Mydnight's Hero (16 page)

As you approach the Oridon Stone you see a dozen men standing in a circle around its base, and a horse-drawn wagon parked close by. They salute you in a friendly manner as you rein in your horses and come to a halt beside their wagon. One of them, a bearded man with ruddy cheeks, leaves the circle and walks over to introduce himself and his companions. You learn that they, like Prince Karvas, are from Siyen. They are the great-great-grandchildren of warriors who fell here in battle exactly one hundred years ago to the day. They have come here all the way from Seroa on a pilgrimage to honour the memory of their fallen ancestors.

After a few minutes, Prince Karvas dismounts and joins the circle of men at the Oridon Stone. He bows his head in reverence and offers up a silent prayer to Ishir to watch over the souls of the brave Siyenese who sacrificed their lives on this field of battle. While Karvas is praying, you talk quietly with the bearded man and learn that his name is Daventi. When you tell him that you and your companion are bound for Siyen, he offers you some words of advice. He tells you to be wary should you wish to cross the River Ioma at Voshno, the next town on the trail. The bridge has been seized by robber knights from Cavalia and they are demanding a heavy toll from anyone seeking to use the bridge. Rather than cross the river at Voshno, the man suggests that you should continue north along the trail. Three miles north of Voshno is a small farmstead at the river's edge. For a moderate charge the farmer will ferry you and your horses across the river by raft.

Having paid his respects, Karvas walks away from the monolith and remounts his horse. As you turn your horses to leave, the friendly Siyenese salute you and bid you both good luck and godspeed on the road ahead. You return their kind gesture with a Kai salute before you and Karvas gallop off across the plain to resume your ride along the dusty trail.

Turn to 139
.

The trader becomes angry when you refuse to offer him more of your gold, and he signals to his henchmen to throw you out of his emporium. They move towards you in eager readiness to obey their master's command. Rather than resist and risk slaying them in a fight, you allow yourself to be roughly manhandled out of the warehouse: lose 2
ENDURANCE
points.

Back on the quayside you resolve to explore the tangle of alleyways that make up the city's eastern quarter in the hope of finding someone who is more willing to talk about the Prince. Unfortunately, your efforts garner no useful information. As the sun begins to settle on the horizon, you finally abandon your search and hurry back through the darkening passageways towards the market square.

Wizard Acraban and Lord Zinair are already waiting aboard the
Starstrider
by the time you reach the market square. The magician orders the boarding cage to be lowered and you are winched up to the skyship. They are disappointed to hear that your search for information has been in vain. Fortunately, Lord Zinair's efforts have been more fruitful.

‘Prince Karvas is not here,’ he says. ‘He lived here when he first came to Sheasu some ten years ago, but a young woman called Amarelda arrived soon after and they were married, here, in the harbour. They left Mydnight the day after their wedding and settled somewhere on the northern coastline. It has been more than a year since they last visited the city.’

Turning to Acraban, Zinair says: ‘I propose we travel north at first light and commence a search of the northern shoreline. I suspect it will be easier to espy their retreat from the air than to attempt any search by land.’

Acraban nods in agreement. Then he passes word to his young crew to prepare the
Starstrider
for a voyage north at first light.

Turn to 187
.

As your final blow shatters the second blade and breaks the spell that brought it to life, you hear the sound of a bell tolling in a lower level of the citadel. Your Sixth Sense warns you that it is an alarm bell; your escape from the dungeons has been detected.

You leave the library and hurry across the sumptuous chamber to the shiny steel door by which you first entered this apartment. Soldiers are ascending the stairs towards it. You catch a glimpse of them and quickly you retreat into the chamber, slamming the door shut behind you. An attempt to secure the door is unsuccessful for the lock is jammed and the dial refuses to turn. Hastily you and Karvas barricade the door with furniture and then you look about for another way to escape. You see only one — through the window. The soldiers are pounding on the door and the barricade is shifting and collapsing as you and Karvas climb out onto a stone ledge. The barricade gives way and you hear the soldiers shouting as they force their way into the chamber. Then an arrow shatters against the surface of the ledge, only a few inches from your left boot. You look up and see Citadel Guardsmen with loaded bows leaning over the battlements above. Alerted by the tolling bell, they have spotted you on the ledge outside Sadanzo's chamber. When a second arrow pierces Karvas' cloak, you take hold of the Prince's forearm and pull him with you as you step off the ledge and plummet towards the moat, 30 feet below.

You hit the stagnant water with a mighty splash and immediately strike out for the surface. You break through the scummy film that floats on top of the water and, seconds later, you see Karvas emerge from the depths to gasp a lungful of clean air. Arrows are falling all about you. They drop from the battlements above, and they streak past your head, fired by archers who are running across the drawbridge.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
.

If the number you have picked is 0–1,
turn to 312
.

If it is 2–6,
turn to 15
.

If it is 7–9,
turn to 224
.

Hastily you leap aside to avoid the dagger but it wounds your thigh as you fall to the ground: lose 3
ENDURANCE
points.

