LEGEND OF ZELDA TIME LOOPS: Link-Mania
Disclaimer: I do not own the Legend of Zelda, for who can say that they truly own anything. Even those treasures that we hold tightest will, in course of time, slip away from us into oblivion. But seriously, I don't own this stuff.
22.5 cont.
In the beginning, there was light.
Then, the light divided in three, red, green, and blue. The brilliant red light took the name Din, and gathered itself, before forming that which is, matter and energy and physical substance. The soothing green light took the name Farore, and planted itself to create the greatest of all gifts, life, imbuing it in the earth to bring forth trees and beasts and men. The dazzling blue light took the name Nayru, and spread itself, weaving together the laws and orders by which matter would move, by which life would interact, and by which both would grow. Together, the three lights, later to be named goddesses, combined their power to create the land of Hyrule, and all that encompassed it, filling it with their chosen beings...
Unfortunately, they didn't exactly get everything right the first time. Hey, they were learning. It wasn't like they had done all of this before. Their first attempt resulted in far too little matter being used, resulting in an odd, ghostly realm that was way too bright. They set that one aside, naming it the Spirit or Sacred Realm, and decided to pretend they meant to make it all along. Labrynna followed, where the physical laws were just a bit off, leading to time looping in on itself a bit. Then Holodrum, where matter and life intersected oddly, making the seasons dart back and forth unless monitored closely. Finally, in Termina, most of the life was concentrated in four giant figures, and time only flowed as much as it chose to. Each world was in turn sealed to the side while the goddesses started over, certain that this time, they had managed to get everything just right. And finally, they did. Nayru finally sorted out all the fiddly bits of time, and Farore managed to fully diversify the life, and Din ensured there was plenty of matter to go around. Of course, at that point they realized that there wasn't space on the ground for the kingdom they intended their chosen children to start, so they had to throw up a floating island, but it was good enough.
Meanwhile, in one of the sealed off creations, things began to go oddly...
The first thing that Zelda noticed as the three women arrived within Link's mind was the massive moon hanging in the sky, bound up in thick, black chains. The second was the shadowy figure hurtling towards them. Acting on instinct, Zelda shoved Midna (who was in her half-Phoenix mental avatar state) and Navi (who was Hylian-sized) off to either side while she pushed off the ground, calling on her angelic wings as she leapt over the figure's charge.
TH/I-S IS M+IN\E!
The twisted voice acted like a physical force, buffeting all three as they turned to face the figure. It was tall, and featureless save for the black flame surrounding it and the shadowy chains hanging around its body. It looked like one of the Shadow Interlopers Link fought on a regular basis, save that it was covered in flame and...nothing else.
Zelda had little time to think on that, as the figure grasped at the air and tugged, and a rip formed, revealing the hilt to a twisted blade that Zelda recognized as Ghirahim, the sword of Demise. Flicking her hand, Zelda summoned up the Bow of Light and began firing arrows of light intermixed with arrows bound to spells, while Navi and Midna darted forward to engage it physically.
WH-Y DO YO/U FI+G\HT FO-R TH/E\M?
The words were almost visible as they slammed into Midna, knocking her back a step while Navi's blade crossed against the blade of the shadowy figure. Navi quickly backpedaled, parrying the blade to the side when it became obvious the figure was much, much stronger than her in here. Still, she had decades of sword-skill behind her, and she quickly started a series of guerilla strikes, darting in between the many holes the mad figure left in its guard. Beside her, Midna shaped her burning psychic power into a hammer, and brought it smashing down on the Deity's blade, holding him long enough for Navi to score several deep slashes across his torso.
"They are my friends!", the Twili princesses spat back. "And Link is my butler!"
TH+E/Y A\RE NO FR-I+EN/DS! T\H/EY S-IT ON TH+EIR TH/RO-NES A\ND C/A/S-T US AS+I\DE!
Navi blinked. "What are you blabbering about?", she scoffed, as she ducked underneath a powerful hammer blow from Midna, that knocked the Deity staggering back. "Zelda's the only one of us that actually has a throne, this time, anyway, and none of us have ever met you."
T-H/EY MA\DE AN+D W/ER-E AS/HAM-E\D! TH\EY C+A-ST U/S O-U\T!
A whirlwind slammed into the Deity's face as Zelda fired off a mentally-projected Wind Waker Arrow, and she used the time to regroup with the others. "I believe he is ranting about the Goddesses. He kept bringing them up when I fought him physically."
Midna frowned and nodded. "That makes sense. He probably senses that I lack the Goddesses' Blessing in this life, due to my heritage. Never mind that I have been Din before." She scowled as she ducked under a crescent of darkness that flew from the Deity's blade, and she responded with a wall of psychic flame. "This is pointless. Unless we can get Link from wherever he is napping, beating this punk like a drum won't do anything."
Zelda glanced upwards at the chained moon. "I think I know where he is."
Midna and Navi both followed her gaze, then nodded. "Go," Midna stated, "we'll cover you. You are best at breaking magical seals. You get caught in them often enough."
Zelda growled playfully at the jab, then nodded, before taking off, while below, Midna and Navi charged back into battle.
Four faces, craggled and weathered. Smiles all around. He was safe, protected, loved.
"Wel~co~me to li~fe."
Zelda followed the same route they usually used to enter the Moon, avoiding the dark chains that bound the Moon in place, and found herself in a familiar field. It was not, however, the field she usually found within the Moon. Instead, it was the clearing that she recognized from Kakariko Village, and in the center, stood the Deku Tree.
Several chains pierced inward from the outer shell of the Moon, spearing into the aged tree, which was obviously dying, its bark peeling and leaves curling brown. Several dark webs crisscrossed across the branches, casting dark shadows across the Deku Tree's face, and a familiar clicking echoed from the branches.
