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The Gravekeeper's Daughter

Summary:

A retelling of the story of Breath of the Wild based on how I played it, with my own character backstory, etc. Things are different, obvi but I hope it's still good. <3

In depth descriptions of things, Incoming.

Notes:

Been writing this a while, before the release of Tears of the Kingdom, but after I was really late to the party for Breath of the Wild. Most of the plot was hashed out if not decided before I even knew anything about the newer game.
My pal Monty has helped with the editing because I am blind to many issues, so say thanks to Monty before beginning.

Chapter 1: Prologue

Chapter Text

In the beginning there was darkness, a vast void that isolated itself from life and light. The sort of darkness that refused the addition of light and yet remained effervescent, full of deep soulful colour that was continuously in motion. Unsteady was not a word you would think of as a descriptor for an unending void, however, with that said; the void was unsteady. Imagine if you will: a Goron; on a plank of wood, on a rope, strung between a large gap, while being absolutely terrified of heights; that is how the colours moved. They were inelegant in their movement. Reds, blues, greens, and purples moved like sparks; jittering and clustering before jutting off or being blotted out by the blackness. Then the motions would repeat, in a jig ever infinite and immortal only elegant in its eternity, shifting and twisting so every view was fresh, in a loop so long that most beings would never be able to see all of the movements. On viewing it felt as if static had taken form and that it was spinning near out of control; like overcharged wool on a rogue spindle that would spark out and (instead of casting its usual sharp, numbing sting) have its touch remain like velvet.

 

In the void there were no smells, nothing to feel, nothing to taste, and nothing to see beyond the dance of darkness. Yet, within these languid depths something stirred. Now, had there been grass or forest or wild, filled with plants and all manner of wild things within the vast nature that would take up this expanse; even the smallest among them would (sensing an end to this eternal peace) go completely silent. A sullen and unsettling quiet would be laid over this wilderness like a heavy blanket, and to any nearby observer would sink a deep sense of dread.

 

“Dreamer...” a strange voice wept from the darkness.

With two syllables the voice managed to pull back the curtain. The veil of darkness that danced before the world, was wrenched back like nothing and spread blinding light into an old room untouched for decades. To view it would be to feel bleach on your skin, or to perform a trust fall with a campfire; it seared and burned the universe and the sound of the voice was like that of a train horn in an isolated mountain town or a lionel’s roar to a young child; in short, it was deafening.

 

“Your eyes are shut. Awake! A new day dawns Dreamer, and you must meet her,” the voice continued on.

Its sound dragged across the nerves like a retired musician pulling their bow across violin strings. Though long since completed their training of decades, they struggled to find the notes again. The sound of which grated against the eardrums, however, within the sea of light there was nowhere to hide from its penetrating crawl.

 

“Awake, Dreamer!” it paused in thought between tearful words, “um... tea and cakes shall await you in your-” the croaky voice cut off mid sentence, almost as if it had choked on the words that they cast upon the world so carelessly. During this moment, the infinite silence returned but the veil remained open. The fabric of this reality fluttering gently back and forth in the breezes of time. Each flick of the curtain was a second, a minute, an hour... time in the void was difficult to gauge, however... in this time if an observer of sorts were to become curious, to lean in closer, it would tug at the invisible string of a snare that would yank them back by their hair. For, as a motion of that sort were to reach completion, did the light streak across the remaining darkness in red, blue, green, and gold. Each stream showered sparks upon the observer, stinging vaguely upon their hypothetical form. And following the bright colours came the voice; shrieking, dragging the reality back against shards of broken glass and pottery, digging nails deep into the clay and piercing further until it reached for gold. This disruptive pull of a disharmonic calliope that spun its tune around like a twisted whirlwind of fishhooks. All this to say that it tore at the veil, leaving it no more than a shredded rag of reluctance and regret, and it tore through that which the veil protected. Each wave of petulant and agonized screams scraped at the ears and clawed at the soul. It cried out into the emptiness that the now bloody observer remained in, and they wept. Unable to move, to help, to scream in their own right. Just slowly, silently, agonizingly they were consumed by the light.

Chapter 2: Awakening

Summary:

Our hero awakens and grapples with their identity as they try to piece together their missing memories.

Notes:

This chapter is for my cat, who stares at me waiting for scratches and chicken. I do my best but she is very demanding.

Chapter Text

T he first thing that the Dreamer noticed was that their hearing returned. Although in their mind it had only a moment ago felt as if molten rock had been funnelled into their ear canal and left to harden in their brain, they no longer felt the deafness and dreadful demise that would usually come with that. In its stead was the sound of shifting liquid surrounding them. It did not move as swiftly as they were used to, for they were sure that water had to run for it to be as it was. But what were they to know, they had only just had their dark blanket torn from their arms, and were thrust into the cold.


...cold...

That was the second thing that the Dreamer felt. A cold wetness that slowly spread out from their chest to each of their limbs and their head. A once comforting warmth now receded as the water from the coming tidal wave. And true to form the wave began to make itself known. It started with the new flesh now being exposed to the surrounding air, which crept across it like the limbs of several thousand spiders; it made their skin crawl and their body shudder. The frigid air found its way through every crack and crevice of their body, strengthened in each fold of fabric and followed each drop of liquid on its way down into the surrounding basin.


The body lurched and recoiled, jittering like the stars they once saw before their eyes, but now they felt pain in every movement. With each shake, they felt pressure on their eyes, their throat, their lungs; they could feel something run out of their nose and down their face. The cold, the air was pushing down on, feeling like a vice grasping their neck, for something so cold it burned so hot. Liquid came out of their ears now, they could feel the steady stream. Then down from their eyes ran warm tears, caused by the ever tightening vice grip on their neck and chest. It was near impossible for them to hold on any longer, the cold would push her to hold it no matter how hard they fought or convulsed. So... they gave in.



In a moment, they took a breath but the air fought with whatever was in their lungs, the pressure building in intensity before with a jolt forward they coughed up everything they could. Air and water sputtering out of their mouth with each gasping cough, leaving little but the bitter taste of bile and blood on their tongue.



At least they could taste, a sense that at this moment they wished was still lost to them and their shuddering body. They squeezed their eyes tightly shut, hoping that in some way shape or form they could force themselves to return to the void in which they had felt so comforted. However with another hacking cough, their body lurched and they hit their head against a nearby wall. The Dreamer winced, recoiling in pain and rubbing their head opening one tear filled eye in the process. The world was a blur of browns and blues. In fact the primary colour was blue and spreading. It seeped out from their field of view, and across the ground until it began to take over. As it did so, her eyes focused and blinked away the tears. There was a blue liquid spreading across the floor, shifting, foaming and bubbling as it slid lazily down into a nearby drain. Their hand reached up and touched their chin, the feeling of dampness and warmth transferring between her face and hand as the blue foaming substance was wiped away. They were sure that was normal, but the colour and feel of the liquid made them ill. It felt slick and slimy and warm, as though they had spat out a glob of mucus and ink. It made their stomach churn more, causing them to swallow hard. They were not going to throw up again. That taste was bad, the sight was worse, and they knew they did not like to throw up.

What the hell even was that?

They thought, their mouth still stinging with acidity.

Oh... that hurts, ow- head ow.

They spoke in their own mind, trying their best to come to terms with the pains of their body. It had been a while since the sense of self had been tied to something corporeal, and by the goddesses the world they now inhabited (or had always inhabited; it was currently unclear which it truly was) was agony.

OH ow...

They held back another wretch and cough as they sat up. Now came the process of attuning to the self, and the Dreamer needed to acclimate to their surroundings. Struggling with one hand and trying their best not to slip, they took a look around. Beyond the basin was a small cave, with alien objects scattered about. But aside from that. There was nothing. No sound beyond their shallow breathing and the steady drip of liquid in motion. Just dust, cold, and them, sitting in the basin. They blinked a few times, they could see fine enough. Something was producing light, but she couldn’t see them, it was as if they were missing something. However as they tried to understand this, to comprehend what they were experiencing, she winced in pain again.



FUCK OKAY OKAY, DAMN.

Their hands gripped their head tightly, waiting for the implication of impaling glass to subside wanting to melt away back into the void.

Come on, come on.... and... ahh. Perfect. Now, focus on something you can focus on. I can focus on. Is it you or I? Are there multiple of me?... yeah that’s not something that is relevant right now. But something that will keep me awake at night later. Other than that, let’s focus on me.... I-



They paused their internal monologue for a brief period, searching for a word that was on the tip of their tongue. Looking desperately for it like an elder would her spectacles- as if it were right in her front pocket or on top of her head but they could not see it.



I am... I am.... well I certainly am, that’s for sure. But, what- or who for that matter? And is... throwing up blue stuff normal? It can’t be. It couldn’t be. No, no, no, no, no... no. That was... well it could be.

They didn’t have much experience in the act of “not throwing up strange foaming blue goo”, so the normalcy of such a practice remained to be seen.



What and who am I? That should be easy to answer. That should definitely be easy to answer. I should know who I am.... um....

...



...



...



...



Let’s start with what I am not.



It was hard to figure out who they were. Who they were? Who he was? No. No he felt wrong. They were not a “he”. That was one thing. They knew they were not a man. And upon inspection, they also did not have scales or feathers, or long arms and short legs. She remembered those were important, so she had to be human. Good, human was something. And that voice from before, the one that hurt to hear had called them Dreamer... so perhaps that was their name. It did not feel like their name by any means, in fact it felt just as hollow as not having a name or a sense of who and what you belong to, at least to Dreamer it was something to hold on to. That and she was not of Goron, Rito, or Zora... that was certain and something to hold as well. Feeling out into the ether for strings of hope. Grasping for threads, for something. And so with each discovery she made sure to check down a list.



I am a human who spits out blue foam, and... my name is probably Dreamer.



Is how the statement began. Then it became.



I am a human who spits out blue foam. I have tan skin. My name is probably Dreamer.



She shifted and touched her face, as if to give herself some sort of tactile guide, however it did not help in the slightest. She ran her fingers through her hair and looked at it. It was long and blond, running down to her middle back in a braid that was soaked through with the blue- water? That then made it look a bit green.



I am a human who spits out blue foam. I have tanned skin and blond-ish hair. My name... could be Dreamer?



That last part became more and more uncertain as it went on. She moved to her knees and stretched a bit. This was fine. She could figure out more of herself. She... She... how long had she been referring to herself as-? Well that was so seamless that she hardly noticed. That made more sense to the Dreamer. Of course she was a woman, that felt right.



I am a human woman who spits out blue foam. I have tanned skin and blonde hair. My name may be Dreamer...



A brief smile crossed her face as she thought of this, she had something. She had enough threads to begin to weave something, however, she knew not what it was going to be, but she hoped it would be spectacular.



She moved her hands onto the side of the basin, getting the best grip she could muster as she drew what strength she held in her weakened limbs. She put her weight onto her arms to push herself out and fell forward, slipping, and hitting her chin on the edge. She grunted in pain, moving her left arm to rub her chin in some sort of soothing fashion, however in this action she felt no comforting touch. She felt no touch at all. For, upon looking down she saw a phantom. A mirror image of her right arm slowly flickering in and out with purple light, before fading in its entirety. Her arm... she swore she had it before. She felt it in her slumber, in her waking, even now. And yet nothing lay to her left. Nothing moved how she meant to move it, for nothing was there. A dull ache began to present itself, starting at what would be her mid bicep and spread toward her chest and down the ghost of her arm. It intensified with each pump of blood in her veins and quickened as a sense of terror settled in.



Where was it? Dear goddesses... her arm. Where could she have left it? What was she thinking? How could she misplace her arm? Was she in her right mind? How could she even begin to process this?



Her breathing became erratic. And she pressed her back against the other side of the basin, as far away from the arm stealing edge as she could possibly get. Curling her knees up to her chest, she wished that she could have been anywhere but here. Not that she knew anywhere that she could go. But that wasn’t the point. The point was, that as she stared helplessly at the edge of the tank and wished for her arm. A simple human arm that matched her other one. She shook, each breath suddenly even colder and shakier, as if she was swallowing shards of ice that melted and boiled as they reached her stomach. She took a breath, gulping and shuddering as she tried to compose herself. Taking the strength of will that remained to look upon what was left of her. True she saw herself, what she might have looked like in her mind. But her arm.... she took another shaky breath, her chest rising and falling in uneven bursts. She looked down. At the bandaged chest she had not seen. At the scarred torso that laid beneath that. She touched it with her fingertips, the texture rough and uneven, causing a deep set nausea to rise in her stomach. She choked down the blue stuff as it rose in her throat again. Whatever had done this had left not only a physical mark, but a mental one and she could not seem to recall what it had been that had done this, and she was unsure if she wanted to.



She looked upon the stump of her arm, the thought of which made her have to choke down bile again, burning her throat as she tried to brave the discomfort. The stump as it were, was not that of earth or flesh but of a material that the Dreamer had yet to comprehend. She knew what metal was, and this was not it. It was not a bandage or some sort of further attachment to prevent blood flow. It felt heavy, like stone weighing her down in deep water. And the texture was old and chipped but not rough, like that of stone which had been battered by the sea. It was golden yellow and brown, with what looked to be glass laid in the cracks. Unsafe to have in a wound closure in her uneducated opinion, but who was she to judge the craftsmanship of such a thing. Who but the person this creation was attached to. Where was the person who created such a device, and would they be living still for her remaining hand to yet lay it forcefully upon his face. For if so, she would do such a thing with great pleasure and sorrow. Upon the bottom of this... what was it? A stump cover?

Upon the bottom of this stump cover there were grooves that fell in many different directions. And holes which none but her littlest finger could fit into, though she was afraid to do so, for fear of it getting stuck. In her exploration of gazes, and touches on the surface of this covering, she tried to remove such a thing. Pulling at it to her own dismay, feeling shocks run through her arm with each attempt. Apparently not strong enough to remove it with her bare hands, she would have to find a tool or weapon to release her arm from this prison. It weighed on her and she wanted it gone. She slammed the stump against the side of the basin and felt the vibrations run through her as if her bones were tuning forks. Her teeth rattled in her jaw and she took to the thought of giving up until she found something or someone that could help her remove it. She bit her lip, and pulled herself out of the basin, landing on the floor with a loud, wet, SLAP.

Groaning and shaking, she used her arm to hoist her body up from the ground. Her legs nearly buckling as she tried to stand on her own. How long had she slept? Where was she? She looked around the room again, finding nothing new, but the stone on the wall. Yes the stone that lined the cave walls was carved with patterns that looked like the ones on her stump. Whoever did this, whoever made this cave, they had done this to her. And they were who she would find retribution in knocking to the ground. She stumbled a bit, struggling to hold herself up while leaning more heavily to the left. She took another shaky breath; though it was now steadying, and resolved that she would be driven by her need to slap the shit out of the person who attached this THING to her.



Shuffling on her weak legs she crossed the room. Her movement dragging paths through the dust on the floor, it was thick and kicked up slightly, causing the Dreamer’s nose to itch. She leaned against a small pedestal before making her way to the door. Sliding slowly until she could make it to the exit. She held her hand up to it, a sturdy and solid with risen pedestal beside it. It was nearly as tall as she was and the door itself dwarfed her. And unfortunately to her dismay there was no handle. She ran her finger tips along the surface trying her best to find some sort of hand hold or hidden button to let her out. There was nothing. Not a sign of an exit that was left. It was as if she was sealed in a tomb. Though unembalmed and left alive to rot whenever she awoke. What sort of crime did she commit to deserve this sort of unearthly torment. A death fit for the worst of humanity. For that would leave her alone and losing her mind long before she would be given the release of death. She would starve or more likely die of thirst, that would surely happen before she was to lose her mind, but the fear still remained within her. Her fear was well founded, and as the feeling began to rise again she slammed her hand on the sturdy door, screaming and kicking and calling for help.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH! PLEASE! PLEASE HELP!!!!! FUCK!!!!”



She hit the door harder and harder with each cry for help, her hand and feet thudding with a deep pain that would bruise and remain for days- if not longer. She screamed until her lungs hurt, then screamed some more. Her throat felt like it was bleeding, like it tore from each further cry. She fell to the ground, her knees slamming hard against it as she inhaled with desperation. She cursed internally as she tried to hold back more tears, her eyes stinging the longer she held them in. For what escape was one to have while stuck in a tomb. She would lose herself, lose reality. And she had only just become reacquainted with such a thing. This was not for her. She wanted more than this. She needed to find some sort of release. She wanted freedom. Not that she had much of a concept of freedom. But she knew the word. She knew what it meant... vaguely. She knew that she wanted it, she craved it. Something deep within her hungered for this thing she barely knew. And she wanted to fight for it. If only she had something to open the door.



She sat there for a moment.



Then another.



Then another.


Then the tears started rolling down her cheeks, but the pain in her throat made her sobs silent. Unnoticed.



Then... the first tear hit the ground. And with that came a shard of hope, piercing yet positively radiant.



Dreamer” the voice began again. “You are awake!” The voice sounded sorrowful still, and yet full of excitement. As if putting on a mask of an actor in order to play a part. However the light of their truth shone through the eyes and through the voice. It was unable to hide from the Dreamer’s discerning ear. Though with this voice there was only the mind, it echoed throughout like a child screaming into an empty chamber, and Dreamer recoiled from the sound, ready to fight but realizing they were alone in here. Perhaps the madness had settled in early. Perhaps she had been awake far longer than she thought. What mattered though is that she heard it speak.



Welcome to the world! You have been missed!” it continued to yell into her mind. She held her head and sat back onto her bum. Whoever or whatever it was that had infiltrated her mind unfortunately had no volume control and she was starting to get a headache.



I know you can hear me, and I understand that you cannot respond. I am here to help.'' The sound was like a voice out tune. It raked across stone and the trill of each word scraped the inside of her mind.



The way out is locked within the pedestal behind you, to release it simply place the receptor into the slot between the leather straps. I promise everything will be-” the voice was cut off, like it had in her dream. Except this time there was no scream nor agony following it.



It was just silent.



Now, the Dreamer did not trust every voice that suddenly entered her head. To be fair this was the first of them, but that did not matter. None of this mattered. Did she think that this could mean anything or was this her own inane delusion. Perhaps it was, it likely was. But if that were in fact so. That would then mean a part of herself was telling her that this was the right way to go. And who was she... who was she to question herself?



Well she had plenty of reasons to. However, the Dreamer had a choice, to sit and wallow and die of dehydration, or take a chance at potentially escaping. So, shakily once again she rose to her feet, using the door to balance herself and, with the strength of will that pushed her as well as her deep desire to punish those who put her here, she reached the pedestal. Brown and gold and aged greatly. Ancient she would say. And affixed atop it laid what looked like a leather harness with straps...

Disconcerting. She gulped again, to prevent the blue bile rising.



No fear.

She told herself, even though there was a looming dread with this stone... machine. It felt as if this thing, this place was staring at her. As if there were a million eyes on her. But what could she do? Not fight? She closed her eyes. And with several fumbling motions, she placed the stump into the pedestal. And the pedestal began to thrum.

Chapter 3: Connection

Summary:

The Hero makes does her best to escape her confinement.

Chapter Text

For a moment, the Dreamer held the stump still in the pedestal. With it gently thrumming against the strange metal attached to her and ran deeply into her bones. It began with a shift, then a groan, and then the rumbling began. It wasn’t loud or earth shaking but it resonated throughout her body as she held it. It shifted as if something living was trapped inside, shaking and writhing intensely trying to break free. She understood that feeling. The caged feeling. But this felt feral, unhinged, and unable to tire. Deep within her soul she felt it, it was animalistic in nature, and now she was near it. Perhaps this pedestal was a latch that released a creature onto the world that resided outside, if there was an outside for her to reach. However the growl of the monster that had been laid to rest deep beneath, grew in intensity and she knew her previous thought to be false. For, she had to be within the belly of this beast. And she must have awoken it somehow.

With this realization hitting her she jerked away from the pedestal and whatever mechanism it might have held. However something deep within it held her in place. It gripped with the force of a hundred human hands, but she could not feel where they held her or how they managed to do so. Where was this legion of humans? Were they laid beneath her tomb? Were there hundreds or thousands of sacrifices that had been put in her same position, only for their souls to hold their replacement hostage? If that were so... why was this their world? Why would they be so willing to doom her to their same fate? Why is this what she had to deal with in her final moments?

A world of unjust imprisonments and the soul of a woman left behind joining a legion of others to doom another to the same fate. She pulled again, her legs slipping from under her, and the Dreamer was only just able to catch herself with her hand before her face slammed into the object. She took a few deep breaths, bracing for her next escape attempt. She held a hand against the pedestal, and locked her feet against it as well. Then pulled. She pulled. And yanked. And grunted. And drew back. And strained. And panted. And tugged. And with each attempt she became closer and closer to gnawing what remained of her own arm off like a wolf in a trap. Except she was no wolf. She was a lamb left to be slain by whatever beast she was in the belly of. The rumbling made her teeth chatter now. Maybe this was what she was meant for, she thought as the pain of the shaking resonated within. But truthfully how could she -with any accountability for the self- think that she wasn’t meant to do something other than die. She had been so certain just a short time ago that she would do something great. And she would. Even if she did have to bite this thing off of her body. She took another deep breath. The Dreamer shook her shoulders and her hair, flicking herself in the face with the end. She huffed. And she braced. And she planted her feet as firmly as she could. She gripped her fingers tightly onto the surface of the pedestal, gritted her teeth, and, pulled, pushed, kicked, slipped, yanked, collapsed, drew in breath, shifted, and started all over again until she fell to the side.

 

Damn.... DAMN IT!

 

She tried to rest a moment. Her energy was gone. The dreamer fought hard and was considering returning to the dream, at least until she had prepared herself enough to chew through flesh and tissue. Which is not something that she had ever imagined herself doing. It was fine, she could do it. She just needed to catch her breath. She felt weak. Which though possible felt abnormal for her, or... strange at least. She remembered being stronger, or she thought she did. She remembered a lot of things. Like having an arm. Dreamer shifted uncomfortably, her body hanging limply, head against the top of the structure, chest heaving with each breath. The monster had her, and she had no second wind.

She felt the rumbling stop. Maybe... she wouldn’t be eaten. Dreamer lifted her head, hoping for some sort of feeling of release. But the grinding sound continued, shifting and churning from within. She tried to shake free a final time, sweating and shaking after a moment of strenuous pulling. Something felt cold within her. Like she swallowed a metal ball and had it swirling around her stomach. She felt feverish, cold and warm coming across her in waves followed swiftly by goosebumps. The world began to blur and darken. And the hairs all over her body began to stand on end.

NEEDLES! NEEDLES IN HER BLOOD! PULLED AT BY A MAGNET IN ALL DIRECTIONS!

That’s the feeling that spread across her body. A sudden, sharp, shock ran up her shoulder and throughout her entire nervous system.

 

Then she was on the floor. Shivering, and numb. Weeping, as the feeling of their blood being ripped from her body subsided. And she felt like a puddle that was being jostled by the rain; rippling but otherwise unmoving.

 

Goddesses. Goddesses help me. HELP ME! I AM IN PAIN AND ALONE.



They took a deep breath and coughed. She had forgotten to breathe, but she was still here, still alive. She still felt the swirling feeling in her stomach. And, as if you spun a coin on a table and it was coming to the climax before the drop; she felt the pressure and anxiety that came with suspense. The coin wobbled and circled and spun and spun until it came to a slow stop and the anxiety could subside. However.... in the absence of anxiety came the lurch once again, as the Dreamer leaned over the side of the basin again and threw up inside of it. It was blue again... her stomach groaned and she whined.



I am alone...



Her vision began to clear up, but it was... different. The brown and gold was slightly muted, and the blue... shit. It was so blue. Even more so than she recalled. She blinked hard a few times staring at the gel and foam that began to make its way down the drain with the rest. Maybe her eyes were still recovering from the shock. She pushed herself up with her arm and rubbed the back of her head. The shifting, whirring sound remained in her ear, but it wasn’t as loud. It was actually hardly there, like some kind of background noise but it was oddly comforting; like someone humming peacefully in another room.



Where is that coming from?

 

She searched the pedestal, convinced it was close, placing hands up and down its surface, she pressed her ear against it. No movement. No hum. She traced it with her fingertips to try and feel anything. But nothing was out of the ordinary in this space. A phrase that was not normally used in a place as abnormal as this. She tried to move back toward the door. Stumbling a bit. She shifted her stance and stumbled again. There was another feeling that she realized that she was experiencing. Dreamer felt as if she was carrying something overly weighty in her left hand. And unfortunately for Dreamer...she did not have a left hand. So either her perception was amiss, or there was something new that had happened, and she really had hoped that she just hit her head and potentially could be perishing a smidge quicker. She did not want to look down again. She did not want to gaze at what did not remain as it caused pain and fear, though she did not entirely know why. However, were she not to look down she would feel terror over whether or not something had attached itself to her that would take away her life force or do something potentially worse than being stuck in here. It was a contest to see what would take her first, the fear of the known or unknown. And though the outcome of the fight was difficult to discern at the beginning, it was easy to see that in the foot race between a tortoise and a hare- the hare takes up the most ground the fastest, and the Dreamer’s curiosity won out. So to the dismay of the rest of her mind, she had a look.

 

She had.... an arm. It was strange, though her vision didn’t seem to entirely want to let her know how unusual it was. At first... the phantom hand returned. Then as she moved it, the shape of the spectral being followed behind on some sort of delay, and beyond it- moving when she wanted it to, was something else. It was an arm, that was for sure. But it wasn’t hers. It was in brown and gold segments like the stone of the walls almost as if they were pulled right from them. There was glass like in the stump however it glowed a bright golden yellow. The pieces fit together like armour, connected by segments of some flexible off white pieces made of some sort of alloy. The fingers; which she flexed, were made of the same material. Three fingers and a thumb, each made with three sections of the material and ending in claw-like points. On the back of the hand there was a separate panel, the odd gold symbols subsided leaving room for another. On the hand was a crying eye, with its iris glowing an unearthly shade of blue. The dreamer rolled her shoulder and shook a bit, nearly falling over due to the weight of the arm. This was fine. She asked for an arm. She got an arm. But why did this make her so uneasy? She put her hand to her chest, reaching for her heartbeat and feeling a harness that had buckled itself around her torso.



This... is as normal as anything else that has happened today.



She hobbled over to the door, shifting and pivoting to make sure she was somewhat balanced. Everything was fine. At least that is what she told herself. She couldn’t wallow in this stupid cave anymore. She had to try to leave. She felt something draw her- it felt like a slight pull, toward a stone tablet by the door. Her eyes flashed, or something flashed before her eyes. The previously blank stone tablet suddenly glowed with a matching eye to the one on the hand. It blinked at her, the light floating above the stone like magic. She swallowed hard and while trying to keep her body as far away as possible, she waved the hand over the stone. Both briefly glowed brighter and a rumbling started. The door in the wall shook and swung open slowly and with the drama of a child actor. She heard rocks falling. The dust and debris from inside began to blow about. And the room was suddenly filled with fresh, damp air. The dreamer had no clue how stale and stagnant her room had been, but this woke her immediately, her energy returning as she looked out into the dark room beyond.



The cave was not as dark as she thought it would be. With the room illuminated in a light blue hue, as if moonlight was contained within the walls. But there was no source for this glow. Not beyond the arm. She shifted her shoulder and strained her neck. It was already a pain to carry this arm around, heavy, and uncomfortable. She wanted to take it off, but, whether for fear she’d need it or that the voice would return to her quiet mind, she kept on. Within this chamber there were several boxes and crates broken up and clawed at by animals. The remains of barrels cast across the ground beneath her feet. They splintered and were scattered about causing her to step carefully. Treading on toe tips for fear of splinters. Within the shattered remains of the boxes however, she noticed some odd stone boxes. Obviously scratched at by the animals in attempts to find more food, unfortunately finding themselves unable to open them. Cautiously the Dreamer stepped among the wood, needing to traverse it to get passed, but wanting to investigate such a box. She raised the heavy latch, and lifted the even heavier lid, her arm shaking as she did. Though she had hardly felt it (the weak shiver of unused muscles) as she was far too busy peering into the chest. Her eyes were wide as though such a thing would contain immense and wonderful treasures. This felt natural to her, she was compelled. And even though she reached within and felt not but a piece of aged cloth, she felt excitement and wonder. As not only was this item hers now, but she was also quite chilly.

The cloth was fashioned in the shape of a shirt. It was old and worn and nearly falling to bits. At the very least, she could use it to remove some of the dampness from her skin, and at most she would wear it. Which she did. Pulling it on over wet hair and skin, and tearing one sleeve open with the force and strength of the arm. She reached further into the chest, her fingers grasping at another. She pulled out a pair of trousers with her hand, and as she did she heard the creaking sound of the chest’s hinges. As it slowly started to close without support. She tried to shove herself back with her hand but as it was in the process of grasping her second prize she was still halfway in the chest. She kicked at the chest to push herself away but it was too late. Or it would have been had the strange left arm of hers not shot up and caught it without her even thinking. She had not wanted to use it- and yet...

She pulled out from under the lid and moved the arm, letting it slam shut on itself. By the goddesses, that thing alone could have killed her. How weak must she be? And how strong was the arm. She looked at it, flexing the fingers as if it would show in a bicep. But it felt... not much like anything. But she could see it. And she could move it. However, touching with it and being able to feel things with it- well it made her feel even more aware that this thing attached to her... was not hers. But... again, her fear of pain outweighed her desire to be free of this unholy object. She pulled on the trousers and stood back onto her feet. Then peered at the way forward, which was a sheer and damp wall. Knowing her luck so far, she did not have the upper body strength to make it very far. To be fair, the fact that she had made it this far was impressive. And to be even more fair she did make it outside of the last chamber. If she were to die here, she would feel much less shame.

Shame.

Shame on her for thinking such things. If she died out here, she would die climbing. Or as a matter of fact she would die falling. But that was neither here nor there. So Dreamer took a step up to her next valiant opponent and readied herself. She took several large breaths, in preparation for such a task, and then before she could fully think about the potential consequences of her actions, she pressed her fingers firmly into one of the many flaws in the rock face and hoisted herself up. Her arm wobbled and she kicked with her legs hoping to be able to make it at least half way. Her nails scraped across the surface of the rock cracking as they did. Perhaps they were too long for trying to escape a terrible fate. She would be sure to do better next time. Dreamer grunted and groaned and heaved and SWUNG the other arm up and into the stone. Now, she expected it to bump against the stone, heck even grip the stone but it dug in. She watched the stone be pierced by whatever this was... it moved through it as though it were driven iron, or a knife through butter...

 

Butter!

 

What was butter? Whatever it was... she missed it. She needed it... but she remembered that it needed to be on something. On food. When she got out of this place, she was going to get so much food covered in butter. And with this arm, it would be faster than she would have imagined... perhaps it wasn’t all bad, but it was still heavy. Despite the fact that it ached and burned with each further swing, she moved with a speed that she did not know she could, or that anyone could for that matter. The air rushed by her ears as she swung up, higher and higher, reaching the top of the ledge in mere minutes. And, though she was tired and out of breath, she still felt victorious!

Dreamer saw an exit. A light not too far away. Down the corridor, though the walls dripped and puddles lingered on the ground, she strode forward with speed and insatiable curiosity. Cool air rushed past her, in breathing it it cooled her aching lungs. She pushed herself beyond what she thought she would have handled. For, whatever lay beyond the carved stone around her... she made it.

She stepped over the threshold and into the light; this time chasing it instead of recoiling from the intense pain. And at first, she squinted trying her hardest not to get the sun in her eyes. She stepped out, her bare feet touching grass. The smell of dampness left her nostrils and was replaced by the sweetness of dirt and apple blossoms. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the world around her... but when they did. She found that she had another reason to be breathless.

Gazing down upon the landscape below was nothing short of looking upon a masterpiece. If you were to put a symphony onto parchment in emotion alone it would not invoke nearly the same sincerity, even if you considered the fact that it was an impossible task. It was...nature. Effortless in its complexity. In its divinity. All roads would lead back to it in life and death and the dreamer... well she stood above it. Looking down on it from a cliff and yet things still towered over her. The trees that surrounded her, the mountains above. Every bit as intimidating as they were enthralling. To find herself in this open wilderness was both a miracle and an experience. That she had to stop and stare at it for a while. There were paths, and grasslands, streams, ponds, and to her west was a forest. But that was just in the vicinity. There was a vast openness beyond. So vast that she could hardly comprehend it in its splendour. A single tear ran down her face, then another... and another. Until it came upon her like a tidal wave. She fell to the ground wiping what she could away, just to catch another glimpse at the world. The sky was there, the sun bright within its embrace. She wanted to reach out to it, to thank it, but then she would sob again. Not from distress, not from misery... but she was so enamoured with it... she found it so beautiful. That she couldn’t help but cry. And she had no idea why.

 

Chapter 4: The Best of Intentions

Summary:

In the heat of battle, THE HERO fights.

Chapter Text

There were not many things the young hero feared, but on that shortlist was the fear of letting people down, or letting people get hurt. And in this moment where people screamed and warning bells rang out across the city, he felt the sounds ring through his bones. He swallowed hard, the sounds beginning to blur together in his ears despite it feeling just as loud in his body. His legs would have been shaking under him had his horse, Valiant not been under him striding along in full force. He kept going, galloping through the town from the castle as his rider stared forward, dissociating on his back, the reins slack in his hands. The world continued to blur slowly around him and sounds of panic muffling as a panic of his own set in. Until WHAM.
He was hit in the back of the head, snapping him back to reality as he turned to see what hit him. The hero quickly ducked, avoiding another swift hit from a bow. The talon holding it gripped tightly with tension. The hero knew him well, he knew that he was probably scared too. Not that his companion would ever admit that; especially not when he was preparing to hit the hero a third time!

“Hello!” His friend flew out in front of him, flapping his wings so he could face the hero. “Earth to Link! I don’t see how you are helping lead this counterstrike if you can’t even focus.” His blue feathers were striking even now as he snapped and glared down at the hero. He knew that the Rito man had the best intentions, that he cared about him but Revali was hard pressed to show it.

The hero stared at Revali, his nod signifying understanding. He couldn’t bring himself to speak for fear that he would start to panic and prove the comments of his compatriot right. Words that he stated over and over during their training, that he was small and cowardly, and a weak link. That he was only with this team because the princess requested that he was one of the champions. He struggled to focus, to keep his head on his shoulders, but with this comrade in arms he would too be able to save the people he so wished to protect.

“Good,” Revali stated matter-of-factly before shifting his movement to fly alongside the hero. “Now let’s get moving, the others are ahead of you and we don’t need you screwing up back here!” The Rito pushed himself forward, tossing his bow into the air and caught it over his shoulder, as he began heading up to help the others and show soldiers where to help the most. Buildings were in flames and massive, half dead pig creatures crawled up and over every home, wall, and market stall. Taking and destroying what they could, and occasionally staring at people with vacant, glassy blue eyes.

The hero tapped the horse’s sides with his heels and flicked the reins, pulling a bow off of his back and rocketing forward with Valiant, his hair flying behind him as he did. He took a breath in, and as he let it out he let go of the reins, trusting his steed. He took in another breath, with which he pulled back the string of the bow and as he let it out fired at one of the undead monsters square in the nose, causing it to slump backwards cracking its skull against a wall. He caught up with Revali and gave him a sly smirk, only to see his ally shoot three with one shot. Link had no idea how he managed that. He’d have to ask him if they survived this, not that he was likely to get an answer.
That was also something that Link had rarely thought of. The fact that they could die. To him, failure had always been an option, and he was fearful of that. But death... that was not something he ever thought to fear.

 

He shot as he moved forward, catching up with a few other soldiers from his regiment and the leaders of which he was to call his equals; despite them often feeling like his superiors. The first was a woman; tall and strong with deep red hair like that of a rose. Her hair was long, and she was furiously protective of it, which he learned from experience. If you were to cut a single strand of hair you would be eating dirt. Although that didn’t always mean death- it often did though. She was always prepared for a fight, Link had never seen her without her sword or shield, and she terrified him.
Next there was the Goron. Link assumed that he was older from the beard and long hair, but he had not known too many Goron in his short life. The guy was the tallest of the group, he was large in frame, and he lumbered along far slower than usual. Oftentimes he would curl up and roll like a boulder down a hill, but for the moment he was unable. His large hands and rocky skin held a large slab of stone that Link thought was meant to be a weapon, as well as the final precious fighter.
Lady Mipha, the gentle Princess of the Zora and skilled warrior in her own right; although she wouldn’t say that herself. She had shimmering red scales that sparkled in the firelight which would have been a lot more romantic had they not been on a battlefield. She was smaller than him, and fierce. Though very delicate at first glance, Mipha was a force to be reckoned with if she had the belief that others had in her. That the hero had. In all honesty he and Mipha had met when they were younger, and though she lived a much longer life and would continue to do so, the princess was a friend...at least he considered her to be.

As he caught up to them, the Goron, known as Daruk, tossed Mipha up into the air, who was quickly caught by Revali, his talons holding onto her trident as he flew them up higher.
The others looked at him briefly, before Daruk rolled off ahead of them to fight some of the beasts.


“About time you showed up,” Urbosa spoke sternly. “you are aware that you’re needed here, correct?

 

He nodded, afraid of what she would do if he answered dishonestly.


“Well, I’m glad you’re getting your act together. We can’t let them get to the castle-” she paused, looking into his eyes before sighing, “you look tired. Unfortunate dreams again I would imagine.”

 

How could she possibly know about his dreams? The shock must have crossed his face because she spoke again quite quickly.

 

“You toss and turn in your sleep, it was not hard to imagine such things.” There was a very faint chuckle in her voice but it was clear that there was no time for levity in this moment. “I trust the princess, unlike the others.”

 

Revali flew up into the air, dropping Mipha down into a group of injured people who were being attacked.

 

“That trust extends to you, hero. Do what you must. I will be there if you need. Fight hard, earn their trust. Kill the monster.” Urbosa ran off to the side as she pointed in the direction of a man riding on the back of a dead giant. His tattered, grey robes billowing in the wind as he marched the beast forward, its flesh sloughing off as it lumbered, leaving not but rot and bone behind. It opened its mouth but only the rattle of bones and sound of flesh slapping against flesh came out. It seemed as though this thing was trying to roar, not that it had any further need to intimidate, as the people below ran from it in fear.
All people but the hero; who charged head on fuelled by the words of his mentor, trusting in her judgement despite the fact that he did not believe in himself. He held onto his bow and started methodically repeating the steps he was told to take out a giant, not that he had thought he would have to do it.

 

Step one, keep your distance


Step two, knock an arrow and shoot it in the eye. It will minorly harm them, but it is moreso a distraction.


Step three, get up close and personal, once it falls it is a perfect time to hit.


Step four, repeat.

 

Over and over, word for word he repeated this in his mind. Thinking about all of the things he could do. He pulled back another arrow and shot it into the yellow eye of the creature. It fell, it wobbled. And tumbled. The man on its shoulders nearly fell with it, but managed to (quite clumsily) land on his feet. He led the army of the dead toward the castle; this lanky strange man, his arms elongated by the dark magic that ailed him, his clothes hidden under a long purple robe that was caked with mud on the edges. He stood before the brave hero, and stared into the cold eyes. This man was a human, or he once was. He was unlike the corrupted magic users that could be found across Hyrule, not as long and hunched, with skin like charcoal, and from what Link could tell he was still mostly sane. He wore a crown made of dark stone that seemed to be inlaid with dragon bones, as his darkened firey gaze pierced the hero.
Courage was what he was told to have. To be brave and protect the kingdom was an honour. To champion an army against the forces of evil. But how was he meant to do any of that when he trembled at this sight. Not for the fear of death that could soon come to him. But for what might happen to the others if he should fail.

 

Link urged Valiant forward, halberd in hand. His silver armour clanking with each step of his horse. The blue sash flapping intensely behind him as he approached the mage. He gritted his teeth and focused on his target. He watched the mage lift his hand and staff, not breaking eye contact. The force of which would have drawn in our hero if he did not stop rushing ahead first. That was until he heard a sound, a shifting- swooshing sound that came from his right. The clack of bone grinding on bone as -swiftly as an arrow- the massive, three clawed hand of the giant came swinging at them, slamming its bony fist into the side of his horse clipping his leg in the process, something crunched, and he cried out. Him and Valiant flying through the air and landing, scattered across the ground the weapon that had been in his hands, clattering against the stone. It had barely been 5 minutes alone and he was scraped up on the ground. He moved to stand, wincing as he put pressure on his foot, but still he was unwilling to show more than mild discomfort.

 

He took a step to grab the weapon before hearing the cries of his loyal steed. His head whipped around to look at Valiant who laid helplessly on the ground. Whinnying in pain as he tried to get up, fell, then struggled to breathe. His eyes screamed fear, and his breathing was short. Leaving the halberd behind, he hobbled over to the side of the horse, his leg dragging behind him painfully. He looked over the dark hair and sad eyes of his horse, putting a hand on his neck and watching as his side quickly rose and fell rippling and crackling as it did. His ribs falling inward with every exhale. Link stared in horror, watching the agonized gasps of the creature he loved. He knew that there was little he could do in this moment. Not only because of the attack being waged around him, but also because nobody is willing to save a dying horse injured that badly, and with ribs cracking over and over like fresh ice on a pond, it was unlikely that this would go well for his friend. So he took out his sword, and with the finest mercy that he could muster, he plunged the blade into his neck, trying -with deep regret and anger boiling inside him- not to cry. He held the blade for a moment before turning back to the villain. The man who held control of the beast that did this, he stood up at first before his leg buckled and he winced again. It was sprained at the very least, if not broken. But Link would not fall. He would not prove the others right. He held his sword with both hands. Pulling his shield from his back and onto his right arm, he stepped forward then rolled, dodging another hit from the now even slower giant as the massive creature swung its club at him.
Dragging himself forward he lunged toward the mage, who in turn drew a surprisingly shoddy sword of his own, taking it in both hands as he made the staff disappear in a flash. Link wondered ‘what sort of mage would use a sword?’ as he dodged the first swing from them, their long sword screaming through the wind as they attempted to strike.
He then took a strike of his own, swinging and falling back in turn. Parrying and dancing, as though in a bloody waltz. Each flick or stab of the hero’s blade left spatters of blood on anything nearby. The two men spun and slashed, dodging the swings as they stepped carefully. Link avoided the creatures that tried to grab onto his armour and pull him aside while the mage cast spells of defence on himself, that made him even more evasive than he already was.
They fought up the courtyard, the fountain in the centre of it full of diluted red and the remains of the dead. Had Link not been distracted, he would have been disgusted, staring at such a display and gazing upon the face of a man who had been dead no more than ten minutes ago, he looked as though he was just in a sound sleep. That was all that death was to him... sleep. He wished to die in his sleep to avoid the pain that came with death, not on the battlefield, not like this.

 

However as he thought those words, the mage lunged forward desperately, causing Link to stumble back, slipping with his left and falling onto his right. He cried out as the leg twisted behind him, there was no crunch of bone but the pain of his leg was more than enough to cause him distraction. This left him open, and he fell to the blade of the mage.

 

Link stared up. Looking at the blood on his hand as he laid down, half in the mountain with the other bodies. The mage commanded his battalion to go to the castle. Before stomping on the neck of the hero with a smile, and leaving him to die in the waters.

 


 

The hero felt a breeze on his face and awoke in a room of light, its walls shimmered and shifted as they let light pass through almost magically. He was weak and in pain, but in the pain he was certain he was alive. There were medical instruments and life saving tonics all around as the world slowly came into focus. He was safe and alive, but at what cost? The cost of many people’s lives, their homes, their livelihoods. If he had caught the mage in time...
Perhaps someone else had done it. Perhaps they were the one to thank, and everything was peaceful. They would have, his team mates, his friends. They would have saved the day. He was sure of it. But if that truly was the case, either way he was exactly what he loathed himself to be.

 


 A weak link.

Chapter 5: Regent

Summary:

Our hero makes first contact with other creatures.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

The view from above the valley was breathtaking, and Dreamer could have sat there and watched it all day. And she nearly did, had it not been for her slowly growing hunger. After a solid amount of landscape appreciation she stood and began to walk down the winding path that lead below; hoping to find some food along the way and to experience the beautiful world that she was so enraptured by. It was like entering a painting. One that drew her in, in all senses of the word. The sweet air was like nothing she had smelled before, not that she remembered smelling anything outside of the damp before this. The light was bright and blue and gold, it rested above her in the big blue cloudless sky. She had sat there watching birds cross it, and wondered if she would see a cloud on the horizon. She laid on the grass, touching it with her fingers, digging her fingers into the dirt and smelling it. Goddesses, she loved the smell of earth, or did she miss it? She didn’t remember which it was, but she didn’t care. She heard water. Water ran down below from somewhere. Where? She wanted to swim in it, to fall and to laugh and to run through it. And the leaves were rustling! There must be birds in there! Living in their little nests and living life, as a bird. She smiled at the thought, to live life as a bird with access to the whole world but enjoying your tiny little corner of it.

She wanted that. Her own little corner of the world; and yet on that thought she couldn’t help but to look out into the world. Beyond its simplest features. There were mountains, and valleys. Hills, forests, and rivers. And a mountain... a strange red glowing mountain that drew her in. She wanted to go there. She wanted to see, and smell, and hear, and taste, and touch everything. She looked to the west. Seeing a bird that flew in circles on the horizon but didn’t seem to want to get closer. If she could go and see that bird too.... maybe it could teach her to fly. Though without feathers she wondered if she could. Perhaps it was fanciful to believe that. But she thought that if she had a coat made of feathers, maybe that could be possible,

although the logistics of that would have been iffy. For one, she did not know how to make a coat, and for two... she had no idea where she would get enough feathers to do such a thing. She supposed she’d have to keep her feet firmly on the ground until she could find solutions to such issues. Our girl could only dream.

She walked down the mountain path, her feet pressing down upon grass and soil as she admired the land in its own surreal beauty. It was as though she had never seen the world before, in its lush and distant beauty. And yet she felt a familiarity, like that of a song that was played often for a young child that they vaguely remember, but don’t know why. It felt familiar, like a warm blanket wrapped around her shoulders, or a cup of tea after a long day. Not that she had any idea what tea was, and if someone were to tell her that it was hot leaf water she would make it poorly, with the wrong leaves, and most likely avoid trying anything resembling tea again.



She kept walking down the steadily declining path and as she did so, she watched a squirrel scramble up a tree with nuts in its grasp, and like some animal intent to catch it the dreamer chased. When that endeavour proved fruitless, she took to climbing the tree it had hidden in, taking refuge up in the branches and roosting there for a while. She peered from behind the leaves, staring down upon the world like a wild cat stalking her prey. There was a sort of comfort in this state, and it was not necessarily in the power one could have felt from being in this position. No, it was in the safety that the embrace had. Having leaves all around her felt natural. Perhaps in another life she had simply been a wild bird, or perhaps she knew birds, heck- she could have even been a tree. But the feeling of being beneath the shroud of nature was right for her.

The dreamer gazed across the horizon again, looking for the direction her weak legs would lead her. She could head toward the red-gold glow of the far off mountain, or go in the direction of the forest below, or perhaps even -... there was a sudden sense of dread within her body, her weak legs suddenly collapsed from under her and she fell from the tree, the mechanical hand being the only thing to slow her fall and leave her uninjured. The same would not be said for the tree, three deep gashes were carved down along its trunk, its bark splitting revealing the strong wood inside. Panicked, the dreamer yanked the arm free and stared at the carnage that this appendage had caused. She reached down into the dirt and dug, placing some mud and clay onto the wound as best as she could. She had no way of knowing how to help a tree, or even if what she was doing was good. But she knew from kneeling on the ground that the dirt had stuck to her hands, so she hoped that the result would be good. It had to be good. This was her fault.

 

But why? Why would she do this? What would make her panic in such a way? Why did she not remember? She looked upon the horizon again when she heard a voice. Another voice, much less painful to her mind than the other. It was yelling and calling out, distant and desperate to be heard. Most of all though, it was real.

Quickly the Dreamer got to her feet and ran in the direction of the calls, if this was to bring her any sort of trouble then at least she would see a person. She was desperate to see another person.

 

Down by a nearby lake she saw a small hand wagon, overturned with its contents spilling out onto the ground. Several burlap sacks of different sizes strewn about, some torn open to reveal fresh meat and vegetables, while others remained intact but nearly fell into the water. There were several figures below, one hunched and elderly and clearly trying his best to fend off the other three. Dreamer felt a deep feeling, more than dread it was something fiery and strange that burned inside of her body, it made her run faster despite the weakness she was still trying to overcome. She picked a fallen tree limb off of the ground with her hand, and with the one that was not hers she used to throw a stray stone at one of the assailants, striking him right between the eyes.

Strange bandits. she thought. Say something to help, or something intimidating and strong to scare them away.

She opened her mouth only to let a weary and strained “Ai-” leave her lips as she struggled to get a word out. Perhaps she hadn’t ever been good at speaking? Or maybe she just hadn’t tried until now...

A reddish embarrassment crossed her cheeks. She had hoped that perhaps none of them had heard or seen. That maybe she had stumbled and fallen into an exhaustion fuelled nightmare since exiting the cave. That was quickly proven wrong as the three supposed bandits turned to look at her.

 

Dreamer was taken aback, the expected human faces were nowhere to be found. These men, or what she had expected to be men were not simply in strange leather hoods. Instead, the leather continued down across the faces, sagging and wrinkling like sun aged skin. Their bodies were burned red, peeling, and scarred. Deep grooves drove across the forehead, around the central horns and bleary blue eyes. Had they not stared at her so intently, she would have sworn they were blind.

They growled in her direction; a guttural sound that erupted like a chunk of food caught in one’s throat, both breathy and repulsive. The repugnant creatures wore nothing more than a single loincloth adorned with the skulls of small animals. They had heavy stomachs which were still unable to fill the sagging skin, and their posture was hunched to account for their long arms which grazed the ground as they stood before her. Their three fingered hands gripped their crude weaponry, and clawed at the spilled meat with broken fingernails. They stood on two toed feet which kept moving and shifting with restless energy. As they screamed in her direction their mouths showed few rotten teeth, some of which looked nearly ready to fall out of their heads, and the smell that followed was that of bog stench and rotting meat. Needless to say, the Dreamer had lost what shred of confidence that remained. She didn’t run though, standing and staring as strong as she could, the left arm shifting and creaking as she prepared herself for a fight.

Globs of viscous slobber dripped from the maws of such disgusting creatures; their bodies moved unnaturally, their joints clicking noisily as they shifted their forms in her direction. One of the red skinned creatures ran at her- leaping forward with a club in hand. It swung the lump of wood toward her, causing her to leap out of the way, just narrowly avoiding the tips of her toes being crushed. She took her stick to it, hitting it with all her might which did little but annoy the thing. She heard a sharp chime in her mind and moved to the right, nearly avoiding the strike of the creature that had come up from behind, it jutted a spear out striking only her clothes and grazing her side. She winced, recoiling and smacking the beast with her stick. It stumbled back in a daze, shutting its bleary eyes as her great defensive twig snapped. Shit. That was... an unintended consequence.

She dove away from the fray as the third pig approached with another spear in hand that it thrust forward. The weapons- though simple- were dangerous and painful, as their unfinished surfaces would leave splinters in the flesh and blood spattered on the ground. She did not want the red to water the plants, to spill that which should be contained within herself. She fumbled to catch her breath as she spun around. She was hit again; more directly- painfully- she felt the spear’s point enter and twist into her body. Piercing and splintering just as she feared, she gasped. Eyes wide as she heard another faint chime.

 

The club wielding monster approached her, screeching and slobbering as it jumped at her. Were she to pull away the spear would tear her skin, the pain of which struck fear in her heart. Pain was vile and unsavoury, it made her ill to even think about the speed with which she could feel her injury worsening. She swallowed hard, watching the creature jump at her- and as swiftly as she could manage she thrust the broken stick forward, its body landing over hers. It squealed and squirmed, shrieking as it swung its arm trying to hit her with his weapon. And yet before it could even manage to land a blow, it fell limp across her form and exploded in a mass of brackish oil that coated all that were within its range. Perhaps it was blood. Perhaps indeed, but her body moved before her mind could finish processing it, grabbing hold of the dropped club and swinging around to the beast that had her pinned. It recoiled with the hit, retracting the spear from within – leaving Dreamer with another sickening feeling. Pain was her weakness, she realized, and the end of every pain of hers would be her salvation. She placed the hand on her wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding, she turned around to face the attackers. Dreamer backed toward the old man, her eyes focused on the monsters in order to protect him, to protect herself. And this way there would be no surprises.

She planted her feet and watched the weight of these dead eyed creatures shift from each trotter. She eyed their weapons, tentatively- her blood dripping off of the sharpened end and seeping into the grain. She could feel eyes on her, not the ones of the creatures looking through her, but of the man, she had nothing to say... she was unsure if she even could say words. If she stopped to think about what she’d say, she’d die. Dreamer saw the first shift, the drool dropping as the head dipped down and it lunged at her. The spear shot forward, and with Dreamer shifting to the side, she slammed the club into the spear, driving it into the ground before it reached the old man. She hit the creature as its feet carried it directly into her range. She hit it over and over and over until its body fell onto the ground in a puddle of the same black sludge. Before taking another breath she ran to the final one and bludgeoned its flesh until it too was reclaimed by its inner goop.

She panted, out of breath and with blood pouring from her body. Feeling pulses of pain radiate from the wound, she turned on her heel, walking barefoot to the muck and pulled the spear from the ground. She looked the man in the eye, he seemed appreciative if wary. He spoke to her, or tried to- the words he said were not quite the same as what she thought in- as if she had encountered language when she only made pictures. It was not her tongue...it was new. She furrowed her brow, then she looked at his cart; the overturned creation was on its side and the wheels were askew. They were solid wooden wheels, likely hand carved and hanging on a broken axle. She stepped forward and the man seemed to brighten. He started picking up the sacks that were not spoiled- yet Dreamer approached the wheels, she pulled the axle from the cart and was met with the man peering around. He ran around the cart in a panic that Dreamer still failed to understand. If he knew what she was thinking it could be easier, she could just tell him not to worry and that she was not going to harm him. She stopped for a moment, giving the man a quick look of sympathy, before turning back to the cart and jamming the spear through, temporarily replacing the axle.

Dreamer looked back to the man, she put a hand on her hip and tilted her head. “See-” is what she attempted to say, but her throat seized up and all that came out was a soft wheeze. He looked at her a bit puzzled, but she didn’t have time- with each beat of her heart the pain got worse. She used the arm and pulled the cart back onto its wheels. Then, she moved to help the man with the bags when he spoke again, to her it sounded like “are moo ah kight” she got “are” but was unsure if it was what she thought it meant. It felt strange, familiar but not recognizable, like the face of a painting worn away over time. She picked up bags and he continued to speak. “mo- ceveirisslie are moo bosay?” She looked at him confused before putting the bag back down, and turned away to pick up another bag. He continued to say words, but she ignored it- “mist- mist” why would he be saying mist. She continued to lift bags. “Mist!” She put it back in the cart. She picked up another bag- “MISS-” Dreamer dropped the bag. Were those... words? “miss- are you okay? You’re bleeding” She dropped the bag and blinked, then she turned to look at the man with realization in her eyes. She excitedly stepped toward him. “you’re okay?” she smiled, wow she could hear him. She could understand him. Wow... that was... that... that felt...

Suddenly she was closer to the ground. Knees in dirt, arms on the edge of the cart, trying to keep herself up. oh. She felt sick. And her fingertips felt cold.

“Come on there... get on the cart” the man spoke- and before she knew it his arms were under hers and she was sat in the back of the cart. She laid against the bags and felt the cart move beneath her. She stared up at the sky, and she watched as the clouds (clouds... huh) spun ...as clouds are want to do. She felt nothing. Though at times the trees would shift and stutter... but nothing... felt good. And the sound of the wheels turning lulled her into a drowsy daze. She blinked and the sky turned to wood. Logs rested on other logs above her head, with a spattering of small patches of sky through the cracks. She sat up quickly and immediately groaned in pain as an invisible shard of ice was thrust into her side. She fell back down and heard fast footsteps. She heard a door and movement. “Calm down, calm down... are you- ah, you bust your stitches.” she panted in agony, her breath exploding out from her mouth a quiet but consistent groan escaped with every breath. She slowly reached toward the wound and felt the wetness continue to permeate her shirt. “hey! Hey! Don’t touch it-” the man said, pulling her hand away from the wound.

“Goddess damn, who raised you?” He scolded her as he looked at the wound. “tsk. Now I have to fix it. Hold still and don’t touch anything else- before you get yourself hurt again.” he turned from her and she rubbed her fingers together, feeling the warm liquid stick to them. She groaned, she did not like to see her blood outside of her body. Her belly was burning, her side was like ice and she laid as still as possible as she tried her best to breathe through the pain. The man returned swiftly, a tired look in his eye as he held a pine needle in his hand. He knelt beside her, taking a moment of pause before speaking again. “I can’t say this too much. Stay. Still.” There was nothing for a moment then she felt it- a needle entering and exiting her skin so quickly she could hardly discern, she groaned and tried to hold her tongue but as she tried to pull away from the pain crying out in agony -


 

She looked at the ceiling of the cabin again, this time with no old man to speak to her. She couldn’t move, not that she wanted to... she felt unwell. She was weak and she knew it... but this... she sighed, trying her best to keep focused on her sense of self, for if she had no one to talk to- she had herself. This continued for the next few days; waking, remembering, sleeping- occasionally seeing the old man and attempting to communicate. But the man didn’t or couldn’t respond... she had to find a way to speak to him. But her voice failed her, perhaps she simply had not spoken for some time, but she found it disheartening...she wanted to communicate but he often acted as if she wasn’t there.

It wasn’t til the seventh day that she decided to get up and do something. She struggled to her feet trying her hardest to not cause herself pain as she made it up. She stood, then nearly fell onto the table nearby as her legs faltered again. She winced and took a breath in as she waited for the blinding heat to subside. His cabin was small and tidy- with a dirt floor and few items within. One wooden plate with a knife and a spoon, half made arrows, a bed in the northeast corner, and a plant growing in the southeast. There were old boots, and a cloak hanging by the door, a chest to the northwest, and a book resting on the corner of the table- however those seemed to be the only items around. As if this man had no need for anything more.

Dragging her feet across the dirt she made her way across the floor and pushed open the door. Immediately her senses were drawn in by the scent of pine. The sweet smell of their needles drew her in and the image of them brought her comfort. The cabin sat amidst a grove of trees, the branches softly shading from the rays of the sun. Nearby there was a large log that fell some time ago, and a pot above a campfire. She held her arms close to her body, crossed against her torso as she stepped foot outside. She walked toward the pot, with her feet stepping lightly against the grass and fallen needles. Dreamer gently grazed the edge of the cooking pot with her fingers...it was cool. Perhaps she would be able to cook... if she found materials or had food. She wasn’t hungry though, perhaps the pain in her side distracted from the pangs of hunger. Perhaps there was something nearby, or something that she could use to start the fire...not that she knew how to do that... One step at a time... food first.

Dreamer looked around at the grove, stepping cautiously around the trees as she looked for anything of use, any mushrooms or plants that she could find around. She followed her nose, and the sense of focus that guided her. Perhaps it was one of her skills from before? That she- the most amazing “Dreamer”- could know of plants and where to find them. That is the skill she had hoped for of course, to know what plants to eat. Or at least... she hoped that wasn’t the only skill she had, if that was something she could do. However the lack of food in her arms was more than enough to make her realize that perhaps this snap judgement of herself was wrong.

She sighed, leaning against a tree when she heard a sound.

THK. THK. THK.

A steady rhythmic beat.

THK. THK. THK.

She approached the noise with caution and suspicion, however she was still comforted. That could have just been the pine though. The pine made her relax. As she approached though there was no monster that meant her harm- just the old man chopping away at a log that he felled. He stopped mid swing and stared at her before sighing and lodging the axe into the side of the trunk. “you’re up and about, good... you owe me seven days of supplies.”

You can’t be serious

She thought, though her inner voice must have come through her face as the man quickly replied.

“Hey. That’s not my problem, you used my supplies. Perfect timing anyway, I need someone without old bones to go and get the pack I left up there.” He pointed across a nearby ravine, and up a cliff face where a small shack barely remained standing.

 

You have got to be kidding me.



“I can’t make the climb like I used to... found that out the hard way.” He rubbed his lower back.



Oh don’t you dare play the fragile old man card... unless...

She thought back to how she had to save him... maybe it was like that? Maybe she had to help him? And maybe this time she wouldn’t get stabbed. She paused at the thought... perhaps that wasn’t the best metric for “good” but then again, who was she to know what a low bar was.

Fine. Fine I’ll do it... but only because you’re old-

 

She watched as he tied the logs into a bundle and pulled it over his shoulder. “perfect- then I’ll be on my way back...” She made a face of utter disbelief at him before walking closer to the ravine and looking down. She swallowed hard, how in the world was she meant to get across there. How would she... The man pulled the axe out of the log and began to walk away. That was when she had an idea- The dreamer jogged back over to the old man, stopping in front of him before he managed to escape. Dreamer held out her hands, stopping him in turn. She turned her hands around and made a grabbing motion with them. Letting a little sound out of her mouth as she tried to explain.

I need this.



He raised an eyebrow. “what? This?” he held up the axe. Dreamer nodded fervently. “Will you bring it back? That is MY axe” She nodded again, her eyes pleading. “Fine.”

He handed it over with caution, while Dreamer took it with both hands and (with the glee of a child gifted a new toy) both excitedly and carefully rushed back to the edge of the ravine. She swung the axe back, spinning it in one hand (to her great surprise at having such a skill) and swinging it against the nearest tree. She swung again, and again. Inconsistent but repeatedly. Thk.
Thuk. She panted. THUK THUK THUK- she wiped sweat from her brow. This was stupid. It was stupid and dangerous. She took a breath. THUCK THUCK....THUK- she took another breath-

 

This isn’t even a thick tree!

Why did she feel like this? THUK THUK THUK. She looked over the tree- this was heavy, the stupid axe was heavy and she was trying her best to. KREE-
Dreamer stepped back. She took a breath and pulled back the axe. The momentum of which caused her to stumble back and topple over the fallen log; The axe falling out of her hands and into the ground. She heard the creaking continue and crescendo as the tree fell across the gap landing with a thud. She peered over the fallen log- only to see that the tree had become a makeshift bridge. It worked. It worked! Not that she was sure that she would even make it:



Not too bad Dreamer ...



That... still didn’t sound right. Dreamer got to her feet and upon examination of the other side she could see little danger beyond the obvious, fatal fall that resided below. She could have peered down, her curiosity gnawed at her like a beaver would another... less treacherous log, but she would have to resist for the moment. If she was to be afraid of heights... then perhaps she should avoid indulging that fear. Her stomach twisted with dread, she would not wish to fall and live, she could just imagine the horrific possibilities of such a fate. Perhaps that was something that came with being unable to speak? Being thoughtful and having a wicked imagination, perhaps that was why the sky was bluer than she remembered. Dreamer shrugged off her shirt, twisting it tightly and slipping the axe into the loop, before putting her arms back through the sleeves. It worked well as a weapons harness, well enough at least. This way she wouldn’t even think to lose it, for if she would lose it she would also lose her shirt. And she liked the shirt... because it was her first thing.

She stared at the log in front of her, her stomach still twisting. There had to be something else, a security- AH! Yes rocks, what if the log were to roll. That would be... not great. She took a moment, gathering what rocks she could and piling them on the sides of the log until...she decided it was safe enough. Perhaps she was afraid, but how could she not be. This was a feat that she had yet to see through, and boy, if there was a way she could be brave enough to do this, perhaps she would not have hesitated. It took several more moments, with her checking and double checking the rocks, testing her footing on the log, and trying her best not to feel the impending doom that loomed over her.

She had to be careful, she had to be safe, and aware of every little movement that came with the log. If she slipped, if the log slipped, she’d have no way out. She swallowed hard, taking her first step onto the crackling bark of the log. She felt the rough texture on her bare soles and with great care, she BOOKED IT across the bridge that she made. Her heart was racing, her palm was sweaty, and she skidded onto the grassy cliff on the other side.



No Fear.



There were even trees here. How is there such a world where nature remains unimaginably stubborn. Is it the same with people? Should people be so stubborn to not leave such a place would they thrive like a tree? She walked along the cliff side and her hand grazed its rough face.



Here is to hope that in a hundred years, the cliff’s edge should remain and the tree with it.



She walked around the corner of the mountain, only to see that there was no ladder or staircase that was hidden. no. No, there was nothing. Just a sheer cliff face and grass. Had she been expected to climb? Is that truly what he asked of her? Dreamer had expected the bridge crossing to be the trial, with such a deep chasm beneath and the chance of death... but she was mistaken. However, Dreamer was not one to whine. To think about proper complaints and hold them in until she decided it was relevant or until the end of time. Besides, she was not that injured. She hardly felt pain with the fear that rushed through her. So she found the roughest patch of cliff face and started to climb.

After a struggle she hung there for a moment, sliding down a few inches as the arm’s fingers dragged grooves into the rock. It would have taken more time to recover, however, she was on limited time now. At least until she made it to the ledge. She wasn’t doing well with her stamina, she was out of breath, her arm hurt, and she needed to recover. She bit her lip. She wasn’t ready, if she grabbed the ledge she was going to fall again. She wiped her hand on her pants. Another thought formed in her head, and she began to swing. She moved her body shifting her hips and torso until she began to make up some momentum. It was going to work, she could do it, she could swing herself up to the ledge and be able to breathe, to be able to stop the rising pain in her lungs. She swung her legs, kicking her feet across the stone as she struggled. Back. Forth. Back and forth. She swung again and again with the inner fire burning in her chest. She reached out her arm toward the ledge. Swinging back and forth, as the arm let go.

 


“AH AH AH AH!” The dreamer screamed over and over, as she slammed her forearm against the top of the cliff, and grabbed onto the grass that managed to grow on top. She pulled the arm up with all of her might, willing the claws to dig into the stone to hold her, before pulling herself onto the surface. She took in gasping breaths, panting like a dog as she tried to hold out. Then she started laughing. She was only half way up and yet she felt incredible. Not physically. But she did it and her side hardly hurt. It was a win for Dreamer.



***

Notes:

Hi Hoi,
I am going to be travelling for like a month from this point. I will try to keep posting every Monday, but if there are any delays that is probably the cause.
Thanks for reading.

Chapter 6: Reprieve

Summary:

Our heroine spends time with the Old Man, and learns a bit about the small corner of the world around her.

Notes:

Sorry for the late chapter y'all,
Been busy with travel as of late but here we go. Your entertainment has arrived. <3

Chapter Text

`Dreamer stretched her aching muscles, after catching her breath she finally managed to will herself to stand. She hurt, but what would she do? Give up? no. So she turned back toward the cliff face and swung the claw up to it, then began to climb again. She was more careful, taking time with each pull and swing, stopping on the few ledges that remained until, to her exhaustion and delight, she made it to the top. Pulling herself up, she flopped over the edge and laid on the grass.

That was it, she did it- she made it to the top. The dreamer rolled to her belly and pushed herself up. She scanned her surroundings. Damn she was up high, too high some would say, but there was something... something breathtaking about such a view, something that made her heart ache. She glanced up, seeing birds fly overhead, if only she had awoken and had feathers, so she too could fly. Perhaps even just to reach the ground again, and not be tasked with climbing back down. Perhaps that was why she was called dreamer, because it was only in her dreams that her desires could be fulfilled.

She looked across the cliff, there was a heavy looking pack leaning against a strange stone structure. She approached it, picking up the bag and swinging it over her shoulders, the axe pressing into her back uncomfortably. She turned on her heel to head back down when something tugged at the back of her mind. She looked over her shoulder at the stone. She felt her vision blink out without her moving her eyelids. The bluer blue cloud sky blinked to grey cloud sky before returning to the usual vibrancy. She peered around the structure, it was ancient, and ruined.

There were symbols carved into the stone, some of which repeated around the circumference.

Moss crawled up the walls, and veins of something copper fell within the cracks, spidering up and across the surface. The roof had collapsed in on itself, and it smelled of wet earth. On peering inside it was mostly bare, with the floor overgrown with plants and earth, but in the centre there was a pedestal, like that of the one the arm came out of. She felt a bit nervous, the twisting and shifting of her stomach intensifying as she approached. Hesitantly she placed the palm onto the surface of the pedestal, her breath catching in her throat. She held it for a moment before... nothing. Nothing happened. It was not what she had expected... but she was grateful that there was no more pain.

With the deed done and her curiosity sated, she turned around and hoisted herself over the side of the cliff. She dug the metal fingers into the stone and slid her body down the cliff, which was much easier than the climb up. She dashed across the bridge she made and ran through the woods back to camp, riding the high that this victory gave her.

