A/N: Sorry this took me so long. I've been sick with double bronchitis. Lemme tell ya it hasn't been fun, I'm finally feeling better, so I'm happy about that. There's only so much coughing you can take!
Later on when it was dusk Link was sitting against the back like Dorephan was. If some miracle was going to happen he hoped that it would happen soon. Waiting was killing him, not in the literal sense but he'd rather be back at the Domain with Mipha. "Pst! Hey?" He heard a female voice behind him. But all that was behind him was the canal and some trees, so he looked over seeing Dorephan was resting. He got up and turned seeing a white head bobbing in the water.
He almost had to take a double take but it wasn't Reith she had blue eyes no horns or markings, or flowing fins, just a regular Zora. And her scales were silver white not pearly white. "Who are you?" Link asked. She looked up at the guards who were still unaware of her existence, not that it mattered but she'd rather talk to them undisturbed.
"My name is Unara." She said giving him a kind smile. "Is it true? You've met my daughter? Larona?" she asked looking so hopeful yet a sad glint remained there. Link nodded looking to king Dorephan.
"King Dorephan knows more, I only just came to meet her after she resurrected his daughter Mipha from the dead." He said and Unara turned to King Dorephan.
"You do mean your fiancé right?..." Dorephan said opening an eye and looking sharply at Link.
"Yes of course sire…" he said looking away blushing trying not to let anyone see it. Unara smiled as she snuck up to king Dorephans cell.
"I'm so sorry your majesty, Nelmephes doesn't know the royal family of the main land. You shouldn't be in here..." she said in apology.
"No apologies needed I understand. From what Reith er Larona has told me I'm sure he and you have gone through a lot when you lost her during whatever happened."
"Wait who is this Reith?" Unara asked tilting her head confused.
"Reith and Larona are one in the same. She lost her memories when she was a guppy during whatever happened. And she was adopted by some kind Hylians who renamed her Reith when she could not recall her own name." Dorephan explained.
"That's why we couldn't find her… Nelmephes gave up hope a long time ago but I never did. Can you tell me about her?" she leaned on the bars listening intently.
"She's a very sweet young Zora and she looks very much like you." King Dorephan said with a smile. Unara teared up a little, smiling back. It made her heart swell with joy that she took more after her.
"Lady Unara we came here because Reith asked us to! If you can't convince her father to help us with her crazy witch sister we're going to have problems…" Link interrupted. "We have no idea what her plans are! The Zora Domain could be in grave danger if he does not help us!"
"Levelah!?" Unara asked in disbelief. "But how?" she pushed herself away from the bars and looked at Link with wide eyes.
"They forced Reith into it." Link explained. "I'm not sure on the details but when we got there she was in pretty bad shape."
"Oh my baby girl… And who are they?" Unara asked but she dreaded the answer.
"Voltar and the Eels…" Unara visibly shook at the name. She remembered him clearly and what he did. She unconsciously touched her stomach where he had stabbed her.
"Come now it's too dark to travel back to the mainland now but let's find you better accommodations. We can talk there." She came around to the front where the guards were. "Open the doors, the Prisoners are under my charge now."
"But my lady?" the first argued.
"Its fine Dekitu. Please." The large muscular grey and white native nodded slowly and let the two of them out with some reluctance. "Don't worry I'll take the backlash if he gets upset. And have Chenoa and Mika bring some food. I'm sure our guests could use a good hearty meal." Link and King Dorephan couldn't agree more as they walked out to join her. The guards nodded since they no longer were needed to guard the cells.
"You are too kind my lady Unara." King Dorephan said with a smile as they walked together down a path lit by torches. "I see where Reith gets it from." That made Unara smile.
"Please, you came all this way at my daughters request I would not have you treated as prisoners." Unara said visibly happy to know her child was alive.
"Well the situation isn't as great as it sounds. When I left them they had been captured by Levelah…" Link stated. "She begged me to go. Or else I would have tried to stay and fight, but Levelah also put a spell on Sidon my friend, the prince."
"Oh no the young prince? Your highness I'm sorry." Unara said sympathetically. "I know how her magic devastates… Turning Zora against Zora… Turning harmless creatures into beasts." She showed them into their water side place that was huge. Dorephan didn't even have to duck through the doorway. "She wasn't always like that if you can believe it. Nelmephes had a mate before, she was the leader of the Eel clan. But as she grew older she grew terribly ill and after so many times of Nelmephes bringing her back she just didn't want to go through it anymore. She was ready to die, and Levelah didn't take it well. She was determined to find a cure. But when she couldn't find one through regular means she became desperate and dabbled in the dark magics. And soon it consumed her and she abandoned her goal for a cure for power… She just justifies her actions out of jealousy and anger of abandonment."
