It has always been said that a river runs in one direction, and that it is impossible for one to run in two directions at once. Yet there are always those who refuse to commit themselves to what the masses say, and in their minds they believe that anything is possible. Immediately, they become the handful of citizens in society who spend their time observing, and analyzing their surroundings, trying to find the answers to Nature's most unsolvable questions instead of immersing themselves in the almost pointless and incessant patterns society creates. Few actually come into contact with such a river, however if they were to embark on a search, they would find that one existed in Hyrule. The Zora's River led into the Castle Town, or so we are led to think. In fact, if one took the time to place themselves at the midpoint of the beginning of the River and the Castle Town, they would find that the currents flowing from Zora's Domain were met with a countering current that originated from the Castle Town. Why this is so, no one holds the answer, and even those who passed by its banks could never even formulate a logical hypothesis, no matter how long they spent in thought. After centuries, Hyrulians who managed to observe the phenomenon decided that the only explanation at that point would be that Zora's River was controlled by magic, though they could not, for the life of them, pinpoint the source of such magic, if the River was, in fact, steered by that.
Our story turns, at this point, towards this specific spot we have been discussing and, in essence, dissecting. Under the morning light, a blue form steadily broke the surface of the river water, and a pair of eyes flicked left and right, gaging their surroundings, albeit discreetly, as ravaging armies were not far away. Almost as quickly as it had appeared, whatever it was soon disappeared, dunking its head under and into the aqueous body that filled the riverbed. Within moments, whoever observed the midpoint of Zora's River would have found that, for once, the current reversed and for the first time since anyone could remember, the river flowed one way towards the Castle Town. Some might have been alarmed at the sight, claiming that such an event preceded the gradual integration of individuals into the realm of the masses, an erasure of the minority as the latter is defeated, signaling the beginnings of one opinion, and only one voice with none others to counter it, none to face it in the opposite direction. However, some would argue that in fact, there were times when such an action needed to be done, that there were times when the minority would need to conform for a common cause and one day, would become itself again. Many more would doubt that the latter situation would happen.
But how would they be able to know? After all, the majority always assumed that a river never ran in opposite directions, yet they were wrong. They can doubt the existence of the figure that, at first, emerged out of the water, however we've learned that anything is possible. The minority can have a voice, the war can be won. After all, there is a place in Hyrule where a river flows both ways. And if it is possible for a river to do such a thing, what, exactly, do we call the impossible?
Bent double, breath short, the King wearily sat in his chair, head close to his knees. No news of his daughter had reached him, and with each passing moment His Majesty expected a messenger to bang upon his door, hand in a fist, panting, arriving to inform him of the Princess' death. For hours now, the battle had raged outside, unrelenting, and full of screams of horror and agony. Yet it no longer mattered to the King whether or not his loyal Hylian subjects would lose the battle, the sole knowledge His Majesty sought pertained to his daughter's life.
Eyes leadened with gray, wrinkling bags of fatigue, the King wrapped his red cloak tightly around his shoulders and gazed at the scene unfolding from the boundaries of his chamber window. At any other chosen time, His Majesty would have taken the occasion to behold the Hyrulian sunrise, with its cloudy fabrics of yellow and orange looming up behind the outline of Death Mountain. Time and time again, the King had thought of this instance as the one moment in his day when he could sit in peace and observe as the sun reached higher into the sky, its rays penetrating the clouds and the entire land below it. However, this particular day proved to be quite different, and the King no longer felt moved by the beauty of the sunrise as he watched its bright gleam reflect off the metal of the soldier's armour. In fact, the King perceived that the clouds had even a light tinge of red that gave the Hyrulian sky an appearance of danger that penetrated every soul and gave them a feeling of unease, as though the blood of those who perished on the battlefield was reflected up above.
A persistent banging threw the King's senses back into the chamber he was presently confined in, causing him to momentarily debate whether or not he should call whoever it was in. After much hesitation, His Majesty made the decision to turn his attention to the door, and projected a "Come in!"
