Sorry for the delay again! I just CANNOT miss E3 for the life of me, even though this year's made me want to crawl into a corner and cry in shame.
This chapter stars everybody's favorite, Zelda Harlon! Yay!
HUGE Reality reference in this one. You should probably read at least the prologue to get that part.
I don't own Zelda! I don't own the song This Is Your Life!
Beta-read by the amazing LeilaEditer! Oh, and I recommend Crown of Ages by Flute Chick. The beginning's rough, but it gets better with each chapter.
Don't be scared to comment/review! I don't bite... sometimes...
-Ani
Chapter 3 (The Maiden)
Sweat rolled down the back of my neck as I sat in the cool, refreshing shade of a pavilion on the Thomas Family's farm. Diana was behind me, using a large loom to weave an intricate cloth with Marin and Midna. Malon and Orielle were lying on the floor, their hair plastered underneath worn-out baseball caps. Jon and Nathan and Darrell, Karane's older brothers, were playing cards. Karane, Pipit, Kina, and Karane's younger siblings, William and Grace, were sitting on a bench, panting. Everyone was drinking water, trying to prevent themselves from succumbing to the forceful Eldin heat.
I looked at the sweatstains on my denim overalls, the same ones everyone was wearing, except for Marin and Midna, of course. I frowned at how Mr. Thomas obligated us into farming for him each summer.
"When are we going to start plowing again?" Pipit asked, pointing to a large, green machine.
"In about fifteen minutes," Malon sighed. "We still need to irrigate the half of the fields we have already planted."
Orielle groaned.
"Hey! It's either that or the cows, and those cows are ferocious!" Karane yipped.
"I suggest we get started before noon," Nathan commented, taking off his baseball hat to ventilate his head.
"Yeah," Kina agreed. "We can irrigate later."
I stood up and walked towards my plowing "team", Jon, Kina, and I. The other groups, Malon, Karane, and Nathan, and Pipit, Orielle, and Darrell, already started walking towards their machines. We walked through the muddy corn fields, finally reaching our green Case IH plow, imported from a faraway country. Jon got in on the right side, claiming it was unsafe for us to walk over there. The driver's door swung open, and Kina and I climbed the steep steps to the seating area on the right. We buckled in, and began to plow.
The wind whipped my yellow braid and Kina's short, chocolate ponytail around wildly. Our job was to look and make sure everything was working right, and that the soil was turning over properly, waiting to be planted. And this was the easiest part.
We did this for about an hour, until our entire section was plowed. Now, it was time for the backbreaking work- literally. We had to plant the corn seeds. By hand.
"Can't Mr. Thomas do this himself with his brothers?" Kina sighed.
"Kina, they're in their fifties and sixties. We're a bunch of young teenagers. Do the math!" Jon smarted.
"No need to be mean, Johnny," I scolded, dropping a seed into a hole.
My entire summer, in a nutshell. Yay.
A few hours of backbreaking (and probably illegal) labor later, everybody was sitting in the pavilion, again.
I stared out at the golden-blue sky, clouds floating lazily, the peak of Mt. Eldin in the distance. The horizon was easy to see from the flat plains of Thomas Ranch. It reminded me of a story I was told when I was younger, by an older girl. I forgot most of the details, just a few lines and my mother screaming at me.
"You know, there's always a strange sadness as dusk falls. They say it's the only time we can feel the lingering regrets of the spirits that have left our world. The hour of twilight..." I spoke poetically, quoting the book.
"Zelda, don't go near her! She's dangerous!" A twenty-seven-year-old woman yelled to her daughter. The five-year-old child was walking towards a tall woman with fiery hair, an ancient book incased in her long-fingered hands.
Midna's green eyes shot up and looked at me. A look of worry spread across her pale face.
"What?" Karane asked, annoyed.
"Nothing, nothing," Midna's look returned to normal. Karane raised an eyebrow.
"Would you like to hear a story, child?" The woman asked, evil hidden in her seemingly sweet voice. The child's grey eyes filled with concern.
"My name isn't 'child', lady. I'm Zellie!" The girl giggled. A sinister smile curled upon the woman's lips.
