Hero of the Zonai

by bladeofthebookworms

A brutal war between the Zonai and Sheikah peoples sends ripples throughout the kingdom. In the midst of the violence, a young Zonai warrior discovers a mysterious ancestor, who urges him to see beyond the plight of his people. For peace is elusive, and Hyrule's greatest threat has yet to emerge. T for violence.

40. Fall From Glory

Chapter 40: Fall From Glory

~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~

Zelda

With Skasha and most of the Zora keeping watch, in case the Zonai or Yagamura's Sheikah decided to attack again, the Order of the Sword began setting up a small camp on the shores of the Hylia River, building a fire and putting up the few tents they had brought with them. Zah Tori issued a few curt orders before jogging to where Zelda sat with Link and Inpa, next to the monk building a fire.

She hoped they could get the fire going quickly; Link was horribly pale, with blue lips and a contrasting bright red nose, his shoulders shaking every few moments with poorly suppressed shivers. His hair was stiff and frosted at the ends. Some of his breaths seemed almost to rattle in his lungs. Equally worrying was the fresh blood on his tunic, mostly concealed by his arms, wrapped around his middle.

"Glad you made it," Zah Tori said, bending slightly to grip Link's shoulder. He gestured to the fresh blood on Link's clothes. "How much of that is yours?"

Link chuckled tiredly. "A bit," he said, and lifted his arms aside. Zelda tried to see, but he kept his arms positioned in such a way that she couldn't get much of a view.

Zah Tori hissed at the sight. "A bit," he echoed grimly. "Sit tight. We'll get you patched up as soon as the tents are set up and you have somewhere to lie down." He gave Link's shoulder a firm pat and rejoined the other monks working on setting up camp. The monk working on the fire successfully set it off, burning orange flames flickering to life in the deepening dusk.

"I'll keep an eye on it," Link told the monk, who nodded and joined the others with the tents.

"How are you doing?" Zelda asked quietly, leaning closer so that her shoulder brushed against his. Her eyes darted to his arms again, hiding his injury. She hoped it really was as insignificant as he had said. But after Zah Tori's reaction, she was feeling more than a little doubt.

"Much better now that there's a fire," Link answered, his voice rough and hoarse but his smile warm. He uncurled one of his arms from around his waist to reach for a long, narrow piece of kindling and set it into the flames, which danced eagerly around it.

Three Zora neared from the river as they continued setting up camp, joining Zelda by the fire.

"Princess of Hyrule," the tallest of the three said, bowing deeply before sitting down cross-legged across from her. "I am Dorphos, fourth son of King Phaidon, and his Master of Intelligence."

"Pleased to meet you," Zelda said with a dip of her head. "Thank you for coming to my knight's aid."

The solemn Zora turned his amber gaze to Link. "You held your ground against a force you could not have survived against, without fear," he said with deep respect. "Whether this is courage or foolishness, you have shown yourself to be either a fierce enemy or a valuable ally in battle. I was happy to lend you assistance." He looked back to Zelda. "And you, Princess… to find you alive is most wondrous. My mission proves to be more fruitful than I ever could have imagined."

"What do you mean?" Inpa asked, frowning slightly.

"My men and I were sent down the river to investigate the happenings at Castle Town," Dorphos explained. "We heard of the supposed death of the Princess of Hyrule, and the King of Hyrule's descent into madness. My father sent me to investigate. In winter, when the rivers are frozen, only a Rito could see Zora passing beneath the ice, and then only where the snow had not covered it up. No one knew of our presence in the waters surrounding the castle, of that I am certain. We learned of the King and Queen's deaths, and the Gerudo Khanot's rise to power. All seemingly in response to your death, Princess. Which, as we see now, was an utter lie." He shook his head slowly, thoughtfully. "I have many questions, and I hope that you will be willing to discuss them with me, but… perhaps not tonight. It has been a long day for all of us, and I see that your companions have finished with your tents."

