A/N: I do not, in general, write kid stories. My adult ratings are for a reason. My stories feature: violence (often graphic), Sexuality (almost always graphic), and worse. The villains in my stories are typically very villainous. The heroes are not always heroic- even if most of the time they are. Readers should expect a blanket trigger warning on everything I write. Themes of dubious- or non-consenting sex, domination, violence, gore, and character death- including major characters- exist in many of them. I do not condone such activities in real life, but unfortunately they are real in our world, and I don't feel that I could write fiction fairly without including them.

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That's enough out of me. Enjoy!

And, one last time (because my last post for the day)- Merry Christmas, or whatever holiday you do or don't celebrate this time of year!


Ch. 16:

Friends and Hard Roads

She had intended to rest lightly, the attacks of the last weeks seemed to be trying to instill an unhealthy level of paranoia in the princess. Yet, when Zelda woke the next day, it was slowly, oddly comfortably for being exposed to the cool air of the river in morning. Wait... no... she was actually warm. And covered by fabric. The fire was hot too, crackling merrily near her, higher than it had been when she went to sleep.

She cracked one eye carefully, but couldn't see anything. The other, too, only showed treetops and another clear, cloudless day. Finally, Zelda risked opening them fully and looking around. There were, indeed, two people in her captured camp that had not been there when she went to sleep after the moon had passed the mid-way point of the sky. "M- Mina? Mils?"

The two siblings looked up from their tasks, the woman sharpening her sword, and her brother stirring something in the pot he lugged around over the rebuilt fire. "Hey," Mils murmured, turning a little red-faced and looking down, then keeping his attention on the meal he was cooking.

"You slept pretty late," Mina said with a teasing smile, "Have a late night? Old Brigo asked us about you a few times when we passed the bridge. Seemed mighty interested in your whereabouts, but we said we hadn't seen you since the first time."

Zelda chuckled a little nervously, unsure how she should be reacting. She wasn't used to, at least in this new life she lived, the affectionate eyes of others. Especially older men. Even if she was probably near a century older than he, Zelda still felt like she was in her early twenties at the latest, and more likely her late teens, like her body looked. "I... see."

Mina glanced down at her sword, then set it and her whetstone aside, then pointed, "You're slipping a bit. If you care. I'm sure Mils doesn't mind the show."

"Sh- Shut up," Mils muttered under his breath, turning even redder.

The princess glanced down to see that yes, the very edge of one of her areolae was visible. Her parka and the red shirt beneath must have shifted in the night. She adjusted it hastily, "Sorry. I didn't expect company anyway, much less you two. What're you doing here? Not that I mind, of course."

Mina shrugged after sending a quick glance to Mils, "He hurt his back, so we're heading back a day early. We got some decent loot anyway, so it's alright. And this one even killed a Bokoblin on his own, for once. I guess you can improve, little brother."

The blush deepened, and Mina's grin widened. Zelda took pity on him, though, and pronounced, "Well done, Mils. That's a respectable kill, then."

"N- Nothing like yours," he murmured, somehow turning even darker. He was getting into worrisome shades of purple now, despite (or perhaps because of) Zelda's encouragement. His sister was suddenly fighting to hold back a chortle of amusement, even covered her toothy grin to do so with one hand. "You killed two of them so fast... I had to kill mine 'cause Mina was holding off two, and couldn't help."

Zelda took in another breath to congratulate him, but this time his sister took pity as well, and leaned over to punch him lightly in the shoulder, "It is a worthy kill though, y'know. I was just your age when I got my first, and look at me know. Your biggest problem in sword-work has always been your lack of confidence. Now that you know you can do it, you should improve faster. We might even be tackling harder areas after next trip, once you've really proven yourself."

"N- Next trip?"

Zelda had to grin at the gulp the young man made, but Mina only rolled her eyes, still grinning at her teasing too, "Next. After you've really proven yourself, not the one after- eh, I guess I can see how I said that badly. Not the next trip then, the one after. If you kill two on your own, we'll know it's not a fluke. Not even at once. I still struggle to do that, unlike our savior over here."

"Speaking of saving us," Mils muttered, making an obvious effort to change the subject, "we both thought, since we had a bit of extra supplies- thanks to you as well- we'd cook you a meal before we head on. And, if you're, uh... um..."

The white-haired woman rolled her eyes, "What my idiot brother is trying to say is, if you're still headed east, we can go together if you want, at least to the Stables. We're probably heading to Hateno after that, not Kakariko, but we'll go there on the way back so we might still see you."

"Oh," Zelda gasped softly, surprised by the offer, "I didn't even consider... I actually have quite a lot of food now. I was up late because I was cooking so much. But I won't say no to not have to delve into my stores, if you truly have enough. I could even pay you- I have some Rupees of my own now."

"Nah," Mina waved her offer away with a negligent hand as she sheathed her blade and slipped the whetstone into a pocket on her belt, "It's not a big deal. We got enough for about a hundred and eighty Rupees when we get back home, so we're doing fine. Happy to cover it, and lots of the soup is coming from what you gave us anyway."
Zelda nodded, still unsure, but eventually sat up fully and removed the dress she was still using as a blanket and folded it back into her satchel, glad as ever for its expanded interior. "That's really handy," Mina muttered as she watched it go. "We could carry a lot more treasure with one of those."

Zelda nodded again, smiling as she explained, "There was a man I... knew. A long time ago. He made it for me. It makes things lighter, and shrinks them down, and it's bigger on the inside, so I can actually carry quite a lot. He said it was just a basic enchantment job, but... you see this hammer?"

Mina and Mils both looked up at the nine-inch sledgehammer on her weapon strap, "That's a full sized mining hammer, about five feet long. I can barely lift it, much less swing it. On the belt it weighs about a half-pound. I hardly even notice it."

Both siblings whistled.

"You... willing to trade it?"

"Sorry," she chuckled at the white-haired young woman's question, "Not for anything. It's... sentimental, and I kind of need it for... well, my journey."

"Eh, I had to ask," Mina said with a rueful smile, "it would help us a lot too. I understand though, I won't ask again."

Shortly after, as Zelda started picking up the rest of her sparse sleeping equipment, Mils announced the meal was done. It was a simple soup, chicken, potatoes from somewhere, corn, and a broth Zelda couldn't identify but that was savory and rich, if a little on the fatty side. Still, she appreciated the flavors very much, and the filling soup even more. "It's quite good," she said after finishing a bowl the siblings had loaned her, "I mostly have hard meals myself. Steaks, skewers, things like that. I like them, and they keep just fine in the bag, but I'd need a collection of bottles or something to carry soups. Though that's an idea."

"You could buy some in either Hateno or, if you are willing to pay extra for better quality, Kakariko. Both have a glass-blower, but the Sheikah one is better. He's our grandpa," Mils informed her.

"Oh. That's good to know. Are they travel-safe?"

Mina nodded next, "Sure are. He's right, grandpa's are safer, but I think in your magic sack they'd be alright either way. So... you heading east with us? It's already about mid-morning, we left the camp on the west side of Proxim Bridge at dawn."

Zelda groaned, "I left it... three days ago. I've been up and down the hills south of here, killed several Bokoblins and an Octorok. It's... well, I like exploring I suppose, but Brigo suggested I visit a trader in the woods. Giro. So of course I did that, and we ended up talking Alchemy for most of the day. Then back here, and... well, you know how it is."

Mina chuckled, "If you aren't in a particular hurry, you may as well stop and smell the flowers from time to time anyway, our mom always said. No harm in it, right? And that way you get to enjoy a little of life, instead of work, work, work. Speaking of... you gonna go clean the pot so we can get going, Mils?"

"It's your turn," he complained, but after a harsh glare from his sister, the younger sibling stood up, grumbling, and lifted the still steaming pot from the stand over the fire with a leather glove. Both watched him walk it a few dozen paces away and crouch at the edge of the swiftly-moving river.

As soon as she was sure he was out of earshot, Mina turned a level look at Zelda. "He likes you. Don't mistreat him. Don't lead him on. Please. He's... He's never felt that way about someone else. Just... let him down easy if he ever says anything."