"So the girls got some issues amplified by dark magic…" Link said. Unara nodded.
"Basically. And the goddess perceived her as a threat and Nelmephes was forced to take action against her. But before that she attacked the ocean clans nursery to kill Larona and myself." She frowned sadly. "I'm glad Larona got away with only minor injuries. Even if she doesn't remember me, she was safe."
"What about you? You got away alright didn't you?" Link asked and she looked down and shook her head.
"No I'm afraid not, I didn't make it… The only reason I stand before you now is because of Nelmephes." She said offering them a seat at a well crafted table. "After he healed my body and replaced my soul within me, he whisked me away to this island and he hunted down Levelah and the two of them fought. Nelmephes plan was to take her to the shrine of resurrection to purge the dark magic from her body. But when he was going to someone stole her body and he was never able to locate her. And he never really got over losing so many loved ones." As they were talking a couple of females brought in a feast of food and drink for them, to which they dug in gratefully.
"If you need us my lady we'll be outside…" Chenoa said eying Link suspiciously.
"Really there is no need." Unara said putting her hands up. Link recognized the voice. This Chenoa must have been the female from their welcome committee. She certainly took after Nelmephes in the trust department. "Please forgive her she's just protective. And this is the first time she's ever seen a Hylian."
"Ditto for them." Link retorted.
"They are very interesting what are they called?" King Dorephan asked.
"They are called the Phethea. Nelmephes has watched over them since the great flood. That was long long ago."
"That was long ago... that was at the dawn of Zora history, when our species really started to unite." King Dorephan murmured thinking aloud.
"Mama we're home!" The two young Zora came running in on after the other stopping when they saw who was seated at their table.
"It's alright Aja, Eja, this is King Dorephan from the Zora Domain on the main land and this is Link he is a Hylian from the main land also. I know you've never seen a Hylian before but this one is good. He recently saved Hyrule from an evil being.
"So you're a protector of Hyrule?" Link nodded.
"Yeah one of them." Link said.
"There was more than one?" Aja asked.
"There were five champions. To fight against Calamity Ganon… plus Princess Zelda…"
"What happened?" the two asked looking at the two of them intently.
"I don't think you're big enough yet for such a story." King Dorephan said as the two gave disappointed faces with awwws.
"That's right you two don't need nightmares, now come on and get cleaned up you're filthy. Wrestling in the dirt with the cubs again." They both giggled and grinned.
"But it was fun!" Eja announced.
"But I came out on top!" Aja said proudly.
"Only because you tripped me…"Eja said glaring with a pout.
"I didn't trip you… you tripped over my foot like a klutz because you weren't watching where you were going! I'm not a psychic I don't know which way you're going to go."
"Enough with the name calling… you are brothers, you will fight over such petty things but in the end you're family. You never know what tomorrow might bring… and that might be the last thing you ever say to each other…" Unara said as she got up and hugged the both of them. "Now apologize."
"I'm sorry Eja..." Aja said looking guilty.
"Me too…" Eja replied looking just as guilty. Link and Dorephan looked at one another. They really needed to reunite this family.
"Unara!?" she turned to see her rather annoyed mate standing in the doorway tapping his claws on the doorframe. "Do you mind explaining this to me?"
"Of course darling." She said with a smile as she drank her tea. This only seemed to infuriate her mate further. "Boys go on and wash up please, and take your time." The two awed again.
"We never get to stay for the good parts…" they pouted as she kissed their foreheads and they ran off to wash up in the lagoon. Unara cleared her throat when the boys were gone.
"Since you were too angry to see that this is King Dorephan from the mainland Zora Domain, and taking him prisoner could potentially start a war…" Ah! Now Dorephan saw where she was going with this. It wasn't to anger the sea king it was to was to get him to see logic. "And I'm sure Princess Zelda would not appreciate her last champion being taken prisoner either." His features softened a bit as he blinked at her.
"You mean to tell me that this tiny Hylian is the one with the sword that seals the darkness?" Nelmephes asked then shook his head. "Why should I believe any of this!?"
"Sweetie I am originally from the ocean clan I do know who all the royals are. And everyone knows who the Champions are, well besides you. But that's not your fault." Unara explained gently. Nelmephes walked in and pulled up an oversized chair and sat.
"When my son first met Larona she went by Reith, and still does as far as I know. But a few days after their first meeting she went to see Vah Ruta while our meeting ran late..."
"Why does that matter?" the oversized Zora asked
"Just be quiet sweetie and let the king talk please?" Unara asked. He huffed and sat in his chair mumbling something about being immortal meant nothing these days.
