Kala listens to Mipha as she looks to her skin. It glows again momentarily then fades as her attention shifts to Mipha.

“My spear? Oh yes, one moment.” She stands and steps into the hallway, then returns holding her spear with both hands.

“Do you suppose I should try channeling the energy into this object?” She stares at her weapon confused.

Kayo has a far away look thinking about what Link and Irina are telling him, “Three beautiful… kind… princesses. You are truly blessed by the goddesses.”

Irina hmms, “Well, there is Princess Mipha, her older sister, Princess Ruto… who is also beautiful and kind, and their younger brother Sidon. I think you would love to meet all three. And their people, of course.” She looks at Link.

Mipha nods. "Yes, try channeling it into the spear. Some objects have the ability to work with or amplify your abilities. I am wondering if this is the case with your weapon."

Link still has a bit of a mischievous grin on his face but he tries to hide it when he is called, “Yes, you should definitely meet them all sometime. The domain that they inhabit is arguably the most beautiful part of Hyrule.”

Irina notices the grin and playfully pokes him, as if asking him to behave, but out of Kayo’s sight.

Kala shows Mipha the spear. On the surface, it looks like a regular spear but the craftsmanship is ancient and of a very high quality. It is made of the ivory of some creature, perhaps the bone of some sea beast, with a steel center inlaid into the center shaft. “My grandmother gave this to me. This is the handiwork of our ancestors.”

She closes her eyes and points the spear away from Mipha, then takes a deep breath. A few moments later her skin starts to glow again and so does the tip of the spear. After a bit the tip pops with a small discharge and Kala opens her eyes a bit surprised.

Kayo takes another sip from his glass which appears to have had some bokowine. He sits back and crosses his arms, “Thank you. Your home sounds lovely. I should very much like to visit someday.”

Irina smiles brightly and nods. “We would love to have you. Hopefully, everything will be solved soon in Hyrule and you will get to visit.” She looks in the direction of the room where Princess Mipha is, thoughtful.

Mipha was excited! "I think we might have found it! Admittedly, it was only a hunch, but I think we have made a discovery!" She hurried over to Kala and stood side by side with her, nearly bumping arms with how close she was. This spear was a partner!

"Your grandmother had sharp senses. Not only was this an heirloom, it is an amplifier. A companion to your gift! That energy that I felt earlier can channel through people and objects. This is fascinating!"

Kala grips the spear firmly and focuses on it. The tip begins to spark again for a few moments. Her smile almost turns into tears. "I believe you are right. She always said that she saw some great potential in me. She said that someday I would find it."

She sets the spear down and says with a sigh, "Thank you, Mipha. I'll admit when I first saw you and your friends, I had my doubts about what your presence would bring here. But now I see that it was all destiny."

Link sees flashes of light and hears pops of energy. He raises an eyebrow, and looks as if he wants to check on them, but doesn't hear anything out of the ordinary so he doesn't move.

Irina did not notice the sparks. She was holding her glass on the table and smiling around the room and the group, as if she didn't have a single worry in life.

Mipha extended her hand to place on Kala's shoulder. "I didn't know what this trip of ours held here. Without yours and your brother's help, we might never have managed to find what we were looking for. I sincerely believe that our destiny was to find you. The sword was our goal, but it appears you were our mission. What good is the light if it's only contained within the blade?" She questioned, though it was only rhetorical.

"And now that your gift has been awakened, it will serve you and others greatly," she smiles warmly. "I think now would be a good time to return to the others. I can't recall if you've eaten yet or not, but...I wouldn't mind enjoying another bite to eat. I am a bit peckish at the moment."

Kala smiles warmly to Mipha, just watching her for a few moments. She finally says, “We will always remember the impact you made here. Thank you again… and yes, let's eat.” She rises enthusiastically. “After all, this may be one of the last times I get to enjoy Fred’s cooking for a while.”

Kagetora blinks, momentarily taken aback by the guard's increasingly frantic report. He opens his mouth to respond, then closes it again, apparently unsure where to begin. "...I see." He pauses for a moment. "Thank you for your report. Please continue to keep the villagers safe."

He gives the guard a respectful nod before returning to Sheik, his expression growing serious. "It seems the situation is worse than we anticipated. The guards are struggling to contain the fog, and apparently, a group that ventured into the Shadow Temple has not returned."

