Chapter Two- An Empty Throne

Zelda slept until the late afternoon, not waking until a sliver of sunlight made it through the heavy curtains to pierce her eyelids. She sat up slowly, groaning as her stiff joints crackled. It took her a moment to remember where she was—for a blissful second, she'd almost believed she was back in her childhood bedroom, about to be greeted by her nanny, Kila. She forced herself to stand, yawning so widely that her jaw popped.

Paya had thoughtfully left a set of Sheikah whites hanging from the low ceiling supports, as well as a washbasin set by the foot of her bed. Zelda peeled off her sweaty nightgown and washed as quickly as possible—the water had gone cold. She dressed herself in the whites and was in the process of detangling her long hair with a bone comb when a gentle knock came at the door.

Without waiting for an answer, Impa entered. She was far less formidable now than when Zelda had first seen her—without her wide, conical hat, she seemed much smaller and weaker. Her shriveled face broke into a toothy grin.

"I'd been wondering if I'd have to wait another hundred years for you to wake, Princess."

Zelda smiled sheepishly. Even under all the weathered lines and ridges in Impa's face, her warm eyes were exactly as she remembered them. "My apologies," she said, embracing the frail old woman. "Paya's nightshade tea certainly did its work."

"Come downstairs and have something to eat, my dear. We have much to discuss."

After Paya had ladled Zelda a generous portion of potato and leek soup, Impa informed her of a clandestine meeting of Sheikah elders that would be taking place that evening to discuss the future of Hyrule.

"There are several steps we must take towards defeating Ganon," Impa explained. "For one, we must recover the Master Sword. It was lost shortly after Link—"

"I hid it," Zelda supplied, wiping a bit of broth from the corner of her mouth. "I asked the Deku Tree to watch over it."

"That was wise. But the question of whether Link will be able to wield it once again remains."

Zelda poked at a potato, watching it turn over in her bowl. That was not something she had considered. Even without his memory, he still had the soul of the Hero, didn't he? But his eyes had been so empty…

They had to find a way into the Resurrection Shrine. Only then could they know what in Hylia's name had been done to him.

The meeting took place outdoors, to Zelda's surprise. She, Impa, and the head of Impa's personal guard, Dorian, were escorted out of Kakariko Village by a company of silent, black-clad Sheikah ninjas. The air was cool and slightly damp, which Zelda greatly preferred to the dry, dusty heat of Impa's home. As they left the village behind and started up a steep path, fireflies began to emerge, casting everything in an ethereal green glow.

At the crest of the hill stood a shrine, one of many that had been excavated across Hyrule. There were more than one hundred of them, of unknown purpose. Curiously, this one now shone with a rich orange light, illuminating the whorls carved into the stone. Was this a reaction to Ganon's emergence?

They continued past the shrine, passing beneath an archway and into a thick cluster of trees. The forest was alive with bioluminescence from various flowers and mushrooms. For a moment, Zelda thought she saw a glowing white-blue rabbit nosing through a patch of nightshade, but it vanished as soon as she blinked. She glanced over at Impa, who leaned heavily on Dorian's arm.

"Why aren't we simply meeting in your home, Impa? Or elsewhere in the village?"

"Too many… eavesdroppers," Impa panted. "These talks are… too important to risk… rumourmongers."

In the distance, flashes of flickering torchlight grew steadier as they approached a small, burbling creek. There were even more ninjas on the other side of the bridge—Zelda could not recall being this heavily guarded since the Champion's Inauguration one hundred years ago.

At last, they reached a clearing. A stone platform, glowing orange like the shrine, was the centre of a small circle of people dressed in Sheikah whites. Purah she recognised, but there was also an old man with wild hair and a young woman no older than Paya by his side. They both stared wide-eyed at Zelda as she sat on one of the provided cushions circling the platform.

"In Hylia's name," huffed Impa as Dorian helped her sit down. "Must you choose locations that might as well require climbing to the peak of Mount Lanayru?"

Purah shrugged, her eyes guileless behind her round spectacles. "You wanted secrecy. It isn't my fault you've become an old crone."

"We're all here now and that's what matters," said the old man, before Impa could retort. "Princess, it is marvelous to see you in such good health after everything you've been through."

"Thank you," Zelda murmured, staring down at her lap. "May Hylia watch over you."

"And you as well, your Highness. My name is Robbie—I was one of the top scientists specialising in Guardians before the Calamity. This is my wife, Jerrin—"

"Enough introductions," Impa interrupted. "Our time is short."

