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                                | GREMLIN |
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                                 presents

                               THE SHADOW OF
                                 THE BEAST

                      Copyright Gremlin Graphics 1990

In Search of the Beast

The grounds of Necropolis were silent. The moon, low and large on the horizon,
cast a cool blue light across the stony ground causing ancient statues to cast
long and dark shadows into the corners. One statue in particular, a giant
griffin, accounted for most of the darkness. It's wings folded behind it, arms
spread wide and stretched heavenwards.

In the griffin's arms sat a lone creature, as still and cold as it's host.
Scaly skin glistenining in the thin light, it clutched a Globe of Seeing which
it moved slowly from side to side examining its reflected features. As it did
so it recalled the events of that day, the frightened humans being herded into
the central courtyard, the pathetic pleas for help as they were dragged one by
one to the sacreficial stone, and the final air rending screams each time the
knife came down in one swift arc and the life blood ran.

He remembered a tired, resigned face being pushed towards the stone, a face
that seemed of some importance to him. Yet how could that be when the lives of
these people meant nothing to him? And, as the gleaming blade struck home, he
recognised the agonised face. It was his father.

Then he remembered. He remembered being younger. Being freer. Being human.
Suddenly the painful memories of all he had been came flooding back to him.

The temple masters had done this to him. They had been responsible for all that
he was, and the loss of all he had been. A feeling of shock rose, fighting with
anger for dominance. Now he would stop serving the temple masters. He would
stop killing for them. He would kill them.

He scrambled to a standing posture, and lifted the globe high above his head.
He held it tightly in his gnarled claws, and, issuing a bellowing roar, crushed
it. It shattered, and thousands of tiny shards arced downwards, making the
ground around the statue look cold and frosty. Nothing would stop him now. He
would crush them as he had crushed their globe, and wouldn't stop until the
blood of each of them, and the creatures they had created soaked the earth.
Once this was done, he would combat the Beast himself.

Flame red eyes stared out across the sun-scorched plain, scanning the distant
forests. Just for a moment he enjoyed the stillness. A respite before he once
again set mind and body against the unnatural creatures his masters had
spawned. He knew that somewhere within the giant forest lay several Beast Mage
buildings, and, hidden even deeper, the Beast himself.

Drawing in breath sharply, he flexed his hardened muscles, feeling the blood
pulsing through his arteries, the double heart pounding furiously in his chest.
His power and speed were all that ensured his survival. He knew that the minute
he was weakened, and his reflexes dimmed, that minute would be his last.

Setting off at a run he made for the trees, stirring up a trail of grey dust
behind him. To have remained on the plain while the sun was high would have
been fatal, and the trees would provide a respite. Even so he knew that their
shade would not prove entirely safe, and were likely to be providing shelter
for other beasts than himself. As the warrior reached the edge of the forest
his instincts told him that he was unlikely to be alone for long. His eyes
narrowed, darting from side to side watching for the tiniest movement that
would betray a predator.

When it came it did so with speed, rushing at him full on. It provided a
warning, as it's black wings crashed through the foliage, and from its mouth
came a piercing scream as it sighted it's kill. The warrior had barely enough
time to turn as the gaint batlike creature flew directly at his head.
Crouching, he brought his bone-covered fist up hard into the creatures soft
underbelly, using it's own momentum to direct it into the trunk of a tree. It
screamed in pain, hitting the tree with it's spine curved backwards before
falling to the ground, it's spine smashed and skull broken. It made no noise
but for the treacly blood bubbling from it's mouth and ear.

The warrior ignored the body. Behind him had come another screech, this time
even closer. As he turned and dived for cover another winged demon flew at him,
claws extended for the kill. The warrior struck out again, but too late this
time, and he felt its talons tearing into his flesh as he rolled away into the
undergrowth, dragging the creature with him, rolling onto it and breaking it's
neck in one movement. He lay there panting, momentariiy dazed. He could feel a
warm wetness across his side and stomach, and with it a sharpening pain.

He stood slowly, fighting the waves of pain that passed through him, feeling
his hearts pounding faster. He had to keep moving. Other creatures would smell
the blood soon and he could not ward off another attack.

As he stumbled between the trees he noticed something out of place against a
distant trunk. Coming closer he realised that it was a doorway, and recognised
that it was a Beast-Mage construction. Thinking only of the things that would
soon be trailing him, the warrior took a chance and dropped through into the
darkness.

There was a cool breeze coming from somewhere beneath him, and, now that the
creature was out of the forest, a menacing silence fell, a silence disturbed
only by the slow dripping of water deeper within the cavern.

As the warriors eyes became accustomed to the poor light he made out a worn
stairway curving away from him into the darkness. So, his suspicions were
confirmed. He had stumbled upon one of his ex-master's outposts. An outpost
that would definitely be inhabited by bizarre creatures, but that couid also
possibly host the Beast. There was only one way to find out…

Padding slowly down the stairway, the warrior readied himself for whatever
abominations lay in wait at the bottom. Soon the stairway straightened out and
the warrior found himself on a narrow ledge. The phosphorescence from the
cavern walls was enough to reveal that he was in a huge chamber that extended
away into pitch darkness. Now the silence was interrupted by distant sounds of
angry growling. Whatever inhabited this place had obviously picked up his
scent.

