Chapter 23: Long Way Home

-Zelda-

As Zelda stood watching over the inky black abyss, she kept her eyes locked on the small bloom of light orbiting in the deep water. Empowering an arrow with her Triforce of Wisdom, she had ensured Link would have a reliable source of light. But her heart sank the moment the lights below disappeared—she couldn't imagine the horrors Link must be facing.

As she waited, a low wailing sound rose from the depths, its eerie echo reverberating off the stone walls.

It made the hairs on her neck stand on end. She shuddered, dread creeping through her. The sounds were piercing, unnatural, and she feared they wouldn't stop. But to her relief, the wailing ceased after a few moments. She prayed that whatever was happening down there, Link would return safely.

Her bow remained drawn, and she scanned the water's surface, eyes straining for any sign of movement. Then she saw it—dark shapes drifting upward, illuminated by the faint light from the cistern above. Zora. Bodies, slowly floating to the surface.

Zelda tightened her grip on her bowstring, her mind racing as the lifeless forms bobbed in the water. She narrowed her eyes, trying to make sense of it. More bodies followed, rising to the surface, and yet there was still no sign of Link. A knot of worry tightened in her chest, but she forced herself to stay calm. Panicking wouldn't help.

Finally, amidst the floating Zora, she spotted him. The distinct blue of his Zora tunic caught her eye, and his head broke the water's surface, surrounded by the fallen. Relief washed over her like a tidal wave.

"Link!" she cried out, her voice filled with desperate hope. He had been gone for what felt like an eternity, and each passing moment had tested her resolve not to succumb to panic. She rushed to the edge of the massive basin as he slowly swam toward her. As he neared, her relief quickly gave way to concern. He looked pale—too pale.

Reaching down, she helped him out of the water, grabbing the back of his tunic and hoisting him onto solid ground as he clambered up. A single, mirthless laugh escaped his lips, startling her. She stepped back, and then she saw it.

His left forearm was gone, severed. The limb was tucked neatly into his belt. Blood oozed weakly from the wound, and Zelda's stomach lurched. Her face paled as horror twisted her insides. What had happened down there? How could he have endured so much again? His skin was almost ghostly white, making him seem otherworldly—so alien, so wrong. And then, in the midst of it all, he smiled.

It wasn't the smile of the man she knew, but something unnervingly hollow. The unnaturalness of the scene—the severed arm, the blood, that smile—squeezed her heart tightly until the only emotion left was sheer terror.

Her breath caught in her throat, and she screamed. It tore out of her, raw and horrified, unable to contain the panic that gripped her.

Link's distant, cold eyes fluttered shut as he collapsed and fell to the ground.

In an instant, Zelda snapped out of her panic. Her heart still raced, but she forced herself to focus. He needed help, and fast. They were too deep underground to call for aid, but she couldn't afford to waste time.

She rolled him on to his back. His breathing was shallow and weak. She knew her healing magic would stitch wounds together and cleanse infected blood, but there was no magic she knew that could replace blood. She would have to reattach his arm.
The thought of touching his severed forearm made her feel sick. It felt so unnatural to her. But she knew there was no other choice. He would die in moments if she did not act.

She rolled back the sleeve above his bloody stump, seeing splintered bone, marrow and sinew strands poking out of it. The sight alone caused something to die inside of her. She quickly did her best to ignore it. Now, she had to be brave. With a shaky hand, she grabbed the severed limb by its cold and unresponsive wrist and pulled it out of his belt. The fingers flopped helplessly, as bile started to sting her throat.

She forced herself to hold the cold severed limb to his elbow. Now, she needed to clear her mind. Working magic could be exceptionally dangerous if she did not cast it properly. She pressed the forearm to the stump and closed her eyes as she took slow breaths, trying to calm herself. She had practised this spell constantly in her youth, knowing it could one day be vital, but never imagining this.

She began. Opening her mind, she let ambient magic in to her senses and began to direct it around her nervous system. The synapses in her head tingling as raw and potent power flowed through her. Uttering the language of the goddesses, she weaved the form of the spell, emphasising its effects. She had never reattached a limb before today, and was taking every precaution that she could.

