#{ In The Kingdom Of Hyrule [ic] }

[phoenixcatch7]

Looking through the transformation page of the zelda wiki (whoever did that I love you thank you for supporting my late night fixations) and NO ONE EVER TOLD ME

Oracle Link, aka Legend, has a ring THAT TURNS HIM INTO HYRULE??!!

WHY - WHAT - IT DOESN'T EVEN DO ANYTHING

Oh the SHENANIGANS

[hyliasblade]

Are there countries besides hyrule there?

Yes though We Do not Interact very often At All

There Is Termina our Neighbor for example

I Have not been there In Many life times For Um

Reasons Haha

[hyliasblade]

What Like the year

Um 2023

Or No actually Almost 2024 In 2 days

weird! s0 when are y0u?

[bokettochild]

thoughts on Fable LU

I know most creators in the LU circle like to make Fable be a nice, gentle person in contrast to Legend- the sweet to his sour if you will, but you know what?

I want Fable to be the most ice queen level sort of screwed up that, when the chain find out Legend has a sister, they THINK she's the sweet one- only to meet her and realize that Legend is the nice one in the family.

I want a Fable that lost her mom and dad because Ganon's servants were hunting her family down for ages, killing off every Hylian Knight as they sought out the hero, hoping to eliminate him before Ganon emerged. I want a Fable that knows her father was betrayed by his best friend and cast into the dark world. I want a Fable that's watched the king make dubious decisions for years and has come to accept them as normalcy. I want a Fable who doesn't hesitate to kill for the good of her kingdom. I want a Fable that's well aware of how dark the world is and grew up with that knowledge.

I want a Fable who has watched her brother tear himself apart for the world they protect, who's seen him go from innocent child to grief-ridden young man; full of guilt and still desperately wanting to save everyone. A princess who contrasts her hero, but not in a way that makes him look cruel, but highlights the humanity of the saltiest hero.

A princess who is cold to outsiders, in contrast to how Legend befriends other kingdoms with ease. A princess who will kill, where her hero shows mercy. A princess who makes the tough decisions, because she won't force others to do so for her. A princess who is dangerous and cold, someone who makes even the heroes doubt which side she stands on.

I want a Princess Fable Hyrule who has set her sights on being strong- not because she wants to be 'great' or because she wants power, or even to go down in history. Not even for Hyrule. (She never got to see Hyrule or know it's people, it makes no sense that she'd love them with anything like someone who actually knows anything about them personally, not like her brother). No, she wants to be powerful for one reason: so her brother can stop forcing himself to be strong.

She called this little boy to help her and watched him make his first kill and sent him on a mission that slowly tore him apart and reforged him into a hero. Like her predecessor, she blames herself for stealing his childhood, except Legend is her brother, and she has no way to give back what he lost. So, instead, she tries to create a place where he no longer has to remain what he became, and maybe can go back to being what he was before; carefree, content, and happy. (He won't, but she wants him to have that option anyway).

She's a wildfire to the court, to her enemies she's a storm, but she's a warm, gentle thing with her baby brother.

She's the scary Zelda to me. I think all of them should be affected by their worlds and experiences, but I feel like she, of all of the princesses, has the best potential to be hardened. After all, she's been through most of the same hell as Legend, only unable to change it. She's been powerless long enough, I want her to be just a bit power hungry in the wake of it.

I want Fable to be scary!

[idkaguyorsomething]

They need enrichment in a new enclosure. ¡Reblog and tell us why you sent them where you did in the tags!

[capybonara]

I want to follow the idea done by others of explaining their zora kingdoms, but since the zorca technically have no kingdom I've hit my own obstacle on how to share this info. So I figured I'll just post here and there and then figure out how to compile it all together (maybe do a directory similar to werewolfsisters comic one!) but yeah!! Basically I just wanna share this stuff and it won't get done if I don't do it so HERE WE GO! DIVE! DIVE! DIVE!

The Zorca (Zora Orca)

🐋 The Basics The average zorca is larger than a hylian zora, ranging from 15 to 20 ft in height. They're bulkier and wider, carrying more fat/blubber which protects them from harsh elements, being completely immune to ice and lightning specifically. Because of their size they don't go inland very often.

Unlike the zora in Hyrule, the zorca have more mammalian traits. They have blowholes in order to breathe in oxygen, they give live birth and nourish their young with milk, they have fat and blubber instead of scales, and they use echolocation to hunt and detect things (a fantastic visual comparison can be found here!)

