The next morning, Treo and Stormy have breakfast together and make their way to the Adventurer's Guild to take on a new quest. There's more people than when they arrived yesterday and many of them didn't give the two more than a casual glance as they make their way to the quest board.

: "Most of these are simple gathering and small animal hunting quests. Do any of these jump out at you as interesting enough to take?"

: "No, none of these look any more interesting than others. You pick, I....trust your judgment."; she said almost blushing and turning her eyes away. She's having trouble admitting she trusts Treo, but still finds herself opening herself up to him so easily despite any internal caution she should have about people in general.

As they peruse the qeust board, the familiar long-haired brunette woman behind the counter comes over to speak to them.

: "Good morning! I have a special quest for you two if that's okay. Just follow me, please."; she says with her signature smile as she leads them behind her counter, down the hall and before the Guildmaster's Office. Opening the door, she announces; "I've brought Treo and Stormy to speak with you about the quest you're assigning them."

: "Ah, thank you Amber."; he says as he motions for the two to sit down. "I'm glad you've come. Once again, I apologize for the way you were treated, Stormy. If there's anything we can do for you, please just let Amber or I know."

: Smiling slightly; "It's okay, I appreciate your kindness...both you and Amber have been very accomodating."

: "Well, to be honest I was told directly by His Majesty himself to make sure you were taken care of and to be afforded ANY accomodation."

: Her eyebrows raise in shock at the news; "The King spoke to you this morning about it?"

: "Yes. When I gave your report to the Guild Headquarters yesterday, I got a response this morning from the King. He was...angry about the incident and gave me special instructions that included offering this quest to you."

: "Angry? Not at me, I hope."

: Shaking his head; "No, definitely not you. He was furious at those that were in your party. He ordered them to be taken into custody and brought before him. They're currently under guard on their way to the Capital already. They left about an hour ago."

: Looking at Stormy; "Wow! I didn't know you knew the King. Color me further impressed!"; he said with a soft smile.

: "Well, he........uh.....I'll explain the details later, okay? I promise I'm not hiding anything worrysome, I'm just....not comfortable going into the full story right now....okay?"

: "No worries. You've long ago earned my trust, especially after last night. I'm sorry for failing you. My defense isn't as good as I'd like it to be, if I couldn't fend off that attack last night. Thank you again for healing me. I'd definitely be dead were it not for you."

: "No, you're defense is amazing! I'd probably still be stuck out there by the woods if it weren't for you."

: "I heard about your scuffle at the Inn. Word is it was the Thieve's Guildmaster herself that attacked you. You're lucky to be alive at all. That's also a testament to your abilities, Treo. It's also why I want the both of you on this quest."

: "So what can you tell us about this quest?:

: "I have a special quest I'd like you two to take. It has to do with the Lich and those undead you fought on your way here, Stormy. I'd like the two of you to join a party we're sending out to scout out those ruins and report back what you find. If there was more than that Lich and his undead minions there, don't engage...just report back so we can determine size and numbers for the quest to issue to clear them out. "

: "Join a party? Erm....who are we joining? You know how most adventurers seem to treat me. Are you sure I'm not going to receive the same treatment?"

: "I can guarantee that you won't. In fact, the Royal Family can also guarantee you'll be treated fairly."

: "The Royal Family? How can they provide such a guarantee?"; she said as the door opened up and a young man and woman enter, wearing very sturdy-looking armor.

: "Please allow me to introduce Prince Camber and Princess Murielle, or their adventuring names Cam and Muri."

As Treo and Stormy stand to greet them formally, Cam waves his hand and shakes his head.

: "That's not necessary, especially you Stormy. The entire Royal Family wants to make sure you're afforded every accomodation, especially after all you've already been through. We both jumped at the chance to show you personally how sincere our intentions are."

: "Yes, please let us join you. Between the two of us, we'll personally guarantee nobody ever treats you like that again."

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

: "Will the Royal Guard be joining us as well?"

: "They are not needed. The two of us are more than skilled enough. If things get so bad that we need more backup, we have the ability to magically summon additional aid. Please don't worry about such things."

: "I can extend my defense to both of you as well, which covers both physical and magical attacks. This should work out well, I think."

: Turning to Treo to respond; "I've heard about you as well. It's fitting that you and Stormy have teamed up, your skills and abilities compliment each other quite well."

: "We're looking forward to working with you. We can leave whenever you're ready....if you'll have us, that is."

: "Erm....I don't see any reason to delay, and I have no problem grouping with you. I'm just not used to being on such...familiar terms with the Royal Family. I felt the same way with your father, but like him there's something....disarming...about you."

: Smiling slightly; "Then let's get started."; he says as he and Muri lead the way out, followed by Stormy and Treo.

As they walk back through the main lobby, some of the comments from other adventurers can be heard.

"Cam and Muri are grouping with others? Don't they always go alone?"