Zelda didn't hesitate. Even as she flew close across the ground towards the tree, a Silver Arrow shot out from the bow she still held, lancing as fast as thought in towards the dark branches. A whistling thud, a flash, and then a chittering scream broke out as Queen Gohma fell out of the tree, its eye pierced through, already flaking into dust, while its webs dispersed. Zelda wasn't going to waste time playing around here.
The Deku Tree still seemed weak, but as she approached, it opened its mouth, beckoning her in. She quickly did so.
'Link, I'm coming.'
"HAAH!" Midna shouted as she brought one of her flame-coated fists forward, smashing it into the Deity's guard, before twisting to deliver a second blow around his guard. The Deity twisted, roaring senselessly as it brought its blade around to block the strike. Which left it perfectly out of position to dodge as Midna's hair came around, in the shape of a burning hand, and slapped it aside, knocking it flying straight towards Navi, who barely flitted out of the way.
"Hey, watch out. Why to you keep aiming at me when you toss him?"
Midna shook her head. "You're supposed to knock him back to me. It's called volleyballing."
Navi huffed. "I think you mean volleying, and does it look like I can volley with this?" She waved her rapier around, before ducking and slashing through one of the chains the Deity tried to impale her with.
"Link manages with a Bug Net." Midna responded, while gathering a fireball and hurtling it into the Deity's face. Navi used the distraction to line up, before unleashing the Linear skill Asuna had taught her. A dozen times she struck, before twisting and kicking off, driving the Deity off as she withdrew her blade, then darting out of range to circle around and look for another opening.
So much empty space. Freedom. Exploration. A distant white sphere, too far to walk to.
"What is it?"
"It is th~e mo~on."
As Zelda flew through the mouth of the Deku Tree, she found herself exiting a wooden arch. She glanced back to see simply the arch, leading out to an endless field. Turning back, she saw the village of Ordon laid out in front of her. More chains pierced down from the sky into the town, which appeared broken and deserted. Zelda quickly moved forward, only to dart away from a sudden burst of motion spotted from the corner of her eye.
A Darknut sliced into the dirt she had been standing on, red eyes gleaming within its helmet. Zelda quickly fired an arrow straight into the eyeslits of the helm, causing the dark knight to collapse in a pile of dust. However, as Zelda turned back, she found a dozen of the dark warriors, stepping out from around ruined buildings and broken trees. Huffing slightly, Zelda dismissed her bow, and drew forth a pair of shining blades of light.
"Very well. Let's go."
Navi leapt in with a shout, hurling a Dazzling Gleam from her hand to knock the Deity back. "Get off her!" Midna had gotten a bit careless, and the Deity had managed to grab her hair with one hand, and had used the leverage to slam her into the ground. The flash of Navi's attack disoriented the Deity long enough for Navi to slash through its wrist, the newly severed appendage dissipating into smoke. Midna rolled away as the Deity howled in fury and pain.
Y-O/U H+AT-E ME! TH/E\Y HA-T+E ME! WH/Y?! W\H-Y D\O TH+EY H/A\TE?
Navi ignored his shouts as she began to circle, faster and faster, drawing on the air around her to twist and shape. A tornado formed, gripping the Deity and lifting him, up into the sky. Navi followed, circling to maintain the vortex, before drawing back and flipping into a tight rising arc to gain speed.
"TORNADO AXE SPLITTER!" Navi swung her blade around, pushing all of her momentum into the strike, forcing her energy out into the blade. It swept down, cutting vertically through the vortex and through the Deity trapped inside, sending it hurtling down to the ground below.
The Deity arrived with a crash, and Navi followed shortly thereafter, landing heavily, and panting lightly with exertion. Executing her moves in the mindscape was simple, but draining, as the Deity's power actively fought their attacks and sought to stop them from completing. A hand rested on Navi's shoulder, and she glanced up at Midna, who was watching as the Deity rose from the crater, already healing from its near-bisection.
"Good job. Now it's my turn." Behind her, the Mirror of Twilight floated and began to glow.
So many things. All small, but some smaller, scurrying around and doing things. They made them.
"You made me first. That means I'm best?"
"We ca~re fo~r a~ll a~nd fo~r yo~u"
The last Darknut faded as Zelda sheathed her blades, before stepping forward to what the Darknuts had been guarding. All of the chains piercing down centered within the well at the center of the village. Zelda couldn't remember if Ordon actually had a well, but it now sat in the town center, glowing slightly.
Zelda flicked out her hands and gathered a thin bubble of air around her body, before stepping over the edge and dropping into the depths of the well. Water rushed past, and suddenly everything seemed to spin, before she found herself rising up and breaking the surface of the water, revealing Outset Island floating in front of her as she bobbed in the water just off of the docks. More of the chains rose from the sea and extended from the sky to pierce the island, and they seemed to be centered on the top of the mountain. Zelda quickly floated over to the dock and ascended out of the water, before quickly taking flight.
Her mental fatigue saved her. Her concentration drifted for just a moment as she ascended, and her wings flickered, causing her to drop a few feet. Just as it happened, a massive figure tore through the air where she had been, and Zelda quickly performed a barrel roll to gain distance. Wheeling around, the Helmaroc King let out a screech as it came back for another pass.
Zelda fired off several Light arrows, but a combination of the drafts around the massive bird and its thick body blunted the damage, leading to the Helmaroc seeming to simply shrug off the bursts. She needed something stronger.
However, before she could formulate a plan, a blur of red light shot down from the heavens, piercing through the back of the Helmaroc King and out the front. It faltered in the air, flailing its wings, before its feathers began to molt off as its body converted into mist, fading away with an angry, desperate cry. Zelda gaped briefly, before catching sight of the raising figure that had just defeated the giant bird. Her heart rose at the sight of a rising red Loftwing, before falling slightly at the empty saddle on its back. However, as it drew level with her, Zelda saw a familiar gleam in its eyes.
