Legion of Shadow (78 page)

If you win a combat round against the stone giant, you can choose to direct your damage towards the giant or one of the stone golems. If you defeat the giant, all remaining
stone golems immediately crumble into dust.

If you manage to defeat this colossal foe, turn to
443
.

653

The ground trembles and shakes beneath your feet. Turning, you see a monstrous hulk of a creature advancing on Lansbury, who stands defenceless in her magical trance. With
effort, you throw yourself into the path of the beast, struggling to maintain your balance as it stomps closer, sending tremors rippling out across the hilltop.

The hulk stands seven metres tall, its thick body covered in knotted muscle. In each of its four arms is a cruel weapon of some description, from a serrated blade to a wide-headed axe. As your
eyes are drawn upwards, you give a gasp of horror – the giant has two enormous heads, each one displaying an ugly mishmash of teeth and eyeballs. You raise your weapons and prepare to take on
this unnatural abomination, buying Lansbury the time she needs to finish her ritual:

Special abilities

If you defeat the Brothers Grimm, turn to
645
. If you are defeated, turn to
661
.

654

There is a rumbling crack as the lid of the tomb shatters. From the broken shards, an armoured knight rises to its feet, a tower shield grasped in one hand and a rune-etched
sword in the other. From the narrow slit in the knight’s visor, you see two red-glowing eyes.

‘Ugh, why does everything want to kill us?’ groans Nyms.

‘Up there, look!’ Caeleb points to the hole in the ceiling of the chamber. Crouched at its edge is a black-cloaked man, his face partially concealed by a hood. Both his hands are
pointed towards the knight, their tips crackling with black magic.

‘A necromancer!’ gasps Janna.

Before you can act, the hooded stranger drops down from the shattered ceiling. He lands in a crouch, his tattered cloak rippling from his thin shoulders. ‘Fools,’ he hisses.
‘You cannot stand against the might of the bone army!’

The mage reaches for his belt, his black cloak shifting to reveal the hilt of a jewelled dagger. With a scrape of steel, he draws out the hooked blade. As he holds it aloft, a murky ochre light
spreads from the hilt to its tip. ‘Your bones will rise again,’ he cackles. ‘And you will fight loyally by my side, as my eternal champions!’

655

With a shriek, Cinders explodes. From the billowing cloud of soot, three sparks of light appear, crackling and hissing angrily. Then they speed back into the floor, leaving thin
trails of smoke in their wake.

As the soot above the pit clears, you discover a number of charred items resting on the still-glowing coals. You may now choose one of these as a reward:

With the room’s guardian defeated, you are now able to pass around the pit and take the stairs to the exit. Turn to
423
.

656

You find Lansbury waiting for you at the edge of the camp. Together, you head out into the grey expanse of the bone fields. You glance her way, waiting for her to explain the
reason for this impromptu expedition – but the woman has her eyes fixed on the horizon, the sack trailing in the dust behind her.

‘Do you want me to take that?’ you offer, indicating the sack.

Lansbury looks at you confused, her thoughts clearly on something else. ‘Oh . . . this? Yes.’

As you take it from her, you can’t help but take a peek inside. ‘What are these?’ you ask, inspecting the three metallic-looking rods. ‘You found them in ruins,
didn’t you?’

Lansbury nods. ‘They’re for protection – in case we run into anything . . . hostile.’

You hoist the sack over your shoulder, then hurry to catch up. ‘So, you going to fill me in on what this is all about?’

Lansbury gives you a sidelong stare. ‘I think those angels, those statues, are weapons.’

‘Weapons?’ you ask incredulously.

She nods quickly. ‘Reading between the lines, it’s what the records seem to be suggesting. They were weapons built by the mages, to help them win the shadow war.’

You blow out your cheeks in wonderment. ‘I would never have thought . . . so, what do we do? Press a switch or something?’

Lansbury shakes her head. ‘I think I will need to repair the magic weaves.’ Noticing your look of confusion, she attempts to explain. ‘Magic is like a tapestry – the
threads and cords all interweave to make a whole. Sometimes the magic gets broken or frayed, and needs to be repaired so that it works again. Do you understand?’

You shrug your shoulders, not entirely convinced. ‘So, you repair the angel and I watch?’ You grin. ‘Sounds good enough to me.’

‘You may need to do more than that,’ replies Lansbury, coming to a halt. She points to several specks, hovering in the grey sky. You squint, trying to discern what type of creature
they are. Then you hear a devilish shriek carrying on the air.

‘Bone wyverns,’ you declare with a grimace.

‘Lucky for us, they aren’t attacking,’ she says. ‘They’re heading north.’

As the flying creatures speed away, you pick up the pace again, hurrying through the silent wasteland. Turn to
673
.

657

The defeated creature explodes into a whirling maelstrom of shadow magic. As it does so, the spell that held the legion in thrall breaks – and the inhuman monsters screech
and holler as they rush forward. You quickly turn to Avian, who is struggling back to his feet. ‘Shield us! Shield us now!’ you order.

The mage throws up his hands, uttering the words of a spell. Suddenly a green dome of magic settles over you. Outside of it, the legion’s howling, angry screams can be heard as their claws
and weapons pummel harmlessly against the shield.

Lifting up your arm, you turn your glowing shadow mark towards the magic.

‘No!’ gasps Avian. ‘You cannot do this!’

‘It’s our only chance.’ You step forward, towards the whirling tornado of black magic. Your shadow mark suddenly blazes into life, writhing and twisting around your arm. There
is an answering flash from the cloud of shadow magic, before it starts to spiral towards your outstretched arm. As it touches your skin, the mark greedily sucks in the energy, filling you with its
power.

‘It will kill you!’ shouts Avian. ‘You cannot hold that amount of magic.’

A mad peel of laughter escapes your lips as the magic continues to flow into your body. You can feel the air around you sizzling with magic . . . When you look down you see that your whole body
is glowing with purple light. You can’t help but revel in the ecstasy of the power which is now yours, making you stronger, faster . . . godlike.

‘I can’t hold the shield,’ wheezes Avian. ‘Too weak . . .’ The mage drops his arms. As he does so, the shield flickers and then is gone. With frenzied howls of
bloodlust, the shadow spawn surge forward to attack.

But you are ready for them. Raising the palms of your hands you send a wave of shadow energy sweeping outwards from your position. It slams into the army, sending them flying backwards as if hit
by the force of a tornado. As they try and charge once again, you send another wave of magic out, throwing them back through the air like they were nothing but straw dolls.

‘I never saw power like that,’ whispers Avian, looking at you in awe.

‘The gate.’ Your voice booms like thunder. ‘Run!’

Together you sprint towards the glowing portal, aware that the recovered shadow spawn are rushing forward once again, weapons and claws glinting in the half-light.

You push Avian through the portal and then follow, your body still pulsing with Sharroth’s absorbed magic. Turn to
688
.

658

The charge is now attached to one of the lumbering golems. As the wire burns down, the golem stops, looking dumbly at the glowing thing stuck to its side. ‘Uh-oh.’
Suddenly, there is a deafening explosion. The golem and one of its nearby companions are blasted to smithereens, sending fragments of stone and dust in all directions. The remaining two golems and
the giant continue to advance towards you: