The Eye of Winter's Fury (57 page)

These weapons can then be improved using further items from your backpack. (note: When an item is used, it must be removed from your hero sheet. Items can only be used once.) The bonuses include:

You may return to the frost forge any time between quests, to craft items or add abilities (make a note of this entry number on your hero sheet). Return to the quest map to continue your adventure.

395

For defeating the rift demon, you may now help yourself to one of the following rewards:

When you have updated your hero sheet, turn to
503
.

396

The rush of cold is sudden and fierce, punching through your chest, freezing your heart and stealing your very last breath. It fills you, numbs you, a coldness so intense that it burns the stone beneath your feet, cracking it to frozen splinters.

If you wish, you may now learn the glaciator career. The glaciator has the following special abilities:

Ice mantle (pa):
You may permanently raise your
armour
by 2. You are also immune to any effects/abilities that would lower your
armour
in combat.

Brittle edge (pa):
Each time an opponent wins a combat round and rolls for a damage score, your opponent immediately takes 2 damage, ignoring
armour
(whether they cause health damage or not).

When you have made your decision, turn to
677
.

397

You find yourself in a large cavernous chamber illuminated by an eerie green light. It seeps through the cracks in the walls and ceiling, where you glimpse veins of black rock set back into the ice. As you advance warily, weapons drawn, you pass a number of cathedral-like pillars, stretching all the way to the domed ceiling above. They are arranged in regimented rows, suggesting that they were sculptured with a purpose in mind. You examine the nearest one, noticing runelike glyphs glowing just beneath the surface. Their meaning escapes you.

The vastness of the space is daunting. In places the ceiling is pitted with melt holes, many of which stretch away to distant circles of daylight above. Some appear to channel the wind, filling the chamber with a chorus of ghostly moans. A fear creeps along your spine. Several times you glance over your shoulder, feeling like someone – or something – is following you. But each time you look for any sign of a pursuer, you are presented with nothing more than green-lit ice.

Jumping at ghosts.
You berate yourself and head onwards, determined to find some clue as to what happened to the missing explorers.

A noise forces you to turn yet again.

This time you see a man, slumped on the ground, his back resting against one of the pillars. He is huddled in thick furs, his blonde hair matted across his ashen face. Both hands are pressed tight against one of his thighs. A smear of blood trails back around the pillar.

You immediately run to his side.

‘What happened?’ You kneel next to him, looking down at the leg. You rummage in your pack, wondering if you have anything that may help.

With a hiss the man lifts his hands, a dagger flicking into one of his bloody palms. He holds it to your throat, a wheezing snicker gasping from his mouth.

‘Think you’d trick me, eh? You another ghost, come to try your luck?’

You glance down at his leg – there is no wound there. Clearly the blood was not his own.

‘I think I was the one who was tricked,’ you reply guardedly, meeting the man’s pale eyes. ‘I’m no ghost – I came looking for explorers. Were you one of them?’

The man appears confused for a second, his gaze dropping to your armour and weapons. ‘Is this true?’ he rasps, his hand shaking as it grips the dagger.

You nod as best you can with a blade to your throat. ‘Tell me what happened here. The blood . . .’

The man lowers his dagger with a sigh. ‘Go look for yourself.’

398

You finally manage to corner the hand between two boxes. Grabbing a sack, you open it out just as the hand makes a leap for you, the ivory fingers balling into a fist. Quickly, you close the sack, holding it out at arm’s length while it bulges and shakes. After several minutes of frantic movement, the sack finally hangs still – the hand evidently admitting defeat.

‘You’re not actually keeping that, are you?’ asks Anise, sounding thoroughly disgusted.

‘Why not? It might come in handy!’

She shakes her head.

If you wish, you may now take the following item:

Clackers

(backpack)

A skeletal hand

with a mind of its own

You turn back to the dusty storeroom, contemplating your next move.

399

Searching the remains of the fire giant, you find 100 gold crowns and one of the following rewards:

When you have updated your hero sheet, turn to
705
.

400

Skoll strides over to the curving wall of branches, where you notice two objects tangled up amongst the snaking limbs. He rips away the makeshift barrier, freeing the objects. Noting your bemusement he holds them up, one in each hand. Both are made of dark iron and have a single round edge; the rest appears broken, ending in jagged points.

‘Fimbulwinter,’ states the warrior. ‘It was a shield, forged by the Titans. I hoped to find the last piece here, but it has gone. Instead I found the witch – and this . . . trap.’

