History of the Zora, Part One: The Eternal Zora's Domain
"The rains have blessed Lanayru since ancient times with an abundance of pure, clean water. Seeking a bounty of such water, the Zora gathered there. Thus, as the legends go, the domain was born 10,000 years ago. The land was also rich in ore, and so a unique form of stonemasonry was developed to create our new home. The domain is one giant sculpture, a feat of architecture that has drawn admirers the world over. Our great domain will ever stand as a hallmark of the esteemed artists who made it, an eternal symbol of Zora pride." ~King Dorephan
Chapter 2
A Hero's Calling
With my cleaned fish roasting over the fire in a pot with some seasoning herbs for dinner, and my wet clothes hanging over the windows in compensation for my current lack of curtains in case any nosy carpenters might try looking in, I sit down at my small table after having finally just taken a real bath for the first time in a week; something that I don't get the chance to do everyday out in the wilderness.
As I wait for my dinner to finish cooking, I find myself staring yet again at the cherished trident mounted on my wall. I soon take out the Sheikah Slate and search through my photo album until I find my favorite picture in it; one that I had taken during a trip to Zora's Domain.
I gaze with both affection and sorrow at the image displayed on the screen: a picture of a beautiful statue of a young Zora woman wielding a trident in her hands...modeled after the very trident displayed on my wall.
This statue was the first thing I had seen back when I had returned to Zora's Domain for the first time since losing my memory, and is what I always stop to pay my respects to every time I'm in the area.
And yet...I had completely overlooked it the first time I saw it. I merely passed it by after giving little more than a quick glance... I had no idea at the time just how precious it was to the Zoras...nor how precious it would immediately become for me once I would pay heed to it...
It started back one day not long ago, when I had just recently had my Sheikah Slate restored to its full functions by Purah after hearing from Impa the story of what took place 100 years ago and was told to first free the four Divine Beasts before taking on Calamity Ganon. And so, as my quest that would take me across all of Hyrule began, I soon found myself traversing the Lanayru Wetlands where I had spotted a shrine.
Now, these shrines can be found all across Hyrule and are believed to have been made some 10,000 years ago by the ancients of the Sheikah tribe. Only the wielder of the Sheikah Slate can enter them, and they each house an ancient monk who presents some sort of trial to help train the foretold hero destined to combat the Calamity (who is apparently me, though I have yet to learn how that decision came to be). Some of these trials are as simple as solving a puzzle, others involve having to fight against an ancient battle machine, still others tend to be a combination of both; requiring me to solve puzzles while fighting off machines and avoiding dangerous booby traps that try to knock me into a bottomless pit or something. No pressure.
As I entered the shrine, I heard the voice of the monk inhabiting it echo; "To you who sets foot in this shrine... I am Daka Tuss. In the name of the Goddess Hylia, I offer this trial."
The so-called 'trial' was pretty simple. All I had to do was use the Magnesis (a rune on the Sheikah Slate that allows me to control polarity to manipulate metal objects magnetically, no matter what the size) to lift a large, metal bowl from the bottom of a pool of water and use it to scoop up some ancient orbs and drop them onto some pedestals to open the way forward.
In all honesty; I cannot begin to fathom why the ancient Sheikah thought that building such a trial would really be necessary. I mean; just how much funding did the construction of each and every one of these high-tech shrines cost the kingdom of 10,000 years ago, anyhow? I really don't see the logic behind using so much of the kingdom's resources and finances -as well as stationing a monk to spend an eternity waiting in here for the day a hero would finally come and complete this meaningless puzzle- on just a simple challenge that could have easily been created in full within a mere toybox on a conveniently smaller scale. But, hey, maybe that's just me.
When I reached the end of the shrine, I found the Sheikah monk in the same condition as all the others before him; bone-thin from having gone without food or drink for more than 10,000 years, and sealed away in a cubicle barrier of mystic energy designed to preserve him in stasis, keeping him alive even as the many centuries had passed so that he could fulfill his duty this day. (I always did think that must be one seriously boring existence for the poor guys...)
