Chapter Text
“You must be joking,” A blue-feathered Rito proclaimed, spreading his fingers and drolly covering his heart. “Time travel? Alternate timelines? A Hero who looks like that?” He pointed at Wild and snorted. “Don’t make me laugh!”
After Urbosa had arrived and been filled in, Daruk and Revali had shown up. Daruk, to much celebration – gorons were universally recognized as the life of the party, after all. Revali, on the other hand, well…
He was Revali.
King Rhoam frowned. “Is something funny?”
“Oh, on the contrary.” Revali puffed out his chest, and practically pranced around the room. “It’s not funny at all. In fact, it’s so very not funny, I struggle to find a word to describe the depths of just how… humorless this all is.”
Urbosa rolled her eyes, looking towards the Princess sympathetically.
“It… it is quite serious,” The Princess thinned her lips.
“Serious!?” Revali barked out. “Ha! No, it’s far from that! This whole ‘story’ of yours reads like a bad joke that someone specifically formulated to be as absurd and hilarious as possible, only to fall totally flat and be met with the sound of empty coughs!”
‘Rather like your personality, then.’ Wild gestured, causing Mipha’s lips to twitch.
“What was that?” Revali demanded, turning to Impa. “No, seriously, what was that? I won’t tolerate anyone speaking in code right in front of me!”
“Chill out,” Impa ordered. “He just said that you’re being a bit overdramatic about it all-“
“Overdramatic?” Revali haughtily huffed. “Overdramatic? You want overdramatic?” He rounded on Wild. “Unlike those who are blessed with pulling a magic sword in the middle of the woods, and have people of dubious origin and history coming forward to persuade those in power to give out promotions to those clearly undeserving of it, some of us have to actually work for our positions, and I will not sit here and be made a fool in front of those who specifically reached out to me, by those who reached out to me!”
Wild blinked, and a shadow fell across his face, and he narrowed his eyes.
“Honestly,” Revali snorted, turning away. “The idea that this…” He gestured to Wild. “Is the Legendary Hero? Simply ridiculous. And the notion that the squint over there,” He pointed at Deku Link. “Is another one? Don’t make me laugh.”
“Squint!?” Link screeched angrily, jumping up onto one of the railings, as he drew in a breath. “I’ll show you, feather-boy!” And an enormous, yellow bubble began to inflate from his snout.
“LINK, NO!” Paya bellowed, tackling the Deku Scrub before the bubble went flying, up into the rafters where it popped.
“And now your own soldiers are attacking each other like fledglings in the crèche.” Revali harumphed. “Oh, yes, you’re making a very persuasive case for joining your war effort – a war effort against an enemy that has no base, no commanding officer, and no point of origin!” Revali added on sardonically.
“We have identified a tomb deep under this Castle,” Rhoam replied, looking at each prospect to make sure they understood fully. “Housing a lone corpse remarkably preserved for how long it has remained down there.”
“Probably some servant or visitor who wandered down the wrong passage.” Revali waved away.
“The architecture down there is Zonai,” Rhoam elaborated whilst leaning forward. “Murals with depictions of the Demon King line the walls… depictions that match the corpse. On the corpse itself, we’ve been reluctant to approach too closely, but even from a distance, it’s clear that he wears the jewelry and fabrics of those that call the desert home.”
“Impossible!” One of Urbosa’s guards, who bore an uncanny resemblance to Nabooru, huffed angrily.
Urbosa wasn’t so quick to throw the matter out, however. Her face was pensive, as she chewed her lip. “Ganon was said to have incarnated in the form of a Gerudo, once…”
“Many times,” Paya cleared her throat, gesturing to Link. “From what we’ve learned from him and the other heroes, Ganon seems to favor the Gerudo for… some reason.”
“The desert’s not a kind mother,” Link orated with his hands, causing Wild to look at him with a frown. “At day, she’ll roast you. At night, she’ll freeze you. And at all times, she’ll withhold precious water, and send winds blowing sand strong enough to skin a man alive. The Gerudo are a hardy people – they have to be – who better to make his mortal form as tough as possible?”
Urbosa turned to the Deku Scrub with a look of academic appreciation. “You’re very well-learned.”
“I lived it.” Link corrected, glancing around. “On three separate occasions, Ganon took Gerudo form.”
“Really?” Curious, Urbosa leaned forward.
