Time for Chapter 74, while Sarami still searching for a way to help her friend Gonaeti, a new crisis is about to unfold!
Link looked around cautiously, he was once again in a familiar yet at the same time unfamiliar place; he was back in the strange field he kept coming to in his dreams. It was a type of grassy plain that seemed to stretch out as far as he could see. There was a large towering object in the distance, but couldn't figure out exactly what it was.
"This dream again... just where the hell am I?" Link spoke. It was then he heard a loud clash of steel, as he turned to see yet another odd sight.
It was the mysterious figure from before, the one that kept appeared every time he dreamed of this place. Only instead of just standing there being a jackass to Link, he was locked in battle against some sort of second being he had never seen before. The creature looked like a humanoid skeleton monster, wielding an old sword, but the most distinct thing Link could make out about the skeleton was one of it's eyes were damaged.
"You just don't give up, do you ya bone bag? Well bring it!" the mysterious man said, wielding a two handed sword and bashed it into the skeleton.
The skeleton recovered and leaped at the man, who quickly backflipped out the way then swung his sword down one more time, causing the skeleton to suddenly vanish. The man took a deep breath and sheathed his sword onto his back.
"That damn thing, why does it have to keep bugging me like that...?" the man muttered, before looking to Link and grinning, "Oh hey there buddy, been a while hasn't it?"
"Yeah, um... just what was that?" Link asked.
"Hell if I know, that skeleton guy started appearing here lately and keeps bugging me to fight him. No matter how many times I try to get rid of him he keeps coming back." the man said.
"Well I know what it's like to deal with someone that won't leave me alone." Link commented with a small smirk.
"Hmph, smartass." the man muttered.
It was then Link saw the skeleton warrior materialize behind the man again, and bring up it's sword.
"Hey, behind you!" Link shouted.
The man's eyes widened and he quickly turned to confront his attacker but it managed to get a cheap shot on the man, before he punched it away and slashed it down with his sword.
"Damnit... I let my guard down..." gasped the man, turning back to Link, "Grr... I really need to get rid of you so I can finally free myself."
That's when Link's eyes widened, in that moment he could clearly see the man's face, and noticed very distinct markings on it...
"It's... it's you..." Link gasped, "It was you all along?! I thought I got rid of you all that time ago!"
"Heh, finally figured it out huh? Well fact of the matter is you never did get rid of me, buddy." grinned the man, "I've been inside here all this time, waiting for the right opportunity to get rid of you and take over."
"I won't allow that." Link said narrowing his eyes.
"We'll see about that buddy, we'll see." chuckled the man, turning and walking off.
"Hey wai-" Link called out, before he felt the floor open up from under him and he once again fell into the void.
Link woke with a gasp, realizing he was in his bedroom once again. He put a hand to his head and contemplated what he had seen.
'So that's who it was all this time...' Link thought to himself, 'But what can I do about it...?'
He then looked down at Nabooru, who he had spent the night making love with. He smiled softly seeing the Gerudo leader sleep in a state in tranquility, and laid back down beside her. He ran his hand through her crimson hair and gave her a kiss on the nose. She smiled warmly in her sleep and put her arms around him.
'...and what would everyone say about it if I told them what it was...?' Link thought to himself, his eyelids growing heavy again as he drifted back to sleep in Nabooru's embrace.
"Hmm, your vitals seem just fine, now let me give these in particular a little more examination..."
"Hey, quit grabbing at those, doc!"
"Fu-fu-fufufu..."
It was a couple days after Sarami, Link and Nemisa returned home to Gerudo Town from Kakariko Village, having failed to get in contact with Granny Truttlo on what to do about Gonaeti's pregnancy condition. Upon arriving home Sarami went right to the books, trying to find a solution so that she could save both Gonaeti and her unborn child.
At the moment though, Sarami was focusing on someone else's pregnancy, namely Link's three child-bearers Ragome, Leivuri and Esolu. The four of them were in the palace's maternity chamber, and Sarami was giving each of them a full physical to make sure their pregnancies were going smoothly.
Sarami was currently focused on rubbing down Ragome's large breasts, running her hands along the sides, under them, and giving them a gentle squeeze, seeing no abnormalities with her like with Gonaeti.
"Oh you're doing splendidly Ragome!" Sarami said with a sweet smile, "And your children are coming along nicely!"
"Ugh, I still can't believe I'm having twins." Ragome said, laying back and rubbing her round belly, "And I gotta carry them for another four months? Link owes me big time for this!"
"Oh come on Ragome, we know you're enjoying it just fine." Leivuri giggled lightly, "I've seen you singing to your babies to help them sleep when you think we're not looking."
"Ack!" Ragome flinched, "W-Well I can't help it, I love these girls Link gave me..." she spoke with a small blush on her cheeks, "I didn't know what to think about being a child-bearer at first, letting myself get fat like this and dealing with all the puking and cramps..."
