"Makes a certain kind of twisted sense," mumbles Rudrik. "Using a misled cult to gain divine power? If it's good enough for a Runelord it's good enough for Razmir."
Nime considers the possibility. "It certainly saves taking the test of the Starstone," she says after a moment. "Although, just because people worship you doesn't make you divine. If that were the case, there would be a lot more demi-gods in Calistria's court."
At any confused looks, she shrugs. "There are a lot of divine prostitutes that are literally worshiped," she says by way of explanation.
"I thought they just got paid," says Rudrik. "Learn something new every day, I guess."
Nime banishes the grateful Hobbin back to Nirvana, then you continue on your way.
The center of the next room room is occupied by a raised dais, on which stands a brass statue of a bull. A large brazier has been installed under the statue’s belly. You can easily see that the large bull statue has a 4-foot-wide hatch built into the side.
"Well this is peculiar. How do you think it works? You put, like, beef inside and then light the brazier and eat the real beef out of the fake beef?" ponders Rudrik.
"Well I wouldn't put something that elaborate past some Taldan nobles, if they could afford it, so it certainly seems within the realms of possibility for Thassilonian high society."
Nime looks back at the room they just exited - filled with prisoners - and then back at the brass bull. Her expression shifts to sadness. "No," she says slowly. "I don't think that's what this was used for. I've read about things like this and I would be happy to be wrong, because I couldn't believe someone would make something so ... horrendous." She reaches out with the tip of her glaive to open the hatch.
As Nime fears, inside is a charred skeleton with the sigil of Pharasma on its brow. It lets out a bloodcurdling scream before crumbling to dust, filling you with a sense of thanks.
Nime turns away, tears beginning to fall from her eyes. "How can people do something like that to each other?" she asks. "They must have something damaged inside their soul." She moves close to Rudrik and presses against him for reassurance.
If the brazen bull was disturbing, the next room is not much better. A total of eight iron sarcophagi stand on display in this room. Of the eight, five are wide open, revealing dozens of cruel spikes lining their interiors. A door is set in the north wall, while the fiery line continues to the east.
"We should check the sarcophagi." Shenuska says, gesturing Rudrik forward. "I fear there will be more Pharasmins. Then that door, just to be sure."
Each of the three sacrophagi contain the well-punctured bones of a prior victim within, each marked with Pharasma's sigil. They scream and crumble away, and this time, you feel a divine presence in the room. You are filled with a grim sense of satisfaction, and you instinctively realize that Pharasma has granted you a gift for your efforts. The souls you released to the Boneyard were those of ancient Pharasmins who were seeking the truth of the Peacock Spirit and hoped to prove that Xanderghul and the Peacock Spirit were one and the same, as Hobbin suspected. Now, they can finally move on to be judged.
An acrid smell hangs thick in the air of the drab room beyond the north door, emanating from a pool of clear but slightly fuming liquid in the center of the room. A five-foot-wide polished stone walkway surrounds the pool, with a glass display case containing a peacock statue standing on the ledge across the pool opposite the room’s entrance.
Rudrik spots a magical trap on the glass display case. Anybody trying to tamper with it will be telekinetically thrown into the acid pit!
Nime turns away when the remains in the tortuous devices are revealed. When she finally turns back, her face is pale, but set. "This is an evil place and must be cleansed," she says.
"We will do so."
~~~~
"Can you disarm the trap?" she asks Rudrik. Once the trap is removed, her intent is to deposit the statue into the pit of acid.
"I can try. It's magical, so a little dicey. It'll catapult anyone who screws with the case into the acid," explains Rudrik. "'course if we want to make sure it's safe while I'm trying to disable it, we just have to find some way to make it so that's impossible. Put boards over the pit or neutralize the acid or something first. Anyone able to purify water?"
"Um ... I can try," Nime says, biting her lip as she looks over the pool. "There's an awful lot of it there. I might have to do it more than once." She frowns and looks back at Rudrik. "And it would certainly ruin the poetic justice of plunging the stupid peacock statue into the acid."
Nime purifies the liquid to neutralize its potency, then Rudrik works to disable the trap. Fortunately, the precautions prove unnecessary as the half-orc skillfully disarms the trap and removes the rod from the peacock shrine.
You head to the next room to the east. Stretching racks festooned with chains and manacles adorn the northern portion of this chamber. An immense creature slithers here. It looks like a horned rattlesnake, save for its two muscular arms, each of which wields a scimitar. ”Die, intruders!” it shouts telepathically as it rushes towards you!
