Into the Dark and Unknown: Ch 3. Test of Will
Leere yawned as she rested against Bonegrinder. Morning came too early for her. “You awake?”
"No." Bonegrinder shifted his coils and buried further into the pile of blankets and pillows. "Go back to sleep."
“Hmmm. I need a shower. You know anywhere nearby with a water supply?”
"Showers do not exist in Omisha, you have the river." Bonegrinder kept his tail curled around her ankle. "And other creatures inhabit Omisha besides this old snake's kind. You are not going by yourself."
“Then come with me and get out of the pillows.”
"Nooo..." Bonegrinder grumbled. "It's warm, you are warm, he does not want to move."
Leere frowned, until a cheeky thought filled her. Taking off her clothing, she threw each piece of article on him until she was naked. “Well, I’m off. Your warm body is leaving you.”
"Nooo..." Bonegrinder simply plucked her up and plopped her on his coils again. "Stay. This old snake is tired and wants to sleep more." He cared not that her bra was hanging from one of his horns or that she had purposely hit him in the face with her thong.
Malik groaned as he saw Leere play around with Bonegrinder, turning away when she started to disrobe. “Princess... stop. Put something on and I’ll take you myself if the brat won’t.”
"Bonegrinder is not a brat, he is too old to be a brat." The Anagari objected with a loud grumble before rising from his pile of pillows. He stretched and yawned. Maybe while she bathed, he could refocus his magic and transfer into a source of energy so he would not feel so tired. "Fine, fine. He will accompany the princess."
“I will accompany too. Least you both waist time.”
Leere quickly covered herself with a towel, embarrassed Lord Killjoy here would be joining them. Perhaps he needed a bath as well. “I’m sure we’re faster than you, my lord.”
Malik frowned at her obvious sarcasm in his title. “Let’s just get a move on.”
Leading the princess and lord to the river, the Anagari motioned for the two to wait a moment. He chanted in Echidnan and a glowing circle expanded from his hands. He placed the circle in the water, and it covered a sizable portion of the river. He then slithered into the cool water and floated on the surface. "Do not swim outside the ring," Bonegrinder informed Leere and Malik. "He cannot guarantee your safety if you do."
Malik looked away as Leere threw her towel away and dove in. He simply stood guard and on watch. “Enjoy your bath.”
"Oooh, Bonegrinder thinks the big boy is too shy." The Anagari took this as a chance to tease Malik. "What do you think, tiny princess?"
“I think he enjoys stank he’s accumulated.” Leere smirked as she ran water through her hair.
“I had a shower yesterday. And I don’t need the Anagari falling for me.”
"Hmm, well, he does have a nice ass, but his personality is very disengaging." Bonegrinder told the princess as he curled himself into the shape of a tube float for her to hang on to his coils if she wished. "Tiny princess here has all the three 'b's. Beauty, boobs, and butt."
“Ha! Thank you.” Leere did so, kicking freely in the water. “Seriously. Why are you a stick in the mud?”
“I’m surprised you’re so care free. Especially around him.”
"Tiny princess is carefree around Bonegrinder because she knows that he will not eat her nor harm her." Bonegrinder stated the truth. "Tiny princess stumbled into his home as a child. She knows that while he is dangerous and ancient, he holds true to his word. He said he will not harm her, thus he means it."
“You have an attraction for monsters, don’t you Princess.”
“Good and bad.”
“From my point of view and the stories you share. Terrible...” He gave a long stare at Bonegrinder. “And tolerable.”
"Tolerable," Bonegrinder snorted in amusement. "He will take that as a compliment."
“I find your claws around the royalty disturbing at most, questionable at least.”
"It is for a good reason, he promises." Bonegrinder decided to attempt to explain. "If you or the pretty prince had found out about us Echidnans before, you or pretty prince would have assumed the worst. Monsters older than the land itself usually have a bad reputation. Humans have a bad reputation with us." The Anagari flicked his tail as if waving a finger to emphasize his point. "Since he took the opportunity to have an advantage over pretty prince, then it allowed time for him to learn our ways, to see how we view humans, and that Mother is interested in only peace. Else, he feared that pretty prince would have done something rash... like send his undead commander after innocents."
