"Wait here, Ralis," Zelda called behind her, gathering her cloak closer to her body. She had already taken a torch from him, lighting her path. Ralis nodded, pulling the horse and carriage to the side of the high earthen wall on the shore of Hylia.
The Princess wandered away into the night, turning the corner into the empty shrine to Lanayru. It wasn't abandoned, but it was close, preserved as a historical site more than anything else, now. People who felt particularly desperate in their lives came here to offer a prayer; they sought comfort in the ancient ritual. It felt odd, entering the shrine knowing that it was real. The Light Spirits weren't supposed to have faded away with time. Though the cavernous room felt empty, Zelda continued to approach.
She stood at the end of the earthen path, removing her hood. The torch barely touched the darkness in the shrine. "Spirit Lanayru," she called, somewhat cautiously. It echoed back to her.
"Lanayru," she called again, turning her head to try to see any change in the silence. She transferred the torch to her other hand, stretching out her marked hand in front of her, off the edge of the path over the water in the bottom of the shrine. She breathed deeply, summoning forth a pulse of light; it radiated slowly upwards, illuminating the cavern briefly, before fading. She didn't understand why nothing was happening. The Spirit was supposed to be able to be called upon. Perhaps she had read something wrong—or perhaps they really had faded away. How desolate was Hyrule, now, stripped of all its protectors of old? Was she on her own?
Zelda sighed, putting her hand down and turning away. All that risk, leaving the castle, dragging Ralis into the affair, for nothing. She hung her head and reached for her hood, already striding away, when a shimmering light began to fill the shrine.
"O Chosen Princess," the voice of the Spirit whispered, seemingly quiet. Zelda whirled around, an elated smile dancing across her face. The Spirit rose from the water, coiled, immensely bright and serpentine. She was amazed, dazzled by its brilliance.
"Lanayru," she greeted it, returning to the end of the path. The Spirit shimmered, its massive frame taking up the entire cavern. It lowered its head, as if in reverence; shocked, she did the same.
"Princess," the Spirit began. "I know nothing of what you seek."
"A war is coming," she stated sorrowfully. "I come to you in my hour of need. What must I do to ensure Hyrule's victory?"
The Spirit's large eyes shut for a moment, then opened slowly. "Only the Chosen Ones may defeat each other. You and the Hero must harness your Gifts. There is no way to ensure victory against Darkness. . . But be warned, O Descendant of Hylia, of the Cursed Ones. . . Their power is dangerous, born of Darkness. It is Shadow, the intermediary between Light and Dark. . . It has the capability to sway between the two, and take with it the victory of Hyrule."
Zelda nodded, perhaps a little confused. "Surely, we all—as do they—have the power to choose between good and evil, Light and Dark."
"It is not that simple. . . some beings are more capable of one than the other. Some influences corrupt. O Princess, the Sacred War may restore greatness to Hyrule, but it may also usher on the darkest era in its history. The Goddesses themselves rely on your victory."
The Princess nodded once more.
"Extend your hand, Sacred One," The Spirit said. She acquiesced. The Spirit bent forward, its snake-like head just barely resting upon her fingertips. Gold surged through her like a wave of warmth. She exhaled. "You are healed, Princess," the Spirit said now, drawing backwards. "Go, with the Goddesses at your side."
/\\\
"I know you have them."
Midna's head snapped to the side, locking eyes with the man sitting on the fallen log next to her. "I don't know what—" she started, but saw the wind mage tilt his head to the side and roll his eyes. She huffed, then lowered her voice. "I need them."
"We," he corrected, lowering his voice as well. Link was still sleeping peacefully, but they couldn't risk him waking and hearing them. "They won't like it."
"That's why we're not telling them," Midna scoffed. "I'm not going to risk this fight."
"You know we're risking all of the trust we've built here by doing this. It's...it feels wrong. It isn't, but it feels like it."
