Chapter 4

Hymns at Heaven's Gate

Cold.

Dark.

I curled inward, further into my soft cocoon and away from my chilly fingers and numb feet. Birds chirped in the formless world beyond my eyelids, beyond the strange-smelling blankets and the lumpy quilt.

Light burst through the darkness with a clatter and clanging; coldness melted as hazy excitement jolted my squirming innards.

"I'm going to prepare the horses," a woman said, cracking open the silence along with my closed eyes.

I tilted my face to the right, toward the light and the sound of her steps.

She steadied the tin lamp on the table besides the door and the world formed out of amorphous shapes, Sense and understanding and memory arranged themselves in my head along with the images of the dark wood-trimmed room. She—the woman—was Impa. I was lying in bed at the inn of Gatepost Town. I was joining to the excavation today.

She had reached the door before she spoke again. "Meet me outside the stable when you're dressed."

In the middle of turning the door knob, she stopped. Her eyes or her teeth, or perhaps both, flashed brightly. "I've already packed your traveling things for you, for after you've finished your prayers. But do you want your boots or a cloak for the road? A rain swept through last night."

She wore thin, summery clothes—or at least she seemed to be in the dim candlelight. Her straw hat bobbed behind her head. My gauzy dress slumped in the chair where I had carefully arranged it last night. The past few June mornings had been warm.

"I'll be fine."

Impa stared at me, her gleaming eyes scrutinizing my decision. "Alright then. I'll see you downstairs in a few minutes. Purah's there as well, so you have the room to yourself to get ready."

I waved my hand in farewell as she eased the door closed. Her footfalls echoed in the narrow hallway, before fading into the stairwell's silence beyond.

Birds continued to sing. But it was still dark, still night. A few raindrop trails glazed the windows, sparkling like stars, yet the only source of light was flickering beside me, casting shadows on the walls. Somewhere in the darkness was the Great Plateau and the Temple of Time and all the mysteries I would uncover today.

At the thought of research I twisted myself about in my blankets, throwing them off and sliding my numb feet on the floor. My stomach twisted again with an anxious excitement.

I tiptoed to the window, the wooden floor creaking beneath my feet. None of my usual morning tiredness clung to my eyelids or limbs, tethering me to the bed. I pushed myself forward in an effort to see beyond the false stars twinkling on the glass. Perhaps I could spot the setting moon, or the pale planet Nayru smiling in the morning sky.

I touched the window and icy water slid onto my hand. I gasped. I stumbled backward, falling into the rickety chair. I thudded against the seatback and heard the ominous whisper of fabric ripping.

I jumped up, cursing myself, "DamndamndamndamndamnZeldawhyyyyyyyy!"

Still cursing and praying, I dragged the chair into the candlelight, before collapsing onto the floor and smoothing every silken crease with my shaking hands. Smooth, perfect fabric was all I could feel. I couldn't even find the spot I had stained with ink two nights ago, the dress had been so immaculately cleaned.

"But its fine," I muttered to myself. "How?"

I had heard it rip, after all. Had I been hallucinating and imagining sounds? Still panicking, I reached behind me and felt the back of my soft robe. A loose thread dangled between my shoulder blades. Contorting my arms about, I pulled off the robe and brought it close to my face.

Somehow I had managed to rip the seam above some little gathered pleat by the neck. The fabric itself hadn't even ripped, just the stitching.

"Why the hell would that make so much noise?"

In all my growing excitement for this trip, I had worked myself into some crazed tizzy. I had read about this somewhere, that excitement and fear come from the same part of the body, and here I was as living proof. The excitement coursing within me had all too easily turned to fear. I inhaled deeply, trying to soothe myself, but once again my heart beat grew more rapid.

Something was burning! But the fireplace was empty.

I brought the robe to my face once again and now I gave it an anxious sniff. I could still smell the smoke of last night's fire about it. I sniffed at my arm and my hair. Both reeked of wood fire as well. I paused and glanced around. My dim reflection stared back at me from the obsidian mirror on the table. My heart thudded to a halt. If Urbosa had seen me, she would tell me I needed more sleep.

It was time to leave this strange room.

I let the white dress cascade over my shoulders like silk before placing the bustle atop my hips and fastening the belt around my waist. Catching my reflection in the mirror once again, I noticed that my bustle was askew. I tugged it straight. In the low candlelight, the pale silk gleamed otherworldly, like moonbeams dancing on water.

