There was more weight to the crystal I held in my hand than I expected, its cool surface gleaming. We had all huddled around the table in the room Titan was using in the inn we were calling our base, our eyes reflecting the hues of the skill crystals that Titan and Gex had been gathering over their jobs. It was odd to think that in this world, you didn't learn skills naturally as you grew older and spent time studying them. You just picked up one of these crystals, and if you were compatible, you got the knowledge. In the real world, you put effort into learning and mastering skills. But these things could give you the basics for a skill if you met some minimum requirements in seconds. I never thought I'd live in a place where magic was real.

  “If we’re going to be a proper team,” I said, “I say we buy a house where we don’t have to keep paying for fresh hay.” I looked at Bel. “I miss a proper mattress!”

  “Proper mattress,” she said rolling her eyes. “You slept on a slab of rocks.”

  “A supportive slab of rocks in the shape of a mattress,” I said indignantly.

  “And sleeping with your Elven woman.” Gex laughed. "Alright, so while Scaly Butt and I were busy, what did you find out?" Gex asked, her voice filled with curiosity as she examined each crystal.

  “Do you want to explain, Bel?” Titan asked politely. “You are our scholar after all.”

  "Sure! We have quite the collection," Bel chimed in, her Elven features making her look even more scholarly than usual. "But there's one in particular that stands out." She grinned, meeting our gazes to ensure we were paying attention.

  "Which one?" I inquired, my gaze bouncing between the myriad crystals on the table. We had fifteen crystals sitting on the table amongst the glasses and plates. To my untrained eye, they were mostly identical; the obvious features were different colors, but they were all more or less universal in shape, size, and weight.

  Bel picked up an oval crystal that seemed to shimmer with many colors and held it up for us all to see. "This, my friends, is the Perfect Multiclass crystal. And Titan and I found out it's incredibly rare. It allows the user to hold up to three job classes simultaneously, without an XP penalty." She grinned, holding the fist-sized crystal in one hand. "They were willing to pay, an obscene amount of money for this little thing. They almost wouldn't let us leave."

  "Whoa, seriously?" I couldn't contain my excitement. The thought of mastering not just one but multiple classes was blowing my mind. "How does it work? Can anyone use it?" If anyone could use it, that would mean it was a highly sought-after skill crystal, and I could see why the Mage's Guild was willing to fork over a large amount of gold for it.

  "Once you absorb it, you simply need to apply for the job classes you want. But here's the strange part," Bel said, her brow furrowing. "The mages wanted to study it, and a few gold coins pried out some interesting information. This crystal requires Dragon lineage to use, not Human like most multiclass crystals. The scholars at the guild had never seen a Dragon crystal of any sort before, let alone a Perfect Multiclass crystal. Some of them were genuinely frightened." She paused, letting that sink in. "They think it might mean Dragons are evolving to have class levels."

  "That's... unsettling," Titan murmured.

  "There's more," Bel continued. "It grants three job class slots, but one of them must be a divine class. The other two can be whatever you qualify for, and there's no XP penalty across any of them." She held the crystal up, its colors shifting in the light. "It's incredibly rare, and they wanted to know where we found it."

  "It sounds like it’s worth it!" I gushed, already imagining the potential combinations that could be achieved. But as I looked around the table, I noticed a shadow of doubt creeping onto the faces of my companions.

  "Is something wrong?" I asked, picking up on their unease.

  Gex hesitated before responding. "That crystal could make us filthy rich, you know? And I mean the good kind of filthy." She winked at me. "Plus, Scales here has Dragon blood in her, so she could definitely use it. But selling it? That's retire-and-open-a-tavern money we'd be walking away from."

  The orc looked at each of us before sighing. “Guess I’m not going to retire so easy will I?” She grinned. “Oh well, who wants to die old and fat? Angel, go ahead and pop your sheet open for us."

  I nodded, holding my left hand out and manifesting it like before. I thought about rotating my hand, and the sheet turned around to show to my friends. Causing me to grin as I’d just proved a theory I had.

