The Darke Crusade (28 page)

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Authors: Joe Dever

Tags: #Fiction, #Fantasy, #Lone Wolf, #Magnamund

BOOK: The Darke Crusade
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316

The scout places two fingers to his lips and gives a long, warbling whistle. The sound makes the mercenaries turn and stare in your direction, and you hear one of them whistle twice in reply. Your scout then calls out a request that you be allowed to enter their camp. There is a long pause; then a heavily-accented voice replies:

‘Show yourselves.’

Relief that you are human, and not Drakkarim, is displayed clearly on the faces of these League-landers when the four of you stand up and walk towards their camp. You receive a warm welcome from these soldiers of fortune, and two of them offer to escort you to their leader — Baron Maquin.

Turn to 294
.

317

You abandon the shelter of the bridge and work your way slowly along the ice-filled ditch to a point directly in front of the tower. Here you settle to observe the Drakkarim guards who are dutifully keeping watch over the eastern approaches to the town. All you can see of them is their brutal faces peering out of the horizontal slit which runs the full circumference of the tower. After a while, three of the four Drakkarim leave the tower by a staircase at the side. Only one remains, and you decide that now would be the best time to make your move, before the three return or before their replacements show up for duty.

Prarg insists that he go first; he has crossed here once before and he knows a safe way through. The ground looks clear but there are concealed pits out there just waiting to snare the careless or unwary. You nod your agreement and, as soon as the guard turns his face away from the observation slit, Prarg makes his run. Crouching low, he half-runs, half-scampers across the clearing, keeping low and zigzagging as he weaves a safe path through the pits. It takes him thirty seconds to reach the base of the tower; then he slips around the side and takes cover beneath the steps before beckoning you to follow.

You take a deep breath then launch yourself out into the open. With heart pounding you run towards the tower, following in Prarg's footsteps which are clearly visible in the snow. You are halfway across when suddenly the guard's face reappears at the observation slit. You pray your camouflage skills will keep you hidden for a few seconds longer, but then you see something that shakes your confidence. The guard raises a curious square of glass in front of his eyes, and at once you sense it possesses magical properties.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you have Grand Huntmastery and you have reached the rank of Kai Grand Guardian or higher, add 1 to the number you have chosen. If you have the Discipline of Assimilance, add 2.

If your total score is now 0–3,
turn to 249
.

If it is 4–6,
turn to 67
.

If it is 7 or higher,
turn to 74
.

318

From out of the grey-green gloom comes a lumbering hulk that fixes you with its hungry scarlet eyes. The beast is covered with a vile fur which glistens in the eerie light of the tunnel. Its long sinewy arms are outstretched and in both of its huge hands there are chunks of dagger-like flint. Its distended belly skims the walkway as it stalks closer, and a brown gluey saliva runs freely from its fanged lower jaw. With the grill at your back preventing your escape, you draw your weapon and get ready to defend yourself from this nightmarish creature.

Tunnel Stalker:
COMBAT SKILL
 43   
ENDURANCE
 48

If you win this combat,
turn to 162
.

319

Using your Magnakai skills you command your tired horse to descend the hill and cross the bridge. Hopefully its tracks will lead your pursuers in the wrong direction and enable you to get away. As the horse wanders off, you beckon Prarg to follow you into the dense forest. Your instincts and Pathsmanship skills set you on a northwesterly tack, the direction you hope will lead eventually to Magnaarn and the hidden Temple of Antah.

You have covered two miles when suddenly you hear a sound which stops you both dead in your tracks. It is a terrible, bestial growl.

‘There!’ gasps Prarg, and you spin round to see a terrifying creature come slinking from out of the undergrowth.

Turn to 20
.

320

The site has been expertly cleared and very little evidence remains that Magnaarn and his bodyguard were here, yet you do manage to uncover some tracks frozen beneath the snow. They were made by men and horses, and are a little over a week old. Satisfied with your discovery, you leave the campsite and follow the tracks westward.

If you possess Animal Mastery and have reached the rank of Kai Grand Guardian (or higher),
turn to 227
.

If you do not possess this Discipline, or if you have yet to reach this level of Kai Mastery,
turn instead to 131
.

321

Your second Arrow kills the Death Knight instantly. You shoulder your Bow and run down the corridor, with Prarg close on your heels, and soon you reach a junction where you are forced to choose a direction, left or right. You call upon your Kai skills and immediately you sense a strong presence of evil lurking at the end of the right-hand passage. You focus on the source of this evil and determine that it is the Doomstone. You tell Prarg and together you advance along the passage until you reach a closed door.

If you possess Grand Huntmastery or Grand Pathsmanship,
turn to 214
.

If you possess neither of these Disciplines,
turn to 229
.

322

Gradually, over the next few hours, the level of the water rises until it covers most of the surrounding mud flats. Here and there, clumps of wire-hard briar stand isolated on tiny islands which are almost flush with the surface. They are the only features to break the dreary landscape.

As sunset approaches, so the wind dies until there is barely enough breeze to ruffle the canvas. Stoically Prarg gathers in the mainsail and you ship the oars; then together you pull back against the scum-darkened water and continue on your way. You are watchful of the current, for this will indicate your approach to the River Gourneni, but the water is so thick with silt and slime that neither of you can be certain of its direction, or even of its existence.

It is almost dark when finally you reach the outflow of the Gourneni. It is a sluggish confluence, jammed with deadwood and silt-banks which obstruct most of its fifty-yard width. You both realize that an attempt to navigate this river at night would be foolish, and so you decide to set up camp at the river's edge and wait until first light before continuing.

