The Caverns of Kalte (10 page)

The door slides open to reveal a wide, well-lit corridor running north to south. The low rumbling noise you detected earlier seems much louder here than in the darkness of the passage behind. To your left you see a door and in the distance, a junction.

If you wish to investigate the junction,
turn to 254
.

If you decide to close the secret door and to continue exploring the dark tunnel,
turn to 336
.

Before you all bed down for the night in your warm sleeping furs, Fenor prepares a nutritious meal of dried meat in Wanlo, a potent spirit.

With the strong wind beating upon the roof of the tent, you slip into a deep sleep. But your dreams are nightmares filled with ghastly images of Vonotar the Traitor.

Turn to 291
.

Your lightning reactions have enabled you to avoid being crushed by the closing door. You adjust your equipment and set off along the corridor.

Turn to 63
.

You have covered less than fifty yards when you arrive at another cavern. Lying upon a raised dais of ice in the centre of the frozen chamber is a Baknar, a fierce and carnivorous ice creature. It seems to be sound asleep and the remains of an animal lie scattered around the slab. In the far wall of the chamber lies another tunnel.

If you have the Kai Discipline of Hunting,
turn to 279
.

If you wish to creep stealthily past the Baknar,
turn to 23
.

If you wish to attack the creature,
turn to 101
.

You discover that many of the bones scattered among the stalagmites are of human origin. Shattered skulls, skeletal hands, and rib cages lie half buried in the ice. You are about to abandon your search when a small box made of carved bone catches your eye.

If you wish to open this box,
turn to 218
.

If you prefer to leave it, you can examine the fortress door by
turning to 52
.

You pour the healing Potion onto your sore and broken skin. Immediately, you feel the soothing effects of the fluid. The pain fades and the swelling begins to subside. The Glowing Gem is a cursed Doomstone, and the power it contains is deadly to all living creatures. Had you not possessed a Laumspur Potion, the effects of the Doomstone would certainly have killed you. You discard the deadly Gem and the now empty vial of Laumspur.

Make the necessary adjustments to your
Action Chart
and continue along the corridor by
turning to 97
.

The gale dies away during the night and dawn arrives calm and still. On the horizon to the far north, you can see Ikaya, the ice fortress. The huge crystal-towered stronghold is a wondrous sight, made all the more marvellous because it appears to hover upside down upon a large cloud. ‘Kalte mirage,’ says Dyce. ‘There's no dust in the air here — the land is reflected in the clouds. That's Ikaya, but the real fortress is over the horizon. It cannot be more than forty miles away now.’ Dyce grabs a spade and starts to dig out the Kanu-dogs that have been buried by snow. You wake the others and eat a meal before setting off once more.

It is midday when you reach the edge of a deep gorge. It is over forty feet wide, and there appears to be no way of crossing it. You are forced to travel along the gorge to the east. Eventually, after three miles, you discover a narrow ice bridge. However, the centre of the bridge is frighteningly thin and narrow: it looks incapable of supporting the weight of a loaded sledge.

You can now see the real Ikaya upon the horizon.

If you wish to risk taking the sledge across the ice bridge,
turn to 73
.

If you wish to unload the sledge and ferry the equipment across piece by piece,
turn to 162
.

If you decide to leave the sledge here and continue on foot,
turn to 223
.

He is frail and weak, far too weak to climb. You tell him to tie the rope around his waist so that you can haul him out of the prison. Slowly he follows your instructions. As you draw him up, you are shocked to discover that he weighs no more than a child. You quickly pull him to the comparative safety of the passage. Now you must find out who he is.

Turn to 56
.

Great chunks of ice are falling away from the underside of the bridge, and a wide split appears. You manage to keep the sledge on course and reach the far side of the gorge, but you soon discover that a sledge runner is broken and irreparable. You are forced to abandon the sledge and continue on foot, but it still contains some useful equipment. Some of this you may take and store in your Backpack (remembering your maximum of eight items in total):

• Enough food for up to 5 Meals (each counts as 1 item)
  
• Sleeping Furs (counts as 2 items)
  
• Tent (counts as 3 items)
  
• Rope (counts as 2 items)
  

Fenor, Irian, and Dyce quickly follow you across, but as they reach the centre of the bridge, disaster strikes. Dyce catches his foot in the cracked surface and trips. You watch in horror as he slips over the edge. But he catches the edge and hangs on by his fingertips.

‘Help me, help me!’ he cries, slowly losing his grip.

