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A short distance from Lord Adamas's tent stands a wooden watchtower, constructed by his army engineers, which offers an unobstructed view of the causeway and the great gate of Torgar. As you reach the top of its rickety ladder and step on to the platform beside the Lord Constable, he recounts the events that have led to the siege of this city-fortress.

Following his victory over the Ogians and the destruction of Xanar, Adamas led the allied armies of Bor, Talestria and Palmyrion along the Blackshroud Trail in pursuit of the shattered enemy. When they reached the Agna-kor-kuzim, the 'road of slaves', the army of Bor was detached and sent to assail Blackshroud from the east, while the bulk of the allied forces marched north towards Torgar. When Talestria was overrun in the early days of the war, thousands of her people were taken as slaves and imprisoned here in this fortress. Lord Adamas had sworn that one day he would free them and he was determined to fulfil his pledge.

During the march north, a great battle was fought near the wastelands of Zuttezna, against two Giak armies led by Darklord Kraagenskûl and Darklord Chlanzor. Both were soundly defeated by the allies and sent back to Cragmantle to lick their wounds. Although victorious at Zuttezna, the allies had suffered heavy losses and Adamas feared they would be too weak to storm Torgar. He was too far from his homeland for reinforcements to reach him swiftly, and there was the growing threat that the Darklords would muster their troops in Tanoz and Mozgôar and attack again. Faced with this grave dilemma he decided to risk an assault on Torgar.

'We have means to breach their iron gate,' he says, staring purposefully at the great door of Torgar. 'The Elder Magi have given us a device that will reduce it to twisted scrap, and when we march through that portal and free our people, we shall have all the reinforcements we need.'

Turn to 120.

Text copyright © 1987 Joe Dever.
Illustrations copyright © 1987 Brian Williams.