Brussels Vortex - Grand-Place 1927

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<<widget "monHUD">><span class="vortex-hud"><<if $where == "there">>📌 On location. <</if>><<if $where == "away">>🚀 Express game. <</if>><<set _loot to "">><<if $vetements == "1927">><<set _loot += " 🧥">><</if>><<if $argent == "oui">><<set _loot += " 💸">><</if>><<if $carnet == "oui">><<set _loot += " 📔">><</if>><<if $medaillon == "oui">><<set _loot += " 🪙">><</if>><<if _loot != "">><<=_loot>><<else>>You have nothing.<</if>><<if $tempsPerdu > 0>> ⚠️<</if>></span> <</widget>>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "amigo">><<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><<run setup.sifflet.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/13EN.webp" alt="Card 13"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">The Amigo</div><p><em>"What on earth are you wearing? Headed to a costume party or something?"</em></p><p>The police officer handcuffs you and pushes you unceremoniously into a cell at the Amigo.</p><p>An ironic name, since the Amigo is still a functioning prison in this early 20th century. (In your time, it will have become a luxury hotel welcoming world celebrities…)</p><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><<if $argent == "oui">><<set $argent to "non">><<set $vetements to "1927">><<set $progression += 1>><p>The policeman takes your money, muttering that it’ll do for now. In exchange, he hands you old inmate clothes 🧥. You put them on without complaint and head out, crossing the Town Hall courtyard and the Grand-Place, before reaching a busy street.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|12]]</div><<else>><<set $tempsPerdu += 1>><p>⚠️ With no money, you can’t buy your freedom—it costs you precious time.</p><p>Hours later, the policeman lets you go:</p><p><em>"Don't let me see you again in those rags!"</em></p><p>You walk through the Town Hall courtyard, the Grand-Place, and rue des Harengs, looking so shaken that a young passerby stops to check on you.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|15]]</div><</if>></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "herbes">><<set $vuedgar to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/15EN.webp" alt="Card 15"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Rue du Marché-aux-Herbes</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>The young man listens intently as you tell your story.</p><p><em>"From the future? Like in Wells’ <em>The Time Machine</em>? Ha! Ha! That’s a good one!" he laughs. "Allow me to introduce myself: Edgar Jacobs, apprentice opera singer. If you want to tell your tall tales to Albert Einstein or the scientists here in Brussels, I’d suggest the terrace of the Monico. As for me, I’m meeting a friend—she’s a fossil specialist, and she’s got an extraordinary story of her own!"</em></p><<if $vutract != "oui">><<include "34">><<set $vutract to "oui">><</if>><div class="choix">[[Go to the Monico|30]] [[Go with Edgar|19]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "herbes">><<set $vuedgar to true>><<set $vetements to "1927">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/12EN.webp" alt="Card 12"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Rue du Marché-aux-Herbes</div><<if $where == "there">> <<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>You carry on in your coarse, scratchy clothes 🧥—not exactly comfortable.</p><p>The flower seller is gone—you won’t be able to talk to her anymore.</p><p>In front of you, a young newspaper vendor waves the latest edition of <em>Le Soir</em>.</p><p>Nearby, a friendly-looking young man introduces himself:<br/><em>"Hello, my name is Edgar. Is everything alright?"</em></p><p>A large poster nearby announces the release of the film <em>Metropolis</em>.</p><div class="choix"><<if $argent == "oui">>[[Buy a newspaper from the child|14]]<</if>><<if $argent == "non">><span class="bonus">You have no money: you can't buy the newspaper.</span><</if>>[[Talk to Edgar|15]] [[Find out about the film|23]]</div></div></div>

<div class="bonus"><p><strong>🌟 You're playing on location.</strong></p><p>To get an additional clue, look among the houses on the Grand-Place for the one called<em> In den Vos</em>. When you've found it, click on the number that corresponds to it:</p><div class="choix"> [[03|80]][[05|80]][[07|07]][[13|80]][[19|80]][[21|80]]</div> <p style="margin-top:1em;"><em>Otherwise, you can also:</em></p></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/welcome.webp" alt="Welcome to Brussels Vortex"><div id="texte" lang="en"><p><strong>Brussels Vortex is usually played with a 54-card deck.</strong></p><p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/packshot-en.webp" alt="The card game"> This version lets you play solo or with others, right on your smartphone. <strong>Not in Brussels?</strong> Try a quick 10-minute express game 🚀. <strong>On location?</strong> 📌 Unlock bonus clues and enjoy a playful 45–60 minute walk through the city’s history—starting at the Grand-Place. <div class="choix"><<link "📌 I'm at the Grand-Place in Brussels">><<run fetch("https://babeleur.be/bv/tracker_surplace_en.php", { method: "POST" })>><<goto "02">><</link>> <<link "🚀 I'm somewhere else">><<run fetch("https://babeleur.be/bv/tracker_express_en.php", { method: "POST" })>><<goto "03">><</link>></div> <small>ℹ️ For stats only, we log your country, IP, date and time—fully anonymous, no personal data collected.</small></p></div></div>

<<set $where to "there">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/02EN.webp" alt="Card 02"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">📌 On Location</div><p>You’ve chosen the best way to experience <em>Brussels Vortex</em>. You’ll follow the story through the streets of Brussels, moving from one scene to the next every 2 or 3 minutes—with step-by-step directions to guide you.</p><p><strong>This version includes bonus clues, marked with a 🌟.</strong> Use them—they might just help you unlock the mystery!</p><p>You can pause the game anytime and continue at your own pace—at a café terrace, for instance!</p><p><em><strong>For the best experience (especially during peak tourist season), we recommend playing in the morning.</strong></em></p><div class="choix">[[Start|03]]</div></div></div>

<<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><<run setup.gp.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/03EN.webp" alt="Card 03"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Grand-Place, Present Day</div><p>You’re admiring the Grand-Place’s stunning architecture when—suddenly—a blinding flash erupts around you.</p><p>You feel disoriented—your head buzzing, your vision blurring—until your senses slowly return.</p><p>Something feels off. The passersby, the smells, the temperature… it’s as if two films were playing over each other. A strange light shimmers in the air.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|04]]</div></div></div>