Link nodded, and took it as permission to elaborate. “First was when I knew him. Back then, the Gerudo were still a tribe of raiders and bandits, stealing to get by, and males were born every hundred years, and king by birthright.” He looked to the side for a moment. “We have a theory that all of them were versions of Ganon, who for some reason or another never really did the big power-grabs that they’re later known for, but we can’t prove it. Anyway, he was the one I dealt with – pulling the Master Sword sealed me in stasis for seven years, and when I woke up, he was in charge. I fought him, won, then got sent back in time, so I could warn the king.”
“The Hero of Time’s story is still well-known, even amongst our people,” Urbosa’s lip twitched slightly, but one of her guards scowled.
“And it was what gave you Hylians to hunt us down like animals.” The guard spat.
“You went to war with us first,” Link gesticulated. “Not that I say we can blame you – Ganondorf was your king, and we were about to get him for high treason. But you tried to bust him out of prison, and that spiraled into a whole situation on its own! The tribe split, and Nabooru took the ones not loyal to Ganon into the desert to hide, while the rest just… threw themselves at us trying to rescue Ganon. It only stopped when we tried to execute him.” He shifted. “And… well, I didn’t learn this bit until later, but apparently it didn’t work. Ganondorf survived, and was banished out of reality instead. He returned later to fight the Hero of Twilight, and actually died then.”
“Intriguing,” Urbosa hummed.
“Heh, I know about that Twilight guy!” Daruk grinned. “They say he could wrestle a hundred Gorons like they were uppity toddlers and not break a sweat!”
Link nodded. “Yeah, he’s… something else. Anyway, that was the first version I know of. The second version of Ganondorf incarnated into your people after they resettled Gerudo Town. I don’t know if he was king, this time, but he sought some powerful trident, and fell to evil again… as is his very nature. And the Gerudo, remembering the evil that he caused before, did away with him before he could be a problem. They sealed him inside a magic mirror, and it looked like there was peace. But Ganon was clever, he reached out, and manipulated those on the outside to let him free. But someone was there to fight him then, too – another Hero. That one drew the Four Sword, and became Four, and they fought Ganon. And when they achieved victory, they used the power of the Sword to split Ganon’s soul into four parts, and the magic of the Sage of Time, to hide those four pieces across different corners of time, so that Ganon could never come back.”
Urbosa’s eyebrows shot up, but Revali snorted before she could speak.
“An excellent story,” Revali strutted about. “But if that’s the case, how is he here now, hmmm?”
“Because, you disingenuous cloaca, I haven’t finished talking yet!” Link huffed right back. “Anyway, the Four-fold Hero hid the spirit orbs in different locations across time and space… but one of them returned to the Triforce – the part of Ganon’s spirit that was bound to the Triforce of Power. And at that time, there was a powerful sorceress who was watching over it. It couldn’t manipulate her directly, but its dark magic could be used to influence her subconsciously. Mild dislike became blinding hatred. A minor crush became dangerous obsession. And she started a war where time itself was the battlefield, and the four pieces were drawn out, and reunited… and Ganon returned. That was the one we fought in the War.” He shuddered in place. “Terrible man. Beating his subordinates until they were left in full-body casts,” Poor Ghirahim. “Enslaving them to his will.” Volga certainly wasn’t happy. “And just using people as tools.” Cia had certainly been on the receiving end of that. “By the end, it was just him on the enemy side.”
“Is there a point to all that?” Revali questioned with a bored tone.
“He likes to ramble when people listen,” Paya shrugged. “Best just listen to him. Never know what you might learn.”
“Hey! Some of this knowledge has gotta survive me! I won’t have many regrets when I go out, but that’ll be one of them. Now, what was I saying…?” Link frowned. “Oh, right. And three: this new version of Ganon. When I fought him, he acted like he knew me, but that was apparently because that stint of time as a disembodied spirit allowed him to remember what his body was keeping away from him? I don’t really know. Point is, that Ganon is another incarnation. He really likes to come back to the Gerudo – you guys have to be tough, and he likes to take advantage of it.”
“I see.” Urbosa looked down, as a fire lit in her eyes. “Well, if he’s got a body under this Castle, what are we waiting for? Let’s go down there and kill him now!”
“Indeed,” Revali, in a rare show of solidarity with another sapient life-form, agreed. “If- and that’s not saying I believe you- if Ganon’s physical form is beneath us, as we speak, why don’t you just go down there, plant a large supply of explosive, and be done with it?”
The Princess raised an eyebrow, but it was Wild who answered first. ‘Aside from the fact that explosives plus confined space equals a real bad time?’
