We appear in darkness, only the silvery threads of the pentangle stood out reflecting the small amount of light. The atmosphere was cold and chilly, our breath froze as it exited our bodies. A mist formed along the lines of the pentangle. Our eyes took a little time to adjust to the darkness from the brightness of moments before. We could feel that we were in a vast space. Around us were hundreds of statues or all sorts of shapes and sizes, stretching to the sky above. As we grew accustomed to the gloom, we could make out more of our surroundings. The statues that stood all about us were of the God, Shaam. We supposed we must be in one of his major temples. The roof was a hemisphere, the central area open to the stars. The statues stood some 50-60' tall, the opening some 70' above.

Wilhelm Schults sees at the end of the room a slight gap between two human sized statues of Shaam. He goes to investigate. One of the statues has a shield with a handprint and the markings of Shaam. Wilhelm Schults presses his hand onto the hand print. He says, "Praise be to Shaam.", the palm print area fills with silver, which overflows to fill the symbols of Shaam. The central chamber comes to life, soft light fills the chamber. The two statues move to either side to reveal a 200' corridor leading deeper into the complex. Chimes hanging from the ceiling begin to sound and fill the chamber with their songs. We now see at the other end of the chamber a set of double doors with the inscription of Shaam. The inscription is slowly being filled by silver flowing along from the first rune into the other runes.

{He who goes unnamed} takes flight and rises up through the opening in the roof. From his vantage point {He who goes unnamed} tells us that we seem to be the center point of a town. He says that lights are coming on in the buildings and that people are moving from their houses, into the streets, and they seem to be coming directly for the Temple. {He who goes unnamed} notices that there is snow falling but the hemisphere of the chamber seems to extend in an invisible arc shielding the interior of the chamber from the snows outside. {He who goes unnamed} cast invisibility and hangs in the air. {He who goes unnamed} cast longear and listens at the balcony of a building close by. He hears the loud peeling of bells and chimes. A man in priestly robes appears of the balcony, he turns and speaks to another with surprise in his voice, "The Temple is a light?!". {He who goes unnamed} hears another angry voice full of indignation, "What the Temple of Silence is disturbed! The silence has been broken!". {He who goes unnamed} thinks, "Here we go again. Out of the frying pan and into the fire.".

In the chamber below, Stefan makes the first move down the corridor. With each step chimes sound, the further into the corridor he goes the louder the chimes get. Stefan cast intuition and seeing that the corridor's end is not far away and there is a door. Stefan cast leaping and in one motion covers the span of the corridor. He lands, clutches at his ears and collapses before the door.

Stefan cast intuition and tells Yiros Fetta Uzo to fly down to the door at the end of the corridor and back again. Yiros Fetta Uzo does so without being affected. Wilhelm Schults meanwhile has moved to the main doors. He watches as the inscription is slowly being filled by silver flowing along from the first rune into the other runes. Before it if filled he says, "Praise be to Shaam.", the doors open and a burst of cold air fills the chamber. Behind the door stands a crowd of some fifty armed men, priests and soldiers. Wilhelm Schults raises his arm, "Praise be to Shaam.". A priest cries out, "The silence has been broken!". Wilhelm Schults replies, "Sorry about that.". "Surrender blasphemers.". We surrender. "The punishment for your actions will be eternal silence. And the punishment for your compatriots will be silence.". Stefan questions, "Silence?". One of the guards sticks out his tongue and raises a knife to it.

Stefan calls to us to leave the main door alone. "That way only brings Wilhelm Schults death and the rest of us a tongueless existence.". He calls out to {He who goes unnamed}, "Can you get out up there.". {He who goes unnamed} tries to rise up but encounters a crystal dome. "No, we are sealed in.". "Right then, everybody let's try to get out via this corridor with the chimes.".

Stefan cast intuition, he cries out, "Everyone down this end now, we will try to surrender and talk our way out of this.", we begin to move towards the entrance of the corridor with the chimes. The door at the end of the long corridor opens. There stands a priest with the half red, half white face, he screams out, "Silence blasphemers. You have broken the silence. Surrender or die.". Wilhelm Schults cries back, "We surrender, we surrender. I am a worshipper of Shaam.". The priest screams back, "Your presence here is blasphemy. Sixty two years of unbroken silence, until now. Blasphemy! That's what it is blasphemy!". We all surrender. The priest orders Wilhelm Schults executed, worshipper or not. "How dare you break the silence of the Temple of Shaam! And for the rest of you your punishment will be to never again break the silence'.". The guards move to begin taking the tongues out of peoples mouths.

