The Hyrulian Valhalla Saga: Side Stories
By Queenie Z

An Answered Prayer

Just as the Hero of Winds had grown up with the legend of the Hero of Time, so too did New Hyrule's Hero grow up with stories of the Hero of Winds. Most of those stories had come from Niko, who had the tendency to embellish the truth somewhat, so he had no idea which parts had actually happened, but that only served to fuel his curiosity when he finally got to meet his predecessor in the afterlife. Engie had so many questions he wanted to ask, both about the elder Hero's life and his own role in their eternal battle against evil.

Naturally, Wind was more than eager to answer his questions. Together they took a long stroll beside the train tracks that had appeared upon Engie's arrival, discussing legends and lore, distinguishing fact from fiction, and sharing their own stories of hardship and victory. By this time, the sun was already halfway down, though they were in no hurry to return to their homes, for as long as they didn't need sleep, they could continue forging their brotherly bond.

Engie held his arms out, balancing himself on a rail as they walked. "So then Tetra became the queen," he said, "and you established the royal guard. ...How come you didn't take a political position, too? I mean, you helped her found the kingdom."

Wind shrugged. "I wasn't interested," he answered. "Tetra's a natural born leader; I just wanted to keep helping people."

"Yeah, I understand," said Engie, wobbling a little before hopping off of the rail. "I never liked the thought of going into politics - I always preferred serving to leading, you know?"

Wind chuckled and nodded his head. "That's just the nature of the Legendary Hero," he said, "we're all like that."

"I bet you got to protect a lot of people," said Engie with a warm smile.

"I did. Helping protect the kingdom we built for everybody was the most fulfilling thing I ever did."

"Even more than being the Hero of Winds?"

"I always thought of it as a continuation of my role as the Hero; it was all one in the same to me." Wind looked out towards the sun setting in the horizon. "...But as fulfilling as it was, it was also, well..." he paused, thinking, then continued, "...it was scary, a little bit."

Engie raised an eyebrow. "After everything you went through as a kid, how could you possibly have been scared as an adult?"

"You become scared of different things as an adult," said Wind, looking back at him with a more serious expression, "you know that. And what scared me for most of my life was knowing that I wouldn't be around to protect New Hyrule forever."

The younger Hero lowered his eyes in shame. "...Yeah, that makes sense."

"I'd come from an era where the people prayed for a Hero and never got one," said Wind. "At the time, it made no sense - if the old gods had protected Ancient Hyrule, why did They destroy it instead of sending someone to save it?"

"Were you afraid the same thing would happen to New Hyrule one day?"

Wind stayed silent a moment longer, then continued in a hushed voice, his eyes closed and his face far more serious than what would have suited his young form. "...Ganondorf had told me that our gods had abandoned us," he said, "I was afraid that he had been right all along."

"But he was wrong, wasn't he?" Engie said. "The gods and the spirits all protected us; They helped Zelda and I defeat Malladus."

"That's right," said Wind, finally smiling again, "and you're proof of that." He placed a hand on Engie's shoulder. "I prayed for a long time that our kingdom would be kept safe, and when I died, I knew I could leave it behind in peace."

"What made you realize that?"

Wind grinned. "You could call it a sign from the heavens, I guess. It's complicated." He patted the younger Link's shoulder. "But left the world knowing that you'd come to take my place. So, in a sense... you're the answer to the prayer I've had all my life."

Engie turned a bright pink and snickered bashfully. "You make it sound so special...!"

"Hey, it is special!" said Wind, "Being the Hero's a great honor! You ought to be proud."

"But all I wanted to do was help the princess out! I didn't think it'd be this whole big deal..."

Wind wrapped an arm around his successor's shoulders and laughed. "Trust me, none of us did."

"Okay," laughed Engie sheepishly, "I'll take your word for it." He looked back up at Wind brightly. "So what all did you do as the guard captain? I mean, other than protecting people."

"Well, I spent a lot of time training new recruits. ...Oh! You know Russell, the captain of your time?"

"Yeah, what about him?"

"He was my apprentice."

"What!? No way! He never told me that...!"

Together, the elder Hero and the answer to his prayers continued their conversation long into the night and far past the train tracks' end.