Zelda nodded, feeling a flicker of nervousness in her stomach wondering what the Zora's questions would be. Time enough to worry about that later, I suppose. "Yes, of course," she said. "I'll be happy to answer whatever questions I can, later on."

Dorphos nodded and pushed to his feet, looming above them all. "I will rejoin my men," he said. "We'll get a formal watch scheduled for the night."

He left the glow of orange firelight, a pale shadow in the dusk. In his place Zah Tori approached, letting a hand rest on Link's shoulder. "Alright," he said. "We've got a tent set up, and dry clothes. Ready to move?"

Link regarded the Sheikah blankly for a moment, exhaustion written plainly on his features. "I'm not wearing a Sheikah robe," he murmured, hunching further around himself.

Zah Tori chuckled, and Zelda felt certain he was smirking beneath his mask. "Well, it's good you won't have to, then," he said teasingly. "We brought something I'm sure you'll agree will fit you much better."

Link paused a moment longer, and then with a quiet grunt pushed to his feet. At once his eyes rolled back and Inpa and Zah Tori both rushed to catch him before he could fall. His hands fell limply away from his middle, revealing what he had been trying to hide.

Fresh blood, glistening in the light from the fire on the cloth of his tunic – much more than just 'a bit.' It was far more alarming than the patches of old, dried blood forming little brown splatters in obscure places across his clothes – patches Zelda had initially thought were just mud. She was on her feet before she fully realized it.

Link shrugged Inpa and Zah Tori away, finding his feet again although he swayed slightly. His bleary gaze found Zelda's. "I didn't want you t'worry," he said quietly, regret in his gaze.

Zelda managed a choked laugh. "I was worried anyway," she said, her voice shaking just a bit – she didn't know what from. Horror, fear, perhaps a little frustration that he hadn't said something sooner. "I – I always worry about you – because I care what happens to you."

"And speaking of," Zah Tori said, gripping Link's arm firmly above his elbow. "We have a place for you to lie down so that we can fix you up."

"I tried t'do that already," Link mumbled, his head down as he walked slowly with Zah Tori to the nearest tent. "Didn't work so well."

"Because, knowing you, you got right back up and started fighting again, didn't you," Zah Tori said with a long-suffering sigh. "And here I was thinking you'd get a break, spending some time in Zonai lands."

Link seemed to shiver then, and Zelda winced, worry and fear creeping around her heart. She had thought – hoped – that his time braving the frozen wilderness while on the run was the only thing impacting his health, and yet apparently he had also been injured and bleeding this whole time. She followed close behind as they entered the nearest tent and Zah Tori helped Link lie down. The Sheikah looked up at Zelda and gestured to a spot beside Link's head. "Talk with him," he instructed. "Try and keep him awake. I'm going to get Toh Shimo – he's the best of us at dealing with wounds."

Zelda swallowed thickly and nodded, stepping aside to allow the monk out of the tent and then sitting down beside Link's head. Inpa followed her, reaching for Link's belt and carefully unbuckling it. He sucked in a sharp breath that turned into a cough as her hands brushed against the fresh blood on his tunic, and Zelda winced.

"You… you said you had to take care of it yourself," she said slowly, searching for something to talk about. "Like with your lynel?"

He nodded slowly, a sheen of sweat on his forehead, but didn't respond.

"How did it happen?" Zelda pressed, taking a corner of her dress and wiping the sweat from his brow, wary about how being wet would impact him when it was so cold. Her fingers brushed against his skin and she froze, startled by the warmth she felt. He… he has a fever… Swallowing thickly, she continued dabbing gently at his face, reminding herself that she was not a healer and trying to return to the task Zah Tori had set her. "Surely not another lynel…"

"No…" Link murmured breathily, his whole body flinching as Inpa started carefully slicing the blood-soaked patch of his tunic away. "The… th'Boar Tribe. They've… turned away."

