"BWAH!" came the exclamatory zeal of Daruk as he strode up to the Park, Mipha following along at his side as the large Goron pumped a fist through the air, "Leg one of this journey completed! Link, my brother! How are you?!"

He rolled up on Link, who offered a hand while smiling, "If it isn't the baddest Goron this side of Eldin Canyon. I'm doing f-!"

Link's speech came to an immediate halt as Daruk shook his hand, pounding a massive palm into Link's back, though he just managed to remain upright amidst the friendly assault, "…fine… Yourself..?"

"A Goron's day among friends is never one of anything less than spectacular!" the large boulder of a man boisterously assured with a laugh, "And look who I ran into on the way! Lady Mipha's company is one of many fanciful tales and pointers- I shan't have been a bore myself!"

Mipha approached from behind the Goron, offering her own hand to Link with a soft smile, "I was traversing the river and coming across Inogo Bridge, I found him standing there waiting for me."

She giggled, hiding her face politely as she did so, "I don't think he wanted to be lonely for the entire trip."

"H-Hey now," Daruk nervously replied, scratching the back of his head, "You'll put a chip in my image… Now, where's your Princess? Surely you didn't come without her!"

Link pointed a thumb over his shoulder, "She and Urbosa are catching up over there, so-"

"Then I must give my thanks for the invitation!" Daruk exclaimed happily, "It is not every day you're invited into a roving fight club, scouring the lands to put on shows for its denizens!"

Link's face fell in confusion, which Daruk seemed to catch rather quickly, the Goron running through his memory for a brief moment, "or is this the thing with learning about the Divine Beasts?"

"That seems more accurate," Link nodded, "…and less deadly."

"Bwah ha ha! Have no fear, my sworn brother; you could hold your own against any Goron!" Daruk assured before stepping off toward the other end of the Park to greet Zelda and Urbosa, leaving Link to peer his way with worry at what activities the man must have been doing in his off-time.

"Ehm, greetings," came a weak voice from behind him, leaving Link to return to Mipha's sight with a acknowledging nod.

He bowed low in respect, "Lady Mipha. Thank you for making this journey on behalf of the Kingdom of Hyrule."

Mipha shook her head, even though Link couldn't see her, still holding his bow, "Oh, I've already had a good time listening to Daruk recount most, if not all of his life, along with a few tales that I'm not sure were dreams of his or simply embellishments."

"He does that," Link replied, nodding while continuing his near-right angle, "If you interject something along the lines of rock sirloin, he'll-"

A chill ran down Link's spine as the cold skin of Mipha's hand gently touched his cheek, its dry smoothness undercut by something of undulating waves from within that gave only a subtle sensation of plumpish give, her voice following along happily, "Please, you mustn't be so reverent. You can stand upright."

Her hand began to tug at Link's cheek, directing him back upright as the Hylian nodded obediently, "Yes, my lady."

"See? Now isn't this much more casual," she nearly giggled, returning her hand to her rucksack, the strap of which she'd had held in front of her, "I've wanted to explore the world for so long; I'd much rather it be with friends than with soldiers."

Link's lips curled uncertainly, though he went on for her benefit, "How are those turbines working? Still chugging along?"

"Yes," Mipha replied with a smile, "Was that the last time I saw you?"

Thinking for a moment, Link nodded, "I believe so- it had to have been; that was the summer before the good King Dorephan decided to cut off our arrangement."

Mipha's expression fell, "Well, uh- Yeah."

Suddenly feeling the air dampen, Link grabbed his arm, looking away with further uncertainty now that Mipha was obviously drawn inward toward her thoughts, leaving him standing their with his awkward stance until she spoke back up.

"Did they ever explain to you why?"

Link shrugged, grinning, "One of the best things about my line of work is that I don't often worry about the 'why's. I leave that to my liege, and-"

He took a glimpse over his shoulder, frowning, "and my Princess… Whatever the reason, King Dorephan was quite good to us as guests; I haven't an ill thing to say about him. He's benevolent and wise; he had his reasons."

Mipha nodded, raising her rucksack back over her shoulder, careful not to slam it into the lengthy trident that sat strapped to her back, "Well, hopefully this excursion will allow you to return."

"Me?" Link wondered curiously.