She ran both her hands along her stomach, "...but then I feel these two growing inside me, and I really feel satisfied. I'm getting great meals, comfortable living, and Link's been treating me right this whole time... Sometimes we just talk, sometimes he makes passionate love to me..."
"Y-Yes, it's embarrassing to think of, b-but he's so good to us in bed..." Leivuri said as she covered her face to hide her blushing, Esolu nodding in agreement.
"I guess what I'm sayin' is I think I wouldn't mind spendin' my whole life doing this sort of thing, having lots of kids with Link and helping our population, cause I really love livin' the way I am now!" Ragome said, smiling brightly with an exposed tooth fang.
Sarami smiled warmly, she recalled her own days as a child-bearer for Ganondorf. Naturally back then things were much different for her. She was in Gerudo Fortress during those years, and her lifestyle was hardly anywhere as nice as these girls had it here. She was in a dark and lonely living quarters, her rations were hardly filling enough for her, and Ganondorf didn't even give her the time of day. When her child died, he had even deemed her a weakling and discarded her like trash.
But as much pain as Sarami went though in her early adult years, she was happy to see Ragome and the others living so happily now, and how well Link was treating them all. Nabooru had done wonders to reform the Gerudo so they could all live a good lifestyle, and she wanted to help these girls be as comfortable as possible through it as well.
Leivuri tilted her head a little at the happy look in Sarami's eyes, before smiling pleasantly, "Dr. Sarami, you fancy Link as well, don't you? I'm willing to think he'd take you as his wife and give you a precious daughter of your own."
"H-Huh?" Sarami exclaimed.
"Shii-shi-shi!" snickered Ragome, "I say go for it! I promise you won't regret it, he's an awesome lover!"
"U-Um..." Sarami blushed, before deciding to change the subject, "S-So Esolu, how's your throat doing? Can you talk at all?" she asked, taking a moment to check her throat.
Esolu simply held up a page of her sketch book, showing a drawing she did of her face with an X-shaped bandage over her mouth.
"Poor Esolu is still mute I'm afraid." Leivuri sighed, "Not even the town mystics can figure out what's wrong with her."
"You poor thing. Losing a part of you like that can be a terrible feeling..." Sarami said, thinking about her lost child in that moment, "...believe me, I know."
Ragome and Leivuri looked to each other with a frown, wondering just what pain Sarami went through in her life before getting to where she was now.
"Sarami? You about done?" Nemisa asked, poking her head into the child-bearer's quarters, "Lady Nabooru wants you to attend a meeting with us."
"Very well, I was just finishing up." nodded Sarami, getting herself up, "I'll be back for another check-up two weeks from now, just take it easy all of you, okay?"
"Weeell taking it easy sounds a bit hard, buuut... okay!" grinned Ragome, laying back on her pillows with one arm behind her back and the other striking her belly. She turned to the servants and called out, "Hey, could someone please get me some strawberry cakes with whipped cream?"
Esolu meanwhile had bored but sparkling eyes as she held up a heavily detailed drawing of a frosted scone pastry.
"I think we'll be just fine Dr. Sarami." giggled Leivuri, "Go on, and good luck with Link."
"Ah ha ha, t-thank you..." Sarami said blushing, and hurriedly followed after Nemisa.
"So what business do you have for us today Nabooru?" Link asked as he, Nabooru, Aviel, Nemisa, Saria and Sarami all sat around the dining table of Gerudo Town palace.
"Well, I have some good news today." Nabooru spoke with a wide grin, "I've received a confirmation from representatives of Hyrule Castle, and it seems the Hylian Parliament have agreed to meet with us to discuss a possible peace treaty, and to abolish the Banishment Law!"
"That's great!" Link said with wide eyes, "Finally a chance to set things right!"
"Alright, then we can finally give our sisters the freedom they've earned!" Aviel chirped happily.
"Well I never thought I'd see this day." smirked Nemisa, "I can't wait to see you two speak out to those Hylian mongrels."
"When we get there, I'll do what I can so we Kokiri can start putting ourselves out to Hyrule as well!" Saria said.
"Wonderful! So how long will it be until then Nabs?" Sarami asked.
"It'll still be a while I'm afraid, there's legal matters to deal with as well as them having to prepare the town for our arrival from what I've been told, but rest assured we're finally making real progress!" Nabooru said proudly.
Link smiled, he was worried about Nabooru for a while since she blamed herself for a while on her inability to make the significant changes she wanted to, but now it seemed they were finally able to accomplish just what she had wanted for everyone.
"In other news, you'll be happy to know we've been reliving a number of our sisters from their... let's say 'temporary residence' from certain nobleman's estates." Nabooru smirked, "That list you got us from the Wyvern Keepers has been imperative to tracking down and freeing them Link."
"That's great, and what about the slaves from other tribes?" Link asked.
"They're all being escorted back as well. The people have been good to keep quiet about who exactly saved them of course." Nabooru said, then sported a grin. "And as an added bonus, those noblemen who had been keeping them have been under a lot of pressure over it too."
