Collectors Guild of Mechandre

The Collectors Guild of Mechandre (Me Shu-sul: Me Shu Lan do Gwan Pakdae /mɛ ʃu læn do gwæn pækda/; Vieurais: Chantille d'allassants de Mechandre /ʃɑ̃ti:l dalasɑ̃ də mɛʃɑ̃dʁə/, commonly known as the Guild is amongst members, is an organisation based in Mechandre. The society predates written record, as is the case with nearly all organisations that perform the task of memory collection. It received a royal charter from Han We pak-Jin Soo in 722, following the events of the famous King's Seige. As such, the Guild has an exclusive right and duty to perform the task of extracting memories from the departed, though it has extended its own remit outside of that narrow scope of its initial obligation.

The Guild is governed by the Council, which is chaired by the Guilds Master, Chuk Wa il-Ji Yeon. The remaining members of the council are made up of the heads of department, the Second, and a secretary. On rare occasions, the Council has permitted an exceptional member to be elevated to their ranks but this is an extremely infrequent occurrence that few dare to even aspire to. The Guild is extremely secretive about its methods and its true size.

Since its royal chartership, the Guild has been headquartered at the Grey House in central Sunpac City.

Recruitment
Recruitment by the guild is typically undertaken by a handful of dedicated recruiters, though some collectors have been known to bring students into the fold under their own initiative. The guilds have a particular preference for recruiting collectors and archivists from the poor orphans of the world. It is their believe that recruiting children from the orphanages instills in them a sense of loyalty towards those that rescued them from an awful life. Further, those without familial ties have one less point of origin for potential conflicts of interest. Lastly, it is held that training people from a young age is the most cost-effective method, as it allows for a longer period of service under the guild in exchange for the same cost in training them, which yields greater cost-effectiveness, and allows employees to acquire a greater level of experience and skill across the length of their career. As such, the guild recruiters tend to visit the orphanages once a month, and try to recruit children in the 9-13 age range.

Collectors are appointed from those who have successfully passed through training and display aptitude for the memory-recovery portions of the training. Though not everyone who is trained attains this level of skill, they are still the most numerous of the graduates from the program.

Archivists are rarely recruited into the role directly from training, though a handful of especially talented freshly trained students may be deemed ready for this task and elect to pursue this path; however, it is more common for those who take on this role to come from established backgrounds as collectors of some experience and note.

Not just anyone can be a collector or an archivist. It requires a particular affinity for the process that the majority of people simply do not possess. In recruiting for these roles, recruiters will make possible candidates take a simple test. A successful applicant will be able to detect the moment at which a purposefully-poisoned rat or mouse passes on to death without being able to see it, even if it has yet to stop moving. A person who cannot perform this task lacks the attunement to life that is required of the role, but may be offered work in the roles below.

Attendants are either recruited from those who were found to not be capable enough for work as a collector, or from people applying for positions with the guild as support staff. Further, all trainees work for the Attendants during their schooling.

It is common for guards to be drawn from a variety of walks of life, though many are poor and lured in by the promise of a decent wage. Mercenaries are common applicants for the position and, historically, mercenary orders have been contracted to provide their services in guarding collectors. Facility security has always been dealt with internally. Street fighters and ruffians are common group of applicants. Some are looking for a way to escape their poor lot in life, others are simply looking for a chance to legally flex their muscles. Such people are often disappointed.

Support staff are drawn from all sorts of life, and apply either for specific positions, or are tested for aptitude and assigned a role based on the results.

Training
Training for those intended to be collectors is an intensive process. Trainees live in the guild hall cloisters and are involved in work or studies six days a week. Students are taught to deal with the stages of grief in both themselves and others, and are taught the history of the guilds. In addition to these theoretical topics, they address several practical topics, include the processes of memory collection and attendancy. Both topics are covered in considerable depth, with students working two shifts weekly for the attendancy. Archive work is covered in some basic depth, and those who progress directly in the Archives after completing their studies are given at least one further year of intensive study in this field before being deemed qualified.

Memory collection is studied at both a theoretical and practical level. Trainees master this art by extracting the memories from animals that are to be slaughtered for guild meals, and on mice and rats caught by the guild’s cats. If the cats are found to be dying, they too are used. These memories are more simplistic, less numerous, and less clearly divided than human memories, and are therefore easier to handle and practice upon. They also hold no value, and so are of no concern if lost.

Overall, the training process lasts at least three years, though training can be extended to up to five years for slower learners. Beyond this time, the guild simply gives up and the person must serve as an attendant or support staff for a period to cover their expenses before being allowed to decide whether to retire or stay on in their role.