“It doesn’t have to be explosives you ignoramus,” Revali snorted derisively. “I am smart enough to know about things such as ‘load capacity’ and ‘structural tolerance.’ But the fact remains that we’re up here, piddling around, while you should be down there, exorcising the threat.” He looked harshly upon Wild. “What – does holding that sword make you too ‘honorable’ to rid us of a threat that’s knocked down?”
“Aside from the fact that it’s a war crime?” Link raised an eyebrow. “It is – trust me, I’d know – the last time I went down there, messing with Ganon’s corpse, he woke up. If we go down there now, when we’re not ready, we’re going to have a bad time. I’ve done – well, not exactly this before – but I’ve gone down there before.”
“Ah, yes, ‘time travel.’” Revali made air-quotes to send home his point, and he flapped a wing, letting out a sigh of disgust. “I’ve dismissed those claims.”
Link’s beady yellow eyes narrowed. “Buddy, you do that again, and I’m going to make chicken fingers.”
Rhoam cleared his throat. “Whether or not you believe the young Hero’s claims, the fact remains that he does have a point. At the moment, Ganon is, as far as we can tell, dormant. Rather than risk disturbing him by approaching too closely, I deemed it wise to instead remain back for now, and use the time we have to ensure we are making all necessary preparations. But that doesn’t mean we are simply letting him remain there forever. As we speak, I’m having my Sheikah researchers mapping out the tunnels, sealing off any possible alternate exits he may make use of, and installing sentry turrets around the body so that if he does awaken… it will be into a fight.”
“We’ve been debating, and we believe we’ve hit upon a plan that can work,” The Princess crossed her wrists. “As we speak, our top scientists are devising a weapon that ought to be capable of extracting the Triforce of Power from Ganon’s being. Once it’s safely removed, we assemble the entire object… and use its power to rid the world of Ganon. Permanently.”
There was some murmurs at that… and one person straight-up left the room, huffing in exasperation.
“That’s…” Daruk slowly began. “Kind of a tall order. Not that I’m debating it exists or anything, but it’s a holy artifact. You sure trying to do that will work out?”
The Princess merely smiled. “Hylia is on our side.”
“Ah, and now we’ve reached the point of the conversation where it shifts to ‘please believe me, please! I swear it’s a good idea, just take my word for it!’” Revali snorted.
The Princess frowned, and Impa scowled. “It’s not a matter of taking me at my word. It’s the reality of the situation. You heard the proc-“
“Yes, yes, the proclamation,” Revali waved his hand. “What I heard was some nonsense about your powers not being the domain of a man to speak on. Nothing about the Triforce, or that she stood with us.”
Urbosa looked at the Princess with a sheepish expression. “He is right. Gods… well, they can be notoriously testy about these sorts of things, little bird. That’s what makes them Gods. They don’t think like us, they don’t see the world as we do. It’s a different kind of morality.”
“Well,” Mipha began to speak up, coughing. “They are right in this case – Hylia is on our side. The Princess, her… other self, and that Deity fellow – he’s Hylia’s husband, or so they say – took the Sword That Seals the Darkness to her for her blessings. It returned to the battlefield in Zora’s Domain in a brilliant show of light, you must have seen it.”
Revali appeared floored for a second, before turning his head. “I saw no such thing.”
“Aw, come on!” Daruk gestured. “Heck, even I could see it, and I was on top of Death Mountain at the time!”
Urbosa nodded in agreement. “There was a rather large light show coming from that direction…”
“And it was most likely the result of Her Majesty wielding the sacred power that is in her blood,” Revali flippantly answered. “But a goddess it was not. It’s completely ridiculous – just absolutely asinine. Time Travel? Doppelgangers? Gods? And that one,” He pointed at Wild.
The knight opened his mouth. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“What it means,” Revali leaned forward. “Is that you should not be here. The Princess’s powers are tied to training and study. My abilities, and the abilities of all the others you have summoned here, were honed over a lifetime of training. But you? You just pulled a magic sword out of the stone, yet it’s you who’s supposed to land the killing blow against Ganon, because of that weapon? Our weapons are special because of us, but you? You are only remarkable because of that sword.”
“Whoa, low blow!” Link jumped up. “Paya, please let me do it.”
The Sheikah silently held up a hand, watching Wild’s face. His jaw was twitching, and his ears were flicking the same way Link’s did when he was angry.
“Sir Link comes from a long line of dedicated, honorable, and capable knights.” Rhoam frowned in puzzlement.
“Oh!” Revali’s brow shot up. “You’re a nepotism knight, too! How painfully average were you before, hmm? How far were you able to coast along thanks to what others did for you?”
A thunderous slam, and a bright flash filled the room, stunning everyone for the moment.
