Nirzeg examines the statue with Zeek’s help, but it seems like the great statue of Annam is rooted to the ground. No tracks or wheels are apparent. 

Harshnag, meanwhile, follows Nirzeg’s instructions, silently lifting the heavy greataxe off the statue and touching its blade to the Ise rune.  

The rune glows, a bright blueish-green, and the steel greataxe immediately vanishes from Harshnag’s hands, reappearing in the grip of Thrym’s statue. While this happens, the gentle glowing mist transforms into churning thunderclouds lit by flashing lightning! The sound of rolling thunder fills the temple, and beyond the clouds you can just barely see another room.

“This is it,” shouts Harshnag, smiling excitedly as the thunder rolls. “Haha! This is what’s supposed to happen! The portal will stay open for an hour, so we will only have that long before it seals itself again.” He enters the clouds, beckoning you to follow.

Derrikoth looks at the portal anxiously before stepping through, muttering in Draconic, "Giant magic..."

The clouds permit you passage. Beyond the thundering archway lies a hexagonal chamber whose walls rise 50 feet before tapering to a 90-foot-high apex. Standing in each corner of the room is a life-size statue of a giant holding up a heavy, iron lantern with one raised arm. Each type of giant is represented: hill, stone, frost, fire, cloud, and storm. A cold, magical light radiates from each lantern, illuminating a giant corpse lying on the floor beneath a shroud of frost in the middle of the room. The corpse looks like it has been here for some time, preserved by the cold. Next to the body rests a giant, frost-covered morningstar.

"Well would you look at that. Poor bastard either ****ed up past this point, or this is yet another puzzle to be solved." Nirzeg comments on after having entered behind the rest. If given a few moments to ponder, Zeek is eventually sent off to examine the statues more closely, assuming he can do so while avoid the light of them. If not, the githyanki pulls out pocket pebble, and seems to wind up to throw it. He only hesitates at the last minute to say, "Any bright ideas from the choir, or is some genius is willing to approach the body and check it for more clues."

The flame inside each lantern glows with the brightness of a torch, illuminating the majority of the chamber between the six of them. Each lantern bathes the statue holding it in a cold light, accentuated by the frost the covers most of the room. The statues are much less impressive than the paragons outside in the main temple area, each of these being roughly as large as Harshnag (rather than twice as tall). But even with the smaller scale of things in this chamber, it still feels made for giants, and the heroic-looking statues still dwarf you considerably. 

The giant body lies unmoving, covered in frost in the middle of the chamber. 

Swiper looks up in amazement at the flames illuminating the chamber, then tilts his head when he sees the giants body lay there unmoving. He then searches it for anything of interest because what else would he do with a free body just laying there?

Dead Body Searching Time: 12

The dead giant is wearing a golden breastplate that is obviously magical, and though his mace lies just outside his grasp, his frozen hand is clasped around something else. 

As Swiper searches the body, a giant-sized specter rises from it. The ghost stares at you, forlorn. The ghost appears as a cloud giant, and speaks in Common.

"Why have you come, small ones?" asks the giant's ghost, sadly. 

A brief shudder passes through Nirzeg, as wicked thoughts pass through his mind in the prescence of such a "well behaved" spirit. But, he restrained them, and after briefly clearing his throat, the Githyanki approaches the ghost and calls up, "For you, possibly. Your giant kin have taken it upon themselves to cause quite a great deal of trouble in the world of the small folk. And we ****'n wanna know why that is. Why now of all bloody times... And how we might go about getting to the root of this whole ****'n shit show." He asked, thumbing whatever direction Harshnag is, assuming he passed beyond the barrier with them.

Harshnag shrugs at Nirzeg's gesture, as if to say, don't look at me, I didn't expect this!

The ghostly giant listens to Nirzeg. Then it replies, in a pained, echoing voice. "I am...was...Eigeron. I suspect you have come for the Oracle? I can help you; I know how to access the Oracle. Though you may not like the answers you receive." The ghost looks sadly down at his lifeless body.

"I came here for wisdom. Came here...with my father...and then we were told of the trouble of which you now speak..." Eigeron's voice trails off, before returning, "...the Oracle urged me to step out from under my father's...dark shadow. That...he could never impress the gods enough to earn their favor. And then..." the ghost's voice trails off once more.

Under Eigeron's body is a circle of runes, inscribed on the floor, partially obscured by the frost.

Noting the runes, Nirzeg started to approach to where he thought it safe enough and examines them. For if this was but a death trap, or perhaps more there.

Arcana: 19 (Nirzeg knows giantish, if that matters)

Even as he did so, the Githyanki spoke on. "Sounds to me like the arse lead ya into a death trap." Nirzeg comments on. "So, how did you come to meet this Oracle -exactly-?  How did he contact you? A voice in your head, or something else?"

Derrikoth nods along impatiently as the giant speaks, though he actually seems to only process the last few words, which he covers up by barging in with a question, "And who was your father?"

Eigaron's ghost nods slowly at Nirzeg. "My father desired an answer. He wished to know how to elevate himself to the top of the Ordning." sighs once more and looks down at his fallen body. “It was then that the oracle gave its answer, and my father struck me down. The fight was terrible, but in the end I was slain, and my father left this place. And here I have remained.”

