Kreuzberg Riot

The May Day Riot of Kreuzberg (1987). By SD (text-color:red)[//Content Warning: Possible explicit references to death, deteriorating mental health, fatal injuries such as severe burns and neck trauma, suicide and brutality.//] [[Start -> Start]] [[Bibliography -> Bibliography]] [[Designer Statement -> Des.Stat]]

//Kreuzberg, West Berlin.// //1-May-1987 FRIDAY// You are a citizen in a district of Berlin that is currently experiencing great civil unrest called Kreuzberg. Between the squatters' movement, urban decay due to the construction of the Berlin Wall, and many protests, social and political tensions are high. As a citizen in such a politically charged area, you spend your days just trying to get by-- whether that be avoiding the conflict or deciding how you will involve yourself without suffering adverse consequences. As you explore, you will discover that what you find is gritty, charged, and for many, deeply personal. Music and politics collide and every choice calls for survival, ideology, or staying afloat. Riots flare, movements fracture, and the underground's flame either rises or burns far too quickly. From here, you as the player can choose between two archetypes: [[Irie Hibiki -> Irie]]or [[Oliver Brotherhood -> Oliver]] Choose wisely. (cycling-link:"𖦹♫"," 𖦹♫ Everything in the beginning of this Twine is purely fictional-- written for the sake of writing a character that will hopefully come off as believable and furthermore, human. This Twine is written in this fashion as, in chosing to write about an event rather than a specific person, it means creating archetypes: Irie and Oliver. The beginning sets up the archetypes to have backstories, to convey to the players their motives and who they are at people. As a rough estimate, the actual riot should start around 8-10 passages in. The basis of events, for the timeline and description of events is based off of this German source: Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

Beattie, Aaron. "SO36 A History of Berlin's Iconic Music Venues." Love From Berlin. Last modified February 5, 2018. Accessed October 7, 2025. http://www.lovefromberlin.net/so36/. The Berlin Wall. "Rioting in Kreuzberg." Narrated by Helmut Sarwas. Aired on Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg. Brain, Jessica. "Historic UK." Evil May Day 1517. Last modified February 8, 2023. Accessed September 6, 2025. https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/Evil-May-Day-1517/. Briscoe, Charles H. "The May Day Riots." ARSOF History. Last modified 2012. Accessed September 6, 2025. https://arsof-history.org/articles/v8n1_mayday_riots_page_1.html. Brown, Timothy S. "Music as a Weapon? 'Ton Steine Scherben' and the Politics of Rock in Cold War Berlin." German Studies Review 32, no. 1 (2009): 1-22. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27668653. Clarkson, Alex. "Urban Tribes: Subcultures and Political Conflict in West Berlin, 1945-1991." Social Justice 38, nos. 4 (126) (2011): 71-90. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41940959. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. "Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg." Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html. Curling, Carl A., and Samantha Todd. "The Burn Injury Severity Profile." In Parameters for Estimation of Casualties from First and Third Degree Flash Burns, 9-18. Institute for Defense Analyses, 2017. http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep22792.7. Dreher, Christoph. "Berlin Stories: Die Haut's Christoph Dreher on Berlin in the '80s." Red Bull Music Academy. Last modified septe 13, 2013. Accessed September 9, 2025. https://daily.redbullmusicacademy.com/2013/09/berlin-stories-christoph-dreher-on-berlin-in-the-80s. Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. "Burn Hospital Treatment." Britannica. Last modified September 15, 2025. Accessed October 7, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/science/burn/Hospital-treatment. Flakin, Nathaniel. "May Day in Berlin: Six Moments from 134 Years of Workers' History." The Berliner. Last modified April 30, 2024. Accessed September 6, 2025. https://www.the-berliner.com/politics/may-day-in-berlin-six-highlights-from-workers-history/. Gauglitz, Gerd G., Felicia N. Williams, and Kathryn A. Collins. "Overview of the management of the severely burned patient." Edited by Marc G. Jeschke. UpToDate. Last modified July 25, 2025. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/overview-of-the-management-of-the-severely-burned-patient. Gerhards, Jürgen, and Dieter Rucht. "Mesomobilization Contexts: Organizing and Framing in Two Protest Campaigns in West Germany." American Journal of Sociology 98, no. 3 (1992): 4-5. Accessed October 5, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1086/230049. Hurard, Lucie. "History of the Kreuzberg district in Berlin." CITEGO. Last modified 2008. Accessed November 4, 2025. https://www.citego.org/bdf_fiche-document-2427_en.html. "Illustrated map of squatting in Berlin." Berlin Besetzt. Accessed November 4, 2025. https://berlin-besetzt.de/#. Jackson, Frank. "A Short History of the Berlin Squatting Movement December 1980 - July 1982 - Frank Jackson." Libcom.org. Last modified July 1982. Accessed September 23, 2025. https://libcom.org/article/short-history-berlin-squatting-movement-december-1980-july-1982-frank-jackson. Konnerth, Detlev. In the 1980s Kreuzberg looked very different. By the way, this is SO36, a neighboring punk institution. Photograph. The Berliner, February 15, 2023. Accessed October 21, 2025. https://www.the-berliner.com/berlin/coretex-forever-35-wild-years-for-punk-in-the-capital/. LA Times Archive. "Opponents of W. German Census Riot in Berlin, Causing Heavy Damage; 100 Hurt." Los Angeles Times. Last modified May 3, 1987. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-05-03-mn-8684-story.html? Rada, Uwe. "The birth of a myth." taz. Last modified April 29, 2017. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://taz.de/30-Jahre-Kreuzberger-Mai-Krawalle/!5401412/. Reveron, Sean. "Portraits Of… '80s West Berlin Punk Culture." CVLT Nation. Last modified April 4, 2016. Accessed September 15, 2025. https://cvltnation.com/portraits-80s-west-berlin-punk-culture/. van Bebber, Werner. "May 1, 1987 in Berlin: Trail of Cobblestones." Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 2, 2017. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/spur-der-pflastersteine-6309901.html. Vile, John R. "Flying Flag Upside Down." Free Speech Center. Last modified May 20, 2024. Accessed November 5, 2025. https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/article/flying-flag-upside-down/. Warby, Rachel, and Christopher V. Maani. "Burn Classification." National Library of Medicine. Last modified September 26, 2023. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK539773/. Williams, Aya, Mahesh Srinivasan, Chang Liu, Pearl Lee, and Qing Zhou. "Why do bilingual code-switch when emotional?" National Library of Medicine. Last modified August 1, 2020. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6745004/. Wurm, Phillip. "One, two - fight!" Spiegel Story. Last modified April 30, 2017. Accessed October 7, 2025. https://www.spiegel.de/geschichte/1-mai-in-berlin-die-geschichte-der-kreuzberger-krawalle-ab-1987-a-1144792.html.

You are (cycling-link:"(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[Irie Hibiki]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[Irie Hibiki*: check footnotes for more information!]"), a 23-year-old Japanese student who is studying abroad at Humbolt University of Berlin. You just recently came over to Germany, moving in at the start of the school year. You studied German literature and language for two years at Dokkyo University. As a child, you always loved journalism and taking trips around Japan to document different cultures and scenes such as the fashion of the Harajuku District, Shibuya's nightlife, and many more. You're now studying to be journalist and you're curious about the punk scenes that seem to always be festering in the Kreuzberg district, waiting, creeping with bated breath for the right moment. You have a camera, tape recorder, notebook, and a knack for parroting and transforming words to be heard loud and clear for what they are. What you document will shape the narrative of what the outside world hears about the riot. [[Start your journey -> Alarm goes off]] (cycling-link:"(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹 For Irie, the decision points/story of their archetype is meant to basically be just a college kid living in a place with things happening, things that they are curious about. The goal ISN'T to be a defining part of the riot, but rather to be someone who happened to be there, and CAN make an impact because they're there and have the opportunity. I feel like when making stories like this, it tends to lean towards 'being the hero/villain of the story' and I don't intend for this to be like that. Really, what I intend is that Irie is an outsider looking in, and remains removed. Clarification note: Irie is a unisex name, and I couldn't really decide what gender I wanted them to be so they just-- kind of don't. Thus, as this character, they/them pronouns will be used (I'm in to far deep to go and change every pronoun so). *In Japanese naming conventions, the surname comes first. If written the English way, the name would be 'Hibiki Irie'. However, considering most of the characters that Irie interacts with will be random people (a.k.a not acquaintances), Irie will be referred as that due to formalities. Irie (surname) means 'inlet' which means 'a small arm of the sea, a lake, or a river. It also means 'a place or means of entry'. It was chosen because 'means of entry'-- often news articles and such can be a means of entry into a previously unknown scene. Source: https://discover.23andme.com/last-name/Irie There is also another reason for the name, which has to do with the first definition-- but the details to that can be figured out when getting to the ending. However, I can say that I chose that name because when figuring out where Irie would start out, they live near the Spree River so it's just a fun little detail. Overthinking things. Hibiki means 'sound, echo'. I chose this name because I feel like as a news reporter or journalist-- you kind of echo what happens around you. Although information after being filtered through news outlets tend to become biased towards certain parties-- Irie is a journalist that echoes the word of the people. They echo things as they are, or as they are relyed to them. Source: https://www.behindthename.com/name/hibiki]")

TIME: 0500 LOCATION: APARTMENT 201 --------- (text-colour:yellow)[''beep beep beep''] Your alarm goes off at 5 am sharp. It's loud and jarring as ever, ringing and bouncing off the walls of your small apartment's even smaller bedroom. The repeated flashing of the alarm's numbers blind you. You lying on your side, you prop yourself up on one elbow. You rub the sleep out of your eyes as best as you can before reaching over to turn off the alarm. (cycling-link:"(text-colour:yellow)[''//'おはよう!'//'']","(text-colour:yellow)[Goodmorning!]") Reads your alarm, greeting you for waking up. You sigh out a little laugh, something that you do every time you see it. It's a cute little thing-- a coding screen and many, many wires incased in a little plastic box, that alarm. Awhile back, one of your classmates was had a crush on you, and this was one of their attempts at winning you over. Complicated and thoughtful, you can't help but feel happy every time you see it. Anyways, while your first class doesn't start until 9 am, you had a long night of falling into a deep spiral of research, frantic writing, and journaling (meaning that you have some things you still need complete). For a long while now, the district of Kreuzberg has been clouded with civil unrest, so much so that it chokes the air-- and its residents. It intrigues you greatly and you desperately want to know more. Blinking blearily at the calendar on the wall across from you, following the red Xs, it reads "May 1" surrounded by a messy circle drawn hastily with a black marker. Underneath, in the same marker, (although you can't read it from this distance but you know it's there) "May Day protest" is written. Right. That's what the plan for today is. You plan on going to the protest if possible to document the event. You want to interview people, take photos, and just-- experience the event. You collapse onto your back and sigh, staring up at the ceiling. Still tired. What will you do to start your day? (either:"[[Wake up and get ready -> head out]]","[[Wake up and get ready -> study and finish homework]]") [[Sleep in -> Nope]] [[Ignore alarm -> Might be a mistake]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 For the start of this story line, I wrote this passage the way it is for this reason: as a journalist, Irie wants to get there early, wants to be able to document Kreuzberg's May Day protest from start to finish. So, like as any story would do, this sets up where Irie is starting, what the motives are, and what can possibly happen next. This is a purely literary passage. No sources.]")

TIME: 0520 LOCATION: APARTMENT 201 --------- You lie in bed for a few more moments before finally rolling out of bed-- almost literally. You get up and switch on the floor lamp, it's much too bright for the ceiling light right now, rubbing your eyes at the light. You see the products of your research last night, a messy desk, stacks of books, newspapers, and writing utensils strewn about. You still need to do your homework... but that can wait. Some minor missing assignments won't matter as much in the long run. Hopefully. You walk to your apartment's small bathroom and go through your morning routine. Brush teeth. Wash face. Brush out hair. After that you go back to your room to get ready. As you make yourself a quick omelette for breakfast, you debate where you want to go. You kind of want to head to school to see if there's anything you need to do in the news room, but at the same time you already want to go to the Kreuzberg district to see if anything is getting set up yet. [[Head to school? -> School]] [[Go to Kreuzberg district? -> Kreuzberg arrival]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This is a purely literary passage. Just a person deciding why they want to leave their house and to go where. No sources. However, this passage doesn't actually really giving choice-- it kind of just... gives the illusion of choice? Since the passage that comes before it randomizes the decision that you get, this passage and one of the other passages still ends up giving you the same choices to take at the end. So actually-- I'm not 100% sure why I even wrote separate passages, but like, it just spices things up.]")

