>TM 4 >LS 2 >PS ON >PL66 >SM6 >CP ON >FO OFF >------L-----------------------!---------------------------R β226β Having agreed the places where each of you will begin Š your search for the whereabouts of Prince Karvas, you Š follow Acraban to the rear deck and enter the Š skyship's boarding cage. Swiftly it is winched down Š to the market square where you are met unexpectedly Š by a jostling crowd of grimy-faced street urchins. Š They have been gathering here since dawn to stare in Š wonderment at the ιStarstriderι hovering motionless in Š the cloudless sky above. Acraban hurls a handful of Š copper coins across the cobblestones and these Š children scramble to retrieve them. This creates Š enough space to allow Zinair to push open the cage Š door and the three of you to step out. After agreeing Š to return to the skyship no later than sunset, you Š split up and go in search of your chosen Š destinations. Unlike the urchins, the adult population of Mydnight Š appear less than fascinated by the imposing sight of Š the ιStarstriderι hovering above their city, and few Š pay it a second glance. This seeming lack of interest Š does not surprise you. For centuries this port has Š been a refuge for exiles from the many nations of Š Magnamund who, for their own individual reasons, have Š chosen to forsake their native lands. They are, by Š nature, a secretive community. Any overt interest in Š the affairs of another is commonly viewed with Š suspicion and distrust. You retrace the route you took last night and soon Š find yourself at the harbour. ιThe Azaktanaι is still Š moored at the quayside and you give the crew a Š friendly wave as you stride across the quayside Š towards The Smitheries - the city's west quarter. This district of Mydnight is crowded with the Š workshops of skilled artisans and craftsmen. Š Ironsmiths, potters, carpenters, weavers, wheel- Š rights, and glassblowers to name but a few. Most are Š honest men seeking refuge from the greedy barons and Š landlords of their native lands. Some have come to Š escape their debts, while others have found Š themselves brought here by some misfortune. The noise Š that fills this quarter of the city is almost Š deafening. The ceaseless hammering of iron and copper Š blends with the cries of sellers to create a Š reverberating wall of sound. You enter a blacksmith's shop that has an impressive Š display of knives, tools, and other utensils fixed to Š the beams which support its slated roof. You hope Š that Prince Karvas may have purchased items from this Š shop as sometime in the past and you ask the owner if Š he knows of him and his whereabouts. The blacksmith Š scowls with disdain and turns his back on you. Your Š Kai sixth sense tells you that he suspects you to be Š an assassin who has come here to Mydnight to find and Š murder the prince. He motions to his son who is Š working the bellows of a furnace nearby. You realise Š you must act quickly if you wish to allay the Š blacksmith's suspicions and avoid a confrontation Š with his son. If you possess the Grand Master discipline of Kai- Š alchemy, turn to β14β If you do not possess this skill, or if you should Š choose not to use it, turn to β260β