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Link Hyrule Castle Town is massive. Guarded by thick stone walls near the countryside as well as a deep moat, the city is clearly the biggest urban center in Hyrule, or at least, for the Hylians. There's markets set up both inside and outside the walls, travelling traders of all sorts of races - large round rockmen, tall blue-skinned fishmen, round-eared humans, and then the pointed-eared Hylians.

Inside the city, the buildings all have blue rooftops. There's several districts, like any city - the entertainment district, with its various minigame shops and the like or things to watch and do such as shows and travelling performers; the business district, with shops and restaurants; the residential district with houses.

In the middle of all of these buildings is the Central Plaza, with a massive stylized fountain in the middle, holding a statue of Triforce-stylized wings. Most market stalls are over here, looking for the foot traffic.

The castle is further back, on the opposite side of the walls, past the fountain. It's imposing, and feels protective to the locals. It's /absolutely massive/, with white walls, pearly gates, and a large guard detail. Spires pillar into the sky. The guards check anyone who approach to see if they should actually be there.

The city is, honestly, crowded. It's a major population center, and guards walk down the streets, protecting important intersections. They glance more at Noticeable Foreigners, and especially at non-humans, but they don't harass anybody.

Link is here in the central plaza, dressed in his green tunic and cap, with the sword given to him by Tetra on his back. He's standing near a manhole out of the way of the crowds, who have already gawked at him earlier. More accurately, he's kneeling down, trying to listen to it. As if he hears something down there. He's literally probably about to enter the manhole and crawl down into the sewers if nobody stops him.
Raphael Cousteau A man with an obnoxious grin on his face, long black coat, and rainboots jogs into the town.
> Alright, what's here for me to care about?
INLAND EMPIRE: The desert sun burns hot, the lone tree the only shade and succor. Tend it.
There's a headshake, but nonetheless. Direction is direction, and thus far it's never hurt to just follow the voices in his head. And so, Link finds a hand clapped on his shoulder, from a man with an interminable *Expression* on his face.

"Hey, is that some policework you're doing there?" Raphael says to the Hero of Courage. "Maybe you oughta bring a cop."
Raziel 'The city stretched across the horizon, in all directions except behind me.  The gates massive, and the stone of the walls and the castle pristine.  This city was made to feel protective, and to its credit did its job well.  However, I was here to discuss a storm on the horizon that could wash over this land, and threaten to challenge the safety of these walls.'

Raziel was dressed in what might be considered very well done, but mostly concealing armor.  Fabric is used to cover the areas where the skin would be shown, as well as his head covered in more of the same.  Only two glowing blue eyes could be seen underneath.  His hands are three claws, slightly bonier than they should be.  In fact, there was an overall...thinness to Raziel that was just slightly off.  His shoes ended in revealing cloven claws, he was obviously not human, but what he was was hidden.

Passing by the Hero of courage, he arches an eye towards him, trying to see what the man was doing.  Looking at the manhole, he gives him another look before shrugging his shoulders.  "Good luck, Hero," he says, well-meaning but a little baffled.  

'It was here I would find those who ruled this land and those who are painted by such a spiteful brush by Ganondorf.  Here I hoped to hear the truth of the matter, or at least their side of things.  Likely the real truth laid somewhere in the middle.  Whatever happened, it would likely be here that I threw my blade in.'

'Ganondorf reminded me far too much of Kain to live.'

Stepping towards the castle's entryway, Raziel waited for the guard patiently, "I seek an audience with your rulers.  I am Raziel of the Concord, and I brook no delays."
Tetra     Tetra's wandering her way from the direction of the castle, clad as ever in leather armor, a series of decently-done stitches binding a cut along the back of the chestplate. That said, her hair's down today, and her sword is slung across her back instead of at her hip, with a strap bearing a red eye shedding a tear; she's here to carouse and enjoy the sights of the city, not solicit her skills as a fighter.

    Link, of course, stands out in the crowd. Not many folks wearing something like that. She steps up to him from the other side not long after Raphael, looking down at the manhole cover. She gives him an odd look. "Pretty sure there's nothing but sewage down there, Hero," she comments. "Well, okay. Maybe fresh water, if it's feeding the fountain... seriously, though, is something up?"
Revali "This is..."

The blue-feathered bird-person holds the arrow up to the sunlight. He turns it from side to side, examining it.

"... Worthless crap."

He tosses the arrow over his shoulder carelessly, letting it land back in the market stall he'd plucked it out of. "Don't know why I came here..."

Revali is here, along with a handful of other Rito, browsing the marketplace. If the guards give him or them any sort of suspicious glances, he ignores it.

"I swear. If I wanted arrows that were going to break apart mid-flight, I'd just grab random branches from the trees and glue tips and feathers to those..."

Oh, and he's loud. Very loud. And his tone leaves something to be desired vis a vis politeness.
Alruna Greengate The funny thing for Alruna is she actually feels more at home among the Hylians than most other places in the Multiverse thus far. The prevalence of round ears in many places isn't /unsettling/, but it is unusual. Hylians, Elezen, it's all the same to her and more familiar, besides. Especially when she's spending much of her time in Hyrule wrestling Gorons and having a hell of a time carousing with the burly stone men. She's in the company of a couple of them as they stagger their way nowhere in particular. The Gorons seem a lot more drunk than she is, as she's doing much of the holding up.

They espie a doorstep that looks especially inviting, and the two yellow stone men each sit down, resting their heads against the pillars and sighing in relief. Alruna laughs, holding herself as she watches the poor Gorons try to alleviate their symptoms, and her gaze wanders towards the plaza. Tilting her head, she absently promises to be back for her acquiantances soon, and wanders, reasonably steady, over towards the cluster of people gathering around the manhole cover. "Hey! What might you be up to?" she asks, putting her fists on her hips in mock-seriousness.
Abigail Barton With news about the Hylians and Gerudo being on quite a few people's lips over the past weeks, it's only natural Abigail would show up to investigate the town for herself. Although she's been paid a few times to play the security guard for certain Hylian parties, she still hasn't fully thrown her hat into the ring with either of the opposing peoples.

That's why she has to learn a few things first. Find out if these people can be redeemed. Find out if the Hero really has a chance at saving everyone rather than just the people with the right connections.

That's why she's posing as... Herself? No disguises, no sneaking about. It's probably for the best, since she's never actually been here normally, so she doesn't have to worry about anyone recognizing her last disguise. She goes from store to store, eatery to weapon shop to check out the local specialties and chat up the owners about their thoughts on the looming war and how that might affect them or the royals.
Staren     Staren has flown from the warpgate on his magic broom, to land in front of the Castle Town gates. For once he's not wearing futuristic armor, although he's not trying to blend in with the locals either. The only things that might pass for local style are his goggles, scarf and his boots, although close examination would reveal they were made with machines. His long labcoat might vaguely remind one of a scholar's robe, but the shirt and pants underneath are clearly synthetic fabrics, even if they're plain.

