The winding alleyways were a maze beyond Clay's comprehension. The oppressive darkness served to further complicate the golem's travels as every building appeared to be the same dark shadow, the occasional sputtering of light purple gemstones making the shadows slightly more distinct.

Clay had no idea how long he spent traveling through the dark streets. Occasionally he'd pass a busy intersection where traders hawked their wares, pleasant-smelling aromas wafting from cooking stalls. Lost in the unfamiliar city, the golem soaked in the signs of civilization. Every new sight became a vivid memory.

Clay came to an open courtyard, and the sounds of chanting echoed loudly off the nearby buildings. The stone pathways were lined with illuminating purple gemstones. Everywhere the golem looked stood people of various races chanting, all of them wearing the same white robes. A central bonfire blossomed into the air, and orange and yellow light filled the courtyard. The shadows seemed to flee from the light cast by the flames.

As Clay moved amongst the robed people, one of their number stepped forward to address the newcomer.

"Welcome to the court of Amri, goddess of the first flame." The elderly drow female addressed Clay.

Clay marveled at the dancing flame. Only the lake of molten fire could compare with the illumination of this pyre. He bowed before the drow woman, humbled by the magic of the scene before him.

"Come." The woman beckoned as she took him by the arm.

The two of them came to stand before the bonfire, and the woman released the grip on Clay's arm.

All about him the rhythmic pulse of the acolyte's chanting soothed the golem's mind. He stared deep into the roiling flames as they licked high into the air. Clay found himself mesmerized by the dancing flames. It almost appeared as though a figure was dancing in the depths of the fire.

Clay gazed deeply into the twirling fire, his eyes chasing the mirage in the flame. The rhythmic chanting held his consciousness with hypnotic force. He swayed on his feet as his eyes chased after the illusion hidden in the warm glow.

A feminine physique became defined before his eyes. The figure danced back and forth, closer and farther. The image didn't want to be caught by his gaze. It wove between the coals and danced up the licking flames.

The warmth of the fire lulled him and his eyelids drooped as he tried to keep up with the dancing flame. The chanting had stopped.

Surprised at the sudden silence, the crackle of flame drew his consciousness back to the courtyard. Turning his head he saw the elderly drow woman bowed with her head to the ground. As he continued to scan the courtyard, he saw that all the white-robed figures were on the ground.

Turning back to the flame, the golem saw a feminine silhouette of five inches in front of him. His eyes opened wide as the silhouette leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. He felt the heat course through his skin. Dazed by the experience he watched vacantly as the figure stepped back into the bonfire. This time his eyes couldn't keep up as the dancing flame disappeared from view.

Clay reached up to his cheek with a hand, and a crust of charred stone crumbled beneath his fingertips.

"Amazing." A voice startled him out of his revelry.

Turning to the voice, he saw the elderly elven woman standing once more.

"The goddess has blessed you," she said with admiration.

Clay stared blankly at the woman, and then back into the flames. He didn't know what she meant but felt spellbound by the magic of this place. The chanting had picked up once more.

Regaining his sense of self, Clay stepped back from the flame. The woman bowed to him as he walked away. Other chanting figures bowed to the golem as he walked away from the bonfire.

Looking over his shoulder, Clay felt a deep sense of regret as he walked out of the courtyard. His eyes bound by the fire, he could almost see a hand waving at him before it disappeared amongst the flames.

As he left the courtyard of Amri, Clay felt detached from reality. His face still tingled with warmth from the fire that had toasted his face.

Looking around, he noticed something weird, he could see. The world was somehow much brighter. The purple gemstones that lined the streets and sides of buildings shone much brighter. The shadows seemed to recoil at the penetrating light. Caged flames at street corners stood as bright beacons, casting light far across the streets.

All of a sudden the world of Orgas was teeming with life. The traveling pedestrians were no longer faceless shadows fleeing from one building to another, Clay could see the subtle expressions on their faces. And, while his eyes still couldn't penetrate the depths of the sky overhead, the pitch black of the air above was replaced with more subtle shades of gray.

The sameness of the buildings that surrounded him was replaced with intricately designed scaffoldings and elegant facades. Many of the buildings he passed had signs stating the nature of the business conducted within. Clay passed by multiple guild halls; apothecaries, smithing, brewers, and more. He must have passed by numerous such buildings as he had walked through the city blindly.

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Clay wandered by the hunter's guild and was about to pass on by, but decided to inquire about the guild inside.

The interior of the building was lined with the, now, brilliantly luminescent purple gemstones. The dining room was packed with patrons busy eating, drinking, and planning. At the reception desk, a young woman sat smiling at him.

"Hello, welcome to the hunter's guild," the human female said.

"Hi." Clay returned the greeting. "I was wondering about your guild. I'm registered with the traveler's guild."

Clay fumbled with the papers in his shirt pocket.

"Ah. Yes, our guild deals closely with the traveler's guild." The young woman responded as she examined his papers.

