Chapter 41
Chosen Heroes

King Rhoam of Hyrule sat upon his throne as he looked down at the good guys who came to this world that Xander referred to as the prophesied chosen heroes. Princess Zelda was seated on a smaller throne next to him. Link had noticed Zelda when he came into the place, but because he didn't want to cause a ruckus, he remained silent and did not try to approach her, asking if she knows him. The fact that she made no reaction to seeing him confirmed his question.

All of them except for Nihilister were bowed down in the presence of the king. Seeing that Nihilister was not bowing down, one soldier standing at the side called out to her, demanding that she show respect in front of the king, only to be silenced when she shot a murderous glare at her.

Crown, noticing Nihilister's rude behavior, said to her without looking up, "You are in the presence of a royalty, a king. Show your manners and bow down to him."

"Why should I? He's not my king anyway! I bow down to no one, not even the Rapture Queen!" replied Nihilister in annoyance.

"I am a king, yet I am still showing respect and bowing down in the presence of another king. Should you not also do the same thing?" Crown said to her as raised her body and glared at her.

Hearing this, King Rhoam asked Crown, "You are a king?"

Crown looked at him and nodded. "Indeed, where I come from, I am the king of my own kingdom, known as the Last Kingdom."

"But you are a woman, and female rulers are supposed to be queens," Rhoam said to her.

"But I have the highest authority in my kingdom, and only kings are allowed to have such a position, not queens. Therefore, I am a king," insisted Crown.

"Don't bother trying to reason with her," Nihilister told Rhoam. "She's insane, and you can't convince a crazy person to think otherwise!"

Rhoam simply laughed in response while stroking his beard. "Hohoho! Looks like we have a fun and interesting bunch of people here!"

"I apologize for the lack of manner my subordinate is showing," Crown said to Rhoam while bowing down again.

"Who said I'm your subordinate?!" Nihilister said in anger to her.

"It's all right. I won't demand this of you. If anything, I feel like I should be bowing to you, because you are the prophesied heroes who will save Hyrule," said Rhoam.

Guillotine looked up at him and asked, "If I may ask, your majesty, what exactly does the prophecy say that makes you determined to believe we are the chosen heroes?"

"According to the seven sages, the chosen heroes will appear out of nowhere in Hyrule Field one day, and as you claim to appear in flashes of light in the field, it is highly possible you are the chosen heroes," explained the king. "The chosen heroes are the only ones who can obtain the legendary weapons used for defeating the Demon King Ganondorf, the Master Sword and the Yato."

Link and Corrin were surprised to hear the names of the those weapons. The Master Sword was the sword Link used for slaying Ganondorf, and the Yato was a sword used by Corrin during the war between Nohr and Hoshido. "No wonder we do not have them with us…" they thought.

Additionally, hearing the king mention Ganondorf worried Link. He had heard on the way to the castle from Xander about Ganondorf invading Hyrule, and this shocked him, as he was sure Ganondorf was slain.

He then said to the king, "Your majesty, you wish for us to defeat the Demon King, right?"

The king nodded. "If it is possible, please do so. The Demon King has been plaguing us for so long, and we do not know how much longer we can hold him back. He has been gaining new allies as time goes by, the most recent being Garon, king of Nohr."

When he said that, Xander and his group lowered their heads with depressed, angry, and ashamed looks. On the way here, Corrin had learned from them that Garon had pledged his loyalty to Ganondorf and turned his own kingdom into a land of monsters and evil, showing no concern for the lives of the civilians. Things got so bad that his own people and family turned against him and fled to Hyrule for safety. Even Xander, who was supposed to be perfectly loyal to Garon, could not stand how low his father had fallen and defected over to Hyrule.

"Garon… Even in another world, you're just as terrible!" Corrin said in anger in her head.

"However, before you go after the Demon King, I want you to obtain the legendary weapons first," Rhoam told the good guys. "Only then will you able to stand a chance against the Demon King."

"We will, your majesty," Link said to him with a nod. "We will not fail you."

"Very well. For today, take a rest and get used to this place, and tomorrow, if everything is ready, we will pave the way for you to the locations of the legendary weapons," Rhoam told them. "If you have anything, ask away. My servants and even my daughter Zelda will help you in every way possible."

Afterwards, Zelda helped give the "chosen heroes" a tour of the castle. The first place she took them to was the armory of the castle, where several weapons and equipment were kept. "If you see anything you like, feel free to take it for yourselves," Zelda said to them. "They are all available for you to use!"

Picking a random sword and also a javelin, Link said in his head, "I can make use of every single one of them."

Guillotine looked through a collection of swords placed on a wall, and there was one that caught her attention. She grabbed it and got a good look at it. The sword was largely silver, except for one part near the base that was made of gold. When she swung it around in the air, she noticed that the blade glowed slightly and left behind a trail of yellow light, and this intrigued her.

Zelda noticed her interest in the sword and went up to her and said, "That is a Light Brand. It can function as a projectile as well. Its light affinity makes it useful against monsters."

"A sword that functions as a projectile too? I can think of an instance where I used one before," said Guillotine, thinking back of when she used the Simulation Room for a specific purpose.

