You will wake some mornings, Zelda, questioning whether you have woken at all. Sometimes, the world will simply be... unfathomable. The burden here is twofold; let none of it affect your strength, and let none of it pass your notice.
- King Rhoam's Diary, Entry #521
Stone by stone, beam by beam; as each day passed, Hyrule Castle grew back into its former self.
The Castle was a patchwork of new and old - much like its inhabitants, actually - and hence was only reminiscent of its original shape. It was an imitation, some would say a poor one, forged by memory and habit.
Zelda wished her own memory was stronger. Like the Castle, there were parts of Zelda that would never be recovered. And yet, some parts just needed more than time to repair. For several nights past, she had dreamt of being plunged deep into a rushing river, with red, empty faces above her, silhouetted by a glowing, blue light. Zelda knew it was a memory, but the rest was intangible, lost in the eddies of time.
This was where her mind took her as she reviewed plans for the Castle, as well as the town beyond. From Link's explanation, there were parts of the rebuild that required more than just workers. Large, mechanical cranes were needed to hoist the stone and lumber high into the air. The decimated Hyrule Cathedral was of particular focus, something Zelda knew High Priestess Lady Adelina would be ecstatic over. The young woman yearned for a place to hold her worships - Zelda on the other hand simply wanted somewhere other than the throne room for her wedding!
Link and Sheikah Researcher Robbie had personally drawn out the plans for the crane's construction, and Robbie would arrive soon at the Castle to oversee the project. Zelda didn't mind the work so much - it reminded her of her old research, something she had yet found time to take up again.
For two hours, Link and Zelda holed up in the latter's study, checking and double checking the final plans before their esteemed guest arrived to enact them. In exchange for her assistance, Link was to teach Zelda all he could remember of the sign language Mipha had taught him some one hundred and fifteen years prior.
"Do you remember much?" Zelda asked as they worked. She sat at her desk, while Link occupied a high-backed chair beside her.
"I think I never truly forgot, it's like... muscle memory. Sidon and I practised a bit, and it was all just there."
"I'm glad it hasn't been lost to you."
"Me too," Link said solemnly. He gave her an apologetic look. "I should have told you about it, back then."
"It was special to you, I understand."
Folding up the plans he held, Link placed them on the desk with a contented sigh. Meeting Zelda's bemused gaze, he held his open palm to his ear and pressed his fingers and thumb together.
"Listen!" Zelda recalled. "That one means listen. Are we starting now?"
Link nodded. In a smooth gesture, he brought his hand to his chin, then moved it outwards and away from his face.
"Um, beard?"
"Thank you," Link corrected with a chuckle. "It means thank you."
Zelda repeated the gesture, delighted. It had been so long since she had learned something new. The spark of curiosity had returned, and she was about to demand a new word when there was a knock on her study door.
The Rito scout who delivered the news was wide-eyed and open-beaked with shock and stammered like a child when he spoke.
"Y-Your Majesty, your guest is accompanied by...by a-a thing! A mechanical beast!"
The poor Rito grew only more mortified when both Link and Zelda laughed.
"Send Robbie my good fortunes, and pass on that we will meet both him and Rhoamet at the old Royal Laboratories on the morrow."
The scout bowed and scurried from the room so fast his talons scratched on the stone.
Still sitting beside her desk, Link was staring at her expectantly, wide-eyed as the scout had been - only not from fear, but anticipation. Zelda need not ask. His face said only one thing; may I?
"Go," Zelda said. "Find your Guardian. I have plenty of work to do here."
Link bounced to his feet, gave her a kiss on her forehead, and was out of her study in a heartbeat.
The Sheikah researcher took in the sight of the old Royal Laboratories with a dejected frown on his face. It marked out a hard line amongst his wrinkles, as did his narrowed, beady eyes. He heaved a sigh. "I suppose I'd hoped they'd be in better condition."
"The level of destruction suggests Sheikah research was targeted directly," Zelda mused. Another sigh from Robbie only affirmed her hypothesis. Behind them, Link stood with the Guardian that had joined Robbie on his trip from Akkala - the one Link had named Rhoamet, after Zelda's father. Zelda had thought it incongruous at first, but Rhoamet and his namesake shared more than she had realised; they were the last of their kind, dedicated to their Kingdom, and ultimately, compromised. Link had the Sheikah Slate in hand and was performing a diagnostic on the living relic while Zelda and Robbie conversed.
"No point rebuilding it," Robbie grumbled. "There's nothing left. That blasted Seer..."
His words caught Zelda's attention. "The Seer?" she asked innocently. Robbie recoiled as if bitten by an asp.
"I said no such thing."
"His name was Malachi, wasn't it?" she said determinedly. "My father's diary only mentions him a handful of times, but I remember him. He was Sheikah, and a mage too."
The researcher cast his eyes over the destroyed lab, and once more became solemn. Zelda could almost feel his pain, but she had to pursue this truth. She needed it. This Malachi...he was one of the final mysteries of her father.
She spoke in a soft, firm voice, imploring Robbie to meet her eye. "I know you remember, Robbie and therefore you remember that it is your duty to aid me here. I'm not a Princess anymore. I'm-"
"Your Majesty," Robbie said pointedly, almost in answer. "I have lived, for well over one hundred years now, trying to forget what that man did. I'm not even convinced he is dead."
"Then help me put that chapter of our lives to rest."
Robbie took a deep breath, but before he could answer, Link called out to them from Rhoamet. He held up the Sheikah Slate so that the screen faced Zelda and Robbie, his brows raised. Robbie's face fell, then he slumped; whatever argument about to be had, he knew he could not win it.
"Rhoamet has entries in his communications log," Link said incredulously.
"I know," Robbie answered.
"The log is only for interactions with other automatons."
"I know," Robbie repeated.
"There are no other living Guardians."
Robbie shook his head. "Half a year ago, that was true. But not so now."
Zelda could hardly believe the words she said next. She was caught between excitement, awe, and terror at the news; "You found other living Guardians?"
"No, I...I activated them myself. Rhoamet has been inducting them, as it were."
"You know how dangerous they are-" Zelda began.
"I know, of course I know," the old Researcher sighed once last time. His age was at last beginning to show, and he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hands before he spoke. "You want to hear about Malachi? You have no idea what he took from us. I only wanted to recover... some part of it."
"Tell me everything," Zelda said slowly. "Everything that you remember."
Robbie looked to Rhoamet, who was sitting patiently on the grass. His mouth twitched, and for a moment he regarded the automaton with scorn, though Zelda could not discern why. Rhoamet, however, sat unaware - he was an innocent, such was the nature of Ganon's possession.
