They had been traveling for a week when they happened upon the stable.
Travel had been slow because of the still-active Guardians, which, as if in a frenzy over the loss of Ganon, roamed the countryside blasting away at anything else which moved. Though Link had proven himself a capable warrior, and Zelda was sure she could call upon her light powers if necessary, neither of them wanted to risk an unneeded confrontation. Zelda was still exhausted from the last century holding back that terrible evil, and while Link said nothing (though was that ever any different from normal?), she suspected that he was worn out from his battle against Ganon, as well.
The first day out from Hyrule Castle, Link handed her the Sheikah Slate, the ancient device which possessed greater technology than anything anyone in all of Hyrule had created in the last ten thousand years. Zelda was glad to have it returned to her hands - even though it wasn't truly hers, it felt right.
When they camped for the night, she spent time going through files. Zelda was surprised to find a plethora of new photos, new objects and monsters that had been categorized, and more complete map data on Hyrule. She looked up to the knight who sat across the fire from her. "Did you do this?"
He nodded.
She looked back down at the screen, fascinated. Before the Calamity, when they had traveled together, he never seemed to take much interest in the Sheikah Slate. And yet here was so much evidence to the contrary, hundreds upon hundreds of files showing his journey since awakening in the Shrine of Resurrection.
That night, despite her exhaustion, Zelda spent hours combing through the photos. Many were basic shots meant to catalog items for the compendium, weapons and wildlife and monsters. Some were images of landscapes: the Akkala Highlands at sunset, the Gerudo Desert on a cold night, Death Mountain as a blood moon rose overhead.
But what fascinated her the most were the people.
The majority of the photos were not of pretty scenes or data entries, but images of people from all around Hyrule. It seemed that Link had photographed just about every single person he met: here was a photo he took of himself with a Sheikah warrior. Here was another photo of a wedding between a Hylian man and a Gerudo woman. Here was another photo he had taken of himself with a Rito children's choir. Hundreds upon hundreds of photos.
She looked up at him, only to find that her knight had fallen asleep. "I wonder," she said aloud, though quietly enough so as not to wake him, "if you did this because you lost your memories."
It certainly seemed plausible. Zelda could not imagine what that must have been like, waking up after one hundred years with no memory of who you are or what had happened. Though she felt as if she had missed so much during her time imprisoning Calamity Ganon, at least she had never forgotten who she was. Her memories, as painful as they may be, remained intact. Perhaps Link, out of a fear of losing his memories again, had used the Sheikah Slate to record as much as he could, so that if that were to happen again he would have photographic evidence to bring them all back.
"No, that's not it," she muttered to herself, continuing to look through all the pictures. These photographs didn't have fear in them - there was no desperation to these images. They were full of, well…joy. Joy in being alive, joy in the little moments spent with all of these people. Link's journey hadn't just been about rescuing Zelda from Calamity Ganon. These pictures showed that it was as much about protecting the people of Hyrule.
Zelda sighed. She wanted to experience it all for herself. But she was a princess - no, a queen now - and when things were sorted, she would most likely spend the rest of her days in Hyrule Castle.
For three more days, they traveled precariously over Hyrule Fields, avoiding Guardians as best they could. Link admitted that the machines seemed more frenzied now than ever before - normally they moved in patterns, following paths that could be predicted with some level of accuracy, but now their movements were erratic, ramming into each other and constantly firing their death-beams at anything unfortunate enough to be caught in their gaze. All of the victims Zelda noticed were monstrous in origin: Bokoblins and Moblins that probably had rushed to the plains when Calamity Ganon had assumed his Beast form there.
Signs of that destructive battle were visible everywhere. Like the Guardian beams and explosions Zelda had seen before, Ganon's attacks had left scars in the earth, black gashes in the ground where no life grew. She wondered whether life would ever grow in those spots again, or if Ganon's everlasting hatred would render them barren forever. Snapping a picture with the Sheikah Slate, she determined that that would be a topic of research for another day.
Near the end of their fourth day of travel, they encountered a fascinating sight: a battle between a Hinox and two Guardian Stalkers.
Zelda had seen Hinoxes from afar, of course, but had never witnessed them in combat. The one she saw before her was a Blue Hinox, a more powerful variant of the regular red ones. Like the Guardians, its singular cyclopean eye was its primary weak point: the Hinox's skin was tough as armor. It knew this, and kept its eye covered with one hand while it swung a tree at its foes with the other.
