“Go down the hall and make a right,” the elf instructed. “There will be a room with your actual guide. Well, not guide but he’ll give you a little orientation so you can get to know the place.”

“Thank you,” Yuna said to the elf as he walked off. She took one last glance around and before heading off in the direction the elf had pointed.

‘I forgot to ask for his name.’

As she walked, she tried to note everything she could about the guild headquarters and their operations. It was a difficult task because there was barely anything she could find. Yuna saw people walking around talking to each other but only a select few wore uniforms. This made her assume that there was a hierarchy with those in uniform near the top. But this idea was smashed when she saw a person with no uniform ordering one with a uniform.

‘I don’t even know the location of this place,’ she thought, frowning. ‘I just know it’s in a grassy field and underground. That could be anywhere.’

Yuna couldn’t even say much about the technology since she wasn’t well versed in the specifics of technology. She found holographic screens and biometric locks but that was all she could see with her eyes. 

‘Hopefully the orientation can give me more information.’

She entered the room that the elf had directed her to and found a beastkin male waiting for her inside. The man had rounded ears that resembled those of a lion and his mass of hair came down like a mane. He gave Yuna a bright smile that revealed his large canines.

“Yuna, welcome to the Valkyries,” he said pleasantly. “I’m called Gatekeeper. That is my title as well as my name here. As my title suggests, I watch the gates to this establishment and I examine everyone that enters it. It is my job to give every new recruit a brief orientation about the layout of the base and the rules. Any general questions can be directed at me. Is this all understood?”

‘He talks really formally,’ Yuna thought.

“Yes,” she said out loud.

“Then let’s go on to the orientation,” Gatekeeper said. “The headquarters of the Valkyries has a very straightforward layout for most of our members. That’s because most of our members do not have access to more than three rooms. You are part of that group. And so I will be telling you the location of these three rooms.”

He tapped the table he sat behind and a holographic display was projected into the air. With his hands, Gatekeeper manipulated the screen until a three dimensional map of the room Yuna was sitting in was shown. 

“This is part of the lobby. More specifically, it is my office,” he said. The map zoomed out of the room into the large open area Yuna had first arrived to. “This is the main lobby. This is the room where most people come through. Now let’s go on to the three rooms rooms that you will have access to.”

The map zoomed and Yuna saw a room that contained what looked to be a few tubes that resembled transporters.

“This is the transportation room,” Gatekeeper announced. “There is always an operator available and it’s open twenty fours hours a day, seven days a week. The only time it is closed is during maintenance, which will be announced ahead of time, and emergencies. The transportation room will transport you to a hovercraft which will then send you off to your intended location.”

The three dimensional map changed again and showed a hallway with a number of doors spaced out. 

“This is the living quarters. You have access to this part of the headquarters but you will not be given a room here unless you can prove that you need one. Some examples of when you would need one could be that you are homeless, about to be homeless, are in danger, or all of them combined. Once we can verify this, you will be given a room.”

Another appeared and this one contained a number of tables and chairs as well as trash receptacles. 

“This is the mess hall. You come here whenever you are hungry or simply looking for a snack. There are no set times for meals and it is open for the entire day. Now that I have explained to you what these rooms are, I will tell you how to reach them. Simply walk down the hall and you will find them. The doors are labeled. Any questions?”

“Yes,” Yuna said slowly. “Are there more than three rooms here in this base?”

“Of course,” Gatekeeper smiled. “But these are the ones that you are given complete access to due to your status. At times, you will be allowed into the briefing room or the office of a higher up. Other than that, those three rooms are the only ones you can enter.”

“So if I get promoted, I will gain access to other rooms?”

“To put it simply, yes. However,” he said, putting up a finger. “You will need to be promoted quite a few ranks up in order to gain access. The first few tiers still only give access to the three rooms.”

“How do I get promoted?”

“Promotions are given out depending on how well you perform on your missions. The ones who give the promotions are the managers. At least up until a point. They can give you a promotion up until you have obtained trusted status. After that, the elites will determine whether or not you should move up.”

“Trusted?” Yuna repeated. She had never heard of such a rank before. “How do ranks work here? What is the hierarchy?”

“It’s simple,” Gatekeeper replied. “You are simply a “member” right now. Once you have some time with us, you will be promoted to “senior”. After senior, the next rank is “trusted”. Once you have achieved Trusted, you are then given a position. You can work as a manager, work for intelligence, or even work under me. And that’s it.”

“Are there any higher positions than those?”

“Technically, yes. Those positions are the ones taken on by the leaders of the Valkyries. However, no one has ever been given one so far.”

“These are the elites you mentioned before, correct?”

“That is correct,” he nodded. “There are seven Elites. They are rarely seen and live on a completely different location. I do not have the authority to disclose any more information on them. Are there any other questions?”

Yuna had many questions. How many people were in the guild? What were the main objectives of the guild? Where was the guild located? And more importantly, who are the leaders of the guild.

‘But I don’t think he’s going to answer any of those if what he just said is any indication. And the amount of people in the guild should be fluctuating because of the ongoing recruitment. Wait.’

“How do I receive a mission?” Yuna asked, looking up.

“You will receive a notification that a mission is being assigned to you,” Gatekeeper explained. 

“But my contact information was never asked for?”

“You will receive a notification that a mission is being assigned to you,” he repeated with a smile.

“How do they know what kind of mission to assign me? What if a combat mission is assigned and I’m not suitable for that role?”

“You will receive a notification that a mission is being assigned to you.”

“I see.”

‘So I won’t be getting any answers on that.’

“Are there any other questions? I will try to answer what I can,” he asked.

“Do you know what kind of missions there are?” Yuna asked hopefully.

“I do not have the authority to disclose such information. I apologize.”

“Then, can you tell me how to return to my home?”

“That, I can help you with,” he said, his smile brightening. “Just go to the transportation room and the operator will explain the rest. But before you go, I would recommend that you get something to eat. Based on the time you arrived, I assume you didn’t have dinner yet?”

Yuna shook her head.

“I thought so. You can either go to the mess hall and obtain a meal to take with you before you leave or you can return home and eat. I believe you are from Junction? Is that correct?” Gatekeeper asked.

“That is correct,” she replied. 

“Then I think it would be appropriate to inform you that guild members receive a discount at the Hideout. Their food is excellent.”

“Thank you for telling me.”

“Do have any other inquiries?” 

“No, thank you.”

“Then you are free to leave,” Gatekeeper announced. “We are pleased to have you here and hope that you will do your best in helping us achieve our missions. Until next time, Yuna.”

He waved goodbye to her as she left the room, waving back. She walked to the hall and stopped before going any further.

‘Let’s eat first,’ she decided. Then she marched down the hall until she reached the mess hall.