Content with the dress, I reached for the clay pitcher of water from the dressing table and filled the bowl besides it. Inhaling deeply, I plunged my face into the water, prompting a wave of shivers up my arms. As I straightened, water dripped from my hair down my back, prompting more shivers. Then, wetting a cloth, I soaked my arms, each drop of cold water leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake. A few spots of red blood stained the pale fabric.

Sighing, I rummaged in my bag and uncorked the vial of calendula ointment. I rubbed it into my ragged cuticles until my hands smelled like a garden. I must have been picking at them in my sleep.

Then began the familiar routine. I opened the silver box and untied the velveteen pouch within it. The golden bracelets and the necklace slid unto the table with a delicate rattle. Had anyone ever worn solid gold jewelry in this inn? I slid one of the bracelets over my fingers. Was this the most expensive item ever brought here?

Their weight embraced my wrists with the same delicate touch of Master Link's hands. I could still feel his warm hands around mine. I hadn't dreamed of him last night, but I wish I had.

I began to mumble prayers aloud to myself as my thoughts raced; half of my mind focused, the other half relying on the effortless muscle memory of an all too familiar ritual. My mother had taught me some of these prayers, my father had taught me others. And the rest I had read in books.

"Dear goddess," I whispered, pushing the other over my hand and toward my elbow, "help me to access your divine powers today. I act only in accordance of your wishes."

I dreamt I dwelt, I hummed to myself, before realizing my error and switching to an old chant tune.

I fastened the necklace and stood, looking at my reflection but not seeing it.

Sitting down on the bed, I laced the leather sandals around each shin in turn, tying the thongs into a simple knot, all the while watching my reflection. I then reached for the textured handle of the boar bristle brush.

"Why is my hair tangled?" I asked the ancient spirits with the same reverence with which I asked them to guide me in my journey to access my sealing powers. They, like my reflected face, offered no answer when I gave the mirror one last look.

I was still asking the dragon spirits for guidance in an ancient hymn—"O ye three guards of earth and sky and sea, help me aspir' to Hyrule's guardian be"—as I walked toward the door and shut it behind me.

One hand on the wall, one hand holding my silken skirt aloft, I maneuvered down the hallway and the dark staircase —"dear goddess, don't let me trip and die on the stairs" I muttered. In the tavern, eyes of coal stared at me from the great stone fireplace and followed me as I side-stepped chairs and tables toward the door. The coals continued to slowly blink at me as a girl crouching besides the fire raked them to-and-fro with a long poker and shoveled the ash slowly into a large pail. The smell of baking bread wafted from the kitchen. I wish I could stay for breakfast. Cold travel rations no longer seemed adventurous or appetizing.

I pushed open the door, which had been holding in the warmth and the smell, and the cold dark morning rushed around me. I shivered. Almost scared to break the stillness, I stepped forward and the deck creaked beneath me. The noise reverberated about the village square, bouncing from the sloping roofs to the shop windows, which reflected the light of orange fires from the square's street lamps, and caused a few cuccoos to stir with angry noise. I winced. The flames cast long shadows on the roads and paving stones, and I followed one until my eye caught the movement of a flickering torch, much shorter than the lamps' flames.

The torch was being held by a cloaked figure standing in a huddle of other figures and horses under the large tree we had rested by yesterday. One seemed to be half-made of molten gold. It was Impa, her long silver hair gleaming red in the torchlight. I had worried that I would need to search for them in the dark, but here they were, right in front of me.

I braved the creaking deck and stepped down onto the dusty path. Even on the dirt, the long dewy grass grasped at my ankles like goblins. I stopped and sighed and looked up at the greenish black sky, asking Hylia for more help, this time for the strength to walk with slimy blades of grass clinging to my feet. I stepped hesitantly off the dirt onto the central square's lawn and the long grass quickly enveloped my feet and shins. Within a few steps, my leather sandals were already drenched. I hurried with long strides, eager to reach dry ground.

The group chattered indistinguishably amongst each other. One of the two guards, reins in hand, yawned. They all seemed to be oblivious to the pre-dawn world around them, and unaware of my hurried footsteps, even if my dress sparkled prominently against the darkness like the moon itself. But Impa turned as I approached, and recognizing me, smiled, her face lighting as if I had lit a fire under her chin.

"You look the image of the goddess, Zelda," she exclaimed, grabbing her sister by the shoulder and turning her around to see me. "Exactly the image of the princess of ten thousand years ago, don't you agree Purah?"

"Absolutely! You match the depiction on the scroll perfectly!"

I nodded, wishing that someday I would truly resemble the ancient princess, in sealing power as well as in dress. But I couldn't help but smile at their compliments. "Thank you" I said, my chattering teeth eliding my words.

