Great, monolithic towers loomed over them, decorated with silver and gold and enormous, stained glass windows. It was magnificent and awe inspiring. A massive cathedral built to stand as a symbol in an age where ‘hope’ was almost non-existent. And as Daki stood before the mighty structure, he found himself rooted to the spot, unable to look away.

“Welcome… to The Guild!” Taeo shouted dramatically.

He was at a loss for words. The Guild was the place Mother Margie had asked him to go, but now that he was here, it seemed like a structure too grand for him to enter. A place where only the greatest among his people were welcome.

In a much more solemn tone, Taeo said, “let’s go.”

Daki nodded, though he was still unsure. Would they accept the piece of paper in his pocket? Would it be right for him to request that they look over its contents? What had Mother Margie even written on the paper?

“Alright,” Daki said as he exhaled and followed the hare down the long path.

It was lined with many palisades which Daki guessed were used as a defense. Above them, was an enormous overhang, held up by six strong pillars on either side and the door straight ahead of them, was tall and arched. Though they could only see darkness from the outside, when they walked through the door, everything changed.

The room lit up like a beautiful sunrise. Daki noticed at first while he scanned the interior, that it was enormous. Nearly five replications of his home could fit inside the space. In its center was a large desk and about ten feet behind that, were two curved staircases, leading up to a secondary level. Off to one side, he could see a large hearth with a few chairs and couches around it and a table that guild members were currently sitting at. A couple of them spared a quick glance at the strange duo, before returning to sipping their coffee and tea or whatever else was in their mugs. Daki turned his attention to the myriad of doors on the other side.

“What are those?” he asked.

“Various meeting rooms and such,” the hare replied. “So… whatcha think? Is this as grand as you thought it would be?”

Even from a distance, the scale of the building was great. With its high towers and stained glass soaking up sunlight. In darkness its towers shone, reflecting silver moonlight away. The citizens of Edge could look upon that great structure, their hearts filling up with hope once again. Hope that one day their lives will get better. Hope that those daemons and The Scar will disappear.

There had been a time when he was that person. Always looking up at it with the wish that a guardian from the guild would come and save him. That was no longer the case. Daki shook his head. “I used to think that the guildhall was some great thing. A place where heroes were born who might one day, save us all…”

“So… what happened?” Taeo asked.

Daki crossed his arms and bowed his head. “I grew up.”

During the two years he spent alone, on the streets and counting on no one but himself for survival, Daki had seen a lot. Others who were in a similar situation starved or died of thirst. Died of either the heat or the cold because of a lack of shelter. Killed each other over the few measly resources which had been available to them at the time and… some were hunted like prey animals by daemons from The Scar.

He looked up when one of the many doors clicked and then creaked open. There were voices and a parade of footfalls as several individuals exited the room. They all appeared to be adventurers, wearing various types of armor, carrying bags on their backs as well as different types of weapons. Those people looked like they would be ready for any kind of conflict. Daki eyed them as they separated, some going to sit in the lounge and others who either made their way toward the exit of the building or climbed the curved staircases to the second level.

Taeo gave him a hard nudge in the ribs. “Nevermind them,” the hare said. “He’s the person you need to speak to.”

A middle aged man separated himself from the group and went to stand behind the large desk. He was tall and wore a long, flowing gown. His hair was brown, thin and curly and Daki could see a few strands of gray in it as well. His eyes were the eyes of someone who knew too much. A man who had lived in the world far longer than he had intended to and was tired of everything.

“Him?” Daki asked.

“Yes,” Taeo said. “You have something you need to ask him right? Well… now’s your chance.”

Daki glanced up at the man who stared back in turn. Was it this person whom he was supposed to hand Margie’s message to? He let his hand fall into the pocket where he had placed the folded piece of paper. He took a breath and then crossed the room.

Other eyes were on him as he approached the desk in just a few quick strides. “My mentor… caregiver… she wanted me to bring this note to The Guild.”

“Oh?” the man said as he took the paper from Daki’s outstretched hand.

Daki nodded. “I don’t know what’s on it,” he said. “She… told me not to read it until I got here.”

The man unfolded the paper and scanned what was written on the page. After a moment he looked up, his eyes meeting Daki’s. “And you still haven’t?”

“N-no,” Daki said. “I thought… she didn’t want me to…”

A loud chuckle escaped the man’s throat. “Is that what you thought?” he asked. “No… no. Sometimes words are quite literal. I know Margie and she really did just mean for you not to read its contents until you were standing inside.”

“I… see,” Daki said. That made sense, she was a very literal person. He shook his head, and put out his hand for the note back.

The man smiled. “No, that's all right. I can tell you what it says from here.”

“Go on,” Taeo said. “You should let him read it.”

Daki sighed. He did want to know what was in the message, but he was also nervous. Whatever it said, he knew it was probably about him in some way. It was probably something really important. But why would she have him bring it to the guild? “Tell me what it says,” he said.

“Well… I won't read out the whole thing to you, but here's the gist. She basically says here, that she's been training you for a very long time. Your mother Margie also states that your family is on the other side of the scar and that she wishes that you could be the one to find them.” The man looked up from the paper and into Daki’s eyes. “I have no reason to believe that this isn't true, because I trust her. but I'd like to ask you, do you have family on the other side of the scar?”

“Yes,” Daki said. “We were separated when it appeared. For the longest time, I've wanted to find them. But now... I don't know…”

“And why would that be? Is it because you see the danger, or perhaps you don't think there really is a way to cross over the gap?”

No... the real reason was much simpler. It had just been so long since The Scar had appeared. If he were able to cross over the gap, there would be no guarantee that he would be able to find his brother. And even if he could, would Silas still be the same? He looked away. “No I…I know about the climbers.”