Stefan cast intuition, he cries out, "Everyone down this end now, we will try to surrender and talk our way out of this.", we begin to move towards the entrance to the corridor with the chimes. The door at the end of the long corridor opens. There stands a priest with the half red, half white face, he screams out, "Silence blasphemers. You have broken the silence. Surrender or die.". Wilhelm Schults cries back, "We surrender, we surrender. I am a worshipper of Shaam.", the priest screams back, "Your presence here is blasphemy. Sixty two years of unbroken silence, until now. Blasphemy! That's what it is blasphemy!". We all surrender. Stefan cries out, "We came from the Temple of Shaam at Stormy Bay. We had no choice as to where Shaam would send us.". The priest responds, "You lie, you were sent here by Lumina to steal from the Temple of Shaam. Speak the truth now.". The priest cast a spell at Stefan. Stefan mouths some words but nothing comes out. "See, his silence is guilt. You shall all die for your crimes.". The guards begin to execute our group. Stefan ends the spell.

Stefan again calls to us. "Surrendering is out which every way we go. It is either death or a tongueless existence. We have no choice but to fight. Can anyone think of another way out of here?", the door at the end of the corridor of chimes opens. There stands a priest with the half red, half white face, he screams out, "Silence blasphemers. You have broken the silence. Surrender or die.". Wilhelm Schults cries back, "Up yours!". The priest screams back, "Your presence here is blasphemy. Sixty two years of unbroken silence, until now. Blasphemy! That's what it is blasphemy! Guards slay them all.". A hail of crossbow bolts come down the corridor. Wilhelm Schults is struck four times and falls unconscious to the floor. Gabriel Von Hendlebrodt returns fire, hitting the priest and sending him backwards. Again he fires this time with a cold ball arrow, it envelops three priests and those crossbowmen in the corridor. Most drop, some return fire hurting Gabriel Von Hendlebrodt. More crossbowmen appear in the corridor of chimes.

The inscription on the main door slowly fills with silver flowing into all the runes. The main doors open. More clerics and guards start to move into the chamber. Yiros Fetta Uzo cast shock bolt into the crowd. Werner Faßenberg cast earthwall and seals that entrance for a time. Yiros Fetta Uzo says, "Our only chance is the pentagram. I can try to overcast the teleport spell. Our chances are slim but we will have only one chance at doing this. I need everybody in the pentagram.". Gabriel Von Hendlebrodt fires another cold ball down the corridor of chimes. We drag Wilhelm Schults into the pentagram and Stefan plugs his holes as best he can. Heinz Meier continues to fire his bow down the corridor of chimes. {He who goes unnamed} descends from the ceiling and takes his place in the pentagram.

Yiros Fetta Uzo starts the spell it takes round to build up power, mists of magic begin to swirl. The eyes of all the statues of Shaam begin to glow. The guards press on towards us from the corridor of chimes. The guards on the other side of the earthwall have started to force a breach. The power builds. The eyes of the statues of Shaam glow brighter. Yiros Fetta Uzo says the command word, the spell teleport is cast. There is a flash of brightness all around us. Yiros Fetta Uzo is bathed in light which streaks from the eyes of the statues of Shaam. He cries out in pain, then both he and us are gone. We all lie on the floor of the chamber in the Maguskôl, all of us are singed but we are all alive.

Quickly the Mages come to our aid and administer healing herbs and vials. We are brought before Yikshak Scroogestien, head of the Maguskôl. Werner Faßenberg reports on our success in despatching the two witches. Wilhelm Schults provides proof of our accomplishments by displaying their heads. Werner Faßenberg relates the tales of our adventures in the world beyond the eastern veil. He reports that the Serpent Staff was destroyed by Aristotle in his battle with the witches. The Ice Globe also went to Aristotle, he took it as compensation for loss of a Wand of Fire. Aristotle we believe was unable to escape with us from the Temple of Shaam and was slain.

Yikshak Scroogestien, head of the Maguskôl, congratulates us on our efforts and indicates that we will be most suitably rewarded. We are to take our choice from the vaults of the Maguskôl. First we take our leave and rest awhile.