'When I was young, I hit my head. I fell off my horse. When I woke up, I went on an adventure. My head never really stopped hurting, and ever since then, I've seen him. That man. He comes to me when I am in trouble.
But he never helps me.
He never helps me. Instead, he always points away. Towards home. But I can't go home. He knows that. If he is who I think he is, then he knows that. But he urges me to go anyway.
I don't think others see him. I think it is just me. So I ignore him. But one day, if I everhave enough of this life, maybe I'll go see what he wants.'
†
A disaster.
It had, overall, been a disaster.
While seven entered, only three left. The blood and carnage they had witnessed was too much for even Vooru, and she blamed Link. Gerudo were indeed fierce warriors, but the reality was that Hyrule's peacetime resulted in younger soldiers, be they Zoras, Hylians, Gerudos, who had not been exposed to true horror. That was the result of a peaceful time. One could train for combat, certainly. But in the wild, no one blew the whistle when things got hairy.
His head ached fiercely as he collapsed to his knees.
By some miracle, he had made it to the Lost Woods.
Not the Lost Woods, in fact.
But the piece of land that bordered just in front of it. The very same that he and Malon visited, though she never knew of it's dual purpose for Link. Link could not enter the Lost Woods anymore, colloquially referred to as the Forbidden Woods by denizens of Hyrule.
But, the small pool of water that sat just before where the roots began to knot and the forest became sentient, was still saturated in healing power. Just as it had been when he crossed Hyrule with his small friend. And it was here, after most journey's that he would return to recover.
Without this small morsel of land, he surely would have died from his injuries long ago.
He looked at his reflection in the still water, as he had for years now. His body changed, but he still felt the same. He plunge into the pool.
Weighed down by his gear, he slowly sank to the bottom. The bubbles floated up around him, and put him in mind of fairies flying away towards the sky.
Navi.
His body was weightless as he sunk to the bottom. The sunlight shimmered through the clear blue water, only momentarily stained by red clouds of blood that eventually dissipated into nothing.
Further down he sunk, such that the sunlight could not reach him now.
Above, he saw a figure, standing at the edge of the water.
He knew the figure who looked down on him from land.
He knew the man.
Even at such a distance, he could see the ornate orange robe that adorned him.
The man pointed to the Lost Woods.
Link coughed suddenly, unaware of how long he had spent descending. He kicked off the rock floor of the basin and swam upwards.
He gasped as he broke the water, grabbing the grass and coughing. He swept his hair back, not surprised to find the man had disappeared.
††
The crowd murmurs were loud as the people clamoured in Kakariko. The small village square was packed with civilians wrought with worry. The fiend sightings in the fields had not subsided. Most wanted to travel to Castle Town to wait out the invasion from behind the safety of the castle walls. After all, Kakariko was a vulnerable location in comparison.
Link passed through the crowd, largely unseen. He had spotted the commotion from the neighbouring woods and decided to take a look. He peered over the crowd. Some locals carried bags. Some seemed to have travelled from as far down as the South to take shelter.
"Link? Link!"
He zeroed in on Malon's voice and carefully pushed through the crowd to get to her.
"Link! You're safe!" She grabbed his hand again.
"What's happening here?"
Her dark blue eyes scanned the crowd, the hot weather made it so strands of her cheek, and she pulled it away.
"I'm not sure... I think people are hoping to stay in Castle Town. They are probably going to raise the bridge."
"Raise it? Why?"
"Because the fiends, there are too many. They've even been seen in Kakariko at night recently. In this village, Link."
Link looked around. He had only just returned from Gerudo Valley and it was true he hadn't begun hunting the remaining fiends, but he hadn't expected them to multiply so fast. Perhaps the cause was not the temple after all.
Vooru had no doubt redacted her deal with him, and no Gerudo help would be coming.
"Aren't the guards on it?" He asked.
"Yeah. Honlun says they will be increasing their numbers going forward. But they weren't as prepared. They didn't expect them to make it to Kakariko."
Link spotted Talon not too far off, speaking with someone.
"Honlun? Wait. So what are-"
Someone pushed passed Link in a hurry and he bumped into Malon. He grabbed her shoulders to steady her. And for a moment, she flustered.
