Limitless Path

The conversation turned out to be very boring, as the group of three were asking Tazeen a bunch of rather basic questions. Things about how leveling worked and where best to put stat points which, she supposed, it was great to have a real expert’s help, but she figured most people would have figured out all that out at this point. The two men and one woman looked to be a handful of years older than Beth, maybe mid-twenties, though she was not great at judging ages even before being thrown in a universe with a bunch of immortals, but it was a little strange that people still relatively young were asking so many basic questions. Hadn't any of them ever played a video game or read a fantasy novel?

The woman gave Beth a side-eye at one point while the shorter of the two men, little more than five-foot-six and slightly stocky, continued asking questions, being the main voice of the group. Beth leaned against the counter a couple steps down from them, waiting for another fifteen minutes as they continued pestering Tazeen, though the elf seemed largely unbothered by the barrage of questions. Eventually, the taller of the two boys nudged his friend and whispered something, something about going over what they learned and not blocking the line, and the three moved off, though they didn't leave the lobby. They found one of the groupings of chairs that they seemed to like and all huddled together with their heads together to have an intense, whispered discussion.

Beth stepped in front of Tazeen and glanced at the group again before looking back at the elf and raising a brow. He simply shrugged and said, "People require basic information; it is part of our job to provide it."

"Remind me to avoid desk duty," Beth muttered slightly darkly before sending Tazeen a file.

"This is the report for your last mission?" he asked in a perfunctory manner as he scanned the document.

"Yepper," Beth replied with a nod.

"Hmm," he made a noise between acceptance and distraction, still reading through her submission. Finally he said, "This is adequate. I am rather surprised you not only encountered a Crystal Dread but defeated it without more grievous injuries."

"It was a hella tough fight, but we got it," Beth said. "Wanna see the corpse?"

"No, no. That's quite alright," Tazeen replied with a slight shake of his head. "You should go talk to Jaq about it. Let him know you finished his busy work."

"I knew it," Beth crowed. "We thought it was just his shit work he was too lazy to bother with himself."

"I wouldn't exactly use those terms," Tazeen said with a slight frown and Beth was suitably cowed herself. "But yes, it isn't the most interesting work…usually."

"Well, we got the bastard and we're still in one piece. And, it was a good fight, so I can forgive him all the boring bullshit," Beth said with a shrug.

"Indeed," Tazeen replied stoically. "Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Can I schedule my test now?" Beth asked.

"Are you confident?" he answered immediately.

"As long as it's not today or tomorrow, then yeah, I should have enough time to review," Beth said with another shrug.

"Very well. I will schedule you for three days from now, that being Saturday. Will that work?"

"Yeah, perfect," Beth said. "I'll head down to see Jaq then go back and cram for three days. Should I just come up here for the test, or…?"

"Go to the lounge Saturday morning. We will take it from there," he said.

"Good deal. Thanks, Tazeen," she said before turning and walking away, giving a slight wave as she did so.

"Any time, Ms. Beth," he replied calmly.

She made her way down to the commissary, not passing anyone else in the hallways this morning. She found the place empty as she strolled in, noting that the shelves appeared even more full than they normally were. Maybe Jaq was trying to tempt people into buying more, or maybe he was just tired of fetching things from the back and so overstocked the front. It didn't take long at all for him to pop out from one of the several doors along the back wall, giving her a glower as he did so.

"What a lovely morning. And it's so good to see you, Jaq," Beth said in a too-sweet voice as she approached the counter.

"I don't need this today," he grumbled. "Did you at least finish the damn job?"

"Yes, king grump, we finished your shit work," Beth replied back with an eyeroll.

"Good. You do not need to tell me personally, however," he continued with another frown.

"Yeah, I don't like seeing your face, either," Beth quipped. "But I have actual business with you today."

"What," he demanded.

"Helmet and boots," she replied back.

