Forge gazed around the small room he’d rented while taking Guild classes.
It had all the essentials: a bed, a small desk, decent light, yet no windows.
Though, to make up for the lack of natural light and scenery, it had a painting on the wall that showed an ever-changing bird’s-eye view of the landscape.
Cinder adored the painting.
“Ready to go?” he asked.
“Breakfast?”
Daniel gave the dragon a scratch behind the ears and joined him in watching the painting.
“I’m happy to get you anything you want. But you know you can’t be out in public yet.”
“Not public. Guild.”
Forge sighed. This had been a point of contention between them since they had arrived back at the Guild after receiving his armor.
He remembered that night fondly.
The team had shared their secrets and become closer.
It had turned out that Gideon was of noble birth.
He had left behind his family’s money and connections to join the Guild, only taking the family sword that no one had used for generations.
The news hadn’t shocked the team, as they had all sacrificed something to become adventurers, but money and privilege were a lot tougher to turn your back on than merely moving away from your family.
Green Falcon had faced the latter. She had moved away from her family home, though her story was particularly interesting as she had lived in the Tir, an Elven city to the east.
And then there was Lioness.
Forge had never known how clerics received their Divine Path.
In Lioness’s case, she had been a child when bandits had attacked her family’s small farm.
Generations of her family had lived there, and they had all taken up arms against the threat.
Hypros’s minor blessing of strength had served them well on the farm, but it hadn’t been enough to fight System reliance.
They had all fought bravely, and the young Lioness had bandaged wounds and supported the fighters as her family battled the siege.
In the end, the bandits got desperate and tried to burn them out, but the smoke alerted the nearby town to the situation.
The guards arrived and routed the bandits, but not before the attackers had struck down Lioness’s entire family.
She had nearly died as well, and when the cleric had found her, she was still clutching the pitchfork she had grabbed to defend her family.
She had been eight years old.
The cleric had taken her in, and she had lived and worked at the temple of Hypros until she reached System age.
The temple’s priest had offered her the Path of the Divine, which she had eagerly accepted, then spent the next two years working with guard patrols to protect the area.
It hadn’t been enough for her, though. She could walk the Divine Path that way, but System points were hard to gain, so she’d joined the Guild.
Forge smiled fondly, recalling the Hypros cleric’s words. She was the only member of the team that saw dungeon culling as a secondary concern.
She wanted to work jobs that would allow her to fight bandits, and while she would follow the law to the letter, she didn’t have sympathy for those that terrorized others in the name of greed.
“We’re going to take a job today while we’re waiting for our first dungeon run to be scheduled,” he told the dragon.
Cinder didn’t reply and continued to watch the painting as the view seemed to soar over a mountain peak.
“That means more gold, since between you eating it, and us paying for the room and food, we’re burning through the gold we received from Polto and Plud.”
The dragon again didn’t answer, and Forge let out a deep sigh.
“I know you want to go out in public, so let’s make a deal.”
The dragon turned to look at him and waited.
“When I open my third mana-gate, we’ll both get a little stronger, right?”
“Yes.”
“Once we do that, I’ll let you walk around with me in the Guild.”
Before the dragon could respond, he held up a finger.
“Provided we get approval from the guildmaster, and I deem the situation safe,” he specified.
Cinder thought about it for a few moments, then gave him a wide saurian grin.
“Deal!”
Forge returned the dragon’s grin with his own.
“Alright, let’s go get breakfast.”
***
“Any news on the Silver Blade issue?” he asked Gideon.
The swordsman shook his head, displeased.
“No. It seems the little brat’s family disappeared from the city completely.”
Silver Blade had lasted less than an hour in custody.
Using a hidden needle of the sullied steel in the collar of his shirt, he had infected himself and died quickly.
While a priest could have saved him, the clerics didn’t have the power to stop the rotting sickness, only prolonging his suffering.
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They had bundled him into a carriage while three separate clerics continuously cast healing spells on him, but he died before reaching the temple.
The Guild had tracked down his family, but the house was empty.
They had obviously left in a hurry, leaving dishes ready to eat on the abandoned table, but there had been no clues pointing to where they had gone.
