Chapter 7: Reason

Throughout the week, Volga found himself frequently studying with the princess and well… spending time with her in general. He had learned so much in a short time; he learned how to write structured sentences. His vocabulary expanded each time Zelda read to him, or when he tried reading on his own. He learned arithmetic, and understood more of numbers. He learned the history of the main wars throughout the eras, and how they impacted the land. He learned the process of how plants drew sunlight for photosynthesis, and the names of the various star constellations that he and Zelda spent the other night watching them from the rooftops.

He learned that her hair was slightly darker than his own, and how unruly it could sometimes be before she brushed it. He learned that he found himself wondering what the texture would feel like through his fingers, and that he cherished her hair regardless of the condition it was in. He learned of her various facial expressions, and his shy fascination with them. He learned what made her sad and angry. But more prominently, what made her smile and laugh - and that he took delight in doing so.

Unfortunately, he also learned that today was his last day in Hyrule Castle before the trial, as well as his last training session with Impa. He'd been having several training sessions with her by the end of the week, his injury having made a steady recovery in Zelda's watch. His wings and claw had been absent by now, and he only hoped to have need of them for the trial itself.

"You've been showing much improvement on your mobility and reflexes," Impa commented, making a side-step motion with her lance to dodge Volga's jab. "But tell me. What weapon have you felt the most comfortable with so far?"

Volga glanced down at the lance in his hands. "I like the lance," he muttered. "Though I can't say I always like having a shield. It tends to slow me down, and I find that I end up missing opportunities to strike when I rely too much on it."

Impa gave a smile of approval. "You've been learning, I noticed. This is good." She paused. "Have you considered trying the lance, but without using a shield?"

He blinked at her. "I can't say that I have. You mean, the lance just by itself? Like… a spear?"

She nodded, and gestured for him to discard his shield on the grass. Volga did, and though the absence of the heavy shield felt strange, there was something almost… natural to him about using this weapon as one. The weight seemed just right, balanced with his personal preference to be able to be agile, yet aggressive when the time prompted him to be.

The weapon could be used with one hand, or both, so it gave him more options to consider. He opted to start with both for his final spar with Impa. When she moved in for the attack, Volga did not find his hand to be a burden as much as he thought it would. He moved fluidly as he evaded her, able to maintain a firm grasp on the spear as he made a forward lunge. Impa blocked, but Volga had been prepared for that. He wove around her shield, in an attempt to flank her.

Impa turned sharply, meeting his attack with her lance.

"I actually had to work a bit there," Impa panted, sounding a bit miffed. "I feel… you liked this weapon, didn't you? Would this weapon be the one you would bring to your trial?"

Volga hesitated for a few seconds, considering all the weapons he had tried so far. "Yes," he said. "But I'm still willing to learn how to use the other weapons. I want to understand each one as much as I can."

"You can take that spear with you to the trial, then. You have plenty of years ahead of you to practice with other weapons, if you still feel the need to."

He bowed his head. "Thank you, General Impa."

"A trader should be arriving here shortly," said Impa, as she began to pick up the weapons, clearing the training field they had been practicing on. "He will be taking a shipment of goods to the Dinolfos clan, so I requested for him to take you along. Upon communication with the reptilian chieftains, it seems that this place where you will have your trial is the same place the trader will stop by to drop off the crates."

Volga felt something in his chest tighten. "Oh."

"You don't seem particularly enthusiastic about this trial," Impa observed. "Not that I would be eager myself to plunge into some unknown danger, but… are you afraid?"

He shook his head. "No," he said quietly. "I just don't know when I'll -"

When I'll be able to see her again…

"Nothing," he said, looking away. "It's nothing."

Impa regarded him for a moment, before she spoke up again. "You know what I think? It is not your inexperienced abilities that hold you back. It's the fact that you have found nothing to fight for yet. Fighting to you, it seems, is nothing more than a clash of weapons and mobility. You have not yet found a purpose to fight."

