Wolf's Bane (29 page)
Your killing blow splits the vile creature in two, severing the venom sac located below its tongue. The small amount of fluid remaining in the sac splashes on your weapon and immediately it gives off wisps of acrid, green-grey smoke.
Unless the weapon you are using is a Special Item, the acid quickly corrodes it and renders it useless. (Delete this weapon from your
Weapons List
.)
If before leaving this hall you wish to search the shelves for useful items,
turn to 271
.
If you choose not to search the shelves,
turn to 12
.
Drawing on your newly-acquired magic, you focus on the distant vent and carefully recite the words of the Brotherhood Spell
Teleport
. For a few seconds your vision swims in and out of focus as your strength is sapped of the power that this spell requires (lose 4
ENDURANCE
points). Then your sight becomes crystal clear and you feel yourself floating upwards through the air towards the apex of this gigantic cavern.
You have risen close to a mile above the canyon when suddenly you attract the unwanted attention of a gigantic dragonfly. Anxious to evade a probable attack, you concentrate harder upon your destination and will yourself to accelerate.
Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you possess Assimilance, add 1 to the number you have picked.
If your total is now 3 or less,
turn to 340
.
If it is 4 or higher,
turn to 84
.
As you leave the chamber, the portal slides shut and your Iron Disc emerges from the slot. You take the disc and slip it back into your pocket as you retrace your steps to the junction. On arriving there, you continue ahead and begin your exploration of this new passageway.
Before you lies a smoke-filled hall that reeks of death and decay. Only the floor appears to be solid, and yet when you stare down at its glassy surface, you see that it is honeycombed with thousands of cells, each one occupied by a tortured soul writhing in perpetual torment. The walls of this evil chamber are wreathed with sulphurous smoke, lit intermittently by shafts of crimson lightning. The foul substances which pass for air seethe with the tension of ferocious, evil energies.
From the centre of the floor there arises a slender domed plinth. Moments later, a wide dais rises beside it, upon which you see a visage of the Dark God, one that he favours whilst occupying his unholy throne hall. Nothing could have prepared you for the sight that now meets your gaze — it is the foulest you have ever seen.
Naar's favoured form is a great globular body, like that of a bloated spider, borne by a score of stunted limbs which emerge chaotically from the underside of a sac-like abdomen. His face hangs like a parody of a wrinkled old sow's yet with an evil-smelling black hole where one could expect a snout. The upper surface of his body is covered with pouches of vile fluids that trail wisps of black smoke, and his maw is studded with hundreds of blue-stained fangs. But it is the eyes that shock you most. The Dark God has the eyes of a man.
Illustration XIX—Before you is Naar, the foulest thing you have ever seen.
Naar shifts his bloated body from the dais and slither-shuffles towards the plinth. A misshapen limb extends to the plinth and its domed cover retracts to reveal a wondrous and mysterious artefact. A second shock stuns your senses when you recognize the nature of this artefact. It is one of the most legendary items in all the long history of Magnamund. It is the fabled Moonstone of the Shianti!
The toughness of the plant wall and the confines of the stem make it difficult for you to wield your weapon effectively. It takes you nearly half an hour to hack your way out of this plant, during which time you lose 2
ENDURANCE
points due to fatigue.
To continue,
turn to 230
.
As you pull yourself from under the creature's body, your hand brushes against a collar of steel that is fixed tightly around its muscular neck. Attached to this collar is a thin disc of iron engraved with runic symbols. (If you wish to keep this Iron Disc, record it on your
Action Chart
as a Special Item.)
You are now anxious to leave this place in case the creature's death-cry has alerted others of its kind. By way of an iron staircase, you leave this cellar and emerge through a trapdoor into a street adjacent to the hall.
You have come to the edge of a deep canyon. The verdant walls of this massive gorge are carpeted with a rainbow of colour and the air is alive with the busy noise of huge, buzzing insects. Everything is fecund and fertile and dripping with humid jungle heat. High above the gorge you glimpse for the first time the source of the light which illuminates this strangely wonderful realm. The canyon is set within a cavern, the walls of which seem to engulf the sky. At its apex there is an oval-shaped vent through which a concentrated shower of amber rays pours down, like sunbeams through a stained glass portal. You watch in awe as flights of dragonflies, each as large as a Vassagonian Itikar, circle languidly above the canyon on gossamer wings. They shimmer like streaks of liquid silver as they ride the thermal currents. The sight is one of great beauty, yet one you cannot fully enjoy. The instinct which led you to the rim of this gorge now tells you that the source of the power you seek lies several miles away and above, beyond the vent that is the source of this cavern's light. Carefully you consider your predicament and determine that in order to escape, you must reach the vent — an exit that lies more than a thousand feet above the rim of the gorge.
If you possess Kai-alchemy (and wish to use it) and have attained the rank of Kai Grand Crown,
turn to 329
.
If you possess Kai-alchemy (and wish to use it) but have yet to attain the rank of Kai Grand Crown,
turn to 146
.
