// Text Library  - 

// towns 40-49

begintextlibrary;

1 = "You return to the Portal Fortress, the tower where everyone arrives in Upper Avernum. You recall that the huge hall to the southwest contains a powerful teleporter. It carries people and supplies to and from the Tower of Magi down in Avernum.";
2 = "This tunnel looks like it was dug in extreme haste and then shored up with a rough stone wall. The air is still and icy cold. Nobody has been back here for some time.";
3 = "You back away from the button slowly. Nothing harms you.";
4 = "You press the button. It stays pushed in. There's no noise, no click, no hum, no nothing. Just total silence. You get a very bad feeling and start to move back up the corridor to the north. You walk at first, and then run. You don't make it.";
5 = "The explosion blows through thirty feet of rock, creating a new tunnel leading into the chamber with the portal. The blast also shatters every bone in your bodies and turns your flesh to liquid. Whatever magical protection you needed to save yourself, you didn't have it.";
6 = "You move closer to the portal, but waves of heat and force start to push you back. Ripples of fiery red appear in its surface. You push harder, trying to get inside.";
7 = "Seles jumps up and stops you. _What are you doing? The portal doesn't go anywhere now! You step in, and bits of you will be scattered from here to the sun! Idiot!_ Chastened, you back away from the portal.";
8 = "You start to walk towards the portal. When you do, Seles yells, _Stop!_ and guards run up to restrain you. You are marched quickly away from the portal.";
9 = "Seles walks up to you annoyed. _What did you think you were doing? You must get permission specifically from me to use the portal. Said permission you do not have. Now back off!_ The guards release you and give you nasty looks.";
10 = "You start to walk into the portal. You feel resistance as you approach. Waves of heat and force try to throw you back. You push harder, moving slowly and carefully into the glowing pillar of energy.";
11 = "Soon, everything goes black. Then yellow, then orange, then green, then colors you don't have words for. Then you find yourself elsewhere...";
12 = "In this center of this cavern, you see the portal through which you arrived in Upper Avernum. It's ten feet high, glows with intense energy, and, even at this distance, makes your skin tingle. A mage with a journal stands in front of it.";
13 = "It was frightening to go through it the first time. You don't feel too enthusiastic about being near it again. Its constantly shifting surface bathes everything around it in a sickly blue light.";
14 = "This small laboratory is well lit with torches. It's very quiet and dusty. Not much gets done here now. The chisels, hammers, and other tools indicate what these chambers were used for.";
15 = "This is the crystal shaping chamber. Humans borrowed many magical techniques from the vahnatai, all of them involving various sorts of crystals. The portal to the west is powered by a pair of huge magical crystals, made here with vahnatai aid.";
16 = "An invisible force holds a crystal upright and perfectly still on this platform. The magic must hold the stone ready for precise cutting.";
17 = "This small chamber is probably being used to store crystals. You smell unwashed beast and hear soft, raspy breathing. A guard has been left behind.";
18 = "This room is filled with papers, journals, booklets, maps, schedules, inventories, and people manipulating, studying, reading, writing on, shredding, crying over, and generally dealing with these records. This must be where the fort's planning takes place.";
19 = "This is a very bad place to cause trouble. Massive waves of guards have no trouble disarming you and hauling you off. You are immediately deemed unfit to be Avernum's champion in the surface world. Your adventure ends here.";
20 = "There is a round hole in the east wall, six feet up, two feet in diameter, heavily slicked with grease. There's no way to work your way up it, and it's too dark and twisty to see the end of it.";
21 = "With the typical disregard for hygiene and aesthetics, the goblins have been throwing their filth, bits of rotting food, and general excretions down this slope for some time. It's pretty gross.";
22 = "You find the pitiful remains of what was once a human being. You see on her shoulder a scrap of what looks like a uniform of the army of Avernum. It's too unpleasant to look any closer than that.";
23 = "The goblin stink gets really thick in this narrow passage. Even from here, you can tell that a bunch of these creatures are living to the south.";
24 = "The furs in this goblin lair are less rotten, the air less fetid, the scraps of food mildly fresher. The higher status goblins must receive the privilege of living here.";
