We sat at the corner table of the small restaurant, two finished plates in front of us. It had taken the rest of the afternoon to return to Oasis from the temple, and we were starving. Master Rogue chose an out-of-the-way place to eat so we could have time to digest the incredible food and the meeting's contents.

Master Rogue, his usual composed self, sipped on a cup of steaming tea, his eyes thoughtful. I, on the other hand, was still trying to reconcile the day's revelations with my understanding of the world.

"This place," Master Rogue began, breaking the silence, "is the first restaurant Lord Timekeeper ever took me on a mission. I thought it best to do the same."

My eyebrows rose at that. "How long ago?" I asked.

A smile creased his lips. "Time matters as much as names do in this business, student."

I snorted, expecting no less of an answer. Someone in the back yelled at a server in the strange desert language. Master's eyes darted to the disturbance.

"We've stepped into the next phase of the game, it would appear," Master Rogue continued, returning his attention to me. "The decisions we make and the alliances we form ripple far beyond our immediate sight. And we have our leader to thank for them being correct most of the time. Yet sometimes we choose the wrong fork in the road, and even the best Seers cannot predict the outcomes."

I grimaced. "Did I do the wrong thing? Should we have just..." my voice dropped to a whisper, "...killed Nayal?"

Master pursed his lips, then shrugged. "It was the obvious choice. And sometimes, the most apparent choices bully the other fates out of the way. But think about it. Had you chosen that path, what would you have become?"

I tilted my head, considering this. Master continued. "If you had chosen to kill your friend before you knew of his true colors, how would you have felt? What would have happened to you in the prison? Who would have come for you for revenge? Would you ever have even gotten out of Altheria?"

His questions hammered at me one after another like steel on an anvil.

I sat back in my seat, tears welling up in my eyes against my will. I quickly wiped them away, but a flash of understanding crossed Master's eyes. The possibility of taking Nayal's life, a decision that could have drastically altered my own, loomed over me like a shadow. "I... I don't know," I admitted after I cleared my throat, my voice barely above a whisper. "I never thought of it in that way. It seemed black and white at the time, but now..."

Master Rogue nodded, his expression softening. "Life is seldom black and white, student. It is a spectrum of choices, sometimes even more than we know are there, each with its own consequences and lessons. The path you chose spared Nayal's life, but it also spared you from a burden that could have haunted you forever. It did not, however, spare Drakthir. It did not spare many of the dwarves who were killed in the collapse of their ward. It will not spare those whom the escapees murder. It will not spare those who are to die in the resulting war."

He was right. Had I chosen to end Nayal's life, I would have been consumed by guilt and doubt. But not killing one elf resulted in so many more deaths, and even more potential lives to be taken. It made me sick.

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"Your journey, your growth, it's about more than just the physical paths you've walked," Master Rogue continued. "It's about the moral and ethical paths you've navigated. You've learned, adapted, and made choices that, while difficult, have brought you to where you are now. Right or wrong, you need to continue moving forward. Because the more you can grow, the more you can make the right decisions and protect those who need to be saved. And it's time to grow into the elf that we need. That your realm needs."

I nodded dumbly, still thinking about what he was saying. From the door, a man popped his head in, saw us, then headed over to us.

Master smiled. "Looks like we have our decision."

I recognized the newcomer from the meeting. He was in the seat second from the right. He strode to our table with purpose as his colorful robes fluttered around his steps.

"Good evening," he greeted in his thick desert accent, his voice carrying a warm, resonant tone. "I hope I'm not intruding. Your apprentice looks as though he has seen a ghost."

"Not at all," Master Rogue replied, gesturing to the seat next to us that he had kept open. "We were just discussing today's events. Your presence might shed more light on the decisions made."

The man gave a subtle nod, taking the offered wooden seat. "I've come directly from the council's deliberations."

I leaned in, my earlier thoughts momentarily pushed aside, as he cleared his throat. "Your proposal and the conditions attached to them have been thoroughly considered. We agree to the terms. We will train your young blacksmith on our technique and expect you to align with the humans in the war. This includes forging the equipment requested in their joint Guild offering."

Master Rogue's expression remained unreadable, but there was a flicker of satisfaction in his eyes. "We are pleased to hear this. The Free People value honor and commitment. You can be assured of our adherence to the agreed terms."

The two men stood and clasped arms. He turned his expression to me. "As for you, young elf, I have reserved the desert forge for us in the morning. Meet me there for your lesson. And take this." He handed me a worn book, similar to my book on blacksmithing technique from prison. "Wait until you are alone to use it, but read it tonight."

"Thank you, sir," I replied, taking the heavy leather tome in my hands. Its cover, worn and weathered, spoke of age and use. There was a symbol of a desert tree with a blacksmith's hammer on the cover. "I'll read it tonight," I promised, eager to uncover the book's mysteries.

The man smiled like he knew something, opened his mouth as if to speak, but shook his head and headed out the door.

Once he was gone, Master sat back down at the table and picked up his remaining tea. "Keep that safe. That's worth more than all the commissions you'll make in your lifetimes."

I clutched the book a little tighter. "I will," I said.

"What you'll learn from that book goes beyond ordinary blacksmithing. It's a legacy of knowledge passed down through generations." he continued, taking a slow sip of his tea, the steam curling up in the restaurant's dim light. "In the right hands, that knowledge can create wonders. In the wrong hands, it can bring about ruin. Remember that as you read."

Something sad passed through his eyes, and he looked away. I wanted to pry into what happened to the previous guild blacksmith, but I stopped. That would be for another time.

The serving girl walked past, and Master flagged her down, paying for our meal and pushing himself up from the table in a fluid motion as I did the same.

Stepping out into the cool night air of Oasis, the book securely under my arm, I felt a tangible excitement coursing through me. While outside the prison, I had only leveled up once to level 4. But everything was progressing so slowly. If I could make quicker advancements with help from this new book and the desert people, then I was all for it. Reaching level 4 was an achievement, especially for someone who never had a remote shot at becoming classed. But I knew there was so much more to learn and more skills to acquire.

The night was a canvas of stars, the dry desert air cloudless as always. I gazed up and took in the endless beauty.

Finally, we returned to our room, and Master unlocked it with the small key the front desk gave us. Once we were inside, he gazed at the floor, then checked the windows and curtains for any unseen threats. Happy, he turned to me.

"I'll give you some privacy and will return once you're done."

"Done?" I said, confused.

Master's expression held a hint of playfulness as he nodded. "Let's just say you won't be able to put it down once you've started reading."

I looked down at the book again, turning it over in my hands. "How..." I started to say, but when I looked back up, he was gone.

With a deep breath, I sat on the dusty floor with my legs folded and opened to the first page.