Ghoul Attack

After finding the Book of Inverted Darkness in the Shadowed Room the party explored their options.  Some members wanted to leave but didn't know how to get out of the room, Mara was for finding a way out of the windows even though the party was high above ground.  Melisana and Pretis said that the party was low on healing surges and dailies after three battles and thought the party should take an extended rest.  Others were just trying to determine how to get out of the room.  Finally the group decided to take an extended rest given that they held the keys (shaped stones) to getting into the room.  That way they shouldn't be bothered.  Watches were set and the party spent an extended rest.

The Shadowed Room

Just as Bratorn was completing his directions to the Shadowed Room an Imp and an Invisible Stalker appeared in the library with the party.  Immediately they launched into an attack.  The Imp dazed Gofin, attacked her and then went invisible.  The stalker then created a dark zone and launched an attack against Alhellara.  Meanwhile the party spread out to attack the creatures but Mara and Pretis ended up in the dark zone and were blinded.  After one round the door opened and a Priest strode into the room attacking Demin who had moved to try and block the door.  Bratorn stated that this was Hragris, his master, and leaped into the battle knowing that all was lost for him.   Two more priests entered the room and caused much damage with their dagger attacks.  

The Temple of Vecna

As the party continued up the stairway to the Temple of Vecna they saw that a large overhang was above them and that the stairway continued into the platform.  It emerged into the center of  the platform where the party saw a large white building covered with carvings of leering faces and fiendish forms.  There were red and black banners hanging down from various places.  The banners depicted a symbol of a bony, splayed hand with a leering eye in the center of the palm.  There were a set of closed double doors on the face of the large building.   Also noticed were two archways into the outer skull itself.  Melisana crept up to the eastern archway and saw that it continued for some 25-30 feet where it opened up somewhat.  Lythandar moved up to the archway and could see some tables, chairs and a sofa in the larger room.   Pretis moved to the edge of the large building while Gofin moved to look down the other archway where she saw a similar view as Lythandar had seen.

Into Cavitius

After defeating a group of shadows in the Haunted Battleground the party took a short rest and scoured the area for treasure.  Lythandar discovered a pair of Gloves of Ice which he kept being the only member of the party with a cold attack.  The party then moved on continuing down the slope of the Burning Peaks.  Ash still covered the ground which made quick movements difficult.  Soon the party came upon signs of a battle, old corpses, scraps of armor, broken weapons and fallen standards.  Just ahead the party saw a mound of bone and flesh.  It appeared that the bones and flesh of innumerable people and creatures were somehow fused together into a disgusting amalgam of horror.  This monstrosity was certainly one of the Hideous Engines that Marit and the Tovagian soldiers mentioned.  Led by Pretis the group decided to make its way around the mound at the farthest distance possible.  Just as Pretis moved within a few yards of the Engine a single skull on the top started chanting but there was no movement from the horror.

Haunted Battleground

The party ran into a group of Tovagian soldiers who yelled out some words such as, spy, Cavitius, kill them.  The battle was soon waged as the soldiers moved forward and some shot crossbows at the party.  There appeared to be a couple of leaders, soldiers with swords and halberds and crossbowmen.  As the battle was engaged the leaders of the Tovagian patrol did much damage to Pretis and Mara.  At one point Mara was knocked prone and when she tried to stand up a soldier knocked her down again.  Demin stayed at range and fired his crossbow into the battle while Gofin found herself engaged with a halberd bearing soldier.  Lythandar threw a fireball at the advancing group to soften up the soldiers.

Blood...Blood...Blood

As the party moved out of the Library of Kas they were soon surrounded by a group of black robed, knife carrying, face painted figures.  The figures had the same leering face painted to look like a one-eyed skull.  The Cultists were chanting "blood...blood...blood" in Common. The battle was on as they cultists attacked moving swiftly around the party.  Melisana used Curse of the Divine Plague to again daze and confuse several of the cultists.  The party then tried hurriedly to move away from the infected cultists before they were also affected.  Several cultist minions were soon eliminated and a few of the cultists were bloodied but the kept using "Dance of the Knife" to apply multiple attacks and dance around the party.  

The Library of Kas

As the party continued into the passage under Castle Xiphos they came upon a twenty foot square shaft that bisected the tunnel.  It rose up towards the Castle and led deep into the earth.  Darkness in both directions quickly swallowed up the parties light source.  The sides of the shaft were even more slick with moisture and yellowish slime than the passage itself.  A narrow one foot wide ledge ran around the sides of the shaft and on the other side a tunnel extended into the rock.  On the wall next to the shaft were three metals levers protruding from the wall.  The first and third level were pulled down and the middle lever was parallel to the floor.  As the party looked around a quiet sound rose from the depths -- some sort of wet, sloshing, slurping noise.