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The mountain air was thin and bitingly cold. Hordak stopped to catch his breath, silently cursing his exhaustion. He gazed up at the sky, still dark and spangled with stars, and wondered how much time he had before dawn. If he hadn’t been led on such a meandering trail, he would have reached the summit by now. His target was clearly a master of evasion.
Steeling himself, Hordak continued on, keeping to the darker shadows of the rocks. Two long weeks of tracking and he was finally closing in. This Sheikah researcher had caused no end of trouble to the Yiga, but after tonight, she would no longer be a threat.
Your days of running are over. It was foolish of her to travel alone. Surely she knew there was a target on her back. Perhaps she thought herself strong enough to face the Yiga. She had miscalculated.
Hordak came to a stop directly below the summit. The sky was growing lighter now, heralding the hour just before dawn. He was tense with anticipation, trying to ignore the ache in his limbs, how his hands shook as they gripped the rocks. It was still so hard to breathe. Hordak was in no state to face a direct confrontation, but if he played his hand right, there would be no struggle.
Drawing a deep breath, he slowly crept forward to crest the summit. His keen eyes took in the details of her camp at a glance. A mess of equipment, the remains of a cookfire, an empty bedroll. He shrank back into the shadows, nearly cursing aloud.
Where is she?
Hordak cast his eyes about the summit. Encircled by the rocks, the clearing sloped gently inward, gathering rainwater into a shallow pool at the center. The pool was surrounded by short grass swaying gently in the wind. There was nowhere for her to hide.
Movement caught his eye across the pool. There was his target. Entrapta.
She looked smaller than the description suggested, but there was no doubt in Hordak’s mind. Her hair gave her away. Entrapta knelt at the edge of the pool, one of her absurdly large ponytails trailing in the water.
Hordak glanced from Entrapta to the remains of her camp. Her supplies were not within easy reach. He could still take her by surprise. Blending with the deep shadows between the rocks, he edged around the clearing toward her, always keeping Entrapta in sight. Finding her awake before dawn was an inconvenience, but the situation was not entirely unsalvageable. Her guard was down. At this distance, he could hear her muttering to herself, though he could not make out the words. Careless…
Entrapta glanced up. Instinctively Hordak stilled, his eyes narrowing to two red slits behind his mask. She could not possibly see him. His uniform blended perfectly with the shadows, and her eyes were not specialized to the dark, as his were. Yet Entrapta continued to stare in his direction, pinning him in place. Her eyes were covered by a pair of large goggles. It gave her quite a comical appearance. He would have found it amusing if the situation wasn’t so tenuous.
“Hi there!” she called loudly.
Hordak flinched. How could she--? His cover was gone, and now he was trapped. Entrapta was still too far away. If he moved to attack, she would be ready for him, and if he fled… Hordak clenched his shaking fists. He would not get far. If she could see him at this distance, he would be an easy target running down the mountain.
“I didn’t realize anyone else was here,” Entrapta said, getting to her feet. “Are you another researcher?”
He took a steadying breath. She did not know who he was or why he was here. Hordak would simply have to bluff his way through it. “Yes,” he replied, mirroring her gesture and standing to his full height.
She grinned “Great! I always thought it made sense for the Yiga to have researchers too. What are you here to study?”
She knows. Of course she does... This mission was growing worse by the moment. He would not make it out alive. Entrapta was coming around the pool toward him. Hordak could see no weapon in her hand, but that meant nothing. Was she a warrior as well as a researcher? It was always a possibility with Sheikah. His hand gripped the hilt of his sickle. Very well. I will make sure I do not die alone.
“I’m sorry,” she said suddenly, coming to a stop. “That was rude of me to pry. It’s probably a secret.”
He nodded tensely.
“Well, anyway, I came here to test a flight apparatus.” Entrapta gestured toward the mess of supplies scattered by her bedroll. “Once the sun is up, I’ll give it a launch! Would you like to stay and see it?”
Wary of a trap, Hordak did not take his eyes off her. “I suppose so.”
“You could muster a bit more enthusiasm,” she remarked. “The power of flight is a big deal for those of us who aren’t Rito. I don’t think you’re a Rito, though. A beak wouldn’t fit under that mask. Are there any Rito in the Yiga?”
She is quite a chatty one. He sighed infinitesimally. “No.”
“Then you might want to take more interest in flight. Think of the amazing things you could do with your own wings!”
She did have a point. Hordak thought of all the times the Alliance had easily outmaneuvered them. Hyrule had the advantage of the Rito in the sky and the Zora in the water. All the Yiga had to match was dark magic, and there were precious few practitioners. Perhaps he would observe what Entrapta was doing to see if he could glean anything of value.
Entrapta had already turned away from him, returning to her supplies. She packed away most of her belongings and then set about rearranging what Hordak had previously thought was a crumpled sack. Now he could see it was some sort of glider. Properly assembled, the fabric of the wings was drawn tightly over the frame, forming a single broad silhouette.
“This is my third model,” Entrapta explained as she worked. “The first one didn’t work at all, and the second was… nearly a success. It was flying fine until a gust hit it from the wrong direction. That was quite a fall! I landed in a tree. Didn’t break too many bones, but the glider was completely shredded. Unfortunate, really…”
Hordak watched her silently, learning what he could of her design. She was making no effort to hide her work from him. On the contrary, she seemed proud to show it off.
“Done!” Entrapta stood back up, lifting the glider over her head. “Now I just need to get a bearing on the wind. Hold this a moment.”