At last, Robbie looked back to Zelda, who was waiting with bated breath. "Words grant life to those who are better off dead," he said. "Listen well. I will not repeat myself."
One hundred and four years earlier
One Year Before the Calamity
From the mezzanine of Hyrule Castle throne room, even the tallest Knights looked small. In the early days of his reign, Rhoam recalled feeling isolated by the remote positioning of his throne. When he had asked why it was built this way, the throne high upon the balcony, his wife had been the one to tell him.
Zelda recounted the story of a Queen, another Zelda, who'd lived some five hundred years prior. This Queen disliked meeting her supplicants eye to eye. She felt their judging glares too harshly, and in cowardice, had ordered the great mezzanine built. It encompassed near half of the room, flanked on either side by a pair of winding marble staircases. This Queen made the entire room her throne, and in doing so raised herself above all who would come before her.
Rhoam surveyed the gathered court and understood the way that queen had felt, though he knew, even isolated, he could never escape judgement.
His advisors stood to either side of the raised throne, while the members of the court - nobles, Knights, the Royal Guard and various other title holders - and the supplicants waited below. By his guess, two hundred had come to court this day. It was more than the day before, and the day before that. Each day a new record was set.
They all came for one reason. Well, many reasons, but one primarily; to ask for help.
Rhoam sat listlessly as he listened to their needs and complaints, his head resting on a balled fist. The combined heat from the crowd jammed into the surprisingly modest sized throne room made Rhoam drowsy. Twice now Spymaster Malachi had roused him with a sharp but discreet jab to the shoulder. In a last effort to remain alert, Rhoam sat forward and pinched the skin between his thumb and forefinger.
The Mayor of Hateno had travelled all the way from Necluda to report a second year of failed crops. The old man wrang his bony-fingered hands, which Rhoam noticed were adorned with a pair of curiously opulent looking gloves.
"Hylian Rice is a staple, for all of Hyrule. Another year like this and…" the Mayor trailed off, baulking at the rest. There could be famine, Rhoam knew. He'd been hearing it for over a year now.
"Do you know why the harvest might be failing?" Rhoam asked, but the man shrugged haplessly.
"If only the Goddess would reveal it to us," he said. Wordlessly, like a shift in the breeze, all eyes moved to Princess Zelda, who was standing to the other side of Rhoam. She took a sharp intake of breath but otherwise showed no reaction. Rhoam waved away the suggestion.
"Focus on facts, not prayers. I want a report on any changing conditions - the weather, your farming schedule. If so much as one seed was sowed differently, I want to know. That's the only way we will combat this."
The Mayor bowed hurriedly. "Of course, Your Majesty," he wrung his hands again, and did not step back now that his turn was done.
"What is it?" Rhoam pressed.
"Well, if I may speak to one aspect of change…" the man's voice hushed with each word as if he was speaking sacrilege. Rhoam's patience, much like his attentiveness, began to wear thin.
"Speak!" he commanded, earning a startled yelp from the Mayor. He composed himself but wrung his hands tighter than before. Rhoam thought he might rip his fingers from their sockets if he kept this up.
"Your Majesty, we had trouble attracting labourers to Hateno this season, as with the last...and...you, see, it was a long winter, and we have moblins in the hills now and-"
Malachi cut in then. "Speak as your king commands," he growled.
"It's the Sheikah!" the Mayor blurted. After that, the words came tumbling out. "You have them set up at Fort Hateno, and at that laboratory near town. It's those...mechanical things people keep talking about, and those Beasts! We can see them all from Hateno. People think Hateno is a Sheikah stronghold. They...they won't come!"
Rhoam thought on the words for a long moment, allowing no emotion to cross his face. At his side, both Malachi and Zelda were visibly fuming.
"Do you expect us to just put the Divine Beasts back in the ground?" Malachi demanded of the Mayor.
"Well...I...I don't-"
"Those Beasts are fundamental to Hyrule's future. Your people will need to learn to live with their presence. This Kingdom will starve because of their superstition, have you thought of that!?"
It was the most riled up Rhoam had seen the Spymaster, and for a moment he pitied the toothless Mayor.
"Perhaps the Divine Beasts could be moved to more discreet locations," suggested Chief Advisor Voswann, emerging forth. "I'm sure the Champions-"
"The Champions are focusing on gaining full control of their Beasts," Zelda interjected, with all the authority of a Queen. Rhoam looked between them as they bickered.
"And when they do, Princess-" Voswann began.
"Then they must focus on preparing the defence against Calamity Ganon."
"Surely you can understand how talk like this makes the people uneased."
"The truth makes us uneasy, Voswann," Malachi cut in. "Are we really still pretending Calamity Ganon is not a threat?"
"The reasonable among us know to base their plans on evidence!" Voswann protested, casting a glance at Battlemaster Otra. "Not prophecy."
In a swift, powerful motion, Rhoam stood from his throne. At once, all the advisors sprang back. The argument was done.
Rhoam turned his attention back to the still quivering Mayor. "I will send twenty of my soldiers next harvest season to aid you, and I will have Director Malachi recall the researchers in Hateno to the Castle."
"At once, Your Majesty," Malachi affirmed. Rhoam hoped he had not overburdened the man. A fortnight past, the old Director of Research, a Sheikah man older than even Voswann, had passed peacefully in his sleep. Malachi was made Director in the interim, for an indefinite tenure that could well last until after the Calamity.
After the Calamity. The thought had not yet presented itself to Rhoam. It felt like something that would never materialise, and Rhoam frowned at his pessimism. Had they not prepared themselves as best as possible? The taste of uncertainty was thick on his tongue, and the only remedy was to speak.
"You are dismissed," he told the Mayor. "Call the next one."
Another half dozen supplicants came before him following that; one from Lurelin and one from Hyrule Ridge, both complaining of monsters near their settlements.
After that, a representative from Lake Totori warning that the harsh winter had forced them to pull couriers from rotation, and that correspondence would be slow until the fullness of Spring was upon Hyrule.
Then, a pair of messengers from Gerudo, two guardswomen near identical in appearance, reporting that a band of Yiga were seen heading north through the Gerudo Highlands, likely to avoid crossing the Gerudo-controlled Digdogg Bridge. Bad news after bad news; all of it ominous. The Calamity would be soon, it had to be.
Finally, Dr Purah came to report that her attempts to activate the Shrine near Gaponga Village had been unsuccessful. Elder Soklee had given the name to the conical monoliths uncovered all throughout Hyrule, and the Sheikah researchers had many theories as to their purpose.
"I have come to ask Princess Zelda for use of the Sheikah Slate, since court is the only time we see her these days," Purah said matter-of-factly.
