Arz stood outside his study. A few Guild guards hovered nearby, curious as to what was going on. Isilhorn, Khoribin, and Orikori all waited on the stairs. Even with the AZ guns, Isilhorn and Khoribin kept their distance.

  The party felt a little smaller now that Alzidius was in the hospital. Part of Arz felt like he should have stayed at the sergeant’s side, but the relentless questions about the terrible wound had worn Arz down quickly. Even Alzidius grew tired of the question because it was one with an impossible answer. Impossible to most people.

  Now, with the smaller party, they waited in what felt like another impossible situation.

  “It can’t be that bad, right?” Arz asked.

  “I heard something moving around in there,” one of the guards said. Arz didn’t know his name, but he was stationed in the tower frequently.

  “Was it my eel? Have you met Sal?”

  The guard shook his head.

  Arz shrugged. “Maybe one day you’ll be introduced.”

  “Arz,” Khoribin whispered. He walked over like he was trying to sneak, but the AZ gun clanged loudly as it bounced off a buckle on his pants. “Now is not the time. We need to make sure an AZ didn’t come through.”

  “A robot wouldn’t hurt Sal.” Arz looked back at a small crowd of nervous faces. “Everybody back up.” He understood the danger, of course. So why would anyone think they needed to rush in at his side?

  Khoribin stayed at Arz’s side as everyone else moved down the stairs until only their heads were poking above.

  Arz elbowed Khoribin gently. “I’ll distract it. You throw open the door and hit it between the metal plates.”

  “I don’t think my aim is that good.”

  “Well, don’t hit me or Sal. Or my stuff. Or . . . just hit the robot.”

  Khoribin nodded and lifted the sleek metal rifle to his shoulder. Arz took a deep breath and tossed open the door. Others would have gone in slowly, but he liked to make an entrance.

  The portal was gone, but an AZ-32 stood on the far end of the study near the far window. Arz closed the door behind him and casually strode forward.

  “Well, who do we have here?”

  The AZ-32 spun around to face Arz. Its eyes glowed, but one was cracked and dim. Its arms moved slower than the rest of its body as it tried to aim. “You are trespassing. Surrender for processing.”

  “Actually,” Arz said, thrusting his arms out, “you are trespassing. Look around you.”

  The AZ stopped lifting its gun as its eyes switched to a lime green light. Its head swiveled as it looked at each part of the room. Arz continued forward, not even flinching as the green eyes locked on his face.

  “Identify.”

  “Arz Kurana,” he said triumphantly.

  “Unknown location: Arz Kurana.”

  “Oh, wait, no. I’m Arz Kurana. You’re on Earth in the city of Bralincote.”

  The robot’s eyes turned off, leaving four glossy circles where Arz could see a little reflection of himself. He ran his hand over the ingredients table, trying to decide if there was something good to use.

  There wasn’t.

  Even if the darkfire oil burned hot enough to melt the AZ, he didn’t want it staying on the ground. The last thing he needed was an out of control fire that would burn down the whole tower.

  The AZ robot’s eyes flashed blue as it seemed to turn back on. “Unknown location. Advise.”

  “Are you asking me?”

  The eyes flashed green again as it scanned Arz. “Unknown individual. Advise.”

  His heart beat harder as Arz got closer, but the AZ didn’t react. It only scanned him again like it was continually trying to recognize him.

  “Who are you?” Arz asked.

  “AZ-32-11512 of Doumenus Security, Ricarun Republic.”

  Arz swore it sounded more proud while saying that than it did while it spoke earlier. He stopped about six feet away and casually sat on the chair he had used to block the portal. He noted the indents from where the robot had touched it.

  “Can you think? AZ-32-115, uh, 7?”

  “AZ-32-11512.” The robot let its arms fall to the side. Two of the four arms still gripped the gun, but its barrel pointed at the ground, which let Arz relax. “Doumenus Security forces are not part of the Free Think Initiative granted by the Ricarun Council of Robotics. We were created as a protection force, not as independent robotic life with sentience.”

  “Everything you are saying is just from them?”

  “Affirmative.”

  Arz folded his hands in his lap and let himself sink into the cushioned arm chair. “So, then what are you meant to do when you are not on Doumenus?”

  “Correction: AZ-32-11512 does not leave Doumenus.”

  “You are not on Doumenus, remember? We’re on Earth.”

