Chapter 6:
Farore's Family

Eli

It took another day to get to Kakariko. They did not stop at Lon Lon Ranch as they had before the attacks. They were safer under the cover of his mother's spells in any case. It was during the second day in the morning that Mother gave him and Leita a necklace each. Eli watched as Mother worked a ritual over each one, using holy water, sweetgrass, sage, fire, and blessed salt. Like with the sacred circle before, there were no flashing lights or mystical glow after each ritual was complete. It didn't seem like anything happened to them.

"I had meant to give you these when you came of age," said Mom as she clasped it around his neck.

He looked down and fingered the silver chain and pendant. It was a crescent moon. He watched as Mom put a gold necklace with a sun pendant on Leita.

"I have blessed them. They will keep you safe from the blight. Always wear them," she instructed.

After this, Eli watched her do the same ritual over her and Father's marriage tokens: their matching bracelets.

When they arrived at the village, darkness was falling on it. The houses and buildings were blasted and broken, bricks blackened by the fire that had been set upon them. Their soldiers moved around with the people of the town, cleaning up still after the attack. They were greeted by three soldiers at the top of the massive steps that helped travelers scale the steep slopes of the mountainous area.

They seemed to recognize his mother and father.

"Amaya, Tori," said the soldier who seemed to take charge and walk toward them first. She removed her helmet to reveal she was a woman with short, sandy hair and purple eyes. Her face was grim, worn, and still smudged with soot.

Mom went first to greet her as Dad helped him and Leita out of the wagon. The two women clasped each other's arms in comradery.

"It's good to see you, Telsa," said Amaya. "Especially during harsh times. There's no one else I would be more thankful to see."

Telsa smiled though it was weak under her obvious exhaustion. "The feeling is mutual …" Her smile quickly faded. "So you were you attacked at the lake too?"

Mom nodded. "Only by two. So we have that to be thankful for."

Telsa nodded. "Thank Nayru … Come, many refugees of Castle Town and other nearby villages are taking shelter in whatever homes we have available. Much of Kakariko's population was displaced after the attack as well, myself included. We are all one family under Farore, we will take care of each other. I'll help your family get settled in, and then we have much to discuss."

"Yes, I have many questions," agreed Mother.

Eli took Leita's hand as Dad led the horses who carried their wagon, and they followed Mom and Telsa. The smell of smoke was still strong in the air, and everything seemed so still and quiet, even though the townspeople were moving about. Leita's hand squeezed his harder as she leaned in closer to him.

Eli felt it too. Despair lingered like a thick fog in the air.

They were taken up to the windmill, where it was crowded with other refugees but at least they were safe. Dad stayed with them, setting up some bedding and getting them some food while Mom and Telsa left to talk.

Eli started to close his eyes, in order to focus so he could Listen, but then someone flicked him in the ear. He turned to pout at his father, who smiled knowingly at him.

"Eli, you will know what you need to in time. Now eat and give your mother some privacy to talk."

Amaya

Amaya strolled back down the steps of the windmill building with Telsa, her arms folded over her chest. "Tell me what happened. I know Kakariko has enough casters to get up an effective barrier."

Telsa sighed heavily, her purple eyes looked even more exhausted upon reflecting on this memory.

"We did," she said as they reached the bottom of the stairs. Telsa glanced around at her ruined village, searching for words. "Maya … He came. Ganondorf Dragmire. I assume after he had finished with Castle Town. But he was… looking for someone."

Amaya paused at the bottom with her, raising a brow. "Who?"

"The princess," said Telsa. "Refugees and what soldiers were left from Castle Town report having seen Ganondorf chasing her and Lady Impa on a horse. He killed some of the Royal Guard that was pursuing them too. After that, they weren't able to find him or Impa and the princess. But then he came back that evening and that's when… it all started."

Amaya frowned, her blue eyes piercing. "How was he able to get through the barrier? I know that Dragmire is not only their king but their most powerful mage. Still, he couldn't take on a barrier supported by multiple mages all on his own. We saw that during the last war."

"Yes, I know." Telsa's worn out eyes stared dully back at her. She nodded, almost numbly. Her voice sounded more dazed now as she recalled it. "You're right. It should have been that way … We even got Captain Agni's warning through the sending stone, but, Amaya, he ripped through that barrier like it was paper."

Amaya stared, not knowing what to say to that.

