Zauber Kartoffel

"Hey, good news! You have now been given the responsibility to deal with our most important client, Mr. Zauberkurg." [['Oh, what happened to Gil, our previous driver?']] [['Thanks! What am I doing now?']]

"He got a promotion and will be going to Austin! He didn't tell you about that?" [[Hmm.. that's a little bit strange. I thought we were close friends.]]

Well you're doing what Gil was doing so far. You go to Mr. Zauberkurg's Kartoffels and pick up a few bags of potato, and deliver McDelivery to his house twice a day. [[Oh that's it? Seems to be an easy job. Why am I being paid extra for this? I have no complaints but...]] [[Right onto it!]]

"Maybe he didn't want you to feel jealous. But you know, since this is our most important client, you might get a promotion anytime soon!" [['Thanks! What am I doing now?']]

[[You pick up the empty bag of potatos and drive to Mr. Zauberkurg's farm.]]

Well there are quite a few potatoes. [[Hmm, can I see the contract?]] [[Right onto it!]]

Look, we're busy now, but I'll get you the contract tomorrow. [[Sure! What do I do now?]]

Pick up your potatoes! [[I sure will!]]

[[You pick up the empty bag of potatos and drive to Mr. Zauberkurg's farm.]]

The 30-minute drive was peaceful. There was very little sound, from cars, animals, and wind alike. You notice the weather is a bit strange. While it was almost immaculately sunny where the potatoes are, there was a dark cloud above the house. [[Knock on Mr. Zauberkurg's door]]

There were some noise from inside. [[Mr. Zauberkurg, are you there?]]

An old man opens the door. He has a slender figure, a beak-shaped nose, and piercing blue eyes. He smiled. "Sorry, I was taking care of some house chores." It's difficult to fathom the depths of his eyes. [[I came here to drop off McDelivery and pick up some potatos]]

Oh thank you! [[You go to the back of your truck and look inside the packagine box]]

There are at least two dozens of McDonalds paper bags. [[Wow, are these all yours? ]] [[It's rude to make comments on your first encounter so you skip]]

"Yes, is that a problem?" Mr. Zauberkurg seems slightly annoyed. [[Oh, no. Not at all! Haha, you're a big customer... That's what I was saying.]]

[[Oh, I also need to pick up the potatos]]

Okay. Leave the McDelivery at the door. [[Oh, I also need to pick up the potatos]]

Right, follow me! Mr. Zauberkurg leads you to the back of the farmhouse. [[You follow Mr. Zauberkurg]]

There are thousands of potatos in neat boxes at the back of the farm. They are all immaculately peeled. [[Wow!!! How did you peel all of this?]] [[You already annoyed him with your questions, so you just pick up the potatoes and leave]]

You're really a curious cat aren't you? [[You already annoyed him with your questions, so you just pick up the potatoes and leave]] [[Yes I am! What's the secret?]]

[[You return to the McDonalds Kentucky]]

It's machine learning of course! What do you think? He smiles again. [[You pick up the potatos and load them onto the truck]]

Mr. Zauberkurg seems impressed. "You're actually quite strong?" He grins and chuckles. 'Thank you.' You utter. [[You return to the McDonalds Kentucky]]

Your manager, Christina, seems busy working on the computer. "Did you get the potatoes?" [[Yes I have. What do I do now?]]

Unload those potatoes and wait until dinnertime! [[Oh I don't do other deliveries?]]

No, you just stay healthy for Mr. Zauberkurg. [[Okay! Good news. So many potatoes! How is it even possible?]]

I don't know, probably machine learning. [[Right]]

Dinnertime comes. You're given the boxes again. There are two dozens paper bags again. [[What's in all these bags?]]

Oh just 100 plain cheeseburgers. [["100?!?!?! For a single person?"]]

Well there are big eaters everywhere. Why are you so curious? [[He eats 50 plain cheeseburgers and peels many thousand potatoes a day?]]

