Catherina de Nimici was a pious woman. Born third daughter of the cousin of a noble of the Nimici Famiglia, she had been destined to be sent off to the monastery as a young girl to join the faithful in worship of the Goddess. After several years (and one too many playground brawls) she had instead been transferred over to one of the more militant branches in order to direct her 'youthful exuberance' where it could be better utilized.

She had learned very quickly after that beating up monsters was supposed to feel much better than beating up people, that healing was a very important miracle that all holy women should learn, and that the battle-nuns of Monastero della Fortezza di Santa Paola were much stricter on putting down the unsanctioned cockatrice fighting rings which tended to crop up in the backrooms of the local villages at night.

Not that she knew anything about such unholy places, of course. Catherina was a very pious woman.

And it was that piety which had led her to abandon the monasteries to become an adventurer. Because really, what helped the Goddess more? Wasting away in a monastery somewhere in the Montibus, or taking the fight to the unholy Demons themselves?

The Mother Superior hadn't liked that line of reasoning, but she also hadn't liked Catherina very much either and was pleased to see her gone regardless. The feeling was mutual.

Not a day later saw her leave for the big city to join the Rodina Adventurer's Guild.

And now, barely two years later, she was already quitting.

Ah, Mother Rosanda. If only you could see her now. You'd be saying 'I told you so!' with such severity that even a Demon would bow their head in shame.

But Mother Rosanda was not here and therefore could not judge her life decisions anymore, something which made this all worth it even if she failed in everything else.

That all led her to today. Her bags were packed, her farewells said, and her resignation turned in. It was time, finally, to leave the guild for good.

Perhaps, in another life, she might have stuck around. It wasn't a bad gig, all told, but the writing was on the wall. The Rodina were falling, and she did not wish to be dragged down with them.

Taking one final look around the room she had spent the last two years renting from the guild, she couldn't help but feel a sense of melancholy wash over her. It wasn't home—a tiny little room like this would never be home—but it had been hers. And now it was stripped bare, so that whoever came in after could turn it into theirs.

With a deep breath she clasped her hands over her heart, and kneeled against the marble floor.

"Oh Goddess, in these trying times, please watch over me as I work in your name," she prayed softly. "May your Daughter guide my footsteps, for my faith shall never falter. And should neither grant me strength, then may the path to redemption be clear to me, so that whatever trespass I committed may be forgiven."

Such guidance might be needed soon, regardless. When it had come out that the Ambrosi had been excommunicated for dealing with Demons, she'd been shocked and horrified as anyone else, even if the accusation was swiftly lifted. She had prayed much those days, hoping against hope that her soul had not been stained by proxy.

Then not a week ago the Rodina Guild, strongest of all Adventurer's Guilds from Riposa to Pedemoa, had been utterly overrun by Demons. Even now most of the guild was still in disarray, reeling from the loss of face and manpower that the tournament had left them in. Cracks in the foundation of the organization which any other time might have been stepped over had suddenly widened into insurmountable canyons.

Watching all this occur from her front row seat, Catherina had decided then and there she wanted no more part in it.

Standing, the battle-priestess grabbed all that she owned and slung it onto her back. The choice had been made, and there was no going back now.

As she made her way out of the building, she couldn't help but notice how empty it was. Most days it was filled to the brim with people. Adventurers, receptionists, servants, aristocrats, everyone and anyone needed to run a guild properly.

Now the silence was stifling. The people were not gone, just… quieter. They didn't mingle in the halls. They didn't stop to take in the decadent architecture or shout at friends from across the room. It was a silence which tasted of fear, of worry. The wondering if the lives they had built in these halls was about to come crumbling down around them.

In some ways she was lucky. She could go as easily as she came. Where would these people go, when the end of the Rodina finally came?

She would pray for them later, she decided eventually. She didn't know what else she could do.

Then she paused, as she noticed someone she had nearly forgotten about in the chaos of the previous days.