Finally, she released to torrent of power she had manifested. As it left her fingertips, it coalesced in to bountiful restorative power. It suffused Link's torn flesh as it purged the area of infection and dirt.

As Zelda sustained the spell, it began to knit the shattered fragments of his bones back together. There were so many fragments, and many more had been lost to the water. The spell would regenerate them, but at a high cost to her. She ignored the cost. This was the least she could do to help him.

Time blurred as she laboured with the spell, weaving tendons together and mending torn blood vessels. She didn't know how much blood he had lost, but she hoped that, given time, his body would recover.

As the spell's energy began to wane, Zelda knew it had done its work. Whether or not it had worked as intended, she couldn't tell. Link would have to confirm that once he awoke. She severed her mental connection to the forces of magic, and immediately, the weight of exhaustion settled in. Her body felt sluggish, and her mind struggled to keep up. Basic thoughts drifted out of reach, leaving her feeling irritated and slow.

Her tutors had always compared it to having too little sugar in the blood. So, with shaky hands, she fumbled into her pouch and pulled out several pieces of tablet, eating them all at once. The sweetness spread across her tongue, soothing her nerves as her mind slowly returned to clarity. She took a moment to breathe, sitting motionless as her strength gradually returned.

Looking over Link's arm, she noticed how pale it was, his hand even more so. But there were no scars or seams where the flesh had been reattached. She felt a small relief wash over her. Gently, she dragged him to the wall of the cistern, propping him up to allow better blood flow to his arm. She rubbed his forearm, hoping to stimulate the blood vessels. After a moment, she felt the faintest warmth returning to his cold, almost grey skin.

"Oh, thank the goddesses," she whispered, hesitating. The power of magic certainly belonged to the goddesses, though skilled practitioners were rare.

"And… me," she added quietly, a little sheepish.

Link remained deeply asleep, his breathing still shallow. Zelda pressed her hand to his forehead—there was barely any warmth in him. Frustration gnawed at her. She had done all she could, but it didn't feel like enough. They had no blankets, no supplies. Neither of them had expected to be here for so long. She scanned the area, eyes landing on the wooden scaffolding surrounding them.

"I'll be right back," she murmured, glancing once more at Link.

She found a pile of logs scattered around the circular room. Gathering two small ones, she hauled them back to where Link lay, her arms leaden from the effort. Still, she managed to build a small fire, using bits of bark as kindling.

With a simple spell, she ignited the wood, watching as the flames slowly grew. The warmth spread across her, banishing the cold that had seeped into her bones. With some effort, she dragged Link closer to the fire. Despite his slender build, he was surprisingly heavy, and she had to use both hands to move him.

Once settled, she sat beside him, her mind exhausted but sharp enough to know there was little else she could do for now. He would need to be awake to drink water or take in anything else. She didn't dare try to feed him while he was unconscious, fearing it might choke him.

So, she simply sat next to him, resting her head gently on his side, eliciting a quiet murmur from him as he continued to sleep soundly. As the fire warmed them both, she let her own exhaustion take over as she finally allowed herself a moment of relief. Link was still alive.

Then, smiling a little, she let herself fall to sleep too.

- Link -

Eyes flickering, Link felt warmth. It felt like an age since he had experienced it. He wanted to stay like this for as long as he could. The soft heat soothed him, almost tempting him to fall back into unconsciousness, but something tugged at the edge of his awareness. Letting himself stay still, he focused on that simple sensation of warmth.

The light dancing on his eyelids was disorienting. Slowly, he opened them.

His vision blurred, he made out the flickering glow of the fire. Staring blankly in to them, his vision started to sharpen. He recognised the colossal cistern and then the scaffolding. Blinking, he let the warmth seep in to him. It had been cold for too long.