If you do not possess this Discipline, or if you choose not to use it,
turn to 116
.
You emerge through the steel roof of the tower and catch a fleeting glimpse of the rain-swept city far below. Suddenly there is a tremendous flash, closely followed by the concussive blast of a terrific explosion. This shock wave hits you from behind, leaving you feeling as if you have just been kicked in the back by an angry mule.
Fortunately your winged mount is able to ride this shock wave which helps propel it upwards at great speed into the base of the thick black storm clouds.
The passage leads to a landing where a circular staircase gives access to levels above. As you climb the stairs, you are filled with a growing sense of uncertainty and dread as you ponder what may await you in this alien tower. Yet these feelings of impending doom are quickly banished when you reach the third level, for here you pick up the trail of your adversary. Your tracking skills determine that his trail is fresh and you pursue it eagerly.
You pass through a maze of empty passageways which leads eventually to a large, circular hall. Cautiously you approach the entrance and peer inside. Your tracking skills and your curiosity are handsomely rewarded when you see Wolf's Bane; he is standing alone and he is unaware that you have found him.
‘This way, my lords!’ shouts Foilan, as he spurs his black mare along a mist-wreathed street that snakes through Tyso's shabby North Quarter. The street is deserted yet many citizens witness your passing. Their eyes glint in the moonlight as they peep through the smoky yellow panes of their windows, their curiosity and fears awakened by the clatter of your horses' hooves.
At length the street opens onto a wider avenue which gently descends towards a sprawling expanse of derelict ground surrounded by a tall, moss-covered perimeter wall. Several dozen guards and rangers have gathered at a distant archway in this wall and, by magnifying your vision, you can see that they have erected a barricade which completely blocks the entrance to the burial ground beyond.
The Reeve-lieutenant tells you to wait here with your men. Then he goes forward to inform the guards of the situation and to tell them that you and your companions are not Kai impostors. On seeing his signal, you move forward and join him at the archway. At his command, the guards hurriedly clear away some of the rubble which fills the entrance, enabling the five of you to dismount and proceed into the necropolis on foot.
In the moonlight, the burial ground has a certain ghostly beauty. There is an aura of sad serenity surrounding its mouldering tombs as, with the passing of centuries, they crumble to dust and disappear with their secret memories of another age. But all is not what it seems. Your Sixth Sense detects the lingering aura of an evil entity that has invaded this place. A glance at your fellow Kai tells you that they, too, can sense its presence.
You clasp the Platinum Amulet and feel a tingling vibration run through the palm of your hand. The sensation grows stronger as you move along a weed-choked path which leads to a shadowy tomb. With the passage of the years this tomb has settled lopsidedly into the soft Tysoan earth, yet a flight of damp stone steps descends to where its door once was. As you draw nearer, you notice that all that now remains of the door is a mound of broken rubble.
If you possess Telegnosis,
turn to 256
.
If you do not,
turn to 318
.
When you strike your final blow, the limbs of the Meghanic come adrift from its torso and it disintegrates into a heap of buckled metal. You sift through this scrap and discover nothing of value, save for the warrior's Sword.
You leap over the battered remains and continue along this winding tunnel until you reach an empty chamber. Here you can feel a warm breeze and you sense that it comes from a stairwell in the far wall. When you investigate, you rediscover Wolf's Bane's footprints clearly embedded in dust on the stone steps. You cast your hands over them and detect that this is not a false trail; your enemy passed this way sometime within the last hour.
Slowly you ascend the stairs and arrive at the arched entrance to a large, vaulted stone chamber. Gathered around a fountain set into its north wall are a group of six grey-skinned humanoids. They are busy drinking a clear, oily fluid that pours from the fountain's spout into a semicircular trough. All are barefoot and clad in rags, and they are each armed with a spear and a bow. The only exit from this chamber appears to be an archway set high in the north wall. There is a balcony in front of it that can only be reached by two flights of stairs which rise up on either side of the fountain.
Quietly you observe the creatures slaking their thirsts, and you try to formulate a way in which you can get past them and reach the balconied exit in the north wall.
If you possess a Bow and the Discipline of Magi-magic and have attained the rank of Kai Grand Guardian,
turn to 138
.
If you possess Kai-alchemy and have attained the rank of Grand Crown (and wish to use it),
turn to 26
.
If you do not possess these skills, or a Bow, or if you have yet to attain the required levels of Kai Mastery, or if you choose not to use either of them,
turn to 121
.
From the cover of a leafy bush you observe the primitive settlement for several minutes. (During this vigil, unless you possess the Discipline of Grand Huntmastery, you must eat a Meal or lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.) But as time ticks by you become increasingly restless. The hut into which your enemy ran is a small, single-roomed hovel, yet you can detect no movement within it. Prompted by a gnawing fear that you may have allowed Wolf's Bane to escape, you move closer to the settlement under cover of the thick jungle foliage.