  I’d noticed a number of people over the last day glancing at their character sheet because they were holding their palm up and gazing at it. But until they mentally thought about showing it off it remained invisible. As I’d just proven it was the thought of sharing it that made it materialize so the others could look at it.

  This had taken a bit of practice for me since it required me to will it into existence and then still pretend that I could see it, like I was standing next to them. I wondered how Bel envisioned this process. I had also learned that the sheet provided a lot of information and if you had information, you didn’t want others to see you had to practice omitting things from their point of view. Gex and Titan had explained it to Bel and me. I still didn't fully understand how I was making a sheet appear above my hand, and by twisting it around, the others could see it. I was just chalking it up to magic at this point. I'm sure Bel could give me a detailed breakdown if I really want to know.

  Gex, Titan, and Bel's eyes scanned the sheet down to the bottom, which listed miscellaneous information. In this case, it showed which skills I could learn. Titan explained that if there was anything in this category, it would indicate special details. Such as if there were specific skills you could learn. In my case, I could learn the typical skills I encountered. Still, I had the designation Dragon Descendant and Human Descendant, which meant any skills specifically designated for Dragons and Humans were mine to use. No one in our group had access to Human or Dragon skills.

  "Shit, that's a treat for a change," Gex said, grinning. "So, if a Dragon-Kin has access to Human and Dragon skills why do you look like a Kobold?"

  I shrugged. From what Gex had said, there needed to be dozens of people from a particular race who attempted the classification process from monster to Demi-Human. If there were about twenty or thirty of my race, we could take the test, but since it appeared to be just me, I think I was destined to be considered a monster.

  The mood was serious as I looked over the crystal. Bel said that if I used the crystal, I would have three jobs to aid the party. The potential of the Perfect Multiclass crystal was immense, but so was the weight of the decision I'd have to make. With three classes to choose from, I could be incredibly useful to Bel in getting us back to our home and helping Gex and Titan in our adventures while Bel did her research. And, of course, I could protect my girlfriend from danger with those jobs. It was a lot to think about.

  I took a deep breath and looked at the crystal in Bel's hand. My fingers tapped nervously against the wooden table. "You know, if you guys want to sell it, I have no right to it. But I'd like to try to be as helpful as possible," I finally said, finding my resolve. "I feel like having access to multiple job classes would be really useful for us."

  "It's not like Titan, and I even knew we had that thing. So, yeah, we could sell it. But that's short-sighted," the Orc warrior said. "We sell it and get one payday. You use it, and we can get multiple paydays, causing you to become almost as badass as I am." She grinned, took a drink from her cup, setting it down. "Just my thoughts. Titan? Bel?"

  "No, it's logical," Bel agreed. "Short-term gain is generally a long road on the path to failure." She gave a gentle smile.

  "I echo what you two said," Titan said, nodding. "Besides, who's to say we won't come across another one? We found it in a random loot pile, so it's possible that we can see it again."

  "Well, if you're all sure," I replied, offering them a confident grin. "Then why don't we see how badass I can be?"

  With a gentle smile, Gex scooped up the Perfect Multiclass crystal, its edges shimmering with anticipation, looking to the others. "All in?" she asked the other two.

  "Yep," Bel replied with a nod.

  "The sooner, the better," Titan grinned, showing his big white teeth.

  "Thanks, guys," I said sincerely. I held out my hand, feeling the weight of their trust as I accepted the crystal. "I promise I'll do everything possible to make the most of this opportunity."

  "Good," Titan chimed in, his voice warm and supportive. "We have faith in you, Angel. We know you'll make the right choices."

  I held the crystal close, its cool surface pressing against my red-scaled hand. At that moment, I knew there was no turning back; I was ready to face whatever challenges lay ahead. With this, it would be even easier to find the way home. And if Bel and I couldn't get home for a bit, then this meant I wasn't just uselessly tagging along behind the other three while they risked their necks.

