Since then, a week had passed as Cassandra made her preparations. She found that gathering supplies was the most strenuous of her task. Krista, like she suspected, had asked for far too many weapons. Spears, crossbow bolts, javelins, knives, and even an axe were all on her list, though strangely enough there wasn’t a sword there, Krista preferred weapon of choice. Cassandra comprised by getting her the knives, bolts, and a single spear, and an Augmentation ruby crystal staff to support her lack of an affinity.
Amelia’s was much more simple, just a new staff, some text books, ink, and paper. Such a studious girl, though she did also ask for a fairly large amount of blush, face cream, and other cosmetic items.
It was the items the boy asked for that gave Cassandra the most trouble, though. First were his weapon choices, just some arrows and knives, not even a replacement to that rusting short sword he had. He even wanted cosmetic item, just like Amelia, but that barely covers the half of it. Next was paint, so much paint, in so many colors. Then it was the thing he called nitropowder, Cassandra had remembered something called that in Journey years ago, but it was not readily available in Stellar. Instead, she had to go looking for charcoal, sulfur, and something called potassium nitrate. Luckily her maid, Emily, grew up around farmers and had previous knowledge on how to obtain it.
“Here’s most of the stuff you three wanted,” Near Guild Street, Cassandra got herself ready to part ways with her Grand nieces and the boy with some parting words, “Inside the Laborers Guild you’re going to meet with the Guild Master Vanessa. Once you find her, just tell her Guild Festival, 980. She’ll know what it means, considering she wouldn’t be able to recognize you based on appearance.”
In accordance with their plan, each of the three used Amelia’s synthesis to change their ages by about half a decade along with some help from external cosmetics. Just Damien’s aging had gone a long way to change his appearance, along with large amount of facial hair, his normal hair grew to and thickened, turning into dreads. Rather than cut it, Damien and Amelia decided to tie it at the back. Then there was his upper body, which seemed to actually grow some muscle, comparable to Krista’s.
There was a good bit less change from Krista, like Damien, her hair grew out long, but she decided to cut it short, even shorter than what it was before she aged up. Her body grew more defined, not necessarily getting larger but it was much easier to see where all the muscle was. Damien and Amelia also made a pass over her with their cosmetic abilities, even changing her natural brown hair color to a near jet black.
Then there was Amelia, the person who Shining Twilight members would be least likely to recon, who increased her age anyway since two people in their mid-twenties people hanging out with a 17-year-old girl would be strange. Of course, it was her who had the most drastic changes. Her more rounded features became far more angular, like her mother, and she well… the best way to describe it would be that she grew. In height and in other ways, she was about the same height as Krista if not a little shorter. This was the first time Damien had seen her like this, so he couldn’t help but stare a bit.
“Eyes forward big guy, keep your head on the mission,” remarked Krista.
“Come on, I saw you staring too, it’s wild what a few years can do,” he whispered back.
“I can hear both of you talking about me,” said Amelia from behind them.
“Sorry,” they both said.
“Alright, so the Laborer’s Guild,” Damien continued, “Doesn’t have that same ring of the Hunter’s, the Researcher’s, or the Artisan’s, honestly it sounds a bit discouraging.”
“I remember going in there once with Madam Heart,” added Amelia, “The place was destitute, filled with people full of despair. At least the building is better.”
“Well, to be fair, you’re right,” Krista answered, “They get a bit of a bad rap as the group you join when you can’t find work with the other guilds.”
“But look at it this way, the Laborer’s Guild is the guild that will take you when everyone else sees you as nothing,” responded a familiar voice from behind all three of them.
“Kriel?” Krista asked slowly.
There they saw a tall man with a noticeable hunch and silver hair approached them, albeit he never actually looked any of the group in the eyes, “You know who I am?”
“Ye-Yeah, we recently spent some time in the Hunter’s Guild and some blond guy kept complaining about a recent job he was on where he was teamed up with some people not from his guild. Including a guy with silver hair,” answered Damien.
