$Id$
$Log$
+Revision 1.8 2005/08/14 19:52:04 angantyr
+Fixed various *ne issues.
+
+Revision 1.7 2005/08/12 23:23:51 jonathan.blake
+Minor updates and illustration corrections.
+
+Revision 1.6 2005/08/11 22:14:54 jonathan.blake
+Modified small illustrations placements according to discussions on mailing list.
+
+Revision 1.5 2005/07/13 03:52:27 jonathan.blake
+Added illustrations for Powers section and reordered small illustration list. Needs placement of small6.gif and small8.gif.
+
+Revision 1.4 2005/04/21 15:53:05 jonathan.blake
+jffdougan said: Added illustrations, implemented minor approved fixes
+
+Revision 1.3 2005/04/01 22:31:03 jonathan.blake
+Illustration code added by jffdougan - still needs dimensions
+
+Revision 1.2 2005/03/10 18:21:51 jonathan.blake
+Removed link to old staff email address.
+
Revision 1.1 2004/11/21 17:59:53 angantyr
Initial Freepository revision, of the 2004-06-20 version of the file.
Revision 1.1 2002/10/21 21:36:12 jblake
Initial revision
+-->
+<!--
+Secondary illustration summaries:
+small1: multiple glowing orbs
+small2: egg-shaped stone on a pedestal
+small3: plume of smoke (I think)
+small4: leaning tower
+small5: walled city on a hill
+small6: bubbling goo
+small7: shadowy hooded figure
+small8: wild-haired woman
+small9: fist rising out of fog
+small10: the ethetron
-->
<meta>
<title>Beyond the Nightmare Gate</title>
<creator class="short">Joe Dever and Ian Page</creator>
- <creator class="medium">Text by Ian Page<br />Edited by Joe Dever</creator>
+ <creator class="medium">Ian Page<br />Illustrated by Paul Bonner<br />Edited by Joe Dever</creator>
<creator class="long">
&inclusion.ian.page.bio.gs;
&inclusion.joe.dever.bio.gs;
+ &inclusion.paul.bonner.bio.gs;
</creator>
<publisher>Project Aon</publisher>
- <date class="publication"><year>2004</year><month>06</month><day>20</day></date>
+ <date class="publication"><year>2005</year><month>08</month><day>14</day></date>
<description class="blurb">
<p>You are the Wizard Grey Star, chosen hero of an ancient magical race&emdash;the Shianti. To find the Moonstone, source of all Shianti wisdom, you must venture <!--ERRTAG-RE-2974--><strong>Beyond The Nightmare Gate</strong><!--/ERRTAG-RE-2974-->.</p>
<p>Dare you enter a realm of mystery, a world of gods and demons? For somewhere in this twilight region is the secret of the Moonstone. Only you can find it and with its power throw down the evil Shasarak and save mankind. Your journey will take you across the grey plains of the Neverness, past the dark enchantments of the Crystal Tower, and on towards perils undreamed of. Armed only with the Wizard's Staff and the magical spells of the Shianti, you must step into a nightmare world where only the bravest will survive!</p>
<dl>
<dt>Transcription</dt>
<dd>Mike David</dd>
+ <dt>Illustration Transcription</dt>
+ <dd>Jonathan Blake<br />Simon Osborne</dd>
<dt>XML</dt>
<dd>Jonathan Blake<br />Jeff Dougan<br />Thomas Wolmer</dd>
- <dt>Action Charts</dt>
+ <dt>Replacement Illustrations</dt>
<dd>JC Alvarez (action charts)<br />Jonathan Blake (extramatter charts and tables)<br />Christopher Lundgren (map and small illustrations)</dd>
<dt>Proofreading</dt>
<dd>Ryan Cross (Sections 36&endash;70)<br />Simon Osborne (front matter, Sections 1&endash;35, 71&endash;350)</dd>
<dt>Coordination</dt>
<dd>Jonathan Blake<br />Thomas Wolmer</dd>
<dt>Special Thanks</dt>
- <dd>David Davis</dd>
+ <dd>David Davis<br />Patrick Kalinauskas</dd>
</dl>
</data>
</section>
<meta><title>Sorcery</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="sorcery.gif" width="386" height="122" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="sorcery-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Enchantment</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="enchant.gif" width="386" height="130" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="enchant-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Elementalism</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="elementl.gif" width="386" height="118" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="elementl-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Alchemy</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="alchemy.gif" width="386" height="121" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="alchemy-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Prophecy</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="prophecy.gif" width="386" height="123" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="prophecy-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Psychomancy</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="psycmncy.gif" width="386" height="126" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="psycmncy-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Evocation</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="evcation.gif" width="386" height="131" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="evcation-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Wizard's Staff</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="staff.gif" width="386" height="120" mime-type="image/gif" />
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration class="accent" id="staff-ill">
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<data>
<p>You find Oz-na-Mun sitting before his shack, staring at a tall mass of moist, red clay before him. His gaunt face is full of sorrow and he does not even look up when you approach. <quote>So you have come,</quote> he says, flatly.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>Oz-na-Mun is sitting before his shack, staring at a mass of red clay</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill1.gif" width="386" height="643"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill1.pdf" width="386" height="643"/>
+ </illustration>
<p><quote>You knew I was coming?</quote> you reply, surprised.</p>
<p><quote>He has been here; your shadow brother, your dark self. There was a girl with him also.</quote></p>
<p><quote>I seek the Moonstone of the Shianti,</quote> you state. <quote>Do you know where it is and how it may be found?</quote></p>
<data>
