Chapter 40: Marshalling the Light
Link turned away from the person he had known as Sheik, who was now calling himself—or herself—Zelda. His face had reddened, and the corners of his eyes bled salty tears. "No," he said, more harshly than he had intended. "It's too painful."
Looking down at him, Zelda hesitated, taken aback by the feeling she had heard in his voice. "What do you mean?"
"How do I know this isn't a dream? I've had dreams like this ever since the day I met you in the castle courtyard. Every time I had one, I got my hopes up, thinking I had found you again—and every time, I woke to find out it was a lie. I can't go through that again."
"My disguise as a young man was necessary to hide from Ganon. Without it, I would have been one of the first he suspected of carrying one of the lost shards." Zelda tried to keep her head erect, but something in her eyes and the quiver of her lips betrayed her inner struggle. "Please forgive me."
Link swallowed hard. "There were so many times when I thought you might have been killed. Ganondorf tried to make me believe that himself, but you've been watching me since the moment I left the Sacred Realm, haven't you? You were there, even when I didn't see you."
Zelda squared her shoulders and stepped forward, the hem of her dress trailing behind her in the grass. She stopped in front of the tree where Link was still sitting and knelt with her hands in her lap. Quietly, she continued.
"On that day, seven years ago, Ganondorf attacked Hyrule Castle. I saw you as we were escaping, and I thought it would be best to entrust you with the Ocarina of Time. As long as you had it in your possession, I thought he would never be able to enter the Sacred Realm. But then, something I never could have expected happened."
Biting his lip, Link looked her full in the face for the first time. "What was it?"
"After you opened the Door of Time, the Master Sword sealed you in the Sacred Realm, allowing Ganondorf to obtain the Triforce in spite of all our efforts."
Link moved his mouth several times as if he would speak, but even the Triforce of Courage seemed to fail him when it came to exposing his heart.
Zelda took one of his hands in each of hers. "The dark age ruled by Ganondorf will end. The Six will lure him back into the Sacred Realm, and then I will close the way between Hyrule and that Realm forever. To do this, I need your courage one last time. Please protect me while I do my part."
Link squeezed her hands as he peered beyond the trees and beyond the clouds to a place out of sight. "I would suffer anything for you, as long as they gave me the courage."
She lowered her eyes. "There is one more gift I have to give you. It is a power given to the chosen ones, a weapon that can penetrate Evil's defenses."
Link stared at the globe hovering over their outstretched hands. It was a sphere of bright crystal—but what held his attention was the arrow that had pierced the side of the crystal so that its head was embedded in the exact center.
"It is the sacred Arrow of Light." Zelda's voice had begun to pick up volume again. "A time may come when the Hero needs more than his blade. When that happens..."
"Not to seem rude," Navi said, finally interrupting, "but he has enough to carry already."
"Show me one of your arrows."
Link took one of his four remaining arrows and held it out to her. Touching it to the crystal, Zelda stepped back, and they could all see that the same golden light afire in the crystal now burned from the head of Link's arrow like one candle lit by another.
"Before the battle for Hyrule begins, you will need all of the songs I taught you with my harp." She smiled at the look on his face. "It will not be as hard to remember them as you think. The Ocarina of Time gives a strange power of memory to anyone who holds it."
Link returned the glowing arrow to his quiver. "That's a relief."
He glanced away from her, trembling. Suddenly, as if a sluice had been released, he leaned forward on his knees and brushed the side of her face with his left hand. She blinked, startled.
He smiled. "I've waited a long time to do that…and this."
Mustering his courage, he clasped her by the back of the neck as lightly as he could and pulled her forward.
Several things happened at once, all in the space of a few seconds. Navi spun away from them, screeching in her most obnoxious tone, "Oh, come on!" A tremor as if of thunder rumbled through the woods, and the ground shook.
Had they been given another moment, their lips would have met. But their eyes were closed, and neither could see the barrier that had risen between them. With a sudden intake of breath, both opened their eyes to find that a wall of crystal had separated them, enclosing Zelda's body completely.
"No!" Link pounded his fists against the crystal, but it was harder than the rock of Death Mountain. Slashing at it with his sword was out of the question; he dared not risk harm to Zelda, even if there was a chance of breaking it.
A voice out of their darkest memories howled through the woods. "Foolish of you to avoid my pursuit for seven long years, only to let your guard down on the eve of battle. But I knew you would appear if I let this boy wander around. My only mistake was to underestimate his power." Ganondorf, unseen, paused as if in thought. "No, my mistake was to misjudge the Triforce of Courage!"
