No.

The young mage, although thorughly tired and deranged from lack of sleep, almost laughs. His ears perk at the mention of a mission, and his posture becomes somewhat straighter. It is as if the thought of a good assignment is all Jett needs to stay awake.

Just kidding. I'd be happy to come along. Kick some scummy Intelligent Ones out of our home and steal their prized possessions? I'm definitely in, Victor. You didn't even have to ask, you had me at "mission."

"Heh, OK, well, I'll come pick you up in the morning. G'night..."

Still chuckling to himself, Victor waved goodbye to Jett and climbed up the remaining three floors to his own dormitory. Happy that he was finally done recruiting people, the Bard opened his door and rushed in, collapsing on his bed and instantly falling asleep...

... only to wake up to the thunderous pounding of Zayxin hammering the door with his massive Goron hands hours later. For the third day in a row, Victor has been rudely awakened by the surly Goron. The entire room seems to vibrate during the fierce banging on the tenderized wooden door. It would not be surprising if the entire frame collapsed and sent the door crashing to the floor.

Barrrd! BARRRD! Get up, therrre arrre five people waiting forrr you in the courrrtyarrrd. Get yourrr boots, gloves and cloak on and get down therrre.

All signs of Zayxin's presence disappear. The Goron descends the stairs to his own dormitory for whatever business he might have.

Stirring at the sound of the Goron's pounding, Victor struggled to open his tired eyes. That is, until he realized that it was time for the mission. It was then that he hastily got out of bed and began dressing in the organization's uniform, then quickly washing up before heading out of his dorm.

Down the stairs he went, until he finally reached the lobby, where he then exited to the courtyard to meet the rest of the team...

Standing in the courtyard is Victor's chosen group of allies.

Jett, with his staff and unique magic abilities. Thespin, with his delicate bow and racial music talents. Kessler, armed with an interesting Boomerang of an odd foreign texture and a bright, logical mind. Derix, with his needlepoint rapier and incredible agility. And Eyra, with her ancient Kokiri Sword and years of experience.

The party is a decent group of warriors, consisting of four vagabonds, one scholar and one grunt. As Victor steps into the courtyard, all eyes stare at him, waiting for him to make at least some kind of brief announcement.

Standing before the waiting group, Victor seemed to freeze up. He had never been much of a leader, but their staring eyes made him realize that he would have to become one soon. So, folding his arms behind his back, the Bard began to pace back and forth before the group, making the announcement he knew they expected.

"As you know, you five are gathered here today to go on a mission to the Hospitality District, in search of the stones of curse. I'm not behind this mission, of course, but it was Tristan and Maverick who thought it up. I was told to recruit five others for the mission, and, well, here you are."

Victor smiled and continued.

"Now, I have no idea why they told me to choose the team. I have the least experience of all of you, and I know less about this place. And I know for a fact that I am no leader. So, though I doubt any of you really do, don't think of me as the 'leader' of this group. We are all equal allies in this mission; no one person will lead another..."

Stepping towards the group, the Bard unsheated his dagger and grinned once more.

"Unless anyone has any questions, let's head out, shall we?"

There is a moment of silence. Derix pipes up from the back of the group, a tone of sarcasm laced into his words. In the way he says it, he is obviously joking around with the bard.

You really think we'd ever follow your orders? Heh, you'd get us all killed.

Witty outbursts aside, the party turns towards the gatehouse and exits the castle grounds. The journey across the amazing connector bridge is a safe one, and they are not subjected to any threats in the duration of the walk.

The Hospitality District is an entirely different story. From every direction, a thin fog engulfs surroundings and makes it difficult for anyone to see more than five feet ahead of them. To make matters worse, the terrible hissing and bone crushing noises seem to be hanging in the air at every point. Faint and quiet, but threatening nonetheless. The group prepares their weapons for the worst case scenario: a battle with a Cursed One, or worse, an Intelligent One, as they attempt to navigate the hazy District.

OOC: Didn't give me much to go with there, eh, Blank?

