Vote registered; turning to section 373.
373
‘That’s it!’ exclaims Banedon, stabbing his finger at a map of the Dry Main that covers his chart table. ‘One hundred and fifteen miles due west of Bir Rabalou; one hundred and fifteen miles due south of the oasis of Bal-loftan.’ He picks up a quill pen and marks the spot. ‘The Tomb of the Majhan.’ (This section is the correct answer to the code puzzle posed in section 331.)
You study the map and ponder the miles of desolation separating you from your goal. Banedon notices your look of dismay and quickly tries to put your mind at ease.
‘Fear not, Lone Wolf. We’ll be there before the dawn.’
You smile at his confidence, but it is not the actual journey that worries you. Your concern is what you may or may not find upon your arrival.
To continue, turn to
320.
320
Dawn is breaking on the horizon of a low hill that is blurred and dotted with small tufted trees. Swiftly the
Skyrider has voyaged through the night to arrive at the foothills of the Koneshi Mountains, in whose folds the skyship is safely tucked away from watchful eyes. Twenty-five miles to the north, across a landscape of barren rock and dry brush, lies the Tomb of the Majhan.
You set off with Banedon before the dawn, anxious to waste neither time nor the protective cover of the darkness. Now, as the great golden disc of the sun climbs in the sky, for the first time you are able to see your goal. A massive excavation has exposed the heart of this scorched land, delving deep around the tombs of its forgotten ancestors.
Thousands of Giaks, spiteful and malicious servants of the Darklords, labor unceasingly to remove rock and sand from this quarry. They are forced by Drakkarim to drag their backbreaking loads up ramps to the rim of the crater. Close to the edge of the crater, an encampment of black tents surrounds a large domed canopy. Lying in the shade of this construction is a huge flying creature – an Imperial Zlanbeast. Its presence here can only mean one thing: Darklord Haakon has arrived. The thought of the Darklord’s presence here chills your blood, but you draw some comfort from the labor of his Giaks. That they continue to labor is a sign that their mission has yet to be completed; the Book of the Magnakai has yet to be found.
It is impossible to approach the crater unseen. You will have to wait for darkness before you dare make your approach and attempt to enter the Tomb. During the long wait, it is agreed that Banedon should try to find Tipasa. It is likely that he is being held captive somewhere inside the encampment. It seems improbable that Haakon would have killed him before discovering the treasure he has traveled so far to secure.
During the day, you must eat a Meal or lose 3 ENDURANCE points (or 2 if you have a Canteen of Water if you choose to drink now). If you possess the Kai discipline of Hunting, you are unable to make use of it in this desert wasteland to satisfy your requirement for food. Remember to make any necessary adjustments to your
Action Chart.
As night falls, so your desperate quest begins. The Giaks pose few problems that you cannot overcome with your basic warrior skills, for these creatures have been overworked to the brink of complete exhaustion. Only the Drakkarim show any sign of vigilance, but even so, there are less than a dozen patrolling the rim of the entire crater. Not until you reach the main entrance to the Tomb do you encounter any real challenge.
A Drakkar stands on guard by the entrance, his cruel eyes glinting behind his twisted iron death-mask. Occasionally, he diverts his attention from the watch to take a drink from a water flask.
If you have the Kai Discipline of Mind Over Matter, turn to
214.
If you do not possess this skill, turn instead to
239.
Lone Wolf has the Kai Discipline of Mind Over Matter.
214
You focus your skill on a nearby spade, willing the handle to rattle against the wheelbarrow in which it rests. It only takes a few seconds for the vigilant Drakkar sentry to leave his post and investigate the suspicious noise. By the time he returns, you have entered the Tomb of the Majhan.
To continue, turn to
395.
395
For as far as your eye can see, a perfectly straight sandstone corridor slopes away into the distance. Torches crackle and sputter on the walls, illuminating pictograms engraved in the yellow stone.
At regular intervals, rough-edged slabs protrude into the main corridor. You stop to take a close look at one of these slabs and the floor beneath it and come to a frightening conclusion. They are traps, set off no doubt by the Giaks when they cleared this corridor of sand. Rather than instructing the Giaks to avoid them, the Darklords must have deliberately used their slaves to trigger them. Once the traps had been sprung, the squashed bodies were cleared away and the slabs chiseled through to the next section. Pit traps in the floors seem to have been neutralized in the same way. Set off by luckless Giaks, they have been filled in with their dead bodies and leveled off with sand. The thought of this heartless barbarity fills you with a sense of renewed revulsion for the Darklords and their kind.
Just over a mile along the corridor, eventually you arrive at a large stone door. The stone surround bears evidence of recent chisel-work, but the door itself is rock solid. You notice a faint beam of light descending from a hole in the ceiling. It creates a small circular pool of light, a little to one side of a similar hole in the floor. In the wall near to the door there is a triangular indentation. It is about the same size as a Gold Crown.
If you possess a Prism, turn to
233.
If you possess a Blue Stone Triangle, turn to
245.
If you possess neither of these items, turn to
298.
