The relatively cramped conditions of the guild hall were what struck Alison first. The air was thick with the smell of parchment and a hint of ale. The Brass Monkey was more of a bar establishment first and foremost while the Guild seemed to encompass all the support needs of the official adventure apparatus of the state. It was bemusing to Alison, to see themselves referred to as "adventures". Suppose it was a better phrase than "Semi-state-sanctioned Mercenaries".

That said, the atmosphere of the guild hall was about the same as the Brass Monkey. A handful of adventures that made up the patrons were tense with stress. The siege was coming to a head soon, the preparations in the streets showed that much. Through her Whispers, Alison had caught up on what was going around town during their walk to the guild. The preparations seemed to be proceeding smoothly, but she wondered how much of the city could truly held when the walls finally were breached.

Pulled away from her dark thoughts, a little dog-like creature came bounding up to them, yapping and excited to see James. However, when Alison leaned over from behind, she watched the dog shy away and flee back to its owner.

That hurt a little.

The owner behind the desk spoke with James before finally turning her attention to her. A local with sharp ears must be one of the more exotic races Alison had heard about in this world.

"Afternoon, Alison." She gave Alison a nod and then looked back at James. Alison gave a curt nod and a smile, letting James do the talking. After confirming their intentions, she gestured to the Source Crystal scanner. It was a strange device, almost looking like some sort of crystal ball with bits of brass sticking out. Again, it confused Alison how all of the place the world seemed in its development.

She wondered if they could set up some sort of wireless surveillance system...

She placed her hand on the crystal and smirked internally when it displayed an alias. Not even the magic ball seemed to see through her facade! That, or she was so in deep that "Alison Walker" might as well be her real name at this point.

"Alison Walker," The Guildmaster read on the system, checking a few other details before looking at Alison "You're not from here," she noted. "Have you been in Valhiem long?" she asked,

Alison simply shrugged. "I've been around for only a little bit. Lucky me to get caught up in all this." Alison joked. After a few motions on the monitor, the Guildmaster finished.

"Alright, you are now officially a member of Second Chance." The Guildmaster said and left the display up for Alison to read this auspicious message. Though she picked up on the shift in the Guildmasters demeanor. Some sort of piece of information she had seen caused her to look at Alison differently. Alison didn't like it. She may have been able to hide her real name, but clearly, she couldn't hide what she was. Cursing internally at the damn computer, she looked at the screen and began to read.

---

"Figures..." was all Alison said when she finished reading the message. It had finally confirmed her suspicions. They were being used as some sort of interdimensional last resort. Otherworld Volkstorm soldiers were drafted at random to fight in a war they didn't understand or had any stake in. Anger threatened to warp her otherwise calm demeanor, but she pushed it back down.

It was all so absurd.

Alison sighed and closed the message before turning to James. "I take it you didn't accept Miss "Rightful Empress"'s offer? Good call. So far she either isn't in control enough of her minions as she says she is or just wants to remove a potential threat in the easiest way possible. Why bother with using whatever crazy amounts of energy it took to bring us here to send us back when you could just snuff us out with a well-placed dagger or arrow?" Alison mused, crossing her arms. "Yeah, don't worry, I'm not buying what she's selling."

However, once they left the guild and away from prying ears, she leaned close to James as they walked. "That said, I think we can't entirely trust this Empire either. I think something bigger might be at play, and while they might treat us nicely while we're useful, nothing is stopping them from dropping us as well. We gotta stay close and watch our backs, kid. Take it from me, Más sabe el diablo por viejo que por diablo..." she finished with a wink.

James’ reaction to being praised was comforting. Now Adam knew his friend was at least aware that he had the support of his team, and that was the point of it all. It was a nice time in general, really - everyone together, enjoying a nice meal. No battles, just pleasant conversation.

Upon hearing Zell's compliment to him, Adam humbly waved it off. “It was nothing, anyone else would have done the same.” The Fighter's suggestion of a feast, however, elicited more of a response from the caster. “That sounds like a great idea. They're lovely people, all of them. Isabelle is precious and adorable, Tyrion is like a little Barracker junior - in the best sense, of course - and Eren will make a great Druid someday. I'm sure they would all be happy to meet everyone. You too, Alison.” The red-eyed man even was considering visiting before Second Chance descended upon the orphans.

Speaking of the Rogue, Adam would have wanted to help her register for the Guild…if he didn't remember his conversation with Lucy yesterday. James had the political understanding to make this emergency Guild registration thing happen; he did not. Therefore, he deferred to their team leader in this regard.