Malik had to admit, he could see that situation easily develop. “I wonder how much darkness in Ralnor came from his father, and how much from you.”
Leere frowned at that accusation. “Ralnor is a good man. Darkness isn’t inherently evil.”
“Is that what you tell yourself to feel justified?”
"Ah, that is where you are wrong," Bonegrinder told Malik. "He gave none of his darkness to the prince. Darkness was already there. He could sense within the pretty prince's mind the ever-raging bloodlust. Yet, this old snake knows how to contain that very well. So, he set prince pretty's sights elsewhere, gave him a task to focus upon. Besides," He smacked his lips. "Anyone who is unlucky enough to piss off the pretty prince means Bonegrinder gets an extra snack for the day." The Anagari carefully pulled Leere a little closer to the center of the circle by her ankle. "Besides, darkness is viewed as evil and corrupt, yet there are many who find solace in it. Just because there is an absence of light does not mean the dark is used for solely malicious purposes."
“I suppose that’s true. Ralnor enjoys his tortures and his games. He enjoys his little evils.”
“Excuse me?” Bonegrinder could feel Leere’s anger fester in her core. “Ralnor has done more good. He’s like me. He channels his darkness for better purposes.”
“Perhaps you’re right. You both possess disturbing qualities.”
Leere stopped kicking in the water, her gaze growing bitter and cold. “What nerve do you have to say that to me.”
“You certainly enjoyed trying to drag me to hell as a child. Or torturing those you deem worthy of wrath.”
“You were a bad man who killed my guardians right in front of me. Threw me into an asylum where I was raped. If Ralnor has any evil, perhaps he learned it from you. I remember how you’d beat my siblings in what you called ‘training’. Perhaps our disturbing qualities come from being forced to confront the evils around us. You’re a blunt killer Klinge.”
“Shame you can’t control this killer anymore like a puppet, witch.”
"Good Kaksa, have mercy..." Bonegrinder muttered to himself as the two hurled insults at one another. "You two are behaving like newly hatched spiderlings. Personally, this old snake does not care if you two do not like each other, but for the sake of impressing Mother, and earning her trust you two need to be cordial to each other in her presence." He then added, "Bonegrinder does not care if you argue in front of him, but it must not happen in front of Mother. Do you two understand?"
“Clear enough.” Malik turned his back on them, looking out at the country side.
Leere looked down, holding Bonegrinder’s coils tighter. “Understood.”
“I doubt that I’ll be in danger returning to the hut. You can enjoy the rest of your bath in peace.” Malik trotted off back towards the residence.
Once Malik was out of sight, Bonegrinder turned to Leere.
"He is harsh, and you have a silver tongue." The Anagari stated. "Are you going to be all right, tiny princess?"
“... I don’t know. He’s right in some ways. I’m attracted to monsters, and they’re attracted to me. I hope members of my family isn’t as insidious as he claims. Am I near a ledge of falling into evil?”
"..." Bonegrinder was not sure if he should be the one to tell Leere that there was a reason that Mother had a magical border protecting the mountain pass between Malus and Omisha. While humans were seen as the bad guys from a monster's point of view, the Mortuus were that of nightmares. Reanimating the dead was... tasteless, abominable, and a manipulation. How many times did peace try to be achieved and the Mortuus would dig up the corpses of their loved ones to use as a puppet? It was not just the necromancy which caused Mother to have a sour note against them, but... the use of... demons. Ancient demons of evil. "Darkness finds comfort in darkness, tiny princess."
“I suppose that’s why I love the Dragmires so.” She rested her head against his coals. “May you wash my back?”
"Never think darkness is bad, tiny princess, just remember that sometimes, evil things use the darkness to their advantage." Bonegrinder chuckled at her request. "If you wish it."
“I insist. You have... a good touch.”
"Very well." Bonegrinder circled his long body to where she could still hold onto his coils while he washed her back. He materialized a rag out of thin air, dropping from a portal. The Anagari was disturbingly good at the hardest magic of all; portals. He gently washed Leere's back, making sure to be careful around the scarred areas. "Have you ever thought about this old snake removing that tattoo for good for you, tiny princess?"
“Of it’s magic? Or the ink?”
