fandomhigh | The History of the Zora; Monday, Fourth Period [08/16].

Sidon had said there would likely be a trip to Zora's Domain itself before the summer was out, and Sidon was a Zora of his word! So after leading his duo of daring historians to the Portalocity office, they would find themselves whisked away to the Ne'ez Yohma Shrine, nestled underneath the royal throne room, and from there, out into the main courtyard of the magnificent Zora's Domain, nestled among the Laraynu Mountains and gleaming in the mid-day sunlight after a light rain seemed to make everything glitter and glow.

Drawing in a deep breath of that frest Laraynu air and letting out with a happy sigh, Sidon turned his bright and eager grin to his students. "And, finally!" he said. "Welcome to Zora's Domain! Please, feel free to look around, visit with my people, and see some of the things we've been talking about in our class for yourselves! Unfortunately, I must ask you to remain here in the Domain itself. The mountains and the waterfalls around here are especially beautiful and enticeing, but there has been an increase of monsters in the area lately, and I should not wish to see any of you put at risk! This also, alas!, means that we will not be able to see the Divine Beast up close and personal, either, but that may be for the best. She has been acting a bit strangely lately. Erratic! And unpredictable! But there is no lack of things to experience here within the safety of the Domain, either! So explore! Ask questions! Find yourself a souvenier or two!

"But," he added, with a lift of his finger as if to seem authoratitive and pre-emptively reprimanding, although the effect was spoiled by his grin, "please meet back here, in the main courtyard, here in front of this state," he gestured to the statue at the center as if it could possibly be missed, "a little later. Because we have one more lesson, and I can think of no better place to teach it than right here! So go explore, ask me questions if you have any, or, better yet!, ask my fellow Zora! They simply adore visitors from Fandom," well, most of them under the age of 200 did, anyway!, "and will be more than happy to help. But, if there are no intitial questions, I'll see the two of you back here in short order!"

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Wetly!

Astrid Magnussen

Belle

Looming over a large lake, surrounded by mountains and waterfalls, Zora's Domain exists on several gracefully built tiers with many winding, swooping walkways interconnecting them, with shallow, ankle-deep water everywhere (there are, however, rainboots available should you wish to protect your shoes). There is an inn that offers waterbeds to visitors passing through, actual beds, though, not like the water bed/ponds for communal sleeping Zora behind the throne room, although you could visit that as well!

Scope out some ware at the Coral Reef general store, or brave dealing with the surly Elder Zora who runs Dento's Blacksmith Shop behind it.

Travel up to the highest teir to the Royal Throne Room to pay respects to the massive, hulking King Dorephan himself if you're feeling to adventurous, but keep in mind, the man is about the size of a two story house and makes Sidon look tiny!

And, of course, there are Zora ~~NPCs~~ citizens and soldiers, young and old alike, everywhere, eager to meet more people from Fandom and help answer any questions they may have! Or just to chat it up a little!

Belle was quite happy to wander off to explore Sidon's home for a while. It was quite beautiful here, and there was so very much to see, even if walking here was a bit splashier than she would normally find ideal.

The store seemed like a fine place to start.

Once they'd gotten some of their exploration out of the way and had gathered back at the main courtyard, the smile Sidon greeted them with was one they might have recognized from last week, which was a pretty good indication that this was not going to be a very happy story. But it was an important story, and the only one that a class about the history of the Zora could truly end on.

"And now," Sidon started, "for our final lesson, although we have only touched on a few of the highlights of my people's grand, rich history, and I can think of no where better to tell this story than right here, in the heart of Zora's Domain, in front of the soul of Zora's Domain."

Here, he gestured to the statue behind him, looming over even him, depicting a small, regal female Zora, etched beautifully in the same shimmering blue rock that made the Domain itself, poised gracefully with a long, ornate spear.

"This," he said, his voice gone quiet, but still carrying easily over the courtyard, as a hush seemed to fall over it; the hatchlings and quite a few of the younger adults stopped going about their business to also pause and listen as their prince wove his tale, "is my sister, Princess Mipha, who was chosen nearly one hundred years ago as a Champion of Hyrule, to pilot the Divine Beast Vah Ruta in our now seemingly endless struggle with the Calamity Ganon. Mipha and Vah Ruta are said to have shared a bond instantaneously; she was overjoyed to be in the presence of such a powerful entity, and deeply honored when given the brave task to pilot it. My dear sister, the dear princess of the realm, who had brought so much light and joy to the people around her, who taught even me," he chuckled a little in fond remembrance, "to swim! If you can even imagine!, knew that the battle would be a difficult one. Each of the Champions knew that there was a chance that they might not succeed, and...alas...they did not."

He was quiet for a long moment; the whole Domain seemed to be holding its breath, interrupted, finally, by a loud, bellowing sound from up the mountains, up by the East Reservoir Lake, a trumpeting and a rumbling of the Divine Beast itself, as if responding to Sidon's words.

"Princess Mipha was a brave beacon to her people in the darkest of times, and still, to this day, remains to be so, to give us the hope that her death will not have been in vain and we shall, one day, rise up and avenge her and defeat the Calamity once and for all. Upon the fall of the Divine Beasts, all of Hyrule mourned, and it was truly a dark and difficult time for us all. I was so young back then that I barely remember, but there are many here today that can still tell you of the despair that fell across the Domain, to the point where it became difficult to even think of our lost Champion. We sought to place her prized weapon, the Lightscale Trident, into the Zora River in her honor, but it was then that a voice came down as if from the very heavens themselves, a soft, sweet, bold voice that we all knew and loved:"

After a small pause, Sidon reverently quoted, "'The Lightscale Trident and I are one... Abandon your grief and know joy once again. Do not cry...just remember.'"

The small crowd of Zora who gathered to listen ducked their heads and another moment passed.

"And so," Sidon concluded, "this memorial was built, the Lightscale Trident was retrieved, and we chose instead of wallowing in our defeat, to look up to her bravery and her sacrifice and to know that we are stronger now because of it. We venerated the trident to remember our brave princess, and now, every year, we celebrate Mipha, as well as her other fallen comrades from around Hyrule, in the Champions Festival, where we rememember, we despair, but, most importantly, we hope."

He finished with giving his two students a soft but grateful smile.

"I cannot thank the two of you enough," he said, and though his voice was soft, it was making up for it with the typical uninhibited outpouring of Sidon-sized sincerity, "for allowing me to share with you the history of my people. Perhaps soon, we shall be able to add the next chapter to it, and it will be far brighter than this last one."

Belle knew something of barely remembering the loss of a loved one. She remembered her mother, of course, but not much of what had happened that day.

"Thank you," she said softly. "For sharing her, and all the rest of this, with us."

There is a little time after the story if the students wanted to hang around before they headed back, just enough for him to work up his usual enthusiasm before they do. But for now, he was uncharacteristically quiet and reflective, but he is definitely there.

Edited 2021-08-16 09:44 (UTC)