The zorca are nomadic by nature and are highly adaptable. They can thrive in artic/subarctic, tropical and subtropical areas. They are apex predators meaning they are at the top of the food chain. Their diet consists of fish, and other marine life such as seals, sharks, whales, and monsters. Zorca don't stay in one place too long to avoid over hunting (other races gotta eat too!) They don't prey upon other Hylian races, but there have been some startling encounters between them and their smaller zora cousins at times!

🐋 Their Hierarchy Zorca families are matriarchal. A female zorca, usually the progenitor of the pod, leads her family. And she passes all her knowledge down to her daughters, from hunting techniques, migration routes, to child rearing. 

The Grandmother Matriarch, her sisters, and eldest daughters all form a council and make decisions for the pod. Daughters of each generation are taught the lessons of their foremothers and become a potential candidate as a future leader. 

Choosing a matriarch of a pod is a once in a lifetime event since zorca are a long lived race. While each woman is raised to become a candidate for matriarch, in the end, the role is bestowed through a vote from the entire pod. Creating a new pod is surprisingly not as common either. Daughters are allowed to strike out on their own to establish their own, but they find it difficult to maintain without the support of their family. Many end up returning to their original pod with a child or two in tow! 🐋 Social Behaviors

🫧 A pod is led by a Grandmother Matriarch. Decisions are made between her, her sisters (if any) and her eldest daughters. Said decisions include things like where to travel, when to hunt, and on the rarest occasion – who to exile.

🫧 Both male and female zorca have privileges and restrictions among the family.

🫧 All adults save for the very elderly, pregnant or nursing are expected to help in a hunt. 

🫧 Mother’s with young children or who are expecting get first pick of each hunt. If asked, men will give up their share to help them keep their strength up.

🫧 Male zorca are allowed more freedom than their sisters. They are slightly spoiled; with mothers hunting for them more than their daughters. The goal is to see their sons reach adulthood so they can sire healthy babies.

🫧 The men are allowed to leave the pod whenever they want without being questioned. And they can be absent for as long as they wish. Most of the time they visit other pods to court zorca. Ultimately, many return to their matrilineal pods.

🫧 Women zorca stay with their mothers and grandmother to learn about the responsibilities of leadership. There are other roles they can choose from ranging from lead hunter, bard/historian, teacher, midwife, scouting, diplomat/envoy and many more.

💖 Courtship 💖

🫧 Turning the Wheel - A large courtship event where many zorca pods come together and participate in a “race” that begins in the Lanayru Sea and ends at the center of Rist Peninsula. During the journey, individuals may find a partner to race with, and may choose to pursue a relationship if they reach the end together. All are welcome to join; new faces, experienced runners, those with non-zorca partners. The event itself does not have to be finished, there’s no prize for anyone who arrives first. It’s about the camaraderie and celebration of life! Zorca don't have to wait for the courting event to seek partnerships either. It's just easier when all the pods are together in one space.

🫧 Male zorca employ various methods to attract partners. From feats of strength, athletic displays and singing. They can form bonds with partners of any gender which can last a lifetime. 

🫧 Fights can break out between competing individuals, but the injuries are never too serious.

🫧 Teeth Raking can be a form of affection during courtship. A zorca runs their teeth along the skin of the one they're courting. It can often leave light marks, and possibly more permanent scars depending on how rough they are.

🫧 Zorca are polygamous but men and women can develop a preference towards a partner if their bond is strong enough. Example, two zorca may meet repeatedly over the years to produce children.

🤝 Bonds with other Hylian Races 🤝

🫧 While it's not taboo for a zorca to seek the company of someone from another race, it's preferred their trysts help increase their population.

🫧 Even so, some prefer to love freely without the heavy responsibility hanging over their heads. As well as not having to deal with the difficulty of finding another zorca somewhere in the vast ocean!

🫧 More often than not, these particular relationships rarely form lasting bonds due to the zorca’s nomadic nature.

[manitschilly]

My notes taken while reasearching the Zelda Timeline lol, mostly cannon a little headcannon in places. Also my Zelink rating aren't how much I like them it's how likely they are in the narrative.

Power: Din ->Demise->Ganondorf. The Gerudo give birth to a male every 100 years, and it's only ever been Ganon. The 100 year system got screwed though because Ganon keeps not actually dying. Pigs. Fire. Red.

Courage: Farore-> heros spirit (fierce diety?)-> Link. Only the hero's spirit is reincarnated in Link, so he's not the same person. Not related at all, except for Twilight Princess where Link is a descendant of Ocarina of Time Link. Wolves and horses. Lighting. Green.

Wisdom: Naydra -> Hylia-> Zelda. Every Zelda is actually Hylia reincarnated through a consistant bloodline. Loftwing. Ice. Blue.