Inpa looked up sharply, her eyes narrowed. "Your own people did this to you?" she asked in shock. "Why?"

"Dohmos," Link growled through gritted teeth. "He… he corrupted them, somehow. I tried t'fight his power with my own spirit magic. It… wasn't enough."

"Calamity," Zelda whispered anxiously, meeting Inpa's gaze.

Zah Tori returned then, holding a lantern. Toh Shimo followed, carrying a satchel full of supplies. Zelda shifted closer to the back of the tent to give them room. With five people the tent was fairly crowded, but perhaps, she reflected, that would prove to be a good thing. Five people close together would help to warm the space faster.

"You didn't clean it before sewing it shut, did you," Toh Shimo tsked, glancing at Link as Zah Tori held the lantern over Link's side, exposed thanks to Inpa's trimming of his tunic. Zelda bit her lip looking at it, unevenly stitched together at its deepest point, the edges red and inflamed. Toh Shimo drew his own knife and carefully cut Link's tunic entirely away from his chest, revealing the rest of the wound – a shallow line, scabbed over but with the surrounding skin discolored with infection, stretching from below his heart to above his hip bone. The lowest couple inches of the wound were the deepest, and that was where Link had stitched it shut, although many of the stitches had burst and the wound was bleeding sluggishly, dark liquid pooling welling up from the hole. Zelda felt her stomach clench, looking at it, beginning to understand the depth of what he had gone through over the past few days.

"So what happened?" Zah Tori asked, his voice carefully calm and nonchalant as Toh Shimo got to work. Link explained, his breaths shallow, between pained groans and sharp cries and chest-wracking coughs, weaving a haunting tale of a Grafensted turned dark, torches burning with a wicked magenta flame. He spoke of a Zonai shaman that had been deceived by the powers of the Calamity, and spread that deception to the rest of the warriors of Skeldon.

He screamed when Toh Shimo set about cleaning his wound, his body tense and rigid, muscles straining, sweat gleaming across his skin. Zelda laid a hand on his shoulder, blinking tears from her eyes; hearing him in pain, seeing him hurting, made her heart feel unbearably heavy, her stomach sick with nerves.

I chose to be here, she reminded herself firmly. I'm supporting him in what ways I can.

Toh Shimo finished with the cleaning after several minutes, or maybe only a few that seemed to have stretched into infinity, and started stitching him closed again. Link seemed unable to keep talking, sucking down short, harsh gasps through his tightly clenched teeth, his breath stuttering each time the needle pierced his flesh. Near the end of it Zah Tori handed Inpa the lantern and pressed down on Link's chest to keep him still as his body trembled, strangled cries of pain choking out from his throat. When it was done at last, he went limp, his head lolling to the side against Zelda's knee, shuddering, breathing hard and coughing a bit, his face twisted into an agonized grimace.

"Here – dry him off," Toh Shimo said, holding out a cloth pulled from his satchel of supplies. "He'll be cold enough from blood loss, and he's half-frozen – we don't need that getting any worse."

Zelda took the cloth, and Toh Shimo gave another to Zah Tori; they set about drying the sweat from Link's skin. Zelda tried not to feel too self-conscious about what she was doing, and tried to be gentle as she ran the cloth over his muscular shoulders and neck. She was stopped by Toh Shimo's hand on her wrist a few minutes later, after the monk's other supplies had all been cleaned up. "We'll take the rest from here," he said kindly. "I'm sure it helped him to have you here."

"I – I can still help," Zelda protested, and Inpa snorted.

"It's not a matter of whether you can help," she said with amusement. "More of a matter of decency – his clothes are all wet."

Zelda felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment and quickly handed her cloth to Toh Shimo. "Th-thank you for letting me help," she said with as much dignity as she could muster, before rising and walking from the tent to the sound of Zah Tori's poorly-muffled chuckles.

"He'll be alright, Zelda," Inpa said as they returned to the fire, which the Order of the Sword had kept happily fed. "You'll… you'll see."

