Mistaken for a Returnee

Aldritch and Sulika stood side by side; one washing dishes, the other drying them and placing them on the drying rack. Neither said a word, instead they'd chosen to work in companionable silence until Faeyra returned a short while later.

And when she finally did return, she was barely recognizable as the elven seductress Aldritch had come to know her as.

Her hair was pulled into a tight bun and held in place by a long silver needle. Instead of a dress, which was her usual attire; she wore tight leather pants, a black shirt with loose sleeves extending down to her wrists beneath a sleeveless leather hauberk, dark leather boots, and fingerless leather gloves of the same color as her boots.

She was also wearing a thick leather belt adorned with six pouches of varying sizes, and a rather large backpack. The bottom of the backpack had a strip of leather anchoring it to the belt, preventing it from bouncing or swaying whenever Faeyra moved.

"Okay, everyone ready to go?" She asked while fixing the straps on her gloves. She didn't want them too tight, but she also couldn't have them sliding around.

"Yep." Sulika replied, she placed the final cup on the drying rack and turned to face her friend- she was a bit flabbergasted by the size of her backpack but decided not to say anything to discourage her friend.

"Your backpack is heavy, yes?" Aldritch slowly circled Faeyra, eyeing her outfit from every angle. "And your hauberk is a bit tight around the chest and shoulders- have you built muscle since you last wore it?"

"Pfft." Sulika shook her head and tried to disguise her laugh with a cough… It didn't work.

"Did I miss something?"

"No, Sulika is just upset that her girls haven't grown since she was fifteen. I told her a massage would help stimulate their growth, but no matter how much I offered, she-"

"Alright, let's get this show on the road." Sulika clapped her hands, intentionally interrupting Faeyra's comment, and shoved past them.

Faeyra laughed at the color of Sulika's cheeks and followed suit.

Aldritch watched the two of them leave before scooping up Synne and tucking her away inside his robe; the puppy cracked open an eye to see what was going on. But upon seeing the pocket inside his robe, she went back to sleep.

She'd already done this one before, and didn't see a reason to get worked up over it a second time…

"Do you plan to tell them about the pocket?"

"Haven't made up my mind yet."

"I don't believe you need worry about them betraying you. I don't sense such ideations from either of them."

"... Of course, you're correct, my Lord. I suppose I've grown overly paranoid." He shook his head and headed out the door- only to almost run over Sulika in the process.

"Aldritch," She blinked away her surprise, "I was just coming back to find you. Did you forget something?"

"I wanted to make sure Synne was comfortable before I left." He stepped aside, allowing her to lock the door while he moved to join Faeyra at the bottom of the stairs.

"Did you put her with Snowball? I'm sure he'd love the company."

"I did not. Sir Snowball is guarding Sulika's room as if it were his own territory. I wouldn't distract him from his duty in such a fashion."

"Sir Snowball?" Faeyra laughed into her hand. "That's what you call him?"

"Of course: he's a loyal protector of your home. Such people were knights back home."

"Okay, I see that… But Aldritch, he's a bird."

"I once knew a tortoise who'd been granted a knighthood."

Faeyra's smile fell, and she gave Aldritch a look of disbelief. "Was that a joke?"

"Not at all. She was a fascinating creature- most Magma Torti are, but Miriel was even more so. She protected one of our mines from an erupting volcano. For her bravery, the king saw fit to grant her a knighthood and declare her entire lineage a protected species."

"Wow."

"What's that?" Sulika asked, once she'd rejoined them.

"Aldritch was just regaling me with the tale of Sir Miriel… Oh, and apparently Snowball is a knight now."

"He's a what?"

Auris was alive and well.

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets, going about their lives with as much truth and dedication as they could.

Sulika, despite knowing it was rude to the civilians they passed, couldn't help but express her amusement- She knew Aldritch liked her feathered friend, but this was something else.

"Sir Snowball." She repeated for perhaps the fifteenth time.

"It's really not that funny." Faeyra sighed. "I told you she'd be insufferable."

"So, you did." Aldritch chuckled.

"No, but it's great, isn't it? Why didn't I think of that? Do you think he'd wear a tabard if I made it for him?"

"Sir Snowball takes great pride in his work. I imagine he'd be glad to wear it."

Faeyra and Sulika looked up at Aldritch with identical expressions of bemusement.

