Victor couldn't help but blush when the men began to laugh at him, and was grateful when their leader silenced them. At the end of the explanation, the Bard nodded in understanding, but he still had more questions.

"Why did you summon me, then? Certainly I can be of no help to your organization... And why are there so many monsters around here?"

Unseen by all, the hooded figure is smiling.

I was afraid you would never ask. Your part is very important in our motive. You see, at a certain point in time, every race of this world will be joined in a ceremony that will bring about a great change to our world. At this time, the peace that existed long before the birth of Ganondorf Dragmire will be recreated, and the world will be whole again. There will be no evil, no betrayal, no slaughter. It will be the world that our Goddesses envisioned when they bestowed the Sacred Golden Triangles upon our land. You show great potential as another Hylian representative. How dearly you would be praised if you were to lead the world to its Second Chance, to its second Golden Age.

And your fourth question : The monsters. The Cursed Ones, as we have been calling them. We discovered them when we established this city as our fortress. Little is known about them, but our top scholar believes that they are the dark remains of the casualties of the disaster from centuries ago. We do not know why they attack us, or why they are so foul. The matters are being looked into and researched before the beasts escape from this cavern and destroy Hyrule.

I have been quite vague thus far. If you wish for more detail on any matter I have crossed, just ask. I imagine your thirst for knowledge has yet to be slaked as it is.

As the man spoke, Victor's smile grew wider. To think, he could be responsible in part for the rebirth of Hyrule! As the other man finished, Victor looked rather pleased, that is, until a confused look crossed his face. Realizing that the man could probably see his change in attitude, Victor spoke:

"I'm sorry... it all sounds pretty good, and I'm glad to be a part of it. At least, I think I am. It's just... the Zora by the fountain, and the Goron guard, they made the organization sound so dark. It's... rather hard to decide who to believe. How exactly is your organization going to bring about this peace? Through what methods?"

Through murder, mass suicide and smuggling.

The hooded men around the table begin to laugh again, as the man's voice has a major hint of sarcasm in it. He silences them once more with a wave of his hand.

Ah, so they have made us seem like shadow-mongerers... Excellent. Victor, we are a dark group for certain reasons. Some members, such as Selerovisk the Zora and Zayxin the Goron, have noticed the importance of keeping the motives secret and trusting no one. They are shadowy people, but not all of us are. The Zora has seen harsh times, and the Goron has his own dark past. Most of us do. They are merely ensuring our protection and defining their own personalities. The key word is "Secret."

But you do not need to worry, we do not do anything that harms innocent people or that makes us fit the description of barabaric. Blood is shed, but never is it the blood of the undeserving. At this time, we work mainly to protect our allies and to gather resources and useful necessities.

I trust you will find no traces of evil in our plotting. I am obligated to answer any more questions you may have, so please, find out as much as you need.

"Well then, I suppose there is no harm in joining your group, then! However, I do have one more questions: who are you? I don't think I've really met one person in this whole organization... And so far, you're the first to show me any friendliness since that one Human, and the archer who saved me from Orias and the Cursed Ones. Anyways, you asked me to introduce myself before, so I guess I should do that, shouldn't I?"

The Bard smiled and, fumbling with his chair once more, stood up before the collection of cloaked figures. He made another deep bow and spoke again:

"I, my friends, am Victor, the Bard. I've been around Hyrule for a while now and, as I'm sure you have guessed, I was born and raised here as well. I try my best to fight for the good of Hyrule, and if it means joining your group then so be it! Anyways, I hope to be of service to you as best I can, though that may not be good enough... So! Who are you?"

The man can be heard laughing quietly, although there is nothing funny. It is not the typical menacing laugh that is heard when an evil person has fooled the hero, but more of a jovial recognition of Victor's easygoing attitude.

It is truly an honor to make your acquaintance, Victor. My name is Darizan, second to the leader. The mention of my name will not serve you any real purpose, but I suppose it is important for you to know. Is that it? There was nothing else you were in the dark about?

OOC: Oh noes! Don't tell me Victor's been tricked!

