"My grand-uncle spent his whole life hoping to get to this place," you say. "So let's be thorough."
The two of you get to work searching the area. It's mostly dirt and rubble, but you find scraps of other wood and fabric buried beneath the sands. The place was once a city square, as far as you can figure. A place where vendors set up small shops and sold their wares.
You're about to give up and move on when Waif produces a small piece of pottery. As he lifts it the bottom drops out, spilling a cascade of tiny shimmering globes into the sand.
"Pearls!" he cries out excitedly.
You kneel to help him gather up the tiny treasures. There are at least a hundred of them in all, from black to lavender to milky white.
"Truly this is a city of riches," Waif breathes.
"Maybe," you say, holding up one of the larger pearls. "It's still not a star jewel though." Your eyes are drawn upward to the distant tower. At the top, something green glints in the rising sun.
Not a bad start!
Now continue along the northern avenue by TURNING TO PAGE 85
140
The ants are swarming. Churning. They form an semi-circle at your feet, their bodies rolling beneath the sun in a red, deadly wave.
"Waif!" you cry out. "Your torch!"
Gripped by panic, it seems your partner has forgotten all about his firebrand. He brandishes now, swinging it down and forward. A few ants fall beneath the flames, but there are way too many. The torch just isn't enough.
"Hang on..."
You unsling your rucksack and reach inside. For one panicked moment you think you left it back at camp, but then your hand closes around the object of your search: a small metal cannister of lamp oil.
Quickly you squirt the oil onto the cobbles, creating a curved line separating you and Waif from the advancing army of ants. Eventually the container goes empty and you toss it. You can only hope it's enough.
"Light it!"
Waif does as he's told. The flammable liquid goes up instantly, igniting in a huge wave of heat and smoke. You hear a distinct crackle as the front line of ants falls victim to the flames. The ants just behind them fall back and retreat.
"It's working!" you shout triumphantly. But you also know it won't last forever. You and Waif will need to get moving before the flames die down, or before reinforcements arrive. You grab his shoulder and pull him backward, away from the battle.
"Which way? East or west?"
If you'd like to go east, FLIP ALL THE WAY BACK TO PAGE 13
If you'd rather go west, HEAD OVER TO PAGE 82
141
"Waif, quick! Grab my hand!"
Sprinting forward without thinking, you extend your arm. Your partner reaches back, and then suddenly you're both sliding into the sinkhole!
Sand rushes past you. It fills your ears, your mouth, your nose... Somehow you stay on top, doing your best to avoid the rock and rubble tumbling past to fill the gaping hole. The sand-slide begins to slow, and then eventually, stops altogether. You're buried up to your waist in the newly-shifted desert. It takes you a good minute or two to pull yourself free.
"Waif! WAIF!"
Your voice echoes against the empty horizon. There's no answer. Your friend is gone, buried beneath the sands of Atraharsis.
You hardly knew him, but you're overcome with a profound sense of sorrow and loss. Unwilling to face the city alone, you reluctantly accept that this is
THE END
142
You stand in what appears to be a large, circular chamber. But as the torchlight reaches the walls, it's revealed the room is actually hexagonal. Each of the sides contain a single arched exit. And above each shadowy opening--
"Look! The glyphs!"
Six images are carved deeply into the stone, one directly above each opening. You spin in a circle, examining all of them.
"One of these leads to the Hall of Kings," you tell Waif. "It just has to..."
143
You stare at the openings. They all look the same. Each is completely identical to all the others, except for the different markings carved overhead.
Alright, this is it! Make your choice!
If you choose the exit marked with the SERPENT, take a really deep breath and GO TO PAGE 117
If you pick the exit marked with the DOG, swallow once and HEAD OVER TO PAGE 146
If you pick the exit marked with the CROWN, deliver a very royal salute and TURN TO PAGE 99
If you pick the exit marked with the HORSE, let out a long, deep breath and FLIP BACK TO PAGE 20
If you pick the exit marked with the CAT, try to land on your feet OVER ON PAGE 156
If you pick the exit marked with the HAWK, see what happens when you TURN TO PAGE 160
144
"Jump!" Waif screams. He's nearly drowned completely out by the thunder of the surging river. "Do it NOW!"
There's no time to line things up or even hesitate -- all you can do get in motion. You take your best running start, plant your left foot against the lip of the receding floor, and launch yourself toward the opposite hallway.
You sail forward, feeling the powerful rush of air churning beneath you. Waif looks so small, so very far away. Your foot catches something... and then suddenly you're through the opening. You made it!
"I... can't... believe..."
You fall. Not into the river, though. This time the floor of the hallway gives out, dropping you through a chute and along a rough stone ramp. You bang up against Waif a few times, and then the both of you are ejected -- through the ceiling -- into another large chamber.
For a few moments you just lie there, dizzy from the fall, grateful to be alive. Then you pick yourself up, check for broken bones, and help Waif to his feet.
