The Krakos: Book Two of The Legend of the Artificer

Chapter 7

The guild house was less of a house and more of a random, haphazard collection of wings built on top of each other, sticking out at odd angles and standing out of sheer willpower. It was massive, sitting nearer to the end of town, and looked like it had been added onto over years. There was a main building, tall and imposing and made of odd angles and an overly large door he was sure was made for towering members, and he took a moment to stare up at the imposing structure. Someone tended to flowering vines climbing up the sides, curling around the sign to the right of the door reading 'Dawnbreak Guild', and a tower jutted out at the center of it all with a massive, circular window.

"I wasn't expecting the size," Tibalt said faintly as he took in the practical compound, and Grim urged him forward.

"Dawnbreak Guild has been around for centuries," he said by way of a reply as Angel heaved on the large double doors. "A lot of masters added wings based on whims, honestly. There's a courtyard at the center, a museum where we keep things members brought back from missions and donated to the guild, library, game room, dorms for members that don't make it back to town a whole lot, random aquarium we aren't sure who put in, a garden where we grow more rare plants we brought back and sell, apothecary for members, an infirmary, things like that. Lots of entertaining spaces, the guildmaster before Guida apparently loved having secret passages, so try to not fall through random walls, a greenhouse, just a bunch of shit we don't need but have anyways. Guida added an observatory and conservatory."

"It's huge," Tibalt muttered in disbelief, and Grim snorted.

"Don't let it blow you away. Everyone here is a disaster."

The doors opened to the sound of yelling, and Tibalt's heart sunk in his chest as he realized he was going to have to deal with the cast of a shounen. He didn't have that kind of patience. Didn't Grim know what he was dragging Tibalt into?

There was a crash, and Tibalt blinked as a blur of red and gray sprang across a table, white flashing out as fabric wrapped around another dwarf-shaped blur and threw them into a pillar.

"Oy, Belial, your form is sloppy!" Grim called as he slung an arm around Tibalt's shoulders and pulled him in close. The person froze, and then whirled so Tibalt could take in the sight of a gray holkind with large, black horns and red eyes standing on a table, bandages around her wrists slithering back up under her coat sleeves as her gaze narrowed on Tibalt.

"Where'd you pick up a red holkind?" she demanded, and Tibalt looked awkwardly between Grim and her as Grim smiled and waved a hand.

"Trade secret. Tibalt, meet Belial. Belial, meet Tibalt."

"Belial, we aren't done!"

The dwarf rose up from the dent they'd put in the wall, black, bushy beard bristling like the offense could be felt in their follicles. Blazing blue eyes honed in on her, and Angel sighed and unhooked his scythe, spinning it around to cut through the air and hover between the two of them.

"We have rookies. Behave," Angel ordered.

"Oh, you're the gunslinger!" the dwarf gasped as their gaze narrowed in on Tibalt, and he inhaled sharply. "That was a good showing!"

"Wait, when did we have a viewing?" Belial demanded as Tibalt got a good view of the hall. All manners of species scattered through the hall, drinking raucously, munching on plates heaped with food, and he caught sight of an open wall towards the back where a chef was casting home-spells on raw foods to pop out full meals. Light was glowing in the corner, and Tibalt subconsciously pressed a little away from Grim to get a good look, only for a heavy hand to land on his shoulder and pull him back.

"You can harass the chef later," Grim said and pushed him towards a table where a dwarf and a human woman were sitting drinking. "Sophia. Nice to see you taking over our drinking hall again."