Sheik anticipated as much with regard to the fog, but his eyes intensified into a pained glare regarding the news of the Shadow Temple. "I came here hoping to find something that may help us with this fog issue. That is our priority. I am aware of the group that entered the Shadow Temple, but...it is greatly concerning they have not returned."

He continued up and towards Impa's home where he entered without knocking, likely to the dismay of any occupants inside. Immediately heading towards a bookshelf, he starts searching through them for information. "This shelf may contain a more compact collection of books that may prove useful to our search. There's far too many at the castle to look into and this narrow selection should be a good starting point. If Lady Impa keeps it, I imagine it has importance."

Kagetora follows Sheik into Impa's home, looking briefly surprised at her rather unceremonious entrance, but closes the door behind them. "Understood. Let's focus on that priority, then."

He approaches the bookshelves, examining the titles with interest. "I am not particularly knowledgeable about dark magic, but perhaps I can help narrow down the search. Is there anything specific you would like me to look for, or would you prefer if I kept watch at the door?"

As he waits for her response, he casts a brief glance around the room, remaining vigilant even in the apparent safety of Impa's home.

The few villagers that were in here didn't know what to expect of the sudden entrance, so some retreated away from the door while others moved forward with the intent to defend.

"You two lost?"

Sheik searched the shelves, "No, no need to keep watch at the door, but you can keep watch on the ones addressing us," Sheik states in a slightly distracted manner. Finding interest in one book, he grabs it and pulls it from its place on the shelf to flip through it quickly to find anything that stands out. When nothing does, he replaces it back on the shelf.

Kagetora nods to Sheik before looking momentarily startled by the villagers' reaction, then quickly steps forward while raising a hand reassuringly. "Our apologies. We mean no harm." He offers them a respectful bow. "We have come to investigate the disturbances affecting the kingdom and hoped to consult Lady Impa's library."

He glances briefly toward Sheik, already occupied with the bookshelves, before turning back to the villagers with an apologetic smile. "I apologize for our sudden entrance. We did not mean to alarm anyone."

"Who are you supposed to be with? How do we know you're not here to cause any trouble? We didn't hear any news about anyone coming to look into this. We've got poes running around out there, mucking about! They mostly stick to the graveyard, but the others bother us here at night!" The defensive villagers continue to press the duo.

Kagetora maintains his calm demeanor. "Your concerns are understandable, especially under the circumstances." He offers another reassuring smile. "My name is Kagetora, and I serve in the Hyrule Royal Guard. My companion and I have been investigating the disturbances throughout Hyrule, including the strange fog that appeared in Castle Town."

He pauses, glancing toward Sheik before continuing. "I assure you, we have no intention of causing trouble. We only wish to find a way to help." He then turns to the villagers. "You mentioned Poes bothering the village at night. Have there been more of them than usual?"

Sheik continues rummaging trough the shelf while Kagetora is left to defend their collective honor. He thinks to help out a bit by saying, "I am Sheik, travel companion to this Royal Guard while we investigate these disturbances." He really said nothing different in terms of what's already been shared.

"I am a Sheikah, much like Lady Impa is, thus why we're here." Maybe that might help a bit. He never turns to directly address the crowd, but he is speaking to them.

The villagers were still on edge, but the longer they stayed like this, the easier it was for them to drop their guard. "Yes, so many more poes around! Can't tell you how many, just know it's more and every so often, they're inclined to come into the village. I fear more of them might start working their way down here."

The others who were further back added to this point. "We've nver seen this many before. Who's to say something isn't happening in the graveyard? With more of them up there, there's bound to be something bad going on!"

With every new mention of the word "poes," Kagetora's face grows a little paler. The rest of the words just fade in the air, although he tries his best to follow.

"P-Poes...?" He repeats quietly. Even more? Wandering into the village? From the graveyard?!

He swallows, straightening his posture as he makes a determined effort to regain his composure. "I... see. Thank you for the information. We will certainly take that into consideration."

He glances toward Sheik, silently hoping he has found something useful among the bookshelves. Preferably something that doesn't involve visiting the graveyard.

Sheik has found nothing that doesn't involve going to the graveyard.

"We'll remain vigilant regarding the threat of the poes. It's our intention to find out what is causing their increased frequency and it is our duty to ensure that they don't impact you all any further." He, at the very least, turns to the villagers and bows to them. "You have my word."

