I know, folks, you thought it'd never get here. Well, after months of waiting, here is Chapter 5 of LOM: Twilight Creed.

The Legend of Midna: Twilight Creed

Chapter Five: Memory Sequence 4

"Mr. Fox, if you would be so kind," said Mason in a creepily kind fashion, "could you possibly get up and come get in the animus?"

"What are you being so nice for, Doc?" I asked, just to stoke the fire.

"They've sent an intern to observe this animus section," he admitted, lowering his voice so that only I would be able to hear if there was anyone else around.

I followed him out to the main room with the animus, and right away it was already the best day in the real world I'd had in a long time. Waiting next to the animus holding a clipboard was a smokin' hot redhead, a little heavier than maybe most people would like, but I like a girl with a little more meat.

"Dr. Mason," she said, and I was even more turned on when I heard the slight Irish lilt in her voice.

"Caroline," he replied blandly. He turned his attention to me. "Mr. Fox, this is Caroline Hawking. She'll be accompanying our animus sessions."

"So you're Adam Fox," she said, sizing me up. "Not quite what I expected, but you'll do."

"Thanks?" I said. What do you say to that?

"Alright, enough chit-chat," Mason insisted, going back to his usual dickish self. "Mr. Fox, get in the animus, if you don't mind, so we can get on with this."

"Your Highness," I said, bending to one knee, "you are an Assassin?"

"Indeed I am," replied Link, the King of Twilight. "As such, I insist you call me Link. We are brothers, after all."

"Why didn't you ever bother to mention this to me?" Midna demanded.

"If there had been need of us, I would have told you," Link said simply. "As it was, there was never a need for the Brotherhood here in the Twilight Realm until now."

"And you need us desperately," said Machiavelli. "We have reason to suspect that there are several of your countrymen who are planning to use a Piece of Eden to resurrect the Usurper King Zant."

"You're not serious," Link insisted. "No one would be mad enough."

"It is true, Your Highness," I said. "I heard them myself, plotting to resurrect the Usurper King."

"Who were they?" he demanded. "We should have them arrested and executed before things get out of hand."

"Forgive me, Your Highness, but I know not their names," I confessed.

"It is of little importance," said La Volpe. "Shweenog has learned well the ways of the thieves. He and I will sniff out these conspirators, and justice will be swift."

"Link," Midna interjected, "you can't just trust these guys! You barely know half of them."

"I would trust Machiavelli with my life," said Link, "and I have heard of La Volpe's skills as a thief; he is legendary. And of course I have heard of Ezio Auditore da Firenze, the new Mentor of the Assassins. If they have faith in Llwynog, so do I, and I suggest you do the same."

"Hmph," Midna harrumphed.

"It's settled, then," Link declared. "Llwynog and La Volpe will track down any kind of lead on these conspirators, and we'll go from there. I'll have a room arranged to function as headquarters in the palace. There is a chapel in the palace town with a secret passage behind the altar. Use it when you come and go."

"You surprise me at every turn, Niccolò," said Ezio. "It seems you have friends in every corner of the world, but it is good. Our endeavors should be easier knowing that the ruler of this realm is one of our own."

"I'm afraid I cannot guarantee your safety during your missions," Link said. "While it's true that we work toward the same ends, the guards still see Llwynog as a would-be assassin against the crown, and will likely label you guilty as well by association."

"This is true," La Volpe chimed in. "We will have to allow the guards to view us as a threat. To order them not to attack us would expose, and subsequently compromise, the Brotherhood."

"Sì," Ezio said pensively. "Your Highness, please forgive the losses to your guard that may be necessary. I do not wish to shed blood that unknowingly is loyal to our cause, but it may be unavoidable at times."

"Don't worry," said Link. "We have a large force available. While it will be unfortunate, it will not be something we won't be able to recover from."

"Then, once again, it is settled," announced Machiavelli. "Llwynog and La Volpe will go out into the city and discover who is behind this plot to resurrect the Usurper King. I trust you can handle yourselves?"

"Certamente," said La Volpe. "We will not return until we have discovered something."

