Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Warriors spat out blood.

The plan was going well. They’d found a monster encampment, much to their relief as they’d been tracking the pack for at least two days. Warriors had come up with a quick strategy, and then they’d engaged.

Wild eliminated the lookouts easily enough. That had given them the advantage. Of course, they hadn’t counted on exactly how many monsters there were. But if they stayed vigilant, they’d be all right.

Pulling his sword out of a bokoblin, the captain turned to see how everyone was faring. Wind and Legend were back-to-back against a small pack of stalfos, but they had the situation well in hand. Time and Twilight were handling a moblin, and Hyrule had already eliminated several lizalfos alongside Four. Wild was—

Wild was about to get hit.

“Champion!” Warriors shouted in warning as he rushed to the amnesiac’s aid. Wild was too busy eliminating a wizzrobe to notice the bokoblin behind him, ready to strike—

The bokoblin’s head was separated cleanly from its body just before Warriors got within range, making the captain jump. The bokoblin fell as Wild turned, revealing Sky standing there, his Master Sword dripping with the beast’s black blood.

“Thanks,” Wild said breathlessly.

Sky smiled. “No problem.”

And just like that, the battle continued. Warriors returned his attention to his immediate surroundings, and shortly thereafter the camp was cleared.

Warriors pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the black blood off his sword while he heard a ruckus behind him. Turning, he saw Wind and Hyrule laughing, arms slung over each other’s shoulders, shouting at the sky.

“Your black blood army sucks!” Wind yelled.

Chuckling, the captain sheathed his weapon as Twilight settled the excitable teenagers. The adrenaline of the fight started to fade, and Time commented that he would search the perimeter for stragglers. Warriors nodded, staying with the rest of the group and remaining vigilant.

As Warriors corralled the other heroes together, Twilight paused mid step, his hand on Wild’s shoulder. The champion and the captain both noticed the change and looked at him questioningly.

“What’s wrong?” Wild asked.

“I thought I heard something,” Twilight said softly, his body tense.

Everyone who heard him stilled, listening. A little splash came east of them by a stream, and they whirled around to face it.

A single octorok peeked out before slowly floating into the air, oblivious to them.

Legend raised his bow and nocked an arrow, ready to strike, when Wild leapt in from behind and snatched the octorok around its mouth. The little creature was still inflated, attempting to squeal in protest.

“You’re not going to eat it, are you?” Legend asked hesitantly as he lowered his weapon, disgust twisting his face at just the mere thought of it.

Hyrule’s eyes brightened, a hopeful look crossing his face.

Wild laughed. “Of course not, they’re best in potions! Besides, I figured out something way better for these guys. Watch!”

“Uh, what is that?” Twilight asked, wary. Legend opened his mouth to explain when Four spoke first.

“It’s—what the hell, Champion?!” Four exclaimed as Wild pressed his lips against the octorok’s mouth and inhaled sharply.

“Did—did you just kiss an octorok?!” Wind asked, laughing so hard he nearly fell to the ground.

Wild smiled mischievously, saying, “Heck yeah, I did!”

Everyone froze. What was… what happened to Wild’s voice?! It sounded so unbelievably high pitched, like a fairy trying to speak!

Wind was in tears. “Holy crap that’s amazing!”

Sky’s mouth fell to the floor. “How did you do that?”

“You just kiss it and breathe in!” Wild replied in his high-pitched tone.

Sky reached hesitantly and Wind nearly dove for the octorok, but Legend swatted their hands away. “Stop, how do you know those things aren’t poisonous?”

Wild’s lips trilled as he blew air through them in a dismissive manner. “Please, I’ve done this so many times I’ve lost count. It’s fine.”

“How did he find out the first time?” Four muttered.

Seeming satisfied with the explanation, Twilight took the octorok and kissed it first. Then he spluttered and nearly tossed the creature back into the water. “Ew, gross, tongue, ugghhhh—”

Sky leaned heavily against Hyrule as the pair and Wind were practically cracking their ribs with their howling. Twilight’s voice matched Wild’s, but his frantic delivery made it pitch up by an octave.

Warriors snorted, his chest burning from the effort it took to not double over in hysterics. “My, my, Rancher, I didn’t know you were that kind of kisser.”

Twilight promptly punched him on the arm. Warriors couldn’t help the grunt that got knocked out of his lungs; even playfully, the Ordonian’s swings were strong enough to send him stumbling.

A delighted squeal tore through the air as Wind giggled and tossed the octorok to Hyrule. Wind started yelling at the top of his lungs, and Sky immediately pulled out his lyre.

“Wait, wait, you—you know so—so many songs,” Sky said eagerly, halting between words because he was giggling at his own pitched voice so much. “So I’ll play, you sing!”

By the time Warriors could catch his breath again, the octorok had passed between so many Links that the captain had lost track, and Wind was singing sea shanties at ear splitting levels. The captain wondered if Time would come rushing back thinking they were torturing fairies.

Hyrule ran over to Warriors, his eyes sparkling, his cheeks flushed with excitement. “Here, your turn!”

The captain grabbed the wiggling octorok, staring at it nervously. He looked at Legend curiously, wondering if the veteran had actually kissed it, and raised an eyebrow.

Legend bit his lip, crossed his arms, and looked away. Warriors cackled. Oh, he kissed it.

Well, might as well try it out.

 Putting the slimy lips to his own, Warriors couldn’t help but shudder a little bit, but he inhaled hastily nonetheless before tossing the poor creature back into the water.

“Aw, wait, no, we still need him!” Wild yelled from his place beside Sky, his voice slipping from a high soprano to his more typical tenor.

Warriors wiped his mouth and then tested his voice carefully. “He needs a break too, Champion, he’s had eight different people kissing him.”

Oh goddesses he could just see Zelda losing her composure at his voice. He blushed at the thought of it, and then he had to laugh at himself.

A twig snapped at the edge of the clearing, and all the voices hushed at once. Everyone turned, swords at the ready, when Time emerged from the shadows.

No one said a word.

Their leader crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow, seeming to be waiting for something. Warriors narrowed his eyes. He knew that mischievous glint in the man’s eye. He was up to something, but no one dared to speak and reveal their silly game. Time was, after all, the most serious of the lot, and many of the boys had suffered under his disapproving glare.

Time took a deep breath. “I thought I heard fairies over here, so I had to investigate.”

There was a moment where everyone registered that the man’s usual baritone was three octaves higher, and then the tension snapped.

Wind doubled over, his octorok-induced operatic tones shifting to normal laughter. Sky blew out a sigh of relief alongside Four and Hyrule, while Legend and Twilight chuckled. Wild scurried to the stream to find the octorok again, only to whine in disappointment when it was evident the creature was long gone.

Warriors giggled, which then erupted into full blown belly laughter as he heard his own voice again.

Time smiled, relaxing, and motioned with his head. “Come on. Let’s go find a place to make camp. This is too exposed.”

XXX

The group sat in a circle around the campfire, comfortable after a hearty dinner.

“We should do a storytelling game!” Wind suddenly suggested.

“How does that work?” The champion asked curiously.

“One of us starts by telling a line of a story, and then we go from person to person and add to it,” Wind explained with a wave of his arm. “It’s fun!”

Sky smiled over at the smithy. “Why don’t you start?”

Four brightened significantly at the offer. “Sure! Once, there was a person known as the Hero of Men. Legend stated he had been gifted a sacred sword called the Picori Blade.”

Wind jumped in before Four could continue. “Yeah, the Picori Blade! It’s a magical sword that can shoot fireballs the size of mountains! And you can pick your teeth with it too!”

Four bristled. “That’s not—”

Wind laughed heartily, clapping Four on the back. “Oh relax, it’s a game, remember? Besides, Picori, picking, they sounded similar enough—”

Four’s face was steadily growing redder, and he looked like he was about to go off while Wild giggled at Wind’s joke.

“Let’s move on to the next person,” Sky inserted. “Smithy got us off to a great start. So, the Picori Blade was given to the Hero of Men and it can shoot fireballs. Champion, I think you’re next in the circle.”

Four settled with a calming breath as the offending addition by Wind was diplomatically left out, and Wind eagerly looked at Wild to continue the tale. The champion eagerly continued the legend, and Twilight had to smile at it all. He looked at Sky especially, happy the younger hero was able to smooth ruffled feathers so easily. In a group as variable as theirs, that was a crucial gift to have.

Twilight was startled out of his musings when Wild elbowed him. “Your turn, silly!”

Oh. Wait, what had Wild said? “Uh, yes, and then everything changed when the bokoblins attacked.”

Everyone stared at him, and Twilight felt himself blushing. “Haha, I guess I might’ve missed the last part… what did you say, Champion?”

Wild rolled his eyes. After repeating himself, Twilight added to the tale a little distractedly before letting his mind wander again. He wondered how much longer they’d be in this particular Hyrule, seeing as it had been almost a month. He rubbed absentmindedly at the old, mostly healed wound on his side, a parting gift from the Shadow in accompaniment to the realization that it could shapeshift. The wound rarely bothered him at this point, but it still acted up like any other newly scarred tissue.

Eventually the wild tale ranged from the Hero of Men defeating evil to dancing in his boxers in the rain and then being cursed by an evil cuccoo (Sky was distraught at this) to never be able to dance again. It took an even more tragic turn when dancing was required for a dungeon puzzle and the Hero of Men could only remove the cuccoo curse by wearing Princess Zelda’s most cumbersome dress and twirling while whistling Zelda’s lullaby. At this point, Twilight wasn’t even sure how it had managed to get this insane or who added what part, but he was laughing nonetheless.

When the great cuccoo curse was lifted and the Hero of Men danced triumphantly and obtained the Triforce of Courage, Time decided that was a good enough ending for the legend. The conversation eventually shifted, steering towards more serious topics. Matters of the Shadow, his abilities, and his motivations became the primary topic, and everyone was heavily engrossed in it.

“Well…” Hyrule said thoughtfully, staring at the fire. “He’s a Shadow, a being from the Dark Realm. He’s probably just trying to cause chaos. He’s evil.”

Twilight felt something within him tighten and snap at the phrasing, already having heard this from Four about his shadow crystal. While the object itself was a cursed item, the implications that all that came from a dark realm was automatically wrong did not sit well with him. “You can’t just assume that everything from the Dark Realm is evil.”

“It’s certainly corrupting, at the least,” Four intoned, carefully avoiding Twilight’s eyes. This was not a new argument between the two.

“Ganon corrupted things in my world,” Wild supplied. “Maybe it’s his agent.”

Everyone paused a moment. The topic of Ganon had been tossed around, but they weren’t too sure how much they should consider it. In this new light, it seemed a bit more plausible.

Legend nodded. “That’s possible. Ganon had turned the Sacred Realm into something of a Dark Realm in my world. Maybe the Shadow itself is Ganon, trying to do the same thing here. And the goddesses brought all of us together to eliminate him!”

"Technically, the dark portals brought us together, but your point still stands," Four amended. "I suppose the goddesses would have found a way to get us together for this."

“Wow, he really does just keep coming back, doesn’t he?” Wind noted.

Everyone except Sky nodded sagely.

Warriors shrugged. “It wouldn’t be the first time the goddesses have thrown heroes together to solve a big crisis.”

The statement held a certain finality to it, an acceptance of an assumption they were slowly building on.

With that, Time ended the discussion. “What matters is how we handle the problem now that it’s here. We can start by getting some rest. It’s getting late. Let’s divide up watch.”

XXX

Sky absentmindedly poked at the fire with a stick. He had taken third watch, but to be honest, he hadn’t slept through the first two either. As soon as everyone had settled for the night, Sky had tossed and turned, haunted by the conversation they’d had, haunted by the guilt and steadily growing realization of the situation around him.

Whimpering caught his attention, and he turned to see Wild shifting in his bedroll, his eyes squeezed shut. Sky watched him for a moment, his heart aching at the sight, and then stood and walked over to the champion. He knelt beside him, putting a careful, gentle hand on his arm, running it back and forth in a soothing motion.

As Wild steadily relaxed, Sky felt his heart fall somewhere into the vicinity of his stomach. The champion was plagued with nightmares from whatever hell he’d endured that gave him those scars.

And it was Sky’s fault.

Sky had long since figured out that Demise’s last words had not been a spiteful and empty threat, but a legitimate promise of enduring suffering. Words spoken as a curse had indeed infused dark magic into the land, and it was entirely due to Sky’s inability to end things sooner.

What if he had cut the demon king’s head off while he spoke? Would the curse still fall on him? Would murdering a defeated foe curse him in itself? He didn’t know. All he knew was that he had, in fact, let Demise doom everyone and everything.

The stick snapped in half in Sky’s white knuckled grip. He let it slip out of his fingers alongside the splinters and tiny trickle of blood that followed. He felt agonizing anxiety and self-loathing, and then he shook his head, numbing his mind and heart to the best of his ability in order to cope. Making his way back to the fire, he rubbed his hand against his pants, the stinging pain that it brought bringing his foggy head back to reality with startling clarity.

Sky had done this to all of them. And now… maybe he had done this too. This journey, this adventure, this danger.

Twilight almost died because of me.

He loved his brothers dearly. He saw how they dedicated every fiber of their being to their duty. He saw how they enjoyed it but also hurt from it all the same. He saw Time’s disdainful and fearful looks at the Master Sword. He saw Twilight’s melancholy gaze at the sunset. He saw Warriors’ shaking hands after a particularly hard battle. He saw Legend skipping on sleep to avoid nightmares, he saw Hyrule constantly looking over his shoulder expecting a threat, he saw Wind cut beasts down with practiced ease despite being a child, he recognized Four’s careful words and calm demeanor as the meticulously practiced coping mechanisms that they were.

And Wild’s scars screamed more than anything he could ever say.

A rustling sound caught Sky’s attention, snapping him out of his musings. He stiffened, alert for danger. He heard more movement, but it was coming from farther away, below the cliff that the campsite hugged. Rising, he slowly walked to the edge of the cliff a dozen or so steps away from the edge of camp, continuously checking and rechecking the perimeter. When he got to the drop, he saw the tree line below, and he could barely make out movement in the early dawn light.

Bokoblins.

Sky reached for his blade silently, and then froze. One of the bokoblins was darker than the usually red or blue hued monsters, and its eyes glowed red in the darkness.

The Shadow.

That shapeshifting monster was here.

Sky immediately whirled, ready to awaken the others, but then something stopped his voice before it could escape his throat. Turning back, he looked down again, watching as the pack of beasts moved away from the cliff, deeper into the forest.

I can take them. I’ve taken an army before.

Sky’s breath caught at the vehement thought. His head was still spinning with guilt and pain and fear and anger, the words maybe the Shadow is Ganon himself reverberating in his soul.

If the Shadow really was Ganon…

Then it was Demise.

And Sky was not sending his brothers to get hurt again by the demon king that he was supposed to kill.

Something snapped into place in his mind, heart, and soul. His body filled with fire. Taking a deep breath, Sky turned back to camp, making haste to pack his belongings. Then he shook Wild roughly to ensure the champion woke.

Wild stirred, moaning, and that was all the indication Sky needed. He ran back to the cliffside, sailcloth in his hands, and scanned the area again.

The bokoblins were gone. That meant they headed south, away from his brothers. He could track them.

Sky stepped forward, launching himself off the cliff without a second’s hesitation. The cool morning air numbed his face and hands, but his grip on the sailcloth was as strong as iron. He deployed the cloth at the last moment and let the energy he’d picked up allow him to roll forward. He tied the sailcloth around his waist, hiding behind a tree to examine his surroundings.

Footprints were clear in the dim light due to some mud. Sky avoided the wet soil to remain quiet as he continued his hunt. He heard no noise whatsoever, which he didn’t like – they hadn’t had enough time to get that far away.

Drawing the Master Sword and his shield, Sky tread carefully onward. The trail continued until it led into a larger clearing. Sky hung at the outskirts, ensuring this wasn’t an enemy camp or a ambush waiting to happen.

Instead, he saw a familiar sight.

A portal.

Approaching it slowly, he processed the tracks leading directly to it. So the Shadow had moved on, taking his army with him.

Disappointment and frustration boiled his blood, and then he took a calming breath, letting the morning air cool his flushed face. He stared at the portal for what felt like hours.

He should go back to camp. He should tell the others what he found. He should ensure they’re okay.

But this… this was the best way to ensure they would be okay. This was the best way to make up for his incomprehensible failure. He imagined Wild’s humming while he cooked, Wind’s exuberant laughter, Twilight’s gentle smiles and hugs, Time’s steadfastness, Four’s words of wisdom, Hyrule’s warmth and excitement for exploration, and Legend’s watchful concern and softness.

He imagined Warriors, a knight with honor, who had borne so much yet still had an air of joviality and calm. A knight who had fulfilled his duty despite all the odds against him.

He would protect his brothers. He wasn’t going to give the Shadow any extra precious time to regroup. He would not be late. He was Hylia’s Chosen Hero, and he would fulfill his duty and end this.

Sheathing his blade, Link stared determinedly through the portal, and marched ahead alone.

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

The fire had mostly died down by the time the sun’s dawn light started pushing the darkness of night from the horizon. Time shifted uncomfortably, leaning against a dresser. Warriors watched him quietly, similarly unable to sleep. It was partly due to the fact that their day had been nearly cut in half by the time difference, but the situation itself certainly didn’t help.

The captain’s gaze drifted to his sleeping companions. His mind always did an automatic head count when he’d see them, a habit he had picked up from the war. When he settled on seven, his heart twisted anew.

Warriors had gone over multiple reasons why this had happened. Why Sky might have left. His mind immediately had screamed traitor and he’d quickly squished that old paranoia. Sky was the among the least likely to do something like that. Warriors knew this for certain because he’d made a list of possible threats from the other heroes the day he’d met them.

Old habits die hard, after all.

No, Sky wasn’t a traitor. He was young, though, and that led to foolishness. Warriors had already seen such recklessness play out in the other teenagers, but Sky had never demonstrated such behavior.

So if he wasn’t a fool and he wasn’t a traitor, then why the hell had he gone through a portal alone?! Why had he abandoned his post and left them vulnerable?!

One thing was for sure, Warriors was going to give him a stern talking to when they found him. Because they would find him. Sky was fine. He was fine. Warriors had contingency plans already building in case the young knight wasn’t, but he refused to really deliberate them for now. It was too early for that sort of thinking. This was a search and rescue operation, not a recovery operation.

Goddesses, just the mere thought—Warriors swallowed hard, images of fallen comrades appearing in his mind. He didn’t want to even imagine that for the kindhearted, soft little knight. He shook his head and looked back towards Time.

He found little comfort in the man’s worried expression and furrowed brow.

“Pretty sure I can physically feel your anxiety from over here,” the captain commented quietly.

“And I can already see you calculating the next move,” Time fired back, crossing his arms. “Perhaps we should collaborate instead of stew in our own thoughts.”

“Great, I’ll start: I get to be the first one to lecture Sky when we find him.”

Time blinked, and the seconds that he refused to react to the remark made Warriors squirm. Their leader was not an optimistic man, and it looked like he was already worried that lectures would be the least of their concerns when they stumbled onto their missing brother. But then he smiled, and said, “Very well. But I’ll be next.”

Warriors relaxed as Time took the bait. It was a delicate balance, understanding the reality of the situation while also being flippant about it. Taking heavy matters lightly was something soldiers excelled at, though, and the captain continued, “Perfect. You can build on mine.”

There was a pause, and then Time suddenly asked, “Do you think he was trying to leave us?”

The question was posed as evenly as possible, but there was the slightest hurt, the slightest worry giving it an edge. It held a vulnerability to it that Warriors wasn’t sure he’d seen in Time outside of when Twilight was dying.

The captain sighed. “I don’t know. It doesn’t seem like him to do that.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Time agreed, both in assurance to himself and in confusion.

“What we should focus on is how to find him,” Warriors said. “We’ll have to ask Rancher how long it might take to gather intel in town before we can head out.”

“Depends on who you ask.”

Warriors and Time both jumped, startled at hearing Twilight’s voice over them. He and Wild had curled up at the top of the tree house to sleep for the night, and he was now peeking over the edge of the balcony.

“You didn’t sleep either?” Warriors asked.

Twilight gave him a flat look. “Did you really expect me to when Sky’s missing and my home might have been in danger?”

“I suppose not.”

Twilight carefully climbed down to the main floor, stepping gingerly over his brothers and settling beside Time on the floor.

“We can talk to my guardians and the mayor,” Twilight said. “Rusl has connections across Hyrule, he’ll know what’s been going on in the kingdom. Mayor Bo might have some extra information as well, certainly more official stuff.”

Warriors smiled as Twilight’s accent peeked through when he mentioned his people’s names. “I can practically hear your country drawl trying to escape, farm boy.”

Twilight rolled his eyes. “Well, yah better get used to it because you’re gonna need a translator for the accents here.”

“Oh no, don’t make it thicker—”

“Why? Yah ‘fraid o’ what I might say that you won’t know? I reckon you’re gonna fit in as well as a sore thumb ‘round these parts, oh captain.” Twilight continued, smirking in delight.

Warriors groaned. Bloody miscreant.

An audible growl emitted from the corner as Legend sat up. “Could you not talk so loudly first thing in the morning?”

“You were so eager to get up early and get things moving,” Warriors fired back smoothly, smirking at the veteran.

Legend grumbled, bags evident under his eyes from a very clear lack of sleep. The captain would be surprised if anybody slept well, honestly. The only one who would be able to pass out so easily would be—

Warriors sighed, cheer draining out of him. “We’d better start waking everyone up, anyway. The sooner we can gather intel the sooner we can move out.”

“We’ll need to resupply while we’re here as well,” Time added as he rose to his feet.

Twilight nodded in agreement and moved to wake Wild while Time and Warriors went to the others. Legend, being the absolute morning person that he was, stayed huddled in his corner, face buried in his hands. The captain threw a curious glance in the veteran’s direction but didn’t bother him, knowing Legend was better left alone for the first few hours of the morning.

Breakfast was a rather somber affair. Wild cooked a quick meal, boiling enough eggs to last both breakfast and lunch, as well as frying some vegetables. Legend, Hyrule, and Four were all silent, Wind only spoke to ask what their next move would be, and Twilight spoke briefly about the village. Time looked to Warriors, who coordinated with Twilight to figure out how to best utilize their resources in an efficient manner.

After maybe ten minutes of scarfing down food, Twilight directed everyone to the spring outside of town to clean up. Then they broke into groups. The captain was going to talk to the mayor after Twilight introduced him briefly, and while he did so Twilight and Time would speak with the rancher’s guardians. Wild and Hyrule were tasked with gathering supplies, leaving Legend, Four, and Wind to assist or pack up supplies in anticipation.

Or, in Wind’s case, to explore the village. The sailor insisted on helping one of the other groups, but Warriors put his foot down. Too many people in any one group would only end up in stepping on each other’s feet, and given stress levels, he didn’t need tempers flaring up or money and time being wasted.

It didn’t take long for their group to attract attention. Most of the village as awake as the sun hugged the horizon, and the children rubbed sleepiness from their eyes as they gasped in wonder at the group of heroes.

“Link!” most of them shouted, making all the heroes turn to face the incoming horde. They were led by a blonde who was close to adolescence in age.

Twilight immediately crouched down to hug the blonde as the other children stopped short upon noticing scrutiny from his companions. “Hey, Colin.”

Colin held the ranch hand tightly. “I missed you. Are you okay? What’s happening? Do you know why the monsters are attacking more? Who are the people with you?”

Twilight laughed. “Slow down, Colin, I can’t answer everythin’ all at once.”

Warriors covered a laugh for a cough. It was endearing hearing his accent slip out in his hometown. And mildly terrifying at the prospect of trying to understand the mayor.

“Look, I need to talk to Mayor Bo,” Twilight explained, ruffling the kid’s hair reassuringly with a smile. “But then I’m gonna go to the house, okay? These are my friends—”

“Is that a training sword you got there?” Wind interrupted, peeking around Twilight. “Because I can teach you some pretty cool moves if you want! I go by Sailor because I’m from the seas, but I’m one of the best fighters in my area, so if you want to learn some cool moves, we should go train together!”

Warriors smiled proudly at the youngest member of their group. On the surface it looked like Wind was just easily distracted and immediately interrupted the conversation, but the captain knew that the sailor had read into the same nervous energy that he himself had. This Colin fellow was not likely to let go of Twilight anytime soon, which would slow their progress with his questions. Understandable from someone his age, but not a delay they needed or wanted. Wind was finding a purpose for the morning and helping the group.

Colin glanced nervously between Wind and Twilight, who gave him an encouraging pat on the back, saying, “He’s one of the best swordsmen I’ve ever met, and he’s a very good friend of mine. You can learn a lot from him, Colin! I promise I’ll come by to talk later.”

Colin hesitantly nodded. Wind eagerly grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him off towards the tree house, where Warriors knew there was a training mannequin already set up. The sailor was already babbling, attracting the curiosity of at least one of the other children, but the rest remained in place, shy and anxious.

“It’s okay, guys,” Twilight said gently as some of the adults of the village started to gather and murmur amongst themselves. “Like I said, they’re my friends. I’m gonna go talk to the mayor, okay?”

The kids shifted, stepping aside for the rancher to head towards the largest abode. Warriors followed him and choked back a laugh as some of them immediately started to interrogate the group. As he followed Twilight, he examined the village itself, looking at the adults in particular for any sign of threat. There weren’t many of them out, but they had a wariness to them, though the sight of Twilight seemed to set some of it at ease.

Twilight knocked on the door, which was quickly opened by a young woman who looked to be around his age. She gasped in delight. “Link! Oh, you’re okay, I’m so glad!”

Warriors took a subtle step away to give them a moment as she rammed into him with an excited hug, making him stumble a bit in place and laugh. He smiled knowingly when Twilight happened to catch his eye, and the captain wiggled his eyebrows. The rancher shot him a sour look in return and Warriors finally had to laugh.

So this was Ilia.

He couldn’t wait to tease his brother about her.

In the meantime, though, Twilight quickly made some introductions to the mayor, who was apparently Ilia’s father. The enormous man welcomed Warriors into his home, and Twilight quickly excused himself to go see his family.

XXX

In the interim while Twilight was gone, their party had split into different groups. Legend had finally decided to distract the children, trying to cheer them up with a joke. Of course, the joke seemed to fall flat, making Legend try again, waving his arms to emphasize his points, and though the children grew steadily more bemused by the spectacle, Time found himself chuckling at it.

Meanwhile, Hyrule was already exploring to find any shops, and Wild… well…

“For pity’s sake, don’t climb near the beehive!” Four shouted from the ground as the amnesiac knight was nearly hanging off a branch in an attempt to reach a beehive because apparently they needed more honey for cooking. Time eyed him nervously, but he knew this probably wasn’t Wild’s first time antagonizing a nest of bees and likely wouldn’t be his last.

He heard a heavy sigh behind him. “That didn’t take long for him.”

Turning, he saw Twilight watching Wild with exasperation. He put a hand on his descendant’s shoulder. “He’ll be alright. He’s just gathering supplies like he was asked to do.”

Twilight gave him a flat look.

“Come on,” Time prompted. “Let’s talk to this Rusl fellow.”

The ranch hand nodded, heading towards a different house, when he froze just before they reached the door.

“Hey, before we go in there,” Twilight suddenly said, making Time pause. “Uh, please don’t mention the whole me-almost-dying thing. They… they’re a bit… they worry. Stuff has happened in the past and they worry. So I’d rather they didn’t know.”

Time nodded. Far be it from him to decide what his descendant’s family should and shouldn’t know. He himself wouldn’t want to worry Malon if he’d almost died. “Very well.”

Goddesses. Malon. She was going to kill him if she found out about Twilight’s injury.

Twilight knocked on the door, interrupting Time’s train of thought. The door opened a moment later, revealing a man probably in his early forties with thick, tan skin, dark hair, a broad stubbled face, and a strong build. His fingers were calloused, Time immediately noticed, and also had a small speckling of little burns.

Just like Four.

A blacksmith and a swordsman, Time figured.

The man took in the sight before him and Time watched the emotions in his eyes, reading him fairly easily. Initially the man looked immensely surprised, excited, and relieved to see Twilight, but catching sight of Time made him stifle his reaction. Instead, he smiled warmly but cautiously. “Link, it’s so good to see you again. Who’s your friend?”

“It’s okay, Pa,” Twilight immediately said, and just like that Time watched the man in front of him, Rusl, unwind. “He’s family too.”

Time swallowed thickly, feeling unable to speak all of a sudden.

Rusl looked Time over for a moment and nodded. “My name is Rusl. It’s a pleasure to meet you. What relation are you to Link?”