<p>You perceive that the realm you have entered harbours many illusions: the waters of a blue ocean, rippling with foam-crested waves, roll above your head where the sky should be; below, green hills undulate between mountains balanced upon their peaks; a huge fist rises up, poised to smash down upon you but you pass through it as if it were a phantom. All around is the sound of crazed laughter. A man who believed in the reality of these illusions would stand at the threshold of madness. With the strength of your will you challenge the illusions that surround you; instantly the nightmare vision disappears.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small9.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small9.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect187"><link-text>Turn to 187</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>You have landed in a large field. In the distance you see the hazy outline of a city, gleaming in the sunlight. You take out the Gyronome and its tone confirms that you are in the Realm of the Singing City. Several people are running towards you from the city; they are fair haired, have strange, circular ears and are dressed in short, white togas. They are calling to you in a language you do not understand.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small2.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small2.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>They soon reach you and chatter enthusiastically as they point excitedly at both the Ethetron and the sky. You smile and nod and try to communicate with them the best you can. Their soft voices have a flute-like sound and their language, incomprehensible though it is, possesses a lilting, musical quality that is pleasing to the ear. They are Elessin and they are asking you to accompany them.</p>
<choice idref="sect45">If you wish to go with the Elessin, <link-text>turn to 45</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect66">If you decide that it would be wiser to refuse, <link-text>turn to 66</link-text>.</choice>
<data>
<p>Above your head, where the sky should be, the blue waters of an ocean roll, rippling with foam-crested waves. Below, green hills and fields shift and move like water. The Ethetron rocks violently. You are no longer able to choose between up and down, left or right. Mountains stand upon their peaks; towns and cities drift past; night becomes day, and day becomes night in quick succession; a huge fist rears up, poised to strike, then passes through you like a phantom. All around you is the sound of crazed laughter.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small9.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small9.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect67">If your current <typ class="attribute">WILLPOWER</typ> score is 12 or more, <link-text>turn to 67</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect104">If your <typ class="attribute">WILLPOWER</typ> score is less than 12, <link-text>turn to 104</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>With smiling faces and much laughter, the Elessin lead you to their home. As you draw closer to the Singing City, you gaze in wonder upon the dazzling display of glass and fragmented light that gleams beneath the bright sun. Rainbows of colour splash from the delicate spires and splendid ivory towers that point towards the sky. Like the distant ringing of a million tiny <!--ERRTAG-RE-82691-->bells, the music<!--/ERRTAG-RE-82691--> of the city reaches your ears. You hear the warm resonance of a shifting bass accompanied by pure, whispering harmonies as delicate as a <!--ERRTAG-RE-82885-->breeze, and<!--/ERRTAG-RE-82885--> you are awestruck by the magnificence of the city. The Academicians told you that the Elessin are cruel <!--ERRTAG-RE-83049-->creatures, but<!--/ERRTAG-RE-83049--> their city suggests a purity of spirit beyond any mortal imagining.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The Singing City with its delicate spires and splendid ivory towers</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill2.gif" width="386" height="610"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill2.pdf" width="386" height="610"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>You pass through the arched gateway of the city and walk along a long avenue of crystal paving stones.</p>
<choice idref="sect238"><link-text>Turn to 238</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>You enter a door. To your surprise, you and Tanith find yourselves standing in a circular chamber filled with a milky-white light. Your heart lifts when you recognize that the source of the light is the Moonstone itself. <quote>So you found it at last,</quote> says a voice behind you. It is the Jahksa.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>You and Tanith find yourselves in a circular chamber filled with milky-white light</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill3.gif" width="386" height="644"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill3.pdf" width="386" height="644"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect275"><link-text>Turn to 275</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>Hastily, you walk across the plane of clouds, crossing the Neverness and gaining on the Crystal Tower, which gleams faintly with a strange light. The tower is built from great shards of black <!--ERRTAG-RE-86063-->crystal, and<!--/ERRTAG-RE-86063--> its design is entirely alien to your eyes.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The Crystal Tower gleams faintly with a strange light</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill4.gif" width="386" height="638"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill4.pdf" width="386" height="638"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect167"><link-text>Turn to 167</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>Soon you are back where you started, having completed a circuit of the Crystal Tower. To your immense surprise, however, there is now a door beneath the metal plate. Tanith has an incredulous look upon her face. <quote>There is strange sorcery at work here,</quote> she comments.</p>
<p>The iron-shod door is tall and uninviting. You try the handle but the door is locked. You notice a keyhole and five Keys hanging on five hooks by the door. Each Key has been shaped into the likeness of a beast.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The iron-shod door is locked and five keys are hanging by it</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill5.gif" width="386" height="640"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill5.pdf" width="386" height="640"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect240">If you wish to use the Serpent Key, <link-text>turn to 240</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect227">If you wish to use the Eagle Key, <link-text>turn to 227</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect235">If you wish to use the Wolf Key, <link-text>turn to 235</link-text>.</choice>
<data>
<p>You work your way down the steps of the palace and enter the avenue of crystal that leads from the Singing City. Moving at a painfully slow pace, you finally reach the grove of trees where your flying machine is hidden. You drag the statue on board and turn to the controls. The Ethetron rises up into the air and, using the Gyronome to guide you once more, you soon feel the strange tingling sensation that indicates that you are crossing the realms of the Daziarn.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small10.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small10.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect278"><link-text>Turn to 278</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>You take out the Gyronome. To your surprise it is still emitting its familiar, high-pitched note. You are further confused when you discover that the device continues to sound at the same volume wherever you point it. You depress the foot bar. The mist within the glass dome begins to swirl and its ghostly light grows <!--ERRTAG-RE-94429-->brighter, but<!--/ERRTAG-RE-94429--> there is no sensation of movement, even with the bar pressed all the way down to the floor. You fear that you are stranded&emdash;becalmed upon an alien sea.</p>
