Role

Chapter 1

"Kuryaelin, my only grandson, there is something I need for you to learn,"
said a worn man lying on what could only be perceived as his death bed.
Unfocused black eyes stared blankly across the room, belying the cunning of
the mind within. "You may only be a boy of five, but I have seen much in my
years of living in Thera. I chose Galadon to live in because it is a crux in
the cities. I have seen legends stalk these lands in the name of good and the
name of evil. I have known true terror in those whom tormented those living
in the cities in the name of chaos. I have seen those lovers of Battle, those
Ragers rip the hapless magi into pieces for the sake of cleansing the land of
the magics. When I was young, the light-blinded dogooders rallied behind the
Knights of Thera for the sake of their good ideals and I have seen the lawmen
known as Arbiters become this Blood Tribunal. I remember when the Scion of
darkness materialized when the Masters of Magic fell to pieces. In my youth I
even remember the most horrific Lich walk the land..Zorszaul was his
name..yes, Zorszaul. Long has the Empire aspired to more than they can
grasp..them with their laws and brutal discipline. When the barons of Chaos
collapsed and the Sylvan warders merged with the remnants of the Barons to
become Outlanders..them who are focused and effective in their battle against
civilization, my bones tell me they are all necessary. Your father, my son,
Heutyril was a brash fool but he was well suited for this world. He traveled
to the known cities in search for knowledge about the guilds to find which he
could rise in..but as is the wont of the gods he was slain before his prime.
Your mother has never been the same but you must take this void and fill it.
What your father will never show you, you must learn on your own. Varied are
the guilds, and I wish that you would have a peaceful life but I think it is
not for you. The magics do not run strong in our family, neither is a love
for woodcraft or metalcraft. I have found that I learned most about people.
What I need for you to learn I will not be able to teach you. I would that
you will puzzle the reason they are all connected and bound to one another
and the land. This I charge you with, on your oath and word, though you know
not the depth or width of that which will behold you. You must find a way to
keep the peace in the land. In the cities and without. You will find a way to
influence the world, and you must be cunning. Leaders shape this world, but
they often make enemies who will cut their vision short as well as their
lives. Do not be one of these men, though your ambition may burn through.
Find a way to see each of the guilds and more than that, the mighty Cabals
who run this land and help the land to...survive...I read once an old saying.
"Cheer the bear, or cheer the bull, but cheer both and you will be trampled
and eaten. Now, give an old man a cup of tea and let him lie."