### 239

The thunder of hooves warns you that more partisan horsemen are heading your way. You wheel your horse about and gallop down a long, twisting hill track. You are beginning to outdistance your pursuers when your steed suddenly pitches forward and throws you head-first into a tangle of foliage. The dense undergrowth cushions your fall and you emerge unscathed, but your horse has been seriously injured.

A deep pot-hole ensnared its foreleg and the limb is broken: the poor animal cannot go on. The partisan reinforcements gallop into view and you are forced to abandon your crippled mount and escape into the surrounding trees on foot. With the angry cries of the partisans echoing behind you, you curse your ill luck and hurry deeper into the darkening forest.

Turn to 250.