"Once the Gods fell, the world was thrown into disarray, yet a single bastion of hope always kept light of their way. At first, this great city had no name, though it quickly earned one, anyway: it was knighted as Alandriel"
-History of Alandriel, by Ethan Smith
When the wide city-scape of Alandriel opened itself up to Daniel, it was not in the best of shape. The beautiful redbrick lanes that arched up towards the Guild Cathedral and parallel streaks of bustling shops and inns had vanished under the small crowds of doctors, nurses, nuns, and pastors crawling the streets, pulling along carts that were piled with metres high of bodies, the smell of burning and rot accompanying it. As the guard hurried him along, he could not take it all in, but the smog and stench of death was enough to paint a picture of what had happened here. After all this was lower Alandriel, a place that wouldn't adhere to the advice and guidance of some pompous nobles who only wanted to protect themselves.
Meandering through the sickly cobble alleys and paths, through the diseased people lying in agony on the sides of them, past the countless houses that were marked for abandonment or plague, the guard and Daniel had finally arrived at their destination. A modest abode, yet larger than its neighbours and seemingly grander in its architecture. And, on a small panel nailed to the low stone wall that encompassed the house, was engraved the name 'The Birch Estate'. Again, without much time to marvel at the size of the estate compared to what used to be his home out in the countryside, he was hurried inside the garden as the guard fumbled among his pockets and armour. He eventually found a simple bronze and rusting key, that he then slid seamlessly into the door's lock and opened it up to reveal a dim-lit wooden hallway and beside it, a cushioned chair and an already alight fireplace, its alluring warmth carrying even to where Daniel stood.
Daniel, rather excitedly, rushed to the fire and the chair, muttering under his breathe a simple "finally" before putting his hands to flame and taking off his mask, when a large slam almost made him throw himself into the flames, as the door to the house closed behind him, and the guard who accompanied was nowhere to be seen.
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"Well, that was no way to treat a guest, leaving him in a strange house, with a conveniently lit fire and, a-and a-" Daniel began to complain, before realising his situation, "A-and, no-one I r-really know..."
Yet, before the estranged boy could properly begin to worry, his host entered the room, and, to the boy's surprise, it was a familiar face: "Iago! What are you doing here, I thought I was meeting you in the Guild!"
"And what right do you have to say that in my home, where I should be the one who asks you that! Also, what do I always say to you about calling me Iago, not Igo.", the boisterous man who sat in the door-frame to the room exclaimed, dressed in seemingly casual, but obviously expensive, clothing and with a smug grin smothered all over his face. After a quick embrace and recollection of the boy's travels to the man, he could finally put a word or two in.
"What a time for you to come to Alandriel, boy; what a time. The city's gone to shit now the elven plague’s gone and ruined everything."
"I saw; what happened though, I thought the plague had been all but killed off in the forest of Gearmön!"
"As we all thought. Recently, a fraeru settlement decided to make permanent residence in the outskirts and it just so happened one of them had it and one thing led to another and... well, here we are." Igo grudgingly declared, "For that reason, the Guild's opening ceremony for new recruits has been cancelled and it has been requested that all of them take up residence in the academy dorms, as you were going to do as well. However I decided not to.”
Just as Daniel was about to interrupt in protest, Iago rushed in to add his assurances.
"Trust me when I say that this was for your safety. There is no better place for you at the moment. You know what would happen to you if your peers found out about, well... you, and it would be better if it was just us two and some of my servants."
"..."
"Just get some good sleep and rest, Daniel. Your first day’s tomorrow and you don't want to be tired for it and especially late too."