The Hunger of Sejanoz (8 page)

Your Arrow strikes one of the worm's vital organs and then the creature swiftly retreats into its bore hole, shrieking hideously.

To continue,
turn to 2
.

You detect the faint outline of dusty footprints leading across the chamber to the opposite door. You are eager to follow them, but your Kai Sixth Sense is making you feel uncertain that it is safe to do so.

If you choose to ignore your Sixth Sense and cross the chamber to the door opposite,
turn to 168
.

If you decide to heed your Sixth Sense, you can turn back and explore the other passageway by
turning to 290
.

You call upon your Magnakai Discipline of Psi-screen to repel this sudden psychic attack, and slowly the pain retreats from your skull: lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.

To continue,
turn to 147
.

The tip of a barbed arrow rips open the padded upper sleeve of your tunic and scrapes a furrow of flesh from your shoulder. The sudden pain makes you cry out, but you quickly recover your composure and use your Kai healing skills to staunch the flow of blood: lose 1
ENDURANCE
point.

To continue,
turn to 40
.

You are awoken in the middle of the night by the noise of a powerful hissing explosion. You reach for your Kai Weapon and leap to your feet, but as your vision adjusts to the darkness, you feel scalding hot water pouring down upon you from the heavens. Suddenly you realize that you are caught in the falling deluge from an exploding geyser, and you are in very real danger of being boiled alive where you stand.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you possess Grand Nexus, add 3 to the number you have picked.

If your total score is now 4 or lower,
turn to 180
.

If it is 5 or higher,
turn to 98
.

You draw upon your mastery to raise the air temperature around the creatures. As it warms, they are engulfed by a cloud of fog-like vapour that you hope will obscure their vision. One of the creatures stumbles and falls, but the other bursts through the cloud and it launches a fearsome attack.

Turn to 164
.

You note teeth marks around the head and shoulders of the toy soldier, and when you hold it to your nose you detect a bitter odour that you recognize immediately. It is the aroma of graveweed — a deadly poison.

With one swift blow you strike the head of the toy against the carriage door and snap it off, releasing a stream of black powder from its hollow body. ‘This is the cause of your son's sickness,’ you say. ‘It is powered graveweed.’

Turn to 47
.

You speak the words of the Brotherhood Spell
Lightning Hand
, and extend your right fist towards the warrior. A tingle runs down your arm and a burst of blue-white light illuminates the crypt when a bolt of energy jumps from your hand to explode in the middle of the Guard Captain's chest, killing him instantly.

Turn to 137
.

Chan accepts your refusal in good spirit and he offers the Xi-die to you as a present, a token of his respect for your reputation and your innate Kai skills.

If you wish to accept Chan's gift, record the Xi-die on your
Action Chart
as a Special Item that you keep in the pocket of your tunic. You need not discard another Special Item if you already hold the maximum number permissible.

To continue,
turn to 204
.

Your swift reflexes save you from the onrushing missile and you are able to scramble through the foliage and effect a hasty escape. Chan is close behind you, and both of the angry ice-creatures are perilously close behind him. As you stagger and stumble headlong through the dense undergrowth, bolts of ice whistle through the branches with spectacular effect.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
.

If the number you have picked is 0–4,
turn to 228
.

If it is 5–9,
turn to 43
.

Chan approves of your wish to investigate the
yansi
and asks only that you do not spend too much time there. You agree to this proviso before riding to the entrance of the burial cairn. At once you detect that this
yansi
has suffered an unwelcome visit from tomb robbers at some time in the past, for its solid stone portal has been shattered by repeated hammer blows. You dismount and descend a flight of narrow steps that lead down into a cool, dark chamber. At first sight this solitary chamber appears to have been stripped of its contents, but when you use your Kai tracking skills, you detect something that the tomb robbers failed to find: a concealed trapdoor. Closer examination of this hidden portal in the floor reveals that it is protected by a magical spell.

If you possess Kai-alchemy and have reached the rank of Sun Knight,
turn to 233
.

If you possess Kai-alchemy and have attained any rank up to that of Kai Grand Guardian,
turn to 185
.

If you do not possess Kai-alchemy, or if you choose not to use it,
turn instead to 76
.

You retreat from the gate with the other troops and take up a position behind a barricade in the central square, set before the inner keep. You hear the boom of the steam-cannon, but there is no explosion at the main gate or anywhere else inside the fort. Your Kai Sixth Sense tingles with the presentiment that something is very wrong, and this feeling prompts you to hurry back to the main gate as fast as you can.

Turn to 278
.

As you progress along the corridor, you hear the sound of voices getting steadily louder. You recognize them to be the voices of the tomb robbers who stole your Kai Weapon. They are gloating over your blade, and you hear one man say that it must be worth more than all the treasures of the graveyard put together. At the end of the corridor you see an arched wooden door, banded with strips of black iron. You peer carefully through its keyhole and see the robbers in the room beyond, silhouetted against the flames of a log fire. With grim determination you resolve to attack them and recapture your stolen blade.