<<set $curloc to "grandplace">><<set $tempsPerdu to 0>><<set $argent to "non">><<set $carnet to "non">><<set $medaillon to "non">><<set $vetements to "2025">><<set $vutract to "non">><<run setup.eclair.play()>><<run setup.cheval.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/04EN.webp" alt="Card 04"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Grand-Place</div><p>Thunder, strange clothes, carts pulled by horses… a flower seller waiting for customers. No doubt—you’ve been thrown into the past.</p><p>But when? Why? And how do you get back? People are staring—clearly, your 21st-century clothes don’t go unnoticed.</p><p>Suddenly, an angry voice rises from a corner of the square.</p><<if $where == "there">><<include "46">><</if>><div class="choix">[[Go see what the shouting is about|05]] [[Talk to the flower seller|06]] [[Get away from the stares|45]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "tserclaes">><<set $vutserclaes to true>><<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><<run setup.cri.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/05EN.webp" alt="Card 05"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">'t Serclaes Statue<<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>></div><p>A furious man in medieval armor brandishes a heavy sword—he seems determined to destroy the statue of Everard 't Serclaes, the city’s liberator in 1356. As he shouts and flails, a shiny object slips from his belt.</p><div class="choix">[[Pick up the object|47]] [[Step back and look for clues|45]] [[Talk to the flower seller|06]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "grandplace">><<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/06EN.webp" alt="Card 06"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Grand-Place</div><<if $where=="there">><<include Deplacement>><</if>><p>The flower seller is still trembling with emotion.</p><p><em>"Good heavens! Did I see that flash of light? 'Course I did! Must be those crazy scientists who just showed up in town..."</em></p><p>You’d like to question her further, but a hand firmly grabs your shoulder.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|13]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "harengs">><<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><<set $argent to "oui">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/45EN.webp" alt="Card 45"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Rue des Harengs</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>You catch your breath in a quiet alley, out of sight. From a window above, laundry flaps in the breeze—until a banknote 💸 flutters down and lands at your feet.</p><p>This money is now yours.</p><div class="choix">[[Go back to see the flower seller|06]] [[Steal the drying laundry|12]]<<if $where == "there">>[[🌟 Explore the surroundings|21]]<</if>></div></div></div>

<<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><<set $where to "away">>That's a wrong answer. You lose the benefit of playing on location.[[Resume|04]]

<<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/07EN.webp" alt="Card 07"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🕵️ An Unexpected Warning</div><p>Still shaken, you’re suddenly approached by a woman who throws herself at you.</p><p><em>"I saw it all! You’ve just arrived, haven’t you? Be careful—you stick out with those future clothes. Change as soon as you can. And spend as much time as possible on the Grand-Place. Search for clues, explore everything—that's where it all began, I'm sure of it! And don’t bother with Niels Bohr. He never tells me anything..."</em></p><p>Before you can reply, she vanishes into the crowd on <em>rue du Marché-au-Charbon</em>.</p><div class="choix">[[Go see what the shouting is about|05]] [[Talk to the flower seller|06]] [[Get away from the stares|45]]</div></div></div>

<<set $curloc to "tserclaes">><<set $medaillon to "oui">><<set $progression += 1>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/47EN.webp" alt="Card 47"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🪙 A Medallion</div><p>You find a metal medallion—clearly very old. It shows Saint Michael slaying the dragon, the legend behind the cathedral of Saint Michael and Saint Gudula, not far from here.</p><p>While you were picking it up, the mysterious man ran off. Even stranger—the statue has vanished! It’s as if it had never existed.</p><p>The flower seller is getting ready to leave.</p><div class="choix">[[Talk to the flower seller|06]] [[Get away and look for clues|45]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "herbes">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/21EN.webp" alt="Card 21"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Rue du Marché-aux-Herbes</div><<include "Deplacement">><p>The ruins of the Grande Boucherie, hidden behind a fence, have been waiting for reconstruction since their collapse in 1917…</p><p>An elegant man in his forties approaches you:</p><p><em>"Hello! I’m Michel Polak, architect. For years, proposals to replace these ruins have come and gone—but none succeeded. I’d like to build a commercial gallery here, to be called the New Palace. It would feature a beautiful arcade to shelter passersby from the rain. But… how many pilasters do you think we need?"</em> he asks, lost in thought.</p><p>Choose the ideal number of pilasters for Michel Polak’s future building (in your time, inaugurated in 1929, it will house the “Flanders Shop”):</p><div class="choix">[[7 pillars|81]] [[8 pillars|81]] [[10 pillars|10]] [[11 pillars|81]] [[12 pillars|81]]</div><p>Otherwise, you can also:</p><div class="choix">[[Go back|45]]</div></div></div>

<<set $vudate to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/14EN.webp" alt="Card 14"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🗞️ The Newspaper "Le Soir"</div><p>The child bursts out laughing when he sees your large bill:</p><p><em>"No way I’ve got change for that! But here—borrow it for free! Edgar, you'll get it back for me? I’m off to the Stock Exchange!"</em><br/>You learn it’s October 28, 1927—the second day of the Solvay Conference, which has brought Einstein, Curie, Bohr, Planck, and other physics giants to Brussels.<br/>Below the article, an ad catches your eye: titled <em>“She Dances the Charleston”</em>, its illustration is signed by René Magritte.<br/>And in a small box, an announcement promotes Fritz Lang’s spectacular new film, <em>Metropolis</em>.</p><div class="choix">[[Ask where to find Einstein|15]] [[Ask questions about Magritte|16]] [[Go to the cinema|23]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "agora">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/19EN.webp" alt="Card 19"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">In Front of the Agora</div><<if $where == "there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>Edgar stops in front of a wide entrance. In your time, it’s the entrance to a shopping gallery. But in 1927, it leads to the city’s largest cinema: the Agora.</p><p><em>"Today’s the premiere of <em>Metropolis</em>—a story set in the future. Since that’s where you’re from, you might be in it!"</em> Edgar jokes.</p><<if $vutract != "oui">><<include "34">><<set $vutract to "oui">><</if>><div class="choix">[[Find out about the film|23]]<<if $where=="there">>[[Go with Edgar to meet his friend|Entree]]<</if>><<if $where!="there">>[[Go with Edgar to meet his friend|20]]<</if>>[[Go to the meeting from the enigmatic message|41]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "monico">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/30EN.webp" alt="Card 30"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Boulevard Anspach</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>The neighborhood is bustling—no surprise, with the Stock Exchange just around the corner. Trams rattle by in every direction.</p><p>The Monico, a lively café built in 1874, mirrors the energy of the area. It’ll remain mostly unchanged all the way to your time.</p><p>You’ve barely taken a seat on the terrace when a heated conversation catches your ear. One of the speakers is unmistakable, with his trademark moustache and wild hair: Albert Einstein!</p><div class="choix"><<if $vetements is "1927">>[[Listen to Einstein's discussion|31]]<</if>><<if $vetements != "1927">>[[Listen to Einstein's discussion|32]]<</if>>[[Go to the meeting on rue des Fripiers, as indicated on the enigmatic message you found earlier|41]]</div></div></div>