Zelda's ownership of the Sheikah artefact was news to Rhoam. He cast her a disapproving glance, but she did not falter.
"My apologies - I have been hard to work with my devotions, as I'm sure you can understand. I will have it sent to you at once."
As she spoke, Rhoam caught sight of his daughter's appointed knight, waiting dutifully in the crowd. He stood out on account of his cyan blue tunic - the very one Zelda had begrudgingly made for him. She had been all too happy to make the Champions' scarves.
With the proceedings finally over, the crowd and Rhoam's advisors began to disperse. Before Zelda could similarly disappear, however, Rhoam pulled her aside.
"I don't like you distracting yourself with research you are not involved in, Zelda."
"The Sheikah Slate is a fundamental instrument," she countered readily. "I need it if I'm to visit the Divine Beasts. I have many theories on how-"
"Your assignment is not to visit the Divine Beasts, only to coordinate the Champions, which you have managed quite well. Let the research to the researchers."
"And what if I want to research as well? Purah herself taught me. I believe some of my ideas could be worth—"
"Enough," Rhoam hissed, incensed by her rebellion. "Stop playing at being a scholar. You forget your true duty."
Zelda glowered at him, her mouth pressed into a thin, angry line. But her fury passed. With a pout she said, "I'll be leaving on the morrow for Gerudo Town, to visit Lady Urbosa."
"So soon? You were already granted leave to visit Lord Daruk, in Eldin."
"And I will be going to the Spring of Courage," she added. She peered down her nose to where Sir Link stood patiently waiting for her, the Master Sword ever present at his back. "Perhaps this time, Father, I might go alone-"
"Absolutely not."
"But-"
"I don't need to explain myself to you, Zelda. You know why it is dangerous."
Zelda became almost distraught and looked half ready to fall to her knees. "Then assign me a different Knight. Anyone else! I can't stand him!"
"Good! Better you hate him than dally by falling in love!"
"Father!"
Rhoam shook his head. He'd had enough of this. The arrival of Dr Purah seeking her Sheikah Slate was enough cue for him to leave. Without so much as a hand wave goodbye, he turned his back to Zelda and said, "Return quickly. Time is short."
Purah repeated the phrase in her head as she traversed the long, underground tunnel between Hyrule Castle and the Royal Laboratories. Each time, it grew more and more malicious, like an unholy chant.
Director Malachi. Director Malachi.
Ugh. Even the thought of it made her want to retch. Not that anything would come up. She had skipped breakfast again. There hadn't been a single moment spare since supper the night before.
With the aid of her assistant Robbie, she had been inching ever closer to a major discovery. While the Shrines remained inactive, the Guidance Stones simply needed a power source - namely the flame from the ancient Sheikah furnace. What Purah and Robbie had discovered the night prior was that the uncovered automatons, the Guardians, could also be activated merely by exposing them to that same energy source.
Doing her best to make herself presentable, Purah had gone to the Castle to retrieve the Sheikah Slate from Princess Zelda that morning. The instrument would be necessary to perform a diagnostic on the Guardians.
When she returned, Robbie was already out in the small plain surrounding the laboratories with their assigned Guardian. He had grown borderline fanatical about his research into the automatons, and for good reason. This particular Guardian had been uncovered in Lanayru and was found to be blinking somehow, it's single beady eye communicating something, only neither Purah nor Robbie had yet figured it out.
Even all of this distraction could not excise from Purah's mind who now led her research. The Spymaster. That interloper who had betrayed her mother's orders and returned to Hyrule. She was ready to whine about it all to Robbie when to the west, they caught sight of Divine Beast Vah Medoh triumphantly launching itself from the spire of Lake Totori. Glad to see that the Champion Revali was making progress, Purah found her dour mood subdued, even just a little. The researchers watched the Beast's flight together while their Guardian waited patiently behind them, then returned to the task at hand.
While Robbie noted the Guardian's movements and reactions to stimuli, Purah commandeered the Sheikah Slate to perform the analysis. A diagnostic of the Guardian produced a host of data - its serial number, inner workings, status and, curiously, a communications log.
"Robbie, come look at this," Purah waved him, having spotted something on the log. She pointed to the pattern of dots and dashes. "Is that-?"
"Sheikah Code!" Robbie gasped. He looked at the Guardian with a grin wider than the Hylia River. "You can speak!"
The Guardian blinked a few times, and Robbie approached, watching it intently. "Come again?" he said.
The Guardian blinked again. Robbie copied the pattern down, furiously scribbling in his notebook.
There was movement behind them - the sound of boots gently shuffling across the grass, and the murmur of voices. Purah stiffened. She recognised the slimy tones immediately. Who else, but the very Director she had been dreading seeing.
"Ah - looks like our dedicated researchers have anticipated our arrival," he crooned.
Purah turned and felt her stomach lurch. Behind Lord Malachi were a retinue of soldiers, as well as Purah's younger sister. Now that Princess Zelda was nearly a grown woman, with her own appointed Knight to boot, Impa's duties as her attendant were less. She had been allowed to take up an apprenticeship with Lord Malachi, something Impa did more to keep an eye on him than learn his trade. Purah glowered at them in seething silence, and Malachi returned the gaze.
"Y-E-S," announced Robbie. "If I remember the code correctly. We haven't used it since we were children, but I think that's right. Purah, look! Purah?"
Robbie fell silent as he saw who had gathered behind them.
Affecting a smile, Malachi turned back to his retinue. "As you can see here, the Guardian Stalkers are very sophisticated. But, they are dangerous, so when we move them, we must take extra care.
"Move!?" Purah cried in unison with Robbie. Impa was unable to give them anything more a mouthed, I'm sorry.
"Indeed," Malachi said, spinning on his heel back towards the researchers. His outward pleasantness evaporated, and with a threatening glare he said, "We'll be relocating yourself and the Guardians to the Castle."
He waved his hand, and the soldiers set to work at once, marching into the laboratories.
"But what about the other relics? Are we moving those?" Purah asked, watching in horror as the soldiers entered her laboratory.
"No," Malachi answered immediately. "You will focus solely on the Guardians."
"Director, with respect, I am not a weapons specialist. My work is here."
Malachi's face darkened. He approached, his tall figure casting a shadow over Purah and Robbie both. "Need I remind you we are facing an imminent Calamity."
"But all of it could be important! What if the Shrines were made to aid the Hero? Or the Slate?" Purah argued, refusing to be intimidated, though her hands did shake. "We already know it is fundamental to controlling the Divine Beasts-"
"Dr Purah, will I tell the king how you stood in the way of our preparations?"