"Indeed," said Dorian. It was the first time Zelda had heard him speak—his voice was low and pleasant. "I thought I might begin with good news—a possible sighting of sir Link."

Murmurs broke out as Zelda's heart leapt. "Where exactly?"

"A barmaid at Wetland Stable spotted a young man with no shirt, torn trousers, and shoulder-length hair wandering near the Bottomless Swamp. When she called out to him, he fled towards Eagus Bridge and she lost sight of him."

"Take a few men tomorrow morning and investigate," Impa ordered.

"I will go as well," said Zelda. All eyes turned towards her.

"Absolutely not," said Impa, not unkindly. "You are the future queen of Hyrule. We cannot possibly expose you to any unnecessary risks."

"Queen?" Zelda repeated, aghast. There had been no queen of Hyrule since her mother's demise, and Zelda had never felt inclined to rule. Her strengths lay with machinery and scholarly research rather than politics. The last time she'd even been tutored in the various fields necessary to become a governor of a kingdom was when she was six years old—before unlocking her sealing power had taken top priority.

Purah let out a low whistle. "Way to break it to her, sis."

"How am I to become queen?" Zelda demanded, hearing her voice become higher-pitched. "What kingdom is left for me to rule?"

"Your people still live, Princess." Impa folded her hands in her lap, frustratingly calm. "They need you."

"They need a qualified ruler, if one at all! They've been without a monarch for a century, scattered across Hyrule—"

"Yes, they are scattered. As queen, you will serve as the rallying point." Impa sighed, shaking her head. "Hyrule needs stability and unity. You will bring the realm back together and allow it to heal at last."

Zelda shook her head. "The other races will not accept my rule. Even a century ago, the Rito never—"

"Princess, I must insist—"

"Stop it!"

Purah's high shrill cut through the night. Silence fell as the girl climbed atop the glowing pedestal, fists clenched and eyebrows furrowed.

"Snappity snap, you're both acting even more childish than me!" Zelda felt her cheeks burn, and she dropped her gaze. "This isn't even what we came here to talk about!"

"She's right," said Jerrin softly. "I don't see any point in appointing a queen if the realm is still threatened and she does not wish to take the throne. We must focus on finding a way to seal Ganon away… permanently."

Ice crept up Zelda's back as something whispered in her ear in a language she could not comprehend. She shivered, earning a curious look from Dorian.

"The Divine Beasts and Guardians are still corrupted by Calamity Ganon," Robbie explained as Purah retook her seat. "Without them, I don't believe we have a fighting chance. I considered an attempt to capture a live Guardian…"

Zelda allowed her focus to shift away from the conversation and inwards instead. The Divine Beasts had been her specialty, her passion—every hour that she was not praying or doing fieldwork on the shrines was spent studying maps of the colossal machine's inner workings. Daruk of the Gorons had even joked that Zelda should have been the one piloting Vah Rudania, as she knew more about it than all four Champions and the Sheikah scientists put together…

"What if I reclaimed the Divine Beasts?"

Robbie's eyes nearly bulged out. "Pardon me, Princess?"

Trying to get everything out before Impa interrupted her, Zelda hurried to explain: "Each Beast has a central control unit that allowed the pilot to mentally connect with the machine. Once they got the hang of it, the pilot could control the Divine Beast as easily as their own body. I recall that each control unit had a pedestal designed for the Sheikah Slate—like the shrines. It must be designed as an emergency override system."

Purah was the first to catch on. "So if you had a Sheikah Slate…"

"I could override the control unit and take the Divine Beasts back from Ganon."

The idea seemed to shimmer in the air like a bubble. Their last hope, so fragile it could burst at any second.

"Why must it be you who completes this task?" asked Jerrin. "Wouldn't it be easier to send someone else into the bowels of the Beasts?"

"I know the most out of anyone about them," said Zelda breathlessly. "I don't wish to brag, but it's the truth—all the pilots all have fallen. Frankly, I would trust no one but myself for this mission."

Purah chuckled. "Seems like a plan to me. Get Linky and the Slate back, retake the Beasts and poof—no more Ganon."

"It will not be that easy," said Impa crossly. "There is too much that could go wrong."

"But it's the only plan we've got," Purah pointed out. The others were nodding in agreement.

Impa's brow deeply furrowed, warping the blue tattoo of a Sheikah eye on her forehead. "If this is the only way, so be it. But the Princess must have a guard."

Purah thrust her tiny arm into the air. "All in favour?" she chirped.

The motion passed unanimously.