Chapter 3
"I'm glad to be here," said Cassandra, on a walk with her parents through the gardens behind the Magicians' Guild.
"We're glad to see you too," said her father. "Maybe a little too glad," he added, elbowing her mother in the ribs.
"I may have decided to throw something," she admitted sheepishly.
Cassandra eyed her. "Let me guess," she said, slowly and carefully. "Mom got word that I was coming, started crying from sheer joy, and then decided to throw a giant party and invite half of the heroes on this side of the crimson."
Her mother began laughing hysterically, and Cassandra smiled. "Mom, you're so predictable."
"I'm sorry, Cass. I couldn't help myself," her mother chortled, recovering from her hysterics. "But seriously, though. You're a fully grown young woman now, and I feel you should find a Guild to join. You've always had the spark of a great hero in you, my girl," she added, "and I think that somewhere like the Warriors' Guild is the perfect place for you to practice and bring that out."
"Besides," added her father, "the headmaster is a beloved family friend. I'll never forget what he's done for us." With that, he took on the gaze of a man remembering as he recalled a distant memory.
"And he's here today!" her mother said cheerfully, to break the silence. "Over there, in fact." She gestured to a pavilion, full of noise and laughter and all sorts of people from different Guilds milling about. Cassandra and her parents walked over to a tall, battle-worn gentleman in crimsonite armor. "Hello, Lorre."
Lorre turned to face Cassandra. She saw a pair of twinkling eyes in his scarred face, but behind them there was an imperceptible sadness. He smiled. "Why, Cassandra! How you've grown. The last time I saw you, you were just this tall." He held a hand just above his knee, then knelt slightly and looked into her eyes. "You're looking more like your namesake every day," Lorre said softly, gently smoothing her hair with a hand that was missing a finger. For an instant Cassandra thought she saw tears in his eyes, waiting to fall, but he blinked and shook his head and stood back up, and they were gone.
"It's nice to see you too, Uncle Lorre!" she said cheerfully, in an attempt to lighten the mood.
A slender young woman in shimmering blue armor sprinted over, the yellow lightning boots on her feet kicking up twin trails of dust. "Lorre! Thunder! Emergency meeting in five!"
Lorre shook his head slightly. "Miss Briarcliff, would you consider slowing down for a little bit? You live your whole life swiftly. Slow down for a moment. This is Cassandra Zevulon, Thunder's daughter."
"Hello," Cassandra said shyly.
"Pleasure to meet you, Cassandra," was the reply. "I've heard lots about you. Name's Bryn Briarcliff, Headmistress of the Archers' Guild, and I need to hold an emergency meeting with the other Guildmasters."
Lorre rolled his eyes. "I swear to the gods, Bryn, if this is something stupid..."
"I am dead serious, sir," Bryn said evenly, casually removing her bow from her back and plucking the string. There was a slight hum and a faint shockwave rippled through the pavilion. "There's a major threat rising, and we are all in grave danger."
