by Joe Dever
If you wish to continue along the highway, riding full speed for Ruanon, turn to 297.
If you wish to avoid the main highway and continue by the eastern track, turn to 15.
39
The arrow arcs through the smoke-blackened sky and pierces the officer's shining breastplate. You hear his scream of pain ring out above the din of battle and watch as his cruel eyes flicker and close. He swoons and slips from his saddle, your arrow lodged deep in his heart.
Turn to 148.
40
A line of empty ore wagons lie parked along a stretch of track that disappears into the west wall of this gallery. Above the arched tunnel, a flight of wooden stairs leads to a smaller passage lit by a sputtering torch.
You stay hidden in the shadows, watching the gallery for half an hour before you are satisfied that it is safe to enter.
If you have the Kai Discipline of Tracking, and if you have reached the Kai rank of Aspirant or higher, turn to 349.
If you wish to follow the wagon track into the west tunnel, turn to 55.
If you wish to climb the stairs to the balcony and explore the passage, turn to 291.
41
You recognize the silky fluid; it is the trail of a Stoneworm, a dangerous subterranean predator. You warn your men not to step in the slime, for it is highly corrosive. No sooner have the words left your mouth than there is a sudden and ghastly noise.
Turn to 276.
42
Your knees shatter on impact and you drop like a stone into the darkness of the shaft, but the pain and shock soon fades into unconsciousness. As you hit the surface of an underground river, hundreds of feet below, you are unable to save yourself from death by drowning.
Your mission and your life end here.
43
If you are to survive this attack, you must fight with speed and accuracy. You raise your weapon poising yourself to strike.
Pick a number from the Random Number Table. If you possess the Discipline of Mind Over Matter or Weaponskill, add 1 to the number you have picked. If you possess the Kai Discipline of Hunting or Sixth Sense, add 2 to the number you have picked.
If your total is now 0–6, turn to 262.
If it is 7 or more, turn to 111.
44
As the rangers encircle the ruins, the strangers make a dash for the highway. Your men give chase and swiftly dispatch them with their swords. One of the robed men shatters a small flask as he falls to the ground. A search of the bodies reveals 12 Gold Crowns and enough food for two Meals. If you wish to keep any of these items, remember to mark them on your Action Chart. You notice that both of the men wear amulets on chains around their necks. They are wooden and shaped in the likeness of fish.
If you have the Kai Discipline of Healing, turn to 149.
If you do not possess this skill, turn to 188.
45
You recognize gnadurn sap dripping from their spears. It is a deadly poison. You dare not risk engaging in combat with these bandits, for the merest graze from one of their tainted weapons could be fatal. Leaping to your feet, you race away from the trees and run towards Ruanon.
Turn to 307.
46
You have barely taken a dozen steps when you are confronted by a hideous sight. The tunnel ahead is blocked by a huge and slimy creature, its skin covered with warts that glow with a greenish luminescence. You draw your weapon as it moves closer, hopping from one clawed foot to the other. Suddenly, a pair of wings sprouts from its back, and it leaps into the air. You feel your stomach contract as it hurtles towards you, its razor-fanged mouth opening wider and wider.
Tunnel Fiend: COMBAT SKILL 20 ENDURANCE 10
If you win this combat, turn to 281.
47
You manage to gasp a lungful of air before the dark waters close over your upturned face. A tentacle brushes your foot, and you lash out just in time to prevent it from ensnaring you. The creature is badly wounded, but it is determined to claim your life in return for its injury.
Giant Meresquid: COMBAT SKILL 16 ENDURANCE 37
If you win the combat in longer than five rounds, turn to 340.
If you win the combat in five rounds or less, turn to 32.
48
You sense that the left tunnel leads away from Ruanon. Without hesitation, you turn and head off towards the right.
Turn to 145.
49
Lifting your feet high, you step into the tall crops, taking care to part them first with your hands. You allow the stalks to close again behind your back before you crouch down and hold your breath. You have completely vanished from sight; it is as if the stalks have never been disturbed.
The bandits amble past barely inches from where you hide, oblivious to your presence. When you are sure they have gone, you emerge from the crops and hurry away.
Turn to 204.
50
The great doors open to reveal a patrol of six tunnel guards. They are each armed with a crossbow and react instantly to your presence on the bridge. ‘Charge!’ you shout, hoping that you might be able to overpower the guards before they can fire their deadly weapons.
Pick a number from the Random Number Table.
If the number you have picked is 0–6, turn to 184.
If the number is 7–9, turn to 267.
51
You have been riding for over four hours when you see a flock of birds. They are black and very large and are swooping around the brow of a distant ridge.
If you have the Kai Discipline of Animal Kinship, turn to 227.
If you wish to investigate the ridge, turn to 328.
If you would rather ignore the birds and press on, turn to 120.
