Zelda

"Vaati, you have lost."

Zelda expects Vaati to yell at her, to deny he lost, even make a foolish attack of his own. She expects some reinforcement in the form of Veran or any other of Vaati's subjects. Yet he doesn't yell, he doesn't attack, no one comes to help him. Instead, he stands up weakly, laughing hoarsely. He holds the Four Sword in his hand, yet he does not attack. Zelda, however, takes every precaution. She raises the Bow of Light again, just in case the Wind Mage attacks.

"I...have not lost." Zelda frowns, drawing back more on the bow. Vaati raises his free hand in response. "No, you are right, I have lost this battle. But the war… It is the war I have not lost."

"What do you mean?"

"Zelda, this is the moment in which you decide the fate of Hyrule." Vaati holds his palm up and produces an image. In it, three Vaatis of different colors assemble the four Sages, Link, and Impa. Despite the numbers, the rebels are at a disadvantage. They're injured beyond Oren's ability to heal, and she is focused on healing Impa despite Ravio's arguments that the Sheikah has long passed. That leaves Link, Hilda, and Ralph to stand against the clones, yet Zelda knows that they would last a second.

"Link's ability with the Four Sword is limited. He can create the clones, yet they are connected directly to his mind. He must command them to take action. As for me, I have the same connection, but I didn't command them to round up your friends. They did on their own. By their individual thinking, they might go against my command to not kill them. I should call them off for such disobedience but that is now your decision." Vaati eyes Zelda's right hand, seeing exactly what he desires most. "For the lives of your friends, give me the Triforce of Wisdom."

Zelda pales. She lowers the Bow of Light as the weight of the Wind Mage's words pile on her shoulders. She sees the pained face of Oren as she relentlessly denies Impa's death, the struggle of the three who stand before the clones. If what Vaati says is true, Link, Hilda, and Ralph will die. What strikes her more is that the clones don't suffer the same condition as the original, which means that they survived her attack when she took Vaati away from Link. The alternative is that Zelda performs another time-skip attack, but with only being able to jump forward a second ahead, it will not be enough to save anyone.

"Of course, this is a hard decision for you. You, Zelda, beat me to the Triforce but it deems you unworthy of Power and Courage. I defeat the ones worthy and claim them as my own. You do your best to keep Wisdom away, yet here we are. You have a choice, Zelda. I'm too weak to fight, so you can easily finish me off and claim the Triforce for yourself. But at the same time, will you sacrifice Link's life for it. Which will it be, Your Highness? Will you give up the power of the gods to save him," Vaati holds out his left hand to receive Zelda's right, then places forward his Triforce-branded right fist, "or is love not the ultimate conqueror?"

Zelda stands still, unable to choose. Half her mind, know the consequence of giving Vaati the Triforce of Wisdom, argues that it is the better option. The other half argues that even if Vaati kills them, Zelda's wish is to reset the last eighteen years, meaning that this moment will change as well. It won't matter anyway.

"What truly eats you is not the ability to make the choice, it is the guilt you'll feel if you make the choice that saves the world. But in order to do that, you'll have to sacrifice your friends. It doesn't matter what you wish, you will remember it. You will remember that you let your them die. You'll be alone in that thought. No one but you will remember the world we know now. Can you do it, Princess? Can you live knowing that in the end, you won but at the same time, you killed your friends? Will you prove that good and evil, light and dark, they don't exist in the definition we wrote them as. If saving the world makes you good but sacrificing others for your own gain is evil, then what does that make you?"

"Stop it!" Zelda drops to her knees, holding her head in distress.

"Then choose! Your mother made a choice! Your father made a choice! Your Impa made a choice! That fairy made a choice! They all made one for you, costing them their lives to preserve yours. Now you have to do the same!"

"No!"

"Your mother gave you away hours after you were born to keep you alive from the attack on the castle. That was her choice. Her life for yours. Your father made the same choice to keep me from getting to you for just a moment. Same with Impa today, twice. Make their sacrifices worth it Zelda. Make their deaths by my hand worth it. Get the life you desire! Take Courage and Power from me!"

Zelda tries her best to ignore Vaati's words while she does try her best to choose. The conversation between her and Link should be enough for her to decide. They both want the same thing.

"Link… If you could possess the full Triforce, what would you wish?"

Link has never thought of doing such a thing, so he says the first thing that comes to his mind. "Umm… Peace, I guess. It is what we're fighting for."

Zelda slightly nods, then walks up to Link. "Yes, but...what would it be that you would really want?"

