Citadel Graduation

It was my final day in the Citadel and I awoke between Sara and Cleo. I moved and felt one of their bodies slide off of me and onto the bed, I thought it was Cleo. I heard a sound as one of them began to stir awake as well, I let out a long yawn as I roused myself and looked down at the sleeping faces of the women I had lain with. They looked beautiful in their peaceful slumber, and it took all of my strength to awaken them. I gave each of their shoulders a gentle jostle.

I heard them waking up and smiled as I sat up on the side of the bed, swinging my legs over and onto the floor. “Morning” I said, stifling a yawn as I ran my eyes over their naked bodies in appreciation.

Sara ran her hand down my arm, her eyes still mostly shut as she was brought from her dreams. Cleo sat up and leaned down to give Sara a peck on her lips, “Morning” she said, her cheeks blushing a little as the **** had faded from our systems.

Sara’s eyes began to open more, and she gave Cleo a smile, “Is it the last day already?” she muttered as she sat up in the bed.

“Uh huh” Cleo murmured as she cradled Sara in her arms, “our last day in the Citadel” I saw her lean into Sara again and whisper something, though I did not hear what.

I saw Sara’s lips crack into a smile, and she turned to me. “You go and get ready; I think we’re going to be a few minutes” she said as her hand swatted my butt cheek.

I could guess why she wanted me gone and I grinned at them both as I stood up and got dressed, feeling their gazes following me. “Okay, last night was great by the way” I said. I was going to go, but first leaned down to give them both a quick kiss each.

I had awoken rather early and thankfully no one was in the living chamber, though Korin and Sybil had both seen me leave with the girls last night. I quickly dashed into the bathroom and cleaned myself from the odour of sweat and sex that clung to my body. Following my refreshment, I went to my own room and changed into the clothes that I had worn when I arrived at the Citadel all those weeks ago.

Dressed in my deep black tunic with threads of golden silk running in patterns across the seams, matching black pants and boots, I admired myself in the mirror for a moment. It had been a while since I had occasion to care so much about my appearance, recently I had simply been so tired and stressed to do anything more than simply pulling a shirt over my head. It was nice to have occasion to dress myself so finely. I also retrieved my sword from under the bed and attached it to my waist again, the weight of it felt comforting .

I left my room and saw that Sara and Cleo had left their room, dressed in the clothes that they had arrived in as well. “You look fancy” Sara said as she raised a cup to her mouth and hid a smirk.

I glanced down at my attire and couldn’t help but smile as I brushed some imaginary dust from my tunic, “Thanks, you two don’t look so bad yourselves” I said as I came over and joined the meal that they were enjoying.

Rayall came from his room, he seemed rather chipper and excited for our last day, “Morning everyone” he said with a smile and came over to begin picking at the fruit.

We nodded to him and muttered our greetings as we passed the time eating our breakfast. A noise came from Korin’s door as he swung it open and came out dressed in his dwarven outfit that Bella had purchased for him. It was what came behind him that shocked me.

Sybil left from his room, dressed in the outfits that we had been provided for the past weeks. I was shocked at the sight of the two of them leaving the same room, I had forgotten the pastry that I was bringing to my mouth to eat and simply allowed my jaw to hang open. Had the two of them… my thoughts trailed off as I saw the embarrassed look on Sybil’s face as everyone stared at her.

“I think the word you’re looking for is Morning” Korin said with a smirk as he came over and sat himself next to me. Sybil remained silent as she came over, sitting as far away from Korin as she could and still staying silent as she picked at the food.

“What the hell happened?” I whispered to Korin, I was wide-eyed and still unable to believe what I had just seen. He simply looked up to me grinning and gave me a wink.

The time came for use to leave for the training hall, we hadn’t been told what to expect for the day and as such, we simply followed our usual routine. The servants seemed to be unusually busy as they rushed throughout the corridors.