"Who wants to go to the pond with me?" Pipit asked. Nobody answered him. "Okay, then."
"I think you're hiding something, Midna!" I yelled, rapidly changing the subject.
"Gosh, Zel! You don't have to be so upset about it!" Midna sighed heavily. "I've read that book before. Y'know, 'Hylian History' or something? I didn't know that you've read it, too. That surprised me. Does that answer your question?" Midna declared, irritance hidden in her voice.
"Okay then, Zellie. My book, would you like to read it?" She spoke kindly, trying to lure in her prey. She held out the ancient text, glowing an unearthly blue. She would need to read just fifty words before her spirit will let go, replaced by the spirit of the Ancient Goddess of Wisdom.
"So nobody wants to go to the pond with me?" Pipit whined. Orielle sighed, pulling her messy chocolate waves back into a ponytail. Everyone was tired.
"I guess I'll go!" I spoke nonchalantly, waving my dirt-encrusted hands in the air. I got up out of my seat and so did Pipit, walking towards a green, four-person tractor.
"Wait, can I come, too?" Karane ran towards us, her beanie flying off her red locks. She stopped for a moment to pick it up off of the ground. It was now covered in mud, but Karane stuck it back on her head regardless.
However, the young blonde scooped up her child from the ground and ran as far away from the woman as possible. The woman tried to chase after her, a scowl etched on her face due to the failure of her plan.
"I'll find her! I'll find your little girl if it is my last deed!" The woman screamed into the nothingness of the forest. Her golden eyes were set ablaze with fury and hopelessness.
"We have to go home, too, Zelda." He began, but turned around towards the loom. "Come on Diana! We're going home!" Jon called to my sister. Diana started running towards the tractor with John chasing after her.
When everyone was in the tractor, it started to go towards the pond. It took us about eight minutes to get there.
The pond was encased in trees, densely scattered within the area. The five of us walked through a narrow path before arriving at a crystalline lake.
This was only one of the encounters of the Matron of Light and the Maiden of Shadow.
A pontoon boat was tied to a small wooden dock. Pipit tossed a set of keys to Jon as Diana and Karane loaded the small water vessel. I gulped.
"You coming, Zel?" Pipit asked, untying the boat from the dock as John started it up.
"Can't we just walk home?" I asked, eyeing the water carefully.
"Zelda, I know you're afraid of drowning, but we have lots of life jackets. You'll be fine!" Karane smiled, taking my hand.
Yeah. Watch the boat sink in five minutes, I thought.
I reluctantly stepped onto the pontoon, and Jon started speeding away on the water. By the time we stepped into our home, it was dark outside.
The eleven-o'clock world premiere of my favorite new movie was coming on in about four hours, after the premiere of another one of my favorite movie-documentaries. Karane was supposed to come over and watch them with me. Therefore, I needed to take a shower.
I took off my muddied boots and left them at the foot of the stairs. Dad had left the light on, thank the king. Otherwise, those steep, dark stairs would be my death sentencing. I climbed the wooden steps and turned towards the bathroom.
After stripping off my dirty clothes, I stepped into the warm shower.
You see, I have this demon-necklace-thingy. I can't take it off, or this pale indigo light will surround it, and it doesn't get dirty or wet, or said light will surround it. I swear it is the devil's incarnate. With every drop of water that falls on it in the shower, that light appears. I think it was made to trigger seizures or something.
I got out and put on my pajamas: a purple Potentia Elementary Field Day shirt and a pair of blue basketball shorts. Fancy.
I glanced at the clock, the red numbers eight-forty-seven burning into my grey eyes. Karane would be here in half an hour to watch Hyrule Historia and Fantasy with me.
I took out the popcorn bag, but placed it back, remembering I had braces. Still. So what I ate an entire bag of apples and they had to rework my braces again? Twice?
Instead, I found a bag of baked chips. Bleh. Not as good as warm, drippingly-buttered popcorn crunching in your mouth. The chocolate soy milk was chilling in the fridge, waiting to be savored by two fourteen-year-old girls. I could hardly wait.