-----

Upon saying his goodbyes and exiting the Mended Drum, Adam thought he would return to Golden Tree Park right away to resume his work. However, this would end up not being the case. Instead, he ended up running into someone he did not expect…

MacKensie enjoyed the flavours and the gentle burn of the stew as she listened to Alison speak on her favourite foods. While she did not have much experience with airport food, she had been to at least half a dozen famous restaurants across the world. Italy had it's fair share of high-end dining establishments, however what specifically came to mind when Alison mentioned the country was cities like Rome and Venice - famously romantic locations. And there was only one experience that MacKensie could relate to such a fine-dining tale and that was the very recent evening at The Nightingale.

Butterflies. Mentally, she tried to shoo away the memories and she forced herself to actively listen to the American woman, letting out a light chuckle as Alison recalled wearing a dress for the first time in years.

"...Everything about it..." Alison went on. MacKensie remembered how Zell had complimented her earrings. How it made her feel.

"...the food..." How he'd put his knife and fork down and randomly ambushed her with the most poetic and romantic soliloquy anyone had ever said to her.

"...the atmosphere..." How she'd taught him a basic version of the Waltz that she'd learned when she was ten. How that had been more enjoyable than the most advanced ballroom dance, with the most advanced partner, in the most opulant social event she'd ever been to.

"...it was... "

Magical. Alison briefly went silent and MacKensie's gaze fell to the table as she sank into her own thoughts. Involuntarily, her eyes went across the table to find Zell looking back and she was wrenched back to reality with alarm, turning her head away immediately. Fortunately, at the same time, Alison spoke again so the attention was on her and it was unlikely anyone noticed MacKensie's suspcious behaviour.

That evening was nothing to remember fondly. It was not magical. It was lies - One lie and empty platitude after another. One big moral failing. She hated Zell for it. She hated that it had to be him that she'd bumped into at the blacksmith, of all people. She would never forgive him. She may not ever forgive herself. I have forgotten the face of my father.

She felt sick.

After looking forward, all morning, to this lunch date, MacKensie now found herself glad when it was over. Outwardly, she maintained good form and was cordial throughout the goodbyes. When Zell was at the bar, MacKensie wished everyone a good afternoon and made a sharp getaway to her room, facepalming the moment she was far enough up the stairs to be out of sight.

She had worked so hard to forget that night and restore a level head, so that she might actually concentrate on the priority that was the imminent threat of destruction. And she had been doing so well until today. But now the wounds were fully reopened.

I hate him. She went in her room and sat on the bed, burying her head in her hands. I hate him so much.

After the round of cheers, tipped glasses and all the cheery back-and-forth had not to mention the amount of alcohol imbibed the day's end in sight all in all Clive was left in good spirits, yet there was something that kept nagging at him like a pesky little fly buzzing round' a stable horses head "Now I hate to break up such a fine little 'swah-ray' such as this but I'm thinkin' I need to get some air.." the southerner put the word 'soiree' in air quotes, wiggling his fingers jokingly with a good natured chuckle excusing himself from the table.

"Oh and before I mosey on for a bit-" Clive spoke up regarding the newcomer Alison as his chair squeaked when he got up, habitually reaching for where he would normally hang his hat before snorting and remembering he in fact lost it awhile ago.

Clive clicked his tongue, shaking his head slightly at his own forgetfulness "Glad to see a new face, specially' one from the land o' the free..We'll have to chat sometime bout things never been to the big city myself so hearin' it from you sure would be nice...Nice to talk bout home at least." with that said Clive bid the rest of his friends goodbye for the time being leaving the tavern and stepping into the street, where he wandered for awhile alone with his thoughts...

His nagging thoughts, thoughts of what had become of him...Of what had become of those pale faces he saw...Alone, looking up at the sky Clive breathed a ragged sigh "God...I dunno if you can hear me but why?" he muttered running a hand through his hair "Why can't I just forget." he just wanted to go back to being himself, before he died twice now. Before he'd fought Zigmund...Seen all those ghosts, before experiencing the nothingness of the void.

His mind wandered like the rugged heels of his boots as he made his way through the lonely road he walked upon, he wondered for a second remembering strangers around him when he awoke 'In my own grave...' Clive thought to himself with a quick shudder, whoever they were there must have been a reason for whatever the heck they did. Folks out and about were giving him some odd looks so with a shake of his head and a deep breath the Texan pushed aside the thoughts he was having for another time.

The whole group was together, meeting another from Earth. When she showed what her item could do, Fenna was astonished at first, but it soon made her think about all the items everyone had received and how well they fit with the class they had. Magic has brought them here, but it didn't seem random. Had the people casting the magic known what kind of people they needed, or had the magic picked up on their needs and made the choice for them? There was a lot she didn't know, but for now it wasn't the most pressing of matters. They had a battle ahead of them and that's what she had to focus on.