    For now, he's trying to be patient and play nice. He explains why he's here to the guards, and that he asked Sir Theodor to get him an appointment to properly discuss medical aid, and follows directions to wherever he's supposed to go as long as they aren't obviously giving him the runaround.
Zero Kiryu The first thing that Zero Kiryu when he goes someplace completely new is to simply take it all in. Chiefly, that begins by emptying his lungs of air and breathing in deep. There was a time when the scent of blood and its underlying characteristics revolted him. It seems an awfully long ways off to him now, standing to the side of a busy street corner as to avoid getting too badly in the way.

He breathes in.

The surrounding lights up with a river of scents, intermingling and wafting through the air in great streams that he could draw over a bird's eye view of the city if he had one.

What makes a person? There are so many little pieces moving together that even if you knew what was broadly doing what you couldn't figure it out without taking it apart while it's still running. Which is the problem, really.

He smells dull indifference and unrestrained jubilation, reactions to betrayals and the maturing of treachery, fear of conflict and the tell-tale sickly-sweet rot of acknowledged opportunity in war.

Several blips on his radar move about. One is heading away, several more are clustered together around a single point.

Rather than joining any of the present clusters, Zero shuts his eyes and simply follows the blips, and their scents.
Lezard Valeth The Sorceror went down to Hyrule. He might be looking for a soul to steal, but that's not really why he's here. The Sorceror in Black did not bother to hide himself at all, instead walking in through the front gates, his stride intent, as if daring the guards to attempt to get in his way.

    It's a stride and attitude that might feel familiar to them. Still, he arrives in the Hyrule Castle Town with nary a care in the world, simply walking amongst the people and ignoring the looks he gets along the way. There is a casual glance through the town, examining the movements of the people, glancing at the wares on display. There is a small smile as he sees Revali castigate the fletcher for his wares, but he doesn't get involved in that. Instead, he spends some time looking at the castle itself, assessing it, pondering the guard. His ruminations, however, are interrupted by the sight of Link kneeling next to the manhole. He tilts his head slightly, curiousity on his face as he sees the Hero of Courage preparing to delve into the sewers of all places.

    Not seeming to care that he's standing out in the open, he pulls a tome out of a fold in space, flicking a hand to open the nameless book. The pages flutter, Lezard pausing as he stops them and then quietly intones the words of a scrying spell, attempting to extend his senses into the waterworks below.
James Bond      James Bond has come bearing a gift. Patiently, he's waited, watching for signs of those who could lead him to the nobility. He's waited near the more expensive parts of town. The wine shops, if there are any. The jewelers. The fine silk clothes. The gourmet foods, that kind of thing.

     He's been watching for signs of rich idlers or their manservants. He supposes it's a reasonable expectation he should find one, anyway, but then he was attacked by a ninja the last time he was here. With sudden amusement, and a glance towards the castle, he realizes--he still owes Impa a date.

     Maybe later, he'll stop by the south wall, at sundown, like he'd said. Now, his attention is elsewhere. The woman is a professional--she'd already be suspicious, and she'd keep her mouth shut. But there is a group of people potentially much less scruptled.

     Nobles. Preferably, he's looking for nobles themselves, rather than their servants, aiming to ingratiate himself with them as a rich off-worlder. It's technically true, and he even gives his real name. THey should remember that, if they were at the coronation. It was how he'd introduced himself then, wearing a charming smile and an immaculate tuxedo. "Bond," he says. "James Bond. I recognized you from the coronation ceremony." His voice is a rich, pleasant English baritone.
Link A group approaches Link. Raphael, Alruna, and Tetra. As they come up and ask him what he's doing, acting like it's just a sewer, he cups his ear. "Listen."

If they indeed get close enough to listen, there's the sound of clockwork operating through this specific manhole. This is not normal for Hylian sewers, at least - there's no machinery down there, or there isn't supposed to be.

He doesn't go in on his own, though. He seems nervous about it. "...but it might be nothing. I don't know."

Lezard sees it first, having not been opposed by the guards even they did recognize him. As he scrys below, someone has a hidden room inside the sewers. Well, not so hidden, because the clockwork noises gives it away. It's an old, wizened man with a beard, working on some sort of robot with a large cavity in its chest. He's using modern power tools, but seems heavily unfamilair with them - as if they were a last resort.
Link Abigail checks out various stores. The war /very much/ matters to the royals and nobles. They've been waiting a thousand years for this - some fear it, some quietly are waiting for it, and some are indifferent - they'll go to a country home when Ganondorf attacks the Castle Town. The poor folk, are scared more than they're proud, but everyone feels the same way: The Hero of Courage will save them. Or at least, that's what they say publicly.

Bond manages to, after some trying, find some nobles who'll talk to him. One, a woman, remembers him as that 'charming foreign gentleman'. Whatever he wants to talk about, he can start pumping her for information, depending on what he wants to ask.
Lilian Rook     There is a very specific reason Lilian had decided to enter Hyrule. A very particular one that will necessitate a lot of footwork, a lot of spontaneous calls, a lot of talking, and a lot of effort that nobody could know about. That reason is . . . for much much later. Ideally, nobody would ever realize it.

    Visiting the castle town itself should be an entertaining adventure though. As has unwittingly become a custom before she'd really noticed, she'd decided to take Tamamo along with her (though it's unlikely the Bunrei would be willing to sit around at home by herself anyways). A trip like this necessitates something nice, not a battlesuit, and so she's carefully put together (that is, preemptively commissioned) a sort of pseudo-romantic-medieval dress ensemble, with a thick, dark skirt, loose red silk corset-laced tunic-blouse, silk gloves, leather boots with those obnoxious laces all the way up, and proper earrings and a jeweled choker to properly convey the proper social class, with the unsettling 'black iron' pendant tucked down her shirt. She'd spent hours on this one, all the way down to the meticulous application of 'naturale' makeup and everything. There's just also a handgun strapped to her thigh under the longer skirt. It isn't law enforcement issue.

    At first, most of what she seems to be interested in is having a good time dicking about the market. Ostensibly, it's pure tourism, and the light step and pleasant tone she goes about the place indicates she's enjoying it, but at the same time, she's keeping careful track of the wares and prices at each place, sketching out an idea of what the local economy has in abundance and what it pays a premium for, and what the common person can buy versus what is marketed to the upper classes. Minigame stalls might draw her attention, given she doesn't have rupees on her person, though presumably a castle township accepts vintage gold and silver coins.

