The fight was on, and Willifort brought friends with him - a bunch of more imps, disguised as crows, zipping through the window. However, Ray decided to fasttrack the battle and send Willifort out of the window that was neatly smashed open after Osvaldo was sent skidding out the same way. Willifort was helpless as he took the express route down into the Cassalanter garden. It occurred to the party that the window was directly over Victoro's pumpkin patch, confirmed by his cry of horror as his pumpkin patch was presumably smashed to bits from having two beings fall on it. The imps proved to still be a hassle though, and Enigma felt the sting of their venomous tails as they managed to puncture him in a vital area and downed him nearly instantly. Fortunately, Sigurd and Ray were there to help him out as Yuan neatly cleaned up the imps. The team knew they had worn out their welcome, though, so they quickly descended the ladder out of the attic, only to stumble upon another scene in the master bedroom - Willifort duking it out with a woman in black leather and a hood, as she was holding a rapier in one hand and the golden lockbox that contained the Cassalanter's cult garb in the other. This woman seemed very familiar to Yuan for some reason... The team debated on what to do, but decided to come to the woman's aid and beat down Willifort, with Yuan scoring the finishing blow through the use of his powerful PEC BEAM! Willifort was blinded by his radiance. The thief woman revealed she didn't intend harm to the party, as she was the Black Viper, a well known thief - and the client of a previous potion deal Yuan had helped put together for the Zhentarim some time ago. There was little time to explain exactly what was going on though, and Jalester was willing to overlook her reputation as she was willing to help the team find the cellar. However, there was a problem... In the ballroom, all of the guests had gathered as Ammalia Cassalanter had somehow corralled them there and was informing the guests that everything was under control. Through the clever use of Minor Illusions, Enigma made the crowd sound like they were shouting insults and doubts at her, much to her chagrin, but she kept her cool and stated everything would be explained once her husband has dealt with the situation outside. Yuan got a brilliant idea, though, and had Ray use a Major Image spell to conjure the image of Osvaldo being summoned out of the ground and cursing at his mother for his forsaken state of being. This sent the crowd into a frightened craze as they stormed out of the room in all directions while Ammalia could do nothing to stem the stampede of frightened nobles storming their way out of the building. The Black Viper stated this was their chance and the team escaped with the crowd downstairs and into the cellar, which was located under the staircase. On the way, though, they had noticed there were guard liveries and other assorted gear on the ground sitting over piles of black ichor. The Black Viper had said someone else had been here fighting them - was there yet another intruder into Cassalanter Villa? In the cellar, she said she had already found what she was looking for, but she was having trouble picking open the massive iron vault that was also down here. The team decided to give it a go, but Enigma and Jalester had no luck with it. Thanks to Ray, though, the Black Viper was able to give it another shot and managed to get the thing open... only to find it was empty. Scanning the room, Sigurd found a tiny magical sigil in the ceiling, of the abjuration school - meaning that the whole thing was likely just a trap. A false vault. What a waste of time. Fortunately, the Viper had found the real secret here, a hidden door in the other side of the cellar, that lead to some storage containers that originally held stacks of silver bars... which were now missing. Hmm... Either way, she pointed at a dark staircase in the back of the room which seemed to lead downwards. She didn't know what was down there, and wasn't willing to find out as the place had a foreboding aura. The Viper already had a good haul, and as long as the team didn't rat her out, she wouldn't do the same, so she bid the team farewell - specifically to Yuan - as she quickly made her exit, leaving the team to explore the scary underbelly of Cassalanter Villa. They immediately found the place to be very offputting - sets of prison cells on one side of the dark room and chanting could be heard in the distance. Exploring around, they found what appeared to be some kind of balcony overlooking a long hallway, but Yuan found out the hard way that the floor hadn't held up well under age and the bricks gave way under his weight, though he was able to avoid falling thanks to his danger sense. When this happened, though, the chanting stopped, as the falling brick sounds reverbed throughout the dungeon. The team thought it best to head back the way they came. Heading down another staircase, they found themselves standing in front of a painting of a well dressed gentleman with devil horns. The team realized this must be a depiction of Asmodeus, the archdevil of indulgence. Nearby, the team saw a double door with the faded symbol of the Cassalanter coat of arms and the symbol of Siamorphe, the demigod of nobility. This must be where the tomb of Caladorn Cassalanter must be... Heading inside, the team was confronted with several sarcophagi, all bearing symbols of a nobleman holding a chalice. Soon, though, the team was set upon by several ashy-looking specters, and a ghost of a clean shaven man of knightly bearing. But when the ghost saw Jalester wearing the symbol of Siamorphe, he held off his attacks and spoke with the team, noting they bore the symbol of his god and asked them what they were doing. Enigma explained the situation, stating they were seeking an item that once belonged to Caladorn Cassalanter. The man recognized something in the drackal and asked him to follow further into the tomb, showing the way to his own sarcophagus. Aside from bones and dust, a gleaming set of half-plate armor and a shining, golden mace sat within. Caladorn's ghost asked Enigma if he vowed to use these items to destroy evil, and when it was confirmed so, Caladorn smiled, and stated to Enigma the following before fading away to the ethereal: “Use the mace to destroy the effigy of evil incarnate. End the corruption to restore my family's honor. Seek your master once the task is done." It wasn't clear what all of that meant exactly, but the team wouldn't get much chance to find out as they could hear voices coming their way. Their attempts to hide in the tomb were unsuccessful, though, and they were set upon by cultists of Asmodeus, including a particularly large brute of a man, who utterly kicked the crap out of Sigurd with a morningstar. A spellcaster also tried to cut through Yuan's rage and hold him to the spot, though was unsuccessful, all the while beating him down with a spiritual blade as the other members fought back against the cultists. Eventually, Sigurd was able to retaliate against his attacker enough that his mask broke, revealing the tusks of a half-orc, and Io finished the job, shattering the mask completely - revealing the man to be Hrabbaz, the Gralhund's personal servant! Indeed, the voices heard earlier sounded awfully familiar... With the way clear, the team could try and find a way out of the temple, but there was still something Enigma must do before leaving... What is 'effigy of evil incarnate? Were the Gralhunds part of the cult? And what was transpiring outside? Find out next time... in Waterdeep: Dragon Heist!!