25 = "This passage has the best construction of anything you've seen in the goblin lair so far, which, granted, isn't saying much. It actually has a cut stone floor. A solid cavewood door is set in the north wall.";
26 = "Not sure why you're doing it, you utter a brief prayer or two to the goblin's dark god. Nothing happens. This time.";
27 = "You utter the powerful words and focus your holy energy into the rough altar. The evil energy in this altar is very weak. It blows away like feathers in a strong breeze. The altar is now nothing but mundane rock.";
28 = "It's very rusty, but you manage to turn the wheel. It controls the gate to the north.";
29 = "Like most settlements in Avernum, this bandit lair has a small shrine. The temple is small and dark. The altar itself is non-magical and slightly dusty.";
30 = "";
31 = "The bandits have been dumping their trash in this cave, a suitable distance from where they actually live. Like all trash pits in Avernum, the stuff is being very slow to decompose, and the stillness of the air maintains an unbearable stench.";
32 = "Your head gone, the creature sews the head of a small dog on the stump in its place. Boy, do you feel silly.";
33 = "This bizarre, bulbous building is clearly of vahnatai construction. The stone looks not so much cut or shaped as grown. The walls are round, smooth bubbles of rock. Eerie, silent passages lead inside.";
34 = "";
35 = "When you bend close to the crystal, odd magical runes begin scrolling rapidly up its surface. You concentrate hard on them. After a time, they repeat, and repeat again. However, your magical knowledge is inadequate to decipher them.";
36 = "When you bend close to the crystal, odd magical runes begin scrolling rapidly up its surface. You concentrate hard on them. As they begin to repeat, they start to make a little bit of sense. You try to figure out what they're saying.";
37 = "This chamber is still and solemn. It is a sacred place for the vahnatai. To the north is a smooth, deep blue pool, dotted with intense flames floating on its surface.";
38 = "Two large stone platforms rise from the pool. Bridges cross over to them. This room serves as a home for two of the vahnatai's sacred leaders: the Crystal Souls. They are the spirits of their most revered ancestors, given physical form.";
39 = "You approach a magical barrier. It's just a faint shimmering in the air. You don't feel any sort of heat or cold or static electricity. It's just that, when you get close, your muscles simply refuse to move you down the corridor any further. You back away.";
40 = "The moment you brush against the crystal, a blast of energy flies out and washes over you. You leap back. Eventually, the sharp, agonizing pain fades away. Vahnatai magic comes with no safety mechanisms.";
41 = "As you approach the chamber to the west, every hair on your body stands up. It is a magical laboratory, cluttered with apparatus and fully engaged in research. Everything here is charged with energy.";
42 = "There are glowing crystals on the two stone platforms in the middle of the room. Above them, the air warps and shimmers, like above a fire.";
43 = "You reach the entry hall of Ghikra. Ghikra is not so much a town as a diplomatic settlement, where your vahnatai allies keep in touch with the people of Avernum. It is strangely silent. There are no guards. There must be a different sort of protection.";
44 = "The entry hall is decorated in the vahnatai style. There are statues and pools arranged in odd formations. The placement seems random to you, but it must have great aesthetic value to them. Curving passages lead off into the shadows.";
45 = "This case contains hammers, knives, and other tools for the working and shaping of crystals. Worthless to you.";
46 = "The passage is blocked by a wall of energy. You've developed a pretty good feel for when you can get past a magical barrier and when you can't. You're outclassed here. You back away.";
47 = "Suddenly, flames erupt from the fire pit to the south! You shield your eyes from the bright light. When you look again, a moment later, three beings are there that weren't there before. They are the guardians of this passage, and they don't look happy...";
48 = "You approach the glowing door in the air. With a flash of light and a strange, vertiginous feeling, you are reunited with your party.";
49 = "In your last few moments of life, you realize why the vahnatai didn't need any guards in Ghikra. Flames shoot from the walls and turn you to ash. The Empire stole three Crystal Souls from them once. They made sure that nobody could rob them again.";
50 = "Ghikra is now completely silent. Now that you know the vahnatai are responsible for the horrors on the surface, you approach with extreme caution.";
51 = "This is a lovely, carved wood chest, lined with mother of pearl. It must have been smuggled down from the surface. You open it and find that it is padded inside and lined with fine velvet. The box is empty.";
