[Maria; Mercenaries’ Guild, Llygredd branch]

A feeling of unease permeates us as we patiently wait to be called for a meeting with one of the guild staff. Normally, one would just report finished jobs to one of the clerks on duty, but due to the sensitive nature of our recent task, we’re being called in for a private meeting instead. At least it shouldn’t take very long, seeing as we waited out the morning rush before coming here. It’s definitely not because I overslept, okay? Luckily, the building tension is broken by the arrival of a staff member.

“Gwallt is now ready for you. He’s waiting in his office on the second floor, head down the left hallway and it will be the third door on the right.”

I was not expecting to meet the guildmaster here, so it seems we’ve stumbled onto something even bigger than I initially thought. Looking around, it appears my comrades are just as surprised as I am that we’ll be meeting him. It only takes a moment to regain our composure before we wordlessly head up, mentally preparing ourselves for whatever could happen to us. After all, Gwallt was a force of nature in his youth, and despite being nearly 50 years old by now, could probably defeat us all in a fight even if we were to work together.

Upon opening the door, we are greeted with a spacious office with a handful of chairs nearby, as well as a cabinet and a desk on the opposite side of the room. A tall, muscular man sits behind the desk. Despite the obvious signs of aging, it’s obvious he won’t be slowing down anytime soon. As we enter single file, Gwallt calls out to us.

“Maria, Zach, Ivan, and Liam; correct? I hear we have much to discuss and precious little time to do so, so I’ll skip the pleasantries and skip right to the chase. I’ve heard something unusual happened during your previous assignment, and I’d like you to elaborate. Don’t worry, I’m not gonna snap your arm just because you made a mistake. Har har har!” His booming laughter intimidates us almost as much as him joking about possibly breaking our arms.

I’m currently too terrified of Gwallt to speak, but luckily I don’t have to. Ivan, being our unofficial leader, has the ‘benefit’ of being the one mainly giving the report, with the rest of us just being here in case he forgets something or we have differing thoughts.

“As you probably knew, we recently took a contract to hunt down an escaped convict, one guilty of many cases of both murder and theft. He was somehow able to break out of confinement the day before his execution and escape out into the wilderness before long. We also know that, before he left the city, he stopped by a suspicious building to pick up a package, one that he was supposed to guard with his life. After accepting the job, we gave chase for twelve days before killing him in the Wedi forest. This much we have already reported, so I’ll continue.

When we searched the man, however, we found that he had somehow managed to pass off the package before his demise, despite us seeing him with it earlier that same day. We were in pursuit the entire time, so we would’ve noticed him either dropping or handing the thing off. Despite that, he continued to flee instead of facing us as he was known to do before his imprisonment. The part that really concerns us is the fact that none of us even questioned it until several days after the fact.

Following the event, we decided to take a day off in the nearby village before heading back. During that time, Maria found something very unsettling. According to one of the village girls, named Candis, her sister was visited by some ‘bad men’ asking about something her master left behind, and subsequently disappeared. Maria determined from their description that they were a noble’s goons, but that's not the disturbing part. Despite it having been less than a month, only Candis seems to have remembered her sister’s existence, and even she has forgotten her name. That just isn’t natural, and brings mind manipulation to mind as a likely cause. We can’t help but feel something sinister is happening in Wedi, and for our part want nothing more to do with it.”

After Ivan finishes his tale, Gwallt waits for a minute in contemplation before responding.

“If what you just said is true, there most likely is something going on there, laddie. I’ll send for one of our private investigators later and have them head there on the morrow. Hopefully we’ll also find out what those men wanted, too.”

“Sir, I’m glad you’re taking us seriously, but shouldn’t you do a bit more research before committing resources to this?”

“Mind mages are a dangerous foe, and in situations like these we don’t have the luxury of waiting for information to be confirmed if we want to act. Normally, ye’d be right, but not now.”

As he says that last part, I notice a distant look in Gwallt’s eyes. Not wanting to stay any longer than we need to, we quickly wrap things up and prepare to leave. In our haste, we almost forget to collect our pay. On the way out the front door, I find myself suddenly having a coughing fit. Seeing as I’m not the type that has allergies, I can only presume somebody kicked up a cloud of dust that I was unlucky enough to inhale. After Ivan double-checks with me to make sure I’m okay, we walk towards our favorite restaurant to celebrate a job well done.

[Gwallt]

Ahh, youth. I remember when I was their age. Back then, a was a naive, arrogant fool who let their power get to their head. It wasn’t until I suffered a severe injury that I was humbled, but it came too late. By that point, the tendons in my left arm were so badly damaged that my entire arm became weak, and I could no longer fight. Bah, here I am becoming sentimental again. I need to prepare for my next meeting, not reminisce abouts days long gone. Still, I wonder how you’re doing right now, pard’ner. Come visit me sometime, m’kay?