After all, the proof was all around her in these demolished and wrecked buildings. If she hadn't seen it all for herself, she wouldn't have believed what Telsa said. Dragmire had been formidable during the war. He had shown that when he slaughtered the Sheikah in droves. Amaya was certain that the Gerudo had not had a magic user as powerful as him for hundreds of years. The Gerudo so rarely had magic among their people, and even fewer that had enough to be a true threat.

But no one, not even Elias Serwen, could have done what she was saying he did.

"Obviously, Princess Zelda wasn't here, nor was Impa," continued Telsa. "I think the only reason he didn't kill us all was because he didn't want to waste his time … He seemed determined to find her."

Impa would know better than to take the princess to her home village to hide. Even Ganondorf knew it was the last remaining Sheikah village, even if hardly any of the residents were Sheikah themselves. So, of course, he would look here on the off chance Impa did try to hide her here. Any strategist knows to eliminate all the obvious moves just to be certain.

Amaya nodded, looking down in thought. "But why …? She's just a little girl."

No older than Eli.

Telsa shrugged and her eyes narrowed bitterly. "Maybe he just wants to destroy the Nohansen line? After all, he's already …"

She looked up sharply. "You mean, King Theodas is …?"

The hard edge to Telsa's face softened with grief, and she nodded, her voice thick with emotion as she said, "That bastard strung his body up at Castle Town's front gate."

Amaya closed her eyes for a moment. Dragmire did seem to have a love for hanging up the corpses of his enemies, as he had done the Sheikah. It was meant to be a warning to those loyal to the Hylian royal family. It made sense that in the end, he did the same to King Theodas himself. A warning to all who would oppose Ganondorf.

She opened her eyes and fixed them on Telsa once more. "Can you tell me anything about how Ganondorf was able to take Castle Town so easily? We should have seen an army coming."

Telsa let out a shaky sigh and nodded, dropping the hand that she had cupped to her face. "He… teleported them."

"What?" Amaya's voice almost cracked like a whip. "No caster has enough mana to teleport an entire army!"

Telsa just shrugged helplessly. "I know. Goddesses, everyone knows. He shouldn't have been able to break the barrier, and he shouldn't have been able to teleport an army, but he did. I don't know how to explain it, but he did. Not only that, he didn't just bring his warriors. He brought... monsters. Beasts. Invincible warriors in towering armor. These are the things that refugees have told us."

Amaya stared at Telsa, lost for words. It all should have been impossible, but here they all were. Her scrying had shown her the smoldering ruins of Castle Town. There was no other explanation except for the impossible. Somehow, Ganondorf Dragmire had become unstoppable in less than a day.

She had heard myths and mostly stories about casters who had made deals with spirits. Entities that were often neither good or evil, though there were some of darker and twisted natures. These myths claimed that casters could boost their power, do things that other magic users would not be able to do no matter how much of their life they had devoted to the art of magic. Those were supposed to be just myths. Still, none of them spoke of things on the scale that Dragmire seemed to be wielding his magic.

"There has to be something more to his urgent need to find the princess …" mused Amaya.

She had no idea what. She was just a girl of ten summers. Of course, the Nohansen line had always been unique in many ways. Whatever secrets they had, only the Sheikah and the royal family would know.

She sighed heavily.

Amaya had remembered what Kubera had said not weeks before all this happened. He had been angry about King Theodas' decision to trust Dragmire's offer of peace and loyalty. He said that Theodas stressed the importance of putting aside past wounds in order to finally have peace between their peoples and make Hyrule truly whole again. It sounded like something Tori would have said, with his unending compassion, forgiveness, and kindness. Amaya rather admired those qualities. It was one of the reasons she loved Tori so much. But she recognized the weaknesses such an optimistic stance could have.

There were those who would take advantage of those kindnesses.

Eli

Weeks went by, and Eli and Leita were put to work with the rest to help restore the village. This meant just gathering wood and brick and separating them into piles or gathering water and wood for meals. Whatever chores they were capable of, they did. Mother and what remained of the casters in the village were able to put up a magical barrier again. They heard of attacks on the villages out in the plains. They continued to receive more refugees, telling stories of Gerudo raids on towns.

Some reported sightings of Ganondorf, saying that he was destroying some villages in his search for Princess Zelda. Eli was able to hear more things as he listened in on these refugees talking to other townspeople, previous refugees, and soldiers. He heard things he was certain his parents didn't want him to. Stories of Gerudos taking slaves, Hylian men in particular. It seemed that not all villages were destroyed. If the Gerudos seemed to think they provided good resources like food from farming communities, then they would take their harvest instead of their lives.

