Sunday, Harvester 23, 552 CY (50 AN)

Rrowthar leads the Shields of the Sorrowfell through a copse of trees and into the narrow streets of a much more decrepit portion of the city. As they round a corner, they hear a booming voice call out, indicating that some manner of work is complete. They notice, floating above the street, some manner of rift, pulsing with elemental energy. As the Shields move forward to investigate, a large humanoid wearing animal hides and wielding a stone quarterstaff emerges, slinging magics. Peren and Torinn immediately move to engage and flank him, knocking him down and keeping him on the defensive. He is swiftly joined by four large, hulking things evidently made of living magma, and a small horde of five creatures apparently made of animate rubble. Although the giant is swiftly dispatched, the elemental things are not. The battle against them is protracted; most of the Shields are on the defensive — Bezaldooz slinging spells as Bosabrieln sings battle-songs and Valna mutters prayers — with Torinn engaging one of the creatures just beyond the reach of the others and Peren dashing across the battlefield to harry the various elemental foes. One of the magma-things and most of the rubble creatures fall quickly, but it takes a sustained flurry of steel and spells to fell the rest. All the while, the elemental rift gutters and pulses with energy.

After the creatures are slain, the Shields search the area, and in addition to some gold in the giant’s beltpouch, they find a ritual for creating the elemental rift. Bezaldooz uses the information to close the rift, and then the Shields have a moment to rest.

Catching up to Obanar at the Guardian’s Tower, he indicates that the city’s attackers are penetrating the vaults beneath the Tower. While he reinstates the wards, would the Shields be able to stop them from doing whatever they are doing? The Shields agree to this course of action, and descend with Rrowthar into the vaults below the Guardian’s Tower.

The Shields arrive to find the door to the vaults ajar, revealing three creatures made of frost and a mammoth earth elemental. They quickly dispatch the frost creatures and defeat the earth elemental, taking the opportunity to regroup and position themselves outside the door to the next area of the vaults. Upon breaching it, they note four of the frost creatures in the next room. Peren notes nearly imperceptible sigils etched into the floor, apparently part of some arcane trap. The walls to the left and right of the room are energy barriers, and two of the frost creatures are trapped beyond them. As Peren and Torinn enter the room, they note that their footfalls become heavier and they are less mobile. The group quickly destroys the four frost-things in the room, and then they decide to experiment with the two trapped frost creatures. Peren throws a javelin and notes that it is sucked through the energy barrier when it strikes it. Despite the redirect, the javelin still hits its target, killing the frost creature. Bezaldooz vanquishes the other with a magic missile.

Too large to safely navigate the trapped floor, Rrowthar stays back while the Shields gather around the door. When they force it open, two flaming humanoids armed with scimitars and shields — similar to the humanoid creature they encountered in the forest antagonizing Rrowthar when they first met him — are waiting on the other side. Two of the frost creatures approach behind them. Fire flares out of the fiery humanoids’ shields, filling the area with flame and causing much of the party to stumble towards them. Rrowthar, unfortunately, staggers into a trapped glyph and is blown across the floor from glyph to glyph until he is thrown through the energy barrier and trapped in one of the cells. Peren manages to maneuver past the fiery humanoids and out of the slowing effect of the room, allowing him to position himself behind the humanoids and set up a flanking position. Seeing an opportunity, he kicks one of the humanoids off-balance into one of the trapped sigils, sending it careening into one of the energy cells. Torinn drops his weapon and grabs the other humanoid, throwing him onto a glyph and similarly blowing him into a trapped cell. The two frost creatures are quickly dispatched.

Regrouping, Bezaldooz uses his portal gun to open a gateway into the cell holding Rrowthar, allowing his escape. Examining the room, the Shields note magic circles carved into the floor. These circles create energy barriers, beyond which things are hazy and indistinct. There appears to be something of indeterminate shape suspended in each barrier. As the Shields round the corner, they see a human — robed, with a circle tattooed around his eye — enacting some ritual on one of the magic circles. Quickly determining that he is attempting to breach the circle, they try to stop him. However, despite a resounding blow from Peren’s sword, he manages to finish his incantation and grab a strange chunk of gold and silver revealed in the magic circle. He shoves this into a bag — evidently a bag of holding by the size — and turns to face his attackers. The Shields quickly overwhelm him, but he apparently has a contingency plan in place — when he is first wounded, he disappears.

The Shields investigate the scene, and finding nothing further, begin to exit the vaults. They encounter Obanar, who congratulates the Shields on their work, indicating that Argent’s defenses are again secure. He invites the Shields to join him for refreshment and respite, and to talk of the day’s events. They agree, but first hope to dispatch the fiery humanoids trapped in the energy cells. Bosabrieln has the idea that perhaps they should parley first, to see if these creatures know anything. The group agrees, and Bosabrieln approaches to speak to them. As he addresses them, however, they notice that he has advanced just a little too close to them; they respond by flaring their shields, scorching Bosabrieln and drawing him into the energy cell. As they begin attacking him, Torinn steps onto a trapped glyph and launches himself into the cell. The others cast spells on the trapped creatures until Obanar can finally drop the wards on the vault, opening the energy cells. Peren rushes into melee, and with the combined might of the Shields of the Sorrowfell, the flaming humanoids are swiftly defeated.

With the Tower secure, the group ascends to Obanar’s sitting room to discuss the day’s events.