Dark Cave

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This is a **Volcano** exploration event.

## Enter

Courage, Stealth, Constitution

You take a few steps inside the cave and look around. It's extremely dark, so much that you can barely see anything. It would be more careful to have a light to go inside. Who knows what could happen to you in the darkness?

Make a torch (requires at least 1 wood, 1 fabric, and 1 tinder)

You craft a torch you're lighting up thanks to some tinder fungus, then you go inside the cave. You take advantage of that to observe it and you can see it divides into two tunnels. At the entrance of the left one, there are what seem to be dried blood stains.

-1  Wood, -1  Fabric, -5 Fire Intensity

Move forward in darkness (Courage)

Success: You have nothing to light the way, but you still decide to go inside the cave. You move forward by following the walls because you don't want to venture in the middle of the tunnel where you wouldn't have any landmark. This would be the best way to get lost. The light lowers little by little. Soon, you're in the pitch dark. Now, the place is completely silent and you feel the rocks weight on you. You must be quite far from the tunnel's entrance.

Failure: You have nothing to light the way, but you still decide to go inside the cave, where the darkness quickly surrounds you. However, after a few steps, your determination suddenly vanishes. You're frozen with terror. Anything could be lurking in darkness, ready to attack you, and you have the unpleasant feeling that someone is staring at you. Panicked, your muscles free themselves, and you rush outside.

Survivor gains trait: Scared (4 days)

I won't go without a torch

Better not venture inside without a light. You don't know how far the cave goes. It may be connected to a huge network of underground caves and in that case, if you go too deep, it's very unlikely you'll find your way again.

(with torch) Go right

You move forward in the rock tunnel, noticing along the way many openings in the walls that lead to other hallways, indicating the presence of a grid of an underground network. It must be a real maze, so you prefer to stay in the main tunnel. The tunnel leads to a vast room, and you're troubled by what you're seeing: clothes, tools cut out of rock, a bed... Someone lives here and must be somewhere around, in one of the many tunnels. Does this person have good intentions? You don't want to run into them to find out, especially as you're alone, unarmed, and your torch's light is getting weaker. You have to get out of this place quickly. Before you go, you pick up what seems useful to you, and then you turn back to where you came from, worried that someone might come out of one of the many side tunnels. You reach the exit without any unforeseen meeting, but you prefer not to linger here.

+ Beer, +  Crap Meal, +  Foul Smelling Potion, +  Worms Poultice

(with torch) Go left

You move in the rock tunnel that kindles your curiosity. During your progress, you notice many openings in the walls that lead to other hallways, indicating the presence of a grid of an underground network. It must be a maze, so you prefer to stay in the main tunnel and follow the blood so you don't get lost. After a few minutes of walking you notice a dozen dead rodents hanging from some hooks, and bleeding on the rocks. You shiver and realize what this means: someone was in this tunnel, at the same place as you, not so long ago, and this person must still be pretty close. Does this person have good intentions? You don't want to run into them to find out...

(with torch) Turn around

No, you're not taking the risk to venture inside. You don't want to meet the wrong kind of person. Who knows how they could react to seeing you here? The blood you're seeing probably belongs to some visitors that were too curious... You rush outside.

-5 Courage

(with torch) Keep going (courage)

Success: You decide to unhook rodents and take them with you. If you lose your way, this will be your only food supply. You keep walking and you notice that there is more and more blood, until it's all over the walls. What are you getting involved in...?

+  Pelts, +  Raw Meat

Human bodies are hanging on some hooks, cut open, with their guts out, having spread everything they had inside in wooden buckets. You're this close to vomiting. The blood smell is very strong and this dreary display is not helping to contain yourself.

Survivor gains trait Nausea (1 day)

The person who did this is probably still around, knowing you're here. You turn around immediately, you think you heard some footsteps behind you, but no one's there. You're starting to freak out, this is not good.You need to leave NOW, before your torch dies out. You don't want to meet whoever did this bloodshed in the pitch dark... You rush away, fearing someone might come out of the many tunnels at any moment. Luckily for you, you reach the exit without any unexpected meeting, and you swear never to come back here.