Purah scoffed. "You cannot-"
Reaching down to pry the Sheikah Slate from Purah's hands, Malachi crouched so that their eyes were level, and whispered. "Yes, I can."
"You traitor."
"Sister! Enough!"
Still waiting behind the Director, Impa shook her head. Purah knew better than to argue with her sister. The truth was evident, pure and plain. There was nothing to be done.
Soon, Malachi's retinue began to emerge from the Laboratories, boxes of relics in their hands and incensed researchers on their heels. In the boxes, Purah saw swords, and shields, all giving off a consistent, cyan glow. They were taking the Sheikah weapons, she realised, and Goddess only knew what for.
When Malachi finally departed, after all but gutting the laboratories, Purah, Impa and Robbie sat on the grass by their Guardian. They were expected to deliver it to the Castle in exactly one hour, and resume their work there.
"Perhaps we should lighten up," Robbie offered. "The Guardians are important. And Director Malachi hasn't actually done anything wrong."
Purah glared so hard at Robbie that she felt her eyes burn. Impa merely sighed.
"What?" Robbie whined. "It's been sixteen years! He sold us out to the Yiga once-"
"Will you listen to yourself?" Purah snapped. She leapt to her feet, restless from her unletted anger. "You're under his spell just like the King!"
"What is he going to do? Stage a coup?" Robbie challenged, and Impa gave an authoritative, "No."
Impa crossed her arms indignantly and said to her sister. "You're the Know-It-All. What will he do?"
Impa rose to her feet, gathering her long silver hair into a tight braid as she spoke. "I don't know. But we need a plan."
"For the Calamity?" Purah pressed.
"For everything."
Gatepost Town had always struck Princess Zelda as unusually small, given where it was. The village sat at a fork in the road, and all traffic moving from Lanayru and Necluda to Gerudo passed it by. There was even a garrison nearby, yet Gatepost Town contained no more than a handful of homes and a single, run-down inn.
Rubbing the pink from her fingers, Zelda waited for the innkeeper to return with her request. By the way he scurried about - clattering through his crockery, striking his flint, fishing Hyrule Herb tea leaves from an ancient and spotted tin - one might have thought he was serving the Goddess herself. When he was done, he produced a kettle full of hot tea, and two ceramic mugs. Zelda paid him likely more than needed, and he stuttered through a thank you, bowing his head in reverence. The exchange was a familiar one, though Zelda still disliked it.
With a sigh in each step, Zelda climbed the stairs up to the boarding rooms and tapped gently on one of the doors with the toe of her boot. The door opened a slither, and a single, blue eye framed by ash blonde hair came into view. Link's glare was intense, interrogative, but softened when he saw her. He opened the door and bowed.
"Don't," Zelda said curtly, handing him his tea. It was a peace offering. An acknowledgement of something she had been resisting; Link was now a necessary part of her life.
He cupped the empty mug with both hands, looking between it and Zelda with a bemused expression. Zelda swallowed.
"Come sit with me," she said, the word more an order than an invitation. "Hyrule Herb is a cure-all."
Link raised a sceptical brow but acquiesced to follow down from the boarding rooms to the veranda of the measly inn. They sat side by side on some rotting wooden chairs. A light, misty rain began to fall. Princess and Knight sipped their tea in silence.
"How does your shoulder feel?" Zelda asked eventually. The Knight shrugged out of habit and immediately winced.
"Sore," he answered.
The memory was still fresh, images coming thick and fast like a flock of birds at wing. Two Yiga, with their curved blades; Link, with his sacred one. Zelda had refused to look away, but there was no need. Link would not kill either Yiga, even when given the opportunity. Even when one landed a bruising blow to his shoulder with the hilt of their scythe. He'd never cried out, only turned, pivoting faster than Zelda knew men could move, and the Yiga were soon vanishing in a puff of red smoke.
"You didn't have to do that," Zelda said quietly, arising from her thoughts.
Link paused before he spoke, watching the rainfall. "My job is to-"
"I meant, you didn't have to spare them. They were enemies of the crown."
"They're people." Link looked down into his tea. "And...my job is to protect you. Not…"
Kill people? Zelda was sure every Knight in Hyrule would savour killing a Yiga. But not this one. Zelda thought to comfort him. She looked at his hands; they too were pink from the cold, but they did not shake. There was a stillness to Link that made him appear statuesque. Timeless, like he could live in any age.
"Thank you," Zelda murmured. "And...my apologies. Your job can't very be interesting."
His lips pricked upwards. "I like being away from the Castle."
"If my father had his way, I'd never leave."
"My father is the same."
"So I heard. Didn't Lord Otra have to sneak you across the river, just to get that sword?"
"Would your father let you go? After what happened?"
"I don't know. I don't know if I'm a person to him, or just another part of a prophecy," Zelda looked down into her own teacup, ready to feel awfully sorry for herself. But then she remembered why she even had this tea at all, and how much Link had endured up until this point. Near fifty men had died because he found the so-called Sword that Seals the Darkness. And not two days ago, he had fought a pair of vicious Yiga, for what? An insolent little Princess.
"Your father is Sir Micah, isn't he?" Zelda asked, changing the subject. "He served during my mother's reign. I suppose your being a Knight only makes sense, with someone like that to teach you."
Link nodded but had nothing more to add. He drained his cup, wiping his mouth on his patterned arm wrappings. Zelda felt her stomach sinking; talk of his father seemed only to worsen the mood.
"It's okay, you don't have to talk. It's rude of me to pry," she muttered. To her surprise, Link turned to look at her. When he held her gaze Zelda seised. He could have kept her there all evening.
"Was your mother a seamstress?" he asked, and Zelda nearly gasped from relief.
"I-It was a hobby, one she taught me," she stammered. "Why do you ask?"
"This tunic," Link pointed to his chest, and his eyes went wide as if in awe. "Really comfortable. Strong too. Hasn't torn once."
Zelda couldn't help but grin madly. "Really? I had Purah help me. We discovered that Silent Princess nectar does something to the dye. It triples the fabric strength! But I had to be conservative, the flowers are rare, so I'm glad it isn't tight! Oh!" she clapped a hand to her mouth and felt herself redden. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ramble."
Link just smiled at her, his cheeks full. Zelda felt herself smiling back, until she suddenly became shy, of all things. She'd lost track of herself, that was all. She couldn't possibly enjoy his company. Link was everything Zelda both feared and envied, and yet... Something about the calm of him, it soothed her troubled mind.
The rain began to ease, but Zelda willed it to pour. She looked to the fork in the road, and caught sight of Vah Rudania in the far distance, lumbering around Death Mountain.
