Chapter Text
With her hand outstretched the princess, bathed in sacred light, began to contain the malice of the Calamity before her. It took an outpour of the remaining strength she obtained to do so; the very will of her people from the last one hundred years pushing her powers to their limits and beyond. All of those years of terror and agony had been brewing up for this very moment and there was nothing that would stop the princess, especially now. Her power, the very holy power of the goddess herself, spread itself out and around the monster until it overtook the beast entirely. In one last surge of her ability, the sacred light locked in Calamity Ganon and disappeared from existence, sealing the malice away. For now.
Far behind the princess stood her loyal swordsman, watching on in apprehension. He had completed his part in the fight and knew the very last blow would come from the princess herself. It had been what she was born to do, what she had been taught her entire life. Her duty as their princess meant she would awaken her sacred powers and fight against the Calamity, as many had done before her. Alongside her crucial responsibility came the swordsman’s own role in the story - that of the wielder of the Master Sword, the blade that seals the darkness. It was there he stood, many yards away from the girl he was sworn to protect, with his eyes locked entirely on her.
There was a fuzziness that had come whenever he tried to remember his life before his one hundred year slumber. Huge gaps of nothingness came in between memories of great importance - at least, that is what the swordsman understood as important. He was shown many of his past memories through visions from the princess herself as she battled with the Calamity. Though he was given only twelve, he desperately wished for more and could only hope that with time, he would remember his life as it was before. Of his past, the only comfort that he could recollect was that of the princess Zelda.
Link remembered his solemn vow of protecting the princess with his life. It was embedded into the very bones of his body, flowing through the blood in his veins. It was but a whisper when he had first awakened, yet now it roared in his ears like waves at the first real sight of Princess Zelda.
Her arm lowered as the venomous-filled skies began to swirl back to that of Hyrule’s blue. Her duty had been fulfilled at long last. After one hundred years of torment, the princess could finally know rest. Not a moment later, her body began to feel lightweight as she stood there, turning to her side to get a sight of her swordsman. His look of concern only worsened her worries as she outstretched an arm out towards him. The toll of one hundred years of concealment had been a heavy one on the princess. She had forgotten her own wellbeing long, long ago. In the princess’ viewpoint, her own welfare did not even pale in comparison to that of the people of Hyrule kingdom. Their longevity mattered so much more than her own.
He was at her side in an instant, catching her body before she could collapse onto the ground. Link could feel the very exhaustion in the princess’ soul while he held her. She could barely grasp onto him, the limpness creeping up from her legs and throughout her entire body. There was nothing she wanted more in that very moment than to rest, yet she strained herself to try and remain awake longer for there Link was, catching her in his arms. She had only rehearsed what she wanted to say to him so many times, in many of her dreams in those lonely hundred years. Even so there was nothing that came out from the princess’ lips apart from his name once more before fatigue overtook her.
A panic quickly arose in Link. He wasn’t sure what exactly one hundred years of maintaining a prison for a being such as Calamity Ganon could toll on a person, but he was certain it was too much for most. The hero hooked one arm under Zelda’s lifeless legs and hitched himself onto his own two feet. Bringing his fingers to his mouth, Link let out a shrill whistle for his stead nearby. As soon as his beloved horse was in reach, he clamored both himself and the princess aboard, then began the long ride back to the only place his mind could latch onto. Hateno Village, where Purah and inevitably Robbie both awaited his return.
The fight had taken place in the very center of Hyrule Kingdom, Hyrule Field. From there, it would normally take Link half a day to reach the village of Hateno. He would have to travel through West Necluda and continue eastward before he would arrive there. It would be a race against time to get the princess the help she needed, but he was determined to do it. He gave his stead a firm scratch on his ear before flicking the reins, starting their journey onward.
As the race began through Hyrule Field, Link had forgotten about the major threat that littered across the grass; the guardians. The ancient beasts of machinery had made it apparent that it was their territory many times to the swordsman. The closer they grew to the guardians, the clearer it was that they would no longer bring harm to him. The malice that had been a virus upon them had now dissipated, leaving behind untrustworthy machines. There was an unease as Link passed by them, their blinking single eye watching him closely. He expected a fight as always, paying close attention to the way their mechanical limbs inched closer and even away from his position. Nevertheless, no fight came and Link was safe to continue.
The skies were alight in gold as the sun rose up in the morning. Sunlight shone down on Link and Zelda, warming their skin in a newfound heaven. The once horrid glow of malice that covered nearly all of Hyrule was now gone and all of the occupants of the kingdom were beginning to notice. Those closest to the castle had been watching the legendary battle from afar, either stuck in a dread or hope that kept them there. They saw the frightening Calamity, heard its monstrous roars from deep within the castle’s walls. Upon seeing the giant mass of hatred, many thought that the swordsman didn’t stand a chance. Others had much more hope, for he wielded the fabled sword that sealed the darkness. In addition, there was their princess to take into account, whom no one anticipated until she arrived. Glowing in her beautiful, white light, she heroically sealed the monster of malice away, saving her people and all of Hyrule.
Cries and cheers rang all throughout the kingdom. Some stood in disbelief. Others couldn’t contain themselves. Those that settled at the Riverside Stable were among the ones that celebrated the end of the Calamity. So many celebrations of relief were sprouted about until someone yelled, “That’s Princess Zelda!” At once there was silence, all eyes turning to see that horse that was racing across the grass and paths. There, draped between the horse’s head and a Hylian man, was the princess.
