Mipha : The Zora Champion

Chapter Three

The sun was beginning to fall below the horizon, and a warm breeze ruffled the trees. I sat atop a golden horse, link riding his own horse beside me. We had been traveling since morning, yet I was not tired. Link and the wind kept me awake, and I had no intention of sleeping. Not at night, in the forest. It was a death wish.

We had stayed silent for most of the trip, and I had done a lot of thinking. About my father, about the divine beast, but, most of all, about Link. He never said anything, and his expression was always blank. But you could tell that he was always thinking. What he was thinking, I didn't know. But he was always lost in thought.

Suddenly, my horse stopped moving. Link's horse stopped as well, and they both stood there, exhausted.

"We should take a rest," I told Link, who nodded in reply. I climbed down from my horse, Link following close behind me. I sat down on the ground underneath a tree, and leaned against it. Link walked to a small sapling and used his sword to cut it down. He placed it in a small clearing between two trees and pulled some flint out of his pocket, lighting the fire with a spark from his sword.

I grabbed some branches off the ground and tossed them in. The fire blazed larger, and its warmth radiated onto me. Link sat down next to me, looking exhausted. He stared at the flames with the same blank expression as always, his legs in a criss-cross position. He soon dozed off, his head drooping forward.

I sat wide-awake, staring at him. I listened to his breath, slowly inhaling and exhaling, over the crackling of the fire and the soft wind. Slowly, I worked up the courage to go over to him, leaning my head against his shoulder and falling asleep.

〜

I woke to the bright sun filtering through the trees and onto the forest floor. Birds chirped in the trees, and the dew-covered grass shone like tiny crystals.

Link was already awake, feeding our horses apples. I stood up. "Good morning," I said, stretching my arms. "We should start going. It's still a long way to Hyrule castle."

Link nodded, and he put out the last of the fire as I climbed onto my horse. The golden-furred animal grunted and shoot its mane. I was still getting used to controlling the horse, but I had made some progress. Link, however was a master. His horse was perfectly bonded with him, and he knew just when to turn and stop.

Link boarded his horse and we set off, following a faint trail through the forest. Up ahead, the forest opened into a large field. The sun was bright in the distance, and the silhouette of the castle was sharply contrasted against the bright morning skies.

The horses ran for about another hour, and we arrived at Hyrule Castle Town. We slowly trotted through the town, people swerving to avoid our horses. I greeted every one of them, while Link only stared blankly ahead.

When we made it out of the town and to the castle gate, the guards saw Link and opened the gate immediately. We rode through, continuing up the path that led to Hyrule Castle. Link swerved to the left, and I followed him. We soon ended up at a stable-like structure at the base of the castle.

I hopped off my horse and tied it to the pole sticking out of the ground. Link walked over to a bucket of apples and fed a few to our horses. Then, I followed him around the castle and to the grand staircase.

I stared in awe at the giant structure ahead. I had been here once before, but I still could not get over it's massive demeanor. It was majestic and beautiful, carefully designed and built. Not only was it beautiful, but it was the very core of the whole of Hyrule. And I was walking into it.

Link and I climbed the staircase, and came to a large, metal pair of doors. Two guards in full metal armor pushed the door open, and we walked in. I was surprised to see two people standing there; King Rhoam and Princess Zelda. They must have been waiting for us.

"Greetings," King Rhoam smiled as I bowed to the royal figures. "How was your journey back?"

"Uneventful," I stood up straight. "Thankfully."

Link walked up to Zelda and she smiled. He smiled back, and my heart fell.

"That is good." The King nodded. "I applaud your courage in coming here. Many others may have declined our requests."

"I could never," I assured him. "I would love to hear more about the Divine Beasts."

"Of course," King Rhoam gestured to a door to his right. "Let us speak."

I followed the King and Zelda walked past me. She turned to me, somewhat glaring. I looked quickly down at the ground and entered the room that the king led us into.

King Rhoam sat down on a large, metal throne with red velvet cushioning. Zelda sat in a smaller but identical chair to the right of him. Link and I sat on a bench in front of them. I looked around the room. Tall, stained glass windows of soldiers and royals were on the walls, and a huge, crystal-covered chandelier hung in the middle of the ceiling.

The King went on to describe the situation. Upon Ganon's inevitable return, he planned to use the divine beast as a powerful attack. He needed four champions, one for each divine beast, to pilot the ancient weapons. He had chosen me, Mipha of the Zora, Daruk of the Gorons, Revali of the Rito, and Urbosa of the Gerudo. I listened intently to about half of the conversation, but then I noticed.

Link and Zelda stared at each other as if they hadn't seen each other in years. Love brightened Zelda's gaze, but I couldn't get a good look at Link, since he was sitting right next to me. What if he looked just like Zelda, full of love and longing? The thought made my heart ache in my chest.

It seems like a terrible thing, but at that moment, I despised Zelda.