In this western adventure, you play as "Boots" Taylor, the singing cowboy known as the Texas Mockingbird. Last night, the Black Blade and his men robbed the dance hall, took your gun, and took Rosa. You pursued them, but now they've ambushed you in this arroyo!
This solution is by David Welbourn, and is based on Release 1 of the game.
SPOILERS AHEAD. Reading a walkthrough prematurely can sometimes diminish one's enjoyment of an interactive fiction game. Please make an honest effort to play the game before reading this walkthrough.
You identify Ace on the outcropping, who's given a cylinder.
> x Ace.(He throws an explosive!)
> talk to Ace.(He climbs off the outcropping.)
> x bandolier.(filled with bullets)
> x boulder. x guitar.
> take rock.
Ace has climbed back up onto the outcropping with another cylinder. This is when you need to throw your rock!
> throw rock at Ace.
Ace falls and drops the TNT. The blast erupts behind the outcropping.
> w.
Behind the Outcropping
Ace's upper body and arm visible. Rest of him and his gang are buried.
> listen to Ace.("Rosa never loved you." He dies.)
> look in pocket.(You take a gold casket.)
Learn how to use the casket:
> x casket. read it.("E D'ARGY / B'TE SGDG")
> open large. x discs. take disc. close large.
> open small. put disc in small. close small.
> pull thumbwheel. turn it.
> open small.(The disc is on fire.)
You can now LIGHT CASKET in the future.
> e.
Arroyo
Optionally, you can check out your duds more thoroughly, unless you're in a hurry:
> x duds. x shirt. x trousers. x boots.
> x kerchief. x hat. x spurs. x chaps.
> x Thunder.
> s.
Overlook
> x windmill. x man. x house.
> s.
Outside the Stable
> x barn. x wagon. x eyelet.
> w.(Someone shoots at you; you retreat.)
> sw.(Someone shoots from the barn; you retreat.)
> ne.
Inside the Stable
> x mare.(skittish; you'll call her Dancer.)
> x stall. x manger.(empty, within reach)
> x tub. x straw. x whip. x tack. x gear.
> sw. s.
Whitey, in the hayloft, takes a shot at you.
Outside the Barn
> x overhang. x trough. x Whitey. x rifle.
> take hay.(You also find and take a block and tackle.)
> x hay. x block.
> n. ne.
Inside the Stable
> put hay in manger. pet mare.(She allows it.)
> open gate. take whip.(You remember you have sugar lumps.)
> give sugar to Dancer.
> close gate.
> x rafters. take handle.(out of reach)
> whip handle.(You acquire a branding iron.)
> x iron.(X-shaped brand)
> sw. s. e.
Inside the Barn
> x trapdoor.(You see a tangle of hay dangling through it.)
> w. s.
Outside the Bunkhouse
> x door.(Has three keyholes: bronze, silver, and gold.)
> x trough. search trough.(You acquire a fencing tool.)
> x tool.(For cutting and hammering.)
> x barrel.("PURE LARD")
> open barrel.(Using the fencing tool, you break apart the barrel into staves, hoops, and lard.)
> x lard. x staves. x hoop.(which?)
> x small hoop. x large hoop.
> take large hoop. take lard. take stave.
> w.
North of the Corral
> x brazier. x ashes.(were Confederate bills)
> x gate. x padlock. x fence. x cattle.
> sw —or— se.
South of the Corral
> x post. x rope. take rope.
> cut fence.(using the fencing tool)
After the fence is cut, you hurry back to the north side of the corral.
North of the Corral
> e. n.
Outside the Barn
> take hay. s. w.
North of the Corral
You need hay for kindling, and wood for fuel.
> put hay in brazier. put stave in brazier.
> light casket. light brazier.(The brazier now contains a slow-burning wood fire.)
> put bullet in brazier.(from your bandolier)
The cattle surge southward and escape. You go around to...
South of the Corral
> search Podge.(You take a sheet and a key.)
> x Podge's key.(Note the silver ring.)
> x rifle.
> n.
In the Corral
There's nothing useful here.
> x dust. x manure.
> s. nw.
North of the Corral
> put iron in fire.
> z. z. z. z.(The iron is now white hot.)
> take iron. e. n. e.
Inside the Barn
> burn trapdoor with iron.(You hear Whitey jump out of the hayloft window. You go outside.)
Outside the Barn
> x body. search body.(You take a sheet and a key)
> x Whitey's key.(Note the bronze ring.)
> n.
Outside the Stable
> make lasso. lasso wagon.
> pull wagon.(can't: not enough leverage)
> put block on eyelet.
> put rope in pulley.
> pull rope.(The wagon is near you and you retake your lasso.)
> x wagon. x cartwheel. x board.
> take board. put wheel on axle.
> put hoop on cartwheel.(It's only half on.)
> hammer hoop.(using the fencing tool)
> push wagon west.
