A note from the Hime no Argh herself–
Ah, it feels so good to finally be working on this fic again. To celebrate the dissipation of my last bout of writer's block, here's a new chapter! Much rejoicing!
***
Chapter 15
In the Realm of the Goddesses
"What do you think?" Zelda asked Link quietly.
He could see it in her eyes. She wanted to go. She wanted the mysteries that had surrounded them since the day they met solved; she needed the answers they sought. So did he.
Link took her hand, threading his fingers through hers, and smiled at her. "Let's go."
Zelda smiled back, then took a deep breath, squaring her shoulders. As one, she and Link stepped into the portal. Instantly they were bathed in light; the world around them melted away into darkness, and they flew through an endless, star-filled sky.
* * *
Link breathed, inhaling the scent of damp earth. He became aware that he was lying on something cool and prickly; opening his eyes, he realized he lay flat on his belly in tall, lush grass, surrounded by a thick, dark forest. The Lost Woods? Link thought, confused.
He sat up, shaking his head to clear it, and took another look around. The grass beneath him was vividly green, the leaves on the tall, stately trees even more so, glittering with dewdrops like thousands of emerald jewels. Through the canopy overhead he caught glimpses of a night sky, deep black with the silver glimmer of stars.
"Zelda," Link said aloud, remembering. She was nowhere to be seen. "Zelda?"
Only the wind answered, whispering through the trees. Branches swayed and danced as if alive. A chorus of fireflies drifted through the small clearing, lighting the trees with their yellow glow. Link climbed to his feet, suddenly unnerved. Like the Fairy Fountain, there was something tangibly unnatural about this place. There was an energy in this forest, some kind of mystical power that was beyond his power to comprehend.
One thing he was certain of–he had to find Zelda. Link glanced around, then picked a direction and started walking.
Save for the soft hum of the fireflies and the occasional rustle of leaves in the wind, the woods were completely silent. Link heard none of the animal sounds one would expect to hear in a forest; not a single birdcall sounded from the leaves.
Eventually Link caught a glimpse of something shimmering through the trees. He hurried toward the shimmer, relieved to spot anything other than trees and fireflies. Perhaps it was a familiar landmark with which he could place his bearings.
Instead, he found himself in another clearing, far larger than the one he'd woken in. The shimmer came from a broad lake, its surface smooth and glassy. A full silver moon reflected in the lake's dark waters. In the middle was a small island, on which a single willow tree stood. Amid its weeping branches stood a woman.
Link knew at first glance that this was no ordinary woman. She lit the broad clearing as if she were the sun itself, with an intense golden light that appeared to shine from within her. She was shining so brilliantly that it should have been difficult to look at her, yet her blinding light didn't hurt his eyes. She was naked as far as he could tell, golden hair tumbling down her neck, arms stretched gracefully over her head as she reached for the willow's branches.
As if she sensed his presence, the woman suddenly turned her head toward him. Her face was concealed behind that incredible light, yet Link sensed her eyes on him all the same, studying him just as intently as he did her. Her arms fell to her sides; she moved away from the willow toward the edge of the island. Calmly she stepped out onto the glassy surface of the lake.
Link shrank back as the woman walked unhurriedly across the water, filled with a terror unlike anything he'd ever known. She could not possibly be human; nor was she a fairy full of kindness. His heart knew what his mind did not immediately perceive–she was a being beyond the mortal realm, and the terror that surged in him was answer to her uncompromising divinity.
She was a Goddess.
* * *
Zelda awoke on a hard surface, feeling pins and needles in her arm where her head had rested. She sat up, gingerly rubbing the arm, and took a look around. She was lying on a marble floor in a great library, its ceiling raised far above her head. Dozens of bookcases were spaced all around her upon which handsome, leather-bound volumes were arranged neatly and carefully. A marble staircase to her right led up to a terrace where she could see yet more cases and books; a tall, gilded window was set in the wall across from the staircase, through which bright sunlight streamed.