"Heh, that's music to my ears." Nemisa said, as a former slave herself she felt a little more uplifted by this news.
"Lady Nabooru, King Link!" shouted the guard suddenly, running in and gasping out, "We have a situation!"
"What's the trouble?" Link asked.
"It's the C-Block of our desert patrol, they were attacked by Desert Wolfos! The patrol managed to fight them off, but they sustained serious injuries, and even worse Sister Marata of their group was abducted by the monsters!" the guard exclaimed.
"Wolfos?! You mean like what we fought over at the warp point temple?" Aviel asked.
"Oh no..." Saria whispered in horror.
"What?! How the hell did that happen?" Nabooru asked, "C-Block is among some of our strongest soldiers, they can take down a pack of Lynels without breaking a sweat! How could mere Desert Wolfos give them any trouble?"
"The patrol said they were suddenly attacked, and the Wolfos exhibited very strange power they had never fought before." the guard said, "The rest of the team are currently at the medical clinic right now getting treatment."
"That's terrible, I should get over to the clinic to help the nurses!" Sarami said, she was about to get up, when another guard came rushing in as well.
"Sorry King Link, Lady Nabooru, but we just received this letter at the front gate" gasped the guard holding up a piece of paper, "The strange thing is that it was handed to us by a Desert Wolfos."
Nabooru walked over and took the letter, looking it over carefully as Link, Aviel, Nemisa, Saria and Sarami all gathered around her to read it. The writing was rather rough, but they could make out the Hylian text.
'To the rulers of the Gerudo people, we have abducted your solider, and she is alive for now. We request a meeting with you at the town 'Grinder's Ridge' to the west. If you do not show yourself by the time the sun rises tomorrow then we shall make this woman food for our young.'
"Damnit, they're actually holding her hostage?" Nabooru clenched at the note angerly, "Those bastards..."
"Grinder's Ridge? What's that?" Link asked.
"It's an old abandoned mining town to the west of here. It was pretty bustling back when iron deposits were found in the nearby mountains, but when that was cleaned out the people left almost as quickly as it was established." Nabooru said, "Didn't think anyone would willingly live there anymore, much less the Desert Wolfos."
"Well it seems at least one of them can write somewhat legibly." Sarami pointed out, "And they're self-aware enough to acknowledge how to write a letter and even arrange a deal like this..."
"But still, can we trust them...?" Nemisa asked, "What if it's not wolfos, but bandits or rebels?"
"Well whatever it is, we can't wait! We gotta go save Sister Marata!" Aviel said desperately.
"Of course we will, we just need to form a team to go out there." Nabooru said, "Since they're giving us less then a day's time, we don't have an opportunity to make a plan, so we'll just deploy our spies out there for now, and figure out what to do depending on the situation when we get there."
"Alright let's get going then." Link said, "We're not going to let anything happen to Sister Marata."
Sarami thought to herself on that note and nodded, "Nabs, Link, if it's okay, I'd like to go with you all."
"Are you sure Sarami? That's quite a long walk." Nabooru said worried.
"I'll be fine." Sarami nodded, "If Marata is injured it'll be better if I'm there to provide immediate treatment."
"We'll go see if Togau is willing to go provide her support." Link said, "She can use her Lynel form to haul Sarami and Marata back to town as well if they need it."
"But what about the injured soldiers who were brought into your clinic?" Nemisa asked Sarami.
Sarami paused for a second but then nodded, "It's okay, I know my nurses can handle it. I trust them to be able to manage without me."
Link looked to the doctor and grinned, happy to see her relying on others more now then before, "Alright, glad to have you on board Sarami."
"Actually if you'd like Dr. Sarami..." Saria spoke up, "I could go help the nurses over at the clinic!"
"Could you?" Sarami asked with a smile, "I'd appreciate that!"
"Very well then, we'll leave as soon as possible!" Nabooru nodded.
"So that's the place?" Aviel asked, peering out in the distance.
"Yep, Grinder's Ridge. This place is where our sister is apparently being held." Nabooru said as she, Link, Sarami, Aviel, Nemisa and Togau, along with a good number of extra guards, all stood at a rocky area overlooking a town in the distance.
The buildings of the town were constructed entirely from wood, and were lined up along side each other down two lines, with a wide path between them that led to a two story town hall at the end. Many of the buildings had horse stalls with old rope hanging from them. The windows of the buildings had wooden shutters that opened and shut themselves when the wind blew by. A lone tumbleweed blew through the center of the seemingly empty town. There was also a sign post at the front of the town with the town's name inscribed on it, that swayed and creaked as the wind blew through the area.
"I'm glad I was able to come along and help yall," Togau said, "But you sure anyone's here? This place looks more like a ghost town then anythin'."
"G-Ghost town?!" Aviel exclaimed, clinging to Sarami with her bird wings.
"She just means that it's been abandoned." Nemisa sighed, rolling her eyes.
"So what's the plan Nabooru?" Link asked.
