Mydnight's Hero (22 page)
You offer the ticket seller half of the money in your Belt Pouch, but he refuses to accept this generous bribe. It is all or nothing. Disgusted by the man's shameless greed, you leave the jetty and hurry to the tavern in the hope that you will be able to purchase some tickets there.
This riverside inn is in urgent need of some paint and repair, yet for all its shabby outward appearance it is a very popular tavern. Its taproom is filled to overflowing with customers. The sound of lyre and pipe music mingles with the chatter and raucous laughter of its patrons, many of whom are river travellers bound for Seroa within the hour. You push your way through the noisy crowd and climb a flight of stairs that give access to rooms on the upper storey. From the top of the stairs you are able to get a better view of the crowded bar room. Karvas points out two men who are standing at the tavern counter. They are dressed in dandified court costumes and they wear Sadanzo's eagle's-head emblem pinned to velvet berets that are resting on their coiffured heads.
‘I'd wager those two dandies have tickets for the riverboat,’ says Karvas, conspiratorially. You focus your concentration on the two men and your Kai Sixth Sense confirms that the Prince's assumption is correct.
If you wish to approach them and offer to buy their riverboat tickets,
turn to 17
.
If you wish to wait outside the tavern and approach the men when they leave,
turn to 111
.
The smooth surface of the tower wall proves to be more difficult to climb than expected. You come to within an arm's length of the window ledge before your fingers slip and you fall into the street, striking your head on the cobblestones as you land heavily on your back: lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.
When the throbbing pain in your skull diminishes to a dull ache, you make a second attempt to reach the window. This time your efforts are rewarded. On reaching the window, you haul yourself through its open frame and drop down onto the steps of a stone stairway beyond. This circular staircase leads to the top of the tower and offers you a magnificent view of the city. Aided by your night vision, you are able to locate stables less than a mile to the north of the tower. You commit their location to memory and then hurriedly you descend the stairs and return to the window. Once more you use your climbing skills, this time to make a speedy descent to the street below.
Prince Karvas is delighted to hear that there are stables in the city, and he insists that you set off for them at once. He is leading the way out of the warehouse ruins when suddenly the tower bell begins to toll once more. Moments later, the temple doors swing open and the procession of black-clad figures file out into the street. Instinctively you take hold of Karvas by the arm and pull him back into the ruins to avoid being seen by the emerging soldiers. As they pass by, you peer around the edge of the crumbling warehouse doorway to watch them. A strange feeling of unease makes the skin on the back of your neck prickle, and immediately you sense that all is not what it seems. When you magnify your vision to take a closer look at the passing figures, you gasp with shock at what you see.
You climb the steps to a landing on the level above where you hear loud voices and raucous laughter echoing from an archway. A glance through the arch reveals the chamber beyond to be a guards' dormitory and mess hall. Over a dozen citadel guards and gaolers are gathered here, celebrating the capture of Prince Karvas with a cask of strong mead provided by the Knight Bachelor.
You continue up the circular stairs to the next level where you discover a hall that is lined with stands of armour and hung with tapestries. You remember being brought along this hall on the way to the dungeons, and you hurry through it to a pair of stout oak doors at its far end. To your disappointment you discover the doors are locked and bolted from the other side. At first there appears to be no other way out of the hall. Then your keen eyesight detects that one of the tapestries is moving slightly and, when you pull it aside, you discover a narrow archway and a flight of stairs leading up to a burnished iron door. As you climb towards the door, you see a small lever set into the centre of its shiny, smooth surface.
If you possess Grand Pathsmanship
and
Telegnosis,
turn to 349
.
If you possess Kai-alchemy and wish to use it,
turn to 91
.
If you possess none of these skills, or if you choose not to use them,
turn to 229
.
Slowly you step away from the boulder and motion Acraban to follow as you descend the steep trail to the beach. Prince Karvas walks towards you, his right hand resting purposefully on the hilt of a short sword sheathed by his side. Despite his dishevelled appearance, he moves with a proud aristocratic gait that reveals his noble ancestry.
