Shade, 2 hours, 55 minutes, 25 seconds remaining

Shade watches the doors to the Sacred Realm with impatience and worry. The last nine hours put him on edge, and that's not to say just how jittery the last hour has.

The Gerudo were first to fight, but luckily the prince had returned half an hour ago. He has no clue to the progress made since he left the goddesses, yet with Ganondorf there he...feels relieved. In Darunia, the battle is just beginning. He knows Zelda hasn't woken, but he hopes the Resistance is doing well.

That leaves his current worry: Link of Ordon.

The Hero of the Resistance has been in the Sacred Realm for six of the nine hours he's been mentally woke. Or however he's in the world of the goddesses, the fact is that Link's mission is taking longer than usual.

To obtain the third element, Water, Shade sent Link to revisit a memory that haunts Shade even in his death. There's a plethora of those Shade could have chosen. Vaati's triumph. The many times Agahnim nearly came close to his own triumphs. The day he faced Ganon as a kid. But no, he sent Link to the darkest day of his life. Now with time running out, Shade fears that the goddesses' plan is in jeopardy and he chose the wrong day for the current moment.

That day, Shade faced Ganon as a man, just three days before Hyrule fell.

"Link, do not worry." Link watches as the childlike Goddess of Courage steps to him. She sits beside him, glancing at the large stone doors. "If he's anything like you at that age, he's probably procrastinating."

Shade scoffs. "I don't remember procrastinating with the world on the line."

"True, true, but Zelda was sleeping at this point in time for you. You had...free time, if I may say." Shade grunts at the memories of what his patron Goddess calls "free time." There's no possibility Link could be doing the same. He shifts in place both physically and mentally, his mind moving from his student and successor to Hyrule's displaced successor and her rebellion.

"Has Zelda…"

"Nay. But the Resistance is fighting. Forest has entered Medoh. Seasons and Ages confront the Dark Sorceress. Spirit and Thief are about to initialize their plan for the Demon Lord and his weapon. The King still secluded himself in his castle."

"Are you sure you aren't omniscient?"

"All-seeing, but not all-knowing before the present occurs. If we were, we could control Demise's curse. Remember that you and Zelda's soul are tied to that, not to us."

"Yeah, right. Then answer this, do you think they can win?" Link glares at Farore, his brown eyes searching for some truth in her green. She closes them, looks away, and sighs.

"Why ask me a question you know the answer to?"

"Because I need to believe otherwise."

"Then you must accept this truth, my friend. Zelda is not ready. Ganondorf is not ready. Young Link is not ready."

Shade stands up, and in a stance that Din would smite him for, he looks down upon the Goddess of Courage with fury. "Is that what you see or what you know?"

"Link-"

"They can beat Vaati. I believe they can. They have spent two months fighting this war, two months of losing. They have given up everything and lost everything to fight the Imperials. Yet you tell me they're not? When was I ready? When I was twelve, eighteen, or twenty-two? Why not lock us up for seven years like the Hero of Time? Maybe...maybe we're never ready. We do what we must. No, not must, but forced. You forced a twelve-year-old girl to protect her kingdom and suffer months of torture. You forced a twelve-year-old boy to risk his life to save her and defeat a monster. You have forced us time and time again through this same cycle, yet you sit here and tell me you can do nothing? No, it is not mortals who aren't ready, it is you three divine beings who are never ready. You three beings who sit up here and watch as Link and Zelda fight Ganon to save Hyrule. If I look down on Hyrule now, I will see that the god who started this is fighting against his servant, and the goddess who gave up her divinity to protect mortals will arrive soon enough." Shade turns around, Farore to his back and the doors of the Sacred Realm to the front. "You left us for the heavens."

"The song, Link."

Shade keeps his position, but Farore's response confuses him. "The song?"

Farore stands up. "The song is why they aren't ready. They can beat Vaati now, sure, but it will not be today. Fate has not come to fruition just yet. 'Youths chosen by the three, unite north and south and return the light to the darkened land. Show the holy pendants the way to the timeless temple-"

Shade's face pales, his body slumps, his eyes freeze on the stone doors. The Pendants of Virtue made it to the Temple of Time. What follows…"'An age-old war you shall fight.' You mean-"

A knock on the doors alert Shade and Farore. When a much bigger impact resonate in their ears, both mortal and goddess rush to open it. There, they see Link slumped on the stone, his body too weak to hold up. Open wounds, bruises, and exhaustion are all Shade can see on his protege, and he does his best to pick him up. "He's alive."

