“You’re the lord we’re supposed to talk to?” Falynn said, looking the man up and down.

He certainly looked the part of a lord, she thought, if perhaps a bit blander than her expectations had led to. In her mind, a lord was dressed in fine clothing, gilded with precious colors and their hands adorned with flashy jewelry that they rubbed in the face of the lesser folks. Aren Rainhall’s clothes were of high quality, and there was fancy embroidery on the end of his sleeves and along the buttons that made up his coat, but they weren’t at all flashy. And what was more, he was more… friendly than she’d expect a lord to act.

“Trust me, your surprise is unsurprising,” he commented, taking note of her increased scrutiny. “But I assure you, I am none other than Aren Rainhall, Master of the Adventurer’s Guild. I have been eagerly awaiting your arrival.”

“Why would you sit in your own lobby pretending to read a book?” Now it was Leonov who spoke. He had the faintest lilt to his voice, evidence of a lifetime living on Attos. “Was it your goal to make yourself seem more learned than us?”

“I wasn’t pretending at all, dear man,” Rainhall replied, looking hurt by the suggestion. “I rarely have free time to myself, between running the guild and completing contracts with my own part. Any chance I get to relax and read some is quite welcome!”

Despite his seemingly indignant reaction to Leonov’s accusation, his congenial grin remained firmly in place. It was almost… artificial, how happy he was. Roni and Taiki seemed unimpressed. Leonov still looked rankled by the way they’d been bamboozled. Falynn, however, decided that she quite liked Aren Rainhall. Sure, he’d tricked them into thinking they were alone with themselves, but she could appreciate the fickle and mischievous way he’d done it. A funny man, she thought.

“So,” she said, deciding to take the reins of the conversation. “What do we have to do now that we’re in the guild?”

“Well,” he said, giving a little head bob in her direction, grateful that they were past the awkward moment. Well, beginning to move past it, at least. “You can do whatever you like! Merilda there will be able to connect you with a contract appropriate to your skills, and you can choose to accept it or not. The more contracts you complete, the more fame you’ll garner. The more fame and experience you have, the higher rank you earn in the organization, giving you access to more dangerous and challenging contracts. Simple system, yes?”

The four of them nodded. To Leonov, it made a kind of sense. Being a soldier and rising through the ranks functioned much like the system that Rainhall had set up. The more training and battles you took on, the better you got. And surviving multiple battles ensured that your name was floated around more often, giving you more opportunities to increase your standing and earn promotions. Of course, as a soldier, he’d shunned that part of his life, merely wishing to serve. He’d never risen above the rank of Sergeant because he refused to take part in the politics of the army.

Now, however, he wanted that fame and prestige. It was the quickest way to earn a name for himself as a warrior. He finally allowed a thin smile to appear on his face. It wasn’t a big one, but his pleasure at the idea seemed obvious. And genuine. Roni, too, always eager to challenge herself, flexed her fists as if ready to fight for a name right then and there. This was definitely an improvement over the simple life she’d enjoyed in the forest.

“Can we take a contract now?” She asked. Leonov nodded her assent to the question.

“Of course, you can!” Rainhall said jovially. “All you have to do is talk to Merilda or whoever is at the desk when you return later, should you be busy now.”

Roni made a move to turn back to the desk at once, but Falynn stopped her with one hand on the huntress’ shoulder. “Hold on, Roni.”

She turned to face Rainhall directly. “Are you sure there’s nothing else to it? Don’t we get any kind of identification to say that we’re members of the guild?”

At that moment, Merilda approached, having left her desk without them noticing. She cleared her throat politely to get their attention, then held out two medallions. They were leather, suspended by leather cords, and stamped with the emblem of the Adventurer’s Guild, two swords crossed behind a shield. Falynn noticed that Leonov and Taiki were wearing the same amulet around their necks, and she hadn’t thought to comment on it or even notice.

“Thanks,” she said meekly. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught Taiki smirking. The warrior had already risen to her feet, club resting on her shoulder, and Falynn felt a flash of annoyance, knowing that she was amused at the druid girl’s expense. “So, do we have to come back here to complete the bounties?”

“Sometimes,” The noble replied. “In some uncommon cases, you’ll return to another person. But each contract will make it clear.”

Merilda offered them a single sheet of parchment now, bearing the details of their first contract. Falynn accepted it, thinking that things were progressing a bit faster than she could keep up with. “Escort Lady Emma Breeden to the nearby druidic commune of Shallow Brook?”

Roni frowned, recognizing the name of the place. Of course, she did. It was the very commune that Falynn was from. She clicked her tongue. She had just escaped, and now she had to return. They’d think that she’d failed in her venture. But Taiki, who read the document as she passed it along, merely raised an eyebrow before handing it off to Leonov. The man looked pleased with the idea of some work. Had to start small, he thought. Of course, he did.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it,” Rainhall told the four of them. Just then, four strangers had entered the waiting area from a room deeper in the building. “My own party is here, and we’ve got a job of our own. Good luck, and welcome to the guild!”

He was gone in a swish of his long overcoat without another word. Whether intentional or not, he left the four newest members of the Adventurer’s Guild in a stunned, undecided sort of silence. Of course, the silence didn’t last long. Almost at once, they started voicing their thoughts, offering suggestions. Well, all of them except for Taiki, of course.

“We should go to the market,” Leonov suggested.

“We should get going, then,” Roni said.

“Can we try for another contract?” was Falynn’s question.

They looked at each other, stymied. To their surprise, based on what little they’d gleaned about Taiki, she was the first to offer input that was working towards making them a cohesive unit. “Do we need to visit the market? And what about this contract do you not like?”