Under the Windmill
The sniper here is Don Felipe, Rosa's accompanist!
> x pipe. x cistern. open it.(some water)
> x rotor. x mechanism.(has bolt and X-shaped hole)
> put iron in mechanism.(Mechanism is too rusty.)
> put lard in mechanism.
> put iron in mechanism.
The bolt is pulled, the windmill blades turn, and Felipe falls to his death.
> x Felipe. search Felipe.(You take a sheet and a key.)
> x Felipe's key.(Note the gold ring.)
> i.
You start putting clues together.
> SPACE
You realize that the Confederates are trying to continue the war they've already lost. And the Black Blade must be in the ranch house.
> se.(Rosa screams that the Black Blade will kill her if you don't leave. You retreat.)
> e. s. s.
Outside the Bunkhouse
> put Felipe's key in gold keyhole.
> put Whitey's key in bronze keyhole.
> put Podge's key in silver keyhole.
> s.
Inside the Bunkhouse
> x bunks. x crates.("NOBEL'S SAFETY POWDER")
> open crate.(They're empty.)
> move crates.
> x poster.(You learn Rosa is the Black Blade!)
> n. nw.
Ranch House
Somehow you don't hate Rosa as she waits on the widow's walk above you.
> sing. sing. sing.
Rosa throws you her rose before the house explodes. The blast shoves you away, Lulabelle shatters, and darkness wraps you.
> SPACE
Epilogue
You sing a final song with your harmonica.
*** The End ***
> notes
The notes include a postscript and historical background information on several featured topics.
Extras
Characters
People:
"Boots" Taylor, the singing cowboy known as the Texas Mockingbird, is the protagonist. He's trying to rescue Rosa from the Black Blade and his gang.
Ace, the Black Blade's right-hand man, and three other men ambush you in the arroyo.
Whitey does the really dirty jobs for the Black Blade. He's up in the barn's hayloft.
Podge is a toady who never fights fair. He's in the corral, concealed behind the cattle.
Don Felipe is Rosa's accompanist. You thought he was a friend, but now he's up on the windmill's platform trying to kill you.
Rosa is a dancer you're in love with. Unfortunately, you eventually learn she's also the Black Blade and responsible for many deaths and robberies.
Animals:
Thunder, your horse, runs back to El Crucero when the game begins.
A bullsnake may be briefly seen in the arroyo.
A canyon touwhee may be heard cheeping in the arroyo.
A skittish mare is in the stable. You decide to call her Dancer and rescue her too.
Mentioned:
Pendleton Murrah, the previous governor, hired Rosa and her boys to "foul up things up with the Union." He supplied them with Confederate money and dynamite.
Slaves used to live in the bunkhouse.
Credits
This is the response to CREDITS:
This story was written by Mike Carletta for the 2021 Interactive Fiction Competition.
The Song of the Mockingbird is Merciful on the Zarfian forgiveness scale.
In addition to the usual actions, you may wish to READ and SEARCH things. Hints are available via HINT. Finally, you can display the cover art using ART.
Thanks to my wife and muse, Kathy. She is my sounding board, editor and chief tester. She deserves much of the credit, and none of the blame.
Thanks to my All-Star team of beta testers: EpicIFer, J. J. Guest and Linus Åkesson. They patiently, thoroughly and ruthlessly tore my game apart.
You may use The Song of the Mockingbird and its characters in interpretive dance, scrimshaw and porn parody. In fact, please do.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.
Inventory
Initial items
your regular duds. You're wearing them.
Your duds consist of a shirt, trousers, boots, hat, kerchief, spurs, and chaps. You can examine all of these individually, but you won't be willing to remove any of them except the kerchief, which you'll do automatically when you take some lard.
Your hat contains a harmonica, but this won't be revealed until the epilogue.
a gun belt. You're wearing it.
Your holster is empty, and you won't be getting any guns in this story. Ignore your gun belt.
a bandolier. You're wearing it.
The bandolier contains a supply of bullets. When the brazier north of the corral contains a wood fire, and the fence south of corral has been cut open, put some bullets in the fire to spook the cattle into a southward stampede, killing Podge.
your faithful guitar, Lulabelle. You're carrying her.
Whenever you play Lulabelle, you sing; and whenever you sing, you play Lulabelle.
You can sing whenever you like, but the only time you must sing is when you're at the ranch house with Rosa. Sing three times to try to convince her to leave with you.
Lulabelle is tragically broken when the ranch house explodes, but you think you might be able to restore her someday.
Keys
All three keys are for the bunkhouse door; you never find a key for the corral's padlock. Examine the keys and note the different metallic rings on the fobs. After you've inserted all the keys into their appropriate keyholes, the bunkhouse door is unlocked.
Podge's key. Acquire it by searching Podge's body.
Put Podge's key into the silver keyhole.
Whitey's key. Acquire it by searching Whitey's body.
Put Whitey's key into the bronze keyhole.
