The guild similar to the world fell between two eras, unsure of what it wanted exactly. Making his way in, the stench of leather and polymer came across his nose. The original aesthetic but it seemed to be glossed over with modernity.
Neon signs could be seen all over, the seats retro futuristic and the touch easy on the eyes. Making his way to the front desk, he met the clerk who busy with another adventurer. "I've told you that if you wish to use the fallen world's guns then you'll need a bonded license."
The talk ended shortly after before she turned to face him. "Name?" Her voice ever monotone. "Rowen." She looked at him, her pupils flickering momentarily before falling into apathy. "Are you a returning member or registering from a party?"
"I'm new." Short and functional. "Alright then I'll need your to pick a class, path and intent. I'll also need a soulmark reading from you." His eyes squinted. 'Soul mark, is this meant to curb those enlisting from being those of my world?'
She gestured to a pedestal beside the desk. It shimmered faintly as runes gleamed and wires, elegant and crude at once. "It pulls the surface signature of your essence. Just a fingerprint of it. For registry and… compliance. Nothing invasive."
He made his way onto the pedestal and felt a scan probe his body. A light prick trickling all over his skin however it was over before he could notice it. Elyes Varnette the clerk shifted her fingers across the sleek dashboard that projected all kinds of data that he wasn't familiar with.
[{Essence class: Human.
Mana Type: Null/Warp (Unstable.)
Primary Signature: Artificial Hybrid / Not Registered.
Status: Admittable.}]
He was glad that it recognized him as a human as even he didn't know what exactly he was at the time. Not fully a demon but not a beast either. "Class?" He looked at the options presented.
Knight Path: Vanguard, Bulwark, Executioner
Maga Path: Elementalist, Puppeteer, Augmenter
Hybrid Path: Stitcher, Phaseblade, Eidolon
"Hybrid, stitcher." Elyes's gaze lingered on his figure far longer than he felt she should have. "Are you one of those flesh types?" Her fingers typing away. "Something of the sort." Shifting her attention back to her screen, she asked for more. "What is your intention?"
"Nothing more than working, hunting and observation." She let out a faint hum of acknowledgement as she finally looked back up. She handed him a thin mana-infused badge, stamped bronze with a flickering green light at the base. It was warm to the touch.
[{UA Union Adventurer
Rowen | Hybrid Path – Stitcher
Status: Green (Provisional)
Clearance: Local Only}]
He clipped it to his belt."Fine. You'll be listed under provisional green. That means no guild commissions over Grade III until you're tested. You're eligible for personal quests, monster bounties, and off-record investigations. But stay away from political contracts unless flagged up."
"Noted." Her eyes seemed to hold something back and he felt it. "As for your soulmark, it didn't flicker." Curious he quizzed. "Was it suppose to?" She gave a faint nod making him wary, unsure of she knew just what he was or merely curious as well.
He pulled away from the desk, making his way to the boards listed with all kinds of quests. Some long overdue, others flashy but out of his scope. Looking around for a bit, he found one that he liked and tapped it. His badge glowed in acknowledgement.
[{MISSION 112-A
"Strange Occurrences in Thistle Hollow"
Type: Personal Contract.
Reward: 80 Blue Shards.
Status: Ungraded.
Offered By: Merchant's Union.
Notes: Entities interfering with mana signatures.}]
Just as he was about to leave, he felt it. An overwhelming presence of life essence that walked in the guild. He didn't bother wasting his time and quickly took his leave, Eyles took a quick glance at his departing figure before shifting back to her work.
***
Before he went out for his quest, he knew that he needed a weapon, something that fit his taste would be hard as it wouldn't be equated with a sword. The broker's stall sat in a crowded alley, the wood façade dressed with mana-infused carvings, but the interior smelled like gun oil and wet brass.
Behind the counter, a bald dwarf with mechanical lenses over his eyes, one constantly adjusting. "What are you looking for? Something subtle or savage?" His tone husky as he gestured at his weapons on display.
He looked around, his eyes barely interested before he found it. "How much for that?" Pointing at a folding rapier spear staff. Sleek yet brutal. "Ahh that... An all range weapon however few choose to wield such a master piece. Takes time and effort to master it and in the heat of battle mistakes aren't viable."
"I'll take it." Realizing his persistence the dwarf couldn't help but don a smile. "If you'd wish then so be it. Of course it won't be cheap. It took me a long time to craft one of these babies. 1,500 blue shards." He gauged Reynolds who wore his poker face well.
