Heaven's Light (Book 1)

Chapter 9 - Ashura

I was feeling pretty excited. Jeriah invited me to go with him on his next little mission thingy so I could figure out how things worked around here. He also told me that, if I needed a place to sleep, the guild had its own dormitories for men and women. I could also go out into the town to an apartment complex and find a home there. I was leaning toward the latter, since the guild charged tons of money to stay there.

"When are you thinking about taking your next mission?" I had asked him.

"Probably tomorrow morning. I'll take a look and see what's available and we'll go from there," he had told me this afternoon.

It was evening now, the moon glistening high in the sky. I was wandering around the streets, attempting to find a suitable place I could call home. I didn't have any money with me, but I was pretty confident that I could strike a deal with the landlord to pay as soon as possible. I would have to pay rent, but I was reassured by Drake that any other place in town was cheaper than what the guild was charging. Members only stayed at the dorms for the luxury of it, not because it was cheap. Apparently, most guild members stayed there.

As I glanced in and out of buildings and shops along the cobblestone pathway, I found my head peering inside the doorway of a beautifully decorated, perfume encrusted place layered in crimson red carpet and black furniture. It was small and cozy, a tiny fire faintly illuminating the foyer and sitting opposite the front desk. There was a woman seated behind this mahogany desk, black, thin-rimmed glasses sliding down her slender nose, black hair hanging in her flashy, purple eyes. Her gaze met mine and she waved me over to her, an interesting smile on her face.

"Hello there, sweetie!" she greeted, flashing perfectly straight teeth. "Welcome to the happiest place in Venenatus!"

I stared, eyes wide, at the flamboyance in her small gestures. "W-what?"

"How may I help you out tonight? Would you like a nice, warm room?" she offered, wiggling her thin eyebrows with a smug look on her face.

Before I could act even more confused, a girl came charging from behind me, slamming her thin arms on the surface of the desk, her head only as high as my mid-stomach. She was only partially dressed in thin linens, hair a chocolate mop on her head, a pouty look on her face.

"Ella, I can't do this anymore!" she whined. "They just aren't respectful these days."

The woman with glasses, Ella, patted her arm reassuringly. "Why don't you take the rest of the night off and relax? You've been requested quite often and probably just need a break."

I rubbed my temple, feeling a headache coming on. "What is this place?"

The short girl next to me looked at me like I was crazy. "Are you kidding? You've got to be kidding, right?"

Ella was no different, suddenly losing the flamboyance in her mannerisms. "Uhh, if you don't know what this place is, then you don't want to be here."

I took a step back and stared at the two women, confused, before spinning around and hurrying out of the red and black building. I had no idea what kind of a place that was, but I was definitely not interested in getting involved with anything strange. I just joined a guild; I didn't need drama or jobs yet. I needed stability.

So, I was returned to the cobblestone streets, perusing my eyes over the shops, pursuing my original objective: housing. The crowd of pedestrians shrunk a little since I was in that strange place, but it was still noisy and bustling, making it difficult to find what I needed. Soon, my mind started to wander and I stopped paying attention to the buildings lining the path, my thoughts drifting with the sounds of heels clicking and voices exchanging.