  "Alright, then," I declared, determination filling my voice. "Let's figure out which job classes I should take and get started!" I still needed to be fully schooled in the job classes; Bel had gotten her job when she went to the Mage's Guild. I tried to consider it a profession, but there was cognitive dissonance because of where Bel and I were from. You spent years studying and working towards your profession on Earth. Here, you walked into a random building of likeminded people and asked for a job? Seemed weird. In this place you’re your job, and even to some extent your race, fueled what skills you could access going forward. So, you could never learn the piano or the like if it wasn’t a skill crystal in this world.

  And that didn’t even factor in how your stats grew here. Another entirely new concept as well. To think that all my exercising and training in martial arts meant that it had determined a numerical value for me. Even Bel had puzzled at how they could quantify that sort of information. There was so much to learn about this world.

  I held the crystal to my chest, thinking about it like I had with the skill detector and finding my hidden skills. The crystal flashed brilliantly briefly, and then it disappeared from my hand. It had been absorbed into me. There was no good way to explain what I was feeling. It just felt like my potential had been unlocked, like some brick wall had been in my way for all these years and now I would be able to surge forward. Peering inward I saw now that along with the Dragons in my training hall there were three trophy cases, which I assumed to be my perfect multi class crystal.

  "Alright, Hun," Bel said, snapping me out of my thoughts. "I've got some ideas for you."

  "Great," I replied, my tail swishing with anticipation. "Lay 'em on me."

  “You were something of a Tom Boy and always physically active,” she said, holding up a finger. “We get a class that fulfills those requirements. But nothing dangerous,” her tone was sharp. “So, I’m thinking archer or some other ranged class.”

  I blinked, shaking my head. “A bow?” I asked her. “Have you seen these things?” I indicated my breasts. “There’s a reason Amazons in Greek mythology cut off their boobs,” I said.

  “I hadn’t really thought of those as a reason,” Bel acknowledged. “Besides, that’s just a myth they mutilated themselves. You remember the stupidest things from class.” She grinned. “And to paraphrase a great movie ‘there's a shortage of perfect breasts in this world. It would be a pity to damage yours.’” She grinned. “I can make you a gun.”

  “One, I don’t know how to use guns,” I said raising a finger. “Two, you don’t know if you can even make one. Three,” I ticked another off. “Bullets, you don’t have the stuff to be a gun smith.”

  “If we had a house in the countryside I could setup a lab and we could get started,” Bel said.

  Gex rolled her eyes. “So, this archery and gun thing are out. Scaly Butt has spear and shield skills. We can make focus on Phalanx fighting but you don’t want her wading into combat.” She grinned. “Could you imagine Scaly Butt using Titan’s shield, all turtled up hiding behind that immense thing.”

  “And what would I use?” Titan asked.

  “You’d use the Kobold,” Gex laughed. “Just snatch her up by tail and let her stab and rotate as needed.”

  “Not a Kobold,” I reminded her.

  "Okay, fine, some other less safe martial class." Bel leaned in, her blue eyes glinting with excitement. "We could always have you try your hand at cat burglary. Thieves are agile, stealthy, and great at disarming locks. You can't ignore the fact that no one in this group knows anything about that. Gex is a tank, and Titan is a cleric. They would just stumble blindly into traps and potentially harm themselves."

  “What about you and your scholar skill?” I asked.

  Bel frowned, mulling it over. “I suppose I could learn those skills. But that would mean I’d have to be in the front scouting for traps.”

  I shook my head. “Absolutely not. Gex can go first.”

  “And eat a fireball to the face?” the Orc asked. “I like my meat well done, not to be well done meat. You’re fireproof, you can go first.”

  “I’m not giant boulder to my dome proof,” I shot back.

  Titan sighed, shaking his head. “Let’s make you a priest,” he said, simply. “You can help me out with the healing. Then Gex can eat more fireballs and get a balanced diet.”

  “You too, you big lug?” Gex said, feigning hurt at her friend’s comment.