  “Advise.”

  “I can’t open a portal to Doumenus right now. Not unless I get some more ingredients. Will you listen to my instructions to collect materials for me?”

  “Negative.”

  Arz shrugged. “Then you might as well shut down. You aren’t going to be useful.”

  The AZ-32’s eyes shut off and it crashed to the ground, cracking the floor where it landed. Khoribin threw the door open at the far end of the room and ran in with his gun raised.

  “What happened?” he shouted upon seeing Arz calmly sitting down.

  “I convinced it to turn itself off.”

  Khoribin lowered his eyebrows and relaxed his stance. “Really?”

  Arz pointed to the ground. “Not everything needs to be violent.”

  “It’s safe,” Khoribin shouted.

  Arz noticed that Khoribin was already looking a little more put together than he did when they first met. It hadn’t been that long, but he seemed to be taking his new, if unofficial, role seriously.

  Orikori was the first into the room, not even hesitating. Isilhorn followed a few seconds later. The guards from outside peeked in, but stayed out of the study.

  “I didn’t hear any shots,” Isilhorn said.

  “Arz talked it into dying,” Khoribin said. He kept his gun aimed at the fallen robot.

  Arz smiled. “That makes it sound like I’m boring, which I have to say, is sometimes true. This, though, was more advising it to shut down since it had no purpose here on Earth.”

  “What do we do with it?” Isilhorn asked. He slowly approached with his gun still raised.

  “Calm down. It’s dead. Leave it for now. I’ll decide later.” Arz stood up and made a show of poking the AZ’s face with his foot. “See?”

  Its head fell limply to the side. Khoribin quickly pulled the gun out of its hands and retreated. When it still didn’t move, he visibly relaxed. “Bring this to the captain,” he said, handing the new gun to a different guard.

  “Do we have to? I can’t imagine giving Higgrion a gift,” Arz said.

  “He’s still our captain.” Khoribin set his weapon down and watched as the guard left the study.

  “I don’t blame you for giving it to him. I just don’t want him to have it.” Arz walked over to Sal’s tank. The eel swam around happily. Or he at least looked happy. Arz still didn’t understand eels that well. “We’ll have to get another for your sergeant when he’s healed.”

  “Do you think Alzidius will be able to be a soldier after an injury like that?” Isilhorn asked.

  “I’m hoping so. We’ll find a way.” Arz tapped the robot corpse a few more times, just to really make sure it didn’t suddenly start wiggling.

  “What’s next?” Orikori asked. The little scribe somehow appeared right beside Arz. His notebook was in his hand and he was already taking notes before Arz managed to speak.

  “I suppose I need to meet with the Guild sometime,” Arz said. He leaned over and watched Orikori write at lightning speeds. None of it was legible to Arz. “Or maybe I don’t. You’ll carry everything to good ole Jaralath, won’t you?”

  “Yes, Master Kurana. That’s why I’m here.”

  Arz scowled at the title. Orikori had a knowing smirk on his face, telling Arz that he was trying to agitate him.

  “Well, Khoribin, I have all of this.” Arz gestured to his newest ingredients. Chronofluid, spiraltree roots, and darkfire oil filled up a new space on the table. “You know what these can do?”

  “Not at all.”

  “Invisibility,” Orikori said.

  “Okay, that ruined my presentation. I was going to be a lot more exciting with it, you know. Life can be a show, Orikori. Khoribin here would have been delighted with a real presentation.”

  “I prefer to just know.”

  Arz rolled his eyes. “Everybody makes it sound as if I’m boring for talking a robot into dying, but then they are impatient with my not boring and very exciting presentations about recipes!”

  “I like the presentation,” Isilhorn said.

  “See?” Arz thrust a finger toward the young guard. “Isilhorn likes the presentation. Why aren’t you more like him?”

  “Do you need me to act excited too?” Orikori asked.

  “No. Too late. My feelings are already hurt. Besides, you’re the one that ruined the surprise. You can’t make up for it now.”

  It hardly took an hour to make ten invisibility potions. The only problem was . . . Arz couldn’t see them.

  “You had to expect this,” Khoribin said.

  The guard had been hovering just over Arz’s shoulder the entire time he had been working. While Arz had been thoroughly enjoying Khoribin’s company, he sometimes found the guard’s bluntness annoying.

