Fandom reawakening: calamity

[Soulmuse]

Aisha felt an overwhelming sense of relief, that she only needed to explain some parts of the story, with the ability to run with Atara already reaching the obvious conclusion. Without Atara turning and running, it helped to quell at least a little bit of her rising panic, and let her pile of knowledge carry her onwards, if only because at this point, she’d committed to this insane course of action, and inertia proved far more powerful than panic.

Not that it made talking about it any easier. Curling further in on herself Aisha laughed, high pitched, and probably more than a little insane. Chewing on her next words for a while, Aisha elected to answer the direct question first. “Rumor says the Royal Family kept a tiny shard of the Mirror. I don’t think I believe that no matter how powerful Queen Midna was, I don’t believe trying to bring a bit of the Mirror through with her could be possible.”

“The magic sealing us within is imperfect. Necessarily so to allow the Mirror to function, and while breaching the seal on the Twilight Realm is impossible en-masse, many scholars theorized it to be possible for a single person, or perhaps obstacle. Perhaps as a way for someone tell the Goddesses we wished to repent, or for their agents to determine if we still lived, or just a strange accident of fate.” Aisha shrugged. “Why or how didn’t matter to me at the time, and theorizing now is pointless. Rebuilding the Mirror is, with my knowledge, impossible. And I’m not sure what would happen if I did go back.” Aisha didn’t think they would kill her, but she didn’t actually think they’d banish her either, even at the time.

That did leave open it’s own question. “I’ve been in Hyrule since I was…” Aisha stopped, counting briefly. “Well it’s been at least ten years. Living as this.” She motioned to herself. “I learned to stick to this appearance very quickly.” The words, at the point, ran out, Aisha pulled her knees tighter against her chest. “Aisha, the slightly strange hunter is much better than Monster.”

 

[endersheart]

It wasn’t totally out of the question. The idea of Midna taking a piece of the mirror, while seemingly unfeasible, would fit in with the idea of the fondness those said she had for her Link. It would also take away from the purpose, her very reasoning behind shattering the Mirror of Twilight. The words she whispered to Link and Zelda. For that very reason, Atara disregarded the rumor.

She listened to Aisha's story carefully, so as to not miss any of the pieces. A group that was banished, banishing one of their own. Comical, wasn’t it? “Do you want to go back?” She inquired, “I’m sure there has to be some kind of way, if you want to return?”

Atara fidgeted, ten years. It sounded draining, using a constant supply of magic for that length of time. Although, she wasn’t sure how much magic Aisha was actually using.

“You’re not a monster,” it was the first response she was certain of, “you’re not any worse or different than anyone else here.” There was a pause, a moment of clarity, “we all have secrets, we’ve all made mistakes, it’s part of living- trial and error- nobody is perfect.” Her hands clenched, “that doesn’t make you any less of a good person, Aisha.”​

 

[Soulmuse]

“At this point, I don’t know if I could go back. As in, live that way again.” Aisha never gave it any thought. “And even if I did, I’m not keen to annoy Goddesses by trying. I can’t imagine kicking me out went well.” Or, Aisha didn’t say, she didn’t care to find out what dabbling in that dark magic of the sorcerers who got them all banished would get her if the Goddesses scrutinized her.

Listening to Atara’s words, Aisha could only shrug. “I suppose so. I never give much thought to goodness. I know I am not evil.” Or most of her wasn’t, ignoring that little voice that really liked to do terrible things. Twisted, how something so small would be enough. “I’m just very broken.” Spreading her fingers Aisha examined her created fingers. “I’ll get used to all this eventually. I’ve gotten used to everything else, this will be no different.” Her eyes narrowed, scrutinizing the illusion for any imperfections, before deeming it satisfactory. “Although I think I’ll stay like this,” a gesture at herself, “At least for a while.”

 

[endersheart]

*Two days ago*

Atara hummed, an entirely airy sound. She couldn’t blame Aisha. Years of being banished, being cast aside, she wouldn’t be able to find it in herself to go back either. Even if she didn’t know the full story behind Aisha's banishment.

The words she had meant to be touching seemed to barely scratch the surface, still, she flashed the Twili a small smile. “Well, knowing you’re not evil and just broken is a good place to start, I suppose.” Standing up, she dusted her pants off. “We should try to work on that broken part next, though.” There was a pause, a moment for her to turn towards Aisha. “I’m sure, either way, you’re very beautiful.”

“Should we head back, now?”

Aisha followed suit, standing slowly her joints stiff from sitting for quite so long. “I suppose we should.” If they didn't, someone would be likely to come looking for them, and Aisha didn’t care to spill her guts again, or endure the emotional whiplash of vulnerabiltiy to lying in short order. Gathering herself, she did a final once over, to confirm her appearance didn’t have any strange gaps, or imperfectsion that would give away the lie.

A thought had occurred to her, partway though their conversation, one that took a while to form, and even when Aisha acknowledged it, a little while longer to voice, after she finished confirming herself to be, well ‘herself’. “Why did you actually come looking for me?” She privately doubted it to just be worry.

