Anna pushed the door to the adventurer’s guild open and stepped inside. She walked towards the rear counter, glancing around the room as she made her way there.

Sheesh, it’s empty in here. I must be the only adventurer that likes getting up in the morning.

She walked up to the counter, and the same attendant she’d spoken to walked over, a bored look on his face.

“You’re early,” he said.

“I usually am,” Anna replied.

“Well, I guess I won’t have to listen to old Agustus complain about having his time wasted,” the attendant said.

“Is that the appraiser’s name?” she asked.

“It is,” the attendant replied.

“I’ve never met anyone named Agustus before,” Anna said.

“That’s odd. It’s a fairly common name,” the attendant replied.

“Maybe around here it is, but not where I’m from,” Anna said.

“Where are you from, anyway?” he asked.

“Therondale,” Anna replied.

“You’re a long way from home,” he said.

“Yeah,” Anna replied.

“So, are there a lot of lady adventurers in Therondale?” he asked.

“No, not really,” Anna replied.

“So, how’d you end up joining the guild then?” he asked.

“Honestly, it just kind of happened,” Anna replied.

“How does joining a guild just kind of happen?” the attendant asked.

“Well, I was working as a barmaid when a party of adventurers showed up in my village. They told me I had magic and invited me to join them, and I’ve been with them ever since, mostly anyway,” Anna replied.

“So, you’re a mage then?” he asked.

“Not exactly. Something is wrong with me, so I can’t cast spells, but I can power magical items,” Anna replied.

“Well, that explains the magic sword I suppose,” he said.

“Yeah,” Anna replied.

“Well, he should be here soon, so you can wait at one of the tables,” the attendant said.

“Okay,” Anna replied.

She walked over to the nearest table and sat down, kicking her feet on the chair as she waited for the appraiser to arrive.

People began to stream into the guild hall. Most were adventurers either turning in contracts or taking new ones, though she did see a few clients making requests. A young boy walked into the guild hall and looked around nervously before heading for the rear counter. When he reached it, the attendant looked down at him and scowled.

“Beat it! I already told you, go to the guards! This isn’t a charity!” he said.

“I can pay, you see!” the boy replied.

He held up his hand and opened his palm, showing the attendant a few grimy copper coins.

“That’s not even enough for the guild fee, let alone the payout for the contract!” the attendant said.

“Please help me find my big brother! He’s the only family I have left!” the boy replied.

She felt something wiggle in her chest, so she slid out of her chair and walked over to the boy.

“I’ll help you,” she said.

He looked up at her with wide eyes.

“You will?” he asked.

“Yes,” she replied.

She took his hand and led him back to the table where she’d been sitting.

“So, tell me what happened,” she said.

They sat down, and the boy took a deep breath.

“My brother found a job, and he went to work, but he never came back!” the boy replied.

“How long has he been gone?” Anna asked.

“Two weeks!” the boy replied.

Shit! Thokri said the longer someone’s missing, the harder it is to find them!

“Do you know where he went to work?” she asked.

“Yes! And I went there, and they told me they hadn’t seen him, but they’re lying!” the boy replied.

“We’ll go and talk with them after I’m done here,” Anna said.

“Thank you,” he replied.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

His voice was soft, and he looked down at the table. It was clear that the guild hall, or perhaps her presence, was making him nervous. Unsure of how to comfort the boy, she just smiled at him and waited patiently for the appraiser to arrive.

Sometime later, she heard the bell ring ten times in the distance. An old man with a bushy white beard walked out of the back room and over to the counter. He said something to the attendant, and the younger man pointed directly at her. The old man walked over to her table and bowed slightly.

“I am Master Agustus, at your service,” he said.

She stood up and held out her hand.

“I’m Anna. It’s nice to meet you,” she replied.

He shook her hand.

“The pleasure is all mine. Now, where’s this magic sword of yours?” he asked.

She patted Ted’s hilt.

“Right here,” she replied.

He eyed the sword for a moment before nodding.

“Well, come along. Let’s get started,” he said.

He turned and started to head for the back of the guild hall. She turned to the boy and held her hand out.

“Wait here. I’ll be back soon,” she said.

“Yes’m,” the boy replied.

She smiled at him again before turning and following Agustus into the back of the guild hall. They passed by a few rooms before entering one.

The room was disorganized and smelled of old parchment and perhaps a bit of mold. A large table sat in the center of the room. It was covered in a variety of strange implements that sparkled with magic. Agustus walked over to the table and tapped it with his finger.

“Please place the sword here,” he said.

She drew her sword, walked over to the table, and placed it next to the tool. Agustus’s eyes went wide when he saw the blade, and he took a step back.

“It’s one of the black blades!” he said.

“Yeah, it was, but I beat up the fifth general and took it from him. It got broken when I did that, but then when I stabbed a man who was trying to force himself on a woman, it sucked out all his blood, fixed itself, and it started talking,” she replied.

He gave her an incredulous look.

“It speaks?” he asked.

“I do,” Ted replied.

Agustus looked down at Ted and raised his eyebrow.

“None of the black blades can speak,” he said.

“Really?” Anna asked.

“Yes, every one of them has been captured at least once throughout the ages, and when they were in humanity’s possession, they were studied carefully,” he replied.

“Really? I didn’t know that,” she said.

