The Road To Rauru [Hexzerro/Onyx Leo/LuckyEights]

It was still early enough in the day that the sun's shadow was still cast over nearly the entirety of the Eastern Caves' valley. This was one of the times of day when the Gerudos shifted their guard, and when the majority of the Hylian refugees began to wake up to begin their day. One of the advantages to the Eastern Caves was how long into the day it would stay cooler than the surrounding desert, in fact this early into the day it was still fairly cool, almost enough to see one's breath in the air.

Today was the day, Nazirah had already talked with Zaina, Captain of the Eastern Star Archers, about her plans and that she would leave for Rauru today. When she had first brought the idea to Zaina a little over 3 years ago, she wasn't yet the captain, and had been (hesitantly) on board with the idea, though she thought it a better idea to travel with a larger group. Now, with her being promoted Zaina was less than excited with the idea, though since the last captain had eventually caved to Nazirah's arguments and given her permission Zaina continued to allow it.

With the changing of the guard Nazirah's replacement arrived from below, climbing the tower the archer who Nazirah had never learned the name despite years of being replaced by her of nodded her goodbyes, Nazirah returning the gesture. Nazirah made her way down the long ladder of the tower, and began to weave her way through the tunnels and buildings that made up her home. Eventually she made her way to her home, where she began to gather her things, humming an old tune to herself. Rations and water were her main concern, she needed little beyond her weapons, her flute, some moisturizer would come in handy, a traveling cloak, and of a solid bottle should be enough to get her through the desert, let alone to Rauru.

Locking up as she left she made her way to the front gates, but since she was no longer on duty, she had to make her way on the ground, no using the walls and upper caves to get around nice and quickly, and it took her all of 2 minutes to remembered why she preferred to take the high road. The lower roads where filled to the brim with Hylians running their early morning errands, and there was scarcely room to move, let alone at a decent speed. Through the lower caves and roads where there were too many Hylians and not enough space she made her way, Eventually making her way to the front gate. Once she got out of the front gate, things got easier to move, if much worse to look at. Refugees that couldn't fit in the fortress proper had set up a small tent city outside the gates, but here at least there was more room to move. Nazirah often wondered If it was worse for the Hylians outside the walls or inside, was the crowded space worth the safety?

"Either way" she thought
"All the more reason to Retake Rauru and get these poor people home... and out of our hair"

As Nazirah made her way to the end of the camp and the outskirts of the settlement proper she was stopped by one of the Gerudo Guards stationed around the ends of the camp and hidden in the hills

"Halt, what are your reasons for leaving?" the guard asked boredly.

"I'm heading for Rauru, with the intention of inspecting the lay of the land and defenses for weakness" Nazirah answered in a professional voice.

"Under who's orders?"

"My own, I'm wit- Formerly a member of the Eastern Star Archers, Captain Zaina was my superior"

"hmm, very well keep well in the deserts archer" the guard said, apparently unhappy that the most eventful thing to happen this day was over already.

Nazirah made her way out a litttle into the desert, pausing to look up at the series of towers, caves, and walls behind her, she walked over to the longest cast shadow on the desert from the towers and waited. Today she would set out, but for now, she would wait until the last shadow had left her feet before leaving home.

Not too far away, A pair of clawed talons touched down on the cool desert sand. The short (by Gerudo standards, anyway) bird-like creature stood out like a sore thumb against the backdrop of Hylian vagabonds and Gerudo guards. Her purple breastplate gleamed in the sun as she stretched out her impressive brown and white wings. With her appendages fully extended, it was obvious her wingspan almost doubled her body’s size in length. The Rito’s eyes scanned the distant horizon. Completely ignoring, or just oblivious to those around her. “Hmm, not here either…” She mused.

As if by magic, with a sudden flick of her arms, the bird’s massive feathered plumage retracted and fell like a cloth sleeve. Revealing the gloved human-looking hands that were hidden inside. “I guess I’ll have to do it the old fashioned way.” She said once more to no one in particular. Removing the silver spear off her back, the Rito girl refocused her sights on the ground in front of her as she slowly advanced, jabbing the butt of her weapon into the ground every several steps she took.

Needless to say, to almost any observer, this could likely be considered a very peculiar sight.