“Hmm,” Atara acknowledged the question, shoulders rising in a slight shrug, “I don’t really trust Keenan, I guess.” She trusted Aisha far less prior to this conversation too, but didn’t see any point in mentioning that. “Also,” she gave her a general once over, “you were acting off when you came back, almost like you were upset.” That could easily go hand-in-hand with worry.

Not trusting Keenan, based on what Aisha had seen felt like a prudent strategy. “Not much guessing required.” Aisha didn’t smile, although something approaching mirth might have reached her eyes. “I’ll guess you’ve talked to him as well? About what is happening with Saran?”

Atara nodded, slowly trailing in the general direction of the camp now, “yeah, I asked him about Saran.” He would know the most after all. Yet, she couldn’t openly state that, not until she knew the full extent of what Aisha knew about Keenan.

That could be called a cagey answer, which Aisha could respect, even if it didn’t quite get what she wanted to know. “And what did he mention about what happened? And about Saran’s condition.” Keenan’s secrets weren’t quite Aisha’s to tell, and the rest of what happened verged a bit ot close to revealing uncomfortable other details.

That intrigued Atara, “what happened?” she repeated.

Aisha considered, then decided to take a bit of a risk. “The wound on his chest. It’s…” She stumbled a bit. “Not just a wound.”

It seemed they might go back and forth forever on concealed answers. She crossed her arms, “well, he told me that much.” She didn’t know how in depth this conversation could go, not without revealing their companions past identity. “Actually, I sort of just assumed there was something else going on.. the kid was too freaked out when he woke up for it to be something normal.” Hesitation, “and you two were too eager to get away.”

Well, that told Aisha enough, and frankly he’d trust Atara this far. “Malice. I don’t know all of the particulars, Keenan promised a more thorough explanation later. The more pressing matter is that…” Aisha trailed off. How to say the next part tactfully, and without causing a panic, or giving herself another panic attack. “My speciality in magic is in illusions. But I…I know some of the more…” After a few seconds of fumbling, she gave up, and went for the detailless truth. “Well, things I shouldn’t. Addicting things. That Malice it calls out to that part of me, and I tried to do something stupid.” Her lips curled in a frown. “Hence hiding out here.”

That caused a few questions to pervade her mind. “Dark magic? Do you practice dark magic or just know of it?” If practicing it was the case, it helped piece a few more things together. “You reacted to the malice, which is sensible, really, but Keenan did too?” If Aisha already had a connection, a bond, with dark arts, the malice reaching out to her was to be expected. With Keenan, on the other hand, she would have to have a better grip of the situation.

Aisha considered that reply carefully. “I’ve practiced it enough to be familiar with it, but not since coming to Hyrule.” An informative answer, in the way of being informative without telling Atara much of a value. She felt a little bad, but just admitting the truth wouldn’t come even if Aisha wanted too. “Keenan didn’t react as strongly as me. Which is…good.” Understatement. “Just annoyed him, I think.”

A furrow of her brows, “that’s..” she wasn’t sure. She wanted to say it was to be expected, who wouldn’t react poorly to malice. However, the situation seemed more complicated than that. “How exactly did you react?”

Well that was a more direct question, one that she couldn't dance around so easily. “Tried to pull it out of him.” Aisha licked her lips. “I…don’t even know what I intended to do after that, just that I tried to pull it out of him.”

Atara didn’t know much about magic, an accident from her childhood, but what Aisha was describing sounded dangerous. “Well, I think it was for the best that it didn't work. Who knows what would have happened to the boy or you, for that matter.” The dabbling in dark magic should have scared her, but it didn’t. Aisha was a Twili and darkness clung to their history.

“Let’s just..” a breath of air, “take it easy, figure out what’s actually going on with Saran. The more we know, the easier it will be for us to understand if your magic can actually help.” Keenan still seemed like the best candidate to help them learn more, him or research of her own, lots of research.

“I doubt there is much I can do, without something bad happening to me in the process.” Aisha stretched a bit, then settled herself. Far to many secrets and exhausting elements of this conversation for her liking. If nothing else, the implicit information Atara doubtlessly gained didn’t send her running once again.

“I would start with Keenan. He knows something.” Exactly what, neither of them knew, but they could find out.

Something bad happening to Aisha was out of the question, which eliminated the use of her magic as well. It was only to be expected that the person who would seemingly know the most was a former Yiga. Questioning him again, when he notably hadn’t been honest with her the first time, seemed redundant. Aisha was right, nevertheless, he was the first person to go to. “I agree, he knows something, but getting him to tell it is a different story.”

"I can probably get at least something out of him." Aisha ventures after a few seconds of thought. "He also knows about….me…and implied he'd explain more at some point." She'd actually intended to seek him out soon but given her mental exhaustion, and all of Atara's revelations meant that would need to wait.

"As long as Saran doesn't seem in danger we should be safe to wait a few days before asking him more. Let everything settle down." Let Aisha settle down, she meant. "Unless you have a better idea?"

