Taming Demons for Beginners (The Guild Codex Demonized #1) - Annette Marie Page 0,48
flipped it open. Taking the folded papers, I closed the book on the copy of the grimoire page and handed Amalia the forms.
She unfolded them, her expression incredulous. “How did you…?”
“Uh …” Admitting that I’d considered blackmailing her father seemed unwise.
“Whatever,” she sighed. “This is good. We can register you as a legal contractor, but you’ll also need to join a guild with a Demonica license.”
“A Demonica license?”
“Yeah.” She unplugged her phone from the wall charger and pulled up an app. “Guilds need a special license to have Demonica members. Most guilds don’t bother with it—they don’t want contractors. Let’s see … guilds with a license …”
I recognized the MPD app on her screen. Along with making and enforcing laws, the MPD required anyone with magic to join a guild by eighteen years old. Guilds provided support but also monitored their members, helping enforce the rules and laws.
Since I wasn’t a practicing sorceress, being a guild member was kind of like having a gym membership I never used. I paid a monthly fee and scheduled an annual checkup every spring, but not all guilds were that passive. Some were tight-knit communities, some were weekend clubs, and some were businesses with members doubling as staff.
“Okay,” Amalia said. “There aren’t many around here. Your options are the Grand Grimoire, Odin’s Eye, M&L, the Crow and Hammer, and the Seadevils. That’s it.”
“The only one I recognize is M&L.” That guild was also an international bank—the same one my father had worked for. They employed a lot of mythics, and most of us did our banking with them.
“You don’t want to join M&L. They’re sticklers for rules, and I think they only take Demonica mythics for security jobs. Let’s see … the Seadevils guild has one contractor and the Crow and Hammer has none. That’s no good. You’ll need to blend in.”
Unease churned in my gut at the thought of transferring to any of those guilds, but this was my new reality. Until I could get rid of Zylas, I had to accept I was a contractor. An illegal one.
“So that leaves the Grand Grimoire and Odin’s Eye—oh, but Odin’s Eye is a bounty-hunting guild. You’d never get in, and you want to stay far away from bounty hunters anyway. It’s gotta be the Grand Grimoire. They’re a Demonica guild, so you’ll blend right in with the rest.”
“Okay,” I mumbled.
“Let’s get this form filled out and—” Her phone beeped loudly. She tapped the screen and read something, her full lips pressing into a grimace. “The MPD just sent out the alert.”
“What alert?”
“For an unbound demon. Took them long enough. You sent in that tip hours ago. They must’ve lost the demon, but now they’ve located it and they need the combat guilds. See?”
She held out her phone, the message displayed in bold text.
MPD Emergency Alert: --CODE BLACK-- Suspected unbound demon active in your area. All CM assemble at GHQ ASAP. NCM take shelter. PROCEED WITH UTMOST CAUTION.
Unused to MagiPol acronyms, it took me a moment to parse the whole message. Combat mythics were to assemble at their guilds, while non-combat mythics should take cover. With that alert, every mythic in the city now knew about the escaped demon, and they’d be either terrified or preparing to face the creature’s unchecked magic in the hope of killing it. I squirmed, painfully aware of my role in the demon’s escape.
“Anyway,” Amalia said, tossing her phone onto the mattress, “let’s get these forms filled out. Dad made me do his paperwork all the time, so I have the MPD guy’s email memorized.”
We busied ourselves filling out the form while Zylas systemically gutted the television. Amalia scanned the paperwork with her phone, sent it off, then stood and stretched.
“As soon as we get confirmation that he’s inserted your paperwork into the system, you can apply to the Grand Grimoire. You need to move fast or it’ll look suspicious.”
I nodded. “Thanks, Amalia. I would’ve been screwed without your help.”
Her gaze darted to Zylas. “None of this will save you if your demon doesn’t behave as if it’s properly contracted. That part is for you to figure out. I’m going down to see if the front desk guy can recommend any late-night delivery options.”
Giving Zylas a wide berth, she swung the door shut behind her. I sighed, figuring she wanted to get away from the demon more than she wanted to visit the front desk. Unconcerned by her absence, Zylas snapped a chip board out of the TV’s innards and