The darkness ever deepens. As you stumble your way through the shadows of the earth and stone, you stumble out from the hallway and into a massive reception chamber. The walls outstretch far enough to house a feasting party of guests, long enough to keep the tables, with another hallway exiting on the other side. You have only a moment to awe at this marvel of a room, as in the center of the room sleeps a massive beast.

It is about the size of a small house like the ones near Grayskull (no relation), and snores like the rumbling of a forge. It appears at first to be a great lion, curled up for a rest before returning to prowl the savannah. However, on it's neck rests the head of an eagle, larger than any living bird of the natural world. It's great eyes are shut, but tell of a distant eyesight from which none can escape. It's feathers lay flat, it's great beak shut like a steel trap. It's tail wisks back an forth in it's sleep.

Your hands tremble in anticipation. You are like a rodent to this beast, a toothpick after the meals it must eat to sustain such a massive frame. You begin to step lightly, making as little sound as possible on the stone floors as you slink around the edge of the chamber, keeping good distance from this spawn of Tartarus. Your shoes are worn out, the soles thin, which makes for a soft footstep that makes almost no sound. The creature shows no sign of stirring.

You slip on a loose rock. You swore it was not there a moment ago when you moved to step, but it is there nonetheless, and it causes you to stumble and clatter, making a small ruckus. It is enough to stir the beast, who is on it's feet in a moment, paws outspread, its great eyes fixed on you as the beak opens and lets out a skull-splitting screech that sends terror through your very essense. You dash, desperate to reach the opposite exit, the beast surely too large to follow. It pounces, jumping and then sprinting at you faster than lightning. You have the advantage of size, being small and adept, while the beast's massive body causes it to slow, then turn, then build speed again. This handling error affords you just enough time to slip into the hallway and keep running, up the passage, around the corner, down the way, all the while listening to the monster shriek and caw, clawing at the wall and sending rumblings through the earth. You do not slow down until the screeching fades, and you do not stop to rest until it is entirely gone.

You are tired, frightened, and worn, but you continue on your journey.