While the heroic trio climbs into the mountains, Scythe is still busily working on recreating his masterpiece. Now with the scales of the dragon in his inventory, he takes part of the Comet's hide into Wanderlust, and asks a dwarven smith if he could make the scales into some kind of mail. The dwarf will do so, for a price, but it's a price the now-rich Maximal can actually handle. After the mail is complete, Scythe adds it to Hulk's armor. The next day, Trenek reports that the dwarves are on their way with the first load of energon. She is a little surprised at seeing the 'new' Hulk in the repair bay when she enters. While Scythe deals with the dwarves and collects the ore, she mentions the project, offhand, to Clockwork. Clockwork is, frankly, appalled at Scythe's tampering, and punches his own commander right in the head, telling him off, and making Scythe aware of Clockwork's both lower rank, and much bigger size.
Within the mountains, the Maximals finally reach the gleaming silver temples. Climbing to the lowest of these structures, they encounter a single, female knight, who is praying at an altar, and seems to have been doing so for some time. She is confused at the Maximals' appearance, but they explain themselves. She introduces herself as Lady Victoria, a knight of Aravorn who has come here to pilgramage and pray for a fated mount. Paladyne and the lady knight speak, trading stories of their adventures. Victoria decides that she will rest, and, the next morning, attempt the climb to the tallest peak of Eaglehome and pray in the great temple.
The next day, the Maximals travel with the morning sun, and before morning is over, they reach the tallest peak. Here, many knights with winged mounts visit the temple and run its proceedings. Having seen all he came to see, Snowshriek decides to fly home, using his significant air speed to get back to oversee the loading of energon (which he just knows is going to go wrong). Shadowraith speaks with a few of the adventurning knights, while Paladyne and Victoria talk with Freden, the high preist. Paladyne offers a donation of many of the better suits of armor that were secured from the Comet's lair, to give to worthy knights that arrive at the temple. He then tells the priest his tale and that of his compatriots. Freden is very interested, and upon hearing that Paladyne has not yet been knighted for his deeds, grants him the title, Sir Paladyne. Victoria also speaks of her works, mainly fighting the undead and the plague in the lands of the south while Mornyth's reign was still strong. She is recognized as a knight of the high order for her deeds.
As Snowshriek is already approaching the ship that night, Paladyne and Shadowraith are resting for the journey home when Freden speaks to them of a premonition. Their friends are going to be in danger...
For that evening, the Maximal ship is attacked, stormed by an irate high priestess of Morynth and her loyal followers. Though autoguns and Trenek at the main control panel manage to hold their firestorms at bay, they do a good deal of damage to the sheilds, and the high preistess and one of her followers manage to enter the ship through the hole still cut in the hull. Scythe quickly activates the mostly-reconstructed Hulk, and Clockwork also rushes to help. Snowshriek sees the attack from the outside, and chases the other priests away with blasts of ice. Then, he enters the ship, just in time to see Clockwork attack. Though his mounted gatling gun may look primitive, it packs a punch, raining a hail of bullets onto the priestess and carving her through her meager armor. Bloodkiss, Morynth, however, finds this a bit amusing. She simply begins to walk toward the fallen corpse... and is smacked on all sides by the Maximals as she attempts it. Hulk grasps her...and immediately something unusual happens, as he falls out of Scythe's immediate control. Rather than doing as he is instructed, he throws the Predacon at the other priest, then injures the human. This combat is cut short, however, by a shout of surprise from Clockwork, as the corpse of the priestess, now black as night, stands up again, and reaches out toward the Maximal golem with slow and calculated hands. His rain of bullets cut through the woman as if she was not even there, and she reaches inside him and rests hands on his spark. Scythe regains control of Hulk, and his immediate solution is to get Morynth out of the room. He and Snowshriek take her into the hallway and lock her down out there-unconscious from damage. When they return, the priestess and her lackey are both gone. Clockwork is on his knees, seemingly weakened, but uninjured. He says he is not sure what he did, but whatever it was, it frightened the wraith woman and forced her to retreat.