I'm still not entirely sure what transpired outside of the Night Keep. As Emit snuck to the crates, I took the long way around the Keep's foundation--it handed manifested, yet! Near the river was a wheel similar to those used in water mills, pre-cataclysm tech. Sadly, I couldn't quite determine its purpose before the Keep appeared in a massive puff of smoke. I took a peek through the windows and saw more Verdant hauling crates of blistering seeds towards their carriages. When Rohan charged the caged bear, they decided to join the fight and left the crates behind. A golden opportunity, so I made my move.

The Night Keep had multiple levels. I never left the ground level, so I have no information about its basement or upper levels. On the ground level, I found a large inner room containing a massive machine, which I later learned is a Mana Forge. A mean-looking Verdant remained near the Forge and locked the doors to the room, so I turned my attention to the crates. I moved them to a dead spot and tried burning the seeds. Little did I know that fire would cause them to sprout. Within a few seconds, I was entangled, all the windows and doors were blocked with thick thorny vines and the remaining Verdant was approaching me. Luckily, I had heard noises of fighting and could convince the Verdant that an attacker outside of the Night Keep had shot the seeds with their rifle. He freed me and ordered me to go to the basement to disable a pylon and bring the Keep to safety. I refused and convinced him to do it himself. Once he descended to the basement, I slashed my way out of the Keep and joined my companions. Emit and I convinced a few of the Verdant to hurry to the Keep and defend it from attackers inside, seriously reducing the Verdant force. Finally, I joined the battle and landed a few fateful hits on the unsuspecting Verdant commander...