In-Spired

I have only seen these two feral oddities when the group has gathered to eat (at which time most often I have been left in another room somewhere - obviously not needing to do so myself!)

As best I can tell, somewhere along the way, this boyish-but-intimidating tribesman (if my label is kind - but if brutally honest, truly a barbarian) called Phantom rescued one of the white bears native to these regions, and the two have become fast friends - showing no interest whatsoever in the Netheril ruins and thus seemingly enjoying hunting and exploring together out on the ice, which has been helpful reducing the distractions to do the same from the more studious party members.

A topic of discussion has been what to name the bear, and even more curious, the bear seems to somehow participate in this discussion, though it obviously cannot speak.  There is a glint of intelligence in this creature above what one would expect - no doubt some enchantment has imbued its mind with heightened brain function. If not enchantment, perhaps something of the brain's size itself - for this bear is far larger than any I can recall even in writings. Monstrously large - perhaps even approaching the mass of the region's mammoths the Frost Giants sometimes ride as mounts.  Just so - it has clearly become an ally to the group, and a powerful one at that!

Somewhere along the way, a jar of hearts the wizard Dex had been brought to the surface, perhaps to air out the stench (my sense of smell is long forgotten) - and it seems the great bear thought it an appetizer to sample. In doing so, however, it broke the jar and was badly slashed. When shooed away, its blood had mingled with the fluids and the one remaining heart quivered with a slow beat.  I perceived a strange whispering accompanying whispers of Phantom, as if he were conversing with another entity - and then suddenly he grabbed the heart and consumed it, much to the disgust of all who happened to witness.  The event has not been spoken of since.

The dwarven priest of Moradin, Cleric of the Forge, Anvil'bjorn and half-blood Muzgardt Duergar, h'Rothgar would have been perfectly at home in the the ranks of the the Phandelver Pact five centuries ago, at the Forge of Spells within the Wave Echo Caves deep beneath the Sword Mountains.  While I delight in conversing with the Tiefling of ancient Netheril, it's h'Rothgar with whom I find the greatest familiarity and kinship, for memories of those years remain golden to me.  The dwarf bears the burden of an inspired creation - or re-creation of a lost wonder: a sky-ship, of which Moradin has sent visions and dreams and truly placed miraculous discoveries in his path toward realizing.

From the floating earthmote islands in the harbor of Neverwinter, to the design schematics within the Ring of the Book of the Shadowy Ink, to the engines of the crashed Nautiloid (see Brain Freeze  and Shipwreck, Spirits & Scion), to the arcane workings of Xardorok Sunblight, to finally this very ruin of the pinnacle workers of enchantment - The Netheril. He shared with me all this as he and I worked through the items and manuals and materials within a lab-workshop, and my own imagination captured, I endeavored to lend him insights and suggestions to further his quest - and no doubt destiny.

Truly the time taken has proven worthwhile, in further discoveries and workings we have brought to be.  The first being a deeply accurate model-within-a-glass-bottle of a Netheril "Skycoach" - the flying ships used to carry people and cargo between the flying enclave cities. The second being the scroll tube from the library composed of (the rare) uncharged or "empty" Chardalyn. This would readily accept magical enchantments much like the ores refined in the Forge of Spells. The bottle already possessed a magic by which it had reduced the size of an actual (mock) skycoach within, facilitating its extreme detail. By imbuing the tube with the learned Duergar magic to Enlarge/Reduce, and passing the bottle through the tube (outside the spire's rooms!) - the skycoach was made lifesize once more, yet could also be returned to its tiny form!  When first made large, it had the properties of paper and thread, easily crumpled or even blown by the winds - so care must be made for stability until it cured into wood and rope, cloth, glass, and metal - over 10 minutes time.

However, this would be merely the form of the thing, and lack the needed internals for accommodating crew and passengers - and of course the magical enchantments needed to fly. While this last key detail would be the remaining pursuit of the Moradin Priest, the need for a test of the Mirage Machine before risking its use on Dzaan offered a unique opportunity. Employing the skilled magic of the Illusionist's skills, all the specifics - the hinges and pulleys and blocks and tackle - the galley, the bedding and cots, the water stores, the gearings, the decor and gear - could be placed within the tiny form, to be made full sized through the bottle-and-tube's mechanisms.  And so a careful and thorough effort to account for each and every detail...

Memorized and then Given to Memory

There are two in the party that have taken sharp interest in the books found within the Spire. The first being (sensibly) the Tiefling wizard Alyks Askaria , whose occupation prior to these adventures as a librarian of the Host Tower (while studying Divination wizardry as a student of the Arcane Brotherhood ) resulted in a deep fascination with rare books and scrolls - and indeed has been the grounds on which she and I have forged something of a professional friendship in sharing tales of The Netheril , her chosen focus of study - nearly an obsession! In fact, the lass can even read Loross (the language of the High Netheril , which I am helping her learn to speak as well).

