Summary:

The chain arrives at the palace.

Notes:

first one, two, three weeks between updates and 3 months. I don't like making people wait, but I was busy with other things and did not end up finishing this fic before in went on vacation. In regards to that: expect that other project to be revealed this month. It's not LoZ related is all i can say for now.

With respect to the new chapter, please note the new tags. It's very short and third hand, but yeah brief reference to self harm for the purpose of cannibalism, reader beware.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

It may not be a good sign, but they don't find Xalem's assailant. Which does mean that the threat is still running free, but in the meantime it did makes clean-up a cake-walk. Just a few vermin and the odd half-grown Baba were all that remained.

It allowed Twilight to hang back and get some much needed rest. The last few days had been a bit more straining than the light travel they had planned.

They fixed the issue surrounding the excess 'Waste' too. Apparently the 'Source' from which it flowed could be controlled from the room Xalem worked in. Once Sky dispelled most of the mist up there. He could stabilize the thing remotely.

Now it is just Twilight and Hyrule waiting up on the roof until the rest finish cutting the grass.

Hyrule lights up. "I think it's them!" He says pointing at the black box putruding on the corner.

Speak of the Demon. Sure enough, they all come out Xalem included.

"Changed your mind on coming with us?" Twilight asks the Twili.

Xalem shakes his head. "I cannot." he says, "it will take me a few days for the Station to become fully operation and it is prudent not to leave the island unattended anyhow. I'm just here to see you off."

Twilight nods. "Fair enough, so what? You'll just snap and warp us away?"

"Snap? No i'm not capable of such advanced feats i'm afraid. I suppose the Queen must have shown you quite a few of those, they say she's very gifted. I'll using the Source's power to warp you away."

"Very well, i'll send the Queen your regards."

"You're too kind Hero, but thank you and goodbye!"

They wave him off as he slides back in the box. Sure enough,

there it is.

The doors slam open.

The intruder's eyes are panicked, though his full kowtow hides it well. He raises only his head when he begins.

"Her Excellency the Queen and our Most Honourable members of the Head Council: pardon me interrupting your meeting, but I bring urgent news."

Midna closes her eyes and shallows a grimace. Urgent news was never the welcome type, Really, though they had finally mustered a return to order it seems true peace will still elude the Realm for some time. How many years, generations, would be feeling the weight of her failure? She breathes in and motions the councilmen, the youngest of which still two decades her senior, to return to their seats.

Raising her chin she faces the messenger and commands: "Rise."

To his credit the messenger wastes little time as he does: Thank you your Majesty is all he stalls before diving right in.

"One of the plantations in Sector Z that had been overtaken by the recent Storm has been cleared and resumed operation without our aid. From it Nine light-dwellers all in the likeness of the Hylian form of the Divine Beast have been warped in front of the palace. Though none look exactly alike and only one of them claims to have been the one to have aided her Majesty on her quest to purge the Usurper's wicked influence and save the Realm."

The man falters, finally reading the room. Good, now is not the time for bootlicking. Midna scowls. There never had been, really. He lower his head before continuing.

"They have requested an immediate audience with her Majesty regarding the origin of recent Storm."

It is impossible. These must be imposters, bums getting their kicks out of tricking the palace. They're probably idiots thinking all Hylians look the same, hero or not.

Raising her chin, she returns her attention to the messenger.

"They remain at the gate I presume?" she asks.

Looking back up he answers. "Yes, they're awaiting permission to enter."

At her right Kaprant, ever cautious in his old age, raises his brow and interjects: "They are cooperating with the guard?"

"Oh yes," he answers jovially, before clasping his hands and clarifying: "Though I must warn you: they do carry fiercesome weaponry, so please do be on guard if you do decide to investigate."

Like any fraud would be a match for her. If that is the case she can only pity them even without the fused shadow her power in this realm is unmatched. Still, recklessness never did her any good, so she turns to the man who had been her father's closest confidant and scraped together the kingdom in her absence for his blessing.

Midna cannot keep her lips from quirking up when he does.

"Very well," she rules, "We will verify their claims. Councilmen, let us consider the meeting hereby adjourned."

It takes all her remaining restraint to wait out and acknowledge their aye's before snapping her fingers, but she manages.

First the all too familiar darkness and then, there he is.

It is him.

It's odd, they've got themselves quite the crowd. They've mostly avoided these up till now. Most people gave them little more than a passing glance. The scepticism was the same though. Now, with some looking at them as if they were the Goddesses themselves, and it was odd to think how they weren't even that far off, as Their blessed. Yet more were looking at them like they were the Demon King, not the ones risking their neck to stop him, but most were anywhere in-between.

It reminds Warriors less of the adoring crowds from after the battles were won and more of whenever they'd first arrive in foreign cities, towns and villages while on campaign, especially later on in the War. There were always the hopeful, the ones who'd cheer whenever they'd step foot in their in settlement, who'd shower them with praises and gifts of all sorts.

But for too many reasons that crowd had thinned as the War went on, amongst all classes too. Administrators started disapproving of the added strain on their cities, merchants became chagrined about the disruption, farmers prepared for their harvest to go up in flames in front of them and the destitute who just wanted to endure, mothers who'd turn away as they walked by, beggars with dirty bandages frowning at them as they lay along the streetcorners. With how some of them looked you one would almost think they were the ones to blame for the war. Worse was that sometimes they weren't even wrong. Ganondorf let his rats raid freely wherever he went, but there were those places that were simply never in his way that were left untouched. Some of those places it was the Army that chose to make their stand there. Warriors would never forget open crying and the empty stares. There would be no celebrations after those battles, hard-won as they were, instead they'd leave quietly in the night.

But the worst was when the destitute still put all their faith in them. Children in ragged clothes singing that no more harm would come to them and sometimes even that the dead may return to the living. He would smile and laugh, but could never quite meet their eyes. Warriors recalls the tale of a comrade who, one night, was filled with hunger after their latest battle. He hadn't been able to keep his food, but now was wondering around town looking for something to eat. At one point he encountered an elderly man laying on the street. Still awake, but with nothing to give, the old beggar insisted on cutting off his leg to feed the soldier and pulled out a knife. Distraught, the soldier managed to stop the deranged man and bring him back to his senses. Warriors doesn't remember the man's name only that he later slitted his throat after he joined the mutiny. It had been easy to hate him then.

It haunted more than just Warriors' dreams. Impa had remarked perhaps a heart blessed by the goddesses was to pure for a war like this the first time she saw him after. -As if he was faring any worse than the others, he'd been fighting since the start and was alive and in one piece at that. It was more than most could say.

It mattered little now. They ended the war and Hyrule was rebuilding and that was that. Besides, Warriors has to admit that for all the healthy caution in the crowd the range present isn't quite as extreme as in times passed.

Warriors is just about the to jest to his favourite ranchhand if all these Twili he's so fond of are just going to keep them waiting. When a black mist appears, kind of like the one that had enveloped them earlier and from it appears: a princess beautiful as the setting sun, huh? Well if anyone was going to shatter his heart like a mirror into a million pieces. Warriors looks at the regal figure, skin black and gray accented by intriguing turquoise markings, clad in exotic robes and finally eyes and hair bright orange, yeah.

That ought to do it.