  The Minotaur shrugged. “Just trying to be practical is all. I can’t be in two places at once. I either protect our mage from attack or I keep our fireball eater healed. Priest classes generally only have a requirement of adhering to their patron deity. And there’s plenty of monster deities and deities in general who would like to convert monsters to their path.” He toyed with his mug. “Angel gets some priest abilities, like healing and she already has ranks in shield, and spear. That’s a pretty basic skill set. Depending on which route her god picks for her she might get some restrictions, like no heavy armor.”

  “What about you?” I asked.

  “Oh, I worship the Goddess of Protection, so heavy shields, maces and armor are pretty much her forte. And by extension mine. But I’m never going to be able to bring someone back from the dead or break a curse on someone.”

  Bel and I stared at Titan for several seconds while both of us tried to process what he’d just said. They could bring people back to life here? And I was familiar with the curse, Gex had said she was cursed. So either Titan couldn’t heal that like he said, or the two hadn’t ever brought it up before.

  “Ok, so priest,” I said.

  Gex shrugged her shoulders, taking a pull from her tankard. "It's just the facts. And I don't have to like eating a fireball to the face opening a treasure chest." She leaned in, grinning. "We'll leave that to our resident Scaly Butt."

  "Finally, there's the mage." Bel grinned. “Rear heavy class that throws spells. I'm a summoner, so my magic is geared towards calling on creatures. I have to find and make pacts with creatures or buy the summons crystal to make the initial meeting with a potential summons. And my rank limits me to what I can potentially declare as my summons apparently. I'm not all that versatile," she admitted. "But if you were to focus on a traditional Mage class, you could supplement us with powerful elemental magic, allowing us to deal with massive damage from a distance. It might be challenging to master, but the payoff would be huge."

  I stared wide-eyed at her. "How in the heck do I even begin to fathom what you just said?" There was one part of her statements that made sense though. She was actively trying to keep me out of danger by making me be in the rear line. Which would have been helpful for protecting her, but it wasn’t my speed. I wanted to get in close and throw them around, so they had no hope of making it to Bel.

  She shrugged. "When you pick the job, you'll understand that stuff. Well, most of it," she admitted. “I only had the one job crystal to select when I went to the Mage’s Guild. And when I selected the job crystal this ring appeared on my finger.” She held out her hand, showing me an ornate ring. “If I think about it, my staff comes in and out of this ring. I can’t summon my spirit without my staff being present.” She closed her eyes and moved her hand, a long wizard staff appeared in her hand. It was a purplish hue and was probably about as tall as she was. The staff at the top forked and floating between the two tongs of her staff was a multifaceted crystal that shifted in different colors.

  Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

  "That’s because there are only a few open to an individual based on various factors," Titan said. "Stats, for one. Temperament for another. You wouldn't want someone who is generally confrontational trying to be a priest." He gave Gex a sly grin. "It's better to not force yourself into a job you can't advance in. Luckily, we can refocus; it just requires a bit of back and forth between the two guilds in which your job resides. So, you're not locked into something forever."

  "Who determines what classes based on temperament?" I asked the big man.

  “For the mages like Bel there, they have some elaborate crystal that detects the most optimal class for them.” He took a sip of his drink. “Though that’s not to say you have to take what the mages offer. Their process looks for what is most attuned to the person and then offers that. For Bel the mages think this will be the best for her growth as class.”

  “I didn’t want to fight it, since I was new to this,” Bel said, her tone a little glum. Considering her scientific bent back home this made sense.

  "Generally, the guild master, but in my case, it was the Gods themselves. When I went before the priests to begin my journey, I was greeted by the Goddess of Protection herself and accepted into her ranks as a cleric."

  I blinked. I'd asked Titan to heal me earlier from when Gex had slapped me a bit too hard after the Solar Brew yesterday. Still, I didn't think he'd actually met a deity. And what's more, I would be having the same conversation with a deity. I saw Bel looking at me, and she had the same deer in a headlight look that I was pretty sure I was displaying. We had religion in Manhattan, but no one actually believed some musty old dude would talk to you when you died. For Titan to casually say, he'd not only met with a deity but been chosen to be in her ranks. I shook my head, trying to wrap my mind around that.

  "I can't even comprehend that," I admitted, excited and overwhelmed.

