// Text Library  - 

begintextlibrary;

1 = "You find a packet of notes describing the sinister archmage Garzahd, powerful leader of the Empire forces invading Avernum. It concludes that his defenses are incredible, but a mage living near Formello, Solberg, may know how to deal with him.";
2 = "You find a book on magical barriers. It's pretty dry, but it makes one interesting comment. Some powerful magical barriers are resistant to the dispel barrier spell, but they can be brought down by exposure to quickfire. You take note of this.";
3 = "This is an Avernite military report. It describes Fort Dolthar, a large Empire installation on an island northeast of Fort Emerald. It mentions that spies saw a group of tall thin alien beings there, entering the fort with two Empire dervishes.";
4 = "Sixus and his helpers must have hastily constructed this compound. The wall here is crumbling.";
5 = "This door is huge and made of steel. It also has several rings of magical symbols, no doubt placed there for protection.";
6 = "You hear a grinding noise to the south. You hope that it's not bad news.";
7 = "On this bookshelf, you find an Avernite military report. It mentions three Empire installations in the caves southwest of Dharmon: a tower filled with sinister mages doing weird experiments, the cave of Sulfras the dragon, and, largest of the three, the fortress Angierach.";
8 = "These scrolls are covered with bizarre gibberish. Head spinning, you replace them on the shelf.";
9 = "These scrolls are covered with magical incantations in an obscure runic language. Fortunately, you manage to decipher them. They're descriptions of interesting rituals - you now know the spell Force Barrier.";
10 = "The air ahead of you shimmers, and, in a moment, several defenders are standing in front of you. They were waiting invisibly and hoping that you would turn back. Now that you haven't, they have given up hope. They are ready to die to protect Sixus.";
11 = "You dish up several bowls of hot, hearty stew. It is filling and refreshing, and you quickly eat your fill. It is only later, when the pain shoots through your gut, that you realize that the stuff was left for you as a trap for intruders.";
12 = "The walls of the passage to the west leak drips of water and are crumbling slightly. The construction here is of very poor quality.";
13 = "With a loud grinding noise, the wall in front of you slides away.";
14 = "When the statues realize no food is forthcoming, they flex their muscles and hiss at you menacingly. You back away, and they return to their inanimate forms.";
15 = "As soon as you open your food bags, the statues go mad with hunger. They leap forward, ripping your food from your hands, and devouring it. Then they back away and turn solid again. You check your possessions. All of your food is gone.";
16 = "This chamber is split into thirds by two wide pools. There are several giants waiting for you at the north end. Well, fake giants. They are sculpted from painted wax. The constructs sway from side to side, patiently waiting for you.";
17 = "As you approach the gate, you step on the runed stone pad. Lightning races down the iron bars, forcing you back. The bolts of energy fade away, and you hear a soft clicking noise coming from the levers to the south. Then all is quiet.";
18 = "The walls of Fort Dranlon are a formidable sight. They are scorched, stained, and studded with vicious looking spikes. There are glowing glyphs etched in the cave floor at regular intervals, traps to slow and sear attackers. Every surface has been scorched by spells, thrown by warriors from both sides.";
19 = "This small shrine shows signs of frequent visitation. The kneeling pads have been worn threadbare by the beleaguered soldiers of Fort Dranlon.";
20 = "There is a stone platform here, used for defense of the fort or surveillance of the nearby area. It's very exposed. No doubt many defenders up there have been clipped by enemy spells.";
21 = "You find a tiny cramped office, tucked in next to the barracks.";
22 = "";
23 = "When you cast a spell, a white glow appears around the altar, shimmers a bit, flashes brightly, and fades. It would seem the altar has no special evil magic about it - it's just a black block of stone.";
24 = "Mmm! Tastes just like beef stew! Delicious!";
25 = "Hmm. This tastes like old, melted cheese. Bad cheese. You leave the remains of the meal uneaten.";
26 = "Ugh. It tastes like the inside of your boots (or at least your best guess of what the inside of your boots tastes like, as, fortunately, the indignities you have been forced to suffer in the underworld have not yet included tasting the inside of your boots). You feel ill.";
27 = "These bookshelves are mostly empty. The few scrolls remaining are either blank or filled with meandering, worthless notes. Someone has recently gone to great pains to pack up and remove everything valuable. Quite a disappointment.";
28 = "You reach the altar, but you don't quite make it. You have reached the first layer of the tower's defenses. Several small clouds of sulfurous smoke erupt behind you. As they fade, guardians appear.";
29 = "As you enter the lecture hall, you step on a glowing rune. There is a flash of light and a cloud of foul smoke. Defenders appear.";
30 = "Moans and angry howls echo down the corridors of this level of the tower. The stench of strange creatures hangs heavy in the air.";
31 = "This chamber contains several magical cages. Here, captured beasts (and humans) may be held for study (or worse). Very unpleasant, but par for the course for the Empire.";