“He’s uh…” Twilight trailed off. “You know what, I’ll explain how we’re related later. But he’s safe.”

Rusl eyed Twilight, raising an eyebrow and then brushing it aside, dragging the young man into a hug. “I’m just glad you’re alright, son.”

Twilight settled into the embrace, smiling and holding his guardian tightly, when the moment was interrupted by another voice. “Link? Link, is that you? Rusl, is Link home?”

Rusl laughed, releasing Twilight. “Yes, he’s here.”

A woman appeared next, face flushed with delight and a toddler perched on her hip. Twilight immediately dipped his head to get a kiss on the forehead from her.

He supposed this had to be Uli.

“Honey, I’m so glad you’re here!” Uli said happily, cupping Twilight’s face with her free hand. “Oh, we only have—I’ll get some more food ready for you—”

“It’s okay, Ma, I already ate,” Twilight interrupted her. “I wish we could catch up, but—we’re in a bit of a hurry. I need to talk to you guys about some threats in the area.”

“You mean the new monster attacks?” Rusl asked, growing serious. He held up an arm, which was bandaged. “I’ve met a few of them. They’re far more powerful than any bulbin I’ve ever encountered.”

“They came to Ordon Village?” Twilight asked breathlessly, growing pale.

Uli put a hand on his shoulder. “No, sweetheart. They were in Faron Woods, though, and out in Hyrule Field. Rusl just went to investigate and had a run-in. He’s okay.”

“Everyone’s okay now,” Rusl amended. “The monsters left yesterday.”

Time and Twilight exchanged a grim look.

“We can discuss this inside, though, come in!” Uli insisted. “The morning air has a chill to it, you’ll catch a cold.”

Twilight moaned at the woman’s fussing as Time smiled and accompanied him indoors.

The interior was small but homely. Time was offered a chair at the table while Uli finally released her tiny charge, who had started wiggling and reaching for Twilight the instant she’d laid eyes on him.

“Link! Link!” the toddler squealed in delight. Twilight quickly picked her up once she hit the ground running, twirling her around as she laughed.

“Hi Hana,” he greeted, kissing her nose and making her giggle. He carried her to the table to sit beside Time as Rusl and Uli took places across from them.

“Where you go?” Hana asked.

“I went on an adventure,” Twilight answered.

“Who he?”

“He’s… he’s the Hero of Time.”

Rusl and Uli snapped their attention to the rancher, eyes wide. “What?”

Time sighed. “He’s right. We’re all heroes of Hyrule, thrown together to fight a powerful foe.”

Though Uli watched Time, wide eyed, Rusl’s gaze immediately returned to Twilight, eyes questioning. Some silent dialogue occurred between the pair, Twilight shaking his head. Time didn’t comment on it.

“We’ve been dealing with monsters that are enhanced by dark magic,” Twilight explained. “The same kind that you probably ran into in the forest… are you sure you’re okay, Pa?”

Rusl waved a dismissive hand with a gentle smile. “I’m fine, Link, I promise. But… are you okay? Those monsters are like nothing I’ve seen before.”

Twilight shifted uncomfortably. “Yeah, I’m fine. Everyone in my group is an excellent fighter. We’ve been handling it.”

“That brings us to the issue at hand,” Time inserted quickly. He knew Twilight’s guardians needed time to process and he was sure his descendant wanted time to spend with family and friends, but one of their own was still missing. “We’ve been traveling between different lands, different time periods of Hyrule’s history, through magical gates. One just brought us here to your Hyrule, which means there are far more beasts to track than the ones you found in Faron Woods. One of our group went ahead and we’ve lost track of him. We’ve been searching for him for a day now.”

Twilight nodded, looking at Rusl. “Have you heard anything about someone fighting the monsters? Or if the beasts have taken someone prisoner? Maybe other monster attacks?”

Rusl took a deep breath, thinking about it for a moment. “To be honest, Link, I was about to write to you about the matter. It all did start suddenly, within the last couple days. I never saw what happened with the beasts near Faron Woods – I only knew that the next time I went on patrol they were all gone. I’ve gotten word from other members of the Resistance, though, and from Kakariko – Renado was saying there were attacks near the Goron mines. Auru mentioned movements to the west, possibly in or near Gerudo Desert.”

“How did they spread out so fast?” Twilight muttered, shaking his head. “But no mention of a Hylian swordsman?”

Rusl sighed. “I’m afraid not. I’ll write to the others so they can keep an eye out for him. What does he look like?”

“He carries the Master Sword,” Time immediately said. “And wears a white cape embroidered with the symbol of the royal family.”

“The Master Sword…?” Uli whispered. “The legendary blade that you used, Link?”

Twilight shrugged sheepishly. “Well, I did say we were all Heroes of Hyrule.”

There was a pause in the conversation, and then Hana started pulling Twilight’s tunic, interrogating him further. As he answered the child, Uli ushered the pair to the couch, leaving Rusl and Time at the table.

Rusl watched the Hero of Time carefully, a guarded sort of contemplativeness to his features. Time wondered if he knew Twilight was his successor and descendant. There was certainly something glinting in the Ordonian’s eyes.

“Are you the leader, then?” Rusl asked as Twilight and Uli played with Hana.

“Not officially,” Time answered, wondering where this conversation was going. They had a little time for Twilight to be with his family since the others likely were still obtaining supplies. “But yes.”

“I ask you to be honest, then,” Rusl said quietly. “Is Link okay?”

Time raised an eyebrow. “Is there something that would indicate he isn’t?”

Rusl huffed out a laugh, looking away. “He has a tendency to… well, never mind. I’m glad he’s able to help Hyrule in such a manner again. And I’m honored to have you in my home.” Looking back at Time, he said firmly, “And the Resistance will assist you in any way we can.”

Time nodded. He wasn’t sure what this ‘resistance’ was, but he trusted it was an organization that could be of some help to them. They’d already managed to obtain some sort of leads. The Goron mines and Gerudo desert.

Though if Time really thought about the geography, that led in two opposite directions. There was no way Sky could cover that much ground that quickly. Hopefully Twilight could track his scent, then, and narrow down the possibilities.

But that was only possible if there was still a scent to follow. The longer they waited here, the more it dissipated.

“I appreciate the help,” Time said, standing to end the conversation. Twilight started to shoot to his feet as well, but Time waved him off. “Stay with your family. I’ll check on the others. When we’re ready, I’ll come get you.”

XXX

Rusl watched the armored Hero leave his home, his mind buzzing with thoughts.

There were multiple Heroes of Hyrule converging to fight this new enemy? Just how strong was this person if it required legendary heroes across history? Would Link be alright? Was this Hero of Time the same one who mentored Link, and did the Hero know that? It seemed Link certainly did.

Rusl supposed there was no way of the Hero knowing consider he’d been dead when he’d taught his charge.

Sighing, Rusl looked to his left to see Link being coaxed into eating some biscuits and gravy that Uli had left over from breakfast. Hana was babbling excitedly while showing Link all her latest projects and toys. She then introduced him to her new baby doll, whose name varied depending on the day (today it was just Baby).

Link played along, asking what she liked to do with Baby, but his eyes were quickly starting to droop. He’d clearly not slept well, and the warm biscuits were settling him into an unscheduled nap. Uli and Rusl exchanged glances, and his wife guided Hana outside to play as Rusl walked over to Link, kneeling on the ground beside him.

“Link,” he said softly, nudging the young man.

Link jumped, startled. “Sorry. Guess I’m just a little tired. I’m okay, Pa.”

Rusl watched him carefully, but he didn’t comment. He’d let Uli do the fussing. He could respect Link’s efforts and his mission, even if it did still make him worry.

"I'm sorry that I can’t stay longer. We have to find Sky.”

“Sky? Is that his name?”

Link laughed a little. “Well, his name is Link. All of them are named Link. We just go by nicknames so it doesn’t get confusing.”

“And his is Sky.”

“Yeah.”

“What’s yours?”

Link shrugged. “Rancher, mostly.”

“I suppose Wolf is a bit too on the nose?” Rusl questioned with a smile, ruffling the boy’s hair.

Link chuckled, leaning into Rusl a little and letting the older man wrap an arm around him. “Well, to be honest, they didn’t really know at first. At least not all of them.”

Rusl squeezed his ward a little. “I trust the way they found out was less traumatic than us.”

Link grimaced, which made Rusl worry. That couldn’t be a good sign. The young man leaned away, running a hand through his hair. “Yeah, it—it was.”

“Link—”

“Don’t worry, Pa, I’m okay,” Link immediately said with a strained smile. “Just tired and worried. Sky’s been missing for over a day now, and… well, you know how dangerous those monsters are.”

“I’ll send word to the others,” Rusl assured him. “Your mentor will be back when your party is ready to leave, so try to rest in the meantime, Link.”

Sighing, Link relented, pulling himself to the couch. “All right, if that means you’ll stop fussin’ over me.”

“Now, now, that’s your mother, not me,” Rusl chided as he tossed a blanket over his boy. Link huffed, unconvinced, but closed his eyes to settle nonetheless.

Rusl watched him for a while longer, waiting for his breathing to relax, and then he grabbed pen and paper and ink. He wrote quickly, explaining the situation, and started making arrangements to explore the area himself so he could gather more information. He’d have to pack for the trip and plan accordingly with the family – he likely would be a little behind Link and the other heroes. But he’d help as best he could.

Uli reentered alongside the Hero of Time about an hour later. His wife went straight to Link, rearranging the blanket a little and kissing him on the temple. The Hero looked at Rusl, who held his analytical gaze.

“Have you gathered all your supplies, then?” Rusl asked.

“Almost,” the Hero of Time answered. “It looks like a storm is coming into the area, so we might have to expedite or wait depending on the situation.”

Rusl hummed, feeling it in his old wounds as well. “A storm out in Hyrule Field is not a safe situation. It’s too exposed. I’d recommend keeping your party either to the village or Faron Woods.

The Hero sighed. “We really can’t afford any more delays. We’ll watch the storm and see what can be avoided. Our plan is to leave by midday.”

That would hopefully give the storm time to clear, but it didn’t give them much sunlight in this autumn period. “You’ll barely make it to Kakariko in that time.”

“On foot, yes,” the Hero answered. “We’ll make do. Thank you for your assistance, Rusl. If you could relay the message to Link, we’ll meet him at his house when we’re ready to leave.”

Rusl nodded in acknowledgement, and the Hero departed.

Uli sighed, her hands carding through Link’s hair. “He’s been gone for months and we get him for a few hours, just to find out the situation is far worse than we could have thought.”

“A Hero’s work is never done,” Rusl noted, though not without a little sadness to it. “We’ll help as best we can, dear.”

There was a pause, and then, “Where’s Hana?”

“Oh, she’s with Colin, they’re on their way back now.”

The door opened and Rusl turned expectantly, only to find Ilia in the doorway instead.

“Oh, Ilia dear,” Uli acknowledged with a smile. “I’m afraid Link’s asleep. But he’s going to be leaving soon, so it’s okay if you want to wake him up and talk.”

Ilia’s brow furrowed in worry, but her face softened at the sight of Link snoozing on the couch. She tiptoed towards him and poked his chest sharply. Link scrunched his nose in disapproval, his brow furrowing as he shifted and started to wake up. When he saw Ilia in front of him, he blinked blearily and smiled. “Hey.”

“Hey,” she said softly in reply before poking him again, her expression growing serious. “Where’s Epona? Is she alright? Have you been taking good care of her?”

Link groaned, whining, “Is that seriously the first thing you have to ask? I swear, you must think I abuse her.”

“You work her so hard, Link!”

“She’s fine, Ilia, I take good care of her!”

Rusl and Uli chuckled and headed for the front door to retrieve Colin and Hana, giving the young pair some space.

XXX

Legend grumbled, rubbing his knees as his joints ached. The group was steadily making its way back to Twilight’s house to plan their next move, and it was clear a storm was coming in. Legend didn’t fancy being in a tree while a thunderstorm rolled into the area, but they still weren’t the highest point. Nevertheless, he didn’t feel all that comfortable.

Glancing at the door leading into the cellar like it was his only hope of escape, Legend started to rise and head that way when he saw Wind sitting at the top, staring out the window. The sailor had a tightness in his shoulders, and it drew the veteran to the ladder.

When he reached the top, he hesitated on the last rung. Wind was curled in a ball, his knees to his chest and tucked under his chin as he gazed out into the distance. The rain started to fall outside, a gentle pitter patter on the roof, and thunder rumbled in the distance, making Legend’s skin crawl.

“You okay?” Legend asked, raising an eyebrow. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a dreary look on your face.”

The boy was just as expressive as—

Legend’s heart clenched, and he sighed, climbing all the way to the top.

Wind turned scared eyes to the veteran. “Do you think he’s okay? What if he’s out in the storm?”

Crawling over to sit beside the sailor, Legend rested his arms over his knees, gazing out the window. The sky had darkened considerably, and the rain was growing heavier. His heart grew heavier with it. It was midday – they were supposed to be leaving now, but Time wanted to see if they could wait out the storm. If an hour had passed and it was still going, they’d head into the woods and make camp at the edge of Hyrule Field until it cleared up. It was the best they could do with the circumstances, but he still didn’t like it.

“I don’t know,” he answered truthfully. “Sky’s a strong fighter, and despite his dopey face, he’s no fool. He’ll be okay, Sailor. And we will find him.”

If it weren’t for the storm, Legend would leave now to find his friend, his brother. He suddenly felt annoyed that they had spent the entire morning in Ordon. He knew they were gathering information and supplies, but that didn’t make the thought that Sky was out there alone while they acted normal any more bearable.

Images came unbidden to his mind. Sky bleeding and broken. Sky bound and in a cell. Sky scared and alone.

Legend bit his tongue and reached out to squeeze the sailor’s shoulder, and he glared out into the rain. “We’ll find him, Sailor. I promise.”

XXX

The rain was freezing on his skin as thunder roared directly over him. Lightning streaked across the sky, temporarily bringing near broad daylight to the vast field. He crouched down a bit more, staying hidden from the pack of monsters ahead. Wild had taught him that the rain often would mask movement and allow for stealth, and he was taking advantage of it.

His right knee throbbed a little as he crouched, but he tried to ignore it. He had to win this fight.

Link was no fool. He knew he couldn’t take entire armies of black blooded monsters by himself. He knew it was pointless to try. He’d caught the tail end of the Shadow’s forces when he’d entered this Hyrule, wherever and whenever it was, and though he’d been quick to act, he still had burned through three of his five potions in just one fight. He’d had better luck in that one village because there were Gorons there to fight the few monsters that lingered.

His knee was still bothering him.

He had to be tactical about this. Learn from Warriors, learn from his time at the academy, learn from his observations.

He had to wait and listen.

Well, waiting and listening was certainly something he could do, and so wait he did. He figured if he eliminated the Shadow the rest would fall, but he’d yet to find the monster.

The hordes had spread across this Hyrule the instant they’d crossed through the gate. He had to do what he could to mitigate the damage, though his priority was still hunting down Demise.

Eliminating a pack of black blooded beasts was something he could handle. There were only six of them, and he’d come up with a plan.

Stashing his mogma mitts into his adventure pouch, Link pulled out a familiar little friend that had gotten him through a fair amount of situations in his journey. He equipped the beetle and fired it into the sky, letting the pouring rain and roaring thunder cover the little whirring of its wings.

He wasn’t sure how potent bombs would be in this weather, but he still had to try. The bomb flowers had never not been functional, even once when it had been drizzling back on the Surface.

Six monsters. Three bokoblins of strange features (likely from this Hyrule), a moblin, a staldra, and a white wolfos. He could handle this.

His faithful little beetle flew overhead, and as Link opened his palm in a command, the beetle reciprocated, dropping a bomb flower in the middle of the group. The explosion was milder than it should have been, but it still was enough to make the beasts scatter in varying directions. The moblin stumbled backwards the farthest, and Link took his opportunity to eliminate the largest opponent.

Scurrying out from behind the tree where he’d been hiding, he grabbed his whip and wrapped its tip around the moblin’s neck. With an enormous tug that nearly sent him flying backwards himself, he pulled the beast down, where it stumbled into a small trench he’d dug out earlier while laying his trap. The change in footing made the beast finally fall, exposing its neck to Link’s blade, and he pierced it quickly.

The moblin gurgled and snarled, its long arms trying to reach for him, making the Skyloftian jump back. Damn it, just die already!

Taking a leaf from Wild’s book, Link pulled out his bow and arrows and let loose two of them in succession into the beast’s throat and head. The moblin finally stilled, but Link had no time to register it as the wolfos charged, making him yelp and grab for his shield barely bashing the beast off in time.

The others were getting their footing too. Great.

Pulling out another bomb flower, he rolled it into the fray and the explosion was even more diminished by the massive streak of lightning that tore across the sky. It managed to push the staldra and one of the bokoblins away, though, so that was something.

Now if only this damn wolfos would stop—

Link pulled out his whip, but the blasted beast was too fast. He barely batted it away again, and then a bokoblin got within striking distance.

Despite the black blood, bokoblins still fell easier than other foes, and though it took far longer than it should have, Link gutted the monster, just in time to roll out of the way of another charge from the wolfos.

The staldra was within snapping distance too.

Gritting his teeth, Link reached for his last bomb flower. A smarter creature with more dexterity, like a lizalfos, would likely parry this attack, but a direct blow from a bomb should be able to at least stun the staldra until he could cut off its three heads in one fell swoop.

He just wished he didn’t have to burn through his supplies like this.

That regret was as much thought as he could spare as he rolled the last bomb flower. The white wolfos was back, and this time, it managed to knock him flat on his back. Link yelped, kicking with his feet and making contact with the beast’s stomach, sending it flying into the trench he’d dug out. He rolled and crawled to the edge, jabbing his sword into its head, hearing bone crunch beneath it.

Fire erupted up his back.

Yelling out, Link rolled, feeling mud and moisture seep into a wound just inflicted from one of the bokoblin’s blades. For one split second he was grateful he’d put his sailcloth away, and then he felt himself shudder as warm liquid dripped down his back.

He supposed some of the chainmail had been damaged, then.

Ignoring the bokoblin that had injured him, Link had the wherewithal to follow through with his earlier attack, rushing to the staldra as it tried to right itself and cutting off its three heads quickly. Then he turned and glared at his two remaining opponents.

And then felt his heart skip a beat when rustling and hissing emitted from somewhere to his right.

Link whirled and saw at least three more silhouettes in the darkness of the field, lightning illuminating them to be two lizalfos and another bokoblin.

Well, this meant two things.

The good news was that it meant the Shadow had to be nearby. Reinforcements wouldn’t appear out of nowhere, these monsters were organized for a reason.

The bad news was that Link was about to get his butt kicked if he didn’t think of something fast.

Saying a prayer, he raised his blade to the sky, feeling her hum with power. He swept out horizontally and watched in satisfaction as the skyward strike cut the original pair of bokoblins cleanly in half.

Unfortunately, it gave the lizalfos time to scurry into fighting range.

Link swore as he dodged a slash that would have taken his arm off. Swore again when his back screamed in protest.

One enhanced lizalfos was bad enough, but two—

Link took step after step in a near retreat as the two lizalfos pounded his defenses with their swords. He managed to shield bash one away, leaving it stumbling for a moment, but he was far too late to dodge the other one.

Its blade sank into his abdomen with a decisive lurch, impaling him to the tree he had been hiding behind earlier.

Link gasped, his body screaming, his mind ready to white out entirely. The lizalfos snarled, stepping forward slowly, its maw wide open as if it meant to bite off his head entirely, its breath hot and revolting.

With a scream, Link raised his sword in defiance, beheading the beast with all the energy he could muster.

The other lizalfos was getting ready to charge as the first one fell. The bokoblin was just as close. He had to act, he had to move.

With trembling hands, he gripped the sword that skewered him, nearly throwing up as he jerked it out, tears streaming down his face. The display caught the two monsters off guard for a moment, and Link felt his entire body scream and tremble and—

And tingle.

Looking up, he saw the darkness of the clouds around him. He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. His heart was ringing in his ears, he was sick to his stomach, and he was about to pass out.

But he knew that sensation.

Raising the Master Sword heavenward, he braced as lightning came crashing down.

His body felt like it was being shaken by Koloktos, his right knee at the brink of collapse, his mind too numb to register that he’d lost too much blood. Power emanated from his blade, glowing with such intensity that it almost blinded him. His arm stiffened as the familiar sensation of fire and energy tore through it, the majority of the lightning contained to the blade. The longer he held it, the more unstable it became, and he thrust his sword in a diagonal slash, watching it make contact with the two foes still standing.

Link didn’t even bother to see if they’d survived or not. The Master Sword fell out of his numb fingers, and he fell with it.

When nothing immediately killed him after that, he figured it had done the trick.

Gasping, he reached into his adventure pouch with trembling fingers. He ached for someone to call out to him, for Warriors to turn him over and start applying pressure to the wounds and barking orders, for Hyrule to arrive with his hands aglow, for Wild to offer one of his dozens of bottles full of potion, for Legend to nag and panic, for Twilight to fuss and reassure him and say everything would be fine, for Four to reassure Wind in the background as he fretted, for Time’s steady voice to ask for a status update and check in on him.

But no one was here. As they shouldn’t be. Because this was his fault.

And he’d be damned if he was going to die like this.

Fingers numbly curling around one of his two remaining bottles, Link popped the lid off and heard a familiar chime. A fairy flew into his line of sight, seeming to examine him, and he tried his best to prop himself up for it to see the damage.

Goddess his abdomen hurt. Link nearly begged the fairy to just hurry up when it started to twirl around him, and he felt the blessed relief of magic ease the unbearable pain into a dull ache. Drained, he collapsed as the fairy flew away.

Well… that could have gone better.

Link laid in a daze, his arm twitching, his belly aching, his back sore. He swore he blacked out at one point. He had no idea how long it had been. He was so damn tired.

But he was close. He had to be. The Shadow was starting to send reinforcements after him. That meant he had to be close.

Groaning, he slowly rolled onto his belly and pushed himself up to his knees. The rain, which had been ceaseless for what felt like hours by now, soaked him to the bone, making him shiver incessantly.

Don’t be late. Don’t screw this up.

Grabbing the Master Sword and digging her into the ground to help him stand, he muttered a quick apology to the blade for the disrespectful use and began to walk across the field.

Don’t be late. They’re counting on you. You have to fix this.

Anxiety filled him at the thought of falling behind, at the thought of anyone else getting hurt because of his mistakes, and he eventually started to increase his speed as he ran through the mud, his feet sinking into the ground as it fought his every step.

His muscles burned despite the cold. His lungs were screaming as he wheezed against the wind. He doubled over at one point, coughing and trying to catch his breath. The ground rumbled around him, the loose wet soil shifting, and he jumped, pulling out his blade as a stalfos appeared beside him, dragging itself out of the earth.

Link cut it down quickly, watching the bones tremble with cursed magic, though it seemed to be the usual sort rather than the Shadow. He shuddered for a moment, wondering who those bones belonged to, as he often had on his adventure. Was it just a magical creation entirely? Was it a fallen soldier who was cursed to fight and kill?

He froze all the way to his core. A fallen soldier who was cursed to fight and kill. Just like the others, the ones he used to call friends and brothers. Cursed to fight and kill, cursed to be hurt and dragged into wars because of his own mistake.

Cursed, cursed, cursed.

Shivering, Link sheathed his sword, took another two steps, and gasped as another stalfos came at him from behind. Though the first fell with a swing of his Master Sword, this one took several more slashes, and Link nearly collapsed from the effort. He was exhausted.

Thunder roared overhead, and the area was illuminated once more. In the brief flash of visibility, Link could make out a gate off in the distance at the edge of the field, and the silhouette of a monumental structure – a castle.

That had to be the capital, right? The others always spoke of Castle Town, and that was a castle. So that had to be it. They would no doubt have supplies that he could buy to prepare for his next hunt – he’d moved too quickly in the other village to really stop for anything.

He would find the Shadow. He would end this. And he would do so without letting anyone else get hurt. This was his fault, his responsibility. If this Shadow was an agent of Ganon, then Link would cut his way to the source and get it right this time.

Link doubled over, coughing and spitting out some phlegm. His body was so racked with tremors from the cold and exhaustion that he could barely walk. Holding his sword tightly in his hand, he stumbled in the direction of the castle.

Not much farther, he told himself, coughing again after a few steps. His chestfelt like it was on fire. His right knee gave out and he stumbled, catching himself at the last second. Gritting his teeth, he continued ahead, however haltingly, and let his determination drive him.

He would succeed. He would defeat the Shadow and he would kill Demise once and for all.

Chapter Text

It had been a fairly busy night at the bar, and Telma was thankful that it was emptying out. She loved the cheer and bustle that came with her business, but not when the majority of them were soldiers.

Sighing as she wiped the counter, she glanced over at Auru, Shad, and Ashei. The three were murmuring feverishly as they stared over a map, marking different places where monster attacks had been increasing. She was beginning to grab a round of drinks for them when her cat, Louise, started meowing incessantly at the door.

“Now, why would you possibly want to go out?” she asked the fluffy white feline as she headed for the entrance. “Don’t you know it’s pouring outside?”

Opening the door, she watched her cat scurry outside into the water. That wasn’t completely unusual, but…

Lightning flashed, and Telma gasped.

Leaning heavily against the railing was a small figure, shivering and half collapsed. Telma hastened outside, ignoring the water sloshing at her sandaled feet, and she quickly climbed the flight of stairs to reach him.

At first, she almost felt her heart skip a beat. The green the boy wore was all too familiar. “Link?!”

The boy twitched, his gaze rising to meet hers in acknowledgement, but the face was not Link’s. Who was this boy, and why was he dressed in the Hero of Hyrule’s attire?

Either way, he was clearly ill or…

The crimson stains told her enough.

“Come on, sweetie,” she said as she pulled him off the fence. She stumbled a little as he leaned nearly all his weight on her, limping badly on his right side. He seemed completely unaware he was even being guided anywhere by a stranger, just following along.

Telma shuffled as best she could while supporting his weight and immediately called for the others once she got inside.

Auru was there first, getting on the boy’s other side to assist him before his leg finally gave out entirely. The boy became dead weight, making Telma yelp and nearly knocking her over as Ashei hastily sprang forward to catch him by the shoulders. Auru took a deep breath, grunting a little as he picked the boy up and carried him to the nearest table.

Ashei scowled at the kid. “Why is he impersonating Link? Idiot child probably went gallivanting around as the Hero and got himself hurt for it.”

“That’s not the issue right now,” Auru said pointedly as Telma grabbed first aid supplies.

Shad hesitantly approached, his eyes scrutinous and curious. They settled on the sword still strapped to the boy’s back, still unnoticed by the others. “That blade…”

“Yes, we’ll have to get it off—” Auru said as he unstrapped the belt holding the sword in place, and then he froze.

“Isn’t that Link’s sword? Or it was?” Ashei asked, her tone growing sharp.

Shad glanced around the room warily, scanning for other patrons and seeing none. He took a step closer. “This isn’t just Link’s sword, it’s the sword of the Hero of Hyrule. The legendary Master Sword.”

Telma plopped the first aid kit on the table. “Whatever sword he has, he won’t be here much longer if we don’t get to work. Get his shirt and chainmail off.”

The sword was placed to the side, Auru hissing as it sent a stinging, burning sensation up his arm when he grabbed it, and they sat the boy up to remove his clothes. When the tunic, chainmail, and undertunic came off, though, all they saw were the angry red remains of freshly healed wounds with some blood clots caked around them.

Telma stared at it in confusion. “What… but then where did all this blood…?”

“Never seen fairy magic before?” Auru asked with a smile. “He may not be in danger of imminently dying, but he might have lost a lot of blood before he was healed. What he needs is rest.”

Telma huffed. “And something warm, he’s shivering . I’ll get some blankets.”

In the meantime, she rolled up the boy’s undertunic so it could serve as a pillow; it was damp with sweat and blood but not soaked all the way through like the rest of his clothes. When she walked away, the others grew more somber, staring at the sword.

“What could this possibly mean?” Auru wondered aloud. “Only Link can wield that blade. It tried to injure me from just touching it for a few seconds. How is this boy carrying it?”

“You think he took it from Link?” Ashei asked darkly. “Surely the sword can’t be won over, right?”

Here she glanced at Shad for advice, and he only shrugged. “Legend says that only the Hero of Hyrule can wield it, but it doesn’t specify how that works. But the blade is sacred, so… surely it can’t be from underhanded tactics.”

“A duel isn’t underhanded,” Auru pointed out.

Ashei huffed. “Link would never duel anyone.”