  “Just because I expect something doesn’t mean I prepare for it.” Arz scowled at his own statement. He glared at Orikori and pointed at the scribe. “Don’t write that down.”

  “Too late, Master.”

  Arz groaned. “I previously considered Jaralath to be my arch rival, with Higgrion as my greatest human enemy. I may have to change my rankings. How high do you want to be?”

  “I like to achieve great heights, Master.”

  Isilhorn chuckled from the other side of the room. He had stayed near the door, almost as if he had been guarding something. Whatever it was.

  Sal swam through his tanks and tubes, checking on everybody in the room. Arz still wasn’t used to having such an audience while he worked, and neither was the eel.

  Orikori watched everything Arz did, while Khoribin stayed close and Isihlhorn watched from afar. Arz liked all three men, but tried to imagine the life of solitude he had been living.

  He had almost died numerous times.

  Perhaps the company would help prevent that. In fact, it already had.

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  “How are you going to use those?” Khoribin asked. The guard had moved to the table and felt around for the invisibility potions.

  “Okay, clearly I need to find an invisibility-proof material. I have to assume that won’t be easy, so let’s calm down in the meantime.” Arz easily picked up one of the invisible vials. “I will keep this as we move on to our new adventure.”

  “What now?” Isilhorn asked.

  “I am in dire need of Drops of Heaven, red oil, Celestial Essence, and silverwater.”

  Orikori’s eyes widened. “A single drop of each of those ingredients costs enough to fund the whole city for a week.”

  “And we need big containers of them all,” Arz shouted, slamming his hands on the table.

  Isilhorn flinched and frowned.

  “Sorry,” Arz whispered.

  Isilhorn raised an eyebrow, clearly unable to heart Arz and obviously not adept at reading lips.

  “Where do we find those?” Khoribin asked.

  “Well, red oil and Drops of Heaven are found near volcanoes. Silverwater comes from the Bralin Mountains, and the closest place to collect Celestial Essence is the swamps of Julaptra. It comes from the willow trees just outside the swamp.”

  Khoribin’s jaw dropped and he stared blankly at Arz.

  “That is more than a month’s worth of travel,” Orikori said.

  “And the Guild promised help with everything I need. Shall I petition the old man for some assistance?” Arz asked.

  Orikori nodded quickly. “We cannot collect all of that ourselves.”

  “Then we shall travel to the grand building of pornography!” Arz waved everyone on and marched to the door. Khoribin and Orikori hesitantly followed. Isilhorn waited until Arz passed the door and marched on after him.

  Arz nodded to and greeted everybody he saw on his way to the Prime Wizard building whether or not he knew them. He was feeling confident. Things had only been going better since he joined the Guild. With their assistance, everything felt within reach. After restocking his ingredients, he could dive into research on portals to specific planets. With luck, and some time to review his own notes, he hoped to open a portal to Gargaxia Station, though the idea of ending up in space again was terrifying. Maybe there was a way around that. With Jumthin ingredients, he hoped to visit their other worlds without the need of one of their spaceships.

  Arz looked around the city, even stopping for a moment when he spotted a plume of smoke. The idea of an afterlife was a complicated one in his mind. There was no evidence to say there was, but there was equally no evidence to say there wasn’t. He had been through portals to other worlds, met slimes and robots, seen fire that couldn’t be put out. There was evidence to say there were much greater things in the universe than he would’ve ever guessed.

  He had once told Alorala that their ancestors lived out on one of the stars. Maybe she was there now. And if she was watching him, she would want to see him helping people. He needed to be someone she would be proud to call her father.

  Arz couldn’t let anybody else get hurt. He needed to honor Alorala properly.

  Arz wondered if the others actually understood. They had their own stories, their own struggles, and they had heard Arz’s story. Everybody knew of their own traumas, but did they understand other peoples? Did he?

  The Guild of Wizards had claimed Arz was going to change the world, but all originally wanted to do was burn it down. Exploring to honor Alorala wasn’t helping anyone. Not even Arz. If anything, the pain in his heart grew deeper as he saw new worlds.

  Arz stopped just outside the Prime Wizard building. Khoribin, Isilhorn, and Orikori stopped right behind him. “Are you sure you want to follow me?” he asked.

  “It is my assignment,” Orikori said.

  “Okay, you don’t count. You didn’t volunteer.”

  “Correct, Master.”

