Living Whirlwind (The Citadel of Chaos)

The Living Whirlwind is a female adversary in the Steve Jackson's Fighting Fantasy Gamebook "The Citadel of Chaos", first published in 1983.
She is a female face inside a whirlwind. In the accompanying illustration by Russ Nicholson, not only her face but also the whirlwind's shape and hair looks female.
The hero, star pupil of the Wizard of Yore, is on a mission to assassinate the evil sorcerer Balthus Dire in his Citadel. The Whirlwind's relationship to the sorcerer remains obscure. The hero encounters her in section 245 of the book as he is on his way to the Citadel's main entrance.
She hits the hero as a sudden gust, throws him off his feet, laughs at his attempts to harm her with his sword, and blocks his path. She cannot be killed or appeased by the hero except when he shows his anger, which elicits another laugh and the confession that enjoys watching people getting angry; still, she and the hero do not communicate well. However, she is also easily outsmarted by ruses and magic, especially those that take her attention elsewhere. Being outsmarted can also make her furious - to no avail.
== The Encounter ==
On his way to the gate, the hero hears a "faint whistling" that "gets louder and louder" fast until he is suddenly hit by a "strong gust of wind" which keeps him from proceeding to the Citadel.
Upon retreating, he sees a "ghostly female face inside what appears to be a living Whirlwind". She tells the hero that she finds his appearance offensive and abuses him verbally. When he draws his sword, she laughs.
The hero has several ways of reacting to her:
=== 1) Ignoring her ===
"Deeply insulted by (the hero's) indifference", she will blow him off his feet and block his path wherever he tries to go.
=== 2) Trying to pacify her by talking to her ===
This will make her torment the hero by blowing him off his feet each time he rises. If he is lucky, he can outsmart her by looking into the shadows and making her believe that another creature like her is hiding there; as soon as she investigates, the hero can sneak off. If his luck has left him, the ruse fails and the hero will be forced to use magic or retreat.
=== 3) Using magic against her ===
==== a) Creature Copy Spell ====
This spell creates an exact duplicate creature which then attacks while the hero watches. When her duplicate appears she "watches in astonishment" and "backs off a little". In her case, however, the duplicate is unable to attack: "They seem unable to get close together, like two spinning tops, and keep bouncing apart." Still, the hero can run past them and reach the Citadel's entrance.
==== b) Illusion Spell ====
When green, fuming gas emerges from the hero's hands, she "backs off", realizing "that her own spinning will suck the gas inside her Whirlwind". Her retreat enables the hero to dash for the Citadel.
==== c) Levitation Spell ====
When the hero floats into the hero above her, she watches in dismay and "spins herself frantically, trying to suck" him down, but the hero is out of reach and taunts her with a smile as he reaches the entrance.
=== 4) Showing anger ===
If the hero makes his anger obvious to her, "she laughs again" and explains that "she likes to see people getting angry". She then accompanies the hero several metres towards the gate. However, "conversation is difficult", and when "she sees something in the distant shadows", she "nips off to investigate", leaving the hero to proceed on his own.
Category:1980s
Category:Beehive Hairstyle
Category:Book Villainess
Category:Bully
Category:Chaotic Evil
Category:Defeated By Magic
Category:Evil Laugh
Category:Humiliated
Category:Humiliator
Category:Sadist
Category:Fate: Ending-Dependent