~*Mother Of Fate*~
by Jared Dark
The weary woman trekked across the damp grass, her mind working tirelessly to form a plan. Would it work? As she began to worry more, the pain in her head worsened and she couldn't bare it much longer. How much Farther was the forest? Would she make it? Still she continued until she reached the edge of the woods where the great field met the unknown area of her world. Cautiously she stepped in, foot by foot, breath by breath. The woods were dense and she couldn't see but a mere 5 feet in front of her. Almost suddenly she came to an opening in the trees, and a bridge became visible- It looked as though it were made for children. So the legend of the Kokiri Children is true, she thought to herself. She lightly placed her foot on the rickety rope bound bridge, tapping it for some reassurance of strength. Although this did not come, she knew what she must do, and all doubts blocked away she crossed the bridge. After a few seconds she had crossed the vast, cavernous basin, and was on her way into what looked like a small village. She walked down the main path lined by tree dwellings slowly and with increasing awareness of the small children watching her. Why were they watching her? It seemed like forever, making her way down the road, swinging her head left to right to see childrenor were they small people? All that mattered was that they were watching her- and it frightened her to death.
She had come to the edge of town- where was it? Then she saw it- a large hole in the wall over the lily pond, a hole which she would go through to find sanctuary for her baby child.
It had been only a day and a night since the owl had flown into her room, while she laid still on the bed, trying to heal her wounds. It landed on the end of her bed and she thought she had been dreaming, perhaps even halucinating when it began to speak to her.
"Good evening, Mother of Fate.", he had said to her on that damp, warm night. Or perhaps it had been chilly but her aches and fevers may have deceived her. She lifted her head slowly. Before she could speak he continued. " My name is Kaepora Gaebora,. I am one of the Seven Ancient Sages of the Scared Realm, and have come to deliver news, which could be interpreted either to be good or bad. In short, you have given birth to the Hero of Time." She felt the breath in her soul leave her for a moment, but he continued. "You are going to die. As you know you have been fatally wounded in the War of the Realms. The only thing keeping you alive is the Triforce, as you have born its child-its protector. Verily, you have felt it.," the woman nodded and let a tear roll down her face. She had hoped that her instincts were wrong. Still he spoke. "Your child must be brought up in the care of a Sacred being- as you will die, and his father could never bring him up to become the Hero of Time- the Savior of Hyrule. Are you willing to give up your child to ensure the fate of all who come after him?" He said this with such dignity that the woman could barely say no. Besides, she did not want to. She was on her last days and he needed a good home. Her husband hadn't come back from the castle yet, he was filling a delivery. She would say she hadn't born two children. Only one. She glanced quickly at the two newborn children sleeping in the cradle in the corner of the room. This is what she must do. She nodded in silence as the tears now poured down her face, wetting her blonde hair. The wise, old Owl gave her instructions on where to take the child and how to handle everything. After this he added, " Your actions are not in vain. Your son is going to grow up to be the champion of Hyrules glorious history, his name passed down through the ages, and he will always be protected by myself and the other Sages." She reached up with a kind of gesture that had 'Wait' written all over it.
"I, I want you to promise me something. Please.," she said desperately. The Owl gave a soft hoot. "Promise me that my child will come to know his mother. That someone will tell him who I was and why I let him go.why I could not keep him." She looked down for a moment as if in shame and he cooed to get her attention.
"That is a most honorable request, Mother of Fate, and will be fulfilled. Good-night and have no fear. Yours will be a painless withdrawl from this world." And with that the Owl flew back out the window, and the woman slept deeply for many hours until she awoke and prepared to bring the child to his new home.
There she stood, readying herself to take the leap, run ahead, and do whatever it took to ensure her babies safety. She moved quickly through the rock, pushing away vines and other various obstacles, until suddenly it was there. The most majestic, beautiful thing she had ever had the luck of placing her eyes upon. The Great Deku Tree of Kokiri Forest.