Well guess to do a lot of work you need to eat a lot. [[That's right, but these numbers are just too many]]

Oh, I'm busy just go do the work. [[You drive the truck and head to Mr. Zauberkurg's Kartoffel Farm again]]

Mr. Zauberkurg's farm around dinnertime is also quiet. The same as before, you notice the dark cloud on top of the farmhouse. There are no cloud and the weather is pleasant everywhere else. [[Mr. Zauberkurg, the dinner delivery]]

Leave them out the door, will you? [[You leave them outside the door and head back]] [[You decide to sneak in]]

And then you feel a sudden blow to your head. [[...]]

You shout, intentionally loudly, "Goodbye Mr. Zauberkurg!" You drive away, but then park your truck next to a tree so that it wouldn't be seen from the farm, and sneak your way back into the farm. You put your back against the wall. You hear Mr. Zauberkurg's voice. It's mumbly. [[The old man must be talking to himself. Old age... I guess]] [[Why is he talking to himself?]]

mmhmaawuhhehudshfjkdsjdjhasd.... order.... [[Is he counting numbers?]] [[Let's listen in more closely]]

You think it's nothing not understandable given his age, but something's strange about the talk. [[Is he counting numbers?]] [[Let's listen in more closely]]

4,000... until tomorrow.... not good... [[Let's listen in more closely]]

You realise that there is another voice that's replying to Mr. Zauberkurg. 'Yes' 'Yes' Yes' The voice is very mechanical, monotonous, almost like someone without soul. [[Who is this person? And why would Mr. Zauberkurg be lying about them?]]

RINGGGGG!!! Your phone rings. The voice stops. Oh no... what do I do now? [[Face him and try to lie]] [[Run away]]

What are you doing here? The pupils of his eyes are narrow. His lips contorted, and what seems to be an attempt at a smile appears only as if it is hiding something ugly. [[I... left my phone]] [[I thought you were suspicious. What's going on in this farm? It's strange]]

You run towards the

Did you find it? Yes I did. Very well. Have a good night. [[You turn back and walk towards your car]]

Oh well, I'm just an old man running a potato farm. Will you help me run the farm? He grabs you by your neck. [[...]]

Why did you not drive here? [[I didn't want to disturb you.]]

Where... is this? You wake up, and you're not alone. [[Look around]]

Well... I guess you were not very successful at that. You feel a sudden blow to your head. [[...]]

It feels like an open space, but you realise it's just that the lighting is very dim and the ceiling is high. You look around, and the first thing that you realise is that people's faces are expressionless. Immediately noticeable is the dune of potatoes in front of you. Next to each person, there is a peeler, and a familiar object. [[Inspect the familiar object]]

You immediately recognise it. It is the potato box that you picked up from the farm and deliver it to McDonalds Kansas every morning. [[A person taps you from the back]]

Hey poor soul, welcome to the potato hell. You are doomed to peel potatos here for the rest of your life here, just like all of us. [[Where is this?]]

Mr. Zauberkurg's basement of course... [[Who are you?]]

I don't even remember... You recognise a familiar silhouette. [[Go and take a closer look at the person]]

Gil, is that you? [[Who is this? The name rings familiar...]]

Gil, it's me! We used to work at McDonald's Kansas together. Christina told me that you got a promotion and went to work in Texas or something! His eyes brighten up for a fraction of a second. "You need to run away from here! We're all hypnotised. Otherwise, you'll suffer from the same fate as us!" [[What does it mean?! Can you say more?]]

His face contorts, and his eyes become lightless again, as if someone turned off his switch. He does not say anything futher, walks in front of the pile of potatoes, and starts peeling them Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, swoosh [[Look around the room]]

You look around the room and realise that everyone is concentrating on peeling the potatoes. Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh... All of them have dull eyes that lost their lights. The swooshing sound continues, and the boxes fill up with potatoes. You realise that there is a gigantic clock in the left wall of the room. [[Inspect the clock]]

Unlike the normal clocks, the clock is going backwards. You immediately realise that it is counting down. [[Try shaking a person]] [[Go back to your place and starts peeling potatos]]

You tap them from the back. The person turns, "I'm busy peeling these potatoes. Meeting deadlines is incredibly important for us to continuously get the cheeseburger Mr. Zauberkurg graciously bestows on us." The person says monotonously and turns back to peel more potatoes. [[Try shaking a person]] [[Go back to your place and starts peeling potatos]]

