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Hey @palmolli if written well enough nothing can be called ‘just a plot device’ and you may actually be cooking up some totk lynel steamroller level contraption here you never know <3
Something is wrong with Sun. (Sky's Zelda)
Okay... so this is lowkey highkey far-fetched and a wee bit stupid... but I'm posting anyway because free will and uh... for fun.
These two pages are what sparked this dumb theory. You'd expect Sky and Sun to be exchanging letters regularly given their CLEAR attachment issues.
(Evidence of the attachment issues)
That's not "young love", Time. It is trauma. I doubt that was hyperbole given the crap Sky did to get Sun back home during the events of his game. The two are inseparable, basically two halves of one whole. Separate them if you dare.
OH WAAAIIT. They already are!!!
So why isn't Sun sending him letters? Now, there is a possibility she HAS been sending him mail. We just haven't seen it. Or, the postman just isn't visiting Sky's era since... he doesn't exist there, and he seems to only be giving out mail to the Links in the eras he exists in. And most Skyloftians just stuff a letter in their bird's beak and send em off with a pat on the back. They have no need for a mail man they have mail birds... but STILL...
Could there be an alternative, less factual, and reasonable explanation for her lack of letters?????
Uhhhh... honestly, this is more of a fanfic idea than a theory so.... why not.
THE SHADOW KIDNAPPED HER! YES! UH... PLOT DEVICE!!! CUZ SHES UH... HYLIA REBORN... AND STUFF... POWER SOURCE? REVENGE? PETTINESS? SIMPLY JUST TRYING TO BAIT SKY?!?!?!?!?
anyways... this is... so stupid... but... whatever. I've actually been really drained recently, so... no art... no writing... sorry. I needed to post like... SOMETHING. (yes, I posted that Hylia drawing, but I posted it a few days after drawing it) my creativity is gone, and all my writing drafts are so cheeks 💔 so.. eat up... I guess.... sigh MY HEAD HURTS
if not for other people agreeing that this is the funniest thing possible on the internet i would think my sanity finally snapped. HOLY SHIT I'M LAUGHING SO HARD RIGHT NOW
you all need to watch this
if there is one single video on the internet that will ALWAYS, ALWAYS make me laugh, it’s this one. trust me, i have tried and failed. it’s this one.
This headcanon is now canon to me.
Captain isn't that high of a rank, so there would be quite a few people in the military that would outrank Warriors.
However, I also like to think being a Hero is sort of a rank on its own when it's needed. During a war for example, being the Hero (as a rank) would give Warriors more privileges and he isn't just a captain. If there isn't a pressing conflict, then Warriors is just a captain. Just some dude.
I'm definitely just sort making this up but I am trying to blend his somewhat lowly rank and with being a Hero, which is kind of important in Hyrule.
Heehee cool animation *ooh ahh*
Kept seeing this trend and wanted to hop on it so um. Hi lu fandom 👋 first post!
eeep the cliffhanger(?) nooooo T-T
The banter and dialogue is so natural and in character 10/10. Here is a heart because I can’t like the post twice <3
@i-love-zelda-16 you’re amazing!!!
Holding On ~ chapter 3: Needle in a Haystack
summary: Warriors gets help. Hyrule tries.
notes: i think Legend and Wars are my fav duo. i love them :D
chapter word count: 2,579
| CHAPTER 1 | CHAPTER 2 | CHAPTER 3 |
(banners ~ @cafekitsune)
Legend awoke to the sound of thumping footsteps accompanied by a panting breath, racing towards camp.
Who the hell was running like that in the middle of the night?! The rest of them were trying to sleep for Din’s sake.
As Legend slitted open his eyes, he saw the familiarly parted blonde hair, shining blue eyes, and a long, royal blue scarf. The Captain. Of course, it was the Captain waking everyone up.
Legend could just barely make out his blurry silhouette lit by the flickering fire. As he came closer, the Veteran took note of Warriors’s worried, yet otherwise inscrutable expression.
Legend’s mind puts the pieces together like a puzzle. Something must’ve happened…
Maybe he doesn’t need to yell at Wars for waking him up… if something…
Warriors continued approaching closer to Legend. What was he doing? What had happened? Questions and annoyed curiosity fluttered around in Legend’s mind like butterflies.
Warriors leaned down and began to shake the person next to him. Oh good… he wasn’t waking Legend up. (Oh shoot, I’m already awake, aren’t I…) Who… what? Why—
“Hyrule… Rule… wake up…”
Oh. He was waking up Hyrule. Why was he waking up Hyrule?
“Please, Rule. Wake up…”
Hyrule groaned tiredly.
“Nngh… whaat…?” He responded confusedly.
“Hyrule, yes! Ok, I really need your help. So you gotta wake up, alright?”
“Mhmm… yup…” Legend could hear Hyrule begin drifting off again.
“Hyrule, no! Please, this is serious! Something’s… ugh.” The Captain paused to huff. “Something’s happened… to do with magic. And I don’t know anything about magic, but you’re part Fae, and you know this stuff! You know about magic. Please Hyrule, I need your help!”
Well they were done for, then.
It was beginning.
Shouldn’t hadn’t carried them far enough.
Legend decided to intervene.
“Captain, I know what’s going on.” Legend sat up abruptly sighing.
“Legend!” He said surprisedly. “I… uh, didn’t know you were awake!” Legend cracked a grin and crossed his arms, but noticed his expression and fixed it immediately.
“You think you can’t wake someone up with your heavy footsteps when you are running in here?”
“No, I—”
“It’s fine.” Legend said. “It doesn’t matter.”
“You said you know what’s going on. What’s going on?!”
“Did you have to… fight…”
“Yes, I just did, Vet.”
Legend’s smirk immediately fell.
“… oh.”
It was already too late.
A beat of silence passed through the air between the two heroes.
“Who?” Legend finally asked.
“Wild.”
“… Mm. Well, we only have so much time.”
“Is there gonna be a way… to save him?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never actually had to deal with the complications of the Darknets—”
“This is because of the Darknets? That thing from earlier?”
“Yes, I… I thought that was obvious!”
“No, it wasn’t… but that means…”
“This curse isn’t unique to Wild, yes.”
“It means…”
“That more could be on its way. That Wild was only the first… of many.”
More silence.
“Hyrule and I are the only ones who know about this right now. Hyrule sensed the magic in the Darknets earlier. I guess you know now too.”
“Yeah, no kidding I know. I just had to fight him! I just had to leave him. Out there. Alone. I had to run away. I don’t think you understand the extent of this, Leg—”
“I do, don’t worry.” Legend replied annoyedly, returning his gaze to Hyrule. He looked back up. “Wars, we have to make sure you, Rule, and I stay sane.”
Hyrule was already fast asleep again.
Warriors sighed. “Let’s wake him. He knows magic; maybe he can get rid of this curse…” That was his original idea anyways.
“Worth a shot.” The Veteran responded. Legend leaned down towards the Traveler and began to shake his shoulder in hopes to rouse the sleeping Hero. “C’mon, Rule. Time to wake up. We need your help.”
Hyrule didn’t even stir.
“Ah, whatever.” Legend said, giving up after about two seconds.
“He’s not waking up? Is he usually like this? Is… he okay?”
“He’s fine. Just a deep sleeper, that’s all.” Legend raised his hand and placed it on Hyrule’s forehead. A white glow, just barely tinged violet, began to emanate from underneath his hand.
Hyrule’s torso shot up quickly. “AH! Wh— what? Leg? Wars? What… what happened?”
“Legend! What’d you do to him? Where’d you learn that?”
“Eh. Picked it up on my adventures. I can do some magic myself. Nothing compared to our Rulie here, though. Heh.”
“What’s going on, Leg?” Why is it— it’s the middle of the night! Why…” Hyrule’s eyes were filled with fear and confusion. In a darker tone, he added, “Is this what I think it is?”
“You were right, Rule.” Legend said. “We didn’t have enough time. We’ve… already lost Wild.”
Realization washed over Hyrule like a powerful tsunami.
Wild was… gone.
“Is he really gone?” Hyrule asked, his voice stained with grief.
“For now, yes.” Warriors responded. “But we can prob—”
“Is he really gone?! Yes or no?!” Hyrule shouted, tears pricking the Traveler’s eyes.