<p>A thread-like line of white light in the distance gives you fresh hope. Your flesh begins to tingle&emdash;an unpleasant sensation that seems to be drawing the strength from your body (lose 2 <typ class="attribute">ENDURANCE</typ> points). The horizon of white light thickens until it splits the darkness in two, and yawns like an infernal chasm. Terrified, you hurtle towards the momentous shaft at an incredible speed.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The horizon of white light splits the darkness in two</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill6.gif" width="386" height="622"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill6.pdf" width="386" height="622"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect74">If you wish to try to slow your pace, <link-text>turn to 74</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect310">If you wish to continue at the same speed, <link-text>turn to 310</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<p><quote>I seek a girl; her name is Tanith,</quote> you cry, <quote>and one who is named Oz-na-Mun.</quote></p>
<p><quote>So be it!</quote> replies the <!--ERRTAG-RA-104225-->Chaos-master<!--/ERRTAG-RA-104225-->. <quote>The bargain is struck. These things you shall have and then you must return to me and make payment.</quote></p>
<p>Before you can ask the nature of this <!--ERRTAG-RE-100594--><quote>payment</quote>, you<!--/ERRTAG-RE-100594--> find yourself standing upon firm ground, looking out across a vast quarry of red soil. Your Ethetron lies close at hand. On the other side of the quarry you can see smoke rising from a rough wooden shack. You push the nightmare visions from your brain and head towards the shack.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small6.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small6.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect127"><link-text>Turn to 127</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>At first they are distant specks but they are moving towards you at high speed and soon you are able to distinguish details. You give an involuntary gasp: the creatures have oily, purple-black skins with slickly matted feathers; their eyes protrude like two swollen bruises from the sides of their heads and their cry is hoarse like the ringing of a cracked bell. The Ethetron moves <!--ERRTAG-RE-106632-->sluggishly<!--/ERRTAG-RE-106632--> as the very last of the grey mist seeps from its dome. You turn the ship towards the Trianon but the malformed birds (if birds they are) are gaining on you.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The creatures have oily, purple-black skins with slickly matted feathers</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill7.gif" width="386" height="599"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill7.pdf" width="386" height="599"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect64">If you wish to attack one of the Chaos-birds at long range with your Wizard's Staff, <link-text>turn to 64</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect108">If you wish to wait for the Chaos-birds to draw nearer, <link-text>turn to 108</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect78">If you have the Magical Power of Elementalism and wish to use it, <link-text>turn to 78</link-text>.</choice>
<data>
<p>As you regain control of the flying machine you begin to slow down. You make a rather bumpy landing in a field but both you and your craft survive it unharmed. You take out the Gyronome and its shrill call confirms that you are now in the Realm of the Singing City. Away to your left and in the distance the city glints beneath the warm sunlight. Suddenly you notice several figures heading in your direction, though they are still far off.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small5.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small5.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect85">If you wish to hide yourself and the Ethetron, <link-text>turn to 85</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect214">If you wish to wait where you are, <link-text>turn to 214</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>Immediately, you are standing in the court of the <!--ERRTAG-RA-124820-->Chaos-master<!--/ERRTAG-RA-124820-->. The high walls ripple with light as the strange architecture of the Master's hall changes constantly. In the centre of the hall, upon an obsidian throne, is seated the <!--ERRTAG-RA-124820-->Chaos-master<!--/ERRTAG-RA-124820--> himself, ruler of the Realm of the Paradox. He makes a disturbing sight: a giant over thirty feet in height, his facial features and characteristics are in a state of constant flux, continually melting into new and hideous guises. You glimpse dark and loathsome creatures, beasts and beings of indescribable horror, writhing within this awesome god.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The Chaos-master continually melts into new and hideous guises</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill8.gif" width="386" height="646"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill8.pdf" width="386" height="646"/>
+ </illustration>
<p><quote>Welcome to the Master's court!</quote> he bellows. <quote>Allow me to introduce my guests.</quote></p>
<p>Slowly a dark-robed figure walks into the hall. He wears a hood and carries a black staff. Following immediately behind is Tanith. She gives you a brave smile.</p>
<p><quote>May I present the Wizard, Grey Star.</quote></p>
<data>
<p>You are led to a high-ceilinged chamber lit by a curious, pulsing light. The room is filled with strange, ornate machines of gleaming metal. Lights flicker and you hear a throbbing hum and a continual, metallic, mechanical ring. Several Academicians tend the machines, pushing buttons and pulling levers, though to what purpose you cannot guess.</p>
<p><quote>Grey Star, Tanith&emdash;allow me to introduce you to Crabkey, one of our greatest and most ingenious inventors.</quote></p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description><quote>Allow me to introduce Crabkey, one of our most ingenious inventors</quote></description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill9.gif" width="386" height="644"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill9.pdf" width="386" height="644"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>You recognize the shabby man who turns to greet you; he was the man who sat in the armchair when you first entered the chamber of the Academicians. In the strange lurid glow of the laboratory his shadowed, bulging eyes make him appear even more sinister than before. <quote>We meet again,</quote> you say uncomfortably.</p>
