Chapter Text
The expedition had been going well, he would say. Or at least as well as any expedition taking him and the princess down into the forgotten bowels beneath Hyrule Castle to investigate the outbreak of some mysterious and possibly Malice-related sickness could go.
The princess was currently zipping around like an excited bee, taking pictures with her Sheikah Slate and yammering on and on about the Zonai. Link didn’t quite understand everything she was saying, he’d never been much for history himself, but her wide-eyed excitement was infectious to say the least.
That and he was glad to finally be somewhat returning to the norm of his past life, standing by the princess as her personal guard… though admittedly he’d felt his sword-arm itching for something a little more challenging than just a couple of keese and the gaggle of bokos they’d encountered at the tunnel’s entrance. Still, the princess’ sheer awe at the mural they were currently standing before made it all worth it.
Link himself had to admit that the mural was interesting, if only for the scenes it displayed. It was a shame that the latter end of the mural had been blocked by debris. He’d made a suggestion to the princess to simply bomb the rubble, but her response had been to balk and begin chastising him for such a suggestion.
“Link! Doing so could possibly completely destroy the mural! No, it’d be best if we brought a crew of workers down here to clear the rubble manually. This is priceless history here, Link!”
He rubbed the back of his neck and smiled awkwardly. On second thought maybe she was right about him having a slight obsession with explosives. He’d of course never admit to it, but he’d found himself sorely missing two runes in particular from the Sheikah Slate she held at her hip. The miraculous device hanging alongside the Ancient Blade he’d given her for emergency self-defence. She’d protested it at first, but after seeing one completely annihilate a golden moblin from existence she changed her tune rather quickly.
Still, despite the various distractions they’d encountered during their short span in these Zonai ruins, Link couldn’t stop thinking about the Master Sword… He drew it from its sheath just to check, not needing to bring it towards his face to know that it was still glowing. The blue radiance of the blade could only mean one thing… There was something down here with a lot of Malice.
The princess of course noticed his concern, and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder.
“Don’t worry Link. We’ve already defeated Calamity Ganon. I doubt that whatever may be down here could be half as dangerous.”
She smiled reassuringly, but despite her words, Link could still feel a cold weight in his gut as they traversed further down into the tunnel. The wisps of Malice had been here since they arrived of course, the dark purple energy taking on a noxious, gaseous form. But the further they trekked down the ancient tunnels, the thicker the sickening mist became. And as they made their way out of the mural room and down a dark and decrepit staircase, Link could feel his nerves straining. The Malice in the air was thick down here, he could even see the ember-like flickers of dark energy flittering about every now and then. He kept his blade drawn, the holy light of the Sword that Seals the Darkness seeming to frighten the noxious fumes away.
He made sure to keep Zelda close behind him, looking over his shoulder every few seconds to ensure that nothing was sneaking up behind them. They met eyes for a moment, exchanging silent words through their held gaze. They nodded, whatever had been causing the release of these sickening fumes was close. The two could see a light up ahead, a ghostly green-blue flickering faintly through the deep gloom of darkness that was the Malice at the bottom of the stairs.
Biting back the rising dread in the pit of his stomach, Link stepped forth into a much larger chamber, before being immediately taken aback by what he saw.
The Malice in this chamber was nigh suffocating for one, it lingered thick in the air, pouring out from a figure at the center of the room. That figure in particular, along with what was attached to it were what struck link speechless however. (Not that he was one for words to begin with, but regardless.)
It was a corpse, a mummified corpse if he felt like being specific. The figure locked in a pose that reflected agony, or perhaps it was rage and anguish, with what looked to be a glowing, severed hand puncturing its claws deep into its chest. From the wound poured forth a constant, vile stream of Malice that snaked through the air and ancient stones of this forgotten place.
Behind him, he heard Zelda arrive, gasping openly at what she saw. Her voice following shortly after, the slight shake he’d come to recognize as her nerves betraying her clearly evident.
“W-what… is that?”
She looked around, horrified at she sheer density of Malice inside of this place. All seemingly pouring from the mummified corpse held in seemingly perpetual agony at its center.
“Could this be… the source..?”
Link felt his heart drop as the princess stepped forth out of his protective guard. He so dearly wished she would stop doing that. Nevertheless, he stood beside her, blade drawn and at the ready as she approached the mummified corpse, torch in hand.
