The Deathlord of Ixia Page 14

  If at any time during this fight you reduce Tagazin's ENDURANCE points score to 25 or less, do not continue, but turn instead to 168.

  217

  You bring to mind the words of the Brotherhood Spell Counterspell and focus on the lock as you quietly recite them under your breath. For a few moments the air crackles with static electricity; then you feel a calm descend: the sorcerous spell which once protected this door has suddenly evaporated.

  Confident that it is safe to proceed, you unsheathe your weapon and use its tip to prise open the three lockplates, revealing their internal mechanisms. With the lock exposed, you set about the now-simple task of opening the door.

  Turn to 10.

  218

  The second wave of Lavas comes swooping down, howling defiantly, and the terrific beat of their wings forces you and the Demonlord apart. You look up to see that one of the winged creatures is cradling a curious item in his horny hands, an item which radiates an intense aura of evil power. At first glance it resembles a large metal bowl with a sharp spear of crystal fixed to its underside, but when the Lavas descends towards Tagazin and inverts it, you suddenly realize its true purpose and design. It is a helm of power, affixed with a crystal spike. The Lavas place the helm upon the Demonlord's head and the spike begins to glow menacingly.

  Now the encircling Lavas ascend into the sky where they wait to view the confrontation which is about to commence. Suddenly Tagazin, revitalized by the power of the spiked helm, comes charging at you with his head lowered, snorting loudly like a raging bull.

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

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

  If it is 5 or more, turn to 142.

  219

  As your hand closes around the hilt of the sun-sword, you suddenly recall Guildmaster Banedon's words of warning: Use the Sommerswerd with discretion. In the darkness of Ixia its power will be like a blazing beacon … it could readily alert the Deathlord to your presence.

  For a moment you hesitate in drawing the sun-sword from its Korlinium Scabbard. But the cave creature is now almost upon you — it is closing swiftly for the kill. You must act immediately if you are to defend yourself from its attack.

  If you choose to unsheathe the Sommerswerd and use it in your defence, turn to 110.

  If you decide to leave the Sommerswerd in its scabbard and use another Weapon instead, turn to 275.

  220

  ‘Give me your Weapon, Grand Master,’ says Banedon, holding out his hand expectantly. You unsheathe your hand-weapon and pass it to him hilt-first. From a pocket he takes out a dull red gem, no bigger than a fig stone, and presses it gently against the hilt of your Weapon. To your surprise, you see the gem sink into the hilt as easily as if Banedon were pressing it into a pat of warm butter.

  ‘The gem is a Dessi Stone,’ says Banedon, in answer to your unspoken question. ‘Lord Rimoah gave it to me. Now, I give it to you. Whenever you use this Weapon in combat against a non-living foe, the power of the Dessi Stone will help you achieve swift victory.’ Banedon returns your Weapon and you examine the Dessi Stone carefully for a few moments before sheathing it in your belt.

  With the Dessi Stone fitted into its hilt, your Weapon now inflicts double ENDURANCE point losses against an undead opponent in combat. Be sure to record this permanent modification to your Weapon on your Weapons List.

  To continue, turn to 22.

  221

  You stagger to your feet and try to get away but your escape is quickly thwarted. The creatures glide swiftly across the snow and block your escape route, forcing you to face them in a desperate hand-to-hand combat.

  If you possess the Sommerswerd and wish to use it, turn to 167.

  If you do not possess this Special Item or choose not to use it in combat against these creatures, turn instead to 130.

  222

  You barge your way through the skeletal warriors and escape into a maze of dark corridors. The breathtaking speed of your action leaves them sprawled helplessly on the ground and, by the time they have untangled themselves and staggered to their feet, you are nowhere to be seen.

  When you are sure that you are not being followed, you pause for a few moments to use your Magnakai skill of Nexus in an attempt to determine the location of your missing weapons and equipment. You sense they are not too distant and, guided by your feelings, you go off along an adjoining passageway in search of them.

  The dingy, ice-caked tunnel wends its way deeper into the bowels of this vast alien vessel. You explore a series of empty holds, where the walls are braced with gleaming crystal girders, and pass through low-ceilinged chambers that, despite the biting chill, reek of death and decay. At length your search ends at a great grey door which is guarded by two undead Drakkarim warriors, armed with spears. The noises you heard earlier have now ceased, and so has the movement of the vessel; you sense that this craft is no longer at sea.

  From the cover of a curving crystal bulkhead, you spy silently upon the Drakkarim guards while you consider your next move.

  If you wish to attack the guards with your bare hands, turn to 243.

  If you choose instead to use your Magnakai mind Disciplines upon the guards, turn to 336.

  223

  You sense that the wisps of black smoke are a manifestation of several evil beings, each possessed of a strong psychic presence. Fearing attack, you quickly draw upon your Kai Mastery to construct a Mindfort to protect yourself from psychic assault. It is a wise precaution. Moments after the Mindfort is in place, the wisps streak across the chamber and encircle your body. They accelerate to a dizzying speed before launching a massive wave of psychic energy at your mind. Fortunately for you, this tidal wave crashes against the walls of your Mindfort and dissipates harmlessly into a thousand motes of light.