Kriel didn’t answer for a moment, probably trying to decipher the truth behind- “Oh, yeah, that’s Cline. He’s a bit of a prick, but I think he’s good people. Are you looking to join the Laborer’s Guild?” Maybe he was just absentminded.
“Sort of, we’re looking for Vanessa, know where she is?” asked Krista.
“Yeah, sure, follow me,” he answered, “She should just be in her study.”
More than happy to have someone lead them to where they needed to go, the trio followed Kriel into the Laborer’s Guild building. When compared to the other Guild buildings, he Laborers Guild found itself to be much larger, albeit far less flamboyant. Damien could have sworn as he walked in that he saw a bull with drills for horns come blasting out of the Hunter’s Guild just as he walked in.
Inside, the trio was met with an unexpected sight, energy. The place was busy, People were lining up in front of the counters, others were looking at jobs on the various boards, and none of them looked like they belonged in a place called the laborers guild. People in military drags, but missing limbs, others wearing full armor with large gashes all within them, others wearing nothing but rags, but they all still looked lively.
“The Laborer’s Guild isn’t like the others, most of the people here would be considered the dregs of society, unwanted by the military and the other guilds,” Kriel said, “If it wasn’t for Vanessa we might have still been in that situation.”
“What did she do to change this place like this?!” asked Amelia.
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“Not much, really, increased the size of the building to accommodate our greater numbers, added a living space for those without homes, started a skills training center, among other things,” Kriel explained, “Really, all she did was give these people hope.”
“She sounds like a good woman, can’t wait to speak with her,” reasoned Krista.
“Good, cause her office is right there,” In front of them was a simple doorway with a metal plaque beside it that simply said ‘Vanessa’. “I have some work I need to get back to, but if we meet again, I wouldn’t mind showing you three around further, goodbye.”
He left without even waiting for a word of thanks, leaving them to continue his own business. In front of Vanessa’s Door, Damien didn’t waste any time knocking on the door and saying, “Ms. Vanessa, Cassandra sent us here and we were told to remind you about Guild Festival, 980.”
The door swung open, and a tall haggard looking woman faced them, “So, you’re the ones, come in,” she said with alarmingly alcoholic smelling breath. Her skin was dark, close to Damien’s own if not a bit lighter. She also wore a lot of cloth on her body, strange knowing that it wasn’t considerably cold outside, but even with all that on, it was easy to see a lot of her piercings she had on her lip, nose, and ear.
Inside, there was a sofa with a thick piece of cloth over it, a desk with stacks of papers and empty bottles, and a single chair that Vanessa slumped on.
“Shining Twilight, where can we find them?” demanded Damien, “
“D-Don’t speak so loudly, I’m going through a bad headache,” Vanessa said while rubbing her temple and lying her head on her desk, “Listen, before I tell you that, I need to give you your new identities. Cassandra already filled out your fake guild information, I need to make sure you guys have your story straight, then I’ll give you the place.”
“Our story?” Damien asked, “I don’t think these two can handle anything complicated, just say we’re guild members, that’s probably more than good enough.”
“We’re the ones who can’t handle something complicated?” Krista mocked, “I don’t think either of us were the person who got caught being from Jou-”
Damien was quick to cover her mouth, “Point taken, but I’m also getting the feeling that I got my point across too.”
Krista just folded her arms crossly leaving Amelia to speak her piece, “I agree with Damien, if not just for myself. Lying was never my strongest aspect.”
Vanessa responded by opening a drawer in her desk and taking out three small cards, all of which she lazily tossed in front of herself, “You’ll find the basic information about yourselves on those cards, take a look.”
Darius Heart Colors, age 24, born February 15, 995. Occupation: Mercenary, Wattiez: Mental, Augmentation, Elemental. Proficiencies: Archery, Stealth, Negotiations. It never occurred to Damien but based of the years, Stellar had 150 extra years of history when compared to Journey.
Krisha Colors Heart, age 23, born November 11, 995. Occupation: Mercenary, Wattiez: None, Proficiencies: Swordsmanship, Axe handling, Knife throwing, Shield wielding, Hand to hand martial arts, the list went on.
