The prince felt a wave of relief wash over him as he set foot in the place he called home, even though he knew his return would be short-lived. He and the others in his party would spend the night in Naboris, but most of them would be departing yet again the very next morning, heading east for Taafei. The priestesses who had been traveling with them returned to their temples, just as some of the servants and civilians returned to their homes. The nomads they had picked up at the Arbiter's Grounds dispersed into the city as well, although it was difficult to predict if they would stay for long. The prisoners they had captured were taken to the dungeons to be dealt with later.
While the servants took their supplies back to storage, Harun followed Queen Urballa and Elder Kobami up the front steps of the palace, along with a number of guards and retainers. Before they reached the top of the staircase, the doors flung open, revealing Princess Sabah and Commander Bularis. The queen had sent them on ahead earlier when she turned around to go help Harun, so they had arrived before everyone else.
"Mother!" Sabah hurriedly climbed down the steps, and Urballa climbed faster to meet her in an embrace. "I am relieved to see you."
"I am glad you are safe as well, my child," the queen said warmly. "I apologize for leaving you, but your betrothed required my aid."
Please do not refer to me like that…
"I understand, Mother." The two of them parted as Harun climbed the steps and caught up with them. "I am happy you are safe as well, Prince Harun," Sabah said kindly, also giving him a brief hug. "What was it that attacked you? More monsters?"
"In a manner of speaking," Elder Kobami answered for him, tapping her walking stick against the stone steps.
"What?" Princess Sabah asked.
"There were no monsters," Harun explained. "Merely some… misguided folk who wished to do me harm." The prince struggled against the urge to speak more harshly of the Hylianites who had attacked him. It would do him no good to let his rage take over now.
"...I see." Sabah looked at him with the utmost sympathy, as if she could sense the matter was troubling him exponentially more than he was trying to let on.
"Queen Urballa," Commander Bularis said, standing behind the princess. "I've tasked the servants with preparing a feast in celebration of your return, however short-lived it may be."
"Thank you, Commander. I am certain everyone will appreciate a good meal after a long march through the desert." The queen turned to address her retainers. "Everyone, I thank you all for your service thus far. You will not go unrewarded, I promise you. Those of you who will be joining me on our excursion to Taafei tomorrow, please return to your quarters and make whatever preparations you may need. Those of you who are to remain here, you may do as you wish for the night. I hope to see you all in the great hall when dinner is served."
After being dismissed by the queen, many in the crowd began to disperse. Harun entered the palace with the queen, the princess, and their retainers, then did as instructed, leaving to return to his quarters and prepare for tomorrow.
"May I speak with you for a moment, Prince Harun?"
Looking over his shoulder, Harun found Princess Sabah was following him down the halls of the palace. The prince furrowed his brow, unsure as to why she wanted to speak. "By all means, please join me."
As they walked together to his quarters, Harun couldn't help but admire the familiar sights of the palace. While the architecture was somewhat similar to the Spirit Temple, it felt much more like it was designed to be lived in. Every room in the Spirit Temple had been cavernously large, as if it had been built for the gods. "I wish we did not have to leave home again so soon," he said aloud.
"Yes," Princess Sabah nodded, her jewelry jangling slightly as she did. "Being away from home certainly makes one miss one's own bed. But it is nice to see other people. The letter Mother received said Princess Seraphina would be coming. I look forward to seeing her again."
Harun remembered the youngest Hylian princess. She had visited Naboris a couple of years ago along with the Sage of Light and some ambassadors from Hyrule. The young girl was much more energetic than Sabah, but she was very kind, and the two princesses had become fast friends.
"Princess Zelda will be there as well. I wonder what she will be like." Harun had only heard stories about Crown Princess Zelda Victorique Hyrule. Like him, she was next in line for her kingdom's throne. The Hylianites in Naboris spoke of her as if she were the perfect princess - wise, brave, pious, strong, beautiful - a natural born ruler. Harun could only hope he would one day turn out to be half as good a ruler as they expected her to be. The Ganonites, on the other hand, said she was nothing but her father's dog - cold, calculated, ruthless, self-righteous, tyrannical, and willing to raze a village to the ground if the king ordered it.
I hope it's the Hylianites who are right about her.