“… Yes.” Warriors whispered, then shocked to silence.
Hyrule released a breath, not from relief, but from the satisfaction of receiving his unfortunate answer. Wild was gone. Really gone.
Warriors: “But that’s why we need you, Hyrule.” Hyrule’s pointed ears perked up again. “You’re the only one of us who knows magic. You’re part Fae, right?”
“Yeah…”
“So then maybe you could undo the curse on Wild!”
Hm. It wasn’t a bad idea… but Hyrule would need to study the curse first. Or at least get close to Wild, of course. And to do that, they’d need to find him.
“That’s not half-bad, Wars. Maybe you’re onto something…”
Warriors lightly jabbed his elbow into Legend’s abdomen. “Ah, ow. I get it. Your idea was fine, now lay off.” Legend responded.
Warriors chuckled. “You think you’ll be able to do it, Rule?”
“I mean, I could sense the magic originally in the Darknets… maybe I could… extract it from Wild?” Could that work? Could Hyrule really suck the curse out of Wild? Was it even possible? Would Wild even remember who he was?
“Worth a shot.” Legend said, shrugging.
***
Hyrule: “Can we go over the plan again?" I’m still confused.”
Warriors sighed, “Again? But we just did…”
The three of them had quickly formulated an impromptu plan to confront the possessed Wild and for Hyrule to use his magic to “extract” the darkness from within him.
“Ok, so Wars and I are going to defend you from Wild. You have to act quickly so we don’t die. You don’t want us to die, right, Rule?”
“No…”
“Leg, get to the point please…”
“You will turn into a fairy and go up high into the trees. There, you’ll turn back into your Hylian form and start the spell. Warriors and I will continue defending you because Wild is really good at climbing, okay?”
“Okay…” Hyrule responded nervously. It felt weird planning to confront another one of them… “It’s still possible that it won’t even work,” He added.
“We know that. But we might as well try.” Warriors replied, shrugging.
“Of course. We have to. For Wild’s sake.” Hyrule assured. The other two nodded.
“Okay. Then we’re good to go,” The Captain said, pushing himself upright and starting to compile his gear back onto himself.
By the light of the fire, the three Heroes redonned their equipment and trekked back into the dark, mysterious woods to save their brother.
***
Legend let out an unamused groan. “Captain, we’ve been searching forever. We’re not going to find him tonight. Can’t we just wait until the morning—”
“No!” He quickly, sternly replied. “We need to find Wild! We will find Wild. I can’t leave him again, okay? You’re just going to have to accept that, Vet.”
“I understand that, and I want to find him too. But we need sleep. You need sleep, Cap.”
“I’ll be fine. Finding Wild is more important than my sleep.”
Hesitantly and quietly, Hyrule interjected, “Guys, do you hear that?” Neither heard him though.
Legend mumbled under his breath, “Your beauty sleep.”
Warriors whipped around to face Legend, whose face was painted with a smug smirk. “Ok, that’s about just enough, Leg; I said that once. Once! And I was drunk too! I just can’t—”
“Pretty boy needs his beauty sleep…”
“Legend, I swear to Hylia–”
“GUYS!” Hyrule shouted. The bickering Heroes’ banter immediately ceased. Hyrule took a deep breath. “1, I can’t keep listening to you guys anymore; you are insufferable, 2, do you hear that?”
The three were perfectly quiet. Shoot, it wasn’t more Darknets, was it? That was the last thing they needed.
But no, it wasn’t more darknets. A faint rustling echoed around the Heroes. A clean shing echoed through the woods as all drew their swords.
“Do you think it’s him?” Warriors asked.
“For all we know, it’s just a squirrel or something.” Legend responded.
“Or a bunny…”
“Shut the hell up.”
“Guys…” Hyrule pressed.
“Sorry, sorry.” Warriors apologized, but his smirk stayed in place across his face.
The three were silent once more.
“Ugh, this is nothing.” Legend said annoyedly, sheathing the Tempered Master Sword. “There was nothing there. Let’s just continue. I think this way is probably our best bet, but–”
“Argh! Wild?!” Hyrule exclaimed, as another clash broke through the silent forest. Both Legend and Warriors immediately turned around to face Hyrule, his sword raised, pressed against Wild’s. “Why are his eyes red?! Is it because of the curse?”
They found him!
Shoot, they found him. And he was just as vicious as he had been earlier.
“Yeah, it is… But Hyrule, you need to do the spell!” Legend yelled over the clanging metal.
“I can’t do the spell, I’m obviously preoccupied!” Hyrule yelled through gritted teeth to Legend behind him. Ok, that was a fair point. They had to do something to divert Wild’s attention from the Traveler to one of them.
“Rule, this might hurt, but trust me, I’m trying to help!”
“Okay, what are you doing— ARGH!” Legend bashed into Hyrule’s right side, protecting himself with his shield. “Ow, Leg! What the hell was that for?!” Hyrule yelled, falling to the ground with a painful thud. He got up and sheathed his sword, as Wild began to focus on Legend now, who quickly and efficiently blocked all of the Champion’s attacks.
“Just go! You need to turn into a fairy! Now!” Oh. Legend was trying to help. He said that, didn’t he?
Hyrule was smart enough to listen.
He closed his eyes and began to gather the magic in his fingertips, quickly turning into a small Fae, and racing up towards the treetops.
“Hyrule, yes!” He heard Legend shout down below. From his vantage point, Hyrule could see that Warriors had now also joined the battle. Clangs and clashes erupted in the air like fireworks. Wild loved fireworks…
Hyrule transformed back into his Hylian form then, perched up above the battlefield (which was much more of just a random spot in the woods rather than a battlefield; just ask Warriors) as the two Heroes below continued the fray.
Okay, extract the magic out of Wild. How… How do I do that?! Just try– maybe sense it, at least.
He raised his hands and closed his eyes again, searching for darkness. The forest felt off and eerie, and darkness was everywhere– surrounding them. Hyrule could easily make out the three spirits below him, and he could also easily sense that they were the same: the Hero’s Spirit. Though, they all still felt different. They all had the same base, just with different toppings. Unfortunately, Hyrule was having a hard time deciphering where the curse placed on Wild was. Whoever had placed it on him– the Darknets, had done a really good job hiding it from the senses. But, despite not being good at many things, magic was one of Hyrule’s expertises, and he was skilled enough to pinpoint the exact placement of the curse. Now, to extract it.
“Hyrule, can you hurry it up? Wild’s getting more aggressive!” Warriors shouted from down below.
“I’m going as quick as I can; sorry, Cap. I’ve found the curse, I just need to remove it now…”
It was like pulling the needle from the haystack. Hyrule had found the needle, but now, he just needed to line up his hand and slip it out…
“Argh! Hyrule, c’mon! Any faster, please?”
“I promise, I’m trying my best to be fast! This isn’t easy, Leg!”
Hyrule tightened his metaphorical grip on the curse, slowly slipping it out of Wild’s conscience. If he removed it too fast, there was a high chance that it could severely mentally injure him. Luckily, Hyrule had done a few similar things before, so he knew the risks and how to prevent them.
“Almost got it…” He said quietly to himself, eyes still closed, one arm outstretched towards Wild, the other gripping tightly to the tree trunk for balance. “C’mon, so close…”
And the curse slipped out.
The red from Wild’s eyes drained, and the Champion collapsed on the ground. Warriors and Legend stood in shock, panting from the strenuous, difficult battle that had just ensued.
“Yes!” He quickly, quietly exclaimed. “Guys!” He shouted down below. Warriors and Legend looked up with tired, yet satisfied expressions. “I got it!” Warriors gave Hyrule a thumbs up. Legend grinned lightly in approval, eyes half-lidded.
Hyrule transformed back into a fairy and headed back down towards the forest floor. Once settled, he returned to his Hylian form. Warriors was already taking care of the unconscious Wild, while Legend approached the Traveler.
“Good job, Rule. You did well.”
“Oh! Uh, thanks.” He replied embarrassedly. “It wasn’t much, really. Easier than I thought it would be.”