Nazirah was lost in thought when the Rito landed nearby, and at first only made note of movement, but thinking it was merely a Gerudo or Hylian she kept her eyes on the horizon- until the landing of the Rito made a small commotion amongst the guards behind her. It is likely that the landing of the Rito would provoke, while not a aggressive response from the guards, a notably curious one. The guard that had just recently finished bothering Nazirah approached the Rito

"Halt stranger, what business do you have out here?" the guard asked the Rito trying to hold back her own curiosity and focus on her job.

The commotion did eventually cause Nazirah to turn to the Rito, watching the strange newcomer with a clear curiosity from a short distance, she reached for her Hawkeye out of force of habit to get a better view, but she stopped before she actually put it in front of her eyes, laughing shortly to herself about how the bird was too close to warrant the use of her Hawkeye. She listened and watched as the guard dealt with the stranger, judging the guards inability to remain totally focused on the task at hand.

The Rito continued pecking at the soil with her staff, completely ignoring (and increasingly agitating) the Gerudo guard as she continued in her peculiar endeavor. It wasn’t until the bird’s third and final warning did she perk her head up and acknowledged the tall woman looming over her. “Oh! Hello, there!” She beamed, as if she were suddenly surprised by the fuming guard’s presence. “My name is Ciska, I’m a monster ethologist.” She answered, readjusting her glasses with a smile as she spoke. “I’m here researching the local Leever population. I guess you would know them as the small… Spinny, blob-things. But more importantly, I haven’t seen a single one all morning. Verrrry troubling.” She answered the guard, tapping her chin while glancing back down at the ground on her last statement.

Heaving her staff slightly upwards, she began to jab at the ground once more while maintaining eye contact with the guard. “You see, they respond… To vibrations caused by... Disturbances In the sand… But I’m afraid with all the foot traffic here... They must have been pushed further inland.” She sighed, finally giving up and sheathing her spear against her back.

“Is there any way you can just… MOVE these Hylians out of the area for about a season? It would be very beneficial to my research.” She asked, gesturing a pushing motion with her hands to further illustrate her point. Within a few moments, she suddenly gasped in embarassment. “Oh Valoo, I’m so sorry. What am I even saying?"


“...It’d have to be at least two seasons.” She added, sticking her tongue out and lightly slapping her forehead with an open palm “Durrr!”

If looks could kill the Rito would have died from acute heart failure well before she was able to finish, the young Gerudo guard was quite irritated with being effectively ignored and frequently interrupted

"Hello y-"
"Ciska, I'm just go-"
"I KNOW WHAT A LEE-"
"Listen y-"
"NO I CAN'T MOVE THES-"

More than anything Nazirah felt sorry for the young guard, though she also worried that those further away might mistake the issue for something serious and it could blow up into something much worse. She made her way back to the guard and the Rito and laid her hand on the younger Gerudo's shoulder.

"Calm yourself sister, I will handle this, go alert your captain that we have a rare visitor, or are you not going to be staying here long- she paused for a moment trying to remember the name of the Rito race- Rita?" She said as she turned to the Rito and the guard, took a breath to calm down before storming off.

The chatty Rito shook her head. “Nope, Ciska.” She corrected, wrongfully assuming the Gerudo simply misheard her name. “And I’m honestly not sure now. If the Leever population here is as dire as it seems, then I suppose I don’t have much of a reason to stick around, do I?” She added, huffing with another small sigh of frustration as she looked off again to the horizon. “I really wanted to hold off my expedition to Rauru for another few days, but... I guess I don’t have much of a choice now.” She said, her voice trailing off as she paused to mull over her current predicament.

Within another few moments, the smaller girl perked up again as she turned her attentions back to the Gerudo. “Oh! I’m sorry, I’ve just been rambling to myself, haven’t I?” She asked, unwittingly rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment. “Some people, well... Many people, inform me that I have a tendency of doing that.” she added before apologetically dipping her head. “I'm terribly sorry... Ehrm… I don’t think even get your name?”

