The Cauldron of Fear (4 page)

You look upon the city of Tahou from the balcony of a tall tower, the spire of the Thalis Temple, situated at the heart of the Rainbow Park. It is noon, but there is no brightness in this day, for a grey blanket of smoke covers the sky. Below you lies a shattered city, its once proud buildings now seething infernos, its streets and squares choked with rubble. Hasty defences have been constructed where the city wall is holed or fallen, and the battlements to the north and east are covered with unburied dead.

Beyond the wall, the flats lie shrouded in a mist that curls like the smoke of a thousand campfires. Its thickness is unnatural and you sense at once that it has been conjured to hide the enemy. You leave the tower and make your own way through the burning streets towards the West District, where the fighting at the wall is fiercest. You pass the smouldering ruins of the Anarium and take a fire-swept street that leads to the West Gate. A building at the end of this street is being used as a shelter for the wounded. The roof has caught fire and a handful of soldiers are trying desperately to evacuate the wounded before it collapses.

If you wish to help these soldiers,
turn to 342
.

If you wish to continue towards the West Gate,
turn to 179
.

You leap from your hiding place like a tiger pouncing on its prey. Miraculously, the guard manages to parry your first blow, but he is awestruck by your skill with a blade. He retreats towards the strongroom as you press your attack.

Strongroom Guard:
COMBAT SKILL
 13   
ENDURANCE
 22

If you win the combat in less than three rounds,
turn to 117
.

If you win but the combat lasts longer than three rounds,
turn to 276
.

The shock of the fall and the numbing chill of the icy black water conspire to sap your strength. You flail and flounder in the deep until you are gripped by cramp and can no longer resist your doom. Unconsciousness smothers your pain as you sink slowly to the bottom of the lake, weighed down by your equipment and the freezing water that now fills your lungs.

Your life and your quest end here.

You have answered the riddle correctly
²
and Khmar displays his collection of valuables from which you may choose your winnings. You may take any two of the articles listed; they are all Backpack Items:

• Silver Bowl
  
• Vial of Gold Dust
  
• Altar Cloth
  
• Scroll of Honour
  
• Jadin Anklets
  

If you already carry the maximum number of Backpack Items, you may discard two of them in favour of your prize.

Since you have displayed your intelligence so effectively, the plains farmers are now reluctant to continue gambling. Khmar and his sons gather up their winnings and bid you goodnight, and the farmers follow suit.

If you wish to talk with the tavern owner,
turn to 268
.

If you wish to order a meal,
turn to 88
.

If you decide to call it a day and retire to your room,
turn to 156
.

There is a faint
click
but the doors remain firmly closed.
³
You press the lower three buttons at random in the hope of chancing on the correct combination, but the buttons lock into position and you cannot prise them up.

Turn to 207
.

You tie one end of the rope to the bottom rung and drop the rest into the darkness. Seconds later you hear it strike stone and you realize that you will not have too far to descend. As you climb down the rope, you pass through a layer of mist that glows with a curious blue-green luminescence. Twenty feet below the mist your feet touch firm ground. (Erase the Rope from your
Action Chart
.) Close to where you land lie the skeletal remains of a human body.

If you wish to examine the body,
turn to 186
.

If you wish to ignore it and investigate your surroundings,
turn to 51
.

‘Save your sympathy,’ he sneers, ‘ 'cause you're about to meet him face to face!’ Suddenly he lunges forward, a curved dagger gleaming in his hand. He flicks his wrist and the razor-sharp blade whips through an arc towards your throat.

If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Huntmastery,
turn to 36
.

If you do not possess this skill, pick a number from the
Random Number Table
.

If the number you have picked is 0–3,
turn to 119
.

If it is 4–9,
turn to 260
.

Your Arrow passes harmlessly beneath the creature's thrashing coils. There is no time to attempt a second shot. Quickly you shoulder your Bow and draw a hand weapon, as it makes its diving attack.

Turn to 82
.

You are in combat with the Zakhan of Vassagonia. You cannot evade this combat and must fight him to the death.

Zakhan Kimah:
COMBAT SKILL
 30   
ENDURANCE
 38

He is immune to Mindblast and Psi-surge.

If you win the combat,
turn to 350
.

For countless hours you follow the great avenue as it bisects the heart of Zaaryx. The once-grand buildings that line this ancient thoroughfare are in varying states of decay: some are almost intact while others have disintegrated into little more than piles of black rubble. You try to keep track of time but it proves difficult in the perpetual half-light of this buried world. Twice you stop to sleep and eat before you near the centre of the city. (Erase 2 Meals from your
Action Chart
or lose 3
ENDURANCE
points for each Meal missed. If you possess the Magnakai Discipline of Huntmastery, you are able to forage for food from the wasteland of Zaaryx and therefore you do not need to make any deductions.) There you discover a great hall, its arched porticoes smooth and undamaged by time.

