#29300 Entrance to the Blue Trials~ You enter the musty area beneath the blue temple and stop in awe. The stonework here is simply incredible--a combination of dwarven stonemanship and elven artistry. On the wall there is an inscription: 'Only those who brave the elder beasts may arrive safely at the orb.' There is a door to the east. ~ 293 ad 0 D1 ~ door~ 1 -1 29301 D4 ~ ~ 0 0 29202 E info credits~ See KEROFK zone description room. ~ S #29301 Passageway~ It seems that door you just passed through disappeared behind you! The only way to go is forward, then, deeper into the passages. You're not sure if you feel comfortable about this... The passage continues south. ~ 293 ad 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29302 S #29302 Passageway~ Blank passageway, with bricks set so close together that any mason spotting such work would keel over in disbelief. The passage continues westwards, and back to the north. ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29301 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29303 S #29303 Passageway~ Another door is here, and you have a sneaking suspicion this one might disappear as well once you pass through. The passageway leads east back the way you came, and the door is to your south. ~ 293 ad 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29302 D2 ~ door~ 1 -1 29304 S #29304 Octagonal Room~ As you enter, you see a bright light spinning in the center of this octagonal room. Also, there are many bones of prior adventurers strewn about. Unfortunately, the door DID disappear behind you again... the only way out is east. ~ 293 d 0 D1 ~ door~ 1 -1 29305 S #29305 Passageway~ Back into passageway, and, once again, the door has disappeared behind you. The only way to go is north. ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29306 S #29306 Passageway~ Once again you find yourself up against a normal-seeming door in the north wall. The passageway leads a little way south, and then runs up against a dead end. One way to go, again. ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ door~ 1 -1 29307 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29305 S #29307 Trial~ This is a large rectangular room with three exits, doors to the north, east and west. The door you've come from has...disappeared! You are not surprised, however. There are some strange scuff marks on the floor, and you'd swear that discoloration is an old bloodstain. ~ 293 d 0 D0 ~ north~ 1 -1 29311 D1 ~ east~ 1 -1 29309 D3 ~ west~ 1 -1 29308 S #29308 Passageway~ The door behind you has disappeared, and you sigh. This is getting old. This is just a tiny room with a door to the south. You feel you know that door already. ~ 293 ad 0 D2 ~ door~ 1 -1 29301 S #29309 Passageway~ The door behind you melds into the stone walls without a trace. Whomever wasted the magical energies to these doors certainly had flair, if not a sense of humor. The passage continues southward. ~ 293 ad 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29310 S #29310 Passageway~ You've come to the end of the passage here. But, instead of a door, its a trapdoor! The excitement is palpable; a change of pace, perhaps? ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29309 D5 ~ trapdoor~ 1 -1 29302 S #29311 Passageway~ Here the passageway has two alcoves on the sides, each with a statue of some forgotten god. The plaques have rusted away so you can't even read the names. Probably these were devotions to Gods whose time was over and whose followers deserted. There is a trapdoor in the floor beyond them: the only way to go. ~ 293 ad 0 D5 ~ trapdoor~ 1 -1 29312 S #29312 Passageway~ You drop from the now-vanishing trapdoor above to this new passage. It runs to the east. You begin to wonder if you'll ever see Kerofk again... this maze is awful! ~ 293 ad 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29313 S #29313 Passageway~ The passage continues to the east and west out of your small circle of light in either direction. There seems to be nothing interesting here, just stonework and you. ~ 293 ad 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29314 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29312 S #29314 End of the Passageway~ The passageway ends here, with a door in the northern wall. The passage seems still and eerie. ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ door~ 1 -1 29315 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29313 S #29315 Second Trial~ Here are two doors, north and east. The door you came through is gone like chaff in the wind. There's no clue as to which door is the correct one to exit by, and you wonder if this is merely a test of guess. ~ 293 d 0 D0 ~ north~ 1 -1 29317 D1 ~ east~ 1 -1 29316 S #29316 Passageway~ You feel this was the wrong decision, somehow. There are two 'nests' here, for the lack of a better word, looking recently used. ~ 293 ad 0 D2 ~ door~ 1 -1 29301 S #29317 Passageway~ You feel you have made the right decision, somehow. The door behind you has vanished, but the passageway leads away to the north. ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29318 S #29318 Passageway~ Here is a door to the north. A plaque next to it reads, 'The Trial of Defense! '. You get a BAD feeling about this room ahead. ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ door~ 1 -1 29319 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29317 S #29319 Trial of Defense!~ This is a small close room, with a door exact opposite from where you entered. The door behind you is conveniently gone. ~ 293 d 0 D0 ~ door~ 1 -1 29320 S #29320 Passageway (Again!)