---

Close your eyes. Picture yourself in a space ship, suspended in the cold vacuum of space with nothing but void outside. There is no gravity, no perception of weight. Imagine how strange the sensation of weightlessness feels. Your internal organs do not press against each other and your bodily fluids do not have to fight the forces of the Earth's attraction. Every cell in your body feels different.

Can you really imagine how zero-gee feels?

All role-playing games have one thing in common: They make possible the impossible. There are no role-playing games which simulate real life exactly. RPGs all share some fantastic extension of reality. Science fiction games extend our current knowledge of space and technology many-fold and give us hyperspace, faster-than-light travel and cybernetically enhanced bodies. Fantasy builds on mysterious magics to create spells, magic potions and exotic creatures. Horror dredges the depths of our nightmares to scare us with vampires, demons and other creatures of darkness.

But is it always necessary to turn to role-playing games to achieve the impossible? Mankind has reached the moon, climbed the highest peaks on Earth and dived into the depths of the oceans. And most of us have the opportunity to experience the impossible too. From the thrills of skydiving to the magic of the ocean floors, life's greatest adventures are open to us all.

Of course, there are some limits to what you and I can do. It is unlikely that you or I will ever stand on Mars or really experience the zero-gee of space. For these experiences, we must still turn to our imaginations and to the magic of role-playing games. But for the most part, reality can be as exciting and adventurous as fantasy. Life is, after all, what you make of it.

This BEHOLD! is dedicated to everyone who has helped make my own small portion of reality as interesting and fun as it is.

Thank you all.

Anthony Brooks

Back Cover: The third episode of Tyrannosaurus-Ex finishes off this month's BEHOLD! Once again, the artist behind the series is Donn Ingle.

Cover: Our totally awesome cover this month is by talented artist Dominik Wysocki. It is appropriately titled Wizardry.

2    Editorial

4    Euvgeni by Damian Costa

This is the final part of the Euvgeni saga, and brings to an end the adventures of the brave berserker warrior from the South. (At least for the time being.)

This month, we have an extra large edition of the game guide, as we wrap up the stories of several characters and bring the Game Guide up to the point where some new blood joins the quest.

10    Matrix Manipulation by Warren Johnson

Another special feature this month is our coverage of the virtual reality scene. Not only do we have a review of The Lawnmower Man, but we also have an interesting Shadowrun story revolving around the virtual world of the matrix. Part two will appear in the next issue.

14    Innocent Magic by Sebastian Wysocki

You may wish to refresh your memory and re-read last issue's Innocent Magic before reading this one. This is the second part of the duet and brings Eddie's nightmares to an end... at least for now.

We were first to announce the making of the movie (see BEHOLD! #5) and now we are proud to present one of the first reviews. What movie? The Lawnmower Man, of course.

What is there to say about the littlest AD&D character around? Just that everybody knows dynamite comes in small packages.

In the last episode of Euvgeni's story, he was framed for murder. We pick up the story as Euvgeni tries to prove his innocence...

Euvgeni looks away from his family and turns to the crowded courtroom. He stares Alachrinn in the eye, and produces a broken vial.
"Is there is an alchemist in the room?" Euvgeni shouts.
"You are out of line, Maryamitrevnavich. I cannot allow this to continue." Alachrinn snaps.
"It is my right to ask for professional opinion." Replies Euvgeni, cooly. "Is there an alchemist here?"
A small, nondescript man stands up and walks up to the bench.
"Your name, for the record." Alachrinn snaps.
"Sir, I am Mahan Hollis."
"Would you please analyze this vial." Euvgeni hands the vial to the man. Mahan Hollis carefully sniffs the vapours coming from the minute amount of liquid remaining in the vial. The crowd waits, breaths held, for his verdict.

"I have come across this poison -- for it is a poison, though not lethal -- only once before. It is indeed very rare and can only be obtained from one desert plant. Such a substance is well beyond the finances of the defendant." The man says quietly and slowly.
"Then you would say that it could only be found outside these forests?" Euvgeni asks with renewed excitement.
"That I would." Replies the man slowly.
"And that it is very expensive?"
"Yes, sir."
"Thank you." Says Euvgeni. The man bows low and returns to his seat.

"I would also like to call upon a witness." Announces Euvgeni next.
"Impossible." The smile on Alachrinn's face wanes and a look of horror spreads across his face.
"Your accomplice, I believe." Euvgeni says with satisfaction. He points towards the unconscious form of the man-thing and realizes with a sense of horror that the creature has disappeared.
"It appears that your witness has vanished." Alachrinn begins to smile again, "Now I would like to say a few words. On the person of Euvgeni you will find a pouch of diamonds, the key to the bank vaults, and the murder weapon, ample proof of his guilt." Alachrinn sits back as the guards search Euvgeni's body. Sure enough, they find the incriminating evidence. The crowd erupts into a hostile noise.