They killed anyone who exhibited magical gifts, children included.

Spirits were down even in Kakariko, where they were relatively safe. However, Eli also heard how the barrier had failed to protect them from the first attacks. Everyone knew that it could fail them again, if Ganondorf decided to come visit them.

Dad still smiled, like he always did, but Eli could see the heaviness in his eyes. He knew he had to be worried about Killian and the Agnis who didn't show up in Kakariko. There was no way to know if they were dead or not. Dad asked anyone who came from Castle Town if they had seen Kubera Agni, who was well known since he was the captain of the royal guard. He asked everyone if they had seen Killian, since he traveled all the time to practically everywhere in Hyrule. No one was able to tell him about either one.

Except for one evening, while they were helping serve dinner in the village. Everyone was sharing food and resources. They all ate together and slept crammed in houses and tents. It was like Telsa had said when they first came, they were all family under Farore and would take care of each other.

Dad had just finished asking someone about Kubera, when a soldier looked over, perking as if it caught his interest.

"Kubera Agni, right? That's who you're talking about?"

Dad brightened with hope. "Yes, do you know anything about his whereabouts?"

The guard shook his head, but then almost seemed to grimace uncomfortably. "No, but... there was this family who showed up here the night of the attack on Castle Town. A woman claiming to be his wife. I wasn't there myself or anything, but they said she had two kids with her. They got... turned away by a caster."

Eli watched Dad's face fall.

"What …?" The question was almost a whisper. "W-why? They weren't turning away refugees before and we still aren't now."

The guard shifted uncomfortably again. "Well... I heard it was because the woman claiming to be his wife was Ceres Kali. You know... granddaughter of Aliyah Kali."

"Yes, I know." For once Dad sounded angry, curt. His voice snapped sharply. "Because I know her. Ceres is Kubera's wife!"

The soldier put up his hands defensively. "Hey, this is just what I heard. I wasn't there."

"Then who was?" Mother had been nearby and seemed to have heard almost everything as well. Her voice had that chill to it though, like when she had spoken to that Gerudo who attacked Dad.

"It—it was Vivian, okay?" stammered the soldier under her piercing gaze.

Mom nodded. "I see."

She turned away. Dad dropped his ladle into the pot of soup to chase after her, calling, "Amaya, wait!"

Eli felt Leita grab onto his arm. He looked down at her tearful face. "Eli, why would they turn them away?"

He didn't have an answer for her, but he would find out. "Come on."

He took her hand and followed after their parents. He was sure he had heard that name before, Kali. He just couldn't remember. He never knew what Ceres' surname had been before she married Kubera. Normally, men took their wive's surname, but the Agnis had been like his parents. Mom and Ceres took their husbands' surnames.

Eli weaved through the groups of people seated, chatting and eating their fill this evening, Leita trailing behind him, attached by their clasped hands. He saw their parents stop at one particular group. He arrived just in time to hear his mother speak to another woman, who was tall and slender with black hair peppered with gray rolled into a neat bun.

"Is it true that you turned away Ceres Agni and her children?"

Vivian looked up at her. She snorted, looking back down to her soup, gathering a spoonful and blowing on it. "And what if I did?"

Mom's face was still as cool as ice. "If you did … that means you turned away a mother and her children."

Vivian rolled her eyes. "I turned away a threat that we can't afford during these difficult times. We have no need for necromancers here."

Eli felt his insides go cold. Necromancer? Then he remembered where he had heard the name Kali. Aliyah Kali was one of the most popular horror stories when it came to necromancers. But Eli had thought she had only been a story. He never thought she had been a real person.

Mother stared at Vivian with the same cool expression as before. She blinked, tilting her head, her eyes calculating. Dad put a hand on her shoulder, his brow heavy with both sadness and concern.

"Amaya, please …" he whispered softly to her.

"We are all one family under Farore, necromancers included," stated Mom.

That was when anger sharpened Vivian's elegant yet older features. Her narrowing eyes especially accented by the crow's feet at the corners. She shoved her bowl of soup aside and stood up to tower over his mother.

"Necromancers included …?" the woman growled with disgust. "I was orphaned because of that necromancer! Don't tell me they're supposed to be my family when they took the family I had! Don't make me sick with that kind of talk. Anyone who knew Ceres Kali knows there was something wrong with her, just like her grandmother. You should be thanking me, not treating me like this."