Link closed his eyes again, breathing slowly. "Ganondorf. I'm yours to do with as you please. Leave her unharmed."
No answer came except the hysterical barking laughter he had heard the day he opened the gate to the Sacred Realm.
"Link…" Navi landed gently on his left shoulder. "The crystal. Zelda. She's gone."
The rain had begun in earnest, and in the distance, behind the hill that guarded Hyrule Castle Town from view, came the first of the horns. It was not a beautiful sound, like the horns of old Hyrule before the siege of Ganondorf. There was evil in that sound, and the force of each heaven-hurled drop of water only strengthened its power.
Worse still, the Hero of Time had failed to return.
"I will seek him out, before our heart is lost," Daphnes said.
Arswaine shook his head. "If he returns of his own will, it would be better for all of us." He eyed the muddied ground beneath the battering ram and stamped the butt end of his spear in the soil. "But for the sake of the men and our Gerudo allies, go."
Daphnes turned to reenter the forest, but a stir had risen among the Gerudos and the Knights sitting nearest the trees. "Sir."
Arswaine followed his second's line of sight. Out of the woods strode Link, sword in hand, staring straight ahead. The line of his jaw was clenched, and there was a gleam in his eyes more terrible than the lightning rending the heavens.
He disregarded all their looks until he stood on the far side of the battering ram, facing the hill and the city beyond. With his left hand, he raised the hilt of the Master Sword to the sky, held it there for a moment, then thrust the blade into the ground.
There was quiet for nearly three minutes as they waited for him to speak. Finally, he began to address them in a voice that carried to the edge of the woods.
"We all lose things that are dear to us. Some lose homes, some their wives or children, others the dignity of their culture. This is one thing that unites us. But why have we lost these things?" He raised both arms as if to welcome the storm. "Do we curse those who created this world, as Ganondorf does? Or do we allow the gods to mold us through our pain?"
Another horn sounded from the other side of the hill, threatening to drown him out, but the Hero of Time only raised his voice the louder. "The courage Din looks for is gotten through pain, not the absence of it. All of you have found this courage in the last seven years, and that is what will end the dark age of Ganondorf!"
Tearing his sword from the ground, he whirled to face them. As his voice rose to a fever pitch, he pointed the blade upwards. "May the Way of the Hero lead to the Triforce!"
A cheer burst from the Knights of Hyrule, and a moment later, the Gerudos followed, their voices blending in with the Knights'. Scimitars clattered against shields all across the plain.
Link reached for one of the Medallions he had obtained from the Sages and flourished it. "We are not alone," he cried. "Six from the Sacred Realm offer us their aid!"
Elsewhere, even as the Hero of Time speaks, the Six are watching. Their eyes are fixed on Hyrule, tracking every move of the strange assembly at the edges of the forest. They have observed the Darkness from the moment it left Hyrule Castle Town; thus, they have a far better idea of what lies ahead than the others.
"He is not the child he was," Impa says. "His trials have made him stronger."
Saria nods her assent. "I should know that as well as anyone."
The others remain silent as the Hero plays the Minuet of Forest, one of the five songs he has learned from Zelda, the Seventh Sage. When he is finished, he places a small green disc, the Medallion of Forest, on a pedestal facing the Forest Temple.
"Go now," Rauru says, his eyes locked on Saria. "Bid the Kokiri to their destiny."
Four more times, this scene is repeated. The Hero plays each melody in turn, places the Medallions, and calls the Sages back to Hyrule one last time, until only Rauru, Sage of Light, is left in the Chamber of Sages.
Rauru sighs. Even the oldest of the Six cannot tell how this battle will play out. Time, human frailty, and the mysterious acts of Din and her sisters will all play their part.
"Power and Courage," he whispers. "Who will be the victor?"
Link returned to Kokiri Forest despondent, certain his attempt to recall the Sages had failed. Nothing had happened when he placed the Medallions near the temples, so he concluded the Sages were unable to hear him. Ganondorf had been able to keep five of them unaware of their identity, after all; what prevented him from blocking their efforts to help him now?
It was in this state of mind, as he neared the edges of the forest, that Link heard a voice from the woods surrounding him. "Hey, Scrub legs!"
That stopped him in mid-stride. Mido?
Sure enough, the freckled face of his old nemesis emerged from the trees on his left, followed by many more of the Kokiri, all of them carrying some form of weapon: slingshot, pebble, Deku Nut, branch, wooden spear, or shield.
Link struggled to hold back a smile. "What is this?"
