In this world there are two constants; light and shadow.

It was under the silent protection of the twin deities and their formless mother, referred to as the Creator. But all was not always peaceful.

A great schism formed between relations of humanity and monsters who found it difficult to live in harmony. That is, until 1000 years ago, when a great calamity known as the Sky Beast appeared and began eating away at any life that came into contact with its many arms.

Humanity began to decline and, in a last resort, they depended on a select four who bore the power to use mysterious stones called the Keystones. They believed the bearers’ powers could rid the world of evil, whom humanity believed was the Lord of All Monsters.

But they found out much too late that the Monster Lord was not at fault for the Sky beast, and they failed their mission. In that moment of desperation, the Creator showed herself, defeating the Sky Beast before making herself scarce once more.

Since that time, the Monster Lord took it upon himself to insure the preservation of Humanity as he felt responsible for all that transpired. And since, his legacy lives on with the many generations of Monster Lords after him.

And so, this brings us to now…

The people believed in a myth that the twin deities live amongst them in forms they would never know. The myth states that the Shadow Deity exists inside of an ageless woman named Capryce, who lives in a famous manor in the heart of the Kingdom of Jaune.

As for the Light Deity…

It’s said they went into hiding ever since, and no one living knows what they may look like now.

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A portly dog girl sits eeriely still on the floor of her dim bedroom, staring blankly at the single color tone on her TV in some kind of strange trance.

The door to the room creaks open, breaking the darkness with light from the hallway as a horned girl casts a shadow in front of it.

“Gome, I’m back,” the horned girl spoke out in a familiar calm tone. She looked over at the TV as she walked inside of the room, noticing that it’d gone completely blue due to inactivity.

“How long ya been sittin’ there dude?”

“Hu—wha? Oh. Hey Kiki,” the dog girl finally snapped out of it. “When did you even leave?”

“Like 2 hours ago. Don’t you remember? I even said something to you about it.”

“Oh. I must not have heard ya. Where’d you go?”

“The store. We ran out of bread and some other stuff,” Kiki paused and let out a sigh before continuing, “Gome, you gotta get out more. You’re starting to lose it.”

“Ah, yeah you’re right.”

“Hm? You’re agreeing with me and not whining?”

“I dunno. I just feel kinda weird lately. Like, something’s not right anymore.”

Kiki didn’t say anything. She and her friend Gomenne were close enough to be family, so she knew when something was up. Although this time she couldn’t pin-point exactly what it was.

“Kiki. I know you just got back, but let’s go out to get something to eat. I forgot to eat today,” Gomenne says as she grabs her jacket and bag.

“Okay,” Kiki replied.

Without another word, the two then headed out.

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Gomenne was quiet the whole trip to their local diner, about a-few-blocks-away walk from their apartment. They sat at their usual booth tucked away in one of the corners of the restaurant and sat quietly as they waited for their food.

Kiki was the first to break the silence. “Gome, is something up? You’ve been awfully quiet.”

“Y’know,” Gomenne started, her voice sounding dry, “I think we should try starting a guild together.”

Kiki looked surprised. “What’s got you thinkin’ about that?”

“I dunno, man. Kinda tired of everyday being the same. It sounds kinda fun. Plus, it’s an easy way to gain influence as the Light Deity again.”

“That’s weird coming from the laziest girl I know.”

“Shut up.”

“I mean it, though. Starting a guild’s not something you can want and then slack on, y’know? You gotta put real effort into it. ‘Sides, people aren’t exactly gunna wanna believe someone like you is the Light Deity.”

“I know, I know. But I’m really serious about this.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Really really?” Kiki pressed.

“Kiki, I’m serious.”

“Alright, alright. So what’s the plan?”

Just then, a waiter came out to hand them their food. The both of them had ordered a their house-special burger, a burger with a thicker beef patty than most fast food places and their “secret sauce”, with large-size fries and a soft drink.

“Enjoy your meal,” the waiter said dryly before leaving the two girls alone to eat their meal. Kiki thanked the waiter.

“Right, so,” Gomenne began right after taking a bite into her burger, “I’ve been researching this for a while. We gotta get four people to join up with us before we can register as an official guild. If we ask Star she’ll say yes regardless, because it’s Star.”

“Don’t people in a guild have to be able to fight and stuff?” asked Kiki, “Y’know, ‘cause of her shell, she can’t really do too much in a scrap.”

“There are plenty of people in other guilds who don’t do dirty work. Besides, Star isn’t completely helpless. She could come in handy being around.”

“Right. Still, that leaves one other person,” Kiki noted before taking a bite of her burger, continuing with her mouth full, “You gunna ask Cappy to join up?”

Gomenne had been sipping her cola at the same time. She swallowed hard, letting out a cough and clearing her throat before speaking, “H-hell no! We’re not letting cats join our guild. Besides, ain’t she like supremely busy being famous anyway?”

Kiki then points out, “She makes time to visit Star still, y’know.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Gomenne huffed. “I’m just getting tired of relying on her help. I really just want some independence. The more people I can get to depend on me, the stronger I’ll become. Just like that stupid cat.”

Gomenne paused briefly, her voice becoming a bit somber, “Still, I wish Cloudia was around. She would make it so much easier to get approved.”

She grabbed a couple of fries and stuffed them into her mouth before continuing, “Guess we gotta look through the classifieds, as much as I’d hate to get involved with randos.”

The two of them then focused on eating their meal for a few minutes before Gomenne broke the silence once again, “Tomorrow, let’s get Star and go quest-hunting at the community center downtown. But I ain’t doing any crap newbie quests like killing rats and slimes in the sewers. The quicker we make a name for ourselves, the quicker we’ll get noticed and people will warm up to the idea of joining. Sound good?”

“Yeah. I can handle pretty much anything,” Kiki said with a smirk mostly hidden behind her tall jacket collar.

The two girls finished up their meal, leaving a decent tip before leaving the restaurant heading back home.

Though this was the beginning of their journey into the unknown, the two friends didn’t sweat overthinking about what the future may bring for them. No matter the trials they would have to face they would do it together.

And little did they know that a great mystery would soon land right into their lap...