In his mind, he could still see them. The furious faces of the Zora, their snarling teeth bearing down on him through the pitch black water. His heart jumped. Tensing as he jerked his gaze around the room, expecting to be surrounded by them. The panic was sharp, cutting through the haze of warmth.

But there were none. Link let out a shaky sigh as relief washed over him. He heard a quiet murmur from his side, and he felt a gentle pressure rubbing against him.

Looking down, he saw Zelda. Her head rested gently against his side and her arm was wrapped around him. For a moment, he blinked in disbelief. How long had she been there? How long had he been asleep? His eyes went wide as he felt sharp pins and needles prickle his forearm. He flexed both sets of fingers as he was looking down. Both arms were there.

He brought his left arm to his face, looking around it and poking it. There was no scarring, no bent or broken bones. Though it stung, he smiled. He had been dreading how he would have to adapt to a single working hand.
Only Zelda could have done this for him. Looking down at her in awe, she snored quietly as she held him. It must have taken some toll on her, he thought.

Full of gratitude to her, his racing heart slowed and steadied. There was no danger here, only her. She slept on peacefully, strands of her hair brushing his arm, the soft rise and fall of her breath steady against him. The firelight flickered across her face, casting a golden glow over her tired features. He didn't dare move.

The anxious feeling in him was quiet and small now. Somehow distant too. He felt a sense of calm he hadn't known in what felt like years. Maybe it wasn't the fire, or the safety of the room that eased his mind. Maybe it was simply her. A small smile grew on him. For the first time in a long while, everything was fine.

With his mind soothed, he closed his eyes, sinking into the moment.. He let his eyes shut. Images of snarling Zora, their milky eyes and the suffocating darkness played in absolute clarity in his head.

He drew a quick breath and opened his eyes to escape it. Zelda hadn't stirred. The fire burned on, warming and real. Not the dark depths. Not the cold water.

"It's over" he muttered to himself, for himself. "It's over..."

The nightmarish scene couldn't follow him here, he told himself. For once, he didn't have to be on guard. He didn't need to look over his shoulder. Not now.
Just to be safe, he did anyway and saw the thick stone wall of the cistern he was against.

The images however stayed with him. He could almost feel the crushing force of the Kraken's tentacles wrapping around his limbs again. His breath quickened once more and his hand started twitching. His stomach twisted in to a tight knot, panic snaked through him as his pulse climbed.

Breathing out, he fought the tension back as best as he could. Link's eyes closed again, and this time, the exhaustion he had kept at bay for so long began to overtake him. The mental toll was worse than anything physical. He wasn't injured now as Zelda had seen to that, but his mind had been stretched thin. He was worn down by the ordeal.

Zelda's grip around him tightened ever so slightly in her sleep, and it pulled him back, grounding him. It soothed him just enough.

She was here. He was safe. They both were. His breathing slowed again as he let his head rest against the stone wall. He didn't need to do anything right now.

The toll of what he had done had taxed his body to its limits. His eyelids grew even heavier as his mind started to slow down. Every fibre of his being turned heavy. It would be so nice to just be unburdened for a while. If he went to sleep, at least he wouldn't have to think. And so he did.

Link stirred some time later. The two logs now glowing orange and their bright flames gone. They radiated heat still, for which he was thankful.
Warmth still surrounded him, both from the remnants of the fire and from Zelda's soft weight resting against his side. Her steady breathing lulled him back into a quiet calm.

He blinked groggily, his eyes adjusting to the dim light of the cistern. He hadn't slept that deeply in... He couldn't even remember when. It was the first time in forever that his body hadn't woken him with some nagging sense of danger. But now, something else was forcing him awake.

Hunger.

His stomach felt as empty as a canyon. The dryness in his mouth gnawed at him too, his throat parched and scratchy.
Despite the empty ache, he still didn't want to move. Not with Zelda still sleeping so soundly, her head tucked against his chest and her arm wrapped lightly around his waist. He'd never seen her like this. So peaceful or unburdened.

