Nothing in this world is single
All things by a law divine
In one spirit meet and mingle
Why not I with thine?
- Percy Bysshe Shelley, Love's Philosophy
Chapter 1: Persephone
Listen...
Hear me again, in the deep of your heart.
What do you remember?
Here.
Let us go to the beginning…
It is midday in the Gerudo Desert, and the heat sears shimmers into the air. At midday the sun's life-giving rays bring only death. Birds do not fly. Keese flee to their murky caves. Even lizalfos bury themselves below the blistering sands, to the blessed cool beneath. All who make the barrens their home live by one simple rule: Nothing that defies the desert survives. Only the suicidal, or the insane, would dare tempt the dunes when the sun hangs highest in the sky.
But then, you were never troubled with such a thing as sanity, were you, Urbosa?
I saw you then, barely eight years old, your shield skipping like a stone across the Palu Wastes as your hair cascades in the wind. You glance with regret at the flowers you love, safflina scattered across the sands like sailboats slumbering on a placid sea…But alas, they will have to wait. You do not have much time. True, Kami's sand seal protests little to you as her passenger, but, chieftain's daughter or no, you know the theft will be accounted for. Oh, but even this could not hinder the grin growing up your cheeks, as you race towards the looming rocks of the oasis.
Do you recall this recklessness, O Champion? Do you remember why you risked the wrath of the midday sun? Do you remember why you sped like a storm past such a blooming bouquet?
Ah.
Because there were voe in the desert, Urbosa, and you wished to see them, of course.
Gerudo Town simmered for a moon cycle. The King and Queen of Hyrule were on their way to the desert for the first time in generations, full escort in tow behind them. Rumors flew in hushed tones that a dream, dreamed by your ancestors since time immemorial, was at last coming true. How you smiled at the whispers, Urbosa, for you knew that they were true. Your mother and the Royal Family, after decades of labor, will soon establish a trading post at Kara Kara Oasis, where Hylian and Gerudo together can heal the scars of calamity, treachery and war. Naturally, you were strictly forbidden to leave the walls of the city, for another four years must pass before your Sav'aiaaq, when you will be deemed ready to see, let alone speak to a voe.
As if this could have ever stopped you.
O, Urbosa, how often your ears swelled with scoldings from your mother and the town guard both! What a roguish vai you were then! What a roguish vai you remain! Gerudo young and old had long conceded to your misadventures, returning but a roll of the eye and a shake of the head. Surely, they would all admit that you could never be kept from such a curiosity as this.
And so you are there, hiding in the oasis' rocky surrounds.
There. Now you have it. You are there/then.
There is your mother's personal guard, and your mother herself, bowing heads and exchanging ceremonial swords with your first gilded glimpse of the creatures known as voe.
They are shorter than you expected.
The gold-crowned King and his guard, deep blue clad and parading halberds black as obsidian, stand a full head and a half below even the smallest Gerudo warrior. Many, King included, bear thick hair beneath their nose and along their jaw, and you have to struggle to not scratch your face.
How your heart swells with disappointment! Have you not heard the lamentations of battle hardened soldiers languishing without their voe? Have you not seen their yearning stares crawl across the desert as they await the Rito Post? Were you not raised on nostalgic fantasies of the voe who captured the elders' hearts with arms of hardened steel and faces of soft, green grass?
Of course you have! All daughters of the Gerudo have.
But…how could you imagine having such feelings for the beasts in front of you? Perhaps there is more beneath the surface, something invisible that snares the souls of vai, but-
"Who are you?"
Sa'oten! Behind you, Urbosa!
You pirouette like the warrior you train so hard to be, reaching for a weapon you are not yet allowed to carry. But, while your hand hunts a blade, your eyes meet, instead, a young Hylian vai.
Near your age, she is. Shades of pink peer from beneath the pomegranate folds of her cloak, and a hint of golden hair slips from beneath her snow white veil. Her lush green eyes enchant you at once, shining like morning dew atop the palms on a clear summer morn, carrying a smile that passes through you like a plunge in the oasis.
What is this?
Urbosa, Lady of Lightning, Pearl of the Sands, Heir of the Seven Heroines...
…Rendered speechless?
