The Legend of Zelda: Return of the Hero
The Fairy King
-Part IV: The Call of Destiny-
Link gazed at the instrument in his hands for what seemed an eternity. He remained oblivious to the events unfolding behind him. The black crystal of the serpentine staff began to glow, pulsating in foreboding rhythm. Slowly the corpse of Dreygus rose once more and without sound he reached for his weapon. The Fairy King held the instrument of darkness once more and pointed it towards the unsuspecting hero. Lost in thought, Link raised the ocarina and placed the reed between his lips.
Closing his eyes, Link blew the first note as Dreygus unleashed a tendril of dark energy. The snaking black tether pierced him back to front. The dark sorcerer manipulated the tentacle with his staff and lifted Link off the ground. Being shaken violently in the air, the Emerald Knight could only roar madly as he tried grabbing the shimmering dark energy running through his body. Fortune no longer smiled as his hands passed seamlessly through the black tether. The resulting pain was unbearable and the corruption from the cord began spreading across Link's body. He felt as if his soul was being crushed in an endless void.
Helpless against an attack made on the spirit, Link could sense the strangeness of it compared to any attack on the flesh. It was a frightening panic which filled his heart as the corruption consumed him. The Hylian could feel himself dying. The light from the room faded as the darkness spread to the final reaches of his body. In his last moments Link saw a glimmer of hope in the face of Zelda as she smiled at him. His eyes did not shut but the light vanished all the same.
Link's mind entered another realm but this one was not filled with happy memories. He was surrounded by nightmares, creatures he had faced and people he had failed to rescue. He saw himself walking through a field of bodies, each one a person who had needed his help, each one a haunting spirit in the back of his mind. In the distance he heard a familiar deep laughter. Looking up he saw a red haired man from the West standing on a hill.
Link turned to his left and saw a dark reflection of himself. The doppelganger he had faced many times was gaunt and pale enough to be mistaken for dead. The dark shadow glared at Link with piercing yellow eyes as if certain they were destined to be enemies forever. Turning to his right, Link saw seven different shadows. One of the shadows ran up and began shaking him by the shoulders.
As hard as he tried, Link could not make out the face other than a pair of brilliant blue eyes. The shadow grabbed his left hand and held it to his face. Staring at the back of his hand, Link could see the outline of a familiar symbol appear as it glowed white hot and erupted in a magnificent, blinding light. When his vision cleared, Link was back in the moss covered room.
Dreygus had set the entirety of his focus on creating the darkness which was consuming Link's body. The Emerald Knight's spirit was proving most difficult to corrupt. Had he paid attention he would have been able to witness was the triangular symbol on his left hand glow beneath the darkness. When the Fairy King sensed the surge of power it was too late. The flare of holy light shattered the corruption consuming Link and the tether of dark energy exploded leaving Dreygus blinded. He remained stumbling through the room attempting to find his staff when the Hero of Time returned to the physical realm.
Seeing the dreaded staff lying unattended Link wasted no time retrieving the weapon and removing the crystal. With the grievous artifact in both hands, the Forest Child began squeezing with all his might. Eyes closed, he bellowed a war cry causing his hand to ignite with the triangular symbol once more. The power storming within Link's grasp caused purple electricity to spark as his holy energy clashed with the darkness of the jewel. His thoughts lingered on why the spell consuming his body had broken. What weakness was there against this evil?
Roaring still, the Hero of Time continued focusing all of his strength to crush the relic from another realm. Only after he thought of home and those waiting for him did it finally wane and shatter. The falling shards evaporated into thin air before hitting the ground. An unearthly screech filled the room as Dreygus fell to his knees writhing in agony. The involuntary spasms abruptly stopped as he began rising into the air with his arms extended on either side.
The unearthly scream finally changed into the barely recognizable speech of man, "No!"
Link watched in wonder as single rays of light burst forth from the Fairy King with increasing speed until they crescendoed in an explosion of light, forcing him to shield his eyes. When the brilliance subsided all that remained as evidence was a smoldering Ausrellian death mask and a staff crafted to look like a snake.
The cocoons above began to stir with movement. The tightly wrapped vines slowly unraveled to the reveal six beautiful women dressed in silk underneath. Each dress was set to match the hair color of the respective owner. No longer clad by darkness the aura of compassion had been restored to the Great Fairies of Hyrule. Not a single trace of Dreygus' corruption remained. Each one smiled as they glided down to Link on mystic wings.
