-Kanyou, Country of Qin-

Fae do not sleep. That is a fact. That is also a very annoying fact when you have to stay up for half a day because the mortal you guard spends it in an unconscious state; and leaving you with nothing to do but sit in one room and wait and watch.

And be bored out of your mind.

Left with nothing to do, Tetsu, sat on Zelda's desk and rocked her little feet back and forth. Her faint glow was the only source of light in the room, as the moon had disappeared behind thick clouds. There were faint steps outside the room as guards and servants made their nightly service, but no one touched the heavy doors of the heir's room in what was formerly the king's room. In the room the time was echoed by the steady breathing of Zelda and her nightly attendant.

Time flew by ever so slowly. Tetsu sighed and leaned back. Allowing herself to sink, she merged into the wooden desk. Her mind took shape with the desk so it became another limb to her as much as her arms or legs. She stopped feeling the wind and instead felt the carven life of the wooden construct. She became the desk. Diving ever further, Tetsu moved through its legs into the floor. Her mind expanded even further from there to encompass the king's quarter of the palace. She felt the boots of the guards step on her, the lighter shoes and sandals of the servants, and one cloth set of feet.

Suddenly curious, Tetsu swam to where the cloth feet were. She snuck her face up from the surface. The feet belonged to a man who was in the king's library. A scribe perhaps? She smiled mischievously. Tetsu just adored messing with the servants.

She swam through the floor a bit closer, and as she neared she felt scrolls fall onto her. Some scribe he was, the man had no care for the items kept here. She'd show him.

Lowering herself like a cat, she pounced. She leapt into the air behind his head. She no longer was one with the wood, but one with the wind. With a thought she blew a gust of wind in his face. Just a little gust, just enough to be spooky.

Only rather than panic or scream, the man spun in the blink of an eye and grabbed her in his fist.

She was no longer one with the wind, but one with his flesh. She merged with his flesh, with his soul, with his mind. Therein lied the problem with Fae. They were born to merge with the world, to become a part of whatever they touched so they could mold it however they wanted. They were the firstborn. Other beings of flesh and soul came later... so Farore did not take into account flesh and soul when she made the Fae. The two were not exactly compatible... because in truth they were too compatible in ways even though they were not designed to be.

Tetsu screamed as she felt her essence being torn and attacked by the soul of the man. Her soul touched his soul. His flesh became her flesh. His mind became her mind. The two became bonded as glue, and out of reflex the two resisted only to tear each other in doing so.

Zant fell to his knees and screamed in equal agony. He had no idea the Fae was there, but when she spooked him his training took over and he reacted out of reflex. He felt his body go numb as it was no longer just his own, his mouth screamed in a voice no longer his, he felt his soul be assaulted, and his mind...

-Before-

Getting into Chancellor Ryo's army at night was no small thing. Zant had to use every bit of skill he had to make his way in. At first he joined pretending to be any other soldier, but then he was barred from nearing the inner tents of the army at night due to his made up rank. Zant could assume the role of an officer, but he couldn't take the chance. Ryo was meticulous and had a perfect memory. He might know all of his officers either by name or face with nothing more than a glance.

However there was a saying: There was no place a shadow could not reach, for where there is light, there is shadow illuminated. Zant was a Sheikah. There was no place he could not reach.

Zant entered as smoothly as a shadow into Ryo's tent. Chancellor Ryo had his back turned sitting in a chair reading scrolls, checking maps, and writing. Zant didn't make a sound as he pulled out his twin scimitars and approached the chancellor.

"Who sent you?" Ryo suddenly asked.

Zant did not stumble or be startled, but he did hesitate. Ryo continued writing as if there wasn't an assassin behind him.

"It would appear I have lost. I concede." Ryo said. "You are here to take my life, and if there was anything I respect it is a working man. So I will not stop you. Only... I cannot help but wonder who sent you. You see, I am a man of many doubts. I'm a bit of a cynic like that. Was it Chancellor Ketsu? No... the man acts too desperate to have sent an assassin. And if Ketsu didn't do it... then that rules out Prince Kyou."

Zant approached Ryo and placed his two blades in a circle around Ryo's neck. The Chancellor flinched at the sudden appearance of two very large curved blades, but to his credit he did not beg. "I act on the throne's behalf." Zant whispered.

