The Devil's Hook

The Devil's Hook is a particularly infamous natural archway found within the desert mesas of Terra Eclipsis. Known as a cursed location to the locals, The Devil's Hook is known for its odd, hook-shaped formation, with one end of it being very thin compared to the other side. The smaller end overhangs on a mysterious pit, known colloquially as the Hell Cave.

Geography

The Devil's Hook is massive, reaching up several kilometers high into the sky. It's natural formation resembles that of an archway, albeit with one end becoming rather thin on one side-- enough that, from the right angles, at the right distance, it's almost comparable to that of a hook.

It quickly earned it's name due to the fact that it sits right atop of the Hell Cave.

The Hell Cave is a cavern with an unusually high amount of volcanic activity occuring within it. Magma flows down the walls within, with lakes found throughout it's depths. Occasionally, one can feel the earth shaking beneath their feet as they go down deeper. Old mineshafts from Dwarven prospectors before the First Elven-Dragon War are littered throughout the Hell Cave, long abandoned and on the verge of collapse.

At the end of one tunnel, one can find The Beneath.

The Beneath is a dark pit that has existed since the dawn of Terra Eclipsis. It holds it's own secrets, illuminated by a faint, purple glow, much like the surface world does now. It's said that The Beneath is only one small part of the deep, deep underground, an area that few species are able to get down to.

It's also suggested to be very dangerous, as those who have wandered down into The Beneath rarely return. Those that do manage to come back are irreversibly scarred at best, heavily Transformed at worst.

As of present, The Beneath has been condemned by The Union. All access to it is under heavy supervision, as to prevent either Dragons or The Tower Of Babel from gaining access to the wealth of Mana located within it.

Localized Phenomena

Due to the heavy amounts of heat that eminates from within the Hell Cave, the weather tends to fluctuate heavily, especially during the winter time. Thunderstorms are a common occurance here, which has resulted in a fair amount of protection being added to the nearby villages to protect them from lightning, such as lightning rods.

After The Withering, there have been regular occurences of Purple Hazes, originating from the mouth of the Hell Cave. This makes The Devil's Hook one of the few places on Terra Eclipsis where a Purple Haze can even occur.

History

The Devil's Hook was discovered by Dwarven Prospectors in the early days of the realm, before the Elves would find themselves constantly at war with both other species and with themselves. Sensing a massive amount of ore within the ground beneath the hook, the Dwarves would set up shop near it, establishing the village of Holven at the base of the Hook.

The Mine would operate for five years, with hundreds of pounds of metal and gold being dragged up from it's depths. This would continue on until the Dwarves uncovered a pathway leading down to The Beneath. It's not certain what happened to the mining teams that first investigated The Beneath, though it's been fairly reasonable to assume that they all were killed by a malignant force that resided within The Beneath.

The Kingdom, in it's early days before it would become a terrifying force feared by the other species of the realm, would offer support to the Dwarves of Holven, sending troops down through the mines to investigate.

Only one knight came back.

He was tranformed, his entire body having been turned into stone-- Still alive, but with his movement heavily restricted and his facial features becoming limited. Although his lips were made of stone, although his body was now as cold as the rock around him, he spoke fiercly, determined to get the warning out. From The Kingdom, a messenger awaited for the news from this sole knight, writing down everything he was told so that he could deliver it to his leaders.

In that darkness, I saw a purple light. It called to all of us, trying to worm it's way inside of our minds. As we traversed deeper and deeper in, we would find the caverns shifting, twisting, turning. One of our men was crushed as he broke off from the group, going into one tunnel. He wasn't able to escape when the walls came closing in on him, turning him into paste.

We kept our guard up as we kept on going. It wasn't long before we were attacked by something. It had wings the length of our castle's moats, and dozens of eyes staring right through our souls. It was nothing we've ever seen before, and when it came after us, there was no escape.

I got lucky. I was knocked off of a cliff within this cavern. The last thing I saw it do was bite the head off of one of my companions. It's jaws snapped shut, decapitating him in a mere instant.

I don't think I'll ever forget those eyes. There was something unholy within them. A wrath that not even the most furious of elves I've known could ever hope to match.

Since then, it's been suggested by some that what the knights encountered within The Beneath was a Dragon. Due to the dangers associated with The Beneath, The Kingdom, and then The Union once they occupied the territory, would block off The Beneath using powerful Barriers and keeping a selection of guards stationed there, for the safety of those outside; and to keep whatever lies within locked away.

Alternative Name(s)

The Accursed Hook, The Hook, The Dragon's Den

Type

Cliff

Location under

Terra Eclipsis