We arrived at the hall and saw all of our teachers ready for us, dressed in ornamental adventurer clothing. “Well, here you are” Orion sighed as he ran his gaze over us. “You think you’re ready to become adventurers?” he said with mock disdain, making it clear by smiling at us.

“I suppose their standards have dropped a lot” he said with a sigh, “but, maybe you’ll do.”

Astrid waved a hand through the air dismissing him, “Oh shush Orion. You’re all very good, the kingdom is lucky to have adventurers, as well trained as you are” she said, getting a few smiles from us. “Today, there will be a ceremony in the great hall, congratulating you on the progress that you have made and all that nonsense. There will be a few more formalities, and then you will be allowed to leave the Citadel and start adventuring” she gave us a soft smile. “Now come on, the speech will by any time now” she said as she and the others began to leave the room.

We were taken to the grand hall, where we had all been sent to, following the test of divinities. The tiled floor was in a stunning mosaic pattern, detailing an image that was hidden by the swathes of adventurers that filled the hall. We stayed in our group, never having had an opportunity to get to know any of the other groups.

After a while, the queen came into the hall accompanied by a procession of guards. The prince was nowhere to be seen on this occasion, she walked forwards with all heads turned to admire her in all her regalia as she ascended the steps at the end of the room and seated herself upon her throne.

A silence fell over the crowds, as we waited in apprehension of her words. “Adventurers” she addressed us, “You are here today in celebration of the work that you have all committed to your development, both as defenders of these lands, but also as men and women in your own right. Your skills will be tried and tested in your future, you will face dangers , and some of you may even be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice to defend those in this very room” she paused for a moment of solemnity.

“I wish you luck in these coming days, may you become prosperous from the contracts that you accept, and may you fulfil them with honour and bravery. From this moment forth, you are free to form the parties that you will fight alongside. You may choose adventurers from the same temple as yourself, those that you have trained alongside, friends that you have made, or you may simply choose to become an individual adventurer.” A few whispers went up from some of the adventurers who wanted to speak of parties among themselves, they were quickly silenced by a subtle gesture from the queen’s hand. “As the queen, and the seat of this great kingdom I would like to extend a hand of friendship towards the noble adventurers. I trust that in the days ahead of us, we will be able to call upon your aid when needed.”

A few patriotic mutterings came from some of the higher born adventurers, and I heard a “Hear! Hear!” from somebody. The queen’s face released a soft smile at the gesture, and she nodded her head. “I shall allow you to continue your journeys now, I wish you all the best” she finished as she rose from her throne and began back through the hall and out of the grand doors.

People began to quickly chatter as they decided who they would join with for a party, I glanced at the others in my group. “I take it we’re all good with joining as a party” I said. Most of them nodded.

“Well, I’m joining the shadow guard. But the five of you are good enough on your own” Sybil said. She had told us all last night, but it was still a little hard to take.

“Ay, well we’ll see if ya can stay away from me for that long” Korin said with a grin.

Rayall spoke up, “I have received an offer from Crynthiel as well” he said, sounding a bit nervous. “He said that he can find me a job in the temple of Cleonora, he suggested the role of quest master.” I was surprised that he hadn’t mentioned it to us before. He quickly continued, “But I would like to at least try adventuring before I take a desk job. I should like to join as a party, at least for a few quests”

“Oh, okay” I said, nodding my head. “Well, let’s see if we can persuade you to stay with us” I added with a smile, getting agreements from the others.

I looked across the great hall, satisfied with the company that I would be spending my future with. A lot of the adventurers seemed to be flocking around Zarin, vying for his favour and a place in his party. They were apparently under the assumption that someone bonded to the lion spirit would have a party that would become legendary and go down in stories throughout history. That was often the case with the three chosen of the goddesses, growing up I had heard many stories of their heroic deeds, and sometimes the members of their parties managed to slip into the tale.

I let out a long sigh, “well, let’s see what else the Citadel wants from us today” I said, nodding towards the door which a few people were beginning to leave from.