As the young Rito was pausing Nazirah tried to interject

"oh? you are he-"

Before being cut off by the chatty little bird. Once she was certain she was finished talking she calmly and with more than a little amusement responded

"My name is Nazirah, of th- formerly of the eastern star archers. I'm sorry to say that for the most part, Leevers have been a rare sight in this valley since the Hylians set up camp 16 years ago" with this Nazirah herself paused and looked into the horizon

"Has it really been 16 years already? It feels like such a shorter time since the leevers where a nuisance we'd pick off any chance we'd get..." Provided that Ciska would permit it, there would be a short silence while Nazirah got lost in the past until she turned back to the young Rito

"Ciska, you mentioned Rauru, are you aware of the fact that Ganon's forces took the city 16 years ago? I'm not sure how you even intend to go there, finding things in the desert can be quite difficult if you don't know how to get there in the first place. why would a young Rita like yourself even want to go to a city in the middle of the desert?" Nazirah's voice was dripping with a polite, if condescending, concern and curiosity.

Ciska seemed a bit surprised that the Gerudo would even ask. “What? Of course I know that. It’s the whole reason I’m going!” She grinned, her eyes almost beginning to sparkle as she continued to speak. “Rauru has essentially become a melting pot of monsters, left to fester and rot in itself for well over a decade! Can you even imagine how many different habits those monsters might take on? I’d be crazy NOT to go!” As she spoke, several Hylians turned their heads up from their various tasks to glare at the girl, obviously not appreciating the reminder of what has befallen their former home. Of course, the small bird didn’t notice.

“Besides…” The girl grinned again as she pushed up her glasses. “Don’t take me for some limp-wristed bookworm-” She affirmed, quickly removing her spear from its clasp, twirling the weapon between her fingers before dramatically stamping it into the ground at her side. “-I’ve studied just as many tomes on armed combat as I have Dodongo eating habits. If there’s a venture fraught with dangerous monsters, then there’s no one better than me to observe it first hand.”

“Though it's like you said, It’s just the finding it part that’s tricky…” She added, the bird’s enthusiasm finally seeming to drop a bit. "Surprise surprise, a desert's full of sand that looks the same in every direction."

As Nazirah listened to Ciska politely, nodding and mhming when appropriate, she steadily became more and more worried for the Rita's life. The sparkle in her eyes made it quite clear that there was certainly not going to have her mind changed, but there was no way that this bookworm would last a day in the desert alone. Quickly shooting a glare back in the direction of the Hylians who aught to know their place, she then turned to Ciska and somewhat reluctantly and defeatedly offered;

"You are quite fortunate Ciska, not only was I about to head out to Rauru, but I have been taking my time and you almost missed me. You are more than welcome to join me, though I've never made the trip myself the way is known to me. my only two conditions are that you be properly prepared to head out into the desert - I don't want to have to double back because you ran out of water - and that you keep a low profile. I'm heading there to... check up on it."

The smaller girl perked up again when she heard the Gerudo offer her services. What luck! being escorted by a native of the desert was more than she could ever have hoped for! This was surely to be a sign of blessing from Valoo, which Ciska was sure to voice herself. “Of course! It would be remiss of me as a researcher not to pack accordingly.” She assured, shifting her brown satchel bag to the front of her body so she could further illustrate her point. “See? Food, journal, canteen of water, reading materials, my unmentionables -Oh, I probably shouldn’t mention those…” She voiced, abruptly shutting the latch of the bag and allowing it to swing back to her side.

“And don’t you worry! Low-profile is my middle name!” She beamed, quickly flicking her right arm out to shift it into a large wing, then giving the Gerudo a flamboyantly feathery salute.

At the mention of the unmentionables Nazirah put her face in her hand and did everything she could to stifle a laugh, only just barely succeeding. Once Ciska had finished Nazirah began

"I expect it will take us two and a half days to reach Rauru, longer in the unlikely event we get lost and have to double back, I do not know your people well, is it uncomfortable for you to walk for long distances? If not I recommend you stay on the ground whenever possible, sandstorms can appear seemingly out of thin air and I'm not certain you'd make it back if you lost sight of me."

