Level 11 1. I did not know where I was, but I suspected that I had arrived at a little used part of the palace. I spotted a potion bottle to the west of me, but there was no way to get to it. I climbed a steep wall and looked to the east. 2. I ran and jumped as far as I could. There was no other way to go. I barely grabbed onto the wall on the other side, then pulled myseif up. As I sailed through the air I had spotted what looked like a healing potion below, but I had no need of it. Some dust fell from above, and I realized that the ceiling might be loose. I stood facing east, under two supporting columns, and jumped. One of the ceiling stones fell as I stepped aside. 3. I climbed up the gap and, remembering the potion I had seen far off to the west, started running in that direction. The stones beneath my feet dropped, one after another, but I kept running as fast as I could. 4. Finally, I came to the end of the passage and dropped down. 1. My reward? A Life Enhancement Potion. I drank it greedily. Now, to get back where I had started from, I had to attempt a difficult jump. I crept to the very edge and jumped across the gap. I landed on the edge of the opposite landing, just in front of the door that had led me here. But as I landed, I fell backward, off balance just had time to grab the ledge before falling to what I was sure would be my death. I then retraced my steps. 2. Leaping again across the wide chasm I just made it by my fingertips. Then I headed east. 5. Just a few steps further, I came upon a blade trap and spotted a guard beyond it. I saw more dust on the floor near the blade trap. I stood near the blade trap and faced west, I jumped and, as I 1 suspected, a ceiling stone fell. I stepped out of its way. The guard taunted and yelled at me, but he did not dare brave the blade trap, for then he would have been helpless - before my sword on the one side and the blades on the other. He could only yell in frustration. 6. I found a healing potion up above the blade trap, but had no need of it. So I ran, this time to the east, over the rotten ceiling (now the floor) as it crashed and fell behind me. 7. I did not stop until I had reached the far wall, where I found a stone that did not fall. Carefully, I climbed down. 8. I stood before a closed gate, tyhe rubble from the ceiling behind me. I could see that the fallen ceiling tiles had ruined some mechanisms, and, on closer inspection, I saw that several of the floor stones disguised gate-closing mechanisms. Far to the west, over a narrow gap, was a gate- opening pressure plate. I ran and jumped onto it. I jumped the gap again and ran through the gate to the east. 9. I kept running as I saw another gate far ahead. As I ran, more floor stones fell beneath my feet, and I dared not stop until I was safely through the second gate. 10. A guard stood on a high passage, and, as I climbed to encounter him, he stood ready to attack. Several floor stones were loose, however, and I had to advance almost into his sword before I could safely stop and attack. I swung my sword as quickly as I could to drive him back, but he got in the first blow. I redoubled my efforts and drove him steadily backward until he fell with a cry, landing impaled on the spikes below. Then I ran to the east, at the last moment jumping the gap. 11. I sailed through the air, over a row of spike traps, and barely got hold of a part of the floor that stuck out over a chasm. The floor was old and rotted, however, and gave way beneath my weight. I started to fall, but grabbed another floor stone below the first. It, too, gave way, but I continued to grab whatever presented itself. Finally, I caught a solid ledge and pulled myself up. The exit door was there, but without a pressure plate to open it. I continued east. 12. Another guard stood above me, and as I climbed to meet him, he hurried forward. Once again, I just had time to draw my sword and strike in one smooth motion, I had had plenty of practice by this time, however, and I drove him back. He was a cautious fighter, but I baited him and struck whenever he was near.Soon he had joined his fellow guards in whatever place was reserved for Jaffar's servants when they died. 13. I ran east until I reached a dead end. I was momentarily stymied, but then the floor gave out beneath my feet. I fell with the stone, but discovered a pressure plate in a small alcove. I stepped on it and heard the distant sound of the door opening. I ran back the way I had come, past the dead guard, and onto the stairs that led upward. A fresh breeze blew down the stairwell, and for the first time I knew I was close.

Continue to Chapter 3: The Dungeon (Level 12)
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