Chapter Four - The New Members
Marlow walked up to the public area of the guild hall and saw a couple dozen people, big and small. He walked up to a step-ladder next to a podium, organized his lines that were on a notecard, and turned on a microphone lacrima. He began speaking.
"Attention. Attention. Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Ruby Phoenix! I'm so glad you could make it here today to take part in this experience today. I hope you all have a wonderful time joining in our little family. Now, I'm sure you're all wondering; 'Why would the guildmaster be so young?'"
There was a silence, then a voice rang up "You're a rabbit?"
"Yes, yes. I'm a rabbit. I'll get back on-"
Another voice, "Why are you a rabbit?"
"Long Story. I'll get to it later." Marlow said cheerily. There was some murmuring, but Marlow called out again, "Attention. Attention. Thank you. Now, as you complete the signing-up forms, take time to get to know each other if you haven't already. Meet new people. We're going to be working together, so don't be shy. Meanwhile, me and my associates will get together and interview you all so we can know each other. Don't worry, you're all accepted no matter what, unless you've committed a crime or- Any-who," He said that comment under his breath, "Let's get to it then!"
There was a cheer and Marlow went into a small room with Caden and Arcadia. Chiron had elected to go out on a job dealing with a demon, so he couldn't make it, and Hayle was hanging out with Isa. Milo was facilitating the crowd upstairs, calling out names, serving punch, and the like. It had been five days since the interview was published in Sorcerer's Weekly, with actually a surprisingly well-written review. Marlow was scared of how the reporter was going to write the guild as, but apparently, she was impressed. Milo looked at his list and called on the first name,
"Rowan Kory, you are first!"
The first person to enter the room was a tall, robed figure with short, brown hair,and a prosthetic leg made entirely of wood.
"Hello, Rowan," Marlow started, "How are you today?"
"Pretty good," the man said, "You?"
"I'm good myself. So, Rowan, tell us a bit about yourself."
"Well, I'm a wizard who practices Wood-Make magic, as I can make whatever my imagination allows out of wood. I even made a leg, since my real one got burned in a fire."
"Really?" Arcadia looked up, excited, "Who started the fire?"
"Actually, a member of that dark guild you took down a couple of weeks ago. The one who turned into a hydra. I don't remember his name…"
"Oh," Caden interrupted "That Julius guy?"
"I don't know, seven-year-old me didn't ask the hydra his name while he was burning down my house and family."
"Oh...sorry," Caden said sheepishly.
"Well anyway, an old wizard found me and taught me how to use Wood-Make magic. After he died of an illness, I took to travelling, looking for work. That's when I heard some group defeated the guy. I was upset I couldn't do him in, but I thought 'Whatever, I need work, and these guy's mean business' so here I am."
Marlow spoke "Well thank you for -"
"Actually," Caden interrupted, "Julius is still out there."
"Oh." Rowan said, interested, "That's interesting."
Arcadia had an evil look on her face, then said, "So if your house burnt down, does that mean…" and she ignited a tiny flame in the palm of her hand. Rowan looked wide-eyed and said skittishly "Thank you, I'm delighted to join the guild. Bye." and he quickly left. Marlow gave Arcadia a menacing look.
Milo read from the list, "Star Jones, you're next." and everyone heard a loud, sing-songy voice yell, "That's Lucky Star Jones, ah whatever," he calmed down and went into the room. A tall, jacketed man with star-shaped sunglasses and white, stylish hair came in. He took one look at Arcadia and said with a suave voice, "Hey, baby. I'd be happy to join a guild with women as hot as you. What do you say we get out later? Who knows; maybe you'll get lucky?" He drew out that last word.
"Umm, no thanks. You're trying too hard" Arcadia commented harshly.
"Arcadia," Marlow whispered, "please stop harassing potential guild members."
"He's harassing me." She whispered back.
"Yeah, but...fine." Marlow calmed down. "So, what brings you to our guild?"
