Inspiration: Star Wars, The Information Paradox by Stephen Hawkins, Grand Unified Theory by John Preskill (Preskill didn't institute the theory, he was just a big proponent of it); and "The Song of Healing," in Majora's Mask. "Tree of Life" album by Audiomachine for the 2020 reedit.
Author Note: Some chapters will be different from the old story even though the story will read with a similar outcome (25 will be 26, 26 will be 27, 27 will be 28, etc). I know some of you know this story by the chapters. The chapters will be numerically different from this point onward, not in terms pivotal changes. Though, that can happen too. Thanks. Reuploaded 7/31/2020.
Word Count: 14,144
Chapter 25
A world between worlds
A weakness.
Everyone has one. It is only a matter of finding out what it is. The Hero of Sky's weakness was Hylia of Skyloft. The weakness of my master was his overconfidence. The weakness of the Twili people was the pride in their king. The weakness of the Hylians was their faith in the goddess. So, what was the weakness of this new foe? This Hero of Twilight? He is as impetuous as the Hero of Sky was, but what truly made him tick? What gave him his resolve? The obvious answer was the Triforce. The second obvious answer was the woman with him, Zelda of Hyrule. But, was that all? Was he harboring another secret? I imagine he was. All Hylians did.
I was intrigued.
I needed to investigate.
I walked over to the mirror I conferred with, the Mirror of Shadows. It was an ancient mirror that had the same powers as the Mirror of Twilight, only this one was under my implicit control. It was long vertically at eight feet. The pane was made from bone and petrified ash. The glass shifted, as it wasn't a normal sand and heat combination. It was a mixture of twilight particles, the gravel from my lair, and a spell cast upon it by my master. It came back together as soon as the Mirror of Twilight did. This mirror was the mysterious compatriot of the twilight mirror. It shared the same fate. If the twilight mirror broke, then this mirror would break. Such is the inverse of these looking glasses. The fortunate and unsuspecting thing about the Mirror of Twilight was that it recorded the conversations of its patrons. The holders had no idea that everything they said, whether the mirror was in pieces or in whole, was recorded. I could go back to the log of conversations holders partook in and extract information from there. A weakness was bound to come up.
Yes.
That was exactly what I would do. I was never the type to wait for a solution. I created my solutions. Having made my decision, I waved my hand in front of the mirror and suddenly the staid glass shifted. A rotating vortex was suddenly created. This manifestation was not a wormhole, though I could channel that too if I wanted. This conjuring was a memory vacuum. It conveyed only aspects of the mirror where thoughts were concerned. A fascinating phenomenon to be sure. I focused it on one entity only, the Hero of Twilight. Suddenly, voices began filling the air from the past. The conversations began right after the collection of the first shard. However, as I scurried through, much of it was nonsense. I was beginning to think the Queen of Light was the hero's only weakness. That was, until I came across an interesting conversation from several months back. I cycled back to the beginning where I heard a certain name midway through.
The conversation went this way:
"Why do you suppose Elbourne took the mirror?" the queen asked.
"Your guess is as good as mine," the hero said. "He really is causing us a great deal of trouble."
"I have to agree," she replied.
"The question is, how are we going to get the shard from him?" he asked. "Who knows what his knowledge is about the mirror already."
"You think Elbourne knows about the Twilight Realm?" she inquired.
"He might," the hero said, "why else would he have the shard?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," the queen replied.
"You've been around Elbourne," he started, then asked, "what do you think will work?"
"He's so stubborn it's hard to tell," she answered.
"I could muscle it out of him," the hero suggested.
"That won't work with Elbourne," she divulged.
"Oh…" he replied, "really? Why not?"
"He has a high tolerance for pain," the queen stated plainly. "In fact, in some strange way I think he likes it."
"How do you know that?" he asked.
"We went on a hunting trip together a couple years ago where he got shot by an arrow in his thigh," she explained. "I wanted him to stop and get medical attention, but he insisted on keeping with the hunt. That hunt lasted for five hours. When it was over, he finally removed the arrow. What a mule... that man..."
"That man huh?" he repeated. "What does that mean?"
"It doesn't mean anything," the queen said, "Elbourne is just Elbourne."
"I've been shot at plenty of times," he stated, "and considering my journeys in the past it was almost a staple to my activities. But of course, I've had the good sense to dodge the arrows."
"Really?" she asked.
"Really," he replied.
I paused the vortex there. I noticed the inflection. I could sense the aggravation in his voice here.
"Interesting, it seems this dragon prince frustrates him, and exceedingly so." I smirked knowingly. "I'm not surprised."
It was an important find. However, I needed more. I continued my search through the conversations and came across another one with a similar theme. The earmarks were all there. It had to do with the Roostian prince.
This one went this way:
"I don't think you should have to seduce Elbourne for the shard," the hero divulged.
"I beg your pardon?" the queen asked.
"I don't think you should seduce Elbourne for the shard," he repeated.
"Why is that?" she inquired.
"I forced the issue on you," he stated. "Besides, I can get Elbourne to tell us where it is, just give me a few minutes with him and he'll sing like a bird."
"I told you, you trying to muscle him won't work," she insisted. "He isn't that kind of man."
"You've never seen me get inventive Zelda," he said.
"Look, we don't need to make this anymore difficult than it already will be," she replied. "We'll just go with the plan we decided on at Snowpeak."
"That's my point," he stated. "We didn't really decide on anything. It was more like I goaded you into that decision."
"I felt that way at first, but I've had time to think about it," the queen said, "and I'm fine. It could work."
"While putting you in unnecessary danger?" the hero tried to reason. "You think that's worth the risk?"
"I won't be in any danger," she reassured, then added. "Elbourne... Elbourne would never hurt me Link. I know you won't understand this, but he cares about me a great deal. He'll only go so far. If I ask him to stop, he'll stop. He's... he's in love with me."
There was a definitive pause in the conversation.
"He's in love with you?" the hero repeated in disbelief.
"Yes, he is," she said.
"And you still want to do this?" he demanded. "Are you trying to prove something to yourself?"
"No," she replied simply, "I just know he won't hurt me."
"Fine," he said, "whatever, we'll go along with it. But, I don't think you should wear that outfit you were wearing when we were at Snowpeak."
My curiosity piqued when I heard that.
"What was she wearing at Snowpeak?" I wondered with a smirk. "Whatever it was must have been very provocative."
The conversation continued.
"Why not?" the queen asked.
"Elbourne might think all those disgusting things he said about you are true," he stated.
"I can't very well seduce him in what I'm wearing," she said. "I wouldn't get close to what I could accomplish in what I had on at Snowpeak."
"That's what I'm afraid of," he muttered.
The nuance was becoming more and more evident. The Hero of Twilight had a serious issue with the dragon prince and... anger. I could feel it resonating from him when I fought him. But why? Not that it mattered. I was simply curious.
"It seems the solution is becoming clearer," I uttered, "but… I'm not really surprised. This essentially could be purported by design."
I dialed through the vortex one last time. I wanted one last conversation to solidify my hypothesis. I found one some time later. Their voices sounded like they had been drinking a bit too much honey wine or something. There was a bit of a slur in both the queen and the hero.
The conversation went like this:
"What was all that hoopla about with Elbourne after we stopped Sheik?" the hero asked the queen.
"So... you saw that," she replied.
"I hardly miss anything suspicious Zelda," he stated.
"It was nothing," she said simply, "he was just happy I finally got the last shard to assemble the mirror."
"So he knows about the Mirror of Twilight?" he asked.
"As a matter of fact, he does," she answered. "He apparently has been researching it for weeks. He even confessed to me he was the one who rotated the shards between the attractions."
"And you're okay with all this?" he accused. "You're speaking like you're at a recital or something."
"What would you like me to do?" she asked with a hint of sarcasm. "Scream? Panic? I can't prevent Elbourne from having a curious mind. He's his own man."
"You could act a little more concerned," he countered. "Elbourne knowing about the Twilight Realm isn't a small thing."
"Elbourne can read books all he wants," she started, "just as long as he doesn't get in our way during this investigation."
"This investigation?" he repeated. "Is that what we're calling it now?"
"I don't know what else it would be," she replied.
"Even so, I don't like it," he said emphatically.
"I have to ask," the queen started, "why are you so aggravated by the dragon prince? I remember you disliking him, but now it seems your toleration of him is nil."
