Talindra drifts through several rooms on the upper floor, staring out the windows with expressions ranging from shock to depression. Eventually everyone ends up in the second floor dining room. All but one of the chairs are still usable. Talindra tries to sit in one and slides through it as though it didn't exist. She sprawls on the floor, sinking partially into it before she stabilizes and pushes herself to her feet. "That's going to take getting used to," she mutters in elven. She moves to the head of the table and looks at you. "What knowledge would you have of me?"

((ooc: Talindra answers the questions in elven; she's clearly not particularly comfortable with Common, and she can tell your Common is different than the one she learned. The elves in the group translate.))

Corym's Questions:
What can we expect in the remainder of the rooms?

After describing what you've explored, Talindra nods. "You've been very effective exploring. Master Bhephel's bed chamber is in the room beyond the laboratory. Otherwise, the only other place left in the mansion is the tower, which was used as a place for the master to relax away from the chaos of the school."

Descibe the plight of her fellow apprentice, see if she has suggestions?
"Now I wish I had occasion to learn more about undead. I have no idea what has happened to Lianthorn." She shuddered. "Undeath. It's horrible. I can't... I can't feel Arvandor anymore." She glances at the non-elven members of the group. "It's as though I've lost my hand and my hearing. If Lianthorn has lost her mind as well as her life, perhaps you should destroy her so that she might finally return to Corellon." After a long moment, she adds, "I may ask you to do the same for me."

I didn't think that summoning stuff in Myth Drannor was supposed to work--how do we get rid of that Efreet?
"Kill him. Before the wards can fail. I don't know how Master Bhephel managed to bind him, but efreet never forget those who summon them. If he can escape he'll burn the mansion to dust, and if he gets back to the Plane of Fire he'll return with an army to take vengeance. Fortunately, efreet are not tanar'ri or eladrin. Kill him here and he's dead."

Does she have a suggestion about where there is an Iron Flask so that we could keep/control the Efreet?

Talindra shook her head. "If Master Bhephel had one of those, he never mentioned it. I assume he knew a way to manipulate the mythal to allow the binding to hold, but I don't know what it is. It would be safer to assume that it's not possible to control him."

What items from the tower would she lend us to assist in our work?

"I don't know. We'll need to see what is still here, and what is still usable. I don't know what happened to Master Bhephel, and even when... before... I didn't know all of his secrets, or all of his treasure."

What secret powers of the Mythal can she show us?

"I was just an apprentice," Talindra says, smiling sadly. "I know how to use the Overmantle, of course. But I was centuries away from being trusted with secrets of the mythal, or being able to discover them for myself."

Would she recommend trying our hands at other Mage Towers before attempting the Irithilium?

"What are your intentions at the Irithilium? What do you intend that you fear you need better knowledge?"

Can she give us more specific directions to the Irithiilium?

"Yes, of course. I know the master had some maps around here somewhere. I'll find one for you and mark the Irithilium on it for you."

Can she help add to our map some sites for artifacts that we could bring to her/The People?

Talindra hesitates, then nods. "If Myth Drannor is truly fallen, then of course we must save as much as we can. I'm just... I still can hardly believe the city has been destroyed."

We were only going to the Irithilium in the first place to try to acquire Gate Lore--where else might we find Gate Lore?

"Anywhere, or nowhere." Talindra shrugs. "Gate lore was widely but very closely held, and it was never something I was much interested in. Any wizard's tower or mage school might have some, a lot, or no writings on gates. And that was back when the city was alive. Now? I don't have the faintest idea where you should start looking."

I'm equally interested in the non-magical crafts of Myth Drannor--is there like a public library where knowledge of that stuff might be kept?

"Hmm. That wasn't really something that was gathered in libraries. Masters shared their secrets with their apprentices, or not, as the case went. Perhaps the Scholar's Hope? That was a temple to the gods of knowledge of several races."

Elorfindar's dad loves Kiira--how about some Kiira? Kirra Making?

"I can't help you here. Creating kiira was almost a lost art even in my day. I would guess at least a few house archmages knew those rituals, and probably some of the high mages. But among the common folk? As easy to get the secrets of alloys from the dwarves."

Krackor's Questions:

Does she think she needs components that she doesn't have/have become uselessand need replacing?