    A number of unusually black crows perch atop buildings, one alighting on the fountain. A wayward murder, most likely, staring watchfully for food, probably. They're very dark though. None of that blue-black sheen. They're impossible to tell apart.
Alruna Greengate Alruna kneels down to listen. "But what if it's something?" Alruna's tone sounds hopeful. The pretence of disinterest lasted about as long as it took for the prospect of something possibly dangerous to show up. "Hey, do you have a crowbar?" she asks the ever-smiling man standing by. He looks like the sort of man to have Tools about his person. Alruna picks at the cover before he answers, testing to see if it's locked down or firmly wedged or merely very heavy.
Revali The other Rito in the contingent, being nearly as picky/dismissive/contrary/ill-tempered/etc as Revali is being right now, happily pick out things to purchase and barter.

Revali, though, makes a few more dismissive comments about what's on sale... and then finds himself gravitating towards the minigame shops. Partly out of boredom, partly out of wanting to find *something* to spend the rupees he'd brought with him on.

As he walks the streets, he pauses, glancing up at the murder. "Lots of crows today..." he says to himself. "Very... portentious."
Tamamo     Tamamo has, indeed, arrived together with Lilian. She has put in less effort to make herself up for the trip, but there's something to be said for naturally divine beauty and a previously established archaic mode of dress. The former practically cheating, and if she really has done through this personal effort, it's not possible to tell.

    She follows about, if not leads about, Lilian with quick taps of heels that keep her well above the expectedly dirty street level. She has no apparent, particular aim, content to look through what the market has to offer, question the shopkeepers as to the silver they accept, and direct them to display this or that hat, glove, boot, jacket, robe, dress, knife or other kitchen utensil in whatever combination of goods she finds. She does have some things that would be nice to find, even if a foreign street market is not the most likely to have the finest quality.
Link Staren asks the guards where to go. They actually know about him! He's not ushered to the castle - instead, he's directed towards a building not far from the castle to meet with the representative of the foreign minister, Duke Alexander. Once inside the office, he's introduced to the representative, Lady Rhea, after a bit of waiting. This is where he can start talking about his plans, as he is asked 'what do you want to accomplish, and how do you plan to accomplish it'.

Raziel comes up to the front gates and demands entrance. The guards pass on his name to the interior, where a guard walks in, comes back out, and tells them 'we have no idea who this is'. He's told to make an appointment at a specific office, and that when he has one, he can enter the castle. No sooner.
Link Lilian enjoys a fun day with Tamamo at the markets. Her scouting in the process picks up some information. Rice is, apparently, a 'normal people' food. Wheat is 'more upper-class/rich' but some wheat products are cheap, while bananas are actually pretty expensive. Various regular fruits are cheap and plentiful, as are some meats, which are basically just regular animals. While there's plenty of poultry, there's no equivalent to chicken to be found. Among the linens, anything made out of Gerudo silk will not be found in these stalls, but instead in fancy clothing stores. They do take 'gold and stuff', and there's an exchange for such.

Revali walks the streets. Some people ask him if he's really a Rito, mostly children, and that it's 'so rare to see one in the city!'. Some parents hush their kids, apologize, and then try and innocently ask if he's a postman, because they're older and know about them. After this, he's able to find the perfect shop:

The archery contest. With various prizes, including some 'weird red crystal heart'.

Revali can probably clear out every prize casually.
Raphael Cousteau Raphael Cousteau cups his ear as well, leaning in as Link suggests.
[:.][.:] PERCEPTION: Yeah, uh, maybe close your eyes? Too much visual input right now. Cutting some of it out might do it.
The police officer closes his eyes, though that horrendous grin doesn't leave his face.
That seems to do it. He notes the whirring and clicking noises with a firm nod. "Yep. Sounds like suspicious crime-type ticking to me. I agree. Let's investigate." There's helpful headtapping, and he moves to remove whatever covers the sewer entrance.

"...Oh, more of you."
AUTHORITY: You're the police officer. Keep control of the situation.
"...Well, alright. I can deputize you, sure. Let's go. But come on, this shouldn't require a prybar."
Abigail Barton The nobles that express fear will have Abigail's condolences. The nobles looking forward to for the war or expecting to escape it will have their faces memorized (with some aid of a smartphone camera and tourist-like selfie posing) for later.

The commoners are who Abigail really zeroes in on. That, and the crows, but she's not big into that superstition thing. She'll leave that for the old ladies with crystal balls or some such. No, she's going to focus her second inquiry on these commoners, trying to goad a bit more of their real thoughts out when it becomes clearer that they aren't being entirely honest to her or themselves.

Buying a round or two should help. That, and the occasional mention of Gerudo to see if that's enough to rile them up with thoughts of coexisting should Link defeat Ganon, or even living as slaves should the Hylians not be wiped out entirely.

Besides, she likes the think she's got some charm aside from just being able to act. It couldn't hurt to rely on that a bit, too.
Lezard Valeth The mass of heroes seems intent to go explore the sewer. But Lezard knows where they're going already, which allows him to Do The Thing. You know, the one where they bust into a place and the Wizard is already there. How? Simple.

    A circle draws itself around his feet, a column of light flashing into the air as Lezard fades out using his teleportation magic.

    Meanwhile, the old man hears a voice behind him. "Well well, it seems you are having some difficulties. Would you care for a hand?" Lezard says knowingly, adjusting his glasses as he fades into place.
Lilian Rook     "Wheat, rice, *and* bananas? What kind of gibberish climate does this place have? No, even if they're imports, those are all . . ." Lilian almost huffs to herself from a tour through the food stalls. "Well, I suppose what should I expect from a fairy tale land full of quasi-elf people. 'Oriental' appears to be the rarity. Supposedly their metallurgy is top notch, according to what else I've heard. The guards appear to be reasonably disciplined and well armed, for total nobodies. This place would be well-defended from a normal invasion, but . . ."

    This kind of thing occupies her thoughts the way around the plaza and adjoining quarters. She thinks them out loud when she and Tamamo have a private moment, usually down alleys or in corners of stores. She doesn't seem to mind the fancy clothing stores, but decides they're quite honestly not her style. When she ends up at the minigame booths roughly at the same time as Revali, she speaks up from out of the way with "Very much so. It's bad luck to disturb them." Sidling up, she says, staring off into the distance instead of looking at him, in the direction of the red crystal heart, but without really looking at it --more like through it. "Do you know how the rhyme goes? About crows?"

    "One for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl, four for a boy, five for silver, six for gold, seven for a secret never to be told. I was always told to be careful about which murders you stay around."
Tetra     "... Huh." Tetra's ear wiggles as she listens, and she frowns. "You're right, that's not normal..." She looks around her, making sure the guards aren't looking. "... okay. Let's go." She leans down and attempts to pull up the lid barehanded along with Raphael... and manages it, just barely, fumbling her side of the thing as Lezard disappears. "Gah! Goddesses, that man has no sense of subtlety..." she mutters. "Sorry about that," she sheepishly tells Raphael.
Revali "No... no, ma'am, it's fine," says Revali when he's stopped in the streets, actually really not minding the attention. "It is rare, perhaps I should fix that..."