"I don't like you being around him," he stated rather bluntly. "I don't like that he looks like me and sounds like me, but he's the exact opposite of me. I don't like it."
"But why?" I asked. "That's been privy to you for years, why is it an issue now? You know you're the better man."
"I can't put it any other way than how I just did, other than I don't like that you like him," he replied, then added. "It makes me feel icky."
"Icky?" she repeated with a giggle.
"Icky," he said once more.
"Don't you think that's juvenile?" she asked.
"It's very juvenile," he replied, "but who cares, it's true."
"Why worry about wha-" she tried.
"He desires you Zelda," he interrupted plainly, "and I don't like it. You're a Queen of Hyrule, you're supposed to be revered, not looked at as a sex object."
"I've got news for you Link," she said, "queens of Hyrule like having sex."
"This isn't about sex, this is about Elbourne," he replied. "There's something deeper in his depravity for you. He almost sees you as a prize, not as just you."
I stopped the recording there and grinned.
"Aren't you a perceptive fellow Hero of Twilight, and now you've made it quite clear to me how I can instigate this situation. I just need to foster more tension between you and the prince of… dragons."
What an interesting title. It was quite titillating actually. However, I knew I had work to do. It was time to get reacquainted with this hero and his beloved queen. If I could separate them, then I could get what I was truly after. At that, I shut off the vortex and summoned another. This one allowed me to jump through dimensions. Time was of the essence. I had another audience in the Twilight Realm.
~SSS~
The Twili Impasse, several hours later, Zelda
We journeyed several hours heading west from the Palace of Twilight through an area known as the Twili Impasse. It was a commodious expanse of field where mysterious incandescent lights cast low, demarcating the sky and the earth. The distinction was so great that the visible space between the demarcation reflected all the colors of the rainbow. It represented a displacement in the light spectra. I had never seen anything like it. It was magnificent.
"This is incredible," I whispered as we walked nearby.
Link nodded in agreement.
"It truly is."
Our journey thus far had been relatively peaceful, but I wasn't without my worries. First, there was the barrier. We could now see up close what the electrical barrage was doing outside the palace confines. As from afar, we could visualize the same black and red spastic domes shifting and protecting all of the homes of the Twili people. Witnessing this showed me that the twilight queen's power was truly a marvel. I just hoped it would last.
Second, there was the missing king. I, nor the others, had any idea why or where Xavier had run off too. It was quite possible that the wayward monarch returned to his kingdom via the portal that only he and Elbourne were aware of. Elbourne reluctantly spilled the proverbial beans as to where that was. But when we searched that bridge of field near the palace as we left, the king was nowhere to be found. There was also the worst case scenario to consider. The king may have already been captured by Ghirahim, and possibly... compromised. More plainly, he was probably dead. I hated the thought, and there was no way for us to know, but I put nothing past the vile nature of that monster Ghirahim. Being out here alone was dangerous for anybody. There was no indication of when the demon lord would try to attack again. I just hoped Xavier was still alive.
Lastly, my concern for Elbourne was growing. I noticed him lingering behind, keeping to himself. That was bothersome to me. I had no idea what he was thinking, and he could be a very volatile man when I didn't know what he was thinking. I understood that he wasn't a child, and that he had gone through bouts like this before, but this was with me. When we had disagreements like this in the past they often didn't bode well. I remember one time when we hadn't spoken to each other for weeks. He later confessed to me he spent most of our time apart in a brothel trying to forget me. He said he drank potions so that every time he slept with a woman she looked just like me. I didn't know what to say to him after that. I... I sometimes didn't understand how his mind worked. There were times Elbourne was so painfully honest that it scared me. Even so, I wanted to reconcile anyway. To do so, I left Link's side for a moment, but with a bit of an objection.
"Where are you going?" the hero asked quietly.
I didn't want to make a scene, but I didn't think every move I made needed to be questioned either.
"I'm going to go speak to Elbourne," I said softly.
Link sighed and stared into my eyes. He looked beyond me to the dragon prince, then back to me. Afterwards, he reluctantly nodded. He had to know now wasn't the time for needless banter.
"Very well, he must be worried sick about Xavier no matter how bad their fallout was. I feel for him."
I was grateful to hear that. Elbourne needed a bit of sympathy.
"Hopefully we'll be able to find the elusive king. Perhaps luck is still on our side."
Link grinned.
"Perhaps."
With that, I let Link's hand go and lingered behind myself. Elbourne could clearly see what my intentions were and paused for a moment. He probably thought I was being disingenuous. I wasn't. I just wanted to help if I could. I stood my ground when the dragon prince halted. Who knew Elbourne's bumping into us at the Arbiter's Grounds would lead to such serious circumstances? He finally started walking again, and when he caught up to me I walked in step with him. He was silent, staring in front of us at the road ahead. The sights were incredible. It was a neutral enough subject. I thought I would begin our conversation there.
"This is all so new to me. What a magnificent place."
Elbourne didn't reply right away. Instead, he paused in his trek again and turned to stare at me directly. I paused with him. His beautiful hazel eyes were searching my face. Admittedly, he looked slightly annoyed with me trying to talk to him. I assumed he wanted to be alone with his thoughts, but there was only so much silent scrutiny one could have. However, he didn't let himself get dissuaded. I think he conceded because he knew silence at this time was improbable. We needed each other right now. We had too many years of friendship to just ignore each other.
"It is," he replied finally. "What's your point?"
I didn't let myself get discouraged by his tone. I even attempted a grin.
"My point is that I wish Hyrule had areas of similar mystique. Have you been to this impasse on your previous visits?"
Elbourne gave me a poignant stare before cutting his eyes and looking around momentarily. He eventually nodded at the recognition.
"I have, but to be honest this spatial separation didn't start happening until recently. I've never seen this before."
That was of note.
"Really?"
Elbourne nodded again and continued.
"Really. It had to have begun five or six months ago... after my last visit with Midna. The sky was completely normal then. This just came out of nowhere."
I stopped in my tracks befuddled for a second. His timeline correlated exactly when Link and I started our journey. That had to be more than a sheer coincidence. There was no doubt in my mind that finding the shards had something to do with this. It was the only explanation that made sense.
"Six months ago?" I whispered again.
Elbourne gave me a quick once over.
"Yes, what's so notable about that?"
I didn't answer him immediately and turned my attention to the goddess at the head of the pack.
"Hylia did you hear that?" I called to her.
The goddess, walking ahead, stopped momentarily and turned to face the rest of us.
"What are you talking about?" she asked.
I left Elbourne's side for a moment and hurried over to the goddess. I wanted her input. This could be important news.
"Elbourne just mentioned this demarcation started after his last visit with Midna. That can't be mere happenstance."
The goddess gave me a wayward look and nodded.
"There's nothing happenstance about it my dear, and yes his highness is definitely right. However, I would state the demarcation did not start until after Midna was subdued. That may have been Ghirahim's plan from the beginning. I only say that because this area is slowly being taken over by the Demon Lord's Lair."
I couldn't get over the name.
"The... the Demon Lord's Lair... could a dimension be more provocative?"
The goddess understood my unease.
"The title is a bit overt, but it is what it is. With Midna succumbed, her power is being primarily utilized to protect her people," she explained. "However, now the overall defenses of the realm have been compromised and the whole region is steadily getting more unstable. Ghirahim is taking advantage of that by slowly gobbling up small pockets of space and time. The only way to prevent the Twilight Realm from being devoured completely is to find the Virtue Key and wake her majesty up to restore the working order."
Elbourne then walked up to be in step with the rest of us, but he looked perplexed.
"Devoured?" he repeated.
Hylia turned her attention to the dragon prince.
"It isn't a term I use lightly. The more I ponder over this, the more I believe his intention was to take over this realm completely so he could be right next to Hyrule. That would make his dimensional jumps easier."
The dragon prince still appeared dumbstruck.
"Who truly is this Ghirahim?" he couldn't help but ask. "Why is he so hell bent on destruction?"
Hylia understood his frustration all too well.
"He's an ancient lord who's a servant of Demise, and quite frankly, all they both know is destruction," she explained. "Trust me when I say you don't want him to bring his master back. Demise makes Ghirahim look like fodder. Stopping the demon lord from awakening his master is our number one priority."
