The Manaverse

Slatewell Safezone

Granite City

The Crusaders rested after their celebratory meeting. They each chose an activity that best kept their minds distracted. Whether it was a dual smithing shift, group meals, or some other mundane activity. The majority of the rest of the Safe Zone's population, however, was finding it harder and harder to stay relaxed.

Upon the arrival of the System, a large majority were lost in panic and fear. Of course, a small percentage of the population took up arms to fight back the hordes of Monsters long enough to allow the rest to reach safety. However, that was a very small number indeed. The non-fighters just tried to stay alive, many of whom did not succeed.

That panic and fear never really left the general population of Granite City until the Lock Down began. The blue barrier spread a sense of security that helped many settle down and allowed them to start to come to terms with their world ending.

As with all good things, this sense of protection and safety provided by the barrier quickly faded. The glorious "Safe Zone" that was an island of refuge in a storm of death and change started to feel like a prison cell that only stayed their execution temporarily.

The limited space, which had been reassuring at first, became a major burden. While there was enough space for every survivor in the Residential Towers to have a bed, there was never a true sense of privacy. Strangers were always within arms reach. The population had to take turns leaving their rooms or there would be no space for anyone to move around. The bathing spaces, while divided by gender, were communal and always in use. Only the lucky ones who received a room above the first three floors found any sort of refuge.

This made for a lot people spending a lot of time with nothing to do but think, worry, and panic while they sat on their bunks. It didn't take more than a few days for cabin fever to start to spread.

Then the Count Down appeared yet again. The same terror inducing numbers that announced the arrival of Hell popped into everyone's visions when there was twenty-five hours before the end of the Lock Down. This caused the atmosphere in the Safe Zone to shift from being oppressive to filled with dread and despair. That feeling deepened further every time the ominous numbers ticked down.

Many attempted to find refuge in their assigned beds while others found the people they knew to huddle together with and wait for the end to come. That's how, for the first time during the Lock Down, the streets of the Safe Zone were completely empty save for a small group of people who gathered around a new, unused building.

The plain, square building made of stone and wood had been locked up tight since the day it had appeared. As soon as the Count Down began, the magical chains holding the twin sets of wooden, double doors fell free on their own accord and disappeared before they hit the ground.

First in line to enter the Adventurer's Guild was none other than a tall, blonde ex-soldier and a red haired Drakkin. The rest of the Crusaders had asked to leave off registering their group so it was left to Jut. Brick had been more than eager to join him to check it out.

"Fuckin' finally." Brick cursed as he pulled one of the doors open.

Jut couldn't help but smirk at Brick's back as he followed him through the doors. He had felt like saying the exact same thing.

The first floor was open with half of the space resembling a tavern and the other half looking like a bank lobby with a single, long counter, line creating rope barriers, and four framed surfaces on the walls. Simple fixtures hung from the ceiling, each holding a small ball of white, magical light that gave everything a crisp and professional feeling. Finally, there were two spiral staircases on each side of the room.

Behind the waist high counter stood multiple familiar stone colored mannequin looking beings. Before the humanoids and set into the counter were familiar, square panels that were undoubtedly connected to the System. Jut examined one of the Operator Bots to see if it was the same one that ran the Shop. As he expected, it wasn't.

Adventurers' Guild Operator Bot, Unit 9X56

The two Crusaders went to the closest Operator Bot. Brick, being more of a people person spoke with the Operator Bot while Jut touched the panel.

"Welcome. Are you here to register with the Adventurer's Guild?" While the bot may have been a different model than the one at the Shop, the voice was the same gender-less monotone. Looking closer allowed Jut to see that their bodies were identical too, down to every seam and contour.

"We want to register our group, yeah. I guess we do that through the panel?" Brick responded jovially. His earlier annoyance seemed to have fizzled away.

Jut let the bot answer as he could see the information by touching the panel. He was sure it was going to bring his teammate's annoyance flooding back. So, he'd rather have someone else do it for him.

"Unfortunately, the Group you have registered with the Safe Zone and registration with the Adventurer's Guild are distinct events. Furthermore, each individual Being needs to register themselves as there is a small test involved." The bot said.

"A test? What the Hell? I haven't taken a test in years." Brick said. Concern and the returning annoyance crossed his features.

"Each Adventurer has to select their chosen Party Role and will be evaluated by how they perform that Role in combat. These evaluations should always be taken, whether a Being registers with the Adventurer's Guild or not, as it allows one to asses their choices and make changes before it's too late. Thus, the evaluations are required."

After the bot finished, Jut spoke up. "There's a cost too. It's pretty cheap, like ten coppers a season, so forty a year. We currently sell stat food for more."

Brick shrugged. "That's not too bad then. What benefits do Adventurer's get? And why is it different than the Safe Zone's registration?"

Despite the room filling with the chatter of people and their impatience, there seemed to be a bubble around each station that muted external sound. It was similar at the Shop too, but it was far more noticeable here. Jut figured it was probably a privacy thing.