Sulika leaned forward to see around Aldritch's wide body, "I can't tell if he's joking or not."

On Aldritch's other side, Faeyra leaned forward to reply, "Neither can I."

"I can't either." Oakairo snorted.

Faeyra was thankful for the distraction Aldritch provided. Without it, she'd be nervous, more so than she had been in a long, long time.

This was the first time she'd willingly gone near demon territory in- what- a century? Maybe longer?

For probably the dozenth time since leaving the store, Faeyra patted herself down to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything.

Sulika was experiencing similar feelings.

However, her nervousness came from excitement rather than fear.

This was it, their first outing as a guild. Sure, a few members wouldn't be joining them: Rea, Veta, and Emrid were all non-combatants, so it made sense they'd stay home. But Derrik, Oladi, Zarud, and Ralocan were meeting them at the docks.

Together, the seven of them were heading down to the island Aldritch discovered. And with the money they'll earn from today's hunt, they'll take their first steps towards becoming a proper guild.

As for Aldritch… Well, he was a bit eager to see how Sulika, Faeyra, and the rest fought. But aside from that, all he felt was the anticipation that always preceded a fight.

It didn't actually matter what they found on the island. The true treasure was hidden away inside the dungeon, which they- apparently- weren't even allowed to enter today.

He didn't like it, but he understood why.

Sulika and the others needed the proper protective equipment in order to survive inside a dungeon: they needed masks, oxygen tanks, and booster potions to withstand the miasma.

They used to borrow this equipment directly from the hunters guild.

However, with Sulika's recent departure from the guild, the guild was well within their rights to refuse their request.

Which was fine, Aldritch wouldn't bring them into a dungeon with substandard equipment anyway.

Today's adventure was only about reclaiming the island from the demons- but soon the guild would be properly equipped to handle a confrontation on their own. Nothing would stop him from entering the dungeon then… And in truth, he wasn't certain if he would let them stop him now.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

Inside Aldritch's pocket, Synne was contemplating how quickly she could climb out of her master's robe and locate that absolutely fascinating scent she'd picked up a second ago.

It was meat- juicy, delicious, glorious meat.

Sure, she enjoyed the breakfast he'd given her: Some kind of dried swine meat he'd brought back from her last home- though he'd told her not to tell anyone.

Considering she couldn't talk; she was certain she could follow her Master's request without fail… Not that she'd tell anyone even if she could speak their language.

Master said the meat was for her, and her alone. She didn't have to share food anymore, and she wouldn't. Anyone who disagreed would find themselves on the wrong side of her chompers.

A short while later, as the sun finally rose above the outer wall. Aldritch, Sulika, and Faeyra reached the aerial dock.

Standing near the entrance was Max and twelve other hunters, which Sulika recognized as the members of the third scouting team.

Joolbic and a trio of 'official' looking men in dark suits stood a short distance away, clearly in the midst of a heated discussion.

Lastly, the first two members of their new guild: Derrik and Ralocan, were standing off to the side. They were obviously attempting to put as much distance between themselves and the other groups as possible, without coming across as rude.

Aldritch slowed his walking speed and motioned for Sulika and Faeyra to do the same. "Standard decorum would suggest we greet the governor first, then the people next to him, before moving to Max and the others." He whispered just loud enough for them to hear. "But it's not necessary for all of us to follow such procedures. Only the guild master should-"

"Have fun then." Sulika replied, cutting him off with a slight smile on her face.

"Give em hell." Faeyra chimed in, also smiling up at him.

"...Fair enough." He laughed and shook his head in amusement at how quickly they'd passed on the position of guild master.

Once they were within fifty feet of the three groups, Aldritch broke off towards Joolbic's group, Sulika headed for Max's group, and Faeyra continued making her way to Derrik and Ralocan.

Faeyra greeted the two men with a charming smile, prompting them to respond with equally happy grins in return. "How's it going, guys?" She asked, stopping only a few feet from the two of them.

"It's a good day to slay some Demons!" Ralocan replied, looking positively ecstatic to be leaving the city. "Venerable Cyndarr has once again blessed us with a fine sunrise. He's no doubt pleased we're moving to reclaim the land from the foul demons, returning it to the rightful hands of the faithful."