As she got back to camp she saw the old man, sat before the fire. She ran over and stood in front of him. oh, you’re back... took you long enough”

 

And you’re complaining? You couldn’t even get up there.

Dreamer rolled her eyes and pulled the axe out, tossing it down into the log the man leaned against, with it barely grazing the side of his shirt. He raised an eyebrow, and looked up to her in surprise. She smirked down at him and slung the backpack off of her shoulders and tossed it at his feet.

Alright. I see... huh” he stared at her for another moment, assessing her perhaps? He didn’t look happy... that’s all she could see. She wasn’t all that good at reading expressions. Then he picked up the bag, rifling through it. “Sit then.”
She sat down next to him leaving the axe as space between the two, but kept her eyes on him. He quickly took notice of this. “what? Are you expecting praise? We needed these.” He paused looking into the bag then looking over his shoulder at her. He clicked his tongue and pulled out some strange red fruits? She furrowed her brow looking at it... trying to remember what it was called before he tossed some into the fire. “Fine, if you won’t stop staring. You are more useful than my daughters.”

 

This crotchety old man has kids? Someone had children with this man???

 

He looked annoyed, she could read that expression. “what? You don’t have to look disgusted.” S he looked down at the dirt, it was funny, the shift to suddenly care about her opinion. She tried to stifle her chuckle. “tch- just eat”

He reached into the fire, hardly reacting to the heat or pain, handing her a searing hot fruit. She fervently tried to hold it, but as the heat became too much she had to toss it between her hands until it cooled. She wondered about this man, who was he? This recluse in a cabin, who had daughters somewhere. She wished she could ask him for his name? Or find something to talk about- not that she would be able to respond. She blew on the fruit and on her hands, trying to cool them off, it was squishy in her grasp. She looked to the fruit, then to the man to see how he ate it.

huh... what?” he held the fruit half up to his mouth “Have you never seen a man eat a baked apple before?”

 

Baked apple.

Dreamer shook her head.

“right... well you just bite it, though some people don’t like the skin, I never got that though. I was told as a kid that it made you stronger, but neither of my girls liked it... I think the youngest just copied her sister though.” his voice got a bit quieter as he spoke, mumbling in a way that the dreamer couldn’t quite understand. She held the apple up to her face with both of her hands. Sniffing the sweet aroma before taking a large bite. Her body collapsed back as she bit into the sweet flesh, her tongue dancing with the flavour, and before she knew it the food was gone. She felt better, stronger, and overall happier. She wiped the juice and chunks of the fruit from her chin, then held out her hands for more. It took a second for the old man to notice her again, but when he did, he chuckled and handed another over. “you’re a strange one... aren’t you?”

She couldn’t answer, but assumed he didn’t really need one, as she devoured another apple as quickly as the first. Maybe... just maybe... she could enjoy her time here. If he kept her fed that was.

 


 

The next days or weeks blurred together for her, for time was both nothing and everything to her. The moment that she lived with the old man was simple and full of opportunities to learn. There were things he taught her and things she just... knew.

On their first outing (once she had healed some more), they had gone on a fishing trip down at the nearest lake, they had stepped carefully so as to avoid the bleary eyes of the disgusting sunburned creatures that attacked a few days prior. She was told that they were called Bo-kob-lins, a name that was unfamiliar to her and yet she felt as though she should have known what they were. The pair crept about until they were out of sight and sound of the creatures. The old man told her that such creatures were evil. Though she wanted to believe there was good in them, – having peered at them and watched them from the cliffs above their camp, watching them dance and play games- whenever they spotted either of them, the creatures immediately went on the offensive. She couldn’t think as to why they would find the two of them so worthy of their ire, but all she could do in return was to defend.
However, the two had gone to fish, the man armed with his fishing rod and the dreamer armed with his axe. They walked along to the lake, and had she been able to speak she would have been asking so many questions. For the time though, they remained in silence and she observed. She saw the land, with its ridges and its fields covered in grass and flowers. The sky, and the mountains, and the ruins on the horizon. She furrowed her brow at that. Trying to understand. It was like the ruins she had seen before, but these were just stone. Columns and walls standing tall with rubble scattering across the natural landscape. It was a large building, larger than she’d yet to see, and there was that feeling. A pull toward it. She tugged at the arm of the old man, her bright eyes staring up at him until he looked to her- and she pointed at the building. He sighed.
“We don't go there.”

She pulled his arm again and pointed harder. “what? What is the matter?” she pointed again. “It's some ruins, an old temple from over 100 years ago, I think it’s older than that but I don’t know how old. It was called the temple of time, before it was destroyed by those things.” he nodded his head in the direction of the temple before turning toward the lake and walking up to the shore. She stared at the building, narrowing her eyes and trying to focus on what he meant. It was just a shape at first, the sun being extremely unhelpful as it shone in her eyes, but as she followed the man, she eventually saw the strange shape of some rubble. Then she saw another, and another. All in similar positions, and none had crumbled. They sat atop the rubble, with strange round bodies, and buckets as heads, and long spidery legs. As if someone (perhaps those Bokoblins) had made an effigy out of whatever they could find to spiders of all sorts. She walked toward the lake.

That day had been her first time swimming, and she caught a fish with her bare hands! It did nearly cause her to drown though. She knew how to swim. She did not know that you could not inhale water. She learned how to fish.

 

... Later in the day, the old man napped by the lake after having asked the dreamer to protect him. So she did... for a bit. Then she got bored. Then she took the axe and began to explore. She did as she was taught, the man told her to be careful and avoid conflict with those if you are unsure of the fight’s outcome. So she tried to be quiet. She found a tree with apples, and picked a few, carrying them in her shirt to return to the old man. Then she looked out over the lake, jumping into the water from a high ledge and feeling warmth as she landed in a circle of lily pads. She climbed up a spire in the central lake and found a... strange weapon? It was like a knife... but larger and it felt much better in her hand than the axe, it was light and swift, and she knew she wanted to keep it. She swung it as practice, but without the man to explain it to her... she could not yet understand it. She dare not wake him though, for he implied that terrible things would happen if she did.

She stuck it in the ground by the pile of apples, then peered back over at the temple.

 

Perhaps a look wouldn’t hurt?

So, she looked. She approached it- staring inside and seeing bokoblins had taken refuge in the ruins. There were stained glass windows and aside from the debris...there was a statue of a beautiful woman with wings inside. It was far too nice for the creatures to have made it, and though she wanted to get a closer look, she felt too afraid that she would have to fight these creatures.

She crept around the building, trying her best to keep her footing among the rubble, as there was something else she wanted to see. The strange effigy. She approached it, and saw something she didn’t quite understand. These were too complex to have been made by those creatures. Though covered in dust and dirt these designs and patterns were intricate and alien. She wiped away some dust with the hand, and saw... that the metal was the same. The clawed fingers of the hand and the long legs of the statue matched. These things were like brothers, the arm that had fused to her shoulder was related to whatever this bucket headed... thing was. She looked at its metal ears, and its strange lens, trying to extrapolate what little she could understand about these connections. She pulled a screw loose from this... thing- and before she could question its origins more, she heard a whistle from behind her. There was the old man, waving her away from the building to head home.

 

The next outing was further away, they had gone to a place the man called “the forest of spirits”, he said that this was where they were going to need to find more food. He gave her a bow to “go with that sword you found”. He emphasized that both were a weapon and a tool, he showed her how to restring the bow, and how to shoot an arrow- a skill she already seemed to have some advantage with. He taught her to be safe and to hunt, to lurk around in the dark, in the trees, in the tall grass... and he showed her how to kill, and prepare meat. And while he was distracted during one of their hunting trips she returned with mushrooms, and wild plants that she had a feeling would be delicious. Another time, she found eggs. And yet another she managed to fend off some bokoblins. It was safe to say that Dreamer preferred their hunting trips to anything else. She felt more at ease within the shadows of the trees. And though she had her quirks and a tendency to catlike curiosity she was sure to be growing on him. She got him to smile, and when she didn’t mess up he would ruffle her hair, which he would have to fix due to the claw appendage that replaced her arm.

There was a time during one of these trips, that she had gone off on her own. Looking for items other than meat, her intuition and nose drew her to a clearing in the forest. It had been magical, with rocks and crystals around her- and a ton of mushrooms that would feed them for a good long while. She rushed in, sliding down to pick what they could eat. Happily foraging as a surprise to the old man. When she felt a dreadful rumbling from below. The earth shook, and moved underneath her feet, raising up and lifting dirt. Dreamer didn’t turn around though, the immediate rumbling made her afraid- it reminded her of the arm pedestal... and she had no desire to find out what was making the ground move like that. She leaped off the rock she stood atop and dropped her score, running off into the woods in a panic.

It had been a miracle that she had not been followed. By the massive rumbler or any bokoblins. But she couldn’t tell the old man what she saw... he just scolded her and had her work harder- which she couldn’t blame him for, honestly.

 

The third outing they went on, was a strange one to her. The old man hadn’t explained what they were doing or where they were going... but he said that they would be gone for a few days. She had woken up to him cooking in the pot, several meals that made her mouth water, and yet she was told that she would not be able to eat them yet. He had looked over her clothing, and had just... looked at her with a pitiful expression. He entered the cabin and when he had returned he held boots and some... fabric? In his hand. He handed over the worn boots and told her to put them on.

“You'll need these,” he said. “and this as well, it...it should keep you warm” he handed her the fabric, and she held it out in front of her face. It was heavier than her cotton shirt, likely wool. It had been dyed years ago, as it was bleached a bit by the sun, and there was delicate but purposeful embroidery to patch any holes. She rubbed her face against it- it felt itchy. She made a face. “I think you mean thank you! But I know... you get used to the itching... it keeps you warm” he patted her on the shoulder, then packed what was left of his supplies, slinging the axe and pack on his back and they began their trek.

They began to walk, first toward the temple, then through a gate carved between two hills. Then they began to climb. The temperature dropping rapidly as they ascended. They would climb for hours, doing their best to avoid having to fight the bokoblins that remained. And when they couldn’t avoid it, they would clear out a camp to have a fire for the night. Had they not been bundled, had the man not brought the food, they would have probably frozen to death. But they stayed warm, even on the nights where the wind blew right through them. When the ice nearly caused them to slip and plummet. When they struggled to keep their grip. They were still warm, and that was what mattered.

Soon enough though, they made it to the mountain top. A place that apparently was their intended destination. Upon reaching this summit, the old man stopped. He looked down, and before them was a heap of rocks, and a collection of branches, tied together so they stood tall- with a piece of blue fabric tied to it. She squinted.

Do you know what this is? Do you know where we are?”

He asked her this often once he realized that she had several hundred gaps in her memory. He didn’t ever expect her to answer. But to the surprise of both of them, the dreamer nodded.

She knelt down by the rocks, clasping her hands together before laying her head in the snow nearby. She tried to speak, raspily mumbling in what could almost be words as she held her head to the ground.

 

Goddesses protect the soul that is buried beneath this stone, for whatever they were in life, let them be at peace in death. Or let their breath come into a being, anew.

Dreamer raised her head after finishing the prayer, and gazed upon the grave before her. She stayed on her knees in quiet reverence. Both of them were silent... then the man spoke. “This is the resting place of someone very important. Or... what remained of them. I appreciate your respect even though you don’t know him.”

 

Dreamer just looked at him, and shrugged. “Do you mind if we stay here for some time? It has been a while since I’ve visited”

Dreamer nodded. She took in every detail of the place, the smell of the icy air, the appearance of the grave highlighted by the horizon. She looked at the mountains, and the hills below. She saw the river of the dead below, an apt but morbid name given the situation. She saw bokoblin camps in the distance, and a world beyond their little corner. She saw... ruins, more ruins. She was drawn there. But she spent another moment, sitting, breathing, experiencing. The old man was in pain, it could have been the cold, but she knew it was a deep feeling for whoever was buried here. After a moment she stood... she placed a hand on his shoulder and started toward the ruins- but he spoke before she could step away- “thank you. You... you remind me of my Hilde. Don’t wander too far... okay?”

She felt something... something strange, in her chest. It made her feel ... upset. But she didn’t know why. She took a moment. Then she nodded, and stepped away. She explored the ruins as she tended to do, putting a hand on a pedestal like she had done before. And still... there was nothing. So, when she returned, they began their trek back down the mountain, and back home.

 


 

After this, the dreamer was allowed to go out on her own, partially because the old man trusted her- and partly because he was tired. She tried to encourage him, but she was well aware that a man of his age was not going to be able to do all that she could. So she helped where she he would let her.

 

Dreamer was on a hunting trip when it happened.

She slung a wild hog over her shoulder, tied by its trotters as she prepared to head back. Hunting didn’t often take long for her, she knew what she was doing, she was proud to say that she was good at it. So she started walking back, to the edge of the treeline. When she felt the pull again. She saw a pond, a wall, and more ruins. What was it in these strange ruined structures that made her so curious? She tried to forget it, to pull away and not think to look at it. For the old man, for her friend. She couldn’t help it though. Making sure there were no monsters around, she crept toward the structure and explored it. It... was the same as it always was, as each of them were. She tried to understand, to see what the writing meant or understand what this was for, but as per her ritual, she placed a hand upon the pedestal and... nothing. As if she should be surprised.

She thought about giving up this little venture of exploring ruins, but ... what else was there beyond the day to day? Killing monsters? She wouldn’t kill them for fun, that was madness to her. She turned around, and saw... more ruins in the distance. She had never been there, she hadn’t been a lot of places. But ....it looked interesting. Different. And not infested with the terrible hog monsters. But the space was open, aside from a raised bit of earth. There were some monsters scattered about- but if she was careful ... she could make it.
With much breath held and many bullets sweat she only had to kill one monster. She crept around the back of the ruins, drawn by a glint in the distance. A sword, perched carefully atop one of the ruins. A ruin... within more ruins. It was odd. But one thing she could extrapolate was that the larger remains were built around the strange metallic structure. She grabbed the sword, and scaled the wall; leaping over, falling through the roof of the structure and landing on top of the pedestal inside, which hurt like hell. It took a moment to recover, but when she did she placed the hand on the top of it and climbed out as fast as possible. The structure made her feel uneasy, she wasn’t ready to deal with whatever was in store there, and she trusted her instincts.

However... as she was leaving the area... another glint caught her eye. Something glowing with yellow light within the raised land. Perhaps it was a small cave? And within it something they could use for food, or ... something shiny. She felt the adrenaline before elation, as she made her way there as fast as possible.

 

The last stop, then home.

She promised herself. If she didn’t then the old man would be upset, or hungry, or ... both. She scrambled across the stone walkway to the cave, clambering inside. And to nobody’s surprise... there were more ruins. She sighed, not disappointed by that per say, but it was too much. Too much for her to process or understand, the only thing that stopped her from walking away, was the fact that these ruins... were different. The rough stone and metal seemed to be one, textured yellow and brown and very strong to have withstood all of this rock being on top of it. Above all else though, the pedestal in the centre was glowing a bright yellow, pulsing in and out.... so... she put the hand to it.

Then the rumbling began again.

***

Chapter 7: By My Sword

Summary:

A tale of The Hero's valiant fight against the necromancer's master.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

The hero ran through the castle, each step of his echoing through the vacant halls. His shield held rigidly in one hand as he gripped his sword in the other. The path was eerily clear, which he wouldn’t normally have been worried about, after all his friends had cleared paths for him before. It was often Daruk; his goron companion, that led the charge. Link admired his bravery and commitment to protecting the others. Had Daruk been here, he wouldn’t have batted an eye, but he and the others were behind the hero, holding off what forces of evil remained in the castle. They were likely working well together, killing beasts and saving those that remained.

However, he too had been entrusted to save people, running ahead as an opening in the combat presented itself, he had followed the destruction and the beasts that ran to the fight. He fought his way forward, valiantly destroying each evil being with every strike of his holy weapon. But now, after all of the running and fighting he stood before the massive doors of the throne room, his breath catching in his throat, his lungs burning, and his shield arm sagging. It had been a long day, and there weren’t many of them storming the castle. Many soldiers perished in the attack of the mad mage, a creature that... until a few days ago, had been their most terrible adversary.
The mage fell during the day of the initial attack, not that the hero had been there to see... but as he had been told, the creature fell, cackling omens of another master. This master was fortified against, they added more rotations of guards, armed the battlements, crafted more weapons. But it had not been enough, the master had found a way in behind their lines, and now he was behind the great door that Link stood before.

He looked behind him, then forward again. There was quiet, save for the distant sounds of fighting. He had a moment before he entered, so he leaned against the wall next to the door. He had to be in the best shape for this next part. Unsure of what to expect, he needed to be ready- so, he slid his shield back onto his back and after shaking the tension from his arm, he reached into a pouch on his side. Link didn’t have much on him, he had a bow and some arrows, the sword that seals the darkness, his shield, and the potion bottle that he retrieved from the pouch. He pulled the cork from it with his teeth and spat it to the ground, then downed the potion as quickly as possible, with drips of the red liquid slipping out from the corners of his mouth and dripping down his chin.

With a quick wipe of his chin he felt stronger, revitalised, and ready to fight. Re-equipping his shield the hero pushed the doors open and entered into the massive chamber ahead. The room was an impressive sight to behold; with lofty ceilings housing a beautiful and ornate chandelier that the hero was surprised remained unbroken. Long and elegant drapery hung along the walls and framed the massive windows. The light that filtered through the stained windows was dim and cool, it lit just enough for Link to see the shape of the princess sitting on her throne, as demure as he remembered.

The hero stepped forward cautiously, peering around the room as he held his sword at the ready. With each step he surveyed the area, he moved toward the princess and with reverence and as much decorum as the dishevelled soldier could muster. He spoke to her as calmly as he could, asking her to come with him. However, when she had failed to give him a response, he urged her to come with him for her safety. Though, upon receiving no answer once again, he stepped closer to the princess, witnessing fear in her wide eyes as she sat bound to the throne and gagged with rope. The hero, as cunning as ever, took no more than a moment to realize the trap that he had fallen into. He turned around, just in time to see the door be closed by a figure cloaked in shadow. The hero grimaced and stared into the darkness, stepping back so that both the princess and the figure were within his line of sight.

Link took a swing to the rope that bound the princess’s right hand, the sword briefly lodging itself into the throne as the darkened figure began his approach, slow and steady as a creeping frost. With her hand free the princess began to pull at the rope binding the other. The hero stood in front of her- his charge was to protect her, to save her, and he would do so if it meant his life.

 

Yet another BrAvE~ soldier come to die by my blade.” the shadow growled from across the room, his figure slowly coming into view. The master lumbered forward, each step heavy as he carried a great-sword upon his shoulder. He loudly cracked his neck. The man was massive, if he even was a man and not a beast; he stood at least seven feet tall and towered over both Link and the princess. His eyes glowed like hot coals and his hair was long and fiery red like a lynel’s mane. Had the giant not spoken, had the hero not known better, Link could have mistaken the intruder for such a fearsome creature. But this was no mere beast, at least not in the traditional sense, for what human would begin such senseless slaughter...with levels of rage and bloodthirst that were so high they could be felt in his gaze. It was easy to mistake him for something more wild and dangerous.

The hero was stoic in his silence, not giving the villain the satisfaction of a reply, he steadied his blade and his breath. “Yet another foolish boy who fancies himself as a hero... tsk, I’ll make this quick.” The giant lunged at the hero, his movements much faster than his body would lead one to believe. Link focused in, staying still until the last possible moment as he had been taught- then, he swerved to the left, using his shield to parry the attack away from his body. Now, the man was strong but, in using his momentum against him, Link just managed to twist his attack out of the way and send his blade curving away from the princess, thus causing him to stumble. The hero swiped at his opponent but only just fell short, with his blade catching and slicing through the cape that trailed behind.

 

The villain turned and paused, swinging his sword out to point in the direction of the hero. “You were taught by a Gerudo- that was the Naborian parry...” Link could barely see the grin that slowly pulled across the man’s face, but he managed to feel it more than anything. The villain side stepped. “Heh, this might not be as disappointing as I expected.”

The hero valiantly ran toward the villain, and their steel clashed against steel as they glided around the room in a terrible dance of death. With each slash and step the two impressive swordsmen were intensely focused on their craft, for one wrong move and the other would meet their end. However, with the hero’s focus on the blade work he hadn’t realised that his steps were being guided. Not until his back hit the nearest wall. His eyes went wide as he watched the massive blade come down toward his crown. He slid away, catching the blade with his as he attempted to parry. His arms shook as he defended against the man, but Link saw not a sweat of desperation on his brow. Link gritted his teeth, holding as steady as he could, his arms burning and his legs shaking. Then his grip slipped, letting the sword clatter to the ground and the dastardly blade to sink into his hip joint.

The hero cried out in pain and fell to the floor. The villain pulled his blade up and out of the wound, spraying blood across the wall behind him. Link, now collapsed on the ground, reached for his blade in a desperate attempt to save his own life for the sake of the princess, however he could feel that the man would execute him at any moment. Link took a breath, his sword just out of reach before he heard a deep, bellowing scream. Looking up, the hero saw the giant, gripping his side, and pulling an arrow  glowing with light, free from his form. The hero knew what he had to do, his fingers grabbing onto the hilt of his sword, he watched the man snap the arrow in two.

WHY YOU LITTLE-”

 

The princess stood behind him holding a glowing golden bow, she notched another arrow, and loosed it into his back, causing him to yell out again. He turned to look at her, and in seeing he was distracted, the hero drove his sword up into the villain’s sternum.

***

Notes:

Sorry this is so late all, pain is kicking my ass.
Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, and happy holidays to everyone else. <3

Chapter 8: Freedom

Summary:

The heroine deals with the consequences of curiosity.

Chapter Text

The dreamer gripped the pedestal in fear. Usually she would pull away and run from such a terrifying churning and rumbling to save herself from the pain that followed such terrific sounds; however, the ground shook beneath her and with that her legs refused to move. What used to be the cave crumbled down around her and became nothing but rubble. She felt whatever this mechanical beast was beneath her, as it moved up and up- taking her with it, which once again made her hold on for dear life, the claws of the left hand she possessed scratching and scraping helplessly at the surface until she came to a sudden stop.

She cautiously pulled away from the pedestal before scrambling farther from it and to her feet. She wandered out from the centre of the structure and grabbed a hold of a rail that had previously been hidden by rock and dirt. She leaned upon it, and once she was sure that it felt solid enough, she looked up and admired the world beyond in wonder, as she had many times before. However, this time she didn’t have to be huddled up as a shield from the cold, or hyper aware of monsters slowly approaching. This time, Dreamer could see out into the vast wilds before her, once again enamoured by the beautiful green which drew her in so many days ago. The wind whipped at her hair and clothes but the cool air seemed to take the fear from her, if only for a moment. She laughed with relief as the anxiety left her and she revelled in the fact that she continued to live. There wasn’t a beast beneath her feet, there was only a tower, a tall tower, but she was alive.

 

I’m alive you fuckers!

She thought. Wishing to shout it into the wind, but all that could escape her was her laughter. She looked out into the world, a world she would explore some day when the old man didn’t need her any longer. She would conquer it. She laughed again, and looked from the mountains to the valleys to the -to the volcano to the other mountains. She blinked. Mountain, volcano,-, valley, mountains.

Mountain, valley, -, volcano, mountain.

Mountain, volcano, -, valley, mountain.

Mountain, Valley...Volcano- no

no no. That... there were too many plains in the centre, that wasn’t right.

Valley...Volcano

Valley...Volcano

Valley...Volcano

Valley...Volcano

Valley...Volcano

Volcano...Valley

Volcano... Valley

Vol-CASTLE.

 

Dreamer stumbled back as she saw it, as if it was folded into the fabric of the universe only to pop out just to scare her. She screamed. The fear returned with a fiery passion. She scanned the horizon and there it stood, massive, impressive, and vile; like it had been there her whole life along with dozens of towers that began to rise up in the same way hers had. She swallowed hard. She broke something. She fucked up. She had to tell the old man. She looked for an exit from this place, a ladder or something. But whoever designed such archaic architecture didn’t approve of the average person being able to climb up or down. There were instead platforms leading downward. Luckily she had learned from the old man how to take a tumble. So, fuelled by the terror of her broken world, she leaped down and tumbled onto the platform, nearly sliding off in the process, clawing at the surface as she caught her breath. She looked down, hoping for another platform nearby, and before she had more time to process her fear she let go, falling with a harsh thud onto another platform. Then another and another til she hit the ground, and almost immediately began to run as fast as her legs could carry her, stumbling out of the reach of beasts that attempted to give chase only to give up when she didn’t stop. She wouldn’t stop, she couldn’t until dinner was cooking on the fire and the old man had her fresh kill on the table.

 

She slammed the cabin door open in hopes to get a light scolding from her friend, only to find he was not there. Nor was he out among the trees, or by the fire. She dropped the boar on the floor and approached the table, seeing his writing implements scattered about and a page torn from his journal. She knew it wasn’t her business to look through his things as he had scolded her one too many times. However she did notice that this was addressed to her.

The letter read:

Girl.

Meet me at the statue in the old cathedral whenever you get back.”

 

She had just run by there. How long had he been waiting? What if it had been overrun by bokoblins, would he be alright? She grabbed his axe and yanked it from the stump it had been lodged in, placing it on her back with her sword. He left it behind, how had he left it and gone to the cathedral all on his own? Damn idiot. Not that she could or would ever call him that to his face. She pulled the lid from the pot as well, believing it’d make a good defence if she needed. Then she ran.

Booking it to the temple of time, she felt no fear for her own safety, as it was overshadowed by her fear for his. She ran in through the front, her sword in hand as she attacked the wild creatures that inhabited it head on. She swung precisely and moved wildly, trying her best to disorient the monsters. She had to be sure that none would hurt her or the man. She had to clear it out. She had to save him. She had to save her friend.


Then...when she had done her work, there was quiet.

 

There was silence in the cathedral, all but her heaving breaths. She walked in cautiously, seeing no signs of the old man, alive or dead. Not even leaving a puddle of goo to where he may have exploded on the floor. She searched nonetheless, and as she walked around the scattered rubble and approached the statue she could almost hear whispers of the past residents who visited here; mumbled prayers to goddesses about trivial things, wishes, dreams, and screams of terror. She hummed a lilting tune trying to block out these thoughts, closing her eyes as she stopped in front of the large winged statue. She lifted her head, opening her eyes again as all the sound ceased, the woman was bathed in light, her hands clasped together, her wings relaxed and her face-. The dreamer remembered that face, though she couldn’t place it. It was peaceful, at rest, and smiling softly. She remembered the face smiling- but not like that, it was wider, happier, smaller, she blinked hard.

 

Wonderful, yet another mystery to uncover.

Dreamer waited for a moment, then another, looking for her friend, wondering if he had made it here, wondering. She sat at the feet of the woman, her back pressing against her dress as she looked toward the door of the cathedral. She folded her hands in her lap and sighed. Closing her eyes once more she pursed her lips.

Goddess, please protect the friend of mine should he still live, and should he not please reveal where he is to me. Let me put him to rest.

 

She mumbled the words, and as she did so she could have sworn she felt lighter. As though a heavy burden was lifted from her shoulders, but she carried no pack, she had her weapons and that was all. But she felt less tired. She felt better in fact, as though she was stronger. But perhaps that was just how the act of prayer made her feel. Maybe she had been religious in her life? Though the fact she couldn’t remember who she was praying to would be a bit upsetting if that was the case.

When she finished, she shook her shoulder and gripped the hand closed; on opening her eyes she saw that phantom hand, and the metal hand had begun to ache again. She sat up, pulling away from the statue, trying to shake the pain out of the limb when she heard his voice calling to her from above.

Looking up, she saw her friend, his bushy beard visible even at this distance. He stood up in the old bell tower of the cathedral and waved at her. How did he manage that? He was so old, he kept giving her more and more tasks to do, she thought he was frail... but there he was, having climbed up to such a height with no assistance. She wanted to ask, but before she could attempt to make a sound she heard him, “GIRL, GET UP HERE! I HAVE SOMETHING FOR YOU.”

Before she could even look confused, he disappeared from her vision.

So, she rose to her feet, and jumped through a vacant window, then began to climb up the side of the building, and up the ruined bell tower. With the arm, it was easier, but her hand did slip on some weak bricks that she nearly pulled out of place. As she pulled herself up through the collapsed section of the tower, she came upon the old man. Out of breath again she smiled and went to approach him, only for him to hold up a hand for her to stop. She furrowed her brow at him and he looked down at her with a cold gaze. He sighed.

 

Well, what is it then?

She thought, starting to look frustrated, and a bit angry, crossing her arms over her chest.

 

“I am not long for this world, Girl... my spirit is fading.”


Dreamer dropped her previously grumpy expression and picked up a terrified one as her eyes went wide, she once again began to approach before he stopped her again. He was old, sure, but how could he say that? He managed to get up here, he took her hunting, he chopped trees. He didn’t look like he was on death’s door. She opened her mouth but he began to speak again.

“It is time to listen now, there is no time for us to fight on this. Please.” That made her stop, he never said please to her, she just stared at him as he stared past her. “I am far older than I appear to be, child, and I have been waiting for you to emerge from that cave for well over 100 years. You have a grave duty, as do I.” he sighed again, staring out into the world as the Dreamer often did before changing his train of thought.

“There was once a brave hero that had a grave duty as we do now. They were meant to bring peace to the land before you. But they failed. You are meant to take up their mantle and defeat the evil that was left behind.” he paused, and she let out a nervous chuckle. Her? She was meant to save the world. Perhaps he had lost it, maybe he was dying and his mind was the first to go. “The monstrous statues you saw below were created by an ancient civilization, they were possessed by an evil force, they were meant to protect us... Hilde... she helped them.”

You're not making any sense old man...

He still wasn’t looking at Dreamer, but she looked at him, she stared, watching his face, when she saw movement on his hand. She looked down at it, watching the skin calcify and crumble away leaving bright green light in its place. The dreamer felt her fear rise in her chest, her eyes began to burn, she reached for his other hand, and as it crumbled in her grasp she stepped away in horror. One by one his limbs crumbled away, and his clothes fell to the ground, cracking and crumbling to dust.

She screamed, and the man looked at her with sympathy, his eyes wide as he realized what was happening. He spoke but his mouth didn’t move, with the flesh turning to stone as it began to crack, “I have less time than I thought, shit.” The woman's horrified expression remained. “I borrowed this body, a friend of mine allowed me to use his when I passed so that I may proceed with my duty.” he blinked and his face cracked further. “his spirit is long gone, but mine remains, for now. I’ve completed my duty, I’ve prepared you. But I’m not ready to go – my dear.” the mask of his face fell as one and landed on the ground, smashing into dust.

Dreamer watched it fall, barely able to focus through her frightened tears. Then she looked back at him. To whoever this was. This ... spirit?

Before the woman stood an older man, younger than the man who fell before her. He also had a beard, and long greying hair, he wore ornate blue and gold robes, and a strange gold and blue metal hat. His body was larger than the old man’s, and it floated half a foot off of the ground. He looked at his hands, spectral, glowing with green light. Green flames circling his form. She could see through him, she wanted to throw up. Tears ran down her cheeks and her hands shook, her whole body shook. She knew that she broke the world. Her world.

He looked down his nose at her, with those cold, unsettling eyes. “My name is King Rhoam Bosphoramus Hyrule, and I used to rule this land.”

 

The dreamer sobbed, but felt her head jerked up to look him in the eyes, “Believe me when I say that I am still the man who trained you. Do not hold onto the form that I have taken, be glad that I hold you high in my esteem...I-”

The dreamer’s lip trembled as she looked at him.

 “I need you to heed my instructions, do you understand?” slowly and through sobbing breaths, the girl nodded. “Good. You will go there.” He pointed east, toward a mountain cleaved in two by the gods, “Past the duelling peaks, to a place called Kakariko village. There you will seek out an elder named Impa, she is the chief. She will explain things further.” he looked down at his floating body, whose light began to fade. He looked to her face again, eyes softening in the way they often did when she did well; there was kindness in them, and there was sympathy. There he was. There was her friend.

“Don’t worry about me girl,” he smiled slightly, “my spirit will be freed, and I have hope that I can join my wife and daughters wherever I land... you are so much like those girls- though much more capable.” he chuckled, though she could see the sadness in his eyes. “I left something for you. You'll find it in the chest behind you. I don’t wish to leave your side, but we all must do things we dislike for the greater good. You have to save Hyrule, for yourself, for everyone... Lina.” he opened his mouth to say more before simply nodding and his light faded away, leaving nothing but dust, which quickly blew off in a breeze.

Lina fell to her knees crying and scrambling to scrape up any dust, unsure what to do with this painful aching in her chest. She screamed, and wailed; just managing to gasp out shrieks as she saw the dust blow off of the bell tower and into the world. Her throat burned from screaming, from crying, but she couldn’t stop, her shoulders shook as she scratched grooves into the wooden floors, drooling and dripping tears onto it.

 

NooOoOoOoO!!!! DoNt leAVE Mee!” She croaked, the words far more sharp than the screams, piercing the night air with their ferocity.

Chapter 9: Close Encounters

Summary:

Lina takes a leap of faith on her way to Kakariko Village.

Chapter Text

Lina’s eyes were stinging, her lungs were burning and she had focused on her breathing. It took time to slow it down, to calm herself, to get up and stop praying for her friend to return. He was the first one she met and the first she’d lost. He taught her much, he healed her, he was there... or he used to be there. So she supposed that she would have to do what he asked, if only because she respected him too much not to.

She ran her hand up through her bangs, pushing them out of her face and wiping her tear stained cheeks. With great effort she shifted her weight and hoisted herself up to her feet. She had to focus, she could not wallow for longer, for the sun had nearly risen again. Lina stared out into the world; sure she had dreamed about flying away – of adventuring, but she didn’t know if she was ready. She didn’t know if she could handle what lay beyond the plateau. Fear churned like a witch’s cauldron in her stomach so she took a deep breath. She held it in, hoping that this would clear her mind, before turning and opening the chest as she let out her breath.

 

Before her was a strange contraption, made from wood, fabric and rope. She shifted her grip on the object and turned it in her hand. She stared at it, studying it... before recognizing it from the sketches she saw in the old man’s journal a lifetime ago. He called it a “paraglider”... the sketches showed a person hanging onto it while in the sky... she’d thought it had just been make-believe, but with it in her hands now, she wondered if he could have peered into her mind while she slept and seen her dreams of flight. She smiled sombrely; knowing that he knew her better than she ever thought, before gripping it the way she saw in the guides, and after some reasonable hesitation she leaped from the top of the bell tower.

She had everything she needed for travel on her person, having been on a hunting trip not long before any of this occurred, so she had food and water, and weaponry. Sure she left a boar at the cabin, but she knew that if she were to have gone back there now, she was unlikely to leave it for the foreseeable future. She had nothing left for her back there, and though she lived on this land for as long as she could remember, nothing truly tied her here. Nothing but her memories, which she kept tucked away in her mind. So, as she felt the wind rush by her and her hands grip tightly to the wooden supports of the glider, she felt free. She was flying.

 

She glided down to the ground and ran to the nearest edge of the ruined wall and cliff face that had kept her from the world all this time. She ran to the edge as quickly as her legs would let her, there was no looking back, only the push to continue. Lina could not hesitate lest the feeling anchor her to this land. Movement was what she had, what she needed in the moment, not as much as her need for her friend but it would have to do. She looked forward and leaped off of the edge.

She cut through the wind so fast it flung her hair back, she felt its force push against her face as if it didn’t want her to persevere, and yet she kept on down through the air. She couldn’t turn back; it was too far away and too high up. The cliff face had a facade made by man, it was the size of mountains, and far too tall and sheer for someone without a metal arm to climb. She wondered how people of the past managed to make it up there to make their prayers, or to live... if they lived there. She saw no stairs, just ruined walls. It was so high that should Lina have looked back and down for long enough she would have likely gained a strong feeling of vertigo. She kept the feeling at bay by simply not looking down, which wasn’t the worst idea, had she not been running out of steam.

Despite this fact she landed quite gracefully – by letting her grip falter and falling a little too hard to the ground, while letting her glider land quite harmlessly in a bush – however, she somehow managed to twist her ankle.

Grumbling, she limped over to the now fallen glider and folded it away, before starting on her way toward this “Kakariko village.” It was much farther away than she initially assumed, but with her body failing her as it often did she wouldn’t be able to make it there quickly. Now on the ground, she felt considerably more exposed and suddenly felt very small. She crouched by the bush and looked over to the split mountain peaks. It would be hard for her to lose her way there since there was an obvious landmark. She cupped her hands and placed them over her eyes like binoculars or spectacles, and looked in that direction. Her vision was drawn out and pulled in much closer as though she was in fact looking through some sort of magnifier.

She pulled her hands away and looked at them in disbelief, then back at the horizon. It returned to being distant. She blinked confusedly for a moment, before figuring that she didn’t need any more questions to have to answer in her future.

She looked through her hand-magnifiers again and gazed upon peaks. “there.” she said softly before in the blink of her eyes, she saw a light flash over her vision and a red beacon shot up from the mountain top. She looked around her as if to find the person who was playing a joke on her before looking back, the beacon remained. She had no idea how she was even meant to question that, or understand  the reality of it happening before her eyes. But it was fine, this was fine, she just had to stroll across the plains until she made it to a village. No problem. She began to stride through the long grass, the sweet smell of plants surrounding her. The grass was new. It was hers to experience, to enjoy. She had no idea why she had been scared.

Perhaps it had only been the idea of what lay below the plateau that intrigued her, because right now it just looked like an extension of the world she knew. Though, with that said, the limitless potential of the land around her was overwhelming. Should she get too overwhelmed, she could easily go back, or she felt like she could. The means were in her grasp somehow, she would just have to figure out what sequence would need to be broken in order for her to do so. But she couldn’t now, for her loyalty to the old man... to this “King Rhoam”... remained, despite him no longer existing.

In fact he wasn’t even who she knew him to be, how could her loyalty lie with him? How could he lie to her like that? He couldn’t just be honest about who he was, or who she was? Then again, who was she? The dreamer. Some great “Hero”. Lina? It felt weird. Not bad, just weird. Going so long without a name was weirder still, and just going by “girl”. GIRL? He could not have even bothered to give her a name before?! Damn it she was mad, he made her mad. And yet she kept doing what he asked. Why? Why could this terrible man-spirit who called himself a king just tell her what to do? Why did she listen to his orders?

It was safe to assume that it was a compulsion. Such a nasty horrible thing she must have kept from her past life. She had to help him, despite him being dead. He was dead. And her duty to him was inevitable.



Maybe he was right though? Maybe she was a hero. Even though she was consistently terrified and avoided fighting.

This wasn’t her.

She couldn’t be that, she just wanted to complete his last request.

And Lina was her name. She would take it, as a last gift from the old man. But there was still no time for this, at least, that is what she thought.

 

She had to get moving. She couldn’t stop.

Her mind kept repeating that, despite her feet already moving beneath her, fuelled by her anger.

 

Walking through the open field, Lina was acutely aware of her surroundings. Moving like a predator all the while feeling like she was prey. She could not take the path, knowing that if she was spotted further in the open she wouldn’t be able to outrun her enemies. She would have preferred a thick treeline, but instead she stuck wherever there was long grass.

However, the discomfort she felt brought her heightened awareness, which she found to be the most useful, despite feeling exposed. And she quickly came to appreciate her decided path as she passed ruins that an old road passed through, she began to get closer out of curiosity when the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and she crouched down in the grass. Peering out with wide eyes, and her heart beating out of her chest. As she watched a large shape lumber its way out from the shadow of the ruins and sniff the air.

Were you to ask Lina to describe what exposed itself from its hiding place, she would have few words to describe the creature. However, there would be reference to an “elongated bokoblin”, which despite its accuracy it would not be an entirely apt description of the creature. At least not in a way that would properly capture the utter horror and disgust that Lina felt when gazing upon it from her hiding place. This creature stood around 7 feet tall, hunched. With an extra 2 feet in the singular, twisting, unicorn-like horn sticking out of its head. The nose was long like the muzzle of a dog but with the very front point of a pig snout on its end, which in many circumstances could be cute, but if you took it by the nostrils and pulled it farther and farther incrementally for months until it stuck out and hung limply on the end, you would understand the discomfort that its appearance left upon its viewer.

Its mouth hung open as it sniffed the air, its dripping blue tongue lolling out between the large gaps in the teeth it had left. It had the same cloudy blue eyes as the bokoblins, but it was much skinnier, and with more visible muscle than their smaller counterparts, with the same dark sunburned skin; though much more red, and leathery. It had gnarly long nails on both fingers and toes, and its hands dragged along the ground as it searched for something. Her perhaps?

She shrunk away from it, holding her breath as she watched it look in her general direction, scanning the horizon for movement, sound, or smell. Lina hoped that the grass hid her scent, or that they (unlike the dogs or pigs they were compared to) had a terrible sense of smell. She could have sworn for a moment that the cold blue eyes of the thing met hers, they focused on where she laid in the grass for too long not to be. She bit her tongue, willing herself to be quiet and run... before watching the creature turn away and head back into the ruins, dragging its weapon behind it as it plucked a piece of bloody meat from its teeth.

With her eyes locked on where the creature disappeared, she started crawling away through the grass, only briefly glancing in the direction she was headed until she was sure it wouldn’t come after her. When she was sure, she turned her head, and looking upon the horizon her heart did not calm. Walking on their own across the plains she saw more of the beasts shambling, looking for food.

 

She held her breath, if she was quiet enough they might not notice her. So intermittently remembering to breathe, she gave the monsters a wide berth and moved as stealthily as possible across the plains, lurking in the tall grass and hoping to hell that she wouldn’t be seen and devoured.

As she passed by she couldn’t help but wonder if the drooling, bloodied creatures considered her; or anything for that matter before they decided to turn who or whatever was nearby into a meal. Or were they just mindless creations, crafted by the hands of some fucked up god. What sort of mind would create such a beast? She wondered. And why make them want to consume and destroy people? What had people ever done to them?

As she passed particularly close to one of the beasts, she heard no sounds from it other than deep rumbling snorts and the wet slurp of it sucking the marrow from damp bones. She simply hoped they wouldn’t see her as their next meal. So she kept moving as fast as she could.


 

It took time, a lot of time, most of the day in fact. Walking or creeping slowly, until finally these creatures were nowhere near and she could pop her head out from the tall grass. She gripped her sword tightly as she did, ready to attack if she had misjudged her surroundings. And to her dismay along the road, in the middle distance she saw clusters of the pig things dancing, eating, and fighting. She shrunk back down.

Sure she could take down one of them, with the camps not often taking that much out of her, and if she went to one of the ones with a spit over a fire, there was a chance she’d get a hot meal out of it. But with that many she was sure to get seriously hurt. She started to plan a way out of there, either around or through, when she heard a new sound. It wasn’t something good but it sounded like when she tossed rocks into other rocks. Peering out just a bit let her catch a glimpse of another terrifying beast, and a human riding upon its back. The human looked simple and tired, and he kept going forward, whistling a tune off key. Behind him on a rope was a smaller- less scary creature that was covered in bags and sacks, both creatures had ears that flicked back and forth and seemed to be strapped down to protect the man from them.

He wasn’t paying attention, perhaps he needed sleep, because he failed to notice her. However, that wasn’t on him alone as both failed to notice some of the lingering dangers ahead, the creature he rode on however, did. There, in the grass were lurking dangers. Before anyone could react, two of the ravenous little pig men jumped out of the same grass that Lina sat in and swung their weapons at the man and his two beasts. They smacked the creature with a club, causing it to rear up and the man to fall off its back. The smaller hoofed creature -getting spooked in the commotion- ran as well, but not nearly as far.

 

Seeing the man get hurt flipped a switch in Lina’s brain, before she could even think she leaped out from her hiding spot and drew her sword on the pig men. The first one was the easiest for her to take out, a few slashes to the back and it was nothing more than a puddle of black ichor. The second one had heard its compatriot being harmed and turned to it’s assailant. Having landed a hit or two on the man it was primed for a fight. It took its club in its hand and swung down at Lina’s head, knocking her to the ground. It slammed the chunk of wood into her ribs as she tried to recover from the concussive blow that crumpled her. As it swung down a third time, she rolled out of the way, nearly getting struck. She raised her sword before rolling aside again, just narrowly avoiding another attack. The monster screamed in her face out of anger or frustration. Its breath alone could have knocked her out, hitting her with the smell of rotten meat. She wanted to be sick, but in this moment her body realized that the creature left itself open. She drove her blade into the chin of the beast and watched as the ichor ran down. The monster struggled, then crumpled and fell on top of her.

Grumbling out of disgust and pain she shoved the body off of her and shuddered as it melted into goo. Rubbing the back of her head she turned her attention to the man she tried to help, and upon seeing him groaning on the ground she realized that he must be quite hurt. She looked for the man’s creatures, the larger one was nowhere to be seen which Lina was glad for, but the second was only a little ways away. So she approached the creature as calmly as she could. She raised her hands to it in surrender and heard it let out a raspy scream. Lina fell backward, holding her hands up in front of her face as she waited to be mauled by the creature. But the strange beast looked at her as if she was the strange one. She slowly got back to her feet and hesitantly grabbed a hold of the rope that was tied around it, and carefully brought it over to the man. It seemed gentle, calm, she could handle it.

She stopped the hoofed beast in front of the man and hoisted him up onto his pet’s back using the arm. Then, she guided them off of the road and set up a small campsite in a circle of low grass. She hoisted the man back down onto the ground, tying the hoofed thing to a large rock, and tended their wounds. He seemed tired; drowsy and quiet, she watched him, and he watched her for a time, til his eyes began to close against his will. She let him sleep.

 

She sat back, her back against a large rock and took a breath. Her legs ached from crouching that whole way, however long that was. She stretched her legs as she looked up at the sky, beautiful... still light but the sun was close to the horizon. There was no rest for the wicked, and less so for the kind, she rose to her feet again, though her bones creaked and groaned with the movement. She took to gathering some materials for a fire while still keeping a low profile, she picked stray sticks from the ground and tried to find any dry wood to keep from creating too much smoke and drawing monsters to their location. She built it carefully and, though it was small, it would keep them warm throughout the night.

She kept it tended as the day turned to night, keeping an eye on the pet and the man, making sure that he wasn’t in too much pain. She tried to do what the old man did, though she wasn’t sure she could emulate the unconcealed disdain when it came to having to make sure her stitches were closed. So instead she just watched him while he slept. And he slept funny, like in the way you would imagine a sickly child would. Although he was in fact injured, she found that he looked exceptionally frail in this state, not to mention he held his mouth open like one of those large sunburnt creatures. No sound left his mouth though, she wondered if he slept like that often, and how often did he swallow an insect. The thought disturbed her, so naturally she tried to shut his mouth. Only for it to open again only a moment later.

Well, if he ate a bug it wasn’t going to be her fault.

As night enveloped them, Lina laid back in the grass. She hadn’t often laid outside during the night. The old man encouraged her to find a place to rest, or to simply sleep in the cabin. But she had camped in the snow which was cold, but her friend made sure she didn’t freeze.

 

Lina looked up at the moon and stars above her and thought of the void from all those weeks ago... she missed its embrace, its warmth. She closed her eyes, trying her best to avoid the feeling, to avoid the regret. Then she heard a bell. A little ringing bell in the back of her mind.

At first she tried to ignore it, to hold it back from her conscious mind as she tried to rest, to sleep. But as it persisted, ever consistent and annoying she found herself rising up and opening her eyes again. The world around her began as a dark expanse, before she blinked again and in doing so her world began to glow blue. She thought the moon had gotten quite a bit brighter, but who was she to judge? She heard the bell ring and ring behind her, a chime that cried out for her attention, so... for the sake of her rest, she turned toward it.

There was no errant bell ringer behind her, however in the distance, in the midst of a small lake, a tower stood. Another tower. The things which had brought her much trouble in the last day or so. She wanted to lay back down, to roll over and go to sleep. But when she noticed the bell began ringing in the front of her skull she figured there was no escaping it. So she stood, briefly taking into consideration waking the gentleman who slumbered nearby, so he could also take watch. Perhaps it would have been safer. But considering his pet was a terrifying hoof beast, she was sure that he would be fine.

The bell chimed again. So, turning away from the campfire, she began to make her way to the nearby tower.


 

The morning dew dripped off of the blades of grass and puddled on the ground nearby, the air was cool and full of mist as dawn broke upon the plains. The man had slept quite soundly that night, though his head and body were a bit battered. He felt the dampness of the morning on his skin and in his bones as he rolled over and searched for his blanket, unfortunately finding nothing but grass. He wasn’t cold, or... not that cold. The dampness from the dew still latched onto the coolness of night, and so too did his body. He shivered, trying his best to roll over and go back to sleep.

This act however, was interrupted by the sound and smell of meat cooking. He rolled back toward the sound and opened his eyes just enough to make out the shape of a person tossing meat and apples into an open flame. He wondered if he should be more concerned than he felt, as, when he saw that he was not being surrounded by monsters he was relieved. He didn’t know this person though, and they could be just as bloodthirsty, after all there were evil people in the world. He couldn’t be too careful.
He would have to try though, and if the worst were to happen he had a sword on him... somewhere.

He opened his eyes more and shifted so he was propped up on his arms, making it clear to his potential captor that he was now awake. He looked at the person in front of him and blinked a few times, to try to fully prove to himself that the person before him was real.

Now, to describe Lina’s physical appearance would be like trying to view a simultaneous sunset and eclipse. Both moments are beautiful, but combined would ruin your vision and be indescribable. That as least is the lens with which our dear damsel is viewing his hero. Lina was tiny. She stood no taller than five foot two, not that she was currently stood. She was, in fact, hunched over the campfire, watching it like a hawk and hardly blinking as she stared into the roaring flames. Physically she was stunning, both positively and negatively. For one, she had the beauty of a dove.

With that said; most people cannot tell if a dove is male or female without much intensive study, which is the exact energy her appearance gave off. Her face was soft, and her eyes were almond shaped and hazel coloured. Her blonde hair danced in strands falling loose from her braids like a golden halo, though a part near the front was bleached a stark white, like all of the pigment was drained from it. Her skin was tanned as though she had spent her life out on the beach, relaxing and enjoying the air. Something about her reminded the man of a fairy, but upon searching he could not find the answers to the questions he was left with on gazing at her.

This all was contrasted by the other factors to her stunning appearance. The first being that her eyes intermittently flashed blue. Not meaning that they were slightly hued blue, they flashed with startlingly bright blue light as she stared into the fire. The same blue light ran through some veins on the left side of her neck and down into what could only be described as a giant guardian death claw. She leaned on it for support as she crouched there, it looked heavy, after all it was made from the parts of a war machine, or that’s what he thought. But he could have been wrong, he was wrong about a lot of things. Not to mention the most concerning thing, that she was covered in wounds, black ichor, and blood.

The blue light pulsed through the arm and up into her eyes, before it faded from her face and she looked over at him, startling him slightly.

 

“Oh!” her voice was hoarse, and her eyes darted between him and the fire. “You’re awake... I wasn’t sure you were going to wake up.” she laughed, which sounded like when you rub the soles of your boots together.

He chuckled awkwardly.

“I made breakfast... I don’t know what you like but we have... meat. And these baked apples.” she picked one up out of the fire with the metal arm and held it out to him.

 

“I- uh... thank you” he said, hesitantly taking the apple from her, before juggling it in his hands til it cooled.

She took one in her hands and took a big bite, quickly regretting it as the hot fruit seemed to burn her tongue. She sucked in cool air to try and lessen the damage. He chuckled again, before eating his apple in silence. He started to remember what happened the day before and upon getting to the part where he was attacked, he realized that this person must have saved him. “Thank you.”

She looked up at him quizzically, a second apple in hand.

 

“You know, for saving me yesterday. I- feel like I would have been fine but, it was kind of you to stop and help me.”

 

“oh- I didn’t see another option. If they took care of you then they would have gotten to me next, besides... they hurt you and scared your friend.” she pointed at his pack mule.

 

“my friend.... that’s an interesting way to put it”

 

“What is your friend?”

 

“Hm?”

 

She kept pointing at the beast. “What is it? The creature. It keeps yelling at me, I don’t know what it wants.”

 

He laughed, before realizing she was seriously asking.

“Oh, that’s Xeva, she is a donkey.” he paused. “Do you not have donkeys where you’re from? I don’t recognize your accent.”

 

“I don’t know, this is the first time I think I have seen one. Or, yesterday was. Is it kind?”

 

“kind?”

 

“It doesn't seem to want to eat people.”

 

“oh- uh, yeah she’s fine, well she’s more than fine. She is one of my closest companions, we travel together a lot. She carries all of my goods-”

 

“That sounds stellar.” Lina said with a smile. “What goods?”

 

“AH! Right, right. Let me properly introduce myself. My name is Cambo, I am a merchant. And I sell some normal groceries for the average person. I tend to travel back between Wetland and Kakariko” he gestured to her as if to indicate that she too was meant to introduce herself. She however did not get the memo.

 

“Kakariko! I am also headed there. Perhaps you could help me find the way?”

 

He looked a bit taken aback before shaking his head jovially. “Well I don’t see why not, since you’ve done so much for me already.”

 

“perfect! Thank you, sincerely.”

 

“... and what, may I ask, is your name?”

 

She paused, taking a moment to collect her thoughts before looking back at him, “You may call me Lina.” Then as casually as pulling out a smoking pipe, she pulled her sword; still dripping with ichor and moved to cut the large piece of meat with it.

 

“WAIT- DON’T DO THAT!”

***

Chapter 10: Make a Difference

Summary:

The Hero heads to Castletown in order to become his training as a knight.

Notes:

You can thank Monty for the majority of title names, as he has come up with most of them

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

That was that for the young hero; having someone come to his town and see him as something other than just a farm hand, --as someone who could make a difference in the world-- made him incredibly happy. He had always thought that he could do more than the work he had been put to his whole life, but this was the first time anyone had given him a chance to. He had always been quite strong, using his farming tools and slingshot to help the other townspeople keep monsters from the village. He was skilled enough when it came to fighting, so much so that he often got into trouble defending his friends and smaller children from bullies. He was told that he’d be able to help his people by protecting them and the kingdom as a soldier and a knight. So, since he had no family there and his friends were few, he decided to leave home and take up the offer. It took little time to pack his things, say his goodbyes, and borrow a horse from the farmer he worked for. But once all of that was done he was ready to leave the little village for the training camp.

 

The camp was located up outside of Western Castletown, an ironic name in his eyes considering it was such a massive city. However, the hero hadn’t seen it in person before, in fact he had not managed to leave the village he was born in until now, so he assumed that those he heard it from were just being overdramatic in their retellings.

The road to the training camp was quite peaceful, after all he kept to himself. Not making a lot of noise and keeping good pace on his horse was key to keeping the monsters off of him. He was glad to have this horse lent to him, having had helped to tame it, he and the creature had formed a bond. It was his duty to make sure such a wild creature wouldn’t cause harm to anyone. But this nature of his meant that Valiant wasn’t all that kind to others, so it was probably safer for him to be taking charge of him. Despite his wild nature, Valiant was a good horse. He was strong and could run like hell if he felt the need, so perhaps he could be a knight with the boy. He could only hope that those in charge would let him keep his horse. They were connected now.

He leaned down and patted the neck of the horse, smiling a little to himself. It turned out that he hadn’t left all of his friends behind. As he looked up, he saw some strange movement ahead; bandits by a wagon down-road.

“Shoot.” he thought, “Now I’ll have to go around them.” However, before he and his horse could change direction he noticed their attention wasn’t focused on him and Valiant, who for all intents and purposes looked quite easy to rob. Instead, they looked to be surrounding another person. This potential victim didn’t look armed and he couldn’t see if they had money as they were dressed simply. That didn’t matter though, he couldn’t just leave them to be harmed.

He flicked the reins and quickly urged Valiant ahead. He couldn’t just sit by and watch harm come to another person, even if they were a stranger. As he approached he saw that the person being surrounded was a young woman, she wore a simple dress with some red trim, and had long white hair tied back out of her face. She stepped backwards, arms up, ready to protect her face from her attackers.

He could not quite hear what they were saying but as he approached he saw the bandits erupt into puffs of red smoke which rose up around the woman. When the smoke cleared the bandits revealed themselves as the secretive and evil Yiga clan. Before they could take another step toward the woman, the young man jumped off of the back of the horse, flipping in the air and on landing got straight to business. He had a simple wooden sword to his name, which was strong but not too sharp. He could not slash at the villains, however, he could hit them quite hard. And so as he came down from his jump he hit one of the Yiga clan in the head, knocking them unconscious with a loud THWACK.

He went after the next, he had heard tell that they moved fast as a strike from a dreaded thunderstorm rod, but with them being surprised he managed to get the jump on them. One after another each of the villains were knocked unconscious, though after three were gone the rest had caught on to the situation. He turned quickly and was just able to block the swing of a sickle toward his head, leaving a deep divot in the wood.

He parried the attack to his left and began to fight against the challenging bandit. Swing after swing he managed to block attacks all the while they were chipping away at his sword. Eventually it was whittled away until it snapped, and as luck would have it the blade managed to curve away from the hero’s leg and into the ground. The boy tumbled back, and the bandit pulled the blade free, raising it to swing down again only for him to falter and drop the blade instead. Falling to the ground with his back riddled with throwing knives.

"But wait, what about the rest?" he asked himself.

The boy looked up from the bandit to the young woman who stood across the way from him, her arm outstretched in a throwing motion. He looked at the unconscious bodies on the ground, however, some of them weren’t breathing. The three that he hadn’t taken care of himself were bleeding on the ground. He looked back up to the young woman with fear in his eyes.

“Be not afraid,” she said, brushing the dirt off of her skirt. “I can handle myself, but I do appreciate your help.”

 

“What are you doing out here alone, with no horse?” he asked urgently.

 

“Plenty of people travel alone... and as I said before- I can handle myself.” she brushed him off.

 

“I can see that.” spoke the boy as Valiant strode cautiously closer.

 

“You’re brave to have done that. Stupid but brave. Let me guess, you’re going to be a knight for the king’s army?”

 

He laughed nervously, “right.”

 

“Then it looks like we’re heading in the same direction. I am bound for the camp as well.”

 

He looked at her, then the bodies, then his horse, thinking that such a warrior would be a formidable ally. “Would you like a ride?

 

“I would be very grateful for one, yes.” she gave him a condescending smile, before stepping over one of the bodies and approaching the boy and his horse. “It’s good to meet you, I am Impa.” He helped her up onto the horse's back before hopping into the saddle himself and setting off for the city.


 

On entering the city, the hero’s eyes went wide with wonder. This was the first time he had seen such an impressively massive city, let alone been in one. The lively streets caught him off guard, hustle and bustle being more than harvest at the farm, he wondered if all the days were this busy. He carefully led Valiant through the streets, doing his best not to trample people who were just going about their business. Which was difficult as he kept getting distracted by things like chickens being sold in stalls or people calling to him to buy things. He was distracted so much that Impa had to keep redirecting his attention. The buildings were all much taller than any he had seen, people were hanging clothes on lines outside of their windows, and people were rushing around as if it was their job to do so. Thankfully the boy had Impa to keep his eyes focused on the road. With her help she guided him through the city to the west end where the training camp was.

 

Upon arriving past the bounds of the camp, Impa spoke up again, “Hey kid, stop here would ya-” He looked over his shoulder as he stopped the horse in front of a fancier looking tent than the rest.

 

“hm?”

 

Impa hopped off of the back of the horse, “Thank you, kid. I’ll see you around.” she smiled and started to walk away before turning around. “oh- by the way, the registration is that way.” She pointed to a shaded table off to the left, then she smiled and walked into the tent leaving him alone out there.

Once she was safely inside the young man approached the registration table, he had someone write down his information then was given a uniform and a bunk. He hurried over there so as to not take too much time since the people there rushed him along, he pulled Valiant along behind him. Leaving his horse outside of the barracks, he took some time to lay his belongings there within the chest. Taking care with each item, he changed into his trainee uniform. Upon exiting, the young man was accosted by a knight, in fancy grieves, who looked quite annoyed.

“IS THIS YOUR HORSE?” the man gestured to Valiant who stood stalwart in the middle of the thoroughfare.

Our hero, not one to lie and not much for words simply shrugged.


“RIGHT. WHAT IS YOUR NAME SON?”

The young man stated his name, which to all known history was Link.

“WELL LINK, YOU JUST EARNED YOURSELF TWO WEEKS OF STABLE MUCKING DUTY”

The boy shrugged again, more than used to it from his time on the farm.

“WANT TO MAKE IT THREE?”

Link shook his head, realizing that he might have made a mistake.

“FOUR WEEKS MUCKING DUTY, NOW GET THAT SORRY EXCUSE FOR A HORSE OUT OF HERE AND TO THE STABLES WHERE IT BLOODY BELONGS.” The man shooed the boy away before heading off to his own affairs.

The hero walked his horse to the stables, a feeling of embarrassment over him. He had been used to keeping his horses wherever they were needed, his village had never been busy enough for him to worry about them being in the way. Now that was something he had to worry about.

He walked to the stables and put Valiant away, making sure he was comfortable and calm all the while. He rolled up his sleeves and got ready to begin mucking out the stalls as he closed Valiant’s gate. However he heard a commotion from outside of the stables, a sharp whinnying paired with several voices yelling and people scattering. He rushed back out of the stables, reaching for a nearby pitchfork but hesitating as he looked toward the sound. He saw a man trying to tame his horse. The beast appearing to be spooked, reared up in a panic. It kicked and whinnied in distress as its carer tried desperately to hold on to the reins.

Other recruits scattered as the hero ran over to help. He hopped up onto the back of the horse, using the nearby corral posts to help himself up, and held on tightly around its neck as it bucked and kicked more. He patted the creature, softly whispering kind words to it until it calmed down. When he was sure it had, he slid off its back and left it to its owner’s care. He leaned against the fence to the horse training ground, catching his breath before collecting himself enough to clean out the stables, when he was approached by someone else. He saw Impa walk up, alongside a beautiful golden haired woman, who was wearing simple yet elegant clothing and a cloak concealing a circlet around her head.

“Your highness, this is the young man who saved my life. Kid... this is princess Zelda, she wanted to make your acquaintance.”

***

Notes:

Also I am so sorry for the late posting... I was flying back from my trip and only got back yesterday.

Chapter 11: Hunter

Chapter Text

The two companions walked along the road toward the twin mountain peaks, after packing up what little they had. It was probably for the best that they had one another, or at least Lina thought so. She was happy to have someone to talk with at least, someone who actually seemed to want to talk to her. Not that she didn’t miss the old man’s personality, in fact, she missed him quite a bit. But how could she talk about it, when the person she would want to talk about it with is the one that was gone. 

"So,” she asked, “is this Kakariko place really dangerous?” she looked at him, the loose hairs from her braid wild in the breeze.

“Not usually” he sighed, “but that is because they are secluded up in the mountains and have all their people trained as armed guards.”

“Really?” her eyes went wide with curiosity.

“Yeah, I heard once that they were supposed to be all trained to fight, but I dunno if that’s true. After all, most towns have guards nowadays... doesn't yours?” he glanced at her, his eyes scanning her expression. Lina shook her head, she couldn’t remember any town. She hadn’t been to one in the time since she had awoken. “Strange,” her companion, Cambo, looked at the ground as he pondered the thought.

“I stayed in a cabin.” she said frankly.

“Ah isolation, I guess that makes sense.” he muttered half to himself, as though he wasn’t entirely convinced that she would hear him, “From what I remember, they used to guard the royal family-”

“Like King Rhoam?”

“King R- yeah sure, some king.” he scratched the back of his neck, “and princess Zelda.”

“Princess Zelda?” She had only remembered the old man talking about Hilde, maybe that was just a nickname. Or maybe he was just a crazy old man ghost... she could have hallucinated. But- no no she wouldn’t think of him as a ghost, she wouldn’t have imagined that. It had only been a day ago, she couldn’t have forgotten it. Then again he might have had more daughters, but she couldn’t quite remember.

“You don't know?” he shot her a surprised look, as though she had said something absurd. “I thought they were super common stories.”

“I haven’t heard a lot of stories.” she pulled her braid down over her shoulder and twisted the end.

“Huh, alright... well, apparently she was a powerful sorceress, who was descended from goddess Hylia... or something. I don’t quite remember, I started tuning out the stories.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, narrowing her eyes in thought as she tried to wrack her brain for any of this information. She knew many things still, she knew her name, and what many things were, mountains, towns, people- she just didn’t know the details. The brush strokes were there but they were all blended together. She just hoped that it didn’t make her seem stupid.

“Oh, well I'm no historian, but all of them seem so far-fetched. And there are so many different- er... do you really not know the stories?”

“I don’t know.”

“Oh. Well I'm not a storyteller, maybe you'll hear some at the stable? Usually it’s to kids so it’s pretty likely”

Lina tensed, “I thought we were going to Kakariko”

He shrugged casually, looking carefully across the nearby river at the many camps of monsters prowling along the way. “It's on the way, and is a good stop for business. Lots of travellers and all that-”

“How long will it take?” she asked, eager to get there faster than he probably intended. She needed to do what the old man asked of her, she needed to find her way there and figure out what she was going to do after she was done.

“I dunno, it'd just be good to rest on an actual bed.” he stretched out his arms and neck as they kept moving, groaning slightly as he did.

“Right... a bed.” She vaguely remembered what that was. With the primary thought being where she slept in the cabin. It was a thin straw mat covered in furs and a blanket. It was more comfortable than the hard dirt ground that was the alternative, but not as much as fresh snow. She wondered what sort of beds he was thinking of, likely the same type she knew but mostly because she couldn’t quite picture anything different.

“And if you want, you can help me sell some of this stuff, I'm pretty good at this consistency thing but you'd have to clean up a little... you still have bl-,” Lina quickly cut him off, putting her blood covered hand in front of his face and shushed him. “what?” he furrowed his brow and side eyed her, his voice harsh but lowered. Silently, Lina held up The Hand and pointed into the river, “There,” she pointed at the reeds lining the sides of the river and crossed over in places standing strong and bending carefully with the water. Cambo looked at it, narrowing his eyes, then turned to face her, “The river?”

He opened his mouth to speak again and as he did Lina grabbed his face with her hand and turned his face back in the direction she was staring. “Watch the reeds.” she muttered as she watched them carefully, and reluctantly Cambo joined her. It was quiet, the wind rushing through the split in the mountains and the water roaring past. The sounds of which drowned out any noise too far away. They were close now, so close that they could see the silhouette of a horse head in the distance, and a plume of smoke coming from it like a beacon. It would not even take long, and here they were standing still, and Lina, impatiently waiting for Cambo to notice- “those reeds aren’t bending.” she muttered.

“tch, all that for some reeds.” he pulled his face out of her grasp and tried to step away.

Lina rolled her eyes, moving around him and his pet “donkey” as he called it, so that she was closer to the river. She wasn’t sure if he heard her correctly, and she was even less sure if he understood that she was uneasy. True she had also been made that way by Xeva, but this felt different. “do you not see it?”

“The reeds, yeah I see the reeds.” Lina looked to the beast and began digging, reaching for the pack “Hey- Hey! What are you-”

“Shh-” she snapped, yanking a pot lid free from his pack and looking over her shoulder to see the reeds move slightly but no more. “There's something in the water.”

“what are you talking about?”

She quickly pulled him down to her height as she whispered succinctly. “The reeds bend with the water,” she gestured with her arm, “but those-” she said, while pointing at the strange reeds that remained still.
“shit.” he sighed, not out of exasperation, but something that Lina couldn’t quite gauge. His eyes widened slightly as he stood behind Xeva, with his back to the northern twin mountain.

 

“What is it?”

Cambo paused, swallowing hard before taking a moment to respond. “How did you see it? It’s camouflaged.”

Lina didn’t answer him, her eyes were locked on that spot, “No. What is it?” she asked again, not out of care for him but out of a desire to know what this hidden creature was, and why it was there before them.

“right... it’s an Octorok,” Octoroks... Lina tried to search her mind for such a creature but every turn it was nothing but emptiness, no appearance, or sound, or smell, just a black expanse and movement. She gripped the handle of the pot lid in the metal claws, trying her best not to break the wood with them “they're in nearly every river... usually I just have to run fast and avoid them if they’re far enough away, but this one is close... they don’t usually stay near this side.”

“What do they do?” Lina’s hushed tone growing still and focused.

“Uh... from what I’ve heard they shoot rocks at people... river rocks. I don’t know what happens next.”

Lina put her hand on the donkey’s pack, “here is the plan, we keep moving quietly. And if it wakes up I’ll keep you safe.”