"I sent spies in advance to check out the area for any possible chances of an ambush." Nabooru said, "Once they give us their report we'll head into town."
It was shortly after that a group of three Gerudo spies all leaped down in front of the group, "Hello Lady Nabooru, we've done our investigation."
"Nice timing, so what do you have for us?" Nabooru asked.
"All we've seen around here are a number of Desert Wolfos, no rebels whatsoever." said the head spy.
"There are two wolfos standing just outside of the town, judging from their position they may be guards." said the second spy.
"They don't seem hostile at all either." said the third, "In fact they're kinda cute!"
"Uh huuuh..." Nabooru said skeptically about that last one, "Well, thank you for the report. Stand by for now, we're going to investigate the town for ourselves."
Link, Nabooru, Sarami, Aviel, Nemisa, Togau and their backup guards all slowly approached the town, looking around to keep their eyes out for any attackers. As they got closer, the two wolfos standing at the entrance growled and went into defensive poses, but didn't attack them.
"Stay on your guard." Nabooru said, her hand hovering over her scimitars.
"Hang on a sec, let me handle this!" Togau spoke up, walking past her and up to the wolfos.
"Togau, what are you doing? Be careful!" Aviel called out in worry.
"Don't sweat it, just wanted ta see if they'll hear us out." Togau said grinning, she turned to the beasts and Link and the others could hear her making small growls and roars at them.
"I... don't get it." Nemisa said sweatdropping.
"I think she's talking like a Lynel." Link observed.
"Hee hee, it's rather cute hearing her make those noises." Sarami giggled, "She's reminds me of Chester."
It was then the wolfos started making growling, barking and yipping sounds. The others stared as Togau replied with more growls and roars. One wolfos seemed to point and stomp it's foot and make more growling sounds, before Togau growled back more. Eventually the two wolfos looked to each other and nodded.
"Okay, so I told em how we got called out over here, and they said they wanna see some proof of us gettin' invited." Togau said, "One of them also said he wanted the steak sandwich he could smell, but I told him it was for my mate and off limits!"
"Wait, so you can understand them?" Aviel gasped out.
"Reckon course! I only just learned this sort of thing recently, but I'm getting a hang of understandin' the language of animals!" Togau grinned, "I've even been practicing with my pets Imra and Oseg!"
"Huh, so you're becoming aware of more Lynel powers over time? Interesting." Nemisa said.
"Nice work Togau!" Nabooru nodded, "Now as for the proof..."
Nabooru walked up to the two wolfos and presented them with the letter they had received. The two wolfos stared own at it, giving it a good sniff, before they both nodded and ran off. They stopped for a second and looked back at the group and made more yipping and growling sounds.
"They say to follow them." Togau explained.
"Alright, but let's continue to stay on our guard." Nabooru said, as the group followed the wolfos down the road.
As they walked along the path, they all looked to see Desert Wolfos all peeking out from the door-frames and windows of the town. A few stared down at them from a high window, two peeked out from under a water trough, while one wolfos was peeking at them from a knothole on the side of it while it's tail was sticking out from a barrel.
"The spies were right, they don't seem very hostile, just cautious." Nemisa observed.
"Maybe this will be easier then we thought." Link said, a little more relaxed, but still prepared himself for anything.
Soon the group arrived at the town hall building at the end of the path, and the two wolfos barked at them while gesturing to the door.
"Guess we're going to be meeting with their leader?" Link asked Togau.
"Yup, up on the second floor of this place, they say to show the boss our full respect." Togau nodded.
After stationing the backup guards to watch over things outside, Link and the group all went inside the town hall. Inside they saw what remained of a pretty standard town hall building. There was a check-in desk lined with mail slots, a waiting area with tattered books, and a few office rooms with typical furniture you'd expect. Only instead of people, the place was filled with wolfos.
Rather then immediately attack the group though, the wolfos were lounging around the place; some were sleeping, some were eating food they had hunted for, some younger pups were wrestling and playing around with one another, there were two wolfos who were having a tug-of-war with a piece of rope in their mouths, but none of them gave off any hint of a threat.
"Really wasn't expecting this." Link said, "I thought we were going to have to fight them, but they aren't hostile at all."
"That spy was right, they're kinda cute when they aren't trying to kill us." Aviel nodded.
The six of them went up a staircase to the second floor, where they saw what appeared to be a large meeting room. There were numerous Woldos laying around the place, and much more pups then downstairs, but it was there they also saw an amazing sight.
Laying on the podium stand was a very large but slender Wolfos, it's eyes were a sapphire blue, it's fangs weren't overly long like the others, it's fur was a beautiful snow white with silver streaks and without any mange to it, and the fur on it's head seemed to grow out backwards and down it's back like human hair. The Wolfos's long tail flicked up and down as it stared at it's new company before it.
"Oh my, that one looks so pretty..." Sarami gasped.
"It's a White Wolfos..." Link said, "Weird, I thought these ones only lived in cold areas."