Carefully La Volpe and I crept along the rooftops of the Palace city. Unlike in Italia, these structures were familiar to me; the perfectly smooth, black stone walls and low-angled roofs, the narrow gaps between buildings. This was home. It occurred to me as we stalked above the streets that travelling these rooftops was not that different from doing so in Roma. Perhaps our worlds were not that different after all…

"Do you have any ideas as to where we should begin our search?" asked La Volpe as we traversed the roofs. "This is your turf, after all, not mine."

"I'm beginning to think our worlds are very much alike," I said. "Just as in Roma, I think the best place to begin here is the Wllyhoau, the main plaza in this city."

"I won't even begin to try to repeat what you just said," La Volpe snickered under his breath, "but yes, I agree. Large public gathering places generally are good places to start." We descended from the rooftops and blended into the crowd, keeping our eyes and ears open for anything that might give us a lead.

"Shweenog," I heard La Volpe say in low tones so that only I would hear, "do you realize that there are two men staring quite intently at you?"

"I was not," I answered in the same hushed tones. "Why do you suppose they would do that? Unless…"

"They are the men you overheard before your unintended trip to Roma? Precisely what I was thinking."

"Vieni con me," I said. "We must mix in better with the crowd, but keep your eye on them and we will follow where they go."

"Now you are thinking like an Assassin," La Volpe said as we pushed deeper into the crowd.

"You know," I said after a few minutes had gone by, "I'm not entirely certain it's just me they're watching."

"What," scoffed La Volpe. "You think they find me suspicious?"

"Actually, yes," I said, "and we need to move and let them lose sight of us before we act. And actually, I think we need to move now because they're coming this way!" Sure enough, the men who had been watching the two of us started to shoulder their way through the crowd, first at a walk, but they soon broke out into a run.

"The chapel near the palace," said La Volpe. "That's where Link said to find the passage that will lead to our hideout. Get yourself hidden and then make haste to the chapel."

"See you there," I said hurriedly. Immediately I bolted in the opposite direction, shouldering people out of the way until finally I darted into an alley. I followed it down until I came to a ladder. I scaled it as quickly as I could and dove into a rooftop garden nearby

"Thank you, gods," I breathed. I waited until the coast was clear, and then kept to the roofs as I made my way back to the chapel near the Palace.

"Well," Link demanded as I entered the hideout. "La Volpe says you were unsuccessful in your venture today. Perhaps you have something that will contradict him."

"Yes, and no," I said. All eyes were on me now. "No, in the sense that we were not able to pursue our targets. A fatal flaw I have discovered is that, aside from yourself, humans are still unwelcome here. La Volpe stood out as a human in a sea of Twili, and I fear that the rest of you will as well. Before we can commence further investigations, we will need to procure better disguises, which I'm sure will be no problem. Something to cover the skin as much as possible, and of course more in the style of the Twili. I was also seen as suspicious, in part I think because I am dressed in a more human fashion, but also because I was seen with a human."

"Do you have anything good to report?" asked Ezio, who, while maintaining a calm and collected demeanor, was clearly disappointed in my performance.

"Actually, sì, Mentor," I said. "While La Volpe and I were in the Wllyhoau, I was able to successfully pickpocket a pictograph box. I believe these are the men we are after." I held out to Link a small square of film bearing the image of the men we had seen.

"Very well," said Link. "All is not lost to us. I must return to the rest of the palace. I suggest you all rest now. I'll be sending a servant down soon to measure you all so that we may have some better disguises made for you."

"Forgive me, Mentor," I said as Link left the hideout. "I received the best training, and still I failed. I should be cast out of the order for this failure."

"No," Ezio replied. "Shweenog, listen to my words. We have a lead, this pictograph you have brought us. As Link said, all is not lost. And just because you did not do as well as you expected of yourself, do not think that that merits expulsion from the Brotherhood. Do you think everything I have dreamed up has gone according to plan?"

Before I could answer, he turned and headed for another section of the hideout. Still feeling the sting of failure, but a bit consoled, I resigned myself to sleep.

"Out already, huh Doc?"

"Don't give me that," Mason sneered. "I would've kept you going, but Ms. Hawking insisted we had done all we needed to for the day. The board sent her, so it'd be stupid to go and piss them off."

"A bit twisted logic, but appreciated all the same," I said.

"We'll see you tomorrow, Adam," said Caroline, "bright and early."