"I… I don't…" At that moment, Link did know what he would wish for. The events of the Great Palace replays in his mind. Seeing his father and mother, alive, together for the first time in his memories...that would be his wish. Then his mind swims elsewhere, to a person closer and very much alive right in front of him. He hadn't concentrated on his feelings for Zelda ever since they had left Kakariko (when Spryte lied about him liking Hilda… He has almost forgotten about that), but ever since they left Ordon, he focused on protecting her, putting his life on the line just to place her on her rightful throne. Veran's words didn't hit him then, but now… Maybe it was selfish, but he deserves this one. "If… I have a wish that I truly want, I would wish to be back in Ordon, spending days hunting in the woods, taking over my father's blacksmithing shop, and relaxing by the spring. I would wish that every morning, I can sit at the table and there will be my father and my mother, and for the first time, I can have both my parents at a meal. I would wish that...I could spend each and every one of those days with you, Zelda, as we already had. I would want to spend the rest of my days with you if I could make that wish."

Zelda places her hands on her chest, tears forming rivers down her cheeks. Her assumptions were right. Link indeed had fallen for her, not Hilda (No offense to the other Princess, but she had her man). "You...you would wish that?"

"Yeah," Link chuckles, rubbing the back of his head, "yeah I would."

Yet Ganondorf's words also ring in her head, asking her to make the hard choice.

"Could you break a promise to ensure your world is safe, even if the world hates you for it? Could you..." Ganondorf steals a glance Midna's way, finally recognizing the blue-skinned beauty beside Zelda. He turns back to Zelda, finishing his question. "...hurt the one you love the most to achieve your goals? Can you do all that, Wisdom?"

Zelda glances at Link, who had his eyes on the incapacitated Vaati a few meters away, then at her own right hand, then back to Ganondorf. "I don't know my place in this destiny of ours yet. But if it means that my country will be safe, I will do anything for it."

Except when the moment comes, she hesitates. It is not because she cannot make a choice, but the choice, both of them, have unfavorable consequences. The Triforce knew that when she came to it in the Sacred Realm days ago.

"You are indeed worthy of the Triforce, Zelda. As were most of your ancestors. But...I cannot allow you to make your wish."

Zelda, shocked by the Triforce's claim, steps back. "What? Why? If I am worthy, you are supposed to-"

"I don't have to do anything. I can deny you even if you are worthy, which is exactly what I'm doing. It is not that I cannot grant your wish or have no desire too. I want you to understand what you desire to wish. That time will come very soon...so until then, I grant you the Triforce of Wisdom, Link the Triforce of Courage, and Ganondorf the Triforce of Power."

Zelda sighs with little relief in the fact Vaati didn't receive Power. "Why Ganondorf over Vaati?"

"People misinterpret power as brute strength, which Vaati clearly has over Ganondorf. Yet...in other ways, Ganondorf is more powerful than Vaati will ever be."


"Fi?"

"Your Grace."

Zelda looks to her hand, praying that the sword spirit can give her another alternative. "Please tell me there is a way to save Link and the others without giving Vaati the Triforce."

"... I am sorry, Your Grace."

"Then I have no other choice. Link, I am sorry." "Take it." Zelda raises her right hand up, her sobs nearly masked by her voice. It hurts her to say such words but...The Triforce is right. She is not strong enough to make such sacrifices herself. Link, Hilda, Oren, Ravio, Ralph, Ganondorf...she hopes they can forgive her. "I...can not give up their lives and live with that guilt. So have your world, Vaati."

She feels the cold hand of Vaati wrap around hers, rubbing with the thumbs the marking of the Triforce. "You are your mother's child. Seems love is truly a powerful weapon. It is...foolishness." Vaati begins to extract the Triforce of Wisdom, and due to Zelda's readiness to give it up, the process is over quickly. Wisdom floats in the air above the pair. Excited, Vaati drops Zelda's hand and raises his right hand in the air. "It is time."


Vaati

Courage and Power resonate with Wisdom, and the two pieces eject themselves out of Vaati's hand. They align with each other, then slowly connect with a brilliant shine. As the assembled Triforce casts golden light throughout the darkened sky, it begins to lower itself to a reachable height for Vaati. The Wind Mage grins as he takes a step to approach the power of the gods, then turns to the awestruck Zelda. Casting away the Four Sword, the clones of Vaati vanish. With the other rebels safe, Vaati closes the image. "I have kept my word. Yet I do not trust you to keep yours." He points his finger at Zelda's arms, turning them to stone. Alarmed, Zelda tries to raise them up, but they're too heavy for her to move. Now with no one to stop him, Vaati steps forward to the Triforce.

