I woke up gasping and sucking for air, sitting up. The air around me was cold, and I laid on a gold pedestal, supported by an ever-flowing pillar of water. Link was next to me, still out cold. He held the Master Sword tightly with his left hand. I looked around and jumped to see… myself?

"Hello, Zelda."

I did not hear the voice so much as feel it; three tones at once ringing in my head. It sounded like ringing bells. My… doppelganger smiled softly.

"We are The Three Goddesses."

I nodded slowly.

"We chose this form, as it would be easy to recognize."

"Could you please take a different one? It is a little eerie to see myself." The Goddesses nodded. "Who would you like us to be?"

I thought for a few minutes, looking at my lap. "My mother." They nodded and subtly changed. Taller, darker hair, and an open, innocent face.

"Is this better?"

"Yes, thank you."

I stood up and looked around the large, empty space that went on forever and ever. "Where is this place?"

"This is the Sacred Realm. The point at which we left Hyrule after its creation."

"How did we get here?"

"The Hero of Hyrule freed the Master Sword from its pedestal, opening the portal and bringing you here, as you were both touching the sword with your left hands." Dimly, I could remember doing just that—reaching for Link with my fingertips on the pommel to get away from Ganondorf. "How long have I been here?" The Goddesses tilted their head. "There is no concept of time in the Sacred Realm. If you mean in earthly hours, it could be anywhere from a few minutes to years." Years. I sat down slowly, my eyes wide, sinking to my knees. The Goddesses waited in silence, watching me. "So… was Ganondorf left behind then?" They nodded. "So… if it's been years, he would've taken over Hyrule by now, and…" They nodded again. "Father, I have failed you," I whispered, putting my face in my hands and sobbing. "No you didn't," murmured a voice next to my ear. It was Link, and I wanted to look at him, but I couldn't stop sobbing. He put an arm around my shoulders and squeezed me against his chest in a hug. The Goddesses waited still, until I was done mourning my failure. I sniffed and dried my eyes with my fingers. "Sorry…" They nodded sympathetically. "Zelda. You must go back. You can take back your kingdom. It has been done before, it can be done again." I nodded with belief. "Link. You must aid her. Power is not the topmost triforce because it is the best. It relies on wisdom and courage to be supported, to even exist. Wisdom cannot support power alone." Link nodded, and the Goddesses beamed at both of us. "Ganon does not know it yet, but he needs you both to complete himself. Without you, he has nothing to balance upon." They straightened, and held out both of their hands, palms upward. "I will send you back now, to your own time. Right now you are as you were when you came here. You might find this is not the same when you return." We both nodded. "Very well!" The Goddesses called, their voice taking on a new thunder. They raised their arms high, and started to glow like a star, brighter and brighter until I could no longer look at them.

When the light started to fade, I opened my eyes. I wished I hadn't, though. We were back in the temple of time, alright- or what was left of it. Someone or something had apparently hated the building's beautiful architecture and torn it down. The room we were in was open to the night sky, the stars shining dully past a smoky haze. I stood up and looked around, my jaw agape. The rest of the building was crumbled to bits and pieces, the pews broken, burned, or simply missing. The statue of the goddesses was smashed apart entirely. I looked down at myself, and jolted. It must've been quite a while since we were in Hyrule; my body was longer and fuller in all the womanly places. I was still in the ill-fitting clothes I'd run to the temple in. The dress fit far too tightly, and the seams were stretched. I turned back and looked at Link, who'd gotten up. He was in much the same predicament, his hair long and raggedy, his jaw firm. I buckled my cloak across my body to hide its… advancements, and turned back to Link completely. "How long do you think we've been gone?" I asked him softly. He shook his head. "Not sure, your majesty."

"Probably shouldn't call me that anymore," I muttered with a little frown.

"Why not?" was his casual reply. "You're still the queen."

"I don't feel like it." We picked our way through the rubble. The tapestry was gone, long burned or something. Funnily enough, the doors were still standing, and in perfect condition. We went around them instead, through gaping holes in the walls. The market was much of the same. Buildings were destroyed, things were burned, statues and monuments were smashed to pieces. My first instinct was to see what had happened to the castle, my home, and I headed that way. "My lady, I wouldn't go that way." I turned and frowned. "Why not?" He pointed beyond my shoulder to the main walkway of the castle. There was now a towering wrought iron gate blocking its way, with two menacing guards in complete suits of armor standing before it. Link pulled me back with his hands on my shoulders, turning me towards the way out of the castle marketplace entirely. We crept along in silence, occasionally knocking around small bits of gravel and broken statue. The fountain that continually flowed in the main market was not doing so now. The water that was in its bowl was green with algae. "Where are all the people?" I whispered through my tears. Link shook his head. "I know not, my lady." We finally managed to escape, out into the main fields of Hyrule. Giant lizards wielding swords and shields crept about, and Link kept one arm protectively in front of me. "There needs to be a faster way to travel," I muttered to him with a frown. "And a safer way." I didn't mean to cause offense, but I had no weapon, and I knew Link would have a hard enough time trying to protect himself. "I'll see what I can do, my lady." We crawled back towards the castle on the outside of the walls, Link staring ever ahead. I could see the distant woods. Surprisingly, they didn't look much changed. Sure, the closest trees were dead or dying, grey and covered with horrific spider webs the size of rugs. But there was still a good green sort of smell emanating from them. The grass underfoot was patchy and yellow, littered with bones. I tried not to think about whether they belonged to animal or man. Link stopped abruptly, his hand on my shoulder. He whistled low, a soft tune I didn't recognize. We waited for several minutes, but nothing happened. His face fell. "She must be trapped somewhere," he muttered. She? "My horse," he explained. I nodded with a frown. Link continued sneaking with me, occasionally looking up. I could see dark shapes circling, silhouetted in the night sky. He whistled a different, low tune, and one of the dark shapes slowly swooped down, getting bigger. It was an owl, with huge eyes and two funny shapes on top of its head, almost like cat's ears. Link held out one arm and the owl alighted. He turned with his arm outstretched, giving the owl a little push. It flapped into the air, circling low over the grounds until it was a dark speck against the sky. "Hopefully he'll find the horse for us," Link muttered. He turned and faced the woods. "My lady, I hope that you are not too fond of warm beds, because we may go without them for a long while." I smiled sadly.