When they arrived at Harun's quarters, the prince opened the door and gestured for the princess to enter ahead of him. She nodded her gratitude as she passed. "Please, have a seat," Harun offered, indicating the chairs near the fireplace. He saw his belongings had been returned to his room already and left in a pile by his bed, so he placed his trident and the mirror shield with the rest of his things. He would be needing most of it tomorrow, so he did not feel the need to unpack. "So, what was it you wished to speak with me about, Princess?" Harun asked, waving his hand at the fireplace to ignite the wooden logs inside of it.
Sabah looked at him sympathetically as he sat down across from her. "I wanted to see how you were doing," she said plainly, her voice as gentle as could be.
Harun blinked. After everything that had happened, it seemed impossible to put everything into words. "I am uninjured," he said, deciding to focus on the immediate present. "An arrow grazed my head, but our healers took care of that with ease."
"That is good to hear, but that is not what I meant." Sabah's royal headdress twisted a little as she shook her head. "How are you feeling? No one has been through more than you this past week."
Except those who died.
Harun clenched his jaw, but he knew Sabah meant well. He sighed briefly, trying to think of a way to answer. "It has been… a trying time, to be sure," he said, stating the obvious. The look of concern in Sabah's eyes was suddenly too much to bear, so he leaned his head back and looked up at the ceiling.
"I can only imagine," the princess said. There was a pause, during which she was probably waiting for Harun to say something, but he chose not to. "I hope you know, no matter what the people who attacked you might say, most of us do not think harshly of you."
"After what I did to Lady Averla, it would not surprise me if they did," Harun said, suddenly feeling bitter.
Princess Sabah looked more tense after he spoke those words. "That was not your fault," she assured him.
"I know. None of it is. I never asked for any of-" Harun stopped himself before he could become angry, letting out another sigh. "You know, I am beginning to understand more clearly - what you said about Demise. With everything that has happened to me, it is difficult not to think that the gods must simply hate me."
Sabah shook her head. "Nephysis and Hylia both love you, Harun. Nephysis had her servants watching out for you, and Hylia allowed her priestesses to heal you."
Harun looked down at his bruised arm. He had indeed been healed, for the most part. However, he had never been convinced of the theory that all magic came directly from the gods. He had never been devout, and he could use magic just fine. Even monsters practiced sorcery sometimes.
"Two of the people who loved me most have died because of me." It hurt to say, but it was a truth that had been eating at him. Katta had been his first love, and Lady Averla had been as much of a mother to him as Queen Urballa.
"I still live, and I still love you," Sabah said after being silent for a minute. "And so does Mother."
Harun looked her in the eye, and saw she was close to tears. He suddenly realized what he'd been doing.
She is only a child. It is not right for me to burden her with all of this.
Harun smiled weakly, trying his best to put on a brave face. "And I am very grateful for that. I suppose at least one god must love me if I was lucky enough to be blessed with a family like you."
Sabah's face softened, and her lips curled into a smile. Placing her hands on her armrests, she hesitantly pushed herself up out of her chair. Realizing what she was doing, Harun stood up as well. She took a few steps forward, and they embraced. It was comforting to know there was still someone who cared for him, even if he was unable to see her the way he'd seen Katta. Sabah was still too young, and the hug she gave him was as if from a sister. Someday he would work up the courage to ask the queen to rethink their betrothal, but he hoped the two of them would remain close regardless.
"I will do whatever I can to help you through this," Sabah said to him.
"And I will do whatever I can to keep you and our people safe," Harun promised.
Even if that means safe from me.
After they let go of one another, the princess made her way to the door. "Will I see you at dinner?" Sabah asked before she left.
"Of course," Harun said with a nod. "And thank you, my princess. For everything."
Sabah smiled brightly. "You are welcome, my prince."
The next morning felt very familiar to Harun. He had only just returned home, and now it was time to leave again. Many of the same members of their previous traveling party would be joining him, including Queen Urballa, Princess Sabah, Elder Kobami, and Commander Bularis. However, they were bringing less priestesses this time. Instead, they would be bringing diplomats and nobles of the queen's court to aid in negotiations with the Hylians.
However, this journey would not be nearly as dangerous. They would be traveling along the road the entire time through an area of the desert where monsters were not very common. Assuming the weather was good, they would be able to reach their destination by nightfall.
