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Encounter Conditions
None
Initial Text
You find one of many sketches of fiery lakes, but this one shows a chain hanging down from above. On the opposing page, you can see the view up the chain, showing tunnels dotting the sides of a lava tube up towards an open area above where many more chains hang.
If the hero lives up to the usual standards, he should be able to jump over the lake and grab the (presumably not superheated) chain.
Summary of Choices
- See if he climbs back to the surface - Leads to The Black Book
- Search for him ducking into the tunnels - Leads to Tunnels of The Black Book
- Look for sketches of him swimming across - Gain 3 XP in Will
Choice Text and Results
See if he climbs back to the surface
You look through the book, eventually finding a sketch of the hero hauling himself back up to the highest layer of the chasm. At the top great slabs of meat hanging from hooked chains come into view, although it's arguably more inviting than lakes of fire.
(Leads back to The Black Book)
Search for him ducking into the tunnels
(If you have the blazing skull)
You find a sketch of the hero hauling himself above the fire, flaming skull in one hand and a hooked chain in the other. It's a little more adventurous than the artist's other pieces, almost more fitting for a heavy metal audio chip than his usual horrific fare.
(Leads back to Tunnels of the Black Book)
(If you do not have the blazing skull)
You quickly find a sketch of the hero making his way into the dark passageways dotting the chasm walls. The images are easy enough to parse at first, with walls of dark stone covered in scratches reminiscent of writing.
Over the next few sketches, they quickly fade into darkness. You stare at the last sketch, utterly black except for the few places the ink cracked.
It's hard to say whether you should be surprised when you wake up in a pool of your own blood. Strange, uneven bites have been torn out of your flesh, any one of which would be crippling to someone without your… talents.
Lose all HP
Look for sketches of him swinging across
You quickly find what you were looking for: a sketch of the hero swinging across the pit of fire on a hooked chain. His featureless face is stretched a bit, as though he's screaming under a mask of blank flesh.
You feel a tremendous surge of relief at the next sketch, which shows him at the far side of the lake. Relief and… confidence? The feeling fades after just a moment, but you're calmer in its wake.
You've earned 3 XP in Will