The floors creaked as they walked around. There were four people inside, matching the descriptions the woman provided. It was difficult for Meyra to see, as the window was covered in grime. The people were laughing as they opened the hatch to go downstairs. 

Meyra was able to hear and see a portion of the basement using the crack. Things were quiet for a bit, only murmuring and whispers of the people walking around. A scream came from someone inside and their shackles dragging against the floor. A woman thumped to the ground and pleaded with the people standing above her. 

"You didn't catch enough Peshwen for us this time. Instead, you will be catching Riffen for us to sell to the bars."

“Thank you! Thank you!” The woman smiled as she kept her head held low.

The person standing above her looked down on her. They yanked on her hair, pulling her up by the bundle. The woman screamed and cried, weakly bringing up her shackled arms. They laughed and dropped her to the ground, causing her to hit her head and be knocked unconscious. One of the others came to heal the woman. 

“You can't kill them you idiots!” The healer yelled and grumbled, “Making more work for me this way.”

After they finished working, they stood up. Their angelic wings poked out from their robe, dragging on the ground. One of them levitated the woman out of view, complaining they were too tired. From a bin they grabbed an unprocessed fish that was decomposing, the stench wafting out of the crack and making her gag. The fish levitated out of her view and she heard a shriek. 

Meyra heard a loud thud accompanied by screaming. She staggered away from the building. Her wings dragged on the ground until she was able to shakily stand up. Meyra gripped onto her stomach, trying not to hurl, as she flew out of the village. She made her way back to the cliff where Ren was pacing. 

“Where have you been?!” Ren exclaimed, stopping after they saw Meyra's state. 

She was still covered in cobwebs and fresh blood. Tears stained her face as she hurled beside a tree. Ren crouched down, placing a hand on her back. Meyra cried, sniffling, until she was done. She cleaned herself up and shakily stood, gripping onto the tree for strength. 

“We have some juice back in town, I think it'll be best for you to update us when you're feeling better,” Aylin spoke from the portal. 

When they reached the other side, Aylin guided them to Stasia's. They gave her a glass of juice and helped her sit down, before heading inside. Ren sat across from Meyra quietly, looking through their notes. 

“I am here if you'd ever like to talk,” Ren mumbled. 

“Thank you,” Meyra whispered in-between sips, just trying to keep it down. 

“Looks like you could use some rest. Let's get this out of the way first,” Stasia spoke from inside. 

She was seated in the middle, looking up at the hole in the ceiling. She smiled when Ren and Meyra walked in, motioning for them to sit in front of her. Meyra propped herself up against one of the beams, placing a cushion on her abdomen. She spoke in-between tears about what she had seen, Ren staying silent and keeping their head down. 

“We can check on them periodically. We need to get at the roots. Removing them would not be beneficial in the long term,” Stasia spoke as she reviewed Meyra's drawings. 

“Do you know anything about the fish they were talking about?” Ren asked as they also looked at Meyra’s notes. 

Riffen is a fish commonly eaten due to it being available in high quantities from the west. It lives right along the shoreline, making it easy to catch high quantities. It needs to be consumed with alcohol to remove the poison, which is why it is served as a bar food. The Mer are the only ones supplying fish from Rildin, bringing the highest quality fish when they come to market. 

Peshwen has a high poison content. It can be eaten with alcohol, but it needs to be consumed with high quantities. So, it is usually reserved for times when there is too much alcohol being produced in town. At this time, people are barely able to meet demand, so the fish is not being eaten. 

"It's been popular due to being so affordable, oftentimes people forget they're paying more with the amount of alcohol they drink with current rates. I think everyone just wants to drown themselves,” Stasia said with a sigh.

"What happens if people eat it without enough alcohol?" Meyra asked and Ren shrugged. 

"They can become irritable or violent depending on the amount. We don't allow it in the forest for that reason, so I've only seen it when I visit town." Stasia leaned back on her cushion.

“Thank you for your help, this is from everyone. You will be guided back,” Stasia spoke with a smile. 

She pulled out four small satchels each with a small note saying to open them later. They thanked Stasia, Ren heading out first with three of the satchels. Stasia held Meyra’s hand, keeping her back. 