"Both." Bonegrinder admitted. "It would not be easy to remove the magic, but the ink, perhaps so. Yet, he can still do both if you wish it."
“Oddly enough, I like the ink. Don’t you think it’s rather mysterious?”
"Bonegrinder is not fond of needles, tiny princess, so he looks at it, and thinks 'ouch'."
“Well, you have your pattern in your scales, do you not? Or think about White’s booty sac. It’s art of the body.”
"Patterns he was born with, tiny princess, not obtained by prick-prick-prick." Bonegrinder's finger tapped three times against her back to prove his point. "While tattoos are beautiful, he can do without one." He reached up under his eyes. "These were painful enough. He does not require more."
Leere lightly winced. “I can imagine so. Can’t exactly use those to woo.”
"If one wished to be a shaman, one had to get these." Bonegrinder recalled the day he received the tattoos and his scales actually flexed from the memory in defense. "These allow us to have clearer visions. Bonegrinder thinks that is a load of horseshit, but he had no say."
“What’s the point of a painful magical tattoo you don’t fully understand if you can’t use it to get laid.”
"Well, he supposes it makes him look prettier." Bonegrinder jested in good humor with a flip of hair. "If anything, he supposes that is adequate."
“See. That’s the spirit.” Leere swam out towards the shore. “You think Blue and White are a little too horny for me?”
"Hrm, trick question, tiny princess." Bonegrinder slithered onto the bank and squeezed the water out of his long hair. "Monsters and humans both enjoy sex, but monsters have higher sex drives. Humans, while they may not have as high sex drives as Echidnans, still can go for a bit. Well..." He snickered. "The females can."
“What. No drive left in you?” Leere bent over to pick her towel up, starting to dry her hair.
"Plenty of drive, tiny princess, but he has to be in the mood for it." Bonegrinder chuckled, knowing she was trying to tempt him. "Besides, we need to be ready for Mother's inquiries."
Leere quickly dried herself off, tying the towel around her breasts. “Well now that your best friend is looking her best, I say I’m ready.”
"Heh, the inquiries are not until the morning, tiny princess," Bonegrinder patted her head. "But he appreciates your enthusiasm. Come, he knows you are hungry. He will take you to get food."
~
Malik wrote in a small journal, detailing events of his journey in Omisha. He wondered how worried his wife and Zarazu were. No doubt they had their own fantasies about the country. No doubt Zarazu would be temperamental he didn’t tell her of his departure.
Bonegrinder had gathered lunch for Leere and Malik. It was a basket full of various, edible fruits and freshly killed rabbit meat. He managed to convince the Tlanuhwans to give him some bread and cheese for his guests after trading a few dead rabbits. Once he cooked the meat, he went to wake Leere from her after bath nap. The tiny princess sure did snore loud when she was in a deep slumber.
“I’m... Im up. I’m up.”
The Anagari kept poking her with his tail until she finally moved.
"Come, your breakfast will get cold."
Leere yawned, thankfully fresh from her morning bath. “What you make for us all?”
"He has already hunted. You have bread, cheese, fruit, and meat."
Both Malik and Leere took their seats, starting to eat. Each glance at one another was filled with awkward tension.
Swallowing her food, Leere tried small talk. “You happy having kids?”
“I am.”
“You like... being alive?”
He looked up at his food, stunned she’d even say that. “... Yes.”
"Bonegrinder is surprised that the bossy metal wife is not pregnant yet." The Anagari had an amused grin on his face. "As much as that one jumps on her. He can smell it."
“She nearly died delivering my daughter.”
Leere clenched her fork more tightly from the sheer cold wrath in his voice. It obviously upset him.
"A risk all women take to bring their child into this world." Bonegrinder made sure to place some of the wild fruit on Leere's plate as well as Malik's. Before he thought, he even blurted out. "Even his own wife---his own tribe, the women sometimes had difficulty delivering eggs. Still, he believed you wished for a large family. Do you to wish to try for more?"
“How about you speak to me about your own wife first?” Malik glared at Bonegrinder, knowing full well he wouldn’t.
"No use to speak of her, she is dead." Bonegrinder pulled the meat from over the fire so it would not burn. "She was not like this old snake. She could be killed. He cannot."