He stepped back through one of the doors just briefly, reappearing a few moments later with two pieces of equipment. He dropped both of them on the counter and gestured to them, Beth sighing a bit at his usual taciturn unhelpfulness. The items were what she had requested, a helmet and boots, with the new helmet being rather familiar:

Silverite Shielding Mask

{A mask made of a silverite alloy, it provides great protection due to a complex shielding enchant. It is also enchanted with fit, minor repair, and minor durability.

10% increased INT.

Minimum level 150.}

The boots were heavy silverite pieces, each made of a series of large plates of the material welded together, with just enough give in the ankles to allow for maneuverability while still maintaining the protection. Beth gave them an inspection before actually Identifying them, lifting them and noting the weight, which would have been enormous pre-Path. Now, she didn't even feel it as she hefted the right boot in one hand, turning it to inspect the sole before glancing inside. She finished by checking the piece’s stats:

Silverite Plate Boots

{These boots, made from a special silverite alloy, provide unparalleled protection while enhancing the user's physical strength.

5% increased STR.

Minimum level 100.}

"How much?" she asked as she set the boot back down.

"Six plats," he replied evenly. Beth made the coins appear, he made them disappear, and then she made the armor pieces disappear.

"Got one more for you," she said.

"What now?" he grumbled.

"Corpse," she matched him, not feeling like wasting time if he didn't. He gestured for her to step back and put it in the middle of the shop, which caused her to raise a brow, but she did as instructed, making the pieces of the Dread appear in the middle of the shop floor. Jaq appeared beside it in less than an eyeblink, Beth not seeing him have moved either through or over the counter, and he examined the monster's body with a critical eye.

"Were you attempting to leave nothing of value?" he asked slightly caustically as he was finishing his examination.

"It was level one-eighty and we were level one-fifty, Jaq. We were trying to stay alive," she replied a little hotly.

"You need more practice," he shot back with a grunt before reappearing behind the counter.

"Okay, Baelvyr, I'll take it under advisement," she retorted sarcastically.

"I'd give you one platinum for it, as it is now," he ignored her barb and moved the discussion along. "But, again, I would urge you to keep it. It will be more valuable to you and your companion as crafting materials or for barter."

"Just knowing the rough value is good," Beth said with a little sigh and a shrug, making the corpse disappear.

"What else?" he asked grumpily.

"What else is that I'm going to go spend three days studying," she grumbled as she turned to leave.

"The Silver exam emphasizes practical knowledge rather than theory," he reminded her in a lecturer's voice before disappearing back through one of the doors, Beth just waving over her shoulder as she left the shop.

Making her way back to their room, she found both of the other girls sprawled out, unclothed and uncaring, Blood seemingly asleep. The lupine woman had wolf ears back, and Beth distinctly saw them flicking when she entered, though her eyes didn't open. She made sure the door was firmly shut behind herself before letting her own clothes vanish, walking over and picking Sabs up before sitting in her spot on the couch and settling the smaller woman in her lap.

"Nothing today?" Sabs asked lazily, wriggling back against Beth to press the two more firmly together.

"Studying," Beth said. "I'm taking my Silver exam on Saturday, which is in three days, I guess. I'm going to just be reading today, then I'll look over my notes tomorrow. I might ask for some help on Friday; there's some mock questions in one of the books Tazeen recommended to me."

"I'd be happy to help," Sabs purred contentedly. "I plan on doing the same thing…eventually."

"It's good knowledge, regardless," Beth replied with a little shrug, bringing up a book on her communicator. "What's with the ears?"

"What ears?" Sabs asked at first, eyes scrunching and frowning slightly in confusion. Before Beth could clarify, she said, "Oh! Blood's ears! Sorry, I'm not in a thinking mode right now. She figured out already how to manipulate her body to look less human as well and, apparently, she really likes the wolf ears."

"They still have the improved hearing, they just look and feel better," the 'sleeping' wolf spoke up, still sprawled on her armchair with her eyes closed.

"Whatever works for you," Beth mumbled. "I think either look great."

