Passive-aggressive flames neither impress nor upset me. Moving on, Morrowind is owned by Bethesda. Anyone know of any Morrowind-based RPG's out there? Or will I have to make my own? -D

Winterbell timed her arrival back in Balmora to coincide with news of the Telvanni success in getting the Mage's Guild Monopoly overturned. Aryon had been frankly skeptical as to her ability to ride this one out, but didn't see the need to order her from the Guild. At least, not yet.

Winterbell had also talked her patron into supporting her plan to install Fast Eddie as her Mouth. He had suggested that she select someone more traditionally Telvanni, but Winterbell had countered with the fact that no one else was willing to take on what looked like a rather precarious position. Aryon had nodded and said he would start looking for yet another replacement Mouth.

Winterbell stepped of the Guild transport platform to a scene that was amusingly familiar for the Balmora Guildhall. Complete chaos.

Marayan was watching quietly from the doorway, his arms folded across his chest.
"Have you said anything?" Winterbell asked him.
"No. I think this is enough of a test as it is."

Estirdalin was pouring over the official document, as if there was some catch in the wording, but the document was as clear as the Telvanni diplomats could make it. Vvardenfell Civil Edict number 4771 was now null and void; and with that the monopoly ceased to exist.
"If Tebonius had just-"
"How are we going to maintain alchemical standards?"
"I can't believe the other Houses didn't-"
People talked over each other, passing around the offending piece of parchment like it was a dead rat.
"Let's hear Winterbell's take on it," Sharn said nastily as she passed Winterbell the edict.

Winterbell smiled at the Orc, grateful for the opportunity to speak without having to shout.
"I think you're all overreacting," she said mildly.
"What?"
"Winterbell, you might be an outlander-"
"I know what this means!" Winterbell raised her voice and the hubbub quietened. "So before you all start panicking, think this through."
"Think what though?" Ajira asked.
"The fact that this isn't the end of the world. Imagine the worst; imagine Telvanni opening shop here, so what? Who in their right mind west of Red Mountain would buy from a Telvanni?"
"They could lower their prices," Sharn reposted aggressively.
"Redoran and Hlaalu will react as nicely to them as Telvanni does to Wolverine Hall. They'd be taxed into the ground; they'd have big transport overheads and would be about as popular as a kagouti on a guar farm."
"Well, it is a bit unlikely that they'd come here," Galbedir began.
Winterbell cut her off, "There's more at stake here than paranoia about Telvanni. As far as I'm concerned the monopoly was a bad idea from the start."

"It allowed us to keep up standards," Marayan entered the conversation for the first time, the mage still standing unmoving in the doorway.
"Did it?" Winterbell asked. "Let me explain, we set the standard, yes. And we will continue to set the standard, but you're deluding yourself if you think that the Monopoly kept the populace safe from substandard practices and quacks."
"Balmora is a prosperous town," Winterbell explained, carefully maintaining eye contact with her audience, "but even here there are those who cannot, for one reason or another, afford our services. And for them there are other places to get those services, there always have been and there always will be."
"We tried to remove-"
"And what good did it do?" Winterbell shouted, and Estirdalin flinched. "For forty years, I was one of those people. It certainly wasn't by choice, but the Guilds wouldn't accept me. Not only was I poor, not only did I deal with the skooma addicts, the fallen women, the slaves, but when the local Guildmaster was feeling particularly energetic I went to jail."
"The Temple-"
"The Temple heals for free only to convert, and for some twenty-five gold is too much to spare. Have you lived there? Have you seen what it's like?" Winterbell let silence descend briefly before continuing.
"Unless you throw open your doors and offer services free, to everyone, these people will always exist. Removing the monopoly has just made their lives a little easier."
"It's not our job to make people's lives easier," Sharn wasn't going to let Winterbell off lightly. Ajira looked like she was going to say something when Winterbell held up her hand; enough guilt, it was time to work on pride.
"Do any of you have any confidence in your own abilities?" There were indignant exclamations at that remark and Winterbell waited for them to subside before continuing.
"Then why should anything change? We off the best training and services for a reasonable price and I assume we all have plans to continue to do so. We are respected and trusted, and yet are none of you brave enough to stand on your own merits as mages? Must we lean on the monopoly to support us? The monopoly was put in place on the mainland during a time when wars between various guilds threatened public peace. It was the last resort of a desperate government trying to make the streets safe by backing the biggest guilds. We don't need it. We're better off without it." There were murmurs of agreement at her remarks, and even Marayan was nodding; he knew Winterbell well enough to know she meant what she said.

"Ranis," Winterbell drew attention back to herself at the mention of that name, "represented the kind of Guild that I don't want to belong to. She ordered me to stop these unsanctioned trainers and healers, even if it meant killing them. I didn't, I couldn't, and we had no right. Until we live in a perfect world we will have to make do with an imperfect system. This system is imperfect, but now it's a damn sight fairer."
Estirldalin sighed, "Well, I can't argue with that, Winterbell. Even so, this is going to be a testing time for the Guild. We're going to need discipline and leadership."
"Leadership?" Galbedir rolled her eyes, "Good luck with that."
Winterbell grinned, "I'm working on that one." She swept into the next room as the noise rose again, this time speculative and hopeful. Marayan followed more sedately.