Where'd you end up now? Find out when you FLIP BACK TO PAGE 142
145
Here the street doubles back upon itself, creating a wide avenue that skirts the northernmost reaches of the city. Not far in the distance, the Queens Tower looms against the morning sky. Its smooth, almost-reflective surface curves inward as it juts upward from the sands, creating a feminine, hourglass shape.
Standing between you and the tower, a raised pavilion is set off to one side. A series of beautifully carved marble columns are set equidistant from one another in a large rectangle.
"As much as I want that tower," you say, pointing upward, "this is too interesting not to check it out." Waif nods his agreement, and moments later, you're at the top of a small set of granite steps.
The floor here is clean, the debris minimal. A series of large, elongated stones -- pieces of the toppled columns -- lay strewn about, the edges polished smooth by centuries beneath the shifting sands. Kneeling before one, you're attempting to read an inscription at the base when, all of a sudden, Waif starts backing up in your direction.
"What's the--"
Then you see it. Ahead of you, crawling forward on all fours, is an enormous, razor-toothed monitor lizard. The creature is freakishly huge -- maybe twice the size of a Komodo Dragon -- all scales and claws and muscle. Its thick pink tongue flicks in and out of its mouth as it sniffs the air.
"Waif..." you whisper, as if somehow lowering your voice might help. He doesn't move. "Waif!"
Waif stands beside you, frozen against one of the rounded white stones. There are three more such stones behind you. You grab the only weapon you have -- your camping hatchet -- and wield it with as much ferocity as you can. Which to be honest, isn't much.
With the monster still advancing, it's time to make your move.
If you decide to fighting the lizard is your best bet, TURN TO PAGE 77
If you'd rather hide behind the set of large stones, TRY THAT OPTION ON PAGE 56
Or maybe you can just yank Waif out of the way and make a break for it. If so, GO TO PAGE 111
146
You look at the glyph shaped like a dog. Innocent and pure. Man's best friend.
"The dog looks good," you say. After all, what could go
wrong?
Together you pass beneath the glyph and enter a dark corridor. You haven't gone more than a few dozen steps when, suddenly--
"The floor!" Waif cries. "It's rising up behind us!"
You whirl around. The floor you just crossed is tilting upward, turning the entire corridor into a steep incline. By the time you turn back it's already too late -- your legs buckle. The torch goes out. Waif lets out a scream and you find yourself sliding downward, into the oblivion of utter darkness.
"Unnffff!"
You fall and fall, yet somehow when you land you're still alive. Waif re-ignites the torch and you find yourselves in a high-slung cavern, sprawled across an enormous pile of sand. The walls are rough-hewn, scarred by the blades of a thousand primitive tools. The ceiling stretches high overhead.
"The quarry," Waif says. You notice an ominous tone in his voice. "The founders excavated here to build the city. These tunnels... they go on for miles and miles."
There must be a dozen exits from this room alone. All of them are pitch black. As if reading your mind, Waif follows your gaze to the torch. How many hours of light are left? How much water is still in your canteens?
There are thousands of tunnels that make up the maze down here. Maybe you'll be able to navigate them. Maybe you'll be able to make it out.
Or maybe all the exits collapsed in on themselves thousands of years ago. You don't know the answers to these questions, but ultimately you'll find out.
For now however, this appears to be
THE END
147
The simple stone staircase empties unceremoniously into the second level of the Queen's Tower. This floor is even more lavish than the first. The furnishings are more preserved, the walls more brightly painted. The staircase you arrived at continues upward, spiraling high along the wall. It appears to go past a few more missing floors, all the way to the top.
Shining down from the upper opening is a gleaming green light.
"The star emerald!" Waif cries eagerly. Immediately he starts up the staircase... until you place a hand on his shoulder.
"Hang on," you say. "It was an effort just getting to the tower. Let's not go running around too fast."
Your partner steps down reluctantly. Together you search the second floor. There's not much here, but at least everything doesn't crumble to the touch.
You're about to set foot on the steps again when Waif calls you over. "Come. Look at this."
He's standing over a moldy chest. Your partner has already brushed the sand aside and gotten it open. Inside is a smaller object made of delicate green glass.
"Should we touch it?" he asks. Instead of answering him you pick it up. You turn it over in your hands a few times before realizing what it is.
"It's a puzzle box!"
"A what?"
"A puzzle box. My grand-uncle had a few of them. They're always different, but he taught me a few tricks on how to solve them." The crystalline structure of the box is sleek and beautiful. You can see there's something inside, but refraction from the glass makes it impossible to tell what it is.
"I'll bet I can open it," you tell Waif.
If you'd like to give the box a try, roll two dice (or just pick a random number from 2 to 12)
If the roll comes up odd, TURN TO PAGE 79
If the roll comes up even, TURN TO PAGE 23
Or maybe you'd like to put the box in your rucksack and continue upward. If so, GO TO PAGE 122
148
You move to the lever at the western side of the room. You figure one door's as good as the other.