They exited the eastern gate of Naboris in the early morning. Harun rode his camel on Queen Urballa's right, while Princess Sabah rode on her left. Since they were taking the road, they were not bringing any sand seals this time, and due to the relative safety of traveling by road, they were to travel as one group with the royals in the center of it.
The first half of the journey went by without incident. The sun beat down on them hard, but their water supply was enough to keep them hydrated. They spotted a few lesser monsters off the road in the distance, but none attacked them, and the columns of guards would have been more than enough to defend the queen and her wards if need be.
When the noonday sun was above them in the sky, they approached the settlement that marked the halfway point of their journey to Taafei. "I see you remembered to bring that shield," Queen Urballa remarked to Harun as the very front of the convoy reached the gates.
Harun reached behind himself to put a hand on the item in question. "Indeed, my queen. I feel it is my responsibility, and there may be some sort of clue to its origin in the fortress where Queen Nabooru once resided."
Urballa nodded. "Are you familiar with the settlement before us?" she asked him.
"Kara Kara Bazaar?" Harun had never been there before, but he was familiar with it. "It is a trading post where our people exchange goods with the Hylians and other travelers. Some Gerudo take their Mother's Pilgrimages here, too, if they do not wish to leave our territory."
"Good," the queen said, as if she were a schoolteacher and he were a student who had answered a question correctly. "Some merchants make a business of weapons and equipment, or of rare artifacts and oddities."
"Ah," Harun said, realizing what she was saying. "You think we might be able to investigate the shield's origins at this bazaar."
"Perhaps," the queen said with a nod, her elegant headdress gleaming in the sunlight. "We shall stop here for a meal and a short rest before continuing. As long as we are here, you might as well see what information you can find."
"Agreed."
The convoy pulled into the city and found pens and hitching posts where they could leave their camels. Queen Urballa quickly began giving out orders. She sent several servants to gather supplies that would be needed while they were all staying at Taafei. A massive influx of residents at the fortress would likely put a dent in their stocks, and in Gerudo, it was always best to err on the side of caution when it came to food and water supplies.
"Stay with me, child," the queen said, taking her daughter by the hand.
"Yes, Mother," Princess Sabah said. "May we visit the food stalls in the market? I am quite hungry."
"Of course, child." Urballa surrounded herself with guards, including Commander Bularis and a few other Iron Knuckles. "Prince Harun, will you join us? Or would you prefer to look into the matter of the mirror shield?"
"I believe the shield will be my priority," Harun said, deciding he should look into it while he could.
"Very well," Urballa agreed. "But keep your guards with you. This is not the safest of places."
Harun nodded reluctantly as several eager Gerudo approached him.
"May I join you, my prince?" Kyra asked, nearly bumping into him as she reached his side.
"I would be happy to carry your things for you, my lord," Emri offered, somewhat hiding behind Kyra.
"I shall keep you safe, Prince Harun," Laine declared, stamping her weapon into the ground.
"Thank you, ladies," the prince said, turning to his old training partners. "You three shall be more than enough to guarantee my safety," he said, hoping to deter any more guards from joining him. He would have preferred to simply wander the bazaar on his own, but the queen was right.
A small annoyance. At least these three had been Katta's friends, in a way.
Like many Gerudo settlements, Kara Kara Bazaar had sprung up around an oasis. The pool of freshwater sat in the center, and around it, market stalls of all kinds could be found - meat, fish, fruits, vegetables, weapons, clothing, books, trinkets, apothecary materials, pots, pets, mounts, livestock. The majority of the merchants were Gerudo or Deku Scrubs, most of whom resembled walking cacti. Harun also noted a number of foreigners in the bazaar, both as vendors and as patrons. There were a number of Hylians, some round-eared humans, a few Sheikah, several Rito, even a couple of Gorons.
There are voe here, too.
Harun had seen other voe before in his lifetime; mostly Hylian men visiting Naboris as ambassadors, along with their guards and servants. Still, it was strange for him to see so many of them in one place. Since they were all foreigners, they were all much shorter than he was, but they looked similar to him otherwise.
"Shall we find an armorer to question about your shield, my prince?" Emri asked, holding her spear close to her chest as if she were afraid she might accidentally drop it on him.
"Yes, that would be a good place to start," Harun agreed.