Her eyes darting to the side, Mipha clarified, "That is, you and Hylians in general. Though, you did make quite an impression while you were there; I'm sure quite a few of my countrymen would recall you."

Link felt another chill as he lowered his head, "I, uh, don't believe I-"

"Mipha!" came the thrilled voice of Zelda, the two Princesses meeting in a fierce embrace as Zelda nearly flew into the Zoran lady, who just barely kept herself aloft, "My goodness, it's been so long! Sidon was just a little teeny-tiny thing back then!"

The Zora Princess gave a smile, "Oh, yes."

Zelda glanced at her with a critiquing glance, "Is he still tripping over that dorsal fin of his?"

"Constantly," Mipha replied with a subtle series of giggles, "He'll grow into it though."

Happily pulling her bag up toward her, Zelda went on, "Oh! I brought you a gift as a thank you for agreeing to join our company, and now that I think about it, it might be just as nice for your brother as well. Let's see- Here!"

She pulled out a thin book, one with a fantastical scene on the front, that of some Hylian children sitting in front of a tree as though listening to it speak, quickly changing hands as Zelda offered it to Mipha with a smile, "I know you like Hylian fairy tales, so I made sure to find another book of them for you to read. Though, you might be able to use it to help Sidon learn Hylian script as well, having thought of that a moment ago."

Mipha nodded with a smile, "I suppose that would work. Thank you very much, my lady."

"Now," Zelda suddenly tensed, "We don't need any of that, now."

A boisterous laugh came from Urbosa as she and Daruk returned from introducing themselves, "Uh oh, watch out! She's in scholar mode!"

Zelda whipped around, "I'm not in some mode… I just think we're all in this same boat now- I don't need any titles or anything, just my name. That's what I'll go by."

A soft smile from Mipha sealed the deal as she nodded, "I just asked the same of your bodyguard, here. Zelda."

The Hylian Princess gave a sigh of relief as she reached out a hand, "Thank you, Mipha."

Mipha giggled, as though suddenly turning mischievous, pointing toward Link as she continued, "And that's Link.

Then pointing to the Goron, "and Daruk."

Then toward Urbosa before her face switched to one of curiosity.

"And Urbosa!" came the pounding of Gerudo breath shaking the air, "Chieftain of the Gerudo! Scourge of the Seven Sands! Queen of the-!"

Zelda's waving hand forced her to resign herself prematurely, "Uh, Lady Urbosa, don't you think-"

"Pfft, heck no! I don't mind people using my title!" Urbosa boasted happily, "Here, I have fifteen more parts to recite for you all; Chieftan of the Gerudo! Scourge-!"

"Daruk!" Zelda exclaimed, hurriedly rushing her hand into her backpack, "I brought you a gift as well!"

Glistening eyes appeared atop Daruk's face as his voice shuddered, "A-A gift? For me? Surely, you shouldn't have! Taking an adventure with my sworn brother is gift enough for me!"

Link turned away from Urbosa's curious glare that had met his eyes.

"I mean, I wasn't entire sure what to get you, but I managed a request with one of our excavators and- Here!" Zelda proclaimed, pulling a rock from her pack about as big as her hand.

Daruk's eyes immediately glazed over in wonderment, "Opal! By the goddess Hylia, have you a clue how many rupees that would fetch among my people?!"

"Really?" Zelda wondered curiously, examining the rock in her hand.

A hand in front of her face to hide her cough, Urbosa asked lowly, "Uh, Zelda, should we think about-"

"But I love it!" Daruk exclaimed happily, "I hope it won't offend if I decline to eat it at this moment. Such a thing is only for the most cherished of cherished occasions."

Zelda shook her head attentively, "That is fine by me. A gift from the Kingdom of Hyrule to you. Do with it as you will."

Pulling the opal toward his pocket, Daruk's eyes wandered for a moment, waiting for the eyes that had once been on him to avert as the others continued their conversations, subtly and quickly reaching down to simply lick the face of the stone, the taste coursing along his tongue as he stood there in the lap of contentedness, a mouthful of eons, of Hyrule's infinite history, dancing in his mind.

The sun had already begun its descent, now advancing low toward the mountains of the east as daylight crept toward its end. Still waiting for their final Champion, Zelda had made the executive decision to wait atop Sanadin Park for their representative of the Rito, whomever that might be. She and Link had suspected Revali, one of the lowliest among a tribe of people so reverent of bloodlines, though neither she nor Link truly knew. Their summation of Revali being their representative came mostly from the Rito leader's rather low respect for, both, this quest and the Kingdom of Hyrule; surely he'd simply cast off some lowly worm wrangler to merely get the Princess of his back.

