if i die tomorrow - permanent hiatus

rider

     When we set out from Death Mountain, with Daruk by my side and my spirits high, I had no idea what lay ahead in the murky waters of the very near future. 

     Often I looked back at this day and remarked upon my stupidity. The way I barely thought at all about what the consequences of my actions were. The way I didn't understand the way the little ripple I had caused in the calm waters had, over the wear of time, become a raging tsunami threatening to lay Hyrule to doom. I never even realized, the ignorant fool I was.

     How I'd been so drunk on the joy of reuniting with those I called "friends" and completely lost sight of what I'd lost, what I would continue to lose. 

     Today was a rude awakening. It was time to focus again on the one goal I had.

     Zora's Domain wasn't far away. Almost as soon as we step out of the Eldin region, we enter the Lanayru area. 

     "I think we can get to Mipha by noon today." I told everyone. "Which will be good because Gerudo Desert is a long ways away."

     "Fair enough." Revali said. "Better to get this over with and start fighting already. I'm getting bored."

     "And we care about whether you're bored or not." I shrugged. "Daruk, you all set? We're not coming back here for a long while."

     "All good, little guy." Daruk grinned. "Got plenty rock roasts for the journey and my Boulder Breaker. That's all I need!"

     "Great. Let's go."

     I wasn't expecting to run into trouble. After all, we'd passed through invisible at Goron City, although it was fairly obvious to the Tera now, that someone powerful enough to destroy all the cameras had been there. However, our face, force, and numbers had been lidded. 

     More likely than not, the Tera didn't know that the two strangers that had popped up in multiple Hylian towns had recruited such dangerous warriors, unless there were direct spies already completely blended into the town's people, which wasn't likely due to the newness of this system. 

     For once Revali proved himself useful. 

     We were brushing the Akkala region on our way down the path to Zora's Domain when we first saw the person galloping on a horse, storming towards us from the general direction of the Akkala Citadel. 

     Over the entire course of this journey, I had barely seen two riders put together, let alone in the wilderness like this all by themselves. 

     And they were coming straight for us. 

     My first immediate thought: enemy.

     "Look!" Naturally, Revali had noticed the person too. "Who's that?"

     "Hide, quick." I dragged them behind a boulder, Daruk crouching down so the massive stone could hide him. I looked out at the person on the gray horse, my eyes narrowed. 

     Had they found us? Were we caught? Was there an ambush waiting for us somewhere?

     All my senses were on hyperdrive. I squinted closer.

     They passed right by us on full gallop, and I felt the sudden wind stroking my cheek, toying with my loose hair. 

     Time slowed down.

     I choked on my breath, the world suddenly fading out of focus. 

     Suddenly I lost my head and something, something told me I had to stop this person right now, right now, or else I would regret it for the rest of my life.