Pathoz - The Prison of Grief

        Pathoz (Path-aws) is a tiny island situated at the very tip of Halus' spine. It is one of the three island prisons used by the Spiral to gather information on the suffering of mortal beings, though its own area of study - misery - is perhaps the most complex and misunderstood. While the other two prisons focus upon pain and fear, both of which are relatively simple, Pathoz deals with a more complex emotional state, and must be carefully arranged for proper study. The Spiral seek to perfect their demoralization tactics in this way, hoping to learn what can dissolve a foe from within as well as without. Prisoners brought here are often brought in groups, most often friends or family, and forced to watch each other die or suffer some lasting, awful fate. This hideous trauma can break individuals far faster than pain or fear, and thus the studies continue. Spiral priests and dozens of suicidal prisoners can be found in this subterranean, white-walled maze of misery.

        Anyone held here will generally be held with friends or comrades, making it a little more specialized than the other two prisons. For this reason, it is staffed by the more intellectual Spiral priests, who go to great lengths to arrange for proper conditions, aquisition of prisoner groups, and the orchestration of the hideous little 'plays' designed to cause mental anguish, feelings of betrayal, and all manner of other emotional acid. In this way, they seek to dismantle the very nature of that which opposes them, and better understand the vulnerabilities of the mortal mind.

        The prison itself is built into the barren landscape at the heart of the island, nothing more than a tomb-like plaza with three subterranean entrances, surrounded by rocky, bone dust badlands. This landscape offers no real cover from the blistering tropical heat, and certainly nothing grows here to feed even the most basic levels of the food chain. The only sound is the constant, low howl of the wind, and the dry skirl of shifting dust.

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