Now that they sat together Fenna realised it had been a while since they had last done that. They had all been busy with their appointed tasks, some leaving early in the morning and others returning late in the evening. She too hadn't spent much time just sitting here with the others. She saluted Zell when he tapped her drink and there was some small talk with those sitting at her table.
When Barracker talked to her she turned to him. She laughed when he talked about Tyron making a skateboard. Whatever would happen to her, she had introduced something from home here and that was a nice thought. "I will visit Mother Anne soon," Fenna promised. She definitely wanted to see the skateboard Tyson had made and how he was doing with it.

When people were leaving - James and Alison to the guild, Barracker to retrieve some books and take them away, Adam and Clive outside and MacKensie upstairs - Fenna remained seated for a moment to think about what she would do. Just like that, the moment they were all together was over and she needed to do something. She did need to check up on her soldiers. With some delegation she didn't need to oversee them as much as before, but it was still good to be present for most of the day when they were active. They also loved seeing their mascot Sil.

"Back to work I guess," she said to Zell, the only one remaining at the bar.

Fenna went outside and Sil soon joined her. She first went to the training grounds; after some intense training at the beginning, nowadays they had two moments they would all gather and do a couple of training exercises and she would relay the latest information if she had any, before everyone went on their way for their individual tasks. Those who were below average with their weapon handling would do extra training sessions, others helped with building the defences of the city, especially around the area they would be stationed at.

The Eagles cheered when Sil soared over their heads and Fenna congratulated them all on their progress and in few words encouraged them to keep it up and that she had faith in every single one of them. Soon they would have to show their worth in actual battle. How many would survive? She looked at the faces before her. Some were willing, some were ready, most were afraid of what was to come. The best she could offer them was to keep them busy. It worked well for her to not think too much of home.

The process was easy enough and in no time he was once more on the receiving end of that accursed message.

Despite having seen it before it still gave him the ick, like a piece of ice touching his spine and slowly grasping his throat, oppressive and ruthless until it was satisfied -but it never was. It wasn't until Alison talked to him that he managed to tear himself away from it.

He gave her a nod to confirm her rhetorical question

"Yah, we more or less thought along those lines too, plus the fact that she sent people to kill us kind of soured the deal"

He followed as they left the guild, from what little he had seen then it was likely the people there were going to become very busy soon enough and frankly he didn't have the time to delay, the ritual still needed preparation and he had to gather some regents.

Still, it was nice talking to Alison, even more so as she sprung an old saying as they walked together.

"Ah!" He chuckled, the sudden use of Spanish was surprising but perhaps it should have been considering how common it was across the globe, but saying that it was nice hearing a piece of home so far away "Truer words have never been spoken, but yeah you are right, I am not a fan of becoming some disposable asset or tool after we are done" He gave her a shook of the head "Frankly I would prefer to get everyone back home as soon as possible, some would wish to help I know but I would choose their lives over people I don't know without hesitation"

It was callous of him and he wasn't sure he would have been able to do what had to be done before the 'incident'. But now he knew deep inside his heart to what extent he was willing to go.

"So, I have an errand to run in the Academy, do you want to go too? I could present you some of the peeps I know there" If his read on Alison was correct so far she was the kind of person who seeks connections like a gambler seeks a roulette.

“It's a calamity, a horrible thing!”

This was not the first time this sentiment had been expressed during the walk of two adventurers to their destination. Considering the loud tone, one might think the speaker was talking about the current siege of Valheim and the danger Saladin's forces represented to its citizens. Or maybe even just a description of the war in general. However, it was not; instead, it was a certain gnome complaining about a different group entirely.

“Everywhere I go, it's Second Rate this, and Zeros of the Sky that. What did they do to deserve all that praise?”

Xavier Johnson's question went unanswered by his unfortunate walking cohort. Vaella knew from bitter experience that it was rhetorical and that he would answer it in due time.

“Nothing, that's what!”

Due time = not even a second, in this case.

“First red-eyes harasses me, then when I called out the disgrace of Hades and his slack-jawed sidekick for their evil ways, the thug almost attacked me!”

The elf offered a rare smile at this, knowing that this was not what actually happened. The oblivious gnome continued.

“Oh, and now supposedly their Ranger is some athletic expert now, according to the Thieve's Guild. Like a group of grade school dropouts is credible? Please. MacKensie Trydant? More like MacKensie Try harder next time.”

And with that, the elf was grateful that Xavier did not handle the Silver Arrow's diplomacy needs. Annoying that group was one way to end up in a shallow grave, never knowing how it happened. Oh, hopefully no one from there heard that, she thought.

“And don't get me started on their so-called leader.” 