<p>Crabkey stares at you without speaking. Spittlethrift breaks the silence: <quote>Mr <!--ERRTAG-RE-130648-->Crabkey is<!--/ERRTAG-RE-130648--> the inventor of the machine that will enable you to journey to the Realm of the Singing City, <!--ERRTAG-RE-134180-->aren't you, Crabkey<!--/ERRTAG-RE-134180-->, old chap?</quote> Crabkey continues to stare at you insolently. With a slow blink of his huge eyes, he makes an unintelligible sound in the back of his throat and nods.</p>
<p><quote>Yes, yes,</quote> says Spittlethrift half to himself. <quote>Come now, young Wizard and pretty mistress Tanith, come see his wonderful creation.</quote> Mounted on a small dais in the centre of the laboratory is a most unusual machine. <quote>This,</quote> says Spittlethrift proudly, <quote>is the Ethetron, the flying machine that will carry young Grey Star through the realms of the Daziarn, and to the Singing City to fetch our prize.</quote></p>
<data>
<p>The Ethetron is quite unlike anything you have seen before. It has a railed platform, and is shaped like a saucer, except that its stern is pointed like a lizard's tail. It bears a large glass dome in its centre. Passing through the top of the dome is a single black shaft like the mast of a sailing ship. The single sail resembles a giant bat's wing and is made of a strange material that shimmers like water and looks like metal but is like fabric to the touch. A closer inspection of the glass dome reveals that it contains a swirling, grey-white mist.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The Ethetron's tail is like a lizard's, its sails like bats' wings</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill10.gif" width="386" height="628"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill10.pdf" width="386" height="628"/>
+ </illustration>
<p><quote>It is the raw stuff of the Daziarn, unformed power for the craft,</quote> explains Crabkey. <quote>Without it, the craft would fall from the sky. To steer,</quote> he continues, <quote>you must operate this lever&emdash;pull to climb, push to dive, left and right as normal. To draw more power from the glass dome you must press this metal bar at your feet; to slow down, release it. If you apply no pressure, the craft will remain where it is; if you push the lever to the left or right without power, the craft will spin on its axis. Beware, these controls are very sensitive. You need apply very little pressure to make the craft change its course.</quote></p>
<p>When Crabkey is satisfied that you understand the controls, he introduces you to another Academician, Slypate, who hands you a shining sphere of red and yellow metal. <quote>This is a Gyronome. There is no north, east, west or south in the plane of the Daziarn, nor is there time as you perceive it,</quote> says Slypate. <quote>The only way of finding the Singing City is with the aid of this device. When you draw it out, it will emit a sound if you are heading for the Singing City. The louder the note, the surer your course. To return to the Crystal Tower, the Gyronome must be absolutely silent. It is very accurate: I invented it myself,</quote> he says with pride. You take the Special Item and place it in your pocket. (Remember to mark the Gyronome on your <a idref="action">Action Chart</a>.)</p>
<p>Soon you are ready to leave. The Academicians offer you the choice of the following <!--ERRTAG-RA-148465-->items<!--/ERRTAG-RA-148465--> to aid you in your quest. (Remember that you may carry only <!--ERRTAG-RE-148584-->two Weapons<!--/ERRTAG-RE-148584--> and a maximum of eight <!--ERRTAG-RA-148465-->items<!--/ERRTAG-RA-148465--> in your Backpack.)</p>
<data>
<p>You head across the cloud plane towards the hunched figure. The man turns and looks at you, apparently unsurprised by your sudden appearance. He is dressed in grey, tattered rags and, with a start, you see that the flesh of his hands and face is almost transparent, revealing the veins, bones, and tissue that lie beneath his skin.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The hunched figure is dressed in grey rags and the flesh of his hands and face is almost transparent</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill11.gif" width="386" height="635"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill11.pdf" width="386" height="635"/>
+ </illustration>
<p><quote>No peace. No peace,</quote> he mutters to himself. <quote>So many interruptions&ellips; the passage of strangers, asking directions and breaking the silence.</quote> He gazes at you with a sad but steady stare. <quote>I am Drear, wanderer between worlds,</quote> he says, as if reciting a litany. <quote>Sailor upon pointless seas, traveller of timeless lands, born of a world grown old and tired. You are in the Neverness, my children, the unformed and unclaimed void of the Daziarn, where no one yet resides.</quote></p>
<p><quote>What of yonder building?</quote> you ask.</p>
<p><quote>The Crystal Tower, home of the Academicians, scientists and scholars from another plane. They are mad, my friend. Do not waste your time with them. Instead, follow me and find peace in the calm of wandering; shed all purpose and responsibility. Come, follow! I seek the salvation of silence, the tranquillity of endlessness.</quote></p>
<data>
<p>You use another <typ class="attribute">WILLPOWER</typ> point but this time you feel the balance of power shift in your favour. Before your enemy is able to pour extra force into his <!--ERRTAG-RE-165742-->counterspell<!--/ERRTAG-RE-165742--> you order the wind spirits away. At the abrupt change in the <!--ERRTAG-RE-165856-->force<!--/ERRTAG-RE-165856--> of the wind the Ethetron lurches violently and, as you struggle with the controls, the Jahksa staggers backwards. Tanith seizes her chance and, rushing furiously, she runs headlong into the Jahksa and heaves him over the rails. You both give a triumphant shout of joy and you quickly bring the Ethetron under control.</p>
