"Another mead, please," a gruff yet feminine voice yelled out from its place at the bar. The early morning Grimrosi sun had started to peek its way through the windows of the tavern, and a stray beam found its mark on the voice's owner. Stocky and fair of skin, she held an unmistakable resemblance to most Helbrund men and women. At over six-and-a-half feet tall, however, her impressive height was unusual for the supposed half-dwarven race.

"And close the shutters, for the love of Ardren. I would like to be able to see what I'm eating, thank you." The woman hunched over a small bowl of eggs, ham, and porridge as she inhaled her food, only coming up for air to swipe away an auburn lock that had strayed from the tight bun atop her head.

Each year of service as a former mountain guard folded itself into a different crease on her tired face. Protecting the whole of Nelthemar from the endless threat of demonic invasion was an occupation that took in many inexhaustible young adults and spat them out creaky-jointed and disillusioned. But rough and weathered as her war-hardened visage was, it still retained some feminine charm. Many of the tavern’s patrons looked to her in awe of her stature and found themselves captivated by the notion that she would have been a figure of beauty in her prime.

"Anna. Good morning," said a familiar voice, brimming with an unfamiliar energy. She turned to find Deventh taking a seat beside her, looking well-rested for a change. He chuckled as he watched the bartender, a slight and sprightly Nelthrin girl with a head of voluminous blond curls, scrambling toward the windows to draw back the curtains. "They're still afraid of you up here, huh?" He asked her as he waved down the frantic young barmaid.

With a curious glint in her eye, Anna asked, "I'm surprised to see you awake at this hour and well rested. Did you finally meet a girl?"

"Not in the way you're imagining," Deventh said, offering a slight smile to the barmaid as she approached. After ordering himself a cup of coffee, he asked Anna, "Have you gotten to your office yet, by any chance?"

"No. I've only just woken up myself." The Helbrund yawned as she spoke. The stretch that followed caused her to encroach on Deventh's space, though he'd anticipated such and leaned out of the way. "Did you speak to Tatsidi?"

"I did," Deventh replied with a yawn of his own. "He seemed apprehensive at first, but when I offered to let him in on the planning, he warmed up to it. We're lucky to have had his loyalty, given our record."

"As long as he keeps working, I have no complaints," Anna said. "We need all the coin we can get, and we can't keep missing payments."

"Speaking of which," Deventh began, "Lord Bisset's daughter stopped by yesterday. Didn't even say a word about wanting to collect our rent, which was strange. She had... A request which took me by surprise, though."

"Oh?" Anna hummed through a mouthful of food.

"She asked to join the guild." The bartender returned with his coffee, and he gathered his thoughts through the first sip before moving on. "I couldn't help getting the impression it may have been her timid version of an ultimatum. The interview notes are on your desk." Towards the end of his last statement, he hesitated, almost able to hear the wrinkles in Anna’s forehead deepening with stress.

"I can already tell you I won't be impressed," she grumbled. "She's an adept worker, at least in respect to taking care of mundane tasks. If she's thinking of going out and fighting, though, we might just have to assign her to weevil duty." Deventh met her suggestion with a smirk as he set down his mug carefully.

"Now that I think about it, I'm struggling to see how this would cause us to owe her less money, seeing as we would be paying her. I suppose we'll find out when you meet with her about the rent," Anna said pointedly as she flagged down the bartender. "And in the meantime, I'll go read that note you left and gather Tatsidi. We need to be on our way to Kho'gul soon."

"Aye, the rent," Deventh said, his voice dropping. “I doubt she's still hanging around here, but she couldn't have gone too far if she's waiting for our answer. Either way… We're still a little short, after the last of our charter fees."

"We're wha—?" Anna caught herself before her frustration boiled over, rubbing her temples to calm down. "I suppose we should be thankful she hasn't said anything about a final notice. Please tell me this business with the Oath will cover what we have left."

"And then some," Deventh assured before finishing up his coffee. He stood from his seat, stretching his arms to dispel the final traces of morning grogginess. With one last yawn, a burst of wakeful energy found its way to him. "Perhaps once we're done, I'll even be able to get something decent to eat," he added lightheartedly, eyeing his empty mug. Anna noticed at that moment he had indeed become slighter in recent months; his square jawline had grown gaunter, his sharp elven features more pronounced.

Offering a simple nod in return, Anna stayed behind to finish her meal. After leaving her payment, she stood up and stretched, causing several joints over the breadth of her body to pop. Moving past the bar to an unmarked door, she started toward her office.

A sudden burst of cold, damp air twisted Anna's face into a displeased grimace as she opened the door. In the dreary stairwell, with only a small window to light the entranceway, her eyes widened to adjust themselves. Once she'd reached the bottom of the stairs, she made her way down the first stretch of the hallway.

At the end loomed a corner, as sharp as it was dark, where any unwitting individual might collide with the wall. Guided only by habit, she turned left around the corner and continued to her office. In the adjacent lounge, she spotted Tatsidi snoring away on a couch. Figuring he'd eventually wake up from his nap, she slipped into her office to gather herself for the long trek ahead.

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A few minutes later, the door of Deventh's office clicked open and shut. A shadowy head appeared in Anna’s doorway. The silhouette of a hand appeared as well, offering a friendly wave before the figure presented itself in full.

"Ready to head out when you are," Deventh said, eyes wandering to the letter she held. His peculiar mask slightly muffled his voice; it was composed of three tiers of lightweight brass plating, each of which squarely covered and mimicked the outline of a portion of his face until it formed a full mask. Lined with a flexible black fabric, it also protected him from the harsh winters of Grimros. "Unless you'd rather talk about that before we go."