Using your Kai skills of detection, you scan the two river banks to determine which would be a safer place to set up camp. Unfortunately you sense little difference between the two; neither east nor west looks very inviting.

If you decide to set up camp on the west bank,
turn to 135
.

If you choose to set up camp on the east bank,
turn to 84
.

323

You uncover the sack and sift through its contents. Gleaming in the dim light you see a mass of coins, silver plates and candlesticks, jewellery, and all manner of precious and semi-precious stones. There are countless gold teeth, pulled no doubt from the mouths of fallen Lencian knights, and scores of trinkets and other mementoes taken from less noble corpses. One item you sense possesses magical properties. You pull it out and, on closer inspection, you discover it to be a polished Jadin Amulet which is fixed to a gold neck-chain.

If you decide to keep this Jadin Amulet, record it on your
Action Chart
as a Special Item which you wear around your neck. It adds +1 to your score should you be instructed to pick a number from the Random Number Table when trying to avoid normal missiles (e.g. arrows, bolts, darts, etc.) aimed at you.

Having replaced the sack in its hole, you draw your cloak about you and approach the main gates. The guards are busy admitting the latest batch of prisoners and, helped by your camouflage skills, they do not give you a second glance as you stride confidently into the town.

Once inside, you head towards a dark, deserted alleyway which is sandwiched between a stables and an armoury. From here you observe the compound with a growing anger and pity for those trapped inside. Stirred by their plight, you vow to help these starving men. Patiently you watch and wait for the patrols to pass; then you scurry towards the compound fence to make contact with the Lencians.

Turn to 150
.

324

You enter the warehouse through a broken window and soon find a hiding place among hundreds of rolls of canvas that are being stored on the ground floor. Periodically, Drakkarim enter and search the length and breadth of this sprawling building, but they fail to detect you.

While you are hiding from their search parties, you consider your companion's plight and grow ever more fearful for his safety. You are also very anxious that, under torture, he will reveal your identity and the reason why you have come to this town. You are determined not to allow this to happen and so, as midnight approaches, you slip away from your hiding place and make your way stealthily towards the Shugkona Gaol.

Turn to 260
.

325

‘Come, Prarg,’ you say urgently. ‘We must hurry from here. I sense more traps nearby.’

Obediently, the captain follows as you make your way speedily along the passageway towards a distant torchlit chamber. Upon reaching this chamber you are brought skidding to a halt by an unexpected sight.

The room is constructed entirely of polished black rock. Revealed in the torchlight is a throne of rough-hewn marble, where rests the skeletal remains of a warrior clad in mouldering furs. Bare bone gleams dully through a clinging mass of muscle and sinew, now shrunken to an iron-hard texture, and upon its skull there is perched a helm of solid gold. Set into the face of this helm is an emerald as large as your fist.

Prarg approaches the throne, tempted by the magnificent emerald, but he halts the moment you warn him that the helm is protected by a magical trap. You sense that a powerful spell of warding encircles the throne; to touch the crown would activate the spell, thereby unleashing a blast of destructive energy. The thought of being blown to atoms serves to dampen Prarg's curiosity and sheepishly he returns to your side. You give the booby-trapped throne a wide berth and leave the chamber by a smooth-walled tunnel in the far wall. But you have taken no more than a dozen steps when a chill of premonition runs like a trickle of icy cold water down your spine. You halt and reach for your weapon. Then a loud voice booms out, destroying the silence.

‘Welcome, Lone Wolf. Welcome to your tomb!’

Instinctively you know that it is the voice of Warlord Magnaarn.

Turn to 280
.

326

Desperately you try to tear yourself free from the creature's grip. You draw your weapon and strike at the tentacles which ensnare your legs, but the skin which sheathes them is like iron and you can barely cause a scratch. Then you sense that the creature's most vulnerable spot is its single eye and, with renewed vigour, you dive down and attack it relentlessly.

Illustration XIX
—Desperately trying to draw yourself away from the creature's grip, you strike at the tentacles which ensnare your legs.

Gartoth:
COMBAT SKILL
 43   
ENDURANCE
 50

If you win this combat,
turn to 243
.

327

Prarg awakens you shortly before dawn. It has been snowing during the night and the boat is covered with a thin layer of crisp white flakes. As you open your eyes, the cold air brings you swiftly to your senses, its sudden unexpected chill making you shiver violently. However, this discomfort is momentary; your Magnakai skill of Nexus rights the imbalance and a comfortable warmth returns to your frozen limbs.

Carefully you step from beneath the boat and cast your eyes across the marsh which borders the river, now completely white. Tracks in the snow betray the nocturnal passage of several swamp creatures, but none are too large as to cause you undue concern. Prarg unpacks some provisions and, after a breakfast of dried meat, potatoes, ale, and blue cheese, you prepare the boat for your long voyage north up the Gourneni river to Bear Rock.

By mid-morning the snow has returned and your progress is soon hampered by a whipping wind that blows persistently in your faces. Shielded by your innate skills, the sub-zero temperatures cause you little concern as tirelessly you work the oars. But Prarg is not so fortunate and, as the hours pass, the cold saps his strength until he is unable to continue rowing. Single-handedly you take over the oars whilst your guide, swathed in blankets, mans the rudder and acts as your pilot through the narrower sections of the Gourneni.

Turn to 107
.

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