Chapter 40: Tones of a Voice
Zelda stared, stunned at her hand.
She lowered it with wondering disbelief, no coherent thought completely explaining what just happened. Only lingering tinglings confirmed what had transpired.
"Was…was that?...The power…"
Something thumped behind her.
Zelda whirled in surprise.
Link lay listlessly on the ground.
The world narrowed.
"No, no…" Her feet thudded across the muddy ground, the sound hollow to her ears. Her legs gave out next to Link's prone form.
"Link!" One hand found his waist and another his shoulder, shaking him. His eyes were closed.
"Get up!" yelled her voice, tinny and hysterical.
Sliding an arm underneath his shoulder blades, Zelda pulled him upright into a sitting position, but his weight rested heavily in the crook of Zelda's elbow, her muscles straining.
Finally, there was a response from him. Link coughed, the slight force of it bobbing him forward before teetering back against her forearm. His eyes were mere slits, pain wracking him with just that one action.
"You're going to be just fine." Her voice wavered, her mind raving at that waver. Zelda leaned closer, wanting, no needing Link to look at her.
Link swung his head to meet her gaze. And a sob built in her throat.
He was spent.
Utterly and completely, mind and body. What lay in those blue depths was his final offering to her.
A goodbye.
No! Her heart cried out. No.
Her hands gripped onto him more tightly, begging him to stay.
His lips parted slightly, the lightest of warm air caressing her cheek–
A word unspoken.
Then his eyes lost focus on hers, his lids sliding closed. His head lolled back, the weight of Link sagging into Zelda's arms.
The Master Sword lay on the ground by his side, Link's fingers limp around the handle.
The darkness of his lashes didn't flutter. His chest didn't rise with another breath.
The air in Zelda's lungs choked out in a strangled gasp.
Link was a body of muscle and sinew. Lifeless.
Wetness.
It dribbled from the sky, sinking into her dress, seeping into Link's hair, splotching on his pale skin. It trembled in the corners of her eyes just before Link's form blurred before her.
Zelda dug her fingers into the back of his head, into his tunic, clutching Link closer. Her head dropped onto Link's chest, a hoarse cry vibrating against her teeth.
Wild brush and roasted Chickaloo tree rain hadn't washed away the smell of him.
Wrenching, agonizing sobs convulsed through Zelda's body.
Emptiness.
It rose up and up and up.
She was alone. Truly alone.
Zelda had lost everyone and everything that ever mattered to her. And the person who had stood with her through it all was gone.
He was the last piece. The last remaining shred of love she had, and he took it with him beyond the reach of the Goddess's power. Zelda had blossomed. And Link had died.
"No–" the word broke on the sob clawing from her throat.
Zelda was falling to pieces. She was crumbling into ash. She was gone, gone, gone.
Her thoughts tortured her.
My power awakens to save us only to lose him. The only person I–
The breath twisted into a scream.
I was too late. Just in time to be too late.
Zelda cried harder, the agony bitter.
It's not too late.
The voice, a whisper, brushed Zelda's mind with a feather-light touch. Zelda stilled. That voice didn't belong with her other thoughts.
It's not too late.
The voice, more insistent this time.
Zelda raised her head, bleary eyes blinking away the tears as they focused on a flicker of light. Frowning, Zelda watched with growing attention as the Master Sword pulsed again.
It's NOT too late, the voice commanded.
"The sword…?" Zelda couldn't make sense of it, but she knew instinctively that the sword was indeed communing with her. And its voice spoke with quiet urgency.
"So he can…He can still be saved?" Her words were cautious. But a glimmer of hope grew inside of her.
"Princess!"
Zelda's focus shot away from the sword.
Across the field, two figures were racing across Blatchery Plain. They hopped and sprang off of the fallen guardians, moving with cat-like agility.
Their garments gave the two Sheikah men away instantly as they sprinted to Zelda, halting in a kneeling-position in front of her.
"Princess! Are you all right?!"
The two warriors' chests heaved with exertion, waiting for her acknowledgement.
He can still be saved. Like lightning flashing in the sky, Zelda knew what the sword was telling her. She honed in on the crest of the Sheikah eye stitched onto the two men's armor. The only way to save Link.
"The Shrine has side effects." Purah's caution came into Zelda's mind. "It wipes the body clear of any damage, restoring the body to full completeness…but it does so to the mind as well."
Link losing his memory, losing his memories of Zelda…it hurt to think about. He would forget all that he had been through, a slate wiped clean. Zelda, forgotten. But…it hurt more in this moment holding Link as he lingered on the edge of life and death.
