Paradise lost

The valley is green and full of life, but the main thing that draws your eye is the vast city that lies below you. It's breathtakingly beautiful, with many great towers gleaming in the sunshine; rather than the ruin you were expecting, though, the place seems like there are still people living there. You have little time to survey all this, however, as there are two men with spears standing not ten feet from you, gaping at you.

"You!" one of them says. "You came from the outside world?"

"Ye-es," you answer, hoping that they won't suddenly attack you. But they do quite the opposite in fact- they throw themselves at your feet, prostrating themselves before you.

"Gods be praised!" one of them says. "At last, someone has found the courage and the wisdom to find our fair city!"

With much ado they march you down the narrow path towards the city, one in front and one behind, as an honour guard. You find the need to take off the furs you were wearing for travelling in the mountains, for it is wonderfully warm here for some reason. You enter Akor Carr itself to find it thriving and full of people; you note with some approval that all of the women are very beautiful. People watch as you go past, pointing and chattering at the man who has come from the outside world.

The guards take you inside a palace that lies at the heart of the city, a building grander yet than all the rest, and in a large audience chamber kneel before a throne. A man of about forty sits upon it, a crown upon his head.

"Your majesty, this man came through the tunnel from the outside world!" one of the guards declares.

"Thankyou, guards. You may go." They get up and leave. The king stands and approaches you. Various courtiers stand around the room, watching what is going on.

"So at last we have been found," the king says. "Two hundred years ago my ancestors shut all the ways but one into Akor Carr. The rest of the world took our great city too cheaply; they were lacking in wisdom and bravery. So it was decided that only those who proved themselves worthy by finding the tunnel should be able to come here. You, my friend, are the first."

"My name is Sir John, Knight of the Mighty Thrust," you declare. "It is an honour to have come to Akor Carr."

The king nods approvingly. "And it is an honour to have you here. Let this day be remembered well, for it is a momentous one. Now come, you must be tired from your journey. I will have a servant take you to where you might bathe, and you will be given a fresh set of clothes. And later, we will have a feast in your honour!"

You are led away and wash yourself in a warm bath for a good half an hour. The clothes you are given are nothing more than a simple white cotton shirt and trousers, though you are assured by a servant that this is what the nobility wears in Akor Carr. You later make your appearance as the guest of honour at the feast, where you are thankful to discover that the servant wasn't lying and everyone is dressed the same as you.

You are seated between the king and a startlingly beautiful woman in her twenties, who you discover is the High Priestess at the temple, for the whole feast. Towards the end, when everyone is stuffed full of food and merry, a gong sounds somewhere and the door opens.

"Ah yes!" says the king. "And now for your gift!" You sit up a little straighter to see what it is. Three beautiful girls enter and approach the high table; they stop before you and curtsey.

"These three," the king declares in a booming voice so everyone in the hall can hear, "are the daughters of three of the most powerful noble families in Akor Carr. Each turned eighteen only this morning. Pick one, Sir John, and tonight you may do with her as you wish!"

The nobles all begin chattering about what a fine present this is for you. Apparently, it's not seen as uncommon to let strangers whom you wish to honour have their way with your daughter. You stand, and a hush falls over the room as you study the girls.

There's not much to choose between them- they're all stunning, with killer bodies. One has black hair and the other two are blondes; they all wear their hair in a waist-length braid that falls behind them, as is the custom here. "Your names?" you say.

"I am Nyx," answers the raven haired girl.

"I am Hemera."

"And I am Selene."

You continue to look them over. "Have you made your choice?" the king asks. "Whichever you choose will bring great honour to her family, for it will be known that she was chosen to please the first outside to visit us in two hundred years."

A low hum of chatter starts up again, but you hold up your hand and silence falls. "I have chosen," you say loudly, "... all of them!"