“No, Please no! Let me go!” A woman screams as two men push her up a set of mossy cobblestone steps.

They take her past a pavilion, up to the edge of a deep, dark drop.

“Please, I'm begging you! There must be someone else, please!” She struggles against their hold, her backpack with what little belongings she has jingling behind her. She tries to reach out to kick them, but her Converse slip on the wet floors.

“We don’t wish to do this either, Heang. ”

“I promise you, heaven awaits.”

“There is no such thing!” She wails, “No such thing!”

“It will all be over soon…” One man says.

With a heave, they both push her off the ledge, sending her plummeting down. About a minute later, a faint splash is heard.

The men nod at each other, wishing her peaceful passage to the afterlife as the mosque's megaphones unleash a chorus of prayer over the setting sun.

As you jump into the portal, you feel yourself falling through an immense darkness. Around you, the scents of rot and algae fill your nose. You see the patch of sky above you get smaller, until it is but a spotlight. Around you, ornate tiered columns border endless archways, spiralling down along with you.

The stone gets darker as you fall further down, they glisten with the slick of water, coated in algae with snails nesting in the cracks. All around you are circles of light, emanating from lamps attached to the point of each arch, they act as runway markers for your triumphant landing, passing you in rings like you were falling down a tunnel.

Looking down, you see a pool of cerulean water, its surface creeping halfway up one of the many tiers of archways. In it, a gigantic fish swims, circling around its relatively tiny domain. As the pool gets larger through your fall, you see the fish look up, its eyes an unnatural and deep black. It launches itself out of the water, jaw extending like a snake, ready to swallow you whole.

At that moment, you feel yourself bounce. As the fish jumps up to catch its latest meal, you land on a taut, near transparent fishing net. Hand woven and extending across the entire diameter of this ungodly hole. Your rear just so much as brushes the snout of the fish before its upward momentum gives out and it falls, splashing back into its watery prison.

You see others on the net, spanning about 50m end to end. The halo of light high above you has shrunk to the size of a coin, and from the smell of the water below, it seems that you all are in a well. Specifically, at the bottom of a well.

From the depths beyond the archways above you, people begin to gather, you hear chatter and wet footsteps. A few flashlights shine in your faces and long sticks poke at your sides. You look up to the balconies and see women of all ages - their faces curious yet… furrowed.

They look upon all of you with a hostility, a few of them hold penknives and one particularly built older lady has a shotgun, ready to fire.

Silence.

A woman with a basket of mushrooms over the back and a shovel in her calloused hands raises an eyebrow, her voice is low, sonorous and suspicious, echoing over the entire well.

“We are The Well. Who are you?” —-

All human NPCs in this setting have the pronouns She/Her

Srimum - The Well's head engineer and repairperson. She manages the sewage and ever failing drainage system. She is responsible, dedicated and an excellent problem solver. She is one of the most knowledgable women when it comes to most physical sciences. Current status: Unknown

Efsan - Mushrooms, algae, plants, fish, snails and everything in between - Efsan has picked, examined, catalogued and very likely eaten it. She knows everything about the ecosystems in the well and how it changes as the water rises higher and higher. She makes sure everyone has enough food, and ensures people ration in the wetter months, which nowadays have become every month… Current status: Unknown

Kanna - 22 and Efsan's newest apprentice, she has really taken to the giant fish in the well and wishes to see it live a long and happy life. Her head is very firmly underwater when those words reach her ears - literally. One of her favorite pastimes is free diving deep into the Well's many flooded levels. That and shredding on her (homemade) electric guitar is all she cares for these days. Current status: Unknown

Heang - A vocal activist and avid feminist. Heang spends a lot of time painting murals in the great hall and giving inspirational seminars. She is highly engaging and intense. She is incredibly knowledgable about music, poetry and the arts. Heang helps organise sharing sessions where the women swap and share their knowledge in the Great Hall amphitheatre. She and Kanna love to have jam sessions and long to start a band one day. Current status: Unknown

Yat - Formally a professor, Yat is now The Well's resident timekeeper and architect. She typically works in Srimum's workshop, but unlike all the other women in The Well, she has become heavily pregnant. Due to her pregnancy she has been weakened, and some women have expressed hostility towards her because of this. Current status: Unknown

References Include:

Thalasso Hobbyer for constructing the beautiful diorama that was the main inspiration for this library

Adalaj Stepwell For the structure of the Library

An Arapaima is the inspiration of the being at the bottom of the well

The culture and commune within the well was general inspired by Southeast Asian Oral Histories, and is set from 1990s to 2010s.