'So, you are fighting it after all, Link'. Zelda smiled at the bird, which let out a squawk and turned, providing its back. Zelda took the implied invitation and alighted on the saddle, allowing her own shining wings to fade. Then both princess and bird quickly ascended up into the sky.
24.1 (Detective Ethan Redfield)
"So, I assume this is the Mikasa Glitch?" asked Ryuu Barten, owner and patron of Termina's very own milk bar, Eden Hall. Seven Links were sitting at the table, drinking deep gulps of Chateau Romani. Elsewhere on the stage, a Zora, Goron and Deku Scrub Link were playing their parts for the Ballad of the Wind Fish. A young human Link was waving his Baton, directing the wind to enrich the music. Ryuu decided it would be a sight to see during the Carnival of Time.
At the table, there was one Link, self titled Young Link who was featured in the Hub's Ocarina of Time. He looked up at Ryuu and sighed. "Yeah. I just know next loop, I'm going to spend the entire loop trying to sort out the different memories."
The building started rumbling and shaking for several seconds before it came to an end. Ryuu looked out the window and asked, "Shouldn't you do something about that?"
He indicated the moon that was even now slowly descending towards Termina. Young Link shrugged, "My adult self has it taken care of."
Adult Link smirked as he stood atop the clock tower. His hand drew a multicolored sphere and crushed it between his fingers. Power flowed through his veins as he drew his sword towards the moon. His hands became a blur as his blade cut and cut the mass of stone over and over again, a shining image of the Triforce appearing in the air as he did so. After his blade ceased moving, the moment seemed to hang in the air, then a final slice smashed into the orb, sending it flying to the stars. With a flash of light, the Moon was gone. He swung his blade low twice, twisted it in his hands behind his back, then sheathed it in victory.
Ryuu nodded as he looked out the window, "Yep, it's gone alright."
Young Link rested his head on the table, not giving a damn with the impending headache coming up. The door swung open, causing every patron to turn to the door. They expected to see Adult Link walk through, but it was a boy dressed just like the other Links inside, but this time sporting black hair. Young Link groaned and asked, "TV Link?"
The new arrival nodded. Ryuu pulled up another jug of Chateau Romani and poured a new glass.
24.2 (masterofgames)
Navi grinned as she looked out over the massive audience in Hyrule Fields. She had finally perfected her transformation into her mostly Hylian form, and so could be seen clearly as she waved to them, receiving a roar of applause as she lifted the voice enhancing pendant to her mouth.
"Hello Hyrule!"
Another cheer answered her.
"Here we are on our fifth event! Just as a reminder, our little conductor contestant lost in the horseback riding first event. A good effort, but all that time driving trains just gave him the wrong reflexes for the job." she continued, gesturing to Link in the judge's box, wearing his conductor hat and uniform, who received some polite applause, and smiled and waved back in reply.
"Next to him, we have our boy from the clouds, who was taken out in the Goron-sumo second event! He had the will to win, but being trained to ride birds, he was just in the wrong weight class."
Link gave a small nod and smile.
"Then, we have our would-be pirate, taken out in the third event, the magic duel. His spell selection was just too small to compete, despite the fight he put up."
Link straightened his blue lobster shirt and stood to wave.
"And last time, our one man army contestant was eliminated in the stealth round. A good effort with distracting to cover the others, but four targets were just too difficult to hide completely."
Red, Blue, Green, and Purple Link all waved.
Several other Links down on the field all drew their bows and took their places.
"And now here we are at archery! Who will be eliminated today? Who, out of our remaining selection of heroes is, The Weakest Link!?"
The crowd roared.
24.3
Link whistled to himself as he wandered through the small door at the base of the Maku Tree. Visiting Farore, Oracle of Secrets, was always fun, as she always had a ton of nifty toys for him to use, though trying to guess the passwords was incredibly difficult. They were typically ridiculously long streams of letters and number, referencing random things like the number of Gasha Nut trees in existence, the number of eyelashes on the Mayor's left eye, the name of the current Moblin guard spelled backwards, and every fourth letter from the poem hidden in the bottom drawer of Pirate Captain's cabin. Still, hints were everywhere if you knew where to look, at it had never been exactly the same thing twice, so it was a great way to stave off boredom.
"Hello, Farore, how are...you...?" Link trailed off as he took in Farore's unusual outfit. Her skin was a pale blue, and she was wearing a large set of overalls and a large blue bandanna on her head. She was also floating about an inch off the floor.
"HELLO, HERO! I AM FARORE, THE BOX ORACLE OF SECRETS!" Farore boomed out at far too loud a volume.
"The wha?" Something about this was stirring something in Link's memory, but he couldn't quite remember what. "I, uh, I was coming to..."
"WHAT NUMBER AM I THINKING OF?"
Link blinked, then took a wild stab at it. "Six?"
Farore grinned widely. "YES! YOU ARE CORRECT! FOR A BOX HAS SIX SIDES! YOU GET A REWARD!"
Link's mouth dropped. That had to be the easiest 'secret' he had ever solved for Farore. "What do I get?"
Farore's grin widened, and gained a slight maniac tinge. She sped over to the counter, and pulled a large tasseled rope that was hanging next to her desk. "BOXES FOR THE CHOSEN ONE!"
Link barely had time to react to the rumbling that started above him before a tide of boxes poured down from a hole in the ceiling. Cardboard boxes, wooden boxes, an odd box-shaped watermelon, all swept down, filling the room before forcing their way out of the Maku Tree through sheer pressure, carrying Link away from a final shout of "BOXES!"
