[b]In the Guild Master's Office...[/b]

The woman behind her desk narrowed her eyes when Ezlan began to speculate on her alcohol.  Except for a couple of decanters with glass stoppers (one of which seemed to match the crystal tumbler she was holding), all of the bottles in the cabinet were labeled.  When Erevan made his comment about verifying the wine, the guild owner couldn't help but quirk a little smile.

"Stand by the door," she said to Ezlan.  "And keep your hands to yourself."  Then, to Erevan, she said, "I already told you; your fifth is a woman named Nemeia.  You can't miss her..."

Again, she quirked another little smile.  When they settled down, she put her tumbler on what seemed like a roughly cut piece of marble used as a coaster.

"As I was saying," she began, an impatient edge to her tone.  "With our best teams up North, I've been forced to shuffle the rest around to take up the slack locally.  You'll be taking the poor man's road to Blightstone - a miserable little trade depot often used by the swamp runners.  Nemeia should know how to get there.  There is a man named Dagston there.  He operates a tavern with no name.  Talk to him when you arrive and get his blessings to work in his territory.

"Your mission is to reinforce Maddox's group.  He's been chasing bandits in the region.  You will also take a purse with bank notes for payment to his boys as well as a small amount of travel money."

She opened a drawer on her desk and withdrew two packages; one looked like a little tube wrapped in a sheep bladder with the lid sealed with wax while the other was a simple sack.  She tossed them onto the far edge of the desk closest to the newly formed group.  Embedded in the wax on the end of the tube was a small silver coin.

"There.  Do not lose the bank notes.  Now get going."

[b]Back in the guild hall...[/b]

"This token and the runner that you dismissed say otherwise," Nem said, holding up the stylized copper symbol of the guild to the light cast by one of the windows. "I'm here at the behest of the Guild Master, not you."

The burly man unfolded one of his arms and put a finger to the silver coin pinned to his shirt.  His expression did not change.

Throughout the Lowlands and in Iron Harbor, a fairly complex system of coins was used to denote rank, titles, importance, jurisdiction, etc.  Copper was usually the lowest tier of importance, used often simply to show affiliation.  Copper was cheap.  Silver was often a sign of authority or high value.  Packages shipped with a silver coin were treated with more care and delivered more swiftly.  Gold tended to be reserved for packages of only the highest value and for significant company leaders or members of high authority.

In this case, all members of an adventure guild were required to wear identification in the form of one of these coins.  The shield over a river feeding into a larger body of water signified the Shield Brethren of River City.  The burly man barring Nemeia's access wore a silver coin, however, the detail differed; the coin was slightly larger and had the standard shield-over-river in the upper section with a grand looking building beneath it.  This showed him as the Master of the Hall, meaning his authority was over the guild hall itself.

While Nemeia was correct in that her summons came from the guild master herself, this man could legally block her path and, should he press the issue, eject her from the building.