Cave of the Monkey
The Cave of the Monkey is an important mythic place for the different beliefs of the East. To all, this site is the dwelling and power of Monkey, a powerful spirit. To the followers of the Path, Monkey has often provided insight to the sages of Shou Lung. In Ra-Khati, Monkey is one of the founders of Padhran. Among the gompas of Tibet, he is a mischievous, though helpful, boddha. The followers of the Way hold he is a troublemaker and trickster, often overcoming the evil spirits of the celestial world. Even the shamans of the steppe hold Monkey in awe as a powerful spirit to be respected and placated. This when the shamans have only a dim idea of what a monkey looks like!
Hidden deep in the valleys of the Yehimal is a cave. Little known and hard to find, its passages wend for miles beneath the surface, opening into tumbled caverns, chimneys, sinks, and bottomless pits. This is the home of Monkey.
A powerful spirit, Monkey chooses to spend at least part of his time on the Prime Material plane. Although capricious and troublesome, he has a genuine affection for humans and so has often helped them in the past. At the same time, he does not like to be disturbed and so has made his home far from settled lands. The cave is located in a long valley, narrow and deep. The valley can only be reached by threading a maze of lesser valleys and high passes. Dropping well below the level of the peaks, Monkey’s valley is warm and wet, a sub- tropical oasis surrounded by jagged spires of icy rock. The lowest slopes are thick with groves of rhododendron, bamboo, oak, and pine to make a dense jungle.
Wild boar, bears, leopards, and monkeys live here. The cave is hidden in this forest. From the outside it looks normal, although the area around the entrance is thick with little monkeys of all types. Inside, the tunnel wends its way past several branches before coming into a set of luxuriously appointed chambers. The floors are covered with rugs and fine furniture. Painted scrolls, stolen from the great collections of the world, hang from the walls. One chamber is a library with scrolls from Shou Lung, Wa, Terraguard and other places of learning. (Monkey ranges farther afield than just the orient.)
Another chamber is a treasure chamber, again containing precious artwork and jewelry stolen from around the world. If Monkey is not present, all of these things seem to be unguarded. The cave is more extensive than just these apartments, however. Elsewhere are gates to other Prime Material planes, other worlds on this Prime Material plane, and other planar locations. These other planar gates include one that opens into the gardens of the Celestial Emperor, another that opens into the Emperor’s stables, and a third that leads to the underworld of the Celestial Bureaucracy. There are more gates beyond this that have never been identified. Again, none of these seem to be guarded.