Nazirah wasn't lying when she mentioned the sandstorms, but she did have another reason to try and ground Ciska; In the desert anything in the sky is often an easy target, her archer mentality made the idea of having something in the air quite uncomfortable to her. Nazirah began to head towards a particular rock near the south-middle of the valley, motioning for Ciska to follow her

"Try to keep it so we can both see each other as often as possible. If I can't see you or you can't see me make a whistle noise like this - she put her pinky and index fingers into the corners of her mouth and made a whistling noise not unlike that of a moldorm's "I am separated from the pack" noise- can you do that?

“So it’s that far, huh?” Ciska asked, her enthusiasm noticeably fading once again. She glanced down at her leathery, birdlike feet. Her toes wiggling in the dusty sand as she became re-aware of their presence. “Two and a half days is a long time.” she added with a bit of a sigh. Rito were definitely built for traveling long distances like this, just not on foot. Through the air (and as a Rito who’d never even undergone courier training), she'd estimated that she could probably close that distance in a little under a day if she'd really tried. Across land was a completely different story though. She’d never really tested her stamina in that way. “I’ll be honest, I may need to take more than a few breaks.” she admitted as she followed behind the taller woman. “I shouldn’t speak for us as a whole, but I know that walking definitely isn’t one of my strong-suits.”

After the Gerudo explained more about the dangerous sudden sandstorms that plagued the desert, Ciska stared with wide eyed wonder as she watched the desert woman whistle with her fingers. People from the Mainlands never ceased to impress the girl, and as such, when Nazirah finished her demonstration, Ciska applauded it while letting a faint “Oooooh!” escape her lips. Her eyebrows then raised upwards when Nazira instructed her to do it as well. “Well, I can certainly try!” She said, cracking her knuckles to prepare herself.

As her fingers inched closer to her mouth, the girl let out a small snerk before she continued. “This gesture means something totally different back home…” she mumbled under her breath before continuing her advance. With her fingers inserted, she took a deep intake of air, and...

“PPPPTTTHTHHHBHBTHBTHBTHTHTHTHTHTBBBBBBHTHTHHHHH”

“Wait.”

“PPPPPPPPPPPPPPTHTHTHTBHBTHBTHTHTTHTHHT”

“Wait…”

“PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPTRHHRRHHRRRRRRRRRBBBBBB”

“Hold on, maybe if I-”

“PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFTTTHHHGRONK”

“Okay, I don’t even know what that was.”

After wiping the copious amounts of saliva from her mouth, she turned to the Gerudo and exaggeratedly shrugged her shoulders with worried laughter. “Maybe we should just try extra hard not to get separated?”

At Ciska's display Nazirah covered her face and did her best to stiffle a laugh, though she failed.

"I'm curious, what does that gesture mean to you?" She asked after she had a solid laugh. "And I would feel much more comfortable if we had a long carrying sound to find each other, I can do this -she once again makes the moldorm noise- what CAN you do? A simple whistle will make it too easy for monsters to find us for my comfort, but if that's all you can do..."

As she spoke Nazirah kept an eye on Ciska's stride, trying to gauge how long the Rito could walk before tiring, walking had to be easier than flying right? She eventually resigned herself that she may have to carry the girl if they had to take too many breaks, they couldn't stop too often if they wanted to make half decent time and not run out of water.

The girl let out another small giggle in response. “Let’s just say, you wouldn’t want to get caught doing it in public.”
As she walked in tandem with Nazirah, the Gerudo would probably notice that Ciska was expending quite a bit more effort to keep up. After all, Gerudo are mostly athletic and leggy by default. With Nazirah also possibly standing at more than a full foot taller than the girl, Ciska didn’t stand much of a chance. “What can I do, what can I do…” Ciska repeated, tapping the crook of her finger against her chin as she often did while in deep thought. “OH!”

Suddenly opening up her satchel bag and rifling through its contents, she removed her blue journal, feathered pen, and a small spool of thread from inside.“I used to do this all the time back when I was a little kid!” she said as she flipped her journal open to a blank page and grabbed end of the book. “Sorry, baby.” she whispered as she slowly, but evenly tore the page out of her book, then immediately placed it back inside her bag before getting right to work.