Link, out of Deku form, walked, very calmly, up to Revali. Well, actually, he kind of dragged himself over. He looked like a corpse, grey and red in the eyes. He looked up at the Rito’s giant eyes, and, still very calmly, slapped Revali.
Revali, very clearly unused to such treatment, spluttered indignantly.
“There is more talent in his pinky than there is in all of you,” Link stated, clenching his jaw. “And you know it. That’s why she picked him. And doesn’t it just burn?” He turned on the spot, stomping back over to grab the Deku Mask. “Oh, by the way: Acting like that doesn’t make you better than others – it just shows everyone how low your self-esteem really is.” He put back on the mask, breathing slowly as Paya stared at him dumbly.
“W-Well, I never!” Revali squawked at last. “King Rhoam, I was invited here, and now you’re just going to let-“
“Revali,” Rhoam cleared his throat sternly. “You may be a guest in this halls, and I may have called upon your aid, but that does not give you the right to talk down to those within this Castle.”
“But he-“ Revali quickly pointed the finger at Link.
“He is already restricted from duty on medical reasons – which will be extended, thanks to that little stunt.” Rhoam pointedly looked at Link. “But the lad does have a point: Your abilities and reputation only gives you a greater responsibility to be courteous and upstanding. It does not absolve you of it. Young Master Link, that goes double for you.”
Revali crossed his arms in defiance. “You want me to pilot your Divine Beast, and expect me to take treatment like this? Please. Find someone else to pilot it.”
Rhoam leaned forward. “That is quite possible. There is a host of Rito who would be more than willing to take the responsibility, I’m sure… But they are not you, and you know it.”
Revali snapped his beak shut. Then opened it. Then closed it. Again. Finally, he forced out a begrudging statement. “Well… if nothing else, you do recognize I’m the best… But I want that one,” Revali pointed at Link. “Far away from me.”
“He knows I could take him, and I know where his bullsh*t stems from,” Link gestured to Paya. “And he knows he’d lose.”
Paya glared at him. “Shush, you almost caused a diplomatic incident.”
“In any case, it’s academic.” Revali snorted. “The idea that a goddess would occupy herself with matters of the mortal world-“
Finally, Wild had enough. With a roll of his eyes, he stomped his foot, making sure everybody’s eyes were on him. Then, he drew the Master Sword.
The moment the blade left its sheathe, it sprang to life with a golden glow, and an electrical hum that seemed more suited to a buzzsaw. He held it off to the side, away from anyone in the room, and stood as a blast of burning light jumped out of the blade, slamming into the wall and scorching it.
His point made, Wild sheathed the sword.
“-is…” Revali continued his earlier statement, staring in shock. “Very concerning.”
“For the record:” Wild directed to the Rito, without nary a hint of resentment behind his words. He was just stating facts. “I was fighting Lynels when I was three, and putting full-grown men in body-casts. The Sword chose me because of my skills, not in spite of them.” With that said, he stepped back, and crossed his arms.
Link just clapped his hands.
“In any case,” Rhoam coughed. “You are right about one thing, Revali: It is concerning. That a goddess would show a marked change of her level of interest with what is going on now, after what we’ve learned.”
“Eh?” Daruk scratched his head. “What is it we’ve learned?”
“Since we’ve redoubled our efforts to find a way of vanquishing the Calamity, we’ve taken a look at ancient texts, trying to find information to assist us,” Rhoam pointedly glanced at them all. “We’ve been keeping the matter close, but if we are to work together, there can be no secrets.”
Urbosa’s eyebrows shot up. “I don’t think I like where this is going.”
Rhoam thinned his lips. “One of my researchers stumbled across a compendium of ancient Zonai poems. One of them told of two travelers who came from the future, who spoke a warning to the King and Queen of Hyrule. That warning was this: The Hero of Time would return in a new and unexpected form. He would lose his hand. And the Master Sword would be shattered by the forces of evil, causing the world to plunge into darkness. These portents would foretell the coming of the greater threat: The End of Time.”
“Shivers,” Link signed. “Every time.”
“Y-You’re having us on,” Revali haughtily chuckled. “The Calamity is already a threat, there’s no need to escalate things.”
“And had we not heeded the prophecy that we discovered earlier, we would be woefully underprepared to deal with it,” Rhoam gestured.
“I mean, it’s not all bad!” Daruk chuckled nervously. “The sword isn’t broken!”
Urbosa nodded in agreement, pointing to Link. “And that one has both his hands; I can see them.”