“Uh, guys?” Warriors called to the two others. Both Legend and Hyrule turned their heads in the direction of the Captain. “He’s not waking up. He’s still got a pulse, though.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Legend answered, stepping forward towards Warriors who was kneeling on the ground next to Wild. “He’s probably just unconscious, that’s all. We can just carry him back to camp, K?”
All three finally let the relief set in as they walked back. They had done it. They had really done it. All of them had been so incredibly worried they would never see their brother again. But the threat wasn’t over whatsoever; it was still possible that someone else could still be infected with the curse. It wasn’t contagious, right?
But for now, they could relish the satisfaction of saving their brother in their arms (well, technically it was just Wars who was carrying him, but metaphorically) and safe and sound once again. It was a group effort. A complete group effort. Warriors was the one who first found out Wild was possessed and cursed, Legend had formulated most of the plan and knew about the curse/the Darknets, and Hyrule was the one who pulled that curse out of Wild, ultimately saving him. They were all necessary and all grateful that night.
The four Heroes returned back to a peaceful, sleeping camp, and laid Wild down to rest. Then, the others exchanged a few words and headed off to sleep themselves. Warriors woke Time for his watch and went to bed. (beauty sleep ;) )
Finally.
This hell of a night was over.
Everyone was safe and sound and secure.
… Or were they…?
bonus! chapter 4 summary: Wild gets scared. Wind talks to a friend.
I wish my wips looked like this. Woe is me, amateur mediocre fic writer with sentences and bullet points instead of fics.
Boom shakalaka or wtvr….. this isn’t finished and will not be finished but it’s okay because I like how it is right now and I wanna be free from WIP hell 😞😞😞 SAVE ME I DRAW TOO MUCH AND DONT FINISH THEM EVER AAHHHH
Wind noooo
Wars nooooo
I did a (ghost) wind-less version of this drawing aka how the Chain finds them at the end of the chapter lmao
Headcanon that when legend fails a song he'll fall to his knees and shake(?) a fist at the VR sky. So the others just get 10 seconds of Beat Saber void and the tip of the blue sword just twitching in the corner. Even better if it's on Warriors by Imagine Dragons on Expert+ because holy shit that level took FOREVER to clear and also hehe funny.
I have a rlly strange LU headcanon but I want to get it out there anyways laalalal
Sky would be a beast at beat saber.
Like... rhythm game + sword thing
Sky is the best swordsman in the chain. ANNDDDD, like most of the Links, he's got a nack for music.
headcanon that wild has sensory issues with hair and the texture of it sometimes but refuses to cut it because it’s also a source of so much pride and a reminder of how far he’s come since he woke up in the shrine of resurrection
Technically Tuesday where I’m at. The burnout do be hitting hard.
Happy Monday everyone :)
@i-love-zelda-16
Wars in green ig
warriors: if i can't see the problem it doesn't exist
warriors: *sobbing with scarf over his head*
wind: i see the problem. it exists.
wars deserves to cuddle with his scarf, bro needs therapy
Wars can't remove himself from his environment so he blocks his environment out.
Wind refuses to let himself be blocked out, even when the captain needs a minute to himself lol.
so @aaa-batteryy how crazy would it be if i showed up to school tomorrow with a bucket of ice water
congrats on the 350 followers!!! if you haven't received 5 art suggestions already, could i suggest something with Sky, Four, & Legend? --@uncleskyrule
I think those 2 should get to be mischievous, and Four I've decided would absolutely be their target because they're determined to get a reaction out of him lol
Thank you for requesting this!
damn wars, that riff was electrifying if I do say so myself
Hii, do you take requests or not?
If so can I get Wars playing an electric guitar? This might seem random but it makes sense to me since his games soundtrack is mainly electric guitar, also sequence of drops enemy keep is a banger sooo, also your art is so good :)
As someone who felt like this for 3 months during my first swim season ever, drowning’s gotta be the worst way to go. HYRULE NOOOOO!!!!!
@nyastri gave me 4 ideas to torture Hyrule, and I chose one:
"Drowning"
Hope you like it, Astri!
Did you turn your phone screen or your face to see Hyrule's face? 😆
okokok hear me out... centuries by fall out boy for our boi legend
hiii!
i believe i have a song that’s really Legend-coded. i saw you made a bunch of playlists for our boys and i thought i’d share! it’s called Bow Down by Alibi Music. i just thought i’d share :D
You know what? Consider it added. Both because I think he deserves more Empowering Songs (he has so many sad ones 😔) but also because it's giving me ideas possibly beyond my art skills HAHA
I personally named my horse tanner. Guess what color it was.
Wild: got a new horse today.
Twi: Cub! We talked about this. You can’t collect horses like collecting pokemon.
Time: dunno, think Malon would be impressed.
Wild: didn’t know what to name it.
Twi: he is shit at naming things.
Time: seems to run in this family
Wild: so named it Mayo.
Twi:
Time:
Wild:
Twi: don’t finish that sentence Cub.
Wild: 😈 some times mayo-neighs.
Time: *deceased*
Twi: 🤬
Everyone else: oh god no. 
the master door does more damage than the master sword convince me otherwise
(@technicallya1manband @tortilla-of-courage @sky-squido)
in reference to the chain fic
just realized that when Ravio returns home to find the door gone and multiple items missing from Legend’s house, it’s going to look like some one robbed the place
he living with da penguins that colonized da boat
wild: @blaircrissette
context: https://www.tumblr.com/penguinly/781079728990879745/frick-the-boat-got-colonized-by-penguins?source=share
Be nice to him. It’s his first time living.
If only I could do this to the fricking combat shrines in TOTK but also maybe I just suck at the game lol
Just a quick reminder: Skyward Sword Link is SCARY in a sword fight
This is actually my second time playing Skyward Sword HD. I do not consider myself a beginner necessarily, but I Did Not Know that I was capable of demolishing mini bosses lol. Years of Lynel training I suppose xD
Also this post was kiiinda made with Linked Universe in mind, but, really, it doesn't have to be about LU. This dude (be it Link, Sky or whatnot) is horrifying in every instance.
OH MY GODS THIS IS BASICALLY MY ‘IF ALL ELSE GOES TO SHIT’ FIC I LOVE IT SO MUCH
@skyloftian-nutcase your fic "Numb" made me FEEL THINGS. It gave me those little angsty butterflies and I just adore how you describe emotions! Everything flows so naturally and all your fics are just a joy to read!
I took a bit of creative liberty with this fan art, but I hope you like it! ❤️❤️
The empty ‘im so tired’ look in Sky’s eyes is killing me
☀️ Sunshine 🌩
I READ THE FIC AND YOU SHOULD TOO GO DO THAT RIGHT NOW PLEASE
Fanart based off of THIS AMAZING WHUMPTOBER FIC of @skyward-floored 's!! Please read it and it's sequel❤️
Warning: Blood, stabbing, character under control
frick the boat got colonized by penguins. they're just angry about the tariffs my bad. i promise the fish is okay though.
Yes my computer crashed while I was making this.
I’m gonna leave him here, make sure he stays out of trouble
Thursday here but I am still dying
Captain, it’s Wednesday
reference under the cut
cue wind hopping in and exposing himself as an almost 14 year old with a liver of steel and terrifying the entire chain then walking away in a straight line barely buzzed. important to note that warriors took one sip and forgot his name.
Twilight: what are you drinking?
Warriors: tea
Twilight: really? What kind of tea?
Warriors: tea … quila
Polls!!! I love polls!!! You'd never guess which one I picked lmaoo.
