"Fascinating. I see I have even more to learn than I had realized." Leareth glances around. "I think I will go speak to the magic researchers now. Vanyel, would you like to come look at artifacts as well, or do something else? I would enjoy your company but it is by no means an obligation." 

"Really doubt you'd enjoy my company," Vanyel says tonelessly. "I don't think I'm good for much right now, I'll just slow you down." 

Leareth is very unsure what to say to that - it feels like something in Vanyel's thought processes is just straight-up factually wrong, right now, but he can't find the right wording to correct him and isn't sure it's even helpful to try.

"It does seem that it might be tiring for you right now," he acknowledges. "Probably there are other activities which would be more restful." :We should not leave him alone: he reminds the others. :I am not sure what would be most helpful for him right now, but he does enjoy music: 

"Let's go rustle up a concert."

Does Vanyel want a hug before Leareth heads off to look at artifacts? 

...Sure? Vanyel is noticing that he's pretty confused why Leareth is trying so hard to be nice to him. 

Leareth is wishing that he could do more things to help, he's frustrated that he can't just fix the situation somehow - especially given that he seems to be the main cause of it, even if accidentally. If hugs help, well, they're very easy.

He heads off to speak further with the pharaoh's researchers and study more artifacts. And mull over the question of Tylendel's soul.  

And Hagan will drag Vanyel along to meet another brother of his, who collects pretty girls with good singing voices and now they have a band (and half a dozen children).

They would be delighted to catch Hagan up on five years of missing all their musical performances!

He does not have anything like the Velgarth Gift but he's very, very good and so are all of the women.

This is, honestly, one of the best possible distractions for Vanyel right now. He listens to the songs, and then asks questions about local musical practices, and he can sing some of the songs he knows from Velgarth if they want? 

They would be incredibly delighted about that.

Vanyel sings a few songs for them, and then yawns and admits that he's kind of tired, he didn't sleep that well. 

Then they can head back so he can rest. 

Meanwhile to the artifacts from yesterday the magic researchers have added some wands (which store a fixed number of uses of a spell and then run out), some weapons enchanted to cut through shields, a bunch of ioun stones, which orbit the heads of intelligent creatures and grant them magical defenses, and a headband of intelligence which Leareth can try on if he would like. 

Leareth would be delighted to try on the headband of intelligence while he looks at the other artifacts, to see if it helps him analyze their magical signatures and understand how they work. 

The headband of intelligence does the same thing as the spell, though unlike the spell it does it all the time. It does make it a bit easier to understand how the artifacts work. If Leareth would like, he can actually observe the making of a simple shield amulet, which only takes a few hours.

Leareth would very much like to watch that! ...In a moment. Maybe thanks to the headband, he's just thought of something that he missed before. 

:Hagan?: 

Yeah? Wow, you don't need line of sight for the telepathy? 

:No. Range varies for Thoughtsensing, but mine is quite strong. Anyway. I just thought of what might have become of Tylendel's soul: 

Oh?

:It would be helpful if we could ask Yfandes to confirm, but - I have a reasonably confident hypothesis that Companions are made starting with the reincarnated souls of past Heralds. And then the additional modifications, of course. I had thought that the god or gods involved would usually take souls from centuries ago, since otherwise the Heralds would eventually notice this, but - it does seem possible that Tylendel could have been sent back as a Companion, and that Vanyel might not have encountered him yet since he spent recent years mostly on the Karsite border. It is surprising, but seems more likely than his soul being somehow destroyed: 

Huh! What implications does this have for their lifebond, I'm unclear on to what extent lifebonds are a - sex thing - not that I'm close-minded about people dating horses I guess -

:I have absolutely no idea! I never heard of this happening before; it does seem potentially awkward, usually lifebonds are at least romantic in nature. Also I am not sure how to check this, since I cannot exactly go ask all of the Companions in Valdemar if they are Tylendel. It would be helpful if there were a different search spell that could locate Tylendel even in a new body...: 

I've never heard of one but I haven't heard of the one the pharaoh used for this, either, maybe ask his pharaohiness.

:Is that the actual title or are you making it up: Leareth is genuinely unsure here.