Recruitment

Anna frowned when she got to the bank. That guard was right, this statue is tasteless. Who even designed this? She glanced at a nearby guard, who shook her head.

"I know you want to." She called out. "But destroying the statue is technically illegal."

Anna sighed. It was a crime against decency to allow this thing to stand, but there was nothing she could do about it at the moment, so she opted to walk by it and made for the bank. At the front doors, a surprisingly well equipped and well armed, if what was on her waist was what Anna thought it was, guard stopped Anna.

"Hold, traveller. I am required by law to inform you that attempting to rob the bank will result in your summary execution. Are we at an accord?"

"Execution? Isn't that a bit harsh?" Anna asked with a raised eyebrow.

"We've had no bank robberies in the five hundred years the bank has existed. Do I make myself clear?" The guard continued.

"One final question." Anna looked around, then leaned in to whisper. "Is that a combat shotgun?"

"You mean this?" The guard gestured at the gun on her waist. "This is the latest from the Khaz Gun Works in Port Sulala, the Street Sweeper. Deadly to 200 yards." The guard glanced around. "My shift ends at 9."

Anna winked. "Maybe."

She walked inside, and found a elaborately decorated interior, befitting a bank lobby. There were a few merchants mingling, talking to clerks of varying kinds. Spotting a sign over an oak door that said Moneychanging, she made her way through the lobby. The guards inside were all just as well equipped and armed as the woman watching the door inside. Expressionless faces, shotguns at the ready, and what was very obviously primitive ballistics armour. So what was the deal with the guards in the rest of the city?

Opening the door, she found a single goblin sitting at a desk. He motioned for her to sit in the chair across from him.

"Just a single room?" Anna asked as she opted to sit. The room was too small for its purpose, of that she was certain. This should be a manager's office.

"What were you expecting?" The goblin asked with a toothy grin. "Now, what do you have for me?"

"Coinage. From a place that's... not here. I assume you're just going to melt them down." Anna opted for a dramatic finish and simply opened the bag and turned it upside down. Well over a thousand coins spilled out onto the desk.

The goblin frowned. He knew most coinage by sound alone, and this was making a noise closer to jewellery. He picked up a coin and inspected it closely in his hand. Something was clearly off about the coinage but he couldn't place it. That's when it hit him.

"What's the purity of these coins?" He asked, squinting as he squeezed it.

"Isn't all gold coinage generally around 90 percent pure?" Anna asked with a slightly confused tone.

"Ninety percent?" The goblin yelled, his eyes practically bulging out of his head. If what she said was accurate, then what was sitting in front of him wasn't coinage. It was a dragon hoard. He quietly pressed a button under his desk. The Baron had to be alerted, this would ruin the economy.

"Something wrong?"

"Not from here are you?" The goblin cleared his throat, and tossed a Southern Karandi gold coin at her after pulling it out of his shirt pocket. "That's what passes for gold around here."

Anna looked at it and frowned. "This is... is this brass?"

"That one's brass plated lead. I haven't seen a 'gold' gold coin in at least a century. Old Republican coinage is gold, but that doesn't leave private collections."

A knock at the door came, and 3 guards armed with shotguns entered. Their armour was polished to a mirror finish, and a thin man entered behind them.

"Miss, the Baron of Thorns wishes to speak with you, regarding your... coins." He said, in a tone that was respectful but still quite firm.

Anna could sense something radiating off the guards, but the magic of this Karand was extremely alien to her. Looking at the thin man, he was dressed like a butler, and it was clear she didn't have a choice. Making a scene also wouldn't help matters, so she sighed.

"Alright, you boys win this time. Let's get the coins back in the bag, hmmm?"

"That would be best." The goblin said.

---

The thin man didn't say a word as they walked through the streets of Point Thoryn, flanked by the 3 armed guards. Anna noticed everybody was giving them quite a wide berth, and there was a trail of whispers behind them.

"Where are we going, exactly?" Anna ventured to ask.

"The Thorn Manor." One of the guards replied. "Please show the Baron the respect he is due when you meet with him."

Anna nodded, but the guard gave no further reply. All business, she thought to herself. 

The walk lasted a few minutes, and she took more stock of her surroundings in that time. The streets were wide enough for carts to pass, but clearly designed to frustrate any enemy force with countless alcoves and potential sniper nests. Whoever built this town was a paranoid genius.

Anna couldn't help but whistle when she arrived at the gates of the Thorn Manor. Huge wrought iron gates straddled the road onto the manor grounds, and the 2 metre tall walls made it clear the privacy was expected. Looking around, Anna suddenly realised the thin man was no longer with them. In fact, she couldn't recall when he even departed.

"What happened to the other guy?" She asked one of the guards.

He simply pointed at the Manor entrance. Looking across the courtyard, he was standing there with his hands clasped together in front of him, as if he had always been there.

Anna huffed. More of that fancy Karandi magic, she supposed. Looking up at the manor itself, it reminded her of Antebellum south architecture from Earth. A shaded balcony swept all around the second and third floors, and a dome capped the centre.

The thin man bowed as he opened the door. "Please follow me, the Baron is waiting in his study."

Ascending the spiral staircase in the middle of the hall, the man stopped in front of a door on the second floor. "I will be waiting outside."

Anna nodded, and turned the handle on the door. She wasn't quite sure what she was expecting inside, but the visage of Baron Andrew still surprised her. The man was enormous, like somebody took a gorilla, shaved it, then stuffed it in clothing a size too small. The powdered wig suited him in a way, but the dozen rings across his massive hands gave an all too familiar vibe.

"Ah, welcome." Andrew said, flashing his teeth in a grin for a moment. "Do sit down, drinks and snacks will be arriving."

"Sure you need more?" Anna asked, testing the waters as she made her way to the open seat across from him.

His laughter boomed out in response. "What good is being rich if I can't have a snack or ten?"

Anna gave a faint smile. Good, he's capable of laughing at himself she thought to herself.

"Let's get right down to business, ma'am." Andrew clasped his hands together. "Why don't you show me these coins that gave my boys the vapours?"

"Oh very well." Anna reached into the bag of holding, and pulled out two gold coins, handing them to Andrew. "Apparently you all use fakes?"

Andrew flicked a coin through the meaty sausages that he called his fingers. He tapped them together, then on the desk. After looking at the inscription, he carefully put them down.

"These don't come from Karand." He stated this with finality, like he was delivering a verdict.

Anna tried to hide her discomfort at how quickly he seemed to know. "What makes you say that?"

"Setting aside the fact that only the ice for brains elves would use gold this pure for currency?" Andrew pointed at the inscription. "That's not in any alphabet I've ever seen, and it looks like it was minted last week."

Anna sighed. Of course. It's written in Thorass, he'd know in a second.