~ You feel relief pass over you for a moment. This place looks to be a nice, safe place to rest if you've ever seen one. ~ 293 acd 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29321 S #29321 Passageway~ Now you are in a twisty set of passageways, and feel rather lost! ~ 293 ad 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29322 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29320 S #29322 Passageway~ Now you are in a twisty set of passageways, and feel rather lost! ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29321 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29323 S #29323 Passageway~ Now you are in a twisty set of passageways, and feel rather lost! ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29324 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29322 S #29324 Passageway's End~ You seem to have come to the end of the twisty passageways, with no discernable exit. Could there be something hidden here? ~ 293 ad 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29325 S #29325 Trial of Persistence~ In this plain, square room, there are four doors, each at a corner of the compass. They all look exactly the same, and for a moment you feel confused. ~ 293 d 0 D0 ~ north~ 1 -1 29327 D1 ~ east~ 1 -1 29326 D2 ~ south~ 1 -1 29326 D3 ~ west~ 1 -1 29326 S #29326 Passageway~ You feel you have chosen the wrong exit, but there seems to be a hole in the floor as the only exit. Odd... ~ 293 ad 0 D5 ~ ~ 0 -1 29320 S #29327 Passageway~ The passageway leads away to the north, and you feel you have chosen correctly again. What luck! ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29328 S #29328 Passageway~ There is a door to your north, with a plaque that says, 'The Trial of Death!' Uh-oh. You wonder if you've a scroll of recall... ~ 293 ad 0 D0 ~ door~ 1 -1 29329 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29327 S #29329 Killed by Arrow Traps!~ Suddenly thousands of arrows pepper your body...turning you into a giant pincushion!!!! YOU ARE DEAD (R.I.P.!) Welcome to The Builder Academy (TBA)! 0) Exit from TBA. 1) Enter TBA. 2) Enter description. 3) Read the background story. 4) Change password. 5) Delete this character. Make your choice: (and then, the illusion and shock slowly fades away.) ~ 293 d 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29330 S #29330 Alcove~ Up ahead, you see a bright light, much brighter than most mundane light sources you've seen. It seems to be coming from a small globe in the next room, resting on a pedestal. ~ 293 d 0 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29331 S #29331 Pedestal of the Orb!~ This is a large square room. All around on the walls there are friezes of dwarves and elves, pictured worshiping the very orb that hovers above the pedestal in the middle of this very room. The pedestal is pure gold, and the orb hovers above it, humming and glowing with such radiance you can barely see its form. This, then, is the object of your quest. ~ 293 cd 0 D0 ~ door~ 1 -1 29332 S #29332 Temple of MouseRider~ Here you are again at the Temple of MouseRider, through a bizarre twist of space. The main entrance seems to be gone, however... MouseRider is clutching one of the shards of the destroyed orb. He laughs evilly as he takes a vicious dagger and disembowls himself, spilling organs all over his feet and the floor. 'Fools!' he cries, 'I am now an immortal, I am now a liche!!' He laughs, and directs his minions to attack! ~ 293 cd 0 D0 ~ door~ 1 -1 29333 S #29333 Void~ Mouserider's bedroom is gone. You float in space, and several objects wink into being around you. A reward from the gods, perhaps? A rift opens in space below you, and you spot the street outside the White Temple in Kerofk. A voice booms around you: "Take these toys, and remember this: don't expect plot continuity from a mud!" You feel relief. ~ 293 cd 0 S #29334 View of a City~ Incredible! From this vantage point you see a huge city to your east, large enough to hold thousands of people. Great walls encircle the city, no doubt to keep the marauding monsters at bay. The city is in a VERY defensible spot in that over half its length is sprawled along the edge of a cliff. Beyond the cliff you see a dark ocean, reflecting the starlight above very feebly. The road continues west down the rise, and east, towards the city on the edge. ~ 293 d 2 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29335 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29341 S #29335 Near the City~ You are very near the city now. There is a great gate to your east, with guards slowly letting people in and out. The walls surrounding the city seem impassable, but several scorch marks along its length tells a different stories about war and raids. To your west is a rise where you may get a better vantage point of the city. ~ 293 d 2 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29277 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29334 S #29336 Dirt Road~ The road travels north-south here along the side of the mountains. To the north you see some cultivated fields, and to the south a fork in the road. The sky above seems eerie, especially to the west where the glow of the normal sky brightens the horizon... ~ 293 d 2 D0 ~ ~ 0 -1 29337 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29341 S #29337 Turn in the Road~ The road turns here to the east. Around you you see small cultivated fields, tended by farmers who seem paranoid and quick. The vegetables they are harvesting seem pale and lifeless by your standards, with a few you've never seen the likes of before. From several burned out shells of houses you guess the farmers just try to grow what they can before the city is put under siege again. ~ 293 d 2 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29338 D2 ~ ~ 0 -1 29336 S #29338 A City on the Edge~ From here you see a great walled city from the side. Only half is walled, the other half sprawled directly on the edge of a great cliff which drops down into a