TIME: 0505 LOCATION: APARTMENT 201 --------- You only lie in bed for a few seconds, remembering that you still have to get some homework done before your class in the morning. With a sigh, you get up and go to your apartment's small bathroom and go through your morning routine. Brush teeth. Wash face. Brush hair. After, you shuffle out to your apartment's equally small kitchen to get yourself a quick fix before finishing your homework. You sit down and [[start your homework ->Homework!]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This is a purely literary passage. Just a person deciding why they want to leave their house and to go where. I kind of wrote this passage because I noticed a lot, like just on social media and such, that non-American students tend to do their homework in the morning? I thought that was interesting and decided to kind of apply that here. However, no sources. However, this passage doesn't actually really giving choice-- it kind of just... gives the illusion of choice? Since the passage that comes before it randomizes the decision that you get, this passage and one of the other passages still ends up giving you the same choices to take at the end. So actually-- I'm not 100% sure why I even wrote separate passages, but like, it just spices things up after you 'finish your homework'.]")

TIME: 0620 LOCATION: HUMBOLDT UNIVERSITY OF BERLIN --------- Around an hour later of the wonders of busing/public transportation, your arrive at your university. Currently, you still have around an hour before your class for the day starts. Where do you decide to go? [[Go to class? -> Humanities]] [[Go to the news room? ->Newsroom]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This is a strangely short passage, but I needed a passage that would smoother transition the choices I wanted to happen.")

TIME: 0630 LOCATION: KOTTBUSSER TOR -------- Taking the public transport systems, you arrive in Kreuzberg about an hour later in Kottbusser Tor. A central hub for Turkish immigrants, you have heard rumors of a café run by a kind couple that is well-loved by the community and especially people from alternative scenes. Considering that you got here so early and the festival-protest has yet to even start, perhaps stopping by the café for a nice cup of coffee would be nice. Plus, you could possibly interview or observe any people there... However, you are incredibly interested in walking around and exploring. You would like to see what you can capture and if you go into the café, you might miss any previous opportunity you had. Furthermore, while you are also interested in tracking down any early starts to the protest so you can record the whole event from the very start to finish-- that could end up being a waste of time if none of Kreuzberg aside from shop and buisness owners are wake yet. What will you decide to do? [[Cafe? -> Cafe]] [[Walk around? -> Observation]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Many immigrants were Turkish and many lived in Kottbusser Tor, hence why I described the people to be Turkish. This is the only historical portion of the passage, but it is only historical to the setting of Kreuzberg in that time and doesn't have anything to do in relation with the Kreuzberg Riot. Clarkson, Alex. 'Urban Tribes: Subcultures and Political Conflict in West Berlin, 1945-1991.'Social Justice 38, nos. 4 (126) (2011): 71-90. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41940959.")

TIME: ???? LOCATION: HUMBOLDT UNIVERSITY OF BERLIN, CLASSROOM --------- You enter the classroom, and lie your head down on the table and close your eyes. --------- You wake up to find that your professor is already here and starting his lecture. Still sleepy you are unable to make out what he's saying. Something about something being late? No matter. You take out your notebook and pencil case, starting to take notes on the lecture. -- JAPANESE MAY DAY RALLY NOTES 01.05.78 //Over 300,000 people had gathered in Meiji Park on 1 My 1952 for a peaceful labor rally. The largest unions, joined by Socialists, Communists, radical left-wing groups, and some 'fellow travelers,' would voice their opposition to an anti-subversion bill in the Japanese Diet. Folk dancing to traditional music entertained the working classes and their families before distinguished guests spoke. ... Teams of rioters attacked American vehicles, screaming at them to go home which eventually lead to serious street fighting. Policemen that came to disperse the rioters were met with rocks and bricks, bags of offal, and tear gas. They were also rushed and taken out before a new group of police, larger than the last and fully armored, took out the rioters with tear gas and pistol shots. Many were injured.// ---- As your class ends, you check you watch to see what time it is. Seeing that it tells you 8 pm, you sigh in disappointement that so much time got eaten up. Wait. That's what the professor was saying about being late. Although you're a bit upset at having missed the chance to document the May Day protest from start to finsh, at least you can still document it from... middle to end? Yeah. In media res, or whatever your English major friends keep muttering about. Hopefully the event is still happening and didn't decide to pack up early. You set aside your grievences at yourself for choosing to be responable and pack up your notes and pens. Leaving the university campus, you go to the nearest station that will take you to the Görlitzer Bahnhof subway station but you find out that it is closed down and any other methods of transport refuse to take you into Kreuzberg. Dejected, you go home. [[End. Sorry! -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage is historical in both context of the Kreuzberg riot, and of context of past events. Historically, yes, the Bahnhof subway station was closed down and that is because of vandalism. Then, for the notes about the Japanese May Day riot, the information is taken directly from the source and partially reworded. Briscoe, Charles H. 'The May Day Riots.' ARSOF History. Last modified 2012. Accessed September 6, 2025. https://arsof-history.org/articles/v8n1_mayday_riots_page_1.html. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html")

TIME: 0620 LOCATION: HUMBOLDT UNIVERSITY OF BERLIN, NEWSROOM --------- You walk into the newsroom where the lead editor and a few other writers are already there and typing away on their computers, doing their respective research and articles. The lead editor, Hanna, looks up from the newspaper she's reading and asks you how your research for your article is going. Pulling out your journal, you excitedly show her all the work you've done and your outline. You talk for hours and hours on end, reviewing, workshopping, and writing without a break. Unbeknownst to you, outside the sun has set and midnight arrives. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Just an ending passage. Not historical.")

TIME: 0635 LOCATION: CAFÉ --------- You open the door to the café, small bells hanging from the overhead door hinge jingling and announcing your arrival. Inside, the café is warm-toned and inviting-- it's interior cozy and comforting. On your right, the walls are painted a dark turquoise, covered in framed antique images, black and white family photos, and newspaper pages. Lamps, books, and other knick-knacks line the wall sitting on shelves. The morning light streaming through cream curtains send light over the dark oak and tile tables and chairs and cast beams on the clean, brown tile floor. On your left, the walls are made of brick and a long oak counter with a glass display case filled with various pastries such as (cycling-link:"baklava","a rich pastry with layers of nuts and syrup"), (cycling-link:"börek","a savory cheese or spinach filled pastry"), and (cycling-link:"poğaça","a soft bread roll often willed with cheese") that make your mouth water just looking at them. The walls are lined with wooden shelves that hold coffee beans, various teas, sugars, syrups, and other ingredients. Above them, large chalk boards fill the rest of the wall with the café's menu. Behind the counter, you can see a set of stairs leading to the upstairs apartment. Already, there are already people sitting at tables, filling the café with sounds of conversation and laughter. A voice echoes down the stairs, "I'll be right there!" A few moments later, a young Turkish boy, looking to be around 19 years of age, hustles downs the stairs while tying an apron behind his back. "Would you like to order anything?" [[Order a drink -> Altan or not]] [[Politely say no and sit down and observe the people -> Cafe information]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Nothing in this passage is historical. However, the café is inspired by the Fourty Years café on Lausitzer street that exists today. I decided to have a café setting because I wanted there to just a fun and cozy way for my archetype to gather information, and thus represent players with information, about Kreuzberg to really affirm the journalist archetype. Furthermore, considering all that is happening right now happens before the actual Kreuzberg riot, it means that I can basically do whatever I want storywise to set up the event.")

TIME: 0700 LOCATION: KOTTBUSSER TOR -------- You walk around Kottbusser Tor for the time being, staying in the area and in the areas around it, admiring the culture there. The district isn't pristine in any way. There's graffiti, stray trash, and few people lying on the ground and sleeping. However, it's diverse. Punks and Turkish immigrants exist on the streets. Some people walk with purpose, on their way to whatever it is they need to get done for the day, while others linger and hang out on benches. The scenes amaze you. A few paces in front of you, you see a man with a ripped, hand painted t-shirt that says "Ben's Rupture", ripped skinny jeans, and a red mesh shirt. His blonde hair has been buzzed down and he wears a thick, heavy looking necklace. On his back, he has a guitar case. The man is standing alone, and seems to be paying attention to nothing in particular. You kind of want to interview him, but you also would like to take photos while you still can before the scenes change. What do you do? [[Take photos -> Photo]] [[Talk to the man with the guitar case -> Interview]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage is historically accurate towards punk culture as all the descriptions are based off of photos that come directly from the second source. I felt that I would best be able to convey the culture and scenes of Kreuzbergs in words if I was describing images rather than taking from articles. Many immigrants were Turkish and many lived in Kottbusser Tor, hence why I described the people to be Turkish. Clarkson, Alex. 'Urban Tribes: Subcultures and Political Conflict in West Berlin, 1945-1991.'Social Justice 38, nos. 4 (126) (2011): 71-90. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41940959. Reveron, Sean. 'Portraits Of… '80s West Berlin Punk Culture.' CVLT Nation. Last modified April 4, 2016. Accessed September 15, 2025. https://cvltnation.com/portraits-80s-west-berlin-punk-culture/.")

TIME: 0730 LOCATION: KOTTBUSSER TOR -------- You take your time, walking around and observing the life happening around you. The people here seem to like their life as it is, and you wish to capture that. You take many photos of people on the street for about 30 minutes. You decide to review your photos and choose your favourites. <img src="https://cvltnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/m_punk_photo_unknown_1983_613.jpg"height="220px" width="320px"> //A photo of what seems like a group of friends, sitting on a bench, having a good time.// <img src="https://cvltnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/m_punk_photo_unknown_1983_614.jpg"height="230px" width="320px"> //A photo of a guy who seems to have had a late night out last night. He seems to be enjoying his nap.// <img src="https://cvltnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/m_punk_photo_unknown_1983_11839.jpg"height="230px" width="320px"> //A photo of two lovely men who were very happy to have a photo of them taken.// You're very happy with the photos you've taken. What will you do now? [[Leave? -> Go home (ending)]] [[Stick around? -> Help the injured]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage is historically accurate towards punk culture as all the photos come directly from this source. Although, I suppose that it does lose some historical accuracy as all the photos are from before 1987 so there's a gap in time but it was still relatively the same until urban renewal starting in 1990. Reveron, Sean. 'Portraits Of… '80s West Berlin Punk Culture.' CVLT Nation. Last modified April 4, 2016. Accessed September 15, 2025. https://cvltnation.com/portraits-80s-west-berlin-punk-culture/.")

TIME: 0730 LOCATION: KOTTBUSSER TOR --------- You walk up to the man, tentatively waving your hand around to get some attention. The moment you approach, he looks over at you and you ask him if you can interview him. You explain that you're relatively new to Berlin, Germany and that you're studying at a nearby university to be a news journalist. You mention how you're passionate about punk culture and would like to hear directly from people of the alternative scene about their lives and how they live. The man takes a moment to consider your words before agreeing. You take our your tape recorder from your bag and start it with a brief introduction of what you're doing before starting. "OK-- introduce your self. What is your name, what do you do for a living, and why do you like living here, if you do?" "My name is Oliver Brotherhood. I'm 21 and I am the frontman for a punk-rock band called (cycling-link:"(text-colour:red)[Ben's Rupture]","'(text-colour:red)[Ben's Rupture' is a reference to the Big Ben-- since Oliver hails from the UK and rupture refers to a 'breach' or a 'disturbance' which is kind of what the goal of them performing is: to disturb society and it's quietness.]"). I am originally from the United Kingdom, but moved here at 17 to start a new life. Since then, I have been living with my bandmates, Lena and Jakob, my bassist and drummer, in a slightly run-down apartment building owned by a kind, elderly man. He even supports my band and sometimes brings us small groceries, or drops off water crates at our door. He doesn't really ever mind when we miss a month of rent due to prepping for gigs. Uh, on that note we play tonight at the SO36. So, generally, yeah I'd say I like living here. It's different." "Thank you for your time." You stop the tape recorderer, thanking him again. He says it's no problem but asks you if you're wearing a watch right now. You say you are and tell him it's seven thirty. Oliver swears for a second before thanking you and disappearing down the streets. You're glad you got to talk to him. For the time being, you continue to walk around the area, heading to the center of Kreuzberg. ---- [[... -> Help the injured]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage doesn't have any historical accuracy or significance. It's just a nice interactive passage that I wrote for the fun of having my two archetypes interact.")

