Sam looked around the room they had been led into. It was a plain room with nothing hanging on the white wooded walls. There were several comfortable-looking chairs along one side, what looked like a large scale built into the floor opposite the chairs, and a barred teller window opposite the door. No one was at the window at the moment, so Sam wandered around the room aimlessly. She examined the scale and found it was what she had thought. Her weight was plainly displayed on the wall above the scale when she stepped on it.

"It is for calculating job rewards," Nara said helpfully. "Some monster parts are valued by weight. The steaks you have, for example, would be sold by weight, not quantity."

Sam nodded in understanding and continued wandering around the room. Nara walked over to the teller's window and slipped a silver coin in a slot next to the teller bars, causing a timer to pop up on the back wall. The timer showed two hours but didn't start counting down. Nara then walked over and sat in one of the chairs with her hands in her lap. Sam could tell the woman was nervous but she kept her composure quite well.

They didn't have to wait long. A tall man with a frilly white shirt and black leather pants slid into a chair behind the teller's bars after only a few minutes. He looked at the two women closely before speaking, "Miss Evander, it is good to see you again. It seems we will not have to intervene on your behalf after all," Nara just stared at the man in confusion, so he continued, "Come now, young lady. You didn't think Arron's transgressions went unnoticed, did you?" He scoffed, "We knew you were bound to him as a slave the moment you stepped into this hall those few days ago. In fact," he dug around in a pile of papers he had brought with him and, pulling one out, he slipped it under his window to Nara who got up and took it with cautious movements.

Nara read the paper, and her head snapped up in surprise, "This is a job to bring Arron in for suspected slavery!" She exclaimed. "I thought the guild always remained neutral. Why would you go against the Children of the Light?"

The clerk smiled at her. "The Adventurers Guild can act against members who break our tenets in whatever way we see fit. Arron broke a tenet, so he was going to be disciplined. He thought he would avoid detection by not allowing you in this room." The man chuckled, "We are the most powerful guild on the planet with access to magics that defy reason." He shook his head, "That man was either a complete buffoon or far too arrogant for his limited capabilities." He looked to the two of them, suddenly serious. "We will, however, have to discuss how you have been released from Arron. But I am getting ahead of myself." He pushed his chair back, stood up, and with a slight bow, he said, "My name is Evan, and I am the chief evaluations officer of the Helms Peak branch of the Adventurers Guild." Sitting back down, Evan flicked a small switch on his desk, and the room's white turned slightly yellow.

Sam jumped a little. This was not how she expected things to go; it had her on edge. It didn't help that she heard the door's lock slide shut when the room turned yellow. Turning on her mana sight, the entire room exploded in color, mostly yellow, but virtually every other color was represented as well.

"Evan noticed Sam looking around the room and said, "At your level, you will be mostly blind trying to discern the magic used here, Miss Moura. I would suggest you—"

"Arcane runes," Sam stated, interrupting Evan. "There are hundreds of them! No, thousands!" She was looking around with wonder at the thousands of intricate swirls and hard angles that covered every smooth surface in the room. "How long did it take to carve these?" She whispered mostly to herself.

“How can you possibly see the runes? But more importantly, how do you know what arcane magic looks like?” Evan fixed Sam with a stare that told her she better tell the truth.

"I turned off the yellow magic in my mana sight, and I use arcane magic," Sam answered honestly, still staring at the runes. They flared brightly at her words, then went dormant again.

"Ahem," Evan got Sam's attention. "Thank you for your honest answer. Now, shall we continue this interview, Miss Samantha?"

"Oh, sure." She turned off her mana sight, and the yellow hue filled the room again. "But one question. Why did the runes flare when I spoke?"

"I will explain, but first," Evan said in a professional tone, "For the record, this is the entry interview for Miss Nara Evander, a Moonblight Mana Reaper currently bonded with Mister Naris Blight; they are posing as a Human Sorceress. Also in the room to participate in this entry interview is Miss Samantha Moura, a Human Pathfinder. Ladies, the yellow color in this room will remain as long as your answers are honest to the best of your knowledge. The hue will turn red if you are trying to hide the truth or are telling an outright lie. If you do not wish to disclose information, say so, and we will move on. But suppose I determine the question must be answered. In which case, I will ask you to explain why you do not wish to answer the question. If you can satisfy me that your reasoning is sound, then I will allow the question to go unanswered." He grinned at Sam, "like the fact that you can wield arcane magic. That young lady will never leave this room, and I suggest you do not disclose it to anyone else. Everyone needs to keep some secrets, and the guild respects that. Now, if you would each speak two truths and a lie, we can confirm the room is functioning and move on."

