Chapter 5 · Malebolgeone of the damnedCircle VIIIBeing built
The Lantern Thief
The thief in serpent shape who tears the lantern out of your hand and runs ahead with your flame in his mouth.
Un ladro del settimo fossato, in forma di serpente. Ha in bocca la tua lanterna, e non scappa per tenersela: scappa perché è quello che sa fare. Si ferma a guardare se lo segui.
Revealswhat happens to you halfway through the seventh ditch.
The seventh is the ditch of the thieves, and its punishment is an exchange of bodies. Here the ditch does to whoever passes what those damned did in life, and it does it with the one thing you cannot go without: this is not a lost inventory slot, it is the dark. The lantern really does leave the bag, and the flame you watch moving away along the bank is yours.
He does not run off: he runs ahead, stops, coils and waits, because stealing in order to escape is not enough for a thief. He moves at five metres a second, under your running speed, and every time you get within three metres he bolts at seven point four for a second and six, so he is only taken back while he is coiled. Whoever comes up from the floor of the ditch with no lantern is never robbed at all.
The numbers
| What | How much | When |
|---|---|---|
| Pace when he runs | 5 m/s | |
| How often he coils | 5 s | |
| How long he stays coiled | 1.1 s | |
| Range at which he bolts | 3 m | |
| Pace of the bolt | 7.4 m/s | for 1.6 s |
| Head start when it begins | 9 m | |
| Beyond this distance he waits for you | 18 m | |
| Range at which you take the lantern back | 1.7 m |
Links
- Found in
- The Seventh Ditch, the Thieves
- See also
- The lamp, The Lamp and the Oil
- Named by
- The Seventh Ditch, the Thieves