The dragon prince shook his head. He was at a loss for words.
"I see."
Link, who had been quiet, was also listening. However, he wandered ahead a bit, studying the terrestrial phenomenon more closely. He finally spoke up.
"How long before Ghirahim makes a full breakthrough?" the hero asked Hylia suddenly.
The goddess shook her head.
"It depends on how quickly he gets back to full power, or the stability of this realm" she replied. "When we first encountered him, he was but a shell of his former self. If he gets back to full power before we wake up Midna, then we'll have some serious problems on our hands. He'll completely consume the Twilight Realm and prepare to do the same with Hyrule."
This situation was becoming more detrimental than I could even imagine.
"This is grave," I said to myself.
"Indeed," Hylia replied anyway. "That's why we can't stop. We're going to have to pick up the pace to find what we're looking for."
I nodded.
"I agree."
However, before the conversation was concluded, Link looked like he found something.
"What's this?" he asked rhetorically.
We all then turned and looked in the hero's direction. The sight that caught his attention was a space within a space. It looked similar to a nebula, a cradle for 'baby' nebulae, a small 'stellar nursery' for a lack of a better term. It looked like a tiny galaxy transposed inside the space. What a sight.
"It looks like a portal substantiating," the goddess replied.
Link kept his eyes fixed on the space.
"Is this where the clue was leading us to?" he redirected suddenly.
Hylia paused for a moment, contemplating his inquiry.
"It could be, but I don't think so. We'll have to find a specific area in the Twilight Realm that displaces space and time. This looks like it's only displacing space."
I stared at her puzzled, finding that phrasing odd.
"But how is that possible when space and time are inversely proportional? How can one be displaced and not the other?"
Hylia didn't have a straight answer.
"I know that seems confusing, but there are many things in the world that are meant for discovery. Nayru was the progenitor of the heavens, so she may have created spatial arrangements full of mystery for that very reason: discovery. Can minutes march on when a space is confined? Possibly. Can time truly be measured without space? Probably. There is also the possibility that this phenomenon is being created by Ghirahim's interference."
I saw her point, but it still wasn't any clearer for me.
"The latter seems more like the logical conclusion."
The goddess gave me a knowing look.
"Don't be so caught up in the definitive laws of the universe," she cautioned. "Those laws can be broken at any moment, especially when the laws are instituted by a goddess." Hylia then turned her attention back to the hero and prompted him suddenly. "To illustrate that point, watch this: Link put your hand through the space."
The hero turned and looked at her taken aback.
"Excuse me?"
She grinned at his reluctance.
"Trust me, I know it sounds extreme, but you'll understand soon enough."
Link looked from her to me and hesitated at her words. However, he then turned and faced the space again anyway. He reached out, but then paused in doubt. I couldn't say I blamed him. Even so, he eventually stretched his arm through the space. The hero was able to move his arm to and fro freely, and... nothing extravagant happened. It was just substantiated space. A small hole in the bend so to speak.
Elbourne was not impressed.
"Is something else supposed to transpire?"
Hylia shook her head.
"No, the point has been made. If this was what we were looking for, we would have had far greater evidential markers than this. However, we are on the right track to finding Exerion. This demarcation is evidence of that."
I was encouraged at her words.
We'll find the Virtue Key before the week is out.
"Patience my dear," the goddess said in response to my thoughts. "Let's not be presumptuous. Let's take it one step at a time."
Elbourne then gave Hylia an offhanded look.
"Who are you talking to?" he couldn't help but ask. "That's the second time you spoke spontaneously like that."
I understood his confusion. Elbourne still wasn't aware that Hylia could read minds. I knew his question was directed to the goddess, but I decided to intervene anyway.
"She was replying to my thoughts," I disclosed.
The dragon prince then looked at me taken aback. He turned his attention back to Hylia.
"You can read minds?"
Hylia smirked underneath her bandages.
"Yes I can," she confirmed. "However, there seems to be a couple of brains I can't penetrate."
Elbourne's expression never changed.
"I don't follow you."
The way she uttered that got Link's attention as well.
"Yes," the hero chided, "what do you mean?"
I was fully aware of what she was speaking on, but I hoped she wouldn't divulge it. It would only lead to more infighting and we needed solidarity right now.
"Ancestral mother..." I hoped she'd get my gist.
However, the goddess ignored me. She kept her eyes on Elbourne.
"What I mean is I can't read your mind or your father's for that matter," she revealed anyway.
Link stared at her taken aback, then cued his eyes over to Elbourne. The dragon prince looked just as surprised. However, his surprise soon gave way to defensiveness.
"Is that a problem?" he demanded suddenly.
Hylia didn't answer his question directly and narrowed her eyes.
"I'm the Goddess of Hyrule, if something escapes my notice, it's always a problem."
Elbourne didn't appreciate her apparent insinuations.
"What are you getting at?"
Hylia stared the prince down.
"What do you think I'm getting at... big Elly?" she countered.
I closed my eyes, wishing this wasn't transpiring this way. This was not boding well.
"Will you two stop it? This isn't helping."
There was tension in the air now. I glanced over at Link and saw him looking suspiciously at Elbourne. It was already starting. Elbourne ignored me and boldly took a step towards the goddess.
"If I knew I wouldn't be inquiring," he stated.
There was something in the prince's tone that made Hylia pause for a moment and search Elbourne's face. I presumed she was checking to see if he was lying.
She grunted.
"No… I suppose you don't know."
Now I was getting confused.
What are you talking about Hylia? I wondered, hoping she would read my mind just then.
She obviously did, but ignored my thought anyway. Afterwards, the goddess turned back around and redirected the group.
"We need to keep moving," she ordered. "We can discuss this later."
I was taken aback at her abrupt manner, but didn't question it. It obviously wasn't something to be discussed now. Hylia then went on ahead of us in the direction of the impasse. Link, Elbourne, and I were watching after her for very different reasons. This was becoming more and more unsettling. And, almost inadvertently, I glanced over at Elbourne. Surprisingly, he was already staring at me. His gaze was so intense, it made me blush. His eyes looked like they were imploring me not to believe whatever Hylia was trying to imply about him. Link, however, saw my reaction and quickly intervened. He stepped towards me and took hold of my hand.
"We need to get going." The hero nodded after the goddess to not make it so obvious that he was trying to pry me away from the dragon prince.
Elbourne then cut his gaze to Link, and I never saw him look at another man with so much hatred. It was open, raw, and frankly, scary. However, Link was not intimidated. The hero stared right back. In fact, the hero was even emboldened and yanked on my arm to prompt me in the goddess's direction. Not the most conventional response, but it was effective. I didn't have much of a rebuttal and followed in step. We headed after Hylia, but I glanced over my shoulder to see Elbourne staring at me again. He hadn't followed yet. His eyes were an emotional kaleidoscope: pain, anger, resentment all wallowed together in one expression. He finally cut his gaze from me and cursed under his breath. I turned back to the hero and clung a little closer to Link, feeling both guilty and confused. What was Hylia implying?
Don't make them right about you Elbourne, you aren't that person. Please don't make them right.
~SSS~
Several hours later, The Whispering Wood
Over the next several hours Link, Hylia, Elbourne, and I continued traveling along the same road. When dusk arrived, we entered an area called The Whispering Wood. I thought it was simply in name only. However, suddenly voices moved to and fro about the wind. The group as a whole was initially caught off guard by the strange occurrence.
'איר האָט אריין די ווהיספּערינג האָלץ ... האַלטן דיין געדאנקען'
'You have entered the Whispering Wood... mind your thoughts...'
I looked around with a hint of fear.
"What was that?" I whispered.
Hylia and Elbourne were the only ones unscathed. Link was more on guard that anything.
"Voices," Elbourne answered simply, "voices of the people."
I stared at him taken aback.
"Voices of the people?"
Hylia nodded in agreement and closed her eyes.
"The dragon prince is right. This forest is very old and full of memory. The whispers are from the memories of the people. However, I gather with Ghirahim being on the loose, these might be the voices of the entrapped."
What a sobering thought. I couldn't conceive such a notion.
"Or both," the dragon prince added. "I've walked through here many times in the past and I always heard something profound... or gossipy. The Twili would use these woods to communicate scandalous information and to create memories."
Link appeared curious.
"Gossiping trees?"
Elbourne shrugged.