‘Then how do we find the missing piece?’ You look past the warrior, to the opening he has made by tearing apart the branches. You can see a distant column of red light, spearing up into the broiling clouds. ‘What is
that
?’

Skoll follows your gaze. ‘The Well of Urd. A break between worlds – our realm and the shroud. The Titans hold it closed; they sacrificed their spirits to keep it so, but the witch has found a way to weaken their power, if only for a brief time.’

You tilt your head, taking in the turbulent sea of cloud. ‘She is summoning demons from the shroud?’

Skoll nods. ‘To aid her in freeing the world serpent – the creature that will destroy our realm. You know little of this task. Why did you come here?’

‘Sura,’ you answer, after a brief pause. ‘A shaman. She believed in you – that you would reunite the tribes.’

‘And you were crazy enough to listen to a shaman?’ He grunts with amusement. ‘Come.’ He stuffs the fragments of the shield under his arm. ‘Whatever your cause, it can wait. We must return home – to Vindsvall.’ Turn to
292
.

401

Rummaging through your pack, you pull out the players’ guide. You quickly flick through its pages, reading up on the rules of the game. (Make a note of entry number
776
– you can refer to this entry at any time to study the rules of ‘Stones and Bones’.) When you are ready to play, turn to
511
.

402

After a tense wait, you see dirt-stained fingers grappling along the tunnel wall, followed by an arm and shoulder, then an angry sweat-soaked face. With a snarl the Skard struggles to free himself, hand fumbling for his knife. Seeing your chance you charge forward, weapons slashing at the prone warrior. It is time to fight:

	Special abilities
	Tight spot : In the first two combat rounds, the hunter’s speed is reduced to zero.

If you manage to best this savage hunter, turn to
317
. If you lose the
combat, remember to record your defeat on your hero sheet. You may then attempt the combat again or return to the map.

403

(Decide which weapon/item of equipment you will place on the podium.) After studying the complex carvings at length, you discern pockets of magic focused in three of the outer circles. One pertains to frost, one to earth magic and the last to the darker shadow arts. By activating the runes around a circle, you will be able to call on the spirits that embody that power.

404

You approach the figure warily, weapon drawn. As you near, you are surprised to see that the man has no physical body, only a translucent green shimmer outlining his features. A ghost. He is leaning over the table, his hand passing back and forth across the wood. He appears to be writing, his lips mouthing something you cannot hear. There is no paper on the table and the man has no writing instrument, and yet he seems intent on his task, moving his hand in a series of erratic motions, no doubt forming letters that you cannot see. Despite your attempts to communicate with the ghost, he remains oblivious to your presence.

If you have a
black feather quill
, turn to
472
. Otherwise, turn to
138
.

405

Maune’s grief-stricken howl is the first sound to greet you as you enter the chamber. He stands over the remains of the dead eagle.
Its head has been severed clean from its shoulders. A trail of blood streaks across the dust, leading up the slope and through the doorway above.

Skoll looks back at you, shrugging his heavy shoulders. ‘We’re not alone. The wolf you saw . . . it could be another shaman.’

You open out your consciousness, feeling for Nanuk. There is a hazy impression of the wolf, still circling the bear. Its teeth are like shards of midnight, the one yellow eye shining with a bestial cunning. Each time the bear takes a swing, the wolf springs back. Teasing. Mocking.

The same corruption you smelt on the wolf lingers in this chamber. ‘Yes, they were here.’

Maune staggers to his feet, drawing the sign of a cross above the mangled remains. ‘One God, give us strength. Give us light.’

‘We already have our path.’ You nod to the blood-spattered earth. ‘They want us to follow.’

‘Gladly.’ Maune pools fire into his fist, then hurries up the slope. Skoll is right behind him. You start to follow, but a stab of pain forces you to stagger. Wincing, you grip your forehead.

‘Nanuk . . . ?’

Again, you quest out for the bear – only to be met by claws, teeth and the coppery taste of blood. The two animal spirits are now locked in deadly combat, thrashing through the sand.

‘What is it?’ Anise puts a comforting hand on your arm, squeezing it tight. ‘We should stay with the others.’

406

You feel a sudden vibration against your back. Removing your pack, you look inside to discover that the book
Hergest’s Hauntings
has started to glow with a ghostly white light. You pull it out and flick through the pages, until you arrive at a section labelled Ryker’s Island. Following the author’s directions, you uncover a hidden niche behind
one of the beer barrels. You crawl into the space, scrabbling over loose rock and animal droppings, to eventually find yourself in a tight crevasse that runs alongside the cellar.