Cold. Ice Cold. The table of the Adventures Hall I was currently resting my head-on. Why was it so cold? I'd been sitting there for 10 minutes, at least, yet it was still as cold as when I got here. Why was I just sitting around?

The salami of the sandwich that was the Adventures Hall was the quest board. But quests weren't the only things populating it. If you were an Adventurer for hire, like me, you could give a short description of what you were willing to do and name your price. At least that's what I did.

My price? It was 30 gold coins, the equivalent of 3 mediocre potions. I could have a higher price since Asogas, the city I was currently in, didn't have many alchemists. So they usually jacked up their prices to the point of robbery. But I didn't want to be too mean, so I settled for 30 gold coins.

Right about now, I was at the point of dozing off. When I felt a tap on my shoulder.

"Are you Mercedes? We're looking for a healer." I excitedly turned around to the female voice, questioning me. 

She was wearing a leather breastplate over a blue shirt and beige pants. She had a longsword and dagger attached to her belt with a lute strapped to her back. Her face consisted of long blonde hair, dark brown eyes, and a noticeable dimple. She seemed around 5 foot 2, compared to her 6 foot 9 friend.

He was wearing scale mail armor and had a giant backpack. His broad shoulder and bulging muscles with his height gave him the appearance of a hulk of a man. He had long black hair and dark brown eyes. He had a precise cut on his skin, most likely from an arrow or something more exotic, like a crossbow bolt.

"Yeah, that's me. What's your quest?" 

"We're trying to investigate a disturbance in a nearby village. All communication has been cut off. It's a small village, so we don't need to mobilize so many people. But just in case we need a healer! " A mysterious mission, I like it.

"Okay! When do we set out?"

"We're planning on setting out right now since we don't want to arrive too late. Are you okay with that?" I nodded.

"I'll go call a carriage, you should get to know Ov, he may not talk, but he's sweet inside." He blushed a bit, showing he was paying attention to the conversation. She ran off, and Ov returned to his usual self.

"Are you two dating?" I didn't like beating around the bush, so I asked what I'd be thinking straight away. He looked down and shook his head. Ah, unrequited love. Thankfully, I've never experienced it first hand.

"Too afraid to ask her out?" He nodded.

"I'm sure she likes you." He glanced at me then back at the table.

"Not talkative, huh? Is your full name Ov?" He shook his head but didn't give me his full name. Maybe she meant that he didn't speak at all?

"What language do you speak." His mouth opened.

"Common not good. Celestial." If it weren't for the fact I wanted to get closer to my goddess, Selune, I  wouldn't have learned it.

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"I also speak Celestial! Did you learn it to get closer to a deity?" My eyes sparkled. I've always been interested in deities. Which is, probably, why I'm so obsessed with Selune.

"I... learned it when I was younger." He switched to Celestial. 

"Ah, okay. Where are you from?"

"Um, I'm fr-" I heard the door of the Adventures Hall snap open. I looked over and saw Ov's friend walk inside. She joyously hopped towards our table.

"I found a carriage, so let's get moving!" The journey in the carriage was uneventful till Ov dozed off.

"So how did it go with Ov?" The carriage was pretty dark when we sat inside, so I cast one of my spells, Eyes of Night, on everyone. Was it a waste of mana? Yes, but it was too late.

"It was fine, did you know he spoke Celestial?" She nodded.

"He doesn't really like sharing it... Oh, I didn't introduce myself. I'm Elba Jellico, and that's Ovrutunt." She held her hand out, and I eagerly shook it.

"I'm Mercedes..." I hesitated for a bit, unsure if I should tell a stranger my full name.

"Dew..." She questioningly looked at me.

"Well, we all have our secrets." I assumed that was a jab at Ov's expense.

"So, when will we arrive?"

"It's not that far, so we should arrive in an hour, at most." I nodded and contemplated what I would do for the next hour...

The dice hit the leather seats of the carriage with little to know bounce revealing the victor immediately.

"Looks like I won again, Elba! Pay up!" I'd already hustled Elba out of 420 gold coins. I didn't need to cheat since I have Selune on my side.

"Are you serious?! Double or nothing, how about it?" I shook her hand. Looks like I'm getting 840 gold coins today. She rolled and got a 4. 

When I rolled my dice, it stopped at 2. But before Elba could retrieve the die. The carriage stopped, and the die flew off the seat.

"Well, I think we should just stick with the 420." I quickly grabbed the die of the floor and opened the door out of the carriage to jump out.

But the sight I saw made me think twice. There was a thin layer of pink fog surrounding the village. The buildings we could see were in ruins with overgrown pink vines instead of the natural green vines.

"Just what happened here?" Elba paid the carriage driver and took in the sight that was the town. He drove away after Ov got out, something about not getting paid enough for this.

"Okay, guys, new plan." I glanced over at Elba, who was issuing orders.

"Whatever caused this is probably above our skill level so let's investigate a bit and then head for Asogas. Deal?" Ov nodded almost immediately, and I followed soon after. I looked up and saw the sun was still in the sky even though the village didn't seem to be hit with sunlight. 

Anyway, it's midday, so it's time to pray (A/N: Bars!)

"I'm going to consult Selune. It may take a few minutes, sorry."

"No problem, we're a bit hungry, right Ov." Ov shook his head. I knelt down, locked my hands, and closed my eyes, getting ready to recite the poem, I'd done it thousands of times before, yet it took me a second or 2 to remember the whole thing.

"From the shadows of chaos, two sisters are born,

One the bright Selune, the other the dark Shar.

A harmonious balance soon to be torn,

when Selune gifts life with a flame from afar!" I opened my eyes, and a white blaze sparked to life in front of me.

'You called?' Her voice was calm and motherly. I can't believe it! I'd been praying to her for almost 20 years, and finally, she’s answered my prayers.

'Well, you better believe it. So why have you called?'

"What happened here?" I gestured at the village

'The mist and vines... It's definitely a Fey, though I'm not exactly sure which one, so stay vigilant. They're usually kind, so the ones that turn bad are in cahoots with demons.' Fey was a widely used term for anything coming from the Fey plane. Even some elves are Fey, but that's beside the point. Why would a Fey befriend a demon?

"Thank you for your divine wisdom. If I wish to reach you again, should I pray?"

'If you truly need my help, then I'll be able to sense it. But don't hope for me to help you forever. Shar is quite the handful.' I chuckled as the flame dispersed. Shar and Selune are twins, though it may seem like they're opposites, that's far from the truth. Shar and Selune both govern the night, just different aspects of it. Selune the good, and Shar the bad. Things are rarely so black and white as their conflict.

I got off my knees and dusted myself off.

"Okay, I'm ready to go. Let's figure out what's wrong with this place!"