“What the fuck are you doing,” John said, trying to keep his voice down. He was not succeeding.
Tasha quickly shushed him and looked back out into the hallway. No one was there, at least.
“I’m joining a guild just like all of you,” Lucy said, her voice low and words intentional.
“This can’t be a coincidence,” Wyn said. “I’m trying to do my damndest to be rid of you and you keep showing up when I least want you to!”
Lucy just shrugged.
“Surely the… they don’t have that kind of influence,” John said. He looked at everyone for support but found none.
“I don’t think you want me to answer that,” Lucy said.
John’s face relaxed in surprised understanding then squinted together in frustration. “You’re an asshole.”
“John,” Tasha said.
Lucy sat down in one of the large, cushioned chairs in the shared sitting room. The six of them quickly made their way to the wing after Gregory introduced Lucy as their sixth member, and encouraged them to get to know each other until he could finish briefing them on the guild rules and expectations.
Little did he know they already were acquainted.
“It’s fine,” Lucy said. “Really. I get where you’re coming from. But like I told Wyn, I’m not the enemy here. I’m in debt to them like Wyn and his sister. Worse, even.”
“My father’s the one who accrued that debt, not us,” Wyn clarified.
“But you’re the one who’s paying for it now that he’s dead. As I told you before, I know that situation all too well.”
“Explain,” Cedric said. He sat in an identical chair near Lucy, calmly watching her.
“Explain what?”
“Two things you said just now that carry more meaning than you’re letting on. One, that you’re in debt like Wyn, and two, that you know his situation ‘all too well.’”
Lucy narrowed her eyes at the Lightning Wizard, leaning forward as though to reply. Instead, she hesitated. Cedric wasn’t an idiot, nor was he bothered at her suspicion. Marcy didn’t share the same patience, though.
“You think about trying something and you’ll regret it,” Marcy said. She freely stood in the room, her gaze fixed on Lucy like a predator. She didn’t have a bow or arrows equipped on her, but one of her kukris hung on her belt. Her hand was suspiciously close to the weapon.
Lucy relaxed and raised both of her hands. Marcy’s look was… unsettling. “I’m not trying to rile anyone up. Never have, and don’t want to start now. He just caught me off guard.”
“Good,” Wyn said. “Now’s as good a time as any to call in my reward, too.”
“Reward?” John asked. “What are you talking about?”
“My reward from Lucy from beating her during the combat trials. It was a wager we made.”
“That’s right,” Lucy said. “I’ll hold my end of the bet. I said I’d answer any question of his.”
Wyn sat down beside Cedric and tried to mimic his calm posture. It felt more forced, but that was better than looking crazed or pacing the room. “I want you to answer Cedric.”
Lucy took a deep breath. It was never easy talking about herself, especially not to people who didn’t exactly see her in the most favorable way. “Alright. I can explain myself. Yes, I’m indebted to the Assembly. No, I am not part of their organization. I’m as involved with their activities as Wyn or his sister is. The only difference is that my debt isn’t a coin debt. It’s a life debt.”
“What does that mean?” Tasha asked. “I can take a guess, but I don’t want to assume.”
“It means that the debt I’m paying off is for a life. Not an amount of coins.”
“Your life or someone else’s?” Wyn asked.
Lucy smiled. “My sister’s.”
“What happened?”
Lucy looked around the room. Was she really about to share her situation with them? She didn’t technically owe them that much.
But if she wanted to gain their trust and not be even more of a pariah in her own group, well… she needed to gain some sympathy. And she didn’t even need to embellish it. The truth was pitiful enough.
“My sister was in deep with the Assembly, not unlike your father. She was roped in young and manipulated, and I couldn’t get her out despite trying over the years. One day she came to me asking for help, and I tried my best. But I failed. And then she was gone.”
Lucy was gripping the armrest of the chair hard. Wyn thought it might snap. After a few seconds she noticed her temper, then relaxed and continued. “The Assembly came to me after threatening me, saying that me trying to help my sister was an attack on them and their business. They forced me into servitude saying if I didn’t take my sister’s place they’d kill the rest of our family. So I agreed.”
Wyn sat back in his chair and closed his eyes. So Lucy really was in a shit position like him. Even worse, it sounded like. Maybe she could truly be an ally rather than an enemy after all. If he could use her to gain some insight into the Assembly maybe he could free himself and Arabelle. Maybe.
“How long is your life debt?” Tasha asked.
Lucy shrugged. “It’s a life debt. So until they dismiss me, which they won’t do, or I die.”
The silence that hung in the air was telling. She really was just a pawn in their game. How can anyone respond to that?
“So what now?” Marcy asked. “If you really are taking orders for them, then you still answer to them above anyone else. Even us, the guild, the city. What’s your goal here?”
“Right now my goal is just to climb. Apparently making money as a Climber can be lucrative, and having someone powerful with tower magic is an asset, according to my handler. Despite me telling them that power fades out of the city. But they don’t really listen to much I say.”
“Are they wanting to try and do the same to me?” Wyn asked. “If I pay off my father’s debts, will they force me to keep climbing after since it benefits them?”