<img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/tract.webp" alt="Leaflet found"> <p class="tract"><strong>On the ground, you find an enigmatic message.</strong> It says: <em>"Do you know the words Internet and Bitcoin? I'll wait for you at the end of the day at the corner of rue des Fripiers."</em></p>

<<set $vuedgar to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/16EN.webp" alt="Card 16"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Rue du Marché-aux-Herbes</div><p><em>"Magritte? Ha! If I didn’t know that crazy painter, I wouldn’t be called Edgar! I hear he spends a lot of time at the Cirio—you could try your luck there. Anyway, I’ve got to run to the royal galleries!" he says cheerfully.</em></p><div class="choix">[[Go to the Cirio|17]] [[Talk about your time travel|15]] [[Go with Edgar to the galleries|19]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "agora">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/23EN.webp" alt="Card 23"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">At the Cinema</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>A poster announces the premiere of <em>Metropolis</em>, a German blockbuster by Fritz Lang. “Exclusive release today, October 28, 1927!” reads a chalkboard propped up near the ticket window.</p><p>The screening is about to begin. The cashier is inside—if you’re lucky, you just might be able to slip in without spending a franc...</p><p>Through the glass door, you catch sight of Edgar darting into the Royal Saint-Hubert Galleries.</p><<if $vutract != "oui">><<include "34">><<set $vutract to "oui">><</if>><div class="choix">[[Join Edgar|20]] [[Watch the film|29]]</div></div></div>

<<set $where to "away">>That's a wrong answer. You lose the benefit of playing on location.[[Resume|45]]

<<set $carnet to "oui">><<set $progression += 1>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/10EN.webp" alt="Card 10"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">📔 A Notebook</div><p><em>"Thank you! That’s exactly the number I had in mind… Actually, I found this on the Grand-Place a few minutes ago. Think it might be of any use to you?"</em></p><p>He hands you an old notebook. Flipping through it, you glimpse plans for a strange machine, pencil sketches, and frantic notes.</p><p>On page 50, two entries are underlined: <em>“Code 1/2”</em> and <em>“Password”</em>… You might need them later.</p><p>You keep the notebook and take leave of Mr. Polak.</p><div class="choix">[[Go back to see the flower seller|06]] [[Steal the drying laundry|12]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "mokafe">><<set $vulouise to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/20EN.webp" alt="Card 20"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Royal Galleries</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>A young woman is waiting for Edgar in a café inside the Royal Galleries.</p><p><em>"This is my friend Louise Monard," says Edgar. "She’s a real pioneer—she’s studying paleontology, and she’s the only woman in her group!"<br/>"The real pioneer is Madame Curie," Louise replies. "She’s a Nobel laureate and she's attending the Solvay Conference today with the other scientists. Me? I’m just a student. I’ll probably never be allowed to become a museum curator... But look at this photo, Edgar—don’t you think it’s extraordinary?"</em></p><div class="choix">[[Look at the photo|08]]</div></div></div>

<<if $carnet is "oui">> <<goto "51">> <<else>> <<goto "20">> <</if>>

<<set $where to "away">><div id="container"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🕳️ Wrong Trail</div><p>That wasn’t the right bust… Your notebook is gone. You have no choice but to turn back—and from now on, the on-location clues are lost to you.</p><div class="choix">[[Back|20]]</div></div></div>

<<set $carnet to "oui">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/27EN.webp" alt="Card 27"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">📔 Revelations</div><p>Phew—you’ve recovered your precious notebook.</p><p>Inside, a double-page spread shows the legend of <strong>Saint Michael slaying the dragon</strong>.</p><p>The next page reveals that <strong>Brussels' Cathedral of Saint Michael and Saint Gudula</strong> was inspired by this very legend.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|20]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/08EN.webp" alt="Card 08"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">A Photograph</div><p><em>"Isn’t it incredible? A pterodactyl in the sky over the city!"</em> Louise exclaims. <em>"It was taken two days ago by a friend of mine—an aeronaut testing his balloon above Brussels."</em></p><div class="choix"><<if $medaillon == "oui" or $carnet == "oui">>[[Continue|22]]<</if>><<if $medaillon == "non" and $carnet == "non">>[[Continue|26]]<</if>></div></div></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/22EN.webp" alt="Card 22"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">A Strange Resemblance</div><<if $medaillon == "oui" and $carnet == "oui">><p>You can’t help but notice how much the creature resembles the one engraved on the medallion… or perhaps the one drawn in the notebook.</p><<elseif $medaillon == "oui">><p>You can’t help but notice how much the creature resembles the one engraved on the medallion.</p><<elseif $carnet == "oui">><p>You can’t help but notice how much the creature resembles the one drawn in the notebook.</p><</if>><p><em>"This creature looks a bit like Saint Michael’s dragon, don’t you think?"</em> you suggest.<br/><em>"Saint... who?"</em> Louise asks, puzzled.<br/><em>"Saint Michael. From the Cathedral of Saint Michael and Saint Gudula."</em><br/><em>"In which city?"</em><br/><em>"Here, in Brussels!"</em><br/><em>"Are you sure about that?"</em><br/><em>"In my time—the 21st century—it’s still standing!"</em> you insist.<br/>Edgar bursts out laughing, but Louise watches you closely.<br/><em>"This is odd… Just yesterday, I met a strange American at the bookshop. Said he was ‘trapped in a time vortex.’ And now you claim to be from the future too?"</em></p><div class="choix">[[Go to the bookshop where the American was|24]] [[Continue the discussion|26]]</div></div></div>

