Lovely Tera ought be more careful in the future. She is instilling in her young charges a taste for revenge, and she should know the appetite of a young man is nigh insatiable. Not that I, a mere human with puny human-like intelligence, could fathom the inner workings of the Belar mind, but nevertheless, the gleam in Kestrel's eye as we strode into battle against Burton and his hapless fellows warmed my heart! Burton had offended us most gravely. And so he had to pay. And what more delicious method of payment than at the end of a sword backed up with the devastating might of a Theurge! Oh, it was glorious in its simplicity, in the ease with which our enemies fell before us! Now, to somehow keep that spark alive in the others, for one day, one day very soon I suspect, they will need all the fury of this day and more!

I have been carefully considering the various Guilds, now that I am eligible to join their ranks. The Order, of course, has the greatest prestige, and for that reason, membership is attractive. Their library and spellpool are second to none, and their membership so broad that they need little gold in dues, and the gods know that gold, or its lack thereof, is a constant misery in my life. But they are known to be a bit, shall we say, formal, in an annoyingly inefficient manner. Rules of Order, et cetera. Committees to determine the composition of committees. I've heard that binding a mephit takes less time than the forms to borrow a common tome from their library. And the jealousy and politics, well, the Order remains unsurpassed by all accounts, and while such things interest me, I think I have enough politics with the Belar.

There are many lesser Guilds, and one of them in my estimation, the Fabricari, stands apart. Smaller than The Order to be sure, and less prestigious, but not too small. And when a special item is needed, the knowledgeable shun The Order and seek out the true masters of fabrication. They are rumored to be a more serious guild, more secretive, for they have more secrets to guard. And while they may not master the metamagic that The Order finds so fascinating, their own mastery is equally impressive. How many can count among their ranks a crafter of a Staff of Power? The Iron Golems of Kant were Fabricari creations, if the stories be true, and Zagi himself was a Fabricari if the guild's loremasters can be trusted. If The Order even possesses any Artifacts, we can rest assured none of their members actually created them!

I believe I shall seek out a representative of the Fabricari in Ashanto and pledge myself for membership. No doubt, being so close to Cressa and what with the Tournament in the city, many items of arcane magic are soon to change hands. The Fabricari could not resist such an environment. Who knows, perhaps they've even set up a small guildhouse in Ashanto. The roads, at least south to Cressa, are as good as in Cressa proper. For all intents and purposes, Ashanto could be annexed and no one would notice. I have little fear that they will reject me, though my few years may cause some to doubt my ability... at least initially. When I demonstrate Flame Arrow and then expound in detail upon Bardelade's Theory of Extraoccultular Magistrations, they should become a bit more curious about the mere "boy" before them. When they realize that I can draw the longbow slung upon my back, the more attentive among them should be quite receptive to me and my thousand pieces of gold. Except for the fact that I have not quite mastered the level of difficultly of the incantations in Bind, I have the physical means to survive its casting! What Fabricari worth his salt would not quickly usher one such as myself inside their doors? Oh, and what secrets lie beyond those doors! We shall soon see!