"That is enough!" Alachrinn shouts over the rising din. "Judgement will now be passed."
The crowd becomes silent in expectation.
"You have been found guilty of all charges, and you are sentenced to death. Furthermore, it is with a sad heart that I must inform you that your father's business will have to be suspended for further investigations."
"No! You can't do that!" Euvgeni begins to lose control.
"But I can, after all I am now the President." Sneers Alachrinn...
"Not so." A low, growling voice echoes through the chambers. "You have unjustly accused this man here, and have proceeded to take personal revenge on this man by abusing your power, furthermore, you have breached our contract, and are attempting to usurp my command! You have ruined my plans!"
A tall lizard-like creature in black robes stands up, and points a finger at Alachrinn.
"NO! NO!" Screams Alachrinn.
"Yes, yes." Rumbles the creature as a stream of magic hits Alachrinn. He flies back out of his chair and hits the back wall of the court, obviously dead.

"Euvgeni Maryamitrevnavich, you will take command of this village under my control."
"No, I won't." Euvgeni is rapidly losing control and the man-thing sees the glint in his eyes a moment too late. A huge fist crashes into the creature's jaw and it rocks backwards. Euvgeni grabs the vial and throws the remaining contents into the face of the man-thing. It begins to cough and splutter but soon overcomes the effects. Chaos ensues as the courtroom is evacuated and the two antagonists face each other. The lizard creature pulls a short sword from its scabbard and slashes Euvgeni across the chest. Blood splashes on the furniture. The wound across his chest is bleeding profusely, but to the creature's shock, Euvgeni just shrugs it off. He grabs the dagger which had been used to kill the president, and drives it into the creature's body. Reeling back, the creature begins to cast a spell at Euvgeni. He senses the creature's intentions and dives through a window only seconds before the room explodes into fire.

The creature lets out a frustrated yell and materializes outside the burning court house. It moves towards Euvgeni, who is scrambling to his feet. The man-thing casts again, releasing more magical energies at Euvgeni. Fortunately Euvgeni manages to scramble around the corner of the court house, and the energies crash into the corner of the wall, leaving a smouldering hole in the mortar.

The creature runs towards the court house corner. Euvgeni, hearing the running footsteps, stands flat against the corner of the wall. As the creature comes around the corner, Euvgeni grabs its arm and swings it into the wall. Its face crashes into the wall and it staggers backwards. Euvgeni smashes into it, with a double-handed "Grand Slam". The lizard creature falls to one knee, gasping heavily, desperately trying to catch its breath. Euvgeni kicks its head and the creature hurtles backwards onto the ground. Suddenly, a white-robed elf materializes next to the creature. He bends over the fallen body, and looks down at the man-thing.
"The elven court has had much need to apprehend this individual; we thank you for assisting us." With these words, both figures disappear in a ball of magic.

As Euvgeni comes out of his berserker rage, he feels the effects of the damage done to him inside the court house. He grimaces and slides to the floor, breathing heavily. After a few minutes, four fully-armed men rush around the corner, only to stop and see nothing but Euvgeni kneeling close to ground, examining an unremarkable spot on the earth.
"Not even a trace." He murmurs to himself...

The village spent the next few years recovering from the damage done by Alachrinn's deeds. Euvgeni was made president of his village by the grateful folk, but did not make a very good leader. After two years of hit-and-miss leadership he decided to pack it in and go adventuring.
"I hereby relinquish my leadership and clan championship to my father."
With these words, Euvgeni left the forest village, in search of high adventure, fame and glory.

This edition of the Game Guide wraps up the adventures of Tekuna, Souriin and Casoe with Bladner, Shadow, Opand and Slyoak. Part seven will continue the story with some new characters making an appearance. In order to fit ten games into the limited space available, the descriptions for some of the less interesting games have been kept short.

Game 23: To Be Continued...
The brave heroes decided to rest and train before continuing their fight against the time riders. They also experimented with the powerful gifts given to them by Egreera, mistress of the forest.

Game 24: Monsters in the Mountains
Once the heroes had finished training, they were "hired" by Wella Atenmo, owner of the prestigious "Bank of Rotan" to go debt-collecting. The group's task was to collect funds from one Ash Bloodfist, a surly, dark-haired warrior. Ash was eventually forced to pay up and the adventurers returned the missing money to Wella. Also around this time, Tekuna was seen "lifting" a valuable pouch from an eminent Rotan mage. Despite a crafty glitterdust spell, Tekuna managed to evade him. Although the city of Rotan was quiet around this time, there were several rumours of trouble in the mountains, so the heroes resolved to travel south next. Casoe Quantamine decided to remain in Rotan.

Game 25: A Letter
As the heroes prepared to ride towards the mountains, Shadow Kaylar was given a strange letter by a messenger. The letter was from his father and spoke of strange and mysterious happenings in the town of Strontal. The heroes swiftly travelled south, heading for the steep mountain pass between Rotan and Strontal. Before reaching it, they were surprised by a rust monster, which destroyed Shadow's magnificent armour. Dejectedly, the party continued on, stopping once more to investigate an abandoned shack.