At nine, the doorbell rang. Mom opened it up, displaying Karane with her wet, red hair out of pigtails (shocking!), a washed beanie on her head. She clutched a red sleeping bag in her hands, and a gym bag was on her back. Karane's mother was standing behind her. Mrs. Gentry and Karane were like carbon copies of each other, though Mrs. Gentry wore her red hair in a long ponytail, was taller, and aged.
"Hi, Susanne! Glad you could drop Karane off this late!" Mom smiled.
"It's been really hectic today, Nessa, with the kids working at the farm. It'll do you good, Kara!" Mrs. Gentry slapped Karane's back playfully, speaking with a slight Southern accent.
"Well, looks like their movie will be starting soon! I'll make sure that Jon and Di stay upstairs, and we'll be in the basement if you need us!" Mom spoke to us.
"Bye, Karrie! Make good choices!" Mrs. Gentry kissed Karane's forehead and shut the door. Mom walked into the hallway and shut the door to the upstairs before proceeding down to the basement and shutting that door.
Karane and I walked into the living room. Our TV, a forty-seven inch one at that, was on channel six, the channel that the movies were on. The introduction to Hyrule Historia was starting.
"Long ago, there was a time of heroes and princesses and evils in a noble land called Hyrule," The narrator began, accenting the "hy" in Hyrule.
"A past, once realities, then memories, then records, and finally stories, lost in the greed of the intentional forgetfulness of itself. These stories, when merged, create somewhat of a broken history for this fabled Hyrule, but people shun it. They do not want to feel the pain of defeat or the joy of victory anymore. They just want to live."
"There are many legends from this land, but none greater than this one. The story of a hero forced to labor in the heat of farms. The story of an evil who wishes to rule the land. The story of a princess, hidden in plain sight. This is a story passed down for ages, but abruptly stopped due to controversy. This story, this legend, is the legend of young girls named Zelda. This is their legend. This is our legend. This is the Legend of Zelda."
It cut to a man, sitting at the edge of a pond, with an older teenager.
"Tell me, son," The man spoke, his voice raspy. "Do ya' ever feel a strange sadness as dusk falls? They say it's the only time our world intersects with the other. The only time ya' can feel the lingering regrets of all them spirits that have left us. That's why yur' always lonely at the hour o' twilight..."
Those were the words. Those were the words from that book. Those forty-nine words shocked me; I had read them before.
"As you can see from that reenactment, the Era of Twilight has been known to be one of the most controversial tales of Hyrule, ever. Many people don't even think that it actually happened, and I don't blame them!" A rather large man started laughing on the screen. It said that he was a historian. "What's crazier than having a constant yellow sky and black squares rising into nothing?"
"However, I feel that beginning with the Twilight Era is rather inappropriate. I feel that we should start with the Sky Era," A female historian began to speak. The movie went on, documenting every major and minor occurrence of this glorious country.
I knew this documentary by heart. I loved the stories it told, mainly because they seemed impossible. I mean, a floating island? Eternal yellow skies? A boy going through time to save not one, but TWO lands? It sounds like something that would make for a really good video game.
"Hey, Zel! Fantasy is starting!" Karane motioned towards the television. The sounds of crashing waves and shots of rocky beaches filled the screen. The sky was dark, a storm brewing. In the text below, it started to name... well... names.
I had no idea who the actors were, but apparently Avril was going to be played by Emma Kinstone, Zeruna by Mila George, and Liam by Pipit's old friend, Keet Williams. Or at least that's what the intro credits said.
A girl with grey eyes like mine and a dirty-blonde braid ran along the cliffs, tugging a little girl along with her.
"Come on, Zerrie! You're much too slow!" The older girl taunted, running faster. The younger girl was struggling to keep up, her long, flaxen hair fluttering in the wind.
"Are we almost there?" Zerrie yelled, her voiced tired and filled with drawn breaths. The older girl turned around and smirked mischievously.
"We are there!"
I started to get tired. I yawned, my consciousness fading, and I started to fall asleep, right there leaning up against the couch.
