The Defenders of Dusk

by Dane Barrett

  328

  Usually sneaking past two guards enclosed within a guardhouse would be child's play, but you notice that to build the makeshift hut the orcs have ripped up some of the wood belonging to the floor of the bridge, leaving this section somewhat lacking its intended strength. The remaining planks creak under the strain of your weight, so you will need to be particularly stealthy if you do not wish to be detected. Roll 2 dice. If the result is equal to or lower than your AGILITY, turn to 200. If the dice roll is higher than your AGILITY, turn to 323.

  329

  You grasp part of the outer wall so that you can gain some space before swiftly driving your shoulder forward into the shutter, attempting to split its latch in the process. Roll 2 dice. If the result is equal to or lower than your STRENGTH, turn to 270. If the dice roll is higher than your STRENGTH, turn to 371.

  330

  Leaning out the window, you observe a balcony further along from your current position, though it appears to be in a state of severe disrepair. The entrance above the platform has been boarded up, but there is another window a short distance beyond it. You should be able to use the balcony to reach the other opening. Roll 2 dice. If the result is equal to or lower than your INTELLIGENCE, turn to 130. If the dice roll is higher than your INTELLIGENCE, turn to 162.

  331

  You suddenly sit up, gasping for air as you remember feeling the sensation of drowning only seconds before. You are sitting in complete darkness, though you know you are still in the caves as betrayed by the echo of water dripping into a pool nearby. You reach out, using your hands to feel your surroundings, and find nothing but rock walls around you. The floor is damp, but you are no longer submerged in water. No matter how long you wait for your eyes to adjust to the dark, you don't seem to be able to make out any shapes. Though you don't often rely on light sources when you creep about in the night, you see little choice but to light the candle you keep tucked away in your pocket for emergencies. Do you have the keyword BULB? If so, turn to 352. If not, turn to 355.

  332

  After a good deal of running and sneaking, you finally return to the hideout and slip inside through one of the side windows. You are greeted happily by Zabel and Babin, who arrived here an hour before you did, and weren't sure you had made it out of Eastwood Ridge alive. Arinzo is also here, and he hands you a recovery potion that you quaff down eagerly. Restore up to 2 points of lost HEALTH.

  “They have a dragon,” you splutter out once you finally have your breath back. “Some kind of cross-bred thing built for war. I killed its rider before escaping.” The others glance at each other and shift uncomfortably.

  “That explains the wall of flames which engulfed the city,” says Arinzo. “I thought it to be a sorcerer, but dragonfire makes sense. Hopefully, without its rider, it will become unruly and uncooperative with our enemies, though I suspect it may also become dangerously unpredictable.”

  “It's not all bad news, though,” says Babin, happily munching on a piece of pot pie. You glance about to see if he has brought enough to share with everyone. “Xanth, our master spy, has infiltrated the ranks of our enemy. So at least we know some of their troop positions and activities now.”

  “I know that our enemies seek to put something into the water,” you reveal. “A dust that will help them control the minds of the people.”

  “This is troubling news,” replies Arinzo. “Quickly! Tell me what else you have learned!” Turn to 362.

  333

  As you slip in and out of cover, the risk of being discovered steadily increases. Roll 2 dice three times. If all three results are equal to or lower than your AGILITY, turn to 120. If one or more of the dice rolls is higher than your AGILITY, then one of the guards has spotted you (turn to 150).

  334

  You creep towards the soldier's back, matching your footsteps in the water with his own, gaining a step only when a solid mound of dirt allows you to. Periodically he hesitates as if hearing your approach, at which times you cease moving and stand like a statue behind him. Each time he continues on, oblivious to your presence. Once close enough, you bring your dagger up to his neck and draw it quickly across his throat. You hold the man, lowering his dying, quivering form down into the water where he shudders once more before lying still. Leaving the soldier's body concealed by the murky water, you continue on towards the intersection where you know you will find the entrance to the Thieves Guild. Turn to 36.

  335

  As you reach the bottom of the stone steps, you peer across the wall in dismay as you observe the enemy forces, who have finally secured several ladders onto the battlements, and are now pouring unimpeded over the parapets and making their way down to the street level to invade the town. The wall is lost, and the enemy has cleared a path leading to the core of the city. With nothing more to lose, you leap forward, slashing your blades left and right, exterminating as many of the invaders as you can before being inevitably overwhelmed by their superior numbers. Your adventure ends here.

  336

  You twist your body to one side and watch as the blade flies past your body, clattering off the wall behind you and falling with a splash into the water. Turning back to face your enemy, you observe it hurriedly fluttering away further into the tunnels. Coward! Continuing on cautiously, you enter a small rectangular room which smells of death. On closer examination, you discover a pile of corpses lumped into one corner; town guards if their armour is any indication. Another circular drain is the only exit out of here, so you slide on through into another more extensive tunnel. Here the path splits in two. One passage heads to your left, and you can hear something moving about in the water in that direction. Otherwise the tunnel you are currently in continues onwards and appears to also turn left further along. Will you take the left-hand passage (turn to 345) or continue to the end of the tunnel and take the second left-hand turn instead (turn to 295)?

