### 185

At the end of the corridor a flight of steps leads down to an open prison door. Cautiously you peer around the doorway into the chamber beyond, where you see a man chained to the wall. He is lean and sinewy, with jet-black hair and a moustache, which he has braided into his long sideburns in a style known as ‘Pirazin plaits’, fashionable among Slovian men. He appears to be either asleep or unconscious.

You enter the chamber, moving swiftly and silently towards a staircase on the opposite side, and immediately he springs to life. ‘Hold fast, Northlander,’ he hisses. ‘They’ll catch y’ for sure if you take the stairs. Let me loose and I’ll show you a way to slip out o’ here quicker than mist through a net.’

Quickly you consider his offer, but choose to leave him, deciding instead to trust your Kai instincts to aid your escape. You shake your head and turn to leave, but the man is shrewd; he says something he knows will change your mind.

Turn to 316.