“Watch closely, this is actually pretty interesting!” She said as her fingers went right to work, wrapping the torn paper around the pen, then tying a tight knot around it with the strand of thread. “If I fold this, then tear here and... Here…” she explained as her hands continued their ministrations. “Tear this part too, then fold it enough so that passing air creates a vibration… Pull the pen back out, and…!” Lightly tucking the paper tube between her lips, the girl deeply inhaled as if she were smoking a cigar, causing the flattened tips at the end to hum and vibrate together and emit a loud noise that was similar to a duck’s quacking. “DANANANAAAH! Instant paper whistle!” she beamed, obviously proud of her handy-work. “I used to annoy the gall out of my parents with these! Good times.”

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If you kids at home want to follow along Ciska's Arts and Crafts Workshop, then just watch this!

Being one of the younger inhabitants of the Fortress of Thieves does not come without its disadvantages. Though she had a general respect from most of her peers, there had always been a lingering doubt of whether or not Levia was worthy of the reputation she had accumulated. Any bandit could rob a passerby, but it took nerves of tempered steel to go out and snag greater riches. She was bombarded with challenges constantly by the other thieves, and often she turned down such childish instigation when realizing she would get nothing from it. It annoyed her to no end how often they would pester her about being too "chicken" to do something not even they would do. As far as she was concerned, Levia was much more efficient than much of them. One night, however, she was approached with another challenge. One that would top all of the others.

"You come back with somethin' from Rauru," the fellow thief explained, "Then you'd shut everyone in this place right up." Levia traveled south that very morning, armed with plenty of arrows, mini bombs, rations, and two bottles of fresh water.

She could see the scene repeat itself over and over in her head as she treads the cool desert sands, fully cloaked by her hooded black cape and misery written all over her expression. Through the strenuous journey just to get this far, she had been cursing herself for doing this, and now she found herself lost in unfamiliar territory, a little ways away from the Eastern Caves unbeknownst to her. Levia's knowledge of Rauru was limited; all she was aware of that it was nothing more than a ruined town filled with monsters. Thinking about it, there couldn't possibly be anything there...could there?

On the other hand, those monsters could be holding a plethora of valuables. Just the thought of the riches they could be hoarding in those ruins was enough to ignite a spark of determination in those brilliant green eyes. That excitement was dampened when she reaches for a bottle in one of her pouches. The weight of the bottle was disheartening. She was running low on water in the middle of a desert. "Yep," Levia groans, crossing her arms under her cloak, "This is what I get for being greedy. I'm never gonna find anything way out here..."

Nazirah and Ciska had been traveling for a little over a day, following a series of hidden posts frequently buried in the sand, following the stars whenever possible. Fate had been kind to the pair as the weather had cooperated with little more than a strong breeze. Getting separated hadn't become a problem thankfully as Ciska's feet had tired out quite quickly, and Nazirah has opted to carrying the young Rito when she became unable to walk herself rather than spend likely up to an extra day in the desert.

Whether the Rupee eyed Hylian saw the Gerudo on the hill or the Hawkeyed Gerudo archer saw the small black figure in the desert first is up for debate, but it was almost certain neither could hide from the other from such a great distance being unaware of the others presence until it was too late. In that moment Nazirah would toss Ciska off her back and pull out her bow -just in case- stealth was out of the question but there was a solid chance the figure wasn't a threat.

"HOLD, YOU ARE IN GERUDO TERRITORY, REVEAL YOURSELF AND STATE YOUR INTENT" Nazirah yelled out after the figure in a calm yet commanding voice fairly typical of the Gerudo people in their element. Though she didn't say as much it was clearly implied that any rash actions would be dealt with at the tip of an arrow; not an exiting prospect at this range for most.

"WE HAVE NO QUARRELS, I WILL NOT SHOOT IF YOU COOPERATE" she added as almost an after though, if it was Hylian seeking refuge she didn't want to scare them into the desert, where they would almost certainly perish.

Ciska thoroughly enjoyed her time with the older Gerudo woman. It wasn’t often that she’d had a travel companion, and even less often she’d had a travel companion that would offer free piggyback rides. As time rolled on, Ciska would have regaled almost countless tales of her experiences as an ethologist. Some of them interesting, most of them boring, and a handful that were downright questionable. Despite this, having the opportunity to freely talk about her passions was an experience that was well worth the trip on its own.

