Quiet Serenity (Open)

[daemien]

Daemien sat next to the entrance of the Spirit's Spring of Lanayru, and observed the greatness of the lake. He decided to come to Lake Hylia because of how important the lake's waters were, and the fact that it flowed into Castle Town. More importantly, he heard that this area was native to the Zoras who protected these waters in the name of their queen. At the moment, Daemien was alone and actually wondering if a Zora would befriend a half-breed like him.

[Kulau]

Kulau would never consider himself a pious man. While he still worshiped the gods as others did, he never found himself at their shrines often enough. Sure, he visited during his travels to other regions for good measure, he was never at the shrines as often as others.

However, on this day, taking a break from his routine laps around the Lake, he stopped in for a quick bow to the spirit as a sign of respect. He wasn't really expecting to see anyone else there, but there was a young man at the entrance. Strange, normally people would come into the shrine, not sit at the entrance. Kulau found this interesting, and decided to strike up a conversation.

"Afternoon sir." He said, nodded in acknowledgment. "Enjoying the view of the lake?"

[daemien]

Daemien nodded his head in response to the Zora's question. "I'm from the city, so it's nice to get out of the hustle and bustle of town. My name is Daemien, good sir." Daemien said with utmost respect for Kulau, but he was still quite quiet. To be honest, he wanted to talk more, but he was just the quiet type.

[Kulau]

Kulau nodded in agreement. "Yes, it is important to give yourself a break once in a while. Castle Town is a difficult place to find peace. My name is Kulau, it is a pleasure to meet you Daemien." In truth, Kulau never really liked seeing other races around Lake Hylia. Outside of the water-dwelling minish tribes, they always seemed to take from the lake's wonder. Having this young man sitting here bothered Kulau slightly, but through diplomatic training he was able to hide it.

[daemien]

"Pleasure, Kulau. I have a lot of respect for Zoras, so it's an honor to make your acquaintance. As for me, I'm just half Hylian and Human." Daemien said as he stood up before Kulau. "So, what brings you to the lake at this time?" Daemien asked, hoping to continue the conversation.

[Kulau]

Kulau nodded. So he was a hybrid. As far as hybrids went, he was pretty common. Hylian and human often found themselves entangled like such, and it came as no surprise to Kulau.

"A word of advice, Daemien, you may not want to announce in the future that you are in fact a hybrid. Might cause a bit of prejudice, especially around the town markets. Just a word of advice. Personally I don't care, it isn't a man's race that makes him who he is." He sat near Daemien and took a deep breath.

"Day off from work. I was doing laps in the lake when I decided to pay a visit to the Spirit Lanayru. Which is when I ran into you. Are you simply here on a break or did you come to the Spirit's Spring for a personal reason?" He didn't think much of prying with the man, it didn't seem like he was one to hide information. He was being very forward and Kulau returned that in kind.

[daemien]

"Originally, I was planning on seeing the Spirit Lanayru but I got distracted by the lake. Since we both have the same goal at the moment, we should both go to the Spirit's Spring." Daemien said while no longer delaying to go to the alter, and knelt down in respect. He knew full well the danger that he was constantly in, but somehow Daemien seemed to manage some way or another. It also didn't matter to him if Lanayru manifested himself or not, but he was still glad to have spoken to Kulau.

[Kulau]

Kulau also went into the shrine, personally his favorite shrine. Maybe it was because the water was deeper here, maybe it was because this one watched over his home almost 100% of the time, the only exception being the odd trip to Eldin to see the Gorons or Faron to the Dekus.

Approaching the altar, he went down to one knee and bowed his head in respect. "Great watchful Spirit Lanayru, grant us, your people, your blessing in these uncertain times. We ask for your light to penetrate the darkness which clouds our lands, and to help us restore the peace that we once enjoyed." He then pulled a single rupee out of his pocket and jumped into the shrine's pool.

When he emerged, he seemed quite content.

[daemien]

Daemien watched Kulau intently in his actions, and was hesitant to get into the water. It wasn't that he was afraid of getting wet, but merely because he felt unworthy to swim in the spring's waters. Daemien was also was really impressed by the architecture of the shrine. However, he still felt insignificant and unimportant to others.

[Kulau]

Kulau emerged from the pool, looking at Daemien. He didn't expect the human to enter the shrine's sacred pool, few non-Zoras ever do, and most of them were aquatic Minish. He also noticed, that, despite his piece being for everyone, including him, he said no words.

"Do you often keep your prayers silent, or are you content with all I have said to Great Lanayru?" he inquired, wondering iff the man were intimidated or otherwise due to the shrine. It made little difference, but Kulau returned to his one knee position in silence, awaiting the response.

[daemien]

"I'm quite content with your prayer, but this is all so new to me... Forgive me if I'm being too quiet for your liking. I suppose, you're the first person I could truly open up to because of the life of secrecy I've had to live in order to survive this long." Daemien said calmly with a smile, mostly because the thought of swimming was fun for him. Unfortunately, his body was more meant for land than rather for sea; which would obviously put him in a disadvantage against a Zora that could naturally swim as fast as a shark. "Do you get to swim as often as you like? I tend to run a lot personally, but I have read some myths that say that King Zora gifted the Hero of Time with 'the ability to breath underwater'. Whether or not it was true, I'm sure it was created exclusively for the hero. Anyway, the source of life in Hyrule is the water flowing out of Zora's Domain and branches out southward. I also believe there is a possibility of underground rivers flowing out of the domain, and the largest buildups of the underground rivers are likely the four Spirit Springs which all are blessed by the Essence of Light." Daemien said, spilling out some reasonable theories and letting some energy loose.