24.4 (Crisis)
As she lounged by her private pool, Zelda had to admit to herself that the swimsuit was perhaps the most ingenious fashion innovation ever. Displaying practically all the features of the physical form while still being considered socially modest attire. Most Loops she'd had to fight tooth and nail on political and legal fronts to be allowed to wear outfits that had a fair amount more fabric than the average women's one piece, much less the bikini she preferred when given the option (having never forgotten the look on Link's face the first time she wore one), because the delicate sensibilities of the Hylian nobles tended to think it scandalous for a princess to show so much as her ankle. She sometimes wondered if they'd try to hide even her face from view under the claim that a princess's visage was not to be seen by the unworthy or some idiocy like that. Honestly, for whatever other problems the Gerudo posed in the average instance of Hyrule, they had a much more sensible view on clothing.
There were other reasons she liked this Loop. Aside from being more of what many loopers referred to as a 'modern' setting (and even a bit advanced technologically), it had taken as its past a recent foray of hers to move Hyrule (well, New Hyrule) to a constitutional monarchy. Which meant her official duties as a princess were almost entirely ceremonial. She still had duties of course, but she also had a great deal more free time than usual. And her relationship with Link...
Zelda grinned to herself as she pictured Link in his latest non-hero outfit. He'd gone with his traditional green, but he was every inch the biker for the time being. The whole 'boyfriend/girlfriend' thing was something else she liked. She and Link weren't together every Loop they were Awake, and most of the time they were involved it was in some official capacity as princess and consort. The ability to be together casually would likely forever be a novelty.
"Your highness?" a male voice interrupted Zelda's thoughts. And her sunbathing.
Looking over, Zelda saw her master scheduler clearing his throat. "Hello Shad. Did you and Ashei have a good time last night?"
The young man blushed crimson and coughed politely. Yes, it seemed those two had had a very good time last night.
"We did," he stated at last. "However, I came to remind you to get ready for your appointment this afternoon."
"I thought the delegation from Lorule wasn't until next week?" Zelda blinked, sure she hadn't forgotten that. It was still relatively rare that she and Hilda could get together and just chat. Link and Ravio hadn't seen each other in a while either.
"It isn't," Shad agreed, "but your visit to Light Labs on the other hand–"
Zelda shot up so fast her wardrobe almost malfunctioned. That was today?! She'd gotten so caught up in the 'modern' conveniences that she'd nearly forgotten about the other loopers whose home branch Hyrule had fused with. Ones she'd been looking forward to meeting for a while now.
24.5 (Filraen)
"Navi, you're not fooling anyone with that getup" Link said to his fairy companion, who was wearing a fitting Konoha flak jacket, dark blue pants, long-sleeve shirt, a face mask and a metal plate in her forehead which had the Kokiri emblem carved on it.
Thought it may be the fact that the brightness of Navi's tiny body made her clothes impossible to see.
"You say so but nobody has been able to recognize me since I started wearing it, haven't they?" Navi's retorted quickly, deliberately not mentioning they were in Termina right now.
24.6 (Inspired by Alyss Penedo)
Link yawned and stretched, before looking around. He was on a long stretch of beach, which looked like it was probably Koholint Island. There wasn't any sign of Marin, but he might have woken up before she showed up. Still, it was as good a time as any to head down the beach and get his sword.
As he walked down the sandy shore, several large crabs popped up out of the sand and scuttled towards him. Link kicked out, flipping up one of the crabs and knocking it flying into another. While his baseline self might be defenseless without a blade, Link was not so handicapped. Finally, he spotted his blade lying half-buried in the sand off to the side.
"Perfect. Come to Poppa." Link's hand closed around the handle of his sword, and, with a jolt, he suddenly felt himself falling, yet he could still feel his body standing still on the shore. Then his body began to move on its own.
"Oh dear. Master, there is a 96% chance that we are sharing a single body this Loop."
'OK Fi, so, I'm going to shoot the Moblin in the rear, then I'll switch over to you to deal with the two closest.'
'Affirmative, Master.'
Link groaned softly. 'Seriously, I know you aren't that submissive anymore, so why do you keep calling me Master?'
'Because your expression becomes 35% more humorous when I do so.'
Link stared blankly ahead at the group of Moblins, before letting his arrow fly and reaching for the sword. 'Of course it does.'
As Fi took control and surged forward in a graceful lunge, Link pondered on their situation. Once they had linked up, they had managed to establish a mental connection to communicate. A few tests had confirmed that, so long as Fi's hilt was in contact with Link's hands, Fi would be in control of his body. Link didn't mind as much as he might have, because Fi was, by design, a phenomenal swordswoman. This was exemplified in the fact that, two seconds after darting forward, Fi had already finished off both Moblins with a series of spinning slashes.
24.7
Din, an up-and-coming trainer from Celadon City, stood on stage in the Indigo Conference. Lifting her Pokeball high, she shouted, "Hero, I choose you!"
Link, for now a Scyther named Hero, burst from his Pokeball to face his competition. 'My life this Loop may be a living pun, but sword-arms are always cool.'
24.8
"Sho, we neesh ta make wif da teshs fo da heeero, sho he know who he ish." Navi, Goddess of Courage, slurred as she looked out over the Land of Hyrule that she and her 'sisters' had just finished creating. Several bottles of fermented ambrosia and Big Mac's Special Kick In The Can Bottled Firewine floated nearby, most well on the way to being drained. The three temporary goddesses had been celebrating finally getting the creation of Hyrule finished with no mishaps.
"Do we~e ha~a~a~ave to?" Midna, Goddess of Power, drunkenly sang as she spun some clouds around her fingers, forming an impossible knot that was slightly painful to look at. "He's gonna have the, whatisit, green, head floppy hat thing."