Ryo chuckled. Zant narrowed his eyes down at him. Ryo said, "Then clearly you are missing a detail. The throne is whoever sits on it and if you think killing me will establish Kyou's rule, then you are ignorant." Ryo turned in his seat to look Zant in the eye. Zant did not move his blades. "I could relate to you Ketsu's pure incompetence or how Kyou would pick me over Ketsu if I defeat him smoothly... and the fact that you have yet to kill me tells me you really are not acting under Kyou's direct orders. I know of the Sheikah mask... the inability to act without direct authority."

Ryo looked Zant in the eye. "Have you broken the mask? Are you capable of acting as a free man? Or are you acting on another's orders?... Namely to one who lost her mask? So... are you killing me on Impa's orders?" Seeing Zant's confusion, Ryo said, "Seems you don't know. More's the pity."

Ryo turned back around to face his small desk with the papers on it. "You really think it is a coincidence we are at war right now? I do not. This war has been one in the making for a long time. Is it not odd that Impa goes to Zhao and returns with some girl? Is it not odd that rather than go through proper channels to certify her lineage, it is the priests? The rule is to check the birth records, the conception records, the sexual records to prove the girl is conceived by the king. Is it not odd that this... girl of Zhao is the declared heir? Is it not odd that in the girl's unfortunate death that Impa continues to fight the throne? These are the things I question. Face it, Sheikah... or whatever you are now... I'm not the real enemy. So allow me to rephrase my question: Under what authority do you act?"

Zant's scimitar's swords shook in his hands. He tried to kill the man, he wanted to. He wanted to serve Kyou and prove himself, but he couldn't. His hands would not move. He had killed so many, but it was the mask. The mask took the guilt, the death, the darkness and kept it away. It was the mask that killed.

Zant had not been able to wield the mask since this started.

Suddenly unsure of himself, Zant felt he would lose his mind. Who was to blame? Who should he kill?

"If there is any doubt to what I say..." Ryo pulled a scroll out from his robes and extended it to Zant. The scroll bore the seal of the king. Startled, Zant took a step back. "Read. You will understand... after all, you know who the queen mother is."

Zant felt himself trapped. Trapped by the circumstance, trapped by Ryo's words. Perhaps he was a snake under the control of the charmer. Perhaps he was just a man seeking answers or an escape from his guilt. Regardless of his reason he took the scroll, broke the seal, and opened it.

He read it.

It was a short scroll. Merely a sentence long. Yet in reading it, Zant's inner mask shattered. He dropped the scroll and fled the tent.

Ryo took a step back to steady himself. He let out a long breath. It had taken great effort to be so calm and charismatic. Now that the assassin had seemingly gone to choose another target, he could settle himself. Who had sent the assassin? In truth, Ryo did not know who sent the Sheikah, but the assassin's hesitation was something he managed to use.

He picked the scroll up. "So uncouth. He could have at least reapplied the seal. Now I'm going to have to repair it myself."

-Present-

Zant's fragile mind strained under the weight of two. He screamed, he threw himself around, he cursed and swore and knocked everything down around him. He clutched at his head demanding the pain to leave. Finally he released his fist and threw the Fae across the room. Tetsu collapsed where she landed. Guards, hearing the racket, stormed into the room and searched the room, but they could find no one.

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The open window banged against the palace in the heavy wind.

-Mitagi House, Qin-

Impa sat at the table tapping her fingers impatiently. She had a feeling what this meeting was about, and she was prepared for it. Didn't mean she had to like it.

"Shadowmaster Impa of the Sheikah clan." She declared herself.

"Phantom Barc Lon of the Sheikah clan." Another stated.

"Phantom Jin Bao of the Sheikah clan."

"Phantom Abrucan of the Sheikah clan."

Another three were named of lesser rank, but these three were the only ones of any importance. They were the next rank down from Impa and were loyal to Zelda's Qin.

"Shadowmaster Impa, we have called for this meeting to discuss the matter of your meeting with the princess." Barc declared. Impa nodded.

"What do you have to say about it?" Impa inquired.

"Your choice exposed you unnecessarily, and our clan." Abrucan said.

"I was very careful." Impa said. "I only revealed myself to High Princess Zelda and to Ouki Mitagi. I assure you, gentlemen, no one else had the slightest idea I was there."

