The Prisoners of Time (12 page)
Read The Prisoners of Time Online
Authors: Joe Dever
Tags: #Fiction, #Fantasy, #Lone Wolf, #Magnamund
Nonchalantly you brush the red flower away and fix your eyes on the road ahead. You have not eaten today and must now eat a Meal or lose 3
ENDURANCE
points. If you possess the Magnakai Discipline of Huntmastery you are unable, on this occasion, to use this skill in lieu of eating a Meal from your Backpack.
Lorkon and his Meledorian troops are overjoyed to have witnessed the spectacular defeat of the Chaos-master, for your victory has rid them of their greatest enemy. They call to you to come down from the roof and, when you appear at the doorway, they shower you with praise.
‘We owe you more than our lives, Aonian,’ says Lorkon, his strange blue eyes aglow with admiration. ‘Your great deed has saved our realm and put an end to the plague of chaos that would have corrupted us all. We are forever in your debt.’
As he shakes your hand he notices the blade with which you dispatched the Chaos-master. ‘It is a good omen for my clan that the sword you used to banish the evil one was forged by my ancestors. I am doubly proud that it served you well. But now it must return to the Grand Sepulchre, for such is our law.’
It is with some reluctance that you return the Ironheart Broadsword to its rightful steward (delete this Special Item from your
Action Chart
), for never before have you wielded as fine a sword as this.
You scan the barren wasteland, straining your senses to detect the missing Lorestones, which must be somewhere among the millions of rocks and wind-smoothed boulders that cover the vast plateau. But it proves a fruitless search: you can find no trace of the Lorestones nor even the slightest indication that a Shadow Gate opened here.
You dive behind the trunk but you feel a stinging sensation as the blowpipe dart scratches the side of your neck. A wave of nausea churns your stomach and your throat becomes painfully tight, restricting your breathing and causing your pulse to race: lose 4
ENDURANCE
points.
Odel appears at your side and wipes the scratch with a handful of fungi culled from the bark of Baylon's Bough. Swiftly the frightening effects of the poison subside as the healing properties of the fungi take effect.
If you wish to keep some of this Baylon's Bough Fungi, mark it on your
Action Chart
as a Backpack Item.
Your shaft strikes wide, glancing off his shoulder and disappearing over the parapet of the roof. He utters a mocking laugh, his cat-like eyes glinting through the slits in his visor, and hurriedly drops the Lorestones into a small sack tied to his sword belt. Angered by his laugh, and by your failure, you shoulder your Bow in favour of a hand weapon and rush forward, determined to prevent his escape.
At length you abandon your observation: you are unable to see any sign of intelligent life in the surrounding landscape. You decide to follow a nearby stream in the hope that it will lead eventually to a river, where the chances of finding a village or settlement should be higher.
With a haunting scream, the evil shadows fade and dissolve in the swirling clouds. A loud wind whistles in your ears, carrying the mournful sound of a tolling bell. At the centre of the cloud a ray of golden light pulses like a heartbeat in time to the chime of the bell. It draws you towards it and you cannot resist its call.
Your Kai senses reveal that the three warriors are Meledorian scouts. They have been sent by their leader, Lorkon Ironheart, to meet you
en route
and escort you directly to his headquarters.
If you wish to make your presence known to them,
turn to 189
.
If you wish to approach them under cover of the trees,
turn to 330
.
You aim for the weakest part of his armour, where his chainmail vest joins the bevor of his helmet, and release your straining bowstring. But the warrior has the reactions of a young leopard: he senses that he is vulnerable to your Arrow and twists aside to avoid it.
Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
and add to it any missile bonuses you may have.
If your total is now 0–4,
turn to 147
.
If it is 5–8,
turn to 326
.
If it is 9 or more,
turn to 17
.
‘Come, let me show you some of the wonders of my realm,’ says the Beholder, as the great black door swings slowly shut. ‘It is so rare that I am able to entertain a guest, I would deem it an honour if you would accept my invitation.’
With the only exit from the chamber now sealed off you have no option but to accept, yet his politeness makes you feel uneasy. You are his prisoner, yet he speaks to you as if you were free to leave at any time.
You are eager to put a good distance between yourself and the monolith, so you decide to run beside the stream for as long as your legs will allow. Time passes rapidly, although the terrain changes very little until you reach a line of low hills, spread out before you like a sleeping colossus. Here a path ascends from the bank of the stream to the crest of the hill and you follow it. On reaching the crest you stare down at a remarkable and daunting sight.
The chamber is filled with valuable tapestries and furnishings, but there is little that can be carried out with ease. Certain that you have overlooked nothing of practical value, you head for the roof in order to spy on the surrounding Chaos-creatures.
With almost casual stealth you unsheathe a weapon and hold it poised to strike. The creature is close: you can sense it getting ready to attack. There is a rustle of fur. Swiftly you raise your legs to avoid the sweeping lunge of two hairy, clawed paws. Then you strike a blow that carves a crimson wedge from its ugly snout. The creature gives a gurgling scream and scrambles through the hole, driven by pain and its blind lust for revenge.
