Silver Horizons

Well, this was quite the climb.

In the short time that Mercury had been on Earthland, she was fascinated by the variety of seasons she’d run into. It was completely different from the stark place she’d been born and raised. However, her feelings were a bit mixed going up the wintery slope that was currently at her feet. The snow was utterly gorgeous, blanketing the land in a soft powder that glittered like diamonds in the light. The view was utterly breathtaking.

However, the reality of tromping through snow was much less fantastic. Mud and grim clung to her boots and, if she wasn’t careful about how she stepped, flipped up onto her pants. The Xocili grumbled in annoyance every time another dark spot appeared on her pants, stopping to brush it off in the hopes that stains would not set if she got rid of the mess quickly. Mercury greatly disliked being dirty, able to tolerate it in small doses but too much prolonged exposure to filth was a quick way to make her grumpy.

Her trek up the mountainside was of far greater importance than her desire to be clean, unfortunately. She had learned that there was a wizard guild at the peak that was well known for their research into magic, technology, and other such things. As a woman who knew little to nothing about Fiore’s culture, the opportunity to learn more was too enticing to pass up. Along the way she had been stopped by a pack of wolves, who watched her with steady curiosity. There had been a brief moment where she’d wondered if they might attack her, but soon they turned up the mountain and looked back at her expectantly. It hadn’t taken her long to realize that they were leading her toward her destination, so she followed.

Eventually, she reached the top. The young woman turned and thanked the wolves, bowing to them respectfully with her head until they ran back out into the woods. She entered through the doors to find herself in a foyer of sorts that was illuminated by golden lacrimas. Not wanting to leave tracks on the carpet from the muddied snow she’d picked up, she kicked as much of the stuff off as possible just outside the door.

Anyone looking upon her would find a woman that appeared to be in her early twenties. She had lavender hair that was shorter in the back than it was in the front, and aside from the spots she’d kicked up outside from nature her clothes were pristine and on the trendy side. On her hip in open view was what appeared to be an oversized pistol of sorts, safely holstered away as she had no intentions of being a source of hostility in this place. She observed the lobby through vivid emerald eyes that took in everything she could see before greeting someone that looked approachable.

“Hi there, I apologize if I’m intruding, I’m just hoping you can point me in the right direction,” she said with a small but kind smile. Her voice was soft, and slightly on the deep side. “I’m new to the area and was informed that this guild was known for their expansive library and research facilities. I was interested in finding out more about what accesses are available to the general public, or if there’s a way I could take on a membership of some sort..?”

She was greeted by a young blonde woman that was only a couple inches shorter than herself. The woman introduced herself, explaining that she was the one in charge of the guild Mercury had found her way toward. It was a bit of a surprise. It wasn’t often that she wandered into an establishment and the first person she met was the one running the place.

Mercury smiled at the woman pleasantly. “Mistress Jarnefeldt, it’s an honor to meet you.” She offered Leona a professional handshake. “My name is Mercury Arseneault. I’m new to the area, only been in Fiore for a few months. I’ve been looking for a place to settle for a while that might help me adapt to the culture here. Silver Wolf seems like it could be a good fit for me. Do you have time to give me some information about the guild and what you look for and expect of potential members?”

It was clear that Mercury was a fairly straight to business kind of woman, though not in an unfriendly fashion. She’d left out an awful lot of details regarding her background, but given that her words were still fully truthful there was no deceit to be had. The lavender haired lady simply wasn’t one to pour out the intricacies of her life to a complete stranger.

Leona wasted no time in answering Mercury’s questions, getting right down to the brass tacks of what encompassed the goals and interests of Silver Wolf. It seemed their focus was not just on magical research, but also on its development. Though the guildmaster didn’t outright states as much, the Xocili assumed that the guild offered to its members the resources to be able to follow through with such crafts. Similarly, Leona followed up with stating that they had similar focuses on both technology and languages, as often times their research lead them into other countries. “Fascinating,” Mercury said, her captivated tone quite sincere.

The only major rule that Leona had to offer was that the work conducted by its members must never be something that turns them into an enemy of the state, nor something that knowingly and willfully puts its members at risk. Outside of that, it seemed that Silver Wolf wizards were free to take jobs and pursue their interests as they saw fit. “That sounds more than reasonable,” the lavender haired woman offered. The rules made sense. A guild like Silver Wolf would only be allowed to operate as freely as they seemed to so long as they weren’t doing things to draw negative attention to themselves from those who ran the country, and it would hardly be much of a home if her guildmates viewed her as untrustworthy. These were acceptable mandates that she could more than accommodate.

“This sounds like the right kind of place for me, then. I’m a bit of a technophile, myself, so perhaps I might be able to contribute some of my knowledge and technology for study as a gesture of goodwill toward the guild. I possess a number of gadgets that I’m certain have not been seen in this region.” Despite how human she looked and felt, Mercury was actually alien to the planet of Earthland, and the technology she had was, quite literally, not of this earth. It would probably take her some time to divulge her true origins to members of the guild, if she ever did, but there were a few harmless devices that she could donate to its libraries that would probably keep some of the members nose deep in research and development for months.

She offered Leona a genuine smile. “So, what do you need from me to formalize a membership?”

It seemed all they needed to formalize things was for Mercury to receive a guild mark -- a magical tattoo of sorts of the guild’s emblem in whatever color she fancied. Leona advised that Mercury could bear the stamp wherever she liked, outside of crude locations presumably. The lavender haired woman hummed thoughtfully, a delicately manicured fingertip tap tap tapping away on her lower lip as she considered her options. Despite how she was probably coming across, she actually wouldn’t be averse to having a tattoo in a scandalous location, however for something like this it behooved her not to take that route anyway.

Wanting the mark to be in a location where she could both show it if need be, or cover it if wanted, Mercury ultimately decided on a location that was fairly traditional for such things. “How about on my back, between my shoulder blades? In a shade of red, if that’s available.” Assuming this was acceptable, she would follow Leona to whatever area they needed to go in order to transfer the mark. Mercury shed her crimson cloak and pulled the back of her shirt up over her head, keeping her front covered but exposing her shoulders so Leona could do her thing. Once complete, she would pull the garment back in its proper place.

She was greatly looking forward to the experience of being part of this guild. It seemed the pairing was going to be mutually beneficial in both directions, and Mercury intended on making sure she was an asset to them. “Thank you very much, Mistress Jarnefeldt. I’m looking forward to working with you and meeting the rest of the guild.” Gathering her things, she was escorted to the room that would belong to her for her time at the guild -- her new home for the foreseeable future. Mercury wasn’t altogether sure of how much time she would realistically wind up spending here, but it was still a comfort to know she would have a place to rest her head and relax.

Ready to get settled in, she slug her bag on the bed and began to unpack...