"This is no place for you, fiend," Nime pronounces. A spells of dismissal follows.
"Fire or cold! No acid, no electricity and don't enchant it!" Shenuska snaps out quickly. "It'll try to eat you Rudrik."
Nime’s spell falters against the fiend’s spell resistance.
"Fire? I think I can manage that." Theo snidely remarked before levelling his metamagic rod at the creature.
The asura twists away from the fireball, but it is still scorched by the flames. It rushes forward in anger, and while it cannot reach Theo, it takes its frustration out on Rudrik, landing a devastating blow with a poisoned scimitar!
Rudrik coughs and takes a second to wrench his shoulder back into its socket.
"Thanks fer bringin' the fight to me."
"I told you to leave!" Nime demands. "Why aren't you leaving?!"
Sensing the spell resistance, Theo decided to take a different tact. During their wait for nightfall, he'd felt a stronger connection to the draconic power in his blood form. He knew what it would do, so let the flames rise.
Starting from his outstretched hands and spreading up his arms, Theo's whole body was wreathed in golden flames, flames which expanded outward across the floor and obscuring him from view. Shapes moved inside the flames until they burst open like a chrysalis - the force coming from the large wings of the young golden dragon that now stood where Theo had been a moment before, his roar reverberating around the chamber.
"Well, this feels different," the now-transformed Theo remarked in a voice that rumbled like a furnace before rushing forward to engage the hostile serpent.
Shenuska tweaks the flow of time to speed her companions, unwilling to throw any more powerful magic unless the circumstances become dire.
Rudrik lands two hits on the asura as dragon Theo moves to flank. The monster retaliates, landing one more hit with its poisoned scimitar.
The door behind it opens as two of the twin adhukaits emerge to join the fight. Trailing them is a three-faced, six-armed fiend! She takes a page from Shenuska’s book, casting haste on the assembled asuras.
Rudrik goes down under the poisoned assault.
Shenuska stops messing around and goes straight to the dangerous magic, weaving in abjurations to remove her magical protections.
Still frustrated at the lack of cooperation from the outsiders, Nime moves to lay a healing hand on the half-orc.
In position and with Rudrik under assault, Theo started laying into the serpent with his new appendages.
Nime heals Rudrik, wiping away all of his injuries and constitution damage. Rudrik tears into the aghasura while Theodric scores a few light blows on it. It is badly wounded but still standing.
Shenuska's spell falters against the three-faced fiend's spell resistance!
The fiend casts another spell to enchant her kukri before moving in to threaten Theo. The two lesser asuras attack the draconic sorcerer, slicing him up with their kukris and claws, while the hulking aghasura continues to assault Rudrik, landing one hit with a poisoned scimitar!
Revitalized by the powerful healing magic, Rudrik manages to redouble his efforts - and he hopes that he can finish this enemy before it finishes off Theo.
Rudrik's powerful strike slices through the aghasura's defenses, and with his follow-up blow, the mighty snakelike fiend collapses!
Shenuska gives up on the all or nothing approach and casts Slow on the various asura to negate their speed boost.
Cursing in draconic as the blades bit into his scales, Theo shifted back a step before engulfing his two assailants in flames.
Nime moves from Rudrik to Theo in an attempt to keep her friends fit and fighting. The sorcerer feels her soft touch and the healing that it provides.
Both adhukaits take the full force of Theo’s breath weapon. Shenuska removes the haste from all the asuras. The three-faced fiend lands a devastating slice with her kukri and a glancing blow with a scimitar, while the weaker fiends continue to slice up Theo.
Knowing that she can't keep up with the damage that the outsiders are putting out, Nime tries one more time to send at least the adhukaits back to their home plane.
Unfortunately, both fiends resist being banished!
Since the kukri-bearing fiend has moved to engage him, Rudrik is only too glad to oblige.
Shenuska jabs at one of the lesser asura's minds before lifting up into the air, out of easy range.
Angry at his flames not doing as much as he hoped, Theo savaged one of the creatures again.
EDIT:
The asura resists Shenuska's spell. Rudrik and Theo both injure their chosen opponents, and the asuras are all too eager to return the favor!
"Yeah? My turn!" shouts Rudrik, redoubling his efforts against the enemy asura.
The heat was growing around Theo as his fury built and he continued to lash out at his assailants.
Another spell of healing for Theo follows as Nime attempts to contain her annoyance.
Shenuska waits for the boys to land their blows and then scrambles another mind or two.