Level 7

## Level 7: "Thalassophobia"

### Description:

**Level 7** is an impossibly large ocean that seems to stretch infinitely in all directions. Despite the absence of fixed light sources within the level, a dim natural light is present across the level. Detailed exploration of this ocean is sparse due to the extreme danger and the amount of preparation it requires to navigate. What we know of **Level 7** is as follows:

**Level 7** is largely unexplored but is understood to be composed of two rooms: the entrance room and the "room" containing the ocean itself, with a high concrete ceiling suspended above the water. The entrance room appears to be the most readily available point of entry to **Level 7**, being directly at the bottom of the stairs from Level 6. This entrance room is the most habitable point in the level and should be used as a home base for those who dare to explore the ocean below.

This room is fully furnished, with a bookcase against the left wall containing several books of unknown origin, a small coffee table, a single chair, and a fluorescent ceiling lamp. The carpented floor is covered with a shallow pool of water no deeper than a puddle. Across the room from the staircase to Level 6 is the doorway to the ocean.

Any explorers willing to traverse **Level 7** should be aware that the centre of gravity within the entrance room is different from that of the rest of the level. The entrance room appears to be built sideways into the ceiling of **Level 7**, with the door opening up directly above the water from a top-down perspective. Anything directly in front of the open doorway will have its gravity forcibly adjusted to that of the ocean, leading several unfortunate wanderers to plummet throught the doorway into the waters "below."

The vast majority of **Level 7** is composed of the ocean outside of the entrance. The door to the entrance room is located on a fixed spot on the concrete ceiling, roughly 4.5 meters above the surface of the water. Though the water surrounding the entrance is barren, wanderers travelling far enough across the surface have discovered islands made of an unknown rock, which are mostly uninhabited.

The ocean of **Level 7** is mostly uncharted, but exploration suggets that the entire level is almost completely devoid of life.

The "zones" of **Level 7**, categorized by light levels, are listed as such:

### The Daylight Zone:

As the name sugges, the Daylight Zone is the most well-illuminated part of the Level 7 ocean, being slightly less dim than the surface. Very little else can be said about this zone, as it is the most barren area of the ocean.

### The Twilight Zone:

Located just below the Daylight Zone roughly a kilometre below the surface of the water, the Twilight Zone is significantly darker and colder. This zone contains loose bones and scraps of rusted metal, as well as the first sightings of full skeletons. These skeletons are often humanoid with noticeable differences, including much larger jaws containing long, sharp teeth and legs ending in what are presumed to be flippers. Several skeletons of large, unearthly fish have also been spotted, many of which are covered in bite or scratch marks. The water pressure is said to be quite strong by this point, yet it appears that at no point in Level 7 is the pressure great enough to crush the human skeleton. However, due to more pressing dangers, explorers willing to travel this far or further down are advised to leave as quickly as possible.

### The Midnight Zone:

Estimated to range at around three kilometres below the Twilight Zone, the Midnight Zone is completely dark. Many more full skeletons have been found within this portion of the ocean, almost all of which are those of the humanoid entities previously mentioned. There have been reports of incredibly large fish-like skeletons in the Midnight Zone, but the skeletal structures of these creatures have been described by observers as "incomprehensible."

### The Abyss:

Any depth below seven kilometres from the surface is considered to be too dangerous to explore, with the longest recorded exploration of the Abyss lasting just under two minutes. The Abyss is sparsely decorated with mountainous piles of tar and rock, with a steady bubbling emanating from an unknown source below. This zone is also densely populated by the aforementioned humanoid skeletons, most of which have been eroded in some regard by the immense pressure. Little else is known about the depths of the waters, aside from rumors of a cave entrance in one of the underwater mountains that are said to lead to Level 8.

The current depth of **Level 7** is unknown by exact terms, but members of a certain abandoned Group in **Level 7** have determined it to be impossibly deep architecturally. Fragments of synthetic fibre in the Midnight Zone and Abyss suggest that the ocean floor is carpeted.

### Entities:

~~In terms on entities, **Level 7** is reported to contain only one. Alone in the freezing waters, The Thing On Level 7 appears to have killed off any other life in the ocean.~~

For many years, Level 7 was believed to have only one entity, the infamous Thing On Level 7. As of April 18th, 2019, **Level 7** is now inhabited by another entity, who goes by the name Tiny. The combined ferocity and physical prowess of both entities have left the entire rest of the ocean completely uninhabited, making them the primary sources of danger within the level. Both entities appear to be matched only by one another in terms of speed, strength, and detection and are to be avoided by all means necessary.

As of now, Tiny has been shown to limit himself to the Daylight and Twilight Zones, whereas the Thing makes its home in the Midnight Zone and upper Abyss. It is unknown how or why, but the two appear to have an agreement of mutually-assured destruction, preventing one another from hunting outside their designated territories.

### Colonies and Outposts:

#### Fort Surrender:

* An outpost on the closest recorded island consisted of a haphazardly constructed shelter composed of broken furniture held together by tar.
* Inhabitants are rumored to have devoted themselves to worshipping The Thing On Level 7.
* Numbers of inhabitants: Unknown, but said to be somewhere between 4 and 9 people.
* Population of the outpost is ~~rumored to be~~ hostile.

### Entrances and Exits:

#### Entrances:

The only known entrance to Level 7 is through a staircase down from Level 6, which leads directly into the entrance room. There are rumors of a possible entrance through a puddle on the floor of Level 8.

#### Exits:

The most well-known exit to **Level 7** can be found in an underwater cave on the side of a particularly tall mountain toward the bottom of the Midnight Zone. This mountain is almost directly below the entrance room, creating a straightfoward (albeit lengthy) route to Level 8.

Certain locations under the water of the area may lead to Level 37.

As of 6/28/22, a new exit has been discovered roughly 150 meters west of the entrance room that leads directly to Level 9. This exit is approximately 150 meters below the surface and is marked by a collection of massive underwater pipes and stone pillars in a circular information. In the centre of this formation is a wooden door built into the floor of a circular stone platform. Judging by the high quantity of skeletons and loose bone in the area, it is safe to assume this is where Tiny resides most of time, so approach with extreme caution.