Becoming Monsters: I'm Blue 14

Without that particular group of tourists around, the building was much calmer. Enough so that Abbey enjoyed the relative quiet for a bit, reading the signs and looking at displays. She had only been to Camp twice before, after all, and both of those were with goals in mind. She hadn't really had the chance to just be a tourist, herself, and she had to admit to herself that it was all pretty cool. The idea of people just choosing to go be heroes, like the fantastic stories of their youth. People who saw their new world and new abilities, and decided to give them a push. She shook her head. It was all high risk and high reward. That was all, right? People were people whether they had fantastical powers or not. Abbey gathered herself up and walked to the back, where the public relations desks were.

The smiling man greeted her instantly. "Abigail, it's nice to see you when we aren't both crazy busy. I'm Alan." Now that she had a chance to pause, she could take him in. Alan was a pleasant-looking if nondescript man, dressed in slacks and a polo embroidered with what looked to her untrained eyes like a guild badge.

"I definitely prefer Abbey. So, I guess this is where I cut to the chase and ask how to apply for a job here. You seem to know. Also kind of want to know what's up with starting businesses around here, all of the rules in the book are unclear."

"I hope you aren't trying to do both at once. Conflict of interest."

"I'm not, no. My boyfriend wants to earn some extra cash at Camp."

"Ah, that makes sense. In that case, I'll take the questions in reverse order. The rules are vague because we really don't have many. Just keep the activity away from people it can harm, and if someone wants to rent a stable space they go through us for it. If he's joining up with one of the others as an apprentice, it's treated just like he's their Guilded and we leave it at that."

"That seems... awfully casual." Abbey had a pocket notebook out and was writing by now, but the brevity of the response was bewildering to someone who had been taught to consider much more.

"We are Delvers here. We police our own pretty efficiently, it gets a bit loud at times but stays fair."

"I do hope you'll excuse me when I say that I don't think that ends well. Too much can go wrong, and the people here have too much power for that to be comfortable."

"Perhaps, but we all work towards the same goals. That is enough for the moment, and has been for the last four years. As for the job application process, that is going to be a bit more involved than most."

Abbey closed her eyes. There was always a catch. "What do you mean by that?"

"You need to qualify for your Delver license, pass the test even if you don't get your card. Plus an apprenticeship period here. I know the Marshal wants you with us, so we're skipping some of the other weed-out steps, but I need to make sure you know what you're doing and won't lose it when some of our more rowdy people show that side of themselves. The pay's good, but you need to get there."

"Alan, if that's all I have to do, then it's barely an application at all." Abbey, on reflection, hoped she wouldn't have to eat those words.