  "Do they not have Gods in New York?" Titan asked.

  I shot Bel a look, searching for how we should explain it. We had told Gex and Titan we were from somewhere far away. We thought the idea of another planet with tech far beyond what they had here would have been hard to swallow as hard as we were finding it to swallow the entire magic and crystal system that seemed to be here. "In New York," Bel began, "The Gods are very personal but distant. We know they exist for many of us but do not intercede. Leaving some, like Angel and myself, to question whether they exist."

  Nice, I thought, flashing my girlfriend a smile. They'll buy that for sure.

  Gex and Titan seemed to ponder this. Gex seemed to accept it and then moved on. On the other hand, Titan seemed crestfallen that the place we were from didn't seem to interact personally with our gods. I'm curious how he'd feel about a computer with Wi-Fi that could spit out the answer to just about any question if you asked it right. "Not everyone can have a personal relationship with a deity," Titan said solemnly. "I suppose it makes sense that you both would find it hard to appreciate the connection I have." He turned to me, grinning. "Now you could have that connection. What are some of the Gods from your land?"

  I needed to figure out how to answer the Minotaur. "Uh, internet," I said lamely. Bel shoved her arm into my ribs, causing me to wince. "Sorry, Uh, the only ones I know offhand are Jesus, Buddha, and some that passed into legend like Apollo, Thor, and Shiva."

  Gex's eyes lit up at the last one. "Shiva is one of our deities," she said. "Orcs have worshipped her for centuries." I turned to face the black-haired woman. "She's a great fertility goddess."

  "Uh, our Shiva is a destroyer god," I mumbled. "Sounds like he maybe decided to take a break and build a family when he went to the Orcs." I wasn't going to mention that a Hindu god was named the same as an Orc god; it was probably a coincidence that the two were named similarly. Now that I have thought about it, was Buddha really a god? Wasn't he just some guy who had gotten enlightened? Religion was not my forte. "Uh, anyway," I said, looking to change the subject.

  "I suppose if you didn't want to devote yourself to another master, Scaly Butt," Gex said with a grin. "You could be a fighter instead of a priest. Think about it. You right up there clubbing things next to me in the fight."

  "Think about how these classes can complement our group," Bel suggested, her voice gentle and encouraging. "We've got Gex as a strong melee fighter, Titan as a cleric who can hold his ground in combat and provide some healing, and me as your resident mage-in-training. We'd have a versatile team with you as ranged support, priest, and mage."

  "Yeah," I mumbled. The idea of running forward and wailing on people was more my speed. After all, I've been practicing various martial arts for years. "What about all my fighting training?" I mused.

  "What type of training did you use in your old land?" Gex asked; she leaned forward. Her eyes were bright with excitement. Clearly, fighting was a topic she cared about greatly.

  "Uh, I used to hit people with my fists and feet," I said.

  "Is that why you're so good at taking a pounding, Scaly Butt?" she grinned.

  "Taking a pounding is what I try to avoid," I said.

  "And that's why Titan has heals on standby," Gex said. She leaned forward, grabbing one of the remaining crystals. "So, what else do we have?" she asked.

  Bel took a moment before speaking, looking between the three of us. "Well, now that we've given the Perfect Multiclass crystal to Angel, we have fourteen more," she said. She pulled a deep red, so red it was almost black, from the group. "This is a magic skill crystal; it'll give someone rank A fire magic."

  "Well, that's not good for Scales," Gex said. "Sure, she's immune to fire, but she's going to get Dragon's breath."

  "You breathe fire?" Bel asked. She reached forward. “Let me see your mouth.”

  I blinked, opening my mouth to let her see. I flinched back when she stuck her finger in touching my tongue. I pushed her hands away. “You mind?” I asked. I could taste her scent in my mouth now since she’d just stuck her fingers in there. “I don’t examine—” I stopped as I realized what I was saying. “And now I’m going to taste you all day.”

  Bel flashed a grin and almost said something but Gex’s words cut her off. “So, what’s so neat about the scaly one’s mouth?” Gex asked, curiously.