"... And indeed, I used to be a postman, thank you for asking."

He salutes. "Through rain and sleet and moon most red, the Rito Post is miles ahead!" he says, reciting the old motto with a genuine grin on his beak.

In a much better mood, the rito continues his search... and he finds the perfect minigame stall.

The Rito Champion enters, waits to see if he's recognized, and then drops ten times the entry fee on the counter. "I'd like to pay in advance for ten attempts, if you please," he says.

And then he glances over at Lillian. "Can't say I know how the rhyme goes, no... and there seem to be-" He glances up at the rooftops quickly. "Considerably more than seven."
Staren     Staren explains: He has seen one village that was desperately in need of supplies (He'll name it if needed), claiming that the military is taking it all. While defense of the kingdom is important, friendly people beyond the gates have plenty of aid to give. Hyrule isn't the only place that can benefit this way; thanks to the Multiverse, every world can benefit from the best things that other worlds, through their different circumstances, were able to develop.

    In short, he's making at least a basic effort to NOT frame it as 'we're better and want to give you stuff out of pity'.

    If the one village is an anomaly, then Staren would like to help it. If it is emblematic of a larger problem, then he'd like to provide Hyrule with the resources to solve it.

    How? Other worlds have great mechanical factories that produce the supplies physicians and apothecaries need in high quantities; he can arrange for such to be shipped here. It might take longer to provide professional volunteers, however. Does Hyrule have a shortage of doctors, and if so why?
Raziel 'It seems my comrade in arms did not bother to indicate his allies.  A regrettable thing, or petty because of our recent discussion.  Regardless, it seems I would not be getting in through this door without an appointment.'

Raziel shakes his head, "Very well, the knowledge on the Gerudo, Ganondorf, and the Song of Healing will remain mine until I am given entry.  Good day," he says, irritably.  Turning, he starts walking towards this 'office'.  

'Tch...bureaucracy.  How dull this is becoming.'
Link The manhole cover can be lifted with sheer strength, and multiple hands make it easier. It's been used recently. As the group climbs down, they can follow the source to the man in the hidden room. He's too busy power-tooling things to notice anyone at first, but once he takes a break, he hears Lezard and turns around.

"Huh? It's not what it looks like! I ain't breaking any laws! I'm just trying to learn history, dagnabbit!" Before the others can arrive, Lezard gets the first intel. "This Wiseman, once it has a heart, will be able to answer any question in the world, y'know?!"

The robot, with a better look at it, is a clockwork mechanism with a cavity in its chest. It's stereotypically heart-shaped. Weird pieces of crumpled stuff in that shape lie around, having clearly been crammed inside and didn't work.

When the rest of the group comes in, he squints. "Wait. You ain't the guard, now are ya? Name's Yosefer. I'm making the greatest invention since wheat!"
Zero Kiryu Zero opens his eyes. A ripple of discontent and confusion passes beneath his nose as Raziel exchanges words with the gate guard. More blips draw his attention. His eyes rise towards the crows. Why does he remember crows distinctly? Were they a psychohazard in someone's mental landscape? Or was it something else?

He hums to himself, his eyes tracing a path to Lilian and Revali as they speak about the crows.

Making a mental note of both of them, he turns about and begins to walk the length of the city. Whenever he comes by a park, a patch of gross, or simply an unattended garden box he pauses.

At some of them he deposits a tiny bramble that worms its way into the soil, and at others he does nothing at all. There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to the particulars.
Lilian Rook     Revali, looking up, finds the crows have largely dispersed in bunches. Over the archery stall and in the plaza around it, according to his ~~bird empathy~~ eyes, there are five, precisely.

    There are none in the sewers, but two crows hover around the open entry, hopping about and dithering on going inside.

    In Zero's meandering, he'd get the sense that he keeps seeing the same three crows over and over again. They all look exactly the same though.

    When Raziel heads to the same office as Staren, there is precisely one, large, pitch black crow, so dark its eyes are invisible, perched ominously over the peak of the roof, right above the door.
Tamamo     "Perhaps a great variety," Tamamo says to Lilian, "and a cooperative community of spirits. Mountains, forests, plateaus, lakes and rivers. If all of these come together closely, you might find such varied crops, and more besides." She, herself, looks with interest through the available silks. Yes, these meet her standards. Silver and gold changes hands, and she comes away with a bounty of Gerudo silk, mostly formless now, but she will shape it to her needs soon enough. "Metallurgy, is it...? I shall have to give a more careful look through a smithery and its collection of knives. But they would make them to all purposes, even the foreign? Ahh, can we not find one shortly? Having questioned this much, I must also be given at least one satisfying answer. I have yet to prepare everything needed for that display I did promise you."

    Revali's voice is one she recognizes, and she gives him a curious look, likely not realizing that he's native to the general area and has every reason to be nearby.
Raphael Cousteau     Raphael is a strange old man, but he turns out to be surprisingly good at maneuvering around sewers. As the old man asks if they're guards, he takes a breath.
AUTHORITY: OK. This is it. Declare now, and the man will have to answer your questions.
Raphael clicks a couple of finger guns. "I am *absolutely* law enforcement, I'll have you know. Inspector Raphael Ambrosius Cousteau of the Citizen's Militia," He says firmly, like he means it. And hey, it's true. "We received reports of unusual activity down here, and -hey-, there's a robot of some kind."

His gaze turns to it, and his head tilts.
INTERFACING (Failure): The fuck is any of that?
VISUAL CALCULUS: No idea, but judging from the age of the parts, general size in comparison to the cavity, and from the old man's lack of calluses on his hands, this is neither his machine, nor are those parts meant for it.
AUTHORITY: THIS IS PROBABLY ILLEGAL! ARREST HIM!

Raphael takes a firmer stance, tilting his head upwards. "You got a permit for that robot?"
James Bond      Bond smiles. This'll be easy. "I caught notice of you, but..." He gives a shrug, and his smile grows a bit weary. His body language and expression say it all. He's just happy to be okay, after the Great King of Evil showed up. "There was that uninvited guest,' says the other uninvited guest. He makes light of it in an attempt to get her guard down.

     That's how you want to do this kind of work, muses Bond. Outwardly, he seems quite invested in the conversation. "You seemed to enjoy the wine," says Bond. He's referring to the Gerudo wine, of course, coyly. "Don't worry--I did too." This, he adds with a slightly mischievous flick of a smile, his eyes twinkling with sudden mirth and warmth. The remark is uttered conspiratorially.