As he approaches, a voice enters his head. "You are the Assembler, the one who was not chosen to bear the Triforces of Courage, Wisdom, and Power, yet brought them back together as one. As such, I shall grant you one wish, one chance to change the world as a god. Be it small or large, for good or for evil, there is no wish I cannot grant. Once you land your hand on me, there is nothing to stop your dream from coming true. So Assembler, speak your words and let them come true."

This is his moment. After 18 years, and many more centuries, Vaati will get the wish he so desires. "Triforce! Harken to my voice! Eliminate all opposition to my rule! The Resistance and all their allies! The curse of Hyrule! Anyone and anything that can take Hyrule from me, make it not so, for Hyrule's past, present, and future shall be Vaati!"

"Then come forth and touch. Make your wish come true."

Vaati steps up to the Triforce, reaching out for it. As he comes close, a thought in his head forms. He retracts his hand and turns his head to the unmoved Zelda. Why now should this thought hinder him from completing his goal? In one touch, he could wipe out all his enemies! Why have second thoughts? Pride. Vaati's pride momentarily gets the better of him. He could eliminate the chosen three and their six sages, yet… He remembers the look in Link's eye earlier, how fearful it made Vaati for the short while he experienced it. The battle with Zelda was exhilarating. The fight in Rauru, with the three chosen against him, while short, left him desiring more. They nearly beat him there, and to be honest, he has not gotten close to his full power. At the time, he was just the mage. Today, he is reborn. The next time they meet, he wants them to experience his true wrath. He needs to be transfigured.

He needs them dead by his own hands.

"One exception. The nine heroes, Link, Zelda, Ganondorf, Hilda, Ravio, Midna, Ralph, Riju, and Oren; let them live."

"It shall be. Now grant your wish."

"Why?"

Vaati turns away from Zelda, facing the Triforce but not stepping towards it. "Simple. You guys have been fun, and to truly end our story, to make it quite the legend, I will not wish you nine away. Zant has business with Midna. Ghirahim with you, Link, and Ganondorf. Twinrova with Ganondorf and Riju. Veran with Ralph. I will give them their chance to satisfy themselves as I am now...but we shall meet again, Princess Zelda. Just know this...as great as this fight was, it didn't push me far enough. The next time we face, bring Ganondorf. Push me Zelda, and experience my true form. Then I'll kill you and end this legend of Zelda."

Vaati quickly turns and reaches for the Triforce. It resonates and begins to rise in the air, showering the sky with golden light. It extends out the Triforce to cover the city of Darunia, then out towards all of Hyrule, and eventually the world.


When the glow dies out, Vaati stands alone in the dark sky. The Triforce marks his right hand, but the mark itself is dull. He stares out in the distance, unreadable to the Princess of Hyrule. He should be exhilarated, yet the Wind Mage seems quite down. It's almost as he is not satisfied with his own victory.

The stone around Zelda's arms erodes, allowing her to stand up. She rubs off the lingering magic and stands behind Vaati, not knowing if she should say anything. But the presence she gets from him...it looks like defeat.

"Zelda?"

"Ravio? Are you guys okay?"

"Yeah we are all here but...what the hell just happened? I felt something unexplainable as if hundreds of thousands of lives were lost at once. Did you make the wish?"

Vaati's wish came true. The Resistance, their allies...all are gone at moment's notice. She can imagine the confusion on their faces as Ravio explains what he just felt, the pain Ralph experiences as he hopes to get an answer from someone. Even worse, she can imagine the anger of Riju and Ganondorf, if their battle was in victory, to have their people erased.

The king slowly turns around, his head bowed. Despite not being able to see it, Zelda can tell Vaati is angry...but for what reason she cannot tell. Suddenly his dark aura surrounds him, shooting higher than it ever did before. The Triforce glows in unison on his hand with the spike of power Zelda senses from Vaati. Fear wells up in her throat-this is not the Vaati from before. He's much stronger than her-not even the trace amounts of divinity or the power of the Light Force will help her. Without the Triforce of Wisdom, she won't endure his wrath.

He draws the Four Sword, recreating his clones in front of Zelda. Four powerful, angry Vaatis against one confused, powerless Zelda. She'll have to stand up to them. Recalling all her available power, she reaches for the Master Sword, the blade gaining its heavenly glint again. Without a word, Vaati directs the three clones towards Zelda. Individually they attack her, in which Zelda is able to fend off, but once they start to attack as a unit simultaneously, it becomes quite clear that Zelda will not be able to fend them off.

