The dormitories on this level are labelled in the order "Myst Wolfeye," "Solstrem Maverick" and "Darizan Neo-Dragmire." Myst's is the one of the left. Before Victor gets the chance to knock, a hooded man - undoubtedly the Wolfeye that people had mentioned in the duration of the bard's stay - pokes his head out of the dormitory and glances left and right. Locking his sight on Victor, he steps into the corridor and crosses his arms.

Victor Vir... #49. It is indeed a pleasure to be meeting you. I apologize for being unable to greet you at the appropriate time, namely your first arrival. The others have told me that you and your friend hold great potential. This is good.

Myst's face is shrouded by his hood. Most of the other alliance members had revealed their facial features upon meeting with the bard, but the Sheikah refuses to.

I must also apologize for concealing my face. You see, I am suffering from a slight plague. I am only kept alive through Maverick's magic and Lara's incredible "Muse Therapy." My bitter disease scars are not to be shown.

Yawning, the Sheikah steps back towards his dormitory. He reopens his door and gestures for Victor to enter.

But it is late. I have a power to bestow upon you. Come, step into my chamber.

Victor raised an eyebrow at the Sheikah's strange traits, but was glad that he chose not to show his scars. He was, after all, a bit squeamish. So, smiling and entering the room, the Bard decided to make conversation.

"This power you're gonna give me... is it this 'dark power' I've heard about?"

OOC: I'll be leaving in a few minutes for a few hours, so you may not get a reply too soon, Blank. Then again, I might still be here when you post, too.

Myst chuckles at Victor's inquisitive nature. Stepping into his dormitory, which is twice the size of Victor's and much better furnished, the hooded Sheikah points Victor in the direction of a floating grey orb in the center of the room.

Indeed. With this "dark power" you will be endowed with several unique traits. No "Darkness Poisoning" as we call it will hound you. Essentially, this is the drainage of sanity, health, and other necessary characteristics that are often lost through darkness. Because of this, the dark power is usable only in this underground realm and other locations infected by the Cursed Ones, though we are not sure if such places exist.

You will be enabled the use of techniques foreign to your race and class. It is absurd for a bard such as yourself to learn Elemental Explosion, but with the right training and exposure to the dark power, you can attain the ability. Your physical and mental statistics will also increase. Yes, it is an extraordinary power that we use. It will come in handy for your mission.

Now, Victor, step into the light.

Victor gulped and hesitated a moment. Everyone in the organization said that the dark power was harmless, without any kind of nasty side effects. But, if it comes from the Cursed Ones somehow, then can it really be that good? It was a big decision in the Bard's eyes, since 'stepping in to the light' meant giving himself up to this dark power...

Still, it would only work in the cavern itself. He thought back to the fight with Orias and remembered how weak he had been. Perhaps the dark power was just what he needed. So, making up his mind, Victor nodded at Wolfeye and stepped towards the orb...

As the hazy grey light consumes his body, it is all over for Victor. The images of thousands of nightmares and dark deeds of the world come flowing into his mind, filling every crevice of his head with darkness, cleansing him of all weaknesses. The hideous beasts that can be seen in the nightmares continue to burn him. One is clearly Ganon, the great King of Evil, setting fire to a small village. Thousands of innocent people are running in every direction. In another, the hideous form of the Intelligent One floats in front of him.

Myst can not be seen anymore. The room disappears in a blinding flash and is surrounded by darkness. Victor is sent spinning in every direction, terror and malice filling every square inch of his body.

And then it ends.

The darkness lifts, and Victor emerges in a small wooded area. The trees are all alive, but surely the bard is still underground. A light fog hazes the clearing. The grass is soft and the air is fresh, but there are no signs of wildlife. Myst appears out of nowhere and pulls his hood down. Rather than a disgusting, hideous scarred and diseased face, it is the face of a calm, healthy Sheikah. He smiles and rests his hand on a large deku tree, and speaks casually.

It was not enjoyable, was it?

Still cowering from the 'trip', the now peaceful surroundings did nothing to calm Victor's nerves. His eyes twitched in every direction, waiting for the terror to continue, and after a while he manages to focus them on Wolfeye, who had just asked his question. The Bard wanted to yell, to scream, to run away from the man and the organization and return to the outside world, to Hyrule, his home. He wanted to yell at Wolfeye for making him go through the experience, for making him accept the dark power. He wanted to run away to his dormitory and hide in a dark corner, isolate himself from the world until the bad thoughts went away. He wanted to do all these things at once, somehow, someway.

Yet all he could manage was to shut his eyes and nod slowly...

Myst changes his smile to a serious expression after receiving his answer. Taking his hand off the tree, the Sheikah approaches Victor.