“With what, that lid?!” he did his best not to get much louder.

“What choice do we have?”

“Be cowards?!”

“Is there another way to Kakariko?”

“No....”

“Then we can’t be cowards now!” the determination radiated through her voice, she tried to keep it from getting too loud and echoing. “We have shit to do.” Lina watched the reeds twitch again, then she briefly broke her focus to look at the shaken Cambo and nod to him as reassuringly as she could given her own appearance.

He nodded his head in return, then did his best to swallow his fear and move ahead on the path, with Lina moving a little behind him and Xeva, whom he could do nothing but trust. They moved quickly and as quietly as they could, all while keeping their eyes on their respective targets. Cambo focused his eyes ahead, pointedly avoiding looking in the direction of the monster, so as to not antagonize it. Lina meanwhile kept her eyes on the strange reeds, she kept her breath steady, and bracing for something like when she held the bow strings in her hunts. She was exposed, she was the prey once again, however she wasn’t alone this time, and she couldn’t use the strange arm to pull herself out of reach and climb up the mountain around the threats. She couldn’t leave him to the wolves... she couldn’t let him be stranded or die. The creature hadn’t moved, they were getting closer to it, step by step. The tension in the air was palpable as they stepped ahead.

It was quiet.

 

At this point on the road, reeds intermittently blocked her sight. With each step she moved ahead, and with them she lost sight of the creature through the rest of the reeds. When she could see again, she scanned the water for the strange reeds again. It took a few glances across the shining surface, the ripples and reflected sunlight keeping her from catching sight of the beast. It wasn’t until a cloud passed overhead that she could see a bit more clearly, and upon catching sight of it she saw, not only the stiff reeds, but below in the deep rushing water, she stared into a pair of bright yellow, gleaming river stones. She hadn’t seen them before, she would have known if she had.

Lina swallowed hard, speaking to Cambo in as hushed of a tone as she could. “On my signal, I need you to run.”

“What? What is it?”

“Shh, I need your trust.” She moved with him still, slowing a little but trying her best to not lose the monster. She watched the shiny yellow pebbles, and watched them blink at her. There was a bubbling that began around the stiff reeds, the water roiling and splashing up from it. It was as though a pot of water was boiling inside the river itself. She could feel the nervous energy that was radiating from Cambo and Xeva, but thankfully the two of them held on, they remained as calm as one could near a boiling river. Then in a flash, a column of water burst up in the boiling area shooting up through the split in the mountain. Lina smacked Xeva on the hindquarters and whistled hard, shooing the others forward quickly, leading her companion to be pulled ahead by his steed.

The water fell down from the sky, the spout dissipating as the impromptu rain soaked the creature’s targets. In its place, hovering at least ten feet in the air was an octorok. She understood what Cambo meant when he said it was camouflaged, the skin of the creature was patterned with blues, greys and browns. The texture looked like the river bed that it had laid in. Dirt and silt dripped down it along with the water which it must have covered itself in to hide better. This creature was about the size of Lina, however it rested much higher in the air. It was slick, not with water as it glistened like a frog in the rain. The stiff reeds stuck up from a bulbous and rubbery head. The stones that she had previously spotted, now shone and sparkled like rounded gemstones underneath the creature’s pronounced brow. It had a large gaping mouth that looked like a much more pliable opening to a spout or bottle, it shifted and sucked in air as it floated up above the water. Around what could only be described as its “face” the being had large bony ridges that pushed up against the flesh, pulling it taught.

Finally, the creature had eight twisting and twitching tentacles that kept moving despite it remaining quite still to her eye. She wondered how such a thing could keep from revealing its position with such appendages. However it would be difficult to see with the rushing water overhead. She watched the creature’s pocked and dimpled skin pull even tighter against the bony protrusions, seeing the mouth pull closed for a moment. Before violently spitting out a large river rock in the direction of the man and his running donkey.

Damn it.

She thought they’d be fast enough but hadn’t realized, he might seem more like the prey here. Lina ran ahead, jumping in front of the man and the donkey, as the river rock landed firmly in her torso. The breath was knocked out of her lungs and she tumbled to the ground. She gasped desperately, pushing the stone off of her chest and rising to her feet again. She bit down on her tongue, holding in grunts and groans as she felt something shift and click in her body. She couldn’t catch her breath, she could barely stand, but as she looked to see if Cambo and Xeva had gotten far enough away, she heard the splashing of water.

She snapped to attention, feeling the river water rain down on her again as she began to move toward her companion and she held the pot lid up in front of her. Another large river stone came flying up at her, but this time she was ready, and ducked her head down behind the pot lid shield, letting the stone strike it. The improvised weapon hit and broke down onto the ground at her feet. Then the creature splashed down into the water. She wasn’t far enough away to avoid its attacks yet. She could try to run when it was down, but it was only seconds before it came back up.

She tried to catch her breath again, but it still ran from her. She stepped back and held her ground. Perhaps she could kill it? Knock it out for future travellers, and let them run far easier. But it was too far in the water. She could not swim and swing her sword, even if she wanted to. Her heart pounded in her ears. She felt her lungs burn and her chest was clicking and creaking. She stopped moving, standing and staring and bracing herself. She had no arrows to shoot, and she only could hope that maybe she could throw one of the shot rocks back at it.

The octorok rose back up out of the water and fired another, much rounder river rock at her shield. As it made contact with it something in her (that wasn’t her ribs) clicked. When the stone hit her shield, she moved the arm thrusting it forward and shoving the stone toward her target. The movement redirected the force of the stone. Like two children hitting a ball back and forth, Lina returned the serve, thrusting the stone back at the creature with as much force as she could muster.

As the stone flew through the air, it hit the octorok in its large, fleshy head. Although it wasn’t returned with nearly as much force as it was initially thrown, the stone pressed into the head and pierced through the skin. The octorok shook and collapsed into the water, limp and dead. Lina watched it, waiting for it to get up once more, but as the body washed up to the shore, she knew it was gone.

Lina gasped as she landed on her knees, choking and gasping as something in her clicked and scraped against each other (this time it was her ribs). Something was broken, goddess... it broke something. The breath would leave her lungs quicker than she could inhale it, but she could not stop despite the pain. She crawled over to the corpse of the monster, its flesh deflated like an old balloon. It looked upsetting. But she inspected it. Something about it called to her, perhaps it was hers now. She was a hunter after all. She picked up the carcass, its slimy skin leaving sticky residue across her skin and clothes as she slung it over her shoulder, holding it by its tentacles. She got back to her feet, groaning and gasping, then finally walked over to Cambo who was much closer to stable now.

Lina trudged toward the building. Tired and in pain, but glad that both of her companions were safe.


 

She walked up to Cambo, with the battered and near broken pot lid and held it out to him.

“Thank you for letting me borrow this,” she choked out.

Cambo turned to look at her, before glancing quickly between the river and the dead octorok that Lina held. “How did you learn how to do that?” he asked, breathlessly.

“I don't know,” she shrugged before wincing, “it just felt right”

He looked at her, his expression was one of fear and admiration, “Well your feeling just saved us.” he laughed nervously. “You should keep trusting your gut, cause it works. But I don't want to do that again.” he paused a bit, shifting on his feet somewhat restless. “Are you sure you weren't trained somewhere?”

“Nowhere I can remember,” she murmured, “I was good at hunting... but I didn't think I would be any good with this...” she gestured to the wooden pot lid and held it out to him again, “here is your lid back.”

Cambo looked at the near broken lid, “uh... thanks” he took it in hand and put it back into Xeva’s pack, trying his best not to break it. Then the two approached the stable. 

 

***

Chapter 12: Valiant

Summary:

Lina makes it to her first ever stable.

Chapter Text

So why are you carrying around that beast?” Cambo asked. He looked over his shoulder at the strangely impish young woman who carried the corpse of the tentacled beast over her shoulder.

Lina was quiet for a moment; she hadn’t quite thought about it, sure she could have left it there to be taken, eaten, or rot but the old man had taught her not to waste much from a kill, even the bones could be made into good tools and this one hadn’t melted yet. “I- could use it,” she said with the certainty of an anxiety-ridden squirrel.

You could use it?” her companion questioned, unsure of if she was at all serious.

There are probably uses for... this, I just need to figure out how to- or what to do with it.” she smiled a little, trying to give off a casual confidence.

You have no idea what to do with it. Do you.” he shook his head. Those words sounded like a question… but he didn’t say them like one.

What could she say to that?

I know nothing as I was likely brought to life a month ago. Born yesterday if you will. I just follow the instincts I have, and you’d probably think that’s absolutely fucking bizarre and leave me.

 

She kept her mouth shut.

 

I see.” he looked off into the distance, hiding his smirk and judgmental eyes from her.

Maybe I can cook it?” she said softly, mostly to herself. To the point that she had thought she said it in her head. In fact, that was what she thought until Cambo actually responded.

Nooo nonononono. You can’t cook monster parts.” he turned to face her with a panicked expression and body-language, reaching his arms out as if to stop her from walking off of a cliff.

Why not?” she tilted her head to the side, like a dog that was confused as to why you took something from their mouth.

You can’t- it makes terrible things.” The look on his face made it clear that he had experienced such, "terrible things".

What sort of terrible things?”

it is... indescribable.” his face went pale and slightly green as it crossed his mind. 

Oh...Then can I eat it as is?” she didn’t actually want to eat it right now, though she would if she needed to. Its slimy texture was not the most appealing to her, especially as she had been carrying it around for some time. She couldn’t tell if she was hungry again or if her clicking ribs were causing her such discomfort.

Oh no. You shouldn’t eat food raw. Especially not... that.” he looked sick again.

Lina furrowed her brow “What? Why...”

Like...” he sighed, beginning to find this topic of conversation to be tedious, “many things are fine like... apples, but meat is not good to eat raw, it makes you sick.”

oh...” Now that she thought about it, she had yet to try raw meat. The old man had cooked most of their meals, and she had cooked for him once he taught her the basics but it hadn’t occurred to her until this conversation that she probably could. But she shouldn't. But she could...

She couldn’t help but be curious now.

 

Dear Hylia, give me strength-" he pinched the bridge of his nose, "Didn’t your mother ever teach you to cook? Or at least not to eat raw food?”

Lina felt a pang in her chest. Something ached... she must have moved wrong, her ribs must have cracked again. But this pain was on the other side of her chest. It wasn’t where she had been hit... and it felt deeper as if something stabbed her in the heart. I don’t have a mother.” she spoke coldly, and with some reluctant comfort. She had said it many times before.  The conversation halted, like flash frozen water. It was as if those words that had been used to break the ice had all been forgotten. There was an odd look on Cambo’s face, a constipated look, and he refused to make eye contact with her. It took a moment before he opened his mouth again.

Then your father-” he spoke, and the ache in her chest was persistent, but it did not get stronger. It was like her missing arm, she still felt the pain but its source wasn’t there. “-didn’t your father teach you?”

...I don’t know... probably.” She knew the old man wasn’t her father, but she knew that she had to have been taught before, not that she could remember. “I know the old man showed me how to make a... uh spicy meat and fish dish.”

Oh yeah! So he must have taught you- and I know that dish... it’s pretty good.” he smiled, though he still didn't look at her, likely having to do with what he said before. He looked down toward his feet and together they walked a little further ahead. Lina looked off into the distance, she had a mother somewhere once, or... or she didn't? it felt like she had one though. and she knew the old man wasn't her father but she had to have one too, right? and she had a feeling that they taught her a lot, they had to have... and since the octorok didn't turn into goop she was sure she could prepare it in some way.

Then this should be edible-” she said softly.

Hylia- please don’t eat the monster!” he cried out in desperation. 

Why do you say that? That’s not my name.”

huh?”

My name is not Hylia.”

No it’s not- it’s the name of a goddess.” he ran his hands through his hair, “The main goddess people worship... I’m surprised you don’t know... I know you lived in a cabin but she has statues all over in case you want to say something to her.”

Hylia... oh! The statues, the ones with the wings?”

yes?”

I’ve seen one of her, I spoke to it and it made me stronger.”

Yeah, I’ve heard that people can feel that way when talking to her. It’s not really my thing but I understand it.”

 

There was another lull in conversation as Lina looked toward the stable that they were quickly approaching. Though they were closer, they weren't close enough. The nearest things to them were spiked wooden barricades pointing outwards around the stable, it was some kind of primitive protective fence. They were staggered in distance around the stable and in frequency, with very few openings, the most major ones being around the roads that led toward it. The main building itself was not the most solid structure, a large tent with wooden supports and the head of a terrifying effigy made out of wood was affixed and balanced atop it. It looked as though it had been there for years, with worn wood and repairs all over it. Around it there were other smaller tents scattered around but it didn’t seem like they were here to stay.

Can you teach me how to cook it- the monster?”

n-no.... it’s monster parts... I- maybe there is someone at the stable but-” he rubbed the back of his neck again as he closed his eyes in hopes that this might soon end.

 

HEY CAMBO!” A man at the front of the stable spotted the two and waved them over. Lina couldn’t quite see him from this distance but he looked to have a moustache. “GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!” he leaned against the wall of the stable and waited. It took them a little while longer to get over to him, walking past the many defensive fences as they did. But as they got closer, the man in front came to greet them all the same. “Cambo you made it, I expected to see you a bit earlier.” he laughed though there was concern in his voice. “Everything okay?”

Rensa! Hello, everything is fine-.”

Glad to see you got here safely, lots of monsters popping up the last few days.” He stroked his moustache as he spoke. The man, who apparently was named Rensa, had dark skin and hair, and wore a strange outfit. At first glance, it looked rather simple until Lina noticed the oddly pointy shape of the hat and the oversized hoofed creatures embroidered on his vest.

Either this is his building or he has a weird love of those odd long mouthed, hoofed, weirdly scary things.

 

Yeah I noticed,” Cambo gently placed a hand to the back of his head, where he had gotten hit by the club before. “I really need some rest. How are you?”

I’m good, I’m good...the boys are doing well, they seem to keep growing up faster and they like being here-” it was at this moment that Lina had lost interest in the conversation. She did not know this man, and he did not know her. There was no need for her to partake in chatter about things so minuscule. So she got distracted, if you could even call it that. Firstly she looked at Xeva and the pack on her back, then the ground drew her attention; she looked at the dirt collecting on her hand-me-down boots and wondered how far she had walked already. How many miles? How much dirt? She found the thought alone to be marvellous. To get more steps on her feet and dirt on the boots. Something about the feeling of travelling was so right, despite her mind telling her that she missed her old friend and wanted to turn back.

She looked back to the river. What would it be like if she followed it? Where would it go? She couldn’t see due to the trees on the horizon, maybe she would have to go over there. Or, to climb up the side of the mountain that the river ran against. Or what was up the side of the mountain she was closer to; if she touched it could she have believed she made it this far. Perhaps she was just imagining it all and still remained up in the bell tower with her old friend, unable to leave his side. But one whiff of the strange scents in the air made her forget her questioning. She heard new sounds and there were new sights to see, she had to experience it all. She wandered from the conversation.

In the mix of these new sounds she heard strange ones, odd sounds that she wasn’t sure if they were quite natural. They were guttural rumblings and cluck-cluck-clucking, like sounds of dragging or hitting a stick against a ridged and hollow log.

They’re creatures- they have to be, it’s not like they’d have monsters around here. Not this nearby with all those fences.

 

She turned toward the sounds, and peered around the tent toward the alien things. There Lina saw the large hoofed monsters that she had initially been quite wary of. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked upon the creatures. There were two larger ones being held there and one donkey. She wondered if there was a way to call them, a name, she would have asked Cambo had he not been occupied with another conversation. She would have asked him before if she had a point of reference, perhaps later?

Yes... perhaps later.

 

So she very calmly and cautiously approached the creatures. They were in some sort of facility, like a wooden prison of sorts, only their heads and necks sticking out with a trough of dried grass in front of them. They were quiet aside from a few huffs. She heard more animal noises as well, the soft clucking came from there... she knew the name of that one... cuckoo- how did she know that? And another that bleated; it took her a second, but once she peered around the wooden prison she remembered that this creature she saw was called a goat. She had a feeling of appreciation toward those animals, perhaps she had always liked goats. Despite this however she was still drawn back to the hoofed creatures.

How in the world did she remember goats and cuckoos but not... whatever this thing was. It wasn’t too scary... not now that she knew Xeva, but something about these creatures made her stomach churn and caused fear to reach its creeping claws into her throat. Despite this she was fuelled by determination, after all she felt partly responsible for her companion losing his last one of these creatures.

The eyes of the creatures were dark, and yet they were not filled with darkness. Skittishness perhaps, but not malice. She approached, closer and closer, trying her best not to startle such strange tall creatures. She held out her hand, though it’d be much safer to use the other metallic appendage, something compelled Lina to touch the beast, to show it some gentleness despite the danger. Would it let her touch it though? Or would such a creature bite at her hand causing her to need to replace the one she still had? She closed her eyes and inched closer until she felt coarse hair in her hand. She opened her eyes, and was far closer than she expected it to be. She was touching the muzzle of a tall white and brown speckled creature, and to her surprise it had not tried to eat her or jump out of the prison to maul her. She stroked the muzzle of the creature and smiled. Perhaps she had no right to be scared of such a creature, it seemed so gentle now that she was close to it... perhaps the two could be friends. Yet she still felt fear, perhaps it wasn’t the creature that caused it, but the anxiety remained.

You’re not supposed to be touching the horses,” a small voice spoke from behind her, causing both Lina and the horse to jump in surprise. She took several steps back from the creature as it kicked up a little and let out a terribly shrill scream. Though she wanted to swing around and hit whoever said the words that ruined the moment she shared with such a beast, her instincts told her not to.

Holy fuck dude! Asshole, nearly gave me a heart attack!

 

She turned quickly -startled by the voices suddenly behind her- but with her body not fully cooperating as it had in moments of danger. Instead due to the speed with which she spun around she felt the weight of the arm overcome her, causing her to wobble and get dragged down to the ground, dropping her kill behind her as she tried to catch herself against the feeder of the beast jail. She saw a small creature staring at her, it looked up at her with a round face and large eyes, dark hair fell down from its hat in stray strands, and it looked at her from close to the ground. Then she saw another, she would have sworn she saw double if it hadn’t been for the fact that she had not yet hit her head… that she could recall. Then again her memory was not what it used to be. Or that was what she assumed. Lina blinked hard, seeing if her eyes would refocus, and when they didn’t seem to need to in any capacity, she tried to comprehend just what she was seeing.

Vehvi?

 

She tilted her head watching the small people that were looking at her. They also wore silly hats and vests, but they looked much better in them. Perhaps it was only because they were wee. But knowing that even children wore such clothing it must have been the current style- she felt a little underdressed, and quite glad for it as she was unsure she could pull off that hat. These were Vehvi... two of them, twice born, twins. She looked both of them over again before speaking. “Horses?”

Do you not know what horses is?”

they are those things behind you!”

Oh, so a stable is a horse prison.

 

are you silly?”

They both spoke to her, their voices small and sweet. They were still quite young, their little faces looking up at her as they waited for her response. Something about vehvi warmed her heart, perhaps it was simply because they were smaller than her, but they made her forget that she had even been startled a moment before. Lina smiled at them, “the silliest.” she replied, “can you tell me about horses?” she shifted her posture, leaning forward and up onto her knees so she could look them both properly in their eyes.

oh yeah, we’re so good at it!”

We've seen dad do it a bazillion times.” The pair looked at her with excitement and pride in their twinkling eyes.

Alright then,” she said with some cheer infused into her tone of voice, attempting to clasp her hands together before finding it a bit uncomfortable but she committed to it despite how awkward it felt, “hit me with it.”

The children each took a step back, looking to each other to make sure they were lined up right. They shuffled and shifted back and forth before putting their hands on their hips and grinning like little devils, ready to steal your soul for the sins of coveting horse knowledge.

WELCOOOOOME-” the twins began, “to the duelling peaks stable! Where we take care of horses for you!” They both pointed and did a prideful wink in her direction.

I am the expert on horsies so I will tell you all of the things,” the one on the right said first. “so horsies are man’s best friend. And they are pretty good for carrying stuff and taking you lots of places”

There are many kinds of horses too!” the other one smiled “there are ones with lots of spots and ones with a few spots and ones that are pretty plain”

but the plain ones are the fastest and best!”

And they are much meaner and scarier”

just a little, but when they’re your friend they are really nice! OOH they also are really good at knowing where to go, and when it’s your friend you can whistle for them and they come running”

We can even help with your horse here at the stable, we can help name them and make them pretty, and you get a free saddle with your first horsie!”

and it’s really pretty too! We help our dad make them!”

We hand him the threads and some tools too!”

 

Well, that’s very impressive,” Lina smiled softly, giving a polite bit of applause to the excitement of both children.

If the Vehvi are not afraid, I could be a bit more brave? But they aren’t scary... they aren’t really- why?

 

Do you want one?”

One?” Lina was taken before she could take that path in her mind.

A saddle!”

oh, I’m sorry. I don’t have a horse”

aww...” the young children paused, a bit of disappointment across their faces before one started to grin again.

well you should get one!”

This caused the other to get excited as well, “Yeah as soon as possible.”

Lina laughed a bit, the sound of which barely left her lips. “Perhaps.”

There was a pause between the children and her. The one on the right seemed to be thinking, putting a hand to their chin and looking lost in thought. But before Lina could even say anything the child gasped and leaned over to whisper to their sibling. This attempt at whispering did not keep the desired effect, as there was no hushed tone of secrecy. For as many children are want to do, they were far louder than intended. And Lina heard them say “Darton, we could help him get a horse!”

That’s a very good idea.” Darton said in a pitiful excuse for a whisper. Then they turned back to Lina, doing their best to seem as secretive of their last interaction as possible. “There are many horses nearby!”

Yeah we could show you.” The other added, who despite being just as excited was much more soft spoken.

Come on!” Darton excitedly reached for her hand before stopping suddenly in his tracks. Lina looked down and sighed with realization.

Oh, of course... the arm, that stupid arm.

 

Instinctively Lina began to pull it away, trying to hide it behind the rest of her tiny figure. It was- she was- this whole thing... She couldn’t find the words. She couldn’t think of what it was, but she knew that when the child laid eyes on the arm she felt a deep impending dread. Her mouth immediately dried and she stared, waiting for the moment the child would react. And what felt like hours for her only took a second or two in reality, as the child’s words once again took her out of her mind. “That's so cool!”

Lina wasn’t sure how to respond to that. How would you react to someone praising something which you have found useful but otherwise has brought about nothing but disdain. Something that she would throw away in a heartbeat should she no longer find a use for it, if only to forget about the damn thing and the panic it brought about to her. Then the other one spoke, “what happened to your arm?”

I-I don’t know,” She stammered out, her stunned expression went unnoticed by either child who kept their eyes fixated on the intricacies of the arm

How do you not know?” The child furrowed their brow.

I don’t know,” Lina nervously shrugged.

You don’t know a lot.” Darton giggled as they poked one of the fingers.

aren’t grown ups supposed to know a lot?”

What makes you think I’m a grown up?” She said, trying her best to return the positive energy despite being a bit shaken.

you look like one, you have white hair like grandma”.

White hair? Wasn’t her hair blonde?

Is it strong?” Darton asked.

How strong are you?”

I don’t know... I can climb mountains with it?” She started to get a little bit shy, so many questions for her. She was used to asking them... maybe this would convince her to keep some questions to herself?

Probably not.

 

Can you show us?”

Maybe some other time.” she said bashfully, thinking it better that she not try in case she failed. She didn’t want to leave the two unimpressed, despite it being unlikely considering the circumstances.

Please!!!” The two begged in unison, and as they did they pulled their cutest faces. Her side reminded her of its soreness, it was only a few hours ago that she had been hit. It was fine, she was fine, but there was no climbing mountains for today.

I... can’t climb today.” she began and before she could see the disappointment on their faces she held up an index finger to each of them, “I can... I can... maybe do something else...” The children cheered as Lina rose to her feet, doing her best not to further injure herself. “Let’s play a game called...” she paused, doing her best to think of a fitting name for this game that she was making up on the spot, “Paraglider”

I’ve never heard of that.”

Of course you haven’t. You can only play it if you have an arm like this” she lifted it up, trying not to grimace as she said that. “Who wants to go first?”

Both children raised their hands, bouncing up and down on feet that desperately tried to jump. Lina looked at both of them and smiled, she pointed to Darton. “You first Darton.”

The kid gasped, then narrowed his eyes suspiciously “how do you know my name?”

Don’t you see my arm? I’m magic”

ooooooh” the two said in unison.

ready to fly?” Lina asked, and the child excitedly nodded, so much so she thought their head was going to fall off. Lina laughed, then focused in. She took the arm and willed it to remain as gentle as possible while still remaining secure. Then in a swift motion she lifted the young human above her head and started carefully but sporadically moving the arm around. The child was up off the ground, much higher than the twins stood and was giggling and babbling like a brook. Lina smiled, moving the arm back and forth until she eventually set Dalton down.

The little vehvi fell onto their butt, giggling hard and calling for another turn.

Don’t worry, you’ll get your turn again, but do you want to try?” she gestured to the other child. Who approached a bit more warily but still proceeded closer. And when they were in range Lina picked up the small child and started the process all over again. This game continued for a few rounds, she picked up spun and dropped the little vehvi until they would wait no more for turns and decided that they were to go at the same time. Lina held the quieter child as their sibling had climbed up her side and hung tightly onto her arm desiring to also keep the game going. Lina had done her best to continue as well, swinging back and forth with the two as they laughed their hearts out. She spun quickly enough to excite them but slowly enough so they would not lose grip.

 

ah, I see you’re keeping busy.” she heard a voice, and stopped her spin to face it. There she saw Cambo, Xeva, and the moustached man Rensa. They looked to be taking Xeva into the prison. Lina wanted to say something, to fight for Xeva’s right to be free from the prison, but Cambo was in charge of her so she was somewhat sure he knew what he was doing. Lina shrugged, and with the motion the children laughed. Rensa had a hold on Xeva’s lead, and looked over at the strange trio before him.

What are you boys doing?”

Darton smiled at the moustached man, “Plaaaaying” He swung on the arm.

Have you looked at the sun? It’s nearly dinner time, you two need to wash up!”

But we’re playing!” the child began to make a sound that was akin to speaking but worse. Lina winced at the pain of such a shrill and upsetting sound. What was this desperate whining? “Please let us stay out a little longer!”

Please!” The other joined his brother.

Darton and Shibo! Get down now or you have to go to bed early too!”

The quieter one, apparently named Shibo, stopped the noise after that, but Darton continued. “I don’t wanna!” the child continued to whine even though there were no apparent words being said. The sound increased in great volume and sharpness, it pulled her ear apart with each shrill shriek and she did her best to hold on. Her instinct was to shake the grip of the creature free from her arm, to run from the sound and hide in a tree like a frightened cat. She held on though, knowing it would be poor form to toss a small child to the ground despite her desperate desire to. The child swung and kicked and shrieked like a terrific beast. Lina heard them speaking to one another but she could not make out the conversation with much clarity, she stared into nothing, feeling her vision blur as she waited for the noise to stop.

 

Suddenly... her vision went white.

 

Lina heard only a faint ringing in her ears- with the thudding of her heart in her brain. Her stomach churned desperately, her head swam, and all she could feel was herself softly weeping. Why did pain always come for her? It tore into her very being and split her in two. Nausea hit her in waves as the thudding pulsed throughout her entire body, but mostly in her side. Her body was broken and she could not move. She could not hear if others were speaking to her, she could not confirm whether or not she was okay, she simply remained a shivering puddle of agony.

Although she could not move or speak, she could speculate on what happened. Well, that was sort of true, at the moment she could not think but in retrospect she would be able to. The child, in its desperation to not go to sleep, swung around and planted a foot square in the ribs. Not only that but the injury she had sustained prior, the weak clicking and grinding of her ribs that she tried to ignore, was the spot that the boy’s foot struck.

Her vision had yet to clear but she felt her arm be raised above her head and felt someone lift her to her feet. She groaned as the pain continued its pulse and she was shifted so her arm was up over someone’s shoulder. She tried to hold herself up but found limpness eased the pain more. She knew she was being spoken to but just shook her head in response. She felt bad for being in pain, for her pain had caused her game to end. She had enjoyed the game despite the outcome, and the laughter would remain as a ray of sunshine in her dark and empty mind.

She was sat down on something soft, then gently but firmly she was pushed back. She laid back, whatever she had been placed on was soft and warm, was this what dying felt like, here in this comforting embrace? She thought not, though death was not a fear of hers she had a feeling others would not fear such a warm embrace. No, death would be cold... wouldn’t it? Or perhaps far too hot. She knew she would not die, no, but she was in a lot of pain. Then she was left alone. She had heard the words come to her through Cambo’s voice, telling her to stay where she was and that he would be back. They echoed through her mind as though she was in a hollow tunnel, so far from this place. This horse prison.

As she lay still, as she remained as limp as she could to avoid making her pain worse, her vision cleared and she could feel again. She looked up at the straw canopy above her, it was supported by wooden beams that criss-crossed on each other and held the canopy aloft. Was this a bed? It felt… familiar- not like the mat she laid on prior to this, she remembered the feeling but was unsure if it was too soft. It was comfortable... she wondered what it was like to have a bed like that. It was warm inside this tent, safe from the elements, and there were very few people around. Perhaps she was safe, and maybe she could close her eyes for just a moment. Her old friend kept her company when her blood soaked the earth, and in doing so yelled at her quite a bit to stay still. The best way for her to do so was to keep her eyes closed.

 


 

Lina awoke in the stable with a start. She hadn’t realized that she had fallen asleep, how could she? She had just closed her eyes for a moment. Though... when was the last time she had slept? It was hard to say, perhaps she had slept on the hunting trip she had been on... that had only been a day ago... so...

she shook her head, there was nothing to worry about. She stretched and reached her hand up to her hair... it didn’t feel wet or smooth as it had been. It felt like a bird’s nest. She’d have to fix it later, right now she had to get up and keep moving. She had to find Cambo, where was he? She looked around trying her best to focus on the surrounding area, sitting up quickly and thinking about her hair. The old man helped her fix her hair as the arm made it hard for her, surely Cambo or someone else could help her? Wow she slept well, that was good to know, beds made things much better she had to remember that for later. She felt great!

...she felt great..

she reached her hand down to her side, she gently touched it, then pressed a bit harder, and harder, until she was now sure she would bruise her own skin. There was no pain... odd. She must have healed quite quickly... or slept for quite some time. And yet-

and yet everything seemed the same as how it had been left the night before. Huh...

weird.

A good weird, but still weird.

She rolled out of bed only to find the children from before sitting down on the bed next to her. Their father, Rensa, sat on the floor looking up at them in an animated manner. She tuned in to the conversation curiously. However this was not a conversation exactly, he was speaking to them and they just sat there, eagerly listening.

“and so the young hero was called to service for the princess. She saw him fighting off two dozen monsters on his own. So, he took his strong horse-”

“Valiant!”

“yes! His strong horse called Valiant and travelled to the Big city of castle town. On the way there he saw a pretty lady named Impa, who was in trouble-”

“She was surrounded by bandits, right daddy?”

“yes she was! And these bandits were trying to steal from her. But luckily the hero, Link, helped out. He rushed over on his horse and managed to save the lady Impa from these bandits with swings of his sword.”

The kids gasped,

“but they just disappeared in puffs of smoke, cause they were bad guys but not monsters.”

the kids sighed and smiled. “So what happened next?” Shibo asked.

“Then the lady Impa helped him get through the big city and took him to the soldier training camp! There she introduced him to the lovely princess Zelda who was visiting there that day.”

“And she fell in love with him right there-”

Rensa laughed, “I don’t know, maybe... But she took a liking to him and he became her favourite future knight. So when he finished his training he became her appointed knight.”

“and then she fell in love with him.”

“What is with you today?”

“Love is pretty!”

His dad shook his head and laughed, “maybe next time I’ll tell you a love story, how’s that sound?”

“yes!” “no!” the twins yelled. Someone cleared their throat by the counter, Rensa’s face was staring back at him, moustache and all. Rensa looked at his boys and stood up.

“But for now I have to get back to work, you boys go have fun okay?”

“Let’s practice being heroes!” one yelled before running off outside, quickly trailed by his brother.

 

Lina stood as well, it was an interesting story, but she wasn’t sure how accurate it was. She didn’t know this Link, but she knew he had something to do with her purpose. If this was true, how could she live up to such standards? And she was better with a bow than she was with a sword. It wasn’t like they were related, she was just his... successor? She’d go with that. It was fine. But she didn’t think he’d like the city... that part felt the most wrong. Chk. It was nothing. Just a fairy tale.

Lina walked out of the stable’s main building and looked out. Before her there were many tents and people scattered around the area. There had been tents around the area before but these were placed much more intentionally. With her eyes and nose pulling her in that direction she decided to follow the draw, keeping her eyes peeled for Cambo.

She walked down the lane, her every sense perked up toward every new experience. Looking at new food items, and supplies. She got a few surprised looks her way but ignored them all the same. Cambo, when she found him, was completing some sort of sale or trade, handing over various meats for a few small crystals. She stopped in front of him as the customer walked away, letting him look up at her from his seat on the ground.

“You seem to be doing better, how are you feeling?”

“I’m actually okay”

“huh. Good to hear. But I’m surprised. Are you sure? Do you need a healing potion or- oh! I got you this” he reached into a pack off to his side, “there was a person here a while ago that sold baked goods, it’s a bit crumbled but it should still be good.” The merchant pulled out a slightly puffed loaf of sorts, it wasn’t bread. She knew what bread was... vaguely, but she didn’t remember this. She took the objects. It looked to have some small pinkish chunks in it and some nuts. She sniffed it subtly before taking quite a large bite out of it. She chewed it, savouring the flavour. It was... sweet! She remembered sweet, it was like an apple. In fact there might have been apples in there as well, there was another fruit there though- that was where most of the tartness was from. The pink bits gave a sudden sweetness to her mouth as she bit into them. She let out a satisfied “mmmmm” before scarfing down the rest of it and licking the crumbs from her fingers. Once she could comprehensively speak again, she asked, “what was that?”

“you haven’t had a muffin before?”

Mmm muffin.

 

Lina shook her head. “Right,” Cambo continued, “You lived in the middle of nowhere.” he paused looking at the crystals he had been given, placing them at a pouch on his side and pausing. “I have something else for you- but you should clean up before we continue to interact here”

Lina furrowed her brow. What was wrong with her? Was she dirty? She didn’t feel it. Then again it had been a bit since she had been near water. “There is a pond right over there, I’d suggest the well but that’s drinking water.”

Lina simply nodded at the instruction. She wasn’t sure why he asked her to do so, but it had to be bad if he was asking that. She looked down at her hands... staring and blinking a few times as she walked down to the pond. She didn’t think she looked dirty, she wiped her hands on her pants and stared, perhaps she didn’t see it because they were also brown. It was weird. Could she simply not handle the perception of dirt or was he just far too particular about things? She shrugged, stopping at the edge of the pond and kneeling down.

The pond was small with grass poking up from it and a handful of frogs hopping around it. A handful of frogs being one or two due to the usual size of frogs, unless you were one to have exceptionally big hands; in that case, good for you. There was a mass of thorns in the middle of the pond, only a few steps from her, growing up out of the water in quite a tall mass. She furrowed her brow at it, nature was such a confusing thing to her. She loved it, but she was still flabbergasted by it. After taking it in for a moment she looked down at the water instead. The light hit the water in pleasing ways, reflecting off like rippling glass. With such light she struggled to look at parts, but her body created a shadow so that she could see.

She reached into the water, with her hand and the claw and paused as she looked at it. She worried that she would scratch her face with it. She focused, stretching and shifting the claws so as to not scratch herself. She had done it before, early in her days with the old man, and she had to focus her best efforts to be careful. Her hand was easy, with thin but strong calloused fingers and chipped short fingernails. Even though it was stronger than some others likely had it was still nothing compared to the claw. Though not massive, it was slightly bigger than her hand. It started to feel like her own at times, though when she did normal gestures and touched the hand she knew it wasn’t hers. There was no pliability, no tenderness, it was just nothing.

She exhaled and picked up water in her cupped hands. Splashing water on her face and watching the filthy water drip off her face and into the water below. She washed her arms and legs, and did her best to clean the rest. Then she looked at her face in the water. It was hard to see her reflection, as the water was hardly settled but she could see her messy blonde hair in a tangled braid, and to her surprise she did have a bright white streak in the front of her hair. The children were right. She looked at her eyes, both green and blue, and her face was not round but it was soft, not strong but angled and should she tie her hair back she could blur the lines between herself and someone else. She touched her face with her hand, examining her features.

It has been so long... Hello, me.

 

She sat back on her butt and tore her gaze from her face. She remembered what she looked like now, she appreciated her features, they remained in her mind. But for now she could- she heard a soft dinging in the front of her mind which distracted her from her current train of thought. The bell dinging drew her toward the thorny bush. That damn pull, she couldn’t ignore it. She had to get back to Cambo but-

Lina closed her eyes, she thought about it. She had a thought, thinking of touching the thorns and climbing over them carefully. She would climb across the thorns and land safely in the middle, after all there was a structure in the middle. However, as she touched the thorns the thing shattered and stabbed her fingers and hand. She shrieked and shook it as the injury took hold. No, that wouldn’t do. Then she thought about the thorns, the thorns weren’t a dome or a bundle, they were a ring, surrounding a structure. She climbed up the side of the mountain, swinging hand over hand until she reached a nearby ledge. Stopping to gather rocks and stones like flint. Flint could start fires when struck with metal, the old man told her. It was a useful tool, so she had to have some. She looked over the ledge, peering down at the thorns and the structure and she saw the same sort of pedestal she found up on the plateau. She smiled and leaped down and fell down, using the paraglider to her advantage, managing to land just within the circle and take a breath before placing the metal hand on the pedestal.

Lina opened her eyes. She was sat on the ground before the pond, reeling from such a vivid experience. Had she fallen asleep again? no... no the time had hardly passed. People were in the same places they were, and the structure was before her. A few ruins around a pedestal, nothing more... she stretched and stood, walking back to her companion, her finger bleeding and her arm sore.

Lina came up to Cambo and sat beside him, “thank you,” he looked at his things, “I didn’t really get to thank you for saving my life-” he spoke a bit quietly, “so, here... take this as a reward, I will not let you return it.” she was handed a crystal, nothing more. It was red, and glimmered in the sunlight. “this is a-”

“Rupee, well it’s 20 rupees” Lina said without a thought, not processing that she knew that.

“I’m surprised you know that”

“oh... really i-” she paused. It was currency, the same currency, how could she forget? “I just know, I suppose. Sometimes you have to buy things” She had no money on her until this point, it was nice to have some on her person.

“Well, good,” he laughed a bit to himself, “You can stay here if you want, to help me sell things. But I don’t mind if you want to do something else”

Lina nodded. “So when will we be going to kakariko?” she asked with furrowed brows.

“Tomorrow.” This answer made Lina annoyed, she had come all this way, she had rested, and now she was ready to go. But here he was sitting, and selling. “Listen, I know you’re eager but I need to make money, we’ll be heading there tomorrow I promise.”

Lina pouted, it wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair to her. But... she didn’t have a guide. She could leave, but she wanted to make sure he got there safe. It was fine, this will be fine. So she waited.

 

She tried to help, to hang out there with him and keep him company. But after a short amount of time she got exceptionally bored and excused herself. In this she went to examine other stalls around the area. There were many different things being sold; cloth, food, herbs and mushrooms, meats, potion ingredients- as she walked by the potion ingredients stall a hand raised to get her attention. “hello! Little one” an older woman spoke up. “I tried to speak to you before but you were asleep.”

“Do I know you?”

“Oh I’m nobody, but I was told you were the one who killed that monster. I am a potion seller, I am particularly taken by your kill and have taken it upon myself to remove the useful parts from it. However, I know that it was yours, would you mind if I pay you for the parts, or split them with you.”

“Can you show me how?”

“Hm?”

“Can you show me how to take the right parts for potion making?”

The old lady chuckled, “you know what... yes.”

This activity took about an hour, with Lina learning as quickly as she could to properly take apart such a creature and use their parts in potions. The knowledge stuck in her mind as she learned, and she got to keep a few of the gathered materials. The old woman gave her a bag to keep them in so as to not contaminate her other items.
After that Lina continued down the lane, walking a bit closer to the stable, she found yet another merchant of interest. Just setting down in a spot that seemed to be set up for him.

This man looked awkward, he had a bowl haircut and a bulbous red nose, he was gangly and thin with his clothing hanging off of him. His face was freckled and his skin was tanned. On his back was a MASSIVE pack. This pack was bulgingly full of many items, with pots and pans hanging off of the side. The pack was the shape of an insect, a large beetle that hung from his shoulders. She wondered how he possibly could stand upright with that on. As he sat, he raised his hands above his head and pulled down a wooden tray in front of him. Ready to buy and ready to sell.

Lina approached out of entertained curiosity.

“HELLO!” the guy spoke, “Welcome to Beedle’s roaming shop! I am Beedle, how can I be of service today?”

“uh... what do you have for sale?”

“many things! So many depending on where we meet hehe” he grinned, pulled away at a tab on his pack and yanked out a strip of fabric with some items attached. There was a pouch of “Octo-Balloons” which Lina assumed to be the flotation device that they used to raise up into the air. There were also three green frogs with orange feet in a breathable container, and another with a bunch of crickets jumping around in another container. Finally there were arrows, a lot of arrows. Lina’s eyes lit up at the sight of them. She was a hunter after all. She pointed at the arrows,

“6 rupees each”

Highway robbery.

 

She furrowed her brow. She could do it, she could make her own like the old man did. But there wasn’t time for that. She had enough for a few so she took what she could and smiled at the strange man. Before turning on her heel and walking back to Cambo. Despite the amount she paid for 3 arrows she couldn’t help but buzz with excitement, it was the first time she made a purchase in this life, it was an accomplishment. Excitedly showed off her purchase to her merchant friend, thrusting it in front of his face when he was free.

“Did you want me to... buy this?” He asked with a raised eyebrow. Lina shook her head. “You just wanted to show me?” She nodded. He paused before getting back to counting his coin “That’s nice dear,”

With this response Lina was pleased and wandered off once more. She wandered through the lane, stopping and speaking to people here and there until she wound back at the stable, bored once more. What did people do around here all day? Just talk, or sit, or sell? It was exhausting. She saw a beautiful wood off across the way, but if she went in there she knew she’d be gone for a few days at least. Maybe then she could at least sell some of the stuff she picked up.

She sighed, ready to head to the nearby fire and sit til it was time to go, but then she heard something that made her perk up her ears. They were the words “Blood moon”. These words made her shiver, something deep in her core jittered with energy, though she wasn’t sure if it was excitement or dread. “What’s that?” she turned to an older man with dark hair parted at the peak of his head.

“hm?” he jumped back in surprise.

“the blood moon?”

“oh... you don’t know? Never mind- I – ahem hello, My name is Hino, I have a personal interest in the moon and its phases, you are?”

“Lina, hunter”

“Nice to meet you, Miss. Hunter.” She raised her brow and let him continue, “yes well it’s interesting when you look at it.” He opened his notebook and started flipping through the pages. “The sky is fascinating to us all, but the moon shifts in fazes, however these “blood moons” as they are don’t follow a specific pattern like the other phases.” he scratched his chin. “I’m not totally sure- I’ve been trying to place them but nothing seems to work- anyway there is one thing that correlates with them. The resurrection of monsters happens only under a blood moon. It is curious, but there has to be some scientific explanation for such a thing.” he began to mumble as he flipped through the book again, falling into his own world once again.

Lina stared at him for a moment, but after figuring she wouldn’t get any more useful information or conversation out of the man if it was not related to the moon she took a few steps away, nearly bumping into a slightly familiar face. “Oh- Rensa?” she blurted out.

“Have we met before?” he asked.

“no- um, I met your Vehvi-”

“right...OH! Shoot, are you alright?”

“I’m fine.. fine... They are good, and still so small.”

Rensa laughed lightly, “yes... very. Thank you for playing with them, I don’t get to as often as I'd like.”

“I see.”

“yeah work is... booming”

“they appreciate it- that is to say they watch you. They tried to sell me on a saddle.”

“did they, now?”

“I... don’t have a horse though.”

Rensa laughed a bit harder, “Oh I’ll have to tell my brother about that- that’s hilarious.” he laughed more before catching his breath.

“How does one get a horse?”

“oh uh... well they spook easy- so you’d want to come up where they can’t hear or see you. And then you gotta get on them and calm them til they listen to ya...”

“I see...”

“You can practice over there.” he gestured over to the ruin-scattered field beyond the fences and stable. “There are wild horses everywhere, just uh... make sure to bring it back and register it with us, there are a lot of things pertaining to this but that’s the gist, my brother knows more, he’ll tell you when you register.” he smiled at her.

 

Lina smiled back, and with little a word said after she took off in the direction of the horses. So, she did her best, as she walked then crept over she saw attempt after attempt of trying to pass over the plains and spooking the horses, going for the dark and plain one in the herd and getting kicked off, going for the patched one and being kicked in the ribs, chasing after any ones she attempted to reach, and as she crept up to one of the walls close to the herd with her body buried in the tall grass she held her breath. She could hear them stepping and knickering on the other side. As she approached this time, or... after visualising she kept her eyes on a tan horse, it was a beautiful pinkish tan with white accents and nearly only one colour. If the children were right the single coloured ones were kind of scary but good. She was here to take that chance. She used the arm and climbed up the side of the wall, trying her best to keep the mechanisms quiet so as not to spook the beasts on the other side of the wall. She climbed to the top of the ruin, and crouched atop the structure, waiting patiently for the beast to stop moving. And when it did... she struck. She leaped from the wall and glided down onto the back of the creature, waiting for it to kick and buck. She patted its neck and... to her surprise she was calm.

The horse was relaxed, more so than the others that ran out of fear. Lina smiled to herself. “hello sweetness.” She kicked the sides of the horse, urging her forward and turning her toward the stable. It was like breathing for her, and the way she could feel the horse moving and breathing beneath her was so normal, she felt relaxed.

She walked the horse up to the counter, ready to register her with the stable. And after far too much paperwork which thankfully she only had to sign her name on. With the last signature she was done, took a breath and was ready to walk away when she was told that she had yet to name the thing. What was in a name, she hadn’t chosen her own. Dreamer? But she didn’t call herself that. or... um... damn she couldn’t think of a single thing... but she couldn’t stand there staring at the man, what would suit the creature. She looked back at the horse, and stared into its big brown eyes. It was sweet, and brown and pink and- she got it. She would name it after the gift her new friend had given her. “Muffin.”

“Muffin it is, let us get a saddle on that sweet girl and you can be on your way...” he paused, “is there anything else we can do for you?” Lina thought a bit, she was about to say no, when she had another thought she told them to hold on and ran off.

Lina after a few hours came back to Cambo, as the merchant was packing up his stall. She put her hands on her hips and directed his attention to the stable where beside Muffin stood a slightly larger white and brown speckled horse. She grinned, “I GOT YOU A HORSE! His name is Carrot cause you also sell carrots,” she stood before him proudly, so proudly that he couldn’t tell her that he thought the name was really dumb.

***

Chapter 13: "I need to-"

Summary:

The Hero, Link recovers from his battle against the mage and the giant.

Chapter Text

Five days, it was five days before the hero Link woke up. It was slow though; first, seconds of lucidity. Then, minutes. And on the fifth day, hours. He awoke with not a thought in his mind, barring his friends safety. He tried to get up, wrestling with the pain and nearly fighting his way to his feet when a doctor came to stop him and hold him down. He tried to calm him, “hey, hey Link- calm down, breathe.” he held his hands to his shoulders holding him as firmly as he could without further injuring the hero, “the fight is over, kid. You need to rest- Jeez you gotta take a breath. Your body can’t take much more.”

The young hero shifted, squirming and wriggling like a snake held by a weirdly strong bird. He was a swordsman, The Swordsman, he should have been able to get free but unfortunately her strength was eclipsed by the doctor’s weird grip strength. “I can’t!” he called out, “Are they okay? I need to help them.” he kicked forward, his foot slamming into the doctor’s stomach causing him to fall forward and roll off of the bed. He laid in the fetal position on the floor, and caught his breath as Link rose up to their feet. He held his side, groaning in pain as he realized he may have overdone it. He leaned on the bed frame, trying desperately to keep himself up and off of the floor.

“Someone! He’s up and he’s pulling his stitches!” the doctor called out as he caught his breath and tried to stand. He coughed as the breath left his lungs again and he fell back to the floor. “He won’t rest!”

Link walked over to the door of the infirmary tent, however, as he reached for the edge of the tent and was quickly stopped by the hands of his warden and Zelda's carer, Impa. She held Link’s hands as she tried to keep him steady. “Hey. Hey. Breathe. Kid, you’re okay... everything is okay,” she held him up, lifting his arm and shoulder over her neck and walking out, “I’ve got him, doc.” She walked him out of the tent past many others people in similar condition, until they were somewhere more calm. Impa took him down to a bench so they could look out at the movement of the soldiers preparing their forces for another attack. Once they sat and were settled the woman spoke to him, “You okay now?” The hero nodded, “good, good.” she took a breath, letting the boy take in the fresh air for a bit until she found the moment to speak. “Your fellow champions are fine. They are alive, and were minorly injured at most. You kept asking for them- The princess lives too.”

She paused to let him take in the information. He didn’t remember asking for anyone, but he was a bit embarrassed if he had been caught calling anyone’s names. He cared about them but didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea.

“You’re probably wondering what happened.” the hero nodded in response, not feeling any desire to speak nor having the energy to do so. “So, Daruk told me that they found you in the fountain. Revali saw you fall, and Urbosa came running to your aid. She held off the mage while the others cleared out his forces, and Revali came to your rescue. Mipha tried to heal you while the others took out the mage and his monsters. With his death came the end of his undead army, however there was something else.” the hero stared at Impa with intensity, how could there be more? Well, why wouldn’t there be? He couldn’t be so lucky for this to have been easy.

“The mage kept speaking of his master before he was cut down.” The hero began to stand, his fire lit with another monster to fight. “SIT DOWN.” Impa snapped sternly holding her hand on his shoulder so as to keep him in place. She knew this hero after all, she had known him since before he entered the city. She knew that he would not stop fighting until he could no longer, even though he was still injured from the last one.

“bu-”

“No buts, you are not doing this. That is all you needed to know. No more details or anything. You are going to heal. You are not allowed to be here any longer. As soon as you are able to ride you are going home. Doctor’s orders. Princess’ orders. My orders.” Impa stared at him, their eyes focused in a game of chicken until Link inevitably pulled away.

He stayed a day longer before heading out on the back of Valiant, he was sent to his home, to his father and sister and although he tried his best he could no longer find joy in this old life of his.

***

Chapter 14: Saudade

Summary:

Lina spends some time exploring Kakariko village and meeting its people.

Chapter Text

A day or so later Lina and Cambo started their trek up the path toward the village of Kakariko. The journey was much faster when riding upon the backs of their horses, though the speed was counteracted by the young woman stopping often to pick up edible greens and mushrooms. Cambo, having begun to get used to Lina’s minor eccentricities had simply begun to keep a steady pace and walk ahead, keeping just close enough for her to run back to him when she inevitably realized that she was being left behind. Lina wasn’t paying attention to him, but he occasionally looked back and asked her about whatever she had just picked up. Many different items were placed into the pouches of her pack, causing each to slowly shrink in available space as she filled them more and more. As she spoke of her knowledge he took in every ounce of information. He did know basic things, like how a stamella could help revitalize someone who was running low on energy, or an armoranth was able to toughen your skin, but he did not know how important for taste and vitality it was to place herbs (which he initially thought were weeds) into food, perhaps he should try to find some and make some better food with such items. Someone with such experience alone in a cabin had to know what they were speaking about, he trusted that.

“what is your life like-” Lina asked, “-is it only travel or..?” she trailed off, losing her words as she picked up another herb.

The question took him off guard, she had asked very little since the stable, which didn’t bother him, besides the chatting about nature didn’t make for poor company. He thought about it for a moment, gathering his words before speaking. “I’m from Hateno – I grew up a little outside of there, but it’s a farming town, only farmers as far as the eye can see. It’s good, honest work, but I couldn’t get into farming. I know a little about plants- that’s why I sell carrots and shit.” Lina looked at him, her attention drawn to the sudden shift in tone, it was much more casual, open, and crass. “But like I said I couldn’t get into it- disappointed my father when I said I was leaving. We got into a fight, and he- anyway, I’ve been travelling since, not too far but it’s consistent. Maybe I’ll travel farther one day, but I like my little bits of adventure.” He sighed in contemplation,

“Family is a tough thing, something we all have to figure out... I haven’t figured it out yet. But when I do I gotta be around someone who likes my love for adventure or travel... or well who at least respects it. I like what I do, really. Despite the danger.” He tapped his fingers against the reins of the horse as he looked down at the ground before them, taking a deep breath in. He wasn’t entirely comfortable on the back of the horse. He had liked his last horse, he had, and he appreciated the usefulness of this one, but Xeva was his favourite, even if she went slower. Horses made him uneasy, but he was not one to shy from a gift, he had to keep it...Carrot.

He kept on for a moment, but didn’t hear movement behind him, had he lost her? He turned back, and saw the young woman lost in thought on the trail. Staring out onto the horizon.

 

Now, Lina had been listening, she was paying attention to the plights and tales of the man. However, she did get a bit distracted when a tree started talking to her. It didn’t look like much at first glance, just a tree. Then she looked back and it was closer, the bark was not brown, it was green, light and dark swirling like the grain of uncovered wood. She did a double take, staring at it for just a moment before approaching. It seemed to shift and move and... breathe. And when the wind hit her again she felt the same warm feeling that she did when she dove into rings of lily pads or lifted certain rocks. She couldn’t help but feel a bit confused. She saw wood. It was wood right? But then it breathed. She looked up its trunk, there were sparks of light floating around his body, they faded in and out and fell down like leaves before vanishing. It didn’t seem alive, it didn’t seem real and yet-

She saw a face in the tree, or the approximation of one, below the high hanging branches she saw wooden eyebrows and the nose like a snapped branch, it had no eyes, or no mouth but an extremely big leaf was placed over the nose like a pseudo beard. As if this tree had somehow tried to be or appear human.

She shook her head, this was just another thing that wasn’t real, that was all. Another thing her mind made up. Then the tree sighed. A high pitched whining sound that resembled a child’s voice. She looked at it in what would be its face and (fully prepared to cut this tree down) she approached closer.

It sighed again, its strong back that should have stood tall was hunched over in defeat. “Oh...” it moaned.

 

“what- what is it? Hello?” she asked, waving her hand in front of this face of its, trying her best to seem nonthreatening despite her apprehensive posture. The creature popped up, its top straightening as it did the approximation of looking her in the eyes.

 

“you can see me?!” It practically screamed in her face, Lina jumped back, looking quickly over to Cambo who was still walking and talking, seemingly unaware of this situation.

 

Lina held her tongue and just nodded. “Oh thank goodness!” the creature continued “Nobody has ever been able to see me before! Hello!” it waved a branch at her.

 

She stared silently for a moment before responding, “and... you are?”

 

“oh! Sorry! I’m Hestu- I’m a fairy though most people can’t see the fairies around here, and you must be a human! How curious. We see you all the time but you don’t ever see us, until now! I’m so excited!!!” she could only imagine that it was grinning, it was still a tree after all.

 

“I- I’m Lina.”

 

“Lina! Wonderful!”

 

She smiled a little, his wonder was just like hers, she wondered how new to the world he was, being such a tall tree. Was he like her? “so... ahem, what’s wrong?” she asked the tree, wanting to help him to the best of her abilities.

 

“Oh! Well it’s a little embarrassing-” he began “I’m looking for my family. We’re playing hide and seek- but they took the seeds that go in my maracas! We do this once in a while... but some terrible monsters took my maracas!!!” it took a limb and pointed in the direction of some rocks up ahead on the path.

 

“... so... monsters can see you?”

 

“oh yes! Monsters are magical like us, but much meaner and ickier, they see us all the time. That’s partly why we hide, but also we like hide and seek”

 

“right...”

 

“but I can’t keep going without my maracas, they’re my only pair, and if I find my family how will I store the seeds?”

 

Lina sighed, “o-okay just. I’ll see what I can do, I’ll try to help”

 

“really!!!! That's amazing! I’ll be very grateful!”

 

She opened her mouth, about to let him know that it would be no problem when Cambo called to her. She nodded to the tree before running back to Cambo at a steady jog, leaving Muffin behind to keep it company. Quickly flagging him down she lowered her voice, letting him know quickly and unceremoniously that there were monsters up ahead. She pointed to the stack of rocks that indicated their hideout, “I’ll handle it” was all she said, and though her companion tried to protest, a stern look from the young woman as she reached for the sword on her back turned the merchant’s attention to keeping his items safe. He nudged his horse to walk along; giving the devil’s den a wide berth. Lina planned to take the creatures out just as easily as she were to shoot a hog. (However, despite the intent of that analogy, without enough precision and strength such a manoeuvre would end up butchered and/or with much disgruntled squealing.)


 

Before Lina entered, she saw herself. She would walk into the space and should the monsters be few and with little rest they would be easy to handle. However, following that thought did not go in her favour- they noticed her the moment she entered (as she was not being particularly quiet) announcing her presence to the other monsters with a horn and letting her blood spill as they skewered her and she fell to the ground. She caught sight of them, one was red... and two were... blue? She hadn’t seen a blue one before... it wasn’t just that their skin was blue. In this experience that she witnessed, she struggled to fight them. Now, fighting red bokoblins always varied in difficulty but these blue ones slayed her. They made her bleed and continued to stab her, they seemed smarter, older, and their skin was thicker. She had hardly done damage, she would have to do better, swing better, fight harder.

She took another step and saw herself again. witnessing herself creep around the area. She climbed up over the rocks and into the den of the beasts. She kept quiet, holding her breath and creeping toward the chest in which the tree’s items were kept, she tried to open it, straining and prying at it with each of her hands before realizing that she couldn’t open it. The chest was heavy and high up on a platform and she... she heard the sound of squealing and a horn before she was shot dead and collapsed atop the chest.

She snapped back to her present, and stood outside the den. She would not be caught defenceless, not opening this strange magic chest.


 

Lina entered and improved from those imaginations, watching her back, watching their moves, blocking arrows and taking each out with a stab or knock to the head until there was nothing but ichor and their weapons, which she hastily picked up and added to her own stockpile. Once each and every monster was dead and she had shaken the viscous liquid from her newly acquired items, the chest chimed and its lid snapped open.

 

You couldn’t have done that earlier?

She sucked in a deep breath, trying to cool her lungs from the ever burning sensation that irritated them. It was a weakness she would have to remedy, she just had to figure out how. Lina walked over to the chest, picked up the contents and walked away, all awe and ceremony had left her as she simply wanted to get it over with.

So she walked back to the tree, Hestu the tree. Then she held out the maracas with little concern for how such a being might take them from her grasp. Yet somehow it managed it. The tree moved its “arm” branches, the wood creaking and stretching unnaturally as they pulled themselves further and further out, wrapping the twigs around each object as though they were creeping vines.

They pulled the instruments free from her grasp and the creature looked at them shaking them vigorously, before sighing. “oh right they’re still empty... normally they’re filled with seeds so that I can make wonderful music but...wait a moment-”

Lina felt a pull around her body, a soft breeze that swept up her hair and clothes before quickly settling. “AHA!” the child-like voice continued, “You already had a couple on you! Now I can play a song!”

Completely unprompted by the dreamer, Lina was suddenly startled by the sound of a trio of instruments. The first being the maracas, which lead the melody of the rhythmic tune. This was accompanied by a drum and a flute, whose sounds seemed to come out of thin air. She watched as the tree moved, getting up and dancing as he felt the rhythm of music. Lina could only stand there and watch, slack jawed. Perhaps she had a really creative imagination, that was the only explanation that could help her process the emotions she felt. Trees didn’t dance, even fairy trees. At least that’s what she assumed. She held her tongue, waiting for the creature to be finished, and when it was, it took a breath, the sparkles around him turning red as they rained down around Lina like it was her gods damned birthday.

 

“That's quite a bit better! Thank you for your help miss-”

 

“...Lina.” she could have sworn she told him her name already.

 

“Hero Lina! Enjoy your new pack!”

 

New pack? She looked down at the pack; it was the same one she had gotten from the old man, the same one that used to be his, with the worn and patched up sides, and the strained seams. She fiddled with it and looked around for anything new, “i- it’s the same- I don’t-”

But when she looked up again the tree was gone.

Had this all been in her mind? It was very good at tricking her, maybe she was just losing something? She bit her lip in contemplation before opening the pack and placing her hand inside... an act that previously ended with her arm only going elbow deep into the bag, now ended with her being able to fit her entire arm in, up to her shoulder. She shook her head. It was always like that- she had to have forgotten.


 

Lina and her steed Muffin followed the path up to the village of Kakariko, picking up what foodstuffs she found to be edible on the side of the road. She passed small waterfalls and rocks stacked high alongside the path, gazing upon everything with wonder once more and touching everything she could. She lifted rocks only to feel a warm breeze surround her, and sipped water from one of the falls which dribbled messily down her chin. Eventually she got far enough to see wooden arches above the path. Each arch was made of a sturdy hardwood that was coated in some sort of tar or wax, it was painted with earthy red or brown. It was held together with nails and metal brackets that were slowly rusting, and rope, lots of rope. Protective seals were carved on wooden scraps and painted red, to ensure that the goddesses would protect the surrounding area. Finally atop the arch’s peak was a crying eye cast in iron, its centre was dented in multiple places. The arrows that were wedged into the nearby wooden planks encouraged her to pull out her bow as Muffin walked along. It had been a moment since she shot from horseback but this would be nothing, it wasn’t even a moving target. She pulled back the string and shot up. Her arrow skillfully struck the eye, and Lina grinned with pride. She could do this, this was her thing. Once again she felt that warm wind, it wrapped around her giggling and laughing. Lina watched in slow motion as Muffin’s ears went back. Now Muffin had been a gentle horse since Lina had grabbed her. She was sweet, if needing a little training. But as the wind wrapped around both her and Muffin, the horse was startled. She bucked and ran forward, launching Lina back out past the arches.

The young woman groaned as she slowly picked herself up from the ground, she looked back to where she shot the target and for a brief moment thought she saw a little living tree stump, floating there. But after blinking there was nothing. She must have hit her head. Lina looked over to Muffin who stood at the side of the road, eating grass. Lina stomped over to the horse, taking her by the reins and as calmly as she could manage walked Muffin under the remaining arches and into an open area.

This had to be it. This had to be the town. Lina and Muffin stopped and looked upon it.

There were many houses, more than she had ever seen in one space. Then again this was the first town she had not seen in ruins. And it was beautiful, with the thatched roofs over wooden walls, and the protective charms hanging anywhere they could. The buildings followed the incline of the slope the town was sat in, nearly to the point that they began to climb up the stone of the mountains. Ponds and streams and farms were scattered throughout the town with shady trees around each home. This village looked as though it had been untouched for centuries. As though its peace and keeping it was sacred. Across from her in the furthest corner of this small valley was a massive building on a peak surrounded by ponds and waterfalls. It had multiple stories and a much wider area than the other houses. It matched the others in aesthetics but it was clear that this was where one would go if they wanted to speak to someone important.

Lina laid her eyes upon the building and felt the acid rise in her throat, not from fear or sickness, but from an odd strain of disgust. She scrunched her nose up, staring at the building and, though excited to be here and explore the town she made the conscious decision that she would avoid that house like her life depended on it. She’d still be sure to enjoy herself, so she shook off the feeling, tied Muffin up to a fence and (after giving the darling horse an apple) she ran down the path into the town proper.

***

Lina walked around, taking in every new image with bright and innocent eyes. She turned her head to every new sight and sound. What strange orange fruits were the farmers growing? Why were there an abundance of cuckoos? How could so many people live in one place, and did they all have their own houses? Such questions she would have to ask Cambo when she saw him again. She kept an eye out for him as she walked, wondering where he may have gone, and figuring it was likely where they sold goods. Where would they sell goods?

The young archer peered around every building until she came across one that had a sign out front. She looked up at it and saw a rudimentary carving of a shirt in the wood that hung above the door. It took her a second before she realized that this could potentially be a merchant’s shop. Though this was much nicer and fancier than the stall that Cambo had set up, after all it was in a solid structure that seemed as though it would keep the rain out. There must be stability in this. It didn’t seem like the sort of thing that Cambo would want. Where was he anyway?

“Hello!” a sweet voice spoke, taking Lina’s attention from the sign. “Are you looking for clothing?” Lina blinked at her, letting her proceed. “You... your boots if you don’t mind me saying- are falling apart.” she yawned. Lina looked down at her boots, staring at them for a few moments before her eyes focused. Huh. That was weird, she could have sworn they were fine, solid and waterproofed. They had held up in the snow but now they looked ragged, as though she had gotten them third or fourth hand and had not taken to mending them as the others had.

How?... huh....

 

“Welcome to the-” she yawned again, her body desperately taking in air as she spoke “– the best clothing store in all the land... Enchanted. We can get you clothes just like that.” The lady snapped, trying her best to keep a smile despite her obvious exhaustion.

 

Her words drew Lina in despite the lacking delivery, she shifted on her feet, looking forward to heading in, but she held herself up. Tilting her head to the side inquisitively she asked, “Are you okay? You seem tired”

 

The look that crossed the woman’s face was one that Lina was initially uncertain of, it wasn’t yet anger or disgust, though it was a cousin of those. Such a relation had no name in Lina’s mind and yet it struck her as a misstep, for offence was often given through the best of intentions. “oh- I’m fine, just... didn’t sleep. Are you going to go in?” She was quick to dismiss any further conversation. Lina’s instincts more than her mind kicked into gear and with her mouth shut like that of a frog’s she turned away and stepped up to then inside the door.

 

“Welcome to Enchanted!” The person inside spoke up before the door was even closed. She looked similar to the one outside but a bit taller, perhaps older, likely sisters. She was putting something away, pushing aside the papers that she had been fiddling with as she looked up across the empty store at Lina, “It’s not often we get a new face around here. How can I help you?” she smiled, so brightly and kindly which Lina did not find easing. The shop was mostly empty, with a counter across from her. There were a few mannequins about each with different clothing items on them, all practical and sturdy but all incredibly unique. There were a few stools that were sat by a wall, stacked out of the way of feet that’d easily trip over them.

 

“I... apparently need new boots.” she muttered.

 

The lady looked Lina over and clicked her tongue as she did so. “And pants, if you want. Those look nearly 100 years old.”

 

“There’s a matching shirt too.” Lina offered, lifting the edge of her warm doublet to show off the thin, off white shirt.

 

“My gods, that is fascinating.” she leaned her elbows on the counter, “I will pay you to get a look at those, I’m here for old textiles. I won’t pay... much, but I’ll pay.”

 

Lina took a step back, bumping into the door. Her eyes went wide- “These are my only shirt and pants.”

 

“what- really?!” she blurted out like a cough, “ahem-We’ve got some display pieces up here, but come to the back with me, I’ll probably have something I can sell you for a trade and a little extra.” The saleswoman lifted a section of the counter creating an opening that Lina would be able to walk through. She stepped off to the side and held open the curtain for her customer to go ahead. behind the curtain was a small office, with a desk, a chair and fabric within a shelf. To the left was a mirror and dressing screen. “Alright, go behind that screen and take off your pants and boots.” Lina hesitated before seeing the determination on the woman’s face and did what was asked of her. Lina undressed and moved the items out of the way, before, after a moment she saw another pair of boots and trousers thrown over the screen and falling clumsily into Lina’s hands. “Those should hold up to some wear and tear.”

As Lina put on the new and much more comfortable items, the lady looked over the old pants that she had been wearing. She tutted as she looked over the items. “These could be worth quite a bit, or they could have been, these have been... saturated with... mud. I’m going to say mud and only mud to save my sanity.” she sighed, “I can still study this weave cause it’s quite interesting but... yeah I can give you those items and nothing more, apologies.” She stared at the weave of the fabric a bit more before setting it aside to wash later. “Is there anything else I can help you with? Something custom, or I don't suppose you’d be interested in one of our sets.”

 

Lina recalled the mannequins out front, those had to be what she was speaking about. Unless she just happened to have a catalogue somewhere... not that Lina had much to pay with, she recalled a few items but none really stood out. They were all just clothing.

The woman stood, taking on a less frustrated and more confident demeanour, entering into the shell of a sales person, “Of course you can buy them all or get them one piece at a time. These pants and boots are part of one of the sets... common clothing that the average hylian likes to wear. But the other one right up front is special, it was used by shiekah stealth forces to assist the royal family in ages long past. They’re great for sneaking, but are expensive.”