     "...do you have a moment to indulge an off-worlder's curiosity?"
Alruna Greengate Alruna practically leaps to be the first one down, sliding down the ladder and hitting the floor of the tunnel with a heavy thud.

                                  LIGHT PARTY                                  
                              --CASTLE TOWN MAZE--                              

Her anticipation turns out to be a bit optimistic. They follow their noses - figuratively... very... figuratively - and arrive at the clandestine workshop easily enonugh. Alruna is confused, and doesn't immediately notice the identity of the other intruder standing in the workshop.

"Does he need one?" she asks Raphael, QUESTIONING AUTHORITY.
Tetra     Tetra seems pretty off-put by the secret robot, and just... stares at Raphael for a moment. Like she wants to say something.

    Something like 'you have no authority here and I'm pretty sure I would know'. But none of them are technically supposed to be down here to begin with, so on top of breaking cover, she wouldn't have a leg to stand on, rationally. So she doesn't.

    To Alruna, she side-mouths, "Play along." To Yosefer--"And really, even if you DO have one, it's /strange/ to be building something in secret off the side of the city's *sewer system*. Aren't there workshops for this sort of thing?"
Link Abigail buys some drinks, and people talk more freely. There's some who want to co-exist, but most just want them out of their hair. Almost none of them want slaves (one guy who considers the idea gets yelled at by everyone else, drunk as they come). Honestly, most of the peasants just want to live to see tomorrow - they're scared, and some actually doubt the Hero. He doesn't even have the relics - how could he save them if Ganondorf attacked tomorrow?

Bond talks to the woman. "Of course." A Hylian accent says, Bond having successfully started familiarity. She offers him to some tea at a nearby restaurant, where she'll answer any of his questions.
Link Raziel heads to the office - when he reaches the front desk, they tell him to sign some forms, or have someone do it for him if he's illiterate, but they also respond to any 'Concord' announcement by telling him that 'another one' is in a meeting here.

Staren lays out his plans. The woman's interest is piqued, but she makes it clear that she herself can't permit that - she'll take his plans about the machines and pass them up to the Duke, who will see what can be permitted and what can't. Regarding doctors, many of the educated are working either in the city, or in the war effort, so, technically, yes.
Lezard Valeth "Of course. Fear not, I have no desire to turn you in." Lezard leans around the man and looks over the design of the machine man. "Once it has a heart, you say? This seems like something of use. But it seems that the heart is question is something of a secret to everyone."

    He bows for a moment, dramatically flourishing his cloak. "Lezard Valeth, Sorceror of Midgard. A pleasure, Yosefer. Have you any leads on what manner of heart these Wisemen require?"

    He glances over at Raphael with a minor scowl. "This is /not your jurisdiction/, cop. Be careful."
James Bond      Bond obliges the noblewoman, and joins her for tea. He takes a moment to study those around him, watching for any Hylian customs. Attempting to impress, he asks about them, provided there are any. He'll do his best to honor them, if so.

     "So," he says, "Tell me about this prophecy." It's an odd question to start with, but he has a plan for that. All he needs to do is show his human side. He has one of those, doesn't he? "I have to admit... my world hasn't had anything like that in a long time." He pauses. There are literal knights of the round running around the Multiverse as he speaks. The thought amuses him, and as he looks into her eyes, across his tea, he smiles warmly.

     "You must all be very proud for your Hero," he says, speaking of Link. "He cut a bold figure--stood his ground against that Evil King." He uses imprecise terms. Why not? She already knows he's an off-worlder. Play it a little ignorant.
Raziel Raziel looks up at the crow, there is a moment where his glowing eyes squint at the bird.  However, he continues on, entering the building and having to deal with bureaucracy.  Sitting down and starting to write the paperwork out, because he can read, he muses to himself.

'That was a rather large crow.'

Look, they're not all insightful monologues.
Link Meanwhile, Revali is given wide eyes, but they want his money. They'll let him take the challenge.

Targets pop up, moving 'decently fast', and he has to hit them without missing.

He could do this in his sleep.
Link Yosefer responds to the group by puffing up his chest, but literally everyone can immediately tell he's a Completely Harmless Old Coot. "Why, I found this! It's mine! It dates back from before the Great War, y'see, and they'd take it from me to put in a museum if they knew I had it! I learned from a travelling man, I don't recall his name, that it's the legendary 'Wiseman', and if you give it a heart, it'll answer all of yer questions!"

Tetra, specifically, would know there's not much in the way of salvagers' rights if the nobility wants something bad enough. This would definitely go into a museum.

Link, for what it's worth, starts to speak up. "Well, uh...if you found it, it /is/ yours, right? We can't take it from him..."

Yosefer, meanwhile, responds to Lezard. "I'm tryna figure that out. I think it's supposed to be made out of crystal, since every other material under the sun doesn't work!" This immediately makes Link start searching in his bag, remembering something.
Revali Revali adopts an easy, casual shooting stance as the targets come out. He hits him at a steady pace, easily making the perfect score.

On the second run-through, he doesn't actually pay attention to the targets, now that he knows the pattern.
"So... you sounded familiar... I think I talked to you on the radio?" he asks Lilian, firing off arrows without looking in the direction he's aiming. "Revali, Rito champion."

"And grand-master archer. Obviously."

On Revali's third round, the targets don't even finish fully popping up before they sprout new arrows in their bullseyes.
Abigail Barton That's just what the lady in the vaguely maid-like purple getup was waiting for. She needed to know if the commoners were worth saving, and if they proved to be as bloodthirsty or indifferent as the nobles...

Well, she'll figure out the rest of her plan on that end later. They do mention relics, though, and that's something she needs to go elsewhere to visit. Namely...

The castle. There's likely a library or scholars there she can try interrogating for info about the relics beyond mere prophecies or legends. Surely someone might have an inkling as to where they could be, who might have them, if they're even intact after so long...

She might need to knock someone out and dump their body behind a bush to sneak in with their clothes if she can't get in the normal way.
Alruna Greengate Alruna looks at Tetra, white brows knitting together. "If you say so." she murmurs sotto voce.

It's when Lezard speaks up that the spotlight of Alruna's attention swings around to focus on the robed wizard. The desire for violence practically radiates off her as she ambles closer to him, one bare hand clenched tightly enough her knuckles are white. She folds her arms, staring balefully - not necessarily at Lezard, but anything and anyone that she happens to be looking at gets the full force of the effect.
Raphael Cousteau     Raphael does have an issue here. He doesn't actually have jurisdiction. He has the Hero of Courage with him, but he's not sure that translates into the actual ability to make an arrest. And that wizard guy seems to be openly challenging him on it. He's going to need to think a moment.

