The party is visibly shaken and wonder for a time at what they have done. Was it really the right thing? What will be the consequences? This is obviously something larger than even they had anticipated if Elysenika has taken a part in it. They speculate for a time, but then get down to the business of returning home with the key to Reym. They leave no message for Eldrin, trusting that word of the destruction of the planar barrier will allow him and the dragons to come when they are ready.
They miracle a greater plane shift and reappear at the Shining Gem inn outside of Althofen, just to be sure they can get back home with little trouble. The inn is still abandoned and haunted looking, but nothing assaults them. From there, John easily teleports them to the teleport room of their house in the city. They are met immediately by priests and paladins of Hysor ready for battle. They identify themselves and the priests relax, allowing the party to settle back into their house. They see that it is the heart of winter and snow blankets the streets. Outside, they see the boy, Lance Kreedy, shoveling the path. The priests and paladins send for Septicant Franklin and Lieutenant Eberulf. The party looks around the house and feels relaxed and at home. When Franklin and Eberulf arrive Lance comes in with them, happy to see the party and eager to hear of their adventures. They notice right away that the two men look haggard, and Eberulf sports some new nasty scars and limps. Stories are exchanged, with Franklin going first.
"A few weeks after you disappeared the investigations into the murders and the trial that you were put through reached fruition. Gelrin, your lawyer if you recall, discovered who had leaked the tip about you and this house – a general Abel Fortisso in the Krewaldian army who had links to the highest levels of the government. He and many of his close acquaintances were proven to be in league with devils. Gelrin and the temple of Hysor had no choice but to bring the evidence through the proper lawful channels. As you can imagine, all hell broke loose (Hysor forgive me for the phrase). Warrants were issued, allegations were made, and more indictments issued as the trail led deeper and deeper into the government and the army. The whole situation grew worse and worse. Arrests were attempted, but the general rallied loyal troops and resisted. He fortified himself in the northern towers and sent runners out to bring in more troops. The city almost erupted in civil war. The bluecloaks were given greater authority because the regular army could no longer be trusted in this affair. All through this trying time, general Fortisso parleyed, insisting on his innocence. But the proof was incontrovertible. When the final attack came, the bluecloaks stormed the towers and were met with heavy resistance. The city guard rallied to the general’s defense and attempted to flank the bluecloaks. However, reinforcements arrived from Hunsruck just in time to turn back the tide. When it seemed like the bluecloaks had turned the tide, diabolic allies of the general teleported in and started destroying the bluecloaks savagely."
"At this point, we ordered the priests and paladins of Hysor to join the fray along with several of the other priesthoods. Eberulf himself was wounded severely by a devil who had just killed the bluecloak colonel who was engaged with general Fortisso. However, Eberulf prevailed against the devil and in a brief moment within the fray, he was able to use his detect evil power to be sure of the general. Who, despite all in the heat of battle, was still claiming his innocence and saying that the devils were no allies of his. But Eberulf saw through the lies and detected great evil and along with several others, attempted to arrest him. The general finally surrendered. But the devils were not beaten. They still savaged the bluecloaks until at last Lord Natas arrived with an elite personal guard who were able to turn the tide. The city once again owed Lord Natas for coming to its aid as he did 20 years ago."
"The general was taken to prison and the militia was disbanded. Protection of the city has been handed over to the bluecloaks, led by Field Marshal Pauletta of the Coalition Guard. In the weeks that followed the near-coup, martial law has been declared. For the protection of the citizens, a curfew has been established while the bluecloaks attempt to root out the evil that has taken root here. There have been many successes. A den of devils was discovered underground and destroyed by the bluecloaks just a week ago."
"I have been receiving reports in the past few weeks indicating that Althofen is not the only city to be infiltrated thusly. Most of the major cities in Krewald, Saarland, Croy, Uchdry, Lignia, Rothland, Deir es Mal, Bedwyr, and Bircen are under similar martial law and Coalition Guard control. It seems that devils are at the root of the evils of the southlands, as you yourselves had surmised, and perhaps have even infiltrated the levels of government in most of the countries. The Chancellor has issued levies to triple the size of the Coalition Guard and has established special camps throughout the alliance to train them."
"I worry, however. Field Marshal Pauletta has proven to be brutal in her policies and tactics. The council of 12 has delegated great powers to her. She has instituted policies where all arcane and divine spellcasters must register with them and be issued special permits to continue their jobs. This has made the Krewaldian bureaucracy ecstatic, naturally. I'm afraid that you must immediately do the same and register yourselves. It is the law. Those who refuse have been imprisoned and not been heard from again. There are rumors of secret trials and executions, but these are unsubstantiated."