"If you want to, you can test it over there," Zelda told her while pointing to a large empty part of the room that had targets on the wall. "That's where we do practicing for projectile weapons."

Guillotine went over to that place. Holding the sword and making a stance, she swung the blade in the air hard, causing it to fire a crescent-shaped projectile made of light. It soared through the air and cut a target in half. The others saw this and were amazed.

"Wow! That was cool!" commented Centi.

"There are swords that double as projectiles in Final Quest too," said Exia.

Guillotine looked at the Light Brand with a smirk and said, "I believe I have found it it! The weapon made specifically for me! With this, I shall smite all the evil in this land and the Demon King! Beware, evil, for I, Guillotine de Mephisto, is coming for you!"

"I'm glad that you like it!" Zelda said to her happily. "Feel free to use it however you like!"

Meanwhile, Link noticed something on a nearby table. He went over to it and saw that it was a gauntlet, but its appearance reminded him of something. "This looks like the Ultrahand…"

Zelda went over to him and said, "That is indeed the Ultrahand. With it, you can manipulate objects however you want. It's best used for building stuff."

Hearing this, Centi went over with an intrigued look and asked, "This gauntlet can be used for building stuff with ease?"

Zelda nodded. "Why don't we try it out now?"

She led them out of the room through a door, and they came to an empty lot that had several wooden boards, metal pieces, and various other accessories lying around. "This is where we test out the Ultrahand and build things," Zelda told them. "Feel free to use anything around here to build whatever you want."

"I'll give it a try and see if it's the same as he one I used," said Link as he put on the Ultrahand. Pointing at a wooden plank, he fired a green beam at it and was able to raise it into the air with a flick of his hand. "It works like I thought!"

He began using all the stuff lying around to bring them together, and in a couple of minutes, he built a crude-looking four-wheeled vehicle resembling a platform with wheels and a lever on it. "Yeah! It works like wonders as always!" said Link before running over to the car he built.

"Wow! You can build stuff that easily with that gauntlet?" asked Centi with interest.

"Yep, the Ultrahand is designed for construction, and easily at that, as it can easily fuse objects together. Our people have designed various things that help them fight back against the Demon King. Not that we have been successful in winning against him though…" said Zelda.

"Woohoo!" exclaimed Link as he used the lever as a steering wheel to steer the wooden board vehicle around the place.

"A carriage that can move without horses? That's impossible!" said Corrin in disbelief.

"You better believe it! This looks like wonderful technology! I don't care if it's magic or science, I think I want to try this Ultrahand thing already!" said Centi while trembling with excitement.

Link eventually parked his "car" next to them and got off it. "Anyone want a spin on that?" he asked them.

Centi held out her hand to him and said, "Give me the Ultrahand! I want to try it right now!"

"Sure," said Link, taking off the gauntlet and giving it to her.

Centi hurriedly put it on and rushed over to the stuff lying there and began construction materials. Everyone watched eagerly at what she was going to build, and his and her faces became more and more in awe as she constructed a missile launcher tank within a minute, with tank treads and all.

"Overkill much…? You're bringing modern day military machines into a fantasy world…" commented Exia.

"What is that?!" asked Corrin.

Centi stood proudly next to her creation, and then she pressed a button at the side of the war machine, causing to shoot missiles out of its launcher and high into air. Everyone watched in awe as the missiles disappeared high into the sky, seemingly never coming back down.

"Wow… I don't think I've ever built anything like this…" commented Link.

Centi looked at the Ultrahand and said with great happiness and sparkling eyes, "I love this thing!"

Night had fallen, and the good guys were being led to their rooms by a pair of maids—Ade and Cocoa.

"Wait a minute… Aren't you the maids from the maid cafe Maid For You?" Centi asked them.

"I do not know what you mean by that. We have been maids serving the royalty of Hyrule for a long time already," Ade said to her.

"I see… So this world even has different versions of our own people," said Guillotine with interest.

"So they're not the same Ade and Cocoa we know, but the ones from this world," said Exia. "It's strange that this world is a combination our Link's, Corrin's, and our world…"

"Please allow us to take you to your rooms," Ade said to the good guys as she led the way.

They were taken to their rooms. Link and Nihilister each had their own rooms. Crown and Corrin shared a room. Exia, Guillotine, and Centi shared a room.

Link entered his room and looked around. It was a large and luxurious room fitting for a king. "I like it!" he said.

"I am glad that you find this room satisfying," Ade said to him happily. "If there is anything you need, please let us know now."

"It's okay. I'd like a good night's rest soon," Link told her.

After the maids left, Link then lied down on his bed with his limbs sprawled out. "Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever slept on such a large bed. It sure is comfortable!" he thought.

The door swung open suddenly, and he sat up in surprise to see Nihilister stepping in, shortly followed by the other girls. Link was going to say something, but Nihilister interrupted him. "Sit down. I've got something to say to ya all."

Each of the girls began sitting down on a random spot, some on the floor and some on chairs. Nihilister herself sat down on Link's bed, with the Hylian behind her. "What is it you want to tell us?" Centi asked her.

"I think I know what is happening, about how we got here and all," replied Nihilister.