 

“How much?”

 

“They’re made to order. Based on materials needed and time it takes to make one. Though for someone of your size...” she looked Lina over again, “It’d be a bit cheaper, the chest guard alone would be 700” Despite the exorbitant amount of money, Lina was focused. She heard the words “stealth suit” and craved such an item.

 

“I want one.”

 

“Even with it being a custom fit?”

 

“Please.”

 

“hmm...We can do a piece at a time if you don’t mind me taking your measurements now.” The woman reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of long ribbon that was rolled up in her hand. In incremental sections there were lines stitched onto it, with numbers next to them. “You are going to have to undress dear. Accurate measurements don’t happen with thick layers on.” Lina did as instructed, and as she stood there, exposed, the woman wrapped the ribbon around different parts of her body and wrote down numbers. They were silent at first. Lina didn’t know what to say, she considered asking questions but her mind would answer them before she could open her mouth. She presumed to not have any interest in clothing aside from the need for stealth and yet she kept surprising herself with knowledge of objects in this space and actions of the seamstress.

 

Then she thought of a question, “Who is that lady out there?”

 

“Oh? oh-that’s my sister. She helps me out here, she likes fashion and it keeps her busy so... ya know.”

 

“She seemed tired.”

 

“Oh that-” she rolled her eyes, “I told her to get rest. She was out catching fireflies... she has a thing with fireflies- I don’t get it.”

 

“I see.”

 

“Yeah it’s been like that since we were kids, but she’s fine, don’t worry about her too much.” The woman looked down at her measurements and tapped her pencil on the page. “So are you a merchant? Just passing through?”

 

“Hunter actually.”

 

“Really? we don't get many new hunters around...” she seemed a little too surprised by that, “Okay just make sure you are careful. There are a lot of monsters around.”

 

“I’ve noticed.”

 

The seamstress laughed, as if Lina had been joking. Lina wasn’t joking, but she didn’t tell the woman that. “Oh, your earrings are nice.”

 

“Thank you so much,” Lina smiled, brightly and involuntarily, “they were my mother’s.” She paused... that was news to her. When did she have earrings? When did she have...

 

“That's very nice for your mother to leave you something so nice, the only thing my mother left me was this store.”

 

“It’s a nice store,”

 

“why thank you, we do our best.”

 

“my mother was gerudo... or half- I don’t remember.”

 

“I’m surprised you don’t wear the gerudo style of clothing, not mad though, I’m happy you’re wanting something of shiekah make”

 

“I’m surprised too haha” what the fuck???? what the fuck??? WHAT THE FUCK????

 

“Well, that’s all... what piece do you want first?”

 

Lina tried to remember what she saw out there, thinking of what would best benefit her in her hunting. “Well, either the mask or the leggings?”

 

“Hmm, well the head gear will run you 500 rupees and since you already have those pants it’d probably be the best option.” That is so expensive for a piece of fabric, but she really really wanted to become more sneaky than she was.... she would have to find money though.

 

“oh... uh do you buy other things, like, as trade? Other than clothes.”

 

“Occasionally. What do you have?”

 

Lina dug through her pack and pulled out anything she had excess of, Including food. The lady sighed. “This won’t be enough for what you want... buuuuut, you can get the cloak over there if you want something right now. Though I appreciate some good food, that’ll get you a bit more.

Hmm... it’s something. Not stealthy but it’d keep me warm...

She’d take it.

Very happy about her new purchase, and distracted from what she was meant to do. She’d have to make more- more food meant more money, it was the only thing she had of value. That was her mission now.

 

She walked out to start her new mission and in doing so she narrowly avoided a child shaped speed bump that crossed her path. She did an odd dance, spinning with wide legs in order to prevent herself from stumbling. When she stopped she heard the giggles of said speed bump at Lina’s attempt to stay upright. Such a child expressed to her that she was funny, and seeing the little girl she was distracted from her task once more.

“you’re not from here, everyone is too busy to play. Will you play with me?” the girl asked. And was the only thing Lina needed to hear to get hooked. Learning her lesson from the last time she attempted to entertain children Lina asked the girl what she wanted to play and to her relief the two ended up playing a few rounds of hide and seek. At least that was the case until the girl seemed to get tired or bored, before then running off.

Lina took a breather, stretching her back, then she looked for a good place to cook. She peered around some buildings, stepping past gardens and around fences before coming down to the square. The centre of town was near the clothing store. In fact, it looked like a small merchant’s square. Plenty of buildings about, all with signs above their doors. And right across from the shops, up on its perch was the large house, or temple; with stairs leading all the way up to the door. A pair of white haired men stood in front of the stairway, presumably as guards. Lina looked them over.

I could take them.

 

Not that she wanted to... but she could. And even then she wouldn’t give them the satisfaction, she could sneak past them as easily as it was for her to fall over. But she wasn’t going there anyway, looking at that building made her stomach twist in on itself, it made her want to spit. She shook it off. Nearby the stairs she saw guardian statues. And before she could finish surveying the area she was already walking over there. What was her problem?

She stopped in front of the statues, seeing apples and nuts and vegetables given as offerings to guardian spirits. She sighed as she looked them over, not a sigh of discontent however- it was in fact the opposite- she felt something relax in her chest as she looked them over. She stepped in front of the one with the least offerings and pulled an apple from her pack. Breathing a prayer of protection to those Lina wished to protect, before feeling that joyous wind tickle her ears as it seemed to respond to her. She stood, stepping around the statues and peering over the nearby fence.

The fence which protected people from falling into the deep water below, it flowed down the mountainside and ripple as it burbled from a spring somewhere deep within the mountain. She watched the water move and flow as fish swam in and out of it. They were new to her, patterned in spots of white and orange and brown. She wondered if they would taste good with some herbs and salt... then she wondered if they were meant to be eaten at all. Some birds are kept in cages and as pets, so perhaps these fish were not meant for food. She licked her lips like a hungry cat before turning away. She’d have to ask so as not to offend, despite her wondering how such a creature would taste. She leaned on the fence, now able to focus on her observations. There appeared to be a moon home, a jar home, and a carrot home according to the signs. She wasn’t sure what they meant, they didn’t have words on them. Were people meant to infer meaning from the signs? She would likely have to go inside and look into them.

Next to “carrot home” was a wooden deck with tables, chairs, and a cooking pot atop it. To the north was a path between the mountains and another to the south. Finally to the centre of the square sat another smaller pond, little streams ran down into it and splashed up the lily pads just a bit, fish swam about there as well, like there was an underwater tunnel going between both pools. In the centre of the pond however there was a small mound of stone with one of those statues – a “hylia”-- sat atop it, though with the way the grass and moss grew climbing it, it looked as though the statue was carved from that very spot.

With those notes taken care of, Lina FINALLY went towards the cooking pot. To make food, for money, so that she could hunt. But due to her taking a bit long with her other preoccupations she found another young girl with similar hair to the other. Perhaps they were related, or more likely... Lina just found lots of children to look alike. This child at least seemed old enough to be this close to a fire, like... 7 or... 12... 13? no no... she... she didn’t know how children aged.

She opened her mouth to let the girl know that she needed the cooking pot to complete her “hunting in comfort and style” plan and maybe riding on a big animal or flying.... she hadn’t gotten past the receiving clothing for money part. However, before she could divulge her master plan the child groaned. Not at Lina’s presence, which would have been acceptable. But at the cooking pot and the ingredients laid out on the napkin before her.

Lina asked the girl what the problem was, which surprised them both. The girl had recipes to cook for dinner but she didn’t have everything she needed. “My dad works really hard to keep us safe!” she said “He gets really tired so I like to help. But I can’t if I don’t have everything.” Lina knelt down by the cooking pot and pulled her bag off her shoulders, rifling around a bit while she asked the girl her name and what she needed. Upon answering Lina pulled each of the ingredients  out and showed them to the girl called Koko, to the child’s excitement. Lina got her everything... everything but butter. Butter!!! The first thing Lina remembered. She needed it. She craved it. And soon she would find it! The child let her know that they sold butter in a store nearby. And in less than 5 minutes Lina returned with three sticks of butter.

The girl joyously thanked Lina and began cooking. All the while Lina waited, curiously watching and waiting. Regretfully she bit a stick of butter. It was a mistake. Why ... Why did she crave BUTTER? BLEH. And she couldn’t get it off her teeth or tongue. It wasn’t bad- but it was MUCH. SO MUCH. She was like a dog with peanut butter until it melted, but when it melted it tasted better. She learned quickly. Butter was not for biting.

After some time (and a brief nap on Lina’s part) the girl called out a name that Lina vaguely recognised. She hadn’t paid attention before, but it was recent. The words “Hi, my name is Kottla! What’s yours?” in a tiny voice rung out in her mind as the young girl called it out into the open. She called the name then waited, then called again, then again. Her expression grew more and more distressed as it went on. This display caught Lina’s attention, little Kottla not coming for dinner... so they could be related? Not the point. There was a child in distress and another one potentially missing, Lina leaned forward touching her hand to the girl’s shoulder. “hey, hey. Take a breath.”

The child did as she was told.

“Okay, do you have a guardian?”

Koko nodded.

“Alright, here’s the plan. I met your sister earlier, Kottla. With hair like yours. You go find your guardian... and I’ll try to find your sister.” Lina stood up and held her hand out to the girl, “I promise I’ll make sure she’s safe.” the young girl nodded. Taking Lina’s hand as she stood, before running off to find whoever took care of the kids. And despite the cries from her stomach due to the scent of cooking still in the air, she went on the lookout for Kottla.

She knew the girl was tired of hide and seek, and despite the thought that her energy for it may have come back, Lina doubted it for right now. If that was the case, the child would have heard the call and come for food. She took a moment to breathe, she was a hunter, normally regular tracking methods would work but she was in a village. She was out of her element. Though in this state of mind she found another detail, in the same way she recalled the name. Which way did the child run?

North.

 

North! Though there were two paths, one up the mountain and one down, if the child was tired as she said she was, Lina figured that she wouldn’t go up the mountain, so she followed the northern path off of the village square.

Up the path Lina initially noticed two things. Neither was more important than the other in her mind as she took it all in at once. The first was a beautiful view of the Lands below, with rivers and hills and forests, she could see mountains further on the horizon and of course she could see the castle... despite her eyes not wanting her to. The second was an array of large stones of different shapes and sizes all with writing carved into and painted on the surfaces of all. They stood like obelisks of knowledge and wisdom, or perhaps even hubris. For an ocean of headstones lay before her, and Kottla lay near one like a tiny castaway riding a wave of emotion, fast asleep.

Lina approached, doing her best not to startle the girl awake, she knelt down beside the sleeping child, her breathing soft and still as she was curled up tightly at the base of a stone. The would-be heroine sighed, feeling pangs of emotion as she looked upon the child. Were she to have known her better perhaps she’d have laid a blanket on her, or picked her into her arms and held her in a firm embrace. But she did not know the child, the child was safe, she did not need to pick up the girl despite how sweet she looked. Lina gently nudged the girl awake with her hand, brushing the hair out of her face before she did.

She understood one of the feelings this stirred within her,

Sadness.

 

The girl’s eyes opened drowsily as she yawned looking up at Lina. “hi...”

 

“Hello sweetie, what are you doing out here?”

 

The girl blinked a few times, the tiredness not leaving her eyes as she slowly looked around. “where am i?” she smacked her lips.

 

“you’re in the graveyard...”

 

She paused, her brain still ticking away waiting for her mind to warm up, however when it did she looked nervous. “Oh no! I’m late! Did I miss dinner?!”

 

“no, no... you didn’t. Your sister made some very good food. I’ll take you back in a moment, but what are you doing out here?” Lina had an idea what the girl was doing, but waited for her response. She looked as though she was thinking, and Lina let her for as long as she needed before she answered.

 

“Oh! Yes. I was prayin’ for mama. She can’t play games with me... so daddy said I could pray... it’s not like playin’ but if it makes mama happy.” the girl chewed on her thumb, “I fell asleep while prayin’... I hope she’s not mad...” Kottla patted the gravestone in front of her, “sorry mama.”

 

Lina understood another one of her feelings, it was regret.

“what were you asking for?”

 

“I want mama to be happy! And maybe if she’s happy there she’ll come back. Cause daddy and Koko miss her.”

 

“you don’t?”

 

“I don’t know... I talk to her” she patted the stone again.

 

“Here, why don’t we finish wishing your mother happiness and go get you dinner, okay?”

 

Kottla gripped her fists tightly with determination “okay!”

 

Lina took it slow, showing the child how to kneel and bow, and recite her words and blessings to the dead. Wishing for safety and happiness from the goddesses and for the spirit of their mother to find them again. As the child spoke Lina felt tears well in her eyes, this wasn’t fair, but it was death’s toll. When they were done, Lina stood, taking the child by the hand and walking her back into the village. O n dropping off the child Lina was met by Koko and one of the guards. Koko ran up to greet her sister, and Kottla ran to copy her. Lina approached the guard. He appeared to be the girls’ father, and he thanked her. He gave the woman a nod and with Koko’s help, gave her a portion of each of the meals that they had made. Lina smiled, thanking them in return. Then she watched as they walked away, heading home.

Lina rolled her shoulders, walked to where the cooking pot sat and took a seat nearby, taking a look at the bowl and cup she was handed. The cup had a veggie soup in it, it went down fast and easy as a taste turned into an empty vessel. Meanwhile the bowl had some sort of heavy meat dish with chunks of orange in it and... an apple or its slices with... mmm. She practically melted as she tasted it. This was it, the thing she had been searching for. This was butter! A hot buttered apple... genius. This child should get an award.

As Lina ate and prepared to cook for the evening she realized that there was a third feeling she had pangs of in the graveyard that she only just grasped...

Understanding.


***

Chapter 15: Ancient

Summary:

Lina regretfully runs errands around Kakariko Village.

Chapter Text

Lina stood proudly at the counter of the clothing shop. Piles of paper packaged meals laid out in front of her as she happily waited for the seamstress to appraise her hard work. Lina thought it was good, at least better than she had done before. She had worked half the night and with some ingredients laid out in front of her, she managed to make many edible and several quite delicious meals. She took pride in the act of cooking, like she took pride in her hunting. Perhaps it was ‘cause she enjoyed it, or had a knack for it (though there were a few times that she got lost in thought and put the wrong things in). She made several fish dishes, some salted meats – which she had learned was a way to keep them cured –, some grilled vegetable dishes and roasted meat skewers. She felt like she could have done more if given more time, but the shop would have closed had she not rushed. Though if this was good enough to get her money, then she could go forage and hunt for more ingredients.

How joyous!

After some quiet contemplation the seamstress spoke. “This should cover the mask and... probably the leggings too if I consider the amount. Not to mention, it would feed my family for at least a week if not more. I might have to give some away... I probably won’t though...” she chuckled softly. I only managed to finish one of the pieces though. The other will take a few days if you don’t mind the wait-.” Even if she did, what could she do? Have her sew at knife point? No... that’d be wildly impractical and tiresome. But also she wouldn’t have the heart for such a thing. She would just have to wait. The woman knelt down and reached under the counter, pulling up some blue and white fabric pieces, each sewn carefully and sturdily with similarly coloured thread. The fabric was folded and wrapped around a pair of hand whittled hair sticks, stained and sealed red with a matching pair of cuckoos carved into its surface.

Lina took the product happily, however instead of putting it all on right now, -- as she was aware of the difficulty messing with her hair would create-- she just put on the mask but placed the sticks in her pack. She was hopeful that she could find someone who might be able to help her with that mess at some point. Someone she could trust to get close enough to her head and not try to kill her. And though Cambo was a fleeting thought to cross her mind, she had caught him just before he entered the moon house to “get some sleep before heading back”, and besides the fact he would be tires and/or leaving soon, he just looked like the type of person who couldn’t braid to save his life, so she didn’t want to bother him.

She smiled behind the mask at her happy trade, then looked up at the woman who was now burdened with this abundance of food. Lina, realizing what she had saddled this woman with, made a soft but genuine offer to help her take the food home. And to Lina’s people pleasing delight, the seamstress accepted.

 

As the young woman was closing up shop, Lina stood outside; holding a great many packages of food in her arms, balancing as much as she could until the woman came out to join her. They shared the load of the packages and the woman led the way home. It didn’t take too long, with her following a path past small farms and through grassy yards until they reached a cozy looking cottage. The two stepped inside the house, heaving the packages onto a dining table. It was quite humble within; a wooden bed, an old table with a set of chairs around it. A couple of bed rolls leaned against the wall, and a little fireplace off to the side. In the bed lay a sleeping old woman, and nearby was the shopkeeper’s sister struggling to keep her eyes open as she sat, staring out of the window.

After the food was firmly on the table, Lina spoke softly to the seamstress, “I’m sorry Miss. Claree, but I must ask something of you. Do you have a pot or jar I could borrow?” The shopkeeper thought for a moment and walked toward a wardrobe in the corner, she opened it and rifled through before pulling out a glass jar.

 

Here you go. It’s no problem at all.”

 

I’ll bring it right back,” Lina nodded and quickly left out of the front door. Briefly hearing the shopkeeper telling her sister to go to sleep. They argued quietly, as they did so Lina crept up on, caught, captured as many fireflies as she could before they were scared away. Lina gently knocked on the door so as to not surprise them, and slowly slid it open. She cleared her throat and approached the younger of the two sisters. “ahem, so I ... I heard you liked fireflies... and that’s why you seemed tired so here." She held out the jar of insects that she had gathered and Lasli (the younger one) jumped up out of her chair. She started to squeal before her sister stopped her and silently gestured to their sleeping grandmother.

 

“Y ou did it! You did it!” Lasli cheered softly. “I will take wonderful care of them, I’ll even get them a box and give them a little home.” she jumped on her toes with excitement. “Here,” she ran to a corner of a room with bags in it, stumbling over the carpet as she did. She dug through the bag and pulled out a gleaming purple rupee.

 

Here, I saved this up. It’s not all of my savings-” as she said that she looked at her sister who opened her mouth, “-but it’s a good amount. I love this so much I have to give you something. And you have to take it, I won’t have any take backs.”

The old woman grumbled in her sleep, and Claree shushed Lasli. Lina blinked and held out her hands, taking the money and giving them a smile. After a moment Claree turned to her sister, “now Ms. Hunter, if you don’t mind... my sister needs to get some sleep so if you don’t mind-”

Lina nodded, stepping back out through the sliding door and leaving the sisters to their passive aggressive discussion. She didn’t know that people would be so excited about her help. She did help despite this, she wanted to make things better. But she did nothing to achieve the reward she was given, she just did what she would have done anyway. Though that being said, Cambo also gave her money, as thanks for saving his life. Now she wasn’t sure if that was the most effective way of making money but she did need money all the same.

No... no that wouldn’t be why she helped people... it was a perk for sure but that wouldn’t feel right if she did it like that. No... it’d feel like pulling on a wet wool sock... or rubbing cotton on your teeth... inherently wrong. Though it would help her get closer to her goal of getting some more than decent clothing.

 

But now she was tired. Cambo went to the moon house and so would she. Upon entering, she approached a counter and they asked if she needed a place to rest her head for the night. Lina nodded, offering up money and asking to be woken in the morning. The Moon house was similar to the stable, a building with beds scattered here and there for people to rest in. And that was what Lina did. She took off her boots and cloak and climbed up onto the bed. In closing her eyes she thought it was odd to pay for sleep, but mattered not since she planned to get up early and resume her cooking anyway.


 

As Lina slept, her mind was filled with faces, or bits of them, eyes and ears and voices that said no words. She saw a blade, one small then another larger one. Slicing and slashing until blood poured down into the void before disappearing. She could taste it, even in her sleep. The iron, far in the back of her throat. And in this fountain she saw a man, he was tall and strong and before she could get a clearer image she was woken up.

Shaking off that nights dream, she quickly got up, pulled her boots on and ran across the street to the cooking pot.

She managed to cook one meal before getting abruptly distracted by a distressed voice. She looked across the square, seeing a home under the cliffside, a man stood by a fenced-in garden. Lina looked around, it was still early, nobody else was around, nobody else could have made that sound. She sighed, putting away her ingredients before walking over.

She had things to do, things she wanted to do at least. So why was it that she felt the need to continue this? Perhaps nobody else would help? But she would simply ask what was wrong and, if she could not help... then that was that. And she would be back to cooking in no time.

 

Moya! Halpa! T-tola, where are you my chickies? Oh no! oh no!” he called and called name after name while running back and forth around the fence until Lina approached. She held a hand out and as the man ran into it he stopped, only noticing the small woman when he felt the pressure of her mechanical arm on his chest. oof, oh i- I’m sorry – er- ser. I, um, I didn’t notice you were there.”

 

you seemed upset- it was distracting.”

 

Oh! Sorry... I didn’t mean to be disruptive”

 

What seems to be the problem?”

 

“M y cuccoos, they all got out of their pen!”

 

This is all about cuccoos? Seriously???

“R ight.”

 

My ten cuccoos, Moya, Halpa, Tola, Hussol, Luldel, Isol, Moli, Passon. Rurren, and Jelli-.” He began to go into increasingly tedious detail about each of the differences of the cuccoos. To the point that Lina had tuned him out until he abruptly stopped talking to breathe. “But it’s really hard to notice the differences in Rurren and Jelli’s tail feathers... they’re practically twins if you aren’t around them all the time. I have no idea where they’d be... they’ve never run away before!!!” The man  looked like he was about to start crying.

 

Lina sighed and stretched, and looked over to the man. Do you want help then?”

 

Would you?! I miss my chickies so much!”

 

uh... yeah sure.”

Anything for peace and happiness I guess.



And so she searched the surrounding area; missing pets would not go far after all. They were all scattered about. She even found one atop the roof of the clothing shop. Climbing up there was a struggle, it would not stop raining and she struggled to not stab holes into the side of the building, trying her best not to pull the thatch from the roof. But she did it, she made it, she brought the last cuccoo to the fence and though she hadn’t yet acknowledged the man, he began speaking to her. “... ten. That’s ten! My goodness Jelli, how did you get up onto that roof.” he laughed. “Thank you! Thank you!! Here, take this. I’d never have found them if it wasn’t for you!”

 

Oh... well that wasn’t true at all, anyone could have done that.

He thrust a purple rupee into her hands and went back to watching his birds. Lina wanted to say something, she wanted to return the money because it wasn’t much trouble... but she saw the look in his eyes and there wasn’t any talking to him now, not with the joyous gleam in the bird lover's eye. So she went back to cook for the rest of the day until she had made more than enough food to cover the final piece of clothing. Not wanting to burden the seamstress with more food she turned to another shop. She wondered what the “jar house” had in store.

 

And i t was heaven!

By heaven, Lina obviously meant an arrow shop, though she could make her own if given the materials, that meant time... and she was going to get money now, yay money! Money for clothing and arrows, what could be better?

She spoke to the woman behind the counter, listening to her happily chat as she evaluated the quality of the food. She told Lina about her work as a fletcher, making arrows using cuccoo feathers. She still had a good access to them but it’s a little less consistent since her husband got overly attached to the birds and she left him over it. Lina paused, giving that some thought, but seeing how she responded, she wouldn’t say a word about knowing her husband. In fact she couldn’t fault the woman, the man was fucking weird.

Once she got her money and arrows she went back to the moon house and laid down to rest once more. She felt she needed it, despite her far shorter day, and the dreams of faces that persisted.

And the man in blood...


 

When morning came she was awoken again, however upon opening her eyes she saw, not the owner of the sleep house... but one of the men that she saw outside of the big building. This one being the father she had helped the other day... what could he need? Were his girls okay?

hm?” she groaned sleepily,

 

ahem," he stood stiffly, looking off behind her, "you need to come with me.”

That’s not concerning at all.



She did as she was asked, following the man out and up toward the big house. She had figured she’d have to go and deal with the lady in the big house at some point, but she didn't expect to be fetched. Maybe the lady heard of her deeds and sent someone to get Lina... it was bound to happen...probably. The man stopped at the bottom of the stairs next to the other house guard, they waited, and Lina also waited. Then admittedly after a little too long, Lina realized that they were not blocking the entrance, and were waiting for her to go up on her own. She smiled and nodded at each of them, wishing them a good day before starting up the stairs.

The would-be heroine would have been impressed had she not been existing in the village for several days already. The waterfalls cascading on either side were pretty though... and kind of loud. She wondered what it would be like to jump into the water from the height of those waterfalls. She might have to try it, if only to get up that high. She hadn’t yet gotten to climb up the mountains around here, but she desired to reach every peak in the region. As long as the arm was attached to her, it wouldn’t be bad to have it help her achieve her dreams.

Lina tugged the mask down from around her face and took a breath. She felt heat in her chest and her stomach flip flopped. She had to be unwell, perhaps that was excuse enough not to enter the building. However she thought of the old man... the king... the... guy she knew who asked her to do this. She sighed. She wasted enough time already... she had to do this for him, then she could do whatever she wanted.

 

She stopped at the top of the stairs, only a step or two away from the door. Lina felt the breath catch in her throat. Was she afraid? No this wasn’t fear... no but what was this? It was a feeling of tension that she could not describe, she didn’t have the words yet. Lina was sure she could find it if given the time, but what time did she have? Both all and none of it. Ugh, existence was confusing.

She rubbed the back of her neck, and tried to gain the strength to continue. But it would take a moment, the queasiness was distracting to her. Maybe some fiend had cast a spell on her so that she would be unable to finish her mission... but that was silly... sure this stuff was weird but who would have thought that demons would cast spells. Then again the world was weird, demons could be real, however for the sake of Lina’s sanity it is for the best that the train of thought is dropped.

 

As she cut the line of that train of thought she looked up and saw a young lady, softly humming as she swept the porch that wrapped around the building. She wasn’t tall, but she was taller than Lina. With long white hair down to her lower back which was tied up and out of the way at heights that made it appear to only go past her shoulders. She wore simple clothing with rich accents in blue and red, like many of the other shiekah people. Her light bangs just barely covered a painted eye on her forehead. Painted? Was that the word? It wasn’t painted but... her skin was red but only there...

tsk

the word would come to her.

Though the maiden wasn’t looking in her direction, Lina could see a soft face with kind and gentle eyes. The way she hummed and smiled to herself warmed Lina’s heart. She was pretty, but not just pretty – you could see from the way her smile shone from this small section of the world that she was beautiful internally. Though the twisting intensified. Lina looked at this face, she wanted to look her in the eyes, because Lina thought she had seen her face before. She didn’t know where, probably in her dreams. But she felt like that face... it was so familiar.

 

um, excuse me-” she grasped for the young woman’s attention. “I’m sorry to bother you but are you-” before Lina could even finish what she was saying before the young woman looked toward her, her face went bright red, and she dropped the broom running swiftly inside. The doors shoved open and slammed closed right in front of her.

Lina was speechless. She hadn’t had that effect on people before. She felt a twinge of embarrassment. Her head was covered, but she thought it might have been her hair, or maybe there was blood on her or... no... no it wasn’t- it wasn’t anything like that. Though it could have been her face. She didn’t mean to offend her, or make her upset. She had just wanted help. Lina reached down to pick up the broom the lady dropped. She thought of trying to calm her with a smile or help her pick up the broom, but no matter the thought the young woman still ran away. It was just her luck that she would be invited somewhere just to have a potential host run away from her. She shook her head. It was fine, just fine. She wouldn’t be upset about it, the world was strange after all. She took the step forward, and as she took the second she pushed open the front doors to enter the building.

 


Inside the house on the hill, it was dark. Not only due to the dim lighting, which was kept up solidly by the low burning candles but, by the dark wood interior itself. It kept up the low lighting despite the sparse covering over the windows. The wood taking in most light and hiding it from views. The air was rich with scents of spices, as incense smoke rose and dispersed among the rafters. This was a home first and foremost, the simple amenities scattered around, a low table pushed off to the side with cushions instead of chairs. More cushions and sleeping mats were scattered across the floor barring a few paths for ease of movement for guests. There was a small fireplace to keep the home warm though there were no beds about. On the far wall there were two sets of stairs, each turning behind the wall and heading presumably to the same area, above the main room. And finally between the two staircases there was a slightly raised platform, atop which was a strange metallic glowing sphere. To the right of it was a strange tapestry, which she couldn't quite see the details of, but its tan base blended into the clay back wall.

Finally, in front of the tapestry, atop a stack of several large pillows, sat an old woman. Not just old, in fact, she was ancient. Sat there with her hair pulled back far too tightly that her skin was pulled with it. She wore similar clothing to the young woman that Lina had seen outside, and had a similar symbol tattooed on her forehead; however, hers was blue. Atop her head she wore a hat made of straw, with a red crying eye painted on it. Lina would have thought her a husk of a woman, had she not been drinking tea at that very moment. Because, for the moment this description was taking place, the woman was having a long deserved moment of peace.

This peace was quickly disturbed when the pretty young woman came in, surprising the ancient lady. And was disturbed even further when Lina pushed both doors open with a broom in hand, looking like an ominous but petite shadow lurking in the doorway. There was a moment of pause as Lina took in the surroundings as described above. Though on looking over the woman she felt herself scrunch up her nose, as though someone wiped shit on her face.

Her.

There was something about that old lady. A look in her eyes, the way she held her cup of tea, something. It made Lina grit her teeth and want to grind them. She did her best to ignore the feeling, but it was like those bells ringing in her head, incessant and annoying. Or perhaps it was just the woman.

She hadn’t even spoken yet.

 

... yes, yet.

In trying to ignore the feeling Lina approached. She let the doors swing shut behind her and the lighting slowly cleared across her face making her a little more visible. “Excuse me, you dropped your broom- I didn’t mean to scare you.”



Lina held out the broom to the young woman who looked like a terrified bluepee- ... bluepee- what the fuck was a-

She took it, avoiding eye contact as the old woman nodded at her. She muttered a very soft “Thank you,” before she rushed past Lina and went back outside. Lina was stunned, she didn’t even look back and just waited for the door hinges to squeak shut before even considering turning to look at the keeper of the crypt.

She was frail and old, Lina thought, though something about her told her that she was older than time and that despite her age she was hardy and could stab Lina if she wanted to. Something in the would-be heroine told her that, and that she could not take her in a fight without getting injured despite the seemingly clear disadvantages. Lina wanted to fight her. She wanted to prove herself. She wanted to make her eat dirt before having a cup of tea with her. She narrowed her eyes as she studied her wrinkled face. She thought for what felt like hours as she tried to place any word for how this woman made her feel, and after a bit of quiet contemplation and staring, she settled on loathing. This whole time that she had been in this town, she had been dreading this moment, not out of fear but out of some sort of loathing. Goddess... she could not stand to look at her face.

 

The old woman looked at her with wrinkled brown eyes, her steely gaze looking upon her form in a way which made Lina’s skin burn. Tea dripped over the lip of the cup as she looked, Lina watched it slowly creep down the side and be absorbed into the fabric of her outfit. Lina kept her eyes from further meeting the old womans’. Young Lina, was the first to speak, “The old man told me to come here to speak with Impa, is that you?” She tried her best to be kind despite the disgust she felt.

The old woman raised her eyebrows, sipping the tea as she looked down at Lina from her perch. The look on her face hardly changed but in her eyes she could see some glimmer of recognition.

 

““ old man”? Do you have any sense of respect?” the old woman croaked. Should a toad have had wrinkles she could have been its twin.

 

huh?

 

whoever that was must have had a name child, it is in using a name that you give respect.”

 

uh...” he did have a name, she just didn’t like to name him it felt weird. Calling him ‘old man’ felt more respectful than his actual name, why would he have waited to tell her if that was the case? “His name was... Rhoam, King Rhoam. He told me to find Impa and talk to her.”

 

The old woman sighed, “I am she-”

 

Lina furrowed her brow. But you’re... old. “Were you a friend of his?”

 

a friend? Not really. I worked under him when he was alive; goddess protect his soul. -but... what did you mean King Rhoam came to you”

 

He taught me everything since I crawled out of the cave. Fed me, gave me a place to live and all that. So when he died... died again?...” she shook her head “when his body crumbled to dust and he became a ghost I came here cause he told me to, not cause I want to be here. He said you would be able to tell me about this hero that I’m supposed to be like.”

 

and why would I need to do that?”

 

I don’t know, all I know is that” she cleared her throat and did her first and best at a King Rhoam impression, “my duty is done once you tell me about this hero...” it wasn’t half bad, “I think I heard his name is Link or something.” She shrugged.

 

Link...” Impa paused, staring at Lina and tilting her head. “I see. I trained Link many years ago. So that is likely why.” She looked at Lina like she was waiting for something.

 

... yeah so can you tell me about him? What is this grand purpose I’m meant to complete or-” Impa’s eyes widened subtly, before refocusing. Lina zeroed in on the changes in the old woman’s face but could not figure out the thoughts behind her eyes... what was with her? Why did he choose me? You trained him so you knew him, right?”

 

Tsk, I could tell you about that but as chief of the village I have a lot on my plate right now.” She took a long loud sip of her tea, “but if you’d want to free up some of that time, there is something you could help me with" Great. "Lurking within the ruins up on the mountain. It’s stopping our hunters from reaching the sacred forest. Could you handle that?”

 

Her innate desire to help people turned off as fast as it took a fish to get wet. “Are you pawning your work off on me?”

 

just-” she took a calming breath, “Go deal with it, child. And if you get back I’ll answer all of your questions.”

 

If?


 

Lina walked up the mountain path toward the ruins, they weren’t quite at the top but they were far enough away that she found this whole thing to be a hassle and a waste of time. She hadn’t had major problems with most of the tasks she’d taken up around the village, sure they were menial at best but she liked to help. Being tasked with something akin to pest control by the chief who could have been as old as a goddess damned pillar of salt, well that was too much for her. Though was it too much cause a person of authority asked it of her or was it only because it was HER. Impa. Who was Impa to ask anything of her anyhow? Was she just taking advantage of her kindness, or were there other motives? Ugh, Lina’s head hurt thinking about it. Though luckily the hike didn’t take long enough for her to worry about it for too much longer, so she was at the entrance to the ruins before she knew it.

The valley below looked quite quaint from this height, however she could still see the big house and subsequently the young and familiar looking girl staring up from the porch as she leaned on her broom. Lina waved then turned away, ready to make sure that this place was safe for others to go through. She faced a few crumbling walls and a door, beyond which was another one of those strange pedestals. The beeping in the front of her mind began. She hadn’t heard its call since entering in the town but now it was loud and as annoying as ever. She stepped up and placed The Arm™ on the pedestal’s surface.

This time was a bit different though, she felt... a pulse. It ran up the arm and zapped her skin. She pulled the hand away and shook it.

 

O-kay.... weird.

Ignoring that, she continued into the ruins. There were a few more intact walls than she had been used to seeing in these places so, she couldn’t quite see but she could hear and smell and feel. And her senses were telling her... nothing. It was weird. It felt like she was outside... and yet-

She turned a corner and in front of her was an open room. There were no doors, no windows. Just high walls and cloudy sky. Wasn’t it sunny before? It must not have been, or perhaps the clouds just crossed over the sun... that had to be it.

There had to be a door somewhere or something... how else would the hunters have made it through here? Lina guessed she would just have to look through the whole room, checking every corner in case there was a door at one of these angles. She sighed, what a pain. Why this when she could just hunt for them? She’d have much preferred that.

 

Lina began to cross the empty crumbling room.

It was curious though, how so many things brought her to such strange ruins. What could have been built here? What sort of buildings were these, and why did the pedestals all look the same? She pursed her lips. If only she had some parchment to write out her questions so she could ask the lady, Impa. If someone that old didn’t have answers to everything, then she knew there was no hope in this world.

As she reached around the midpoint of the room she was stopped by a trembling feeling. The hairs on her arm stood on end and she felt a sense of unease. Unsure if the feeling was real or not she looked at some of the fallen rubble, and she watched the pebbles bounce and shake as the vibrations continued. It got more and more violent as time progressed causing Lina to stumble back and pull out her weapon, she turned her eyes to the centre of the room and turned her back to the wall. She braced herself.

 

There was a grinding sound then there was quiet.

 

The quiet was long enough that she briefly considered taking another step before she saw the ground rise up in the centre of the room, like a quickly growing mole hill. Though the issue with mole hills was that it needed a mole to make it. So what was making the ground mound so quickly? The wariness swelled within Lina as the mound got bigger and bigger and bigger. Until it seemingly reached its peak. There, at the top of the mound she saw what looked like mechanical fingers sticking up out of the dirt. ... no not fingers... claws. They were mechanical claws, off white like hers, and pulling whatever they were attached to up out of the ground. Lina looked from her hand to the claw as the dirt flew up them, they looked like cousins. She crept along the wall as she kept an eye on the slowly emerging figure.

1.

2.

3.

Three sets of claws, like on the hand. The claws extended along segmented legs that curved and stretched as it strained to get the body up out of the ground. They curved upward the way an inch worm inches and remained that way as the pile of dirt at the centre rose out of the hole it was placed in. Up and out from the dirt rose some sort of mounded disc. It was brown, but darker than the dirt that was atop it; and on its body were circular patterns that felt a bit more natural, haloed by an orange grow. A look which mirrored the plates of her arm.

Its plates and gears grinded and whirred as it tried to move forward. The body stepped and stumbled before beginning to shake. It stepped and shook violently until the dirt was flung from its back but a mound remained. The mound matched the body, with the same patterns and glow, barring one difference. In what Lina could only think to be the centre of its face was a bright blue pulsing orb.

Lina held her breath, creeping along the wall she tried to move as silently as she could, her hair stood on end, her eyes unblinking. She couldn’t think, she couldn’t speak. She knew something was wrong with this thing. It wasn’t a monster like she had fought. This was like her, or at least like the thing that had attached itself to her shoulder. She hoped they couldn’t sense each other.

 

The being turned to look at her, and in a swift motion its head detached from its body, popping up into the air with a steely metallic spine hanging out; arms quickly unfolded from within the spinal column, clicking and spinning quickly as it pulled a glowing blue weapon out from nowhere. Then it immediately made a b-line for her.

fuck.

Lina bit her tongue as though she had actually said something aloud.

There was a moment here, like before, when she helped that talking tree, she saw herself again. She watched herself fight, she watched how she dodged and how the creature had spider-like movements. She saw and felt every swing, every near miss, every strained muscle and the weight of the arm. Her mouth dried as the mechanical spider jumped backwards. She watched as the light in the eye pulsed faster and faster ‘til the change was imperceptible to her; then there was a flash. It was so bright it nearly blinded her. She felt heat and cold and then... smelled smoke. She watched her body fall and her eyes go dark.

 

Fuck.

 

FUCK.

 

Lina came back to her senses and just managed to avoid a swing from the beast. Its glowing polearm nearly slicing her ear off. This was fine. Everything was- WHAM- it slammed forward hitting against her arm and knocking her backward. Shit! She hardly had time to tell herself it was fine. Okay then, all thought went out of the window- something in her mind dimmed like a fire slowly going out, however despite there being no visible flame, every part of the fire was still hot.

Lina was no longer present within her mind and body, she felt like she was floating down a lazy river as another her rapidly moved ahead. Step step swing, strain. She stepped out of the way, ducked and backflipped her way out of range, ducking behind some rubble as she scarfed down some food. The inner Lina wondered why she could be eating at a time like this, but it’s not like she could ask that to outer Lina, whose searing burn from a strike seemed to not hurt anymore.

She could feel her biting her lip, it hurt. Damn. Lina peered around the pillar as the creature reared back, then spun precisely in her direction while slashing with its weapons, she ducked. It knew where she was.

 

CRASH!

Rubble fell down around her as the creature ran into the pillar, the rubble smacked it on its top and arms causing it to jitter and shake and spark. Lina jumped back as the inner self watched. She, quickly noticing this opportunity, slashed at the creature's arm that had been partially broken. However not much came of that. In a split second, lina remembered the similarities between the arm attached to her body and the claws of this creature. She held her own fingers out like the claws of a cat before striking down on the broken arm severing it and taking its weapon.

Something about it felt wrong, it ached her phantom arm and pulled on her neck muscles, though only inner Lina felt it. She tries to cry out to pull away from the pain... she closed her eyes. And when she opened them again she was actually outside. She and the outer Lina were not fully back in contact with one another but she could feel everything once again, repairing like fabric being stitched back together. They were nearly down the mountain. She was nearly down the mountain. Something in the air smelled different here than in the ruins, she was curious about it. But not enough to go back.

 

She approached the big house. She walked up the steps. She opened the door. She stepped in front of the old woman, still sat unmoving atop her perch. And in a surprisingly graceful motion she threw one of the creature’s legs at the base of Impa's cushioned tower. She need not say a word. The lack of any light in her eyes was enough to get the question across.

 

What the in the fuck was that?

***

Chapter 16: Once Guardians

Summary:

Lina tries to get answers from Impa and is sent off to Hateno to do another task.

Chapter Text

 “100 years ago, in the earliest days of my career I was given the esteemed position of a personal guard to the royal family. Specifically I was charged with the personal protection of the young Princess Zelda. Now the king that you mentioned was her father, King Rhoam, and he was aware of the timeline we were on. A timeline that was pushed ahead by an ever resurrecting force known as Calamity Ganon.

Calamity Ganon at one point was a man, though many records of this man were lost to time. We know that he used to reincarnate every hundred years along with a hero and a powerful mage. However, in a time far older than I know, and during a battle when he was on his last legs, this man gave up his ability to reincarnate to become this unkillable force of nature, one which could only be banished until its inevitable return after approximately a century.

King Rhoam was preparing for this calamity. He urged the princess to learn her craft, gathered heroes from every corner of the world, built up an army, searched for ancient weapons and for the hero of legend. These heroes from across the land were called “champions”, one from each major settlement in a region, all masters of their crafts. The ancient weapons, mechanical beasts like the one you fought in the ruins. Though the majority were bigger, stronger, and were meant as protection for the kingdom, and those bigger still were formed into the shapes of beasts from across the world.Each of the champions was given one such massive divine beast, so that they may protect their homelands.

And the hero of legend, “Link”, was a young soldier far better than they should have been, given his experience. Something about his movements were trained and focused even though he came from a little village. It was almost unnerving.

After assisting with monster attacks that were growing in severity, some of the calamity’s worshippers made their way into the castle. Monsters rampaged, and walls fell. While I was indisposed the hero ran in and saved the princess all on his own. Afterward however, the calamity hit.

The hero fell that day, he was gravely injured. Our doctors did their best to save him, but he needed to be laid to rest.”

 

“oh” Lina sighed, feeling an understanding sort of pain as she got it. She was what was left. She looked up at the princess’s guard, the old woman who was telling the story. She sat on a pillow cross-legged, the soft but persistent tugging of a comb pulling through tangles in her hair. The younger woman sat behind her, having taken it upon herself to care for Lina’s mane. Who was Lina to refuse such tenderness, she needed it after all.

 

“So now we have you...”

 

“Lina”

 

“Lina- you don’t have someone to teach you the way I took Link under my wing- so what you need to do is find the truth. You will understand, I know you will, but I cannot answer every question you have. To get the answers you seek, you first must go to the village of Hateno, there you will find a scientist named Purah, she should have a new device for your arm.”

 

“a... device?”

 

“I am not going to be the best at explaining this to you.” she squeezed the bridge of her nose with her fingertips, “I didn’t make the thing, but from what I recall they’re runes, or something like that, have you not- wait... have you not used your runes yet?”



“my what?” Lina stared at Impa, blinking in confusion.



“the runes, the magnet or the ice-” Lina continued to stare, and Impa stared back, judgmental, discerning. “...”



“...i-” Before Lina could fully put together a sentence, Impa snapped, breaking whatever facade of collected wisdom that laid before her, she rolled her eyes.

 

“OH MY FUCKING-you’re so STUPID.”

 

Lina’s loathing welled up again, like a spring covered with a lid. She had thrown the leg of her kill in front of Impa with spite, but calmed herself enough to get answers, but now... now Impa opened the flood gates, and Lina snapped back, “What the fuck old lady?! I AIN’T DONE NOTHING TO YOU”

 

“SOOOO ELOQUENT. A perfect representation of a HERO.”

 

“I’M NO HERO. I’M JUST DOING IT FOR MY FRIEND.”

 

“Of course YOU would be SO SELFISH.”

 

“Me? Selfish??? ME???”

 

“Yes you- I would never- If I could do what you could-”


Paya placed the hair sticks in Lina’s hair and stepped back. She took in a breath and cleared her thoughts before looking back at Impa. “um, is everything alright grandma?” There was a brief pause in the argument and a collective exhale was expelled, as both women sat back on their pillows. Lina tried to let go of the spite she wished to spit into Impa's face, and to release the venom she held in her throat, but she pushed it down instead. She looked in her lap, stared at her hands... then processed.

 

Lina turned to Paya, a look of surprise on her face, “grandma?” She remembered Paya looked familiar, but maybe she knew someone once that looked like her. She looked between Paya and Impa.


“no, she’s off limits. Don’t even think about it.” Impa’s bittered words flew out.

 

“wh-wha-?” Lina hadn’t even processed what that was directed to, she was just as confused as ever.

 

“shh- it’s just-” there was a look of contemplation on Impa’s face, “magic, you should have learned the spells when you awoke, the runes should be active by now. I know they were carved into your arm, but I don’t know the details. You should go on ahead. And bother Purah with your questions.”

 

“I CAN DO MAGIC!?” Lina yelled, no longer in anger but excitement. She stood with this newfound energy, the looped braids in the front of her hair swung back and forth.

 

Impa had no reply to that, simply sighing as she did. “Anyway, Hateno village. Go to the lab, talk to the scientist, get the rune, come back. Okay?”

 

“Chk, fine” Lina rolled her eyes, groaning like an annoyed adolescent, not wanting more instructions especially not from Impa, but she knew that she needed answers. She stretched her muscles out, then waved at Paya with a small smile, before stepping out of the door.

 

 

Lina gathered some supplies, she had been in town for some time but it was probably for the best that she moved on. She gathered a few items, sold some food, bought some butter and let the seamstresses know that she would return hopefully within a few days. She sat in front of the statue in the square, breathing in the pond air as she leaned against it. She should want to keep moving to explore, but there was something quaint and peaceful about this place. Even when she lived in the cabin they had monsters approaching here and there. But it seemed as though in such a high and remote place they’d be unlikely to have issues with monsters. They’d be safe. She could have just stayed here and been safe. She wanted to- but felt as though she held the weight of the world on her shoulders, she wasn’t a hero, she was a hunter. She killed animals for meat, that was it. Maybe her purpose wasn’t to be a hero, maybe it was just to be...? What even was a hero? What did that involve?

Lina bit her lip as she thought.

She was Lina, the hunter, she was a woman with one arm, tanned skin, and long blonde and white hair. She wanted to know who she was. She wanted to stop missing parts of herself. She just wanted to know more. But she also wanted peace. 

She knew she loved her horse, and to be out in the fresh air, and the cold on her face when she was bundled up, and FOOD. Yet no matter how much she loved or ate, she felt hollow.

Lina felt her back warm a bit as she leaned against the statue of Hylia. The warmth spread across her back and around her shoulders like a warm embrace. When the feeling subsided Lina felt revitalized, she didn’t feel stronger like the last time, but she felt like she could do more. Perhaps she would even be able to run to Hateno instead of riding on horseback. She laughed to herself, no... no she wouldn’t be able to do that. Muffin needed to come with her. Muffin was her friend.



Lina felt a hand touch her shoulder and she opened her eyes. As she looked up she met the soft gaze of Paya who smiled sweetly. “Hello... Miss. Lina.” She stepped back so she was only half-stood on the bridge. “I don’t mean to bother you, but I felt like I needed to apologise.”

 

“For what?” she raised an eyebrow”

 

“Well, for the first impression I made.” she spoke timidly, “I didn’t mean to run away, for one I thought you were a man- er not that you look man-ish or- oh dear.”

 

“It’s okay, I get it.”

 

“And running away wasn’t nice, so... sorry. Once I found you were a girl I relaxed... I liked braiding your hair... so... if you’d like to, I’d be happy to help you more in the future.”

 

“Really?”

 

Paya nodded shyly, “Anything you need.” She made eye contact with lina for a brief moment and had a look of determination deep within her gaze.

 

“Well, uh... sure. I can’t really do my hair on my own.” she looked down and flexed the fingers on The Hand™. “-not without it getting tangled.”

 

“Maybe I can show you how to when you get back?”

 

“that... would be nice.” Lina tucked some loose hair behind her ear, “Thank you.”

 

“okay. Bye then, and have a good trip!” Paya smiled shyly, then turned around and ran back to the big house.

 

Lina smiled, was that... the first time someone wanted to help HER? It felt... nice. She walked down the bridge, picked up her pack and walked out to the exit of the village to reunite with Muffin once again.

 


 

Lina rode back down the trail toward the stable in about a day, her pretty pink pony trotted along as Lina picked up mushrooms, herbs, and flowers. Any flowers that she was sure she couldn’t use for cooking she plucked and wove into muffin’s hair. Somehow her claw didn’t get stuck in Muffin’s mane like it did with her hair, in fact it worked quite well as a brush. And though Lina couldn’t yet use it for fine motor skills she did find that in taking care of her horse she was able to find a level of pressure with her touch that was comfortable for both of them. It made Lina smile. Muffin wasn’t scared of the arm, most people didn’t seem to want to say anything about it, but she could see they were uncomfortable with it. If it was really made of the same materials as the mechanical beasts, she would understand why they should be uneasy.

Lina stopped for directions briefly while at the stable, then she thought to buy more arrows from Beedle, before doubling back on the path and trotting along on the back of her horse. Lina chatted happily with her horse occasionally as they moved, though often they would proceed in comfortable silence. It was calming for her. Perhaps when she was done with this she and muffin could just travel the world.

Lina slowed Muffin, the field she began to pass through was overgrown, unattended for decades with plenty of long grass which made it perfect for the horses that lived out here. There was a small forest out to the south, and some swampy ground nearby. It was all perfect for nature to thrive and grow, there were flowers and plants growing wildly everywhere, some of which were edible and were a clear draw for Lina to grab. She restrained herself to grabbing things only slightly off of the path, otherwise it would take twice as long to reach the next village. There were ruins littered throughout the field, both with the rubble of old buildings and the remains of the strange and corrupted protectors of this land. These metallic creatures, once guardians, were now stuck in positions of violence toward those that brought them to life. Somehow she felt kinship with such creatures, but she was well aware that they would likely kill her if given the chance. And having looked one of the small ones in the eye... she knew that she wouldn’t be able to reason with it. So she’d keep such thoughts of relation to herself.

Lina hopped off Muffin mid thought as she had noticed a few peppers and mushrooms scattered about nearby. She wandered down the path picking up what she could and getting a bit distracted by each new item she saw. As she wandered along, the little hooded rider gathered enough materials to fill a basket. She smiled to herself enjoying the hunt, until she heard Muffin whinny. Lina looked behind her, but upon seeing no immediate danger she told herself she’d gather one more mushroom and head back to the horse. She took a step closer to the mushroom before she heard the screeching and grinding of metal on metal. She paused her movement, turning her eyes from her quarry to the right, where the sound was coming from. One of those statues, those ruins, one of those stone like metal monsters with moss growing up its body started to turn its head. The gaps between its plates lit up and it slowly turned its attention to her.

The level of constant profanity that ran on a string in Lina’s mind was incredibly overzealous. As when Impa had told her of these guardians, she had no idea that there were more like this large statue. Truthfully she had hoped that these were simply stylised depictions of the smaller ones or the corpses of these now extinct beasts. However, she could not be so lucky. In the moments it locked its eye with Lina, she made several notes. Firstly, the creature could hear or sense her, if anything this creature was asleep beforehand and she had woken it, but she couldn’t just look away. It knew she was there somehow. Secondly, the being was humming and ringing with energy, its eye flashed with light as the smaller one had in her vision. So she was certain that she would die if this were to hit her. And finally, she was incredibly aware that this THING was not trying to move closer, it was close but Lina could see no legs around. It was stuck. It was stuck in the ground!

Lina could hear a humming sound, and whatever the noise was began ramping up in intensity. She stayed her nerves and ran for the final mushroom. Snatching it up, she ran back and forth as the humming became more and more and more --before ducking behind the corpse of another metal beast. A large explosion rang out behind her half a moment after she hid. She took in several sharp breaths. That would have definitely killed her. The scent of burning foliage behind her, filled the air. She felt heat and a draft coming from the impact site. Lina looked over at Muffin, she could still hear the grinding... it knew she was there, it was looking for her, what was she to do?
There was enough rubble that she could run and hide from it. And ahead there was a large wall between two cliff sides. It looked like it was a gate of some kind. She was surprised it still stood but was glad for it all the same. That was her way out. Lina put her items in her bag and looked at Muffin again. Biting her lip to hold in her fear she got to her feet and ran. She heard the machine charging up again, and she quickly ducked behind another ruin. She moved ahead, more and more, hearing explosion after explosion until. It lost sight of her. Lina watched it spinning its head around trying to catch a glimpse of her, but as she crept toward the old structure she found it could not see her.

Her horse was still out there though, not that Muffin seemed to be in any danger from the statue. She tried to wave Muffin toward her, to get her attention as quietly as possible but it wasn’t happening. Lina pressed herself up against the entryway of the gate then stuck her fingers into her mouth and blew hard, releasing a shrill and sharp whistle. Muffin’s attention was drawn to her. Unfortunately so was the guardian and whatever bokoblins were in earshot. Quickly though, Lina ducked behind the wall and held her breath so as to not draw their ire.

Lina remained hiding there for a few moments until she looked back over to the left, only managing to get startled by the very horse she called.



This was Fort Hateno.

Lina thought, she didn’t know how she knew the name, but she recognised it.

“Let's rest down here,” she said to the horse, “there’s a place to cook here, and we could camp or- or there’s a cabin over there.” Lina surveyed, there were in another small wood, trees were scattered on either side of the road. There was a river to her right, a pond to her left, and a cabin up ahead. They were still in a valley, luckily having mountains around was advantageous now. It wouldn’t be easy to sneak up on anyone here, unless you had forces that could climb easily. And Lina was quite certain that bokoblins were not known for their good climbing. She believed there was safety here, and she was unsure if there would be more before the village.

Lina led her horse close to some long grass and tied her to a nearby tree. She needed to eat at least, whether or not that cabin meant safety for her. So she sat on a log and began to make herself a meal.

 


 

After eating, Lina tried to have a nap. Tried being the notable word. Lina could hardly find a moment to relax as any sound outside of her norm kept her awake. She tried to relax, to keep her eyes closed and just lose some time during the afternoon, but to her dismay the sleep that she so craved was so out of her reach that it rested far across a vast desert. She kept her eyes closed, trying her best to hold herself still to at least rest. She listened to the sounds of the forest around her. The loudest sound was the river, its rushing would have drowned out the ears of most people, after all most would not lay down and listen for minutes or hours.

Lina listened, past the rushing river in her mind she heard... birds. She heard squirrels, and the breathing of muffin. Buzzing... she heard buzzing as well. Nothing flew around her head though. Lina sat up, it was a distant enough sound anyway. She turned her head until the sound was louder, then she opened her eyes. She looked across the trees, when her eyes focused on something new, something... golden.

Muffin was sleeping, so Lina figured there was no rush to get moving. She heaved herself up onto her feet and approached the golden tree thing. She walked toward the buzzing gold, and stopped behind a tree to peer at it. It dripped something onto the ground, something that glistened more gold than the shape in the tree. Lina didn’t notice any monsters, so it had to be safe... right?

Lina walked forward, sticking her hand out to catch whatever drips that fell. When a few had hit her hand, she pulled it back and licked the liquid.

SWEET!!!

Oh it was so sweet, it made her tongue dance with joy! She needed more of it!

Lina took a few steps back and pulled out her bow, she knocked an arrow. And shot at the stem of the golden buzz. Lina hadn’t seen a fruit like the golden buzzer before, but she was excited to have it with food. As the golden thing hit the ground, the buzzing intensified. Lina tilted her head to the side as she slowly put the bow away and pulled out a blade. Maybe she wasn’t the only one who wanted such sweetness. She stepped back, preparing herself for a fight. The golden thing twitched and buzzed as tiny insects dragged themselves out from a hole in the bottom of the thing. Shit... SHIT! It was a hive. She watched as the insects flew out and swarmed. They moved into a cross formation, its centre taking aim against her. The swarm flew toward her in some desperate attempt to protect the hive. Lina swung once, a bit too early before the insects flew around the blade and struck her. Lina lifted her hands in front of her face and tumbled back. She cried out in pain.

 

Her arm stung like hell, they must have had venom or something for it to hurt so badly. She stepped back waiting for the creatures to swoop around to attack her again. She braced herself and held out until the creatures swooped against her again. Lina stepped forward, she stepped forward and breathed in, slicing through the cross. They blew past her but she was sure she connected somewhat, she turned around as they swooped around toward her, then she swung again, connecting another blow which caused the swarm to dissipate. She tucked her sword away and cradled her arm while her teeth. Ugh, she remembered what they were. Cursor bees... and despite the fact that they helped make plants grow she hated them. If she were to see one, she wouldn’t kill it, but they were vicious in swarms. She walked over and picked up the hive... and the sweet stuff... she tasted it again. Honey!

She remembered... there was something she could make with this, but if she were to make that... she was going to need more honey... damn it. Maybe it’d be good practice in case she came across a giant bee or something.

 

After a few more minutes, Lina had gathered three hives from within the vicinity and put them in her pack. She shook her head and rubbed it, her arms stung. Ow... she had no idea if it was worth the taste, but if this recipe that she remembered would bring back memories, maybe it would be. She sat back, leaning against a tree. She hurt so bad.

 

“Excuse me.” a man’s voice came out from the trees, Lina looked right at it, toward the direction of the cabin. There stood a man. He was older, balding, and wore spectacles. “Were you the one yelling out here? I was doing my best to continue my research but I kept getting distracted.”


She didn't think she was "yelling" but okay.

“oh, sorry.” she said softly.

 

“Is everything alright? You sounded like you were in pain…”

 

“oh... well.. I was fighting some bees-”

 

“Ah, the Courser bees. They like it over here. Did they get ya?” Lina nodded and the man sighed, “Oh, well come in here, I should have herbs that will help with pain.” He turned back to the cabin and went inside. Lina took a moment a bit confused at another person just offering to help her, but followed him inside.

The man sat at his desk, closed a book and laid out some dried plants and herbs. He gestured for Lina to stand by him.

“Alright, where did they get you?” Lina rolled up her sleeves as far as she could and showed him her arm. It was covered in swollen stings. “Goddess Hylia, that’s a lot of stings. How many times did you get hit?”

Lina shrugged.

“You adventuring types really need to be more careful with gathering materials, you seriously could get hurt.”

Lina shrugged again and let him wrap up her injuries. he ground up some of the herbs into a paste and laid them on the stings before wrapping her up with some cotton bandages. After a moment the pain began to subside. “Thank you.”

 

“Doctor Calip,”

 

Ah, a doctor, that’s why he was able to fix me up so easily.

“You said you were doing research?”

The man’s eyes lit up. Then told Lina about some ruins hidden by a statue with glowing eyes. There was a riddle or something but by the time the man began analysing every line, Lina had stopped paying attention. As soon as she found any lull in conversation she made an excuse to leave and thanked the man. Backing out of the cabin and into Muffin.

 

Hadn’t she tied Muffin up? She could have sworn...

She heard a little laugh over her shoulder and looked out into the forest... but seeing nothing but muffin and some trees, she decided to move on. Said goodbye to the doctor and hopped on the back of Muffin, trotting ahead as she kept an eye out for this man’s weird glowing statue.

The air was clean and the sun was getting low, she thought about making camp somewhere but she had already lost much time out here, so she made her way down the path. Due to losing much time, she flicked the reins, spurring Muffin along at a run. As they went along, the forest vanished, she rode along the side of the mountain, watching the objects along the horizon disappear as she and muffin rose along the path, getting higher and higher up. Lina let Muffin follow the path ahead as she kept an eye out, spotting strange stones, and monster camps following the river. She also kept an eye out for any places to hunt along the way. They kept moving forward and rocks started cropping up alongside Lina’s view. Boulders on one side, and mountains on the other. The only space to move was forward or back. Well, she could definitely see how this village was still around, considering how difficult it seemed to be to get to.

She watched the road ahead. Keeping an eye out for any nooks or crannies for enemies to hide. And seeing nothing she yawned. She was still alert, but there was something comforting about the rhythmic movements of Muffin as she ran, it was like someone rocking a baby to sleep, and slowly... so slowly Lina leaned forward, burying her face in the sweet floral scents of her horse's mane.


 

Lina was jolted awake by muffin’s panicked whinnying. Her eyes shot open as she looked up toward the horse. Her hands stretched to grasp onto the now slipping reins as she hung upside down from the saddle. She was stuck, her feet stuck on the stirrups and her pants hooked on one of the pins that had found itself loosened. Lina tried to gather any information about what was around her. She wondered if the horse had tried to wake her up, but as Muffin bucked and reared again she heard an impact and a squeal. No! Bokoblins! Lina tried to pull herself up, to grab the reins or the saddle but as Muffin bucked again, Lina hit her head against the ground and felt a rip as her pants tore. She landed heavily on the ground, and heard whinnying and hoof beats fading off into the distance before she could even manage to get up.

 

Lina heard the snuffling of a pig, but as she pushed herself up she felt a piercing pain in her leg. She cried out, and with her other leg she kicked she heard a squeal get farther and farther away as it screamed. Lina heard another snuffle and squeal approaching. She opened her eyes, she was at a cliff’s edge. So close that she was even able to see over the lip and down into the ravine below. Lina looked to the monster approaching her, another blue monster. Damn it. She winced. Her leg... had one of those stupid spears sticking out of it. She was up against a death drop and a monster, and she was still waking up. She held up The Hand™ and desperately cried out for it to stop.

The word didn’t feel like "stop", it felt like she was saying many other syllables and sounds that were not those of the word “stop”.

Yet, to Lina's surprise... it did. In fact, the creature stopped mid jump. Lina pulled the weapon from her wound and moved away from the cliffside, sliding around the floating beast and moving her legs under it just in case it was held aloft by some clear glass stand... but no dice. The creature stayed put. Was this part of the magic she was told about? She moved over to the mountain wall and lifted herself up. Taking the spear in both hands she leaned on her good leg and stabbed at the creature. It remained still. She stabbed again and again, doing all she could until the weapon snapped in her grasp. She threw the pieces to the side and stared at this statue creature. Lina looked at the torn piece of her pants and with a sigh she further tore it, tying it over her gushing wound.
Lina felt a tugging, as though a chain pulled tighter and tighter and tighter through her body before it snapped. She felt the break in her chest as though her chest cavity caved with it. But her chest was fine. However, as it broke, the beast flew across the ravine and into the water below. Lina blinked in surprise and stared into the horizon. That was... likely not going to make sense to her for a while.

Muffin was nowhere to be found, as she scanned the horizon. Lina called for her, she whistled... but nothing. She would have asked for help from a stable, but such a place was far enough away that she didn’t want to turn back. So, she was alone again. The sun rose over the mountains as Lina hobbled down the rest of the path, the hill turning downwards as she approached a crossroads by noon. Lina stopped for lunch. She ate what little she had on her, enjoying what she could, though mid bite, Lina felt her hair stand on end and dropped to the ground. She laid in the long grass leaving her tiny picnic on the rock she had been sitting on.

She didn't know why she did it, but after a moment, she was glad she did.

 

Lumbering nearby there was a long bokoblin, in the rubble of a building by some nearby woods right by the crossroads where she aimed to tread.

Lina wanted supplies, she wanted to get food, she wanted to rest within the limb of a tree and feel comfort. And she wanted to casually walk along the path to the town, but of course monsters had to be everywhere. And a big one too. Her leg hurt, she couldn’t fight it easily. But it was in the way of things that she wanted. Lina knew that she couldn’t take one head on, at least not now, after all she could barely take on bokoblins without getting injured. But she wasn’t one to take things on from the front, normally she liked to get the jump on her prey, not that she had managed to do so lately. Most creatures made it a habit to surprise her instead. She bit her lip. However, this beast was in her way, and should she think of this monster as her quarry...

 

hmm.


Lina pulled out her bow and took to her hunt.

***

Chapter 17: To Hateno

Summary:

Lina fights her way up to Hateno Village and blows the lid off a sheep wrangler operation.

Chapter Text

Lina thought of the creature as one of the hogs that hung around the Forest of Spirits. Like the hogs that she had learned to hunt on. She slowed her breath. It was just a massive, evil, bone crunching hog. The only difference between it and a regular hog was its ability to craft crude clothing, she supposed, that and any possibility of it tasting good. She stayed crouched in the tall grass as it sniffed around unaware of her presence, just how she liked it.

Lina had drawn back the bow string and focused in on her quarry, this beast was hers. Now she had to be fast. This bow wasn’t strong, and it had been near breaking when the old man had given it to her, she had learned that with weak bows she needed more shots. Luckily Lina found herself to be overly confident with this sort of weapon. Rightly so, but pride cometh before the bird falls. She released the arrow right between the creature’s eyes, sending it reeling and tumbling backward over the rubble it stood before. Lina held her breath and lowered herself. She knocked another arrow as she kept quiet. Had this been a hog, simply pulling the bow back and shooting again would have done it, hogs often ran off when startled from behind. Though... this wasn’t her average hog, the old man told her that the bigger the hog and its tusks, the sneakier you would have to be. They were more likely to gouge you with their tusks should they find you. And, seeing the horn atop its head, Lina hoped it wouldn’t see her.

The creature got up, and swung its head back and forth sniffing and staggering around the rubble. It leaned against a nearly intact wall as it breathed in, searching for its assailant. Lina shifted anxiously, she drew the string back, and released, sending another shot flying in its direction and striking behind it. The sound drawing its attention as soon as it impacted.

She bit down on her tongue, holding in the whispers of a curse that she almost uttered. She knocked another arrow, watching the creature’s head shift and swivel as it inspected the projectile that was now embedded into the mortar of the wall. Lina pulled the arrow back. She could strike at it from behind, but it would likely be able to find her in her hiding place, then it would be over. She could hit it now... but it wasn’t the safest option. She would be in more danger than ever. The long bokoblin yanked the arrow from the brick with a strong but sluggish motion. And Lina watched the creature look at it and break it in its crushing fist.

Those weren’t easy to break, at least not for a human. Maybe... maybe Lina could break them using The Arm. But if she wanted to snap the wood normally she’d have to bend it across her knee for some semblance of breakage. She swallowed hard. Watching every swivel and twitch, she waited for a moment when the beast was still, and when its movement ceased for a moment, she shot.

SNAP!

The arrow flew straight and true and in one swift motion it struck into the creature’s head again, causing it to fall back into the wall and hit its neck on the stone. At the same time, Lina’s bow pulled apart at the ends, the parts that had been fused with sap made glue and twine were pulled and bent to their limit, before splintering at her fingertips and snapping back to hit her in the face.

“SHIT!” Lina cried out as she held her nose. She also fell back, closing her eyes only briefly due to pain before looking back to the would be goo pile should lay... and yet.

Lina watched as the creature shifted, its left arm first and then the right. They planted themselves on the ground and pushed the body up, its head lulling to the side as the neck hung low and crooked. It looked toward her trying to lift its head back up to the height that it had been and failing. Despite this lower perspective however, it saw her. How did it see her? How was it still moving?

Maybe it doesn’t actually have a brain.

 

It groaned and snuffled as it reached down with its elongated arms, fumbling around for something Lina couldn’t see from her perspective. Lina saw it notice her. She had to get up. She had to prepare. She could not stop until the beast stopped moving.

Lina stood, rising from the grass only to stumble and wince when leaning on her weak leg. Damn it. She nearly forgot about her injury, but she had to fight it... there was no one else around. It was just her and the creature, and running wasn’t an option. Lina looked at what the creature had been fumbling for. The object now in its hands, was a club, carved down from a tree with a whittled handle that it now grasped. The body turned to face her, the head hung down to its stomach as it looked at her with the glassy eyes. It’s mouth lolled open and it drooled as it looked at her. If she lost, it was going to eat her. Or try to, even with the neck the way it was. It still looked at her hungrily. Perhaps it only needed a few more hits. She tried to control her breathing but the pain made it hard.

Lina held up her sword, the axe would be too slow. The sword she found was already in rough condition, it wasn’t near breaking yet but it was chipped and rusted, she had to try something though. Lina limped forward a few steps as the creature lumbered in her directions in the manner of a drunk possum. Lina gritted her teeth. Pain to save her life? Was her life even worth dealing with the pain? Ugh, perhaps until she had the answers, she could put up with it a little longer.

The creature got closer.

 

She’d have to fight the thing once it got close, but she was terrified.