32 = "This is a desk of an Empire scribe. Here, the tedious work of copying and recopying scrolls has been taking place. However, a quick search reveals that anything secret or valuable has recently been removed.";
33 = "One moment, there were no guards before you. The next moment, there were. Several of them. Very, very large guards.";
34 = "There is a bright flash of light. You blink a bit and wait for your head to clear. You feel very disoriented.";
35 = "For a powerful fortress of the Empire, this place is eerily quiet. You see neither mages going about their studies nor guards on patrol. You can't imagine that you could have gotten this far without Elderan knowing that you're here.";
36 = "Suddenly, bright blue motes of light fall from the ceiling. The room grows very cold.";
37 = "Suddenly, the western wall of this room slides into the floor! With a roaring noise and a blast of heat, flames pour out of the opening, racing towards you!";
38 = "The book is fascinating! It describes powerful, elaborate magical rituals in a clear, concise manner. You learn a lot in a short time ...";
39 = "The tome describes bizarre, horrifying rituals. You find yourself compelled to read the tome aloud. It takes some time to build up the strength to do so, but you finally slam the book shut. Your mind feels numb.";
40 = "The box contains the skin of an entire giant, carefully removed and tanned. It's a big bundle. Eww. You close the box again.";
41 = "You step out onto the roof of the tower. It is a large courtyard with a clear, sparkling pool. The courtyard is surrounded by a high wall and the ground is tiled with large, smooth granite slabs. From here, you have a fantastic view of the lands and river to the south and east.";
42 = "This room is dominated by a large pit, filled with molten metal. The blast of hot air when you open the door singes your eyebrows. You can't see any source for the searing heat. Powerful magic fuels this room.";
43 = "You try to make sense of the tome. It's written in an esoteric variety of magical script, currently in vogue on the surface. You fail to decipher it.";
44 = "The Empire archmage Elderan falls. The loss of his skills is a severe blow to the Empire army.";
45 = "You pull the lever. It shifts back to its original position with a loud clang. One of the pillars slides silently into the floor. You hear a soft chiming noise. Each of the three crystals to the north flashes brightly for a moment.";
46 = "You pull the lever. It shifts back to its original position with a loud clang. Nothing else happens.";
47 = "The lever controls one of the cages. When you pull it, it snaps back to its original position, and a section of wall slides out of the way.";
48 = "Try as you might, the book is just too complicated to understand. If you just knew a little bit more about magic...";
49 = "You hear a distant clanking noise.";
50 = "Now you know where the giants' seemingly unending supply of throwing stones comes from. They smash them out of large boulders and use crude hammers to round and shape them for maximum throwability. You learn something new every day.";
51 = "Every building in this settlement is crude, save this one. The giants have built a shrine to their dark, mysterious gods. The chamber is dominated by a huge, basalt altar. There is an idol on it. You will have to get close to see more.";
52 = "The huge box is filled with smelly, badly prepared skins and furs. The only thing you get from this box is parasites. Dozens of small, nasty bugs immediately leap from the furs onto you.";
53 = "You carefully lift the crystal off the altar and secure it in one of your packs. Disaster fails to occur.";
54 = "You carefully lift the statue out of the box and secure it in your pack.";
55 = "You hear a click underfoot. You've tripped a trap set by the giants. You jump forward just in time to avoid being crushed by a rain of boulders. You're now trapped inside.";
56 = "";
57 = "";
58 = "As soon as the chains fall off, the man leaps to his feet. He runs to you, a vicious, fanged smile appearing on his face. He looks crazed with hunger. You now know why he looked so weak.";
59 = "You turn your back on him. He says _Please! Help me!_ and continues pleading for your help until you're out of earshot.";
60 = "This is a large smithy, where giants craft the oversized weapons used to pulverize Avernites like you. There is a large pit of red-hot coals in the center of the chamber, surrounded by large anvils for the creation of giant-sized weaponry.";
61 = "You step over the crumbled boulder used to seal up this chamber. Inside, you find the grisly tribute the giants have been giving to the demon in return for its guidance.";
62 = "There is a trophy on this wall. It is the head of a huge drake.";
63 = "There is a pair of trophies on this wall. There are the heads of both a basilisk and a giant who fell victim to it. The giant's head was turned to solid stone.";
64 = "There are several trophies on this wall, all of them broken and rusty weapons. There are flails without heads, swords in five pieces, and so on.";
65 = "There is a trophy on this wall. It's the skin and eyestalks of a gazer.";
66 = "Something in the corner catches your eye. It's a small, torn bit of pink ribbon.";
67 = "A flash of color catches your eye. Tied around a small stalagmite, you find a pink ribbon.";
68 = "You hear a snatch of whispering from the hall to the north. You look just in time to see a flash of movement in the shadows at the far end of the pool.";
69 = "The corridor is blocked by several chalky-looking pillars of stone. As you approach them, darts fly out of the wall...";
70 = "There is an oppressive air hanging over this fort. You get a sense of dark magic and darker rituals. You can't be sure, but you would guess that hint of sulfur in the air is not entirely natural.";