We followed in their steps and left through the doors of the room. Calendis was waiting on the other side of the great wooden behemoths. “Aucus” he said with the smile that usually meant bad news. “Can I have a word with you?” came the unwanted words

I groaned, “I’ll be a few minutes” I said as I turned to the others, “Let’s go then” I said to Calendis. We tromped through the hallways and arrived at his office, the small room that seemed to be cramped with secrets and troubles.

I took my seat in the leather chair in front of the desk as Calendis took his own chair. “Well, it looks like your training is completed, how do you feel?” he asked.

“Pretty good I think” I said, shrugging a little, “I think things might be a lot safer for me when I start spending more time with monsters and less in the Citadel”

He chuckled a little at that, “Yes, you might be right with that” he said, “But, it does mean that you won’t have a room here any longer. Where do you plan to stay?”

I thought for a moment, the temples offered rooms for adventurers at a relatively low cost and was close to other adventurers that I could train with. However, being ostensibly bonded to a spirit of Tallaque I would have to live in the same temple as Zarin, that could not be good for my health. “Well, my mother has some friends in the temple of Soras. They let me stay with them when I arrived in the city, I think they might be okay with me moving in again for a bit.” I suggested to him.

He nodded his head, “I suppose that you could, though that is not a particularly long-term solution to your housing problem” he said. I couldn’t disagree, “I do have another suggestion though. As a gift for your graduation I have purchased a house in the city for you. It is in the central district; it isn’t huge but should be big enough for you and a few of your friends” he offered.

I was surprised, he had bought me a house and was so casually offering it to me. “Wow, I don’t know what to say” I said, in awe

“You can say yes. It is not completely altruistic, I must admit. We both know that the temple of Tallaque is unlikely to be a safe place for you, and the… dangers that are coming for us will need you alive to face them. This will at least protect you from unnecessary dangers” he explained, looking a bit uncomfortable at how grateful I seemed

“Yeah, I suppose there is that” I said with a smile. “Thank you Calendis, I don’t know what I would have done here without you”

He smiled back, “It is no trouble, after all the crown is the one paying for it” he said with a sly grin. “I just hope that we don’t have too much occasion for us to meet”

“You and me both. But again, thank you” I said seriously. I rose from my seat and walked to the door as he turned his attention to some of the papers on his desk, it was just like him.

I left his office and saw that the others were waiting for me outside, “Bad news?” Korin asked

I shook my head, “For once, no. He gave me a house” I said, still a little shocked.

He chuckled at that, “It’s probably haunted” he said bluntly, the others laughed at that as well.

I couldn’t help but smile as well, “Could be, let’s go to the rooms and pack our things. You can all live with me; I’ll be a generous landlord” I said as we walked down the halls.

As we returned to our room, I didn’t have much to pack as I was wearing most of my possessions at that moment. I looked at the food on the tables that was left over from breakfast and picked up one of the small sweetcakes, popping it into my mouth. Most people went to their rooms and began packing and I decided to gather my belongings as well.

I went into my room and saw a small satchel waiting on my bed, I placed the books that I had been given into it. Both The Bestiary and _A Collection of The Adventurer’s Abilities _went into my bag, then I opened my wardrobe and folded up the clothes that the Citadel had provided, I wasn’t sure if I could take them but there seemed to be no one preventing me from taking them. My bag wasn’t even half full as I looked at my bare room that now seemed to possess no sign of the weeks I had lived there.

I stepped out into the living chamber and saw Korin with his own satchel, he was reaching up to the liquor shelves and filling his bag with as many bottles as he could. I snorted a bit at the sight, “here, give me some of them” I said as I sat my bag onto a table.

He grinned at me, “Yeah, ya can carry some of them for me” he said as he tossed a bottle of dwarven spirits to me, I put it into my bag along with the next few that came my way. A knock came from the door as the others began to exit their rooms. I walked over and pulled it open.

