Settling into the Rosegate House, you planned your next excursion into the Banewarrens.  Once your supplies were inventoried, you went to the Ghostly Minstrel to meet with Jevicca Nor. 

Jevicca took you back to the Inverted Pyramid to go over plans for the expedition.  She showed you the reconstructed Geristronamous, and cautioned that he was not built for fighting, and care should be taken to return him intact.  Geristronamous’ knowledge of the Banewarrens was mostly restored, and his presence could prove valuable on the mission.

During the exchange, Carric let slip that the Church of Lothian had interests in the Banewarrens.  Though Jevicca pressed, you would not reveal what they sought (the Sword of Lies).   Jevicca cautioned not to trust the Church.  She then indicated there were other factions within the Inverted Pyramid that also sought items from the warrens; they were not allied with her efforts to seal the tombs, so caution should be taken if you encountered them.

With Geristronamous in tow, you headed back to the Banewarrens: through the abandoned home in Oldtown, through the tunnels dug by the umber hulk last year, through the entrance and up into the Outer Vaults, to arrive at what were known as the Inner Vaults.  These Vaults were populated partially before Danar Rotansin was twisted by evil, and Geristronamous reported that they contained both banes and other evil entities.  And, it was clear from the now-ajar sealed door, they had been opened by the Vladaams.

Heading into the Inner Vaults, further into the base of the spire, the first room you explored contained a long-abandoned font of holy water.  The water gone, a black pudding had taken up residence, and it quickly attacked the party.  During the melee, Raelen lost not one but both of his chaositech swords due to critical malfunctions.  This would unfortunately be an omen for how the next hour would go.

A few nearby rooms proved empty, but Geristronamous’ knowledge proved helpful when he advised you where a trap lay.  Unfortunately, just past this location, a large group of wights burst from an unexplored room and attacked.  With the wights attacking the middle of the party’s ranks, the battle quickly turned chaotic.  Ebrahim and Phen were hit multiple times, the wight’s blows draining their strength.  Raelen rushed back into the melee and quickly found himself surrounded.  Ebrahim tried to escape but the wights pursued him around a nearby corner.  Hoping to eliminate many with one blow, Phen rushed to the middle of the pack and let loose a fireball from his armor; the wights shrugged off the worst of it.  Even Geristronamous had to flee.

Eventually you beat back the horde, but much healing was needed, and due to the wight’s life-drain ability, even that failed to restore full health.  You scouted for a room to hide in for a moment’s rest.

Locking yourselves in the room, you barely had a moment before you heard voices outside.  Vladaam agents.  You considered your options when another voice joined them: the dark elf, Shilukar.  The Vladaams surveyed the scene of your battle with the wights, and then grew silent.  You made tentative plans, with Phen using an invisibility potion to scout around, finding two Vladaams still guarding the door, with Shilukar gone to get reinforcements.  

With the Vladaams split, you made your move: Phen attacked, invisibly, and the rest of the party rushed out.  Though one guard was unusually strong, you beat them back just as two more Vladaam guards showed up.  Despite one transforming into werewolf form, you were able to defeat them fairly easily.  But there was no sign of Shilukar.

Then, the mage made his presence known: from behind the party, he threw a chaositech void bomb into the room you had been using as a shelter.  Debris and bodies were sucked into it as Geristranamous and Ebrahim struggled to avoid being sucked in.   As everyone clambered to safety, you looked around for the dark elf, only to find him just as he used a wall of ice to seal off your pursuit.  By the time you were through the wall, he had escaped, again.

At this point you considered your options.  Quickly catch your breath and continue, confident that you had routed the Vladaams.  Or, return to the city for rest and full healing, with the possibility of the Vladaams sending reinforcements as well . . .