Having no further path beyond the remains of the odd tree, the group circled back to the ruins of the earthen font. Moving south from there, Pavo found a tree had lifted a house off of its foundations, and inside he could faintly hear children talking, one panicky and the other calmer. He reported this back to the group who all decided to investigate, though with some trepidation and expectation of attack.
The group's approach brought a young girl and her brother to the elevated porch. They proclaimed that their father had been hurt and they needed help. Pavo threw a rope up to be tied off, while Ash climbed the tree. With them both in the house, it rocked wildly. Ash got the kids to the edge while Pavo picked up the father and carried him to the porch. Zacarius used his travel curse on each as they came in to view. Pavo then jumped and, with the aid of his enchanted ring, floated slowly to the ground. The house, now severely unbalanced, fell away. Ash managed to grab on to the tree as the house fell past, and Zacarius threw the injured man out of the way before the house hit, but was himself buried in the rubble. Luckily, he was not badly injured.
Moving on, the group circled back around to the lake they had initially seen when they first entered. The lake seemed normal water, but droplets were falling upwards, only to fall again as snow. The group found another dawn piper at the center who ordered his servant to be rid of them. He then used his magicks to enchant Kyezra into approaching. Pavo came forward as well, while Wortleby, a gnome hiding in the woods, introduced himself with a crossbow bolt into Zacarius' back. Ash turned to deal with this new threat, shooting him.
The dawn piper let loose with an ear-shredding series of notes from his horn, causing Kyezra and her cat to bleed. In return, Pavo stuck him. Wortleby revealed his nature as a Spriggan by growing to gigantic proportions and striking Zacarius roughly. Zacarius fled, but Ash stood his ground, readied his adamantine hammer and smote the morningstar Wortleby was using, shattering the weapon. Wortleby tried to strike Ash with the remaining butt with little success, and Ash dropped his foe just before the trio in the lake killed the dawn piper, causing the water font to close in a deluge of rain.
With one path left unexplored past the lake, the group moved on. Pavo spotted a tripwire just as Ash was about to set it off. He quickly disarmed it, but not before being noticed by the two fey that set it. They used their nature magic to heat the hated metal of Pavo's weapons, causing him to drop them. They then snuck into the midst of the group, striking to kill Zacarius and Kyezra, neither with much success. The group surrounded them and let known their displeasure.
Back at the reality rift, the group found the way clear. Beyond where the rift had been stood a large ice sculpture, and coming around the far side of the hag's hut in the middle of the clearing strode Nazhena, the winter witch whose tower the group had invaded when first they came to Irrisen. As Nazhena was sizing them up and stating her intentions, Ash shot her with an arrow.
Nazhena summoned an ice mephit to assist while her ice golem was engaged by Zacarius and his spell-produced flaming sword. Pavo and the great cat moved forward to engage the witch, while Kyezra and Ash stayed at range, unable to easily get past the ice golem and unwilling to give up pressure on the witch. The cat leapt to strike the ice mephit but did little against its otherworldly defenses. Nazhena leapt into the air and summoned a spectral hand to aid in delivering her spells, but Pavo snuck in beneath her and struck her with rays of scorching flame while she was distracted, almost killing her. Unnerved, she summoned a sleet storm for cover and fled, leaving a melting ice golem behind. When the storm's magic dissipated, so too did the magic holding the ice mephit to this plane, and the group entered the fabulous hut.
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