The Meaning of Familia

Being raised in urban Torik I could truly appreciate the beautiful scenery that made up the rural island of Kume, even at the speeds we were going in the train. 

Large spans of land with nothing but green and farmland as far as the eye could see. I could even see a few farmers working hard on their fields under the beating sun in the cloudless sky. I could easily imagine how peaceful life must've been for everyone who was born in Kume.

The only problem was how unbearably hot it was. I knew that it was hot, but nothing could prepare me for just how blistering it really was. I was even beginning to understand Robius unique choice of 'style'.

As soon as we stopped at Kuni, the capital of Kume, Robius wasted no time getting off the train.

As we ventured into town, I saw dozens of villagers making the most of their simple lives, from a woman watering her flowers, to a man constructing a house whilst being scolded by someone whom I assumed was his boss.

Kuni was a small town, yet every inch of it seemed just as lively as Torik only it was a fair bit quieter.

I noticed that not only did everyone recognize Robius with cheerful expressions, but they also didn't even seem surprised by his lack of clothing.

Robius waved to each of the villagers with a charismatic smile as he made his way to one of the largest buildings in Kuni second only to the governing noble's, and presumably his guild's hall.

Brilliantly dark stained wood made up most of it's structure as it sat upon a sturdy foundation of cobbled stone protruding from the bright, grassy ground beneath, giving it an air of sophistication, and yet the shape of the hall was quite simple, matching that of an old Viking longhouse, with a few modern alterations such as a second story and a shingled roof.

Beside it's large silver rimmed double doors was a swinging sign with the words 'Draconum Familia' written in a fancy font.

For a moment I thought. "This place has pretty good taste, maybe Robius is just a black sheep".

Unfortunately, I had no idea how wrong I was at the time.

The interior of the hall mimicked the exterior in it's elegance. It's walls were made of the same dark wood as was shown by it's exterior, a couple of symmetrical, cobbled, stone pillars held up it's second floor which was accessible via two staircases on the right and left side of the hall. The hall was decorated with various tables and benches, that unlike the rest of the hall were of surprisingly poor quality. Towards the back of the hall was perhaps the most important part of the whole guild. A very, very, well stocked bar.

The one thing that surprised me the most, was how the guild was so understaffed. (Though based on my first-hand experience with just one member, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.) By my count they had only six people counting Robius.

There was an elderly man dressed like a butler. He wore a dark woolen dress coat, and a pair of dress pants to boot. Yet he was careful to add the guild's crest above his left pocket.

A scrawny figure dressed in a dark cloak concealing most of what would be identifying features, yet I could still see the guild's insignia sewn into his cloak and a pair of elven ears atop his head.

A rather imposing boy with deep violet hair in a samurai tail, and a set of piercing platinum-colored eyes. His guild crest was worn as an accessory to keep his hair up.

A petite archer with long, flowy, lavender-hair and bronze eyes equipped with a leather breastplate, a left vambrace and an elegantly carved wooden, recurve bow on her back beside an empty quiver engraved with the guilds crest. Beneath her armor was a single-sleeved, hot pinkish tunic sleeving only her right arm, and a pair of sleek dark brown pants.

An athletic, blue eyed, blond haired, pretty boy flirting with the lavender haired girl. He dressed in a brilliant yellow uniform with a flame pattern on his blazer jacket, and on the trims of his slacks.

The hall was eerie quiet. It was as though they didn't even notice I entered.

Until the violet-haired man noticed Robius.

"Dude where's your shirt! Don't tell me you lost it!" He exclaimed.

"You freaking blind or something!" Robius shouted in response as he pointed at me. "Like a gentleman I gave it to Kenki! Our newest member!"

The violet-haired man grabbed a tanabo(a long two-hundred club studded with metal) from beneath a table and started to bud heads with Robius. "You? Gentleman! Don't make me laugh!"

"Yeah! Well, it's the truth, so get over it!" Robius replied fired up.

"Master's going to be mad if he sees you two." The lavender haired archer warned in a gentle voice.

"Tell me darling, will heaven be looking for it's missing angel?" The pretty boy said as he appeared beside me and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"What?" I replied in shock.

Kukiri leapt from the ground to my shoulder, an impressive feat for a creature of her stature.

"Ignore him, it's for the best." She generously warned.

"What's that supposed to mean? Whatever I suppose I should stop those two. I hope to be seeing more of you darling." Pretty boy said as he approached the brawl and rolled his sleeves up.

However instead of ending anything he was getting just as involved as the other two, adding flames to the occasional flash of lightning and burst of Ether that was the brawl.

Kukiri must've noticed the dumb impression on my face as she took it as a sign that I needed some explaining.

"This must be confusing. Allow me to explain" the black and white fox offered. "The guy who picked a fight with Robius is Aceil Roun, he's the same rank as him so Eta. He's a Mage meaning he can only control Mana or Ether. In his case it's his Ether." She explained generously. "He uses it to power his fists and muscles to allow for stronger strikes."

"So, he's using body enhancing magic?" I deduced as Aceil threw Robius across the hall.

