#botr20

[katedoesfics]

Breath of the Resistance | Chapter 20

A blur of white swooped down and Teba threw himself against the Windblight, knocking it to the ground and sending its prepared laser attack shooting across the sky. Link shot twice more at the blight as it lay stunned on the ground. One of the bullets hit, but it dodged the second as it stood up once more, shrieking in agony. It was slower now and growing desperate. It prepared another attack, this time firing rapidly like a machine gun at Link and Teba.

They ran across the Divine Beast once more, ducking behind one of the pillars in an attempt to avoid the attacks. The bullets stopped and the blight returned to its laser attacks, blasting the pillar away. Link and Teba ran from the debris of the blast and Teba pulled Link onto his back once more as he took to the sky. The Windblight wasted no time teleporting above them, another deadly blast locked on to them. But this time, before Teba could think to dodge the blast, Link lept off of his back and onto the Windblight, clinging to its legs.

The blight shrieked and tossed itself around in an attempt to dislodge Link, but he clung on and fired two more shots up at the phantom. The Windblight screamed as it plummeted once more to the ground, and Link held on as it crashed against the ground. It did not hesitate to prepare one last blast, but this time, Link took hold of its arm and forced it backwards, twisting it around as the blast let loose. The blast hit the Windblight square in its head, cutting its screams short as its head exploded. Mechanical debris and a strange, dark haze flew in every direction and the blight fell limp, defeated.

Link pushed himself to his feet and leaned against his knees as he fought to catch his breath. At the corner of his eye, he saw Teba land beside him and grunt at the corpse of the blight.

“That was ballsy,” Teba said with approval.

“Yeah,” Link said between breaths. “No shit.” He straightened, pocketed his gun, and turned his gaze to Teba. It was then that he had noticed the scorch mark down the side of Teba’s body. He opened his mouth to say something, but Teba cut him off.

“Don’t worry about it,” he said quickly, waving a wing at Link and turning around with a slight limp. “Let’s just get out of here.”

“You’re not gonna leave me up here, are you?”

“If you don’t hurry up, I will,” Teba warned him. “It does hurt, you know.”

Link rolled his eyes and jogged to the control panel, pulling the Sheikah Slate out of his pocket and placing it against the panel. It pulsed a cool blue light for a moment and Vah Medoh let out a life-like sigh. Its screams turned into a more melodic kind of screech and it perched upon the tall pillar above Rito Village.

Two down, two to go.

Link tucked the slate in his pocket and hurried to the edge of Vah Medoh where Teba waited. He climbed as carefully as he could onto his back and they took flight, making their way down into town.

*****

Teba, a newly appointed Champion, did not let Link leave without stocking his car up with gear. He filled the trunk with additional ammunition, for Link’s guns and for a few additional pieces that lay across his back seat, courtesy of the grateful Ritos. Along with these weapons were some knives, a box of C4, and of course a few snacks for his drive. Besides a quick bite in Goron City before he left, he couldn’t remember the last time he had eaten, and his stomach was definitely complaining about that.

He tossed some chips in his mouth as he drove south towards Gerudo Desert. Once more, he opted to avoid the main interstate as much as possible, taking the long way around in hopes of avoiding as many of the Guardians as possible. The road moved up and down over the rolling hills of the countryside, and he noticed a few shrines in the distance as he drove.

Zelda mused over the shrine. She held the Sheikah Slate in her hands, peering at it curiously before attempting to place it on what seemed to be the control panel just outside. Unlike the Divine Beasts, however, the slate did not seem to activate it in any way. She was muttering to herself as Link got out of the car. He closed the car door which caught her attention, but she only seemed aggravated with him.

“Let me guess,” she started, her hands on her hips. “My father sent you after me.”

Link opened his mouth to speak, but Zelda cut him off angrily.

“I bet he told you I was off doing some silly research project like I’m some dumb schoolgirl. If it doesn’t have anything to do with this stupid power or a damn war that hasn’t even started, he doesn’t want me doing it. But I’ll have you know that there’s more to these shrines than people realize. They’re part of the ancient Sheikah technology, too, so they must be important, and I’m going to figure it out.” She turned on her heels abruptly and collected the slate from the pedestal. “I just don’t know why the slate isn’t responding to it. I cannot get them to open no matter what I try!”

Link hesitated, unsure of what to say to comfort her. But mostly, he didn’t want her going off on some rant. “Maybe you just need-”

“What I need is for everyone to stop breathing down my neck!” She pocketed the slate and turned to Link angrily. “Stop following me! I don’t need any guards or escorts and I don’t need you. Got it?”

“I don’t think you have a choice in that matter,” Link said crossing his arms.

Zelda ignored him as she walked towards her car. She slid in the driver’s seat, closing the door hard as she did so, and turned the key in the ignition. Without hesitation, she threw the car into drive and peeled away from the shrine and back onto the road heading towards the highway.

Link slunk into his seat. While his memories of the Champions had come back to him suddenly, one by one, the ones with Zelda were more sparse, and he couldn’t quite fit the pieces together. So far, all he knew was that he was entrusted with the task as her handler to work with her to prevent Ganon from starting a war. And that she was kind of a bitch.

Still. For reasons he didn’t understand, he felt drawn to her. With any luck, more memories would come back to him and complete the mysterious puzzle that was his life.