Behind the two sisters, the two guards bowed respectfully, murmuring greetings. But where was Rodolfo? Suddenly, a torch blazed in my face. The crackling sparks flying toward me quickly extinguished my thoughts with a few puffs of smoke. I jumped back with a yelp, but thankfully the torch had also leaped away.

"Zelda!" We were just—wow you look beautiful!" Robbie exclaimed loudly, now twirling the torch behind him.

My heart pounding violently, I could barely open my mouth to respond. But again I smiled, knowing that the heat burning at my cheeks was caused by more than the flames that had nearly enveloped my skin. I fought back a laugh as my fear softened into an indescribable mixture of amusement and enchantment.

"Robbie! If I didn't know you were careless, I would have called that an assassination attempt," Purah scolded loudly. "You're old enough to know fire safety!"

"My apologies your highness," Robbie said sheepishly, before facing me and saying quite seriously, "but if you ever find yourself in danger of immolation again, just remember that you should stop, then drop, and then roll."

I laughed in spite of myself. A chill breeze enveloped my shoulders and I shivered. Impa began reprimanding Robbie, with less humor than Purah. But I didn't hear her, the cold morning distracted me far too much. Like Impa, each of the Sheikah wore dark cloaks about them.

"With this noise, one could wake the great Calamity itself," Rodolfo said, his voice breaking through the darkness, as his horse burst through the mist surrounding us. "What's the cause for such clamor so early in the morning?"

Hooded in both his dark cloak and the mist atop his black horse, he looked like a spirit of death. His cloaked head looked about before finding me. He tossed back his hood, to reveal a silver fringe that gleamed like molten-steel in the torchlight.

"Your highness," he murmured with a prayerful reverence, bowing slightly.

Impa cut in. "But are you sure you don't want your cloak?"

"No, I can't wear one with this outfit," I explained, facing her again. "It's all part of my pilgrimage. I must approach each shrine and temple as the goddess. I would to conceal my identity, if we had to travel farther but no one will see me in the darkness. And I'll change into those boots and trousers afterwards so I can join you in the search."

"Then I presume you won't be riding your horse as well?"

I followed Impa's hand and glanced at my horse. His coat was damp and covered in grass—he must have spent the night rolling about in the pasture. "On second thought, I'll lead him on foot for now, if that's alright."

"Well, since that's settled and everyone has arrived, perhaps it is time to depart for the gates," Impa said, lithely settling herself atop her horse. And with assorted noises, we fell behind her as we paced toward the gates ahead of us.

The grey wall, which lightened in color each passing second, was immense, but the mist obscured most of it from my sight. It seemed to extend beyond the sky itself, piercing the low-hanging fabric of the heavens. The wall itself stretched to the right and left further than my eyes could see, as it curved around the plateau. Within a minute's walk, I could make out the protruding structure surrounding the gate, which stood out in relief from the rest of the wall. This protruding section was buttressed with tower-like sides, and was decorated with ornate inlaid windows. My eyes descended from the wall's top and I was surprised to see that the doorway itself, beneath all the elaborate carved arches, was rather small. Such a small wooden door, for such an imposing wall. My eyes and my mind could barely process the sight in the dim light.

Robbie chomped on something, breaking the stillness of the morning. In the darkness I tried to make out what he was eating.

"Do you want some bread?" he asked, offering a hunk of bread in his extended hand. "It's fresh from this morning."

"No thanks," I said hastily. A nervous excitement was coursing through my stomach and I doubted that I had room even for warm bread in my stomach.

"The wall looks like a building," I said, gazing up at the elaborate windows.

"Yep, there are rooms carved into the walls," Robbie said. "Some rumors say that an ancient settlement lived within the walls and that passageways even extend underneath the plateau. And, like I was saying yesterday, some say that the plateau was lifted by the goddesses and placed here. And that the plateau itself conceals a great ancient civilization that built these walls as protection." Impa groaned exasperatedly ahead of us, but Robbie continued unperturbed. "Perhaps the ancient technology will answer some of these questions. But now, only the Royal Knights use it, and mainly for defensive purposes. They guard the entrance," he explained, and, as if on cue, I could see two figures in front of us

The two knights, clearly tired from their night watch, sat on stools around a small fire. One yawned and stretched, the other quickly elbowing him in castigation. They both shuffled to their feet and positioned themselves in front of the open doorway.

"Halt travelers. We don't allow pilgrimages to enter before dawn."