"Your resourcefulness in overcoming this trial speaks to the promise of a hero..." he said to me as I approached and dispelled the barrier around him. (Apparently, mastering the ability to scoop orbs out of the water and drop them in their proper place is the work of a true hero?) "In the name of Goddess Hylia, I bestow upon you this Spirit Orb." A sphere bearing a Hylian crest appeared from the motionless monk and flew into my chest. His purpose fulfilled at long last, Daka Tuss's body broke apart into sparks of blue light and faded away, departing in peace for the next life. "May the goddess smile upon you."
"Um. Yeah... Thanks," I said awkwardly as I watched him disappear. "Bye, I guess..." For as many times as I witness this, I still can't quite get over how uncomfortable the whole thing is to watch some old guy pass away right before my eyes like that just because I completed his petty trial.
Still, I guess it brings the monks a great sense of fulfillment to at last be relieved from an eternity of stasis and finally be allowed to move on, and I do have need of the Spirit Orbs to grow stronger, so I just have to make sure to clear the trial of every shrine in Hyrule for both the monks' sake and mine, as well as for everyone relying on me as the hero who will combat the Calamity.
A new Spirit Orb acquired, I exited the shrine. Looking at my map (which was blank at the time, as I hadn't activated the local tower yet to extract the regional map of that area), I found myself feeling unsure where to go next. All I knew was that I was supposed to free the four Divine Beasts, though I still had no idea where to begin looking for them. Impa had told me that I could acquire all the information I would need about the beasts from the respective races associated with each of them; the Rito, Goron, Gerudo, and Zora tribes, to be specific. However, there remained one question that I found myself pondering without answer...
Where do I even find these tribes in the first place?
The information I had to go by was vague, as was my current map. And although the names of the four races did sound familiar, I still had no recollection whatsoever of what they even looked like. So even if I did happen to find someone from one of those tribes, how would I even recognize them? I guess I can't just expect someone to conveniently show up and_
"Ah! You there!" I heard a female voice suddenly call out to me. Huh? I took a look around, but couldn't see anyone within the surrounding landscape. "Over here! Over heeere!" she continued to call out. Finally I spotted her_right where I would have least expected to see someone...
In the middle of the water.
Her name was Tula. She was a being unlike anything I had seen since my awakening; part woman, part fish! Yet somehow, the sight of her brought a feeling of familiarity. The minute I looked upon her, it suddenly felt completely natural to be addressed by someone from in the water. I almost felt foolish for not expecting it, as if this is the kind of conversation setting that happens everyday.
She looked me over up and down. Her eyes lit up with excitement. "I knew it! You are a Hylian, aren't you?!" she practically squealed with delight. "Yes, you must be a Hylian! Otherwise you're one unfortunate-looking Zora!"
Suddenly I realized what she was; a Zora! How convenient! "Yes, I'm a Hylian," I confirmed for her. I wasn't sure why she was so thrilled to see a Hylian, but I was probably just as pleased to run into a Zora. Her timing couldn't be more perfect if she tried!
"Well, your timing couldn't be more perfect if you tried!" she then said to me, as if mirroring my thoughts. "I was ordered by Prince Sidon to find a Hylian! I've been searching nonstop!"
I took a look around the small pool of water she was in; clearly not the kind of place someone in the middle of a search for a Hylian would stop to explore. The only apparent reason for anyone to stop at such a small, isolated pool like that would likely be either to bathe in private or to sneak in a break to splash around and play in the water. And in her case, the latter was most likely. "'Nonstop', eh?" I said in a teasing tone.
"Yes, quite!" she replied, somewhat sheepishly. "I certainly wasn't just floating around and splashing in the water for fun!"
"Uh-huh... Sure you weren't," I teased some more before getting back on track. "So anyway, who's this 'Prince Sidon', then?"