TIME: 0640 LOCATION: CAFÉ --------- You walk up to the cash register, looking at the menu and deciding what to order. "Uh, I'd like a cortado, please." "Sure, $2.50." "Thank you." You stand off to the side, at the end of the counter, watching as the boy makes your drink. He navigates the back of the counter with ease, getting coffee grounds, making an espresso shot, and steaming milk. At the end, he puts it into a small paper cup, with a heat sleeve and a hot lid and puts it on the counter. [[Talk more with the barista? -> Obtain Altan. maybe?]] [[Take your drink and leave -> no altan]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Purely literary passage, there's no historical connection at all for anything.")

After a long and brain-numbing night, you're too mentally and physically exhausted to get out of bed... you close your eyes, thinking to yourself that you'll sleep for just a few hours longer. You feel yourself be pulled back under into the sweet relief of rest for the next 8 hours more. ... [[You slept too long. Restart? -> Start]] (cycling-link:"(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage breaks the rule of having a certain amount (3?) of choice possibilities before ending, but because I got permission to have a 'joke' passage of sorts and this is it.]")

TIME: 0640 LOCATION: CAFÉ --------- You take your drink and leave, thanking him for making it. You hold it in your hands to feel the heat of it in slight chilliness of the May morning. Since you have a lot of time to kill, you walk around Kottbusser Tor for the time being, staying in the area and in the areas around it, admiring the culture there. The district isn't pristine in any way. There's graffiti, stray trash, and few people lying on the ground and sleeping. However, it's diverse. Punks and Turkish immigrants exist on the streets. Some people walk with purpose, on their way to whatever it is they need to get done for the day, while others linger and hang out on benches. The scenes amaze you. -------- TIME: 1930 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- The has begun, and it's loud and dangerous. People are throwing stones and screaming at police, lighting fires and starting fights. You're mostly trying to stay off to the sides and document the event, but there have been times where you've harrowingly avoided getting dragged in by people pushing forward, or avoided getting hit by stone, or dodged getting spotted by police lest they assume you are also a rioter. Suddenly, you see a bottle set afire fly from the middle the crowd and crash into a set of barriers, causing them to light on fire. People scream and push each other, causing some people to fall down and frantically try to scramble away from the flames. Suddenly, you see a teenage boy fall down and catch on fire. You recognize him. It's the boy from the café. [[Help him -> Injury]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage is historical in the information of how police were able to control the riot and cause it to die down and ultimately stop.It is also historical in the information about how the rioters were protesting, with the things they threw and such. Any information I mention comes from this source: Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

TIME: 0650 LOCATION: CAFÉ --------- You take the coffee from the counter thanking him. You start to leave, but stop yourself, thinking about the interview opportunity that this gives yourself. He obviously lives and works here, so he most likely knows alot about the punk scenes that come and hang out in the café-- he must have a lot of information that he could possibly share with you. "Hey wait," you call out, grabbing his attention and setting down the cup of coffee. "I'm a journalist, and I'm new to the area of Kreuzberg. You've been living here your whole life right? I would assume? Would you be willing to be interviewed?" He takes a moment to consider your words before answering, "Sure, that seems interesting! Let me grab my (cycling-link:"anne","the Turkish familial term for 'mom'") so she can run the counter while you interview me. He walks up the stairs, disappearing for a few minutes before he comes back down, followed by a kind-looking woman of slightly short stature. He comes around the counter and tells you, "OK. I'm ready", and you sit down with him in the corner of the café to avoid some of the noise. "Alright", you say, taking out your tape recorder and setting it on the table after clicking it to record. "Introduce yourself, your name, your age, what is life like living here, and what do you think about the activity that comes in-and-out of the café. "Uhm, my name is Altan. Altan Wolfe. I'm 19 and of Turkish-German descent. My mom immigrated here and met my dad here in Berlin. Living life here is all I've ever known. I'm currently in college but I don't think I'll move out of the Berlin area anytime soon. I'd say living here is, unique. There's some issues but it's not as a bad as people think it is. The people living here are angry sometimes, but that shouldn't take away all the good qualities of them. Like, they really like our café and they respect the space. I think if they didn't come to the café so often, we wouldn't be so well off as we are now." "Do you trust them? What things do you hear about them?" "Well, yeah, I'd say that I trust them. They haven't wrecked the café at all. I think that sometimes they just need a nice place to rest. Considering how a lot of them are squatters. They don't have access to a comfortable place to just sit down and enjoy life, y'know. We give them that opportunity here. And about that last question, they don't really talk a lot about anything negative. They usually just talk about hanging out, and about having or attending gigs. Although I did hear that they're worried about the May Day parade that happening tonight." "Alright, thank you for your time." You shut off the tape recorder, thanking him again for answering your questions. You get up to leave, but this time, he suddenly stops you. "Hey, you want to see the May Day protest right? What if you go with me?" [[Politely decline and leave -> no altan 2.0]] [[Wait around and go to the protest with him -> Yes altan]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 The information that I wrote in Altan's response are briefly historical and come from these sources. THe cover the information about there being squatters and about Turkish immigrants. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html. Jackson, Frank. 'A Short History of the Berlin Squatting Movement December 1980 - July 1982 - Frank Jackson.' Libcom.org. Last modified July 1982. Accessed September 23, 2025. https://libcom.org/article/short-history-berlin-squatting-movement-december-1980-july-1982-frank-jackson. ")

TIME: 1900 LOCATION: CAFÉ --------- You spend all day at the café, still in that corner, listening to and transcribing the tape recording for your research journal, amongst other things that you do in research for your university's newspaper. After the natural light from the outside window has started to dim, Altan comes back over to you, telling you his shift is over and that he's ready to leave if you are. Altan and you leave the café, walking over to the main Kreuzberg area where he tells you the protest is happening. When you both get there, it's already chaos. The protest is becoming more than just a protest and people are showing extreme violence. You look over to Altan, and find that he has disappeared. You're confused until you realize what happened as you, too, are swept into the crowd. [[Try and find him -> Injury]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Nothing in this passage is historical. At all. Except the location of the riot but other than that there's no choice decision that is historical. ")

You desperately push through the crowd, trying to find Altan, but it's difficult due to the sheer amount of bodies that block you from trying to get any farther down the street. You stand on benches, looking for Altan but are unsuccesful every time. You try to even ask some of the people but are met with no response or something vulgar. You start to panic when suddenly, you see a bottle set afire fly from the middle the crowd and crash into a set of barriers, causing them to light on fire. People scream and push each other, causing some people to fall down and frantically try to scramble away from the flames. Suddenly, you see a teenage boy fall down and catch on fire. You recognize him. It's the boy from the café. It's Altan. You don't even take a second to think before you run into the fire grasping for Altan. He has long stopped screaming, only low groans as the fire eats away at him. You feel the clothing on your skin get hotter and hotter before you realize that you are getting burned too. You can only hope that you can save him. (either:"[[escape the fire -> succumb to wounds later]]",",[[you are saved, and recovering in the hospital -> hospital talk]]") (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This is a purely literary passage that leads to the ending for this passage sequence. There are no sources on exactly what injuries or fatalities occured so I am assuming that due to the instance of fire, that it is plausible to assume that at least some people were injured due to fire.")

You crawl out of the fire, leaving Altan behind as you realize you will not be strong enough to pull him out. He doesn't scream and you don't cry. It's too hot and painful for either. As you lay on the streets, your vision grows hazy and you slip. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This is a purely literary passage that leads to the ending for this passage sequence. There are no sources on exactly what injuries or fatalities occured so I am assuming that due to the instance of fire, that it is plausible to assume that at least some people were injured due to fire.")

You run through the fire, grabbing onto Altan and dragging him with all your strength across the ground. He groans, a sign that he's a live and you sit with him-- waiting for help. Waiting for anyone to help. Miraculously, the paramedics arrive and you're both taken away to the hospital. In the back of the ambulance, you sigh in relief. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This is a purely literary passage that leads to the ending for this passage sequence. There are no sources on exactly what injuries or fatalities occured so I am assuming that due to the instance of fire, that it is plausible to assume that at least some people were injured due to fire.")

You went home, happy about the photos you took. [[End -> Start]]

TIME: 2000 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- The May Day protest started a couple hours ago and the more you stick around, the more you see that it is jsut escalating more and more. People are throwing stones and things are getting vandalized, broken into, and set on fire. It's getting dangerous and you think about leaving. However, police come in with barricades and vehicles, tear gas and batons. They're prepared to end this riot and you can't escape. If you go through the alleyway, you're sure that you'll get lost and be unable to find your way home again. People are collapsing to the ground, choking and hurt. Some of them can't get back up and are being trampeled underfoot. It's chaos and you're not sure how much longer you can stand to watch this happen. [[... -> helper ending 1]] [[...-> helper ending 2]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 The information portions of this passage are about the police and their methods of ending the riot. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

You are Oliver Brotherhood, a 21-year-old frontman for your punk-rock band, (cycling-link:"(text-colour:red)[Ben's Rupture]","'(text-colour:red)[Ben's Rupture' is a reference to the Big Ben-- since Oliver hails from the UK and rupture refers to a 'breach' or a 'disturbance' which is kind of what the goal of them performing is: to disturb society and it's quietness.]"). You fled from the United Kingdom at 17 following the arrest of your father amidst the Brixton riots, untrusting of the system and scared that one day they'll come for you too-- not that you'll let anoyone know that. Since then, you have been living with your bandmates, Lena and Jakob, in a slightly run-down apartment building (this in itself, is a small miracle you can appreciate-- allowing you to avoid becoming one of the many squatters that are scattered across Kreuzberg) owned by a kind, elderly man. He doesn't speak English very well and your German is highschool-level at best but it doesn't bother either of you. Furthermore, he even supports your band-- bringing you small groceries, or dropping off water crates at your door. He doesn't seem to mind you missed last month's rent either considering you blew all your cash on prepping a gig at the SO-36(cycling-link:"*","SO-36: Check footnotes for more information") on May 1st. [[Start your journey -> Outside the SO-36]] (cycling-link:"(text-colour:red)[♫]"," (text-colour:red)[♫ Note: skip the writing in the '-----' if you are just looking for footnote information. ------------------------------------------------------------------ When deciding what archetypes to make, I realized that the two I ended up with, I wanted them to be polar opposites. While Irie is a character that becomes involved because of time, place, and curiosity-- Oliver is more involved. Fatally involved in some cases. He's almost meant to be the stereotype of a 'punk' that media portrays, that we often think of: dirty, bold, loud, different, and most importantly, political. Oliver is all of that and more-- I want him to be someone that is caring and easily hurt. When writting him I thought of two main things: the characters Hobie Brown (Spider-Punk) and Jinx from the show Arcane. Oliver is dedicated to his cause-- something that can often become dangerous and it IS dangerous in this time place. Now, not to ramble, here's what the significance of fictional characters does to influence my writing: For Spider-punk-- it's kind of obvious, he's a punk, he's British, and he doesn't let anyone control or dictate what he does. He believes in his ideologies and does what's best for him and the people he cares about. Then, in Arcane, there is one main issue, the opposition between the undercity of, Zaun -- a dirty, poor, and dark city, and the glorious city of Piltover -- a shining, advanced city. In this conflict, in the second season, Jinx comes to be the image of revolution-- once too loud, too bold, she is quickly humbled and put in her place. She becomes a hurt and quiet hero (although still viewed as a villain by the people of Zaun, by the enforcers [that universe's police force]). So just to summarize, Oliver is frankly very much inspired by these two characters. Furthermore, basically what I intend for Oliver is that he's an outsider who got into the inside. He's an outsider because he hails from the United Kingdom, but he gets too involved, too mixed up with the political events of Kreuzberg. ------------------------------------------------------------------ *It is well-known these days that getting a gig at a venue costs money, a large sum in fact, but this is not the case for this time period. In 1983, the building was closed and its owners went bankrupt-- this left the building open for squatters and alternative groups to go in and mess around until 1987 (date unclear) when the building was closed by police. Source: Aaron Beattie, 'SO36 A History of Berlin's Iconic Music Venues,' Love From Berlin, last modified February 5, 2018, accessed October 7, 2025, http://www.lovefromberlin.net/so36/. However, due to the exact date of when the building was cleared by police, this passage and following passages that take place in the venue has questionable historical accuracy. This Twine takes place in year 1987, May 1st so I am personally not sure when exactly in the year that the building was cleared by police-- I am assuming that when this happened it was happening during the May Day riots as the police cleared many buildings in the area during the event. Furthermore, Oliver's characters and motives are largely inspired and based on the career and influence of radical rock band //Ton Steine Scherben// and is sort of a look into/ my way of researching the politics of music, especially that of the Labour Party and how they influenced each other. Also, during this time, squatters dominated the streets, hence why Ollie befriends and interacts with one. Black, Johnny. 'Red Wedge: Bringing Labour Party Politics to Young Music Fans.' The Guardian. Last modified April 22, 2015. Accessed September 6, 2025. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/apr/22/red-wedge-bringing-labour-party-politics-to-young-music-fans. Brown, Timothy S. 'Music as a Weapon? 'Ton Steine Scherben' and the Politics of Rock in Cold War Berlin.' German Studies Review 32, no. 1 (2009): 1-22. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27668653. Jackson, Frank. 'A Short History of the Berlin Squatting Movement December 1980 - July 1982 - Frank Jackson.' Libcom.org. Last modified July 1982. Accessed September 23, 2025. https://libcom.org/article/short-history-berlin-squatting-movement-december-1980-july-1982-frank-jackson.]")