<p>As you draw closer to the Moaning Mountain you soon locate the cavern in its side and, with some skilful manoeuvring, you line up the ship with the yawning cavern mouth.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>You soon locate the cavern in the side of the Moaning Mountain</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill12.gif" width="386" height="643"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill12.pdf" width="386" height="643"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect300"><link-text>Turn to 300</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>You pick up the road out of sight of the poor survivors and follow it to the next village. This village is also ablaze. No one attempts to put out the fire; instead, everyone stares at a figure dancing maniacally on the roof of a house. It is a familiar and disturbing sight: Jahksa. Even now he is hurling bolts of magical flame into the thatched and wooden <!--ERRTAG-RE-182734-->roofs<!--/ERRTAG-RE-182734--> of the village houses.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>Everyone stares at a figure dancing maniacally on the roof of the house</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill13.gif" width="386" height="641"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill13.pdf" width="386" height="641"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect154">If you wish to attack the Jahksa at long range, <link-text>turn <!--ERRTAG-RE-182908-->to 154<!--/ERRTAG-RE-182908--></link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect169">If you have the Magical Power of Elementalism and wish to use it, <link-text>turn to 169</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<p><quote>I thought&ellips;</quote> she says with a dry sob. <quote>It was in my mind&ellips; the Black Wizard, he had your face. He took me from the Crystal Tower and brought me here. By the time I realized it wasn't you, the <!--ERRTAG-RA-192805-->Chaos-master<!--/ERRTAG-RA-192805--> had asked me what gift I desired. I asked for you, Grey Star, and the <!--ERRTAG-RA-192805-->Chaos-master<!--/ERRTAG-RA-192805--> told me that the Black Wizard was you. Then my mind was full of fear and loathing. I&emdash;</quote></p>
<p><quote>You don't have to explain. It's all right. I understand.</quote></p>
<p>Outside, a strange, yet familiar voice sends a chill down your spine. <quote>How touching; how noble. Such understanding,</quote> it sneers. You rush outside to see a hooded figure dressed all in black. Slowly, deliberately, the hood is pulled aside to reveal your own face staring back at you. <quote>Greetings, brother,</quote> says your voice. <quote>We meet at last.</quote></p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small7.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small7.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect291"><link-text>Turn to 291</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>A sky-blue sea with foam-crested waves rolls where the sky should be. Green hills and fields ripple and undulate like an ebb tide and the Ethetron begins to rock violently. Mountains stand on their peaks and towns and cities float haphazardly in the air. Night becomes day and day becomes night in the blink of an eye. A huge fist rears up, poised to strike, then passes through you like a phantom. All around you is the sound of crazed and forlorn laughter.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>Mountains stand on their peaks and cities float haphazardly in the air</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill14.gif" width="386" height="642"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill14.pdf" width="386" height="642"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect156">If you have the Magical Power of Enchantment, <link-text>turn to 156</link-text>.</choice>
<p>If you do not have this Magical Power, pick a number from the <a idref="random">Random Number Table</a> and add it to your <typ class="attribute">WILLPOWER</typ> score.</p>
<choice idref="sect86">If the total is 20 or more, <link-text>turn to 86</link-text>.</choice>
<data>
<p><quote>Get out of my mind!</quote> she screams, desperation and pain in her voice. Quickly you extinguish the glow of the Gem for fear of damaging her mind. Outside, you hear a voice that sends an icy chill coursing through your body.</p>
<p><quote>How sad. Tragic. Such a waste of energy on a girl who despises you.</quote> You rush out of the room to see a hooded figure dressed in black. Slowly the hood is pulled away to reveal your own face looking back at you. <quote>Greetings brother,' sneers a voice identical to your own. 'We meet at last.</quote></p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small7.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small7.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect291"><link-text>Turn to 291</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<p>The Elessi shakes his head. <thought>I have never heard of such a thing but there is one who surely might. In the Realm of Paradox lives one called Oz-na-Mun, he of the mighty hand. He is wise and knowledgeable; perhaps he will know.</thought></p>
<p><quote>How may I find this Realm of Paradox? My only guide is this.</quote> You show the Guardian the Gyronome. <quote>And it can only guide me between here and the Neverness.</quote></p>
<p><thought>Give this thing to me,</thought> he says. He closes his eyes, places the Gyronome close to his mouth, and begins to sing into it very softly. <thought>Now the Gyronome will guide you,</thought> he says, <thought>though you may never return to the Singing City. I have changed the power of the device so that it will seek the Realm of Paradox instead of our own; it will still return you to the place you call the Neverness while it is silent.</thought></p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small10.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small10.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<p><quote>I thank you,</quote> you say, boarding the Ethetron. <quote>Farewell.</quote> To a chorus of joyful singing and the blessing of the Elessin you carefully rise into the air with your perilous cargo. Once more you feel a strange tingling sensation as you leave the realm of the Elessin <!--ERRTAG-RE-204346-->forever<!--/ERRTAG-RE-204346-->.</p>
<choice idref="sect278"><link-text>Turn to 278</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>You ignore the man, who soon disappears from view. You continue across the cloud plane towards the building and soon you can make out the shape of a tall tower, gleaming faintly with a strange, brittle light. The tower appears to be constructed from great shards of black crystal, and its architecture possess an alien quality that is both puzzling and intriguing.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small4.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small4.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect167"><link-text>Turn to 167</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>Tense with anticipation, you wait as the figures draw near. Each wears a short white toga; they have blonde hair and strange, circular ears.</p>
<p>As soon as they arrive they begin speaking to you in a language you cannot understand. Their voices are soft and flute-like and there is a lilting quality to their speech. These are <!--ERRTAG-RE-229317-->Elessin, inhabitants<!--/ERRTAG-RE-229317--> of the Singing City. Excitedly, they chatter on, pointing at both the Ethetron and the sky. You soon realize that they wish you to go to the Singing City with them.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The Elessin have soft, flute-like voices and wear short togas</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill15.gif" width="386" height="611"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill15.pdf" width="386" height="611"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect45">If you wish to go with the Elessin, <link-text>turn to 45</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect6">If you wish to attack them with your Wizard's Staff, <link-text>turn to 6</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>The webbed claw rakes the side of the <!--ERRTAG-RE-229962-->Ethetron, but<!--/ERRTAG-RE-229962--> your swift reflexes save you from certain death. As the monstrous limb sinks back into the mist, Tanith points to a crack that has appeared in the glass dome that contains the power which drives the craft. The Ethetron starts to lose height, sinking slowly into the swirling mystery below.</p>