Impa urged her horse ahead of the group and stopped in front of them. "We seek entrance to the Great Plateau, on orders of His Royal Highness and the Royal Laboratories." She offered them a piece of parchment, "I think you'll find us to be neither mere travelers nor pilgrims."

"Of course Lady Impa, please proceed," one replied, bowing humbly, upon glancing at the letter. The two of them stepped aside. In response, Impa nodded and urged her horse through the small doorway. We followed her, stepping slowly through the entrance.

Out the corner of my eye I watched the two guards salute the two on horseback.

As I passed through the open doors, tugging the horse along, I stared at the stone surrounding me. We had entered into a hallway of sorts with a low ceiling. Robbie was right. There were rooms within the walls. A few torches hung on the wall, and carved royal birds, emblematic of Hyrule itself, loomed in the darkness like gargoyles. But the hallway soon ended. We emerged, not into an open field, another cramped interior hallway, or a subterranean tunnel, as I presumed we would, but into an impossibly large hallway, whose walls were spaced ridiculously far apart from each other. The walls stretched so high above me that I could not tell whether a ceiling covered us.

I stood on a dusty road, which was more road than ancient floor, and dirt now caked my still-wet feet. Impossibly tall stone pillars, some colored by moss and lichen, lined the passageway, towering over us. I gazed upward as I moved forward, hearing the guards behind me gasp in awe. How was a place like this built? Surely a divine being was involved.

The rising sun taunted us, sending light trickling down the walls of the canyon, pulling us skyward. But as we advanced through the semidarkness, the slanting path ahead of us turned into stairs. Impa stopped and turned, her horse pawing at the ground. Behind me, the two soldiers dismounted from their steeds with a clanking of armor and a few stifled groans of distaste.

"I had forgotten about the ascent." Impa said, shaking her head. "We should probably return the horses to the stable for the day."

"But they can make it up these steps just fine," Robbie said, leaping down from his horse and pointing to the steps. "Look at how wide they are! And they're quite sturdy too," he added, jumping up and down atop one. For extra emphasis, he nudged his horse forward and it dutifully climbed a few steps. "Behooooold! My horse cliiiiiimbs!"

"It's not the up, I'm concerned about Robbie." Impa explained softly, closing her eyes. "It's the down."

"Ah shit."

"Rodolfo, you lead Zelda ahead with the guards." Impa said, before meeting my eyes. "I'll be following behind you in just a few moments."

"What about me?"

"Purah, you're great with horses, you help Robbie lead your horses back to the stable. And while you're at it, take Rodolfo's and Zelda's as well."

Impa dismounted her horse and walked closer to me before speaking in a voice just above a whisper. "Your highness, I know this isn't what you were expecting, but this way you'll get a head start at the temple. You'll be able to take your time, and then we can start with the chapels and the worship sites before setting out to either Mount Hylia or the Eastern flatlands"

"Its no matter to me."

"We will wait for you, once we return to the plateau, we can explore the temple area first. Rodolfo and the guards will stay with you, you'll be safe. No monster should be able to walk on this sacred ground, and the border walls are heavily patrolled. But go now! Don't lose the dawn by dallying."

"Here, I'll take that, your highness." Purah exclaimed, taking the reins from my hands. "Good luck with your prayers!"

To my left, Rodolfo, slid from his horse and approached me. Without a word he gestured toward the steps, as if to let me walk ahead of him. I shook my head. "Please lead the way, I don't know where I am going."

"As you wish, your highness."

I looked back and nodded at Impa. She smiled encouragingly.

Ahead of me, Rodolfo had begun ascending into a slowly lightening fog of solid mist. His dark robe seemed barely perceptible against the pre-dawn clouds. I placed a hesitant foot on the lichen-covered stone, testing it. I didn't slip. Instinctively, I hitched my skirt to my knees and climbed upward.

Behind me, a few clanks echoing about the cavernous space told me that the soldiers had begun to follow me. But within a few steps the mist had swallowed Rodolfo whole and even the reassuring steps of the soldiers behind me were muffled. The world disappeared further into mist, but as I climbed, arches emerged from above me, until I couldn't distinguish stone architecture from the ephemeral haze. The clouds themselves congealed on my skin, falling like raindrops on my arms and trickling down the steps in weak rivulets.

The mist grew whiter, nearly blinding me. At this point I had lost Rodolfo, whose musical voice was echoing slightly ahead of me; but how could I be sure where he was in this fog? And the faint sounds I could hear were fading. Fading fast.

Silence.