<<set $curloc to "mokafe">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/26EN.webp" alt="Card 26"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">In the Royal Galleries</div><p>Louise Monard studies the photograph, deep in thought.</p><p><em>"I’d swear this photo isn’t a fake. But how could a reptile that vanished 1.5 million years ago be flying over Brussels?"</em> she murmurs.</p><p>Suddenly, loud shouting echoes from outside the galleries:</p><p><em>"Einstein! Einstein! Stop, I beg you!"</em></p><div class="choix">[[Go and see|38]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "librairie">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/24EN.webp" alt="Card 24"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">At the Bookshop</div><<if $where == "there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p><em>"A strange old American? Oh yes, of course! He came by several times asking for books on the history of Brussels. His name? No, I couldn’t say. But he did leave this on my counter,"</em> the bookseller says.</p><p>He hands you a brochure: a Cunard Line timetable for steamships between North America and Europe.</p><div class="choix"><<set $origine25 to "louise">>[[Continue|25]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "entree">><<set $vudate to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/38EN.webp" alt="Card 38"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">In Front of the Royal Galleries</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>An old man calls out to Albert Einstein in a strong American accent. The physicist loses his temper.</p><p><em>"My poor Tesla, you're utterly mad! Take your boat, return to America, and find yourself an alienist! Sending me all those letters, then showing up in Europe just because you heard I'd be at the congress in Brussels... What appalling manners!"</em> Einstein exclaims.<br/><em>"Einstein, I beg you! Only you and Niels Bohr can help. The temporal vortex I accidentally created is becoming a catastrophe. You physicists are my only hope,"</em> Tesla pleads.<br/><em>"Leave me alone!"</em> Einstein snaps, storming off.</p><div class="choix">[[Follow Einstein|36]][[Follow Tesla|39]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/36EN.webp" alt="Card 36"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🚋 Tram Pursuit</div><p>After weaving through the city, the scientist leaps onto a tram. To follow him, you'll need to convince the conductor watching you—by buying a ticket.</p><div class="choix"><<if $argent == "oui">>[[Continue the pursuit|37]]<</if>><<if $argent != "oui">><span class="bonus">Unfortunately, you have no money. You must stop the pursuit.</span><</if>><<if $where=="there">>[[Return to the Grand-Place|gpfin]]<</if>><<if $where!="there">>[[Return to the Grand-Place|33]]<</if>>[[Go see Metropolis at the cinema|29]][[Go to the meeting on rue des Fripiers|41]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "grandplace">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/39EN.webp" alt="Card 39"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">On the Grand-Place</div><<if $where == "there">> <<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>Like a madman, Tesla storms onto the Grand-Place, ranting, shouting, gesturing wildly. Suddenly, he darts into a house and the door slams shut behind him.</p><div class="choix">[[Knock on the house door|42]][[Wait for Tesla to come back out|33]][[Go to the meeting indicated on the leaflet|41]][[Go see "Metropolis" at the cinema|29]]</div></div></div>

<<set $vucomplice to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/42EN.webp" alt="Card 42"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🚪 Grand-Place</div><p>A woman with a suspicious look opens the door and asks you for the password.</p><div class="choix">[[TWENTIEST|43]][[BRUSSELEIR|43]][[RIGHT|43]][[CLEAR|09]][[I don't know the password|43]]</div></div></div>

<<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><<run setup.bombe.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/33EN.webp" alt="Card 33"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">💥 Grand-Place</div><p>A tremendous explosion rings out. It throws you to the ground and you lose consciousness.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|11]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "fripiers">><<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/41EN.webp" alt="Card 41"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Rue des Fripiers</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>It's incredible how this street corner reminds you of Brussels in your time: the Ingesoll shop will be replaced by a shoe brand and the cobbled street will become pedestrian, but the places won't really change much, deep down.</p><p>You wait for a long time, then a stranger finally arrives with a determined step. You wonder if you haven't already met her somewhere.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|49]]</div></div></div>

<<set $vueinstein to true>><<set $origine25 to "einstein">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/31EN.webp" alt="Card 31"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">On the Monico Terrace</div><p>Einstein is holding a Cunard Line brochure for steamship crossings between New York and Antwerp.</p><p><em>"Look what the American left at the bookseller’s, Niels. That old fool has been chasing us since New York!"</em> he says, tossing the brochure into the gutter.</p><p><em>"If what he says is true, his work supports quantum theory..."</em></p><p><em>"And I’ve already told you what I think of that,"</em> Einstein growls.</p><div class="choix">[[Get closer to hear the discussion better|35]] [[Pick up the brochure|25]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/32EN.webp" alt="Card 32"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Bad Encounter</div><p><em>"Your goose is cooked!"</em> shouts the police officer. <em>"Parading around Brussels in those clothes—have you no shame?"</em></p><p>He shoves you toward the Grand-Place, clearly intending to throw you in the Amigo, the city’s prison.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|33]]</div></div></div>

<<set $curloc to "monico">><<set $vueinstein to true>><<set $vubohr to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/35EN.webp" alt="Card 35"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">On the Monico Terrace</div><p><em>"Come now, Bohr!"</em> Einstein snaps. <em>"You know perfectly well your quantum theory doesn’t hold up epistemologically. I’ve told you already—God does not play dice!"</em><br/><em>"And I tell you again, Einstein: who are you to tell God what to do?"</em><br/><em>"Niels Bohr, you drive me mad!"</em><br/><em>"And you, Albert Einstein, you are impossible!"</em></p><p>The two men rise and storm off in opposite directions.</p><div class="choix">[[Follow Niels Bohr|36]][[Follow Albert Einstein|38]]</div></div></div>

<<if $origine25 == "louise">><<set $oldloc to "librairie">><</if>><<if $origine25 == "einstein">><<set $oldloc to "monico">><</if>><<set $curloc to "grandplace">><<set $vutelegram to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/25EN.webp" alt="Card 25"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">A Coded Message</div><p>Tucked between two pages of the brochure, you discover a telegram:</p><p><em><strong>"1/2 - GRAND PLACE<br/>THE TWENTIEST MACHINE GUN IS GROWING AT YOU / NUMBER FIVE FORTY / RING TWO TIMES / THE RIGHT PASSWORD : 'BRUSSELEIR' / IS IT CLEAR?"</strong></em></p><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>The title clearly points to the Grand-Place as your next destination. But which number is the right one?</p><div class="choix">[[20|40]][[40|40]][[42|42]][[45|40]]<<if $carnet == "oui">>[[Consult your notebook to find a clue|50]]<</if>><<if $origine25 == "louise">>[[Go back|26]]<</if>><<if $origine25 == "einstein">>[[Go back|35]]<</if>></div></div></div>