  Arz turned a glare to Orikori. “What do you think of me after what the Guild told you?”

  “You are filled with limitless potential, but your goal inhibits you from making real change.”

  Arz scowled. “That wasn’t the type of answer I expected.”

  Orikori shrugged and elected to not say more.

  Khoribin gestured to Isilhorn.

  The young guard sighed loudly. “Honestly, I am still deciding. You are brilliant, but sometimes a little careless. Someone who was really planning ahead wouldn’t have let me follow them into the portal. If you’re learning from your mistakes, you need to find a way to defend yourself while entering so what happened to Alzidius doesn’t happen to us. Or you.”

  Arz nodded to him. It was impossible to argue. The sergeant had shown up to help and got shot almost immediately. Arz was the only human that had been on Doumenus before. He should have better prepared everyone for what they were getting into.

  “You know I didn’t want him to get hurt,” Arz said.

  Isilhorn nodded. “And you will help us help you from now on.”

  “No.” Arz looked the young guard right in the eyes. “I want nothing more than to keep you all safe, but I recognize that I need some help. I can’t guarantee safety. I can’t guarantee success. I want you at my side, and I will do what I can to help Alzidius recover. But I absolutely, definitely, can’t say nobody will die. Maybe it’ll be me and you can all move on with your lives.”

  Khoribin clasped Arz’s shoulder. “We’re here to stop that from happening.”

  Arz smiled and confidently led the way into the Prime Wizard building. Some guards scrambled in the wide entry chamber upon seeing Arz. One rushed to the Guild chambers, likely to inform them of Arz’s imminent arrival.

  “How can we help you Master Kurana?” a guard asked.

  “Oh, just stopping by. Is the Guild in?”

  “Yes, of course. It is within normal work hours.”

  “People have normal work hours?” Arz looked around. “What’s all the porn for then?”

  “I’m not sure I understand the question,” the guard said.

  “Ah, never mind.” Arz strode over to the Guild chamber and knocked. “Anybody home?”

  “You can enter,” a guard said behind Arz.

  Arz was planning on making a show of things, but perhaps it was better not to agitate the guild today. Especially when he was planning to ask for a substantial amount of money. And favors. And probably other things.

  Arz opened the door into a silent room. The Guild of Wizards sat around the grand table, watching Arz, Isilhorn, Khoribin, and Orikori shuffle into the room. Arz sat in an open chair, one that looked much newer than those around it. At least, the cushions were newly upholstered.

  Jaralath nodded to Arz and cleared his throat, gathering the attention of the rest of the Guild. “Colleagues, Wizards, we welcome our newest member, Arz Kurana.”

  Arz beamed at the rest of them. Ellazahl looked like she might have died with how far her eyes rolled back into her head. Or it might have been the wrinkles and gray hair.

  “We have been inviting you to meet with us for days, and now you finally drop in unannounced?” Adrezor’s voice boomed. The huge man glared at Arz.

  “Inviting me?” Arz asked quietly, almost whispering the question.

  Jaralath shook his head. Arz let the smile return to his face. Having the old man actually on his side was more helpful than Arz ever would have previously admitted.

  “What do you need, Arz?” Jaralath asked, interrupting Adrezor before he could continue.

  “A lot, actually.” Arz leaned forward and looked around the chamber. “Have you spoken with Higgrion?”

  “The captain has not been around today,” Jaralath said.

  “Ah, well, I gave him a bit of an upgrade. Oh.” He pointed at Khoribin over his shoulder. “You see this?”

  Khoribin took the cue and walked to the table, displaying the robot’s weapon. Murmurs spread through all the guild members besides Jaralath.

  “Explain what this is,” the old man said.

  “I believe you all have the record of my time on the planet we now know as Doumenus.” Arz paused, waiting for some nods. “Great. I went back. Just earlier today, actually. We, uh, we temporarily lost a guard. Sergeant Alzidius. He, unfortunately, was shot with this weapon.” Arz noticed some shifting expressions. “He’s alive! Injured, but alive. I made sure he got to a hospital, and I already got a lecture from the doctors. He’ll live. Recovery might be tough, but he seems strong.”

  Khoribin and Isilhorn showed their agreement.

  Arz reclined and placed both hands behind his head.