52 = "The chest contains several round, smooth red amulets, one for each of you. You take them and put them on. You feel a pleasant cool feeling while wearing them.";
53 = "You open the chest, and find a small blue crystal with a glimmering light flickering inside it. There's something about the light that seems almost alive. You pick up the crystal and put it in your pack.";
54 = "The chest contains a beautiful steel sword, its pommel wrapped in shiny lizard skin. You reverently pick it up. It must be designed to slay dragons.";
55 = "Remembering what Commander Johnson told you, you turn to the wall and say, 'Galros.' Sure enough, a section of the east wall of the building slowly fades away. A corridor leads into the dark bunker. There is a peculiar, pungent smell, like burning herbs.";
56 = "New Formello is still under construction. Many of the buildings are incomplete, and everything looks new. Interestingly, some of the buildings look like they were made by sliths. Many of them have come up from Avernum to help the humans settle the surface.";
57 = "Several of the massive insects that infest Upper Avernum have hidden back here. They ambush whatever fresh meat they can. They greet the arrival of prey with great enthusiasm.";
58 = "This chamber contains several huge rock pillars. They are being knocked apart to get stone to build New Formello. Stones from the huge rock formations are stacked all around you. It must have taken great effort to break them loose.";
59 = "From among the huge rock pillars to the west, you hear a soft chittering noise.";
60 = "This room is full of building supplies: hammers, picks, shovels, and the like. Very little of it is useful to you.";
61 = "You spend a long, uncomfortable night, filled with tossing, turning, and strange dreams. The dampness of the room sinks into everything.";
62 = "When you wake up the next morning, you feel rested, but only a little. You also feel cold, moist, and uncomfortable.";
63 = "You walk into a peculiar room. It contains only a large stone chair edged with gold leaf. It is surrounded by a pattern of runes made of carved agate, embedded in the floor. They glow slightly.";
64 = "Suddenly, a secret door opens slightly in the south wall. A hooded figure pokes out his head and sees you. He mutters a command and pulls his head back. As you prepare to charge after him, the runes flash once ...";
65 = "You are at the entry to a magical laboratory. There is all manner of esoteric clutter piled in every corner. Strange, constantly changing smells waft through the air. The floor is covered with small blobs of slime, moving around like little slugs.";
66 = "You peek into the cauldrons and jump back, repulsed. There is slime cooking in there, one color of slime for each pot. You aren't sure whether Bojar was trying to make slimes himself or render down slimes he found elsewhere.";
67 = "Either way, the sight and smell makes you ill. You notice that the insides of the cauldron are covered with a thin layer of glass to keep the acids from the dead slimes from eating through the metal.";
68 = "You finally reach Bojar's bedroom and library. A thin residue of slime covers everything. The bookshelves on the north wall are mostly bare, but there is a large book on a pedestal in the corner. It's open, and the ink on the exposed pages looks fresh.";
69 = "The smell coming from the cave ahead is a combination of rotting flesh, old cheese, and garlic. There is a thin layer of clear, mucous-like substance on the floor. There are also several spines, dried and bent, each about a foot long. And bones. Lots and lots of bones. You are approaching something dangerous.";
70 = "This is the body of one of the fort's brigands. He died from multiple stab wounds to the legs. Your guess: the goblins killed him and hid him here. Probably just dungeon politics.";
71 = "The brigands and goblins have responsibly opted to store up a little extra food for hard times. In this cave, mushrooms grow in neat rows. They are carefully tended by goblin lackeys.";
72 = "The cabinet is filled with Erika's notes on the vahnatai. There are drawings, biological notes, musings on their thoughts and philosophy, and many pages of _Yet Unanswered Questions._ It's all pretty technical, and you don't get much out of it.";
73 = "You find the withered body of an Empire soldier. Erika left him here to starve to death.";
74 = "This chilly cave is the spiders' larder. Cockroaches, most of them the size of a small dog, lie paralyzed in thick coffins of webbing. They wait here patiently for a hungry arachnid to walk in and suck their insides out. Spiders only eat live prey.";
75 = "Whoever occupied these ruins before the spiders moved in, they weren't stupid. They removed from this hidden treasure room everything they could carry before they departed. Not much remains.";
