68th Entry: World of Light
With Oren frozen in place, Link was able to fire at the eyes floating in the Malice whirlpool at Oren's feet. But the ice didn't hold for long, and Oren broke out forcing Mipha to freeze her again. Then after the third time, Oren collapsed into the water. Mipha immediately dived from the top of Vah Ruta to prevent Oren from drowning while Sidon did the same. Left floating on his own, Link swam back to the raft. Zelda followed Link's example and used her Paraglider to fly down.
The two watched the water carefully, as the purple whirlpool dissipated and metallic fragment floated upward that resembled a pair of horns. Midna briefly appeared out of Link's shadow, and beckoned the horned metal fragment to come to her. After it did, she returned to Link's shadow just as Mipha and Sidon resurfaced carrying Queen Oren with them. She was back to normal, though she looked physically exhausted.
Sidon signaled the Zora guards over, and they took Oren with them towards Zora's Domain. While Sidon followed them, Mipha swam over to Link and Zelda's raft. She avoided Link's gaze and looked directly at Zelda.
"How did you know Vah Ruta's capabilities?" Mipha asked.
"During my occasional visits to Sahasrahla's house, he told me that Purah had some old journals that detailed the mechanical aspects of the Divine Beasts," Zelda explained. "So I got in touch with her, and she shared the journals with me through the Hyrule Network."
"It's a good thing you did that," Mipha smiled. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have known what to do."
"And with the journals, I could probably do some adjustments to the Divine Beasts so they work better for the Champions to control," Zelda suggested.
"That's a good idea," Mipha agreed. "But for now, I should make sure my stepmother is okay."
Mipha then dove back into the water and swam away while Zelda covered her mouth again. Link then gave Zelda back her bow and a few remaining arrows.
"Oh, man," Midna said, reappearing. "That fish has got a serious crush on Link."
"What makes you say that?" Zelda questioned.
"Come on! It's so obvious," Midna insisted. "But maybe you're in self-denial because you're secretly jealous of Mipha."
While Link didn't know how to react, Zelda recalled Riju asking the same thing and shook her head. "I'm not jealous."
"If you say so," Midna shrugged. "But now we can assemble the Fused Shadow, since we have all the pieces."
"Are you sure?" Zelda said. "If I recall, the Hero of Twilight helped your ancestor collect three of the pieces from the Fused Shadow. So that means there's a fourth piece."
Chuckling, Midna pointed at her helmet. "I've been wearing it the whole time."
Zelda couldn't figure out what to say, when she noticed an extra person was now on the raft. It was a tall man wearing a black robe and a chameleon-shaped helmet.
"Zant!" Midna gritted her teeth. "How are you able to traverse the World of Light so easily?"
The black-robed man held up his right hand, where a golden triangle glowed. "Because I have been given the Triforce of Power by my god through the prophet that speaks through him. So if you thought you could use the Fused Shadow artifact against me, then you're a bigger fool than I thought, Midna."
Raising his long-sleeved hand, Zant caused the Fused Shadow fragments to float away from Midna and into a portal that was similar to the ones Midna used to transport Link and Zelda. Link then unsheathed the Master Sword and raised it toward Zant, who winced.
"I see you managed to exorcise your shadow form, Hero of Hyrule," Zant remarked and glanced at Zelda. "Though I'm not familiar with your companion."
Zelda held up her bow and loaded it with an arrow. "I'm Sheik, the surviving member of the Sheikah squadron that was sent to locate the Yiga Clan's hideout."
"Ah, so you're the Sheikah boy who was causing trouble for Master Kohga," Zant realized. "You must have been the one who freed the Hero and rescued the captured children."
"That's right!" Zelda said triumphantly in her masculine voice. "And now they're in a safer place."
"Safe?" Zant laughed. "No one escapes the Yiga Clan and gets away with it. At least, that's what Master Kohga said before he sent his underlings to recapture the children."
Tightening her grip on the bow, Zelda said, "You're lying. What more use to you have for the children, if they were just a ploy to uncover the Mirror of Twilight which was only a means of trapping the Seven Sages?"
"Oh, so you figured that out," Zant remarked. "The prophet of my god thinks the children could be used as leverage to force the missing Princess out of hiding, as she's apparently not in Hyrule Castle where he thought she would be. Instead, all we found was her father, some pitiful soldiers, and a confused Sheikah girl."
"If you harm any of those people, I will not forgive you," Zelda threatened.
Link moved forward to strike. But Zant waved his hands, which sent an invisible force that knocked Link and Zelda off the raft. Meanwhile, Midna was bound by the same invisible force and hovered midair.
"You should have stayed dead," Midna growled. "A person like you doesn't deserve to exist!"
"Says the Twili Princess who befriends members of the same race that forced her people to eternal isolation in the realm of Twilight," Zant retorted, pulling Midna closer to him. "It makes me sick to know that you and your ancestor thought there could be peace between our realm and theirs, when neither can exist in the other's realm. But then your ancestor had to go and shatter the Mirror of Twilight, thinking it would be better for her people to live in isolation. So in other words, she was a hypocrite to her own beliefs."
"You're wrong!" Midna argued. "She did it to prevent people like you from invading Hyrule."
"Well, clearly, that didn't work as the powers of evil can linger even in death," Zant replied. "Now here's a taste of what the World of Light really has to offer!"
Zant then caused Midna to fly into a shaft of sunlight that broke through the clouds. She screamed in pain, and fell into the lake. While Link swam over to her, Zelda got back onto raft and saw Zant vanish in the blink of an eye.
To be continued…