“You will have a tough road ahead. Please stay strong and reach out to me whenever you want.” Stasia hummed, handing Meyra a bluish-white stone. 

Meyra teared up, putting them into her belongings before giving Stasia a hug. Stasia brought her into a bear hug, rubbing her back between her wings. Meyra cried, feeling the stress leave her body. She smiled, wiping away the tears and caused Stasia to laugh. 

“You remind me of my own. Though yours are not with you now, I hope I can supplement them.” Stasia chuckled and gave Meyra some cloth to clean herself up. 

Meyra thanked Stasia, not asking how she knew. At this point, those that were chosen seemed to know more about her than she did. Instead of questioning, she decided to take it as a form of comfort. After one final hug, Meyra gripped onto the blue stone in her pocket and went outside. 

“Looks like you've got some loose tear ducts there. Feeling alright?” Ren chuckled and gently jabbed Meyra’s waist. 

Meyra laughed and walked with Ren until they reached Aylin. They were seated on the reindeer, their one pant leg rolled up showing their lower leg missing. Instead, it slit into a shorter slot on the harness. Aylin waved for them to follow and they walked away from the town. 

“Thank you for today. All has been resolved,” Meyra said with a smile and watched as Aylin blushed. 

Laxen yawned beside the portal, clad in armor. She waved and grinned. 

“It was great to meet you all. Safe travels. You're always free to visit!” She said while checking the portal. 

Laxen confirmed and the two walked through the portal. The midday sun came through the edge of the forest, illuminating their path. Meyra ran ahead of Ren and into the field, stretching her wings and spinning in a circle. She felt her skin heat up from the sun and grinned. 

“Looks like you're happy to be back.” Ren chuckled as they stopped out of the forest. 

“It's much warmer here, it feels great!” Meyra giggled. 

They agreed on flying back, as it was already past midday. Meyra picked up Ren and flew well above the skyline. She looked toward the horizon, seeing the town in the distance. By early evening, they had made it back to town. The two made their way back to the guild to rest. 

“It's great to have you back! The others will be arriving tomorrow. Please gorge on the feast we have this evening,” Rendel laughed to himself and motioned to the spread of food in the dining area. 

After getting themselves settled, they feasted on the spread downstairs. Full, they parted ways for the night. Meyra sat on a chair by her window looking into the distance. Smoke wafted from the farmlands to the east, making her shiver. 

A white glow emanated from her bag, causing her to pull out the satchel. Inside was a necklace with a vial. The liquid glowed in the moonlight with a sheen. The note read moonlight water. 

Moonlight water is a rare commodity, as it can only be produced by spiritualists contracted with moon spirits. Stasia's village is the easiest to access by town, but typically the villagers bless the water. She blessed this water, making it shine brightly even within the bag. Meyra smiled as she closed up the satchel, putting it back in her bag. 

"God, can we talk?" Meyra asked the void, waiting until she fell asleep. 

The fox was seated on the windowsill when she awoke. It looked at her and cocked its head before jumping into her bag and pulling out the satchel. The fox cackled as it looked at the vial in its paws.

"Whew, this is worth a fortune. What do you need?" 

"What are we supposed to do to find the people that caused this famine?” Meyra asked, stretching her wings after she got out of bed. 

"Soon, there will be a gathering of important figures. You will go. Prepare well, you will need it." The fox grinned before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

She grit her teeth, unable to finish her thoughts. Myra went downstairs to eat, Ren nearly finished their meal. They agreed to meet later when the others arrived. It was late at night when they arrived, exhausted, and nearly face planting into their food. It was agreed to meet the next morning. 

“Sorry about yesterday, I'm glad to see you!” Kalin exclaimed over his food. 

As they talked, Ren handed out the pouches. Kalin and Ayra glanced inside and grinned. 

“This is worth a ton. How about going out on the town?” Ayra asked. 

“Stasia gave those to us as gifts, do you think there is some other purpose?” Meyra pried. 

“I don't know about you. I'm only here to make money. This is worth more than we got slaughtering the monsters for Vallan,” Ayra said while pulling the necklace. 

Meyra stayed quiet, her vial in her side pocket. She kept her head down while the others caught up. After everyone finished their meal, they went to one of the lounge rooms. Ren closed the door behind them and sat on the couch. 