Atara shook her head, “no, that’s fine, I’m sure waiting a few days will be fine.” She didn’t tell Aisha that the fact she was willing to talk to him made her more than ecstatic. That, in all honesty, Atara didn’t know how she would have confronted him if she had to. There was already an overwhelming sense of irritation prickling beneath her skin. The fact that she was almost certain he had, in all regards, lied to her.

“There is one thing,” her skin crawled and, for someone she barely knew, it felt like anything she said would be some form of betrayal. What, though, was she betraying? “Keenan is..” no, that wasn’t right, “Keenan was, in his past, affiliated with the Yiga.” For Atara, there was no sense of relief; no weight off her shoulders. Her fingers dug into the skin of her arms, “that’s.. all I know about him and his secrets.”

Aisha blinked, once, then twice, then a third time. “Huh.” That, actually, made a lot of sense. While she didn’t know much about the Yiga, it lined up well enough, and perhaps explained the sudden sense of unease Atara suddenly radiated. It also complicated, to some extent this makeshift plan the two of them just created.

“As long as he has left that behind." The Twili settled on. "We really are a group of secrets.”

Atara breathed out a laugh, “some secrets are worse than others.” Ones that would lead to other people getting hurt shouldn’t be secrets. Those that, more or less, were for comfort within oneself and wouldn’t affect others didn’t matter.

They had walked far enough to almost be back to camp now. The Sheikahs' eyes settled on the outlines of the tents, “I suppose we’ll discuss more once we know more, then?”

Aisha nodded, also cognizant of the approaching camp. “That seems best.”

Atara gave a small nod as well, “it’s a plan.”

*Present day*

There was something soothing about the morning breeze. The sunlight peeking through the horizon, signifying another day. The air wasn’t as suffocating out here as it was back in Kakariko, she didn’t feel like a bird in a cage. Certainly, it was the lack of her father being around.

There was a pencil balanced between Ataras fingers, eyes fixated on the paper below. Research, it felt like that was all she had done the past two days.

They had started on their journey again. Saran hadn’t made a full recovery, but Atara had deemed him okay to travel with breaks. They were currently on one of those many breaks. She had taken the opportunity to wander off, if only to have a few moments of peace to settle her thoughts.

The group was nearly to Inogo Bridge now. From there, it would be a matter of traveling through the rainfall to get to Zora’s Domain. She still wasn’t certain why she was chosen by that mysterious voice. She, in all aspects, was nothing like Link, yet, she supposed none of them were.

Her lips pursed, scribbling down some more notes.

Since her and Aisha’s conversation, she had avoided Keenan. Her original plan had been to inquire more about Sarans condition and his secrets, then Aisha offered. However, now that she knew Keenan reacted to the malice, to Saran, she wasn’t sure what to say to him at all. Just annoyed him, I think. It wasn’t abnormal, was it?

The lead broke.

She was overthinking, she had to be. Keenan was from the Yiga clan, a cult that worshiped Ganon. A reaction to the malice was normal, it was normal. Unless it wasn’t and her and Aisha’s speculation was right.

She fished around in her small bag, fingers searching for another writing utensil. To her dismay, she hadn’t brought an extra. With a sigh, Atara picked up her scattered belongings and made her way back to where she had left the rest of the group. It took her some time to get back, having gone farther than she anticipated. Far enough to get out of the rain.

Zelo pond was behind them and if they went East they would find Zora River. South to them was what Atara had declared to be an overrun monster camp. She knew with Saran’s condition it would be better to not tempt fate. Therefore, she and the group had strayed away from the ruckus.

The rain was more intense where they had settled, showing her just how close to Vah Ruta they were actually getting. They hadn’t made much progress from before, the previous camp could easily be traveled to in less than a day, but that was expected under the circumstances.

She arrived at the rest spot, shuffling in and taking a quick glance around. “Are we ready to go?”

—

The past two days had been a blur. Saran being unwell had kept Nessa on her toes. She was certain he would never ask her to go out of her way for him, but she was also certain he would do the same if the roles were reversed. She tried her best to help with anything she could; cleaning the wound, gathering supplies, wrapping it.

The other day, when she and Atara had been harvesting Hyrule Herb to stock up as much as they could, Atara had gifted her a new spear. She wasn’t surprised the older girl had heard her talking about her old one being taken, since when she was ranting to Saran she hadn’t been very quiet, but she was surprised to see the flash of gold. A hand extended and a small smile, with something akin to a Gerudo Spear in hand.

“It was my mothers,” Atara had stated.

“You don’t want to keep it?”

A bittersweet laugh, “no, I was never good with them.” Atara had given a small nod of approval, “plus, I think you could use it more than me.”

Nessa didn’t argue, she offered her a kind smile of her own and a ‘thank you’ before taking it.

It was beside her now as she sat next to Saran, keeping an eye on him. Atara had left their rest spot a bit earlier, not long after their arrival. She was certain Atara just needed some alone time.

Internally Nessa was concerned those creatures would sniff them out at any moment and she wasn’t sure how Saran would do, considering the current situation. Best to stay out of sight and as far away as possible. A fight, while unavoidable at some point, would be best if eschewed for the time being.

