The guards immediately attack the party, apparently having been posted on the trail to intercept them if they attempted to flee back to Greenest. The acolyte casts a Bless spell on the guards, which makes them harder to kill, and a winged kobold appears from somewhere and starts dropping rocks on the party. Karat throws Inflict Wounds on the winged kobold and brings him crashing down into the forest, dead. The adventurers are able to defeat all the guards, though Bilbo, Gourbain, and Elbolin each take non-life-threatening injuries. The acolyte, realizing that he is overpowered, attempts to flee, but Elbolin catches up to him and pins him down on the ground just a stone's throw from the trail, calling out to the others "I got him". Hooflepoof suggests that before they kill him, they should try to get some information out of him.

They ask him why they (the cultists) were looking for them (the adventurers), and he answers that Rezmir was angry and wanted her prisoners back.

"But why are you after Black Barry?" they ask. The acolyte doesn't know who Black Barry is, so they point him out. "Oh, the cat-looking dude? I don't know, but we've been told to keep an eye out for him, and capture him if we can. He must have crossed somebody very important."

"Who is Tiamat?"

He seems surprised by this question. "Praise Be To Tiamat!" he says, raising his right hand, with two fingers curled back. "She is our Dragon Queen - and will be the queen of everything, once her power is restored!"

"And how will her power be restored?"

"I am just a humble acolyte, not an expert in the matters of the gods and goddesses. We are only called to gather treasure to please her when she returns."

Sensing that he may be saying too much, the acolyte refuses to answer any more questions. Bilbo suggests that he shouldn't be allowed to leave alive lest he give away their secrets (whatever they might be), even going so far as to suggest that he should be decapitated, touching off a discussion that was nearly a competition for wanton cruelty. Bilbo finally dispatches him with a javelin. Gourbain cuts off his nose and Elfo a toe, throwing them in their packs with little regard for what damage they could do rotting in there.

The adventurers continue toward Greenest, and barely reach the edge of town before a villager recognizes them and tells them rather excitedly that there is some trouble over at the Townmaster's Hall. Hooflepoof dons his Cloak of Invisibility and heads over to see what is going on. Bilbo wants to go too, but the others discourage her from consuming a valuable potion, and she agrees that she won't, as long as Hooflepoof is back in 15 minutes. The rest of the group waits near the edge of town.

Hooflepoof approaches the Townmaster's Hall, and sees that a pretty substantial group of baddies has it surrounded; there are at least 8 kobolds, 4 ambush drakes, 4 cultists, and even a dragonclaw. They have the hall completely encircled, and although it is locked down tight, the kobolds are working on breaking in, and making pretty good progress in tearing the framing from one of the windows. It looks like they should be able to break in very soon. Hooflepoof doesn't explore further because he wants to get back before Bilbo takes the potion.

The villagers are avoiding the area directly around the Townmaster's Hall, but as he gets further away, he can see a few gawkers hiding in the shadows watching the action. He slips down his Cloak of Invisibility and asks a boy about 10 years old what is going on. "A monk ran in there," says the boy.