<<run setup.coup.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/40EN.webp" alt="Card 40"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">💥 Wrong Door</div><p>You didn't knock on the right door... But the club that knocks you out certainly hits the right head! You immediately lose consciousness.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|52]]</div></div></div>

<<set $tempsPerdu += 1>><div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">📔 Tesla's Notebook</div><p>The handwriting covering the notebook is tightly packed and nearly illegible, forcing you to focus for several long minutes… You've lost precious time. You learn that the notebook belongs to Mr. Nikola Tesla, New York. Two entries catch your attention: PASSWORD: "CLEAR" and CODE 1/2: just read every other word to decrypt the message.</p><<if $tempsPerdu >= 3>><p>Time is running out. Return immediately to the Grand-Place.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|33]]</div><<else>><div class="choix">[[Continue|25]]</div><</if>></div></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/52EN.webp" alt="Card 52"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">The Day After</div><p><em>"Are you alright?"</em> asks the nurse, handing you the newspaper. <em>"Even with that nasty shock, you're still luckier than that American who was in the cellar that exploded!"</em></p><p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/55EN.webp" alt="Newspaper"></p><p>The relief of being alive brings a smile to your face. But there's no longer the slightest chance of returning to your own era. You'll have to get used to living in the twentieth century…</p><p><strong>The End</strong></p><div class="choix">[[Go to the main menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<<set _score to 0>><<if $vutserclaes>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vuedgar>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vueinstein>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vutelegram>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vutesla>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vucomplice>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vumachine>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vuboucle>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vudate>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vulouise>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vubohr>> <<set _score += 5>><</if>><<if $vetements == "1927">> <<set _score += 15>><</if>><<if $medaillon == "oui">> <<set _score += 15>><</if>><<if $argent == "oui">> <<set _score += 15>><</if>><<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🌀 It's over for you...</div> <img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/soonEN.webp" alt="Is this really the end?"><p><strong>Your progress: <<= _score>> % </strong><<if _score >= 85>> 🌟 Well done! You've seen almost everything! But did you understand it all? Check by clicking on "see explanations"!<<elseif _score >= 55>> 🔎 You've discovered many things, but not enough to understand the whole story... Don't hesitate to start again!<<else>> 🤔 The adventure has barely begun... You should start again.<</if>></p><p>You can also visit the <em>Brussels Vortex</em> website or, if you wish, buy me a coffee (no obligation, this game is 100% free).</p><p><strong>New episodes of <em>Brussels Vortex</em> are coming soon!</strong> To be sure not to miss them, <strong>subscribe to the newsletter below.</strong></p><div class="choix">[[🔄 Play again|startover]] [[💡 See explanations|explications]] <a class="link-internal" href="https://brussels-vortex.com" rel="noopener">🌐 Visit the site brussels-vortex.com</a> <a class="link-internal" href="https://buymeacoffee.com/babeleur?l=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">☕ Buy the author a coffee</a><<if $inscription != "oui">> [[📨 Subscribe to the newsletter|inscription]]<</if>></div><<if $inscription == "oui">><p style="font-size: 0.85em; color: #333;">📨 You're already subscribed to the newsletter. Thank you!</p><</if>><p><small><em><strong>© Arno Maneuvrier, 2024-2025.</strong> This adaptation was made with <a href="https://twinery.org/" target="_blank">Twine</a> and <a href="https://www.motoslave.net/sugarcube/2/" target="_blank">Sugar Cube</a>. The illustrations are a mix of copyright-free photos (old postcards), photos taken by myself and AI-generated images (Dall-E). The sounds are from <a href="https://lasonotheque.org" target="_blank">la Sonothèque</a> and the <a href="https://aporee.org/maps/" target="_blank">Aporee ::: Maps</a> project. For the "on location" parts, the maps are from the open source <a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org">OpenStreetMap</a> project.</em></small></p></div></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/37EN.webp" alt="Card 37"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🏨 End of Pursuit</div><p>Once off the tram, the man you're following continued to walk randomly through the streets of Brussels, talking to himself for hours. He even forgot meal time! He finally ends up going to the Métropole hotel, where he's staying during the congress. You can't follow him any longer, as the bellhop makes sure not to let intruders in.</p><div class="choix">[[Go to the address indicated in the enigmatic message|41]][[Return to the Grand-Place|33]][[Go see Metropolis at the cinema|29]]</div></div></div>

<<set $tempsPerdu += 1>><<run setup.projecteur.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/29EN.webp" alt="Card 29"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">At the Cinema</div><p>Although the Agora is almost empty, "Metropolis" is a masterpiece. Moreover, seeing the original 153-minute cut is a chance that none of your 21st-century contemporaries will ever experience, as this copy will be lost in your time. But was this really the most appropriate moment?</p><p> You have no more leads. All that's left is to go to this mysterious address indicated in the enigmatic message you found earlier.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|41]]</div></div></div>

<<run setup.coup.play()>><<set $vucomplice to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/43EN.webp" alt="Card 43"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">💥 Ouch</div><p>It seems the woman with the evil look had an accomplice lurking in the shadows... You take a tremendous blow from a club to the head and immediately lose consciousness.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|52]]</div></div></div>

<<set $vutesla to true>><<set $vumachine to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/09EN.webp" alt="Card 9"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">⚙️ In the Cellar</div><p>The woman lets you in. You then go down a dark staircase that leads to a cellar. In the middle of it, a strange machine takes up all the space. The old American is furiously agitated.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|44]]</div></div></div>

<<run setup.machine.play()>><<run setup.chrono.play()>><<set $vumachine to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/44EN.webp" alt="Card 44"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">⚡ In the Cellar</div><p>"Impossible to stop this machine! It's gone mad, it's going to explode... And so am I! I don't even know what day it is anymore! Quick, help me! If you select the right numbers, we might be able to calm the vortex a little!" says the American.</p><p><strong>What day is it?</strong></p><div class="choix">[[October 10th|33]][[October 15th|33]][[October 19th|33]][[October 23rd|33]][[October 28th|28]]</div></div></div>

