Chapter 9 - Victory and Celebration

Summary: Hyrule is victorious, though Link's battle with one of Ganon's creations does not go entirely as planned.

Mipha and Link waited on the northwest pier of East Reservoir Lake. Today was the day Ganon would attack.

"I'm going to board Ruta and activate the main control unit with Purah's defense program as we discussed," said Mipha.

"And I'm coming with you," said Link. "I don't want to take any chances our timing is off, and Ganon's blight creature arrives with you there alone. I worked very hard to get us to this position, and I am not going to jeopardize everything now."

"Alright," said Mipha. "I'll pull you along."

Mipha and Link dove into the water, and Mipha swam to Ruta, pulling Link with one arm. They both climbed aboard, and as soon as they entered, Link shuddered. He remembered Ruta from four years ago in his timeline, and it made him feel sick inside. The last time he was here, it was crawling with malice and Guardian Scouts. But that was not what bothered him. Malice and Guardian Scouts were nothing to be afraid of. What bothered him was what he recalled of the scene that played out just before he left Ruta that last time.

Ruta had been the first Divine Beast he sought to take back from Ganon's control, and he didn't know what to expect. He had thought Prince Sidon would work together with him on restoring Ruta. And Sidon had indeed worked with him to overcome Ruta's outer defenses. But after Ruta's defenses were shut down, Sidon had given him only words of encouragement to deal with the inside of Ruta. He was a Champion, after all, and only a Champion could enter a Divine Beast. Sidon looked fearful, seemingly anxious to distance himself from Ruta and wait for Link back at the Domain. Link had been left there all alone. He activated the terminal at the entrance and then heard a familiar voice in his head.

"You're here!" she had said, and her tone was one of surprise and happiness. He recognized that voice from his memory of her. It was Mipha. After that, her voice guided and encouraged him through the places he needed to go to take back control of Ruta. He thought at first she must be alive after all, as her father had hoped, trapped somewhere but able to communicate with him through Ruta somehow. Finally, he activated the main control unit and had his battle with Waterblight Ganon. He was victorious! He had defeated their enemy.

Now, where was Mipha? But before he could savor his victory and search for her, he heard her voice once again. "Hello, Link," she had said. And then he saw her spirit, and he realized that what everyone had feared was true: Mipha was dead. He stood speechless, in shock, as he listened to her and received her gift of healing. Through some magic, he found himself disappearing. And when he reappeared, he was outside Ruta, and she was gone. To him, Ruta had been haunted.

Now it was eerily quiet inside Ruta, and the sound of their footsteps in the water echoed off the walls of this cavernous device. The only other sound was the splash of water flowing in another room. They both started walking to the central terminal at the rear of the bottom floor. Mipha seemed quite calm, totally at ease with her Divine Beast. But Link remained on edge. He realized it didn't make sense, but muscle memory of the time he spent inside Ruta made him wary. He reached back and took comfort in feeling his sword was handy.

Finally, they reached the main terminal. Mipha started working with it and activated Purah's defense system.

"Alright, Purah's system is activated," said Mipha.

"I just said a short prayer to Hylia that it works," said Link. "Let's get out of here now."

They retraced their steps to Ruta's entrance, then dove into the water and swam back to the northwest pier.

"So now we wait," said Link.

"You were very nervous inside Ruta," said Mipha. "You shouldn't be afraid of her."

"It wasn't really fear," said Link. "It was the terrible memories I have of the last time I was there."

"I wish I could cure your mind. Do you want to talk about it?" asked Mipha.

"I do, and I don't," said Link. "For someone with so many memory problems, I wish this was one I could forget. In my original timeline, Ruta was the last time you spoke to me face to face, or rather your spirit did. I carried that heartbreak with me all this time. But that hasn't happened now, and, with Hylia's help, I will do everything in my power to make sure it never does."

Mipha and Link continued to wait on the pier.

"What happens next?" asked Mipha.

"From what I recall, Ganon emerges from under Hyrule Castle, and waves of purple malice spew out across Hyrule, infecting all the Guardians and Divine Beasts. Four horrible creatures of his take over the Divine Beasts. We should be able to see what happens to Ruta from here," said Link.

"What is the creature Ganon sends to Ruta like?" asked Mipha.

"It's a disgusting-looking monstrosity with one eye that can shoot an energy beam. It also wields a giant spear and can summon blocks of ice," said Link.

"Are you sure you can handle it? Do you need me to help?" asked Mipha.

"I can handle it alone," said Link. "I've practiced destroying it many times. If it cannot enter Ruta, then I need you to take over Ruta. If it can enter Ruta, then you and I will battle it together."

They waited in silence. Suddenly there was a distant roaring sound. The sky darkened, and waves of purple malice could be seen shooting through the air, originating from west of them, the direction of Hyrule Castle. Ganon's attack had begun.

