"So what brought you back here so quickly? I thought you and your companion had plans?" The old man sat back in his chair.
"We did, but we stumbled into a problem." Aurora proceeded to explain what had happened this morning. "I'm not entirely sure what they were after. The man they were fighting mentioned some kind of medallion. Any ideas what they could be after?"
"Hmm…So it's them again, huh? Continuing to be a parasite as usual." He sneered.
"Them? Have you encountered them before?"
Lord Blackwood looked at her with confusion. "Are you saying you don't recognize them?"
She raised her eyebrow and crossed her arms. "Should I? They looked like typical thugs to me."
"They are with the group responsible for the devastation of your hometown."
"WHAT!?" Aurora stood up in a hurry. "Why aren't we working on finding them!"
"Now, now, calm down, we are working on it. They cover their tracks pretty well. In the meantime, I have a request to make of you and Camilla."
"A request? What would it entail?" Her eyebrows raised as she sat back down, regaining her composure.
"Nothing difficult, there is just a cave outside a nearby town. I need someone trustworthy to scout out for me." He placed a small bag on the desk. "This is an advance payment of 10 gold coins if you choose to accept it."
An advance of 10 gold just to scout out some cave. Sounds like I know what we're doing next. "I accept the request." She secured the gold in her bag before standing up. "Do you have a map to the cave?"
"Of course." He opened a drawer and pulled out a small parchment. "Here you are. The path to take is marked."
Aurora accepted it and placed it alongside the gold. "Then I'd best be on my way to meet Camilla. I'll register at the guild and grab a quest to cover our tracks before we depart." She promptly left and made her way to the guild.
~~~~~~~~~~
Camilla walked into the Adventurer's guild and took in her surroundings. The large open lobby had a long circular reception counter positioned straight in front of the door. To the right was a seating area filled with around 10 long tables with benches on each side. A small kitchen and bar were along the side and back wall bordering the reception desk.
To the left was a more open common area with a fireplace, some couches, and tables.
A request board filled with sheets of paper sat to the right of a U-shaped staircase that went up three floors. Adventurers filled the tables in the kitchen area, laughing as they chugged mugs of beer while exchanging tales of their journeys. Other parties crowded around the job board, bantering among themselves before choosing one. Their steps caused the wood floors to creak as they submitted the request to a clerk for approval.
Camilla smiled at the warm atmosphere before she moved towards the clerk behind the desk. "Hello, I'd like to register here today."
The clerk glanced up briefly before grabbing a few documents and placing them on the counter next to the quill. "Please fill out these forms, and then we can get you registered."
Camilla slowly looked over the required information before filling it out.
Name: Camilla Dawnblade
Race: Human
Occupation: Squire
Skills: Intermediate earth magic, Advanced swordsmanship, Basic tracking
Age: 27
The other forms consisted of regulations and a form for release of liability upon death of the applicant. These seem reasonable. We shouldn't be stuck as newbies for long either. She turned in the papers and took an empty seat on one of the couches, a long sigh escaping her. Her fight kept replaying in her mind, focusing on the survivor's looks. The only odd thing that kept appearing to her was the dragon claw emblem they all wore. Just who is this group? Always seeming a step ahead at every encounter.
Her thoughts were interrupted when Brandy, the clerk, called her back to the counter. "Here is your guild card and tags. The card proves your identity, and the tags are for your rank. We keep a copy of your card if you ever lose it; however, if you lose the tags, you will have to undergo a reassessment. If you pass, we will issue you another one."
She handed over the two items. "Do you know how the ranks work?"
"I know how one increases their rank, but not all of the ranks that exist."
"Alright. Well, new adventurers start as unranked. After you complete your first quest successfully, you will be promoted to Sand rank. Afterwards comes Dirt, Pebble, Rock, Quartz, Ruby, and finally Diamond rank."
Camilla raised her brow. "That is a rather unorthodox classification."
Brandy could only let out a light chuckle. "Well, the guild master is a rather eccentric man. He claimed he couldn't stand being the same as everyone else."
"I…see. It's…certainly unique." She was about to ask a question, but felt a gaze on her. Her eyes snapped up to her left, looking out a high window. Three cloaked figures stood on the roof of the adjacent building, their eyes watching her movements momentarily before they vanished.
"Sheath your blade, young lady. Chasing ghosts is pointless." A bulky adventurer in ornate silver armor and wielding a longsword spoke. His words made her realize she had drawn her sword and sliced an edge off the counter. Brandy and the other two clerks were holding each other in fear.
Camilla took several breaths to calm herself, her murderous feelings fading as well. She turned towards Brandy and bowed. "I apologize that my sudden outburst frightened you." She rose, turning to the adventurer who stopped her. "Thank you for your intervention. If you hadn't, I would've chased them through the entire city."
"It was nothing. You showed some potential with the sword. Are you training to become a Knight?"
"Ah, yes. I just completed my Squire training before coming here," she crossed her arms in front of her, shifting her weight onto her back leg.
"Now now, no need for skepticism. I just happen to know the captain of the guard here. I can put in a word for you if you wish to become one." He turned to walk away. "I shall return in a week. Give me your answer then."
She watched him leave while pondering his offer when Aurora entered the guild, running over to Camilla.
"Are you okay? I felt your aura shift from down the street!" She looked Camilla over like a concerned mother would a baby.
"Aurora, I'm fine. Really just relax."
"Alright. If you say so." She wrapped her arms around her for a brief hug while whispering. "I'll go sign myself up. You find us an easy quest we can do nearby."
Aurora ran over to the counter and began filling out her own documents. Brandy helped her as well, giving her the same explanation she had given Camilla regarding the rankings.
Name: Aurora Frostwind
Race: Half Elf
Occupation: Ranger
Skills: Adept marksmanship, Advanced tracking, intermediate stealth
Age: 38
Brandy filed her paperwork as Aurora joined her friend in locating a quest. "Ooo~ What about this one!?" She pointed to one offering 10 gold to eliminate 4 demonic boars that had been terrorizing the local farmers just outside the city.
"Sure." Camilla grabbed the quest, and they returned to the counter right as Brandy returned, holding Aurora's card and tags. "We would like to take on this quest."
Brandy looked it over for a moment before stamping "accepted" at the top of the page. "You have 5 days to complete the quest before we repost it. If you fail to complete the quest in time, you will need to pay a penalty of 10 silver. Furthermore, you will be barred from accepting another quest for seven days."
"Understood, Brandy. Thank you again. Let's go, Camilla." Aurora ran out of the building, her partner close behind. "We need to head out of town to the south."
"Alright, lead the way then." They traveled through the city for several minutes until they reached the south gate. The guards waved them through, having noticed the guild tags hanging from their necks.
"Well that was simple enough. Now the hard part." Aurora stopped and pulled out the map, quickly discerning the direction they needed to travel. "Alright lets go." She took off running, Camilla keeping pace with her. They ran for several miles until stopping next to a river.
"We're close now. We'll rest for a moment before we continue on." Aurora was hardly fatigued, but Camilla felt her lungs burning. It seems I still need to work on my endurance.
Once Camilla had recovered, the duo made their way across the river, carefully moving from boulder to boulder. They made it across safely, with Aurora checking the map one last time, and headed into the forest. They traveled for another mile before Aurora signaled Camilla to stop and hide.
Once Aurora made sure the coast was clear, they approached the cave. "Ready?"
"Let's go!" The duo moved into the cave, unaware they were being followed.