{June}

The trip to Alera was, generally, a long and boring one.

June rested her head on the railing as she sat at the back of a truck that slowly, gradually, cut through the land, on the way to their destination.

As boring as it was, however, there was very little choice in this matter. June and her band were low on cash. They needed the income.

In her hands, June played with that token she'd been given. The symbol of the crescent moon with a sphere within, with spikes connecting it to the moon around it, was strange, but alluring.

"So, what kind of club was this again?" Ross asked, holding his hands behind his head as the truck rumbled along the dirt path.

"Olivia... didn't say too much, but after I sent her that letter about how we wanted to perform for them, she said that I could go to some places in Cradle and ask about her. I did and... yeah, seems like she's well-known. It doesn't seem like a scam."

Specifically, June had gone to some bars, small stores, and libraries. Everyone said the same thing. That Olivia was a kind, generous person. They would go on and on about things she'd done for them.

If this was a scam, it was a damn elaborate one.

"I just hope the coin's worth the hassle of getting to this place. Feels like we're on the opposite side of the world."

It was an exaggeration on his part, but June could understand, to an extent. This was a three-day long journey, even though they were traveling by car. She couldn't imagine how long it would take to get there on foot.

"It will be," June assured him. "She literally gave us a whole plat for free, just to show that she was serious. It'll be fine."

"If you say so."

Despite the doubts, the group made their way to the rural village all the same.

It took a few more hours, but before long, they finally arrived.

"Uh... Is this really it?" Ross asked. "Doesn't look like the kind of place a rich lady like Olivia would be from."

Alera was, like many other villages, a piece of the Old World that hadn't quite felt the passing of time as harshly as other places. Old road signs, a few broken cars here and there, and many strange buildings were immediately noticeable.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

June sighed, trying not to let the village's appearance get to her.

"All villages kinda look like this. Come on, let's get moving."

"If you say so."

June and her friends grabbed their instruments, thanked their driver, and headed into the village. There were people walking from one place to another. They spared the group a couple of glances but largely kept moving.

"Alright, I think Olivia said her club would be... this way."

Leading the others, June walked through the village quickly. She'd learned, over the course of her travels, that a confident stride was often enough to prevent people from paying too much attention to them. It made the locals assume they were important, and, generally, the last thing someone who was looking to stay out of trouble wanted was to run into someone important.

Olivia had left some rather specific instructions. She mentioned that they should go to that club immediately, just so they could give them some housing while they got through the performances.

Multiple, yes. And, Olivia was willing to pay for each one.

However, while they were on their way, one of June's bandmates paused.

"Hey! A hotdog stand! Can we stop for a second? I'm hungry as hell."

"Uh, sure," June shrugged.

Just like that, they made a momentary detour, heading over to it. There was an old lady behind the stall, with sunkissed skin and a pair of kind eyes that looked back at them.

"Greetings," she said. "What can I get for you?"

"Two hotdogs, please."

"Sure. That'll be four silvers."

June's bandmate was holding his food before long, but before they could leave, the lady noticed something.

"Oh, you, what is that thing?"

June turned.

"Hm? Me?"

"Yeah... What is that?"

The lady pointed at the coin June was carrying.

"It's... uh, just a weird coin someone gave me."

"Really?" The lady tilted her head. "I..."

June raised a brow. The woman paused, almost like she was frozen.

"I swear, I know that coin from somewhere but... Oh!" The lady said and, for an instant, she looked alarmed. It was just a flash of emotion, a brief display that left as quickly as it arrived, but she looked distraught for a few seconds. Then, out of nowhere, she smiled again and said, "ah, I forgot what I was gonna say. Have a good day, dear."

"Um... Thanks."

[What just happened?]

It didn't seem like the others had noticed this weird interaction. They'd been too busy looking around and chatting.

June set this moment behind her and decided to do the same.

"Uh, let's keep going."

"Sure," Ross replied and they were on their way once more.

The group moved through Alera, cutting through a few streets until they arrived at the spot Olivia had described.

It was an empty, desolate, and eerily quiet garage of some sort. The strange thing was that there was seemingly a door of some sort at the back.

"Guess this is it."

"Yeah, that's not sketchy at all," Ross said and June rolled her eyes.

"Let's just see what it's like, okay? If it's too uncomfortable or whatever, we'll just leave."

"Gotcha."

So, June walked up and tapped on the door with her knuckles.

A couple of seconds passed and the door opened, revealing a pair of beastborn. One man with a set of wolf ears and one girl with the eyes of a lizard.

"Good morning," the girl said quietly.

"Uh, hey," June said, raising her coin in the air. "I'm June. June Dahlia."

"Ah!" Instantly, as she heard that and saw the coin June was carrying, the girl's mood brightened up. "I see. Come in. We've been waiting for you."

They stepped to the side, allowing the band to move in.

As soon as they were inside, the beastborn closed the door behind them, and that garage went back to being empty, desolate, and eerily quiet for the rest of the day.

And for many of the days that followed.