58

The bear knows the forest well: he knows its treasures and its dangers. Carefully you follow in his tracks as he works his way through the pines towards the edge of a deep gorge, where a trail descends gently to the bank of a rushing river. Massive boulders, smoothed by centuries of erosion, rise from the foaming torrent like giant stepping stones. Across the river lies another forest, dark and forbidding. Although the sun is strong in the cloudless sky and the air is warm and dry, a grey mist hangs heavy and cold around the trees of that forest.

All along the bank on this side of the river grow clumps of bushy herbs with bright red flowers. The bear scoops a pawful of the scarlet petals and chews them contentedly as he nods farewell and ambles back into the forest.

If you have the Magnakai Discipline of Curing, turn to 276.

If you do not possess this skill, turn to 325.