The group decides to rest another day to recover spells and so that Baxtor can create more holy water. On the 15th the group returns to the tunnel and proceeds to the point which they were ambushed before. Instead of crossing a rickety old bridge, they move up the stairs and into a den occupied by a goblin wizard and his pet lizards. The lizards attack with electrical shock and Serro is immobilized before the creatures are brought down. The goblin wizard also proves tough to kill, but his spells and potions are no match for Salla's axe and Baxtor's mace.
Another trio of goblins are encountered, but Alastriel's sleep spell comes in handy again, and they are quickly disposed of.
While Karnack is raiding the corpses, he notices a large heaving wolf in the doorway. The wolf stares at him with blood red eyes. Karnack decides to charge the beast, but it sidesteps him easily and quickly pounces on the rogue. Karnack puts up a struggle but the wolf eventually pins him down and starts sucking blood from his neck. In desperation, Baxtor raises his holy symbol and frightens the unnatural being away, but not before Karnack is left a bloodless corpse, pale, cold, and without any vital signs. The others try numerous things to revive him, from splashing holy water on him, to stuffing his mouth full of garlic and holy wafers, but nothing seems to improve his condition.
With Kyladrian in jail, Serro stunned, and Karnack feared turned into a vampire, the group is down to 3 - Alastriel, Baxtor, and Salla. Pressing on, they enter a room with a large throne blocking a drop-off in the far corner. The throne is made from stretched skins and bone, and comes to life when Salla approaches. Salla takes a beating from the animated chair, but the three of them manage to defeat it and turn it into broken furniture.
Behind the throne is a ladder that leads down into another chasm. On the other side can be seen a similar ladder, and the lantern light gives away the sparkle of coins or metal in the room beyond. Salla, feeling better after being healed by Baxtor, and encouraged by the priest's claim that nothing dangerous lies beyond, climbs down the ladder and begins to cross the cavern. Unfortunately an enormous bat swoops down from the ceiling and attacks the dwarf. Baxtor climbs down to help while Alastriel remains in the throne room shooting arrows at the huge flying rodent. With everyone's help, the bat is slain.
Just then, Alastriel notices that the undead wolf is back. She scurries down the ladder and the 3 scale up the far ladder into the small room beyond. A quick glance around the room reveals piles of coins and a heap of weapons and armor. But there is no time to search the booty because Drakthar has crossed the chasm in the form of a bat, and he assumes his goblinoid form when he reaches the other side. Baxtor immediately casts a spell which makes Alastriel invisible to undead creatures, and she furiously moves about the room in search of something that can help fight the vampire. Meanwhile, Baxtor and Salla fight desperately for their lives, as they realize that they are trapped in this room, with no escape except a 20-foot drop. Salla attacks with his silvered hand-axe but despair sets in when it slips from his grasp and falls into the chasm below. Alastriel meanwhile has found a masterwork spear with a silvered tip. Baxtor takes this and Salla finds Baxtor's old discarded silvered spear. The vampire slams into Baxtor and begins sucking his blood. On the verge of death, the cleric summons strength from some unknown reserve and throws the vampire from his body. Furiously, Drakthar strikes him down and faces Salla. The dwarf, however, thrusts his spear into the wounded body of his opponent, and the vampire disappears into a cloud of mist. This time, however, the mist moves down toward the floor and slips through a crack in the ground.
After a closer look, Salla and Alastriel discover that in the center of the floor is a plate that can be removed, similar to the trap door in another room in a different part of the complex. They speculate that under the floor could be the coffin, or the resting place of the vampire. It is at this time that Serro comes to, and a big decision is upcoming for our heroes. Do they cut their losses and retreat back up to the surface again? Or do they risk their lives and attempt to finish off the vampire once and for all?