AUTHORITY: OK, so we arrest the wizard.
LOGIC: I..feel like he needs to be committing a crime for us to arrest him.
He looks to the robot, then to Lezard. Then to the wise man.
SUGGESTION: OK. Every time you talk to Lezard, he's just going to feel empowered and important. Try to keep him out of the loop on the conversation.

"Alright, well, you found it, it's yours, good enough for me!" Raphael clicks his tongue, looking back to the old man. "Doesn't sound like you stole it from anyone alive, so that's my concerns allayed. What kind of questions were you hoping it'd answer for you?"
Lilian Rook     "Yes. I'm not sure we properly spoke to each other. But I'm familiar with who you are." Lilian glances up at the five."Silver? Well, good luck."

                -----[stop]-----
    Lilian times it mid-arrow flight. Withdrawing a little paper card, she elegantly handwrites the exact address of the office Staren and Raziel are at, and slips it into Tamamo's palm; she's the one person who will know exactly how and why, and what it means.

    Looking at the arrow, dead on target for yet another trivial bullseye, effortlessly proving Revali's flawless, peerless, first rate archery technique, Lilian reaches out over the counter, and nudges it, just ever so slightly, imperceptibly, so that it'll hit the ring just outside the bullseye. Second from the center. Not quite perfect. Silver. Second place.

    From there, she walks through the frozen streets, passing Hylians chatting, mid-gesture, mouths open. A coin hanging in the air here from someone flipping it into the fountain, the individual water droplets arranged around it like stars. Down the silent streets, through a world of her own, through the office doors, and finally, into the audience chamber, directly behind Staren, in plain view of the officials.

                -----[start]-----

    "My apologies for the intrusion." says Lilian, suddenly there. "And especially if I've startled you. Once I became aware of what was going on here, though, I had to make as much haste as possible."

    "I'm afraid, esteemed lady and gentlemen, you're being deceived. Conned by a man with malicious intent, who represents those who hold nothing but hate for you and your people. I urge you to reconsider."

    Tapping the jewel on the throat of her choker, the microchip in it displays a holographic interface in front of her face that she taps through. Two folders down, a list of audio files, dated for only days ago, spreads out. Looking up, she says:

    "I have proof."
Lilian Rook     Lilian taps the play button on the audio file. The spectrometer pulses, rippling with the bass, growling timbre of the unforgettable baritone of the Great King of Evil himself, resonant and menacing even only in recording. It flatlines between words, and then peaks up and dips down when he is replied to, unmistakably, the voice of Staren.

Click. Lilian looks directly across the table, straight into the eyes of the nobles.

<Q-Conversation> Ganondorf Dragmire says, "It gives them comfort to have a Great King of Evil that they know will fall by the hand of a savior in green."
<Q-Conversation> Staren says, "I'm not asking you to deal with them. They don't deserve it and you don't deserve to have to lower yourself so.

Click. The silence between is heavy. Leaden. Seething.

<Q-Conversation> Ganondorf Dragmire audibly clenches his hand. "They don't."
<Q-Conversation> Ganondorf Dragmire says, "Deserve it?"
<Q-Conversation> Staren sighs. "You know full well what I mean. After everything they've done, they don't deserve to get off scot-free. You gave them their chance and were spurned.

Click. Lilian's expression is a hard mask of expectation. The look she exchanges is meaningful. Steely. The look of someone about to deliver the final verdict of execution.

<Q-Conversation> Staren says, "Were I in your place I'd probably fight not only the Great King of Evil, but also those among the Hylians who instigated this.".

There is one last pause. Deeper than the others. Lilian scrolls to the last piece of the audio catalogue. The last, damning nail in the coffin.Click.

<Q-Conversation> Staren says, "He wants Hylians, whether innocent or not as individuals, to burn, and that's completely understandable and it's hard to blame him for it."

    She closes the window with a wave. She glances to Staren, flashing him a private look that the nobles won't see. A cruel, self-satisfied, vengeful ghost of a smile, only her eyes needed to say all that needs to be: 'This is what you get for fucking with me'.

    She glances back to the officials. "Just say the word." she says.
Lezard Valeth Raphael is called out, and he chooses to not escalate against the wizard. Whether his inner voices are correct or not, Lezard seems to accept this. He looks to Alruna, his expression clearly indicating that he is more than capable of sating Alruna's desire for attempted vengeance if she wants... But it seems Alruna, too, doesn't want to start a brawl with the wizard down here.

    In the meantime, he looks back to the old man. "A crystalline heart? Are those common here?" He taps his chin, thinking about it, when he notes Link rummaging about. "What, do you have one?" He asks Link.
Staren     Staren is startled by Lilian's appearance and just looks... confused as she talks about conning and malicious intent.

    And then she unveils her master stroke.

    Lilian just gets a confused glance. It's clear what she's trying to do, but why does SHE want to hurt the Hylians? It doesn't make sense.

    As Staren's entire visit here is predicated on the idea that the Hylians can be reasonable, so he continues matter of factly. He can always use force later. "I am sympathetic to the suffering of the Gerudo and the Hylians both, yes. I'm not taking a side in this war, just helping people no matter the color of their skin. So, is there any reason I shouldn't expect a call back from this Duke?
Tamamo     Tamamo watches Revali shoot. "A feat worthy of the title, I see." She hasn't introduced herself today, and still doesn't, for the moment.

    And then, a shot that was just off the mark. "Hm? Ah, but I suppose there is always room for improvement." Raising a hand with her palm toward herself, she ends with, "And now, I must be off. Fare thee well."

    Tamamo has, in her hands, an address. She retraces her steps to the main streets, recalling her earlier, aimless wandering, and finding the path toward a certain office. She needs merely make her way there. There may be those that seek to bar those without a pass or appointment, but she has on her side the words, "I have been summoned within," an exact destination, absolute conviction, a willingness to use a subtle form of magic that radiates trustworthiness and, failing all else, legs that will propel her up over castle walls. She has determined that she will arrive, and where, if nothing of the 'how' or the 'to what.'
Link Staren's meeting is going rather well. Until Lilian appears. The representative's guard is about to move in defense, when she says that Staren is a deceiver, and the representative waves a hand to allow her to speak.

The tapes speak for themselves.

"That's..." The woman says, and then just shows disgust. She waves a hand again. It's a signal that she's done with Staren, and not going to listen to his words. "We cannot allow such a blatant sympathizer of the Great King of Evil to deal with our sick, our poor, our most defenseless, simply at his word. Begone."
Alruna Greengate Alruna's been called many things. 'Savage' and variations on it are fairly typical. She /can/ be savage, there's no denying that, but she's also not an animal despite what the wizard might (and certain others do) think.

A /crystal/ heart, though, is well outside Alruna's knowledge base. She's not monomaniacally focused on Lezard, honest! She just doesn't have anything to offer at the moment.
Raziel Raziel continues his paperwork, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Lilian had walked in, but when things start to get...spirited, Raziel's eyes looked up from his paperwork, their glowing squinting as of focusing on the conversation in the room.  

