Legion of Shadow (56 page)

‘Thank you once again,’ says Hal, as you prepare to part company. He rubs his eyes, sniffling sadly. ‘Bah! Look at me, blubbering like a fool!’

Belinda kisses you on the cheek. ‘Yes, I owe you my life stranger. And don’t worry, I’ll keep a close eye on this one.’ She pinches Hal, giggling.

You wish both the explorers the best of luck, before heading back into Mistwood. Return to the quest
map
.

478

‘The dwarves were the first born – the oldest race on Dormus,’ says Shay, tracing her fingers along the edge of a carved statue. It depicts a squat, bearded
humanoid dressed in rune-covered robes. ‘They were scholars – experts in science and arithmetic. It allowed them to build great underground cities, sculpturing breathtaking architecture
out of the minerals and stone that they mined.’

She gives a heavy sigh. ‘But there were those amongst the dwarves who were not content with such feats of intellect and beauty. They were warriors, expansionists – who saw the stones
and metals of their land as merely tools to make war with the other races. They wanted to conquer the world – to live in cities above the earth, where their strength and power would be seen
and admired by all.’

Shay walks over to the crumbling remains of a temple. Along one wall is a mural showing dwarf fighting dwarf. ‘There was a war. On one side was the Illumanti, those who were sworn to
uphold the original ideals of their society – truth, justice and enlightenment. And then there were the Dours – the warlike dwarves who had given in to their bloodlust. As you can
imagine, the Dours were unstoppable. After all, they were warriors; masters of their craft. Some say they had been tainted . . . warped by the demonic magics that they sought to master. The few
Illumanti who survived the culling, fled to the surface, leaving their underground cities to be pillaged and destroyed by the Dours.’

You look around at the half-buried ruins. This must have been part of one of the dwarf cities, which was destroyed long ago in this great war.

‘Few now remain,’ says Shay, kicking at the loose dirt and rock. ‘It is a sad end for such a great people.’

479

You search the bodies and find 10 gold crowns and the following items, which you may take:

If you have
Lorinwold’s Field Guide to Roots, Herbs and Leaves
then you may pick 2 bramble thorn and 1 thimble sage from the swamp. (Make a note of the herbs on
your hero sheet.)

Bern sheathes his blade and turns to view the misty horizon. ‘As I suspected – the one that fled probably has the horn. Hmm, he won’t have got far. Come on, let’s go
finish this.’ Turn to
501
.

480

There are paintings hanging on the walls to either side of you. One of them depicts a white-walled castle set in sunny meadows. A plaque beneath it reads: Fairwater View. The
painting opposite shows a dusty track winding up the side of a bleak, wind-scoured crag. Its plaque reads: Road to Perdition.

You notice a thread of light running between the wall panels next to each of the paintings. You guess that the light is coming from a hidden room behind the walls, which means the panels
themselves could be secret doors.

481

You ready yourself for combat as the ooze slithers into the cave. Clearly the creature has some sentient intelligence, as the moment it comes close to you, it suddenly spreads
out, forming a slimy net to swallow you up. This ooze could prove to be deadlier than it first appeared:

Special abilities

If you defeat your sticky foe, turn to
494
.

482

With your attention focused solely on the Dwarven chest, you fail to notice your attacker until it is almost too late. A skittering rock alerts you to their presence, allowing
you to throw yourself aside as a barbed spear strikes the ground, missing you by scant inches. You spin round, to find yourself facing a giant, nightmarish creature. Its head and torso are human,
but its lower body is that of a black, armoured scorpion. The creature’s venomous tail arches high above its head, its pointed tip dripping with the same black venom that coats the
wickedly-barbed spear:

Special abilities

If you defeat this deadly predator, turn to
506
.

483

The elderly man grunts with pain. ‘Bah, just my luck to find the one adventurer who doesn’t carry a healing potion.’ He looks down at his injured leg. Blood
has soaked through his breeches, where a rip in the fabric has exposed a nasty jagged cut. ‘Can’t put any weight on this,’ he grimaces. ‘I’m next to useless until I
get a healer.’ Turn to
538
.

484

Three columns of runes are set into the stone on the door. Above it, carved into a cross-section of rock, is a message in an angular script. If you have
The Compendium of
Dwarven Lore
then turn to
530
. Otherwise, you cannot decipher the strange markings, so you decide to leave the chamber. Turn to
496
.

485

The foul stench of decay wafting out of the cave makes your decision an easy one. Not wishing to meet whatever is inside, you return to the clump of tree roots and carefully
climb back down into the cave.

486

The swamp giant lurches forward, knocking aside trees and roots in its efforts to reach you. Then, from out of the dark skies, you see a feathered body swoop down in front of
the monster, forcing it to take a teetering step backwards. Your eyes strain to follow the rapidly-moving object as it darts and wheels around the confused giant – then, as one of its dives
brings it closer towards you, you see that the creature is in fact a large golden eagle, and riding on its back is one of the dryads.

‘Wasn’t going to let you have all the fun now, was I?’ she shouts, as the eagle blazes past in a flurry of grey feathers and claws. It is Solandris, and she is armed with a
magical, glowing bow. The dryad’s arrows already pepper most of the giant’s upper body, and her relentless attacks have succeeded in drawing its attention away from you. With the giant
distracted, you now have a chance at defeating it:

Special abilities