The party is not happy at all about the martial law in the city. And they are definitely not happy about having to register as casters with the bluecloaks. Helbrecht in particular is adamant that they should check in with the councilor to the king in Arhus because they were last ordered to keep a low profile. This order was issued 500 years ago, though Felgarn, Skilgannon, and Helbrecht are not convinced that much time has passed.. Registering would counter that order. Lieutenant Eberulf also is adamant that they follow the law and register. He and Helbrecht lock horns over the matter. Ultimately, John teleports Helbrecht, Felgarn, and Skilgannon up to Arhus before the argument gets out of hand. They appear in the middle of the Golden Lion Inn amidst the crowded winter. They go outside and find the city cold and bustling, the big square covered in ice and slush. The three party members who came from the past feel very much at home, though they are saddened at the neglect and changes they see. This alone starts to convince them that time has indeed passed. The city is much different than they remembered.
They head to the palace, but John decides he isn’t really a part of this particular task of the 500 year old party and so he goes to the temple of Elysenika to ask some questions about the events that transpired at Elysenika. Meanwhile, the crew from the past is stopped at the gates of the castle where they must makes their case to the guards to be allowed to see someone of importance. Finally, the guards send for a priest and a wizard. When they arrive, they listen to the crew from the past's story, which is confirmed in a zone of truth. They start working their way up the bureaucracy until, hours later, Duke Ulrich himself meets them in a council room. He checks them out very carefully with his monocle, and then takes their report. They have a fairly long conversation. He first thinks he should send them back to the past and fix things so Gwynyth Raius never fell. But he changes his mind after considering how close a parallel this is to what happened with the Circlet and how that got out of hand. He shrugs off his comments when Helbrecht asks him what he's talking about. When the crew mentions Croom and John, Duke Ulrich asks about the rest of the party. He takes the death of Osirc (them damn Blukhorels, always dying) poorly. After some deliberation and talking, he decides that they should continue pursuing the Lemegeton thing (his words). He puts them in charge of the party with the paladin gone. He warns them to watch John carefully, as he can cast spells just like a demon can. They leave shortly after that.
John meanwhile has gone to the temple of Elysenika and spoken to a priest there, very frankly laying out what happened with Elysenika that morning. The priest is stricken. He says there is an ancient prophecy passed down through the temple about the end of all things that Elysenika created. It is a a great Armageddon where "All the multitudes who exist that left will return." That all the planes will change. The second sign is what John mentioned, the taking down of a great barrier. The first was the destruction of "the honeycombed portal." Felgarn, Skilgannon, and Helbrecht arrive at this moment, and they hear what the priest has to say. He mentions that there is supposed to be a third sign, but he doesn’t know what it is. He and the other priests will pray on it. He runs off in a panic telling the other priests "It is the end of the world! We must pray!"
They return to Althofen, deciding to register for the greater good, meeting up with Croom first before going to the government center to fill out the forms. John omits a few things: his epic spell knowledge feat and the spells he got from it. Croom omits all information about the key to Draconia. Helbrecht omits the key to Reym and the spellbooks he hasn’t transcribed yet. They are escorted home by bluecloaks, much to their distaste.
They rest in their own beds for the first time in months. The next day, the party talks it over and decides to rest for a time here in Althofen, waiting for the winter to end before adventuring forth. Felgarn will take this time upgrading and creating magic items using the money they gain from selling the loot they recovered on their last adventures through Draconia. They immediately find that shopping in Althofen is not going to work, but a quick teleport to Arhus fixes that problem. Hans has taken his leave of the party and returned to his home at Kyle's caravans, worried about the work he has missed. He promises to keep in touch with them and will definitely accompany them when they are ready to leave Althofen. Meanwhile, Helbrecht is concerned about the state of the school of elementalism, so he teleports to Fingen, Nothelm to find out what is what. He is dismayed to see how the school has fallen into disrepair, and even further upset when he sees that the school of metal elementalism is in the worst shape of all. He meets with Master Julia and is further startled to see that she is the highest level wizard there at a mere 14th level. He starts to make arrangements and plans to rebuild the school to its former glory.
