The Caverns of Kalte (19 page)

You cover your nose with your sleeve and turn away from the carcass. Irian has regained consciousness, and is quick to begin scooping out some Baknar oil for himself.

The light is fading fast and you decide to pitch camp here for the night. After a meal has been prepared and eaten, you volunteer to sit watch, in case the Baknar should decide to return. Spending a sleepless night huddled against the cold night winds seems infinitely preferable to sharing a tent with your guides stinking of Baknar oil.

Turn to 325
.

The Ice Barbarian was armed with a Spear. You may take this Weapon if you wish. You search the body and discover a curious disc of blue stone. If you wish to keep the Blue Stone Disc, put it in your pocket and mark it on your
Action Chart
as a Special Item.

At the top of the stairs, if you wish to go left (north),
turn to 104
.

If you wish to go right (south),
turn to 330
.

The door is closing fast; there is very little space left through which to escape.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you have the Kai Discipline of Hunting, you may add 3 to the number you have picked.

If your total is now 0–4,
turn to 53
.

If your total is now 5–7,
turn to 16
.

If your total is now 8–12,
turn to 113
.

After a few hundred yards, you find yourself in a huge cavern that spreads out in all directions as far as the eye can see. You have entered the caverns of Kalte and are now looking at an uncharted world that few Sommlending have ever seen. This massive underground labyrinth was constructed by the Ancients many ages before the Sommlending set foot in Magnamund. Its wide avenues, temples, and arenas once echoed to the sounds of a race of creatures for whom the ice was a natural home. M'lare bowls still hang from the ceiling bathing the caverns in their eternal light.

You trek steadily northwards for nearly six hours, until you arrive at the bank of a fast-flowing melt-water river. On the opposite bank, you see a tunnel leading off into the distance. You can find no apparent way of crossing the deep water, except by using the ice-floes bobbing up and down on the surface. By jumping from one floe to the next, you could get to the opposite bank, but it will not be easy. You will have to jump at least three of the icy slabs to reach the other side.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you have the Kai Discipline of Hunting, you may add 2 to the number you have picked. If your current
ENDURANCE
points total is less than 8, deduct 2 from the number you have picked.

If your total score is now −2–+3,
turn to 94
.

If your total score is now 4–11,
turn to 176
.

As the door slides back, you are horrified to see the blank pupil-less eyes of the Ice Barbarian staring directly at your face. A low, unnatural cry comes from his open mouth, and in an instant the Doomwolves are awake and snarling.

If you wish to escape, you must turn and run back down the stairs.
Turn to 261
.

If you wish to stand and fight,
turn to 343
.

The lance has grazed your shoulder blade and knocked you to the ground. As you scramble to your feet, you see that the Ice Barbarian scout has stopped and removed his skis. He advances towards you with an evil-looking bone sword in his hand. You prepare for combat.

Turn to 68
.

The Ice Barbarian screams a low, unnatural cry. You have been spotted and you know you must silence him quickly before he alerts the whole of Ikaya to your presence. You turn to fight.

Turn to 161
.

That night, a gale sweeps across the open ice shelf and buries your tent in snow. During your sleep, the canvas is forced in upon the four of you and your sleeping furs become soaking wet. You awake at dawn with terrible cramp in both of your legs. It takes nearly an hour of massaging your frozen limbs before you can stand properly. You are beginning to wish that you had never set foot in this icy hell.

Turn to 167
.

You manage to remove most of the hardened wax that covers the stopper, and ease the reluctant seal from the fragile glass stem.

If you have the Kai Discipline of Animal Kinship, or if you have reached the Kai rank of Aspirant (you are skilled in six Kai Disciplines) or above,
turn to 156
.

If you do not possess this Kai Discipline, or if you have not yet reached the required Kai rank, you are suspicious of the dank mouldy smell of this liquid. You quickly put the Vial down. Now
return to 10
and choose your next course of action.

The stone door moves slowly to one side. It reveals a narrow archway that is full of billowing and swirling mist, hiding whatever it is that lurks beyond. You notice a severe drop in temperature.

If you have the Kai Discipline of Sixth Sense and if you have reached the Kai rank of Guardian (you are skilled in seven Kai Disciplines),
turn to 341
.

If you have the Kai Discipline of Sixth Sense but have not yet reached the rank of Guardian,
turn to 124
.

If you do not have the Kai Discipline of Sixth Sense, you prepare yourself to fight and pass through the misty arch.
Turn to 264
.