Zelda climbed to her feet, looking around. "Link?" No one answered her call; Link was nowhere in sight. She glanced to her left and abruptly gasped.
There was an enormous, full-length mirror between two bookcases; Zelda stared at her reflection, dumbfounded. She wore not her usual frayed breeches and patched shirt, but a dress–no simple peasant's shift, either. It looked as though it were made for royalty, with its bodice and full skirt in a soft, petal-pink hue. The collar was cut below her shoulders, the sleeves ending at her elbows and draping into points. The hem of the skirt skimmed on the floor with a small train in the back. Over the gown was an open-ended surcoat favored by ladies of the noble class, a soft lavender color, tied at her waist by a leather girdle. Lavender-colored ribbons were woven through her hair, and a tiny, lacy gold crown completed the ensemble.
"Wow," Zelda said dimly, staring at her reflection.
At some point during her scrutiny of herself she realized she'd better find Link, or at least someone who could tell her where she was. She glanced around once more, then headed up the marble staircase, the heels of her leather slippers tapping against the floor with each step. At the top of the stairs, between the rows and rows of bookcases, was a small round table and two chairs. Upon one of the chairs sat a woman.
She wore a white shift with full sleeves and a long, slender skirt, yet the simple dress could not dim her astonishing beauty. Even sitting she appeared unusually tall and strong, slender and generously curved. Her fair skin was as delicate and smooth as the petals of a flower; her hair a lovely tangle of chestnut brown curls, cascading down her back to her waist and woven through with silver ribbons. She lifted her head as Zelda tentatively approached, and in her lovely face were a pair of large eyes set beneath perfectly arched eyebrows, an extraordinary crystal blue, hard and glittering like diamonds.
"Welcome, Zelda," the woman said to her, rising in polite greeting. Her voice was astonishingly clear and pure, melodic as a finely tuned harp.
Zelda remained where she was, uncertain. "How do you know my name?"
"I know all about you." There was something in the lady's voice that Zelda recognized–some lingering echo that made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. "You need not be afraid of me," she continued as if she read Zelda's mind. "You are welcome to explore my domain at your leisure."
Zelda shook her head. "Thank you, but there's someone I need to find."
"Oh?" The woman met her gaze directly. "Who?"
Zelda stared into those extraordinary crystalline eyes, suddenly at a loss for words. She knew there was indeed someone she had to find, but for the life of her she could not remember who.
"Have you forgotten?" the lady asked softly.
Zelda frowned, concentrating hard, but all that came to her were meaningless thoughts and images. She grasped at memories only to have them slip through her fingers like sand...frantically she scanned thoughts as she would the pages of a book, finding nothing–
"Relax." The pure voice of the strange woman broke through the search; her palm on Zelda's forehead was ice cold. "Empty your mind. Seek by instinct, not thought, and you will find what you are searching for."
Yes, Zelda thought, letting the lady's words fill her, thoughts emptying from her mind like water from a sieve. The world around her drained away, her awareness of the woman and the library and even herself fading. The subconscious part of her awakened somewhere deep inside, stirred, and rose to the surface.
Everything around her had suddenly changed. She was in a cold, dark place where echoes of things she did not understand lingered, where the woman beside her was gone and in her place, a tall, brilliantly glowing entity that frightened her beyond all reason. There were shadows all around her, gripping her in their power, consuming her, and the last vestige of her that was not terrified out of wit gave a final, anguished cry of desperation.
"Link!"
* * *
Link fell to his knees as the goddess stepped onto shore, no longer daring to look upon her. The terror coursing through him was absolute; he was unable to move or think, nor remember for what purpose he was here. He was aware only of the divine being kneeling before him and taking him into her arms.
His perception of the goddess changed, suddenly and drastically. She was no longer terrifying; she seemed to embody a feeling with which he was familiar yet distant–a feeling of warmth, of safety and security, of loving reassurance. It was then that he knew her–Farore. Giver of life to all mortal beings.