"Yet you still acted in contrast to our need to stay hidden."

"Our mission is to serve the princess, not ourselves. The princess is alone in the palace and I decided a moment of familiarity and assurance would do her well." This hushed them briefly. Impa continued, "And it sounds to me like you have already discussed the matter."

"Our clan merely feels that your focus has become... compromised." Jin tried to sooth her.

Abrucan though, was far more blunt. "We are at war with Zant over the fate of our clan, and his power if left unchecked could have dire consequences of the nation of Qin. We cannot made idle moves. We cannot expose ourselves unnecessarily."

"I know that. I did not make an idle move. It may not have been in the best interest of the Sheikah, but it was in the best interest of Qin."

"And that is where we believe your interests have become compromised." Jin said.

Impa narrowed her eyes at him. They were all difficult to make out in the darkness, but she could make out his shape. "Do you mean to imply that as Sheikah we serve ourselves before Qin?"

"Not at all." Jin replied.

"My lady..." Barc leaned forward. "We are not implying your loyalty is compromised, but your mindset. Allow me to say this plainly. Are you a Sheikah Shadowmaster or Qin minister?"

"I am a Sheikah!"

"Yet you have acted as a Chancellor would for some time now. You became tutor to a member of the royal family of your own volition, become a politician, guided us to rebel against the throne while withholding information that we were, in fact, protecting it so that we would act solely on your word, and now, when the princess appears 'lonely' because she has no Chancellors you go out of your way to comfort her and offer a token of guidance. This is not made any better by the fact that the heir has made no effort to officially instate you as the rank you are beholden to acting as. Your position is fake, yet it has extended far past its due."

Impa clenched her fists. "What are you implying?"

"That you have become overly attached. Shadows must be flexible and hidden and unknown. This is what you have taught, and what you have practiced all of your life, is it not? Yet you seemed to have turned over a new stone in the last year. Naturally we can say that tutoring the princess alongside Ryo's private teacher was acceptable, as you have much wisdom and cunning to offer, and we can turn a blind eye to extending that guidance to the next several steps... but this is becoming a pattern of attachment and involvement beyond what is acceptable for Sheikah."

Impa could say little against him. She wanted to refute him, but found she couldn't. He was right. Under the previous king all the way back to King Shorlin she had been a perfect shadow. She had no personal attachment to those she served. It was business. She was a shield against the enemy, a shadow that conducted assassinations, kidnapping, and other dark deeds at the behest of the royal family so that their hands could stay clean. She was nameless to them, invisible, merely a shadow without face or individuality.

But that was not what Zelda needed. Not since the moment Impa saw the girl in the alley way. At first it was merely acting a part for the girl's comfort. But at some point it was no longer an act. When had that line been crossed?

At the behest of Ouki Mitagi, his English friend was in attendance. The man stood to the side spectating, but Impa wanted his opinion. The man was very much like a Sheikah. He was powerful, cunning, wise, and most of all, invisible.

"As Ouki's shadow, you have a very Sheikah like perspective. What is your opinion of this matter?" Impa directed her attention to the Englishman.

The Englishman hesitated, but as the other Sheikah turned to look at him. He sighed. "There is a saying in my homeland's book of God. 'No man can serve two masters.' It means to serve one may mean compromising another. This is, I believe, what they are trying to say. I do not know enough of your ways to say how you help your country or tell you what you should do, but if I were in your position I would be doing everything within my power to help the country. If you can serve it better as a Sheikah, then be a Sheikah. If you can serve it better as a politician or minister, then be a minister. If you can manage to be both, then be both, however I do find myself agreeing with them in this one aspect. It sounds like being a Shadowmaster comes with very different responsibilities than that of a minister. I believe you have reached the limit of what you can achieve as both, and they are asking you to choose between them."

Impa looked between them all. The other Sheikah were silent, but she could hear their approval. While the Englishman was impartial, it seemed he had good points and read well the situation. Unfortunately his advice still agreed with them and put her in a difficult position.

"If I were to step down from being a minister, there would be no argument?"

"None." The men agreed.

"And if I were to step down from being Shadowmaster, there would be no consequence? Would it be agreeable with the council that I still be Sheikah?"