-there is a void called Null

-The three goddess create the earth and the triforce, and that's their only relation to Demise, Hylia, and the heros spirit. They're not reincarnations at all, more like patrons. (Unwillingly in Dins case). Din created the land, Farore created life, and Nayru created order.

-possibly Zonai and Sonia and Rauru founding the first kingdom of Hyrule. This would imply there is a Ganon unconnected to Demise sealed for the rest of everything and a dragon Zelda floating around. Rauru and Sonias light and time magic start off the royal family.

-a long undisclosed time with robots for some reason

-A battle between the Hylia, Demise and the races in Hyrule breaks out over the Triforce. Hylia takes the Hylian kingdom into the sky to protect them, then becomes a Hylian to protect the triforce. She also created a sword with a spirit named Fi with her godly power. With Demise sealed for now, she waits to be born.

-Sheikah are probably started around here, as like a Hylia cult.

-Skyward Sword: First incartion is Skyward Sword, when Hylia chooses to be born as Zelda and chooses Link as her champion to hold the heros spirit. They fight Demise who then curses them to reincarnate forever, and establishes his own incarnation, kicking off the rest of the series. Hylia, now Zelda, is shown to use her time powers. Link, Zelda, and a few Hylians from Skyloft restart the kingdom on the surface.

Link and Zelda are in love, Zelda chosing Link specifically for that reason. This could imply that Hylia and the heros spirit are soulmates in some way, and every incarnarion after is an extension of that. They don't end up together every time, but that makes it even more beautiful and heartrenching. (Just to specify, Links aren't related so don't worry about it) 10/10 Zelink potential this shit is cannon.

Kikwi present. Impa is there as part of the Shiekah. Impa seems to be either a repeated name or a title given to Shiekah warriors meant to protect the reincarnation of Hylia, not their own incarnation.

-another very long time gap

-evil sorcerors are after the triforce which is hidden in the sacred realm. A new temple of time (after the one in Hylias time used to hide the sealed Demise and Zelda) is built around the master sword, which has been holding in Demise this whole time.

-Another long time passes. Zelda's descendants have become the royal family. Princesses are named Zelda after the original incarnation (note, they aren't all reincarnations, just named after her). There is still a lot of magic floating around the bloodline.

-sheikah are sworn to Hylias blood and therefore the royal family.

-Hyrule is again in danger, a special species called the Minish come from the sky to protect them with a special sword, which was then wielded by an incarnation of Link.

-Minish Cap: a bitch named Vaati wants light powers, turns the current Zelda (actually an incarnation, you know because there's a hero) to stone, and that times Link turns the Minish's sword into the 4-sword. Zelda is the light power source, as the light power is still in the royal family. 8/10 Zelink potential

Gorons present

-Another time skip

- Four Swords: the four-sword is used to defeat Vaati again by another Link and Zelda incarnation. 6/10 Zelink potential

- time skip

- Giant ass civil war

- shiekah go into hiding but are still used by the royal family for sketchy shit. (Queue shadow temple 'nam flash backs)

- the first actual Ganondorf is born, or the second depending on if the Zonai are before or after.

- Ocarina of Time: Ganondorf is born as king of the gerudo, and pretends to be allied with the king to gain access to the triforce which is still in the sacred realm, sealed with the master sword. This Link incarnation pulls out the master sword as a child and opens the sacred realm, allowing Ganandorf access to the Triforce, the triforce of power attaching itself to him forever. This also gave Link the triforce of Courage and Zelda the triforce of wisdom. The sacred realm becomes evil and Ganondorf is sealed in it. There's a lot of time travel and it ruins just everything.

Zora, Kokiri, Gerudo, and Gorons present.

Great deku tree dies and is reborn.

and now shit hits the fan

Fallen hero time line

- Ocarina of Time: Link freaking dies and Ganondorf wins, taking the while triforce for himself. He still gets sealed in the corrupted sacred realm, but now he has the triforce. 0/10 Zelink potential long term, as Link is dead, but like 8/10 short term.

- time passes and homies keep going into the sacred realm to get the triforce but they never come back and monsters keep coming out. The sealed it again, at great cost of life and resources

-Echoes of Wisdom: a dark being called Null that was the nothing before the three goddess's created Hyrule starts taking over Hyrule with Rifts. Zelda gets kidnapped and Link is called to save her, but immediately after gets dragged into a rift and Zelda saves Hyrule from Null, who for a second owns a piece of the Triforce. At the end Null is defeated and the Triforce is restored. 10/10 Zelink potential it was glorious

- A Link to the Past: Agahim, some bitch, takes over the kingdom and the remaining sages to break the seal on Ganon. This reincarnarion of Zelda magically contacts the new Link. He kills Ganon and uses his newly acquired triforce to put everything back to normal. Now the royal family has the triforce. 7/10 Zelink potential. Same Link then has Links awakening acid trip. I'd knock down the Zelink potential but Malin like isn't real so.