"What are you doing here then? Are you going to Castle Town too?" He continued.
The chaos around them seemed to grow. Malon, spurred from her daze, squinted to hear him for a moment as the crowd momentarily swelled.
"No, no. We're going back to the ranch. I'm really not..."
"Malon!" A voice called.
Partially short on breath, Anju side stepped through the moving crowd towards Malon.
"Anju! Are you fleeing to Castle Town?"
"No no. We will be staying here. We have everything we need for a few days... We'll tough it out here. I'd rather be with my family. Are you staying? You guys can cram in with us."
"No we're going back, we can't leave the ranch. I'm just waiting for my father, then we'll be going."
"Stay safe, Malon... Don't go out at night, they are worse at night. I've even seen them in Kakariko at night."
Anju nodded to them both, her brow showed the marks of concern before she took her leave towards the Eastern end where her house stood.
The panic in the crowd was contagious. It was paramount in Malon's mind to return to the ranch and prepare however she could for whatever was coming.
"Link, are you going to stay?" She asked, tugging at his arm.
"I don't know..." he murmured, lost in thought.
He watched Anju leave through the crowd. He wanted to ask what exactly she saw, but he thought better of it.
He didn't notice how intently Malon stared at him. Desperately, she searched his face for reassurance, but he was lost in thought.
"I've been thinking of something. Something from a long time ago." She said.
His eyes continued to scan the hectic environment as the people pushed passed them. He wondered if he ought to follow them back to the Ranch before heading out into the field on his own. He wondered if he could figure out where the Royal Guard would start so he might tackle another location.
"Do you remember when we were young? You told me about Termina. And the moon. You said that in Termina, the moon was falling? That's where you had gone."
All the surrounding stimuli drowned to the background and his eyes met hers.
"I remember you used to tell me lot's of stories. And one day they just stopped. We were young but you told me that you just weren't sure if any of it were true. How could the moon fall in one place and not another, you had said."
But why was she talking about this now of all times? He wondered.
"Well, now that we're older, do you think it was true?"
She stared attentively at him.
"No." He said.
She was quiet for a moment, her hand still holding on to his arm. Somehow, his response seemed to disappoint her, but he couldn't exactly understand why.
Her gaze lowered and her hand slumped from his arm.
"Well. I think it was true. I believe you. And I think you know it was true also."
She half noticed the blood which seemed to seep from beneath his tunic. A cloak hung off his shoulders, as if to conceal it.
"Malon, new plan." Talon appeared between them, startling them both. "Oh, kid, you're back."
"What is the new plan?" She asked.
"You will take the wagon to Castle Town, to drop of the rest of the supplies. Honlun will go with you to Castle Town instead of me. I'm going to stay here, and help Mutoh. I'll meet you back at the Ranch. Worst case, I'll be there tomorrow."
"We're separating?" She asked anxiously.
"Don't worry, Honlun will go with you to Castle Town and escort you back to the ranch. If it's safer to leave the wagon in town, then do it."
"But dad..."
Talon grabbed her shoulders.
"You want to help right? Well, Castle Town will need supplies. I'm going to stay to help them here. So let's do this, and meet back at the ranch by tomorrow."
It was obvious to Link that the idea overwhelmed her.
"If we go now, Malon, we can make good time." Honlun said, emerging from the crowd.
"Why cant we go together?" She asked her father. "We'll help Mutoh tonight, and then go to Castle Town tomorrow."
Honlun answered in place of Talon.
"The fiends are appearing more and more. Even last night, they walked through this village, they were spotted by the windmill. They will be back."
Link looked back to the windmill.
"Your father wants to help, so it's better to be as quick as possible about it. I think it will be the best plan..." Honlun took her hand gently, and she clasped his in return.
Link forced himself to look away.
"Ingo is at the Ranch for now." Talon said. "I'll see you soon!"
"Link, will you come with us?" Malon asked.
"No!" Talon interrupted. "L-link, he will join us. We could use his help."
Malon nodded.
"Take care of him, Link." She said with a smile.
She left hand in hand with Honlun.
Link's heart beat violently in his chest. Malon leaned into Honlun as they walked away and for a moment, he felt a deep detest for his life and his lack of control he had it.
