Prying eyes

Prying eyes is a divination spell that summons floating eyes to scout for the caster.

Effect
You create ten or more semitangible, visible magical orbs (called "eyes") that move out, scout around, and return as you direct them when casting the spell. When an eye returns, it relays what it has seen to you and then disappears. Each eye is about the size of a small apple and can see 120 feet (normal vision only) in all directions.

The spell conjures 1d4 eyes plus one eye per caster level. While the individual eyes are quite fragile, they're small and difficult to spot. Each eye is a Fine Construct that has 1 hit point, has AC 18 (+8 bonus for its size), flies at a speed of 30 feet with perfect maneuverability, and a +16 skill modifier on Hide checks. The eyes are subject to illusions, darkness, fog, and any other factors that would affect your ability to receive visual information about your surroundings. An eye traveling through darkness must find its way by touch.

When you create the eyes, you specify instructions you want the eyes to follow in a command of up to twenty-five words. Any knowledge you possess is known by the eyes as well, so if you know, for example, what a typical merchant looks like, the eyes do as well. Sample commands might include:
 * "Surround me at a range of four hundred feet and return if you spot any dangerous creatures.": The phrase "Surround me" directs the eyes to form an equally spaced, horizontal ring at whatever range you indicate, and then move with you. As eyes return or are destroyed, the rest automatically space themselves to compensate. In the case of this sample command, an eye returns only if it spots a creature whom you would regard as dangerous. A "peasant" that is actually a shapechanged dragon wouldn’t trigger an eye's return. Ten eyes can form a ring with a radius of 400 feet and among themselves see everything that crosses the ring.
 * "Spread out and search the town for Arweth. Follow him for three minutes, staying out of sight, and then return.": The phrase "Spread out" directs the eyes to move away from you in all directions. In this case, each eye would separately follow Arweth for three minutes once it spots him.

Other commands that might be useful include having the eyes form a line in a certain manner, making them move at random within a certain range, or have them follow a certain type of creature. The DM is the final judge of the suitability of your directions.

In order to report their findings, the eyes must return to your hand. Each replays in your mind everything it has seen during its existence. It takes an eye only 1 round to replay 1 hour of recorded images.

If an eye ever gets more than one mile distant from you, it instantly ceases to exist. However, your link with the eye is such that you won’t know if the eye was destroyed because it wandered out of range or because of some other event.

The eyes exist for up to 1 hour per caster level or until they return to you. After relaying its findings, an eye disappears. Dispel magic can destroy eyes. Roll separately for each eye caught in an area dispel. Of course, if the eye is sent into darkness, then it's very possible that it could hit a wall or similar obstacle and destroy itself.

Material components
A handful of crystal marbles.