Telma returned with a veritable mountain of blankets, settling them over the teenager, who stayed asleep despite all the jostling. Just as she was about to say something, there was a loud knocking at the door.

“Now what?” she muttered, making her way to the entrance. “This is far too much excitement for this late at night.”

Ashei hastily threw a blanket over the sword lying beside the boy.

When Telma opened the door, she stared in mild surprise as the postman stood in the entrance. “Oh! Is there mail for someone?”

“For you,” he said triumphantly, and then, upon noticing the others behind him, smiled in delight. “Ah, for all of you! Here, I have a letter for each of you.”

Exchanging confused glances, the others approached as the post man handed out letters. Telma looked back at him, raising an eyebrow. “Do you ever sleep?”

“Oh, I do,” he replied with a laugh. “But I was told this was urgent. I’m relieved I found all of you. Now I can go home to my family and get a good night’s rest for more deliveries in the morning!”

With that, he left in haste.

Telma slowly closed the door, baffled. “He… has a family ?”

Ashei snorted back a laugh and opened her letter, her brow furrowing. “It’s from Rusl.”

“So’s mine,” Auru announced, having already been reading his letter. “And I think I understand who this boy is now.”

“What?” Telma glanced between her letter and the others. “What does it say?”

“Rusl says Link knows about the source of the monster attacks and is attempting to track it down with the help of other Heroes of Hyrule,” Auru explained. “…Heroes from all over Hyrule’s history , he says.”

“Like… from different… from different eras ?” Telma parsed out, bewildered. “Oh, my. I’ve seen some things, but this… are you sure that’s what he’s saying?”

“That’s what mine says too,” Ashei agreed.

Shad was positively beaming. “This is fascinating !”

“So then that boy…” Telma trailed off, her eyes drifting to the teenager on the table.

The others looked his way as well as he started to moan and shift. The group walked over to him, filled with curiosity but still a degree of wariness.

The teenager’s eyes fluttered open and he coughed a little. When he registered his surroundings and state of undress, he started to grow more flustered, breath quickening as he sat up.

“Easy, hon,” Telma said gently, putting a hand on his shoulder. “You’re okay. You practically collapsed right outside my bar.”

The young potential hero watched her, eyes wide and expressive. He was obviously frightened, but he had a sense of awareness to him, quickly taking in the others and growing more guarded.

“Who are you?” Ashei asked, cutting to the chase. “And why do you have that sword? Do you know Link?”

He bit his lip. His eyes settled on the letter clutched in Ashei’s hand, barely visible as she crossed her arms. Then he noticed the one stuffed in Telma’s belt and wide open in Shad’s hands as he pored over it and then looked at the teenager in unmistakable curiosity.

“Are those from Link?” he asked quietly.

“No,” Auru answered. “But you know him, don’t you?”

The teenager’s hand subtly slid to his right, finding the blade hidden underneath.

“Hey,” Telma cut in sharply. “No fighting in my bar. Nobody’s here to hurt you, sweetheart. They’re just worried about Link. We all are.”

The teenager immediately started to shake his head, grabbing his hair with one hand as if he was going to pull it out. Telma took his wrist and brought it down. “Easy, hon. It’s okay. Why don’t you tell us what’s going on?”

“I have to go,” he muttered. “I’m sorry I bothered you, but I have to go.”

“You passed out less than ten minutes ago,” Ashei said flatly. “I don’t think you’re going anywhere until you rest.”

The teenager raised an eyebrow at her, clearly annoyed. “You look like you need the sleep more than me.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Ashei snapped as Auru laughed.

The teenager sighed, moving a little more and wincing. Telma finally coaxed him back down gently. “Whatever your quest is, young man, you need to rest first. We can figure it out in the morning, okay?”

“’n the morning…?” the teenager slurred, already falling back asleep. When his breathing evened out, Telma sighed.

“All right,” she said, tucking the boy in a bit more before stepping away and eying the others. “I’ll contact Rusl. Could one of you take him to the back? I don’t think it would be good if word got around about this.”

XXX

Wild would be lying if he said he was okay. But at least he was hiding it better than he used to.

When Twilight had been hurt, the champion had nearly—well, had actually had a meltdown. How could he not? He’d lost so much ; he couldn’t bear to lose anyone else, especially someone he cared about so dearly.

Yet here he was, staring at an empty space where Sky should be.

The camp was still, as it was the last vestiges of the night before dawn broke through the darkness. Wild had offered to take third watch, knowing well enough that he would wake around this hour whether he was on guard duty or not. He’d slept uneasily the night before, and the longer Sky was missing without so much as a hint to what was going on, the more anxious he became.

He just… he didn’t know how to process it. He was trying to keep his anxiety to a minimum, but it was a fear of the unknown, a dread that slid into his core like ice creeping through cracks in a foundation and ripping it apart from the inside. With Twilight it had been agonizingly straightforward - he’d seen his brother go down, and there was a clear culprit. He’d felt helpless to stop Twilight from dying, but the issue at hand had been apparent. Here…

This felt like his past, like the painful ache of everyone he’d known before the Calamity haunting him. He didn’t know their circumstances, he didn’t know what had happened to them, he’d barely been able to start piecing it together. He’d barely even resolved to try to piece it together, stories and people from another life a century ago gnawing steadily at his sanity.

But Sky wasn’t a phantom from a past he couldn’t remember. Sky was a part of his life now , and he was terrified he’d become another lost Champion, another piece of his life that just vanished into thin air with no explanation, no closure, nothing.

Wild hugged himself a little, feeling ice cold and alone. Goddess, he hoped Sky was okay. He wanted to get up and look for him now . The sunlight was beginning to make the horizon glow, and he shot to his feet to wake the others. He doubted they’d mind the early start.

A bush rustled and snapped, and Wild grabbed his bow and arrows in a heartbeat, yelling, “Everybody up!”

Snores and yelps sounded around the camp, and a figure shot out of the bushes with its hands held high in the air, eyes wide and terrified.

“Easy!” the figure said shakily, and Wild recognized the skinny, muscular physique and voice after a few seconds of confusion. The postman took a steadying breath as Wild lowered his arrow while others scrambled for weapons and then froze in bewilderment. “I have a letter for a Mr. Rusl, I’m just passing through to get to Ordon.”

Legend dropped his sword to throw his hands in the air. “Do you ever sleep?!”

Twilight stepped forward and smiled apologetically with bleary eyes. “I know Rusl. Who’s it from? I can deliver it for you.”

“I’m afraid I can’t say,” the postman answered, taking a step away. “I have to protect my client’s privacy!”

“You could also try not scaring us half to death,” Legend threw in while gathering his blankets that he’d tossed everywhere in his panic.

Twilight sighed. “I understand. We had just spoken to Rusl yesterday about an urgent matter, and I know he sent word to others. I was hoping it was information we were looking for. You could expedite our search.”

“Your search…?” the postman asked confusedly. “Mr. Link, I’m afraid I’m not following.”

“We’re on a very important quest,” Warriors piped up. “Link is the leader of our team and was sent personally by the queen. We had spoken to Rusl to help widen our search, and he’d been expecting word from others to help gather information. If you at least tell us who the letter is from, it’ll give us a better idea of whether this is helpful information you’re carrying.”

Twilight shrugged, trying to set the man at ease. “You know me. You’ve followed me all over Hyrule—”

“And beyond,” Four interjected quietly.

“—And so you know I’m not a dishonest or untrustworthy sort. At least tell me who it’s from.”

The postman sighed, pulling out the letter. “It’s from the barmaid, Lady Telma.”

Twilight immediately perked up, more alert. “Telma! That has to be in relation to Sky.”

“I’m afraid that’s for Mr. Rusl to decide,” the postman said as he moved his arm back towards his pouch.

Wind slid in beside the man, giving him a beaming smile, his expressive eyes twinkling. “We understand, Mr. Postman. You have your own heroic duty that you have to maintain.”

Legend opened his mouth to protest and Wind cut him off immediately, crossing his arms. “The postman delivers valuable conversations, gifts, and information all across Hyrule. He’s a Hero of Hyrule just like Link. We should respect that. Have a good day, Mr. Postman!”

With that, Wind stepped away and waved the man off, who practically glowed with pride and happiness at the compliment, bidding them a good day and running into the forest.

“Sailor, what the hell, that could have—”

Wind’s smile widened, eyes narrowing in mischief as he held the letter up in the air.

“You sneaky little pickpocket,” Warriors huffed with a smile as Hyrule laughed.

“I am a pirate,” Wind replied with a shrug, handing the letter to Twilight. “Now open it up! I want to know if it has to do with Sky.”

Twilight tore into the envelope, perusing the letter quickly before gasping.

“What does she say?” Time asked, facing him fully.

“Telma’s seen Sky!” Twilight immediately said, his face flushed with relief and joy. “She says he’s at her bar. He’s not hurt but he looks like he was at some point, she says he’s resting there now. We have to go!”

The camp burst into excited movement in an instant, and then Time held his hands out to calm everyone. “Easy. If the letter says he’s resting then we have time. Let’s eat so we have the energy to get to him.”

Although the anxiety to reach their friend was palpable, Time’s words made sense. Telma’s letter didn’t indicate that Sky was in serious condition or going anywhere, which gave them all time to take a collective sigh of relief. The slowly building tension within everyone eased and released itself through enthusiastic and cheery chatter.

Wild grabbed the cooking pot and tossed some ingredients in to make a large batch of oatmeal. It would be quicker to eat and everyone could have their bowl individually flavored as they pleased. He would save the majority of his ingredients for a celebratory feast when they found Sky. He grabbed his ladle automatically and then paused as his fingers brushed over the elaborate carving in the handle. Holding the cooking tool with both hands, he felt his chest clench as he traced the woodwork, his heart filled with sudden worry.

Sky’s position was known, and he seemed to be safe for now… but he’d been injured at some point. And that still didn’t explain why he’d left in the first place. Had he been captured and had escaped? Had he waited for them to come rescue him and then decided they weren’t coming? If the postman had been around for Telma to reach him, why hadn’t Sky himself sent a letter to one of them?

Four traipsed over, collapsing beside him with a heavy air, and Wild held back an unamused laugh. Their smallest brother was also quite the worrier; he shouldn’t have been surprised that the cheerful news didn’t help him for long. “I miss him too. But we’ll see him soon.”

“Hopefully,” Four muttered.

“Hopefully?” Wild repeated as he ladeled the oatmeal, stirring absentmindedly.

“I mean… he disappeared for a reason, right?” Four asked himself as well as Wild. “I just don’t understand.”

Wild whistled to catch the others’ attention. Everyone was already packed and nearly finished dressing for the day (Wind was complaining that the soles in his shoes were beginning to wear thin, distracting Twilight temporarily), and they hastened over to eat and head out.

“Guess we’ll find out soon,” Wild said, giving Four a reassuring smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

XXX

Link’s entire body hurt .

More pressing than that, though, was the buzzing in his mind that seemed to reverberate into his chest. Confused, his eyes snapped open as his body tried to process all the sensory input. His chainmail was off, and he was wrapped in what felt like a robe and a handful of warm blankets. His head rested on something that was too hard to be a pillow but too soft to simply be a hard surface. And that buzzing was—

People?

Turning so he was laying on his back rather than his side, he blearily took in the sight of a small room, an antechamber of some sort, that was hidden from a larger room by a curtain. The people were on the other side of the curtain except for one, who was sitting in a chair by the entrance. It was a young man who was heavily preoccupied with a book he was reading.

Where was he? The last thing he remembered was stumbling into the town and being completely overwhelmed by its scale. He was lost, it had been the middle of the night, and he’d been too exhausted to see straight.

He… he’d spoken to someone, hadn’t he? He vaguely remembered doing so. Was this that person’s house? Was that who was reading? No, no… it had been a woman’s voice for sure…

He smelled food and heard murmuring from beyond the curtain. Breakfast? He smelled something else, the smokiness of a hearty fire, the sharp scent that whet his tongue with a flavor he’d had in the past.

Mead? He remembered having some with the others a few worlds back (he had conveniently left out that he wasn’t considered of age on Skyloft - he’d been curious , after all). The smell was definitely something with alcohol, he was certain of that.

…A tavern ?

The man in the chair shifted, pulling at his collar a little as he got more comfortable. The blue embroidery on it caught Link’s eye, familiar in its design to his own people’s clothing. What in the— where was he?

Shaking his head, Link turned back towards the wall to see his clothes folded neatly in a pile. His adventure pouch was leaning against them, just within reach.

The longer he stared at his belongings, the less hazy last night became, until it all crashed into him with sudden clarity.

Those people—they knew Twilight! Link had long since figured out this was Twilight’s Hyrule, based on the stories he’d told and hearing familiar names tossed around in different areas he’d visited. He didn’t want to stay here any longer than he had to - what if one of them sent a letter to Twilight and that bizarre postman actually found him? He’d somehow traveled through worlds to deliver mail in the past, after all. Link didn’t want them to know what he was doing, he didn’t want them to get hurt. It was best that they stay in the other Hyrule where he’d left them. The less they knew, the better.

Just like in his own adventure. He’d handled being alone before.

…Well. He’d had Fi. And Gaepora. And Impa, and eventually Groose. But it had been his first journey - he was more experienced now. He’d figure this out on his own. He had been doing fine so far.

You almost died, idiot, he argued with himself. Then he argued back, But I didn’t , so it’s fine.

Glancing around, he saw his escape route: there was a ledge of sorts that framed the walls, and one of them had access to a hole leading somewhere away from here.

Reaching forward slowly, he slid his adventure pouch under the blanket, fishing out his faithful little beetle. Aiming for the rope holding the curtain, he fired the little helper, which flew directly into the rope, snapping it and sending the curtain falling onto the man on the stool, who yelped. He then flew the beetle to a ledge and knocked a few pots over to the ground before summoning it back. In the mild chaos that ensued, he leapt off whatever he’d been resting on, grabbed his belongings, and used the half severed rope to climb up the ledge towards the exit he’d spotted.

The passageway was dark and stuffy, making Link’s skin crawl. He felt like he was underground digging through Mogma tunnels. He tried to ignore his heart rate steadily increasing in a panicked frenzy.

As he stumbled through the darkness, crawling since it was too small and narrow to stand, he saw a dull light up ahead. Eyes widening with hope, he ignored how many scrapes he’d gotten on his knees through the robe as it separated from the movement and hastened his pace. When he reached the opening, he stared in bewilderment.

Was this… a house? Why was it buried in coins? The place smelled strange, coppery and metal, but also damp. Sliding to the ground, he hissed as his bare feet slipped on coins and was cut by glittering stones. He hastily threw off the robe and put his clothes and gear back on properly before nearly rolling his ankle on another mountain of some sort of currency.

Growing frustrated, he grabbed on to a nearby open chest for purchase, and the damp smell slammed into his nostrils. Was it… coming from the chest ?

Curious, Link peered into the treasure chest, which was larger than even the ones that held boss keys. He couldn’t see a bottom. He grabbed a coin and dropped it into the chest, listening, and eventually heard a splash.

There was water in there! Where did this chest lead? He couldn’t see any other exit since what was probably the door was held in place by more decadence than he could count, if he knew what value it held. It would take a while to shovel the coins and jewels away from it.

But this…

Pulling his sailcloth off his shoulders, he held onto it tightly and leapt into the abyss. The fall honestly wasn’t that long, but the lighting of the new environment hit him so suddenly he didn’t have time to deploy his sailcloth. This wasn’t an issue, though, since Link slammed into frigid water, making him gasp and nearly inhale a mouthful of it. He slid down a little flooded slope into more water, and as he looked around he was heavily reminded of the lower levels of the ancient cistern where he’d had to retrieve the sacred flame to temper the Master Sword.

Swimming through a few tunnels to a shore, he saw the vestiges of webs and went on high alert. A few keese were flying around and were easily dispatched, and thankfully he didn’t see any skulltulas… yet.

What he did see, though, was a dead end. What was the point of this place? It had to lead somewhere. It looked pretty dilapidated, maybe it used to lead somewhere. 

With no other options (it wasn't like he could go back to the place he’d just escaped), he searched for clues. After crawling over some crumbling stone walls, he found something promising: a mound of exposed earth, loosened from being torn into fairly recently. In fact, if Link just moved some of it…

Poking hesitantly at the ground with his Mogma Mitts, he saw it give way into an already-made tunnel.

Wow. This really was like his last adventure.

Tying his sailcloth around his waist so it wouldn’t pull at his neck underground, he took a deep breath and entered the tunnel. He… hated these closed spaces. He already missed the sky. But he could manage. He had in the past, after all. He kept his focus on moving forward, crawling little by little through the passageway. The air grew clearer, and light started to pierce through the darkness. Relieved, Link climbed upward as the tunnel fed to its exit point.

Blinking a few times as the sunlight blinded him, Link dusted himself off and grew even more bewildered. He was in a tower now?

Did anything lead outside?!

Sighing, Link started to climb, noticing that the steps spiraling around the tower’s wall were broken in places, with attempts at construction evident. It looked like maybe a battle had happened here. Link wondered if it had to do with Twilight’s adventure. 

Either way, some support ropes were strewn all over the place, allowing him to tightrope walk his way across. When he finally reached the top, the source of the sunlight, he smiled in relief. The windows flanked the doorway, and he exited out to stone walls high in the air. Then he finally got his bearings.

He was in the castle.

“Link?

Link’s head snapped to the side to see someone in ornate attire watching him. He almost asked how she knew his name when the realization sank in: she was talking about Twilight. She must have thought he was Twilight because their clothes were similar.

His stomach churned. He wondered why their attire was similar.

The beautiful brunette woman in the elegant dress watched him with such a… strange look. At first it was surprise, which was expected, as she registered that the person she thought she was speaking to was not, in fact, Twilight. But then her eyebrows returned to their resting place, her mouth closing slightly, and she cocked her head to the side, eyes scanning him. There was something… almost magnetic about her gaze. Link couldn’t move.

“It’s you,” she whispered as if she herself was entranced as well, taking a slow step towards him. Link took a nervous step back. “The one from…”

Here she hesitated, her hand rising to her chest and resting over it. Link watched her, disoriented but unable to look away. She held herself with such an aura of otherworldly… something . Power? Familiarity? The woman closed her mouth entirely, along with her eyes, and she tipped her head forward in a graceful bow. 

Link shuffled in place, even more perplexed, but his uneasiness was starting to settle. She wasn’t a threat, at least, but who was she? And how did she recognize him?

“It’s good to see you again, Hero,” she said as she rose once more, a gentleness crossing her features as she clasped her hands in front of herself. “But I must ask… where is Link?”

…What?

Good to see me again? When have we seen each other before? Is that why she seems weirdly familiar?

Link shook his head a little, focusing on answering the question. “He’s… busy. There are monsters in a distant land that are enchanted with dark magic and he’s getting rid of them.”

“There are such beasts here as well,” she commented. “Did… did he send you here to assist? I didn’t know such a thing was possible.”

Possible? This was making less and less sense. But it seemed she had valuable information he could use to track the Shadow, so he tried to ignore his returning unease. “I’m here to help. Tell me where they are.”

“I’ve heard reports of their presence near Faron, Eldin, and the Gerudo Desert.”

“I eliminated the first two hordes,” Link said. “How do I get to the Gerudo Desert?”

The woman’s brow furrowed together almost imperceptibly, her poise remaining intact and trying to hide her seeming confusion. “There is a passageway that is protected by my guards by Lake Hylia. They can escort you there.”

Her guards? Oh… this lady was important. He definitely didn’t want to ask her name - she obviously seemed to assume that he knew her. That would just make things incredibly awkward.

Wait.

She… she was someone of importance. Who had guards. Who knew Twilight. Who had authority to take Link anywhere in Hyrule.

Oh, goddess. This was… this was Twilight’s queen, Zelda.

Zelda. When Link had first learned that there were others who also bore her name in each Hyrule, he… hadn’t known what to think. He'd assumed that perhaps girls were named after her because of the impact she had on history. But with the curse… the only other possibility was…

Those who share the blood of the goddess and the spirit of the hero.

The spirit of the hero was shared among Link and the others whom he had left behind to protect them. Which meant those named Zelda were… well… his Zelda’s descendants. And seeing as it was highly unlikely she was romantically interested in anyone aside from him…

This woman was his descendant.

Did she… there was no way she actually knew that, was there? How did she claim to know him? 

Goddesses. His bloodline. His descendants had to fight Demise on a regular basis as well. He’d cursed his own family.

Link felt his chest tighten and his mind grow numb as the emotions were too overwhelming to process. He pulled anxiously at his sailcloth, words failing him, and leapt over the side of the wall to make a hasty escape just as the woman called out to him in surprise.

Lake Hylia. Gerudo Desert. He didn’t need an escort. He didn’t need to be near anybody. This was—he was—

Goddesses above, he just wanted this to be over. He would restock in the market he remembered seeing last night and then get the heck out of here. There were already too many people here, just adding this to it was—

Link shook his head as he hastened by confused guards. Shouts started to echo across the pathway and he pushed past the last pair to lead out into the square.

And then he nearly had a heart attack . Was that—were those—

What the hell were they doing here?!

Hiding behind a pillar, he sucked in a breath as Hyrule froze in mid step, turning to scan the area where he had just been standing while the other heroes pushed ahead towards the opposite pathway. Legend called for his friend, whose intense gaze finally turned away to follow the veteran.

How did they find the portal so quickly?! How were they here in the capital?! What were they doing ?! They… surely they weren’t… there was no way they were looking for him , were they? Link felt his heart clench and mouth go dry at just the thought, and he immediately shut it down. No. That wasn’t why they were here. He wasn’t even going to think about how his absence was affecting the group. He was the slowest member, he’d gotten Warriors and Hyrule hurt when he couldn’t keep up - this had nothing to do with him.

They must have heard about the monster attacks and were trying to clear out Twilight’s land. But that put them too dangerously close to the Shadow. There was no time, there was no time!

Trying to catch his breath, Link rushed away from the group to find directions to Lake Hylia and get to the desert as quickly as possible.

XXX

Wind hovered so closely to the others that he nearly tripped over their feet. As exciting as it was to see Castle Town, this place was overwhelmingly large and crowded. Wind was fairly certain this city alone held double the population of Outset Island. The entire place was floored with uneven cobblestone that reflected some of the sunlight in little puddles, and the air was filled with voices and footsteps and water trickling from the fountain and singing and dancing and calls for sales on acquired goods and—by the sea, this was a lot.

Warriors wandered around with an air of command, making the crowds part out of his way, and so Wind practically clung to his scarf, carried through the crowd like someone caught in a rip current. Hyrule was similarly quiet and subdued while Legend meandered between different market stalls and alleys, hanging near the periphery of the large plaza. Twilight was in the front of the group, leading the way to Telma’s Bar while Time hovered towards the edge of the plaza as well, staying in the shadows. Wild had to drag himself from every food stall he saw, snapping himself back into focus. The energy of the group was a strange mix of relieved, elated, and anxious, as if their quest was almost over but they weren’t sure if Sky was just out of reach or not. Wind was certainly relieved they finally had a location and confirmation that he was alright, and he was eager to see his friend again and give him the biggest hug he could muster. 

Four paused just ahead of Wind, glancing somewhere in the plaza at the same time as Hyrule. Wind turned to face them as he continued to walk, nearly tripping over Warriors’ scarf once more. 

“What are you guys doing?” he asked.

Hyrule didn’t move, simply staring at something. Four, however, rushed to the other side of the plaza where some musicians were playing and singing. He stood there for a moment, a smile on his face, and then dropped a few rupees in the pan on the ground before skipping back to the group.

“I always love the street performers when I go into Castle Town,” Four explained breathlessly as he caught up with the group. Wind had to smile at his flushed cheeks; Four had been pretty morose despite the good news, but he’d been growing steadily more excited the closer to the city they’d gotten. It seemed he’d finally caught the infectious relief that was swimming through the group.

At least through the younger members of the group. Time seemed strangely quiet, and it made the sailor a little worried and curious. What was the Hero of Time seeing that Wind wasn’t?

“Hope the money’s the same in this Hyrule,” Legend remarked as he joined the group once more.

Four froze in mid stride, horrified that he might have insulted the street performers with useless money, and Wind grabbed him by the wrist. “It’s okay, it’s the thought that counts!”

Meanwhile, Legend called to Hyrule, who hadn’t moved an inch. The traveler finally snapped out of whatever daze he’d been in and hurried to them just as the group entered another street.

As they moved, Wind’s eyes finally lingered long enough on his overwhelming surroundings for him to register something he actually wanted . It was a smaller market stall, which was a relief, and it was absolutely overflowing with apples. The apple looked scrumptious and he was honestly pretty hungry after hiking across Hyrule Field at an accelerated pace all morning. Wind tried to get the seller’s attention, but the man didn’t pay him any mind, seemingly too busy with other clients. When he glanced at Wind after the sailor had done his third polite “excuse me, sir,” he waved dismissively with a comment about street kids and don’t have time or something of the sort.

Indignant, Wind furrowed his brow and snatched an apple anyway, whirling and getting ready to take a bite out of it when it was hastily yanked out of his hand. He let out a protesting whine, but it fell on deaf ears as Warriors plopped the red, juicy, life sustaining fruit back on the stall before the seller had a chance to notice what had happened.

“Sailor, you know better,” Warriors said in a low, chiding tone. “Why are you trying to steal?”

“He was being rude and I’m hungry,” Wind replied, annoyed. “And that was with me being nice.”

The captain raised an unconvinced eyebrow, putting a guiding hand on Wind’s back and pulling him away from the stall. “We’ll get food once we get to Sky.”

Wind understood that. It wasn’t like he didn’t recognize they were moving with a good degree of urgency. This wasn’t some foreign or unintelligible concept to him - he’d lost his sister for Farore’s sake. But the letter had said Sky was safe - Wind also understood that as well, which meant they shouldn’t be so frantic about everything. Being hasty meant not thinking, and despite his exuberance and young age, the Hero of the Winds did try to be measured in his pace. 

Most of the time.

He supposed there was more to it, a reason the excitement the younger heroes felt was tempered with a degree of unease in the elders. Ignoring his growling stomach, he let the captain get a step ahead of him, still in sensory overload with everything around him and also wanting some space from more chastisements. Then he saw an apple appear directly in front of him, held by a hand decorated in rings.

Wind blinked, registering the sight, and then gasped, grabbing the fruit with a grateful smile glowing upward at the veteran hero. “Thanks, Vet! Wait—did you buy it from that jerk?”

Legend scoffed and then winked, bumping his elbow against the younger hero’s shoulder. “Guy was rude, anyway. Don’t tell the captain.”

Wind practically gasped in delight. Finally , someone who understood! He took a bite and skipped to keep up with everyone else.

Twilight led the group to the end of the street, but before exiting the city entirely, he veered left down some stairs in a side alley. Wind hastily stuffed his half eaten apple into his adventure pouch as the group huddled together at the entrance to what had to be Telma’s Bar. They entered single file, and Wind felt his anxieties from the city settle with the familiar sight of a tavern.

The place was small and cozy, just as the young sailor liked them. There weren’t many people in at this hour, which was a bonus. But there was something very apparent.

Sky wasn’t here.

“Telma?” Twilight called uncertainly.

A woman who was sweeping what looked like clay shards paused in her work, glancing up. “Link! Oh, honey, what a sight for sore eyes. I’ve had quite the encounter and I think you’ll be interested to hear it.”

As the others huddled around Twilight to see the woman and listen to her words, she raised an eyebrow and lowered her voice. “I see you brought... are these the other Heroes that Rusl wrote about?”

“Where’s Sky?” Wind immediately asked, his earlier cheeriness dissipating. 

The woman, presumably Telma, cocked her head to the side. “I’m sorry, dear, but I don’t know who that is.”

Time laid a hand on Wind’s shoulder, and the young hero understood the motion, sighing and biting his tongue as Twilight spoke. “Rusl's right. These are the others, but we're still missing one. He goes by that nickname. I got info saying you might have run into him.”

“Actually, yes,” Telma answered, and Wind perked up. “But you just missed him.”

“Where’s he going?” Legend immediately questioned.

“I’m afraid I don’t know, hon,” Telma said with a sigh, sweeping the last of the shards into a bin. “He certainly caused quite the stir. Found him stumbling outside the bar last night, soaked to the bone and exhausted. I let him rest here the night, couldn’t get much out of him. He seemed like a nervous fellow. But just earlier he disappeared right as half my bar seemed to fall apart!”

Wind wilted under Time’s hand. They were right back where they started. But Sky had to be close , maybe Twilight could follow his scent—

Oh. Of course he couldn’t. He couldn’t turn into a wolf here. Wind blew out a hiss of a breath, blinking frustrated tears away.

