Ruik provides Vandoren and Valerius with details of his recent undertakings. He had successfully persuaded Sir John of Lownell to provide Prince Busirane with false intelligence, and because of this ruse Busirane had unwisely split up his army in pursuit of a phantom foe. Sir John is now close to openly betraying King Tereus, and to this end has dispatched a sizable force from Lownell. At the moment Sir John’s troops wait hidden somewhere near Antace, ready for an opportune moment to assist King Weremach’s beleaguered armies. In this endeavor Sir John has the unwitting support of Prince Nestor, who apparently does not realize that he is once more the dupe of Lownell.

Meanwhile, King Tereus has quietly returned to the Yron Citie in order to put down yet another rebellion. Ruik knows a little about the mysterious wizard who is assisting Prince Busirane: this powerful magician is guarded by a squad of cataphracts, and keeps his own tent in the middle of the enemy camp. The wizard is exceedingly haughty and disliked by the ruckish officers—but has the attentive ear of the Prince. The wizard keeps odd and irregular hours, either performing services for Busirane or else engaged in research.

Ruik also reveals that for the last several months he has tormented Prince Argus by covertly erecting pentifixes on the battlements of Argus’s own castle. These pentifixes have all “miraculously” appeared overnight, and have prompted even more conversions and consternation among the armies of Argus.

Friar Sidrach speaks at length with Father Theodore and learns that King Weremach’s body is languishing, although his spirit appears at peace. Since the harrowing of Lorn Abbey, the old man is no longer troubled by unwholesome visions.

St. James, his conscience sorely troubled by recent bad dreams, asks Vandoren to compose a letter addressed to the parents of his childhood friend, Dale. The letter explains how Dale was killed while exploring Owl Island.

Vandoren and Valerius travel to the Lady of the Keep, where Valerius studies magic and discusses recent events over a game of chess. The Lady knows little about the evil beneath Lorn Abbey, and asserts that such corruption is symptomatic of the spread of Pentianity. She also has a passing familiarity with the mysterious wizard working with the rucks.

The consortes meet an archer named Owen Grey, who has been performing feats of skill outside the castle. The young man is clearly an excellent marksman, and in no time he has fallen in with our heroes.

The consortes decide to the take the measure of Orestes. To capture the attention of the ruckish captain, the consortes erect their pavilion in a high, prominent place, opening flying the banner of the Ebon Quill. That very night a large ruckish raid led by the captains Telles and Butades assails the front gates of Antace; meanwhile, a small force of twenty-four rucks led by Orestes steals into the Pentian camps and makes straight for the black pavilion.

The consortes are ready for the assault, and eagerly turn the tables on the raiders. Orestes brought with him some very tough Black-blade warriors, and the fighting that follows is swift and deadly.

In the midst of battle, the mysterious wizard makes his appearance. The magician—a tall, thin man dressed in gaudy gold and purple robes—conjures an air elemental to harass Valerius. Vandoren uses Bened’s scroll to cast a cone of cold on the wizard; in response the angry wizard polymorphs Vandoren into a sheep. The wizard follows up by turning Valerius into a frog; but when he attempts to transmogrify the Friar, the Gerardian escapes unscathed.

Meanwhile, Orestes and his lieutenants begin wrecking havoc about the pavilion. St. James is struck down and pulled away in the nick of time by Owen. Orestes chases down and then kills poor Mot when the simple man attempts to flee the battle on Bear. Meanwhile, Noxumbra swoops down, plucks up the transformed Valerius, and flies straight to Sir Fulk. There the raven explains that Orestes is in the camps—and at this news, the Pentian forces mount a sortie.

The ruckish raiders begin to fall back, but our heroes—led by Hamral, Mendelor, and Friar Sidrach—give chase. The wizard conjures a wall of ice that blocks pursuit, he then hurls a lightning bolt at Renton. The horrific blast nearly kills the fighter; the wizard then casts a devastating cone of cold on Friar Sidrach, but the Gerardian stands fast—even managing to restore Vandoren. The bard promptly turns invisible and attempts to sneak up and grapple the wizard, but as soon as Vandoren comes within a few paces of the wizard his magics fail.

