Voyage of the Moonstone (10 page)

For a few moments the raiders stand transfixed with shock, as if they are unable to comprehend that their leader is truly dead. Then the reality of their loss crashes in upon them and they become overwhelmed by their worst fears. Without their leader, they panic and hurriedly cut the grappling lines which hold the two vessels together. When the last rope is severed there is a great rending of iron and timber as the ram of the pirate ship wrenches itself free from
The Pride of Sommerlund
's port side. Then a cheer resounds from the mouths of those Sommlending who have survived the battle when they see the enemy ship turn about and flee for the safety of the isles off Cape Kabar.

To continue,
turn to 281
.

‘He's right,’ says the rogue, and sheepishly he backs away from your table.

‘He can't be the creature,’ whispers one of the other men. ‘It wouldn't know the answer.’

Confused and angered by their actions, and by what they are saying, you rise from your seat and demand an explanation. The innkeeper hurries over with a tankard of ale in his hand. He and the men apologize for the frosty reception you have received since you entered the tavern, and the innkeeper offers you the ale, free of charge, as if to make amends for their behaviour.

‘I don't want your ale,’ you snap. ‘What I want is an explanation. What's really going on here?’

The innkeeper looks at you and there is fear behind his eyes. ‘Very well,’ he says, ‘I'll tell you. It's only right that you should know.’

Turn to 74
.

You pitch camp among some sand dunes overlooking the village and its picturesque bay. Oswin attends to the horses while you help Sligh and Ernan to build a fire from driftwood. While you are foraging for wood, you stumble upon some strange pink-leaved plants growing along the edge of the beach.

If you possess Herbmastery,
turn to 317
.

If you do not possess this Discipline,
turn to 228
.

The door bangs open against the wall and a loud screech echoes from your room. This painfully sharp noise makes you raise your weapon defensively but, as you prepare to strike a blow, you suddenly see a startled cat come hurtling through the doorway. You smile to yourself and sheathe your weapon as you watch the terrified cat scurry along the corridor amidst a cloud of dust and loose fur.

The room itself is shabby but clean. You take off your cloak and equipment, wash from a cracked porcelain bowl, and then sit down on the threadbare mattress which serves as a bed. Now your thoughts return to your mission, and while you are pondering what may yet lie in store for you on the road to Elzian, you open the satchel containing the Moonstone and bathe in the warm glow which radiates from this wondrous artefact.

Suddenly there is a knock on your door. The sound gives you a start and quickly you buckle the satchel and stow it under the mattress.

If you possess Telegnosis and wish to use it,
turn to 229
.

If you possess Grand Huntmastery and wish to use it,
turn to 339
.

If you possess neither of these skills, or if you choose not to use them,
turn to 25
.

By the skill of her crew and helmsman,
The Pride of Sommerlund
enters the Bukimi Channel and picks up a prevailing wind which propels her swiftly away from the pirate raiders. Soon the enemy ships have disappeared beyond the distant horizon. When Raker is sure that they have abandoned the chase, he praises his First Mate and crew and promises that tonight they can look forward to a double rum ration as reward for their skilful seamanship.

As the ship navigates the narrow strait dividing these two Lakuri islands, you pass close by the fire-blackened ruins of a beach settlement which nestles in a bay overshadowed by cliffs. It is Kita Cove, formerly the secret base from where Captain Khadro launched his pirate fleet. Staring at the charred remnants of his settlement, you try to imagine what it must have looked like before the encampment was consumed by the tremendous fireball that was to seal its doom.

A mile beyond Kita Cove, the strait becomes narrower at a place where it passes between two overhanging cliffs. Paoll is sure that he can navigate safely through this channel, but his confidence is shaken when the lookout suddenly screams a warning: ‘Whirlpool ahead!’

When you catch sight of the swirling, foaming water, you sense immediately that this is not a natural phenomenon: this watery vortex is the result of evil sorcery.

If you possess Elementalism,
turn to 226
.

If you do not possess this Grand Master Discipline,
turn to 55
.

You ride the benign thermal currents that swirl between these lower mountain peaks and enjoy a spectacular aerial view of the Great Masourn Range. Within the hour you emerge from the peaks and drift towards columns of rock that rise up from the lower slopes of the timbered mountainside. Circling above one of these columns are six large, black winged birds. You magnify your vision and your pulse quickens when instantly you recognize them to be Itikars — giant Vassagonian eagles.

The leader of this predatory group has golden markings on his wing tips that glint in the sun, giving them a metallic appearance, and when he sees the balloon approaching he veers away from the column. The others follow his lead and all six come flying towards you in a wedge-shaped formation.

They fly past overhead and stare down at the balloon with their cold black eyes. Then the leader turns about and you sense that he intends to attack you on his next pass. His companions form up behind him in a line and he leads them in a steep dive.

Illustration IV
—The leader of the Itikars turns and you see that he is about to attack with his razor-sharp claws.

As he comes to within a hundred feet, he spreads his razor-sharp talons and fixes his cruel eyes on the balloon's vulnerable canopy.

If you possess Kai-alchemy and wish to use it,
turn to 141
.

If you possess Animal Mastery and wish to use it,
turn to 168
.

If you possess a Bow and wish to use it,
turn to 326
.

If you possess neither of these skills, nor a Bow, or if you choose not to use any of them,
turn to 53
.

The old woman sits herself at your table and takes hold of your right hand. For a few minutes she mumbles and murmurs incoherently as she traces every line on your palm with her crooked index finger.