“One out of three…” Mipha swallowed. “That is… if it were less complicated than it is. Which it isn’t.”
Rhoam sighed heavily. “I’m afraid the Sword was already broken. It was repaired.”
The air went cold and still, as Link coughed.
“And… well, Link has both his hands now,” Paya began. “But he grew the one that was cut off back.”
“He grew it back!?” Revali squawked in disbelief. “Preposterous! Even the best red potion can’t do that!”
“Unfortunately, it is the truth.” Rhoam nodded.
“All right, so…” Daruk coughed. “You undid a couple of the signs, then.”
“It may not be that easy,” The Princess regretfully smiled. “The text only specifies that these things happen. Not that they remain a permanent state of affairs.”
Rhoam solemnly dipped his head. “Precisely. We may have undone those portents… or, just as likely, things remaining that way are not important: just the fact they happened may be a sign of coming disaster.”
“What kind of disaster?” Urbosa probed as she leaned forward inquisitively. “You said the End of Time. I’m no expert, but wouldn’t we all just… stop existing? Is that really a thing we can fight against?”
“I don’t know.” Rhoam admitted. “According to what we’ve found, the sun will turn black and cold. The dead will rise in quantities so great that the living will be totally overwhelmed. And the one responsible will spread, and grow, and consume until existence itself is being torn apart.”
“…well,” Daruk awkwardly coughed. “That doesn’t sound fun.”
“As far as I can tell, only two beings maybe have the kind of power to make that possible.” Link gesticulated, trying to ease some of the tension. “Ganon and Hylia. Hylia is very obviously not going to do that, and for Ganon to get that kind of power, he needs the Triforce.”
“Yes, yes…” Revali hummed. “And have you considered that your plan to stop him might cause that ‘prophecy’ to pass?”
“Maybe,” Link shrugged. “But we can’t sit around and do nothing. Ganon’s going to wake up no matter what we do – we need to be ready.”
“Which is why we must stand together.” Rhoam decreed. “If Ganon is truly capable of wielding such phenomenal power… we need every person we can get in this fight. If we fail, dying will only be a prelude for what is to come.”
Revali threw himself back in the chair. “Well… I suppose when you put it like that…”
“Hyrule is our home as well,” Urbosa decreed, looking at the King. “I’m sure I can speak for the rest of us when I say that, if we weren’t prepared to defend it, we wouldn’t be here.”
“Yer darn tootin’!” Daruk bellowed uproariously with a hearty grin. “Heck, even without that prophecy business, I don’t need to tell you it’s been bad news, what with those monsters everywhere. You got my vote!”
“As with mine,” Urbosa concurred.
Revali flicked his head. “You’re right in saying that I’m the only one qualified to pilot our Divine Beast. Far be it from me to let you do this without me.”
“Indeed?” The King searched them all, turning hopeful. “Then there’s no need to wait any longer! We’ll have you sworn-in as Champions at once! A ceremony should show everyone we’re serious about this – and there’s the matter of your ranks in the military. Not to mention getting you to your Divine Beasts and getting them working.” He shot up from his feet, moving around quickly as he mumbled to himself. “Oh, dear, there really is much to do…”
The Princess, however, only smiled, as relief spread through her very being. Yes… things were going well.
-----------
“Kanto!” A Sheikah researcher huffed and puffed as she rushed up to another – one that had been down there since the start. “Kanto! We need to talk!”
“Eh?” The flop-haired man took a bite out of a banana. “What is it? I’m busy.”
She looked around, finding the Imprisoning Chamber largely empty. The other people were moving turrets into position, setting them up, but the vast cavern was large enough that they could speak undisturbed.
“I just came from up top,” She lowered her voice to a whisper, so quiet that not even a Sheikah could hear. “They were talking about Lo- Ganon.” She coughed, shiftily looking at the corpse.
He shifted his weight, and his entire body language changed. “And what about it, hmm? Trying to dispose of it early?”
“No,” She shook her head in a rush. “But… listen, do you think this is a good idea? Waking him up?”
“What!?” He spluttered. “Of course I do! It’s only the singular goal – the long-passed-down imperative binding all the generations of proud Yiga together. Of course it’s a good idea! Why wouldn’t it be?”
She went white in the face. “I heard them talking – about… signs. Things that would happen that would signal a larger disaster.”
“Yeah, that’s how omens work.”
“No, but listen,” She nervously bounced. “Th-They said that all of it would be a sign of the End Times. Not just the Kingdom of Hyrule and the family, but, like, the end of the world! Darkness reigning, the dead rising, until the universe itself died!”
