// Text Library  - 20-29

begintextlibrary;

1 = "A small, pathetic Empire patrol, equipped with shoddy uniforms and shoddy weapons, approaches you. They tell you they're looking for a band of Empire army deserters who've been robbing caravans in this area. They look very relieved that you aren't them.";
2 = "You leave the campsite, still confused by the lack of guards. Unfortunately, you soon find out where they were: looking for travelers to rob. When they find you raiding their camp, they decide to liberate you of your wealth.";
3 = "You decline his offer. He smiles. _Oh, well. Always a market for my wares in troubled times._ He gives you some more tea and then bids you farewell.";
4 = "The bandits, probably renegade soldiers, are all dead. You've just made life a lot easier for the people living in these parts. Unfortunately, all the loot they owned was left at their camp. It's not with them.";
5 = "The glowing shape suddenly glows more brightly, turns red, and splits into several shapes. They coalesce into solid, fiery humanoid beings, each nine feet tall. One of them barks, _At last! Our masters have had enough of you. You have learned too much, so we have been sent. Prepare to die!_ They attack.";
6 = "The sight of this desolate, blasted valley sends chills up your spines. It's dark, lifeless, and reeks of sulphur. The ground is littered with bones. There are also many lizard scales, some of them as much as a foot wide. You're sure that you're being watched.";
7 = "The bones are mostly, but not all, of animals. There's also some humanoids, and the skeletons of massive beasts with four legs and stumpy tails. Strange.";
8 = "You charge the encampment. They see you and react instantly. Several of them pull out rough clubs and try to delay you. The rest of them flee into the hills. You butcher the fighters easily, but they achieve their mission. Their women and young get away.";
9 = "You search their encampment. You find a tiny amount of food, little in the way of weapons, and no possessions. Whoever this clan was, they were poor and almost totally defenseless. Disappointed, you leave.";
10 = "You back away from the nephilim encampment, unsure what to do about these pitiful creatures.";
11 = "The shade doesn't coalesce completely. It remains a vague, glowing, insubstantial humanoid shape. It says, _Avernum's struggle continues. You have been seen. They search for me, too. I can help you little now._";
12 = "_The enemy is near, and their hatred is great. More monsters are being prepared. The attack on Valorim is only the beginning. The vengeance will continue. They must be stopped. Please, for us all, fight on. I must go. It is unsafe._ The shade disappears.";
13 = "A shadow flits across the ground towards you. You look up, see what casts it, and gasp. It's a massive lizard, eighty feet from head to tip, soaring across the sky. It circles over you, inspecting you carefully. As you prepare for your impending doom, it banks off and flies over the mountains ahead.";
14 = "A platoon of Empire soldiers, nervous and alert, comes near you. They don't approach or say anything. They only look you over and move off quickly. Their weapons were drawn and bows were nocked. Whatever they're looking for, they're very nervous about it.";
15 = "You come across the ruins of a small farming community. A half dozen farms were clustered around here. Then something destroyed them. The level of overgrowth makes you think that it happened at least six months ago.";
16 = "What gets your attention is the huge force that was brought to bear on these sturdy stone farmhouses. They were smashed apart, as if attacked with a battering ram. The stone clearly bears claw marks, left by the creatures that tore these homes apart.";
17 = "The efreeti and their pets lie dead before you. Alas, you find nothing to help you figure out where they came from or who sent them.";
18 = "You run away. When you look back, you see that the shade has faded.";
19 = "She slowly unzips her skin tight leather jumpsuit. _Oh boy_, you think.";
20 = "You encounter a band of Empire army deserters, hiking west to escape the carnage to the east. They seem to feel you're an easy target for a quick robbery.";
21 = "The wall to the west and the river to the east made this promontory a highly defensible Empire outpost. It was a perfect place to keep soldiers safe and fed when they weren't out marching.";
22 = "The outpost has been destroyed. Some creatures actually clawed their way through the thick stone walls, and the settlement was devastated. This happened some time ago. You only find broken weapons and crumbled buildings, soon to be overgrown.";
23 = "You find the site of a small battle between humans and golems. Unusually, the humans seem to have won decisively. You find the broken down remnants of thirty golems but no dead humans.";
24 = "There is a simple message carved into one of the shattered creatures: _Baziron Was Here._";
25 = "A small band of golems, faceless, powerful, tireless, and implacable, reaches you. They attack fearlessly.";
26 = "You meet a patrol of Empire soldiers. Unusually, they seem cleaned up, well equipped, and entirely professional. They tell you they're operating out of Tevrono under General Baziron, and to watch out for golems. Then they leave.";