That was what was so confusing to Zelda: why were the Guardians attacking the Hinox? Hinoxes were known collaborators of Calamity Ganon, serving his needs and terrorizing the people of Hyrule with their insatiable appetites; in turn, the Guardians were all corrupted with Malice, Ganon's hatred given physical form. She would expect them to be working together, not fighting each other.
Yet there was no doubt as to the current happenings, as Zelda and Link both watched the Hinox smash one of the Guardian's legs into bits. The machine fired off several short blasts in quick succession, each of them pointlessly bouncing off the Hinox's thick hide. The other Guardian furiously rammed against the monster's legs, toppling it to the ground and taking one of its spider-like limbs and jabbing it against the Hinox's now unprotected eye again and again. It was gruesome to behold.
"Come on." Link's voice was barely above a whisper. "We should get moving."
"Right."
They began to make their way back down the bluff to sneak around the combat when Zelda noticed something that stopped her in her tracks: a red dot projecting right over Link's chest.
"Look out!" She dove and pushed him out of the way as a beam of light sliced through the air where he had been just a moment before. The resulting explosion from the beam striking the hill sent her spinning through the air, crashing to the ground and rolling down the remainder of the incline…directly into the leg of a Guardian Stalker.
It pushed past her, the machine's sole focus on Link, who was still sprawled out on the ground. He looked alive, but unconscious.
She had to do something. Cupping her hands together, she closed her eyes and willed the Goddess' power to her. Please, Goddess Hylia, hear my prayer, she begged. Grant me the power to protect Link in this moment.
There was a flash of light. She opened her eyes. Hovering before her was a golden-white bow.
The Bow of Light. Of course! Zelda grabbed it, recalling the moment when she had summoned the weapon for Link in his battle against Ganon's Beast form. If this weapon was powerful enough to stop that hulking beast, surely it would be enough to stop a single rampaging machine.
She drew the string back, and a bolt of light appeared in place. "Here goes nothing," she muttered, and fired.
The bolt struck the Stalker squarely in its body and vanished, having seemingly done no damage. "Oh, curses," Zelda swore. She desperately wished that she had paid more attention to the archery training her father had pushed on her at a young age.
Though her assault had done nothing to actually damage the Guardian, it did do one thing: it caught the machine's attention. Spinning away from the fallen knight, it now turned its attention to the princess. As it charged up its attack, she fired bolt after bolt after bolt. Each of them struck the machine in rapid succession, but none of them pierced its glow eye. The machine flashed with light as it finished charging up. Zelda closed her eyes, anticipating the worst.
"HYAH!" There was a cry and the sound of metal driving against metal. Zelda opened her eyes to see the Guardian careen off its axis, firing the beam but striking the ground several feet to her right off in the distance. One of the machine's legs had been sliced clean off.
And beside the now-sparking gap stood her heroic knight.
As the Stalker turned to face him, Link wasted no time. The Master Sword shining in his hand, he brought the blade down upon another of the machine's legs. The rubbery limb exploded in a shower of sparks as the sword ripped it from the metal body, and the Guardian fell over on to its side. Zelda, seizing the opportunity, drew up her bow and fired. This time, her bolt made its mark, and Link pulled her away as the Guardian squealed in terror, electricity crackling around it, and exploded.
Their troubles weren't over. One of the two Guardians from earlier had apparently heard the commotion and come to check it out. It caught sight of them and began charging up an attack of its own.
"May I?" Link held out a hand. For a split-second, Zelda was unsure of what he wanted, but then she remembered the glowing bow in her hands.
"Of course."
She handed the weapon to him. Link took one look at the Guardian and, without a second thought, unleashed a light bolt into its eye. Zelda barely had time to register the machine's demise when Link handed the bow back to her.
"You really must teach me to use this properly," she commented later, as they made camp for the night. "I do not want to rely on you for my protection at all times. You will not always be by my side."
The next few days were conflict-free, though they both moved slowly to avoid any further catastrophe. Zelda was glad for the slower pace; it allowed her to rest often, which in turn gave her time to further-analyze the data in the Sheikah Slate. Little by little, she was beginning to feel more like her former self, from the time pre-Calamity.