Game 26: DRAGON
Once they had finished examining the shack, the heroes rode on to the monastery at Naivasha. Attacked by margoyles, they sought refuge in the monastery. Their host (a man named Gritch) was actually a priest of Widapa, and he drugged the food and drinks offered to the party (of course, they fell for this). When they awoke, the heroes found themselves sealed in cells below the monastery. They tried to find a passage out of their cramped quarters, but were horrified to find the way blocked by Ayak, a young black dragon. The heroes bribed him with the most valuable possessions they had, including some extremely rare and powerful magical items (rub, rub). Eventually, Ayak settled for just killing Tekuna (probably because she attacked him with a dagger) and let the rest pass. They swiftly located and battled evil Gritch. After a difficult and dangerous battle, Gritch was overcome, and his temple was spoiled by Slyoak and Opand -- an act which struck a blow deep into the Widapan faith, and gave Souriin nightmares about being chased by frenzied, knife-wielding Widapan priests for weeks. The group was too weak to fight their way past the enraged margoyles outside, so Souriin used his Staff to transport them back to Rotan. Once there, Tekuna was revived (again) at great cost (again).

Game 27: Wedding Gifts
Back in Rotan again, the heroes became targets for the assassins' branch of the Widapan faith, and spent several weeks avoiding nasty white knives. They also received an invitation for the wedding of Aran and Shallay (see Game 16 in BEHOLD! #4). Because they were running short of time (and were strangely eager to leave the vicinity of the white knives), the heroes arranged for a teleport spell to transport them to Pirs for the wedding. The wedding was interrupted when a strange silver haired lady appeared to warn Souriin that his father's life was in danger.

Game 28: Going Down
Meanwhile, unknown to the heroes, the Widapan faith had made a pact with the time riders to annihilate them. Using the powers of the crystal sphere which had become part of Tekuna's hand, the time riders were able to snatch the band of adventurers from the wedding and plunge them into a fiendish lair below the city of Pirs...

Game 29: Rock Bottom
The heroes, still trapped beneath Pirs, searched frantically for a way out. Tekuna was becoming weaker and weaker as the crystal orb exerted more and more power. The great "Wizard of the Red Orb" first appeared to the heroes here, in the dungeons under Pirs and guided them towards the exit. On the way, the group overcame a group of powerful Widapan priests, sent to destroy them.

Game 30: The Sign
The wizard finally led the group out of the miserable dungeon and into the bright outdoors. The heroes escaped in the nick of time as the caves, disturbed by the vibrations the crystal orb had caused, collapsed behind them. But the surprises were not over -- Ayak, the black dragon, met them at the entrance, forced by something he called "the Bonding" to fly the heroes to Naivasha. Nervously, and with much cajoling by the Wizard of the Red Orb, the heroes climbed onto his enormous back. The group was just beginning to enjoy the flight, when Korpath, the time rider lord, played his trump card. He warped time and space, causing Tekuna's crystal orb to fracture and Ayak to plummet towards the ground... thus bringing about the "Trial of the Arches", in which many of the heroes died.

Game 31: Perhaps
In the first part of the Trial of the Arches, the heroes battled many foes and passed many strange tests, both from the past and of the future. In one of these tests, the heroes were transported back to prevent the overthrow of Ivrea and in another they fought an evil illithid in the realm of the imaginary.

Game 32: Time to Change
The group continued with Korpath's tests, and with each success, Korpath's powers over them grew weaker. Finally, only one test remained... and here the heroes failed. On the "plain of risk and reward", four of the brave heroes perished. Only Souriin who chose not to risk his life on the plain, and Tekuna (who was both rewarded and cursed by her path) survived. Opand Rupdel, Slyoak Woodguard, Bladner Gron and Shadow Kaylar all lost their lives. Shocked by this tragic turn of events, Souriin and Tekuna returned to Rotan...
 

Creatures encountered: Game 25: Rust monsters. Game 26: Margoyles and a Black Dragon. Game 28: A few Kobolds, an Ettin and hordes of Orcs. Game 29: More Orcs, a mimic (friendly), Orcs, some Rats, Piercers, more Rats, more Orcs, lots and lots of Goblins, a few more Orcs and another Rat. Game 30: Skeletons and Ayak. Game 31: A Mind Flayer, a Lizard Man, a Gynosphinx and two Orcs. Game 32: A pair of disorganized Goblins and zillions of Orcs.

Game dates: Game 23: 3/2/93 - 9/3/93 Game 24: 9/3/93 - 15/3/93 Game 25: 15/3/93 - 16/3/93 Game 26: 16/3/93 - 19/3/93 Game 27: 19/3/93 - 1/4/93 Game 28: 1/4/93 Game 29: 1/4/93 Game 30: 1/4/93 - 2/4/93 Game 31: 2/4/93 Game 32: 2/4/93

Erratum: While compiling this issue's Guide, I spotted a few omissions in the "Creatures encountered" column in BEHOLD! #4. Apart from a Giant Shark, the heroes also encountered three Orcs and a Gynosphinx in game 11. Apologies for this error.

The next instalment of the Game Guide introduces Euvgeni, Flash, Artak and Damalanthas, as well as a few less well known characters such as Goran Foehammer, Fleév Chinand and Magnomia Aftheisis. Read all about their encounters with the evil witch Estendenta; the hunt for the Medallion of Istaris and Tekuna's adventures in Meldora.

