On her body, the Company recovered The Hand That Is The Key and a signet ring bearing the symbol of the House of Bhindum. Cirend and Uso�s speculation � that Thannali was in fact the daughter of the House of Bhindum who had played the Company as pawns to steal the Hand � was right all along. This potentially implicated the Loremaster who referred the Company to Thannali, and who was all too aware of the Company�s plans.
As the Company grew nearer the Heart of the Vaults, they were coming to believe that the Evil contained therein was not limited to ancient artifacts � it was an Evil that was spreading onto the World Above, that was creating unlikely alliances between previously unseen enemies bent on making the Vaults and their Evil a permanent part of the World Above.
After the Company came together again, they spoke at length about rescuing Thanali, whom they had decided had most likely been kidnapped and imprisoned by Navanna and House Bhindum. An assault was planned on the noble house, involving having Sebastian disguise himself (herself) as Navanna again, and the rest of the adventuring company disguising themselves as Navanna personal werewolf agents or other guards of House Bhindum. Although Sebastian's disguise was not up to snuff, she used a magical potion to bluff herself and the rest of the Company past the guards to infiltrate the prison cells. There, the Company rescued two prisoners, including a Shagir jewelsmith and a hapless half-elven farmer. Neither prisoner had heard of Thanali, however, and the Company began to think that perhaps Thanali was nowhere to be found.
In the process of the prison-break, the Company encountered Aliaster Bhindum and four more werewolf agents. Aliaster, a master in the ways of magick, caused much difficulty for the Company, but in the end they prevailed, successfully murdering the noble son of House Bhindum and his werewolf bodyguards. Unfortunately, during the fray, a human guard, who did not actually participate in the combat other than to form a human shield between the Company and Aliaster, was slain by Uso's magick.
After a night's rest, the Company returned to the Banevaults, and noticing that it appeared undisturbed since their last visit there, they continued all the way through to the dreaded shaft. After investigating the base, they began to try to ascend the shaft but were attacked by a huge flying fiend. The creature was clearly not of the world of Samoth, and both Cirend and Uso began to suspect that it was perhaps a demon from another world. The Company eventually defeated the creature, but its otherworldly aura caused dread in the adventurers, as they slowly began to realize that other, more fearsome creatures might await them ahead.
Using the Company's magick resources, they began to ascend the shaft and came to a series of platforms some 120 feet above the floor. Exploring this "level", the Company encountered many closed vault doors, what appeared to be the lair of the flying fiend, and a box covered with evil carvings. Jeremi suspected that it might contained a piece of the staff of shards, but the Company ultimately decided not to open the box.
The Company also found a passageway guarded by some sort of metallic statue, but its magick seems to have faded long again, for it seemed incapable of movement.