The ledge that he was on appeared to be deserted, so he advanced slowly.
Without warning there was a sizzling sound behind him. Instinctiveiy the
warrior jumped, and felt his feet burn as a white hot fireball shot beneath him
and explode violently against the cavern wall. So, his former masters were
aware of his presence, and realised his intent. He would have to be twice as
alert now. They would use every means in their power to stop him.

Ahead of him now he could make out a rough wooden ladder staked into the side
of the ledge. He swung himself onto it and began his descent, dropping silently
the rest of the way when he saw another ledge beneath him. No sooner had his
feet hit the ground than a scaled abomination rushed forward, his large teeth
glinting as he roared ferociously. The warrior turned calmly and despatched it
with a single blow.
And so the ordeal went on as he worked his way deeper into the cavern.
Unnatural creatures beset him at every step, but each was destroyed with
determination as the warrior remembered his promise to himself to continue
until every last one was dead.

He had just dropped onto another ledge when he caught a glimpse of something
shining in the distance. Moving closer his keen vision made out a key sitting
on a shelf on the other side of a broad chasm. He started to move swiftly
towards it when he was halted by an almighty roar. Suddenly, he was confronted
by a huge guard. His opponent took a short moment to size him up and then made
a charge, swinging his double headed battle axe at the warrior's head. Without
losing a moment the warrior sidestepped the blow and slammed his fist into the
guards throat. There was a sickening crunch as the neck snapped, and the
warrior stepped back quickly as the huge body tumbled forward over the ledge.

There was no time for recovery before another hulking figure was rushing
headlong at him. But this time the warrior was ready, and his flying kick sent
the guard plummeting backward to join his accomplice. Now a clear way lay ahead
of him to the key. He sprinted along the remainder of the ledge and, just as
the edge of the abyss met him, he leapt forward, hands flailing, reaching to
grasp the edge of the shelf.

He made it In a shower of dirt and stones, and caught his breath as he hung
swinging above a seemingly bottomless chasm. He could feel his sweaty hands
begin to lose their grip. Now the warriors true destiny would be decided….

The Warrior's Objective

You must fight your way through several different regions in order to reach the
heart of the enemy's stronghold and face your ultimate adversary. Creatures you
encounter will invariably be hostile, and will cause damage when they come into
contact with you. Contact can be avoided by punching or kicking creatures away
from you before they get too close, or by shooting them if you have a weapon.

Each time you are damaged your heart-rate will increase. Your current
heart-rate is shown on the monitor in the centre of the screen at the bottom.
If your heart-rate gets too high your hearts will burst, resulting in instant
death. During your attack on the stronghold you will find various artefacts
which can be used to assist you on your quest. Some of the items, keys for
instance, can be collected for later use when you move over them. Items that
you have in your possession will be shown at the bottom of the screen. Other
items, such as potions will have an instant effect which is shown on screen
when you move over the item.

There are also weapons that can be collected at certain points in the game.
These are used instead of punching and kicking to destroy your opponents.
Certain creatures can only be destroyed by special weapons. It is up to you to
discover the best way to use the artefacts you find and how to tackle the
creatures you encounter.

Controlling the Warrior

Use the joystick or keyboard to control the Warriors movements.

Joystick / Keyboard / Effect

Up / Q / Jump up/Use exit.
Left / O / Move left.
Right / P / Move right.
Down / A / Move down.
Fire / Space bar / Kick, punch, or fire weapon.
/ H / Pause the game.

Press the fire button to punch, or kick while jumping. If you have a weapon in
your possession, pressing fire will fire the weapon rather than kicking or
punching.
Moving the joystick up or down will normally cause the warrior to jump or
crouch. If, however, you are standing on or against a ladder moving the
joystick up or down will cause the warrior to ascend or descend.
There are exits between areas. If an exit is facing you, simply walk into it to
use it. If an exit is to one side of you, stand next to it, and then push the
joystick up to use it.

LOADING INSTRUCTIONS

Spectrum 48k/128k/+2

Insert the cassette into the cassette player and press LOAD”” and then press
the ENTER key. Follow the on screen loading prompts for further instructions.

Spectrum +3

Insert the disk into the disk drive, and use the disk loader. Follow on screen
loading prompts for further instructions.

Amstrad CPC 464

Insert the cassette into the built in cassette deck, press the CONTROL and
ENTER keys. Follow the on screen loading prompts for further instructions.

Amstrad CPC 6128

Insert the disk into the built in disk drive, and type |CPM. Follow the on
screen prompts for any further loading instructions.

       _______________________________________________________________________________
       | (c) Gremlin Graphics Software Limited 1990                                  |
       |                                                                             |
       | This manual and the information contained on the floppy disks are           |
       | copyrighted by Gremlin Graphics Ltd. The owner of this product is entitled  |
       | to use the product for his or her own personal use only. No one may         |
       | transfer, give or sell any part of either the manual or the information on  |
       | the disk without the prior permission of Gremlin Graphics Software Limited. |
       | Any person or persons reproducing any part of this program, in any media,   |
       | for any reason, shall be guilty of copyright violation and shall be subject |
       | to civil liability at the discretion of the copyright holder.               |
       |                                                                             |
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