Chapter 7
The Voice gave me many problems that night...
Petra...kill Namib...KILL HIM...he's going to kill you in your sleep if you do not...I may have neither liked nor trusted the bloke, but I was not about to slit his throat in his sleep, so I refused.
KILL HIM ALREADY! IF YOU DO NOT YOU WILL NEVER HAVE CHILDREN!
How are those two concepts related?! The Voice tormented me the rest of the night and I woke up absolutely exhausted...Namib aroused a few minutes later. He promptly offered me...voltfruit.
Wait...what?!
"Ya need a pick me up, Petra?"
"But...but how...that's my damn favourite!"
"Just a guess." That seemed like a huge porky to me...but I had not eaten any voltfruit since meeting Namib. How did he know?! I ate some hylian herbs for breakfast before eating the voltfruit; Namib, meanwhile, ate more bird drumsticks he cooked over a fire. When we finished we set off to the north, towards Jeddo Bridge...the bridge, in spite of its size, was in ill repair and absolutely freaked me out as we crossed it. A little while afterward we hit a fork in the road...I wanted to go east, but Namib insisted on continuing west.
"But won't that take longer?!" I barked out, my appreciation for the voltfruit being short lived.
"There are fewer stables on this west route...ya don't want to be hounded down again, do ya?" He had a point...we went west. To our north was this huge swamp filled with these bizarre...trees? Not quite sure what they were...they looked like a tree and a mushroom had a love child. Our route basically continued west for a while until it veered north to the Tabantha Stable...
"I thought you said there were fewer stables on this route?!" I coarsely whispered to my "partner".
"This is the only one, sheila...and they don't have a beef with me. Plus we need to buy coats SOMEWHERE...New Kakariko is frigid."
"Why should I bother? I love the cold!"
"You WON'T love the cold in New Kakariko, Petra...please wear a coat."
"Who says ya aren't just being a bloody salesman for this stable?!"
"I am a thief, do ya think they'd hire me?!"
I was not sure how I felt about meeting a bloke who could stand up to me...but I decided to purchase a coat regardless. When we reached the stable we each spent several hundred rupees on a coat and cooked lunch before continuing to the west, across the Tabantha Great Bridge. The bridge was in just as bad of shape as the Jeddo, but my attention soon veered to something incredible traveling near the bridge – a MASSIVE, serpentine dragon, bright orange red, coated with flames. I had never seen anything like it! I grabbed Namib's arm and pointed him at the beast like a little girl, forgetting how I still felt about the thief lord.
"What's THAT?!" I enthusiastically called out to Namib.
"That...is Dinraal. The spirit of flame that embraced the form of a dragon...amazingly it possesses no ill will towards people. Rumor has it that ya can steal one of its scales if ya shoot it with an arrow...but that's suicide over this canyon." I wanted to try to prove him wrong...but fail and I would go SPLAT on the bottom of this immense canyon, so I just watched Dinraal, spellbound, for about half an hour with Namib before we kept moving. Namib...felt like a friend for that half hour.
We crossed the bridge and kept moving west, fending off the odd wolf pack as we progressed (and taking the meat of any wolves we felled). Eventually the path veered to the east and we continued following it, finding ourselves climbing up a gentle hill. We eventually approached what looked like a large boulder; however, when I got close enough...IT MOVED. I hurried away as the "rock" acquired massive rocky fists and short legs...a stone talus, a massive monster that likes crushing ribs by throwing those fists at passersby. Namib promptly readied for battle.
"Petra!" he cried out, "I'll distract the beast while ya pelt its ore deposit with arrows!"
"Why can't I distract it and you pelt it with arrows?!" I barked out, not wanting to take orders from Namib. He glared at me before he ran into battle...the talus focused on Namib at first, giving me time to pelt its ore deposit – a talus's only weak point – with my arrows, causing it to crash into the ground each time it was struck and allowing Namib to wail away at the deposit with his two swords, creating sparks with each blow. Eventually, though, the talus wised up and started facing me instead, preventing me from hitting it with my bow...time for plan B. I ran up to the talus and baited it into trying to crush me with its huge body, at which point I quickly climbed aboard and began bashing its ore deposit myself...
"Petra, you're going to hurt yourself!"
"I'll be fine, ya daft coward!"...until I wasn't. The talus, right before the ore deposit could break, threw me towards a nearby cliff...I barely caught myself and was struggling to keep a grip on the cliff face, staring certain death in the face. Namib shoved the talus downhill and ran to my side, (painfully) catching me with his muscular hands right as I lost my grip...I was shocked he was willing to save my life after everything I had been putting him through the past few days.