52
A hail of feathered shafts cuts the air. The arrows strike home with deadly accuracy. Three of your men have fallen by the time you reach the mine, and an arrow passes so close to your right eye that you are blinded by its flights. You lose 1 ENDURANCE point. With a hand held to your injured eye, you stagger into the entrance of the tunnel.
Turn to 248.
53
The door slams shut, and you spin round to see a bandit leaping at you from the shadows. His head is a mass of bloodied bandages, but he is armed and determined to fight.
Wounded Bandit: COMBAT SKILL 13 ENDURANCE 16
He fights you with his back to the door and you cannot evade him.
If you win the combat, turn to 109.
54
As you gradually descend into the tunnel, you feel a draught of cold, dank air on your face. The walls of the tunnel are composed of a glittering ore that catches the light of your torch and reflects it in a dazzling display of colour. As your eyes follow the dancing lights you suddenly notice that the floor is covered with pink fungi.
If you have the Kai Discipline of Healing and you have reached the Kai rank of Warmarn, turn to 4.
If you do not have this skill, or if you have yet to reach the rank of Kai Warmarn, you can risk walking through the fungi by turning to 65.
Alternatively, if you wish, you may eat some of the fungi by turning to 201.
55
As you make your way along the torchlit tunnel, you pass several ore wagons bearing the same design branded upon their wooden sides: a cross moline above the initials ‘O.V.’. You recognize the seal of Oren Vanalund, the Baron of Ruanon, and it confirms the fact that you are heading in the right direction. Suddenly, the sound of approaching footsteps begins to echo along the tunnel ahead. They become louder, accompanied now by shouting and the crack of a whip.
If you wish to dive into one of the empty ore wagons, turn to 161.
If you wish to hide in the shadows of the rough tunnel wall, turn to 286.
56
You hit the guard and open a deep wound in his neck. He screams and turns to face you, a short sword in his hand.
Wounded Guard: COMBAT SKILL 12 ENDURANCE 18
If you win and the fight lasts for 3 rounds of combat or less, turn to 69.
If you win but the fight lasts longer than 3 rounds, turn to 203.
57
‘You must save her, Lone Wolf. You must prevent the sacrifice!’ The Baron's voice is choked with emotion.
‘Save who? Who must he save?’ questions Captain D'Val, as he tries to calm the excited Baron.
‘My daughter, Madelon, of course,’ the Baron answers. Tears are welling up in his eyes and nervously he wrings his hands. Then he utters the ominous prophecy:
When the full moon shines o'er the temple deep,
A sacrifice will stir from sleep
The legions of a long forgotten lord.
When a fair royal maid on the altar dies,
The dead of Maakengorge shall rise
To claim their long-awaited reward.
‘Don't you see? Barraka has found the dagger of Vashna. He is going to sacrifice my daughter upon the altar of Maaken to release the undead of Maakengorge, the Chasm of Doom.’
‘During the Age of the Black Moon, King Ulnar of Sommerlund killed the mightiest of all the Darklords, Vashna, with the Sommerswerd — the sword of the sun. Vashna's body and the bodies of all his troops were hurled into the bottomless abyss of Maakengorge. He plans to lead the dead to victory; first to conquer Sommerlund and then all of the Lastlands,’ explains the Baron, fear in his eyes.
You stare at the Baron in stunned silence. If Barraka completes the sacrifice, all is lost. What mortal army can stand against a legion of the dead?
Captain D'Val ushers you from the chamber and closes the door. ‘I feared he was insane, and I refused to listen to his words. But the events of the last few days confirm my worst nightmare. He speaks the truth!’
As the dreadful significance of the prophetic verse begins to chill your spine, your thoughts are broken by the shrill blast of a war-horn. Captain D'Val strides over to an arrow slit in the wall and looks out across the desolate plain. As he turns to speak, his face is ashen grey. ‘The bandits — they're launching an attack!’
If you possess Captain D'Val's Sword, turn to 327.
If you do not possess this weapon, turn to 289.
58
Peering about in the gloom of the camp perimeter, you decide that the actor can only be in one of two places: a large caravan to your left or a smaller coach to your right. You notice a handkerchief lying at the door of the smaller coach.
If you wish to enter the large caravan, turn to 222.
If you decide to investigate the smaller coach, turn to 110.
59
Captain D'Val and his men are locked in mortal combat with the invading cavalry; they are outnumbered and hard-pressed by the merciless foe who use their spike-shod horses to kick and trample their opponents underfoot. You reach the barricade to see yet another wave of the enemy approaching. Armoured handlers with packs of Warhounds spread out in front of a line of spear-armed infantry.
Fifty yards from the barricade, the armoured handlers stop and kneel to let loose their dogs of war.
Pick a number from the Random Number Table.
If the number you have picked is 0–4, turn to 193.
If it is 5–9, turn to 260.
60
Your Kai sense reveals that the right tunnel is a dead end. Anxious not to get trapped by your pursuers, you turn and run into the left tunnel.
Turn to 199.