Lone Wolf possesses a Prism and a Blue Stone Triangle. To resolve the book’s logic, I will have Lone Wolf use the Prism.
233
Holding the Prism in the center of the beam, you divert the light towards the hole in the floor. There is a sound of stone grating on stone as slowly the door opens to reveal a large chamber. It is dimly lit, but in the dust that covers its marble floor you can see footprints too numerous to count. As you enter, you catch sight of a rough stone throne that is facing the wall on the far side of the chamber. Behind you, the door slides shut with unnerving speed.
To continue, turn to
289.
289
The throne begins to revolve. As it turns, a terrible howling fills your ears. It changes and transforms into the growling of a harsh guttural language, the likes of which you have never heard before. Words and sounds that the mouths of men could never be shaped to speak roll through the chamber like thunder. It is the dark tongue, spoken by Haakon, Lord of Aarnak, Darklord of Helgedad.
He rises from the throne, the ghastly voice still echoing from his unnatural mouth. A spiked fist opens to reveal a glowing stone. Blue flame smolders around its surface and you can feel currents of power radiating from its core. Suddenly, his words change and now you hear a tongue you know well. He is speaking Sommlending.
‘Look on your doom, Kai whelp!’
There is a deafening crack, a sudden surge of power, and a fireball of blue flame leaps from the stone and comes hurtling towards your face.
If you possess the Sommerswerd, turn to
311.
If you do not possess this Special Item, turn to
219.
Lone Wolf possesses the Sommerswerd.
311
You raise your golden sword just in time to deflect the bolt of raw energy. It screams from your blade and explodes into the chamber wall, gouging a hole several feet deep in the steel-hard rock. The impact jars the Sommerswerd from your hand. The blade arcs through the dust-choked air and embeds itself, upright, in the stone floor. Hurriedly, you roll across the floor and take cover behind a pillar.
‘Your doom, Kai whelp,’ spits Haakon, ‘is but seconds away.’
If you wish to try to retrieve the Sommerswerd, turn to
278.
If you choose to move to a new hiding place, under cover of the swirling dust, turn to
350.
If you decide to stay hidden where you are, turn to
230.
Here’s the recap: Lone Wolf and Banedon arrives at the Tomb of the Majhan. Once there, they agree that Banedon should split off to rescue Tipasa the Wanderer while Lone Wolf sneaks into the Tomb. Thanks to his Mind over Matter Kai Discipline, Lone Wolf achieves this without any problems. After passing through a corridor filled with triggered traps and their Giak victims, Lone Wolf uses his Prism to open a door to a throne room. To his horror, the throne is occupied by Darklord Haakon, who shoots a fireball of blue flame of Lone Wolf. His Master Sword fortunately deflects the Hadouken, but Lone Wolf drops it from the resulting impact. Please make your votes on whether to try to get the Master Sword, run, or hide before 9:00 AM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.
ACTION CHART
KAI DISCIPLINES:
1. Sixth Sense
2. Healing: +1 ENDURANCE point for each section without combat
3. Hunting: no need for a Meal when instructed to eat
4. Mindblast: +2 COMBAT SKILL points
5. Mindshield: no points lost when attacked by Mindblast
6. Animal Kinship
7. Mind Over Matter
8. Tracking
9. Camouflage
WEAPONS:
1. Jeweled Mace (+1 COMBAT SKILL or +3 COMBAT SKILL against summoned foes)
2. Sommerswerd (In sections where it is specifically mentioned, +8 COMBAT SKILL and double damage against undead)
BACKPACK:
1. Bottle of Kourshah (+4 ENDURANCE)
2. Alether Concentrate (+4 COMBAT SKILL for one fight)
3. Rope
4. Brass Whistle
5. Concentrated Laumspur Potion (+5 ENDURANCE)
6.
7. Rendalim’s Elixir (+6 ENDURANCE)
8. Prism
SPECIAL ITEMS:
• Kai Shield (+2 COMBAT SKILL when used in combat)
• Kai Gold Key
• Crystal Star Pendant (Reroll one number per adventure, unused)
• Silver Helm (+2 COMBAT SKILL)
• Ticket
• Red Pass
• Padded Leather Waistcoat (+2 ENDURANCE)
• Firesphere
• Blue Stone Triangle
• Scroll
• Dagger of Vashna (+3 COMBAT SKILL, -3 ENDURANCE)
• Sash (does not count towards 12 item limit)
• Copper Key
BELT POUCH: 20 Gold Crowns
COMBAT SKILL: 15
ENDURANCE POINTS: 21/21
RULES:
• When in combat, stop to ask whether to use any items or abilities if ENDURANCE is less than 11 or Combat Ratio is less than -4
FASCIST KILL COUNT: 47
RESURRECTIONS USED: 1
NOTES:
• Visited the Ruins of Raumas
• Survived the perils of the Graveyard of the Ancients
• Visited Gorn Cove
• Bridge password is ‘sunset’
• Applied Baknar oil
• Visited a hut on ‘Raider’s Road’
• Visited the Ruins of Maaken
• Read the Barakeesh proclamation