After choosing equipment, the Party straggles out of the Duke's palace. The accountant clerk is a bit put off by the 5 axes taken by Red, but, otherwise, most of the Party's choices go unremarked.
Red, fixating on the city's need for food, seeks out the seneschal to find where he might want the city searched for supplies. Claire trails the big lad and, when he seems nigh to contesting with some guards about the possibility of looking into closed room, she directs him back to another clerk. The clerk tells them that supplies are being found and brought to the palace, that any place without food has already been inventoried, that they are free to searched the uninhabited part of the city beyond which Jouet was assigned. Red's attention becomes distracted and he ends up inquiring about forests - and being directed to a woods north of the palace yet within city walls. The woods turned out to be an ancient park, man-made, to Red's disappointment.
Paris escorted Genelle back to Jouet's block, trailed by most of the other Party members. The desperate need to run away was wearing off, so Paris and Genelle spent most of the evening and night soothing the survivors as the shock-reaction set in.
Anton slipped away and became invisible, intending to test his new spells. He found that he could fly only about a quarter of the height of the main 40-story tower, before the strain grew too much. He tested his bow skill and attempted various acrobatics while levitating, ending by dumping the entire contents of his quiver down into the quiet street below. Subdued, he descended and gathered up those (18) of his arrows that he could find. He began walking - still invisible - back to the Jouet block.
Unfortunately, as he entered the more congested streets, more and more people were able to discern the edge effect of his spell and, in the midst of the excitement this generated, Anton had to hurry away and resume his visible form.
The streaming lights of the inns along the main thoroughfare caught Anton's attention. The rest of his evening was spent singing for drinks in the Crown & Phoenix. A lad named Rupert latched on to him.
Meanwhile, Red, Claire, Brillig and Calais decide to see if they can find a cart to use in the quest of the book-toting mage. Amos of the Blue Mug Inn directs them to Jake's stables. Brillig notices a man in rainbow-coloured robes in a far corner of the inn and files that information to pass on to Mia later. The innkeeper's son guides the group. They learn that Jake's ox was injured in a fall from the stairs that were created when the world changed, thus the cart is currently unused. Claire convinces Jake that they are on a mission for the Duke and that Brillig will heal the ox in partial recompense for borrowing both cart and ox. She promises that the Duke will provide actual payment. Red leaves his great axe as surety. Brillig manages 3 points of healing on the ox and then he and Red pull the ox - in the ox cart! - back to Jouet's part of town. Paris is summoned to check out the ox. Then most head for bed, planning to pack the cart and leave come dawn.
Claire and Brillig escort Mia back to the Blue Mug where Claire chats up various people and learns that many are trying to form companies to seek treasure in the wake of the world change. A man named Toby claims to know all there is to know about Durlag's Tower - which houses the treasure of a mighty fighter - if Claire ever manages to locate that tower.
Meanwhile Mia builds up the courage to speak to the very-popular rainbow-robed man. Having told him that two days ago she became a priest, he accompanies her outside to talk. He pumps her for information, learning how and what she learned in the Fount of Chaos. Henri himself had been hit by only one card, "Drawn by affinity," he affirmed, somewhat puzzled as to why Mia seemed so hesitant to own up to her affiliation and growing steadily more impatient with her willful lack of knowledge. He informed her that theirs was the Church of Chaos, that he was searching for the actual church as the old time Church of Law "would not give them the time of day", and that the clerical healing skills were in great demand amongst treasure-hunters.
Henri seemed just slightly better informed than Mia. "I think it's 'gods' - a different one for each colour," he stated. "But I'm not sure yet." Mia complains about the coloured robes saying, "They are not silly; they are loud." Henri warns her, "If you hide from Them too much, They'll probably get even." Henri continues to question Mia about the Party's planned quest for the mage with books. Claire and Brillig interrupt before Henri can find out too much accurate information. Claire lies with abandon, trying to distract him. Brillig tells the truth in a limited fashion. Having shaken off the priest of Chaos, the three return to the Party's dwelling.
After midnight, Anton weaves his way home.
The next morning, the Party piles the hung-over Anton along with the food Claire and Red scavenged from the uninhabited section into the cart.
At the outer gate, guards question the Party's destination, it apparently being unusual that a cart and ox be allowed out on a non-critical mission. Paris defrays the questions by being somewhat unresponsive, being, herself, somewhat provoked at the addition of the cart to the plan. Cart and ox mean that the Party cannot travel as quickly as on foot nor do they have the option of traveling cross-country. The current route seems now west, back the way they'd originally come.
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