"Prince Sidon is a member of the distinguished Zora royal family," she explained as she turned to point toward a tower in the distance. "He's waiting at Inogo Bridge, which is at the other side of that tall tower. I do hope you'll agree to go there and meet with him."
I was a little confused by this abrupt request. What does this Prince Sidon fellow want with a Hylian?
"Ah, yes... You must be taken aback by such a sudden request," she said upon realizing her abruptness. "My apologies. For us Zora, this is our top priority right now. So I must beg you to grant my request."
"Um. Okay, I guess," I replied. "I'll head right over."
"Oh, and...if you do meet Prince Sidon..." she added hesitantly. "Perhaps don't tell him I was splashing about and playing in the water. Deal?"
"Not a word," I said with a chuckle before heading off.
It was a fairly long trip on foot, and I had encountered a few other Zora along the way; each requesting that I go and meet with their prince at Inogo Bridge. I still wasn't sure what they wanted a Hylian for, but they said it was urgent and that this Prince Sidon can explain when I meet him. Although my quest to free the Divine Beasts was a high priority, I could never turn a deaf ear to someone's plea for help. The least I could do is find out what's troubling them and see if there's really anything I could do to help out. Perhaps they could also help me in turn by telling me about the Divine Beast that's supposedly associated with their tribe.
By the time I had arrived at the Inogo Bridge that the Zora had pointed me to, a heavy rain was pouring down without cease. No sooner than I approached the structure did I hear a voice call out to me;
"Say, hey there! Young one!"
I looked around, even checking the nearby water this time, but didn't see anyone. The voice called out again;
"Up top! Above you!"
I looked up to see a tall Zora -and I do mean tall; probably about ten feet in height!- standing atop one of the bridge's pinnacles and calling down to me. He jumped down and landed gracefully on his feet before me. "Pardon the entrance, but you're a Hylian, aren't you?" he said to me. "I was hoping perhaps you'd have a moment to talk..."
"Uh. Yes..?" I replied, still confused as to what all this fuss about Hylians is about, and also feeling somewhat intimidated by his massive size. Being the short guy I am, it's not like it's unusual for me to have to look up to someone like this...but usually not that high! This guy's taller than two of me stacked on the other's shoulders!
"Aha! A Hylian! Yes, I knew it!" he exclaimed eagerly in a loud voice.
"Yeah, I'm a Hylian..." I confirmed again, though wondering who this loud Zora was. Is he really that 'Prince Sidon' I was asked to meet with? He seems much too informal for royalty... "And you are..?"
"Oh, pardon me..." he quickly excused himself upon remembering his manners...only to reply all the more loudly; "I AM SIDON, THE ZORA PRINCE!" He struck a pose of enthusiastic determination and bore a toothy smile. "And what is your name? Go on, please tell me!"
He is...
"My name's Link," I replied. "So, what's all th_"
"Link? Your name is LINK?!" he said eagerly before I could ask my question. I wondered if that name meant anything to him. Does he know who I am perhaps..? "WHAT A FANTASTIC NAME!" he loudly declared. (Apparently not; he's just that overly enthusiastic...) "Hmm, though I cannot shake the feeling that I have heard it somewhere before... Well, in any case, it is a strong name!" he continued, not relenting in his enthusiasm in the slightest; "To be honest, I've been watching you. I've seen the way you work. I can tell by how you carry yourself that you are no ordinary person. Link! You must be a strong warrior among the Hylians, correct?!"
Well, he's not wrong...
"That's right. ...I guess," I said with a shrug.
"AHA! JUST AS I SUSPECTED!" he exclaimed loudly. "I am a Zora prince, after all. I have an eye for talent that is unparalleled! YES! EXQUISITE!"
"Except maybe by your tendency to over-hype..." I muttered quietly as I shielded my ringing ears from his loud tone of voice. Is he hard on hearing or something?
