The Jungle of Horrors

by Joe Dever

  The soldiers are unlikely to listen to reason. Your only hope is to evade them before you are both surrounded and speared to death.

  Pick a number from the Random Number Table. If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Animal Control or Huntmastery, add 3 to the number you have picked. If you have reached the rank of Primate, add 2.

  If your total is 0–3, turn to 57.

  If it is 4 or more, turn to 234.

  19

  You concentrate all your skill on trying to save your companion's life. Placing your hands on his chest, you transfer the warmth of your healing power into Paido's poisoned body, breaking down the toxin by degrees. The treatment is slow and laborious, and it is dawn before you know for sure if your skill has saved his life.

  Turn to 103.

  20

  The old woman pockets your gold and leads you and Paido to a room at the top of the stairs. Books and charts are stacked high on shelves and scattered about the floor, and daylight streams in through a domed portal in the ceiling. A massive bronze telescope is fixed to the portal, and below it rests a circular table of carved bone set with gems. Seated at the table is a beautiful young woman. Her hair is silken gold, and around her high, pale forehead she wears a circlet of jet inlaid with runes and mystic symbols.

  Turn to 42.

  21

  Painfully slowly you inch your way across the bog, covering less than a mile in three hours. As the sun sets, you find yourselves in the middle of a thickening fog and decide to halt for the night and continue at dawn. Unfortunately, the Danarg quicksands shift and settle like the ebb and flow of the tide, and during the night, you are drawn into its depths to remain forever a prisoner of the bog.

  Your life and your quest end here.

  22

  Studying your map you discover that the watchtower at the top of the hill is called Shieldwarden Tower. Paido tells you that the commanding officer of the town garrison is known as the Shieldwarden of Tharro.

  If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Pathsmanship, turn to 327.

  If you wish to ride up to the watchtower, turn to 14.

  If you choose to enter the temple, turn to 78.

  23

  A claw-like probe of mental energy rakes your mind. Instantly your Discipline repels it, protecting your thoughts and memory from its wilful intrusion, but the unexpectedness and power of the attack leaves you shivering.

  ‘Are you all right?’ asks Paido. ‘Perhaps we should go below and shelter from this storm.’ You answer with a nod and follow him down the stairs into the welcoming warmth of the tap-room. The soldier Trost greets you on your return, but you fail to notice him — you are too busy scanning the hold for the stranger. You see him, seated alone in a shadowy corner opposite your table, quietly reading his black book.

  Turn to 166.

  24

  In the distance you see a pall of dense, black smoke rising into the sky. At its base a fortress wall and a cluster of cottages are feeding the greedy flames. Syada burns. To the north of the doomed town an army of black-clad troops covers the hills. The black wolf-head banners of Ogia sway on long poles, fluttering grimly above the ranks of the merciless horde.

  Along the track a great procession of men, women, and children come towards you, some on horseback, some in carts, and some with bundles of possessions clutched to their soot-blackened chests. They stumble forward in silence, their eyes filled with terror and despair.

  A soldier, bleeding from a wound to his head, rides past the crest shouting, ‘Turn back! Turn back! The armies of darkness are coming!’

  Illustration II—A soldier bleeding from a wound to his head rides past shouting: ‘Turn back!’

  It is impossible to continue along the track northwards. The dirt road is blocked with refugees from Syada, and the Ogian horde are poised to launch an attack from the hills. Only two courses of action are left open to you: you can turn back along the track, or you can ride west, across the hills towards the Mordril Forest. Consult the map before making your decision.

  If you wish to ride west, turn to 311.

  If you decide to turn back along the track, turn to 276.

  25

  Your psychic skill detects that each of the black crystal cubes is vibrating, and what is more, the vibrations are building up to an explosive intensity. Should even one tiny fragment of a crystal puncture the Levitron's pressure tank, the liquid gas stored inside will ignite and the skyship will be torn to pieces in the resulting explosion.

  If you wish to gather up the crystal cubes and throw them overboard, turn to 50.

  If first you wish to help Paido fight off his attackers, turn to 169.

  26

  The dwarf's face beams with pride as he prepares to talk on his favourite subject — himself. Nearly an hour later you have heard all there is to hear about the life and hopes of Lardin, son of Kardon of Bor.

  ‘What news have you of Luukos?’ asks Paido, as the dwarf takes a rare pause for breath.

  ‘News of a kind that's becomin' only too familiar round these parts,’ he replies in a disgruntled tone. ‘That Zegron's bitten off more than he can chew this time. Once Lord Adamas an' the army boys come down on 'im he'll wish he'd stayed in his stinkin' city of Xanar, you mark my words.’

  ‘Don't be too sure o' that, Lardin,’ says a rosy-faced farmer, who has sidled along the bar to join in your conversation. ‘My sister reckons that this time Zegron won't stop till he's flattened everything between Luukos and the Tentarias.’

  ‘That star-gazin' sister o' yours is full o' good news. When 'as she ever seen anything cheerful with 'er telescopes an' charts an' crystal balls, eh? Answer me that.’ Agreement rumbles from the tavern crowd, now openly listening to the discussion.