Volga looked up at her. "And what is your purpose, if I may ask?"

"To protect the Royal Family," said Impa at once. "They have been in constant danger throughout time. They will continue being so in the future. It is my duty to keep watch over them. Zelda, above all. The king does not have many years left in him. Zelda will eventually be tasked with ruling this kingdom on her own. At least, until a prince presents himself to wed her."

He fell silent at this, trying to make sense of the array of emotions going through him. "But the…" he broke off. "The soldiers."

"What of them?"

"They can't be of more help?"

Impa sighed. "Of course they can. But even so, there is power out there that is beyond our own to stop it. Our soldiers are strong, but not all of them are brave. Our knights are the ones with true courage, some of the finest protectors of the Royal Family - who would risk their life for our king and princess. In fact, many of the ancestors of the family have been knights."

What a difficult life it must have been for the Royal Family, always living in fear of being attacked, or being involved with a war. Impa had mentioned that the king did not have many years left in him… did this mean Zelda would inevitably lose both of her family members? And how would she rule over the kingdom on her own? What if something happened to Impa too, then who would protect her? Impa was not immortal as far as he knew.

Our knights are the ones with true courage, some of the finest protectors of the Royal Family - who would risk their life for our king and princess…

"General Impa," he said seriously, his green eyes intense. "I want to be a knight."

"What?" Impa said blankly, unsure she had heard him correctly.

"I want to be a knight," Volga repeated firmly.

She stared at him, dumbfounded. It was apparent that she did not know how to respond to this, at least not right away. And so, she laughed, ceasing the closest he had to a mock-free training session with her. Volga ignored the gibe at his pride, waiting for her to reply.

"You?" she snorted. "A runt who can barely pick up a war hammer, or block with a shield? Kid, please. You can't be serious. How do you expect to fight? Slash and swipe at your enemies with your claw?"

Volga shrugged. "If that is what I must do to defeat them, then yes. I will."

Impa's laughter began to ebb away, realizing that he was indeed, serious. She knew he barely had ambition during their training sessions, so what had changed? "Why?" she asked.

"It is difficult to explain," he murmured. "But if what you say about me not having a reason to fight is true, then this could give me an indication of where to begin. And I want to be seen as something other than a dragon. A prince can have honor given to him for free, while a dragon would only be revered by its own kind. But as a knight, then maybe… just maybe, I can have a chance to be something more."

All traces of amusement completely left Impa. She was staring at Volga as if she was seeing him for the first time.

Finally, she spoke. "Becoming a knight is not something that can be achieved so easily, or quickly. For some, they are already seasoned enough soldiers to be able to carry through knight training with ease, and even then, the training is still rigorous. For others, it can take years for them to master their training. There is simply no way that you will be able to become a knight before you leave here for your trial. You would have to visit here several times a week while living in Eldin. The traveling would be most inconvenient for you, too."

"But if I could find a way to continue the training after my trial," Volga protested. "If I could find a means of traveling efficiently, would you consider training me? I will do whatever it takes to be accepted."

The Sheikah looked deep in thought. "Perhaps," she replied. "You would still need the king's consent, regardless. If you complete this trial however, I may be more… inclined to persuade the king to consider your future visits."

Volga's eyes lit up with hope. "Really?"

He thought he had imagined it, but Impa's lips almost curved into a smile. "Don't get ahead of yourself though. There may be opportunities in the future for you to learn more. In the meantime, you have a trial to tackle. I wish you luck… Dragon Knight."

For some reason, that title rang really well in his head, whether Impa was doing it to mock him or not.

Volga had stuffed his belongings in the rucksack he had brought when he first arrived there, though it was considerably fuller this time than before, with all the gifts Zelda had given him. Clothing, books, sweets, and more - were all crammed inside. He made sure to bring the essentials, such as fruits, bread, and a flagon of water. Something was missing, however he could not place what it was. His mind hadn't been entirely focused on packing to start with.