"Are you a Gerudo spy?" she inquisitively asks.
A spy? How dare she! But you find no anger amongst your fragmented feelings, just as there is no accusation in her smile.
"Oh, this is so exciting!" She claps, "My name is Minerva. What is your name?"
"I…I…" you stammer.
Why do your lips forget to stir? Why is your tongue tied to your teeth? Your mother would say the empty sands may as well turn green with grass. But your breath soon escapes your throat, the words falling like hydromelon seeds from your lips.
"U- Urbosa. But...I- I am no spy!"
The young vai, Minerva, seems disappointed. "Oh," she says, voice dropping from its eager perch. Goddess, you wish you could be a spy, if only it would brighten her smile again. "Then... Why are you hiding?"
"I…It...there are voe..."
Ah, Urbosa, you are as bashful as the birds of the desert deep. You hope it is not obvious.
It is.
She gasps, "So then it is true! There are no men in the desert?!"
You shake your head and your tongue loosens, "Just a few. And my vana…umm…" Does she know this word? Likely not. Good, then, that you have studied your Hylian well. "My mama says I am not allowed to see them. I try whenever the nomads come close to town, but-"
"Nomads?" she asks, agape, and you laugh like a fool.
"Of course! Did you think Gerudo only live in Gerudo Town?"
"No," she shakes her head, eyes filled with intrigue, "But we don't have any nomads anywhere else in Hyrule."
Anywhere else in Hyrule…
Do these words alone stir the freedom in your spirit? Does your heart race when you hear tell of the world blooming beyond the bluffs? Are you delighted by dreams of wilderness canopied by branches of towering evergreen and blanketed by verdant, velvety grass?
Ah, but of course you are, sweet Urbosa.
The questions pour from your mouth, like the torrents that crash on the plains after the rarest of rains. Minerva is as eager to ask about your homeland as you are about hers, and the both of you are only too eager to speak. Quickly you learn that you both adore the feel of slipping into silken sheets on a warm summer's night, soft and smooth as a caress. That you both hate the taste of palm fruit, no matter how much sugar you add to their pale, fibrous flesh. That you both believe the smell of spiced meats roasting on coals as the sun sets is the greatest smell in all the world. That in a moment of madness you each have eaten an electric darner, feeling the tingle as it crossed your lips…and then both spat it out an instant later.
Minerva laughs mischievously, "I like you, Urbosa! You're fun! Would you want to be my friend?"
How quick speech now sails off your tongue! "Y-Yes! Of course! Of course I do!"
Oh, Urbosa, what fortune! Has Gerudo Palace not been a lonely place for you, sealed by a legion of lookouts keeping you safe, secure and solitary? Do you not lie awake entrusting your secrets, not to companions, but to the cool evening air instead?
And now this comes to an end. Let the histories know your smile, which shall be carried in your heart all the rest of your days. Let it be known that she is smiling too, calling like the hammered strings of palace dulcimers, welcoming you home as the sun sets behind the endless dunes.
"So now that you have seen them, what do you think of voe?" she eagerly asks.
The moment is ruined. Your nose instinctively wrinkles, "I think they're weird."
"I think so too," she scoffs, "My mama says I will feel differently when I'm older, but I don't think we are missing much. All they ever do is beat each other up to impress some lady that..."
Her gaze slides beyond the rocks and spies your sand seal, scratching and swirling in the dust, scrubbing the day's detritus from its fur. Swift her eyes widen, like a cactus in bloom,
"Is that a sand seal?!" She yells, face flooding with excitement. You nod, words again wilting on your tongue, "And...is it yours?"
Well...
"Close enough."
Her cheeks fold as a smile explodes across her face, and the oasis' cool rushes over you again, "Then you can take me to Gerudo Town! Please, Please, Please! I have always wanted to go!"
You frown. A risk you easily took, but an hour ago, now seems far too perilous… Why is this so?
"It's far too hot," you respond, "Mama always says Hylians are only safe when they are somewhere flowers grow and…well…there is only sand out there."
Minerva's laugh is that of a cool evening wind whirling through the walls of the palace, "That's why I have this, silly!" Up she tugs the arm of her cloak, revealing a bracelet weighted with the indigo blue of sapphire, "Magical gifts from the Gorons! And besides..." She places her hand on the scorching ground and softly closes her eyes.