"Part of being a leader is doing whatever it takes. Regardless of how it feels," Midna replied, pursing her lips. "We're doing it for them, anyway."
Vaati nodded, then fell silent for a moment. The woods were oppressively thick, shrouded in mist that blocked the light from the impending sunrise. He felt very, very alone, despite his company. "Why are we?" he murmured, opening his hands as though he were honestly perplexed.
"Having second thoughts?" she asked in return, examining his rueful face. She didn't know him well, at all, but it seemed unusual for him. "I thought you liked being impulsive."
"I just...we're going against what's by all accounts our nature. Against our best interest, probably."
"You're an idiot," Midna sighed, resting her chin on her hands and staring into the fire again. "A book doesn't decide who you are. Don't be so gullible."
Vaati huffed. "I don't know what's real anymore. We're caught up in some divine maelstrom now."
"It's going to your head," Midna chuckled. "We have to think up a way to get back."
"And tell the Twili what? 'No worries, we're just aiding the people who cursed us to a life in darkness and need a super dangerous relic to do it'?"
"People are going to have a choice after we do this. Freedom. We can open the realms. But they don't need to know that unless we win."
"What if the Goddesses—or whatever they are—have a problem with that?"
Midna leveled an irritated glance at Vaati. "You're a real downer. One step at a time. For now...get the stupid sword, then find a way to get the Fused Shadows without anyone else knowing."
"We can get reinforcements while we're there," Vaati mused. "They just have to be trustworthy."
Midna nodded. "I don't want too many. This has the potential to get ugly. I don't want people dying because we decided to be noble."
"Other than us."
"Right," Midna laughed. "This was our stupid idea, so it's only fair."
Link tossed and turned for a moment, silencing the two. "Get up, Short Stuff, we're cold and bored," Midna called, loudly, breaking through his light morning sleep.
"Ugh," he groaned. He paused for a moment, rubbing at his eyes and pushing his disheveled blonde hair from his face. "Did the fire go out in the night?"
Midna nodded. "I fixed it. You're welcome."
He observed the fire, flickering with a bluish tinge of Midna's magic. "You guys are up early," Link commented. The two seemed more congenial than normal, sitting next to each other on a fallen log. He felt a twinge of anxiety—jealousy?-for a brief moment, looking at them, before he brushed it aside.
"Couldn't sleep. These woods are creepy," Vaati mentioned, stirring up a small tornado of fallen leaves and damp moss on the outskirt of their small camp, assembling it in some humanesque form before letting it drop back to the ground. The wind mage did look weary, pale as usual with circles under his eyes. The dim morning light in the forest cast his face in deep shadow.
Midna laughed. "You're creepy."
Link smiled and shrugged. "I grew up not far from these woods. They don't bother me."
"I'd rather just get out of here as soon as possible. The trees keep messing up my senses. Makes me feel claustrophobic."
"Let's eat something and start searching, then," Link suggested. He reached for his travel bag, which he had taken off of his horse for the night, and pulled out a paper-wrapped parcel of bread for the three travelers. They sat in silence, huddled around the fire.
/\\\
Ghirahim was done resting.
Zant had been pulled from the luxurious home that Ganon had ordered the wounded Twili to stay in, leaving only a rudimentary Rosulyla mage as Ghirahim's guardian. He grinned smugly when Zant had left, giving the mage a taste of the bone-chilling smirk before returning to pacing the room like a caged animal. He had only dreamt of sweet Hylian blood on his hands in the past days. He couldn't wait any longer. He was healed now. It was time to go.
He turned on his heel, mid-pace, to flash to the doorway, inches away from the mage. The petty Rosulyla man jumped, his hands lighting up in a weak display of fire. "You've been ordered to stay here," he sputtered. "Get back."
Ghirahim swept his hand along in front of him, sending the mage flying into the opposite wall at an impossible speed, his human bones crunching and cracking in a split second upon impact. He grinned and waltzed out, throwing open the door to the room to come face to face with Ganon.
