The Neathersphere

"Alright," said Aradia, suddenly serious, "I suppose the obvious first question is how did we get here?"

"Like we know we got here through that tear, but what is that thing? And how did it transport us here? And where is here?" Prism added borderline frantically.

Aradia shot her an amused look and then turned back to the Delingers.

Mrs. Delinger sat back thoughtfully and Mr. Delinger puffed his pipe and the sweet smell of tobacco filled the air.

"As far as we can tell, the rip opened about six months ago. At first it just made us curious but then those things started coming through."

"The Wraiths?" Asked Prism.

"The Wraiths, yes but they aren't even the worst of it. They are more like watch dogs. They seem to wait at the edge of it to stop people from passing through."

"But what's the worst if it, then?" Asked Prism with a shutter.

"We aren't sure what they are but they seem to be foot soldiers of some sort of dark army. They come through under the cover of night and scour the land as if they are looking for something. They wreak havoc everywhere they go. Their very presence seems to throw off the natural balance of things."

"But what are they looking for?" Asked Aradia seriously.

"We're not sure. Everytime we get close to them we end up fighting for our lives and sad to say we aren't as young as we used to be."

"Where are they coming from?" Asked Prism with wide eyes.

At this, Mr. Delinger hoisted himself to his feet and walked laboriously to a desk in the corner to retrieve a large tome. He made his way over to The Fae and handed it to Prism open to a certain page covered in complex drawings and symbols she could not read. He tapped a drawing of a circle bisected by several lines.

"The Neathersphere." He said and removed his pipe from between his teeth.

"Pardon?" Said Aradia looking up from the book.

"Me and a group of my colleagues have long studied what is just outside of our dimension." With the use of these amulets, he pulled a long pendant on a gold chain from under his shirt. It had a large green, rough cut stone encased within it's gold bands.

This time both Fae looked taken aback. Mr. Delinger continued.

"In our travels we have realized that all creatures across all planes believe in the existence of some sort of dark dimension. Some believe it is a place of punishment for the damned but we believe it is simply another world like the rest of ours, but is generally misunderstood because of its dark nature."

"I understand." Said Aradia, thoughtfully.

"But if that's true, then why is it causing all these problems now?" Asked Prism concernedly.

It was Mrs. Dellinger who answered while Mr. Dellinger relit his pipe.

"From what we can gather, there has been a disruption in the power structure there. Some sort of uprising and now the more nefarious beings there have overthrown whatever was keeping them in check and they are seeking something that will help them spread to others."

Then Mr. Delinger added,

"The unique part about The Neathersphere, and in fact the very reason for its name, is that it is a circular dimension located centrally between several others, two of which are ours and yours."

Prism and Aradia exchanged a look from over the pages of the book. Aradia could tell Prism was as concerned as she was. They understood the importance of balance for the success of life in any ecosystem and this sounded very dangerous to them.

Aradia raised her eyes and looked from one Shrew to another,

"We want to help. What can we do?"