Call of the Abyss [Book 2 Complete]

"You saw it, right?" Cass muttered under her breath as she, Julia, and the elves were navigating the long corridor between the training arena and main hall.

"Saw what?" Julia asked quietly.

"The Etherium. City doesn't talk about it openly, but anyone that's been around long enough recognizes the signs. They've got Etherium powering this place—a shitload of it.

"Got some kind of magic delivery system in place, that's what you saw when the shield activated around the training arena. Etherium's not actually stored there under the ground—that transfer system's set up to deliver Etherium-powered magic all around the city," Cass said, still quiet as they walked slowly down the corridor.

"Is that where this city's outlandish, garish displays of opulence come from? Presumably, access to huge stores of Etherium would make for extremely profitable trade—no, wait. You said the city doesn't talk openly about it?" Julia mused, thinking aloud—though still quietly.

"Yeah, good catch. They aren't trading it, but I do think you're right. The Etherium is where those giant chains of Orichalcum and an entire wall of Adamantine came from. That Etherium stays at the top, though. You aren't going to find anyone walking around with exotic metals like that in the city," she explained, glancing over at Julia walking beside her with a slight smile. "Well, most people aren't, at least."

Julia pressed down the blush creeping up her face. She'd worn her armor through the city and into the fight—too late to regret it now.

"How could they possibly be affording those metals in such amounts if they're holding onto the Etherium? You can't just make that stuff out of thin air—Etherium or no," she reasoned.

"Can't make it, no. You might be able to summon it, though," Cass said, giving Julia a pointed look. She seemed to have gotten what she wanted, as she smiled at Julia's obvious surprise. "That's right. That's no ordinary ferret draped over your shoulders, is it?"

Julia stared straight ahead and schooled her expression. Was this bad? Braden had mentioned that she should keep Lumenfall's (then Trixy's) origins a secret, but he didn't suggest it with a tone that would indicate a catastrophe if word ever got out.

"Ha, you're strong, but your politicking needs work. Don't worry, I'm not gonna try and pry information from you. I only mentioned it because you seemed interested in the Etherium—interested enough to let your guard down in the middle of a spar with me, no less," Cass said, chuckling.

"Thanks. I am interested in Etherium, yes. I…well, let's just say we haven't had great experiences with it recently," Julia admitted.

"I see. Regardless, keep your eyes and ears open. The opulence you see on the outside isn't this city's entire story. City hasn't even been around a hundred years, so all this wealth and power concentrated so quickly into the hands at the very top…well, you'll see for yourself just by living here," Cass said, pushing open the door into the main hall.

Julia was silent, contemplating what Cass had just revealed as they walked behind the reception booths and over to a staircase at the end of the hall.

The worst-case scenario seemed to be becoming more likely the more she learned, but she didn't jump to conclusions. It was likely that the huge store of Etherium that Cass mentioned was what was used to create the portal in the marsh. That's not guaranteed, nor is it indicative of the entire city being against them. It was very possible that a single corrupt official used the Etherium, or a thief could've even broken into wherever it was stored and used it.

She shook her head as she climbed the stairs to the administrative office above the reception area. Her theories for the city being uninvolved sounded as outlandish as the city in its entirety being against them. There were simply too many unknowns to guess with any degree of accuracy.

Cass knocked loudly on a plain but sturdy door, entering when a gruff voice inside answered.

"Test's finished. She passes—with honors, I'd say. Haven't had that much fun in a while," Cass said, hands on her hips. "If you don't need me for anything else?"

Wilfred, sitting in a comically small chair at a comically small desk, nodded to her seriously. Cass turned around to depart, placing her hand on Julia's shoulder and whispering as she went by.

"Watch this city closely. Gold often belies the deepest, foulest rot."

Julia glanced in Cass's direction, but she was already closing the door behind her.

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"Well, congratulations, Miss Julia. High praise from Cassandra is not something I hear often. That's one of two tests completed," Wilfred said with a small smile.

"Two? What else is there?" Julia asked, moving to take a seat in front of the desk, but Wilfred waved her away.

"Don't bother. It's late already. We have a hotel wing here at the Guild that you and your companions may stay in for the time being. Please return there and get some rest. We can discuss the other test tomorrow.