A chime rung through the dark, pitch black abyss I was standing in. I started walking towards a large, teal design on the floor, glowing ethereally. Stabbing the design, I could feel myself being lifted up, flying higher to nowhere. I opened my eyes to a startled young girl.
"Hey! Hey! Zelda?" Karane shook me awake. I opened my eyes. "You're missing the movie!"
"I gotta go to the bathroom!" I got up and ran upstairs to the bathroom, locking the door behind me. My shin felt like it was being eaten by sharks. I looked at it, but it was fine. Nothing was there.
I glanced at myself in the mirror. My necklace was glowing through my shirt! You could see the weird pale-indigo light through the purple!
I burst out of the bathroom and went into my bedroom. I found a large fur coat- that ought to do the trick! I mean, it's fur and leather!
I jogged back down the stairs.
"What's with the coat?" Karane asked, annoyed.
"It looks cool. I just felt like it, okay?" I scoffed.
"The same way you felt like leaving your iPod wrapped around your neck?" She laughed.
"Very funny, Karane!" I turned back to the movie. I was slightly relieved that she thought it was only an iPod. My mouth let out a content sigh.
"Hey, I'm the recluse here, not you!" Zeruna snapped at Liam.
"I thought I was just annoying," Liam said nonchalantly.
"You are."
"Glad to know I'm appreciated."
Zeruna and Liam walked through a dark forest, one with a sword, another with a glass dagger. Liam was far ahead of the towheaded girl.
I felt a sharp pain in my thigh. I clutched it hard.
"You okay, Zel?" Karane asked.
"Yeah," I spoke softly. Karane raised an eyebrow for the second time that day. Soon, the pain subsided and I felt fine.
"Hurry up, Zeruna!" Liam called.
"Come on, Zerrie!" A voice echoed.
"You're way too slow!"
"You're much too slow!"
Zeruna's sapphire eyes filled with shock, but it quickly faded. She ran towards Liam, but the screen cut to the Channel Six logo for a second.
"Good evening, I'm Anju Harris coming to you live from Hyrule Castle," A woman with short, auburn hair spoke frantically. Sirens blared in the background. You could see her shaking. "We have just received word that Her Highness, Princess Zelda, has been shot."
"What?" I screamed. Karane started shaking, too. If somebody could try to kill the Princess, the most heavily guarded and protected person in the entire nation, they could kill anybody!
"Officials say that this could have been a well-coordinated terroristic action from the country of Geruda. Regardless, Prime Minister Daltus has declared that Hyrule is in fact under attack. He advises that people stay away from crowded areas like malls and hotels for the next few days. School has also been cancelled nationwide until June ninth. Please stay safe."
The camera panned towards an ambulance, but did not zoom in. A tall woman with flaxen hair and tanned skin held a limp, purple-clad, bloodied girl. The girl had the same hair color as I did.
"Don't close your eyes! Don't close your eyes! You'll be alright!" The words seemed whispered through the distance and the sirens. The woman shook the girl furiously as she was placed gently into the ambulance.
"ZELDA!" She screamed. The camera panned back to the anchor.
"This might be the last time you see Her Highness alive," Anju spoke, sadness hidden in the worried tone. "At least she will be able to join Her Majesty Queen Elandra in the heavens for the first time."
A tear streamed down her pale face.
"Anju Harris here, back to your regularly scheduled programming."
The screen cut back to Fantasy.
"If it takes you that long to walk down a path, Princess, I'm just going to leave you here!" Liam started walking away.
"Oh, I apologize, Mr. Important Hero! Not all of us can be as brave and gallant as you! I, the holder of Wisdom, shall only exist as your personal, walking encyclopedia!" Zeruna spoke nobly, catching up to the green-clad Liam.
"Well, do excuse me Your Highness! Please do explain to me the laws of gravity, the Pythagorean theorem, and a detailed history of the universe!" Liam spoke in the same tone-of-voice.
"Please shut up!" Zeruna yelled.
Despite how funny that scene was, I was still shaken by Anju's news. I didn't want to live here in this country anymore. My home, my nation, was under attack.