Oh, how Vaella wished the speaker would not get started on anything, ever.

“They say that lames is some kind of tactical genius. Well if he's such a genius, why doesn't he ever-”

The mustached man paused for a moment, seeing Adam Phillips as the gnome and elf approached the Mended Drum. “See? They never leave me alone!”  Following this angry outburst, Xavier started walking more quickly away from that establishment, apparently forgetting it was their destination in the first place.

“What’s his problem?” The fisherman asked Vaella, clearly confused by the exclamation.

“I wish I knew,” she responded with a heavy sigh.

Room 103 at ‘The Academy’. The room was a lecture hall, used for studies and the learning of magic uses. The room layout consisted of a stage at the front with seats curving round like an auditorium. The rows went higher and higher up as they got closer to the back of the room. The place was decorated with pots of greenery, vases stood on stools potted about, marking the end of each row. There were even paintings of students who had reached the level of mastery and fame among their fields, also marking the start of each row on the wall. The windows were tall but narrow, beautifully decorated with a fine art of stained glass.

Barracker and Neebs were sat on the centre of the stage, Barracker in a state of concentration, his eyes closed. With one palm placed over the ceramic bowl of water, he let his thoughts drown away and the source flow through his body. “Well look at you, you're doing it,” Neebs lit up with excitement, the mage leaned up over the table, rising from his seat. Barracker let his eyes open, his muscles started to twist as if he was straining to lift the water. His face going from a calm state of steadiness to scrunched up as if the pain was too much to bear. “You’ve got this,” the friendly teacher insisted.

The water rises, droplets begin to spit out, more formed then the water starts to try and take shape. The water began to vibrate underneath but then the surface began toppling over the sides of the bowl, swaying before beginning to fade into nothing. The Paladin’s face began to screw not with pain but frustration, this was not working. Barracker looked to his teacher as if words would bring a new found lesson, a nugget of information he had not been using throughout the lesson. But the words were not what Barracker had expected. “I am thoroughly impressed, that was some sweet tricks there. I told you when we started just stay calm, concentrate and do what you can with the water. I just needed to see what sort of stage you were at.”

Barracker’s face did not seem totally convinced by the words, and he didn’t mean to show such a lack of faith in Neeb’s teaching methods. “Barracker, look, any level of an average water domain user does not have a talent or can bring down whole bodies of water down upon their foes. Forget mastery for a moment, to do expert level things like raising water or creating shapes, these are expert level things, you do understand that right.” He looked at Barracker and then pointed to the bowl. “This right here, isn’t beginner level. Beginner level takes many lessons to overcome and you told me you gave up on your studies to control your domain. You must try and try again, that is the only answer. Failing is only part of achieving something, so now I know where you are at, try parting the water, and if you find that manageable try to create a little whirlpool in the bowl.”

Barracker sighed heavily, he nodded in understanding and agreed with what was said. He would try this. First relax.

Frederick was back behind the bar. On arrival, the old man gave a curt little nod to Zell who returned the gesture with a bounce of his eyebrows. Frederick's assistant was sent off to other duties. As Zell drank from his glass, he caught a visual of gold in his peripherial and looked in time to see a blue cape and blonde hair disappear up the stairs. Zell sighed and turned about to his lean back against the bar with glass in hand. Only him and Fenna were left, but the Dutchwoman soon decided to be off aswell.

"Back to work I guess," she said to him as she made to leave.

"Alright mate," Zell nodded. "Catch ye later, yeah."

He absently watched her go until Frederick, who was buffing down the bar with a rag, piped up. "And then there was one."

With a smirk and a slight turn of his head, Zell acknowledged the barkeep, but his mind was soon back on MacKensie. He was deciding wether or not he should try to speak to her. There was a chance he could make things worse (Zell being Zell, this chance was not insignificant) but at least he could say he tried. The Englishman had lived his life boldly. The very opposite of risk-averse. But here he was, stumbling, fumbling and bumbling.

He finally came to a decision. "You miss one hundred percent of the shots you don't take," he said to himself - a phrase not uncommon from his mouth.

He took a deep draught of his ice water and put it down on the bar, then wiped his mouth with his sleeve and headed for the stairs. He arrived at MacKensie's room and knocked on the door, deciding against calling out, as he knew that she may not even open the door if she knew it was him. When she opened the door, he knew he'd have to be quick.

"Mac, can we talk? Please," he asked, ready to put his foot in the doorway so she couldn't slam the door in his face. "Come on, doll. We can't go on like this. It's killin me - not being able to have a laugh with you, like normal. The banter between you, me n James is half of what keeps me sane in this shitshow." His one-sided grin was soft, hopeful. Anything but the usual cocksure. "Everyone's gone. Let's just talk."