27 = "This valley is deathly silent and devoid of life. The rocky ground is covered with a thin layer of slime. A heavy search reveals a cave entrance ahead. If you hadn't been told about it, you would never have found it.";
28 = "You set the money on the ground. A gazer swoops down. One of its eyestalks fires a ray. In a moment, the money is gone! As you try to figure out where it went, the creatures float off. One hisses back at you, _Go by. But, when you return, you must pay again, or die!_";
29 = "When the eyebeasts see that no payment is coming, they react with instant and potent violence.";
30 = "You walk straight into a golem ambush. They circle mechanically from the woods, looking for Empire soldiers to burn down. When they see you, some unseen logic grinds through their construct minds. They settle for attacking you.";
31 = "You return to where you met the concealed soldiers. Grateful for your delivery of their message, they invite you to sit by their fire for coffee and military-type camaraderie. They heal your wounds and bless you before you depart.";
32 = "They are clearly angered and offended by your refusal to help them. Your visit doesn't last long after that. They roughly blindfold you and march you off into the woods. When you can remove the blindfolds, you find you're alone.";
33 = "A patrol of Empire soldiers, marching close together with weapons at the ready, comes near you. When they see you aren't golems, however, you cease to be interesting to them. They march off without a word.";
34 = "The forest suddenly grows very silent. Slowly, a group of faceless gleaming statues comes into view, approaching you. They look you over carefully, seemingly analyzing you and estimating your strength. Then their programming tells them to attack you.";
35 = "When you move towards their line, the golems mindlessly walk forward to fight you.";
36 = "You join the soldiers for what looks like a simple battle. However, when golems start crawling over the railings of the bridge, you realize that the constructs have been programmed to set an ambush!";
37 = "The valley ends at a cliff. It's too high and steep to climb. At the top, you think you can see a pathway. Farther up, you see a line of smoke trailing up into the air. Someone must be living up there.";
38 = "The Empire army had a small fort here. It didn't last long in the face of golem fireball barrages. There isn't much of it left. It's been abandoned for months.";
39 = "You find the chopped up remains of a dozen fire golems. The surrounding vegetation isn't charred at all. The creatures were destroyed before they were even able to shoot back. One of them has 'Baziron' carved into its blank face.";
40 = "They give you a small, sealed scroll. Their captain says, _We know you're an Avernite, but we've heard that you can be trusted. Don't let us down. General Baziron needs to get this!_ They blindfold you again and take you back to where they found you.";
41 = "You encounter some of the hidden band of soldiers. Their memories of your refusing to help them are still fresh. The brush you off and disappear into the woods.";
42 = "You meet a patrol of Empire soldiers. They're clearly on edge, and clearly searching very carefully for something. They ask you if you've seen signs of 'the beasts' nearby. When they hear you haven't, they move on, relieved.";
43 = "There was a massive battle here. You would guess it took place about a year ago. Bits of broken metal and bone are everywhere, and the ground is still lightly stained with blood. The scars of fireballs are everywhere.";
44 = "You find several skeletons. They were large, four-legged creatures. The number of these you find is very small, compared to the size of the battlefield. It can't have gone very well for the humans.";
45 = "Twenty heavily armored guards are watching the bridge. They ask you if you've seen signs of 'the beasts' nearby. When they hear you haven't, they motion for you to move on, relieved.";
46 = "";
47 = "You find several human skeletons. The scraps of the robes they were wearing when they died hang from their bones. The alien beasts caught them inspecting the base of the wall and literally ripped them limb from limb. The creation of the wall quarantining Footracer Province was not built without great cost.";
48 = "This long bridge has been abandoned by the Empire. It is overgrown with ivy and moss. Although this was clearly a major trade route, merchants stopped coming here some time ago.";
49 = "";
50 = "When you enter this valley, you hear whispering. The sound is barely audible above the wind. It seems to be coming from farther up.";
51 = "";
52 = "When you try to enter the glade, a band of concealed soldiers step out of hiding and stop you. _You can't return to our camp. Just deliver that message. It's important, and Baziron will reward you._";
53 = "";
54 = "When the eyebeasts see that you don't have enough money, they react with instant and potent violence.";
55 = "This farmhouse is ruined. Large, clawed creatures smashed it to bits. There are signs of repairs, but the owners haven't had the courage to move back in yet.";
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60 = "When you emerge from the woods surrounding this remote town, men in the watchtowers shout an alarm. There is a lot of confused running around on their part until they realize you aren't bandits. Life is dangerous for a small, remote town in Valorim.";
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