Finishing the Process

Civil action

Myska's Menagerie are freed to finish the task that physically brought them to Heartsieve in the first place as well as make their preparations to finish their deeper goal here as well.

Millie would magically send a few messages to Vorat Earthforge to confirm the supplies before this discussion. Both these Sendings and the actual retrieval would bring plenty of wariness from the dwarf despite assurances that the party had dealt with Virtuosa. It was only upon Seeing Chupta wearing the helm of Virtuosa that he was at ease giving up the supplies. While at Fowler's Mill, Crush would take the time overnight to enrich the surrounding lands for the homestead's well being. Entering into a similar state to his symbiotic enhancement, the hydramorphs came out and plunged into the ground to root through the area for long term nourishment.
  An easy rate of travel from Billowbluff to to Fowler's Mill and back would take three days. It was in this time that Astrid would finish her complete training on airship piloting and allow her and Chupta to take completely opposite shifts in the future. It was during these flights too and from that a few more conversations were cemented down.
  The first major conversation to be had was about Virtuosa's helmet. Millie's examination of it revealed that it was almost two separate magic items. The helm of teleportation was the base structure that worked as intended. On top of that, the temperance shard-made mask had its own properties. Dubbed the Mindmask, the creation protected the individual from psionic attacks and any divination magic. These discoveries explained Crush's eternal failures to scry on Virtuosa as well as Astrid's failed Psychic Lance during the drows' ambush. The downside to the wondrous item was that it took a significant amount of focus to maintain the magics (Legend Lore: the combination takes two attunement slots). The Mindmask could be broken down for Temperance Shards to put into the Shade Crystal but did they want to?
Astrid briefly made the argument of “Are we trying to hide?” because the mask could only hide one person. Millie followed the line of reasoning with the intention that if they had no use for it, they should immediately give any Temperance Shards they had to Myska for fear of the loose ones being hijacked. That is, unless they had appropriate reasoning to keep the item.
  Chupta concocted a cunning use for the Mindmask. Due to it's unique use of protecting against any divination spells, the man realized that it could be used to protect himself from the repercussions of a failed attempt to Contact Other Plane. The spell that both intrigued and frightened the man was now being being buttressed. Chupta would take the pair while handing off his temperance monocle of seeing to Millie. In short enough time, they would find even more reasons to keep the Mindmask intact.
  The companions decided to use the Shade Crystal to tap into a brief conversation with Myska. While she remained dormant without having another shard cluster added, she could muster enough power for a brief commune. The questions the party had for her and her responses were as follows:
1. In the last eight days, have we been within a mile of the temperance shards we were sent to retrieve? I'm Sorry, No
2. Are the Crystals in the Shrieking Flats? In a way, yes
3. Is it safe for us to enter the Shrieking Flats? Not all of you, no
The final answer had Astrid puzzled. “Interesting. I thought it would be no. I would guess it would be Chupta. His helm is the easiest exception.” Crush questioned if the possible danger could be the “little mossy things I'm always leaving behind.” Astrid openly stated that she wasn't sure what was going on with that.
  As the conversation broke, Millie had his own brain-blast of an epiphany. Perhaps it was Astrid that would not be safe. If the shard cluster was underneath the Shrieking Flats, two odd answers would make sense. The asterisked answer to whether they were in the Shrieking Flats would be technically correct but misleading. Furthermore, Astrid's drow family had stated that it was important for the woman to remain separate from any familial connections. They were working against some sort of void-like entity that claimed the drow. They had bade her not to seek out the drow. If Astrid's descent into the underdark brought her into it's sight and it would not be safe for Astrid to seek out these shards.
  The companions latched onto this interpretation to the point of Astrid having Millie remove the magical tattoo upon her to ensure that she could were the helm without removing her belt from the Hardgut Clan. Despite it being simple to remove and able to be re-attuned, she would rather permanently lose the tattoo than remove the belt for anything long term. While the group was still willing to listen to arguments for anyone else in danger going underground, Chupta's generalized response of him going underground and not being able to fly away was not taken into serious consideration.
    Another major note on this travel was a successful scrying attempt upon Scizzord. Crush's crystal ball revealed to him the smashed and oozing family relation standing in a temperate forest environment.
  Scrying on Scizzord
The tortle was hunched over a dead elf wearing a finely made chain mail The elf was missing one ear and had a tentacle for an arm on the same side. Scizzord reached down and picked up the elf's other arm at the wrist. A purple crystal ring could be seen on the hand. As Crush watched, the hand itself disintegrated into mud and squished through Scizzord's clawed hand. Rubbing his fingers together, in a moment only the ring remained. The amethyst coloration faded into a dull grey in the tortle's grimy palm. Scizzord wheezed out a, “You didn't even know what you had...” As he took the ring and firmly placed it against the long surface of the grey shard the tortle used as a spellcasting focus. The ring itself melded into the shard and disappeared.
  Upon hearing all of this, there was a general sense of forlorness of not being able to know exactly where he was. If they couldn't attack him, the idea was floated once again to call out to their rival and call him out to fight. While they wanted the idea to work, they knew he wouldn't take such simple bait.
  The final thing to note on the group's return trip to Billowbluff was a minor project. Millie put together a map of the surrounding area for Merrygild. Astrid fancied up the tool with her own labels. Upon the rambunctious return to Billowbluff with the supplies they had denied and delayed getting, Millie found the partial gnome to give him the final gift. Merrygild's ecstatic nature continued to beam as Millie gave him the attention and encouragement to follow in the trade. On a professional note, Merrygild was instructed to get a cart. Millie promised to check-in in three to four months to see how progress was going. Millie also collected some names of possible relations in case they bumped into each other in New Derth or Lacington (Beddnu, Sheblill, Lodwa, Markiert, Glorep, Epnegaa).
  The companions got their pay. Millie sculpted another water tank from the ground stone in the alley. Crush was still offended at the town's racists but forced himself to cool down. Millie would send his his own earthen version of a speedy courier to his parents back in Lacington. In it was simply a pouch with 100 gp and a slip of paper reading, “Love you.”
  Their next stop would be to the mesas southeast of the Shrieking Flats. Rather than entering directly in, they would find a plateau to park on before looking for cave entrances. As far as the party knew, the Shrieking Flats were a “natural” phenomenon caused by the air currents, rocky outcroppings, and myriad of holes throughout the region both small and large. The plan was to head underground on the outside and begin the slow journey below the flats to find their prize.
  The night they parked atop the plateau, Astrid took a moment to reflect upon her recent familial encounters. She closed her eyes and thought of her sister, both from her eyes and from her mother's. Of her sister drifting, weightless, as the drow could. As her thoughts linger on, her attunement to this part of herself grew. When she opened her eyes, she was drifting through the air as her sister had.
  Millie and Astrid had a brief conversation of the connection. They spoke of Astrid's previous, dreams, both sleeping and awake. Of those glimpses of time where she found herself confused or even aided in combat because of it. Millie questioned the possibility off Astrid deliberately attempting to strengthen that bond. It might be possible. But Astrid had witnessed another companion attempt a similar thing. Fozz had gained a pseudo companion around the same time Astrid's first connection had been made. In the end, that shadow had been his downfall. And what of Crush? His symbiotic fungus had also strengthened around that time, seeking to help him more than most of his order... where would that lead?