A note from the Hime no Argh herself–
Well...I like this chapter quite a bit. ^^ Won't say why though, spoilers and all. The updating might be slowing down a bit through December...there's finals week to get through, then I'll be home for Christmas break and working because I have no money, so I don't know how fast I'll be able to write. Hopefully I'll be able to stay at my old pace, but only time will tell.
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Chapter 23
The Shadow Guide
Even late at night the Lost Woods were alive with sounds–the soft humming of the fireflies, the rustles of birds in the trees and animals in the leaves, the whisper of wind through the forest's dark canopy. Zelda found the forest sounds comforting as she walked steadily deeper into its heart. Before long she came across a deserted, moonlit clearing that would serve her purpose.
It was only then that she realized she had no idea what she was doing. Zelda nearly laughed aloud. How did one go about traveling to the past, even if one was the Sage of Time? It was a ludicrous, almost impossible idea. Almost.
And Link was going to kill her. Assuming, of course, she came back alive.
Zelda smiled with grim humor. If she died, at least she wouldn't have to endure Link's wrath. If she lived, and succeeded, it would be worth it.
The wind was picking up. It was a warm breeze, yet Zelda felt a familiar prickling of gooseflesh that had nothing to do with temperature. Instinctively she glanced up.
A shadow swept across the sky, catching the silver moonlight and reflecting it across glittering scales and fragile, nearly transparent wings until Zelda saw clearly its form.
It was a dragon.
Zelda stared in amazement; she had never seen anything like this creature before in her life. It was long, sinuous and graceful, whirling and banking in the sky as it spiraled downward toward the clearing. And it was bearing someone on its back.
The dragon touched down in the clearly and Zelda suddenly found herself under the scrutiny of a large, gleaming yellow eye. The dragon's hide was primarily blue with a glimmer of silver, its body thin and sinewy, the tail thin and whip-like, the graceful, arched neck nearly the length of its body. Its thin paws ended in wickedly curved silver talons.
"I see you like Blue in this form," a familiar voice called from the dragon's back. Zelda blinked and glanced up as Ronin leapt from his perch at the base of the dragon's neck, landing in the grass beside her.
Zelda stared at him, bewildered. "Wasn't Blue an ox?"
"Blue is a shapeshifter," Ronin explained, patting the dragon's neck affectionately. "She can take on any form she chooses. She likes the dragon best, but we both figured it would be a bit conspicuous in public." A pleased rumble sounded from deep in Blue's throat as Ronin scratched her hide.
Zelda shook her head. She had seen more strangeness in the past few months than she had in her whole life, but Ronin and his dragon had to be the strangest. "What are you doing here?" she demanded of Ronin, trying to ignore Blue's scrutinizing eye.
"I felt a change in the current of the winds." Ronin smiled mysteriously. "The winds whispered to me that you were about to try something very daring and very stupid."
"They've got the stupid part down, all right," Zelda said dryly.
"Pray tell what exactly it is you intend to do, fair lady?"
Zelda looked down, scuffing her toes against the forest floor. "Impa and Saria aren't enough to help us. We need the rest of the sages. I'm going back to my mother's time to find them."
"Ahah!" Ronin laughed heartily. "That is stupid!"
Blue gave a trill that sounded suspiciously like a snicker.
Zelda glared at him. "I don't have any other option. We need the sages now."
Ronin sobered and smiled at her. "They will never say that you were not brave, Zelda." He glanced up into Blue's yellow eyes. "Well, my dear?"
Blue stared at Zelda again for a long moment, then gave another trill. "That's that," Ronin said, nodding. "Blue will go with you."
Zelda blinked at him. "Why?"
"So you don't waste a few months wandering around in Hyrule looking for these people, that's why." Ronin slapped Blue's shoulder affectionately. "Blue here'll be your wings. She'll get you around fast. Time is what you don't have, isn't it?"
"Why would you do that for me?" Zelda asked slowly, staring at him.
"For the love of a fair lady, why else?" Ronin grinned at her. "Word of advice to you, Lady Zelda. Trust your instincts." He stepped back, retreating to the far edge of the clearing to give Zelda and Blue space.