Zelda, surprised, blinked several times, then nodded before she could really consider what Mina was saying. Her eyes whipped back and forth between the distant man and his sister several times too. "I... wouldn't do that, I don't think," she eventually said, just as quietly. "I mean, I barely know him, or you for that matter, but I wouldn't... lead him on. At least, not on purpose."

"So... no interest at all?"

If anything, the princess was more surprised by that question. "Wh- What? What does that- what is that supposed to mean?"

Mina only grinned teasingly in her direction next and poked the fire with one of the Bokoblins' charred sticks, stirring the coals a bit before starting to bury it in dirt to protect it for the next traveler who came through, "Nothing in particular... but your face got a little red just there. You sure you wouldn't do anything to him? I mean... if you're legitimately interested, that's one thing. Just don't trick him. Be honest."

Zelda gulped as she slapped both hands to her cheeks. They were indeed a little warm. "N- No," she protested weakly, "I wouldn't. I... I suppose he's handsome enough, in a... certain way. But I'm genuinely not... um... looking for romance. Right now."

Why she tacked that last part on, the princess didn't know, but she felt it needed to be said.

Mina just shrugged, "A shame in a way, but until he can provide I wouldn't expect him to settle down anyway. He's getting better, but I still earn about three quarters of what we take home every trip. At half I'll see if he wants to cut loose from his annoying big sister and start a family or something."

Zelda did not miss the calculating way the woman looked in her direction, but still could not think of a proper response. Instead, she blurted, "What about you? Are you looking?"

It was, apparently, either the wrong thing to say, or the very right one, for Mina almost fell backward in surprise, her own face taking on a dusky hue as she blushed beneath the tan. "M- Me? I... W- Well... I don't, um... I'm not looking r-r-right now either."

"Oh... a shame, because if you were," she pressed, "I'm sure a handsome man like Brigo would snap you right up... or a beautiful woman, if you prefer."

Again, Zelda didn't know why she had said that. Maybe she was projecting her own strange fantasy from the grotto the day before onto the woman, but something about Mina's demeanor had called it out. She was still surprised when the woman didn't protest, but instead turned a shade darker. "I... Uh... well, would you look at the time. We need go get going if we're going to make the Stables before sundown. Mils, you about done?"

Zelda had to force herself to hold back the cackle. Teasing Mina was very fun indeed. Suddenly she could see the appeal in how the woman treated her brother.

"Almost!" he called, "Give me another minute! Can you at least pack the stand and fill the water bottles?"

"Sure," Mina replied just as loudly, using her stick to slide the metal stand away from the fire and carry it by the ring over to the river to cool it. Zelda watched them break their temporary camp quickly, already done herself, and waited until they came back while she thought about what she would do.

She did need to actually make her way to Kakariko at some point in the near future to develop a plan, but the princess was also sure she needed to visit that tower. Her father had been quite insistent on explaining their importance more than once. It would need to be activated sooner or later, and she was right there, just a couple of hours away. Less, if fording the river was easier than it looked. Either way, it could save her a half-day or more of direct travel if it had a Travel Gate like the shrines and Plateau Tower had, if she ever needed to come back this way. Using them was a stomach-churning experience, but it was better to have a few minutes of queasiness than waste time, when she was in such a hurry overall.

Which was odd, considering how much time it felt like she'd wasted exploring. Even if, intellectually, she knew it was worth it simply because of how much stronger she was, more experienced, and better equipped. Roughing it and fighting frequently did have benefits, and every time she had to struggle for her life, Zelda felt like she performed just a bit better. Her foes were growing stronger too, and she had to be ready to at least match them.

"Ready to go?" Mina asked as the pair returned, back to bantering as Zelda suspected they did often.

She nodded and stood up, then said, "I... won't be going with you long, though. I have to go to that tower."

Both brother and sister gawped as she pointed toward the tall, orange-glowing structure. "Wh- What? Those things just popped out of the ground a couple weeks or so ago, and now you have to go there? Whatever for?"

Zelda grimaced at Mils' question. She was terrified of their judgment, yes, and oddly so for both of them. She also knew she could not trust everyone. But she had to trust someone, and the pair had helped her as much as she had helped them. More, actually, in Zelda's eyes, though she knew they felt the opposite. "They... came out of the ground because of me. You know how the one on the Plateau is blue?"

Both nodded, eyes wide.

Zelda tapped her Slate, "This is... the real reason I'm here. It... It has to do with the Calamity." Even telling them something, she wasn't sure how much she dared say, so was trying to keep it vague.

To her surprise, Mina suddenly stood up straight, "Mils, go. Leave."

"Wh- What?" he sputtered.

"Go. Up. The. Road," she repeated, emphasizing each word, "Now. I'll join you in a minute. Don't go too far, just... give us some privacy."

"Tch... fine..." He was still grumbling, and cast a disconsolate look back to the two women a short ways off, "Bye, I guess, Zelda."

Nervous, Zelda watched Mina warily as she, in turn, watched her brother walk away with a hard set to her jaw. Once she judged him safely out of earshot, she looked back at Zelda. "You're her. The princess. I wasn't lying, Zelda's a really common name... but that hair, the scar... that slate. You're that Zelda. The one that went missing right after the Calamity struck. Aren't you?"

Zelda gulped, idly fingering the haft of her spear, then nodded. "Yes. I am."

Mina stared for several seconds, as if trying to judge her honesty, the nodded firmly herself. "Alright. I'll tell Mils to back off. Don't worry, your secret's safe with me. There's a few in Kakariko who might figure it out, but I doubt most others would. I can't believe I remembered Grandma's stories... I can't believe you're alive."

"The ancient Sheikah work miracles even in this day and age," Zelda eventually said softly, "the Shrines and Towers are just part of it."

"So... it's to do with stopping the Calamity, then? Grandma said that's what you disappeared fighting."

"Yes," Zelda told her quietly, "I... don't know if I can. But I have to try."

"Well... you have my support," Mina replied after a few more seconds, "I'm sure you'll have Mils', too, even if he never finds out who you really are. Shit, I can't believe this... he'll be so embarrassed he has a crush on a real princess, heh..."

"Oh, please don't tell him, then," Zelda urged, "I... I feel bad enough as it is. And... don't worry about telling him to back off, either. If... if it becomes necessary, I'll do that. Just, maybe... tell him to keep looking, too? I don't know... I don't want to get his hopes up, but it isn't like there are many- or any- nobles left for me to..."

Both girls giggled, sharing a look of understanding. "I gotcha," Mina said, and reached out a hand to clap Zelda's arm in a way very similar to the punch she'd given her brother's. She stopped at the last moment, "S- Sorry. I... it's hard to process. A real princess. The princess. Wow."

"Please don't treat me differently," Zelda whispered finally, "I'm the princess of a fallen kingdom. Right now, aside from my actual bloodline, I'm literally just like everyone else. And the value of my bloodline is questionable, given the task before me."

Mina nodded solemnly, and considered Zelda's words carefully before saying, "Alright then, I'll do my best to keep treating you just as I have. F- Friends, then?"

Zelda felt herself beaming, and offered a hand to shake, "Friends, for certain. I could use one."

As she clasped it, shaking once, Mina giggled, "Friends with a princess... too bad I can't tell anyone yet."

"Perhaps ever," Zelda reminded her teasingly.

"Eh. Details. Come on, we should get going. If Mils asks, we can just say it's girl talk. We did talk about boys, after all..."

Laughing, the two continued on their way, walking toward the distant shape of Mils. They were almost there when Zelda put a hesitant hand on Mina's upper arm, and whispered, not breaking stride, "I should mention... your secret is safe with me, too. I don't care who you love, or... what gender. It honestly doesn't bother me, so... if you need someone to talk to as well..."

"I might, at that, sooner or later," Mina hissed to keep her voice down, "but it might be awkward, too, since I'd be talking to a woman about liking women..."

