Legion of Shadow (36 page)

319

The queen smiles, though there is little warmth or comfort in the gesture. ‘The man whom you seek is one of the Council of Nine – an order founded by a powerful
human mage named Avian Dale.

‘Cornelius has many gifts, but his most powerful is that of prophecy. He sees the future – all futures, which shift and change like the wind. Some paths are set, others can be
altered. Cornelius sees them all. You will need his help if you wish to close the shadow gate. Yes. I know of what has befallen the city of Talanost. If the Legion of Shadow is not contained there,
then all that we hold precious and dear will be lost . . . forever.’

Turn to
376
to ask another question, or turn to
336
to end your audience with the queen.

320

‘Ladies and gentlemen, show your appreciation for the one and only, “Left Hook” Luke. Former captain of the Betsy Blue and the most feared pirate of all the
seven seas! Yee-hah!’

Your opponent strides confidently towards you, his bucket-topped boots squelching through the mud. He is ragged and thin, his greasy hair hanging in loose strands from beneath his tri-horned
hat. With his one good eye (the other concealed by an eye-patch), he gives you the once over, his lips curling into a sneer.

‘I asks for a champion and they send me a deckhand.’ He circles around you, tapping the hook of his left hand against the blade of his cutlass. ‘I hopes yer understand,’
he says, grinning, ‘I needs the money for a new ship. So, there ain’t nothing coming between me and my bounty.’

You must now fight this deadly pirate captain:

Special abilities

If you win the combat, turn to
277
.

321

Quest: The seared scar

The forest gives way to a plain of black, scorched sand. A few shrivelled, charcoal stumps are all that remain of the once verdant wilderness. Warily, you wander alone through
this brooding landscape, past crevices that gout smoke and steam into the red-tinged sky.

The scar widens as you progress southwards, eventually bringing you to the lip of a vast, bowl-shaped crater. Cutting across its centre is a jagged rift, where the ground has violently buckled
and split apart. The flickering red glow of lava and flame dance along its steep sides, presenting a stark contrast to the grey-black ash that covers the rest of this wasteland.

You descend into the crater, half running and half sliding through the ash and dust. When you reach the bottom, you see that the ground is hard and smooth – the soil having been heated to
such a degree that is now fragments of dark crystal. Each footstep you take forces the crystals to splinter like broken glass – the only sound to be heard in this grim silent place.

As you approach the rift, you spot a figure lying on their side in the dust. You hurry over, suspecting that they have been injured. As you near, you see that it is an elderly man; his narrow
face encircled by a thick bush of wiry grey hair. He is dressed in simple leather clothing, with a skullcap resting lopsidedly on his head.

‘By Judah’s light, a traveller,’ he gasps. ‘Don’t suppose you could spare a little healing tonic. I appear to have taken a bit of a tumble.’

If you have a healing potion in your backpack and wish to offer it the man, turn to
467
. If you don’t have a potion or do not wish to waste it on a stranger,
turn to
483
.

322

As you open the door at the top of the stairs, you are met by an icy blast of wind and rain. Ahead of you stretches a section of the castle battlements, its narrow walkway slick
with rainwater. Not wishing to turn back, you race out into the fury of the storm.

The count follows you onto the battlements, his cloak whipping around his narrow frame. ‘You think you can run from me?’ he shouts. ‘You can’t escape your
doom.’

Suddenly, you hear a screeching sound coming from behind you. Spinning around, you see a mass of black bodies sweeping down from the clouds. As the winged creatures near, you realise – to
your horror – that they are giant, fang-toothed vampire bats! Fighting them on these slippery battlements is going to be a real test of your skill:

Special abilities

(Note: You cannot heal after this combat. You must continue this quest with the
health
that you have remaining. You may use potions and abilities to heal lost
health
while you are in combat.)

323

Weapons raised, you follow Bern into the pack of wreekin. The air rings with their warbling cries, as the creatures spin their nets about their heads, weighted with hook-like
bones. Bern quickly becomes entangled in one of the nets, falling to the boggy ground. You try and go to his aid, but are brought up short by a bolt of green light, which rips into the swamp ahead
of you, throwing up mud and water high into the air.

As you spin round, you see one of the wreekin holding a wand fashioned from strips of bone. It levels the wand at you again, preparing to fire another blast:

Special abilities