When you awake, you sense that something has changed. It takes nearly a minute to realize that the incessant howling of the night winds has ceased. ‘It's a beautiful morning,’ says Irian cheerfully, his head appearing through the tent flap. You quickly climb out of your sleeping furs and stare out over the icy landscape. The Kalte air is fresh and clear. You see a strong mirage in the distance that seems to throw the land up much higher than it could possibly be.

‘We should make it to “The Rock” by nightfall,’ says Fenor, as he busily pulls a reluctant Kanu-dog into its harness. ‘Best to make camp there tonight. The shelter is good; this far from the sea, a blizzard can whip across the shelf from nowhere in a few minutes. I've known trappers to be blown for miles if they're careless or unlucky enough to be caught out on the shelf with no cover.’

That day, the Kanu-dogs pull strong and true, for the going is smooth across the ice shelf. By nightfall, you have reached ‘The Rock’, a splinter of granite that has thrust through the ice shelf. Its curious shape reminds you of the King's citadel in Holmgard. You make camp to the leeward side of ‘The Rock’, to avoid the worst of the night winds.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
.

If the number you have picked is 0–4,
turn to 103
.

If the number you have picked is 5–9,
turn to 220
.

The massive door slides open to reveal a long stone causeway, spanning a vast chamber that is bathed in the orange glow of fiery furnaces. A gust of hot, putrid air wafts over you and a deafening noise assails your ears. Fifty feet below the causeway, great stone vats hang suspended over roaring flames. Each vat is full of bubbling slime writhing and contorting as if it were alive.

Fear and revulsion grip your stomach as you begin to grasp the sinister secret of this hall. Row upon row of stone plinths bear the mutilated corpses of Ice Barbarians, their skins peeled back and pinned open. Each corpse is attended by hideous creatures, a ghoulish legion of mutants crawling and slithering across the blood-drenched floor. This hall is a place of great evil, a nightmarish laboratory, a temple of the Black Art of Necromancy constructed by Vonotar the Traitor.

Illustration XVI
—This hall is a place of great evil, a nightmare laboratory.

Across the causeway, another doorway suddenly slides back to reveal four Ice Barbarian mutants. As they shuffle towards you, a mixture of horror and pity overwhelms your senses.

If you wish to fight these creatures,
turn to 83
.

If you wish to flee from this terrible place,
turn to 130
.

The creatures in this cavern are Kalkoth, savage and cruel predators of Kalte. Their favourite prey is Baknar, and it is the remains of one of those animals spattered across the floor of the cavern. There is another passage leading off towards the north, but it is on the far side of the cavern.

If you wish to creep past the sleeping Kalkoth,
turn to 125
.

If you wish to retrace your steps and take the other tunnel heading north,
turn to 235
.

If you wish to attack these sleeping creatures,
turn to 109
.

Destroying the door in this way is an extremely strenuous task. You will need to eat two Meals after the six hours of labour or lose 6
ENDURANCE
points due to fatigue.

When you finally cut hole large enough through which to escape, you discover that you have attracted some unwanted attention.

Turn to 106
.

On seeing you enter, the two old men jump to their feet and flee from the chamber along a smaller passageway. Their screams of panic echo loudly throughout the caverns.

You are very hungry and quickly consume the cooked animal, pausing only to spit out the bones. You then notice that the fire is burning in a strange, half-spherical metal bowl. The other half of the sphere lies on the icy floor nearby and you find that both halves fit together perfectly. When you open it, you discover that the fire still burns inside. If you wish to keep this Firesphere, place it inside your jacket and mark it on your
Action Chart
as a Special Item.

Return to the tunnel by
turning to 132
.

Unfortunately, the guards suspect that something is amiss and challenge you in their strange language. You have no alternative but to attack them before they can raise the alarm. However, the fumes of the smoking herbs are affecting the Ice Barbarians and this will aid you in the following combat. You need fight only 3 rounds of combat before the guards collapse unconscious to the floor.

Ice Barbarians:
COMBAT SKILL
 17   
ENDURANCE
 30

If you are still alive after the combat, you can signal to Loi-Kymar to approach the hall.

To your delight you discover that one of the magnificent jewelled doors is unlocked. You gently push it ajar and enter Vonotar's chamber.

Turn to 173
.

You have been walking along the passage for less than five minutes when it veers sharply northwards. Just ahead, to your left you can see a large stone door; the lever is up and the door is closed.

If you wish to pull the lever and open the door,
turn to 317
.

If you wish to continue northwards,
turn to 126
.