Zora present

-Oracle series: same Link then has another acid trip but this time it's real, ending with Ganon being brought back to life as a mindless force of chaos. Ups Zelink to like 8/10, and confirms existence of other kingdoms beside Hyrule that aren't in another dimension.

- triforce splits again somehow, power returns to beast Ganon

- time skip

- A Link Between Worlds: new Link, new sages, Lorule exists so that's fun, opposite Hyrule dimension without a triforce. Ganon is freed and eats a man probably. Confirms this Link and Zelda have their respective triforces. Upon returning to Hyrule, the triforce is again in 1 piece and peace is restored to Hyrule and Lorule. 8/10 Zelink potential and like 9.5/10 Hildio potential.

- same Link goes to Hytopia, yet another kingdom in the same dimension.

- time skip. Great time, royal family again has the United triforce.

- King breaks up the triforce and sends Courage to the next Link incarnation, hiding its physical location from all except his daughter Zelda. New King puts that Zelda under a sleeping spell and regrets it. Tries to rule with just power of Wisdom but it doesn't go great.

- time skip

- The Legend of Zelda: same Ganon steals the triforce of power, new Zelda and Impa. New Link, without triforce of Courage, again postponed Ganon

- Adventure of Link : same Link is helping Hyrule not burn down, when suddenly he is given the triforce of Courage mark. He wakes up the old Zelda. I'd say the Zelda born in his time is the actual incarnarion, the older Zelda just a princess. 9/10 Zelink actually but like also he's a little weird with old Zelda to little odd but okay.

Child timeline

- Ocarina of Time: Link defeats Ganondorf and is sent back in time to relive the childhood he didn't have. He warns the royal family before Ganondorf can gain any power and therefore the events of Ocarina of Time never happen. Link leaves on a horse to look for Navi and has a Majoras mask acid trip. 10/10 short term Zelink and like 2/10 longterm, but also one of my favorite dynamics. This is one of the tragedy timeliness, where Zelda loved him before sending him back in time (Sheik was a simp). He could have ended up with this Zelda, but he probably didn't because his descendant in the next game isn't royalty like at all. Scrodingers Zelink, if the next Zelink happened then this one didn't, but we don't know if it does.

-Twilight Princess: Ganondorf is banished to the Twilight realm, where the wizard sent there a Hella long time ago got busy. He gains power with a guy named Zant who takes over the Twilight realm and breaks out to Hyrule. The princess of the Twilight realm named Midna finds the new Link incarnation, an actual descendant of the last one and holder of the triforce of Courage.

Link is trained by the like ghost of the hero of time, who is an adult and missing an eye. The hero of time means nothing to this Hyrule because Ocarina of Time never happened.

They kill Ganondorf finally holy shit and the Twilight mirror is shattered, forever separating the two places.

Like 8/10 Zelink potential, frick Illia freaking hate her. I follow that Zelink both had a crush on Midna but she's gone sooooo

Gerudo, Gorons, and Zora.

-big ass time skip

-Four Sword Adventure: new Ganondorf is born finally, but is like immediately sealed with the 4-sword by a new Link. I don't think there even is a Zelda so 0/10 Zelink potential

Adult timeline

-Ocarina of Time :This is what's left when Link gets sent back in time. Ganondorf is sealed in the corrupted spirit realm and the triforce of Courage shatters into 8 pieces, master sword is returned to the temple of time. 10/10 horribly tragic Zelink poor Zelda good lord.

-time passes without any reincarnations.

-Ganon escapes his seal in the sacred realm but there's still no Link or so Hyrule is effed. The gods flood Hyrule, society continues on mountaintops that are now islands and Hyrule is frozen underneath a giant ocean. The Triforce of Wisdom is split in two between Zelda, who stays on land, and her father, in the frozen Hyrule.

-Time passes badly

-Windwaker: Gannon escapes to the surface and kidnaps "girls with pointed ears", or descendants of Hylia. A new Link appears and gets the master sword from the frozen Hyrule, but it doesn't do shit until he fixes the triforce of courage. The king appears and bestows Links pirate captain the other half of the triforce, as she's reveled to be this time's Zelda. The triforce is restored and the old Hyrule gets genocided. Ganon is sealed, not dead, and Link and Zelda/Tetra go to establish a new hyrule. 10/10 Zelink potential this is some good shit. Rito, Kokiri, and Gerudo present

-Phantom Hourglass: Same Link and Zelda have a bit on their quest, no lasting consequences except for 11/10 Zelink potential. They discover New Hyrule.