“I don’t think so. While the Assembly has their hand in just about everything, they do keep their end of agreements. If there was a problem it would be with a person, not the organization. It’s the only way they’ve been successful for so long. In my time working for them I haven't heard of them going back on their word.”
“Like organized crime?” John asked.
“In a way.”
“You said if there was a problem it would be with a person,” Marcy said. “Does that mean you?”
Lucy laughed. “No. Not at all. I have no desire to cause any more problems. I just want to keep my head down and cause as little issue as possible.”
Wyn tried to follow Lucy’s words and logic but it was hard with his continuing anger for her. But he was starting to see it was misplaced. She really wasn’t a member of the Assembly, or at least based on what she said so far. There was the possibility of her lying, of course, but he didn’t get that impression from her. Not since she first revealed who she was really working for.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
But that still didn’t give him much reassurance. If they saw climbing as a valuable means to obtain more money, then it would make sense for them to try and keep Wyn around if he was as successful as he’s been. Whether that would be an underhanded play or legitimate one, he didn’t know. But he wasn't about to completely trust her statement on that subject. He still had ideas on how to get him and Arabelle out, and if it came down to it, blood would be shed. Even if it was his own. Just as long as it wasn't Arabelle's.
“I don’t fully believe you when you say they won’t try to keep me around after I pay off the debt,” Wyn said. “If they see climbing as great as you say, what’s to stop them from trying to force me to keep going?”
“I get where you’re coming from,” Lucy said. She sat forward and leaned on her knees. “I’ve dealt with them for awhile now. If you get on their wrong side, they’re the worst people imaginable to deal with. But upfront, they keep their promises. Surprisingly. If your father incurred the debt and you pay it off in his stead, it’ll be considered clear and you’ll have no more obligation to them at all. Though they will try to recruit you, I guarantee it.”
“How in the hells can we take your word for it?” John asked. "I don't believe a damn thing you've said."
Lucy smiled. “I’ve closed a fair number of debts in my servitude. They aren’t even spoken about again. We leave them behind and that’s that.”
“As far as you know,” Wyn said.
“Maybe. But there are enough people out there that owe the Assembly. They aren’t worried about the ones who actually paid up. Just the ones who haven’t.”
“And you’d bet your reputation on that?”
“I don’t have a reputation. But I do have a life debt. So, I guess I’d bet my life on it.”
Wyn sat back and processed his thoughts. Lucy seemed not only confident but completely sure of herself. Would they really leave him alone once his debt was paid? Living a life always looking over his shoulder sounded like a stressful one. But if what Lucy said was true, then he didn’t need to worry.
But it all came down to could she be trusted? She said the right things, at least. And the only part of her that pissed Wyn off was that her involvement with the Assembly reminded him of his father and his own situation. None of that was directly her fault, though. He very well could be sitting in her seat trying to reason with someone else.
Maybe she deserved a chance. She was his new teammate, now. At the most basic of levels, he had to trust her in order to climb and feel safe while climbing. So her offering this information was a good show of faith that Wyn appreciated. He wanted to tell Gregory about her allegience but not yet. It was better to keep a close eye on her as a teammate than kicking a hornet's nest and bringing negative attention to him, his sister, the rest of the group, and even the guild. There would be a time to tell them. But now wasn't it.
He just couldn't shake the thought of her being part of the enemy no matter how much he wanted to. As he was once taught, sometimes it's better to keep enemies close.
For now.
“Okay,” Wyn said after a moment. “I believe you.” He kept his face as emotionless as possible. If he wanted to sell himself, he needed to be convincing.
“Wait,” John said, jerking his head towards Wyn. “Just like that?”
“Not just like that,” Wyn said. “Think about it. What she says makes some sense. She hasn’t done anything to me personally, and I’ve put my own feelings for the Assembly onto her instead of separating them. Which is my own fault.”
“I mean, I guess,” John said, deflating against the wall.
“And if she’s going to be our teammate, we need to trust her. If we have any reason to believe what she’s said otherwise, well… we can address it then.”
“Perfect,” Lucy said. She slapped her knees and stood up. “That’s all I wanted to hear. So are we gonna go see what this lovely guild has to offer us, or what?”
*****
The rest of the day went by in a blur. Being introduced to the guild house and more members was overwhelming, and all he wanted to do was to center himself. He felt more out of sorts than ever, with the change of his new home, new team, discussion with Lucy, and Gregory’s information about the guild.
It wasn’t that he was nervous or afraid, though. Change happened more than people realized or hoped, and it was best to embrace it. But having so much at one time was more jarring than he realized.
Gregory finished their guild introduction by providing the rest of the guild rules. Or at least the rules they needed to know at this point. For one, they had a contact to go to for any issues or concerns relating to the guild. Theirs was Faye, to everyone’s relief. Another rule was that they had dinner together twice a month - every second and fifth Solday of the month, marking the beginning and end of the climbing season. Wyn liked the thought of that, as it sounded more like a family.