“It’s not common knowledge,” he replied.

“Okay, so why does Ted talk if the black blades can’t?” Anna asked.

“I have no idea, so let’s see if we can figure it out,” Agustus replied.

He picked up what looked like a jeweler’s loop and put it over his right eye before leaning over the sword. The loop started to sparkle with magic, and he began to look the sword over, humming as he did so. After a few moments, he flipped Ted over and examined the other side before standing up straight and taking off the loop.

“Just how broken was this sword?” he asked.

“It looked like an old iron sword that someone stuck in slime for a week,” Anna replied.

“Might I ask exactly how it ended up in such a state? I was under the impression the black blades were nigh on indestructible,” he asked.

“Uh, I’d rather not talk about it,” Anna replied.

He sighed.

“I understand. Anyway, back to the sword,” he said.

He gestured at the blade.

“From what I can tell, it was basically destroyed. Even the spell gem in the hilt was shattered. So, when it was exposed to blood, it wasn’t able to repair itself properly,” he added.

“What do you mean? It looks just fine to me,” Anna replied.

“Yes, the sword itself was repaired just fine, but the enchantments are haphazard at best. Honestly, it looks almost organic, including the repairs done to the spell gem itself, which explains why it can speak now,” he said.

“It does?” Anna asked.

“Yes, you see, spell gems are highly complex and control the flow of mana, or in this case darkness, through the various enchantments on whatever magical device they are embedded in. Now, because of the extent of the damage done to this spell gem when it repaired itself, it reconnected the severed pathways incorrectly which ended up creating an artificial mind of sorts,” he replied.

“So, Ted’s a person by accident?” Anna asked.

“Basically, yes,” Agustus replied.

Anna grinned.

“Well, that makes two of us,” she said.

He raised his eyebrow again and gave her an odd look before coughing into his hand.

“Anyway, because of the way the spell gem repaired itself, most of the enchantments won’t work, but there are a few you might find useful,” he said.

“How am I supposed to use them? I don’t have darkling power,” Anna replied.

“You don’t need it anymore. The enchantment had prevented mana from powering it,” he said.

“Why did it need an enchantment like that? I thought the darklings’ power was too different from mana to work,” Anna replied.

“Oh, they are very different, but they interact with the world in a similar way which means enchantments for one type of power will often work with another, though it will require about ten times the amount. The same actually goes for divine artifacts as well,” he said.

“That’s good to know. So, what can Ted do then?” Anna asked.

“As far as I can tell, there are three usable enchantments. First is the repair spell. That can be activated by exposing the sword to fresh human blood or by cycling your mana inside of the spell gem,” he replied.

“So, I don’t have to kill someone to fix him. Well, that’s good to know,” Anna said.

“I can imagine. Now, the repair spell will also make the blade more durable and sharper if you activate it while the sword is whole,” he replied.

“Seriously? Ted’s already made from adamantine. How much stronger can he get?” She asked.

“According to the old stories, the black blades were able to go edge to edge with the hero’s weapons, and those are strong enough to cleave through dragon’s scale,” he replied.

“No shit!” she said.

“I shit you not,” he replied.

They both chuckled at the bad joke.

“So, what are the other enchantments?” she asked.

“Well, one of them allows you to call the sword to your hand as long as it's nearby,” he replied.

“Oh, I saw that one!” Anna said.

“Ah, good. Well, you activate it by pushing your mana through the spell gem and then down into the grip. After it has absorbed a good amount of it, all you have to do is hold your hand out and push a little mana into the air, and the sword will come to you,” he replied.

“That’s great! So what’s the last enchantment?” she asked.

He frowned.

“I’m hesitant to even mention it, but it’s better that you know so you don’t accidentally activate it,” he replied.

“Is it that bad?” she asked.

“It’s a curse, a nasty one,” he replied.

“A curse! What kind of curse?” she asked.

“The kind that makes any wound inflicted by the sword never heal, even if it’s treated with a divine blessing,” he replied.

“That’s horrible! Who would make something like that?” she asked.

“The Dark One,” he replied.

“Oh, right,” she said.

“Anyway, it’s active by pushing mana into the spell gem and then around the edge of the blade,” he replied.

“Well, I’m never going to do that,” she said.

“I don’t blame you,” he replied.

“So, is there anything else I should know?” she asked.

“No, that covers the enchantments. Though, I am going to give you a document that states that this sword is not one of the black blades but a wholly new weapon created from the remnants of one. Just in case you run into any trouble with the authorities,” he replied.

“I appreciate it,” she said.

He walked over to a messy desk and rifled through the papers before finding a blank sheet. He then pulled a magic quill from his pocket and scribbled on the paper before signing it. He returned and handed her the paper. She thanked him and then folded the messy letter up and stuffed it in her pocket before taking out the silver she owed and handing it to him.

“Thank you very much,” he said.

“You’re welcome,” she replied.

“Oh, and one more thing,” he said.

“What is it?” she asked.

“Nice tits,” he replied.

He smirked at her.

“Yeah, they are great. Well, you have a nice day,” she said.

She turned and walked out of the room, heading back to the front of the guild hall where the boy was still waiting.

“You ready to go?” she asked.

“Yes’m,” he replied.

He stood up, and they walked out of the guild hall together.