"Din, why is it so crowded in here?" Impa said with a scowl on her face. "It was completely empty when we first arrived."
"Maybe that has something to do with the fact that it was two in the morning when you got here," Sheik said.
After a lengthy car ride, Zelda, Impa, Sheik, and I had finally made it to the Temple of Time only to find that we would have to wait in a line a mile long just to get in. Faron wasn't a particularly large town, but the Temple of Time was a massive tourist hotspot and people came from far and wide just to get inside. I had never actually been myself, but I'd heard that it was pretty cool as far as large religious temples go.
We had to park a few blocks away from the Temple, and once we finished the walk up we found a massive crowd waiting in the plaza out front. It would take at least another hour to get through the line, and none of us were too excited to do any more waiting. I was surprised to find that the outside of the Temple didn't actually look all that interesting though. It pretty much looked like any other old, gray church.
"Well, I guess we're just gonna have to get in line and wait," I said dejectedly.
"Actually," Sheik said with a smirk as he pulled out his wallet. "Lucky for the three of you, the Sheikah are in charge of maintaining this place, so we don't have to wait for anything." Sheik then pulled a blue identification card out of his wallet. On the card was a Sheikah symbol and small picture of Sheik. I caught a glance of the writing on the card, but it was in some strange language that I didn't recognize.
I guess Sheik noticed me noticing, because he said "The writing's all in Sheikah so that most people can't read it. Helps us stay anonymous."
Sheik led us around the side of the building to a door that was much smaller and less impressive than the massive double doors that made up the actual entrance. He slid his blue card through a scanner, and the door 'clicked' as it was unlocked. Sheik went in first and the rest of us followed single file through the door.
Upon entering, the first thing I noticed was that the entire inside was almost nothing but white. Marble floors connecting to white-wash walls and white stairs leading up to a shiny white altar. It was insanely bright inside, and I had to shield my eyes for a few seconds while they adjusted. The next thing I noticed was that it was totally empty on the inside despite the massive crowd outside. There were also big stained glass windows on each side depicting various goddesses as well as some of the old legends about the Hero and the Princess' eternal struggle with evil.
I was standing at the entrance gawking, but everyone else seemed totally unfazed. It was clear that they had been here plenty of times before. I quickly realized that I was being left behind and jogged to catch up.
We walked up the stairs and behind the big altar to the wall in the back when Sheik turned and said "Alright, I'll go ahead and open up the inner sanctum for you guys and get the door behind you just in case someone tries to sneak in. It's still early so we won't open the doors to tourists for another 30 minutes or so, but you can never be too careful."
"Wait, so you won't be coming with us?" I said.
"Bringing one person to the past is dangerous enough," Zelda said. "We wouldn't want to take any unnecessary risks."
"Besides, you'll need someone to open the door when you get back Link. Although, I bet in my time you'll only be gone for about ten minutes or so," Sheik said.
"Oh yeah, I hadn't even stopped to think about that," I said and then turned to Zelda. "Just how long will this take?" Although I still had no idea what "this" was.
"Well, it's just like Sheik said. When you get back likely only a few minutes in your time will have passed," Zelda said. "Should you see that we're telling the truth and agree to help us, you could be in the past for weeks or even months. It just depends on how long it takes to defeat Ganondorf."
"And that's assuming we actually succeed at all," Impa said.
"Impa! We can't start talking like that now. We have to stay positive," Zelda said.
"That's all good and well princess, but I want Link to be aware of the risks he's taking," Impa said sternly. "This is not a game or some fairy tale. This is war. Do you understand that?" It was hard, but I met Impa's gaze and nodded. Truth be told, I didn't really understand anything, but I knew that I didn't want to let Zelda down.
"Alright, now that that's all settled, let's send you three to the past!" Sheik said with way too much excitement. "Link you'll probably want me to hold onto your phone and wallet, since people from the past won't really know what they are."
"Right, good point," I said taking my wallet and phone out of my pocket. I would have been more nervous about giving my stuff to a stranger, but there was no money in my wallet and my phone was cheap as hell. I handed them over to Sheik and he walked over to the altar and pressed some kind of hidden switch underneath it. The massive wall behind the altar started to slide sideways in a way that should've been impossible. Once it had slid away, it revealed a large chamber with tall, looming windows that let sunlight pour into the room. At the center of the room was a small platform with a pedestal that was about a foot high.