That is to be expected. Every member of this organization felt the same way. One even went so far as to attack me afterwards. I believe it was Radley, although it may have been Gavin. Ah well, it matters not. Never again will you have such a terrifying nightmare. Or so we should hope. But cheer up, Victor. You hold an excellent power now. Practise using it, and you will far outweigh the skills of the ordinary surface dwellers.

About this forest... it is a secret place that no Intelligent One can ever access. We used the last traces of the "Light Power" to seal it from the darkness outside. Consider this forest to be the backyard of the castle. That is all it was in ages past, we believe. You should be able to access it for peace of mind whenever you want.

Now, about your assignment. You and five other - your choice - will head into the Hospitality District after you rest. I suggest taking a variety of different classed people, for safety.

Feeling a bit calmer now, Victor opened his eyes and had a look around. It would be helpful, having a place to escape to. Especially a place free of Intelligent Ones. But, as much as he would've wanted to stay in this place forever, he had a mission to attend to still. He wasn't as up to it as he had been before, but the Bard knew it was now his duty to go through with it. So, finally able to find his voice, he spoke to Wolfeye.

"I can take any five people I want?"

Victor already had a few people in mind, but he would need to return to the castle to find them. Which reminded him...

"By the way, how do I get out of this place?"

Myst laughs, pointing to his head and gesturing to the surrounding area.

There is no real escape, nor is there an entrance. You just have to think about coming and going, and you will be transported here. It will not work in the presence of a Cursed One, however, so you will be unable to come here if you are in a battle.

The old Sheikah leans against a tree and puts on an expression of deep thought. In a dim flash of light, he disappears.

Nodding and closing his eyes again, Victor focused his thoughts on his dormitory. (OOC: Just to speed things up a bit...) In another dim flash of light, he was back inside the castle and in front of his dormitory door. A slight feeling of queasiness from the trip overtook the Bard, and he waited a few seconds for it to pass before entering his room.

Once inside, he found a pad of paper, a quill, and some ink in his satchel. Victor then proceeded to jot down a list of names on the parchment:

"Kessler
Eyra
Derix
Jett
Thespin"

These were the people he wanted as his team of five for the mission to the hospitality district. So, folding the paper into one of his pockets, the Bard headed out of his room and towards the stairwell once more. Down he went, to the 15th floor to meet with Thespin and Kessler. He knocked on Thespin's door first...

After Victor knocks on the solid door, there is a moment or two of silence. Finally, just as it seems that Thespin is not at home, the portal creaks open and the bard appears in the doorway. Stretching, he glances into the corridors of the fifteenth floor to see if Victor is the only man at his door.

Ugh... You woke me up, Victor. Great payment for saving your life. Anyway, what do you need?

OOC: Did I mention that I'd be gone for most of the day?

IC: Suddenly donning an angry look on his face, Victor pointed accusedly at the archer.

"Saving my life?! Orias nearly KILLED me a little while ago! Strike that, he DID kill me, until Selerovisk revived me! Some 'savior' you are!"

Glad that he had let go of his anger finally, the Bard reached up and rubbed at his temples, sighing heavily.

"Look, Tristan told me to recruit members for a mission to the Hospitality District. Gonna look for some Stones of Curse. Are you in, or out?"

Thespin clutches his heart for the duration of Victor's enraged outburst, jolted awake by the sudden expression. Listening to his fellow bard's plight, he nods and leans against the door frame, yawning.

Fine, fine. I wasn't going to be doing anything better tomorrow anyway. Just... wake me up last. For your own personal safety. I can be grumpy if I'm awoken from my important sleep. That reminds me...

The Trinian reaches for his quiver that is hanging from a nail beside his door. Just as he is extracting an arrow, he laughs and shoves it back in place.

I'm just kidding, Victor! I won't kill you. Hell, I saved you two out of four times already, it would be damn shame to have to put you down myself. Sure, I'll come along. Come get me in the morning, when you're ready.

With that, the door closes and the archer's body collides with the mattress in his dormitory. In less than three seconds, a low snoring sound can be heard drifting lazily through his room.

Nodding with satisfaction, Victor crossed Thespin's name of his list and returned it to his pocket. Next up was Kessler, who happened to live on the same floor. As he moved towards the next dorm, the Bard could hear the archer's snoring, and was reminded how much hw wanted to get some rest himself. He shook himself out of his daze, however, and knocked on Kessler's door.

Kessler answers the door almost instantly. His eyes are wide and he appears to be very, very tired. In his hands he holds his glasses, polishing them on his clothing, which appear to be ordinary enough (a simple jerkin and regular pants). It is the first time Victor has caught a glimpse of what anyone from this organization would look like in an ordinary situation. Kessler places the glasses on his face, but still has to squint just to see who is at his door. Expressing slight impatience, the ranger asks Victor what he wants.

Victor? You're... you're showing up at quite the hour, aren't you? Well, I'm up now... What can I do for you?