Zelda hesitated, mulling over his words. Trust her instincts–well, that was better than nothing. After all, hadn't she done the same to awaken the Triforce within her? How different could it be to awaken a Sage?
She began by taking a deep breath and erasing her thoughts from her mind. All doubts, fears, and insecurities were pushed away; she focused only on the sound of her breathing. When her mind and her heart were clear, she looked deep inside of herself, searching for the well of light that was her own soul.
Without warning something wrapped itself around her, capturing her in its power, its consciousness sliding over hers. As the unknown entity rose to the surface, taking control of her body, Zelda desperately focused her last conscious thoughts on herself, Blue, and a time long ago in Hyrule.
* * *
The grass beneath her was soft and sweet-smelling, and the sun warmed her back as she lay with her head in her arms. Zelda came awake and aware slowly, stretching cramped muscles. She had a headache and felt exhausted, yet some urgent need prompted her to wakefulness. There was no time to sleep.
It was only when she rolled over that she noticed she had company, sitting cross-legged in the grass beside her.
She bolted upright, startled. The world suddenly spun around her and a fierce pain burst in her head. Groaning, Zelda fell back to the grass.
"Easy," said the stranger, brushing a hand across her forehead. Zelda stared at him in wonder. He was a slender young man dressed in blue, wearing a ragged white tunic on which a red, ornamental eye weeping a single large tear was embroidered. The symbol looked very familiar to Zelda, yet she couldn't quite place it. Strips of linen were wrapped around the man's wrists and his chest beneath the tunic, and more ragged linen formed a makeshift mask that concealed his nose and mouth. His left eye was hidden beneath golden hair; the other, visible eye was a vivid, startling blood-red.
It was then that Zelda recognized the symbol on his tunic. Impa had showed it to her once–a Sheikah eye.
"Are you a Sheikah?" Zelda asked the young man.
"Yes." His voice was light and youthful. His hand rested on her forehead still. Oddly, her head had ceased its pounding. "My name is Sheik."
"Sheik." Zelda gazed up at him. His crimson eye disconcerted her in a way that Impa's never had.
"And yours?" he inquired, his gaze locked with hers.
Zelda blinked and averted her eyes, trying to shed the paralysis he'd wrought on her. "Zelda," she muttered as she pushed herself into a sitting position. For the first time she looked around. A vast plane covered in vividly green grass stretched on in all directions around her. The sun beamed warmly upon the rolling hills and the grass swayed gently in the breeze. Blue lay on her back beside her in a blue-and-silver heap.
Zelda jumped up and dashed to the dragon's side. "Blue? Are you all right? Wake up!"
The dragon's yellow eyes shot open. She flipped over to her feet, growling savagely. Zelda stepped back as Blue's wings flared, her teeth pulled back in a snarl–then abruptly Blue began to relax, staring around them with curiosity.
"Sorry," Zelda apologized. "I didn't mean to startle you."
Blue made a sound of reproach and went back to examining their surroundings.
"Where are we?" Zelda asked, turning to Sheik, who seemed quite unfazed by the dragon.
"Hyrule Field, of course," Sheik replied.
Zelda's jaw dropped. She stared around them again, utterly flabbergasted. The vast, grassy plains could only be Hyrule Field, yet this place was completely different from the field she knew. It was peaceful, a perfect picture of tranquility. There was not a monster in sight, and the sky overhead was a clear, brilliant blue, instead of a swirling mass of storm clouds.
I did it, she realized suddenly, amazed. I actually went to another time. That's why Hyrule Field is so different.
"Do you know where I might find the Sages?" she asked Sheik. "It's a matter of extreme importance. I must find Rauru, Ruto, Nabooru, and Darunia as soon as possible."
For a moment Sheik gazed at her in silence. "We're at the southernmost part of Hyrule Field," he said at last, nodding in a direction that Zelda took to be south. "Closest to the desert. That is where Nabooru can be found."
Zelda glanced south, but Sheik touched her face, sliding his fingers under her chin and turning her gaze back to his. His eyes were perfectly level with hers, Zelda noticed; they were exactly the same height. "Who are you," he asked softly, "that calls herself Zelda and seeks the Sages of Hyrule?"