<<run setup.pluie.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/11EN.webp" alt="Card 11"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Brussels?</div><p>When you wake up under tropical rain, the scenery looks like Brussels, but is it still Brussels? What remains of the ruined buildings emerges from foul-smelling water that gives off a powerful fermentation odour. As for the heat, it's literally suffocating.</p><p>You deduce that you're far, very far ahead in the future. You'll have to do your best to survive in this nightmarish world... Especially if all the mutant rats are over two metres tall, like the one that just leaped in front of you. Your only hope: that it doesn't have too much appetite for human flesh...</p><p><strong>END</strong></p><div class="choix">[[Go to the main menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to "fripiers">><<set $curloc to "grandplace">><<set $vuboucle to true>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/49EN.webp" alt="Card 49"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Back to the Grand-Place</div><p><em>"Let's walk together to the Grand-Place!"</em> says the woman. <em>"You come from the future, don't you?"</em></p><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>You head back to the Grand-Place with her, but can't help asking her:<br/><em>"How do you know?"</em><br/><em>"Be quiet, we don't have time. I come from there too and I'm trapped in a time loop, it's hellish. I've been living the same October 28th for months... So don't waste your precious minutes! Look for clues! If you find a coded message, read every other word! And no cinema, no sterile discussions looking for René Magr..."</em></p><p><strong>A blinding flash interrupts her. When you come to your senses, she has disappeared and...</strong></p><div class="choix">[[Continue|04bis]]</div></div></div>

<<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><<run setup.chrono.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/28EN.webp" alt="Card 28"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">⚙️ In the Cellar</div><p>The machine starts to run wild. If you do nothing, it will end up exploding! You rush to turn the dial to number 28, but the inventor stops you with a gesture:</p><p><em>"I apologize for all the troubles that have happened to you. I thought I had made a major invention with this machine, but the course of time has become uncontrollable. That's why I came here. I hoped that the physicists present at the Solvay Congress, Einstein, Bohr or Planck, could help me. But they don't want to hear anything and I don't know how to repair this damned vortex... Go ahead, enter the date! Good luck!"</em> he says.</p><p>You comply. Once again, a flash blinds you.</p><div class="choix">[[Continue|48]]</div></div></div>

<<run setup.stopAllSounds()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/48EN.webp" alt="Card 48"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Brussels in the 21st century!</div><p>Phew! You're back in your own time!</p><<if $vetements is "1927">><p>Since you're still wearing your 1927 clothes, a passerby exclaims that he loves your vintage look. Did you find it at the "Petits Riens"?</p><</if>><p>Everything has returned to normal... Or almost, if you don't dwell too much on the pterodactyl circling in the 21st-century sky. It seems the machine has caused quite a few temporal disturbances. Are you really at the end of your surprises?</p><p><strong>The End</strong></p><div class="choix">[[Go to the main menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "cirio">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/17EN.webp" alt="Card 17"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">At the Cirio</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>To you, the Cirio feels steeped in history. But for the locals of 1927, it’s just a slightly old-fashioned café—it’s only been around for 41 years. When the waiter takes your order, you ask if he knows René Magritte.</p><p><em>"Monsieur René? Sure! But he doesn’t come by much anymore. I’ve heard he prefers the Monico—it’s just nearby,"</em> he says.</p><p>⚠️ You’ve lost some precious time...</p><<set $tempsPerdu += 1>><<if $tempsPerdu >= 2>><div class="choix">[[Return to the Grand-Place|33]]</div><<else>><p>As you leave the Cirio, you run into Edgar again, heading the other way.</p><<if $vutract != "oui">><<include "34">><<set $vutract to "oui">><</if>><div class="choix">[[Go to the Monico|18]] [[Go with Edgar|19]]</div><</if>></div></div>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "monico">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/18EN.webp" alt="Card 18"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">At the Monico</div><<if $where=="there">><<include "Deplacement">><</if>><p>The bustle in the neighbourhood is spectacular. Indeed, this is a nerve centre, due to both its proximity to the Stock Exchange and the many electric trams that stop here. At the Monico, the waiter explains to you that René Magritte left to settle in France barely a month ago. He won't be seen in Brussels again for a long time.</p><p>⚠️ You're losing time.</p><<set $tempsPerdu += 1>><<if $tempsPerdu >= 3>><div class="choix">[[Return quickly to the Grand-Place|33]]</div><<else>><p>On the terrace, two men are talking quite loudly. One of them is unmistakable, with his trademark moustache and wild hair: Albert Einstein!</p><div class="choix">[[Listen to their discussion|31]][[Go to the meeting indicated on the enigmatic message found earlier|41]]</div><</if>></div></div>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">It all begins in New York in 1927</div><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli01.webp" alt="Tesla Portrait"><strong>Nikola Tesla</strong>, the brilliant inventor of alternating current, is 71 years old. Ruined, he nevertheless continues his experiments and discovers by chance a way to modify the course of time.<div class="choix">[[Next|expli2]][[Back to menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<<set $tempsPerdu to 0>> <<set $argent to "non">> <<set $carnet to "non">> <<set $medaillon to "non">> <<set $vetements to "2025">> <<set $where to "away">> <<set $score to 0>> <<set $vutract to "non">> <<set _score to 0>> <<set $vutserclaes to false>> <<set $vuedgar to false>> <<set $vueinstein to false>> <<set $vutelegram to false>> <<set $vutesla to false>> <<set $vucomplice to false>> <<set $vumachine to false>> <<set $vuboucle to false>> <<set $vudate to false>> <<set $vulouise to false>> <<set $vubohr to false>> <<goto "01">>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">The invention creates an uncontrollable time vortex</div><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli02.webp" alt="Illustration"><p><strong>Living beings are torn from their era and projected into another</strong>: you, of course, but also pterodactyls from prehistory.<br/><strong>The course of time is rewritten.</strong> If pterodactyls didn't disappear with prehistory, then they are commonly seen: dragon legends no longer have any reason to exist.</p><p>In this new timeline, the Brussels legend of Saint Michael fighting the fantastic beast has therefore never existed... No more than the cathedral dedicated to him. That's why Louise Monard doesn't know it.</p><div class="choix">[[Next|expli3]][[Back to menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Did you meet this woman?</div><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli03.webp" alt="Unknown portrait">Torn like you from her original twenty-first century, <strong>she is trapped (like you) in a time loop</strong>, and condemned to endlessly relive the day of October 28th, 1927....<div class="choix">[[Next|expli5]][[Back to menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">But let's get back to Tesla...</div><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli04.webp" alt="Cunard Line timetable">He decides to go to Belgium because, in October 1927, the Solvay Congress brings together the cream of physics of the time in Brussels: Albert Einstein, Niels Bohr, Max Planck, Marie Curie...<p><strong>Tesla wants to ask the physicists for help to stop the vortex.</strong></p><p>Thanks to an accomplice who lives on the Grand-Place (she sent him a coded telegram), he had his machine delivered to Brussels. It was during a new test that you were projected in turn to 1927.</p><p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli05.webp" alt="Tesla's accomplice"></p><p><strong>What happened next, you may have discovered.</strong> Einstein considers that temporal modifications are impossible and refuses to listen to Tesla. Tesla dies in the explosion of the machine (in your timeline, he will actually die in 1940 in New York).</p><div class="choix">[[Next|expli6]][[Back to menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">You probably met some real celebrities!</div><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli07-EN.webp" alt="Edgar"><p>Young <strong>Edgar P. Jacobs</strong> was still destined for opera in 1927, but twenty years later he would become the creator of the comic book characters Blake and Mortimer. Who knows if his album <em>The Time Trap</em> won't be inspired by his meeting with you?</p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli08.webp" alt="'T Serclaes"><p>Torn like you from his era during the last test of the machine, <strong>Everard 't Serclaes</strong> liberated Brussels in 1356. We can understand why he's furious to discover the statue that represents him as a recumbent figure...</p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli09.webp" alt="Polak"><p>And <strong>Michel Polak</strong> will indeed build in 1929 the private mansion that will later house the Flemish region tourist office, on rue du Marché-aux-Herbes.</p><p>It was impossible to meet <strong>René Magritte</strong>: he really did leave to settle in France in September 1927, two months before your arrival in Brussels.</p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli10.webp" alt="Louise"><p>Lastly, <strong>Louise Monard</strong> is unfortunately a fictional character. In 1927, a woman could unfortunately not hope to become a museum curator in Belgium...</p><p>As for <strong><em>Metropolis</em></strong>, Fritz Lang's masterpiece, it seems that its Belgian release did indeed take place in October 1927. It makes sense that it was shown at the Agora, which was then the largest cinema in the city centre, where the gallery of the same name is located today.</p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli11.webp" alt="Metropolis poster"><div class="choix">[[Next|expli8]][[The solution|expli7]][[Back to menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">The solution 💡</div><p><strong>For purists and Choose Your Own Adventure fans, here's the complete solution.</strong> <em><ul>Go see what the shouting is about, pick up the object.</ul><ul>Get away to look for clues. You recover the money. Steal the clothes.</ul><ul>Buy the newspaper to know the date. Go to the cinema. Join Edgar.</ul><ul>When you see the photo of the pterodactyl, having the medallion allows you to intrigue Louise and Edgar with your explanations about the cathedral that no longer exists in their timeline.</ul><ul>Go to the bookshop. The telegram is decoded by reading every other word. Go to number 42. The password is CLEAR. The date is OCTOBER 28th.</ul></em></p><div class="choix">[[Next|expli8]][[Back to menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><p>I had great fun mixing fiction and historical reality in this episode. I hope you enjoyed it too.</p><p>I designed it while thinking of <strong>Philippe Ebly</strong>, brilliant Belgian author who died in 2014, whose deeply humanistic science fiction enchanted my childhood.</p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/expli12.webp" alt="Ebly"><small>Photo Daynohan — CC BY-SA 3.0.</small><p><strong>Did you enjoy this story?</strong> Share it! Thank you.</p><p><a href="https://babeleur.be">Arno</a></p><div class="choix">[[Back to menu|MENU]]</div></div></div>

