The Heart of Fire (69 page)

When you have made your decision, you return to the courtyard. Turn to
510
.

459

The ruins are eerily quiet, the only sound coming from your heart hammering against your chest. It is some minutes before you realise you have been holding your breath since
arriving here – the air is sickly-smelling and heavy with decay.

You quicken your pace, wishing to return to the jungle as soon as possible. However, you are brought up short by a peculiar sight – a pillar of stone rumbling towards you. Its angular body
is made up of three rotating cubes, each engraved with a different animal icon. As the totem continues to thunder closer, you realise that it has you in your sights – and it isn’t
slowing. It’s time to fight:

Special abilities

In this combat, you roll against the totem’s speed. If you win a combat round, you can choose to direct your damage against one of the cubes. Once all three cubes are
reduced to zero
health
, you have won the combat.

If you manage to defeat this totemic terror, turn to
621
.

460

Your choice was a bad one. The rock monster smashes your soldier to pieces, then continues to stomp towards you. (Remove your soldier from your hero sheet. Then return to
427
to fight this monster yourself.)

461

There is a bright flash of light and suddenly you find yourself looking upon a spear of purest gold, its runed blade flickering with a spectral light. You reach out and put a
hand to the weapon, feeling its power course through your body, filling you with the magic of the ancestors. If you wish, you may now take:

By equipping this item, you automatically learn the spirit hunter career. (Note: As soon as the
ancestral spear
is unequipped or you learn a new career, you lose the abilities associated
with the spirit hunter career. If you do not take the spear, then you must leave your main hand equipment slot blank until you can find a new weapon.)

The spirit hunter has the following special abilities:

Spirit mark (co + mo)
: When your damage score causes health damage to an opponent, you can also mark them with an ancestral rune. In
subsequent combat rounds, the mark allows you to increase your damage score by 2 against this same opponent for the remainder of the battle. Allies also benefit from this modifier.
Spirit
mark
can only be used once per combat.

Spirit ward (mo)
: Cast this spell any time in combat, on yourself or an ally, to raise
armour
by 6 for one combat round.
Spirit
ward
can only be used once per combat.

The font’s magic has also cured you of your hex. You can now access all of your abilities once again. With your work here done, you leave the pagoda and continue your journey. Turn to
668
.

462

‘Spirit walk is test. We all get spirit walk in my tribe to prove we one with the ancestors. It prove we better than them.’ His fingers trace one of the runes
carved into the staff. ‘Elders choose spirit walk for us when we come of age. They give me the hardest spirit walk. I not go back till it done or Boom Mamba shame family, shame ancestors. I
not want to bring shame.’

463

As you back away from the witch, your foot knocks into something. You glance around quickly to see Scar-face spread-eagled on his back, a knife wound to his chest. Lying next
to him is a black-bladed dagger, still glistening with blood.

‘No!’ You step away from the body, your eyes fixed on the dagger. It is the same one from your dream . . . the one you used to kill Virgil. ‘I didn’t mean . . . I
didn’t know it was him!’ you protest.

Scowler gives a roar of anger, spinning on the demon. ‘Witch! I make you bleed!’

The woman’s laughter rings in your ears. ‘Oh yes. Remorse. Fear. Anger. All my favourite appetisers!’

Scowler drops onto all fours and charges the robed creature. Determined not to lose another of your companions, you draw your weapons and enter the fray. It is time to fight:

Special abilities