I was still only days removed from being an apprentice, and requests from guildmasters carried weight.

  “How may I serve our guild, Grand Guildmaster?” I replied.

  He liked that response.

  “Seneschal, as you now know, we use an extraordinarily rare feature of pure moonstones, each carved in the magical method of 7pt to 49pt stones. As you can imagine, finding one that, when we place it in the single socketed silver pouring pitcher that was made just for that purpose, we are faced with near constant frustration.”

  I saw where he was going. “You would like for me to call these qualities forward from the stones if possible,” I stated.

  He smiled. “Exactly. Could you please try?”

  “Bring me seven stones and seven pitchers,” I stated.

  He turned to the masters around him, and they scurried off into another section of the forge. When they returned, there were dozens of masters present, not just those who were invited to instruct the new Seneschal.

  I made no comment about the crowd but arranged the gemstones in front of me from least to greatest.

  The guildmaster said, “While the rarest cuts are hardest to perfect by our finest jewelers, we have found over the centuries that the least stones are the hardest to find the Moon Silver special ability. We have hired enchanters to place the stones in the pitcher and cast their Remove Gem from Socket spell to repeat the process over, and over, and over.” The uncharacteristic repetition by an elf signaled his deep frustration. “It is a huge drain on our guild's finances, but we have no choice. The magical Moon Silver ability does not last forever in our stones. After some time, they crack from use and turn to powder.”

  “Do you keep the powder?” I asked.

  “We do, out of tradition, but it has never been of use afterwards.” He said.

  I recalled that powdered moonstone was an alchemical component I saw at Alexander's, and given its location among other such ingredients for his magical restoration potions, I took it to be valuable and useful for the more powerful versions.

  Since the masters hinted that the least stones were the rarest, I started at the top with a beautifully crafted 49pt moonstone. I lifted it tenderly and focused on it.

  A moonstone was a gemstone and could be treated like either a magical gemstone or a magical stone. Thanks to the warnings from both the grandmaster sage and the Dwarven masters, I did not intend to seek powers in natural stones with a magical cut higher than 28pt.

  I entered the moonstone and found myself drifting in its blue and white shifting colors. Occasionally, I saw flashes of rainbow colors as it shifted in my hands and caught different light.

  There was no difficulty finding the Silver Moon ability, but they were right, it was of the rarest type I had ever seen. There was no struggle to pull it forward, just the single casting point I always used.

  I asked for the pitcher, and the grandmaster handed it to me quickly, fearing a time constraint. I patiently examined the craftsmanship and praised its work. One of the masters in the back muttered quietly to a neighbor, “That is my work! See the curved leaf and triple fronds worked around the handle?”

  I placed the moonstone in the single socket, and it clicked into place. I held the pitcher, and like a magical ring or weapon, I knew its ability and function. The Silver Moon feature was in place.

  I handed it to the grandmaster, who similarly examined it and then shouted in joy. He passed it around the room, and all the masters were able to verify that the Silver Moon ability was in place.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Bella whispered, Take your time. Don’t rush this. It is important to them, and if you make it look easy, your entire effort here could be wasted.

  I repeated the process for each gem cut. It was no more difficult each time, even the 7pt moonstones were easy to call forward. I spent the same careful amount of time on each one, however, heeding Bella’s advice. I could have completed all seven in half as many minutes, but I took about half an hour to give weight to the moment. Given her warning, I figured that if they thought my effort was light and the task easy, they might want me here all day, and that could upend their entire silver crafting economy.

  And, she added, this will add to your legend among the elves.

  I don’t want a legend. I just came here to get help for our city.

  Let them enjoy the suspense. They live ten or twenty times your maximum life expectancy, and it is often filled with drudgery after a few centuries. You are bringing them suspense and hope.

  I didn’t argue. But by the time I was done, there were tears in the Grand Guildmaster’s eyes. “Thank you, Seneschal. What payment can we offer for your services?”

  I was surprised. “Grand Guildmaster, you asked me for a favor, not a commission. There is no price for my service to our guild today.”

  The masters all looked both startled and ecstatic all at once.

  “Is there anything at all we could do for you?” He asked.

  “I was hoping for a chest of books and ingredients to help my lessons with my new apprentice, if that would be no trouble.”