“I had a dead wife before Asakonigei. Her name was Cipher. You don’t honour the ones you loved?”
"Then you know it hurts to recall." Bonegrinder was not going to speak much more of it than this. "Each tribe has their ways of remembering loved ones or honoring them. This Anagari prefers to forget."
“I speak from experience. I too, at a time, tried to forget. It was cowardly.”
"Think what you wish." Bonegrinder cut the meat and offered equal portions to Leere and Malik.
“Leere... don’t you think Malus be left forgotten?”
“What makes you suddenly say that?” Leere glanced up from her food to stare at Malik.
“I’ve talked to some locals. They fear the place.”
"Who talked to you?" Bonegrinder was interested who had the balls to speak to Malik. "Let him guess..." He thought for a moment and then sniffed. "Kiume."
“Big spider? Yes.”
"Blue's and White's father." Bonegrinder gave a short explanation to Leere. "Kiume is a prominent leader in the Iktomi and Jisdvna Tribes."
“Oh! It’d be nice to meet his acquaintance. Assuming he wouldn’t want me to be betrothed to his daughters.”
"No, tiny princess, Kiume will not try to marry you off to Blue or White." Bonegrinder assured her with a laugh. "He will, however, probably suggest the best mushrooms for you to smoke."
Leere has to wave her hand at that. “No drugs. Please. My doctor says I should avoid them if I don’t want to slip into bad habits again.”
Malik was slightly impressed the Wild princess had limits. “Wise.”
"... then Bonegrinder will tell him to suggest the best aphrodisiacs." The Anagari had no filter. "For you and that pretty moo-moo girl."
“Sunshine what?” Leere looked up to him, confused.
"Your sunshine." Bonegrinder simply stated. His visions of the future sometimes came out with no reasoning. "Pretty, blonde sunshine." Then, while Malik and Leere were eating, he decided it was time to consume his own meal. He had caught a wild boar and knew that the two were uneasy about eating boar meat thanks to Ganondorf's influence. He consumed the whole boar in one gulp.
Malik rose an eyebrow. “You’re lucky I prefer a horse as a mount...”
"He eats horses too, but prefers boar." Bonegrinder licked the blood off his wide jaws. "More salty."
“That’s disgusting.” Malik frowned heavily, pushing his plate away and putting his helmet on. Leere didn’t have a counter to it. She’d seen acquaintances devoured alive in a similar manner.
"One must eat to live, and one cannot be too picky." Bonegrinder then nearly drooled. "But a prized hunt is a cow. Fatty, delicious, scrumptious cows..."
“Perhaps we should go and meet your mother before you talk of eating humans.”
"Oh, don't flatter yourself, you'd be all gristle." Bonegrinder jested as he waited for Leere and Malik to finish their breakfast before taking the leftovers back into the hut for later. "Are you two ready? Keep in mind, the questions might be insensitive, crude, or downright crass. Mother does not know any 'human' boundaries. Yet, she will know if you are lying."
“You’re rather forward too.” Leere patted his coil. “How bad can it be?”
"Mother is... well... Bonegrinder is forward, but he has learned some human boundaries." The Anagari tried to think of an example. "He would not ask you to repeat about..." He cleared his throat. "Past negative experiences at the hands of others... Mother has no such filter."
Malik nodded with understandment. “Very well. We’ll brace ourselves. Take us to her. We came to learn and establish a good relationship.”
"Please try to remember she is not being 'rude' on purpose. She simply does not know of human customs." Bonegrinder led the pair back to the temple. He had a touch of apprehension in his chest. What would Mother ask? How would she react? If Mother was anything, it was unpredictable. "Do you recall the rules from before?"
“Yes. Do not speak out of term. Be honest.”
"And bow." Bonegrinder could not emphasize that enough. "No arrogance."
“And bow.” Malik repeated.
Once inside the temple, Bonegrinder heard the overwhelming echo of whispers. Mother was never alone. Her most precious ones, her dangerous treasures, always surrounded her, ready and willing to serve. There was Mother, lounging on her throne, her huge body only accommodated by a section of it. The Anagari bowed and kept his gaze downward to the ground.