"Yes... I can see how that would be the case," the golden-haired one admitted, "Still, if you need it."

"Understood. Alright, Mils, let's get going. Zelda, you can probably cross the river just up there... see the rocks?"

She nodded, glad for the topic shift, "Yes, I actually spotted them the other day, from up on that hill. The water's flowing rapidly though..."

"It's doable if you are careful," Mils told her, and now Zelda could plainly see him looking over her body when he thought she wouldn't notice. At least he was trying to be subtle about it, and...

She found she didn't mind, anyway. At least, as long as it was just looking.

How scandalous you are, she mocked herself, but this time even that was a bit teasing.

Before the siblings and her paths split, Zelda helped them dispatch a trio of Chu that oozed from the cracks within the stones near the river before they had even returned to the road. Amazed at her skill, Mina had been distracted while again, Mils had been the one to dispatch one of the Chu on his own. She spent five minutes congratulating him, while his blush at the praise he was clearly not used to receiving mounted higher.

She was about to head out on reaching the rocks when Mina's hand hit her shoulder, "Wait. Sorry... look, there."

Zelda followed the pointed hand to a stand of trees behind a jumble of stone on the northern bank. "Bokoblins. There's another ford a little way further, best take that one."

Without speaking, Zelda nodded, and allowed the two to guide her away. Even if she intended to go back after visiting the tower, backtrack or no. She wouldn't put Mina and Mils in more danger by attacking the camp, but she also didn't want to leave the danger for other travelers.

"There's the ford," Mina pointed out a while later, about half of a mile further east. "The water's a little calmer, but the rocks are lower to the water and wet. Be careful, but since it's not as deep here, if you fall in just angle for the nearer shore. You can probably swim alright, yeah?"

Zelda nodded. She wasn't a strong swimmer by any means, but she could get around. She just still tired so easily. Anything more strenuous than a brisk walk wore her out after far too short a time. "Yes. I'll be careful, too. Until I see you both again."

Mina grinned and gave a mock bow in her direction, "Of course. It was awesome meeting you."

"Y- Yeah," Mils added lamely, rubbing the back of his head as he looked away.

It seemed like all three of them wanted to say something else, but in the end there was only silence as first Mina, then Mils, gave a little wave and turned back to the east.

Zelda waited until they were about five hundreds yards off, pretending to look at the rocks and plan a path. In truth, she already knew what route she would take: Wherever the yellow daisy, invisible to the siblings and sprouting from bare rock itself, guided her. I just hope these Korok Seeds are worth all this extra work.

She still had to fight the powerful current until her arms, back, and legs all ached with exertion since some of the gaps between stones were quite long and the current, even here, was fast and powerful. Still, drenched from head to toe (she had been unwilling to undress brazenly with Mils so close still), Zelda shivered as she climbed out and took the last few steps toward the now-white daisy expectantly. At least my trousers are treated so the leather won't shrink as it dries.

The stones, rough and huge, that had been pushed out of the earth as the tower rose provided a much easier climb to the first set of runged walls, about half-way up the exposed portion of the tower. Looking through the gaps, she could see that even so the tower extended far into the earth, beyond where even the light of the tower itself shrunk into invisibility. Still, she only had to climb up a few of the platforms that surrounded the tower, and it was barely harder than a ladder. With a quick break half-way up the remaining climb to catch her breath and shake loose a cramp in one shoulder caused by the switch from swimming to rock climbing and then easier but longer Tower-climbing, she made it to the top in about another ten minutes. Her clothes were even still dripping, though her armpits and groin were starting to chafe uncomfortably.

She watched, amazed, as like the Plateau Tower had, the Dueling Peaks Tower accepted the Sheikah Slate, and the colors changing. First, the Travel Gate (Yes, she crowed internally) activated, then the stone monolith above the pedestal did the same thing visually as before, dropping a bit of liquid light onto the Slate, which was apparently highly compressed geographical data on the Dueling Peaks region.

Before she could examine it closely though, a new application opened up, activated by the tower. "A... Sheikah Sensor? What's that?"

For once, the Slate responded to her voice commands, and words began appearing on the screen as they had in the Shrine of Resurrection. Sheikah Sensor functionality allows the local sensors embedded within the Sheikah Slate to interface with geographical data set to a Sheikah Tower. In short, this allowed the Slate to alert the user [Notation: Zelda Amaryll Hyrule] when a Shrine is in close proximity [Notation: Approximately one mile by post-Calamity reckoning]. It will then vibrate periodically and, when facing the Shrine correctly, give an audible sound to alert the user. These settings can be adjusted in the appropriate menu.

"I... see. Thank you," Zelda murmured, marveling again at the capability the ancient Sheikah must have had.

You are welcome, Princess, the screen typed quickly. Adjutant entering sleep mode.

"O- Oh. Adjutant...? I know that word... assistant? Something like that. And sleep mode... is that why you didn't respond before?"

She should have known better than to expect a response now, she supposed.

Protected from view by her high vantage point and the walls of the Tower itself, Zelda used the opportunity to remove her outer layers of clothing once more, and draped them over a tripod made of several of her longer weapons. It was a bit chilly up on the tower without them and moist, clammy skin, but the sun was out and warming her already.

As well, knowing she would hardly be noticed and no detail would be discernable if she was, Zelda also crept to the edge of the structure and looked down. She had to suppress a shiver as the thought of what would come of her if she fell, but steeled her nerves and looked down, scanning the place she knew the Bokoblin camp would be.

There were rather a lot of them, she decided. Even the last camp she had slaughtered with their own explosives had little or nothing on this one. If anything, she decided, it was several camps, all large, stacked on top of each other. The furthest group from her now was the one she spotted first, close to the river with Mina. There were several standing watch around the flow in the cover of trees and stone, no doubt keeping an eye out for unwary travelers. With the help of the Slate's scope, she could see that most of those were armed with at least crude bows, but one had a hunters' bow, like her own. Another cluster was grouped around or within one of the skull-rocks, and a third, maybe a fourth as well, was strung out along a high ridge in a picket line that ended in a camp with another watchtower.

That was the closest, directly north of her, but Zelda was unsure if she wanted to attack so many. She spent several minutes as her clothes continued to dry in sun and wind thinking about it, and even eventually fell asleep for a short while.

When she woke, her decision was made. Yes, she would attack... and try to take the groups in small amounts, or individually if she could. Starting with the nearest, she would pick off as many as possible at a distance, then sneak in close. At least, she would use either the cover of the skull-rock, the height from its peak, or hide inside it if she could empty it safely, to take on the group of archers further away. She was reasonably sure the plan would work, mostly because the princess felt she could out-shoot even a squad of Bokoblins for accuracy at range. They might be physically stronger than her, but their bows were weak compared to most or all of hers, now. The stronger draw would increase power and range to befit her better accuracy.

At least, that was her plan. I'm sure it'll go awry soon though.

The wind was at her back as Zelda leaped from the Tower with the paraglider out, and it carried her swiftly and easily out, far beyond where she truly needed to be. It was not hard, now that she was a bit more experienced with the device, to angle back and correct her course. It was slower moving into the wind, yes, but she was still able to land just a few yards away from the Bokoblin on the watchtower while he was facing away and scratching his head.

She stowed the glider quickly, but as quietly as possible, while she moved forward in a crouch to stay out of sight of other Bokoblins down ridge. It would be all too easy, she knew, for any of them looking this way to spot her. And if the one on the tower turned and sounded the horn she had spotted hanging from its loincloth before she was ready, she would have quite the fight on her hands.

The princess froze with one hand hovering over one of the lower rungs of the ladder as the Bokoblin suddenly whirled around. Slowly looking up, she could see half of its bow, ready in one hand though she couldn't see an arrow, and the tip of the pig-like snout sniffing in the air. Had it caught her scent...?

No. After a few moments, she saw the other paw make a swipe in the air at some small insect she couldn't see. It grumbled, apparently having missed, and turned back around. It must not expect an attack from this side at all, with the climb those rocks would require. I can't say it's that unwise, but better to be watchful anyway... as I'm about to prove.