In the end, only Orestes and his wizard survive the raid, and these two villains vanish from the camps in a blast of smoke—after the wizard snarls a final taunt at the weary consortes.

The next day the Friar is able to miraculously restore Valerius to his natural form. The thin magician takes little solace in this restoration, and begins the dark task of burying his loyal henchman, Mot. Marcus and the Friar dispense as much healing as possible. The Friar seeks out Gower’s petrified serjeant, Blount, and restores the grateful soldier to flesh.

That night Valerius receives a dream-sending from Busirane’s wizard. The arrogant wizard claims that the Prince has ordered his troops to kill Valerius on sight, and warns Valerius that he is outmatched and should flee.

After a couple of days of recovery, the consortes mount a reprisal raid, on the premise that the wizard will still be weakened from his last engagement.

Meanwhile, the Pentian and Ruckish armies take the field. Although badly outnumbered, the Pentian forces fight bravely. The knights attempt to punch an opening in the ruckish lines, but the rucks stand their ground. Eventually the rucks begin to outflank the Pentians, and as casualties start to mount, unexpected reinforcements arrive: archers and footsoldiers from Derwich led by Sir Reginald the Penitent and a restored Charles of the Axe, as well as more troops from Lownell led by the knights Burchard, Waleran, and Harold Grimpate. The new arrivals bolster the dwindling hopes of the Pentians.

As the battle rages, Vandoren casts a spell of invisibility about the group, allowing them to sneak into the ruckish camp. The tent of Busirane’s wizard appears unoccupied: St. James can spy sumptuous furnishings within, but Valerius detects magical radiance all about the tent, which could be from warding spells. The group continues on, finding the ruckish camp largely empty save for a single watchtower. The tower is made of timber and about thirty feet high. A score of Black-blade guards stand at the bottom; at the top, watching the distant battle, is Prince Busirane, his wizard, and some high-level ruckish officers.

The consortes swing in to action. The archers begin launching arrows at the wizard, while Valerius conjures up a series of horrific black tentacles that erupt from the top of the tower. Friar Sidrach attempts to cast a prayer that would prevent the wizard from vanishing again.

The wizard is struck by several arrows, and the rucks on the top of the tower are thrown into confusion. The guards at the bottom of the tower begin advancing on the consortes. Meanwhile, the wizard—no doubt aided by some flying magic—shoots off the top of the tower, soaring high into the clouds. Friar Sidrach uses the last of the Unguent of the Sparrow to follow him into the air.

On the ground, the rucks put up a tough resistance, pushing the consortes back from the tower. Meanwhile, a roaring Busirane hurls himself from the battlements, and rises, battered but not undaunted. Valerius conjures a couple of small fire elementals to hinder the prince, but the enraged Busirane dispatches each with a single blow. Meanwhile, in the air above the fray the wizard transforms Friar Sidrach into stone, and the hapless Gerardian begins slowly sinking down to the ground.

The consortes begin a fighting retreat toward the lake, where Valerius plans to summon Sushool and have the water elemental carry them to safety. The warriors, whose strength has been greatly augmented by magic, pick up the stone Friar. Prince Busirane drops back, pulls out a ruckish battle horn, and signals for his army on the field to withdraw from the fighting.

The consortes reach the lake, but the enraged wizard swoops down from the sky before them, crying that they have incurred the everlasting wrath of Hecatesseus, Master Wizard. Hecatesseus attempts to turn Valerius into a carp, but Friar Sidrach’s prayers shield Valerius from harm. Valerius responds by launching fiery arrows at Hecatesseus, but the arrows turn course and rush back at the conjurer. Hecatesseus then casts a spell on Valerius that throws him into a stupor.

With Valerius disabled, the consortes stand on the edge of the lake with no ready transport. Above them hovers a wrathful wizard; before them stands a furious ruck-prince, his entire army on the march. At this, the consortes flee as fast as they can, with Hecatesseus hurling taunts after them.

The Roleplaying Award (RP) includes PBM responses, as well as participation in the live session. The Other Award was for Jay's XP Project, sampled at the Hooch: home-brewed Blackbelly!