"Once more before me, Modoc... Leere... and Malik." Mother opened her arms with her palms upturned, in an inquiring motion. "Are you ready to answer my questions?"
Leere and Malik bowed once more, each answering the Queen of Monsters.
“I am.”
“I am.”
"I don't suppose there is a volunteer to go first?" Mother asked with a sly smile. "Know that some questions are simply for my curiosity and others concern my home and my children."
Leere raised her hand. “May I?”
Bonegrinder was actually surprised. He expected Leere to wish to go last. Still, he said nothing.
"Bold, little princess, yet, here is my first question." Mother asked point blank. "Are you wishing to seek an alliance with Mortuus?"
“No... I want to simply see others like me with my own eyes.”
"You do know that the Mortuus mingle with demons and bring hellish creatures forth for the sake of torment." Mother told the princess in a tone of warning. "Bonegrinder assures me you are doing no such black arts. This is your first and only warning. Here in Omisha, we will not tolerate such arts associating with the fiends of hell. Do you understand?"
“I understand.”
"We will tolerate your art of necromancy for now. However, do not disturb our dead." Mother instructed Leere. "The dead have passed over and do not need their rest disturbed." Then she asked her next inquiry. "Leere, from your memories, your early life was less than pleasant and even as you grew, there were hardships to overcome. I saw firsthand how horrid humans can be from your worst memory. Tell me, if those fiends can do that to you... then why do humans deserve an alliance with Omisha?"
“Because if you read my memories, you already know there are kind, tolerant, and passionate humans in this world. Humans worth protecting from the darkest of evils. Be it mankind, monster kind, or the truly demonic.”
"So... you still have faith in humankind, despite what happened to you?" Mother seemed intrigued. "All your pain, your suffering, your torment... is it worth a belief that humans still have some goodness?"
“Yes. Other humans gave me hope. And despite all the pain and hurt this world has given me, I will endure it all to protect the good and innocent.”
"Hrm... I guessed wrong on your answer. I am surprised yet curious to know how humans can cling so desperately to hope when there seems like there is none." Mother then rose from her throne, the multiple legs tapping against the stone ground. "One last question, Leere, and you are not going to like it."
“Then ask away.”
"The man standing beside of you is responsible for slaughtering your guardians..." Mother stole a glance at Malik. "Do you not think him worthy of my trust? You certainly don't trust him."
Malik started at Leere, certain of her answer. She stared long and hard back at him.
“I don’t like him. He’s a ruthless man. Always has been in my eyes. But I trust him with the protection of Hyrule’s interests. And I put my faith in Hyrule as a beacon of hope.”
Mother actually laughed, not of mocking, but of delight. "Oh, you humans are so confusing and yet so determined at the same time." Mother was satisfied with Leere's answer. "Very well, little princess. I accept your truthful answers. Yet, we still have to question the man who was once undead." She approached Malik, halting right in front of the man. "Firstly, I need clarification. Merely a matter of miscommunication. Kiume informed me that you do not like being called the Lorleidian queen's watchdog yet pretty blonde prince told me that was your title. Why?"
“Because a dog is less then a man. The prince views himself as a successor to his father, Ganon. He views those that are not his family as beneath him. I’ve come with terms that the boy most likely does not see me as family himself. But as Ganondorf once did when he too was blinded by his power, this prince is blind as sees me as a less then him. A tool. An attack dog. I am man. I have risen from the ashes of undeath. I refused to be mocked with a lesser title than a man.” He looked up at Mother, but still kept his knelt position. “The prince, for all his intelligence, lacks proper wisdom.”
"Ah... it is an insult." Mother understood now. "The pretty prince is very haughty, yet he is clever as well. One reason I did not eat him when Bonegrinder brought him to me was because of his silk tongue. He has a way with persuasion." She then decided to switch subjects. "Malik, your memories showed years worth of rage, sorrow, and despair. Yet, this started to change when you met the Lorleidian queen, who with her magic, managed to rid you of undead flesh to turn living once more." She bent down to look the Gerudo in the face. "The very man responsible for the loss of her home, the near genocide of her people, who had a part in killing the queen before her, and last but not least, thought her unworthy of the eldest prince so proceeded to ridicule her and beat her. Yet..." She paused. "The queen views you as a friend despite your callous actions toward her, and despite the losses she suffered. If I were in her place, I would have you strung up like a deer carcass, letting your insides spill to the outside, and watch you die slowly due to your crimes." The Mother then asked. "I wish to know... how did you persuade her not to kill you? Why does she not hate you for what you did? Even more..." She scoffed. "Why does your wife not hate you?"