TIME: 0730 LOCATION: CAFÉ -------- You take your time, sitting around and observing the life happening around you outside. The people here seem to like their life as it is, and you wish to capture that. You take many photos of people on the street for about 30 minutes. You decide to review your photos and choose your favourites. <img src="https://cvltnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/m_punk_photo_unknown_1983_613.jpg"height="220px" width="320px"> //A photo of what seems like a group of friends, sitting on a bench, having a good time.// <img src="https://cvltnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/m_punk_photo_unknown_1983_614.jpg"height="230px" width="320px"> //A photo of a guy who seems to have had a late night out last night. He seems to be enjoying his nap.// <img src="https://cvltnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/m_punk_photo_unknown_1983_11839.jpg"height="230px" width="320px"> //A photo of two lovely men who were very happy to have a photo of them taken.// You're very happy with the photos you've taken. You decide to go home and rest. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage is mostly just a repeat of the 'photo' passage. This passage is historically accurate towards punk culture as all the photos come directly from this source. Although, I suppose that it does lose some historical accuracy as all the photos are from before 1987 so there's a gap in time but it was still relatively the same until urban renewal starting in 1990. Reveron, Sean. 'Portraits Of… '80s West Berlin Punk Culture.' CVLT Nation. Last modified April 4, 2016. Accessed September 15, 2025. https://cvltnation.com/portraits-80s-west-berlin-punk-culture/.")

[TIME: 1830] LOCATION: SO-36 -------- Outside the venue, the (cycling-link:"SO36","The SO36 is a music club on Oranienstraße near Heinrichplatz in the area of Kreuzberg in Berlin Germany. This district has historically been home to the Berlin punk rock movement (as well as other alternative cultures) in Germany") , the wall is layered with graffiti and grime. Layers of posters, weathered and ripped, cover the pillars of the entrance and the security shutters-- squatters, strikes, and slogans line the dirty streets. It smells of beer, petrol, and rebellion. You flick a cigarette into the gutter and watch it hiss. Inside, your band is setting up. The crowd is already restless, squirming like a violent nest of ants, chanting: (cycling-link:"//'Keine Macht für Niemand!'//","'//No power for Nobody!'//") You used to dream of being heard. Now, they scream your words, you lyrics, the phrases of your soul and emotion back at you. You feel in your gut that tonight will be different from your usual gigs. Always political, always aggressive, always rowdy, your fans and your music brings disruption wherever you and your band chooses to go. You're sure that tonight will be like any other, but as you watch the thin trail of smoke rise from the ground and dissipate in the air, you can't help but feel that some emotions will burn bright and fast tonight. The smell of smoke lingers in your nose. Since you still have time to burn before the show starts, you think about what you should do in the time given. [[Go inside for soundcheck -> So36 backstage]] [[Stay outside and go talk to the squatters -> Outside So36]] [[Walk towards Kottbusser Tor to clear your head -> K walk]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ Description of the venue comes from this source's image: Detlev Konnerth, In the 1980s Kreuzberg looked very different. By the way, this is SO36, a neighboring punk institution., photograph, The Berliner, February 15, 2023, accessed October 21, 2025, https://www.the-berliner.com/berlin/coretex-forever-35-wild-years-for-punk-in-the-capital The phrase --No power for Nobody!-- is in surrounded by apostrophes instead of quotation marks as unfortunately, doing so messes with the code, with the cycling link. So to note, there will be a slight inconsistency in how speech is presented in the Twine due to whether or not there will be cycling links present. Aside from the obviously historical parts, such as the existence of the venue and it's location and just-- the whole instance of of alternative/punk bands playing there, this isn't a particularly historical or literary leaning passage because it's the introduction. Another note to add about the decision of creating an archetype such as a Oliver lies in the cycling link about the SO36. As stated, the district, and that venue in particularly has been the grounds for such culture for years and years and remains as so. And considering the actual event of this Twine takes place in Kreuzberg, it just makes sense for Oliver to be a punk-rocker.")

TIME: 1840 LOCATION: SO36 BACKSTAGE -------- The air backstage is thich with sweat and tension. Lena, your bassist, tunes her strings-- her hands tremble and a slight sweat makes her forehead shine in the light. You have a soft spot in your heart for Lena, platonically of course. A lover's relationship has been off the table for years now as she is more of an older sister figure to you. She took you in when she saw you getting caught by police waiting for you to get off of the ferry you snuck onto. As a squatter, she protected you and help you safe, fed, and warm (as possible) during hard times as now you spend your days paying back the kindness she showed you. Although you know, and are fine with the fact that you two will never have a romantic relationship, you both know that each would lay down their lives for each other. "Ollie, I'm worried about cops comin' down on us during our show." You smirk, joking around and saying that they better play extra hard to make this night worth it. Jakob, your drummer, whom you basically fished out of a dumpster, frowns. "This isn't a joke Oliver. I heard that the police are armed this time. They've got tear gas and batons-- we better be careful. //You// better be careful. If you decide to protest too hard, if the protest that will be going on outside gets too out of hand, it'll be bad for us all. I understand you want to play hard, but keep it just as... music y'know? Nothing too outta hand." You tilt your head at him, considering his words while thinking about what to say. What do you tell them? [[Tell them the music //is// the protest. -> On stage]] [[Agree to play it safe. -> Caution]] [[Argue that revolution means risk -> Ideology Clash]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ Police dealt with controlling and deescalating riots and anything that can be potentially dangerous to civilians-- especially if it's politically charged. Thus, this is why Lena is concerned. They're punk, they're political. And they're going to be loud on the night of a protest. Wurm, Phillip. 'One, two - fight!' Spiegel Story. Last modified April 30, 2017. Accessed October 7, 2025. https://www.spiegel.de/geschichte/1-mai-in-berlin-die-geschichte-der-kreuzberger-krawalle-ab-1987-a-1144792.html. The little note about the police is why I wrote this passage. It puts down the basis of the concerns of people who aren't Oliver, and in a way also encapsulates generally the concerns of people at the time. To speak out was often to be silenced. And often that happened forcefully-- which is a huge concern during incredibly politcally charged times. I don't partically have a source for saying that, but look at us today. Aren't we all worried when we have protests and we will be shut down? If worries like that exist today, they often exist in the past too.")

TIME: 1840 LOCATION: ALLEYWAY -------- A group of squatters sit around (cycling-link:" a drum fire","a drum fire is also called a 'burn barrel', it is simply a metal barrel that is filled with trash and paper and lit on fire. Similar to that of a fire pit."), passing cheap beer and stories. You recognize Anja, an activist from the squat on Mariannenplatz. She asks you if you're going to play-- if the sound will be loud enough to drown out sirens. You nod and say that loud is all they ever understand and she smirks. "Loud is the sound of revolution. Loud is the true sound of the souls of the people those pigs try and repress." You laugh at that and ask her if she'd like to come hear the music. She shakes her head, saying that there is something she must do. She hunches closer to the fire, seeking it's warmth. Anja gazes into the fire for a moment, a moment too long as you start to shift hesitantly-- unsure whether to bid her goodbye or stay as you can't tell if the conversation is over. After a second more of hearing the fire crackle, she turns to look at you again. "You've been so wrapped up in your head with that band of yours Oliver. You don't hear the people speak anymore, you only hear them when they scream." You scoff, asking what that's supposed to mean. She looks at you with an expression of "you're proving my point" and you shake your head in disbelief. Anja may be your acquaintance, but she sure can be crazy sometimes. You leave the alleyway, coming out onto the sidewalk. You watch for a second, observing the staggered groups of people making their way over to Heinrichplatz where the protest will take place soon. You look at your watch, considering the time. You should be playing soon-- but there's still a moment of time to do something else before if you wish. [[Head inside before the set starts -> On stage]] [[Stay and talk about what May Day means -> Ideology Clash]] [[Walk towards Kottbusser Tor to clear your head -> K walk]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ Mariannenplatz is one of the many common places where squatters resided in Kreuzberg. Squatters map source: 'Illustrated map of squatting in Berlin,' Berlin Besetzt, accessed November 4, 2025, https://berlin-besetzt.de/#. This passage, like others, is partially historically accurate but also literary. Well, I guess considering the usage of a character archetype, it is difficult to differentiate the difference of what is historically accurate and what isn't passage wise because every element of Oliver and what he does has things that are historically accurate. Using an archetype is very different from directly using an past existent person because well-- there isn't any historical books about a punk-rocker under the name Oliver Brotherhood is there? This passage further introduces squatters and where they were living. On the literary side, this is a foreshadowing passage! Somethings are very upfront and literal and can be taken directly at face value and still make sense but possibly has a deeper meaning.")

TIME: 1850 LOCATION: Kottbusser Tor -------- Kottbusser Tor hums like a live wire-- from both the sound of electricity and generations, and from the vibes of its residents. Kottbusser is alive, but falling asleep-- Turkish grocers closing up, graffiti glinting under yellow lights, and the smell of gas faintly hangs in the air. Further down, a café switches off it's warm lights and a teenage boy flips the closing sign. A street musician strums a broken guitar. You toss him a few coins (the man should consider getting new string soon) and he grins. He looks you up and down and opens his mouth, a slimy, gross thing-- with crooked, black-yellow teeth and an ashy pink tongue, and ominously talks to you, "You play too, ja? Careful. Kreuzberg burns bright." He breaks out into a fit of choking laughter, as if telling an inside joke that only and he and he himself will ever understand. You smile at him, a bit awkwardly, unsure if it's an omen or blessing of sorts. You shake your head, trying desperately to clear your thoughts. What was it with people tonight? What was with all these strange things being said? A streetlight flickers on above you, a sign that night is almost here. Your band will be playing soon but all these foreboding words weigh heavily on your mind. [[Return to SO36 -> On stage]] [[Wander deeper into the district -> Riot Ignites]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ Many immigrants were Turkish and many lived in Kottbusser Tor, hence why I described the people to be Turkish. Clarkson, Alex. 'Urban Tribes: Subcultures and Political Conflict in West Berlin, 1945-1991.'Social Justice 38, nos. 4 (126) (2011): 71-90. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41940959. I suppose that this passage is just a literary one. There isn't a whole lot this passage does except for introduce more areas of Kreuzberg and it's history but also sets up many things and certain endings. Furthermore, it is a passage with references and pretty obvious foreshadowing.")

