We've made it through the mine. From best we can tell, it was a dwarven mine that encountered some serious, serious evil. The source of the evil was a demon called a Glabrazu. Of the beings we have fought on this journey, he was by far the hardest to kill. Even with my spike and a two key strikes, it still took us a very long time and in the course of the battle Tamlin fell.
After the battle, we could physically sense the oppressive evil permeating the mine retreat. We also discovered (before the battle commenced but at the site of the battle) the source of the dripping. There was a giant woman flayed and suspended from the ceiling. The dripping was her never-ending tears. After defeating the Glabrazu and his summoned others, Osbert went about freeing the giant. She now resides in the pool she created beneath her while suspended. We turned to our source text, the Knights of Mist Valley, and was able to identify her as a Krinosi. At one point there were four Krinosi and our very educated guess is that she was the "joyful" krinosi. While her demise was far from joyful, we all got the sense that after she was removed from the ceiling of the mine, she was resting and there was some sense of peace about her.
The treasure haul from this mine is epic. We have something close to 20 mithril bars not to mention the magic items. I am anxious to get back to Holm to have the Dark Blade reforged.
After resting and deciding the path forward, we decided to press on toward the Temple of Knox. Tonight we are resting in a forest village of lycanthropic elves and a fey. Its not the best place to sleep but its not the worst.
Also, last night I was approached by a red cap in my sleep. Its not surprising but still unsettling. We've known they were watching us and are going about their business for them. In some way. I'm not too concerned about that...right now.