  Turn to 283.

  224

  You take the ship's wheel and turn this alien vessel out of the narrow harbour, into the roiling waters of the Tozaz Sea. It is less than an hour past noon and yet the winter night has already closed in. You share the icy darkness with a crew of six Lencian outposters, all of whom have volunteered for this perilous mission. Lanza has ordered them to land you on the coast of Ixia and wait at anchor for seven days for you to return; they must wait no longer.

  With ten miles of sea behind you, you hand over the wheel to one of the crew and settle down on the wheelhouse floor to sleep. But you have barely closed your eyes when the deck begins to buck like a stallion. The ship has sailed directly into a saesha — a sudden and violent sea-storm for which the Tozaz is infamous. Thunder roars and sleet blows with blinding ferocity as the ship dips and rolls in the waves.

  After what seems like an eternity, the ship emerges from the storm — a storm against which few craft other than this could have sailed. The darkness gives way to an eerie dawn which casts its watery light upon a new danger. In the grey half-light you see thousands of icebergs ahead, stretching across the horizon as far as the eye can see. Your heart sinks — navigating a course through this icy maze could well prove impossible.

  If you wish to take control of the ship's wheel as you approach the field of icebergs, turn to 51.

  If you wish to go forward to the prow and act as ship's pilot, turn to 189.

  225

  Chunks of rock and crystal are raining down on your head from above, and what little remains of the stairs on which you are standing is fast crumbling away. You must act quickly to save yourself before this entire stairwell disintegrates and plummets into the hall below.

  If you possess a Rope (oiled or otherwise), turn to 246.

  If you do not, turn to 344.

  226

  You take up one of the crystal swords and examine it. It is a fine blade, but one that was not crafted for a human hand. You replace it in the rack before leaving this chamber and climbing the stairs to the ice-cavern. Here you wait in the shadows for a
chance to escape by the only other exit — the open archway in the east wall.

  Turn to 7.

  227

  The dozen or so winged creatures that surround the ailing Tagazin appear to be urging him on towards the Shadow Gate. Your hopes of returning to your home world rose when first you saw the whirling vortex, but now a familiar sensation of fear returns to chill your blood. The thought occurs to you that if Tagazin should enter the Shadow Gate before you, the dragon-creatures may be able to close it behind him and deny you the chance of ever escaping from this evil domain. It is a risk you cannot afford to take.

  Drawing your weapon, you race along the track in pursuit of the Demonlord, grimly determined to prevent him from reaching the Shadow Gate alive.

  If you possess Assimilance, turn to 347.

  If you do not possess this Discipline, turn to 38.

  228

  The instant you strike the final blow that consigns the Ziog to its doom, it drops to the deck and crumbles like ancient parchment.

  An unhuman cry arises from the skeleton horde grouped on the quay. They come charging down the gangplank towards you, hungry for vengeance. Instinctively you draw your weapon and strike the plank a mighty blow. The wood splits cleanly in two and both sections collapse, dumping the onrushing skeletons unceremoniously into the harbour's freezing water.

  If you wish to examine the Ziog's remains, turn to 88.

  If you do not wish to approach the Ziog's body, turn to 329.

  229

  When you reach the stone roof, you notice an opening at its centre, partially overgrown with barbed creepers. A closer look reveals a flight of steps, thick with slime, which descend into the darkness of the building which now lies trapped below the surface of the swamp. You are peering into this hellish gloom when suddenly your Kai senses alert you to an approaching threat.

  Illustration XIV—A horde of bloated corpse-things, humanoid horrors, and skeletal warriors approaches you.

  You spin around to see a horde of monstrous shapes come streaming along the mossy ridge which you have just travelled. Bloated corpse-things jostle with humanoid horrors and skeletal warriors whose bones are gnawed with decay. It is a ghastly sight — a regiment of Chaos-creatures, drawn here by the scent of human prey. You shiver with dread, for clearly you are the prey they seek.

  If you wish to evade these approaching Chaos-creatures by descending the steps inside the sunken stone building, turn to 259.

  If you choose to stand and fight the advancing horde, turn to 145.

  230

  You recite the words of the Brotherhood Spell Strength, and within seconds, your body surges with newfound energy. You increase your pace until you are running at three times your previous speed. Within a matter of seconds you close upon Tagazin, your weapon drawn in preparation to strike at him as you pass by, but the Demonlord sees that he can no longer outdistance you and he stops to block your path. He is weaker than before, but he has lost none of his devilish cunning.

  As you come to within striking distance, suddenly he leaps at your chest and brings you crashing to the loamy ground.

  Demonlord Tagazin (injured): COMBAT SKILL 45 ENDURANCE 45

  This being is immune to all forms of psychic attack, except Kai-surge and Kai-blast.

  Conduct this combat for one round only.

  If Tagazin is killed outright during this single round of combat, turn to 33.

  If he is not, turn to 301.

  231

  You hit the snow and roll beneath the ice-shelf barely seconds before the leading edge of the avalanche comes roaring down. Tons of rock and ice engulf your shelter, causing part of it to collapse and trap your feet: lose 5 ENDURANCE points.