Zelda didn't respond, holding her hands out to the flames. What little Link had said about his experience in Skeldon painted a worrying picture, much worse than she had initially thought after learning that he was pursued by the Zonai. He didn't say how he was injured, she thought anxiously. How old is that wound? Have they been pursuing him all this time? They would have been able to build fires to keep warm – he wouldn't; it would have given his position away. She was certain that, just as he had tried to hide how poorly the wound was faring, he had also been fighting to keep them from seeing how much damage the winter air had done as well. Clearly he didn't have frostbite – at least in his hands – but there were plenty of other ways the cold air could do damage, and his fever and cough were not promising signs.

The rhythmic flutter of wingbeats alerted her to Skasha's presence and the Rito landed lightly beside them. "Did something happen?" she asked worriedly. "I heard a scream…"

"That was Link," Inpa said with a wince. "He's fine, though. Or… he will be, now that he's all put back together again."

Hearing Inpa say it again, Zelda wondered if she was trying to convince herself as much as she was trying to convince everyone else. Worry squeezed her heart.

"He doesn't trust easily," Skasha noted, pacing in a slow circle around the fire with her talons clacking against the stone. "I don't think he believed me at all when I told him about the Zora. But… he trusts you, and he trusts Zah Tori – which I find most unbelievable. I don't think I've ever heard of a Zonai trusting a Sheikah in these times, until now."

"I'm not sure about the Zah Tori thing myself," Inpa admitted with a terse chuckle. "Something happened in the Trial of the Sword, I'm guessing. Zah Tori significantly changed his tune about Link during that time, and Link returned and all the treachery of the Order of the Sword in getting him stuck was immediately forgiven – or at least, the subject was dropped." She shrugged. "He's got more strength than I've given him credit for, that's for sure."

Zelda stared morosely into the flames, the worry squeezing ever tighter. Please be alright, she thought earnestly.

"Well, if he can learn to trust a Sheikah, I have hope he'll come to trust me, too," Skasha said, her tone light and friendly. "Especially if we're going to continue traveling all together for a while. If you can't trust your messenger, who can you trust to be your eyes?" Her eyes narrowed slightly in concern. "And… that brings me to the real reason I came back here. The Sheikah – Yagamura's Sheikah – they've set up camp."

Zelda's gaze snapped up from the fire. "They have?" she asked anxiously. "Are they preparing for an attack?"

Skasha shook her head. "It's very unclear, and that's the strange thing," she said grimly. "They've been getting messengers in at an alarming rate. It's obvious even from a distance that there's a lot of confusion and tension among their ranks; it's as if they don't know at all what they're doing."

Inpa scowled. "What's Yagamura thinking?" she exclaimed. "If he attacked, he could be almost entirely certain of an easy victory… Is it because of the Zonai? Is that why he got scared off?" She stared hard up at the sky and then at the flames, as if trying to scry them for Yagamura's intent. "Unless it's meant to lure us into a false sense of security," she mused slowly. "Unless he'll send out a force concealing themselves with shadow magic, waiting to attack when we're not expecting it."

"I'll have Da Shinta join me on watch," Skasha offered. "A sign of good faith to the Zora. And Da Shinta is particularly good at using shadow magic – he would easily be able to detect a spell of concealment."

"Perfect," Inpa nodded. "Yes, let's do that. I'll let Zah Tori know, so that he knows to watch out for shadow magic around the camp; you go on and get Da Shinta into position."

Skasha rushed off to find the monk, and Inpa returned to Link's tent, Zelda trailing behind. She made her report at the flaps of the tent, and then with a hand on Zelda's shoulder guided her to one of the smaller tents, as of yet unoccupied. She gave a sharp whistle, and Beira came bounding up from where she had been resting near the horses.

"I'm not great at detecting shadow magic," Inpa explained, ushering the wolfdog closer to Zelda. "So I'm giving you the next-best guard there is." She grinned. "You're looking much too anxious and sad. So Beira has instructions to cheer you up, as well."