As they walked through the crowded marketplace, Harun felt the stares of many people from all around him. The Gerudo were the most obvious about it, as all of them knew of the voe and were surprised to see him there. The foreign humans and Rito often had to do a double take, perhaps surprised to learn there was a male Gerudo at all.
The first vendor they stopped at was a very tiny building with a crude depiction of a suit of armor on the sign outside of it. Laine stepped inside first, and after glancing around, waved for Harun to come in after her. Inside, there was a Gerudo vai at a desk and a few rows of various pieces of armor, most of which appeared to be of decent quality.
"Welcome! Take a look at-" The armorer's eyes went wide at the sight of Harun. "Oh my! The prince is here?" she asked incredulously.
"Indeed he is," Kyra said, smiling smugly, as if bragging about being one of the few who were with him.
"Ah. Well, that is marvelous! Please, my prince, have a look at my wares. I promise you a good price on anything you desire!" the shopkeeper offered.
Harun considered himself lucky she wasn't a Hylianite who kicked him out immediately. However, she didn't seem much like a Ganonite. Her eagerness at his presence came off as something simpler. She may have merely been excited that someone who probably had a lot of money was in her store.
"I was wondering if you might be able to appraise something for me," Harun said, taking the mirror shield off of his back as he approached the vai.
The shopkeeper looked shocked for a moment as she got a look at the screaming face on the shield. "Oh my. Where did you get a thing like that?"
"From the Spirit Temple," Harun replied. "Apparently, it used to belong to Queen Nabooru."
"Really? Well, give it here. Let's have a look." The vai reached out to him and Harun handed her the shield. She examined it briefly, turning it over a few times in her hands and tapping it here and there. "It is in tremendous shape for an item so old," she said. "Being kept together by some powerful durability charm, I'd wager." The armorer's hand glowed with magic for a moment as she ran it slowly over the mirror. "Mhmm," she nodded, perhaps having confirmed her suspicions about the charm. "Are you looking to sell it?"
"No," Harun shook his head. "Can you think of any reason why Bulblins might want it?"
"Bulblins?"
"Yes. A band of them raided the Spirit Temple. Some of them tried to take that shield," Harun explained.
The shopkeeper chuckled. "Probably just because it's shiny, honestly. But then again, maybe this thing was made by monsters. It's certainly not Gerudo craftsmanship, that's for sure. I don't recognize this style, but the Darknuts and the Martelfos make some surprisingly good armor, you know. For monsters, at least."
Harun nodded. He had already known the shield was not Gerudo, but the possibility of it being of monster design had not occurred to him. "I see. Do you know of anyone else in the bazaar who might be able to tell me more? Perhaps someone who deals specifically in rare items?"
The shopkeeper looked hesitant for a moment, likely preferring not to tell him about a rival business. "Uh, well, if you're looking for information about something rare, you may want to try Backeb. He's the most well-connected merchant in the city. You can find him on the north end."
"Excellent," Harun said, taking the mirror shield back into his possession. "You have my gratitude for your assistance." The prince reached into his pouch and pulled out a handful of rupees, placing them on the shopkeeper's desk.
"Oh my!" The vendor looked surprised to have been given so much money for so little. "Well, uh, can I interest you in anything else before you go? I'm sure my armor will-"
"That will not be necessary." Harun waved his hand as he turned to leave, and his guards followed him outside.
"It was very generous of you to pay her so handsomely," Emri praised him.
"It was too much, my prince," Laine argued. "She gave us nothing helpful about the shield."
"Untrue. She gave us another lead to look into," Harun corrected. "Let us see what this Backeb has to say."
Together with his guards, Harun made his way north through the bazaar. As they went, they asked around about Backeb every now and then, and other merchants pointed them in the right direction.
Eventually, they exited the crowded bazaar altogether. The northernmost part of the settlement did not have shops and stalls, but rather it had houses and inns. There were roads running between the buildings, but the green of the oasis was still present all around them.
"This the place?" Kyra asked as they came to the entrance of an inn.
"Um, I think so," Emri replied. "It looks like what the merchants described.
"Allow me to go in first, Prince Harun," Laine offered, her hands gripping tightly around her spear.
"I am sure it will be fine." Not wishing to be overly cautious, Harun opened the door and stepped inside.
