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Encounter Conditions
None
Initial Text
With another lull in the garage's music, you find the source of the crackling sound. A strange tree, perhaps an art installation, grows at the edge of a clear pool in the concrete floor.
The more you look, the more certain you are the tree is something else entirely. Its trunk and branches are made of countless bones.
Even if some of the bones are artificial, there's a strange life to them. They gently shake and move, but maintain their connections with each other somehow.
With each step you take closer, the air grows cooler.
Summary of Choices
- Shake it - gain mysterious bone and 4 XP Strength
- Worship it - gain 4 XP Will
- Dive in - with proper diving gear, gain glowing bone; also stats/hp.
- Leave it be - walk away
Choice Text and Results
Shake it
You wade across the shallow water and grab hold of the tree, shaking it as forcefully as you can. The sound of it shaking and of bones rattling against each other echoes throughout the hall.
A chill creeps down your spine as though you've just attracted something's attention.
As you try to pull your hand back, you realize that it's stuck fast. You continue your struggles like an animal stuck in a snare until you finally pull a bone loose and free your hand.
Well, everything must have noticed that.
You found: mysterious bone
You've earned 4 XP in Strength
Worship it
You drop to your knees in the pool, calling out in worship. A chill shudders through your body, like a hand is gently caressing the inside of your skull.
You've earned 4 XP in Will
Dive in
You jump into the pool, pulling yourself down with hands on the jagged concrete. It goes deeper and deeper, your fingers touching first one bone embedded in the concrete and then more.
The water begins to twist and eddy, moving almost with a will of its own. You are able to avoid the worst of it at first, catching a glimpse of light deeper in the pool, but are forced back to the surface.
You've earned 2 XP in Strength
You've earned 2 XP in Will
Or, with 3 Diving Ability but no Air Recycler:
You jump into the pool, then kick your legs to propel yourself further downward. The water goes deeper than it appeared and bones begin appearing in the concrete. Just a few at first, but gradually more.
The water twists and eddies, moving almost with a will of its own. You cut through it like a knife, catching sight of a faint light deeper in the pool.
However, no matter how deep you swim, you're eventually forced back to the surface for air.
You've earned 4 XP in Strength
You've earned 4 XP in Will
Or, with 3 Diving Ability and Air Recycler:
You jump into the pool, then kick your legs to propel yourself further downward. The water goes deeper than it appeared and bones begin appearing in the concrete. Just a few at first, but gradually more.
The water twists and eddies, moving almost with a will of its own. You cut through it like a knife, catching sight of a faint light deeper in the pool.
Pushing yourself further, you eventually pry loose a glowing bone tangled among the tree's bony roots.
You found: glowing bone
You've earned 8 XP in Strength
You've earned 8 XP in Will
Or, after getting the glowing bone?:
You splash in the pool a bit. It's cold, but refreshing.
You regain 22-30 hit points!
You've earned 2 XP in Strength
You've earned 2 XP in Will
Leave it be
Yeah, as long as nobody looks at it too closely, they shouldn't think it's anything more than an incredibly spooky Halloween decoration. That's obviously not your problem.