“-So once the aphrodisiacs set in, everything turned out alri-huh? Why’d we stop?” the girl managed to ask before immediately getting thrown off her ride. She grunted in pain after she impacted with sand below, reeling back a bit after the sudden 6-foot drop from her perch. Before she could even address the situation, or the sudden pain in her rear end, her Gerudo companion had already drawn her bow and was shouted orders across the desert.

“Trouble!?” Ciska asked as she followed Nazirah’s gaze to the cloaked figure across the hill. Seeing it was humanoid, Ciska quickly jumped to her feet and took her place safely behind Nazirah’s steady arm. “M-maybe he’s just a friendly traveler?” The girl stammered out, almost uncharacteristically shaken. Monsters and beasts she could easily handle without question, but a human foe was an encounter that she wasn’t ready to address.

Though the journey was arduous, Levia was at least thankful for the lack of encounters in the desert. For much of her way, she was isolated and appeared to be the only living creature for miles, which was mildly comforting if not a little lonely. When a the commanding voice of a woman rang through the area, Levia was all but prepared. Her body jolts and her heart nearly leaps into her throat as she looks up, immediately spying upon a couple of figures upon a hill up ahead, and the glint of metal that informed her one was armed with an arrow. She couldn't perfectly make them out, but the height of one of them was enough to deduce that she had been spotted by a Gerudo.

Fear cannot begin do describe how Levia feels about this precarious situation. She--a criminal--had wandered into the territory of hardened warriors. If there were one stationed here in front of her, there would be many more. Drawing her crossbow would just get her killed--she was sure she would be struck down the second she prepared to aim. Even if she thought she could make an escape from this one, there was little doubt in her mind that she would risk running into another. At least this one was offering not to shoot. Risking that any other guards in the area would show that sort of kindness to a thief just didn't seem very realistic.

Slowly, Levia parts her cloak and reaches up to pull down her hood,. "D-don't shoot!" she shouts in response, revealing herself to the archer in the distance while holding her hands up to show she did not have a weapon handy, at least to their knowledge. "I'm just, uh...!" It occurred to her she wasn't entirely sure what to tell this woman. It would be anything but savvy to be honest about her intent to attempt to raid treasure in Rauru, and clearly it was foolish to explain she was a bandit from the north. She had to lie. And she had to be quick.

"I-I'm just a traveler, from up north! I got lost in the desert, that's all!" Levia fibs, swallowing hard as she tries to regain at least some kind of composure. All she can hope is that they buy her lie. If not, well, she wonders if her knack for fleeing will be enough to outrun a Gerudo.

Thankful that the figure in the distance was not a threat Nazirah lowered her bow, and lowered her hawkeye to get a better look at the Hylian, well armed by the looks of it, but it was nothing short of a miracle that the young woman hadn't died of heat stroke in the desert heat, though it occurred to Nazirah that since she appeared to be traveling at night, she at must at least have some sense. She raised up her

"It doesn't appear to be too much trouble, just another lost Hylian. But she is well armed, so be prepared in any case" she whispered to Ciska, trying to reassure her.

"We are coming over to you, don't move" she yelled out to the Hylian as she made her way over to her, motioning for Ciska to follow her. When she made her way to the Hylian she asked bluntly

"who are you, where were you headed, and why were you headed there" Her tone was dripping with a somewhat condescending concern, the sort of tone one would use on a child that ran out onto a busy street without looking.

Ciska let out an exasperated sigh of relief upon hearing that their potential bandit was nothing more than a weary traveler. “Thank Valoo.” She uttered as she slumped her shoulders back down, the tension now beginning to leave her body. “I have issues fighting anything that can speak in more than two syllable words.” she added as she trailed behind the Gerudo warrior.

Upon reaching the stranger, Ciska immediately felt remorse for the young girl. With that pretty face, those shabby clothes, bandages that large, and a lost eye, she must have just escaped some horrible fate. Why else would she be in the middle of the desert? After all, It wasn't uncommon for bandits to kidnap young girls like this for themselves. As soon as Nazirah finished her line of questioning, Ciska added “-And are you hurt? Are you scared? Do you need food, or water? We have plenty!” She said, speaking up from behind the taller woman. “Or what about money? I have lots of money!” the gullible girl offered, reaching for the clasp of the satchel bag.