A little over a week after the Aptitude Ceremony a cart rolled lazily towards the village of Eastlodge. The cart didn’t appear to be anything other than an ordinary cart pulled by midnight black mares, although there was a white cloth covering the contents of said cart. What really stood out about the cart was its passengers.
A very pale man sat at the head of the cart driving it, he had on a black wide brimmed hat, a white button up dress shirt, and black dress pants with a brass buckle. The driver held the reins of the mares with a shovel leaned against his shoulder. To the drivers right was a cloaked man in battle worn plate mail, speckled with rust, dirt, and dry blood. He carried a scythe, using the shaft of the weapon as a walking stick. To the left of the driver was a figure wrapped entirely in white bandages, yellow fluid could be seen leaking from the bandages along with blood. The figure slouched over while walking, almost dragging their arms in the dirt. Every once and awhile the figure would be wracked with a coughing fit. Behind the cart followed a man in a black top hat with a bird beak mask, and a black robe that seemed to billow in an unseen wind. He carried a cane with a skull on top made of silver with obsidian eyes.
The carts approach to the village did not go unnoticed, quickly Mayor Bueacanon was informed of its approach.
“So they’re here already, I didn’t expect any of the sects to arrive so quickly. Oh well, at least we can get the body collecting for the month done early.” Turning to the assistant who had informed him of the carts. “Go inform Bruce, even though he probably has already heard, of the arrival of the Undertaker’s Guild.” He then added, as if just remembering. “Inform Connor too, after all you don’t say no to the Undertaker’s Guild when they come for your gifted.”
“Yes sir.” The assistant replied before running off to complete the tasks she had just been given.
Before the Mayor’s assistant came, Connor knew the Undertaker’s Guild was in town. So when the woman appeared at his front door he was already packed. “This is your final chance to say goodbye, are you sure you don’t want to say anything to your father?” The woman asked as Connor closed the door of his home for the last time.
“There’s nothing else to say.” Connor responded. He and his father had spoken very little after Aptitude Day but this didn’t bother Connor much. His whole life Connor had had a strange relationship with his father, they spoke seldomly and most of what they talked about was the farm but now that he was leaving they truly had little to talk about. He was satisfied with how he and his father had said goodbye, and looking back on it he realized that his life hadn’t been as bad as he thought it was. It had been boring but not bad.
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Now though he was ready for a change, and quite a change it would be. “Let’s go.”
The assistant looked at Connor then shrugged. “Whatever you say.” The duo made their way up the road and to the town square. Everybody in the town seemed to be going the same way.
Once they reached the town square, they saw a cart parked in the center of the square being loaded with bodies. A large man was opening caskets and the pale man was taking the bodies to the cart.
The assistant pointed at the pale man and 3 other people in the square. “Those are the Undertaker’s Guild representatives. They usually come near the end of the month but they’ve made a special exception for us. Obviously it’s due to you.”
“I see.” Connor replied then looked back at the representatives. ‘I guess I’ve never noticed them before because they were always there, doing such a mundane task. That’s going to be me.’ He looked at the caskets and bodies. ‘Kinda gross though.’
The assistant turned to Connor. “It looks like they’re almost done loading the bodies, Let’s go, we don’t want to hold them up.”
Connor smiled. “All right, let’s go!” With that, Connor and the assistant made their way through the crowd towards the cart. The town square wasn’t a very pleasant place to be at that moment, the smell of rotting corpses along with the heat and sweat of the crowd made it very stifling, almost to the point of being unbearable.
By the time Connor and the assistant had reached the front of the crowd the last body had been loaded and the Guild members were preparing the cart to leave Eastlodge. The large man who had been helping lose the bodies wiped his forehead and glanced over at Connor and the assistant. “Ah, there you are Dalia and Connor.” The man straightened his back then addressed the pale man. “Undertaker Karl, this is Connor the deadly steel man.”
Karl looked at where the large man was pointing with a smile. “Wonderful, and just in time for our departure too.” He jumped down from the cart and approached Connor, offering him his hand.
Connor took his hand and shook it. “Nice to meet you, I’m Connor.” ‘Wow, his hand is really cold.’
“The pleasures all mine, I’m Undertaker Karl but you can refer to me as just Karl.” Karl said with a smile. Although because he could see him more clearly Connor noticed that Karl smile seemed forced, almost as if it was hard for him to move his face.
Karl released Connor’s hand then motioned for the other Guild members to come. Karl pointed to the man in the cloak and armor. “That brooding hunk of Metal is Death Knight Acolyte Heinrich” pointing at the man wrapped in bandages “that pestilent mass of puss and poor hygiene is Acolyte Manfred and he” pointing at the man in the black road and leather beard mask “is venerable Grave Warden Nikolas.”
Addressing Connor directly, “I’d like to extend the warmest greetings possible to you, welcome to the Undertaker’s Guild.”