Low on strength, rest, and magic, the Company retire for the evening and spend the next several days resting and attending to their own affairs before beginning the long journey back to Barrid.
The 21st - 23rd of Ebupell
The Company rest. Jeremi and Uso visit several libraries in town, and Uso also uses his arcane magick to identify several items that the Company gained in their battles.
The Company, minus Sebastian, meet in the morning and decide to go visit the goblin shanty-town outside the city walls. Before they leave, however, they hear several loud horns blowing and learn that Senor Baron Escoldante II is preparing to give an address to the public. Pushing their way forward into the crowd, the Company hear a monotone speech delivered by the usually very charismatic Baron. The speech speaks of the lawlessness that has fallen upon the town, and indicates that all able-bodied men are to report for militia duty. The city gates are being locked - no one may enter or leave the city. Lastly, the Baron believes that the AEtonist religion has not done their duty to help stave off the evil in the town and therefore considers them all traitors. He has closed all the temples in town and ordered the incarceration of all �tonist priests.
Following the speech, a very excited Alein encounters the Company and is very concerned, noting that she saw a strange aura surrounding the Baron that she's never seen before. She and Torea mention to the Company that they have been fighting off a group of "rat-men" in the center of town. The Company, Alein, and Torea return to the inn where Jeremi and the two �tonist Paladins change out of their religious garb to avoid the panic-stricken mobs and the overzelalous town militia.
Uso leads the group toward the Baron's keep, where he intends to question the Baron as to his motives. On the way to the keep, the Company is accosted by a group of town militia and a huge, black dog that breathes fire. The dog incinerates one of the town priests and a combat ensues with the Company quickly dispatching the dog. Jeremi uses his arcane magick to put the militia members to sleep.
Resuming their trek toward the keep, they notice a huge column of fire springing out the top of the High Temple of Hallowed Selaenna. Moving toward the Temple, the Company enter and are beset upon by an powerful evil 9' tall humanoid with a skull head and a poisoned-stinger tail. Jeremi is overcome with unnatural fear of the devil and flees the Temple. The rest of the Company stand fast but the devil uses powerful unnatural magick to create Walls of Ice to separate the company and pick them off one-by-one. After a long combat, B'gokktem has been brought to his knees by the poisoned tail of the devil and is no longer able to stand or even lift his sword as the poison courses through his veins. Uso uses his Wand of Burning Hands to melt through the ice, enabling Grumash to swing at the devil with his axe. Rafe attempts to sneak behind the devil but is unsuccessful. Grumash finally destroys the devil. The Company quickly administer a potion to neutralize the poison in B'gokktem and go outside to look for Jeremi.
After the supernatural fear fades away, Jeremi makes his way back toward the High Temple. Along the way, he encounters Mannetto, a Principale of the Illumination and the senior Illumination representative in Marlona while Ennito Crusana is away in Courrisseux chasing down the rogue dwarves. Mannetto recognizes Jeremi as a priest of �ton and offers to join Jeremi's company in retaking the High Temple from evil forces. Meanwhile, B'gokktem drags himself back to the inn to recuperate from his strength drain.
Jeremi and Mannetto meet up with the rest of the Company and they finish clearing out the lower floor of the High Temple, fighting several huge, fiendish dogs in the process, along with a small, flying evil outsider and three black-clad and hooded divine spellcasters.
On the upper floor of the High Temple, in what would have been the quarters of the ranking priest, they encounter a humanoid with infernal features. He immediately causes Mannetto to flee with a supernatural fear, and laughs as he fights the rest of the Company. The fiendish man is an extremely accomplished spellcaster, and wields a fierce flail that shocks whatever it strikes with the power of electricity. With B'gokktem and Sebastian missing from the combat, the Company struggle to defeat the evil spellcaster. Jeremi evens the score by rescuing Uso and Rafe from certain death. Rafe and Grumash trade blows with the fiend, and eventually strike him down. During the combat, he mentions the name "Zai'alari", screaming at some treachery that forced him to do Zai-alari's bidding, and hints that the company must be allied with the stranger. Upon dying, he whispers some strange prayer to