"I have been searching for someone like you for a long while," he continued, completely oblivious to my remark; "A man like you, Link, who carries himself with power!"
Wait a second..! Where is he going with this..?!
"Uh, wh-whatever for..?" I asked nervously while slowly backing away from him.
"Right now, Zora's Domain is in grave danger because of the massive rainfall coming from Divine Beast Vah Ruta!" he explained. "Please, promise you will help us! We need your strength, warrior! Won't you please come to Zora's Domain with me?"
Okay. So he's just looking to recruit a formidable Hylian warrior? Alright. That I can handle.
"Wait_ The Divine Beast, you say?" I said as I realized that the objective he was calling me to was likely also the very one that I was already supposed to be working on to begin with. "Sure thing."
"WOW! REALLY?!" he exclaimed before I had the chance to tell him that the Divine Beasts were the reason I was out traveling Hyrule in the first place. "Thank you, Link! You are indeed the man I thought you were! Now Zora's Domain will be saved for certain! No time to waste! Hurry up and head over!"
He went on to give me instructions on how to reach the domain by foot, since the cliffs were too wet and slippery from the rain to climb for a shortcut and I'm unable to just swim up the river like a Zora can. He warned me about there being monsters who have been known to attack travelers on that path with electricity and gave me an elixir that grants temporary shock-resistance upon consumption (although it apparently doesn't work on a Zora) in case I should encounter them. He then volunteered to scout ahead from in the water and report to me any potential danger he could foresee on my path.
Long story short: the plan worked pretty well. Although I did run into a few Lizalfos wielding electricity-discharging shock arrows on the path, Prince Sidon would call out to me every so often to warn me in advance of their presence so that I was ready for them when they attacked. Having had time to drink the shockproof elixir he gave me before I even saw the Lizalfos, their shock arrows were hardly a bother, and I was able to fight my way through the reptilian fiends' ambushes without too much trouble. I even collected a reinforced shield from them and a forked boomerang that can double as a sword, which I desperately needed since the weapons I had on hand were getting pretty badly damaged.
Eventually I made my way across the bridge known as Luto's Crossing, which was built high above the river. "Hey! Link!" I heard Prince Sidon's voice call out to me again. "Look below! Down here!"
Looking over the rail, far down in the river below, I could see him calling out to me from the water. "Hey!" I called back to him. "How much farther to Zora's Domain?"
"You are still pretty far off, my friend!" he answered. "But I was sure you'd be passing over this bridge, so I have been waiting for you. You will be in Zora's Domain before you know it! In fact, I'm going to head that way too! I shall meet you there!" Suddenly his gaze turned towards the back of the bridge. "Whoa! Link!" he called out with a sudden tone of worry. "Beware, warrior! A monster approaches from behind you!"
"Huh?" I said as I began to turn around...
And saw a huge Moblin rushing in from behind and about to pummel me with its club! Yikes!
*Woosh!*
I wasn't prepared for the moment. The Moblin attacked me before I even had the chance to draw my weapon. I just barely had enough time to jump out of the way of its surprise attack.
But that's all the time I needed...
As I moved out of harm's way, just narrowly avoiding a potential deathblow to the head, time itself took a momentary halt. The Moblin barely moving in this frozen moment of truth, I had plenty of time to draw my Lizal forked-boomerang before my feet even reconnected with the ground from having jumped back to avoid my enemy's blow. But the instant they did, I immediately rushed into the overgrown hellion and took him down with a mad flurry of combo attacks in slow-motion.
*Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash!*
As time returned to normal, the Moblin flipped backwards from the onslaught and toppled over the side of the bridge we were fighting on before it even knew what hit him. It perished as it hit the water with a splash.
"WHOA!" I could hear Prince Sidon exclaim in awe as the fallen beast dropped down into river next to him. "That was incredible! When I saw that beast about to attack, I feared that you would have not the time to react to the blow...but it turned out that he was the one who hadn't the chance to counteract! I never knew Hylians were capable of such lightning-fast reflexes!"