On the seventh day, they encountered the stable. Zelda had seen pictures of them in the Slate - Link had stopped many times at the different stables scattered across the continent, and it seemed that these had often been locations where he had met with locals, rested for the night, and registered a number of horses.
This stable, however, had seen better days. One of the dark scars left by Ganon's Beast form burned over the field, with the stable dead-center in its path of destruction. As a result, the roof of the structure had been blown off. Wooden fragments were scattered everywhere. A nearby tree still burned with small Malice-fueled flames. Several people looked to be attempting repairs.
Link hurried down the slope. "Let's see what we can do to help."
They weren't even halfway down the hill when a voice cried out: "LINK!"
A man in a blue hat ran towards them, waving excitedly. His shirt was covered in ash, and his pants were torn at the knee. "I thought we'd lost you, what with that great beast roaming the fields and all!"
Link grabbed the man's hand and shook it. "Ember. It's good to see you. I was worried when I saw the destruction."
"No kidding. And this is…" The man's voice faltered when he looked at Zelda. "This can't be…you're…"
"Princess Zelda, at your service." She shook his hand, painfully aware of how ragged her clothes were. "What's the status?"
It took several moments for the man to stop staring at her. He finally recovered, shaking his head and turning to Link. "We lost two horses in the explosion, and a couple'o'goats. The other horse scattered to the fields and hasn't been seen since. Gotter'n'me barely made it out alive."
"What about Beedle or Kazul? Were they here when it happened?"
"Nah, they'd both gone on weeks ago." Ember gestured to the people who were working. "Those two Sheikah there arrived yesterday to help out, on orders of Impa. We're just trying to get a roof over our heads again." He eyed them with concern. "I know there's not much, but can I do anything for you? We've still got some food left over, and you two look starving."
Link nodded. "I don't think either of us would mind a meal; it's been a full day since either of us have eaten. What can I do to help?"
The two men began to chat, but Zelda was far from alone. The moment one of the Sheikah warriors caught sight of her, they wouldn't stop talking. "Princess Zelda!? It really is you! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Do you need food? Do you need clothes? Do you need a horse? There aren't any horses here currently, but I'm sure I could catch you one if you really needed."
"I'm fine, really." Her lips curled into a small smile. Though it was a little frustrating, it was also nice to be doted on again. "I wouldn't mind a little food. Make sure Link eats some, as well, before he starts helping."
The Sheikah warrior was happy to help. Within minutes, Zelda was sitting on a wooden log with a steaming bowl of soup in her hands. The smell was intoxicating; she had eaten nothing but berries and cooked rabbit for two weeks. She devoured the soup in a manner that was most certainly not befitting a princess. No matter. There would be time for dignity later.
She washed herself in the river nearby and donned the clothes the Sheikah had found for her: black shorts, a brown tunic, and a pair of leather boots. They were old clothes, and didn't quite fit her, but it was better than the gown she'd been wearing these last two weeks - no, for the last one hundred years, she realized. She was almost happy to toss the rags into one of the two fires they had going.
Link had already begun helping with the construction of a roof by the time she had gotten her clothing situation sorted out. She watched him for a moment, seeing how effortlessly he dove into the work. He hadn't even hesitated to help these people, all of whom seemed to know him as if he had been their best friend for years: Ember was constantly trading jokes back and forth; one of the Sheikah warriors routinely tossed him an apple; and the other Hylian man, Gotter, swapped tools with him without even saying a word. It was fascinating…and somewhat infuriating.
Feeling restless, Zelda sought to find herself a task she could set herself to. Undoubtedly Link would not want to leave until he had helped them affix a roof to the stable ruins, and she had no desire to leave his company just yet. She looked around for something to do.
That man, Ember, had mentioned a horse escaping the destruction. Though it had been two weeks, Zelda knew that if the horse had been well-cared for (and she doubted Link would associate himself with people who treated animals cruelly), it would remain in the vicinity. Perhaps she could go off and try to find the horse herself, and bring it back. She did have an affinity for horses.
She took out the Sheikah Slate and surveyed her surroundings. A horse was like any other animal: it would seek an area where it could find food, water, and shelter. If it was a trained horse, it most likely wouldn't have strayed too far from the road, either, even in its panic. Using the Slate like a pair of binoculars, she examined the riverside. It seemed like a suitable area: plenty of water, and the nearby trees would provide both food and shelter. Scanning the area to the south of the stable, she searched for any sign of the stallion and found nothing.
