There was an old saying among the Gerudo that Death rides the Desert Winds. Whether it was the scorching heat of the day, the frigid cold of the night, or storms of sand, the wind was always the enemy of those who called that desert home. Thankfully for the hastily gathered army of Gerudo, Sheikah and Gorons that now marched the desert, the winds were calm that day. But it was only a small blessing, given what they were about to face.

A large predatory bird circled the air, its blue and white plumage blending in with the midday sky as it swooped down towards the approaching army. The bird, known as a Kargarok, perched on the outstretched arm of King Ganondorf at the head of the gathered forces.

"We are close," Ganondorf announced.

"Alright, demon smashing time!" The chief of the Gorons exclaimed excitedly, bashing his fists together.

"But we are not facing the demon yet," Impa stated as she brought her horse to a stop beside Ganondorf's. "We would be able to feel its presence by now if it were here."

"Correct," Nabooru rode up to the others as she spoke. "As we discussed previously, attempting to face a demon head-on with conventional tactics would be foolhardy at best. We may be able to fight the demon, perhaps even weaken it significantly, but we cannot expect to be able to slay the beast with normal weapons."

"Then I take it you know of where we might find something that can kill a demon," Impa said.

"Possibly," Ganondorf replied. "We do not know for sure, but I felt it best that we should check. Were you aware the Gerudo are not the only tribe that lives in this desert?"

"Wait, you're not?" Darunia was visibly caught off guard by this. "Who else could live out here."

"They are known as the Zuna," Ganondorf explained. "They are a nomadic people that live even deeper in the desert than the Gerudo. We don't know much of their culture, but their ancestors are said to have built the ancient pyramid that houses the Trident of Demise. They may know of or have access to something that we may use."

"The four of us will go in to negotiate with them," Nabooru added. "Though it would probably be best if our forces camped out here for now. We don't want them to take things the wrong way by marching on them with an army."

"Then I guess we shall meet these… Zuna, and see if they can help us," Impa said calmly.

"Yeah, now I'm curious to see what these people are like," Darunia chuckled.

Link, Zelda, Malon and Ruto walked hesitantly as they were led through the forest by a green-clad stranger. The person who they had seen slay a wolfos just moments earlier was obscured by their heavy cloak of dark leaves and a mask made from a single large leaf, which revealed nothing of the person wearing them beyond a humanoid frame. The only other thing they had to identify the person was the simple wooden spear they carried, which was wrapped in blue cloth around the shaft.

Link recognized the path they took and tried to prepare himself for what they were about to see, but the other three were caught off guard when they reached a large clearing surrounding a large, dead tree. The remains of the Great Deku Tree hadn't changed much since Link had left the forest. The shriveled, blackened wood was still substantially more impressive than anything that grew around it, and the large face formed into the trunk was still quite intimidating even if it no longer held any light or life. A place once sacred to the Kokiri now felt almost cursed.

"Why are you bringing us here?" Link asked, finally, as they approached the dead tree.

"Because this is the only safe place left in the forest," their unknown guide explained, their voice was hollow like that of a Deku Scrub yet there was something familiar about it. "After the Great Deku Tree's passing, the monsters of the Lost Woods were able to make their way into the Kokiri's Forest and, well, the Kokiri have never had to defend themselves from something like this before. It didn't take long for the village to fall and the Kokiri were forced to retreat here. You'll learn more once we step inside."

With that, their guide walked through the gaping mouth of the Great Deku Tree. Link was cautious, as the last time he had entered the hollowed-out tree it had been infested with Skulltulas, Mad Scrubs, and, most dangerous of all, the Gohma.

"Do not worry," the hooded stranger said as if sensing Link's hesitation. "The monsters that once infested the Great Deku Tree have long since fled. Without their queen, they could not withstand the power of this holy ground, even in its current state."

Link nodded and followed, with the girls following cautiously. This was unfamiliar territory for them, so they had all silently agreed to follow Link's judgment while wandering what remained of his childhood home.

