Theleb notes that the statues are of hellhounds, and the snake motif symbol is the mark of Geryon, an Archdevil of Hell. The stinking swamps of Stygia, the fifth layer of Hell, are the dominion of the Serpent—Geryon—source of all great heresies.
The chains parts like butter, falling to the ground with a clang! The door swings open, its creaking hinges showing it has not been opened recently.
Shadows cast by a blazing brazier behind a metal lattice to the south flitter across the wall paintings here, granting the images the illusion of haunted animation. A seven-foot-tall statue of a hunched, robed figure with three eyes and a mouth ringed with tentacles stands before the lattice.
Theleb knows that the statue depicts Barbatos: The current ruler of Avernus, the first level of Hell, Barbatos holds the keys to the gateways into Hell. He has dominion over birds that feast on the recent dead.
The metal lattice that bars your way is rusted and looks like a solid shove or kick would push it aside.
A fiery brazier at the east end of the chamber makes the air uncomfortably hot and acrid. An eight-foot-tall statue of a devil with large, curved horns stands at the west end. Across from the metal lattice is a collapsed, descending staircase. An ancient skeleton is partially buried under the rubble.
Once again Theleb can identify the statue here as Dispater: The immense, iron-walled city of Dis, the second layer of Hell, is ruled by Dispater, Hell’s greatest politician and jailer. His followers revere hounds.
Theleb studies the painting. The paintings portray a battle between the troops and div allies of Ancient Osirion and the artificers and constructs of the Jistka Imperium. These two powerful nations clashed for several hundred years around –3000 ar, and the Jistkans eventually lost the prolonged conflict.
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Pinball wrinkles her nose at all the devils represented here.
"This may be Cheliax's history, but it certainly isn't Taldor's," she says. "Unless, I suppose, Taldor had secretive devil worship long before the fall of Aroden."
She casts a detect magic, frowning at the braziers. "This must be magic flame to still be burning... no normal fire could still be here carrying merrily on, unless it was set very recently."
Pinball then moves to the buried skeleton, trying to see if she can pull it out of the rubble or if the stones are too heavy. Before she touches it or gets adjacent to it however, she throws a small blip of positive energy at it, just in case.
The ray of positive energy hits the skeleton, but nothing happens.
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"If there isn't anything of interest here, I suggest we move on"
Manius kicks the metal lattice to the side and moves forward.
"Look another statue. And some stairs"
After everyone has taken a look around and Theleb explains whom the statue is Manius leads the way down the stair and stops in front of the doors
"Can anyone check these for traps?"
After that's been done (and assuming none are found, or they are disarmed) Manius opens the doors
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"Hmm, doesn't seem to be undead at least," Pinball observes. Before they move on, she finishes check its person for anything, including any clues as to its identity-- clothes, belongings.... just how it got here to be buried under the stone of the collapsed stairwell, or who it was, or how long it's been here, even.
She checks the doors that Manius indicates for magic, but her own eyes for traps aren't great either.
Down the stairs you go! At the bottom it opens up into a hallway. The echoing, lightless hall has a dark pool that extends most of its length. A walkway runs above the pool, but much of it has collapsed, leaving only the support pillars below. In the south, upon a platform at the end of the hall, stands a seven-foot-tall statue of a horned humanoid with a large, cryptic disc mounted upon its back. The hall turns to the west before the platform.
Theleb can identify the statue as Mammon: Hell’s treasurer and accountant, Mammon lurks in the dark, rat-infested sewers below Dis—a lightless realm called Erebus that is the third layer of Hell.
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"I'm somewhat worried about what happens when we reach the last level of hell, given we're going in order. Asmodeus himself?" Pinball says.
"....a complex built in imitation of Hell's architecture seems very, very Chelish to me," she says in response to Blanmieux's assertion that it doesn't seem Chelish to him.
With a snap of her fingers, Pinball sends four floating blue-hued lights together to circle the long chamber, skimming down towards the water and up towards the ceiling, to make sure nothing is lurking in the corners.
"Ooh, that looks fun, Garret--" Pinball says, jumping a few pillars after the halfling but letting his better eyes take the lead.
Garret and Pinball bounce from pillar to pillar with nary a kipper scuffed. They look into the new room they've discovered. This hallway has staircases leading down to the north and west. The wide staircase to the west leads to a room illuminated by the warm glow of a small, fuel-less forge next to an eight-foot tall statue. The statue depicts a handsome, winged humanoid, though one side of his body is notably angelic and the other half fiendish. Skeletal remains in a red uniform lie in the middle of the room.
Theleb takes a leap of faith! ...and slips and falls into the wash. Blanmieux follows him, but manages to make it across by hopping from pillar to pillar.
Theleb pulls himself out, spluttering and wet, but unharmed.
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Pinball doubles back, leapfrogging, with a concerned frown at the splooshing.
"....I was going to suggest you let us scout and then work on a safe way to get you all across, but..."
"If we tie a knotted rope from pillar to pillar and move it as needed, letting you climb along it, we can probably proceed-- slowly, but safely... I don't like the look of that water. Or the dead body up here. I can understand the buried corpse in the rubble, but why is there a person just dead in the middle of the floor? Trap seems likeliest."
Manius elects to use the wet method as well, and emerges on the far side wet and slightly oily.
The statue Theleb can identify as Belial: Desire and adultery are the areas of concern for Belial, ruler of the molten layer of Hell’s fourth circle, Phlegethon. His followers considered goats sacred.
There is a strange, fading magic aura on the forge, as well as a faint abjuration aura on a gold bracelet that has the head of a goat on it on the corpse.
The corpse of the Chelish soldier has a gaping but cleanly cut hole through its rib cage.
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Pinball looks at Blanmieux in disbelief. Her mouth opens several times, obvious anger flashing over her features. After several seconds she grips her strand of Iroran prayer beads tightly and counts under her breath to ten.
"Is there a particular reason you are insulting me?" she asks calmly. "If you would rather grab it I won't stop you. But if it is trapped, as it may well be, I believe I am just as resilient in many respects and I don't particularly understand why you feel the need to express a lack of faith in my abilities."