The messenger hastily threw open the King's chamber door, with a smile on his face and an expression of excitement that confused the King. How was it entirely possible for a Hylian to be so full of joy at present times?
"The Zoras have come, Your Majesty!" announced the messenger, confirming the reason for his being ecstatic, "They're at the East Wall at this very moment and they've brought a whole contingent through the River!"
His Majesty straightened up and met the messenger's eyes. So the battle would be won soon, for if the Zoras were mobilized, it was only a matter of time before the Gorons, the Gerudos, and perhaps even the Moledos would be at the Castle Town's various gates. As simple and sure as it sounded, the King was, in more ways than one, unconvinced that Ganondorf would allow himself to be vanquished in such an undramatic fashion. But who was he to decide?
"Well, I'll be damned!" bellowed the captain, laughing as group by group the Zora's either clambered or leaped out of the River, sending beads of shining silver onto the heads of those nearest to the body of water, "They finally managed to get their blue asses out here, heh?"
With one unanimous shriek, the members of Ganondorf's army found themselves locked in battle with a new opponent as the Zoras descended upon them, many with spears in hand. The Zoras seemed to fly right through their opponents, their bodies twisting and turning swiftly, as though none could ever lay a hand upon them. Amidst the flurry of fins and blades, one lone Zora straightened and looked to the Castle Town, her eyes sparkling with a newfound fire that grew undaunted even with every blink of her eyelids. Promptly, Ruto saluted the captain, and stayed her weapon with her hands at her sides until the captain acknowledged her presence with a wave of his hand. Immediately the Zora Queen slashed with her spear, rotating its head left to right, swishing as she moved ahead into the throng of the battle.
"Hang on boys," said the captain, his eyes glancing from left to right as a youthful, mischievous smile spread across his face, "We're in for one wild ride."
"There," motioned Midna, her finger extending in front of her, "He's in there."
The scene was desolate, as ashes and cinders coated the green grass in front of them, clinging on to the oil produced by the plants. Out here in the open, the wind swirled and beat at the tent flaps, lifting them up and down in an irregular rhythm. During the entire ride towards Ganondorf, the wind howled, its shrill voice gradually growing more and more intensified, transforming itself to a constant screech that echoed about the Field. But even the eerie sounds of the wind could not deter the three warriors as they stayed their horses, eyes set intently upon Ganondorf's base. However, all three felt at least a certain amount of anxiety as they stood there, as each were aware of the fact that Ganondorf would not allow them to win so easily and without effort. A silence prevailed, with only the wind daring to speak.
"Shoddy not!" exclaimed Midna, breaking the spell yet demonstrating that her nerves were beginning to constrict her, "One of you first. If he's got any henchmen, I'll take care of them for the both of you."
Link and Zelda met each other's eyes, remembering the previous times when Midna had encountered Ganondorf and fought against him. Her anxiety was perfectly justified, as blows from the past flitted in her head as Midna recalled every occasion with the Gerudo. With that, Link dismounted from Epona and drew Farore's Sword. The Hero tilted the blade with his fingers, catching every image reflected in the metal. At one point, Link ceased turning the Sword and gazed at the blade, a smile creeping across his lips as he thought Farore herself had made an appearance, her noble face staring back at him, knowing that he was prepared for battle. Twirling the Sword, Link pointed the blade towards the ground, and turned back towards Zelda and Midna, his voice dropping almost to a whisper.
"Then I'll push ahead, shouldn't I? Follow if you wish, but I'll warn you now: With Din's Mace, this battle will be full of the unexpected."
"Move along!" hollered Nabooru as the Gerudo tore up the Field, "He's at it again!"
The Gerudo leader led her troops diligently, descending upon the Field, dressed for combat. Within an hour they would arrive at the chaos raging at the Gates. It had taken them much too long to wake from their imposed slumber, and this angered Nabooru as she vowed to chase down her past leader.
"I said move it!" she shrieked, "It'll all be over by the time we get there if we don't."
Hyrule was indeed coming together, at last, waking up with one battle cry. United, much like the currents of Zora's River as they currently were.
Yet many were not aware of how much time they really had in their hands.