TIME: 1900 LOCATION: SO36 STAGE -------- You stop backstage, right at the edge of the entrance to the stage, letting Jakob and Lena pass by you. The crowd breaks into cheers as Lena sets up on the far end of the stage, plugging in her bass. On the opposite end of the stage, the end closest to you, Jakob sits down behind the drum and sets up a wooden box behind him. All the lights in the venue turn off, and Jakob starts to drum. This is your cue. As you walk from backstage, you start to put more a skip into your step-- slowly breaking into a run. You sprint for the drumset, jumping onto the box, leaping over Jakob's head and landing on the kick-drum before launching yourself into the air. While airbourne, a spotlight highlights you in the air. The crowd, noticing your arrival, breaks into screams. You land in a slight crouch to break the force of the impact, feeling the dust and grime of the stage under your hands. Standing up, you grab the microphone and scream into the microphone, asking the crowd if they're ready. Loud cheers, screams, and "Yes"'s are heard in response and you motion for Lena to start playing with Jakob. You don't hesitate for moment to begin singing and playing. //Kreuzberg! Make some noise!// ♫ //I'm a street walking cheater with a heart full of napalm / I'm a run-away son of a nuclear A-bomb / I am a world's forgotten boy / The one who's searchin' to destroy / Somebody gotta help me please! / Somebody gotta save my soul ! / Baby will ya take my mind?!// As your band plays, loud and gritty, you suddenly see blue lights outside. Sirens. You lose your words and your hands slow. You know that Jakob and Lena see the lights too because they've stopped playing and the only sound in the venue is a discordant note as your hand hits a string and the sounds of sirens. Someone one throws a bottle and it explodes against the wall. The barrier between the venue walls and the street disappears and everything dissolves into chaos. [[Keep playing (feed the chaos) -> Riot Ignites]] [[Stop the set (try to calm the crowd) -> Try peace]] [[Jump into the crowd and lead them outside -> Lead protest]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ Admittedly, the writing for this passage, with the set up of the band and Oliver's arrival, etc., is inspired directly from Twenty One Pilots concert videos. The lyrics that you see Oliver sing are the lyrics to 'Search and Destroy' by the Sex Pistols. As I was writing this passage, I was trying to think of a song I would want Oliver to be playing hear and just from a whim I decided he would sing this song and it just happened to work out well because coincidentally the lyrics fit Oliver as a character which was fun. I feel like the reason why I wrote this passage is pretty obvious. Band player plays music. And because they're political, and loud, and playing on the night of a protest, they get cracked down by police.")

You cross your arms, taking a second to reconsider what exactly it is that you really want from playing here at the SO36, and what exactly it means to you to still be able to play with your bandmates for so long already. You've all come so far and you never want to lose that. You don't want to lose anything ever again. You release your arms, letting them hang down at your sides, and with loosely clenched fists you firmly tell them, "We will be playing tonight, but we will not start wars or fights. We are here to play a gig like the million of other times we have done, and we will not be getting ourselves into any situation we cannot get ourselves out of. I swear that nothing out of hand will happen if I can control it." Lena, relieved in hearing this, seems to shake less. She takes a deep breath and picks at her strings, checking one last time that everything is in tune before standing up Jakob, however, grumbles-- knowing that your words tend to jinx things. With some hesitantance, he grabs his drum sticks with one hand and follows behind Lena. Together, you all [[take the stage.-> On stage]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This is a purely literary passage. This passage exists to set up different endings and also sets up a different characterization of Oliver-- it shows a different side of him. Despite meaning to really be the stereotypical punk-rock boy who's always out of control (think: Rodrick Heffley), he's also really not. I wanted to also convey him as a character who's desperately caring of the people around him, for example his bandmates, but just can have trouble getting to that point sometimes. Really, what I'm trying to do here, and with basically all these literary passages is humanize his character. Make him feel real, like someone who would have actually existed during this event or in the world in general. I want to make him more than just an archetype.")

You glare at Jakob. “You wanna live it safe? We've never been safe, never once in our lives. We didn’t come to Berlin to play pubs." You wave your hands around, keeping their eyes on you and you desperately try to keep down your rising frustration and anger. Why were they suddenly being such cowards? It was never like this before so why now? "I didn't come to Berlin just to play it safe and scared, Jakob.” The man in question slams a drumstick against a crate, causing Lena to startle, glancing over in his direction. “There’s a difference between rebellion and suicide.” Lena cuts in quietly, “Both get you remembered.” You grin. “Then let’s make it worth remembering.” You turn around on your heel, grabbing your guitar and slinging it over your shoulder as you walk out onto the stage, turning your back on the two. Behind you, you don't seem them look at each other with concern and fear. You don't see Jakob grab and reassuringly squeeze Lena's shoulder, urging her to stand up and get her bass. You don't see anything except the blinding stage lights these days. [[Take the stage -> On stage]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This passage doesn't have any historical accuracy. At all. This passage is purely literary and is just here to get more into Oliver's character.")

TIME:1930 LOCATION: SO36 --------- Your guitar howls feedback as the crowd bursts throuh the doors. (In your mind, maybe if you just continue to play, this will all go away. You foolishly hope, somewhere in the back of your mind that the sounds of music will erase the sounds of fighting). You continue to sing and play, backing up the crowd and exciting them more. Jakob gets up and grabs you, shaking you away from the mic. He unplugs your guitar and pulls it off of you. As he pulls you, Lena pushes you from behind. "I knew this would happen. Of course this would happen. We gotta go. We gotta go. We need to get out of here now." Jakob mumbles, taking you out of the venue. The street outside is a warzone-- police shields, bricks, and smoke. People run past you, shoving Jakob to the ground and pulling Lena along further into the street-- effectively separating you from the others. A protester thrusts a rag and bottle into your hand. "Light it, Engländer!" Your heartbeat's louder than the sirens. What will you do? [[Throw it -> Flame of Protest]] [[Drop it-> Refuse Violence]] [[Turn the bottle into a mic (start shouting) -> Voice of the street]] (cycling-link:"♫", "♫ This is the last purely literary passage. The passages that will follow this one are directly about the Kreuzberg riot, and while will still be literary to a certain point because, archetype not specific person, everything will be to a point more historically compliant until the endings. I think that the only really historically compliant thing that happens in this chapter and why I wrote it is the timestamp. At the top it is telling you that it is 7:30 pm. This is the time at which the protest became a riot as tensions escalated. So this passage covers and conveys that happening and the time of it happening. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

TIME: 1930 LOCATION: SO36 -------- As the crowd erupts into chaos, and further out of your control, you try to calm down the situation. You shout into the microphone, trying to get people to not panic or overreact, but no one listens to you. You keep trying, shouting louder and louder but you still remain unheard over the noise. You scream and scream and no one hears you. This is out of your control. Everything is so loud and your ears ring. The panic is getting to you too, you can feel it yourself starting to lose your self. Your vision starts to get blurry, and you can feel your eyes starting to close themselves, as if trying to protect you from any visual stimuli. You start to feel light-headed and dizzy as your breath starts to pick up. All you can see are the lights in the distance. Then, all the noise cuts out. You know that there is noise there, but all that comes is a soft, static buzzing in your head as you mind begins to empty but also race with countless thoughts. Suddenly, a hand touches your shoulder, causing you to flinch. Hard. You turn around, and you see Lena there, her face full of concern. Jakob is there too, but you can't seem to fully make him out. Nothing seems to be in focus anymore. Lena's mouth moves, saying something, but you can't hear it. What is she trying to say? What is she saying? You try to ask her, your mouth is open, but your tongue won't move and your lips won't touch. You can't speak. You can't respond or even say "what?" Jakob comes closer, and his image becomes ever so slightly clearer and then he's picking you up. He's carrying you in his arms and you're just slack. Your limbs feel like lead and all you can feel is the sweat sticking to your skin and the itchy cotton and the rough mesh of your shirt chaffing your skin. They bring you outside, into the back alley. Jakob doesn't stop holding you until you come back into yourself. You can hear the noise of the riot, now muffled by distance. You can hear your breath coming out in gasps and your heartbeat in your ears. You scramble to grab Jakob's arms, telling him to put you down and he does. "Are you alright?" Lena asks you, fear and concern in her voice. "I'm-- fine." You tell her, unsure really of what you should be feeling right now. Lena nods, then says, "If you're fine, we should escape. Leave this behind. We shouldn't get involved. This isn't our fight." You stand there, frozen. You're unsure of what you should do next. [[Follow her -> Escape Alley]] or [[Stay behind, you can't leave this unfinished -> Voice of the street]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ What happens to Oliver in this chapter is roughly based off what I know about disassociation and the feeling of it-- where your mind goes and how you feel compared to the world around you. In my character background for Oliver, I have it written that his father was taken away during the UK's Brixton Riots and so Oliver has slight trauma from 1) riots and the chaos it causes, and 2) feeling out of control/feeling like he can't do anything. I wrote this passage so I could get that character background detail across but other than that, this just moves the story along so I can set up getting my archetype actually involved in the main event of the Twine. Furthermore, I think that the only really historically compliant thing that happens in this chapter and why I wrote it is the timestamp. At the top it is telling you that it is 7:30 pm. This is the time at which the protest became a riot as tensions escalated. So this passage covers and conveys that happening and the time of it happening. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

TIME: 1930 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- You jump down from the stage into the crowd. They catch you before your feet can even graze the floor and they lift you like a prophet, chanting your name. They parade you outside, and you, not even for a second, look back at Lena and Jakob. They call out at you, telling you to come back, to stay inside where it is safer-- where you all can leave. But you ignore them as you get closer to the outside. Outside, the street burns. You can see the mobs of police frantically and efficiently erecting barricades as stones are thrown at them. The stones deflect of shields-- with the occasional nailing one in the leg or chest. More fires start by the minute, more and more cars becomes pillars of light, further highlighting the chaos in a hellish orange. A police van overturns. You feel the pulse of something bigger — ugly, real, unstoppable. A young, Turkish protester holds out a flag to you. “For Kreuzberg." They tell you solemnly, holding [[Take the flag and lead them forward -> Flag]] [[Throw it down-- you're no one's symbol -> Refuse Violence]] (cycling-link:"♫", "♫ Many immigrants living in Kreuzberg were Turkish, thus why I have the detail of the protester being Turkish. Clarkson, Alex. 'Urban Tribes: Subcultures and Political Conflict in West Berlin, 1945-1991.' Social Justice 38, nos. 4 (126) (2011): 71-90. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41940959. Furthermore, I decided to have the protester be Turkish because it's a call back of who was supposed to be my third archetype, a young Turkish boy named Altan, before I scrapped him. For the more historical portion of the passage, I pulled the description of the street, like the barricades and the cars burning from this article. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