I admittedly underestimated the ‘Graphic Depictions of Violence’ tag when I read this fic. But also this fic is now my prime example for why ao3 should never be censored. Yes, it’s bloody. Yes, it’s gorey. Yes, I would never be allowed on the internet again if I ever got caught reading this. But I’m telling you there’s something so raw and unfiltered in this fic it’s art. This is a work of art. I’ve never seen an author reveal so much of their thought process behind their writing before and this is what dedication looks like. I repeat, PLEASE READ THE TAGS on this work but King of Hyrule will probably live in my head forever as one of the best examples I’ve ever seen of taking a character and just running wild with the plot. It is simultaneously eerie how in character and how wrong the characters feel. It is so horrifyingly detailed and well thought out. It’s amazing to see someone so passionate about their work. I fricking love the internet.
king of hyrule: a clumsy analysis, ch1.
for @toyouhellohowareyou, @nyastri, and @starwolfie, who asked for a director's commentary on king of hyrule.... i've never done one of these before but i've always wanted to try!! we'll see how it goes. warning: i have given myself permission to ramble. hard tw for descriptions of gore under the cut.
also, my deepest apologies to anyone who thought i knew what i was doing at any point.
first i will give context. this fic was given to @across-violet-skies as an (extremely belated) birthday gift... i'd been trying to find out what sort of ideal gift riv would like without actually asking, and so far had received no hints, because i was a coward who wasn't actually asking. then a perfect opportunity fell in my lap! i said "i've never actually written anything from hyrule's perspective" (we are all gracefully ignoring THE VASE), riv said "i love hyrule. if you write hyrule it will 100% go on my to read list", @a-manicured-lawn went straight for the throat with "Hyrule MEETS THE CHAIN MID SACRIFICE"... and then thunder clashed overhead, sealing my fate forever. chat threw evil possessive fae rulie at me and i caught him with both hands. the first thing i wrote in the document was came back wrong.
i opened a new doc. faced with the spine-tingling prospect of writing from a perspective i was not experienced with, i immediately closed the doc. i backtracked to my headcanons file. in the hyrule section, i found this:
his sisters do not seem to know that he was born so large and wingless, but he thinks that maybe they understand better than he does, for joining them feels like shedding his skin for something truer, and even when he puts it back on he can feel it, these days. he can feel where it rubs against his wings underneath, feels like he is hiding in a shell like the hermit crabs of wind’s beaches, like he is only in disguise as human and is really perhaps something else entirely. fairies are mouthless unless they need to be otherwise, in the case of offered sugar water and fruit. they sing more than speak, and it sounds like chimes, and hyrule knows this, it needs no translation, it sings to the boneless ecstasy of this form, of flight and family and the sweetness of being small…
which i quite enjoyed thinking about. the intersection of fairy joy and horror had potential. the alien qualities of magical creatures. i drew from this feeling to cobble together an opening line:
Mouthless, the fairies sing to him. In his dreams they are made of light.
okay, so, this is a solid start, right? i love it.
He wakes from memories of the cold-sweet greenwoods of Twilight’s era to darkness, and for a moment the sound of his brothers’ laughter seems so far away he wonders whether they were a feverish invention...
i aimed for confusion and befuddlement rather than ignorance. he needed to have some sort of expectations for the situation, so i could fuck with his head more effectively 😈
...a flame deep in the cave, a flickering torch, and by it he sees blood.
here we meet fuckup number 1, in the second paragraph because i exceed even my own expectations! the original draft included monsters - because, logically, who put hyrule on the altar? wouldn't they wish to witness the sacrifice? i ended up getting rid of the monsters to eliminate the need for a fight scene (although, PFFFT, i went back there in chapter 2 anyway), but this lonely torch stuck around. it makes no sense. i don't know why i didn't just remove it. i needed the cave to be very dark anyway, so that the chain would have to light a lamp in order to see the damage hyrule's body sustained...
Hyrule reaches out a finger and scoops it up. It tastes of iron. He can’t afford to leave it, out in the open, where…
blood curse!
...the dark wet pool where he’d been laying. Hyrule reaches out with terrible dawning horror and traces the edge of a divot in the stone, a path for the blood that had leaked out of him while he was unconscious, down and down and down until his hand slips off the edge of the altar and sinks into a bowl of soft ashes —
deeply unhappy with this paragraph. dark wet pool, as a description, gets a mediocre 5/7. the stone altar has carved channels for the blood? okay, but why did i not call them channels??? and thirdly, THE ASHES, ALSO KNOWN AS FUCKUP NUMBER 2. THIS IS LIKE, THE ONLY TIME I MENTION THEM IN THE WHOLE STORY. WHAT THE FUCK, PAST ME.
His dreams of light and greenery are quickly becoming murky.
i quite like this sentence, but—
He lowers his hips off the edge, but he can’t feel the floor. There is not enough light to jump. The altar seems to drop away into an abyss.
WHERE! ARE! THE! ASHES! ARE THEY FLOATING??? HOW DID HE FEEL THEM OFF THE EDGE OF THE ALTAR IF ITS SO TALL??? i was having such conflicting mental images when writing this fic. the altar in my head was like... a normal altar height. but i needed it to be taller to explain why he didn't just run away, since i got rid of all the monsters. so i spent the whole three thousand words trying to edit the altar in my head. mostly unsuccessfully.
The skin on his stomach scrapes against rock as he pulls himself back up.
this sentence was about his hip bone. but i hadn't told you about it yet so i had to switch it out for skin. but it's really about his hip bone in my heart. you understand
...tries to draw his knees into his chest on instinct and the twinge becomes a full body shudder—a spike in his side that reverberates down into his thigh, creaking and bending—
this paragraph was originally about real pain. and then a few minutes later, i was like - wouldn't it be better (worse) if there wasn't any pain? then i can focus on the actual horror part of it rather than the injured part of being injured. if that makes any sense. the imagery is also a bit messy. if i was editing, this is one of the paragraphs i would rewrite. sometimes i actually can't believe i put this stuff on the internet. wtf am i doing
...traces the damp skin where his blood had run all the way back to where it started...
i can't even look this sentence in the eye. i did you so dirty, babygirl. you need a comma. or major surgery. maybe both
edit: i did, in fact, go back and add a comma.
...back to the tender flesh of his hip, where he touches something smooth and hard. He strokes it gently with his fingers, exploring in the dark. He finds wet skin, and hot tense muscle.
okay LETS GET THIS PARTY STARTED!!!
Hyrule shivers. He sits quietly with the ghost of what should be pain. Letting it wash over him. The knowledge festers.
something something the horror of placidity when faced with terrible things. something something hyrule has been running from this exact possibility for years and now that it has happened he doesn't know what to do next. something something life after his inevitable sacrifice has never been a possibility for him
He has been bled like an animal for this sacrifice.
ripping this sentence to shreds with my teeth. in a good way. me when characters dehumanise themselves‼️
If he has already bled into the ashes, if he has already been sacrificed, how is he still awake? How is he still alive?
this is me asking myself this question, by the way. at this point i still didn't really have any idea what was happening beyond "let's fuck em up"
Where is Ganon? Unless—
and then i was like, aha. there is something here that i can work with. you are watching me figure this fic out in real time.
...finds skin; hands reaching up from the ground, fingers just reaching the altar. He grasps them, weak. They are hot. Or maybe it is just that his own pulse is cold and slow? He feels faint.
reaching twice in the same sentence? i'm going to travel back in time and break all my fingers before i can hit post. that wasn't intentional. also, the hands were originally cold, and hyrule felt very hot, because like... fury and anger and evil, u know? temperatures rise with a fever? he's sick from the possession? but then later on i wanted legend to be warm with the triforce, and i realised that it made more sense for hyrule to be cold like a corpse. so i changed it.
He bites his lip. So what if he bleeds? What could it matter now?
hopelessness. lack of urgency. he (and i) are both starting to get an idea of what is happening.
“LIGHT!” Legend shouts. “I FOUND HIM! WE NEED LIGHT—are you hurt?”
legend's so cute when he's stressed out. i say this in a demonic writerly way 🥰
“A darkness looms in this cavern,” Four’s voice says distantly. “Something is shrouding the torches. They’re lit, but… the light is stifled.” “I feel it,” Time agrees. “Evil is here.”
where tf is everyone else? i ask myself. ensemble stories are difficult, because they shift the tone. i need to keep the focus solely on legend and hyrule, so [throws glitter] now you're all wandering around in the dark!!
Sorry, sorry,” he says again, feeling the heat inside him shift and writhe. “It wakes. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m—”
this is the point where i was like, hell yes, he has ganon inside him. also, meet fuckup number 3. i forgot to get rid of the heat motif. he's supposed to be cold now. whoops.
“Sorry for what?” Legend cries. His hands flutter at the edge of the tall altar, empty, searching.
in which i remind myself that the altar is supposed to be tall.