Agtah:
COMBAT SKILL
21
ENDURANCE
27
This creature is immune to Mindblast (but not Psi-surge).
If you win the combat,
turn to 289
.
Having listened to your explanation the giants react with scepticism, but, despite their doubts, they are clearly fascinated by your appearance and the sound of your voice. ‘We are the Yoacor,’ says the leader, proudly. ‘We are the Lords of Yanis — the Shining City — and masters of the Abaxial of Czenos. Come, we will take you to our realm where you may tell your strange story to the Beholder. He will divine its worth.’
He beckons you to approach his dragonmount and you step forward. The thought of being left marooned in this wilderness is all you need to persuade you to obey his command.
There are very few places on this desolate plain that offer cover from the air. You run towards the nearest — a group of boulders — and curl up among them in the hope that you will escape the Zhengha's wicked gaze.
Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Invisibility, add 1 to this number for every Magnakai Discipline you possess.
If your total is now 0–8,
turn to 349
.
If it is 9 or more,
turn to 230
.
You watch T'uk T'ron and the driver scurry across the planks, using the parapet of the bridge as cover. They reach the centre and are examining the damage when a chilling scream, like the baying of a crazed wolf pack, echoes from the trees. Grey shapes jostle in the shadows and your heart freezes in a moment of horror as they advance into the light.
Illustration IX—Grotesque Agtah monsters stagger from the trees on both sides of the bridge.
Lumbering hordes of twisted shapes stagger from the trees on both sides of the bridge. They appear to be neither human nor animal but a ghastly fusion of the two. Their heads are of differing types: some are like cats with huge, green eyes; some are like boars with snouts and twisting tusks; others have rams' heads, sabre-toothed and riddled with decay. The Ookor guards tremble with fear and whisper the word ‘Agtah’ as these monstrosities draw closer.
If you have a Bow and wish to use it,
turn to 77
.
If you wish to draw a hand weapon and prepare to defend yourself,
turn to 226
.
If you choose to leave the chariot and join T'uk T'ron on the bridge,
turn to 335
.
A wave of psychic energy rushes through your mind, washing across your thoughts, searching for some sign of hostile intent. You resist the intrusion and the wave quickly recedes.
Slowly the clouds separate, and a tall tower of glistening white stone looms before you. A globe of golden light hangs suspended in mid-air above its conical roof, pulsating with heat and radiating power like a tiny, new-born sun.
Its comforting warmth draws you towards an open portal at the side of the tower. Beyond it you see a dark tunnel that descends towards a speck of misty yellow light.
If you have completed the Lore-circle of the Spirit,
turn to 312
.
If not,
turn to 106
.
A low, croaking growl issues from the far side of the cavern and suddenly two slits appear, from which a baleful orange light radiates. With bated breath you watch a shape emerge from the shadows: a long, scaly form with short legs and a lizard-like head. The outline of its body, perfectly camouflaged against the red volcanic rock, pulses like a heartbeat as it awakens from its slumber. It swivels its horny head and fixes you with an alien gaze, its snake-like eyes glittering with malice.
If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Animal Control and have reached the rank of Primate or higher,
turn to 13
.
If you do not possess this skill or have yet to reach this level of Magnakai training,
turn to 271
.
Your killing blow almost severs the Tazgar's head and sends the vile creature spinning wildly into the trees amid a spray of its own foul blood. Without waiting to discover if it was the only one of its kind, you sheathe your weapon and hurry away from the clearing.
The berry-like growths smell sweet and succulent. They awaken your appetite and remind you that your last meal was several hours ago.
If you wish to eat a handful of these orange berries,
turn to 234
.
If you decide to ignore your hunger and press on,
turn to 247
.
You walk beside the Beholder along a corridor which leads to a vast, circular gallery. At its centre stands a towering, bell-shaped vessel made out of transparent, glass-like material and filled with a huge, seething ball of fire. Its brilliant light illuminates some strange equipment standing against the walls and cluttering the tables, but little of its heat radiates into the room. You pass on until you come to another gallery which is floored with shining steel like a gigantic mirror. The domed roof is lost in the dim shadows, but at its centre you notice a tiny, disc-shaped portal. The Beholder glances at a row of crystals embedded in the wall and they glow in response to his psychic commands.
‘I am called the Beholder,’ he says, his thin voice echoing loudly in the emptiness of the dome. ‘I observe all that transpires in the Daziarn. I saw your arrival upon the Zhamin Plateau and I know from whence you came. So few of your kind survive transference that I abandoned all hope of meeting you. Indeed had you not met with one of my hunting parties your bones would now lie bleaching upon the sands of that arid plain. It seems that you are by nature a survivor.’
Suddenly a swirling column of light appears, projected from the disc in the centre of the dome. It casts a pool of brilliance in the middle of the gallery and gradually widens until it encompasses the whole floor.
‘Come, observe, and perhaps you will learn the nature of your new world. For you will need to adapt if you are to survive here … for the rest of your life.’