Wait! Something caught her attention. It wasn't a horse, but it was…
Zelda smiled. She knew what to do.
She elected not to tell anyone where she was going. The Sheikah warriors would insist on accompanying her, and she didn't want Link to worry about her. And it wasn't like she was going far, anyhow.
She followed the road south until it reached a small hill to the left, butting up against the river within a circle of trees. There she could see a small figure standing atop, one which most individuals would be incapable of seeing: a Korok.
"Hello!" she called out, hoping not to frighten them. Koroks were easily startled.
"HELLO!" the Korok shouted back, leaping up and down and waving the leaves in their hands. "YOU CAN SEE ME!?"
"Yes, of course I can," Zelda chuckled, walking up to the small figure. "I was wondering if you could help me with something."
"OF COURSE I CAN HELP, YA HA HA." The Korok leapt onto her shoulder.
"There was a horse stationed at the stable nearby. When the stable was destroyed, it escaped. Did you happen to see where it went off to?"
"OH YES!" The Korok was brimming with excitement. "THE HORSEY WENT OFF TO THAT WAY," they said, pointing to the south. "IT GOT CAPTURED BY SOME MEANIES."
"Meanies?"
"BOKO-BOKIE…OH, I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT YOU CALL THEM. THEY'RE MEANIES."
"Bokoblin." Zelda sighed. Figured. Nothing could ever be easy. "Thank you, brave Korok. I appreciate your help."
"ANYTHING TO HELP A FRIEND." They alighted from her shoulder, landing softly back on the ground.
Zelda pondered her situation. The smart thing to do would be to gather Link and the Sheikah warriors to fight off the Bokoblin. But then again…Zelda used the Sheikah Slate to scout out the area the Korok had directed her. There were just four Bokoblin: three red, and one white. The white Bokoblin worried her - those were always more powerful than their red brethren - but it wasn't so many that she didn't think she couldn't take them out herself. After all, she was empowered with the magic of the Goddess Hylia, and could summon the Bow of Light at will. What could possibly go wrong?
Sneaking her way towards the camp, she plotted several possible methods of attack. Obviously the white Bokoblin was her greatest threat - it was stronger and smarter than the others. Reducing the overall numbers to just that one Bokoblin, however, might also be in her best interest. That would require her accurately and quickly firing her bow, neither of which were skills she was sure she had just yet.
Three of the Bokoblin, including the white one, were sitting around a campfire, talking to each other in their language - the fourth stood watch atop a small makeshift tower. Zelda quickly darted behind a bush. The watchtower Bokoblin would need to be her first priority, or else it might alert the others.
In addition to the campfire, an assortment of chests and barrels were scattered about the area: loot they had acquired by raiding Hylian settlements, no doubt. Some of the barrels were of the red explosive variety; Zelda eyed them warily, concerned about the possibility of one going off and injuring either herself or the horse, which was roped up to a nearby tree.
"You can do this," she told herself. She could prove herself to be more capable than others thought her. She wasn't just some helpless princess. She was Princess Zelda, the girl - no, the woman, with the power of the Goddess within her. A couple of monsters were no match for her.
Right?
Deciding not to waste another moment on self-doubt, Zelda cupped her hands together in a silent prayer. The bow appeared before her in an instant - at the very least, she had gotten very good at summoning it. Now she just had to prove that she could wield it with the same efficacy.
Her first shot missed the watchtower Bokoblin by a mile, veering off and striking the hill far away. Thankfully, none of the monsters had even noticed.
Her second shot, unfortunately, struck the watchtower itself.
Zelda hoped that the light-bolt would have knocked the tower over, shaken it, done anything to disrupt the Bokoblin, but instead all it did was alert the monster to her location. It took out a horn that looked suspiciously to come from a different Bokoblin (were they cannibalistic? Zelda had never seen evidence of such a practice, but she wouldn't have put it past them) and blew into it, alerting the others in the camp. Her third shot struck the Bokoblin squarely in the face, but by that point the damage was done: they knew where she was.
Her next shot took out another of the red Bokoblins, sending its wooden club skittering across the road as its body went flying into the river. The final red Bokoblin charged at her, crying out with its pig-like squeal as it leapt into the air with a sword in-hand.