61
Your lightning reactions have saved you from the river. You sidestep in time to avoid the sinuous tentacle and lash out. The blow opens a wide gash and an arc of green blood sprays across the battered rowing boat. Only two of your men remain. One stabs at the tentacle around his foot, and the other lies unconscious at your feet, his arm badly broken at the elbow.
If you wish to hack at the tentacle that is coiled around the ranger's foot, turn to 304.
If you wish to aid the unconscious ranger lying at your feet, turn to 136.
If you wish to grab the oars and row for the bank, turn to 189.
62
The bandit springs to his feet and attacks you with his mace. Deduct 2 from your COMBAT SKILL for the first 3 rounds of combat, as you are now lying on the ground. You cannot evade the combat and must fight the bandit to the death.
Bandit Warrior: COMBAT SKILL 17 ENDURANCE 24
If you win, turn to 148.
63
The sound of a tolling bell drifts across the barren landscape. Window shutters slam down, but eyes still peer at you from the arrow slits carved into the walls.
You draw your company to a halt outside the wide tavern doors. ‘We are Sommlending. We seek shelter for the night and fodder for our mounts,’ you shout. There is a long pause before a voice answers your call.
Pick a number from the Random Number Table to discover the nature of the reply.
If the number you have picked is 0–4, turn to 259.
If the number is 5–9, turn to 95.
64
The only exit from the chamber, other than the well and the tunnel by which you entered, is by a spiral staircase set into the north wall.
If you wish to ascend the stairs, turn to 170.
If you wish to descend the stairs, turn to 228.
65
As you tread on the fungi, the pink flesh splits releasing clouds of spores into the tunnel. They fill your eyes and nostrils. You cannot breathe. Blindly you stagger forward until you are clear of the fungi, but as you emerge from the cloud of spores, you are confronted by another peril. A host of hideous, bat-winged reptiles are flying towards you, their scaly hands grasping jagged pieces of stalagmite. You cannot evade combat and must fight them all as one enemy.
Tunnel Fiends: COMBAT SKILL 20 ENDURANCE 10
If you win the combat, turn to 298.
66
You land and roll forwards. The Vassagonian leaps after you, hoping to deliver a killing blow before you can rise, but he does not realize he is fighting a Kai Lord. You strike him in mid-air, and he is dead before he hits the ground.
D'Val runs past to your left. He leads a dozen of his best swordsmen in a countercharge, driving the enemy back to the barricade. None escape alive. Those who survive D'Val's swordsmen are cut down by his archers as they run across the plain. But the shout of victory has barely died away when you are faced by another formidable attack.
Turn to 124.
67
Your men are hungry and exhausted, but they possess an unshakeable faith in the infallibility of your Kai sense. You give the signal to leave, but as you near the town entrance, you hear a thin whistling noise. A ranger at your side suddenly screams in agony, a flat circle of razor-sharp steel embedded in his chest. More of the discs follow whistling down from the rooftops to claim their victims. One grazes the back of your hand before embedding itself in the neck of your startled horse. You are thrown to the ground and lose 1 ENDURANCE point.
Illustration IV—Razor-sharp discs of steel whistle down to claim their victims.
Staggering to your feet, you run, half-crouched, to the shelter of a wagon. Two of your men lie dead upon the road, but the others have escaped the ambush and are galloping away from the town, hidden by the rising clouds of dust.
You turn to see a bandit warrior standing at a nearby balcony. He is dark-skinned, with oily black hair and beard. He flicks his hand and a deadly disc whistles towards your face.
If you possess the Sommerswerd, turn to 292.
If you do not possess this Special Item, pick a number from the Random Number Table. If you have either the Kai Discipline of Hunting or Mind Over Matter, add 2 to the number that you have picked.
If your total is now 0–4, turn to 242.
If it is 5–8, turn to 263.
If it is 9–11, turn to 278.
68
One sharp blow with the edge of your hand is all that is needed to smash the lock on the boathouse door. Your curiosity is soon rewarded by the sight of an upturned rowing boat resting upon a pair of wooden trestles. A pail of pitch stands beneath it. From the layer of
dust covering the surface of the boat, you judge that it has stood undisturbed for several months.
If you wish to launch the rowing boat, turn to 180.
If you wish to search the boathouse for other useful items, turn to 213.
69
As you step over the dead guard, you follow the line of the hanging rope to a pair of locking pins, which secures the bridge to the edge of the mine shaft. If the guard had pulled the rope, the bridge would have fallen away, and you would have been trapped on this side of the chamber.
You run across the bridge just as your pursuers enter. A rope, similar to the one opposite, hangs from the ceiling next to the tunnel entrance in the west wall. You look back to see that your pursuers are now halfway across the bridge.
If you wish to pull the rope, turn to 125.
If you wish to ignore the rope and escape into the tunnel, turn to 348.
70
Your passage through the trees is lit by the flickering glow of the campfires that line the highway. Bandit warriors huddle round drawing warmth and comfort from the flames. They take little interest in their guard duties, and you find it easy to avoid their patrols.