<<set $tempsPerdu to 0>><<set $argent to "non">><<set $carnet to "non">><<set $medaillon to "non">><<set $vetements to "2025">><<set $vutract to "non">><<run setup.eclair.play()>><<run setup.cheval.play()>><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/04EN.webp" alt="Card 04"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">🌀 Grand-Place... again!</div><p><strong>... You find yourself in exactly the same place and at the same time as when you arrived!</strong> You possess nothing from 1927, your clothes are those you wore in your time... No doubt about it! That woman was right: <strong>you're trapped in a time loop!</strong></p><p>The same angry voice as before rises from a corner of the square.</p><<if $where == "there">><<include "46">><</if>><div class="choix">[[Go see what the shouting is about|05]][[Talk to the flower seller|06]][[Get away from the stares|45]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/grandplaceEN.webp" alt="Map"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Go to the Grand-Place</div><p>Return immediately to the Grand-Place. When you're there, click the button below</p><div class="choix">[[I'm there!|33]]</div></div></div>

<div id="container"><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">📨 Subscribe to the newsletter</div><p><strong>Receive news about upcoming episodes of <em>CartOdyssée</em> and <em>Brussels Vortex</em>, directly in your mailbox.</strong></p><p>The newsletter is sent using the open source solution Keila.io and you will never get more than one email per month.</p><p><strong>Your email address:</strong></p><input id="email" type="email" placeholder="Your email address"><div class="choix"><button id="newsletterBtn" class="link-internal">Submit</button></div><p style="font-size: 0.85em; color: #555;">By submitting, you accept the processing of this personal data solely for information purposes: no advertising, no resale to third parties, and unsubscription is obviously available at any time, in accordance with GDPR.</p><p style="margin-top: 1em;"><<link "Back to end menu">><<goto "MENU">><</link>></p></div></div><<script>>postdisplay["newsletterSubmit"] = function () { const btn = document.getElementById("newsletterBtn"); if (!btn) return; btn.addEventListener("click", function () { const email = document.getElementById("email").value.trim(); if (!email) { alert("Please enter an email address."); return; } fetch("https://babeleur.be/bv/newsletter.php", { method: "POST", headers: { "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded" }, body: new URLSearchParams({ email: email }) }) .then(response => { if (response.ok) { State.variables.inscription = "oui"; setup.transition.play(); alert("Thank you! Your subscription has been registered."); Engine.play("MENU"); } else { alert("Error during registration."); } }) .catch(() => alert("Connection error.")); }); };<</script>>

