### 161

Suddenly an arrow punches through the wooden side of the chariot and passes within inches of your head. This near miss makes you roll away and scramble for the safety of harder cover. You take refuge behind a cluster of boulders where you listen to the harsh gurgling sound of your attackers’ voices as they call to each other excitedly. Peering through a gap in the rocks, you see your ambushers emerge from their hiding places and begin to close in. They are minions of Shom’zaa, and your first sight of them sends a cold shiver coursing down your spine.

At a distance these man-sized creatures appear lithe and reptilian. All have lidless black eyes and scaly green hides that glisten as they move. But as they draw closer you see that each one is grotesquely different. Some have whip-like tentacles, some have spindly limbs and bulbous skulls, and some have rubbery necks and crooked spines that are studded with talons. They are all armed with captured Drodarin weapons and led by a tall creature with a lizard-like face. It gurgles to its fearsome followers, commanding them to attack your position and finish you off.

If you possess a Bow and wish to use it, turn to 102.

If you possess Kai-alchemy and wish to use it, turn to 339.

If you possess Magi-magic and wish to use it, turn to 233.

If you possess neither a Bow nor any of these skills, or if you choose not to use them, turn instead to 29.