SOTB3.DOC

SHADOW OF THE BEAST III

The story so far..

Shadow Of The Beast:

As a small child, Aarbron was enslaved by the Priests of the Beast Lord.  He
was tormented for years and subjected to an evil program of will-sapping
drugs. He eventually had no purpose of his own and totally belonged to
Maletoth, The Beast Lord.  He became the Beast Messenger, a creature
possessing great strength and agility, and he soon forgot his human ancestry.

Time passed and Aarbron performed his duties well, he was a good slave. Then,
one fateful day, he was passing time watching ritual sacrifices when the man
shackled to the alter woke dim and distant memories. Perplexed, Aarbron moved
closer and looked long and hard at the face of the man about to be
slaughtered...

The sacrificial knife plunged down and Aarbron remembered with horror that the
man he now looked on was his father!

As he watched the life blood flow from his body to splash red on the cold
floor of the temple, the memories of his short childhood and the truth of who
he really was became clear to him.

He looked around him at the priests of the Beast Lord and felt hatred. He
swore vengeance on Maletoth and his aid Zelek.

Running away from the temple, cold tears stinging his anguished face, Aarbron
vowed to avenge the death of his father and make them pay for his own years of
torment...

He knew he had a long and difficult battle ahead of him...

Shadow Of The Beast II:

Aarbron fought bravely and battled hard but failed to destroy either Zelek or
Maletoth.  However, he had destroyed many armies of Beast followers and was
rewarded by having some of his humanity returned.

The power of the Beast was diminished... but Maletoth remained a dark threat.

Aarbron drank from a pool of cool clear water.  As the refeshing liquid passed
his lips, the pool darkened and grew cloudy.  A dull light from its depths
illuminated a vision that transfixed Aarbrons gaze:

He saw a small ramshackle house, lonely and vunerable in the storm that raged
around it.  High on a craggy cliff overlooking the house stood Maletoth...
commanding the storm.

Lifting his arms to the rolling sky he began to metamorphose into his beast
form... a horrific winged demon.

With a cry of triumph he lept off the cliff and glided effortlessly through
the maelstrom to land with dark grace on the roof of the little house.

Inside, a frightened mother moved to protect her baby as the clawed hand of
Maletoth smashed its way through the flimsy roof and reached down.

A baby's cry, a mother's scream and Maletoth flew from the roof and into the
darkness... the frightened child in his talons.

A faint whisper escaped from Aarbrons lips... 'Sister!'

He heard Maletoth speak to him above the storm:

'She is perfect to take your place by my side... on Kara-Moon'

His evil laughter mingled with the thunder as the menacing vision slowly
disappeared to be replaced by a bright ring of ripples.

Was Aarbron to be haunted forever by Maletoth?

He knew he must journey to Kara-Moon and face unknown terrors in order to
rescue his sister.

Shadow Of The Beast III:

Zelek was dead...

Aarbron collapsed to the ground and slept.

As he dreamed, an apparition appeared before him in the form of a wizened man.
The man smiled.

"You have done well, Aarbron.  Zelek was indeed a powerfull enemy, to defeat
him took great courage and strength.  The world is now a safer place, thanks to
your valour. But your battle is not yet over. Maletoth, although abated is
still a power to be reckoned with.  To be free of his curse forever he must be
destroyed.

I am Rekann. Once magician to the King, I maintained the balance between light
and dark, good and evil.

Sadly, I was lapse. I should have seen Maletoth's power growing and sensed his
presence, but he was clever... very clever. I had no hope, his attack was
swift. Before I could retaliate he had imprisoned me in this Cage Of
Constraint. But now, your defeat of Zelek has weakened Maletoth sufficiently
to allow me to contact you.  His dark hold on the world is loosening.  We must
strike while we can.

To banish Maletoth forever you must seek out these four items:

The Skull Of Louq-Garou, The Quintessence Of Being, Pendek's Mace and the
Crystals Of Hodag. Only when you have these four entities will you be strong
enough to face Maletoth. Awake now, Aarbron. Awake to face your greatest
challenge yet... but fear not for I shall be with you to guide you along
the way.  Awake Aarbron...your transport awaits."

Aarbron stirred. He lay quietly on the ground, contemplating his dream. He felt
different, he felt good. Looking down he saw that his body had changed, he had
regained his human form. Maletoth's curse had left him, he was free!


           ----------------------------------------------------


From the distance, Aarbron heard the throbbing hum of aircraft engines. He
watched, fascinated, as an old plane flew into view and landed close by.

Aarbron waited... Nothing happened.

He approached the now silent aircraft and, as he neared it, the door opened.
Aarbron jumped back, but again nothing happened.

He looked inside... no-one was aboard. He climbed in and the door slamed shut.
The engine fired up and the plane took off.

Aarbron made himself comfortable. The plane was heading north,... towards
Maletoth.


The Game:

You control Aabron as he searches the far reaches of Kara-Moon to find the four
items he needs to defeat Maletoth. But the search won't be easy; Maletoth's
minions infest the four regions and they will do anything and everything to
prevent Aarbron reaching their master.  And this time it's not simply a case
of fighting a way to Maletoth, for the path is strewn with complex, intricate
puzzles, switches, jet platforms, strange machinery and deadly traps.

You begin the game armed with Shurikans but along the way you may collect
Grenades, Keys, Hammers and Gold to help you in your deadly task.


Selection Screen:

Push your joystick left and right to rotate the level disks. Press fire when
the required level is above Aarbron. You may only access two levels at any one
time: initially Levels 1 and 2 are avaliable to you, however, complete either
and level 3 will also become accessible.


Whats On-Screen:

LEFT   -   TURN/RUN LEFT
RIGHT  -   TURN/RUN RIGHT
UP     -   JUMP
DOWN   -   CROUCH
FIRE   -   USE CURRENT OBJECT

Controls:

F1     -   SCROLL THROUGH INVENTORY
F10    -   QUIT
ESC    -   SUICIDE (LOSE A LIFE)
P      -   PAUSE
HELP   -   RESTART FROM LAST LOAD
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