"Um, excuse me." Nabooru cleared her throat, stepping up front, "I am Lady Nabooru, leader of Gerudo Town, and this here is our ruler, King Link. We received a letter from your tribe asking us to come on behalf of one of our people that your tribe have captured."
The White Wolfos didn't do anything, but just stared at them.
Nabooru continued, "Um... the captive you have is our beloved sister Marata, and we want to bring her back home for rest and recovery. We don't wish to cause bloodshed here, but instead we'd be willing to negotiate a deal, we even have supplies or rupees if you're in need of them."
The Wolfos continued to lay there without so much as a sound or movement. Maybe it was just Link, but he felt the creature's eyes were focused heavily on him in particular.
"...well okay then... Togau, you try talking to it." Nabooru said with a rolling of her eyes, realizing this was going nowhere.
"Airight then." Togau nodded, walking up to the White Wolfos, "Um... lessee here..." she started making growling and roaring Lynel sounds in an attempt to communicate with the White Wolfos.
"You don't think we offended it do you?" Link whispered to Nabooru.
"Don't know why, they're the ones who captured our sister and called us here." Nabooru whispered back in an irritated tone, "Just be ready to fight if we need to."
Toagu continued to growl and roar at the White Wolfos, but got nothing like a response in return. She sighed out and turned to the group, "Sorry guys, nothin' seems ta be gettin' through to this walking furcoat."
"I heard everything just fine, thank you."
The animal rancher froze up upon hearing a voice and looked behind her to see the White Wolfos stand upright on her hind legs, putting her at a good ten feet tall at the highest. It stared down at everyone with it's blue eyes.
Togau stepped backwards and up to Link's side as the young king looked in shock at the Wolfos, "Wait, you can talk?"
"Yes I can talk. And I don't think someone who carries the scent of a Lynel-kitten like yourself should be calling others a furcoat." the Wolfos said with a clearly feminine voice.
"Na ha ha! Sorry 'bout that!" laughed Togau innocently, nervously clinging to Link's vest tightly with one hand.
"So you're a female Wolfos?" Nabooru asked.
"Yes, specifically I am the alpha female of my pack, you may call me Lady Sheeva." the Wolfos said.
"Very well Lady Sheeva," Nabooru nodded, "So just what is it you want from us?"
"I've brought you here to discuss some matters that have been happening recently involving my pack." Sheeva said, sitting herself back down.
"Alright, we're open for discussion of whatever you want." Nabooru said sitting down, "No offense, but you seem quite intelligent compared to most wolfos we've encountered."
"Yeah, I've never seen one capable of speaking in Hylian." Link spoke.
"Yes, well... there's a reason for that..." Sheeva muttered, looking somewhat distantly, confusing the others.
"I also find it interesting you choose to set up your home in this old town, I thought Desert Wolfos preferred to use caves." Nabooru said.
"We used to a while ago, but I decided we needed something a little more... livable" Sheeva said, "The caves we used to live in were so dark and dreary, but here we have more comfort, and the sunlight has done wonders for our pups' energy and enthusiasm."
She glanced over to a group of Wolfos puppies running around yapping, tussling and playing with one another.
"What I want to do is someday evolve these Desert Wolfos from their feral ways, and become more then what they are." Sheeva said, petting one of the pups as it came up to her.
"Fascinating..." Nabooru said with a small smirk.
"Um sorry, but may I speak up?" Sarami asked, "I'd like to see Marata, the Gerudo woman your people captured. I'm a doctor, and I need to see to her injuries immediately!"
"You're... a doctor...?" Sheeva asked, before the wolfos nodded and gestured to some others, "...very well, bring in the spare meat."
"Spare meat?!" Nemisa shouted, everyone else looking pretty alarmed themselves.
"Don't worry, we've been keeping her alive. It's just the name my pack have been using for her." Sheeva clarified then after a moment coughed and added, "Obviously my attempt to change them isn't exactly happening overnight."
"T-Thank you." Sarami nodded, though still shaken by their name for her.
It wasn't long after that two wolfos came in with a young Gerudo woman covered in injuries.
"Sister Marata!" Sarami exclaimed, running over as the wolfos set her down, "We're so glad you're okay!"
"Dr. Sarami... Lady Nabooru and even King Link...?" Marata spoke, "All of you came for me? I'm sorry to put you all out like this..."
"No problem, you know the most important rule of the Gerudo, right? We never turn our backs on our sisters." Link said, sporting a goofy grin.
"That's right." Nabooru nodded, "Now let Dr. Sarami take care of you while we talk things out here with the wolfos."
"Thanks..." Marata grinned weakly as Sarami went to work on treating her wounds.
"Now, back to our discussion." Lady Sheeva turned back to the group, she reached out a paw to the side as a Wolfos handed her a bone, which she started chewing on as she spoke, "First I wanted to talk to you about what happened with the mad Hinox."
"The one that attacked us in the canyon?" Togau asked, rubbing the back of her head.