The Half-Elf—Johan, she remembered—sat on one of the benches along the wall, beneath a painting of Agnus the Maiden on the fields of sacrifice. Laid haphazardly against his shoulder was the talking spear which he tapped his fingers against in an absent rhythm. Even now it gave off enough holy energy to blind her, and she found herself thanking the Daughter she had been able to lay her eyes upon such an artifact, even if she couldn't wield it herself. The Goddess had clearly chosen the young man for some grand destiny, that he could bring such a weapon into battle so easily.

That was not what drew her gaze this time, though. The bags under his eyes had grown, and his slumped form hid a tense, nervous energy. He looked tired. Or perhaps defeated. Like the weight of the world was bearing down on his shoulders.

For a moment she considered approaching. They'd spoken occasionally before, but outside of the crisis that had hit the city they'd rarely interacted. The Rodina guild was simply too large for everyone to know everyone, and she was pretty sure he'd only joined recently himself.

But she was leaving now. The least she could do was say goodbye.

"You're Johan, yes?" she asked, walking up to him. His bloodshot eyes jumped to hers, before he settled somewhat. "It's been a while. We fought together a week ago, with Lorenzo and that other girl, remember? I don't have a lot of time to chat, but I just wanted to stop and say goodbye, before I left."

He didn't say anything for a long moment. Simply looked to her face, then to her bags, then back to her. "So you're leaving too huh?"

"Yes," she smiled wanly. "I'm thankful for the opportunity the Rodina gave me, but after everything that's happened… the Goddess has shown me a different path."

"Has she now…" he murmured, fingers squeezing against his spear. She decided to ignore that.

"What about you?" she asked instead. "Are you planning to stay?"

"I'm… yes, for now," he sighed, his shoulders somehow slumping even further. He brooded very well, for a newbie—some of the older rogues should take notes. "My mentor—Raum—this guild was his passion. He'd helped found it, decades ago, and had seen it run smoothly ever since. But now he's dead, and his life's work is falling apart… I need to stay and help, to honor his memory."

"So, what, you think you can fix it?" she raised an eyebrow. It might be an honorable idea, if the hubris of it wasn't laughable. He was barely older than her. "An organization this size isn't exactly something one person can fix—or break, for that matter—on their own, you know. I know your heart's in the right place, but you could honor his memory in more achievable ways."

"Even if I can't do much, I have to at least try," he growled softly, squeezing his eyes shut. "So many people have died to get me this far… the least I can do is see their goals through for them."

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That sounded very heavy, and something a woman of the cloth would normally be equipped to help him with. Unfortunately, she was a battle priestess and was as good at therapy as a nun was at gambling.

"Suit yourself," she shrugged. She barely knew him anyway, it wasn't her place to force him to choose one way or the other. "Then I suppose this is goodbye, Johan. May the Goddess watch over you, and good luck. It sounds like you'll need it."

The Half-Elf sighed and opened his eyes, giving her one last determined nod. "You as well, Catherina. May you succeed in all your endeavors."

With one last wave, the two parted ways, likely to never meet again.

As she turned away, she found her mind wandering back to his reasons for staying. Though perhaps not realistic, they felt meaningful, in a way that made her own reasons for leaving feel… small. And it frustrated her a bit, dredging up that small part of her mind which spoke only in the Mother Superior's loud and grating voice. Berating her that her own goals were never truly in service to another.

When she was young, it had been her dream to join the great Rodina Guild. At first to splatter the skulls of Demons with divine fists, so as to achieve unimaginable glory to sooth childish pride. But as she matured the dream evolved, to protect and serve as one of the Goddess' most faithful, a warrior priest in truth and deed. And if she happened to become rich and famous along the way, well… that was just a bonus, wasn't it?

Two years she'd spent in these halls. Fighting and praying, saving and serving. Time and time again, she'd been struck by the realities of her work. That connections and blood mattered more to the average guildmaster than skill and talent. That many adventurers died alone in distant fields and dark caves, unknown and unmourned. That when you had bills to pay the choice between saving the poor or the rich wasn't much of a choice at all—and wealthy clients were the Rodina's bread and butter.