"Anyway during the lecture everyone stopped seeing a bright light coming from Vah Ruta." Sidon my son went to investigate. He found Reith unconscious along with my daughter Mipha….who died in battle aboard Ruta 100 years ago….
"So no one else was there to witness this?
"No not directly, the closest guard was on the dam. Which was 100 yards off."
"Interesting…" Nelmephes said.
"You know what I find interesting that father a doesn't seem to care much about his own daughters well being." Nelmephes jumped across the table and snarled grabbing his shirt. Link didn't even bat an eye. "I can't even have children with Mipha and here we present you with your lost ones and you throw them away like garbage…"
"You assume that I am a heartless beast? Do you boy? I collect the facts before I go rushing off into something that involves Hyrule…." Dorephan put his hands up to try to calm the situation. He eyed the device on Links hip and smiled.
"Link apologizes for that, right Link? Link gave him a look and Unara urged Nelmephes to calm. "We do have a uh… Link can show you. He motioned to his hip and Link blinked.
"The sheikah slate?" He looked down at it grabbing it off his hip. "I suppose, Mipha loves taking these true-to-life-images. There should be some solid proof you want in here.
"A sheikah slate? Where did you find that, they were all buried long ago." Nelmephes asked.
"The king had them excavated over hundred years ago. They've been studying it ever since. But I know how to do a few things on this. He pulled up the pictures.
"May I?" Nelmephes asked and Link glared but Unara nodded that it was okay. He gently took the device and pressed something pulling the handle up revealing a lense the picture popped up in front of them like it was happening again but it was a large transparent image. All three looked in awe, Link especially since he'd no clue it could do that. Zelda would go nuts when she leaned about this trick. Nelmephes swiped at the image and it changed to the next one of him and Mipha.
"It's a holo-image, it projects your images like this." He said gesturing to the hologram. He swiped again looking for this said evidence when he found one of the newer ones that had a pearly white female with black horns draped on a red Zora Male smiling happily. The symbol on her head told him everything he needed to know.
"Larona," Unara breathed as silent tears escaped her eyes she's stood up as if to touch the holo-image. It was a heartwarming sight.
"And what about Levelah? What are we suppose to do about her? Or do you need proof for that too, see I would have gotten a image but I was too busy keeping Sidon from tearing me up after she bewitched him..." Link added. Dorephan nudged him giving him a sharp look as the couple looked though the images. They hadn't seen their daughter in a hundred years and seeing her now fully grown. It was more than either of them could have hoped for.
"She looks just like you Unara there's no doubt where she gets her beauty from." Unara blushed and pushed him lightly.
"Oh stop it…" she grinned hiding her face a bit. "She has your eyes, your horns, and markings though. She looks the same mostly from when she was small."
"Fine its settled then we'll leave in the morning…" Nelmephes announced with a determined look in his eyes.
"What are we going to do about the Eel Clan? Levelah is the decedent of their leader, they're going to follow her regardless of what she does. I know that having to deal with Levelah the first time was hard. But she turned to dark magic, and she changed and the goddess…." Nelmephes sighed stopping Unara midsentence.
"I know I remember…" he said as he hung his head and Unara stood up on her tip toes to touch his nape gently. He looked at her sorrowfully. "I will not see you come to harm twice. I could not bear to if you were to die again… so you'll stay here." Unara looked upset by this. "I know the Phethea are capable but I would rather you stay behind and watch over our sons. Nelmephes looked at Dorephan and Link , his gaze serious. "The plan with Levelah is the same… I have to kill her, once that is done I will place her in the shrine of resurrection as I planned to do before. Once it's sealed it cannot be opened and she'll awaken in 100 years free of that dark magics grasp."
"It sounds so simple when you say it..."Link said. "But doing it is going to be a whole other ordeal." He sighed, he could already tell that Nelmephes was going to be hard to work with.
"I'm not saying it will be simple, boy! But that's all we have to go on right now! Or do you have something better to add?" Link looked away and shrugged.
"From the looks of their camp while I was there, they would have packed up and moved camp now that they've been discovered. So their last known location will probably be vacant…" Link responded. "We'll have to wait until they pop up again…"
"You guys can continue your strategy talk I have to get the boys fed and to bed or they'll be out there all night." Unara said as she excused herself. Nelmephes nodded.
"We shouldn't continue to much longer we'll need rest for tomorrow." Nelmephes said mostly speaking about himself since he'd been on patrol all day. Swimming laps around the perimeter of Hyrule was tiring after the tenth time. But it's necessary to keep outsiders out. Except for that one giant Octorok that got by him. He almost had to go in and kill it but then he'd found out from some source it had been slain thankfully. The three talked while the boys ate and when they finished it was decided that everyone should get some rest.