"C'mon kid." Talon called as he disappeared through the crowd.
Fine, he thought. He would help Talon, then head to the field.
He pulled himself away and followed Talon to Mutoh's house.
Lake Hylia.
The field.
Eastern Kakariko.
Those were the most prevalent sightings based on what he had heard from the crowd.
His mind wandered as he helped Talon distribute supplies but felt his help wasn't really required. He needed to get to the field and begin removing the fiends that roamed the area.
He thought back to Malon's strange question.
Yes, as a young child, Link had decided it would be better that she know as little about the violent nature of his escapades as possible and so the stories stopped. To that day, he was thankful for the decision his younger self made, though it came with its own set of draw backs.
He had long wondered if everything he saw in Termina even happened. He recalled many unusual things that didn't make sense. He specifically remembered encountering people in Termina that he had seen around Hyrule. It was an oddity he was consciously aware of even when he was in Termina. A man may introduce himself as Gorman, leader of the Gorman troupe. But Link would only see Ingo, the deceitful stable hand at Lon Lon Ranch.
He hit his head. He often recalled upon that. Epona reared and he fell off. The back of his head struck a rock, very hard. He had blacked out.
He often wondered if this affected what he saw in Termina, and if so, to what extent.
He would shake his head wildly and Gorman would reveal himself to be not the dark haired, bushy browed patriot of Lon Lon Ranch, but the true Gorman; a blond well dressed leader of the Gorman Troupe. Link had replaced the faces of those he met in Termina, with those of people he knew from Hyrule.
Maybe it was a way to extract some ounce of comfort from the new world he found himself in. One without a friend, or a home.
Or maybe, it was his attempt to reconcile things left undone.
And what of the strange masks. How much of what happened, actually happened?
Regardless of the work he put into Termina, fate had sent him back to Hyrule without a thank you. Hyrule would not be without her puppet.
"Talon..." Link began. "I think I've done all I can. I really should..."
"What? You are quitting already?"
"What more is there?" There was an unusual stress in Link's voice.
"Well. It's late. We ought to stay here." Talon returned.
There was a few seconds of heavy silence between them. Link's brow furrowed in suspicion, which seemed to aggravate Talon.
"Look, kid. You can't go after Malon."
"I wasn't..."
"Yes, you were. You were going to head to Castle Town. The thing is, I sent her there because I wanted her safe. They will close the bridge tonight for the next couple of days, and I wanted her there."
Talon folded his arms, unapologetically.
"I sent her there with Honlun. They get along. She likes him. He will protected her."
Link lowered his brow.
"I know you've always had a thing for her. Shit, everyone knows it except her. I know if you go there, and she asks you to get her out of there, I know that you'd do it. And it's not in her best interest, but you don't care about that."
Link cast his eyes away. He did care about her best interest, and it made him uncharacteristically angry that Talon would question that.
"I'm sorry, kid. I just... When this all passes, then it will be fine. But I know she'll be mad when they raise the drawbridge, and she'll want to go back to the Ranch. And... I'm sorry. I just can't let that happen. So..."
But Talon didn't have anything left to say. After that, he just left.
Link stood there for some time, replaying Talon's words. Talon had a way of letting Link know exactly how the everyone saw him, without ever directly saying it. Selfish, lazy and dangerous.
The sun was setting and soon it would be dark. Then he could start.
Let the fiends show themselves.
"Link."
He turned to see a face he hadn't seen in sometime.
"Link, it's been a while, friend."
Yen.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be..."
"I came to find you actually. We could really use your help."
††††
Yen and Link had met as children. He was a young Zora and they had become fast friends sometime after his return from Termina. As children, they would often spend time in the Zora's Pass. Link had learned that Yen knew Ruto. More so, he had been in love with her as a child, and was deeply affected by her disappearance.
Link never explained that he knew Ruto, but he was able to bond with Yen by sympathizing at the loss of someone whose outcome was unknown.
But soon after meeting, Yen had grown cold and subsequently enrolled to be a combatant in the Zora militia. It had been years since they'd seen each other.
"Thank you for coming with me." Yen said, as they followed the stream from Hyrule field to Zora's domain.