She slid into the chamber, sleek and elegant, a feral beauty. A perfect fit, she snuggled inside her jacket, a beast ready to break loose, the hunter and the hunted. The energy, the potential, could not be ignored as she faced down the spiralling tunnel. A dot of light marked its end, her passage to freedom, her path to ecstasy. She exploded from within; in a blinding flash of noise and pain she erupted from the corridor. Open air, freedom, joy, exultation; destiny bound she flew towards her prey. The impact was glorious -- in a wash of warmth she fulfilled her goal, the cycle completed. She exploded out of the cocooning softness in a spray of glory, knowing that oblivion awaited, but such was her lot. The next impact brought pure, pristine, all-encompassing darkness.

The hunter lined up his sights. The laser projected the necessary data onto his retina. He waited patiently, with a calm sense of knowing born of many successes. When the time came he caressed the trigger, his gentle touch resulting in an explosion of sound and a release of pent-up potential. The bullet, the perfect hunter-seeker, took the blink of an eye to reach its  target. It entered the elf's skull with a dull "thrump". Its exit was heralded by a brilliant red spray. The bullet exploded into a wall before the body had started to fall. By the time it hit the ground the assassin's post was empty.

As a bystander, a casual passer-by, he watched the crowd part for the docwagon, its sirens the heralds of death as it carried the corpse to the morgue.

FUNCTION

The staff detects enemies through an air-tester positioned on top of the dynamo. If an enemy is found, the staff expands.

USES

Based on a successful model tests by ANA-R-CHY. The previous model was improved to include more functions. With a pull of the handle, a dynamo fires an electric charge down the staff electrocuting whoever is holding touched by the staff.

DESIGN GLITCHES

• Several important citizens were detected as traitors by this staff and promptly executed (memorably WA-R-PED 1 and WA-R-PED 2). Whether this is a design glitch has yet to be tested.
• It is not yet possible to separate the shock given to the enemy from the shock given to the user. Current-insulated electrically-powered gloves are being designed by R&D.

Timothy looked around. The streets were deserted. He was afraid. He was only ten years old. He had to think; he was vulnerable. It would not be long before they found him and then he would end up like the others.

Swiftly the boy made his way down an alleyway. He passed fresh corpses of various victims. One that caught his attention was a punk with his stomach cut out and a buckled knife clutched helplessly in his hand. At least he had put up a struggle. He also stopped to strip a young woman of her gun. Perhaps he could defend himself. He doubted it — it hadn't helped the woman.

They had come quickly and mercilessly, killing all that moved. He wasn't sure why he hadn't yet been found. They had found his parents. Somehow he had survived. He was lucky.

He didn't feel lucky, as he clambered up the stale wooden stairs of the church tower, passing a brief glance at the mutilated torn face of the priest. He was beginning to get used to the bodies. No-one was safe. He reached the top and lay down for a while to think.

They hadn't wasted time. First came the warning — we were to turn in their runaway renegade or they would come down and get him themselves. They called him "Yeyakeka" — Master of Disguise. They claimed that the United States government had captured him and was studying him. The public took it as a hoax. Aliens broadcasting on radio? It had to be a joke! What a joke it had turned out to be.

Timothy clearly remembered the invasion, he had been playing at the time in a storm drain. No-one knew he was there, not even his parents. He would never tell them; they had forbidden him to play in them — they said it was unsafe. But Timothy had heard the alien's threats and for some reason he had believed them. He wasn't sure why — strong vibes, a hunch, it didn't matter; the point was that he was alive and now he had to find someone else in a similar position. He peered out through the crack in the stained glass window over the ghost-town below. The only movement was a swaying antenna hanging loosely from the roof.

He sat down and continued to think. He hadn't been as upset as he had thought he would be at the sight of his dead parents, maybe it was just shock or perhaps he had never really liked them. He didn't like that thought. Although he was a foster child and had never known his real mother and father, he still loved them. He began to cry, not because of his parents' deaths, but because he knew he should be crying. Besides, there was no-one to see him.

A noise broke his train of thought. He sat up and instinctively clutched his weapon. Once more he scanned the sreets. A low rumbling noise could be heard and the window pane began to vibrate. They were coming.

He had to hide somewhere. He remembered the strong-room in his school; that would be safe. His mother had worked there so he knew the combination to the safe. He ran down the steps stumbling on his quivering legs. He had to reach the school. He scrambled through his scattered mind reassuring himself of the code: 1-5-4-8-4-9-3. He hurdled over the gate and sprinted through the foyer. The rumbling was close. He dropped the gun. Furiously he groped but with no success. He could hear a ripping sound as the gate was yanked off its hinges. He left the gun. He ran over to the safe and began to press the keypad: 1...5...4...8...4... his hands were trembling wildly; he had to remember. He could hear heavy footsteps behind. ...9...3, clunk, it opened. He yanked at the door.