The rule that gave Wyn pause was that as the team’s leader, he had weekly meetings with the other group leaders on Faesday. Gregory said they would discuss intricacies of the tower, strategies for their groups and guild as a whole, and any helpful information to the others. Wyn wasn’t new to strategy meetings with other leaders, but he was still new to the tower. Despite making it to the second tier he didn’t feel like a veteran. Magic, classes, climbing in general… it was becoming familiar but he still felt like it was just out of reach. As though he needed a few more months under his climbing belt before he really could get hold his own as a true leader.
But that was alright. He was the newer team leader in the guild, and they would likely go easy on him.
At least he hoped.
Following the guild house tour and introduction, the group worked on settling in their possessions and organizing their room. They had no expectation of climbing that day, only to join the guild for a special dinner to officially welcome them.
Bringing all of his items was straight forward, if not a big slow and costly. 40 gold crowns and several hours later, Wyn’s belongings were haphazardly stacked in his new room. He took some time to organize it while the others did the same thing. It was an easy, methodical task that helped calm Wyn’s racing mind.
After another hour, Wyn’s mind wasn’t as peaceful as he had hoped. He sat in the common room in their residential wing in one of the comfortable, plush chairs, unsure of what to do. There were still a few hours before dinner. He could review the items in the vault, but it didn’t seem polite to put his nose in the guild’s private stash so suddenly. Training was always an option, but he didn’t want to interfere with anyone else who might already be training, and his energy for conversation with new people was running low.
“Bored, too?” Marcy said.
Wyn quickly turned his head before relaxing. “I didn’t even hear you walk in.”
“No one can hear anything with John throwing his stuff around like he was mad at it.”
Wyn laughed. He didn’t hear the sounds before, but it was unmistakable now. “No, I guess not.”
Marcy sat in one of the chairs and slumped before resting one leg over the other. “This feels so strange to me. Like I’m dreaming or something.”
“I know. For some reason I honestly didn’t think I’d be in a place like this. Like being in a guild would split us up and I’d be thrown away instead of invited.”
“Well, here you are.”
Wyn sighed. “Here I am.”
Marcy put her leg down and stared at Wyn. “You know, eventually you’re going to need to accept that you’re better than your class. That’s not all there is to being a good Climber, you know.”
Wyn shrugged. “When I first came here that’s all I was told. That I’d never succeed by being a Ruby Magician.”
“And look at you now, sitting in a guild hall that invited you with your team that you lead.”
“I guess you’re right. Look at me now.”
Marcy sat forward and rubbed her neck. “We don’t have the most desirable classes out there, but we are good at climbing. You have to admit that.”
“Of course I do. How else would we be here?”
“Exactly,” Marcy said, pointing a finger at Wyn. “I sense change is coming.”
Wyn chuckled. “It already has. Look around!”
“Not that. In climbing.”
“Maybe. Hopefully.”
“Certainly.”
Wyn looked at Marcy, and she was as sure as ever. Her face slowly morphed from serious to happy, to a full smile.
Wyn couldn’t help but return one. It wasn’t often she offered such an emotion, but it was pleasant every time she did. Like being with a friend.
Then a thought struck him.
While the others were settling in, Wyn rounded them up. The only one who wasn’t finished or close to being finished was Tasha, who had far more belongings than any of them. Wyn assumed it was likely going to take her days to be fully organized.
“What’s this about?” Tasha asked. “I don’t know if you know, Wyn, but I have quite a few sets of clothes that still need to categorized.”
“I didn’t know that,” Wyn said. “But that sounds… interesting?”
“No it doesn’t,” John said.
Tasha shot John a look. He smiled sheepishly.
“I don’t know about all of you, but I’m feeling a bit out of sorts,” Wyn said.
“You’re telling me,” Lucy said. “One day I’m sleeping in a shack and now I’m living like royalty. This is batshit.”
Cedric cleared his throat. “That’s one way to put it.”
“What about some practice?” Wyn asked.
“Practice?” John repeated.
“Yes. In Alistair.”
John and Lucy stood up abruptly. They both looked at each other, then back at Wyn.
“That sounds like a welcomed activity,” Marcy said.
“We just need to be back in time by dinner,” Tasha said.
“Then grab your gear,” Wyn said. “Meet out front in ten minutes.”
The group quickly went back to their room to change and prepare themselves. Cedric stuck around, watching them with Wyn.
“Are you sure about her?” Cedric said.
“Gregory and the Twilight Blades are even if they don't actually know her. But she's a capable Climber, at least. Why not give her a chance? What she said may not have been wrong, after all. Keep your friends close but your enemies closer.”
“True. But better to keep an eye on her still. Who knows what will come from this. It’s awfully suspicious she’s our sixth member, of all people.”
Wyn sighed. “I know. I thought about that, too. But we can deal with it together.”
“Fair enough.”
Wyn watched Cedric go back to his room. He thought about his arm and his plan to commission a replacement from Cara.
That was something he wanted to follow-up on. He knew the Wizard wasn’t the same without it. But no one would be, of course, after losing an entire arm.
Wyn thought about why he and his friends were climbing, what their new goals were. Paying off his and his sister’s debt. Getting Cedric his item and new arm. Making sure Arabelle was safe and secure. They had finally accomplished John’s goal of being invited to a guild. Now there were other matters to work on.
And they all started with climbing. Hopefully they didn't end there, too.