"Ta-da!" Sheik said and slapped me on the back. "Welcome to your time machine. Please keep your legs and arms inside the ride at all times and try not to have a panic attack when you realize there is no more Internet or air conditioning."
I walked tentatively into the room, looking all the time for any kind of indication that this room allowed time travel, but coming up with nothing.
"It just looks like an empty room to me," I said.
"It certainly looks that way, but I can assure you that the inner sanctum has magical properties that amplify the power of a very important tool," Zelda said. She then reached into her small purse and pulled out a blue ocarina.
"Wait a minute, is that the Ocarina of Time?" I said in disbelief. "The one used by the Hero of Time himself?"
Zelda seemed to take pride in how impressed I was by the instrument as she smiled and said "It certainly is. The Ocarina is a relic of the Royal Family, and it is the very same one that was used by the Hero."
"Wow, that's amazing!" I said as I eyed the craftsmanship of the instrument. Zelda held it out for me too look at and I ogled at the ornate designs. Just looking at the Ocarina made me feel an excitement that I hadn't felt since I was a little kid. I even thought about asking Zelda if I could hold it. I really was going crazy.
"Princess, we really ought to be getting back as soon as we can. We've no time for games," Impa said. I noticed that she had picked up some neatly folded clothes off of the ground, and was bending over to pick up another set of clothes that looked like a prom dress. A pout flashed across Zelda's fade for a second, but it was quickly replaced by a look of determination.
"Yes, of course. My apologies Impa," Zelda said, all business. "I do hate that I'll be forced to put those dreadfully uncomfortable clothes back on though. The outfits of the future are so much more comfortable." I hadn't even thought to take note of Zelda's clothes since she was just in normal street wear (jean shorts and a white blouse), but it made sense that their clothes from the past would be a different from modern outfits.
"Ok, looks like this is where my job ends and yours begins," Sheik said. He walked over to the altar and pressed the switch underneath it, sending the wall into motion. "Good luck you three. I guess if nothing changes I'll know you guys succeeded. If the world goes up in flames... well let's try not to think about it."
I kept my eyes on Sheik's face as the wall moved the last few inches to close off the inner sanctum, effectively sealing us in. He had a confident grin plastered to his face, which seemed way too optimistic given our circumstances. Once the wall was back in place, I turned towards Impa and Zelda who were looking at me expectantly.
"So, we're really going to the past huh?" I said awkwardly.
"As strange as it may sound, yes," Zelda said as she brought the ocarina up to her mouth. "Are you ready Link?"
I hesitated for a moment, just a moment, before looking at Zelda and saying "As ready as I'll ever be." She nodded and smiled, apparently happy with my response, and started to play a simple tune on the instrument.
The song didn't last very long, but as soon as it had finished light began to rush into the chamber from the windows all around. I had to shield my eyes because it was so bright, and at some point I felt a strange tingling sensation and a tug in my gut. Once I could tell that the light wasn't nearly as intense anymore, I slowly opened my eyes to see the very same room that I'd been in before. The whole ordeal only lasted about 20 seconds.
I looked over at a Sheik and Zelda who looked as calm as if they did this everyday. "So was that it?" I asked. "Are we in the past?"
"It appears so," Zelda said, motioning to something behind me. I looked over my shoulder to find that the door to the inner sanctum was open and that there was an entire entourage outside waiting for us. There were maybe six guys in medieval soldiers uniforms and a couple girls in maid outfits. I also noticed two suspicious looking guys with skintight blue and white body suits on. On their chests was the telltale red eye of the Sheikah.
The two maids immediately rushed towards us, stopping about five feet short and bowing deeply.
"Your highness, we are glad to see you are well," the one on the right said. Then eyeing me she said "We trust the mission was a success?"
Zelda strode over to them and placed a gentle hand on the girl on the left's shoulder. She then turned to everyone and said "We have succeeded in finding another hero." Zelda didn't really say it with much flair or excitement, but that didn't stop everyone in the room from cheering enthusiastically. It made me realize just how desperate their situation must have been. It was daunting.
All of the soldiers, excluding the Sheikah in the back, crowded around me and started to bombard me with questions. There were so many that I didn't have any time to answer a single one.