I just want my brother back.

“I’m sorry,” Telma said genuinely. “I wish I had more for you. It’s midday and you look exhausted. Why don’t you stay here and eat something while my associates keep an eye out? They were already looking for him.”

“Associates?” Four repeated, raising an eyebrow.

Twilight, though clearly worried, gave a reassuring smile to the smithy. “They’re friends, and they’re reliable. If anyone can find Sky, they can.”

His words did little to ease the tension in the room as everyone was growing more concerned with Sky’s disappearance, especially since he couldn’t be far. Wind wanted to turn right around to track him down, but his stomach growled loudly, and it was practically like a death knell to his plans as Time said, “Let’s eat.”

To everyone’s relief, though, he added, “Quickly.”

The group took a couple tables and pulled them together. Wind noticed a keg on one of the tables he was moving and excitedly reached for the sweet smelling mead when both Twilight and Warriors pulled him away. He pouted. “Oh, come on! Linebeck lets me drink, and rum’s way stronger than mead!”

“You’re too young,” Twilight argued.

“Not on an empty stomach,” Warriors chided at the exact same time, garnering a horrified look from Twilight.

“What do you mean not on an empty stomach, the answer is not at all!”

“He goes through what we do,” Warriors fired back with a shrug. “He should be allowed to partake as we do.”

“That’s—that’s literally the worst logic I’ve ever heard—”

“Just shut your traps and eat, will you?” Legend interrupted, throwing a loaf of bread at the pair.

Hyrule picked up a bowl of stew by the hands immediately after it was placed in front of him. Wind did the same and the two caught each other’s eye. For a moment their anxieties were channeled into mischief instead, and the pair set off to racing to see who could gulp the stew down the fastest.

“For the love of Farore, you’re going to choke,” Four groaned, rubbing his face tiredly.

Wild slurped the remains of his stew, plopping his bowl on the table. “I win.”

Wind coughed, flabbergasted and affronted. “You weren’t even in the race!”

Before the atrocity could be further addressed, the entrance to the bar burst open and multiple soldiers rushed in as if they were about to arrest everyone in the room. The heroes quieted, hands subtly sliding to their weapons, but the soldiers didn’t lay a finger on anyone. Instead, they were scanning the area with a strange frantic energy, poking at corners as if the barrels of wine would come to life.

“What’s with all the fuss?” Twilight asked the soldiers as they scurried about the place.

“Her Majesty ran into the Hero of Legend himself,” the soldier answered.

The entire group stared at the armored man. Then at Twilight. Then at the soldier again.

“Really?” Time asked, eyebrow raised and tone denoting exactly what he thought of the man's intelligence.

“The Hero of Legend,” Legend deadpanned. “Oh boy. Wow. That’s—wait, the Hero of Legend ?!”

Everyone stared at the veteran now, bemused. Then it hit Four.

“He was seen here?” Four asked quickly. As soon as the question left his lips, everyone went on alert, figuring out exactly who the soldier was talking about. This wasn't about Twilight at all, it was about Sky!

 “We have been tasked with finding him and escorting him to Gerudo Desert to eliminate the beasts that plague the land!” the soldier explained.

“Yes, he’ll get rid of the monsters! We're just doing escort duty,” another added. “Now stand aside; we must fulfill our duty!”

The soldiers pushed by them with high importance and haste, leaving the eight heroes in their wake.

Wind blinked, processing the exchange they’d just had and then looked at Twilight. “Your knights are idiots.”

 Twilight huffed. “I won’t deny that. But now we know where to go.”

"You think he already headed out?" Hyrule asked.

"Of course he did, at the rate he's going," Four answered. "Why is he doing this?"

The group went silent.

“We should leave now,” Time said, putting money on the table for Telma as he stood. “We can’t fall too far behind.”

Chapter Text

Link’s patience was at its limit as he stared dully at the two soldiers in front of him. “Let. Me. Through.”

“We were specifically notified that the queen would be sending a Hero with her guards,” one of the soldiers said, though with less hostility than before as Link glared at him. “T-that’s the order.”

“I made my own way here,” Link explained curtly. He was far too exhausted for this nonsense. Just how idiotic were the knights in this land? It was no wonder Twilight held them in such low regard.

Thinking about Twilight made his stomach twist. Thinking about any of them made his stomach twist.

He had to hurry up.

As the soldier came up with some other feeble excuse, there was a screech from the sky, making all three of the men turn to see a monster flying through the air. Link watched it warily, wondering if the Shadow had sent a black blooded beast there or if it was common for the area. The petrified reaction from the guards was of little help or use - he figured they’d squeal over a critter let alone a monster.

It was fairly large, though.

Glancing at his surroundings, Link saw the flying creature, the pathway ahead beyond the sealed gate, and some cliffs. With a quick fortifying breath, he pulled out his clawshots and aimed for some ivy on the cliffside, giving himself a higher vantage point as the beast swept in to dive for the ground. The soldiers squealed, abandoning their post.

That could be his opportunity, honestly. But that would leave them to fend off the beast, which was unlikely to end well in their favor.

Goddesses above, he was growing tired of having to save everyone. Couldn’t they at least handle the small matters so he could focus on Demise?

Link shook his head. Focus. You know they can’t help it.

Well. The knights should be able to help it. The longer he watched them run around the more irritated he became. He shook his head, watching the beast instead. There was a way to handle both matters and get him to his destination faster.

Waiting for the right moment as the beast flew just beneath him, ready to climb and gain altitude, Link leapt off the cliffside, angling his body so he collided right into the monster. The winged creature cried out, dipping down a little and then flailing like an enraged loftwing. Link held on tightly, his stomach somersaulting from the thrill of it.

This wasn’t his first time taming a flying beast, after all. Some loftwings when their partners died would be enraged or go insane for a few days. They were a danger to themselves and others. Link had done this song and dance before.

He wrapped his arms around the beast’s neck, twisting his shoulders so his elbows could guide it at the wing joints. The creature shrieked in protest but obeyed to ease the pressure, climbing over the sealed gate and leaving the knights far behind. The land quickly shifted from greens and blues of the field and lake to the familiar terrain of Lanayru Desert.

Wait. No. Gerudo Desert. Whatever. A desert was a desert, anyway. What mattered more was what and who he would find within it.

The creature became further enraged and began to buck wildly, sending them both careening. It was time to get off.

Releasing his grip, Link felt gravity take hold as he free fell to the ground below. The beast twisted away to reorient itself, and he untied his sailcloth to soften his landing. Turning as he heard the monster scream again, he pulled out his bow and arrow, aiming for its eyes. The beast let out a choked cry before it finally crashed into the sand, sliding to a halt in front of him and kicking up a dust cloud.

Link watched it a moment longer, a strange melancholy pulling at his exhausted heart, and then he sighed, turning to face the desert. The sun was fairly high in the sky, but it was beginning to teeter downward for the afternoon. He shielded his gaze with his hand, looking into the wavy air and seeing structures in the distance.

Monster encampments, possibly. Either way, it was a landmark. He’d take it.

Steeling himself, Link marched forward. One way or another, this should be his final battle. Zelda had indicated as such. It was the last horde in the land, after all.

I’m coming for you, Demise.

XXX

The tranquility of Hyrule Field on an overcast afternoon was shredded with the sound of hooves and snarls as a wolf led a pack of heroes riding on horseback. They were all going at a full gallop, the wolf somehow managing to stay ahead of the rest despite bearing the smallest member of the group.

A few monsters littered the area, and the troupe quickly attracted their attention. Wild grabbed an arrow and let it loose, having pulled it back so taut that he nearly snapped the bowstring. It hit a monster in midair with ease, sending it to the ground. The pronounced thud that echoed across the field gave Wild little satisfaction, but at least it gave him some assurance that the others wouldn’t be bothered. 

Wild’s deft movements weren’t the only ones as other members of the group swiftly eliminated targets without batting an eye. Warriors decapitated a bokoblin as he passed, Four shot a few with his bow and arrows before Twilight trampled right over them with a snarl. Nothing was going to slow them down at this point.

After they’d eaten, Twilight had asked his Zelda for some steeds to expedite matters (and had to finagle his way around Zelda’s idea that he’d somehow sent Sky to defeat the monsters). Wild and Wind rode Epona together, Four was with Twilight, and the rest were provided horses from the royal stables. The mood of the group had become serious the instant they’d left the tavern; Twilight had headed for the castle while others had stocked up on what supplies they could get (Legend was still seething that potions weren’t available in the city, which meant they were limited to what they already had - Twilight pointed out that they could restock in Faron Woods or Kakariko, but no one was keen on backtracking at this point).

Thankfully, according to Twilight, Lake Hylia was just to the west of the city, so it wouldn’t take them long to reach it. Wild certainly hoped that was the case; once they began to ride no one had said a word, and though Wild wasn’t the most empathetic of the group even he could sense everyone was on edge just as much as he was. Wind’s death grip on him tightened as he encouraged Epona to move faster, and he could faintly see the glistening lake in the distance. 

When they finally arrived, Time tersely divided them into pairs so they could search the perimeter.

“We know he’s heading for the desert; this is a waste of time!” Legend argued.

“We just got here within less than half the time it would take him to go on foot,” Four fired back. “He has to be somewhere close. What if we blow right by him?”

“That’s enough,” Warriors snapped. “Pair up and move out.”

Wind and Wild quietly stayed together on Epona, trotting around the lakeshore with their eyes peeled. The Champion was just as eager to push ahead, but he also didn’t want to risk overtaking Sky. Still… it should be obvious fairly quickly if Sky wasn’t here.

His mind couldn’t help but wander in a million different directions, anxiety sealing his lips and opening his thoughts. None of it made sense, and it was making even less sense now. Wild’s main suspicion had been that Sky had been tracking the enemy and accidentally fallen through the gate. He would have to fight the horde at that point, and then he would probably head for the nearest landmark, namely Castle Town and Hyrule Castle. It would then logically make sense for him to be in the city, for Telma to possibly find him and help him until he could reunite with the group.

Except he didn’t wait.

Wild didn’t understand. He just didn’t understand . It was now obvious more than ever that Sky was actively avoiding them.

The champion shook his head. We don’t know that. He may not even know we’re here. But that Telma lady wrote to Rusl, which means she must have told Sky we were looking for him, right? Right?

Right?

Wild didn’t know what was happening anymore, but a panic was seizing at his throat, goading him to move faster and find him before it was too late.

Pulling out a telescope, Wind squinted through the lens with a sigh. “Where is he? Surely he can’t be moving that fast? There were knights escorting him, weren’t there?”

Wild shook his head, unable to reply. He didn’t know anything anymore, just that he had to find him.

By the time they had even begun their search, the sun was already dipping towards the horizon. Lake Hylia reflected its bright rays, the sky stained golden and rose, a painting that was reflected with the stretches and pulls of the water’s lapping. It prevented anyone from seeing under its depths, and it made Wild shield his eyes from the glare as he paused, staring at a gateway just ahead.

There were guards flanking it.

Furrowing his brow, he tapped lightly on Epona with his heels, goading her forward.

The guards immediately crossed their spears over each other to prevent his entry. “Only those with the Queen’s permission may pass into the Gerudo Desert.”

Wind huffed. “We’re on a mission for her! Have you seen the Hero she sent this way?”

Wild bit his lip as the guards looked at each other uneasily. He wasn’t entirely sure why they hadn’t just asked them in the first place, but as he turned, he saw everyone converging on their location.

He supposed that meant they hadn’t had any luck. His heart raced in his chest, his anxiety spiking.

Twilight, who had turned back to his Hylian form upon reaching the lake since there were people around, came to the front. “My name’s Link. I have something from Her Majesty. She sent me to aid the Hero of Legend on his quest.”

The guards blubbered a second longer, awestruck, and Warriors finally snapped, “Get to it, then! Tell us what you know! What sort of pathetic excuse for soldiers are you?”

Time laid a hand on the captain’s shoulder, and Warriors’ face, already curled in a snarl, immediately tightened and settled into a dull, cold glare.

Wild shriveled further into Epona’s harness as Wind squirmed irritably behind him.

“He didn’t pass through here,” one of the guards finally remarked. “We’ve, uh–we’ve been waiting for him.”

“He—what?” Legend stammered. “That’s—we didn’t actually pass him did we?”

“What if he’s still in Castle Town?” Wind worried.

“That place is huge,” Hyrule added.

Warriors took a step towards the guards. “You’re lying. I can tell.”

The guards immediately took a hesitant step away from the captain.

“Tell us where he is,” Time intoned, crossing his arms. His voice was certainly the most even of the group’s, but his withering glare was more terrifying than any of the yelling had been.

“Or we gut you like a fish!” Wind added, pointing accusingly at them.

“Sailor,” Warriors and Twilight immediately warned together.

“What, I wasn’t actually— ”

“It was a monster!” one of the guards finally burst out. “We–we didn’t know if he had access or not, so at first we–well… we… but a flying monster came and he–he climbed the wall and jumped on it and rode it over the gate!”

“Sky flew on a monster ?” Wind repeated. “That’s freaking amazing!”

“Maybe we should try it!” Hyrule intoned thoughtfully, looking around.

“Let us through,” Warriors ground out instead.

Twilight turned sharply and walked away as the others started frantically speaking over one another. Wild dismounted Epona to follow him.

“They’re going to let us through, right?” Wild asked, wondering why Twilight was giving up on the matter already. “I can get the gate open without their permission, the slate—”

“Don’t worry about it,” Twilight interrupted as he stared at a wooden structure in the center of the lake. “I have a way that can get us in and maybe give us a head start.”

Wild watched him confusedly. “What is it?”

“Get the others,” Twilight said as he ran towards a boardwalk.

Meanwhile, over by the gate, the Hero of Warriors was steadily losing his patience. He and Time both were steadily feeling increasing dread over the situation; they could sense that time was running out to reach their friend and family, and these guards were one more obstacle and insult to everything Warriors stood for.

Despite the captain’s desire to verbally tear the pitiful excuses for knights apart, his rage was interrupted by both the objective and the champion’s frantic waving.

“What is it?” Hyrule asked before anyone else could. Time, who still had a hand on Warriors’ shoulder to keep him from completely losing it, turned to halfway face Wild.

“Rancher wants everyone,” Wild choked out, his eyes glittering with a familiar panic. Warriors had seen it on his face when Twilight had been hurt.

It wasn’t like Wild really knew how to hide it or process it, after all. The captain was waiting for the champion to finally snap and start disobeying orders like on the battlefield a month ago.

They were all beginning to fray at the seams. What had been a bizarre and unsettling search and rescue had turned into something far more involved and worrying. Sky should have been found easily, yet here they were.

At least Warriors knew he was still alive. But the true matter now was, why was he running so desperately? Was he running towards something or from it?

An old paranoia crept up from his gut into his skull, icy and chilling and terrifying, reigniting thoughts he had already dismissed yesterday.

No , he shook his head as he walked with the others to the boardwalk where Twilight awaited them. I know Sky. He wouldn’t. Something else is going on.

Originally the captain had thought Sky was simply being foolish, following his apparently-faulty intuition rather than his head. It would fit for a teenage hero to do so, even though in all their time together Sky had generally demonstrated more maturity than the others.

Well. On and off, at least. Sky’s seeming laziness had gotten Hyrule and Warriors hurt when he couldn’t keep up with them. He dozed off all the time, dragged his feet with chores… it had never particularly bothered the captain, except the one time they ran into a monster camp and could have used his help. He still held the slightest annoyance over that matter. But… none of that coalesced into a logical explanation for what was happening now. Sky was slow and steady, this panicked rush of his was completely against his nature as Warriors understood it.

Maybe you don’t understand him, then, the paranoid voice whispered.

“For Hylia’s sake,” he muttered under his breath. That’s enough. Sky isn’t a traitor, there is a rational explanation for this and I will figure it out.

At this rate he felt like he and Time were the only ones thinking rationally. Well, and perhaps Twilight.

Twilight watched their approach, arms crossed. He jerked his head behind him. “I found us a way in that’ll help us catch up quickly.”

Time raised a questioning eyebrow as he glanced beyond the Ordonian. “I’m assuming you’re going to explain, then?”

“It’s a, uh…” Twilight faltered and scratched the back of his head awkwardly. Then he sighed. “It’s a cannon.”

Legend’s eyes widened. “What?”

“You want us to blast our way through the gate?” Warriors asked confusedly. Great Farore, he didn’t hate the guards that much.

“No. Over it.” Twilight explained. “This is how I always got to the Gerudo Desert.”

Wind gasped. “Oh! I’ve done that before! Let’s go!”

Hyrule watched Wind rush ahead, bewildered. “You… were blasted out of…what??”

“Am I the only one worrying about the landing part ?” Legend threw his hands up in the air.

“No, you’re not,” Warriors remarked, raising an eyebrow at Twilight. “How did you land?”

Twilight shrugged. “Fyer knows where to aim so you land in a soft space. I swear the sand there is like a pillow, it’s like the one place where you’ll be fine. Just, uh, be sure you roll.”

Warriors cocked his head to the side as he scrutinized the Ordonian hero. “So you just got launched in the air and prayed you didn’t die.”

“Yeah, basically.”

Mentally, Warriors scratched Twilight off his still a rational member of the group list.

The captain groaned, pinching his nose. “How did anyone ever assume you were the responsible one?”

Four and Wind rushed ahead as if this were a normal occurrence, making the captain debate if Four was still rational as well. Wild was already anxiously waiting by the entrance, where a strangely dressed man was eying the group warily.

“Fyer,” Twilight greeted as he approached the man. “We need a lift to Gerudo Desert.”

“All of you?” the fellow questioned. “That’ll cost you extra, you know.”

Warriors unclasped his wallet and dropped it into the man’s hands. “Hope this suffices. Let us pass.”

Fyer stared at the pouch with surprise, stammering a response and opening the door for them. Wind easily swiped some rupees back as he passed. When Warriors raised an eyebrow in the sailor’s direction, the kid shrugged. “He doesn’t need all of them.”

“How do you keep getting so much money, anyway?” Four asked, squinting at him. “I remember when we were at that inn you couldn’t buy anything because you’d paid for our room and board.”

“The room full of pots, of course,” Warriors answered easily.

Wind gasped. “Yours had rupees?!”

“What did yours have?”

“...More arrows. A lot of them didn’t even have anything! It was so disappointing!”

“Mine had a frog in it.”

“Oh, one of mine—”

“Focus.” Time interrupted.

“Does this hurt?” Legend asked uneasily. “It usually hurts on the receiving end.”

“Protect your neck,” Twilight advised. “The whiplash isn’t fun. Beyond that… as long as you land well, it’s fine.”

“As long as you—”

The doors slammed shut, drowning them in darkness. Warriors instinctively huddled closer to his brothers, bumping shoulders with Time.

“This wasn’t exactly how I was expecting this day to go,” he said quietly.

“At this rate, is there even a point to having an expectation for any given day?” Time countered, his usual gentle mischief absent in his tone.

The captain sighed, and the cannon fired.

XXX

Four really wished he had Ezlo. It would make landings much easier.

At least, he figured that’s why he missed Ezlo. Strangely he didn’t remember landing, but he was lying in the sand nonetheless.

What…?

“Well maybe you should’ve mentioned that!” some voice over him hissed as he was slightly propped up by arms.

“I don’t think he’s ever fired that many people together…”

“That’s enough! Cut it out, all of you!”

“Hey, he’s waking up!”

Four groaned as orange light pierced into his vision when he fluttered his eyelids open. Legend was directly over him, holding him gently, eyes filled with worry. Twilight was across from him, also supporting him, and Wild was peeking over his shoulder. Wind was at his feet, expressive face pinched in concern as Time stood behind him with Hyrule. Warriors was directly over him, seemingly kneeling behind his head.

“Hey, Smithy, you with us?” Twilight asked gently.

“Mm,” Four replied, trying to figure out what in the world happened.

“Here,” Legend offered, holding a bottle to his lips. “It’ll at least make sure nothing’s broken while you get your head on straight.”

Four sipped the potion reluctantly, coughing a little at the bitterness as it went down. His world came into better clarity, aches he hadn’t noticed dissipating entirely.

“What happened?” he asked blearily, sitting up of his own volition as the other heroes hovered over him.

“A few of us crashed into each other before the landing,” Warriors noted, and Four saw that the captain was sporting a small cut by his left temple. “Nothing too terrible, but it threw you off balance and you got knocked out on impact.”

Oh. That was probably why Ezlo had come to mind. Maybe he should have shrunk down for the launch, it might have at least reduced his speed and made him less likely to hit anyone.

“How long was I out?” he continued, slowly standing and testing out his body.

“A few minutes, nothing major,” the captain answered dismissively.

“He could have died!” Legend snapped.

Another argument broke out between Legend and Warriors, with Twilight trying and failing to play mediator, garnering Wind’s ire while Wild and Hyrule watched hesitantly. Four rubbed his temples at the oncoming headache, growing steadily more irritated.

“Boys!” Time finally yelled, silencing everyone. When they all stared at him, he crossed his arms, holding their gaze. “Get yourselves together. Every second we stand here arguing, Sky gets farther away. No more talking for a while unless a pertinent question is being addressed.” Directing his attention to Four, he asked, “Smithy, are you able to walk now?”

Four nodded, grateful for the silence.

“Good. Ranch hand, you lead.”

Twilight, sufficiently schooled and looking very small under his elder’s gaze, slowly got to his feet. Four felt a little bad for his friend, who clearly felt guilty over what had happened. He would reassure him if he wasn’t convinced Time would incinerate him right there with his glare the instant he uttered a sound.

Shifting into his beast form, Twilight led the group carefully, sniffing the ground every few paces. Four could see Legend, Wild, and Hyrule all growing impatient, with Legend stiffening while Wild and Hyrule grew fidgety. Eventually, the traveler pointed ahead. “Look!”

Everyone whirled on him, ready to hiss for his silence before Time could get a hold of him. The traveler was unperturbed, huffing, “I see a trail!”

“A trail?” Four repeated, following Hyrule’s finger. Trail was a strong word for what he saw - there were divots in the sand, like a little stream had carved a path, but its lingering imprint was being quickly overrun by wind pushing sand into the crevices.

“You think Sky’s wind item could make such a trail?” Time asked the group as a whole.

“Probably,” Legend answered. “Which means he had to be here recently - the sand will cover it up soon enough.”

Four perked up. That meant Sky was very close!

The group picked up their pace, Twilight still at the lead to confirm Sky had indeed passed through. The silence gave Four time to think and center himself, which he appreciated since his mind had been whirling since this entire ordeal had started.

After all, none of it made sense. Initially, Four had assumed Sky was captured. It was what made the most sense - everyone knew that if they were on watch they were supposed to awaken the group if there were monsters. There had to be some kind of miscalculation on Sky’s part, and somehow he’d ended up in danger and unable to alert them. He’d probably gone to investigate a noise and only discovered too late that the horde was unnervingly close to camp.

At least, that had been the initial assumption. Four had seemed to be the only one thinking it, which was frustrating, but he’d kept his mouth shut. Hearing in that letter that Sky was safe and resting at that tavern had reassured him greatly, but it had also made him start to question things.

Did Sky get himself out of trouble? Was he never in trouble in the first place? If so, what in the world would compel him to do what he had done? Four still had an inkling that his dear friend was hurt somehow, maybe was addled from his experience and trying to find his way back to the others.

What if the Shadow had managed to corrupt him somehow? What if he’d tortured him during his capture? What if Sky was part of the horde now?

Four shook his head, trying to shove the terrifying thoughts out of his mind. It didn’t quite fit the objective details, at least.

That still didn’t stay the worries in his heart that Sky had been captured, though. That somehow Sky had escaped and was trying to find them as desperately as they were trying to find him. That the longer it took them to get to him the more likely he was going to get captured again.

Though the blacksmith was on the quieter side in the group, he wished they’d taken some time to discuss this issue. Outside of the initial concern when they’d found the gate, the group had been treating this situation like a regular mission when it was, in fact, so much more.

Their brother was missing.

Frustrated tears stung in his eyes, and he balled his fists tight enough to dig his nails into skin and distract himself. He absentmindedly followed his brothers, praying that Sky would be fine when they found him. Because they would find him. They were close, as Legend pointed out.

Four nearly crashed into Wolfie, yelping a little as he stopped abruptly. The shadows that encased the wolf were nearly imperceptible in the oncoming darkness as the sun finally hid its shining face behind the dunes. When Twilight emerged from the darkness, he was stiff and very closed off. Four was about to ask what was wrong when he noticed they had ended up at a structure of some sort.

“What is this place?” Wind asked quietly.

Twilight didn’t speak.

“He’s asking you, wolf brain,” Legend grumbled as he stepped forward to investigate the area. “We don’t know this land, remember?”

“Is it a Gerudo fortress?” Warriors questioned.

“N-no,” Twilight finally answered, his voice barely a whisper in the wind. “He… he’s inside.”

“Sky?” Time confirmed.

“Yeah.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Hyrule piped up, catching everyone off guard. “Let’s go.”

The sailor and the traveler moved ahead quickly with Wild on their heels. Warriors paused for a moment and then followed alongside Four.

Twilight stood still, the long shadows of the building consuming him.

Time approached his pup slowly. “What is it?”

“Nothing,” Twilight sighed, shaking his head. “We shouldn’t let them get too far ahead, there’s a dungeon in there.”

“I figured, just based on the appearance. Where are we?”

“This… this place is called Arbiter’s Grounds,” Twilight explained as the pair walked together to catch up. “It was once a… well, I guess a prison for Hyrule. It’s been abandoned for a long time.”

Time glanced back at the building thoughtfully. A Hyrule prison in Gerudo territory? Had they formed some kind of alliance? “I suppose the Gerudo are farther into the desert.”

Twilight glanced at Time from the side of his eyes, saying nothing.

That… didn’t make the eldest Link feel pacified on the matter.

When the two reached the rest of the group at the entrance to the dilapidated building, Time glanced around at the surroundings. The architecture looked… vaguely familiar. And not in a Hylian way.

Wonderful. As if his unease at Sky’s situation wasn’t bad enough at this point.

“Be on your guard,” he advised everyone as a slight breeze blew in their faces. “This place will likely have infected beasts.”

“And Sky’s swimming in them,” Legend added worriedly. “So let’s go.”

The veteran hero was right. The longer they lingered, the more likely they were to lose him again. Time wasn’t repeating that error. Whatever was wrong with the young knight, they had to find him before it got worse.

At this point that was what he was convincing himself. Nothing else really made sense. Sky had interacted with the people of Castle Town, even the queen , and instead of hunkering down to wait for them, or even trying to return to where the dark portal had been (was it still there? Time didn’t recall seeing it when they’d passed through the field again), Sky had continued on to hunt more beasts. 

For whatever reason, the seemingly sweet and gentle knight had gone rogue.

Given Time’s understanding of the Skyloftian, it made little sense, but at this point nothing else made any sense. He knew all his boys were capable of being reckless; Sky was simply a late bloomer.

And of all the ways to bloom… Time was going to have grey hair by the time this was over. He was certainly going to demand an explanation out of the boy when he found him.

That was that. Sky was being a reckless teenager. There was no possibility that he’d decided to leave the group, to leave all of them, to leave—

Time shook his head. Projecting his old wounds onto this situation was not going to do him any favors. The longer Sky was missing, the worse it got. He felt angry at himself for even making this about himself in the first place, and it was certainly decreasing his tolerance for the others’ outbursts. They needed to find the boy. Time was growing more concerned by the moment. If his main theory was true, after all, then Sky was likely to get himself killed. 

Well, honestly, no matter the theory, Sky was likely to get himself killed. They needed to move.

“Stay together,” he advised the group as he led them into the dungeon.

The instant they walked into the entranceway, Time knew this was going to be an unpleasant dungeon. The stifling air held a stench to it that was pungent and uncomfortably familiar. Time was instantly reminded of the well in Kakariko and the Shadow Temple, the smell of brittle old bones and flesh turned to dust. Back home it had been punctuated with a moldy, earthy scent, moisture and soil trapped in a manner that made him feel like he was going through more graves. The dryness of the air here sped the rotting process, making the actual scent of decay lesser while also making the entire place far more stifling.

He couldn’t imagine any of this was pleasant on Twilight’s heightened senses.

He also could quickly figure out what might have happened here. Warriors’ grim, knowing expression implied the captain knew as well. 

Time scanned the room and quickly saw a purchase for his hookshot. Leading the group, he held on to Wind as the pair let the item pull them to nearby sturdy ground, avoiding the quick sand that was consuming flesh and bone alike. Once they passed a whirlpool of sand, they were left with what looked like the remains of a cell to the left and a sealed gate that blocked their progress.

