The Jewel of Ages

I

"I am no stranger to lengthy quests and dangerous missions, but this is tiring even for me..."
The Hero, clad in traditional Sheikah Shadow Warrior garb, muttered in disdain as he repositioned his perch in the tree he and his partner were hiding in. His partner for this mission, Cora, was another young Sheikah stealth warrior in training; shoulder-length silvery hair surrounded her fair features, piercing green eyes peering out from over her face mask.
"The number one rule of being a Shadow Warrior is patience, Link, did you learn nothing from the Grandmasters?" She scoffed quietly in return, eyes scanning the forest below.
The Hero rolled his eyes and would have let out a soft chuckle if it weren't for Cora's cupped hand shooting out beside her and covering the Hero's mouth. They made eye contact for a brief moment, before turning their gaze downward.
Below them stalked a tall, hooded figure, clad in deep blue robes and holding a gnarled staff, the gem at the end of it glowing a sickly red.
Beside him marched two armored Stalfos, their empty eye sockets peering around as if keeping guard.
Link and Cora's eyes met again, and they both nodded simultaneously in understanding. Link reached into his pack and pulled out a small yellow pouch tied shut with a thin wire that lit aflame when he struck it against the tree bark. With one swift motion, he tossed the grenade out of the tree, aiming for the ground directly in front of the hooded man. The man's head snapped up, a deep growl emanating from his throat as he whipped his staff forward, smacking at the grenade but realizing a split second too late exactly what it was, as the grenade exploded in a flash of blinding blue light on impact. The hooded man recoiled with a deep, unearthly screech as the Stalfos guards beside him melted at the light's touch; Link and Cora took that as their chance to strike, leaping down from the tree with daggers drawn, ready to make short work of the mysterious man below them.
However, he was ready this time, thrusting his staff forward and creating a barrier of crackling red energy that Link and Cora narrowly avoided making contact with.
"That magic will nullify your nervous system, don't get hit by it!" Cora called out, circling around to the opposite side of Link. He nodded, giving an affirmative grunt before charging the hooded man again, only to get blown back into a tree by a shockwave from the man's staff.
"I am the Keeper of the Jewel! You cannot best me with mere knives, disgrace of a hero!" He bellowed in his gravelly voice, unleashing another beam of crackling red magic directly at the Hero.
Link dove into a somersault, narrowly avoiding the beam and watching over his shoulder with gritted teeth as it tore a hole clean through the trunk of the tree that was behind him moments ago. The Keeper cackled, continuing to fire magic from his staff at Link, who barely escaped its energies over and over. Cora saw this as an opportunity, and bounded into a wall-jump off another tree, directly at the Keeper's back, daggers poised to bury themselves into the base of his neck. The Keeper was aware of her attempted sneak attack however, and thrust the butt of his staff backward, catching Cora squarely in the stomach and sending her reeling.
"CORA!!"
Link yelled his partner's name in worry and rage, seeing her fall, and dove forward directly at the Keeper, catching him off guard and plunging his daggers into his chest. The Keeper's hood fell back with the impact, revealing the twisted and disfigured head of what once could have been a handsome man, forever damaged by exposure to such intense magics. The Keeper staggered, losing his grip on his staff as the light went out from his eyes. "You did well, Hero...now...I can...finally...rest..." the Keeper choked out his final words before disintegrating into sand around the Hero's daggers.
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