Resolve hardened within Zelda. "Take Link to the Shrine of Resurrection." She glared between the two male Sheikah before looking back down at Link.
"If we don't get him there immediately, we are going to lose him forever!" He lay in her arms as if he were dead. A life with him, even if he didn't know he was in a life without Zelda, was better than a life without any part of Link. Zelda whipped her gaze to the Sheikah men, her words laced with iron.
"Is that clear?!"
Their chins dipped curtly.
"So make haste and go!" Zelda's brows furrowed, narrowing on the Sheikah. "His life is now in your hands."
The Sheikah men lifted their arms towards Link, waiting to take him. Zelda had the urge to grip Link to her chest even tighter.
She examined him one last time, memorizing every inch of his beautiful face. The curve of his nose, the lines of his lips, the slant of his eyes, the brows that conveyed so much of his emotion.
Lowering her head to his forehead, Zelda breathed out, her exhale ruffling stray strands on his cheeks.
"Come find me. When you are ready."
Inhaling one last scent of him, Zelda pulled away a few inches, then closed the distance once more to press a kiss against his forehead. She closed her eyes. He tasted of salt and copper and dirt.
Prying her fingers off of Link, she released him to the Sheikah. They quickly but gently bundled up Link's battered, beaten body against one of the Sheikah's backs.
A sudden thought came to Zelda. The sword's voice again in her mind.
"Wait."
In sync, the two Sheikah turned to Zelda.
"Here." Zelda reached into the damp folds of her dress, withdrawing the Sheikah Slate. The screen was dark, but flickered on under the touch of her fingers. "Take this. Link will need it when he awakens."
Accepting the Slate, the Sheikah gave Zelda one last nod before bounding away as if Calamity Ganon itself were on their heels.
Zelda's heart shattered as each fleet-footed step took her knight farther and farther away, their lithe bodies flying across the plains, disappearing in a blink of an eye.
"Farewell…my Knight." Words only left for her to hear.
Zelda's gaze dropped down to the Master Sword laying in a muddy puddle, the rain slicking over the metal's corroded surface.
A voice in the sword. Zelda hadn't heard any legend about the Master Sword being a living entity.
A cool touch pressed against her mind.
I have been alive through many of the goddess's reincarnations.
Zelda jolted in surprise, unused to the voice in her head.
You only hear my voice now because your power has awoken. I have seen the same battle, in many variations, occur throughout history. Zelda, this fight is not over. She straightened at the use of her name by the foreign tongue. You still have an important part to play before my Master returns.
Images and voices rushed into Zelda's head. Calamity Ganon thrashing, her light shining, Link dying, the Champions slain in the Divine Beasts and the spirit of her father lingering sorrowfully outside Hyrule Castle swirled through Zelda's consciousness. She sat overwhelmed as she took in all of the present. And the future still to be unfolded.
She knew what the voice was telling her to do.
Zelda wrapped her hand around the handle of the Master Sword, rising to her feet. Around her on Blatchery Field were the remaining soldiers and civilians picking themselves up, anxious looks being shot at the empty Guardians around them, untrusting of the prone machinery. They were still armed, making their way to Fort Hateno with orders and shouts. More blasts of Guardian lasers echoed near Dueling Peaks, a fresh wave of them on the way.
The sword was right. This was just a foreshadowing of what her abilities could do. Zelda felt it, the light gliding up and down within her blood, waiting to be used. And she would use it again.
But first, she had a message to deliver.
"Princess!" Impa half-cried, half-sobbed as she ran to Zelda, throwing her arms around Zelda's neck and yanking her into a hug. Relieved expressions mirrored on Robbie and Purah who were close by. The hug was unexpected, but the feeling of someone embracing her, someone familiar and safe after everything almost undid her resolve right then. She wanted nothing more than to return the hug, holding onto the last few individuals that understood what was happening and protect her.
Behind the three Sheikah, Kakariko Village held triple the amount of people it normally contained. Sheikah were dashing to and fro, carrying bundles of bandages, ointments, fallen comrades, and wearing identical looks of fatigue. The wounded were placed everywhere there was an open space, making Kakariko Village look like an outside hospice. The mood was downcast as Zelda peered over Impa's shoulder, searching among those alive. Had Sitkel–?
There. Through the splayed bodies and hurrying villagers, the familiar poet sat on the edge of a roof, watching her from afar. His face was unreadable from this distance; she was just glad to see him alive.
Zelda extricated herself from Impa's arms. "I am glad to see you safe, Impa, Purah, Robbie." Their clothing was singed and soot covered half of them. Robbie had still managed to keep his goggles on and only one of Purah's lenses was cracked.
All of their expressions exuded anxious inquiry.