With that, he resumed his search and found a couple books on poes. Pulling them from the shelf, he skimmed through one and then the other to determine they might be of use. "We have a starting point with these," he notes to Kagetora. "Let's take them and be on our way. We're to remain in Kakariko until nightfall."

This whole thing just went from defensive to just plain odd in the time they were all speaking, but one thing was clear. If they really intended to do something nefarious, they figured it would've happened by now. The two that were protecting the others stood down and went back to their other tasks, muttering amongst themselves about the Sheikah and the Royal Guard.

_"He got really pale at the mention of poes. Thought he was going to turn into one himself..."_

_"Gods, I hope not. We don't need another running around here!"_

Kagetora takes a few seconds to process the plan he has just heard before actually replying. Nightfall. In a village full of Poes. He swallows hard, trying not to let his growing apprehension show.

"Of course." He finally responds, straightening his posture and offering to carry the books.

He gives the villagers a respectful nod before following Sheik toward the exit, doing his best to maintain his usual calm demeanor. Whatever awaits them tonight, he has a duty to fulfill. Even if he'd much rather be somewhere else.

Sheik exits out of the home, expecting Kagetora to follow. He's already begun looking through the books again to see what could be done about the poe threat. The current book inforrms of the different kinds of poes an common places they can be found, but there is something that sticks out as peculiar about them. "It appears we're familiar with poes and big poes, but it appears there are more than we initially thought existed."

He flips through the pages, continuing to skim the contents of the book carefully. "Some can apparently be connected to curses. I think that might be worth looking into."

"She got worn out over the years, but my mother always had the patience to mend it. Haha, you can still hear the rattle inside." Salvatore holds the toy close to Kanali’s ear so he can hear the faint tinkling sound, muffled by layer upon layer of fabric.

Kanali's beak smiles broadly when he hears the rattle. “It is an honor to meet you, Oppi. You must be very brave to have been on so many adventures. I am glad we were able to share this one.”

"And what a great adventure!"
Salvatore smiles as he packs everything into his bag. "And do you have a story to tell?"

Kanali scratches the back of his neck with his wing. He sits down next to Salvatore and shows his messenger bag. “To be honest, until recently, I hadn't ventured far from the Hebra valley in Hyrule. My uncle got me a job as a mail carrier and now I feel like I am exploring everywhere, including this fascinating place.” He looks around and up at the tree tops. “I never knew I would be a traveler but I quite enjoy seeing mew places and meeting interesting people.”

Salvatore smiles at Kanali. "Wow, you must have traveled a lot and seen wonderful places. I've never been to the Hebra Valley. What's it like?"

Kanali pulls out a map from his bag and opens it. He shows it to Salvatore and points to mountains. “It's very beautiful, but it can be difficult to get around. There are many hidden secrets all around.”

Salvatore looks at the map with interest and fascination, observing the places Kanali is pointing out. "Wow, I've never been this far from Hateno Village."

Then Salvatore looks around. "Before today ha ha" he laughs, resting a hand behind his neck.

Kanali chuckles at the last comment. “This is definitely not a part that is on my map. I have no clue where I am… but speaking of which, shouldn't we be getting back now? I think I can remember more or less how I got here.”

I arrive in the castle town square with no idea where I am.

Kanali is sitting with Salvatore and they are discussing their return to Hyrule. He looks up at the stranger, nervous at first, but then calm when he realizes he isn't one of the Gorman brothers that they had run into earlier. He waves with his wing to the stranger, "Hello there."

Exhausted, Salvatore was dozing off when he snapped back to alertness upon hearing Kanali’s ringing voice: "Huh? Eh?" He turned toward Eugene, fearing it might be one of the Gorman brothers and jumping to his feet, but he quickly calmed down and sat back down.

Kanali eyes the stranger uneasily. He stands up and says to Salvatore, “Perhaps we should go now before we get into further trouble.” He offers his wing to his companion. “To Hyrule?”

"You're absolutely right,"
Says Salvatore, getting back up.
"We've rested enough, and the Gorman Brothers might still be looking for us."
Before setting off, he looks at Clock Town and adjusts the bag on his back.

Kanali leads Salvatore down a path into the forest. It's dark now but he seems to know where he is going. After a while he points to some thick shrubs that grow on the side of the road.

“It's through here. Stay close.” He steps inside some prickly branches and then finds a stone wall. He feels around and finds a small crack. “Just squeeze through here and you will see. It's the strangest thing.”

He disappears into the crack into a dark cave.