"Well, actually, we're not..." I admitted. I couldn't just take credit for something I didn't quite do by my own physical strength.
"I beg your pardon?" Sidon asked.
"I said; I'm not really capable of those kind of 'reflexes'!" I said more audibly so he could hear. It was kind of awkward to be carrying a conversation across such a distance. "It only looked like that because time had...uh...stopped." ...That's when it occurred to me that this might be even more unusual to try and explain.
Although he was pretty far down beneath me, I could see Sidon's eyes widen all the more. "I'm sorry, but did you say...time stops when you attack?!" he asked with utmost shock. I nodded sheepishly. I really had no idea how I was going to explain this. "ASTOUNDING! I have known many great warriors, yet never have I heard of one with the power to stop time! It appears the goddesses have sent an even greater warrior our way than I could have imagined! With such power as yours on our side, Zora's Domain will be saved for certain! Speaking of; I will be on my way back there now. You will have to tell me more about this power once you arrive. Just keep following the path and you should be there in no time! Farewell for now!"
As he took off swimming upstream, I couldn't help but ponder... How did I even acquire this ability in the first place? It's not the first time I used this power, but it's the first time I've tried to explain it to anyone...and I don't even know much about it myself. I wasn't sure how I would answer Sidon's questions about it once I would arrive at Zora's Domain, but I needed to get moving again before the effects of that shockproof elixir wore off and would leave me defenseless against any electricity-wielding monsters that may haunt the road ahead.
As I continued to follow the road to the domain, I began to feel a sense of familiarity towards the scenery. Of course, I figured that should only be expected, since I'm told that I had apparently accompanied Princess Zelda as her appointed knight in her travels all across Hyrule as she conducted the preparations to be made for combating the Calamity's foretold return, so it'd make sense to think that I would have more than likely journeyed by this road before during my forgotten past. In fact, I had already felt like this upon reaching a number of places throughout my journey since I awoke from my 100 year slumber.
However, as I grew closer to my destination, those feelings of familiarity began to grow even stronger than expected. Pretty soon, it was no longer mere deja vu that I was feeling; it was more on the lines of nostalgia. Unlike when I first found myself back at places such as the respective roads to Kakariko or Hateno, which I know now that I had been to before in the past, this didn't just feel as if I was simply walking a repeated path; it felt more like...I was journeying home. I didn't understand this feeling, but I soon found myself growing more and more inwardly excited to be heading to Zora's Domain with each step I took.
Along the way, I came across a number of stone monuments that didn't appear familiar. They were a collection of historical records bearing the title; "History of the Zora, As Told by King Dorephan". As the title suggested, they told a little about the Zora tribe's history; most of it seeming to ring a bell in the back of my mind, though I still had no recollection of hearing it before. I did stop to read a few, but I unfortunately couldn't stick around too long because of my hurry.
After a long hike, I at last caught sight of my destination ahead; Zora's Domain! It was a great and scenic structure; well-crafted by expert stonemasons and flowing with an abundant outpour of water. Although I still couldn't recall seeing it before, looking upon it filled me with a mysterious sense of nostalgia unlike anything I had experienced since the day I awoke in the Shrine of Resurrection. It was still a ways off, but I would be there in just a few more minutes of hiking. (Good thing, too. Since I could already feel the effects from the shockproof elixir I got from Sidon wearing off.)
As I came to the final crossing before the domain, I noticed another monument nearby. Considering I was nearly at the doorstep of my destination and had no need to continue the rush, I decided to take a moment to stop and read what it had to say. It read as follows;
"H***ory of the Zor*, Part S*ven. The H*ro Who D*feat*d the Ly**l. As t**d b* King Dorephan
T**re was a time when the p**ple of the land were thre**ened by the dr*** beast Ly*e* who lived on Pl**mu* M**ntain. But one Hy***n drove th* beast back an* re**ored p**ce to the do**in. Th* Zora Helm w*n in th*s fight i* no* north of *** in the r**ns near **** L*ke. It re**s ther* to h**or the d**ds of the he** L***."