  337

  You observe mismatched wooden furniture positioned in an otherwise organised fashion, and the stone floor is adorned with a round section of carpet. Small tapestries adorn the walls, mixing vibrant colours with the inky shadows being cast about by candles positioned inside wall brackets. Somebody has clearly gone out of their way to make themselves at home here. Roll 2 dice. If the result is equal to or lower than your SENSE, turn to 155. If the dice roll is higher than your SENSE, turn to 58.

  338

  You back away from the top of the hill and begin making your way down the slope. You have reached the halfway point when you are suddenly enveloped in a wave of white light, which obscures the hill and the meadow from your view. You hold your hands up to your eyes to prevent the glare from blinding you, and when you lower them again, you discover that you have somehow gained access to the interior corridor of the clock tower. Confused at what just happened, you shake it off and take a look around. Turn to 122.

  339

  You hesitate as you reach for the top of the gate, noticing how the upper portion of the iron frame appears much shinier than the dull grey of the bars you have been climbing. You realise that somebody has purposefully sharpened the top of this frame to a razor-sharp edge to catch-out any would-be sneaks trying to bypass it! Twisting your body to give yourself leverage, you grip the bars tightly and lift your body into a handstand. Just as your arms are beginning to shake with fatigue, you launch yourself up and over the gate, rolling with the fall as you land upon the walkway on the other side. Happy to have avoided injuring your hands, you move on to the next part of the platform which, from the shouts and laughter above, sounds like it passes directly beneath the centre of the enemy encampment. Turn to 242.

  340

  Sheathing any weapons you may have had at hand, you patter up the ladder with hands and feet, being careful to not only remain silent but to keep a low profile as you emerge into the hallway above. This grotty wooden passageway runs the length of the entire floor, and you can see three guards having a discussion down the other end. Doors lead off to the
left and right, though both entrances are well-lit by wall-mounted lamps, so you would need to slip into one of them quickly to avoid detection. A direct attack might be risky, as one of the guards has a bow and will have time to unleash at least one shot before you reach them, should you decide to attack outright. Will you sneak through the left door (turn to 39), the right door (turn to 318) or rush down the hallway to attack the mercenaries (turn to 382)?

  341

  A great ball of slimy gel drops down upon you before you can roll away to safety. You try to push the substance away but just end up digging your hands further into its jelly-like mass. It is then you notice the burning sensation in your arms, and you realise this clump of slime is a living creature, and that it is depositing acid onto your skin! Subtract 1 from your HEALTH. If you are still alive, you manage to draw your blades from their scabbards, and must dispose of this mass before it dissolves you!

  FLESH-EATING BLOB: FIGHT 4, HEALTH 3

  Note that after every round of combat (whether you win or lose) you must subtract 1 point of HEALTH due to acid burns. If you win this battle (and survive the burns), turn to 178.

  342

  You swiftly kick the ladder away, and it topples sideways along the length of the wall. You have timed your manoeuvre perfectly, and while still clutching tightly to the battlement, you watch with gratification as your ladder efficiently interrupts the ascent of the other climbers. Toppling like a dead tree, the frame collects several of the orcs on the way through and sends them plummeting to their deaths. The guardsmen cheer at your heroics before the axe-wielding man helps to haul you back up onto the parapet.

  “I am Harald,” he says, introducing himself while vigorously patting you on the back. “Now let us see to these other ladders before you do something equally as crazy! Hah!” Not needing any further encouragement, you and the rest of the guards finally dislodge the remaining ladders from the wall. Add 15 to your RESISTANCE points. Everyone is bubbling with excitement, though still trying to keep their composure before the next assault hits. It is while you are taking a breather that you notice the western ballista has ceased firing. You also observe the lack of arrow volleys coming from the middle parapet now. Will you move back towards the centre of the wall (turn to 232) or climb the stone steps to the western tower (turn to 399)?

  343

  You soundlessly slip past the guards, a veritable ghost to their senses, and make your way slowly up the tunnel (turn to 32).

  344

  You mutter a curse aimed at the city's maintenance workers who clearly haven't been down here to service these tunnels in some time. You grip the bars and wrench them with all your might, hoping that brute force will solve what brain power could not. Roll 2 dice. If the result is equal to or lower than your STRENGTH, turn to 229. If the dice roll is higher than your STRENGTH, turn to 83.

  345

  The floor devolves into a muddy sludge as you head through this passage, which opens out into another room smelling like a barbarian's modesty cloth. You spot an open grate in the wall to your left, and hurriedly make your way over to it, wishing to be out of here as quickly as possible. Just as you are about to exit the room, you spot movement in one of the corners. Will you investigate the movement (turn to 44) or exit the room as quickly as you can (turn to 233)?