Farore makes an affirmative sound as she picks up Link's sword and his prize, the Element of Water. "Yes, but we must hurry. If he's in this condition now in his consciousness, there's no telling how his true body is reacting. Come on, we must get to the Elemental Sanctuary."

"The where?"

"The Elemental Sanctuary. We're going to Hyrule."


Ravio

A portal had greeted Ravio once he was inside Vah Medoh. He hesitated about going through it, believing it to be for the monsters to warp to the city or enter the beast from below, but it was too convenient for him that it appears just as he walks in. It was for him, and it is from Yuga.

Out on the other side, Ravio cursed the wizard. Yuga wanted a final showdown, and he chooses the world they both left behind as the arena. Ravio was back in Lorule for the first time in three years, though he wasn't a fool. This is just a mirage of his home, but just how much of it did Yuga get right? Between the villain's time and the present is nearly 800 years, enough time for Lorule to change.

The castle looms over Ravio as he walks up to its wooden double doors. Entering the castle, Ravio is made familiar with the large hall that welcomes all guests of Lorule Castle. His eye is immediately drawn to the large painting on the wall that depicts the events known in Lorule as the Cataclysm Between Worlds. Yuga had revived the current era Lorule for this special occasion. Wiping away a stray tear, Ravio looks up the stairs, sensing a lifeforce somewhere upward in the castle. The Sanctum, Yuga is there. Though faint, he senses four other presences. Ralph. Spryte. Oren. Hilda. Between him and Yuga, many dark presences that represent monsters.

"Hilda, I'm coming." Ravio places his hand on the hilt of his sword and begins the ascent.


Nayru

The Oracle of Ages holds her abdomen as she coughs up blood. Queen Veran had kicked the wind out of Nayru, showcasing her skills in combat that far exceeds that of the blue-haired maiden. They've been at it for a few minutes, and only Din has kept up with the Dark Sorceress.

Whether it is because she knows the Gerudo style or is just a better fighter than her sister, Holodrum's Oracle fights the Queen of Hyrule with a tenacity Nayru has never seen before. Sparks flare as the twin blades of Din collide with the spear of Veran, the two women in a concerted dance to the death.

As she stood up, ready to aid her sister again, her sides react violently. She falls back to her knees, glancing at her sister who had pushed the queen away to create distance. "Din, I…"

Din looks back at her younger sister with worry, yet it quickly washes away. "I'll handle Veran." While her words stopped there, Nayru saw the rest of her message in Din's eyes. The real objective still needs to be accomplished.

Nayru nods, and Din leaps back to battle. Nayru turns her head to the terminal and begins to charge her power in it. She says a quick prayer, then picks up the spear. Now glimmering with a soft light, the spear is raised in a throwing position, and its carrier begins to run for Vah Medoh's terminal.

Nayru prepares to throw it, but at the last second, cold fingers wrap around her wrists, changing the trajectory of the spear just by a bit. The terminal is hit, though the damage is minimal. Nayru, in shock, turns to her attacker. Veran holds the Oracle's wrist with a smile, tightening her grip as Nayru tries to wrestle free. Off to the side, body resting beside one of the many pillars is Din, unaware of what's going on.

"Sneaky little brat. You think I was going to let you get away with that?"

"Let me go!"

"Heh, of course. But not before I...have a final piece of fun. My vengeance is not yet complete."

So this is it. Veran has Nayru in her hands, to exact revenge for what happened about a thousand years ago. Nayru didn't want to die, not right now when everything she had lost in her life is coming back. No, she had to live, for Queen Ambi, for Labrynna, for Ralph. She turns back to face Veran, but the sorceress has mysteriously vanished. The queen was nowhere to be found. However, Din was coming to, so Nayru urged her body to walk over to her sister.