And with wealth came corruption and deals in the dark. Demands to turn your eyes away from evil so that you could continue to protect 'the greater good.'

So many deals made, so many lines crossed, and for what? When they had been needed most, they had faltered.

But not everyone had. Other guilds had rallied. Other adventurers. She had done more during the crisis than priests thrice her age and twice her station. Compared to what she saw that day… why remain with a crumbling monument of decadence and deceit, when there were other options on the rise?

Catherina stepped out of the Rodina Guildhall for the last time in her life. The sun was bright, but cold, and even the tourists seemed quieter today. She walked down the road past them all; the strong and the weak, the civilian and the soldier. And as the Guildhall vanished behind the winding city streets, she felt… nothing.

For some reason, she assumed she'd feel something more, upon leaving the guild. Regret, or worry, or even maybe relief. Instead there was merely a strange sense of melancholy, as though whatever dreams she'd once maintained had quietly died long ago, and only now did she realize how empty it had left her. Today her life changed forever, and she couldn't even muster up a prayer.

Her in the end, she'd discovered, glory and pride were so terribly temporary.

-<X>-

Firozzi was quiet now, she found. With All Saint's Day long over and most of the tourists returned to the countryside a lull had fallen over the city as they prepared for the Winter Solstice. The celebrations and festivals would still occur, she was sure—Ambrosi or Capparelli, if a Demon attack didn't stop All Saint's Day it certainly wouldn't stop Holy Bruma.

But such was a quieter affair, and more than a month away besides. The farmers had returned to their fields to plant the winter crops, and the wealthy had retreated to their villas to weather out the cold months in luxury. And in doing so they had left the city to its mourning, unblemished by chaos and greed.

In some ways it was eerie, how quickly the world could move on. In other ways she found it almost peaceful. The city was wounded, but already it was healing, and there was solace to be found in that.

By the time the sun was high in the sky Catherina reached her destination, a small guildhall on the southern end of the Old Quarter. It stood squashed between two other apartment buildings, its façade decorated by grand marble columns and painted a cheerful yellow. Emblazoned upon the door was the guild's symbol—a red dragon's head biting a wreath, the symbol of the new Firozzi Famiglia.

She had left one guild, yes, but she did not plan to stop being an adventurer. She was still a battle priestess, who fought in the Goddess' honor to protect the meek and innocent. If the old Rodina guild would not help her see that goal to fruition, then perhaps a new, rising guild might.

And, well, if a certain someone happened to take notice of her after she joined then that was just a bonus, wasn't it?

Slowly she stepped forward, opening the door to the Rosa Dominae Guildhall with a projected confidence that had gotten her so far in life. The reception hall she found herself in was a faded pink, which for some reason housed an unreasonably massive desk, behind with the Elf manning it looked comically small in comparison.

An Elf who was currently sleeping face down in a pillow of ink-stained parchment.

"Excuse me?" she called up, clearing her throat. "Is this the Rosa Dominae Adventurer's Guild?"

"Wha—!" the Elf suddenly jumped in her seat, the room getting noticeably colder as she jerked away. Snowy white eyes darting down to her she began to stammer, "Who are—I am—I mean yes, we are that guild. Uh, who are you? I mean, are you here to hire us?"

Well, this was not inspiring, but at least it was honest, and at this point she was aware how low her standards had been dragged.

"Actually," she smiled winningly up at the Elf, and was relieved to see the woman's eyes narrow. Ah good, not entirely incompetent then. "I was hoping you would be willing to hire me."

"You want to join this shi—I mean yes, welcome, we'd love a new guildmember! …Who are you again?"

The smile grew a bit strained. "My name is Catherina de Nimici, I'm a battle priestess. I fought alongside your guild back when the Demons attacked? Lorenzo and, uh… the fire girl, with the creepy staff?"

"Pretty Boy and Creepy Girl, huh," the Elf hummed, before nodding. "Right, right! I was off regrowing my legs during most of that unfortunately. It turns out getting kneecapped by a rock wizard is the kind of thing you don't bounce back from easily."

