Then suddenly they all three heard something large crashing through the underbrush. Thrand pulled back on his bowstring and aimed at the noise. A dark elf on the back of an ostard suddenly burst into the open. Thrand let his arrow fly and saw it sink into the drow's leg. He cursed himself for the bad aim, not allowing for a mounted target. It had never even occurred to him. The dark elf leaned down as it rode by and sliced in a wide arc, forcing Thrand to his knees to avoid the blade. Then it was gone, plunging into the woods near the Fae tower.

Knowing he could never catch an ostard on foot, Thrand reached into his pack and tossed a horse statue onto the ground. It quickly grew into a full-sized ethereal horse which Thrand leaped onto. They charged into the hole in the underbrush left by the drow's mount, leaving behind the other two elves.

The chase was a long one. The dark elf was either lost or hoping to lose its pursuer because the trail was very erratic. Several times the drow attempted to hide in the underbrush only to be discovered and forced to flee again. Finally, the trail led into a dark tower near the crypts. Thrand paused there for awhile, resting and watching. There was no sign of the drow in the tower, but that's where the trail ended. It was almost as if there was a passage out below ground, perhaps leading into the crypts.

A short time later Thrand rode back to the Arrow. There he found Anga and Ledolas again. They decided to visit the tower. Ai Lote and a mute known as Gawayn also came along. The party cautiously slipped into the tower. Covering each other with partially drawn bows they explored all three floors. There was no furniture inside the tower until they reached the roof. There they found a large forge and several crates. They also found a tall obelisk.

Ledolas examined the runes on the stone. "Drow. Maerdyn, it says."

Thrand nodded and said, "It's a name, probably a house name. This could be bad".

"There could be a passage. Perhaps we should look for it", suggested Anga.

Thrand looked around thoughtfully. "That could be dangerous, it would be easy to fall into a trap."

They all felt uneasy at this point. Gawayn started to move his hands, speaking with gestures. Thrand shook his head. "Not here. This place is dangerous. Back to the Arrow."

They all slowly backed down the stairs and out of the tower. They didn't feel relaxed again until they got back within tel'Ruid.