The guard runs forward and tries to land a kick to your chin but you turn his foot aside with your forearm and it brushes harmlessly past your head. As he struggles to regain his balance, you spring to your feet and attack him.

Tehda Stables Guard:
COMBAT SKILL
 24   
ENDURANCE
 24

Reduce your
COMBAT SKILL
by 5 for the first round of this fight.

If you win the combat,
turn to 316
.

As the last of Sadanzo's knights crashes dead at your feet, you leap over his crumpled body and rush towards the rear of the stables where the slain knights' horses are tethered to a rail. You and Karvas cut free the two sturdiest mounts and pull yourselves into their saddles. Prince Karvas wheels his horse about and rides him out into the courtyard. When you emerge from the stables, you are following close behind the Prince and struggling hard to keep your jittery horse from losing its footing on the smooth flagstones. Strewn around the walled yard and paddock are the bodies of slain and wounded troopers. Your heart goes out to these brave men, but you dare not stop to help them. To do so would be suicidal. Karvas gallops his horse towards the open gates and you hear shouts of alarm from the Cavalians positioned around the courtyard wall. They have recognized you and they are bringing their loaded crossbows to bear on your fleeing backs.

If you possess Kai-alchemy and wish to use it,
turn to 234
.

If you possess Magi-magic and wish to use it,
turn to 337
.

If you possess neither of these skills, or if you choose not to use either of them,
turn to 273
.

Calling upon your Magnakai Discipline of Animal Control, you focus your special powers at the line of sleeping crows and command them to awaken. Suddenly the birds erupt into life and begin cawing and flapping their wings excitedly. You will the startled crows to attack the guardsmen on the parapet and instantly they obey. While the soldiers are fighting vainly to fend off the birds, you motion Karvas to follow your lead as you break cover and hurry along the river bank towards the arch.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
. If you possess Grand Huntmastery, add 3 to the number you have picked.

If your total score is now 4 or less,
turn to 257
.

If it is 5 or more,
turn to 45
.

You utter the words of the Brotherhood Spell
Net
and point the index finger of your right hand towards Karvas. You feel your arm tingle and a gush of sticky strands shoot from your fingertip to engulf the helpless Prince. You counter the spell to stop the flow, and then you take hold of the net with both hands and pull Karvas out of this cavity. As you are cutting him free from the gluey fibres, you happen by chance to notice that he has a crescent-shaped birthmark on his right wrist.

Once free of the net, Karvas thanks you earnestly for your timely help. Had you not acted when you did, he feels sure that he would have slipped and fallen into the raging river.

Turn to 200
.

You walk from the tavern and wait in the shadows of a nearby alleyway for the two Cavalians to leave. Soon you hear the
clang
of the riverboat's bell echoing through the village. The captain is calling all passengers aboard; his boat is due to set off for Seroa in fifteen minutes' time. You watch a steady stream of people leaving the tavern and walking to the jetty to board the boat, but you do not see the Cavalians. You are beginning to fear that you have missed them in the crowd when suddenly they emerge from the tavern. They are the last ones to leave.

If you wish to approach them and offer to buy their riverboat tickets to Seroa,
turn to 222
.

If you choose to approach them and simply demand that they hand you their tickets,
turn to 320
.

The trader is mesmerized by the sight of the Gold Crowns. You offer him two of your coins and a trickle of nervous sweat runs down his waxy face. He reaches out to take them but then he hesitates and withdraws his trembling hand. He is having second thoughts about selling you what he knows about Prince Karvas.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
(0 = zero). For every Gold Crown that you are willing to give the trader, in addition to the 2 you have already offered him, you may add 1 to the number you have picked.

If your total score is now 5 or lower,
turn to 105
.

If it is 6 or higher,
turn to 26
.

The instant the cell door crashes shut, you use your Magnakai Discipline of Nexus to loosen the cords that bind your wrists, and then you untie the Prince. The air in this dark prison is dank and stifling, and what little ventilation that there is seems to come from the narrow crack that runs around the iron cell door. You vow to Karvas that this foul dungeon will not hold him for long, and you set about examining its walls and floor in the hope of finding a way to escape.

You soon discover that you have been locked in the securest cell of the citadel, deep below the ground. Beyond its slimy walls there lies nothing but solid earth. Only the cell door offers a glimmer of hope, yet it has no handle, hinges, or keyhole visible on the inside. It is not secured by key but by a tumbler lock, similar to the lock of a safe, and it can be opened by means of a dial on the outside of the door. Placing your ear to its surface, you use your Magnakai Discipline of Nexus to will the lock tumblers to move. After a few moments you hear them begin to click over.

You discover that there are three tumblers. To open the door, each one has to be turned to the correct position in sequence. Using your Sixth Sense, you determine that the first number in the sequence is equal to the number of horses you took from the Tehda Stables. The second is equivalent to the number of Lune one can normally expect to receive in exchange for 1 Gold Crown. The third in the sequence is equivalent to the number of towns and cities there are, at present, in the Doomlands of Naaros.

When you think you know the three-digit answer, note down the figures in order and
turn to the section of the book
which is the same as your answer.
¹⁰

If you are unable to determine the correct solution,
turn instead to 203
.