IC: Seeing the ominous fog suddenly surround the group, Victor joined the rest in readying his weapon. He was reminded of his first day in the cavern, where the fog was also prominent. The Bard began to tremble slightly at the terrible sounds around them, but he made an effort to stop; he didn't want to look frightened in front of the others. So, sighing heavily, he spoke in as clear a voice as he could muster.

"Shall... shall we continue onwards?"

OOC: I have to give you very little to work with, so that Victor can actually be part of the mission

IC:

A chilling wind brushes through the District. The unexplainable breeze could never have made its way into the cavern, and so there are few reasonable explanations. Eyra is the first to notice the wind, and the first to react. Her being a thief, and thieves having quicker reflexes than most, she is able to prepare for it in an instant.

Everyone, down!

The others fall flat on their fronts as a sheet of icicles darts at them from nowhere, narrowly avoiding a sure death. There is little time to react before the group is back on their feet and scurrying in every direction. Jett grabs Victor's arm and drags him away from the spot as a searing bolt of lightning shoots towards him.

Victor, get ready to fight. No monster is capable of magic like this. We're in the presence of an Intelligent One.

Struggling to his feet after having been yanked down by Jett, Victor looked around to see everyone scrambling. Taking Jett's advice, he assumed a fighting stance, but was still a little confused. So he turned to Jett...

"An Intelligent One? Already?"

... then scanned the fog, searching for any sign of the fiends.

"How are we supposed to fight them with all this fog...?"

Jett is close enough for Victor to see his entire figure through the mist. His face expresses a deep look of frustration and concern. He shakes his head and ducks low, preparing to dart towards the nearest escape path.

I know, it doesn't make sense. Normally, big villains like these don't show their ugly faces until the end of the mission. Like last time. I doubt we stand much chance right now, especially with this damn fog surrounding us. Victor, we'll just have to escape to the core of the District.

The mage jumps from his low position and hurtles across the Hospitality District's entrance, heading for the grouping of inns that Victor had seen upon his arrival days before. Behind him, the shadows of four others scurry in the same direction, expecting Victor to follow suit. Just as the last of them escapes, a storm of bright flames bursts in midair, sending a shower of red sparks and embers in every direction.

Watching Jett and the other four silhouettes escape further into the district, Victor began to sprint after them towards the abandoned inns. As the sparks began falling around him, the Bard ducked lower and did his best to shield his head with his arms as he ran after the rest of the group, hoping to reach them before the Intelligent One could reach him...

Leaving the shower of sparks, lightning and ice behind them, the search party made their way safely to the first section of the Hospitality District. Along with this temporary safety is the disappearance of the fog altogether. With no signs of the Intelligent One in pursuit, the group is free to search this area. Derix steps onto the veranda of an antiquated tavern, almost falling as the wood gives way beneath him. He looks to the rest of the group.

Guess we're safe for now. May as well get looking. Eyra, you and Kessler should check the inn. Thespin and Jett can search through that cafe across the street, and I'll take Victor into the tavern to help in there.

As the others pair up and head to the designated areas, Derix draws his deadly rapier and prods the tavern door open, peaking inside and preparing for an ambush. Not seeing any immediate threats, he steps inside and gestures for Victor to stay low and follow.

Nodding and readying his dagger again, Victor waved goodbye to the others, then ducked low once more and followed Derix into the darkness of the Tavern. Suddenly, a puzzled look crossed his face, and he whispered to Derix:

"What could we possibly find here in the Tavern?"

Derix turns around quietly and squints to see Victor's figure in the darkness of the the tavern. His eyes aching from the strain he produces an old lantern from the bar counter he is standing at and ignites it, casting a suitable amount of light into the room. Overturned chairs and tables litter the tavern, and there are many skeletons scattered on the floor. The last bar fight of the city's era. Derix looks at the old corpses and quickly diverts his eyes.

They must've been drinking their worries away when the disaster struck. Can't blame 'em. Inevitable death isn't meant to ensure sanity. Now then, there's good reason to look everywhere. I was told that you found one of the Stones in a secret compartment in a demolished Training HQ. So who's to say we won't find one here?

Derix turns from the bard and proceeds to the area behind the bar counter and pushes away what appears to be the skeletal figure of a bartender. He begins to open up every niche, cupboard and compartment possible, searching his best for the treasure.