She pointed to the fork. "I told my father I was going to the Spring of Courage. The far path there will take us south."
Link raised his brows, the meaning clear; But...
"But; the near path north leads us to where more Shrines have been spotted. I just… I just want some more time before I recommit myself to my powers. A few weeks, maybe months..."
The growing excitement on Link's face then served only to embolden her. Zelda sensed its rarity, and seeing it again made her feel blessed by good omen. Link placed his finished mug on the ground and stood, offering out a hand.
"What is it?" Zelda asked.
"You should turn in, Princess. You'll need a good night's sleep."
Zelda merely blinked up at him, so he clarified, "The journey north will be a long one."
Giddy with anticipation, Zelda took his hand.
Like clockwork, the Kingdom moves. Each day another tick.
Champions work to master their Beasts. Rito succeeds first, then Zora, then Gerudo and Goron. In their respective corners, they are almost ready. The days tick down.
The Princess and her appointed Knight begin their grand adventure of defiance; first to the Rauru Hillside, then back to Eldin, then to Zora's Domain. Their friendship grows like the flowers of Spring around them. The days tick down.
Carts by the dozen traverse the roads of Hyrule. Desperation keeps trade alive. Even without a strong harvest, the people must eat. Fish crosses the land from Lanayru, rice from Necluda, wheat from Tabantha. But it isn't enough. The days tick down.
And deep below the ground, waiting for that signal, waiting as it has waited since time immemorial - Calamity looms.
And the days tick down.
Were Hyrule Castle a living being, the underground walkways would be its arteries and veins, and the cavernous docks its very beating heart.
Here, amongst the voracious throng - dock workers loading and unloading cargo, ferrymen mooring their ships, merchants hovering anxiously over their wares - Rhoam found he could walk undisturbed. Unnoticed even. It was wonderfully refreshing.
This day the docks were extra busy. A grand operation was underway, by Rhoam's design. After the failed harvest, the stores of Hyrule Castle had been half-emptied, and the residents of Castle Town had been ordered to donate what they could. That certainly silenced those pink-nosed nobles, with their judgemental sneers. How many of them knew anything about famine? How many of them had protected anything but their own coffers, let alone a Kingdom?
Half the Royal Fleet was to depart before noon in a desperate attempt to keep the Kingdom fed. However, the flagship, the Queen's Honour, would be ferrying more than just grains. It would be ferrying the Princess.
After two months away, Zelda had returned with bad news; her powers were still unawoken, and she hadn't even been to the Spring of Courage. She claimed to have simply lost her way, and returned home to recoup, but not before a reckless detour across what seemed like half of Hyrule!
The revelation had driven Rhoam into a rage and sent the gossip-mongers crazy. They called her Princess Absentia. Zelda had wasted precious time frolicking across the Kingdom - his Kingdom - and Sir Link never once attempted to set her back on the right path. Spraying spittle in his fury, Rhoam had ordered them both to board the Queens Honour and sail directly south for Faron, demanding they not return until Zelda visited the Spring.
Rhoam approached the Queen's Honour, an enormous, elegantly-made vessel powered two dozen oarsmen. Waiting by its bow on the long jetty, silvery hair and white vestments making him beacon-like, was Lord Malachi. He stood in the very centre of the pier, yet none of the workers passing by noticed him, or even bumped into him. Perhaps they did not see him. Malachi was a mage of the powerful textile class, the kind that manifested as a unique relationship within space and time. The Yiga were well known to use it, for teleportation, and the Seers too for their visions. Perhaps Malachi wielded both aspects - though he did not flaunt it. Rhoam's Advisors would have exiled him in earnest should he have chosen to.
Malachi was staring at the ship with a fierce intensity, but that melted away when he caught sight of the king. "I was told to find you here, I have come only to give you a small progress report, Your Majesty," he said, raising his voice above the rabble.
"No need for such formality, Malachi. Speak freely."
As Malachi prepared his words, Rhoam noticed he looked weathered; his usually cropped white hair had been left to grow, his ageless eyes were dark with bags, and even his staple white cloak seemed askew. His work had been tireless.
"The Sheikah Slate we recovered from the Royal Laboratories was the key to our success. The Guardians are almost under our control," Malachi reported. He patted the Sheikah Slate resting at his hip.
"Good, good news," Rhoam said, careful not to betray just how relieved the words made him feel. It was the first good news in a long while. "By the Goddess' grace, this will all be over soon."
Malachi laughed and clapped him on the back. "Do not trouble yourself, Rhoam. All is as it should be." He looked back up to the ship, where Queen's Honour was painted in neat black letters. A small scowl formed on his features. "This operation, however, I feel it unnecessary."
"I must placate the other villages," Rhoam sighed. "I cannot rule Castle Town alone."
Malachi did not seem convinced, but he said nothing. Instead, he looked back to Rhoam and smiled. His warmth only served to deepen the pit in Rhoam's stomach. He sensed the operation was doomed, though he knew not how. The looming fear swelled within him, and Rhoam could not keep from speaking. Who better to unburden himself to than Malachi?
"Why does it feel like everything I do is...never enough? I failed at everything except uncovering the Divine Beasts, and when I succeeded at that, I failed at all else. Those cards you showed me. The next one is the Tower. A burning tower."
"Inevitable. Inescapable, yes. But after the Tower-"
"The Sun, yes I know," Rhoam said, unnerved by Malachi's conviction. "Is there really no other path? We've been following those cards for sixteen years and yet...it feels like it will never end. Why must Hyrule be like this?"
Malachi regarded him still with a sagely calm, and then chuckled to himself as if remembering some old, private joke. "Hyrule is a strange place, is it not? It has no history, only legends. It has no true heroes, only colossi who have wielded its fate in their hands. And yet, we are always either recovering from war or preparing for it. But the end is near, I assure you. The Divine Beasts - their power is the Sun, and they will defeat the Calamity."
"And the Shrines, the rest of the relics?"
"Unimportant."
"But-"
"Shrines cannot defeat the Calamity, this Sheikah Slate will not defeat the Calamity. Power is what we need, and power is what we have!"
Rhoam found himself not completely convinced, but did not wish to argue. If anyone knew what to do in the face of the Calamity, it was Malachi.
In the corner of his vision, Rhoam saw a trio of figures approach. Malachi swivelled on his heel to greet them. "Princess! Hero! Just on time! And...Lady Impa. A pleasure."
Standing at the edge of the jetty, all three youths wore a sombre expression, Princess Zelda especially so. "My apologies, Father," she said. "Sir Link cannot accompany me. His father is ...quite unwell, and Battlemaster Otra has given him leave to remain here. I am bringing Impa to escort me instead."