"Mother," Link whispered in amazement.
"You have journeyed a long way to me, my dear son." The goddess's voice was incredibly clear and pure, with a sweet musical echo. "I am proud of you."
Link wondered what he could possibly have done to make a goddess proud, and said so.
"You have survived," Farore replied simply. "You have come this far. Now you are ready and willing to embrace your destiny. The wheel of fate is at last turning."
"Goddess, I..." He licked dry lips and tried again. "I don't know what my destiny is."
"Dear man, your destiny has been before your eyes for some time now. You merely think you do not know it. But I will help you to see with eyes unclouded." The goddess released him from her warm embrace, but took him firmly by the hand and guided him to the edge of the lake.
"This is your destiny. This is what you seek." Farore touched the glassy surface of the lake so that it began to ripple, and beneath the water appeared a shimmering image with which he was all too familiar.
"Zelda?" Link gasped. "I don't understand! How can she–how can Zelda be my destiny?"
He looked around for the answer, but Farore had disappeared. Wordlessly Link turned back to the solemn image of Zelda–his destiny, Link thought numbly. Then he heard her, her voice, as if she was right beside him–a terrified, anguished cry.
"Link!"
He whipped around. A mirror had appeared in the grass behind him, oval shaped and full-length–but it was not his reflection he saw behind the silvery glass. It was Zelda.
"Zelda!" he gasped.
Her head snapped to the side and their eyes locked, hers wild with terror. He could see plainly what frightened her so–inky, shapeless shadows wrapped around her, binding her, threatening to consume her. "Link!" she shrieked again, twisting to free an arm and reaching for him.
Link stared at her, heart pounding in his chest. It was him she cried for, his protection she sought–yet he sensed more than a mere glass barrier separating them, he sensed dimensions–and still, she cried for him.
He had to protect her. He had never wanted anything more in his life.
Link plunged his arm through the mirror as if it were no more than a barrier of water. His hand grasped Zelda's and the worlds around them shattered like glass, breaking into millions of tiny pieces and falling away into a star-filled abyss. The next thing he knew, he and Zelda stood on nothing at all in the middle of the endless starry void. Link stared at Zelda, gripping her shoulders with shaking hands, and spoke the first thought that came to his mind.
"Why are you wearing a dress?"
Zelda shoved him hard, crying exasperatedly, "Is that all you have to say to me?!" But the next instant she pulled him close and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Congratulations," a voice interrupted their reunion.
Link and Zelda turned quickly. Two glowing, golden entities had appeared before them, permeating the abyss with their unyielding divinity. One of the divine beings, he knew, was Farore–but the other, a colder, more forbidding presence, was unknown to him.
Yet somehow, not to Zelda. "Nayru," she whispered, shrinking against Link as if afraid.
"So you know me, Zelda." The two mortals cringed at Nayru's voice. It was as pure and musical as Farore's, yet great and terrible, pounding through their skulls like a drum. "I am pleased."
"You were...the woman in the library?" Zelda asked uncertainly.
"That is correct."
Zelda gave an involuntary shudder. "What were those shadows?"
"I created them," was the goddess's indifferent reply. "As a test."
"A test–!" Zelda cried, struggling against Link. He held her fast, quite upset himself.
"Why would you endanger Zelda's life for a test?" he demanded with more fury than was wise of a mortal addressing a goddess. "For what purpose?"
"The purpose was to test you, Link," Farore replied in voice considerably warmer than that of her sister. "Needless to say, you passed."
"But I didn't do anything," Link said, confused.
"You protected Zelda," Nayru reminded him. "You broke through dimensions in your desire to protect her."
"Do you understand now?" Farore inquired gently. "Do you now see what I meant when I told you she is your destiny? Zelda has been charged to your care, and you accepted this purpose–no, embraced it. Did you never wonder why you have unhesitatingly protected Zelda since the day you met her? Why you have stayed at her side despite what your better judgement has told you? You have done this unconsciously, and now you know why."