He was surprised Zelda hadn't swung by his quarters, or well, looked for him at all today, seeing that she knew he'd be leaving. It was difficult enough for him find his own will to say good-bye, let alone to search for her. But Volga did search, visiting the many places they had spent time together. Yet they were all empty, devoid of her presence.

"I don't mean to be rude," said the Goron trader impatiently, who had been waiting for him at the entrance of the castle. "But I don't have all day to wait for you to find everything. The horses are getting fidgety outside too, and the crates are all ready to go. You're the only one I'm waiting on."

Volga nodded absently, as he caught sight of the king. Approaching him, he gave Zelda's father a bow. "Thank you for having me over, Your Majesty," he said earnestly. "Thank you for everything."

The king watched him behind an inscrutable gaze. "I hope you do well in your trial, Volga," he remarked. "Were you able to find Zelda?"

"No," Volga grasped the helmet he had been holding in his arms. "She probably just - had something important to do."

"Possibly," said the king frowning. "Though it's odd, because I saw her a mere hour ago. Ah, but I'm sure she'll be writing to you soon though. She's rather fond of you."

"S-she is?" he blurted. "I mean… yes. I'm quite fond of her too, Your Majesty."

"That is quite clear to me," the king's voice did not sound reproachful, but more of a genuine curiosity. "But Volga, I should advise you of the… consequences of attachment. Understand that for the next several years, Zelda will be under strict training in preparation for the war. She will not be allowed to see her friends, nor be given the chance to spend any time outside the castle's walls. She has already been limited to start with, but any kind of attachment would sway her away from her duty. You do not realize the difficult times we are about to face."

"I don't wish for her to be in danger," said Volga, in a desperate plea for the king to understand. "I want to help. I spoke with Impa about becoming a knight someday, and I -"

"I'm sorry, Volga," said the king solemnly. "But right now, the last thing we need is a dragon hovering about the castle. I do not mean to sound harsh, but you must trust me when I say this. Your fate lies in a dark place, something I do not have the courage to divulge to you today. Someday, you will understand."

Volga had not said a word throughout the entire trip, his face hidden behind his helmet. He did not have a notion as to how tightly his fingers held the spear Impa had provided for his use during the trial.

"Here we are," said the Goron trader glumly, adjusting the reins on the horses so that the cart came to halt. "Looks like the Dinolfos trader is already here too. Good. The quicker I can get out of here, the better."

The Dinolfos approached them, its slitted pupils growing slightly larger when it spotted the crates of apples in the cart. "You brought both the boy, and the applesss," the creature hissed. "Excellent."

"And the food?" the Goron inquired, stepping out of the driver's seat, Volga following along shortly after.

A pause, then the Dinolfos cackled. "Food… food, you mean the rocksss, yes? They are right over here. You can place the cratesss of apples at the entrance of the cave."

For the next few minutes, the Goron began to haul the crates of apples to where the Dinolfos requested, grunting at one particularly heavy crate. The Dinolfos circled around Volga in wonder, like a vulture circling a potential prey.

"I can sense the dragon in you," the Dinolfos stated with interest. "But you seem so… human."

Volga did not bother to reply, his head raised, eyes staring through the holes of his helmet, not really looking at the Dinolfos, but through him.

"The crates are all there," the Goron interrupted. "And your end of the bargain was fulfilled, now packed in my cart. I appreciate the trade. I will be off now."

When the Goron left, Volga turned to take a closer inspection upon the cave before him.

Something about the cave seemed out of place amidst the barren wasteland, as if the formation of its rocks had been created there by accident, rather than the natural erosion over time. It was impossible to surmise the depths this cave stretched out to. For the mouth of the cave started off in a downward slope… and goddesses only knew how far down it went.