As if it had been planned, Beira licked Zelda's fingers, tail wagging enthusiastically. Zelda couldn't help but chuckle. "One would almost think Link put the two of you up to this," she said with a raised eyebrow, and Inpa just shrugged.

"I'm just thinking that Link wouldn't want you to be up all night worrying about him," she pointed out. "He would want you to rest and relax, and I know from observation that Beira helps you relax. Probably something to do with how much fluff she's got."

Zelda smiled, scratching behind Beira's ears affectionately. She crawled into her tent and bundled up in the blankets spread out there to stave off the night's deep chill, the wolfdog laying down next to her with her head raised, relaxed but attentive. She slept peacefully, undisturbed by dreams.

~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~

Khanot

~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~

Khanot was still pacing in the charred room atop Hyrule Castle's tallest tower when the moon finally began to break from the clouds that night. After returning from Yagamura's estate the previous day, he'd spent the rest of the evening in close communication with his Zonai disciples, motivating them to keep pushing after Link. As such, he was watching when Dorphos of the Zora burst from the ice with a score of warriors to defend Link. Part of him wanted to call his warriors back at the sight of them, knowing that the Boar tribe teenagers conscripted by Nerkar and Nuralth had no real hope against Dorphos' elite scouts, but he could not let the opportunity to kill Link pass. He would have gladly thrown away a hundred soldiers if it meant stopping him.

Thus, even after his men were pushed back by the Zora, he was not willing to give up the fight.

"Regroup and reload! The traitor must be slain tonight!" Khanot commanded as the last glints of sunlight were drowned by the mountains and snow-spitting clouds.

The Zonai youths shuddered at the order, but Nerkar and Nuralth were willing. Nuralth tended his wounded soldiers and loaded two muskets with the last of their shot while Nerkar, wearing the scale of Dinraal beneath the cloak on his back, crawled through the snow to keep an eye on Link. In the darkness, the warrior observed that more reinforcements had come to the Zonai traitor's aid and had set up a camp. In the dark, he could not identify any of them clearly, but reported that most of the new figures were Sheikah, if not all. While he watched, he also saw a Rito descend to join them, a bird he recognized from earlier in the day.

Thus, when Nerkar returned to Nuralth to give his report to Khanot through the crimson flame, Khanot was forced to admit defeat. There was no way that his ragtag group of Zonai would be able to handle twenty Zora, eight or so Sheikah, a Rito, and the Zonai warrior with the accursed sword. With Link out of sight, assumedly in one of the tents that had been set up, it was not even possible to assassinate him in the night with the last few musket rounds. It would take his and Yagamura's soldiers surrounding them to break the force. As such, there was no point in wasting his new disciples.

"You have failed me," Khanot barked through the flame. "Had you been swifter or shot straighter, you would have killed the traitor before he gathered reinforcements. Now, you have no choice but to depart."

"My Lord, forgive us!" Nerkar cried at once, bowing deeply before the torch in Nuralth's hand. "Maybe… let us try again in th'morning! We can lie in wait, and when Link emerges from his tent, we'll shoot him then!"

Khanot considered the idea for a moment, but saw only its flaws. Link's allies owned the water and the sky, and with Sheikah on his side, he had ways of hiding scouts on the ground that the Boar warriors could not address without a shaman. With night already fallen and wounded among them, Khanot's Zonai would also be forced to set up camp, giving Link's allies knowledge of their location through their fires. They would be on guard for exactly the kind of desperate assault Nerkar recommended.

"No. The moment has passed. You must return to Skeldon in the morning," Khanot said. "But hear me! I am the Flame of Din, chosen by the Goddesses to cleanse this world, and you have wronged me. You will atone for your failure here today."

"F'course, lord! Your servants hear and obey!" Nuralth said eagerly, bowing as deeply as he could with the torch in his hand.