Her concern seemed genuine, and Rhoam was entirely unsure what to make of it. He expected her to be overjoyed at being free of the boy, but instead, she was mournful.
Malachi was equally displeased. "Link's duty is to you, Princess, as Impa's duty is to me."
Neither Zelda nor Link spoke; only Impa stood in defiance. "I am her attendant first, and your apprentice second, Malachi-"
"Director Malachi," he corrected.
"Of course," Impa said icily.
"Lady Impa will go with the Princess, it is common sense," Rhoam cut in. Bickering between the Sheikah would not do. He could not stand it. Fighting the urge to bury his face in his hands, Rhoam nodded for Malachi to follow, and marched along the jetty, straight past the stone-faced Link and Zelda. He would speak to them when they returned successful - only if they returned successful.
For now, there was work to do. "Come, Malachi," he said, not noticing the duo of Sheikah researchers watching his departure. "I wish to see the progress that has been made."
Once the king and Lord Malachi were gone from view, Purah closed her eyes and counted to ten. Just to be sure. Once she was done, she nudged Robbie in the ribs so hard that he gave a yelp. "Move!" she hissed.
With a scowl, her research assistant grabbed up the crate they had brought, and they hurried from their hiding spot down to the jetty. Finding Impa with the Princess and Sir Link was not difficult; they were vibrant against the mass of workers on the docks.
"Let's set sail and be done with this," Purah huffed as they approached. It would not do to dawdle where they could so easily be spotted.
"Purah!" the Princess gasped. "Rob-"
Impa shushed her with a flat hand on her arm, pulling her in close to whisper, "They are not here. You did not see them. Do you understand?"
Zelda motioned to the crate in Robbie's arms. "Nor that?"
"Oh, this old thing?" Robbie grinned. "It's a crate full of grain, Princess, nothing more. Definitely not any potential research papers smuggled from some hypothetical lab!"
Purah slapped him on the shoulder. "That hypothetical is my life's work! Look after it!" Absurdly, Robbie stuck out his tongue at her, and said, "Might be I'll drop it into the river if I'm not treated well."
"You two make me forget that I'm the youngest," Impa scolded. Seething, Purah decided to hold her tongue. It would not do to be found out. She shot Robbie an apologetic half-smile but would do no more than that.
Meanwhile, the Princess and her appointed Knight were at their own silent standoff, navigating the right way to say their farewells. It made Purah feel a little sick, the modesties of the young and smitten.
At last, Zelda spoke. "Y-You can take leave, for as long as you want. Even if I return early."
The Knight nodded, his eyes plastered to the toe of his boots. "I'm sorry," he said quietly.
"Don't be. Your rest is earned, Sir Link. Look after your father, I'm-" her voice broke. "I'm sure he needs you."
The exchange amused Purah as much as it bemused her. Hadn't the Princess disliked her Knight? That was what Impa had told her some months ago…
Impa placed a hand on the Princess' back to lead her aboard; it was time to go. Purah looked back over her shoulder as she hurried followed the others aboard, but the Knight was already gone.
The journey was only two nights, with Impa and Zelda staying on for a third and fourth. Naturally, Purah and Robbie had not booked a cabin, being stowaways (or as Impa had explained to the Captain, emergency assistants), and so they all crammed into one tiny room with only two beds. Under any other circumstance, she would never have agreed to such conditions, but her life's work truly was on the line. They had to secure it in Kakariko before Malachi could reach it.
Leaving their travel wares and the crate in the cabin, the Sheikah accompanied the Princess to the deck. The Queen's Honour soonbegan the lumbering glide south along the Hylia River, towards Lake Hylia, with half of the royal fleet trailing behind. Thankfully the ship was not crowded since it was carrying freight rather than passengers. The deck was mostly empty, save the ship workers and a handful of travellers; the gentle breeze and rolling sound of waves below soon lulled Purah into a state of calm.
Zelda tried to pry for the reason the researchers were tagging along, but received no answer.
"I will tell you once we reach Faron, Princess," Impa assured her. "It isn't safe to speak of here."
"Is something the matter?" the Princess asked nervously. Robbie elbowed her gently in the shoulder.
"The Sheikah are infamous for sneaking around, this shouldn't surprise you!"
At that, Zelda giggled. "Sometimes I wish I could be sneaky and go around unnoticed."
"We ought to get you some Sheikah gear then," Robbie suggested. "I'll give Aunt Soklee your measurements next time I see her."
Purah only half-listened to their conversation as she watched the sloping hills beyond the river bank. Dusk fell quickly, bathing Central Hyrule in a soft red glow.
The Queens Honour passed under one bridge, and then a second, as Purah companions continued their conversation. She considered turning in when something in the distance caught her attention. They were approaching the Applean Forest. The trees were dense but bare from the Winter, and amongst them, Purah spotted movement and light. Pinpricks of blue seeming to hover mid-air, held by shadowed figures. Leaning over the railing, she focused and squinted. Yes, there was indeed movement, and with each passing moment it became clearer, the lights larger. Suddenly anxious, Purah turned to her companions.
"Impa, Robbie," she said, interrupting Robbie mid-tirade. "Do you see that?"
Her grave tone must have gotten through to them, for the other Sheikah immediately followed her line of sight to the forest.
"You need to get your spectacles checked," Robbie teased, but Impa seemed to see something too. She scanned the nearing forest with narrowed eyes.
"Those are either Sheikah or-"
A rallying cry erupted from the forest; a long, whooping call that Purah knew to only mean one thing.
"YIGA!" Impa shouted.
With a final cry, the Yiga disappeared from the forest in a wave of red puffs, reappearing on the ship deck an instant later. In reaction, Impa wrenched the Princess in close and with her free hand she drew her dagger. Robbie similarly reached for Purah, whimpering as he clung to her for his life.
"Protect your Princess," Impa ordered, but the ship workers had scrambled. They were easy prey for the Yiga, who cut through them like butter. Purah saw the weapons they wielded and nearly fell to her knees in shock. The blades glowed a brilliant blue, and pulsated with ancient energy.
"Sheikah weapons!" she cried. "Those are Sheikah weapons! Impa!"
Her elder sister still had the Princess in hand and was fending off the converging Yiga. Around them, the deck had descended into chaos. The Sheikah pressed in close, back to back, as the Yiga began to converge upon them. Smoke was filling the air, pouring out from below.
"There's too many, we need to go!" Impa shouted, managing to gut an advancing Yiga with her dagger. The Princess shrieked, her travel clothes sprayed with the blood. Purah felt Robbie pulling on her arm, dragging her away, but she could not move. She was fixated on the entryway into the cabins. It was now ablaze.