Tall as Ghirahim was, he still looked upwards at the man. He maintained his grin but it turned sarcastic, no longer genuine.
"Hello, Ghirahim," Ganon greeted him, taking a step forward, forcing Ghirahim to take an equally large one back into the study. "Going out to get your revenge, I assume," he continued conversationally, pulling the door closed behind him.
Ghirahim's smile faded to a sullen grimace. "I don't mean to be ungrateful for the lovely arrangement we've made. But my priorities have, well, shifted."
Ganon nodded. "I understand your frustration. You may find that you won't end up quite so enthusiastic about breaking our deal, however."
"You're a fool if you intend to stop me," Ghirahim hissed, eyebrows descending over his dark eyes. Nothing mattered to him besides his revenge at the moment. It occupied his every waking hour. He had never been a good loser, he supposed. If he had to go through Ganon to do it, he would.
"Of course not," Ganon chuckled heartily, opening his arms in a gesture of peace. "But if you kill her, maim her, injure her in any way, you"-he paused at a weak groan from the mangled mage who lay on the floor across the room. A hint of irritation flickered over his face and he rapidly closed one of his hands to a fist. The thick wooden bookcase that stood perpendicular to the dying weakling collapsed upon him, cutting off his whining with a satisfyingly loud crash.
"Hmm," Ganon mused. "As I was saying. I will return the favor upon your lovely Princess."
The words hung in the air for a moment before Ghirahim visibly recoiled, inevitably imagining whatever torture he had thought up for the Hylian woman being wrought upon Midna. He looked up at the hulking man before him, tensing every muscle in his body to avoid a shiver of rage and contempt and fear. Ganon smiled slowly, closing his arms and resting his hands behind his back.
"Do not threaten her," Ghirahim managed to growl, face haunted for a brief second before becoming expressionless, stoic.
"Then do not threaten my victory."
Ghirahim glared up at him, lip curling up in what looked to be disgust, as though he'd finally been posed with someone more morally reprehensible than himself. It shocked him, confused him, tore him between admiration and absolute hatred. "Fine," he hissed.
Ganondorf grinned jovially. "Excellent," he smiled. "Perhaps you could join Zant in the training quarters. I'm sure he'd appreciate your help."
Ghirahim stalked out of the room silently. His only thought was of how wrong he had been about the man in the black armor.
/\\\
"I appreciate the efforts of everyone on this panel to determine the scope of government corruption that, unfortunately, has plagued this Kingdom for many years. It is more important than ever to ensure our Castle's highest integrity in the challenging times we now face. I know that I can never fully communicate how grateful I am for this process, and how embarrassed I am that the situation had spiraled so thoroughly out of my control in the first place. I am confident, however, that Hyrule can and will pull through. I sincerely hope that the decisions made on this panel will assure Hylian citizens that the days of this Castle's inefficiency and outright wrongdoing are over.
"As soon as I am able, should this panel decide that I am worthy to rule this Kingdom, I will initiate new elections for the four Council positions. The recommendation to eliminate partied positions is a fine one, and one that will be immediately put into action. The hiring of new supportive staff will also begin immediately; the City and Country Guard will continue to be evaluated and purged of corruption. I invite all Hylians, not just on this panel but from all over the Kingdom, to cast their vote for their council representative as well as submit any requests, complaints, suggestions or otherwise to this Castle or their new elected councilmember."
Zelda paused, then added, "Thank you," before sitting back down. The panel seemed to receive her brief speech well, nodding along in agreement. A few scribes put her words into ink on their pages. The appointed speaker stood, now.
"Thank you," the Zora woman acknowledged. "The panel will have its decision within the day. We will call for you after one is reached."
A guard stood as Zelda did, and escorted her out of the room.