He felt a firm grip on his neck. He was too late. It had got him. Slowly he turned to face the creature. Its blood-crusted mouth was drooling. It knew it had him. Slowly it brought back a spear-like appendage and plunged it towards the boy. All the child could do was to stand in horror as the point penetrated his skin. He gasped. With a scraping noise, he had felt the claw bounce off something hard. He looked in terror. In his stomach was a sort of hard shell. The boy felt his skin rip away. In the last moment of his life the boy could hear the alien's ravaging madness:
"Yeyakekaaaaaaaaa."

Jansen was feeling done in again. He had spent the last few days slaving away at his terminal to find the information that Mart, his boss, wanted. He had even worked on his wife's birthday so that the data would be available in time (not that he really minded getting away from the old bag really), and all he got for his effort was a grunt. No "thank you", no smile, nothing. For the hundredth time, Jansen felt like telling Mart to shove it, to do the data-digging himself. But that of course would be job suicide. He would be kicked out of Renraku straight away, and he'd lose everything — his pension, his docwagon contract, the works. So, for the hundredth time, Jansen told himself to cool off, and assured himself that he would eventually get noticed and pass Mart on the corp ladder.

Jansen unhooked himself from his terminal and poured himself a cup of coffee. It had been two days since he had handed in the wanted info, two days since his wife's birthday. As usual, Mart had given him a load of other menial tasks to do on the Matrix, but nothing that was worth the attention of his superior brain. One day he'd get ahead of Mart, and then fire him. Then he'd see who was laughing. In the meantime he had something else to deal with — that icon.

For the past couple of weeks there had been another icon browsing around the files that he'd been sifting through. It wasn't always there, and yet it was always getting in the way. He had attempted to contact it several times, but it had always zipped off as soon as he tried. Eventually he had begun to get suspicious, then irritated, and finally mad whenever the icon turned up. Stupid cloaked picture. Jansen sat in front of his terminal, sipping his coffee, deciding what he should do about the intruder. He was sure that it was a Shadowrunner, one of those blasted criminals messing everyone's lives up. He'd considered reporting it to Mart, but then Mart would make sure that he got the praise for reporting it himself. And he wasn't about to go to security — those smug bastards were a pain to deal with. No, he had a far better idea. He would kill the icon, and then make sure that the right people got told about it, and they would see how good an operator he was. Yep. Now he just had to figure out how to kill it...

Working on another boring task given to him by Mart, Jansen saw the icon dart through the files that he was working on — classified information on the location of arms depots situated in Seattle before the turn of the century. Nothing amazing, but stuff you didn't want your kids to find, or your opposition for that matter. Jansen pulled himself away from a dataline and watched the cloak-shaped icon to see what it was after. Information on nuclear arms, hah, no chance of it breaking into anything on that. Only people like himself knew the codes to access that kind of information.

Jansen stopped and consider the thought that had just crossed his mind — if the icon wanted info, why not give it some? A plan started to form in Jansen's mind; moving over to the file on nuclear arms, he opened it and stood aside. The icon stopped what it was doing and moved over to the open file. It shimmered for a second, and then turned, as if in query, towards Jansen's icon. The icon hesitated, and then Jansen closed the file and sped off. The other icon looked after him for an instant, and then also disappeared. Jansen's prey had taken its bait.

The next day Jansen went back to the same file at the same time.  And, lo and behold, there was old Cloak waiting for him. Jansen smiled to himself. He again opened the file, but this time he entered it as well. As he had expected, the Cloak followed him in. Jansen quickly led Cloak further into the file, heading for an area he knew did not officially exist: black ice protection. Cloak followed Jansen in, a minute distance behind him. Jansen headed deeper into the file, moving towards the black ice at an incredible speed, baiting Cloak with some supposed ultra-secret information. At the last possible second, he turned away from the ice, darted upwards, and watched with glee. Cloak realised too late that it had been led into a trap, and to its death. Too late it tried to jack out, but the ice had it. Jansen knew that nothing in the Matrix could beat the ice, so he closed the file, and jacked out himself.

Collapsing in front of his terminal from the strain, Jansen thought about the report that he would draft the next morning. He would report how he had found the icon already in the classified file, and how he had managed to deal with it single-handed. His report was going to be noticed. He'd make sure of that. Jansen left for home.

Oops... we blundered. The sizes for AD&D icons listed in the last issue of BEHOLD! weren't quite right.

The correct sizes for trading cards and spell cards are:

Trading cards: 89 x 64 mm
Spell cards: 125 x 70mm

I hope that clears things up. Sorry for any inconvenience.

The night lay like a thick blanket upon the snow-bound moors. Silence prevailed everywhere and not a thing moved. Even the wind was silent as the planet rolled beneath the stars. Almost as if it knew what was about to happen...

"Son of a Ssoran" swore the man as he ploughed through the snow. From behind came an electronically magnified voice: "HALT OR WE WILL OPEN FIRE!"
"Go kiss your fat, ugly KessRith mothers -- the ones with the warts on their not so elegant posteriors!" Gasped Erith as he struggled across a snowy crest. There was a sound of servos coming into action. This was followed by a second of silence. Then came the piercing, red beams of light.