Hyrule curls his palm over his heart and wishes to wake from a dream. Nothing happens. He traces the familiar scar with the fingers of the opposite hand. It’s cold and light and empty . Why is it cold? Where is the tr—
first reference to the triforce. heavy-handed, but i needed to make sure everyone was on the same page. he doesn't have it anymore. also, i use the rich text box to post to ao3, and it always adds a space after italicised text, which is mildly annoying.
The path that led through the cold-sweet greenwoods, and laughter that quickly turned to shouts of fear and the ring of steel on steel. The ambush. His flaming sword. Legend, turning for a moment to protect Warriors’ back, and the Darknut that launched itself from behind a moblin towards him—
backstory! and a reference to the first paragraph, because i was really enjoying the phrase "cold-sweet greenwoods". an antithesis to everything currently happening (or at least, it was when hyrule still had his heat motif). "his flaming sword" is hyrule's fire spell. i picked a monster at random.
His hand comes away wet from his chest. He can’t feel anything.
i decided he was going to be impaled even before i decided he was going to be possessed 🥰 it wasn't in the brief but sometimes... sometimes you just gotta sheath a sword in someones chest. u know. u kn—
“I’m not Hyrule anymore,” he says.
and then i was like. you know what would make this worse? what if i trick everyone. what if ganon and hyrule's perspectives are hopelessly entwined? what if there's no way of knowing how much is hyrule and how much is ganon? what if this was actually ganon?
and so this is where i started to have lots and lots of fun. and we get into the gore.
His heart. He is touching his own heart. It beats still. That’s not a good sign.
a bit of casualness among the heavy descriptions! a bit of levity for your brain! also, hyrule(?)'s slow, burgeoning panic? i'm chewing on it. if i do say so myself.
Hyrule’s body withdraws his wrist from the inside of his own chest. How deep does the wound go? If there was light, would Legend be able to see the other side of the altar through him?
i was oddly captivated by this idea that legend would be able to see through his chest. this is also our FIRST use of "hyrule's body" replacing "hyrule" as the perspective character! this transition was something a lot of people loved, and i am very glad i went ahead with it. the idea didn't come to me until the night before posting, and i almost discarded it because it made some sentences clunky.
“You know it,” Hyrule’s body says gently. He cups his hand around the veteran’s face, red-stained nails just lightly pressing against skin, wondering what would happen if he dug them into that soft flesh. “You know it, don’t you? You saw that wound. Nothing could survive that.” “You’re not a thing,” Legend objects from under his palm.
once again, me and characters dehumanising themselves. not a huge focus but it complements the ganon/rulie identity issues nicely.
hyrule's always been a "do not go gentle into that good night" sort of character to me - the idea of him so fatalistic? so hopeless? alarm bells are screeching. something is wrong. SOMETHING IS WRONG
the uncomfortable intimacy begins.
“I think I am,” Hyrule’s body says. “I am a corpse.”
this has really got to be one of the most fun lines in the whole thing.
...flinches back, grip tightening on Legend’s face, dragging him forward until he is pressed against the altar.
underestimating the height of the altar, the sequel.
“Finally. We can see,” someone says. “That took forever. Where’s Legend?”
who? is the character omitted because it's not important, or because hyrule's body doesn't immediately know? the legend fixation is rearing its ugly head 🥰
...and Hyrule’s body is saddened but unsurprised to see tears on his face. They glisten like silver stars.
it took me literally twenty minutes to remember what this sentence was supposed to mean, if you're wondering how brain dead i am right now. anyway, it's genuine sadness, not patronising sadness. it's the part of hyrule that still lives and hurts to see a brother grieving. in a way, this is the only moment in the story that hyrule allows himself to properly mourn, and it's through the lens of his relationship with legend.
Their clothes are unstained, faces tense but clean of blood. In this unholy place, from this altar, their wholeness seems hideous.
i like this bit. it widens the gap between them. makes things a bit more real, a bit darker. presenting the chain as alien emphasises rulie's stance as an unreliable narrator. SOMETHING IS WRONG!!
Somehow, he does not care so much anymore about the mess. He is numb. The stone altar almost feels comfortable to his sensationless legs. He moves, and bone scrapes against the stone.
this paragraph doesn't quite do what i wanted it to do. it's not raw enough. but it has potential.
...drinks the noise in, heart quickening. Another wave of blood paints itself over his chest.
i'm mortal enemies with this last sentence. i scratched it and rewrote it five times. still not happy.
He flashes his eyes into the dark, where the Chain lurk, unwilling to step closer, faced with such a spectre. A corpse. A king, woken.
the eye flash was important to me. i was thinking about how many nocturnal animal eyes reflect light? the inherent creepiness of blank glowy eyes. also subtle dehumanisation. and ganon begins to enter the story consciousness - a king, woken.
“You were too late to save Hyrule. You chose to protect Warriors instead.”
this was a largely unnecessary plot point. i don't know. i think i was just trying to increase the tension between legend and hyrule. highlight how off the gentle intimacy between them was. they weren't codependent before. they weren't a perfectly synced pair. and now...
Hyrule’s body looks at him and thinks with a deep, all-encompassing revulsion, mine. All mine.
had to make sure i was hitting that 'possessive rulie' button! i've never written a possessive character before so it took a bit of wobbling before i committed. "how weird am i acceptably allowed to make this?" i was thinking.
Hyrule’s body smears the blood lovingly over him: letting it trace the ghost of his silver tears over his cheeks and nose. Rubbing it gently into his forehead. He hushes him.
replacing the tears with blood -> replacing the grief with fear -> replacing the love with something more terrible. also, characters doing horrible unspeakable things very calmly and gently makes me shiver.
Legend sobs again and tries to pull away, but a dead man’s grip is stronger than stinging iron, and Legend himself is weak and trembling. Barely more than a rabbit under his fingers. He wonders, detached, what it would feel like to snap that neck. What it would sound like. The crunch of bone.
stinging iron! fae reference. dead man! enforcing that corpse idea. rabbit! we know this one. the intrusive thoughts are not winning yet, but they're getting closer.
He giggles, and squeezes Legend until he squeaks. “I forgot you all were here,” he confides cheerfully.
i had a lot of fun with this. the happy cutesy language!! the most effective kind of horror, for me, has always been when something awful is sort of... not quite in focus. there, but not fully understood. happening in the background, or right under your nose while you're concentrating on something else. very casual. very normal. very scary.
“But he’s mine,” Hyrule’s body says reasonably. The torch flickers as a slight breeze passes through the cavern. He feels it whistle through his chest and twitches. Warriors’ eyes are wide and afraid. Hyrule’s body grins and licks his bitten lips, painting his canines with blood. “What are you?” the captain breathes.
and this is when i was like, fuck ganon/rulie's identity crisis, why didn't i write this from someone else's perspective??? HOW AWFUL WOULD IT HAVE BEEN??? WHAT ARE THE REST OF THE CHAIN THINKING??? WHAT DOES HYRULE LOOK LIKE??? his detachment, while working well to create tone and pacing, really made it hard to convey the horror of his appearance.
to my great joy, all my dreams were later answered in Hero of Hyrule, Knight of Hyrule, and Founder of Hyrule.
“Oh, were you trying to say something?” he asks, with his best manners. “Go on. You can do it.”
the CONDESCENSION. i then realised what i was about to make him do, and ran back to riv, asking how gorey the fic was allowed to be. "i can change it. it's not too late," i said... "i am so curious," riv replied. so i continued.
and here we go:
...lips pressed tightly together against the blood, which coats his mouth and the skin around it. It looks like he’s taken a bite right out of Hyrule’s flesh, he thinks. It suits him...
i am making things WEIRD and i am making things WORSE. i have nothing to say for myself. it's intentionally uncomfortable.
Hyrule’s body pats his tongue. “There we are! That wasn’t so hard.”
this is one of those sentences that was worsened by the switch to "hyrule's body". but i'm on a roll now. the next few paragraphs mostly consist of me grinning evilly to myself.
...waits, fingers clamped across Legend’s nose, until the man swallows, shivering. His eyes are glazed. Drying blood clumped in the lashes. Hyrule’s body coos. This was his big brother, once.
this is really the point in which legend's agency is completely gone from hyrule's perspective. he ceases to become a player - whether that's because of the way hyrule has succeeded in taking all control from him, or because of ganon/rulie's further mental spiral, who knows? and i just threw that brother line in there to hurt you. of course.