"I'm scared, Zel!" Karane whispered. "What if there's a nuclear holocaust or something? I don't want to die like that!"
"Nobody wants to die like that, Karane," I bowed my head for a moment.
"I wish there was some higher being or something that we could ask to stop this, like a god. We'd get laughed at if we did, though," Karane sighed.
"What about the Ancient Goddesses? I guess you could believe in them!"
"They're dead, Zelda."
"Karane, they're goddesses. Goddesses don't die."
"Yes, they do die."
"No, they don't."
I thought for a moment. I remembered a dream I had a few nights ago, the one with that song.
"Every step I take, every breath I make, you'll be there to catch me in my wake. If I can see, if I am me, you will forever be," I spoke softly, trying to remember the complicated lyrics.
"What? That made no sense whatsoever."
"As long as you believe in them, they can't die!"
"Oh, I get it! Say, do you the name of that song?"
I tried to remember the name, but there was nothing.
"No, sorry."
We sat in quiet darkness for a while. The ceiling fan softly whirred above us, and you could hear the gentle chirps of crickets from the backyard.
"Have you ever heard of Camp Faron?" Karane asked, shattering the crystalline silence.
"Nope, can't say I have."
"I go there every year. You wanna go?"
"I'm not really the outdoorsy-type, Karane..."
"Please? It will be fun!"
"I guess I'll ask my mom."
"Now."
"Not now! Are you crazy?"
"Why?"
"Gee, I dunno! Maybe because it's dark outside. Maybe because it's one in the morning. Maybe because she thinks we fell asleep an hour ago!"
Karane laughed.
"Come on! I'll go with you. Safety in numbers!"
"Okay. But if this goes badly, I'm going to kill you. My butcher knife is hidden in my closet."
"Good to know."
Karane and I walked down the pitch black stairs leading to the basement. At its foot was a door. I opened it.
Light flooded into our eyes as we stepped into the main room of the basement. Mom was slaving over a sewing machine, making the dress Diana was going to wear for her birthday.
"Hey girls! What's wrong?" Mom looked up and smiled.
"Karane was telling me about this camp that she goes to every year. I was wondering if I could go t-"
"Zelda, hon, I'm sorry, but I just don't see you doing that."
"Mom, please!"
"Ask me tomorrow, Zelda. I'm tired. Go to bed."
I sighed heavily. Karane's emerald eyes sadded as we ascended the stairs.
Scarfing down a turkey sandwich like no tomorrow, Mom finally asked me the question again.
"Zelda, what were you talking about last night?"
"Karane goes to this thing called Camp Faron every year and I'd like to go this summer," I spoke calmly through the chewing. Mom walked over to the laptop and started to type.
"Zelda, it's 150 rupees!" Mom spoke, shocked.
"If you let me go I won't ask for anything physical that I don't need for the rest of the year!" I begged. We sat in silence for a few minutes.
"Deal."
"YEAH! Thanks, Mom!"
In three weeks, I'll finally get to leave this dusty, old farmtown and go to Faron Province! I ran into the living room and dialed Karane's number.
"Hello?" Darrell's voice echoed from the receiver.
"Hi, it's Zelda! Can I talk to Karane?" I asked politely.
"Sorry, she isn't here right now. Bye!" Darrell hung up with an annoyed voice drenched in sarcasm. Jerk. I dropped the phone on the couch and ran upstairs to John's bedroom.
"Hey, Jon! Can you drive me t-"
"No."
"I haven't even told yo-"
"No."
I walked back downstairs.
This was going to be a weird summer for everybody.
Ah! So much stuff! Yes, this chapter was a lot shorter than the others, but these beginning chapters are such a drag to write! I want to skip to the gore and blood and action! Don't worry, the story will start to pick up soon.
The lyrics Zelda spoke were made by me, so I own them. MWAHAHA! They are part of a set of Hylian hymns I made up.
Oh, and if you're wondering, I decided that the theme song to this story would be This Is Your Life by Switchfoot. You'll understand soon.
Remember to check out Reality and Crown of Ages!
-Ani
Published June 12, 2012.