"Yes, I was told the details by my pack members." Sheeva said, then bowed her head, "I wanted to thank you for what you did in destroying the Hinox, I could never forgive it for what it did."
"What do you mean?" Nemisa asked.
Sheeva nibbled on the bone as she spoke sadly, "Some time ago, the alpha male of our pack went on a hunt with his team, but that damn Hinox attacked them. They were completely overwhelmed by it's unusual power and my mate was killed, the others had little choice but to join the Hinox as it's minions."
"So the Wolfos pelt that Hinox was wearing, that was your mate...?" Sarami asked sadly.
"That's terrible, I'm sorry for your loss." Link spoke.
"It's fine, my mate died valiantly defending his pack in battle, and none of us shall forget him." Sheeva said. They then heard whimpering and whining, and everyone turned to see many of the older wolfos hanging their heads down, seemingly in memory of their leader.
"Poor things, they seem like they took it hard as well." Aviel said sympathetically.
"I'm surprised, I used to think the Wolfos were nothing more then just savage monsters, but they are indeed more self-aware then we believed." Nemisa said.
"Yes, I understand it's difficult to see that, but I'm glad to see you all are so understanding." Sheeva nodded, "In fact we-"
It was then they saw Sheeva suddenly stop talking, her ear twitch a bit, and her eyes narrowed, "Excuse me for a second... and don't move from this room."
The group watched as Sheeva stood up and suddenly ran on all fours out of the meeting room and downstairs.
"...what do you think it is?" Nabooru asked.
"Dunno, maybe a threat?" Link guessed.
There was a moment of pause, before they suddenly heard a loud sound.
"ARF! ARF! ARF! ARF! ARF! ARF! ARF!" came from downstairs, causing all of them to fault over in surprise.
"What the heck?" Togau asked, putting a hand to her head.
Sheeva then walked back into the room with a calm demeanor once again, "Sorry about that, I thought I heard someone walking past my home."
"Are you a Wolfos or a domesticated dog?!" Nemisa shouted in annoyance.
Sheeva seemed to ignore that comment and continued, "Now back to the conversation, I was notified about you vanquishing the Hinox monster by the four members of our pack who survived the battle. They were under the thumb of that monster and too afraid to try and escape."
"Oh yeah. Those were the four Wolfos we spared after the battle was over." Nabooru realized.
"Yes, which leads me to ask, why did you spare my people? They had been under orders by that Hinox to kill you all, yet you wound up sparing them in the end. What would have to gain from it?" Sheeva asked, looking to Link in particular.
"Well..." Link spoke, rubbing the back of his head, "Did we really need a reason to spare them? I understood the Hinox was forcing them to fight us, so after everything calmed down I didn't feel the need to battle them anymore."
"I see..." Sheeva said with a nod, "They also said they aided you in fighting a pack of Lynel to save a friend of yours afterwards, and that they admired your compassion to protect your friend."
"Na ha ha, that's right. Link even fought off a Golden Lynel to protect me!" Togau grinned, recalling the time she and Link became a couple, and she leaned her head against Link affectionately, "Now the two of us are lovers!"
"That's right, these girls mean the world to me, and I'd do anything to protect them." Link nodded putting an arm around Togau.
At that moment, Sarami completed her work on Marata, and turned to hear the words Link spoke. She blushed lightly at the kind king even she herself had began to fall in love with.
"Hm, interesting. It's almost as if you were actually..." Sheeva paused, "...yes, I think you'll do."
"Huh?"
Sheeva then stood up and walked slowly over to Link. The Hylian stood tall and firmly, looking up at the wolf before him. He had to admit she was an imitating sight, she didn't say a word, but continued to look down at him. The others were a little unnerved at her, each readying themselves to attack if the Wolfos tried to harm Link in any way...
It was then Sheeva lunged forward at Link, but before the others could attack they stopped to see a very peculiar sight.
Lady Sheeva, leader and alpha female of the Wolfos pack was licking Link's face affectionately, covering his mouth with saliva.
"Wha-!" gasped Nabooru.
"H-Hey!" Nemisa shouted, bearing her fists, "What the hell you think you're doing?!"
"What does it look like Gerudo woman?" Sheeva turned to Nemisa with her tongue still sticking out slightly, "I'm making this male here part of my pack."
"Wait, what?!" Link exclaimed.
"I picked up on it when you first arrived." Sheeva spoke staring at him, "You have the scent of a noble wolf, strong but compassionate, you're just like him... I believe that legend I heard from the Temple of Uvooro holds some truth after all."
"Uvooru? Wait, you mean the Gerudo goddess of beasts?" Nabooru asked.
"Correct, there's a legend that says if a beast of noble blood is slain in battle, their soul will become one with another living being of similar nobility, and carry on it's will." Sheeva said, "Hylian male, I believe you might very well be the one who carries the will of my mate."
"HUH?!' the Gerudo all shouted out.
"Wait, so Link's a wolf?" Aviel asked, tilting her head left and right, "Does that mean I can play fetch with him?"