A large mass of purple malice streaked from the sky toward them. It collided with Ruta, but instead of infecting it as the creature expected, it bounced off and landed in the lake. Then it rose up out of the water with a horrible screeching sound and looked around.

"It looks like Purah's defense is working," shouted Link above the noise.

"I need to get back inside Ruta," said Mipha.

"Yes," said Link, "but I am not letting you get anywhere near that thing. I'll distract it by luring it closer to land here. When I have its full attention, you swim around the side and approach Ruta out of sight of that thing. Promise me you'll be safe."

"I promise," said Mipha. "Stay safe yourself."

Link remembered Waterblight Ganon very well. He had practiced defeating it several times, and he was better armed now than he was then. He started by shooting it in the eye with some arrows. The creature saw him now and approached closer to land. It swung its massive spear at Link, but Link was able to dodge it. Then Link launched some more arrows at it as he moved further back on the pier out of reach.

The creature seemed reluctant to follow Link, though. It must be under Ganon's orders to infect Ruta, and was struggling to know what to do. Hence it stayed near Ruta. Link could not reach it out on the water with his sword, but he had plenty of arrows. Mipha was nowhere to be seen. She must be swimming underwater. Link let loose with a barrage of bomb arrows. That got the creature's attention. It started forming ice blocks and hurling them at Link. He did not have a Sheikah Slate or any defensive runes, so he relied on arrows to destroy the blocks. Then he again attacked the creature with a barrage of bomb arrows. He sensed it was weakening.

Waterblight Ganon approached closer to the pier and then began to energize its energy beam. Link quickly put away his bow and prepared his shield to deflect the ray back. But his timing was off, and the beam knocked him to the ground, searing his shoulder. He groaned, his shoulder burning from the pain. He could hear the creature energizing its weapon again for another strike. He needed to get up and get his shield in position to deflect it. But he was still struggling to his feet, the pain in his shoulder making it hard to push himself up. If he couldn't get up in time, he would have to try diving out of the way at the last second. He could hear the pitch of the energy beam increasing as it approached firing level.

Suddenly there was another sound, the sound of a giant machine in motion. Ruta's head was turning to face Waterblight Ganon. The noise distracted the creature as well. It turned to look when Ruta fired a powerful beam of blue energy. The ray struck Waterblight Ganon, and it howled with pain. The beam continued to pour down onto the creature until, with a final horrible scream, the creature dissolved into a purple ball and then collapsed into nothingness. Ruta's beam stopped, and the lake was quiet again.

Link saw Mipha emerge from Ruta. She dove into the water, and he never saw anyone swim so fast. She was by his side in a matter of seconds.

"You're hurt," said Mipha. "Let me help you."

Mipha's hand glowed with her healing power as she waved it across the ugly burn marks on his shoulder. Soon the wound was healed, and the scars were gone.

"Thank you, Mipha," said Link. "I'm glad you can still do that."

"So am I," said Mipha. "I wasn't sure I could."

"We did it," said Link. "Purah's defense worked. You need to lock Ruta's targeting beam onto Hyrule Castle. I hope the other Champions are having equal success. But I need to go to Hyrule Castle now so Princess Zelda and I can finish this."

"Yes, I understand," said Mipha. "And I will get Ruta in a position to aid you. I pray Hylia will protect you and return you safely."

The details of Zelda, Link, and the Champions' defeat of Ganon are recorded in the annals of Hyrule history, so Link was not going to repeat any more of it here in his notes. Suffice it to say that with the knowledge Link brought back in time with him, they were successful. Purah's defensive rune worked, and Ganon and the Yiga Clan ended up being the ones surprised. When it was over, Zelda and Link stood together in Hyrule Field, any residual purple malice gradually disappearing from land and sky. Zelda turned to Link and smiled. Then they hugged each other and congratulated one another. Their plan had worked, and Hyrule was safe. It was time to restore order and then celebrate.

It was a week later that King Rhoam presided over a grand celebration at Hyrule Castle. Banners blew in the breeze, and people crowded Castle Town for the party. The Champions were all given a place of honor on the platform where King Rhoam spoke, thanking them for their heroic efforts. Hyrule was now at peace, and they needn't worry about Ganon for a long time.

Each village also had a celebration honoring their individual Champion. Link could not attend all of them, so he chose the one at Zora's Domain. Mipha was obviously the star of the ceremony, as King Dorephan praised his daughter for her role in Ganon's defeat. Link remained in the audience applauding for her, but after the ceremony, she did not stop to speak with him but instead left to be with her family. She had clearly not come to terms with who he was or come to accept him as the person she knew and loved.

Link returned to Hyrule Castle, and since Princess Zelda no longer needed a personal guardian, he obtained King Rhoam's permission to leave his duties. He returned to Zora's Domain once again, where he hoped he could be together with Mipha at some point.