He just stared at her dumbly. “Yeah? So?”
“So!? So the universe is where we live, dickhe*d!” And she slapped him upside the noggin to drive the point home.
“Bu- Wuh- How do you kill the universe?” Kanto spluttered. “It’s… the universe! It’s everything! How do you kill everything!?”
“They said it was the end of time.”
Kanto snorted. “Well, that’s stupid, isn’t it?”
“What?”
“You can’t end time, can you? It’s time. If you destroyed it, then it would have never existed at all! And besides, it’s going to end naturally one day anyway, so if that happened, wouldn’t we not be able to exist right now?”
“That’s assuming we, as a species, are developed enough to have a connection to time so deep we can perceive things like that,” She retorted. “Which we can’t. Besides, I don’t think that’s how it works. If destroying it means it’s retroactively always destroyed, doesn’t that mean Hylia is a goddess of nothing?”
“Well, yeah.”
“No duh, but come on, think about it.”
“Actually, yeah, that is a good point,” Kanto hummed. “They say Hylia’s heart beating is what makes time move forward. If you destroy it, wouldn’t you need to destroy her heart? In that case wouldn’t time just… stop and we’d be all frozen forever?”
“You’re worried about the mechanics of the world ending more than the fact that the world’s ending!?”
“If it’s ending. Come on, Ganon has had his servants over the years, and they’ve all turned out just fine! Except for the ones the Heroes have killed. We,” He gestured between them. “You and I – we have nothing to fear from Ganon.”
“But-“
“Ganon is our lord,” Kanto clenched his fists. “And we will ensure he rises again.”
“But-“
“It’s not your place to question,” Kanto gestured. “It is our entire reason for existing.”
She dipped her head. “I know.”
“Now,” Kanto crossed his arms. “Hear anything else interesting in that little… conclave of theirs?”
“Well…” She shifted, “They… did say that disturbing him would wake him.”
“…well,” Kanto turned to the mummy, and the glowing hand on it. “That’s easier than I thought. Still,” He inhaled. “Now may not be the opportune time. I’ll give it time and see.”
That was good – they could assess the situation, see if Ganon would really kill everything…
Why didn’t that make her feel better, then?
-----------
Swords clashed violently in the infected ruins of Hyrule Castle.
It had been ridiculous in hindsight – it had been years and years since their last proper bout of combat - Twilight had expected Ganon to fight like he had all those years ago.
All… slow marching. Weight and power over speed and finesse. Ganondorf could move quickly to dodge attacks, but beyond that, the Dark Lord of the Gerudo relied more on his supernatural toughness and imposing strength to overpower his enemies.
The Puppet Zelda was nothing like that. The moment she drew her sword, she’d somersaulted through the air in a move that would have the actual Zelda screaming in agony as it ripped her muscles apart. She landed behind him, and sent her sword through his back, and it burned.
Twilight threw himself forward, off the blade, and was immediately on the defensive. With sword in one hand, blocking the strikes that came his way, he lifted the other, bringing up the Guardian Laser. But the Puppet was not the brainless wraiths that served her – upon catching sight of it, and the red dot on her torso, her face twisted in rage.
Her mind went through two options – try to dodge/deflect it, or get in close enough that the cannon would take out the Interloper as well.
As the flashing of the dot sped up, she grinned. The nanosecond it disappeared and the swirl of energy appeared in the barrel of the cannon, she leapt to the side as the blast came rocketing out. The second her feet hit the stone, she shot forward, and drove her blade right through the optic.
The Guardian Beam spluttered and sparked, before the cannon burst into blue flames, and it was dropped from the arms that carried it.
“You short-sighted fool,” The Puppet growled. “I own the Guardians!”
Twilight regarded the hunk of metal with a disappointed frown, before kicking it to the side, and holding the technological sword aloft. “Then let me return this to you.”
She scowled, and jumped forward, going for that ridiculous hat of his. The embers of Malice in the arena burned brighter as smoke blew in from outside, obscuring the Hero, and leaving only his weapon as a shining light in the dark. Confident now that her approach was sufficiently obscured, she called upon her dark powers to appear on his other side, maintaining her momentum.
As she emerged from the fog, staring at the back of a blonde head entirely unaware of its coming demise, she smiled, and gripped her sword tighter.
Then, a flash of movement, and her blade was interrupted by the glowing blue one of a Guardian Sword, sending orange sparks flying.
He glared at her right in the eyes. “I’m a spirit. Don’t think me fooled by tricks that wouldn’t fool those beyond sight.” Then, before she could find a snappy retort, a glowing blue disc appeared on his arm, courtesy of a Guardian Shield, and he drove it forward.