  ‘That's as maybe,’ retorts the farmer. ‘But when 'as she ever been wrong, eh?’ An uncomfortable silence fills the inn, and slowly the crowd return to their own business. None, least of all the innkeeper, chooses to pursue the matter further.

  If you wish to ask the farmer where his sister lives, turn to 262.

  If you decide to leave the tavern and continue your journey north to Tharro, turn to 318.

  27

  You hit the floor and roll behind the table, the only cover available on this side of the refectory. The fireball scorches your back as it speeds across the room and explodes against the wall with a deafening crack. You find yourself lying beside Paido, who is unconscious but still alive. His blue-steel sword rests across the back of his legs, and the hilt of a dagger protrudes from the top of his boot.

  If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Divination and have reached the rank of Tutelary, turn to 131.

  If you wish to take his sword, turn to 47.

  If you wish to take his dagger and throw it at the Helghast, turn to 211.

  28

  You draw an Arrow and take aim at the man-like creature close on your heels. Short-tufted fur covers his body and yellow tusks curl up from his boar-like snout. He wields an iron sword, old and rust-gnawed, and his eyes are black and cold.

  Pick a number from the Random Number Table.

  If the number you have picked is 4 or lower, turn to 38.

  If it is 5 or higher, turn to 125.

  29

  Your horse becomes skittish when it sees the abbey loom into view: the painful memory of the Vordak attack is still fresh in its mind. Paido's horse behaves in exactly the same manner, and you are forced to ride cross-country, making a wide detour to avoid the abbey before rejoining the track and reaching the Great North Road.

  Turn to 280.

  30

  Golden fire erupts along the blade of the sun-sword as you raise it above your head. The Helghast shrieks and steps back, its eyes glowing red with fear and loathing. It recognizes the power you wield, a power that is the bane of its Darklord masters, a power that can bring about their total destruction.

  Gnaag Helghast: COMBAT SKILL 34 ENDURANCE 48

  This creature is immune to Mindblast (but no
t Psi-surge). Unless you possess the Magnakai Discipline of Psi-screen you must reduce your ENDURANCE by 2 points at the beginning of every round you fight this creature. If you have completed the Lore-circle of the Spirit, you may increase your COMBAT SKILL by 2 points for the duration of this combat. (Remember to double all ENDURANCE point losses sustained by the enemy due to the power of the Sommerswerd.)

  If you win the combat, turn to 268.

  31

  For a few minutes you stare silently at the pool below. Nothing stirs in the seething waters to record the loss of your horses or the passing of the dreadful Anapheg. All three have disappeared without trace.

  The distant thunder of battle pervades your thoughts, prompting you to leave the tree-bridge and move deeper into the Mordril Forest. The tall trees become denser, often forcing you to turn your body sideways in order to make any progress. Gradually dense undergrowth turns to a carpet of moss and blue-black lichen which clings to your boots like mud. A chill overwhelms you as a thick and pearly mist seeps from the cracks beneath the trees. The many sounds of the forest have disappeared to be replaced by a cold and eerie silence.

  If you are in need of Tincture of Oxydine or of Oede herb, turn to 237.

  If you need neither of these items, turn to 91.

  32

  Paido opens the tailboard and you pull yourself into the wagon. The driver jerks the reins and the rickety vehicle moves away, its wheels squealing as it clatters across the flagstoned quadrangle. In the narrow street ahead you see your horses hitched to a post outside a bakery. You call to the cloaked driver to stop and immediately he obeys your command, pulling his mules to a halt opposite the baker's shop. You bid farewell to your silent friend and retrieve your horses. He returns your wave with a smile and, as you mount your horse, you notice that around his neck he wears a wooden amulet shaped like a fish.

  Suddenly the sound of angry voices echoes along the street as the monks emerge from the baker's shop. You and Paido spur your horses to a gallop, and not until you reach the town's north gate do you bring them to a halt.

  Turn to 347.

  33

  You take the grape-sized seed from your pocket and toss it over the counter. Seconds later there is a blinding flash as the Fireseed erupts into flame. The innkeeper leaps into the air, screaming like a madman as he fights to smother the flames which are eating a large hole in the seat of his trousers. He scrambles through the overturned tables and chairs and disappears through the main door. An instant later you hear a loud splash and the hiss of steam as the unfortunate dwarf leaps feet-first into the village stream.

  Turn to 70.

  34

  As you run you pull some food from your pack and drop it behind you in the mud. The temptation proves too much for the ravenous spider and it stops to gobble up the scraps. You escape into the mist.

  Turn to 129.

  35

  The paved street leads to a large stone building, its walls blank and featureless except for the stains of time. A group of fletchers sits outside beneath a row of bright lanterns, gluing feathers to thin shafts of wood. They work with speed and skill, transforming the rods into arrows of fine quality.

  If you wish to stop and investigate the building, turn to 168.

  If you wish to continue along the street, turn to 264.

  36

  The withered trees are grouped more densely around the northern edge of the pool. A ceiling of vines criss-crosses above your head, and creatures slither against your ankles as you wade through the foul-smelling mud. Progress is very slow.

