Note: Thank you everyone who has reviewed so far. I appreciate your feedback and words of encouragement! My plan right now is to update a new chapter weekly, I am a little ahead right now but I want to keep a buffer in case I ever fall behind. I will occasionally post two chapters at a time as well. In regards to the story itself, I am changing up the order in which some of the events happened in the game. I don't want to spoil it so I won't say too much but you should know it when you see it. I will just say that the Jitan Sa'mi shrine in my story was a regular shrine and did not require a particular sequence to reveal it. If you're curious though you can look up the shrine and see what I'm talking about. Now, on to the story!

Disclaimer: I'm not Nintendo and I don't own their content.

CHAPTER 3: Unexpected Quests

The pair had slept better than they had in months and had all the energy they needed to finally set out to Mount Lanayru. Link suggested hiking over Madorna Mountain to get to Naydra Snowfield in order to avoid the Lynel and Hinox that he knew lurked around the East Gate of Lanayru Road. Zelda trusted his judgment and set of Northbound on foot. Again the pair remained quiet for most of the trip. Zelda now wore an elegant white and gold fur coat and Link was thankful that he had stored his Snowquill gear in the Sheikah Slate. It's ability to dematerialize gear had proven to be incredibly handy in his many adventures. It was a shame that they couldn't teleport to the shrine at the Spring of Power but as far as they knew, it could only transport user and they weren't willing to risk it. Still, Link enjoyed her company as she often marveled at the various sights of nature around them. Link acknowledged her but didn't say much in return. As they reached the halfway point a snowstorm picked up on the mountain. It wasn't enough to deter their progress but it did limit their view as the world around them became a small dome of white. From then on, Zelda walked practically shoulder to shoulder with him just in case. At one point Link stopped completely and held up a finger to his lips clearly telling her to be quiet. Zelda looked confused since she couldn't see what he had spotted and her confusion must have been obvious. Link leaned in close to her ear and whispered, "Lizalfos" his closeness to her in the moment gave her goosebumps which she didn't think was possible with all the cold already there. However, when she looked over there was nothing but a few rocks and ice blocks near the cliff.

Link motioned for her to stay put as he snuck towards the rocks. He slowly pulled the Master Sword out making almost no noise and it took him what seemed like an eternity to reach his area of interest. He slowly raised the sword over his head with both hands, tip pointed downward, and then forcefully drove it down into the rock. Zelda flinched back as she saw blood fly from where the sword had pierced it and then the entire rock began to writhe and change in color until it settled onto a bluish-purple color of the scaled creature that resided in these mountains. The body eventually decayed into nothing but a plume of purple smoke and Link walked back over to her, sheathing his sword. "I am shocked that they still roam these lands, I figured after Ganon's death they would cease to exist." Zelda said half to herself.

"I guess we still aren't entirely done with our duties." Link said and continued to lead them.

Link was glad to see that he soon was able to recognize some of the trails landmarks that he remembered were near the top. However, as they got closer they started to hear a faint deep rumbling coming from the top. They were sure what it was but Link was beginning to rethink taking Zelda up there.

"Princess, maybe we should go back down, I can come up on my own and—"

"I am more than capable of taking care of myself Link." Zelda huffed, clearly not happy with his insinuation.

"I know you are, but I couldn't forgive myself if I let you get hurt."

"Link, we've quite possibly been through the worst possible scenario together, don't you think it's time you start to trust me?"

Link was torn with indecision but ultimately he decided to listen to her, although she was stubborn, she had definitely proven herself to be capable. Sighing, he took the Royal bow and quiver off of his back and handed them to her.

"I'm going to trust you then, I know you're well versed with a bow, correct?"

"Yes! thank you Link!" A huge smile now spread across her cheeks as she reveled in her victory.

"Let's go then."

Normally it would only be a few minutes' walk to the Spring but Link was being very cautious. The Snowstorm had picked up even more vigorously and now they could barely see 5 feet in front of them. It took them almost half an hour to make it but once they did, they found the source of the rumbling. It was the moans of a giant dragon with black scales and purple horns/spikes adorning its entire body which seemed to be coiled up around the top of the mountain. What concerned Link more was Ganon's corruption which was spread all across its body and it had yellow eyes poking out several parts.

"Oh goddesses." Zelda whispered as her eyes also fell upon the creature that was clearly in pain.

A voice came down from the heavens and spoke to them, one they were both all too familiar with. It was gentle and nurturing as it spoke to them, "The one you see before you is an attendant to the Spring of Wisdom. This is Naydra, the blue spirit of Lanayru. The dreaded Malice unleashed by Calamity Ganon has possessed its body and reduced it to this state. You who have banished the Calamity in the past… Free Naydra from this Malice. Show what your power can achieve!"

As if in response, the largest eye on the forehead of the dragon blinked open as wide as it possibly could. Link looked over to Zelda who already had an arrow nocked but he noticed a mix of anger and despair that covered her face as she locked as with him. He nodded to her and she promptly fired an arrow straight into the center of the eye on its forehead. It writhed in response and roared as it took off into the air creating an updraft that nearly swept them off their feet. Link reacted first as he whipped out his paraglider and soared into the air. Zelda was awestruck as she watched him fly up towards the dragon, she quickly regained her composure and nocked another arrow in the bow to shoot at the eyes on the underside of the dragon. Despite its speed she made quick work of them all and had quickly cleared off the underside. In the excitement, she had lost sight of her Knight but she gasped as she found him standing on the back of the dragon with Master Sword in hand hacking on one of the remaining eyes on Naydra's back. Link looked like he was completely in his element as the dragon pitched upwards and he dove towards the eye on the tail. Zelda helped him take out a few of the others but she couldn't reach the remaining ones on its back from her point on the ground. She could only watch as Link drove his sword into the final eye causing it to explode into a cloud of the same purple smoke they saw before. The dragon then returned and coiled itself around the tip of the mountain again and Zelda understood what she needed to do. She outstretched her right arm and the Triforce glowed on the back, harnessing her power she released a field that expanded around the dragon cleansing the remaining malice within it. As a result, it shed its black scales revealing its true white and blue color underneath. Link landed beside her and stored his paraglider just in time to hear the same voice that spoke to them before. "Thanks to your efforts, Naydra, the spirit of Mount Lanayru, has been freed from the grips of an evil power. However, the others three remain corrupted, you must venture out and free them from their Malice so that their spirits may also be freed unto the world!"

At that, Naydra soared vertically into the clouds and disappeared from sight leaving Zelda and Link to stand at the foot of the Spring of Wisdom. Zelda released a breath she wasn't aware that she was holding in and returned her bow back around her shoulders. "The voice mentioned three others but I only know of the Springs of Courage and Power. Do you know what fourth they refer to?" Zelda said as she glanced over to Link who only shook his head in reply. It was the first he had seen these spirit dragons around Hyrule but their objective was clearer now more than ever. It seemed as if the heroes had taken up an unexpected quest but neither of them faltered in their determination to do what needed to get done.