‘Great strength, long life, and good fortune will be yours, kind sir,’ she says, grinning inanely. ‘Ah, but what is this? Is this love I see? I … I cannot be sure.’ And with this she holds open her left palm inviting you to give her another Gold Crown. You look to the owner of the inn and he frowns and shakes his head. The old crone is clearly a charlatan and she will tell you anything she thinks you want to hear so long as you continue to pay her. You snatch your hand away and tell her to leave. Muttering darkly, she picks up her basket and scuttles out of the inn, slamming the door behind her with a resounding crash.

It is getting late and you are feeling tired after your long day's ride, so you bid goodnight to the owner and retire to your room to sleep.

To continue,
turn to 242
.

The meteor is deflected by a plume of water that you are able to summon from the surface of the raging sea. Yet the power of this plume is not sufficient enough to prevent the flaming fireball from striking and scorching the left side of your body: lose 10
ENDURANCE
points.

If you have survived this grievous injury, you can continue by
turning to 132
.

Your Arrow punctures the leader's breastplate, but its steel tip does not sink deeply enough into his chest to cause him a fatal wound. He snaps the shaft of the missile in two and casts it aside with contempt. To your dismay, you see that his men are greatly impressed by their leader's apparent invulnerability and this helps to revive their flagging morale.

Turn to 5
.

You look to the bell and use your Kai Mastery in an attempt to locate the creature, but you can sense nothing unusual. Then a knot of fear tightens in your throat when suddenly you detect a powerful aura of evil. You turn to look at the cowering cleric and your fear becomes an icy terror when you realize that
he
is the source of the evil. Slowly you move backwards towards the stairs and he pleads with you not to go. Then he abandons his pretence. The pupils of his eyes shimmer and become spheres that glow darkly amber, and in a terrifying instant his body transforms. One moment he is a bearded holy man and, in a split-second blur, he becomes a snarling hulk of black-furred death. With breathtaking speed it leaps at you and slashes at your throat with its razor-sharp talons.

If you possess a Bow and wish to use it,
turn to 345
.

If you do not possess a Bow, or if you choose not to use it,
turn to 204
.

You bid Kol good luck and wish him a safe voyage before you and your companions collect your horses and set off from the tavern. The streets of Bir Rabalou are quiet this morning and you reach the city's south gate without incident. Here you gallop through the open gates to avoid any risk of being detained by the surly guards. They shout and curse you and loose off a few arrows in your wake, but these are poorly aimed and you escape from the city unharmed.

It is approaching noon when you arrive at a junction where the coast road splits in two. Ahead of you are the gentle foothills of the Koneshi Mountains, and beyond them you glimpse the snowy peaks of that great range rising majestically into the cloudless sky. Away to the east you can see the rugged coastline of southern Vassagonia where the cresting ocean waves break their backs upon wild and rocky beaches.

A signpost at the junction points to the east and to the south. To the east it reads, ‘Khor — 100 miles / Bisutan — 225 miles’. To the south it reads, ‘Koneshi Pass to Bisutan — 125 miles’.

Consult the
map
before you decide which road you wish to travel in order to reach the city of Bisutan.

If you choose the coastal road (east),
turn to 167
.

If you choose the mountain road (south),
turn to 152
.

‘The people of Hikas are living in fear of their lives,’ says the innkeeper, as he draws up a chair and sits with you at your table. ‘For the past month there's been a creature stalking our streets at night. It's killed more than fifty poor souls, and in terrible fashion. Ripped 'em to pieces. There ain't anyone who's lived to tell what it looks like but everyone's got their own ideas. Some say it's a shape-changer that goes about at day in the guise of a man and changes into a beast at night. Others say it's come from Gorgoron, seeking revenge on the Old Kingdom for the death of its master — Agarash the Damned. I … I don't know what to think. All I know is that it stalks the streets, and every night someone dies a ghastly death by its hand.’

Suddenly the door to the tavern opens and in strides a Vakeros soldier with a sword wavering in his hand. He is wearing the uniform of a lieutenant of the city's militia, and beside him is a small boy — the innkeeper's son. ‘That's him!’ shouts the boy, pointing his finger accusingly at you.

The innkeeper vouches to the nervous lieutenant that you are a journeyman and not the creature that has paralysed Hikas with a reign of terror. The lieutenant relaxes a little and sheathes his sword. He shouts to a unit of his guardsmen who are grouped outside to form into a column and get ready to march, and then he turns to you and asks you to accompany him.

Turn to 20
.

The enemy ship is less than a hundred yards off the port beam when you see the dark shape at its prow begin to twitch and shudder. At first it resembles the body of some grotesque gigantic tick; then eight rubbery legs spring from its black underbelly and suddenly the shape takes on a far more sinister aspect.

A gasp of terror arises from the crew when this spider-like monstrosity opens its scarlet maw and emits a high-pitched chittering shriek. As the enemy vessel speeds nearer you watch with mounting dread as this hideous spider-creature raises its forelegs, as if in readiness to pounce. Furiously it rubs its forelimbs together and a mass of blue-white sparks appear at their tips. Then suddenly there is a deafening crackle of electrical power. A bolt of blazing energy shoots from the creature's maw and snakes across the water towards the crew and marines aboard your ship. The creature's attack hits its mark and the effect is swift and devastating. The crackling bolt ignites timber and sail, and leaves a dozen men sprawled dead or unconscious across the decks. Through the smoke of the burning sailcloth you see the enemy vessel bearing down to ram
The Pride of Sommerlund
. Impact is but seconds away.

Illustration V
—A crackling bolt of blazing energy shoots from the creature's maw towards your ship.

If you possess a Bow and wish to use it,
turn to 101
.

If you do not possess a Bow, or if you choose not to use it,
turn to 270
.