An Ancient Bond.

Interlude

   "One hundred and nineteen shrines." Sheik's voice was a rough whisper beside him, the sound of it filled with irritation. He knew that this was rather irritating, it was annoying to him too, but the shrines were important for their progress. Sheik wanted to be prepared for the Calamity and this was the best way that he thought to be prepared. Continuing on and hunting down the shrines so he could offer them to Hylia and boost his body. At least that was what he seemed to do with them, Sheik didn't even bat an eye at him when he prayed to the statues and asked for more durability.

Then again, he had been a Sage.

"Can I ask a question?" He ponders softly, turning his head to the side to look at Sheik. He was still poking at the tablet in his hands, partly distracted from what Link was saying, but he gave a nod of his head to tell him that he had been heard and he was patiently waiting for whatever it was that Link wanted to ask. Sheik was always good at listening to him and a small smile plays on his lips as he watches the other. "How many Goddesses are there?"

Seeing Sheik fall into the role of the Sheikah tribe leader was rather interesting. It wasn't often he got a visual of the person that his mother raised him to be, stuffed down with lessons and a fountain of knowledge. His hands only paused briefly on the tablet before he started to speak, as if he was reading from a book and he probably was. It wouldn't surprise Link if this was a story he read several times over and over. "Before time began and before spirits and life existed, the universe was in chaos. The three Golden Goddesses descended upon the chaos and began the creation of the world, each of them creating a different facet of the realm. Din created the material realm, Nayru gave the realm of law and order, and Farore created all life forms that would follow the said order."

So three. He said Golden Goddesses. "With their labors completed, the Goddesses departed for the heavens, but not before leaving behind the Triforce, three sacred golden triangles representing a small portion of the essence of the goddesses." He picked his head up from the tablet and met Link's gaze. "Because the power of the Triforce was so great, they entrusted the sacred relic to the careful hands of the goddess Hylia so that she could protect it from those who would misuse its almighty power."

He blinked and shifted a bit where they were seated, leaning closer to Sheik. "If the Sacred Realm is the resting place of the Triforce, why do I have a piece of it in me?"

"To protect it." Sheik answered instantly, leaning closer to Link and taking his left hand. He held it in his own, stroking the back of it with his bandaged fingers. "The Triforce of Courage is the representation of Farore. It does not give you courage, that will never be the intention behind it. All it simply means is that you are Farore's chosen hero to help defend Hyrule, the land that the Golden Goddesses created. It means you are the Hero of our Time, and that you'll save us." He leaned back and let go of Link's hand. "No pressure, I'm just repeating a legend to you."

He knows how Link gets when it comes to failure and victory, when it comes to that crushing weight that everyone is relying on him. He took a deep breath and nodded his head, trying to relax and think of a way for him to distract himself. "So, do you know where we are now?" He asks, watching him.

Sheik gave a nod of his head and effortlessly rolled with it, knowing he needed a change of topic before his mind got ahead of him. Not that he was panicking, not yet anyway. "We're near South Tabantha Snowfield," which he did know since they teleported here from the last shrine, "and this place specifically is called the Forgotten Temple on the map." He nodded to let Sheik know he was paying attention. Sheik tapped something on the tablet and turned it to show Link briefly so he got a visual view of where they were. He turned it back around and settled it in his lap. "It seems like it was an old large temple of worship for the Goddess Hylia. Our last shrine according to the tower appears to be inside."