### 263

You have leapt out of the frying pan and into the fire! The pool of water is an illusion. Its surface is a gossamer-thin membrane, and it hides the egg-like Korkuna which has burrowed beneath it. As you touch the surface, the edges of the membrane roll inwards and smother your hand, holding you fast in a steel grip. A snaky tendril lashes out from a hole in the shell and wraps itself around your throat, its sharp tip piercing your neck. You are paralysed; you cannot move. Horror fills your senses as you watch helplessly as the creature gorges on your blood, its shell pulsating and swelling.

Your life and your quest end here.