The plan seemed to occur to Khanot as he spoke.

"Once you have returned to Skeldon with your warriors, appoint a worthy man to receive my Skeldrite as you have. He will rule Skeldon in your absence. Then, Nerkar and Nuralth, you will return to your homeland with this torch. There you will spread the blessing of my fire until all the people of Faron have received my gift. Then, and only then, will I deliver your people from your enemies and avenge your fallen!"

"It shall be done, Flame of Din!" Nerkar swore, the reflection of the magenta fire in his eyes giving his fanaticism a demonic appearance.

With that, Khanot departed and pondered his predicament while the Phantom flew the final miles between it and Link's camp. When he had first encountered Link in Faron, the warrior seemed like any other Zonai wolf. Even at the Temple of Time, when he felt the Gift of Din's hatred compel him to kill the man, he had not seemed special. So how had he managed to recruit Sheikah monks, Zora royalty, and Rito to his cause? As he speculated about this, Khanot could not escape the suspicion that had possessed him in Yagamura's estate. There was more to the treacherous Sheikah lord's story.

Thus, when at last the Phantom reached the frozen river and started to survey the scene, Khanot was not surprised to find that Yagamura's troops had withdrawn from the temple of the Order of the Sword that they were supposedly besieging. Apparently, while Khanot's Zonai had been pursuing Link across the snowfields, the Sheikah soldiers had a skirmish with the monks at the edge of the Lost Woods and packed up their entire force to give chase. Even once night fell, they continued marching, their lone surviving guardian stalker ready for a fight.

Inspecting closer, Khanot found none other than the Rito he had seen outside the castle's window desperately trying to get Yagamura's attention two days prior.

"We have no choice!" the birdman was explaining to the officer. "Lord Yagamura said that we have until dawn to kill her!"

"Until dawn? What, does he expect us to march through this frozen night and attack a party of sword monks and Zora?"

"Yes, if that's what it takes. If not, it'll be all of our heads!"

Kill her. A chill much deeper than the night settled over Khanot at the sound of the word. He had been told that the Order of the Sword was led by a man, by the name of Zah Tori. Who was 'she,' then? And why was their time up at dawn, the very hour that Khanot had commanded Yagamura to march with him against Link? There were too many questions, and all of them seemed to go back to the same red-eyed Sheikah nobleman.

So it was that Khanot sent the Phantom as close to Link's campsite as he could without jeopardizing its stealth. Just as it descended in its red cloud, he saw the Rito woman land next to… wait, what? Was that… Inpa? Khanot didn't believe his senses at first, but each second the Phantom spied, he was more and more sure that it was indeed Zelda's personal bodyguard, one of the supposed victims of the attack on the Temple of Time, seated next to the campfire.

"Skasha, is everything alright?" Inpa inquired, standing to greet the Rito.

"I… don't think so," the Rito said with concern. "The Zonai that were chasing Link are still at their camp. They've had a few changes of watch, but it still looks like they intend to head back to Skeldon as soon as the sun rises. That's the good news. But Yagamura's soldiers are heading towards us again."

"What? Now? In the middle of the night?" Inpa exclaimed.

"Yes. They set up camp right before the sun set, like I said before, but they must've changed their minds about something, because not too long after that they packed up and got back to marching."

"Do you think they're going to try and attack or are they just repositioning?"

"I don't know," Skasha said, shaking her head. "I don't think I'll be able to know for sure until they get closer. But their last guardian stalker is at the front of the force. If they intend to attack us, their men might not be able to fight well in the dark, but the machine won't care."

Inpa swore under her breath. "And a guardian stalker sneak attack in the dark could be a very successful opening move for them," she muttered angrily. "We'll wait a little longer. But if they continue pressing forward, we'll have to wake everyone up. I hope Link's healed up enough for a very rough ride. I'll have Zelda ride with him and watch that wound."

Zelda?