Zelda stared at him as the hair prickled on the back of her neck, completely entranced by this red-eyed young man, until the sound of Blue's trilling brought her back to her senses. The dragon was shifting her weight as she gazed toward the south, plainly impatient to be on their way. She looked at Zelda.
Climb onto my back and I shall bring you to these sages, the dragon ordered in a faintly feminine voice that sounded through Zelda's mind. Let us waste no time.
Zelda stared at her in astonishment. "Since when could you talk?"
I have always been able to speak. I simply chose not to do so until now. Tell the red-eyed one you are leaving and let us be on our way.
Zelda shook her head, bewildered, and turned to Sheik. "The dragon will take me to the desert," she told him, looking anywhere but into those bemusing crimson eyes.
"Allow me to accompany you," Sheik offered. "I will guide you to all of the sages."
Zelda glanced at Blue. Having a guide sounded much better than wandering around Hyrule with no idea where to look. "Is it okay with you?" she asked the dragon.
Blue's eyes focused on Sheik for a brief moment, then looked again to Zelda. The red-eyed one hides himself in shadows.
"Well, he is wearing a mask," Zelda muttered, aware that Sheik could hear one side of the conversation. "And he's a Sheikah."
He hides, the dragon insisted, but I do not know why. If he comes, he comes now. Blue unfurled her wings for emphasis.
"She's a bit impatient," Zelda said apologetically to Sheik, which the dragon answered with a noise close to a snort.
Blue instructed Zelda to climb up on her shoulder and straddle the base of her neck. Clumsily she complied. Once comfortably seated, Sheik nimbly mounted Blue without instruction and settled himself behind Zelda, wrapping an arm lightly around her waist.
Are you secure? Blue inquired of her passengers.
"As secure as I'll ever be," Zelda replied, her mouth dry. She didn't relish the idea of flying, even on dragonback.
Blue spread her wings, crouching on her hind legs. Zelda felt tension build in the muscles beneath them. Then, like a spring uncoiling, the tension released and Blue leapt into the air, unfurling her great wings and flapping hard to get them aloft. Zelda saw the ground fall away beneath them and grabbed Blue's neck, wrapping her arms around it and hanging on for dear life.
I will not drop you, Blue scolded as she caught a current of air and soared ever higher into the sky.
"I believe you," Zelda croaked unconvincingly, her eyes squeezed tightly shut. Sheik seemed quite unfazed, his grip on her waist light.
"Amazing," he murmured. "I've never traveled this fast."
Zelda opened one eye and glanced at the ground, speeding along far below them. She was startled to see that the plains had given way already to yellow, sandy desert; the air was dryer, the wind harsh against their faces.
Then Zelda felt something, a sensation that was completely new to her yet familiar all the same. Involuntarily her consciousness reached out and touched another. She felt the presence of a Sage.
Zelda wasted no time wondering how she knew any of this. "Land!" she gasped to Blue. "There's a Sage down there! I feel it!"
Blue banked and dove so fast that Zelda shrieked. My apologies, the dragon said, easing into a gradual downward spiral. You startled me.
"My fault," Zelda croaked, feeling as though she were about to vomit.
"Look," Sheik murmured, pointed. Below them were a small group of mounted warriors, steel blades flashing in the sun. One of them must have spotted Blue, for suddenly there were many panicked cries and the movement of weapons being readied.
They mean to attack me, Blue said in an outraged tone, and before Zelda or Sheik could reply, she landed in the sand, raised herself onto her haunches, and bellowed forth a bloodcurdling roar. The horses shrieked and threw their riders to the ground, stampeding away from the dragon as fast as they could while the warriors–a Gerudo squad–scrambled for their weapons, their faces reflecting acute terror.
"Don't hurt them, Blue!" Zelda cried, shaking all over from fright at the dragon's bellow. She tumbled from Blue's back, landing on her hands and knees in the sand. Sheik leapt down gracefully beside her and tugged her to her feet.
I do not intend to attack them, the dragon said mildly. Merely to discourage them from attacking me.
It seemed her plan had worked. The Gerudo were on their feet and brandishing weapons, but neither of them made a move toward the dragon. Then suddenly one of the women dropped her pair of scimitars and stared at Zelda.