Zelda set her feet on the rungs next, then drew her well-used but comfortably-fitting spear. It was a bit awkward holding it while she climbed with her feet, one hand, and her wrist wrapped around the outside of the ladder, but if it creaked at all she couldn't feel or hear it over the constant, low wind the day had brought. Her luck changed as she slipped up onto the upper platform, as the Bokoblin caught movement out of the corner of its eye. It jerked toward her, then stared for several seconds, wide-eyed and slack-jawed.

Maybe her luck hadn't changed that much after all.

Zelda's spear caught it in the throat first, stabbing straight in as the creature recoiled with surprise. The wound was shallow, but blood still spurted, and she could hear the whistling hiss of air passing through the hole as it tried to cry out in alarm. She was moving too fast for it to adjust, though. What must have been long, long hours of training with the weapon to defend herself under a skilled teacher were still embedded within her muscle memory, and as she got more used to handling the weapon, it got easier to use at what felt like a prodigious rate.

Her second thrust went up, underneath its ribs, but was again too shallow to have struck more than a light blow to heart or lungs, or perhaps liver. Blood, thick and stinking of iron, gushed out as the tooth of her spear-head ripped flesh on the withdraw. Already, the Bokoblin was flailing backward, about to tumble from the tower, but she knew it wasn't dead yet. Even as the bow fell from shocked, numb fingers, the spear whirled in her hands, and the spiked, feathered butt end cracked against the Bokoblin's temple with a sharp sound.

Falling already, its momentum made it tumble back and to the right as a step carried it off the tower. The beast flailed as it fell, and she heard another sickening crunch as it hit the ground head-first. Somehow, she didn't think it had survived even that long after the damage she'd managed to do to it.

One of the Bokoblins at the camp below, the thickest part of the long string along the ridge, looked up, straight at her. From here, though, Zelda realized the sun was actually behind her, so she quickly pushed her head forward to imitate their hunched posture, and turned to the side. Perhaps, if she were lucky, her silhouette would be enough...

There was no cry of alarm.

Eventually, the princess exhaled in relief and risked a glance down. The three Bokoblins there were playing, if she had to guess, some sort of game involving stacking stones in particular orders. Sometimes, one would flip one over, which made the other two growl.

"I don't have time to learn Bokoblin games," Zelda muttered to herself after a few seconds of watching, then moved to climb down the tower. The dead one's arrows and teeth she kept, but the bow was worthless to her. Maybe if she had an extra slot for one she might still take it, but as her weapon straps were overloaded already, she didn't want to bother.

The largest problem with the camp was that while there were three Bokoblins, two of them were the stronger blue variety. She had not yet ever faced such a challenge, and wasn't sure she could manage it now. Three of them with one blue was difficult in a straight fight, since the blues were so much faster and stronger, and not a small amount smarter, than the more common variety.

But she had to try.

Zelda tossed two bombs, a round one into a small divot a little way up the ridge, and a square one just a short distance from the tower, then opened fire. It took two arrows to down the red, her first just a little low on the torso, but she sank a third into the thigh of one of the blues before they realized where she was and ran for their weapons, the rock game abandoned.

To her dismay, one picked up a huge branch as a club, the other a long two-handed sword. Fortunately for her, it was the wounded one with the sword, and it ran considerably slower than its fellow. She tried again as the club wielder ran closer but missed, this time sticking one of their stolen crates.

As it passed the round bomb, she blasted it, sending the creature flying through the air, arms and legs flailing uselessly. It landed on its stomach, dazed, a short way down the hill. While it was airborne, Zelda used the chance to re-conjure another round bomb, and threw it where she hoped the sword-wielder would be in the next few seconds.

It proved smart enough to see it coming, though, and juked to the right. The bomb kept rolling down the ridge, zigzagging back and forth as it followed the lowest path, bouncing and bobbing along. By then, the monster was nearly on her, so Zelda hurriedly tapped the square detonation button. In a thunderous crack and wall of blue light, the blue Bokoblin was thrown back a good twenty feet, crashing into the same box her arrow had struck. Somehow, it retained its grip on the blade, and it used that to lever itself up.

It coughed blood, and one eye was pulped, but the thing still came at her again in a fury. The princess still had a few moments, though, so she glanced down at the other, still further one with the club. It had gotten to its feet and was turning her direction... as the round bomb rolled between its legs. It exploded in gore a moment later, the club broken into a half-dozen large chunks as well.

Her attention moved back to the last of this camp's occupants as the heavy sword crashed into the leg of the watch post nearest to the Bokoblin. The tower shook, and with a snarl, the Bokoblin swung again. This time, the whole thing canted dangerously downward.

Zelda knew they were strong, but those were thick legs of wood, and the Bokoblin had somehow chopped through it in just two swings!

She couldn't let it bring her down though. Discarding her bow for now, Zelda picked up her spear once more. Angled down, she jumped, trying to twist in the air to face the other direction. Her goal was to clear the monster entirely and land at its back.

She didn't quite make it, but both boots hit the monster at the same instant the spear did. Her left foot came down on its forehead, the horn stabbing into the sole painfully. The right hit its shoulder, while the spear, awkwardly aimed at the last moment, stabbed it through the top of its mouth. The Bokoblin crumpled, and Zelda fell backward with it. She had further to go, though, and ended up on her back, tumbling down the hill in reverse.

Roughly, adding more bruises on each knob and rock she struck, of course.

After several chaotic seconds, the adventurous princess was able to grab a clump of grass and haul herself to a stop. She was back on her feet a moment later, eyes steely as she looked up the hill, spear still clutched in her other hand with a bloody grip.

The Bokoblin was quite hurt, staggering, but it looked just as furious as Zelda felt as it raised the sword in a twisted mockery of a salute, then charged straight down the hill.

Zelda wanted to brace her spear, but there was neither time nor a flat enough surface to do so. Instead, she waited until the last moment, then threw herself to the side as the Bokoblin swung downward. It soared past where she had been, the blade sparking on the stone, and howled as it stayed airborne thanks to the steep drop Zelda had narrowly avoided.

As she fought to keep her footing on the scrabble slope, she heard another sickening, loud crunch and the clatter of metal on stone. Nothing else, though.

Zelda waited... only silence and the rush of the constant breeze.

Finally, she let her head fall back against the steep hillside while she caught her breath. That had been... harrowing. But she had done it, taken down two blue Bokoblins with smarts and brawn both.

Once she felt her nerves calm enough that she could move safely again, Zelda braved climbing down, agonizingly slowly, to recover the things blade. Even with the abuse it had suffered, it was still in better shape than her spear. The butt end had come off completely, and the point was chipped, having lost the last half inch.

With a sigh, she set the longer weapon against the stone, stomped on it to break the haft, then again, before tossing all three down the slope toward the distant lake below. After adding the worn claymore to her collection in its stead, despite preferring the lighter weapons when she could, Zelda began the laborious climb back up to the camp.

Before moving on, she searched through their belongings, adding what she didn't want to the fire they kept going. More apples, bananas, cumquats, and pears, a half-quiver of eleven arrows, plus the eight she'd gotten from the watch-Bokoblin, and she was ready to go, with the fire now considerably larger than it had been before.

She would deny even the reborn ones food, if they kept coming back. Let them starve.

As the afternoon wore on, the princess killed five more Bokoblins, one at a time, as she moved lower down the ridge. Each one was an easy kill but the last, since they were either asleep as she came upon them, or warming some sort of food over the creepy Bokoblin-skull braziers they used as watch-lights, or staring down the hill in case an enemy came their way.

These ones truly are stupid, the princess thought to herself as the fifth, the only one that had even noticed her before it died, disappeared without a head.

Half of the total number of Bokoblins she had counted down, Zelda now had a clear shot to the skull-rock, but she didn't enter it when she reached it. Instead, the princess moved around to the left, picking off watch-tower Bokoblins with her cheap Boko bow, one bomb at her feet as she went to toss just in case some came charging at her. None noticed her before it was too late, and her aim was impeccable, so before long another four were dead, and she was, all told, sixteen arrows richer, rather than poorer.

