The Legend of Zelda: The Desert Heroes

XXXVI ~Legend of Urnadia~

The ancient Champion of Vah Rudania was the Mistress of Fire, Urnadia. She was the oldest of the group, being in her late 30s and actually had close ties to the sovereign family of Lurelin Village, in other words, my ancestors.

She is not related to me but she had close ties with my ancestors. Urnadia was born to a powerful wielder of fire magic. However, he could not create entire firestorms nor could he create his own fire. He had to have fire nearby.

Urnadia had proven to be a gifted wielder of fire by the time she was fourteen. She had become part of the military that protected the ancient Zonai kingdom, which resided in the Faron region.

The Sheikah first started to notice the Mistress of Fire when she was twenty. They had confirmed her identity as a Champion when she was 27 or 28 years old. She had no children, though, and never would have children. You will find out why soon enough. As a matter of fact, none of the legends of the ancient Champions end well at all.

She became a pilot of Vah Rudania when she was 36. Having struggled with the controls a little bit, the princess of Hyrule at the time had to assist her with the process.

Soon enough, Urnadia had mastered the controls on Vah Rudania.

Urnadia was never in love with anyone, according to the legend. In fact, it is a common belief in my family that Urnadia was going to be the last of her kind. A bloodline of gifted pyrokinetics. And that was exactly how it went. She was the last gifted fire wielder to be born into the Zonai tribe.

There were a few pyrokinetic people that popped up over the years, but ever since the tribe's magic had declined about 7,000 years ago, no one else had been born with magic. We suspect that it may have something to do with the fact that we draw our power from Zonai relics. But at some point, the entire tribe created a powerful artifact called the Zonai Crystal. It did require all of the tribe's magic to create.

But that is beside the point. Urnadia was considered a celebrity in Hyrule at the time. She had been invited to numerous gatherings at Hyrule Castle and was the only one who was allowed to act casual with the king of Hyrule.

However when the rumors of Calamity Ganon really began to become possible, Urnadia began to really focus on her training and whatnot.

She became very distant from the kingdom. Some people refer to her as the Distant Champion because she seemed so distant to society. The only people who ever really saw her were the princess, the Forgotten Hero, and the other Champions.

It should be added that Urnadia was once a socialite. She was so involved with mainstream society that the Zonai often came to her for news about the kingdom outside of Faron. There is a news reporter named Traysi who runs a whole news business called Rumor Mill. Has all of the gossip and interesting news going on in the kingdom.

Urnadia was basically that before the whole Champion thing changed her.

Soon enough, Calamity Ganon awoke beneath the depths of Hyrule Castle. The Divine Beast Vah Rudania was situated atop Death Mountain, where it drew its power from the volcano.

Following the Great Calamity's defeat, Urnadia's life was sparsely and vaguely detailed. She never married, never gave birth, never even fell in love.

It was said that she spent the rest of her life in mystery. No one ever saw her again after the Calamity. People have speculated that the residents of Deya Village could be descended from Urnadia because they have a lot of references to her. They have several artworks detailing a woman of fire.

Others have speculated that she left Hyrule entirely, perhaps north to the Picori lands or even east across the sea to New Hyrule.

But no one ever truly knew what happened to her. She went out just as Ortu did. You must be aware of the pattern here. All of the Forgotten Champions disappeared without a trace. The Forgotten Hero disappeared without a trace.

Urnadia was still celebrated in the Zonai Kingdom, even when it fell many millennia ago.

But as all heroes do, they faded away. No one in Hyrule knows or has even remembered anything mentioned of the ancient Champions. The only people who can even recall something of the ancient Champions are the Sheikah, as they are the ones who chose Urnadia to be a pilot.

An old, old tapestry is passed down through the Sheikah royal family. It details the feats of the ancient Sheikah tribes as well as the fight against Calamity Ganon. It even details the Zonai Champions.

If you are curious, go to Kakariko Village north of here. It is a remote village surrounded by mountains called the Pillars of Levia.

If you are more focused on your mission, you must head out to the Gerudo Desert next to confront Divine Beast Vah Naboris. Once you have obtained the Gerudo Shard, I will tell you the legend of the Master of Lightning.

Good luck, Link.