Eventually, the Company decide that the only way forward is through the room where the extremely powerful and dangerous air guardians reside. Again, quick and clever thinking rules the day, and the Company decide to try to destroy the folding screen with the cloth panels painted to depict a violent whirlwind. Using arcane magick, a strangely quiet Uso burns down the screen from the safety of the hallway. The screen burns to a crisp, leaving only ash where this ancient work of painted beauty has stood for millennia. The Company cautiously enter the room and are relieved when no more guardians materialize to prevent their egress further into the Banevault.
At the far end of the room, Sebastian discovers a secret door and the Company go through and into a long hallway to the East. Midway down the hallway, several members of the Company are assaulted by a powerful force which almost seems to forbid them from moving forward. Uso and Cirend seem unaffected, and Cirend insists that it simply takes strong willpower to move through the zone. This is of little comfort to the other adventurers in the group, who are significantly wounded while passing through the area. Once past this obstacle, they encounter an image of what appears to be the pre-�tonist prophet, Danar, who pleads with the adventurers to go back or else risk unleashing some of the most evil artifacts ever created.
The adventurers are unimpressed by the image's impassioned plea. However, a sealed vault door effectively ceases any further movement into the Inner Vault. Before they can study the vault door, however, they are attacked at the rear of their column. A huge, viscious looking spider materializes out of thin air, accompanied by a female Shagir warrior. The woman throws a note down near the feet of the Company, while the spider uses one of its ugly, hairy legs to grab hold of Orongorg. In an instant, before the rest of the Company can react, the spider, dwarf, and Orongorg disappear without a trace. The note reads:
If you ever want to see your comrade alive again, you will leave the Banevault. We will contact you again once you are out. Do as we demand, or your friend dies a slow, agonizing death.
Shocked, tired, confused, and without a means to unlock the sealed vault door, the Company decide to return to the surface in order to look for their friend.
Evening: Once on the surface, the Company seek out the workshop of Iqbanepal, the craftsman who planned to work on repairing Gerasimos. They briefly talk with the smith and with Gerasimos, but learn no new information. Gerasimos' repairs are still underway, so the Company leave.
Jeremi decides to take a detour over to the Chapel of Hallowed Aladriel in the Rivergate district in order to pray. Once again, he is pestered by the two Shagir guards out front, but eventually gains admittance to the Chapel where he speaks with a very nervous Vicar Falgun, who seems very surprised to see Jeremi and indicates that High Priest Heth is, once again, not at the Chapel. Falgun's nervousness alerts Jeremi, who once again tries to spy a bone ring on Falgun's hand. His powers of observation have improved, for Jeremi does indeed see a bone ring.
Moving further into the Chapel to pray, Jeremi tries to keep track of Falgun's movements. However, the vicar is quite stealthy and as soon as Jeremi kneels to pray, Falgun surprises him with a powerful, precise strike to the head with a mace. Jeremi is nearly knocked unconscious, but has enough presence of mind to rise up and run past the Vicar and outside to the safety of his friends.
Having exhausted nearly all of their magical abilities, Uso, Si'lara and Jeremi advise against going back to the Chapel that night. Instead, Sebastian creates a disguise in order to stake out the Chapel and the rest of the Company return to the inn to rest and recuperate. During the night, Sebastian observes High Priest Heth entering the Chapel, and he returns to the inn to report this sighting to the rest of the Company.
The 8th of Darkel
Morning: Having rested and recovered their spellcasting abilities, the Company return to the Chapel. Jeremi, clearly upset at having been attacked by a fellow member of the �tonist faith, Jeremi walks right up to the front door and accosts the two guards. Without warning, the guards attack and the fight is on. Onc calls inside to warn whoever is inside, then closes the door to try to hold off the Company. The adventurers' numbers are two great, however, and the guards are quickly dispatched. The Company enter the Chapel, and Cirend explains to them that at one point early in his career, he used to work in this particular Chapel. He provides direction, and the Company work their way to the back of the Chapel, where they
