Editing The Machine (section)

===Deep Madness===
I've also been evolving a concept I refer to as Deep Madness in lieu of a less clichéd name. Basically, Delvers tend to go mad, and it gets worse the deeper they go. The constant clanging, hissing, buzzing and roaring of the Machine has a peculiar effect on the people exploring it, and the deeper you go, the weirder things seem to get. It usually starts as bad dreams. Psychological records include examples of drowning in oil, as well as having cogs and pistons painfully incorporated into one's flesh.

This is only the beginning, however. This usually escalates into erratic behaviour, extreme emotion swings and eventually madness. There are reports of Deep Mad Delvers throwing themselves into obvious death traps "to be part of the Machine" or wiping out their entire expedition team.

Whether this is some function of the Machine on the human mind, or merely a version of the phenomenon known as cabin fever is unknown, but leading psychologists generally seem to believe it's perfectly reasonable behaviour for people trapped in a hostile environment days from the nearest help.