IC: Smiling, Victor saluted Darizan and sat back down in his chair. But, not wanting to lose his chance to ask one more question, the Bard spoke up again quickly:

"Just one last thing, Darizan... what do I do now?"

OOC: Far from it
IC:

Waving to the rest of the cloaked men, Darizan dismisses the meeting, but continues to speak to Victor.

I would suggest you rest. It has been over twenty-four hours since you left the inn in the Hospitailty District. You must be somewhat tired, even after drinking that potion. There is an empty room for you on the sixteenth floor, you may go there whenever you like. Perhaps you would like to meet with some of the others before retiring to your quarters. They can be found on any of the first fifteen floors. The basement is still inaccessable, as are the levels above the sixteenth floor.

Standing and approaching the large door, the second-in-command exits the Summit Hall and disappears into the colossal castle, leaving Victor alone with his thoughts.

Darizan could not have noticed, but he had left a Victor whose mouth was agape. "Si- sixteen fl- floors?!" was all he could think, and he left the room still in a haze. About halfway up the first flight of stairs the Bard shook himself out of his trance and decided to pay a visit to a few of the others first, especially since he wanted to find that archer and thank him. So, as he reached the first floor he looked around for the members' quarters...

The locked door on the first floor remains locked, and the door leading into the lobby has been bolted shut. All that Victor can do is ascend to the second floor. This level is similar to the first floor as far as layout goes. An intersecting series of corridors, with three rooms in total. The doors all look the same, and they are shut. Victor will have no way of knowing who he is to meet inside the chambers until he knocks on a door.

Seeing the closed doors, Victor almost continued up to the next floor so as not to intrude upon anyone's privacy, but he decided to knock instead. Besides, the archer could very well be in one of the rooms. So, choosing the first door to be his first target, the Bard sucked up his fear and knocked, hoping against all hope that it would be the right room...

The door whips open, and standing inside the chamber is the Hylian from the inn. Much like last time, his hood is down and his face and short, spiky black hair are clearly visible. In contrast to the rest of the underground city, his room is well lit and seems cozy enough to pass off as a guest room at North Castle. He jumps a little when seeing Victor at his door.

It's you! Ha, I was thinking that the Cursed Ones had gotten you out there, and then Darizan or Wolfeye would be all like "Why didn't you warn him, Jett?" And that would be terrible, since I did warn you. Man, am I ever glad you showed up. That Orias, he almost destroyed you. You'd be wasted in a battle with his superior, no joke. So, I bet you're looking for that guy that saved your life, aren't you? Fifteenth floor, if you want to see him. You might even drop in on Zayxin or Selerovisk, for "old times sake." No? Oh well, man. I'm tired, I'll see you later.

The door closes and is latched inside, and Jett the Human can be heard jumping into his bed. There are still two doors on this floor that remain untouched. Victor has gained news that the archer esides on the fifteenth floor. Jett mentioned the Goron and the Zora as well.

Victor smiled as he say the Human again, but before he could get a word in the door closed. Still, the Bard had gained at least some confidence, and so he did not hesitate to open the second door on that floor, wanting to get to know everyone he possibly could...

A curse can be heard after Victor knocks on the door. It swings open, and standing inside is a man with dark grey hair that stops at his shoulders. A thin scar runs down the side of his face, and his deep brown eyes seem to indicate that he has seen many deaths. Althogu hhis hair is grey, he seems to be quite young, perhaps in his mid-thirties. Just as Jett had been startled, this man is surprised to see the bard.

Well, well, well. Victor. Didn't expect you'd be coming along tonight. Guess I owe you one, your appearance here delayed my field assignment for a few extra days. Name's Derix. There, we've been "formally introduced." So what do you want?

"Oh, uhh, well... your welcome! No, no, I'm just trying to get to know everyone that I can. Sorry to bother you. G'night!"

Smiling, Victor backed away from the man's door and let him return to his sleep. Turning to the remaining door, the Bard stopped a minute to yawn. He was tired, and so he decided to make this one the last for tonight- that is, not counting the archer's room on the fifteenth floor. He still had to thank him for saving his life twice. And so, walking up to the third and final door on this floor, Victor knocked...