"Is it true you're from the future?"
"Are you just as good with a sword as Sir Link?"
"Are you and Sir Link related in any way? You look exactly alike!"
I was completely overwhelmed by the onslaught of questions, but thankfully a booming voice sounded out and quieted all the soldiers.
"Men, that is ENOUGH! I'm sure the young man will be more than happy to answer your questions later, but for now let's give him some space," said the voice. Suddenly, an impossibly large soldier pushed his way through the crowd and took his place next to me. He was clearly older than the rest of the soldiers, but still probably just in his early thirties. He was easily 6'6, barrel chested, and had short, choppy black hair. "You were all selected to accompany the Princess here because I felt that you all had some level of maturity. I doubt I need to remind you just how confidential everything we're doing is. So please, calm down and let the man get settled," the he said.
"Thank you, Captain Jeero," Impa said as she took the place to my other side. As soon as the younger soldiers saw her, they backed up fearfully in a way that was almost comical. I knew I was right to think that Impa wasn't to be messed with.
"Sorry about that son," Captain Jeero said to me and reached out his hand for me to shake. "Most of our experienced soldiers are holding down the front lines, so I had to bring a couple of boys fresh out of training camp."
"Yeah, no worries," I said as I grabbed his hand. He practically broke my hand and pulled my arm out of socket when he shook it, but he seemed nice enough.
"As I'm sure you already heard, my name's Captain Jeero. I take care of all the young bucks, so you and I should be working together quite a bit over the next few weeks," he said.
"My name's Link," I said awkwardly. "I'm looking forward to it, I guess." At the mention of my name most of the soldiers gawked at me.
"So his name is also Link?" one of the soldiers asked.
"Yes it is, and as a matter of fact, Link has serious business to attend to so I would appreciate it if you allow him to get to it," Zelda said from the doorway. I was surprised by how stern she could sound at first, but the more I thought about it the more sense it made. She was royalty after all.
Zelda had changed into an elegant pink and white dress and adorned herself with some pretty fancy looking jewelry. If she hadn't already, she certainly looked the part of princess now. It took all my willpower to keep my jaw from dropping. "Link come here for a moment. We have to get you changed so that you won't stand out too much," she said.
I walked back into the main part of the temple to Zelda who was holding a bundle of blue clothes. When I reached her she held out the clothes for me to take and motioned towards a corner of the room that had been sealed off by curtains to create some measure of privacy.
"I hope the clothes are to your liking," she said. "They should fit you reasonably well, but if they don't you should only have to deal with them until we reach the castle."
I thanked Zelda and moved behind the lavender curtains. I figured I would need to abandon all of my clothes from the future (even if it meant parting with my lucky boxers), but let me tell you, the past does not offer very comfortable undergarments. I also had a rough pair of tan trousers, thick leather boots, a white undershirt, and a simple blue tunic. It all fit surprisingly well, and was different but not necessarily bad. I kinda liked the medieval look I had going.
When I came out from behind the curtains a Sheikah took my future-clothes and walked off with them.
"Don't worry, we'll keep all your belongings safe until you're ready to go back," Zelda said. She then looked me up and down with a pleased expression. "I think that outfit suits you quite well. It's not exactly the traditional garb of the hero, but the blue looks good on you."
Words cannot express how annoyed I was with myself when I had to fight off a blush.
"Thanks, I thought it would be really uncomfortable, but it's actually not too shabby," I said.
"Shabby?" Zelda said with a perplexed look on her face.
"Oh, sorry," I said when I realized that there was no way people from literally hundreds of years ago would understand modern colloquialisms. "It's a kind of a future phrase..."
"Ah, yes, of course," Zelda said awkwardly. "Well we'd better get going if we want to reach the castle by nightfall. Perhaps you can explain what it means to be 'shabby' on the way there."
I couldn't help but laugh at Zelda's awkward use of 'shabby' and I guess my laugh was infectious because eventually Zelda elicited a few giggles.
"Princess, the preparations have been made to depart," Impa called from the doorway of the Temple. Impa had also changed into a skintight blue suit of the Sheikah.
"Thank you Impa," Zelda replied. "Shall we be going Link?" I nodded at Zelda and the two of us made our way too the door. As were were leaving, I noticed that the curtains I had changed behind had already been taken down. I figured traveling with portable changing rooms must be par for the course when you're a princess.