“Ru—Rulie would n—never do this,” someone else agrees, voice breaking. Legend whines an agreement.
even though i'm having a great time writing a darker, more horrific hyrule, i retain the belief that the heroes are each fundamentally good people. my main doubt with this fic is that i don't think i'm straddling that line very well. i mean... after all...
“I already told you I wasn’t Hyrule,” Hyrule’s body says. He squeezes Legend again to coax more pained sounds from him. What is he feeling? Does it hurt? He feels the numb bone of his hip grind against the altar as he moves. The cold point of Warriors’ sword presses softly into his chest. The pressure is almost welcome compared to the gaping emptiness of his wound. “You can taste it, right? You can tell?”
the trusty old obsession with legend manifests itself as jealousy, for a brief moment.
here we see my second attempt at describing bone scraping on stone. it's marginally better.
you guessed it baby, it's the impaling thing again!! if he can't feel pain, does he think of it only as an absence? a lack? there is a metaphor here that i'm not touching but it's in the room with us. it's in the room.
blood curse. right. that's where we're going
Legend jerks in his hold. He laughs delightedly.
now we're getting it!
“Yes, brave one,” he croons, “that’s what the ashes were for. Except I didn’t have enough of a body left to really inhabit , so I borrowed this one. Oh, he bled so nicely for me. It was beautiful.”
those FUCKING ASHES!!! WHY DID I NEGLECT THEM!!! also watch me stickytape an explanation for the possession together in real time
“Didn’t even have to tie him down,” he says gleefully. “He only woke up once during the whole thing, and I guess he figured you’d left him for dead, because he just laid back down. Placid as a lamb, that one, in the end. So easy , when he realised he couldn’t do anything to stop what had already been started…”
is hyrule's body lying? who am i to say (yes yes i know, but). whatever the truth of that dark moment was, i really love this little speech. the idea of him mock-comforting legend with a sugar-sweet description of his own death does something to me. the way he presents himself as helpless. the way he presents himself as unheroic. as giving up. is this hyrule or ganon talking? does it matter?
“STOP IT!” someone screeches. “STOP IT! DON’T SAY THAT!”
i had to keep stopping and going back to add in bits where the chain could talk. whatever fucked-up thing was happening between legend and hyrule had even me constantly forgetting that everyone was right there witnessing it. and when i did remember i had to stop and shriek and wonder whether i'd ever have the guts to post this on the internet.
“BECAUSE I HAVE WOKEN. I HAVE BEEN REBORN. I AM GANON, KING OF HYRULE!”
title drop. every time i read this sentence i get jumpscared by the first bit of my username. the speech pattern is also very clunky. 2/7.
Silence falls for a moment. The torch sputters.
that fucking torch!!! i'm going to commit a murder.
...and, unwilling to let go of Legend for some inexplicable reason, Hyrule’s body instead lets himself sink down onto the sword. His ribs crunch. The blade enters at an angle but then slots neatly into the hole already there—he slides down the steel, still laughing, until the crossguard presses across his chest.
this paragraph and the start of the next had some good ideas and poor execution. i'm playing around with the 'wound as an absence, a loss' thing again. filled by the sword, by violence. that other metaphor is still hanging around. i'm pointedly not touching it. and ganon/rulie places legend above himself. or is it that he places his control of legend above the physical condition of a body he enjoys injuring, to watch the chain squirm? that's the question, isn't it? is this an act of cruelty or protection?
...scrapes against the walls of his heart, tears his lungs ragged. Fresh blood bubbles into the wound and runs, dripping, off the end of the blade. Legend is crying.
blood & tears.
He can’t stop laughing in this dead boy’s voice. He is back. He is finally free. No longer trapped in blood—no longer suppressed by that triforce— his broken knees sag as he hunts them through the dark—
i just wrote him jumping down like a normal person (underestimating the height of the altar, the sequel's sequel), and then my fingers produced "his broken knees sag as he hunts them through the dark" in response to a personal inquiry as to what ganon/rulie's movement would look like and i was like, FUCK, okay, well, this has to be in it. so i broke his knees.
“Which of you has it?” he says suddenly, snapping his head around as he tracks their movement. His neck crunches. The sword in his chest slows him down. He isn’t bothered to remove it. Behind him, Legend retches, curled into himself on the floor.
how will this end? i asked myself. aha: a wish on the triforce. not too much of a deus ex machina, right? it's literally canon. so this is the point when i went back and added in that earlier stuff about the triforce. there's also a half-hearted broken neck in this paragraph. if i had the change to go back, i'd either elaborate on that or cut it entirely. i was too caught up at the time in wondering how to wrap the story up to pay attention to the details. my bad, guys.
The group exchanges glances, unwilling. He pounces on the nearest and shakes him against the ground, climbing atop the man and snarling in his face like a creature. “WHERE IS IT?”
does ganon/rulie know who this is? does he care?
As he leans over, Warriors’ sword begins to ooze back out of his chest. It slips down until the pommel touches the hero’s sternum. Like an axle it balances between them. He is a sheath for the blade. He is the meat on the skewer. He touches his forehead, leaving bloody splotches behind. Where are these thoughts coming from? He is not—he is more—he is GANON, RIGHTFUL KING OF HYRULE.
an interesting visual here, and not one that i'm convinced i pulled off. but i have been informed that the internal conflict was very good, which is comforting.
“Kill him, then,” says Warriors suddenly. There is an outcry from the others.
i wrote this without really thinking about where it would go, but i'm VERY happy i did. everything clicked into place. there could be a sort of standoff - ganon/rulie's dissonance would be exposed - then something and something else and then the end. i was getting close.
“You said he was yours,” Warriors says. “Why would Ganon say that?” He pauses. Hyrule looks back at Legend. He gets off the floor.
this, wars my beloved, is a VERY GOOD POINT. he's the only person with a single useful thought in his head.
The blood and puke squelches under his bare feet as he walks back across the room to Legend.
i was pretty happy with this sentence for no good reason. it feels like a child to me. a disgusting, vomit-y child. maybe i'm just proud i managed to remember that legend threw up. keeping track of details is one of my most important goals in writing.
The wet tip of the blade touches the side of his neck. Simple and so—tantalising. Hyrule’s body can picture it. He can picture—
the internal conflict gets a change to shine. also i just love the contrast in the way ganon/rulie touches and thinks about legend. neither entirely separate. thoughts and actions bleeding into each other emotionally but not physically - he's holding back. he's been holding back this entire time.
But wouldn’t it be better if he—he has been so careful not to break Legend. So gentle. He has let him taste. Helped him understand what was happening—explained, kindly—let himself sink down with a squelch onto the sword—only thought about peeling back the skin from Legend’s face with his fingernails. Left the grinning muscle and bone safe in its flesh wrappings and protected— He stops.
i really love this bit. it was a joy to write. gentle horrors, once again. well-meaning destruction.
“See?” says Warriors. He sounds quietly smug. Hyrule’s body snarls. He wants to rip his arms off. Chew through muscle and tendon and nerve with his teeth—snap him bone by bone—he wants to haul him up onto the altar and keep him still and quiet and safe while his minions take over the world—he grips his forehead—what is happening to him—
my love for the em dash cannot be contained. i'm working on it, i promise, but it's easy and so tasty
Hyrule’s body looks. He finds himself with one hand cupped around Legend’s cheek, Legend pressing into the touch despite himself.
yeahh........ i fucked them up.