"I know Ceres," said Amaya calmly. "So does my husband. So does her husband, Kubera. If anything she seemed … troubled, but she is a devoted mother. She could be just as devoted to her community if you would only give her a chance to be. If there was ever anything wrong with her, it was because of people like you. Your ignorance makes me sick. You're supposed to be a mage, but you reject a magic type when you are capable of casting all of them. Death adepts aren't doomed to depravity; I have known those without the gift for death magic who were just as terrible if not more so than Aliyah Kali. Don't forget, you are a mage and, therefore, just as capable of death magic."

Vivian's face wrinkled darkly with her rage and disgust. "Take your disgusting love for those corpse-humpers and leave!"

There was a dull thud that went through the air as Vivian was knocked by an invisible force into the side of a nearby building. Eli had seen Mom's hands move, but they had almost been a blur.

"Amaya!" cried Dad, his other hand grasping her other shoulder and turning her back to face him. His green eyes pressing pleadingly into hers. "Please, don't. None of this changes that they're … gone. There is no point in fighting among each other, especially not now."

Leita was crying softly into Eli's shoulder too, clinging to him out of fear of the violence she just witnessed. Mom sighed heavily, closing her eyes as if to center herself. Then she opened them, the ice that had formed was gone as she looked up into her husband's eyes.

"Yes … of course, you're right."

But Vivian was grunting, pushing herself up onto her knees. Her bun lopsided and hair loosened after the assault. "You—you whore!"

Mom turned her head to acknowledge her, her expression becoming cool once more. "Calm down. Be glad all I did was give you a slap on the hands, Vivian. Now resume your supper, and I will leave."

Vivian struggled to her feet, her face contorted with anger. "You think I can't dish out as much, Banshee?"

Eli had heard that nickname for his mother before. She got it during the war. Some soldiers had said that Mom had a spell that amplified her voice so much that when she screamed it became a sonic blast that could put a large dent in Goron steel.

"No, I don't," said Mother simply. "Now if you're going to do something, then do it."

Dad stepped in front of Mom, raising up his hands. "Please, Vivian, let's not fight each other. We need all our magic users if we want to stand a chance against the Gerudos. That includes you just as well as Amaya."

Vivian's face seemed to soften at his words. She half-sighed, half-growled. "Fine! I do as you ask only because I had the greatest respect for your father, Serwen."

"Thank you." Dad smiled, then he turned back to Mom, putting his arm around her as they walked away together.

His eyes fell on Eli as they turned to face them. His expression tensed with both surprise and almost pain. A look he didn't seem to want to show him, because he was quick to cover it with one of those heavy and sad smiles of his.

But Eli knew why.

Because he was a necromancer, and Father knew it like Mother did, and because of all those terrible things Vivian had said about them, called them. If they had known about him, would they have been turned away just like Ceres and her family? It would have been his fault, just because he was like this.

Even when he had not yet done anything to earn the title of monster.

He recalled the last time he had seen Ceres in Castle Town. Eli had heard what her neighbor had snickered at her as he went past.

"Oh, that's the Serwen boy … Don't your children play with him? I would be more careful about that if I were you, I hear he talks to things that aren't there. Such a shame too, given his parents and his grandfather, for him to be addled in the head like that."

Normally, such problems weren't a big deal. Eli knew a boy in Castle Town who truly spoke to things not even Eli could see either. Yet, no one whispered behind his back in such a way. The community seemed to embrace and accept him.

So why just him? He seemed to inspire the worst in others without trying.

He remembered the look on Ceres' face, when she looked at him. Alarmed, guarded, almost as if he might actually bite her if he got too close. But now he wondered, could it have been more than that? Was she like him too? Mom said magic seemed to pass the most through the mother's line.

Maybe Ceres was a death adept like him.

Eli squeezed Leita's hand. "It's okay. They aren't going to fight."

But he wasn't squeezing her hand for her sake alone.

Months went by.

Ganondorf and the Gerudos had attacked on the summer solstice, during the Month of Power. Now Din's eyes cooled her flaming rays on the earth. Castle Town remained vacant and in ruins. Not even the Gerudo lingered there, or so Eli heard. There were reports of changes occurring around the castle though. The flow of refugees slowed down to a trickle. They were stretching Kakariko's limits anyway. They had to start creating make-shift shelters further into the rocky mountain surroundings. Thankfully, Eli heard that some Zoras were creating camps along the river's edge for refugees to take shelter at as well. They also brought them fish and other resources from the lake and the river, in order to help with the strain this put on their food supplies. The Gorons even came down from Death Mountain and were helping them rebuild and expand Kakariko. It was the first time Eli had seen so many Gorons in one place. The fall equinox came and went, and it was the end of the Month of Forest.