TIME: 2000 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- You clench the rag and the bottle in your hands, stuffing the rag into the bottle. Slowly, you tip the bottle to the side and watch the towel get soaked by the alcohol in the bottle. Someone flicks on their lighter, and you light the rag on fire before hurling the bottle in some random direction. The bottle soars like a comet through the sky, and for a heartbeat, the fire is beautiful-- pure, golden, and roaring in your ears louder than any crowd you can ever imagine. Then, the bottle plummets and you hear it crash into the ground. For a second, nothing happens. Then, the fire catches. A van explodes. Barriers catch fire. The crowd cheers. Suddenly, someone screams in fear. Lena's voice cuts through the sound, asking you what you have done. You can't answer. You don't know. All you hear is screaming. All you know is fire. (cycling-link:"Like all those years ago.","Oliver has a hard relationship with riots and such. When he was younger, his father was taken away by police amidst the Brixton riots. After that, he ran away from the United Kingdom-- untrusting of the its system (thus why he's punk) and scared that they'll come for him too.") Suddenly, you lose Lena's voice. Instead of yelling, the scolding of a frantic and horrified person, you hear screams. You hear high-pitched screams. Lena. Where's Lena? Where has she gone? You frantically try to find her. Your eyes search the crowd, specifically in the direction where you last heard her. You finally find her when suddenly a fire breaks out next to her and you can hear her scream. You sprint. Faster than you ever have and possibly faster than you ever will. You shove and push and pull through people and flames. You have to get to Lena. By some miracle, you get to her-- you pull her into your arms and take her into the alleyway. Fear devours her face and devours your heart. She searches your face and asks you what you're going to do now. You remove her from your arms and decide. [[Run into the chaos -> Aftermath Riot]] or [[Stay and face what you've started-> Aftermath reflection]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ As much as I'd like it to be historically accurate, it really isn't. I couldn't find any sources about exactly what kind of things were thrown and such outside of things like stones-- so this isn't historically accurate outside of location and is was purely a creative choice. However, I'm sure that things like a rag and bottle (a molotov cocktail) was likely to be used because it's a quick and easy thing to make and was used often in riot type situations I assume. I guess that the easiest way to explain why I wrote this passage and why those elements are in the text is really just because I wanted to. It's dubious towards it's accuracy and really, I'm just pulling knowledge from media I've consumed. However, cars were in fact set on fire. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

TIME:1935 LOCATION: THE STREET -------- You tip the bottle upside down, letting the petrol inside rush out and splash around your feet. Some people around you flinch back, trying to avoid the splash. You can feel the petrol soaking into your laces, slowly soaking into your boots due to poor placement when pouring. The smell of petrol burns your nose. When the bottle is empty, you lean down, smashing the bottom of the bottle to create a pseudo-microphone. You lift the bottle to your mouth, screaming into it “THEY CAN BURN OUR HOMES, BUT NOT OUR NOISE!” The crowd errupts into cheers. Someone starts chanting your name. Someone else throws another bottle. You continue to scream for what feels like hours. Your voice is raw and breaking, but the chaos listens. At the edge of the crowd, you see Lena and Jakob. They're staring at you, watching. Their faces are mixes of concern, fear, and disappointment. For a moment, your voice falters and you're unsure if you should continue. [[Keep shouting until dawn -> Aftermath voice]] [[Drop the mic and disappear into the crowd -> pre-Aftermath reflection ]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ I'll be honest, I'm geniunely getting a little lost with writing these footnotes. I know that they're supposed to talk about if this is historical or not and really, it's not! It's literary, it takes place in Kreuzberg, during the riot, and that's that. There's elements to it that are true, but it's not wholly a 'this happened' 'this didn't' type of Twine because there are no individual reports of what happened that night except this one fire truck driver who had his teeth knocked out because of people throwing stones. This is the source for that comment: Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html. ")

TIME: 1935 LOCATION: BACK ALLEY -------- The alley reeks of smoke and sweat, threatening to choke you and pull you under into the grimy shadows that control Kreuzberg. Lena and Jakob stumble beside you. Sirens echo off the walls. “We’re done,” Jakob gasps. “SO36’s finished.” Lena shakes her head. “No. Kreuzberg never dies- right Ollie?” You don’t speak. You can’t speak. You still hear the sounds of music echoing in the distance. You long to go out and get into the crowd. To put your life on the line, but you know that you can't. And deep down in your heart, you understand that you made the right decision. If you hadn’t decided to escape you know that the consequences would have been worse. People would have been hurt. Your people would have been hurt. You still don't say anything. Instead, you reach out for Lena and Jakob, collapsing into them. [[... -> Good Ending]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This is a repeated footnote, but really, there isn't anything hugely important to note in this passage. It leads to a good ending, and I wrote it as one of the redemption arcs of sorts for Oliver because it's just nice to see sometimes when a recklass character can understand his mistakes and try to fix them.")

TIME: 1935 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- You drop the bottle. It shatters at your feet, harmless (unless some unlucky drunk decides to collapse on the shards). The protester stares in belief. (cycling-link:"'//Feiger Hund//","'//Cowardly dog//"). Go take your barking elsewhere.' He spits at you, turning away without a second glance. Maybe he's right. Maybe he's not. You've seen these things before. You've seen how they can end. You can't lose yourself to this. You just can't. Lena and Jakob are still out there, waiting for you. You promised to them that you wouldn't get involved and you can't just break that promise. You need to get back to them. You turn away from the flames and head down an alley, the noise fading like feedback. [[Find your bandmates -> Escape Alley2]] [[Walk alone into the smoke -> Aftermath reflection]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This passage is in no way historical. There isn't any information at all of things that were said by the actual rioters during the riot-- any actual quotes mentioned in sources mostly come from authority. For that German phrase, I genuinely just looked up 'worst German insults' and went with it. Literary passage!")

You run into the chaos, feeling Lena weakly try and grasp the back of your shirt. Jakob mutters under his breath: "There he goes again." The moment that you leave the alleyway, you are immediately consumed by the chaos. There are people fighting and scrabbling, trying to get to the police. You watch as some cut it slightly too close to the fires. Suddenly, someone screams and you others scream in fear. You turn towards the source of the scream and through burning barriers you see someone. It's the journalist from the street whose name you never got. They're lying on the ground, flames hungrily eating away at their clothing. They don’t scream as they reach out their arm to a boy, a boy you recognize in the back of your mind as someone you've seen-- it's the boy who handed you the flag. The one who encouraged you to participate in this. He's already dead--burned, burning, charring away- Furthermore, the skin on their arm cracks, breaks, and bleeds. They show no reaction however, desperate to save the boy. You can't stand to just watch them burning up, but you also know that you need to leave now so you must make a split-second decision: [[Pull them out -> Pre-Pre Aftermath Riot/hospital talk pov]] [[Leave Now -> Pre-Pre Aftermath Riot 2.0]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This is a purely literary passage that leads to the ending for this passage sequence. I wrote this passage as just a way to make my two archetypes, and my third secret-scrapped archetype, Altan, intersect in their stories. In the most formal way I can say this: I did it for fun.")

NEXT DAY; 1200 LOCATION: HOSPITAL --------- You wake up in a fit of coughs, burning at your lungs and scratching your throat. You find yourself in the ICU waiting room at the (cycling-link:"Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin","one of the best hospitals in Berlin") hospital. The chair you were sleeping in causes you to wake up with an uncomfortable crick in your back and neck, and your legs have gone numb from sleeping while sitting. ---- Last night, after you had pulled that person from the fire, you had immediately found Lena and Jakob, by some chance of luck, and begged them to help you and the person. With no time to go back to the apartment to grab Jakob's car, he had broken the window of a car on the side of the street and hot-wired it, using it to get to the hospital. Figuring that the general hospital in Kreuzberg may not have any time to immediately treat the person, Jakob floored it and drove you and the person to the nearest and best hospital. There, you told Lena and Jakob to stick around as they were admitted to the ER and you were checked out for your injuries-- to which you will be okay as you didn't suffer any burns. This morning, the person, Irie Hibiki as you find out, was transfered to the ICU and you were allowed to stay as Irie has no immediate family in Germany. ---- You stand up and leave the waiting room, going to go check on Irie (you had decided that maybe sleeping in the room of a stranger wouldn't be the best idea lest they wake up and get scared). Entering the room, you see Irie lying on the hospital bed, attatched to tubes and machines. A tube runs through their nose and a mechanical ventilator covers their mouth and fills the room with the steady sound of air rushing. Several other tubes and lines are linked to their body-- administrating and monitoring fluids. Most of their body is wrapped in dressing and gauze, one arm now a stump of just bandages. Lost to the fire like many other things. The family already contacted Irie's family overseas and you heard that they will be arriving on Monday. Knowing that you've done the most that you can, you go to take your leave. "Thank you... for saving me." You turn around and see that Irie is looking at you, head moved barely an inch to look at you the best they can. You're no saviour. You just did what you did was right. You walk out. [[... -> ending 1]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ For the sentence 'as they were admitted to the ER', it might be a bit confusing but for Irie's character, I gave them they/them pronouns as I really never established or decided exactly what gender I wanted to assign to them. So, that 'they' isn't referring to Lena and Jakob but rather to Lena. I believe that nothing I wrote here is historical, or at least I cannot prove it. I was unable to find any details on the nature of injuries that happened that night, just that there were people that had been injured. However, I decided to take the detail of things being set on fire and that at some points firefighters struggled to control the fires breaking out that it is plausible to assume there were some fire related injuries. Information on burn treatment that helped me write a character with burn injuries are listed below. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html. Curling, Carl A., and Samantha Todd. 'The Burn Injury Severity Profile.' In Parameters for Estimation of Casualties from First and Third Degree Flash Burns, 9-18. Institute for Defense Analyses, 2017. http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep22792.7. Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. 'Burn Hospital Treatment.' Britannica. Last modified September 15, 2025. Accessed October 7, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/science/burn/Hospital-treatment. Gauglitz, Gerd G., Felicia N. Williams, and Kathryn A. Collins. 'Overview of the management of the severely burned patient.' Edited by Marc G. Jeschke. UpToDate. Last modified July 25, 2025. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/overview-of-the-management-of-the-severely-burned-patient. Warby, Rachel, and Christopher V. Maani. 'Burn Classification.' National Library of Medicine. Last modified September 26, 2023. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK539773/.")

Feeling the intensity of the heat that is already beginning to overheat your skin, you decide that if you try to run through fire and try and save them, you'll probably end up burning up just like them on the streets. It's not worth it and there's nothing you can do for them. You turn away and close your eyes, trying to erase the image from your mind but you know that it'll haunt your dreams anyways. As much as you try, no matter how much you try, you will never be able to be the person you want to be: a saviour. Sometimes, it's not worth it. Right now, you need to go find Lena and Jakob, and you desperately need to apologize to them. [[Go find Lena and Jakob -> Escape Alley2]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ Really, there isn't anything hugely important to note in this passage. It leads to a good ending, and I wrote it as a redemption arc of sorts for Oliver because it's just nice to see sometimes when a recklass character can understand his mistakes and try to fix them.")

NEXT DAY; 0600 -------- Morning creeps in, pale and silent. Burned cars line the street. A police line holds back what’s left of the crowd-- that being few elderly people in the process of being arrested. You step over a broken guitar- yours maybe. Your voice is gone. Your spirit too, to some degree. Already, news articles, magazines, and papers have been written. In it, the paper calls you //the spark//. You wonder if they’re right. Lena won’t meet your eyes. Jakob won’t talk to you. You do the same. Some revolutions end in fire. Others in silence. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This passage is historical in the incredibly brief description of the aftermath. Other than that, it's just a tragic, literary ending. Descriptions for the aftermath of the riot come from these sources. o van Bebber, Werner. “May 1, 1987 in Berlin: Trail of Cobblestones.” Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 2, 2017. Accessed September 25, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/spur-der-pflastersteine-6309901.html. o LA Times Archive, 'Opponents of W. German Census Riot in Berlin, Causing Heavy Damage; 100 Hurt,' Los Angeles Times, last modified May 3, 1987, accessed October 6, 2025, https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-05-03-mn-8684-story.html?.")

TIME: 2000 LOCATION: BACK ALLEY -------- The alley reeks of smoke and sweat, threatening to choke you and pull you under into the grimy shadows that control Kreuzberg. Lena and Jakob are there, waiting. Waiting for you as you as they always have. "I'm sorry." You whisper, guilty. "I didn't mean to run off-- in the chaos I forgot. I could think. I'm sorry." Lena shakes her head, grabbing your wrists. "It doesn't matter anymore Oliver. You're safe. We both know that you're safe now. That's all that matters Oliver. We're all safe now and we need to go." [[... -> Good Ending]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This is a repeated footnote, but really, there isn't anything hugely important to note in this passage. It leads to a good ending, and I wrote it as one of the redemption arcs of sorts for Oliver because it's just nice to see sometimes when a reckless character can understand his mistakes and try to fix them.")