Outside, all the soldiers were readying their horses for travel, and there were two horse drawn carriages. What was surprising, though, was that we were completely surrounded by forest. There was a small dirt path that went off through the woods, but that was it.
As if detecting my confusion, Zelda said "There's a village just a ways down the road, but the area around the Temple of Time is nothing but forest. I suspect that the town we saw in your era won't be built for quite some time." If there had been any doubt left in me as to whether or not I was actually in the past, it completely vanished after hearing that.
Zelda, her two maids, and I all climbed into one carriage and Impa, Captain Jeero, and the two Sheikah all got into the other one. The rest of the soldiers road on horse back. Zelda explained that under normal circumstances, a teenage boy wouldn't have been let into the same carriage as the princess, but there were two reasons why I was the exception to the rule: 1.) it was best if I wasn't seen by the public so as to avoid confusion (apparently this other Link was quite the celebrity) and 2.) Zelda had some important 'intel' she needed to pass along. Really she just wanted me to explain what shabby meant.
Apparently it was still midmorning when we left the Temple of Time, and it was roughly a day's journey to get to the castle. After asking roughly seven million questions about the future that I answered to the best of my ability, Zelda explained as much as she could about the Hyrule of olden days.
I would gaze out the window at vast plains or small farming villages and Zelda would tell me all about them. I had never realized just how beautiful of a country Hyrule was until I saw it without all the roads, buildings, and people. Of course there were some landmarks that I recognized like Death Mountain, which could be seen from almost anywhere in the Kingdom. The whole carriage ride was pretty surreal. I kept expecting myself to suddenly wake up and realize that it was all a dream, but that moment never came.
Zelda's maids were basically silent for the entire journey. I couldn't tell if they were nervous or just plain awkward. They did make a nice lunch of soup and bread for us when we stopped to take a break at the halfway point though. Once we started to get close to our destination, Zelda decided it was time to get down to business.
"Once we reach the castle you'll begin training with Captain Jeero," Zelda said. "We'll need to turn you into a proper knight if we're to have any hope of defeating Ganondorf." I elected not to mention that it would technically be "Ganondorfs".
"Once you move onto more advanced training you'll start training with Link," Zelda said. When she noticed my confused expression she quickly added "the other Link."
"Right, of course," I said still trying to get a grip on the strange circumstances I'd found myself in. "So what happens after I become a master swordsman? We just go knocking on Ganon's front door and run him through with a blade?"
"Something like that..." Zelda said. Her expression was not very convincing. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there. For now you should just focus on your training."
"Whatever you say Zelda," I said with a shrug. I knew that I was blindly agreeing to a plan that I realistically knew nothing about, but come on, who else was I gonna trust?
"Oh right, I've been meaning to mention this. Once we get to the castle, I'm going to have to ask that you refer to me as Princess Zelda, or your highness," she said. I could tell from her expression that it wasn't something she enjoyed asking me to do. "It's just that my father as well as the nobility are very strict with all their proceedings, and I'm afraid they wouldn't approve of you going around using my first name so casually."
"Oh yeah, of course. Sorry about that," I said. I felt like a complete idiot for not having thought of that sooner. She was literally royalty, and I was going around treating her like some girl I'd met at the mall. Still, I couldn't help but feel a little bummed out at the fact that I couldn't even call her by her name. "I'll try my best to remember that, Princess." I noticed Zelda's smile drop a bit at the mention of her title.
"Thank you Link. It was nice to hear someone call me by my name for once though, if only for a little while," she said.
The next hour or so passed in silence, and I spent most of my time just gazing out the window of the carriage. Soon, I could see the castle of Hyrule looming in the distance just over the hills of Hyrule field.
Once Zelda noticed how close we were to our destination, she turned to me and said "Well Link, I hope you've enjoyed yourself thus far, because now the real work begins."
Thank Hylia for that, I thought.
Author's note: Alright, chapter three is in the books! I'm so excited that we're finally getting into the meat of this story. Things are gonna get real crazy real fast, so be prepared. I'm starting to realize that I can churn out these chapters a lot faster than I originally thought, so keep an eye out for updates. As always, any feedback is good feedback, so feel free to drop a review or PM me anytime. Peace!