“Then why?”

“I'm not really sure, I think it just got easier… You know… watching and wondering. at least then his well-being would just be left as speculation.”

“I understand,” the man said. He folded up the piece of paper and extended his hand toward Daki. “My name is Matthias. And judging by what this note says, I think it would be wise to say that mother Margie would like you to join our Expedition.”

Daki almost fell backwards. It was surprising to him that Mathias would even suggest he join. Other than the magic he could wield, Daki had no other noticeable talents. But to join The Guild, one was required to know at least basic combat. He knew how to evade attacks and run. Daki could hide. He didn't think that would be enough though. They only accepted the most experienced individuals into their ranks.

“You should do it Daki. This is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Taeo said.

“Are you going to take it?” Matthias asked.

Daki took the paper and re-pocketed it. “What other choice do I have? This seems like the most logical one, in order to find my brother.”

Matthias clapped his hands together. “Good Good! I'm glad that you agreed, because it just so happens we need someone else to climb down down down.”

He spared a quick glance at Taeo who gave him a quizzical look in return. “But I thought there would be more-”

The old man put a hand up. “Yes yes,” he said. “You thought you would need actual experience, is that it? The truth is you don't. The reason is because we are always looking for new blood. new adventures who can replace the old ones.”

What Mathias was saying didn't surprise him at all. In all honesty Daki kind of expected that it would be like this. To expect all the adventurers to return alive was just naive and for him going down there would almost be akin to suicide. He knew a little magic. Daki could use it to help things grow, repair things and create light in dark places, but he was unable to use it for anything else. He didn't even know how to properly defend himself against those daemons. So going down there with the skills he currently had, would probably end up in a miserable, miserable death.

“You need fodder,” Daki said.

“I suppose, if you want to put it that way.”

Daki nodded. “Alright,” he said. If it meant that one day he would be able to cross over to the other side and find his brother as well as that man who had saved both their lives, he would go. He would go even if he didn't have the right skills to properly survive within the giant Gap. Learning how to properly fight and defend against those demons was just something he would have to learn on the way. “I'll go.”

Matthias smiled. “Good,” he said. The man then reached under the counter and pulled out a blue ring of fabric. He placed it in front of Daki. “Put this on.”

“What is it?”

“You'll see when you put it on.”

Daki glanced at Taeo for confirmation.

Taeo nodded and then he lifted his wrist to show something similar. His was red.

With another nod, Daki picked up the blue band and slipped it around his wrist. What happened next was completely unexpected and Daki had to shake his head several times to prove to himself that it was not a hallucination.

Welcome to the guild

Rank: Initiate

Inventory: this bracelet

The clothes on your back

Mother's message

Messages: None

Jobs requests: currently none

Scar level: 0

Monsters defeated: 1

“W-what is this?” Daki asked.

“A system we have in place to keep track of all the adventurers,” Taeo said. “Everyone who is a part of The Guild is given one of these bracelets. even those of us who do not descend into the scar.”

Matthias nodded. “That is correct,” he said. “There is of course more to it than what you can see in front of you, but the rest is not as important and we would like our new recruits to figure out what else that bracelet can do. Or rather, what other information it can provide to them.”

“Is this it?” Daki asked. Was this all he needed to be allowed to descend into the chasm?

“No,” Matthias said. “ there's more. you are required to have a partner, and of course while you're down there to fulfill the missions given.That includes the placement of receivers and the clearing of any further level of The Scar beyond any level that has already been cleared. our plan is to make each level progressively safer, so that everyday citizens can go down there without worry.”

“The receivers, are they for communicating?” Daki asked.

Matthias nodded. “All those bracelets can work at any depth, sending messages would be a challenge or downright impossible without a receiver placed at specific locations.”

“Okay,” Daki said. “What about my partner?”

“You have him right here,” Matthias said as he glanced down at Taeo.

The hare quickly backed away, shaking his head in protest. “No! I refuse! There was a reason why I chose to stay up here slay the beasts coming up from The Scar.”

“I am sorry Taeo, you are the only one. All the others are in groups or with partners or have already left or have become injured or… Died… so I'm afraid my friend that you are the one who must go with Daki.”

Taeo frowned. “But… I have a family up here I must protect.”

“A family?” Daki asked, genuinely surprised.

“Yes,” Taeo said. “Two leveretts and a Jill.”

His friend was one of the lucky ones. Daki didn't know about Taeo’s situation specifically, mainly because he was not human, at least as far as he could tell. Of course there was always the chance that Taeo was under some kind of curse which turned him into what he was, but that was highly unlikely.Almost everyone who had been alive at the time, I lost someone very important to them or everyone important to them. Taeo however, seemed to have his entire life intact and was just doing what he could to protect it.

Daki waved a hand. “ don't worry about it, I can go down alone.”

Taeo crossed his arms. “You probably wouldn't even survive past the first ten minutes,” he said.

“You're severely underestimating me,” Daki said.

“This is not about how powerful you think you are or how powerful you think you can become. it is about how powerful those creatures in The Scar are.”

“Taeo please take our friend here into the chasm. He needs guidance from someone who is experienced, someone who's been down there before. if after time you think he can handle The Descent by himself, that is when you may return. you don't have to go all the way down.”

Taeo sighed. “ I should hope not. you know as well as I do that no one has reached the bottom yet… can I… at least visit my family before we go?”

“You may,” Matthias said.

With one last nod, Daki turned back to the grand entrance of the hall with Taeo by his side and the two of them walked towards it. He didn't know what would be in store for them once they started their descent, but he knew about the dangers and would be extremely wary the further down they were able to get. As they exited the building, they were greeted by the most beautiful sunrise he had ever seen.