The inside of the Deku Tree was much as Link remembered it from his brief time exploring the place in his previous visit. Though he was glad to see that there were no longer any Deku Babas growing out the roots and there was no tell-tale webbing that signified the presence of the parasitic arachnids that had killed the guardian spirit. What there was, however, was a familiar young boy waiting impatiently at the other end of the main chamber.

"There you are!" The boy shouted angrily and ran up to the still-unidentified stranger who had led them here. "I keep telling you that it's too dangerous to venture out there! We need to stay here and guard the… wait, who are these people?"

"You should recognize at least one of them," the hooded figure chuckled. "He hasn't changed that much in the past four years."

The boy leered at Link as he sized the boy up before his eyes lit up with recognition. "What? No, you couldn't be…"

Link looked down at the self-proclaimed Boss of the Kokiri, who had changed little since Link had left the forest, though he did seem significantly smaller than Link remembered him. But that would be because of how much Link had grown while Mido, a Kokiri, was perpetually a child.

"Hey, Mido." Link wasn't sure how to greet him, having never been particularly fond of the bully.

"Link?" Mido cautiously reached for the Kokiri Sword sheathed at his hip, a one-of-a-kind blade that Link could have sworn he had left in Saria's care. "No, you're all ghosts trying to take more of us away! But I won't let you-"

"They're not ghosts, Mido." The cloaked figure sighed. "It really is Link, and some of the others Navi and I told you about. Now, if you don't mind, I believe he will be wanting to speak with them."

"Yes, yes I suppose he would…" Mido glared at Link. "But I've got my eyes on you."

"I'm sorry about that," the hooded figure said with a sigh. "Now, as I'm sure you just gathered, there's someone that I think you should talk to. He's waiting in the next room, so follow me."

At first, there didn't seem to be anything within the room they were led to, behind a large, plump sapling growing in the center, surrounded by sunlight that leaked in through a hole higher up the tree. Looking up, however, they could see dozens of fairies flying around. One of those fairies, glowing bright blue, quickly dove towards them.

"Link!" Navi shouted excitedly. "Link, I can't believe it's you! It's been so long! Oh, it's so good to see you! How are you doing?"

Link opened his mouth to answer.

"Wait, no, now's not the time!" Navi interrupted before he could speak. "We can catch up later, but right now you need to talk to him."

"Who is it we're supposed to talk to?" Zelda asked. "There doesn't seem to be anyone else here."

"Oh, that would be me." Everyone turned to where the sapling was growing but there didn't seem to be anyone there. At least until the young tree blinked and opened its mouth to continue speaking. "Hi, we haven't met yet. I was born shortly after the Great Deku Tree died. I suppose you could call me his son, though I have his memories so I suppose in a way I am him. You don't have to call me Great, though. I'm just going by the Deku Sprout for now."

Link stared silently at the Deku Sprout, so Zelda took it upon herself to make their introductions.

"Hello, I am Princess Zelda XVI of Hyrule. It's a pleasure to meet you." Zelda curtsied, which earned a chuckle from the tree. "And these are Malon, Princess Ruto of the Zora, and I take it you already know Link."

"Ooh, so polite," the young tree laughed. "It's nice to finally meet you. And you've already met Saria, Mido and Navi so I guess we can move on to business."

"Saria?" Link perked up and turned to the cloaked figure, with the others doing the same.

"Oh, right, I guess you wouldn't recognize me like this." Saria pulled back her hood and removed her mask so that they could finally get a good look at her.

"You're still wood." Ruto blurted out the obvious.

Saria nodded, her expression impossible to read as her face remained still, like a wooden carving of the girl Link had grown up with. "The Great Deku Tree created the Kokiri in the image of Hylian children so that Link would not be alone as he was raised here. But now that the Great Deku Tree is gone, we are all slowly reverting back to our true natures as spirits of the forest. My transformation was accelerated because of my time spent outside of the forest, but even the others are starting to change."