Felipe's key. Acquire it by searching Felipe's body.
Put Felipe's key into the gold keyhole.
Papers
You'll read the papers automatically when you acquire them, and that's all you can do with them. You may not use the papers for kindling. After you've read all three papers, you will soon have a epiphany and understand that the men were rebels intent on continuing the civil war.
a bloody paper. Acquire it by searching Podge's body.
a sooty paper. Acquire it by searching Whitey's body.
a tattered paper. Acquire it by searching Felipe's body.
Other items
a chunk of flint. There's a supply of rocks in the arroyo. Take one.
When you see Ace climb up onto the outcropping with another explosive cylinder, throw a rock at him (or at the cylinder). He loses his balance, and drops the cylinder. The resulting explosion buries all his men and half-buries him as well.
Once Ace is no longer a threat, you won't want to burden yourself with another rock.
a gold casket. Acquire it by searching Ace after he dies.
Examine the casket in detail. It has a large compartment containing gray discs, a small compartment with an indentation, and a thumbwheel that can be pulled, pushed, and turned. Only one compartment can be opened at a time.
The casket is a lighter. To light the casket: put a disc into the small compartment, close it, then pull and turn the thumbwheel, and finally re-open the small compartment.
Make a wood fire in the brazier north of the corral. Put hay in the brazier for kindling, and put either the staves or the broken board in the brazier for fuel. Light the casket, then light the brazier.
a gray disc. There's a supply of discs in the large compartment of the gold casket.
The discs contain phosphorus and are used to make fire; see gold casket for more details.
some hay. There's a supply of hay in the feed trough outside the barn.
Take some hay and put it in the manger in the stable. Dancer is now friendly.
Take some more hay and put it in the brazier north of the corral to use as kindling.
a block and tackle. It's hiding in the feed trough of hay that's outside the barn.
Put the block and tackle on the eyelet outside the stable. After lassoing the wagon with the lasso, thread the other end of the rope through the pulley and pull the rope. The wagon is now within your reach.
a whip. It's in Dancer's stall.
First, tame Dancer by putting some hay into her manger. Then open her stall's gate and take the whip.
Examine the rafters in the stable to spot a handle. Whip the handle to acquire a branding iron.
a few lumps of sugar. You remember you have them when you acquire the whip.
Give more sugar to Dancer, if you like.
a branding iron. It's hidden in the rafters in the stable.
To acquire the iron, first examine the rafters to spot a handle, then whip the handle (with the whip).
Under the windmill, after putting some lard into the rusty locking mechanism, put the branding iron into the mechanism. This pulls the bolt and the windmill's blades start turning and push Don Felipe to fall to his death.
North of the corral, after starting a wood fire in the brazier, put the branding iron in the brazier and wait until it is white hot. Take the hot branding iron into the barn and burn the tangle of hay dangling from the trapdoor with the iron. Whitey will jump out of the hayloft window to escape the flames and die.
a fencing tool. Acquire it by searching the water trough outside the bunkhouse.
Outside the stable, after you've put the large hoop on the cartwheel, hammer the hoop (with the tool) to secure it there.
a large hoop. It's part of the barrel outside the bunkhouse; open the barrel with the fencing tool.
After you've pulled the wagon near you (using the lasso and the block and tackle), put the cartwheel on the axle, then put the large hoop on the cartwheel. Finally, hammer the large hoop with the fencing tool to secure the cartwheel.
two small hoops. They're part of the barrel outside the bunkhouse; open the barrel with the fencing tool.
You don't need the small hoops, only the large hoop.
some barrel staves. They're part of the barrel outside the bunkhouse; open the barrel with the fencing tool.
Put either the broken board or the wooden staves into the brazier north of the corral for fuel.
a lump of lard wrapped in a red calico kerchief. A supply of lard is inside the barrel outside the bunkhouse; open the barrel with the fencing tool.
Under the windmill, put some lard inside the locking mechanism to counteract the rust.
a coil of rope. It's on the hitching post south of the corral.
With the rope, MAKE LASSO. The rope is now a lasso.
Outside the stable, put the block and tackle on the eyelet. Lasso the wagon (with the lasso), then put the other end of the rope in the pulley. Pull the rope to pull the wagon toward you.
a broken board. It's in the back of the cart.
Put either the broken board or the wooden staves into the brazier north of the corral for fuel.
The board is from one of the crates in the bunkhouse; "BEL'S" is part of "NOBEL'S SAFETY POWDER".
Honorable mention
a cartwheel. It's in the back of the cart.
You can't pick it up and hold onto it; it's too heavy for that. But you can and must put the cartwheel onto the cart's axle.
To fix the cartwheel, put the large hoop on the cartwheel's hub, then hammer the hoop into place with the fencing tool. Now you can push the cart to the windmill, using the cart as a bullet-shield.
The harmonica is only mentioned during the epilogue, when you no longer have Lulabelle to accompany your singing.
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