"The name's Spex." The Kobolti said. "I'm here to join the Guild."

The man looked annoyed. "The Guild doesn't take in thieves." He said.

"And they let in boisterous louts who criticize newer arrivals without knowing what they're talking about?" Spex asked. "That Human is dressed to handle me better than you could. He could draw that sword and attack in the same motion, preventing a frontal attack, and that cloth armor would at least give him time to shake me off before I could slit his neck too deeply. His hair's cut short, which means less hair to grip, and the armor he wears means I couldn't just walk up to him and stab him."

He looked at Wyll. "That aside, I'm not here to steal from the Guild, I want to offer my talents as a scout. I hear a fair amount of missions happen within cities, I can navigate alleyways and can either take out small threats alone or tell others who are better equipped how to find and subdue whatever needs found and subdued."

"You did steal from a member of the Guild." Wyll pointed out.

"I gave it back." Spex replied. "I could have kept it hidden and he'd never have known otherwise. The fact that I was open about it should at least give me some credit."

"I believe he acted as he did to draw attention away from me so that..." I looked at the man. "...he would stop pestering me."

"You cannot be serious." The man said. "You can't trust a thief."

"I can trust a person who's willing to stick their neck out for someone when it's not their business." I stated. "Plus, he was strong and agile enough to get past your guard and scrupulous enough to let you go."

"Gods above, you are a foolish one." He stated. "Wyll, if you let this thief into the Guild, he will rob everyone blind before we know it."

"A test then." Wyll said. "If he can tackle a mission while accompanied by three Guild members, then he will be granted admittance." The way she said this, and the expression she had on her face, it was clear to me that she set this up because she knew he couldn't get the amount of help needed. At best, he could get me because I was willing to trust him, but someone else, who was less likely to trust a thief, or worse, an assassin?

"Alright, what's the mission?" I asked.

"Your eagerness is noted." She said. "But he will need to find two others to help him."

"Alright." I said. "Think you could do this, Spex?"

He nodded. "Only if you think you could trust me." He replied.

It was honestly a bit of a gamble, if this wasn't the person Lissana sent to watch over me, if they were still targeting me, I was making it easier for him to attack and potentially kill me.

"Then you have until this evening." Wyll stated. "And Rex, I know you are thinking of asking Nash and Cier, but I would not bother. They would not associate with a thief. It would dishonor Lady Wyrashe."

"Couldn't hurt to try." I said with a shrug, her eyes narrowed.

"Then he cannot-"

"Wyll." I interrupted. "Don't be a cunt. I know what you're doing, I know you're making it as impossible as possible for this Kobolti to join the Guild, and you know that I stand a decent chance of actually convincing Cier and Nash to assist us. If the Guild has hired people who will not give those willing to do honest work a chance, if the Guild is unwilling to allow someone to pursue honest work, then all you are doing is giving those people no other option but to pursue a life of crime." I met her eyes. "I will ask Lady Wyrashe if she is willing to allow a known thief to work alongside Cier and Nash, and if she forbids it, I will cease to assist Spex in this endeavor, as I know it will be impossible otherwise. However, if she sees the merit in allowing someone to pursue a just life, and she risks her reputation on this Kobolti, then it will be because she sees within him what is necessary to be a lawful citizen of Wyrvale and the Empire."

My plan to shame her worked, but I didn't waste time enjoying her ashamed expression. Spex and I left the Guild Hall and walked in the direction of Lissana's manor.

"I recognize you." I said.

"And here I thought you were like every other Human who can't tell my kind apart." Spex stated without a trace of sarcasm. "Why defend me?"

"You're not in the know?" I asked.

"You expect something of me." Spex stated. "Do you think I will try to kill you again?"

I shook my head. "No. Your employer is dead, killed by the people who used his blind hatred of Humans against him." I looked at him. "Do you have the professional courtesy to finish a job to someone who is dead?"

"The dead can't pay." He replied. "Unless someone else wants you dead, I've no quarrel with you." He looked at me. "Though, I am curious as to why you felt it necessary."