"What he said." Derrik said before yawning into his hand. "Honestly, I appreciated having a few days off with the wife and young'ns. But they've been driving me up the wall since yesterday, I was starting to need a vacation from my vacation."

"I didn't know you had children." Faeyra said, surprised. She knew Derrik was married or whatever the dwarven equivalent was, but didn't realize he had children too.

"He has fourteen of them." Ralocan muttered.

"How many times do I need to tell you?" Derrik spat. "Only one of them is mine, the rest are children of the clan. I'm just looking out for them for the time being." Derrik muttered- He noticed the confusion on Faeyra's face and realized he'd need to explain further.

"It's customary in Dwarven culture for young'ns with recently born siblings to live with various members of the clan from the age of five until their Norrak'thul (Nameday)- Ah, sorry. I meant until their tenth birthday. I forget you elves don't have those." He said, awkwardly laughing to himself.

Ralocan shrugged. "Don't fret over it, Derrik. We may not have Norrak'thul's, but at least we get to own our own names." He replied, a sly grin spreading across his face.

Faeyra rolled her eyes at the comment and the bickering that followed, the two hurling insults back and forth like a pair of teenage boys.

Over with Aldritch, he approached Joolbic and friends with a professional smile in place.

The moment he reached them; he immediately offered his hand to Joolbic- since he was the person Aldritch believed held the highest rank in the group.

Once he'd greeted Joolbic, he introduced himself to the other men one after the other.

The first man was a sprightly Kandis. At five feet tall, and probably a hundred pounds soaking wet, he was one of the shorter Kandisi he'd seen. But with his golden fur, intelligent emerald eyes, and… He realized he'd recognized this man.

"He's cleaned himself up since we saw him at the memorial stone." Oakairo muttered.

Yes, that was it.

The Kandisi from the memorial stone, the one with the eyes of a dead fish.

Now that he was paying attention, Aldritch could see the exhaustion buried deep within the Kandis' eyes.

"Nice to meet you, Sir Aldritch. My name is Nikko Hughes, I serve as the public relations representative for the Hunters Guild." Nikko said in a clear voice.

The second man was a middle-aged human with short and spiky white hair with blackened tips, and black eyes.

Half of his face was hidden beneath a thick, but neatly trimmed beard that matched his hair. And his dark, three-piece suit did little to hide the sheer musculature of the human, who could've easily passed for an Ogre with a little make up and more than a little brain damage.

"Conan Murray. It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir Aldritch. I've heard so much about you." Conan said, grinning from ear to ear. He clasped hands with Aldritch and squeezed… After a few seconds of this, Conan chuckled to himself and let go.

"I like you." He said, tapping Aldritch on the shoulder with his right hand.

He reached into the breast pocket of his suit and pulled out a small card, which he immediately passed to Aldritch.

"Come visit me sometime. I'd love to see how well you'd do in the ring."

"Ring?" Aldritch muttered. Looking at the card in his hand, it read: Conan Murray, President of A.G.P (Azuris Gladiatorial Productions). Located at 11-472, Auris, Azuris Island.

Aldritch sent a confused look Joolbic's way, who let out an exaggerated sigh.

"Despite the name, AGP is the leading provider of arcanist tools on the island. Conan is the one supplying the mana stones you'll be using to revamp our wards- assuming your offer still stands?" He asked in a curious tone.

Aldritch had indeed offered to 'fix' the ward surrounding the island after their talk of creating a guild was complete. He'd even offered to do it for free… But only on one condition.

"Have you found a building for us?" Aldritch replied in the same tone as Joolbic.

"We're still looking into it." The gnome said, a relaxed smile on his face.

"Then by all means, revisit the topic after you've found us a building, or you have found something of equivalent value." Aldritch had a similar smile on his face as he looked away from Joolbic to the last man- Looking away didn't stop him from noticing a sour expression flash across the Gnome's face.

The third man was a pretty Lunaren elf with waist-length, curly black hair that looked like it took an hour to brush every morning.

Twin emotionless amber eyes stared at Aldritch, while a sardonic smile remained cemented onto his face. "Shael Elvaren, Sentinel commander and the one responsible for keeping the peace while you go down to the island." Shael monotonously explained.

His voice sounded surprisingly feminine considering the way he presented himself… Then again, elves were often considered more attractive than almost any other race, making it notoriously difficult to determine if they were male, female, or something else altogether.