"Nah, nah, but how, *hic* how wills he know to besh wearin da hatsh?" Navi pointed a finger imperiously at Midna, before swinging to point off at a point just over her shoulder. Both of them sat their pondering, before Midna suddenly perked up.
"Itsa puzzle, so we should make a puzzle, see, like, with all the things, the square, boxes, yeah, boxes."
Navi blinked and shook her head, before tilting her head from side to side. "Whoa, thash weird."
Midna frowned. "What's weird? I'm not weird."
Navi blinked at her again. "I forgot." She stared at Midna some more, before a lightbulb lit off in her head. "But boxsees. Yah, we can make losh and losh of boxeses, and a picture, too."
Midna nodded. "Yeah, a big picture."
Navi started laughing. "The big pisxture, of evereree, of its all!"
Off to the side, Fi absorbed some more of the contents of one of the bottles and converted it directly to energy. While she had experienced the feelings of being drunk in the past, and had found it to be a pleasant experience, she felt it was the most prudent course of action to remain sober at this time to ensure that her counterparts didn't destroy the world creating their 'box tests'. As she moved to follow the others as they descended to start on their 'brilliant' plan, she sighed softly to herself.
"...I wanted to make it a dance contest."
Link rubbed his eyes, glancing back between the sign and massive room in front of him. He had seen some ridiculous things, but this...
The room was tremendous, and the floor was absolutely covered in stone blocks, thousands of them. Each of the stone blocks was colored on top, and according to the sign, he had to assemble the blocks into a mosaic picture of the three goddesses. It was an herculean task, but the post script was some small comfort, at least.
'P.S. I am very, very apologetic. - Fi, Goddess of Wisdom'
24.9
Impa huffed as she sat down in the wooden chair in Naryu's house. She really disliked Loops through Labrynna, as they always started out with her getting possessed. Or rather, they started out with her being possessed, and thus made Awakening a confused jumbled mess, as she had to be careful not to let Veran discover that anything was amiss. While Epona had assured them that this part of their universal history was a stable as possible, given that time travel was involved, a Veran that was aware of the Loops could often do enough damage to force a crash. Not a fun experience.
The other reason behind Impa's ire was the condition her body was in. For whatever reason, this version of her was a dumpy old maid, rather than the powerful, lithe warrior that she was used to being. Even though she could wield a sword fairly decently, this body had obviously not gone through nearly enough training for a proper royal bodyguard.
Still, the upside was that she really didn't have to do much for this Loop to go right. Link, though for some reason he was Unawake, was able to defeat Veran and save Naryu 99 times out of 100, and Impa was certain she had managed to avoid the hundredth time that led to Veran crashing the Loop. So, she had some time on her hands, and frankly, spending it all whipping this body into shape just wasn't appealing right now.
Naryu breathed a sigh of relief as she saw her small forest home. It had been an honest nightmare being possessed by that witch, she only hoped that Ralph and that boy, Link, didn't horribly injure themselves trying to stop her.
Naryu froze as she entered her house. Paintings. Paintings everywhere. Large canvases propped up against the walls, smaller canvases on her bed, couch, and chairs, and several sketches were laid in piles on her table. Tilting her head, Naryu took in the nearest portrait. It was the picture of a sunset on a beach, but she wasn't familiar with the locale. Probably somewhere to the south...
"Oh, who are...oh, it's you." Naryu spun around at the unfamiliar voice. A rather large woman was standing in the doorway, a small canvas tucked under her arm. Naryu blinked for a moment.
"You, you are the woman who was being possessed by Veran."
The woman nodded. "Yes. I never got a chance to introduce myself, but I am Impa, from Hyrule. I was sent by Princess Zelda to keep you safe, but, well, Veran happened."
Naryu nodded. She perfectly understood the feeling, being trapped in your body, with no way to control what you are doing. "And the paintings?"
Impa flushed. "...I was bored."
Naryu smiled. "They are quite good. Did you paint them from memory?"
Impa winced at Naryu's unknowingly insightful question. In point of fact, Impa had been teleporting around Labrynna (and a bit further) to find things to paint while she waited for the Loop to end. Then Impa paused. The magic she used was native, though her native self wouldn't have known it. But Naryu didn't know her native self, so...
"Actually, I painted them on-site."
Naryu's eyes widened. "So many? You must have travelled far, but..." her eyes suddenly grew cloudy with worry, "that must mean I've been gone much longer than I thought. And I might not be able to go back to the right point, and Ralph will..."
Impa quickly jumped forward. She hadn't meant to send Naryu into a panic. "No, no, it was quite quick. I have access to the magic of crossing space, just as you can cross time. It has only been perhaps a week or so."
Naryu exhaled in relief, before blinking again. "And you painted all of these in such a short time?"
Impa smiled sheepishly. "I was very, very bored."
24.10 (Evilhumour)
Navi was Woke up early in this loop, in what her friends called the Ocarina of Time starting point. Sending off pings as she flew towards where Link was, she thought of how she would try to prove herself this loop when she heard a thud from within Link house.
Flying faster as she got two pings back; she frowned at the large child in Link's place as she flew inside, her loop memories kicking in. While they still named him Link, he was definitely not the normal Link and more than likely a new looper. He was a tall kid with very shaggy hair; and unlike the baseline history for Link, the baby was not found in front of the Deku Tree but several months later almost completely wild. It had taken a lot of work from her and Saria to civilize the child, with him sliding back every now and then, running on all fours, scratching himself with his foot, and generally acting like a wild wolf. The village children had done their best to make him welcome and she had done her best to raise him.
Flying around him, she asked "Hey, hey, are you alright?"
The boy groaned, a hand weakly reaching around as he stayed down on knees. "Human. Not used to."