"If we ever get them again."

"Of course we will, my lady." I was starting to wish he'd quit calling me that. There was a tone in his voice that indicated a closeness with the way he said it. I cleared my throat and lifted my chin. "Well, what shall we do?" Link turned and looked into the woods. "How are your shoes?" I looked down at the winter boots that were making my feet sweat. "Good enough." Link nodded and led me towards the woods.

We crashed through the first layer of dead flora, Link brandishing his sword high. Massive spiders skittered right at us, hissing and chattering massive jaws. Link's sword lessons had paid off impeccably well; he leapt into the fray and shouted in defiance as he parried and thrusted, felling the massive beasts. I was horrified- was this all Ganon's doing? It had to be.

How long had we communed with the Goddesses? How much real time had flickered by as I babbled like a fool? Could I have saved the town faster if I had just leapt into the fray? I would never know the answers. But we were here now, and the Goddesses assured us it was not too late. But I was finding it hard to believe. How could it not be too late? My kingdom was torn asunder, and someone else was in control.

Link was breathing hard, his hair clinging to his face with sweat. He scratched it back out of his eyes with one hand. His face was spattered with green, foul-looking blood, as were his ill-fitting clothes. He looked at me and nodded his head once. "Let's continue on, my lady." I nodded and followed him deeper into the thick cluster of trees and foliage. "Do you know where you're going?" I asked timidly. "Yes." If I looked to my left, I could barely see the ruined castle beyond the woods. It made a good focusing point for our bearings.

Link pulled me in deeper, with a small frown on his face. "Link, what are you trying to do?" I dared to ask. He squeezed my hand to silence me. Soon, we stepped into a wide clearing, with knee-high, springy grass. "We should be safe enough here for the night," he murmured to me, taking off his cloak and laying it out over the ground. The clearing was dimly lit by the moon, and I could make out the shape of Link pulling his old sword from his hilt and placing the Master Sword there instead. He studied his old sword critically, lended from the castle, and handed it over. "Here you are. For protection." I took it from him with one hand, gasping as I was pulled down with the sudden weight. Link chuckled. "It's going to be quite heavy until you're used to it." I nodded and lifted it with a frown of concentration. I managed to hold it almost at chest level until I had to drop it again; my arms were sore from the heft. "Usually, heavy lifting isn't part of the queen's duties," I tried to joke with a weak smile. Link nodded in understanding. "Try practicing with it for a little while."

He lingered at the edge of the clearing, gathering up sticks and cracking them over his knee to test for wetness. I lifted the sword with both hands, hacking and slashing at an ancient, dead-looking tree, trying to reach some sort of competence. I'd had archery, and was good with a bow and arrow, but not sword-fighting. Not only was archery quite noble, but it kept a person in relative safety, flinging arrows great distances. Sword-fighting could be noble too, I supposed to myself. When sweat was heavy on my brow and I could no longer move my arms, I turned to see that Link was making an effort on a small fire. He had gathered some mushrooms as well, and looked briefly up at me. "Your arms are going to hurt in the morning, I recommend stretching them." I nodded and did what I felt were good enough exercises as he took back his old sword, laying the mushrooms carefully along the blade and balancing it across the fire so they would roast on the hot metal. I lifted my chin and stared at the sky through the thick tree branches. "I don't feel safe creeping about at night. I don't know what traps and things he would have laid out." Link murmured to his sword. I lowered my head and looked at him. "I understand that."

"We'd be easier to see during the day, but so would he."

I nodded. "That's fine with me." He plucked a mushroom off the sword and bounced it around in his palm, blowing on it before popping it in his mouth. I followed suit, surprised at how hot the little morsels were. They were delicious too, and a comfort that something so good could still be found in this place. When we finished our sad little meal, I found I was hungrier than before, but we had no choice in the matter. Link stretched out his legs next to the fire, keeping both swords on either side of him. "Take some rest, my lady," he murmured as he looked back at me. "I'll keep watch for the night." I nodded and climbed onto his cloak that he'd spread out on the grass, huddling into a ball inside of my own and closing my eyes. The woods around us was quiet, with the occasional twittering of a night bird or low, growling croak of a frog. I fell asleep and dreamed.