  “Well,” Bel said, beaming. “Angel has three cylindrical tubes in her mouth. One that the tongue goes in, it’s the biggest one and dead center.” She grinned. “And the other two are on either side, but with enough space so as to not be clumped together.”

  The Orc woman nodded like this made sense. “Uh huh,” she said. “And what does that mean?”

  “It means Angel’s bio—” I shook my head. “It means that she’s got the tubes a Dragon would have and when the time come she’ll use those tubes to breathe fire.” Her face took on a troubled expression. “Somehow.” She seemed to ponder it. “This implies she has two sacks or...”

  “Why does it have to be fire?” Titan asked, curiously. “What if she just ejects a line of water or something? I’ve heard hydra are capable of ingesting a lot of water and then spitting it back.”

  “Anyway!” I said trying to get them off that conversation. I knew Bel would want to run tests if she could. "I also apparently have a prehensile tail, retractable claws I rarely use. And other things that Dragons do. So don't expect me to be turning into Smaug, the Greatest and Chiefest of Calamities, anytime soon." At the gasp from Titan and Gex, I held up my hands. "Uh, a legendary Dragon from our homeland," I explained. "Almost certainly not anywhere around here."

  "Right!" Bel agreed, and she elbowed me again, forcing me to wince. "Anyway, so, Rank A fire crystal.” The crystal in question was an Octahedron shaped thing. “I guess we can sell this."

  "Why can't you use it?" I asked.

  "I'm a summoner; I can't cast magic like this. The only spells my class can learn is stuff to augment my summons, if I were to try and use it nothing would happen. You don’t have any magic classes, nor does Titan or Gex. It'd be a waste of a crystal if you don’t get magic that can use it and we didn’t sell it," Bel said, turning the thing over in her hands. She set it down and picked up another. "Most of these are low-ranking skills like iron fortification or gust slash. None of them are skills I can learn. They’re combat skills and scholar doesn’t cover combat skills for some reason." She pouted. “I guess they never thought a mage would want to learn how to hit things.”

  "Yeah," Titan agreed. "Those aren't going to be any good to anyone, really. It's better to just sell them."

  "Now, hold on," I said, grinning. "Why can’t I use them?" I asked, looking at the two experienced adventurers.

  “That’s true, if Scaly Butt gets some sort of martial class these would be a great way to jump her up in combat really quickly.”

  Titan shook his head. “It’s going to depend on the class she’s given. She’s not making use of gust slash with a bow and arrow.”

  "Well, I'm about to have three jobs, right?" I grinned at each of them. "And I have learned S+ martial arts skills. Plus, I have the ability to improvise because of that Human Improvisation skill and Martial Versatility." I had been looking at the Martial Versatility and the Improvisation skills and doing a more thorough investigation into what they did.

  If my understanding of the Improvisation skill was correct it would allow me to apply the basics of a skill to help me learn similar skills, so if I learned some sword skills I would be able to more easily grasp and learn other sword skills. And with Combat Adaptability I could apply those skills with a completely different combat style, taking a sword move and using it on a spear. So, turning a gust slash into a shot from my fist or possibly cutting the air with a kick. “Which would mean I could throw a fireball with a punch,” I grinned.

  "You'd become a video game character," Bel whispered, her eyes wide. "Holy shit! You could be throwing sonic booms and hadokens while roundhouse kicking." She grinned and started nodding. “Ok, yeah! Lean into your martial arts skills, Luv. But only until you get the ability to go to range with martial arts abilities.”

  "Sonic booms?" Gex asked.

  "Haaa doooo ken?" Titan asked, looking between the two of us.

  "Uh, nothing, just words from where we're at," I lied. But I looked at my girlfriend, grinning ear to ear. "That had sort of been my plan from the beginning." I didn’t have the heart to tell him that it was a completely different language on our planet and that was going to open the door for how many more and how things might got weird on translation. English seemed to be the basic language here thankfully.

  Gex shrugged, looked at Titan, and grinned. "Hell, the scaled wonder has my vote to try it. What are they going to do? Say no? We were just about to sell them anyway. Let her try her experiment."