The men looked between each other, and it was Barc to answer, "You would lose immediate rights as Shadowmaster while another is chosen to take your office. You would become an inactive agent until you choose to reinstate yourself, but you would no longer be able to return to the rank of Shadowmaster without a unanimous vote from the council. Is that agreeable?"

"Yes." The other men agreed.

Impa considered it. All things considered, it was a good deal. Even as an inactive agent she would have access to intel and resources of the Sheikah. The only bad thing would be no longer being able to return to being Shadowmaster without substantial effort... but was that truly a bad thing if her ambition had turned towards another path to begin with?

"I accept the terms." Impa decided. "Then I call for the council to begin consideration for the next Shadowmaster now that Zant has betrayed us and can no longer obtain the title. Once an agreement is made and due process is done... I will step down formally as Shadowmaster and step into the light as a minister of Qin."

-Wilderness of Qin-

A campfire was the only light in the plains. The ground was barren for so much blood had been shed that the acid of the blood ate away at the soil over time, and rampaging armies would sow salt into the soil to destroy the soil, and the toil of fueling national war machines tore down the forests. Untold millions had died in the course of history. Entire villages prosper and are burned down in regular acts of genocide. It was a wonder, or perhaps a blessing, that the people had not reduced themselves to extinction.

Like the land of Qin, or rather, like the very land of Hyrule, the land was dying.

Around the campfire were several groups of men. They kept a distrustful distance from one another, as each were more nasty than the last, criminals and bandits and scum that they were. Two of the groups were unknown names, while the third was worthy of note. The third group was a mafia group lead by the renowned Kei Ki. He was a bandit leader with a reputation for decapitations, earning him the name Kei Ki the Beheader. He was young, ambitious, handsome, and most of all, talented. He was a man whom even Chancellor Ryo and Ouki Mitagi would have taken note of and was one of the lesser heads of the Ki family.

The first bandit group growled angrily. "How long must we wait!?"

"Be patient." the second group said.

"Don't tell us to be patient! We have been here all night doing nothing but squatting here!"

"I'm afraid I must agree." Kei Ki sighed. He leaned back against a woman and closed his eyes to rest. "I am patient, but I hardly see the point in a wild chicken chase. If our employer does not come..." He drew his curved sword and looked at its sharp edge. "I may very well find myself becoming bored."

The other groups gulped fearfully. More time passed, with each hour becoming increasingly tense as the three bandit camps eyed each other warily. Kei Ki merely smirked and enjoyed the atmosphere.

Kan Ki said to the other chieftains, "I don't know about you two, but I do not plan to leave here empty handed. If I must leave here, it will be with your men in my service... and your heads decorating my table."

"There is no need for that." A voice said from the darkness.

Out of the darkness appeared a bunch of people in camouflaged clothes. The bandits drew their weapons out of surprise and prepared for a fight, but Kei Ki merely raised an eyebrow. "Sheikah? Are you here to arrest us?"

"On the contrary, Kei Ki the Beheader," A man appeared out of the darkness into the fire light. Unlike the other Sheikah, whose heads were covered by a hood, this man wore a helmet. The helmet was... a mashed up collaboration of other masks. One corner was a happy mask, one corner was a sad mask, one corner was the mask of a monster roaring, and one corner was of a child laughing. In his hands were a pair of sickles. (A type of blade in the shape of a half-circle.)

"I am the one who called you all here for a job." The masked Sheikah said. As he moved the helmet rotated on his head back and forth, as if it wasn't fastened on properly. He didn't seem bothered by it, though.

"A Sheikah... with an actual mask." Kei Ki murmured.

The masked Sheikah snapped his head toward Kan Ki. The helmet spun around to show the monstrous side. "Problem?!"

"Not really. Just find it curious."

The Sheikah's sharp tone changed to almost sing-song and the helmet spun around toward the child laughing. "~Ah. Well then. Curious away!~" The Sheikah straightened. The helmet back around to the monster, and he growled angrily. "Though we are not the Sheikah, not anymore. I do not want to be associated with those traitors." The helmet spun around to the sad face. "Call us whatever you want, we haven't come up with a name yet."

"Um... as you wish." Kei Ki said slowly. He found the man's behavior highly erratic and off-putting. Did the man lose a few marbles in life? "What is your name, at the very least? I find it hard to take employment from someone whose name I do not know."

The helmet spun around to the happy mask. "Zant! Happy to meet you!"