She even had time, now that she knew the coast was clear outside of the skull, to loot a few more crates and roll one of their explosive barrels just out of sight of the door. Doing so had lured the attention of two blood-sucking Keese, but Zelda was able to shoo those away with a waving hand while she retreated, then shoot both from the air once she was safely away from the skull-camp.
Then she rolled a carefully-aimed blue bomb down the hill and waited until it was near enough the larger barrel...

Boom-Boom-Kabooom!

Zelda almost giggled at the triple explosions, each louder than the last. There wasn't even time for the nine or ten Bokoblins she had heard in the skull to scream. Billows of black smoke came pouring from the eyes and nose, and a lesser stream from the mouth entrance, but no Bokoblins came pouring out, or even Keese.

Yet they weren't all dead, either. Zelda had given it about ten minutes for the smoke to clear to a trickle, but there was still a blue Bokoblin in the rock when she peeked around the corner. And it was holding a bow in her direction, though it was charred and even smoking. The arrow was actually still on fire, though the thing didn't seem to mind the flames licking at its fingers.

Green eyes widened. The arrow suddenly got very large, very fast, in Zelda's vision.

Then she realized her fingers were hot.

Bleeding, too.

Somehow, she had reached up to catch it between two fingers. Two of them had been cut by the arrowhead, but the firey bolt had stopped less than two inches from her face.

The Bokoblin seemed as shocked as she was.

Both stared at each other, as the arrow tumbled to the ground.

The Bokoblin reached for its back and drew another, this one not smoldering, and knocked it as Zelda stormed forward, heavy blade at her waist and ready for a quick swing. At least, as quick as she could manage.

Luck truly was on her side this time, for the Bokoblin's bow shattered under the strength of its pull, no doubt weakened by the explosions and fire. One end smacked it in the face, the other flew wide and narrowly missed Zelda herself. She was already on it, though. The sword cut through one arm's bracer and bit deep, driving the Bokoblin back into the wall. It bounced and pushed forward, teeth and tusks covered in spittle as it launched itself toward her in turn.

Zelda didn't have time to swing the heavy weapon again, but it was in a good position to thrust backward with the heavy pommel, which smashed into the Bokoblin's snout. It yelped, one hand covering the nostrils as it started to bleed, and a kick from the princess sent the monster reeling into the wall again.

This time, she was able to recover faster by far, and thrust the sword into its chest. It snarled, spitting blood in her direction, but with the long blade pinning it to the wall, the splatter only touched her toes. Zelda watched it carefully, making sure she looked the blue-skinned monster in the eyes as it died, then vanished into smoke.

She gave the skull-shaped chamber a quick once-over before relaxing, but there were no other signs of life. In fact, the other piles of Bokoblins were already gone, teeth, horns, and a few squirming examples of that same purple bladder that pulsed and writhed even after death all that remained aside from burned, or burning, weapons.

There was quite a lot of loot, though. After spending a few minutes roughly bandaging her fingers, the princess started searching through the many crates, barrels, and even chests the large camp had procured, no doubt at the cost of several lives and even more injuries.

Sixty Rupees, a chunk of amber, an opal, a finely-made soldier's arming longbow, a selection of fresh and salted fish including Staminoka bass, and the thick-scaled Armored carp, and best yet in her opinion, a spear to replace the traveler's claymore: one of the type used by soldiers. Brigo had one just like it, in fact, with a spike at the top for catching weapons, and a bladed rather than leaf tip, suitable for slicing and thrusting both. Testing the weight and heft, Zelda found it more than suitable, and added it to her collection eagerly before dragging the claymore out to the river and tossing it in as far as she could to keep it out of Bokoblin hands.

There was even a Korok that had been hiding since the Bokoblins moved in, who granted her a seed simply for clearing them out.

Self-assigned task done, Zelda used the Travel Gate at the tower and oriented herself east before gliding down once more. She would have to ford the river again to take the easier road, but given her recent success, the princess wanted to try clearing out the monsters Brigo had reported on the northern bank. If nothing else, they might have better weapons and gear, and it would make the road safer for a while.

On her way into the canyon, Zelda spent half an hour carefully arranging a series of bombs on a fragile, glistening cliff-face, and then another two hours digging through the rough, dusty rubble her explosions had caused. She didn't come out nearly as well as she had hoped judging by the shine and shimmer, but a few handfuls of rock salt, and a couple of small pieces of amber weren't nothing, at least. That didn't stop her from being a little disappointed as she continued her trek east.

By then the sun was going down, and Zelda was further put out by a chill breeze that had cropped up, blowing directly into her face. Once she was properly inside the gorge itself, she found it even worse. Channeled, no doubt, by the canyon walls itself the wind that would have been forced to go around the mountain instead funneled through it far faster than it might have moved otherwise. But even that was only part of her problem. As the wind came, it brought with it clouds, dark and gray, scudding across the sky.
Far to the east, if Zelda could have recalled it, she would know that the oceans brought with the moisture. That moisture, when it hit the mountains, gathered and formed storm clouds, in addition to the storms that blew in from off the coast. It was far worse to the south, but even so storms were far from uncommon throughout Hyrule as a result.

It was still making her miserable, as the rain, colder than any she had experienced since waking, lashed down against her face, driven by the wind. The parka she wore was already soaked, but it was the best protection she had against the elements, so even though Zelda shivered, she kept it on as she trudged forward. She was only about a mile into the gorge when she spotted her first enemy.
Two, actually. In that moment, Zelda remembered, if she had not seen them before, what Lizalfos looked like.

Fortunately, the two creatures, essentially giant, vaguely humanoid lizards with crested heads and tails, were otherwise occupied.

One, slightly larger, was on all fours with its long, green-scaled tail high in the air. Behind it was another, sinewy, thin arm wrapped around the other's tail, as it drove forward and back with its hips on well-toned but thin, many-jointed legs.

Mating, Zelda realized as she froze, then took a few steps back before seeking what scant shelter she could in the lee of one of the cliff face's many bulges and curves. It barely did anything for the rain and wind, but it at least would, she hoped, hide her from view for a bit.

That left the princess with a bit of a dilemma, though. Part of her was disgusted by the idea of monsters mating. That part was only exacerbated by the idea of Bokoblins wanting to rape her in the last couple of weeks since waking.
Another part knew that, while they might be servants of the Calamity, Lizalfos were actually native creatures, and had been living in Hyrule since before her people had ever settled it in ages past. They had a right to exist... at least, some, she told herself. The pair were clearly armed as well, as both of the scaled beasts wore leather belts and baldrics with sharpened implements on them resembling sharply-curved knives, and a leather-wrapped handle.

The sounds of the creatures... activity (Zelda could not help her blush at the simple thought of it) was loud enough she thought she might creep by in the rain, which could also conceal her from sight. They would be facing her directly if she passed, however, and she didn't want to count on just that. The river, too, was swollen and loud with the extra water, hissing as it ran quickly over rocks in a channel too narrow for it by half, and pattered by rain besides.

She could use their distraction to attack them, but a part of her knew that Brigo was right. A normal Lizalfos was dangerous, two were moreso. They were, she suspected, not only stronger than an orange Bokoblin (which was still physically stronger than her), faster than a blue one, and smarter than either as well. And, unlike most of the Bokoblins she had seen, these were clearly using weapons they had not simply scavenged, but ones they had crafted or fashioned themselves.

In other words, they were an unknown quantity, and one the princess was not looking to test herself against, distraction or no.

Should she go back? No, that would take another few hours, and she was eager to get out of the rain as soon as possible. She had already been shivering for half an hour, drenched to the bone. While it was still a long way to the Stable, and she would likely be walking far into the night, the possibility of getting out of the wind and rain and a warm meal with an actual bed was too great a temptation to delay.

Which meant she had to go forward. Only... stealth, guile, or a sneaky but direct attack...?