“You never got our message, did you?” They asked, leaning back. 

Ayra, meanwhile, was taking off her jacket and fiddling with her shirt. Her wings were fastened in place, with a dagger between them. She pulled out the dagger and placed it on her lap. 

“Rendel sent us out for Vallan immediately when we returned, so no.” Kalin yawned and pulled his cloak around himself. 

“That doesn't make sense. The letter was supposed to be sent to you two directly. Someone must have interfered.” Ren leaned forward, putting their elbows on their knees. 

“All letters go to Rendel first before coming to us. So it had to be him, but I don't know why,” Ayra grumbled as she played with the blade in her hands. 

“Rendel wouldn't do that. He's like a father to all of us,” Kalin grumbled. 

“Regardless of personal feelings, we need to keep our guards up,” Meyra chimed in, receiving a glare from Kalin.

She shrunk back in her chair, staying quiet. Ayra updated them on the situation in the farmlands. The monsters had become more aggressive, reeked of rotting meat, and were growing in number. During this, the guild started stationing personnel along the border with Dovin. The night before they were sent out on their mission, they went undercover in town. 

They observed one of the local Cruxn locations due to the volume of people visiting compared to others. The lines were long but moved quickly, as it was emphasized to leave after eating. 

Once they made it inside, the two watched the workers cook, noting the pungent smell of fish. People were rowdier inside than when they waited in line, grabbing larger portions than they were supposed to. 

“Everything is empty, I can't bring anything home,” a person mumbled, crying. 

Several workers ran outside, causing them to follow. Multiple people had been beaten outside, caught hoarding food. They were dragged away, the bloodied bread taken by others waiting. 

Kalin and Ayra watched as the people were transported to the nearest Vallan location. They stayed back, unable to enter as the facility is closed for non-patients. They were able to see large crystals suspended in the air over a pool of water. The crystals reflected off the windows and water, casting rainbows across the white walls. Few people walked around from the few they saw, they were primarily Fae and Angelic, and there was no one with the eye dust of higher standing. 

While leaving, Kalin saw someone in the window of the second floor. That floor was small, just over the main entrance, directly above the crystals on the first floor. They had long navy-blue hair, dusted with gold. The person turned around, looking out the window, their eyes dusted with the gold as well. The person locked eyes with Kalin, then a white glow appeared in front of him with an envelope saying to open it that night.

The two went to visit Quixm, as they are the largest business organization in Dovin. They have fewer buildings, as they tend to centralize their procedures. Kalin and Ayra reached their headquarters in the center of Dovin, with their building being one of the tallest in town at four stories. They walked inside and looked at the books along the wall. Quixm allowed the public to use their resources on the first floor as long as they remained in the building. 

As with Vallan and Cruxn, there were no higher ups to be seen. Instead, multiple workers were walking around carrying papers and other objects behind the banisters. They all wore the same uniform, making them easy to spot compared to the visitors. Ayra and Kalin split up, Kalin staying on the first floor and Ayra using her abilities to sneak around. 

She stayed within the shadows, using various objects, including a chair, to look around. The north wing was full of offices, leading up to a large window overlooking the town. All of the offices were well-insulated, so she was unable to hear anything. Looking up at one office from a plant across the hall, she recognized the name of the branch leader. Although the public would not recognize the name, she had regularly heard their name at the guild. 

Ayra snuck in as the door was opened, hiding underneath the desk. There were two people talking above her, one sitting behind the desk and the other standing in front. The person behind the desk was named Weylyn, easily identifiable by the glowing ring around their lower torso. She was unable to see their faces, but based on their clothing, the visitor appeared to be with the emperor’s private army. 

"The emperor has requested a private meeting with you to discuss the situation. Please come by the palace this evening," the visitor said.

"Okay, I will see the emperor then," Weylyn said in a relaxed tone.

The person walked out of the room, the door slamming shut behind them and locking. Weylyn began to tap on the floor underneath the desk where Ayra was hiding. She flinched in pain before moving away from them, they moved their foot and continued to tap where she was.

"Come out." Weylyn sternly spoke, making Ayra's eyes widen in fear.