You go back to your place and sees cheeseburgers. Just chesseburgers and no fries or coke? This is a crime. [[Pick up the cheeseburger and take a look]] [[Devour the cheeseburger]]

You immediately recognise that the cheeseburger wrapping is not in a way that you were taught to do when you were working in the production line. [[Inspect further]]

... [[... ... ... ]]

You notice that the patty has an abnormal tear. You're very hungry [[Devour the cheeseburger]] [[Open up the patty further]]

You open up the patty. Amidst the barbecue sauce, there is a small chip. [[Inspect the chip]]

'666 VERI CHIP - THE MARK OF BEAST' [[Read the back]]

'Made by William Gates, R. Zaubergkurg Lab, and Stanford Students Testing Phase, Effect of up to 24 hours' Oh no, what kind of Stanford would sell their souls for something like this? You think to you self and get reminded of ... too many of them. BUZZZZZZ!!! The alarm rings. [[Look around the room again]]

You're barely conscious, but your hands are moving tod Mr. Zauberkurg comes down the lift. 'Ahhh the wonders of Human-Centered Machine Learning.' You get the definitions wrong, stupid! But your lips don't move and you're powerless. [[The END]]

You notice that everyone stopped peeling potatoes. They start queueing in a corder of the room. You notice that the corner of the room has a small lift from the ceiling. [[Wait in the queue]]

Hee--ho-- hee-- ho--- My name is Rumpelstiltzkin Zauberkurg... A bizarre song is heard from above. [[Keep calm]]

The lift descends, and you realise that Mr. Zauberkurg is wearing a purple robe and a brown leather sorting hat. [[You try to continue keeping the calm face]] [[You run to Mr. Zauberkurg and try to knock him down]]

Mr. Zauberkurg is holding a box full of cheeseburger bags. Each person goes towards Mr. Zauberkurg, picks up a cheeseburger, and goes back to their position in front of the production mountains. [[Follow them and try not to be noticed]] [[You run to Mr. Zauberkurg and try to knock him down]]

You feel a sudden blow to your head and fall down. Gil, with a stern face and empty eyes, is looks down on you holding a bag of potatoes. [[... ... ... ]]

You stand in position in front of the potato pile. Eat, you slaves!! The cheeseburger smells actually quite good, and you're hungry. [[Devour the cheeseburger]] [[Pretend to eat the cheeseburger]]

You pretend to eat the cheeseburger but do not. Meanwhile, you notice that there are some people pushing the trolleys with potato boxes onto the lift. They haven't eaten their cheeseburgers. At the back of the queue, you see Gil. [[You run to Mr. Zauberkurg and try to knock him down]] [[You patiently wait, while nibbling the bread portion of the cheeseburger]]

Mr. Zauberkurg shouts to himself, 'Almost one person's portion missing!' I need to ask Mr. Gates to train the verichip algorithm again! I'm a sorcerer, not a computer scientist... Mr. Zauberkurg takes the lift up and disappears with the potatoes. Gil is returning to his position with his cheeseburger. [[Go to Gil]]

Gil unwraps the cheeseburger and moves to take his first bite. [[Stop Gil]]

STOPP!!! NO!!! You stop Gil's hands and manages to take the cheeseburger away from him. You break open the patty, open up the cheeseburger, and take out the chip. [[Now, now you can eat the cheeseburger]]

Gil takes a slow bite at the cheeseburger. 'Mmmmm... I was hungry after all the work.' You stand there panting, waiting to see if it changes anything. You see Gil's eyes brighten up a little bit. It's not the dim, lifeless eyes that he had until a few minutes ago. [[Talk to Gil]]

Gil, it's me! We used to work together at McDonalds until last week. How can you not remember that? "I... I remember... You need to escape. We need to escape." [[What's happening here?]]

Okay, so Mr. Rumpelstiltzkin Zauberkurg is a sorcerer. He hypnotises people using these cheeseburgers, I guess using these chips until now. I think it's a unique combination of something in the burgers and the chip, I don't know why. [[Can others also wake up?]]

I have no clue. I was trying to fight just like you in the beginning. I didn't know it was the burgers, so I ate it, but it didn't hit me the very first time. Also, even while I was hypnotised, I was able to observe what was going on. For other people, the effect seemed to take much more quickly. [[Do you think it's because we worked at McDonalds and more immune to it?]]