-Spirit Tracks: some train shit in New Hyrule, new Link and Zelda have a soft romantic adventure with no lasting consequences except no more trains. 10/10 Zelink it's the whole plot.

Gorons present

After or before

-all the three timelines get just apocalyptic and society is just like gone, so the Zonai come from the Heaven's and with their arrival comes the merging of the three timelines.

-OR potentially Rauru and Sonias time is actually before Skyward Sword, as Ganondorf isn't actually a reincarnation. This would imply that every other game happens inbetween Rauru and Sonias time and Breath of the Wild, which i like better but it makes some leaps in logic, however it also explains the existence of both time and Light magic in the royal blood line.

-time passes

-Hyrule is once again reformed OR formed for the first time, by the last of the Zonai, Raruru and his Hylian wife Sonia. The incarnations are still going strong, so Ganondorf is born but their kind of hosed because there isn't a Link or Zelda OR the incarnations havent started yet and this is the first Ganon, before he was tied to Demise.

Luckily, either way, a Zelda comes from the future, and after a battle ending in the death of Sonia, Rauru uses himself to seal Ganondorf away and Zelda turns into a dragon.

-Time passes, the kingdom grows and hyrule castle is built over Ganondorf.

-Time passes and either all the other games happen or nothing happens, either way Zelda is still a dragon.

Definitely after

-a Link and Zelda are reincarnated to fight Calamity Gannon, whatever is left of the monster Ganon that was never killed in the other timelines. They, with the highly technogically advanced Shiekah, build weapons and postpone his return. We don't know much but like 8/10 Zelink I don't know could be cool. Shiekah go off, creating shrines and all types of shit.

-abreak off of the shiekah called the Yiga form, which is like the shiekah but for Ganon instead of Hylia.

-Breath of the Wild: a new Link and Zelda are born. They are so far ahead that they no longer have a grasp on the incarnations before them besides a few sparce legends. They know Ganon is coming back but they don't know who he is. They know Zelda is suppose to have powers, but they have no idea how she's gets them. Link finds the master sword in the lost woods, guarded by the great deku (the 2nd actually the first one died somewhere).

So they fail, whoops. Link dies and gets put in a Sheikah shrine for healing while Zelda holds of Ganon for 100 years.

-hyrule collapses and turns into almost a tribal society very unconnected.

-Link wakes up, wrecks havoc, and defeats Calamity Ganon, freeing Zelda and starting the reconstruction of hyrule.

10/10 Zelink potential. We got the before when Zelda cononicly loved him but we don't know Links feeling, and then Link might remember her and its like a reuniting thing and it's lovely or he doesn't and they fall in love again. Or possibly he didn't love her before and either way its a saga and his rubber band was in her study in "her" house thats all I'm saying.

-7 years, hyrule is being rebuilt by Zelda.

-Tears of the Kingdom: A sickness is spreading through Hyrule, Zelda and Link go to investigate and find what's left of the Ganondorf Rauru fought, who is either the first ganondorf or the most recent one. Zelda is sent in the past to Sonia and Rauru, along with the destroyed master sword.

Zelda is turned into a dragon and lives out thousands of years as one, potentially during every other game in the series. If so, the cloud layer established by Hylia was probably around until the upheavel, hiding her.

-The Upheavel happens and the world gets a little more cracked out, but Link defeats the Ganondorf and Zelda is turned back to her Hylian form. 11/10 Zelink potential and the dragon bit is so upsetting.

The three goddesses are present as dragons. Are they dragons? Are they just manifestations of their power? Idek but it's sick.

What the hell is Beedle? I read a fanfic once that he never dies because he helped Hylia once and it was really good so I highkey stand by that.

Sages kinda hop around, usually there's 7, one for each major group, even though not every race exists in every game. Are they extensions of the gods somehow?

(Rito, Zora, Gerudo, Gorons, Hylians, Shiekah, and whatever weird shit they got going on that game usually just Zelda)

One main issue with the Zonai before theory is that there's all the races when the Rito specifically doesn't seem to exist outside of the adult timeline.

There is a possible Kikwi, Kokiri, Korok pipeline.

I prescribe to the fierce deity as the original hero incarnation because it's just fits well and I'm obsessed with him, but it it doesn't really matter either way. I also read a fanfic once where the Fierce Deity loved Hylia and fought with her against Demise, but he died and the hero's spirit in each Link is what's left of him. Also read one where he saved Farore once from Demise and that's why he's specifically blessed with courage. Might have been the same one. I cannot remember it is 5:30 am and I haven't slept yet.