"It caught me by surprise too when I first learned of it," he replied.
The hero's intrigue grew.
"How does one create a memory?" he asked.
Elbourne looked up into the trees. The black xylem was glowing more brightly here. I just noticed it. The dragon prince reached up and grabbed a branch. Immediately, the branch illuminated more and Elbourne closed his eyes. When he opened them he said something in Twili.
"ווי אַ שאָטן חיה צו אַ שאָטן, אַזוי מאַכט צו אַמביציעס מענטשן: טווילאָ די לעצטע טווילי מלך," he uttered, then promptly translated. "Like a shadow beast to a shadow, so is power to ambitious men: Twylo the last Twili King."
I stared at him stunned.
"How is this possible?"
Elbourne let the branch go and ensured the roots were undisturbed.
"The trees record the memories of the people," he explained. "My father often told me King Twylo walked these woods when he was alive. He recorded many things for his people to recall. The xylem has memory sap and binds it into branches which allows the woods to keep record of it. There are thousands, perhaps even millions, of memories here."
I could not lie, I was impressed hearing that. What an extraordinary place. I looked around in awe, like we were in a world of wonder. However, I had a bit of caution.
"Wouldn't that make it easy to extract information? What if an enemy were to take siege of this forest?"
Elbourne nodded at my reasonable questions.
"The royal family thought of that and infused the soil with pretermit minerals," he replied. "These minerals are inactive now, but if an enemy were to capture this forest, Midna would activate those minerals and cause this forest to whither and decay."
What an ingenious idea.
"Remarkable," I said.
The dragon prince simply nodded.
"Indeed."
I gave him a quick once over.
"I suppose it was also Midna who told you all this," I surmised.
He gave a bit of a shrug.
"A bit," he admitted, "but I like to do my own research. The Twilight Orbrary has a wealth of information too. I ascertained most of my information from there."
I would state it again, I was impressed. The goddess too was impressed, but for a very different reason. She crossed her arms over her chest.
"Hmph," she grunted, "I have to say, you explained the typography well. You were spot on in your explanation. It's nice to know you have other proclivities beyond sex and dragons."
For the first time in speaking to Hylia, Elbourne grinned.
"I do, but you have to admit there aren't many things more fascinating than sex and dragons," he joked.
I couldn't lie, that was exceptionally humorous. We all laughed, even Link.
The hero nodded. "That's a hard argument to win."
We laughed more and it was nice to have a moment of brevity. The tension had been so grating. A laugh was just what we all needed. Afterwards, we continued through and into the Whispering Wood. There were sayings all throughout the trees.
Some daunting:
'העלף אונז'
'Help us...'
'וואו איז אונדזער מלכה?'
'Where is our queen?'
'אונדזער ייז זענען אומעטום'
'Our eyes are everywhere...'
'די פאַרזעעניש אַווייץ'
'The monster awaits...'
Some resentful:
'פארוואס זענט איר דאָ ליכט דוועלערז?'
'Why are you here light dwellers?'
'וואָס בייז איז איצט באפרייט ווייַל פון דיין ליכט דוועלערז?'
'What evil has now been released because of you light dwellers?'
'איז גאַנאָנדאָרף נישט גענוג?'
'Was Ganondorf not enough?'
Some lamenting:
'דער קעניג ... דער קעניג ... דער קעניג ... איז געפֿאַלן'
'The king... the king... the king... has fallen...'
Some philosophical:
'די וועלטן זענען קעסיידער קאַליידינג'
'The worlds are constantly colliding...'
'אַ בייגן אין צייט איז אַ בייגן אין פאַקט'
'A bend in time is a bend in reality...'
'וואס איז דער אמת?'
'What is the truth?'
'קען אַ פאַרפאַלן נשמה ווערן געהיילט?'
'Can a lost soul be healed?'
Some resourceful:
'היילן די נשמה פון דער וואַלד'
'Heal the soul of the forest...'
'עס איז אַ זאגן אַז אַן אלטע שלאנג לעבט ערגעץ צווישן די ביימער'
'There is a saying that an ancient dragon lives somewhere among these trees...'
That last saying made me pause.
A clue regarding Exerion?
It certainly seemed that way. We would have to keep going to find out.
~SSS~
Dusk, the Forest of Lost Souls
We continued onward and finally exited the Whispering Woods. It was an interesting place, but admittedly I was glad not to have voices conjuring all around me out of nowhere. The idea was novel and enchanting initially. However, the novelty quickly wore off for me. I wanted my peace of mind back.
The road ahead had a junction that bifurcated into two distinct trails. Both trails looked similar, however there were distortions of space on the right road and none on the left. It looked similar to what we saw earlier in the impasse. The distinction made me contemplate aloud.
"Is that a black hole?"
Hylia crossed her arms over her chest at my question.
"That's a pretty far fetched idea my dear Zelly," she mused. "We wouldn't be standing here if it were."
She had a point, but her omission still didn't explain its existence.
"Well then, what is it?"
She raised a brow.
"What does your gut tell you?"
That was a rather daft question. However, I studied the space again, then proceeded with what I deduced before.
"My gut tells me that my first instinct was right and that this is a black hole. But with your obvious curtailment, this phenomenon isn't a black hole. At least, not in the truest sense of the form. Rather, I believe it is a similar construct with polar variances. Those variances are what is preventing us from being sucked into its center."
Hylia shrugged waywardly at my rationale.
"Interesting point, but considering your deduction, would we be pulled into its center?"
I groaned at her circular reasoning. What did she want me to say?
"Hylia... is this another riddle?"
The goddess chuckled at my answer.
"No, it isn't."
Link then decided to chime in.
"Don't get too frustrated Zelda, Hylia's right. If we were to follow the gist of the alchemist Gaebora alone what you initially said would be true, but you have to consider the work of Lord Owlan as well. He stated that information cannot be completely lost if materials are sucked into a black hole's center."
I turned to the hero surprised. Link was speaking on the principle of the Information Paradox by Lord Gaebora and the Grand Unified Theory by Lord Owlan. Gaebora purposed that all information, or more accurately, all matter was lost when it was pulled into the magnetic center of a black hole. However, Owlan countered the idea by stating information could never be completely lost due to such magnetism, only concentrated. Otherwise all the laws of the physical world would cease to exist. Gratifying that point, the road to the right of us had the appearance of a black hole. However, there was no way we would be able to stand near the holes' center if Lord Gaebora's idea were absolute truth. Hylia and Link proposed very good counter arguments.
I paused for a moment. I was impressed.
"Well, color me dumbstruck," I said to Link. "It seems you were paying attention to your tutor all those nights of study."
The hero grinned at my reply.
"I had too, it was for an important occasion if you recall. We don't just plant pumpkins in Ordon, we read just like everyone else. I remember we were going over logistics one evening and you talked about forms of Twili radiation. That was when you mentioned the Grand Unified Theory. I had to take a few books home from your library that night to understand what you were truly trying to teach me."
I grinned at the memory.
"You were very diligent in your studies. The best student I ever had."
Link returned my grin.
"I'm hoping I'm the only student you've ever had," he flirted.
At hearing that, Elbourne groaned and rolled his eyes. He decided he was going to interject at this point, having heard what he thought was a flaw in the hero's reasoning. He apparently wasn't as impressed.
"Give me a break," the prince uttered. "Again, you're behind the times in your academia farm boy. Everyone knows that what you just mentioned is useless information. The Information Paradox has been irrelevant since the introduction of the Grand Unified Theory. Lord Gaebora should be grateful his legacy is still intact for coming up with such presumptuousness. His theory is hanging on by a spider's thread. He was arrogant to assume that all information could be lost."
I failed to see his counter.
"Which was exactly the point Link made," I defended.
Elbourne simply stared at me.
"He can't speak for himself? Does he need you as a shroud all the time?"
Link then spoke up.
"Of course not, but like any free thinking woman she doesn't need permission from me or you to divulge her opinion."
Elbourne cut his eyes to the hero.
"Always the wise ass, aren't you?"
Link took a step towards him.
"Actually yes, I can be."
I made sure to stand between the two of them.
"Will you two stop this?" I asked calmly. "Please?"
They both looked at me and neither of them replied right away. Hylia finally had something to add.
"I know why you two don't like each other. It's because you two are so much alike."