Where the Rito saw worthlessness, however, Zelda saw something more; what passed as gossip among the Rito often became stories for the Hylians, and Revali was no exception. The tale of the Rito without a mother, found as nothing but an egg upon the soil, hopelessly ignored; for whom might have left such progeny to be taken by nature if truly worth the blood within them? The next part of the tale, that of Revali's bursting from his egg without the need of a mother, or even a nest, was taken by the Rito as some laughable embellishment. Surely he was simply prolonging the inevitable; Mr. Left-For-Dead would surely die without a teacher to pass on the gift of flight. Surely he wouldn't age with the entire world against him even before birth.

Zelda, however, saw a fierce determination within that lost Rito. If he could not find a home among his people, surely he might find one among this Company of Champions.

Without disclosing as much to Link, she secretly grew to hope that Revali would join them. For all the Rito's accomplishments, however, it didn't come without pride; for somebody having to scrap for everything, and having earned every bit of it, Revali had begun to exude a certain proudness from within him, his pride making him a rather difficult person to get along with, and having rubbed Link the wrong way from the start.

Perhaps that was how he wanted it, Zelda had surmised at the time.

"The winds are growing faint," Mipha muttered, her skin easily the easiest of the group to catch such a phenomenon.

Daruk grumbled, turning over in his sleep, "Mountains're beginning to cool off. I'd say it would be wise to consider shelter, or at the very least a fire."

He peered over his shoulder toward the group, "Not that it matters much to a rock-man…"

Watching him with a friendly smile, Zelda replied with a pep in her voice, "Alright, we'll get a fire going. I want our Rito companion to know how faithful we are, waiting g here for their arrival. No point starting off on the wrong foot."

A mischievous chuckle left Link's lips, though Zelda ignored him, instead turning to catch the wry smile of Urbosa, "Well, well; we have our leader's first order. You did it with such gusto, too!"

Zelda comically puffed her chest out proudly, slamming a fist against her chest as a soldier might in salute, earning a playful applause from Urbosa and Mipha, Daruk sleepily joining in only near the ending. Relieving her lungs, Zelda giggled to herself before turning to Link, instructing him to start a fire with the few pieces of lumber that had already been acquired for this moment.

"Question," Mipha spoke up timidly, raising a hand as Zelda turned toward her curiously, "I'm not too well-versed in Rito affairs and all that goes along with that, but might I ask why exactly there is bad blood between them and Hylians?"

Zelda frowned, pressing her hands into her hips as she peered off, "I wouldn't say bad blood, but-"

"I would," Urbosa shrugged, earning a droll glance from from her leader.

Groaning, Zelda pressed on, "I would call it animosity, in any case. Nothing as deep as a blood feud, at least not anymore. But, basically, the Rito used to rule the western skies, for generations- their ancestors roosted there, hunted. For the longest time, Hylians hadn't a clue the Rito even existed- they were always quite suspicious; but when Hylians began pressing outward, settling in those lands to the West, the Rito saw it as a malevolent act, even though those Hylians hadnt even a clue, right?"

"There are so many stories," Zelda continued, a sift timbre hanging in her voice, "Hylians catching sight of shadowy figures in the sky at night, hanging just over the moonlight as if using that glow as their vehicle, catching Hylians in their talons and carrying them off, only to be found days later, nary a bone to be found unpicked."

Urbosa quickly interjected dismissively, "More than likely old-wives tales. No Rito has ever even tasted the flesh of a Hylian."

"Still… Stories do have an effect on people," Zelda went on, muttering quietly, "Whenever the Rito needed help or assistance, so many Hylians turned a blind eye as a result, sometimes causing deaths among the Rito as a result of their inaction. Enough generations of such things, entire cultures can be torn apart by more than geography."

Mipha nodded in acknowledgement, lowering her head reverently while Zelda sighed, clapping her hands, "But enough about that. Part of this whole endeavor is about ridding ourselves of such things. Link, how goes the fire?"

She felt a piercing stare from the soldier crouched on the ground, running a knife along a slab of flint, "Did you think that all it took was dropping everything with just a single swing at it?"