"Rodolfo! Where are you?" I called desperately, hurrying up the steps.

Silence.

"Rodolfo!"

"Look Zelda! The sun!"

"I can't see anything!" What sun could he be talking about? There was no sun, only clouds and mist. Was this some trickster spirit seeking to lead me astray?

But then a hand appeared, reaching out of the amorphous nothingness. My heart pounding in my chest, I placed my own hand into this outstretched one. It was warm and dry and, most of all, real. As the hand closed around mine, Rodolfo's face emerged from the mist above it. His hood had fallen off his head again, and his silver hair camouflaged his head in the mist.

Wordlessly he pulled me closer to him, and I soon found myself on level ground, with soft green grass to my left, and the sturdy flagstones of an ancient patio beneath my feet. His warm hands were on my shoulders, turning me around to look at the stairs. I opened my mouth to say something, perhaps to protest, but his words interrupted me. "Look," he said."

"But that's just the stairs—"

"Look," he urged.

And I looked. Bright clouds dissolved in front of me, and all around me spread a purple sky, tinged with blue and rimmed with peachy gold to the east. Beyond the stone patio, several heraldic eagles faced the castle, guarding me from the edge of the plateau.

I stood above the clouds.

"It's like watching the world from the heavens," I breathed, awestruck and amazed. "This is the view of the gods."

We had reached the top of the plateau and had arrived at a height that seemed like the top of the very world itself. Hyrule nestled into the mist that spread expansively in every direction. Hints of sunlight streamed upward beyond Mount Lanayru and the eastern coastline, piercing the purple pre-dawn sky. The snowy mountains of the Hebra Snowfields and the Gerudo Highlands rose in the west, their white caps glowing pink in the dawn's glow. In a few minutes they would become mirrors, reflecting the full light of the risen sun. The wetlands of Lanayru and the fields of Central Hyrule seemed indistinguishable in the mist, with only the faintest alterations of color distinguishing the two. "The world is so large. Has it always been so vast?" I asked myself aloud in a whisper.

I glanced around at the plateau itself, which was blanketed in a gauzy haze of mist. Dim dark outlines of trees, and hills appeared beyond the fog. A tall mountain loomed to the south. That must be Mount Hylia, I thought. A few flames gleamed orange in the clouds, casting large flickering shadows about.

But, as my eyes focused on the world around me, an entire field of purple lupines began to wave in the breeze, and birds began to sing a hopeful hymn to the morning. My eyes followed the flowers encircling the plateau's walls to the east, where dawn was kissing the sky and Rodolfo stood.

Wearing his long cloak he was dark and solid, the only thing I saw that I was sure was real. Nothing on the plateau seemed to belong to the mortal world, even the air seemed ethereal. Was the whole plateau a mere mirage? Would I keep walking into the mist and find myself returned to a field near Gatepost Town, with no idea of where I'd been? In answer, a faint breeze kissed my cheeks and lifted his pale hair into a dance. The wind, at least, was real. Rodolfo smiled at the breeze and looked up toward the misty hills.

"You seem as if you know the place," I said as the wind tangled my hair about my shoulders. "Have you been here before?"

"I've traveled here a few times," he said mysteriously, "but we should be departing for the temple, if you wish to be there for the sunrise." He turned and his raven-colored cloak swished dramatically behind him. "Follow me."

The guards had emerged from the stairway and were following us as he led us across several stone paths and patios until we arrived at another immensely grand stair case. This one comprised of two sets of curving steps, with a massive stone balustrade dividing them. Royal banners, red and gold, waved on tall flag poles. But something else flickered, low to the ground.

"Quiet," I whispered harshly, stopping and holding my hand out to stop Rodolfo. "What's that bird?"

He collided with my outstretched arm and jumped backward.

"It sounds almost like a wren, but the pitch is off," I continued, cutting off the start of his question.

We listened in silence, my hand still outstretched, lest my bracelets slide down my arm and clank against my wrist bone.

"It's a Hylian Lark," he answered in a whisper.

"I've seen them in older ornithological texts, but I read they were extinct."

"The Royal Guild of Biologists did declare them extinct, after they feared that domestication had rendered them so. But they still exist in small flocks scattered about the plateau."

"This looks like the Golden Land!" I exclaimed excitedly, twirling about to take in the sight of these majestic stairs. "And perhaps it actually is, if ancient birds long since disappeared still fly about."

He laughed a musical laugh and smiled. "This way, your highness." Although I was marveling at the larks still hopping about the pavilion and focusing on their melodious song, I could hear the smile brightening his voice.

