"I agree with Nime," says Rudrik. "Our presence has probably been noticed by now, so we need to hurry. Undercutting the Rune Giants hopefully means fighting them without having to fight the Runelord at the same time - if we're quick enough."
You head into the Bazaar of Rivals to confront the rune giants that now occupy the commerce district. As you enter, you experience another temporal hazard--the buildings around you ripple, stretch, and contract, leaving you momentarily exhausted as you feel your own personal timelines stretching and contracting as well.
It doesn't take long to find the seat of the giants' power. In the center of the Bazaar is a makeshift gazebo, enormous but rickety. Thick but ragged sheets of burlap and ropes of twine stretch overhead, connecting the squat mercantile buildings that once ringed a green space. Inside this makeshift gazebo are clear but improvised efforts at establishing a sort of royalty: an enormous throne made of blasted statuary, a runner made of rags, and an enormous feast table made from broken doors and walls.
Two frost giant warriors stand at the foot of the throne, and seated upon it is an enormous, 40-foot-tall rune giant! Her skin is black and pitted, like roughly cast iron, and etched with glowing red runes.
"Insects! Who are you who dares to come before the mighty Queen Wo-Shalist?" the giant demands.
"Wow. That is a big woman."
"I am Shenuska, and I am here to depose Runelord Belimarius." Shenuska says flatly. "These are my friends and companions." She leaves the conversation there, interested to see how the Rune Giant will react and slightly concerned by the response she is about to receive from said friends and companions.
Wo-Shalist bellows with laughter. "You! You think you can stand up to the runelord! That is funny, indeed!" She chuckles for a few more moments before she leans forward and peers at you more closely. "Hmm... Maybe you are strong. Maybe you can be of use to me. Puny Captain Xoxl is head of the runelord’s guards. He causes me trouble—much trouble. Cultists could perhaps become the giants’ allies. Runelord’s lackeys, though, we will always smash. Kill Xoxl, tiny slugs. Kill him, and city’s giants will be your friends."
Rudrik watches for Shenuska's response. Seems like a good deal... unless the rune giants betray the party after using them to eliminate an enemy. Either way, he stays relaxed in his armor, waiting for the word to draw adamantine or remain at ease.
"I have your oath on that?" Shenuska asks in response.
"We have an accord then." The aspiring Runelord replies. "You will contain your giants for a week so that I may work. I intend to free Xin-Edrassil from the temporal trap and I do not want to free a ruined city when I do so. Fulfill your side of this bargain and we will return to the world as allies. You will need to smash the cultists at that point." She adds with a wintery smile. "I believe you will quite enjoy that?"
"Very well! It is a deal!" Wo-Shalist declares. She taps the hilt of her polearm on the ground for emphasis. "Now go! Kill Xoxl!"
"It never feels right when our arrangements involve the deaths of others," Nime says with a frown and a shake of her head as they leave the pavilion.
"We're weapons," Calendula replies bluntly and without feeling.
"Unfortunately it is often the only way to deal with conflicts, particularly with such powerful people." Shenuska comments. "And some people need to be killed. They are too dangerous otherwise. Alaznist falls into this category, and Belimarius also I believe."
She ceases to speak until they are well away from the Rune Giants and then continues. "Sorshen has changed, she is not the Runelord she was and I have faith in what she says. Belimarius on the other hand I do not trust, if we break the time lock and unleash a full Runelord on our world, plagued as it already is by Alaznist we are doing ourselves no favors. We must end her, as the other runelords have been ended."
She looks around the group for their opinions before continuing. "Shall we investigate her palace then? I imagine we could simply knock on the door and demand entrance, but it might be worth seeing if we can enter quietly and scout the place out. As an abjuration specialist Belimarius will have numerous defenses and any combat with her, or her captain, will be easier without them."
Nime frowns at Calendula's words, but doesn't argue.
Her expression of unhappy contemplation continues as she nods at Shenuska's question.
As you prepare to deal with Belimarius, you feel stronger from your recent experiences and more prepared to face the challenges still to come.
The center of Runelord Belimarius’s power and home to the major governmental decisions that once reverberated throughout Edasseril, Palace Miasmoria boasts a grandeur that seems much diminished now. It lies in a district known as Covetous Chorus, an opulent, gated section of the city. A guardhouse stands near the gate, the columns of the wide building carved in the likeness of Runelord Belimarius. Its wide courtyard is filled with practice dummies and other evidence of martial training, but the grounds are curiously empty.