Sensing his silence he paused for a bit. 'Maybe he won't buy it. Already considering to buy a sword. These humans and their choice.' He wasn't planning on lowering the price at all but wait for Reynolds to make his statement. Reaching to his pouch, he brought out the exact amount requested.
"A fine trade indeed. However do note that there are no refunds here." Reynolds inspected the weapon in his hands. It felt light, the rapier at the end sharp yet light. "If you want to test it I'd like to advise you to do it out of my shop please." Sensing how absorbed he was, the dwarf feared any damage dealt to his goods.
Without another word Reynolds took his leave and made his way towards his quest. '1,500 was much higher than I had anticipated but a sacrifice worth the gambit.' Holstering the Fangblade onto his back and out of town, his figure flashed in an instant.
***
From the trees, Hollowmanes dropped like diseased monkeys. Their bodies lean, pale scavenger-beasts with elongated jaws and wiry limbs. One, two then five more dropped into the scene.
His enemies fell faster than they could attack. Reynolds gave them no window for them to exploit and because of this he was just about done. The entities that he was sent to purge were all nearly dead.
A few feet away from him a small pack of Hollowmanes hollered in fury. The place was littered with their fallen comrades while the cause of it all remained unharmed. With a quick dash he closed the distance and let his Retractable Fangblade cleave through the flesh of his targets.
Now extended to fit a rapier his range was greatly extended and with just a swing, two instantly lost their lives. Three taking this opportunity closed in on him however his reaction was far superior to theirs. Retracting his rapier, it arched back to form a dagger for close quarters.
His movements fluid as ever slicing through the Hollowmanes with ease. His breathes regulated solely on physical prowess and his Fangblade. The quest acted as a training ground for him to test his skills with the Fangblade. Failure unlike the rest was an expense he could afford.
Thanks to the overwhelming power in his body, making heavy arcs through the air wasn't a problem nor was his reaction but his fluidity with the weapon had yet to increase. It was lacking in certain aspects especially in terms of long range as he was a close quarters combatant.
Mournful shrieks filled the air before it fell dead silent. 'Their wildness isn't what I require.' It wouldn't have been the first time he found a trait that he didn't admire and berserk was one of them. Losing his composure for a weapon that required skill was detrimental.
Severing some of their heads for proof, he took his leave however he didn't blindly go back but waited for the presence that he had felt earlier to leave the premise which it had by now.
Elyes looked at the bagged heads as Reynolds gave a report on the quest. Detailing the cause of threat and the execution of it. Cashing in his quest he was about to take another before Elyes stopped him. "Great work however I do have to tell you. Your kind isn't welcomed too greatly by humans."
Her voice low as the guild was mostly empty. By now it was way late into the night and at times like these most would waste it on beer at the local pub or at brothels. "I'm aware however I can conclude that you aren't human as well." She let out a light chuckle.
"Don't we all have our secrets? Just watch your back." Reynolds was a man who had eyes at the back of his head. As for how he came to know that Elyes wasn't human, he had initially tried to copy her malcore flow pattern only to find it odd in comparison to a regular human.
It was way richer than it needed to be, her cap for malcore was above average. "It would seem that the way you dealt with them, you specialize more in the physical aspect however even you'll need to use malcore and when you do, it'll end up than just amazing those around you."
Reynolds had a vague idea of what she meant. So far he had intentionally refrained from using any malcore on the Hollowmanes to make sure that no trace of demonic aura was found despite the statistics showing him as human.
"Your illusion is interesting though. All of the data suggests that you're human and have the soul of one as well and yet you have the body of a demon." His eyes never left Eyles who had a faint smile that never left her lips.
"I'm sure you want to earn the money you just spent on your Fangblade however we're about to close for the night. Try coming tommorow though." He let out a heavy sigh and took his leave, Eyles smile peering through his back and mocking his soul as he trudged on.
'It's quite clear that she has an appraisal ability or one capable of seeing through illusions. Suitable however I wasn't able to mimick it. I'll have to harvest her blood for that.' There were at times when he couldn't mimick a creature on sight and needed their blood for that and humans were one of such beings.
Similar to the Duskrend, during the fight he couldn't delve into the shadows but fight till the battle was over for him to gain the trait. 'I guess the days of visual mimickry are over.' He let out a sigh, the sounds of men in taverns getting drunk echoing through.
Some staggering their way back to their homes while he made his way back to his abode. It wasn't much and given that he slept under the stars, the comfort of a bed was a nice change of pace. 'Malcolm, I'll find you and you'll definitely pay. That I assure you.'