71 = "There is a small obstacle course back here, used to train new recruits. You used it many times during your training. Trainees are forced to go through it again and again until their feet and hands are blistered and raw and every bodily crevice is full of drying cave slime.";
72 = "You find a variety of toadstools and mosses growing in mounds of decomposed mushroom mulch. This is a treasure trove of alchemical supplies. If you pick the stuff and return later, some of it will probably have grown back.";
73 = "You slip into one of the cells. Empire prisoners are brought here for intense and intensive questioning. Avernite hatred and fear of the Empire is all-consuming. Prisoners here are given no mercy.";
74 = "This dusty room is packed with dressed blocks of stone, cement, and other building materials. In case of an Empire raid, any damaged walls can be quickly repaired.";
75 = "You've rarely seen this much paper in one place in Avernum. There's stacks of it! It's all covered with tightly written ledgers, inventories, records, and other bureaucratic debris.";
76 = "This chamber is where the Council of Avernum meets. The mayors of the six (now 5) great cities of Avernum and their aides come here to plan. It's a solemn chamber. It's also dusty. The Council hasn't been able to come together for some time. They've been too busy dealing with their own local crises.";
77 = "This long, narrow passage ends in a short, dimly lit corridor. There's a lot of dust, and little patches of mold are growing at the base of the walls. People don't come back here much. Especially not the cleaners.";
78 = "You sleep for a while. Despite the frequent nips of large bedbugs, you manage to get a good rest. After you get up, you tidy things up a little bit for the next adventurers to come along.";
79 = "You stare deep into the pool and watch, transfixed, as images of the nearby area appear before you. You watch a battle between an Avernite patrol and Empire raiders, ending in grim defeat for the raiders. After a while, the images fade and you step away.";
80 = "You stare deep into the pool and watch, transfixed, as images of the area around the Castle appear before you. However, nothing interesting seems to be happening. You step away.";
81 = "This is a room for meditation. Mages can sit on thick rugs, arranged in a circle around a brazier of burning incense. Inhaling the smoke makes you feel pleasantly light-headed. You shake your head to clear it. You're starting to feel too comfortable.";
82 = "What luck! Among the unpleasantly esoteric tomes and grimoires that litter these shelves, you find a good, old, practical spell book! You now know the spell Word of Recall.";
83 = "What luck! Among the unpleasantly esoteric tomes and grimoires that litter these shelves, you find a good, old, practical spell book! Pity you can't understand a word of it.";
84 = "The guards stop you and point at a sign on the wall. _Sorry, friend. You need Magi Clearance to come in here. If you think you should have it, go see Gilda._";
85 = "You need Magi Clearance to pass through this gate. Fortunately, you have it. A guard nods and raps on the door with his knuckles. You hear a click from inside. The gate opens for you.";
86 = "You round the corner, and suddenly everything erupts in flame!";
87 = "These barracks are enormous. There's enough room here for a whole regiment of King Micah's finest soldiers. However, many of the beds look unused. The troops are probably out on maneuvers. At least, that's what you hope. The alternative is worse.";
88 = "The walls in this room are lined with lead and covered with small, intricate runes. This alcove must be for summoning. A tricky business.";
89 = "Most definitely not a good idea. Word gets around fast about what you've done. A whole garrison of Avernum shock troops immediately sets out to make sure that you don't get out of the Castle alive. They succeed.";
90 = "Camp Samuels boasts a large forge. In the corner is an anvil and a large furnace, sufficient to create steel weapons. This is a rare thing in Avernum. Steel is usually only worked at Dharmon and Fort Draco.";
91 = "These barracks are painfully cramped. The floor is covered with uncomfortable looking pallets, and there are two rusty lockers in the back. This level of discomfort is deemed necessary to churn out soldiers tough enough to fight the Empire.";
92 = "The footlockers are locked, and the guards keep a careful eye on them. It's for the best. The trainees have to go through enough here without you poking your sticky fingers through their stuff.";
93 = "When you get close, you notice that the wall here has several large cracks in it.";
94 = "You find a narrow tunnel. It opens out onto a steep slope outside. You can leave this way, but you'll have to come back in through the main entrance.";
95 = "You pull the lever. It shifts back to its original position with a loud clang. One of the pillars slides silently into the floor, enabling you to escape.";
96 = "As you approach the gate, you step on the runed stone pad. You hear a soft clicking noise coming from the levers to the south. Then the three northern gates open.";
97 = "You return to Camp Samuels. This fort's main purpose is to train Avernite soldiers, pushing and tormenting them until they are strong enough to face the Empire. You spent three months being abused here before you were sent up to Fort Draco.";
98 = "You need Crown Clearance to pass through this gate. Fortunately, you have it. A guard nods and raps on the door with his knuckles. You hear a click from inside. The gate opens for you.";
