Cable Station Reserve

You knew instinctively that you couldn’t risk the ship being blown up. Nonetheless, your decision plays itself over and over in your head as you strike towards Cable Station Reserve. Hurrying along the coast, you remain ever aware of the ship on the horizon, and of that menacing red light.

Cable Street Station is a quiet patch of grass set against the beach. Only a short distance away, beyond the clustering native bushes, the waves crash together like the thoughts in your head.

You glance down at your phone and notice that words are now appearing there, in dot-matrix style like an old-fashioned digital alarm clock.

LOCATE THE TRANSMITTER

A buzz of static bursts out of your device. As you move around the reserve the static gradually resolves into a slow, rhythmic beeping. And there, half-hidden in the bushes near to the blue bench, you spot a suspicious metal box.

You rush to the box and unscrew the top. Inside is a tangle of wires—two of which stand out more than the others: one red and one green. You glance back at your phone for additional instructions.

DISCONNECT THE RED WIRE

“The red one…really?” you say to nobody in particular. Pausing for just long enough to eat a mint, you reach down and pluck the wire free. There is no fanfare: the waves do not stop crashing and your heart hammers loudly in your chest—perhaps even more loudly than before.

“Did it work?” you ask, speaking to the air.

“It worked,” says the now-familiar voice of your Handler.

You look up to see him walking across the grass. “How can you be so sure?”

“There, look…” he directs your attention to the ship on the horizon. The red light has vanished and is green once again. “You have excelled yourself, recruit. But more than that, you have demonstrated exactly what type of agent you would be if this scenario were to ever truly present itself.”

“Wait a second,” you say. “This whole thing was some sort of test?”

“What is life, but a series of tests?” says your Handler with a smile.

“The Firm has been watching you for some time, Recruit-458. But we needed to know for sure that you’d be able to make the tough decisions required.”

“And now the time has come for another tough decision. It’s time for you to choose whether you’re ready to join The Firm. By doing so, you’re committing to a binding contract that will tether you and I together for many adventures to come. We’re currently operating a strike force at the Grange Recreation Reserve, our agents will receive you there.”

“Or… you can walk back to your freedom. The Firm will never bother you again and you’ll be free to forget everything that has happened to you today.” Your Handler shrugs dismissively.

Obviously you’re not about to give up. But at the same time The Firm’s underhanded tactics have hardly been endearing. The mystery of The Firm remains, but how are you going to solve it?

Do you trust The Firm will reveal their motives to you if you become a fully-fledged agent? Or, should you pretend to quit, but actually follow your Handler to try and discover what The Firm is truly up to?

It’s time to decide.

Do you:

Grange Recreation Reserve: Agree to join the Firm, in order to find out more about them? Head away from the beach and down to Grange Recreation Reserve by crossing the carpark. Travel a short distance down Fort Street and you will see the reserve on the opposite side of Military Road. Cross the road carefully.

OR

Military Road: Insinuate to your Handler that you’re going home, but wait for him to leave and follow him, covertly, down Military Road? Then pass through the car park and down Fort Street. Turn right onto Military Road and follow it until the path splits into two sections to form a raised-up cement walkway.