Regis took his time enjoying every inch of Kayna that night. He was enraptured by her mouth, both with the words spoken from it as well as the other things she did with it that night. The other men were all too happy in lavishing similar praise on the taller ladies, and took them in for the night into the respective rooms of a nearby inn.<br/><br/>…<br/><br/>Regis groaned as Kayna gave him a friendly poke. It took him a moment to register things, as he initially looked at the goblin through bleary eyes.<br/><br/>“Huh? Oh,<em>oh yeah,</em>I remember now!”<br/><br/>With renewed vigor he sat up, grabbing his pants from off the floor.<br/><br/>“So the good news is that the Adventurer’s Guild can take on women,” Regis said as she combed his hair in the room’s mirror. “But only as ‘camp followers’ as they call it, and healers for the Nuns of Light. But you get a pre-listed payment for every mission,<em>and</em>get to watch the best in action and learn from our deeds! I’ll need to tell the rest of the guys first; our company’s a council, not a monarchy, as one would say.”<br/><br/><div align="center">(https://i.imgur.com/W0fpdBt.jpeg)</div><br/>It didn’t take long for Regis to reunite with his adventuring partners, nor did it take Kayna any longer to do the same with her coworkers given their sleeping arrangements. Fortunately it seemed that the rest of Regis’ crew approved of the plan.<br/><br/>“Hmmm, more time to spend with these cuties?” the half-orc asked as he patted Syrrak on the bottom. “Can’t complain with that!”<br/><br/>“Stop thinking with your dick, Tellick!” the dwarf exclaimed. “This one here’s a nun, you know what that means? She can patch us up in case Darrell here gets knocked off his rocker.”<br/><br/>The dwarf pointed his thumb over at Fresh Quill.<br/><br/>“Former nun,” Fresh Quill muttered. “But yes, I am trained in medicine.”<br/><br/>The rune-vested man shrugged his shoulders at the dwarf’s gesture. “And you wouldn’t need to worry about that if you’d keep your spare potions padded with cloth, Bruenor.”<br/><br/>Tellick grunted. “Please, not this again.”<br/><br/>Regis waved his hands. “Enough talk, let’s sign ‘em up for a taste of the wilds!”<br/><br/>The Adventurer’s Guild proper was a large building, although one wider than it was tall. A series of stables with some grazing room held horses, griffons, pegasi, and even a strangely docile landshark (https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Bulette) most certainly under some kind of enchantment. The arrival of Kayna and her friends raised but a few heads, in equal parts appreciation at their beauty as well as curiosity, but not enough to distract anyone for too long from work. But the receptionist certainly raised an eyebrow or two when Regis requisitioned supplies for the ‘hirelings.’<br/><br/>“A...a sword for her?” he asked, looking incredulously at Anezka. “And a two-bladed one at that!”<br/><br/>“William, William, William,” Regis tutted. “You know me well enough that I don’t joke around when it comes to business. They may be girls, but they’re not just any girls. They want to learn self-defense, you know, the world’s been getting crazy in places of late. We’ll protect them as any torchbearer, but this is more for peace of mind and to show them how things are really done, eh?”<br/><br/>The receptionist paused, then produced more papers. “Very well.”<br/><br/>Lioran whispered to Kayna. “Seems like Regis is really pulling favors for us. We should repay this gesture later on down the line.”<br/><br/>Porters produced bags and crates of gear, both for Regis’ company and that of Kayna’s group. Amazingly each contained supplies matching what Kayna told Regis of their skills last night, including actual weapons!<br/><br/>Bruenor the dwarf tried engaging Syrrak in conversation, although the dark elf avoided eye contact.<br/><br/>“Let’s keep things...professional,” she said before Bruenor could get in a word.<br/><br/>“I know that,” he replied. “I just figured to say that when on a mission the Guild comes first. Any history in the past-”<br/><br/>Syrrak opened her tome and read to herself in Elven.<br/><br/>Bruenor looked over at Kayna with a sigh. “She always like that?”<br/><br/><hr/><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: Monotype Corsiva;"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 24pt;">The First Quest</span></span><br/>(https://i.imgur.com/gJIozTL.jpg)</div><br/>Scene Music (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxP0AvtTlBU)<br/><br/>Lethadar’s civilization did not begin and end at its walls. Like any appreciably-sized settlement it had outlying farmland to feed the inhabitants of the city proper. Wagons bearing produce coming to the city, militia patrols on horseback, and peasants on errands and chores made the roads feel quite active even if the company only ever saw them intermittently. Syrrak was enmeshed in her spellbook, thumbing the spine even when she wasn’t reading it, while Fresh Quill made sure she kept pace with the rest of the party. Anezka was already running far ahead of the group, causing Regis to shout for her.<br/><br/>“What are you doing?! Get back here!”<br/><br/>“Don’t worry about my sister,” Lioran said. “She may have just joined the Guild, but she’s no stranger to the outdoors. If we lose eyesight she’ll mark her passage...like so!”<br/><br/>Lioran gestured at the ground ahead. A flurry of small white rose petals blew along the dusty trail, causing Fresh Quill to picked one up and sniff it. “Yup, it’s got her scent.”<br/><br/>“Must be easier to get around on an open field than the southern jungles,” Regis mused. “Still, number one rule of adventuring: don’t split the party!”<br/><br/>Eventually a hill came up upon the horizon, preceded by broken columns and buttresses laying in haphazard formation. The ruins lead all the way up to a demolished memorial, the weather and elements long-since broke its foundations into so much loose stone. Anezka waited by a large boulder, writing down something in Southern upon its side in chalk.<br/><br/>“These are remnants of prior kingdoms,” Darrell said, “slain by the Dreadlord’s armies for imprisoning the tyrant’s darkest servants. Although only scholars nowadays care to learn the specifics, one fact is certain: such places still attract evil, even if their function and inhabitants long since faded into history.”<br/><br/>Lioran took a step back from the columns, waving her fingers along a clockwise circle.<br/><br/>“I didn’t know you could call upon magic,” Regis said, sounding impressed as Darrell shook his head<br/><br/>“I...the gesture has long since been adopted as a ward against evil,” Lioran replied, shuffling her feet.<br/><br/>“Alright,” Regis began. “This dungeon has long since been looted of any valuables, but that doesn’t stop monsters from squatting in it over time. There shouldn’t be any, but we’ll do a patrol just in case. Darrell, hang back with Bruenor and Tellick. Ladies...go on ahead; don’t worry, we’ll stay within earshot!”<br/><br/>Regis pointed to Kayna. “Alright, time to show your stuff. Do your magic senses detect anything unusual?”<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Detect Magic</div><div class="spoiler_body">Only Darrell, Syrrak, and Anezka have any traces of magic on their person. The statue in front has the faintest trace of abjuration magic, although the spell itself has long since dissipated.</div></div>