If you possess Kai-surge and have reached the rank of Kai Grand Guardian,
turn to 254
.

If you possess Assimilance and have reached the rank of Kai Grand Guardian,
turn to 136
.

If you possess neither of these skills, have not attained the required rank, or if you should choose not to use them,
turn to 71
.

You draw your weapon and fight your way relentlessly towards the top of the flag-tower.

Bhanarian Signalman:
COMBAT SKILL
 30   
ENDURANCE
 32

You must reduce your
COMBAT SKILL
by 4 for the duration of this fight, because of the disadvantage you experience while fighting your way up a ladder against a determined spearman.

If you win this combat,
turn to 195
.

Once you are a safe distance from the wooded rise, you glance back over your shoulder to check that Kronar and his bandit gang are not in pursuit of the caravan. Your senses detect that the road behind is clear and you tell Chan of this. He is greatly relieved that the Imperial Caravan has been spared Kronar's attack. The bandit leader has a notorious reputation for murdering anyone who witnesses his acts of highway robbery.

After the drama of the confrontation with Captain Kronar, you are thankful that the rest of the day passes uneventfully. It is early evening when the caravan arrives at Javai, a fortified Chai trading town positioned on the rim of a fertile plateau. Chan negotiates with the guards at the town's west gate and the caravan is allowed to enter. You pass along a bustling street, bordered by two-storey wooden dwellings, which leads to the walled chateau of Javai's mayoress, Madame Omaki. Here the caravan draws to a halt in the middle of a flagstoned courtyard, ringed by plum trees. A plump woman with gleaming coiffured hair emerges from the chateau and greets Captain Chan. You can tell by their jovial exchange that they are old friends. Chan swears her to secrecy about the presence of the Khea-khan, and she dutifully instructs her servants to secure all the entrances and exits to her estate.

Illustration III
—Javai's mayoress greets Captain Chan in the flagstoned courtyard.

Chan posts his troopers to guard these portals, and as soon as it is dark, Xo-lin and his entourage are ushered inside Omaki's chateau. She attends efficiently to the allocation of rooms and the provision of refreshments for her royal guests. You are allocated a small room above the stables, and you retire there as soon as you are able. It comes as a pleasant surprise to discover that this room contains a comfortable bed and a bath. After bathing, a hot meal and a bottle of rice wine is delivered by one of the mayoress's servants. You are about to enjoy this meal when there is a knock at the door. It is Captain Chan, and he has some worrying news to convey.

To continue,
turn to 259
.

You shape your mouth in readiness to utter the Old Kingdom power-word
Gloar!
and project its energies at the door. The force of the impact throws open the portal amidst a cloud of loose earth and billowing dust. The coughs and cries of the entourage can be heard echoing throughout the distant corridors of this labyrinth. Fearing that it may already be too late to save the Khea-khan and his family from the clutches of Autarch Sejanoz, you and Sergeant Yeng rush along an arched corridor in search of them until you come to a junction.

If you possess Grand Pathsmanship,
turn to 246
.

If you do not,
turn to 167
.

You detect the faint outline of dusty footprints leading across the chamber to the opposite door. You are eager to follow them, but your Kai Sixth Sense is making you feel uncertain that it is safe to do so.

You are fearful of setting off a floor trap, and so you draw upon your advanced mastery of Telegnosis to reduce your body weight to little more than a hundred grams. Then you set off across the chamber, taking care to tread only where there are footprints. You are within a few feet of the door when suddenly the entire floor falls away like a huge hinged trapdoor. You dive forwards and make a grab for the door handle. As you grasp its iron ring, you look down to see a yawning shaft filled with water at its base. Suddenly you hear the sound of giant stone cogs and the rattle of heavy chains. You glance upwards to see that the ceiling is beginning to descend. As it moves closer, you can tell that it is not stained with soot after all. It is dried blood, the blood of countless men who have unwittingly fallen victim to this devilish trap.

You twist the iron handle and, to your relief, the door swings open. Desperately you haul yourself through and slam the door shut, barely seconds before the descending ceiling closes off this portal completely.

To continue,
turn to 209
.

Soon the densely-packed trees confound your hulking pursuers and you are able to outdistance them. When you sense that it is safe to halt, you throw yourself down upon the cool earth and fight to catch your breath. Chan throws himself down close by, and you can tell that he is shocked and saddened by the ferocity of the encounter and the loss of his favourite stallion. But he proves himself to be resilient, and within the space of a few short minutes, he is back on his feet and ready to go.

‘Come, my lord,’ he says, resolutely. ‘We must press on. Let us flee this accursed place.’

Turn to 121
.