Ears are cool and plot relevant. The closer they are the Hylia the pointier their ears are, they get less pointy over time. Which adds to the Zonai being before because they got the pointiest ears. Also Gerudo ears get more pointy as time goes on.

Din gerudo pipeline? That's interesting. Farore and Nayru don't really have anything like that. Hylia has the Hylians but that's it.

Great Deku tree? Who? How? Why is he still kicking? Kind of adds to the Before Zonai theory or else he would have had to survive whatever apocalypse destroyed everything

In summary, somebody off me and therapy is probably a good investment.

[ladyrijus]

Lately, I have been thinking about Kotake and Koume, and, out of interest, have read through a lot of interesting takes on their involvement in Ganondorf's upbringing during Ocarina of Time. However, I've noticed that some of these discussions tend to depict them as emotionally distant, exploitative, manipulative, and even borderline cruel.

Which, granted, isn't entirely out of line for their characters. What other personality traits could we expect out of witches who brainwashed their people into doing the bidding of their king, who were born nearly 400 years before the events of Ocarina of Time and therefore hold a vastly different worldview than the rest of their tribe?

But as always, I like to carry a bit of sensible skepticism when it comes to the narrative that is being pushed in the game. And I find it almost imperative to do so for Ocarina of Time, given that it is played through the eyes of Link, a child soldier who fails to question the orders that he believes he is meant to follow, and the kingdom of Hyrule, which had recently come out as the victor and dominant power after a "civil" war.

The question still remains, however. What, in Ocarina of Time, would "redeem" Twinrova? Where can we see evidence of their "goodness"?

In my opinion? Their powers.

Their powers, I argue, were not chosen randomly by the creators of Ocarina of Time. It was absolutely intentional to show their association with the Gerudo Tribe and more importantly, the Gerudo Valley/Desert. Just think about it, the climate there is scorching hot during the day, yet biting cold during the night.

Wouldn't you, with powers of ice, try to cool down your people after they return from a tiring yet successful hunt?

Wouldn't you, with powers of fire, try to warm your people up when there is not enough hides and furs to pass around?

And given that no one (aside from maybe Ganondorf) has these powers, it is safe to assume that the Gerudo regarded Twinrova as blessed beings; divine guardians sent by the Goddess of the Sands as a reward for their endurance in such harsh climates.

Again, this isn't to condone their actions that take place during the game. We see they are more than happy to kill in the name of their king, willing to coerce others into killing by ways of dark magic.

However, we should also acknowledge the fact that we're encouraged to see just that: two antagonistic witches who revel in brainwashing, killing, cheating death, and being unapologetically evil.

Boring. If we wanted absolutely evil, death seeking creatures, we can look to literally any other magical creature in Ocarina of Time.

Rather, it's important that Twinrova are humans (or humanoid, though either way their sentience still stands), as it forces players to 1) look at the bigger picture and question why the twins behave the way they do and 2) recognize that they have motives that go beyond simply helping a king assert control over an entire world.

Perhaps, Twinrova might have been prolonging their lives to look out for their people, as they had no one with magical affinity to mentor until Ganondorf had demonstrated his own prowess in the mystical arts.

Perhaps, over the centuries, they realized the chiefs and chieftesses before Ganondorf were not cutthroat enough like their Hylian counterparts to fend off territorial expansion/colonization.

Perhaps, after seeing their era of prosperity being snatched away from them, they grew hateful of the kingdom that lives in splendor, and wanted to see it burn and freeze the way they do.

Perhaps, after seeing the complacency of the new generation, how some of their best warriors seek out lovers in that damned Castle Town, they realized this boy was their only hope of restoring their honor and dignity.

[butthatsjustmyfilthyopinion]

Could BotW’s Hyrule be an unflooded Wind Waker?

Oh boy, buckle up because I have a whole conspiracy theory.

So this whole thing started as I was browsing the Nintendo Gallery in Wind Waker and came across this on Ganondorf’s figurine:

I was like: huh. That looks awful similar to Zonai Constructs. These were the closest I found but looking at it once you’re used to Zonai technology, you see the resemblance pretty clearly.

I know I’m not the first to notice the resemblance to Gohdan either, boss in the Tower of the Gods (we’ll come back to that) because this convenient picture exists.