That's plausible. The driver, Ivan, from the fanciest restaurant that used to deliver to Mr. Zauberkurg also came in a day after me. [[He had other deliveries too?]]

We should have noticed it then, when I heard from Ivan that that he was ordering Caviar Foie Gras Steak set from his fancy restaurant every day. Something's fishy if you order 100 cheeseburgers and a meal as fancy as that. [[I noticed that and tried to investigate, but he had me first. How can we get out?]]

There seems to be only one way out, which is through the lift. When he comes to give us McDelivery for dinner, you sneak out. Find the verichips, hide them, and then he wouldn't be able to exercise any control over us. He's a sorcerer, so becareful. [[Okay, I'll do it]] [[You expect me to fight a sorcerer?!?!]]

"Meanwhile, for now, you need to peel the potatoes. If the portion is missing twice, the machine learning algorithm might flag it." Oh the bloody machine learning... "Blame the Stanford students. Anyway, not back to work." [[You peel the potatoes as he told you]] [[You choose to not peel the potatoes. Who does Gil think he is? Mom?]]

I'll stay here and do two people's worth of potato peeling. Otherwise, he'll get suspicious. Come on, you're not a potato peeler and you're the only hope for the hundred of us! [[Okay, I'll do it]]

Swoosh, swoosh You peel the potatoes, and match what everone else is peeling. The alarm rings, and Mr. Zauberkurg descends again with the Rumpelstiltzkin song. 'Mommy don't know you daddy's peeling them, daddy's eating macs, stuck here peeling potato-e-o-e-o...' [[Yell 'You suck at singing']] [[You go and queue like everyone else]]

Suddenly, you hear loud beep sound ABNORMAL BEHAVIOUR DETECTED TWICE! POTATO PORTIONS MISSING! Mr. Zauberkurg descends using the lift. [[Your eyes meet.]]

Mr. Zauberkurg looks down, with his face livid. HOW DARE YOU!!! [[Your eyes meet.]]

Mr. Zauberkurg wields the wand. 'Wingardium Leviosa!' A cheeseburger, most definitely containing a VERICHIP, flies inside your mouth. [[... ... ... ]]

You intentionally stand at the end of the queue. Mr. Zauberkurg puts down the cheeseburgers, and goes to check the potatoes. [[You take a cheeseburger, and instead of going back to your position, hides at a corner between the lift and the wall.]]

Mr. Zauberkurg inspects the potatoes. "Glad that the algorithm is running well and no consecutive errors in production amount." He returns to the lift and casts the spell. "Wingardium Leviosa" The lift starts flying [[You grab the bottom of the lift as it takes off]] [[You stand there idly]]

The lift goes to all the way up the second floor. Mr. Zauberkurg comes out of the lift using the wand to cast spell to move the potatoes. 'Why doesn't he use magic to just peel the potatoes?' you think, but you realise that it's not quite like convolutional neural network for vision, where magic can detect if the potatoes are correctly peeled or not. [[Jump from the lift onto the carpet on the first floor]]

While you were standing there, Mr. Zauberkurg starts singing again. "Mr. Z is getting hot, hot potato hot, doing something unholy o-e-o-e-o." The singing's terrible, and you cannot but laugh. "Who's that?!" Mr. Z looks down. [[Your eyes meet.]]

There are plenty of places to hide in Mr. Zauberkurg's living room. You choose underneath the sofa. [[You crawl underneath the sofa]]

Underneath the sofa is stuffy and not very comfortable. Moreover, there is a mouse! [[Shriek!]] [[Keep calm and carry on]]

Who's that?! Mr. Zauberkurg scurries back, and looks underneath the sofa. [[Your eyes meet.]]

Mr. Zauberkurg comes back with a box full of McDelivery bags, and another bag filled with what seems to be the verichips. He sings 'Mommy don't know these are veri hot, these are beastly marks, doing something VERI un ho ly o-e-o-e-o' The singing's terrible as always. [[Yell 'You suck at singing']] [[Wait quietly]]

Mr. Zauberkurg goes out again. "Come to the back." And you hear Lucy's voice. "Wow these are a lot of potatoes! Thank you so much!" You cannot make the same thing happen to Lucy, who's been nice to you at work. [[You sneak out]]

The verichips are lying on Mr. Zauberkurg's table. Next to the table is a furnace. [[Take the verichips and put them in the fire, taking one in your pocket.]]