  “These AZ-32 robots are the peacekeeping security force of the ricarun, who are the people that had inhabited Doumenus, and other planets, if I understood correctly. We went back to collect darkfire oil, which . . .” Arz turned and frowned at Orikori. “I thought you brought darkfire oil.”

  “You did not tell me to bring any.”

  “Oh. I thought it.” Arz shrugged and turned back to the Guild. “I went back to get darkfire oil, which burns forever and could be used for heat or energy, or whatever you might find a use for. It really is invaluable. While I was there, I harvested a ricarun skeleton that was dried out in a cave. And now, I can understand the robots! Exciting, isn’t it?”

  Everybody stared blankly at Arz, even Jaralath. Arz looked around, still smiling, but the grin was fading quickly. “Which part are you confused about?”

  “Most of it, Arz,” Ellazahl said. “What is your purpose here? It sounds as if you intend to gloat, yet you speak of only things which we are not familiar with.”

  “I understood it,” Orikori said. He stepped up to the table on Arz’s right side.

  “Scribe Orikori,” Jaralath said. “Welcome back. Please take a moment to decipher Arz’s words for the Wizards.” The old man stood up and waved for Arz to follow him. The other Guild members watched as Arz hurriedly walked across the room. Jaralath led him through a small door almost hidden in the corner of the room.

  On the other side was a small office holding nothing more than a potted plant, a cushioned sofa, and a small desk. Jaralath sat at the desk and didn’t even flinch as the wooden chair creaked under him.

  Arz slumped onto the sofa. He leaned over and grabbed one of the large green leaves of the plant. “What is this?”

  “I couldn’t tell you.”

  “It’s real though?” Arz squished part of the leaf between two fingers. It bruised a small spot. “How is it alive? You have no sunlight in here.”

  “It has been a mystery to me for years now.”

  “This has been in here for years?” Arz noticed Jaralath’s bemused expression and sat back up. “So, what are we doing in this little room?”

  “I think you should send Orikori to me when you need to speak with the Guild. Perhaps he can speak for you instead. It would eliminate the need of you even traveling all the way down here.”

  “Do they hate me that much?”

  “Arz, you speak far too quickly. They were tangled up in the things you were saying. Yes, Orikori sent your notes, but I assume not every Wizard has read them.”

  “Okay, but have any of the Guild members read my notes?” Arz laughed to himself and slapped his knee. “Get it, because—”

  “We’re not Wizards. I know the joke, Arz. You have been making it for years. Tell me why you’re here. Maybe we can solve it ourselves while Orikori explains everything else.”

  “I need red oil, Celestial Essence, Drops of Heaven, and silverwater. Lots of it.”

  Jaralath’s jaw dropped.

  “Which part surprises you?”

  “Arz, Bralincote doesn’t have that kind of money.”

  “Look at the city. We’re doing great!”

  Jaralath fished through his desk and pulled out a ledger. “How much do you think one cup of red oil costs? You have used it. I have to assume you purchased it.”

  “Actually, I harvested it myself.”

  Jaralath’s eyes widened.

  “You’re going to hurt yourself if you continue to be so surprised, old man.” Arz crossed his legs. “I’ll humor you. Three hundred and fifteen Bralin pennies.”

  “Over three thousand, Arz. The only thing you mentioned that is obtainable would be silverwater. We already harvest it for trade.”

  “I’ll take as much silverwater as you can spare. I used two vials of it as weapons recently.”

  “Silverwater is not a weapon. It is hardly more than water.”

  “I put Drops of Heaven in the vial. Turns out the water evaporates and the silver becomes molten. Great for fighting metal robots.”

  “Arz,” Jaralath muttered. “Drops of Heaven sell for fifteen thousand Bralin pennies each.”

  “And you know what? They made great little improvised weapons. Got me through Doumenus alive for a second time. What would you think if I told you Doumenus is three times as deadly as harvesting red oil?”

  “I prefer it here in Bralincote.”

  “So, old chap, what do you say? You and the assisted living party out there throw me a few thousand pennies so I can bring my little group to gather the other three things I need?”

  “Who is this group you mentioned?”

  “Oh, you know, Isilhorn, Khoribin, Orikori, Sal.”

  “You cannot bring an eel, Arz.”

  He scoffed. “I hate when people feel left out.”

  “In exchange for some of the darkfire oil.”

  Arz nodded. “I can have a guard bring it over.”

  Jaralath stuck his hand out. Arz took it and shook. When they separated, Arz wiped his hand on the sofa’s cushion.