"Boy, you must really want me!" Erith gasped "Especially if you're willing to bring out the heavy artillery. But, despite the fact that your compassion burns through me like a strong drink, I must regretfully refuse your heart-warming offer." Inside the tank, Captain Cth'age carefully lined up the cross-hair on the moving target.
"Cheerio, sonny boy!" He growled as he pulled the trigger. He smiled as the moving blip disappeared. Then his smile and gloating grin turned to a frown as his slow brain attempted to bring something of great importance to his attention.

"Wait," his brain said, "this is a heat detecting targeting unit, is it not?"
"Yes." Replied Captain Cth'age. "So what?"
"A human body does not cool that quickly, especially when shot with a laser."
"Oh! So, wait a minute, you are saying that the boy has..."
"Exactly!" Congratulated his brain (extremely pleased with itself at that moment in time).

At that particular moment in time, Erith was groaning on the floor of a small cavern. Erith groaned theatrically for several minutes before he realised that somebody was taking notice of him. He sat up and took stock of his situation. He decided there and then that perhaps the blissful sleep of unconsciousness was best for him, so at the urging of his overloaded senses, he fainted.

Meanwhile, Cth'age stared at the screen, almost as if he was willing it to produce a little red blip. After several seconds during which the screen adamantly refused to do anything, he called the search off.

The hours passed as Erith's brain debated whether to regain consciousness or to remain exactly as it was. Finally curiosity won, and, slowly, Erith opened his eyes. The sight that greeted Erith prompted his brain to decide that it had obviously been mistaken and that being inactive would have been a lot better. But this time nothing of the sort occurred, for Erith had frozen with terror. Before him stood something out of the most terrifying holoshows he had ever seen; something that he was sure wanted to have him for lunch.
"You would likess some soup?" Rattled the thing at him, its mandibles making the most grotesque movements possible.
"What type?" Erith answered, as his stomach took control of the situation. After all, it was hungry!
"Pthera and carrot." Answered the insect.
"Why, thank you. That would be simply smashing." Answered Erith's stomach. The insect scuttled off, and Erith saw his mistake in assuming that the thing was several meters taller than him. In fact, he realized that it was only about a meter high.

Several minutes later, the insect returned. During this time, Erith had spent most of his limited brain power in trying to pinpoint the creatures race. By the time it returned he was certain that it was a creature called a baufrin.
"My namess is Pthk'ah." Said the baufrin as she handed the soup to Erith.
"And mine is Erith," answered Erith as he gulped down the soup, trying to ignore the squishy things that floated in it, "and I am pleased to make your acquaintance."
"It'ss only a pleassure," replied Pthk'ah, "tell me, how did you get to fall down into my humble burrow?"
"Well it's a long story. It started a few months ago. A plague, the "Snow Plague", was introduced to this planet by the KessRith." Began Erith "It effects only humans and naram, and causes a cold. This gets slowly worse until the victim dies."
"Sorry," coughed Erith, "anyway, what happened was that the few surviving people on the planet fell when the KessRith invaded. Now less than two percent of the population still remains. But we fought, and I joined part of the underground. Several weeks ago, I heard that the KessRith actually had a sample of a drug that could cure the disease, but were unwilling to give any to the population."
"What swiness!" gasped Pthk'ah .
"Well," sniffed Erith, "... could I have a tissue? Thanks." The sound of someone blowing his nose filled the house. "There was nothing that we could do against the KessRith invaders, so I decided to try and raid their labs. I failed, as you can guess and I was busy with a hasty withdrawal, when I fell down your burrow. Ahuhhhggghhh!"

Erith clutched his stomach and gasped as a wracking pain spread through his system.
"What!?!" He gasped.
"Ssorry." Answered Pthk'ah as she pulled out a big knife, "but I do occasionally need to reproduce. Now, if you don't mind your intesstine is hindering my larva's birth."

The lights clicked out...

Eddie opened the book again. He had been trying to make head or tail of the writing ever since the morning he had first understood some of it. Now, it seemed nothing more than just a medley of words. They still would not let him out of bed, and his wounds would not heal. Several times he had tried to point out their strange shape, but everyone was ignoring it as if they were blind. Where he had been touched, great black boils had appeared and then burst, causing him immense pain.

Evening was gathering, and he turned once more to the book. He tried againd to read a page... and he understood it. As he studied the page, he grew more and more terrified. He glanced from side to side. Everytime he moved, his shadow would move as well, but just slightly out of tune with him. Something compelled him to read on, and even though he tried to look away, his arms would not let go, and his eyes would not leave the page. Eddie felt as if he was watching someone else on the bed. A knock sounded on his door, and he was free. Eddie screamed like only once before.

The door burst open and his father was standing there.
"Something has happened to Eddie," he yelled, "quickly, get the doctor."
"It's the damned book." Eddie heard his mother say, "I thought you threw it away."
"I did, but he must have found it."
Then sleep overtook him and he dreamt.

"...seems to be coming around..." a voice said. The light was too bright to open his eyes.
"...two pills for the next three days and he will be fine... just a minor burn and the shock... give him time..."
Eddie became aware of the intense pain in his arms. He had bandages wrapped around them. People finally left his room and the lamp was turned off. He opened his eyes. He could see clearly in the darkness. The book was on the writing desk beside him. He no longer felt afraid of or repulsed by it. He would only sleep...