Blood just grunted and then they were quiet for a while, Sabs watching something on the wallscreen while Beth studied and Blood…likely was secretly studying as well. At some point, Sabs's stomach growling was the signal for them to cook a bunch of food and eat, followed by even more studying. The rest of the day passed with studying, eating, and relaxing together. They slept and then resumed the next day, continuing the combination of studying and laying around, not having to leave the room thanks to Sabs keeping the fridge stocked.

The day after that was a bit different as they had a bunch of things to take care of, though it was mainly chores. They also spent some time with Sabs helping Beth review for the tests she would have to take the next day. They got a bunch of laundry done, did some maintenance on equipment, and even spent a little time relaxing in the late evening before Beth and Sabs spent even more time getting…very relaxed that night.

They were up early and washed and fed the next day, ready to get this over with. Well, Beth was prepped and ready, but the other two didn't have anything to do except wait, considering testing was a solo experience. The most they could do would be wait outside whatever room Beth had to take the test in, but they'd rather chill in the room and wish her luck. She left the room with a kiss for Sabs and a wave towards the 'sleeping' Blood in the corner, making her way up to the central lounge.

She found John and Navere at Baelvyr's table, offering the elusive elf a handshake, which he easily interpreted and readily accepted. Before she could even seat herself, the other three had stood, with Baelvyr merely waving a hand at her in a beckoning gesture before they walked out. Beth followed in their wake, moving not into the arena, but to the elevators before heading to the third floor of the main building. There, they followed Baelvyr down one of the hallways to a room that opened into a conference room. There was no other way for Beth to describe it, as there was a wallscreen at one end, a computer terminal next to it, and a long, oval table in the center with chairs along both sides. The three Senior Enforcers sat on one side of the table with Baelvyr gesturing to the other.

Now that the moment had come, Beth was…totally relaxed. She had never really minded written tests the way some people did, and she had spent dozens of hours studying for the exams today, so she was rather confident. As soon as she was seated, Baelvyr presented her with a sheaf of papers that he pulled from his storage power, Beth guessing he had one of those as she never noticed him wearing anything else that might have a storage space attached, not even a ring. There were maybe fifteen pages in the stack that he set before her, and he set a pen beside them that she was clearly expected to use.

"Now," he began. "Let's get it done. I'm gonna explain to ya what's happenin', then ya can ask questions. Firstly, the three of us are way overkill for one little girlie takin' this test, so don't worry 'bout that. Secondly, there's a form there that acknowledges yer takin' the Silver-level test for a new emblem. It's a rote form, just sign it and we'll move on."

He gestured at the top sheet of paper there, which Beth picked up and read, ignoring his advice and John's grumbling. When she was satisfied she wasn't signing away her firstborn (not ever having one, joke's on them), or agreeing to a century of mopping the floor, she signed it. Baelvyr made a flicking motion with his right wrist, and she responded by just handing the sheet to him, which he made disappear.

"Now, next, we're gonna have ya take the test, which is what the rest of that stack a' crap is there. Ya gotta use our pen to write it out; can't have somebody cheatin' with a magic pen they brought in," he explained, rolling his eyes at the thought of somebody using a magic pen to cheat, or maybe at the thought of them doing it for the Silver-level exam. He continued, "Once yer done, and ya've looked it over, I'll take it and we'll ask ya some questions. For the Silver one, ya gotta get a certain minimum on the written part and satisfy us with the questions that ya know what yer about. Any questions for us?"

"No, I'm ready," Beth said with a quick shake of her head.

"Alright, get to it," Baelvyr waved a hand for her to start. A huge mug appeared in front of him which he started drinking from. Navere closed his eyes, Beth assumed to meditate, and John pulled out a complex technical book that was quite clearly and obviously being used as a cover for some kind of much thinner smut book. Beth rolled her eyes and started the exam by checking for the oldest trick in the book; reading through to see if there was something at the end that just let you pass if you didn't write anything.