Ralis stood outside the door, conspicuous among the crowd of writers and Advisors, interested citizens and other cleared individuals. He replaced her escort and led her through the fray, which immediately began to ask for statements from her. As soon as they cleared the grand hall of the Castle and entered the staff-only area, Ralis smiled. "You were perfect, Princess. The decision won't take long."
"I almost wish I could have told them everything," Zelda sighed. "I don't know where I would have begun."
"It's better this way," he chuckled, hauling open the door to her parlor and following her in to sit upon the chairs surrounding the fireplace.
It was only a fraction of an hour before a servant called for her. As he had before, Ralis escorted her to the outside of the large courtroom the panel had been utilizing for their decisions. He bid her good luck and she swung open the door, knowing she would be reinstated but still somehow feeling nervous, like something would inevitably go wrong.
The Speaker cleared her throat, then stood, signaling for the rest of the panel to be silent. Zelda sat upon her designated spot, between the four empty ones of the Councilmen. She was the last one left, apparently.
"Unless anyone in here has withdrawn their vote, the decision to immediately reinstate you, Princess Zelda, as the Crown Princess of Hyrule is unanimous and unchallenged. Elections, as per the Hylian code, must be held within the next month, or this panel will be reassembled to evaluate the Castle. Congratulations," the woman announced, a grin lighting up her face for a moment before she gestured to the rest of the room. "For now, this panel is adjourned."
Zelda smiled, almost gratefully, and stood, shaking the hands of the members as they filed out. She was amazed the choice had come so quickly to them. None seemed overly ecstatic about her reinstatement—some were pleased, perhaps, but there was no elation. It didn't bother her; in fact, it made her less wary of the choice. Under any other circumstance, she would have been lumped in with the Councilmen who had proved themselves completely corrupt. She was happy with the people tolerating her. That was all she needed.
When the last member had left, she slipped out, as well. Ralis shook her hand and smiled. "Welcome back, Your Grace," he said, and she smiled too.
Now, she thought, For war.
/\\\
Deep within Faron Woods, the three travelers wandered. The paths between rural villages and the outskirts of the woods were difficult to differentiate, and many of the small paths between the trees which grew impossibly thick ended in a tall canyon wall or cluster of impassible boulders. The sun was low in the sky, casting deep, long shadows along the forest floor. The group huddled into their cloaks as the temperature dropped.
"That's it," Midna announced. "It's all made up. There's no stupid sword. Time to turn around and do things the modern way."
She leaned against a tree, fiery eyes almost glowing in the dim twilight. She had gotten off of her horse hours ago, preferring to walk and lead it along impatiently. Vaati sighed exaggeratedly, continuing to explore the mysteriously large tree that grew against yet another steep canyon wall. Link paused and retrieved his canteen off of his horse, which had begun to tire of walking around the borders of the woods in circles. He took a long drink before looking to the Twilight Princess.
"We have a little light left. Let's set up camp after dusk," he suggested, sounding almost as exasperated as she had. "Maybe Zelda was wrong," he added, sighing.
"She couldn't have been," Vaati called, still searching fairly energetically through the forest. "It's all real. Just forgotten for a very long time."
"It's all the same to me if we can't find it," Link called back, leading his horse along behind Vaati. "Look out for a good place to camp. I'm getting tired, too."
Moments ticked by as the light faded away. The group spotted a clearing ahead and headed towards it, Vaati still in front. Abruptly, he stopped, his horse protesting in confusion. Link and his horse trotted up alongside him. "Problem?" Link questioned, leaning forward to look at the Twili's face.
Vaati was pale again, looking wary and curious at the same time. He gestured towards a dip in the forest wall near the clearing and coughed as though there were something in the air. "I—I feel sick," he admitted, bleary eyes staring over at Link. "There's something there."
Link pulled out his map and strained to read it in the dim light. Midna, who had just caught up, lit her hand in fire and held it over the page, revealing the group had already wandered far past the last known area. They stood a mile past the creek that marked the former boundary. "We're not even on the map," Link said. "Let's check it out."