"Purah! Now!" came Robbie's exasperated plea. He dug in his nails, trying to get her to move.
"I can't-" she protested. "My work, the crate! It's still inside."
"It doesn't matter!"
"It's my work! He won't take it! He won't!"
The horrible truth had dawned on her. The Sheikah weapons...they had been taken by Malachi. This attack...it was him.
A group of Yiga spotted them, and they charged across the deck. Purah did not see the attackers, consumed by the need to free herself from Robbie's grip. She had to save the crate. She would die rather than lose it.
At the last moment, Purah noticed the advancing Yiga, brandishing their stolen weapons. She screamed, but was cut off when someone seized her by the collar and dragged her across the deck. She kicked furiously, fighting to keep her footing. Breaking free, she saw that it was her own sister pulling her to safety, the Princess still in her other arm. Purah reached forward, and she and Impa interlocked hands, sharing the briefest of glances. Robbie was at her other side, a hand still wrapped around her shoulder. They clambered together towards the railing of the ship. The intention was clear.
"Hold on!" Impa shouted.
There was no time to close her eyes. Purah tightened her grip on her sister. They burst through the burning railing and tumbled from the ship towards the black waters below.
The High Priest of Hyrule was reciting his fifth prayer for the dusk-light worship.
Rhoam would not normally come to Hyrule Cathedral, with its cold stone walls, blank-faced Goddess statue, and empty, stale air. But he needed somewhere empty, lest the thoughts burning in his mind crush him for lack of escape.
He had tried to keep calm, hoping the revered place would placate him. But not so. He felt the history of this place in the very stones below his feet. The very thought of seeing it destroyed almost left him gasping for air.
Only a few other worshippers had come this evening; Chief Advisor Voswann, Lord Malachi, and a handful of nobles and commoners. They bowed when Rhoam entered, and he had half a mind to dismiss them all so he might be alone with his thoughts.
As the High Priest finished his sixth recitation, Rhoam was just beginning to feel somewhat calm. And so, right on cue, the doors of the cathedral burst open. Gasps filled the high hall; a trio of Sheikah, each with their clothes soaked through, strumbled together inside. With horror, Rhoam realised it was Impa, Purah and Robbie.
"What are you doing here?" Malachi barked, meeting the Sheikah youths in the middle of the room. Impa drew a radiant blue sword from her belt and held to his face. Malachi lurched backwards with a cry of alarm.
"Sheikah weapons!" Impa shouted, holding the glowing blade high. "Ask any of your researchers. Lord Malachi seized them all two weeks past. He is the only one who could have armed them!"
"What are you talking about?" Rhoam demanded.
Impa's face fell. "You don't yet know?"
"What are you talking about!?"
Purah pointed to the east. "Go see for yourself, Your Majesty. The Yiga have burnt your fleet and nearly killed your Princess, all because of him!" she cast her finger onto Malachi, but Rhoam did not wait to see the Spymaster's reaction. He barreled out of the cathedral, and immediately smelled smoke. Some way across Hyrule Field, just beyond the Applean forest, a vast plume was rising into the air, tinged red by the flames below.
A great, guttural sound escaped him. It was too much. It was inevitable, inescapable; the destruction of his Kingdom. Rhoam howled, his pain liberated at last, as in the helpless distance, half of the Royal Fleet burned.
Footsteps gathered behind him; those inside the cathedral had come out to see. Some cried out, some said nothing at all.
Rhoam turned back to the Sheikah - the youths, and Malachi. "Where is the Princess!?" he demanded, near-rabid.
"Taken to the infirmary," Impa answered. Behind her, Malachi appeared wholly unaffected by the unfolding disaster.
"Tell me what happened, then," Rhoam said, bracing himself.
Impa explained it succinctly, brutally even. Yiga wielding Sheikah weapons had descended upon the fleet making its way down the river, setting it alight. The entire time she spoke, Purah and Robbie regarded Malachi with disgust.
"Have you nothing to say for yourself?" Purah finally implored him. "We have proof you orchestrated this."
Malachi took a deep breath, pressing his lips together. He shrugged. "I do not deny it."
"You...you admit to it?" Rhoam breathed. He approached Malachi, meeting him eye to eye, but the Sheikah did not cower.
"I employed the Yiga to attack the ships. Fearful, the people would then consolidate themselves to Central Hyrule. We could feed them all, rather than wasting resources in transport."
"Did you also employ the Yiga to burn my fleet!?" Rhoam seethed.
"Well, no. But I did not rule it out," Malachi sighed. He gave Impa and Purah an embittered look. "I suppose I did not expect these stowaways!"
"But… the Princess…" Rhoam's voice fell to a whisper. "You knew she would be on that ship! Zelda was nearly killed!"
Malachi grew indignant at that. "I assumed her Knight would be with her, to protect her as Lady Impa so gracefully did. And in any case, the Kingdom is at stake here, Rhoam. One little girl-"
The words exploded from him. "She is my daughter!"
"A useless ruler who cannot in any way aid Hyrule," Malachi narrowed his eyes. "Yes, she is your daught-"
Thwack! Rhoam moved without thought. He cut Malachi off mid-sentence with a fierce right hook that sent the Sheikah stumbling to the ground. He sprung back in an instant, cupping his split lip and scowling like an offended cat.
"How dare you-" he began.
"Begone," Rhoam snapped.
"Excuse me?"
"I said, begone!"
"You cannot-"
"I can. I will." Rhoam backed away to regard Malachi in his entirety. He would see him completely now, in his true form. "I should have done this years ago, I should never have let you return."
"I have helped you save your Kingdom!" Malachi insisted.
"My Kingdom is in chaos and starving to death, all because of you! I upturned it based on your prophecy, and yet... you were nothing but a snake!"
Malachi threw open his hands; a final challenge. He spoke in his infamous, honeyed tones, but they were as bitter as pitch.
"I was always as you see me now. I never hid who, or what, I was. And I always did what I thought was best. I can see my efforts were waylaid." He unhooked the Sheikah Slate at his belt, and tossed it to the ground. "You have only yourself to blame, Hyrule King. I wonder how much longer you will hold that title!"
"Get out of my Kingdom!" Rhoam roared. "If you refuse I will have you hunted down. I've killed worse monsters than you!"
With a final sneer, Malachi lifted his cloak to his face. He closed his eyes to focus, and there was a puff of smoke. When Malachi let his cloak fall, it was empty.
The fortune teller was gone.
How far he had travelled, or where to, Rhoam could not know. He had been a mage after all...for better, and for worse.