"If you'd like, you can speak with our patrons. Many of our guests come from other guilds throughout Jaskar city. You can also look over the back wall." The woman pointed across the room. "We have many fliers set up, ranked by difficulty. If you see one that interests you, just bring it to me and I can give you more information on the assignment."

Clay looked in the direction the woman was pointing. The wall was plastered with fliers, images stood out on each piece of paper. The golem nodded his appreciation to the receptionist, "Thank you."

Leaving the young woman to her post, Clay walked amongst the tables of the dining room. It was a full house, all the seats were claimed as people of the various races went about their business. Clay received more than a few curious glances, he eyed with suspicion a table of bearded dwarves as he passed. No one barred his path and the golem soon found himself before the wall of posters.

He saw some large numbers listed along the wall. There were letters in the top left corners of each flier. The highest rewards came with the A and S classifications. Clay found the notion of pursuing the master class missions a bit much, and so looked further down the list.

The quests seemed to primarily involve hunting down a creature, or several creatures. The images of the posters showed what the targets looked like. There were even a few targets from the races in the hunter's guild. But, Clay didn't want to involve himself in hunting for any people.

There were plenty of beast hunts to choose from. The C and D class missions had moderate rewards, while the E and F class missions had the smallest. Recognizing that he had no experience with hunting, Clay scanned the E-class missions.

These assignments had listed rewards of fifty to seventy-five dinal. Thinking back to his registration fee with the traveler's guild, Clay recalled it costing fifty dinal. It probably wasn't safe to return to the guild hall with the pair of dwarves conspiring against him, so it would probably be wise to also register with the hunters guild.

Clay picked up a flier with a reward of seventy-five dinal, basilisks. Satisfied with his selection, the golem began moving across the room. This time as he passed through the dining hall, he noticed significantly more attention coming his way. The assembly of hunters was evaluating the newcomer. Their eyes were neither friendly nor unfriendly.

Undaunted, Clay made his way back to the receptionist. Her face beamed with enthusiasm, glad to have another hunter join the pack.

"So? What did you decide on?" The young woman asked excitedly.

Clay handed the flier to the woman.

"Basilisks, huh? They've been terrorizing the trade caravans North of the city for months now." The human woman pondered. "This is a repeatable quest. There are so many of the blasted things that a single hunt won't dent their numbers."

Clay was surprised at that. He'd thought he could get the seventy-five dinal and then choose another mission. But, maybe he could get more out of this one quest.

"For every ten basilisk tails you bring back to the guild hall, you will receive the quest reward." The woman said as she opened a drawer in her desk.

"Here. You can store the tails in this as you harvest them." She handed the golem a folded-up burlap sack.

Clay took the sack and opened it, it was pretty deep and had a wide mouth. He wondered how many tails would fit in the empty bag.

"Do you have any tools?" the woman asked doubtfully.

The Golem shook his head, "No."

"Alright. I can loan out a couple of beginner items, but the price will come out of your reward." Again, she opened a drawer in her large desk. "Here."

She handed him a small knife and a compass.

"So, the basilisks are on the North side of Jaskar. You'll have to use the North gate to leave the city. The compass will help you navigate through the city. Once you're on the outside, just follow the main road. The basilisks hide in the rocks along the road. Be careful if you go alone. One or two isn't much of a threat, but if they swarm on you..." She let the thought trail off.

"Thank you, I'll be careful," Clay said, clutching the knife and compass appreciatively.

With a bow of his head, the golem turned towards the door. He felt the eyes from the dining hall dig into his back as he opened the door and walked out into the streets of Jaskar.

Out in the streets of Jaskar once more, Clay felt somewhat lost. But, his newly improved vision painted the dark underworld with light. The gleaming purple gemstones fought off the encroaching shadows, allowing the golem to see the definition in the buildings that surrounded him.

Looking down at the compass in his hand, he saw the bobbing stone that pointed North. Aligning the stone with the N on the outer edge of the compass, Clay moved confidently through the city streets. The experience was drastically different from how he had left the traveler's guild hours earlier. The oppressive dark had blinded him to the beauty of the city. He hadn't been able to appreciate the elegant aesthetic with which the buildings of Jaskar had been built.

His progress through the city seemed much smoother with the additional help of the compass. The passing pedestrians went about their business, unconcerned with what the golem was busy doing. Clay observed armored drow guards patrolling the streets, spears in hand. Their armor was distinct from the black leather of the Sijjin guards. The Jaskar guards had silver lining along the edges of their leather brocade, and lining their pants. Steel plating added extra protection to their vital areas.

Clay moved past the patrols quickly, not wanting any further experience with drow guards.

Upon reaching the wall that encircled the city, Clay followed the main road that ran beside it. The wall curved in a Northeasterly direction. He was concerned that he was heading in the wrong direction until he saw the checkpoint ahead.

The golem was waved through by more of the drow guards. They seemed less concerned about people leaving than those coming in. There were a few people and wagons awaiting entry as he passed, and a pair of guards stood in front of the line checking over a drow male's paperwork. With a last check of his papers, Clay stepped out into the Orgas plains.