76 = "You cut open the webbing and a huge cockroach laboriously works its way out. Showing the thoughtfulness and kindness these creatures are known for, it attacks you immediately.";
77 = "You kill the struggling cockroach with one swift blow. The spiders will be very mad at you for spoiling their feast. Spiders, intelligent or not, only like to eat things that are still alive.";
78 = "Whoever lived in these ruins emptied this chest before leaving. It has mold in it and nothing else.";
79 = "A few pieces of rotting furniture are all that are left in these barracks. They provide few clues to who built and abandoned this place. They used beds and were human or human-sized. That's all you can tell.";
80 = "As you get close to the dark altar, it begins to glow. It seems to detect something is amiss. The glow fades, and guards appear.";
81 = "The spiders never bothered to make their way into this small shrine, and that was probably a wise idea. Whoever first built this complex had very grim taste in architecture. This room has an odd, malevolent chill. Whatever dark magic lives here, it has not faded with time.";
82 = "This charred pit was probably used as a smelter. There are still ashes and bits of charcoal at the bottom. It's been abandoned for some time.";
83 = "A cave-in has deposited a huge, cracked boulder into this passage, blocking it. The boulder is massive, but you think that some sort of powerful magic might be able to dislodge it.";
84 = "The spiders have rather ingeniously set up cockroach pens here. You hear hissing and smell garbage. The roaches grow up on their own down here and eventually wander out, where they're pounced on, paralyzed, and devoured. Very clever.";
85 = "The powerful ritual easily disrupts the altar's dark energy. Alas, as the altar shatters, it triggers its final trap. Whatever cultists built these ruins, they were quite powerful ...";
86 = "This pedestal has a small statue and memorial plaque on top. The plaque reads: _In memory of Zelaz, lost in the Fort Emergence Raid. May what's left of him find peace._";
87 = "This pedestal has a small statue and memorial plaque on top. The plaque reads: _To Corinda, accidentally teleported into solid rock. We apologize sincerely._";
88 = "This pedestal has a small statue and memorial plaque on top. The plaque reads: _To Volorb, lost during routine training._";
89 = "This pedestal has a small statue and memorial plaque on top. The plaque reads: _To Heustess, lost during commission of routine procedures._";
90 = "This pedestal has a small statue and memorial plaque on top. The plaque reads: _To Kricfalusi, who mysteriously and suddenly dissolved._";
91 = "";
92 = "This room is full of crude, stone counters. They are covered with a wild variety of items, some rare, some common, some quite odd. This must be where the cult stuffs the items which they don't find worthy of worship.";
93 = "These damp stone cells are where the members of the cult come to sit, meditate, and suffer in order to purify themselves. This is a grim place, with mold (and worse) on the floors.";
94 = "This is where the cult does its training. There are several clubs and staves on the floor, each with brownish stuff dried on the ends. Evidently, the cult trains people by having them beat each other senseless with big sticks until skills appear.";
95 = "";
96 = "The books are on different sorts of items. One interesting one, by 'Rita of Patrick's Tower,' mentions that a Radiant Shield will protect the recipient from being turned to stone, and the ritual of Mass Curing can help provide rapid exit from a forcecage.";
97 = "This pedestal has a small statue and memorial plaque on top. The plaque reads: _To Eileen, lost while carrying a bar of metal._";
98 = "The crystal is dark.";
99 = "You almost receive a magical vision. However, your magical skills are not strong enough. It disappears.";
100 = "You receive a vision! You see a huge lizard, undoubtedly a dragon. It casts a spell, and several large golems appear! They march off, and the vision fades. Very interesting. Anaximander should hear of this!";
101 = "You kneel and offer an insincere prayer to the dark altar, more out of curiosity than anything else. Nothing happens. When you stand up, however, your hand brushes the altar. It glows red at your touch and monsters appear.";
102 = "Gingerly, you kneel at the altar again. Nothing happens. You wait. Nothing continues to happen. You can still feel dark energy emanating from the altar. It just isn't bothering with you.";
103 = "You focus your holy energy into the altar, trying to break up and dispel the evil magic. You succeed. The foul forces dissipate, and fine cracks appear all over the altar. A small victory!";
