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a metallic tang laced with a lucid sweetness. You drive yourself forward, snarling like a beast, no longer in charge of your own body, your hands clawing and tearing. Something has control of you, using you to fight back.
    If you have the word sacrifice on your hero sheet, turn to 37 . Otherwise, turn to 54 .
    6
    The tunnel folds into a tight spiral, angling through the trunk until it brings you out onto the gnarled remains of a branch. Turning back to face the tree, you see the crown spreading out above you – a tangle of dark boughs, their pointed tips bunched tight like a regiment of spearmen. From somewhere above, you hear agonised screams – and pleading sobs.
    ‘Rata-rata-tosk!’
    The voice startles you. Spinning to your right, you catch a blur of movement racing up the trunk of the tree. It is only when the figure stops that you can make sense of its shape. It looks like an oversized rodent, its fur stippled red and brown, with tall pointed ears and a wide muzzle for a face. Behind its shoulders curls a bushy tail.
    ‘Not come here, rata-rata, not come!’ The creature’s sharp teeth chatter together as it speaks. A clawed hand reaches for one of the many leather pouches dangling around its waist.
    ‘Wait. Can you help me? I need to find Skoll!’
    The creature hisses, its muzzle crinkling back into a scowl. ‘Witch keeps him. And I protect, rata-rata-tosk!’ He lifts his hand from his pouch, clutching a golden acorn. He throws it down at your feet, the shell splintering into bright shards. From its remains you see a black seedling start to take growth, its thick stem coiling into the air, barbed leaves unfurling.
    You back away from it, unsure of its purpose.
    With a snigger, the wily squirrel continues to scamper up the trunk, then pauses to look down with a hungry gleam to his eyes. He is clearly waiting to see what you will do next.
    You scan the trunk, and its many hand and foot-holds – easy enough to climb. However, you also notice another possible route – a nearby branch you could leap onto. Beyond it, a series of ledges and scraggly vines form a makeshift pathway to the summit.
Will you:
 
Chase the creature up the trunk?
489
Use the ledges and vines instead?
271
    7
    The black sludge closes above your head, pushing dank earth into your ears, nose and mouth, burying you in its suffocating embrace. (You must immediately roll on the death penalty chart [see entry 98 ] and apply the effect to your hero.) Trapped and blinded, you make a last frantic bid for escape, pushing magic into your limbs, bleeding it out in waves of powerful energy.
    Then you are falling, tumbling through darkness, the laughter resounding in your ears once again. Turn to 435 .
    8
    Sam produces a pair of picks and sets to work on the lock. Within seconds, the metal chest is open. After Sam has taken his cut of the treasure, you are left with 50 gold crowns. (Remove the hunters’ chest from your hero sheet.) If you have the locker and wish Sam to open it, turn to 641 . Otherwise, you continue your journey. Turn to 563 .
    9
    The robed man paces the room restlessly, his fingers playing with his short spike of beard. ‘Four weeks you’ve lain on that bed – and two of those cold without life.’
    It takes a moment for his words to sink in. ‘Wait, I was dead? That’s impossible!’ You look to the knight, hoping he will refute such nonsense and offer reason.
    ‘I’m afraid it is true, Arran. We were going to send out a rider, to notify the palace of your passing. But when we came to prepare the body – there was still a life stirring there. Movement. Some nights, it was like you had something wild inside you, trying to get out.’
    Segg ceases his pacing, glaring at you with his blue piercing eyes. ‘I suspected you were possessed, by some demon from the shroud. But it appears that is not the case.’ His stare continues to hold you, as if pushing you to state otherwise, seeking the truth.
    ‘I don’t know what