"Petra, are ya alright?!" he exclaimed as he pulled me back onto terra firma.
"Yeah...I...I'm fine...my pride's a little hurt..." Just then the talus hurled one of its fists at us and Namib was quick to react, using his own fist to slam the talus's fist back at it...striking its ore deposit. Which promptly broke...the talus dropped dead, leaving an array of precious gems behind. We retreated downhill to gather the drops...three opal, an amber, two rubies, a sapphire, a topaz, and a diamond.
"Take your pick," Namib told me. I chose both rubies...
"Are those your favourite?" Namib asked me.
"Yeah...fiery like me."
"Ruby is my favourite also...otherwise I would have stolen a different necklace from Dreemer." I had forgotten that Namib has a ruby necklace hung around his neck...we retreated a short distance uphill, south of Kolami Bridge (which I was not looking forward to crossing...no guard rails!), and found a stone platform on which to spend the night. I bandaged Namib's hand and then set a fire going...he cooked up some gourmet meat we got from killing a wolf earlier that day (it came out delicious!) before we started tucking into bed...
"Petra?"
"Yes?"
"Do I...do I still irritate ya?"
"Almost everyone irritates me, Namib...that's not a very fair question."
"Do ya...do ya...like me as a person then?" I could hear it in his voice...
Does this bloke like me?! I swear he's more bloody mental than I am! I'm not likeable! I've been treating him like rubbish since we've met! I went silent for several minutes, not sure how to answer Namib...
"...alright. I'll ask ya later..." Namib sounded a little hurt, and for once I didn't feel right about it...I had been asked out by blokes before and had always dismissed them without feeling a thing. Not this time...I decided I needed to think about it more and hit the hay for the night.
Chapter 8
The wind was intense that night...our campsite was very exposed and offered not an iota of protection from the blustery gales, so I was bloody cold; had to put my new coat on just so I could sleep. At least it was loud enough that I barely heard Namib's obnoxious snoring...
Surprisingly I slept okay regardless of the drafts and woke up only slightly knackered. Namib went to cook breakfast, but this time I offered to do so, my awful cooking skills notwithstanding.
"Ya sure ya want to? I am perfectly fine cooking brekky," Namib replied.
"I'm sure, Namib," I quipped back. Namib relented, and I started a fire using some wood and flint before trying to cook some of the hylian herbs I had been collecting on our trek thus far. It all went well at first...but then I saw that dragon Dinraal in the distance...
"Namib, look, look! That dragon again! It looks amazing!" I excitedly exclaimed as I pointed at it...we both turned away just long enough for the herbs to turn to charcoal.
Damn it! I mused in extreme frustration after we turned to see the results of my "cooking". Namib was not impressed.
"Is this how your cooking usually goes?" I swallowed before answering.
"Yeahhhhhh..."
"If so...how about ya just leave the cooking to me?" I made no attempt to protest that suggestion, and we soon left our campsite with empty stomachs...
We crossed the Kolami Bridge (not a fun experience!) before proceeding north through some cliff faces...we were occasionally ambushed by lizalfos (who can change colors to blend in with the surrounding scenery), but they did not survive long between the two of us. After exiting from between the cliff faces we went down a grassy slope...I just had to shield surf it, leaving Namib behind. Once at the bottom of the hill we reached a strange intersection with a circular path around a lake and another path heading due east...looks like there should be a stable here, but there isn't. The lake had these large stone pillars in the middle that just begged to have a village built on them. Without a stable hand I was unsure where we were going next...
"East," Namib told me, "we are taking the east path. Put your coat on...it gets VERY cold before long." I forgot that Namib apparently delivers supplies to New Kakariko and would thus be familiar with the area...as we began to depart east I set my hair into a bun and donned a scarf in a last ditch attempt to prevent Impa from recognizing me when we reached New Kakariko.
"Why the bun?" Namib asked. "I think your hair looks great as is."
"Not your business, Namib!" I replied in irritation to what sounded like him putting in a shift towards me. He did not try to probe further...
As we continued east and uphill the temperature steadily dropped until it became absolutely frigid; there was snow on the ground, the forests came to consist entirely of conifers, it felt like my eyes were going to freeze solid...I was feeling quite grateful that Namib had convinced me to buy a coat, but I was wary to thank him for it, still unsure how I felt about the thief lord. Eventually a village appeared on the horizon...
"Tabantha Village," Namib told me. "Friendly territory for me. I've dropped off supplies for them as well as for New Kakariko, so they shouldn't..."
"GET THEM!" A woman screamed from the village. Namib's expression was priceless.