"While it's certainly a Pleasure to meet you all, I'm assuming you aren't here to wish us good luck?" He asked, directing his question to Joolbic.

"No. I wouldn't waste our time for such a reason." Joolbic replied with a chuckle. "We're here, because this is the first time in a bit over a century that a lost island has been reclaimed. I wouldn't miss such an event for the world."

"Oh? How do you intend to reclaim it?" Aldritch asked. Joolbic's words had succeeded in capturing his attention. He'd assumed they were just going to recover what they could, then leave it for the ocean to claim. Were they planning to do anything else?

"I'm glad you asked. Sir Murray, if you would?"

"Right-O." Conan said and stepped past Aldritch. He pointed to a building- no, not a building, it was some kind of reinforced platform near the edge of the aerial dock… there was something being constructed on top of it.

"My people are rushing to build forty of those platforms along the western edge of the island.

By this time tomorrow, we'll have everything we need to reclaim the largest piece of the island from the clutches of the sea.

Then, with the help of your new wards, we'll tie the two islands together in harmony. It'll be like coffee in the mornings, or a pickle and grilled cheese sandwich." Conan sucked in a deep breath and sighed. "Doesn't that sound just grand?" He asked, smiling widely at Aldritch.

Aldritch stared at Conan for a few moments before a smile spread across his face. "I'll stick with chocolate, but hey, whatever heats your forges is not for me to judge."

Faeyra watched Aldritch and the large human smile at each other and wondered what they were talking about. Sulika was off chatting with Max and the members of the scouting team, leaving the three of them to wait for Oladi and Zarud by themselves.

"Probably should've asked this earlier…" Ralocan muttered, getting Faeyra and Derrik's attention. "What's the name of our guild? I don't think I've heard anyone mention it yet."

Derrik realized the elf was right, for once, and looked to Faeyra for the answer.

She shrugged and pointed with her thumb at Aldritch. "We rejected about twenty of his suggestions yesterday before settling on one we didn't hate. Crazy for cocoa, The Ten Chocolatiers, The Chocolate Oracle- which I immediately said no to." She said, her face turning bright red from embarrassment.

"There were more, but I must've blocked them out at some point." She sighed.

"So... what'd you settle on?" Ralocan asked, suddenly regretting his decision to join without hearing the name first.

"Mag Ársa." She said, looking completely exasperated. "Aldritch says it means 'The Oldest Mountain.' in the dwarvish tongue."

"You're right." Ralocan replied, laughing nervously at the name. "It could definitely be worse-"

"That's Kharrak?" Derrik muttered, a confused expression on his face.

"You know, you're right," Ralocan muttered after a second. "It doesn't sound like any Kharraki I've ever heard." He said, looking just as confused as Derrik.

"That's what he said." Faeyra replied and shrugged helplessly. "I'm no expert on the Dwarvish language, so I didn't dispute it. Why? What do you think it means?"

"Well, in Kharrak, Mag does mean 'The Oldest', but Ársa doesn't mean mountain… At least, It hasn't since before I was born. I think its closest comparison is 'Defender?'" Derrik slowly explained, almost as if he were unsure of his translation.

"The Oldest Defender, huh…" Faeyra repeated before glancing over at Aldritch, who was heading their way with a slight smile on his face.

They say the eyes are the windows to the soul.

If that was the case, what kind of soul was revealed through twin orbs of molten gold that burned with a fierce inner light.

And his outfit- a simple, yet clearly old and tattered white robe was evidence of the long years of struggle he'd been forced to endure. While the stark black pants, practical and modest, seemed almost out of place for someone who served a God of Pride.

In contrast to his simple clothes, his armor was almost exaggeratedly extravagant. An opulent golden plate mail that clung tightly to his torso, legs, and shoulders couldn't have been just for defense.

Plain old steel would've been stronger, lighter too.

No, she could easily see that armor as a beacon- A target willingly worn over his body that drew the eyes and swords of his enemies.

And he'd said he'd forged them himself? Why? Why draw that kind of attention to yourself?

The answer, she realized, was simple.

It was a pledge to both Oakairo, and those he protected.

So long as Aldritch of clan Blackshield remained standing, the people behind him were protected.

"The name suits him." She muttered to herself.