This chapter opens with a description of the blue plaques on the ground, which are signs of a disease called "plaques . . thirst for blood" . The host can survive on blood, but the host can die if he does not have enough to drink. If the host eats too much, he can get sick, but if he eats too little, the host will get sicker. If he eats a lot of food, he will also get sick. He will die without any blood, because the poison is "kicking in" , and without blood, the poison will kill the host. The narrator tells the audience that he is still alive, and that the host has given him his blood. He tells them that the blood on his hand was from the animals, and the narrator knows this disease very well. He says that he would never give them food to eat in exchange for the blood of another human being. He explains that the disease is caused by a blood-sucking curse, which is cast on people when they drink too much blood. All of the symptoms of the disease match those of the curse, and it almost costs the host his life if he doesn't have the blood to drink