 

It got even closer.

 

Lina was terrified of facing a beast, of getting injured, of the pain before death.

 

She could almost smell it.

 

But nobody else would save her, not that she wanted to be saved. It was going to hurt, but if now was the time to die she would find peace in it. She just hoped it wouldn’t hurt much more.
It lifted its club up above its massive shoulders. Lina could see the terrible skin on its head and missing teeth from its gasping mouth.

Gross.



The creature swung toward her and Lina flipped backwards out of the way, narrowly missing the attack as the club just barely grazed her boot. She landed on her feet and cried out as she her leg buckled with the landing. She tried to stay standing but it was difficult. Lina put a hand on her leg, it felt wet and warm. Before she had time to process the blood on her knuckles she jumped again, side stepping another attack and slashing at the beast’s legs. It made a guttural sound, perhaps it could also feel wounds and that was a cry of agony. Though with the way it kept moving despite... everything, Lina felt no empathy for the creature. She tried to stay behind it, slashing desperately at its back and legs until it could not stand. Falling forward and crumpling to her blows. Though each step she took she felt like she could do the same.

With another swing she struck its spine and as the blade connected it shattered into the body of the creature. Lina would have sighed were she not desperate for breath. That was her first weapon and now... it was not. She was pissed.

Lina stood atop the oozing back of the fallen beast, groaning as she felt it shift and move beneath her feet. She had a feeling it would try to stand soon. She would not let that happen. She stepped higher, onto the shoulder blades and grabbed tightly around the beginning of the monster’s thick neck. She dug her clawed fingers into its tough flesh and took the last of her breath to yell as she drove the jagged shard of what remained of her sword into it, cutting most of the neck from its shoulders. For a moment, it laid there twitching. Then the twitching stopped, and in moments the creature became a puddle at her feet.


 

Parts were always left behind by monsters after they liquified, and to Lina’s joy the tusk (horn) of such a mighty beast was there for her to steal. Though in pain she was proud of her kill, and though she could not eat such a creature, she did revel in carrying around the twisted horn as a trophy for a while. Lina continued to follow the path toward town, as well as she could at least. For Lina was not a horse, and as she had learned, horses were wonderful at sticking to paths.

Lina kept an eye on the path to the village as she strolled through the forest. In picking mushrooms and herbs through the trees, she found comfort. And while in comfort the world could sense it and sent troubles her way. Lina limped upon her leg as she saw a couple of people being attacked by bokoblins. The jumping little pig monsters would not have been a problem for her most of the time, but her injuries made things difficult. She didn’t have her sword any longer, as its remains were scattered along the side of the road on the blackened ground of the long bokoblin’s corpse. She wasn’t unarmed though, she had the old man’s axe for one, and for another, Lina picked up the club. She had placed the beastly object in the backpack, it was odd that it fit... but she decided not to think too hard about that.

So anyway, two people were being attacked by bokoblins, so far they did their best to hold off the beasts, but these two human women kept missing their hits, and considering their limited weaponry armed with only a... floor cleaner and a hay stabber. She’d remember the names for those eventually. Lina looked to the road, to the path that she had mostly been following, then back to the women who were being attacked. Lina sighed, alright fine. She had to do something, even as she stood behind a tree and peered ahead at them, she knew that. She groaned as she pulled out the two handed axe. True the axe was weaker than the club, but both were unwieldy and Lina was familiar with only one of those options. Lina took it up in her hands, and limped ahead, getting closer and closer, not hiding, but trying her best to take their attention. However the creatures had their eyes locked on the poor women before them.

Lina took advantage of this, she swung the axe... and made quick work of the creatures while they were distracted. The women desperately thanked her. Their haul of mushrooms filled their arms and packs as they spoke more than she had the cognition to process. Perhaps it had been due to the lack of sleep or her hitting her head earlier. They eyed her injuries, and together they helped a half willing Lina on the path to town.

 

Upon entering the little farming village, Lina felt a familiarity. She had likely been here before, not that she could remember but it was a little village, she had been to one before so there was no more awe there. She had seen farms and mountains. But the styles of buildings were different, some with plaster or mud walls and tiles on the roofs, and others... others were wood and square and strange. She didn’t like them. She wondered if she had taste... and looking at the buildings a bit longer, she was certain that she did.

Lina did what she had done in the last village she visited, (after convincing the women that she would be fine). She shopped. She stopped by the general market for materials to make better food, and when she stopped by the counter to pay she took note of two types of arrows that laid in bundles behind the counter. The first were normal arrows, ones she could make herself. The second didn’t have a sharpened tip. It seemed a bit... useless, that was unless it would be for training young archers. So she asked about it. Bomb arrows, filled with some sort of explosive powder and with a sparker or fuse to combust on impact. She was immediately interested, and yet she had no funds to get such magnificent weaponry. Perhaps she could learn to make some for herself.

...

Perhaps not.

...

...

Perhaps???



While contemplating her choices, she found that she had been sweating buckets in the itchy woollen doublet that the old man had given her. Had it gotten warmer? Or had she just not noticed before? She felt sweat drip down her back. She did have the materials to trade for clothing once again, she could get some common clothes so her body could breathe. She felt relief when the lighter cotton fabric touched her skin and she just wanted to hold it, to hug the fabric that was now on her skin. Yet... she hated the colour. So she decided to dye it. Well she decided she wanted it to be a different colour, but was directed to the dye shop. The strange man that worked there told her that she would need to pick up the clothing at the end of the day. She woefully complied, choosing blue and leaving her new clothing behind.

Lina tended to her wounds, she made food and found ruins during the day. She even saw some people finishing up some construction on the edge of town near a narrow canyon and bridge. It intrigued her, and she made a note to visit the site later. She did a few things to assist those who seemed to need it but otherwise had time to rest, and picked up a few tasks from people who “-couldn’t help but notice a new face.”

 

In a quiet moment, Lina sat between some buildings watching the construction workers move on to another project. She overheard some women speaking. and, as an avid observer and a snoop Lina crawled across the grass, ducking behind a pot to hear better. The women were whispering about a scientist in the lab atop the hill. Lina’s ears perked up. This was likely the person she needed to see.

Apparently the women had seen a young girl coming and going from the lab.

“-the old woman who lives up there doesn’t seem to be the type to take children” the first said,

“Oh well maybe something happened, a dead relative or something?”

“And SHE was the only option? I’ve only met her once or twice but, Nikki please, be realistic. Something fishy is going on”

“You always think something fishy is going on.”

“That's because it is!”

Lina snuck back out of earshot, sure this duty to go see this old woman was one thing- but something suspicious? Now, Lina was interested, and heck maybe she could learn something too. Like how to make arrows that explode. That was science worth researching.


 

The next morning Lina picked up her clothes, changing right away to the bashful eyes of those who were awake and nearby, then swiftly she began up the hill.

Halfway up the path Lina found a ranch, a farmer out in the field was guiding animals here and there. They were too far for her to consider an approach as of yet, so she kept going. She had left early in the morning, the town was quiet and peaceful but by the time she got to the top of the hill the town had come back to life. Lina stopped to admire the movement of the people below. She took in their movements and took a breath. Then she walked up to what she assumed was this lab she had to see.

 

The building was once a lighthouse and matched the aesthetics of the rest of the town. The lighthouse looked to be the oldest part of the building, having stood there for decades. But with whatever happened it seemed to no longer be of use as a lighthouse. In fact Lina had seen no sign of any boat in the water. The lighthouse looked like it had been commandeered, wooden extensions were placed around it. A large building with a tall chimney sat at the bottom, and from it, stairs curled around the lighthouse. At the top the glass was replaced with wooden panels and a platform was placed nearby with a strange tube-like device that pointed up toward the sky. At the very peak, atop the red shingles sat one of those decayed guardians, with each clawed limb hanging down over the sides by the windows. There was a small garden to the back of the building and to the front there was a strange mechanical maw, and an apple tree -which Lina deftly snatched an apple from to add to her growing stockpile.

The chimney was cold, no smoke escaped its opening. There were no windows on the front to look through and Lina pushed on the door. Either nobody was home or they didn’t want to be bothered. That didn’t really stop Lina, however the dinging in her head turned her attention to the mechanical maw. She walked over and without thinking put her hand in it. It was cold... that wasn’t right... she knew it wasn’t. She patted around the strange metallic insides. It was supposed to be hot, burning with blue flame. She closed her eyes and remembered it looked so hot and it smelled like someone had burnt soap and spilled a vast array of chemicals. She crinkled her nose at the thought.

That could have been why there was no smoke, hah. She could fix that no problem... although- she thought as she had begun to reach for her pack- the flint sparks were orange, and they smelled like keeping warm during the cold winter nights, this other fire felt... wrong. She turned from the machine, pacing back and forth until she stopped to think, looking out to the people below once more.

She saw farmers farming, and people cooking outdoors. Children playing and eating, people talking. Lina furrowed her brow. There were houses, garden plots, cuckoos, and ponds... there was even a furnace. A furnace out in the middle of a field.... Had someone been looking, they would have seen Lina’s eyes shine with blue light and intrigue. She held her hands up to her eyes like binoculars and her vision zoomed in again. It was a bit disorienting but she stayed firm, she scanned the land below until the furnace came into focus. And within the opening of the structure was a small and flickering blue flame.

 

Before Lina knew it, she had leaped off of the top of the hill and pulled out her glider. She flew down to the flame.

 

The flickering flame was small, dwindling in its power, but it was there, ever vigilant in its warmth. Lina reached into her pack, pulling out the bundle of wood she had on hand to make an emergency fire. She could always get more wood for emergencies, she thought, it was no problem after all she had an axe. She placed the wood carefully around the fire waiting for it to catch. When it did, it grew fast. Lina’s nose burned with the scent of chemicals. She stepped back, tripping over her own foot as she stumbled back to the ground. It was awful, it burned as though the scent had ignited her nostrils, but it felt like the right thing to do- like she helped an eternal flame keep burning. It had been some time since someone fuelled this fire. She wondered where the tender was.

 

With that thought dancing through her mind she likely could carry the fire up now. And seeing the fire catch so quickly she had several thoughts for how to do so. She had the club in her back pocket but she needed that for later, she was scared it would burn too much... but- Lina gazed toward a nearby tree. A limb leaned down to the ground nearly broken off, it had to be dead- which would mean it’d catch better. She smiled to herself, she wasn’t just lucky, she was a genius. Lina grabbed the limb and (after removing the twigs) she stuck the branch into the flames and began to carry it back up the hill.

She held the limb above her head as though she was lighting her way through the darkness. She focused on the task at hand, and since she had followed the path before it was far easier to follow, though it was more tedious. Lina was nearly at the halfway point once more, when she felt something hit her nose, it was cool. Switching hands she touched her nose, pulling back a slightly wet fingertip. She looked up to the sky, and watched as clouds began to roll in.

Lina looked ahead of her dismally.

The fire wouldn’t survive the rain. She didn’t hear thunder but she could feel the sudden deepness of the earth and the scent of the air. It wasn’t going to sprinkle, it was going to pour. Lina looked ahead of her. The branch was burning down the leaves and twigs that remained were falling down to the ground, as the flame was getting closer to her fingers. Drips hit her head, they were going to smother the flame and she’d have to do this all over again. Lina looked ahead of her. There was a tree, a shelter. She could save the fire from the water if only for a moment. She’d have to find another branch but a tree was the perfect place to go. She took another step forward and the sky opened up.

Lina ran for the tree. She held a hand over the dwindling flame in order to try and keep it dry. She kept her eyes forward with the sinking feeling that the flames were fizzling out.

She slid on slick grass under the tree, slipping into a stool that was pointedly placed there and seemed to not have been moved for some time. She stumbled, falling head over tail. Her hands still clinging to the coverage of the flame, closing in so close that it singed her and nearly caused her to drop it. She got back to her feet and looked for a fallen branch, however she found something better. A little stone structure. A small tower with a roof that was shorter than Lina. There were openings around the tops of the tower, and a... wick? That all to say it was a lantern.

Moving with the speed that she had available Lina placed the flame in the lantern and sat back against the tree as she watched the flames rise. She sighed. It was safe for now, but there was no way for her to get the flame up to the furnace in this weather. Lina looked at the burn that started to form on her hand, and quickly stuck it out under the cool water of the rain.

Looking around, she was once again at the farm, halfway up the hill. Under the apple tree across from the farm house. Lina looked out to the field, where cows and sheep had been, now she sat and watched the dogs and a farm hand herd the animals into the barn. She found a sort of comfort in this, the rain, the farm, the animals, it felt normal. It felt desirable.

 

“HEY YOU!” a girl’s voice shouted to her. Lina sighed, there was not a moment where she could stop moving... Lina rolled her eyes and turned to the figure. A teenager with dark hair and a sweet face. And Lina looked mildly annoyed. “WHAT ARE YOU DOING JUST HANGING AROUND HERE HUH? I-” The girl hesitated as her eyes met Linas. She stared at Lina, her loud anger melting away as she suddenly became a stammering mess. “I- I- sorry. I- ahem... Hi! hi... um...” she cleared her throat and crossed her arms. “Why are you looking at our sheep huh?” Lina raised an eyebrow then held up her burned hand, and gestured at the flame. “oh... OH! You’re helping that scientist lady. Sorry. I- I’ve been kinda stressed lately.” she rubbed the back of her head.

 

No shit.

“...is that so?”

 

“yeah um... someone has been taking our sheep and I have been asked to find them. You’re probably not interested...”

 

“I am, a bit”

 

“Oh! Well-” the girl stepped closer, even out into the rain, until she sat under the tree next to Lina. She tucked a wet strand of hair behind her ear as she stood nearby. “I was seriously close to getting the thieves, but I only managed to see the back of them and them leading the sheep away. They were kind of far away, so I couldn’t catch up.” she sighed.

 

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

 

“THANK YOU!” she threw her arms up into the air. “Everyone keeps blaming me for them getting out. But I locked the gate! I’m just worried that they’re gonna hurt the little guy.”

She looked up at Lina and blinked rapidly a few times, Lina wondered if she had a speck of dust in them. “Which way did they go?” Lina sighed softly, it was fine, it gave her something to do until the rain let up. Though she didn’t have a bow, she wasn’t sure where she’d get one. She did think about restringing one of the poorly made bokoblin bows, she wasn’t sure if she’d picked them up thinking about it. They were sad, poorly made, and uncomfortable to hold, but... maybe she could make it work? If she even had some...

 

“they took the path that way.” she pointed to a fork in the road down the way. "Past the hill, down the mountain path. To the beach.”

There was a beach nearby, that was nice... had she been to a beach before?

Lina cracked her neck, “okay, I’ll see what I can do”

 

“what? Wait, you're just helping me, out of nowhere?”

 

“did you not want me to?” she hadn't thought that people might not want her assistance, it would make things boring but she didn't care either way. 

 

“well- well I... huh. I didn’t think about it. Like, if there are monsters down there, I don’t want to deal with that, but i was just releasing my feelings-”

 

“oh.” Releasing feelings????

“by talking to you- a stranger... oh I probably shouldn't have done that. But – like if you’d want to...” she blinked again, several times. Lina really wanted to offer to help with whatever was in her eyes, but the thought of her claw hand approaching a face...kind of prevented it. “I’m sure you could do well.”

 

“-uh okay.” Lina stood up, “just... can you keep an eye on this? Just make sure it doesn’t go out. I don’t want to light it again”

 

“Oh- oh yeah sure... No problem, at all.” she looked down at the ground then back up at Lina. 

 

“Great.” Lina nodded and turned to keep moving, she walked away without a second glance at the girl. Happy to help if she was.

 

Happy to help.

What did the girl mean, releasing her feelings? Weren’t her feelings supposed to be inside her body? That was odd. Lina wondered if it felt good, but how would she get them back in her body? Was there a trick to it? was it magic???

Strange...

 

The walk to the beach was quiet. No creatures attempted to kill her which was a nice change. And it was downhill. So far this had been the easiest walk in the last while, she smiled as she walked down in the rain. She felt like a leaf being washed down a river, she enjoyed the ride but knew that there was a waterfall coming and she could do nothing to stop the impending fall.

As she reached the bottom, she looked past the cliff face and out to the ocean. The beach was beautiful, but nothing compared to the vast openness that was the water. Lina took in a breath of salty sea air. She hadn’t smelled it before, it calmed her. It wasn’t her favourite scent, but it was new. She wondered if she had been to a beach in her life... it was a likely possibility. But, she wasn't sure if she had ever been to the ocean. She wanted to dive in and see how far she could swim out to... but then she remembered drowning... She didn’t want to drown.

It was likely for the best that she finished the request and left before she could think on this more, after all she had a lifetime of visiting beaches... but the sand looked so soft.

She had a lifetime of visiting beaches....

She could always come back. She came back before.



Lina’s vision refocused on her purpose. She had looked beyond the horizon before, but now she began to perceive what was in front of her. On a little outcropping of sand, there was an amalgamation of different wooden slats and planks, each stacked atop one another. They were roped and nailed together with just enough strength to hold. It was both a marvel of engineering and the stupidest thing she’d ever seen. Lina walked along the cliffside wall, the hand gently grazing the stone surface as she kept an eye on the camp. They hadn’t seen her, how could they have? She was a small speck to them. She saw the large tangled platforms, and a smaller watchtower with a single bokoblin on it. There was a fence which she had presumed that housed the sheep. In the centre there was a bonfire, with food that had been cooking above the now smoldering charcoal. She hoped she wasn’t too late.

There were bokoblins everywhere, and one of the stretched ones... she... she couldn’t keep calling them the stretched ones, surely they had a name... m-moblins? Because they were more monstrous than bokoblins? That’d have to work for now, she would think of a better name later. Lina watched them, there were bokoblins of different colours, red, blue, black, all scattered around the camp. Of course they’d need a colony to have to be organised enough to schedule a robbery, and this close to a town too, they were getting brave. Too brave perhaps. Though she considered death was not the answer, she knew that should she approach with kindness they would kill her on sight. It was sad really, that death was all she could deal. But what choice did she have? She wondered if they had a soul. She wondered if they had thoughts. She watched them dance and scream. What were they, really? She tilted her head as she gazed upon them.

 

...

 

Wait- back to the top of that train of thought. “Lina watched them, there were bokoblins of different colours, red, blue, black.” ... black? ...BLACK?!

Surely it had to be a darker blue. She focused her eyes. Whereas the red ones looked as though they had a sunburn, and the blue looked strongly bruised or plated. These... black ones. Their skin looked tough and charred, like meat that was cooked too long or metal coated in soot. It looked like  it crawled from charcoal of the fire, flaking with specks of white ash that clung to it. Lina felt her stomach turn. Was it... dead? No... no it moved like the others unless- She tilted her head, unless they all were dead. She did know the details of the human body’s decay- she did not... like that she knew that. But aside from that and plants she didn’t know how other creatures decayed. She was sure it was similar... though... these creatures bled black...or they oozed into black goo. She didn’t think they followed the laws of nature now... if they ever did.

The rain pounded down upon her head, pushing her bangs back down into her face and plastering it onto her skin. She wiped her face despite the uselessness of the action and pushed her hair back up in hopes they wouldn’t fall in front of her eyes. Had she had a bow right now she could have easily taken out the one atop the watchtower and snuck away with the sheep. But...things didn’t always go her way. It was fine. If she got closer and got the right angle she could knock the bowman down with a rock. With the sound of the rain enveloping her, she crept toward the camp, avoiding the gaze of the reddish warden. Lina slid across the wettened sand and skidded to a stop behind a bush before she could be detected. She held her breath, her boots and knees now covered in sand and mud... but her feet were dry so that was something. Lina stopped, digging around for a rock, a stone... a stick... anything. But just her luck... nothing.

Damn it. There was only sand and dirt and she was right next to the camp. She shook her head. That was it. She was done. If only she had something to throw or... something she could really hit them with. She envisioned herself running in and dying, over and over and over in so many different ways. It was the moblin or the black bokoblin that did her in in most scenarios, puncturing her insides again and again, or leaving her unconsious on the ground, unable to move but aware that they would grill her on the fire when the rain let up. She could run away, she could hide, but only as long as the rain held up. The rain that she had initially wished to stop she now seriously hoped it wouldn’t.

Lightning struck on the horizon, thankfully that should mean the rain would pour for some time. It was like the sky heard her worries, and strove to make it better.

Lina looked to her metal arm... she didn’t know all of the magic that she could conjure... but perhaps there was something that she could do. True that freeze magic could help but not as of right now... there were too many of them for it to do much. She touched the centre of the eye on the back of the hand. When she pressed down it clicked and the eye’s colour turned to yellow. Lina looked past the hand, she looked at the ground and the world... it all had a yellowish hue. Even the bokoblins and moblins and such all glowed yellow. It hadn’t been yellow before... but perhaps it had just activated. She clicked the button multiple times but it kept changing yellow. What a time to try and figure out how this works. Lina felt around the back of the hand, there had to be something. She moved her hand to the glowing point of the eye, feeling it click as it moved around like a dial. Lina spun it, and clicked the button making the world go red. She tried to cast something different. A beam came out from her hand but it dissipated quickly. No... that wasn’t right. If only her powers were destructive, she needed something that would take many out at once. She spun again and clicked. The world went blue. That one didn’t feel right either. She did it again and- the world didn’t change colour. But blue particles rose into the sky, and where they rose from was beneath the arm. Lina looked under the hand, and by her foot was a circle... no no it was a ball. A glowing blue ball with a... handle... on top?

Lina picked it up and inspected it, she had to hold it with both hands, but maybe it could do something... it was a bit big to just throw. So it was basically useless. Lina shook it, she tried to open the top. And when neither proved successful she tucked it behind her back, and felt it slowly... go away. She watched it vanish through the bush. Shit.

She tried to grab it, though she was not in a place where she could afford to be seen. Shit.

It rolled out into the camp. They saw it. She ducked down more, hoping to Hylia they wouldn’t find her. Shit shit shit.

After a moment... there was nothing. Sure there were sounds but she didn’t feel pain. She couldn’t figure out why she kept agreeing to do tasks that could cause her pain... and yet... here she was once again, doing the things. She peeked out again, waiting for the incoming hit of a club when she saw... They were kicking the ball. She quickly ducked down again and decided she’d revisit the idea of monsters having minds or souls later, but for now she had to check and see if the last rune could do anything to hurt them.

Lina hit the button and scrolled but as she clicked nothing happened. She clicked the button again, and again... but nothing happened. It was- was her magic broken? She shook her hand and smacked it a few times in hopes that it would come to life. Nothing. She huffed, hoping that snapping or making some noise would wake it up and- something happened. She was not swarmed by monsters or had her vision change colour. But she did hear a massive BOOM and saw the flicker of firelight on the edge of her vision, then suddenly she couldn’t hear. Well she heard one sound... a very faint ringing in her ears as if there was a glass fly buzzing around in her brain. Then the smell hit. The scent of burned decaying meat hit her nostrils, sweet and sour as it washed across her. She held her hand up to her face covering her nose and mouth so as to try and stop from gagging.

It took a moment for her hearing to come back, but when it did what she heard were the unholy screams. The snorts and grunts of pigs turned into terrifying guttural squeals. Lina let them burn, the sounds of their suffering louder than the explosion. She groaned softly until they stopped yelling. And she waited til they went back to their usual noises. Lina carefully peeked again. The ones on the platforms were unsurprisingly unscathed, though so was the wood. However, the ones on the ground had gone back to their dancing, the ones that were alive that is. There were several black puddles on the ground that bubbled from the heat. They certainly weren’t worthy of her mercy, going back to dancing after she killed the others around there.

This was good though, better than good. Not for them or for her nose or ears... but she could live with this. Lina summoned another circular explosive and rolled it under the bush, again and again. Blowing it up and hearing the screams. She had to get faster with deploying it, as the moblin started trying to kick it away. But it was fine, she could handle it. She was faster than them, and that was what counted, she could likely run from one of them if need be... and need be.

She only stopped when she could no longer hear the moblin’s screams or snorts. Then she sat back and waited. She waited for the monsters to forget, for them to sit in their watchful positions around the fort and not notice her. She hoped for them to look in different directions, but the charred one, the bane of her existence, did not look away from the camp. The other on the farther platform had its head on a swivel... and she knew there was one at the highest point of the structure, but Lina couldn’t see it. Lina watched them for a time before realizing that she would either be caught and killed or – well that was the only option she could think of. So she waited. Sliding down the risen bank she sat on to lay on her back and stretch her legs. She had been crouched for some time so it was of minor relief. Lina pulled the hood of her cloak down over her face. She could feel how heavy it was getting with the rain thundering down on it, soaking it through the threads. It wasn’t bad yet but should she stay in the rain for much longer she would start to get thoroughly soaked to her skin. They had weapons though. They were scattered across the now blackened and glass ridden sand. If she could sneak by and grab one... wait... she looked up at the black one again. It was looking around for sure, but it stared out to where she had come from. If she ran under the platform it stood on and threw one of the spears at the archer, she could take its bow... Lina smiled to herself.

She had some scraps of a plan. She could do it. Arrows be damned. (Though arrows were needed for her fight.)

 

Lina waited for a gap in the surveillance, watching the little red one on the farther platform turn and watch. When it faced completely away from her she jumped into action. With the rain as her aid, she managed to run down without arising much suspicion. She slid across the glassy sand and yanked one of the spears up out of the ground, before skirting around the staircase with a splash in the sea and hiding upon the staircase so that the red one wouldn’t see her. She watched through the gaps, waiting for it to turn away again... her breath quiet even though rain was around her.

Once the creature turned from her again, Lina took the spear in one hand and stood, she pulled her arm back, aiming the weapon as a javelin and threw it, the arch was impressive, and though part of her did think that such a mission would fail, she watched as the beast was struck in the throat. The sharp wooden projectile pierced through the back of the neck with a loud cracking sound, noisily enough that Lina thought her cover was blown, she feared that her spear had broken and she would be spotted soon after. However, as Lina watched the spear quickly disappear into the neck of the creature and land with spurts of ichor on the other side, that particular fear subsided. The creature, with its remaining life, clawed at its neck before falling off of the platform with a crunch and splat. and to Lina's excitement, It dropped its bow and arrows.

 

Morbid.

Lina thought, though she smirked at the thought of the return of her favoured tool. It was then that she heard the sound of a war horn from one of the watchlins of the tower. Well shit, they knew she was there. She’d have to fight. It’d be easier now, but she still really didn’t want to.

She heard rushing footsteps as a figure ran down the tower. Lina swallowed hard. She froze if only for a moment, hoping that it would lose interest and go back upstairs. But as she saw the two-toed foot and glassy white eyes of the blackened pig head, it screamed at her, and Lina; being brought out of her state of shock, ran.

Lina ran down the steps and back onto the sand. She scrambled across the dirt, picking up other weapons as she did. She quickly snagged a light club and slid across the shiny sand her leg stinging with the motion, then hid behind the smaller watch platform. She glanced at the fenced in sheep, annoyed at the creature, she had thought there were more, but all this for one sheep. She hoped it was all worth it. She crawled across the ground, scattering sand as she searched  around the blackened sand for the bow and arrows. It fell farther than she expected when she struck it, she thought it would just slump down but she thought it was quite interesting that they flopped and fell quite a ways when she slayed them.

 

Again. Morbid

But it was only in the moment she decided to search for the weapons that they had once held, that she found it to be an inconvenience. She scanned the surroundings hearing the snorting and sniffling of the creature as it crossed the beach to get to her. It knew where she was. She didn’t have much time. It was getting closer. Lina looked up, and spotted the bow and arrows just out of reach. Lina scrambled forward on her hands and knees, grabbing the bow with one hand and reaching for the arrows with the other. As she did so she felt a sharp breeze hit her arm and saw an impact. Ahead of her she saw a free arrow sticking out of the sand. Lina pulled her arm back in surprise, fuck, the bokoblin at the top was a better shot than she thought. In her rush to get away she nearly forgot it was there. If she grabbed the arrows, she likely could shoot it down but the black bokoblin was still on her tail.

If she was fast enough she could at least grab the arrows then run around. There was a chance she could get shot but a red bokoblin’s arrow wouldn’t kill her... not quickly enough for it to matter at least. If she could grab them with her mechanical arm.. then she wouldn’t even be harmed. Lina leaned forward preparing to snatch the arrows and run, but with the movement she heard something strike the ground. Her eyes went wide, it was there. Lina turned quickly, seeing a spear struck in the spot that her flesh hand had just been resting in.

 

Lina yelped, she scrambled to her feet and took to running again, quickly scooping up the bundle of arrows before fleeing up the ladder of the watch platform as the red bokoblin shot in her direction. She swung the mechanical arm out to the arrow. It hit and spun the projectile, slowing it just enough that it wouldn’t hit her between the eyes, though the wood smacked her against the forehead. ow... she shook her head and quickly refocused, drawing back the worn string of the bow she grabbed and aimed up to the bokoblin. She felt the bow strain and bend as she pulled harder and aimed above its head. It was too far for her to hit it directly, she had to account for the angle, the wind, and of course... the rain. Lina released the arrow. She hoped it would strike true.

A shooting pain hit her in the ankle, and Lina pulled her leg up, quickly slipping as she felt a pain hit her little toe. She fell forward, her chin slamming against the wooden platform beneath her. She cried out, writhing in pain if only for a moment, her feet throbbed, and she could feel them finally getting wet. Fuck. Lina rolled to her side, only for her to see the point of a spear jabbing upward through the slats in the wood. She screamed and it retracted. She shifted and moved quickly to the other side as the spear shot up from another set of slats. She yelled out, grabbing hold of the weapon and using the arm to yank it. She could feel her grip straining but she didn’t care if she took it or if she broke it, as long as this thing couldn’t hit her anymore. She yanked it upward, feeling her shoulder muscles straining until its grip and footing slipped ever so slightly, but that was enough, enough for her to yank upward pulling the creature with her and hearing its head THUMP heavily against the wood. The weapon quickly flew free, within her grasp but not without her falling back and nearly onto the sharp sand below. She could hear its snorts and groans. Lina twirled the spear in her arms, aiming the point down to a gap between the slats and struck. She lifted the weapon and struck again and again and again, as though she was beating the butter from the cream.

When it was quiet... she looked around. Panting... sweating, soaking wet. Her shoulders ached, her arm ached, her body felt like it was falling apart, and her feet were bleeding. She slowly clambered down, wincing with each step. She walked across the sticking sand wearily, toward the little pen in which the sheep was held. Lina sighed, she looked at the beast. “...You’re lucky... today they won’t eat you. Go home.” she unlatched the gate and let it swing open, letting the creature timidly move forward. It eyed her suspiciously... then it ran right back the way she came.

 

She needed something to eat.



***

Chapter 18: Fragile

Summary:

Lina finally makes it to the Hateno research lab to speak to Purah.

Chapter Text

Lina trudged up the hill, or... well she limped dejectedly. As soon as she had released the sheep, it timidly observed her until (when she no longer seemed like a threat to it) ran back up the path to the farm. She followed it back, struggling to keep up and progress across the sand at first. The bleeding, although being washed partly by the rain, kept her from picking up speed. She was soaked, she was in pain, and she was hungry.

In fact, she was ravenous, so much so that she had to stop a fraction of the way up the path just to double over in agony. She tried to keep moving; to simply take another step forward, and instead she folded like a piece of stiff paper. She groaned and fell to one knee. She hadn’t felt this hunger before, this horrible pain which tore her near in two. She felt her stomach growl and roar as though it were some maned beast trying to intimidate its prey, for this beast needed to feed and if it wouldn’t be fed it would feast upon her. Should this have been a physical beast, Lina may have resisted, but as this was a beast in her mind, one that attacked her internally she could not feel anything but remorse. Had she not eaten yesterday? Had she not eaten today? Her body pulsed with each growl and groan and beat of the slowly draining blood and Lina sat on the ground. Knees together and legs off to the side so she wouldn’t have to watch the blood pulsing out of her, she dug through the bag until her hand grasped one of the meals she had cooked the other day. She groaned again, feeling the tearing pain take more from her before she inhaled the cold and slimy buttered greens that she cooked. She licked her lips... was that enough? She paused, looking up at the sky as she felt her pain subside. She sighed loudly, as though she had forgotten to breathe....

Well that was miserable.

 

Lina sat there, trying her best to recover from the tearing pain and keep moving ahead, but she couldn't manage to rise and walk upon the pulsing wound. She looked to her bag. She looked up the path...

She looked to her legs, trying to think of how she could even manage to stay the bleeding here without tearing her belongings. She pulled off her pierced boot, ready to see what laid beneath, she didn’t know what hurt more the wound itself or the cost of what it would take to repair the boot. She lifted the boot and dumped watered down blood onto her pant leg-

Wonderful.

 

She touched her foot gingerly, prepared to recoil at her own touch and yet when she did her grazing fingers felt nothing but blood and skin. There was no pain, no hole, just the wet remains of blood dripping down her legs and fingers. She felt a small weight, like an insect had landed on her foot and fingers. Yet there was only blood. She watched the liquid lift from her fingers, drip after drip rising in the air between the now dwindling raindrops as they were swiftly pulled from her hands and toward her foot. The weight became heavier as it came back to her, and she watched as the red liquid left her skin, or... well it more... returned to her skin. The blood moved like sweat in reverse, drawing back into the skin and disappearing beneath its surface. She watched her skin ripple then settle, like the stillness of ice on a pond. Lina felt...

 

Lina felt...

 

Lina felt-



Lina... Lina...



 

 

 

 

 

Fuck.

What did I feel? What do I feel about this? What the fuck was that? That isn’t- that can’t be normal... right?

She wanted to throw up but for once the unease that she felt didn’t make bile rise in her throat, her stomach would have churned if something was not at work inside her. Gods, what was this? What was she? What the fuck???



 

 

 

...

Ahem.



Lina, had a panic attack.








After climbing back up the sheep’s path the rain finally stopped. With her cash reward in hand and a new branch for carrying the fire she steadily made her way up the path toward the research lab. It was nearing sunset when she made it to the top, lighting the open maw of the furnace with the blue fire before stopping outside of the door. She looked down, there, half covered by the worn away welcome mat was a metal symbol on the ground, made of the same metal of her arm, and it lit up with the same blue light as the furnace. She could feel the spark of life resonate between it and the arm. The same feeling that drew her to ruins and to place her hand upon pedestals, it did not hurt... it felt good, but it felt unsatisfying. Perhaps that was just her state of mind. She looked at her arm, she looked at the door. Her breath caught in her throat as she heard voices on the other side of the door.

Was she excited? Was she... terrified? Angry? Was she ready to slap someone across the room with this mechanical arm that she wielded? She felt sick. And she felt... rage. And she wanted to cry. but unfortunately she couldn’t, she wanted answers. She wanted to know about herself, about everything, about why she was this way. She heard the voices muffled speech through the door. Why was she this way? Lina looked back to the symbol on the ground... she hadn’t put her boot back on. She was soaking wet, but most of the blood was gone- well it wasn’t gone... no, it wasn’t gone. It was there, there within her, she waited for her body to ripple again, but nothing happened. Why was nothing happening? She was here damn it, why wasn’t her body being weird now?

She took a breath and reached out to push the door open or knock, she had yet to decide- when the door opened. She stood there, likely looking a bit dumbstruck. And a bearded sheikah man stood before her. His long hair was tied into a bun at the top of his head and he wore spectacles. He looked down at Lina, and she looked back.

“Can I help you?” he asked.

 

Lina shuffled awkwardly on her feet, she suddenly felt nervous. “I... was told I needed to talk to someone here, about this-” she held up her arm, its metal surface glistening with the rain water that dripped off of its surface. He took her hand, looking it over closely before pulling away with wide eyes.

“Come inside, right away!”

He stepped back and went to a stack of books on a table, “LADY PURAH!” he called, trying his best not to be too loud but knowing his voice needed to carry. “Just stand over there,” he said, gesturing to the rug on the floor by the door, likely to keep her from dripping on the floor.

 

“Excuse me, I- what can you tell me about this, sir?”

 

“Nothing. Well not right now. This both is and is very much not my department. There’s a lot of interesting things that we can do to that but ancient technology is not entirely the easiest to program for when you don’t have access to the original device but... a device. It’s right there. Wow... I thought it’d be more like a tablet-”

 

“You thought?”

 

“Oh yes, I’ve only ever heard of the thing, it was quite a bit before I worked here, just hold on. Any questions can be answered by- MISS PURAH!” he called.

 

The sound of rapid footstep began from above them, getting louder as they moved (presumably closer), whoever it was must have been taking the stairs she had seen before. Lina shuffled nervously on the little rug.

“What's your name?”

 

“WELL THAT- ahem...well that is a question that I can answer. My name is Symin, and I assist with research conducted here.”

 

The footsteps seemed to stumble and stop for a moment, there was yelling though she couldn’t make out what was being said. It sounded frustrated and grumpy. Lina pulled down her hood and unpinned her cloak, hanging it up on the coat rack to dry off a little while she waited. The quick footsteps continued until a door swung open. Lina heard the voice of a child, though how it spoke- “Gods Damn it Symin! I just got upstairs, this better be important.” Lina hadn’t quite seen them, she didn’t feel like turning around, but she felt the silence, she felt the eyes on her... and slowly she did.

Lina looked at the child, another sheikah, a girl, with wide reddish brown eyes behind large round framed glasses. She looked to be about five or six years old. Her long hair also pulled up into a bun in a style she had not seen many children wear. She had a cute round face with the chubbiest cheeks, and a many layered puffy dress. She looked at Lina’s arm, her large eyes following up the mechanics which vanished beneath the sleeve of her shirt, she looked up to Lina’s face... in Lina’s eyes. Looking for something that Lina couldn’t herself find. There was a moment of silence between the three figures in the room. Each wanted to say something but nobody broke the silence. That was until the little girl shrieked.

Lina and the scientist winced, as the girl gleefully screamed and bounded in Lina’s direction. The heroine was confused and cold and being screamed at. She stood frozen in place as she stared in shock at the little girl.

The young sheikah jumped up on her like an excitable little puppy as she grabbed onto the mechanical hand. “OH MY GOSH! YOU’RE HERE, YOU’RE BACK!” she screeched. “LINKY LINKI LINKIII”

 

“I- um...do i know you, miss?”

 

The girl laughed, she just... laughed??? It would have been right in her face if she wasn’t so tiny, “Do you- huh... I mean we knew that there could be some residual amnesia but how could you forget this face?” she put her hands to her cheeks and looked up at Lina while batting her eyes, before visibly jumping from different thoughts before muttering, “Oh i guess you didn’t quite know this face-” she stepped back and spun around in a circle, making a V(?) with her fingers and placing it by her eye. “Brace yourself for this Li cause I’m going to blow your mind! I’m Purah! Genius scientist, head of the Hateno research lab, and the cutest one to boot.”

Lina raised an eyebrow, she thought Purah was old... they kept talking about ancient technologies, and the old woman was meant to have known her so she just assumed...

“Now I know what you’re thinking right now. And yes, I look great for my age.” she giggled, this had to be a practical joke, right? “I’m kidding sweetie, oh you look so confused. All you need to know is that I was working on a project and to no surprise, it worked... too well. But- every experiment has its hiccups... I mean, look at you. Just as pretty and not a thought behind those eyes! Or well... a memory in that noggin.”

 

Lina did not like this magic child’s funny words. In fact nothing she said made sense, this was weird, she looked between the child and the man who just let her talk Lina’s ear off, she tried to get back to brass tacks, maybe she would eventually get answers from a scientist that worked on her, “right... well, I was told to get a rune??? for this???”

 

“YES! the camera!” the little girl jumped up and down, “I’m so excited someone gets to try it out, and with THE arm! Just like it was intended. Oh Robbie was so proud of that-”

 

“Robbie?”

 

“Yes Robbie, he used to be my partner in crime, but he went up to Akkala to do more research on reworking ancient technology.” Lina tried to think hard, she tried to focus on the task at hand but she couldn’t help but be distracted by the confusion this child brought her. “That being said Li, we can deal with the camera in a bit... let’s catch up.”

 

“...you talk a lot.” She stopped talking and looked up at Lina with wide eyes. “and not like a child.”

 

“I should hope not,” Lina furrowed her brow at the girl's words, “Please I’m over 100 years old, if I still spoke like a child now I’d just hurl myself off that cliff over there.” she crossed her arms. “kidding, obviously. But you seem way more vacant than I expected. Come sit down next to auntie Purah and let me examine you." The girl climbed up onto a chair standing on the seat to make eye contact with Lina, and Symin brought a second chair over, scraping the legs against the wooden floor as he did.

Lina walked over and took a seat, staring at the face of the little girl as she adjusted her glasses. 124 years old and she looked 5... no... no that wasn’t right. That couldn’t be right? She tried to understand, but perhaps her mind wasn’t in the state to understand. She shook her head.

 

“Stay still Linky I have to do an exam, it’s just a quick one so don’t worry about a thing.” The child shone a light in Lina's eyes. “hmm...”

 

“Why do you keep calling me that?”

 

“Calling you what?”

 

“Like... Linky, or Li... or whatever.”

 

“That-... that’s your name?” she laughed a bit awkwardly.

 

“No, it’s not.”

 

“Is it not? You know I didn't actually ask if it wasn’t your name... but that’s what you responded to.”

 

“What are you talking about?”

 

“Sweetie...” she looked into Lina’s eyes and furrowed her brow, “um, Symin, can you make us some tea, I think we both might need it.”






Lina sat across from the girl, each with a small cup of tea and a teapot on the table between them. It was plain black pottery, and steam escaped from its spout. Symin was over by the bookcase, desperately trying not to stare at Lina's arm, but she knew he was there, watching and waiting to look at her arm. She looked over at the little girl in front of her, the one that sat and acted like a much older person. It made her uncomfortable, yet it made her feel seen. She wondered if this little girl was telling the truth, if she was the old scientist Purah, if she was the one who made the magic that was ingrained in her arm. Should she find this plausible, then this was the first person she had something in common with, having such a disconnect with ones’ mind and body... especially now.

Purah blew the steam off of the top of her tea, trying to cool the beverage. “What did Impa tell you?”

 

Lina sighed, Impa again, “She said that there was a hero a long time ago and that he died. So I have to come here and get magic so I can have him train me.” or something.

 

“Is that EXACTLY what she said?” The child emphasized.

 

“not... exactly.” Lina shrugged, “she said he was laid to rest, this Link guy... and said something about me learning from this magic or something...” It was hard to remember exactly, it had been days.

 

“I see, I mean she told you as much of the truth as can be expected from her. Though I thought we agreed she would be objective in her telling of things.” Purah furrowed her brow and looked to the door. “If it wasn’t for my current predicament I’d give her a piece of my mind right now.”

 

"What are you talking about?”

 

“I- I’m not good with the hard stuff, been told I’m a bit too harsh. Besides I don't have the story straight in my head sweetie, Impa was supposed to cover that, I’d suggest you go back and ask her.” Lina didn’t like the thought of that, though, Purah’s face at least didn’t make her want to throw up so that was a positive, “I can answer any tech questions you might have though. Seems like the arm fits you well.”

 

Fits her well? FITS HER WELL???? Her shoulder muscles ached constantly; the hoisting, the hobbling, the way she had to lean just to walk straight. Was she kidding right now?



“It...” she held her tongue, she didn’t want to get mad at the child, it didn’t help her fury though. “Why is it so heavy?”

 

“Heavy? Oh ... OH! Hah you’d think a team of scientists would have thought of that, well it was made based on the strength that you could lift but it didn’t account for the fluctuations in strength levels after you awoke. Major oversight on our part- but we did want it to be durable-” an... oversight? “so we used guardian hide for it... sacrificing mobility for strength”

 

“And the change in glow... and the explosives.”

 

“Oh! You got those down, good. Those would be the runes, my specialty.” she beamed, “Cooked them up after studying some ancient sheikah technology over 100 years ago, I managed to deconstruct the code and reforge it in my own image. Cool right? Let’s see- yeah you got Cryo... Stasis... Magnesis-” she scrolled through the different glows on Lina's hand, the colour changing with each spin of the eye dial. “and our two different bomb types. Very nice... you got all of the ones I pre-installed. I will need to get the camera rune down and I should have concept material for upgrading the ones that are already there. I haven't gotten a chance to try it since the Sheik-Arm was locked in a cave forever ago....”

 

“What am I?”

 

“What?” the child blinked.

 

“What am i?” she asked as though it clarified the intent.

 

“Linky...”

 

“That's not my name.” She set the cup down after feeling her hand begin to grip it too tight. “Why do you call me that? And why does my blood return to my body? Why do I have scars if my body didn’t leave a scar when my foot was speared? Why was I in that cave?”

 

“Baby, you’re not making any sense.”

 

Lina took a breath, she could feel her temperature rising. “This arm, why is it on me?”

 

“I can’t answer that”

 

“Tell me!”

 

“I can’t do that to you. I don’t know what it will do.”

 

“Like I’m some volatile experiment,”

 

“Cause you’re fragile!”

 

“Apparently not, not when I get hit or bleed...”

 

“It’s not the same, and you know it”



“NO I DON’T!” she finally raised her voice, “I don’t know anything. I came to you for answers and I only have more questions. Everyone who knows anything just hides stuff from me.”

Why wouldn’t she tell her?



“Take a knee.” Purah said with a sigh and Lina moved from her seat, the chair falling over as Lina knelt in front of Purah. There was silence in the air... regret.

Then Lina started crying, it was soft but audible, and Purah looked uncomfortable. Lina couldn't see this though, she just stared down at the floor, letting her eyes blur and drip fluid. Why was she on the floor? Why did she kneel? What happened to her? Why did her body keep betraying her?

 

“Some of what you said is concerning, I’ll note it down.” she sipped her cup of tea, burning her tongue in the process. “I'll let you compose yourself while I do so.” The child stood from her seat and reached for a pen and paper, crawling on the table to do so. She heard the child begin scribbling away on the paper, page after page until Lina could breathe without much effort.

 

“Who... attached this thing to me?” she asked calmly,

 

“First of all sweetie, it’s a Sheik-Arm. And it is a very sensitive and cool piece of equipment. Please put respect on its name.” she sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “And secondly, it was Robbie. I didn’t have the strength to- I wasn’t very good at the medical side of things so he managed it.”

 

It was that name again. “Who is he?”

 

“Like I said before, we worked together. Did well too, til he went to do his own thing, said i “took up too much space” and that “I don’t have room for his baby” it wasn’t his actual baby, his actual baby isn’t one anymore.”

 

“I see, so he did this to me?” Lina muttered “why?”

 

“That I am not allowed to say, sorry hon. But he could answer... or Impa-”

 

“Why does it hurt?” Lina continued to stare at the floor.

 

“Li- Listen, you’re still not making any sen-”

“WHY DOES IT HURT?” She raised her voice again, staring at the ground and grabbing at the phantom arm that phased through the mechanical one, before her fingers took hold of the metal. “Please... please why does it hurt?!”

 

“I... I don't know. I helped with the rune magic, that’s my whole deal- he’s more into the hardware. But it shouldn’t hurt... the hardware shouldn’t cause you pain.” Lina saw the small hand reach for the arm and she pulled away instinctively.

 

Lina cried out, holding onto the metal so tightly her knuckles went white. “Why was I put in the cave? Why do I not have my own arm? Please... please it hurts so much” her mind hummed with heat as she tried to think or to remember. “Was I a person before this? Please tell me I was a person.”

Damn it. More questions. More fucking questions.

 

“Okay sweetie, sit back down and have your tea.” Lina did as she was told, picking up the now cooled tea and sipping it. She didn’t like the taste. It was like drinking grass to her. “I have enough space for one semi-emotional conversation, but then I can’t take anything else. It’s easier to fix science than it is to fix feelings so... I’ll do what I can. Yes. You were and are a person, you can breathe now.”

 

Lina rubbed the back of her neck and drank some more grass water. “I haven’t stopped moving.” her tone was dower, “I woke up and I kept moving. The old man died and I kept moving. My arm aches every day, but it’s not there... and I keep moving. I don’t even know what’s happening to my brain, to my body, or why I just did what you told me too. I just keep doing what I’m told. I’m hollow.”

I feel like I’m a shell of a person... but if that was the case, I was at least a person.



“This needed to happen, we need you. And despite how Impa acts... we are all glad to have you back. If you let me take a look at your arm... it shouldn’t be hurting, otherwise there isn’t much I can do, you’ll have to speak with Impa again. And it's better that you do, despite my frustration she is an intimidating person.” she scribbled on a piece of paper, words... They were symbols she didn’t have to think too hard to recognise, it was easy to understand, it read, “Talk to Robbie in Akkala,” and then she wrote on another, but folded it too quickly for her to see.

“You should also talk to Robbie, I figure that any conversation with him should be enlightening, but he’s a bit of a handful.” she chuckled, “let me check out that arm of yours and get that rune implanted alright. And if anything happens you can talk to me. I can’t lie sweetie, I missed your face." She patted Lina on the forearm then called to Symin for her tools.



***

Chapter 19: Homesick

Summary:

In an effort to clear her head, Lina decided to help out farmers and go explore the nearby Mt. Lanayru.

Chapter Text

Lina walked down the hill with the bitter taste of tea lingering in her mouth. She hadn’t had much time to process her thoughts or feelings after being imbued with the power to capture still images and view them in her mind, had she thought of it she would have asked how any of it worked, but considering she didn’t feel like turning back or trudging up the mountain again she kept going down. She had several near cries before she left, and now as she fended off another she had a headache, perhaps that’s why she was ushered out of the building. She was given a final hug from the little scientist for good measure, like placing a bandage on an ever springing well. It made her feel marginally better.

For now she had to decide what she was going to do. She could go to Kakariko, arguably she should... but she already had a bad taste in her mouth, she didn’t need her tongue to be tainted again. She didn’t like being lied to. That’s the kind of woman she was; a blonde, human woman, who did not like lying...

She wanted to be as honest as possible to anyone who asked. Not that people asked her much she could answer to. She bit her lip in thought. She needed a direction...

 

As she reached the fork in the path she took a moment to breathe. And as she exhaled she heard shouts, calling for the attention of a traveller. Lina was well aware of her surroundings, she was the only one nearby. They couldn’t be calling for anyone else unless perhaps they had a golden haired dog. She rolled her neck and groaned, having no energy for people and yet something propelled her toward them all the same. She leaned on the fence, looking at the two farm hands out in the field, one was a man and the other was that girl with the sheep from before. They smiled at her, then began to wave her in further.

She was unsure of what they were trying with her, but should they try to stab her she was more than capable of killing them first.

She didn’t like that that was the first place her mind went.

Perhaps she could handle another individual’s attack without first killing them? But the tension in her jaw and arm didn’t give that thought much to hold on to. Internally she sighed, she couldn’t do it especially when they seemed so nice. She hesitated, unsure of what her presence would do to the animals, so she kept her distance from them but she still appreciated their general sweetness. However despite the general unease that came with people looking upon her arm, muffin didn’t seem to have a problem with it... wherever she was. So it would likely all be fine. Lina hopped up onto the fence, getting closer to the two without her first approaching them, and with no energy to hold a smile on her face. The others quickly made up the distance. “yes?” she asked, tiredly.

 

The two farm hands shared glances between one another, then the girl nudged and whispered to man before with a sigh, the man spoke. And although he was the only one that did, she had a feeling that the words were from the minds and mouths of both of them. They presumed her to be good with a bow and arrows, (which she was) due to her retrieving the sheep from the monsters earlier that day. It had only been a day, she had lost track of time in that lab. Her eyes still stung. Gods. She didn’t disagree with them about her prowess, she hadn’t shown herself to not be good with bows after all. But due to this she was roped into another task before she even had time to process. She was quickly ushered across the farm, her arms pulled and back pushed toward what she could only assume was the end of the property.

She brushed past cows and sheep and was followed excitedly by dogs until she was pushed to the side of the barn. Sure she could have fought back, she could have fought them, fought this... but she was so tired. Lina was relieved when they stopped. There by the barn she could see a small lake with an islet inside, it had a little dock with a boat placed neatly on the ground nearby. Were she to ask to borrow it it likely wouldn’t return. She had a feeling she’d forget it somewhere or it would grow legs and run off like Muffin. The lake, though smaller than some in the area, was wide, and the water lapped up against the side of the nearby mountain. She wondered if time would carve channels through it with water as it did a chisel. She furrowed her brow... the cold... she wanted it to wrap it in a blanket...



“Right, so-” the man pulled her from her thoughts, and directed her to the forest that banked the rest of the lake. He spoke to her, but she didn’t really listen to the words, just gathering the gist of what he said. He told her something regarding too many bucks in the area. Something about aggression and danger, or eating feed or something. She checked back in when she heard that they needed her for hunting. She quickly agreed before tensing visibly. She had broken her bow days before, she had no bow to hunt. Deer were skittish and very alert... in some ways like how she was. But she was more capable of killing them than they were of killing her. - this was to say, they ran and ran fast when they noticed anything out of the ordinary. She’d hardly have a chance to hunt them should she try to get close. The two looked at eachother, and shrugged- had they thought this part through?-.

Then again... she paused digging through her pack. She did grab one of those crude bokoblin’s bows. She mumbled as she pulled it out.

It’s not good but I’ve hunted with these before... I dunno if they’ll kill a deer though.

 

She did ask if they had arrows and a few hand made arrows were fetched from the barn. They were whittled down in the hayloft and still had the hay smell on them to prove it. They would have to do for now, at least until this bow broke... it was on its last legs. They thanked her and promised a reward for at least three dead before they finished their duties.

Steep time crunch but I can handle it.

 

There were harder things she could have been tasked with. Lina gratefully took the arrows and tugged at the bow string before disappearing into the treeline.

Gods she missed hunting.

 


 

Lina grabbed the buck by the antlers and stared into its poor black eyes. She felt bad about this at times, she knew that they were all creatures on this earth... but life had to move on and so did death. And in death would this creature serve its place in the ever growing pyramid that was life. She watched its breath catch the cool mountain air of the evening. She should be getting back soon, the air was getting cold and the sun was going down. Despite the terrible morbidity of what she had done and what she now had to do again, she found a peace in it. There was no, “taking something before its time” there was simply death and life. She didn’t know why she thought that, but as she put her hand on its neck to feel its pulse rushing it twitched and bucked, tossing Lina back. She fell to the ground and the creature tried to get up, but its legs flailed and kicked up dust. Lina had hesitated. Damn. She was taught not to. The suffering that the creature must have been in at her hand. She couldn’t live with herself if it stayed in agony for just one minute.

Lina walked back over and caught the buck’s antlers as it slammed back, trying to attack her. The mechanical arm groaned for a moment before she overpowered it and slammed its head back down.

I’m sorry, I’m so sorry you powerful beast. I promise you’ll be safe... I wish you understood me.

 

She took a breath. Staying her nerves as she looked into its eyes again. For a moment, a flash, she could have sworn the creature had understood her thoughts... that it knew that it would be safe and accepted her words. That the creature almost relaxed in her grasp. Then she slashed its throat and waited for its heart to stop beating.

“To Hylia goes your spirit, and to your body I promise you will return to the earth.” she muttered, still not sure what she was saying or why. She took a beat, she took a breath. She could feel her stomach churn just a bit. She had killed to feed herself but three deer felt excessive. She stood up, dragging the deer easily with the mechanical arm as she went back to her other kills. They hung from a tree like some terrific natural gallows. She hated it... and yet it was asked of her. And that was what she did, she needed the money anyway... and she needed to get their blood off of her hands. Lina grabbed her rope and tied knot after knot around the last buck. She released the other two from their unfortunately morbid position and hoisted them all up onto her shoulder using the arm’s power for most of the heavy lifting.

She returned to the farm, a crimson display of victory. As the farmhands had finished putting the animals away for the night, Lina dropped the deer at their feet, not trying to hide the gore from their eyes. The girl immediately went green and started to walk away. The man just looked at the deer and then back at her. “You didn’t have to make such a mess”

 

“It's messy work.” She replied.

 

“Listen it’s fine- just ... ugh now i have to clean this up”

 

“Did you want me to give them a bath before bringing them to you?”

 

“No- no it’s... three?”

 

“you said three”

 

“at least three” Lina furrowed her brow, more than three deer in an afternoon... he was kidding, that was a massacre. “this isn’t going to cover it. ” he said quietly. Lina waited for her reward. This was plenty of meat, should last ages if treated right or given out easily.

 

“ I don’t mean anything by this, but I could have gotten three... Listen, I don’t have much to give you for this, and from what Koyin told me she gave you a pretty rupee for the sheep rescue, thanks again by the way. But I don’t have the wallet to pay for more than it’s worth.” he pulled out a green rupee and he placed it in her palm. Lina didn’t know much, hell this world was more confusing than anything now. But she knew that a green rupee was not worth a lot monetarily, she frowned. “Plus you will be getting a good cut of the meat from this, we’ll get this to the butcher and it’ll go all around town, it won’t go to waste.” Lina sighed, that was something at least it wouldn't go to waste. She gave a slight smile at that and nodded, before turning and walking directly into the lake.

 

 

By the time she resurfaced she was free from the blood that had once stained her, and wished that she could have walked along the bottom of the lake, she wondered what all lived down there aside from stray boots housing minnows. Even if she managed to make some sort of iron weighed boots she wondered if she would be able to breathe underwater... based on past experiences that would not be likely to happen. She chuckled at the improbable concept and sat on the shore of the small isle at the centre of the lake. She laid her head and back flat on the grass as she looked up at the branches of the central tree, the leaves of which filtered out the red light from the setting sun. It was quiet now that the animals were away.

There is nowhere for me to go... I’m alone...

 

“I’m alone.” she sighed. She needed to take her mind off of this for longer, the hunting helped but it was only for a few hours, she couldn’t be thinking of her place in all this, it would just upset her... FUCK.

Think of something... anything else... damn it damn it. Damn it.

 

The wind rushed by her face, “you’re not alone.” the words chuckled by her ears, and she sat up pin straight. Was that in her head or had she heard a voice? It was soft and sweet, like a child’s but it was so kind and wise and ancient. She looked around. And the wind blew at her wet hair and clothes, the cool air hitting her core and drying her at the same time. “Look up here!” Lina looked up to the treetop, she watched the branches sway and bow amidst the dimming sunlight. The voice had come from there, and the wind guided her vision. huh.

... fuck it. She climbed the tree.



The trunk of the tree was large, so much so  that Lina couldn’t wrap her arms around it. She used the limbs and gaps in bark to climb up, trying her best not to gouge its sturdy stem with the clawed fingers and them vice-like mechanical grip. She hoisted herself up into the largest bows of branches, sitting at the top of the twisting collection of branches able to peek through the gaps of the leaves more clearly and capable of seeing the sky. She didn’t look up for the stars that began to peak out, she instead was in search of the voice that called to her. Looking across the treetops she saw nothing, not a creature in sight nor a nest that could house a magical talking bird should they exist. In the bows of the nearest branch though there was a large round stone. It wasn’t massive, but it would have taken both of her hands to pick up. She wondered how it managed to get up into this tree. She looked up to the mountain... that was likely the reason. She picked up the rock.

Return to the ground where you belong, little rock.



She lifted the rock above her head and began to throw it- this action was swiftly interrupted by a child yelling with riotous laughter. Lina nearly dropped the rock on her head, but managed to catch it and stay atop the tree. She looked down below, there was no child there. She dropped the rock and turned around to look for the child on the other side.

“AHA!~” the voice called out, startling Lina enough to nearly fall again. She looked down, when she caught herself, accidentally gouging a branch.

“Shit.”

“language~” the little voice called. In the spot on the branch where the rock had sat she saw a little kid sat atop it, they weren’t there before, she knew that. She reached up and flicked the kid in the forehead to try and see if it was real. “ow.” okay. They were real. She blinked hard, just in case it was an illusion and not a branch, and yet there they stayed. But they weren’t normal. Or at least, not like the children she had seen before. They stared at her, but not with eyes. She saw no face, in fact the face was only a large korok leaf. It blinked... and yet it didn’t blink. Its skin and clothes were patterned like the grain of wood. The rings of whatever tree that crafted such a child was older than any tree she had seen. The clothes that were carved into it were very old fashioned, both simple and fancy, she stared at the creature, the child... the... what was it? Was it... her... was it like the tree she found before? Hestu... right? She poked its forehead leaf, its head had a few branches which also sprouted leaves, and it had no hair... it was like a weird marionette. “ow... wow... you can see me, that’s wow.” it sounded like it was grinning but she couldn’t see its smile.

“Well you found me! Here...” it held out its hand, and hesitantly she held out hers to take the given object. It left a seed in her palm. “Hold on to that, it’s very important” she could feel it wink at her. “I have to get home now... it’s-” she could feel its smile fade, it held onto a tree limb and looked up to the mountain. The wind rushed around her and the leaves surrounded the child as Lina too held on to a branch for support. She watched the child become leaves and wind, and on the air she could hear not but quiet sobs. She shuddered as the air around her got colder and colder until it disappeared. She took a breath, waiting in the silence before looking up to the mountain.

What the hell was that about... what made it cry?

 

... fuck it, she was going to climb a mountain.

 



It was right there. right on the other side of the lake... she had to go after it. The mystery drew her, not some dinging in her brain or pull in her chest. This was her interest, her mystery, she had to figure it out. The breeze never cried. The wind was never sorrowful. It was light or wrathful but it wasn’t sad. Something was wrong. Lina hopped out of the tree and glided down to the opposite shore to begin to scale the mountain.

Swinging the arm up she climbed up the sheer cliff face, its nails digging into the rock and leaving perfect hand and foot holds for the next climber. She swung up the cliff, higher and higher until the air began to get cold. She tried to go slowly, to preserve her energy, but she nearly lost it all before reaching solid ground, so she swung up and landed on the snowy surface. The air was thick and cold, she could feel her knees and hand begin to freeze in the breath of a sudden winter. It was strange to her, she hadn’t been in such a cold before, even on the mountain she climbed with the old man was it not suddenly this frigid, this was as comparable as the temperature only found at the very peak and even then this was something else. How high up was she really? She shivered. Barely catching her breath with the feeling of ice shards being sucked through her thoroughly unprepared lungs. She dug through her pack and quickly pulled out the old, warm doublet that she had kept hold of, she threw it on and fastened it closed as quickly as she could. She stopped and took a breath, her body temperature quickly evening out in the cold. She might have had a spicy meal or two, something to keep her warm while in the mountains, though since she didn't think that they were useful there was a chance that she sold them. That’s what the old man did when they traveled to the mountain previously. But, there wasn't time to go back and get hot food now, there was something around her that was so upsetting to the little fairy that it cried. She had a feeling it was at the peak.

It definitely wasn't that she wanted to reach the peak for bragging rights and the view... well it wasn't... just that.

 

She tried to shake the cold from her hands and feet as she began on the path to the top, she would be fine... likely. There were monsters around, though she didn’t see any bokoblins she could sense them. In fact even though she could feel the danger she couldn’t see anything... it was cold and dark and the wind blew right through her, thrusting snow against her face as she struggled forward. Thankfully the blue glow of her eyes helped her see through the mist and cold. As she climbed ever higher, it hurt to keep her eyes open, it hurt her shoulders to keep moving, and her mouth, it hurt to open and breathe at all. She could feel the hair on her neck stand on end. She wrapped her scarf and pulled the cloak tighter around her. Why had nothing attacked her yet? She could feel the beasts watching her, but she couldn’t see them. She found her way forward, stumbling onto a path of dirt and packed snow... she made it somewhere... finally. She stopped on the path, taking sharp breath after sharp breath. She was more tired than she had ever been, and she was ... cold... so cold. Was the wool shirt not working? She pressed her hand against it, and then she tried to warm her hand with her breath, but she couldn’t get the heat to stick.

Lina looked to the nearest wall, she walked across the path and swung her arm up to climb it, the cold blue surface revealing itself from beneath the snow as she made contact, her claws digging into it like a finger through warm butter and sliding down through the surface. It was ice. She looked across the snow covered surfaces, quickly brushing the snow off of it to find that all of the stone was covered in a thick and impassible layer of ice.

She would have to walk. She could see her breath, and to her it simply spelled out the word cold before her eyes. She shivered, looking up she was still so far from the top. She gasped and started up the path, it was likely unsafe but she had to do something. She gulped hard. Three steps up the path. It took three steps before she had come across anything dangerous. Those three steps were full of tension. The first was discomfort. The second was nervousness. And the third, was panic. As she took that third step she did not feel the solid crunch of snow followed by the solidity of the ground. She instead felt something thick and squishy, as though she had stepped into a pile of rotting meat. Lina’s stomach flipped over like a pancake. She pulled back, however she wasn’t fast enough as a massive white blob shot up from the snow with her foot in its “mouth”.

Lina had seen chuchus before, gross little things that were usually blue but could discolour depending on their environment, she had seen a handful of them that turned green or muddy from being around grass or mud patches for too long. She would have groaned in disgust if she wasn’t freezing at the moment. This one being white made sense, it was in the snow, hell she was sure she had seen one of these before. She should have been more careful. Lina pulled out her sword.

The issue with these creatures was that they tried to knock out and then digest whatever they came across. They seemed to have a taste for human flesh, which was not the best in a number of circumstances... And this one had her foot. She tried to yank her leg free but it held her firmly, she felt it pulling at her leg, it was trying to get the rest of her into its body in order to eat her. She could feel the tingling-burning sensation of it trying to dissolve her leg, fuck, it was cold and yet hot. She cried out, slashing at it rapidly. Though her leg had been melting, simply being in proximity of this blob was enough to cause her to freeze. The mountain itself was cold, naturally, But this creature seemed to generate its own field of frost around it. She cried out louder and slashed harder, hitting it between the eyes. Chuchus weren’t hard to kill or to avoid but something felt wrong, she saw her sword arm shaking. She hit it again and again, there was something she was forgetting. She watched the creature recoil, spitting out her now sizzling foot and shaking violently. It would die in a moment, she just had to wait for it to dissipate. However, dissipate it didn't, it pulled into itself and her eyes widened.

It must have exploded, she forgot they exploded... not with heat but with cold. Lina stood still, well she had no choice in that matter, in fact she couldn’t move, she could hardly breathe. Lina’s body, her hair, her eyes, her clothes, all covered in a layer of ice. Lina was choking, fuck even her tongue was covered in ice, she was still alive, barely but she couldn’t move. She tried to shake, to move the arm, to run... she saw movement in the corner of her eyes. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck. Something was moving close to her, it wasn’t a chuchu, it was white and it was crawling across the ground, and crawling fast. She wanted to scream to cry out to call for help, but she was alone on the mountain, she was alone.

She felt the arm vibrating, maybe it’d help, maybe it would get free before the creature crawled to her.

 

Dreamer!” the voice screamed in her mind, briefly drawing her attention from the imminent peril she found herself in. She wanted to scream back at the voice, but the glass shattered again as it spoke. “ You are in terrible danger.”

No shit.

Dreamer! I need you to listen to me as you have so diligently... You need to think of home, think of warmth. This is your only solace. Please believe me.

As quickly as the scratching screams burst in they left her to the silence of her future demise. She didn’t know what it was saying. Did it just want her to die thinking of something positive? -she didn’t even remember her home, fucking voices in her head. They don’t know what’s going on. Damn it. What other choice did she have, the arm still didn’t manage to release her from this prison and the shape was getting closer still, she closed her eyes and thought of home. Home, what was home to her? She thought of that building in Hateno, she thought of Muffin, of a little cottage with some chickens, of rows of stones, she thought of... Kakario, of a smiling face waiting to greet her, of soft hands wanting to braid her hair, and of a warm meal.

 

Lina fell forward, her body hitting heavily on grassy land. She shivered, and took in deep breaths of warm air. She shivered, again and again... she was alive... she was alive!!!! she could hear her heartbeat thudding in her ears, she couldn’t feel her limbs, she could barely feel her lungs as she sucked in breath after breath. Slowly she stood up and looked around. There wasn’t a flake of snow in sight except on her, though it was quickly melting off of her. She was so tired. She looked around... and saw ruins, ruins she almost recognised. They looked different, smaller, but familiar. She looked up the mountain path toward a forest up above, there were peaks around her but none of them were covered in snow. Behind her there was a little valley, and in the valley was a village, with a large building up on a hill off of the town square, it was surrounded by ponds and waterfalls....

Lina couldn’t figure out how she came here, not entirely for lack of trying but for the fact that she only had the energy for one thing at a time. She made her way down the mountain path, stumbling and falling and using the wall to catch herself at times, she continued into the town, she heard the voices of people around her, but she couldn’t understand them. She fell forward again, only this time to be caught by calloused hands and could hear calls for help.

 

They didn’t let her fall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

She wasn’t alone. 

***

Chapter 20: Dreams

Summary:

Memories and dreams in an entanglement forever interconnected.

Warning: hands and the loss of them.