A golden light gleams from her palm and out of the dead desert sand pokes the tips of verdant green grass. Your eyes widen like the moon, mouth agape in awe, but Minerva does not move, her face still and serene.
The grass grows like a flood, followed by flowers whose beauty stains the sand with azure and alabaster like the afternoon sky awakens after a storm, still clinging to the wisps of clouds. Whatever speech you still possess slips far beyond your grasp, but Minerva simply smiles.
"Flowers are everywhere. They just need a little coaxing to come out."
At this moment, if she asked it of you, you would take her anywhere in the world she wished. If she pointed her finger at a map, or blindly fired an arrow into the stars, you would defy fate, family and all the laws of the universe to take her there, or even perhaps beyond…
You rope your seal and slam your feet between the grips of your battered wooden training shield. "Grab on," you call, and Minerva tightly wraps her arms around your waist. What a day this turned out to be! Soon you shall show her the glittering walls and jade mosaics of the palace, wrought by generations of artisans over countless centuries. The sound of the Spring of the Seven streaming off the palace spire, sating the thirst of all who call upon it. The-
"Minerva…"
The soothing voice of a vai belies the hardened voe surrounding you, their sharp spears blocking your escape. But, Champion, are you surprised that fear's skeletal grip grasps you not?
No? I thought not.
Steadfast you stand, Urbosa, and courage holds true to your heart. Weapon or no, you are ready to defend your friend to whatever end may come.
A deep and booming laugh lazes from behind the rocks, "Stand down, men," The Hylian soldier's spears rise relaxed, "I believe the Queen has found the Princess."
Queen? Princess?
Confusion fills you. Look to young Minerva, Urbosa, for you do not understand. Ah, but her face betrays only an apology.
All at once you know, and you gasp, eyes as wide as the surprise in your breast.
Oh.
The Princess.
Minerva is Princess of Hyrule. Descendant of the Goddess herself.
And the bemused woman wrapping jeweled hands around her daughter's shoulders, silver crowned and silver haired, is Hyrule's Queen. You bow hastily and she laughs like the soft pattering of waterfalls in the hills.
Her laugh sounds just like Minerva's.
"My dear Namia, I do believe your daughter was plotting to steal mine away."
Your mother steps up the oasis' walls, punishment precarious in her glare, "My deepest apologies Queen Sofia. The girl is an impetuous handful at the best of times and-"
"Oh, it is quite alright, is it not, Daphnes?" You steal a glance at the king, who chuckles and nods, "Princess Minerva has never been to another realm before. The last few months she would not stop telling us how excited she is to see Gerudo Town. And besides..." A hopeful look passes between mother and daughter, and the Queen ruffles the veil atop her Princess' head, "I would have them be as close as we are, my friend, if not, indeed, closer. After all, it was our friendship that sowed the seeds of this historic day, and our daughters will one day help its future grow."
The Queen's smile rolls over you like a river as she speaks, "If a friendship blooms within our daughters' hearts, then I would have to say that the future is in very good hands indeed."
Does this mean…? Yes, Urbosa it does. No scolding sermons shall fall on your head this day! Share your greedy, breathless glance with Minerva, for this might be the best day of your life!
So, what comes next? You think you know. Days of clattering chaos on the Gerudo Town streets, and nights of sharing secrets into the erupting hours of the morning. And what then? After all, an entire life lies before you; surely it shall overflow with adventure. Perhaps you shall lead Minerva into the caves beneath the highlands, torches held high against the damp and the gloom. Or maybe your feet will tromp tracks in the heather of Hebra's peak, laughing like a summer breeze as you ride your shields down paths of ice and snow. Or perhaps you shall warm the ground with your backs, eating sweet cherries kissed with tart, gazing into the starry night above.
Smile wide, my friend. One day, with Minerva by your side, the sun slipping over the horizon will carry you into a universe unknown. The wilds of Hyrule shall open themselves like a flower's bloom, and all their mysteries, to you, will be shown. You shall know the joy of the world beneath the moon's crawling climb, like the palace pools, so cool and sublime.
Smile wide indeed, Urbosa. For it is only a matter of time.