  When at last the terrible roaring ceases and, somewhat to your surprise, you realize that you are still alive, you begin the slow and laborious process of digging yourself out of this icy tomb.

  Turn to 179.

  232

  You hit the floor with a numbing jolt that takes your breath away, and leaves you partially concussed: lose 5 ENDURANCE points.

  If you survive this fall, turn to 36.

  233

  You are about to turn away from the window and engage Captains Lanza and Prarg in conversation, when suddenly a loud, discordant bell rings out from above. The sound transfixes Lanza's face with shock.

  ‘By the gods!’ he splutters. ‘It's the alarm bell — we're under attack!’

  Turn to 181.

  234

  You project a powerful blast of Kai-surge at the group but, to your dismay, it does not affect them.14 One of the target creatures utters a sound that resembles a mocking laugh and, from a pocket of its tattered black robe, it draws a silvery rod which it levels at your head. Reflexively you dive for cover, avoiding certain decapitation as a searing bolt of energy surges from its tip. It passes within inches of your back before impacting against a distant pillar of crystal.

  As you scramble to your feet, you see all three of the creatures gliding towards you across the snow.

  If you wish to attempt to evade these ghoulish attackers, turn to 256.

  If you choose to stand and fight them, turn to 35.

  [14] It seems logical that you should deduct 1 ENDURANCE point due to this use of Kai-surge.

  235

  You tear yourself away from the horde and retreat to the stairs. With the hideous gibbering shrieks of the Chaos-creatures echoing in your ears, you hurry down the slime-smeared steps into the claustrophobic depths of this sunken building. At first the alien cries of your pursuers sound hungry and frantic, like those of a ravenous pack of starving wolves denied their prey, but suddenly you realize that they are not cries of hunger at all — they are howls of glee. The Chaos-creatures are enjoying the sight of you rushing headlong to your doom!

  You skid to a halt but it is already too late. With chilling abruptness, the slimy stairs open up and you fall feet-first into a deep, dark pit.

  Turn to 59.

  236

  The great alien vessel looms towards your ship, its jaw-like prow hinged open as if in readiness to bite you in half. Then, with stunning swiftness, your entire craft is consumed by this onrushing vessel, swallowed up in its great jaws. There is a moment of deadly silence. Then, in the morbid, greenish gloom, you hear a bubbling rush of icy water echoing through the vast depths of this gullet. With fearful anticipation you unsheathe your weapon, move towards the ship's rail, and then look down. The surrounding seawater is fast draining away, leaving your ship dry-docked upon a long, V-shaped plinth which glistens like polished bone. The bubbling subsides, to be replaced by another noise — the sound of a great portal grinding open. Bright light streams across the deck, blazing down from an archway which is opening close to the starboard bow. Silhouetted in this light are a hundred moving forms, each man-sized and armed with a sword or a spear. A ghastly howl of anger arises from their ranks when they see unexpectedly that the ship is crewed by living men. As the first of their number leap from the arch and crash upon the deck, you recognize their form. Once these creatures were Drakkarim warriors; now they are undead slaves in the service of the Ixian Deathlord. You shout to the Lencians to prepare for battle as the first wave of undead Drakkarim comes surging forwards.

  If you wish to stand and fight the first wave of Drakkarim undead, turn to 260.

  If you choose to evade their attack, turn to 163.

  237

  You draw your weapon and fight with blinding speed in order to save yourself from these chittering horrors.

  Dentaag: COMBAT SKILL 51 ENDURANCE 38

  These beings are immune to all forms of psychic attack, except Kai-surge and Kai-blast.

  If you win the fight, turn to 149.

  238

  The moment you draw your divine blade, the bodies of your attackers undergo a swift and gruesome transformation. The radiant golden light of your sword washes over them, causing their torsos to implode with dramatic effect. They barely have time to cry out in agony
as their twisted remains hit the floor and crumble to dust.

  You sheathe the Sommerswerd and step away from the foul-smelling mounds of dust. But as you turn towards the archway that these fell creatures were guarding, you are confronted by a terrifying sight. Framed in the archway is the awesome figure of Deathlord Ixiataaga himself, the Deathstaff raised high in his ungodly hand. He has sensed the presence of the Sommerswerd and he has come to destroy it. Stunned by his awful visage, you fail to react in time to save yourself. You see a flash of white light explode at the tip of the staff and, in the very next instant, you feel agonizing pain shoot through every part of your body. Then an explosion of white-hot fire obliterates your senses and, in a terrifying instant, the light that is your life is snuffed out.

  Tragically, you have fallen victim to the Deathlord and his staff of unholy power. Your life and your quest end here.

  239

  You pray to the God Kai to watch over you as you steel yourself to meet these attacking skeletal warriors.15

  Ixian Undead: COMBAT SKILL 46 ENDURANCE 55

  If you win the combat, turn to 152.

  [15] There is no path which leads to this section of the book. It is functionally identical to Section 23 and Section 242, and therefore its isolation does not affect the gameplay of the book. also, in view of Banedon's comments in Section 339, it would seem that you should not use the Sommerswerd in this combat.