Krow stood before the First Tower of Cerkanst.


    He''d been there for over a minute.


    He was bing irritated with himself the longer he didn''t move.


    He had epted his choice fully.


    There was no reason to dy.


    He''d taken thest hometown quest and even finished the hidden quest of exorcising a ghost.


    Though, like the mothmarmot quest, he had to ask: was it normal for Hidden Quests to lunge at your face and try to eat you whole?


    How was that even ''hidden''?


    He took a breath, aware he was stalling.


    There was no reason to dy, he told himself again.


    But here, on the day he was about to register, a shadow of the disappointment he felt when first he saw the vige rose and created doubts in his heart.


    It was possible to change a hometown registration.


    But only in Rends.


    In Zushkenar, a citizen''s papers could not be edited to change the birthce. Unless a half dozen people in the administration of two or more viges and towns were bribed.


    Krow let the emotions he felt wash over him.


    Then he huffed, squared his shoulders and walked in.


    Themunity registration was something unique to Rends.


    Because of the great importance of trade to the yers of the initial craft-heavy game, it was necessary to register as a member of variousmunities or stay as a rogue business.


    The intention was greater immersion into the fantasy world.


    The feature was retained in the Masters of War expansion, with its own upgrades.


    In every race it was different.


    There were rituals and tattoos for example, in the Dryad and the Trollkin viges to be part of themunity.


    In the Dwarvir viges, he heard there was singing and lots of booze.


    Thest time, as a human, he had to run around the vige, chasing NPCs and doing paperwork for a name token. He had to get his application stamped by six vige officials.


    Without the token, he couldn''t open a bank ount or interact with certain quest NPCs.


    He wasn''t sure what the draculkar registration was like. The forum said they had to give blood and y a game.


    Sarnaan grinned a greeting at him as he strode into the tower hall. "How is our snake hunter today?"


    "Wanting to register as a resident, actually."


    Sarnaan leaned back, surprised. "Here? In Cerkanst?"


    "Why not?"


    She leaned close. "You have just reached your majority?"


    "I have."


    She smiled and bowed briefly. "Congrattions on your twenty-fifth year."


    "I''m twenty-seven, in fact." He bowed back simrly. "But thank you."


    "Ah." She studied him, then nodded, motioned to follow her. "Why here, and not in arger town? Better yet, the city?"


    The hometown quests in towns and cities were slightly different, involving making acquaintance of the city or town watch, then getting them to sponsor you for registered citizenship.


    That was he''d done thest time. It required innumerous security jobs and watch missions.


    "I haven''t entered a stronghold of our people for a long time. I thought a smaller ce would be morefortable." Backstory, he knew, would only help after the Quake.


    Nomads were a source of many quests in Rends. In Zushkenar, they were looked down on bynd-owners.


    She smiled at him. "Understandable. Your guardians are joining youter?"


    Krow shook his head. "I have been alone for years now."


    Sarnaan looked stricken, and inclined her head in a show of sympathy.


    Gojo did say that draculkar rarely conceived more than three children, which meant their poption was one of the lowest in Zushkenar. "Many are lost to the distant horizon. I am sorry that they are not here for you at this time."


    "We are Kin; we heed the Call." Krow mouthed one of the many many things he heard Gojo repeat like a mantra during the years of their friendship.


    Gojo was Gomrje Ogvaander, had been one of the few draculkar contracted as a guard for the crafters of Findrakon. He exined that draculkar hoarded knowledge obsessively, and to leave the mountain cities to travel in search of it was honorable.


    Schr and Archaeologist were two of the most respected subsses a draculkar might take.


    But certain of the race also thought it was too dangerous to allow their people to run around Zushkenar because of their low numbers.


    "Mm." Sarnaan nodded in acknowledgement. But she also grasped his shoulder briefly, in condolence.


    He smiled at her. It had been years since anyone hadforted him for the death of his parents.


    She pushed aside a hanging curtain and stopped at a stone door, arge stone block on two posts. She did something with her fingers at a small panel on the wall.


    The door opened, with the noise of stone scraping against stone.


    "This is the entrance to the vault of names." She motioned to the doorway, stairs leading down into darkness. "You must go alone."


    Ominous.


    Krow studied the doorway dubiously.


    How exactly did they draw blood for this thing?


    "The n records cannot be taken out of the rooms below, of course." Sarnaan continued. "And I assure you, the ce is very protected. We are a vige close to the lond paths, after all."


    That wasn''t what concerned Krow, but he only nodded.


    "If you are in need of anything else, I will be at the front halls, as usual."


    "Thank you." He took the stairs.


    Themp above his head burst with blue light and his heart leaped to his mouth, hand shing to the gun at his hip. He heard a slight chuckle from Sarnaan before the door behind him shut with a resounding finality.


    He turned to re at the carved stone of the door, trying to calm the blood pounding through his veins.


    He walked down the stairs, the blue magemps turning on as he went.


    Then suddenly, the stair he trod on lit up with a faint green glow. He froze.


    Draculkar lived in ancient towers, rebuilding their houses again and again, so that the inner parts of a building might stand over a thousand towers.


    And in Zushkenar, you learn wariness of ancient ces.


    He crouched down slowly, eyes alert.


    Was this the draculkar registration challenge?


    There was nomp past the glowing stair, he noticed.


    He took his foot off the light-giving stair, backing away and crouching over it, turning himself nearly upside down to study it. What was the difference between it and the other stairs?


    He only just noticed the band of carved writing, when another stair glowed further down. He heard clicking in the walls, gears and mechanisms.


    Oh no.


    He leaped headfirst down the stairs, utilizing his dexterity to tumble and flip.


    One foot and one hand barely touched the second glowing stair, when he saw another glow further down.


    He twisted his body toward it, intuition born of years as a forester in Zushkenar ring warning, only just missing the slicing des as they breezed past him.


    Speed.. Draculkar were known for speed of movement.