  Suddenly fearful screams, like the baying of rabid dogs, sound from the mist-enshrouded trees ahead. A host of creeping creatures, each an arm's length taller than a man, rise from their hiding places. Black water drips from their corpse-green hides, and their toad-like faces betray their evil intent as they slither and shuffle towards you.

  If you have a Bow and wish to use it, turn to 182.

  If you have a Fireseed and wish to use it, turn to 225.

  If you wish to draw a hand weapon and prepare for combat, turn to 265.

  37

  ‘The next barge north stops 'ere in an hour's time, though it's like to be a might late 'cause o' the storm,’ he says. ‘The fare is 40 Lune. If you wait at the jetty you'll see it when it comes up the valley.’

  If you want to ask the old woman about her daughter, Tadia the Prophetess, turn to 244.

  If you wish to thank her and leave the Ferry House, turn to 299.

  38

  The Arrow slices a wedge out of its shoulder and disappears into the dark, striking another of the beasts lurking in the undergrowth. The boar-faced Ghagrim ignores his bleeding shoulder and continues to advance, licking the blade of his rusty sword as he closes to attack.

  Ghagrim: COMBAT SKILL 23 ENDURANCE 38

  You can evade combat after three rounds; turn to 309.

  If you win the combat, turn to 9.

  39

  You manage to release the Arrow a split second before the fireball hits you in the chest and flings you backwards to the ground! Lose 8 ENDURANCE points. Your shaft sinks into the Helghast's stomach but the creature is unshaken. With a gloating laugh it plucks the Arrow from its body and hurls it aside with contempt. This fiend is unaffected by ordinary weapons; it can only be harmed by magic.

  If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Divination and have reached the rank of Tutelary, turn to 131.

  If you wish to take cover behind the refectory table, turn to 289.

  40

  Your instinct saves you. The speeding shaft punctures your sleeve, drawing an angry red weal across your forearm before shattering against the wall behind — lose 2 ENDURANCE points.

  The bowyery owner utters a thin cry of disbelief and hurls the bow at your head, distracting you as he unsheathes his sword.

  Bourn the Bowyer: COMBAT SKILL 19 ENDURANCE 24

  If you win the combat, turn to 87.

  41

  The wagon pulls away as the monks turn the corner into the alley. As soon as they set eyes on you and Paido they raise the alarm. ‘Murderers!’ they scream, their voices echoing across the town. One of them turns and disappears into the quadrangle to summon more help. The remaining four unsheathe their swords and spread out in a line. Their eyes blaze with hatred as they prepare to attack.

  Monks of the Sword: COMBAT SKILL 22 ENDURANCE 31

  You may add 5 points to your COMBAT SKILL for the duration of the fight as Paido is fighting alongside you.

  If you win the combat, turn to 106.

  42

  ‘I am Tadia the Prophetess,’ she says, her voice soft and lilting, ‘and you are Lone Wolf, Lord of the Sun-realm, Skarn, of legend.’ Paido reaches for his sword but you stay his hand, for you sense that this woman wishes to help, not harm you.

  ‘We live in an age of great peril. Your enemies of old are our enemies; they stand poised to conquer our land and I fear we are too weak to resist them. Your purpose is known to me, and I will aid you all I can in the hope that you will fulfil your destiny and destroy the champions of darkness.’

  Tadia raises her arms and points towards the sky. Floating in the air between her parted hands appears a spinning globe of white fire. She tilts back her head and stares into this ball of flame, her eyes unblinking despite the fearful intensity of the light. ‘Your safest passage to the Danarg is through the Mordril Forest,’ she says solemnly. ‘The road to Syada is fraught with danger — only battle and death await you there.’

  The globe flickers and fades and Tadia returns her gaze to you. ‘Let nothing delay your quest, Lone Wolf. The future of both our lands depends on your success.’

  Before you leave the prophetess offers you a choice of potions and weapons. You may take whatever you wish but remember to amend your Action Chart accordingly. Choose from the following:

  Potion of Alether — increases COMBAT SKILL by 2 points for the duration of a single combat.

  Potion of Laumspur — restor
es 4 ENDURANCE points (enough for one dose).

  Broadsword

  Quarterstaff

  Rendalim's Elixir — restores 6 ENDURANCE points (enough for one dose).

  Tincture of Oxydine — restores 2 ENDURANCE points (enough for one dose).

  All potions are Backpack Items. If you are infected with the korovax bacillus, you may use the Tincture of Oxydine to cure yourself.

  Once you have made your choice you leave the Ferry House and continue.

  Turn to 89.

  43

  You leap from the saddle, narrowly avoiding being pulled off the tree-bridge. Your horse and the hideous creature both disappear from view, quickly swallowed up by the spray from the waterfall. As you land on the slippery wet wood, Paido's horse rears up on its hind legs, its forelegs kicking the air and its eyes rolling madly. He fights to control the animal but it is wild with fear and, with a crack of splintering wood, its hind hoof shears through a rotten branch; it totters on the brink. Paido swings his legs clear and abandons his doomed horse barely seconds before it falls into the watery abyss.