The second is the dark-yet-pale and cold-hearted Shadar-kai servant of the Raven Queen called Sudon . Yet his interest is not his own, but in service to his patron - for the Raven Queen is the keeper of the Fortress of Memories within the plane called the Shadowfell , home to the Shadar-kai. His intent has been made clear - the secrets and lost lore within the pages of the books that have survived will be claimed by him once reviewed by the others - and delivered by ritual to the Raven Queen, an essential part of his very purpose and quest in walking this world. Once the most essential items to be saved were stored within Alyks ' Ring of the Book of the Shadowy Ink (or simply notes copied onto paper), the Shadar-kai formed a shrine out of the shadow of shadow, a darkness tied to the Shadowfell itself, and into that void disappeared the books, perhaps forever.

For this dedication, the warlock's power of calling forth a Specter was made instead Soul of the Raven : allowing him to take the form of a raven for stealth or flight in his ongoing quest. In addition, the Raven Queen whispers two revelations into the ear of Sudon Corvus:

1. the Codicil of White is written by the hand of the deity Auril and a mortal mind cannot even perceive its words - these must be read by a mind that has passed into immortality. (As these words reached his ear, so did they tingle the remaining threads of my soul - a sensation I have not felt in centuries - a message itself regarding a part I may be asked to play.)
2. The second revelation that there are far more true things than fictions in these books - truths whose dangers may well lie on the path ahead. After the Trance of a Long Rest, Sudon may call upon Elven Memory to try to remember things from these books. (Ask one question with simple answer if make History check vs. DC 8, then +6 difficulty for each additional question).

Books of Ancient Lore

• Magical Wonders of Netheril . This book is a collection of interviews with Netherese archmages , who discuss their studies of ancient elven magic and the creation of Mythallar s. The book includes sketches of such devices.
• Mysteries of the Phaerimm . This book sheds light on the phaerimm —telepathic, funnel-shaped monsters of malevolent intellect that lurk in the Underdark —and includes disturbing sketches of them.
• Wizards in the Hollow . The birth of the Netherese empire is chronicled in this otherwise dull, plodding story about the lives of three Netherese wizards .
• Ajamar's Guide to the Phantastic . This breezy, lighthearted treatise on illusion magic was required reading in many Netherese classrooms . It describes clever ways to use common illusion spells.
  
• The Unfettered Mind . This lunatic text discusses how one might exist solely as a disembodied brain, preserved for eons in a magical suspension fluid. It includes sketches of brains in jars .
• Here Lies the King . This elaborately plotted novel features an illusionist who uses magic to impersonate a prince, supplant a king, rule a fictional kingdom for sixty-one years, and fake his own death.
• Lost Scrolls of Sabreyl. Written in Elvish, this scholarly tome copies and analyzes fragments of eight ancient scrolls left behind by a sun elf wizard who taught magic to the cloud giants of Ostoria, a bygone empire that collapsed 40,000 years ago.
• Ventatost . This book uses testimonials and conspiracy theories to piece together events leading up to the destruction of a Netherese city called Ventatost , which disintegrated as it flew over the forest of Cormanthor nearly two thousand years ago, before the fall of Ythryn.
  
• From Shadow, Substance . This speculative work discusses how one might harness the Weave to turn an illusory object or creature into its real counterpart , with commentary and criticism from noteworthy Netherese illusionists. (And it would seem to have been the pursuit of this Netherese wizard - see below section: Of Mirages and Mortality).

Books of Spells and Rituals

Most of the magical scrolls and spellbooks of the place had suffered the ravages of time sufficiently to be dangerous to employ. A missing word in lore would not result in the sorts of disaster possible with a mistaken word of power in working the weave of magic. Yet within the library there was a viewing machine that helped temporarily work out some of those inconsistencies. This resulted in the wizards Alyks and Dex carefully deciding on what to capture into portable form for learning upon reaching their next level of mastery in spellcasting. Spells of potential interest carried exciting notions - such as Far Step, Legend Lore, Phantom Stairs, Telepathic Bond , and Mislead , while others the very core talents of the arts of a Diviner (such as "Scrying ") and Necromancer ("Negative Energy Flood ") - and even names that would seem to promise terrifying wrath, such as Enervation and Immolation .

I look forward to seeing what they have selected and how these will change our fortunes in the stories ahead!

