Quick chapter for now. I will try to write more tonight or tomorrow. I'm trying to move the story along a bit because I feel it's been kind of slow lately.
I always felt like there was more to Twilight Princess's Gerudo Desert than what Link could access in-game. Just imagine that there's land beyond the Mirror Chamber, but no one besides the Gerudo ever knew that it was more than just desert.
The wind is hot and persistent, tearing at Alari's clothes and what little skin she has exposed. Kylan stumbles on next to her, his boots making impressions in the sand dunes. The desert surrounds them—nothing but rolling golden dunes as far as the eye can see. Any signs of life disappeared hours ago as they left Arbiter's Grounds far behind. Now not even the annoying sand-worms leap out to attack them, here in the deepest part of the desert, where the wind rages endlessly.
"I'm starting to think this wasn't a very good idea," Kylan says, having to shout over the wind.
"I knew it wasn't a good idea from the start," she yells back, flashing a smile at him. "Follow the flags, right? That's what you said the Zora scouts found out from the Gerudo's camp. Well, we've found the flags, and we're following them. What could go wrong?"
"Plenty of things could go wrong." Of course she knows that already, but she's going after Ebon and nothing is going to stop her. The Triforce lends her courage, and it flows through her veins like liquid gold. No, not even the gods can stop her now. She has the Triforce and her mage-brother at her side, and she has enough rage to keep her going.
"—or we could get captured by Bublins, or buried in sand, or the Gerudo could shoot us before we even reach the fortress—"
"Kylan!" she says sharply. "Stop listing all of our death possibilities and have some hope, all right? I'm coming up with a plan as we speak."
"How are we even going to get in? Maybe we could let them capture us and then break out of whatever they throw us in."
Alari thinks about it, then shakes her head. "It might work, but they would take my sword, and we don't know if they'd even throw us in jail or just kill us right away. No, we need to be stealthy."
Navin would have a plan already, if he could be here. Her fingers curl into her hands, nails biting into the rough leather of her gloves. Nav would use whatever he had available and combine his magic with his sword, and he would succeed. She thinks of the last thing he said to her, his throat tight and his voice rasping.
Alari presses her lips together and remembers the way he tasted, familiar and warm and right, the salt of both of their tears breaking them apart. She will kill Ebon for him, her torn up soldier-prince-boy, and with him behind her she can do anything.
Even save the world.