"Your Majesty? What on earth are you doing out here in the desert?" she exclaimed. "What are you wearing? Who is that man? And what–what is that?" She gestured wildly at Blue.
Zelda looked closely at the Gerudo, uncertain of how to answer. She was tall, slender, and voluptuous, arms and legs well-muscled, her skin darkly tanned. She wore the strapless midriff and full leggings that were standard Gerudo garb, hers a pale pink like the color of dawn. Her vivid red hair was pulled away from her face and held at the back of her head by a jeweled clip. Her face was beautiful and proud, with heavy-lidded amber eyes, a prominent nose, and full scarlet lips.
Recognition struck Zelda like a hammer. "Nabooru," she whispered, gazing at the Sage of Spirit.
Nabooru cocked her head to one side and stared hard at her. "Yes, I'm Nabooru," she said impatiently. "Are you all right, Your Majesty? Has something happened? Why in are you in the desert?"
Abruptly Zelda understood why Nabooru was speaking to her in such a familiar manner. The sage thought she was her mother, the present Queen of Hyrule. How am I ever going to explain this? Zelda wondered. She looked at the Gerudo's companions.
"Nabooru, may we speak in private?" she asked politely.
Nabooru blinked. "Of course." She turned to the other Gerudo and dismissed them, ordering them to head back to the fortress. When the squad was well on their way, she turned to Zelda, gripping her arm and tugging her out of earshot of Sheik and Blue. "Now, what's wrong?" Nabooru asked seriously.
Zelda hesitated. "This is going to sound very odd," she confessed. "But please, just bear with me."
Nabooru nodded, her amber eyes betraying her worry.
Zelda took a deep breath. "I'm not who you think I am. I'm not the Queen. You and I have actually never met before."
Nabooru's eyebrows shot up. "Do you have a fever, Your Majesty?" she inquired, pressing a hand to Zelda's forehead.
Zelda batted it away. "Call me Zelda," she said impatiently. "Like I told you, I'm not the Queen of Hyrule." She paused again. Well, I've come this far, she thought wryly, and plunged ahead. "I'm her daughter."
Nabooru stared at her in silence for a very long moment. "You're what?" she said at last.
"I'm the daughter of the Zelda you know," Zelda explained. "I'm named after her."
"Zelda doesn't have a daughter," Nabooru informed her.
"I know. I used my powers–the Sage of Time's powers–to come to the past, before I was born. In my time my mother isn't even alive, and Ganondorf is the king of Hyrule, and I need the sages–in short, I need you. I know it's hard to believe, but it's the truth."
Zelda took another breath, having talked without pause in her effort to convince Nabooru. The sage again remained silent for several long moments.
"How do I know," she began at last, "that you aren't some sort of imposter? How do I know that your intentions aren't evil?"
"Look–" Zelda impatiently held up her hand, showing Nabooru the goddess mark on the back. "What more proof do you need? I've been chosen by the goddesses to help defeat Ganondorf in my time, but to even have a chance I need you. Please, Nabooru."
Nabooru sighed. "I'm not saying I believe you," she warned, "but I suppose that Triforce mark at least proves that you aren't a fake." She nodded toward Zelda's companions. "Who are they, if you don't mind my asking?"
"The dragon is Blue," Zelda explained. "She came back with me from my time to help me get around quickly. I have no time to waste. That's Sheik," she added, gesturing toward the Sheikah. "He's my guide. He's helping me to find the sages."
Nabooru barely glanced at Blue, focusing instead on Sheik. "Have we met before?" she asked suspiciously. "I could swear I know you, but I don't know how."
"I don't believe we have," Sheik replied calmly.
Come, Zelda, Blue ordered, rustling her wings impatiently. You have your Sage of Spirit; let us find the others.
Blue was right. They had no time to waste. "Will you come?" Zelda asked Nabooru, praying that the sage agreed.
Nabooru sighed again. "It's my duty to serve the Sage of Time, whatever form she takes," she said dryly. "I'll come."
And minutes later Zelda, Nabooru, Sheik, and Blue were flying over Hyrule, seeking the next Sage.
* * *
To be continued.