A faint smile tugged at his lips. It was nice, this quiet moment. He could let her rest a little longer, even if his stomach wasn't so willing. With an impeccable sense of timing, his stomach rumbled aloud, breaking the silence. Link froze, eyes wide, as the sound reverberated around the stone walls.

Zelda stirred at the noise, her brow furrowing in sleepy confusion before she blinked awake. Still half-asleep, she slowly lifted her head and met Link's sheepish gaze. Her eyes, still hazy with sleep, flickered with realization.

She blinked again, her lips twitching into a small smile. "Link!" she murmured, her voice soft and a little hoarse from sleep.

Link shifted slightly.

"Good morning. Sorry I woke you" he said with his voice low, not wanting to disturb the peaceful quiet too much.

Zelda sat up, rubbing her eyes. She stayed close, her hand resting gently on him. "You should have woken me if you were that hungry."

"I didn't want to" Link replied honestly. "You looked comfortable. Besides, I didn't mind."

Zelda smiled again, her expression soft as she watched him. "Well, it is good to see you're recovering. But we should get something to eat before you wake the dead."

Link watched as she stood. She looked through her pack for some rations. As she did, Link let his eyes look around the huge room. A few feet away was the crack he had made in the walls.

The dark cave loomed in there. His heart gave a dull, uncomfortable thud in his chest as he stared at it, that abyss where everything had gone wrong. His breath came in slow, shallow waves as the memories began to surface again, unbidden. His eyes unable to look away.

The Zora. Their snarling, distorted faces. The Kraken's crushing tentacles and lifeless eyes. The cold, crushing darkness.

His throat tightened. The longer he stared, the more vivid the images became. He could almost feel the cold water again and the pressure against his skin. He pulled at the fabric of his armour, trying to get breathing room. Why couldn't he stop looking?

His chest tightened now and a cold sweat formed on his neck. His hearing seemed numb. All he could see was that dark tunnel. His jaw clenched hard. He wanted to run.

Suddenly, something touched his arm. Link flinched, his body jerking. He blinked, startled, and turned his head, his eyes falling on Zelda kneeling beside him, concern etched across her face.

He hadn't even noticed her approach.

Link swallowed hard, trying to shake the feeling. His throat felt dry, his body tense. He hadn't realized how tight he had gripped his own arm, his fingers digging in. Now the pins and needles felt worse.

Zelda held out a canteen and some dried food, her voice gentle but steady as she spoke to him. He didn't process what she had said. Wordlessly, he uncorked the canteen and drank.
The water was cool, and it helped ground him a little. But the image of that gaping hole in the wall refused to leave his mind.

Zelda didn't say anything else, just stayed beside him, her hand resting lightly on his arm. He glanced at her briefly and tried to muster a smile. It felt weak, but it was all he could manage.

He took another sip of water, his gaze wandering back to the fire.
Link's stare remained fixed on the hole in the wall, his mind unable to look away. The light of the fire was warm and Zelda beside him helped, but the depths and what he had experienced wouldn't let him forget.

"Link?"

Her voice snapped him out of the spiralling thoughts, the sudden warmth bringing him back to reality. Her hand rested gently on his, her fingers curling around his own with a quiet, steady presence. Link blinked, realizing how hard his jaw had clenched now that it hurt.

"Link…"

It was barely a whisper. But it was enough to pull him back to his senses.

The shift back to reality hit him hard, overwhelming him. A torrent of emotion surged up inside him, so sudden and so forceful that he couldn't stop it. His vision blurred and his chest tightened as tears welled in the corners of his eyes.

No. He couldn't. Not now. Not in front of her.

He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to fight it back. In front of Sabbah had been different, Ilia had told him she didn't want him there, for Ilia either. He was supposed to be stronger than this.

The more he fought it, the less he could resist. His throat tightened and he bit his lip. It didn't stop the tears at all. His body trembled and he couldn't hide it, no matter how much he wanted to.

Zelda didn't say anything. Instead, she shifted closer to him, her hand holding his with a quiet strength. Her touch was light. She didn't press him to speak. She just stayed there, beside him.