  Titan rumbled a laugh, slapping the table. "By the Gods, we could be A rank in no time with the way those two think." He shot his companion a look that spoke volumes.

  Gex and Titan moved to stand up from the table, leaving Bel and me sitting. I looked around real quick, leaning in to give her a hug. I wanted it to last longer but in public and all I couldn’t. I felt the subtle tug from Gex. “Down, girl,” she said, probably a bit too loud. “Darn Kobold, thinks everyone wants to breed.” She leaned in closer, putting her hand on the table. “The hells are you doing, Scales? Trying to get your girl in trouble?”

  Bel sat for a moment, her face red. She cleared her throat. “No, it’s ok Gex. Your pet just needs better training.” She slid out of the booth, gave me a small smile with a forlorn look in her eyes. “Give me about twenty minutes before you come to the Mage’s Guild. I have to study the ritual greeting to induct new members.”

  “We’ll give you thirty. I’m going to have a talk with this one,” Gex muttered. “Come on,” she said, pulling a bit harder than she needed.

  I let out a yelp of surprise as I was hauled to my feet, watching as Bel walked away.

  Once she was out of earshot, Gex spun me around to face her. "Listen, Scales," she said quietly, her tone serious. "I know you two are together, but you can't be doing that kind of stuff in public. Not here. Not where people can see."

  "I was just giving her a hug," I protested.

  "Yeah, and that's bad enough," Gex said. "You're property, remember?

  “Monsters don't hug Elves. They don't show affection like that. If the wrong person sees, they'll think Bel's got 'Dark Elven Tendencies.' You want her to lose her guild membership before she even gets it?"

  I felt my stomach drop. "I didn't think…"

  "That's the problem," Gex said, but her voice softened a bit. "You two are from somewhere else. You don't know the rules here. But you need to learn them fast, or you're going to get her in trouble. Or worse." She glanced at Titan, who nodded grimly.

  "She's right, Angel," Titan rumbled. "What you and Bel have... it's special. But it's also dangerous. Keep it private. Keep it safe."

  I swallowed hard, feeling like a complete idiot. "I'm sorry."

  "Don't apologize to me," Gex said. "Just be smarter. Now come on, we need to give her time to prepare, and I need to pick up your clothing from the seamstress anyway."

  The walk to retrieve my outfit was mercifully short, though the seamstress gave me a knowing smirk that made my scales itch. The clothing she'd made was... revealing. Loose pants that left my hips

  and navel bare and a top that was more decorative than protective. At least the cloak Gex had ordered would cover most of it. Gex paid the woman for her trouble and a couple of the under garments, each of them costing some serious coin based on the look on the Orc’s face.

  "This is what monsters wear where I’m from," Gex explained as we left the shop, me wrapped in the dark cloak. "Get used to it."

  After that, we had about ten minutes to kill before heading to the Mage's Guild. Gex led us to a small plaza with a fountain, where we sat on the edge while Titan bought some kind of meat skewer from a vendor.

  "So," Gex said, watching people pass by. "You excited? Nervous?"

  "Both," I admitted. "What if they say no?"

  "Then we find another way," Gex said simply. "That's what we do. We adapt."

  "Bel's putting her neck out for me," I said quietly. "Going to the Mage's Guild, trying to get them to accept me. What if it backfires on her?"

  Gex was quiet for a moment. "Then we deal with it," she said finally. “But Angel? She wants to do this. She wants you to have a chance. Don't make her regret it by being stupid in public again."

  I nodded, feeling the weight of responsibility settling on my shoulders. “I'll be more careful."

  "Good," Gex said, standing and stretching. "Now come on. Time to see if those snooty mages will let a Kobold into their fancy tower."

  “Not a Kobold,” I reminded her.

  "Alright, Scales," Gex said as we entered the sunlight. "Let's see what the mages can do for you."

  “What’s the worst that can happen?" I mumbled. I turned, climbing the stairs to where Bel stood. With her on the stairs and already two feet taller than me, she seemed even more imposing to me. Behind her were two larger Elven males in stately robes, their staves held loosely in their hands.