"I didn't know you cared for birds, your highness," he stated matter-of-factly, as we began to climb. Imposing stone walls draped with ivy hemmed us in on either side. "I have heard of your studies, but I thought that your interests were purely historical."

"I've made it a habit in recent years to learn everything I can about Hyrule. Any piece of knowledge, however seemingly inconsequential, might just be instrumental in the fight against…wait, how do you know of my studies?" I questioned, suddenly realizing how much Rodolfo knew of me despite the fact that we'd only met yesterday.

"Well, I myself have seen you in the library several times, but you do have a bit of a reputation around the castle for your research and your voracious reading habits."

"I do?" I asked, suddenly self-conscious as I also doubted my footing on these ancient stairs.

"I know for a fact that the Royal Librarian, Sir Albrecht, refers to you as the 'lady of the library'."

"Ah." I replied simply, unsure of what to say. So it wasn't merely Father who knew of my research. I'd have to make my library visits more clandestine if they attracted so much notice. What if Sir Albrecht was alerting Father to my library visits?

Once we reached the top of the steps a large circular fountain babbled, adding its music to the birdsong. Above me to my left, a grand spire climbed heavenward. Although the mist obscure my sight, I could make out a tree lined avenue to my right, another small past leading into a wood, and another proper path to my left. But Rodolfo led the guards (their armor still clanking) and I up a smaller staircase to the left. Once we arrived on the landing, a small building made of alabaster stone stood to my right. The strange little building glowed from within, its stained glass windows casting light on the cypress topiaries surrounding it.

"What is that?" I asked, drawn toward the light in the mist like a lost ship toward a beacon. "That's not the Temple of Time, is it? It looks nothing like the prints I've seen of it."

"If I'm not mistaken by the positioning of the triangle, that's Farore's Chapel. Long ago, the Hylians built three temples to each of the golden goddess, and their three chapels form the triforce when viewed from the Heavens. The Temple of Time sits above them, upon the hill's peak," he said, waving a long navy blue sleeve toward the mist-covered hills.

"Is there enough time to look inside and offer a prayer?"

He looked about and held one hand aloft, as if checking for rain, or confirming the direction of the wind. "We have a few minutes to spare."

I approached the portico, which was lit by weathered lanterns coated in verdigris. Although we were far from the ocean, I was almost sure that the chapel had been weathered by an unrelenting sea breeze. Ferns and draping amaranths overflowed from the mossy urns. There was no door, but small colorful sparrows perched on the lintel. Exotic ferns and palms, which I had only seen in illustrations of the Faron jungles, were growing in elaborate clay pots of various designs.

Silently, I stepped onto the terrazzo floors, and trod through the open doorway. In front of me, the circular symbol of Farore on the floor confirmed the identity of the chapel's patron deity. I crinkled my nose. The room buzzed with energy and the smell of the air in a thunderstorm.

Carvings of all manners of flora and fauna were engraved on the grey stone walls. Benches, made of rough-hewn logs, stood in a semi-circle around a simple altar, on which a green flame burned in a bronze vessel. To its right, a small fawn, with speckled downy fur slept, it nose nestled in its belly. A thick cushion of moss spread from the corners.. It was only natural that her chapel would be a haven to all living creatures, for after all, Farore had brought life to Hyrule.

I murmured a prayer to the goddess of courage. "Oh Farore, help me protect this world which you so lovingly filled with life." As if in response, one of the Hylian Larks landed on the altar and stared at me from its perch, offering a few hopeful chirps.

In silence I left the chapel, and we ascended the stairs in front of me to arrive at another chapel of a similar build. A circular symbol above its doorway answered my question before I could voice it. This was Nayru's.

Ornate Corinthian columns hemmed in the portico. The roof was slate-shingled. I stepped onto a floor inlaid with blue, glassy pebbles that resembled the seashore. Silvery leaves clung to the gray walls like ivy.

A night sky, painted deeply as the night itself shimmered on the vaulted ceiling. Lights, suspended in glass lanterns, shone as the brightest stars. They glowed, as if illuminated by magic. A few lacquered pews were arranged in orderly lines and leatherbound prayer books had been piled upon one near the back. I padded across a richly woven plush carpet that led to Nayrus's emblem, displayed in the center of the floor just as Farore's was in her chapel. On the altar, a blue flame burned in a silver bowl. Large stained glass windows filled the walls, and ornate tapestries filled the spaces between them. Some depicted maps, others historical scenes, and others recreated the arrangement of celestial bodies in the heavens.