Trainee
Trainees are new arrivals to the guild, originally taken on to be trained in the fields of attendancy, collection and sequencing. Most of their training focuses on the two former fields, thought the last is touched upon in a basic level of depth.

Collector
The collector is the first of the three core professions, and the most prominent in the public consciousness and perception. They possess a trait known as Attunement, which able to perceive a subtle change in people that signals they are at death’s door, and must go to those people and remove from them the final spark of life and extract their memories. In exchange, they offer the person a chance to leave a final letter to be delivered to a person of their choosing, and collect a last will and testament from them, to be actioned by the guild.

Archivist
The second of the three core professions, the job of an archivist is to take the memories obtained by a collector and undertake work to increase their usefulness. This typically involves making the sequence of events more cogent and to improve the quality of the recollections. Sequencers also maintain the archives of memories, and are responsible for the creation of duplicates where necessary. High ranking sequencers are also involved in the political intrigues of the guild, filtering through the recollections of people of importance to extract information that is of value to the guild.

Attendant
Attendants are the final of the three core professions of the guild. Their job is to execute the last wills of decedents, and deliver their last letters and token gestures that they wish to have enacted. They also work with collectors and the Order of Physicians in dealing with suicides at the guild hall.

Guard
The guard’s job is typically divided into two parts, though some guards are assigned to only one of the two roles. The first role is to guard the facilities owned by the guild, including the general perimeter of the guild halls, and the memory storage archives. The second role is to accompany collectors in their visits to decedents in case of violent resistance to their presence, or the possibility of an attack by the member of the public.

Support staff
The support staff are as varied as the people that make up their ranks. It includes everything from recruiters and accountants, to cleaners, to cooks and farmers.

Uniform
All employees of the guild, with the exception of guards, are provided with a standard day wear that is comprised of an ankle-length, black cassock with a high collar. The buttons are black. In addition, each member is issued black leather sandals, a black cowl, and a black fascia that hangs to the knee. This uniform is to be worn at all times that the member is on duty.

Trainees, collectors and sequencers are issued the above uniform, but provided with black gloves, a pair of thin, needle-like tools for their own defence, and a bone-white, expressionless mask. The mask and gloves are to be worn whenever the member is in a publicly accessible area of the guildhall, or out on the streets. On a duty visit, it is only to be removed when the host has been isolated from all others. The same is true of the gloves.

Those performing Attendant duties need not wear their masks or gloves, though there is no rule obligating them not to do so, and some elect to wear them all the same.

Guards are provided with a black scale mail tunic that falls to the knees, along with black scale mail vambraces, greaves and a pointed black helmet with a grey plume. For offence, each is given a straight-bladed double edged sword that is traditional to the country.

Affiliations
The Guild retains connections to the faith and the Order of Physicians. The trio take advantage of the shared benefits of their cooperation. Bodies of those euthanised at the Grey House are donated to the Order for training and research into anatomy. The Church, in exchange for donations and good publicity from the Guild, does its best to help correct public negative sentiment against the guild. The collaboration is sufficiently close that the Grey House is connected by underground tunnels to the Cathedral and the headquarters of the Order of Physicians.

Public perception
The Guild is not a well-liked organisation. Their insular nature, coupled with public lack of understanding of their work has bred something of a fearful and suspicious perception of the organisation amongst the unenlightened public, who often view them as killers and accuse them of distastefully profiting from the suffering of others. The intensity of anti-Guild sentiment runs the gamut from simple dislike, to fear, and even to violent or murderous intent. In this regard, the Guild is a victim of its own success. As a result of their being few-to-no incidents highlighting what happens when they do not do their work, the public has all but forgotten. The consequences have largely been relegated to myth and tales to scare children.

The Guild are equally unpopular in the circles of nobility. Many of the noble classes fear and distrust the guild for the power they amass through memories and secrets. This dislike is often in addition to the fear bred of ignorance that is often seen in the poorer classes. Many nobles have tried to learn more about the guild, requesting or demanding tours and explanations that are, without exception, declined. It has come to the point where, in publicly accessible parts of their headquarters, staff will say nothing at all, unless it is to direct someone to a private chamber where words can be exchanged freely.

Significant members

 * Guilds Master - Chuk Wa il-Ji Yeon
 * Second - Sul Mai pak-Jin Soon
 * Head of Archiving - Yeon Bai il-Dan
 * Head of Collection - Yeon Wa pak-Kang
 * Head of Training - Yoon Wang pak-Gan
 * Head of Attendancy - Dal Ban pak-Dae
 * Head of Support Staff - Woo Jin il-Daili
 * Commander of the Guard - Han Ba pak-Gweon San
 * Secretary - Chuk Han pak-Kai