Zelda's survival was the common question between the three. Impa's eyes darted to the Master Sword in Zelda's hand. "Did you arrive here by yourself, Princess?"
A sudden rise of emotion swelled within Zelda. Zelda looked down at the sword in her hand, fingers curling tighter around the worn handle. It was Purah who voiced the grim question.
"Where is Link?"
Zelda took a moment to answer, the silence heavy as the three waited to hear her story. Zelda didn't want to relive those moments, didn't want to go back and see Link again collapse, his imaginary body pressed against hers as his eyes closed for the last time. When she gazed back up at the three, Impa, Purah and Robbie shared the same moroseness and for this reason, Zelda told her tale. Their expressions transformed from horror, to sorrow, and then to shock as Zelda ended with her power awakening and Link being taken to the Shrine of Resurrection.
"Your Highness, I'm not sure if it entirely works–" Purah cut in, eyes wide.
"I believe you said you checked it yourself, this morning." This morning felt like a lifetime ago.
Purah chewed on her lip. "Yes, I did and everything seems to work. We have just never tried it out."
"Well, this is a great time to try it out then." Zelda shared attention with the three Sheikah. "We cannot lose Link. We still need him."
"But your powers have awakened. Surely you can defeat Ganon with them?" Robbie intoned eagerly.
Zelda shook her head. "I am but one part of the puzzle. I cannot defeat Ganon without Link, just as Ganon's awakening could not be stopped without my power. Unfortunately, now that my power has awoken, the Hylian Champion cannot battle Calamity Ganon with me."
"Then what are you going to do?" Impa queried, tone frustrated not at Zelda, but at the situation.
"What I need to do until Link is restored." Zelda affirmed.
"Come, Robbie, let us see what we can do for him." Robbie nodded with Purah, the two of them darting off down the path Zelda had arrived by. Zelda watched them go, her heart growing heavier as their disappearance left a pregnant pause.
"This is goodbye, isn't it?"
Zelda turned to Impa. The young Sheikah's features held sadness.
Zelda said nothing, not trusting herself to speak.
Impa huffed, her eyes shining. "You don't know how lazy that boy can be. It could be ages before he's ready."
They laughed briefly, the laughter chasing away some of the strain. Impa swiped at her eye.
"Impa, I need you to deliver a message to Link for me when he wakes."
Impa raised an eyebrow. "What do you want me to say? Shouldn't you say it?"
Zelda shook her head. "In case I–I just need him to get this message no matter what happens."
Zelda understood that everything was linked to the Sheikah Slate. All the technology that failed to work under her touch. She knew that when Link awoke, he would need the Slate to fight against Calamity Ganon…and free the Divine Beasts. Now that Zelda's power had manifested, she could sense the spirits of each Champion, trapped within their divine beast.
"But only if he wants to hear it." Zelda smiled a little at Impa's second eyebrow that rose. Before Impa could react, Zelda threw her arms around her friend one more time, squeezing until she felt she was going to burst. Zelda pulled away, turning to the trail leading out of Kakariko Village.
"You're going to go face Calamity Ganon even without Link. Aren't you?" Impa asked quietly.
Zelda lifted the Master Sword, eyes flitting over its chipped edges. "Yes. But there is one more place I must visit." She lowered the Master Sword to her side.
"It's dangerous to go alone." The words were a warning, as well as a farewell.
Zelda smiled sadly, taking a step away from Impa and her last chance at a haven. "I have everything I need to face the danger."
Korok Forest was a mysterious, mist-shrouded island. Whispers and echoing cackles skittered over Zelda's skin as the mist swallowed Zelda, her flesh erupting in goosebumps. The Forest was off limits. Many who dared enter found themselves hopelessly lost, minds fraying by the time they escaped the shifting maze of the gnarled trees, reports circulating of evil spirits and wicked sprites that haunted the woodland.
But the sword knew the paths through the woods, guiding Zelda with a faint light until she reached a giant hollowed out trunk leading down into a sunny glen. The difference was immediate. Sunshine filtered through the thriving foliage. Shrubbery and vines sprawled over the edges of the sole flagstone walkway heading to a clearing where a large stone triangle rested at the bottom of the Great Deku Tree.
As soon as Zelda stepped on the stones towards the triangle, rustles of leaves and tiny black eyes blinked at her through bushes as she passed. Koroks. The corner of her mouth lifted.
The Koroks were small, woodland creatures that called the Korok Forest their home, rarely leaving this sanctuary. They were harmless, rather enjoying hiding and surprising any who found them. Evil spirits indeed.
