"I knew it would be you... I knew it would be you... I had hoped against hope that I would find the one, that the one would not be the very princess of Hyrule, but you are the one..." came Impa's deep voice, reverbrating off the corridor's walls.
Zelda walked a little faster to keep up with the great woman's long strides and shivered as the cold dampness make her skin clam up. She rubbed the arm of her tunic and observed the picture around her. The corridor was obviously a catacomb of some sort and ancient bodies were stacked on shelves and the only sound that could be heard was the visible puddle nearby dripping. Zelda had thought the catacombs under Kakariko which Impa has guarded her whole would have some sort of sound, but of that there was none. Only the sound of death. She felt her lip trembling, but knew wherever Impa was taking her, it was for the good of Hyrule. Finally she was walking at a comfortable pace with Impa, who had slowed down, as if deliberating every step into the depths.
"Link... he... he will be back soon, will he not?" stammered Zelda, "If Father finds out you 'kidnapped' me... I don't want anything to happen to..."
Impa shook her head.
"Child, you know as well as I that he will not return until seven years hence to fulfill the prophecy. And who will recognize you without your fancy clothes?"
Zelda closed her eyes, and memories started returning to her. She was rather fond of her life as a princess, and she knew that not many people found themselves born into the life they wanted to live. Yes, however earlier years came to mind, days of ripping asunder her own clothes to climb the apple tree in the courtyard. She was unmanageable, running about the castle in her sleeping gown, pesting guard and servant alike with questions. Perhaps this is how she came to be in Impa's care - not only was Impa known as the most loyal caretaker of the Hylian royal family since her mother's own childhood, but she had a way of soothing even the most fierce of beasts or men with song or word.
One of Impa's first amends was to allow Zelda to do the most uncouth things, such as climb trees or swim in the moat, as long as she wore plain clothes and did not dirty her feminine things. The King was initially displeased with this measure, but as Zelda was growing into a fine princess, he quieted himself and allowed Impa to take her own course without interference from himself.
Impa pushed open a large heavy door, which seemed to groan under weight. Walking cautiously into the room, she saw several Redeads standing amongst rancid pools. Being a Sheikah, she knew she had little to fear from them, but her concern was with Zelda. She pulled out her Light Chain whip and banished them with a quick flick of her wrists. Not even dust remained of the lost souls. Taking Zelda by the hand, she lead her slowly across the room, toward a mossy staircase at the far end. She knew what she was going to do. This child... no, it was no mistake. She had the power of prophecy.
Zelda felt odd... at first the air of darkness about this place made her cold and nervous, the torches never burning bright enough and the very air threatening as if to suck the soul of her very flesh.... Now she felt comfortable in the darkness. She could see well and could feel life beating within her with each step, telling her that her existance down here was as natural as the moss on the walls. She watched Impa walk over to a headstone and brush dust off it. Impa kneeled, as if paying respect to the dead souls that haunted these halls. She then stood up and faced Zelda, standing tall... But her usual intense eyes had a look of melancholy to them.
"Zelda, I am Sheikah."
Zelda nodded.
"Yes, Impa.. You told me that when you first taught me what had become my bedtime song."
Impa looked at the wall above Zelda, as if the words that were to soon emerge were hard.
"You have learned that the Sheikah are a race that had dissapeared, a race that lived to protect the Hylian royal family. That was never true... you see...."
Impa looked at Zelda, who had taken a step back, looked at her straight in the eyes with an intense look, fire burning within her pupils, her lips curled a bit as the words flowed out like cinders from a dying fire.
"The Sheikah were never alive to begin with. We are a race... of the dead and spirits. We are not born, we are made. After I had lost my closest friend, your great grandmother, I had sought her out in this very tomb you see before you. The tomb close to my hut in what is now going to be Kakariko Village. My devotion to her had lead me to the discovery that I was the incarnation of a guardian Sheikah spirit, Impa."
Zelda felt like someone had shoved her. Her caretaker, the powerful woman with a gentle heart, was well over a century old. Not only that, but...
"If you're not Impa, who are you?"
She remained silent for a minute.
"It matters not anymore, for I am the same soul that has guarded you for all your past incarnations. I am the Guardian Sheikah for the Prophet."
Zelda remained quiet.
"It will be easier for you to see for yourself. Come and stand here, before the monolith before you."
Zelda took each step slowly, toward the large headstone. The giant eye on it intimidated her as she stood before it. As much as she wanted to look away, the eye compelled her to stay. A wind began to blow, wind that should not exist this far underground. The eye slowly seemed to become less harsh and the harp began to pick up a bit in melody. It played a strange tune - a seven note one that Impa had taught her that played when a Sheikah secret was revealed. A door opened behind her with a loud groan, but she did not flinch. More and more things were making sense.
* * *
