Black Rose Sounds Like Fun! (Rezze's Intro)

Rezze stood outside the Silver Moon Inn. She nervously looked inside the bar and tapped her foot against the ground restlessly. She recalled why she was considering this in the first place. One too many encounters where she had to fight tooth and nail to safety. She didn't have any help or companionship because she either thought herself strong enough to handle anything life could throw at her or that she would be able to learn new skills on the fly. That was before she hit a wall and her progress came to a screeching halt. She could do nothing but research on ways to gain more power and throw herself recklessly into job after job. At the end of her wits, her mind supplied her an idea. Join a guild and hope that all goes well for her.

Many guilds were considered before she decided to try signing up for Black Rose for one reason, Black Rose had Black in it's name. As a Colored Magic practitioner, she believed that all things fell under a classification of color that best represented them and to her Black Colored Magic was special. Black Colored Magic represented magics that relate to power, self-interest, death, sacrifice, and uninhibited. It was the color of ambition and sacrifice and was the type of magic that made of strategies that others would label taboo or forbidden. She had high hopes that Black Rose would be the guild that would let her become a better mage. Her feet stopped its restless tapping as she finally gathered enough bravery to push the doors open.

The doors to the Silver Moon Inn were pushed open as Rezze marched in, riding her false bravado for all it was worth. "HELLO." Her loud greeting was a little more awkward than what she had wanted but she was going to pus through. Her arms and legs were stiff as she made her way to the bar. "I AM HERE TO JOIN GUILD."

Wearing a gray t-shirt with black skirt and white tennis shoes, Victoria was behind the bar slinging drinks for the patrons of Silver Moon Inn. Some would say that bartending was work beneath an Ace, but she did not mind. Bartending was fun for her and it was something she was genuinely good at. It also dropped a lot of interesting gossip right into her lap. All she had to do was serve drinks and lend a friendly ear and the gossip flowed as freely as the alcohol.

Victoria was talking to an impeccably dressed young woman named Christina. She had blonde hair, green eyes, and a supermodel's body that she fit inside a black skirt and black jacket with a white blouse and matching black shoes. She was a businesswoman who worked in management with Jeff at the Cheval Auto Company in Motor City. She had come here on Jeff's recommendation and wanted to try a drink of Albino Gander.

"Albino Gander? That's a good brand of vodka. How would you like it?" Victoria asked.

"On the rocks, please." Christina answered. Victoria obliged, pouring the Albino Gander over ice in a glass and passing it to the businesswoman. The woman took a sip and was pleased with the drink.

"This is a good brand of vodka. It's a lot better than CEILING." Christina voiced her approval.

"I agree. CEILING's cheaper and has a higher alcohol content, but it's a bit too strong for the novice drinker." Victoria gave an opinion gained from experience. CEILING had knocked her on her ass more than once because she had underestimated its potency. She would still drink it, but it was best consumed in a single glass per sitting. Her fellow Black Rose Ace Sakura had learned that lesson the hard way.

Suddenly a young woman with platinum blonde hair and lavender eyes made an entrance and strode confidently up to the counter. She declared her intention of joining Black Rose. Victoria had greeted several new faces during her time as Ace, so she had become a de facto gatekeeper for the guild.

"You want to join Black Rose, huh?" Victoria asked the new arrival. The young woman sounded sincere about joining the guild. She also had a magical signature, so she was a mage. Black Rose was always looking for new members, so Victoria decided to cut to the chase.

"You're in the right place, Miss. I'm Victoria Sheridan of Black Rose." Victoria introduced herself to the new girl.

"YE-" Rezze cleared her throat and started to relax her stiffened muscles. "Yes." She pulled up a stool and took a seat in front of the bar. "Sorry, I haven't been actually part of a guild before so I don't know how this works beyond saying that you want to join..." She began to look nervous again. "Is there more to it? Do i have to prove myself in combat or something?" She began to mumble incoherently to herself as idea after idea popped into her head, distracting her from the conversation she had started. Minutes later she finally pulled herself out of her distracted state. "Whoops, sorry, I'm rambling. I get really distracted sometimes. I should probably introduce myself since you introduced yourself, I'm Rezze Dayhair of...I guess a singed flat rock in the middle of nowhere?" Finally getting around to awkwardly introducing herself, she stuck out a hand for a handshake.

