### 309

The descent is slow and arduous. Much of the staircase has been carried away by falling stonework from the battlements, and you have to contend with a rain of molten ash and pumice that is erupting from the core of the keep. You take shelter where you can, but you dare not linger too long in any one place for fear of being caught in a fissure or a rock slide.

By the time you reach the beach, your cloak and hood are smouldering and the soles of your boots have nearly melted. Many of the creatures of Kazan-Oud have escaped before you and they crowd the beach, clawing and biting each other in a frenzy of terror. The lake is choked with their dead, and the black sand is barely visible beneath the carpet of carcasses. You fend off the crazed beasts as best you can, but to stay on the beach would be suicidal.

If you choose to climb up the rocks and dive into the lake, turn to 254.

If you decide to fight your way down to the old stone jetty, turn to 122.

Text copyright © 1986 Joe Dever.
Illustrations copyright © 1986 Gary Chalk.