"Well, everywhere else wasn't good enough for the likes of me. I'm kind of a star, if you haven't heard. I released a new album about a month ago. Maybe you've heard of it?" The trio shook their heads, "Well...it's… an indie label. Anyway, I practice a type of magic that allows me to manipulate luck and th. It's pretty wicked."
"That's actually pretty neat," Marlow inquired, "I've never heard of that before. How does it work?"
"Well, say that you throw that glass of water you have right there at me. I can manipulate the luck so that it misses or hits you instead. Alternatively, I can make it so it's more likely to hit a target square on the head."
"Wow, how does it work?" Arcadia asked, now interested.
"Magic, baby. So how about that date?"
"Ahh...later?" She said, now uninterested.
"Thank you for your time, Lucky. We'll be glad to have you in our guild."
Lucky performed some choreographed maneuver as he left the room, and proceeded to sing in an annoying pop-star voice.
Milo shouted, "Lorraine Okaritte, you're up next."
A tall, slender woman with modest, brown clothes and green hair straightened in a ponytail came into the room. She was carrying a katana and three, odd rings.
"Hello Lorraine." Marlow chirped, "How are you."
"Fine, Fine. You're well, I take it?"
"Yes, I am. So tell us a bit about yourself."
"Well," she started, "I use holder-type Ring magic, if that's what you mean. I haven't dedicated a lot of my time towards learning a specific magic, I mostly train in martial arts and sword play. The rings, however, use a magic for me already. One wards against spells, one paralyzes a foe, and another cause a large amount of pain."
"Neat," Caden said, obviously smitten with the lady, "So tell us a bit about yourself, miss."
Marlow caught on and looked heartbroken, but he let Lorraine talk.
"Well, I mostly trained my body throughout my life. I didn't...do anything of too much interest." She commented softly
"Thank you for your time, miss." Caden continued, "We'll just ecstatic to have you in our guild. Thank you for your time."
"Yeah, thanks." Marlow muttered.
"You're ever so welcome," she continued, "I haven't a home around here. Your guild has dorms?"
"Yes, of course. Whatever you like, miss."
"Why, thank you. I'll be taking my leave then."
"Bye!" Caden practically yelled. Arcadia hit him, yet he didn't know why.
"Next, we'll be seeing a young miss Juliet Whitman" Milo yelled.
A young girl, about 14 years old, in a plain, white dress came in, smiling with a bubbly personality. She also had white, feathery wings.
"Hello, miss. How are ya?" Arcadia asked, taking the place of a sullen Marlow. Caden was still oblivious.
"Peachy-keen. How are you?"
"I'm fine as well. So, tell us about yourself."
"Well, I grew up in Ceruleo. My parents love magic and wizardry, so when I asked if I could be a wizard, they were more than happy. I learned flying magic, and I also got this little bow I found. I looked like a little angel to all of my friends,, so they called me cupid." She then giggled adorably, "I wanted to join a guild to make new friends and find a prince, if you know what I mean, and Ceruleo had none, so I went here. I'm super excited to be with you guys!"
"Well we're happy to have you, young lady." Caden implied.
"I'm happy to be here!" and Juliet skipped out of the room. Caden and Arcadia let out an audible "DAWWWWWWW!" Marlow was still crestfallen. Arcadia remembered why and hit Caden again, to which he responded "Why do you keep hitting me?" Arcadia kept silent.
"Next, can we see a Claus Orren?"
A voice came up, "Can I come with him? I'm his sister!"
"Sure thing."
Two people came into the room; one, a tall, serious-looking man in fine clothes, and a 17 year old girl with glasses carrying around a book.
"Claus and Milly Orren, I presume?" Caden implored.
"Yep, that's us." Milly spoke
"We heard that there was a new guild starting near where we were and we decided to finally join one." Claus inquired
" A new guild would be neat-o" Milly said.
"Plus, with the death of our parents a year ago, we had no place to stay."