"Anyways, yes I'd like to join Black Rose. I wouldn't say I'm super strong but I'm able to pick up a few odd spells from here and there. Like for example I have this one spell I got from learning about how demonic presences work. Isn't magic amazing?"

The bar rush was slowing down, so only a few customers needed drinks at this point. Victoria could afford to spend some time talking with Rezzie, as the platinum blonde girl called herself. She was... interesting. One moment Rezzie was energetic and seemed like she had something to prove. The very next moment she alternated those traits with nervousness.

"Don't worry, Rezzie. You don't have to prove yourself in combat to join Black Rose." Victoria assured the energetic mage. Victoria recalled a time long ago when she was worried about whether Black Rose would even give her a glance. She was just a street kid with no big-name magic lineage to back her up or even a family to support her. Black Rose accepted her anyway and the rest was history.

"So you're from a singed flat rock in the middle of nowhere?" Victoria asked out of idle curiosity. She then turned her attention to the girl's statements about magic. The brunette was inclined to agree. Magic could do many things.

"Yes, magic can do quite a lot. And don't worry if you're not a super-strong mage. If you're willing to work for Black Rose, there's a place for you here." Victoria assured her. She was not a magic prodigy, but Black Rose did not care about that and welcomed her with open arms. After a few months of membership Victoria was starting to find her way and prosper in ways she could not have even dreamed of back in Capital Crocus.

"I wasn't a mage of earth-shattering power when I first joined. So don't feel bad. You'll get stronger with time and experience." The brunette offered some encouragement to Rezzie while extending her hand forward for the handshake.

"Oh thank Blue..." Rezee breathed out but stared at the offered hand, unsure of what to do. "Is...this a secret sign or something?" She asked, poking the outstretched hand before leaving it alone.

Having been assured that she wouldn't need to prove herself in combat. She wasn't shying away from combat because she was weak. She wasn't. She just didn't want to fight to prove herself, she wanted to prove herself through other mean. Studying magic, research, and application of learned knowledge was what she wanted to do. The fact that most of her repertoire of spells inflicted damage was showing her need to expand her pool of spells to non combat spells. It irked her that she could be more but she wasn't. "I mean...I'm no slouch but...I just don't want to be known as the mage that's just good at combat. I want to be good at a lot of things!" Her mind raced as it began to rattle off things that she wanted to be good at. "A lot of things." She repeated, staring blankly as she got distracted once more.

She shook herself out of her fugue after a while. "Sorry, that happens often, too many ideas and it's hard for me to pay attention to one thing at a time. Actually can I have a drink? I feel like conversations should be paired with drink. Or something sweet and fruity, actually you think that you can get oils from fruits and make it into mayonnaise,? I've heard people taking fruits and turning into ketchup so..." She rattled off into nonsense as topic after topic flowed out of her mouth. Then she flinched as a sudden sharp pain filled her mouth. "Agh, bith mh tungh..." Came the pained muddled explanation of her currently pained expression.


"Ah, right singed flat rock." Finally remembering that she was asked a question. "Right, from there. Not much to say about it. It is a singed rock in the middle of nowhere. I mean it could probably be made into a tourist attraction for people who like rocks but it's a rock so I don't know how many people would be into that." She paused. "Actually, did I throw that rock there? Did I fall asleep there? Who knows? I sure as hell don't!"

"Eh yeah, that is pretty much the way to get stronger. Time and experience. I mean you could take shortcuts, like sell your soul to multiple demons for power. Contract with an entity for more magic. Shackle a nightmare inducing sexuality questioning eldritch monstrosity into a dagger shaped pri-I mean train. Train real hard with some mythical magical being...bleh that sounds like such a White thing to do." She listed off. "I had a point in there somewhere...eh...so since your a member of Black Rose and a mage I'm sure you've got some stories to tell right?" She leaned forward in anticipation.

Victoria was trying to follow the mage's conversation, but the brunette was getting seriously confused. So many tangents and non sequiturs were coming at her that she was losing track of where the conversation was going and where it had already been. It would be a good idea to start with one thing at a time.

"What kind of drink would you like? We have alcohol and non-alcoholic drinks to choose from." Victoria offered. She then listened as Rezzie described her home... sort of. It was an explanation that was lacking any sort of detail and made very little sense. Maybe the rock in question was in the middle of a desert?

The methods of attaining more power were also a bit out there. Who would sell their soul or contract with an entity? Some people would take any shortcut, but Victoria was not one of them. That did not make her better than other people. It was simply a matter of preference.

