### 186

As you strike the killing blow, your enemy cries out in agony, materializing as he falls at your feet. At first glance, he appears to be human, but as you search the body you discover otherwise. His eyes, now glazed and lifeless, are cat-like in structure; his fingers are short and tipped with claws; and his lower jaw protrudes several inches below his upper jaw. The skin is badly scarred but not by battle wounds; they are the scars of crude surgery.

There is no sign of the whip with which he attacked you, but you find a Spear slung by a cord over his shoulder, and a Silver Whistle (mark this on your Action Chart as a Special Item) on a chain around his blood-spattered neck. Instinctively, you place the whistle to your lips and blow, but there is no sound. Shaking your head, you turn to face the pit, and there before you, spanning the blackness, is a solid beam of blue metal.

If you wish to cross the beam, turn to 6.

If you choose to retrace your steps along the corridor, turn to 64.

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