Sam started, "I'm an interdimensional woman of mystery looking for a good time. I'm a female; at least, I was the last time I checked. And I'm a psychopath." The room glowed a red hue when she said she was a psychopath, which actually relieved her a little. She felt she may have been walking a fine line as of late.

Evan's eyebrows disappeared into his hairline when the room didn't react to her interdimensional woman of mystery comment. Still, he kept his composure nonetheless.

Nara's statements were more reserved, "My name is Nara Evander. I was enslaved with a blood contract by the Children of the Light operating under the rule of the Church of the Light until yesterday. I have murdered others of my own free will." The light went red when Nara said she was a murderer. Another thing that relieved Sam. However, she did note the "my own free will" part of the statement.

Their lie detector test complete, Evan asked them to tell him about their recent histories without getting into too much detail. He guided the conversation with pointed questions to keep the interview from getting off track. Eventually, he was convinced they weren't criminals and had done nothing wrong regarding the deaths of two guild members or the three other bodies they produced. He said the guild would investigate the attack and deliver the bodies to the city guard for disposal and to see if they had kin living in the city and if there may have been a bounty out for them that Sam and Nara could collect.

Evan then moved on to the closing of the job they had completed. He collected the hides and gave them a bonus for the alpha. Sam didn't mention the token she had received. He waved the entry fee of ten silvers each due to their underhanded treatment by an acting guild member. He gave both of the women probationary silver-grade memberships. They swore an oath to abide by the guild's tenets and were each handed a small leather-bound rule book afterward.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Closing the job and collecting payment took an hour and a half once the timer Nara had paid the silver for started counting. Sam was happy; the experience made her feel like there may be hope for this world after all. The guild at least sounded like it was on the up and up. She figured time would tell, but she hadn't had any weird vibes. Sam had been a little surprised during the interview when Evan asked what a Sorceress and a Pathfinder were, explaining there were no such classes in the guild's records as he searched through a screen displayed from a crystal set into his desk. Neither Sam nor Nara had wanted to answer the question, so he had let it drop. Sam had understood him not knowing what a Pathfinder was, but Sorceress seemed apparent to her. She decided to ask Nara about it later.

"Miss Samantha," Evan called as they were about to exit the room. Sam turned back to him with a questioning look, and he asked, "Why did you change the oath to only include Hallista and the two moons?"

"Because this is the second planet I have been on in the last two weeks," Sam said. The room stayed yellow. She opened the door, and the two women walked out. Sam had a Cheshire grin on her face at the dumbfounded look on Evan's face as he watched them go.

After they walked out, Evan stared at the open doorway for a long time. He finally looked away, mumbling, "Interdimensional mystery indeed. We are lucky to have found you before a cult or, worse yet, the blasted Church of the Light.” His face scrunched up in disdain when he thought of the so-called holy Church of the Light that had been trying its best to control and enslave the population of Hallista for hundreds of years. Shuffling his stack of papers, he left the room confident the guild’s two newest members would be productive additions to the ranks and making a personal note to check in on their progress from time to time.

***

Once out of the contract completion, interrogation, and application room, Nara bounced up and down, clapping her hands. She turned to Sam with a huge grin, "We are members! And we are silver rank below level fifty! That's unheard of!"

“We do fight way above our weight class,” Sam said.

"I assume you mean we can compete as equals against more powerful opponents," Nara said, and Sam nodded in affirmation.

Nara grabbed Sam's hand, exclaiming, "Let's look at the job board!" She was excitedly vibrating, "Then when we find a job we want, we can start planning what we will need to outfit ourselves." Nara started counting down with her fingers, "We need to sell all our loot. Then we will need supplies. We will need a tent, some better camping equipment, maybe a couple of cots? It would sure beat sleeping on the ground. I personally think we… mmff."

Sam stopped Nara with a hand gripped over her mouth. When the girl kept trying to talk, Sam grabbed her in a headlock and clamped her hand down even harder. She considered pinching off her nose, too. She didn’t though because she had a sneaking suspicion that no one on this planet actually needed to breathe.

Sam leaned her lips close to Nara's ear and whispered, "Shh, no more talkie time. Now it's drinkie time." She smiled at Nara's furrowed brows and the muffled sounds coming through her hand. She continued whispering, "First beer. Then, more beer. Then, even more beer. After that, maybe some food with more beer. Then, a hot bath and a bed for at least eight hours. I don't even care if I sleep just so long as I am in bed for eight uninterrupted hours." Sam thought momentarily, tapping her finger to her teeth with the hand that wasn't currently strangling her companion, "maybe thirty-six hours in the bed." With that, Sam removed her hand from Nara's mouth.