Behind Malik’s helmet was doubt, his mind trying to find an answer. Finally, he gave it. “I truly don’t fully understand why myself. I’m a good commander, a good friend, a good husband, a good father, but I am not a good man.”
Leere glanced to Malik, shocked to hear him admit this.
“I’ve had centuries of slaughtering others. I’ve taken so many lives, ruining many more by effect. I might be forgiven, but my actions will never be forgotten. I don’t wish them to. If someone wishes me dead for my actions, they have the right to take their shot at me. They will fail, but they have my respect. Perhaps Zarazu and Asakongei found forgiveness in their hearts, where most would not. The kindest humans are not to be underestimated. They are not weak by default. Their strength comes from the size of their hearts.”
"To forgive is human they say. Yet, in Omisha, you rarely see such offenses being forgiven." Mother rubbed her chin as Malik spoke. "The Lorleidian queen and your wife must be strong women to overlook such a severe crime to offer you friendship and love. Maybe, there is an underlying reason, yet I cannot expect you to know their minds." She then presented her final question. "And my last inquiry for you, Malik, is not an easy one. Perhaps more so difficult than Leere's."
“Speak your thoughts.”
"You were married once before, to a..." Mother refreshed her memory. "Cipher. Yes. An Iron Knuckle. Strong and kind woman, and an excellent warrior. Soon-to-be mother." She clasped her claws together while gazing at Malik. "You swore to protect her. You failed. You swore to protect the Lorleidian queen. She was poisoned, yet lived at a cost." She then asked. "What makes you so sure that you can protect your kingdom when you could not even protect them?"
Malik practically snapped his neck up to her, finding it very hard to stay still. “My wife died in battle. While her death left a scar in my soul, I have come to terms with the honour in her death. That Zelda died, while I continued on. The snake who poisoned my friend I threw his frozen body down from a tower. I will protect my kingdom from any threat. I will annihilate any danger that comes to Hyrule. And if I fail, then I will avenge it at any price.”
Bonegrinder could sense Malik's anger and knew Mother could as well. He shot the lord a glance, warning him to control his temper. If Mother lashed out at Malik, Bonegrinder would not be able to stop her. While he was powerful in his magic, Mother was the first, the many, the most ancient and deadly Echidnan to ever live.
"A battle led by Ganondorf, if I'm not mistaken. While pregnant too, and yet you did not even try to change her mind when you knew there was danger. Knew how Ganondorf was." Mother ignored his ire, wanting to know more, to understand more. She repeated Cipher's exact words, her magic mimicking the woman's voice. "But what about Ganondorf? He's our king, he's your cousin, he needs us."
Bonegrinder knew right then what Mother was doing. She was testing him.
“You invoke my late wife?” Malik’s voice dropped to levels so livid, Leere and Bonegrinder were unsure if he’d snap and ruin this alliance. “Cipher and I helped Ganondorf temporally stop Teufel. We were a tribe, a family! The last Gerudo of Hyrule alive after the genocide of that abomination of life. We would not abandon Ganondorf without saying our goodbyes at the very least. When the armies of the goddess incarnate came, we fought with honour.”
Bonegrinder stiffened at Malik's voice. He whispered to Leere, not wanting her to get caught in the crossfire in case Malik did indeed lose his temper. "Get behind this old snake. And pray he retains his ire."
"What was more important to you then, Malik? Your wife and unborn child? Your loyalty to Ganondorf?" Mother remarked. "Strange how loyal you are to this cousin of yours, so much that you would willingly allow your lover to step into harm's way? Fighting with honor is one thing, but... dying at the hands of your sworn enemy is another. And yet, you fell right back into Zelda's grasp when Ganondorf married her for the sake of a treaty. It makes me wonder how far you are willing to go for the incarnation of Demise... even at the expense of your now living wife?" Her eyes blinked one by one, contemplating. "What would happen if someone forced your hand? Are you still willing to give up everything for a man who saw you as a weapon? Oh, how did the Lorleidian queen put it?" She used Zarazu's voice. "You are my tool to use as I please."