Mido shook his head. "You think we'd just sit around when there's fighting going on right outside the forest?"
Navi chirped. "How do you know about the battle?"
Mido grinned. "Saria was here just now. She told us everything."
Link peered into the woods. "Where is she now?"
"She said she had to help the Hero of Time, whatever that means."
Help? I'm not sure I know what that means, either. Link shrugged. "These aren't Deku Scrubs we're talking about, Mido. The Kokiri may be killed if they fight."
Mido sighed and gave Link one of his trademark frowns. "You know, Skulltula-for-brains, Saria used to say that we're never too small to make a difference. I thought you believed that when we killed the monster inside the Great Deku Tree. Did you change your mind?"
Before Link had a chance to apologize, a little blond-haired Kokiri girl stepped forward, her tiny hands holding out a bolt of folded green fabric.
"We made you a new tunic," she said. "Just like your old one."
Link glanced down at the blue Zora Tunic he had worn since he entered the Water Temple. Rips and tears. A few scorch marks. One bloody spot where his own shadow had stabbed him.
"Face it, Stink," Mido said. "You're a Kokiri whether you want to be one or not."
The girl pressed the tunic into Link's arms and stood on tiptoe to kiss his left cheek. "We believe in you, Link, even if you've stopped believing in us."
Link raised the tunic to eye level and stared at it for what seemed an interminable period. It was still raining, yes, but the moisture running down his face wasn't from the clouds.
Ganondorf's army had paused at the top of the hill running down into the forest. From Epona's saddle, Link—once more wearing Kokiri colors—watched as one of the creatures in the vanguard detached itself from the rest and strode forward, carrying a spear. Half-dog, half-giant, and knotted with thick muscles, it grunted as it walked.
"The Great Ganondorf demands your surrender," it called when it had stopped within speaking range. "All Gerudos who fight for their master will be pardoned. Any Knight who aids us in capturing this boy will be given his life."
A'idah, the head of the Gerudo flank, faced the creature with grim aspect. "Yes. We know how well the 'Great Ganondorf' keeps his word, especially to those who disobey his law."
The dog-giant growled. "Do you accept his offer?"
Drawing both swords, A'idah screamed, "May Ganondorf perish in the Dark Realm!"
The dog-giant's arm whipped forward, enhanced by its master's Triforce of Power. The spear, too quick to avoid, pierced A'idah through the chest.
Link flinched, and he heard several gasps behind him. The dog-giant opened its mouth and roared. Suddenly, they heard a long series of snaps, followed by a loud hiss. Link scanned the sky for a sign, but it was Navi who shouted the warning.
Those who heard the fairy threw up their shields. Those who didn't or were slow to respond fell to the rain of arrows. Link stared as one of the shafts tore into the soil at his feet. Painted black like Ganondorf's horse and armor, they were almost impossible to see in the storm.
He shuddered, glancing at the screen of leaves and branches that covered the battering ram a dozen meters to his right, behind the frontline. "Mido?"
A yell came in reply. "Ready!"
Link nodded. This is it, then. Fear and adrenaline flooded his body, but most of it hardened into resolve when he saw Zelda's face before his eyes. His own words came back to haunt him. I would suffer anything for you, as long as they gave me the courage…
"Sir?"
Turning to Arswaine, Link raised the Master Sword. "Fix arrows!"
Arswaine carried the order up and down the line until seventy-six bowshots—the exact number of their army, minus Link, Navi, and the Kokiri—had been trained on the Darkness.
Link sheathed his sword and took up the Fairy Bow he had discovered in the Forest Temple. He took the Arrow of Light Zelda had given him, applied it to the string, and pulled back as far as the string would go.
No other signal was necessary. The Arrow of Light could be seen across Hyrule Field, burning the clouds wherever it passed and letting the sunlight through from Epona's saddle to the place where it finally landed: in the mouth of the dog-giant that had killed A'idah. Seventy-six other arrows followed, eating into the frontlines of Ganon's army.
Replacing the bow and taking up his sword once again, Link pointed it at the dog-giant. "Your reward from Din!" The Knights and Gerudos responded in a chorus of war cries.
But the first rank of Ganondorf's army was already on its way down the hill, closing the gap. There would be no second volley.
"The Way of the Hero!" Link spurred Epona to a gallop. Fourteen Gerudos and thirteen Knights of Hyrule charged with him, and the shape the twenty-eight riders formed as they hurtled into the Darkness resembled a triangle with Link as the point, a gesture that would not be lost on Ganondorf.
After that, all was chaos.