The Heart of Fire (39 page)

257

‘Elders don’t like me,’ explains Boom, grinning once again. ‘They want warriors to hunt and protect tribe. Not want me. I got smarts for magic –
not strength of hunter. So elders give me spirit walk they know I never return from. I gotta kill great Mortzilla.’

You frown, the name being unfamiliar. ‘You must kill this . . . creature before you can return to your tribe?’

Boom nods, still unable to keep a smile from his face. ‘I been here for longest time. A hundred and seventeen moons. I try spirit walk but I fail. Mortzilla is a spirit, trapped here like
all the others. Bad things happen here long time ago. Make cut in shroud.’ He slices the palm of his hand through the air. ‘Space between this world and shroud made thin like palm leaf.
Let magic in and other things. Spirits from that other place.’

‘And how does this help me?’ you reply. ‘I came here looking for a—’

‘Demon, I know.’ Boom’s smile fades at last. ‘I sees it with own eyes. It come here day ago. It hurt bad. Skin black from fire. You’re too late, that demon gone
south.’

You rise up from your seat, intending to leave immediately – but the shaman raises a finger in the air. ‘Demon talk with Mortzilla. I find out why if you help me. Complete the spirit
walk and I get all the answers, yes?’

258

Congratulations! Your party has wrested control of the ship from the goblins. The captain picks up the leader’s pirate hat and turns it around thoughtfully. ‘Nice
bit of headwear.’ He tosses it to Surl, who giggles with delight as he places it on his head.

You take a moment to search the bodies of the goblin archers. You may choose up to two of the following rewards:

When you have made your decision, turn to
118
.

259

‘I cannot go back on a promise,’ you state, folding your arms stubbornly. ‘My life was saved and now I must do the same for another.’

‘Who?’ snaps the priest. ‘Is it a Wiccan? Was it the one who stole the relic from the church? That thing is dangerous! It’s a weapon that needs to be protected, else it
will endanger lives!’

‘They stole nothing,’ you add tersely. ‘They went with the intention of taking it, but something happened; something went wrong.’

Benin snorts, shaking his head. ‘So, you would put the life of a common thief over that of the bishop. I hardly think that is a fair decision.’

‘Here, here!’ grins the manticore, clapping its front paws together.

260

You follow Ventus down a number of echoing stone corridors. Doors to either side afford glimpses of similar cubicles to your own, with pallet beds and kneeling stools.
Eventually, you are led out into a wide open courtyard. For the first time you see the vast walls of the monastic buildings looming up into the clear blue skies.

‘The dean’s offices are over there,’ says Ventus, pointing to a set of stairs leading up to a rectangular tower. ‘I must attend to other matters in the library. One God
guide your path, traveller.’ The monk bows and then re-enters the building behind you.

As you cross the courtyard, you spot Bea sitting on a bench beneath a row of mullioned windows. One of her swords is resting across her knees, and she is scrutinising it with a thoughtful
expression. An oil-skin bag is open next to her, with several tattered books scattered on top of it.

To your left you see an elaborate door, made from ivory and gold. It creaks open and a young monk appears, squinting in the light. You notice that he is rubbing the back of his hands, where
branded sigils flash and sparkle with their own bright radiance.

To your right, an archway leads through into a columned hall. At its far end, a lone priest kneels in prayer before a statue of the prophet Allam.

261

It is a long and gruelling battle. Lazlo observes your performance with growing admiration, occasionally offering advice when he sees you overstepping a lunge or struggling
with a parry. Eventually, exhaustion forces you to make a mistake, your wild swing going wide of its mark. Before you can recover, a sudden lurch of the disc throws you off balance. Lazlo catches
you with the hilt of his sword, knocking you flat onto your stomach.

You are about to struggle, when you feel the point of his blade at your neck.

‘Game over,’ laughs the prince. He utters a word of magic, and suddenly the disc starts to lower itself back to the ground. ‘Do not be downhearted,’ he grins, helping you
back to your feet. ‘I saw much improvement in you. Like you said, you’re a very fast learner.’

If you have a high
magic
score and wish to learn the path of the mage, turn to
3
. If you have a high
brawn
score and wish to learn the path of the warrior or the rogue, turn to
97
.

262

A body goes hurtling past you, kicking and jerking as it is consumed in yellow flames. You spin around to see Eldias fending off a crowd of zombies. One of his hands is glowing
with a yellow-orange light, the glow caught in his dazzling eyes.

‘I judge you!’ he screams, rainwater pouring like a sparkling curtain from the brim of his hat. ‘And I find you guilty!’ The witchfinder sends another bolt of magic from
his hand, slamming into two of the undead and sending them writhing through the air.

Then you feel hands wrapping around your legs. In horror, you realise that the half-giant is still moving. Its massive hands now have a hold of you, dragging you down to the rain-slick ground.
As you try and fend it off, a group of zombies break away from Eldias, hurrying towards you, snarling and howling with hunger. From the corner of your eye, you see another group closing in as
well.

You cry out to Eldias for help as the horde descend on you, suffocating you in a tight press of stinking, rotting bodies. You will need to fend off their attacks until the witchfinder can reach
you:

Special abilities

If you manage to survive to the end of the
fifth
combat round, turn to
335
. (Special achievement: If you defeat the zombie horde within five
combat rounds, turn to
367
.)

263

You push past the clumsy traveller, settling into a space at the busy bar. After several minutes of waiting, you finally catch the bar man’s attention. Turn to
364
.

264

You follow Vas into the captain’s cabin. Like the logger’s camp, the place has been ransacked. Paintings have been slashed to ribbons, charts and maps have been
torn apart – in one corner, a chair lies in broken pieces, its seat stuffing spilling out across the grimy floor – everywhere you look, the goblins have smashed and ruined whatever they
could get their hands on.

‘Goblins,’ scowls Vas. ‘Crazier than the captain.’ She kneels down and picks up the remains of a tattered chart. ‘This could be interesting.’

You help her clear a space on the table, so that the chart can be spread out. It appears to show the north and west coasts of Valeron, with various areas marked with red circles. Vas nods her
head. ‘Pirates. These are prime spots for ambushing traders, especially army ships moving between Skardland and Beeches Fort.’

You move around the table to get a better look. As you do so, a loose panel in the floor buckles slightly under your weight. Intrigued, you take a closer look – pushing down on the panel
with the heel of your hand. The other end lifts slightly, revealing a dusty cavity.

‘Well, aren’t you the detective,’ grins Vas. ‘What’s in there?’

You reach into the space and pull out a heavy sack. Inside you find a small pouch of money, a golden compass and a highly-polished pirate’s cutlass.

‘Halves on the money,’ smiles Vas. ‘And I’ll let you have first pick of the treasures.’

You are left with 10 gold crowns and may choose one of the following rewards:

With little else of interest in the room, you both head back to the deck. Turn to
159
.

265

‘They learnt their paltry magic from the dwarves, back in the dark ages – back when we were all savages, with no wisdom or understanding.’ Malak picks a stray
hair from his silken cuff and flicks it away. ‘They treated it like any other weapon – used it to crush their enemies.’

He snorts. ‘I suppose they became civilised, in their own way. But where there is ignorance there is always danger.’ He folds his arms, lifting his head back to peer at you down his
nose. ‘Did I mention the word ignorance yet again? How very . . . apt. Now, if you would just crawl back to your little hole I can get back to my life.’