For a moment, he tried to pull away. She held on. It felt like an anchor holding him in place. The tension in his shoulders softened, and the sob that had caught in his throat finally broke free. It was quiet but raw.

"I'm sorry…" he whispered, his voice barely audible. He didn't know why he was apologizing.

Zelda's hand tightened around his, a small but steady comfort. "You don't have to be sorry" she said gently, her voice calm and patient. "You do not have to hide from me."

The warmth in her voice only made it harder to suppress. He still felt the shame, but with her beside him, it wasn't unbearable.

She didn't judge him. She didn't push him to speak. She just stayed, holding his hand and letting him take his time.

Eventually his breathing steadied and the tears slowed. The weight that had been pressing down on him began to lift. He wasn't fine, but in this moment, he wasn't alone either.

Zelda's thumb brushed softly over his knuckles. Link let himself take a deep breath.

Without thinking, he shifted his body and let himself fall into her lap. His head rested against her legs, the warmth of her body radiating through him. He didn't want to think or to fight the feelings any more. He just wanted to rest.

Zelda reacted with nothing but tenderness, if a little surprised. She leaned into him, wrapping her arms around him. Her chin rested lightly on the top of his head, and she pressed a soft kiss to his cheek.

Link felt his breath hitch again and he clenched his jaw, fighting the wave of helplessness that threatened to spill over. He didn't want to cry again, not in front of her. He felt too vulnerable, but his body refused to cooperate. His shoulders trembled as he fought to hold it in, but a quiet sob slipped through anyway.

Zelda's embrace tightened, and she whispered softly, "It is alright, Link. You do not have to be strong right now."

He wanted to hide, but her words cut through the last of his defences. Another sob escaped him but quieter this time. He didn't know how to stop it. His hands fisted into the fabric of her tunic, trying to hold on. Zelda didn't say anything else. She didn't try to fix him or push him to talk. She simply held him, stroking his head gently. As he lay on her, he realised something. After the light had gone out in the depths, he saw that what terrified him the most was the idea of being alone. He didn't feel like he had to be now though.

After what felt like an eternity, his breathing finally evened out. The tears had stopped, leaving behind an exhausted silence. Zelda stayed with him, her arms still gently wrapped around him, providing a steady warmth that he hadn't realized he had badly needed.

Despite the brief respite, Link knew they couldn't stay here. There was still the battle above them they needed to see.

He stirred slightly, his muscles stiff from lying in the same position for so long. The pins and needles in his arm was manageable now. Shaking his reattached hand, his voice was rough as he spoke.

"We… should probably get out of here," he murmured. "Staying here isn't going to help."

Zelda watched him carefully as he stood up. She nodded.

"You are right. We need to move. We need to find out how our soldiers and the Gerudo fared on the shore."
Link looked around the cistern, his gaze settling on the hole in the wall where the depths loomed. He quickly looked away. He stood up slowly, testing his balance. Dusting himself down, he looked around to try and find a way out. He wondered how the Zora had gotten down here to build scaffolding. There were no stairs or ladders long enough to reach the entrance.

Then, he recalled the cistern being full of water before now. He wouldn't be surprised if the Zora had made their way down through a waterfall. Shaking off the thought of going in to water again, he continued to look.

Noticing a difference in colour on segments of the tall pillars, he managed to see thick iron rings around section of them. They looked as if they could support the weight of an entire column piece. They could hold him and Zelda easily. And he still had his clawshots

"We can use these," Link said, withdrawing them.

"The walls here are steep, but those rings on the pillars? I can latch on to them. It'll be slow, but it'll get us back to the temple."

Zelda stood beside him. "Very well." she said plainly as she started moving to collect her pack.

"One more thing." he said.

She looked to him with a raised eyebrow. Walking to her, he leaned in to her and hugged her with both arms wrapped around her. Resting his head on her shoulders, he exhaled.

"Thank you"

She hadn't judged him as he feared she would have. Instead, she had sat with him and helped him when he needed it the most. He felt annoyed with himself for not thinking of a better or more eloquent way to convey his gratitude.