As you approach, three guards in emerald half-plate armor call for you to halt and state your business!
"One would think that we'd be here to take audience with Runelord Belimarius, wouldn't one?" Nime asks in a thoughtful voice full of question. "But we're not. We're actually here to ... to meet with Captain Xoxl. Could you direct us to him if he's around? If he isn't, can we leave a message?"
She looks closer at the armor and then at Rudrik. "You would look quite handsome in a suit of that."
She turns back to one of the guards. "You don't, by any chance, have a gift shop, do you?"
"We do not," the guard says firmly. "Captain Xoxl did not tell us that he was expecting visitors. But if you speak truth, then you will turn over your weapons and we will escort you to him."
Shenuska looks dismissively at the guards, as though offended that they think she needs something as mundane as weapons. "Hurry up then." She says sharply. "I don't have all day!"
Nime stands patiently as the others give over their weapons. When the guards gesture for her glaive, she seems surprised.
"Oh, yes, I guess some people might see this as a weapon. I've never really thought of it that way," she says. She hands the weapon over without ceremony or care and places a hand on Rudrik's shoulder. "Do you mind if I lean on you a little?" she questions in a low voice.
Rudrik grudgingly hands over his sword, half expecting it to be stolen as it’s currently one of the more powerful personal weapons on Golarion. He puts an arm around Nime’s shoulders and gives her arm a comforting rub.
The guards eye the golem nervously but they escort you to the palace itself and into the entry chamber. This large court has all the trappings of ancient royalty: plush velvet carpeting covers the floors, glittering chandeliers hang overhead, and gold leaf covers bas-reliefs carved into the walls and ceilings. Flanking the walls are enormous, painted marble statues of an elderly, heavyset woman in various stately poses. A majestic set of curved stairs at the back of the room leads upward, with various trophy cases decorating the way.
An armored half-elf man approaches, wielding a crystalline longsword. Those in the know may recognize it as Tannaris, Sword of Envy. "Captain Xoxl! These strangers say they have business with you."
"Do they, now? And what, pray tell, is this business, exactly?" Xoxl says, eyeing you dubiously.
"Captain Xoxl," Nime says as she lets go of Rudrik's arm and totters forward awkwardly. "Are you an evil man?" she questions as she looks him over.
”I am loyal to the runelord and carry out her orders. I will leave it to theologians to determine if that makes me evil or not,” Xoxl says.
Calendula can confirm that he is, indeed, an evil man.
"'I just follow orders'," Nime says to herself in a small voice. "The final refuge of all men that wish to hide from their own sins." She glances at Calendula and with a nod from the scarred woman she gives a heavy sigh.
"Loyalty, while admirable, must be very carefully given, Captain Xoxl, for we shall be judged by the actions of those to whom we give it."
She speaks words of magic and directs a spell at the half-elf.
Shenuska waits, ready to leap into magic if required.
As Nime begins to cast her spell, the guards cry out in alarm!
They move quickly to stop her, attacking with their swords. "Take them out! I will fall back to the runelord!" Xoxl shouts, adding, "Golems! Attack!" As the guard captain runs for the stairs, two of the statues in the room animate, attacking Calendula and Shenuska! Prismatic energies flare as they pummel the women!
Shenuska ignores the effects of the golem's attack easily enough and retreats so that her own golem can move into the fray instead. With a wave of her hand the psychic puts a barrier of whirling blades across the top of the stairs in Xotl's path.
Iron Shen swoops over the top of her likeness and hammers into the gold golem.
Ieldana also retreats from the fray before casting spells of her own, under Iron Shen to catch both gold golems.
"Use cold on the golems not fire." She calls.
Rudrik lunges at one of the guards in an attempt to wrench his weapon away, but fails and just leaves himself open to attack.
Stepping clear of the soldiers, Theo conjured a line of fire under the two of them that stretched all the way out to Xotl. And with a few secondary gestures, vanished from sight.
Calendula steps back out of the golem's reach and towards the man holding her weapon.
Shenuska creates a blade barrier in front of Xoxl. Iron Shen punches a golem while Ieldana slows them both. Xoxl succumbs to Nime’s spell, his body going rigid.