Instead, she found herself walking towards the terminal and picking up her fallen spear. "What is going on," she says, but the words register only in her head, not in her tongue. Her mouth didn't make a movement. Something is horribly wrong, and if she had to guess, Veran is behind it.

Her head turning (unwillingly), Nayru sees that Din has gotten to her feet and limps over to her side. The Oracle of Seasons keeps her blades out as she walks to Nayru, probably still sensing the presence of the queen. "Where did she go?"

"I don't know," Nayru speaks, "but we shouldn't dally. Time is being wasted."

"Indeed." Din twirls her scimitars and moves to impale Vah Medoh's terminal.

"Dimidium tempus." Nayru watches as her voice speaks the phrase and Din slows down in her movements. As the Oracle of Ages, Nayru has the ability to control time, whether it is speeding it up or slowing it down, or traveling to the past or future. However, she refuses to use her powers for the most part, so when the time-slowing spell takes effect, Nayru finally figures out what happened...and there is nothing she could do but watch as her body raises her spear and impales Din through her abdomen.

"Normalis tempore." Time returns to normal. Din, shocked by the sudden pain, drops to the back of Medoh. She turns her head to see the dripping blood on Nayru's spear, then gazes up to his sister's wickedly smiling face.

"Veran…"

The sweet, melodic voice of Nayru conveys the evil laughter of Veran as she picks up Din by her throat. On the inside, the real Nayru cries for her sister. Veran carries Din to the edge of the Divine Beast, hovering over the west side of the city where their people fight. Din's body dangles in the air, with the ground being several miles below.

Despite this, the eldest Oracle shows no fear. She stares straight into Nayru's eyes, straight pass the part that is now Veran, and sees her trapped sister. "Nayru… Take care of Labrynna...and Holodrum for me. Take care of our...little sister. Take...care of His Majesty. And when...you get your body...back, take care of Veran."

"Such kind words, Din. I will make sure to take care of each of them." Veran loosens her grip, releasing Din to the wind, while in her mind, Nayru screams for her sister.


Veran

While the Oracle of Ages mourns her sister, Veran begins to make checks with her general below. "Oh Horsehead."

"My Lady?"

"The Oracles' forces have Zelda. I can confirm this now. Assault them the hardest. I'm expediting our timetable. One hour is all they have left."

"It shall be done."


Ravio

Exhausted from walking up so many staircases and from battling twisted versions of Lorulean knights, Ravio finally made it to the top of the castle within a messy study. It is, was Hilda's study. The princess had a habit of not being good at organization, leaving Ravio to spend many hours a week fixing the study to a more presentable state, only for it to be ruined the next day. He releases a short laugh as he steps around the study, then pushes back his memories as he heads towards the door that leads outside.

Now on the ramparts, Ravio braves the high winds and a fresh influx of memories. Here, Hilda and he would share many nights. It was here that, whenever she felt troubled, he would find her looking up to snowy Death Mountain. It was here that their relationship extended beyond that of a 13-year-old princess and a 13-year-old knight. It was here that 14-year-old Ravio began to know 14-year-old Hilda as a growing girl and himself as a growing boy. It was here that 15-year-old Ravio fell in love.

He could hear her happy laughter, her sad cries, her mad tantrums. He could feel his shoulder swell with moisture from her tears, his arm hurt from her angry punches, her head and arms on his torso as she lays herself upon him. He can see them enjoy gazing over the kingdom in silence, practice dueling as they fought each other and the wind, and the two of them in their best clothes, dancing under the moonlight.

He finds himself at the doors of the Sanctum, the prayer room for the royal family. Why Yuga chose this place instead of the throne room several levels below or even the secret entrance to the Sacred Realm is unknown, yet he could sense the sinister presence of the other Lorulean behind these doors. Is he scared? Yes. Does he want to turn around and run? Definitely. Yet as he turns back to the ramparts, he sees Hilda, and there's no fear in the world that will prevent him from saving her.

He enters the Sanctum, a circular chamber with the symbol of Lorule (similar to Hyrule's, but the Triforce points downward) in the center of the floor. On it stands Yuga, his back turned to Ravio as he gazes to the four paintings on the far wall. Left to right, Ralph, Oren, Hilda, and Spryte. The doors behind Ravio slam shut as Yuga's chuckle resonate in the room. "You have done well to make it here, Ravio of Lorule. I must applaud your uncharacteristic courage." Yuga turns around, making Ravio uncomfortable with the grin he presents. "Yet I should expect as much from the name. After all, it is his fault Lorule wasn't mine."