That was when Impa returned.

A crowd had formed around her almost as soon as she had entered the village it seemed. Excited shouts finally broke through the thick air of despair that seemed to have settled over everyone. Word raced like wildfire through the village, so it wasn't long before Eli and his family heard that Lady Impa had returned.

He had dropped the wood he had been carrying and hurried with Leita toward the village entrance. He didn't try to get close though. Too many people surrounded her, calling, shouting their relief and questions at her. There were so many people that Eli almost hadn't noticed him.

A boy his age with short blond hair and red eyes. His head was covered with a hood, but he looked straight at Eli, seeming to feel his gaze. His expression was blank and unreadable. He had heard that only Sheikah had red eyes or white hair, like Lady Impa. Soon the boy looked away and continued to move along with Impa who promised she would answer questions later.

"Where's the princess?" Leita whispered next to him. "I thought she ran away with Lady Impa."

"She's probably hiding somewhere," said Eli. "Impa wouldn't return with her right by her side. It would be like handing her right over to Ganondorf."

Though he wondered why she returned at all. Protecting the royal family was what elite Sheikah did. It was their mandate. Still, he supposed what remained of Hyrule needed some form of guidance. While the princess was the last remaining member of the royal family, he knew she was about as old as he was. She was not old enough to rule or guide anyone.

He didn't see Impa and the boy again until the next day. Mom approached him after dinner and said, "Come, Lady Impa wishes to see you."

Eli paused in confusion, furrowing his brow and then settling on arching one side. "I hadn't thought she would after everything that's happened."

His training really didn't seem like a priority anymore.

Mom smiled. "There is more need for Sheikah warriors than ever... and, yes, Leita, dear, you can come too."

She took them up to Impa's home, which was the only house that had not been stuffed with villagers and refugees. A Sheikah always needed their privacy, and out of respect, even during these times of necessity, Impa's home had been left vacant and waiting for her.

Dad was waiting for them at the door, and they walked in together. It was dark, but there were a few candles lit. Impa was standing, turning to see them as they entered. The blond-haired boy from before was seated at a wooden table and also turned his head to regard them. His face was blank like before, but as his red eyes shifted down, Eli recognized a heaviness much like his father's, even when he smiled.

Impa nodded upon seeing them. "Thank you for coming … Please have a seat at the table, but Eli, if you would, sit with me."

Impa walked over to an open space on the floor and sat on her knees and then gestured to the wooden floor in front of her. Eli did as he was asked and sat on his knees in front of her and waited.

"We will be forming a resistance here in Kakariko," said Impa. "Your parents have already agreed to join us, all that remains is if you and your sister do as well. Normally, such an offer would not be given to children, but you and your sister are different. Those like you, with your gifts budding so early, may be offered the same as well. Your training will start immediately. We cannot waste time to build our strength once more. What is your answer?"

He didn't answer immediately. His brow furrowed slightly as he thought more critically about this. He turned his head to regard the blond boy sitting at the table. He returned his gaze back to Impa, raising a single black brow at her. The things he had to discuss with Impa were not for some random boy to hear. Part Sheikah or not, as made obvious by the other boy's red irises. Eli was not willing to risk sharing his secret with someone he didn't know.

"You needn't worry about Sheik," said Impa, referring obviously to the blond boy. "He will be your peer in your training, should you choose to accept it."

"I don't see how that's supposed to comfort me, given my... specific gifts." Eli had already assumed Impa knew, but he could feel his mother's piercing stare in the back of his neck. Of course, while Dad and Mom must know about his death magic, they had obviously been keeping it from him on purpose. Something he still wasn't happy about in the least.

"Sheikah training involves knowing how to keep secrets—take them to the grave with you and then some if necessary," said Impa, her own thick white brow steadily arching at him in response. "Besides, he already knows of your 'specific gifts,' as you call it."

"How?" demanded Eli, folding his arms over his chest.

"It doesn't matter if he already knows," dismissed Impa. "Now I suggest you stop wasting my time."

He locked gazes with Impa, still something he wasn't accustomed to doing, but he clearly saw she would not budge on the issue. At least not now, and Eli would not let it go entirely either. Just for now.