"Welcome," they were greeted by a Gerudo vai. The entrance hall had doors leading off in all directions, and there were two staircases leading up to the next floor. The innkeeper stood behind a table with parchment and quills placed upon it. Once Harun and his guards stepped closer, he saw the look of surprise on the vai's face.
"Greetings," Harun said, hoping to skip past the disgust or amazement, regardless of how she was going to react. "We are looking for a voe called Backeb. Might I find him here?"
"Yes, of course. He is in the garden out back," the vai at the desk answered, pointing to the door behind her. "Is he expecting you?" she asked.
"He is not," Harun replied. He did not wish to be rude by demanding an audience, but seeing as though he would be departing the settlement with the queen shortly, he did not have much time to waste.
"Um… Well, he does not usually treat with unexpected guests, but I am sure he will make an exception for… you," the vai said uncertainly.
"Excellent. Thank you." Harun nodded and headed for the door.
The garden out back was about what Harun had been expecting. It looked similar to the Southern Oasis, with lush greenery growing across the grounds. Cacti grew around the edges of the garden, and large flowered vines curled about as if for decoration. There were a few wooden tables set up in the garden as well. At one table, there was a Hylian voe sitting across from a Cactus Scrub a little more than half the Hylian's size. There were also several Gerudo servants milling about, one of whom was writing in a ledger as the two people sitting at the table spoke.
The Hylian voe spoke first. Harun furrowed his brow, not registering what he had said. It took him a moment to realize he had spoken in the Hylian tongue. Harun had been schooled in Hylian as a child and could understand it well enough, but he had not had many opportunities to speak it as of yet. 'Who are you?' had been the voe's question, so Harun replied in his best Hylian. "I am Harun," he said. "Prince-in-waiting of the Gerudo."
The Hylian voe looked confused for a moment, then a look of realization came over him. "Oh!" he said, standing up out of his chair. "Of course, that's right. I forgot there's only one of you. I'm Gartan."
Gartan?
"Greetings, Gartan. And my apologies. I was looking for a man called Backeb," Harun replied.
The Deku Scrub stood up next. His body was green and covered with cactus needles, but the dry grass and blooming flowers growing from his body gave him the appearance of clothing. He had no distinct head or neck, but the upper part of his body had hollow eye holes and a little snout for a mouth. The Scrub raised a hand and whistled a few strange noises.
Harun simply stared at the Scrub, dumbfounded. He had seen many different kinds of Deku Scrubs come into Naboris to trade with the Gerudo, but he had seldom interacted with them, and he did not know how their communication worked.
"He says he's Backeb," Kyra said, translating for the Cactus Scrub.
"...I see." Harun walked forward, turning to the Hylian. "I apologize for interrupting, but I am only here briefly on my way to Taafei."
"No, no, by all means," Gartan said, laughing nervously. "Here, join us, your, uh, highness."
Backeb trumpeted to the Gerudo serving girls as he took his seat again. Two of the girls approached, one placing a goblet in front of Harun and the other one pouring him a drink from a large pitcher.
"My gratitude," Harun said. Taking the mirror shield in hand, he placed it on the table in front of him. "I will make this brief, good merchant. I seek information about this shield. Where it was made, how it came into the possession of a Hylian and then Queen Nabooru, and what Bulblins might want with it." As he spoke, he slid it across the table over to the Cactus Scrub.
Backeb gripped the shield's edges with his prickly fingers, examining it. Harun could not tell how he was reacting, as Deku Scrubs had no real facial expressions. After a moment, he piped up again, making several Deku noises.
"Uh…" Harun began, wanting to ask for a translation.
"By the gods, really?" Gartan said, sounding surprised.
"What is it?" Harun asked excitedly. It sounded as though the Deku Scrub had some useful information after all.
Gartan smiled. "Well, Backeb says that shield of yours is of Stalchild design."
Harun was confused. The Stalchildren was the name of an extinct race of short, humanoid monsters with protuberant faces. What they had been called back when they had lived was unknown to him. Nowadays, their kind were only seen in Stal form, wandering aimlessly in the night after being raised by a Blood Moon. "If that is so, the shield must be extremely old," Harun said skeptically.
"Oh, yes. Thousands of years old," Gartan said.
Backeb whistled out a response as well.