Link and Elbourne both looked at Hylia like she was insane.
"Excuse me?" they said in unison.
She smirked.
"I rest my case," she replied, and stated nothing further. "Now, let's refocus on why we are here. We need to initiate a way to make the environment more favorable for Exerion's appearance."
I then looked over at the goddess inquisitively.
"So this is it? We're where we need to be?"
Hylia gave a wayward shrug.
"I cannot tell you definitively, but we are close."
I looked around.
"Where are we exactly?"
Elbourne was prompt in the reply.
"The Forest of Lost Souls. A Twili can get lost in here forever if he or she doesn't know the way out."
Link then chimed in.
"This is similar to the Lost Woods. The configuration even has a few similarities."
When I looked around again, I saw what Link was talking about.
"Do you suppose we are in that abutment of space?"
The hero grabbed his chin.
"Perhaps, I can't be sure."
The dragon prince had more to add.
"The interesting thing about the Twilight Realm is that there may be places that feel similar to Hyrule, but the twilight can overlay or even terraform some structures differently. I'm sure you noticed that immediately when we got here, but as we traveled to different areas, the landscape took on a feel and look of its own."
I nodded.
"Very true, it's almost as if this world represents all the imaginative realities yet to be discovered in Hyrule."
"Only it's already here," Link corrected.
A point well taken.
"Very true," I stated, "but, my word, what a wonderful thought."
Hylia grinned at my summation.
"It's mind boggling, isn't it?"
I nodded.
"Indeed it is."
She appeared impressed.
"And to think you initially wanted to sit at home with this one. You never would have gained so much insight."
I couldn't argue her there, but then I backtracked for a moment.
"I suppose, but expand on something for me for a moment. What do you mean by making the environment more favorable for Exerion? What change needs to be configured in the environment?"
Hylia gave me an obvious stare.
"You know I can't tell you Zelda my dear. Remember, I am not the director. My input must be very minimal. You have to be the one to get us through this. Trials of Wisdom and all that."
My eyes widened at her puzzled. I was under the impression the trials were over. We were already in the Twilight Realm.
"Am I still held to that edict? I thought the trials had come to fruition after our transference to Midna's kingdom."
The goddess shook her head.
"Has your resolve come to fruition?"
I saw her point and had the epiphany at the same time. Until this matter was completely concluded between Midna, Link, Elbourne, Ghirahim and myself, these would always be my trials. This was, and forever would be, my quest.
I finally nodded at her words.
"I see your point. I truly understand now."
She grinned.
"As I knew you would," she then went to settle my first inquiry. "Regarding your previous question, I'm going to have to direct it back to you. How do you suppose we make the environment more favorable to Exerion?"
I then turned my attention back towards the two roads. I pursed my lips together in thought, then opened my satchel and pulled out my old reliable source, the Book of Mudora. I turned to a reference page in the back and looked up inferences to the Owlan's Grand Unified Theory. There was a small paragraph discussing healing properties of radioactive celestial waste. That information seemed to out of place for what was discussed in the chapter, but I knew every reference in the Book of Mudora had a purpose. Also too, there was that hint given to us by one of the memories in the forest: 'heal the soul of the forest...' A moment later, Elbourne walked up and looked where I was reading intrigued. I had forgotten. He had never seen this book before.
"What's this?" he asked.
However, Link answered for me.
"The Book of Mudora," he too came and stood next to me.
Elbourne then looked at the both of us taken aback.
"It actually exists?"
I nodded, and paused from reading for a moment.
"It surprised me too. I thought it was merely a legend."
The dragon prince nodded.
"I saw a few references to it in The Secret Mysteries of All the Ages. I had no idea the text was real."
The book the prince was referring to was an arcane concordance that referenced rare treasures and old manuscripts believed not to be in existence. I went on to explain its purpose.
"I used this book to decipher some information from the guardians of Hyrule," I explained. "Now that there are believed to be guardians of the Twilight Realm, I think this book will help us find them as well."
The prince nodded.
"Sounds logical enough."
I then went back to reading and noticed Link walk ahead and go down the road on the right. Something must have caught his attention. The hero reached out to the distortion of space like before, but this time instead of the dead space just existing, energy was being sucked in. A small vacuum tugged slightly on the hero's skin and wears. It looked like the space was trying to take him in, but at a very low suction rate. This was the exact opposite finding from the space we saw earlier in our journey.
Link then turned and looked at the rest of us puzzled, but he had an idea.
"Do me a favor and read the riddle once more."
I stared at him intrigued.
"What are you supposing?"
The hero turned back to face the space again.
"I'm not sure, but I want to hear the clue once more to get an inquiry going."
At Link's request, I turned to the last page of the book where I scribbled down the latest riddle. I cleared my throat, then read aloud.
"'A relative nuance can be manifested by seemingly empty matters,'" I verbalized.
Link reached out into the space again where the suction was more apparent.
"'Seemingly empty matters...'" he said quietly, only repeating the last part.
We all stood in silence for a moment while we contemplated what that meant. I turned back to the reference page on celestial healing properties to glean some more insight. I hoped to catch something I previously overlooked. Elbourne was looking where I was reading. He then spoke up.
"'Healing properties of energy…'" he read quietly at the center of the page, then looked at me, "any ideas?"
I sighed and shook my head.
"Unfortunately, not at the moment."
I thought about the riddle again.
'A relative nuance can be manifested by seemingly empty matters,' I know it entails the Lens of Truth. I know it has something to do with this space in front of us. What I don't know is the book's reference to healing. I kept thinking. Owlan's number… matter particles… healing… healing... healing... what is this healing?
I then uttered an unconventional thought.
"How do you heal a broken spirit?" I asked rhetorically.
Just then, Hylia interjected.
"Interesting comment you made, now think back to last night Zelda," she said all of a sudden. "What did Link have you doing then?"
My eyes widen immediately. I stared at her stunned. Was she serious?
"I beg your pardon?" I asked in minor disbelief.
Link too turned and stared at the goddess surprised.
"Excuse me?"
Elbourne then looked between the two of us perplexed, obviously out of the loop with what was being conveyed.
"Am I missing something?"
Hylia kept her attention on me and ignored our rebuttals.
"Just think," she stayed focused, "in amongst... everything that happened last night, what would you consider the stand out feature?"
My cheeks turned crimson immediately. I didn't want to answer that question. Not here. Not now. To be honest, I wasn't sure what part of the evening she was talking about. How in the world had she known what happened anyway? Wasn't she on an excursion? I didn't matter, she was a goddess. I appeared uncomfortable, hoping she was talking about something other than what I assumed she was deducing.
"I don't follow you," I tried to circumvent.
Hylia wasn't thwarted for a second.
"You follow me alright."
My throat tightened.
Please don't make me say it... at least... not out loud.
"Are you talking about when we confronted Xavier?"
Hylia gave me an obvious look.
"Try again."
I looked over at Link, who at this point was grinning at me. He knew exactly what she was talking about now.
"Midna's untimely collapse?" I continued anyway.
Hylia rolled her eyes.
"No," she said dryly.
Link in return looked to the ground and started chuckling, then looked back over at me.
"Zelda... just say it."
I didn't think it was possible, but I think my cheeks turned more red.
"Link..." I hoped he'd understand my obvious reluctance.
He shrugged.
"The longer you hold out the more she's going to press you on it. You might as well tell her what she wants to hear."
I saw his point, but my goodness, was this even necessary? Elbourne, however, still had no idea what we were talking about.
"Will someone please explain to me what's going on? This is becoming rather juvenile."
I then closed the Book of Mudora, hoping to put an end to this.
"Singing," I said finally, "we're talking about singing."
The dragon prince looked at me perplexed.
"Singing?" he repeated cynically.
I turned to look at him, hoping I wasn't too flushed.
"Yes... I did some singing last night."
The dragon prince's features changed for a moment. I think then he knew exactly what I was talking about.
"Oh... really?"
I nodded, avoiding his eyes.
"Yes... really," I said.
Elbourne was quiet for a moment.
"That's too bad," he said. "I would have loved to have been there."
Link then interjected.
"It was a private performance," he said boldly, "and Zelda has a beautiful voice."
I looked over at the hero in complete disbelief. His instigating was only going to make things worse, but he wasn't the one who surprised me. That mantle went to the dragon prince once he spoke again.
