Our heroes approach the guardhouse and have a conversation with Bakrosh’s brother, and his associate, Tree. Irontron is convinced that Tree is himself from the future. Adrik deduces that we can enter the tower by touching a card to its exterior semi-real shell. Vic uses the Key card to open a portal into the world of madness within the tower and seals the portal behind them.

The interior is a pulsing mass off goo, cloven by a narrow chasm, bridged by the giant versions of Knight and Eurale cards. The Star card makes the door out, high on the far wall. Content Not Found: Irontron talks with the card bridge, and eventually some of the party walks across the bridge. When the party is optimally separated, the bridge is revealed to be a pair of dire mimics. The mimics attack, accompanied by a black pudding and some of its spawnlings! The party holds their own against its gooey, pulsating foes, before grabbing floating blobs of goop and escaping skywards.

Floating throught the doorway, our heroes are exposed to a realm of pure madness. They use a veriety of approaches to attempt to avoid the realm’s corrupting influence, with some success. Analastara Velfarren and Iata are touched by pure madness and chaos, irreperably corrupted. Who knows what it may take to make them whole again?

From this realm of xaos, our heroes emerge into the top floor of the tower, dominated by a giant balista which could be used as a siege weapon against Winterhaven or the abbey. The tower is inhabited by a beholder, corrupted by the order of this realm. Adrik observes that the entire tower was a trap meant to ensnare the beholder. The beholder wants to escape and ravage the mortal realm.

The party is having none of it. They execute a textbook tactical assault and dispatch the Beholder with the efficiency of a well-practiced team, recovering three cards. The death of the beholder undoes the trap, returning the tower from the realm of madness to the real world, and reuniting its inside with its outside, and the rest of Dol’Urh. While searching the tower, Vic notices the dracolich emissary from the Tiefling army scortching some land near Winterhaven with necrotic flame, while a Tiefling column approaches through the wastelands to the East, a week away, perhaps more.

The team clears the tower and turn it over to Bakrosh’s personell. The party trades sending stones and goes opposite ways: Mara accompanies the deformed Analastara Velfarren and her ancient, corrupted ancestor back to Lord Velfarren, and Adrik leads the other two corruptid Silver Flame knights behind them. Vic and Content Not Found: Irontron head to Bakrosh.

Mara engages Lord Velfarren in heated discussion about the nature of their accord. Lord Velfarren is impressed with Analastara Velfarren‘s performance, but ashamed of her chaotic transformation. They agree that our heroes will accompany Lord Velfarren to Thelanis and cleanse Iata and Analastara before treating Lord Velfarren’s ancestor, and eventually giving Mara the Vizier card.

Meanwhile, Vic and Content Not Found: Irontron return to Bakrosh’s tent, and meet his patron, Lord Tanlan a Brelish noble and member of the Aurum Accord. Bakrosh gives Irontron the Fool card, as agreed, and offers Vic his other card if our heroes can secure the gatehouse, and turn it over to House Tharask custody. Vic introduces herself to Lord Tanlin, and they get along as only a pair of ambitious and efficient fixers can.

A cordial negotiation ensues, mediated by the sending stones. Our heroes broker an agreement between the assembled parties. House Tharask will cease dumping their industrial refuse into the water, and bring in industrial equipment from the Prime to allow them to dump their slurry into the wasteland to the East. The Eladrin will hold their forest securely, preventing interlopers from interfering with House Tharask or Winterhaven. An Eladrin observer will have to be present in the Abbey grounds to ensure that the the terms are followed. Lord Padraig, however, will have to have provide Winderhaven’s agricultural surplus to House Tharask, so our heroes set off to Winterhaven to secure this final part of the accord.