The 'abyss village' is a human settlement located within Pantala
underneath Lake Scorpion and near the abyss.

## Description

Upon first discovering the abyss village, Cottonmouth founded a
makeshift lab that was lit by oil lamps, with rough walls and damp stone
floors. Within the tunnels, the sounds of clanging and muffled shouts
could be heard as the humans were building or digging. The air smelled
faintly of rotting greenery and the place was a mess, with piles of
vines and pots of dirt strewn everywhere. There were also small
creatures trapped in makeshift cages around the room; most were lizards,
but there was also a monkey and a long-feathered blue-green bird.

The village is surrounded by several underground caves, which are used
to collect water and fish. One of them was described to have a river
sweeping through an above alcove and then waterfalling down about the
height of two dragons into a wide, rippling pool, with pale fish
flickering in the dark water. There is a hole higher up on the wall that
leads to an odd sort of path descending from the hole to the shore of
the lake, made of stairs chiseled into the stone. The cave has ledges,
rock walls, and dark corners, with stalagmites casting long shadows.

A tunnel within this cave leads into a zigzagging, splitting, branching
stone tunnel filled with stalactites. The ground slants downwards, each
turn going lower and lower into the earth, until a faint green glow can
be seen ahead. It glows brighter as a sepulchral, echoing cavern can be
seen from a plateau studded with boulders, containing stalactites
overhead, and overlooking the abyss.

## Notable features

### Salvation Tunnel

Another tunnel within this cave consists of a small gap that leads into
a long, dark tunnel with a low roof. This leads to the Salvation Tunnel,
which has many glinting, shiny diamonds, emeralds, and rubies. They are
embedded in the wall in a design that frames an archway into a new
tunnel, and they are designed to look like the breath of evil plant,
with emerald vines, diamond flowers, and dark and blood-red rubies
throughout. Further in, the Salvation Tunnel has stone walls and a
ceiling that are covered with paintings of humans. Later on, there is a
drawing of a dragon in a cave with smoke rising from its nostrils,
humans doing normal human things, and the dragon again, flying low over
a group of crouching stick figures, and then another painting depicting
the dragon back in its cave, with little bones scattered at its feet.
The walls seem to mirror one another, and the drawings become more
unsettling as one progresses through the tunnel; more dragons appear,
chasing the tiny stick figures, and more bones fill the empty spaces on
the wall. A few dragons have human legs poking out of their mouths, and
other paintings depicted several humans and human houses on fire. There
are increasing depictions of fire, with trees on fire and painted flames
covering wide swathes of the wall with small circles, which may have
been human faces, poking out occasionally. Cricket speculated that the
drawings must be very old, because the dragons they depicted did not
match any of the current Pantalan tribes.

Later down the tunnel, Cottonmouth is depicted by himself within a
circle of figures at a distance around him. He is slightly larger than
the others, with a halo of light drawn around his head, and he was
pointing farther down into the tunnel. A little ways on, he is depicted
again, standing alone on a boat atop waves, with many other humans
following him, crammed ten apiece into their own boats. They are later
depicted going into a cave, with plants painted around it. The vines
curl around the entrance and under the humans' feet, and they are
painted to look like the breath of evil.

## Society

The humans who live in the abyss practiced Abyss Worship for several
centuries. The Guardian of the Abyss, a human chosen by the othermind,
occasionally received messages from the abyss to pass along to the
village. The abyss village is ruled by Leaders, who decided after Vole's
Guardian of the Abyss initiation to abandon him and to stop the
ceremonies that were used to choose new Guardians. These happened every
ten years before their ban. The Leaders then forbid any mention of the
abyss, despite it ruling their people for centuries, and all humans were
instructed to pretend like it did not exist. Mole was the only human
permitted to visit Vole or to go anywhere near the abyss. In addition,
the Guardian of the Abyss was the only human able to go into the abyss.

The Leaders appear to function in an hierarchical system, as Mole was
mentioned to be their only remaining heir.

The abyss village believes that a great and wonderful ancestor founded
the village and created ties to the abyss. This human was Cottonmouth,
and although the abyss village does not seem to know him by name, they
still consider him a savior who could do no wrong.

The humans of the abyss village had fishing nets, which they used to
catch prey in several underground lakes surrounding the village. They
have also been mentioned to use knives, wheelbarrows, pulleys, and to
have doctors, who use a special flower juice to make people sleep during
surgeries. Mole and Raven appeared dangerous and spiky to Luna.

## History

### The Lost Continent Prophecy

#### The Flames of Hope

Raven mentioned that the village had abandoned Vole, who was the
Guardian of the Abyss. She also said that the village only allowed Mole
to visit Vole and no one else.

## Inhabitants

  - Mole
  - Quartz
  - Raven
  - Vole