*****

To Link’s fortune, the drive to Gerudo Desert was fairly uneventful. Except for the stray Guardian patrolling the back roads, Link had no other encounters, deadly or otherwise. Hyrule seemed lifeless. Cities and towns lay in ruins, and the ones that somehow managed to remain standing were heavily guarded, makeshift walls built around them in hopes of keeping Ganon’s forces out. No one dared leave the protection of the walls, and they were even more hesitant to let unfamiliar people in, including the remaining Hylian soldiers. Despite that, Link had managed to find a bed to sleep in for the night instead of his car, and he arrived at a small town just outside of Gerudo City early the next afternoon.

And that’s where his fortune ended as he was stopped by two Gerudo soldiers.

“What business do you have in the desert?” one of the tall, dark skinned women asked him. Her gaze was fierce.

Link flashed his badge at them. “I hear you have a pest problem,” he said.

The two Gerudo exchanged unamused glances. “If you’re referring to Vah Naboris,” the soldier continued, “pest is an understatement.”

“Are you going to let me through to get to it?”

“That depends,” the second woman said. She popped out a hip and placed her hand atop it. “Do you have a death wish?”

“Vah Naboris has been possessed by Ganon,” the first explained. “It has whipped up a sandstorm that threatens to overtake the city and won’t let anyone near it. If we are fortunate enough to penetrate the storm, it attacks us with lightning.”

“Look,” Link started. “I’ve reclaimed two of these Divine Beasts already. I’m under order to reclaim them all so we can end this war. Are you going to let me through or not?”

“We have our own orders, Link,” she snapped at him. “Riju, the leader of the Gerudo, has ordered that no one enter the desert without her approval.”

Link sighed and rolled his eyes. “Then get me approval.”

“Fine,” she said. “I suppose I cannot deny you that. But even if Riju lets you in, I can assure you that you will be unable to reach Vah Naboris. You will die before you get within one hundred yards of it.”

“Let me talk to Riju.”

The Gerudo shook her head. “You should know, Link, that voe are not allowed in the city.”

“We will let her know that you are here,” the second woman said. “If she wishes to speak with you, she will come to you. For now, you can stay in town here.”

Link narrowed his eyes at them. “Don’t keep me waiting too long,” he said. “I have a war to end.”

The two Gerudos stepped aside allowing Link to enter the small town. He found his way to the inn on the other side of town and parked in the small lot. Outside, the wind picked up, and he turned his gaze across the desert to where a sandstorm kicked up. He could hear the distant roar of Vah Naboris, hidden by the wall of sand that surrounded it.

Rather than see if he could get himself a room, he walked anxiously about the town. A few smaller memories dribbled back to him as he walked about, and he realized the town was very different from what he had remembered it to be; a place where people all over Hyrule had come to enjoy the desert heat, like a sort of vacation spot. But now, only Gerudo women and children occupied the town, and very few of them dared to even venture down the road to Gerudo City for fear of Vah Naboris.

Link wandered aimlessly around until he found himself back at the inn. He trudged back over to his car and checked his phone. It had been a couple hours since he had arrived, and he wasn’t sure how long it would take to hear from the two Gerudos, if he would hear from them at all.

“It’s about time our hero showed up.”

Link turned to the sound of the voice. At the edge of the parking lot stood a young Gerudo. Her red hair was pulled up, but draped over one shoulder, and there was a sort of crown on her head. She was much shorter than the other Gerudo, but her stance told Link she was just as fierce and full of sass. She had her hand on her hip, the other raised in the air in a pose that screamed “what gives?” to Link. Behind her stood the two Gerudo soldiers Link had spoken with earlier.

She strode across the parking lot as she spoke. “I got word from one of the Ritos that you were heading this way. Seems you’ve been pretty successful with those Divine Beasts.” She leaned against the car when she reached it and threw her chin in the direction of Vah Naboris. “Up for another challenge, then?”

“Riju, I presume,” Link said with a raised brow. “How kind of you to speak with me.” He was only slightly sarcastic in that comment.

Riju grinned up at Link. “I like you,” she said. “Urbosa was right about you.”

“Oh, yeah?”

Riju nodded. “I may not be my sister, but she was my sister. Her friends are my friends.”

Link offered her a smile, unwilling to admit to her that he had know idea who Urbosa was. Riju was spunky though, and pretty. And like all the other Gerudo, she wore very little, leaving plenty for Link’s imagination.

He cleared his throat and forced himself to keep his eyes on her. “So, Vah Naboris,” he said. “How can I get to it?”

“You can’t,” Riju said with a grin. “Not without my help, anyway.”

Link raised a brow at her. He had a feeling that she would not take kindly to Link’s chivalry; she would not allow him through unless she were with him. “So, are you going to help me?”

Riju rolled her eyes up in thought. She put a finger to her still smiling lips, then met Link’s gaze and held a hand out as she spoke. “I guess I can,” she said playfully. “Under one condition.”

“And what’s that?”

“I’m driving your car.”

Link glanced at the car, hesitant.

“Is there a problem?” Riju said, her eyes narrowed at him. She leaned forward with her hands on her hips.

Link shook his head quickly. “No. Of course not. But… it’s a fast car.”

Riju grinned. “I know. I like it. Are those the kinda toys you get to play with when you’re in the SFU?” She stepped around Link and peered into the tinted windows. “What other cool stuff you got in there?”

“Nothing for you,” he muttered.

“Is that an AR?” She pressed her nose against the window.

“You can drive, but that’s it.”

Riju turned and grinned at him. “Good, because I know my way around Vah Naboris better than anyone. You’ll want me behind the wheel if you want to get aboard in one piece.”