"Oh." She blinked; it was a bit rare that they got a looper that wasn't humanoid, even more so that had little chance to be bipedal. "Do you need some help?" she could have smacked herself, for that stup-
"Y-yes-" he growled before whimpering. "Not used to talk with words." The child shuddered which prompted Navi to gently navigate the child back to his bed with a gentle tone, reassuring when he fumbled and doing her best to help him get used to being a human.
Finally, the boy was sitting upright on his bed, and flashing her a fanged smile that spoke of his gratitude. She understood it from some sort of instinctual response, and she figured that getting him to speaking was something to be gradually done, as was the rest of what they would need to do. First, she would need to learn the true name of the child across of her. So she asked him what was his real name.
The boy simply responded with, "Geri."
"Well Geri, I think it would be easier if I told you of my loop first as speaking seems a bit difficult for you. Is that ok?"
The boy nodded his head and Navi began to tell a tale that would span time itself.
22.5 Finale
"...and why does he even think that it would be romantic? I mean, like, a quarter of the time, he thinks kicking me out, turning me into a midget, and overthrowing the world, will make me want to marry him! How moronic is that!" Midna ranted as a pair of shadowy arms flared out of the Twilight Mirror, smashing down to flatten the Deity. At first, she had been taunting the Deity while attacking with the shadowy powers of Twilight. However, at some point after summoning a series of wolves to tear the Deity apart, she had gotten distracted and gone off on a tangent about the stupidity of Zant.
Navi just nodded, tossing in a few wind blades to pin down the Deity before Midna pulled out actual spears of shadow to pin it down for real. She then summoned up a handful of black bombs and rained them down, interspersed with more rants.
"...can't even take over properly, I mean, you don't leave bits and pieces of your weakness lying around, and gloating is seriously overrated, not to mention short-sighted. You want to impress me, you need to actually have a pair of brain cells to rub together."
Boredom, trapped, nothing new. Everything to be seen is seen, save the stars, and what was beyond.
"I'm going to break free and find a new place."
"Be ca~re~ful."
Zelda smiled as a familiar island came into view. Skyloft always held a special place in her heart, as she had much fewer responsibilities there, and much more opportunities to be a normal teenager. Still, it was rather heartbreaking to see the island in ruins, with shadowy chains piercing through the burning buildings. Still, from her aerial perch, she could clearly see where the chains converged. Beneath the Goddess Temple.
The Crimson Loftwing circled wide around the island, as Zelda used a Magic Missile spell to blow away a flock of Keese that was swarming up towards them, and the pair drifted closer to the entrance to Fi's Chamber. Zelda shivered, even as she blasted away another flock, as she could feel the dark pressure that had been hovering in the background after she entered the moon rising quickly. The Deity was reacting to her presence. She pulled on the Phantom Armor to prepare herself.
The pair landed at the hidden entrance to the Chamber of the Sword, and Zelda leapt off. The Loftwing took flight, circling above as Zelda approached the hidden door. Zelda ran her hand across the surface, allowing her magic to seep into the stone. The wall glowed, and then the glow compressed into a symbol. But not a symbol she had hoped to see.
An egg-shaped oval sat in the center of the hidden door, with the profile of a bird within. Zelda's breath caught, just as a loud cry echoed out from above her.
BWAKAK!
Zelda leapt back as the symbol glowed red, her eyes fixed on the Statue of the Goddess, mouth open in horror. The statue of her most primeval self rippled, before shrinking slightly and twisting. After a long, terrifying moment of morphic-uncertainty, a massive, black, stone Cucco perched where the statue had been. With agonizing slowness, the Cucco turned to stare down at Zelda, glowing red eyes piercing down at her.
"Oh...fuuu..."
BWAKAK! The Cucco's cry cut across Zelda's curse, as it leapt off of the pillar. Zelda barely got out of the way as the massive stone talons smashed into the courtyard where she had been standing. Zelda stumbled, feeling the island itself tilting slightly under the impact. She quickly darted away, pulling on a pair of Pegasus Boots to help keep her ahead of the Cucco's beak as it pecked down at her, gouging deep scars in the grass behind her. She shaped a pair of bombs stuffed with magical powder and hurled them over her shoulder, but given the strong, angry cry that joined with their explosion, she doubted they had had quite the effect she had wanted. However, she wasn't going to stop to find out.
A massive shadow suddenly fell over her, and she glanced up. The Cucco had flapped above her, and now was coming down like a feathered stone meteor. Moments before impact, the Loftwing streaked past with a scream, snatching Zelda away from the flattening strike.
"Thank you." Zelda let out a long breath as she hauled herself up and over into the saddle. "Ok, I need you to circle around. Stay close, but just out of reach." The Loftwing let out a cry and turned to flash past, dodging the beak as the Cucco jumped up, before circling past one of the Temple Walls that hadn't been knocked down yet. Zelda then clasped her hands. 'I really hope this works.'
"One who is brighter than dawn
One who is gold with divine hope
Beyond the flow of time
In thy great name,
I hereby pledge myself to light
Those who have borne they weighty burden
All those who have become heroes
Stand with me now
To grant the true righteous desire
TRIA SAVER!"
Above her head, the image of the Triforce appeared, drawn by the power of her chant, and then a wave of light ripped outward. After the light dissipated, Zelda smiled, before it faded away. The giant black Cucco statue was gone. In its place was a slightly smaller, flesh-and-blood, Golden Cucco.
"Of course. It couldn't be that easy."
At the sound of her voice, the Cucco looked up, then jumped, beak wide open. Zelda let out a small 'eep', which quickly turned into a louder scream as the Loftwing suddenly dropped straight down. A quick twist had them shooting past the open beak, and then the tight dive straightened out to fly straight under the massive bird, Zelda's hair brushing against the feathers on the underbelly of the titanic Cucco. The Loftwing turned and dropped to the side, dumping Zelda off onto the ground next to the remnants of the temple.