Nara didn't miss a breath, "perfect! We can discuss our plans while we eat—,"

Sam's hand clamped securely over the excited woman's mouth again. "Okay, we will have to do this the hard way."

Sam half marched, half dragged the Tenarian over to the large bar, waving her free hand at the bartender, who looked bored as he polished a glass behind the bar. When she got his attention, she placed a couple of silver coins on the bar, saying, "A couple of beers for me and my mute friend here, please." She flashed him her most winning smile and placed another six silver coins on the bar, "keep them coming. It's been a long week."

The barkeep looked at the coins, then Sam, and finally at Nara, and asked, "Ma'am, are you in distress?"

A series of muffled sounds came from Sam's hand, and Nara glared at Sam. Who just smiled back innocently and looked back at the barkeep, saying, "Like I said, she's mute."

“I can hear her trying to talk,” he retorted dryly.

"She doesn't like talking to strangers then," Sam said.

"Ma'am, I am going to need you to unhand your fellow guild member before I can complete this transaction," the barkeep replied.

“Damn, this barkeep is absolutely no fun!” Sam thought before saying, "Look—" She stopped and read his name badge, "Ken, my mute friend here keeps trying to talk shop when all I want to do is have a drink and maybe some of that delicious…whatever it is you have roasting over there and sleep for a couple of days straight. But overall, I want to decompress from two of the longest weeks of my life. Is that too much to ask?"

Ken, the fun sucker, as Sam now referred to him, just shook his head and started pushing the coins back across the bar toward Sam.

With an exaggerated sigh, Sam said, "Fine! Have it your way!" She released her death grip on Nara.

Glaring at Sam, Nara didn't miss a beat, "Thank you, Mister Ken! I was only saying we should discuss our upcoming adventuring plans and how we will allocate and utilize our resources! Should we take a job in the wilderness, or maybe we could pay for a dungeon entry if there are any nearby. Are there any close by? Never mind, we should take a job, maybe two or five, in case one is too easy. But if we do, we will need camping supplies and rations. Vegetables! I am tired of only meat and dry trail rations; we will definitely need vegetables. I—mmmf."

Sam's hand clamped over Nara's mouth again, and she squeezed her to her side. She smiled sadly at Ken. "See what I mean; she's mute. Poor girl." She shook her head morosely at the statement. "So, about those beers?"

Ken redeemed himself entirely in Sam's eyes by scooping up the coins and filling four pints with a dark beer without another word. When he was finished, he slid two pints to each of the women with a whispered, "My condolences for your mute friend."

***

Sam chugged the two beers in front of her and then grabbed one of Nara's. She finally released the poor girl and, ignoring the spluttering woman, walked to a nearby table and plopped down in one of the chairs with a heartfelt sigh and a very unladylike burp.

Nara joined her a few moments later, staying out of Sam's reach. She said nothing and only watched Sam sip her beer and stare absently at the giant fireplace. Nara was about to break the silence to give Sam a piece of her mind, but Sam beat her to it.

Staring into her fourth beer Ken had just deposited in front of her, Sam said, "You are a genuinely good soul, aren't you." It wasn't a question, and Nara had no idea what prompted the statement, so she just waited for Sam to continue, which she did, "Your…kind…race whatever, you aren't inherently evil. I've seen true evil in my old world, and I can tell you are not it." Sam looked at Nara with a genuine smile, "I don't know why your people are hunted and enslaved, but as far as I am concerned, you are a good person, and I want to stay with you and adventure with you. At least for a time." She meant it, too. Sam had been thinking a lot, and Nara seemed like one of those genuine people who literally wore her emotions on her sleeve and couldn't lie to save her life. She had been watching the Tenarian since she had released her and had never even felt the slightest threat from her. Nor had the girl seemed the least interested in “draining” the hundreds of humans they had passed since arriving in the city.

Sam got up and dragged her chair to sit next to Nara, who shifted nervously, probably thinking she would be 'muted' again. Clinking her mug to Nara's yet untouched mug, Sam called over her shoulder, "Hey Ken, can I get something to write on? My partner and I have a lot of planning to do."

With a squeal of delight, Nara gripped Sam tightly and yelled, "It's okay, Ken! I have something to write on! But I need another beer! And some food! And some wine! You said you wanted wine, right? Oh, oh, did I already say food?"

Nara's enthusiasm was infectious, and Sam settled into her chair, relaxing. The delicious beer, the roaring fire in the hearth, and the promise of food and wine put her at a level of contentment she hadn't felt since…well, since the last time she had been camping during a long weekend back on Earth. “Maybe not even then,” she thought, "because back then I wasn't with a friend."