Zelda shrugged, "Isn't that exacyly-"

"Alright, alright," Daruk managed as he pushed himself to his feet, sauntering over toward Link with a groggily determined grin, "For my sworn brother, I will work wonders. Allow me."

With a hand in offering, Link dropped the flint into Daruk's hands, who clasped his hands closed, grinning boyishly while churning his two hands together, increasing in vigor as a ball of heat began to form within his grasp. Not long after, sparks began to pour from between his hands as she rubbed, as though a spoonful of glowing soup were cascading down toward the pile of wood and grass. Such an allotment of sparks quickly caught alight, and a roaring fire wasn't far off as Daruk stopped his hands' movement, dropping the flint to the ground to cool rather let than return it to Link's hands.

"Voila!" he exclaimed.

Zelda and Mipha's eyes bolted open in awe, the former declaring her wonderment, "Wow, Daruk!"

Unperturbed, Daruk triumphantly posed with his hands atop his hips, "Just one of many talents, I assure you!"

"Wow, indeed," Link sighed, eyeing the slab of flint that was now nearly nonexistent.

Daruk frowned, noticing his sworn brother's dismay, simply chuckling nervously as he scratched his chin, "Er, uh- I'll be sure to assist you in acquiring more; I didn't realize it was so exorbitant!"

Graciously enough, Link only smiled, giving the mighty Goron man a vigorous pat at his arm, "You underestimate me, my friend. I brought far more than one single stick of flint along. Thank you for the offer, though, I do believe I'll handle fire duties here on out."

Nervously, once again, Daruk could only laugh at such words from such a tinier being than himself.

Amidst the chatter amongst the women behind the two of them came the sudden gasp of Mipha, who quickly spun toward the north, her voice a mix of excitement and apprehension, "The air! It churns!"

The others followed her attention, with Urbosa being the first to note, "Some Rito do fly with such force that the winds kick up and the atmosphere shivers. Surely this can't be Revali, can it?"

"Tch," Link shook his head dismissively, crouching down and tending to the flames as Daruk joined the women with a boisterous voice.

"How exciting!" he declared, "I cannot wait to meet my brother amongst this Company!"

Muttering under his breath, Link quipped, "You're not missing out on-"

"There!" Mipha shouted excitedly, pointing toward the darkening rays of sunlight, a quickening shadow descending toward them at an arching angle.

A furious breeze picked up, sending the Company's clothes and hair aflutter, even sending Mipha's dorsal fin sailing into the winds with enough force that she needed to grab hold of it due to its rising discomfort. Like a rocket, the winged object burst just overtop the line of intrigued Champions, sending a plume of tornadic winds directly through the Park, immediately snuffing out the flames that Link was tending over, sending the Hylian's head sinking low in defeat while the Rito man swirled upward before hitting the ground, his talons sending a loud CLAP as they broke the atmosphere between themselves and the concrete ground below.

Mipha immediately began to applaud at such a show, with Daruk not a moment late in following her lead, with even Urbosa offering a minute series of claps at the scene. Zelda quickly hurried to the fore, the Rito's feathered arm reaching across his chest before bowing low with his other arm outstretched with regal pomp.

"My lady," the Rito began, his torso falling ever so deeply, "Revali, at your service."

Zelda was quick to reply, "Revali, thank you so very much for accompanying us on this journey. I do appreciate-"

"WOW!" Daruk cried out, rushing up to Revali's side, sending the Rito recoiling in revulsion, "That was astounding! For one so bound to the earth as I, never before have I so longed to feel what the Rito feel!"

Unenthused, Revali slowly pushed Daruk away, gradually returning his attention toward Zelda, "I trust this…assignment won't be completely devoid of class the entire time?"

Daruk seemed unfazed, either due to his waning excitement or simply a misunderstanding, though the rest of the Company, Link included, immediately shot a stare at the Rito, with Zelda apprehensively taking to the fore with something resembling confidence, "I- I don't think Daruk meant any ill will by-"

"No matter," Revali shrugged, stepping away from Daruk as though wholly uninterested in politeness, "I should point out that my company was requested, not volunteered."