"What are you doing?" Zelda scrambled to her feet, gathering her wits and magic. In response, the Loftwing pointed its wing at the base of the temple, where the doorway had been caved in at some point in the Cucco's rampage. Zelda turned back, just in time to see the Loftwing take off and fly up towards the Cucco's head. She smiled ruefully, then turned and headed into the open doorway.
"Good luck, Link."
"...and this is for the time you started up a pinned bug collection." Navi swung her blade around, feeding fire magic into it, to create a large burning tornado around her, which she swept the Deity up in.
Midna raised an eyebrow as Navi twisted the burning column to plow into the earth. "As amusing as it is to see you take out your frustration on him, you do realize that isn't Link, right?"
Navi huffed. "Yes, I know, but if I beat up Link, I know it is only because he is letting me win, given his track record, so this is the next best thing." So declaring, she turned back to the now extinguished Deity and fired off a sharp forward thrust, which culminated in a lance of air piercing straight through him. "And that is for flirting with Tael in front of me."
Midna chuckled, before shrugging smoothly and gesturing with the Mirror of Twilight, causing a wired suspension bridge made of shadow to fly out and land atop the Deity. As Navi turned to gape at her, Midna laughed and stated, "That is for peeing on my wardrobe as a wolf".
Restriction and binding. Everything was shrinking down.
=He is too powerful=
=He is beyond reason=
=If you insist=
=For the good of all, this must be done=
Darkness came and swallowed me up.
Zelda emerged into the front hall of Hyrule Castle. She didn't need to see the chains piercing through the halls to know where to go, she could feel the familiar aura coming from the direction of the main hall and throne room. Quickly, Zelda raced up the staircase and through the set of double doors, racing along the hallway towards the ornate entrance to the throne chamber.
She entered the chamber and stopped, horrified. Link was there, suspended in the air above the throne, pierced through with the chains, which bound him and held him there, suspended. The throne itself was empty, but Zelda could feel the power gathering for a final push to stop her. Directly in front of her, the carpet turned pitch black, and a shadowy figure rose up to face her.
It was herself, in Shadow Interloper form. The dark doppelganger tilted her head and smiled, before raising her hands. Before she could cast a spell, however, a Silver Arrow shot through her head, turning her skull to shadowy smoke. The figure began to reform, but Zelda began pumping the crank on the semi-automatic crossbow she had just pulled out, and a storm of Silver Arrows ripped through the dark figure, reducing her to so much smoke.
"Not today, sweetie." Zelda quickly strode forward, bringing the crossbow around to tear through the chains. Sparks flew as the light of the arrows blasted away at the dark bindings, and one by one they snapped, leading to Link dropping down to the floor. Pulling out a blade of light, Zelda cut away the chains around him, and then pressed her hands to his chest, before flooding him with every healing spell she could think of.
"I am sorry, Link. As much as I would love to let you rest, we really need you to kick this thing out of your head so it doesn't come back to bite us."
"PHOENIX METEOR RAIN" Midna chanted as she assumed a full Phoenix avatar state, before raining down fireballs on the Deity from her extended wings. As the smoke rose and the fireballs died away, Midna then wrapped the aura tightly around her before diving straight down into the devastation. "PHOENIX TWILIGHT SPEAR"
The impact of her attack ignited a fireball within the crater, which lit up the retreating figure of the Deity, who had leapt clear of her assault. It landed and roared in anger, hurling dark crescents of energy from the battered blade in its hands, which carved furrows through the ground and smoke. As the smoke parted, it revealed Midna half hidden behind a flickering magical barrier, which shattered moments later.
Taking advantage of the lull in the Deity's attacks, Navi darted in. "DANCE OF THE BLOOMING LOTUS" Navi spun past the Deity in an arc, slashing as she raced by, before looping around and shooting back in a different arc. Again and again she darted back and forth, moving fast enough to leave a blurring afterimage behind her, which resulted in what appeared to be a glowing flower of slashes appearing, centered on the Deity, who was pinned by the continuous assault. Finally, Navi broke away with a spiraling step, that led her to tightly spin around the Deity, dissipating the flower image with single powerful spin-cut.
Woozily, Navi staggered over to Midna, holding her head. "Ooh, I forgot how many Gees that move packs when I do it at Hylian-size."
Midna blinked innocently. "You...do know that we don't have to be affected by things like gravity in here if we don't choose to be, right?"
Navi stared blankly at Midna, who, she realized, had not seemed the slightest bit winded during this battle, despite swinging around some massive psychic weaponry. "I hate you."
Midna just smiled sweetly in response.
Their banter was cut short when the Deity roared, and the dark flames surrounding him rose up angrily.
NO, Y/O-U CA\N'T D-O T/H+AT! I WO/N-'T...AG\+AI-N...N/\OT...T-O Y/O+-U!
Navi carefully set her stance. "Is it just me, or is he getting stronger?"
Midna nodded. "And still more insane. I fear that it is adapting to our power. That is why I have been trying to limit what I use, while still keeping him too focused here to stop Zelda."
Navi nodded. "Well, I hope she hurries."
In answer to Navi's statement, a trio of Silver Arrows impacted the burning form of the Deity, battering aside the flame, but lacking in any noticeable effect on the Deity itself. Navi and Midna both glanced up and smiled.
Zelda was descending on wings of light, while beside her, Link flew in on his Crimson Loftwing. He looked exhausted, but determined, as he leapt lightly from the Loftwing to land on the ground.
Slowly, Link paced forward, his eyes locked on the shadowy figure. In his hands, the Master Sword appeared in a flash. Almost as if it had been waiting for that signal, the Deity blasted forward with an echoing cry.
N/-N-N/O+\/O-/O\O!
