Blake Hoena - The Tower of London: A Chilling Interactive Adventure

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YOU are visiting the historic Tower of London. It's up to you to make the right choices. Will you make it through the haunted castle to see another day? Or will you become part of the Tower's legend? Start by turning the page. The choices you make will change the outcome. After you finish one path, go back and read the others to see how the decisions you make change your fate. Do you have what it takes to make it through the Tower of London?

Follow the links at the bottom of each page. The choices YOU make will change the outcome of the story. After you read one path, go back and read the others for more haunted adventures! Use your device's back buttons or page navigation to jump back to your last choice to make a different decision.

Tires screech as your bus grinds to a halt. You look up from your phone and glance out the window. Outside, tourists mill about. In the distance, an old brick wall runs along the horizon. Poking above its known as the Tower of London.

You turn to see your best friend, Jerry, waving to you from the front of the bus.

I have to get my stuff! you shout back. You grab your jacket off the seat. Fog is starting to roll in; it could be chilly tonight.

The Tower of London was first built to scare and awe Londoners into obeying. It was also meant to keep invaders away.

We need to get our tickets at the Welcome Center, Jerry says. Hurry up. Then he jumps off the bus and disappears.

You and your friend are here for the stuff sounded fun.

Once you have your tickets, you and Jerry follow a group through a tower gate. Just on the other side waits a man dressed as a is meant to add some authenticity to the tour.

Welcome to the Tower of London! the guide says. Built in 1078 as a fortress, it has also served as a palace, a royal , and a prison. There are 21 different towers 13 that frame the complex, and eight inside.

Your guide goes on to tell the tour group about the Royal kept wild animals there for display.

Rumor has it, your guide continues, that a ghostly Menagerie member still remains. Some members of your group gasp with excitement.

Your group gathers on a stone bridge. A green lawn stretches out below you. The yeoman tells you that it was once a moat. The moat was drained by the Duke of Wellington in 1845. Occasionally though, when the Thames River floods, the moat does as well.

You cross over the bridge and then walk through another gate. You're now inside the Tower's outer wall. To your left rises Bell Tower. Ahead is Water Lane, a walkway that leads you to the Tower's main gate. To your right, just on the other side of the outer wall, is the River Thames.

As you walk, the yeoman tells you pieces of the Tower's history.

Here is St. Thomas Tower, he says, motioning to a building that stands between you and the river.

And this gate here is called Gate, he continues. This gate is so named because so many traitors to the Crown, from Guy Fawkes to Lady Jane Grey, had entered the castle through this gate.

Between two and three million people visit the Tower of London every year.

From where you stand, steps lead down to the wooden gate. This is a water gate, the guide explains. There is no water there now. But in the past, pumps controlled the water level so that boats could pass through.

Those who were executed, your guide continues, had their heads displayed on poles along London Bridge, just downriver from here.

Cool, Jerry whispers in your ear. This is the weird type of stuff I wanted to hear about. You are excited too.

Your group moves on. You enter the inner walls through a gate under a squat, rectangular building that your guide calls the Bloody Tower. Jerry catches your arm and you hang back.

Let's go down there, your friend says, nodding toward Traitors' Gate.

Sure, why not, you say. We can always catch up with the group.

You cross back through the Bloody Tower and jog down some stairs. Traitors' Gate is made of wooden beams with iron bars running through them. It is sealed shut, but Jerry grabs the bars and shakes them, making loud wailing noises.

The Traitors' Gate was built in the late 1270s.

You look around, embarrassed and worried that people might see you or hear you. But there is no one near. It seems as though youre alone.

As you watch your friend goof off, fog rolls in. Mixed with the grayness of the surrounding castle, the thick haze makes it difficult to see. Ravens caw from above. A chilly wind sweeps over you. You shiver as you zip up your jacket.

Come on, you say, grabbing Jerry's arm. We should catch up with the guide.

You don't want to admit to your friend, but you are getting a little creeped out. The sun is setting, casting long shadows over the area, and you don't want to get left behind by your group.

You walk back inside the Tower walls, but you don't see your tour group anywhere. Actually, with the heavy fog, it's difficult to see much of anything. What you can see is the White Tower, straight ahead. The oldest part of the Tower of London, it stands 90 feet tall, rising above even the gray fog.

I think the group was headed to Tower Green. Or maybe the Queen's House? Jerry says, looking around. You can hear how unsure he is.

Tower Green is an open, grassy lawn where several executions took place. The Queen's House is rumored to be one of the castle's most haunted buildings. You know that the tour was making a stop at each place, and they are both close. You just can't remember which one was first. Theyre both in the same area, at least.

One of you has to make a decision. Let's check out Tower Green first, you say.

Maybe this will help, Jerry says, pulling a map from his pocket. I grabbed this at the Welcome Center, he explains.

And it's a good thing he did. While you can see hints of buildings, the fog blurs out most identifying features. You know Tower Green is somewhere ahead of you.

Up there to the left, Jerry says, pointing. He hurries down a stone walkway.

You are quick to run after him. You've already lost track of your tour group. You don't want to lose your friend as well.

In your haste, you plow into Jerry. Your friend has suddenly stopped. You are about to say something when Jerry puts a finger to his lips.

Listen, your friend whispers.

You pause. There is an odd sound, coming from your right. Footsteps? Yes, marching footsteps. Then you see shadowy figures moving through the fog. You squint, but you can't tell if its your tour group. What if its not? You could get in trouble just wandering around the castle alone at this time of night. After all, the Crown Jewels are locked up somewhere in the fortress. You don't want anyone to think you're up to no good.