Suddenly, the hand clasped at the mummy’s chest sagged, as if their presence had disturbed whatever ritual had been conducted here, before it fell off, landing on the cold stone floor with a dull thud. The princess jumped back slightly, startled by the sudden occurrence. But the sound of something clattering down at her feet drew her attention.
Looking down, she saw a small, teardrop-shaped stone which glowed faintly. Seemingly compelled, the princess reached down and picked it up after giving it a cautious tap, examining the smooth stone closely. The stone – seemingly in response to her touch – began to glow brightly, drawing a gasp from the princess. Though the wonder of the strange stone was quickly replaced by shock, as the duo heard what sounded like a deep heartbeat echo out through the chamber. Zelda stumbled back with a short gasp, Link quickly stepping forward to put himself between her and the mummy. Which began to sickeningly creak and writhe as if animated by unseen puppet strings.
Then, the mummy suddenly sagged backwards, strings seemingly cut. Before its head suddenly snapped towards the duo with a blood-chilling crunch. Baleful red eyes suddenly coming to light in its once-hollow sockets, trembling with unrestrained hatred as a veritable torrent of Malice burst forth from the once-sealed holes on its chest. The torrent surging forth like seething tentacles, one heading straight for the princess.
Link of course intervened, but soon found his blade wrapped tight in the grasp of the Malice, surging down the sacred sword and coursing up his arm. Link let out a strangled sound, halfway between a choke and a gasp, as the substance burned its way up his arm. It was like fire and lightning all at once. The only reason he didn’t scream was because it felt as if all the vitality had been suddenly drained from his body.
Link barely managed to stand firm as the torrent subsided, wobbling on suddenly unsteady footing as a second torrent surged towards him and the princess. Steeling his resolve, the hero swung his blade at the encroaching Malice, only to find himself shocked beyond words as the blade. The legendary Sword that Seals the Darkness…
Snapped, shattered like glass upon the Malice-fueled attack. A single shard from its blade managing to fly past the torrent, and lay a thin cut across the mummy’s desiccated cheek.
“Link!”
The princess called out, also stunned near-speechless by what she had seen. Link was all but frozen, staring down at the hilt of his now-shattered blade. But he quickly shook himself free of the fear. Courage coming alight deep within his soul as he stared down at the mummy, meeting its eyes with a stubborn defiance befit of a knight surveying an outmatched foe. Not one nearly put on his last leg from a single attack.
“Was that the Sword that Seals the Darkness?”
A voice hissed out from the decrepit mummy, its jaw moving impossibly, much like the rest of its body. The cut upon its cheek still sizzling like meat on a greased skillet. Its voice was dry, unnatural. Like nails on a chalkboard.
“A blade that shatters so easily against my power cannot save you from me.”
The mummy straightened itself, ancient bones and sinew creaking like leather as its body twitched and writhed. This thing should not be alive, it should not even be able to hold itself together, and yet here it was. Speaking to them with a deep and barely hidden contempt.
“Zelda…”
The living corpse all but snarled, its tone tinged with venom, old and festering since a time long past.
“You, who carries that fragile sword… Are Link.”
Link was once again stunned, but this time he did not falter, merely looking up with surprise as the mummy called out his name. He couldn’t possibly fathom how it had come across that knowledge. But that didn’t matter now, his Courage held strong. Even weakened as he was, he held his blade at the ready, prepared to swing the broken sword with all the strength that remained in his body.
“Rauru placed his faith in you…”
The corpse continued unchallenged, the sizzling cut on its cheek closing back up, its withered face contorting in an expression that may have once been mockery. But in its decrepit state only served to show how unnatural this thing’s continued existence was.
“...And that was all you could do?”
It was Zelda who spoke next, the tremor in her voice more evident than before.
“H-how do you… know our names..?”
The mummy, seemingly bereft of the care needed to answer such a question, harnessed the Malice once pouring from its chest into a seething, hateful orb. Before – with a near-deafening roar – unleashing a torrent of Malice greater than even those before against the ceiling. Link and Zelda had to fight to remain standing as the earth shook violently around them. And both looked up in horror as the ceiling began to lift upwards. Sunlight spilling through as what seemed to be the entirety of Hyrule Castle was impossibly lifted from its very foundations.