"Well, what do you guys do?" Arcadia asked.
"Well," Claus spoke, "I use magical light and dark swords i found in a mysterious dungeon, but magically, I use Body Enhancement magic, making me faster, stronger, and the ilk."
Milly added, "I use Enchantments, cause I love reading, but mine are more elemental based, like if you step on it, you'll burn or get shocked or somethin'. I mostly make traps."
"Well, that's neat. I'm sorry about your folks." Arcadia commented.
Milly spoke up, "Yeah, it's sad. But truth be told, they were a part of a cult that we ran away from, so...yeah. An assassin guild got 'em, and they weren't so keen on keeping survivors. Don't worry, though. We're not crazy cultists or anything."
Claus contributed, "We defected when we were children, and I've looked after Milly all of my life."
"That's an interesting tale." said Caden, "We'll be happy to have you in our guild."
"Thanks!" Milly said, "Catch ya' later."
"Same," Arcadia muttered, "Tell me if you find a good book." Arcadia, contrary to her personality, also loved to read.
"Will do!" Marlow got up finally and said, "I'm good, I'm good. I'm calm."
"Next," Milo said, "Can we see a Maurice Du'Bane"
"Sure thing." a gruff voice sounded.
When Maurice came into the room, the trio saw a well-built, tan man with a full beard and mustache covering his face.
"Hello," he said, "I'm just gonna let you know, if I fall asleep randomly, it's 'cause I have narcolepsy."
"Oh, thank you for letting us know." Marlow said, "So...tell us a bit about yourself, Maurice."
"Well, I work-out. I got this neat regime where I-"
"Your magic?" Arcadia demanded.
"Oh, right. I just use telepathy. I just came here with my associate, Lorraine, although I'm happy to-"
"Oh, so you're after my woman, eh." Caden challenged. Marlow went back to his dejection.
"No...we're not...dating. We just worked together."
"Oh...OK then. Thank you for your time here. We're happy to have you." Caden glanced menacingly at Maurice as he left. Arcadia hit him again.
"Next, may we have a Miss Anise Harcourt." Milo exclaimed.
A young woman entered the room shyly. She wore a light, pink dress and a lovely hat with roses on it.
"Hello, miss. How are you today?" Arcadia asked.
"I'm fine. Thank you miss." Anise responded.
"So, miss." Caden said, "Tell us about yourself." Arcadia looked at him again and raised her hand, but he scooted his chair over to Marlow, who was still sad.
"Well, I went to an academy that taught a very peculiar type of magic." she started speaking, "Along with math, science, and history, they had a special magic class that taught how to use a special device known as a wand to recite any incantation I desire." She spoke so softly they could barely hear here.
"How does that work?" Arcadia asked.
"Well, you practice a certain phrase in a long lost language, and certain phrases cast certain spells. I am not an expert in any of them, but it is beneficial. I came to a guild to learn how to enhance my skills. I'm sorry if I took up too much of your time." Anise sounded as if that monologue was scripted.
"Oh, no. We're happy to have you. Your magic sounds neat; you'll have to show it to me sometime."
"Thank you, miss." She said, as she turned and left the room.
There were a handful of wizards left to interview. A set of twins; Melody and Rhyme Simonds, who sang everything they said and practiced Peace Manipulation and Rage Manipulation magic, there was a fat man named Brutus Arroya, who mostly ate anything and took the power of it via a form of Rouge Magic. A creepy, yet bashful 18 year old wizard named Francis Polk who could control and summon various insects and creepy crawlies, and a young woman named Felicity Moon who used a holder-type flute to control the light, sound, and temperature around her. Finally, they had met all the interviews and everyone who was there to be interviewed joined the guild. Just as Marlow and company were about to pack up and start a party they had planned in honor of the new members, a young boy crashed through the front doors, tripping up and knocking a few chairs over in the process. He was followed by a red, flying cat.
"Sorry I'm late, are you still taking members?" He said to Marlow.