Warriors glared at the door. “There has to be another way in. If Sky came through here it wouldn’t still be locked, unless it’s a facade. Or there’s a way to get overtop it.”

“It probably is locked,” Wind surmised, jiggling the large bars. “Just means it had time to reset. But I swear we were catching up to Sky. We’re sure he’s in here?”

“Reset?” Warriors repeated. “What are you talking about?”

“We need to find the dungeon map,” Legend interrupted. “We’ll waste less time that way.”

Four glanced at Twilight. “Where do we find it?”

The young man shifted awkwardly, rubbing his sweaty palms on his tunic. “I… don’t remember.”

Wind’s eyes widened. “How could you not remember where the map is? You’ve been through this dungeon!”

Wild looked between the pair confusedly. “There are maps?”

Warriors glanced at Time questioningly, equally lost.

The champion then turned to Legend. “Is that why you’re always so insistent on having a map?”

Hyrule shrugged, eyes trained on the floor. “I don’t get the fuss, I get by without them.”

“The point is ,” Time interrupted before this deteriorated further. “We need to find it.”

Hyrule looked at the hero, brow furrowing in frustration. “But—”

“No , we’re not proceeding without a map. It’ll waste too much time,” their leader insisted, agreeing with the veteran.

“Can’t you just follow his scent, though?” Warriors asked, looking at Twilight.

Twilight ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. “I wish it was that simple, but these places require a certain order of events to progress. If I just follow Sky’s scent, we’ll end up in front of locked doors with no way through, like this. We have to do this the old-fashioned way.”

“I still can’t believe you don’t remember where the map is ,” Legend grumbled.

“It’s been a while, okay? A lot has happened since then, I can’t possibly remember all the details of every dungeon!” Twilight finally snapped, losing his patience.

“The good news is that the closer we get to Sky, the less likely it’ll be a problem,” Wind thought aloud, staring at the locked door. “Because if we catch up to him, he’ll still be solving things and we’ll get through them before they can reset.”

“How long is that?” the captain questioned.

“Don’t know. Never timed it.”

“Usually if you get knocked out it resets,” Time offered.

“Look, I may not be as experienced as you all,” Hyrule interrupted. “But I can still follow clues. The key to this door is over there.”

Everyone followed the traveler as he pointed towards a chain coming out of the wall with a handle attached.

Twilight blinked. “Ah. Right.”

Legend gestured dramatically towards the chain. “This is literally the only thing in this room and you didn’t even remember that?!”

“I didn’t see you noticing it, Vet!”

Wind rolled his eyes, rolling through the quicksand to get to the chain as another argument started. Just as he hit solid ground, the ground shifted, and two gibdos dragged their bony bodies out of the earth, spears at the ready. Wind yelped briefly before quickly slashing through them.

“Great,” the sailor said with a quivering tone. “This is one of those dungeons.”

Time looked back at the traveler, who still hadn’t taken his eyes off the ground aside from pointing out the pulley. When he traced the teenager’s stare, he saw what had tipped Hyrule off in the first place.

Specks of blood trailed intermittently from the gate to the pulley that Wind was desperately yanking.

There was still a touch of moisture to them, their innermost circle sitting atop the stone rather than having crusted into it.

Sky was close, but they could lose him if they stalled any longer.

Twilight quickly joined Wind and grabbed the handle, pulling the chain with a sharp jerk, and the gate split and opened, granting them access. Time didn’t comment on the blood, but it was evident who had and hadn’t noticed. Hyrule was already filling up empty bottles with lantern oil and shoving them into people’s hands, face set in determination. Twilight was a shade paler than usual, Four looked terrified, eyes frantically scouring the earth for more signs of Sky’s injuries.

Wild immediately went for the solitary treasure chest in the other corner, pulling out a key. No one needed to comment on it as there was only one locked door in the room. 

Time glanced at Twilight questioningly. This dungeon was unusually simple.

Then again, it could be because Sky was already clearing it.

Legend froze in mid-step, making Four yelp as he crashed into him. The veteran didn’t seem to notice, crouching down with his lantern in the darkness of the next room. Twilight stiffened, clearly on edge, and Time detected movement in the room.

“Vet, watch it!” Wind chided as he squinted into the darkness.

“There’s blood on the floor ,” Legend said, his voice worriedly rising in pitch. “Sky’s hurt! What if he’s dying, what if–”

Twilight and Time swung their swords in unison as otherworldly shrieks filled the air, their blades chopping through a wave of gibdos that had emerged from the quicksand. The rest of the group jumped as Warriors pulled out his borrowed fire rod, and Time and Twilight hastily ducked out of the way as he dispatched the rest and simultaneously lit the torches on the other side of the room.

The bars over the door on the far side of the room opened, and everyone tore ahead wordlessly. Legend reached the next place first, pausing in the center of the large room. Time took in the sights, seeing four stone stands around a large staircase. There were several entrances, he could tell from a swift glance and from changes in air pressure moving throughout the room. The stairs led to a closed door, and two out of the four posts had blue fires lit on them.

In the center of the room was a large cloak and hood, and a broken lantern.

“A poe,” Time surmised aloud. Larger than one he’d ever seen, but it seemed a fair guess.

“Yeah,” Twilight said slowly, looking ahead. “Of course they took the flames again.”

Time was reminded abruptly of the Forest Temple in the Lost Woods, and he looked at the two flames again.

Two flames. For four posts.

“Sky’s halfway solved it,” he whispered.

Wild, with his sharp hearing, turned to look at him. “Solved what?”

“You need the flames to open the gates,” Twilight explained. “And the poes steal the flames. If there are two lit, then he’s defeated two poes.”

Legend toed the tunic hesitantly, sword at the ready. “Uh, yeah. I can tell. But where are the others? This place just got a lot bigger.”

“I remember where the map is,” Twilight said flatly, catching everyone’s attention.

Time glanced at him, confused by his tone. “Where?”

Twilight pointed to an already open chest. Its contents had already been taken.

“Sky has it!” Wind realized.

“Great,” Legend groaned. “That just gives him the advantage.”

“Are we going to talk about why Sky’s actively going through this dungeon instead of trying to find us?” Four piped up, crossing his arms and looking ready to start another fight.

Wind whirled on him. “You want to do this now ? You think we haven’t been wondering that too? Something obviously has to be wrong!”

“Or maybe he’s on to something,” Hyrule offered. “Could be trying to puzzle something out.”

“Only you would assume it’s reasonable to just abandon the group to solve a puzzle.” Four sighed heavily.

“Look, what matters right now is that Sky’s actively hunting the poes,” Twilight said, waving his arm to get them to pay attention. “Which means all we have to do is track them . We can find him!”

“How do we track the poes?” Warriors questioned as he stared at the tattered remains of the fallen ghost.

Twilight shifted into his wolf form wordlessly, sniffing the large robe.

“Okay, but if they’re ghosts how do they even have a scent?” Wild wondered.

“The cloth should,” Four surmised with a shrug, a little put out over how quickly his discussion had been terminated.

“Do ghosts all wear the same cloth, though?”

“Is there a guide to poe fashion we need to know about?” Warriors muttered absentmindedly.

“Bet it smells like crap, though,” Wind said with a shudder. “Yuck.”

Time watched his pup sniff in circles a moment before charging through a door to the side, and everyone followed hastily.

Legend froze yet again just as he looked up at the platform ahead. Time was about to finally get on the veteran hero’s case when Legend’s entire body went rigid before he drew in a deep breath. “SKY!!”

The entire group whirled , and, sure enough, their brother-in-arms was on the platform, sword drawn and stained in black blood, ready to head to the next room. He barely moved, standing in profile to them as if he’d been in the motion of leaving when Legend had yelled at him.

Time felt the steadily growing suffocating knot in his chest loosen, though it didn’t release entirely. Sky was there, alive and within such close reach, and Time felt like he’d never had so much solace seeing one of his wayward boys.

“Sky! You’re okay!” Twilight exclaimed, relieved.

Sky swallowed thickly, his face pale and worn thin. In the lighting he looked almost gaunt, like one of the beasts crawling through this dungeon. Based on the amount of blood on his blade, it seemed Sky was the reason the others had met such little resistance so far, as Time had unfortunately suspected.

The young knight shook his head at the group, seemingly unable to speak, and just as Warriors was about to ask something, he rushed through the door.

“Wait! Sky, what are you doing?” Four called after him.

Legend was the closest and immediately pulled out his hookshot, looking for a perch since there wasn’t a clear path between the stairwell to the platform and the other side of the fallen chandelier that blocked the walkway to where Sky was. When neither the veteran nor Time could find a place for their respective hookshots to latch on, Wild ran ahead, clambering up the rock itself, though he slid quite a bit in his attempt to climb it. Legend sprang forward, using Wild as a step off to jump up to the platform, and Wild groaned, falling to the ground level just as Twilight reached out to catch him.

“Thanks, Vet!” Wild grumbled as he started to climb again.

Legend’s voice echoed from the next room. “Sky, get your sorry ass back heeeaaaaaAAAAYYYYY GIBDOS GIBDOS SHIT SHIT SHIT—”

“Come on!” Twilight called, already pulling a lever attached to yet another chain. “Let’s go!”

The group waited as Twilight hoisted the chandelier into the air, and the instant there was enough clearance they started to tear through. Wind was first, eyes fierce, and Time brought up the rear alongside Twilight. Despite their haste, the large wooden beams with spikes on them didn’t escape Time’s notice.

This place was like the Shadow Temple, then.

Pushing the thought aside, he focused on getting to Sky, and Legend’s yells were easy enough to follow. By the time they reached the veteran, the gibdos were disintegrating into ash and dust.

Legend didn’t spare them a glance, running ahead when a scream tore through the air, chilling them to their cores and making them freeze .

It wasn’t as if fear had stopped them in place. It was… well, it was fear, but a different kind, one that sank into one’s very soul and shook it with dark magic.

ReDeads.

Wind let out a whimper, stumbling backwards when he could use his legs once more, and Warriors reached out to catch him. Twilight immediately transformed again and tore ahead on all fours, teeth bared as he leapt cleanly into the air and slammed one of the beasts (were they always that short? Or was it just that Time was taller now? They still were easily a head higher than him, but…) into the ground. Its claymore clattered on the stone and Legend sank his tempered sword into the beast’s head.

Time quickly dispatched the other ReDead with fire blessed arrows, leaving an uneasy silence in the air.

“Where the hell did he go?!” Legend snapped. “Damn it!”

“Why is he doing this? He just—did he just run through the monsters and leave them to us?” Four asked the room, eyes filled with hurt.

“I don’t understand,” Wind muttered, huddled near Warriors, who had his hands on the sailor’s shoulders. “He—this doesn’t—did he—?”

Warriors’ grip tightened on the youngest Link, knuckles white. He was looking down at the ground, his eyes dark, face stony.

The entire group felt lost, standing in a haze of confusion and pain, and Twilight looked at Time helplessly.

Time tried to organize his thoughts as best as possible. They would all be looking to him for guidance.

He didn’t have any to give.

But what he did know was that he needed answers . Sky’s behavior had gone from erratic to downright dangerous. Time tried to parse it out as best he could, but the more he examined it the more he recognized that he really didn’t understand that boy. Termina had taught him to recognize that everyone had a story of their own that guided their actions, but he was only just realizing that he truly didn’t know Sky’s story at all.

Did any of them know Sky’s story? Wild was like an open book with his wounds, Warriors’ stories and remarks were always carefully interwoven with key details missing, Twilight and Hyrule’s dismissal of the importance of their adventures often left more questions than answers, Wind’s exuberance was shadowed by his very apt ability with the sword for such a young man, Legend’s knowledge spoke for itself most of the time, Four’s face spoke more than his words yet—

Time knew so little about all his boys, but he still knew something about each of them. He had slowly become the secret keeper of the group, sharp enough to catch little hints and private matters they tried to keep to themselves, understanding enough to keep his mouth shut. Some trusted him with secrets, such as Twilight and Four, others danced around the issue but didn’t deny what he might or might not have seen and heard. A silent understanding lingered between him and his boys, an understanding that he knew more than he let on but wouldn’t approach the subject until they were ready to do so.

Well. That understanding was with almost all his boys. He’d never quite had such an understanding with Sky.

The Skyloftian knight had always been warm and welcoming, kind and empathetic. Everyone went to him with their hurts, and he always seemed to know when he was needed. He was among the first to defend those who were injured, he was the first to speak up to soothe tears and anger alike.

But Time knew next to nothing about him, except that he had made that cursed blade, he was blessed to have never dealt with Ganon, and that he was in love with his Zelda. He had made those aspects of his story known.

But that was it. A person’s story was far more than three facts.

So what was Sky hiding?

A door slammed somewhere in the far distance, echoing with a haunting reverberation around the room.

“We need to keep moving,” Time finally said.

Slowly, the group came alive again, following Time with a somberness that hung heavily in the air. Twilight quietly trotted ahead, sniffing hesitantly, when he froze and started growling.

“What is it?” Wild asked, stepping forward before yelping and ducking as a blade came out of the darkness to try and take his head off his shoulders.

A bokoblin, clearly from Wind’s world based on its attire, came screaming out of the darkness alongside a lizalfos and a wolfos. Warriors quickly went to the lizalfos while the champion began to fight the ‘blin. Twilight went toe to toe with the wolfos, both snarling at each other. Time assisted his pup, helping him corner the beast while others jumped in to assist their brothers. The beasts fell quickly enough, and Time’s trained eyes noticed more signs of battle, as if these were stragglers from another fight.

“Sky’s not in league with them,” Warriors muttered with what seemed to almost be a sigh of relief .

Legend turned slowly, eyes alight with fire and bewilderment, aghast at the implications of such a statement. Twilight barked loudly just as the veteran opened his mouth, and Wind stomped his foot.

“This is stupid!” the sailor pronounced. “This is so stupid ! Why is this happening?! What’s Sky thinking?!”

Hyrule ran ahead without a word, making everyone yell after him and hastily follow. Time felt his own control of the situation quickly slipping, and it was making him extremely agitated. One of his boys was already in danger; he didn’t need the rest of them putting themselves in perilous situations.

This group was slowly falling apart, and Time felt powerless to stop it. The soothing, quiet, constant, and gentle seam that weaved between all of them and bound them together was fraying apart and rushing ahead into danger, making the rest of them unravel.

They reentered the large chamber that held the torches and sealed gate only to find that the gate was now open, with all the torches lit brightly.

“How did he—?!”

Hyrule’s question was interrupted as enemies pulled themselves out of the quicksand flanking the staircase, and before Time knew it, they were surrounded.

Wild stared ahead at the stairs and the open gate, eyes desperate.

“Champion, no!” Time called, but it was too late. The scarred hero rushed ahead, though his progress was halted by a large moblin bringing its weapon down to bear on him. Warriors helped block the attack, knocking him off balance enough that an arrow grazed his leg. He hissed and Legend froze the moblin in place with his ice rod just as Wild shattered a blade against its legs, crippling it. Time was too preoccupied with the two lizalfos in front of him, gritting his teeth as they moved with more speed than should have been possible.

Hyrule sent a sword beam flying towards one of the lizalfos, knocking down the beast when the blow really should have gutted it.

Wind let out a battle cry as he leapt off the stone railing of the stairs, getting an aerial advantage and sinking his blade into one of the lizalfos’ heads with deadly accuracy. The beast fell, and the sailor bashed the other away with his shield. Behind him, Time heard Twilight yelp, and he whirled to see the wolf get cut deeply into his right shoulder by a stalfos. He quickly pulled out his bow and fired an arrow between the creature’s humeral head and elbow joint, temporarily pausing its attack and preventing its arm from moving, giving Twilight time to limp backwards and regroup with his ancestor. Time swept his large blade up diagonally, shattering bones and armor alike, and the stalfos clattered to the ground in pieces, giving him a moment to appraise the situation.

The group was chaotic and uncoordinated, anger evident on some faces while others continued to be distracted by the obvious path Sky had taken. Four rolled between two bokoblins to avoid an attack, slicing one of the ‘blins while doing so. Warriors had managed to get a few more cuts but was fighting well enough, back-to-back with Wild, who now seemed to be fixated on protecting the captain after getting him hurt. Though Wild’s expertise with the blade was more than proficient, archery was his main specialty, and being so close to the captain in the center of the action was wearing him down quickly. Hyrule was halfway up the stairs, watching the situation while holding his blade tightly in his hands, face focused, making Time uneasy. Legend had swapped weapons and was instead fighting with his blade once more, yelling a curse at the lizalfos that was slowly cornering him as keese began to fly over everyone. Wind was—

Wind was about to get hit .

“Sailor!” Time shouted in warning as he rushed to the boy’s aid. Wind was too busy eliminating a flock of keese to notice the bokoblin behind him, ready to strike—

Warriors yelled as Wind turned, but it was too late. The blow made contact, and Wind went flying across the room, out cold.

The room broke into pandemonium now. Hyrule cried out, his blade set ablaze with magic, and he easily felled the swarms of keese, making fire and small burnt bodies shower down on everyone. Time raised his shield to block the grisly precipitation while Legend swatted them away instead, distracted and getting punched clearly in the gut with a bokoblin club. Warriors killed the beast in retaliation, turning to run towards Wind as Wild covered the veteran while he regained his breath. Twilight was also tearing towards their youngest, his limp slowing him considerably, and Time turned to face the last large foe alongside Four, who was patting flames on his tunic and hissing.

Four dove ahead before Time, attracting the enemy moblin’s attention and giving Time an opportunity to dive in. The beast had bent downward to reach its small opponent, exposing its neck to Time’s blade. As the two leapt out of the way of the beast’s crumbling form after the blow, they saw that the others were picking off the remainders of the horde with a fair amount of ease.

Time rushed to where Twilight was guarding Wind, bending over Warriors, who was tending to the sailor. Wind’s hair and half his face were stained with blood, and despite the captain’s gentle nudges, he remained motionless. More blood stained his cheek as Warriors tapped it lightly, and Time saw that their captain had a not only acquired more injuries, some were deep enough to break his armor. He held his shield arm to his chest protectively.

“Captain—”

“He needs a fairy,” Warriors interrupted. “We don’t have time sit around and wait for him to recover.”

“Or you,” Time added as he pulled out the last of his fairies. “Rancher, help me sit him up.”

Twilight shifted back into Hylian form, kneeling beside Wind and propping him up. The Ordonian’s own shoulder wound was far more evident now, staining his tunic red. Time uncorked the bottle with the precious healing gift, and the fairy hovered between Twilight, Warriors, and Wind before the elder heroes motioned towards the sailor. The pink light brightened around the fairy as it worked its magic around Wind’s head, and the sailor stirred.

Legend walked over, his feet shuffling as he downed half a potion and took a deep breath, the first Time had seen him take since the hit to his chest and gut. Then the veteran held out the remainder to Warriors. He gave a sharp command before the captain could even get a word in, and Time’s stern look was enough impetus to push him into compliance.

Wind groaned, rubbing his head wearily as he opened his eyes. “What happened…?”

Warriors quickly went to the boy’s side as Time replaced Twilight in supporting him. “You took a bit of a hit there, kid.”

Wind soured at the nickname, but was apparently too woozy to argue. Time gave him a reassuring smile before glancing at his descendant. “You should—”

“We need to preserve what potions we have left,” Twilight interrupted immediately, having predicted what Time was going to say. “We were already running low on supplies—”

“We just stocked up in Ordon Village,” Time reminded him.

“We stocked up on some supplies in the village,” Twilight fired back. “We don’t have potions in Ordon.”

“There’s milk.”

Twilight bit the inside of his cheek, clearly trying to come up with an argument before sighing in defeat. “Fine. I’ll drink some milk.”

“Does anybody wonder if that stuff ever goes bad…?” Four asked in the background as the Ordonian downed half a bottle.

“I wouldn’t worry about it,” Time said with a half smile.

“You drink poes. Your opinion is invalid on the matter.”

Wind giggled, still a little addled. “Why couldn’t you drink the big poes here?”

“Maybe next time,” the eldest Link replied, brushing sweaty hair out of the boy's face. “Think you can stand?”

Wind huffed proudly. “Of course I can stand! I’ve had much worse!”

To prove his point, the sailor leapt to his feet with gusto, and then hastily stumbled backwards into the wall.

“We have to go!” Legend called. “Some of us aren’t waiting!”

Time turned and saw Hyrule and Wild already running up the stairs, and he bit back a groan. There was no stopping them at this point. Warriors steadied Wind and the rest of the heroes rushed after their impatient friends.

“I remember this part,” Twilight muttered. “If Sky didn’t get too far ahead, we can—”

“Sky, wait!!” Wild cried up ahead. “Guys, help!”

Everyone doubled their speed only to find themselves caught in a new horde of monsters, with Sky in the center, bathed in black and red blood alike. The room was filled with stalfos, gibdos, keese, bokoblins, skulltullas, and lizalfos. A few were slain on the ground, but most were converging on Sky, while Wild immediately brought out three bomb arrows at once.

Time held out a hand, alarmed. “Champion—!”

Wild aimed straight for a large skulltulla, loosing the arrows. Time immediately dove for Sky, knocking the young knight to the ground just as the arrows made impact. The blast temporarily blew out his hearing, making the world seem vaguely distant while a high pitch ringing drove him insane. Time groaned, coughing and gasping when Hyrule’s boot slammed into his vision as the traveler blocked a monster attack that would have likely crippled him. Sky squirmed under him, clamoring for an escape route. Time pushed himself up, hastily moving aside as Sky shot out from underneath him. He managed to snag the boy by his sailcloth just as his hearing returned, sending him crashing back into reality.

Everyone was in the room now, fighting and pushing monsters away from the center where Time and Sky stood. Worried glances were thrown their way, but now that they had all regrouped and Sky was seemingly alive and okay, everyone was finally on their game once more.

Well, except for Sky himself.

The teenager twirled, turning himself around to face Time, knocking his hand off his sailcloth, but Time grabbed him by the wrists.

“Please,” Sky wheezed a frantic, tear filled plea. “Please, you have to leave.”

Time furrowed his brow. Of all the different scenarios running through his head, the boy begging them to get away was not the first one that had come to mind upon their reunion.

The sharp interrogation that had been brewing inside of him fizzed out like water escaping a dam, and instead his heart filled with worry. Sky’s eyes were wild, his face sweaty, his body trembling with exhaustion. Time had never seen the boy this frantic and unwell. “Sky… what’s wrong ? Let us help you.”

“You can’t help!” Sky replied, twisting his wrist so much he was likely hurting himself to get out of Time’s grip. “Please, I—”

Wind suddenly used his wind waker to blast a flock of keese into the wall, and the force of the air sent Time and Sky flying right into a half crumbled wall. The stones gave way when they slammed their shoulders into it, and Time felt pain shoot from his shoulder blade all the way into his fingertips.

It’s a good thing I wear armor , he thought dully as he groaned. His mind reoriented quickly, a frantic sense of urgency pushing him to look for Sky, who had fallen entirely into the room beyond the wall. It was a large circular area, covered in sand except for a platform in the center.

The monsters slowly seemed to be pushing the others towards the room as well, and Time hastily sprang to his feet to stop a lizalfos strike from tearing into his already injured shoulder. His body was not happy with the overhead maneuver. When he glanced back, Sky was finally pushing himself into a standing position once more.

Something dark materialized between Time and Sky, and the eldest Link felt his blood run cold.

“Sky!” he cried out in warning, garnering everyone’s attention, but the one person who needed to hear him was distracted, and the dark shadow rammed into the teenager, who stumbled right into the center platform. 

As soon as Sky fell backwards onto it, the Shadow coalesced into a figure, walking towards him slowly as the platform rose into the air.

“No!” Time yelled alongside Twilight, who tore ahead, pulling out a bizarre looking device and slamming it into some grooves in the wall. He hopped onto it, and the strange spinning top started to ascend the wall alongside a cut out path. There was the remains of a stairway jutting out in the wall, and Twilight seemed to be heading for it so he could leap off and get to the centerpiece, but skulltullas were crawling to that point as well. Time felt his heart in his throat, terrified at both what the Shadow could do to Sky and that Twilight might get injured again. He pulled out his bow and arrows to assist the rancher when a lizalfos from behind drew his attention instead. One of Wild’s bomb arrows blew by him to eliminate the skulltulla, and Twilight yelped, leaping off the spinner just as the arrows killed the skulltulla… and the platform Twilight had been heading for.

Time turned to yell at Wild (mainly for almost blowing Twilight up… a selfish part of Time was thankful his descendant couldn’t reach the Shadow alone now), but the champion was already watching sheepishly in realization. He held up an appeasing hand as he put his bomb arrows away.

“We have to find a way to get up there,” Time said loudly over the din as the champion examined the room. “The Shadow has Sky pinned down.”

“The Shadow?!” Wild repeated.

“Damn it, Champ!” Twilight swore uncharacteristically, face pale with worry. “Sky’s up there!”

“What?! Sky’s up there?” Four yelled as he leapt off a wall to give himself some extra speed and height, driving his blade through a moblin’s heart.

Legend rushed over, an unfamiliar cane in his hands. “Get me up there. I’ll protect him.”

“That’s just it , I can’t get up there with if Champion keeps blowing up the platforms— ”

“Solutions now, blaming later!” Warriors barked from the other side of the room.

The monsters all stopped fighting. Everyone froze in mid parry or attack, confused.

What were they…?

There was a harsh, dark laugh that echoed around the area, making everyone look up at the platform. Sky was barely visible, staring at something they couldn’t see.

“What’s happening?” Wind asked slowly.

Legend groaned. “Oh, no. He’s about to monologue, isn’t he?”

“Let him,” Warriors muttered. “It gives us time to find a way up there.”

“Not so loudly, though!” Wind hissed. “What if he can hear us?”

“There’s no way he can hear us all the way down here,” Wild pointed out.

“I can hear you,” a voice echoed down to them.

“WELL THAT’S GREAT BECAUSE YOU’RE A COWARD!” Wind suddenly shouted at the top of his lungs. “GET YOUR SORRY SHADOWY BUTT DOWN HERE AND FIGHT US LIKE AN ACTUAL WARRIOR!”

Twilight and Warriors were both eying the path that his spinner had climbed. The two slowly crept towards the wall.

Footsteps bounced around the area, building a strange dread in Time’s chest as he looked up and felt his heart stop.

His own face was looking back at him, eyes red and skin grey, as if he had been rotting away in the Water Temple for years.

The Water Temple.

This shadow… was his?!

“You…” he muttered.

His Shadow smiled. “Me? Don’t make too many assumptions yet. Now excuse me. I have someone to talk to, and your noise was far too deafening for a civil conversation.”

“Just get out of here!” Sky suddenly yelled, rushing to the edge of the platform. “I’ve got this!”

“Try anything foolish and my beasts will finish you off,” the Shadow advised before swiping at Sky with his blade, making the knight disappear as he jumped back to dodge it. Time snapped back into focus, stepping forward with alarm, as the Shadow walked away.

“So, uh… should we just kill the monsters while they’re not attacking?” Wild offered.

“That doesn’t seem right…” Hyrule noted uneasily. Lowering his tone, he said, “Besides, if he thinks we’re just stuck down here, then we can sneak up. If we attack them they’ll just start fighting back, and then it’ll take longer to get to Sky.”

“He definitely can’t hear us saying that, right?” Wind whispered.

The group waited. There was silence.

Time glanced upward. At least that meant the pair wasn’t fighting yet. He didn’t know how that shadow version of himself from decades ago had managed to grow so powerful, but…

Goddesses above. It had almost killed Twilight. It was going to kill Sky.

“Whatever we’re figuring out, we need to do so quickly,” he said softly.

Hang in there, Sky. We’re coming.

Chapter Text

The world was strangely disconnected. Sight, taste, sound, touch, nothing seemed to connect. Nothing quite processed, nothing quite stuck except for the single thought in his mind.

That’s the old man. That’s the Hero of Time.

The Shadow, wearing Time’s face, smirked at him. “Surprised to see me? You have been looking awfully hard. I’m almost flattered, really.”

Link felt like he was back in the Skyview Temple facing Ghirahim for the first time. The otherworldliness of this creature, wearing such a familiar face—

The face of a friend. The face of someone he’d failed. The face of someone who didn’t entirely trust or like him, and for good reason.

Of all the faces to take… 

Would it have been better if it looked like one of the others? Would it have made him feel better or worse? Wouldn’t looking like the Link who disliked him make this easier?

Because this was a trick. This had to be a trick. Right? There was no way the Shadow was actually Time all along . He’d seen it change shape, it was a freaking lizalfos at one point for heaven’s sake. There was no way this was Time. There was no way it was in league with him.

Right?