Mr. Zauberkurg comes back in. "Where are my VERICHIPS? I need them. Otherwise, they'll all wake up and we cannot let that happen! I have until dinner though." He takes his wand, puts his magic robe on, and takes the lift back to the potato farm. He uses his phone to call someone. "Mr Gate, we have an emergency. I need more chips delivered by tonight!" [[You sneak out the door and run to Lucy]]

Lucy, I have no time to explain. Please take this chip to CSIS Kansas! Don't go back to Christina before that. "What? What are you saying?" [[Mr. Zauberkurg is evil. He's using McDelivery and verichips to turn people into AI! ]]

"At least come with me!" [[Go with Lucy]] [[Say you have to save others]]

You go with Lucy, but then, you lost all courage to do more to save them. You live the rest of your life with guilt. [[The END]]

I cannot come. I need to save others! Please take this chip to the CSIS Kansas as I said. [[You go back into the house.]]

Mr. Zauberkurg is strolling the living room frantically. You notice something weird around the basement. [[Inspect the entrance to the basement]]

The entrance to the basement has only the flying lift, so it's impossible for the people below to come up without using Mr. Zauberkurg's magic lift. However, it's unusually noisy. The noise is coming through the square hole that the lift goes into. You come close to the hole to hear what's inside. [[Hear what the noise is about]]

You look down and see that there are some people who look confused. Their eyes are no longer lifeless. You see Gil speaking to a few of them. [[Psssst!]]

Hey you're back!! What's happening? How can we get out? [[Mr. Zauberkurg is ordering more VERICHIPs from Bill Gates. He's been putting them in your cheeseburgers!]]

I see some people remembering a few things from their lives! What happened?! [[I burnt his VERICHIPs so he didn't have them for lunch. But more are arriving soon and people must never eat the cheeseburgers!]]

Hey, but that itself may not solve the problem, remember he's a sorcerer! [[That's true..]]

You hear footsteps from the living room. [[Hide behind the pillar]]

You hide behind the pillar. Mr. Zauberkurg is frantically moving back and forth close to the hole. "This doesn't look good. Christina! When's the McDelivery coming?!" You hear a voice coming through the phone. 'The driver was a bit late! I thought you already took her or something!' "I already took the curious bastard the other day!!!! WHY IS SHE LATE!" [[You sneak outside. You now know that Lucy's the one who's delivering the chips]]

The outside is quiet as always. [[Shout LUCY!!!]] [[You run out to the route between the McDonalds and the farm]]

There's a lout noise from behind. [[You look behind]]

Lucy's truck is approaching. [[Stand far in front of the truck and wave your hands so that Lucy can see you.]]

Mr. Zauberkurg looks livid. You... you filthy animal. Turn into a frog! Salakadoolah Mechicaboolah Bibidibobidi Boo! [[Your vision blurs]]

Mr. Zauberkurg looks gigantic. You open your mouth. [[RIBID]]

Only a sound of a frog comes out of your mouth. You have turned into a frog. You see Lucy's McDelivery truck approaching, and realise the fate of the people. [[The END]]

What happened?! I have turned in the chip to the CSIS. What happens now? [[The verichips are somewhere with the McDelivery. Christina's on Zauberkurg's side. Open the cargo for me.]]

There are about 20 bags full of cheeseburgers. Oh no, how do I find the chips from here? [[Shake the bags]]

You shake the bags and realise that one has a slightly different sound. [[Open the bag]]

Inside the bag, you find the same chips that you saw before. [[Lucy, I found them!]]

What do we do with them? [[It'd be dangerous to bring them to Mr. Zauberkurg's.]]

I'll put them behind these trees and take them to the CSIS again on my way back! [[Got ya. I'll be hanging here and drop slightly before Mr. Zauberkurg's!]]