"I'm sure there will be a great deal that I require, assuming I can still cast spells. Or that I can handle the components. I've been afraid to try. But once I know, I will tell you."

Is there a book or scroll that she has heard of which could return her to real life or enhance her unlife?

"Believe me, I intend to begin searching once we are done here. I don't even know what kind of undead I have become. I am not a ghost or a banshee or a wraith. Nothing about my transformation has been normal, I doubt getting answers will be easy."

Has she been preparing with such focus, that she is now a Good Lich?

Talindra frowns at you. "I am not a lich. I don't know what I am, but I am neither lich nor baelnorn, and I would ask you not to call me such. This was not my choice."

Can she explain about and showing how to use the Mythal? And will she?

"I can teach you how to make use of the Overmantle, though only elves can make use of it. As for the other powers, I only know the way it interferes with the Art. The mythal blocks teleportation into the city and scrambles teleportation cast inside it. It absorbs all magic from the divination and enchantment schools. And it blocks many evil races from entering the city." Her face falls. "Though that prohibition was apparently not the protection we thought."

As a metropolis, are there any Dwarven areas that may hold secrets to revive or treasures to bring back into use?

"I don't know what is said of Myth Drannor in this day and age, but even centuries after Coronal Eltargrim opened the city, there weren't very many of your people here. Hundreds, perhaps a thousand. They ran the Gemcutter's Guild out of the Onaglym in Cormanthor and had the temple High Axes Hall in Sheshyrinnam. A number of families and individuals would run small smithies and armories scattered throughout the city. But most of them didn't do anything that would make an apprentice wizard know about them."

How to close Gates?

"Disjoin them. Breaking apart the frame or structure that frames the gate will sometimes collapse the gate, sometimes without an explosion, though not always. There are some dedicated spells that can change, warp, or close gates, but those were as rare and closely held as the spells to create gates."

OOC: Sounds to me like a lot of the assistance she can give us is contingent on clearing the tower.

IC: What can you tell us about Efreeti so that we can plan our assault?

Do you know where there was a temple of Labelas?  A quest to restore your immortal mortality would seem to begin there. Or barring that, a temple of Correllon.

So, we have a day.  Can I learn more about the Over Mantle?

When we search through the tower during this rest period/day, bring everything to the Dining Table for Talindra to view in order to gain some insight or knowledge about them or what they represent.
If anyone finds anything in the Tower, lets bring it to the Dining Room, lay it on or next to the table so things can be examined properly, assuming they are able to be moved.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:32, Wed 13 May 2020.

Talindra nods at Corym. "Of course. The Overmantle is one of the most powerful abilities of the mythal. It is a protective mantle that settles over every elf the moment they step within the mythal's bounds. Through the grace of Corellon, it doesn't interfere or disrupt any mantle you might already possess. Most of its powers are automatic; I don't know all of them, but I do know that it will nullify the first spell cast against you of the third to fifth tiers of magic each day. You'll know when it happens because the mythal absorbs the magic in a flash of purple sparks that erupt around you. And, of course, the Overmantle allows you to fly at will. To activate that power, you do like so."

She teaches you that thinking deliberately and in sequence of a hawk in flight, wind rippling a field of grass, and a cloud passing over the sun will attune you to the Overmantle and allow you to fly.

"Can you tell us about notable wizards of the city in your time?  Who would have been able to cast or manufacture items empowered with wish?"

 
This message was last edited by the player at 11:19, Wed 20 May 2020.

"Do you know where your spellbooks are?  I'd love to compare notes.

"How were the schools of wizardry regarded?  What were their reputations?  Did being an alumni of one or the other have any kind of significance? What signs, symbols, and mottos were associated with them?"

"I'm no cartographer, but I've been working on an impromptu map of the city.  This map reflects what I was told by the survivors' community paired with my own knowledge of the ancient world.

I need to start a new map of the neighborhood around this tower.  Once Lianthorn is pacified, I'm going to scout the surrounding area and propose that we eliminate persistent threats that lair nearby before proceeding further to the Irithilium.

Understanding what these buildings were at the time of the Fall might help our tactical situation and our expectations of what might be possible to find during the scouting and pacification."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:42, Wed 20 May 2020.

Talindra, did you ever go down into the cellar and through the trapdoor?  If so, where does it lead?

turning to Corym...