  "Stop there, Small Kobold," Bel commanded when I was a step away. I blinked at my girlfriend. Behind her the two Elven men seemed to come awake, their staves flashed visibly in the light. "Do you submit to the will of the Mage's Guild?"

  I tilted my head, looking at her, trying to determine what she was getting at. She mouthed yes. "Yes, I submit to the will of the Mage's Guild," I intoned.

  "Then step forward," Bel continued, still using that formal tone. "Belladonna Pizzo, member in good standing, sponsors this..." she hesitated for just a fraction of a second, "candidate for evaluation and potential membership."

  "This is no good," one of the Elven mages interrupted, stepping forward. His face was lined with frown lines, and his piercing blue eyes looked at me with open disgust. "Initiate Pizzo, you did not state this creature wished to be a mage." His lip curled. "Denied."

  “I wouldn’t even want it treading on the grounds,” the other said, his tone as sharp as any razor blade.

  "What?" Bel spun to face them, her formal composure cracking. "Why? I followed the proper protocols! I'm sponsoring her as a candidate!"

  "Mages should not soil themselves with the dregs of this world," the second mage said coldly. He was older, with a deeply wrinkled face and sharp blue eyes that held no warmth. "Monsters are property, not people. They have no place in our halls."

  "That's..." Bel's hands clenched into fists. "She's intelligent! She's capable! She has more magical potential than…"

  "Enough," the first mage cut her off sharply. "You are a newly initiated member, Miss Pizzo. I suggest you learn your place before you demonstrate any more of these... Dark Elven Tendencies." The way he said it made it clear this wasn't just an insult, it was a threat.

  Bel went pale. "I'm not…"

  "Aren't you?" The older mage raised an eyebrow. "Treating a monster as an equal? Fraternizing with Orcs and Minotaurs? We know that one.” He pointed with his chin down at Gex. “Attempting to grant it guild membership? These are the exact perversions we expect from the Dark Elves. Continue down this path, and your own membership will be reconsidered. The Guild has no place for those who cannot distinguish between civilized peoples and creatures."

  I watched Bel's face go through a dozen emotions, anger, frustration, fear, and finally a terrible understanding. She was trapped. Push harder, and she'd lose everything. Accept it, and I was shut out.

  The two mages turned and proceeded back into the tower without another word, dismissing us completely.

  For a long moment, Bel just stood there, staring after them. Her hands were still clenched into fists, and I could see her shoulders shaking slightly.

  "Bel," I said quietly.

  She turned to look at me, and I saw tears of frustration in her eyes.

  “I'm sorry," she whispered. "I'm so sorry, Angel. I thought... I thought my membership would be enough. I thought they'd listen."

  "It's okay," I said, even though it wasn't. Even though it hurt like hell.

  "No, it's not," she said fiercely, wiping at her eyes. "This is… this is wrong. All of it. You're not property. You're not a creature. You're…"

  "Someone they'll never see as a person," I finished quietly. "Not here. Not in their guild."

  Gex stepped up beside me. "Come on," she said gently. "Let's get out of here. The stench of Elven purity is making me sick." She took a long inhale and hocked a loogie onto the ground. “Oops.”

  Bel took a shuddering breath, composing herself. "Uh, so step number one was to go to another guild, right?" she asked, trying for a weak smile.

  “How about we go get you a bra fitting?” I suggested instead. “I know an Elf who’d love to get handsy with you.”

  My girlfriend shot me a look. “Why?”

  “Cause when I was being tortured I made her learn how to make bras for you and me,” I smiled. “Cause that’s just the type of girlfriend I am. Putting myself through immeasurable torture so you can have proper fitting underwear in this savage world.”

  Bel smiled, about to reach out when Gex slipped between the two of us. Gex shook her head, chuckling. “Right this way your majesty.” She gave a mock bow and led us to the woman from yesterday. She pushed open the door for the seamstress. “We’re back. You’re going to be apparently making a lot of these bra things.”