"And it's quite uncomfortable, might I add," Mido spoke up, scratching at the collar of his tunic, where Link and the others could now see the bark creeping up his skin.

"I'm not entirely sure why my predecessor decided to do it that way," the Deku Sprout spoke up again. "Personally, I would have left the Koroks in their natural form and let you grow up knowing who and what you are, but what's done is done. Oh, speaking of which, I don't think you were ever told the full story of how you came to be raised by the Great Deku Tree. Care to hear it before we move on to talking about the monsters and stuff?"

Link nodded.

"Alright, so there was this big war fought between the races of Hyrule. Real nasty stuff. No one's fault, really, but sometimes bad situations lead to disaster. Anyway, during the war, a Hylian woman fled to the Lost Woods with her baby to try and protect her child from the bloodshed and fighting and whatnot. Now, you know what happens to people who get lost in the woods and that really would have been a tragedy for you both to have turned into monsters like that, but then something strange happened. Something that I don't think had ever really happened before. She didn't get lost. That woman somehow managed to make her way all the way here to the Great Deku Tree and asked me, or him, to protect her child. I, er, the Great Deku Tree, was impressed by the woman's ability and determination to have actually made it this far, and sensing that you had a great destiny that you needed to fulfill, promised to do as she asked. He took you in and turned the Koroks already under his protection into the Kokiri so that you could have a peaceful childhood before you had to go out and rescue Hyrule. I'm not entirely sure what happened to your mother, I'm afraid. She left the forest just as easily as she came and then… I don't know. Admittedly, the Great Deku Tree didn't pay much attention to things that happened outside the forest, but it's still strange. Although I'm afraid to say that she probably passed on shortly after that. The war was a very dark time for everyone and I'm thankful that none of you have had to experience it. In fact, you've all played a big part in ensuring that nothing like it will happen again. For that, I would like to thank you."

"You're welcome," Zelda curtsied again and turned to Link. The boy was staring off into space, not quite as out of it as when he had first learned the secrets of his past back during their first adventure. Still, it was clear that she would have to take over as their group's speaker. "However, it would appear that this forest is now facing its own problems and I have a feeling that you believe we can help."

"Very astute, though I shouldn't expect less from the bloodline of Hylia," the Deku Tree chuckled. "But yes. As much as I would prefer to leave you kids out of this perilous situation, things here are even worse than you've probably realized and we need your help if we're going to do anything about it."

"Wait, how could it be worse?" Malon asked. "We've already seen that the Kokiri have been driven out of their homes by monsters and forced to take shelter here."

"Hey, where are those Kokoriki people, anyway?" Ruto wondered aloud. "We've only seen two so far."

Mido and Saria both turned away uncomfortably and the Deku Sprout frowned before replying. "You see, that's the problem. They're gone. Well, most of them, anyway."

"Ghosts," Link stated, startling the others before explaining. "Mido thought we were ghosts here to take away more of the Kokiri. That means that some of the Kokiri have already been taken by ghosts."

Mido grimaced, confirming Link's theory.

"Correct," the Deku Sprout shook in in a gesture that was likely meant to be a nod. "It just happened rather recently, which is why I haven't sent Navi to get you yet, but a group of particularly malevolent Poes have taken up residence in the Forest Temple and have begun abducting the inhabitants of the forest. Not just Kokiri, but even Skull Kids and Deku Scrubs have been taken."

"That's awful," Malon gasped. "Are they…"

"I don't know," the Deku Sprout replied grimly. "I'm still week due to my youth and whatever dark power they're using is completely blocking the Forest Temple from my view. I honestly can't tell you what's going on in there or if anyone who's been taken is even still alive. But no matter what, we must stop those Poes from causing any more harm. And while I may not be able to do much to aid you, I believe that you, all of you, can stop them together. So now I must ask: Will you help us?"