If you want to try to rescue Dyce,
turn to 19
.

If you feel it is too dangerous to try to rescue him,
turn to 257
.

The raging wind tears at your clothes, and bombards you with sharp flumes of ice and rock. As you raise the Sommerswerd, an intense howling fills your ears. It is a cry of horror and desperation. You strike at the core of this demon, slicing through the cyclone and into the fabric of its being. In an instant, the wind and the ghastly wailing cease — all that remains are the shattered pieces of a hollow statue scattered on the floor.

If you wish to search the altar and alcove of this temple,
turn to 274
.

If you wish to leave, you may exit via the northern archway.
Turn to 306
.

You are on the very brink of losing your concentration when the rope around your foot loosens and drops away. You dive from the sledge barely seconds before it crashes into the crevasse. The dreadful cries of the Kanu-dogs can be heard as they plummet hundreds of feet into the darkness. Quickly, Fenor runs to your side and drags you away from the crumbling ice edge. You have lost your dog team, your sledge, and most of your food, but at least you are still alive.

You and Fenor jump the widening gap and join the rest of your party. After much discussion, the guides agree to continue with the mission even though the hardships will now be doubly severe. In the distance, you see a narrow passage at the edge of the ice shelf where it meets the Hrod Basin. By nightfall, you reach the shelter of this icy pass and camp there for the night. A quick check of your remaining food reveals the need to cut rations by half if all of you are to reach Ikaya. You lose 1
ENDURANCE
point due to the poor evening meal.

Turn to 325
.

Loi-Kymar hands you some strips of cloth with which to plug your nostrils. You take a deep breath, pick up the bowl of smoking herbs, and leave the kitchen. Using your Kai Discipline of Camouflage to blend in with the shadows of the corridor, you edge your way nearer and nearer to the unsuspecting guards. You leave the bowl in the shadow of a pilaster and return to the kitchen to wait for it to take effect.

In less than a minute, the Ice Barbarians collapse to the floor and you approach the Hall of the Brumalmarc undetected. You are delighted to discover that one of the great jewelled doors is unlocked. Preparing yourself for attack, you gently push the door ajar and enter Vonotar's chamber.

Turn to 173
.

The beast is upon you, its long, barbed, venomous tongue darting at you. You must fight it to the death.

Kalkoth:
COMBAT SKILL
 11   
ENDURANCE
 30

If you lose any
ENDURANCE
points at all during this combat,
turn immediately to 66
.

If you win the combat without losing any
ENDURANCE
points,
turn to 174
.

You can sense an alien life-force somewhere on the other side of the archway. Concentrating your skill, you try to determine whether it is good or evil. You focus your mental powers until you are almost in a trance, but it is no good — you cannot identify it. At least you have been forewarned by your Kai Discipline of some presence and you prepare yourself to enter the misty arch.

Turn to 264
.

After two hours of carefully exploring the passage, you are aware that it has gradually descended over two hundred feet. You eventually reach a vast ice vault, the centre of which is filled with a lake. The frozen surface is very thin, and the water beneath it looks dark and deep. You kneel at the edge of the lake, peering into its mysterious depths. Suddenly you see a large black shape pass close to the surface. There is something alive beneath the ice — and it is enormous. Then behind you, you hear the growls of a Kalkoth. The noise is coming from the tunnel. There is only one other exit from this vault which is on the other side of the frozen lake.

Illustration VIII
—Suddenly you see a large black shape pass close to the surface of the ice.

If you have the Kai Discipline of Camouflage,
turn to 96
.

If you wish to run across the surface of the lake,
turn to 322
.

If you wish to stand and fight the Kalkoth,
turn to 207
.

You notice that the ceiling and walls of the corridor are covered with strange carvings. They seem to depict small cyclones or tornadoes, gradually changing shape into almost human form. Although puzzled by the strange hieroglyphs, you continue until you reach a point where the tunnel takes a sharp right turn. Only a few feet along the northern wall is another stone door. The lever in the wall next to it is raised and the door is firmly closed. Several yards further ahead, a flight of steps disappears upwards.

If you wish to investigate the door,
turn to 246
.

If you wish to continue up the stairs,
turn to 323
.

You sense that this Helm has magical properties that can aid you in combat. You detect no evil surrounding this item or the stone chest in which it lies.

If you wish to take this Helm and put it on,
turn to 308
.

If you are still suspicious of its possible ill effects, leave it untouched and explore the stairs by
turning to 323
.