“If you are so wise, dear mother, then you would have the knowledge to know that Zarazu was the first to accept me as more than a tool. Your sweet little lie of the past does not work on me.” Malik took a few breaths to calm himself. “I am Ganondorf’s servant no longer. I am Zarazu’s servant no longer. I am Lord of Hyrule. I work with the Queen and King to serve my interests. Those interests are the betterment of all Hyrule. Now, may I have a question for you?”
"Hrm... most astonishing." Mother turned her attention to Bonegrinder. "You were correct to place your faith in this one, Modoc. It seems he can control his emotions, unlike previously thought. He is not easily tricked nor fooled, yet perhaps a touch manipulated by the pretty blonde prince." The enormous Echidnan seemed... pleased. "For a man with tales of horror surrounding him, it seems you truly have changed just like Modoc said." She then glanced at Leere. "Perhaps you are right. There are some good humans and change is possible."
However, she was not expecting a question for herself. Arching an eyebrow, the Mother decided she could amuse him. After all, she had just presented a barrage of inquires. "Very well. What is your question, Malik?"
“Is an alliance between Omisha and Hyrule so hard to believe in? Would it not bring about balance in our world?”
"It is not the idea of an alliance that is hard to believe in, Malik, it's the idea of having to believe in humans." Mother admitted honestly to the lord. "You two are prime examples of change, of hope for your kind. Yet, I am not foolish enough to believe all humans can do this, or are willing to accept us." She sighed, thinking with her eyes closed for only a moment. Finally, she spoke. "I will agree to an alliance on certain conditions. However, there is one issue that must be resolved right away before I will even consider it."
“Name your price.”
"We can deal with Al-Daida's slave market ourselves, we can handle skepticism, and we can protect ourselves if need be. However, this is one condition that must remain unchanged." Mother stated clearly and firmly. "We will never lower the barrier for our mountain pass from Omisha to Malus. Do not ask it of us."
“I did not intend to ask such a thing. But consider it done.”
Leere decided to speak up. “But we can still travel there, can we not?”
"There have been a few, not just yourselves, interested in traveling to Malus." Mother used an example. "The youngest of the Dragmire children wished to travel to Malus to find the lost sister tribe to the Gerudo. Yet, my children scared him away from the mountains. Now, the princess wishes to go to find others like her." She then sounded almost a touch... regretful. "Leere, while I understand your desire to seek out others like yourself, I cannot and will not risk my children by lowering the barrier for you to pass through. If you still wish to go, you will have to find another passageway."
“I understand.” Leere felt that travel to Malus might be impossible at this point.
"However, if you still wish to know of your people I will allow you and Malik access to our library." Mother motioned for one of her precious treasures to come forward. The Echidnan was an Anagari like Bonegrinder. "This is Uktena, who records our history. He will show you to the library. While you may read the books, do not remove them from the room. We will have copies made for you to take to Hyrule for the king and queen to read as well." She then stated. "We shall discuss the terms of the alliance with King Covarog and Queen Zarazu when the time is ready. I will decree that none of my children are allowed to harm humans from Hyrule unless in terms of self-defence. Note that I will hold the king and queen responsible for the actions of their people."
“Of course. You’re free to devour any who are foolish to bring harm. I assure you, with the death of the recent traitors to the crown, all of Hyrule has had a bloom of unity amongst the tribes.” Malik gave a bow of respect.
Leere was silent, but bowed as well. A library was a poor substitute for the experience of viewing the real people.
"Ta-ta, Leere and Malik. Do say your goodbyes before you leave." Mother reminded them. "Though enjoy the library as long as you wish."
Once the three of them were inside the library, Bonegrinder nearly melted into the floor. The whole situation was weighing on his mind and he was so relieved that Mother did not consume the princess or the lord. He tried to look at the bright side of the circumstance. An alliance was going to be formed, Malik passed his test without getting killed, Leere answered honestly, he did not get smacked across the room this time... yet, he still was concerned. Leere wished for passage into Malus. Mother would not allow it.
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