"How so? It was the Hero who defeated you."

"Had the Hero not been given the bracelet that allows him to escape the wall I plastered him against, I would have succeeded. This is why my fight is not with him, but with you, Ravio. You, whose cowardice is more dangerous than Link's courage. This is why I will squish you like the worm you are!"

Yuga merges with the wall behind Hilda's painting before reappearing seconds later in front and one both sides of Ravio. Thinking quickly, Ravio strikes the one in front of him, only for it to turn to smoke. Hearing laughter from behind, he turns only to be shocked with electricity from either one of the Yugas or possibly both. When the blast subsides, he looks for the other two, but they merge again with the wall. A few movements in the two-dimensional plane, and the Yugas return as a trio in the three-dimensional world.

Knowing that one of the Yugas is the real one, he looks for any differences. All look the same physically, all wear the same clothes, all bear the same staff. Even the glow on the top of the staff is present for all three of them. That made things even more complicated. To add more to Ravio's troubles, every Yuga had their staff pointed at him, with a bolt of lightning ready to emerge.

Ravio ducks as the bolts coverage in the air above him and the Yugas remerge with the wall. Hopping back to his feet, Ravio quickly processes all he knows. One, there are two exact copies of Yuga. Looking for a difference will do no good. Two, the copies turn to smoke after being hit, meaning that they really have no form, no life. The real Yuga will have a presence of life, and with his abilities as the Sage of Forest, Ravio can detect it.

The Yugas reemerge and Ravio quickly dowses for the real Yuga. He is found on Ravio's left side, right beside Ralph's painting. Ravio thrusts his left hand towards the real Yuga, summoning thick vines to capture the villain. Flicking his hand to move the vines, they swirl around the room, defeating the Yuga clones and slamming the real one on the floor in front of Ravio. The knight takes a step over before flames engulf the vines. Yuga stands up, and shoots Ravio with more lightning, making the boy fly across the room.

Barely maintaining consciousness, Ravio groans as Yuga growls his frustrations. "I tire of you and your petty magic. I'll let them deal with you" The mage snaps his fingers, and from the ceiling of the room, a portal form. Emerging from it is a large, purple-bodied, yellow-eyed octopus-like creature. Ravio stands to face his new opponent, while his true target vanishes from sight.

"Gigabari. Great."

Once Gigabari catches sight of Ravio, it emits an electric charge around its body and slowly floats towards him. Ravio sighs, knowing that the Gigabari, like its smaller counterparts, bait their prey into coming close before shocking them to death. He sheaths his sword and takes out the bow and an arrow. He shoots the arrow and hits the incoming Gigabari before merging with the wall. He moves to the monster's backside, emerges from the wall, and fires arrow after arrow at the beast before it explodes into simpler Baris. Taking sword back in hand and summoning a large tree branch from the tip, Ravio only needs one swing to defeat the Baris.

With the room cleared, Ravio is only given a moment to breathe before his next challenge emerges from the ceiling. This time it is a gold-armored Ball and Chain Trooper, with the ball scorched by flames. Ravio takes a quick glance at his positioning, just a step or two away from Ralph's portrait. While he doubts the fire could affect the paintings (nevermind the one beside him is of the Sage of Fire), he shuffles to the right so the soldier won't hit the painting by accident.

The soldier twirls the chain around, creating a perimeter between it and Ravio. Ravio takes his time by moving slowly along the wall. Once the patience of the soldier is tested enough, it throws the ball towards, who merges with the wall and steps aside before the ball connects, creating a crater. Ravio quickly emerges and tosses the boomerang. It smacks the left side of the soldier's helmet, stunning and disarming him. That is all the Lorulean needs to make his attack, swinging his blade and beheading the trooper. The armored enemy collapses and dissolves, but Ravio's third challenge comes quickly.

So quickly it rams into him. Thankfully he saw the monster coming and prepared himself to merge with the wall. However, not even being flat helped with the pain that results from a Moldrom charging at you.

