Chapter 6-
Link nodded as Gannondorf told his story, apparently the young prince was on his way to inquire of the oracle at Lemnos, the capitol of Delos,
"… Then I had the misfortune to blunder right into a waiting Dodongo; my horse threw me and bolted. I hit my head when I fell, and woke up here. Indeed Rova smiles upon me, it is beyond luck that you came to my rescue. I would wish to thank you, and if I may, ask of your own business."
As always, Link allowed Navi to tell their story. First naming them as mercenaries of Llwellyn, then telling of all their courageous deeds, and finishing with how they had come to Bediver.
"Mercenaries eh? I would do well to have accompaniment on my way to Lemnos, and wherever my current journey may lead from there. Besides the reward I already intended for you; I could pay handsomely for your service."
Link was ready to agree, but Navi spoke up, "We're out of Llewellyn, as I already told you, so we're not cheap."
This earned a hearty laugh from the dark-skinned prince, "Is your shining companion deaf, dear mercenary? Since she did not hear me I will tell you again; I am prince of the Gerudo. I will be king of the richest people in the land."
Gannondorf and Navi haggled on price and the conditions of the contract for the best part of an hour. When they were done, Gannondorf procured three orange rupees, only a few of many, from his wallet,
"Your reward. I'll meet you at the town's gate in a few hours. Get all you may need for a while, my journey may not end at Lemnos."
Link and Navi had few things to obtain; they were already prepared for the journey to Delos, and since their new employer didn't know where his journey would lead after that, they would wait until Lemnos to fully stock up. However Link did replace his knife; the dodongo had run off with his old knife stuck in it's tail.
Gannondorf met them at the town gate astride a dun gelding. He had a cheap saddle, and a worn-looking bundle tied to the horse's back.
"I was born among thieves, and I know it's better to ride a worn saddle and keep one's wallet than to ride a rich saddle and have both saddle and wallet stolen." He explained.
Link was visibly relieved by this; he had worried that his young employer would be foolish enough to somehow display his wealth to every thief on the road.
"Let us take our leave of this place." Said the prince as he gave his horse a commanding slap to get going.
They took the same path as before, and made camp in the same cave as before. Because the only local inhabitants were dodongos and tektites Link didn't even bother hunting, and instead ate the food they had packed.
While the men ate, Navi's natural fairy curiosity prompted her to learn more about their current employer, "I didn't know there were any Gerudo men."
Gannondorf looked up from his meal of bread and dried fruit, "That's mostly true. Our legends say that Ruda, the mortal daughter of Rova, goddess of beauty and witchcraft, was loved by Ganon, the god of strife. Ruda returned his ardor; they sought to marry.
"Rova, who herself had remained free from the chain of a man, did not want to lose her daughter, so she used her dark arts to curse Ruda and Ganon's union; Ruda would never bear Ganon any sons. After their marriage, Ganon used his influence and asked the three great goddesses to make Ruda immortal. They did and gave her dominion over the desert. During the course of time Ruda bore Ganon thirteen daughters, whose descendants became the Gerudo race.
"In the next four generations no male children were born to the descendants of Ruda and Ganon; they became a wandering, nomadic people with no purpose, leader or land to call their own.
"Eventually Ganon discovered Rova's trick, and tried to break the curse, but the god of strife could find no way to undo the powerful magic of the witch goddess. With no way to break the curse, Ganon formed a new plan to bring about a leader for his people.
"Ganon himself entered the body of a select Gerudo woman and was born as her son. He led the Gerudo from their wandering ways and led them to the desert where he had a temple built to the three gods of the Gerudo; Rova, Ruda and himself. This was the golden age of the Gerudo; they built a great fortress and firmly established themselves in their new desert home.
Though he was a god, Ganon's human body aged and eventually fell mortally ill. On his deathbed Ganon promised his children that he would return in one-hundred years to lead the Gerudo again. One-hundred years later, Gannondorf I was born. One-hundred years after him came Gannondorf II… According to record, I am Gannondorf XIV."