She held a hand up, flexing her fingers as the rain pattered against them. Thunder rolled somewhere in the distance, a loud noise in contrast to the quiet of their old campground. She was still mesmerized by the newness of it all.

Suddenly a voice broke through the clearing, “are we ready to go?” Nessa kept silent, a decision to leave it up to everyone else, including her still injured brother: he was who they had been making stops for, after all.​

 

[Soulmuse]

Aisha scowled up at the rain. She couldn’t be bothered to try and think up a good way to keep the rain from hitting her, or rather, to use one. While they were a decent distance away from any monster camps, they were closer than Aisha liked. Even more so given the increasing downpour, which made keeping an eye out for monsters doubly hard, considering that tracks or the like got washed away in the weather.

Kneeling under a bit of an overhang, Aisha shook herself a bit drier, muttering curses into the dark. Even her best tricks couldn’t undo the cold and wet either. Ranging far from the group wasn’t all that wise, but it did keep her from having to deal with the pressing issue of Keenan, or think about Saran, or her own screw-ups, so she’d taken on the task nonetheless. It also made it easier to find game, what little they could. And, the past day, keep an eye on the monsters. By herself, Aisha could sneak and slip between the odd wandering Bokoblin, or even a larger group, but that wouldn’t last for long. Fingering her bow, Aisha watched another few of the monsters amble past in the distance. While she agreed with Atara’s assessment of the camp to the south, she couldn’t deny that there were an ever-increasing number of monsters about, and if they kept traveling, they would end up with trouble before long.

Offering a quick curse to the skies, the disguised Twili pulled the hood of her cloak fight, and started back towards the camp. While her eyes were naturally better in lower light than average, the rain negated any advantage, which meant slow and methodical picking of her path. More than once, she misjudged and slipped , planting her arms to the elbows in muck before making it back to a more beaten path and thus, making better time back towards the camp.

The others were mostly gathered, and Aisha seemed to be arriving a bit later than Atara, catching just the end of a question about moving.

“We’ll need to be careful.” She took a moment to try and wring the muck from her sleeves without success. “Monsters are only getting more common up ahead.” Her lips thinned into a frown. “One or two of us can slip past, but before long, even a Bokoblin will manage to see us.” Aisha wanted to add more, but she held her tongue.

 

[Aura Of Twilight]

Keenan​

Keenan sighed, wringing excess water from his hair for the umpteenth time. While the rain and cooler weather was a welcome change from the arid dryness of the Gerudo desert he was beginning to feel like a drowned rat, his wet clothing heavy enough that it was beginning to annoy him. He knew, of course, the most logical thing to do would be taking his attire off and hanging it over a fire but considering he was with a group and in an unfamiliar area that didn’t seem like the brightest of ideas for a multitude of reasons.

So it was he currently found himself sitting beneath a small outcropping not far away from the group, the headache behind his eyes throbbing in tandem with every drop of water that dripped down from above. He supposed being in close proximity with a fellow malice ridden victim and a certain Sheikah who kept sneaking glances at him every once in awhile were the cause but there was unfortunately nothing he could do about it. On the plus side, at the very least it appeared Atara was avoiding him, thank the Gods. He really didn’t feel like dealing with another one of her interrogations.

​

Though he had managed to distract himself for a little while by meditating, it wasn’t long before former Yiga started becoming restless, feeling the urge to scout ahead again. Aisha apparently had had the same idea however. Over the past couple of days It had become an almost unspoken agreement between the two of them, one looking ahead while the other stayed with the main group until it was their shift. It was currently the Archer’s turn and based on how long she’d been gone he suspected in wouldn’t be long before she walked back into the clearing. He sensed she was almost going out of her way to not interact with him, but whether that was just her nature or something else he had no idea.

Or rather, he was doing his best to not think about it. Better to be safe than sorry.

The others must have been getting ansty too as it wasn’t long before everyone began gathering up their things, quietly talking amongst themselves as they prepared themselves for the next hike.

Popping his knuckles, Keenan jumped to his feet. He could only imagine what Master Kogha would say at the moment. Alright my dudes. The sooner we complete the mission, the sooner we feast like kings at happy hour. YIGGGGAAAA MOVE OUT!

He rolled his eyes at the memory. He almost missed some of those idiots. Almost.

As he walked through the camp, he saw Aisha out of the corner of his eye conversing with Atara. He was just about to opt out on listening to them with he caught one of them mention monsters ahead. Great. Just wonderful. He thought bitterly.

“Someone mention monsters?” Keenan quipped, walking up next to Aisha. “And here I thought they would let us go on our merry way. A pity.” He shook head with a sigh. “Based on some of the tracks I’ve come across I would wager most of them will be Lizalfos. If memory serves me right they’re quite fond of elemental arrows, especially of the electrical variety. Should be fun, as long as no one gets fried in the process that is.” A thought suddenly popped into his head. "Ah, that reminds me…” Pulling the bag out of his cloak, he quickly found the mushrooms and held a few in his hands. “These zapshrooms I collected earlier should help some.”

endersheart Soulmuse

 

[endersheart]

The monsters were patently in larger groups around here. It seemed the closer they got to Vah Ruta, the odds of them avoiding a fight decreased. Atara gave Aisha a small shrug, it would be unwise to stay put too. “We’ll do our best,” she replied, taking in the Twili's expression. An expression that seemed to contain some form of discontent. Yet, before she could ask and see what else was wrong, a masculine voice spoke up.