Zelda didn't stop walking until she was almost in the middle of the triangle, the pedestal of where the Sword rested until the right person came along to pull it free from its recess. She placed the Sword horizontally over the top of the pedestal, kneeling down before it. In the light of the Forest, the damage to the blade was cruelly apparent, the blade stained by malice and the rigors of battle.
Zelda cupped her hands to her chest. The voice had ceased speaking to her upon entering the Korok glen, out of respect for the sacred place or having conveyed everything the sword wished to convey to Zelda.
"Your master will come for you." A soft breeze rustled the leaves around the grove. She closed her eyes. "Until then, you shall rest safely here."
Zelda's assurances to the sword were as much for the voice as they were for her. She imagined Link, whole and alert once more, entering the sacred grove for the second time to pull the Master Sword free. She wondered if he would even remember the first time he pulled the Sword free, or even that he was the heralded chosen one admired by so many.
"Although the Slumber of Restoration will most certainly deprive him of his memories, please trust me when I say that I know he will arrive before you yet again."
Would Link remember her though? Zelda's gut clenched. Her breathing hitched. It didn't matter. In the next few hours, Zelda wasn't even sure she would be around to see him again.
"If I may be so bold…"
Zelda's eyes shot open in surprise at the deep voice.
"What is it that you are planning to do next, Princess?" Zelda rose to her feet, gazing up at the giant Deku Tree, his face ingrained in the old wood. The tree's branches and roots were thicker than several Gorons and the leaves were a perpetual pale pink, swaying willow-like in the light breeze. She'd heard mention of the Deku Tree conversing with travelers, but those rumors she thought were more myth than fact.
Zelda looked down at the sword.
"The Master Sword…I heard it speak to me."
One hand clenched against her chest. "It seems that my role is unfinished." She looked back at the Deku Tree. "There is still something that I must do."
"I sense that there is great strength in your dedication." The ancient voice resounded deeply inside Zelda. She was dedicated beyond anything she'd experienced so far and the dedication was as painful as it was certain. Zelda didn't expect to return here. Ever. A feverish wish pulsed in the beat of Zelda's heart.
"Great Deku Tree, I ask of you, when he returns, can you please relay this message…," Zelda stepped forward, passion rising within her. "Tell him, I–"
"Now, then," the Deku Tree cut her off. "Words intended for him would sound much better in the tones of your voice, don't you think?"
Her eye caught on something. A Silent Princess. Vibrant and vivid in the grass on the outskirts of the triangular platform. Despite extinction on the horizon, the flower continued to endure. A smile softly stole across her face.
Zelda's hands came together as she looked humbly up at the Deku Tree. "Yes."
Leaning down, Zelda gently gripped the handle of the Master Sword with both hands, raising it above the slit in the pedestal. A shaft of sunlight warmed her skin. Closing her eyes, Zelda held the sword aloft its resting place, considering the time that would pass until the Sword was freed once more. The important thing was that it would be freed once more.
Opening her eyes, Zelda lowered the sword down within the pedestal, giving one final thrust to seal it into place. A blue glow radiated from the Sword as it began its healing slumber.
Just like its Master.
Zelda let go of the handle, stepping away. Determination spread through her. Everything was set and now it was her turn. Walking away, she didn't look back.
The malice still swirled through the air around the castle.
Guardians, few and in-between since most of them had been dispatched to spread carnage across the rest of Hyrule, climbed over the fallen debris of Castle Town. Many of them were too far away from Zelda to know she was even there.
No matter. She wasn't here for them.
Steeling her nerves, Zelda gazed up at Hyrule Castle. Her castle. Her father no longer was the king and the Kingdom of Hyrule was no more.
Taking a deep breath, expelling the last of her fears, Zelda began the long walk to the castle, pulse pounding in her heart, every step she took bringing her closer to the remnants of her home.
As if sensing her presence, the great beast of malice paused at the apex of the castle towers, horned vaporous form swiveling to look down upon her. Zelda stared straight into the sky, meeting its vicious yellow eyes.
I am here to stop you. She spread her feet, rooting herself to the spot.
With a roar shaking the foundations of the castle and destroyed rubble, Calamity Ganon descended in a surge of darkness.
"Link." Raising her hand, light already spreading from her open palm, Zelda fixed her eyes on the rolling, destructive evil heading her way.
His name flooded her body with power and Zelda felt the light bursting forth as Ganon swarmed towards her, maw wide to swallow her whole.
This wouldn't be the end. Zelda trusted that. This is what she was born for. She would hold Ganon off as long as it took. For Him.
Her fate was tied to Link. And Link would always find her.
"You are our final hope. The fate of Hyrule rests with you."
Light and darkness met.
Zelda closed her eyes.