He was dreaming of the family sepulchre. He had gathered all the candles that he could find in the house, sneaked off there, and arranged them in a circular pattern. He could feel something else with him, somewhere deep in the shadows, waiting with eternal patience.
"Eddieee, come to meee..."
He awoke, sweat pouring off him like water. He drank a glass of water and looked at the book. Suddenly, he felt sleepy again. It took all his willpower just to lie down.

This time, as he stood there in his nightshirt, he had several things with him. He had a kitchen knife, some dust from one of the stone coffins lining the walls and a box of mathes from his father's smoking room. He could almost feel the presence of something lurking in there. The smell of corpses and age-old dust was beginning to overwhelm him. He heard a commotion behind him.
"Eddieee, come to meee..."

This time the whispering was much louder - closer than before.
He awoke, cold. He was lying on stone. He got up and fell off the side of the stone coffin. He could see blood on the kitchen knife he was holding in the light of the dozens of lit candles. He felt something trickle down his right arm. There was a deep gash there, but the wound was matted with some sort of fine powder. The book was lying open in the middle of the circle of candles. There was a slight breeze but the candle flames were not flickering.
"It's just a dream, it's just a dream," he kept on whispering to himself.
"Thank you Eddieee..."
The whisper came from the middle of the circle. He saw the book glow and explode into flames. The earth was beginning to vibrate. The book was spinning in a circle. The candle flames elongated to an unnatural length. There was a grinding noise and the earth started to open under the book. Eddie's mind was screaming in terror, and yet his body was numb and unresponsive.

Something was coming out of the hole. His senses could not comprehend what it was. Constantly changing shape and dimensions, a worm was crawling out of the hole. Saliva dribbled out of the corner of Eddie's mouth as he felt his reason slipping away.
"Oh no, Eddie. You will not get away from me that easily," he heard a malicious voice say. No matter how hard he tried, he could not pass out.
"For a thousand years I lay imprisoned within this tomb, waiting, plotting my escape. I have YOU to thank for my release, Eddie."
This seemed to release Eddie from all fear.
"No! I would never have released you on purpose."
"Oh, but you have," he heard the whisper in his mind, "a part of you -- a part which you never let surface -- has always wanted me to come. When I was entombed here, I could still think. I learned to manipulate people through their greed and fear. It was I who brought the book to this continent. It was I who led you to it. You see, mortal, I must grant whoever releases me a wish -- a single wish, for anything."
"Anything?" Eddie heard himself whisper.

"You want immortality?"
There were screams of anguish from all around him. Black pitch tar made it impossible to move around. There was fire all around him. He was drowning.
"Everyone is immortal in hell."
The scene faded, leaving him on the floor again.
"Do you want uncountable riches?"
He found himself sitting on top of a treasure pile. He was in a small chamber with a sarcophagus in the corner. He had barely enough space to move.
"You can admire the treasure of the entombed pharaohs until you die of thirst and starvation. Quickly, make your wish."

Eddie found that he was starting to think clearly once more. The Thing had not harmed him yet. It could not harm him. There was a condition he had to fulfil and until he did, the monster was powerless to do anything. So far, everything had happened without him doing anything. There had to be some free will involved -- the wish!

The monster had said that it thrived on the greed of man. The wish was the completion of the spell!
"No..." he whispered. "NO!" he repeated louder. "You cannot force me to do anything. It is my spell, and I can do as I please." He turned around and started walking away.
"Do not be a fool!" he heard behind him, "I can give you anythiiing..."

Eddie woke up, drenched and dirty on his bed. The wound on his arm had disappeared miraculously. He reached for the singed and burnt book on the table and started to read.

The Lawnmower Man has been touted as the first virtual reality (VR) film to be released. It is not a VR film in the sense that you don't need to don fancy headsets and datasuits to watch it. Nor is it strictly speaking directly about VR. Rather, it is a re-working of the old brilliant-scientist-creates-psychotic-monster theme cleverly set in a VR milieu. It does, however, contain several extremely well executed computer graphics sequences which hint at the possibilities for VR worlds.

Pierce Brosnan (star of such block-buster hits as The Happy Birthday Bug²) stars as Dr. Lawrence Angelo, a renowned scientist employed by a top-secret government facility to conduct research into virtual reality. Since this is a government-run institution, the major focus for this research is towards military applications of the technology. Dr. Angelo, however, is far more interested in its potential to expand the human mind. So, after a precious laboratory chimpanzee goes berserk after overdosing on aggression stimulants, Angelo takes a hiatus from the project and goes off to find a replacement — Jobe Smith (Jeff Fahey), a semi-retarded Irishman. Jobe makes his living mowing lawns, and is obsessed with 'big red', his petrol-driven lawnmower — hence the title of the film.

Dr. Angelo invites Jobe to 'play' in some of his virtual worlds. Much to the Doctor's delight, Jobe's intellectual progress surpasses all expectations. It is only a matter of time, however, before the military gets wind of this spectacular success, and starts taking an unhealthy interest in Jobe's progress.Without Dr. Angelo's knowledge, Jobe's regular medication is replaced with the original aggression-inducing formula; and this is where the trouble really starts...