"I feel it too, Vaati," Midna said suddenly. "It's...thick. It hurts to breathe."
The travelers met the dip in the wall only a moment later. It dead-ended a few feet in, leaving the impression of a short hallway. Moss grew upon the hard clay of the boundary, giving it an ancient feeling. Link squinted in against the flickering light of Midna's magic. "Damn it," Vaati cursed, prodding his horse along, again heading to make camp.
"Wait," Link called, dismounting his horse. He walked into the path, observing the faint outline of a Triforce behind the moss. He smiled and, hesitantly, put his hand up against the mark.
Vaati turned just in time to see Link fly back in a surge of gold. With a shuddering groan, the dead end faded away as though it had never existed. A huge entrance to a grove emerged, the trees seeming to recede into themselves to give way to the wider-spaced ones that populated this ancient area. More and more trees faded away, revealing they stood within the very Grove they had sought. Link lay on his back before a crumbling door and a staircase that led down into mossy-floored sunken room, shrouded in low-lying mist.
The last rays of sun, now visible without the more oppressive trees of the Faron Woods, illuminated a lonely pedestal. Resting within it and above the fog was a blade.
"Link," Midna managed. "It's here."
Link stood, in awe, his blue eyes searching for the mysterious sword. It glimmered in the twilight, seeming to reflect the same blue of his irises. Vaati whistled like he was impressed. He dismounted his frightened horse and left it next to his companion's.
"Wow," Link murmured. Old Hylian lettering was imprinted upon the ground before the ancient door. He read aloud, "The Temple of Time."
"Well?" Midna prodded. "Go get it, Short Stuff."
"We're right behind you," Vaati added, edging along. Midna had said it well; the air was thick, with something foreign the two could not name. It was like trying to breathe honey. Sweet, not unpleasant, but altogether too thick. Their bodies were not made for whatever it was that Link could not feel.
Silently, Link stepped down the stairs leading to the sword's pedestal. They were sturdy, sound in construction despite their age. He wondered when the last time someone walked down those steps was. He wondered who walked down them. His Twili companions followed cautiously, a few feet behind him. The fog was damp, like that which hovers near rivers in the coolness of a summer night.
The sword was tall; a longsword. Simple, yet solemnly impressive. It gave off a regal feeling. The hilt was a deep blue, edging into the purple spectrum. A single gold gemstone shone from the hilt, untarnished. In fact, the entire blade stood in perfect condition, untouched by time which had been so cruel to the once magnificent temple built around it. Link's heart raced. He wasn't afraid—he was excited. There was something so familiar about this sword, something so freeing, comforting, even.
He stood behind the pedestal, facing the blade and his Twili companions, who looked wary. He clasped both hands around the grip and, before he could pull upwards, was met with a shimmering blue light that shot upwards into the air from the sword itself. It was so luminous that he could not make out its shape; only that it had one. He kept his hands on the blade, unfazed. A whisper came to his attention; whether it was only in his mind or rang out through the room was unknown to him.
They who are capable of wielding this blade are worthy, chosen by the Goddesses. May they banish evil from all corners of this realm and realms beyond it.
Link nodded, and in a simple movement pulled the blade from its place, holding it up into the twilight. The light was drawn downwards, into the sword, and then shot in a dome from its tip like a great ball of energy. The mist was chased from the area, seeming to hiss as it receded. The Twili were knocked down, the force seemingly too much for them.
Then, the light was gone from the room, and all that was left was the Hero and his Twili accomplices.
A/N: This chapter feels incomplete to me, but I've been sitting on it for a while and figured I'd get it out there. Also, I have a DeviantArt and (while I don't create anything myself) have a 'gallery' of all my inspiration for this fic and others. If you want to check it out, the username is loving-your-illusion. Sort through my favorites. I have a playlist as well that I could compile, although I'm not sure anyone's really interested. ;D Whatever the case, I'm rambling. Thanks for reading. :)