"Oh goddess Nayru, font of all wisdom," I prayed, mesmerized by the rich artwork, "I have always aspired to your example, and so sought to better understand the order of this world. Grant me wisdom so that I might know how to access the sealing powers gifted to me."

As I stepped out onto the portico, I noticed a small blue flower, whose name I didn't know, blooming besides the columns. I'd have to research it in the library.

"And that leaves Din," I breathed.

Her chapel stood above another short set of stairs.

The terracotta tiled roof glowed pink in the ripening dawn. Fires blazed in wrought iron lanterns. The portico's only decorations were two statues of female warriors standing on either side of the door. Inside, gemstones of every colors covered the walls in detailed mosaics. They depicted the creation of Hyrule, and the many landforms of the country, capturing mountaintops in quartz and diamond, and lakes in sapphires. The room lacked pews, save for a few simple cushions of woven cloth that rested on the stone floor. Upon the sandstone altar, a golden bowl burned with red fire, redder than any flame I'd ever seen.

I gazed into the fire, and watched shadows shaped like people and animals flicker across the decorative walls. "Din." I prayed, searching for words. "Your triforce has often been used by those seeking to do evil in this world. But please, I am begging your intercession to allow me to access the divine sealing power which has been entrusted to me. Lend me your strength in my time of need."

I exited the chapel and Rodolfo led me up took stairs to my right. A row of cypresses lined the balustrades of this uppermost patio.

"And the Temple of Time is Hylia's," I thought to myself, a fact I had long ago memorized.

I stumbled backward as I tilted my head backward to see the entirety of the high spire. Thin columns hemmed either side of the door, and a triforce, made of gleaming glass, sat above it.

"Are you ready?" he asked.

I nodded, all words escaping me. Would something happen this time, given that I was as old as the hero of legend? Would the goddess finally answer my prayers in a language I could understand?"

He stepped forward and tugged at an iron handle. The magnificent wooden door swung forward. "After you, my lady," Rodolfo said, bowing his head as he held the door open.

Remembering the guards, I quickly turned to face their emotionless faces. "Please remain outside," I commanded. "I will call if I require your assistance." They responded but I did not hear them.

I stepped into the temple and the sun's first rays, magnified by the stained glass window shone brilliantly before me. The interior walls were marble. Every facet, window, and floor tile reflected the sunbeams that were now gathering in the dustless air and pooling on the polished floor.

It was as if I had stepped inside of a gemstone; each diamond facet magnified the light until even my skin glowed. Or I had walked into a winter morning. Not only did the entire temple glow like the snow covering a winter dawn, but the air hummed with an unnatural quietness. No birds sang. The room was silent. Some ethereal chill had descended, leaving the marble hall suitable only for the heavenly prayers and psalms I would offer to the goddess.

I slowly paced up the aisle, letting my eyes linger on every object and surface. Wooden pews sat on each side of the aisle and wrought iron candelabras stood in between every few pews. The candles were unlit. The lightening sky gleamed behind the tall windows.

As I walked toward the altar, my white dress became as luminescent as the temple's walls and reflected rainbows on the tile. The temple was claiming me as its own.

The altar was elevated from the rest of the temple. Guardian eagles looked down on me as I started up the staircase on a rich red carpet trimmed in gold. I found myself trembling as I looked up and saw the goddess waiting for me, watching me.

And then the sun rose. Light beamed through the windows behind her, setting the temple ablaze with light. It was as if the goddess herself appeared before me, with her glory streaming all about her. Around her, the building's stone and glass transmuted into gold.

Her figure slowly manifested itself from the light as my eyes adjusted to the blaze. She towered over me. While I had heard that the icon of the goddess within the temple was perhaps the largest in Hyrule, I could not have imagined its scope. Its size overwhelmed me.

Smaller statues of herself ringed the central one. This only magnified the sensation of being trapped within a multifaceted gemstone, each plane refracting the same image.

I fell to my knees before her and closed my eyes.

"Dear goddess," I whispered. "I come seeking help."

I stared up at her stony face. "You who control the flow of time, and have watched over this land of Hyrule since time immemorial, you know that I have sought your intercession time and time again." As I bowed my head, I could pretend that she too nodded, acknowledging my words.

"Please, answer me. Tell me what I must do to access the power to seal Ganon away."

My eyes filled with diamonds, my tears now refracting the light. "Please just tell me how."