Meanwhile – On the outskirts of the Rito village
A group of eels on elk back approached the village Rito led by Levelah. She held up her hand looking up seeing the Devine beast Medoh flying overhead. She yanked on her elks reigns making her elk come to a halt, the rest of her company all followed suit. She climbed down from her steed and pulled her cloak more securely around herself, pulling up the hood. She turned to Voltar who took the reigns of her elk. "Stay hidden… if I need you, you know what the signal is… but until then stay out of this that's an order… Now go." She said eyes narrowed. Voltar bowed atop his elk and turned him to walk back into the forest.
Levelah turned and continued on foot while the rest followed Voltar and left to hide out. She walked with poise and held herself with dignity. She was suddenly stopped by a Rito harpy eagle. His large stature towering over her yet she showed no fear, in fact she smiled. She put on her best innocent persona. "I am a simple traveler sir Rito…"
"A traveler?" He asked a little disbelieving. "Traveling a bit light aren't you?"
"What I pack is none of your business. What I need is wings. I'll make it worth your while." She said pulling a bag of Rupees from her cloak. Levelah held it out to him and the Rito merely shook his head.
"Outsiders are forbidden on Vah Medoh… besides Princess Zelda and whomever she appoints the new champion to take over piloting it…. Sorry it's not some tourist attraction…" Levelah replaced the rupees in her cloak and smirked darkly.
"Alright… have it your way then, I'm not opposed to more Rito warriors." The Rito just tilted his head at her as she whispered the spell under her breath. Her hands concealed by the cloak so the Rito was unaware of what exactly she was doing.
"Miss I'm going to have to ask you to leave…" he began but was cut off as the swirl of strong magic blew open her cloak and by the time he tried to react it was to late. And the spell hit causing the same painful mind control spell like it did to Sidon. When he did finally rise again his eyes were completely black.
"Now fly me up to Medoh now!" The harpy eagle immediately knelt and she climbed onto his back and he took off into the sky. Levelah held onto the straps of his armor as they ascended higher. Medoh was coming closer into view and she smiled, soon very soon her plan would come to fruition. As they soared through the air getting into position for landing on top of the Divine beast.
When they did land Levelah jumped off and went immediately to her task. "Stay here, don't let anyone disturb me. And come when I call you, what are you called?" she said getting to the point and the Rito stood back up showing no emotion
"I am called Karos, my Princess…" he said in a monotone voice.
"Alright then…" she turned and walked away to the entrance to Medohs interior. As soon as she was inside her mission was clear. "Oh spirits of old show me the final resting place the last righteous one who perished here." A little green flame appeared between her hands and flew forward leading her. She smiled and followed, behind her appeared a Rito spirit watching her thinking her quite suspicious. It led her to the control room to the very back where she found a small bone. She picked it up examining the old bleached bone, cracked with age.
"Put that back!" she heard a rather angry voice behind her say. She grinned to herself before she responded.
"Now why would I want to do that?" she asked still not facing him.
"Well for one thing that is my bone and disturbing ones place of death is rather rude… So there's two good reasons right there… Now put it back!" Levelah turned to face the champion Rito who looked rather cross with his wings folded across his chest. "How did you even get up here Zora?"
"I flew. I figured that I'd come up here and offer you a proposition that maybe you'd want to be brought back to life like they did with Princess Mipha some time ago. But such a gift has to be wanted so badly it burns inside your soul." She said watching his reaction.
"Wait what do you mean Mipha is alive? That's not possible." Revali asked.
"Of course it's possible! She's flesh and blood breathing and living in the Zora Domain again like nothing ever happened. With her sweet little Hylian by her side to, Link was it?" she could see a viable reaction from the name. "Nice that they get to live happily ever after while you die so young. It doesn't mean that it has to be like that though. Don't you miss the freedom? The flight, the air beneath your wings? Don't you want to be able to shoot a bow again? To touch things? To feel?"
"I…" Revali looked out upon the world below. He barely remembered what it felt like to feel the wind in his face. The ground beneath his feet. The satisfaction of hitting the bullseye every time he shot that arrow. "I won't lie, living again would be like a dream come true… but." Levelah cut him off before he said anymore stepping forward and grabbing his wing hands.
"That's all I need to know!" she said with a devious smile. Revali shocked that she'd even touched him tried to pull away as her mark glowed under her hood.
"What do you think you're doing!" He shouted.
"Shut your beak and let me concentrate!" she retorted holding him still. The purple/black light crept up his wings and Revali struggled fruitlessly.
A/N: Oh dear Revali what happen to you, and please remember to leave me some positive feedback. It really does help me write and make me feels good about my writing, thank you