  346

  You lift the fibre coil gently from the cross, being careful not to stand on or disturb the grave. The whistle looks similar to those used on river ships, although plated in gold instead of traditional silver. Write down the keyword TOOT. As you slip the piece around your neck, you are assaulted by a sudden gust of wind and a swirling cloud of rust-coloured soil. As you cover your face to prevent grains of dirt from flying into your eyes, you feel a sense of warmth enveloping you, bestowing upon you the gift of a powerful and ancient blessing. Choose an attribute which has a maximum value of 10 or less. Permanently increase the maximum value of that attribute by 1. Then restore your HEALTH back to its maximum value. You also experience a vision. You see the evening sky, filled with stars. A streak of light shoots between two of the celestial bodies.

  When you lower your hands from your face, you discover that the cloud of dirt has vanished, and you have somehow emerged inside the clock tower, standing within its inner corridor. Unsure how you got here, you nonetheless begin to explore your surroundings. Turn to 122.

  347

  You sneak up behind a small pile of boxes on the right-hand side of the courtyard. You swear these crates smell of rotten fish and can only assume the guards stationed here do not care if their food supplies are fresh. Peering past your cover, you see two of the Gekkas directly ahead while another is lurking near the left side of the courtyard. They aren't particularly attentive and may even be off-duty, so it might be possible to duck in between them and make it past this area unseen. Do you have the keyword FALLS? If so, turn to 333. Otherwise, turn to 385.

  348

  Leaving your gear behind, you continue to shimmy forward, now having to push yourself forcefully through the gap to prevent your torso from becoming stuck. Do you have the keyword SLIP? If so, turn to 394. Otherwise, turn to 368.

  349

  “The doors and windows have been enchanted,” Ullucus says, motioning his hand around the room before stroking his lengthy, grey beard. His helplessness in this situation seems to add years to his already advanced age. “I cannot use my magic to free us.”

  “Do not worry yourself, your mighty-ness,” you reply, revealing a lock pick. “I've brought my own magic, right here”. It takes less than a minute for you to unlock each of the doors before you lead the prisoners to the balcony you entered from. You fire off Zabel's rocket-propelled hook so that it embeds itself in a rooftop below at a shallow-enough angle to prevent injury during landing. You then tie the other side of the rope to a balcony pillar, making sure it is as taut as possible.

  “We can't go down there,” says the Mayor. “We might die!”

  “You're welcome to go back inside and await whatever fate the enemy has in store for you,” you reply dismissively. You've never cared much for the Mayor, and your priority here is to rescue the Wizard.

  “Everything will be fine,” interrupts Ullucus. “Now that we are outside the tower, I will bestow a ward of safety upon you, so that if you should fall, you will remain tethered to the rope.”

  “You can do that?” asks Vadul. “In that case, let us leave at once.” You raise an eyebrow at Ullucus as a silent question, and he responds with a shake of his head and a wink. The cunning old Wizard apparently isn't above a small lie to get the job done. Without further delay, you begin your descent to freedom. Turn to 212.

  350

  Once you have struck the death blow, you grab the soldier's body as it falls; to lessen the splash of its impact on the water. After you've made sure the man is dead, you continue on towards the intersection where you know you will find the entrance to the Thieves Guild. Turn to 36.

  351

  You reach the top of the western tower, peering out beyond the front of the ballista. So far these great defensive weapons have kept back the lizard riders, though there are several still alive within the ranks of enemies below. You duck instinctively as the ballista crew swings the weapon around to aim at another target before stepping to a safe spot behind them. Also upon this tower is the Wizard Ullucus, who is helping to keep the lizards at bay by tossing fireballs down at them. All seems to be relatively well at this tower, so you turn around and head back down the stone steps. Turn to 110.

  352

  As your fingers dig into your pocket, searching for your candle, you notice a blue glow emanating from the back of your hand. It immediately reminds you of the glint you spotted when investigating the hole with the centipedes, where you thought you had wasted your time. Instead, it appears you had unknowingly picked up a tiny glowworm. As you lift the little fellow into the air, the cave ceiling and walls suddenly erupt into a cascade of tiny blue lights; more glowworms, smothering every spa
ce upon each rock surrounding you. The effect is so disorientating you feel like you have ascended into the night sky. While the blanket of light is spectacular, you notice one small imperfection. There is a little gap within the sea of illumination and, peering at the glowworm on your hand, you deduce that he belongs in that space. Lifting your hand to the ceiling, you watch as the glowworm takes its place inside the rest of the light show, and you suddenly find yourself engulfed inside a hazy fog of blue mist. A warmth surrounds your body, bestowing upon you the gift of a powerful and ancient blessing. Write down the keyword BRAVE. Choose an attribute which has a maximum value of 10 or less. Permanently increase the maximum value of that attribute by 1. Then restore your HEALTH back to its maximum value. You also experience a vision. You see the evening sky, filled with stars. A streak of light shoots between two of the celestial bodies.

  Turn to 287.

  353

  You watch the climbers for some time with very little actually happening before your eyes finally detect movement from somewhere above their positions. From a cleverly camouflaged cave-mouth beyond a waterfall, you spot two figures emerging, guards most likely, walking along a pathway which is almost invisible against the rock face. They are directly above Zabel. Will you use a popper to change her path (turn to 218) or use a whistler to draw them away (turn to 148)?