Scrying through Shards of Glass

The ever-curious young wizards, Alyks and Dex , thoroughly investigated the more arcane and magic-sensing upside-down rooms of the ruin. Almost missed, but for the uncanny intuition of the Divination Wizard , the two and myself entered a doorway more like crack in the world itself, reachable only by those adept in the spellweave of reality, we discovered a tiny "demiplane " - little more than a room, but certainly less cramped than a Bag of Holding . The room itself further distorted visual senses (which I have already had to adapt to being within a glass sphere!) with windows looking out upon far-off places, but cracked and fallen and at odd angles - particularly with the room being upside down, of course. After a significant use of time and adaptation of the room, we came to confirm this was a Scrying Chamber - able to be tuned for viewing other places (and somewhat disturbingly - other times - for at one point we saw ourselves approaching the shard itself, though days past.)

Piecing together the glimpses catching our attention in this wilderness of mirrors... what we found to be of importance or usefulness:

Pushing perceptions from the Shield Guardian Amulet, Alyks's Divination arts sought out where she believed to have seen it - the goblin fortress of Karkolohk east-facing off the heights of the massive mountain of Kelvin's Cairn.  A tragic story then played out through the shards. The goblins faced a dire threat from caverns below and appealed to the Children of Auril for aid. While the goblins could force a stalemate against the hyena-humanoids called Gnolls, these creatures were led by dark forces the goblins' witches could not counter.  The goblins worked with the Frost Druids to capture a legendary giant polar bear, which was to be Awakened by Auril's magic  and made their defender against the attacks, but the ritual was interrupted by Phantom - charging through the ranks of the Frostwardens to shove the Frost Druid off the mountainside (see Spare the Bear!).  This assistance no longer to come, the goblins withdrew their troops aiding Auril against the exploration of the tundra, retreating to defend their fortress, but too late, only to find it taken over by the gnolls and their dark leader, and pressed into supplying troops to that dark cause down tunnels into the Underdark, along with the malfunctioning Shield Guardian. Two splinters divide from this vision - one carrying attention to the falling Frost Druid a futile transformation as she falls into the form of a walrus, while the other splinter follows the path taken by the Shield Guardian machine. 

The perspective changes to complete darkness, and a loud THUMP followed by cracking noises, as the darkness splits exposing far above the aurora of Auril and a clear starry sky. This dimmest of lights shows the viewer to be Vellynne Harpell, waking briefly from her frigid sleep to note the body of a woman in white furs slipping through a fresh crack in the ice above, to fall to the floor of the cavern in which she was lost and disoriented. She casts a spell to gather dying life energies from the fallen Frost Druid, then returns to her sleep.  The split perspective sees the golem-like Shield Guardian, feet dragging as its head and torso are carted through deep passages of the Underdark. Pulled by a team of goblins, motivated by whip-cracks of gnolls, the machine is delivered to hard-working Duergar, who then take it to a workshop (not unlike the one in the Sunblight Stronghold). The view passes through earth and stone upwards through mineshafts and passages and rooms to the surface, where a tower of blood-red stone has been constructed, looming over the ruins of what must be Caer Konig. (And the new seat of power for Xardorok Sunblight!).  The tower is readying for battle - forces approach from the west, a small army from Caer Dineval, ranks of the Knights of the Black Sword, with siege engines and the albino Tiefling wizard Avarice readying siege.

We see the prison Dex names as "Revel's End,", become a massacre (see Horrifying Halls) with screams accompanying alien sounds meant for none of this world to hear. As some of the most securely-fashioned cells deteriorate, powerful beings they were designed to contain attempt an escape - most fall to the Oblex creature that consumed and then puppeted other prisoners and the guards - but not all.  Dex and Alyks remark to each other there were curious references in the report made by the Lords Alliance envoy from Silverymoon, Estilël Farwind - of fugitives of concern.  A vaguely rabbit-shaped blur hops from a crack in one of the walls, then streaks across the icy tundra southward, fading from view, but leaving a sense of it descending into the Underdark, and then a place beneath the ruins of Caer Konig.

The times of these visions are unclear as we view them, some are surely in the past and some surely in the future - what is "now" in this place is unclear, perhaps this place exists across all these times?

Thinking on the spirit of Meltharond and the path ahead for Dzaan-turned-Meltharond, Dex's attention carried a viewpoint far and far across the ice to offer glimpses of the lairs of the White Dragons of the Frozenfar: Arveiaturace (the ancient White Wyrm, Meltharond's friend) in the dormant volcano of Ice Peak Island at the edge of the Sea of Moving Ice. Chasing another shard-crack, Dex saw what must be the lair of one named Arauthator, called Old White Death - upon an iceberg floating upon that sea. Though not known to the scrying wizards, this glimpse comes out of their tie to a Tiefling seen in his company, their friend from the Arcane Brotherhood's Host Tower: Maccath the Crimson.