<<if $oldloc=="grandplace">><<if $curloc=="tserclaes">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/gp-tserclaes.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to the 't Serclaes statue</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8467291%2C4.3524081%3B50.8463138%2C4.3523383#map=19/50.846530/4.352375" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="harengs">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/gp-harengs.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to rue des Harengs</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8467291%2C4.3524081%3B50.8470035%2C4.3531828#map=19/50.846865/4.352804" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="amigo">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/gp-amigo.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to 1 rue de l'Amigo<br><small>(cross the Town Hall courtyard)</small></p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8467291%2C4.3524081%3B50.8463707%2C4.3511861#map=19/50.846570/4.351889" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="tserclaes">><<if $curloc=="harengs">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/tserclaes-harengs.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to rue des Harengs</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8463138%2C4.3523383%3B50.8470035%2C4.3531828#map=18/50.846672/4.352807" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="herbes">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/tserclaes-herbes.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to rue du Marché-aux-Herbes</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8463138%2C4.3523383%3B50.847224%2C4.353215#map=18/50.846801/4.352887" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="harengs">><<if $curloc=="grandplace">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/harengs-gp.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Return to the Grand-Place</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8470035%2C4.3531828%3B50.8467291%2C4.3524081#map=19/50.846865/4.352804" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="herbes">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/harengs-herbes.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to the end of the street and turn into rue du Marché-aux-Herbes</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8470035%2C4.3531828%3B50.84727%2C4.353118#map=18/50.846997/4.353322" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="amigo">><<if $curloc=="herbes">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/amigo-herbes.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Cross the Grand-Place, go through rue des Harengs and turn into rue du Marché-aux-Herbes</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8463707%2C4.3511861%3B50.84727%2C4.353118#map=18/50.846916/4.352737" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="herbes">><<if $curloc=="agora">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/herbes-agora.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go up rue du Marché-aux-Herbes to the Agora entrance</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.84727%2C4.353118%3B50.846418%2C4.354467#map=18/50.846872/4.353638" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="cirio">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/herbes-cirio.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go down towards the Stock Exchange and stop at the Cirio</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.84727%2C4.353118%3B50.8483068%2C4.3507189#map=18/50.847915/4.351884" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="monico">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/herbes-monico.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go down towards the Stock Exchange and continue to the corner of boulevard Anspach, to the Monico<br><small>(in your time, "Le Grand Café")</small></p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.84727%2C4.353118%3B50.8485217%2C4.3501999#map=18/50.847901/4.351659" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="agora">><<if $curloc=="mokafe">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/agora-mokafe.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Enter the Royal Galleries, go up the Galerie de la Reine, take the Galerie du Roi and stop in front of Mokafé</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.846408%2C4.354481%3B50.8480389%2C4.3553132#map=18/50.847227/4.355087" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="entree">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/agora-entree.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Enter the nearby Royal Galleries</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.846408%2C4.354481%3B50.846892%2C4.35432#map=18/50.846611/4.354196" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="fripiers">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/agora-fripiers.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to the corner of rue Marché-aux-Poulets and rue des Fripiers</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.846408%2C4.354481%3B50.848305%2C4.351755#map=17/50.847417/4.353408" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="mokafe">><<if $curloc=="librairie">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/mokafe-librairie.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to the bookshop located in the Galerie des Princes, just opposite you</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8480389%2C4.3553132%3B50.8481738%2C4.3548393#map=19/50.848154/4.355028" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="entree">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/mokafe-entree.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Return to the entrance of the Royal Galleries</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8480389%2C4.3553132%3B50.846829%2C4.354258" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="grandplace">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/mokafe-gp.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Return immediately to the Grand-Place</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8480389%2C4.3553132%3B50.8467139%2C4.3525151#map=17/50.847207/4.353880" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="librairie">><<if $curloc=="grandplace">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/librairie-gp.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Return immediately to the Grand-Place</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8481738%2C4.3548393%3B50.8467139%2C4.3525151#map=17/50.847498/4.353697" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="cirio">><<if $curloc=="monico">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/cirio-monico.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to the Monico<br><small>(in your time, "Le Grand Café"), at the corner of boulevard Anspach</small></p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8483068%2C4.3507189%3B50.8485217%2C4.3501999#map=19/50.848365/4.350405" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="monico">><<if $curloc=="fripiers">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/monico-fripiers.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go to the corner of rue des Fripiers and rue du Marché-aux-Poulets</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8485217%2C4.3501999%3B50.848332%2C4.351696#map=18/50.348355/4.351063" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><<if $curloc=="entree">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/monico-entree.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Go back up towards rue du Marché-aux-Herbes then go to the entrance of the Royal Galleries</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.8485217%2C4.3501999%3B50.846845%2C4.354263#map=17/50.847783/4.352185" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="fripiers">><<if $curloc=="grandplace">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/fripiers-gp.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Return immediately to the Grand-Place</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.848318%2C4.351664%3B50.8467291%2C4.3524081#map=18/50.847529/4.352297" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>><<if $oldloc=="entree">><<if $curloc=="grandplace">><div class="deplacement-box"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/dep/entree-gp.webp" alt="route" class="itineraire-img"><div class="itineraire-content"><p class="itineraire-text">📍 Return immediately to the Grand-Place</p><a href="https://www.openstreetmap.org/directions?engine=fossgis_osrm_foot&route=50.846845%2C4.354263%3B50.8467139%2C4.3525151#map=18/50.846814/4.353456" target="_blank" class="carte-link">🧭 OpenStreetMap</a></div></div><</if>><</if>>

<<set $oldloc to $curloc>><<set $curloc to "entree">><<set $carnet to "non">><div id="container"><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/51EN.webp" alt="Card 51"><<monHUD>><div id="texte" lang="en"><div class="titre">Theft in the Gallery</div><<include "Deplacement">><p>A man bumps into you and bolts toward the top of the <strong>Galerie du Roi</strong>—your precious notebook is gone!</p><p>You chase after him, but he quickly gives up and tosses the notebook aside before vanishing down <em>rue Montagne-aux-Herbes-Potagères</em>.</p><p>To recover your notebook, head up the Galerie du Roi past <strong>Dandoy</strong>, <strong>Mokafé</strong>, and the nearby shops—then find this <strong>bust</strong>:</p><img src="https://babeleur.be/bv/54EN.webp" alt="Bust to identify" style="width:100%; max-width:320px; margin: 1em auto; display: block; border-radius: 8px;"><p><em>What is its number?</em></p><div class="choix">[[27|27]] [[29|20wrong]] [[31|20wrong]] [[33|20wrong]] [[35|20wrong]]</div></div></div>