Navi bobbed up and down to indicate her understanding, "So then, you're not only their prince, but you're also… Their god?"
Gannondorf shook his head, "Not yet… I cannot rule until I am crowned, and I cannot be crowned until I have named my queen… I am seeking the advice of the Oracle of Lemnos on that matter because Rova and Ruda have fallen deaf to my prayers for guidance."
Navi's curiosity was sated, for now, and the party fell silent as they finished their dinner and laid down to sleep. As was the norm, the fairy kept the night watch.
The next day was mostly uneventful, the travelers stumbled across a pair of dodongo bulls sparring, but luckily the testosterone-crazed males were too distracted to harass the party. By the end of the second day, Link, Navi and Gannondorf had made their way out of the gorge and were crossing the large river that made the border of Delos. According to the map that Link had, they would soon find a road that followed a tributary of the great river right into Lemnos. It would take four days of rather light travel to get there, and they could stop at villages on the way if they needed.
Gannondorf and Link pushed their horses and made the distance in two and a half days. In Lemnos they spent a full day arraigning an audience with the Oracle, as well as resting up and enjoying the amenities that a town offered that travel on a horse didn't.
Link had heard of the Oracle of Lemnos while on his travels, the Oracle was actually several priestesses who had dedicated themselves to the great goddess Nayru. They spent their days in service to her, and in return they were granted wisdom beyond that of mortals. Pilgrims often came from neighboring countries to have their questions answered. Since they were in the area, Link thought it might be worth his while to gain an audience with the Oracle.
Although Gannondorf was able to use his title to gain them some priority; they still had a three-day wait before their audience. Link spent this time outside the city, riding Din and showing Gannondorf what he knew of swordplay.
The prince himself was not unfamiliar with the use of arms, but he had been taught the use of two short, curved scimitars, not the long broadsword and shield that Link carried. Both methods had their advantages, as Gannondorf learned, a broadsword could often pierce the slim defense that scimitars offered, but the added attack of two weapons could cut down an unwary enemy in one smooth motion.
When he wasn't sparring with Gannondorf, Link took Din through various exercises and taught him what to do when Link needed to fire his bow, or mount in a hurry or unhorse an enemy. Even the time they spent simply galloping around was well-spent; Link was learning more about the limits of Din's endurance, and patience. He never forgot that the horse served of his own will.
The three days quickly ended, and their turn with the Oracle came up. Link and Gannondorf were ushered into a dimly lit room with six thrones arranged in a circle around a slightly raised platform. In each of the chairs sat an Oracle. The acolyte indicated that Link and Gannondorf were to kneel on the platform, and wait for the one of the Oracles to address them.
Gannondorf and Link did as they were told, and after several minutes of silence they were finally spoken to.
"Lord of the sands, what do you seek?"
Link could not tell which of the oracles spoke, or even if it had been a single one or all of them speaking at once.
Gannondorf cleared his throat and replied, "My gods have fallen silent; I have prayed to them for weeks, but they do not answer me. I must know, who of the Gerudo has been chosen by Ruda to be my wife? Why have my gods not answered me? What can I do to best lead my people?"
"War will be waged before your destiny is fulfilled. Oh son of Ganon, we cannot answer these questions; your own memories will tell you what you desire. Sleep, and remember what you knew."
Gannondorf started to protest that he had been cheated, but his eyes closed and he fell into a deep sleep.
"Forest child, what is your question?"
A/N
Sorry for the gigantic delay, but my rather aged laptop crashed. Because this is the computer I do my writing on, and because I had no backup files, I couldn't get this to you until just recently. I tried several times to re-write the chapters, but I just couldn't get them to turn out like I had the first time. So I've been waiting around all these months for my laptop to decide to start working again. I've backed up all my files now, so there shouldn't be any more delays like that.
Also, you guys may or may not have noticed, but I gave the whole story a bit of a makeover. While I was writing this chapter, I kept noticin a lot of typos in previous chapters. Since I'm obssessive about that kind of thing, I went over all my previous writings and fixed them.