Khanot's heart stopped. It felt like he had been suddenly thrown into a frozen river and sealed in ice.

Zelda was alive?

No. It couldn't be true. Khanot saw the body with his own eyes. He had been there, at the smoking ruins of the Temple of Time, and had seen the cost of his mistake directly before him! He had walked into the Sheikah tent and saw…

And saw exactly what Yagamura wanted him to see.

The metaphorical ice around his thoughts began to crack. Anger like the magma of Death Mountain bled through.

Yagamura hadn't played any role in Khanot's explosion at the Temple of Time, but when he crawled from the wreckage, he was already trying to turn the event to his advantage. He slew Kishimoto, his primary political rival among the Sheikah, immediately. The corpse Yagamura showed Khanot on the day he suggested the two of them cooperate had been a plant the whole time, a random victim found or created in the chaos! With this done, the traitorous Sheikah used Zelda's supposed death to frame the Zonai, convince Pelaris to declare war on them, and force Khanot's hand. It was brilliant. The plot was incredible. It had only one flaw.

Zelda wasn't dead.

And so Yagamura decided to attack and besiege the Order of the Sword without telling Khanot. She had probably been there with the monks the whole time! The monk Maz Koshia was one of the survivors of the catastrophe at the Temple of Time, after all. The 'internal Sheikah power play' Yagamura described was actually a struggle for the Princess's life that had been going on since the Temple of Time fell! Had the monks not thrown their lot in with Link, Khanot would never have known. And what was it Yagamura told the Sheikah officer leading the siege?

Lord Yagamura said that we have until dawn to kill her.

Because once dawn came, Khanot and Yagamura were going to ride out to crush Link together. If Yagamura's soldiers did not succeed in killing her in the night, Khanot would learn the truth about Zelda. Well, so much for that plan. Yagamura did not realize he was toying with the goddesses' chosen Eternal Emperor and successor of the great sorcerer Ganondorf! He would pay for his treachery.

The Phantom departed Zelda's camp and returned to Yagamura's Sheikah. There, it revealed itself to them in its full, unshielded glory. The officer and Rito froze in terror at its appearance.

"Khanot, the King of all Hyrule, commands you to cease your march!" Khanot roared through the Phantom's burning lungs.

"I… what?" the officer babbled.

"You will stop your march immediately and await further orders in the morning."

"I don't take orders from Khanot," the baffled Sheikah continued. "Now, whatever you are, creature, remove yourself from my premises!"

The Phantom conjured two orbs of lightning and struck down the nearest Sheikah soldiers. Yagamura's officer ordered his men to fire on the Phantom. Crossbows snapped, but the bolts passed through the Phantom as if it was nothing more than smoke on the wind. A naginata polearm slashed at its leg without striking anything. The guardian stalker was commanded to fire, but could not target the specter. In response, the Phantom lashed out several more times, killing three, then ten, then fifteen more soldiers. By then, some of the Sheikah were dropping their weapons and fleeing into the night. Seeing that he could not harm Khanot's creation, the officer looked at his panicked force, then nodded to himself, a decision made.

"Men! Stand down! We surrender!" Yagamura's officer ordered at the top of his lungs.

The one-sided conflict ceased at once.

"We surrender, Great Servant of Khanot," the officer repeated, throwing down his sword. "We are at your command."

"You will stop your march immediately and await further orders in the morning," the Phantom ordered. "If any of you disobey, you will perish!"

"Yes, I understand," the Sheikah said, bowing before the Phantom. "We will obey."

And they did. As soon as the Phantom ascended above them, the Sheikah officer started setting up camp and removing the dead. When Skasha, Zelda's Rito, returned to watch their progress, she breathed a sigh of relief that they had stopped. Zelda's camp would not have to flee in the dark after all!

Instead, they would be waiting to receive Khanot when he came in the morning to put the world right. That left the Gerudo king with the rest of the night to decide how exactly Yagamura would receive his due.