The words carved into the stone were just simply too difficult to read. Although I could guess what most of them were supposed to say, but some critical words were still just too rough to make out. It was clear to me that an interesting moment of history was written here, yet I couldn't understand enough to know what took place. But after standing out there in the rain for a good ten minutes or so trying to decipher it, I at last managed to figure out for myself exactly what happened;
Time has taken its toll on this...
That's the most logical explanation I could possibly think of as to why the words on that monument ended up so rough and indecipherable. It must be the reason! Having figured that part out, I decided to study the monument a moment longer to see if I could also figure out what those faded words had once said as long as my mystery-solving skills seemed to be in such working shape at the moment. Unfortunately, some of those key words were just plainly too rough and I had spent too long staring at that old monument already; something I realized after the sound of my stomach growling fiercely at me, demanding to be fed immediately, had snapped me out of my thoughts and back into the present. I figured I should get back on track and head to the domain before I would cause that Prince Sidon guy and the rest of the Zora who were probably waiting for me there to worry that I'm not coming.
And more importantly; before my grumbling stomach would get angry enough to bite me. At the rate it was growling, it sure sounded like it just might do so at any moment. I didn't want to take any chances.
In fact, I decided to play it safe and appease its growing rage by munching on a roasted fish skewer that I collected from the spoils of a deserted Lizalfos encampment (or at least it was 'deserted' by the time I got through it, if you know what I mean...) on the way to withhold its wrath from me. It wouldn't be a pretty picture to have my raging stomach screaming out any nasty language during my meeting with the Zora royal family after all.
No sooner than I set foot in the domain did I see Prince Sidon running eagerly to meet me. So eagerly, in fact, that I was afraid he wanted a bite out of my fish skewer!
It's MINE. I am NOT sharing...
"I've been waiting for you, Link!" he greeted loudly with his signature enthusiasm. "Welcome! Behold the pride of my people, Zora's Domain! Now I shall introduce you to the king. Hurry, this way!"
He then took off running before I could say even a single word... "Um... Hi?" I said awkwardly as he rushed on ahead.
Well, at least he didn't try to take a bite out of my fish skewer. I might have had to punch him if he did.
I meant to ask for details but he ran ahead so fast that I couldn't even tell where he took off to. I had to ask one of the guards standing nearby for directions to the throne room_but the response I got is what really caught me by surprise...
"Um, excuse me..?" I began to say, but the Zora guard gave me a shocked look as soon as he saw my face and his own quickly lit up immediately after.
"Huh? What is it?! MASTER LINK!" he exclaimed with a sudden excitement that left me unsure how to react. "Is it truly you? The Hylian Champion?!"
"Uh... Yes..?" I answered with utmost confusion.
"It's me! Rivan!" he continued; "We used to swim together when I was but a child... Remember?"
This had totally caught me off guard! This guy knows me?! Is that really even possible?! I was told that I had been asleep for more than 100 years! Judging by this Zora appearance, I would have guessed he was probably around 40 years of age or so, but anyone who would have known me should be either long dead or old beyond measure by now! He couldn't possibly have known me_could he..?
Still... Something about what he had said did seem to inexplicably ring a bell somehow... "That sounds familiar..." I admitted as I took another appetizing bite from my delicious-tasting fish skewer, though I still couldn't comprehend how that could really be possible.
...After all; those Lizalfos I collected these baked fish from really didn't prepare them well at all. I swear they just cooked them raw without even properly scaling them first! How in the world do I still find something so poorly prepared so appetizing? The fact that it was so disgustingly soggy from the rain sure didn't make it any more appealing either! I don't know why I was still eating it_yet I was still thoroughly enjoying it and wouldn't dare put it down. Why do I love food so much?