THE NEXT DAY; 0600 ------------ You sit on a rooftop as dawn breaks over the grey city. Below, Kreuzberg smolders – in your hands, a tape recorder sits, still whirring. You caught it all: the chants, the screams, the sound of a city tearing itself open. In the morning light, the events of destruction can both be seen and heard. Many shops had been raided and destroyed. A whole train station is currently shut down due to vandalism. A grocery store was set on fire-- on a whim of some arsonist. In the distance, you can see the few groups of police slowly gathering away the barriers, freeing the area. You whisper, voice hoarse from the constant screaming and from the amounts of (cycling-link:"tear gas","a mix of chemicals that are used to temporarily incapacitate by causing intense irritation in the resperatory system. However, it may lead to permanent and fatal damage.") you had inhaled, to the tape, “They’ll hear us someday," before throwing it down into the alley. It clatters down onto the ground and you're sure that from this height it's probably broken now. It's a would be a miracle if it wasn't. Either way, it'll probably be swept off as trash. Just like everything else in this district. You sit at the edge for a moment, staring down at the drop. The air beneath your feet is tempting. There's nothing left for you here anyways. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This is a neutral bad ending? I tried to be ambiguous with this ending but alas, I think it can be interpreted pretty obviously what happens. This ending passage is fairly historical. It reflects a lot on things that actually happened. I think that's something I just decided to start doing--making my endings very informative I mean. I feel like it's a good way to round off what was a mostly literary Twine with a passage that basically pure information. Information about the destruction of Kreuzberg and the mention of tear gas come from this source: Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

TIME: 2000 LOCATION: THE STREET -------- You promised them that the police couldn’t burn away their voice-- but as the riot goes down and more bottles are thrown, as franticness arises, the voices die down. They die in the throats of their dying owners. The police are efficient in corraling the people on the street like herding dogs to a flock of wild sheep. They release tear gas into the area, and many begin to collapse, their screaming, yelling, and protesting making it easier for the gas to pervade their lungs. The fires that previously illuminated you and others disappear, darkening the streets. You stand there, fear rising in you as people fall around you- succumbing to painful death, near-death, or arrest under the force of batons. Just like you always have, you run. [[... -> Aftermath reflection]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This passage is historical in the information of how police were able to control the riot and cause it to die down and ultimately stop. Any information I mention comes from this source: Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

YEARS LATER ----------- It's been several years since that fateful night. Ben's Rupture still remains a band, and you all have yet to disband-- not that you think it ever will happen unless one of you dies. Kreuzberg seems to be on a pathway for urban renewal, with newer more structurally sound buildings being erected everyday. However, this doesn't mean all the struggles of Kreuzberg have ended. The urban renewal projects have lead to many Kreuzberg citizens to continue living in old worn down buildings to prevent its destruction. You, Lena, and Jakob are a few of these peoples. A couple years ago, the elderly man who owned the building passed away-- and in his will he passed the building on to you. As new buildings are built on the rubble of the old, the rent of Kreuzberg skyrockets. Kreuzberg is on a predetermined path to become a gentrified neighbourhood soon. However, on the bright side, the SO36 has improved. A few years after the building was cleared by police on the riot night, it was renovated and reopened-- now being a legitimate venue once more where you and your band frequently play now. Life is pretty fine now, and you hope that it will stay that way. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ I noticed though that a lot of the endings lead to this good ending, and it's really untentional-- but I guess that subconsciously that because I decided to write a lot of bad endings for the other archetype that Oliver is the balance. For the approach to writing this ending however, I decided to go with a more straightfoward, informative (almost?) passage. When writing this Twine, there were a lot of just straight literary passages For the general description of Kreuzberg post-riot, it was inspired from reading this source Hurard, Lucie. 'History of the Kreuzberg district in Berlin.' CITEGO. Last modified 2008. Accessed November 4, 2025. https://www.citego.org/bdf_fiche-document-2427_en.html. Information about the SO36 post-riot is from this source: Beattie, Aaron. 'SO36 A History of Berlin's Iconic Music Venues.' Love From Berlin. Last modified February 5, 2018. Accessed October 7, 2025. http://www.lovefromberlin.net/so36/.")

TIME: 0200 LOCATION: HOME -------- You slowly make your way home, arriving at the apartment a couple hours later. You spent some time just wandering the street upon arriving back in Kreuzberg just to witness the damage. In the light of day, the events of destruction can both be seen and heard. Many shops had been raided and destroyed. A whole train station is currently shut down due to vandalism. A grocery store was set on fire-- on a whim of some arsonist. In the distance, you can see the few groups of police slowly gathering away the barriers, freeing the area. In all honesty, you were delaying your arrival back at home-- if you will even be allowed to call it that anymore. You're scared if you will find your things outside, telling you you're no longer welcome. You're scared to go back and find Lena and Jakob made and no longer willing to live you anymore. You're scared to them abandoning you. You're just scared. So incredibly scared of losing your family again. You trudge up the apartment building's stairs, arriving on the top floor where your shared apartment is. You see that your things aren't outside so you walk up to the door and tentatively knock. //knock, knock, knock// You hear a crash and a semi-loud thud that concerns you for a moment until the door in front of you flies open. Lena stands there, in front of you, hair frazzled and pajamas crumpled. She collapses into you, wrapping her arms and holding on tight. "You're back. I'm so glad you're back." You stand there frozen, unsure who to respond. "...You're not mad?" "No, no of course not. Jakob respects your decision and I'm so proud of you. We're so glad you're safe and back now." You reciprocate Lena's embrace, relieved that everything will be alright. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This passage is only semi-historical. The description of Kreuzberg is the only part of this passage that is actually reflective of the event and it's aftermath while everything else is simply literary. The description of Kreuzberg post-riot comes from the first source listed below, while the brief description of Irie's rehabilitation comes from the second source. Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html. Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. 'Burn Hospital Treatment.' Britannica. Last modified September 15, 2025. Accessed October 7, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/science/burn/Hospital-treatment.")

THE NEXT DAY; 0900 ----------- Kreuzberg is quiet. You walk through the rubble past slogans smeared on the walls in hasty spray paint: "No Future", "One Struggle", "Oliver Lies". The last one, you recognize the signature graffiti style of none other than Jakob. You hang your head. You're just another foreigner now-- one who thought noise could change the world. Maybe it still can. Maybe not. But you're no longer the person to be doing that. You don't know if your voice will ever be heard again. What you do know now is that it's time to move on and start somewhere else. You convince yourself that you're not running away, just that there's nothing left here for you anymore. Maybe you'll sneak onto a boat to the USA and find something there for you to start. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ If you couldn't tell, this is the worst of worst endings. Oliver's story is based off this reading, with his character really just being a generalization of one of the archetypes of being a musician (particularly an unsuccessful and suffering one). Oliver is an archetype to explore music being powerful in politics and Germany in general. Timothy S. Brown, 'Music as a Weapon? 'Ton Steine Scherben' and the Politics of Rock in Cold War Berlin,' German Studies Review 32, no. 1 (2009): [Page #], http://www.jstor.org/stable/27668653.")

You wake up in a fit of coughs, burning at your lungs and scratching your throat. You find yourself in the ICU at the (cycling-link:"Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin","one of the best hospitals in Berlin") hospital. There's a respirator running through your nose and a mechanical ventilator covers your mouth, filling the room with the steady sound of air rushing. You can feel that several other tubes and lines are linked to your body-- administrating and monitoring fluids. Most of your body is wrapped in dressing and gauze. You try to lift your arm to scratch at your face, but you find that your arm is just a stump of bandages. You blink. Once, twice, before opening your eyes. You see that Oliver is leaving your room and your mind is connecting the dots. (cycling-link:"...助けてくれてありがとう","Thank you for saving me.") You close your eyes again, going back to sleep. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹This is a purely literary passage that leads to the ending for this passage sequence. There are no sources on exactly what injuries or fatalities occured so I am assuming that due to the instance of fire, that it is plausible to assume that at least some people were injured due to fire. Information that I referenced for the burn treatments come from these sources. Furthermore, I chose to have Irie speak in Japanese because of the concept of bilingual code-switching which I thought would be a fun element to add. Curling, Carl A., and Samantha Todd. 'The Burn Injury Severity Profile.' In Parameters for Estimation of Casualties from First and Third Degree Flash Burns, 9-18. Institute for Defense Analyses, 2017. http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep22792.7. Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. 'Burn Hospital Treatment.' Britannica. Last modified September 15, 2025. Accessed October 7, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/science/burn/Hospital-treatment. Gauglitz, Gerd G., Felicia N. Williams, and Kathryn A. Collins. 'Overview of the management of the severely burned patient.' Edited by Marc G. Jeschke. UpToDate. Last modified July 25, 2025. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/overview-of-the-management-of-the-severely-burned-patient. Warby, Rachel, and Christopher V. Maani. 'Burn Classification.' National Library of Medicine. Last modified September 26, 2023. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK539773/. Williams, Aya, Mahesh Srinivasan, Chang Liu, Pearl Lee, and Qing Zhou. 'Why do bilingual code-switch when emotional?' National Library of Medicine. Last modified August 1, 2020. Accessed October 22, 2025. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6745004/. ")

TIME: 2005 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- You see someone fall down on the side of the street, near to where you're standing next to a broken shop front. There unresponsive as people run over them, trampling their limbs. You hear a loud crunching sound a boot lands on the inside fold of their elbow. They scream and jerk and you react. You rush over, trying to grab their armpits and haul them out of the street but they begin to thrash. They scream and claw at you. You still try to drag them out of the street and it feels like an hour, and your back screams at you for putting such a force on it but eventually you are able to drag them out of the street. You look up and see that there are many others like the one you just saved and there are others that look like they need help despite not having collapsed yet. You steel yourself, comitting yourself to this task as you spend the night trying to help those that you can even when the police come in and finally end the riot in the early hours of the next day. ------ You saved many people that day, so many so that when you pay Kreuzberg a visit to see the aftermath of the riot, they know who you are. They don't know your name but they call you a //guardian angel//. You are so new to this community, yet from one (or several) acts of kindness you are welcomed. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 I'm not sure if this passage particularly requires a footnote, but it is completely unhistorical as there are no particular sources on the nature of injuries and casualities that I could find about the Kreuzberg Riot. Everything that I wrote here is purely literary as an ending.")

TIME: 2005 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- You see someone fall down on the side of the street, near to where you're standing next to a broken shop front. There unresponsive as people run over them, trampling their limbs. You hear a loud crunching sound a boot lands on the inside fold of their elbow. They scream and jerk and you react. You rush over, trying to grab their armpits and haul them out of the street but they begin to thrash. They scream and claw at you. You still try to drag them out of the street but you don't notice when their hand finds particularly large shard of broken window glass. They swing their arm out at you in an unseeable blur and you feel something in your throat. You drop the person, grabbing at your neck and you feel that the glass is now embedded into your throat. You drop down beside them, choking on your own blood. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 I'm not sure if this passage particularly requires a footnote, but it is completely unhistorical as there are no particular sources on the nature of injuries and casualities that I could find about the Kreuzberg Riot. Everything that I wrote here is purely literary as an ending.")

Do your German homework! What is "How do you like" in German? [[Computerspiele spielen -> Incorrect!]] [[Im internet surfen -> Incorrect!!]] [[Telefonieren -> Incorrect!!!]] [[Wie findest du...? -> Correct!!!]]

[[Try again! ->Homework!]]

What is "to travel"? [[Reisen -> Correct!]] [[Fahren -> Wrong]] [[Diskutieren -> Wrong!!!]] [[Gehen -> Wrong!!]]

What is "to study"? [[Lernen -> False]] [[Machen -> False!!]] [[Arbeiten -> False !]] [[Studieren -> Correct!!]]

[[Try again! ->Homework!]]

[[Give up? -> Given Up]] [[Try again? ->Homework!]]

