Chapter of Caves: Bram Stonefoot's Journal

From the personal journal of Miner Bram Stonefoot, 14th Cycle, Deepstone Year:

The darkness here is different. It's not the familiar gloom of the Caverns of the Reforged, where the Deep-Delvers hammer out their stubborn existence. Nor is it the oppressive black of the Null Fields, where even the Shadow-Goblins fear to tread. This is a darkness that hums. A darkness that listens.

We broke through the last rockfall three days ago, following a vein of Aetherium Shards deeper than any of us have ever seen. The air grows heavy, thick with the scent of wet stone and something else… something metallic and faintly sweet, like the residue of a Celestial Alignment Ritual. We've marked our path with Runes of Return, though I confess, I doubt they'll do us much good if we get truly lost. The compass spins wildly, and my lamp flickers even with a fresh charge. It's like the earth itself is trying to mislead us. I swear I hear whispers, carried on the faintest of breezes, urging us onward toward the Veins of Whispers.

Old Man Baruk claims he saw something in the shadows yesterday – a flicker of movement, a glimpse of eyes that weren't rodent's eyes. He's muttering about Stone Spirits of the Deep, and I’m starting to worry about his sanity. Still, I doubled the guard last night. I feel the same way, like The Gaze of the Deep is constantly watching us. Found what looks like a lost tome bound in leather, entitled Chapter of the Veins, which should be delivered to Archivist Theron at first chance. The Crimson Cartographers never mapped this place. They should be informed. We need to consult the Silent Monks of Durin's Peak if we ever get out. Maybe even the Cobalt Corsairs would be wary of this place. I fear we are encroaching upon something ancient, something best left undisturbed. I should have listened to Elder Vorin…