Gideon had tried to use his relationship with the local nobles, but his family connections got him nowhere.
“Are they still planning on auctioning off the house and assets to go to Mountain Fury’s family?” Forge asked.
Brightening a bit, Gideon nodded.
“Not all of it, but they got the kingdom to agree to ten percent of the sale, which should still be substantial.”
Forge nodded.
Green Falcon and Lioness arrived with the pair holding out large backpacks to him and grinning widely.
“I’m surprised you didn’t hand me a giant trunk,” he said as he stored the two packs.
“We discussed it,” Green Falcon said.
“In the end, we decided we might need to split the party and will need to carry our own gear,” Lioness explained.
“Paladin, Elementalist, Dragon Guardian, Warrior, and now pack horse, you really are a useful fellow,” Gideon laughed, slapping him on the back.
“I know you can’t see my face, just know that I am definitely not making faces at all of you right now,” Forge said.
“How about now?” Green Falcon asked.
“Don’t worry, I’ll let you know,” he answered.
The team laughed and turned to the job board, which had been their goal for the morning.
Lioness took down a notice and brought it over to the group.
“I’ve had my eye on this one,” she said, handing the request to Gideon.
He reviewed it, then handed it to Green Falcon.
“Seems simple enough, but Trolley is forty miles from here. We’ll probably spend more time traveling than we do helping the townsfolk,” Gideon said.
Lioness shrugged.
“Who cares? They need help and the pay is decent. Besides, the money’s too small for one of the higher ranked teams to bother with, and the town is too far away for the lower ranked teams.”
Forge nodded his agreement.
“She’s right. They need help and they aren’t likely to get it from anyone else anytime soon,” he said.
Lioness gave him a bright smile.
He knew why she had picked out this specific job. It was protecting a small town from bandits, something she was intimately familiar with.
Green Falcon agreed as well.
“Besides, this puts us on the road and gives us time to get to know each other,” she said.
Gideon looked from Falcon to Lioness.
“And how are we getting there? None of us have horses, or the ride skill, and hiring a carriage will cost a quarter of what the job pays.”
Lioness grinned.
“Well, there is a convoy heading east to Aubreyton that we can join as guards and get a little pay, and that puts us less than twenty miles from Trolley.”
Gideon stared at the cleric.
“And, let me guess. They leave today and you’ve already gotten us the jobs?” he asked.
Smiling brightly, Lioness placed a companionable arm around his neck and faced the group.
“See! It’s like we know each other already,” she said with a pleased smile.
***
Forge handed Greta four gold pieces, and the cook made them disappear.
“Please make sure that Angela has what she needs. And let her know that while I’m away, if she wants to take me up on my offer, the Guild will take her in and help her,” he told the old cook.
“Of course, dear,” she said, and he wished her well and left.
The day was clear and warm, but he wore his cloak to conceal his armor, lest it frighten people more than his mask alone already did.
“Miss,” Cinder said.
“I know, buddy. But all we can do is offer her help. We can’t make her.”
“Could!” the dragon insisted.
“You’re right, I could. And she’d run away at the first opportunity and disappear completely. And we’d never be able to help her,” he explained patiently.
“Stupid.”
“Me or Angela?”
“Both.”
“I prefer to think of it as hard-headed,” Forge laughed.
“Stubborn?”
“Yes, I believe that correctly defines the pair of us,” he agreed.
Radiating a sense of satisfaction, Cinder asked questions about the various things they saw as he walked to the southern gate, and Forge answered them the best he could.
Enjoying himself immensely, he took in the sights of the city.
There was no telling when they would be back, he thought.
***
Angela watched Forge from high above.
She knew he’d tried to be sneaky, slipping the gold to Greta.
He had so much to learn.
Not willing to get too close, she had moved to the roof of the small building overlooking Greta’s small restaurant.
She’d been excited to see him and the flash of polished armor beneath his cloak had her wanting to call out to him.
But she still wasn’t sure what she was going to do.
Stick to the plan, she thought. Just another couple of years to reach System age and she could join the Guild on her own terms.
She followed along behind him, staying well out of sight as the paladin seemed to take his time and look at everything around him.
He was so weird; she thought.
Who stopped and stared at a plant growing out of the sidewalk?