Tears in his eyes, the Hero of Time was at a loss for words as his seven year conquest was finally complete. Filling the void of silence each Great Fairy spoke in harmony of each another as if rehearsed,
"Thank you for freeing us Forest Child."
"Dreygus' power came from beyond this realm."
"We would have remained slaves under his spell without your rescue."
"You have done great things thus far."
"But the time has come for you to claim your destiny."
"The Hero of Time must return home."
"Hyrule is in danger and needs your help."
"We know fate has not been kind to you these past seven years."
"It is a terrible burden unfairly placed on you."
"We understand the suffering you have endured."
"Time has not been kind to us either."
"We are in your debt and will never forget."
"So long as we breathe you will never stand alone."
"As proof we offer Navi as your companion once more."
"She has missed you greatly."
"Rejoice Link, we are going home!"
Link remained in silence, the words utterly stolen from his breath as glowing balls of light began to appear all over the room, each one a different color. Not a single shade or hue from the spectrum had been left out. Link's eyes filled with tears as the balls of light began to giggle and chase each other around while conversation from a thousand tiny voices filled the chamber. He had found them, after seven years of searching he had finally found them, the fairies from Hyrule and the dozen surrounding kingdoms which had disappeared. All of them had been called here by Dreygus, the self proclaimed Fairy King. His spell was one that not even the Great Fairies could have resisted for they surely would have stopped him if they could.
Feeling a presence behind him, Link turned and saw the spirit of the Ausrellian Prince behind him. Originally he had tried to kill Link as part of his ancient vow to protect his ancestral home but after finding out the foreigner was here to purge the darkness which had taken residence by Dreygus, the Prince was quick to call off his other guardian spirits. After guiding Link to the King's Shield, the Prince showed him to the passage which led to the chamber Dreygus resided in. His dark power prevented the ghosts from coming near and reclaiming their home.
The Ghost Prince spoke, "Thank you Link, the King is already recovering from his sickness. My people are you in your debt. Please take the King's Shield until you have rescued your own kingdom."
Link replied, "It is I who am in your debt. My life would have surely come to and end here if you had not aided me. Thank you for the gift, I swear I shall return it when I am done."
The Ghost Prince responded, "Then let us depart as friends and may Fortune smile on your journey."
With that the Prince faded away leaving Link to ponder alone. His thoughts did not go far as he noticed a single fairy moving toward him through the crowd of others.
She was the color of light blue and hovered with a certain bounce as she glided forward.
"Navi." Link whispered in disbelief.
"Link!" Navi cried out in joy.
She approached the rest of the distance quickly and hovered at Link's eye level. Staring at the blue ball of light in front of him, Link could barely make out her outline but her well crafted features were unmistakable. The tiny woman covered in silk inside the sphere of color was Navi alright.
"You came for me." She said with tenderness.
"You would have done the same for me." Link replied.
Tears filled her eyes and Navi began to sob uncontrollably. Shocked at her vulnerability, Link did not know what to do and so he simply held up a gauntleted hand to hold her. Navi landed in the cup of his hand and looked up to see the giant Hylian staring down at her with concern. His enormous face eclipsing everything else in the background.
Link heard her giggle for the first time in almost a decade, "Thank you Link."
He smiled and genuinely responded, "Anytime."
Wiping away her tears, Navi stood up in Link's hand and composed herself before lifting off and positioned herself in the all too familiar area above Link's shoulder,
"Lets go home Link."
Turning to the Great Fairies, the Destined Hero told them he was ready. They gave him a few final parting words. Each one carrying on a statement after the next to form the conversation,
"Much has changed since we have left."
"The Lost Woods are no longer safe for our children."
"Find the Deku Tree, he will know more."
"Please take caution."
"You will find our daughters waiting in the Sacred Well when it is safe once more."
"Goodbye Hero of Time, until we meet again."
With that Link was encircled in a blue ray of light and he felt himself being lifted off the ground. The thousands of fairies in the room each cried for luck and safety to him and Navi as they rose. Looking up he saw nothing but a tunnel of white which soon enveloped him. Before finally disappearing he thought he heard a familiar giggle but couldn't quite place whose it was.
-And so the Fairy King wrought his terror over the land until a stranger from the North came. Stepping into the darkness he beheld a light from his left hand and struck down the would-be-ruler. Before his name could be praised and him properly rewarded he vanished just as quickly as he came. His name has been lost but his legend lives on.