"I'm well aware of how beautiful her voice is farm boy. You aren't the first man who's made her sing. That boast belongs to me."
My eyes widened and Link looked thrown for a loop by the dragon prince's rebuttal.
"What?" the hero demanded.
Elbourne didn't flinch.
"I didn't stutter."
I needed to deescalate this.
"This isn't important," I insisted. "We're supposed to be focusing on finding Exerion."
The mischievous goddess agreed.
"Zelda's right. The important thing is we now know the mechanism with which to use. And, what song heals a weary soul?"
I didn't answer right away, as I was slightly frustrated with her. Intentional or not, she made this situation unnecessarily uncomfortable. Even so, I cleared my throat before I spoke.
"The song my grandfather taught me when I was a baby, the Song of Healing."
Hylia nodded.
"Right you are my dear." She then turned to look at the space in question.
When Hylia faced Link, the hero just shook his head and grinned at her.
"Really Hylia?" he asked rhetorically.
Hylia shrugged at his question.
"Was she not singing Master Link?"
The two of them laughed at the jest, but Elbourne was not humored at all. Hylia provoked this situation and expected nothing to come of it. I stared at the dragon prince, hoping to allay this somehow. I then reached for Elbourne's hand, but he evaded me. I tried again and took hold of him anyway. I led him away several feet so that we were alone. I was panicking slightly because when he addressed Link, I knew what he was referencing.
"What was all that about?" I demanded in a whisper.
Elbourne just stared at me.
"You know what that entailed. He was trying to embarrass me. I wasn't about to let that slide."
I closed my eyes and took in a deep sigh.
"That's your ego talking."
"Am I wrong?"
I had no rebuttal. I knew the answer to that.
"Please..." I wanted to change the subject, "we are on an important mission right now. We don't need to do this."
He scoffed.
"Unbelievable. You willfully dismissed me last night to entertain him. You weren't thinking about the mission then, were you?"
I just stared at him.
"Elbourne-"
He didn't give me a chance to answer him.
"You gave yourself to him, didn't you?" he interrupted. "Didn't you?!"
I paused as my eyes searched his face. He looked so angry. No answer I gave would be good enough.
"Not... not last night, no," I replied looking away.
He was breathing hard and I saw him ball his fists at his sides.
"I'm not talking about just last night. You know what I mean."
I then stared into his eyes for a long time. I finally nodded. There was no point in lying. I already implied it. His eyes in return widened slightly and he said nothing for a long time. He looked so... so hurt.
"You did..." he whispered accusingly, "you did..."
My throat tightened and I attempted to calm him down.
"I never meant to hurt you," I whispered sincerely. "Please try to understand."
His eyes widened a little more, and I swear if they were a weapon, he would have killed me right then and there.
"Understand? What exactly am I suppose to understand? That you used me? That nothing in the past meant anything to you? That you're a selfish-"
He cut himself short and stepped back. He looked so disgusted in that instance. Instead of continuing, he turned and walked away. Link and Hylia watched him carefully as he walked past them and back down the road from where we once traveled. When he distanced himself enough, he stopped. I stared after him feeling terribly guilty. Afterwards, I walked back over to Link and Hylia.
"What was that all about?" the hero asked.
I shook my head.
"He's... he's just upset with me right now."
Link glanced over at Elbourne and paused for a moment.
"I see that." He turned his attention back to me. ""Is he going to be alright?"
I wasn't sure.
"I think so. He didn't know about us being intimate. It was a bit of a shock to him."
Link looked insensitively uninterested.
"Why?" he asked dryly. "It's more than apparent that any man with you would want to be intimate with you Zelda."
I understood that, but that wasn't the point.
"I know. I guess he just wasn't ready for that truth right now. I think more fervently he realizes it would have been better for him not to follow us here. First his father, and now this bit of disappointing news."
The hero nodded, but the goddess disagreed. Hylia tapped her foot and looked after the prince thoughtfully just then.
"Better for him, but not for us," she said absently. "We can't lose sight of him. As long as he stays nearby and we can see him, he should be okay to be alone."
I looked at the goddess surprised. Why was she so interested in keeping in step with Elbourne's whereabouts suddenly? What in the world had she found out? I wanted to know.
"What do you mean?"
However, Hylia, ever the circumventor, fanned off my question.
"It's not important right now."
This was getting frustrating. What was she hiding? I knew I wasn't going to get any answers now, so I let it go. I glanced from her to Elbourne in the distance and wanted desperately to take away his pain. Even so, I understood his ambivalence towards me and decided to leave him be for now. Link caught me staring at the dragon prince again and wasn't too appreciative of all this unsolicited attention.
"He'll be alright Zelda," he said simply.
I nodded.
"I know."
The hero studied my expression for a moment.
"Is... is he justified in what he's feeling right now?" he asked suddenly.
I immediately cut my attention from Elbourne to Link surprised.
"I beg your pardon?"
The hero searched my face.
"I didn't miss what he said Zelda, he was very clear. He said he made you... sing. We both know what he was suggesting. Are you sure you have nothing you need to tell me?"
My mouth became agape at the insinuation.
"Is this seriously a conversation you want to have right now?"
Link raised a brow.
"You're deflecting, and yes we need to discuss this right now."
I shook my head.
"There's nothing to discuss Link," I insisted. "I just told you. Elbourne is upset with me-"
"-Because he loves you," Link interjected. "He has said it. He owns up to it. He doesn't try to hide it. The question remains with you."
I stared at him taken aback.
"Just exactly what are you trying to imply?"
The hero shook his head.
"Nothing, that's why I'm asking."
"You're insinuating and you know it!"
Link paused for a moment.
"I thought we weren't going to argue anymore."
I rolled my eyes.
"You can't expect me not to respond to such an accusation."
Link shook his head.
"I'm not accusing you of anything. I merely asked you a question. You're the defensive one here, not me."
This was becoming circular and that was when Hylia stepped in.
"Look you lovebirds, this is all important grown-up lovey-dovey stuff, but this is going to have to wait. We have bigger fish to fry. We need to focus on the guardian."
I then cut my gaze to her.
"You started this!" I accused exasperatedly.
Hylia just shrugged.
"Hey, you can't cast stones at a glass house. Something is bound to break."
I groaned in frustration.
"What does that even mean?"
She crossed her arms over her chest.
"You're a smart girl, you'll figure it out," she then redirected. "Now, let's get back to problem solving."
I stared at her incredulously and looked over at Link. He, too, didn't look like anything was resolved, but decided to drop the subject for now. This was a petty issue considering the greater threat.
"Fine," the hero agreed.
I closed my eyes and calmed myself down.
"Fine," I said too, "you're right ancestral mother."
Hylia grinned.
"As mothers often are." She then turned her attention over to the dragon prince. "Hey, blondie get over here, you are not on time out."
Elbourne threw his head back and let out an audible groan. He turned and looked at Hylia.
"Can you please stop calling me that? I have a name."
Hylia grinned.
"But blondie is so fitting for that platinum mop on your head," she joked.
Elbourne did not find her amusing, but finished with his self-loathing and headed back our way anyway. With the dragon prince back in the fold, the goddess cued me and Link to move ahead.
"Ready or not, it's time we summoned Exerion. The spot ahead is about right. We need the guardian's input. We've lollygagged enough."
I wouldn't call the last discussion 'lollygagging'. There was some brainstorming too. Even so, Hylia was right, we wasted enough time. Afterwards, I pulled out my ocarina. I blew into it to tune it. When the notes had the proper resonance, I began playing the 'Song of Healing'. I learned this song from my grandfather, the Hero of Time. In his later years, he carried a sadness in his eyes that never relinquished. I didn't know what brought him so much pain, but I remember his kindness towards me. Every evening he would come into my room and tell me a story and play me a song. He told me about the forest and the trees and how they could heal a broken heart. One day, my grandfather disappeared among the forests and trees, never to be seen again. I only had him in my life for three years, but his love was so vivid... so clear. There were stories and whispers about him regarding a certain maiden, but I had no way of knowing the truth. My father was upset with my grandfather a great deal of time, because he claimed my grandfather's mind was never in the present. My grandfather never disagreed with him, and one day took off, never to be seen again. I was heartbroken as was my grandmother, though she never showed it. My grandmother understood him in a way I never could, and told me when I got older that my grandfather had to leave. He had to mend what was so broken. What could have broken my grandfather so deeply? A memory? A legacy? A friend? I had no idea, but I wished I understood him better.
