Meeting the president

The soft hum of machinery at the med station buzzed faintly, while Belial stretched his limbs, joints cracking loudly after days of inactivity. He was still sterile from the med station, with that faint smell of ether that seemed to seep into everything here. As he swung his legs off the edge of the bed, his eyes fell on Xin, waiting patiently by the door.

Hey, are you okay? Nothing broken?" Xin's voice was full of concern as he eyed Belial for any signs that he was still hurt.

"Ha, I'm fine. Just a bit stiff from all that sleeping", Belial replied and stretched his shoulders to work out the kinks.

The expression on Xin's face softened, though curiosity took over in an instant. "What happened in there? The monsters weren't that strong. How did things get so bad?

Belial opened his mouth to answer as through his mind ran the images of the forest and the battle against the monstrous ogre. Before he could utter a word, however, the sound of clicking heels stopped them; in her neatly tailored suit, this woman spelled presence and authority.

"Mr. Belial and Mr. Xin, if you'd follow me. The president has summoned the both of you," she said with a somber tone that invited no questions.

Belial and Xin gave each other puzzled glances, but fell obediently into step behind her as she left the med station, winding up the spiral staircase. The building was grand, the kind of place that spoke of history and power. Seven flights delivered them to a pair of large, ornate doors, manned by two hulking men, their intimidating size offset by courtesy.

These doors were flung wide so easily by the guards that it showed one a spacious office filled with warming light. Standing at the far end of the room was a young woman with an afro of black curly hair, and she was clad in a form-fitting black dress. She was heatedly arguing with a man sitting behind a huge oak desk. As the door settled with a soft creak behind them, she turned and revealed her face-a face which spoke volumes in its tangle of anger and concern.

The man at the desk glanced up, his golden eyes locking onto Belial and Xin. His expression wasn't readable, but there was something in the way he carried himself that immediately put them on edge. His features were marred by a long, jagged scar that seemed to lend an aura of danger and command to his person. This was Cole Blackburn, president of the guild-a man whose reputation preceded him.

"You two must be tired," Cole said in a low, smooth voice. "Come and sit down. I'm the president of this guild, Cole Blackburn. And this is Leah, the one who healed you."

The woman with the afro, Leah, was beaming at them now, as if she had forgotten all about her anger of a few minutes before. "It was my pleasure," she said warmly. "I'm just glad I could help."

Belial and Xin exchanged a look of surprise. Of course, they had heard of Cole Blackburn, but it was another thing entirely to be meeting him in person. As for Leah, they did not know who she was, but her presence apparently succeeded in relaxing them visibly.

"Thank you for having us here, but for what purpose have you brought us here?" Belial began carefully.

Cole leaned back in his chair, his golden eyes narrowing slightly. "Leah over here said she found some irregular ogre blood on you. If I can ask, what happened in the forest?"

Belial took a deep breath as he started to explain the story of how this whole unexpected ordeal had come to be. He explained their journey for the material to be used for guild registration, the unfortunate quicksand encounter, and their finding of a hidden dungeon infested with dangerous beasts. With his words, he related the separation from the others, being thrown into a life or death battle against an ogre unusual to anything seen by him.

Cole listened to this, his face never once changing as Belial spoke. When Belial was done, Leah jumped in, her voice going up with equal measures of excitement and trepidation. "Do you know what this means?" she exclaimed. "There is a chance that this ogre is a new species, or possibly even a hybrid. It's worth investigating."

I agree with Leah," said Cole, his tone smooth, yet a hint of determination was already there. "Sounds like this could be an interesting find. Will have to send a team to research it further."

Belial couldn't help but feel a surge of thrill mud up. It was after all, quite an exciting thought that this whole encounter in the forest could amount to a great discovery.

Cole got to his feet and extended his hand towards Belial. "Was there anything else you would like to add, regarding what happened?

Belial had taken Cole's hand, his grip firm as he locked eyes with the president of the guild. "All I can remember is that it had stitches all over the body and a red stone inlaid within its chest," he said in a grave, low tone of voice.

The room was still for a moment. Then the air pivoted. The temperature in the room increased, the air thick with unsaid tension. Belial and Xin knew well the shift in Cole-the dangerous, restrained feeling.

"Mister Blackburn, is everything alright?" Xin asked, a tint of apprehension creeping into his voice.

Cole's expression was a mask of barely contained fury. His golden eyes burned across the room as veins in his neck stood out from the effort he made to try and contain himself. "Thus, he managed to get away from purgatory," Cole muttered, his teeth gritted; his voice low and dangerous.

Leah jumped forward, placing a comforting hand on Cole's arm to try and placate him. "Cole, relax; there're kids in here," she whispered softly.

Cole let out a heavy sigh; the anger inside of him had slowly dissipated with time. He took off his glasses to rub his eyes, as if it would get the haunting memories off his face. He spoke again after that, in a tired but resolute tone. "His name is Lex Drummond," he began with an utterly measured tone, "one of the first people to join when the guild was first established and showed a lot of promise right after its creation."

Belial and Xin listened intently as Cole described the tale of Lex Drummond. The story was that of promise and potential, of a young man who had actually shined great in his prime only to fall into darkness.

"But he returned from one of his trips a changed man," Cole said, a hint of sadness in his voice. "He became withdrawn, brooding, and short-tempered. The man who came back was just like somebody else. We would try to have him talk to us, but he wouldn't say a word.

Dead silence filled the room as Cole told the tragic tale of how Lex Drummond had fallen. Members of the guild who were present were listening with rapt attention, faces a picture of shock and sorrow.

"He came back, killed a fellow guild member, and went rogue all within one week," Cole said, the regret heavy in his voice.

It felt like a gut punch. The guild members were trying to digest the news amidst a thick air of gasps and murmurs. Belial and Xin exchanged a pointed glance; both their eyes were wide, their minds whirling with the weight of what they'd just been told. "We have to find him," Cole said decisively. "The safety of others is in jeopardy, and it's important that we bring him to account."

A knock at the doorcut into the tense silence. In an instant, the guards had opened it, revealing a receptionist named Natalie. Her voice cut through the heavy silence of the place to address Cole.

"Sorry to disturb you, Mr. Blackburn, but I am here to inform you that the combat test for these two is ready," Natalie said professionally.

He nodded gratefully at the distraction. "Thank you, Natalie. They'll be there shortly, " he said.

Turning back to Belial and Xin, there's a small softening of the expression on Cole. "If either of you happen to meet up with Lex, place just a little bit of your aura into this stone," he says, extending his hand with a small, smooth-gray stone within his palm. "This will notify me."

Belial and Xin took the stone, nodding their heads in agreement. "Are you sure this will work?" asked Xin, peering at the stone curiously. It's a new technology that I've been working on. It should be able to detect any auras that come into contact with it and send an alert to my device." Said Cole with a serious look in his eye.

Belial and Xin followed Natalie out of the office, the weight of what was to be done resting on them.

The tension that had filled the room hung in the air as they made their way back towards the forested area at the back of the buildings. There was a mission to be done, and time was of the essence. Upon reaching the forest entrance, Natalie turned to them with a stern expression.

"You have to find and defeat them before the time runs out, and no haxes are allowed in this test," she said seriously. Belial and Xin nodded in most solemn acknowledgement.

Excellent, for the task at hand was not one to be trifled with. They knew they would be prepared for anything that came their way within the forest.

"You take west, I'll take east," Belial said in a voice smooth as calm water. Xinh nodded, and wordlessly they dispersed into the thick undergrowth of the forest. The hunt had begun, and they knew that failure was not an option.