Having just witnessed a sacrifice, not to a god, but to the Earth itself, I feel that it is appropriate to wander onward to the chamber of the gods, behind the Dryads I spoke to earlier.
There's a lot of books on the shelves about the gods, but I'm more intrigued by the light show. There's a lot of lore that is relevant here, and I have the option of praying to all of the gods on offer, presumably based on my experience throughout the world so far, and what has led me to this moment. Not all of the pedestals are available. Someone's been a naughty boy.
I decide to mumble some words to Berath first, not because they're a god of death, but because if you divide the name in two it is 'Be Wrath', or at least, that is how I would pronounce it. I have a hallucination of some sort, and in it, two people die. Splendid!
I try to pray to the other statues of the gods, but end up spawning vengeful spirits instead. Those gods clearly don't like me. I then pray to some sort of wolf god, Galawain, who keeps spawning angry wolves when I say bad things to them. Eventually, I get a quest to gain the favor of each of the gods.
At least it is a pretty place - which apparently, reminds Sagani of home. Once I level everybody up, I end up in Galawain's Maw, where there is a terrible imbalance of power.
Lion and bear, Old Queen, and New King; conflict, and it is up to me to decide the victor.
There's enough conflict all around, with traps aplenty in the Maw, which makes it a very annoying place to navigate. I speak to the Lioness, and she tells me to kick the Bear's Ass. At this point, I choose to agree, because I like Lions more than bears, even though, on the way to meeting with the Lioness, I killed several of her warriors. Oh well.
I find the bears, and open the conversation with a threat that ends in combat. They put up a very good fight, and it takes me a while to take their furs away from their flesh.
Eventually, like in all things, I succeed. I return to the Lioness, telling her of her victory, when really it is mine, and the score is settled. I wander out the way I came, and nothing seems to be changed among the people. However, I apparently have obtained the god's blessing, and some more loot.
I get asked why I chose to kill the bear - I give a hollow answer, I tell Galawain that I hunt Thaos, and that I want to kill him. The gods and goddesses all start to talk to me in unison, giving me their own stories of events - the only thing that they agree on is that I should go find Thaos, and ... have a chat.
I make a pact to return the trapped souls to the lands of Dyrwood, to strengthen the region once more. I head off to rest, and then strengthen my weapons some more, with the fear of missing out on some 'excellent' items pretty much gone. The demise of Thaos is so close I can practically smell it.
I get on a boat to the Burial isle, where this pit of death is. Along the way, I meet my sister, Iovara, in a vision who I don't recall being that involved in the plot since very early in the game - it is a bit out of left field, but I accept it, mumbling some words as her visage before moving onward - viewing increasingly disturbing spectral events of torture and fighting some fairly easy monsters.
I still make a point of exploring the entire region I must, for the sake of completeness, touch every corner of the map. Eventually, I come to the pit. I don't hesitate and all, and leap on in, a leap of faith, if you will.
I make it all the way to the bottom, preventing any of my party members from dying, its clearly due to my superior athletic ability; but the story tells me that it is due to the favor of the gods. There are souls everywhere, with a thick atmosphere. I breathe in, and brace myself for what is to come. Thaos is next.
