Where to begin again thought the aimless man.

Nicholas awoke that morning in the same daze he had been in since his battle with Jagon in the fields near Impa. He was always going through it in his head, the strength his opponent had over him, the damage his armor had sustained, the uselessness of his allies and finally the sudden disappearance by dark magic. It was all a mess in his head, one he didn't think he'd ever figure out. It was just too bizarre.

It had been weeks, maybe months, Nicholas had lost count of the days since that fight. When he had stumbled back to Impa from the battle, battered and bruised, he expected a commendation for his efforts, but instead his commanding officer was furious.

Left without orders, the commander said, foolish endangerment, stealing an officers horse, he said again and again, damage of property not belonging to oneself he babled about the armor he ruined, and disregard for regulations and uniform. It wasn't long before the commander had tossed the papers into Nicholas' face. A dishonorable discharge. With that, Nicholas was no longer a soldier for the Hylian guard, and was now a civilian once again.

He shut his eyes and placed a hand on his face, grumbling to himself. "This is bullshit, pull yourself together man!" He then leapt from the bed and went over to the table in the cramped room he had been holded up in since he was fired. He tossed his jacket aside to reveal his sole peice of armor, the Tempered Arm as he called it. The only good thing from the fight with Jagon it seemed was the local thanks. A blacksmith had approached him and told him he could repair the metal arm back to its proper state, and to show his thanks tempered the armor with an ingot of Goron Iron to ensure a break like that wouldn't happen again.

Pulling the armor on, Nicholas swiftly donned his jacket, slipped on his boots and left the room. The inn he stayed at was new in Impa, a bare bones building that wasn't even ready completely, but Nicholas had worked out a deal, which had unfortunately involved selling his sword and the half-plate he had borrowed from the armory for the fight. They had expected it back, but if they were going to fire him, he decided it wasn't worth returning.

Outside in the harsh chill, Nicholas did up his jacket and glanced around until he decided on a direction. North, I should visit my parents. With that, he started to trudge onwards towards Lon Lon, thoughts of travel after so long inside gave him a certain vigor he was happy to feel, and for once in so long it felt like the Goddesses were smiling upon him.

The open plains are white with the snow that had enveloped Northern Hyrule. An odd snowfall it seems... Nicholas thought to himself while he walked slowly northward. His plan was simple, go home to see his parents, but he hadn't planned at all for the trip. The snow and cold sapped stamina and the walk would be a long one, but Nicholas wasn't about to turn around for fear that, should he return to Impa, he might not leave there.

With only the soft blowing winds and endless white to keep him company, Nicholas did something he hadn't done for years. He sang as he walked, singing an old ballad he would hear back home, of far lands and lost warrior's songs. It seemed to lift his spirit at the least, being on the road again was truly helping him get over the recent events that crept at the edge of his mind.

He halted suddenly, his voice faultering as he noticed others. A man stood ahead of him, bound in furs with spear in hand. Glancing left and right, he noticed two more men. Highwaymen, damn it. Of all the things that could show up, he had to be jumped by some bandits in the snow. That's what I get for ignoring my surroundings. With a heavy sigh, Nicholas took an aggressive hand-to-hand stance and waited for the charge that soon followed his act of hostility.

The first bandit charged in, spear raised, aimed at the chest, while the other two waited at the flank to stop Nicholas from fleeing. Nicholas stood his ground, bracing his feet as he waited for the right moment. When the point of the spear was a foot from his chest, he quickly twisted his body right, catching the shaft of the spear with his left hand as he slammed his right fist into the bandit's left side. The man jerked awkwardly as he fell to the ground, pulling the spear back out of Nicholas' hand, damn, that didn't work out like I wanted.

As their friend hit the ground, the other two bandits charged Nicholas, who whirled around in time to quickly spring himself into the air over his opponent, landing with a sudden turn as the bandit likewise turned around. Nicholas lifted his right arm to block the spear as it slammed into his arm, then swiftly punched the man in the face with a quick left jab. As he crashed to the ground holding his face, the third bandit charged, also aiming for the chest.

Diving to the left, Nicholas rolled back to his feet, turning to face the man again as his friends rose, battered but not out for the count. As the three men looked at each other, they decided to charge their target at the same time. While they began their run, spears raised and ready to peirce flesh, Nicholas held his right arm infront of his chest, flexing his fingers until finally clenching them and taking the trained position needed to execute the Hylian Guard's famed technique. With a quick twist, his body spun quickly, and as he completed the first spin, he held his right arm with his palm facing inward, thick black-gold energy rippling off the Tempered Arm as his Spin Attack crashed through the three spears, snapping the spearheads off the first two and ending with a quick spring upwards, his attack ending as he landed ontop of the middle bandit, dislocating shoulders as he drove his heels into the man.

Once the other two managed to figure out what the hell just happened, they swung about but Nicholas had already sprung into full force, sprinting to the bandit who still had his spear intact and swiftly kicked the man in the gut, followed by a quick uppercut from his right arm. Turning to the last man, all he had to do was unclench his right hand and the man dropped to the ground, pleading for his safety. Lowering his arm, Nicholas looked at the three men then turned to continue on his way.