"Rest assured, while the hotel isn't a luxury resort, it should be perfectly sufficient. We have it specifically for the use of adventurers undergoing advancement exams. Rankings can get…competitive, you understand, so the Guild oversees a small hotel to discourage the use of any…underhanded tactics—" Wilfred explained, but Julia cut in.

"You guard adventurers taking exams so that rivals and ne'er-do-wells don't poison their ale the night before, I get it. Thanks for putting us up. I had actually forgotten about finding a place to stay in all the hubbub," she said.

"Of course. Stop by here tomorrow and I'll fill you in on the details. Just give one of the receptionists your coin. They'll know what to do," he said.

Julia nodded and the group exited the office, where staff escorted them to the opposite side of the building. They had to go back through the main hall—apparently, they were quite strict with the division of departments and services in this branch. Julia suspected there were backdoors and passages that staff could use to get around. There almost had to be, unless they wanted Guild staff crisscrossing the main hall all the time.

The staff opened the door to what felt like a completely different building, though it was clearly just a separate wing. Whereas the main hall was bustling with adventurers going to-and-fro, accepting jobs, turning them in, divvying loot, etc. all while the constant drone of conversation and rowdy behavior from the bar buzzed in the background, this hotel area was quiet and tame.

There was a check-in counter, which the Guild staff people scarcely even slowed down at as they led Julia and company through, a small bar with an adjoining eating area, and even the gentle music of someone lazily plucking a travel-sized harp next to the bar.

The scene was such a contrast from the main hall that it almost gave Julia whiplash.

Her group was brought to the second floor, where they entered a shared space with two comfortable-looking couches sat in front of a fireplace. To the side was a small sitting area with a window looking outside, and there was even a small room with a toilet on the other side! No communal toilet that the whole floor shared! Not that Julia had any need for such facilities anymore, but it was nice nonetheless.

There were four bedrooms attached to the adjoining space, which were plenty—Nadhem and Talnîr chose to share a room, despite Julia repeating that she didn't need one.

She could sleep, but it wasn't nearly as required as it was when she was human. She would still gradually become tired over time, but it took much longer, and it didn't seem to come with the crippling mental fatigue that exhaustion did for humans.

Regardless, the rooms were divided up, and Talnîr quickly left to see if there were bathing facilities. Julia had to admit that she would love a bath.

As the evening quiet set in, she finally had a chance to check her notifications, which she was surprised to even have:

Just from using Paradox Step during their spar, Julia's Subclass had gained two levels! She'd used the entire gamut of her Subclass abilities in her spar with Ravina without gaining a single level. How powerful was Cass?! Or, was it something else—

"What do you think?" Ithshar asked, sitting on one of the couches and staring into the fire.

Julia glanced over at her, slightly confused at having her thoughts interrupted. She at least managed to surmise that Ithshar was referring to what Cass said after the spar.

"Well, there's apparently a huge deposit of Etherium here—somewhere. That's a pretty good lead," Julia reasoned.

Ithshar nodded and continued to stare into the fire.

"This 'Cass'—you trust her?" she questioned without looking over.

"I don't know about 'trust' necessarily. We just met today. I don't see a reason for her to lie, and what she's said so far lines up with what I've observed. Trust doesn't have much to do with anything, at the moment," Julia explained, rubbing her feet. They weren't actually sore, but that was simply what one did when boots finally came off.

"That is true—for now. Be wary, Julia. You put on a spectacle in that arena. People know you are powerful, and many will attempt to use your power for their own ends.

"The Guild's plan was a good one, but they have not prevented bad actors from attempting to manipulate you—only proven to them that intimidation is unlikely to work. Intimidation, however, is only one form of manipulation," she finished, looking Julia in the eyes.

"Of course. I'm here for a very specific reason. I don't intend to become swept up in other people's affairs," Julia replied, thinking the warning a little strange.

"You cannot change where the wind blows. All you can do is attempt to keep your feet, lest it sweep you away despite your intentions," Ithshar chuckled, returning her gaze to the fire.

Julia went back to rubbing her muscles, noting the clear end to the conversation. She didn't have a clue what Ithshar was getting at. Did she think Julia was going to go around asking everyone what problems they were having and trying to solve them? Did she expect to find Julia up a tree one morning rescuing someone's cat?

She was here to find the leader of the Nashiin and stop it—nothing more, nothing less. And it would begin by becoming an adventurer.