Notes:

sorry about this being late! been worried about running low on my backlog but turns out that some of the more recent chapters were long enough to be made into two XD. also general medical issues hindering me.
so... yeah! Thanks to Monty again for saving me the stress from that.

Chapter Text

The hero stood alone in the hallway. When they weren't doing anything, the armor they wore weighed heavy on their shoulders. He wasn’t used to it, he was used to wearing training leathers and they wished that they could wear something a bit lighter so they could move more fluidly, dodge faster, and overall fight better. It was fine, though he thought it probably wouldn't be helpful in this situation. Focusing on the weight of the armor seemed to distract them from the nervousness they felt. This wasn’t meant to be a big thing, and fundamentally it wasn’t. However, the people in the next room were important and intimidating in her eyes, them all being together, talking about her made her nerves heighten. She hadn’t met all of them before, though she did know a few. The archer was an interesting choice to be included in the meeting, she thought he was funny and all, though she knew he had something against her. The head of the champions had trained her and the other soldiers a handful of times. But the others were not necessarily known to her beyond rumours.

He sighed.

Then there were the others, those who were not champions; the princess wouldn’t be there but her father would be. King Bosphoramus would sit there and bestow something grand upon her. She was being given a title today, this was important. He was a good enough fighter to be given a title, not a lordship or anything crazy like that, but this could lead to better things for her little family. She couldn’t wait to write a letter to her father about this, she hoped he would be proud of her.

She... missed him, she missed home. What was home now? Was it the barracks? Would it be these people she was just about to meet? Was it back in the village? Or the meadows outside of it? She felt her stomach twist up. Before she could process the feelings the door to her right opened and she was called in. She stepped through the doorway to see- -there was a vast field of flowers in front of her. She sat on the ground, the flowers smelled sweet and their colours were incredibly vibrant. She swore the colours should have hurt her eyes, but she gazed at them all the same. She looked out into the great beyond, there were flowers as far as the eye could see. She smiled and sighed leaning back on one arm as she picked one of the flowers and inhaled its scent, closing her eyes as a wave of relaxation washed over her. It had been so long, and yet perhaps it had only been a day since she sat in amongst the flowers. It was comfort, it was peace, it was what she needed. She opened her eyes to look at the flower again, to admire its petals and breathe in its fragrance.

As she opened her eyes again the sky was a deep red, with the stars blinking in and out as though they were millions of distant eyes themselves. The moon glowed nearly as brightly as the sun would, if the sun shone with blood that is- and she felt something on her leg. She looked down quickly, the crimson sky having made her blood run cold, and on her leg she saw a hand gripping her ankle tightly. She tried to get up, to pull her leg away, to run, then she saw another hand and another and another pop up from the ground. In fact there were no flowers around her at all. All the flowers she had gazed upon and appreciated were now replaced with human hands reaching up and grasping their dirty fingers in her direction. She looked to the flower she held in her grasp and screamed as it twitched and morphed into a hand, it lunged for her, grasping and scratching at her face as the other hands grabbed her skirt, legs, and hair and pulled her down... deep into the dark and wet of the saturated earth.

Lina choked on dirt, trying her best to claw free to breathe. It tasted of iron and death as she struggled, she kicked and screamed and tried to spit out the dirt. And for what felt like hours she couldn’t breathe....

Then suddenly she could again. She opened her eyes and there was no dirt... she was in a ballroom now. It was strange, fancy and large and she felt dwarfed with the size of it. Had she had the time to process she would have called out and listened for the echo. But she couldn’t process, she couldn’t think, she could barely breathe and take in the magnificence of the room. Because the room was beautiful, intimidating, and opulent... and there was blood everywhere. She looked around, and as she turned the room shifted and morphed, she was pulled through halls that smeared like ink on wet paper, until she was outside and saw the castle in front of her. She stopped, the warping and dripping slowed as a much crisper, large, dark figure came into her field of view. It loomed over her, and though she couldn’t see its eyes she could tell it was looking at her, grinning at her. It tried to speak to her but every word said was replaced by the snorting and grunting of a pig. It raised a massive sword to her, its large and unhinged mouth twisting and shifting its place on the form as it laughed and snorted. She closed her eyes and braced for impact, unarmed and alone, covered in blood-



Only to feel arms wrap around her.

 

 

Suddenly she felt warm.

 

 

She didn’t realize how cold she felt.

 

 

She felt safe...

 

 

She opened her eyes.






Lina awoke under a tightly tucked blanket, her body now much warmer than she had been when she landed. She wasn’t on a bed, but on a sleeping mat on the floor with a pillow propped under her head. She groaned looking up at the ceiling as she tried to wrestle her arms out of her swaddle without ripping the damned thing. The ceiling was gabled with slats and beams of dark wood up above her, between the slats she could see bits of the thatched roof. She recognised the smell of the room, soft and clean with incense wafting through the air. She didn’t know how she got back here, but she wasn’t mad that she was... she missed it. Well parts of it. Kakariko village felt familiar to her now, she knew the people there, was this her home? No, it didn’t feel right, not yet. She felt safe enough here though... enough to sleep at least. She wriggled out from beneath the blankets and managed to sit up. She was in the central room of the big house on the hill. She looked around, near her head on a pillow sat Paya with a cloth and bowl of water to her side. She looked over to Lina as she wrung the cloth out into the bowl, she smiled sweetly at the heroine, “You’re awake, you’ve been asleep for a while, glad to see that the fever has let up.”

Fever?

 

How long?” Lina managed to stay sat for the moment.

 

Just a few days, thankfully your immune system is really strong. Here,” she walked over to the fire and grabbed a kettle that hung above it. She poured a liquid out into a wooden cup and brought it back, “Little Kottla was worried and made you some soup, I’ve been keeping it warm for when you woke up.” She handed Lina the cup and pulled the blanket up around her shoulders. “Stay warm okay.”

 

I-...” Lina took a moment to appreciate the tenderness in Paya’s voice and face. She was sweet, and kind. Lina felt her cheeks warming at her gaze. Though it was quite inviting, she didn’t want to be here yet... she wanted to climb the mountain again, she wanted to stop the spirits from crying, but since she was here… I need to speak with your grandmother.”

 

oh?” Paya looked surprised then looked out the window, “Right now? It’s still quite early.”

 

Lina inhaled the scent of the soup, gods it smelled good. That girl really had something good going, maybe she could sell it? But it was probably too hot to drink. “Preferably,” she sighed, “I have to get back to...” she didn’t know what it was she was doing, or even how to say it... there was so much to do and only one thing on her mind right now... though she did want to figure out her whole memory situation. “-everything soon... training... stopping the odd tree puppet children from crying...and saving the world and all.” she m uttered the last bit, not really believing it. She couldn’t believe most of what was happening to her and had she not seen the spirits with her own eyes she wouldn’t have believed that part either.

 

“O h, she’s in her room.” Paya said hesitantly, “I’ll go see if she’s awake” She brushed off her skirt and moved to get Impa, giving Lina a shy look over her shoulder before disappearing up the stairs.

It wasn’t long until Paya returned with Impa in tow, the old woman walked with haste and even that was so agonizingly slow. She wondered what it would be like to be so old...to be as wrinkled as a potato left in the back cupboard and to be so frail and small... she hated that idea, how miserable that must be. She wouldn’t like being as fragile as a book in a forgotten library, she decided, especially if she kept people waiting for her for what felt like eons as she crossed a gods-damned room that wasn’t even that big. OH HYLIA WAS THIS WOMAN SO SLOW!!!!

Lina took a sip of the soup and immediately burned her tongue, wonderful. She would have thought with the sluggish pace Impa was ambling along at, that the soup would have been cold by now. But unfortunately by the time Impa sat down her soup was still far too warm to drink, so despite time passing in vast amounts as she waited she could still not enjoy her soup! She just wanted to eat something while she sat for 50 years, damn.

Once the old woman sat down there was silence between the two, either waiting for the other to speak. The mood in the air was immediately tense. Though Link had only just awoken as soon as she saw Impa she could feel her blood boiling, though maybe that was just the burn of the soup. She held her breath, she held her tongue, she had much to say but she was trying to be good about it, after all Paya was here.

 

You called?” Impa was the first to break the silence. Her eyebrows showed an annoyance but her mouth was turned up at the corners, though she was tired...she was amused. Why the hell was she amused?! Did she find pleasure in Lina's suffering? Or was she happy that Lina was awake? Ugh what the hell was her problem?

 

... what are you not telling me?” Lina replied coldly, trying her best to keep her roiling anger under control.

 

Impa hesitated to answer, she closed her eyes and sighed. Lina wasn’t sure what she was thinking but she was reminded that the old woman made her feel ill, she didn’t know why, but she had a feeling that it had to do with the lying. She could tell the woman was thinking, she couldn’t see what thoughts were behind her eyes but she knew she had something holding the gears in her head from turning like something was caught between them.

 

I t was probably the cobwebs.

Yeah it was probably the cobwebs. Lina was locked on, despite her stomach churning at the sight of Impa's face she still stared, waiting for Impa to return from where she was in her mind and back to the conversation. She shook her oversized, wrinkly head as she sucked in air, barely breathing out the words, “What do you mean?”

 

WHAT DID SHE MEAN “WHAT DO YOU MEAN?” LINA KNEW NOTHING.

Gods, like she really knew nothing, but she knew something was wrong. Why was nobody old or old-young talking to her like things were wrong? She took a breath and rolled her shoulders, this was going to be a fight and despite how tightly her teeth were gritted together she decided to take it slow, she wouldn’t come out of the gate swinging, “What I am trying to say is...” she took another breath staying her emotions for the time being, “Miss. Purah told me that you were meant to inform me of many things. Like... why she knew who I was... or why she called me... “Linky”.” Lina waited for her to respond, and when she opened her mouth to say something, Lina cut her off, having another thought. “Why do you old people know me? Purah said you discussed this before, so you knew me as well and you can’t deny that. So, why...” Lina sighed and ran her hand through the loose hair of her bangs... Paya must have taken her side braids out. “Why are you lying to me?”

 

Oh?” Impa was calm, far too calm for Lina to accept. She hoped that it would shake her at least but there was no change in expression. She wouldn’t take it, she couldn’t take it. But Impa said no more, and it made Lina even more stressed and angry, mostly because she had to keep talking. Not that it was a problem for her, she could ask questions until sundown but it was the fact that it wasn’t her choice, it was expected of her.

 

How long was I in the void- how long was I asleep? Who am I.... you should know right? You’re supposed to tell me about things... I know my name- or the names people gave me. Is Linky- is that another name? Cause apparently Purah didn’t know my name... then again she wasn’t... I mean I don't know.” She was so young, that was enough excuse for her not to know, but the look in Purah's eyes was as old and wise as Impa’s... so she couldn’t be too sure. “If I didn't know... If I didn’t know any better I- I would have thought I wasn’t a real person but Purah said that I was... and if a scientist tells you that you’re real then you should believe them.” she said confidently, but with the underlying stress of a chihuahua that tried to bite someone out of fear. She shook her head hard, smacking her face with her hair. Her long braid was still in, ow. “So... so what do you have to say, because right now you’re giving me a whole lot of dick all!” She started to get a bit louder but was trying to keep a level head, she could feel her head getting a bit hot and dizzy, she closed her eyes for a moment to get it to stop spinning.

 

Ugh...” the old woman groaned with disgust. She tried her best to gather her thoughts quickly but that was difficult to do, so many questions to answer, and a small angry woman on the ground by her feet. A tiny woman that she needed, that they needed, that her granddaughter idolized. She had to come up with something quickly. “I told you about the hero, I told you all I could. I knew him, he was a colleague but he was secretive... your amnesia is strange to be sure... it is strange you don’t know who you are but this all is-”



Lina didn’t have her pack, she didn’t have her sword, she didn’t even have the clothes she bought. She wore Sheikah made clothing that must have been made for sleeping, it was incredibly comfortable… Thankfully this was an advantage, the sleeves and pants were flowy and light, and short enough that she wouldn’t trip over them. Lina opened her eyes and within half a second was in front of Impa with the mechanical arm outstretched to her throat. She had gotten close enough to graze the tips of her fingers against her wrinkly throat, not that she could feel it. She wasn’t intending to harm her, she had no desire to have human blood on her hands... but she could- Impa didn’t flinch, but Paya screamed.

The guards will be here in a moment. I think you should have known... you should know that I have had a blade to my throat many times.” Impa said.

 

Lina grimaced, she didn’t like the idea of the soldiers coming but what could she do... “No... I don’t want to hurt you... but I know you know me. I know you’re lying. How FUCKING OLD AM I? And WHY WON’T YOU STOP LYING TO MY FACE?”

 

Yelling is going to get you nowhere”

 

It won’t, but it helps...” Lina looked into Impa's old eyes, and she saw... fear and satisfaction. My sword is somewhere, when I get it I will get answers”

 

“Y our sword was near shattering, we took it to be melted down.”

 

You bitch,” Lina was practically nose to nose with the old woman, staring into her eyes, the fear leaving as Lina got closer. “Who-”

 

The doors burst open and with thundering boots the guards burst in, drawn by the screams of Paya. Lina stood unmoving despite the unease she felt from falling ill. She heard them enter; four sets of footsteps, lightly armoured, swords concealed on their hips. They were probably skilled with their weapons, they had to be, she needed to take that into account. She knew one of them to be the father of those two darling girls, that day he had lifted them with no hesitation or sound, he was likely strong so she had no doubt that he was practiced with a weapon and likely his colleague was the same. Now, if Lina moved wrong she could close her fingers and tear Impa’s throat out, she didn’t want to do that, she still needed answers and besides that would be a bad look. Like threatening an old woman wasn’t bad enough.

 

LADY IMPA!” “GET BACK!” The guards called out, each taking steps toward Lina as she quite clearly posed a threat to their chief. Lina didn’t move, instead she just stared at Impa, partly out of her smothered anger, partly due to focus, and partly because she had a feeling that the old woman was the most dangerous person in the room. Impa had the answers, she had the power and power was... everything. Lina took a breath, bracing herself to be struck in the back of the head and fall in a way that didn’t harm the old woman, when the sound of movement around her squealed to a stop. She glanced quickly from Impa's eyes down to her hand... which was raised in resistance.

“E nough.” Impa spoke with the stillness of a stone statue, “I am in no danger, She won’t harm me.”

 

What was that supposed to mean?

The old woman looked to Lina then up over her shoulder into the faces of the soldiers. “Stand by the door if it worries you so.” she heard their footsteps, they took enough to get to the door but the door did not open. Impa glared their way, “The other side of the door. Come now, we need to have a conversation... Paya, you may step out as well, should you resolve not to keep your composure.”

 

B-but you... she... you haven’t been-” Paya sputtered.

 

Child, finish your sentence, leave, or sit down. Do not waste your breath like this.” She said that while looking back to Lina, not that the words were meant for her. She knew that well enough. Impa wouldn’t take a soft but stern tone with her, in fact she tended to lean a bit more condescending where Lina was concerned. She heard the shuffling of fabric, Paya sat down, and shortly afterward, the men left. The room fell quiet. “Good. Now you.” that was directed to Lina. “Sit down quietly or I will make you.”

Lina doubted that, for one Impa was tiny, secondly she was old, and thirdly there was only one of her and there was Lina... who actually knew how to fight. She could knock the old woman down long enough to get away, that is unless she wielded daggers like the stories said she did. Though how would Lina have known that was true, that she didn’t lie and make that up herself. She could have had the lie spread around like wildfire... who knows what could have happened in all of the years that she lived. Lina hesitated. She was within her mind while the thoughts whizzed past her, in the mind she felt as though she was timeless, the reality of the situation though was that she was somewhere. That her body was somewhere, in this room in fact, and time was passing. Time was passing and Impa was losing patience. Lina’s eyes and face went blank for a moment, this brief breath of hesitancy returned to Impa her power which Lina thought she had swiped. The illusion of such an exchange of power was quickly torn from Lina's grasp as the steely look of Impa’s gaze ripped through her.

“O h Paya, please forgive this old woman...” Impa muttered, with vain hopes that her granddaughter might forgive and forget her next utterances. Then the old woman opened her mouth and she changed, her gaze hardened and the words that came out of her were... normal words, though said without the kindness that Paya was granted. In fact they hit her like a stone aimed at her face, hard and fast. She yelled at Lina to sit down. Lina recoiled at the sound, but in the blink of an eye she was on the ground right next to Paya who looked on in concern.

 

Lina focused her gaze forward feigning immediate attention but looking into the middle distance at the painting behind Impa's head. She felt her eyes start to sting as tears began to well up behind them. It happened again, she couldn’t remember sitting down or why she did it. She couldn’t cry though, not now, not in front of Impa or Paya, she had no desire to show weakness to them despite knowing that the power of the situation was no longer hers. Maybe she just blacked out? If she just blacked out then she could have been brought to sit on the mat.... yes that had to be it. It had to be... it fucking had to be. Lina’s hands were shaking.

 

Paya reached over and hesitantly put the blanket back around Lina's shoulders, still showing her a kindness despite Lina lunging toward her grandmother. Lina would have given a slight smile had the situation been different. Lina’s shaky hands reached down to pick up the soup cup that she had left there. She tried her best to keep them steady but even the mechanical hand was having trouble, she was no scientist but that didn’t make much sense. She didn’t shift her vision. Silent and otherwise stoic as she waited for Impa to continue speaking.

This was made so complicated, all of this... so damn complicated-” Impa grumbled, trying to keep it to herself. “-er, pardon my language. Truthfully the likelihood of my language choices going down the toilet increases tenfold around this one.” she gestured in Lina’s direction who opened her mouth a bit in confusion.

 

wh-”

 

Nope, no questions until after the presentation please, I’ve had a century to prepare it properly so I’d like to get it right the second time around.” Impa sighed, this was far more trouble than it was worth but she would have done anything for her lady, and her lady wanted this. She didn’t quite have everything together but she had practiced this speech enough. She was glad however that she decided against the visuals, she could not draw diagrams for shit. “You are right Lina, I did lie to you.” she knew it, fucking fibber. Evil. "I only lied to YOU though, not you Paya dear. It’s just... something about seeing your face makes me want to lie right to it.”

... she didn’t get up and walk away, though she wanted to. It felt like an excuse, but Lina understood the involuntary feelings one had while looking at someone’s face. She kept listening waiting for answers, there was a feeling deep in her gut that Impa would be truthful for once. “I can only tell you from my own experiences and any outside information that was gathered by informants at the time. We pieced together a story and some answers but there are obviously holes. Not everyone was… around to give us information. It would have been summer, I had only just completed my training to serve as a guard for the royal family.” Impa paused, “You wouldn’t know this Lina... but this village once raised and trained the best of the best when it came to subterfuge and stealth. This training made us perfect for close work with the royal family, and we have done so for hundreds of years before the Calamity. I was not doing too terribly in my training, and had just been assigned to my first position, to care for and protect the young Princess, Zelda.”

 

The famous one, could that be true? It made sense, she was old enough.

I wasn’t the only one, but I found the princess’s favour and though other guards remained in the shadows, I was always there at her side. It was in this position that I met a young, fresh faced hero who I may have given some pointers to at the time but did not entirely train. There were many instructors, I had helped some by assisting another guard at the time, but I alone did not train them. I had... er- seen this ‘hero’ from a distance initially, but we officially met once when the princess disappeared from my sight, she was quite shy and you found her... you calmed her. And you gained her favour.”

 

you”?

I did not like you. You were a nobody from nowhere town. You were hardly trained or educated at the time, you just happened to be there, to show kindness and be good at riding a horse... and unfortunately she liked you. So it started with riding lessons, and from what I had seen you were alright with a sword... but I don’t understand why she picked you, why anyone let you get near her or-” she obviously started to get a bit frustrated. Impa took a deep breath. “In gaining her favour the hero quickly rose up the ranks and became her personal favourite knight. and shortly after, they became one of the champions of Hyrule. A team of people from across the continent that were tasked with stopping calamity Ganon and saving the world.”

 

Who?
The hero and his companions fought and trained with ancient machines that we found hidden within mountains, we called them the divine beasts. These beasts were meant to be used as weapons against Ganon and the princess was to be trained to use her innate divine powers to help in the fight.” She sighed, “ the champions failed and all but one perished. The hero had been injured, Fatally wounded. But the princess needed them to be saved. And so, the hero was placed into a healing sleep, one that would fix them in time…

And to buy him time to kill the great evil, the calamity, the princess gained her divine powers and went into combat with the calamity, and has been imprisoning it for the past 100 years. All the while we waited, for the hero, Link... you... to return- to slay the beast.”

 

Lina blinked several times, confused and stunned, she hadn’t fully processed what Impa had said. She hadn’t processed her feelings from being made to sit down but she didn’t know if she could right now... she couldn’t think about this at all. She needed a moment but when Impa stopped for a good long while, like it was the end of her story, only then did Lina realize that she needed a lot more than just a mere moment. Paya meanwhile was having a silent conversation with her grandmother, expressing her surprise and shock to find that yes, this girl was really meant to be the one from the stories. She had her doubts and reservations, very, very, briefly considering that her grandmother’s mental state might have been on the decline but then she retracted that thought. Of course she was right, she knew this hero in person after all. They waited for Lina to respond. Lina felt as though her mind was awhirl once more, so many thoughts and questions and feelings that wished to erupt like mosquitos in a matchbox, she needed time. Time that she did not have in her mind, sure she had some but they were waiting for her, she could feel the expectant eyes on her, watching for her reaction waiting...

 

 

 

“Ok.”

 

OKAY??? OKAY. Fine, she said okay, and she sipped her soup, waiting for the trembling to stop in her mechanical hand. It was good, less hot now but good, though she couldn’t enjoy it as she was getting papercuts from the whirlwind of thoughts in her mind. She breathed in through her nose. The word hung in the air like a heavy fog, Paya looked confused, Lina sipped her soup, and Impa narrowed her eyes at the little blond woman on her floor.

 

Did you hear a word I just said?” she asked, pointedly “Did you retain any information in your sieve of a mind?! At least a sieve would hold an iota of liquid! Gods why did I agree to this?!”


 

Okay.” Lina said again, gaining a confused glance from the two other women in the room,

 

“Okay-”

the third one came interspersed with laughter, and the fourth wasn’t even uttered before her shoulders shook and she tried not to spill the contents of the cup as she set it down again. Lina for the first real time since awakening in that strange pool started... laughing. A true, deep genuine laughter that yielded more than the usual polite chuckles she gave. She had been tired, unwell, and distraught for long enough these last few days. It was about time someone got her to crack, to laugh. Even if she didn’t know who she was, or what her face really looked like, or why the arm attached to her body ached so fervently as she cackled joyously, at least she had this. This terrific laugh, she snorted and fell to the ground doing her best to keep herself up, but failing as the pain in the metal arm caused it to give out. She laughed harder.

 

She hardly got injured, the blood returned to her body. She was terrified and sad and scared, and after all the lies and hurt that came to her she couldn’t help but come here and get told some fairy tale like a child in order to make her feel better. Ok, it needed more theatrics, and maybe some images, maybe Impa could write a book in her old age. She wouldn’t trust the old woman to make the pictures, after all every time she would draw horses they looked like scary bloated dogs that’d make a child cry... and they did make a child cry.

Eventually Lina's laughter died down.

She sighed and her laughter slowly petered away. Her chest hurt, her stomach cramped and her lungs burned, but when didn’t they. She wiped her eyes and sighed, only to be given a deathly look from Impa as Paya stepped away upstairs to her room.

 

... were... you being serious?” Lina still had a half smile on her face, she had listened after all though it seemed that the next thought she grabbed onto was one of disbelief, even when thinking that Impa would tell her the truth. Lina was no hero, she was no valiant servant to the crown. She was just a girl, just a hunter, just a coward. She fought to help others at times, but she was terrified the whole time. Should the circumstances of a given task be one of violence, she could proceed but fighting something that was not directly in her way was something that caused her great fear. She was trying her best to gain the funds to afford clothing that would help her sneak. She should check on that while she was here, she could likely buy the last piece. It was fine, a story could be true, though telling her that she would be a hero- no that she was some long passed hero made no sense at all. I mean look at her, she was here, alive and young. This had to be some sort of tactic to get her to do more stuff for them.

 

You are the hero of legend, from 100 years ago.” Impa was focused, stone faced, unmoving.

 

But-but I’m not old, you’re old.” she held back another laugh, not ready to fall over again.

 

Wow... thanks.”

 

I don’t believe you.”

 

That is quite obvious, kid”

 

Don’t fuckin’ call me that”

 

Everyone is a kid to me at this point.”

 

Cause you’re fucking ancient.”



You’re really trying to get on my nerves, huh kid?”

 

Lina shrugged, “so are you, apparently.”



I’m not the type to be jerked around, unlike you-”

 

what the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

 

Listen, I don't want to argue with you... alright?” it didn’t seem like an accurate statement, but she let her continue, “There has to be something I can say to convince you.” There was a brief pause as Impa looked her over. Dates wouldn’t be helpful, names, times... damn. She had an idea though. “I am not sure that this will work, but... have you ever wondered what happened to your arm?”

 

Lina sighed softly, it was the most obvious part of her body, the thing that stood out the most. It was strange and made strange noises and it was made of the parts of creatures that had likely killed hundreds... or more. of course she had. She rolled and stretched her shoulder, unimpressed but ready for Impa to “dazzle” her with such an answer.

“Yes, and?”



...Let me try to jog your memory. It was early morning, before sunrise you and four of your companions re-entered the city surrounding the castle. The city was recovering from a previous attack attempt, the smell of death still stained the streets and another attack was taking place, though this one was happening from within. I was doing my best to defend the walls as monsters burst through our depleted defences. I saw you and your friends enter, I let you pass. I asked you to-”

 

CHECK ON THE PRINCESS.” Lina heard a woman's voice screech above the yells of the crowds she snuck past, it was younger and out of breath. The face she saw was Paya's, splattered with blood as she fought hard.

Lina blinked, the old woman was still there, before her eyes, continuing to paint the picture.

 

You ran in, and I helped other nobles escape, I- I trusted that you would protect her. If there was one person we would both protect, it was Zelda. We were to meet outside of the city, in the Giant’s Forest when everyone was safe, or when we got everyone out. We weren’t sure who the enemy was but they were inside, likely with the royals. It wasn’t until hours later that I saw a dot on the horizon, I saw something flying toward us… it was you. You carried the princess on your back, she hung on tightly as you flew down using a curtain as a parachute. You fell hard, and I checked on the princess. It wasn’t until I saw the blood she left on my hands from her dress that I even looked to you ... and you-”

 

Lina laid on the ground, she looked up at Impa who held the princess tightly in a hug. Her vision went in and out... in and out... slowly losing focus, she could see shapes but not colours. She felt cold, movement in her hand was slow, she still hadn’t let go of the curtain she held, it was a beautiful dark teal, speckled and soaked with blood as it laid before her. She groaned softly, so softly she was sure she hadn’t actually made a sound. Her mouth wasn’t dry, but she could taste the metallic tang of blood on her tongue. She could feel her heart beating, slowly thudding as her hand got colder and colder. She could only feel one hand, the other was... she looked to her left... she saw noise... a strange blur of colour without shape or form, blinking in and out of her darkening vision. She coughed and looked back up at the princess who stared right back at Lina as she was quickly ushered away. She remembered those eyes, big, green, full of terror and tears. Lina made eye contact with Impa, her round face and eyes staring in horror at her, she knew why, she knew in her slowly stopping heart. She opened her mouth, blood dripping from her lips, “She’s... safe....” she choked out as blood flew from her lips-

 

Lina was staring at the old face of Impa, blinking away tears from her eyes. Fuck... fuck... fuck. Fuck. Fuck fuck.... her throat burned, her eyes stung, and she looked up at Impa. She and Paya looked so alike... “You-”

 

You don’t need to worry. Despite what it might seem, I want you to remember, to be that hero we need- the two of us.... we never really had a close relationship. But we spent more time together than the others that survived. That and the sheikah tend to live for quite some time. So I was an obvious choice I suppose. I waited for so long to see your face again, in the vain hope that you would have changed... but you just woke up.”

 

How, how am I... how am I here?”

 

Well I assumed that you walked." she looked out the window at the slowly brightening sky, "Purah and Robbie helped the best that they could. Purah revitalized the restoration chamber based on some ancient research and Robbie fixed you up. He did a good job too, you’re up and walking. Though your mind needs to be restored...”

 

...it just... how...I...” tears ran down her face, “I’m over 100 years old. If this is true, everyone I know and love is dead...”

 

Welcome to the club.”

 

This can’t be real, this... this can’t be-” that vision or memory felt real though... fuck, it felt so real. Then she thought of something... it took her out of her tears for a moment, just long enough to ask, “if – wait. If you knew me, if other people knew me then... then why are the stories of the “great hero” about him being a man?”

 

The air in the room was still, as if a single breeze of an utterance would shift a curtain and reveal something neither was prepared for. Impa put her hands together squeezing them tightly, “heh... well, some stories get out of hand, some are... pushed in that direction...” silence rang out between the two once again. Lina felt the stillness, the incense scent hanging in the air as she tried to connect the dots. She was saying something but without the use of words... it felt off, and yet she wanted to learn how to do it. She bit her tongue, thinking about everything, it was almost as though she was being lied to but there was an omission, a joy, a pride and yet a shame there. In her eyes, there was a tiredness and yet... a playfulness. Lina pursed her lips as her mind crawled along trying to grasp it... and then suddenly- she gasped with the power of the four winds, causing motion in the still air and revealing the truth.

 

IT WAS YOU! You started it!”

 

Sometimes tales get out of hand,” Impa said calmly, “even situations as funny as this one.”



Oh my gods.... OH MY GODS!



***

Chapter 21: Thermal Shock

Summary:

Lina once again begins her climb up the icy "Mount Lanayru", in search of what made the spirits cry.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Lina needed space. She needed quiet. Time away from Impa for now. She needed to clear her head as it was still abuzz with thoughts. She needed to get away from here, far from any point where she could even see this village despite it being a safe haven. She needed her own place- she had yet to find it though, having barely explored the world. But- that was a problem for a Lina with a clear mind. Right now she needed to focus on something else. She needed air. Fresh and cold mountain air, and to sate one of the voices screaming in her head. There were only so many problems she could handle at one time and the crying spirit seemed far more interesting than coming to terms with her feelings about being an ancient hero. Perhaps one of the little puppet children was frozen on the mountain, she wasn’t quite sure how that would happen but she would help anyhow. After all, if spirits could fix things themselves then everything would be made exactly how they wanted.

 

According to Paya, Lina still needed to rest and recover from her illness, uneducated as she was in the matters of being a fucked up blood sponge. It was hard to walk away from such a sad, concerned, and cute face as Payas; though knowing that she and her grandmother looked quite similar it was a bit easier to do so. (... scratch the cute comment.) She respected Paya for being the one who had cared for her throughout her illness, but she couldn’t just sit there and think while she "healed". Lina smiled at her when she left all the same, knowing that she already had most of her strength back from the soup. Though some of it was still working its way back, she knew that eating more food would do the trick to fix her up. She didn’t want to tell either of the women that this was happening, that her body would fix itself so easily even though her mind would remain severely scarred. After all, she enjoyed the tenderness that came with being cared for. She simply assured Paya that she would be fine, and left.

She walked out of the house and down the steps, taking some time to cook a handful of meals. She needed to stay warm this time. She really needed to stay warm this time. As the heroine prepared to head out she shifted things around in her bag, placing each meal into it after  having wrapped them all up. She was elbow deep in the bag, still shifting things so they laid flat as she reminded herself to breathe, to not think of anything but the spirits for the time being. There weren’t many things left on her to-do list before she left. She had to pick up and order the next piece of her stealth suit, though that wouldn’t keep her warm necessarily. The scarf helped cover her face, with the cloak shielding her from most of the cold. The woollen doublet was all she had for clothing, and with her boot punctured it wouldn’t be much good- truly she should have considered that before she had previously tried to scale the mountain. Maybe she could get the seamstress to help her repair it. She did need it after all. But perhaps the bottoms that she ordered would be warm enough. She liked being able to feel her toes. She liked having toes...



I have to stay warm.

As the thought crossed her mind she felt something touch her hand, it was tough and dense, not like anything she had packed for food. Though it was warm to the touch. She flexed her fingers and tried to understand what this could be, she reached in a bit further and grabbed ahold of the item. It felt vaguely familiar, a sturdy leather grip pressed against her palm. With a narrowing of her eyes she pulled out a short-sword. It was different from the others she had held before, like the one that was currently being melted down for scrap which she had nearly forgotten about.

Damn.

 

But this could likely be a decent replacement despite feeling... hmm, she shifted it in her hand, twisting and turning the blade as she inspected it. The metal itself was etched with runes and swashes, with two sets of spikes along either edge of the blade. Its guard was twisted and curled, and coiled around itself like flickering fire. The pommel had a strangely cut red stone embedded in it, both trapped and affixed together with thick scaled strips of red leather. She studied the strange blade, it didn’t feel cold or nearly as weighty as the other swords that she had held, in fact it was almost too light. She worried that if she was to use it she might even fling it off the side of the mountain. She had almost considered putting it back and looking for another replacement (as if she really had many options) when she noticed that the metal of the blade was changing colour, quite rapidly in fact. It went from a warm grey to brown to an orangey red, as the runes on its surface burst with a glowing  white light. She could feel it, though at this distance it was no surprise, the air around it screamed with the blaze of a roaring fire. Her face was hit with a wave of heat and she quickly pulled away from it, shielding her face as she let it drop to the ground.

The heat and light receded just as quickly as it had begun once it hit dirt, barely singeing the grass as it landed. The heat lingered in the air for a moment before dissipating. She touched her metal hand to the blade first. Then she hovered her flesh hand above it. Not a lick of heat. Not even the slightest whimper of it. It was just... warm. As warm as it would have been for someone to hold her not-metal hand, or to maybe sit in a ray of sun. She chuckled to herself, well... it looked like she’d have some source of heat. She would still have to get some arrows, the lady in the shop in town said she sold some that sparked and lit as one were to pull it back in a bow. She had no reason not to believe her, besides what did she have to lose? If it was faulty it would still function as an arrow.

 

A thought briefly crossed her mind before she decided to get up and walk to the shop.

Where did she get such a weapon? It wasn’t as though it was something all that common to get her hands on. Nobody who carried weapons seemed to have anything like it.

Lina tried to remember, but all she could think of were the ruins. What ruins? Some ruins... and a strange... metal box? It sounded strange and had she not remembered it that way she would have thought it false. Then again, the box resembled her arm, it seemed so close and yet distant just like her phantom limb. It couldn’t be fake, she had to have gotten this sword from somewhere. And she wouldn’t steal, she wasn’t the type to take something that she knew belonged to someone else, unless they were secrets, those she would take.

 

Hmm, peculiar...

She felt a chill run down and across her rib cage. She was sure the phrase was “down her spine”, but her body knew better. Something about questioning the where and why unsettled her. She had enough on her plate now after all, she would cross the bridge of sudden weaponry chills when she got to it, and right now it was at the bottom of her list. Right now, she has to prepare to climb a mountain.

 


 

She quickly gathered as many arrows as she could reasonably buy, then retrieved her clothing order. She threw on the new clothing pieces and layered all that she could, changing out of the loose Sheikah clothing that she was given as the doublet would not fit over them. The tights that she bought fit snugly against her legs, but they weren’t thin, they were thick and would be warm enough for now, though she was made to leave her boots with the seamstress. She knew that if she fought against the woman’s desire to repair them then there would be consequences, she didn’t know what they would be though, the feeling the woman gave off was innate and powerful. Lina would learn this command of the eyes in time. When she wasn’t tasked with great purpose.

 

After stepping outside of the shop, Lina tried to figure out how she was going to get there. A subject that hadn’t occurred to her until just this moment. It took days to get to Hateno last time, and at that time she was on horseback. It could take weeks now, considering she would get distracted by any little herb or mushroom along the road. She had to get to Hateno, specifically she had to get to the lab. If she flew from that mountain top she could likely land higher up on the ... colder mountain. Though hopping to the peak of Mt. Lanayru would have been the most ideal option… it didn't seem likely to happen. She didn’t know what was up there but she was sure that it wasn’t good. And being able to just pop in there would likely be detrimental to her mental and physical health. Though she wasn't sure why...

That being said she still was unsure of how she got here, she remembered being encased in ice, then breaking free. Then being here. Lina paced up and down the road as she thought, adding another thought to her list of things to process. She had to come up with a plan of how to get there, she needed to at least get close, she chewed on the thumb of her glove as she thought. On the third turn however, the air was different; it was cool and smelled vaguely salty, like the sea water by the beach. Hateno village was down below, different mountains were on the horizon, and she stood in front of the ancient tech lab. She rubbed her eyes and poked at her soft arm with the claw/fingers. She was awake- or at least she was alive. She had strange dreams so she wouldn’t be surprised if she woke up on someone’s floor in a few minutes. Her mouth fell dry, she was right here... right in front of the lab, she could ask about this, she should ask them about this. She could figure out if this was some strange glitch in the programming of the arm that simply made her forget weeks at a time. But she had just been there, at least from her point of view. She had no idea how long she had really been away from the scientists, and she didn’t want to burden the girl with more tears. Besides, she didn’t need more questions.

Lina turned from the lab, ran and leaped off of the side of the mountain, gliding across a small valley before reaching the other, different mountain. And though she was tired, she pushed through the pain of straining arm and legs to get up onto solid ground. She barely caught her breath, sucking in the cold air and letting it burn until she could inhale without pain. Only then did she begin back up the mountain proper, though having reached a slightly higher point by glider she had practically gone the same way she had gone before. She couldn’t tell from footprints, after all the wind had blown snow over each step, but there was a feeling of vague familiarity that she held within her. This time though, Lina was warm and as prepared as she could have been.

 

As she walked higher and higher she could feel the cold creeping in past the cloak. As it sank through the wool and into the cotton layers she reached behind her and pulled the strange sword from the bag on her back, yanking it from its pseudo-sheath. And as she flicked it downward the blade sparked to life, its general reddish-gray colour once again becoming that of a fiery orange and the runes on its surface shone white with heat. Lina felt warm, as though she was out in a field on a pleasant and sunny spring day. She watched as the snow by the tip of the blade quickly melted into a puddle of water. Perhaps it was hotter than she had thought. She reminded herself not to touch the blade with her bare hand as she walked up the path, staying her nerves for the creatures that may lie in wait for her.

The walk up the path was a tad quieter than the first time and she couldn’t remember how far she had gotten before. That was a note for the future for her to mark her path. Whenever ice grew in thick layers along the way, she would use the blade to carve an arrow into its surface, just for her own use, she found it unlikely that others would be coming up here in this blustery nightmare realm. The silence with nothing but the intermittent wind blowing let her think, a task she could all but avoid here.

 

I’m not a hero. And I’m certainly not THAT hero. That old bitch is absolutely fucked if she thinks that I could be that bastard.

 

She certainly wasn’t the one from 100 years ago... but the memory was real, the blood loss, the warmth draining…

 

No no, I don't want to think about that.



That could not have been fake, why would it be? How could her brain recall something so vivid and so painful? The face of Paya, it could have been nothing, just an implanted image because that was the face she had seen most recently... but her tattoo... the eye on her forehead was blue in the memory, not red. Blue like Impa’s. And she stood like Impa, and she sounded ... not like Paya. And Lina recognised her, she recognised that sick feeling in her stomach when she looked at her.



These are not my questions, these are yours.



What happened to her that day? What was she like? Was she the same person that perished those 100 years ago? Was she this Link?



Gods-damn it! I don’t know what that was, but I’m not this Link person. I am my own person. Maybe I look like some grizzled hero but I- I-

She could feel her body on her right side start to sweat a bit, it was getting hot. She could switch it to the metal hand but something felt wrong about that, she had been using it to block but having any weapon alone in that hand felt wrong. She tried to use the quiet to remember, sure it would have been better had she not been walking up a frozen mountain, if she could sit somewhere peacefully and remember. Perhaps she would do so upon reaching the mountain’s peak.

But I don't want to.

 

She closed her eyes for a moment, she remembered flowers. Fields of flowers. She wondered if they were still there. She remembered water, rivers and a massive lake, she could smell the fresh water. She remembered a kind but crooked smile, and a sly and perfect smile. She remembered fletching arrows with fallen blue feathers and being reprimanded for it. She remembered his voice, she remembered not caring that he yelled at her. She... remembered that-

Lina furrowed her brow.



“Ugh, this is why you’d make the team fall apart Link, you always have me clean up all of your messes,” He sounded arrogant, and frustrated. It wasn’t her fault she didn’t know that it was wrong, perhaps she should have asked his permission, but she was making them ‘cause she broke some of his in training.



She heard the words so clearly in her mind she could have been convinced that someone else was here with her. But she didn’t sense the presence of this person. She didn’t sense his presence at all. Though if there was any place he was likely to be, it would be up high, he liked to have a good vantage point. Although he often made it sound like he was looking down on others, it was actually just so he could get a better shot.



“Listen you little idiot, I can see you. You can’t fly so there’s no getting the jump on an opponent like that. Sure you can shoot them from the air, but if they see you first then you’re a sitting duck. Hide in the trees and the brush since you can’t manage being graceful in the air like the professionals.”



Gods, what an asshole.

She shook her head, but then wondered what happened to him, this figure that she couldn’t quite picture in her mind. His voice was what she remembered, that and his condescension. When he spoke to her it was to make her feel small, which made her want to fight harder, to be faster, to be better. She would catch him, even if she had to learn to fly to do it.

 


Lina felt a presence in her vicinity. It wasn’t him... she knew that much.



She looked around and yet saw nothing. The cold wind blew fresh powder around making it hard to see but there was still a presence somewhere nearby. Almost like something was watching her no matter where she looked. There was a creeping cold that shifted and crawled up her spine despite the warmth of the nearby sword. She felt her hair stand on end while trying and failing to keep this cold creep of anxiety from messing with her mind too much. There was nothing to see, just the blue of ice and white of snow as far as she could perceive. The clouds dropping baskets of snow from the sky were a deep grey, ever darkening the horizon which only highlighted the clear bout of nothing that surrounded her. She knew that wasn’t the case though, there couldn’t be nothing. Her brain hadn’t steered her wrong yet, her soul and senses prickled up like a startled cat’s fur. But her jumpiness was not aimless, it always led to something, her mind leading her somewhere. And she knew that she felt watched.

She stepped forward, hoping that if there was a creature observing her then she would leave its space and leave it unbothered. But the feeling persisted, the eyes gazed upon every inch of her, she could feel the wandering gaze as she gritted her teeth. She looked behind herself, over and over until she was sure in her mind that she wasn’t being watched. Rationally she knew she wasn’t being followed, that there was nobody that she could see nearby. She thought she heard whispers, but the wind whipped past, she thought she felt eyes on her, but nothing was there. Still she could not shake it. The sickening icy feeling, like she was being treated as prey. She refused to be prey. However, the marginally more rational part of her brain was on top of things now, and it was seriously trying to not focus on her being “The Hero” from the past. It was trying to rationalize that as much as possible all while not thinking about it.

The irrational part of her brain though, she could feel it murmuring below, like the babbling of a brook as you tried to talk to some friends, the only constant in hopping conversations. She tried to dampen or muffle the voice, she tried to focus on her thoughts. But the eyes were around her, they were crawling up her legs, and across her skin, like the hands did within her dream. Scratching and clawing with their vision, tearing at her throat like a beast’s sharp fangs would. She walked the best she could, but aside from her slowly numbing feet she was in a void with nothing but eyes, staring at her. Nothing but blackness, and whispers, and the crawling of her skin.



GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF, LINA.



She was back in the ice and snow, swinging her blade down near her foot, nearly scorching it with the flame. Her toes burned with cold and heat, enough to snap her out of it and not enough to actually burn her feet. She hissed and trudged along up the mountain. She was surprised to not see more monsters about. She had seen a few keese and chuchus, all glowing with the same icy white light but they kept their distance from the road. It was odd, she thought they loved the taste of blood, of her blood in particular. They would ram head first into her half the time, it didn’t sit right. Or perhaps it was just a coincidence. That or whatever lived or died atop the peak was steering them away.

That was likely it.

She felt sweat drip down her face and neck before freezing and falling to the ground.

 

The air got colder and colder as she progressed upward.

All the while she kept feeling the occasional creeping and crawling of something grazing her soul. She felt nothing and everything all at once. At one point she heard footsteps and quickly looked over her shoulder, trying to catch any movement behind her... but nothing came of it. There was nothing.

She kept walking.

There was movement in the corner of her eye, she jumped with fright, only to find snow and ice in its place. Perhaps it was just spirits or her paranoia, but she couldn’t shake the feeling of anxiety. The deep creeping dread gripped her like a corpse risen from the crypt would. She could feel its arms tighten every time she jumped or stumbled.

She felt her stomach flip and churn. Her instincts had yet to prove her wrong, but this time she wasn’t sure. She felt as though her body was betraying her again. That maybe her mind was left back in the blue pool or lost it entirely. She felt her skin crawl and jumped again, half-prepared to scold herself- but this time... she felt cold breeze past her side. It was fast, faster than she could perceive easily with her own vision, but her body understood it. She watched a shimmering silver spark fly past her and into the wind, before spinning around and coming back toward her. She yelped and dove off the path and out of the way, tumbling into the snow as the shining object flew back toward where she had been standing. From her snowbank landing she watched the object fly back, past where she stood and into the grasp of a claw that stuck up out of the snow.

The claw spun the jagged steel weapon before tucking it away. In its place a figure began rising out of the snow as though it was made of the stuff. First came its head emerging up out of the piles of white. As its shoulders crested the surface, the head forward in a hunch, hanging down as low as its chest. From its arms fell down past the knobbly knees of short, muscular legs. One of its three fingered claws gripped the weapon, and the other opened and closed as if grasping for something in the snow that it had lost long ago. It had long serrated spikes on its elbows and nose, which she could have sworn was stained by the red blood of the innocent. At the back end of the creature was a long tail that likely would have coiled and uncoiled with every breath, had it not been frozen in a curl some time ago.

Its mouth lolled open as it croaked, stretching, and becoming gaping and wide. Its tongue was curled up into a coil within its mouth, Lina couldn’t see how long it was or what lay beyond its small sharp teeth. Its eyes were placed on either side of its lizard-like head, shifting in like a scope to look in different directions until one... then both focused forward, on where she sat in the snow. Its shoulders and neck were still covered in snow. The shawl of flakes clung to its back as though they were inseparable. From beneath it though, she could see that It was covered in scales, or what appeared to be scales... she wasn’t sure unless she was to get a closer look but she could have sworn they looked like they were layered flakes of cracked ice and packed snow. They glistened and sparkled in the low light, as though they were semi translucent, though its belly was pink, it looked raw from the cold weather, flaking and turning blue in places. It looked fragile, soft.

She was staring at it, breathing hard, her body was right. She had been followed, it hid in the snow, gods it hid in the snow. She wasn’t crazy, she was just aware, she couldn’t believe it. She wasn’t crazy.

 

She got up to her feet, grabbing for her sword as she did. It had gone cold again- she let it go and it cooled off. She was freezing again. Shit, shit, shit. She scrambled for the sword, grasping it in her hand as she watched it impatiently. It was slow to light again, gods she needed it to hurry up, she couldn’t stay warm like this. Lina watched as the creature shifted and breathed with its mouth open, its vacant stare watching her every movement. She waited for its first move. But before she could even react its tongue shot forward, straight out of its mouth and slammed in the centre of her chest. She yelped and nearly fell over again, the breath was knocked out of her lungs as the strike froze her chest. She felt that if she exhaled her breath would be too cold to steam, or that if she breathed too quickly her chest would shatter. She groaned trying to catch her breath only to cough with each attempt. The beast otherwise started leaping about like an anxious frog, jumping and squeaking as it reared up the weapon for another throw. What was it? This strange bolt shaped thing. His body quickly yanked itself out of the way as she watched the orange glow of the blade spark to life in the corner of her vision. Her chest would thaw soon, all the while the creature kept jumping about. Though instead of rearing up to attack again once the weapon returned to it the creature slammed down into the ground and burrowed back under the snow.

 

Link knew what was up, he watched the snow and stayed put as she waited. Now that she knew they hid beneath the snow, she now had to look for movement and she would be fine. She took calm breaths.

1

2

3

4

On five she saw the snow rise and fall, and on seven she saw it get closer. On nine the creature jumped out of the snow, leaping with enough power that it flew toward her, it glided through the air as it swung the weapon down to strike her from above. Lina pulled away from the spot it was aiming to land. When she did she flicked the sword, watching the flames melt the snow near its tip. Lina lunged forward with rapid footsteps and slashed upwards at her target, slicing through its stomach and down its tail. She slowed a few steps after her blade came free from the flying corpse, she turned away to see if she could catch its landing.

The curly snow lizard landed head first into the snow before hopping back to its feet as though nothing had happened, it turned to the heroine with malice in its strange eyes. At first she wasn’t sure if she had hit it, and held her sword in a readied position before letting a small smile hit the corner of her mouth.

I know something you don’t know.~

 

She couldn’t tell if such a creature could have a look of realization on its face, but she had a feeling of what was going on in its mind. If it even still had a mind. She watched the burning incision sizzle and bubble down at its pelvis. The skin began to crackle and burn, and the scales or what she thought were scales began to melt away rapidly, its breath became erratic, it tried to jump, only succeeding in letting its guts fall out of the cut. The creature only stopped its panicked movement when it tripped over its blackened guts and landed on the ground. It tried to rise to its feet, to move forward and attack Lina in a last ditch effort. But as its scales melted more and more the creature could no longer even emote, it croaked and squealed in pain before it stood before her as only a strange skeleton with quickly freezing organs on the ground. She could see its eyes stare forward, its jaw slack as its tongue fell first, then the remaining internal (now external) organs, and finally the bones. Before all that remained of it melted into a puddle of bubbling black goo.



Gross.

***



Notes:

Sorry this has taken a while to get to y'all. I got pretty sick for the last few weeks, but i've FINALLY got this read worthy.

Chapter 22: Maiden Flight

Summary:

Lina finally makes it to the top of the mountain, the disruption is in reach, all she needs is to figure out how to fix it.

Chapter Text

Lina stepped back from the carnage and sighed, breathing deeply. She was warm again, and for that she was glad. She had nearly made it to the top by the time she dove off into the snow, so she wasn’t that far from the solution to this spirit problem. So, It was another few minutes before Lina crested the mountain, and though she was tired and her skin was quite chilled, she found herself able to manage. She stepped up to the plateau before the peak -glad to no longer have her feet on an incline- and looked toward what she hoped was the solace she needed.

At the top of the mountain there was a fog that rested in the air; so thick that she thought she saw snowflakes resting on it. Her breath came out, curling and coiling, visibly changed by the weight of the air and moving more like a strange magic smoke. She took a moment to breathe, leaning against a rock as she warmed her hand and feet by the sword. Beyond the whirling sound of wind, the quiet sound of running water was not too far away. It would be cold, sub zero water... but Lina didn’t realize that she was thirsty until she heard it running. Were she to move closer and set up a fire she could rest and eat and drink. She could replenish her strength for the moment, not that she really felt weak at all. It wasn’t like she got hit…

Lina approached the sound of the water, as she was hardly able to see through the fog. The flaming sword once again came to her aid, using its heat Lina sliced through the heavy cold and snow like an explorer cutting their way through a tropical freeze. The heroine continued ahead until her feet hit soft powder covering ice and stone. Lina hesitated, wondering for a moment if she had moved too close to a ledge and could not tell. Pulling her sword back she quickly swung it in a circular motion so that the fog and snow melted around her, leaving a little pocket of cleared space, with thankfully no fall in sight.

She heaved her bag down off of her shoulders and pulled out enough split logs to start a small campfire, she shoved some tinder underneath and prepared to light it ablaze. Her hand shook as she struggled with a flint and steel, her gloved fingers struggling to grip the implement as the cold crept in once more. She had to set the flaming sword down to light the fire after all. She struck the flint against the little knife she had, again and again until in a moment of frustration she raised the once blazing blade and struck at the piled wood. Only to find herself in awe when it immediately caught fire.


...

...

...

Well, now I feel stupid.

 


Lina scooped some water into a little metal cup and warmed it by the fire, briefly considering how that soup had warmed her before, and regretting that she didn’t bring any with her. She had food though, spicy food that would be enough to make her sweat. That had worked before, so why wouldn’t it work now? She heated what she had over the fire and had a little meal to herself in the isolating cold and quiet, with nothing but the heavy howls of the wind keeping her company. Her face flushed red with heat, but she scarfed down her food, finishing it quickly.

She had to keep moving. Whatever it was that she was here to investigate, it wasn’t leaving anytime soon, she thought. Lina got up and left her fire to burn out. She looked around, vaguely seeing shapes in the distance, but unable to see much past the fog. She could see a faint blue shine, and some yellow ones quite far off. And she knew that somewhere in those yellow shines that there was the sun. Lina could see however, that there was another yellowish light among them, it was pale like the sun and softly blinked in and out. It shone like a lighthouse, piercing its way through the fog as if to call to her.

 

She needed to go that way, she thought with a touch of petulant resignation. Looking down at the water, she could see it run away from the light, yet she heard no waterfall. Perhaps there was a spring nearby. She might have to be careful so as to not freeze. Lina half blindly wandered toward the beacon. Once a moment or two passed of her moving she stepped forward and dropped suddenly into shockingly cold, waist deep water before she could even try to catch herself. Of course now her magic senses didn’t work.

She briefly thought to backtrack but despite the thought she pressed onward, reaching a stone step in the midst of the water and climbing upon it. Like a dog, Lina quickly shook the water from her clothes and body, hoping that it had not fully soaked through. Thankfully nobody was around to see her do that, she would have felt incredibly embarrassed. She held the glowing sword up to her legs and winced as the water hissed away into steam. She looked ahead this time, seeing water down by the edge of this stepping stone. Though she was closer to the light already, she still found it hard to see anything ahead. In all likelihood there was another stone, and should there not be... cold water awaited her once more. She hopped forward and her feet found purchase on a slightly icy stone, she struggled to find her balance but as she nearly slid off the edge she launched herself forward again, landing on cold hard stone as she bumped her knees and hands. Her shins splashed in shallow water, and her hands held onto a skirt of stone.


The slowly pulsing light grew softer now, illuminating the figure before Lina. The statue of the goddess stood before her, her face tranquil and calm as Lina let out winded exhales all the while. Lina stared at her, the light was warm and being in its embrace let her relax for just a moment.

Had these statues always glowed in such a way? She could not remember. Perhaps it was some kind of magic, but this magic made her feel calm and at rest. Should she rest by the statue when she just had her rest? Should she pray to it as though she were not riding along the ledge close enough to fall into a freezing death. Perhaps that was what was needed. How could she fight when she could not see the path forward?

“What am I to do?” Was this a question of her quest (if she could call it that) or of her existence? She didn’t expect a response, she just asked out into the air. But to her surprise and her horror she felt a heavy hand land upon her shoulder. She looked up wondering if she had fallen asleep as the tranquil face of the stone goddess statue had turned to look at her. Its face did not express a thing beyond contentment, but it reminded her of the spirit/puppet child, it was as if she wore a mask of her own face.

Lina understood that feeling.

Though if that was her face... perhaps she was also a spirit? Hopefully one who had permission to look like a goddess, if it wasn’t Hylia herself. Lina was silent. She wasn’t sure how fast it was in the case she wanted to escape, but it was either a spirit in a goddess statue or a goddess made of rock...

-Probably best not to anger it.

 

“Child.” the statue spoke, her voice was sweet with a deep bass laid under each word, despite this the voice spoke weakly. It entered her mind as though it was the loud little one she had experienced before. Though there was no tearing or clawing or breaking in sight. It was like a slice of warm apple pie with a buttered crust had been put on a plate in front of her after cooling on a windowsill. She didn’t know what apple pie was, but whatever it was she had promised herself at that moment that she would figure out how to make and eat it. “I am in pain.” the voice continued. It was a little bit of a damper on her pie thoughts but she let her keep going. “I guard this spring, I bless its waters- But I am weary. I have little left. Release me from this pain, in any way you can... I beg of you.”

 

Another task to do. But thankfully this likely had to do with what she was already working on. Was this the spirit she had to help, to stop the others from crying? She pondered. Lina nodded, as if to agree to a question left unposed, though it wasn’t as if the spirit could see her do so with its eyes shut.

Suddenly she felt a rush of warmth blow across her, as though she was standing in a field on a hot summer’s day and not atop a massive snowy mountain. She heard her own voice laughing, young and old and heard the laughter of children among them.


She opened her eyes quickly and the wind stopped. Only to see that the statue returned to its previous inanimate state and the fog had also cleared atop the peak, making way for visions of a beautiful spring. She was on a pedestal in the middle of the water with her statuesque companion in front of her. Ginormous pillars of jagged ice stuck up around the edges of this plateau, as though the gods themselves had thrust icy spears into the ground. She wondered what could have made them so angry as to do such a thing to a beautiful place like this. Her eyes traced the path that she had been following, it continued on, though not for much further as the peak lay just ahead, beyond the shoulders of the goddess statue.

Lina saw more ice sticking up from the mountain side. They, like the rest, were strange half visible bluish fragments that glinted across the skyline and around the mountain’s peak. It wasn’t until she stared in awe for a moment then a minute, then two that she saw the differences between the ice. The pillars ahead of her had tiny fractals, fragments of cracks that spidered throughout their insides. That was normal, sometimes ice breaks; even gigantic ice spears made for gods like these ones. But what she was mostly sure was abnormal was the fact that she caught them pulsing. Slowly these crystalline fragmentations would fill and then they would empty with a deep crimson, red. The pumps were sluggish, and with each cycle the water rippled, and a low pulse was felt. She watched the process, her eyes unfocusing slightly and she watched them raise and lower, over and over, as if the mountain was breathing. As though the stones themselves could move. Then again, the statue turned to look at her so it might not have been so far fetched. The mountain’s surface shifted and groaned as stone ground against stone, breaking pieces off of its surface and falling down into the snow and water below. She watched it stretch and pull as the dark stone thinned out to a point of icy barbs that swayed back and forth like a lethargic dog’s tail.

Lina felt her breath catch, she looked between the swinging stone and that of the mountain. The light that managed to hit the moving and dark stone made it shine a deep and vivid blue only for it to return to black once it returned to shadow. Lina’s eyes followed up the length of the swaying tail, she followed the shards of stretching ice up the path to the peak slipping somewhere back around the mountain.

 

It could have fallen down the side, she thought, or mountains could have just been... strange.

Despite this thought she felt the dread, as though someone Lina was avoiding was staring right at her. It was an unavoidable thought. Whatever was here could easily move to follow her faster than she could climb down the mountain.

She turned to her left and could feel it before she could see it. A strange sickness overcame Lina, it ran over her 100 times stronger than when she entered Kakariko. She retched and gagged as an intense feeling of nausea penetrated her skull. She covered her mouth, daring not to puke in the purified spring. However, she felt the sick rising. Her vision went funny, darkness around the eyes with white spots flicking in and out, they reminded her of stars... painful... painful stars. Her face went numb, then her fingers and her toes, the numbness ran up her arms and legs as though she had been out in the cold without her sword for hours. Her lips tingled, she couldn’t feel her tongue, she was suddenly confused. And then she was struck in the side of the head with an ice pick, a sharp shard of ice that was unmelting entered her brain and froze it, causing her unimaginable agony.

She cried out. Screaming in pain then crying as the screaming only made it worse. It was hot and cold and opening her eyes caused the pain to intensify. She held onto the statue, trying her best not to fall into the icy water below. Whatever it was, this was what she was looking for, despite the mental anguish it caused. She waited for the pain to subside, just for a moment so that she could look upon it. But with every attempt to open her eyes, it felt as though dozens of needles were pierced into the top of her head.

She steadied herself, Gods she hated pain. Should she not be able to feel pain, she would be able to do anything. But no, the gods had to hinder her with such a weakness, perhaps it was due to them knowing that she would fight them had she the chance. She would likely fail, but she would try. She spat and drooled at the feet of the statue clinging to her for support. It was odd thinking about fighting and killing someone when you were holding on to them, a god. She placed a hand on her skirt, as gently as she was able.

You said you were in pain, right? Is this it? Fuck- if it is, i couldn’t imagine....


Lina bit her tongue and while holding in screams she lifted her head and eyes, willing herself to return her gaze to what caused her her agony. She felt the needles stabbing in, over and over and over until she was able to focus, the taste of blood in her mouth helped. Through the haze she saw eyes. They popped into view as she focused, and popped out of the haze as if bursting like a blemish from the flesh. The dark blackened red flesh that pulled back like an injury scratched raw by a weak willed victim. It shifted and bubbled as though it had been burned, and from some of the bubbles another eye would pop free, willing yet another to be melted back within the flesh. Each eye, remaining or roiling, looked down upon her, and yet she could not see the other features of a face. The eyes jostled against one another, the jelly-like structures shifting and wobbling as the glowing yellow eyes within stayed perfectly still, staring at her every move, her every breath- through slit like pupils as though waiting. It didn’t move, it didn’t blink... she didn’t think it needed to. But whatever this beast was, was causing the spirits to be unhappy. She had to free it from the land. She had to kill it. She had to live to try some pie. She felt a wave of nausea hit her again. She moved carefully, waiting for it to lunge forward and strike her down. Perhaps with hidden claws, for the thing had no mouth in sight. Lina took the sword, sliding it against her back and felt the sweat accumulate immediately. She swallowed the blood and bile that flooded her mouth as she tried to focus. Lina reached back into her bag, pulling out her new bow from within its depths. She retrieved one of her new arrows, the ones that blazed with flame when struck, she pulled it along the base of the statue until a spark lit the tinder within. Lina pulled back the arrow in her bow and took aim at the largest and most central eye. Should that thing have had a head beneath its eyes, this would likely pierce its skull and brain. Though with something this large the shot would be so long that its mark would be in another country, but it was a shot she had to take.

 

The string released from her fingers and shot the arrow directly into its eye, searing through the centre of the target and sizzling through the others, the nearest ones popping from the heat. Lina retched at the sound it made, which continued as though the flesh was burning. Perhaps it was. She watched the surrounding area sizzle and melt away, the remaining eyes popping with a heat that the arrow likely shouldn’t have created. As the red and black dripped like fat from a pig she felt her bones rattle as the creature groaned and roared. She saw its head reel back and it leaped from the top of the mountain before she could react. Before she could even take a closer look at the rocky exterior of its body. She nearly mourned it. When her head felt lighter. When the pain subsided, she could relax.

 

But the creature clawed its way back up and jettisoned itself up, its long, dark, serpentine body gliding through the air as a Zora would through water. It flew through the air, its graceful motion interrupted starkly by jittering stutters that pulled the creature down further. She could not see its head clearly. But from below it looked like that of a horse. A strange dark snake horse... it wasn’t just eyes below there. And with the eyes on its face gone, she could think clearly. But the red pulsing in its spikes was faster, as though it was the blood pumping through its veins. There were still spots, patches of yellow eyes speckling the raw red and black skin all over its body. It was less noticeable but they were large, and less clustered.



Killing this might not be the answer. Huh.



The thought crossed her mind, she wondered why this was the first thought that came to mind when she was still holding down vomit and holding back dizzying tears. It was moving away from her.... she could escape from it. It still lived. And yet. She felt compassion, something about the pain she felt, and the voice that entered her mind...

She sighed in her mind as she turned around and made her way back to the path. She only knew of birds that flew, birds and Rito. Perhaps this was a really, really strange bird. Perhaps a broken bird as well, since it was circling above the mountain top and had no wings. Though she had seen birds do that too, they likely had prey below. Was she its prey? If so, why not come down to eat her now? It was almost as though it was beckoning her. It was beckoning her.

She ran up the slope with every one of her steps slowed by snow. She felt like she was weighed down but she pushed herself to the peak of the mountain. When she finally reached the peak her body was blasted by cold air in all directions, it was as though the creature had generated the wind current on its own from just its own motion, but the biting cold was too much for them to create on their own... right? She sucked in breath, and shot an arrow toward the beast, aiming for its belly where another eye lesion had burst forth. The wind however cut back and flung the arrow off course, so as the creature looped around and the soft spot passed, She cursed aloud, the words cast away by the winds.

She pulled back another arrow, and adjusted her aim for the strange wind, and for what felt like forever she waited for it to come back around. She wondered if she had done this before or something similar, her arms burned like it was something familiar. Like she held the bow for ages, and like she had shot over and over. Volley after volley. She could feel the sting of eternal stasis in her wind chilled muscles. Her arms felt like she had shot dozens of arrows and yet she was sure she had only stood there for a moment. Then the yellow glow came toward her and at her corrected angle she shot again.

She watched it sink into the strange yellow jelly and ooze the slime within, it took a moment, -half a moment even- Before the beast reacted. Another bellow came from the shaking belly of the snake thing and it turned upon the sky and barrelled down the hill, using its clawed legs to jettison itself off of the mountainside and back up into the air. It bounded higher and higher as though it was skipping across the sky like a rock would upon water. It seemed as though it was weighed down, it looked like a bird with rocks tied to its back. It was going down, and she had to follow her.

Staying her shaking nerves she ran to the edge, looked down to the valley below and as she felt the vertigo she stepped back. Lina watched as the pounding and speed of the serpent’s movement caused currents of air to burst up from the earth below. It reached a lower point in the mountain and began to circle once more. She shook off the biting cold and the feeling of spinning, yet her stomach flipped. She felt there was no choice. She caused harm to the creature, it was her duty to either make this right or to put the beast out of its misery. She yoinked her paraglider out of her pack and yeeted herself off of the cliff.

 




The air rushed past her head, and howled in her ears. Her body pelted with snow down as though it was falling upwards. She was falling down though, and falling fast. She hadn’t fallen from such a height before, not since the great plateau. And that wasn’t such a steep dive. Nor was it as cold. She heard laughter- a distant cocky laughter.

“ hold still! If you want to fly you have to get used to heights!”

She felt the memory of feathers pass her face... then she remembered she was falling. She extended the paraglider and she flew once again. Gliding down the mountain while rising on spouts of air uncovered by the claws of the sky serpent. She rode the sky as though it were waves, in a feeling that felt so familiar. Like she had been in boats or in the surf often. It felt almost good, and though the anxiety she felt on looking down was there... she rode the currents... of air. There was a contentment. It gave her pause.

Or it would have had she not been approaching the beast before her.

 

She could rest and smile once she was done. Then after, she would find the one who spoke to her in her memories.

 

She flew down, trying to gain a decent view of the next eye. The only ones that she could see were on its side and back, at least the ones that were clear enough to shoot. She wouldn’t be able to shoot them from the ground. The horse-snake would not land. She had to shoot from the sky. She was quite sure that the beast knew this as well, as icy currents flew up around it and kept her above it. Lina circled above the thing, keeping her height the best she could. But her arms started to ache, she had been gliding for some time. She had to use this strength where she could.

She had to take the shot...

...though her strength waned. She felt cold... for a moment she didn’t feel as desperate. She took a calm breath, quickly collapsing the paraglider and grabbing her bow. Lina pulled two arrows as she fell, she felt the world slow around her. Her breath. Her beating heart. The heart of the beast. Two arrows strung on a bow not meant for such a purpose, she drove her arm backwards pulling the bow and arrows as quickly as she could in this slowed state. Her injured tongue twitched in her mouth, the flinching pain keeping her focus. Lina released the arrows, that same feeling of her strained muscles as though she fought and fell over and over, took control of her body. Her strength sapped and her paraglider just out of reach, she fell with one thought remaining in her mind.

 

 

Who can’t fly now... strange voice.

 

With that, Lina landed. She was slightly winded and tired but she hadn’t hit the ground, though it felt like it. She wasn’t dead. But the cold stung her eyes, it was hard to see. Had her shot landed? Was she ok? Was the sky horse?

She saw a bright blue light... it shifted and morphed, changing into the silhouette of a woman. Lina didn’t see her face, but she was tall and she wore a long and loose gown. Lina didn’t see herself there, but she was. And the woman looked at her, donning a crown of ice and smiling. Though Lina didn’t see the smile. “My mind is clear, my oracle saved. The laws of this land must be reinstated. Thank you. Favoured one. My sisters await.” her voice echoed, warm and calm and strong, like the scent of apple pie.

 

Lina was laid at the feet of the statue, her blade upon her back and a blue and white scale upon her chest. It was an offering... and a dragon matching its colouring flew up into the sky. 

***

 

Chapter 23: Familiar Faces

Summary:

After freeing the Oracle of the gods (the dragon, Naydra), Lina begins to explore as she continues to grapple with her spotty memory, and the feelings that come with that.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Lina landed in the snow covered valley with a soft thump, the fresh powder cushioned her fall. She clambered out of the snow, though struggling due to her lack of proper gear, she found she was atop a hill. Then she, “gracefully” slid and tumbled down said hill toward a path that had long since been abandoned.