"Is there a particular cave exit I should keep an eye out for when I'm done with the trial?" Volga asked dully. "Or am I expected to come back through the same way I came in?""

The Dinolfos's eyes glinted with an orange glow, reflected from the sun setting in the sky. "It doesss not matter which cave exit you use. Assuming you find another cave exit that isss," he cast a hint of a smirk. "And assuming you live long enough to find an exit in the firssst place."

How very reassuring. Though Volga did not really expect anything less.

"If you do happen to make it far inside," the reptilian continued. "The Dinolfos and Lizalfos chieftains will be there to witness whether you pass or fail the trial."

Suddenly, what sounded like a distant roar reverberated from within the cavern, and for an abrupt few seconds, the earth vibrated. Volga glanced down to see that the pebbles and small rocks were quavering on the ground. Then it all stopped.

"Ah yesss," said the Dinolfos in acknowledgment, apparently having expected this to happen. "I almost forgot to mention of the occasional earthquakess. If you can avoid being squashed by the rock fallsss and large boulders, you might be lucky enough to meet the beast that resides within."

Volga narrowed his eyes. "Lucky," he repeated. "Right. I appreciate the… warning."

With his spear in hand, and his belongings all packed on the rucksack on his back, he faced the cave entrance before him, and began to make his way inside. If this was his death sentence, he would face it, head-strong, and not as a coward. If knights were honored for their courage, then he would be too.

The cave was surprisingly well-lit, at least from what he had seen so far. Along its rugged walls were garnets that fluctuated between red and orange, its glow enabling him to see his path. Volga could not understand a Goron's appetite for rocks, but he could see why they would be interested in trading for the resources within, because everywhere he treaded contained a seemingly endless trail of earths and minerals. He wondered why the Gorons could not simply come inside, until he remembered the beast the Dinolfos had spoken of.

What would he fight, exactly? Would defeating this beast be his actual trial? Did the beast already sense his presence?

Though what unnerved Volga was that he had not stumbled across a single sign of life on sight; no wandering creature or a stray plant, not even a bug scurrying about along the crevices of the walls. He'd been exploring for some time by now, treading further and further below within the cavern.

All he could hear were the sounds of his own footsteps, as muffled as he tried to make of them. Stealth was not his expertise. He could also detect a trickling noise, which could potentially be relevant to the dank and musty scents in the air. Yet there did not seem to be any water source nearby.

Were the creatures the ones hiding? Perhaps they sensed what he was, like that Dinolfos trader had. In some ways, this was a relief, and gave him a rare and an unexpected appreciation for being associated with a beast that was so readily feared. Zelda's influence had sparked his confidence in that he did not feel a need to constantly dread how humans judged him. That he could start seeing his abilities as something to be honored, rather than to run away from.

Volga found that for the first time, he actually missed having his claw available to him. If only he knew how to control his transformations, so that he unleash them whenever he needed to, and not at unpredictable intervals that had often gotten him into trouble.

Due to the silence, he was caught off-guard when the cave suddenly shook. This was going to take some getting used to. Misshapen chunks of the ceiling broke off, rocks from above and around the walls tumbling into the area. Volga quickly ran forth to try and avoid the rock falls, debris catching onto his clothing as he did so.

Jagged stones heavily collided behind him, its sharp edges snagging onto his rucksack, and tearing off the straps, before disappearing into the rubble behind him. Swearing audibly, Volga stood with his back to the wall along the next area of the cave, waiting for the quake to subside. He only moved again when the rocks stopped falling.

The area he had come from was almost entirely blocked off by rocks. He realized he would likely not be able to use this same path to exit the cave, unless he planned to stay here for days shifting rocks around. Volga searched through the rubble, trying to find out where he had lost his rucksack. He had all his belongings in there, including necessities such as food and water.

After a strenuous session of trying to clear the rocks from where he was crouched over, Volga was able to recover some of his missing supplies. He found a loaf of bread wrapped in a crinkled napkin, flattened by the weight of the rocks upon it. It was better than nothing, but the rations would not go for more than two days, and he considered that he would likely have to hunt, depending on how long he found himself in this cave.