The film is essentially speculative — it explores the possibilities at the "cutting edge" of VR technology. As a result, it provides the viewer with a wealth of food for thought. Although this is one of the film's greatest strengths, it also leads to a problem: The Lawnmower Man finds itself caught between the 'real world' and the world of science fiction. In my opinion, though, this does not detract significantly from the film: although it sometimes struggles to maintain the balance, most of the time it manages quite successfully.

No review of The Lawnmower Man would be complete without a mention of the stunning computer graphics effects in the film. These range from interesting abstract conceptions of cyberspace to an intriguing virtual sex scene (intriguing more for its ideas than anything else — the film has a 2-10 age restriction, after all), to some unique methods of dying (you'll never look at a ping-pong ball quite the same way again.) Apart from adding to the science fiction aspect of the film, the effects also suggest what it may one day be possible to experience in various virtual reality worlds.

It is interesting to note that the equipment depicted in the film is not all that far from reality (of the real, not the virtual kind). The headsets in Dr. Angelo's basement workroom are clearly manufactured by VPL (one of the pre-eminent American VR equipment manufacturers) as, it would seem, are some of the datasuits. The capabilities attributed to the equipment are still in the realm of fiction, but they are almost all based on research being undertaken at the moment; and it may well be only a matter of time before we are able to explore virtual worlds with the same high quality of real-time graphics.

In summary, I'd give the film a rating of 7 on a scale with 10 at the top and My Own Private Idaho at the bottom. The story, while not entirely original, is compelling enough; the acting — despite the cast of relative unknowns — is good, and the computer sequences are outstanding. As an introduction to virtual reality, it is perhaps a little thin on facts, but pregnant with thought-provoking possibilities; and as a work of science fiction it is entirely satisfactory.

And now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to go and answer the 'phone...

There has been much confusion in recent months over the meaning of some role-playing terms. To prevent public confusion, BEHOLD! has put together this handy reference list. Further contributions will be welcomed.

Drink: Coke, tea and coffee. Does not include toxic substances such as Fanta Punch or Ginger Beer.

Food: Chips, pizza, burgers, biscuits, pizza, sweets and pizza.

Gamemaster: Sadistic, evil, psychotic, brutal murderer who gets a kick out of swamping players with six-headed, large-fanged monsters. The gamemaster follows this tactic up by bribing the players with a large treasure reward so that they play again the next time.

Gamemaster's Screen: Boxes, doors, lamp-shades and other strange-looking objects used to prevent ogling players from spotting crucial information about the game. Associated with paranoid GMs.

Gaming Group: Hooligans disguised as innocent bystanders in order to infiltrate the host's house (cd. Host).

Hit Points: In some game systems, this is an indication of the life-span of a character. The figure is usually negative, but on rare occasions reaches double digits.

Host: Victim.

Playing Time: An indeterminate amount of time during which the host must put up with the gaming group. Playing time usually extends into the next day.

Role-player: Someone who goes to great lengths to battle evil, sacrificing many things of value, such as sleep, food, money and time.

"Run Away": Loudly shouted phrase often uttered in potentially dangerous situations such as atomic explosions, the appearance of a toxic spirit or when Flash opens his mouth.

Character: Joranth Bumblefoot
Race: Halfling
Alignment: Neutral
Class: Priest (with violent tendencies)
Level: Six

Alternate Identities: Little One (he gets called this by Areena).
Family: A son, a daughter, 4 cousins once removed on his mother's side, 3 on his father's, 6 cousins twice removed on both sides, 21 normal cousins, many uncles and aunts from various branches of the family tree and no brothers or sisters (surprisingly!).
Enemies: Two mages of minor importance (i.e. he forgot their names); Athalar (just kidding!); anyone who calls him shorty. Oh, and Widapa.

Game Statistics: STR 14, DEX 14, CON 14, INT 11, WIS 14, CHR 10. Hit points: 30.

"How would you like to try one of these... er... potions of growth, Joranth?" — Artak of Triscoh

"Only Artafor knows why a halfling had to get involved." — Sepyt Niam

"I would compose ballards of the deeds of this amazing halfling, but no-one in their right mind would believe me." — The Bard

"Aaaarghhhh! Run away! Run away!" — Ninety Tilloniti soldiers

"Uh-oh!" — Tekuna Chand, faced with ninety routing Tilloniti soldiers

Based on plans found on Old Reckoning records. A similar device was useful and popular in Armed Forces. This unit is made to replace the standard laser.

USES

• Can-opener in front (classified)
• Mini-torch for darkness
• Toothbrush (classified)
• Scissors (classified)
• Spoon
• Lighter & lighter fluid in handle (classified)
• Nailfile (classified)

• Some of the wiring may be loose, owing to a broken constuction droid. This may cause sparking (see below).
• Lighter fluid may leak and be ignited by sparking (see above). Damaging COMPUTER property is treasonous!

Because of the complexity of the design, the barrel of the laser is not removable. Therefore, once all six shots have been fired, the pistol should be discarded and a new one requisitioned. (Fee: 1000 credits).