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Link trailed dutifully behind Zelda as she led them out of Deep Akkala. Their path through the region, while beautiful, was long and even more so arduous. Doubly so when you had an irate rito reminding you of said fact every half hour. By the nth time Revali had complained about his sore feet and dulled talons, Link, too, was starting to feel the wear on his own body.
"You know you needn't sulk, Princess." Urbosa's voice was strong, loud without effort; Link couldn't help but listen in, desperate for something other than Revali's complaints to occupy his ears. "The Spring of Power is only one of many opportunities for your power to awaken. We must not lose hope before our tour has truly begun."
"I've spent my entire life dedicated to prayer," Zelda muttered bitterly, the Sheikah Slate held tight between her hands. "yet with nothing to show for it. Should the Spring of Wisdom prove fruitless… I fear my powers may never awaken."
“The Spring of Power is just that, dedicated to Power. To the Goddess Din. Neither are your realm. If one of the three Springs were to provide insight, it would be the Spring of Wisdom. Nayru may yet provide you with the knowledge she is renowned for.” Urbosa touched her hand to Zelda’s back. “Have faith.”
Zelda sighed. Her reply was soft, despondent and lost in the dulcet tones of Revali's newest tirade. Link didn't strain to hear; he knew he shouldn't have pried in the first place.
Up ahead a small merchant caravan rode toward their group, goods rattled in their crates and a pair of donkeys heaved hard with effort. A dozen or so merchant men walked in tandem, footsteps eerily silent and not a word passed between them. Even as Revali continued to complain, Link was finally able to tune him out; an uneasy feeling settled down in the pit of his stomach.
Urbosa and Link shared a glance. She shot him a shallow nod, readjusting her posture to lay a hand on the hilt of her sword. Link forced his stiff shoulders to ease; he quickened his pace to match that of Zelda's, keeping stride even as she gave him a strange look.
As the two groups drew closer to each other, the other Champions seemed to finally catch on to the situation. Mipha holding her trident at attention, Daruk eyeing the oncomers as his fists clenched tightly, even Revali grew quiet in the face of strangers.
Just when it seemed as though they'd pass the caravan without incident, a grunting snort came from the forest. Almost instinctively, Link found his shield-arm moving to block an arrow en route for Zelda; the arrowhead denting the royal insignia emblazoned on the metal.
Like a lethal rallying cry, the whistle of that lone arrow summoned monsters from the thicket to converge on their either side. Moblins and bokoblins emerging by the dozens, lizalfos crawling on and over their fellows in their single-minded bloodlust. Behind them, the merchants' mule squealed and sped away, its owners’ disguises evaporating in clouds of smoke to reveal the red of Yiga beneath. Zelda and her Champions were surrounded within seconds.
Each Champion fell into battle as naturally as all seasoned warriors are wont to do. Urbosa and Daruk charged fearlessly in the thick of the fight as Revali took wing to the sky. The Gerudo Chieftess' Scimitar of the Seven lashed out with bloodthirsty vigour as she broke gnashed teeth with thrusts of her shield. Bones and morale alike were crushed beneath the strike of Daruk’s Boulder Breaker. Revali picked off Yiga clansmen with expertise from high above the chaos, arrows held tight in his draw-hand as he shot faster than even a Duplex bow’s two arrow allowance could achieve.
Link and Mipha left their fellow Champions to handle the horde. Instead of engaging, the two fell back to stand firm on Zelda's either side, raising their weapons in determination to defend their sole non-combatant. Despite demonstrating immense skill and speed, Urbosa, Daruk and Revali were unable to block the advance of every enemy that came their way, their sheer numbers overwhelming; the Yiga being the most slippery of them all.
Two clansmen slip through the fold in a flutter of paper; a blademaster struggles past the one-man blockade that is Daruk soon after. Unlike his two smaller compatriots, the blademaster doesn’t hesitate to attack.
Mipha manages to block the swing of a blademaster. His windcleaver caught on the prongs of her trident, the two locked in a brief battle of strength before the momentum of his blade was redirected into the dirt. Quickly gaining ground, Mipha used the length of her spear to push him back.
The footsoldiers focus on Link. One advances slowly, viscous sickle in hand, as the other takes aim, two arrows expertly nocked and loosened in the same breath. One overshoots, likely intended as a decoy from the get go; it sails overhead, only to hit a moblin trying to overpower Urbosa. The other arrow misses Link narrowly, the knight dodging in the split second it takes to travel from bowstring to target, the breeze sharp in its passing as it skims Link's cheek.
And, in that instant, time slowed to a crawl.
Around him, the battlefield is held suspended in time. Mipha is caught mid-lunge, trident bound for victory; behind him Zelda holds up a loaned shield, blocking the arrow Link dodged just as they’d practised for situations just like this. Crouched just short of the archer’s aim, the footsoldier is half-way through a mad-dash, trying to use the arrow’s path to reach Princess Zelda.
He never even reaches Link.
Link's shield hits the dirt as he grips the Master Sword's hilt with two hands, lunging into that same space blade first. Blow after blow is delivered in rapid succession; the footsoldier's sickle is only just beginning to slip from a slackened hand by the time Link finishes with him, falling into a front roll with the combined momentum of his last stab and lunge.
Time speeds up just in time for Link to catch the archer’s full body flinch as Link suddenly appears before him. The hilt of Link’s blade cracks through the Yiga symbol on the clansman's mask from the force of his blow. Both assassins slumps into unconsciousness; they're soon joined by Mipha’s opponent as their individual battles draw to a synchronous close. Not long after, the ambush ends in victory for the Champions. Monsters dissolve into smoke as all remaining Yiga make a hasty retreat.
They resume their journey after a brief respite to rest and recoup. This time around Revali is silent, complaints forgone in the face of quiet contemplation.
Senses still on high alert post-ambush, Link tracks Revali's approach closely; the rito gradually slows down to fall into step with the knight. Although, it is not so much Revali's presence that takes Link off guard as it is him initiating a conversation.
"That speed… Were you always able to move so fast?" Revali eyes the Master Sword strapped to Link's back critically before clarifying. "Before you found the sword, that is." Although confused, Link nods readily. It was his seemingly supernatural agility that played a significant role in his early enlistment into Hyrule's army, after all. His superiors had been trying to emulate his particular skill for years to no avail, much to their frustration.
"I see." Without further comment, Link assumes that to be the end of their surprisingly amicable interaction. The silence lasts just long enough for Link to be caught off guard again when Revali continues, tone curt. "I'll admit, I had thought you of nobody of import nor skill. A simpleton who coasted on sheer brawn alone." Revali's eyes are to the sky, brow pinched and beak clenched tight. Heaving a sigh, Revali forcibly relaxes. "Although, and I cannot believe I’m saying this, but I may just be beginning to understand why you of all people are Hylia's chosen."
Bashfully, Link smiled softly to himself.