104 = "This large cave is dominated by one feature: a huge tower of green goo. It constantly bubbles, hisses, and emits puffs of dangerous-looking gas. Every surface of the cavern is covered with a thin layer of slime. There are piles of rotting vegetation in the corners. That must be what is fed to this monster, to be converted into horrors.";
105 = "And you are lucky enough to see the process in action! As you watch, a tiny ocher slime crawls out of the green beast's upper spout! It slides around a bit and then is absorbed back in by tentacles in the thing's base. The slimes must be created using these horrid constructs!";
106 = "This is clearly a spellbook. Unfortunately, the directions, ingredient lists, and incantations are beyond your comprehension. Eventually you wander away, unenlightened and frustrated.";
107 = "The book is a spellbook, and while it's a bit esoteric and not entirely clear, you can make sense of some of it. In particular, you understand the instructions for one mage spell. You now know the spell Minor Summoning.";
108 = "The altar is still cracked, inert, and unthreatening. Nothing useful here.";
109 = "Ouch! That smarts!";
110 = "When you reach for it, a spark flies from the amulet and burns your hand. You jump back, startled. Even that brief contact left you with a nasty burn. You leave the amulet alone.";
111 = "When you get close to this float,  a small spark drifts out of it and floats away. As the spark drifts, it starts to get larger and larger.";
112 = "Erika's door has an imposing number of potent glyphs and sigils on it, many of them surrounding a polished steel keyhole. The door is locked, and none of your keys work.";
113 = "There is a flash of light. You suddenly find yourself somewhere else.";
114 = "You draw your blades. Erika looks strangely unconcerned. As you approach, billows of flame erupt from all around you. The floor, walls, and ceiling vomit searing waves of heat upon you. In moments, the air around you is hot enough to reduce you to ash...";
115 = "... but then nothing happens. The amulets protected you! Erika looks alarmed. Then she stands, readying herself for the challenging work of killing you...";
116 = "You pull the lever. It controls the nearby portcullises.";
117 = "You take a sip of the water. It's brackish, slightly slimy, and not at all pleasant. After you stop gagging, you feel a tiny bit queasy.";
118 = "You wash your hands in the slimy water. They come away about twice as dirty as they were before you washed them.";
119 = "A deep voice booms out, _You are impure, interlopers!_ A bolt of lightning flies from one of the walls, no doubt to provide a little positive behavior modification.";
120 = "Your hands tingle. A sweet smell fills the air, and little motes of light appear and dance around you. A deep soothing voice from out of nowhere says, _You are clean. You may proceed._ The lights and the voice then disappear.";
121 = "The padlock holding this door closed looks extremely crude and simple. Even though the gold rune set into it implies some sort of magical protection, you're still confident that you'll be able to get it open.";
122 = "The padlock holding this door closed looks incredibly crude and simple. The gold rune on it, however, makes you suspect magic. Fortunately, the marble key you found earlier unlocks the padlock.";
123 = "You press the button and hear a rumbling, crackling noise from the portal chamber. You would guess that you have just reenergized the portal. Maybe you can finally go home.";
124 = "You enter the most sacred, well-guarded room in the fortress of this bizarre cult. It's the display chamber for their most valued artifacts. There are six alcoves, each with a large case designed to store some valuable (and stolen) item.";
125 = "You approach the teleporter, but then you realize you haven't yet retrieved the Orb of Thralni. If you give the cultists a chance to get away with their ill-gotten gains, it's unlikely you'll ever find them again. Regretfully, you turn back.";
126 = "Holding the Orb of Thralni close, you approach the cultists' portal. Hopefully, it will send you somewhere near home. As you approach, however, the portal suddenly fades and loses energy. You can no longer use it!";
127 = "You look around and watch in alarm as a band of cultists fades into view, surrounding you! They are led by the cult's massive, gaudily dressed, powerful leader. They're fully prepared to take back everything you stole, and a few more items in addition.";
128 = "Nervously, you step near the cultists' jury-rigged, unstable teleporter. Uttering a few quick prayers and reminding yourselves it's your only route out of here, you step in. You black out. Eventually, you wake up ...";
129 = "The portal is still there, but it's in a low energy state. It has enough energy to continue to exist, but not to carry anyone anywhere. You have to find a way to power it up before you can escape.";
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