All around him, the spectators gawped at the empty white cloak. Even the Sheikah were catatonic. Young Purah was the first to step forward, picking up the abandoned Sheikah Slate, and shaking it free of dirt.
"How could you let this happen?" she whispered. "Mother warned you, again, and again."
Rhoam could hardly speak. He met her red eyes and saw that they were full of tears. It was enough to break him. He keeled over, collapsing onto his hands and knees.
"I always did... what was best…" he murmured. "I always… I thought I knew, what was best for us..."
"You think you know what's best?" Purah spluttered. "Letting this miscreant into our home! You who were a stranger to our people, you who were never meant to be king!"
"Purah!" Impa shouted, but she was already done. She returned to her sister's side, sobbing quietly, and the trio of Sheikah prepared to leave. Wobbling, chest heaving, Rhoam forced himself to stand. This was but a setback, an obstacle to the peace he knew was on the horizon. The Tower was yet to come, and Rhoam refused to be broken.
"If you tell anyone of what happened here, I will kill you," he told the watching crowd. "Do you understand me? That goes for all of you." He singled out the Sheikah, and they nodded in understanding. Rhoam then ordered over Chief Advisor Voswann, noting that the man was smiling, vindicated by what he had witnessed.
"When the Princess wakes, ensure she does not re-acquire the Sheikah Slate. Her work with the Divine Beasts ends today."
"A sound move," Voswann affirmed. He gestured for them to take the road leading back to Hyrule Castle. "The Princess will be in the infirmary by now, would you wish to go see her?"
By the Sheikah's accounts, Zelda was not badly hurt. Only shaken, and chilled from the waters. Rhoam shook his head. Of all his fears, she had become his greatest. "No, no, no, no," he muttered. "There's work to do. No, I can't face her…"
Standing somehow triumphant, Rhoam led the long walk home.
Darkness swirled around her; cold fingers dug into her skin, her bones. Red faces, high screeches into the night air. And then, the plunge.
Zelda woke with a whimper, encased in darkness still. For a moment she was in a panic, her head swimming with sensations she did not understand. But it subsided, and she was left, bruised, but not broken, in an infirmary bed. Sitting on the floor beside it was Link, snoozing with his head resting against the wall. Zelda smiled. She was home. She was safe.
"Link," she whispered, and he woke immediately, a hand reaching instinctively for his sword. When he saw her, he relaxed.
"I will tell them you're awake-"
"No, Link, wait-" Zelda reached out and grasped his hand. The warmth blossomed against her skin, and not a second later, she snatched her hand away.
"What happened?" she asked meekly. "I...I can't remember…"
For a long moment, Link struggled to find something to say. "I should have been there…" he finally said, anger in his voice. "I should kill that-"
She retook his hand. This time she did not let go. "You're here now. We still haven't made it to the Spring of Courage, have we? Will you take me when I'm better?"
The rest was on her tongue, but Zelda could not say it. I need you with me.
Gently, Link pulled his hands away from hers, but said, "I go where you go, Princess."
It was enough for now. Zelda lay back down and fell into a blissful slumber.
One Hundred and Four Years Later
By the time Robbie had retold his story, noon was upon them. It made the waters of the Hylia River between the Castle and the Royal Laboratory ruins glisten. To think such a tragedy had occurred on those very waters, and yet it was completely absent from Zelda's mind…
"I'm surprised you don't remember the attack, Your Majesty," Robbie commented.
"I knew I was there, but little else. No one would speak of it. Not even Impa. Father never even wrote of it in his diary." Zelda could look away from the waters.
"So...what happened to him?" Link piped up. The ominous tale had had him engrossed. "He just disappeared?"
"Mages will do that," Robbie drawled. It was clear that nobody could know where Malachi had gone, or where he had ended up. The thought that he might yet live sent a shiver down Zelda's spine.
"None of it makes any sense. Malachi was friendly. He worked for my father for eight years and then just like that, he betrays him. Why?"
"Naturally, I have a theory," Robbie said with a rueful smile. Both Link and Zelda leaned in closer. "Malachi was a Seer, no doubt. His visions were genuine. But...he was wholly uninterested with anything other than the Guardians and the Divine Beasts. And he staged the attack knowing, or assuming, that you two would be on that boat. He gave the Yiga Sheikah weapons, well beyond what was needed. Plainly, he wanted you dead. I considered then - that which he sought to preserve, what did it have in common?"
Link's answer was immediate. "It could be possessed."
Robbie snapped his fingers with pride. "Precisely! Well done, you are my apprentice."
But Zelda was yet to grasp their meaning. "Wait- he couldn't have been-"
"Malachi was being manipulated by Ganon. It is the only theory that makes sense," Robbie explained. "Seers are given windows through the world that others are not. He could have heard voices that he interpreted as divine advice. Advice that told him to position the Divine Beasts and Guardians right where Ganon would need them, all while believing he was doing the Goddess's work."
"No one would believe it, or could have guessed it…" Link murmured, nodding as if impressed.
Zelda looked at the Guardian sitting beside her and placed her right hand on his shell. She drew her legs in close to her chest, feeling vulnerable, and violated.
"Even back then, we thought Ganon was a myth, but his influence never faded…" Feeling a surge of determination within her, Zelda looked at the blank space on her hand where the golden symbol of Hyrule had once been. "And maybe it never will."
Did I make the right choice? The test would come soon, Zelda knew. She could ignore the problem of her powers no longer.
Robbie look again at the rubble-filled field where his laboratory had once been. "I only wish some of what we had done survived. Malachi took it all, in the end."
"He didn't take this," Zelda said, rapping Rhoamet's shell with her knuckles. The automaton's head whirred to face her, and if shifted gently away, blinking at her. Link translated, and began to chuckle.
"He says, Don't."
"What, is he ticklish?" Zelda shot back. Ignoring Link as he rolled his eyes, she kneeled before Robbie. "Malachi he didn't take any of us, or your people, or your ability to work."
"No, Zelda, no he did not," Robbie conceded. When at last he smiled, Zelda saw the youthful face of the spirited researcher as he had been those one hundred years ago. How gracious was the Goddess, to let her see it again. How gracious was she to give Zelda the opportunity to see so many things once more.
"I want to re-establish these laboratories, " she told Robbie and Link both. "And not just for the Sheikah. Perhaps, a place of higher learning, like the Hyrulean Academy, but for scholars. When Ganon returns - and he will return - our Kingdom will not stand unprepared."
Robbie needed little convincing. "Excellent. I will write to Purah at once, though she may be hesitant to leave Hateno, given her...condition."
"Well, tell her I will name her Director, " Zelda suggested knowingly.
Robbie grinned. "Oh, that will do it. She might even rebuild the laboratories herself."