Atara snapped her mouth shut, eyes shifting to take in the other form. She should have known. While Keenan was certainly happy to not have her around, there was no doubt about that, they were bound to end up conversing at some point.

Electricity, the idea was logical. Lizalfos around Zora domain didn’t tend to be any of the other elemental varieties she had read about. It could work, he was right.

Atara stiffened when Keenan made a casual joke about getting fried. The faint smell of charred skin resurfacing. She brought a hand up to her mouth, in the most unapparent way she could. The scent made her feel ill and subconsciously she took a step back. The short distance did little to clear her overwhelmed senses, but still helped her feel more at ease.

She could help. If she had gotten over her anxiety, back when what happened had traumatized her, maybe she could have honed that skill. Instead, she told herself she’d never use it again. “It’s a good idea,” she breathed, but I wouldn’t say fun.

“What do you think, Aisha?” It made the most sense to redirect to the one who had scouted. Atara was certain Aisha would have more knowledge about the monsters prowling about.​

 

[Karcen]

B-206
mentions:

​

Finally they were nearing the first goal of this trip. Really 4 days give or take was not long, but outside of the dark vault time seemed to crawl at points. B-206 would have made her displeasure at the travel time known, but she was trying to be a little bit less abrasive. Honestly B-206 was starting to think about things beyond finding a way to end her existence. There wasn't to much she could do, but she might find something. The zonai and shiekhai had made her and the divine beasts, maybe there was something she could use for her situation.

B-206 saw some of the others talking and overheard talk of monsters. Being a sword B-206 wasn't really worried about monsters, well more she couldn't get hurt. The others might be more worried about pain and B-206 was both jealous and happy that she couldn't feel pain and they could.

" If you are scared to fight the monsters I could distract them some " B-206 offered floating towards the group. Her offered came out worse than what she meant but she didn't correct it. " It is kind of funny they put a spirit in a swird but not their super weapon" B-206 chuckled mostly to herself.

 

[CyberJackal]

“Ah!” exclaimed Trill as Keenan presented the zapshrooms. “That's a brilliant idea! If we can afford the time, I could boost their effects and make them last a bit longer with some herbs. If you've ever seen electric lizalfos around water you'll know it's not a pleasant combination.”

He'd flown over lakes and rivers where the reptiles swam plenty of times, and the electrical current off of their horns could easily be seen pulsing through the water from overhead.

He'd joined up with the group without issue earlier in the day, just before the rain set in. Unfortunately, there wasn't a shred of the features of waterfowl in his lineage and the water soaked him through just as bad, if not worse, than it did for the rest. According to legend, their people were distant descendants of early Zora. He didn't believe it for a moment.

“Of course, I'm also more than willing to lend my wings and bow to the situation.” Then he considered the logistics of a fight against the many earthbound archers and their electricity in the rain from the sky. “Hmm… Well, maybe some stealth would be to our advantage. With any luck, their eyes are no better than ours in this weather.”

 

[Soulmuse]

Aisha almost jumped out of her illusory skin when Keenan appeared, his own assessment forcing her to swallow the frown. She’d seen neither hide, nor, well, hide of a Lizalfos during her patrol, but that didn’t mean much. They tended to be much smarter than your average monster, and being lizards probably didn’t enjoy the rain. She took in both B and Trill’s input in silence before sighing.

“Going backwards. Stealth is a good idea, but I am not sure flying above them will do much good. Trying to shoot in the wind is hard enough, trying to shoot while flying in the wind and rain can’t be easier.” She paused, thinking the rest of it through. “Although there is enough rain and noise they aren’t likely to hear you.”

Glancing at B, Aisha could only shrug. “If we need to sneak by a group, that’s not a bad idea, but I don’t think we can make it without at least a bit of a fight.” Then again, B popping up in some poor Bokoblin’s face would be handy in a fight.

Finally, coming back to Keenan’s point, and Atara’s question. “I haven’t seen any Lizalfos, but I with the weather, I imagine they’re taking what cover they can for now.” Or, worse, preparing for an ambush. “Either that or ranging farther out than I was. Zapshrooms are probably a good idea, or something with them. If we’re going forwards though, probably at least two of us need to be keeping an eye out. Getting to someplace with to many corners to watch.” Her heart skipped a beat. That was a bad idea, really. But, it would let her get a chance to bother Keenan without anyone interrupting, but also plenty of built in reasons for both of them to run away if they needed too.

 

[endersheart]

Atara often found conversation with large groups uncomfortable. Made worse by the pulsing pain now throbbing in her head. An ache that only slightly decreased with the knowledge that no one had paid any attention to her small outburst.

It seemed Aisha had the situation under control, the Twili going through the suggestions made without batting an eye. Atara still offered Trill a small shrug, “I think if it wouldn’t take too long, boosting their effects could be very helpful.” It would be even more helpful if she could charge her own internal electro battery, surely.