Could shapeshifters change to look like people? He supposed it wasn’t impossible. But all he could think was, that’s the old man. That’s the Hero of Time.

The Shadow stepped towards him, his eyes narrowing as his brow deepened. Link felt an innate sense of danger, and his mind snapped back into focus.

He couldn’t be in league with Time. That wasn’t who the old man was at all. Also, the Shadow had attacked Twilight. There was no way Time would hurt his descendant, his most precious member of the group. None of that made sense.

This was Demise, messing with him.

The fear of a child long gone drained out of him, replaced with an anger that slowly filled him from the core outward, distantly familiar like reuniting with an old friend. 

“Your curse won’t save you here,” Link hissed, settling into a ready stance. “I’m ending this.”

His words gave the Shadow pause, which in turn made him wait to see what was happening. Why was the monster suddenly watching him, head tilted to the side? Had…

No. He wasn’t wrong about this. He wasn’t. He knew this had to do with Demise. Perhaps the Shadow was a servant of his. Either way, he’d get to the source. He'd come all this way - he wasn't giving up now.

Time’s dark reflection laughed, harsh and grating, making Link’s skin crawl. “You think I’m Demise? That’s absolutely charming. I must admit, you’re at least close, but oh Hero - surely you must realize by now.”

Here the Shadow started pacing, his teeth bared in a sadistic smile. “You, Demise, you’re cut from the same cloth. Two spiritual titans battling for the fate of the world. Such a fight isn’t without consequence, as you are well aware.”

Link stiffened. No, no, don’t say it, not while the others were in earshot—

“I don’t suppose the rest of you realize those consequences, do you?” the Shadow questioned the others, looking down at them from the pit where they were stuck.

“Why don’t you just come down here and fight?!” Wind yelled, swaying on unsteady feet. Link’s worry for him bubbled in his chest, and he took a small step forward.

The Shadow snorted. “You think that’s all I want? To fight?”

Link gritted his teeth. “Enough of this. Leave them out of it. This is between you and me.”

“Oh, but is it?” the Shadow questioned, its red eyes glancing down at the other heroes again. “I suppose they don’t recognize that it is very much about you.”

“Quit your damn stalling and let’s get to it!” Legend challenged, sword at the ready. Link knew he was baiting the enemy, trying to draw him down so they could fight as one.

The Shadow knew it too. “Call it what you will, Hero of Legend. But I figure you ought to know the truth. It will give me some satisfaction before your deaths, either way. Perhaps it’ll give you some peace of mind.”

Time finally sighed, taking the bait. “What are you talking about?”

Link lunged forward to attack with a yell. They didn’t have to know, they didn’t need to know—

This was entirely about them and not about them at the same time. Link had a job to do and he wasn’t going to let them get hurt, physically or emotionally.

Is that really why you’re so desperate to keep the secret? Are you protecting them? Or yourself?

The Shadow parried the blow, holding their blades in a lock as it laughed. “You truly don’t get it , do you? You don’t understand how terribly you failed?”

“Shut up!” Link screamed, pushing both blades forward, making the Shadow lose its footing before it leapt around to the side, getting behind Link. The Skyloftian gasped, rolling to avoid a swipe that would have cut him clean in half. The others down below cried out to him.

“Oh, I can only imagine how much that curse weighs on you, you miserable wretch! I am not Demise,” the Shadow yelled in return, almost proudly. “But I bear his power, his signature, his heritage . Don’t you understand, Link? I’m born from his malice, but you are my true progenitor.”

Link froze.

Wh… what?

“You think all that malice that the demon king contained could possibly all be sealed into that sacred blade? You think he could have uttered such a curse, damning every Hero after you due to your own shortcomings, and a simple mortal child could stop him? You may have killed a god, but there are consequences, and the ripple of power that infected every inch of time is one of them!” Shadow said, pointing at Link with his blade. The heroes below had grown still and silent. “Demise’s curse follows you, your successors, and the goddess wherever you go, but I am the physical embodiment of that confrontation, the piece of your soul that was corrupted by malice.”

Link felt his mouth go dry. What—this couldn’t—what—

Shadow stepped forward, his form changing with the same disturbing liquid-like movement before it rearranged itself into a familiar face. Link’s blood ran cold.

Shadow turned into him.

His dark reflection smiled. “You made me, Link.”

Link’s mind went blank with horror before it screamed everything all at once. 

This can't be true! What is he saying?!

This is entirely my fault. This is entirely my fault!

This was the cruelest joke Demise could have pulled, the worst insult, the most horrifying truth to cut him to his very soul.

Because his soul had been cut, apparently, his unbreakable spirit had been broken.

This monstrosity had to be lying ! He was lying! There—there was no way he could be right!

But what if he is? It isn’t impossible - Demise was a god, he imbued his blade with a soul just as Hylia did with Fi. What could stop him from corrupting—

He couldn’t even finish the thought. He felt utterly violated, like he couldn’t even trust himself anymore, like he didn’t even know who he was anymore.

Just let him kill you.

The thought made him stop breathing a moment, a bone sinking exhaustion and despair that he could hardly hold at bay.

But he did hold it at bay - because beyond the horror was something else.

The others were still here. And this thing, whether it was him or not, was going to hurt them. And he wouldn’t allow that .

Besides… if it’s me, then… if I kill it…

He didn’t finish the thought. He glared instead, enraged beyond words, exhausted beyond measure, tears stinging in his eyes but dried with white hot fury.

“I wanted to attract as many heroes as possible,” the Shadow purred with grim satisfaction, basking in Link’s silence. “The more I can feed off the Spirit of the Hero, the more I can escape the confines of just being a shadow relegated to the darkness of the world. I hadn’t dared to hope I’d catch the original in my net.”

Snapping its fingers, the Shadow grinned as monsters appeared down below, distracting the others. Link cried out to them but immediately had to parry an attack from the enemy as the Shadow lunged towards him with ferocious energy, and all out war erupted in the room.

Link dodged the attack hastily, his world silencing everything outside of the fight. The Shadow was now his size, leveling the playing field between the two of them, but it didn’t fight like him at all. A small part of his mind tacked that away for later, a piece of hope he desperately latched onto as it whispered if it was you it would fight like you while another argued back but if it’s been around for millennia, it would change and adapt—

His thoughts were interrupted as Shadow shield bashed him in the chest, making him stumble backward. His body screamed, already exhausted from fighting so much. He reached hastily into his adventure pouch and found his last potion bottle, which barely housed a few sips. When he found he couldn’t take a deep breath, he decided it was time to finish it off.

The two gulps revitalized him enough, his determination covering the rest, and he yelled as he parried an attack just in time to send Shadow stumbling backwards.

Link scoffed, “You’re too sloppy to be me.”

The Shadow roared in retaliation, shifting forms once more and turning into Time, towering over him. Link gritted his teeth as he barely dodged a downward strike, giving him an opening to potentially dislocate his enemy’s shoulder as his arm was hovering just in front of him, but the Shadow was too quick, despite his bulkier form. Or, well, he utilized it, shoving his entire body weight into Link shoulder first, and the Hero of the Sky twisted so their backs scraped against each other instead, leaving him dizzy and twirling to the opposite side of the beast. Shadow shifted again, turning into Four, throwing Link off balance and swiping for his waist. Though Sky stepped backwards, the tip of the Shadow’s blade cut into his belt a hair.

The Skylfotian gasped desperately to catch his breath. That potion hadn’t nearly fixed enough, and he couldn’t figure out a good weakness on an opponent who kept changing.

Not to mention he knew he was flinching and stepping away as the Shadow continued to take the forms of his friends. He tried to remind himself that it wasn’t actually Four or Time, but the thought of making anything that looked like them bleed made him physically ill.

Down below, fire burned monsters in large swathes, the heat rising up to their battleground. Link didn’t have time to see Warriors use the fire rod, to hear Hyrule yell as he set half a room ablaze, to notice Wild and Legend freezing enemies with ice magic immediately after they were roasted, making their bodies shrivel in the drastic environmental changes. 

He did hear Twilight’s cry of pain, however, and he turned in horror, the bottom of his stomach dropping out, before his peripheral vision reminded him of an incoming attack. He sidestepped hastily, lost his balance, and summarily twisted his ankle on an uneven stone as he slammed into the ground, pain shooting all the way up to his hip.

Time heard it too. The eldest Link whirled, both eyes opened in fear and protective anger, when he saw his pup fighting a handful of beasts alone while trying to climb the walls to get to Sky. Wild hastily turned his arrows towards the small horde, giving a warning yell before firing this time. Twilight ducked, his shield hovering overhead to protect himself as ice rained from the sky. Time used the hookshot to latch onto a lantern and pull himself to his descendant, cutting the frozen beasts in half.

“Are you alright?” he immediately asked.

“Fine! Fine, I promise,” Twilight insisted. “Just nabbed me a bit, look.”

The rancher showed him the wound, superficial as it was, but enough to leave him limping. Time immediately reached into the boy’s bag, pulling out the last of the milk he’d had earlier.

Twilight opened his mouth to protest, and Time immediately said, “Don’t you even dare . You haven’t earned the right to downplay your wounds after last time. I’m not saying use your last potion. Just drink this so I know you’re fine.”

Twilight sighed in defeat, downing the liquid.

Despite the small reprieve for the pair, the battle on the ground level had barely let up. Warriors cut through swathes of half burnt enemies, what little magical ability he had mostly depleted, and he choked back a gasp and rolled as a moblin swung for his head. Wind tore past him, stabbing the beast’s knee. When the moblin wailed and its leg gave out, the sailor hastily removed his blade, twirling to give himself moment before his sword cleanly cut through the creature’s neck. The fierceness in the child’s eyes was nearly palpable, and he nodded mutely to the captain before continuing on.

The captain surveyed the battle, eyes analytical. They’d eliminated nearly a third of the horde, but it was slow going. After already partially clearing a dungeon and pushing themselves all day, there were weak points he was beginning to notice. Twilight had been one, but Time was covering him. Wind seemed steadier on his feet, but he’d also just been knocked out a few minutes ago. Hyrule and Four had paired up while Legend and Wild held enemies at bay from a distance.

His brain automatically tried accounting for Sky out of habit, and he felt his heart skip a beat as he glanced upward. He couldn’t see anything from this vantage point. But he couldn’t worry about it right now - they’d be useless to Sky if they couldn't eliminate the immediate threat down here.

Heading for the sailor, he watched the boy’s back while he took on a pair of bokoblins.

Up above, Link found himself wishing he was outside. The stale air and dust was hardly doing him any favors with as much as he was desperately trying to suck in breaths. Nevertheless, he raised his blade with a prayer, feeling power emanating from Fi as she sang in sync with his cry. The Shadow’s eyes widened, his dark blade unable to match such an attack, and he barely dodged the strike. It did manage to create distance between them briefly, allowing Link a moment to recover before raising his blade once more.

The Shadow took the opportunity, rushing ahead in a risk of either getting to his foe in time while he was wide open or being cut cleanly in half. 

The former option won out. 

Link managed to deflect a full-on stab with his shield, but the blade still cut through his side as it slipped out of reach. He hissed, feeling fire erupt in his side as blood immediately began to trickle from the wound. The Shadow smirked, not breaking contact, and Link growled defiantly, slamming his head directly into the other’s. His enemy yelled, stumbling backwards as Link saw stars and attempted to blink them away. He stumbled until he felt a breeze blow by him with a sharp whistle, and he belatedly realized it was an arrow. Had the Shadow changed tactics again?

The arrow arched and landed on the ground on the other side of the platform, freezing the stone around it temporarily. Link whirled, but the Shadow was only glaring at him with sword and shield still in hand. Who had—?

Wild.

At the ground level, the champion pulled out different arrows, glaring fiercely up above as Legend covered him.

“You should probably let our Ordonian figure this out!” Legend again warned him as he cut down some keese. “He knows this place better than any of us!”

“He almost got ambushed,” Wild fired back, shaking his head. “I got this!”

“What the hell have you got?!” Warriors snapped from across the way.

“Focus on your own fight!” Wild fired back, eyes narrowing as he looked for his next target.

He wasn’t going rogue. He wasn’t deviating from the plan. He wasn’t going to abandon the group to solely go after Sky. 

He would bring Sky to them.

He nocked three arrows, looking over their red bulky tips, and yelled as loudly as he could, “Fire in the hole, Sky!”

Up above, the voice rang in the ears of his brother-in-arms, who immediately moved into the center of the platform to avoid another stray attack. Shadow didn’t quite understand what was happening, though he mirrored Link’s steps, making him inaccessible to the others down below. Link didn’t give the monster time to figure out what was happening, closing the space between them with a diagonal slash and forcing him to block. Three arrows flew over them, aimed far, far above where it should have been if Wild had any intention on hitting them.

Realization sank into Link like a stone.

He looked up a moment too late to see the arrows collide with the ceiling. 

Ah, shit.

Link watched massive chunks of stone fall from above, forcing him to run towards the edge of the platform just as the Shadow did. The pair were close enough to exchange blows as they ran, neither hitting with particular strength or accuracy, though enough to divide their foe’s concentration. Link pulled out a clawshot, throwing care to the winds as he slapped his shield on his back. He fired for a few stakes at the top of a broken stairway, and Shadow latched onto him the instant the chain pulled. The monster’s grip sank into his fresh wound, making him scream and nearly let go.

Honestly, he had to let go. If he followed through on this move he was going to just hit the stakes and be stuck hanging with the Shadow holding onto him. He wouldn’t be able to defend himself.

But if he let go the sailcloth might not stop both of them from slamming into the ground.

Link huffed, an insolent smile curling his lips, and he released his grip.

The Shadow snarled at him, panic in its red eyes, a strange look on his own face. But Link’s sense of victory was short lived as the Shadow twisted them so that Link was at the bottom and reached for his sailcloth.

The Skyloftian wrestled ferociously with his dark counterpart, preventing him from latching on to their one saving grace, but it didn’t seem to matter either way - their sideways momentum continued long enough for them to slam into a staircase instead of making it all the way to the floor, and Link couldn’t help the scream of pain that was ripped out of him as he felt a rib snap.

Cries rang out from below.

“Champion what the hell— ”

"I didn't mean for it to grab him!"

“We can get to them now, let’s go!”

Time took off in a heartbeat alongside Twilight and Legend. The falling stones had separated the rest from the stairway, though they also killed the majority of the remaining monsters. The eldest Link could see Sky up ahead, pulling himself to stand just in time to parry an attack from the enemy, who seemed just as shaky on its feet.

Despite the Shadow’s efforts, it couldn’t break through Sky’s defense. The boy was the best swordfighter in the group. Sky found an opening and went for it, and though the Shadow jumped to dodge, the knight still managed to cut through fabric and make the monster bleed, though superficially.

Hissing, the Shadow stepped back further, creating distance between them and shifting into a dark liazalfos. With its increased speed it slithered quickly around Sky, bashing him into a wall with its tail. Sky hit the ground and didn’t move. 

Twilight yelled the same time as Warriors, but the captain was being held back by multiple monsters while the rancher had to focus on enemies encroaching on him and Time. Wind, Hyrule, and Four had their hands full as well, and Wild was too far away to be of any use. Legend pulled out a boomerang, charging ahead as the Shadow shifted back into Time’s darker half.

Smirking, the demonic visage of their leader said, “And now you get what you deserve, Chosen Hero.”

Raising its sword, the Shadow thrust it down to pierce Sky through the heart when its motion was stopped. The Shadow jerked with a jolt, blinking rapidly and looking down to see an arrow wedged between its ribs. Snarling, it turned its head to glare at its heroic reflection, who was fixing it with a withering, seething glare as he lowered his bow.

“Get away from him you bastard!” Legend screamed, getting within throwing distance. The Shadow raised its shield to deflect the boomerang and then turned to flee, too wounded to continue the fight. Legend pursued it as Time ran to Sky, who was still motionless on the stairs.

The sounds of battle seemed to quiet down in Time’s mind as he finally took the last three steps in one long stretch and knelt down by the teenager who they’d been chasing for days.  

“S-shadow…” Sky said with a trembling voice.

“He’s gone,” Time soothed the boy gently. “He’s gone.”

The Skyloftian watched him, eyes watering and filled with desperate hope, and he let out a tired, barely audible laugh of relief.

“What were you thinking?” Time whispered, his voice quivering as he held pressure on one of Sky’s many, many wounds. There were far too many , and they were all in various stages of bruising and bleeding. He’d been accumulating them all day from multiple battles.

Sky’s trembling breath halted for a heart stopping moment before he continued to try and suck air in. A gurgling, bubbling sound accompanied it, and Sky coughed harshly. Time flinched, drawing the boy into a seated position as blood flew out of his mouth in little bursts of specks. When his fit had settled, he smiled at Time weakly, who was held captive in terror and horror as blood started trickling freely out of the corner of his mouth and nose. “M-making… amends…”

“Sky!” Legend slid onto his knees, careless of the layers of skin he no doubt just scraped off in the action. His hands shot to Sky’s shoulders, shaking him. “Sky, you blasted idiot, what were you thinking—”

Time steadied the veteran with his available arm, pulling his hands off the Skyloftian knight as shaking him was absolutely not helping. “Vet, get a potion.” 

“I don’t have any!” Legend yelled in a panic without a second thought. “I used my last one on the captain earlier in the dungeon, remember?! Where the hell are your fairies?!” 

Time shook his head, feeling dread fill him. “There are none left.” 

Trembling fingers brushed against Time’s face, barely tracing one of his markings. He immediately returned his attention to Sky just as Twilight came running over. “I’m… I’m…” 

“Save your strength, young one,” Time said softly, taking Sky’s hand in his own. “It’s going to be okay.” 

Sky swallowed, determined. “I’m… sorry. I’m s-sorry. I’m sorry.” 

“What… what is he… why is he saying that?” Legend asked, eyes wide. “Sky, what are you talking about? Listen, if you believed that shithead’s story for one second I swear to the goddesses I will smack some sense into you.”

Twilight was searching madly through his pouch, movements frantic and uncoordinated. Legend reached for Sky again, and the boy went limp, his eyes closing with a shuddering breath.

“Sky. Link. Link, stay with us.” Time pulled Sky to him, cradling the young knight in his lap, supporting his head with his right hand. His other hand slid down the boy’s arm, curling around his wrist in a desperate attempt to find a pulse.

It was there. Thready and steadily slowing. Time’s heart sank with a chilling realization, one that was all-too-familiar.

Twilight’s breath quickened as Legend started to shout the knight’s name. The rancher pulled out a bottle filled with red liquid. “I’ve got a potion, I’ve got one!”

Legend snatched it from Twilight without a word, tearing the cork off the bottle and shoving it in Sky’s face, when Time pushed him away.

“He can’t drink it when he’s unconscious,” Time said, not even bothering to hide the utter defeat in his voice.

Wild and Warriors were by his side next. Warriors stood over the group so as not to crowd Sky, but Wild had no such qualms and squatted directly across from Time.

“Is he okay? What’s happening?!” Wild asked, terrified.

The air grew colder and quiet. Three more pairs of footsteps hurried over, and Time couldn’t find his voice to explain what was happening.

He gave the boy a strong shake. Sky didn’t flinch. His skin was almost as white as his sailcloth. 

He heard Warriors first. The captain sucked a shuddering breath in through his nose, taking a step back; he’d seen enough comrades die in battle, he knew the signs. 

He was already mourning. 

Legend sank into the ground on his hands and knees, his fists slamming the stone. “Fuck. No, no , nonononono…”

His pleas devolved into sobs, wracking his entire body. Wind was asking what was happening, his voice trembling, his face already implying he knew exactly what was happening, even if he didn’t want to accept it. Four was still as a statue, his expression drawn in horror and devastation. Twilight’s hand slid to Wild’s shoulder, gripping it harshly as the rancher squeezed his eyes shut and looked at the ground, tears freely falling down his cheeks.

“Does anybody have a fairy?!” Wild yelled desperately, his head and hair whirling around as he looked from member to member.

He knew they didn’t. They all knew they didn’t. Between the previous world and this dungeon, they’d exhausted many of their supplies.

Pop.

Time glanced to his left to see Hyrule knocking back a green liquid, chugging it like his life depended on it. The boy almost choked at one point before continuing. 

Elixir.

Dropping the bottle carelessly, Hyrule shoved Wild aside and took a deep breath, reaching his hands over Sky. Time watched him tiredly, his heart a pile of ash, his mind settling on the inevitability of the situation.

These wounds were from the Shadow. One wound from the Shadow nearly killed Twilight. One wound took Hyrule all night to barely scrape by with enough healing magic to make sure Twilight survived the night. Sky had too many. Although none were individually as severe as the one the ranch hand had sustained several weeks ago, together they were enough. Together all of it was enough. Sky had been fighting armies by himself this entire time.

Why? Why?!

Why did Sky do this?! Why did this happen?!

Time couldn’t watch this. He couldn’t watch Hyrule wear himself to the bone on something so utterly beyond his ability to save.

“Traveler,” he said softly, barely mustering the strength to speak.

“Don’t—you—fucking— dare.” Hyrule hissed between gritted teeth.

Wild shifted from where he lay splayed on the ground from being pushed. Twilight hadn’t bothered to help him up, too transfixed in hope and horror at the sight in front of him. The champion then glanced around between the heroes before locking eyes with Four. The two nodded firmly to each other.

Standing, the champion grabbed Wind and guided him away. “Come on. Give him some space.”

Four also stood and gently went to Legend, whose cries hadn’t stopped since they’d started. The veteran didn’t seem to notice him, but Twilight also rose and helped the smithy pull Legend to his feet. The veteran shuddered, trying to get a hold of himself as he caught sight of the glow of Hyrule’s life spell. Time heard Warriors shuffle behind him, drawing closer rather than farther.

Sky remained limp in Time’s arms. The blue glow cast by Hyrule’s magic made him look ghostly, as if heralding what was to come. Time swallowed thickly. He wanted to smack the traveler for putting himself through this, for wearing himself thin over such a futile effort.

Sky wasn’t coming back from this.

Time started to shake. Warriors’ hand was warm on his shoulder.

Hyrule started to gasp for air, sinking to the floor as his magic faded from his hands. Sky didn’t move. His pulse slowed even more. Time could barely feel it now. Wind and Legend could both be heard crying in the background as the group had been watching in the distance.

Warriors shuffled to the other side to stand behind Hyrule, ready to pull the weary traveler from the attempt, ready to help the group accept the reality of the situation while Time was still drowning in it.

He’d failed him. He’d failed one of his boys. He’d failed as a hero, as a protector, as a leader.

Sky’s gone.

A million thoughts whirled in his mind. What were they going to do? How would they tell the boy’s family and friends? What would they do with the body?

How could he keep moving forward after losing someone else?

Time bit his tongue until he tasted blood. He knew he could keep moving forward. He’d lost many friends. But this…

This was somehow so much worse.

Warmth engulfed him all of a sudden. Acutely aware of the change, Time was ripped out of his grief and looked around, wondering if perhaps a portal had opened or enemies had arrived or—

Hyrule was glowing.

“You—” Warriors muttered, awestruck, staring at Hyrule’s hand. Time followed his gaze, squinting through the blinding light, and he saw it.

The Triforce.

“I told you,” Hyrule said softly, clutching his left hand with his right as the Triforce burned through the skin. “I don’t know the meaning of giving up.”

Chapter Text

Hyrule Castle hardly felt like the safest place for any of the Links given most of their adventures, but it was as good a place to regroup and heal as any other. Although the entire group was well aware that the knights were useless, and the whispers of nobility hung close over their shoulders, the queen gave them as much privacy as possible and lent her best healers to their cause.

The next twenty-four hours were a somber affair. The heroes kept vigil at the beds of their fallen friends. When they weren’t fretting over them, they were wandering aimlessly, too forlorn for words and too anxious for rest.

It was late into the night after their return from the desert, and Time was staring into a fire contemplatively, his mind still trying to process everything. Twilight had already eased him out of his armor, which had been silently hidden until it could be cleaned of Sky’s blood. Somehow, despite all his experience, Time still seemed to be the least functional when someone was this injured.

How was it that in the span of four weeks he’d almost lost two of his boys? He still hadn’t figured out what had led to this, why Sky had been so terrified, so insistent that they leave, why he’d been apologizing with his dying breath.

There was just… so much. All of it was too much. The Shadow, Sky, all of it. Why had the Shadow taken his form and then spoken such words about Sky creating him? Was that why Sky had been so concerned with eliminating it himself? Some words about a curse, lies hissed between demonic teeth about how Sky had somehow made this mess?

Goddesses above… what had that thing convinced Sky? No matter what had started this… surely Sky wasn’t blaming himself for it?

That had to be the issue. Sky, sweet and soft, always in the background until he decided it was time to cause a little mischief… the boy had always been the least of Time’s concerns when it came to causing actual trouble. He’d always seemed the calmest, the most put together, the least traumatized, the most normal. Between that and his adoration for a sword Time would rather see at the bottom of Lake Hylia, the boy had never really been someone that Time had to keep a close eye on.

Yet here he’d been, taking on the weight of their journey himself and trying to leave the others behind. He’d nearly gotten himself killed for it.

Time had assumed the position of leader in this group and he’d nearly failed in recognizing when one of its members was in desperate need of help.

How long had Sky been spiraling like this? What had led him to this point? Had the Shadow spoken to him on the night he’d taken watch? Had it started before then? Did he blame himself for Twilight’s injury as well? What else was he hiding? What curse had the Shadow been talking about?

Time heard footsteps, and he turned to see the veteran walking morosely through the room, pointedly ignoring his leader. Twilight stood at the entranceway to the room sectioned off for their two fallen brothers, arms crossed as he watched Legend leave. When Time’s eye met his own, he said, “Finally convinced him to go to bed.”

“How are you holding up?” Time found himself asking before he could stop himself. He was worried for all of them, especially his descendant, who naturally took others’ wellbeing and protection as his own personal responsibility. They were all heroes, they all felt that burden, but his Ordonian made it his life’s mission to protect his loved ones far more than anyone else.

Not to mention Time had been doing a terrible job of checking in on anyone.

Twilight sighed tiredly. “I… would feel better if I were the one in the bed. It’s way worse just being the one helplessly looking on.”

Time would rather not relive the events of a month ago, but he knew what Twilight meant. It was the worst feeling in the world, being a child of destiny, someone who was so used to fixing all the problems, and being stuck in a situation where there was absolutely nothing to do.

“I know,” Time said simply, resting a hand on the young man’s shoulder.

“Cap’s still in there,” Twilight said quietly, eyes looking at the ground as his own emotions got the better of him. “I managed to get the rest out. Vet was the last.”

Time hadn’t even been in there since their arrival. Warriors hadn’t left the boys’ side. It was almost as if their positions were reversed from the last time. He wasn’t sure he should be happy about it or not. He felt almost guilty for not hovering the same way, but he’d been fairly useless last time. It would be better if he could actually help the others as Warriors had, but he’d spent the majority of the day in a daze, guided around by Twilight, who had taken the captain’s role in guiding and leading everyone else.

What an insane week this turned out to be.

“Get some sleep,” Time finally said, patting Twilight’s cheek affectionately before lowering his hand.

Twilight watched him uncertainly, biting his lip and nodding. He walked by without another word. The eldest Link took a steadying breath, heading into the room.

It was a fairly small chamber, with both beds’ headboards against the same wall. Time saw Warriors asleep in the chair between the two, scooted a little closer to Hyrule’s bed. The captain was dressed down in his undertunic and pants, scarf and armor set aside in his own quarters. Time pulled an extra blanket that was folded by the bedside and wrapped it gently around his fellow hero. Despite his attempt to be gentle, the captain stirred, one of the lightest sleepers in the group, and turned bleary eyes towards his elder.

“Go to bed,” Time said softly. “I’ll watch them.”

Frazzled and exhausted, Warriors let out a weary exhale, rubbing his face. Time thought better of his dismissal, recalling that the captain had checked in on him in the past, that he himself had just checked in on Twilight. He shouldn’t brush off the man just because he held himself together better than anyone else.

“It’ll… be all right,” he tried to reassure the man hesitantly.

Warriors stiffened, shoulders shaking, much to Time’s alarm. However, instead of sobs, he heard an amused snort. The captain looked up, eyes exhausted but somewhat alight. “You’re really not good at this whole emotional support thing, are you?”

Despite his own mood, Time found himself scowling mildly. “That bad?”

“Your tone isn’t reassuring at all.”

“I’m not used to saying things that…”

“That you don’t believe?” Warriors finished for him. “Me neither. That’s why I try distraction instead.”

Time huffed, looking between the two sleeping boys. They both looked so peaceful now. Not pale, not on death’s door, not desperate or begging for forgiveness.