With a look of exasperation, he sighs and simply goes back to his paperwork.  

'It appears my work may be hindered by the well-meaning, but incompetent actions of Staren.  It would likely be most prudent to distance myself from him.  While I regret not being able to come to an ally's aid, between one ally and the rest I feel the rest are given priority.  Maybe it will be a lesson he will learn in the future.'  

He finally finishes and stands up handing the paperwork back to the clerk.

'No, likely not.'
Staren     Staren is actually surprised. In his own mind, treating people as people is one of the most basic moral goods. That it would be seen as evil by this representative of the Hyrule government...

    Ganondorf's words again come to his mind. 'The day I came to the palace to meet with the Hylian King, I was kept waiting for four hours like a commoner. When I was finally allowed to enter, I met with him and did not bow to him. I stated plainly my desires, and stated plainly my hopes for the future. When I turned to leave, I heard his wife say she did not trust me. That I had Gerudo eyes.'

    Staren has spent all this time giving them the chance to prove that the Great King of Evil is a liar. To show their own side of the story.

    They have only confirmed it.

    Staren's expression hardens a bit as he stands up. "I see."

    He doesn't waste further breath or time on racist idiots. He has nothing to say to Lilian; she sabotaged this deal, sure, but she ALSO exposed that Hyrule's government is just as he initially suspected -- racist incompetents of the sort you ignore or force out of the way, not the sort of even-barely-enlightened institution that Staren makes deals with.

    Out of good faith he didn't bring his giant robot today, though, so for now, he's just going to leave the city and fly back to the warpgate.

    He's still a walking armory if anyone thinks stopping him is a good idea, though.
Zero Kiryu White noise. That's what Zero gets through most of his plants, because there's nothing going on. He strolls alongside a canal running through the city, footsteps light, attention spread thin. Realization of exactly /why/ Yuuki was envious of his strength in spite of possessing other superior talents of her own tickles the back of his mind when a part of the white noise yields to a more serious exchange.

Shutting one eye, he finds his vision rerouted. Brambles creep along the building, winding their way up alongside a window. The sound of Staren's voice, and Ganondorf's. There is no blip that corresponds to Ganondorf's presence. Could he hide himself? But no, that was certainly a conversation from another time and place.

The situation evolves. Context is established. It's an excellent move, he thinks. Agents here will need to actually adopt an infosec policy that includes not saying incriminating shit on the radio.

"Hm." Zero weighs the possibilities of attempting to influence the bureaucrat's actions from there. Seems pointlessly risky. He doesn't know enough about the goals involved.

He listens, and takes a deep breath, committing the scents there to memory.
Revali "What..."

Revali stares at the off-center arrow.

Thoughts swirl through his head, and his grin disappears.

For the remaining rounds of the game, he actually focuses on doing it properly.
Tetra     Tetra frowns thoughtfully. "Yeah, the nobles would love to have something like this in a museum. Or, worse, some private collection..." She frowns. "Yeah, I get it, for sure. You're fine, probably... besides the possibility of this busting through the street when you turn it on." She gestures vaguely upward. She is not interested in fighting Lezard, at the moment, and her hand is poised to move to her sword... but she's only wary right now, given what he said on the radio.
Link As Lezard asks, Yosefer shakes his head. "Common? Nope! Never seen one in my life! But it's the only material I ain't tried."

And then Link pulls out two red crystalline fragments, vaguely 'part of a heart' shaped, out of his bag, and hands them to Yosefer. His eyes widen. He immediately scrambles over to the machine to shove them in, but they don't fit the whole cavity. Despite that, the machine /clearly/ starts to work, as the head's mouth opens, and power starts up. It begins to speak. "I AM THE WISEMAN. ONE THOUSAND YEARS AGO..."

And then, the lights of the glowing crystal dies down. It doesn't have enough juice. It seems to need two more fragments, or an intact heart.

But it certaily works. He's not crazy, at least.
Link Revali hits all ten rounds successfully. When he walks out, the owner is angrily giving him every single prize, including the crystal heart piece. Hmm...wonder what that is.

He's probably banned for life, while a crowd has formed to cheer him on since he's been there so long. Looks like the Rito has some fans!
Link The woman Bond is having tea with seems to be kinda ditzy, and not /very/ bright, but she knows about the prophecy. "Well, let me recall how it goes. It's a very sad thing. The Great King of Evil, that wretched Gerudo, will conquer the Kingdom...but luckily, our hero will come and and slay him, with the power of the Master Sword and the Triforce of Courage. Ancient relics. He's quite handsome, you know?"

She sips her tea. "Of course we're proud of him. He's going to save the world."
Tamamo     Tamamo enters the office only after Staren leaves, having passed him the hall, nodding pleasantly in his direction. With prior business elsewhere, it is left at that.

    Within, "Greetings. Lady Rhea, is it not? I am Tamamo no Mae, Living Deity, Bunrei of She of the White-Gold Face, the Sun, here in company with Lilian Rook, of the Paladins. Please accept this modest gift as an apology for the sudden intrusion." With a spread of her hands, Tamamo brings into existence a box of liquor chocolates. At least, that's the appearance given, and there's no way to prove otherwise. Fox magic is a mysterious thing.

    Further mysterious is her glowing appearance, but that's just a god thing. It serves well, in this case, to mask that she's positively radiating with Charm Magic to the general effect of 'Trust me, I'm here to help, everything will be fine,' near-indistinguishable from an aura triggered by invoking her true nature by name, as she's just done.

    "I hope we can establish amiable relations despite these trying times."
Tetra     Tetra just watches as Yosefer grabs the pieces and puts them into the robot.

    "...well. That was... hm. Guess that merchant of yours was onto something, Yosefer." She looks at him and quirks an eyebrow. "Uh... name's Tetra."

    She takes a moment and peers into the heart-shaped hole, examining the pieces inside. "Hm. How odd... I suppose we'll have to keep an eye out for these, won't we?"
Raphael Cousteau A Few Hours Ago:
Raphael Cousteau makes his way through a seemingly empty field, but for a single tree and a rock just beside it.
[:][:]
He's not paying attention, tripping and stumbling over the foot-high obstruction. He barely catches himself, kneeling as he turns around.
AUTHORITY: How fucking -dare- that rock! SHOW IT NO MERCY!
PHYSICAL INSTRUMENT: PRYBAR! PRYBAR! USE THE PRYBAR!
> This seems stupid.
REACTION SPEED: Listen, just do it. It's the right thing to do.

Well, that's a pretty solid recommendation, even if it's not from any of the parts of his brain that rationally think about things. He whips out the metal prybar, and levers the rock to the side. It's plugging some kind of hole. A sizable hole. A Raphael Cousteau-sized hole.
INLAND EMPIRE: This is it! Get in that hole! Get in that hole RIGHT NOW! DO IT! DO IT!