The purple worm-like boss bounces off the Sanctum's walls, though without enough force to actually damage them. This gives Ravio some time to plan his attack. If he had Riju's power of Spirit, he could essentially pacify Moldrom, yet the powers of Forest doesn't have that ability, not on humans or monstrous beasts. He could try to trap it, but with movements of Moldrom being unpredictable, it would take too much time. Dodging Moldrom and striking the weak point, the red tail seems to be a hero's way of doing it, though it exposes Ravio to danger. That leaves the last option to stay in the wall and strike.

It is the only plan that seems reasonable, and once he decides to go along with that plan, Moldrom comes his way. Once the worm is mostly on a new path, Ravio exits the wall and strikes the tail. Moldrom reacts by coiling up and moving again with more speed. Ravio finds himself unable to get to a wall and merge, so he goes along with the plan of dodging until he gets an opening. It begins to exhaust him by the fifth dodge, but at that moment he gets the opening he wants and strikes. He hurries to the wall, barely beginning the merger before he Moldrom collides with his back. The merge is successful, but Ravio is injured on his right leg. However, he focuses on Moldrom. The monster is moving at top speed, and twice Ravio missed a chance to strike Moldrom.

With his leg injury, he may never be able to time his attack, but if he moves preemptively, he could have a chance. Once Moldorm begins to come close (but not directly at Ravio) the Lorulean moves out the wall and jumps, landing on the tail of Moldrom, just above the red spot. Ravio's sword, however, is stuck in Moldorm's back. He reaches for an arrow as he tries to keep stable, and once he has the projectile in hand, he reaches back and impales the weak point. Ravio collapses on the floor as Moldorm disintegrates, and the portal above him closes.

Using his sword as support, Ravio tries his best to get to his feet. Too much pressure on his right leg, it reflexively causes him to fall back down. Ravio crawls to the wall between Oren and Hilda's paintings. He reaches for Hilda's painting, but it is barely out of reach.

"Well, well, well, that was very impressive. A masterpiece of a performance. Almost quite heroic." Yuga reappears, in his left hand a large yellow ball of magic. "To an end, it comes." Yuga throws the ball, which Ravio fails to block. He screams as he feels his body forcefully merge with a barrier behind him. He realizes that Yuga is turning him into a painting, but it won't work if he has his...and Yuga has the bracelet in his hand. Did it come off when he fell on the ground?

No, he cannot fail now. He cannot lose.


"Ravio." Ravio finds himself in surrounded by darkness, except for the four lights that circle him. The lights take form, and they become the bodies of Oren, Spryte, Ralph, and Hilda. It was Hilda's voice that spoke to him first, the young woman walking up to him. "My dear Ravio." She grasps his cheeks, and her touch is enough to break Ravio.

"Princess... I have failed. I failed to save you, all of you, and now the world will-"

"Enough of that, Bunny Boy." Ravio and Hilda turn to Ralph, his arms crossed. He glares at Ravio with the seriousness of a king, a sight Ravio still hadn't got used to. "You're not done."

"Ralphy's right!" Spryte exclaims before fluttering between Hilda and Ravio. "You're not a painting just yet."

"Then...how am I able to see all of you?"

"Call it a link between two realities." Oren joins Ralph, her hand on his shoulder. "Excuse the king's brashness, but he is right. We have watched you and the others. In this moment, Link still slumbers, but mysteriously his condition has worsened. Ganondorf lives and has joined Riju and the Gerudo in their fight against Ghirahim and Twinrova, the merged sisters of Ganondorf. Zelda and Vaati still awaken their power. Midna and Zant have gone to the Twilight Realm. But what is direr than anything is the battle you're fighting here in Darunia. Veran accelerated the clock. You have less than an hour to stop the Imperials."

Ravio takes in the revelations, concluding that he must get back to fighting Yuga. "Okay, but how will I not become a piece of art? I don't have my bracelet."

Hilda steps back. "We'll take care of that." She nods to the other Sages, and all at once they raise their hands and fire a beam at Ravio. Though he doesn't feel anything physically, subconsciously he can sense his form being pushed back into the real world. He faces Hilda again. "I will save you."

Hilda smiles. "I know you will."