Another thing that I found tough to chew (albeit in a less literal sense) was the fact that this Zora claimed to have known me even though I had lived more than 100 years ago. Crazier yet was that his claims actually felt plausible even though I knew very well that it shouldn't be possible. If what he says is true, shouldn't he be either extremely old or dead by now?
Rivan let out a "Hmm" and held his chin at my lack of recollection. "Well, it has been a hundred years since then," he continued, sounding somewhat disheartened that I didn't remember. "And now I'm over 130 years old..."
Hearing this shocked me. I didn't realize Zoras lived that long! But it does explain everything. And now that I've heard this news, I felt as if I had known of it once before.
"I must say, you've aged well for a Hylian," Rivan continued. "Unbelievably well! Now that I think about it_shouldn't you be dead? Sorry. That may be too personal a question."
Just then, the other Zora standing guard on the opposite side of the gate interrupted with an audible 'AHEM' to remind him of the present; "Father... We are on guard duty right now."
"Oh, right... Sorry," said Rivan sheepishly before turning back towards me and finishing his introduction in brief. "The leader of the pack, Bazz... The heroine, Gaddison... And my father, Trello... They have all aged quite a bit, I'm afraid. But they are all doing well." Suddenly his countenance changed at the mentioning of his father. "Oh... But, Master Link, you probably shouldn't speak to the elderly. Oops! Sorry for keeping you too long. You have business in the throne room, right? Please proceed there at your earliest convenience."
My mouth was still too full to speak a reply, so I simply nodded instead. My gaze then turned to the other spear-bearing Zora standing guard, who was apparently Rivan's own daughter. I wasn't sure why, but looking upon her left me somewhat...moonstruck. For reasons unknown, I quickly found myself feeling strangely drawn to the beauty of Zora women, and there was something that struck me as being especially attractive about a lady Zora with a spear, although I couldn't begin to explain why.
I began to wonder if she was single.
She seemed to notice my stare. "Well, hello there. It looks like Father was really excited to speak with you..." she said to me before shaking her head at her father. "Oh, well. I believe this is our first meeting, yes? My name is Dunma."
Having her speak to me out of the blue like that while I was in the middle of admiring her beauty caught me off guard. I nearly choked on the baked fish I was eating, but quickly managed to swallow without anyone having to notice. I felt somewhat nervous and under pressure in the sudden moment, but managed to regain my composure and put on a cool and calm demeanor as I cleared my throat and said the most casual, gentlemanly thing I could think of to strike up conversation with her without showing too much interest upfront;
"You're female, right?" I asked smoothly as I took another casual bite from my fish skewer.
She didn't seem too amused at my remark. "...My, how observant you are," she said in a peeved tone. "Is there a problem?"
Huh... Maybe that was a little TOO casual a question?
I decided to try asking something a little more straightforward and less obvious this time; something that I was actually already wondering myself; "How old are you?" I said with a mouthful.
"That is NOT an appropriate question to ask a lady you just met!" she snapped loudly, making me jolt back and almost drop my precious fish skewer in bewilderment. She then let out an annoyed sigh. "Let's just say I'm less than 100 years old. Can't you tell? I'm so much less formal than the elders...aren't I?"
I didn't really understand her problem. Why are women always so self-conscious about their age, anyhow? I'm over a hundred years old and don't care a lick about it!
"At any rate, right now Zora's Domain is looking for a Hylian Warrior," explained Dunma, changing the subject. "For more detailed information, please go speak with King Dorephan in the back."
"Oh! Right!" I said as I swallowed, having almost forgotten what I was here for in the first place. "I guess I should get going now," I finished as I took another hearty bite from my skewer.
Rivan spoke up; "By the way..." he said with a sound of concern in his voice. "Master Link, are you going to fight Calamity Ganon again?"
