## Aram, Oakhaven, Dawnstrider Estate
Recruitment Hall
The Interview
The Dawnstrider estate had seen better days. Recruitment posters littered the entrance hall, and the family had converted their main sitting room into a makeshift interview space. A large table dominated the center, covered in quest dossiers, monster research notes, and half-empty mugs of tea. The mutated Minotaur Greg awaited them in the Craghorn Ruins three days' march from Oakhaven, and they needed a fifth member. Temporary, but competent.
Gale sat at the head of the table, her great axe propped against her chair. She ran a whetstone along the blade with slow, deliberate strokes. Her blue eyes tracked the door with predatory patience. Odyssa stood near the window, arms crossed, her silver armor catching the afternoon sun. She had already rejected seven candidates today. Her standards were high, and her patience was running low. Diana sprawled face-down on the table, her curly blonde hair fanning around her head like a halo of frustration. Phiona sat cross-legged on the floor, absently braiding Juggy's carved ears while the staff made soft, concerned woofing noises.
"That last one," Diana groaned into the wood, "claimed to be a Calamity Witch. Her ultimate spell was called Explosion. You know what it did? It made sparklers. Literal sparklers. I could sneeze more damage."
Odyssa's jaw tightened. "And before that, the 'world's greatest swordsman' who nearly cut his own foot off drawing his blade."
Gale's whetstone scraped against the axe. "And the one before that. Level eighty adventurer, he said. Used his mother's forge to make his plaque. His mother's forge. I checked the guild registry after he ran. He was level twelve."
Phiona patted Juggy's head. "The nice ones never seem to be the strong ones."
"The strong ones don't need to interview with us," Gale said. She tested the axe's edge with her thumb. "We'll find someone. We have to. Greg won't wait forever, and I'm not walking into a two-headed, six-armed minotaur's lair with a party of four."
The door creaked open. All four women turned.
Phiona rose to her feet, clutching Juggy to her chest. She stepped forward, her white mage's robes swishing around her ankles. "Hello! Welcome to the Dawnstrider estate. Can I see your guild plaque, please? We'll also need to know your class, your level, your talents, and any special abilities you have. Oh, and how you work in groups. We're very big on teamwork here."
Gale stopped sharpening her axe. Odyssa uncrossed her arms. Diana lifted her head from the table, curiosity cutting through her exhaustion. All four woman were focus on looking for another member and nothing else at the moment.