But so what, right? It can’t be Wind Waker’s Hyrule anyway because it’s not the end of the timeline, right? WRONG. It may be the first in the adult timeline but it’s also the last in that timeline to take place in Hyrule. Phantom Hourglass takes place in the World of the Ocean King, Oshus’s dream if I remember correctly but most importantly, not Hyrule, and Spirit Tracks takes place in New Hyrule, one that Tetra and Link founded later. It is not the same land.

Ganondorf ends up dying at the end of Wind Waker with the Master Sword stabbed through his head (cough cough, we’ll come back to this too). The Triforce is used by King Daphnes, the exact words as follows:

“Gods of the Triforce! Hear that which I desire! Hope! I desire hope for these children! Give them a future! Wash away this ancient land of Hyrule! Let a ray of hope shine on the future of the world!!! And let our destinies finally be fulfilled…”

Granted this is the English translation and I don’t know Japanese, so if anyone is able to translate this scene from the original Japanese that would fly in the face of what I’m talking about please make it known.

King Daphnes wished for Hyrule to be washed away, specifically his Hyrule that he’d been clinging so desperately to. If this is indeed the same land we see from the Zonai in TotK, then the old kingdom would’ve been gone long enough to not be recognizable. He also mentions a ray of hope for the world. This is obviously referring to Tetra, Link and eventually New Hyrule but I wouldn’t put it passed the Goddesses to revive the land now that the danger is passed. And that’s another thing!

The whole reason the world flooded in the first place was because of Ganon, now that he’s died, there’s no reason for it to stay flooded. I seem to recall there being a comment somewhere in the game that went something to the effect of “there’s no fish in these waters to catch because it’s magic god water” I don’t remember where it was but do correct me if I’m wrong.

Geography was another big thing. Zelda geography has never been exactly consistent, I always assumed it was because such large chunks of time were going by that tectonic plates had shifted everything now and then. However, Wind Waker and the BotW maps are surprisingly aligned.

Death Mountain and Dragon Roost are easy examples, the Forest Haven is in a similar location to Mount Lanayru and is in proximity to the ice island. The Forsaken Fortress is aligned with Hebra Peak, Outset Island is shaped roughly like Spectacle Rock in the Gerudo Highlands, the Gerudo Highlands in general, and interestingly enough, Satori Mountain is very close to the Great Fish Isles. Plus there’s a lot of other miscellaneous peaks in BotW.

Something else very interesting, the final boss arena lines up rather well with being either near the castle, or perhaps the Great Plateau. A friend I was playing with when I first discovered this pointed out how proportionately small the people are, and normally you don’t notice that, it’s a very stylized game. But maybe, perhaps the reason the world feels so big was because the Hyruleans evolved to simply take up less space on the islands?

Something else interesting is Luralin Village. We’ve never really seen a fishing village before besides in Wind Waker with Outset.

To finish off the miscellaneous details I’ve noticed, the sword pose. It’s suspiciously similar to the one Rauru has Ganon in in Tears of the Kingdom. Here’s the two side by side.

Now onto my heaviest hitters, the salt thing and the races.

As most people who’ve spent anytime debating BotW’s place in the timeline is aware, the rock salt description mentions it came from an ancient sea. This could be the Lanayru Sand Sea all the way back in Skyward Sword, in which case, why isn’t it localized to the desert area it was in? Or it’s from the Great Sea. Not much, but it’s very much suspicious.

The other big one is the Rito’s presence along with the Zora. Besides the games in question, the Rito only ever appear in the Wind Waker. We know based on the Zora iconography as well as Laruto, a Zora, being Medli’s ancestor as well as that special magic water comment from earlier I believe. So how can the Zora exist alongside them if they came from them? Answer: the Fish Map Men. They fill out your map as you travel through the islands, and on top of that, there’s a lot of Gyorgs swimming around. What is Sidon molded after again? A hammerhead shark. It’s likely a new species of Zora evolved from the sentient Fishmen, this time with more variety. The Zora monuments mentioning Ruto? Left over and well preserved under the waves, maybe like how Hyrule Castle was.

Tito weren’t the only unique race in Wind Waker, Koroks were as well. As I’m sure we’re all well aware, they are present in both BotW and TotK. They’re descended from the Kokiri, and there’s not a shred of evidence to suggest that the Kokiri ever came back. It’s likely they just stayed Koroks and since Kokiri don’t age and stay kids forever, and that trait likely carried over to the Koroks if they’re behavior is anything to go by, they just keep multiplying…

And finally, the Zonai themselves. All this started because I noticed Ganondorf was wearing what appeared to be Zonai accessories. Gohdan is said to be a trial placed by the Gods themselves. The Zonai descended from the heavens to settle Hyrule, it’s not illogical to assume that the Tower of the Gods was built at the behest of the Gods, by the Zonai. Perhaps one of Rauru’s ancestors. The Zonai also have extremely long ears, and it’s said in Ocarina of Time that Hylians have long ears so that they may hear the whispers of the gods. Wouldn’t those closer have longer ears then?