Eventually, Zelda decided on a compromise. She would move forward close to the river, low, hopefully out of sight until she was well past the Lizalfos. But as she went, her hands would stay on her second Pilum spear. She would need the reach and speed to counter them if they spotted her. That decided, and with a check of her shield-pull and that one of her broadswords was clear in the sheath as well, the princess slowly left her hiding spot and moved back, out of sight, toward the lowest banks, just at the river's swiftly-moving edge.

She was half-way past when the question of her plan was made moot.

A hiss, then a second, lower one, yanked her fraught nerves to the left.

The larger Lizalfos' beady, protruding eyes were fixed very clearly on her. The smaller, its strange, reptilian penis, long and fatter and the tip, covered with strange nodules and barbs of the same soft, pale-white flesh as the rest of it, was dripping some thick, greenish fluid as it glared at her for interrupting.

"Sorry," Zelda squeaked, "I'll, um, l- leave you be...?"

She needn't have bothered. Though the princess was sure they both understood her quite well, the female was suddenly dashing forward through the rocky beach and grass toward her on all fours, skittering very much like a true lizard, weaving back and forth in a blur. The smaller, meanwhile, unhooked the curved blade from its belt, and threw it. Directly... far to her right?

She didn't have time to ponder why it had done that as she whipped her spear out and forward. Just in the nick of time, too. Zelda thought its zig-zagging advance might have been done to confuse prey, and that it probably worked more often than not. Yet through sheer luck, as she brought her spear to bear it cut across the angry female's lower jaw, splitting the scales at the front. That had the secondary effect of throwing it off-balance, and its left forelimb slipped, skidding in the wet gravel until it was half-submerged in the river a few feet past Zelda.

She lunged for it, a pair of quick thrusts stabbing down at an angle into the base of the thick tail, and a more shallow one ripping up scales and causing thick, human-red blood to well as her blade skittered along the ribs of its torso.

The princess reared back to thrust again, harder and with an underhanded push downward as the female hissed and recoiled, pulling even its tail into a curve. She had the thing dead to rights, and the bulging, angry eye facing her suddenly filled with fear.

That was when the curved blade, whistling as it passed through the air, slashed across the front of Zelda's parka, opening a wide gash in it, her shirt beneath, and her shoulder as it whipped and whirled.

She flinched back in sudden pain, her strike forgotten as one hand moved to cover the wound.

It was deep, and would no doubt bleed profusely in the rain, but as she backpedaled- ironically in the direction she had been heading anyway- Zelda forced herself to think and work through it.

She had felt pain before. Much of it, and recently. This was bad... but nothing she hadn't had already. The cut was long, just above the swell of her breast and about two inches below her collarbone, but it wasn't lethal. Unless the blade was poisoned, her mind supplied unnecessarily. Just as quickly, though, it sent back to itself, Unlikely. Water would wash off most poisons, and it was sitting there in the open. Infection is more likely, but even then it was probably mostly clean.

Zelda scowled at her own mind, and growled at herself, "Not helping," while she readied the spear again.

Somehow, the male Lizalfos had recovered its thrown weapon, though Zelda knew it had clattered to the rocks after hitting her. It had moved, she now knew, like a... what was the word...? A boomerang, yes. Spinning through the air, as long as momentum held it would stay aloft if thrown properly. The metal was thin, jagged, she could see now, and angled fairly precisely. Sharp, too, she knew from experience.

But that thin metal was also a weakness. Light enough to work properly, it would have to be fragile. A heavy weapon like her claymore would probably fold it in half if he tried to block. The spear wouldn't do it, but if she could make it hit the walls of the mountain a few times, that would dull it significantly, too.

But the female was also still fighting fit, and as it threw itself upright and opened wide, alligator-like jaws to hiss and spit at her, Zelda watched in growing worry as it drew a blade, too. With a side-ways, bulging-eye glance at each other, the two Lizalfos started stalking forward, the male working around to her right.

Zelda risked a quick glance the moment she realized they were herding her.

Toward the river.

The fast, very cold river in which they, while reptilian and most likely cold-blooded, would thrive. Far more than she, at any rate. Lizalfos, she remembered from somewhere, were exceptional swimmers, rivaled only by... the... something. Something she couldn't remember, a niggling thought at the edge of her brain. Someone important to her, a... a friend. A rival, too, but one she cared for, was a... whatever that was.

Zelda frowned, distracted only for a moment by the strange thoughts of people and things she had once known, before she forced herself to focus. When the two charged, it was together, and blindingly fast.

Acting on instinct alone, for Zelda felt herself flinch at the ferocity of it, the sheer brutality of the hunter's skill the lizard-folk displayed, the woman ducked low, nearly to a full split with one leg, while lunging forward and under with the other. Both blades whistled and whined as the strange shape cut the air awkwardly, passing directly through the space her face and neck would have been in quick succession.

Strike, a voice said in her mind. An echo of long past, from another person important to her. Perhaps the same one? Or more than one?

When fighting with a spear, many find its use as a defensive weapon excellent, yes. But they- and you- would do well to remember it is a weapon. Beautiful and graceful they may be, but they are meant to kill. And the surest way to keep yourself from being killed is to kill those who would harm you. So when given the opportunity, you must strike.

Strike fast, strike hard. Relentlessly as any waterfall, and with the force of a thousand crashing waves. Do not stop until your foe is unable to fight back. Kill if you must. That is the way of the spear. Always strike.

Defend if you must, the strangely soft voice continued, but turn that defense into an attack. Move around, like water, fluid and always in motion. Past and around your enemy's own attack, under and beyond their guard, to strike at where they are most vulnerable. But always, always, always remember to...

Strike.

Zelda leaned back, her conscious mind returning beyond the haze of memory and time in the middle of a desperate fight. Somehow, she had stayed moving, dodging one attack here, parrying a second there a moment later, and just now leaping bodily over the swinging whip of a long, muscled tail that had come around to trip her up with blinding speed.

In fact...

She was still airborne as the message finally sunk in.

With nary a thought, the princess pushed, and straight between her bent, raised knees the spear went down, driving into the tail about half-way down the length.

The male Lizalfos spat in pain, its long, frog-like tongue lashing and lolling as its eyes rolled around, wild and shocked.

Her feet touched the ground, and the butt end of her javelin-like spear whirled up to knock aside the arm of the female as it came in for a slash at her relatively unprotected back. That momentum turned into a thrust as she spun, this time ducking low once more and coming up underneath its long, wiry arms to drive the weapon with both hands straight into the softest part of the larger Lizalfos' jaw.

There was a lot of resistance still, as the thick, pyramid-shaped head pierced several layers of muscle, bone, brain matter, and bone again to drive about three inches past the frill at the back of the creature's head.

When her return thrust yielded only a broken haft, Zelda scowled, mid-motion, and turned, wielding the butt like a club or long mace.

It smacked aside the male's suddenly even more furious arm, which scrabbled for her with long, black nails that were wickedly curved and painfully sharp as they grazed the inside of her right forearm, throwing it into the river too.

With a roar of anger, the princess threw the rest of the haft at it as the monster recovered and whipped around to blur through the current toward her.

Rain-drenched, Zelda's numb fingers fumbled for a moment on the haft of her broadsword, but by the time it was in one hand, she was more easily able to pull the release for her shield. It fell into place just in time too, catching the downward slash with its boomerang-like blade a moment before she would have been forced to parry with her far more costly sword.

As it was, the thing's weight drove her backward, and Zelda took two stumbling, faltering steps as the sodden gravel shifted beneath her. The Lizalfos drove the air from her lungs, and the second impact pushed the blade through the slats of her thin wooden shield, but it bent and snapped audibly as the beast yanked it back.

She flinched and winced again and again as the enraged lizard-thing started punching her shield, driving it down into her body and once sending the steel rim into her forehead so that she saw stars. After several agonizing, bruising blows, the creature started to flag, and Zelda seized that moment to send a knee up between its legs.