"Good point, master. He says it is too well-preserved to be genuine, so it was likely made more recently. Probably a forger hoping to pass it off as a genuine article. People will pay a lot of money for what they think is an ancient artifact."
Harun was disappointed in that answer.
Is that all this was? Some naive Hylian got scammed, then gave a fake monster shield to the queen thinking it was valuable?
The prince shook his head. "Even if it is a fake, that does not explain why a group of Bulblins raided the Spirit Temple in an attempt to steal it."
Backeb perked up upon hearing that. His body turned in place as he spoke to Harun and Gartan, gesturing with his prickly hands.
"Another Sage Temple being raided by monsters?" Gartan said aloud to himself, adjusting his spectacles. "That is indeed interesting."
"Please explain," Harun requested. He had not thought to consider whether or not this was an isolated incident.
If monsters are attacking multiple locations in order to steal specific artifacts, something much larger and much more sinister could be in the works.
"The Temple of Time and the Water Temple have been attacked recently, too. Haven't you heard?" Gartan asked, looking surprised. "A whole band of Blins climbed their way up to the Great Plateau and attacked the Temple of Time a couple of weeks ago. And the Water Temple has been raided several times by groups of Lizalfos recently."
"Blins and Lizalfos?" If these attacks were connected in some way, Harun could understand it if just Blins were coordinating. But as far as he knew, Blins and Lizalfos hated each other. The Lizalfos worshipped dragons as gods, while the Blins harvested dragon bones to make weaponry.
Why would these monsters do a thing like this? What are they after?
"Have these monsters taken anything from the temples?" Harun asked.
Gartan shrugged. "Nothing more than monsters usually take. The Blins got all the way to the Temple of Time, but they were driven off by Sage Lucrezia before doing much real harm. They haven't gone back there since. As for the Lizalfos, they've attacked a few times as far as I know, but all they've taken is food and weapons."
Backeb trumpeted out some more Deku noises.
Gartan nodded. "All the Sage Temples house valuable artifacts, though. Are you sure they wanted that shield in particular?"
"I am positive." Harun put his hand to his chin, pondering the situation.
Why would the Lizalfos persist, and not the Blins? Are they not working together after all? Or, perhaps the Blins have already obtained what they were after, but the Lizalfos have not.
If he was right, and monsters really were working together in pursuit of some goal that involved stealing artifacts from the Nine Sages, then this could be a threat to all of Hyrule. It might even be necessary to warn the Hylians and the Zora about it in case they needed to join together against the monsters.
I must consult Queen Urballa at once.
"Thank you both for your time," Harun said, taking the mirror shield back and standing up from the garden table. "If you happen to obtain any more information pertinent to this item or to these events, please send a messenger to Taafei to inform me." Reaching into his wallet, he pulled out a handful of rupees and placed them on the table. "I will pay you for the service, of course."
Backeb made what must have been a happy Deku noise as he reached across the table to scoop up the rupees.
"You are most welcome," Gartan said. "We will be sure to take you up on that offer."
Harun nodded and dismissed himself, heading back indoors with his guards.
"You should not have paid him, my prince," Laine said as they walked back through the inn.
"Oh? Why is that?" Harun asked, wondering if his guard suspected he had been scammed in some way.
"Did you see all the Gerudo servants he had waiting on him hand and foot?" Kyra remarked. "Just another damn Hylian conqueror treating our people like slaves."
"Um, well, weren't they working for the Deku Scrub?" Emri asked, holding the door open for the others as they exited the building.
"And who was the only one the Deku allowed to sit at his table? The Hylian," Laine replied.
Harun sighed. He wanted to point out that he and the queen had many servants who waited on them the same way, they had witnessed no mistreatment of the servants in the garden, and he himself had been allowed to sit at their table as well. However, he knew that these three would never be willing to argue with him. He would not change their minds, but they would nod their heads and say they agreed with him regardless. It made him miss Katta once more.
At least when she disagreed with me on something, she'd challenge me on it.
"Let us regroup with the queen," Harun suggested. "She is likely preparing to leave by now."
"Yes, my prince," the three guards said in unison.
By the time they returned to the area where the mounts and pack animals were being held, most of the rest of their party was already prepared to depart. Princess Sabah spotted Harun as he approached. "Welcome back, Harun," she said to him, waving her hand.
