The party, performing one last search of the area of the large angel fight, discovers a fierce-looking hilt nearby. Adding that to the loot bag Ox carries, they decide to retire back to the palace to allow everyone to heal up so that one last exploration effort can be made the next day before they are forced to return to Charm for more food. They do notice a grand-looking entrance near them to some sort of coliseum area, but do not want to continue on having taken such a beating from the demon in the candle stick which Bill captured.

As the party has retired to the “couch room” for the night, those on watch think they hear what is singing going on all night. Only when they are very quiet can they hear it, but no one can distinguish what is being said in the song. Bill and Thin Boots decide between them that it is a chorus of people singing, not just one, but again nothing can be understood of what is being sung.

The party stands outside of what appears to be the palace in the city. The door of the outer gate has been completely ripped off and is lying on the ground on the path leading in. The party moves into the courtyard surrounding the palace and spreads out to investigate. To the left is a fenced area leading towards some sort of park, which they stay well away from. Small water inlets can be seen going under the walls of the palace on either side of it, and a pavilion type area is situated in front of the doorway. The party immediately notices the door of the palace, a piece worth quite a large sum being made of precious metals, has been ripped off and lays crumpled in the entryway. Red fires off a location spell outside the palace, but can feel nothing.

The party, sleeping once again in a hole created by Red for night shelter, awaken to a would-be earthquake shaking the walls down around them. Everyone manages to grab their gear and make it out, but a few of the party suffer wounds along the way. Dusting themselves off and covering the light wounds, they turn and head north following the road towards the city.

In the days following the attack on the dog-men camp, the party spends its time recuperating and collecting all of the loot from the area. Much armor and weapons can be saved from the barbarians, and it is all transported back to Charm (the newly-named tower compound) for later use. While collecting these items, the now one-armed captain of the barbarians returns to the ruins and begs mercy from the party. After much deliberation, they agree to protect the captain, provided he shows them the location of his boat and pledges fealty. He does so, and the group finds a lot of food and water on the boat, along with another green ring and a chest.

The story picks up with Moon and Ox leading the barbarian troop to the rope bridge across the river mouth. Crossing there, the troop forms up across the river and moves north towards the dog-men’s camp. Along the way, Thin Boots catches up to the troop having decided that perhaps Moon and Ox might want a little help or at least someone friendly watching their back. It doesn’t take long before the troop reaches the outside of the ruins.

Having decided that Switches and Brand will need to return to Tail with a selected book and also return with supplies and more bodies, the group begins working towards this end. Bill scouts out Whistler’s Island where the boat should be but, on the first day of searching, finds no boat. Work on the wall continues as normal until it is noticed that a trail of blood is leading to the tower walls outside. The group decides to wash away the trail of blood as best they can in case something is being led in their direction, but continues work as normal afterward.

The next day work continues on the wall since Red has regained consciousness. Double guards are posted on each end of the wall to watch for whatever has been shooting people with darts while Red works.

The group emerges from the tower the next morning and sets to work. The first order of business is protecting the boat and its crew, and it is decided Marble and Moon will lead a group back to the boat and have them move over to Whistler’s Island where they will be protected from the shipwrecked men and the island’s other nasty inhabitants. A signal fire lit at the mouth of the river will be the signal for the boat to return to its current position and pick the party up. Moon and Marble set off with their henchmen, Thin Boots, and Switches towards the boat.

Leaving the boat and its crew on the southwestern corner of the island, the party of ten (Brand and Switches come with the group) follow the coast south and then turn east, keeping the water just to their right. While this is a scouting mission, the party really wants to get a closer look at the tower they spotted from Whistler’s Island.

After finishing up their personal business in the Library at Howling, the party returns to Tail with Switches and discovers some new faces in Emerald’s posse. Emerald has not only hired new muscle to guard his merchant trips to Red Fern, but four new adventurers have found their way into Emerald’s care.

After the party joins Red and Moon at the cliff above the palisade, Bill instructs the group to form a defensive position in case they are attacked by the mysterious swamp creatures. The rat man (Two Nail) becomes terrified when he realizes the swamp creatures are after him. Moon tries to question Two Nail about the creatures, but he loses all rational thought because of his fear. Eagle spots movement coming up the mountain along the tree line. Before long, Bill can see them as well, but then the creatures go further into the trees and all sight of them is lost.

After acquiring the surrender of all of the bandits, the party searches the caves to find a large food store hidden off of the remaining tunnel. Moonchaser proceeds to interrogate the rat men and discovers many useful facts, such as the purpose behind some of their magical items. He reveals that the skull Bill holds is a powerful device used to boost magical power, but is convinced that the party has no one of skill to use the item. Bill proceeds to use the skull to try to bend the emotions of the rat man, but the rat man proves stronger in magical prowess despite the use of the skull, and Bill is forced to back down. The rat man also reveals Red Earth’s necklace is for the storing of energies.

The party attempts to wrap up affairs at the church and questions the bandit leader some more, and he reveals a hidden tunnel to another room in the catacombs. Faster, one of Bear’s Rage’s guards, is elected to slide down the tight hole into the hidden room and find the other exit out. Billhook meets Faster outside the Church, and Faster leads the group to the hidden entrance to the catacombs in a muddy ravine.