Link nodded.
"Well. As you can see, I became a soldier. It didn't fix anything, but at least I have a purpose." He smiled weakly.
Link smiled in reciprocation. Yen's voice was still soaked with anger. He had never overcome the anger which so obviously consumed him as a small Zora.
"And you? What have you been up to?" Yen asked, as they stepped on some rocks to cross the stream.
"Mostly the same as always. Wandering around. Fighting."
The crickets chirped around them. The moon was now high in the sky, illuminating their path.
"You any better at it?" He joked.
Link chuckled a bit, mostly for Yen's benefit.
"Good." Yen said quietly. "I'm glad you're still fighting. It's all a man really has."
Link was saddened by the choler in Yen's demeanour. And he did not agree with his mantra.
"Fighting is a means to an end, Yen. In the end, you should leave the place in better condition than you found it in. If you have to fight, then fine. But the goal isn't carnage."
"I think you'll change your mind when you see what we have at home."
It had been years since he had been to Zora's domain. It was simply not a place he needed to go often. It had clearly prospered in the peace era. There were Hylian's living there also, which was new compared to what Link recalled.
Yen lead him up the winding paths to the alter where the King usually sat.
"Long ago, Lord Jabu-Jabu lived beyond the King's throne. The King has retired to his chambers, by the way. He isn't sick, he is in good health, he's just tired. Lord Jabu-Jabu, was a deity. When the princess disappeared, so did he. And nothing has been there since. It's eerily quiet out there. It has been for years."
Link knew all that needed to be known about Jabu-Jabu. In fact, he knew the deity intimately after freeing him from the parasites which had plagued, and eventually, killed him.
Like the Deku Tree before him.
For a split second that no one else saw, Link clenched his eyes.
Gone. All of them, gone.
Yen's voice became more sombre.
"Link, I don't know what is in there. But it must have thrived for some time because it is strong. It is strong and it has killed many of us. We were not prepared for whatever it was to grow so strong behind our very backs, unbeknownst to us."
Link marvelled a the monumental stone door, wondering what could be beyond them now.
"It took my arm." At that point, Yen moved his cloak and revealed a fresh amputation that he had hidden up until that point. "I'm useless. And I leave it in your hands."
Link winced almost imperceptibly at the tragic sight of his old friends injury, and his eyes lingered on the amputation even as Yen walked past him.
Yen and his companions pushed the great stone slabs open.
"After you." Yen said, with some hesitation.
Link stepped into the sprawling space. His boots splashed in the shallow water that had run up along the stone floor. There was a heavy mist in the air that enshrouded the opening, making it impossible to see the other side.
Link could hear the laboured breath of Lord Jabu-Jabu, but he knew it was just his memory. A sound he would never forget, just like the feeling of these very rocks beneath his boots.
To his horror, Link was able to make out the corpse of half a dozen Zora's, skewered along the fence posts that used to be home to the ancient deity. Dead and mutilated. The faint smell of rotting meat clung to the mist.
"Link. There is something I've always wondered." Yen said from the entrance behind him.
Link's eyes were fixed on the carnage.
"When we were young, how did you know so much about the Zora's Stone? How did you know it belonged to Ruto's mother? It was an engagement ring, how did you know that?"
Link looked back to Yen, who remained at the entrance to the area.
An uneasy feeling washed over him.
"I've told you many times how much I loved her. But did I ever tell you how she rejected me? She fell in love with some boy with a fairy. A blond haired, blue eyed Hylian. A Hylian who showed up and ruined everything. Carnage may not be the goal, Link, but if you die here today, you will indeed leave the world a better place."
The Zora's began to pull the great stone doors closed.
"Good luck." Yen mouthed, before the doors sealed shut.
Link stared at the closed door for some seconds. He felt no fear or anger. He felt nothing.
The water was still and as he looked around, he recalled his time there with Ruto. She had sat on that felled tree when she handed him the Water Medallion.
'Ok, we really should get going.' Navi had told him, with some annoyance. 'We aren't here to socialize you know!'
Link smiled at the memory of his friend.
He felt something wrap around his boot and before he could react, he had been pulled off his feet and with a terrific smack, his head hit the ground.