"To put it quite clearly, you are Zelda's guardian," Nayru said coldly. "You are to protect her at any cost. This is the task we have laid before you. The purpose of the test was to determine whether you would accept it."
"And you have," added Farore.
Zelda and Link gazed at each other in silence. Almost unconsciously Link brushed a strand of hair away from Zelda's face, thinking that the question of whether he would protect her or not wasn't much of a question at all. "I would never have hesitated," he said, more to Zelda than to the two goddesses.
"Zelda," Nayru began, and Zelda turned somewhat reluctantly toward the goddess, "you are surely wondering what your purpose is."
"I'm not sure I want to know," Zelda admitted.
"Undoubtedly," the goddess replied in her cold, indifferent voice. "But mortals cannot choose their fates, so listen well, child. You, with Link to serve you, are to destroy Ganondorf, free Hyrule from his tyranny, and rule the land as Queen of Hyrule until the end of your days."
The absurdity of this statement was followed by utter silence. Zelda's mouth moved, but no words came out. The goddesses were silent, waiting.
"I–what?" Zelda managed to sputter at last.
"You are royalty," Farore said patiently. "You do not, of course, know this. You have lived your life believing you are a member of the peasant class. But in truth, my dear, you are the daughter of a queen."
"Impossible," Zelda stated flatly. "Impa would have told me."
"Impa is under our orders to keep her silence until the appropriate time," Nayru countered. "We preferred to impart the news ourselves."
"Have you never wondered who your parents were, and why Impa never told you anything about them?" Farore encouraged.
"Well–" Zelda faltered. "Yes–yes, of course, but–"
"Do you doubt the word of the goddesses?"
"No, but–"
"Then believe what we tell you," Nayru interrupted. "Once your true identity becomes known, the people of Hyrule will accept you as their ruler. You will lead them in a war to free this land. You will defeat Ganondorf. And you will restore this land to the peace and prosperity that existed many years ago."
"I don't suppose that comes with a guarantee, does it?" Link asked weakly.
"Of course not," said Nayru. "Zelda could easily die. That is what you are to prevent."
"You will not be alone. You will have friends," Farore assured them. "You will have our guidance and patronage. And you will have the Triforce."
"Triforce?" Link and Zelda asked in unison.
"Our covenant with Hyrule. The sacred relic containing the power of the three goddesses. One piece of it is gone from us–it is in Ganondorf's hands. The other pieces are within the two of you."
"Awaken the Triforce within yourselves, and you will have immeasurable power," said Nayru. "Fail to awaken it and you will never defeat Ganondorf."
"How do we awaken this Triforce?" Zelda demanded.
"That is something you must discover for yourselves," Farore said gently. "It is part of your trials. You both have the will and strength to succeed. Believe this, and nothing will stop you. Now, it is time you return to the mortal realm."
"Wait!" Zelda cried. "We can't go back yet! There are two many questions, too many–"
"We have told you all we can at this time," Nayru told her, not unkindly. "The realm of the goddesses is governed by different laws than that of the mortal realm. We cannot interfere with fate. You will discover the rest on your own."
Link and Zelda would have protested, but the world was already fading around them, turning to whiteness, then dark oblivion.
"Go with our blessing," they heard Farore intone. "You are our Destined, chosen to save Hyrule."
With a shock that made Link's head spin, he and Zelda abruptly found themselves within the Great Fairy's cave in the middle of the Lost Woods. Zelda still wore the beautiful gown. The Great Fairy was nowhere to be seen, but they were not alone.
"Welcome back, my friends." Saria smiled and beckoned them toward the exit to the cave. "Please, come with me." She left the cave with every confidence that she would be followed. Link and Zelda exchanged a look, then went after her.
Demon waited outside the cave, peacefully munching a clump of grass. From the way he nuzzled Saria as the girl emerged from the Great Fairy Fountain with Zelda and Link, it was apparent that the two had made friends.