"Well?" Winterbell rested her arm on the top of Ajira's desk.
"If you'd been trained, you would have made a formidable diplomat." He glanced into the next room, "You may have convinced them for now, but this battle isn't over, and there are still the other Guildhalls."
"I know. But I want to know what you think."
"I still think you're mad. But sincere, I guess."
"Friends again?" Winterbell held out her hand.
"Yeah, friends." He shook her hand, "Did you really go to jail?"
"I was in jail when they shipped me out here. I'm not exactly a voluntary immigrant."
"How odd."
"I'm asking around on that one, but the Emperor has yet to arrest me for dereliction of duty. So, how was the great meeting?"
"Not so great," Marayan gave a wincing smile, "I don't think my brothers like you much."
"I'm heartbroken. Anything else?"
"They're not going to listen to me, no matter what I say. So, Ilmeni and I have decided to join forces and do…something."
"Sounds well planned."
"We need your help."
"Okay," Winterbell nodded.
"Not here. We'll discuss it when Ilmeni arrives; she's going to sneak away as soon as she can."
"Fair enough, I've got some things to organise anyway."

Marayan leaned towards her conspiratorially, "Are you really going to get a tree house?"
"A wha?" Winterbell looked at him blankly.
"A Telvanni house," he explained.
"They're not trees," Winterbell explained, mock-affronted, "They're mushrooms, magical mushrooms."
"And that sounds so much more impressive," Marayan said with gentle sarcasm.
"They are," she protested, trying to keep a straight face.
"Who died and made you two Sweetness and Light?" Ajira interrupted them, not looking entirely happy.
"We were just…" Marayan trailed off.
"Are you all right, Ajira?" Winterbell asked.
Ajira turned to Marayan, "Are you okay with this?" she asked angrily, her hands on her hips.
"Well I…as okay as I'm going to be, yeah. She has done nothing to harm the Guild."
"Even this monopoly thing?"
"I'll make it work, Ajira," Winterbell broke in.
"You'd better, that's all."

Despite her reasonable attempt at sounding unrehearsed, Winterbell had a pocket full of notes detailing her arguments against the monopoly. She had plans for those notes, assuming Eddie had come through.

When Winterbell opened the door to her house she had to jam it open over a sheaf of parchment. Eddie had done his homework. Gadar apparently had a small flat in the St. Delyn canton and Winterbell carefully noted the address in her journal. She barely glanced at the Guild membership list, just taking long enough to make sure it was mostly complete.

Eddie's final submission was a brief handwritten summation of various people who could be reporting to Baladas. Winterbell was unsurprised that he hadn't gotten much further, and she hoped that the wizard himself hadn't gotten wind of her investigations. Winterbell knew the odds were he had more than one contact, but one was all she needed.

Winterbell wasn't too happy about getting involved in Marayan and Ilmeni's plans, whatever they may be. Their previous adventures had proved that they were both brave and determined, but not very organised. Still, she didn't want to alienate the closest thing she had to a genuine ally.

Winterbell went to Vivec. After all but saying outright that she was going to challenge Trebonius the other mages were rather circumspect around her. Even Masaline regarded her curiously.

The Vivec guildhall was busy as usual, but a large number of the people hurrying about and frowning were not patrons but mages. Winterbell didn't recognise many of them, and assumed that they were those who lived out of the towns and had enough spare gold to come in and complain. And complain they had, for Trebonius's desk was covered in letters and petitions. Winterbell shook her head; there was nothing Trebonius could do now, even if he had suddenly regained his mental powers.

As she had expected, Gadar was conspicuously absent, which suited Winterbell well. Presumably he was waiting for the worst to blow over before whispering his Telvanni masters' words in Trebonius's ear.

"Winterbell!" She turned at the sound of Trebonius's voice and plastered on a polite smile. "Have you heard the news?"
"Yes, Archmage."
"Right, well. I want you to do something about it."
"Archmage, I don't really think-"
"You've got quite a reputation for getting things done, Winterbell. So I'm charging you with your most important assignment yet. I want you to kill all the Telvanni."
Winterbell was momentarily rendered speechless. And judging by the sudden hush everyone else was as well.
"All of them?" Winterbell asked cautiously, after she regained her composure.
"Every last one. I'm counting on you, Wizard."
Winterbell did her level best to keep a straight face, "I'll get right on it," she said, wondering what Trebonius's reaction would be if she committed suicide in front of him.

Winterbell made her escape as fast as she was able, merely shaking her head at any enquires. After this latest crazy order, surely the other Guild captains would ignore Trebonius's madness no longer. Which was pushing things a little faster than Winterbell would have liked, but she wasn't about to scorn this piece of good luck.

She went to see Gadar.

Gadar reacted much the same way as Eddie had to his uninvited guest, but knew better to slam the door in her face. He sullenly let her in to his tiny flat, crowded with books and bottles.
"I don't suppose you're bringing good news," he remarked sullenly.
"You never know, I may surprise you," Winterbell replied lightly. "What are your orders regarding the monopoly?"
"I'm to make sure the Guild rolls over without a fuss, spread a bit of paranoia, that kind of thing. Calm Trebonius down, when he's coherent again."
"I think you'll find he's quite coherent at the moment."
"Why, what's he done?" Gadar asked warily as he looked at Winterbell quickly.
"He's ordered me to kill every last Telvanni in retaliation." Gadar blanched and nervously took a step back. Winterbell raised an eyebrow, "I'm not going to obey him, obviously."
"So, what do you want from me?"
"Well, I'm all in favour of the plan to calm down Trebonius, so you may as well do that. And in return," Winterbell smiled, "I'm going to do something for you. A gift, if you will."
"Wha- what are you going to do?"
Winterbell pulled a sheaf of parchment from her pocket. "I'm going to make you popular."