Entrapta handed Hordak the glider, turning to gather her belongings from the ground. Immediately Hordak felt the breeze tug against the wings of the glider. He clutched it tightly, startled by the strength of the pull. Adjusting the angle, he found if the wind didn’t have a chance to gather beneath the fabric, the glider no longer threatened to slide from his grip. Meanwhile, Entrapta climbed up onto one of the rocks and peered out toward the brightening horizon.
She had taken off her goggles, allowing Hordak to see her features clearly for the first time. Her large eyes and ready smile made her look younger than he first supposed. He decided she had a pleasant face, for a Hylian.
Entrapta was smiling wistfully, her crimson eyes bright. “You should come up here,” she said. “The view is great!”
Hordak walked over to stand beside her, still holding the glider. He marveled at how at ease Entrapta was around him. Not only had she exposed her back to him multiple times, but now she was leaving him unattended with her latest experiment. It would not take much to sabotage the glider, leaving her to fall to her death. Yet the thought had no appeal to him. Why was that? She will check her experiment before takeoff, he rationalized. There is no point. That must be why –
“It’s not often you get to greet the dawn from the top of a mountain,” she said brightly. “Pretty incredible, don’t you think?”
Hordak turned to gaze at the lavender sky. His eyes settled on the line of the horizon where the stars had already begun to fade away. It was during these times of transition between light and shadow he felt most alone. These were the times he thought of his home, and all the pain, longing, and helpless anger came rushing back.
“Each dawn is the same as the last,” he replied bitterly.
Entrapta shook her head. “I don’t think they’re ever quite the same. The clouds are different, for one thing, and the wind, and where you’re standing when the sun comes up. I’ve never been on this mountain before, so all this,” she gestured outward at the sprawling view below the mountain, “This is something new!”
She had a point. Hordak had never been to this mountain either, nor had he spent the first hours of dawn with a companion of any sort. He tended to keep to himself, especially in the twilight hours.
Hopping back onto the ground, Entrapta took hold of the glider, and Hordak let her take it. “It’s nice to have someone here with me,” she said. “Thanks for staying around!”
Hordak glanced at her oddly, not knowing what to say. He watched as Entrapta took her glider across the summit to the other side of the water. Belatedly, he realized she was about to launch. Fool! You are allowing her to distract you.
Even as he berated himself, Hordak knew it was too late. The hard edge of purpose he had when he came here was now gone. He had already failed. Somehow the realization did not disturb him.
When Hordak caught up to her again, Entrapta looked at him with a humorous smile. “There’s a legend about this place,” she said. “Do you know it?”
He shook his head.
“It’s called Lover’s Pond.” Entrapta indicated the pool of water behind them with her thumb. “The pond is shaped like a heart. They say if you travel here, you’ll meet your true love across the pond.”
Hordak frowned, turning to peer at the water. Under the brightening sky, he could see it was indeed shaped like a perfectly symmetrical heart. A strange shiver went through him, but he immediately banished the feeling. “Ridiculous,” he growled.
“It does sound a little ridiculous,” she agreed, “but so romantic! I never thought it was a real place. I only climbed up here to have a high place to test my glider, but what a discovery! I took a sample of the water for later analysis. Maybe there is something special about it… I’ve analyzed water from the Sacred Springs before. Who knew water could hold so much magic?”
“This pond is not a sacred site,” Hordak replied firmly. “It was clearly shaped by mortal hands.”
Entrapta looked thoughtful. “Maybe. That doesn't mean there couldn’t be magic in it! The air does feel different up here somehow. Can you feel it?”
“Yes…” Now she mentioned it, Hordak did feel a difference in the air. It hovered just at the edge of his senses. There was some strange power at work here. Normally such a discovery would frighten him, but he felt only a small twinge of fear before a sense of calm stole over him again. Perhaps this mysterious force was what had sapped his will. Perhaps in this place, no blood could be shed.
“I’m Entrapta, by the way,” she said suddenly. “All this time I never asked your name. I always seem to forget introductions.” Laughing, she tilted her head. “Can you tell me, or is that a secret too?”
He supposed there was no harm in it. “Hordak.”
“Hordak? That’s a nice name. Actually, I think I’ve heard of you before… Oh!” Entrapta blinked at him with wide eyes. “Bow warned me about you. You’re the one the Yiga sent to kill me.”
Hordak stared at her in baffled shock. There was no accusation in her tone, no fear, only a frank statement of fact. He knew he should deny it, but there really wasn’t any use. She was in a perfect position to flee, and he would not stop her.
Entrapta smiled at him, a gesture so unexpected Hordak thought he must be imagining it. “Thanks for not trying that,” she said. “It was nice meeting you, Hordak!”
With that, Entrapta launched herself into the open. Lifted by the wind, she flew off into the sky, her wild laughter echoing through the morning air. Hordak watched her glide away, a strange feeling growing inside him. It was not until he was halfway down the mountain that he realized what it was. Entrapta had looked at him with no fear or hatred, and for the first time since being stranded in this twice-cursed realm, Hordak did not feel alone. He wanted to go after her. Not for the sake of his mission, but for the sake of seeing her again, listening to her talk to him.
This is absurd! Hordak shook his head as if that would clear away such unwanted thoughts. What is happening to me? It must be something about that strange place.
He glanced up at the mountaintop, and the memory of Entrapta looking up at him from across the pond entered his thoughts. Hordak looked away sharply, shaking his head again. These feelings will pass soon enough. I need to keep moving.
In the distance, the sun was almost ready to peer over the horizon. Hordak could still see Entrapta, a tiny speck against the rosy dawn. It would likely take weeks to catch up with her again. Surely that was enough time for whatever enchantments the mountain placed upon him to wear off. For now, he allowed himself a small moment of peace, imagining her joy as she soared into the dawn on the wings she made with her own two hands.