Vaati had wished for her to stay alive. What made him change his mind?

As the clones overwhelm her, she falls on the ground. They move out the way just for Zelda to see an airborne Vaati throw down a gigantic blast down on her. It comes down to fast for Zelda to try to deflect it, instead casting Nayru's Love to protect her. Explosions sound off around her, yet the shielding spell holds miraculously. Or, as she'll soon realize, Nayru's Love is not quite protecting.

As the smoke clears and Vaati's form reappears alone and grounded, both she and him are quite surprised to see a very angry Ganondorf and a determined (and somehow still capable of standing) Link beside the princess. The Master Sword now returned to her master, allows Zelda to summon the Bow of Light.

Ganondorf is the first to speak to Vaati, his rage apparent both in his tone and in the strength of his aura. "Vaati! What have you done?! What have you done to my people?!"

"Ganondorf." She throws her out in front of him, pausing his approach to the Wind Mage. "There's something wrong."

Ganondorf, disbelieving that Vaati couldn't have done such a thing, stares at Zelda. "What?"

"He did wish for it, but...look at him. Why does he look like his world has ended instead of ours? Something must have happened."

Ganondorf scoffs and throws Zelda's arm out the way. He strolls up to Vaati and grabs him by his robe, turning him around to see his face. "What did you do?"

"...He's coming."

Ganondorf pauses before he speaks again, probably confused by Vaati's answer. "What?"

"He's coming."

At that point Ganondorf drops Vaati, stepping back in shock. Vaati stands erect, his face downcast. "Ganondorf, the reborn Demon King. Zelda, the resurrected Mortal Goddess. Link, if you were a deity, you'll be the fiercest of them all. You have pushed me to the limit and have earned my wrath. The next time we meet, it will be at Hyrule Castle...in seven days. The final fight, between the shadow of the Imperials and the light of the Resistance, shall take place when the Triforce's powers return." Vaati fades out, vanishing before the pair.

Ganondorf sheathes his blade and turns to Zelda, yet looking not at Zelda. His face expresses worry, something Zelda cannot ignore. "What did Vaati mean?"

Ganondorf continues to stare.


North Castle

Veran raises the right edge of his mouth a little as Vaati appears on the balcony of the throne room with her and Twinrova. He stares out to the fields outside the castle quietly, yet Veran can see the questionable anger on his face. It is strange. Weren't they victorious? Did he claim the Triforce? Yes, he did, it is marked on his hand. What is the source of his anger?

"Vaati, you should be happy to hear that Zant has reported in. The Twilight Realm will belong to him shortly."

"This is no happy moment Veran. We must prepare ourselves. The princess and her allies, we've given them newfound strength. In seven days, they will come for us, stronger than ever. But they won't be the only ones...and it hurts me to say that it is that threat that scares me." Vaati holds up his right hand and flips it to the anterior side. Blisters cover the palm, the result not of him touching the Triforce, but an attack to prevent him at the last second.

"What happened there?"

"What shouldn't have happened at all." Vaati frowns even harder, tightening his fists. One week is all they have, then the final fight between the ruling shadow, the fighting light...and the vengeful dark.


Monsters of all kind assemble on the shattered peak of Death Mountain, all facing towards the north. In the middle, a clear path is formed. One end of it, a dark singularity emerges, from it walks Agahnim. He walks with a certain proud gait along the path until he stops in the center. Stretching his hands, he positions his right hand over his left and smoothly moves the upper hand to the right. As he moves it, a golden stick forms all the way to the tip, where it separates into three separate endings. Agahnim bows as he holds the trident up, allowing it to telekinetically float forward in the air.

It is snatched by a giant, muscular arm.

The wielder holds the trident by his side, the prongs facing upwards. His cap flows in the wind, his armor, the little he has on his arms, shoulders, and torso, click in place. His head, cylindrical in shape, stares towards the northern land of Hyrule, specifically in the direction of the castle.

Two sets of feet walk to him. To his left comes Agahnim, folding his arms and laughing at the incoming destruction to be created. To his right comes a former enemy, dead in spirit but his body repurpose for his use. His skin is black, much like his tunic, his hair is white, and his eyes are blood red. The greatest irony, to have his eternal nemesis be his archangel of death.

As for the leader himself, he goes by many names. Prince of Darkness. Demon King. Scourge of Hyrule. The Great Calamity. The King of Evil. Reincarnation of Demise.

Ganon.