dark ocean below. To the east you see a small gate in the city, which farmers are going into and out of sporadically. ~ 293 d 2 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29339 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29337 S #29339 Fields near a City~ There are some more small fields here, and more burned out houses. From the smell of charred wood and the sounds of fresh construction, you guess that the last raze didn't happen long ago... ~ 293 d 2 D1 ~ ~ 0 -1 29340 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29338 S #29340 Near a City~ There is small gate to your east where guards let farmers into and out of the city with their produce. The walls seem indestructible, but scorch marks along its length tell a different story... ~ 293 d 2 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29276 D3 ~ ~ 0 -1 29339 S #29341 Dirt Road~ The road you stand on forks several directions here, one leading to the north out of sight in the starlit sky, one leading up a hill to the east, and towards the mountains to the west. It seems very quiet and peaceful here. A breeze caresses your face. ~ 293 d 2 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29336 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29334 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29342 S #29342 Dirt Road~ The road continues east and west from here. To the west you see brightness seeping over and between the mountains. Eastwards the strange, unnatural night sky spreads over anything, its permanent stars lighting the landscape with an eerie glow. ~ 293 d 2 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29341 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29343 S #29343 Dirt Road~ You are standing in the foothills before the mountains. A road leads away under the starry sky to the east, and a mountain pass heads up and through to the north. The scenery on this side of the mountains seems bleak and lifeless, probably due to the lack of sun. ~ 293 d 4 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29344 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29342 S #29344 Mountain Pass~ The mountain pass leads up to the west, and downwards to the south. There seems to be a strange half twilight farther to the west, casting an eerie glow over the stones and shrubberies around. You can see a large dark plain to the east that the sun never seems to have shone upon, making it appear to be otherworldly somehow... ~ 293 d 4 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29343 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29345 S #29345 Mountain Pass~ You are standing at the apex of the mountain pass, the normal sky to your west, and the strange night sky to your east. The edge of the night is clearly delineated above you...a sharp edge separating night from normal, as it were. Very odd...you wonder what could be causing this unnatural darkness. ~ 293 0 4 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29344 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29346 S #29346 Mountain Pass~ The mountains rise up here, the small pass you are on wending its way up to the north. The sky seems dark above the mountains, as if the mountains were a dividing line keeping back the night. The pass also leads back down to the ~ 293 0 4 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29345 S #29347 Fleecem and Son~ This is a small, hole in the wall office, lined with boxes and crates of paper and files. An old, beaten-up desk stands near the door, very much on its last legs. The air is thick and humid, the decorations too garish, the space is too crowded. A name plaque on the desk says 'Bungle Fleecem, Esq.' ~ 293 d 0 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29230 S #29348 Graveyard Entrance~ You stand on a path in an eerie graveyard. An archway leads north to Moon Gate Road, and the path continues to the east and south. In the gloom of night and the twinkling stars above, the tombstones seem to take a life of their own in a storybook way. You don't think it would be the kind of storybook you would be interested in... ~ 293 cd 1 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29228 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29349 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29351 S #29349 Graveyard~ This path leads through the graveyard south and west. You notice several graves have been disturbed here, and one grave has been entirely dug up. The bones of a dead dwarf lie exposed at the bottom of the grave, its hands seemingly to clutch at the sky. The tombstone at the head of the grave is completely unreadable. ~ 293 d 1 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29350 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29348 S #29350 Graveyard~ You stand in the south-east corner of the graveyard. The tombstones here are old and weathered by age and elements. Some are toppled over. Some grass grows sparsely around the rocks, paled by the lack of sun. In this area, you feel the peace of death, instead of the decay usually associated with graveyards. ~ 293 d 1 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29349 D3 ~ ~ 0 0 29351 S #29351 Graveyard~ The earth here has been freshly turned up, the graves recent. The headstones tell tale of faithful wives and brave husbands, meeting their ends with dignity and aplomb. Two pits are dug near the wall for a burial yet to take place. You feel strangely chilled by the night air... ~ 293 d 1 D0 ~ ~ 0 0 29348 D1 ~ ~ 0 0 29350 S #29352 Farmer's Stand~ A few wooden stands here are filled with fruits and vegetables grown under this endless night sky. This place seems to get good business, but not enthusiastic customers. You can understand why from the quality of the wares. ~ 293 d 0 D2 ~ ~ 0 0 29220 S $~