TIME: 0530 LOCATION: APARTMENT 201 --------- You finished your studying! You triumphantly set down your pencil, proud of yourself for finishing your homework. Looking over at your alarm clock, you see that only roughly 20 minutes were consumed for studying. You still have a lot of time, and aren't behind schedule at all. You stand up and stretch, before going to get dressed and leave. [[Head to school? -> School]] [[Go to Kreuzberg district -> Kreuzberg arrival]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Ok so, this passage sequence isn't actually significant in any way. I only made this so it will be more interact and hopefully a bit more fun? I know that when making a Twine I tend to make it a bit lengthy, so if I give the player the opportunity to still play something interactive but like-- without the reading, it will add interest to my Twine? I guess? But yeah, this was just solely for fun. This is the flashcard set I used: https://quizlet.com/300188987/german-verbs-flash-cards/.]")

[[Give up? -> Given Up]] [[Try again? ->Homework!]]

[[Give up? -> Given Up]] [[Try again?->Homework!]]

You sigh in frusteration when you check your answers and you got it wrong. Verbs and common question phrases... the bane of your existence. You set down your pencil, promising to yourself that you'll study up later and for now you want to get on leaving. With a bit of self-disappointment in yourself, you get up and stretch a bit before going to get changed and leave your apartment. [[Go to school? -> School]] [[Go to Kreuzberg -> Kreuzberg arrival]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Ok so, this passage sequence isn't actually significant in any way. I only made this so it will be more interact and hopefully a bit more fun? I know that when making a Twine I tend to make it a bit lengthy, so if I give the player the opportunity to still play something interactive but like-- without the reading, it will add interest to my Twine? I guess? But yeah, this was just solely for fun. Also, depending on which questions you got wrong, I wanted to force players into a loop (you can choose to just give up after you get the first two questions correct) which is something that happens a lot to me in games with choice decisions. However, obviously players are completely forced as they can just go back passages but, again, just for fun. This is the flashcard set I used: https://quizlet.com/300188987/german-verbs-flash-cards/.]")

TIME: 1200 LOCATION: APARTMENT 201 --------- You wake up with a jolt, your head leaving the pillow faster than it ever hits it after a late night. You blink at the alarm clock, trying to find its time. Upon seeing it, panic overrides any further thought. When did you go back to sleep? How did you let yourself sleep in so long? You throw off your blankets, causing some of them to land on the floor, and rush into the bathroom to get ready. Brush teeth. Smooth down hair. You run back into your room and haphazardly throw on an outfit and grab your school bag, shoving in some of the pencils and paper laying around on your table from last nights... whatever it was you were doing last night. You look again at your alarm clock. 12:10 it reads. You have class at 12:45, why you ever decided to take an early class is unbeknownst to you. You rush out of the door, briefly glancing at your fridge in a moment's debate of 'food? no food.' before you leave. As you lock your door and head down the stairwell, your plans for the day, marked on your calendar, remain forgotten. [[Arrive at school -> Humanities 2.0 (ending)]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 Like many of my other passages starting out for Irie, this is a purely literary passage. However, one thing that it does do that is important and also factors into why I created this passage is that it sets up the player to reach one of the other, more undesirable endings. It just moves the player along basically.]")

As your class ends, you check you watch to see what time it is. It reads to you 3pm. Still a bit frazzled at your rushed morning, you decide to to just go home and rest. ------- You wake up the next day, and see on your calendar that yesterday you meant to go see the May Day protest. A bit frusterated at yourself, you check the news to see if there's any information on the protest. The news retells the event, the violence, the noise, the chaos. Yeah... you can still write about this. You watch the rest of the news report and when it's over, you get up to head out to the Kreuzberg district to survey the aftermath. Packing your bag with your notebook, some pens, and your camera, you head out to see what you can capture. It takes some time, as any public transport near the area is currently closed due to the riot, so you have to bike there-- which is, admittedly, a strenuous task as you've been relying on public transport for a while. When you're there, you see that police are still milling about. Some squatters and other pedestrians watch cautiously from alleyways, from inside stores, and from sidewalks. There's debris and shattered glass everywhere, clearly some buildings were either looted by rioters, or cleared by the police. There's trash everywhere too. On some parts of the street, you can see there's dark splotches-- official fatality and injury counts have yet to be released so you push that to the back of your mind. You watch as some of the police officers begin to clear away some of the barriers surrounding Heinrichplatz, some of which are darkened and misshappen. You remember that the news reported there were some fires that broke out. Clearly, some rioters set the barricades on fire. You raise your camera up to your face to take a picture of the scene. It'll serve as evidence to the event's aftermath. You debate trying to talk to one of the squatters standing at the opening of the alleyway next to you, but when you look over at them, they immediately avert their eyes and retreat into the alleyway. As some areas of the street are beginning to be fully cleared, the squatters in that area too begin to disappear. It doesn't seem like anyone will be willing to tell you what happened, but that's fine. You watch for a moment longer, take a few more photos, and jot down some observations. After, you head back home. Since you don't have enough information to write any good articles, you decide to just compile the information you do have into your research journal. You'll try to go again next year. Although you don't think it'll be as violent and chaotic as it was ever again. [[End -> Start]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage is one of the more 'neutral-bad' endings. While I have a lot of passage sequences set up to block the player from getting to the main timeline. However, to a certain point this passage is still partially historically accurate. While this isn't one of the main endings, I still wanted it to reach an ending that happened historically and such thing is to do with news reports and what people reported after the event. The descriptions that are in this passage are pulled from this source: Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.]")

TIME: 2000 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- The flag flies beind you, it's weight close to dragging you down if you're not careful enough. On the heavy pole, the German flag flies upside down-- a sign of protest and disatisfaction from all the people lining the streets. You hoist the flag higher up in the air, causing people to scream louder, cheering your name. Every moment that you ran around, with the flag hoisted in the air and the people follwoing you, the riot only escalated. More stones and bricks were thrown, more fires broke out, and the police only started to push back harder. Suddenly, someone tears the flag out of your hands and you're dragged out of the streets, dragged away from the protest. You watch as the flag lands on the ground, and is trampled by countless people. You're dragged into an alleyway and you turn around to see Lena and Jakob there, seeing that Lena had been waiting, looking scared and worried, while Jakob was the one to pull you in as he takes a moment to let go of you. "What are you doing out there?" Lena exclaims. "You promised you wouldn't get involved. You promised that you wouldn't do anything reckless! Why do you have to get involved in this Oliver?" "I- you don't understand Lena. You- I have to do this Lena. I have to alright." "What don't I understand Oliver? Why can't you just understand that I want you safe? Why can't you understand that we want you safe?" "I-" You're cut off by the sound of someone screaming, not the loud, rough scream but one of fear. Lena looks at you, immediately understanding what you're planning on doing. "No. You don't have to go Oliver. This isn't your fight." [[Help them -> Pre-Aftermath riot]] or [[Stay with Lena. Tell her she's right -> Good Ending]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This passage has no actual historical accuracy for the context of the event. For the detail about the flag, it is based off the American protest practice that has been popping up recently where protesters will fly the American flag upside down, originially a martime practice, now a symbol of protest-- being a signal of dire distress in instance of extreme danger to life or property. This is a fairly recent practice, not being even a century old, and I think this only really applies or has been seen in the US so this was just a creative choice. Vile, John R. 'Flying Flag Upside Down.' Free Speech Center. Last modified May 20, 2024. Accessed November 5, 2025. https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/article/flying-flag-upside-down/. ")

The alley reeks of smoke and sweat, threatening to choke you and pull you under into the grimy shadows that control Kreuzberg. Lena and Jakob are there, waiting. Waiting for you as you as they always have. "I'm sorry." You whisper, guilty. "I didn't mean to run off-- in the chaos I forgot. I could think. I'm sorry." Lena shakes her head, grabbing your wrists. "It doesn't matter anymore Oliver. You're safe. We both know that you're safe now. That's all that matters Oliver. We're all safe now and we need to go." [[... -> Good Ending]] (cycling-link:"♫"," ♫ This is a repeated footnote, but really, there isn't anything hugely important to note in this passage. It leads to a good ending, and I wrote it as a redemption arc of sorts for Oliver because it's just nice to see sometimes when a recklass character can understand his mistakes and try to fix them.")

For my Twine, 1987: The Kreuzberg Riot, I knew that I wanted to explore radical punk scenes—specifically riots. Thus, when looking around, I had googled “popular European punk riots” and the Kreuzberg May Day Riot intrigued me the most. At first, I had decided to do three different timelines that covered an archetype within three different May Day riots across the world. However, due to the differences in time I had decided to do two archetypes that were vastly different but covering the same event. Based on the articles I read, which weren’t very helpful, I wanted to create an experience that made you feel like you were genuinely part of the event. When it came to researching the Kreuzberg Riot, there really weren’t any sort of personal accounts of the event. So, what I had decided to do was that one character would be a journalist and their story would directly reflect the sources considering that most of the sources that I used were news articles. Then, for my second archetype, I wanted to create an experience that was a lot more creative in a sense. I wanted the Kreuzberg Riot to not seem like the only event that happened in their life, but simply one of the many things they have experienced during their life. The highlights of making this Twine really were in doing the research that game with it. It was interesting learning what happened, especially since it was such a severe event that happened across the world. Furthermore, while this doesn’t have to do with the riot itself, I really enjoyed finding and reading medical articles about burn injuries and treatments so I could write some of the archetype endings. The things that turned out well were Oliver’s archetype timeline. I really enjoyed writing his story and completing it in a way that I was happy about. However, when it comes to things that I could have developed better was the entire Twine really. When it came to the original idea of my Twine, I had had three archetypes. However, due to a lack of time and ability to fully develop my Twine, I ended up having to cut and shorten many things in the Twine. Furthermore, an issue I had was the fact that a lot of the twine was literary, and it also seems like I didn’t use all the sources that I have listed. However, what occurred was that I consumed a lot of information about the event, from the range of the location to the culture, to the politics so I could write a meaningful archetype. When it comes to how connected my Twine is to the historical evidence, it’s partially difficult to pin down. Due to the fact that I chose to do an archetype rather than an actual person, and because there are no personal accounts of the event, I had to come up with a lot of events from reading other sources and piecing together what would seem like an actual person living their life. [[Back -> Start]]

TIME: 0645 LOCATION: CAFÉ --------- You take your drink and leave, thanking him for making it. You hold it in your hands to feel the heat of it in slight chilliness of the May morning. Since you have a lot of time to kill, you walk around Kottbusser Tor for the time being, staying in the area and in the areas around it, admiring the culture there. The district isn't pristine in any way. There's graffiti, stray trash, and few people lying on the ground and sleeping. However, it's diverse. Punks and Turkish immigrants exist on the streets. Some people walk with purpose, on their way to whatever it is they need to get done for the day, while others linger and hang out on benches. The scenes amaze you. -------- TIME: 1930 LOCATION: THE STREET --------- The riot has begun, and it's loud and dangerous. People are throwing stones and screaming at police, lighting fires and starting fights. You're mostly trying to stay off to the sides and document the event, but there have been times where you've harrowingly avoided getting dragged in by people pushing forward, or avoided getting hit by stone, or dodged getting spotted by police lest they assume you are also a rioter. Suddenly, you see a bottle set afire fly from the middle the crowd and crash into a set of barriers, causing them to light on fire. People scream and push each other, causing some people to fall down and frantically try to scramble away from the flames. Suddenly, you see a teenage boy fall down and catch on fire. You recognize him. It's the boy from the café. It's Altan. [[Help him -> Injury 2.0]] (cycling-link: "(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[𖦹]","(text-colour:#a5d8ff)[ 𖦹 This passage is historical in the information of how police were able to control the riot and cause it to die down and ultimately stop.It is also historical in the information about how the rioters were protesting, with the things they threw and such. Any information I mention comes from this source: Conrad, Andreas, and Carmen Schucker. 'Review May 1, 1987: Hail of stones over Kreuzberg.' Tagesspiegel. Last modified May 1, 2014. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.tagesspiegel.de/berlin/bezirke/steinhagel-uber-kreuzberg-8145370.html.")

(either:"[[escape the fire and go home injured -> succumb to wounds later]]","[[miraculously you and altan are pulled out of the fire -> huzzah]]","[[you are saved, and recovering in the hospital -> hospital talk]]")