When was the last time that statue had received an offering? This spirit. This goddess. Or... whatever it was. She had gifted the scale to the statue... and as she placed it in her stony hands some ruins were revealed. Lina entered them and almost immediately exited, though she did so holding a spear seemingly made from the frosty scale. It was tough, and the tip was shaped like a broken snowflake. Runes were carved into the blade's surface and it glowed a cool, icy blue. A piece of old fabric tied – not to secure it- but as an offering of sorts around the connecting points.

She didn't remember much after she touched the pedestal in the ruins, but she swore she was starting to gain more clarity. She saw the shape of a gaunt face in her mind... the figure was tall but hunched and far larger than her, it held the spear in its skeletal hands. The thing handed it to her as it crumbled before her and dropped the weapon into her possession. It had to have been another nightmare. She swore that ReDead figure in front of her had spoken, but she couldn’t recall its words...

This thought made her uneasy. It felt familiar, like it was still there clinging to her back and choking her from behind.

Screaming...

She walked down the road, aiming for a way back to the village in a day or two. She had a feeling she could just appear there, to make it there with no issue. But she felt like walking. She needed to. To go until her feet hurt, to fight until she was too weak until she HAD to go back. She still had thinking to do. On topics Like:

Why did Impa make her feel so upset? Was it the unease that the gaunt ancient figure from her nightmare gave her? She recalled Impa’s eye symbol being involved? Was it to do with Lina's own body? The way her arm had ached (or detached frankly)? Was it Impa's fault that she lost her arm? no. No, ignoring how Lina felt right now, it felt wrong to say that. Not to mention the way she looked in that memory, she had never seen her look that horrified. (She had hardly seen her). There was so much blood.

She groaned and rolled her shoulder. It hurt to think about. Lina tried to shake the thought free from her head. So many questions, and it hurt to think of why. She walked forward, approaching the gate that once was a guard post, now... still standing strong but faltering. The snow built up against the wall in drifts, and blew out into the grass beyond it. It was warming up as she walked along, perhaps because the dragon was now free. Free from what? Lina still had no clue, but she knew it was- she was free. Maybe the reason why Lina felt sick so often was because she too had lesions like the dragon... but there were no visible wounds. Perhaps it was just in her mind.



Or they live in my brain and my blood...

A... horrifying thought Lina. Why did you think that?

 

 

There was no response. Obviously.

 

 

Lina walked closer to the gate, breathing in the fresh air, and unbuttoning the top button of her doublet. And as she approached the doorway, she stepped into a warmer climate. Her gloved hands were now covered in thick mittens, though two of her fingers were separated so as to still shoot freely. The brown leather was embroidered with little pink and white flowers, though one was coming a bit undone with loose thread. A heavy cloak was laid across her shoulders. And a fleecy blue coat was buttoned up to her neck with a hardy exterior, padded well in case a battle should take place. She saw blond hair from the corner of her eyes, blowing about in the wind.

Lina was next to others, in a line- though she could not see who all stood beside her. Paya- no... a younger Impa stood in front of them, also bundled up, but in a more... loose Sheikah style. Her dress was similar to Lina’s own stealth suit... though cozier, and quite a bit more formal looking. She glowered at them. Next to Impa stood an elegant palanquin carried by several guards, all dressed in full armor, like she had done once before... -before what though?

Impa had a commanding presence despite being far from the tallest and most visibly imposing among them. Lina stood up straight as she waited for her superior to speak to them. Impa first looked them over, then opened her mouth and roared-

Not a description, the little woman let out a deep thunderous roar that shook Lina’s bones.



Wait no... she didn’t roar- Lina knew she couldn’t make that sound at all. Lina shook out of the memory and stepped back from the gate, walking deep into the nearest snowbank and pressing her back against the stone wall. She quieted her breathing to listen out, managing to hear a bit of movement but unsure of where the roar came from. It wasn’t behind her... she readied her sword and waited.

The movement continued, a soft clatter of hooves on wood and stone, the clank of metal on metal as it moved along. Likely it was either a soldier or a horse... either way she likely wouldn’t be in danger. Should it be a soldier, then the roar could be the sound of something dying... and if it were just a horse... well she didn’t know what made that sound but she was sure it was okay. She just had to take this all calmly, nothing wanted to kill her just yet.

Then whatever it was roared again. She could have sworn it was louder this time, but her being lost in thought likely dampened the sound. The roar shook her whole body which made her struggle to keep still in her hiding place. Quickly, she looked around the corner, past the gate, needing to see whatever new creature her mind had cooked up in this time.

 

At first, it was just as Lina had predicted. A large armoured man on a horse.

That... isn’t what she saw.

Well it- it was complicated. Her vision changed and warped before her eyes. At first she did see a man, the shadow of a man. Upon the back of a large steed, it was too large to be a horse... but it had to be one. The only thing in colour that she saw of this armoured man was his hair, it was long and tufted out and was a vibrant red. She watched the red hair flip in the breeze and swing down as it lifted its arm and its blade. He pointed at her, he looked at her, and her soul shook in terror. She had seen this man before, not his face but his essence. Somewhere, the vile malignance of his spirit shook her. She hid back behind the wall, but she knew that he would find her, he always found her- or was it the other way around? Did she always find him? They were like a matching set of socks, always looking for the other with one in hand. She could feel her heart pounding, but she didn’t run. Her mouth went dry, but she was not hot. She felt as though she was ill, her palms getting sweaty at just the thought of a powerful, large figure before her.

 

It’s fine. It can’t be him. It is just a dream. Just a dream. He can’t hurt you- Is how she tried to reassure herself, but to no avail. She slowly sank into the snow and tried to catch her breath. She covered her mouth so as not to gasp and get his attention further, but if he knew where she was she was likely expected to stay there and die. Die like she was meant to do. Die like there was nothing else better.

That’s just the fear talking.

It was the fear talking, and the fear was louder than her own voice now. Screaming in her ears to just come closer and let him get her, to let him kill her, or at least remove her other arm to be symmetrical. Come now Little Link, little hero... you believe that don’t you, that you are a hero...or else your resolve would be cracking. You have to believe that you are good and that you aren’t just a tool for others, that you had a life before this... don’t you? Even though there is nothing to believe in, is there?

 

You are weak,

you are powerless.

 

I have all the power here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Warmth.

The same warmth that came from the statues came from her own voice, it amplified it, despite her not saying anything special. She just muttered some assurances under her breath. But the burning in her hand... like she had been just a smidge too close to a fire took her out of it. Pulling her as though led by someone older and wiser, out from this darkness. She refocused, regulated her breath, and decided (against her better judgement) to look again.

 

Before her... there was no man, and no horse. For there was only a beast before her, some grotesque combination of the two that only looked like some nightmarish evil thought up by a fearful child's mind. It stood taller than two of her (stood on each other's heads). With near pitch skin and hair that shot up like fire. Its face; what she could make of it, was grizzled and animalistic, with a short snout and angry green eyes that reflected the light like that of a cat’s. Its hair swooped from the crown of horns atop its head down its back and its chin, beyond that, it appeared in rough patches, the knuckles, forearms, forelegs, and tail. Its skin was rough and leathery, with arms so long they reached its knees, and claws so long she could see them from where she was standing. Its upper body was scarred and obscenely muscular, adorned with scrap metal armour. Its lower half was also skin and scars, though it was shaped as a horse’s entire body. This creature stood and paced like a humongous insect, though with no wings to speak of? So this... horse... man.. caterpillar... thing... stood in her way. Its eyes glazed over like those of the other beasts she had defeated since. But the sense of dread remained. She always felt some dread when fighting but upon seeing its size and the look of anger on its face, she knew that winning a fight with this thing would be no easy task. And her level of strength was not nearly enough for this. She only killed a draconic parasite, not the dragon itself after all.

 

Lina readied herself and entered the area between gates. Rubble marking where rooms had been, was piled about and covered with moss. Grass and trees had popped up around the area, Lina recalled it being quite sparse in this space... it was long since abandoned, like most places she ran into lately lest they be remote little mountain towns or stables. She had waited until it was far from her, at first she planned to move along the wall and climb the mountain unseen. However as she approached the pond to her left she spotted something that threw off the plan; the hill amidst the centre of the pond was breathing. Shit. Since her last encounter with giant monsters, she knew that if the land was moving and it wasn’t supposed to then it would be best to avoid it. And though she heard of rolling hills she feared what would happen if she woke this one and it tried to do so. She swallowed hard, okay.. okay change of plan. No big deal Lina, you have got this. You are great at improvising. She would just have to keep her distance. Not as far as she could take it but if she could get over the wall or through the gate without the giant growling guard horse looking in her direction, then she would be safe and sound. Easy peasy. And just her luck there were several (young and very thin) trees in the way... it would be no problem.

 

no...

 

problem…

 

at...

 

all...

 

She started moving forward, snow still lightly on the ground to which she was glad. She could walk a bit more softly. Step after step she peered toward the threat, often not breaking line of sight to calm her nerves. This did, in fact, not calm her nerves. She could feel the tingling and shaking of her hands as she waited for an opening to take another step, and she held her breath so as to not let it hear her as she moved. She wanted to scream. It was so much bigger up close. This wasn’t a dream... not anymore... or she thought not.

Damn it, staying connected to reality was hard.

Step...

 

breathe

 

step...

 

breathe

 

wait.

 

...

 

...

 

step

breathe...

 

step...

 

breathe

 

step

wait.

...

...

...

it sniffed the air... then it turned its back to her.

She waited a moment, then

step...

breathe...

step... breathe...

step... step... breathe

step... breathe... step... step

step... breathe... step... breathe... crunch-

It felt like her foot just went through ice, but it looked like snow. Shit. The sun melted the top layer of snow and the cold froze it again. It wasn’t soft again... it... maybe.... maybe it was hard of hearing. That would be ... fan...tastic-

She heard the sound of hoofbeats on stone. This gruff grumbling creature turned toward her and made, DIRECT EYE CONTACT.

Okay... it heard. It's fine, it would have been an act of the gods if it didn’t hear her... maybe... maybe... it was half blind. So if she just stood still, if she didn’t move then it couldn’t see her. If she remembered correctly, its vision was based on movement.

 


 

The beast let out a bone rattling bellow and removed its weapon from its holster. A carefully shaped blade, crafted for such a massive creature. It was curved to facilitate attacks from horseback-or... uh... whatever vantage point this thing had. It even had a guard to protect the fingers, fancy. Lina wanted it-

WELL. LINA WANTED A LOT OF THINGS, BUT THAT DIDN’T MEAN ANYTHING IF SHE WAS DEAD.

The dark visage of the nightmare man flitted in front of her vision as the roar echoed out against the mountains to either side. It rang in her ears and shook her mind. Something about it made her fear. Though if it was it magic or her own warped perspective she couldn't tell. She was frozen, not by cold but by a paralyzing terror. Why did this grotesque creature cause her such anguish? It walked toward her slowly, seeming to relish the moment. She hated being frozen in place, she hated not having the upper hand... and yet here she was not having the upper hand. Then again she hadn’t ever had the upper hand.

It got closer and closer, each hoof step making her shake. She had to move...

It sniffed the air and narrowed its eyes at her, its grip tightening on its weapon as it snarled in her direction. It had long arms, which meant long reach which meant that it could easily get her...

 

Snap out of it Lina! You are already so scared all of the time, it isn’t time to be succumbing now. Please, this fake fear? When you’re already scared. This isn’t real. The nightmare man isn’t real... focus.

Lina was trying to but the second voice telling her what to do was not helping.

Maybe not, maybe not, but what else could she do but argue with herself.

That is absurd.

Truly. She could just think hard enough and get the voice to return. The waking voice.

Not the voice of awakening…

Not the voice of awakening.

Lina snapped free from her frozen terror and glazed over eyes, she stepped back which too the creature by surprise. And before it could snap to attention, she ran. And it growled so low and loud that she could feel her bones rattle. She pressed on all the same.

She ran away, one of her best skills.

She got closer and closer to the gate, trying her best to keep her feet under her, but a misplaced rock caused her to tumble and stumble. She heard a gruff snort and the pounding of hoofbeats. She scrambled to her feet, only for the hoofbeats to get louder, and accompanied by the sounds of paw pads slapping against stone. SLAM. CRUNCH. POP. Lina felt her ribs go again. And perhaps her leg. She felt her heart pulse in her ears as the beast slammed into the nearby wall, shaking it, then trotting around her as though she was nothing but a toy. Lina didn’t move initially. She thought.

Her body would heal if she had food. But if this thing thought she was dead maybe she'd have more time. If it saw her move for food... damn...

She’d have to run, and grab something as she did. That was as good a plan as any. Lina struggled to her feet, and limped/ran toward the exit. She ran as fast as her crackling legs could take her. She could hear the beast preparing to chase and attack again. She could practically feel its hot breath on the back of her neck. But she ran. She ran despite her body screaming with agony, with every bone that had been crushed beneath its hooves, crumbling further as her weight shifted. And still she continued. She felt the creature slash at her back, just missing and slicing at her layers of clothing. She was so glad she prepared that way, with enough thick layers to protect her body somewhat. With this attack she was pushed forward, jumping through the gate with a grinding and snapping of bones. She slipped aside, hiding in the corner, against the wall and mountain side. Taking a moment to catch her breath and pulling out some food so that she could eat. As she pulled food from her pack a giant paw/hand reached through the gate. Its head trying to shove through, gnashing and roaring out. Lina sat just beyond the scraping of the claws. She was safe for now... she slid down the wall and opened her wrapped food package. Eating quickly so her body would be stitched back together. Sitting in the pulsing and radiating pain for a moment.

She kept quiet as she watched the frothing mouth of the monster while it tried to grab and eat her. She felt like a mouse, cornered by a massive cat. But the cat couldn’t reach her in her little mouse hole. She might have felt smug if she wasn’t in agony. She hadn’t even started on this “important mission” of hers... maybe she should just find a nice corner to live in... she sighed, feeling her ribs stick into her side.

She made a little box with her hands, and a screen appeared in front of her vision. She captured it with a flick of her finger. A "Ca-mer-ah"... such a strange and fantastic invention. She caught the beast as the froth was dripping from its mouth.

A Lynel” she muttered to herself. She now knew its name... did all these creatures have proper names? Wow... she might have to find that out. She’d add that to her list of new interests.

 


 

As she waited for her body to heal, to pull the blood back into her skin and reset her bones, she looked out to the pathway ahead. It was mostly paved stone, it was a road once... it led to a waterway... She remembered this place.

 

This isn’t a joking matter. And you will leave the princess out of this. She has had enough problems today...” Impa snapped.

 

I’m sorry. She just seemed sad I-” Lina watched herself step forward.

 

Your responsibility is to protect her, that is it.” she stepped closer, “You may have taught her to ride but that is where it ends, it is dangerous for her to get close to you, any of you. Do you hear me?” she said at a near whisper. “She is under enough stress as it is.”

 

“S tress. She shouldn’t have to worry about stress. Or the pressure she’s under, mind you.” a hand of one of the figures reached to pull her back in line. She felt the stern stare of a different figure above her, despite these warning signs the hero didn’t stop. “Why do you all expect so much from her? Can’t you see she needs something fun to happen once and a while, you are going to break her.”

 

Break her? She is far stronger than you realize.”

 

“S he puts on a brave face for you and her dad!”


“He is not “her dad” he is the KING. And like him she’s regal and stoic, she’s a princess. She has responsibilities”

 

Like saving the world? She’s not some hardened warrior! She’s like me! She’s my friend. She’s-” Lina choked, a look of fear and panic crossing her face as her chin lifted which exposed her throat to the cold of the blade that was now at her neck.

 

...You need to stop talking, kid. For your sake, and hers. You don’t know her. You are no hardened warrior. And unfortunately for the both of us you don’t have the grace and poise to balance that.” there was a pause, with Impa holding her face. Her expression unchanging, the steely gaze terrified Lina, so much so that she thought she was going to throw up. The look wasn’t at all close to the one she gave Lina when when she planted frogs in Impa's bed, after Impa had gotten Lina's tunic died the wrong colour, which was after Lina had rigged a string trap that would dump either water or honey on her head (she had to bathe three times that day), which was after Impa had- anyway... this look was different, sterner... murderous.

Lina hadn’t viewed Impa as a friend, but she had viewed her as a...friendly rival of sorts. Like she had with the archer... She had been told not to anger Impa... she only now realized that this is what they meant when they said that.

“We are heading back now, I will ride with the princess. And I don’t want to hear you saying a WORD, until we get back to the village. Or, more likely not even ‘til we get back to the castle. Maybe then you’ll prove that you shouldn’t be dismissed.” Impa walked off to the palanquin and entered, it got picked up by the guards that stood nearby and they began to walk ahead. The other figures around Lina, shapes in the wind followed, each one admonishing her behavior quietly. One checked her over for injuries but moved on. But one stayed behind her, by her side. “That was insanely stupid, Link.” he bumped into her slightly. They had never been much for touching... After all, they hated each other's guts. But the way he said that... she knew he meant it kindly.

 

Then, as she looked up, she saw some Sheikah warriors running toward the group, waving them down in a panic, she pointed ahead to her friend, he quickly took to the air to find out what deserved such panic. Lina had only one thought... it was Castleton... it was under attack.



Lina snapped back outside of the gate. She felt her heart racing and her body shaking. That was it... Impa made her sick. Not just out of fear... but how she treated this princess... disgusting. If she didn’t have to report to her, if she didn’t want to see Paya... she might not go back. Though... Paya did look like Impa. Her behaviour was different. But...was that enough to distract from the fact that they had looked identical?

Lina did notice that the scratching stopped. The beast was not trying to get her at the moment. Though it left behind deep grooves in the stone. She could still hear it sniffing in her direction. She slowly took off her warm doublet and tucked it away since she was getting warm anyway... she had been sweating up a storm as she healed. Maybe ... just maybe if Lina took off her heavy travellers’ cloak and balled it up, pinning it together she could throw it, distract the beast and get away safely. She could easily get another one. She had money... probably? Then again the seamstress might kill her if she found out... or she would be impressed by her ingenuity? Maybe? Hopefully. It was worth a shot. Using the mechanical arm she chucked the cloak across the gate’s opening. The hand reached out and snatched it with a claw, quickly retreating back into the corridor, sniffing at it.

 

With that movement, Lina climbed up the side of the mountain, swinging her arm up into the stone until she reached a stable, walkable area. She stood there, catching her breath where she landed and as she did she felt something- like a lightly stabbing numbness on her ear and face as she saw a yellow light flash past her right side. Her face tingled as she looked over her shoulder, and watched the creature knock another arrow. Lina ran away again. This time with much less trampling. After a minute or two of running, stumbling, and climbing she reached the peak of the cliffside which she had begun walking across. Now out of the range of the beast, she peered down at the stone paths and flooded waterway below. She watched from above as green curling hoppers moved around the area. She snapped a photo of one.

Lizalfos.” she muttered.

She thought it best to avoid them, to just take a deep breath, update Impa and move on. But then she felt that pull in her chest. Then in her gut. It pulled her downward. She groaned.

 

***

 

Notes:

Sorry it has taken so long for this next part. I've been focused on other projects but I'm here with a new part for y'all.

Chapter 24: Fairy Mountain Muse

Summary:

Lina is asked to help a painter find his muse.

Chapter Text

Lina didn’t like lizalfos much, but they had the intellect to be able to use metal weapons and shields, which she snatched upon slaying them. She had found ruins hidden behind a waterfall, quickly placing her hand on the pedestal to stop the constant pulling sensation in her gut. She tried to ignore what she remembered in there, the blue light, the surreal surroundings, the gaunt corpse that seemingly spoke to her and followed her from ruin to ruin. But once she had finished, and pushed the discomfort to the back of her mind, once she had rested from clinging onto the mountain side as it rained, and got hit with boomerangs and disgustingly long tongues... she appeared back outside of the ruins in Kakariko village, this time however, she was soaking wet.

Lina, knowing that the feeling of wetness would eventually fade due to the wind or dripping dry, and the fact that she didn’t care about damaging anything of Impas, she simply ignored the feeling for now and glided down to the big house. She entered, informed Impa that she freed the dragon spirit from corruption, shook water all over the inside place like a dog, then turned on her heel and left before she was privy to Impa's reaction.

She grabbed herself a new cloak and boots while inquiring about her stealth suit. Thankfully the seamstress' expression and tone softened when she said that she lost such items fleeing from a lynel. As she exited, she went right to the goddess statue placing the dry items nearby but in the centre of the path, so as to not let them fall into the water. She was still damp, and figured that she needed a sense of warmth and comfort. Lina sat on the small islet in the middle of the pond, and sighed. Her body and mind quickly fading to the ever present warmth as she sat in relaxation. She faded to the feeling of sunlight for what felt like just a few minutes, when Lina heard a voice that cut through the light. It wasn't painful, but she thought it was talking to her, so she opened her eyes, letting the light once again fade to the back of her mind. In front of her she gazed at passing faces all going about their days, only for her eyes to lock onto a stationary figure. One stood behind a strange, wooden tripod structure. An old man met her gaze. His eyes wide under his bushy white eyebrows, and his hair pulled up into a high ponytail that stuck straight up into a point.

“Excuse me young lady.”

 

“Am I in your way?”

 

“Well... only a little,”

 

“Oh, my apologies,” Lina got up and brushed herself off as she gathered her things, and moved to walk away. “I haven’t seen you around before.”

Who the hell is this old guy?

She was quite sure this man didn’t live here, he didn’t dress like anyone who lived around here.

 

“Ah, that’s because I’m a travelling painter. Half of the title is travelling. Now I’m just trying to find some nice locations to paint. I thought that the statue here might be the right place as I heard it was pretty... and it is, but it’s just... pretty. Not awe inspiring.” Lina nodded, she knew little about what he was talking about, or what exactly a "painter" was, but she assumed that he just needed someone to talk to, after all she was no painter and he was old. “I need something awe inspiring....” he continued as he tapped his finger against his chin. “I need a muse,”

Lina’s thoughts stopped like a band distracted by a sudden death, the music cacophonously coming to a discordant collapse. She hoped he didn’t mean her. The thought of which must have crossed her face as he quickly spoke again. “Not you- n-nothing against you, but I do more landscapes. I actually heard there was a fairy fountain near here. Used to hear stories about them when I was a boy, but I don’t trust that it’s entirely safe to go up the mountain on my own”

 

“A fairy fountain?”

 

“Right, I suppose that most younger people either don’t hear about them or believe that they’re just tall tales. But I am quite sure it’s true. If you don’t mind an old man telling a ... tall tale.” he gave her a grin.

 

She gave a soft laugh, “Please do”

 

“Wonderful! Let’s see if my storytelling is up to snuff- ahem! Over one hundred years ago the world was traversed by great fairies. And in times of prosperity and wealth they would appear near towns and stables to hear tales and music and receive offerings from travellers. In exchange the travellers would be granted boons or protection as they continued on their routes. It was even said in some circles that fairies walked across Hyrule disguised as Hylians, and if you were a musician and able to get them to dance they would grant you with wealth and happiness for life.

I have been told that both they and their fountains were quite beautiful. These places would disappear and reappear every few decades to hundreds of years, but whenever they planted roots they would shift the surrounding area into anything the fairy desired. Glittering with gold, full of flowers, a grove for magical creatures and fey folk to live. I have wanted to find one since I was a boy. And to hear tell that there may be one near here- well I had to see if the stories were true...

You’re likely skeptical of the stories though. Most children around here are- a few though are avid supporters of the tales and of the arts... in fact, should I find and paint a fountain I already have a buyer on hand if I were to sell...” he tapped his chin with his index finger again. Lina didn’t really hear the last bit, but she knew that those stories were just the pick-me-up she needed! Well, if they were true. But, she had the added benefit of meeting strange little fey creatures. She knew they were real. She just had to meet the person. Maybe she could even get protection for her travels, maybe then her clothes wouldn't get destroyed so easily. “The only problem is that the guide I hired to take me up the mountain is... sleeping off something he shouldn’t have had to drink. So I came over here to paint this very pretty place”

 

“Which mountain?” Lina gestured at the many peaks around the village.

 

The man looked over his shoulder, pointing toward the path to the ruins that she had taken and seen far too much at this point. “I was told it’s in the woods up there, but should there be wild creatures or bandits hiding about I couldn’t handle them on my own”

 

“why not? I see girls go up there all the time.” it wasn’t entirely true, she only saw the girls go up there sometimes, but It was relatively safe since the mechanical monster was destroyed.



“Well, it’s odd, cause I- er...”

 

“Are you worried that fairies aren’t real? I’m pretty sure they are” If her mind wasn’t tricking her that is.

 

“Well, The great fairies haven’t been seen around much in the last hundred or so years, not since my parents... or even grandparents were young, but I was sure that I heard of one recorded nearby. And Their fountains were thought to be some of the most beautiful and lush locations in the world, even blooming in the middle of the desert.”

 

Lina shrugged, “If you would like, I could take you... settle your nerves, calm your fears and... that... stuff”

 

“really?” the excitement the man exuded was palpable “Thank you! That is incredibly gracious.”

She had gone up the mountain to the woods to hunt, and she hadn’t seen any fountains about. But if anything, maybe they’d get up there he’d think the woods were pretty enough to paint, she thought they were.

 

“It is nothing really, I go up there all the time”

 

“Well, when are you free?”

 

“Now.”

 

The man laughed heartily and quickly, “Now it is!” he scooped up his canvas and folded his easel, before quickly attaching both to his pack. “Let us get a move on! My name is Pikango.”

 

“Lina.” the two shook hands, and in his face Lina could see that he was a bit worried that she would be able to protect him should danger arise. She didn’t think it would come to danger though, the scariest thing up there was the deer, and they were more concerned with eating berries and fleeing her than attacking either of them. Lina began asking him questions about his craft, his tools and himself. She inquired about places that he had painted, and he mentioned a few, often rambling for minutes at a time after every question. He promised to show her any more locations that he painted should they meet up again in another place, to which Lina was exceptionally excited.

As the two crested up near the ruins, Lina turned to head in the direction of the woods. Though, after a step or two she looked back. Pikango stopped, he wasn’t following her anymore. She walked up to him, noticing that he was breathing heavily and his legs were shaking. Lina took him by the arm and helped him to sit on the ground. Had she been going too fast for the old man to keep up? She was sure she was going at his exceptionally slow running pace which was also a far too fast walking pace.

He caught his breath as he sat on the ground, Looking up to Lina with tired eyes. He smiled up at her, “thank you for your company on this lovely hike,” he sighed, “But I may not be able to go much further. I’m not all that old, but I need a rest from time to time. Don’t worry about me little Lina, Go on ahead. Don’t let me hold you up.”

 

“But sir, your painting-”

 

He shrugged, “Sure, a live subject is better... but I will be sure to come back to see it once I know this is the right spot... please. See it for the both of us.” Something about the old man’s request resonated within her... he needed rest, yes. But he didn’t seem like he was dying. She worried that if she left, her new acquaintance would crumble to dust. But with the look of determination in his eye she didn’t protest any longer. “If you wouldn’t mind though, could you make a sketch? It doesn’t need to be perfect, just... so I get the idea” he began rifling through his pack for some paper and a pencil.

At this, Lina held up her hands. “No need to worry, I am sure I can capture this on my own, after all I am not sure how well I will be able to draw.” she smiled, and gave him a small wave, and one of the meals from her pack. Even if the meal should not heal him, (which it would if the two of them were equally normal) it should make him feel strengthened at least.

Lina walked up the path.






She followed the overgrown dirt path that led up to the woods, she hadn’t been up here since her grind to gain funds, she nearly forgot what it felt like. Kakariko forest didn’t feel as much like home as the forest of spirits but it was quite an adequate replacement. The trees kept enough shade and were close enough together that it kept rain off of one's head, and the forage was decent here, though far too few deer about... damn things were too easily spooked and too hard to hit.

She crept along the path, trying her best to keep quiet so as to get a meal or two from this sudden excursion into her favoured terrain. Out of the corner of her eye she saw something move, it was too small to be a deer... maybe a rabbit? She pulled her bow back as she gazed toward the location, quickly hunkering down so as to give her her best chance at catching the thing. It took a moment, then two, then three before she saw movement again. She saw a pair of yellow ears and matching yellow eyes pop out from within the grass, and shot before she even had a moment to process that the damned thing was blue. The creature squealed, taking the head shot like a champ before running deeper into the woods. Lina moved closer, a bit faster than she had been so as to still keep up with the thing. She had no clue what it would have tasted like, a blue rabbit... but if she shot it then the trail it left behind would lead her right to it. As she reached the point where it got hit, she was surprised to find no blood... but instead she saw... small... rupees. The same currency that she had to earn. Perhaps it simply held the items in its hands? Or maybe it stole them from someone? Sneaky rabbit. But as Lina went closer picking up rupee after rupee she realized that perhaps this thing did not hold such wealth, but could be bleeding it. The thought crossed her mind and made her shiver. To think, such pain it would be to bleed. Then again, it was already a pain to bleed... though to bleed coin would feel much worse, she thought. She followed the trail of rupees until it ended, stopping far farther off of the path than she realized. She tried to gain her bearings, she wasn’t that deep into the forest after all...

she wandered around for a moment until her foot hit solid dirt, and she looked ahead of her as she was now graced with a well worn path.

A well worn path?

The path was overgrown, was it not?

Lina looked around herself, the forest was all around. The trees watched and waited as she waited for them to answer, but these trees did not speak, they did not laugh or rhyme, for unfortunately they were just trees. The path seemed to start only a few feet behind where she was standing... so she felt that the best way would be to go forward.

The great fairies could bend their domain to appear however they want... do not freak out about being lost in the woods.

 

Lina followed the path through these new, deeper woods. It felt different. Cooler, and with more pine scents. She wondered if she had blacked out again. If she had suddenly warped into a new location. Though it still felt like the woods, it mostly looked like the same woods. But it felt colder. As though a frost had swept in, though despite this the flowers kept blooming. They were beautiful and blue, with their petals shaped like bells.

Blue nightshade... often hard to spot unless at night when they glowed blue.

 

Her thoughts rang out like an encyclopedia entry. She walked over and picked one, studying it before placing it in her pack. As she continued down the path she spotted another, and another. Each flower lining the path so as to guide her way forward. This could likely be a trap. Lina was well aware of this. She proceeded anyway as her need to collect flowers overpowered every other sense in her body.

The further down the path she went the colder it got, she wondered what kept it this way? It wasn’t night... it wasn’t meant to be this cold, and yet her fingers felt the chill. But they weren’t going numb... it was cold but it wasn’t hurting her like the other cold did... it felt different. Lina had to push some branches aside in order to proceed along the path and as she did she was greeted with a blast of cold air. She managed to stand her ground, but not without effort.

Ahead of Lina rested a clearing, and at the centre of this clearing was a beautiful, Massive, flower bud. It was larger than any flower she had seen, with the top of it even cresting past the tallest tree. Lina’s jaw dropped. A flower of this size, what properties would it hold? What secrets… The air was light and the cold tingled in her ears... or what felt like cold. The feeling was strong, it made her feel a bit numb but was it cold? Was it wet? She touched her hand to her skin, and looking at her glove she saw a slight blue lustre to it before it vanished.

Perhaps it was not cold...



Lina stepped toward the flower bud, absolutely enraptured by its whimsy. Its exterior was green and red, with ridges and thorns across its surface, some of which were large enough to wound a giant. Lina reached out to touch the it, her hand grazing against the sharp surface, causing her to quickly pull back. She would heal quickly, but it still hurt. Lina tilted her head left and right, trying to get a grasp of what this could be. If it was new it would be hers... though she wondered what was inside...

Where is the fountain?

 

The thought crossed her mind. She tore her gaze away from the plant looking left and right, but she heard no running water. She saw more plants scattered about, Blue nightshade, and she knew there would be more behind the bud. But... there was water. This bud sat in a pool of water. Where did it come from? Was it just a puddle? no... though the sound of running water was nowhere in sight she could see that the exterior of the bud was wet. She looked closer, and closer until she noticed that there was a slow dripping of water from the spaces between the leaves. The bud was producing the water. She had found the fountain. Lina sighed, in hopes that the flower inside would remain as she knocked gently on the surface of the bud.

Her knuckles stung as she hit it. A voice entered her mind. It was quiet... weak... soft... almost helpless. “Is one... there? Would one come to... call upon me... now of all times? Do they do so as to mock me... or would they offer tribute to the faerie? Sustenance for the first ... in a hundred years?” Lina thought about this, she wasn’t sure what to do. On one hand she really didn’t like people entering her mind without permission. On the other... She did want to help the old painter. And the voice sounded as though they needed help as well. She began to dig through her bag. “ I crave what ... one tends to seek. Life... blood that keeps one ahead... Shiny... blue... that which one spends time to spend... but not one for me to have... one and one more...”

 

Lina thought for a moment. The only blue thing she had was the nightshade... and that didn’t seem to fit with the description that was given. She furrowed her brow as she dug, thinking blue... She pulled out the nightshade, she pulled out her icy spear, and a rupee that she got from the little rabbit thing. She paused, she had a couple of rupees, that rabbit dropped a good amount, and a few of them were blue? It did shine, and... you work to spend it. But this was her money. Damn... you win some you lose some... hopefully just 10 rupees. Lina put her other items away as she took the two blue rupees in her hand, the voice muttering amounts in her mind. “ ten of ... green. Two.. of... blue. ... half of... red... reduce... increase..." Lina wasn’t sure if she was okay, but she would try to help. She set the rupees down atop a large mushroom in front of the closed bud.

 

“Ahem,” Lina cleared her throat, “is this what you are looking for?”

 

The leaves of the bud slid aside just a crack, and Lina saw an eye the size of her torso peer out from behind it. It blinked slowly, first up and down, then side to side. The pupil expanded as it looked over the cut gems. Quickly it returned to the darkness inside. Lina wondered if she had done it wrong, if she had gotten the wrong thing. Would this giant creature kill her for it? Or was it merciful? Then Lina watched as a massive, near skeletal hand reached out from within the bud and grabbed ahold of the money, with so much force that it grabbed the top of the mushroom as well, before yanking them back inside.

There was a pause. A silence that filled the surrounding woods. It was so still that even the birds and insects stopped making sounds. Lina felt her hair stand on end. She took a step back, before the feeling of vitality and ecstacy filled the air like a sudden warmth. It was unsettling, like if someone beside you started relieving themselves in a pool of water. She tried to wipe off the sudden elation and joy that came upon her. But she found it hard to move, to breathe. Just taking in every breath every gasp felt like a chore, but a chore that she enjoyed. She laughed and felt the pull deep in her stomach. This time it pulled her toward the bud, but she could not move. Her face felt hot, her chest felt hot. She could only feel joy. It pained her.

Then the bud burst, sending a shockwave across the woods, it sent Lina flying back so hard that she hit a tree. She was still laughing, still in pain, still gasping for air... until she wasn’t. She groaned as she began to stand up. She tried her best to gather her bearings as she rocked on her feet and leaned against the tree for support. She would heal... it didn’t matter.

Lina shook her head, briefly believing that she had been transported again. And yet she remained in the same clearing in this grove. Though instead of the bud at the centre, there now sat a massive bloom. The flower looked less like the flowers she was used to, instead of the normal thin some petals, these ones were... thick. They were bright pink with splotches along their surface, Lina thought they looked like weird fungal tongues, as mushrooms grew up out of them and the ground nearby. However, despite this unfortunate description, she couldn’t imagine how to describe it as anything but beautiful and enchanting. Multi-Coloured mushrooms popped up everywhere in the vicinity. Even up toward the fountain like a small staircase. The back of the bloom was gilded in gold. Each piece, intricate in its craftsmanship, with little fish birds on the edges of the nearest pieces. All together it looked like the back of a fancy chair. The puddle around the bloom had grown, likely due to the flowing water that rushed out between the petals. The flowers around the area bloomed better and brighter by the water. It was still cold but it felt... warmer somehow.

You really can judge a bloom from its bud. It was as incredible as I imagined.

 

Tentatively she approached the fountain again, she walked up the mushroom stairs and knelt at the top. She reached down and knocked on the water, as though she had done this before. The water rippled once as she knocked. It moved as though a single drop of water had hit its surface. And she stepped back. She watched as it rippled again and again until it began to rise, higher and higher until it became a towering bubble of water that could release any moment and drench her. Lina braced herself for a fight, her hand behind her back as she reached for a weapon. The water stretched, it pulled, and pooled. It shifted as it pulled around before the tension broke and the water cascaded back down into the fountain. Not a drop reaching Lina's head.

Before her now sat a woman, that if stood would be far higher than the buildings in town. She yawned and stretched her arms before lounging back against the gold of the bud. At first Lina could have sworn that she looked to be a Hylian, albeit very large. But as she blinked again, once up and down, and once side to side, she was quickly reminded that whatever this thing was, it wasn’t Hylian. Her large eyes drooped downward as she looked at the heroine, her lips and eyes stained with red and purple, respectively, and the rest of her space adorned with crushed crystal shards which Lina wondered if they hurt. In fact her whole body was covered in these shining crystals. Her skin, though at first of the appearance of a pale Hylian was not a matte colour, it shifted and glittered as though she herself were made of crystals or slick with water. Perhaps both. She wore intricate jewellery of platinum and diamonds, very little was left to Lina's VIVID imagination....

The only covering aside from the jewels were a handful of leaves. At least that Lina could see, she could only see the woman from the torso, up. Her blond hair lifted and flowed down like that of a waterfall, glimmering like liquid gold as it shifted. Lina could have sworn that it was actually made of water. Behind her ear she wore what looked to be butterfly or dragonfly wings. Perhaps a combination of the two...

She looked down at Lina with slitted pupils, an amused yet kind expression on her face.

Hey baby...” she said. “One must be the cute little morsel that gave me tribute. Truly tantalising. You may hold one of my thanks. For it has been so long.” her mouth moved, but not in the shapes of the words she said, as though she were speaking another language that was translated through the air.

 

Lina could feel her face get hot. “Hello mama~” she muttered before she could catch herself.

 

The woman stared at her in a bit of surprise, before laughing. “Oh, one is fun, my sisters will appreciate that energy. I have been known as the great fairy Cotera. How may I address one?”

 

Lina shook off the energy she felt, the glee still lingered somewhat. That must be why she felt suddenly giddy. “Lina… Hunter”

 

“Well good news Lina Hunter, for one is in luck. I am known to give boons to those who give tribute, yes. But as I have been helped, I shall also lend one my gratitude. Speak now, so I may hear that cute little voice once more.”

 

Lina chuckled slightly, she felt butterflies try to escape her stomach, she didn't remember eating butterflies. “Only if you continue to speak to me.” she bowed to the faerie.

 

“Very courteous, how sweet. How flattering. One knows the treatment of a faerie. How did one find the great fairy Cotera?”

 

“An… acquaintance asked me to help look for you, he had the tip- I just followed the nightshade”

 

“Ah nightshade, my favourite flowers. One likes my garden? Then be free to take from it, that is the prize for releasing me from my boredom and torment”

 

Lina grinned, this time the elation was her choice. “Many many thanks to you dear Faerie. I appreciate the offer.” her hands buzzed with the desire to get to work.

 

Thanks for a thanks, it is done. I wish to do more for one. But my power is quite limited. My sisters, they connect me to my power. They rest now… they sleep as I did. Should they awaken, my power would grow… and the four of us would be eternally grateful.” the faerie leaned forward and held out a hand to Lina. “Should one… Lina Hunter find them… and wake them, I, Cotera… would be very grateful~” The fairy smirked.

Lina took the tip of one of the faerie’s fingers, and simply nodded. “I shall see what I can do, your grace.”

 

Should my sisters be released, we may drop the formalities.” She sat up again and stretched. “That aside, I have much work to do. Should that be all, little one, then I should be off. Please… do~ come back.” Sometimes the world did have good things in store for her, and they could be pretty women. “I don’t have all of my power, my sisters and I share it. With them weak as well it will be difficult for me to do much. But let me help one how I can”



Lina nodded.

 

And, should one have any stories-” she paused. She looked as though she wanted to say something, then just shrugged, winked and blew Lina a kiss, before diving deep beneath the water’s surface.

 

Lina didn’t see where she went. It seemed that the water was perfectly clear and shallow, but she couldn’t see past it. It … was almost like a mirror that her face didn’t reflect in. She sighed, it wasn’t the best experience she had with faeries, but it certainly could have been worse.

Lina felt as though the travellers tunic she wore was thicker, that the leather on it was stronger. Though that might have just been her reasonably good mood. Lina turned to walk back… before quickly remembering that she needed to take the picture. She turned around and using her rune she snapped the picture before running back to where Pikango sat. The path back felt shorter than the path there, but she did not mind. She quickly stopped by the old man and showed him what she found, after making the screen with her fingers…
She had no idea if it would work for anybody else to see, and yet he looked at it with excitement. At first he seemed disappointed, only seeing the bud, which confused Lina. It was clearly the bloom there. She shifted the screen and urged him to look again.

Though he initially told her “do not play on a man’s dreams like this, please. I’m tired enough already” she wasn't sure what he was on about, the scene was beautiful, she wondered if it was hard to see. So, she turned his head back to look again, look harder and closer. And in that moment, he managed to see it. Beyond the lines of illusion that disrupted the sight from being captured. The strength of will that the mind had could push through it. Excitedly, he began to take out his pencil and paper and canvas to start drawing it. When he paused, “Is it alright if we stay here for a bit. Just until I have my colours down?” he asked.

Lina simply nodded and took a seat, holding her arm up so that he could sketch the image. Before he began again though he smiled at her, “Thank you… while you were gone, I made something for you,” and he handed her a small paper wrapped parcel that was tied with string. Lina untied the string, she unwrapped the paper and she looked at the package. Inside was a gold rupee. She began to protest. Then he interjected with “I know. But I was going to pay you no matter what. Some good company goes a long way. I won’t take it back either so please, keep it.” Lina tucked it away then took a look at the paper and string. She wasn’t sure what to do with it, thinking she'd likely use it to package more meals until...she saw a drawing upon the paper. It was a sketch with little colour. The image of a beautiful young person with long messy hair was on it. The beautiful bright blue eyes looked tired and kind. The loose hairs framed their young face like a halo of light. She looked at the picture, then at Pikango. She had never seen a person like this before. He just smiled at her some more, “so… what do you think?” he asked.

Lina had questions, she thought it was lovely, but she had no idea who she was looking at. Perhaps it was some old art that he had and needed to get rid of? Maybe he just needed paper? Maybe it was just some art he had done as the time passed? So many maybes crossed her mind until she looked at him, her eyes meeting his ardent gaze and they all went silent.

 

It’s of me.

***

Chapter 25: Reunited

Summary:

Lina, after several climactic events decides to randomly pick a direction and travels.... northwest to see what is out there.

Chapter Text

Lina began her quest to find the other fairies (and subsequently save the world) by stopping at the duelling peaks stable for some moral support (a horse). She did not fancy having to walk to... wherever she needed to go (her feet had been hurting for days at this point, but she kept going). She strolled up to the stable on a cool and cloudy morning. Her newly completed stealth suit fully on display which most definitely defeated the purpose. But with her footsteps near completely silent, she had not a care in the world to those who would judge her, it fit well, she had to commend the seamstress for her work.

She approached the counter, pulling down her little scarf and gave a slight smile and nod to the twin behind the desk. Afternoon! How may I- wait I know you! You’re the lass that one of my nephews injured.” Lina tried to hold back the sigh that escaped from her lips, she smiled slightly so as to not make him feel bad.

Yep, that was me.

 

My brother will probably apologise again if you wait around too long, and he will make it last an eternity.” the man laughed as he flipped through the ledger on the counter. “ah- You’re...” his finger traced all the names on the pages, “Lina-” She curtly nodded. What can I do for you today, miss?”

 

I’m in need of a horse”

 

Ah, yes, you don’t seem to have a horse with you. Would you be taking one out?” he looked down at the book. Lina was hardly given a chance to tell her tale of horse related woe, when the man piped up again, his cadence far faster than hers. “Ah, looks like you’ve got one horse here. Do you wanna take them out?”

 

Lina furrowed her brow, “I’m sorry, what?”

Do you wish to take out the horse you have here?”

 

Lina’s memory was spotty at best, and at worst she was a completely blank slate. She remembered picking up a second horse but that was for Cambo. Had she picked up a third in her time here? What sort of horse would she have picked for herself outside of Muffin? All this was... strange. She tentatively responded “yes”, fully expecting anything but a horse to come out.

Personally I like to imagine it would be either a Giant Badger or a Rope on a string.

 

Perhaps it would just be the local dog in a horse costume? Perhaps it would be a hallucination and they’d think she's- well they likely think that she’s strange already. The man nodded and got to work, he called back to his brother to bring out the horse that was here for the Lady. Lina waited for a good while, until finally out came the other stable owner and a horse. Lina didn’t look up at first, she sat out front against one of the wooden support beams, with her chin in her hands as she stared at the ground in front of her, counting rocks. That was until a pair of worn boots and two pairs of hooves came to a stop in front of her. Initially she didn’t want to look up, she didn’t want to feel the sadness or betrayal that befell her all those days ago, she wanted to stay waiting for a while longer. But then she realized, waiting was fucking boring and looked up at the horse.

 

In front of her was a sturdy, but sweet little horse, with a white blond mane and tail and a pinkish tan coat. Her black eyes sparkled in the sunlight, and though the flowers were picked from her hair, there was a small braid in it now that wrapped around the back of her head like a crown. Lina’s face lit up as she looked up at the creature. She quickly stood and gave her a big hug around the neck.

I’ve missed you, girl!

 

Muffin’s all saddled up and ready to go for ya, miss” the man said with a confused yet supportive expression.

 

Thank you!”

 

She wandered back here on her own. They're smart creatures, horses. Smarter than you’d think.” Lina took the reins that were handed to her and leaped up onto Muffin’s back. Now far more satisfied than she had been. She squealed with delight as she flicked the reins, and she held the horse’s neck as she began to move. She missed her horse, her only friend.

I thought I lost you.

 

And ahead they went.

 




Lina wanted to go to the volcano; the glowy mountain called to her... and yet, there were three problems with fulfilling this desire. The first, being that she did not know how hot it was up there. Nor did she know what to do if she caught fire. Or how to prevent herself from catching on fire. For the second, Lina did not know how well horses did with fire, she assumed as well as she would do with fire... except Muffin would have the self preservation not to go further. And finally the third and most important one, was that she could not for the life of her find out which way the signs were pointing. This was mostly due to a weird cluster of intersections that found themselves nearby one another, and partly due to her inability to read the current language at a glance. ... or at all.

It needed working, staring in confusion and learning from associated symbols, like when she first emerged or how you would teach a child. And while riding a horse, reading words written on wood, by someone who just kind of put these up enough to be functional... she may have gotten a little frustrated, which made her annoyed, which made her angry, which made it so muffin had to calm her down and stop her from gnawing one of the signs in half like an agitated beaver.

Lina took a step back to refocus. She gazed upon the horizon. What looked interesting to her...? There was a big mountain... another big mountain... some wet lands. The -Lina shuddered-... Castle. Her body tensed and shivered simultaneously at the thought of going there, which was pretty damn painful. She was definitely not going to that castle.

Well there were mountains... everywhere, so she would just have to pick one, wouldn’t she? She looked back and forth. It took her a moment, but she decided that she would go just... right across from where she was standing... to the west.

Lina and Muffin started taking the path around the central plain, leading far from the castle; crossing a bridge and vying for her sanity as she attempted to navigate without signage or much of a map... she would likely have to fill out her mental map some more if she planned to keep up this whole “travelling business”. The duo were going strong, running with the wind in their hair and the sky to their backs, nothing could stop them! -until Lina noticed some ruins without a pedestal, it was weird to see that. Strange even. And they were bigger than ones she had seen before. However, while there wasn’t a pedestal, there was plenty of forage to pick. She was sure that Muffin was annoyed by the frequent starting and stopping between bursts of sprinting, however the huffs were quickly muffled when she decided to graze on nearby grass. Lina picked up anything she could, and in the process she quickly surmised that this place was once a little farm, the seeds that landed where the storage shed used to be had made an interesting wild garden, which Lina took full advantage of. She had no memory of this place, she wondered if it had been nice once. Maybe they had horses... horses like Muffin, or cows like Hateno, or cucoos. Lina smiled and patted Muffin’s neck, maybe there would be more farms around one day... and more people. Hell, perhaps she would come back here once she “saved the world”, maybe rebuild it? A thought for another time perhaps. If she didn’t die that is.

Lina and Muffin did their best to follow the road again, stopping from stable to stable as Lina reluctantly got drawn to the ruins she found nearby. Though when they eventually got bored of the road (which seemed inevitable due to the inherent affinity for distraction that the heroine seemed to have), they proceeded to gallop across the plain. The two had to often veer their course to avoid the stark gaze of the scuttling mechanical spiders. Though either lady was fast enough to see them and steer clear of them. Despite finding some more distant ruins surrounding one of those mechanical towers, Lina was quick to spot that they were crawling with those guardians. Luckily she wasn’t close enough to feel any pull toward it. Though the knowledge of its existence was enough to tempt her slightly.

Thankfully it didn’t take too long for the two to cross, and as night began to fall they spotted the smoke of another stable rise up out of the horse effigy’s mouth. And in managing to follow the path to the best of their abilities despite it being weirdly drawn out-

Only because Muffin didn’t feel safe trying to jump the nearby river... Gods I hate these stupid roads.

 

They finally arrived, safe and sound.

Lina stopped outside of the stable, figuring that there would be ruins near here as well, but at this very moment she didn’t quite care for the potential of seeing a horrifying leather skinned man, until the morning. Everything hurt Lina, and they were both quite exhausted, so that was enough for the day. She took Muffin toward a stable hand she saw standing outside by the feed box.

Excuse me can-” Lina began, and to the surprise of both of them the woman quickly turned around, she had bright, wide eyes and dark hair tied up under her cap. She briefly glanced at Lina before turning to muffin and squealing,

 

“Oh my golly! What a pretty horse! What is her name?”

 

Lina blinked slowly at her, quite taken aback from the sudden spike and shift in energy she was expecting. She took a moment to respond. “...uh...Muffin, her name is Mu-.”

 

Muffin! What a sweet name! I hope she’ll be staying with us long!”

 

“U h... just the night-”

 

Oh no... well that’s too bad. Then we’ve gotta make tonight count!” She reached out and pet Muffins’ muzzle. Muffin, being a gentle creature, let her, Lina figured that her horse didn’t view the stable hand as a threat... yet.

 

uhhh...”

 

The woman turned her wide gaze from muffin to Lina. Lina instinctively stepped back. “Hey!”

 

h-hey-?”

 

How is your relationship with your horse?”

 

Lina looked at Muffin and shrugged.

She’s crazy right?

 

Muffin nudged Lina, as if to agree but disapprove of the word choice.

I knew you’d agree. Bonkers.

 

Muffin huffed, as if to say “not what i would say, but I’ll kick her if she gets too familiar."

We should give her a chance alright, she does work here.... I think.

 

Muffin stomped a hoof, Though Lina couldn’t tell if it was to agree or protest.

 

The woman gasped, “oh you two look like you’re having a conversation, that’s so cute! Muffin’s eyes are gleaming with care for you!” she giggled, grabbing Lina by the hands with excitement. Lina desperately restrained herself from flipping the woman into the hay trough behind her. “Then I’ll let you in on a secret.” she continued “If I see a horse who loves their rider very much I like to style their mane and tail for them. I hope you don’t mind that at all.”

 

Lina’s confusion grew. This was far less unsettling than she had made it seem. “oh, well” she looked at Muffin then back at the woman, “That would be... alright I suppose.”

As long as you don’t get off to it.

Muffin and I like flowers”



“F lowers. Yes, what about braids?”

 

Uh, a few but not too many. It’s hard to deal with braids like this-” she pulled her mechanical arm free and held it up.

 

Oh! I didn’t see that... well, I’ll be careful!” She gave Lina an excited and determined look.

But you held my hand?

 

Cautiously, Lina handed the reins to the woman, to the clear disgruntlement of her horse. Though Muffin did follow the woman with little protest.

 


 

Lina trudged inside the stable to get some rest. Upon entering, she paid for a bed for the night, she quickly settled in, put her things down around her space, and she sat on the edge of her bed. She lazily gazed around the surrounding area, it seemed pretty cozy. Not a lot of travellers passed through most of the stables she had seen, though here she saw a few different figures that were not dressed in stable worker attire. She gazed at the nearby faces, just in case any of them proved to be a threat. None of which stuck out, nor did they seem all that capable of much malice. She reached into her bag and retrieved one of her packed meals. She looked at it as she opened it and made a face, it wasn’t one of her best meals, in fact it could very nearly have been one of the worst things she made, but she was going to eat it... the only thing worse than eating it though would be to eat it cold. Not that she couldn’t, if given the right motivation and the right amount of hunger she could eat nearly anything.... but this at least could be warmed. So she resolved to heat it on the fire outside to make it marginally more appetising.

As she walked to the small, well tended, cooking fire outside, she passed several of the people in the tent. Once again she heard a child ask their parent to tell a story of the hero, not that she wanted to hear that. Stories about a person that she likely used to be. She wasn’t sure she wanted to be that same person. Then again she didn’t know what she was like... that being said, fictional stories about herself were not going to help any memory problems. They just made it harder to think of the truth. Despite this fact she couldn’t help but eavesdrop where she sat.

 

You know I’m not the best at stories but I’ll try- The hero was a great horseman and a swordsman. And apparently he had a magical sword that was meant to slay the darkness.” a woman told her daughter, “according to the tales, when the hero returns he will retrieve his sacred sword and save us from the forces of darkness. Like all of those terrible monsters.” Lina heard the giggle of a tickled child. “then we will all be safe and happy, and we can travel wherever we want! There will be so many travellers that we will be busy forever!”

 

A jaded voice piped up, “yeah that’s not gonna happen. Who says it’s true and not something we make up for children to make them feel better.” Though it was hard to hear, Lina was sure she could hear the sound of several glares in that person’s direction.

 

“I believe it’s true” said the voice of a little girl.

 

I do too” uttered a woman with a bittersweet voice, “I’m sure he’s some handsome stranger, who will look for a lovely woman to sweep off her feet.”

 

HAH- like you?” the jaded person spoke up again. To the sound of another glare.

 

Well, the hero could be anyone. We just need to have courage don’t we, Haite?” the mother spoke again, to another gleeful laugh from the child.

 

Yeah courage and all that... I feel that the sword is worth some good amount of money. I mean if it’s sacred or magic or whatever it must be expensive. If it exists after all it’d be something to sell. I’m sure there’s a collector somewhere?”

 

Oh... what? That’s awful!” The bittersweet woman sounded wounded by that.

 

If anything it belongs in a museum.” Another voice spoke up, this one sounded gruff but studious.

 

A museum? Really???” The person spoke to him in a snide tone of voice, “where are there museums? Last I heard the biggest thing in the region was a HINOX!” for a few moments she didn’t hear much, there was mostly just shouting layered over one another. Then someone clapped their hands together loudly.

 

The mother spoke again, “AHEM. Come child, let's get you to bed, and let these people go outside to talk.” there was a moment, as though someone had opened their mouth to object, “Outside. Now.” There was a brief shuffling before Lina was swiftly joined by the faces of those who had been arguing. And her food wasn’t warm yet. Damn it. She would just have to ignore the conversation around her. She poked at her food, focusing all of her attention on it, all the while the arguing continued. She felt the heat rising from the fire and her food, and as she scooped it up into her little wooden bowl she could feel the tension rise in the environment.

 

When it all became too stifling she stood up to leave. This was stopped when a young man grabbed her sleeve. “Hey traveller, what is your opinion on all this business?”

 

Lina didn’t know what she was meant to do with this... so she just shrugged. “I don’t know anything about it.”

 

Well if you found a magic sword what would you do with it?” he crossed his arms and shook his head.

 

Er- well... not sure. I... guess I’d put it in a museum.” she said dismissively, not really wanting to answer. Truthfully she didn’t know, She had a sword that could be considered “magical” but she didn’t want to draw that sort of attention to herself. Had she had the energy she might have wanted to show off but since this was about the hero... she didn’t care.

 

Cop-out answer! it was already said” the young man spoke.

 

Just ‘cause the guy agrees with me doesn’t mean his answer is a cop out” another man spoke.

 

“‘ Course it does.”

 

I would rather not get into-” Lina was cut off by the young man.

 

You seem like the type to fight, I bet you’d use the sword to be some kind of hero .” he leaned forward with a grin, as though he was trying to get a rise out of her.

 

Definitely not.” She rolled her eyes. Really hoping that her food wasn’t getting cold just talking to them. This guy made her mad, she didn’t have the energy to be mad right now.

 

I can see that actually,” the other man agreed... oh no he agreed. “especially with that arm of yours.” shit.

 

Say, that is some arm actually. If it wasn’t attached to you I’m sure it’d go for a pretty penny.” the young man laughed. Lina did not. Instead she turned inside to eat and rest.

 

Wait! Seriously. Where do you get an arm like that?”

 

I'd say The Shiekah... looking at that armor of yours.” Why was the older guy ganging up on her like this?

 

I would rather not talk about this.” she said, only loud enough for them to hear.

 

Come on guys, you should leave her alone on this... this is such a rude thing to badger someone about”

 

Hey, it’s worth it to speculate! My cousin lost his leg a couple years ago... would be good to have something like that for him-” the older guy said.

 

Last I heard...” Lina started before she could catch herself, “Robbie... out in Akkala.” she rolled her shoulder, it hurt all of a sudden. “Anyway, I gotta go-” she walked inside before they could pull her any further into the conversation.

 

Lina had another dream that night... it wasn’t anything profound. Nothing nightmarish... that she would remember anyhow. But she saw herself... looking in a mirror, the reflection was that sketch that she had gotten. The her that was not paper had both of her arms, and that long... braided blonde hair. It reminded her of Muffin’s with all of the flowers in it. She wasn’t in armor this time, she was in a dress. But when this version of Lina looked back to her...

 

Lina woke up.

 

In the morning she asked for Muffin to be returned to her and one of the workers left to retrieve her. As she waited out front for the horse to be tacked up she began to ask around about any weird stuff occurring nearby or unexplainable things happening. She was travelling northwest, so she hoped to look out for anything that she could handle. The jaded traveller from the night before responded to her inquiries by asking if she was a child that believed in fairy stories before laughing at her. She couldn’t help but get annoyed at that. She was not a child, she was sure of that. And magic was real, she was searching for fairies at the moment in fact, which she told him while seething. He laughed more and said, “oh well if magic or the gods were real then we’d all be safe and happy already.” and, though she opened her mouth to speak in return, a thought crossed her mind.

Yeah, I don't have the energy to attempt to argue with anyone. That’s not my thing.

 

So she walked away, which probably made the man think he’d won, but she didn’t care. Unfortunately the rest of the people around had nothing of interest to her. Though she did take their complaints and requests, especially ones that allowed her an excuse to go hunting. And she made sure to lend a hand to everyone she asked. But she moved ahead to greet muffin, who was now generously adorned with flowers and proud of it. Then the two followed a stable hand’s direction down the path and to the nearest forest.

Lina picked plants and mushrooms as Muffin trotted along the path nearby. The hunter was quite pleased that her little horse seemed to follow her so diligently all while keeping the hunt in mind. Muffin must have learned to sneak about in their time apart. She wondered if she had found another rider, another friend to keep her company, though... Lina doubted it. Though Muffin was gentle, she was also quite loyal. As they continued on, striking beasts down and claiming plantlife as her own Lina felt great pride in her work. This was her pride...

She proceeded deeper and deeper into the woods, making her way northward. The woods here felt normal, calm, quiet with the sounds of many birds overhead. As they walked onward, the trees lightened and cleared. Once more exposing the bright light of the sky. Ahead of her was a path between two mountains, with strange mushroom shaped trees peppered about. Curiously she approached them, knocking on the side of one only to determine-

Yep, that’s wood alright.

 

She continued her progress ahead, taking the time to rest upon Muffin’s back and gallop ahead, all while keeping her eyes peeled for the details on everything. In her fascination, she regretfully took little notice of the path ahead. Thankfully, her horse was more clever than she. Muffin whinnied loudly and tossed her head to get Lina’s attention, then she pulled back and reared up causing her to finally get a fucking clue. She looked down and below laid a split in the earth made by the gods. Muffin circled back a few paces and stopped behind a tree. Lina could see across, the yellowish rock to the west and the reddish to the south. She focused her eyes across the way, using her hands to close in.

There was a small voice that spoke from within that told her, perhaps this was dangerous. That voice was drowned out by the one that screamed at her to go further and climb higher. Something, (likely the lack of imminent danger) pushed her forward. She patted Muffin’s mane and dismounted. Lina pressed her forehead to the horse’s muzzle. “Muffin, go back to the stable with this,“ she affixed a package of hunted meat to the side of her saddle. “I may be a while, but I assure you I will return to your side.” Muffin huffed, but seeing the focus and determination in her rider’s eyes proceeded with the command, turning around as she began to make her way back.

With that, the heroine was left alone near the ledge. She had some food on her person, she was armed, basically she was ready to go, she just had to take the leap.

Lina walked off the edge of the cliff and pulled out her paraglider.

 

The air was cool, and for minutes she was surrounded by nothing but the sound of whistling wind and the view ahead of her. Her arms would weaken and tire, and when they did she locked the mechanical arm in place and fished an elixir from her pack, downing it quickly to regain some strength. But not much came of the flight, aside from seeing the birds that flew overhead and feeling such envy of them.

After some time she landed on a ledge below the cliff and to her dismay, the sky began to release its sorrowful tears. The rain fell around her, and quickly Lina was soaked to the skin. Her core was chilled and she could not light a fire for warmth, so she would spend the next several hours climbing and sliding down the slick side of the mountain. That was until she managed to get a rhythm enough to reach a solid ledge. She arose with some dry grass beneath her feet, seeing a camp atop a large tree and covered by some simple wooden structure. She could not see whose fire was lit, nor could she gather their attention. Sore from climbing and tired from the hunt of the day she curled up to rest beneath the tree, quickly building a fire to dry her and watch until the rain stopped and the light shone upon the sky again. On seeing the dawn break she climbed the tree with strenuous effort and found the traveller who was there the night before to be gone. He left a note regarding some patterns on the ground and ruins but Lina saw none nearby, so she resolved to find and question him. After all, most reading was hard for her and this alone made it harder as it was simply cucoo scratch.

Though it took the better part of the day Lina scrambled across the spirous landscape toward the direction of another stable. Here she spoke to a few locals, there were not many of note, though she did meet a man who desired to speak to and gift his life savings to a great fairy. She did consider telling the man she was going to see the fairy, taking the money in his stead, and keeping the money for herself. She did realize that that would be mean... not that he would know about it. However, she urged herself to be kind and helpful and the far too trusting man gave her more money than she had yet to see in her short memory. She tied the pouch to her waist, certain that she would be rid of it soon, as finding the fairies was one of her goals. She gave the man her word that she would bring it to the fairy, even though she could have purchased more clothing items with it.

He mentioned something of a divine beast causing him to fear approaching any closer to the town... Lina recognised the title “divine beast” from somewhere but she didn’t quite remember, instead she was far more worried about what such a beast would taste like. Likely like poultry, but which type, should it be “divine” then it was likely rich and oily... maybe like a duck... she wondered if it would taste like duck... maybe it’d be like quail... it depended how big the bird was. The title would come back to her later that it was one of the things Impa warned her about. But Impa was not on her mind for the time being. Cooking was. So she went ahead of him as she saw a beacon tower up ahead anyway.

The thought of requesting her horse came to mind, but Muffin was far enough away that she thought her travel here was near impossible. Not wanting to get another horse she instead went on foot. Lina crossed the swaying wooden bridge that hung between the stable and the other side. It was above a canyon far larger than the one she had seen before. If the last was carved by the gods, this one must have existed before time itself. A deep crevasse that held demons of the corpse of a goddess herself. Such a canyon was a grave to her and many others, the world will fall before it ever did. Something about a bridge like this made her nervous, looking down upon the ground like this. It had to be the swaying of it. In the sky it was different somehow. But she had yet to find words that she could put to the way this bridge made her feel. She focused on her plan, right now it would simply be to climb the tower, gain the map for this location and get a better view over the land. But as she crept along the bridge the time got later and later. She considered resting in one way or another, but she couldn’t when she was so close to one of her goals. Lina began toward the tower when she felt a sharp pinging in her mind, and in her gut was a pull away from the spire, up its sister mountain. Ruins must lie there, she thought. Lina tried to fight it, if only to get her vantage point but it was as though she was being dragged toward it. She felt her feet scrape across the ground as she tried and failed to move from it. The blasted arm to her left betrayed her. Unwilling to grasp the ground to drag her forward. Instead the heroine gave in and began to climb away from her goal, toward the pinging in her mind. At least day might arrive while she inspected the damned things.

As predicted, when she arrived at the ruins time did pass. Though it was still dark when she arrived and placed her hand on the pedestal, when she looked around again, her hand still in position, the sun was high in the sky as though she had been stood there in a trance for hours.

She recalled more than usual this time, no mummified face that hollowly spoke, no weapon that was now in her grasp... no... all she retained were bruises and burns and the memories of losing a fight over and over and over. It was almost as though her predicted outcomes of the encounter had truly happened to her. She held her ribs, that damned mechanical beast was too strong. Another guardian... small like the one she fought before but... stronger...was it in her mind, or was it in the ruins somehow. She looked around. The ruins seemed bare, there were no monsters about. It seemed peaceful somehow. She furrowed her brow at this. It couldn’t all be in her mind... could it?

She turned around with a sigh and she slid down the pillar. At least she found it, and her brain stopped ringing. She groaned and rubbed her temples. Nothing made sense. Nothing makes sense. She opened her eyes.

 

***

Chapter 26: Only That Which Pleases

Summary:

Lina has a second experience with a Great Fairy and grapples with more memories.

Chapter Text

The blurry figures were around one that had the energy of the princess. They were laughing. The palanquin sat nearby and there seemed to be a joviality to the group. Lina stood a pace or two from them letting them interact with the figure as she looked toward the ruins. Impa stood by the pedestal, a book in her hands, she furrowed her brow at the writing. She placed her hand upon the metal and a look of frustration crossed her face. Lina took a few steps closer.

Lina cleared her throat, “Hey, I don’t think it’s going to work-”

 

Impa looked over her shoulder at the soldier, a glare in her eyes- though this one was not malicious more... frustrated.

“And what would you know about it?”


“Not much really... I just watched...um. Maybe that Purah lady could crack it... or maybe Robbie? I am sure there’s just a trick to it... like a hidden button or-”

 

but it’s ancient SHIEKAH technology. If the princess’s magic can’t crack it... I should be able to do something.”

 

There was a long pause between the two, Lina looking over the frustrated face of her friend.

... is this really about that... pillar thing. Or that book?”

 

Impa glanced between Lina and the book before closing it and looking away.

 

I know that the princess is a prodigy, but I’m sure someone else... maybe other Shiekah could do something. And that book...”

 

Please, just leave it. It’s nothing.”

 

If you just let someone else look at it I’m sure it would help.” Lina smiled, hairs from her blonde braid coming loose as the wind blew, “You don’t have to do all of this... you don’t need to be great at everything all the time.”

 

Impa’s gaze softened briefly, then quickly hardened.

“Of course you’d say that kid. You ALWAYS act as though we have time for this.” she looked to the group, “LET’S WRAP IT UP AND GO.” she called walking ahead toward the princess.

 

Lina followed a bit behind, but a voice cut through to her mind like a knife, the same voice she kept hearing in and out of memory. “Stop pissing her off, do you want to make this worse for the rest of us?”

 

She felt a soft fist hit the back of her head, “I was worried about her V, she seemed stressed out...”

 

You can’t be serious... you really don’t get any of this.”

 

Then tell me what I’m not getting here.”

 

She is our commanding officer, you can’t be “friends” or whatever with her, no matter how hard you try.”

 

So she's like you?”

 

“A bove your sorry ass?”

 

“N ot really, I was more thinking along the lines of, irritable and unapproachably prickly. But after all you can’t deny that we’re close now... huh?” she smirked.

Lina could feel the man’s sneer. Despite everything, Lina knew that Impa cared, she helped train her after all... Lina pulled at her braid anxiously.



