Dawn of the Dragons (7 page)
A signpost on the road out of Quarlen says ‘Casiorn 260 miles’. On a normal horse you would expect the journey to take four days, but on Wildwind you are confident of reaching the City of Merchants before midnight.
Aided by a full moon and your sharp Kai skills, you keep Wildwind on a safe course throughout your long night's ride. Rapidly the miles melt away beneath his hooves and, as midnight approaches, you see the welcoming lights of Casiorn twinkling on the horizon. Using magical spyglasses, the watchful guards above the city's west gate see you coming and set their torches to fire-beacons to help guide you. The gates of the city are thrown open and, as you ride through, you meet with a thunderous welcome from its citizens, rich and poor, many of whom have left their beds to cheer your arrival.
Not until you see the bulbous golden towers of the High-Mayor's Palace do you allow Wildwind to slow his pace. You pass through the palace's grand arch, crafted from marble and gold, and as you bring Wildwind to a halt you see a wondrous skyship hovering over the roof of the High-Mayor's chambers. It reminds you of
Skyrider
— your friend Guildmaster Banedon's flying ship — although the craft above is sleeker and appears to be fashioned not from wood, but from burnished metal.
‘She awaits your command,’ says High-Mayor Cordas, as he strides down the steps of his palace chambers with an entourage of guards and advisors scurrying in his wake. ‘What do you think?’ He beams, pointing to the ship. ‘Is she not magnificent?’
Illustration II—‘What do you think?’ he asks. ‘Is she not magnificent?’
‘Yes, indeed she is,’ you reply, as you dismount from Wildwind who, to your greater astonishment, displays not the slightest sign of fatigue after your incredible ride from Varetta. ‘Pray tell me, High-Mayor, what is the craft's name?’
‘We call her “Cloud-dancer”,’ he replies, proudly.
Within the hour you are standing aboard the gleaming steel deck of
Cloud-dancer
, which vibrates gently in tune to the rising power of its magical engines. The crew of Casiornian engineers set free the hawsers which hold her in place and then, with a farewell wave to Cordas and his court, you give the order for
Cloud-dancer
to commence her maiden voyage north to Holmgard.
The burning wolf-thing comes crashing down into the midst of its following pack members, scattering them in all directions. A collective howl arises from the darkness, a hellish shrieking that is filled with fear, anger, and pain. The dramatic loss of their leader is more than the remaining beasts can bear, and, with a final howl of frustration, they flee from the bridge and scurry back to the safety of their pens in Castle Tranius.
The trooper fumbles for the haft of an axe which is tucked into his belt. Before he can free it, you stride forward and strike a blow with your fist that sends him crashing backwards through the open hut door. Moments later, there is a loud commotion and half a dozen angry Eldenorans come pouring out of the doorway with weapons drawn. You will have to fight them:
Eldenoran Horse-scouts:
COMBAT SKILL
34
ENDURANCE
38
If you win and the combat lasts three rounds or less,
turn to 85
.
If you win and the combat lasts four rounds or more,
turn to 160
.
Your calves and feet are badly scorched by the heat of the dragon's breath: lose 4
ENDURANCE
points. Gritting your teeth against the pain, you force yourself to stand and then use your Magnakai skill of Nexus to extinguish your burning breeches. Your quick thinking has saved you from more serious injury, but it does not impress the dragon. Your escape from his incinerating breath serves to make him even angrier. In a fit of pique, he stomps his massive forefoot down onto the black soil and sends a splash of molten mud and flame soaring into the sulphurous sky.
You use this opportunity to retreat towards the Shadow Gate, but you do not get very far before the great beast sees you and comes lumbering forwards with his jaw agape.
Unless you possess a Platinum Amulet, a Talisman of Ishir, or the Discipline of Grand Nexus, you must now deduct 3
ENDURANCE
points due to the debilitating effects of the heat and atmosphere.
You rush to the brigand's side and wrench the dagger from his chest, but it is already too late to save his life. You step away from his lifeless body and look around at the devastation he and his men have brought to the sleepy village of Pinepeaks. Leaderless, the remaining brigands now abandon their loot and flee to the wooded hills to rejoin their confederates, those who attempted to ambush the troop when first you entered this valley. Nathor's men have secured the village and they are busy helping the villagers to fight small fires which are burning in several of the cottages.
You continue along the avenue until you reach the city's north wall. Here you stop to read a proclamation that has been nailed to the door of a coaching inn and stables. It states that a curfew is in force in Rhem, and anyone found on the streets an hour after nightfall will be arrested by the city watch.
You are about to leave when you overhear the owner of the stables talking to one of his stable-hands. The boy is holding the reins of an aged horse that is severely lame in one leg, and the owner is telling him that he can no longer afford to stable the sick old mare.
‘She'll have to go,’ says the owner, shaking his head. ‘She's worthless to me now she's not earning her keep.’
Tears are streaming down the young boy's face. Clearly he loves the old horse and is heartbroken at the prospect of her being destroyed. Boldly you approach the owner and propose a deal.
‘Sir, if I am able to cure this lame mare,’ you say, stroking the horse's velvety nose, ‘then will you allow me to keep her?’
‘Ha, ha, ha, so you think you can work miracles, do you?’ chuckles the owner. ‘Very well then, stranger. If you can cure her — you can keep her.’