"I actually kinda wanna see that." Togau snickered.
"I... look lady, no offense, but I think you got the wrong guy." Link said sweatdropping, "The only spirit inside me is my o-"
That's when he paused in surprise, recalling the dreams he had been having, and the mysterious man he had finally figured out the identity of...
'Wait, could he possibly be a wolf of some kind...?' Link thought.
"So with that said, my main reason for bringing you here is that I'd like you to join our people Hylian male." Sheeva said bluntly, "As the alpha male of my pack, and my mate."
There was a brief moment of silence in the room, save for a single wolfos biting at itself.
"...what." Nabooru finally said in a flat tone.
"WHAAAT?!" then screamed out all the other Gerudo.
"Wait, hold on, you got to be kidding me!" exclaimed Link, "I can't do that! I'm the Gerudo King, and I have a responsibility to my people! Plus I've already taken wives of my own!"
"You're the Gerudo King, but a Hylian correct? Which means you have no real obligation to the Gerudo. I think you'd do well to lead our pack, you'll be treated as a king just as well here, with all the food you can eat, and you and I can produce many fine, strong pups together." Sheeva said.
"Um, are you forgetting the fact that I'm Hylian, and you're a Wolfos?" Link asked.
"Yes that's right, you two are biologically incompatible!" Sarami pointed out frantically.
"That's not a problem" Sheeva said shrugging, "For I used to be a Hylian myself."
There was a delayed pause, before everyone yelled out another "WHAT?!"
"You people sure shout a lot..." Sheeva muttered rubbing her head.
"Probably because you keep saying such bizarre things!" Nemsia shot back.
"Hang on, ya used to be Hylian, did you put on a Wolfos mask or somethin'?" Togau asked in confusion.
"I'm not sure what you mean by a mask Lynel-kitten," Sheeva said, "But back when I was a young Hylian woman I used to be a traveling thief, as well as a raider of ruins and tombs, seeking out ancient treasures. One day I investigated into the Temple of Uvooru, and it was there I found an ancient relic I thought I could steal for rupees, but as soon as I tried to pick it up, I was cursed, and transformed into what you see before you."
"Dang, that must've been rough, I can sympathize." Togau said rubbing the back of her head, recalling how it felt to turn into a Lynel for the first time.
"I'm not surprised something like that happened then." Nabooru said, "Those who try to use the Gerudo goddess' gifts without their blessing tend to be cursed with horrible fates. You're lucky you still have your life."
"And then you joined with these Wolfos?" Aviel asked, petting a wolfos pup on the head.
"Yes, they accepted me without question, so I had a great admiration for them." Sheeva said, then looked to Link, "And they shall accept you too, Hylian male. We will even allow you to discard your old name in favor of something that suits your new Wolfos self, something like Beorhtwulf, or Rannulfr, or Caineghis..."
"...or Dennis!" Aviel proposed raising up her hand, even the wolfos pup rose up it's paw in agreement.
"Dennis...?" the others thought in confusion.
"Uh, well..." Link stammered, "Look, if there was a giant wolf creature I'd do that sort of thing with, you'd be the first, but... I'm sorry, but I can't leave my people behind."
"That's right, he's sworn himself to us Gerudo, and we all love him deeply." Nemisa said stepping up to Link's side.
"Yeah, and we ain't givin' him up to you!" Togau said stomping her foot forward, her fear of Sheeva from before was gone and replaced with the desire to protect her husband, her eyes turning more cat-like as she snarled at the Wolfos leader.
"Link is our beloved family and we shall not let you take him away. I appreciate that you spared our sister and I admire your drive to better your people. I wanted to be civil with this meeting, but if you try to be forceful about this we won't show you mercy." Nabooru said narrowing her eyes.
"Hmph, civil and merciful are you? After the pain you Gerudo have brought onto my people?" Sheeva interjected.
"Hey, your damn mutts attacked us first!" Marata shouted, sitting herself up from her resting spot.
"Marata, please settle down! You're recovering!" Sarami exclaimed.
"This isn't about that attack, this is about that strange illness your people gave to my own." Sheeva said narrowing her eyes as she snapped the bone she was chewing on in half.
"Strange condition...?" Link spoke.
Leaving Marata with the Gerudo guards, Sheeva led Link, Nabooru, Aviel, Nemisa, Togau and Sarami outside of the town hall to a single story building with 'Jail' written on top. Naturally it was the prison complex for the town back when it was inhabited by people. Sheeva ducked into the building and led the group to one area where they saw a shocking sight.
It was about five Wolfos, all encased in separate cages. They were snarling and biting at the iron bars that made up their cages upon seeing them. There was bowls of water and strange meat that had been ravaged at in each cage.
"W-What the hell is this?" Link asked looking around.
"These are some members of my pack who have been acting more aggressive and violent lately." Sheeva said.
Aviel came cautiously up to one of the cages to get a good look at one of the Wolfos, but it snarled and tried to bite her, making her step back in surprise.