A week after they have returned home, they receive a message from Lady Pine inviting them to lunch. John declines the invitation, replying through the messenger that they will be busy for two months. Not to be deterred, Lady Pine herself shows up on their doorstep another week later, bringing dinner with her. The party can't refuse. Lance is sent to get Hans for dinner so everyone can be present. The party and Lady Pine have a long conversation that is for once not veiled with threats and accusations. She deftly, however, directs the conversation to ancient Reym and the theoretical search for its lost capital city. She reminds them that it has never been found. She comments that such adventurers who find a key should definitely take steps to make copies and leave them with trusted individuals to insure that such things are not lost with the adventurers should anything befall them. She modestly hints that she herself might be such a trusted individual. The party counters that they don't know who to trust. Especially when devils can masquerade as or even turn the highest levels of government such as what happened here in Althofen. After Lady Pine leaves, the party wonders how she could have known of their plans and what her intentions really are.
The next day, John, Felgarn, and Croom go to Gelrin's office. They ask him to pull Lady Pine and Natas's records so nicely kept by the bluecloaks. At least they can turn the inconvenience of registering to their advantage. Gelrin says that the request will likely take 10 days. During this time, Skilgannon and Helbrecht teleport to Arhus to see about buying some property to set up a base of operations there for more convenient teleportation. When the time has passed, and they return to Gelrin, he tells them that Lady Pine is registered as an 8th level diviner who studied under a master in Wellefyn and that Lord Natas is registered as a 3rd level wizard who studied also in Wellefyn, under another master. John tries to track down these masters, even going so far as to teleport up to Wellefyn to ask around, but is met with great difficulty and gives up. They ask Gelrin to find out who has pulled and looked at their own registrations.
A couple of days later, Gelrin has more information for them. He has found that that since they have registered, their information has been accessed by a large ritzy firm of barristers Proctor, Proctor, and Lessay. Also a priest of Brage by the name of Gemeril. They conclude that they are unlikely to learn anything from the large law firm, but they can ask the priest why he pulled their records. They track him down easily at the temple and learn that he is a first level acolyte who just pulls records at random for the fun of it. He found theirs accidentally, he says, and they believe him. Curious, they ask him what other interesting records he has pulled. He tells them that he got a Master Kol's records once, and they suddenly remember the mysterious owner of the only magic shop in town. They hadn't needed him since they are now capable of making their own magic items. They learn that he disappeared about the time the Bluecloaks took over. Worried, Croom casts a discern location and discovers him in a "hole in the ground in the environs of Althofen." They presume him dead, another casualty of the bluecloaks zeal.
Suddenly decisive, they think its time to start laying the cards on the table with regards to Lady Pine and Lord Natas. They go to his mansion, except for Hans and Felgarn (who is still creating magic items), and find that only Lady Pine is in residence. They have another conversation, which as usual, starts off with hints and roundabout accusations. John gets fed up and frankly asks her outright, "What do you want from us?" The conversation turns from there to matters of trust, and her role with Lord Natas. What is it that he wants? What's he doing? When Lady Pine answers in her usual way, the party starts to get more and more hostile. It is Lady Pine's turn to be more frank, suggesting that if they are to start talking a bit plainly, then they should also be obliged to do so.
At this point, the party finally admits that they are going to a Reyman ruins – in fact the capital of Reym itself. Lady Pine in turn admits that she knows this already and that her concern about making a backup of the key is important. But they want to know why she wants to know. What is she going to do with the information? Why does Lord Natas care? The question of trust becomes central. John states it plainly: we only trust those who stand by our side and bleed with us. We cannot trust you or Natas. So, to earn our trust, come with us to Reym. He has essentially invited her to adventure with them. She responds with some scoffing: she’ll die. She can’t live like that. But the essential truth is this: they won’t trust her unless she goes. She says that she will have to consult Lord Natas, and that they will meet again in 3 days at the Party’s house.
There is a lot of talk about the various goals of all involved. John states clearly that his goal is the removal of all demonic/diabolic influence in the world. They sort of agree that they will try to copy the Reyman key and if they succeed they will probably end up giving it to Duke Ulrich. But they don’t think it’s possible.
Later, once out of the mansion, John states the old proverb: keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. They know that sooner or later, if she is with them, her true nature will be revealed. That night, John has a dream about the blessed bible found in the Black Forest. Two days later, after Felgarn has completed the last magic item, the party meets up again ready to venture forth. At this time, John tells them about his dream of the Bible of the Blessed Ones. They sit and remember revelations made months ago about Proserpine, Satan, Pluto and Euronymous found from the information in the book and their dealings with Lady Pine. They are more certain now that she is a devil. They think they may have to fight her instead. Or at least let her come along and then jump her at a later time.
