For someone regarding Forestals as primitive troglodytes, your grasp of
facts seems to be remarkably tenuous. Perhaps your exalted position,
towering above us mere troglodytes, has made you a bit dizzy. Let me
help you get back to earth, then.

You wrote:

"You criticise Tiamat for holding all forestals responsible for the
actions of a few, yet Oakstone has a track record of exactly the same
measure. Herbs have been withheld from Mhaldor many times in the past
because of one or two. Frankly, I applaud Tiamat in daring to defy the
hypocritical, unpleasant, rigid and corrupt organisation that is
Oakstone."

Oakstone does not now withhold herbs from Mhaldor, it has not done so
since more than fifty years, and I regard it as extremely unlikely that
it will ever do so again. As far as I know, none of the organizations of
Grove-holding Forestals - those Groves that Tiamat burns down - has any
herb ban against Mhaldor in place. And let me stress that I should be
the last one to suspect of any political sympathies towards Oakstone.
And that I have, in the past, not let Oakstone or any Forestal
organization off the hook for holding all Mhaldorians responsible for
the actions of a few. Neither have I criticized them for taking just
action against those few - such as exterminators like you, Rhadamanthys.

And I damn well will criticize Tiamat for attacking the Forests in
retaliation for the actions of a few individuals! For these actions do
not defy "hypocritical, unpleasant, rigid and corrupt" Oakstone - it is
not even involved here. They do, however, draw my Grove and those of my
associates into a conflict we'd rather have no part in.

I have no love for Forestals who raid Mhaldor - as Mhaldor's official
policy seems to have been sympathetic to the Forests for some time now.
Endangering that is the work of fools. And as far as I am concerned,
Forestals involved in anti-Mhaldor raids should be tied together with
Tiamat and thrown in the maw of firey Mt. Xevius - nonetheless, I am all
too sure the volcano would spew them out again. But there is a line
here. Tiamat made sure of that. And I'm pretty sure what side of the
line I am on.

Rhadamanthys, Tiamat, do you wish the Forestals, rogue and Guilded, to
unite, against all odds? Is that what you want? We can do so, if needs
be. But who will benefit? Think about it. Not you, not Tiamat, not
Mhaldor.

Narses

Penned by my hand on the 13th of Lupar, in the year 392 AF.