"You do?" asked Corrin.

Nihilister nodded. "It's just a theory, but I think it makes the most sense. There's this Rapture called Gatekeeper. I don't know all the details, but it supposedly has the power to travel through time and space to different universes."

"Gatekeeper…" noted Crown.

"Not only that, it can bring whoever it likes to whatever universe it wants," continued Nihilister. "You see where I'm starting to get to?"

"Aha! You're telling me that this Gatekeeper plucked us from our worlds and dropped us here?" said Centi.

Nihilister. "You catch on quick. Apparently, the only way to return to our own world is to find Gatekeeper and beat it up, and once it surrenders, it will take us back to our own worlds."

"Then how do we find it?" Link asked her.

"No idea. It can be hiding anywhere," replied Nihilister, looking back at him.

"Well, at least we know what the cause of this is," said Corrin.

"Then all we have to do with defeat Gatekeeper, and then we'll be able to return to our own worlds. Simple as that!" said Centi.

"Hold on a second! Do you really want to throw away this chance of enjoying a fantasy adventure in this world? I'm not against returning, but we should at least take the opportunity to engage in this once in a lifetime opportunity of heroism and adventure first!" said Guillotine desperately.

"Is adventure really that important for you?" Exia asked her. "I may play Final Quest a lot, but that doesn't mean I'm interested in LARPing…"

"Now that you said it… I'd love to stick around and make use of the Ultrahand more rather than going back right away," said Centi. "For all we know, you can't take back anything with you."

"Returning is good and all, but as for me, I choose to stay for a while and end the threat of the demon king," said Crown. "It does not sit right with me to abandon this world to its problems. Since we are called the chosen heroes, we should have the responsibility of a hero and save everyone here first."

"I agree," agreed Link. "It would be irresponsible of us to just leave this world without saving it first. I'd rather defeat Ganondorf first and make sure that this world is safe than to go back right away."

"Me too. It just doesn't feel right to just get up and leave right away. We should help solve this world's issue first," said Corrin.

"Tsk! You guys are such killjoys…" grumbled Nihilister.

"I agree…" said Exia, sounding depressed.

"Fine! I'll stick around and play hero with you, as long as I can get back and trample the Rapture Queen eventually! There better be stuff here I can burn to ashes if I want to stick around!" said an annoyed Nihilister.

"By the way, there's another problem that has to be brought up," said Exia. Everyone turned to her as she held up her gaming device with a tearful look on her face. "I have no charger to charge this thing…"

The next day, the chosen heroes were in the presence of the king again. This time, Chime was seen standing next to him, and when Crown saw her, she was surprised and wanted to reach out to her, but Exia stopped her and reminded her, "She's not the same person you know. If it were so, she would've recognized you already."

Hearing this disappointed Crown, but she still accepted it. Nevertheless, she had in her mind to talk with her when she had the chance.

"According to my informant here," King Rhoam said to the heroes while pointing at Chime, "the legendary weapons are located in the Forest Temple and the Water Temple. Her attempts at trying to retrieve them had been unsuccessful due to a large amount of monsters guarding them."

"I bet there is even a powerful boss monster that we have to get through first," said Guillotine with interest.

"The Master Sword is located in the Forest Temple, while the Yato is in the Water Temple," clarified Rhoam. "Now how will you heroes go and get them?"

"I will go and get the Master Sword," Link told him. "You do not need to send an army. Just I alone will be enough."

"Oh no you don't! What dungeon quest is complete without a small party of two or three? I will be going with you to find this legendary weapon of yours!" Guillotine said to him as she wrapped her arm around his.

Looking at her, he asked, "You're coming with me?"

"I will not waste this opportunity to skip out on a dungeon quest! This is essential in a fantasy adventure!" Guillotine told him.

"Very well; the two of you will go to the Forest Temple, and I will be sending someone to go with you," Rhoam said to them. "She is a master thief who is an expert in sneaking around and disabling traps. Her skills should be helpful in aiding you. I will send message to her, and she will probably meet you in person at the temple."

"Thank you very much, your majesty," Link said to him.

"I will get the Yato," Corrin told the king. "Where I come from, a version of its exists too, so I believe I am the only person capable of wielding it."

"Very well, you will go to the Water Temple," the king told her. "Also, the Zoras have agreed to lend a hand if we are ever going to obtain the Yato, so they will be sending someone to go with you."

"Hold on a minute. She's not going alone there by herself," Nihilister said to the king as she walked up to Corrin. "I'm going with her. I've been itching to blast some things for a while now, so allow me to get some good exercise there." Placing her arm around Corrin's shoulder, she said, "With me by your side, you'll be getting your dinky weapon in no time!"

"Um… Thanks…" Corrin said to her.

"All right, then it is decided! Link and Guillotine will obtain the Master Sword in the Forest Temple, while Corrin and Nihilister will obtain the Yato in the Water Temple," said Rhoam. "Your assistants will be meeting you at your respective locations. I wish you all success in obtaining the weapons so that we can defeat the Demon King!"

TO BE CONTINUED

The Ultrahand is the reason why I picked Centi for this world, as I think a builder like her will have lots of fun with it.