Atara folded her arms, it was risky to separate. From everything Aisha had said, the chances of clearing the gap to Inogo Bridge without a fight sounded unlikely. Less numbers meant less attention being drawn, the rationale was there, but what would they do if they were spotted. “You would need to be careful..” she mumbled, “we’re still unsure of the number of monsters, right? Plus there’s that huge camp to the East, wouldn’t want to alert them if we can help it.”

Besides the concern, Atara supposed she could round the group up and tell them it was officially time to go. She hoped everyone was ready. It had been a rough past few days, getting to Zora Domain would hopefully provide at least a slight reprieve.​

 

[Aura Of Twilight]

Keenan​

Seeing the two women nearly jump out of their skins in response to his presence, Keenan nearly rolled his eyes. Honestly, how long would it take for the two of them to always remain aware of their surroundings? Being of similar professions he would’ve thought they would have improved their skills of observation by now. Such weakness was bound to get them killed at some point. He thought about pointing out the issue, but the words died on his lips when he saw a brief look of fear(?) flash through Atara’s eyes.

Then again, perhaps it was his imagination playing tricks on him. Traveling for so long on his own had left him with an unhealthy dose of paranoia.

Regardless, the Sheikah had a thoughtful look on her face when he brought up the mushrooms. She turned to ask Aisha her thoughts but was interrupted by a certain sword bound spirit and Rito.

"If you are scared to fight the monsters I could distract them some.” B chortled, her voice carrying a teasing edge as always.

Keenan decided he could play her game. He looked at her in sheer (read: fake) amazement, putting a hand on his chest. “What a brilliant idea B. To volunteer yourself as a decoy in the form of a lightning rod and running into enemy camp, even at your own peril. You really do have the makings of a hero.”

Trill and him were apparently on the same wavelength when it came to the mushrooms, the Rito’s face looking like a child finally getting to finally visit the candy stand. It had nearly slipped the ex-Yiiga’s mind that the group’s feathery companion was skilled in the apothecary business. Aisha also seemed to like the idea of making a potion but added that it would probably be best if someone scouted the enemy stronghold ahead, preferably not using the sky in the process.

Atara crossed her arms, brow furrowed worriedly. She approved of Trill’s idea but was clearly uncertain about another scouting mission. Keenan understood her reservations, but the group couldn’t afford to stay in place much longer.

He rubbed his chin for a moment. Seeing a nearby stick, he grabbed it and began to draw figures in the sand. “This might not be the optimal solution but I think Aisha and Trill have the right of it. Assuming the enemy is attempting to shelter from the upcoming storm I wager most of them wont be up and about at the same time. Regardless of numbers, most likely they’ll have some stronghold where most of them reside while a smaller force patrols the territory. As long as Miss Archer here and I proceed with caution it should be easy to gauge their numbers. If we time things right, the group can slip in between the patrols and continue onwards to Zora’s domain.” He paused, looking up at the ominous clouds above before he added, “That is of course assuming things go according to plan. We should be prepared for the worst case scenario.” He turned his gaze back Trill, throwing the zapshrooms he had collected earlier into the Rito’s hands. “Sorry to spring this on you Doc but how fast can you whip up a batch of potions?”

 

[Hopos]

Hazy? Hazy was an understatement. Ever since that night at the camp, time had truly begun to flow slower in the little Gerudo's mind. Every syllable spoken to him felt a million miles away, every step felt so distant. The last thing Saran could recall was Nessa's Question.

"How did you escape?"

And both his mind and mouth refused to form an answer. If he had said anything, it would be a slur of confused syllables that roughly translated to "I don't know", or "I wish I could tell you". Even now, Saran wasn't sure of what he said. Even his pain felt far away. He'd try to look at his scar a few times to get a grasp on how bad it really was-but if he ever got close to touching it Nessa or Atara would often stop him.

'Don't mess with the herb-it'll heal faster if you don't touch it'. Saran nodded groggily at the female scolding from an unknown source. He was too tired and much too out of it to put up any fight. His life had temporarily drained out of him.

He noticed that they began to move more at some point. Both his legs and his white-haired care-taker with beautiful features and familiar eyes informed him of this. He vaguely remembers her saying something along the lines of being well enough to travel but not taking things too hard on himself. That was fair-though he probably couldn't overwork himself if he tried.

The pain didn't cease when they traveled. The stinging had gotten a bit more bearable day-to-day, but he had always had a consistent headache wherever they went, worsening at times without explanation.

Their climate however, was something to behold.

Saran had never seen rain in the desert, and when those first few drops of water fell on his nose-he quite simply began to freak out. He found himself clinging to nessa, swiping away at the foreign falling water while staring at it in awe. He honestly thought water only existed in the pond at kara kara bazar, or the rooftops of Gerudo town (How he missed those two dry places, where everything felt familiar and right). Seeing it falling from the sky was just another mystery to behold.

After the long few days of traveling, walking, and trying to recover, it was in this moment standing in the mud of this strange new world-that Saran felt like he'd woken up. He'd barely spoken a word to anyone-but out of the blue he managed to say.