Her body appeared weary, her head and face turned away from their view. The princess’ long hair flowed gracefully behind her, obscuring most of the sight of the man. There was no doubt that he must’ve been the swordsman, but before anyone could truly speculate, they were gone, off to who knows where, deeper into Hyrule.
It was like this for many of the people that Link would pass by. Gasps and looks of curiosity. Most of all, there was always concern for their princess.
It was nearing midday when Link thundered into Hateno. At the first sight of him, the village people began to spew out a plethora of congratulations and thanks, celebrating his triumphant win over Calamity Ganon. Similar to the stable residents, all such talk ceased the moment they took in the sight that was Princess Zelda. The silence was overbearing as Link looked among the sea of faces. They all seemed to ask him the same question over and over again, one that he could not answer, not even for his own sanity.
Somewhere amongst that sea Link heard someone call out, “Purah and Robbie are at the Ancient Tech Lab!” It reignited his focus, drawing him back from his own mind and into reality. A clearing was created through the people and Link raced through it, bolting up the grassy hillside and finally to his destination, the Ancient Tech Lab.
The door of the lab flew open to reveal the duo in question, Purah and Robbie, as well as some others that Link recognized instantly. The white, red and deep purple clothing instantly identified the Sheikah people, especially the older woman known as Impa. Alongside her stood her two bodyguards, Cado and Dorian, and her granddaughter, Paya. There was not a single moment to think, for the bodyguards came to help the princess down, Purah and Robbie started to ask Link too many questions in so little time, as well as Paya worrying over the wellbeing of the swordsman. In the whirlpool of it all, the guards began to take the princess inside, trailing after Purah and Impa, without Link beside her. He didn’t hesitate to reach forward, shouting out, “Wait!”
Robbie put a small but firm hand on Link’s chest, hoping to stop him from interfering. “We need to assess her before we can go forward with any treatments, Link. We need the space to do so.”
So many thoughts dashed around Link’s head. Too many possibilities of what could happen, of what could be wrong. If he could not be by her side, how could he know that she would be fine? He began to muster together a plan of bursting through the doors, of fighting the two skilled guards and demanding to be allowed to stay. If he could knock out at least one of the guards, surely he would get far. Perhaps he wouldn’t use any of his arrows, only the butt of his sword, the least damaging one-
An arm was placed on his own, shocking him from thoughts. It was Paya gently guiding the swordsman away from the doors of the Tech Lab, trying to refocus his attention elsewhere. “Maybe we could pick some flowers for the princess, for when she wakes up. I hear that the Silent Princess is her favorite.”
Link did not mutter a word of protest and allowed the young Sheikah to lead him down the hill to the field below. He still stole looks at the lab, a small inkling of defiance radiating throughout his body. Yet in the end he knew that he would be of no use to Purah, Robbie and Impa. They, with all of their knowledge, would be able to heal the princess. He was sure of it.
After settling him in the field, Paya wasted no time in busying herself with the task of picking flowers. In fact, she was so lost in her venture that she hadn’t paid any mind to Link, who hadn’t moved since they arrived. It was adamant that the toll of the battle was finally upon him. The adrenaline was washing away, and replacing all of his worries and distress was exhaustion. His hands reached across his chest to the leather straps keeping all of his equipment attached to his person. Some hesitation crossed his mind as the possibilities of a threat flanking his blindside crept up. The swordsman surveyed his surroundings quickly but it soon became clear that the only people in that field were Paya, himself, and Epona, who had come to feed on the grass. He unbuckled the straps, rolling off his sword sheath and his shield. He took his quiver of arrows from his backside and laid it atop the pile next to him. With that, Link collapsed onto the ground, taking in deep and long breaths to steady himself.
Once Paya had gathered what she was certain were more than enough flowers, she turned to Link. It came as a bit of a surprise to see him sprawled out on the grass, staring silently up at the afternoon sky. There was a delay in her movements. She wasn’t certain if he would want or need any company as he watched idly up at the clouds. He had a look of weariness upon his face, one that was long overdue. Paya couldn’t begin to understand even a small fragment of what he had been through. All her life, she had heard tales of the lost hero of Hyrule. How one day, he would awaken and defeat Calamity Ganon. All this time she imagined a strong and resilient hero who didn’t show any falter of his stoic persona, and that much was true in regards to Link. Although he spoke much more than her grandmother led her to believe, he was still the radiant image of the prominent Hero of Hyrule. However, in that moment in time, all Paya could see was a very tired and very overwhelmed boy. The weight of the battle he had been through was now finally slipping off of his shoulders.
Gently, Paya sat herself beside the hero, glancing up at the same sky he was so focused on. There were so many things she wanted to ask him, so many questions that only he could answer. There would be a time for that, she told herself, later on when he wasn’t so fatigued from a lifelong battle. Instead, she thought she could try to ease any worries he had for the princess, for that was sure what else was on his mind. “I am sure the princess will be fine, Master Link. Her fight with Calamity Ganon was sure to take a toll on her, but our princess is resilient.”
All Link could give in reply was a small nod of his head.
It was almost an hour later before there was any news of the princess’ condition. Both Purah and Robbie descended from the lab to deliver the news to Link, who instantly sat up in response. They were certain that the princess just needed rest after a hundred years of fighting against the Calamity’s prowess. Similar to the Shrine of Resurrection that Link himself woke up in, Princess Zelda was placed in a bath of water. Purah and Robbie estimated she would only need a few days before she would wake, unlike Link. And even better, Link could be by her bedside.
As soon as those words were muttered, Link dashed off in a flash. Leaving behind a bewildered Paya and Robbie, Purah herself was not confused in the slightest. “He really hasn’t changed, huh?”