Illustration I
—A group of reptilian creatures are stroking a large leathery egg and speaking in a low hissing language.

As you pass through one of these massive arches, you notice a group of reptilian creatures huddled at the top of a staircase that descends into darkness. They are stroking a large leathery egg and speaking to each other in a low hissing language.

If you wish to approach these creatures under cover of the pillars that line the hall,
turn to 56
.

If you wish to call out to them,
turn to 349
.

If you have a Bow and wish to use it,
turn to 171
.

You draw an Arrow and take aim at a Giak's chest. He opens his yellow-fanged mouth to shriek for mercy, but his cry is cut short as your feathered shaft pierces his heart. The other Giak rolls away from the body of his partner and scrambles to his feet, desperate to escape a similar fate.
‘Aki-amaz!’
he whimpers, hysterically, as he scurries towards the shadows of an alley.

If you possess at least one more Arrow and wish to fire your Bow again,
turn to 229
.

If you decide to let the Giak escape,
turn to 57
.

You sift through the items heaped on the tables and disentangle the following, which could be useful:

• Dagger
  
• Enough food for 3 Meals
  
• Rope
  
• Flask of Water
  
• Torch
  
• Tinderbox
  
• Bow
  
• 3 Arrows
  
• Blanket
  
• Spear
  

If you wish to keep any of these items, be sure to make the necessary adjustments to your
Action Chart
.

Turn to 181
.

In the glare of your light you see the panel at the end of the passage loom into view. Damp green vines hang from the wall, and it is not until you are within a few feet of the panel that you realize that the vines are not vines at all: they are the tentacles of a Roctopus that is nesting in the damp masonry. (If your source of light is a Torch, remember to erase it from your
Action Chart
.)

If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Animal Control and have reached the Kai rank of Primate or higher,
turn to 345
.

If you do not possess this skill or have yet to reach this level of Magnakai training,
turn to 32
.

Your mastery of Animal Control quickly restores the horse's usually calm temperament. You pat its neck affectionately and urge it forward, but still it refuses to move. You are about to use your skill to order it on when suddenly you see why it refuses to advance. The glistening head of a giant green serpent has slithered into view, its body still hidden by the tall crops. Its yellow tongue flickers hungrily between two sharp, venomous fangs and its cold black eyes watch your every move.

If you have a Bow and wish to use it,
turn to 216
.

If you wish to unsheathe a hand weapon in case it should attack,
turn to 325
.

If you decide to shout a warning to Banedon,
turn to 348
.

Snatching the seed from your pocket, you hurl it with all your strength at the gaping maw. The Fireseed splits open against a sabre-like fang and erupts in a sheet of flame, searing the creature's mouth and causing it to rear up in agony. With a loud, sickening crack, it slams its scaly head against the ceiling and falls, concussed, to the chamber floor.

With an energy born of desperation, you concentrate all your Kai skills upon opening the jammed lock. The intense concentration bleeds you of 2
ENDURANCE
points, but your persistence pays off.

Turn to 326
.

The guards are full of camaraderie and are surprisingly eager to help you find your way. ‘Follow that street,’ instructs the taller of the two, pointing across the lane, ‘and take the first alley on the left. When you reach the Well of the Singing Serpents, turn right, and then take the second alley on the left. That will lead you straight to Chiban's house on Leech Street.’ You thank them and accept a gulp of their boza wine before waving them farewell.

The soldier's directions prove to be accurate, and in less than twenty minutes you find yourself standing in front of the magician's house in Leech Street.

Turn to 75
.

You dismount and hand Banedon the reins of your horse before approaching the door of the hut. With the tip of your weapon you lift the latch and push it open, wary of what may lurk inside, but the hut seems to be empty. It is furnished with a table, bed, and chair, and a saucepan full of foul-smelling broth is simmering on the grate of a fire well charged with freshly cut logs.

If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Divination,
turn to 143
.

If you wish to search the hut more thoroughly,
turn to 265
.

If you decide to leave the hut and press on with your trek to Tahou,
turn to 123
.

The mercenaries pocket the silver coins and you ask, ‘Is a blond-haired Northlander being held here under arrest?’

‘Not anymore,’ replies the bearded soldier. ‘They carted him off to the Magistrates' Court about an hour ago.’

‘The court's up there,’ says the other man, pointing along the lane. ‘Gallows Street, the first street on the left.’

Turn to 284
.