On the other side was a woman in a slick, dark black uniform. A variation of the Citadel crest placed over her chest in shadowy colours. She looked at me and let out a grunting sound, “I am Deira, Captain of the Shadow Guard. Is Sybil ready?” she said in a gruff voice.

I looked back and saw that Sybil had left her room, she was sat on the chair with a near empty satchel as she waited for the captain. At her arrival she stood up and walked over to us, “I’m ready” she said

“Oh, yeah” I said a little surprised at how quickly she was leaving. “Goodbye Sybil” I said, moving in for a hug but thinking better of it. Instead, I placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

The others came over when it became clear that she was leaving, and we all said our goodbyes. Cleo became quite emotional when she said her farewell and Korin simply put on a smile though I could tell that he seemed a little downhearted at her departure.

As for Sybil, she actually gave us a smile, “Goodbye” she said and looked towards Deira. She sighed and turned back to us, “I’ll…” she cleared her throat, “I’ll miss you all” she muttered. She turned back to Deira, hiding what I thought were her blushing cheeks, “I’m ready now” she said as the two women left and closed the door behind them.

One of our friends had left us and I couldn’t help but feel the loss. I thought about commiserating with one of the bottles that wouldn’t fit into mine or Korin’s satchels, but before I could suggest it there was another knock at the door.

I wondered who it could be this time, I opened the door and saw a second surprise visitor that was unlikely to mean good news. His majesty, Crown Prince Orsat was stood waiting for me, his gut pressing against his fine tunic. “Aucus” he said with a smile as he pushed passed me and stepped into the living chamber. “And his friends” he said with a nod to the others who had gone speechless at his presence.

“Your grace” I said deferentially, closing the door behind him. “What can I do for you?”

He turned back to me, “I would like to have a word with you, is there somewhere that we can speak a little more privately?” he asked.

“Yeah, uh yes, there’s my room” I said as I turned back to my bedroom. “This way” I said as I led him.

We entered and he firmly shut the door behind himself, he looked around the threadbare room with a grim expression. “It’s rather drab in here, they really should put some decoration in these places. I don’t know how you stand the cramped space” he said, shaking his head.

“Yes, of course your grace” I replied politely. “What is it that I can do for you though?” I reminded him

“Ah yes” he said as he sat down on the desk. “I am aware that you have been told about the… devil that was killed recently” he said, struggling to say the word. “I expect that there will be more of them in the coming days, Calendis and I both believe that your dark spirit will be paramount in combating them. I want you and your party to gain more experience in defeating monsters and their ilk before I ask for your aid with the devils, but I also want you to know what to expect and what you are preparing for”

I nodded my head, a little worried by what he wants from me. I was not looking forward to the day that I would be asked to go up against a devil. “Well, thank you for your consideration” I said, trying to push my concerns to the side. “But I don’t know if I ever will be ready to fight a devil. When we went to the dungeon last week, our party had trouble with fighting Stone Golems and that was with Sybil. I think a devil would destroy us”

He nodded his head, “I know, Orion reported on your performance to me” he said, “I have a friend who has left the capital recently. She will be away for a while, but when she returns, I think that she will be useful for helping your party improve. I’ll speak more about it later, but I just want you to consider the idea” he offered as he played with the stump of the candle on my table.

“Oh, okay. Well I would have to talk about with my party, but I’ll certainly consider” I said. With Sybil gone and Rayall contemplating working in the temple, we would likely need at least one more member to our party in any case.

“That’s all I ask; I’ll be on my way now. Oh, and I heard about the house, enjoy it. I think I’m the one paying for it” he said with a chuckle as he got down from my desk and left my room. He said polite farewells to the others that had been so honoured by his presence and left for his other duties.

We finished packing our things and had a look around the room that we had spent so much time in together over the past days. With a heavy heart, we left the room and departed from the Citadel, ready to take on our new adventures and quests. My new house awaited us.