“I don’t—” he starts. “I SHOULD KILL YOU.” “But you won’t,” Legend rasps.
i'm not sure where i fall on the capitalised dialogue issue. (YES, i KNOW, it was ME who wrote it.) it goes a long way in emphasising power, magnitude, other-ness of the possession... but sometimes i squint at it and it seems a little camp. i guess that's not my problem anymore, though, unless i decide to write another ch—
“There you are,” Legend says. His mouth flickers into a smile.
his agency is taken back. the culmination of something (of 20 days of bashing my head into a keyboard)
He pushes up to his feet, half-dried blood soggy on his face and matted in his hair—he stretches up to his full height, scabbed knees and dirty tunic and— His hand is so hot on Hyrule’s own that it burns. Legend blinks. Suddenly his irises are gold.
yes, i thought. yes, yes, yes, home run—wait, fuck, i don't know how the fucking triforce actually works—
“I wish to seal away Ganon once more,” Legend says. “So that Link, Hero of Hyrule, will be safe from harm.”
seven google searches and one plea to discord later, i say fuck it we ball. he's going to wish like a disney princess. it's part of the charm of the franchise, these cute fairytale elements, i say, as i frantically mop the blood off the floor
The torch roars higher. He sees a single tear on Legend’s face amongst the blood, shining like a silver star in the firelight. Darkness overtakes him—pain, suddenly, finally, spikes—
TORCH. 🪦
For a moment the sounds of the cavern seem so far away he wonders whether he is being tortured by a feverish invention. An echo. A might-have-been. Then everything fades.
how do you write a proper conclusion to your essay? just rephrase the introduction/thesis. easy. what? that doesn't work with fic? surely you're mistaken. behold.
so here we are! this post has been a journey and a half. if you have genuinely read this entire thing, my life is yours. i had so much fun writing this fic, and i hope from the bottom of my heart you have at least mildly enjoyed me rambling about the creation of it. this story could never have existed without the wonderful egging-on of my friends 🥰🥰🥰 thank you for coming to my tedtalk
Oh my gods the characterization? How the heck did you make all nine of them sound like actual real people without going out of character at all? And the secrets and the misunderstandings - I can already see the angst building. This is an amazing first chapter! Also DOWNFALL DUO! I am already so excited for where you're going to take this story!!! You're amazing!!!!!
Holding On ~ chapter 1: Shouldn’t
summary: The Chain gets roasted. Hyrule is scared.
notes: EEE MY FIRST WRITING THAT I’M POSTING!!! :D Took a little inspiration from TCR by @sprite-and-the-bunnydragons with the socks part and the hyrule cooking part lol. I love that fic smm. anyways, yay!! :D
chapter word count: 2,728
(@cafekitsune - banners)
The air was damp and thick. Each of the Heroes’ footsteps squelched in the thin mud of the swamp. Green fog surrounded them as they passed dead trees and ancient ruins. This… certainly wasn’t Hyrule’s most prosperous time.
“Does… this era look familiar to anyone?” Legend said hesitantly with a tinge of uncertainty in his voice. None answered the Veteran’s question. Where were these portals taking them? Twilight looked around cautiously, his senses noticing something… off.
They weren’t alone. He just knew it.
Twilight whipped around to face Wild and Four (who were at the back of the line), drawing his sword. He stopped dead in his tracks, splashing water onto Wild’s boots.
“Woah, there Rancher,” Wild said, stepping back, putting his hands up in surrender, “What… do you think you’re doing?” Wild’s hand hesitantly inched closer to his own blade. Was… was Twilight okay? Four said not a word, and simply stared at Twilight with a concerned, puzzled look.
“Sorry, sorry.” Twilight explained, lowering his sword. Wild breathed a quiet sigh of relief. “I didn’t know you two were behind me. I… felt something.”
“Felt what?” Four asked matter-of-factly.
“Something. Something else. We’re not alone.” The three glanced at their surroundings, as a monkey cooed in the distance. Wild looked unamused.
“It’s just creepy here, that’s all. You’re overreacting, Twi. I know you’ve been in situations that were way more dangerous than th—“
“Shut up, Wild. Listen.” Twilight interrupted, slapping his hand over Wild’s mouth, who let out a surprised, annoyed grunt. Twilight responded with eyes full of daggers, which quickly silenced the restrained hero. The three were perfectly quiet.
A faint, eerie, ominous buzzing, not too dissimilar than that of a bee’s echoed throughout the swamp. Twilight removed his hand from over Wild’s mouth.
“What is it…?” Four said slowly, the sound getting closer.
“I don’t know, but we should tell the others.” Twilight responded, as the three had stayed pretty far behind from the rest of the group. “C’mon y’all.”
The three heroes ran to catch up with the group, the buzzing now clearly audible even through the loud splashes of Twilight, Four, and Wild’s quick footsteps.
“Does anyone else hear that?” They could hear Sky ask, as Time turned around to face the running heroes. “Rancher! Smith! Cook!” Time shouted, “Get over here!” They reached the group, panting.
“Oh fu…” Legend began, as Hyrule tapped and shook the Veteran’s shoulder aggressively.
“What? What is it, Leg? What? Why are you—“
“Sh. Rule.” Legend said shortly. All of the heroes were silent.
Leg was staring directly at Twi. No… he was staring directly… behind Twi. At a… growing black mass floating in the distance. There was only one thing that could be.
“Darknets.” Legend quickly turned to face the group, his expression fearful but stoic. “Everyone, try to…” Legend’s lips were moving, but his words were inaudible; the buzzing was so loud at this point. He ran to the side underneath a tree, signaling for the rest of the group to do the same. As everyone found shelter beneath their respective trees, they glanced at each other with worried looks. Hyrule stared at Legend with pleading eyes: LEG, WHAT IS HAPPENING?! Wind curled up into Warriors’s embrace, as Wars pulled his royal blue scarf over his head.
The Chain had never seen the Veteran hero so… scared. If he was scared… How scary were these ‘Darknets’?
Link…
LINK…
Whispers of the name echoed through the swampy forest. Was it in their heads? Or was it real? None of them could tell.
“DON’T LISTEN TO IT!” Legend shouted as loud as he could.
The voice was in their heads now. Plugging their ears or any other methods of mitigation wouldn’t and couldn’t work.
Link, you started all this. You cursed generations to suffer and created the Chain. This is all your fault. You’re the reason why millions have suffered through all of time. You’re the reason this is all happening right now.
Link, Shadow gave everything, literally his life, to protect you at the Palace of Winds. He shattered his own life source for you. He killed himself for you. If you had just been stronger, he would still be here today.
Link, you messed up everything. All time is crippled because of you. You messed with the timelines so much that time itself shattered and more suffering and more pain ensued throughout each of the three timelines you created. Thousands, millions even have died because of you.
Link, you’re the reason Koholint disappeared. You are the reason Marin is DEAD. No, it’s not the Wind Fish’s fault, not Hylia’s, not anyone’s but YOUR fault. You killed her, Link. You killed her and everyone else on that island.
Link, you failed. You may have saved Hyrule from Ganon twice, but Ganon’s return is inevitable. He will always come back strong each time. Your blood, the Hero’s blood will be spilled on Ganon’s ashes each time you defeat him. You can and will never win, Link.
Link, as the Hero of the World of Light, you had a duty to help the people of Twilight. But no, you left them there in that darkened world as the Light’s trash dump. They will suffer there for all of eternity. Midna will suffer there for the rest of her life.
Link, you killed King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule. He wished on the Triforce for you. He sacrificed everything to give you a future, yet you let him drown there at the bottom of the sea. It’s your fault.
Link, Cia truly loved you, and you just let her die. If you could’ve just opened your mind to the possibility of loving her, maybe you could’ve had a future. Maybe you couldn’t have let Lana suffer that incredible loss. The pain you’ve caused…
Link, all your friends are dead because of you. If you had fought harder at that one second at Fort Hateno, everyone would’ve survived. The Champions would have never died. They are dead because of your weakness.
“D-DON’T LET IT G-GET INto… your… h-head.” Legend stuttered, the words painfully stabbing him like raining arrows. The rest of the Chain winced in pain, as the messages echoed throughout their minds. Slowly, slowly but surely, the buzzing and whispers faded.
“I-is it… gone? The voices? The black cloud?” Wind mumbled quietly.
“Veteran, what was that?” Time said sternly. He retreated from his spot behind a tree and turned to face Legend.
“Darknets.” He responded, punctuating each syllable forcefully with a distinct tone of hatred. “As I said. They’re small, black insects that travel in large clouds like that one. They seek strong spirits and wish to cast them down. They get in your head, as I believe we all just experienced. They’re greedy little pests.” Legend’s face was stern, but a longing sadness lay hidden within his eyes.
“Your help is appreciated, Legend.” Time nodded. “Captain? Rancher? Skyloftian? A word.” Time motioned to Warriors, Twilight, and Sky to meet him.
The four heroes grouped together on the side of the path, slightly ahead from the rest of the group.
