MAZE OF CLOUDS

Hook: The granite steps leading down into darkness behind the eastern bronze door greets you with the smell of damp, but, cool, air. It's dry enough not to bother anything... Just cool and fresh... You even hear what sounds like rushing water somewhere ahead... What could this steep, dark stair lead to? As you're about to descend, determining whether to light a torch, or not, an unusual thing catches your eye. Light... Somewhere ahead, far down. A gray ambiance seeps into the stairwell...

Details: This cavern is even more massive than the other one. Though the entry is underground, the maze, itself, is unusual. It's a winding, dangerous pathway up a small mountain contained inside the cavern, itself! Complete with a series of limestone caves and a swirling vortex of condensation that blocks any view of the upper cavern from below, most of the time. However, the entire area is bathed in gray, ambient light, as of a day shrouded in cloud cover, and, rarely, bright daylight, when the clouds part enough to reveal it. At any point the characters may meet the wandering spiritualist, Ògindu, a personal friend of the wizard. He died during the maze's construction, of age, not sacrifice. His spiritual body is anchored to Cloud Mountain and resurrects every day at midnight, if his physical form is killed, which the old wise man finds comical considering his Bundhist beliefs about reincarnation and the cycle of life. He is honouring his old friend who saved his life and protected the world from many threats during his lifetime. He lives sparingly in 'cave F' from which he can get nearly everywhere. He has very few belongings, speaks his own lilting mountain tongue, and the common trade tongue. He may help, or hinder, characters, depending on their activities, and his whims. He is a bóghi, a kind of Bundhist monk, which is much like a yogi, but, Ógindu is an ornery person with no time for fools, and is always at peace with himself and usually meditating and stretching out in the open in the way of his people. He helps with sage wisdom, though it's rough, and will not accompany anyone. Ògindu sees it as his duty to explain the maze and its challenges, if asked.

REGIONS

1. Maze Entry - The minotaur, as before, wakes, as soon as the characters enter the first part of the maze under the mountain, or begin climbing the stairs near the entry. It resurrects, as the other does, every morning at midnight, if it dies. A set of cut limestone stairs lead upward to the top portion of this area and the first view of the mountain maze.

2. Cloud Mountain - The Cloud Mountain looms high over the characters, a limestone edifice disappearing into a swirling maelstrom, high above. Jagged rocky outcroppings can be seen in several places. A tall, 60' sheer cliff blocks entry to the maze. This entire maze requires thinking and survival skills. It's a test of intelligence and logical thinking under duress. The minotaur can scale the cliff, easily. It is easy enough to find hand and footholds, for those seeking to climb it. Thieves will have no trouble. A series of caves and a rushing mountain stream will be seen on the winding pathway. The caves are like those one might find in the wild. The mountain is a miniature reserve contained under the earth... Bird bats roost here, and a bear and mountain lion are present. A white hart and a few mountain goats wander the paths, as well as birds and small animals one might see in nature. There is even a gryphon in one of the caves at the top of this area, just below the cloud cover. The clouds completely obscuring the ceiling of this cavern are massive. It changes from swirling to cumulonimbus, stratus, etc., depending on the random weather patterns one might experience, here. There are chances for torrential downpours, which wash out paths and make it hard to climb and walk, even dense fog that chokes the way and makes it hard to see, and moistens clothing and materials carried. Lightning during storms streaks out and strikes trees and bushes and maybe a hapless character. Sometimes, the clouds break just enough to show what looks like a typical sky beyond them. Temps on the lower slopes are mostly temperate, with small deciduous and coniferous forest present. It can reach as high as 70 degrees or as low as 50 during rain storms, creating just enough variance for slight discomfort in moments of exertion, but, it's mostly pleasant. The middle region becomes much colder, reaching as low as 30, when it rains or snows, and as high as 50, when the sun comes out. Winds are treacherous and offer a real challenge to those trying to maneuver narrow cliff faces, which are many... The highest region occupied by the gryphon is below freezing, most of the time. Snow-capped mountain landscape is represented by this region hundreds of feet off the ground. The 'mountain' is a sheer, jagged spike of earth with some trees representing the various climate zones. Day and night pass as they do during the day, showing the exact sky visible outside.

3. Caves - The caves are dangerous places... As mentioned, there is a bear, a brown bear, with cubs, low down on the slopes. A mountain lion haunts the middle-high regions, and the gryphon may be anywhere, hungry and looking for a meal, winging overhead every so often. The animals do not enter the others' areas, generally staying where they like to hunt. Bird bats roost in the lower caves. They do not like the colder weather. There is also an old tomb, like the last one. Only, this one is a spiritualist warrior king's burial chamber, The Tomb of the Monkey King, built in the style of Japanese or Chinese Buddhist mountain tombs. The same rules apply. What is present is valuable, however, and mostly gold, jade, and bronze, gem-encrusted, and inlaid with ivory and obsidian. There is only one key to this maze. The warrior gives it to the characters, soundlessly, if they approach without stealing anything. If they do touch his treasures, they will be attacked by the mummified figure Rŵno consulted for spiritual wisdom and enlightenment, frequently, much as he did with the Lammasu King about less weighty, but, still important, things.

4. Cloud Maze Mountain Peak - Like the last maze, the 'rune chamber' is present where a final, dangerous bridge must be crossed. The gryphon lurks here and harries anyone trying to cross the bridge. The rough-hewn limestone stairwell carved out of the cavern in one of the upper caves leads a steep 50' up and over the cloud cover to the bridge. The shrine-like area is perched upon the pinnacle of Cloud Mountain. The key lets the characters out of the shrine. The bridge can be reached easily once the bronze door is opened, but, the ripping winds, bright sun or dark night, and the gryphon all provide challenges to retrieving it and making it back across the bridge without mishap.