Character Relationship Map: The Devil Below

Characters

• Arianne (played by Alicia Sanz) — protagonist

  Leader of the expedition team searching for the abandoned Shookum Hills mine. She leads the initial exploration, volunteers to return to the site with locals, and is eventually captured by the creatur...

• Darren (played by Adan Canto) — protagonist

  The apparent leader of the scientific expedition, secretly funded by a coal mining company to locate a rare mineral. He confesses his true mission to Arianne, is captured along with her, and is fatall...

• Schuttmann (played by Will Patton) — supporting

  Former mine owner and father of a boy killed by a creature decades prior. He leads the local survivors who rescue the expedition team and reveal the truth about the monster-infested tunnels. He interv...

• Jaime (played by Zach Avery) — supporting

  A member of the scientific expedition team. He descends into the sinkhole with Arianne to search for Terry and later joins the return trip into the tunnels. During an ambush, he attempts to throw a gr...

• Shawn (played by Chinaza Uche) — supporting

  An expedition team member who initially helps subdue a local antagonist. He gets separated in the woods but is later captured and brought to the creature lair. He observes that the monsters reproduce...

• Terry (played by Jonathan Sadowski) — supporting

  A member of the scientific team who is lowered into the sinkhole to deploy sensors. He is suddenly dragged underground by an unseen threat before Arianne and Jaime can locate him, marking the group's...

• Shelby (played by Jesse LaTourette) — supporting

  A local survivor who guides the expedition back to the sinkhole. He sacrifices himself by distracting the creatures to allow the others to flee. His corpse is later discovered by Arianne in a raft nea...

• Eric (played by Duncan Novak) — minor

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Schuttmann → Eric (Family Father) — Schuttmann is Eric's father and attempts to save him during the mine attack.

  The opening shows Schuttmann speaking with his son Eric before the creature attacks him.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Schuttmann → Shawn (Alliance Rescuer) — Schuttmann's group is connected to Shawn through the rescue effort.

  The locals led by Schuttmann rescue the surviving expedition members after Shawn is separated in the woods.

• Schuttmann → Darren (Alliance Rescuer) — Schuttmann provides Darren temporary protection and reveals the mine's history.

  Schuttmann leads the locals who rescue Darren after the expedition is attacked in the woods.

• Arianne → Schuttmann (Alliance Survival Allies) — Schuttmann becomes Arianne's most important local protector and ally.

  Schuttmann's local group rescues Arianne, and he later stops another local from cutting her escape rope.

• Jaime → Shelby (Alliance Mission Companions) — They cooperate as members of the combined expedition and local group.

  Jaime and Shelby accompany Arianne and Darren during the return journey into the tunnels.

• Arianne → Shelby (Alliance Survival Allies) — Shelby protects Arianne through a deliberate sacrificial diversion.

  Shelby guides Arianne and the others back toward the sinkhole, then distracts the creatures so Arianne can escape.

• Arianne → Darren (Alliance Expedition Partners) — They jointly direct the expedition despite Darren concealing his real objective.

  Arianne leads the expedition while Darren serves as the apparent scientific team leader during the search for Shookum Hills.

• Darren → Shawn (Alliance Teammate) — Their cooperation is established through shared expedition membership.

  Darren and Shawn travel together as members of the scientific expedition before being separated in the woods.

• Darren → Jaime (Alliance Teammate) — They participate in the same expedition and survival effort.

  Darren and Jaime remain with Arianne during the return mission into the tunnels.

• Arianne → Terry (Alliance Teammate) — Arianne acts to recover her missing expedition colleague.

  After Terry is dragged into the sinkhole, Arianne descends with Jaime to try to find him.

• Arianne → Shawn (Alliance Teammate) — They are expedition colleagues who share the danger of the mine and lair.

  Shawn travels with Arianne as a member of the expedition and later appears with her after both are captured.

• Arianne → Jaime (Alliance Teammate) — Jaime repeatedly supports Arianne during the investigation and retreat.

  Arianne and Jaime descend into the sinkhole together to search for Terry and later return to the tunnels together.

Story Analysis

An expedition uncovers the monsters beneath a vanished mining town and forces Arianne to become part of the community's struggle to contain them.

Plot Progression

1. The Mine's Buried Secret — Schuttmann loses his son during an attack in the coal mine. Years later, Arianne and Darren lead an expedition toward the vanished town of Shookum Hills.
2. The Sinkhole Opens — The team bypasses the electrical fence and discovers the abandoned mine. Terry is dragged underground, and Arianne learns that something is living in the tunnels.
3. The Survivors' Warning — The expedition flees through the woods while losing members to the underground creatures. Schuttmann's locals rescue the survivors and reveal why the town disappeared.
4. Sacrifices Beneath the Earth — Arianne, Darren, Jaime, and the locals return to the breached sinkhole. Ellroy, Shelby, and Jaime are lost as the creatures force the survivors deeper underground.
5. The Queen's Lair — Darren confesses the expedition's mineral-hunting purpose, while Arianne is captured and taken to the colony's lair. She kills the queen and escapes with Darren.
6. Guardians of Shookum Hills — Darren sacrifices himself to save Arianne, and Schuttmann's locals drive the creatures back into the tunnels. Arianne agrees to help contain the threat.