"You better kick his ass."

"We're counting on you Ravio."

"Go Ravio go!"


"How?"

Ravio lands on the ground on his right leg, the pain that was formerly there now gone. Oren must have healed him, he will have to thank her for it. Now with the battle with Yuga before him, Ravio stands up and draw his sword. "Yuga! It is over!"

Yuga snarls. "No!" He forms another ball and throws it at Ravio. The Sage of Forest reflects it and the ball crashes into Yuga, rippling electricity throughout his body. Ravio runs forward, picking up his dropped bracelet and thrusting his sword at Yuga. He misses, as Yuga merges with the wall at the last second.

"Ravio." Ravio turns to face Hilda again, more specifically her painting. "One more thing. Ralph, Oren, and I will bless you with our power. I hope it helps to fight Yuga and expel him from within the wall. Now raise your sword skyward, and receive our blessing." Ravio follows along, and three orbs, red, blue, and purple, emerge from each painting of a Sage and blends with Ralph's sword. The blade glows for a few seconds before the light dissipates, revealing a golden blade.

Ravio takes little time to inspect it, merging quickly with the wall Hilda rests upon. He faces Yuga's figure, holds his sword forward, and fires a sword beam. It strikes Yuga, sending him out the second dimension. The mage breaths angrily, twitching with anxiety. "You are nothing but a worm! You will not ruin my beauty!" Yuga vanishes while multiple portals appear on the walls, releasing a projected horde of Fire Keese. Ravio shields himself from the bats and waits for Yuga to reappear.

The other Lorulean returns, this time with two orbs. He sends them one after the other. Ravio, prepared, smacks them back at Yuga. To Ravio's surprise, Yuga hits them both back, and they return with greater speed. He was barely able to hit them in time, but unfortunately for Yuga, he got twice the pain. The mage, once the shocks subside, returns to the wall. Ravio follows and fires another sword beam. Yuga blocks it and another that Ravio fired, unaware that Ravio had fired a third. That beam hits Yuga from behind, and he is expelled from the wall.

"No! No! NO! I will rid of you, Ravio, if it is the last thing I do!" Yuga points his staff at Ravio, casting lightning. Ravio blocks the bolts with his blade and redirects the attack to his side. Ravio thrusts his left hand forward, calling on the power of Forest to summon branches from the stone floor to wrap around Yuga's arms and the power of Oren's Water to strengthen it. Yuga gasps as the branches trap him, his staff wrench from his hand. Now powerless, Yuga watches as Ravio walks around the room. "You wouldn't kill me, not in this condition."

"No, I wouldn't."

Yuga laughs. "Pathetic. You're too much of a coward to kill me. Think your dainty princess will change her opinion of you if you kill me in cold blood?"

Ravio now steps in front of Yuga. "Maybe."

"That is for the best. It won't matter in less than an hour. The world will belong to Vaati, one way or the other. So just go ahead, finish me, Ravio Sheerow of Lorule."

Ravio smiles and turns away. "It'll be his pleasure."

"His pleasure-ARGGGHHH!" Yuga chokes on his breath, and glances down to see a burning blade sticking out from his back. It is the last thing he sees before the very angry Sage of Fire eviscerates Yuga once and for all.


Riju makes a final check on the reins of her sand sea Patricia while Ganondorf gazes out to Vah Naboris. He sees the glowing "feet" of Naboris, pinpointing them to be its weakness of sorts. He looks away to the battling Imperials, Bulblins, and Gerudo. With the battle providing a distraction, the two royals will bring down the beast before Ghirahim and Koume can make a second attempt to destroy the desert people.

"Patricia is ready. Are you Ganondorf?" The Prince of the Gerudo turns to the Chief of the Gerudo, nodding his head. She gestures to the large shield behind Patricia and boards it. "Hop on."

"Are you sure it can hold the both of us?"

"Ye,s I'm sure. I tested it on Buliara and I, and to be frank, you're not as large as her." Ganondorf grunts as he settles behind Riju, holding on to her waist tightly. Riju took a breath to not focus on his touch, and Ganondorf did the same. With clear minds, Riju snaps Patricia's reins, and the duo rides on towards Vah Naboris.