In response to Derrikoth's question, the ghost says in lament, "In life, I was the son of Blagothkus, an evil cloud giant lord obsessed with many conspiracies. He does not share power, but rather hoards it, and is bitter and jealous. I regret that I was not wise enough to separate myself from him when I was still living."

The ghost continues, in answer to Nirzeg's question, "The Divine Oracle doesn't contact anyone; rather, we giants come here to contact the oracle." He indicates the six impressive giant statues holding lanterns aloft, "The oracle will answer only up to six concise questions per day, and will do so truthfully, but the answers are often...cryptic in nature." 

Eigaron points out the runic circle on the floor, all but buried in frost. "You must stand here in order to be heard by the oracle." Nirzeg can make out the words, which are written in the giantish language using the Dethek script: "Ask Your Question and Know Truth."  Nirzeg can tell that there's something magical about this circle, similar to the runic magic of the archway you just passed through. In fact, it looks like there is some kind of rune carved into the stone underneath the giant's deady body. 

Meanwhile, the ghostly giant notices Swiper searching his body. 

"Please...take what you want. It's not like I'll be needing any of it anymore," he intones, melancholy. 

Despite the straight-forwardness of the spirit's answer, and even some inkling of the nature of the runes at work, Nirzeg found himself staring at the ground, thumbing his chin as an equally bothered Zeek sat beside him. "... Three more things.. .Eigeron, was it?" The Githyanki asked, and in a tone for once bereft of either arrogancy or scathing. "Why do you still linger here? And of you father... do you wish him dead for this betrayal? And if so, what could -you- tell -us- in regards to secrets or holdings that at this point even you would not mind is taken of his, if any?" He asked, before holding up a hand.

"We are not common thieves', mind you. But for any request there must be compensation. So, if there are some lingering regrets of yours that need fulfilling, I would here of it. Also, as far as these inquiries go of the Oracle goes, you said concise? As in, no adding ifs and 'or' clauses to a question? Because I would certainly hate for two to be consumed pointlessly. ALSO-..." Nirzeg looks back to Harshnag. "What of you, Biggest.... Harshnag? Do you have no question for the Oracle?"

Time spent in the Eye of the All-Father: 5 minutes. 

Eigeron’s ghost wails. “My father Blagothkus is wealthy, and has a cloud castle of no mean stature, complete with a treasure hoard worth many lifetimes of great fortune. I cannot rest while his evil taints our legacy. If you were to visit vengeance upon him on my behalf, I could finally find peace. But I regret I have nothing to offer you personally as a reward.”

The ghost answers Nirzeg’s other question. “A direct, specific question would yield the most desirable results. The oracle does not approve of dithering.”

Harshnag, in response to Nirzeg’s question, clears his throat as if he was lost deep in thought. “I would...presume my questions would be similar to yours,” the frost giant says quietly. “You go ahead. You’ve earned it. And we giants have had enough chances to muck things up, I think,” he finishes, eyes resting on the slain cloud giant on the floor. 

"That you fu-... That you all have." Nirzeg states, just barely catching himself in time. He then turns back on the ghost, staring up at him with eyes narrowed shrewdly. "So long as there is no hard feelings for if we should find ourselves in a position to plunder a thing or two, then that shall be reward enough... is what I would say, but there is one other question. That being do you know and are willing to divulge any secrets of your further or the castle that might aid us in infiltrating and exacting this vengeance on your behalf. Anything at all?"

Nirzeg waits for an answer ready to jot down anything and everything of note in the 'scratch' paper section of his journal. But after which, and seeing noone eager to step up among the party, he takes one last solid, calming breath. "Well, it's about time we got this show on the road then. Do we need to, well... remove your body from the runes for it to work, Eigeron? Or is it fine where it is for now?" He asked, and depending on the answer would give Harshnag the upnod to remove the body or find a spot stand in itself.

Time Spent in the Eye of the All-Father: 7 minutes

Harshnag moves Eigeron's body, respectfully taking him through the churning stormclouds and out of the chamber. As Harshnag does so, a triangular fire opal falls out of the dead giant's hand and clatters to the frozen floor. The frost seems to shrink away from the opal.

The ghost remains, however, even after the body is gone. "My father is the lord of Skyreach Castle, which is a magical hold made of ice, but impenetrable as granite. I know not where he is now, for the castle can move freely about the skies. The castle is defended by ogres and stone giants from a skyborn assault, though there are tunnels below the castle that could serve as an entry point.

"I do know that he plots subterfuge against dragon-worshipers; he pretends to be their friend, but is gathering them together in the castle for some warmongering purpose. I do not know anything else. Perhaps the oracle will have the answers you seek—I cannot ask questions of the oracle any longer."

Derrikoth clears his throat, stepping towards the circle of runes and speaking in Giant, "Now, er, Oracle. If we were to, say, try and eliminate some of the more brutish, so to speak, giants from this world, what would be the most effective way to do so? Referring of course to those pesky, puny hill giants."

No sooner do the words leave Derrikoth's mouth than does a buffeting wind blow through the entire chamber. One of the lanterns held by the six giant statues is extinguished. A voice thunders a response in giantish: 

<TO REMOVE THE THREAT OF THE HILL GIANTS ON THE WORLD, THE BROKEN ORDNING MUST BE RESTORED.>

While unsure of what exactly was said, the kenku visibly shutters at the booming voice. He looks up to Harshnag. "W-what was that, boss?"