Amelia Heart, age 22, born November 15, 996, occupation: Healer, Wattiez: Life, Proficiencies: First aid, Cosmetology.
Damien was pleasantly surprised to see that he was going to have the surname Colors, reminded him if his time with the Urchins, “Darius and Krisha, huh, but what’s with the Heart in my name and Colors in Krista’s but not Amelia’s. Are we cousins?”
“No, that’s not the backstory we’re going with, “Vanessa started, “Actually, Cassandra was very adamant about this little detail. She also said that Amelia and Krisha will be sisters who joined the Guild together two years ago.”
“That would have been the same time I ran away from home,” remarked Krista.
“Makes it a lot easier to remember, doesn’t it?” reasoned Vanessa.
“How’d you even get our information on official guild cards?” Amelia asked. “Not only is it illegal, but you would have needed our blood and wattiez. Not to mention how you got the cards to display false information.”
Vanessa lifted an eyebrow, “I could sit here and explain for two hours the lengthy process Cassandra and I went through to do that, or I can just tell you that it took a lot of chips and resources instead, so don’t lose them.”
“No need, instead you can tell me how they we met?” said Damien before Amelia could ask for more details.
“Simple,” Vanessa started. “You happened to meet Amelia and Krisha on a job in Horizon where you completed a griffin subjugation, though I’m not sure how you’re going to prove that one.”
“We got that, don’t worry about it,” commented Damien.
“Right, well, after that quest, you decided to follow the girls back to New Dawn and joined their party. One thing led to another, and you went and got hitched to Krisha.”
“… Excuse me?” asked Krista unsure if she heard Vanessa correctly.
“Cassandra’s words not mine, if you have any problems take it up with her, though I don’t think you have the time,” sighed Vanessa, “Look, the Guild Coalition is the most competitive organization out there, and they saw this offer from Shining Twilight as a perfect way to hold a contest against one another. Cassandra called in a favor, but I didn’t really have anyone other than Kriel that I could have sent. In 30 minutes, you’ll be meeting groups from the rest of the guilds in a field just outside of New Dawn’s borders. Cassandra said you’d recognize it as an old training ground, Krista?”
“Oh, yes, I know what that means,” she responded.
“A competition then?” Damien asked, “We just have to beat the others, right? Then the Shining Twilight members will have us join them?”
“That’s what we agreed on,” Vanessa answered, “I had no intention of competing anyways, not too many people in this guild who could be considered competition worthy. You just need to give them this seal, to prove that you’re representing the Laborer’s Guild.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask, but the name of the guild changed to Laborer’s from Mercenaries, was that you?”
Without raising her head, Vanessa stared at Krista, “Yeah, a little over a year ago. Mercenary work is too volatile, both in the metaphorical and literal sense. Call it branding, but it’s the best way to bring in more jobs for these people, I mean, you don’t go to the Hunter’s Guild to pay your taxes.”
“So, you changed the name to make sure the people here could find jobs other than dangerous mercenary work?” asked Amelia, “That’s commendable!”
Vanessa didn’t respond at first, lying her head down further so the three couldn’t see her face. When she did speak, all they could hear was a whimper, “Are you sure about that?”
“What was that, sorry I don’t think we can quite-” started Krista
“Are you sure about that?! Vanessa exploded as she swung her arms into the stacks of paper, “For the past year, at most , I have gotten four hours of sleep because of all of this damn paperwork! Damn it, why’d I move here from Soaring Sun?! Too many different kinds of jobs for too many different kinds of people, and any time I hire an aid, they quit after less than a week. Sure, I like to drink. Sure, I sometimes break things and yell when I’m drunk, but shouldn’t they just get over it?”
Damien could tell their conversation would ultimately become drawn out if they stayed, so he quickly grabbed the girl’s arms and led them to the door as he hurriedly spoke, “It was a pleasure meeting with you Ms. Vanessa, and we promise to get the win for your guild.”
“Hey, don’t leave, I’m not done complaining at you!” she commanded, “Wait!” Yet, they were already gone.