In a strangely human-like way, its already protruding eyes bulged in pain and it whimpered, before the organs refocused on her. The jaws opened wide, snapping down. Somehow, Zelda angled her shield and the wide blow caught both sides of it. Her arm was trapped, but as she drove up and outward, three teeth snapped off, wedging the shield further. Again, the Lizalfos howled in pain, both hands, one bloodied and the other with a few scales missing from the knuckles, came up to yank the shield from its mouth.

Distracted, Zelda used the moment to thrust her broadsword up into the same soft, unprotected spot she'd hit on the female.

This time, the shorter blade scraped along the wood in its distended jaws as it passed, but the Lizalfos still shuddered and started twitching as the first sprays of strangely hot blood sprayed over her front.

It collapsed over her a moment later, and Zelda, bruised and panting, let it lay there for a moment as her breathing calmed. At least now the battered, broken shield was covering her face from the rain.

Eventually, though, the cold and ache in her bones had her pulling and scrabbling almost ineffectually at the dirt and rocks until she was out from beneath the creature. There was blood on her boot, too, and a glance told the princess, with some disgust, that she had ruptured one of its organs. It had two, for some reason, she noted strangely, the other lower than the first, which was still half-erect despite the battle and the creature's now very dead state.

She shuddered, glad at least that the cold water would prevent the blood from staining her parka and trousers. At least, staining them badly. She shuddered again... or maybe that was a shiver? Either way, Zelda told herself once more that it was time to move, move, move.

Move, before you think about it. Move, before you dwell. Dwell on what was, and could not be again. Dwell on what was lost.

No... definitely better to move. Put the feelings aside for now. Unhealthy or not, put them aside until you can deal with them safely. For now, act. Move.

Zelda took a single deep, shuddering breath, then turned away from the Lizalfos. Her shield was useless, bent at the rim and broken half-through in three places anyway. Even one of the straps had snapped, which was how she'd pulled her arm free with it wedged in the thing's jaws. The sword was still fresh enough, but losing a spear and a shield in the same battle was frustrating.

At least you have your life, the princess reminded herself as she checked around for valuables. There wasn't much. This must not have been their camp, she soon decided, for there was no fire, no signs of food or anything except the remains of the Lizalfos as they slowly dissolved, and the blade the female had carried. They were vanishing far slower than a Bokoblin, perhaps due to being partially alive, but little wisps of black smoke and darker magic still curled from them as she searched. By the time she had given up, all that was left of the bodies were two long, spiked horns from their foreheads, a lot like a Moblin's, only thinner and sharper, and one of the curved, wicked talons from the female.

With a sigh, Zelda picked up those and the blade, testing its weight by swinging it through the air.

It wasn't much longer than a short-sword, and with less reach because of the curve, which was awkwardly downward. If she swung normally, it would be a stabbing wound. If she backhanded it, the reach would be even less. But it was, like the one that had struck her, wickely sharp, and even testing its edge made her bleed due to a burr on the blade.

With an annoyed sigh, Zelda did her best to pull down the shoulder of her parka and shirt, bandage the bleeding wound there, spit out a bit of blood from her teeth, and rub at the line of a bruise across her forehead for a moment to make sure it wasn't bleeding too. Then she picked up the weapon in one hand, carrying it because she had no proper sheath that would hold it. Finally, she replaced the easy-pull strap of her shield with one of the Bokoblin's bone-reinforced ones she carried, and moved on into the downpour.

She was even more sore, tired, achy, and cold two or so hours later when the temperature started dropping again. A look backward told the princess that the sun was already down. Night was coming on fast. She couldn't quite see either the front or back of the canyon properly due to the rain, but the glow on the distant, blurry horizon was at least enough to tell her that. Glumly, expecting a truly miserable night, she continued on.

Eventually, as the darkness grew deep, all light hidden by cloud and rain aside from the frequent lightning that stroked across the sky, sending strange shadows down into the depths of the gorge, Zelda saw a small pocket of relatively dry land. Angling for it immediately, the young woman, shivering, found it far less than adequate, but the best shelter she had seen since leaving the Bokoblin-infested skull behind.

While rain-water still ran down the cliff face, it was a dozen or so feet beneath a huge overhang, so very little water was falling directly on the thin strip. As well, a rockslide from some time in the past provided at least a little protection from the wind.

With a whimper at the discomfort and cold both, Zelda sat herself down, squirming to find the best possible spot, and settled in for what might well be the worst night she had ever had. Torture-filled dreams, either herself as the subject or being forced to watch nameless, faceless others that were dear to her all the same under the cruel, hateful devices of another giant, masked figure. Hot pokers, rods, screws beneath thumbs, nails driven through skin and in, skin itself removed inch by aching inch, only to be magically healed and for the process to repeat, over and over, played through what fitful bits of sleep the princess got.

Needless to say, when she woke up shortly after dawn, she was in a grumpy mood.

Muttering darkly to herself, Zelda rubbed sleep-deprived, no doubt darkly-shadowed eyes, and pushed herself to her feet. Mid-way up, the glint of metal inside the rock-slide itself caught her attention.

A moment's investigation, even in a sleep-addled mind, was enough to identify a skeletal hand clutching onto a weapon. Another bow, in decent condition though a bit waterlogged. It was the work of about ten minutes to dig the thing out, and Zelda felt herself whispering a soft prayer to the goddess Hylia, hoping for the protection of...

Well, whoever that had been.

Through it all, the wanderer felt herself growing increasingly angry at the entire situation. That, unfortunately, was nothing new. Still, with a new weapon in hand, the princess forced herself to eat a breakfast of cold apples (which, for all their flavor, were becoming like dust on her palate after so many), and moving on further into the storm.

There was, at least, a small break in the rain if not the wind about twenty minutes before she spotted the group of Bokoblins Brigo had warned her about days before. As she carefully crept closer, wishing the rain had maintained itself for another hour or so (miserable as she still was even now) for the cover it would have provided, Zelda wondered if perhaps the Bokoblins weren't engaged in some sort of celebration.

Half the camp was, as far as she could tell, completely unattended. It was even the side closer to her, which just did not fit her luck lately as far as the princess had observed. The other half, beyond a massive log some six feet or more high and perhaps fifteen long lay on its side, partially sunken in to the earth and half-rotten. Water from the river lapped inside its hollowed out lower end, and the wind carried the sounds of laughter and snorting toward her even as it garbled the noise.

It was that log that protected her from the Bokoblin's view as she came closer, one hand on her Lizalfos blade, the other on the release for her shield. She was crouched low too, just in case, because the wooden bulwark did the same thing in the other direction. She heard several beastly voices cackling and joking with each other crudely, but she had no way to tell exactly how many there were. Brigo had only mentioned a large camp.

That meant the fire on this side of the area, completely unprotected and unattended, had gone out despite having a slab of meat on a spit over it, which was now cold and dripping water still. Weapons lay strewn about too. A javelin, which Zelda eagerly took to replace her crude curved knife, a pair of torches, and some fire-hardened, sharpened sticks like the simple spears the Bokoblins on the Plateau had used leaned against the log itself, or were jammed into the gravel shore, or simply lay amid the grass.

For a few moments, while standing in the empty half, Zelda debated how it would be best to slay the creatures on the other side. She was already committed to that task, this road seemed too important to just let them be, much like the large camp where she had been too late to save that poor, nameless woman who had been in love with Brigo. Zelda took a moment to stuff the blade beneath the coals of the fire and cover it again. Hopefully, they would not notice and it would remain there, slowly warping out of shape until it was useless.

Soon, too soon in some ways and not soon enough in others, Zelda dared peek her head around the log. What she saw was not encouraging.
Five red Bokoblins, and one blue, were torturing another, one with a metallic hoop half-way up its left ear. Bubmin? Why are they torturing one of their own...?

The one Bokoblin she had met that was smart enough to surrender had, she already knew, warned the last small camp of her presence in the area. He must have tried to warn these ones, too, as he fled from her wrath.

For that, the blue Bokoblin was directing its five lesser brethren to pummel the last, Bubmin, viciously with fists, kicks, and claws. They didn't let up, and for a moment Zelda allowed herself to feel pity as they laughed with each shriek of pain the bound-up, defenseless creature gave.