Zelda spun on her heel, dodging the strike with more agility than she thought possible. "Hah!" she cried out. Perhaps she was better at this whole combat thing than she-
Something heavy smashed against the back of her legs, and she fell to the ground. It was the white Bokoblin, carrying a giant wooden club. It had played it smart, waited until she was distracted, to make its assault. Now, lying on the ground, head reeling, it lifted the club and prepared to deal a final blow.
She rolled out of the way, and the club smashed against bare dirt. Her vision was so that she could barely see anything in front of her, but there was no time to sit and wait to recover. She jumped to her feet and fired off two shots without even looking.
For the moment, she could only really rely on sounds. Bokoblin telegraphed their attacks, she recalled from her studies, and always shouted when they were mid-attack. That made it easy. As she heard one of them shout to her right, she darted forward to avoid it, hearing the sound of something striking the ground behind her. Desperate, she drew her bowstring and fired.
"Gyahahah!" The sound of a Bokoblin being struck rewarded her. Hoping for another lucky shot, Zelda let loose three more bolts.
No such luck. To her right, she heard the snorting and sniffling that indicated a still-very-much-alive Bokoblin.
Her vision was starting to return. Now she could see properly (or at least, as properly as one could with spots still dancing before them) that her remaining foe was the white Bokoblin. In addition to the wooden club it had struck her with earlier, it bore a shield of wood and bone. And it was smart about it, advancing towards her slowly with the shield raised such that she couldn't see its face. Experimentally, she loosed a bolt at it. The bolt struck the shield dead-on (was her aim getting better?), but otherwise no damage was done. The Bokoblin continued to advance.
Zelda tried to run through plans in her head. Any attempt to rush the monster would be foolish - with both shield and club, she didn't stand a chance in any kind of melee fight. The explosive barrels might take it out, but she didn't want to risk injuring the horse, which was still helplessly tied to the tree. Running to release the horse wasn't much of an option, either, as the Bokoblin had managed to circle around her so that it stood in the edge of the camp, between her and the chestnut stallion.
Unless…
An idea sprung to mind. Zelda raised the bow, taking careful aim. If she missed, this would all be for naught.
FWIP!
The bolt struck its mark: not the Bokoblin, which was still protecting itself with the wooden shield; not the explosive barrels, which would surely kill the target she had come here to rescue in the first place; but the rope which kept the horse tied to the tree. It broke in a flash of light, and with a terrified whinny, the stallion raced off up the hill.
The Bokoblin looked from horse to girl and snarled, advancing at a faster rate.
Taking a deep breath, Zelda enacted the second part of her plan. Grabbing one of the clubs that the other Bokoblins had dropped, she dipped it into the campfire long enough for the tip to set ablaze. Then, with an almost-blind throw, she tossed it in the direction of the explosive barrels and raced away as fast as she could.
The explosion was instantaneous. A shockwave knocked her to the ground, her face crashing to the rough dirt. Her ears were ringing, and spots danced before her vision once more. Body aching with pain, Zelda closed her eyes and fell out of consciousness.
Link wiped sweat from his brow, examining the day's work. Though it was ramshackle, a flat wooden roof now graced the remains of the Riverside Stable. There were a few holes still, to be sure, and so they would have some leaks whenever a storm rolled through, but it would provide enough shelter for now so that they could get themselves situated once more.
"Not bad, Link!" Ember clapped his back. "I can always count on you to lend a helping hand."
Link nodded. Something seemed wrong. He felt like he was forgetting something.
"Princess!" One of the Sheikah warriors called out. Link snapped to attention, following the man's gaze.
Princess Zelda was walking up the road. Her clothes were covered in soot - and in fact, her tunic looked to be somewhat singed at the edges - and her face was riddled with various cuts and bruises. She walked with a heavy limp, carrying a large wooden club in one hand that she used as a sort of makeshift cane.
In her other hand, she held the reins of a magnificent chestnut stallion.
"Cocoa!" Ember hopped down from the roof and rushed forward to meet them. Completely ignoring Zelda, the man grasped the horse's face in his hands and stroked the stallion's mane. "I never thought I'd see you again!"
Link made his way down carefully and approached them. She looked much, much worse up close - one eye was turning purple, half-closed from injury. He raised an eyebrow questioningly.
"Well, I couldn't let you have all the fun, could I?" she said.
He laughed as the Sheikah rushed in to offer her first aid. This princess was made of sterner stuff than she looked.