The Guild Capitol: Chapter 2.5

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so the other doesn't get lost yet we can still play

Poor Armin, geez. Being enslaved when you were what, twelve? had to be pretty crappy. "Damn," James said. He wasn't all that great at eloquence.

Skye shrugged and smiled at Swarm "Whatever there is to see." She replied then looked around before picking up a feather and spinning it, letting it fall to the ground then pointing the way it pointed "That way, let's see what we find."

Armin bowed his head again. "We are free now, as are you my friend. We should be happy, there are others not so fortunate. May the Weaver protect them." He clasped his hands.

---

Swarm bobbed up and down and followed her.

"Yeah," James smiled sadly, "We've seen some awful stuff, but at least we're away from it now. Sure would be nice if everyone else was free too, but hey, gotta start somewhere right?"

Skye picked up the feather and started walking, looking around to see what they could see n the way

"We must take things, as the Terrans say, one step at a time." Armin nodded. "From what I understand of the guild meeting earlier today, a very large step forward has happened. The re-designation of Androids. While I do not claim to understand this tier system they have here, having allies of great power on side is extremely useful." He bowed his head.

---

--we-- --could-- --fly-- Swarm suggested.

Skye chuckled and looked to Swarm then spread her wings "Good idea" She said before taking off.

James smiled slightly. "It's something at least. Stinks to know my sister's still stuck in there and we can't even tell her there's hope or we might tip off the wrong people, but we'll get there."

Armin nodded. "You will, and then we can fly in and rescue her." he laughed, he liked this idea.

--

Swarm flew after Skye, pleased to see her happy and not feeling sick. It was far better to fly in a real sky.

"It'll be awesome. She might be mad that we've been lying to her for months, but she'll probably forgive us," said James. He peered down a dark alley at a warmly lit doorway.

Skye liked being able to fly in a real sky again and soon started doing tricks just because she could and was enjoying herself.

Swarm would stay close enough they wouldn't lose her in the darkness, but wouldn't interupt, just following the winged girl as she enjoyed the freedom of the sky.

---

"I am certain she will forgive you." Armin agreed. "and understand why you had no choice. " He followed James' gaze.

Skye settled in an easy flight after a while, looking to Swarm then around again. "See anything interesting yet?" She asked curiously

--everything-- --here-- --is-- --interesting-- Swarm pointed out.

James smiled softly. "She's pretty sensible. She'll probably get it." He considered, then headed down the alley, trying to look more confident than he was. Yeah they were a pair of non magical beings in a city full of magic users. This probably wasn't the best idea. But he was kind of curious.

Armin kept close, looking a little wary. He kept reminding himself that they were undoubtedly safe here, the guild was supposed to be safe.

James lead the way over to the doorway and looked in. The room inside was big and open, seemingly way bigger than the building that surrounded it. It might seem like magic at first, but closer inspection would show that the illusion of space was created by clever painting, not by magic. The walls had mirrors strategically placed to help carry light, and there were lots of candles which made the room look warmer. There were benches facing a point at the back of the room wherea dais backed by a painting of griffins flying stood.
The ceiling was painted with a hugely detailed mural that had griffins flying at various heights above carrying branches in their talons, thatgave the illusion that the room was open to a starry night sky above.
"Wow," James said.

"Impressive." Armin agreed, looking over James' shoulder and trying to figure out what the place was.

"I think it's some sort of church," James said, looking around. "Not for any religion I know though." He headed into the building, keeping his voice hushed as he talked. "Wonder if there's anyone here."

Armin gazed up at the ceiling in wonder, then bowed his head reverently. He was of the attitude that even if it wasn't your faith, being polite and respectful to other's gods was always prudent. Just in case.

James wasn't quite as reverent. He tried to not make too much noise, but didn't bow his head to whatever god they worshiped here. He headed toward the dais, looking around for any writing that might tell him something about this place. Hmmm.

"Many Griffons." Armin remarked, speaking in hushed tones. "Do you think it may be one of their deities?" He didn't know much about Griffons, they weren't exactly a species who needed tailoring after all.

"Maybe," James said, that certainly made sense to him. "I met a griffin once back on my old space station, she was nice but she didn't seem all that religious. She clawed up some fool who called her a cat, and then got drunk and asked me to scratch her behind her ears."
He spotted something that looked like writing, and inspected it carefully. It looked like chicken scratches. "I have no clue what this says, can you read it?" he asked, "Might be one of those captchas," he said jokingly.

Armin chuckled and came over. "How do you deal with those I am not a robot check boxes? Does your programming stop you from just lying or do you simply check it and tell them to prove it?" He asked curiously, looking at the writing. "I do not know what this says, we would need a translator but it seems... improper to attempt to take photographs or otherwise take copies of what is likely a holy book." He frowned. "I wonder where the priest is. Are there not usually priests in temples and churches?"

"The checkboxes break our hearts, but we're still allowed to click them," James said, amused. "Usually the site owners don't care if you're a robot or not, as long as you talk like a person." He nodded, "There must be a priest around here somewhere. Someone has to have lit the candles, I assume they aren't enchanted ones."

flying_purple_monkfish wrote:--everything-- --here-- --is-- --interesting-- Swarm pointed out.

Skye laughed at that and shrugged, picking a place to land and have a closer look. "Right, let's see what this place is."

Swarm kept close, looking around at where they now were.

---

"you do not have hearts though." Armin pointed out with a chuckle and patted James on the shoulder. "but you ARE a person. Always remember that." He nodded and looked warily at the candles. They were small enough not to set off his fear but he was still dubious of them. Even a tiny flame with these oxygen tanks could be absolutely devastating. So he kept his distance. "you are correct, there must be someone nearby." He called out softly. "Hello?"