As you walk through the woods, you spot a light glowing amidst the darkness of the moonless night. Walking towards it, you soon realize that it is a campfire marking the meeting place. Alpha is standing at the edge of the light, looking up at the moon. Though his features are stern, you can tell that he has recovered from the initial shock of Master Zaris' disappearance and the ominous return of the Hakiems Tribe. Shada, in her normal relaxed and friendly pose, sits a few feet from the flame. It seems obvious that they are awaiting you and the others so that talks about how to find the Golden Ones, primarily Master Zaris, can begin.

Shada looks up at your arrival. “Hey, you made it. Good. I guess we can get started, right Keyru?”

Alpha turns away from the moonlight and nods to you. “We should probably wait for a little while before starting any serious discussions, so that more people can arrive. But feel free to ask us any questions until then.” His face grows even more serious than before. “I’ll answer any questions you have about the Hakiems or the Golden Ones, but know this: it is only because as of now, you are declaring yourself an enemy of the Hakiems Tribe. By meeting here, you are saying that you are willing to, and therefore will, fight against the Hakiems, and are therefore willing to become a target of theirs.”

He takes in a deep breath, letting it out in a long sigh. When he looks back to you again, his expression has become one of concern. “If you aren’t up to this, then I suggest you leave now. No one will blame you; this fight is one that I would not wish on anyone…well, except maybe Zaboorak.”


OOC: Yeah. 1st experiment is typing in...what is it, second person view? I think that's right...typing by saying 'you' and stuff. Expect more interesting things as FoG continues.

Anywho, as the title to this part may imply, this next week is probably your best chance to learn about the Hakiems Tribe. You can learn about the Golden Ones as well, but this isn't going to be your best chance...

As a final note, I've said it before and I'm gonna say it one more time: you have ONE WEEK, and no more time than that…unless we don’t get enough people. Then I will consider extending it. But really, I’m sure you all don’t want that to happen. The major action shall begin Aug 9.

Well can i crash here? im tired.

Alpha raises an eyebrow at Link's apparent lack of concern. But Shada just giggles. "Sure you can! We'll wake you up when we're starting!" As you glance at the male Sheikah, you just see him shaking his serious face in surrender to Shada's kind heart.

kasei appears alongside link, then sits down, bored...

It was as if the gloom spat him out; Arco stumbled into an empty spot around the campfire, splatting neatly into a cross-legged sit with the same sound you'd get if you dropped a pile of laundry off a second story. The Bard preens contentedly as he listens to Alpha's warnings, and then, having sorted out the wrinkles in his cloak, stares back at both Alpha and Shada. It's a neat party trick, how he can make one eye go this way and the other go that way and thus stare at multiple people simultaneously.

They're eyes that tell no stories, although you know already what his story is, pretty much. He's already met the Hakiems, already fought them... this is just round two. Some amount of moonlight gets sucked into his grey irises, which seems to say...

"Alright." Arco nods. "Alright," he repeats, and then presses on jiltingly: "So we've decided to search for Zaris first, not the others?"

Grenada slowly makes his way to the camp, after spotting the tiny fire on the horizon. The dark of night shrouded his form, his hood embracing his head, and forcing darkness on his face. His legs forcefully lift him over hill and across plain, determined to make it to the fire before daybreak. Later, he's close enough to make out the the faces of Shada and Alpha, and he jogs up to greet them. With a stunted smile, he responds:

"Hey Alpha, nice fire ya got here..."

His voice conveyed with unhidden sarcasm, he takes a seat fifteen feet from the fire, to Alpha's left. He yawns before shaking his head as if trying to beat the urge to sleep out of his system. Apparently it didn't work as he yawns a second time, so his next move is to start conversation.

"So these Hakiems, about how many high ranking members are there? Or at least, contenders in a fight, and what would be the best way to cripple their operations?"

You see Alpha give both Arco and Grenada a knowing nod as they appear around the fire, almost as if their presence was expected while yours was not. This isn't far from the truth actually; if you had done your homework (but, seriously, who does that stuff anymore? ), you'd know that these were two of the people who battled the Hakiems at the Golden Battle. Now Arco and Grenada - along with Raven and Victor, who have yet to appear - are on the Hakiems' hit list. If nothing else, basic survival instincts would motivate them into joining this team.

Alpha addresses Arco first, as his question was the first asked. "Actually, I'm not sure which we should do. That's probably one of the things we should discuss in this meeting. Much as I want to look for Master," he pauses, but only long enough so you're assured that this really is what he wants to do, "I know that he can take care of himself. The other Golden Ones...we aren't so sure about."

Turning to Grenada, Alpha ponders the question. You see his hand rise to support his chin as he goes deeper into his memories, trying to see what information he can find in the back of his mind. "If memory serves," he finally says, so softly you can hardly hear it, "there are five generals in the Hakiems Tribe. The five strongest members, other than the leader himself, Karunik. Then there's Zaboorak himself..." His voice trails off and if you looked close enough, you could see him shiver - not from the night air, which is relatively warm near the fire, but from fright.

You turn as Shada covers for Alpha. "Contenders in a fight? You mean like how many people are in their organization? Geez...could be anywhere from 10 to 10 million. Nobody really knows their numbers.

"The best way to cripple them? That's an easy one." She flips her trademark braid over her shoulder and begins checking it over, plucking out a few split ends. "There's only one way to cripple them: kill them all." Her flippant, nonchalant tone makes you wonder if she's insane, or just very used to death...

