Forest of Spirits — 5:35 AM; Sunny.
The smoke dissipated into the air, leaving him with the quiet surroundings of the forest and the soft crackling of a fire. Link looked around him, disoriented at first, but he quickly began to recognize the cooking pot and the log in which Olli and Essa had first introduced him to the wonder that was mushroom omelet.
With a start, the young man searched for his little spirit companion.
Nothing.
It seemed like the korok had not reached him in time after all.
Link was about to lament this when he heard the dry chuckle of an old man behind him. Turning around, he found the ghost from before, siting near the cooking pot. It seemed as if it had just woken up from a nap.
"Back so soon?" the old man said, "Fiend."
Link frowned at his hostility. His only friend was gone, and this guy was picking a fight, now?!
The loud chime of the slate caught his attention. Link took it out, as it had never done that before, and stared at its screen. The empty map had zoomed in and it appeared as if the location of the golden dot was closer than he had imagined.
"It seems you have managed to open the shrine after all," the old man asked, undeterred by the cold treatment he was receiving. "What do you intend to do with that?" he nodded towards the slate.
Link ignored him and began walking east, unknowingly, towards the ruins of a half-buried tower.
"How curious," Rhoam mused out loud, watching him pass by. A beat of silence, "what is your name, boy?"
"Nonya," Link replied instantly, eyes fixed on the screen.
The old man chuckled and left it at that. He once had a teenaged daughter, you know.