With a polite formality usually reserved for the King's court and council chambers, Acraban bows to the Prince and makes his introductions. In sober tones he informs him of the unhappy events which have transpired in Siyen, events which have brought you both to Sheasu in search of him. Prince Karvas is saddened to hear of the death of his father. He glances at the mound of sand close to the base of the trail and you notice a tear in his eye. Lying alongside this mound is a plank of driftwood carved with the name
Amarelda
. It marks the last resting place of the Prince's young wife.
‘This is bitter news you bring, my lords,’ says Karvas, his sonorous voice wavering with emotion, ‘for my grief is doubled. I have now lost my wife and my father — the only two people I have ever truly loved.’
You and your companion offer the Prince your deepest condolences, and Acraban suggests that perhaps it would be best if you all left the beach. Karvas nods his consent and together you climb the trail back to his house atop the cliffs.
Over a cup of berry wine, Prince Karvas tells you the story of how he came to Sheasu to live the life of an outcast. A decade earlier, during a chance encounter in a foreign court, he had met and fallen helplessly in love with Princess Amarelda — the daughter of the King of Lunarlia. She, too, had fallen for him, and had accepted his offer of marriage. For centuries the neighbouring lands of Lunarlia and Siyen have been enemies, yet the sudden prospect of a marriage between Prince Karvas and Princess Amarelda promised to put an end to many years of rivalry and bloodshed. At first his father, the King of Siyen, approved of their union. But later he changed his mind and forbade his son to marry her on pain of exile. Karvas defied his father and was forced to leave his homeland. He travelled to Sheasu where he was later joined by his beloved Amarelda. She, too, had disobeyed her father's command and had been cast out for her act of defiance. Karvas talks fondly of the years they spent here alone together. Then, with sadness, he tells you that she recently fell ill with a fever from which she never recovered. For more than a month she fought the illness until, only three days ago, she passed away quietly in her sleep.
The news that Baron Sadanzo plans to steal his birthright enrages the Prince. For years he has blamed the Baron for his exile, for he alone openly opposed the marriage that would have healed the rift between Lunarlia and Siyen. Karvas is convinced that the Baron turned his father's mind with sorcery, and he agrees readily to leave Sheasu and journey with you aboard the
Starstrider
to Seroa to thwart Sadanzo's plan. The Prince's willing acceptance to return to his homeland raises your spirits. Acraban proposes a toast to the future King of Siyen and Karvas accepts the gesture in good humour. Then Acraban imparts the glad news to Lord Zinair by means of the seeing stone given to him by the elder magician. Zinair, who is sailing back to Suhn, congratulates you both for successfully finding the exiled Prince and he wishes you all a safe and speedy air voyage to Siyen.
You take it in turns to keep watch throughout the night in case a pursuit party is sent from Cavalia to track you down. Fortunately, the night passes peacefully and you leave the wood shortly before dawn. As the sun crests the eastern horizon, you see a signpost at the roadside which says: ‘VAREDO — 150 miles’.
‘Normally one could expect to reach Varedo in three days by horse,’ says Karvas, ‘but if we use every hour of daylight and rest our mounts briefly, every hour, we may be able to cover the distance in half the time.’ Mindful that you now have only nine days in which to reach Seroa to be in time for the crowning, and wary that a pursuit party could still be sent from Cavalia to hunt you down, you spend this day in the saddle riding as far and as fast as your horses are able. By nightfall, you have made excellent progress and you are confident that the threat from Cavalia is no more. You camp for the night beside a stream and, before you sleep, you use your Magnakai skills to assist the horses to recover fully from their hard day's ride.
The following day is spent crossing the seemingly endless Lucien Plain, the monotony of the grasslands broken only occasionally by an isolated hamlet or farmstead. You have no need to approach these settlements for the rich prairie yields enough game to keep you well fed while you are on the move. It also provides surplus food equivalent to 2 Meals (adjust your
Action Chart
accordingly if you wish to keep one or both of these Meals).