He sighed heavily as his gaze returned to the captain. Not recognizing he was under scrutiny, Warriors had let his expression be more open, fear and worry pulling at him. He looked so damn tired. He’d seen this too many times. Time himself had seen the expression when Twilight had been dying.

Warriors was far more accustomed to this than any of them. And Time hated that.

The captain shifted to get up, but then he paused, staring at the bed. Time followed his gaze, watching with sudden intensity as their esteemed traveler scrunched his nose and twisted in bed a little, eyes fluttering open.

“Traveler? Link?” Warriors leaned forward alongside Time, his hand gently reaching for Hyrule’s shoulder.

The Hero of Hyrule blinked a few times, seeming to register his surroundings, and then he gasped, practically leaping into a seated position. Time immediately sat on the bed just as Warriors jumped forward, both placing steadying hands on the teenager’s shoulders.

“Sky!” Hyrule immediately exclaimed, squirming under their hold.

“It’s okay, it’s okay!” Warriors insisted, putting a second hand on the boy’s chest. “He’s here.”

Hyrule paused, panting for air, eyes wide and wild, before they settled on the pair. “He’s okay?”

Time and Warriors exchanged a look before the leader spoke. “He’s here.”

Hyrule huffed, eyes wet, and then he laughed shakily, tucking his knees into his chest. “I—I thought—I thought he—I—”

He laughed again, more nervous than before, entire body trembling. Warriors settled on the mattress beside him, arm wrapping around his shoulders carefully. Hyrule wasn’t the most comfortable with touch and usually didn’t engage in it, and neither Warriors nor Time were particularly cuddly men, but after everything, they all felt the need to stick close to each other. The traveler leaned into the hold, tears trailing down his cheeks as he continued to chuckle, his breaths quickly accelerating into something akin to panic and relief, a conglomeration of emotions crashing out of him in a fashion that he couldn’t control. Warriors held him tighter.

“We’re glad you’re alright,” Time said softly, his thumb tracing across the boy’s collarbone. “You scared us back there.”

“Yeah, what with the Triforce and all,” Warriors piped up, squeezing Hyrule a little more tightly as he smiled. “You sure did have quite the trick up your sleeve.”

Hyrule’s tearful relief evaporated in an instant, eyes widening with alarm. Time felt his own concern rise – did the boy not remember using it?

“It’s okay,” Time assured him. “We’re all heroes here, Traveler. We’ve borne pieces of the Triforce as well. I just didn’t realize one among us had carried the entire sacred relic. That’s quite an honor.”

“R-right,” Hyrule mumbled, looking at his knees.

“How are you feeling?” Warriors asked, brushing past the distressing topic.

“Where’s the Triforce?” Hyrule countered.

The elder pair glanced at each other again before answering honestly. “We… don’t know. It vanished once you’d finished using it.”

Hyrule watched them a moment, still and silent. Then he buried his head into his knees.

“We’ll find it,” Warriors assured him. “One way or another. Such an artifact stretches far beyond our understanding – it might have returned to your era.”

“I—I didn’t want him to die,” Hyrule said in a trembling voice.

“We know,” Time soothed gently, sliding his hand along Hyrule’s back. “We didn’t want that either.”

Hyrule glanced up at him, cheeks stained with tears once more. “He’s okay, right?”

Time swallowed. Sky remained quiet in the other bed. He pushed lightly on the teenager. “Get some sleep, Link.”

XXX

It was the middle of the night when Legend finally gave up on sleeping.

His mind was whirling too much. Watching Sky basically die right in front of him, watching Hyrule nearly kill himself with the effort to wish him back with the Triforce…

It had been entirely too familiar.

He thought he’d gotten passed that. He thought he’d learned to keep moving in spite of the shadows cast over him by his journeys.

Clearly he’d been wrong.

So the young hero, a veteran of more adventures than any of the others individually, found himself incapable of handling the situation. And he hated that.

Legend wandered the castle, ignoring the cold and uninviting stone all around him. His feet guided him back to the room they’d set aside for Hyrule and Sky. The candle in his hand flickered slightly at the draft in the cavernous antechamber, chilled now that the fire in the large hearth had mostly died down.

When he slowly opened the door, he wasn’t surprised to see someone holding vigil. Time glanced up to meet his gaze.

“Just wanted to check on them,” he said dully, not bothering to hide his reasoning. This felt so different from when Twilight had been injured – Hyrule had been in there constantly trying to heal him. They’d avoided the area to let him concentrate. It had been awful, but at least there’d been a thread of hope to work with. It wasn’t as if there weren’t healers here, but the words they’d been given were little comfort.

They’d needed rest. There was nothing else they could do.

No potion could heal someone who couldn’t drink it. No spell could be cast when the one who knew the spells was the one who was unconscious. And so they’d all just done the last thing they could do, the only thing they could do.

They kept them company.

They kept them company, and Legend simmered with grief, guilt, and unresolved emotions from so many years ago that he didn’t even know how to put words to them.

Time pat the empty chair beside him welcomingly. Legend was thankful for the invitation, thankful that there were no questions being asked. He shuffled over to the chair, watching Sky sleep before his eyes drifted to Hyrule next.

“Our traveler woke up earlier,” Time said quietly.

Legend turned to him, eyes wide. “He did?”

“Yes. I think he’ll be alright with some more rest.”

Thank the goddesses, he thought. He didn’t remember the Triforce being so draining, but Hyrule had used it to augment his magic and grant a wish, so perhaps it worked differently than it had for Legend all those years ago.

Time’s words hung in the air, and then there was silence. Legend’s candle held steady against the darkness, illuminating his face, but he had no words to offer. For a moment, as he watched Sky, it felt like he was holding vigil over a body, a mourner lost in time, adrift in a different Hyrule altogether, grieving the loss of someone who was equally displaced and wholly forgotten to this era.

His breath hitched in his throat. He swallowed hard.

The silence seemed suffocating, but he had nothing to say. Time shifted uncomfortably beside him, clearly trying to find the right words. Legend didn’t care.

Sky. Sky had… just like…

There was usually something to distract him at this point, some task he had to accomplish that made him move forward despite the emotions dragging him down. But this felt like the end of a journey, after his first one or after Koholint, where there was nothing left but the emptiness in his chest, the fresh wounds on his heart. He had no road to travel on, no home to go back to, no Zelda to talk to.

He just stared at Sky.

“I have confidence that the Triforce healed the worst of it,” Time said. “Though I do not know if he will fully recover—”

“He died,” Legend interrupted.

“Link… he’s right here. He’s alive.”

“No,” Legend said firmly, feeling his throat tighten. He swallowed hard to fight it. “No. You don’t get it. None of you gets it. He didn’t just get hurt, he didn’t just fall. He died.”

They didn’t understand. They didn’t realize why they felt the way they did. Even he couldn’t truly comprehend it, but he knew why. He knew because it had happened before.

“The Triforce brought him back,” Legend explained. “But that doesn’t change the fact that he died. He died and none of you get that, he died, he died—”

Legend didn’t know when he’d lost the battle with his voice, when the tears had started to leak out, when the words had devolved into pathetic sobs, an admittance to a grief that he’d carried with him for years, a fresh wound and terror and horror that had ingrained itself into his soul.

Sky was one of his dearest friends. And he’d died.

He couldn’t even be angry at the Shadow, couldn’t even be curious as to what its words had meant, couldn’t even be worried about why Sky had left in the first place. All he felt was utter and absolute grief and loss.

Because Sky had died. They’d had to resurrect him. The others were caught in a confused haze of worry and fear, as if they were just watching an injured brother instead of acknowledging what had actually happened, instead of realizing that they should be mourning too.

Legend’s cries grew louder, inadvertently waking Hyrule. He didn’t notice. He couldn’t see it through his tears, through the darkness that engulfed him when Time pulled him into a hug.

XXX

Sky didn’t wake the next morning when Hyrule did. The others celebrated seeing one of their brothers slowly recovering, but the mood was certainly dampened by a lack of progress from their most injured. Wild found purpose in nourishing Hyrule back to health while Warriors started to fall into a field medic mode of sorts. Sky’s comatose state still necessitated care, though it brought a morbid curiosity in Wild – after all, he’d been in a similar state for a century.

Clearly the Shrine of Resurrection worked its magic to help sustain him. Sky had no such luck. His body still functioned as if he were awake, requiring sustenance, removing waste. He needed to be fed and cleaned, to be moved so he wouldn’t get bed sores, to be prodded to see if there was a reaction. It was a morbid affair, and it made Wild uneasy. He’d only been asleep for two days and it already felt like a century in itself.

Wild found it too disturbing to watch. Instead, he helped the others. He felt like he had to pull his weight somehow, had to blink the images of Sky’s broken body in Time’s arms. Hyrule slowly improving was something they could all latch on to. Warriors never seemed to leave Sky’s room, and Twilight spent a fair amount of time in there as well alongside Time. Occasionally Legend and Four assisted, but Wind was kept away, as well as Hyrule. Wild just couldn’t stomach the sight of the care his beloved friend needed. Whenever any of the boys lamented the situation, however, Legend would firmly and adamantly say that Sky was going to be fine.

It was strange, how confident he was. But with all his experiences, Wild had to wonder if he knew something of the matter. He latched on to the hope nonetheless. It seemed silly not to hope in a recovery, given his own history, but, well… that had taken a while. Sky didn’t have a century.

As the sun set on the second day, however, worry began to hover over them like a cloud heavy laden with an oncoming rain. After all, there was no way they could nourish Sky if he didn’t wake up.

“He’ll wake up,” Legend insisted when Four pointed this out.

“Assuming he does, that still doesn’t address the biggest issue,” Four sighed. “What if… what if when he wakes up, he tries to leave again?”

“He wouldn’t!” Wind argued.

“How do you know?” Four fired back. “He’d been running from us the entire time!”

Wild watched the exchange warily. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t wondered what had caused all of this in the first place, but it honestly hadn’t crossed his mind that it could happen again. He felt Hyrule shift uncomfortably beside him, and he turned his attention to his exhausted brother.

“You don’t think he wanted to leave us, do you?” Hyrule asked him quietly.

Words latched on to the champion’s brain, having first hooked in his mind when he’d heard them two days ago.

You don’t realize how terribly you failed.

This entire journey, Wild had been the failure of the group. Hearing those words had made him think the Shadow had been addressing him when he’d known, he’d known that it had been addressing Sky. But what failure was Sky responsible for? He hadn’t done anything wrong. Unless, of course, the Shadow was simply talking about Sky’s pursuit of it. But… Sky’s frantic attempts to argue, to silence it…

“No,” Wild answered distantly. “I don’t think he wanted to leave us.”

XXX

“It’s been two hours; we should move him.”

“I can do it.”

“No, it’s all right. You carried him last time. I’ll do it.”

What? What was… what?

Link felt impossibly heavy. His half-addled brain wondered if he’d become a sword spirit like Fi, made entirely of metal.

He was lying on something soft, he knew that much. He felt like he was sinking into it so much that he would never be able to get out.

Except he was getting out of it. Or, well, floating out of it. Flying? Was he flying?

Warmth wrapped around his back and shoulders, around the back of his knees. Two grounding forces, holding him steady in a vast expanse of nothing. He felt himself dangling and shifting in rhythmic motions.

Distant voices grew closer as the sound of creaking wood emitted beneath him in shuffles.

“Don’t spill it!”

“Oh, quit your fussing, Vet! Here, Traveler, just drink slowly. We kept it warm for you.”

“Are you guys done arguing? I have a story to finish!”

Grumbles. Sighing.

“Go on, Sailor.” That voice rumbled, buzzing in Link’s ear with the warmth of a hearth and accompanied by a gentle heartbeat.

“So there I was, thirty bokoblins between me and my goal—”

“Oh boy, they multiplied again,” a voice remarked dryly.

“What are you talking about?”

Sailor. Sailor? What?

Link tried to focus, but he was being lulled back to sleep by gentle sways as if he were laying on a hammock on Skyloft.

“It seems each time you tell it more bokoblins appear.” There was that rumbling tone again, waking Link slightly, relaxing him and drawing him into a trance. It was so familiar…

There was a decidedly annoyed huff in reply. “Hey, I know what I’m talking about! Anyway, so there were fifty bokoblins between me and—”

Link finally pried an eye open. Then he blearily tried to do it with his other eye. Everything was so blurry.

The hammock he was on continued to sway gently. Back and forth. Back and forth.

“That’s impossible and you know it, Sailor!”

“Nuh uh, that’s what happened—”

“Sky?”

The swaying stopped, jostling Link out of his relaxed state a little more. He tried to look up, but he couldn’t muster the strength. However, his perception was finally piecing together an image in his brain, and he belatedly realized he was not, in fact, lying on a hammock.

Someone was carrying him.

Someone was carrying him, and the sailor was here. But not just the sailor. He recognized all their voices.

“Sky, can you hear me?”

The rumbling from before returned. The gentle, steady heartbeat had increased a little. Who was carrying him? Link tried again with all his might to move his head, to tip it back just enough to see above, to identify who was holding him. It definitely wasn’t the captain; the voice was deeper than his. That just left Time and Twilight.

It had to be Twilight, then. The man was freakishly strong, and Time would never—

“Here—move this—put him here, old man.”

Huh?

Link felt his world move as the person carrying him—Time—took a few steps forward. There was scrambling and shuffling of items, hushed whispers and excited laughs. Link felt something somewhat hard and warm rise up to meet his back as he was laid on top of something, and his head settled on someone’s lap.

A hand gently brushed his bangs out of his eyes before settling on his chest, giving it a soft pat. With his head facing towards the ceiling, he saw eight faces slowly come into focus, all encircling him like flower petals around its center.

He drank in the sight, having missed his friends so much. Twilight was the one his head was resting on, the one who had a hand on his chest and a reassuring, gentle smile directly over him. Time stood behind Twilight, a hand on the rancher’s shoulder, also watching him, though his expression was less warm and more concerned. To Link’s left were Legend, who quickly placed a hand on Link’s shoulder, Wind, who was smiling so brightly he outshone the sunlight, and Warriors, who had both hands on Wind’s shoulders as he leaned over to see Link more clearly. Hyrule sat a distance away towards Link’s feet, with Wild directly beside him and holding him steadily in a side hug, his face beaming. To his right, Four’s smile was genuine and trembling, his eyes glistening with tears. Link managed to get the muscles in his face to cooperate, and he gave a weak smile.

The group let out a collective sigh of relief, and then laughter echoed in the air. Link was bombarded by voices competing for his attention.

“We were so worried—”

“Our Traveler nearly killed himself to get you better, we thought we were going to lose both of you!”

“We missed you so much, Sky—”

“We really thought you were a goner! Like seriously, Vet was crying—”

“I was not crying!!”

“Are you feeling okay?”

Everyone hushed at the question issued by Twilight. Link watched them all, his smile fading alongside his energy. He took a deep breath, trying to piece everything together, his mind still too slow to process it all, and Twilight patted his chest again.

“It’s okay if you’re too tired to talk,” Twilight said softly. “We got you out of bed so you wouldn’t get bed sores, but now that you’re waking up, maybe it’ll be okay?”

Here Twilight directed his attention to Warriors, seeming to ask him if it would, in fact, be all right. The captain ruffled Wind’s hair, making the sailor giggle and step aside, and he drew closer to Link and Twilight. “Mostly. If he’s too weak to move, we’ll still need to do it for him.”

Link could hardly put anything together. But one sentence suddenly burned in his mind, registering and making him try to bolt into a seated position. His body refused to obey, and he barely had curled into his abdomen before his head flopped back on Twilight’s lap with a grunt.

“Easy, Sky,” Twilight soothed gently, pulling Link onto his lap completely with strong grips under his arms. Link settled his head against the elder’s shoulder, gasping for air at the exertion. “It’s okay. We’ll take care of you.”

“T-Traveler…” Link managed to scrape out, his heart racing.

Hyrule shuffled closer, sitting on whatever object Link had just been lying on earlier. He reached a shaking hand out to the Skyloftian, squeezing his upper arm. “I’m here, Sky. You’re okay.”

His grip felt so incredibly weak, even to Link’s addled mind. He felt his stomach drop.

He’d made it worse. Somehow, he’d made it worse. Hyrule had almost died because of him.

“I’m s-sorry,” he stammered, his eyes stinging with tears, his mind berating himself over and over and over.

“Sorry?” Hyrule repeated, confused. “Sorry for what?”

“You don’t have anything to be sorry for,” Twilight reassured him, his gentle voice relaxing Link’s body, even if his mind continued to whirl.

“Sky, we’re just happy you’re alive,” Four said quickly. “Please don’t—don’t try to do anything. Just stay here. It’s okay. You’re okay.”

“N-no,” Link protested weakly. “I—I need—I—it’s my—I can’t—”

His entire world shifted as Twilight lifted him into his arms and stood. “Shh, it’s okay, Sky. Come on, let’s get you back to bed.”

Despite his complete exhaustion, Link almost wanted to snap. He wasn’t a child, damn it. He had to tell them, he had to make them realize it was best to leave him here, he could recover on his own and then he could hunt—

Wait.

“Shadow?” he asked quietly.

“He escaped, as he always does,” Time said from somewhere to Twilight’s right. “He’s a coward.”

“Yeah, but the Old Man left him with a pretty good parting gift!” Wind piped in. “Arrow to the chest! And Champion got one in his eye too!”

Link wilted in Twilight’s arms. The Shadow was still alive, and he hadn’t even been able to land any meaningful hits on him. The others had to come rescue him. The others, who bore the brunt of his own stupidity and weakness, and who continued to do so.

He was too tired for this. Too weak to hold back his brittle mind and body’s reaction. Too spent to care that he was suddenly weeping.

It just wasn’t fair. Why did they have to suffer for him? Why couldn’t he get this right?! How did he just keep compounding upon his failure?!

“Sky, what’s wrong? It’s okay, we’re all okay, the Shadow didn’t get anyone except for you.” Wild hastily said as Twilight hesitated in lowering him, instead opting to sway back and forth calmingly.

He felt someone card their hand through his hair and wipe the tears from his cheeks. “Hey, it’s okay, Sky. Everyone’s safe, and so are you.”

Warriors’ words were both a blessing and a curse. Link was eternally grateful everyone was fine, but this just wasn’t right.

“I—I s-should’ve—should’ve—”

“Link.”

He snapped out his stuttering, surprised at hearing his own name for the first time in ages. He had long since stopped viewing himself as part of the group, but he’d been remiss to throw his name out for the world to hear when he’d realized he was in Twilight’s Hyrule.

“No one is expecting you to eliminate the Shadow by yourself,” Time said firmly. “We wouldn’t all be here if that was the case. Whatever has convinced you to think you should handle this alone, it’s wrong.”

The room suddenly exploded into sound, cutting off whatever argument Link might have had.

“Wait, you wanted to take on the Shadow alone?!”

“Sky, are you insane, I thought you were one of the smarter ones in our group, what the actual hell—”

“The goddesses wouldn’t bring us all together if we could take the Shadow by ourselves!”

“You could have gotten yourself killed, Sky, what were you thinking?”

“Enough,” Time interrupted the group. “Let him rest.”

Link felt himself being lowered onto the bed, and the blankets were tucked all the way to his chin. He saw the group surrounding the bed worriedly, some looking more annoyed than others, some looking scared, and some hurt and bewildered.

Link sniffled helplessly.

Wind immediately jumped into the bed, kicking off his shoes and snuggling in beside him. “I’ll keep an eye on him.”

Everyone agreed with words that Link didn’t bother to discern, and he felt Wind tuck himself neatly in between his right side and arm, resting his head on his shoulder. Link suddenly felt sore, but he didn’t protest.

“Aryll loves cuddling when she’s scared or hurting or doesn’t feel good,” Wind whispered with a smile. “I figured you didn’t want to be alone.”

Link couldn’t help the small smile that pulled at his lips. He bit back another apology in lieu of letting the sailor have a chance to help, and he closed his eyes, resting his cheek on Wind’s forehead and closing his eyes.

The world grew warm and heavy. Exhaustion pulled at him, allowing him to settle back into sleep, but just before its gentle embrace could take him, his mind jolted back to—

Bleeding. He was bleeding so much. A bone deep exhaustion dragged his mind away, but he clung desperately. This was a different kind of tired, a far too permanent sleep beckoning him.

“S-Shadow…”

He had to know. He had to be sure.

“He’s gone,” Time said. “He’s gone.”

He… he did it?

He did it. They were safe. They were safe.

He felt tears sting in his eyes, his heart fluttering. His mission was… over.

He’d finally eliminated Demise.

He laughed, he laughed in relief. His brothers would no longer be haunted by that demon. He couldn’t eliminate the wounds of the past, but he could prevent any in the future.

“What were you thinking?” he heard Time whisper.

It didn’t matter now, whether they knew or not. But he still… he still felt obligated to say it. “M-making… amends…”

He could never truly make up for everything. But at least now he could…

He could rest. Goddess, he could rest.

I’m sorry Zelda, he thought. He apologized to her over and over, to Groose and to all his friends on Skyloft.

He knew. In his heart, he knew.

This was his last mission.

“I’m… sorry,” he said aloud before directing the apology at those around him. Because he knew he was leaving them too, and he knew he would never get a chance to truly apologize for all the harm he’d caused. “I’m s-sorry. I’m sorry.”

I’m sorry…

The darkness pulled, and he drowned in it.

Link’s eyes snapped open. He’d—goddess, he’d—how—

Hyrule. He—he must have—

“Why?” he asked quietly, his voice little more than a whine.

“Hm…?” Wind perked up, already groggy, but his eyes were sharp as he looked at Link. “What’s wrong?”

Link couldn’t let this out on their youngest. But he couldn’t stop his raw emotions either, and before he knew it he was crying again. “Why?”

Wind watched him, eyes suddenly far older than they had any right to be. The boy held a gentleness and understanding to him, a sympathy and sorrow that intermingled, and he leaned down to hold him tightly.

“Because we love you, Sky.”

Sky fell apart completely, sobbing in his brother’s shirt.

Chapter Text

It was uncharacteristically cold, bringing a sprinkling of the upcoming winter season as frost slowly encased the wildlife in the gardens of Hyrule Castle. Twilight sat on a bench, his legs slowly freezing at the contact on stone, his heart numb as he stared at nothing. Gentle footfalls caught his attention, though he recognized their steady gait, the sound of a dress trailing behind them, the silence of the person in question.

Of all the stories he’d heard of everyone’s Zeldas, he’d concluded that his was the quietest.

He didn’t move as she carefully, gracefully sat beside him on the bench. Her hands were clasped on her lap. He could see a dark cloak in his periphery, trailing down her dress and covering her. It looked like the cloak she’d worn when she was imprisoned in the Twilight Realm.

“How is he?” his queen asked softly.

“Awake,” Twilight replied. “Or, well, he was. Briefly.”

Sky’s and Time’s words echoed in his mind in a nearly maddening fashion. The young knight’s outburst of emotion at the fact that the Shadow was still alive… Time’s observation that Sky was trying to handle this entire ordeal alone…

He just… didn’t understand. What had led to this? They could all—well, he himself knew he was guilty of taking on too much, but—

Twilight would never—he’d never just—

He’d gone after the Shadow, it was true. But he—well…

Twilight was a hunter. He knew that about himself. There was a reason the shadow magic had chosen a wolf as his beastly form. But he also recognized the benefits of working as a team, and it just—it didn’t make sense why Sky would suddenly think he could handle this alone. Had he been thinking about this for months, and he’d just waited for the right opportunity?

Had this idea ingrained itself into his mind because of Twilight’s injury? Was Sky worried about the others getting hurt? The boy was one of the softest souls in the group, the logic at least made sense in that regard, but…

Twilight supposed he should have figured that Sky was just as reckless as the rest. Though, aside from Wild (and possibly Hyrule), even the rest realized that working together was the smarter and saner option.

“And how are you?” Zelda continued, watching him carefully.

Twilight sighed tiredly. “I’ll… be fine. I just want him to get better.”

The queen remained silent, turning her chin ever so slightly so she was looking ahead, just as he was. Twilight suddenly felt guilty, remembering who he was talking to, remembering everything she had done for them the last few days. He finally looked at her. “Thank you. Thanks for… helping us.”

Zelda glanced back at him, her cheeks growing rosy in the chilly air. She smiled gently, tipping her head in acknowledgement. The pair was silent for a while longer before Twilight barked out a laugh.

“Midna would be yelling at us by now,” he chuckled, his chest tightening, eyes stinging. Ah, maybe that was the wrong person to think about on top of all the emotions he was already feeling.

“I imagine so,” Zelda agreed with a huff of her own. “She didn’t seem to like silence as much.”

Twilight hummed, trying to wipe the memories away, only to be replaced by Sky dying, by Sky crying, by—

He sighed. As if Arbiter’s Grounds didn’t have enough awful memories for him.

“I’m glad he’s doing better,” Zelda finally said. “I’m glad I could repay him. And you, Link.”

“Repay…?” Twilight snapped his gaze at her, mildly confused. Was this about the beasts he’d defeated?

“He assisted us against Ganondorf,” Zelda said with a smile, tipping her head to the side as if to remind him of already knowing this fact.

“Wha—no he didn’t,” Twilight argued and then bit his lips, remembering he was talking to a queen.

Zelda’s eyes were knowing, but sad all of a sudden. “We should go inside.”

The look was hauntingly familiar, and it made Twilight’s breath freeze in his lungs. The words of the Shadow came to mind, of meeting the original Link, and the Ordonian suddenly found himself realizing that he really needed to figure out where on the timeline Sky was.

The Skyloftian was tied with Wind for knowing so little of Hyrule, making the pair uniquely different than the rest. Neither were natives to Hyrule, and though the traveler hinted at a potentially similar foreign origin, he still knew Hyrule and was a part of it. But since Wind had fallen easily into the timeline (or, well… timelines), Twilight had simply assumed Sky was some outlier as well, falling between eras that they knew, living in a place so remote (and in the clouds) that he barely understood what the kingdom was doing.

Knowing of the sky islands in his own time, of how ancient they were, relegated to legend… Twilight had wondered. It wasn’t… it wasn’t as if there weren’t hints that Sky might be fairly early on the timeline.

So why did Zelda’s hints at his aid leave Twilight so… uneasy?

Twilight found that he didn’t have the courage to ask her as they both went indoors. He scratched at the Triforce symbol on the back of his hand, stomach churning, and bade her a good night.

XXX

It was late into the evening when Time entered the designated sickroom silently to find Warriors sitting beside Sky’s bed, the young knight’s hand held gently in the captain’s own. Warriors didn’t move, despite no doubt hearing his approach. Time paused just behind him, eye looking Sky over. He’d taken to doing this, whether he’d been in the room for hours or minutes, he’d always come back to make sure the Skyloftian was still here, still breathing.

After the initial shock, he found that he couldn’t stay away for too long a period of time. He’d given it a few hours after sending Sky to bed before checking in on him, only to find Wind and Warriors talking to each other softly. After that the sailor had been dismissed, finding Hyrule and latching on to him. He hadn’t spoken much the rest of the day, despite some prompting.

Time found himself trying to bounce between so many troubled boys that he was thoroughly overwhelmed. So instead, he just checked in on Sky.

Warriors’ thumb traced over Sky’s hand. “You know, I did the same thing… during the war.”

Time didn’t speak, sensing that there was more at the tip of the captain’s tongue. Warriors often didn’t speak to express his feelings – his words were a shield and sword, never an admission of hurt or worry. Time wouldn’t interrupt if he needed to get something off his chest. Goddesses knew he deserved it.

“I took the responsibility of the war on my own shoulders,” Warriors continued, eyes never leaving Sky’s face. “Blamed myself for the war, even though it clearly wasn’t all just because of a woman’s twisted obsession. But I blamed myself anyway. Went to face her alone. Nearly died at the hands of my own Shadow.”

Time’s gaze drifted to the captain, eye widening a little. He didn’t even know what to say at this point, but the way Warriors’ grip tightened around Sky indicated that he needed some kind of response.

Before the eldest Link could articulate anything, the captain went on, “Impa was furious. I’d never seen her that mad. The princess wasn’t all that happy with me either. I…” he cleared his throat, “I was just a kid who wanted it to end. A kid who thought I could accomplish anything. A kid who’d been winning battle after battle and thought I could win one more.”

“Captain,” Time tried to say, but found he had nothing to follow up with.

“He’s not like me, Link,” Warriors said, his voice beginning to wobble. “Sky isn’t—he doesn’t walk on to a battlefield like he owns it. He doesn’t wield the Master Sword like it can do anything. He’s a better swordfighter than me, but he’s a silly, sleepy child, lazy and laid back and—”

The captain stopped abruptly, swallowing, his entire body tensing. Time settled his hand on his shoulder, heart heavy.