The ground beneath the mummy then gave way, and the unnatural being seemingly allowed itself to fall into the dark, cavernous abyss below. Link, no longer able to support himself, fell to one knee. His breaths came heavy and ragged as he held tightly to the shattered remains of the Master Sword.
“Link!”
Came Zelda’s voice, laced with worry as she made to hurry towards him. Only to let out a clipped scream as the ground gave way beneath her feet. Link’s body moved before his mind caught up. He launched himself with his unsteady feet towards the falling princess, uncaring that he, too, was now falling. He reached out with his injured arm, ignoring the sheer agony that shot through his body like lightning at exerting any kind of effort with the injured flesh.
For a moment, it seemed as if time nearly stopped. Slowed down to such a degree that he could see the wind ruffling each golden-blonde hair on the princess’ head. His focus narrowed to a razor’s edge as the reached for her with all his might. Closer. Closer! He was near enough that he could practically feel her fingers closing on his own.
And then… she slipped past his grip, her fingers catching on nothing but air as they sailed soundlessly between his own.
NO!!!
Link could only let out a strangled gasp as the princess fell away from his reach. He had failed. He had failed Her… Again.
Then, the princess was suddenly overtaken with a golden glow, before seemingly vanishing into thin air. Link balked, his eyes wider than saucers as he watched her simply poof away. Before he could even think, his momentum was suddenly completely arrested, and he felt a firm grip clutching at his one good arm. He looked back, surprised, only to see the very same severed had that had once held firm on the mummy’s chest gripping his arm. He didn’t have a moment to question it, as suddenly he was pulled up, and his vision went white.
—~~~—
Link came awake slowly. The first thing he felt was the cool sensation of stone at his back. His eyelids felt heavy as boulders, and he had to fight to open them even slightly. With a soft grunt, he came back to full awareness, sitting up and opening his eyes fully. The first thing he noticed was the room he was in… it appeared abandoned, with thick tree roots covering its ceiling and walls, stone architecture so weathered and ancient that it nearly looked as natural as the roots themselves.
The second thing he noticed was when he looked down. He nearly jumped with shock at what he saw.
His hand… had been seemingly replaced. Dark fur and long green claws greeted him where once had been a perfectly normal, if heavily calloused, Hylian hand. His arm was also wrapped in intricate golden jewelry that hugged tight to his skin. But somehow didn’t feel uncomfortable in the slightest. But as he followed his arm up to his shoulder, he came to another, even more shocking revelation.
It… it hadn’t been just his arm that had changed… no, his whole body was different now!
His skin, once peachy and bare, was now covered in a layer of soft, gray fur. His legs and feet had also changed, his treads now sporting the same sharp, dull-green colored claws as his hands. And as he felt himself up, scarcely believing what he was seeing, he came to the horrifying realization that this was, in fact, his own body. A stiff and slightly more painful than intended (thanks to his new claws) pinch had confirmed that. Another thing that he soon came to realize was that his hair had grown out. And not only that, it had turned a stark white. Like a cascade of Hebra snow flowing over his shoulders, with only its tips tinted with the familiar golden-yellow he’d always known.
He brought his hands up to his face, only to find that not even that had been spared! Where once was a flat, soft Hylian face now sat a fuzzy snout, with a soft pink nose at its end. He felt the strange sensation of waking up with a face that held a completely different structure than that he was used to. And these ears! It didn’t take him very long at all to find that he now possessed some truly massive ears. He could even bring them over into his view by pulling the long, fuzzy appendages forward. Had he been turned into… some weird Hylian-rabbit hybrid!?
As if he didn’t already have enough on his place, he soon began to hear a voice in his head. And his once-damaged arm began to glow a brilliant blue-green.
“Ah, Link. Finally, you wake.”
He tried not to think about the uncomfortable familiarity those words held. Instead electing to rise unsteadily to his feet and look around, arms held at the ready.
“I’ve heard a great deal about you from Zelda.”
Zelda!? She’s alive!? Oh thank the goddess! Relief flooded through Link, he hadn’t completely failed her as he had initially dreaded when he failed to grasp her as she fell. His posture relaxed, no longer holding the same tension-filled edge that it had previously.
“Your wounds were severe… I am relieved to see you escape death.”
Link involuntarily winced, remembering the sheer agony he’d been in not too long ago, the feeling like his flesh had been flayed from the bones by electric fire still vivid in his memory.
