### 165

Shortly after dawn, a howling wind awakens you from your dreamless slumber. It sweeps along the pass from the west, carrying with it the briny smell of the sea. Resolutely you continue your trek, following the roadway through the pass until, at midday, you emerge from the mountains at a point that commands a clear view over the land beyond. There you stop and stare at an expanse of rocky terrain so fragmented that it might have been smashed by a giant hammer. It slopes down to the shores of a wide inlet--the Gulf of Helenag--where a line of Darkland ironclads are steaming northwards on their way to join the blockade. From where you are, they appear no larger than tiny black specks dotting the steel-grey sea, but the clouds of yellow smoke that pour from their funnels clearly identify them as enemy ships.

The track continues, snaking southwards across the barren landscape on its way to Argazad. For three hours you tread its uneven surface until you arrive at what appears to be the ruins of an ancient tower.

If you possess the Magnakai Discipline of Divination and have attained the Kai rank of Mentora or higher, turn to 323.

If you do not possess this skill, or have yet to reach this level of Kai training, turn to 191.

Text copyright © 1988 Joe Dever.
Illustrations copyright © 1988 Brian Williams.