A moment passed as Anna stood in place staring at the closed letter. A spark of inspiration lit up her eyes.

"What do you think about taking her with us and seeing how she does? Nothing beats first-hand experience, after all."

"Sure," Deventh agreed, his nonchalance entirely disproportional to the hours of apprehensiveness and contemplation preceding it. "As long as you don't mind that one small detail."

"Detail?" Anna asked. "What detail?" She opened the letter and, skimming through it while waiting for Deventh to answer, her eyes landed on one word in particular. "Lus'rak—demons!" she whispered, her fist clenched and crumpling the paper. "And you thought I would be happy with this?"

"No, I didn't," Deventh said, "I'd guessed by your optimism that you hadn't actually read it yet. She claims to have only summoned what she referred to as 'the small ones' before, but I thought you should know either way." He shook his head, acknowledging that even with all the information at the surface, their options were few.

With aggressive, clumsy movements, she packed her papers and necessities for her travels. Squeezing a set of three gold and blue banded rings over the fingers of her left hand, she declared,

"I didn't retire with the intent to have further run-ins with those filthy creatures." After she finished packing her belongings into the various compartments of her backpack, she tucked in the flaps and pulled the leather cords with an air of finality. "But I will give Jessa a chance. Anything bigger than an imp and I'm caving its skull in. She'll be out, and we can search elsewhere for a new headquarters."

"I can accede to that. I don't know what she's planning to do, but if her joining us means we'll still have a guild to kick her out of later on, I'm inclined to give her a chance." Concluding with a nod, he turned to the door and stepped out to give Anna the space she needed to finish gathering her thoughts.

On the way out, he reached down to pick up the small, black backpack he'd dropped at the door. He slung it over his shoulder while scanning the room for any sign of Tatsidi still being there. The cat remained in the same spot as before, but with his rucksack supporting his head in place of a pillow.

"Ah, Deventh. I was wondering, have you thought more about letting Miss Jessa join the guild?" His tail twitched back and forth as he draped it over the arm of the couch. "Respectfully, I think this may be a bad idea."

"Maybe so, but I spoke with Anna, and we decided to give it a try," said Deventh. His voice took on an unwavering, authoritative tone, but his restless fingers tapped on the hilt of the dagger at his hip. The moment he set his sight on a chair across from Tatsidi with the intent to relax before leaving, a rosy-cheeked face peeked around the corner, redirecting his attention.

"I'm sorry if I'm interrupting anything," Jessa said, a shy smile revealing her pearly white teeth. She stepped out from behind the separating wall and into the room, then asked Deventh, "Did Anna tell you about the final notice for your rent? I meant to give it to you yesterday, but I forgot until after the interview and left it on her desk instead. Since I made that mistake, you'll have a one-day extension."

Moving in closer, Jessa noticed Deventh was now sporting a light covering of leather armor, including a chestplate and bandolier with numerous pouches and loops fitted with small alchemy vials. She looked over to Tatsidi and noted his gear as well. "Are you going somewhere?"

"We are," Deventh confirmed. As soon as he'd answered her question, Anna stepped out of her office, her bag more bloated than before. The two guild leaders exchanged glances, and although Deventh's mask hid his expression, Anna sensed the confusion on his face. Returning his attention to Jessa, Deventh asked, "If you don't have any more work to do today, would you like to come with us?"

"What?" Jessa exclaimed, caught off-guard by the sudden invitation. "I-I mean, the only duty I have for the rest of the week is studying, so I'm more than happy to come with you!" As her demeanor shifted from nervousness to excitement, it was as if she had become a different person. "Uh, where is it we're going?"

"To the city," said Deventh. "We're just starting on a job with the local Ardren's Oath chapter, so we're heading out shortly. We figured the best way to welcome you would be to jump into some hands-on work right away – if that interests you."

"The warriors' guild? Does that mean we're going to be, um, fighting?" As fast as it had disappeared, Jessa's anxiety crept back into her smile. She adjusted the lining of her blue woolen tunic, which was cinched tight by a leather belt with an embellished silver buckle. "I suppose I should change and gather my things as well. I won't be long; I've been staying in a private suite upstairs."

"I don't think we'll be doing much fighting right away. That is, unless our contact ends up being particularly disagreeable," Deventh joked, grabbing the black hood of his cloak at either side and flicking it over his head in a fluid motion. "I wouldn't worry too much about being dressed for the occasion, either, as long as you can keep warm. A few ward spells should suffice for the road in case we run into trouble."

"I only know one ward spell. And, well... I've never actually been in a fight before," Jessa said, inciting a chuckle from Anna.

"The three of you should be able to hide behind my shield if anything is to happen," the Helbrund said, puffing out her chest, though it was unclear where she might have been storing the item of which she spoke. This piqued Jessa's curiosity, but she only scantly expressed it with a slight tilt of her head.

Jessa's attention was diverted by a sudden sneeze from behind her. She gasped as she found Tatsidi tumbling off the couch. In a remarkable display of catlike grace, the Apo'na managed to roll over and catch himself, springing from his hand up onto his feet.

After brushing the dust off his leather pants and jacket, built with dozens of pockets and straps, Tatsidi grabbed his rucksack. He addressed the other three as he swung the bag over his shoulder. "So, after Miss Jessa grabs her things, we should be ready, yes? I will wait at the tavern. All this napping has worked up a mighty hunger."

"Sounds like a plan," said Deventh. He kept his eyes fixed and steady on tinkering with one of many hinges on his glove, using a small, indistinct pick-like tool. "Let's all meet upstairs when we're ready," he concluded before returning to his office to finish his preparations.