That night, a cadre of devils make an attempt to assassinate the party. While everyone is asleep, they trust the paladins to keep the watches, they are nearly taken completely unaware. One devil, however, moved too early and killed the paladin sharing the room with Skilgannon and that woke him up. Skilgannon immediately shouted, allowing the rest of the party to wake up before the remaining devils kill them with a simple coup-de-grace. The party is separated, each sleeping in their own rooms, where in each is a few devils set to deal with them. On the first round of combat, Felgarn is taken to half health and is grappled by a pit fiend. Skilgannon is hurt badly by the two devils in his room, Croom is also hurt badly, but not as bad as Felgarn. Croom miracles a teleport to go help Felgarn in his room, which just about saved Felgarn’s life and started turning the tide of battle. John and Helbrecht’s time stop spells also allowed the tides to turn as a maw of chaos locked down two devils. Unfortunately, that left Skilgannon alone and he was soon knocked unconscious and dying. Still, the devils were winning until Croom successfully dismissed the pit fiend. Then things turned, and that’s the time that an arch-devil revealed, using greater invisibility, entered the fray. Unfortunately, the arch-devil waited far too long, and had lost too many of his allies to continually provide flank and provoke sneak attacks, for that is this arch-devils forte - he has some rogue abilities. He did however, manage to knock Croom down and dying, and Felgarn close behind. John and Helbrecht’s magic however, became too much. At one point, the arch-devil used a lightning parry and even deflected spells, impressing the heck out of the spellcasters. But when the arch-devil jumped out of the disintegrated hole in the wall to grapple the flying John, they were really impressed. However, Helbrecht finally got the elemental monolith summoned and at that point, the arch-devil had to choose between escaping in shame or dying. He chose to escape, cursing the party for making him fail his mission. Even with their powerful magic, the party is unable to follow or track the arch-devil once he escaped.
As usual, just when the fight is over, the Coalition guard shows up to take the party’s statement. Meanwhile, the house is burning from a deadly lahar that Helbrecht had cast during the melee that has caught the house on fire. Numerous walls have been disintegrated and two rooms were destroyed by maw of chaos. The fires are put out and the party is escorted to the guard house to give their statements for hours into the wee morning. They are escorted to the Silver Lady Inn where they immediately take a room and use mordenkainen’s magnificent mansion to rest for a full 8 hours.
When they leave the mansion the next day, Hans is there saying that he tracked them down and guessed that they were hiding in the mansion. They found him reading a book, his new spellbook, while waiting for them. They tell him what happened the previous night. They go downstairs and find a note from Lady Pine asking them to come visit her, but they decide that they will go to their house first, then prepare for a big fight, perhaps the final confrontation with Lady Pine, and visit her at her house. At their ruined house, they find the paladins and servants at work sorting and clearing out the mess.
Now, they go to the Natas Mansion, buffing along the way. They are greeted by the butler and led to the sitting room. They have true seeing up, but none of them are able to discern anything amiss about her once she enters the room with them. She tells them that with regrets, she cannot adventure with them. They expected that reply and pretty much say that this is the end of their relationship. They talk more, in her usual roundabout way, about other things she could offer to prove otherwise of their suspicions, but she cannot convince them. Like a witch accused, she says, there is no easy way to prove her innocence. Helbrecht finally pulls out the bible of the blessed ones and talks about the relevant passage of Proserpine. He calls her Proserpine, High Princess and she just laughs. Croom and Helbrecht try to get an explanation about the backwards names (how uncanny it is that her name is Pine Proser and her lord's is Natas), and and she can’t give a good enough answer for them. John starts passing around a note taking a vote about attacking her. The vote looks like its going in favor of an attack until Helbrecht reads the passage, Lady Pine points out, “If this Proserpine brought Satan to Maal, then wouldn’t that mean she is more powerful than Satan?” This gives them pause and Helbrecht changes his vote. They just leave instead in a huff. She wishes them the best of luck on their adventure.
Afterward, a confused Hans (the vote hadn't reached him) is given an explanation of what went on. They go to the Wandering Minstrel inn, get a room, and summon a mansion there. They talk about what just happened. Hans plays devil's advocate and leads them on a logic argument about how Lady Pine could have learned about the trip to Reym through non-infernal means. In fact, they discover that the young boy, Lance, was in the room with the party and Eberulf and Franklin when the party told them of their entire adventure and their intentions to enter Reym.
Now, the party takes a vote. On the table: leave right now for Reym, or go attack other targets first. John voted for other targets after reading the bible of the Blessed Ones, but he is outvoted. The party gives notice to Franklin that they are leaving. They leave him 50,000gp – for the house repair (and a new addition for another room), and the raising of the paladin slain in the attack. They then teleport to the mountain where the gate to Reym is.