"You helped me out, even if you were the one I was expecting, I would have done the same. Shall we say we're even?"

He nodded. "If you'll tell me what this is about. I honestly doubt Lady Wyrashe will agree to lending her two strongest warriors to someone who tried to kill her guest."

"Not until you tell me why you were at the Guild Hall." I replied. "In all honesty, I don't really believe your intentions are as noble as you make them sound."

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He sighed. "I have a target within the Guild itself, someone who has been stealing from both the Guild itself and the Adventurers within. I am to use my skills to find them, and I am to kill them. My display was very much a warning for them to knock it off, at the same time, it was to test whether or not that Human was the individual in question. The quality of their armor does not match their rank."

"And?" I asked.

"It was not them. Satisfied?"

I nodded. "Yeah. The basic story is, Lodran threw a Conceit Fiend crystal at me, and it glowed brightly in my hand." Spex stumbled after I said this. "Chances are, you very nearly foiled the plans of the ones who targeted him, or you very nearly gave them the victory they sought after. After all, I hear royal blood can level an entire city."

"It can." He replied. "What does this have to do with me?"

"I was supposed to meet up with someone who's meant to protect me." I said. "The way you're looking around, you should have spotted them by now, which means they're either very good, or very missing. Or, Lissana dropped the ball." I looked at him. "Show me a less than conspicuous way to the Wyrashe manor."

He nodded and led me into an alleyway.

"So, what is your plan, then? Are you going to conscript me to your royal army?" Sarcasm, that meant either no danger, or a lot of danger.

"I don't expect you to fight for me." I said. "But using me as a means to deliver your warning to your target has instead made you as much a target."

Time froze, and I used my prepared spell for something I hadn't attempted before.

'Telepathy. Target: Spex.'

My spell took effect, and I could feel Spex's mind reeling with confusion. Why was time frozen?

'This is how I was able to protect myself from you.' I thought. 'It is a special ability, "Initiative". It freezes time for me and anyone considered a part of my party. Can you see where the hostile is?'

I could see out of Spex's eyes. Small movements moved time slowly, he slowly searched for any sign of a hostile creature and spotted something he identified as a Felwight, it was a winged creature that superficially resembled a bat, except big and with a skull for a head. It flew slowly toward us.

'What is it weak against?' I asked.

'Wind magic.'

I focused and turned a Divine spell slot into a prepared spell slot, and as time resumed, I shouted, "Wind Blast!" The air around me danced before it was sent at the Felwight, which was unsettled mid-dive. It crashed hard into the ground, where Spex darted forward and stabbed it to death. I coughed up blood and felt unsteady on my feet. Time didn't freeze, so I asked, "Do you have a healing potion on you?"

Spex looked back at me and looked shocked.

"By the Gods... Blood?" He came over and handed me a potion. I drank it and felt better. I then grounded the excess Mana to stave off Mana Sickness.

"There was a Felwight." Spex stated. "That is never a good sign, especially within a city such as this."

"I need details." I said as I drew my sword. "What can we expect?"

"Felwights. They typically nest within more secluded areas, usually slums or back alleys. Thirty is a small nest, fifty is a medium one, one hundred is a large one. It cannot be bigger than a small one, since there was only one and we haven't been attacked since. Chances are, anyone using these alleyways have been attacked and either carried off or eaten."

"What happens to them?" I asked.

"More Felwights are incubated within their victims, who have been paralyzed and cannot move. Within three days, as little as one, two to three Felwights burst out from the victim violently." He looked at me. "And they are completely silent. We would be dead if not for your ability."

We moved forward, as we did, we spotted small signs that there had been others here before. An errant blood splatter, a knife caked with a tar-like substance, which I noted on Spex's daggers.

"Felwight blood?" I asked.

He nodded. "It is like tar, it makes melee attacks against them impractical and is difficult to get off. I've seen Felwight hunters who get so caked with the stuff, they practically never need to wear clothing again."

"Pleasant." I snarked.