"Child, you have come from far away, have you not? You are the Mother of Fate. Scrolls of your story have long been predicting this moment in the temples of our world. Yours was a hard decision to make. Yours is a love that's true. I will watch over your child in your honor. You have born a noble baby. His will be a tale of courage, trust, triumph, and love." The mother fell to her knees, trembling and crying softly, as though to hide her feelings from the tree in a feeble attempt. She pulled herself together and looked up with tragic eyes at the Great tree. "Place the child on the ground, in front of me." The woman did as she was told, with a deep trust and reverence for the tree. She stayed on her knees, not blinking, wondering deep in her mind what was going to happen. Suddenly, from the clouds, a fierce strike of lightening came down. Blue, then red, then green, or perhaps all of those colors at once, but when it came down it hit the baby and exploded off with a rainbow of beautiful sparks and colors. Presently, the child was lifted from the ground by an unseen force and slowly it was raised up to the top of the tree.
"This baby, Born the Hero of Time- may your heart be filled with the qualities of a true warrior. Din, Nayru, Faror, the three great goddesses of Hyrule who gave us the precious gift of the Triforce, Bless this baby!" cried the tree. There was a brilliant blast of pure white light and out of no-where, the baby was on the ground, still bundled up in the green cloth, still asleep. The mother stood, understanding the power of the world she lived in, and with great effort she turned around, wiped the brazen tears from her eyes, and began to walk away. The tree called out to her, "Mother of Fate!" The woman turned quickly. " Go to your home, your loving husband is there, he awaits your return. You have one day to prepare for your exit from this realm to that of the spirit. Go with pride. Take care." And the woman returned home.
There she stood, in front of the gates to her home, Lon Lon Ranch. She sighed and moved her eyes up the wall to view the grain tower high above the walls. Slowly, she pivoted to look around her, around at her world. First she looked widely at the castle. Tall, towering and gleaming with beauty and prosperity, it signified the opulence of Hyrule. Next in view was the colossal land formation that is Death Mountain. The rocky slopes and ascents of the peak were fantastic, but perhaps the most prominent feature was the open, yet dormant volcano which crested the mountain. From almost every point of the world you could see the ring of smoke that encompassed the mountain. Her eyes wandered along the Zora river, until it disappeared under a tunnel of rock. She was going to miss this world. What is the Spirit Realm like? She thought. She watched the sun roll distant across the sky, and turned to walk into her home.
Her husband ran up to her, tears welled in his eyes, "Oh, thank god your safe! I got your letter- you went to see the witch in Kakariko? What did she say about your health?" he sounded desperate.
"Yes, Talon- she" she looked down as she hesitated, " She said I would not last more than one day." He looked shocked and scared and sad all at the same time;" But my passage will be comfortable" she said.
"Comfortable for whom? Maybe for you, but not for your child. Not for your loving husband." His face was now streaming with tears, and he wiped his mustache clean.
"Talon, now what we must do is prepare. Lets just be calm." She was still trying to hold back her own tears but she had to be strong for her husband. Strong for herself, too. She sighed and sat down on the bed, her husband at the table. In less than a day her body would be lying on this bed, cold to the touch, without breath.
For the next half day, her husband just held her, and stopped her from crying whenever she got scared. They ate dinner in near silence. At sunset, they walked out into the great, open pasture to watch the glorious sight. It seemed as if the world wanted to give her a majestic farewell. Shooting stars whirred across the dazzling sky, which colors were mixed swirls of Aqua and navy blues, and bright crimson. It made her feel very important. She turned to Talon, and he brushed the hair out of her eyes while the wind whistled around them, as they embraced in a long, tender kiss.
Abruptly, something inside of her collapsed. He took her in his arms, and laid her down on the soft damp grass. She felt weak and could sense the air in her lungs exiting her body involuntarily. She decided it was best to put what little air was left to good use. "TalonI love youI love you so much. And I would give the world for you. This was soso unexpected." Without warning she began coughing in between barely coherent sentences. "I am leaving now. Like an autumn breeze making the air crispI can tell my winter comes soon." Her husband nodded and wiped an isolated tear from her eye, "Good-bye now, my love. Tell Malonthat mommy lovesher" And she was gone. All of the pain, all of the exhaustion. It was all gone. Soon her little boy would grow up to bring himself, and her, a legacy that would be told in every way possible for hundreds of years.