Leonov gestured at Falynn to answer first, so she did. “Well, I’m actually from Shallow Brook.”

“So?” Leonov didn’t see the problem.

“My mother is the High Priestess of the commune,” Falynn explained. “I just left. I don’t really want to go back. They’re gonna think I failed on my adventure.”

“Then tell them you’re just working a job,” Roni said in her usual firm voice. “Who cares what they think? We’ll do our job, then leave.”

“I suppose,” Falynn said. It wasn’t really in her nature to argue. She still didn’t want to go, but she didn’t want to come across as the petulant brat.

“And you,” Taiki continued, giving the conversation another prod down a new path, and directed her gaze to Leonov. “Do you need the markets?”

He gave a single curt nod. “I’m low on rations, and I’ve been getting them from The Heron.”

“How long will it take to get down there and grab what you need?”

“I can do it on the way. She already knows I intend to pick them up after this meeting.”

 

-

 

They were finally outside the city, and a young human woman was with them, though she sat apart from them in a horse-drawn caravan. One change that they hadn’t been made aware of was that she was traveling with her daughter, as yet an indistinguishable small child wrapped in thick clothing and wearing a cloth mask. Perhaps the child was sick, Falynn had pointed out. Shallow Brook was known for their expert healers.

“I don’t care about the particulars of the job,” Leonov had stated. Taiki seemed to be with him. “All that matters is that we perform our job and move on to the next one.”

There was no disagreement with this sentiment. Roni, however, did grow tired of the slow pace of travel about an hour away from the city. As they were in the wide open plains of tall grass, she decided that she would move on to scout ahead.

“But this isn’t a dangerous area,” Falynn protested, adding in a lower voice, “Don’t leave me with these strangers.”

“You’ll be fine,” the elven ranger said. “Just keep an eye on the horse. You’re good with animals.”

Then she was gone, vanishing into the tall grass at the side of the road without a trace. Leonov let out a low whistle. “She’s an excellent stalker. I lost track of her after almost ten feet.”

“Yes,” Falynn said grumpily. “I’ve noticed that about her.”

They passed through the next hour without talking much until the forest started to appear on the horizon. That meant that they’d be at Shallow Brook in five hours, maybe four with the speed of the horse. If they could travel straight, it would only take two, but the road inside the forest wound so much that it took nearly double the time to travel under the trees. That was by design, of course. The denizens of Dagorra Forest wanted to stop people traveling through it as much as possible. The true residents or people familiar with forestcraft didn’t rely on the roads.

Falynn had expected no trouble to come as they traveled through the forest. It was her home, after all, and she knew all about the inner workings of it. But she was wrong. Rather, there was a source of trouble that she had failed to think of. They struck the wagon when they were only an hour from Shallow Brook, on the very edge of the Kromstone territory. Three figures literally swung down from nearby trees to land beside them. Falynn, recognizing them, shot to attention.

“Korna,” she said suspiciously. “What are you doing here?”

Instead of answering her, they surrounded the cart, slapping the most functional parts of it; the rods that were tied to the horses, the wheels, and the support for the tarp covering. They woodshaped the dead wood away, creating large gaps that made the structure unstable. Roni was quick to catch the one at the tarp and undid their work quickly. At least it didn’t collapse on Emma Breeden and her daughter. Then the Kromstone boys were away, laughing loudly at the mischief they’d cause.

“Gah!” Falynn screeched. The horse, startled by her sudden yell, jerked hard enough to break free of the ties holding it to the cart, and it galloped away, quickly disappearing from view. “Korna! You’ll pay for this!”

Leonov arrived around the side of the wagon, his sword and shield raised. A half second later, Taiki appeared, holding her spiked wooden club aloft. Both were ready for a fight. But there was nothing to fight. Letting out a frustrated sigh, Falynn stepped over to the wagon's shattered wheels. “Sorry about that, Lady Breeden. I’ll get the wagon fixed in a jiffy.”

“How do you expect to fix it?” Leonov asked. “We do not have the supplies to repair a wagon with us.”

“Of course we do,” Falynn said, sounding cross for the first time since they’d met. “Brace yourself, Lady Breeden. I need to lift the cart.”

Taiki snorted in derision at the statement. That twig of a girl, lift a cart? But then Falynn swiped her arms upward, and roots actually shot out of the ground. Thick, sturdy roots lifted each corner of the cart, holding it perfectly level. Then she strode, or more accurately stomped, over to a nearby tree and put a hand to its trunk. A strange shiver went through the tree, and then a thick branch above her simply fell off as if it had welted.

“Thank you,” they heard the druid girl say, giving the tree a pat. Then she’d returned and was bending the wooden branch as if it were made of clay, guiding it into the shape of a new wagon wheel with her bare hands. In less than a minute, she’d torn off what remained of the old wheel and attached the new one. Then she repeated the process for the other side.

“Okay, that’s impressive,” Taiki was forced to admit. “But what about the horse? It could take us forever to find it in this tangle.”

“I’ve got that handled just fine,” Falynn assured them. She was already kneeling down; her eyes closed as she gripped the bone amulet around her neck.

“Lord of Nature, grant me the strength to shape life between my hands,” she muttered. “Grant me the wisdom to traverse the land and the companion to carry me.”

At once, the staff in her hand began to warp. It twisted, changing shape and expanding, and moving. She wasn’t even touching it now, but it continued to shift. It grew legs, a thick body, then a head. In a matter of minutes, what had been a simple thick wooden staff was now the shape of a powerful stallion. It had no eyes or discernible face, but it stomped its front feet and let out a muffled sort of neigh. Falynn attached the newly repaired cart by fusing more wood for the connection and wiped her forehead.

“There,” she said finally. “Now we can go.”