She thought he might go to look at the horses, but instead joined a group prepping wagons.
Her heart sank at the sight. Was he leaving the city? Would she never see him again?
Forge joined three others in a carriage, and Angela made a snap decision.
Moving closer, she watched the porters carefully, then dashed towards a tarp covered wagon and crawled under the flap.
Sealed wooden boxes surrounded her, and after some minor adjustments of the boxes, she found a comfortable place to hide.
When they stopped for the night, she’d have to appropriate some food, a blanket, and a pillow from one of the other wagons.
She was nothing if not resourceful.
***
Forge stared out the carriage window as they completed the final preparations for their journey, and the remaining porters took their spots on the wagons.
Touching his hand to his cloak, he stored it in his ring.
Across from him, Green Falcon made a face.
“I really need to get one of those rings.”
Turning to Gideon, she gestured at Forge’s hand.
“Gideon, how much are those rings, anyway?” she asked.
He grinned at her.
“Planning to start saving now?”
She nodded, and he gave a long, theatrical sigh.
“A Tier One realm ring sells for twenty-five thousand gold, but only to adventurers at Rank Three. Civilians have to pay four times that amount, and the prices increase per Tier of the ring, up to Tier Ten,” he explained.
Lioness laughed.
“I know I’m going to regret asking this, but what Tier is your ring, Forge?”
“Tier Ten,” he answered.
All three of his teammates’ heads turned to stare at him.
“So that ring is worth how much?” Green Falcon asked.
“Two-hundred and fifty thousand gold at minimum. And I heard you can’t buy it with just money. It’s only even offered to people who are at the absolute highest standing within the Guild,” Gideon answered, turning to look out the window.
“So, he could sell it, get four Tier One rings, and have enough money left over to buy us a headquarters?” Lioness asked.
Forge stored his mask into his ring and turned to stare pointedly at the cleric seated beside him.
Gideon’s laugh made both Forge and Lioness turn to the swordsman.
“While possible, that would be the absolute dumbest thing he could do,” he said.
“Right now, that ring is an extremely useful piece of gear for the party, but as we get higher in the Guild, him having that ring will open doors for us that nothing else could.”
“So, a status symbol?” Lioness asked.
“More like proof your team is elite.” Gideon replied.
The swordsman shrugged.
“Take this with a grain of salt, but my understanding is that eventually money will no longer be a concern for us. You can’t get certain things with money or even rank. All you have is your reputation as a Guildy. And a Tier Ten ring will mean we get to sit at the adult table.”
“But not right now or the near future,” Lioness observed.
“Nope. We still have to put in the time and sweat. But we have a good diverse group here, even if we’re lacking a bit in the magic department.”
Lioness scoffed.
“We have ranged, two melee fighters, and healing, and I’ll be backing up Falcon with my crossbow, and Forge can tank. I’d say we’re pretty well covered.”
“I can also heal a little and have a ranged spell,” Forge added.
“Okay, that’s it! I want a full list of your skills, spells, and whatever else you can do,” Lioness yelled at him, to the amusement of the rest of the team.
Looking for help from the others, Forge only saw curious looks.
“I was going to tell you, eventually.” Forge said as he pulled up his System screen.
“Let’s see: Two mana-gates open. Three points total in Bar Mace. Two points in Strength. Two points in Willpower. Magma Tentacles and Firebolt at Tier Two. Regeneration, Healing, some Fire Immunity, and…,” he cut off.
“Sorry, I just saw that my Defense has increased. My armor must have a magical defense in place. I have a plus three to Defense.”
“Hypros’ fist!” Lioness exclaimed.
Falcon’s wide-eyed stare bored into him.
“Well, now I feel a little underpowered,” she muttered.
Forge shook his head.
“I admit I have more abilities than the average recruit, but they’re all low leveled. And unlike people that focus on just one or two powerful skills or abilities, I’m going to have to raise all of mine.”
Gideon nodded.
“He’s right. He’s powerful for a new Guildy, but someone like Zap would eat him for breakfast.”
The others, while not entirely mollified, reluctantly agreed with his assessment.
“So, anyone else have any mana-gates open?” Falcon asked.