Corym, what if that trapdoor secures a secret passage away from this building, far enough away that we could sneak back without drawing attention to being here?


Talindra, are you aware of a way to reach the roof?  Many houses that I have seen since I left the Comfort of the Clan, have had either flat roofs or some entry on the roof, even in Baldurs Gate.  Corym, you remember the buildings in Glen, they were strange and still had that roof space, you are a buildings person, what do you think?
This message was last edited by the player at 19:55, Wed 20 May 2020.

When she notices her preference for the language, Sirenya asks Talindra questions in quaint, gnome-accented elvish.

Does Talindra know anything about the elven dualists?

Does she know about the gnomish dualists?

Does she know where and how they studied?

Were there different kinds of animals when she was alive?

What were the most popular dishes, and what were Talindra's favorites?

Corym

"Can you tell us about notable wizards of the city in your time?  Who would have been able to cast or manufacture items empowered with wish?

"Notable wizards?" Talindra sighs. "How much time to do you have? All of the noble houses had their own archmage, any of which could work such magic. The Srinshee, though no one's seen her since Eltargrim's death. Ualair the Silent was the Grand Mage and leader of the Council of Twelve. High Court Mages Khyssoun Ammath and Irhaal Argentaamn both served Eltargrim before the Council. All of the mage schools were led by archmages. Including this one." She spreads her hands.

"Do you know where your spellbooks are?  I'd love to compare notes."

"Yes." She smiles slightly. "And perhaps one day you will."

"How were the schools of wizardry regarded?  What were their reputations?  Did being an alumni of one or the other have any kind of significance? What signs, symbols, and mottos were associated with them?"

"Wizard schools were well regarded. Perhaps too well regarded; we had many more than Evereska. The Irithlium turned out practical wizards who kept the city running. The Six Tyryl Towers trained battle mages and adventurers. Windsong Tower was the most mysterious. The Incanistaeum was the first to open to non-elves, and so openly despised in some quarters and disbanded years ago. And those were just the largest. There were at least half a dozen smaller schools, run by one or two wizards like Master Bhephel, and I don't know how many apprentices the gnomes had hidden."

"What's in the neighborhood?"

"This Dlabraddath, the New Ward. The city has been building out in this direction for centuries as N'Tel'Quess move in. The street outside is the Way of Heroes. To the south, where it meets the Street of Song, are inns and taverns. We even had the headquarters of the League of Innkeepers. It's not a particularly quiet street, but that's what wards on the windows are for. North of us are more houses, both Tel'Quessir and N'Tel'Quess. There weren't any other wizards of a power like Master Bhephel, but there were several lesser mages like myself"

Krackor

"The cellar used to be the crypt of the family that lived here before Master Bhephel bought the land and built the school. There were some lingering dangers that could be triggered by the careless, so he sealed it. I haven't been beyond the door of the room at the base of the shaft.

"Access to the roof is through the tower. The tower's top is open to the sky. There's a wall along the edge to keep the unwary from falling, but it's open where it meets the roof. It doesn't snow in Myth Drannor, so the roof is just sloped enough to drain water." Talindra shrugs. "Of course, normally we just flew if we needed to go to the roof."

Sirenya

Talindra sighs and shakes her head when you ask about dualists. "The dualists are a dying specialty, and rightly so. That school of thought was developed in the First Flowering. It was impressive for its day, but magical knowledge has expanded considerably beyond such simplistic two-stream system. There were still a few who held on to the old style, but they were few and fewer still wished to study under them."

She cocks her head when you ask about animals. "In what way? The animals of Faerun have been much the same since the People came to this world. Perhaps a few more mages have meddled and created things like owlbears since I was born, but unless the humans have slaughtered creatures entire, I suspect Cormanthor is much the same."

When you ask about food, she smiles. "I love pumpkins. Rich and creamy in soup, moist and spiced in bread, roasted over an open fire. Nothing tastes quite as good." Her face falls. "I'm not hungry. It's been more than a day. I'm not hungry."

Any speculation on why we're not able to utilize the overmantle?

Talindra shook her head. "I can't feel the mythal the way I could when I was alive. I don't even know if it still exists. But a mythal was tied to and supported by the People; with us gone there's no telling how it might have unravelled. Even if I knew more of its powers, I would be hesitant to use them."