Instead, she returned the hug, holding him close.

"At any time, Link" she smiled back.

After packing her things, she stood next to him as they both looked up, the top of the cistern looking impossibly distant. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held on tightly.
With a nod, Link took a deep breath, raised the clawshot, and aimed at an iron ring.
The device fired with a metallic clink, the chain extending and hooking securely onto the ring. He tugged once, testing its hold. Zelda took a deep breath for what came next.

"I am ready"

The claw retracted and pulled both of them up steadily. The weight of both of them slowing the mechanism down.

Several times, they had to pause, scanning for the next available ring, but each time, they found a way forward. The ascent took time, Link having to reposition several times and plot his next move.

Finally, they reached the upper edge of the cistern. The moment Link pulled himself over the final ledge, he collapsed to his knees, panting heavily. Zelda wasn't heavy, but having to bear her with one arm was enough to drain him. She climbed up beside him, releasing a held breath. She quickly moved away from the edge. The drop back down would be fatal with one single mistake.

Leaving through the door, Link heard the sounds of flowing water and machinery turning. Water flowed through channels in the stairway above them. As they made their way back up to the walkway, the old temple seemed to be back to normal.

"Link, look!" Zelda said excitedly. She pointed at green and slimy looking water flowing through channels in the pathways. It was lake water. Particularly, the algae infestation that came with it. The stained waters were carried off to other parts of the temple.

Once eerily silent, the temple was now alive with movement. Massive wheels and gears churned, water flowed through channels, and the mechanisms that had long been dormant were working again, churning steadily as the purification process resumed. The lake, it seemed, was beginning to heal.

Link managed a small smile. Being out of the giant cistern was helping to relax his mind. Seeing everything working again made him feel hopeful. The lake would eventually be purified, but the Zora, he couldn't guess.

"Well done, Link. You have gone and potentially saved all of Hyrule once again by doing this"

Link was surprised by her. "All of Hyrule? You mean all of castle town draws its water from this lake? How did this save all of that and beyond?"

Surely one lake wasn't enough to support an entire nation, he wondered.

"Well, yes there is that. Assume for a moment that this temple purifies the water and that the parasites are no more. That means you have saved the Zora too. Though they do not tend to speak much, the Gorons depend on water from them to help with their mine on Death Mountain." she explained eagerly, happy to be able to contribute something.

"You cannot cool lava very easily without a large source of water, after all. If the Gorons could not do this, they could not smelt ores for our blacksmiths to use, their trade industry would crumble… The effects of a single lake are wide reaching"

Link appreciated her insights. He hadn't considered the wider implications of the lake before.

They stood there for a moment longer, watching the temple continue its steady rhythm, the machines humming and groaning as they worked to purify the lake. The sight was a small comfort in the wake of everything that had happened.

"Thank you. Again. But we should try and get out of here. Hopefully we can make our way back up through that rockslide we made earlier" he suggested as he set off for the entrance room of the temple.

As they both entered the room, they were both surprised to see Sabbah and several Hylian soldiers in the cave. She looked exhausted. Her bright and focused eyes looked dull and heavy. Her clothes were stained with Zora blood and there were tears across them.
The soldiers didn't look much better. They slumped as they sat on various rocks.

"Link! Princess!" Sabbah exclaimed. She hurried over to them both. The soldiers followed behind her.

"Where you go? We thought you dead!"

"Not yet, Sabbah. Sorry we worried you. We...had a lot of work to do" Link explained.

Zelda nodded simply. Sabbah wasn't wearing her veil. Link felt happy to see her smiling, even in her tired state.

"We will share story later. But we stay here for while."

"Oh? Is something wrong?" Zelda asked, sounding concerned.

"Yes. Look" she replied, pointing up to the caved in roof. The collapsed trees had been cleared in the time they were both in the lower part of the temple. Looking beyond it, Link saw the sky was an unnatural shade of orange.

"What's going on?" he asked, at a loss.

Sabbah shrugged.

"Lake is on fire".