Also afloat in the Sea of Moving Ice, the briefest of scenes plays out showing Zaknalimar, Aelar, and Agaric - with a dwarven warrior confronting a mighty Frost Giant within a skull-shaped castle of ice on a massive sheet of ice shaped with perfect symmetry as a snowflake - the Isle of Solstice, and grave danger they face in their pursuit of the Codicil of White. (See: Auril's Abode).

Other adventurers bravely work against dark forces - countering the Zhentarim rise in Ten Towns through the Chardalyn Syndicate, increasing attacks by gnolls and Reghed tribesfolk from the south and east - and orcs and trolls from the north and west. Who now stands with or against Auril has become confused and blurred. Among the heroes are the race of Goliaths of the Spine of the World, like the one befriended and rescued from the dungeon of Sunblight Stronghold who called himself Kapanuk Talltree Thuunkhalaga - these mighty but primitive people, seemed able to tame griffons as steeds to ride into battle, as a group is seen flying north from the mountains to join with the forces attacking Caer Konig.

The last of the visions seen within that room brought into focus the urgency that we should quickly finish our tasks in that ruin while we still had time.  Visiting and event of the near future - but how near unknown and too dangerous to chance, we watched as a great tremor of power washed over the entire continent of Faerûn. We saw but a flash of its cause, the use of a great artifact called the Draakhorn, sounding a signal bringing millions of creatures to halt a moment as it passed like a prickly wave of warning out and out and out across the lands and water. In some places the earth itself slipping and quaking, cutting off passages, collapsing towers and caverns, or opening others. In the Frozenfar, beneath Kelvin's Cairn, forges of the shield dwarves collapse while southward in the underdark beneath Caer Konig, another opens, lined with runes of deep red and a sense of a dread gateway. Something too awful for the mind to recognize twitches beneath the colossal Reghed Glacier to the east. Vellynne's sealed-off tomb-within-ice opens a route for escape, into the Underdark. In the skull-palace of Auril, great icicles and tumble and walls crack. But most concerningly for us, a crack long still preventing this very shard from diving deep beneath the ice into an unknown abyss shifts just enough to swallow the Netheril's lost spire. And so, we fled the room to hasten Dzaan to conclude our business in the magical chamber, that we might flee before that disaster!

From Shadow, Substance

The book by this name had what seemed a preposterous concept, but indeed what would prove to be the most prominent of the discoveries in the ruins (particularly with the strange fate of having the Dzaan-Simulacrum's creator's bones carried so long by the necromancer Dex) - was the invention by the tower's forgotten archwizard, described in golden magical script:

"Behold my masterpiece! Here can illusions be made real, shadows become substance! Create your illusion, let it stand atop the crystal disk, and watch my rune chamber do its work!"

Controls of rune-carved crystals call upon reserve power to ready a small chamber, but even after careful restoration by the Forge-Priest h'Rothgar, cracks in the walls damaging the enchantment give rise to concern it will likely work only once. With the hope of becoming a living being rather than merely an illusory creature, the Dzaan-Simulacrum curls into position as Alyks operates the contraption aided by Dex, who has used a necromantic ritual to channel Dzaan's spirit into his bones, carefully sewn onto clothing - becoming a sort of stand-in for the illusionist.  h'Rothgar moved from crack to crack in the room, urging as best he could the room's arcane powers without danger or malfunction.

Skillfully coaxing success with their combined talents, a living re-embodiment of Dzaan stepped out of the chamber, truly a miracle only possible through the weaving of lost and godlike magics.  Dzaan then began the process, as promised to Dex, as the hexblood necromancer had promised to another ancient archwizard, of carefully studying the body and clothes of Meltharond, stolen off the back of the White Wyrm Arveiaturace, once her friend and centuries-long companion.  (See Shipwreck, Spirits & Scion) Alyks provided further detail on the appearance at a younger age with the page in the Book of the Ring of the Book of Shadowy Ink, a likeness it captured unknown years ago by an unknown wearer, but identified by Zelenn the White as a young Meltharond, who she (a long-lived high elf) had known.  With the skills of a Master Illusionist, Dzaan felt confident he could attempt the guise - and the opportunity for adventure and power with such a partner thrilled and inspired him.  Absent actual words or even seen, Dex felt an approving "presence" of the dead wizard in this act of merciful kindness for the once-majestic dragon now nearly blind and falling into despair-driven madness in her finest and final century.

The test performed on the ship-in-a-bottle proved successful, but also exposed how dangerously unreliable the mechanisms and remaining power stores. But in the end, the miracle made real a man from a mirage - Dzaan-turned-Meltharond emerged from the capsule. The passing of the Red Wizard of Thay with this re-creation, left the bodyguard wight Krintas with one final purpose - to safely see Meltharond to the lair of the White Wyrm Arveiaturace, now believed to reside on the Ice Peak at the mouth of the Sea of Moving Ice.