All three guards are badly burned by Theodric’s fire snake! One slices at Rudrik as the half orc fails to disarm him, but his armor keeps him safe.
One guard continues to focus on Nime, cutting her down! Only Pharasma’s divine gift keeps the oracle alive. The other attacks Rudrik but can’t get past his armor. The slower golems pummel Iron Shen and Calendula. Xoxl manages to break out of his paralysis!
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"RRRAAAAAHHH!"
Rudrik lets out a scream of pure, unbridled rage, and simply wrenches the sword from the hand of the guard who stabbed Nime.
Rudrik succeeds at yanking the longsword free!
Skilled with all kinds of long blades, Rudrik simply grabs the blade with an impervious gauntlet, twists against the man's thumb to flip it free, then flips it in the air to land the hilt in his own hand before he hammers the hapless soldier with it.
Shenuska steps back out of ranger and vanishes from sight before pelting the guard who felled Nime with force missiles, while Ieldana considers her next move and Iron Shen fights on.
As Nime fell, Theo felt his blood surge and a roar more fitted to a dragon tore its way out and through the two nearby soldiers, the sorcerer only having the presence of mind to aim it away from also hitting Rudrik and Calendula at the last moment.
Calendula pours life back into her friend with a gentle touch.
Nime's eyes flutter open and when she sees Calendula looking down at her, she gives her an affectionate smile. "Oh, hello. Did I fall down again?" she asks. Her hand reaches out to cover Calendula's scarred one. A moment later she remembers what they're interrupting. "We have things to do, don't we?" she asks before struggling to her feet.
Both of the guards resist Theo's shout. Rudrik manages to disarm the nearest guard, slicing the surprised man with his own blade. Calendula gets Nime back on her feet while Shenuska blasts the wounded guard with magic missiles and Iron Shen pounds the gold golem again.
Xoxl's sword, Tannaris glows as it heals the guard captain. The half-elf braves the blade barrier, crying out in pain as the swords slice into him. Bloodied but unbowed, he continues up the stairs and out of sight!
Meanwhile, the disarmed guard takes a step back and swiftly draws a longbow, firing at Theo. The other one tries to hack at Rudrik. One golem continues to attack Iron Shen while the other shifts its aim to Rudrik.
Catching his breath after the roar, Theo opened his mouth but this time let loose the flames.
Ieldana conjures shadowy fires to blast Iron Shen and reinforce her battered body with liquid iron.
------------------------
"Deal with the golems." Shenuska says quietly to Ieldana, "I think we're going to have more visitors soon." The psychic moves away from the melee still further and focuses on closing her own wounds for the moment, before lashing out with a second spray of missiles.
Ieldana retreats as her fires continue to erupt around Iron Shen and targets the nearest golem with a pinpoint ray of frost to slow it down.
Iron Shen, battered but not quite broken, fights on.
Rudrik falls to the ground and starts dying as well.
"Nime, you silly ninny, you need to stick with what you do best," the undine says to herself. "Caring for your friends."
She moves close to Rudrik and suffuses him with healing energy.
Theodric's fiery blast takes down the most wounded guard and injures the other. Shenuska blasts the other guard with magic missiles, then Calendula recovers her sword from the fallen guard and slices into the second one, cutting him down! While Nime heals Rudrik, Iron Shen slams into the gold golem, leaving it badly damaged.
Still slowed, both gold golems focus their attacks on Iron Shen, pummeling the golem and blasting it with fire and electricity.
Shenuska doesn't audibly do anything but her allies suddenly find themselves moving much faster than they were before.
Ieldana, unable to do much to harm the golems, takes the time to improve her personal defenses, lifting off the ground and into the air behind Iron Shen. The golem meanwhile fights on.
Calendula pats Nime's back, pushing more healing energy into her
Emboldened by Shenuska's gift of speed, Calendula rushes thru the blade barrier and after the captain
"Calendula, NO! Nime yells out when she sees where the paladin is off to. She rises on wings of mist to fly after the woman.
Since the new plan appears to be to a. leave living enemies behind, and b. to run through the barrier meant to keep more enemies out, Shenuska sighs and dismisses the barrier.
Worried that it would have some undesired consequences, but not wanting to leave these golems behind them, Theo moved towards the stairs and unleashed a powerful bolt of fire into one golem that arced immediately into the next.