  “Who are you sending for silverwater?” Arz asked.

  “Do you have a preference?”

  “Jarreth. Do you know him?”

  Jaralath shook his head.

  “Time for you to meet him! He works for you, after all. How am I getting to Mount Parikus?”

  “We can fund a carriage and a driver to take the four of you.” Jaralath leaned forward in his chair and spoke quieter. “Are they safe with you?”

  Arz scowled. He didn’t look at Jaralath and instead watched the door to the main Guild chamber. “Of course not. But I like them and I don’t have any intentions of letting anyone get hurt. Not again. Alzidius was an unfortunate incident, but how could I have guessed the AZ-32s would be waiting to ambush me?”

  “Parikus isn’t so dangerous that I would expect anyone to die. I am entrusting their lives to you, Arz.”

  “Aren’t my guards there to keep me alive?”

  Jaralath’s eyes told Arz everything he needed to know. Jaralath didn’t expect Arz to die. He had already survived more than anyone expected him to. Nothing was as dangerous to Arz as it was to everyone else. That’s what Jaralath thought, Arz was sure.

  “Nobody is going to even stub a toe,” Arz said quietly.

  “Then you have my full confidence. Let us inform the others.” Jaralath walked over, opened the door, and ushered Arz out.

  He was reluctant to stand from the comfort of the sofa, but the sooner he left the sooner he could get back. “Oh, when I’m gone, can someone feed Sal? You said Orikori, but if he’s with me . . .”

  “I will send someone daily.”

  “That’s too often. But do send someone daily to check on Alzidius.” Arz pivoted and walked back into the chamber. Ogatharix’s face was even more stone-like than normal. If she felt emotions, Arz wasn’t familiar with them. They had to be emotions like static or mundane.

  “Esteemed Wizards,” Jaralath said behind him, voice booming. “Arz and I have spoken. We are going to be funding an expedition to acquire some rare materials at Mount Parikus in exchange for his notes and a container of the forever burning darkfire oil.”

  Ennbias slammed her fists on the table. It was a far more aggressive gesture from the young woman than Arz would have ever expected. “Unacceptable! How much of our money is he going to throw away?”

  Arz sauntered over to her and tapped the table. “Is it throwing money away if I continue bringing you invaluable resources from other planets? Or are you going to Doumenus on your own to fight some robots?”

  Ennbias spun out of her chair and stood face-to-face with Arz. Her brown eyes bore holes through his, though he was glad he didn’t have such an intense face. “Why should I believe you? I don’t trust you, Arz.”

  He grinned. “You think Doumenus isn’t dangerous? Isilhorn, my boy, what horrible thing happened as soon as we stepped through the portal?”

  Isilhorn hesitantly stepped forward. “Please don’t call me ‘boy.’ My sergeant, Alzidius, was shot through the shoulder by one of these.” Isilhorn hefted his robotic gun and showed it to the Guild. “It burnt a hole right through him.”

  Arz pointed with his thumb to Isilhorn. “People don’t get shot when you’re somewhere safe. A robot attacked Alzidius. Now I have a robot corpse in my study.” Arz turned to Khoribin. “Is it a corpse?”

  Khoribin shrugged.

  “We’ll call it a corpse,” Arz continued. “You are welcome to use my recipes that Orikori shared with you, but if you are going to go in thinking each portal leads to a holiday, you are going to get killed. Alzidius was shot because of bad luck. Nothing more. If I had another second to react, I could have killed the robot sooner. And you know what? Now, I will be ready. I learned.” Arz poked Ennbias in the forehead with his finger. “I don’t think you’ve learned a fucking thing.”

  “Arz,” Jaralath snapped.

  Arz rolled his eyes. “Is someone else going to hop on a coach and travel to Mount Parikus? I know every single one of you in this room knows why this is dangerous.” Arz glared right at Ennbias. “Or is someone here going to defy the Emperor?”

  The Guild of Wizards was silent in response.

  “That’s what I thought.” Arz pivoted and strode from the room. “I’ll expect our ride in the morning.”

  He led Orikori, Isilhorn, and Khoribin out of the chamber without another thought. The guards nodded to him on the way out. It was great leaving the chamber without handcuffs or anyone swearing at him. Though he expected there were some harsh words spoken about him behind the heavy Guild doors.