The rain continues to pour down for the entire boat ride back, ironically calming just as the party gets back under the shelter of the temple. The party quickly becomes leery when they realize that Cyric, barely harmed, is speaking to Olwein and some villagers in the temple. He is just finishing telling them that the party was killed by the demon-shark as they arrive.
The party counters Cyric's demon-shark story with their own. They assure the villagers that they encountered only normal sharks and sahuagin, evil aquatic humanoids. Their tale convinces the villagers that no dark forces are at work, simply evil humanoids. As Cyric slinks away, the resolve of the villagers hardens. A great party is thrown, a unique dwarven celebration of the battle to come. The dwarves drink, plan to battle the sahuagin, and drink some more.
The party is invited to take place as guests of honor in the festivities, but they graciously decline. They, especially Oleg, are concerned that Cyric might return, possibly with allies, to cause trouble. They dutifully stand watch over the dwarven celebrations all night and into the morning. No sneak attack occurs, though, and Olwein assures them the situation is now well in hand. The dwarves are a resilient people, and they've been fighting humanoids for untold years. Now that the specifics of the situation are known, they should be fine. His confidence convinces them, so the party takes their leave. Olwein sees them off with a parting gift -- a huge 40 lb. sack of silver coins. It's not much, he apologizes, but all they could scrape together.
The group decides to return to town for the day, and then head out to examine the mysterious dig site the next morning. They arrive in town and head their separate ways. Oleg spends the day scribing another spell into his spellbook. West and Gronk try to sell their statue, with limited results at first. The jeweler comments on the interesting nature of the piece, so they explain to him the circumstances under which they acquired it. He then refuses to purchase it, but directs them to the temple of St. Cuthbert. Cuthbert's temple and following are small in town, he explains, but they happily buy at market price any evil items, to properly ensure their destruction. Armed with this knowledge, they quickly find the temple and dispose of the statuette for a good forty platinum pieces. They also find a moneychanger and compress the silver coins into platinum for easier carrying.
The next morning, the party heads west. They find the mining camp late in the afternoon, and decide to attempt a slight deception. Weaving in between the twentish tents, they find the mine foreman, a sturdy dwarf named Migan. Oleg inquires after work, and the foreman assures them there's plenty, at a generous wage. Oleg then asks what they're digging up, since he doesn't see any ore. Migan complains that nobody knows, but Sionaas, the wizard sponsoring the dig, assured them the'd know it when they find it. West suggests that magic might be used to assist in the dig, and wonders why Sionaas isn't helping out. Nobody knows that either, Migan answers, but he's adamant -- no magic! No items, no spells, nothing.
The party accepts tools, but before they can head down into the mine shaft, an injured dwarf is brought up to the surface. West inspects the man, and realizes he's been bitten. West is able to ascertain that the bites come from a specific animal called a "Burrowing Biter", a small insect. Usually there are several hundred of the beasts, who coexist with a larger parent for a while before striking off on their own.
The party further learns that there was a cave-in below, and many other dwarves are buried alive. They rush down to assist. Gronk, with his huge strength, is a valuable asset, moving massive boulders the dwarves would have had to chip away at. Oleg and West also plug away, helping significantly in the recovery effort. Sadly, most of the dwarves are dead, but a couple are pulled live from the collapse.
Just as they finish clearing away the last of the rubble, the party is attacked by a small horde of the burrowing biters! After dispersing the swarm, they dig out the tiny passages they'd burrowed, and discover a significantly larger hole. Following it, they eventually encouter the parent beast, a huge insect the size of a dog. The cramped quarters are a significant hindrance, but the party eventually manages to slay the beast, along with hundreds of its spawn.
There is a huge celebration that evening, with the party as guests of honor. Gronk, in honor of his efforts, is given a "middle" name by the dwarves -- Duthmok. Literally, "The Orc Who Digs". West turns in early, while Oleg and Gronk compete to outdrink one another and their hosts. Finally, they retire as well. Precious few hours later, they're woken by an anxious Migan.
The perimeter guards for the mine spotted hobgoblins in the area just around daybreak, and the mining camp is nervous. Migan asks the party to investigate. Bleary-eyed, they arm and armor themeslves and head out. West is able to pick up their trail quickly, and they discover the hobgoblin encampment is a scant quarter-mile away from the dwarven mine. Acting quickly and decisively, the party crashes the camp and slays all but one of the eight hobgoblins.