Blank had heard very little of the conversation as he stood on the outskirts of the meeting place. His ears perked at the first audible sentence. "Kill them all." A merry smirk made its way to his tired features as he stepped into the group. Now, Blank had never been a careful person. Some would even say he could be downright clumsy at times. As he stepped towards the fire, he felt his foot step on something cylindrical, possibly a log. Oh no. Not even having time to cry out, the Hylian tumbled into clear sight. There was a moment where he lay there, then stood and brushed himself off as though the embarrassing moment had never happened. Gazing about the meeting place, he eyed the warriors that had gathered. Arco, Grenada, Link, Kasei, Shada, Alpha and himself.

"Hey there," came the greeting, nullified by the grass that spluttered from his mouth as he spoke. Coughing, Blank continued, knowing very well the topic at hand. "So you actually plan on wiping them all out? You'll need a nomad for this escapade!" His face beaming with pride - pride which undoubtedly did not belong on his features - he sat down and made himself comfortable. "I wasn't around for your last major battle against these Hakiems jerks, but I think I know you well enough to keep my sights set on helping you. Although I'm a wanderer, and spend most of my time alone, I know how valued to assistance of allies can be."

Now focusing his attention on Alpha and Shada only, Blank proceeded to ask his only important question. Normally he would never have thought up something that needed answering, but there were so many small questions, and the nomad had easily found a big one. Just as he was about to fire away, it escaped him. He heaved a sigh from his fatigued throat and shook his head, disappointed. Instead, he asked another that had been bothering him. "Do you know any of the Generals' identities, or how to defeat them?"

OOC: And now to go to work. Don't you guys get too far ahead while I'm gone

Lady Rose came to the camp fire. She immediately saw Kasei. Good, someone I know, she thought. Out loud, she said, "I've already met Kasei here, but I do not know the rest of you. My name is Lady Rose Hillmound, but you may drop the 'Lady' part if you want to. It is hardly applicable to me anymore."

OOC: What the-?! Since when has this been up?? Meh, maybe I shouldn't've waited for a link to here from the other topic...

IC: Victor was lost. Well... not really. He knew exactly where he was, he just... didn't know where he was supposed to be. The Bard had already searched most of the field looking for the location of Alpha's little meeting, and when the sun finally dipped behind the mountains in the west and darkness had fallen he gave up his search. So he headed towards the lake shore so he could relax a bit and... plan the next day's search.

It was then that Victor saw the campfire in the distance. He decided that the warmth of a small fire would do him good, so he quickened his pace and moved towards the glow. When he within range, the Bard noticed the many familiar forms huddled around the flames and smiled. The warmth of friends bested any fire's.

Finally reaching the gathering, Victor waved and quietly said "Hello." Though he saw quite a few unfamiliar faces, he decided to leave introductions for later. Instead he took his place by the fire and began to warm his hands, deciding to stay silent and listen to the others rather than asking his own questions...

OOC: Since today, apparently.

IC: Lady Rose saw the new man appear. "Hello," she said. "I don't think we ever met before. I'm Lady Rose Hillmound." She waited for a response.

OOC: Yeah, yeah, I know he wants to be silent, but Lady Rose is the kind of person to make friends with people she's about fight alongside with. That's sort of why she became a general.

"That's notable," says Arco in response to Alpha's answer. "Perhaps we ought to think like the Hakiems, and... imagine who they'd be most likely to go after first." He furrows his brows in concentration and bites his lip. A flick of his eyes acknowledges Grenada's approach.

After a moment of silence, he turns to face Shada, having heard her replies to Grenada.

"Agreed," he says. You notice that, in a disturbingly methodical fashion, he has his dagger in one hand and is chopping single blades of grass one at a time and tossing them into the fire. It's weird, that he's not just cutting them by tufts.

"Kill them all," he echoes, a slight change growing onto his features.. It's like fighting a Ghoma... do you fight the head, the body, the eye, the legs, or even all the little summoned Skulltulas, and in what order? No, just kill them all. It really is very easy if you don't think about it. After all, sure you can kill the head and the body dies, but kill the body and that head's not going anywhere, sure enough. And if you kill both simultaneously...

Arco laughs to himself, the coarse rumble of the Goronic "ho-ho" mixed with the wheedly snigger of a Sheikah. Sometimes, as you'll find, he'll laugh at memories, made so long ago and only now unearthed.

He then notices Blank, and proceeds to size him up carefully... it'd been a while since they last--and first--met. Feeling comfortable doing something he does a lot, Arco... stares. A man with a 100:1 thoughts-to-speech ratio, he realizes that there are quite a few others here that he's either mostly or totally unfamiliar with...

And there's plenty of time to get to know them.

Oh, and Victor, too!

Hi Shada, Kasei, Lady Rose, Blank, Alpha, Victor, Link, Arco... Cloud takes a deep breath. and Grenada.

Cloud was cheerful today. He didn't know why, he just was. Maybe it was in the air, maybe it was the fact that he was at the begginings of a great adventure, or maybe his new socks.

Hey guys! How are all of you doing?

Lady Rose nodded towards Cloud. "I'm glad to see you made it," she said.

When Lady Rose addressed him, Victor decided to come out of his silence and introduce himself. Smiling, he stuck his right hand in the direction of the woman and spoke.

"Hi! I'm Victor, the..."

Noticing Arco, he paused and reconsidered his wording.

"... well, one of the Bards around these parts."