Survivor gains trait: Cave Explorer

Failure: No, you're not taking the risk to venture inside. You don't want to meet the wrong kind of person. Who knows how they could react to seeing you here? The blood you're seeing probably belongs to some visitors that were too curious... You rush outside.

+ Depression, -5 Courage

(in dark) Turn around

You choose to turn back, hoping not to run into a dead-end. You really feel stressed, and you reach the exit with relief.

Survivor gains trait: Claustrophobia (permanent, +10 Exploration and +2 to +5 Depression each night), -5 Courage

(in dark) Keep going (Courage)

Success: A little further, there's a faint light: it comes from mushrooms and little stones spread here and there in a tunnel. You can't see clearly, but it's still a sizeable source of light. You decide to pick up some, they could be useful to you, then you keep going to the darkness.

+  Fire Crystal, +  Strange Mushrooms

After a few minutes of walking, you freeze. You've heard a voice. You're not alone: someone is walking somewhere, in the darkness. You stay silent, and sharpen all your senses. You hear the voice again, much closer than before. It's a man walking. You barely make out some parts of sentences that scare you to death, for they don't make any sense. Then, he bursts out in an insane laugh that echoes down to your guts. This person gives you shivers up and down your spine. You take a step back and your foot hits some sticky surface. You take a gleaming stone that you've picked earlier and you distinguish what's on the ground. Blood. A lot of blood. And a little further, ahead of you, there's a dark shape. You stretch your arm to light it, and you muffle a scream when you realize it's a hanged and stabbed body. You need to leave NOW!

Failure: You choose to turn back, hoping not to run into a dead-end. You really feel stressed, and you reach the exit with relief.

Survivor gains trait: Claustrophobia (permanent, +10 Exploration and +2 to +5 Depression each night), -5 Courage, +depression

(in dark) Get away in silence (Stealth)

Success: You put the stone away so the stranger doesn't spot its glare and you slowly retreat to the darkness, as quiet as possible. You even try to control your breathing. You keep your calm and you stay focused on each one of your steps. The man's voice becomes fainter and fainter. The way back seems to last forever, as you fear the stranger will catch up to you. Finally, you manage to reach the exit safe and sound. You're never going back in there ever again. There are dangers much worse than Bjorn on this cursed island...

+5 Exploration, survivor gains trait: Cave Explorer

Failure: In your retreat you hit a pebble that loudly rolls before it stops in silence. Now, the man knows you're here. Lurking in darkness, he's waiting for another noise from you to know where you are. It's your jerky breathing that gives it away. You hear the sound of someone running, and as you understand he's spotted you, you run away. A swift pain goes through your shoulder and you feel pulled backwards, making you scream.

+ Injury

You manage to hit the man, who falls on the ground, and you pull out from your shoulder the metallic object he hurt you with. Wasting no time, you run off as fast as you can, hoping to shake him off. The way back seems to last forever during which you fear the stranger will catch up to you. When you reach the exit, you're soaked in sweat, and the ache in your shoulder feels more painful as the adrenaline weakens. Ouch.

+ Fatigue, survivor gains trait  Small Wound

## Check the surroundings (x1)

Requires: **Hunting**, **Crafting**

You decide to look around, hoping to make some interesting findings. A few minutes of searching later, you end up some marks on the ground.

**Examine the traces** (**Hunting**)
**Failure**
You might well analyze them, unfortunately you can't guess where they come from.
**Success**
You can see there are two kinds of marks. First, fighting marks: you get the feeling people fought here, there are even some little drops of blood, and one of them was dragged toward the cave.
The second kind of marks belong to small rodents, and there semm to be a lot of them.
**Make a trap** (**Crafting**)
**Failure**
You try and make a trap with what you have, that is to say not much. Unfortunately, you can't do it.
**Success**
You try and make a trap with what you have, that is to say not much. Fortunately, you can do it.
You see them walking from one bush to the other and then, after a long time, two small curious animals come close to the trap and trigger it.
+  Raw Meat