Wandering Dungeon

The Slick Pig stood near the center of town so any adventures staying there could reach any party of the town quickly. It was a large two story building towing over the rest of the single story buildings surrounding it. A well worn sign hung out slightly into the street and depicted a pig covered in what looked like oil flying out of the arms of someone.

"This looks like the inn the guard talked about." Garrett said. "So the adventurers guild should be right across the street." Garrett, Blixie, and Kyle turned to their right and saw a few shops. A shop selling weapons had a sign with two swords crossed over the words 'Quillions Quills'. Two doors to the right hung a sign sporting a shield behind a helmet with the words 'Pangolins Protection' that advertised for an armor shop. Between them sat a shop barely wide enough for the door on its front with a stylized 'A' above it.

"Well that is the mark of the adventures guild," Blixie said as she pointed above the door to the small shop. "But I've never seen them use such a small building before. They must have a really peaceful life out here like the guard was saying."

Kyle perked up remembering something. "That reminds me. We need to cover your mouth Garrett or have Blixie talk for our group."

Garrett and Blixie turned to look at him. "Why would I need to do that?" Garrett asked.

"I overheard the guard we met talk to another guard and say that the words he was hearing from you didn't match up to how your mouth was moving." Kyle shrugged. "Which, after noticing it now, does look like I'm watching an old kung fu movie that was badly dubbed."

"Well that makes sense. I don't really have that fine of a control with my Unseen Force skill yet." Garrett quickly pulled a strip off of the bottom of his cloak and tried to tie it around the bottom of his face. His control over the fingers of the elf was not great so he ended up changing the threads from his fingers to the edges of the fabric and tying it that way. "I'm wondering how you heard the guard from way over here though."

"Well you're not the only reborn gamer in this world with cool abilities." Kyle quipped. "I happen to have an ability that allows me to leave a small puddle of myself that I can hear and see through. I've been leaving puddles sporadically as we traveled to get practice and I figured having an ear around the entrance would come in handy." Kyle puffed up a little. He was quite proud of his forethought.

"So you have been leaving puddles everywhere? In the forest, on the road, and even by the stream we passed?"

"Yup."

"Ew. Bad squishy, bad. No leaving puddles everywhere." Garrett chuckled. "I thought you were house trained." Blixie stared confused for a second before laughing.

"Haha. Very funny Garrett." Kyle grumbled.

"Sorry Kyle. You setup that joke too well." Garrett got himself under control. "That does sound like a very useful ability though. Well, let's go check out the adventurers guild." Garrett walked forward.

"I'm so pumped for this." Kyle threw two tentacles into the air and squirmed forward.

"Just remember, no talking Kyle." Blixie admonished.

"I know. I know."

Garrett pushed the door open and stepped inside. He was surprised by how stark the inside was. Simple white washed walls and a wooden floor greeted them. Garrett easily could have touched both walls just by spreading his arms. A small elderly women sat behind a counter that spanned the width of the room. A couple of bookshelves flanked her and a simple door stood behind.

"Hello dears." A soft voice whispered through the room. "What brings you in today?"

"Hello ma'am." Garrett said respectfully as he approached the counter. "We are just passing through town and are running a little low on travel funds so we were wondering if there was any work to be done."

"Of course dearies. Tell me your guild rank and I will see if there is anything suitable."

Blixie spoke up. "Sorry but we are not part of the adventurers guild so we don't have a rank."

"Oh my, oh my. That just won't do. I can only give work to guild members. I'm sorry." The old woman replied with a touch of sadness in her voice.

"I understand." Garrett said. "How would we go about joining the guild?"

The old woman looked quizzically at the group. Everyone was taught in school that to join the guild you just have to go to any branch and prove that you can survive the rigors of the adventurers lifestyle.

Blixie noticed the look from the old woman. "Please pardon my companion. I found him unconscious and injured in the woods a few weeks ago. He seems to be suffering from amnesia and really only knows the skills granted to him by the gods."

The old women's glare turned to a smile of compassion and sympathy. "I'm sorry to hear that. I had amnesia once after getting clubbed over the head while fighting some orcs." She chuckled. "I went a couple of months trying to figure out why some old man was chasing me around saying we were married. My memory came back after I took a blow to the head from fighting in the annual tournament. What a crazy year this has been."

Garrett and Kyle looked at each other silently promising each other to not anger this old lady. The old lady pulled a couple sheets of paper and a quill out from under the counter and placed them in front of Garrett. "Now just fill out this waiver form and we can get started on your test."

"Waiver for what?"

"It is just a standard agreement saying that you won't hold the guild responsible for any injuries or deaths resulting from any quests you take on or any tests the guild requires from you." She said with a practiced smile.

Garrett filled out the sheet with his name and wrote down his class as monster tamer. "So how do I join if this is just a waiver?" As he finished signing his name on the form, a stylized 'A' appeared, the same as on the front of the shop, and another formed on the back of his hand.

"You just need to take a small test and I will evaluate whether or not you qualify to join the guild. Don't worry about the mark on your hand either. That is just a binding spell to verify that you signed the waiver." The old woman hoped down from her stool that she was sitting on and disappeared from sight. A small section of the counter swung in. Garrett was shocked that the old woman only stood slightly taller than his waist. She then turned away, walked to the door behind the counter and opened it. "Step right this way into the testing area and we will see what you can do."

Garrett, Blixie, and Kyle looked at each other and shrugged. Garrett noticed a slightly mischievous smile on her face as he and his companions proceeded through the door.