[Kulau]

Kulau was confused by the young one. He wasn't being consistent, which made him worried, and suspicious. It was this inconsistency that made Kulau pause for thought before continuing.

"No need for forgiveness, it's just that you were more open before. It seems like when we walked into the shrine you seemed to quiet down. Which is nothing unusual but it gives one pause. Perhaps you are naturally quiet and being outside the shrine made you more open." Kulau shrugged at the idea of leading a life of secrecy. He could and would never do it, it just wasn't in him. Before, he was the one who couldn't physically handle a warrior's job. Now, he was the voice of the queen. In the future, who knows.

"So why all the secrecy? You wouldn't bring it up if you weren't willing to entertain the question. Is it the fact that you are a hybrid? Or do you have some sort of dark past you need to atone for?"

Kulau was a bit taken aback when Daemien mentioned all about the Zoras and Lake Hylia. The kid was knowledgeable for sure. "I have my opportunities. I do so for conditioning on days like today, when my duties are on hold. As for the legends, we zoras know them well, and we are aware of the vast underground channels that hydrate all of Hyrule. It is widely considered the most important part of Hyrule, for without it, water would be quite scarce."

[daemien]

"The city isn't as kind as most people think it to be. There are some people that still believe that the mixing of races is an unholy act which is punishable by death. However, there is now a group of Cavaliers aligned with Hyrule nobility that seek to protect hybrids that are being discriminated against. I am one of the lucky few that was given their protection, but you can't be too careful in the city, especially at night. Which is why I try my best to hide my secret identity, my race, from others in largely populated areas." Daemien said as he got out of the water to dry off. "I'm usually the quiet type, but I feel safe with you around. Needless to say, I can protect myself, but I still feel like I'm lacking in potential. Other people that I'm around with more refer to me as the 'Black Rogue' because of my black attire and the fact that I can wield more than one type of weapon. I wanted to tell you more about my roots, but it slipped my mind earlier." he said as he addressed the title he went by, and he was well aware that the whole land would suffer if Zora's Domain froze solid.

[Kulau]

Kulau nodded. Being a hybrid was tough, this fact was not lost on him. The Domain had a few Zora dominant hybrids, there was some discrimination, although never from Kulau himself. That would be unfair, especially if they were in fact good people.

"So you've been protected by the Sentinels before huh? Not surprising, Rwaht Orin has been really pushing for hybrid protection since he began working as Praetor. What does surprise me is that people can immediately tell whether or not you are a hybrid. You look like you could blend as any human. The only reason I know you're a hybrid is because you said it yourself." Kulau Leaned up against the wall as Daemien dried himself off. This chance encounter just kept getting more and more intriguing.

"So I have to ask, what about me makes you feel safe in my presence? I'm not exactly a warrior, nor am I some sort of freedom fighter like Praetor Orin. I can't even offer you the diplomatic immunity I am granted through my position." He looked at the young man inquisitively, curious as to his use as one who comforts. Did others feel this way and not tell him?

[daemien]

"Well, you're very understanding and you take the time to get to know someone. Sometimes, even soldiers need someone that they can talk to, especially a person that isn't racially biased. I take it that you are an ambassador, then?" Daemien said and asked calmly as things got a little more interesting.

[Kulau]

Kulau scratched his fin and smiled. "When the need arises. Currently I'm just a diplomat, but I serve as an ambassador when it is needed. They give me a room in the castle and I operate out of there. It's nice, but you miss home quickly. Especially when you spend half of your day cramped in a bathtub trying to stay hydrated." He couldn't help but laugh a little at that last statement, true as it may be.

"So what is it you do? You work as a common merc, or are you something more?" For some reason, mercenary work didn't strike this diplomat as something Daemien did for money.

[daemien]

"I'm part of a small organization known as the Monster Hunter Guild. Our purpose is to exterminate evil monsters in order to protect the people of Hyrule. Any race is welcome to join our ranks, even monsters that want to do some good in the world. It makes a great excuse for me to train and gain real combat experience. I was recently recruited, so I only know so much about it, which doesn't bother me at the least. As far as money goes, I spend a fraction of it on charity for the less fortunate." Daemien explained to Kulau, proving that he wasn't exactly the typical mercinary, but one all the same.

[Kulau]

Kulau widened his gaze. The man was fighting monsters, and even donating sum of his income to charity. What a guy. However, despite this, he was laughing. It wasn't a disbelieving laugh, Kulau certainly believed the story was genuine. Daemien had no reason to lie.

"I wasn't aware Hyrule had a guild for slaying monsters. Normally I thought that was left to the Knights. Although having a specialized group for that couldn't hurt. Monsters are different from your everyday bandits." Kulau had had run-ins with monsters before. Mostly mad scrubs and moblins, nothing actually dangerous.

[daemien]

Daemien calmly nodded to what Kulau said, and he responded with his own thoughts. "The world has felt like it has been changing recently. I can't put my finger on it, but I think that we'll be seeing a lot new faces and more diplomatic relations than before. There's a chance that I'll meet new allies and enemies along the path I have begun to walk upon. Wouldn't you agree, Kulau?" Daemien replied calmly as he wondered what his destiny had in store for him.

[Kulau]

Kulau tilted his head, surprised the human was being so philosophical. Kulau hadn't seen many of the changes that he saw, maybe because he didn't associate with the common folk nearly as much as the upper echelons.

"I don't see it. I think you're making too much of a change in your life. Meeting new people is a common occurrence. The world is always changing, it's just how it is. So, in a way, your statement is correct, but I would not put so much emphasis on it. It's natural, nothing new." He smiled again, at least the young man was ready for it.