Jessamy searches the mirrored room high and low but finds nothing of interest save a few chunks of broken sculpture that seem to softly glow with various colors - perhaps a remnant of the powerful spirit that was previously trapped within.
"Um, how was he trapped in a prison? What's he doing here?" Jessamy asked.
The spirit's powerful voice echos through the heroes' thoughts.
Pirknok nods, his eyes burning with anger. "We'll do it," he states with finality. "He deserves a lot worse than death, for what he did."
"Can you tell us anything else about the master or his apprentice? We've killed some pretty scary things already in here, and we're kind of looking for more," Jessamy asks.
Krojun nods to the peacock totem. "Indeed, brother spirit. We will see this arrogant one laid low. What will you do now that you are freed?"
Siolad shrugs. "...alrighty then."
Pirknok watches, still wide-eyed with wonder, as Jess addresses the spirit, and it answers, and as Krojun calls it 'brother'. As it prepares to depart, the dwarf quickly reverses his grip, grasping the blade of his katana with both hands and holding the hilt to his forehead. I don't know how to thank you for all you've taught me. I hope... I hope maybe to see you again, someday, if you're... bored... or...
"So ... it sounds like we might need to backtrack a bit too, to get the essence of their sins? Um, can you tell us how to do that before you go?" Jessamy asks.
The massive colorful spirit glances at Pirknok again before bowing slightly to Siolad.
With that final warning, the Great Peacock turns to mist and rapidly fades from view.
Pirknok shakes his head in wonder, staring at the air the peacock spirit occupied moments before. After a few seconds, he lets out a long breath. "That was..." he begins, but trails off with a shake of his head, unable to produce the word for what he wants to say. Amazing? Wonderful? Stronger than that. I never would have imagined it in all my life... and I don't think I'll ever forget it.
"We should go, then," he says, instead.
"Yeah, we need to find this apprentice and collect his sin..." Jessamy agrees.
The dwarf nods, though a frown knits his eyebrows together for a moment. "How do you even 'collect' someone's 'sin'?" he wonders aloud.
Krojun shakes his head. "I daresay I don't really wish to know."
"He said Siolad would know," Jessamy says, glancing over at the elf.
After verifying that the secret door is safe, the party ventures eastward.
Bookcases full of tomes and scrolls line this cozy chamber’s walls and a reading table with several matching chairs sits atop a thick rug in its center. A peacock made of gold sits upon the table, holding a single stick of incense cleverly positioned in its tail feathers. A heavy wooden door exits the room through the wall to the northwest. A figure lies slumped in the chair in the far corner — the body of a man wearing rich robes and a cloak made of peacock feathers. An elegant mirror is clutched in his hand, and a book and quill sit on the table before him.
"I suppose he was referring to my magical and research expertise." Siolad shrugs.
Krojun nods to Jessamy and raises his axe, stalking toward the corpse to check if it lives or not.
"So is that the apprentice, you think?" Jessamy asks, hands twitching to grab her daggers. "He's got lots of peacock stuff."
--
Ensu, meanwhile, intones a quick orison to his uncaring god and check for magic.
Pirknok's posture is wary; he holds his ebon katana up and ready, as if the indolent figure may spring up and attack at any moment.
With a couple well-placed pokes, Krojun confirms that this man is well and truly dead. How he died remains a mystery.
Jessamy spots a couple items of value on the verified corpse. A thick journal and a softly glowing ring. The journal is written in Thassilonian and quite dense, though a few loose pages seem to be of immediate interest.
"Huh," Jessamy says after the journal's translated. "That all doesn't sounds good. Guess that's what it means about getting the essences. Maybe we should go back and get everything and make sure we've searched everything well?"
Ensu frowns. "Once we've done that, I think we might need to go to this place. But we should also probably warn others. Perhaps I should take care of that -- my uncaring master's power will let me travel quickly and safely -- even though it means leaving you."
Through the doors to the south the party finds a long disused bedroom and a storeroom piled high with unused supplies. Nothing in either of these rooms appears to be of particular value.
During his sweep of the chambers, with a detect magic cantrip, Siolad notes a magic aura coming from the mirrors Pirknok smashed near its entrance. Despite the mirrors being destroyed, the fragments of broken glass glow with a powerful unique aura.
Ensu tries to determine what the aura is.
Siolad ponders the aura as well...
Siolad and Ensu struggle to determine the specifics of the aura. In fact, it's not a purely magical aura at all. A sweep with detect evil confirms that the aura has alignment properties as well.
Ensu wracks his brain to determine if there's a way to collect it. Had they found any magical receptacles that the gnome disregarded at first, but now might be of note? Anything else he can think of...
Ensu will collect the shards, being careful not to make skin contact as he puts them in a satchel before indicating they should move on.
With something of a goal forming in their minds, the party backtracks through the bizarre and unnerving wings of the Runeforge and picks up assorted other items bearing the same sort of strange aura found on the glass shards. Soon the heroes bear bits and pieces from each of the wings they've conquered - crusted bodily humor, droplets of elemental arcana, etc. Each wing of the Runeforge is accounted for minus the 'Iron Cages of Lust' they abandoned earlier.
Jessamy keeps an eye out as they retrace their steps, trying to make sure there's nothing they missed along the way.
Ensu nods in pleasure as he collects the bits of arcane detritus, sure he is pleasing his god.
Pirknok grips his katana and growls in a low voice, as if remembering, "She said she ate their souls."
After a few moments of silence, he turns to Krojun with a troubled expression. "The Elders speak of soul-eaters, but in their stories it's only the worst of souls that get eaten. Those men didn't seem evil. Do the spirits really allow... that... to just regular souls?"
"The spirits allow men to make their choices. I must believe these men made poor choices. But still, I do not believe their souls deserved such a fate. Perhaps the spirits sent us to punish the wicked?" Krojun murmurs.
After some much needed rest the party returns the Iron Cages of Lust.
The area is unchanged since the party departed. The cages that once held insensate prisoners are still empty.
The large pavilion of opaque sheets still remains at the chamber's center. No mysterious voice beckons the party to enter this time.
Jessamy looks around and shrugs.
"Maybe she's gone?" she says hopefully and continues on.
Jessamy does a circuit of the chamber. She spots nothing dangerous or valuable among the empty iron cages. From within the pavilion she detects no movement or sound.
Pirknok glowers at the shrouded pavilion, drawing his sword as the group approaches. "Well," he says, breaking the silence, "Don't see much reason to leave that standing..."
Jessamy nods in approval, ready to leap in if needed.
Siolad watches and prepares a magical incantation.
As the party approaches the pavilion, a cold feminine voice finally answers. "You should not have returned mortals. You have run me out of patience."
"An' you've run us out of patience, too," replies the dwarf in a low growl, raising his sword and striding bravely forward.
Krojun unslings his axe and follows Pirknok, beginning to chant the Litany of Heroes Who Fought the Unknown.
HP 93/93
AC 26, touch 17, flat-footed 26
Fort +6, Ref +13 (+3 vs. traps), Will +5
CMD 20
Touch of good: 1/5; Hunter's Howl: 0/3
Effects: +4 to rolls for 1 round (touch of good)
Jessamy uses her beneficial touch on herself, and then moves in to the room, swords drawn.