You drop slightly before Mr. Zauberkurgs. He frantically picks up the 20 McDelivery bags and hurries back into the house. [[Sneak back into the house]]

"dASFDKAGHAD!!!!" You hear Mr. Zauberkurg's furious shriek. He is obviously very mad, and presses on the dial like crazy. "The chips are not there!!!!!" 'That's impossible! It's in one of the bags!' "WHICH BAG! You should have come yourself, not send one of your unreliable delivery people!!! I'll turn you into a frog! Do you think someone knows about this? I'll need to turn them into frogs before someone discovers." [[You realise that unless you do something, the people below will turn into frogs.]]

He hurries to the kitchen and takes out flasks full of green, purple, and orange liquids, pouring them into the gigantic black cauldron on the fireplace. "Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble!!" He scoops them and pours them on the cheeseburgers. "This will do the job!" He puts on his robe, takes his wand, and takes the lift to the basement. [[Follow him secretly, without being seen.]]

The lift goes down and you stand close to the hole, observing what he's doing. He puts down the cheeseburgers dipped in the green potion. "It's.... a special meal!! Enjoy!!" However, the people are hesitating. Their eyes are not the same dull eyes before. "Where are we, what are these?" "They're big mac for you. I saved you, and you just need to peel a few more potatoes and I'll get you out!" "Get us out now! And who would want to eat cheeseburgers with green shit on!" "It's Tabasco Green!!!" Mr. Z shrieks, but people don't seem very convinced. But another person replies, "Well, I'm hungry, I'll eat one now." [[Step in and stop him]] [[Leave him to eat the cheeseburger]]

NO!!! That will turn you into the frog!! Mr. Zauberkurg looks up. [[There's no turning back now. Jump onto the lift.]]

He takes a bite. "See, nothing happens!!! Come and eat the burger people!!!" "Don't! It's a trap!!" Gil shouts. The guy that finished the cheeseburger looks around and says, "No it... Ribid!" He shrinks into a frog. People scream. Mr. Zauberkurg seems furious. [[You jump in.]] [[Stand there and watch]]

You cannot help but let your courage take over and jump onto the lift. "You filthy animal, I'll turn you into a frog!" [[Hold his arms to stop him from casting his spell]]

Mr. Zauberkurg utters, "Wingardium Leviosa" And the cheeseburger darts too fast right in front of Gil's mouth. Gil resists. [[There's no turning back now. Jump onto the lift.]]

"You filthy animal!!! I knew it was you. I'll turn you into a frog." [[Hold his arms to stop him from casting his spell]]

The lift shakes vehemently and starts flying back and forth and up and down. You hold onto his arm, and while the wand oscilates, the lift slowly comes down onto the ground. [[Continue to hold his arm.]]

Your arms are running out of strength. Mr. Zaukerburg is old, but he is strong. [[Ask for help]]

Gil, HELP!!!! Gil comes, and you manage to tie Mr. Zauberkurg to the lift, using his robe. [[Feed him the cheeseburger.]] [[Wait for the police to arrive.]] [[Kill him.]]

You have caused suffering to too many people and do not deserve to live! You choke him to his death. Mr. Zauberkurg suffocates, but his eyes turn green. [[You laugh.]]

Well, if the cheeseburger is so good, you might as well eat it youself!! You force the cheeseburger in his mouth. He resists, but after a few seconds, words do not come out, and the sorcerer shrinks into a frog. RIBID. [[You hear police siren from the outside]]

You hear the police siren from the above. "Mr. Zauberkurg, you're under arrest for kidnapping and forced labour of 100 people." The police comes down using a ladder. Mr. Zauberkurg seems to have given up. [[You see Mr. Zauberkurg taken above by the police]]

But the words do not come out. RIBID! The sorcerer cast a curse during his final moment. You turned into a frog, although the people are saved. [[The END]]

"You are under arrest for manslaughter and forced labour of 99 people!" You have a lot of things to explain to the police. [[You follow the police to the police car]]

[[The END]]

You look around. Some people are crying. They are all grateful to have gotten their lives back. "You are a true hero, for not only saving us, but for sparing his life." [[You are proud of all the decisions you made.]]

You are now so done with all the evil, sorcerer, frogs, and potatoes. You have learned an important lesson to carry on for the rest of your life: to be curious, to persevere, to have patience, and not to be cruel. [[The END]]