"Greetings, Princess," Harun replied. Once he reached his camel, he decided to dismiss his guards for the time being. "Thank you, ladies. You may return to your positions in the convoy now."
The three of them looked disappointed, but they bowed and left to go find their own mounts.
"Prince Harun." Queen Urballa appeared beside Princess Sabah, greeting Harun before helping her daughter back onto her camel.
"My queen," Harun said, bowing slightly in greeting.
"Did you learn anything useful about the shield?" the queen asked.
"Yes, it seems I have," Harun confirmed.
"Splendid," Urballa said with a smile. "I am glad your time was not wasted. Please, tell me what you have learned."
Once everyone was mounted and the supplies were secured, the convoy set off once again, departing through the eastern gate of Kara Kara Bazaar. Many people waved at them as they passed by, but many took no notice. The coming and going of travelers was likely an everyday occurance, and some might have mistaken them for a rather large merchant convoy.
"The shield is of Stalchild design," Harun explained to the queen once they were back on the road. "Although, it may have been made more recently since it is too well preserved, even for an object reinforced with ferromantic charms."
"Interesting," Urballa said, sounding as surprised as Harun had been when he had heard that. "Could that have been why monsters wanted it?"
"That is still unclear," Harun admitted. "However, it appears both the Temple of Time and the Water Temple have been attacked by monsters recently as well, although their objective is unknown, if they have one at all."
"I see." Queen Urballa pondered that information for a moment.
Harun understood that he was raising more questions than answers with this information, but he knew there was still something they could do with this knowledge. "I propose we share this information with the Hylians and the Zora," Harun decided to say, mustering up his confidence.
"And why is that?" the queen asked.
"Perhaps they know something we do not," Harun explained. "And if we work together, we will increase our chances of getting to the bottom of this mystery."
"I think that is a wonderful idea," Princess Sabah interjected, riding her camel a bit forward to catch up with them. "That kind of cooperation can only be good for our peoples. Right, Mother?"
Urballa took a moment to answer. "It may be worth telling them about," she said. "But not immediately."
Harun furrowed his brow. "What? What do you mean, my queen?"
"As Elder Kobami advised us before, there is likely some power to be had from that shield and whatever else the monsters may be searching for," the queen explained. "Which means, the more we tell others about it, the more we risk that power falling into the wrong hands."
Harun narrowed his eyes. "You mean you wish to hoard this power for ourselves and use it as leverage over the Hylians, rather than giving them the opportunity to use it as leverage over us."
"Perhaps," Urballa admitted. "That is what my wisest adviser suggests. And, given that we will be entering into negotiations with the Hylians by tomorrow, such leverage may become necessary very soon."
"But, my queen," Harun began, taken aback. "This could be something much bigger than us or the Hylians. Blins and Lizalfos working together - something like that only happens when they have a demon to lead them, does it not? Surely a threat of that magnitude would necessitate us putting our differences aside for the time being."
Princess Sabah said nothing, but she nodded vigorously in agreement.
"We do not know for a fact that these monsters are working together," Urballa pointed out. "For all we know, they are actively competing. And, even if they are working together, that is no proof of any demon. Stranger things have happened without dark forces at work."
The prince did not like what she was saying, but he had to admit she had a point.
And, I suppose, the only demons we know about are within me now…
Harun heard laughter in his head, but he shook it off. "I understand, my queen, but it seems too big a risk to not act on this."
"I do not intend to do nothing, Prince Harun," the queen said authoritatively. "However, we must prioritize. I promise you, we shall investigate this matter further in the future, but for now, I must ask you to avoid the topic once we reach Taafei."
The prince was disappointed, but he tried not to let it show too much. "...Very well, my queen." He stayed silent for the next few minutes, but then a thought occurred to him about another pressing matter. "What about me?" he asked. "Are we to tell the Hylians of my… condition?"
It took a moment for the queen to answer. "Such a thing cannot stay hidden for long," she replied. "It would be better for them to hear it from us. Still, it should not be the first topic we discuss with them. I imagine it would be quite distracting, especially given how the Hylians feel about King Ganondorf."
Harun nodded. "I understand." The thought made him nervous. The Gerudo who hated Ganon had tried to kill him already.
What will the Hylians do when they find out?