Volga found very little of what remained of his possessions. It was by some miracle that he was able to find his parchments and books Zelda had given him, unharmed, the worst of it being some dust on the covers. He brushed it off, and placed his belongings in the torn rucksack. He would have to carry it now, since the straps were broken. And he would have to get out of here soon, before the ground would shake again, or he'd end up having every path blocked off.

He ambled back to the direction he had been heading to, continuing down the cave. There, he saw something. The first sign of creatures. There was an opening far up along the wall, where a group of bats had been hanging, up-side down, their wings folded around themselves. Their yellow eyes fixated upon Volga, or rather, at the sound of his movements.

If they didn't disturb him, then he didn't really have any reason to provoke them. He could feel their gaze upon him as he walked by. And the distant sound of footsteps. He was being watched. But it was not only by the bats.

Volga turned around, his eyes scouting his surrounding, but there was nothing. Unsettled, he walked around cautiously, catching sight of two unusual statues parallel to one another, like guards situated at a post. The statues were both identical, featuring ancient designs of a mouth at the bottom. The top of the statues were rounded, outlined in the shape of an eye, but they were shut. Upon Volga's approach however, the eyes on both statues slid open.

"Watch out!"

Three things happened at the same time; he saw a flash of light from the eyes of the statues, shooting a beam that reached all the way across the area, a scream of warning, and something shoving him to the ground. Disoriented, Volga shifted beneath the weight on top of him, trying to figure out what had transpired. He was met with a pair of familiar blue eyes.

"Zelda?!" he said in disbelief.

"Shhh," she said urgently, glancing in the direction of the statues. "Don't move. Their eyes are closed again. We're just barely out of their sight."

Volga lay there, motionless, though the hammering inside his chest was quite the opposite. He watched as Zelda slowly climbed off of him, in a manner so fluid and quiet, that she resembled a feline. And her clothes too, did not even make a ruffle of a sound, a purple dress tunic, with a belt around her waist. She reached for a dagger, strapped to one of her brown, leather boots.

"Do you have anything explosive with you?" she asked.

He shook his head at the bizarreness of this question, curious as to what she intended to do. "I can produce fire though," he said after a few seconds.

"That might do," said Zelda thoughtfully. She handed him her dagger. "Do you think you can maintain a fire around this blade?"

Volga took the dagger, holding it by the grip. "I can try," he said, shocked by how light the weapon was. "What are you -?"

"When the eye opens again," she explained. "I will throw this dagger at the statue's eye. Since we do not have a means for general explosion, we'll have to be more accurate with where its weak points are. Those statues are called Beamos. They are security statues. I've seen father place them in the castle before, but they don't look like these. These appear far more ancient."

Though he had a ton of questions in his mind, Volga knew now was not the time to make them. He closed his eyes, focusing on channeling the fire from within his body, relishing in the fact that he was actually asked to use his abilities. A flame floated above his palm, and he redirected it toward the blade.

The fire encircled the hilt, enchanting the weapon with flames. The combination produced an unnaturally bright light, as if the rays had come from the very sun. "This dagger," he began. "This dagger wasn't man-made was it?"

"Correct," Zelda replied, watching the fire in awe. "I conjured it."

"You… conjured it?"

"Impa's been trying to teach me to conjure weapons," she said hastily. "A rapier is my goal, but so far, all I've been able to conjure are daggers and arrows. This magic draws power from light, unlike the summoning of creatures, which is a completely different kind of magic."

Intrigued by this side of her that he had not known, Volga handed her the dagger back. "Careful so that the flames don't burn you," he said worriedly.

