Lips press to a line, he dared not comment on the unwillingness of their leader to part ways with the seer. Words laced with many emotions, those meant to stay sealed and hidden away behind their masks. There was nothing he could do to spare Sooga the shame and the bile of these thoughts at war. A guillotine hung over them all ever since Astor had arrived and ignoring that wasn’t something they couldn’t afford anymore. Hairs on their neck stood up in anticipation of some end; whether it was by the Hylian forces, the prophet or maybe even Ganon himself, who’d know? The die on their fates would be cast soon.
Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale deeper. He left his leader the silence to wallow in; they both needed it. He had averted his eyes, directed them at the shadows dancing on the walls. A small flame, it’s much like their hopes this moment and those the right hand placed in his finding. Iza looked back at him. A nod, he stood up and produced a scroll with an elaborate map. “These are his movements.” He holds the paper in one hand, traces ancient runes with the other. Lines in red color begin filling the map and signifying the routes, but many of them don’t connect with another. “His ill-will is unbound by any and all restraints; perhaps a gift of the Calamity’s making. The portals he travels through are of a different making than our hallowed techniques. And the final time he was in the sight of the inverted eye was at the Breach of Demise. There is a pattern to his madness: look.”
Lines in a dimmer hue outlined the complete Triforce over the map of Hyrule. The visited points marked their hideout and the Korok Forest, as well as the interior parts. Only one outline missed, the one connecting courage to wisdom’s Triforce. “Markings of a ritual. Should our calculations stand correct, his next goal where the final lines meet is at the Hateno’s fortress. We could intercept him at Hyrule field.” Iza proposed in a quiet voice, but the reveal of his findings were at odds with the task of surveillance. If his hypothesis was correct, there wasn’t time left to idle before the cursed prophet would do something.
the map unfurled, and sooga leaned in, quick to begin studying the routes iza had gone through the efforts of tracking.
his brow furrowed.
‘ such a specific pattern... ‘
was there reason to the routes astor followed?
had he planned ahead of time to navigate such avenues, for there was some tying to the calamity that tracing such a pattern would fulfill, or was it another piece of strange destiny?
either way, it mattered little.
what was to be considered was the fact they could trace it.
but just as much was the consideration that it was a trap.
an intentional ploy to lure in watching eyes to reveal themselves.
‘ ... we haven’t much other choice. ‘
a sigh was stifled by sooga’s mask, righting himself as he turned back away, pacing slow as he considered what was to come next.
to act without master kohga’s direct permission would be considered treasonous, and he would have far more to worry than their mysteriously dwindling ranks, but, it was likewise in the best interest of the yiga.
paranoid and worried as kohga was of slighting ganon in some manner and seeing it come to bite them, it was an inevitability.
there was no appeasing as starved of an evil as ganon that devoured all in its path.
‘ i... will speak with master kohga. ‘
on all other subjects was he listened to.
the respect between them was deep, and sooga did not take lightly his role as kohga’s most trusted (and only) advisor, and he so hoped that their master would thusly not ever think he would lead them astray.
to approach him on such a dire subject, one that would challenge their entire way of life, was not something he would do casually, nor without considerable thought---but would kohga have the ability to see beyond his mounting terror to understand they needed to seize their fate now, rather than falling to the hand of darkness?
sooga’s eyes fluttered shut, mentally fortifying himself for what was to come.
‘ either way, we will move at once to try and stop the cursed prophet before he may enact the next stage of his plan. thank you, iza, for these findings. you have done well. ‘