"Of course!" Zelda replied, Link and Malon nodding in agreement.

"Sure, why not." Ruto shrugged.

"Thank you," the Deku Tree did another full-body nod, this one intended as a bow. "Of course I don't expect you to go in unarmed. Return to your homes and make your preparations. When you are ready, Mido, Saria and Navi will meet you at the entrance to Forest Temple."

"That's the old building behind the Sacred Grove where we used to hang out," Saria added helpfully.

Ganondorf, Nabooru, Impa and Darunia entered the Zuna settlement, which consisted of a few large tents set up sporadically around a small desert oasis. A few of the mysterious green-skinned beings seemed to be going about their daily routines. As they approached the water's edge and those who had traveled by horseback dismounted their steeds, a Zuna dressed in white robes and a turban with a colorful feather sticking out walked up to them.

"Greetings, travelers!" the man welcomed them. "Visitors to this village are a rare sight, indeed. What brings you to our village?"

"Hello, I am Ganondorf, King of the Gerudo," Ganondorf bowed. "And this is my second-in-command, Nabooru, as well as Impa and Darunia, who come from the lands east of the desert. We are here because of the demon that currently plagues these sands, but we do not currently possess a way of defeating the monster. But we have heard legends of your ancestors' ability to forge divine weapons and we hoped that we could negotiate a trade for something that could aid us in our quest to protect the desert."

"Yeah, I think we have something that could work but you're going to have to trade for it." The Zuna turned his black eyes to the Kargaroc that Ganondorf had used to scout out the area, which was perched on the Gerudo King's shoulder. "I see that you've managed to tame a roc. Is that normal for your people?"

"The Gerudo learned how to tame them a few centuries ago and while it is still an uncommon pastime, there are some among my people who have devoted their lives to raising and training the desert birds," Ganondorf explained. "I take it that you are interested in learning this skill?"

"Yes, we have a way of enchanting the feathers and try to collect them whenever we can, but they can be hard to come across as rocs normally make their nests on the high cliffs where we can't reach them. If you can have some of those people you mentioned bring us some of your trained Rocs and teach us how to raise our own, then we have some old magical arrows that should be exactly what you're looking for."

"That sounds like a fair trade," Ganondorf nodded. "I will send for some of the best Kargarok trainers to come here and teach their craft."

"Then we have a deal," the Zuna said. "Though, I do have another request."

"And what would that be?" Ganondorf asked.

"Could you get your people to stop ignoring us?" the Zuna requested.

"What do you mean?" Ganondorf was confused by this.

"I mean that it seems like no one ever visits us. It's like we're closed off from the rest of the world. Like we don't even exist. We didn't even know people lived outside of the desert but now you've just shown us that there's a whole world out there that we haven't been able to be a part of."

"Odd, I had always heard that the Zuna were an isolationist tribe, that you didn't like interacting with others."

"No, not at all!" the Zuna raised his voice a bit. "We've all been wanting to open up and see what's out there in the world, but no one ever comes to visit us and there hasn't been anything we can do about it!"

"I'm sorry, I had no idea," Ganondorf apologized. "It would appear that my people have done you a great disservice, but I will do what I can to right this wrong. Once we have slain the demon, I will personally set up a caravan to initiate trade with your village, and that any Zuna who wish to Gerudo land will be allowed to do so. You have my word."

"I'm sure that some of the Gorons would love to explore this desert more," Darunia chimed in. " I might be sending an expedition or two to scout out the area once this whole demon thing gets taken care of, maybe set up a new village or two in the mountain regions nearby. I'll be sure that they come to visit once they get settled in."

"The nations of Hyrule, the land where we come from, have recently been focusing on exchanging goods and ideas," Impa explained. "I am sure that they would welcome the Zuna as a new member to the growing alliance of cultures."

"Alright, then I guess we better make sure this demon of yours gets taken care of!" the Zuna said excitedly. "I'll go get those silver arrows for you."