And....She was alone again. Her back against the cool metal of the pedestal, her hands still tugging at her braid. She shook her head then held it as she regained her sense of self. Impa hadn’t always made her feel sick... and V... who was.... ugh... she felt... bittersweet sentiment. That almost made her feel sick. She still wanted to hit him but in a softer way, she supposed. This was her, was it not...? Her feelings about these people were real. It felt as though the past was infecting her, despite her desire to resist it. Her opinions changed somewhat.

Lina moved to climb the near distant tower before she was accosted by any more visions of a her that was not her. Lina made her way there, sneaking and running around monsters and guardians until she approached the tower. She saw many creatures of all levels of strength surrounding the structure and up the path that led to it. She would have to keep climbing. She didn’t know which one she liked less, climbing or paths... it had to be one of them. She slowly managed to sneak her way up through their ranks and to the top of the mountain that housed the tower. At the top she reached...

She...

She reached...

She reached...

She wretched...

Lina held her mouth as she tried to hold back the sickness. Her mind once again pierced by needles as she tried to focus on the tower. She saw double... triple... she felt blind and sick and nearly revealed her position to the monsters before quickly hiding behind a black stone spire, which seemed incredibly out of place to her. The strange oozing black and red blood that seeped out of the Goddess’s Oracle surrounded the tower’s base and covered sections of its frame. Lina felt the same pain, the same nausea that she felt around the snake beast. It caused her to stagger, she nearly fell but she tried to stay herself, to focus on all but the pain. She swallowed down the sick that churned in her stomach as she peered around the pillar. Lina saw no eyes, she only saw the black and red, perhaps the serpent had bled upon the ground or was pierced by the spire. She briefly thought to touch the ooze, wondering if such a substance really was the cause of her pain. And yet, as her hand approached she could feel the hate rise off of its surface. She watched as it reached out to grasp at her. Should she touch it she felt that it would grasp onto her skin and pierce her from within. She figured it was best not to touch.

Instead, she tried her best not to bring any attention to her position, she climbed up the black stone, using it as a step to leap toward the next; which was taller. Then the next; which was taller still. Which gave her enough height to fly to the one part of the tower uncovered by the black blood and was open enough for her to climb.

 

At the top of the tower the cold set in and Lina pulled out her worn doublet once more. She shivered as she tried to keep warm while waiting for the tower’s map to enter her mind through the arm. She took in the view from such an impressive height, taking in the beauty and the sights from the altitude of birds...When, in a nook carved in the mountain below she spotted a little glowing bulb, nestled between the stone walls. Before thinking any further she leaped off the tower’s top and flew to the faerie flower. For her target had been spotted and was soon to be acquired. The tower she had found was that of the Tabantha region; known for its mountains, wheat, and temperate autumnal weather year round, and she had hopefully found the sister fairy, the second one of four. Lina hoped that she had at least, there was always a chance that this bulb would just be alive and eat her... she hadn’t thought of that before. That would be awful... she didn’t want to be eaten by a plant. Lina landed quite gracefully all things considered, though her leg made an aggressive and intimate introduction with a nearby rock. She approached the bulb. She put a hand to it and once more the bulb shook, with the sounds of movement inside before it opened a crack for an eye to peer out. Its squarish pupil looked around before coming to settle on her relatively tiny form. Several loud and panicked breaths came from inside, and it spoke in a deep rumbling, and scratchy voice, “who is there? Who stands before this sacred home? And with such hard eyes and supple breasts my dear... my dear... though if I should be remembering there are certain standards to uphold.” the creature inhaled, “Little one, Who must provide an offering of 500 rupees in order to release me from my hiding place-” she paused. “and yet... look at such... that seems to be... yes.” The eye retreated from the gap and a massive hand stuck out, this one thin and clawed with the joints covered in fur. It grabbed the pouch affixed to her belt and tore it asunder. Ripping it clean from her waist. The voice giddily giggled and the bulb closed, the voice laughed and sighed in such a way that Lina could not help but avert her eyes from the sound in a bashful manner. The noises took Lina off guard, she did not brace herself just as before and once again the bulb thrust itself open and Lina was thrown back into a nearby rock. She felt the heavy crack before everything went dark.

 

When will you learn...

was her only thought before the blackness hit. It took her a little while to recover, but as she did she got to her feet before crumpling to the ground, feeling blinding pain in her back and her leg. Alright, maybe this wasn’t the easiest to walk off. These massive creatures would have broken her if she was not a strange bag of blood and bones. She just needed to eat, then she’d be fine, but right now... she wanted to finish with the fairy.

 

no... no no. I’m eating something... fucker.

With spots dancing before her eyes, Lina tried to reach into her pack but winced in pain. Fuck...

Something landed on her head as she struggled. She didn’t know what it was, an insect or a bird. But something had definitely landed on her. She went to reach for it when she noticed that there was a reflective pink glow on her hand and the puddles nearby. Lina was unsure if it was her mind still recovering from the impact. Then she looked up, and she saw movement. A pink blur that as she refocused her eyes seemed to be ... tiny legs. Whatever was atop her head made a little chittering sound before the limbs pulled back and she felt the weight leave her head. She saw a glowing point of pink light circle around her while chittering and... just as quickly as it appeared it disappeared down into the water of the fountain. Lina shook her head and moved to try and get the food again when she realized she was in no more pain... curious.

With that, she crept up the mushroom steps and knocked upon the reflective pool below as before.

From the water below her the fairy burst forth. Its skin was a dark shiny rose colour and its hair rose and fell in perpetual petals like those of pink spirit blossoms. The eyes were still squarish and framed with paint of gold and sunlight. Her chest was covered in petals intertwined with gold jewellery. On her chest and at the tips of her ears and elbows there was thin black hair that looked as though it was saturated in oil. She was adorned from head to toe with bangles and rubies, it looked as though she was once restrained by a jeweller. Like her sister she too had a circlet and a pair of insect wings tucked behind her ear as decoration. She gave a sharp toothed grin, leaned her head in her hand and brought it as close to Lina as she could. Her head was nearly the size of Lina’s entire body. As it grinned, its sharp canines glinted like polished silver daggers.

 

“W ho would be so wonderful as to bring the Great fairy Kaysa a tribute. Who brought just what I needed. Who has revitalized me.”

 

er... I’m Lina”

 

Who is Lina. Such a name. Lina. And who has such a face, one to rival the beauty of my sisters and I. So cute. So cute indeed. I could just eat who up... consume every last morsel, and drink every last drop. Who is a man? Or ... a woman? Either will suffice for my needs. Perhaps who would wish to stay with me, to live with the Great Fairy Kaysa and eat of the fruit... and the food of the fey”

 

It was safe to say Lina could not make eye contact, “ahem... I was sent to help you, by your sister. I... shouldn’t stay too long I should find the others”

 

Oh... which sister was it?” she paused to think for a moment, “hmm t’was Cotera. Who...has mine sister bewitched? Dearest Lina... Do what pleases thine self, but only that which pleases. I am to please as who should for me. Mine little flower... mine sweetest beauty. Should I please who sits before me? Should I remain the beauty that one should know? Should I still smell as sweet. Or would one need hold the name “Cotera”?”

 

Lina didn’t know how to answer... she didn’t know how to speak to her. This massive creature spoke in ways she did not quite understand. “You... are quite pretty... Your skin and hair are like roses, I quite like them despite the thorns... in fact... I like them, including the thorns. All is beautiful, in fact you remind me of a field of flowers... one that I should wish to stand in and embrace” .... where did that come from?

 

Oh! Who has a way with words... who indeed should enter mine chambers should who be interested.”

 

I... can’t... I have much to do,”

 

“W ho is so busy. Or perhaps who plays hard to get. Something I could take to... would the dear Lina like to see mine thorns?” she paused, a greedy grin on her face as she turned Lina’s chin to face her with a sharpened fingernail... then she pulled away, “I jest... Little one, who shall benefit from humour as well as from the gifts my sisters and I bring. Though I am not at my full power due to the last two remaining asleep with their slothful behinds. Who should save them would be awarded most handsomely. But as of now I see that I have damaged a garment... in mine haste to retrieve mine strength... allow my assistance.” She winked, and with the tip of the same sharp nail she ran her finger down Lina’s side, from underarm to hip to thigh, until she paused.... then pulled away. Lina’s outfit was repaired. “Thine work is finished. And though I wish to see more of who, I have many or- much... to attend to.” she grinned and leaned away from Lina. “Request my assistance whenever who wishes." And with that she slowly sank into the water, disappearing before the heroine’s eyes.

Lina looked away, letting out the breath she was holding as she took two steps back and suddenly she was once again atop the tower, looking at the open bloom far below. The question now was... where to next? Lina looked up over her shoulder, scouring the horizon in every which way until... she saw a strange shape on the horizon. It looked like a bird but never flapped its wings, it flew in a steady circle in the airspace around a perch. Now either both were very large or it was quite close... incredibly close even... far too close that it wouldn’t be just a few paces ahead... it was likely the former.

There she decided, that was the direction she was going. She still wondered how a bird like that would taste, though now she wasn’t sure it would taste like much unfortunately. She looked to her clawed mechanical hand... contemplating its taste. 

Chapter 27: Birds of Paradise

Summary:

Lina finally reaches Rito village and has a little encounter with a big bird.

Chapter Text

Lina clung to the side of a rocky mountain spire which stood within the centre of a vast valley basin. Its waters dark and ravenously lapping at the rock face below. It looked as though one had not been lost to it for centuries and its hungry maw was gnashing for a new meal. Her body was still as she held tightly, her clawed hand embedded into the stone and her feet bracing carefully against any ledges they might find. She reached into her pack and pulled out a meat skewer glazed in honey. It was cold, but even like this the sweetness made her happier, it felt as though her body had regained the stamina that it lost gliding down to this point. Lina felt strong once again as she crept closer to the village above. It was a bit unfortunate that she undershot the target that was the village of the Rito, and was now hanging on the side of the mountain spire in the centre of a basin lake.

At the very least it was quiet, the one positive in this situation. The whistle of wind and the roar of the waves below became nothing in the vast emptiness of her mind. The only thing that might have broken this hum of silence was her own muffled humming. Her mouth started expelling a tune that she had long forgotten the origins of. She could almost hear the voice of that V guy in her mind saying, “stop that awful humming noise, if you can’t sing well then find other less annoying ways to make music.” 

I think played an instrument... once...

He wasn’t here though he just existed as a blurry shape in her mind. She didn’t know what he looked like, and yet she remembered his voice so clearly. Perhaps that was the thing that stuck out most about him. That and his general need to get under people’s skin. She felt close to this bitch though, this annoying bitch that she really wanted to throw something at... it was nice to think that she was close to someone once, and to remember it. Though unfortunately she didn’t remember what he looked like. And he was more than likely dead or worse... old and annoying.



Though Lina chose this direction at random she felt as though this would lead her to answers about V and about herself. After all, this village that she approached was that of the Rito. And based on her knowledge only the Rito and birds could fly, so V likely had to be from here. Then again she wasn’t sure how the Rito lived in such a small area. It was just a small village on a spire of rock in the middle of nowhere. She wondered if that was always the case as she was sure that they had a bigger town, or that some at least lived around other races, maybe around the spire or on the land beyond the basin. Maybe they all got destroyed or it caved in on itself one day. Something had to have happened. Maybe that calamity thing people kept mentioning...

She hadn’t seen any machines on her way down to the spire though, which was lucky enough, perhaps the terrain was far too steep for them to cross. Thankfully she was more “man” than machine so she managed to beat them out. Due to this she was reaching the top quickly enough. Then, hopefully, she could rest. As she swung the heavy metal arm up to the edge of the ledge she felt the earth rumble and felt wind batter her from all angles. She heard the shriek of a hawk that, with volume alone, could have knocked down several unsecured homes if given the chance. She swung down with her metal arm to try and catch herself and pull up but it grazed the edge and scraped down the side of the mountain dragging her body down with the weight, only just managing to catch a strong ledge when she was another few feet down. She winced at first then yelped as she felt her shoulder wrench out of place. She held tightly to the wall, trying her best not to fall off as she braced to slam it back into place when she felt her hair stand on end.

Oh weird... that felt like her danger sense...

she slammed her shoulder into the rock, putting it back in place. GODS THAT FUCKING HURT JEEZ... she wheezed out a breath as she tried to compose herself enough to climb again. Then the wind picked up. The wind that blew hard enough to yank her hair out of its position despite the pins that were stuck in it. Lina felt the wind whip her clothing and though she could barely hear it – she could feel the gears and motors of the arm straining against the wind to keep her up. She tried to swing upward but her fingers could barely grip onto the stone with such strong wind around her. She would need to keep hanging there until it stopped, if it stopped. Lina looked in the direction of where the wind was coming from and saw the shape of a large bird that was quickly getting larger and faster by the second.

 

Well... hell.

 

Lina screamed into the wind as she scrambled up the side of the mountain, trying to gain the tiniest bit of headway. The bird got closer and closer. Lina could not climb up; she hung to the side, her muscles straining as the bird swung its massive mechanical body around the pillar, its claws gouging across the cliff face of the basin as it stalked around for its prey. Once it swung out of range of her, Lina made her way back to the top, quickly rolling onto the nearby grass before it looped around and up again. She hid there until she saw it begin circling above.
She wondered what something like that ate, likely... whatever it wanted. It was so loud, though with it being the size of a town on its own attributed to that. Although she had repositioned her arm Lina was still in pain. She held onto the mechanical arm and tried not to move it much. With what energy she had left from her perils, Lina made her way up the bridges to the village proper, all the while keeping a wary eye on the bird circling above.

Though as she stared at it for too long she could feel the sun burning her eyes and brain, she couldn’t keep squinting at it so quick looks were necessary. She couldn’t stay staring at it for too long as the longer she observed it the more it seemed to cause her pain. She got up and made her way up the stairs that began the village.

 


 

Rito village was a strange wooden amalgam that climbed up and around the sides of the tallest and most central basin spire. The wood had been treated with mineral oils and tar so as to protect it from the elements over a long time. She wondered how long these boards had been here, had she walked along these same boards before? Was she familiar with the wood and stone? Probably, the clear air felt familiar. Her memory wasn’t great but she remembered the feelings. She wondered if it had always been that small, feeling like someone returning to her childhood home.

The village was quite small with the spire only able to hold one or two little buildings before creeping higher and higher in an upward spiral before ending abruptly quite a ways from the top. Despite the overall naturality of the buildings that sudden stop seemed quite the opposite. Though, right there and on further spires Lina could see that the stone was engraved with the deep and massive claw marks, likely belonging to the bird shaped construct that tried to eat her just moments before. Attached to which were the remains of old, splintered, boards that must have previously been structures or attached to the village in one way or another. What had she wandered into? Was she stuck here, under the patrol of such a hellish beast? Divine, why would someone call it divine, such a thing without feathers and flying without flapping such wings. So big that it could level the village should it desire to. If it desired anything. Why call such a creation divine?

Lina’s arm weighed on her, maybe she would find a healer of some kind to help with the pain... or maybe the pain was always there in her “not so divine” arm. “Divine.” “Guardians.” such contradictory names for such terrible beings. Perhaps... or for certain they were once seen that way... not that Lina thought that such things could ever be good. Without feeling. Cold. Agonizing to have attached to ones’ self. Machines... divine... please.

 

Lina walked up the steps toward the first landing of the town. She rested her hand upon the wood and rope of the railings as she watched the pretty, painted banners flutter about in the air. It wasn’t too cold at this height, she could see birds flying along and even insects that fluttered about. The grass grew across some of the lower spires, and sets of bridges hung between them, swaying in the breeze. They surprisingly weren’t broken, though there were remnants of other previous attempts. It seemed like the divine bird did not have a problem with THOSE bridges. Perhaps at this time it was safe enough to go.... the path did lead down to more solid ground. With a stable nearby... what luck. But that wasn’t on her mind right now, she needed help, and to figure out who V is or...was.

The hylian stranger took note of a small statue of Hylia at the entrance, to which she greeted respectfully. She wasn’t sure how many of these statues could speak but she figured that they have helped her enough at this point, she might as well give them some respect.

The buildings weren’t quite buildings to her? They were structures, but they weren’t entirely enclosed. They seemed like wooden gazebos that had many many windows, with not a pane of glass within them. If she remembered correctly, the rito were quite good at resisting the cold, it had to do with their dense feathers which Lina thought would be useful should she head deeper into the mountains. She had not found herself envious of much, but the rito, in their open homes with feathers and the ability to fly, that was something she could only dream of. She was envious of them, she hoped that in another life past or future she would be allowed to fly and have brightly coloured feathers as well.

Lina noticed one, sitting nearby on what she would assume was a point for take off. He was staring out into the horizon, looking bored as ever. He looked young though obviously he had hit maturity as he barely had any baby feathers left. His feathers were teal and white and covered his entire body. His beak stuck out distinctly from his face, which was normal as their heads proportionally were quite a bit smaller than she thought they ought to be. Their hands were massive though so that likely contributed to it; she couldn’t tell if it was just the feathers or what laid beneath. She was curious about it, she wanted to ask... but likely they were just that big to facilitate flying and nothing else. Beyond the hands their arms were wing-like, with several hundred large feathers splaying out as they were untucked, and instead of feet there were talons, which made sense as they were naturally quite bird-like... the wood beneath was all scratched up after all. Their clothing was minimal but looked warm over all, fleecy and thick. It was beige and brown accented with orange and green.

She might need to get some clothes of her own... maybe they’d be warm enough for her- though they likely didn’t sell anything in her size. These creatures were much larger than her after all... 

He seemed not to notice her... or likely was actively ignoring her. She figured that was fair enough, she just stumbled in here and based on her spotty memory of V he wasn’t the nicest. So maybe the general rudeness was cultural and not personal? Though she did still need to ask where they kept their cooking pot... if they had a communal one here, or a healer; as it would probably be nice to feel like a normal person for once... should they treat her like one.

She looked a bit too long at the young rito's feathers, admiring them greatly.

She was in pain...

She asked where the cooking pot was and, quite a bit annoyed that he had to speak to the stranger that had been staring at him, he simply told her that any help she needed was “up” and that she should go there sooner rather than later.

Of course it was up. Thank you for nothing stranger. I’ll likely bother you again because you helped me sooooooooooooooooooo much.

 


 

As she walked up the stairs she began to notice more and more Rito exiting the structures. It seemed quite barren at first but looking at the way they too nervously looked at the sky it was likely due to the swooping giant that monitored from above. Many of them stopped to look at her, adults and children alike just watching her, out of astonishment and excitement. Most went about their day, but the children especially peered at her from a distance. She smiled at the little pastel and white faces. Their bodies were only up to her waist and yet she knew it was because they were still quite young, and they would one day grow to be far taller than she. She waved at them, she approached cautiously, so as to not scare them but when she got too close they seemed to run off. So instead, she spoke to one of the grown Rito standing outside of one of the buildings, all the while she was acutely aware of the children who whispered about behind her.

Lina asked about the cooking pot. Which as stated was "up" again, but this time she was told it was past at least 3 more buildings, that was helpful... she thanked them. They then asked if she needed a place to stay, gesturing to the inn behind them. It was then that Lina realized that she had not slept for... she didn’t know how long she hadn’t slept for. She said “probably” then walked off with purpose.

 

As she began to walk off she felt the eyes on her again but before she could look toward the tiny figures, she saw a shadow move out of the corner of her eye. She stopped to stare at it... she heard V’s voice laugh.... then it was gone. She tried to refocus, then a small child approached her. She was mostly white, as young rito were, with patches of pale lilac feathers atop her head and on her shoulders and back. Her little talons tip tapped across the wood as she flapped her little wings. “are... you a ... hi-li-an?” she asked. Her voice a little stilted, as though she was trying her best to remember the words and language. Lina nodded. The girl, as a rito could not smile in the traditional sense, but her eyes gained a cheerful gleam. “yay! Not ... mon-ster?” she looked at Lina, then at the mechanical arm that the stranger held.

Lina felt a lump rise in her throat, the truth was that Lina didn’t know how to answer that. But this was a child, and little as she was... she didn’t need Lina's existential panic on her shoulders. So Lina looked at the girl, and looked over herself- patting her clothes as though she lost something. Then she turned to the little fledgling and shook her head. “Not since I last checked” she gasped, “Are you a monster? Should I be scared?”

 

The child looked surprised, then squawked out a little laugh, "I'm not a monster! I’m a Kheel”

 

Lina nodded, “that makes sense... I’ve never met a Kheel before”

At that the child began to ask her questions. Then not before long another girl came, then another, and another until she was at the centre of a sea of little chicks. Lina tried to answer the questions but quickly ran out of steam. She began walking again, followed by a flock of little feathered fledglings all chirping about. Lina couldn’t help but smile. She asked them questions as well though nothing much of note until one of the girls remarked that they were sad that it was too dangerous to leave the village.

Lina, clearly curious, asked why. Kheel spoke, “The big bird....” she hopped a bit more sadly now, “mommy is scared of the big bird, it flies around a lot. I just want to sing.”

Another of the girls, still small but taller than the others, and with more colour to her feathers spoke up as well, the red standing out starkly against the others, “It’s called Vah Medoh,” she said, “Father would tell us stories about it, but he went to travel...He said it was meant to protect us. But it won’t let us leave...” she held Kheel’s hand, “It’s dangerous though, so we have to listen to the rules.”

A little green one popped up, “Chief mister Kaneli! Chief mister Kaneli! He’s super old, he can tell you more about it.”

“If you’re curious” said the red one again.


***

Chapter 28: Voices on the Wind

Summary:

Lina, in search for answers regarding the mysterious V is guided to talk to the leader of the village.

Chapter Text

She walked up past a bridge that led out to a shorter spire, ruins laid there and she saw a dark figure standing upon them. But before she could take a better look, the children decided that she had to see this “Chief mister Kaneli” and so she was ushered as far up the stairs as they could go, long past the places she intended to go, and unable to argue louder than their own excitement. At the top of the stairs she could see that there was a relatively new railing, blocked off from a deadly drop. Up the spire to what looked like a giant stone perch she could see the remains of wooden supports and the stone was littered in massive talon marks as well... whatever once roosted there was long gone. Before she could get a better look, Lina was pushed into the top most structure.

There she saw an ancient Rito man, he was quite a bit rounder than the others, likely due to the fact that he no longer needed to fly as much. He had brown feathers and simple clothing. The feathers on his chin were long enough to braid and his eyebrows looked like they could make him take off on their own, due to their length. His eyes opened, a deep green as the children interrupted the peaceful rocking in his chair. “have we met before?” his voice was tired.

 

Lina laughed slightly, “uh... If we did i am pretty sure I’d remember”

Liar.

 

“ah I see, how can I help you young ladies”

 

“Mister Chiefton Sir.” the blue child spoke now, “The...person” the realization that they didn’t catch her name was visible on her face. “they want to know about Vah Medoh sir...”

 

“ah that is a hot topic as of late... though we don’t get many visitors as of late so i don’t mind brushing off my story telling skills. Take a seat children,” Lina watched the girls sit down around her and she cautiously joined, sitting cross legged and looking up at the wise old owl.

“A long time ago, when I was just out of my baby feathers, the kingdom was preparing for the attack of a great and terrifying beast known as Calamity Ganon. It was said that if our preparations failed, the whole kingdom would be in ruin. I wasn’t yet chief so I helped where I could, primarily guarding the village during this time. When some humans with white hair came to speak to the chief Medli about our participation. They uncovered some ancient artifacts that they wished to use to protect us all. They uncovered these objects from all around the continent of Hyrule, and assigned them pilots from all over the world, “Champions” they called them.

The beast they gave us, was called Vah Medoh, and for the time of preparation before the battle was to begin it protected us, with its connection to one of the champions, its pilot, the great hero. I only met him a few times, and we didn’t speak much as I was quite a bit older than him- but I could see in his eyes that he was made for greatness, his name was Revali, hero of the Rito.”

Lina was prepared to hear the name Link come up again. Well... that surprised her.... she should have expected it and yet... she was mostly relieved. She didn’t have to hear her name... or that name. It wasn’t hers. But Revali... she wondered if that name had to do with V... maybe they were related. But the name struck a chord nonetheless.

“He managed to hold the beast under his control, he managed magic, was a skilled flyer and archer. Some of the best that the world had ever seen. When the calamity hit... It caught everyone off guard. Revali was on a mission, he rushed back here to get to his beast, but it was too late.... The hero went into the belly of the beast and never returned. After the calamity raged on for some time the creature went dormant... until recently. It awoke around the same time those strange towers popped up on the horizon.”

So, it came to life because of the towers, because of me? They’re in more danger because of me? These little girls....

fuck me...

 

Guilt scratched at her heart like a cat clawing furniture. “I’m sorry that this all happened”

 

“Well it was a matter of time, you had nothing to do with it.” but she did, and them not knowing just made her feel worse.

 

“Is there anything else you could tell me about this... hero Revali? Or anyone from that time that went by V?”

 

“Hmm let me think, I have many stories about Revali... passed down from his mother, and others who knew him. He was the youngest archer to join the Hylian forces. He was clever, and brave, and didn’t take nonsense from anyone. He was a very closed off person, very stoic for someone his age. After his passing, I remember we were visited by the princess, she had grown into a lovely young lady... and she offered her condolences to us all. She assured us that in time, a hero would return and rescue us from the Calamity, but time is strange for us all... in both the sky and the sea. We live, we watch others grow and die, and then... we watch it again. I have seen much of the time, and I have yet to hear or see her promise be executed." He sighed, “I’m not sure about anyone named V though, many people come and go through this place...I’d have to give it some more thought.” he yawned, “though I’m getting a bit tired now so any more stories will have to wait.”

 

good, he knew nothing embarrassing- not that there is anything.” the annoyed voice of the stuck up spectre spoke up. It was V. Though she couldn’t remember where she stood with V. Were they just knights? Was he a friend? How close were they? Was he a champion? That was Revali though... Revali was the name that felt like it meant something, like something important. But V felt like a friend... she nodded her head.

 

“Thank you for your time Mr. Chieftain sir.” not to mention there was that princess again... mentioned over and over. And she was yet another blurry figure in her memories, faceless... meaningless. That was something she noticed... people so often spoke about meaningless things. Kings, princesses, divine beasts. Until this moment of guilt she couldn’t recall any of this having meaning to her... and yet here the names laid... meaningless.

He nodded and gently waved her away as she exited the structure, her thoughts trying to find order within her mind. She was going to protect these people she just met. She always felt that need to protect, but this was her fault, this was her mess to clean up... damn it. And should the other beasts be acting up in a similar way...
she sighed to herself, she could have just left it all alone... but-

 

“You’re far too stubborn for that, great ‘hero of the wilds, swordsman of the Hylian guard, greatest there ever lived, the princess’ chosen knight.’” she heard the snide remarks of that same sarcastic voice, and despite the fact she wanted to respond she held her tongue while around other folks.

 

“He was always a troublesome child,” a soft feminine voice spoke as she began down the stairs to find somewhere to cook, “he got into more trouble than you would think... but he is my boy, and he is marvelous at whatever he sets his mind to.”

 

she walked further, seeing glimpses of the blurry dark figure, flying around. Chatting with people, firing arrows. All just outside of her vision. She groaned a bit... It was getting hard to see with all of the darkness flashing around her, but by some miracle Lina managed to step into the small round kitchen space with little trouble, though her shoulder still hurt, and because of this her hunger was getting worse. But unfortunately she wasn’t alone.

 

In front of the communal cooking pot (that they thankfully had) was what Lina assumed were a mother and child. The alleged mother was crouched, slightly hunched over the fire, her lilac and pink feathers styled gently around her soft features, with each row upon her head falling down and curling up as though it was meticulously styled hair. Her clothing was like that of the other Rito, elegant in its simplicity. And her beak was different than most other Rito that Lina had seen, with it being round and pink. She stirred the pot with one wing as she tried to keep the child from the fire with the other. The child looked to be a boy, and quite young at that, his entire body was feathered white, bar some small grey patches on his hands and elbows. His eyes were large and blue and bright, and as he saw Lina he hid behind his mother and peered out shyly. He seemed... much younger than the girls that corralled Lina earlier.

 

“oh, sorry,” the woman spoke, “I wasn’t expecting anyone to come in- I’m nearly finished” if only lina was born to be as pretty as she was... Lina studied her features again for a moment before looking around the area, her eyes gazing over some cooking utensils, spices and a book that sat open on the counter. It had words written in it... which was not very helpful to her, but there were also pretty little pictures, stamped on meticulously. She knew what stamps were... and how to make them... what a skill to remember... stamp making. But not faces of the people you knew, or how to read anything, or how the world worked. From the recipes she saw she could make out a few ingredients, though some she didn’t quite know what they were. She would have to focus more to try to read the names or the recipes themselves, but she didn’t want to spend minutes to hours trying to read it when someone had just spoken to her.

 

“I don’t mean to rush you off.” She tried to seem approachable, though she had no idea how she looked or came across in general, she saw the boy peer out from behind his mother and Lina waved, only for him to hide behind the woman again.

 

“Oh it’s nothing really... I’ve been at this for a while... Tulin, baby, why don’t you go play with Amali’s girls while mommy finishes up.” She reached behind herself and patted at the tiny figure that laid there. The boy peered out again and looked to the stranger then to his mother before scurrying off to play. “sorry about him, he’s a bit shy with strangers... and he wants to make sure I’m safe”

 

“That's sweet.”

 

“He's going to be a tough one once he gets a bit less shy, I tell you” she laughed.

 

Lina nodded, mostly just waiting for her to finish, but she really had no other direction to go, so she decided to talk, “Are these your recipes?”

 

“Ah, the new ones are... It’s a community project. I just tend to cook a lot when I’m nervous.” she smiled, looking down at the food she was cooking.

 

“Well, from what I can see they look delicious, I’ve never heard of most of these...” she flipped a page... she saw several things with apples as an ingredient, was one of them apple pie??? “especially this pie...” she guessed.

 

“Oh yes well I can’t take all the credit for that,” holy shit she was right. “Amali helped me a bit, her writing is better than mine, but I prefer making the stamps anyway, it’s easier than feathers messing up the brush strokes...”

 

“That smells good, you-” she took a breath, she might be overstepping, “You said that you cooked when you are worried. Are you... now?”

 

She sighed, “guilty, I suppose talking about it made it pretty obvious, i was trying to keep up a brave face for Tulin,”

 

“your... son?”


“correct.”

 

“Is it the bird- er- Vah Medoh?”

 

“No, no... well yes... but no. Partly...” Lina could tell she might have made her a bit frustrated... or likely it was just the conversation, this was due to the woman stirring faster. “My husband... his name is Teba... i...he... he thinks that he can take down the divine beast on his own.”

 

“Well that’s good of him,”

less work for me i suppose,

though... the guilt if something happened to him and I couldn’t stop it.

 

“NO- well... ugh. He is a wonderful archer, best in the village, but... he is determined to try and take it down on his own. It would take at least a fleet to break through all of its outer defences let alone what is inside... that’s what I heard at least. We would maybe have enough if all of the adults went up but not all of the people here are fighters. We can’t lose anymore people. And well, I haven’t been much for fighting since Tulin hatched, but despite the fact that our son is here and right in front of him he is determined to throw himself at it and-” she hesitated, looking around to make sure her son was not in earshot, then she choked the rest out softly, “and die up there.” She paused, taking in what the woman said, before the Rito’s eyes went wide. “Oh gods, I am so sorry. I did not mean to overshare. I’m just so -”

 

“Worried, i get it. And I would assume that you’re frustrated as well. I don’t have kids or anything like that... but I understand wanting to protect people, especially those close to you. It cannot be easy.”

 

The woman stared at her, her eyes glistening with a soft dampness. “Thank you... here, as a gift for listening to my rambling, please take something to eat.”

holy shit, SCORE!

“Well, I am not going to turn down free food.” she said matter-of-factly.

 

“Hah, well that’s nice.” she picked up a bowl and ladled some of the; Lina assumed it was some kind of fish stew, into it, handing it to Lina, “I’m Saki if i didn’t say so already.”

 

“Lina... Hunter.” she held out her right hand to shake. Saki held out her left wing. And when Lina switched to her left hand... the woman flinched. Lina quickly put the arm behind her back, feeling a bit ashamed that she scared the poor woman.

 

There was a stifling pause in the air, before Saki broke it again. “Ahem, A pleasure to meet you, Miss hunter...”

 

“Likewise” she nodded, she looked out of the nearest window as she started to shovel food into her mouth, “where did you say your husband was?”

 

Saki thought for a moment, “He is... well I didn't say. but he is making preparations to fight the beast over the flight range in the mountains, the entrance is by Dronoc’s Pass... why... Do you ask?”

 

“What if I went to check on him... maybe I could convince him not to do it? Or at least not to do it alone, free of snack charge”

 

“That is doubtful, and it is dangerous out there.” The beautiful Rito woman was hesitant.



“You needn’t worry, I made it here after all, and I’m quite the skilled archer myself.”



“Please...you -“quite the skilled archer” -I may have taught you a thing or two-but you have a long way to go oh great and powerful hero” that stranger’s voice came again, it was behind her, she watched the shadow move that way as well. She snapped her neck around to look. But no one was there. No one was there.

 

“Is something the matter?”



“No, sorry i thought i heard something”

shut up, shut up, shut up...

“If anything I can try... and I’ll let you know if something happens as soon as I can.”

 

“Right... that would... that would be okay. You really don’t have to.”



“If it will help ease your worries at all, I will. Besides, I’m like a dog. You’ve fed me now, I couldn’t possibly not.”

That made her laugh a little, then a little more. She smiled in the way the birds did then nodded. “It’s cold over there... cold for anyone else. There is a store for that just down from here, they sell clothes for Rito and others who look to visit the mountains...hopefully you can get enough to keep yourself warm there.”

 

“Well I certainly hope so, don’t want to freeze before I get there.”



Saki smiled again, this time a bit more sombrely. “Thank you.”



“You can thank me when he’s back here.” To that she didn’t say anything, just scraped the rest of the food into bowls and stared into the fire.

 




Lina collected supplies, she had many more questions and was sure they’d be answered through her experiences. As she didn’t want to seem more crazy than she likely already did. In selling some of her food, she managed to get some warm clothing whose lining was full of thick and soft feathers, it matched that of the rito’s usual garb though likely made with someone like her in mind. It covered more, and had gloves. Gloves were good. Leather.... fur lined, they felt familiar. So familiar. But they were the wrong colour, they were dark leather... the ones she got were a gift... she remembered that, “so you won’t freeze your fingers off in the cold, made with finger flexibility in mind for your shooting. Now come on.” they even had flowers embroidered on them, pink and blue ones, she didn’t even have to do it herself, and they were light leather, she liked that. She liked that a lot... being thought of with care in mind.

 

She looked back at the dark leather gloves, blinking several times. With this snowquill suit Lina could even wear her stealth suit beneath it. Lina used whatever she had left to resupply, gathering ingredients that she had no idea what they were for... some grain that was used in the pie recipe. And a green stick that tasted sweeter than honey when she licked the inside of it. She might need to ask someone how to use it. Or she could throw it into a pot and hope for the best... that was likely the option she would choose. She filled her pack with many meals including bread, which was soft, fluffy and warm... it even tasted better when she put butter on and it melted within the soft pillowy texture within. She had to make a few loaves of bread and was nearly out of the grain when she was done.

I may have gotten carried away.

 

Then and only then did Lina head toward the ruins she noticed earlier. She went about the normal routine, touching the pedestal... feeling her body go through some trial by fire or another... she recalled seeing that gaunt figure that gave her another prize... she couldn’t tell if it was the same figure or not... it could just be a lot of siblings that all decided to live and die in terrible torture mazes. That or it was all in her head. Which was more likely, ‘cause who would make a pact like that with their siblings... or... well she wasn’t sure if she had siblings so who was she to judge some ancient family’s pact. When she returned to the world a few hours later, it was night. Lina came back into her body and began to walk away.

 

“HEY!” she heard the voice call from behind her, the same voice that kept taunting her and making snide remarks. She didn’t know why she felt like they were friends when this person seemed to not like her very much. But it was night, she likely was alone. In fact she knew nobody was behind her- she was just looking in that direction. But to her it felt cathartic to turn on her heel and yell-

There was a figure fuzzy and black before her eyes, that slowly shifted and changed as it strutted about on the flight deck. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust, but when they did it was suddenly day time. The sun was shining, the birds flitting about, and the divine beast perched on the ground around the basin. Due to where the sun rested in the sky the figure remained dark but the fuzziness was cut away by it, she could see a face in the shadows. It looked... like it was trying to seem radiant.

 

“It took you long enough, now take a seat and witness perfection.”

 

Lina took a seat, she was warm in her soft clothing, the light brown leather gloves on her hands with little flowers embroidered on them. They weren’t done well, but she appreciated them. After all they were a gift and she appreciated them, even if they were from the asshole in front of her.

 

She watched the figure create a whirlwind around himself, lifting himself up off of the ground and high into the air as it threw her hair back scattering some of the flowers from her hair into the wind. “do you like it?” he yelled from above “I call it, Revali’s Gale! It is a new technique that creates a lasting updraft to easily gain altitude. It will be a great tool to advance those with wings.”

 

“Oh... bravo~!” she said, a twinge of sarcasm in her voice. It was cool, she’d admit it but his attitude left more to be desired. “ “Revali’s Gale” it’s a bit full of yourself. Don’t you think?”

 

“I knew it was perfect, -and all the best moves are named after their creators - but i figured a ground dweller like yourself would be most impressed by my work.”

 

She rolled her eyes, brushing the blonde hair out of them as she smirked up at him, “just get back down here.”

 

“And what? Not show off my impressive flying skills, flying that you still can’t do~”

 

“Ouch, rub it in, why don’t you?” she flipped him the bird, something she was told was insulting in his culture.

“That's what I’m doing Link,” he twirled about in the sky, like a graceful dancer returning the gesture. Meanwhile she was on the ground, getting more and more annoyed.

 

She got up from where she sat, tossing her hair over her shoulder as it flew about in the churning wind that remained, “uh... you begged me to come here and watch you do that, which I’m fine with if you would stop playing with me like this. Especially since we know that it’s unethical for me to shoot you down. So, bye-”

 

At this he dove down and quickly landed, his feet landing so hard against the wood that she worried he might have broken an ankle. But he proceeded to walk up to her all the same. “I did not beg! I simply figured a hylian like yourself would be most impressed at someone your senior creating a new technique to teach guards and forces.” he said pridefully.

 


“First of all, you don’t need to talk about me or my people like that. Second of all, you are NOT my senior...? We're basically the same age. And thirdly-” she narrowed her eyes, “I thought preening yourself was supposed to be private.

 


“OH here we go, you’re just jealous of my obvious skill and higher rank. But you’re right I shouldn't come for your people, I should just aim for you directly.” He stared down at her, his yellow beak open in a grin, his eyes pierced her, as green as the trees in the distance. His feathers were a beautiful deep blue with small red circles under and around his eyes. His armour was similar to the regular rito clothing but with many more pieces of treated leather. He had a bright blue scarf tied around his neck that also blew in the breeze he created. Though it was gradually dissipating. “ ... you’re practically an infant though so it might seem like I’m punching down”

 

She grumbled as she removed a mitten with her teeth, “Says the asshole who still has most of his baby feathers.” Then she reached up behind his head and gently began preening one of his pinfeathers with her fingertips. He seemed startled but didn’t pull away. Instead his feathers bristled and he sighed slightly in annoyance. He looked down, his whole body bending as he did so, a feeling of defeat on his face but making it easier for Lina to reach. She gasped, “quiet for once? So are you going to be nice now, Vali?”

 

“...to you? Please, that’s not likely.” he pouted.

 

“Then I won’t watch you fly around and perform anymore-” she pulled her hand away, putting it back into the mitten as she turned away from him. Her coat hung open on her shoulders.

 

“Wait no... please!” he reached a wing out and put it on her shoulder.


Lina paused her retreat, she let the feathers hit her face and neck as it hit her shoulder. These moments were rare, and she appreciated them, despite their usual antagonistic banter. Things had been like this since they met, since he yelled at her the first day when she posed a challenge to his shooting record, not that she beat him. She couldn’t beat him, but she wouldn’t tell him that. She appreciated his company, he challenged her to get better... to be better. Hell, if it wasn’t for him she might not have even gotten on this team. She hated his guts, but she would do everything possible to save him, in fact he likely would be the first one on her team she would save, but again she wouldn’t tell him that. She knew that he would do the same for her, it was unspoken... in fact during battles it had before. It helped that they were around the same level of maturity... the same age... relatively. He was likely her closest companion.

 

“please?” she asked, an eyebrow raised, a malicious grin on her face. She wasn’t often malicious, in fact she was seen as strong and kind, but Revali always brought out that animosity... She appreciated that he thought she was the type. Like someone who could put up a fight in many senses of the word.

 

“I refuse to say it again.” She couldn’t see his face, but he was likely playing proud as he often did when she caught him in these moments of him caring. If she didn’t hold it against him then he would see it as a weakness right? He did the same for her.

 

It’s fine, I heard it V. And I’ll hold it over your head.” She turned around and poked his beak. Smiling as the wind died down and she stepped back onto the steps. “And I’m sure Mipha did too... isn’t that right?” His eyes went wide as she turned around and grinned looking toward where present Lina currently stood. Lina looked over her shoulder... it was dark and nobody was there. When she looked back the space was empty and it was night again.

 

Lina took a moment to compose herself after that... her heart pounding from yet another sudden vision entering her mind. They knew each other... quite well. Her throat got hot. Fucking hell...


And he’s dead

 

She barrelled down off of the flight pad and into the night air below.



***

Chapter 29: Fight or Flight

Summary:

Lina meets Teba; warrior of the Rito, and together they plan to take on the divine beast.

Chapter Text

Lina’s feet once again landed in soft white snow, except this time she sank up to her knees, she felt no cold or wet though. These new clothes kept her nice and warm, but they weighed her down. The boots, the pants, and the coat. The one light item was a little feathered hair accessory they included with the purchase. This, she asked Saki to help put in her hair in place of the hair sticks, and with the downy ornament covering her ears on either side, they too were kept warm.

She would need to be more careful since she was so heavy now, it meant she would be slow despite her usually quick reaction time. Even if she managed to surpass the heaviness of the clothing, the snow would slow her down anyway. She would likely have to just do her best and hope she would survive. As if that wasn’t what she was doing already. As she landed, her boots creaked beneath her feet, they were strong, hard, and needed breaking in. But they helped. She barely felt the cold with her new gear, her frostnibbled face being the only exception.

She exhaled and watched as the breath danced up into the air. She undershot her target once again, which seemed to be becoming a common trend. Luckily, she landed on a big enough ledge that she could stand on it without hand holds. She lifted her hands up to hold the ledge above her to hoist herself up to the flat plain where she intended to land. Then she stopped, hearing a hollow clattering which she did not yet recognize. Slowly, she lifted herself up enough to peer over the edge. 

Facing away from her stood a stalkoblin. The creature stood about as tall as she did, however it was bare, not just naked, though that already would have been disconcerting in the cold. This creature had nothing to keep it warm, though it had very little skin left. All that Lina could see was the creature moving and twitching as though it was full of life despite its obvious lack of... everything that gave them life. Its bones were bleached white from the sun, and on closer inspection Lina could see a bead of red light within its twisting skull, glowing up out of its eyes, the glow spidered down through the cracks within the bone and seemed to keep the body moving with a puppeteer’s precision. It looked like a strange amalgam of a human skeleton and a bokoblin’s. She wasn’t sure if bokoblins even had skeletons seeing as they only became goop when she killed them. Damn.

Where did the bones come from?

 

Lina didn’t feel confident fighting something that was already dead and still kicking when she was in such heavy gear. So, she quickly ducked down to avoid the gaze of the creature as its red eyes scanned its surroundings. After a few moments of it clacking its loosely fastened jaw, she peered up over the edge of the ridge again to get a better view of it. Lina watched carefully as the sun began to crest up over the mountain peak and the creature's bones began to smoke and burn; the bright light of the sun searing away the stringy red sinew and causing the bright bones to clatter down into a pile of loose remains and ash, dying... again. When the coast was clear, she climbed up and walked over to what was left. She decided that it was for her benefit that she were to collect all of the useful items in the pile in case it should decide it wanted to return. It took some time, most of the bones she attempted to grab, crumbled into ash at her touch. Though one of its teeth, a nail, and one of its arms survived. Lina grabbed ahold of the arm, and it grabbed her back, twisting and twitching as though it had never died. Lina squealed in terror, scaring a herd of wild horses nearby, and shook her arm until she was free from its grasp. She didn’t see any more of that sinew, so she was confused about how it could still move. But Lina wondered if she could use it. She hesitantly grabbed the arm by the opposite end and shoved it into her bag before it could scratch at her. Lina sighed.

She heard the sound of something snapping a branch, and her head snapped to attention, if only to find a weird horse or deer like creature that had not been startled by her initial terrified shrieking. It was larger than a horse, with a shorter tail and had large fan like antlers, a round muzzle and a beard. It was so big that she could likely walk under it without needing to crouch. She watched its ears perk up, she could see it... the mannerisms of prey. Lina took out her bow and drew back, seeing if she could shoot and skin it. Though as she released the arrow, she watched the creature turn toward her. She could see that this likely wouldn’t work, but it was too late already. The arrow struck its target but it didn’t fall. Instead it turned around and bolted. It was definitely prey. But unfortunately she needed to have a stronger bow or a better shot, she would have to try again later when she found another. This was when she remembered she could use her camera to capture and find it...

fuck.

 

She proceeded past some ruins, pulled in briefly by its beeping call, and headed down the path toward the nearby archery camp. As she arrived, it was mostly quiet, the wind blew in and out of the hollow area, the distant sound of water being rippled by said wind, and as she got closer she could hear the sound of a knife slicing wood. The gentle carving motion, the thk. Thk. Thk. Of the knife carving the wood. It had been a while since she heard it, it had been a while since she had been around carvers. But it made her think of the cool company of the old man or the warm company of another. As she got closer she could see a figure, sat upon the landing pad of a small building that laid out along the path. To her left, where she heard the wind and water she could see there were painted wooden targets, some of which were cracked and stuck back together with bands and glue. This had to be the place, and the figure who was likely making arrows was just as likely to be the person she was looking for. Before she could move much closer an arrow was shot just in front of her foot.

Who goes there?” a white feathered Rito asked coldly.

wow he looks just like his kid...

-or it was likely the other way around. They did look the same. The man before her looked young... but that was likely due to the abundance of white feathers. A young and handsome bird man, of course Saki’s husband would be the second prettiest bird she’d ever seen.... damn. Even his voice drew her in despite the cold reception. It was deep and rumbling in an almost relaxed way... like a rushing river, different from the more chirpy sounds of the other rito. There was annoyance in his voice, and the need to rush forward... an urgency or an impatience.

 

He shouldn’t beat me out,” Revali’s voice popped up in the back of her mind, "I am the prettiest bird there is.” of course- no, he wouldn’t say that... Revali wouldn’t call himself a bird. Her mind filled in that space, after all she wasn’t really hearing his voice, she couldn’t be. But the proud sentiment would have been the same.

 

She smiled and waved to the Rito man before picking up the grounded arrow, “Hello! you’re Teba... right?” she walked a step closer, “I’m Lina... hunter. Your wife sent me.” she hoped that would let her get up to the building without getting shot at again. It was only a white lie, white as the snow... with the purest intentions. She was getting good at that. Lying, but only about the mundane, and for the sake of purity. Purely keeping her alive. After some cautious movements forward, She climbed up the ladder that led into the building. She walked over to the landing pad before proceeding. “she told me-”

I know why she sent you...” he interrupted, his bow on the floor before him, “there’s only one reason she’d send anyone out here, I am not going back until the beast is felled. I don’t know how she managed to get a hold of a hylian but- ”

 

“-to help.” she lied again, cutting him off in return, “I want to help. well... I asked if I could come help with anything. She didn’t really send me here, I offered,” and there was the truth. She hoped he wouldn’t be mad. On the landing pad there were wooden railings, and upon the railings were a handful of small carvings, many looking like they were based on animals or made to be toys.

 

You? Help me?”

 

Well it’s that or head back to your wife and kid, should be an easy decision.” She smiled, though she was fully prepared to knock him unconscious and carry him back to his village over her shoulder... it might be unwieldy with the size of him though. He was... maybe two feet taller than her... she could probably carry him over both of her shoulders... or maybe put him in a little shield sled. Yes. Perfect.

 

If I head back we’re stuck in the cycle of hiding and barely surviving, a Rito isn’t meant to be cooped up,”

 

and you’re certain of this decision?”

 

as a feather is light” he didn’t even look at her as he said it, normally eye contact would ensure the certainty, but he had not flinched, not moved. He was sure.

 

Fine, fine...” she sighed, ‘if you won’t go back, then I should ask that you at least take me up there with you. I have been trying to figure out how to get up there myself. I was going to wait until it swooped down again and hop on its back...but I am not sure when it would do that. Again...”

 

“What?” His feathers bristled at this, and his brow furrowed in annoyance and concern, “you can’t do that- you can’t expect to just get on its back-”

 

those are the words I said, sir”

 

oh I’m “sir” now” He raised what would be an eyebrow.

 

yes....”

 

He sighed, “that is an increadibly stupid idea. Others have tried to simply get a closer look and were shot down by the beast’s defence cannons. You’d be fed to the bay below before you could pray to Hylia for your soul.”

 

“Right...” she hadn’t seen any defences when it swooped down before but then again she was focused on the pain at the time.

 

Besides, It won’t be coming back down for another week at least, so there isn’t time to waste. It’ll keep circling for the time being unless something attracts Its attention, and I’m not sure you would even be able to make it up that height without wings. It’s higher than the mountain’s peak.” he said matter of factly, “so, if someone like you can’t fly, why would I let you slow me down?”

 

Lina thought for a moment and ran her gloved fingers along the railing that stood behind her, “because I figure, that when you are focused on protecting your family, you will stop at nothing to make sure they are safe... that you won’t stop even if you are in danger, or in pain, or wounded. That you could die up there, and- That is, if you are a real fighter and hero like they say. So if I promised your wife that I’d try to keep you safe and then told you about it you could feel guilty and let me actually help you. That and my integrity would be on the line.”

 

you didn’t...” he paused, letting the words hang in the air a moment, for the first time in this conversation he managed to stop his carving, “I- go on”

 

so, I said that if I couldn't convince you to come home right away, I’d at least somewhat make sure that you came home alive. So, what’ll it be? Go home alive now, or fight with me and come home alive later,” Lina picked up a toy from the railing, in the shape of a little rito. “I met your kid... He’s cute, I don’t want him to go without his dad”

 

He considered her words carefully, gazing down at his carving. He remained deep in thought before he looked up at the figurine in her hands. He released a heavy sigh.

“you can’t fly, what do you possibly expect to do up there?”

 

Shoot.” She put the toy down and pulled out her bow, “I’m a good shot- a great shot even.”



Sure you are.” Revali spoke in the back of her mind.

Sure you are...” Teba said, simultaneously with her mental perception of Revali.



wow... okay ouch from both sides.

Welp, it was time to prove them wrong. “I am, seriously. Besides I’m not letting you go alone, let me shoot.”

 

Then show me what you can do, Hylian." He reached behind him and tossed her a bundle of five arrows. “Mid air, hit five, then you’re in”

 

She furrowed her brow, Mid-air? Was he kidding? Was that even possible- she had her glider but she had to hold onto it to keep in the air...

Hey hero...” Revali's voice whispered into her ear. “You idiot, I know you remember that move we came up with. It’s cute when you pretend not to know things, but it doesn’t make you more endearing. So you need to remember this... now. Besides, this guy is cool and all, but he won’t make it alone with Vah Medoh’s defences, so since I’m not here you need to remember enough to help him... be the shot i can’t be right now...Though I’d rather see his face than yours.”

You- wanna time me or...?” Lina said, causing Teba to furrow his brow. She tried to pull her bowstring but found it hard to grip and pull with her gloves on. They were warm but there was no function... shit. “no? Okay.” she unbound the arrows and put them in her quiver, yanked off her gloves with her teeth and tossed them on the ground. Then she leaped off into the upward stream of air before she could be stopped , unfurling her paraglider to gain extra height.

Lina felt the pull in her shoulder as she was raised up into the air, as she reached the apex height she folded the glider and pulled out the bow, a motion that took an attempt or two before she could perform it with perfect precision and fluidity. When she got the hang of it, she felt the world slow around her. The wind, the water, her heartbeat... every sound quieted. Even the cold creeping across her fingers dulled. She pulled the first arrow back and shot toward the first target, then the second then the third, all hitting (though her accuracy was not the best). Before she needed to pull out the glider again. Doing this she rose into the air, the world speeding up around her once more, sound and feeling catching up to her, it was so cold. Before she could properly feel the pain she pulled the bow again, the world went slow again, silent. She wondered if it was like that yellow glow-.the one that froze a creature or object of her choice. She took her last two shots before falling toward a stone spire, the string snapped, her muscles ached, and she couldn’t pull out the glider, so instead she kicked off of the spire and rolled onto the wooden platform. She rolled right back onto her feet and As she stood there, she rubbed her hands together, catching her breath.

Shit that was fucking cold.

She breathed hot air on her hands.
“See?” she shivered as she spoke, “I totally could,” though her fingers were freezing. It was cold here... but even worse it’d be much colder up there... she couldn’t use those gloves though...

not bad, “hero” she heard Revali speak in the back of her mind.

 

Fine,” Teba tucked the newly made arrow into his quiver, “fine,” he stood up and threw his wings up, “fine,” he shook his head and walked into to the structure, Lina followed quickly all the while hearing him muttering the word “fine,” to himself. Teba started a fire in the central firepit, and made room for her to sit. “You can shoot, I’ll give you that. So I’ll let you help. Warm up here, kid.” Lina took a seat on a nearby stool, and warmed her hands by the fire. “I can’t shoot if you are being carried so you had better be a damn good (and quick) shot.” he muttered.

Teba started moving things around the shack and dug around in a nearby chest, “so you can shoot, but you can’t be shivering up there,” he shook his head as he tossed blankets aside, “your aim was shaky at best, and we can’t spare accuracy due to the cold. And it will be far colder when we’re in the air, there’s no shelter up there, the wind rips though you at that height, even through feathers... you got that?.”

Lina nodded. Teba sat down and reached deeper into the chest, “right, here we are,” he retrieved a pair of familiar leather mittens, they were quite old and they had fingers separated specifically for shooting, with notches in the leather where joints sat, for ease of bending. They were faded yes, but some of the embroidery was still intact, the little blue and pink flowers holding on for dear life. “found these a while ago. Not sure why they were here but I’m glad I saved them. Someone needed to use them.” He threw them to Lina who caught them with one hand.

Lina had to stop herself from pulling them on immediately. The image of an arm overlaying over the mechanical one again. She couldn’t ruin these, she ruined enough clothing already due to the monster arm that was fused to her. She sighed, putting the left glove in her pocket and pulling on only the right one, it fit perfectly.

my gloves” Lina sighed softly.

 

What was that?” Teba looked over his shoulder at her as he grabbed some other items. His eyes narrowed, though not as suspiciously as suspected, they were curious.

 

Nothing, these will work perfectly, sir Teba.”

 

he laughed, "I'm not a knight... Lina, was it?”

 

yes sir”

 

He shook his head. Then he pulled out a bundle and set it down far from the fire, “well, if you’re ready I’ll give you some of my talon made explosive arrows and we can-”

 

HOLY SHIT I GET EXPLOSIVES” Lina exclaimed with excitement before realizing that she said it aloud and not... in her head.

 

Teba hesitated, stepping in her line of sight of the arrow bundle, “I don’t know if I should trust you with this.”

 

sorry those were inside thoughts... not that that makes it better. Sorry... I mean I was going to get some on my own, but I didn't have the money. I’m just excited to use something new though...thank you sir.” She gave him a little half bow.

 

He narrowed his eyes, then laughed at her, “you remind me of my son”

 

ouch... so i can tell nothing is happening with that... great.

If you hold off for a couple of days, I’ll grab more arrows and we can put some real bang in this.” Her eyes were bright with a fire that someone who had to shoot explosives probably shouldn’t have.

 

He pondered, “... I suppose I could wait...” Teba shook his head, “but you only have till noon, the day after tomorrow.”

 

Lina popped up onto her feet, “Hell yeah! I’ll be back!” then she jumped out of the shack and ran off.

 


 

Lina spent some time hunting, and in hunting she gathered meat, materials, and weapons. Each time she found enough she brought it to the town in exchange for any arrows that they could make her. She helped where she could, even bringing supplies to and from the nearby stable. Lina didn’t sleep, she hardly ate, she made food- spicy food- food that would keep her warm. She sold anything else she could, and in the brief moment that she managed to catch Saki, said “your husband is safe for now but I need to keep moving, I’m very busy preparing so I can go with him to fight the scary mechanical bird, byeeeeeee” Lina didn’t stick around long enough for Saki to process it, though she could hear confused and distressed squawks in the distance when she supposedly figured it out.

The day after tomorrow, Lina returned to Teba, who was putting together some supplies. She proudly displayed an extra 10 arrows, grinning at him. “tadah”

 

woah- careful with those, keep them away from the fire” His voice was nice when he told her what to do... she moved them out onto the landing.

 

Let's get going! I’m ready to down this bird”

 

You seem so certain of our success.”

 

why wouldn’t I be?” she hadn’t slept, “if you’re as good as I’ve heard then nothing should stop us!” She hadn’t had time to process the fact that she was going to be in immense amounts of danger.

 

He chuckled, “as long as you are sure, kid”

she took a little step back at that. A blurry figure appeared in place of him for a moment.

you alright?” the figure flickered in and out of focus over Teba,


“yes... yes! I’m fine” she sighed, “I just think we’re forgetting something”

 

Teba, without a blurry shadow across him thought then dug in his bag. “your bow broke. Did you get it repaired?” he didn’t need Lina to answer, her blank expression was all he needed to see, “right, here.” he sighed, pulling out his bow, something much stronger with a pretty pattern painted on it. A small talon grip, this size of a small child's, printed on it. “you can borrow this, but I need it back”

 

I'll keep it safe sir.”

 

he nodded and looked up at the sky. “it’s clear today..., are you ready?”

 


 

Lina clung onto the feathers of Teba's back, careful not to rip at them with the claws on her left hand. She could feel him wince whenever she pulled but he kept flying all the same, she apologized.

Hah, there’s no damage you can do that Tulin hasn’t already done with his talons.” Yeah she wasn’t recovering from him treating her like his clearly very young son... instead of that she focused on Teba’s plan, which he shouted to her during their primary ascent. He had observed the creature during a previous assault on it where several Rito had tragically died. The beast was fully protected by some sort of translucent blue shielding, that was except for the four cannons that stuck out from its surface. Should the cannons be disabled he figured that the shields would follow, and if not then there might be a gap in the shields so that they could enter and reclaim or disable the beast. Lina was to shoot the explosive arrows at the beast while Teba flew around and drew fire. Lina did think she would be more likely to draw fire as a more stationary target, but he assured her that with his speed and her quick shooting that they would be fine.

Teba seemed more at ease now that he was in the air, despite the impending doom. She almost got why, though he couldn’t fly as quickly with her on his back, she was excited by the manoeuvres that he pulled as they approached the height of the divine beast, the sun at its back aptly giving it that vibe.

As they approached ever closer the beast finally took notice of them. Its ever circling pattern quickly broke as it turned toward them, “HOLD ON!” Teba called out. Lina wrapped her arms around his neck as he flew directly up, getting even higher as they approached the beast. Lina looked down, keeping an eye on Vah Medoh and watched the metal bird turn its nose upwards to follow after them. two of the “cannons” slowly turned to aim in their direction,

MOMENTUM IS KEY WHEN FLYING, BREAKING TOO FAST WILL CAUSE ONE TO FALL, SO THE BEAST WILL KEEP FOLLOWING IT’S MAIN TARGET. YOU CAN HOVER, HUNTER. IT WON’T TURN TO YOU.”

The bird was far bigger than them, hence it gained on them, for though Teba was quick, so was Vah Medoh. “WHEN I DIVE, THAT’S YOUR CUE TO JUMP.” Lina reached back and grabbed a hold of the paraglider with her left hand. She waited in that position, seconds felt like minutes. It was like a staring contest, with eyes straining just to keep focus and not blink. All the while Teba twisted and turned higher into the sky. There was a brief moment of peace where Lina could see all that was below and she felt as though she could have been at peace until the beast began to shoot at them. Beams of hot, hard light, like that of those guardians burst from the cannons. They hissed past and dissipated in the air after a time, something like that would seriously burn.

Teba swerved left and right nearly avoiding shot after shot, Lina could feel her hair singe and begin to smoke due to this, but her life was in her grasp, she had to be grateful for that. He then flipped backwards in the air and dive-bombed. He twisted around so Lina could jump upwards. Lina took this as her cue and jumped up off of his back and into the air. She flipped backwards and opened her paraglider. This slowed her enough to see just how fast Teba and the beast truly moved, which was faster than several herds of horses combined. She hardly had time to think about pulling out her bow when they were already past her. Lina panicked, she didn’t know how to catch up to them. So she folded the paraglider and dropped. She didn’t know what she was doing, she was falling for sure, falling and waiting for an opening. She hung the glider on her belt and slipped her bow off of her shoulder, then she noticed that the rear cannon facing her was charging as it aimed toward her.

Shit.

Lina pulled out one of her arrows and drew back the bow string, she felt the world slow around her again as she aimed directly below her. Then, when the arrow was shot, she pulled out her glider which caught the hot updraft caused by the sudden explosion. Shrapnel rained downward, but that wasn’t her problem right now. She made the shot... she made the shot!

Teba swooped down and around before coming back and scooping Lina up onto his back. “NICE WORK KID, THREE TO GO” she grabbed onto his neck again and Teba dove down, followed once more by the beast. It stayed close and only got closer as they moved.

OKAY, THE TAIL IS NOT GOOD, LETS TAKE IT DOWN BY THE MOUNTAINS”

he swooped down to mountains moving in quick sweeping motions around the mountains. He dove down, taking Lina and the beast over the nearby stable and around the Rito Village basin. Trying to be as careful as possible he took the bird down through its usual route around Rito Village. It gained on them even more.

TEBA???” she called, staring back at the beast closing the gap between them. They swept around the basin and as they did the bird began to overtake them. It moved closer and closer and Lina could see the translucent shield getting closer as well pushing them off course. “TEBA!!!” On the other side, the cliff was getting closer and closer. She knew that with her on his back Teba had no chance of outflying this thing, she had to think quickly, she had to save him. “GO DOWN!” Lina shouted as she pushed up off of Teba’s back, thrusting his trajectory downwards. She then hopped up, planting a foot against the cliff face. In one swift motion she pulled out her bow, pushed off from the cliff face, and shot one of the front cannons. The beast screeched and flew fast ahead. Lina began to fall back down toward the dark water below, the cliff wall just out of reach due to her jump. The water’s gnashing jaws and frothing mouth became more and more apparent as she rushed closer. Should Teba live she could live with being consumed, if only she could protect the townspeople, if only she could make sure a father could see the son again. Or the husband could see his wife.

Something snagged her coat and her descent slowed. Looking down she could see the shadow of a Rito reflected on the water.

 

V?

she thought. She was pulled back up and tossed into the air, her body jolted as the talons grabbed onto the bow she held. She looked up, the dark water fooled her, it was just Teba's shadow. She shook her head, trying to get her old friend’s image out of her mind, at least until the fight was over. “WHERE IS IT?” Lina called over the rushing wind. “DID WE LOSE IT?”

 

Teba caught an updraft and ascended up around the village, continuing to follow the path the bird often took, Lina could see the gouges in the stone and as she looked around could have sworn she saw the small white shape of a feathered head ducking into one of the buildings before they swooped up and around the perch-spire. Teba looked around, hovering up over the perch and slightly gaining height. After a moment of near silence, Lina wondered where such a beast might go to recover. She listened to the howling winds, and the roaring rapids. She couldn’t believe that a creature of such size could just vanish. The howling wind... the roaring rapids... the open sky. Howls, roars, open... Howls, rumbles, open...

Howls, screams, open...

 

 

The wind howled.

The rapids burst.

They were out in the open.

 

She felt the hair on the back of her neck rise up, but before either could say or do anything, a torrent of water shot up from the basin showering them with droplets of water. They rained down and within the sudden burst came Vah Medoh, its head turning toward them as it dove in their direction, screeching so loud that Lina could feel her brain shaking inside of her skull. Lina saw Its cannons begin to light up and as she screamed- “TEBA!” -the air hissed with sudden sizzling of water. They both began to fall. Teba’s feathers smoldered and fell from his burned shoulder and Lina toppled toward the spire.

First her back hit the stone; hard, and she tumbled backwards off of the perch. She slid and tumbled, hitting rock again and again before her claw managed to catch onto enough of a ledge. She yelled out as her body whimpered in pain again. She knew she would heal if she had a moment, but there was no moment to be had, the beast swooped around to take another shot, so she scrambled up atop the spire perch and as it began to get close to the village with its charged cannon, she dove off of the extended end of the perch, drawing the beast’s ire from destroying more of the village.

 

She glided along with her paraglider, begging the creation to move along faster than she could urge it. She could hear the sound of the charging beam and in feeling the heat she released the glider, dropping down several feet before she took out her bow and shot volley after volley of arrows watching them explode on the surface of the shields before hearing a screech. One had to have broken through. Lina pulled out her glider again, only to just slightly break the fall and land hard on the ground, tumbling into the grass as she literally ate dirt. She groaned, spitting out the dubious food and trying her best to refocus her eyes. Everything was a blur, she was sure that she hit her head. And from the look of the surroundings she may have tumbled a few extra feet. She coughed as she sat back against a tree, she pulled off her pack and grabbed a snack. As she ducked down from the gaze of the beast for a brief moment of respite she wondered when the last time she had been hit so hard was.

 

She felt ribs cracked, blood around her that was hers and blood that wasn’t. Bones and bodies broken, the crack of rotten footsteps on pavement. Her lungs choked with a mixture of blood and water as she tried to breathe. The bones in one of her legs completely shattered. She should be dead... she should be dead... but she had both arms... so that was good.

 

Teba was down, she hoped he was alive, she couldn’t live with herself if he died... that kid needed his dad, that woman needed her husband. Lina stared upwards, watching the bird swing higher and higher once again, and wondered how she would get up there to get the last shot off. One last cannon. Fuck she might have to climb the spire, but that might get it to attack the town... she couldn’t do that to them. But something had to be done... something....
Lina had... no ideas, so instead she began to run in the direction of the updraft that Teba caught.

She went for the updraft, leaping off the edge and caught the air with the glider. It didn't take her up as high as it had taken him, that was to be expected, but she did her best to keep going all the same. Seeing a spire nearby she glided down to it and climbed to the top of it. Then she did the same with the next draft and spire and the next until she reached the highest spear. Maybe if she could get its attention she could jump onto its back, like in her initial plan. It wasn’t the best idea. She had no clue if the shield would hurt her. But if she hurt that family, a simple hard light shield would be nothing to the pain they would feel. As she reached the top of the tallest spire she realized that there was little chance she could reach it. So she shouted, she screamed.

FUUUUUCK YOU!!!!! I’M IN YOUR AIR SPACE!!!!” she shrieked out. Then she waited, and waited. But nothing came from that beast. It was likely rebuilding its cannons as she waited.

FUCK! FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK

She kicked a rock off of the top of the spire. Lina jumped off, and reached to pull out her glider, when she felt someone grab her by the scruff of her coat. They started pulling her upward with speed and ferocity. Lina gasped, unprepared for the aid. She looked up to see soft pink feathers above her. “GRAB ON!” Lina was tossed up into the air and landed heavily on the back of the pink feathered Rito woman. Saki flew up toward the beast, flapping harder and flying far faster than Teba.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING?” Lina shouted.

 

YOU WERE SO CLOSE! AND YOU GOT HIM HOME ALIVE. YOU GOT MY HUSBAND HOME! SO WE’RE FINISHING THIS!”


They moved up and up. Higher and higher. Until the air was so thin Lina struggled to breathe, but Saki persisted. She made long sweeps around the beast, trying to catch sight of the cannon. When she saw it, Saki barrelled toward it, her body moving quickly to avoid the heat of the beams that shot from it. When they got close, so close that a shot could not possibly be missed and Lina was unsure that they would not be hit by the incoming blast, Lina pulled out her bow and shot. Then without warning Saki dove down, taking Lina with her. They watched from below as the cannon went up in smoke and the hard light shields dissipated. Saki looked over her shoulder at Lina. “THAT’S IT FOR ME, LINA. TAKE CARE OF THIS FOR US.”

Together they flew in close. Saki dropped Lina off with a smile,

“I missed flying like that... but I’ll leave this mess to you, I have some people to take care of.” and with that, she dove off of the beast, leaving Lina on its back.

 

***