[HQ Ignorance] Scene 109: The Entrance to Hell

[Lev Lafayette]

Scene 109: The Entrance to Hell

After hearing your stories, Niantic agrees that you are indeed worthy of
helping the Gopher people confront Chaos and in return they will provide
magic passage according to your desire. Niantic summons a light spirit
to lead the way and again the trio find themselves taking a long
underground journey in the land of the diminutive gopher people. As the
party travelled on occasion they espied many other members of the tribe,
mostly carrying supplies of food and water, who quickly stepped out of
the way of the shaman and her group. At one point however, a
gruff-looking group of four men stopped and conversed with Niantic who
turned to the party in explanation:

"These brave men travelled to the place of Chaos. Originally there were
six. They were attacked by the crawling mouths. Our people are fast, and
the others escaped. They have used Gopher Magic to come here and tell me
the news. Now we must used Gopher magic to go to the place of Chaos."

With that remark the Shaman sat herself down, cross-legged and began to
beat the floor of the cavern with what appears to be a very large
carrot. Murmuring to herself, her eyes shut, she continues weaving her
magic for some minutes. Finally, the Fourth being first to notice it, a
ghostly white large gopher appeared in the light just ahead of group.

With its appearance Niantic leapt to her feet, surprisingly sprightly
given her apparent age. "Run!", she exclaimed. "Follow Flash!". On
demand, the gopher spirit also turned and ran down the passageway. It
seemed strange, but as the group chased the rodent both the walls and
passage around them gained a translucence, and the feeling in their feet
and muscles gained an otherworldly, dissociated sense. 

It was difficult to determine how long the party chased the gopher
spirit as it ran and burrowed through the soil, but the conclusion was
sudden. All found themselves on the edge of a yawning chasm which
stretched as far as the light permitted. Far above, the rays of Yelm
could be seen, but below there was only darkness.

"Our people fruitful and multiply", Niantic explained. "They dig many
passageways, make many homes. Then some passage dig too war and end up
here, the wound upon the earth. Crawling mouths come out of this pit and
spit glue at the gopher people. Many people are eaten. We fight them
with spear and magic. We block up their passageways. But they eat out
new ones and now there are many more. We fear for our people."

"Few gopher people climb things like this. It is like a mountain but
underground. Great warriors, might shaman, have gone down this pit, but
have not returned. This is Wound-Upon-The-Earth. My grandmother teach me
that once all of the lands was great Garden. Then Chaos comes out of
ground, and come from here. The pit is bottomless. If you fall, you must
either climb up to the Surface or below to the Underworld."

Looking down, all witness some scuttling on the chasm face. Four, maybe
five, strange, multi-legged creatures with gaping mouths.

Niantic whispers softly. "We appreciate what you are doing here,
elf-man, far-rider, little enlo. If you save us, if you defeat the
Mother of the Mouths, the Gopher people will not forget you."