I gave him a puzzled look. "'Again'?" I asked with a mouthful.
Now he was the one giving me the puzzled look. "I mean... Master Link... You and Lady Mipha fought Calamity Ganon 100 years ago. Don't you recall?" I wanted to say something, but my mouth was still too full to speak in complete sentences. Seeing the look of incomprehension on my face, Rivan seemed to figure out my situation for himself. "Master Link... You really don't remember anything, do you?" he said to me with realization. I shook my head in confirmation. He smiled in understanding. "OK! In that case, ask me anything you want to!"
I wanted to ask who this 'Lady Mipha' he just mentioned was but my mouth was still too full yet. "Mipha?" was all I could get out clearly.
"Lady Mipha is the princess of the Zora and Prince Sidon's elder sister," explained Rivan. "She is also the Zora Champion. That means she was able to command the Divine Beast Vah Ruta. But unfortunately...Lady Mipha was... Well, 100 years ago...Calamity Ganon..." His tone grew somber with each word. He seemed unsure how to explain. "I should not be the one telling you this. Sorry. Please ask King Dorephan if you wish to know more. Is there anything else you want to ask?"
I still had plenty of other questions weighing on my mind, but I realized that I had probably kept the Zora royal family waiting much too long already. I decided to get back to the initial question I had meant to ask him from the start; "Throne room?" I said with my mouth still packed.
"The throne room is where King Dorephan and Prince Sidon can often be found," said Rivan. "You can use either staircase to go up. When you get to the second floor, the throne room is up and to the back."
I swallowed at last. "Alright. Thanks. I should probably head over there now. Maybe we can talk more later and catch up?"
"Roger that!" said Rivan happily.
I looked over at Dunma. "And...uh...I guess I'll see you around, too, then?" I said somewhat sheepishly.
She only gave me an unamused look in response. I guess my first impression didn't go so well with her...
I still couldn't figure out what it was about Zora women that I suddenly came to find so attractive. After all, I had already encountered several human women since my awakening -a number of them being quite lovely- but I never really paid them much mind. I had more important things to concern myself with. And yet, the instant I meet a Zora woman around my age (well...in the same stage of physical maturity as me, anyhow...), I was immediately attracted to her and making a fool of myself like some walking bag of hormones! What's up with THAT?!
Boy, am I weird...
As I proceeded through the domain, I saw it; towering before me in the pouring rain was the majestic statue of a beautiful Zora girl adorned in regal ornamentation and wielding a magnificent trident. I gazed up at the treasured statue...
And then looked right on by it without giving it much thought at all. I had no idea yet just what kind of great sentimental value that prized statue held to the Zora people.
Nor what equally great sentimental value it was soon going to hold for me as well...
Thanks for reading! ...And my apologies for how long it took to get this second chapter out. My intention has been to match the dialogue from the actual game as closely as possible while adding new script here and there. But to do this, I've had to play this part of Breath of the Wild again and write down word for word every line used by every NPC related to this event, which is a pretty tedious and time-consuming process...and most of the dialogue I had to record isn't even used in the end since there's no way I could have possibly fit all of it into this story. And I must say; trying to write a scene using pre-written script is proving to be much more difficult than I would have thought! Now that I'm trying to work with it, I've come to realize that BotW's dialogue actually isn't very well-written...at all. (The conversation with Dunma was especially awkward to write out; I spent days of writer's block on just that part alone!)
Anyhow, I know this is probably the least interesting chapter in this story, since it doesn't have much original content to offer, but we will begin to sway from the canon soon enough. And I know it probably wasn't necessary to include the explanation of the shrines and everything, but I couldn't resist; I just had to poke fun at the illogical concept behind them (which I shall continue to do further into the story as well). Haha
BTW, does anyone know what that three-letter word is supposed to be between "of" and "in" in that damaged monument Link finds? Having all three of its letters missing, that's the one word I haven't been able to decipher...