We spotted two ahead of us, they had their backs to us.

'Can you use magic?' I asked. Spex shook his head. 'Advice?'

'I can kill one more before my daggers are rendered useless.' He said. 'If they were incapacitated, we could run past them.'

I drew my sword and focused. I thought about the wind, and I imagined myself slashing the air and releasing it as some sort of wind-based attack. I had a very clear image of what I wanted, and almost as if it was required, I channeled the Mana I had within myself and shouted, "Wind Scar!" To my surprise, both Felwights were smashed into the building. Spex and I charged forward and turned right just as the Felwights started to reorient themselves. We ran out onto a street, and I collided with Cier.

"Rex, why are you running out of an alleyway?" He asked as I hit the ground.

"Felwights, in the alleys." I said. His attention snapped to the air, where the two Felwights were diving at us. He punched the air, and they were eviscerated, with their blood flying away from us. "Hm." He adjusted his gloves. "I used a little too much power."

I stood up and brushed myself off. "Why were you fighting Felwights? That is above your rank, and this Kobolti doesn't look strong enough to handle them either."

"We ran into them, and to my knowledge, the Guild doesn't know about them." I said. "I can explain at Lady Wyrashe's."

He nodded. We walked until we reached the front doors. He turned to face me and said, "Explain."

I gave him the basic rundown.

"You sought to lure out any potential threats that would have prevented your protector from meeting with you, it is likely they were taken by Felwights." He sighed. "And this is, of course, after you decided to go with a known assassin, whom you intended to bring here so that you could ask Nash and myself to help you help him. Has the idiocy of your plan occurred to you, or are you simply that thick-skulled?"

"I never seriously expected either of you to go with the plan." I said. "But considering my assigned protector is either dead or playing host to a chest burster or two, I worked with what I had access to."

"And thus, idiocy can be the only option." He mused. "You have blood on your armor."

"I channeled a Divine Spell to create a wind spell." I said. "I had seconds to react and Initiative as my only buffer."

"Fair enough." He answered. "Recover while I speak with my Lady regarding this. I will have an anonymous request sent regarding the Felwights, and if what you say is true, then it is likely Wyll will have this Kobolti try to prove himself by sending him, and by extension, you, against them." He rubbed his temples. "Go."

I went in, while he detained Spex to bring him to Lissana. I rested until Nash came to me.

"Come." He said. "My Lady has verified that the Kobolti is what he says he is, and she is intrigued by your idea and initiative, and thus has allowed myself and Cier to accompany you both."

"Alright." I said.

"Cier has already told me what you told him. You did well, considering." He said. "The Felwights are a reasonable thing to not expect, even if you knew of them, and your response was what I would have done in your situation."

We left the room and met up with Cier and Spex at the front door. The former looked annoyed, the latter looked terrified.

"What, did you threaten him?" I asked.

"I did nothing." He replied. "Let us get this charade over with."

We left and headed for the Guild Hall in a carriage. "Why a carriage?" I asked.

"Privacy." Cier stated. "And you interrupted my shopping, this will allow me to get it done faster."

"Ah."

Cier leaned forward as he looked at me. "This Kobolti, Spex, is a member of the Blackwind Assassin and Thieves' Guild, they are allowed to operate within Windsong unofficially so long as they take care of discreet situations for my Lady. It seems he was tasked with investigating the Windsong Guild, which my Lady is also interested in. You've provided her an advantage with your stumbling about, and if things progress as expected, we may be able to unearth some corruption that we have been unable to uncover. I expect we will individually be offered incentives to not partake in this endeavor, they will appeal to honor, or greed."

"So, you're saying the thief in the Windsong Guild Hall is someone who works directly for it, and is also likely someone important enough who would try to hide what is happening."

Cier nodded. "To steal from the Guild Hall is to steal from my Lady, as anyone who threatens the integrity of those who would protect those who cannot protect themselves in turn threatens my Lady."

"I really did stumble into something big." I remarked.

"We are here." Nash stated.

We got out of the carriage and walked into the Guild Hall...