<p>Suddenly, there is a hideous roar and seven eyeless heads on long, slender necks wave before you like monstrous flowers in a breeze. Twenty feet tall, with teeth like razors, they sway this way and that, blindly seeking you out. A giant head sways barely a few feet away and a yawning mouth bears down on you.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>Seven eyeless heads on long, slender necks wave before you</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill16.gif" width="386" height="634"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill16.pdf" width="386" height="634"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect194">If you wish to attack the creature with your Staff, <link-text>turn to 194</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect171">If you wish to manoeuvre between the long-necked monsters, <link-text>turn to 171</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>You pass through the Gate, past a shimmering waterfall, and into the foothills of a mountain range towards a lush, green valley. You land the Ethetron and you and Tanith disembark.</p>
<p>Everywhere is a growing, verdant splendour. The air is fresh and invigorating and you suddenly realize that you have not eaten since you crossed the Shadow Gate. You mention this to Tanith and she nods in agreement, pointing to the berries of a nearby bush. Perhaps more familiar natural laws apply in this realm. You eat your fill of the delicious berries; restore 2 <typ class="attribute">ENDURANCE</typ> points due to their great nutritional value.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>Everywhere is a growing, verdant splendour</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill17.gif" width="386" height="638"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill17.pdf" width="386" height="638"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect177">If you have the Magical Power of Alchemy, <link-text>turn to 177</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect293">If you do not have this Magical Power, <link-text>turn to 293</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>You come to a main road that crosses your path into the valley. It leads into a village, which you can see in the distance, hugging a small wood of squat trees. Strangely, there is a lot of smoke rising from the village.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small3.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small3.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect201"><link-text>Turn to 201</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>Your Power of Prophecy shows you what you feared most: Shasarak's Jahksa. Your dark twin is somewhere close at hand and there is terrible evil in his heart. The use of this Magical Power has cost you 1 <typ class="attribute">WILLPOWER</typ> point.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small7.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small7.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect228"><link-text>Turn to 228</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>The man leads you into a vast hall. Its incredibly high ceiling is supported by hundreds of transparent columns that contain a <!--ERRTAG-RE-251549-->many-coloured<!--/ERRTAG-RE-251549--> liquid. At the far end of the hall is a pillar of swirling light that illuminates a <!--ERRTAG-RE-251713-->grotesque but life-like statue<!--/ERRTAG-RE-251713--> of a child. <thought>Welcome,</thought> says a voice in your head, <thought>to the Palace of the Screaming God.</thought> Instinctively you spin round to look at the man with the golden hair. He is a <!--ERRTAG-RE-259054-->telepath, and since<!--/ERRTAG-RE-259054--> the language of the mind is universal, you are able to understand everything he says. <thought>I am the Guardian of the Threnogem,</thought> he informs you. <thought>And you are Grey Star. Pray tell me, why have you come to the Realm of the Elessin?</thought></p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>In the palace of the Screaming God there is a grotesque but life-like statue of a child</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill18.gif" width="386" height="610"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill18.pdf" width="386" height="610"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect322">If you wish to attack the Guardian of the Threnogem, <link-text>turn to 322</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect71">If you wish to snatch the Threnogem from the statue's mouth and try to break out of the Palace of the Screaming God, <link-text>turn to 71</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect259">If you wish to tell the Guardian your true purpose, <link-text>turn to 259</link-text>.</choice>
<data>
<p>You are soaring through a starlit sky, myriad tiny <!--ERRTAG-RE-264401-->pinpoints<!--/ERRTAG-RE-264401--> of light shining above. Tanith clutches your arm and points below at a swirling gaseous incandescence, lit by sporadic bursts of violet lightning. Suddenly, a huge, webbed claw as tall as a house, with green, shining skin rises up out of the mists.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small1.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small1.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>Add together your <typ class="attribute">COMBAT SKILL</typ> and current <typ class="attribute">WILLPOWER</typ> points.</p>
<choice idref="sect215">If the total is 15 or more, <link-text>turn to 215</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect233">If the total is less than 15, <link-text>turn to 233</link-text>.</choice>
<data>
<p><quote>Splendid! Splendid!</quote> says a cheerful voice. You spin round to see a little fat man, dressed head-to-toe in a black gown. He claps his pudgy hands together and smiles happily.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>Spittlethrift claps his pudgy hands together and smiles happily</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill19.gif" width="386" height="638"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill19.pdf" width="386" height="638"/>
+ </illustration>
<p><quote>Who are you?</quote> you ask, still breathless.</p>
