The Guardian Slayer (botw fanfic)

14. Akkami

Though Impa had vaguely told her what the citadel looked like, no words could describe the majesty of the grand structure. It sat on a tall cliff, and it was so big it looked like it was built into the rock itself. Several thick walls as tall as mountains rose up from the cliffs and looked over them. It seemed impenetrable from the outside. She wondered how anyone could attack the stronghold. But it worried her at the same time, because if this fort was failing, they were in big trouble.

The Akkala Region itself was very beautiful. The fields were lush and full of wildflowers and the trees sported striking orange and red foliage. It was also teeming with life; she watched wolves run along the rich underbrush and birds weave in and out of trees. Though she could also several patches of barren land and bare trees where battles had happened.

Akkami had always wanted to go to Akkala because her parents met there and it was her namesake. However, once Akkami was born, the family moved to Castle Town and started working in the Royal Ancient Tech Lab, so she spent most of her childhood working for her parents. This meant that she didn't make friends her age because she was only surrounded by adult researchers. She also didn't get to travel anywhere because they were always working, and she only learned later that they were racing against the clock of the Calamity and couldn't stop. Her entire life was affected by the Calamity Ganon and Prophecy of the Hero and it wasn't even her choice. She used to have a lot of resentment, especially towards her parents for dragging her into this life- even after they died- which she later learned to regret. She regretted hating her parents for so long, and once she realized she took them for granted, they were already gone forever. Being in the Akkala region gave her a wistful feeling. She looked around the serene landscape and wondered if she could find the old settlement where she was born. However, that would have to wait. She peered at the enormous citadel looming over her, casting a long shadow in the morning air.

They marched across the grand bridge that led to the main entrance into the citadel. Then, she suddenly heard an electronic buzzing, indicating a guardian was nearby. She pulled at her horse's reins and turned to Devan.

"A guardian is close!" She hissed, wildly looking around, trying to find where it was coming from.

He signaled for the battalion to stop and they drew their weapons. She scanned the area and saw a flash of a glowing blue just below them. A guardian stalker was attempting to climb the cliff. Akkami slid off her horse and gripped her staff. She was just about to jump down to strike, when a volley of arrows rained down from a turret of the citadel.

"Shields up!." Devan wailed, darted towards her and raised his shield above them both, but the arrows weren't aimed towards them and instead, they hit the guardian below. The guardian glowed red and shot an automatic laser. It hit the base of the bridge and she heard the stone crumble. The bridge shook from the impact. She looked up and saw a row of archers lined up on the lowest citadel wall, winding up for a second volley. She threw her hands up and yelled at them.

"I'll take care of it! DON'T SHOOT!" She shouted as loud as she could. Then, she took a deep breath and leapt off the edge of the bridge. She landed hard on her knees but stood up as quickly as possible, because the guardian had started targeting her. She whirled her staff, delivered a couple hits and jumped out of the way when the next laser fired. She noticed several arrows lodged in its body and a couple had actually hit its eye, leaving the glass bulb partially shattered, so the guardian probably wasn't working totally properly. She rolled to the side and the guardian, confused, shot another erratic laser straight up towards the sky, hitting the bridge once again. She had to get it away from the bridge. Judging from the damage already done to the guardian, she figured it probably wasn't at full health, so it would be easier to defeat, but at the same time, the arrows had somehow malfunctioned the guardian, so it's programming was way off and unpredictable. She swung her spear, cutting off a couple of its legs. It flipped over, unbalanced, but shot a weak laser just before falling over. It hit her square in the chest, instantly throwing her backward. Her ears rang with the deafening after effects, but she wasn't seriously hurt from the direct hit, as it had struck her chest plate, the most protected part of her armor. She sat up and blinked the dark spots curdling in her vision. The guardian had already righted itself and was targeting her again. She crossed her forearms and knocked them together just as the laser fired and the force field parried the blast away. Still dazed, she managed to get up and throw her staff into its eye, with so much force, it came out the other side. Then she grabbed the butt of the staff, twisted it, and slashed upwards, so the blade cut through the top half of the guardian's head. It exploded in a pile of parts and she scooped them up quickly and returned back to the group.