They met in a shower of sparks. Pushing off, Link parried aside the force of the blow and slid his blade down toward the Deity's hilt. The Deity pushed aside the thrust, forcing Link back a step, before bring the blade in for a side sweep. Link leapt up, his foot brushing across the blade as he pushed off into an aerial somersault, before landing and dashing forward under the Deity's guard.
Back and forth they dance, Link darting about like an acrobat, rolling around strikes and popping up to slide past the Deity's guard. The Deity crashed forward like an avalanche, each blow bearing overwhelming force, directed with echoes of the skill Link displayed, each strike aimed to be a lethal blow.
Link stepped back to allow a mighty slash to pass diagonally in front of him, then stepped forward, his blade darting in towards the deity's face. The deity deflected the first strike with the pommel of its blade, then batted the second away with the back of its hand, before bringing its blade around towards Link's open ribs. Link barely managed to position the blade in the way, absorbing the majority of the blow, and skidding backwards on his heels from the strike. Link adjusted his stance, then sighed, and smiled.
"I understand you now. I know what happened, how they sealed you away."
T-HH/E\Y W/E/R-E A/+FR/-AI-\D!
Link nodded. "I understand. And with that understanding, I will pierce through the darkness of your fear and hatred, and reveal the light I know you have inside." Link quickly sunk into a deeper stance, before kicking off, the Master Sword glowing as he brought it around.
"SHONEN POWER UNDERSTANDING THERAPY BLADE STRIKE!"
All was white.
Zelda groaned slightly as she came to in her body, which had fallen to the ground when they had jumped into Link's mind. Next to her, Navi likewise stirred, while Midna was already standing next to Link. Zelda rose and made her way over, pausing only briefly when she spotted the Fierce Deity Mask floating in the air in front of Link. Keeping her eyes on the artifact, she slid up to his side.
"Therapy Blade Strike?"
Link chuckled. "Naruto and Ichigo taught me about it, and I improved on it during a Gurren Lagann Loop. It seems ridiculous, but if you have the proper circumstances it is extremely effective."
Zelda hmm'd noncommittally as she gazed at the mask. "And your 'experiment'?"
Link sighed sadly. "It seems that the Goddesses made Termina as an accident, and sealed it away rather than unmaking it. When they made it, there were only four beings in existence, The Four Giants. They took a look around, and then they went to work improving the place. One of the first living things they made was the Kid." He nodded towards the mask. "While the Giants worked on making things and beings, the Kid grew and learned. It explored every nook and cranny, and met every living thing here, though it always considered itself to be the best, because it was the first that was made."
Link sighed as he stared up at the now-distant moon. "Eventually, it got bored, and wanted to find new places to explore. So it broke free and snuck around the other worlds. It ended up breaking through and leading some of the demons from a different sealed world into Hyrule, which led to the whole Demise situation. It was unapologetic when the Goddesses confronted it, and declared its intention to break down all the barriers so that it could go wherever it wanted. So the Goddesses sealed it away in a mask and bound it in the moon. Then, well, when I took a look through its past, it woke up and took over."
i'm sorry
Zelda, Midna, and Navi all jumped at the tiny voice that echoed out of the mask. Link smiled, sadly, before shaking his head.
"There is nothing to be sorry about. Like I said, I understand."
...i don't want to go away
Link gestured up at the giants, who were still standing around after having heaved the moon back into orbit. "You don't have to. The Goddesses aren't here, and your...your parents are. They are here for you."
The mask was silent as it slowly rotated, looking at each of the giants in turn, before it turned to face Link again.
ok
With that, it quickly began to float up toward the giants, who all started to speak as one.
"Wel~co~me ba~ck."
22.5 cont. - Mental Battles can get rather overblown, and symbolic.
24.1 - Mikasa Yo Linka (The Mikasa Glitch causes a Looper to split into multiple versions of themselves)
24.2 - You are the Weakest Link! Well excu~use me, Princess.
24.3 - Beware My Boxy Secrets!
24.4 - The Mega Legend of Zelda: Tale of Two Heroes
Note - Relationships are a tricky thing in the Loops. There are very few stable long-term relationships, with most being like Link and Zelda: An amicable on-again, off-again, when they get the desire.
24.5 - Navi the Ninja
24.6 - Things got a bit complicated when he found the Fire Rod and Midna joined the mix.
24.7 - Link used Swords Dance. Ganondorf used Run Away.
24.8 - Drunk Goddesses Make Odd Puzzles.
24.9 - It can be tough, sitting on the sidelines. Sure is colorful, though.
24.10 - And Geri joins the Loops, from 40K. Let's give him a round of app-paws!
22.5 Finale - And Everything is Resolved. Read on, and see what may come in the future.
22.5 Follow-Up
Link sighed as he stretched out on the clock tower roof, staring up at the stars. Given that the Loop hadn't ended immediately, he knew they had about a week or so. Usually, that gave him enough time to ride Epona out to seek out Navi, but given that he knew exactly where she was (off attending a Zora Fashion Show with Midna and Zelda), he didn't see much point in wandering around lost in the woods.
Plus, he had someone he had to meet.
"Are you sure you want to do this?" He glanced up at the figure, or rather, object, that had joined him on the roof.
i want to explore, like i was going to before i messed up The Fierce Deity Mask floated in from the edge of the roof. we are...linked. we can stay together
Link laughed. "Your first pun. Good job." He rolled up to his feet, then turned and held out his hand. The Mask floated forward and settled onto his palm, staring up at him. "Before you go in, did you decide on a name like we discussed?"
...a name...i never had one...i don't know
Link nodded. "Well, until you decide, I'll give a temporary name. How about...D?"
The Mask was silent for a long moment, before it twitched in a parody of a nod. i will be called...D
Link smiled, then slid the Mask into his Pocket, and turned to watch the sun rising.