"I have some stories to tell. Quite a few, actually." Victoria said to Rezzie. She did not know which story would be of interest to the novice, so she did not offer any yet. She was still trying to learn a bit about the prospective Black Rose member and figure out what she wanted from the guild.

“I’ll take whatever’s strong, don’t worry, I can handle it.” Rezze didn’t have a problem with drinking, neither did she have any preference on what she was drinking. “So what stories do you have? I bet you get to do a lot of cool things whenever you go out to do things.” She excitedly chattered on, wanting to hear a story from the more experienced mage. She was like a child in a toy store, but replace the toys with books. A store of books. A bookstore. “I should go visit a bookstore…” She mumbled to herself as she scheduled a search for a nearby bookstore to visit.

Rezze turned her head to the side, facing the stairs, as a new voice announced the presence of another person. There, a woman with white hair stood. Rezze didn’t know what to think of her other than the fact that she was very pretty. “Um...hello! I’m Rezze Dayhair. I’m not actually a member yet but I wanted to join Black Rose.” Rezze introduced herself to the woman. “You must be another Black Rose member!” The realization came late for her but she was nevertheless giddy for having met so many mages that weren’t immediately out for her blood. “ This is great! I have so many questions! What makes a Black Rose member a Black Rose member? Do you all do your own thing most of the time or something else? What’s it like having allies?” The short girl had gotten up from her seat without her realising it and was looking up at the white haired woman with an expectant expression.

"OK then. If you want something strong, try this CEILING vodka, on the rocks. This shot's on me." Victoria said to Rezzie before making the drink in question. Victoria rung up the sale and put her own money into the register, then pushed the glass to Rezzie. In the meantime Astrid Foss entered the room and instantly commanded attention. Victoria was still surprised that Astrid had chosen to join Black Rose.

Victoria raised a hand in greeting to the Wizard Saint.

"Me? I have a few stories, mostly job-related. I helped save Motor City from robots that went rogue a few weeks ago. It was tough fighting military-grade robots, but thanks to the Motor City Police and the same doctor who created the robots, Motor City was saved. I can also tell you about going to Silent Cemetery to save a pair of merchants from a necromancer." Victoria told Astrid and Rezzie. She remembered that trip well. Highlights were looking inside the "DOWD" burial vault to see its ghastly contents and seeing the grave of Anna Carlisle, the child whose life was cut short at only eight years of age. The most vivid highlight was dueling and defeating Mortalis the necromancer and stopping his plans for conquest.

“Oooh, thanks! I’ll be sure to pay you back the next time you want a drink.” Rezze gave her thanks, accepting Victoria’s treating of her. She sat down again, giving the white haired woman personal space once more, and watched her make her drink. A hand reached out and snatched the glass off the counter and downed the drink in one go. The effect was immediate. Her through burned as the liquid passed through it and settled in her stomach. “Whooo!” She shook her head once, reeling from the strength of the drink but she looked like she enjoyed it. “That was great!” She complimented. “I’ll have another!” She said this time pulling out her own Jewels to pay for her own drink.

“Oooh, that must’ve been fun!” She paused as she considered what she had just said. “Well as much fun as fighting machines or necromancers are. Probably wasn’t enjoyable for anyone else involved…” She amended. “Necromancy huh...I should probably pick it up soon, necromancy sounds useful.” She muttered to herself. “I suppose I should tell a story of mine? Is that how this works?”

Victoria was surprised. Someone actually liked CEILING? She did not question it. Victoria would make a mental note that Rezzie liked the powerful drink. Good bartenders learned to associate drink orders with customers.

"No problem. I'm glad you liked it." Victoria replied to Rezzie as the other declared that she liked CEILING. She listened to the girl say that she needed to pick up necromancy as a magic type at some point. Victoria was iffy on that kind of magic. She personally wanted nothing to do with it, but she kept judgment to herself. Her job was to help bring in new members, not chase them away.

Victoria deftly prepared the second round of CEILING on the rocks. She rung up the sale and put the Jewels in the register, then handed Rezzie the drink. It sounded like Rezzie had a story of her own to tell.

"Yeah, necromancers can be tough customers. So can military-grade robots. But right now I'm interested in your story. Just tell it when you're ready." Victoria said to the platinum blonde. Astrid had went off to the side to have a drink in peace. The brunette would respect her wishes and devote her attention to the potential new member in front of her.