"When you said that my gifts were suited to learning the ways of the Sheikah, did that include all my gifts? Even the necromancer ones?"

He kept his eyes locked with Impa, watching to see if there would be any hesitance in her gaze. He did not want to be lied to about this.

"Eli," gasped Tori. "What …? How …?"

"I read it in one of Mom's books. Death adepts can demonstrate their affinity for death magic early by feeling, seeing, or hearing the dead. I can do all three." He answered without taking his eyes off Impa.

He heard Mom sigh heavily.

"What …?" said Leita softly.

He felt his heart shrink, trying to retreat. He kept his eyes on Impa now only because he did not want to look at his little sister's face. Leita who loved him, admired him, looked up to him. He didn't want to see her disappointment or fear.

Impa, at least, held his gaze fast. Eli suddenly had second thoughts about keeping his eyes on hers. For once, he felt as if he wasn't the only one peering in—but that she was staring into his soul and would glimpse the tremble in his heart.

"Yes, it includes the necromancer ones," answered Impa.

He nodded. "I assume I'm not punished because I haven't exerted my will over the dead?"

Impa arched a critical brow that caused an irritated bristle inside him. "Indeed, you have not broken Sheikah law … What do you understand about being a death adept?"

"It means I have the ability to interact with the dead, be it simply that I can feel, see, and hear them or by exerting my will over dead spirits or by reanimating corpses … I just don't understand how my necromancer gifts would be suitable for Sheikah training—all I can do without breaking the law is talk to dead spirits."

Impa snorted. "You sound like a book, child."

Eli did not hear any kind of compliment in her tone. He knew Mom always said books and an intellectual understanding of magic wasn't enough, but still … Eli had only ever seemed to shock and surprise his parents. They had never sounded so condescending about any of his abilities or intelligence. He was not used to Impa's kind of response to an answer of his.

Impa seemed to notice his anger and smiled. "I told you. Come train with me if you seek the truth. These books tell you nothing of what you need to know."

"And what do I need to know?" asked Eli. He did not like being wrong.

"What it means to be a death adept and how that is exactly what makes you suitable to be a Sheikah. How else do you think we battle rogue necromancers? The forces that they channel through them do not follow the same principles of the other arts of magic. As guardians of the dead, we must understand and know these forces in order to stop those who abuse them."

Eli knew that Sheikah often knew death magic too, or at least they could counter it somehow. But no one slurred words like "corpse-humper" at them. While Impa might not see anything wrong with him for having these powers, that did not mean the rest of the village would accept him as a Sheikah worthy of protecting and using those gifts.

"If I join, and if I train with you to be a Sheikah … Can you guarantee that me and my family will not be thrown out of the village?"

Eli didn't care if everyone hated him for what he was. He just didn't want his family to suffer for it.

Impa furrowed her brow at his words, confused by them. "Why would you think this?"

Mom sighed. "Oh, I'm sorry, Impa, so much has happened I didn't get around to telling you... about Ceres."

Impa gave a sigh so heavy Eli hadn't expected it. "Ceres … They didn't let her in, did they?"

Mom shook her head solemnly.

"Who did this?" asked Impa. There was no anger in her voice. It was just a question.

"Vivian, but I've already had words with her about it."

"Yes," agreed Impa. "However, I think it's important to remind her that she does not get to say who is allowed to enter my village … In any case, Eli, do not worry yourself about something like that. True, the villagers may never understand or accept you as you are, a Hylian with death magic. Even if I accept you as one of my own, it's possible they may never do so. However, you do not need to fear for yourself or your family. You will not be thrown out. I can swear this to you."

Eli nodded. "Then I will train with you. I will join the resistance."

Impa nodded. "First, tell me why you want to."

He blinked, his brow furrowing. He had thought all he had to do was say yes. He hadn't really put it into words. He just knew that he would need to fight. He would have to fight.

"Mother says we are all one family under Farore and that we take care of each other," began Eli. He hesitated for a moment, but his gut told him not to try to hide his truth from Impa. He held her gaze. "But I don't know if I really care about anyone else's family. I want to protect mine, but I'll need to fight the Gerudos if I want my family to ever know peace again. It just happens that … everyone else would benefit from this as well."

This was his truth. What did he care about these petty, ugly people who would never accept him? They never treated him as a family under Farore. He saw no need to do this for them. He would protect what was his, the only people who had ever loved and accepted him. That was all he needed in this world.

"I see." Impa simply nodded, accepting his answer. "Very well. We will start tomorrow."