I have to do something. This is... too much. I can't even be mad he tried to warn them, he was just trying to keep his people alive, wasn't he?

Casting about a bit longer, Zelda spied a sealed chest on their usual short watchtower, and a couple of barrels with explosives, placed strategically around the other half of the camp. That fire was smoldering, very smoky, but still lit. Did she dare ignite them?
It wouldn't, she suspected, be enough to finish off the stronger blue, but it would weaken the cruel thing, and might take out most or even all of the lesser ones. But it would probably be enough to kill Bubmin, too.

The princess let herself wrestle with the dilemma for a few seconds, before the same words from her mysterious teachers floated through her mind. When in doubt, Act. When you are faced with a problem, Strike. Remove the enemy's ability to fight back, and remove the enemy completely.

Zelda swallowed past the sudden lump in her throat. The meaning in this case was clear.

She was in a war, and sometimes war required sacrifice. It helped that Bubmin was still, when all was said and done, still a Bokoblin, and therefore a possible threat. She just didn't know if she could trust what he had said about not liking violence. And the other Bokoblins, well... they all needed to die.

None of them spotted the blue bomb rolling into the camp until it was too late.

With a resounding crash, Zelda threw her bone-reinforced shield over her head to protect against the falling debris of stones, crates, barrels, weapons, and Bokoblin parts, all of it aflame.

When the cacophony and patter of explosive detritus halted past the ringing in Zelda's ears, she found the blue Bokoblin, one hand holding a two-foot long shard of wood stuck through its abdomen with a bleeding hole on both sides, still standing. "What you do?!" it roared at Bubmin, "You say blue fire lady coming, then boom-boom go boom! What you do? Is Bubmin lie? Is Bubmin blue fire lady?!"

Its short sword raised high as it ran for the prisoner, who was still, miraculously, squirming against its bonds wildly. One leg had come loose, but its hands were still bound beneath it so it could neither fight back, defend itself, or pull the other leg free from the spike that dug deep into the earth.
"No," Zelda cried out, her weapon and shield clattering to hang from their respective straps and swing against her legs. Her trusty hunter's bow rose, an arrow in place before the Bokoblin had even identified her location. She stepped from around the log purposefully, standing tall now, sighting down the arrow at its bulbous, furious face. "No, he was being honest. I am coming. For all of you."

Somehow, its wild swing through the air knocked her arrow aside, but the follow-up caught it in the cheek. The blue Bokoblin whirled in a full circle, hissing in pain, and staggered backward.

A second caught it in the left pectoral, and it staggered back again.

A third, the same shoulder, and it lunged forward in response.

Only to slip on the rocks as it had already been driven into the edge of the river. As it fell to the ground, Zelda dashed forward, closing the distance by half. It was fast, though, faster than she had expected, even for a blue. It was on its feet, sword still held high though it now dripped mud and water alike. Another spitting snarl was the only response it gave her before it charged, the blade in its right arm held back carefully for either a swing or thrust.

It bit deep into her shield, cracking through the bone on the outside, but the barrier held. Zelda's arm ached and throbbed with the force of the blow, which sent her staggering to the right two steps too. But she was still moving, her leg bringing up a knee as soon as she recovered. It was a good thing too, for the Blue had, despite battering her shield with it, parried her own swing with its sword a moment later. Sparks flew as the metal screeched, but only for a moment as her powerful kick blasted into the blue Bokoblin's gonads.

It whimpered in slow motion, feet a good two feet off the ground, before crumpling, toppling to the ground. Slowly, somehow, probably the adrenaline, Zelda brought her leg down gracefully to stand on both feet again as the beast dissipated into smoke.

For Bubmin the Bokoblin, the strange blue-fire lady who made such noise seemed like an avenging angel, here to destroy his people.

He could only stare, wide-eyed, as Zelda smoothly sheathed her weapon and hoisted the shield to her back again, then went to retrieve her discarded bow. Only when that was all done did she cross over to him and take one knee next to his cowering, whimpering form. "You're... Bubmin, right?"

With a sniffle, the orange-skinned creature nodded, "No hurt, no hurt..."

"I'm not going to hurt you," she promised it, shocking herself with how gentle her voice was. "You have kept your promise. I can tell. That's why they were torturing- beating you- wasn't it?"

Bubmin sniffled again, "Yes... Bubmin try to warn, say to not fight, not kill. They hit Bubmin many time..."

"You have done well," she decided, "I am going to set you free. Remember your promise to me."

She had already pulled the pin free and cut it loose, then cut his wrists free before the creature seemed to realize she was serious. Still, Zelda took a few steps back, the spike rope pieces in her hands, but ready to defend herself at a moments notice. "Go, Bubmin. Go, find your matron, and- and fuck and eat meat."

"Blue-flame lady... amazing," Bubmin whimpered, his glowing, vicious orange eyes strangely blue now as he stared at her. "Bubmin.. go."

Then he ran, as quickly as he could, for the east. This time, she watched as he scooped up a flaming club, dragged it through the water to douse the flames without slowing, and kept running until he was out of sight around a small bend in the gorge.

"I truly hope that wasn't a mistake... again," Zelda whispered to herself, before setting about looting the Bokoblin's own loot.

Weapons aside, it wasn't that great a haul. Several monster parts, some of which had burned up because she had lingered with Bubmin, and still-burning pieces of wood and bone shields and weapons. Most of it, she left as it was. Only the spear and sword were worth taking, and she gladly did so with the javelin, but the sword was more than she could carry without dropping her sole torch, which the princess was unwilling to do.
Unwilling to leave it in the hands of any Bokoblins, Lizalfos, or worse that might come through or return with the Blood Moon, Zelda threw that into the deepest part of the river she could find, and tossed the wood onto the fire. Even as the rain returned with a drizzle, she knew it would still be enough to destroy those before the flame went out.

Finally, Zelda opened the chest. Inside was a weapon of sorts, one she did not expect.

Wooden, angled like the Lizalfos' blade only as long as her arm and thicker, made of wood reinforced with a few ribs of metal. A boomerang, her male mentor's voice sounded in her head, not a weapon you see often. They come from the deep south, far beyond Hyrule's borders. Thrown, they can return if their momentum isn't disturbed by hitting your target. A decent club otherwise. More of an exotic than truly practical weapon.

Zelda frowned. It was pretty, in its own way, she thought... but she also thought her mentor's advice, remembered from some possibly-imagined past, was an accurate assessment. It was hardwood, rattan perhaps, and sturdier than any Bokoblin club, but that still would not last longer than the steel blades or spears she now carried. With a sigh, Zelda added it to the fire, too.

I need to be able to carry more. Even if it slows me down a little. These are trade goods I'm tossing away, or a method for people to defend themselves from monsters. If I can trade or give them to those who need them, it would be far better than just taking them from the Bokoblins and burning them.

Unfortunately, as she set on her journey once more, Zelda saw no way to bring that about. It wasn't like she could simply return to the Great Plateau and ask her father's ghost for another enchanted satchel. For all she knew, it had taken him the entire century she had slept to make the thing. And beyond that...

He was gone. All sense of his presence had vanished from the place along with him as he faded into ghostly flames. All that was left was a far-distant echo. No... she could not ask him.

Yet, there must be a way, the scientist in her mused, as much for a way to distract herself from the swiftly returning rain, as fierce as it had been before, than to solve the problem.

About half an hour later, the howling wind changed to a lower, deep moan and the rain moved from directly into her face to more overhead as she finally broke free from the canyon walls. In the distance, she could see two rivers every time lightning flashed, and a wide, sturdy, but uneven bridge of logs and planks spanning the wider one she walked next to. "Finally," she muttered, lifting her eyes now to look for the light of flames, candles, lanterns... anything to tell her where they way-stable might be. Brigo had mentioned a giant horse-head, but it was still quite dark, and Zelda didn't think much of her chances of spotting something like that.

She was surprised when the bright, even brilliant, orange light she spotted through the rain was not a stable at all, but another shrine.