"Pardon him," the cat interrupted, "He's always late for everything. I'm known as Roger, and this child is named Tony. He heard about your guild and felt he had to join."
"Sure," Marlow answered, "We're always taking new members if you wanted to join. What type of magic do you use?"
"I'm a Cosmic Dragonslayer! Taught by the Cosmic Dragon Solioth!"
Marlow stared at him, stunned. A Dragonslayer? Here? Marlow had heard of the destructive and awe-inspiring power of the Lost Art of wizards taught by dragons themselves, but all the dragons left, or so Marlow heard. He never imagined one to come to the guild, though, although he was young. Also there was a flying cat, but those became common for some reason seven years ago. Exceeds, weren't they called? Anyway, Marlow responded to the boy.
"We'd be happy to have one of your caliber in our guild."
"Yeah! Thanks rabbit-person. Where's your master?"
"...I'm the master."
"Oh...neat! Why are you a…"
"It's a long story!" Marlow practically shouted, then he lowered his volume, "Sorry, everyone asks that. If you go down the stairs, you'll see there's a party for new members. Don't drink any alca-"
"Thank you, uhh...sir." Roger had interrupted as Tony bolted down the stairs, "I am Tony's guardian, as he has no parents. Tony wanted to join a guild, so I told him to join a newer one for experience. I hadn't the privilege of meeting this...Solioth, but the powers that he taught Tony to use are something of mention, when he doesn't use it to destroy things. It is sad, though; ever since the dragon left and Tony found me, he hasn't had a definite home, and he's simply been wandering. but now, he can join this...guild, I suppose."
"Well, thank you for picking us."
"Indeed…" Roger had said snobbishly.
Suddenly, a thought caught Marlow, "Wait, if all of the dragons left fourteen years ago, then why is Tony so…" Roger flew down the stairs before Marlow could finish his question, so he just ignored it for now. Marlow went to go to the party downstairs when he saw Chiron appear in the doorway, carrying a sort of hawk with a blue-feathered neck and a backwards claw. Suddenly, he remembered the job that Chiron took alone; one that entitled him to go east to deal with a demon. He didn't think he'd befriend it, though.
"Hey, Chiron. How was the job?"
"Interesting. I made a pact with the demon threatening the small village of Ivy Stone not too far from here."
Yeah, I know. I kinda read the job description…"
"Well, I didn't know."
"Sorry…" Marlow looked guilty, "What kind of demon was it?"
"This is Vinde. She is an Aela demon; one who controls the weather, evidently. Rest assured, she agreed to be my companion, and now there are no more troubles in Ivy Stone."
"Cool; there's a party going on if-"
"No, but thank you. I'm going to rest."
Chiron had a look of concern on his face. Marlow asked, "You alright?"
"Actually," he paused, "Nevermind."
"Suit yourself. Nice job on the...job, by the way"
"Thank you."
The party lasted all through the night. The new members were shown their dorms, which were high in number. Everyone got their own room, but then went back to boozing it up at the party. Caden kept trying to act chivalrous and knightly around Lorraine to get her to like him, but she wouldn't, making Marlow slightly relieved. Arcadia, Isa (although she was underage), Felicity, and Milly (who also was underage) started a drinking game, to which Arcadia won, slightly. Arcadia then proceeded to try to start a boxing match with everyone. After losing to Maurice, she then passed out at the bar. Anise quietly watched the others enjoy themselves, shyly smiling. Chiron, Francis, and Clara took no part and went to sleep. Rowan hanged out with Maurice, Hitari, Marlow, Claus, and they started a game of poker that lasted through the night. Maurice lost often because he kept projecting his hand to everyone. Lucky and the Simonds had a drunken sing-off. Tony, with Roger in tow, watched the girls' drinking game, as did Juliet. Brutus ate a lot. Milo was over-worked and dying. Hayle was trying to wake Arcadia up. They all had a fun night, and barely anyone went to sleep. The party lasted all through the night.