"What's wrong with them?" Aviel asked hiding behind Nemisa.
"You tell us, Gerudo." Sheeva said, "These ones were captured by your people, and when they returned to us they were acting this way, they even attacked their own kind. The ones that attacked your group back in the desert were escapees that we were trying to save."
"So that's why they attacked Marata and the others..." Nabooru said.
"Attacking their own kind..." whispered Sarami, she looked to one in particular who was shaking. The wolfos turned to Sarami and it's eyes gleamed a blood red. It snarled and lunged out, bashing against the door of the cage several times until the rusted lock broke off and freed the snarling creature.
"It's loose!" shouted Nemisa, bringing up her fists.
"Hey you, stand down!" Sheeva shouted to the Wolfos,
The creature however didn't respond, and instead lunged at Sarami with it's fangs and claws, but Link stepped out in front of her and swung his fist out, punching the Wolfos and knocking it down to the ground. Link and Nabooru then quickly went over to Sarami to make sure she was okay, and Sarami just hugged Link tightly in response.
"Hey everyone, look..." Nemisa said, as they all looked to the injured wolfos, it shook and coughed, before breathing out a strange yellow mist, before it collapsed to the ground. Everyone stared and watched, cautious of it attacking again, but then it just evaporated into a purple and yellow mist.
"No... he's gone..." whispered Sheeva, her arms were trembling, "Just like the others..."
"How terrible..." Aviel said with tears in her eyes.
"It's okay Aviel, it's spirit can now pass on to the next world..." Nemisa assured her, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Hey, did the way that wolfos was acting look familiar to any of you at all?" Link asked.
"Reckon course;" nodded Togau, "The red eyes, that weird yellow breath, that poor wolfie died just like the Hinox did, same colors and everything."
"That rebel from the Hall of Knowledge also experienced the same fate..." Nabooru said.
"So that's it, these wolfos must have been testing subjects for the power tonic the rebels are using, much like the Hinox!" Sarami said
Sheeva scowled and looked to Sarami, "Listen, you're a doctor, correct? You must be able to do something to cure the rest of my people of this illness!"
Sarami looked helplessly at the other four Wolfos who were shaking and coughing, "I-I'm sorry, but I've been researching the remains of the Hinox and a few other victims for a possible cure, but I keep hitting setbacks..."
"But doctors heal those who are sick, correct? We've been doing what we can to protect these members of our pack until we can figure out what to do for them." Sheeva said, "There must be something you can do!"
"Not with what knowledge I have at the moment." Sarami shook her head, "Whatever process was used to create the power tonic is still unfamiliar to me, and I can't develop a cure unless I know the exact components and means to making it!"
Sheeva just stared down at Sarami, her eyes narrowing coldly, "Hmph, I should have figured as much. That is of course assuming you're telling the truth."
"...just what are you insinuating...?" Nabooru scowled at Sheeva, pretty aware of what the wolfos meant but wanted to hear it from her mouth.
"I'm saying that you're working with that damn doctor who infected my people with this illness!" Sheeva said angerly, "I had hoped to give you Gerudo a chance to prove you had nothing to do with it yourselves, but I can see you have no regards for my people's lives!"
"That's bull-crud, Sarami would never do anything like this!" Togau shouted to Sheeva.
"Yeah, she's worked hard to help find a cure for that tonic!" Aviel said in a fit.
Sheeva disregarded what they said and spoke out to Link, "Now you see what pain these Gerudo have brought to my people?! Male, your place is not with these humans, they will only hurt you if you stay with them! Your place is with us as our mighty alpha male!"
"No way!" Link spoke out, "This wasn't the work of any of my friends!"
"He's right," Sarami clarified to Sheeva, "There's a rebellion fighting against us right now who plan to kill Lady Nabooru and King Link and take over the throne. They've grown so desperate in their goals that they developed a type of tonic capable of giving them great power, but it takes an extreme toll on their body."
"Really now, so that's what it was made for...?" Sheeva muttered in thought.
"We're currently working on tracking down the location of the rebel's research laboratory that's developing it, if you allow us to work with you I'm sure we can-" Nabooru spoke, out was cut off by Sheeva.
"No need for you to interfere, we already know the location of where this is all happening." Sheeva said, "I've already been notified of it and the cruel doctor responsible, and once we're ready, my pack will attack the base where they're hiding."
"Interesting, do you by chance have a name of this person?" Nabooru inquired, curious of which Gerudo she remembered from the fortress it could possibly be.
Sheeva nodded, "Yes, before one of my people died to the illness, he spoke the name of the one who did this to them..."
"And we won't rest until we have the corpse of the one named Granny Truttlo!"
At the mention of the name, Sarami, Link, Nabooru and Nemisa's eyes widened in shock.
"WHAT?!" Sarami exclaimed.
Well at least Sarami has finally found out where Granny is, right? Is her mentor really working for the rebels, or is there something else going on? And what will Link do about being invited to join the pack of Lady Sheeva and the Wolfos? Find out next week!
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