<p><quote>I am Spittlethrift, scholar, professor and master of the Crystal Tower. Yes, yes&ellips; a tower of learning, a veritable pillar of wisdom and knowledge, ha, ha, indeed!</quote> He takes a pair of wire-framed spectacles and places them on the end of his smudge of a nose. <quote>You are not <!--ERRTAG-RE-264296-->alone, I<!--/ERRTAG-RE-264296--> see.</quote> He squints at Tanith. <quote>Most pleasing, enchanting&ellips; yes, yes, well done! You have passed the test; you will suffice.</quote> He turns towards the door and flutters his hands in an agitated manner. <quote>Come now, you must meet the rest of us. Oh yes, delightful, engaging, so wonderfully entertaining!</quote></p>
<p>The excitable little man leaves the room, still chuckling to himself, and you follow close behind. Soon, he ushers you into a dim room, which is dusty and full of cobwebs. The air is stale and thick with tobacco smoke and seated opposite in a large armchair is a thin, straggling man, roughly Spittlethrift's height, with bulging, shadowy eyes. Reclining in various positions around the room are several others, all approximately Spittlethrift's height, and all similarly dressed.</p>
<data>
<p><quote>Looking for me?</quote> asks a contemptuous voice. You look up and see a hooded figure dressed in black, carrying a long, black staff. Slowly the hood is pulled away to reveal your own face staring back at you. <quote>Greetings, brother,</quote> your own voice laughs, coldly. <quote>We meet at last.</quote></p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small7.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small7.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect291"><link-text>Turn to 291</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>You break the trance and breathe out through clenched teeth. Tanith is confused. She tries to make sense of the visions that you have placed in her mind and the magical compulsion that forces her to fear you. Outside, you hear a voice that sends an icy chill through your body.</p>
<p><quote>How sad. Tragic. Such a waste of energy on a girl who despises you.</quote> You rush out of the room to see a hooded figure dressed entirely in black and carrying a long, black staff. Slowly, deliberately; the hood is pulled away to reveal your own face looking back at you. <quote>Greetings, brother,</quote> sneers a voice identical to your own. <quote>We meet at last,</quote> it laughs, mockingly.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small7.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small7.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect291"><link-text>Turn to 291</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<p><quote>Grey Star,</quote> she sobs. <quote>I thought&ellips; it was in my mind&ellips; the Black Wizard, he had your face. He took me from the Crystal Tower and brought me here. The <!--ERRTAG-RA-298227-->Chaos-master<!--/ERRTAG-RA-298227--> asked me what gift I desired and I asked for you, Grey Star. Then the <!--ERRTAG-RA-298227-->Chaos-master<!--/ERRTAG-RA-298227--> told me that the Black Wizard was you and then my mind was full of hate and loathing. <!--ERRTAG-RE-288977-->I&ellips;<!--/ERRTAG-RE-288977--></quote></p>
<p><quote>You don't have to explain; it's all right, I understand,</quote> you say. From outside the shack, a sneering voice sends an unnatural chill through your body.</p>
<p><quote>How touching; how nice. Such understanding.</quote> The evil voice laughs, mockingly. You run outside to see a hooded figure in a black robe carrying a black staff. Slowly, deliberately, the hood is pulled aside to reveal your own face; your own eyes stare back at you as if you were looking into a mirror. <quote>Greetings, brother,</quote> says your voice, with a bitter laugh. <quote>We meet at last.</quote></p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small7.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small7.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<choice idref="sect291"><link-text>Turn to 291</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<p>The creature facing you is called a Jahksa. It is a creation of Shasarak; an apparition in the likeness of a living spirit, in this case, yours. <quote>Are you afraid, Grey Star?</quote> taunts the Jahksa. <quote>There is nothing to fear but yourself,</quote> he sniggers.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small8.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small8.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>Tanith appears at the door of the shack and looks at the two of you in bewilderment. She sways as if about to faint and you rush to her side. The Jahksa snorts derisively. <quote>How weak you are, Grey Star. Petty friendships, loyalties, and your honourable quest for the Shianti stone&emdash;how can you expect to defeat the Wytch-king, he who possesses the might of the Shianti and freedom from their foolish teachings, with such weaknesses?</quote></p>
<p><quote>They are my strengths as <!--ERRTAG-RE-303897-->well, Jahksa<!--/ERRTAG-RE-303897-->,</quote> you reply, coolly.</p>
<p>The Jahksa spits on the ground at your feet. <quote>That for your strength, Wizardling.</quote> He turns his back to you, then suddenly spins back, wielding a black staff in a wide arc. But you were expecting a trick and lift your Staff in time to block his blow. As the staves collide, their magical fire crackles and splits the air.</p>
<data>
<p>Staggering under the weight of the statue, you move towards the exit. The terrified Elessin hang back to let you pass, their faces full of fear. You leave the palace and view the long flight of stairs that leads from it with apprehension.</p>
- <p><quote>Please stop,</quote> pleads the voice that rings in your head. <quote>We mean you no harm&ellips; . What you are doing is madness!</quote></p>
+ <p><thought>Please stop,</thought> pleads the voice that rings in your head. <thought>We mean you no harm&ellips; . What you are doing is madness!</thought></p>
<choice idref="sect4">If you wish to do as he says, <link-text>turn to 4</link-text>.</choice>
<choice idref="sect22">If you do not trust the Elessin and are determined to press on, <link-text>turn to 22</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>You thank the Vale people for their kindness but insist that your quest is urgent and will brook no delay. You ask if they will show you to the Gateway to the Realm of the <!--ERRTAG-RE-315768-->Moonstone, and<!--/ERRTAG-RE-315768--> they agree. That night they take you to the Silver Lake, which lies high in the mountains. They instruct you and Tanith to climb aboard the Ethetron and fly above the lake. As the night grows older, and the moon climbs higher in the sky, the waters are bathed in a beautiful shimmering light, like that of polished silver. Then, they say, must you fly into the lake itself, for it is the Gate and the moon its key.</p>
+ <illustration class="float">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ <description>The Vale people take you to the Silver Lake which lies high in the mountains</description>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="ill20.gif" width="386" height="641"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="ill20.pdf" width="386" height="641"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>You do exactly as they say and when you reach the surface you discover no water at all; merely the passing touch of something as light as gossamer.</p>