“What did we do?” Warriors asked all of a sudden, turning vulnerable and pleading eyes towards his leader. “What did we do that made him think he had to do this?”

“I don’t know,” Time answered honestly, voice oh so quiet. He still was trying to figure out if what the Shadow had said held any bearing, if Sky somehow had convinced himself that this was his fault, but it didn’t add up. There was no way the Shadow could have run into just Sky without anyone knowing until this entire fiasco. And even if that were the case, if the Shadow were speaking truth, if somehow it was from Sky’s era… what would compel Sky to think he needed to handle this alone? Why didn’t he just tell them that he knew the enemy?

There were too many unknown factors. Time needed answers. None of this was adding up.

“You know, the sailor said that Sky didn’t even get it,” Warriors continued, shaking his head as his eyes started to glisten with tears. “That he didn’t understand why we’d save him.”

Time felt the bottom drop out of his stomach.

“How could we have failed so badly at communicating that he was part of the team?” Warriors questioned, releasing Sky’s hand and leaning forward to bury his face in his own. “Damn it all, we almost lost him to that.”

Time was still trying to catch his breath from the realization that was eating Warriors alive. Of all the difficulties and journeys he’d been through, and the people he’d seen, the only person who had ever felt so out of place that they would rather die than carry on the farce was—

Himself.

Time sat slowly on Sky’s bed, processing everything, but his hand remained steady on Warriors’ back. He finally found the right words to say. “Captain… this isn’t… you can’t blame yourself for this. We haven’t done anything that would make Sky feel unwanted or unloved. Something else is going on.”

Because something else had to be going on. Malon and her father had welcomed Time with open arms, but that hadn’t fixed the wounds in his heart and soul that had nearly led to permanent disaster. No one person had been responsible for it.

This had to do with Sky’s own adventure. He knew it.

Time hastily shoved the emotions aside in lieu of this new information. He was terrible at addressing emotions, particularly his own, but he could puzzle things out. And this gave him something to focus on instead of drowning.

Warriors took slow, measured breaths, face still hidden in his hands, but Time could feel his posture changing, his muscles relaxing and then stiffening in waves. He was slowly trying to recollect himself. Time didn’t try to speed the process, and instead swept his hand gently up and down the captain’s back. To his relief, Warriors relaxed under his touch.

“How can you be sure?” Warriors asked tiredly.

“Because I, too, have been through something similar,” Time acknowledged. “Not in the same fashion as you or Sky, but… I understand. This isn’t about us, Link.”

Warriors huffed, hands tracing down his face, pulling at the skin before they fell to his lap. “So we’re just collateral damage.”

“No,” Time reasoned out. “He’s trying to protect us.”

Like I did. A Hero forgotten to time that shouldn’t have existed, protecting those who would never understand.

Sky had spoken of the Ocarina of Time as a “timeshift instrument.” That implied the boy had probably done some time traveling of his own.

The eldest Link had to admit, he had never given much consideration to Sky’s own history and story, having little interest in hearing about the Master Sword, but now he realized he really should have paid more attention. He shook his head and bit his tongue, saving the internal beratement for later. Warriors needed him now, and considering everything the captain had done for him a month ago when Twilight had been dying, he owed it to the younger man.

And he needed to do better as their leader, anyway.

“Idiot,” Warriors finally grumbled, pulling a chuckle out of his elder.

“Yes,” Time agreed. “Now let’s focus on helping him remember he’s surrounded by fellow heroes. Such as a brave captain whose worth far surpasses his appearance or abilities in battle, whose heroics stem from his heart.”

Warriors’ face, tired and fragile as it was, contorted for a moment, lip wobbling, and he cleared his throat loudly, squeezing his eyes shut and looking away.

“Didn’t think you had it in you, old man,” the captain tried to say casually, though his voice shook and his laugh was wet. He sniffled, hands grasping his tunic with such intensity his knuckles turned white. Time’s own hand was steady, continuing to soothe along his back. Warriors finally seemed to grow uncomfortable with this degree of vulnerability and rose, still facing away, Time’s gentle touch now out of reach.

“Captain,” Time started, trying to say that it was okay to be hurting, but Warriors cut him off.

“You’re right,” the captain said, his voice growing stronger. When he finally did turn, his face was flushed, eyes glassy, but there were no tears on his cheeks, no wobbling of his lips. His face was turning to stone as he tried to steel himself. “We need to get to the bottom of this. This—this can’t—”

Warriors swallowed, brow furrowing in frustration and determination, but the words were trapped in his throat.

“This can’t happen again,” Time agreed quietly.

The door opened behind them, and both men turned to see Twilight standing in the entranceway. Warriors sighed heavily, heading towards the exit.

“I’ll check on the others,” he muttered, not bothering to look behind him.

Time watched the captain go and the rancher approach. Twilight’s eyes were fixed on Sky.

“How’s he doing?” his descendant asked softly.

“No change since before,” Time answered, his heart aching at how much all of this was hurting everyone. A restless energy pulled at him, growing impatient for Sky to awaken so they could get this figured out. He didn’t dare wake the boy, though, terrified that he wouldn’t heal properly. But another fear pulled at him, demanding that he wake him just to make sure he could wake up.

It had been almost three days, but the image of Sky dying in his arms hadn’t left his mind.

Twilight knelt at Sky’s bedside, running his hand through the teenager’s hair. Neither hero spoke for a good while before the younger one said, “Do you ever wonder… where in the timeline Sky is?”

“Far more now than I did,” Time admitted. “How are the others?”

“Little sailor’s still is upset,” Twilight answered. “He won’t say why, though. But you can see it. Champion and the Veteran are trying to cheer him up. Traveler’s taking a nap; the little guy’s with him.”

Any other discourse on the subject was interrupted with a whimper. Sky’s brow furrowed, face pinched in pain or concern or distress as he squirmed in the bed. Twilight and Time both leaned forward in concern, Twilight’s hand resting on Sky’s chest as Time’s reached to him as well.

Sky awoke with a start, eyes blown wide, breaths coming in quick, short rasps. He tried to shoot into an upright position, but Twilight caught him just as he made it halfway and nearly collapsed.

“It’s okay,” Twilight immediately soothed gently, pulling Sky to his chest.

“You’re safe,” Time added, hand resting on Sky’s shoulder and catching the boy’s attention.

Sky swiftly gained control of his breathing, eyes flickering between Time and Twilight with some degree of anxiety. His gaze lingered on Twilight, looking up at him from where he was snuggled in his hold, and he seemed to wilt, looking down at his lap.

"Nightmare?" Twilight asked. The teenager didn't respond, but they both knew it had to have been.

“We need to talk,” Time said firmly, cutting to the chase, though the gravity of his voice was lessened by the way his thumb traced gently on the teenager in an attempt to calm him.

“Let’s get some food, okay?” Twilight suggested, softening the words further as Sky nearly shriveled into him. “Come on.”

Twilight went to pick Sky up, but the young knight wiggled out of his grip, scooting to the edge of the bed. Time stood, and he and the Ordonian flanked the young knight to help him stand. He walked shakily, and by the time he reached the door he was panting for air.

“I can carry you, Sky, it’s okay,” Twilight insisted, scooping the boy up as the knight let out a small groan in protest.

“Best let him,” Time added with a gentle smile. “Our rancher is not going to let you out of his sight for a long time, so you might as well get used to it.”

Sky eyed him uncertainly, slumping in Twilight’s hold as the pair exited the room. Time would let his descendant fuss over the boy for a little bit, would let Sky get a potion and some food in his belly, before he continued his earlier attempt. He wasn’t sitting on this problem for too long – the boy had died because of it.

He’d died. Legend was right, and though Time refused to linger on the grief as much as the veteran had, it…

Time sighed, following Twilight into the larger room where everyone else was gathered. The group grew silent as they saw Sky, and then they huddled around the ranch hand.

“How are you feeling?” Legend asked first.

Sky didn’t speak. Twilight gently placed him on a sofa, and Wild and Legend immediately flanked him.

“Here,” Wild said, shoving a bowl of stew into the knight’s face. “Eat. You need it.”

“And then drink this,” Legend ordered, holding a potion.

Sky did as he was told without complaint. Everyone seemed to be holding their breath, waiting to see what they should do next. The tension was ever growing, worry and frustration bubbling just below the surface. Warriors hovered close by, anxious energy driving him to rock between foot to foot.

The champion watched him carefully as he ate the stew. “You know it’s not your fault, right?”

Sky paused after a sip, body going rigid.

“Whatever the Shadow was talking about,” Wild tried to continue. “This—none of this is your fault, your failure.”

“You don’t know what he was talking about,” Sky suddenly snapped, eyes narrowing, catching Time off guard with his vehemence.

“Well I can’t know if you don’t talk to me!” Wild replied sharply, rising to his feet. “I want to help you, Sky. I don’t remember much of my past, but I do remember feeling so utterly silenced and alone and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. Talk to us! Tell us what’s wrong! Why did—why did you leave us?”

“Look, whatever bullshit the Shadow said isn’t true,” Legend said with a wave of his arm. “You know that. How could any of this be your fault? You were just as confused as we were when we all ran into each other!”

“I fought my Shadow before,” Hyrule added. “The one we’re pursuing could be anyone’s, really. Or something far worse; I’ve never seen such magic, after all. But it doesn’t matter. I didn’t invent my Shadow just as you didn’t invent this one, you know.”

“None of this is your fault,” Twilight assured gently from across the couch.

Sky dipped his head down, fingers trembling as he held the bowl.

Four broke the silence. “…He… he was right, wasn’t he?”

The Skyloftian practically wilted, shrinking into himself, shaking like a leaf. Twilight hastily took the bowl out of his hands before it could fall and shatter on the ground.

Time knelt in front of him, eye piercing into him as Sky hesitantly glanced up under his hair. He averted his gaze the instant he locked eyes with their leader.

“Tell us the truth, Link.”

The room held its breath, waiting for an answer.

“He was right,” Sky whispered, propping his feet in front of him on the sofa, hiding his face in his knees. “It’s my fault.”

In his periphery, Time saw Legend about to say something when Warriors put a hand on the veteran’s shoulder to silence him. Twilight was about to hasten forward to soothe the young knight’s tears, but Time put an arm in his way.

The eldest Link studied Sky carefully. Whatever caused him to blame himself for was clearly tearing him apart.

This was the reason he had left the group in the first place.

“What is?” Time prompted quietly.

“E-everything,” Sky continued, fighting desperately to speak through hiccupped sobs. “I—it’s—Ganon is m-my fault, I f-fought his predecessor, t-the one who started it all, who h-hurt all of you!”

The room was still as everyone watched Sky gasp for air in order to explain.

“I—I f-fought Demise,” Sky explained, a hair’s breadth from unraveling. “H-he was—he was Ganon’s predecessor, o-or maybe Ganon before he was called that—he—he said—he c-cursed me, all of us, and s-said—he’d follow Zelda’s d-descendants a-and—and the Spirit of the H-Hero and—and I didn’t stop it—”

Everyone let him cry a moment, trying to process what he’d said. Time tried to process what he’d said.

A curse. They were cursed? Because of this Demise person that Sky had fought? Did he mean in that they had to fight Ganon? The curse was that evil would return? Was Demise Ganon?

I fought his predecessor.

Farore above. Time and Twilight exchanged looks, comprehension dawning on his descendant’s face as well.

Sky predated all of them. All those weeks ago, when he hadn’t known who Ganon was, it was simply because Ganon hadn’t been known by that title yet.

Sky was the first Hero.

And the boy had known it. He’d been festering in these thoughts, he’d been drowning in them.

He’d left to fight the Shadow to fix it.

How could he possibly fix it? What delusion would lead him to believe that defeating the Shadow would stop the curse? What made him think he could salvage what he believed to have destroyed?

Had he assumed they’d just let him? Had he assumed they wouldn’t care about him anymore if they found out?

Time had heard enough.

Moving closer, he slowly pulled Sky to him. He held the boy tightly, so tightly it almost hurt, and Sky melted into him, knees sliding down so the pair could be heart to heart. The young knight became incoherent with his sobs, though Time could hear I’m sorry stammered over and over and over.

Just like when he’d died.

And oh how the pieces fell into place. Oh how Time’s heart hurt. Oh how he knew of such guilt, how he remembered it finally sinking in after Kakariko was set ablaze all those years ago, how a nine-year-old child in a sixteen-year-old’s body finally registered that the world had been irreparably damaged because he’d opened the way to the Sacred Realm. The years after taught him that it was not his fault alone, that it was an accident, but he knew.

He figured, unfortunately, that they all knew to a degree. They were all human, after all. They all made mistakes.

Sky had nearly—actually—gotten himself killed out of guilt. He had been avoiding them out of guilt.

“T-the—the Shadow—” Sky tried to continue. “Ganon, G-Ganondorf, they’re all my fault!”

“So, like, this Demise guy became Ganon?” Wind surmised quietly.

“I think that’s the idea,” Four murmured.

“Wait,” Wild chimed in. “So Sky fought Demise, and Demise won and cursed him? Cursed all of us?”

Legend shrugged. “You think we’re going to get the full story out of him now?”

Sky was practically hyperventilating at this point. Time squeezed harder, and he could feel the boy struggle to breathe against him. Dipping his face into Sky’s hair, he gave him a soft reassuring kiss on his head.

“Shh,” he whispered so only Sky could hear. “Breathe, Sky. It’s okay.”

To his credit, Sky did try. He took one shuddering breath after another, holding it and releasing it. The occasional hiccup interrupted the pattern, and he’d start to spiral again until Time shushed him gently once more. As Sky’s breathing settled into exhausted panting rather than choking gasps, Time released his hold a little, letting Sky lean back a little. The teenager’s head rested on Time’s chest, his eyes closed as he sniffled.

“What happened with Demise?” Time tried again. He needed to finish getting the full picture. Sky’s guilt over a curse and a perceived failure had caused this, but Sky’s perception was clearly off. Time needed facts.

“Did he defeat you?” Wild asked quietly.

Sky’s eyes snapped open, and his entire body stiffened. The tears practically evaporated in the searing heat of his sudden anger. He wasn’t glaring at anyone in particular, but the look was enough to make Time take a step back.

“No,” Sky spat. “I killed him. But before he died, he—he said—he cursed all of you. He said—he said he’d come back. Again and again and again. And I just stood there and let him do it.”

Sky turned to look at Wild now, fists so tight the skin was paling, but it was obvious the vitriol was aimed only at himself. “You speak of failure, as if the Calamity that destroyed your world was your fault. I destroyed all of Hyrule for all time, before it was ever even made. I destroyed Skyloft’s future. My people, my home, my family, and all of you. The future! I destroyed all of it!”

His anger evaporated in an instant as the words finally spilled out, and the tears returned. Sky crumpled to the ground, Time and Twilight barely able to catch him before he hit the floor.

“And h-he—and he—the Shadow—” Sky sobbed. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry—”

The group watched helplessly for a moment as Time held the boy, not knowing what to say but desperately wanting to soothe him.

“You didn’t destroy Hyrule.”

The first to speak was their youngest. Wind stood, tall and defiant, glaring at the Skyloftian.

“Hyrule won’t be destroyed by anyone,” Wind continued. “Even without a Hero, it persevered. And it needs its heroes. We’re not cursed.”

“That’s right,” The traveler agreed, also rising and nodding. “We chose to fight and we’re proud of it. We defeat that curse time and again. And Hyrule always survives.”

“You didn’t all choose it,” Sky disagreed shakily, clearly distressed still. “I—I know you didn’t. And you—some of you were children. It isn’t fair—”

“Ganon is hardly fair, and he’s far beyond anything we can comprehend,” Warriors cut in. “When I fought him, my predecessor had split his soul into pieces to prevent him from ever returning and even that didn’t work. You can’t… you can’t blame yourself for a demonic power that’s far beyond any of us.”

“Speak for yourself,” Legend suddenly snapped. “Far beyond any of us. Ha! We all defeated him.”

Sky watched Legend with fear evident in his eyes. Time threw a stern glare towards the veteran, warning him to watch his words. The teenager ignored him.

“Sky,” Legend said slowly. “Ganon’s killed people like us. I came from the legacy of a Hero who fell when he fought him. The fact that you bested him is a testament to your strength, it is a testament to the fact that you did everything you could. I defeated him and he still came back. Our traveler is proof of that. You’re not responsible for his curse, he is.”

“B-but it was my job to prevent that,” Sky argued. “Hylia chose me to stop him, to kill him. It was—it was supposed to be over.”

“Who’s Hylia?” Wind whispered to Four, who shrugged.

“I was supposed to end the threat as well,” Time said. “Yet my descendant fought the very same monster I had. And not only that, but he somehow managed to attack the Sailor in a completely different timeline.”

“B-but—”

“Link. Stop trying to rationalize this.” Time interrupted, reaching forward to rest his hands on Sky’s arms. “You can’t rationalize that kind of hatred. Ganon isn’t a man, he’s a monster. And you’re not to blame for his actions.”

“He cursed me and I didn’t kill him!” Sky yelled. “He was saying the words, I could have ended it then!”

“So why didn’t you?” Four questioned quietly.

“B-because—because—” Sky stammered, hyperventilating, terrified now that he was under scrutiny. Time was going to just end the conversation there, but the knight continued, “I thought—I didn’t know, I didn’t know! Ghirahim spoke words just like that and they were empty—he didn’t set his mind to murdering me until the end, he was just insane and—and Demise was already dying, and I—”

“Listen well, Link,” Legend said firmly, walking closer to him and holding his attention. “Whatever his words may have been, that doesn’t even guarantee you could have stopped him. And of my many adventures, I didn’t even fight him in all of them. Enemies will always rise to destroy this land, and the Heroes of Hyrule will always rise to fight them. That’s not a curse. It’s an honor.”

Sky watched him a long time, seeming to let the words sink in, but something darkened his features, and he glanced at Time. “Such an honor that you hate those who helped you through it? That you hate anything having to do with it?”

Time stared, dumbfounded, and then understood. Sky was no longer talking about Ganon.

This was about that damn sword.

Sighing, Time looked away a moment, trying to find the right words. Malon would immediately know what to say to soothe him. Time wasn’t going to lie – his childhood certainly hadn’t been pleasant. But he wouldn’t for one second blame Sky for that. Not when he himself had heard Ganondorf utter a curse against him to follow him, and now learned that two other heroes had to deal with the man.

Perhaps that was a good place to start. “Sky, you’re not the only one who’s let him return to attack again. We’re all testaments of that. Do you think we all blame each other for it?”

“You can’t blame yourself,” Warriors said firmly. “It’s pointless to take accountability for the actions of someone else, no matter what. You can’t control Demise, or Ganondorf, or anyone else. You defeated him, as was your duty. That’s all anyone can ask for.”

“But now this!” Sky suddenly shouted, tears returning. “Now this, with this Shadow, who says he came from me, that Demise poisoned my soul—”

“Shadows are creatures of dark magic,” Time explained, tone demanding Sky to listen. The knight hiccupped a little pathetically, but he didn’t continue to argue, letting his elder say further, “They feed off darkness, off negative emotions and traits, but they’re not part of us. They’re dark personifications of us. Traveler has fought his Shadow. I have fought mine. The captain has fought his.”

“Three of them, actually,” Warriors admitted dully.

Everyone stared at the captain a moment.

“Goddesses above, how much ego did you have back then to power three Shadows?” Twilight blurted out.

Warriors huffed. “It wasn’t that bad! I had plenty of other negative traits to utilize as well!”

And the dam broke.

First it was Wild who barked out a laugh. Then Four. Then Legend snorted so loudly it made Wind cackle as well. Before long, everyone was laughing.

Well, almost everyone.

As the air filled with giggles and cheerful uproar, Time leaned in so only Sky could hear him. “You’re not alone, Sky. You can’t blame yourself for this. No matter what the Shadow said. We’re all here to help each other. None of us blames you for any of it.”

“Hylia trusted me,” Sky sniffled. “Zelda trusted me.”

“Trusted you to do what?”

“To end it. To make sure war didn’t start again.”

“Again. So he’d done this before?”

Sky buried his face in his hands, and Time let it go briefly, pulling him back to his chest.

“Listen to me,” he whispered. “None of this is your fault. Everything that happened to us after you… that was Demise’s doing. You can’t possibly account for everything that beast can do. I certainly couldn’t, nor could any of the others. But we all defeated him and brought peace to our land and time. You’re not a god, Sky – you can’t protect all the timeline. Even I can’t do that.”

“I’m sorry,” the young one whimpered.

Time’s heart broke again, holding him in his arms as he apologized. The stale air of Arbiter’s Grounds suddenly filled his chest, the dry heat prickled at his skin.

“Don’t apologize,” Time practically growled as he held the boy tightly. “Don’t you dare ever apologize for any of this.”

The laughter around them had faded, lost in Sky’s cries and Time’s order. Everyone huddled around them.

“We love you, Sky,” Wind assured him, his voice shaking a little. Warriors put a hand on the sailor’s shoulder and leaned in as everyone else did.

“You pull this shit again and I’ll kill you myself,” Legend added thickly, burying his face in Sky’s shoulder.

Sky coughed a laugh into Time’s chest. “Sor—”

“No,” Time hissed. “Don’t apologize.”

And so the knight held his tongue, letting himself be held by the other heroes. After a few minutes, the hug slowly eased off, though everyone hovered close. Twilight tossed pillows on the ground so everyone could sit in a circle around Time and Sky. As the Skyloftian calmed, letting himself stay in Time’s protective embrace, a more placid conversation started, turning the original interrogation into a story to be told instead.

Sky was sometimes vague on details, but Warriors pressed for every piece of information. Hylia’s identity and role in the matter, the legends of the war led by a demon king, a god of chaos and destruction and hatred who tried to destroy not only what would be Hyrule, but the entire world. And, most importantly, Sky’s role in this legend.

The boy had fought a god.

“So, to be clear, you, a tiny little student who lived in the sky, fought the god of destruction who nearly annihilated the world, including a goddess, and you’re upset you couldn't entirely kill him despite defeating him.” Legend summarized flatly.

Warriors huffed. “That’s certainly an impressive feat. But by the goddesses, I thought I had an ego – what would make you think you could summarily destroy a god, Sky?”

“I did,” Sky noted bitterly. “With the Triforce. But then Ghirahim interfered and traveled to the past.”

“Of course he did,” Time grumbled under his breath. That had to be what Sky was talking about with timeshift items.

“To be so close…” Four muttered thoughtfully. “It’s no wonder it’s so frustrating. But still… why didn’t you tell any of us? Why did you just set out?”

Sky squirmed a little in Time’s embrace. “I… everyone talked about how the Shadow could be Ganon. I had to… I wanted to finish what I’d started. Rancher had almost died, and… and I didn’t want anyone else to get hurt.”

Guilt, as Time had figured. But apparently also just plain adolescent stupidity.

The same pride and bravery that led to a child princess creating an intricate plan that would fail. Time bit back a sad laugh. If he had any doubt about Sky’s place in the royal family lineage, it was fading fast.

Goddesses, the boy would start the royal family, wouldn’t he?

“Wow. And I thought Rancher was bad,” Wild noted.

Twilight threw him a dull glare. “You’re not any better, Champion.”

“You saw time and again how much effort it took to eliminate just the monsters he was sending everywhere,” Legend pointed out, growing frustrated. “Yet you thought you could take him on alone? You saw what he did to—”

“That’s why I had to do it,” Sky argued, pulling out of Time’s arms as he filled with fiery energy. “Everyone here has done their part, and I—”

The knight’s mouth clamped shut as everyone dared him to finish his sentence. Instead, he sighed in defeat, leaning back against his elder’s chest.

It was going to take time for Sky to believe what they had told him. It would take a while for him to accept that he wasn’t at fault. But Time was certain they would all be keeping an eye on him and ensuring he did finally accept the truth.

“Where’s the potion?” Time asked softly, rubbing Sky’s arm reassuringly and ending the stressful conversation.

Hyrule wordlessly grabbed it and held it out. When Sky started to falter in holding it, Warriors leaned over to assist.

“I believe that’s enough excitement for tonight,” Time remarked, standing and pulling Sky up with him, easily situating him in a carry like he’d done multiple times while the boy had slept.

“You need rest as well, old man,” Warriors noted, holding out his arms. “Your advanced years require it.”

The younger Links snorted back laughs, and Time let the jab slide. He could see the pleading in the captain’s eyes, the need to just hold the boy. He handed him over.

As Sky let himself be carried, he felt his heart racing despite the exhaustion pulling him under. He heard murmuring and wishes of good night, and a last promise of their care from many of his brothers-in-arms. He felt like he could break apart once more.

It felt… he didn’t know. Freeing and heartbreaking. An acceptance he couldn’t possibly deserve, but desperately wanted. A promise that it wasn’t his fault that couldn’t possibly be true.

But… the others had spoken of things that he had not considered.

Ganondorf had uttered a curse to Time. They all had successors despite their victories. But…

It still didn’t change the fact that it had started with Sky.

And it didn’t answer the questions that the Shadow’s words had brought forth.

Sky felt his world shift as Warriors settled on the bed alongside him, letting him rest on the captain like a pillow. The elder Link wouldn’t let go.

Sky felt the guilt crush him anew, though with a different flavor.

“I’m sorry I caused all this,” he mumbled, too exhausted to elaborate, wishing more than anything he didn’t have to apologize anymore despite knowing he should.

Warriors sighed through his nose. “You’re more stubborn than I gave you credit for. How many times do we have to tell you—”

“No,” Sky interrupted. “I mean… I mean for what’s happened lately. I’m… I guess I didn’t…”

“Didn’t expect us to care that much?”

Sky shriveled a little. No. He… he hadn’t.

Why would he? He was among the quietest and least noticed in the group. He was teased for his sleepiness, admired for his fighting prowess but never really…

Legend had cried. He’d made Legend cry. He’d hurt all of them. The fact that the captain was refusing to let go... he'd figured that, next to Time, Warriors certainly viewed him with the least concern. Time for obvious reasons, but the captain... Sky just couldn't compare to him. Besides...

Sky was always the invisible one, it felt like. But he supposed maybe how he felt was wrong.

“I’m sorry,” was all he could say.

“I’m sorry too,” Warriors acknowledged. “I’m sorry you ever thought that… goddesses, Link, we…”

“I know,” Sky said for him, knowing he was struggling to express himself. They all struggled with that sometimes, but someone as stoic as the captain was especially prone to it. Sky knew that about him. He knew a lot about all of them. He’d observed a lot. It allowed him to ease seamlessly between his brothers, to help them and soothe their worries, to figure out the best way to keep the peace between all of them.

He'd always just felt like the helper, but never really belonging. He supposed…

Well, he certainly felt far more seen than ever. He wasn’t sure he enjoyed all the attention, but goddess if it wasn’t validating and reassuring.

“We love you, Sky,” Warriors whispered so softly Sky almost missed it.

The young knight could hear the captain’s heart racing, could feel how his arms shook. He basked in the surprise and assurance of it before his heart could no longer take the pain radiating from his fellow knight. He wiggled a little bit to return the hug he was receiving, willing all his warmth and care into it, suddenly filled with concern. “I love you too.”

Warriors took a shaky breath, and one of his hands slid up to hold the back of Sky’s head as he buried his face in the younger knight’s hair. The bed gently sank as someone else joined, and Sky could feel the wolf pelt against his skin. As the warmth of the embrace and the promise of love and safety enveloped him, he vaguely heard more footsteps shuffle in, though by the time he had fallen asleep he’d lost count of how many of his brothers had managed to sneak into the room.

Time was last, smiling down at all his boys as they huddled around the Skyloftian in the center. They were all back together, and he was safe, and their leader would ensure it stayed that way.

The promise of safety felt a little more tenuous the next morning when the queen brought information of a portal being spotted by Lake Hylia. But the assurance of Sky remaining with the group was all the promise they needed. Everyone kept a close eye on the young knight as they traveled together.

The gate stood before them, dark and ominous. But they stood together, united and strong. They would keep each other safe.

Hylia’s Chosen Hero looked to the others. He saw Wild, scarred but continuing despite it all. He saw Wind, optimistic, a promise of a future yet to come. He saw Legend, beaten down by life but not defeated by it. He saw Four, eager and ready to face the unknown. He saw Hyrule, relentless and resolute. He saw Twilight, heart ever glowing and bleeding for those around him. He saw Time, wise and strong. He saw Warriors, the knight that he sought to be.

Shifting his blade on his back, feeling her hum against him, Sky stared determinedly through the portal, and marched ahead with his brothers.