During the afternoon, you see a group of riders approaching from the north, from out of the wooded foothills of the Ioma Range. You magnify your vision and your stomach churns when you see that they are carrying spears which display the black eagle's-head pennant of Baron Sadanzo. You focus your Kai senses upon this distant group of riders and detect that they are not soldiers. They are a hunting party seeking wild deer. The open plain offers no place to hide from these approaching horsemen and the lack of cover makes you feel especially vulnerable. You remain stationary for a few minutes while you watch them draw closer. You are hoping that they are too preoccupied with their hunt to pay you any attention. However, you soon realize that they have lost the trail of their wild deer and have decided to track new quarry — you and Karvas.
If you wish to stand and face this hunting party,
turn to 93
.
If you wish to attempt to evade them,
turn to 277
.
You launch a pulse of mental energy at the archer and it sears his mind (use of this Grand Master Discipline costs you 1
ENDURANCE
point). The man screams and recoils from the sudden pain that has invaded his head. As he falls backwards, he releases his arrow and it arcs through the air to shatter uselessly against the wall of the stables.
Karvas leaps into the saddle and you toss him the reins. With a cry of elation, you wheel your horse about and spur him towards an avenue on the east side of the square. You and the Prince gallop side by side along this broad thoroughfare as fast as your mounts will carry you, trampling any Bakhasian who is foolish enough to stand in your way. The road leads directly to the city's east gate where a bell is tolling loudly. A crowd of militiamen have gathered at the gate, summoned from their beds by the alarm, but they are without their officer and in the chaos and confusion they have forgotten to close the gate. They scatter in all directions as you thunder along the avenue towards them and you are able to escape through the open archway without challenge.
Whooping with excitement, you race away from Bakhasa along a dusty trail that heads towards the foothills of the Dammerdon Mountains. You glance to your side and see Prince Karvas punch the air victoriously. Clearly he is as excited by this daring escape as you are; he has a grin fixed to his sweat-streaked face that stretches from ear to ear.
The strong Bhanarian stallions carry you swiftly into the foothills and never once do they falter in their stride nor slacken their impressive pace. Only when you can no longer see the lights of Bakhasa do you let them slow to a canter. For more than an hour you travel the trail as it meanders through pine-covered hills and shallow valleys. The night sky is clear and the way ahead is illuminated by bright starlight. When you come to a shallow ford that crosses a fast-flowing stream, you stop here awhile to let your horses drink their fill.
Unless you possess the Discipline of Grand Huntmastery, you must now eat a Meal or lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.
To continue,
turn to 323
.
‘So you're on your way to Seroa, eh?’ says the Knight Bachelor. ‘If you are there in time for Harvestmas then you'll see the crowning of Baron Sadanzo. I only wish I could be there myself to celebrate that happy day. Alas, someone must remain to protect Cavalia while our master, our future king, is away.’
Karvas asks the young knight why he and his men are wearing the crown of Siyen upon their shields and surcoats. ‘I thought,’ he says, taking care to mask his native Siyenese accent, ‘that it is customary here in Siyen for only soldiers of the King's Guard to wear the royal crown? Is it not so?’
The Knight Bachelor glares at Karvas and you sense that the Prince's comments have stung him. ‘Our master is … will be … the King of Siyen,’ he blusters. ‘There is no other who claims the throne of our realm. We wear the crown in honour of his right to ascendance. Perhaps you foreigners oppose our Baron's right?’
The Knight Bachelor stares accusingly into your eyes. When he gets no reaction, he jerks his head back to Karvas and fixes the Prince with the same cold, unblinking gaze. Your Kai Sixth Sense informs you that this Knight Bachelor is a greedy and ambitious young man who is hungry for promotion. Unwittingly, Karvas has insulted his honour and, to save face in front of his men, he is thinking of arresting you both on the suspicion that you are spies. You know that you must act swiftly if you are to avoid this.
If you wish to apologize to the Knight Bachelor and tell him that your companion did not mean any insult by what he said,
turn to 95
.
If you wish to offer the Knight Bachelor a bribe in the hope that he will allow you and Karvas to go on your way,
turn to 161
.