"…Right. So, do I sign any paperwork or…?"

"What a wonderful idea!" she grinned at that, jumping down from behind the desk. As she walked up to her Catherina realized that the Elf was actually much taller than her, the perspective from behind the oversized desk had simply warped her perception. "Yes, anything that isn't dying of boredom out here. Come on, Ósma should have everything with him in the guildmaster's office. The kid'll probably want to see you before you join too."

"The kid?"

"Oh, the guildmaster. He's only what, thirty something? Practically a toddler. Oh, but uh, don't tell him I said that, he'll throw more desk jobs at me if he knew I was mouthing off to the newbies."

The building wasn't that large, thankfully, so she didn't need to listen to this strange Elf's ramblings for very long. Arriving at a nondescript door, the woman threw it open without even bothering to knock.

This was a mistake.

"NO MEANS NO, CHIARA!"

"Fuck you!" a teenager she barely recognized slammed her fists against the grain of a much more reasonably sized desk. The man who had just yelled stood behind it, a deep scowl which mirrored the girl across from him etched across his face. "She's my friend, you self-righteous prick! I don't care how dangerous it is for me, it's ten times worse for her! So I'm going, damnit, and I'd like to see you try and stop me!"

With that she turned to storm out, only hesitating slightly at the sight of the two of them standing in the doorway.

"This conversation isn't over, Chiara! Get back here right now!" the man shouted after her, only for the girl to throw back a hand gesture which would have seen her scrubbing the latrines for months if she'd done that in the monastery. "Chiara!"

The girl simply shoved past them with a snarl, disappearing out into the hallway behind them.

That left her locking eyes with the man she presumed to be the guildmaster.

"Is… is this a bad time?"

The man groaned, dropping his head into his hands before falling back into his seat with a sigh. "Yes, but that's never stopped anyone before. Come in and take a seat Signorina, hopefully there's still a chair in here my sister hasn't destroyed."

Settling in across from the tired looking man, she stated plain what her reason for coming here was. "My name is Catherina de Nimici, and I would like to join your guild as a new adventurer."

"Really?" he blinked, for some reason looking surprised at that. "You want to join this—I mean, that can be arranged, yes. We have been rather short on manpower recently, what with the whole… everything. How much experience do you have then, if you want to become an adventurer here?"

"Quite a lot," she gave him her most winning smile, one slightly less formal than what she'd given the Elven receptionist before. Her confidence in the guild may have taken a hit, but she'd already quit the Rodina so in for a piccoli and all that. "I am a noble's daughter who was raised in a monastery for much of my youth, and two years ago I joined the Rodina Guild as a battle priestess. I worked regularly and succeeded in completing many jobs, but after the Demon attack I felt it was best to move on to a better guild."

He eyed her like he couldn't tell if she was mocking him or not, before noting her words down on a piece of paper. "Wow, that's an actual resume. Rather standard, but not Mario levels of standard so I suppose I can't complain. Alright then. Welcome to the Rosa Dominae Guild, Catherina. I look forward to working with you."

She blinked.

"That… that's it?" she asked hesitantly. Surely there was more, right? One conversation and she was signing papers? "No test of strength or skill? No other second or third interviews? Not even going to make sure if I'm lying or not?"

"Well, if you're lying then you'll die in the field rather quickly," he smiled as if he were telling some amusing joke. "But I know you aren't, since I recognize you from the tournament last week. You beat Matthias, even if he was petering out by that point. And to be frank if you can survive Demons, my family drama, and meeting Johana and still want to join? I say welcome aboard."

"I… thank you?" she stammered. This was frankly moving far faster than she would have ever imagined. And there was a part of her, a very small and easily squishable part, which was now worried she was making a mistake.

"Just, one thing I need to make sure of before we sign any paperwork," he steepled his hands before his face, looking deathly serious. "You've never committed regicide, right?"

That part was growing bigger by the second.

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