Grandfather… I hope you finally found peace in death.
As I played, the notes of my ocarina echoed through the air. Hylia then took out the Lens of Truth and tossed it to Link. Link caught it just before it hit the ground and stared at the goddess surprised. Hylia just nodded towards the space.
"I would suggest you shine some light on this situation now."
If that wasn't a clue I didn't know what was. Link took hold of the odd looking monocle and shined the mystic magnification at the paradoxical wormhole. Suddenly, the resonance of the music became more manifested. Then, something strange happened. An ethereal displacement in space actuated in the left road as opposed to the right. The lens brought forth the truth. The particles shifted and swayed, creating a number in the air: 6.022 x 10 to the 23rd power. Owlan's number. It made sense that music would hide a number sequence in it because music was the language of numbers. The scenic intonation quickly differentiated from particles into the body of a dragon-like creature. Apparently, Exerion was hearing the call.
All of a sudden a strong gust of wind blew up from underneath us and drew in upon itself towards the creature taking shape. Exerion's tail extended from its body, it was long and diffracting twilight, with a shifting luminescence of golden brown and platinum black. Exerion's neck elongated to a reptilian-like, platinum black face, with shiny black onyx eyes. It had a pair of wings that spanned one hundred feet into the heavens at maximum capacity. In short, it was a magnificent creature. The legend that was thought to merely be a legend was now here. Hylia, Link, Elbourne, and I looked at the guardian in wonder.
"Wow," Link uttered.
Elbourne shook his head in disbelief.
"Incredible," he whispered.
I couldn't have said it better myself.
"So, this is the great Exerion," I whispered in awe. "I never knew such brilliance could exist."
The giant guardian stared down at all of us without an ounce of maleficence, which would have surprised an outsider because it looked like a creature that belonged to the underworld. After a few moments, it spoke.
"Greetings Goddess of Hyrule," Exerion said to Hylia. "For no disguise could ever hide Hylia the Great."
Hylia took this moment to step forward and bow. If she saw fit to bow to the guardian, the rest of us followed suit as well.
"It has been far too long my friend," she said to the guardian with a rare hint of seriousness to her tone.
Exerion then lowered its head as if trying to bow.
"Indeed," it said in a deep, booming voice, "nearly twenty eight years."
We hadn't even gotten into the thickets of the conversation yet and I was already confused. I looked at the guardian perplexed.
"Twenty-eight years?" I repeated. "I was under the impression that you came into existence over five hundred years ago."
Hylia glanced over at me.
"That's not what the guardian is surmising, but I too am at a loss for words regarding what the guardian is trying to divulge."
If Hylia was in the dark about this. I knew this was going to be an eye opening conversation.
"Excuse us for being so confused my lord," Link added.
Exerion hovered quietly for a moment.
"I'm not surprised, I have indeed been in existence for over five hundred years. However, an envelopment of darkness took place nearly twenty-eight years ago preventing even the Great Hylia from seeing the tangible Twilight Realm. I had no way of communicating what was going on to her."
I was taken aback at hearing that and looked over at Hylia shocked.
"Even you couldn't see it?" I couldn't help but ask.
The goddess took in a deep sigh and shook her head.
"Unfortunately no."
I couldn't believe it.
"Dear goddesses," I whispered.
"What happened?" Elbourne stepped in and asked the guardian. "What could have possibly been so momentous that not even the Goddess of Hyrule could see?"
Exerion was quiet for a moment and stared at Elbourne inquisitively.
"You are known as the Prince of Dragons. The Twili people speak a great deal about you. I hear it in the Whispering Wood."
Elbourne looked at the guardian surprised.
"Really?"
Exerion's girth resonated. The atmosphere shined.
"Really. There is an unprecedented confusion about you amongst the Twili people. Some of it good. Some of it bad. However, it is not for me to divulge to you. Just know that your fate lies directly with you."
The dragon prince stared at the guardian in pure disbelief.
"I... I had no idea I would be hearing such words today. They are indeed sobering. However, I thank you for them."
Everyone in the group was staring at Elbourne now, but Exerion brought the conversation back to the initial question.
"Twenty-eight years ago there was an unholy alliance formed between kings and the Demon Lord."
A dread developed within me immediately at hearing that.
"What do you mean?" I asked. "What alliance?"
Exerion shifted his gaze towards me.
"Five hundred years ago, Hylia commissioned me, and my brethren Azimuth and Radian to guard the Realm of Twilight. It was a secret commission known only to the Twili royal family and the Goddess Hylia herself."
It was no wonder there was no written record of the Twili guardians existence. It was made in secret as a gift to the Twili people.
"As time went on, the deplorable servant of Demise made his way to the Twilight Realm, Ghirahim," Exerion continued. "He was sent to kill me and my brethren. However, we knew of his plans and had his essence trapped forever in a Mirror of Twilight by designation of the Twili king."
My stomach churned when I realized my putting the mirror back together foiled those plans. My actions brazenly put the Twilight Realm at risk. I kept quiet. However, Link appeared puzzled.
"How so my lord? How was the Twili king privy to Ghirahim's existence?"
"That I'm not sure, but he knew," Exerion explained, "and he made provision to protect his people. Even so, the King of Hyrule at the time, Daphnes II, had no idea that the fiend Ghirahim had traversed dimensions and was now on the loose in the Twilight Realm. Nor had he any knowledge that the King of Twili had Ghirahim's essence placed onto the Mirror of Twilight. All of that was done in secret of the Hylian king, even though Daphnes II had knowledge of the second Mirror of Twilight's construction from over two hundred years ago."
Inadvertently, my mouth became agape. I was shocked. I couldn't believe all this time Hyrule was harboring the demon lord Ghirahim without my father's knowledge. Why didn't the Twili king tell my father of Ghirahim's existence? Why would he allow such an important occurrence to happen and neglect to inform his ally in Hyrule? Why would the Twili king put another realm at risk? Something else was amiss. Something that needed to be brought to light that I was unaware of.
As if reading my thoughts Exerion went on.
"A great cloud of darkness overcame the Twilight Realm shortly after these events took place. The King of Twili was betrayed and murdered by his overseer Zant. At this time the seal keeping Zant out of Hyrule had waned. Two years after the fact, it gave way completely. It was eighteen years after the sealing of the mirror and the killing of the king that Zant made his move to take over Hyrule," the guardian continued. "It was only because of the brave actions of the Hero of Twilight, the Queen of Destiny, and the Queen of Twilight, that Zant was over thrown. However, the threat of Ghirahim was always a sleeping menace."
All of us were listening as if spellbound.
"Ghirahim has the same ability as his master to traverse space and time," Exerion revealed. "He ripped a whole in the dimensions to get here."
We were all silent. Someone with that kind of power was more than a sleeping menace.
Just who are we dealing with?
A shiver ran down my spine.
"Who indeed," Hylia whispered in reply to my thoughts, but spoke as if she was talking to herself. "He's a monster."
I looked around and saw the unsettled faces of my companions. Ghirahim's eradication was going to take some significant planning. Hastiness would lead to many deaths. However, I couldn't lie, I was still confused about some of the things revealed. I had an idea about this unholy alliance, but what did it all entail? There seemed much more there if the goddess was not able to see. Also, how did the king of the Twili at the time know how to capture the demon lord? That was quite the foresight.
Hylia then spoke up.
"Finding the King of Dragon Roost is once again our number one priority. Something tells me he has some of the answers we seek."
Hylia could have been a little more subtle, but that wasn't her forte. Elbourne looked her way, but said nothing to defend the king. He knew it wasn't worth the trouble right now. He could only speak in his wayward father's behalf.
"He's not a wicked man, he's not. He's stubborn and foolish at times, but he isn't wicked."
I stared at Elbourne remorsefully. The dragon prince and his father may have had their ups and downs, but I knew it was Elbourne's desire to please him. He's only ever wanted the approval of Xavier.
I took a step forward.
"We will find him, don't lose hope."
Elbourne looked my way, but said nothing. The guardian was listening carefully, but took the stance of the goddess.
"I understand your grievances Prince of Dragons," Exerion addressed Elbourne, "but Hylia of Hyrule would never allow you to falter, and as unorthodox as she may be, her words do merit consideration. The Dragon King is in great peril and has been for a long time."