“I’m concerned.” Time started, “I assume we all had… personalized messages back there.” Time stared the three down. “Don’t let them get into your heads. Do you hear me?” He spoke with the most serious voice possible, making sure there weren’t any… complications with this incident, and that they could all just leave this day behind.
“Yes sir.” Warriors responded. “I don’t believe a word those Darknets said.”
“Same for me.” Twilight continued.
“And me.” Sky said, hints of fear hidden in both their voices.
“You must have no doubt. You must not give in. I need to ensure this.” The other three heroes nodded.
“And what about you, Old Man?” Twilight said, grinning lightly, resting his hand on Time’s shoulder.
“Don’t worry about me— I’ll be fine. Just make sure the rest of the group is too. Tell them this message.” Twilight nodded, his feelings of sympathy written all over his face. Warriors nodded as well; he was more accustomed to taking orders after his experience in war. Sky nodded slowly too, obviously scared for the wellbeing of the group.
***
“OWW! WARS, GENTLE!!” Wild screamed, as Warriors brushed his long, tangled locks.
“It wouldn’t be this painful if you just brushed it everyday…” Wars responded in a mocking tone. Hyrule could see Wild roll his eyes from across the crackling fire.
Yet Hyrule’s mind was racing.
He was the only one out of all of the Heroes who could sense magic… at least he thought he was the only one. Well, Legend could too, but he kinda sucked at it. A faint smile crossed the Traveler’s face, before it returned to its pensive, overwhelmed expression.
Hyrule was known for… well, not being the brightest. Sure, he literally lived his childhood in a cave; how was he supposed to know how to cook gourmet meals and interact with others normally?
See, Hyrule had kept a secret from the Chain. For about two and a half hours now. Still hadn’t beat his record of five hours and twenty-three minutes of “secret-keeping” from when Wild had stolen everyone’s socks and dumped them into a nearby river. Except for Hyrule’s. No one wanted to touch Hyrule’s socks. According to Warriors, they were “classifiable as biological weapons”.
But anyways, Hyrule had sensed magic in the Darknets. Powerful magic. But not just any regular time manipulation or dark powers or anything so trivial like that.
He sensed something worse. Far worse.
Possessive magic.
Today, Wild was having his hair brushed by Warriors.
Tomorrow, Wild could have Warriors at sword-point.
The thought made Hyrule shudder.
He knew the chances of possession taking over the Chain were low, but a cloud of doubt still fogged the Traveler Hero’s mind. What if…
And how was he supposed to tell anyone? He couldn’t bear the thought of scaring the others like that, with such dangerous information. And what about him? Was he going to survive this? Or any of the Heroes or—
“Hi Rulie!” A cheery voice interrupted. Sky. Hyrule held in his mental breath. “Can I, uh… sit with you?” Hyrule nodded, and the Skyloftian sat down on the log, next to him.
Hyrule’s heart was still pounding. Should he tell Sky? He would be the safest option… but Sky might tell Time. What about Legend? Hyrule knew he could trust him… he was going to have to tell everyone eventually… but how?!
“You… Alright there, Hyrule?” Sky’s soothing voice broke his thought again. Hyrule looked up, staring into Sky’s muted cerulean eyes.
“Oh— uh, yeah. I’m fine.”
“Something on your mind?” Sky was practically an empath.
“No… nothing much.” Hyrule bluffed, “… Sky, how well do you know magic?” The question seemed to catch the Chosen Hero partially off-guard.
“Oh! Umm…” Sky thought for a moment, “Well, there are some interesting magical beings and artifacts in my era. We have these things called Timeshift stones that can turn back time if struck. And… uh, we also have some dragons— elemental dragons… and, umm…” Sky hadn’t satisfied Hyrule’s curiosity, or the pounding truth throbbing in his head… but it was fine.
“Oh! That’s cool.” Hyrule replied, trying to hide his shakiness in his voice.
“RULE!” Someone shouted from across camp. Legend. He motioned for Hyrule to sit next to him on the fallen log across the fire.
“Gotta go,” Hyrule said to Sky, who gently waved him goodbye.
Hyrule made his way across camp. Wild, having finished his torturous hair brushing session, was now serving up some soup to the Heroes.
“Sit.” Legend said, his own bowl fresh with the steaming stew. It looked absolutely divine. How did Wild do it?! All the times Hyrule had tried to cook, it had ended up in an explosion or something. The Chain had decided that Hyrule wasn’t allowed within “five paces of the kitchen.”
Hyrule followed Legend’s command though. “Rule, something’s on your mind. You’re not very good at hiding it.” Hyrule blushed and turned away from Legend. “Rule…” Legend insisted, his tone sounding more annoyed than concerned. “What’s wrong?” He asked.
Hyrule didn’t respond. He didn’t want to. He didn’t think he could. Maybe he should just stay silent forever again.
“Hyrule. What. Is. It. Something’s… off with you.” The Veteran groaned, begrudgingly shoved a spoonful of soup into his mouth. “Or don’t tell me. Or even better, I’ll start calling you Link. C’mon Link, spit it out. You better tell me, Link. Time to start talking Link—“
Ok, that was annoying. “I-I’ll tell you,” Hyrule quickly, quietly interjected, mostly just to get Legend to stop. It felt so weird for Legend to be calling him Link.
But Legend could sense it was serious based on the breathiness in the Traveler’s voice; his face immediately softened. “Oh… ok…”
“B-but… not here. Not now. Later.”
Legend didn’t reply. He leaned back and sighed, patting Hyrule on the back, staring up at the stars starting to shine through the dim sky. “Ok, then.”
***
The sun was long set, and the moon sat comfortably in the night sky. Hyrule’s heart hadn’t stopped racing ever since he had talked to Legend earlier. He knew he had to tell him. Now or never, Link.
“Um, Legend?” Hyrule asked timidly. The Veteran looked up.
“Do you want to tell me now?” He responded, crossing his arms. Hyrule nodded.
The two made their way into the edge of the clearing where the Chain had set up camp for the night. From the distance, they could see the crackling fire and the rest of the Heroes laying out their bedrolls in preparation for a good night’s rest. Sky, of course, was already fast asleep.
“Legend, I… um,” Hyrule started, unable to continue. Legend, the usually dismissive and rude one, didn’t insult or try to interject the Traveler— his friend. This was more important, and even Legend knew it was inappropriate to make a sarcastic joke or something.
“Take your time, Rule.”
Hyrule took a deep breath. “Back there… i-in the woods, I sensed something. Magic.”
“Yes, the Darknets contain powerful magic. That’s what I was saying before… that happened… that we can’t let those… messages get into our heads… if we let them… then there’s a chance that something bad could happen—”
“You knew?!” Hyrule said loudly. Camp seemed quieter now— did the rest of them hear the Vet and Traveler’s conversation?
“I knew… what…?”
“The something bad! I know you know.”
“Rule, I told you beforehand— I told… all of you beforehand.”
Hyrule was stunned. What? Legend hadn’t said a word about magic or something bad or possession or—
Wait.
The realization crashed down upon Hyrule, just like the lightning bolts he could cast down from the sky if he wished to.
He had.
“Everyone, try to…” Legend’s lips were moving, but his words were inaudible; the buzzing was so loud at this point.
Hyrule remembers.
That must’ve been what Legend was saying earlier! He knew. He knew everything— why didn’t he say something when the group got back to camp? How were they going to tell the others? What was going to happen to the Chain? Were they going to have to fight against each other? How? When?
“Rule, nobody heard me, did they…” Legend said slowly. Hyrule didn’t respond again. “Rule,” He said sternly, “Do you understand what this means?”
“Yes.” Hyrule responded. He knew exactly what this meant. “I know. There’s a chance,” He paused, wincing at the next words. “That we could lose some of the group. That they weren’t strong enough, and now…”
No words were needed.
Both heroes knew exactly what was coming.
“We need to tell the group,” Legend said quickly. “This is serious.” Hyrule could see a glint of fear hidden in the Veteran’s eyes— sadness, even. For any of them, the thought of losing each other was something that hadn’t even crossed their minds. “We’ll tell them in the morning. Sky’s already asleep. The magic shouldn’t kick in until… later.”
Shouldn’t. That was the word Hyrule was relying on to keep the Chain safe.
But shouldn’t still had room for error.