Celestial music filled the air. Harps, magnified by the marble walls, resounded like an orchestra. Were these the voices from the spirit realm? The goddesses were communicating with me! I had ascended to golden land, I must be hearing the celestial music. Or Hylia's voice must sound like heavenly music, like ancient hymns and psalms and the harp which she herself created. Unexplainable joy blossomed in m heart—I had finally succeeded.

Then a voice distilled itself from the angelic harmonies, a voice that could not be described as anything other than heavenly. This must be the voice that calls one to the spirit realm and robs souls from bodies. It spoke ancient words, words I recognized as ancient Hylian but could not immediately translate.

"I hear you goddesses." I said. "I hear your voices, please direct me. What are you telling me?"

I was transfixed, but I closed my eyes, suddenly scared by the sublime. The music resonated from the walls, surrounding me. But what were the words, what was the text? My eyes flickered opened, a sudden fear seizing my heart and stopping it for a second.

The voice was all too familiar. The text was too. The words were old Hylian, a prophecy and a story from the beginning of Hyrule. I had heard this voice singing outside my window on moon-filled nights. And it had sang for me last night.

"No." I whispered, my mouth parched and my throat constricting.

"Rodolfo. Why have you disturbed me?" I whispered, horrified and fighting back the scream that threatened to erupt from my throat. "Why?" I asked, my voice twisting nearly into a yell.

The music stopped, hanging in the air for several seconds before falling into silence.

I turned. He stood, still in darkness, in the narthex of the temple. He still held the harp aloft. "He who sings prays twice," he answered. He had fixed his face with that inscrutable expression, one that certainly could not contort itself into any semblance of penitence or shame.

"I don't—I cannot be disturbed when I pray."

He was silent.

"Rodolfo, I must pray alone." I turned away from him and fixed my eyes on the feet of the goddess. I couldn't hear his footsteps. "Please g—no, you must go"

And when his footsteps faded into distant silence, a single cry spasmed through my throat. My face flushed and my lips trembled. Why were they always silent? Why did they never speak?

"Dear goddess, oh lovely lady Hylia, hear my prayers," I whispered into the silence, trying to steady my voice.

A vein twitched near my temple, and my heart beat echoed in my ears. My heart pumped the blood of the goddess through my body. I closed my eyes and I could see the red in my veins, illuminated by the sun in front of me. Yet why was she silent?

Some stories would say that the blood of many ancient heroes flowed through royal veins as well. Was Link the hero of this generation? The first hero in ten thousand years?

"Dear goddess…please…protect him. And please imbue me with the power to seal the darkness of the Calamity. Without your intercession I cannot hope to save and preserve this land you have created." Looking up at her, sunlight crowning her stone head, she smiled warmly, yet her silence chilled the blood that flowed through my arms and into my aching heart.

Stone and flesh.

How entirely different we were.

"But if I cannot access those powers, help the Sheikah in their plans. And if we choose champions to pilot the Divine Beasts, like in the last fight against the Calamity, please help Father and his advisors find Champions who already possess their powers and the ability to control the ancient technology."

A single tear scorched my eyes, searing a path down my cheek toward my chin.

"Please let me be the only disappointment," I sobbed, and the sun rose another inch, turning my tear-filled eyes into golden amber, trapping me inside like a bug.

I blinked away my sudden blindness.

"Please let me be the only failure."

I bowed my head, away from the light and the responsibilities. But still, dazzling lights danced across my closed eyelids, filling my vision with the red of my blood. Lacking any and all opportunity for escape, I gazed back up at her, her power reverberating around the temple's marble walls.

"But if you won't grant me my sealing powers, please guide us to the ancient technology."

"Please."

A/N

Hello dear readers, I certainly haven't posted in a while! But, good news, chapter 5 is very nearly done, and I hope to have that up next week. After my proposed chapter 4 reached 10,000 words, I decided that that was just too long and I split it, so here's the first half.

My sister and I played Age of Calamity over Christmas and it was so cool to see BoTW's world before the calamity occurred. That being said, I did creatively imagine the Temple of Time and the three other temples much more grandly than they appear in the game. But given that AoC isn't canon, I feel totally justified in my creative license. I still want to play an actual BoTW prequel though.

Thanks to Jane Keybored for the lovely long reviews. You're right, Zelda is a bit annoying and a tad too idealistic. But she certainly is a teenager. And given that she's about to undergo quite a traumatic and taxing year of serious responsibilities and stressors, I've been finding it fun to imagine her slightly more carefree personality before the events of BoTW. Rodolfo has been a fun character to write as well, he's enchanting but he still has an ego to get over!

Many thanks for all the favorites and follows! And I always welcome feedback :)