"Yep. Anyways the archer is Lilac Kron, she's a Theta and another Mage but she manipulates Mana instead of Ether, she conjures the surrounding Mana into her arrows to grant them different effects." Lilac waved in my direction which was a relief to know at least one person was sane.

"Pretty boy is Jex Fortuna, he's zeta. He's a Sage capable of manipulating both the surrounding Mana and Ether, as his attire suggests, he specializes in fire magic."

A ball of fire erupted from the brawl as if to prove Kukiri's point.

"Then there's the barkeeper. Bastion; the very definition of gentlemen. He's technically an Iota rank, but only because he's not allowed on quests due to his unknown power."

Bastion nodded at me as he poured a glass of juice.

"Finally, there's Shade the Sage. He's an elf but he's also a native since he was born here. He goes by Shade cause he's edgy as hell. He's an Eta like Robius and Aceil but only because his spells have such a long casting time."

The man in the corner rose his middle finger at the cheeky fox. "Can it fox! And you three should listen to Kron, Master Frost will be pissed if you break a chair." He said as he took a drink of the juice Bastion poured him.

"Oh, like this!" Aceil shouted as he threw a chair at the edgelord knocking him from his seat.

"Your gonna pay for that, you bastard!" Shade exclaimed as he shattered his glass in his hand before rushing into the brawl.

"That's getting added to your tab you know." Bastion remarked as he picked up the pieces of the glass from the bar.

"Anyways," Kukiri continued. "We have another five members but they're all out on quests. And of course, Master Frost is here too but seeing as Aceil just got back from a job I'd say he has his hands full."

"Shadow's grasp!" The edgelord exclaimed, yet before the spell could activate, he was thrown across the room by Aceil.

"Everyone here is a lower rank then I was. And yet," It didn't take a genius to tell that I was way out of my league in. Every member of Draconum Familia had power equivalent or greater then even the betas of Azure Ursine. "How is this possible."

"Don't feel bad, you're not weak. This guild is just filled with absolute monsters." Kukiri concluded as she casually cleaned her paws while watching the brawl.

Suddenly a thick layer of frost enveloped the whole guild freezing everyone in place.

"Is this how you treat our guests!" A frosty-blue haired man shouted. Gowned in a long white fur cloak with an enlarged crest of the guild on its back.

"Aceil! Was that a chair!?" He continued as he pointed at a pile of sawdust.

"Yes master!" Aceil replied without hesitation in a proud voice.

"Mine turned to ash!" Robius compared competitively.

"Do you know what this guild means? Do you know why we are Draconum Familia?" The guild master asked in a serious tone as he casually walked past Robius and Aceil punching them both in the gut with enough force to make them fall to the ground, before continuing to approach me.

"What about Jex?" Robius whined.

"Um no." I replied nervously as The Master stared at me expectantly with his snow-white eyes.

"In the tongue of our ancestors it means The Family of Dragons. Dragons are mythical creatures, nobody knows what they look like, what they sound like, whether their benevolent or evil. There are theories of course, but in the end, they are an impossible being. We represent that same impossibility, no matter how hard you try it is impossible to understand us unless you are us."

I wasn't gonna lie he sounded pretty cult like. And yet he was right, my guild was my family and yet there was very few I was as close as these people were, it truly was an impossible feeling.

"Robius recruited you right?" I nodded affirmatively at my new master's question. "Then he will show you our ways, I'll have a crest made for you and added to some clothing of your choice, so you don't have to wear Robius'. Welcome to Draconum Familia...what's your name?"

"Kenki Asuma." I replied, as the air of sophistication immediately dispersed from Master.

"Welcome to the family Kenki." He concluded, before he lifted himself with a magic circle up to the second-floor railing where he balanced perfectly.

"Now then Aceil. I heard that when you killed that Oni you also destroyed the entire barn it resided in. Do you know what that means?"

Aceil looked up at Master with a wide grin.

"Yes, Master Frost." he answered.

"Good. It means that the money for the damages will be taken from your pockets. But more importantly it means... That Oni is supa dead!" Master Frost roared followed by everyone else. "We got a new member for the first time in fifteen years! Let's celebrate!"

********

Having spent the better part of the night drawing on Aceil's sleeping face and searching for a quest to do with Kenki I finally found the perfect one and registered it with Bastion which basically meant I didn't have to meet with the contact, something I wish I did earlier.

Anyways I sat at the table which Kenki had passed out on, soaking a slumbering Kukiri in a puddle of her drool.

I began poking Kenki's face repeatedly until she woke up. She was surprisingly resilient.

"What." She slurred with Kukiri still wrapped in her tight embrace.

"I got us a quest! Let's go!" I shouted waving the paper which the quest was wrote upon, in her face.

"Eww!" Kukiri shrieked as she leapt onto my shoulder and began cleaning herself. "I'm drenched!"

Kenki stretched showing of her new jacket completed with our guild's crest sewn into it's back. Which was a good thing for more then one reason seeing as I had my shirt back.

"Who drew on my face!" Aceil shouted.

"That's our cue!" I replied as I grabbed Kenki's hand and ran out of the hall, with the quest in my free hand and Kukiri holding onto my neck for her life.