The impact was like being hit by a stampeding, metal horse, sending her flying back and slamming into the ground. As she slid to a stop, her Malice-laden blood boiled in fury – that was how he’d killed her(him) their last bout. He’d knocked Ganondorf to the ground, then delivered the Fatal Blow.
Not this time. She kept her expression the same, even as she felt the giddy, murderous glee of a plan coming together. Twilight took a running start, and jumped up. Once she was sure he was close, she shot up, aiming her sword straight up-
Into nothing. Twilight landed in front of her, not on top of her – exactly where he’d been aiming. The brief lapse of confusion gave way to desperation as she turned her maneuver into a swing, trying to slash at him, but it was too late.
He’d rolled around to her backside, and not a moment later, she felt her unprotected spine shatter as the blade of energy tore through it.
“You… You…”
“You know, one-hundred-thousand years is a long afterlife,” Twilight narrowed his eyes. “I’ve had a lot of time to practice.
The Puppet growled, and she jumped ahead yet again.
From there, their duel raged; a lone, righteous spirit versus the God of All Chaos. Had there still been Hylians around to document it, it surely would have led to a new legend. But he wasn’t fighting to save a dead world. He was sterilizing an infection.
All that said… it must have seemed to be something biblical.
Twilight didn’t know how long they fought. Time went weird without a method of keeping it. That, plus immortality, plus an adrenaline-fueled battle. But it took them from the Castle to the shores of Hateno. All the way from the tip of Akkala to the edge of the desert. He and the Puppet did battle.
And he was winning. Oh, how he was winning. Twilight was never filled with more determination in his entire life. Two pieces of the Triforce rested with the local Ganon and Twilight had the third, just by arriving, it migrated back to him.
He knew what he needed to do, and he would not falter.
Finally, the Puppet was on the ropes. Though unnatural perseverance allowed her to keep moving, her body was, still, mortal. And the holy Ancient Energy of the weapon he held kept the Malice from regenerating it.
She’d collapsed outside of the Thundra plateau.
“No… No!” The Puppet growled and raged. “This isn’t possible… it’s not possible!”
“It’s happened.”
“It’s not fair! I am a god!” The Puppet declared with burning eyes. “I won! This world is mine!”
“Hylia disagrees.”
“Hylia?” The Puppet spat. “Wait… she’s never sent a dead Hero to fix her problems.” She looked up at Twilight with new comprehension. “Spirit guides, visions… but she’s never gone so far as to raise the dead. You’re something different. Something new.”
Twilight snorted. “She’s the Goddess of Time. You can’t imagine what she’s capable of, even in that body you stole.”
“The Goddess… of Time?” The Puppet’s face darkened, as the Malice burned hotter. “SHE WOULD CHEAT SO FLAGRANTLY TO DENY ME MY RIGHTFUL VICTORY!?” The Puppet bellowed, and the world tremored. “I CONQURED THIS WORLD! I WATCHED AS THE LIGHT, AND THE LIFE, AND THE PURE DIED! IT IS MY TERRITORY, MY DESTINY-GIVEN RIGHT, MINE!”
“Not anymore,” Twilight gripped his weapon with both hands. “This is the end of you.”
“The end?” The Puppet defiantly shook her head as she bared her teeth. “An end to this world… BUT NOT MY LIFE!”
Twilight drew up to swing, but it was already too late. The Puppet’s eyes flashed for only a brief instant, but that was all it took. The Malice omnipresent in the world burned agonizingly, before the bulge atop Mount Hebra popped.
With the thundering roar of an angry god, the mountain began to spew. Fire, and ash, and water erupted out as a blast wave raced down the contours of the mountain and the land. Twilight moved to bring his sword down, and was knocked off his feet as the blast wave hit, toppling the dead trees and ruined stone towers.
“Time travel is hopelessly chaotic,” The Puppet spat as she stood up. “Only the truly creatively bankrupt or truly desperate make use of it. There’s too much potential for it to go wrong. But since Hylia’s proven herself willing again… well, I might as well even the playing field.”
On his back, Twilight moved for his sword. Then, as if reacting instinctively to his movements, the ground burst open, and from the cracks emerged slimy, burning roots, wrapping around his arms and legs. They pulled his limbs apart – so far that he couldn’t move, but not far enough that they’d be torn off – and anchored him to the ground.
Twilight felt the ground shift beneath his back, before a glowing tendril burst through his sternum.