He eyed the rest of the group, "As were all of yours, I assure. As such, I do expect- and you all should- a certain level of decorum while in the service of the Princess Zelda. We're not ravenous dogs, prancing about- we're to be the best of the best, correct? I trust that you all have high enough standards that…bursting forth into one's face is still seen as utterly obnoxious and quite rude, and if you all wish to be seen as Champions, I suggest acting as such."

Finally understanding Revali's intentions, Daruk's face fell unenthusiastically, his arms crossing while Mipha looked on in shock, unable to understand how such rudeness could be espoused. Urbosa remained in the background, with only a droll expression to show her emotions, though, as Revali turned to find Link, once again beginning the fire from scratch, Urbosa's eyes tensed.

"I would expect such from him, I suppose," Revali noted aloud, shrugging before turning his attention back to Zelda, "He does remain a mere bodyguard, correct?"

Unsure how to answer, Zelda simply nodded, leaving Revali to sigh, returning a glare toward Link, "Pity. For one so assured of themselves, it must be such a pain."

As though it were a table tennis match, the Company's heads jolted from Revali toward Link, catching the Hylian's smirk, though otherwise, he didn't reply at all, simply continuing to run his knife down the slab of flint. Silently growing annoyed, Revali gestured in Link's direction.

"How I poke and prod, yet he remains so quiet and full of himself!" he noted aloud, "How good do you think you are, Hylian? How much better do you believe yourself to be?"

Link rose to his feet earning a collected, worrisome set of grumblings from the Company, with Daruk stepping forward and holding a hand against Link's chest to keep him from anything stupid, though Link allowed his words to act in action's place, "Perhaps it's not a question of my worth, but of your own lack of such a thing."

The Rito's eyes narrowed viciously, as though far more ready to take a peck of skin from Link's face than turn and leave. However, something akin to cooler heads prevailed, with Revali turning toward Zelda with a sneer.

"I have no qualms about taking it upon myself to make a name for myself along this excursion," Revali explained with a tad of disgust in his voice, though he quickly threw a finger in Link's direction, "Though, I would enjoy the common courtesy of knowing that this one won't slit my throat in my sleep."

Zelda groaned, not believing she was hearing such things, "Reval- Everybody, just calm it down, alright? Link isn't gonna slit your throat or anybody else's. Now, we have to get along; did your elder not explain what we were doing? How will it look if even we aren't coalescing?"

Revali eyed her with confusion, "He merely said we would be carving our names into history from the blood of all the Hinox we'd be alleviating this world of."

With a whimpering sigh of defeat, Zelda's shoulders slumped, "Yet another who takes this endeavor about as seriously as an itch…"

Looking on with further confusion was Revali as Urbosa was quick to offer a reassuring pat among the Princess' back, "Now, now. Okay everybody, fall in; obviously we're going to have to get Revali here up to speed, but we can do that while- Well, I believe our leader should announce our next course of action."

Link being noticeably absent from the collective, Zelda took a deep breath to prepare herself, "Alright. As it's getting late, we might as well camp out here for the night. By the light of dawn, we'll be heading up to the peak of Satori Mountain to ask its guardian spirit for its blessing before our trip. After that, we're to head south, to Gerudo Desert. Given Lady Urbosa's status, that should be the easiest, and therefore, our first milestone upon this journey."

Running an uncertain hand along her arm, Mipha's lips pursed in concern, "A-Are you sure we'll…"

She trailed off in worry, afraid of becoming any sort of hindrance, though Link was quick to speak up in answering her plight, "I was asked to prepare for most anything. We've brought jelly which Zoras can use on their skin to remain moistened, though, I'm not entirely certain how it will fare atop Death Mountain. I was also told to expect bridges not to be crossed until arriving at them."

Zelda's fingers fiddled at her chin at his words, quickly reorienting the conversation, "Alright, if everybody would like to pitch in on pitching tents, by the light of the moon, we'll be able to explain ourselves to our final member. Again, Revali, thank you for your time."

Shrugging, his feathers fluttering from the movement, Revali replied, "Whatever this…journey may be, I can't help but feel as though my talents will be better demonstrated out in the wilderness. You have every honor to ask of me what you will in order for me to do so. My bow is rigid and my aim true. Allow me to prove such a thing so that my reputation may precede me in the future."

His verbose language catching Zelda off guard, she still managed to bow respectfully, offering, "Thank you again, Sir Revali."

Link could only mutely chuckle as he stoked at the flames before him.