Talindra--we know the windows can't be seen from the outside.  Are sounds able to pass through them?

Is there another exit from the tower that doesn't face the street?

Once in side, Kitheras will describe what he saw of the neighborhood and see if Talindra can fill in any blanks for the phenomena he saw.

Corym

"When Master Bhephel built the tower, he enspelled the windows to block both sight and sound. This neighborhood could be quite raucous in the evening, with all the inns and taverns, and the noise is not conducive to studying. From what you tell me, the visual shields are still there. I have not heard anything through the windows in my wanderings, so perhaps the aural shields still exist as well." She shrugs. "You will have to test them.

"And no, there are no other entrances to the tower. With the Overmantle, the roof and balcony were as accessible as the door. It was all we required."

Kitheras

Talindra listens to your report on the neighborhood, her face becoming sadder and sadder as you describe its condition. When you finish, she sighs and does her best to answer your questions about the buildings.

#7: "That was Silvershingles, the headquarters of the Society of Silversmiths and Fineworkers. They held exhibits every spring of the pieces that were made over the winter. Lovely. Simply lovely."

#10: "This was Curiosities Cold and Clear. It was an inn and tavern run by halflings for halflings. The taproom," she tapped the map's northern end, "was sized for elves as well as small folk, and had the best fried mushrooms in the entire city. I never went further inside. The southern door led into the kitchen."

#14: "The Golansyr Inn. This was the headquarters of the League of Innkeepers. Some said it was the finest inn in the entire city. I always thought it was a bit overwrought."

#18: "This was the Rose... Towers? Rose Tree? It was an inn, or maybe rooms for rent, or something. It was run by a human for humans, so I didn't pay much mind. The roses were lovely, though."

#19: "Owl Towers." She smiles slightly. "This was a grand inn and fine tavern run by Bialaer Erkowe. He was the only dualist I've ever met, and lost his hand adventuring three hundred years ago. Or three hundred... well. You understand."

#20: "This was Shuldin's Stonespire. It was an inn, and also brewed some of the best beer in the entire city. The petrified trees were much older than the human-style taproom at their foot; the Stonespires had been brewing there for centuries."

"The rest were either houses, or small workshops with their owners living above them. But I was deep in my studies and didn't get out much save for evenfeast now and then. I'm sorry I won't be able to help more."

Sirenya had been exploring. Since she was almost the master of sneaking and being undetected, she had spent time exploring the outskirts of the manor when she had little else to do. However, her natual curiosity had gotten the better of her, and she decided to return to Talindra.

"Talindra." she says, hoping to elicit a response. "If you had the skills and inclination...where would you wander to if you could do so undetected?" she asks. "Are there hidden treasures that I could find to aid the others perhaps?"

Talindra raises an eyebrow at you. "Do you mean did I lust after my masters spellbooks? Or were there neighbors whose possessions I found alluring?" She seems amused. "Even if I did, I'm not sure it would be of much use for you. Surely anything bright and shiny would have been carried off centuries ago." The amusement drains from her face.

Sirenya chuckles at the thought of Talindra lusting after her masters spellbooks. It was so out of character. "I'm sure there were other more interesting things to lust after. Surely you had an interest in some of the handsome men of the city?" she asks, wondering if there was ever a love of Talindra's life.

"Oh, a few." Talindra smiles again. "If there was one thing Myth Drannor had in plenty, it was beautiful men and women. And songs exalting them. Not that I had much time to partake. The life of a senior apprentice is filled more with books than strangers' beds." She trails a translucent hand through a wall. "I suppose it's too late to regret that."

"At least you have the opportunity to speak with all sorts of strangers along the years, but tell me...if you are unable to leave the manor, surely you must have read all that there is to offer within these walls. Perhaps I could fetch a book from a library that you would like to pass the time?" suggests Sirenya.

"You are very kind. Kora has been gracious enough to serve as my hands, but she has earned a break. On the bookcase in my room is a thin book bound in red leather. If you would bring it here and turn its pages, I would be grateful." She sighs, her spectral breath blowing a few strands of her hair that curl down over her face, but otherwise leaves the room untouched. "It is my favorite book of poetry, and I find I could use the comfort."