<choice idref="sect247"><link-text>Turn to 247</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>You spend another day and night with these happy, simple people. The beauty of the vibrant valley is a welcome relief from the hardships of your quest, however worthy the cause. The time spent with the people of the Vale has a beneficial effect, restoring 4 <typ class="attribute">ENDURANCE</typ> points and 2 <typ class="attribute">WILLPOWER</typ> points. Tanith radiates a happiness and gaiety that you have seldom seen before. You ask about the Gate that leads to the Realm of the <!--ERRTAG-RE-343220-->Moonstone, and<!--/ERRTAG-RE-343220--> the elders tell you of the Silver Lake.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small10.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small10.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>That night, you and Tanith are led up into the mountains to a large lake. They tell you to board the Ethetron and fly above the beautiful lake. Then, when the moon has climbed to its highest point in the sky you must fly into the water, for the lake is the Gateway to the Realm of the Moonstone and the light and power of the moon its key. You do as they <!--ERRTAG-RE-352392-->instruct, and with<!--/ERRTAG-RE-352392--> a wave, you dive towards the Silver Lake, but as you break the <!--ERRTAG-RE-343770-->surface, it<!--/ERRTAG-RE-343770--> is not water that washes over <!--ERRTAG-RE-352553-->you but<!--/ERRTAG-RE-352553--> awe and wonder.</p>
<choice idref="sect247"><link-text>Turn to 247</link-text>.</choice>
</data>
<data>
<p>Triumphantly, the Jahksa deals a killing blow. You feel a searing pain tear through your body, but miraculously you are not slain. The Moonstone, instrument of judgement and truth, has made a reality of Shasarak's mockery of you. In killing you the Jahksa has killed itself. With a howl, the Jahksa dissolves into black shadows and returns to the spirit realm from whence it came.</p>
+ <illustration class="inline">
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance class="html" src="small2.gif" width="386" height="150"/>
+ <instance class="pdf" src="small2.pdf" width="386" height="150"/>
+ </illustration>
<p>With a thrill of <!--ERRTAG-RE-353877-->anticipation, you<!--/ERRTAG-RE-353877--> take up the Moonstone. It flares, as if in <!--ERRTAG-RE-353983-->recognition, at<!--/ERRTAG-RE-353983--> the touch of your hand. It glows with a warm, familiar feeling as it nestles in the palm of your hand. Tanith's eyes are wild and shining with triumph. You have fulfilled your pledge and completed the quest&ellips; almost. Armed with the might of the Moonstone, you now possess the only known power that could throw down the evil Wytch-king, Shasarak. But that is another story, and the day is yet to come.</p>
<p>The final conflict in your fight against the Shadakine Empire is concluded in Book 4 of the Grey Star saga, <!--ERRTAG-RE-358789-->entitled<!--/ERRTAG-RE-358789-->:</p>
<p><cite><a href="&link.04wotw;">War of the Wizards</a></cite></p>
<meta><title>The Shadakine Empire</title></meta>
<data>
+ <illustration>
+ <meta>
+ <creator>Paul Bonner</creator>
+ </meta>
+ <instance src="map.jpg" width="1024" height="768" class="html"/>
+ <instance src="map.pdf" width="1024" height="768" class="pdf"/>
+ </illustration>
+
<illustration>
<meta>
<creator>Christopher Lundgren</creator>
<meta><title>Introduction</title></meta>
<data>
- <p>We have taken our unique opportunity to correct errors and to enforce a standard of English usage. We list our changes here. If you see anything that needs correction, please contact the <a href="mailto:&link.staff.email;">Project Aon Staff</a>.</p>
+ <p>We have taken our unique opportunity to correct errors and to enforce a standard of English usage. We list our changes here. If you see anything that needs correction, please <a href="&link.staff.contact;">contact</a> the Project Aon Staff.</p>
</data>
</section>
<data>
<ul class="unbulleted">
+ <li>Illustration I (<a idref="sect12">Section 12</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration II (<a idref="sect45">Section 45</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration III (<a idref="sect47">Section 47</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration IV (<a idref="sect50">Section 50</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration V (<a idref="sect56">Section 56</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration VI (<a idref="sect60">Section 60</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration VII (<a idref="sect75">Section 75</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration VIII (<a idref="sect94">Section 94</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration IX (<a idref="sect105">Section 105</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration X (<a idref="sect116">Section 116</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XI (<a idref="sect122">Section 122</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XII (<a idref="sect138">Section 138</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XIII (<a idref="sect160">Section 160</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XIV (<a idref="sect174">Section 174</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XV (<a idref="sect214">Section 214</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XVI (<a idref="sect215">Section 215</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XVII (<a idref="sect216">Section 216</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XVIII (<a idref="sect241">Section 241</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XIX (<a idref="sect250">Section 250</a>)</li>
+ <li>Illustration XX (<a idref="sect306">Section 306</a>)</li>
<li><a idref="map">The Shadakine Empire</a></li>
<li><a idref="action">Action Chart</a></li>
</ul>
<data>
<ul class="unbulleted">
<li><a idref="powers">Magical Powers</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect14">14</a>, <a idref="sect32">32</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect26">26</a>, <a idref="sect77">77</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect59">59</a>, <a idref="sect182">182</a>, <a idref="sect338">338</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect67">67</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect163">163</a>, <a idref="sect179">179</a>, <a idref="sect236">236</a>, <a idref="sect255">255</a>, <a idref="sect265">265</a>, <a idref="sect276">276</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect211">211</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect228">228</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect247">247</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect291">291</a></li>
+ <li><a idref="sect350">350</a></li>
</ul>
</data>
</section>
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