Elbourne then looked to the ground, closed his eyes, and groaned in frustration to himself. Surprisingly, Hylia came up to him and placed her hand on his shoulder in reassurance. I was mildly taken aback at this, but I was glad that again she was taking the initiative to show some kindness to the dragon prince besides me. He was going through so much and it seemed like the whole world was against him. He needed to know that he wasn't alone.
"Like the queen said before, we will find your father, and he will have a chance to explain himself without prejudice," she promised. "Have a little faith in me."
Elbourne paused, but then nodded.
"Thank you."
Link then stepped forward with an inquiry of his own.
"You mentioned other guardians my lord," the hero said, shifting the conversation, "how are we to find your brethren?"
An excellent question on the hero's behalf.
"You will find them in the same manner that you found me," the guardian answered. "They are hidden in the world of twilight by means of riddles. Riddle me this, riddle me that, and they will give you the whereabouts to the Virtue Key."
Link then attempted to gain some more insight.
"What is the Virtue Key my lord? What makes it so powerful?"
Those inquiries seemed more direct than the guardian was comfortable with. It even stayed quiet for a long time before answering.
"It is the great undoer of any prodigy," Exerion explained. "It unbinds any spell, undoes any cast, releases any hold, and tells all truths. It is one of the most powerful weapons in the Twilight Realm."
I was stunned at hearing that. I never expected the Virtue Key to wield such power.
"It's no wonder the protection of it was bestowed upon you and your brethren my lord. Such a weapon would be malevolent in the hands of an enemy."
The guardian gave me a quick education.
"The Virtue Key has no malice, thus it cannot be wielded by evil. It is similar to the power of the Master Sword. Its power comes from its spiritual assets. However, there is no evidence that it cannot be manipulated."
That was none too reassuring.
"Manipulated my lord?" I asked.
Exerion decided to be more direct.
"Take my words as warning of any weapon. Manipulation is a ploy that the most nefarious of foes garner. Just keep your wits about you once the key is found."
That was telling, and it made sense considering its description. I had read stories where even the Master Sword was attempted to be thwarted though it was the ultimate weapon of evil's bane. This was information to keep in the fore. And considering the subject of manipulation, there was still the mystery of who gave Midna that locket that put her under. My gut was telling me it was Xavier, but I had no proof. All I had was a hunch and the witnessed combative nature of the Roostian from our last encounter.
"This question may seem a bit presumptuous, but I must ask. Could you tell us who gave the locket to Lady Midna, Master Exerion?"
It was as I assumed, there was hesitance.
"I thought it would be obvious by this point my lady," the guardian said anyway, "but as with the Great Goddess of Hyrule, there is only so much interference I as a guardian can do. I will let Queen Midna tell you when she awakens. Or perhaps your perceptive powers will lead you to the answers before then. Whatever the case, it is not my place to tell you."
That was probably all the answer I needed. It was more than likely Xavier. The secret meeting. The treacherous behavior. The outright deception. The Roostian monarch was the high probability culprit. Although, Exerion was exhibiting the same reservations as the Hylian guardians. It seemed to be a familial trait.
"I understand," I replied, and conferring on familial traits, we still needed the information on the other guardians. "My lord, one more question, where are your brethren? You never did answer Master Link."
At the inquiry, Exerion's countenance illuminated. Its platinum black appearance shifted to look like the stars of the heavens. It appeared like a living breathing dragon nebula now. It was unlike anything I had ever seen.
"Ah yes," Exerion started, "I have kept you in suspense of the much needed coordinates. Even so, in the spirit of your journey, I shall give you the destinations in riddle form like my light kin before me. The names of my brethren are Azimuth and Radian. Part of how to find them lies in their appellation. The rest lies within the two riddles I will bestow upon you now."
That was interesting.
Their appellation?
This information was significant. Azimuth. Radian. What was in a name? Just from off the top of my head I knew an azimuth was a way to measure a part of a circumference. It was an angular rudiment in mathematics. A radian was a quotient between the span of an arc and its radius. It was also used as a conversion measurement from degrees in trigonometry. The names of these guardians already told me a great deal. I was ready to learn more.
"What are the riddles?" I asked finally.
Exerion seemed to be waiting for my cue.
"Azimuth's riddle is this: 'the inverse of the lag to what is natural will purport the conservation of all things.' 'Radian's riddle is this: 'avenues turn to a certain degree and revolve around a sweet kind of tart.'"
Everyone looked at the guardian waywardly, especially with that last riddle. There certainly wasn't any austerity when it came to the procurement of these riddles. Where in the world did Hylia come up with this stuff? Lag? Tart? I suppose it didn't really matter.
"Book of Mudora, here I come," I muttered.
The dragon prince simply shook his head.
"'The inverse of the lag to what is natural will purport the conservation of all things?'" Elbourne repeated, then looked at me. "You've solved this kind of obscurity before?"
I nodded, not really blaming him for being so off put.
"Four other times thus far."
Hylia came up and patted my shoulder.
"This will be child's play for Zelda. There's nothing this girl cannot solve."
I stared at the goddess surprised and blushed. I thought it was a bit premature to be singing my praises. I solved the other riddles true, but I studied day and night to do so. It looked like I would have some long nights again.
"I appreciate that ancestral mother, but I can't take all the credit," I said modestly. "I had your and Link's help at times too."
Link shook his head and grinned at me.
"As much as I would like to ascribe myself to your outcomes, I'm afraid you're being too kind. This is what you do Zelda and you're brilliant at it. There is no doubt that the crown jewel of Hyrule is not the Triforce, but the woman who sits on her throne… my beloved Zelda."
The hero was being more than generous.
"I... I don't know what to say... thank you."
The hero stared into my eyes.
"That's good enough, you're welcome."
With all this faith in me, I knew I couldn't let everyone down.
"I'll get started as soon as we break for camp tonight. We will find the Virtue Key long before Midna succumbs."
Link then turned his attention back to the guardian.
"Speaking of the Twili queen, can you give us a status of Midna's condition?" he asked suddenly. "Is there some way you can gauge her condition?"
Exerion stared at the hero with illuminated eyes.
"I am afraid I cannot. It has too much sway on the events of this world. Just know the sooner you find the key the better the queen's outcome."
That wasn't too reassuring, but it was something.
The hero sighed.
"With all this talk of the Virtue Key, it's actually making me miss the Master Sword."
Elbourne then looked over at Link.
"You miss it?"
The hero nodded.
"It's strange, but at least if we had it maybe it could be useful now in this instance. I used to think of it as a burden, but after realizing what it can do to protect people, it makes me want to wield it again."
Hylia crossed her arms over her chest.
"I'm glad you feel that way, because we're going to need the Master Sword again to defeat Ghirahim. That's the only way to stop him."
The group then focused on the goddess.
"I'm not surprised," Link said, "evil's bane is evil's bane."
Hylia nodded.
"His seven deadly attributes are no match for the spiritual ones latent within the sword. Those virtues are already encapsulated in the Master Sword. Once the demon lord has been compromised, he can once again be encased in the mirror."
The plan seemed plausible enough, but there were still lingering questions I had. However, I never got to ask them. Out of nowhere a screeching sound suddenly filled the air. Everyone stopped immediately and covered their ears. The sound was piercing. To make matters worse, an unexpected visitor teleported from the other side of the forest with a small army of shadow beasts. A battalion. It was Ghirahim.
"Dear goddesses!" I whispered. "He's found us!"
Both Link and Elbourne readied themselves and took the guard position. Hylia took the point position and snapped her fingers for her kodachi.
"Speak of the devil," she uttered more to herself than to any of us.
Link looked back at me.
"We'll hold them off. Do not engage, do you understand?"
I nodded.
"Right, I'll stay in the back."
At seeing the numbers, Elbourne groaned and equipped his axe.
"How in the world did he find us so quickly?"
The goddess shook her head.
"That's a good question. we'll have to ask later, but I like our odds."
Exerion then dispelled from the field of battle.
"I must bid you all farewell," the guardian said. "In my current state I would be of no help to you."
With that, the guardian disappeared. We set our sights to face the demon lord ahead. This was not what any of us had in mind.
What now Ghirahim? What are you planning now?
The next chapter will be up soon.