"Waif, help me pull."
The lever comes down with the smooth ease of good engineering. The granite block begins to lower, while simultaneously, a door rises out of the floor in the west side passage. Even when the mechanism is fully raised, you realize it hasn't blocked much sun.
"Maybe if we--"
"Aaahhhh!"
Something large and dark leaps from the top of the ancient counterweight. Disturbed from its resting place, a huge spider lunges at Waif!
Roll a single die (or just pick a random number from 1 to 6)
If the number is a 1 or 6, TURN TO PAGE 108
If the number is a 2, 3, 4 or 5, GO TO PAGE 70
149
Left, right... one random hallway is as good as another. You split the difference and take the center.
The light from Waif's torch reveals crude stone walls wet with condensation. They seem to grow darker the further you go. At one point the corridor makes a U-turn, doubling back on itself, and that's when things get significantly steeper.
"Careful," you tell Waif as the floor curves even further downward. He starts to respond when his foot skids on a patch of sand!
You reach for your friend as he slips over the edge. He's light. It should be an easy catch... but as you grab for him your own feet slide out from under you on the sandy incline. Together you fall, skidding downward, trying to avoid the burning torch along the way. Ultimately you're deposited into another room, dropped rudely through a hole in the chamber's ceiling.
"Ugh," you groan as you rise slowly to your feet. "I've almost had enough of this place."
Waif's raises his torch and his eyes go wide. "Almost..."
Ouch! You're gonna feel that in the morning. Now TURN TO PAGE 142
150
"Forget it," you shout to Waif. "Just run!"
You turn your backs to the wave of insects and start running. Waif is just ahead of you. The ants are swarming behind you, surging forward. You can hear the rustling of their carapaces as they slide against and climb over each other.
There's a brief, heart-stopping moment when you're sure they've caught you. You can actually feel the creatures crawling up your feet, skittering beneath your pants leg, biting you in the calves... But the pain never comes. Either it's all in your head, or you're too numb to feel it. You want to turn around, to see if you've beaten them. But as Waif glances back over his own shoulder, the fear in his eyes tells you not to.
Finally Waif slows, mere seconds before it feels like your heart is going to explode. You take it down to a jog, then a walk. When you finally look back you see only a dozen or so ants left in the street, crawling in mindless circles.
"That... was... close..." you breathe. "I... I don't..."
"Take it easy," Waif tells you. "We're safe." Not only hasn't he broken a sweat, he isn't even out of breath! You don't know whether to be angry or jealous.
You rest until your breath comes back, helped along by a cool drink from your friend's canteen. When you look up, the avenue you're on has reached a junction point. One road heads east into the rising sun. The other stretches in the opposite direction.
If you'd like to go east, TURN TO PAGE 13
If you'd rather go west, FLIP TO PAGE 82
151
Your legs shake as the floor grumbles beneath your feet. Frantically you look down. Sand is scattered in small piles around you.
Earth is key...
"Waif!" you cry. "Help me gather some sand!"
Cupping your hands together, you start scooping up sand and dumping it into the altar. As expected, it runs straight out of the holes on all four sides. But something else happens too. The floor seems to be slowing down.
"Keep going!"
You both alternate, taking turns scooping and loading the altar with sand. As you develop a rhythm the floor slows its ascent even more. But it still doesn't stop...
Waif's hand closes over your shoulder as he suddenly points upward. "Look!"
A number of stones have retracted, creating a hole in the ceiling. There's a glyph carved beside the opening you hadn't seen before.
"Water!" Waif translates. "Water, life!"
Waif drags you over until you're standing directly beneath the hole. Arms at your sides, the two of you hold your breath as you're pushed upward, straight through the new opening. The floor slams into the ceiling with a dull BOOM, knocking you right to your knees.
>
"Here!"
When you look up again, you're in the equivalent of a stone cylinder with no roof. Waif has already climbed out. He extends a hand downward and pulls you into the upper chamber.
Pretty slick escape! NOW TURN TO PAGE 142
152
You continue along the shadowy corridors until they spill you into a long, narrow hallway. The floor is different here. Instead of the smooth mortared flagstone you've been walking on the entire time, this floor is made up of square clay tiles.
"Hang on," you say as Waif moves to step into the hall. "Something's up here."
Holding the torch low, you can see the tiles come in three colors: white, black, and red. They seem randomly distributed along the length of the hall in no distinguishable pattern.
"We have to go through here," your partner shrugs. He points to a dark exit at the opposite end. "There's no other way."
Looks like you'll need to tread carefully. Lift your leg and make a choice:
If you step on a white tile, TURN TO PAGE 170
If you step on a black tile, TURN TO PAGE 61
If you step on a red tile, TURN TO PAGE 113
153
You push your palm against the obelisk key and begin to turn counter-clockwise. The stone shifts beneath your hand...
Treasures of the Forgotten City Page 11