"Where'd you get that new spear?" to his sister.

He vaguely saw her get it from someone but he didn't register it's full presence until now, when he had 'woken up' internally. It's long and traditionally carved form was a sight to behold-and saran briefly wondered if Nessa had made her magical prowess known to these odd people that surrounded them.

"It looks nice.." He complimented with a gentle smile. It made him feel warm inside to see Nessa get something new and shiny for herself. Even if he didn't have his two trusty daggers anymore, Nessa deserved this luxury with the hell they were being put through.

Saran's head nodded forward to see the group plotting out some kind of strategic attack. Monsters were supposedly ahead..something he didn't look forward to dealing with. The group seemed to be bickering in some manner, a brilliantly blue Rito and that...off-putting man conversing with Saran's care taker and another peculiar black haired woman. Grima and Uriah were standing somewhere off to the side. (Perhaps looking for the frog creatures?) as everyone else huddled in the rain.

Saran didn't quite care what they would do, so long as if when they split up, he would still be with his sister.




Interactions: Neat spear sister also thanks for literally being my shoulder to cry on .Nessa ( endersheart )
Mentions: Pretty nurse lady whose eyes i like to look at .Atara ( endersheart )
PRETTY BLUE BIRD! .Trill ( CyberJackal )
Neat hair i think .Aisha ( Soulmuse )
Theres something up with you .Keenan Thompson ( Aura Of Twilight )
Frog much? .Grima/Uriah ( Takumi98 )

 

[endersheart]

Nessa had noticed the group conversing away from them, some form of planning in the makes. Saran hadn’t responded to her question, expectedly, and she didn’t feel quite right leaving his side. So she stood there, soaking up the feeling of the rain against her skin. Unlike the others, she quite enjoyed the feel of it. It was new, wet, and cold, a huge contrast to Gerudo desert.

Of course, she did find herself missing her home from time to time. She wondered what had happened to Saline and Peppa, if they were alright. The sand seals were very intelligent and they knew their way home. However, she knew there was a possibility that the Yiga had reached them first. Making her uncertain of their fate in a way that gnawed at her internally.

-“Where’d you get that new spear?”

Nessa thought it was her mind playing some weird trick on her, a noise that had slipped through the wind and rain. Turning to look at her brother incredulously, she opened her mouth, then closed it. She wasn’t quite sure what to say. Did he actually speak? Clearly and not in some form of a mumble.

“Atara,” she finally settled on, “she got it from, uh, a friend. I guess she never got used to it and.. I lost mine.” She didn’t go into the details of how she lost hers, she was sure her brother knew. She also feared the mention might upset him back into another state of despair. She didn’t want that, not if he was finally coming back to himself.

When he spoke again, another clear sentence, her heart skipped a beat. She hadn’t imagined it. Excitement ran through her at the thought that maybe, after almost three days, he would be okay. She turned fully, grabbing both his cheeks in her hands, “how are you feeling? You haven’t spoken in two days Saran, two, I was so worried about you.” A pause, “I.. still am worried about you.”​

 

[Hopos]

"I'm sorry-" Were the first words out of his mouth. In all honesty, Saran was shocked that it had been two full days since he last spoke, his daze made time seem to fly by much faster than reality.

But even past that he had made his sister worry..again. It wasn't like he could help his silence given everything that happened, but he still felt a little guilty. Like he could've maybe mustered up some form of speech if he just tried.

He sighed and gently grabbed Nessa's hands that were promptly smushing his cheeks with their grasp. Warm and tender, even with the cold drops of rain that were falling on them.

After a beat he continued from what he said "Sorry I made-well, am making you worry..but I do feel better. I can't explain it but all of the sudden..I just feel more awake."

He looked up towards the sky at this, a pelt of rain falling directly on his nose. He winced and look back down to meet Nessa's eyes, silent in their own fear. "Less foggy. Maybe it's the rains doing."

Saran looked around again, still trying to make sense of his environment. They had gotten up and started walking but to where? What was their destination? He had no idea where the 'Trilby valley' they were in before was..and no ability to know the place they were going now. He considered asking Nessa where they were going, but he eventually decided against it. What difference did it make? Probably just another wet place, hopefully with some slight increase in temperature.

 

[Soulmuse]

Aisha bit her check to keep from scowling, and from fidgeting. Turning herself into the center of attention had not been the plan, and made her far to uncomfortable, but apparently, she’d went and made herself that.

Looking over Keenan’s shoulder at his crude sketches in the dirt, it seemed like they all agreed in principle about the plan. And, despite everything else, Aisha had to admit that if two of them were going to go ranging out ahead of the group, herself and Keenan probably did make sense. She could vanish into the shadows if needed, and apparently Keenan could take care of himself.

It also would give a chance for Aisha to talk to Keenan, alone. Well, as alone as you could get when stalking monsters in the wet and wilds. Not, frankly that Aisha wanted to deal with it, but she also knew that creating the Keenan sized mental hole in her psyche, would keep sucking up energy and mind space she couldn’t spare. So, she would take this chance to get it done.