"But Volga, look… your flames…"

And he soon realized what she was talking about. The flames he had produced were in fact, not burning her. They did not even catch onto her sleeves. Had he somehow, unconsciously, willed his powers to be able to do that? He was only ever able to keep himself from being burned, and sometimes his clothes, but never was he able to control the fire so that it would not burn someone else. Not that he tried burning others yet, but that was beside the point.

"Alright," she said, opening a rucksack of her own that she had brought. She grabbed an apple from inside, and turned to Volga. "I will use this as a distraction. Once the beams are focused on it, I'm going to take advantage of the distraction to strike the statue."

Another flame surged from Volga's fingers, and this time, he directed it toward his own weapon. "I'll take the other statue," he said, coordinating with her lead.

With a nod, Zelda tossed the apple in the direction of the Beamos. The bright laser shot from their eyes, instantly obliterating the fruit. Not even a seed of it remained. Volga's eyes widened. That could have been him, if it were not for Zelda. That could have been Zelda.

"Zelda, wait -" he said, not wanting her to risk herself. But Zelda was already in motion.

She threw the dagger toward the Beamo at about mid range, hitting it slightly above the eye, but still striking the target, nevertheless. Volga rushed over, taking the opportunity to handle the other statue while it was confused, plunging the spear right into its eye. Both children took several steps back at the sounds of malfunction, before the statues boomed into pieces of scrap and metal.

"You arrived here inside a crate of apples?"

"Yes, Volga," said Zelda, laughing at the skeptical expression on his face. "I was in that cart behind you the whole trip. The ride wouldn't have been so bad if I could actually see anything from the crate."

"Why?"

It was a simple word, and yet that one word contained so much that he wanted to ask her. They continued in the cave, neither really following one another, but rather walking along together.

"You did not really think I would just stand back idly as you put yourself into danger, did you?" she said adamantly.

Volga, still not used to having anyone show such concern for him, looked at her in confusion. "But," he argued. "This wasn't just any ordinary retreat you made from the castle. You would not put yourself in such risk, not without an important cause."

"And your life is not an important cause?"

Stunned, he found himself stumbling over his words. "It was the trial given to me, not to put your life in danger with me. You could have died!" he gave her an intense glare, a fierce expression on his usual mellow regard for the princess.

"So could you," said Zelda calmly.

He said nothing at that, crossing his arms in his chest, resembling someone very familiar. "Well, we go back, then," he said decisively. "We go back and get you out of the cave. Then we'll search for the nearest outpost so that you can be escorted -"

"In case you have forgotten," she reminded him. "The path that we came from was blocked off from the rocks. So it's best we continue together, rather than retrace old steps that cannot be followed."

Still not convinced by this plan, Volga could not help but question his own motives. He could not deny that he was overjoyed to see her, and it brought him some ease in knowing that he would be able to spend a little more time with her, even if she never sought him out to say good-bye. The selfish part of him wanted her here with him, but another part of him wanted her to be safe.

It was not that he was skeptical of Zelda's own abilities. In truth, he had been thoroughly impressed with what she had been capable of, and her wisdom with how she was able to dissect the issues, and reconstruct the situation. Already she was displaying the quality of a tactician, and a natural born leader.

"I've brought extra supplies you know," said Zelda, as if trying to make a point. "I may have been stubborn to come here, but I'm not without some aspect of resourcefulness."

Volga mentally scolded himself. "No, no," he said quickly. "Zelda, you don't… you don't have to prove anything to me. You don't have to feel a need to be strong all the time, not around me. You've done more for me already than I could even think on how to repay you."

"Volga…"

"Are you alright with us making camp here before we rest?" he asked her, the stress in his tone. "I can't focus on anything right now. I think some reading and something to drink will help clear my mind."

Zelda gave his shoulder a soothing squeeze. "Relax," she said softly. "I'll take care of the drinks, and set up camp. Pick any book you would like to read with me, and I'll join you shortly."

I wonder, if one of the reasons you couldn't say good-bye to me is because I don't want to say it either…