Gently you settle the mare and run your hands down her lame foreleg. Using your Magnakai Disciplines of Curing and Animal Control, you slowly ease her worn-out joints and mend her cracked bones. Within minutes she is as agile as a newborn foal.
‘Well I be a storgh's uncle!’ gasps the owner, amazed by the sudden transformation. ‘So, stranger, you
can
work miracles after all! The horse is yours!’
You climb upon the mare's back and wave farewell to the owner and the stable-boy, who is now crying tears of joy.
‘If ever you're looking for work,’ says the owner, as you turn the horse to leave, ‘then there'll always be a job for you here!’
You intone the words of the Old Kingdom Spell
Invisible Fist
and extend the palm of your right hand, pointing it towards the belly of the swooping beast. You feel a surge of energy leap from your palm and shoot towards the creature. It senses your attack and veers in mid-air to avoid it, but its reactions are too slow to escape being hit. The concussive force of your spell deals a crushing blow to its chest and, momentarily stunned by the impact, the beast loses control and hits the ground with a sickening crunch.
Cearmaine provides you with a fresh horse from the Canatarium's stables, and then he escorts you personally to the city's north gate.
‘Good luck and godspeed, Grand Master,’ he says. ‘May we meet again one day — but in happier circumstances.’
Under cover of darkness you ride due north towards the border with Eldenora, less than eight miles distant. The hilly terrain and your natural camouflage skills enable you to evade the enemy's lookouts and pass into their territory unseen. At first the going is easy and you cover many miles despite the undulating ground, but shortly before dawn you find yourself descending from the hills towards an expanse of marsh and reed beds. You try to avoid this bog and make a wide detour to the east, but before long you are brought to a halt at the edge of a steep ravine.
Both ways ahead now look impossible on horseback, but you are loathe to abandon your mount. You decide to turn back, yet you have gone no more than half a mile when your Kai senses alert you to danger. In the distance you see a regiment of Eldenoran cavalry on the move; you count more than a hundred riders. Rather than risk running foul of them, you reluctantly abandon your horse and return again to the edge of the ravine.
If you wish to attempt to cross the ravine,
turn to 186
.
If you decide to try to cross the bog,
turn to 217
.
You erect a psychic shield to protect your mind from Roark's assault, and you successfully deflect his attack. But as his ghastly apparition gallops past, it stirs in its wake a whirling maelstrom that is filled with rocks, broken glass, and other city debris. This whirlwind assails you physically and knocks you to the ground.
Ghost of Roark:
COMBAT SKILL
48
ENDURANCE
30
You conduct this combat in the normal way. If you possess a Jewelled Mace, you may add +3 to your
COMBAT SKILL
for the duration of this fight. While attacking the ghost of Roark using your psychic Kai abilities, you must defend yourself from the injurious effects of the debris-storm. Only by defeating Roark's ghost in combat will you cause the maelstrom to cease.
If you win the combat,
turn to 146
.
You leave the monastery under cover of darkness and set off towards the northwest, into the foothills the Durncrag Mountains. Soon you pick up the trail that leads to Raven's Eyrie and you follow it for a mile to where it crosses a mountain stream. Mist oozes from the peaty soil, breathing a damp film on the surrounding rocks.
You continue beyond the mist-enshrouded stream until you reach a rocky spur of granite called Eagle's Claw. Here you detect a low humming sound and your pulse quickens; you sense you are getting closer to the Shadow Gate. This resonant hum steadily increases in volume the nearer you get to Raven's Eyrie. Then, as you come to within a few hundred yards of the peak, you catch your first glimpse of the Shadow Gate. It is an awe-inspiring sight.
It appears like a black, semicircular cave mouth that seems to hover motionless in the air. Crackling snakes of electrical energy surround its edges, and the air before it writhes and shimmers like a desert mirage. You reach into the pocket of your tunic and remove the Sun-crystal, weighing it carefully in your hand so that you will be ready to throw it accurately when the time comes.
The electrical fire that borders the Shadow Gate suddenly flares and gives off hissing sparks which climb like fireworks into the night sky. Moments later, a trio of Lavas emerge from its total darkness and soar into the air. Judging by their direction of flight, you determine that they are going to reinforce the enemy line which keeps King Ulnar's armies at bay.
You are too far from the Shadow Gate to hurl the Sun-crystal and so, with caution, you begin to inch your way nearer to your goal.
If you possess Grand Pathsmanship and Telegnosis,
turn to 291
.
If you do not possess
both
of these skills,
turn to 127
.
Swiftly you take hold of Nathor and heave him across the neck of a saddled horse. Then you mount this steed and urge it to the gallop, scattering a trio of bogus castle guards that are hurriedly trying to block your escape from the stables. The castle keep is alive with screams and curses as you steer your horse towards the gatehouse, where, to your mounting horror, you see the portcullis beginning to fall.
Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you possess Telegnosis and have reached the Kai rank of Sun Lord or higher, add 2 to the number you have picked. If you possess the Discipline of Grand Huntmastery, add 2. If you possess Animal Mastery, add 1.
If your total score is now 2 or less,
turn to 21
.
If it is 3 or higher,
turn to 230
.