"This way," Saria added, and headed off into the woods. Link and Zelda hesitated for a moment, gazing at each other in silence.
"Why don't you ride?" Link finally asked, gesturing toward Demon. "You must be tired."
"So must you," Zelda replied somewhat defensively. He really does try to protect me, she couldn't help thinking. Every moment, of every day.
Link smiled, mounted the heavyset gelding, and reached a hand to help Zelda up. "C'mon. Demon's strong, he won't mind two riders."
Zelda hesitated, but she didn't have the strength to argue. All her energy seemed to have abandoned her; she felt as though she might fall asleep on her feet at any moment. She took Link's hand and let him pull her up in front of him on Demon's broad back, arranging her long skirt so that she could comfortably ride sidesaddle. Link slid an arm around her waist to steady her.
Saria flitted through the trees as easily as the wind, often disappearing from their view. Demon, fortunately, seemed to know where he was going, for both Link and Zelda were far too weary to guide him. Exhausted, Zelda leaned back against Link; he lifted his free hand to sift gently through her hair.
Soon enough they came upon their destination–a small stone castle in the midst of the trees, half-crumbled, a ruin of what once must have been a glorious structure. Ivy snaked up the walls and spires of the castle and twisted about the pillars flanking the entrance. Saria sat on a fallen piece of stone beside the entrance, waiting.
"Welcome," the girl said as Link and Zelda dismounted and warily approached.
"What is this place?" Zelda inquired, scrutinizing the stone structure.
Saria smiled and rose from her seat. "The Forest Temple. Why don't you come in?"
Zelda exchanged a glance with Link, and they followed Saria inside the temple. It was dark and gloomy within the stone walls, dimly lit by flickering torches. Plants grew everywhere, from the sparse grass that grew through cracks in the stone floor to great, tall trees that rose along the walls like pillars, lifting strong, leafy branches to the heavens. The canopy of leaves completely obscured the ceiling, assuming there was one to conceal. Saria knelt on the cold floor in the middle of the great, empty foyer and motioned for Zelda and Link to join her.
Vines began to grow from splits in the floor beneath them and inch up Saria's legs, but she ignored them. "I imagine you must have many questions."
"Who are you?" Zelda and Link demanded, immediately and simultaneously.
Saria giggled, sounding for a brief moment like the little girl she so resembled. "My name is Saria. I am a sage–the Sage of Forest, to be precise."
Zelda blinked. "Sages? The elemental guardians of Hyrule? But they're just legends!"
"Not just legends," Saria replied patiently. "Before Ganondorf was King of Hyrule, six of us served the Queen–your mother," she added to Zelda. "Now there are only two of us left alive. I am one. Impa is the other."
Zelda gasped sharply. "Impa?!"
"The Sage of Shadow," Saria confirmed.
Zelda's face fell. "I see. So there are even more secrets I'm not aware of."
"Impa only kept these secrets in the interest of protecting you," Saria said kindly, slapping a thick vine that had begun to twine around her chest to make it retreat. "She knew that once you met Link, events would be set into motion. Ganondorf would become aware of your existence as the power of the Triforce within you began to awaken. You would be put through dangerous trials, eventually discovering the truth. She wanted so badly to protect you from your fate, knowing well that this is impossible."
"So that's why she never seemed to like me," Link realized suddenly. "Because I'm...I don't know...some sort of catalyst?"
"Exactly," said Saria gently. "It is your fate, and Zelda's, that the two of you should meet, forge a deep and lasting bond, and defeat Ganondorf at one another's side. It has always been so, throughout history."
It took a few moments for those words to sink in. "What do you mean, throughout history?" Zelda demanded, staring at the sage. "This has all...this has happened before?"
"I told you that I and five other sages served your mother, yes?" Saria looked at her, meeting her eyes directly. "Your mother was the seventh sage, the greatest of us all–the Sage of Time. Her name was Zelda. And your father's name was Link."
* * *
To be continued.