Aayela is a TADS 2 interactive fiction game and is © 1996 by Magnus Olsson. This game was entered in IF Comp 1996 where it took 10th place. At the 1996 XYZZY Awards, it was a finalist for Best Writing.
You play as King Dargon's youngest knight, sent on a fool's errand to find the Stone of Aayela, a mythological crystal containing a spirit of light, Aayela. If the gem exists, it might cure Queen Dahra of her baffling illness and prevent the civil war that's brewing due to the king's distraction. The king has ordered you to find the Stone, hidden somewhere deep under the mountains, and you, of course, must obey.
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 1.2 of the game.
Skip introduction (y/N)? > n
Outside Door
Your lack of a decent inventory is explained by the rigors of a hard journey to get here.
> about. i. x lantern. x scroll.
> open door. read scroll.
> n.
Inside Door
The lamp goes out. The door slams. And you're left in darkness.
Although you can't see, you can still use "x" and "examine" to examine things by touch.
> x door. x lantern. x floor.
> n. n. nw.
Side Tunnel
> touch floor. touch object. (It's a penny whistle.)
> blow whistle. (You hear someone singing in response.)
> sing. (You can't manage that; you're too hoarse.)
> n.
There's no further exits; this is a dead end. Go back and take the other fork:
> se. n. ne.
Junction
Several exits here.
> w. (wall) nw. (wall) n. (cave-in) ne. (too narrow)
> e.
Crawl
> x air. e.
Squeeze
> x air. x crack. take paper. x paper. (brittle)
> w. w.
Junction
> se. (too narrow)
> s.
Tunnel
> x sand. dig sand. x cover. open cover. d.
Below Manhole
> x ladder. x wall. se.
Confined Space
> s.
North Wall
> play whistle. g. listen.
> z. (Repeat.)
After several turns of music, you see a blue spark as the music ends.
Open Space
> x star. take star. (A tingling sensation; you let go.)
> play whistle. (The spark flashes with you.)
> take star. (It flares bright, and you can see you're in...)
Marble Room
> x pedestal. x gem.
> x paper. (One word that can force Aayela's obedience is QUELTUYA.)
> n.
You are stopped by the appearance of the wizard Heliax, who claims ownership of the crystal.
How will you respond? Will you try to kill him, give the gem to him, say "QUELTUYA", or break the crystal?
> kill heliax. (He dodges and kills you easily.)
*** You have died ***
> give gem to heliax. (He accepts it.)
> z. z. z.
Heliax decides to kill you after all instead of letting you go.
*** You have died ***
Note that throwing the gem at him or putting the gem back onto the pedestal both result in Heliax possessing the gem.
> queltuya.
You are briefly filled with violent melody, then you quickly kill Heliax, wish yourself home, kill King Dargon, kill his protesting courtiers, heal Dahra, and then marry her. You are the king now.
(The game is over.)
Note that it's not useful to say QUELTUYA before Heliax's arrival.
> break crystal.
Aayela is freed and she surrounds you with light and music. Heliax's menace fades. You return home without the crystal, but Queen Dahra recovers quickly anyway. The light and music are inside you.
(The game is over.)
Note that if you try to break the crystal before Heliax's arrival, you are stopped in the act by Heliax's arrival.
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