EPILOGUE
TWO
Link dismounted Windbreeze next to a small pool to let the
horse drink. He pulled out a brush and began stroking Windbreeze with
it, cleaning him. Link wetted the brush and began washing Windbreeze.
He pocked the brush and climbed to Forest Haven.
Makar, the
Great Deku Tree, and Komali were already there. They smiled at Link
as he entered the room.
"Medli's coming later. She has
some, err, business to attend to," Komali explained. Link grinned.
Medli was most likely taking care of their two- year-old twins, a boy
and a girl, named Zamir and Calandra.
'What else?' Link
had thought when he had received the letter from Quill that announced
the Ritos birth, thinking of the girl's name.
"Thanks for
waiting for us, Link!" chimed out a voice. Link turned his head to
see Aryll and the King of Red Lions.
"When's Zelda
coming?" squeaked Makar.
"She'll be here soon. She set
out with us, but we couldn't wake her from a nap, so we just left
her snoozing under a tree." Aryll giggled as Daphnes told them
this. "Well, 'tis true!"
"Sorry I'm late!" panted
Zelda as she came in, adjusting her hair. "So, does anyone have any
idea what to name this land? We cannot call it the Great Sea anymore.
I mean, no offense to you, Aryll, but the Heroine did a pretty good
job on making sure that we couldn't have that name again!"
A
small chuckle rumbled around the room. Link took out a bottle and
captured some of the magical water in it before murmuring, "Why
don't we all give suggestions and vote?"
They all agreed
and went around to room, giving suggestions.
"The New
Hyrule," suggested the King.
"Haven of Life," suggested
the Deku Tree.
"Seas of Dirt," suggested Aryll.
"Korok
World!" squeaked Makar, and they laughed. "What? I was being
serious," joked Makar in defense.
"Come on, let's get
serious," Link ordered, but a smile escaped his lips.
"Sorry
that I'm late," came Medli's voice. In her talons she carried a
large blanket. She flew over to them and dropped the blanket on the
ground. There were some squirming from it and Link realized that the
blanket contained the twins. Medli kissed Komali on the cheek as a
greeting and smiled happily at the others. She opened up the blanket
and took out the twins.
Zamir had the beak and chin of his
father, with bright tawny eyes that were more orange than brown. His
hair was a bronze color, like Medli's.
Little Calandra had
black eyes and brown hair that would be black when she grew up.
"She
looks just like Calan!" exclaimed Zelda softly. "But how...?"
Zelda asked puzzled. She had just learned about genes and such ('twas
a new thing in the new land, which everyone wanted to be sure to know
so that they could show off), and she knew that neither Komali nor
Medli had black hair OR black eyes, nor did their parents.
Unless...
"Calan was my cousin," shrugged Medli. "That's
how. You know, that 'gene' thing, whatever it does..."
Zelda
smiled and shook her head, like it was "cute" that Medli wasn't
slaving over the knowledge of genes.
"On to naming the new
world," Aryll interrupted swiftly.
"How about...the Sky of
Magic?" suggested Komali.
"No...the Skies of Blade!"
cried Medli.
"World of Magic," Zelda offered.
They
all rounded on Link, who was the last one to make a
suggestion.
"What d'you think, bro?" asked Aryll. The
fourteen-year-old girl propped her head on her hands. "What name
are you going to give?"
Link opened his mouth and gave forth
the name he thought of.
Five
years later
Dear Diary,
Mine and Zamir's sixth birthday is in two days. Life in the Changing World is blissful. Were Momma and Da really alive when Ganondorf was? Did my namesake really die in the rule of the Evil King? I can hardly believe mine ears. Was the world's namesake alive in the days of Ganon? Was she truly a Gerudo, like him? And did she really slay Ganon? She was Changer Who Saw All, Bryn the Changer, and that's how our world came to get its name: Changing World that Sees All, but we shorten it to Changing World. But why am I telling you this? You obviously know this all. I'm just recording down stuff because, when Momma gave this to me on my fourth birthday, she told me, "Remember, Calan, record down your life in this. 'Twill not be long till you make a legend of yourself, and we will love to hear the humble beginnings of our sweet Calandra, with a voice better than my cousin's, and compared to you, the other Calandra was tone-deaf, sweets." But it's in another entry, isn't that?
Poor Calandra. She died at the wrath of Ganondorf. So did my Grandfather.
An entry taken from the diary of Zamir, on the next day
Dear Diary,
Tomorrow! Tomorrow I get my wings! Before, you had to get your wings when you're thirteen, but Momma and Da says that I can get it beforehand!!! It is strange, but I never knew that Valoo had had a wife. Well, it turns out that this dragon came to Dragon Roost with an egg, demanding that Valoo, the baby dragon's father, see his son! When learning that Valoo was dead, this dragon left, all upset, leaving her egg behind. My mother taught the baby dragon all it needed to know and now she is the Great Sgeemn's attendant. Sgeemn is already bigger than how big Valoo was at twice Sgeemn's age, which is saying something, for Valoo was a giant, as I was told!
Tomorrow I will travel through Dragon Roost Cavern with the Hero of Wind for my guide. Calandra will have the pretty Heroine of Space, but I don't care. I can bear with this.
After I make it through the Cavern, I will have to take a turquoise scale from the back of the Great Sgeemn. Daddy and Ma will be waiting up there.
- Zamir
Calandra and the Heroine of Space came to where Sgeemn was, along with Komali and Medli. The fourteen-year-old Heroine clapped Calandra on the shoulder.
"I remember when you were a tyke, you know that? I remember before you were born." Aryll smiled. "Look at us now. Cresting the hill to take a scale from Sgeemn. And haha! We beat the boys."
Calandra came forward and took a scale from Sgeemn. The dragon looked down at Calandra with solemn eyes, daring her to chicken out. Calan smiled back and held the scale close to her.
A YEAR DAYS LATER
A nineteen-year-old Link was standing at the grave of Bryn, replaying the battle over and over in his mind, remembering the flash of blades as Bryn had brought down the staff.
"Hey, Hero!" called a cheery voice. Link looked up to see Zamir, winging his way down to him. "How's life been treating you?"
"The same of usual," Link replied dryly. "You?"
"Oh, these wings are great," exclaimed Zamir. Link couldn't hide a smile at the seven-year-old's happiness. "You know, you could get wings too!"
Link shook his head, even though he had always wanted to fly. "Nay, nay, Zamir, I would be betraying old customs."
Zamir perched himself on a log. "But times are changing, Link. We can move on from the silly customs. Slaying Ganon was the start of it. People began to live more freely. Aryll then shaped the world. She made us another Hyrule, like you and Zelda were told to do by the King, right?"
Link nodded. Zamir continued on with his speech. "Why shouldn't we defy and betray our old customs? Not only have we defied them, Link, but we have made new ones to follow in their places."
"But the Goddesses – "
"If the Great Goddesses had been angrily with us for changing this life, then do you think that you would be nineteen, and that I would be seven? No! You would have died when I was just born, and you fifteen, and Aryll twleve. You would have died for shaping the world. So ignore that, Link." Zamir paused and straightened up. "Come, Link. Sgeemn is waiting for you."
Link hopped on Windbreeze and rode to the East.