“ACK!” Twilight let out a strangled yell as it burst through his heart. He could re-manifest, he’d be fine… Still, she wanted him unable to interfere. He wondered why she hadn’t tried this before – maybe she wasn’t all that confident in her ability to try it twice, so she’d saved it to the very end.
He could get out – he just needed to think. To visualize his destination. Difficult to do with the prickly roots slapping him senseless whenever they got the chance.
Twilight grunted, warping across the field, only to get another tendril coiling around his leg. It dragged him onto a knee, and attempted to hold him back, even as he crawled towards the Puppet.
She stood there, spreading her arms and throwing her head back. Her hair whipped in the wind as magenta fire built around her. Slowly, the Malice surrounding them began to lose color. Then its stench. Then, it began to fade entirely, disappearing from material existence.
All the while, she began to glow brighter. Like a hateful sun on the surface of the Earth. The restraints finally succumbed to whatever it was she was doing, and Twilight charged.
The Puppets eyes opened, the fire flashed, and with a sound like a cannon firing, she was gone.
Simply… gone.
Only scorch-marks remained, and the skeleton of the infected world.
“Oh… no…” Twilight muttered to himself, before sprinting over and falling to the ground, scraping at the scorch. “Oh no, no, no. No! Damn it, no!”
The ancient spirit shot to his feet, and he bolted. The most desperate run he’d made since he carried Midna on his back across Hyrule Field.
-------------
The duty of guarding the entry gate into Gerudo Town was a boring job. It was important, but it was boring. There wasn’t much to do except stare at the sand – sand that reflected the daylight so brightly it could scorch the eyes and skin.
Occasionally, though, there would arise something to break the monotony. Something moving across the dunes that would break the sunlight with a dark shadow.
One of the guards witnessed this nebulous shape coming from the direction of the Highlands. At first, she thought it might have been a cloud. It was a cloud – a small, localized sandstorm, blowing through the desert. But as it drew closer, shapes in the middle became visible.
An enormous legion of Hylian figures, all of them dressed in red and wearing masks. Up at the front, a dark shadow – like a walking void – led the march, with a weapon at its side. A weapon burning with unholy, black fire.
All of them moving towards the town with singular, horrible purpose. She knew those masks – all of them did. The annoying pests that tried to come around time and time again. And they were making another pass.
“Yiga, incoming!” She screamed into the town. “Close the gates! Call the guards! We have incoming!”
She stood, rooted in place with her spear at the ready as the legion approached. From behind her, pouring out of the gate like a vomitorium, the bravest warriors of the Gerudo Guard marshalled together. Archers took position up on the walls, while those that held spears and scimitars formed a defensive line. Immense stone doors were sealed shut, pulled into position by a network of ropes and pulleys, before the rope was severed, turning the gate into wall as thick as the rest of it.
The Invaders came to a stop, just a hundred feet away.
“Halt!” The Guard Commander bellowed from her position up on Gerudo Town’s wall. “You’re approaching the sovereign territory of Gerudo Town! State your business, or you will be fired upon!”
The cloaked figure tilted its head with an unsettling rattle – like that of a desert snake’s – and the sandstorm kicked up in the Yiga’s approach abruptly died, every stray grain falling to the ground.
A deathly stillness fell over the area.
Then, a cloud of sand was launched up, carried in a geyser of wind that none of them had felt coming. It rocketed up towards the wall, blasting into the Commander with unnatural precision. The woman screamed as the flood of sand propelled at such high velocity tore into her skin, and she was knocked down from the wall, back into Town.
They were far enough away that they couldn’t hear the impact.
Then, it erupted into chaos. Arrows were sent flying all at once, without a single order spoken, and the Yiga scattered, warping in clouds of smoke.
Except for the Shadow. Like the rules of the world were merely a suggestion, it moved forward with incredible speed, and with extreme power, it knocked one of the Guards’ spear away, before ramming her through with his blade.
“No business. Only death.” It hissed as she dropped. The Guards, horrifically outnumbered on such short notice, were forced to fight anywhere from three-to-five Yiga at once. Some made sure the fight became a little more even, but for the vast majority, they could not hope to withstand simultaneous attacks from all angles.
Not even the guard on duty who alerted the others.
She thought the Shadow distracted, but as she sprinted towards its turned back, it suddenly jumped into the air, twisting over her, and when it landed, it unleashed a series of strikes carried out with such swiftness that by the time the first drop of blood hit the sand, she was already beyond saving.
The last thing she saw was the Shadow marching towards the gates, and the army behind it, ready to push through.