He descends wholeheartedly down, dropping into a strange cave. There is some bioluminescent plantwork, and a single wooden chest, within which is a peculiar item...
Now, in this very instant..

Raphael draws something out from his coat. It looks similar to the fragments Link pulled out, but it's a /complete/ crystalline heart. He sweeps over dramatically to the Wiseman robot, replacing the fragments with his full heart.
INTERFACING: And that should be that. Ask a question before the nerd wizard guy scoops it.
RHETORIC: I got this. Hold on.

[::][::]
"Besides the Master Sword, where would one find a relic of great use to the Hero of Courage in fulfilling the prophecy?" Raphael adds a tongueclick and fingergun, because of course he does.
James Bond      Bond leans forward with interest. "Master Sword?" he asks, with an intrigued smile. His eyes widen slightly, creating the appearance of lively conversation. That's the ticket.

     "My world has a similar story," explains Bond before a measured sip of tea. "A good and noble king with a sword, pulled from a stone, returns to lead the country to safety. In that story," continues the gentleman, gesturing slightly with his free hand, "In the beginning... the king had to prove himself worthy of the sword." He pauses. Is that how that stupid story goes? He pauses, a moment, pretending to admire the noble sitting across from him. She's pretty, yes.

     But he's actually listening to the radio band. Discussion of that very same thing is going on now--that Cousteau that guessed his trick earlier. The hero's yet to find the sword. That Cousteau thinks he knows where half of it is, whatever that means, but Bond won't underestimate him a second time.

     "Mm," he mumbles, pretending to come back from thinking pleasant thoughts of the noble. "Sorry," he offers, with a bashful smile. Now, he's got to make it seem like he's trying to push the conversation forward without getting too personal. If she's as ditzy as she seems, he expects she'll eat it up. "I don't suppose you'd know where I could read up on this prophecy later?"
Lilian Rook     With Tamamo here to *immediately* roll all of the social dice forever, and Staren storming out defeated without causing any further issue, everything is lined straight up for Lilian's coup of the situation.

    Though, any sequence of events that could have transpired would have lead to one of them. She'd planned this out thoroughly.

    From there on, she cranks up the charm herself. Persuasive. Fascinating. Hard to argue with. Just really good at words, after having to deliver so many speeches, convince so many people to do things, and bullshit so many lies.

    Her angle is simple enough: now that she's delivered such a convincing blow, she wants to convince them that the Concord is up to no good and have Ganondorf's interests in mind, while the Paladins are here to do the opposite; they intend to back Hyrule and ensure the King of Evil is defeated, including lending effort to their beloved Hero along his journey to ensure that the Triforce is assembled and the Master Sword is resurrected, as well as aid in the upcoming, no doubt trying times of the oncoming war.

    It's obvious everyone believes it's going to happen. It's obvious as well that they're scared and unsure. She's selling the promise that big strong experienced heroes will be there to protect the people while the destined battle plays out, while playing on their absolute faith in the prophecy and their obvious celebrity adoration of Link. It culminates in a request to have a direct audience with the royals, with a metaphorical smile and a wink for skipping reams of paperwork and wait time.
Revali Revali has some fans! Today's a good day.

"Revali. Champion of the Rito, and grand-master archer," he says, posing.

He starts passing out some of the lesser prizes from his cleaning-out of the archery game to some of his new fans, to keep the ego-stoking going. Today is a good day for Revali.

Well, mostly good. How'd he nearly miss that one shot...?
Link "Oh, you know, the legendary sword that'll slay Ganondorf." She says, understanding he's ignorant, as she oohs at his story. When he asks where he can learn more of the prophecy, she'll direct him to the royal library.

Tamamo and Lilian both talk to Lady Rhea, and they both turn on the supernatural charm. Where otherwise they might be asked to leave after Staren's incident, they're able to talk her into trusting them, Tamamo's charm making them trustworthy and Lilian's fae abilities making her words appealing. While she says she 'doesn't know how easy it will be to get the King to meet with them', she'll do her best and talk to the Duke, who is a close friend of the King. The locals /absolutely/ know what the Paladins are, and they'd be, it seems, happy to have their help.

Mission accomplished.

Meanwhile, Raziel's paperwork is filed, though the desk clerk advises that 'he might want to refile it again, later, after everything's cooled off'.
Link Raphael puts in a heart. The machine fires back up. It speaks again. "I AM THE WISEMAN. A THOUSAND YEARS AGO, COURAGE AND POWER CLASHED TO CHANGE THE WORLD FOREVER." And then, Raphael asks his question.

"IN THE LAND OF THE DARKENED TOWER, ON THE ISLAND THAT SEES ALL, LIES A FANTASTICAL AND BEAUTIFUL WOMAN WHO CAN GRANT YOU WHAT YOU SEEK. WADE CAREFULLY."

And then, the machine dies down, the heart being slid into a cavity in the chest. Raphael is pretty sure it's Lost Forever.
Alruna Greengate Alruna's eyes widen at the sight of Raphael producing a Piece of Heart- no, an entire Heart Container! Her surprise is audible as he slots the whole thing into the robot and asks his question of the Wiseman with a bit of flair and panache.

"Well that's... quite a treasure you have." she admits, clapping her hand on Yosefer's shoulder. "Take good care of it."
James Bond      Bond stays a while longer, feigning interest in the noble. He eventually invents a reason to leave, and offers some pleasantry or another. As he steps away from the table, and pays for their tea, he asks for her name--the last useful thing he can glean from her. If needed, he can use it as a form of social credit, on top of the wealthy appearance he presents.

     Once that's over with, he visits the library. There, he can maintain his disguise and catch up on this prophecy talk. Maybe with some luck, he'll find some obscure passage or other that can give him some leverage. The Master Sword is pretty clear in what it's meant to do. Moreover, he can easily ingrain himself with the others later, and move from there.

     The Triforce of Courage... that's a different story. There's no analog for that. He decides to use the time he has to pore through the library for mentions of the Triforce and what it's supposed to do. Maybe it slays the army of 'infinite monsters' that Ganondorf is said to command?

     He manages his time carefully. By sundown, he's at the south wall, just as he said he'd be. No disguise, and no weapons. There is, however, a bottle of Bollinger R.D. on ice.
Link As the group gets their lead and tells Yosefer to take care of his prize, he smiles. "Come back with crystals any time! I want to this baby to be used, y'all hear?"

Yes, he's going to stay in the sewer.

Bond finds out that the Triforce of Courage is said to protect one from magic, and enhance courage. Not much else is known - the previous wielder never talked much about it. About his meeting...

That's to be found out another time.