Nodding along to Keenan’s request to Trill to make the potions, Aisha threw out the quick summary of her thoughts. “Once you’re done, we should be ready to get moving.” Giving the sky a significant glance, she added, “The sooner the better before the storm gets worse.” Letting them settle, she waited for Trill to leave to start brewing potions, before lowering her voice so that only Keenan (hopefully), could hear her. “We need to talk, while we’re out there.”

 

[endersheart]

When Sarans hands met Nessas, the hold she had on his cheeks loosened. A breath left her lips, the last bit of stress she felt leaving with it. “Maybe it’s the wound, maybe it’s finally getting better,” she suggested, not knowing quite how deep his wound ran. That the actual wound would take far longer to heal and would require much more care.

“Or the rain,” she quietly agreed as his emerald eyes started to take in their surroundings. She didn’t know if it was their twin bond or instinct, but she answered. “We’re heading to Zora Domain, the rain, travelers have said it’s the Divine Beast; Vah Ruta. I think.. well, I’ve been told.. we’re going to see what we can do to help.”

She fell into silence, nibbling at her bottom lip in a nervous habit. “I’m sorry, too,” she spoke up, “I’m sorry for everything.” She wished she could be more specific, but the list of things she had done that got him, unintentionally, in trouble was much too long.

-

Atara examined Keenan’s messy drawing, arms still crossed. She could place some trust in them, she hoped, they had been traveling together long enough for that. Not to mention the secrets her and Aisha had already shared.

“Okay,” she concluded, “I’ll get the others ready to go.”

She gave the slightest wave of her hand, stepping away from the two. Trill had already disappeared to go make the potions, a much bigger job than hers. When the Rito arrived, he had brought a beautiful redheaded Hylian with him. A merchant that went by the name Bemere. She hadn’t spoken with her much yet.

She went up to everyone individually, letting them know it was time to go and telling them to get their stuff together. She went over the plan; Aisha and Keenan were to go ahead and they would trail behind. She wanted to make sure everyone understood and was on the same page.

Her last stop was the twins and she came to an abrupt stop at the sight in front of her. It wasn’t that she didn’t think Saran would go back to normal, she did, she just wasn’t sure if it’d take days, weeks, or even months. To see him so casually talking to his sister after two days, well, that came as a bit of a surprise.

Instead of commenting on his alertness immediately, she pressed a hand to Nessas shoulder gently so as to not scare her. “We’re leaving soon, I just wanted to let you two know. Saran.. well, it’s good to see you’re better.” She gave him a soft smile, before going back to her original reason for coming over. “Our current plan is for Aisha and Keenan to go ahead, from there we’ll follow behind them. We want to minimize the risk for monsters to spot us.. but, just in case, we need to be as ready as we can be.”​

 

[Takumi98]

Grima and Uriah​

With some reluctance he headed in Grima’s direction, giving the other man a small nod and even a smile. “It seems you might have your hands rather full.” He greeted after B had finished speaking. He hoped the spirit wouldn’t start going off again. He leaned against a nearby tree. “Sorry for the interruption, just thought I’d come home and say a quick hello to you all. I’ll try not to bother you all for too long.”

“That I do, if you've come to help it's much appreciated,” Grima nodded at the other in greeting. Granted the children hadn't been much of a handful yet, but that could always change in a matter of minutes or an hour.

Zelo pond was behind them and if they went East they would find Zora River. South to them was what Atara had declared to be an overrun monster camp. The rain was more intense where they had settled, showing her just how close to Vah Ruta they were actually getting. They hadn’t made much progress from before, the previous camp could easily be traveled to in less than a day, but that was expected under the circumstances.

She arrived at the rest spot, shuffling in and taking a quick glance around. “Are we ready to go?”

The following two days were a bit of a blur. Grima kept an eye on Uriah so she wouldn't overwhelm Saran, as the boy was still under the weather. Though, with Trill and another Hylian joining their ranks, Uriah was more busy asking her guardian about the ‘birdman’ than anything else.

Making sure Uriah's cloak was on right so it wouldn't slip off and she'd get soaked in the rain, Grima had checked on Valen the horse while the other's discussed what to do about the monsters ahead, keeping them in The corner of his eye as Uriah looked through the grass for frogs until they were ready to leave with a plan.

When Atara had come to them to inform them of the plan then went to the twins, Uriah stood and followed after Atara then tilted her head at the half-Sheikah, hands cupping a small frog she wanted to show the twins before they left.

“What about Valen? Will he cause any problems?” She asked motioning her head to the horse Grima had been checking the saddlebags on, almost worried that her horse would mess up the plan somehow. Said horse was rather large, his fur a solid black save for the white on his face and the white fur along his hooves. He was a smart and fast steed, however. Uriah at least thought so, as he knew to follow a trail and at least knew that a stable meant safety. Plus he kicked monsters before.

Interactions: Atara and Nessa ( endersheart ), Saran ( Hopos ),

Mentioned: Bemere ( frecckkles ), Trill ( CyberJackal ), B ( Karcen ), Adagio ( Naburius ), Keenan ( Aura Of Twilight ), Aisha ( Soulmuse )