  He laughed out loud. “We will give you that and more!” He turned and hurriedly spoke with the other masters. Some scurried away smiling, and others with looks of concentration.

  They invited me to a light lunch, which I happily shared. “What, no fried gwids?” I asked in mock surprise.

  They laughed and said they heard about the behavior of the Enchanter guildmaster.

  I raised my hands. “It was all in good fun. In fact, I owe him an apology. I should have checked into the local guild hall as an enchanter upon my arrival.”

  The Grand Guildmaster corrected me, “Seneschal, this is your home. You do not need to check in as a visitor!”

  He was right. But I should stop by and pay my respects, regardless.

  As I was getting ready to leave, I was asked again if there was anything they could do for me. I replied, “Well, if it is not against tradition, I could use some powdered moonstone. It is an ingredient for some work I may have planned.”

  In addition to a crate of equipment and ingredients, a floating chest filled with textbooks good for my apprentice and myself, they also presented me with a five-pound barrel of pure powdered moonstone.

  “Will this suffice?” I was asked.

  It would last a hundred years, I thought to myself. “Yes, indeed. It is very generous of you and our guild.”

  “There is just one more thing that you could do for us. Please join us at the outer forge to pay your respects to all the masters and students.” He urged.

  “I would be delighted, but you must help steer me through the crowds. I must get to my other tasks before I depart again for Keelwell.”

  “Not to worry, not to worry!” He assured me.

  It was a setup, of course. I was not to honor them but to be honored by them. It was not long, and it did not involve searing my forearms at the forge, but they made me an Elven Master. They gave me a silver medal on a blue silken cord that I wore around my neck, one that matched every master present in the garden. There were hundreds of apprentices and dozens of masters.

  I admit that I got a bit choked up at one point and had tears in my eyes at the attention and kindness. But instead of making me look weak with a lack of emotional control, it just endeared me to them all the more. Elves don’t share emotions easily, but when emotions are shared, for good or ill, they mean all the more.

  The AL whispered into my ear. Enchanter Gwydion earns a spell or skill point to be placed as desired for completing the Elf Master quest. You have earned an ally in Grand Guildmaster Rennyn Caibalar for solving the Moon Silver quest. Spell and skill points must be reclaimed at a guild hall or sanctuary. You earn improved favor with elf merchants and authorities. Prestige changes from level four Notable to level five Estimable. Additions and notes have been added to your Book of Quests that remain unread.

  It was another hour before I was able to make my way out of the outer forge garden area.

  Grand Guildmaster Caibalar escorted me out personally. I paid my respects and thanked the masters for their instruction and unexpected honor. “If I succeed, it is due to the wisdom of my teachers; if I fail, it is by my own imperfect hands, and I will practice all the harder,” I said to them on leaving.

  More than one master turned to her or his apprentice and said, “Mind those words. They came from the Seneschal to your ears today!”

  They also presented me with a full set of seven moonstones encased in a silver-lidded wooden chest with the gemstones resting in silk-lined indentations. It was quite beautiful.

  In presenting the chest to me privately to avoid scandal, he said, “Place your hand upon the silver and introduce yourself as Master Gwydion Istari Arbrestrom and tell it to open or stay in place. It will obey you and none other. The default status is locked, so you do not need to command that; merely shut the lid. It is a way to protect one of the secrets of our guild. Also, you will discover that when you do this, the chest will remain immovable wherever you place it. It uses some very special summoning spells commissioned from us for a second set of moonstones, should we acquire them. We are giving this to you, and we will merely commission another box from them in the future, thanks to your gift to our guild.

  “Because of your skills in adding and removing gemstones, we have a single pitcher with one socket carefully wrapped in the crate that we are escorting to your homestead. We ask that, since you are not here, you only use this one pitcher and one moonstone at a time and return them securely each time after you are finished with them. It will give some comfort to those of our guild who were concerned about you departing with both secrets and tools of the guild.”

  “Guildmaster, I should have thought of something like this myself. I understand the caution and promise to abide by these restrictions.” I replied.

  “Then go ahead.” He said, pointing to the top of the chest.

  I placed my hand on the silver lid and stated formally, “I am Master Gwydion Istari Arbrestrom, open.”

  The lid clicked open, and I saw the seven gemstones in their silk-lined beds. After staring at them with a smile, I closed the lid, and it sealed shut.