“Your arm, however, was beyond saving. I had to replace it, lest the injury endanger you further… but… I must admit, I did not anticipate that your body would similarly change to match it. You must forgive me, I was just as surprised as you, as I watched the changes spread…”
Well that was… reassuring at least. That his sudden and complete transformation had not been intentional, at least. The fact that it had happened at all however, and seemingly without explanation, didn’t help to settle his nerves though.
A glint in the corner of his eyes caught his attention, and he immediately turned to face it. He’d recognize that blue-winged hilt anywhere. The Master Sword.
Link walked forward, stumbling for a moment on his still unsteady new feet. He reached forth to pull the blade from where it had been sunk between two of the ancient roots. His expression turned dour, as he saw that the blade’s edge still remained corroded and shattered. He had somehow hoped that the legendary blade would have somehow magically repaired itself while he was unconscious. Nevertheless, he found its scabbard laying beside it, and carefully sheathed it where it had always rested by his side. Though now he had nothing to strap it to. Thus he came to the startling realization that he’d been left quite nude since his transformation. Though lacking anything to cover himself with, he decided that there was nothing for it. Better to be naked than dead… and also he supposed being unwittingly transformed into some strange fluffy rabbit-Hylian hybrid was also better than being dead. At least the fur helped to keep the chill away.
Holding the sheathed blade at his side, he used it to bat away some of the dried roots that had grown over the room’s entrance. Soon walking into a larger room with what appeared to be a circle of fine sand at its center, with a stone statue depicting what looked to be two dragons circling one another just in front. As he walked forward, the stone statue suddenly came alight, a glowing green glyph appearing in the hollow circle at its center. A rune that looked like a hand clearly displayed alongside some illegible text.
Link walked up to the glowing glyph, and upon looking down at his bejeweled arm, noticing the similarities between it and the hand rune on the glyph. Experimentally, he held out his hand towards it, and just as he thought, the glyph seemed to activate, before dispersing away in ribbons of green light, with a sound like chimes heard through water.
He heard a sound behind himself, turning around, he recognized the blue rune that had appeared in the sand circle. He had used its like many times before when in possession of the Sheikah Slate. It was a teleportation rune! He was suddenly startled from his thoughts when the dull, ringing sound of what may have been a bell or gong of some kind echoed out through the ruins. He startled again when what he now recognized to be a massive set of gears to his left began to spin. Okay, so whatever he just did probably activated the… wherever he was right now. Thankfully that also meant that a previously sealed door up ahead had now opened, allowing him further passage through this place.
As he walked through, he came across a collapsed segment of whatever structure he was in. Finding a pool of water had formed in the pit. Without thinking twice, Link put his hands together and dove right in…
…
COLD! COLD COLD COLD COOOOOLD!
He quickly burst from the water like a sopping cat, having seemingly forgotten about his new furry form already, and not being prepared for how that paired in combination with ice-cold water. He gasped and sputtered as he pulled himself from the pool, and he could swear he heard a light, warm chuckle in the back of his mind.
Well thankfully he was… pretty sure nobody had seen him pathetically scramble out of the water like that. And that nobody had seen him instinctively shake himself dry like a dog immediately afterwards. His long rabbit-like ears flopping loudly as he did. The blush of embarrassment was thankfully seemingly enough to warm him back up as he continued down the passage. Where he found…
…Oh you have got to be kidding me.
Well, thankfully he wasn’t afraid of heights.
After another frigid dive into ice-cold cave waters, Link found himself supremely thankful that there happened to be a convenient chest beside the pool, which held some clothes inside.
It took him a frankly embarrassing amount of time to figure out how to put on the dull brown skirt and long, lacy sandals. But at least by the end of it he’d had the opportunity to mostly dry off and finally have something to cover his sensitive bits. So long as he ignored that the skirt only covered those from certain angles…
Link continued his stride forwards toward the light of day. Only to find himself completely shocked once more. He was… he was in the sky. On an island.
Link was on a sky island, and moreover, he could see even more islands lifted up into the sky as far as his vision went. It was like a whole sky archipelago! And as he looked down… wow that was a big drop- okay, well at least there was water at the bottom. He’d jumped off waterfalls before, this was probably not all that different. Except for the fact that he was currently who knows how far up in the sky above the earth.
But he wasn’t known as a fearless hero for nothing. Link quickly steeled his courage, took a few steps back, and leaped forth off of the platform.