From the Bluepeaks come disturbing rumors of trouble with the mines. Ore shipments have dried up and prices in Acryn are beginning to rise rapidly. As unrest among the Union of Miners increases the Guild of Miners has put out a call for skilled adventurers to get to the bottom of the mystery
The party are hired in amidst obvious tensions between the Guild of Miners and the Union of Miners to investigate the cessation of the flow of ore from the mines of the Bluepeaks. Journeying north they find Greystone Gulch destroyed, the mountain torn apart and the settlement razed. Moving on they are able to rescue many of the Miners at Strom's Dip who sheltered in the mine as some mysterious force tore up the mountain around them. When they are waylaid by a group of Caulish soldiers they also learn that these mines were not the only ones attacked. Caul's mines have also been targeted and the party are able to prevent a diplomatic incident by convincing the Caulish that Acryn is not to blame.
Finally at Highgate Pass the party find the source of the devastation, a great floating citadel hewn into the shape of an alien face. It hovers above the settlement as black armored figures round up the miners, directed by red robed mages: the Magisterium.
The party are able to free the villagers and cut down the Magisterium sorcerers but even as they do so the ground begins to quake as mana crystals are pulled from the earth into the mouth of the citadel. Using the magical chains of the dead wizards the party ascend to the citadel in search of children taken by the Magisterium. At the summit of the fortress the party confront the ranking Magisterium sorceress who suggests that the Magisterium believes it alone has the right to the mana in Acryn's lands and will crush any who oppose it. Using powerful magics she attempts to destroy the party. They prevail, but even as she dies she breaks the enchantment that holds the fortress aloft.
Racing through the crumbling citadel the party find the kidnapped children and drag them to safety as the floating fortress smashes into the mountains and explodes. In the mining settlement they are hailed for their bravery. John and Kjell play the pro-guild and pro-union factions against each other while Jarred helps repair the mine.
Heading back to Acryn the party report to the guild that they have saved two of the mines, which should be up and running again soon, though no longer producing mana. All except John that is, who hands over the mine ledgers to the union proving the terrible conditions the guild has been forcing it workers to labour under.
The attack of the Magisterium is a matter of national importance and Chiara Walker is summoned. The party explain the events and describe the arcane weaponry the Magisterium had at its disposal. Chiara is extremely pleased that the papers they recovered seem to reveal the location of the Magisterium's capital, a mystery till now. She is less thrilled that knowledge of the arcane menace is now public knowledge, but concedes it was probably unavoidable. The strange cube they recovered also reveals that the children the Magisterium attempted to steal all had magical talent.
Chiara is most disturbed by the Magisterium symbol embedded in Jarred's head and is about to have him arrested as a security threat when Kjell suggests a radical surgical intervention. Against the odds he succeeds in replacing Jarred's skull with the False Mimir Jarred recovered from the Labyrinth. The magic of the artifact should stop the Magisterium from spying through Jarred's eyes…but the effects on Jarred are dramatic to say the least.
As John stokes Union rabble rousing, tensions within the city increase but the guild retains its monopoly thanks to the influence of the church of the leader. Still its clear labour relations are deteriorating.
Over the next few days various mercenary companies in the employ of the city are seen moving to the south, often escorting mages from the two colleges, while at the council building the Caulish ambassador seems to be in demand.