It has been too long, glad I'm not too rusty.

Following the Battle for Impa, Jenni remained posted in the small town. Her captain knew not that she had even been in the fight, the clueless man, but decided Impa was the best place for a warrior of her ability. The locals remembered her attempts to help them though. They payed Jenni well for her involvement, and a local smith offered to temper her saber, claiming the blade would become nearly unbreakable. Jenni graciously accepted the gift, and was soon wearing a beautifully remade blade on her hip. Jenni remained at her post until winter came, and she was released from active duty. On that day she packed the her few possessions, and began to trek north. The Guards lent her a horse, for travel as far as Castle-town. It was too cold to make the journey on foot.

The wind was blowing, and the cold air forced itself down the neck of her tunic, despite the heavy cloak she wore wrapped tightly around her body. The small cooking fire Jenni had lit when the sun went down this past night burned weakly, barely giving off heat.

"Screw this. I'll be warmer on the move." She stood up, and kicked snow into the small fire, putting it out with a hiss. She saddled the horse, and was soon on the road again. I should really go home before returning to the city... Jenni shivered, steered the horse towards Lon Lon Ranch, urging it to walk as fast as the snow would allow.

A long hour passed with nothing but snow before her. She blinked snow from her lashes, and then squinted in surprise. There was a dark shape moving through the snow ahead of her, still too far ahead to see clearly. The shape was alone, as far as she could tell. Jenni reached into her bag, and pulled out her Hawkeye, placing it over her eyes. What she saw next caused her to gasp, and then smile wider than she had since before the Battle for Impa. It can't be... She kicked the horse into a run, in an attempt to catch up with the man ahead of her. Even in the snow, the noise of her animal must have been heard.

Nicholas had lost count of the time as he continued his walk through the snow. It had been quiet since since the encounter with the bandits, but he decided singing would be a bad idea all the same. The sound of the wind quietly howling across the empty sky drew Nicholas' attention upwards, making him realize it was already dark. I could always bunker down in the snow, should keep me out of the wind... he thought, though it seemed pointless. "It's not like I could sleep anyways, might as well keep walking," he chuckled to himself as he trudged on.

Soon though, he could hear the sounds of a running animal. The crunching of snow made it sound like a large animal, so Nicholas quickly swung around, knocking snow off his body which had caked on hours ago. He could make out of the shape of a horse galloping towards him, though he couldn't tell if they were a friend or foe. Being ready to dive out of the way if the rider showed hostility, Nicholas waited in place for the horse to catch up to him.

Jenni rode towards the man, and within minutes was within range to talk. She slowed to a walk, and pulled the hood down from her head.

"Nicholas!" She hadn't seen this man since the Battle, but she had heard of his expulsion from the Guard. She walked up to, and stopped, only a few feet away. "What in the name of Hyrule are you doing out here? Come on, let's get a fire going, the night will only get colder." She Swung down from the panting horse, and lead it closer to her friend.

Once the figure on horseback dropped their hood, Nicholas recognized the person as a friend of his. "Jenni, it's good to see you," he said, a big smile on his face. "I was just heading home to see my parents, and I was making good time too... I think." He stopped for a moment to ponder exactly how far he had gone, but the snow was disorienting. "To tell you the truth, I have no idea how far I've walked." Resigning himself to stopping for now, he walked over to Jenni to help her start a fire.

"Come to think of it," he asked as he cleared some snow away to put the wood down for a fire, "what brings you out here? It's dangerous to go out alone."

"Lon Lon, huh. You did not think this venture through, did you." She stuck out her tongue at the man, and pulled a small tent out of her saddle bag, along with flint and kindling to start the fire. "See if you can find some burnable wood, or this fire will be a small one." She found a small hollow beside a bank of snow, and flattened it out as well as possible with her boots, before setting up the small pitched tent. There would be room for the both of them inside. Upon finishing this, Jenni squatted down beside the cleared area and began setting up the kindling.

"I have been in Impa too long. I was released for leave, and just wanted to go somewhere... different. I decided to head to Lon Lon... it has been awhile since I visited the farm." She slipped into silence.

"Stick that tongue out once more and I'll freeze it to my gauntlet," Nicholas laughed as he went about digging through the snow for wood. He dug and searched as Jenni set up the tent, but he had no luck finding any wood for a fire. It'd probably be too wet to use anyways, he shrugged as he wandered back to Jenni. "Looks like it'll be a small fire tonight, I'd sooner find the three goddesses bathing in a hotspring then wood in the snow." Settling down by the soon-to-be fire, Nicholas gazed around at the white landscape before looking back at Jenni.

"So how long are you on leave for?"

Jenni laughed and shook her head at her friends comments, whilst still building the small fire. She struck flint against the dull side of her sword blade, and within seconds the small fire was burning, as happily as a small fire in a snowy plain could. She sat on her heels beside the small fire, and pushed her cold hands in close. After several seconds a small amount of steam began to rise from her skin. She sighed.

"That feels nice. Too bad it's so small. Maybe we should look for the Goddess' hotspring instead." She smiled and settled lower onto her heels. "I have a full seasons leave from duty. they haven't given me time off in awhile, and we've been busy."