"Adventurer's who stay in good standing and pay their dues are allowed access to many of the Guild's services. Once fully staffed, we will have healing services, reduced meal expenses, a guild shop and barracks style housing. There are also training simulators and, of course, the ability to take jobs." The bot continued, which made it apparent they didn't need to breathe. "The Safe Zone and Adventurer's Guild are separate for multiple reasons. The first and most important reason is because the Adventurer's Guild is not beholden to any local government. It is an interplanetary organization with two purposes, to regulate the Monster population and generate income for those who perform the regulation. Nothing more, nothing less. The Safe Zone, on the other hand, is only local and is required to look after it's population." The bot explained.

"Oh. That's probably a good thing, I guess." Brick said, not really impressed.

Jut looked past the window he was using to register as he spoke up. "How do I register our Guild, the Radiant Crusaders? I don't see it as an option."

"Private groups, such as your Guild, come into existence through local registration. Those affiliations will show on your Adventurer's Progress Plate but will not have any impact on anyone's Adventurer's Guild status."

Brick rolled his eyes. "APP? Like a phone app?"

Jut finished entering his information and paid the one silver testing fee. He received a token engraved with a number three and a pop up window that told him to go to the second floor. He looked to Brick and shrugged. "I don't know, man."

At the same time, the Operator Bot responded. "As the item functions much like an application, the acronym is not far off from being the truth. In your planet's words "Close enough."

"I see." Brick said, stepping up to take Jut's place so he could register. "Whatever works, I suppose." Jut could tell by the man's tone, he was being sarcastic. Could the bot?

"How does being an Adventurer work?" Jut asked.

"Registered Adventurers take jobs. Jobs issued by the Guild are usually Monster elimination requests. The APP records the Monster Eradication Lore. Once an Adventurer returns and confirms their job complete, they receive the reward associated with the job. There are gathering jobs, but those are usually outsourced from the Safe Zone or local leadership. To complete those, Adventurer's must sell the required items to the System Shop."

Jut had glimpsed the option when he was last at the Shop too. A crafter could set a request at the Shop and that request was supposed to be registered at the Adventurer's Guild. They could then get those items from the Shop. With the Adventurer's Guild closed, those requests went through the Town Hall.

"What determines what jobs we can take?" Jut asked.

"Who can take on what job is based on multiple factors. This includes, but is not limited to: Ascendance Rank, Adventurer's Guild Rank and Party Size Limits or Minimums. Based on your planet's pre-System Lore, an Adventurer's Guild Ranking will start at F rank and progress to A rank before topping off at S rank. Anyone accepted into the Guild starts at F rank. Adventurer's can take jobs up to one rank higher than their current Adventurer's Guild Rank as long as all other requirements are met."

"The System went with that layout, huh? Thank you for the summary, Operator Bot guy. It's much appreciated." Jut said as Brick grabbed his own token. The Guardian's had a stylized number seven on it.

"It is very prominent in your culture's animated and light stories. The format is fairly straight forward so it's selection was considered the easiest for the general population to understand. And, you are very welcome Adventurer Applicant Zoak. Please use the stairs on this side of the building and go to second floor then turn right for your entrance exam."

It was a clear dismissal, so Jut and Brick took heed and continued on. Jut sent message to the other Crusaders through his conversations menu option so they knew they couldn't avoid coming down and registering themselves, which made him feel a little bit better. He had been a slightly irritated at how quickly the entire team had dumped the job on him. Being the leader of the Guild, while giving him more responsibilities, should have allowed him to delegate some things, but in the end it wouldn't have mattered. That didn't stop him from enjoying the uno reverse.

The circular, stone steps lead to a doorway on the second floor. Passing through it, Jut and Brick walked into a long hallway leading left or right with a sign in the shape of two arrows, pointing down each direction. The black text on a white background said Advancement Examinations on the left side and Simulated Training Pods on the right. They followed the path right. Jut was curious why they weren't directed to the examination area, but didn't dwell on it.

The blank hallway ended with an opening on the right that lead into another hallway. This one reminded Jut of the floors of the Residential Towers. Tall, stone metal doors were staggered on each side all the way down. Above each of the doors was a placard with a stylized number. Jut pulled his token out and stopped walking at the number three door.

Looking at the door, it had no windows or even a handle. All the stone colored slab had was an impression in the middle that was the perfect size to place the token. The only reason Jut knew it was a door was based on its shape and the layout of the hallway.

Jut shrugged and placed the token in its slot. As soon as the token was close to the impression, it was pulled into place like paperclip being pulled by a magnet with the number three landing up right before it was absorbed into the door. Four lines appeared in the door and it opened a long those lines, retracting into the wall.

Jut felt a thump on his shoulder. When he looked over, Brick smiled and gave him a thumbs up. "Good luck. I'll meet you on the first floor when your done." The Guardian then walked a bit further down until he reached the seven door. Jut grinned at the subtle challenge in the words.

"Not if I see you on the first floor after your done." Jut called after him.

Brick had already walked into his test room but the door hadn't closed yet. The Guardian's arm shot out and he flipped Jut off before giving him a shooing gesture.

Jut chuckled and entered the testing room.