"Wait...what?!" Soon several dozen villagers – some wielding pitchforks, others swords, still others with just their bare hands - had come to scrap with us...all gray skinned, red eyed, classic puppets of that damn Voice. I laughed a little.
"Awwww, has the whittle thief lord been betrayed by his fwiends?" I sarcastically barked to Namib. He looked offended but did not try to reply...we just tried to hurry past the village, only to be circled by the villagers.
"Petra! Ya run ahead of me! I'll be fine!" A few days ago I would have been happy to abandon Namib...but now I felt very guilty from the idea.
"No way! I'm fighting with you!" Suddenly Namib picked me up and roughly threw me over the mob.
"Just run! I'll catch up with ya!" This...this felt painfully like what Devyn did for me four years prior. I ran with tears in my eyes before the fighting could begin...but when I tried to leave to the north, suddenly this purple barrier, extremely painful to the touch, surrounded me.
"Ha ha ha! I caught up with Petra!
Didn't expect to see me, I betcha!"
It was Dreemer...and he was accompanied by this bizarre wanker with a blue feathery shirt, fur pants, woolly grey hair, and a grey goatee. I was feeling somewhere between nervous and furious.
"You drove this damn town mad, didn't you?!"
"I drove it mad,
and of that I am glad!
For now I can recruit Petra to our coup!"
"How many times do I have to tell you that I am NOT joining you freaks?!"
"Join or cry,
join or DIE!
Bluster will teach this miss
what it means to us dismiss!"
Dreemer then disappeared and "Bluster" flashed a psychotic grin before creating a powerful gust of wind, throwing me against the barrier (that bloody hurt!). The bloke was a complete weirdo...he could laboriously fly on his feathery arms and fought primarily by throwing gusts of wind at me; I had to run FAST to avoid them. I was struggling to harm him...couldn't get close enough to strike him with my sword, not enough time to use my bow, could not figure out how to break the barrier...
"He he he he! Use your magic, Barclaya! Use your magic! Prove why we want to recruit you to our side!"
He knows my real name...damn it...please please PLEASE don't let Namib hear that!
"Absolutely not!" I threw my shield at Bluster's head, stunning him long enough for me to land a few blows from my sword. When he recovered he leaped away and began using his wind magic again...suddenly I got an idea.
Maybe...maybe he could keep me suspended in the air long enough for me to pelt his hide with arrows?! I tested my theory next time he launched a whirlwind at me...this time I ran right into it, it launched me into the air, and on the way down I pelted Bluster with my arrows. I was able to do this several more times until one of those arrows knocked his "hair" (a wig really) off, revealing a bald head, and the creep passed out from the embarrassment; however, I then hit the ground VERY hard...sprained an ankle. Not good...
CRUD! Dreemer then appeared...
"Petra is injured, I see!
Well then...I'LL TAKE HER WITH ME!"
I really believed this was the end...but before anything else could happen...
BANG! SHATTER!
The barrier broke and Namib came rushing in, swords drawn, ready for a brawl, a livid expression painted on his face. "Ya are not welcome here, Dreemer! SCRAM!"
"The traitor is here!
Time to disappear!
But this is not the last
Namib will see of his past!
HEHEHEHEHE!"
Wait...what?!
Dreemer disappeared with Bluster...there was no way I was not thanking Namib this time.
"Namib...thank you. I don't think I would have survived without you."
"Are ya alright?!" Namib asked. I tried to get up to answer him, but was struggling to walk...Namib did not need a further answer.
"Please...let me carry ya to New Kakariko. Don't strain your ankle for a while..." I felt a little embarrassed to let a near stranger carry me, but I did not have many other options...Namib gently picked me up and carried me north.
"Namib?"
"Yes?"
"What happened to all those villagers?"
"They're out cold right now...but we would be wise not to retake that route. Probably head east when we are done at New Kakariko." I was FULL of questions by then.
"How did you defeat so many without killing them? How did you break that damn barrier? Were you a Plague Witch at some point?" He seemed hesitant to answer...I did not press him that time; I was just grateful he saved my life again, grateful he chose to come with me...
We continued northeast for a while but veered straight north as soon as the terrain allowed...the deep snow slowed us down, and Namib was sounding real knackered from hauling a bird in his arms for such a long distance. Eventually, late at night, I saw torches in the distance, illuminating a couple dozen log cabins...and, a little while thereafter, people. The Sheikah...white hair, pale skin, fur coats with this red eye symbol on the back.
"Lord Namib!" one of them cried out, "Are you alright?!"
"I'm fine, but she needs a bed now...sprained an ankle..."
"Anything for you, Namib!" They quickly provided us with beds...I was out within minutes.