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“I am sorry, Princess, it’s too dangerous right now,” says Perilous Jack.

“Let me slay the Giant first, and then I will return and release you. As long as you are in this cell, you are safe.”

Princess Vasilisa begins to cry, but she does not try to stop him as he leaps over the pit and continues down the corridor. In a moment, he comes to a second pit, from which issues the sounds of stifled rage and the clank of chains. In the bottom of the pit stands Layla, Captain of the Lorikeet Guard. The floor of her pit is also a metal grate, and again Jack thinks he sees something moving in the darkness below.

Layla is bound hand and foot to the wall and is busy yanking on her chains in a vain effort to break them. When she hears him approach, she ceases her efforts and looks up in irritation.

“Are you going to help me or are you just going to stare?” she asks. “The Princess is in the next cell; I don’t know how you managed to get here without tripping over her. Help me out, so we can go.”

Again, Jack hesitates. The sensation that someone or something is intruding in his mind lingers.

If you think Perilous Jack should try to rescue Layla, turn to 113.

If you think he should continue down the corridor, turn to 104.