"What are A-ranks like them doing grouping with HER? That's just wrong."

"She'll get them killed, too...it's just a matter of time."

"Hey Cam, can we join you too?"

"You two don't need HER...just group with us instead."

Stormy is saddened by the comments, but Cam furrows his brows, clearly showing his anger.

: Putting on a smile; "I'm glad you two joined us. You're the only ones whose skills perfectly compliment our own. I'd can't find anybody else I'd rather have with us. Thanks for agreeing to work with us."

: Startled by her declaration; "Sure thing. Thank you."

Several in the crowd gasp upon hearing them as they leave the building, making their way towards the main gate.

: "Is there any equipment you need before we head out? Armor, weapons, magic acessories....we'll gladly pay for anything you two need.

: "Where's your sword and shield? Can I see them, please? "; she asks.

: Bringing them out from within his item box, he turns to show them to the Princess. "Here you go....Muri."; he says nervously.

: Taking the sword first, she looks closely at it; "Ah...a good weapon for a defender, but I can make it stronger. Would you be okay with an additional enhancement?"; she says returning the sword and taking the shield.

: "If you can make it better, than sure...go ahead. Thank you for offering."

: Looking at the shield she nods; "Yes, this is the key to your defense. If we can increase your defense, this ability will be even better. I have an enchantment I can add to this as well."; she says returning the shield.

: "Wow! Thank you. I thought you were an archer?"; he says looking at the bow slung over her shoulder.

: "I do both. I don't show just anyone my magic side, but you two are more than trustworthy."

: "May I take a look at your bow?"; he asks glancing at her bow over her shoulder.

: Smiling slightly; "Sure, fair is fair right?"; she says handing her bow over.

: Looking at the bow and the string for a moment; "Interesting choice for the string. Most are made from dogbane, milkweed, yucca or nettle. But this looks like it's made from something different. Can I ask what it's made from?"

: Raising her brows in surprise; "It's a special kind of silk. I didn't know you were a fletcher."

: "I'm not, really. I just worked for one once upon a time. The wood is also high quality. It truly is a very nice shortbow."

: "Why do you call it a shortbow? What kind of bow would you not call a shortbow?"

: "It's pretty small, compared to what I worked with. Well, if I can work with a fletcher you trust, I can make one for you if you're interested."

: "I can't imagine using a bigger bow than this. It already takes a lot of my strength to draw it for each shot."

: "The kind of bows I'm used to take more upper body strength. The stave I'd recommend using is from Yew wood, about 2 meters long, and preferably used with 1 meter long arrows."

: "Wow! What's the range on that kind of bow?"

: "With training and a good bow & arrows, accurate shots out to 400 meters is common, if you have the upper body strength to pull the bow all the way back and aim with precision."

: "I'm lucky to get 250 to 300 meters with my bow. A 2 meter long bow...no wonder you call this a shortbow. I'd love to have you work with ..... a good fletcher I know. Please, would you do that for me?"

: "Sure, I can do that. But you'll need the upper body strength to pull it. It'll take a while to make the bow, though...unless your fletcher knows of a way to quickly dry and age the wood prior to shaping."

: "I don't know the ins and outs of making a bow, I'm sorry. I leave those details to our fletcher. I'd love to see the bow you're talking about. In the meantime, I'll try to work on getting stronger....or getting some strength enhancements, if that doesn't work. Thank you, Treo. This has been very enlightening."

: "Muri doesn't get impressed easily. That's a rare ability you have...and your knowledge is also impressive. If you know so much about fletching, why are you a defender and not an archer?"

: "I'm destined to be a defender, I feel it's my calling in life."; he says turning to Stormy and smiling. "I'm quite happy spending the rest of my life as a defender."

: Blushing at Treo's words, she turns to Cam; "So what got you two interested in becoming adventurers? I would have thought that your... family would prefer a less dangerous line of work."

: "It's actually less dangerous doing this than staying at home with family."

: Leaning closer to Stormy to answer; "Politics and assassins are all we deal with at home. This way we can be of use in combat if we can at least marginally defend ourselves."

: "That makes sense."

After several minutes, they make their way out the main gate and proceed towards the tree line, heading in the general direction of the old ruins where the Lich Stormy battled came from.

: "It'll take a day to get there on foot, but horses or a cart would be too noisy and draw too much attention. Besides...we have a quicker method that we don't want anyone to see, which is why we're going out here away from prying eyes."

After they get a hundred meters or so into the woods, Muri pulls out a palm-sized orb from under her cloak and begins chanting. A few moments later, a faint magic bubble forms around the four of them and then vanishes. They notice the surroundings have changed slightly and the trees look...different.

: "Did we just teleport? Where are we now?"; he asks looking around in order to try to get his bearings.

: "We're just outside the Ruin. It's this way."; she says leading them out of the forest and towards what looks like an old ruin.

: "We're here. Are you two ready to enter and see what else was here with that Lich?"