One last little thing I couldn’t seem to fit anywhere, isn’t it weird how Rauru’s name is one we recognize and yet Sonya isn’t? The Oocca canonically speak a different language than Hylians, perhaps the Zonai originally did as well and simply adopted Hyrulean names to better fit in. Rauru was arguably the most important sage. He could have chosen in to appear more humble while still showing his importance. Alternatively he didn’t want to disrespect the dead king by taking his name and/or it would seem arrogant.

[untamedcourage]

i was going to ask if you haven't seen all the shit falling from the sky but i guess if you aren't in hyrule you wouldn't have

there is a whole civilization up there. or uh. the ruins of one anyway. old zonai stuff. i think it must have all been part of hyrule at one point and got lifted into the sky somehow? but i don't really know for sure so for now that is just a theory

yikes though. about the apocalpyse things not the warp songs the warp songs sound cool. i mean i hardly use the warp function of the purah pad anyway but the ability to just go wherever is really neat but those are restricted only to hyrule so to go like other places is even neater

i mean i guess you are right in this kind of situation all i really can do is joke about it huh? joke and fight. those are my coping mechanisms

the only link? yes? why would there be more mes? i think one me is all hyrule can handle honestly

yeah you didn't. hi quin. it's fine i am also known for being stupid and confusing

You got shit in the sky going on? Maybe I should tell my brother to check on that shit.

I am! I use warp songs to go all over the place. Including other worlds and times, apparently. Sometimes the places I end up are pretty nice, like the current world. Sometimes it's worse. Significantly worse. I've been through four separate end-of-world events.

Joking about it can help you cope with it. It's how I view it, anyways. Ain't like anybody can exactly blame you for it. As for the surprise naps, I definitely don't blame you for being nervous about that one.

Oh no, buddy. Are you the only one there? That shit sounds lonely. I have been to the founding of Hyrule and it's been around for a stupid long time, okay. There's been a lot of Links in a lot of times.

I may have just realized I haven't introduced myself yet, and I am. Very sorry about that. I'm still re-learning how to people. My name is Quin. Half-Sheikah. I do a lot of really stupid, confusing stuff, so feel free to point at whatever topic and go 'hey, what the fuck' and I can try to explain better.

[bigsoftmarshmallow]

How would the Ganondorfs (Wind Waker, Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess, Hyrule Warriors, and Tears of the Kingdom) & Demise react to going to the final battle against the Goddess and the Hero… only to be struck down by their own SO?

As they look up, breathing already getting harder to do, they question why, and the SO, who had once looked at them with such love and devotion, hisses "Did you actually think I loved you? You? The Demon King?… You are more pathetic than I thought. No. I never loved you. You were a means to an end. Now, dear husband, perish."

This scenario is a devastating betrayal, one that would strike deeply at the heart of each Ganondorf and Demise, shaking them to their core. Here's how they might react, given their personalities and the depth of the bond they believed they had with their SO.

Wind Waker Ganondorf

Reaction: Shock, Disbelief, and a Hollow Despair

Wind Waker Ganondorf, who harbored a deep longing for his people and a twisted hope for their future, would be utterly crushed by this betrayal. As he lies on the ground, his body broken and his strength fading, his wide eyes lock onto his SO's cold gaze.

"Why?" His voice, usually so commanding, is barely more than a whisper. He was always aware of the potential for betrayal, but from them? The one he trusted?

When his SO delivers their cruel words, it’s like a blade twisting in his chest. The realization that the love he thought he had was never real strips him of the last of his will to fight. He had fought so hard, for so long, but to realize it was all for nothing, that he was used, it breaks him in a way no hero ever could.

His last moments are filled with an aching emptiness as he closes his eyes, a single tear slipping down his cheek.

Ocarina of Time Ganondorf

Reaction: Rage, Betrayal, and a Final Curse

Ocarina of Time Ganondorf, the man who clawed his way to power with sheer will and cunning, would be overwhelmed by an all-consuming rage at this betrayal. As he lies on the ground, his hand clutching his wound, he looks up at his SO, disbelief warring with fury in his eyes.

"You… dared…" His voice is hoarse, laced with venom, but there's a tremble to it—a crack in his steely composure.

When his SO spits their hateful words, any remaining warmth in his heart turns to ice. He had trusted them, cared for them in his own twisted way, and now, they throw it back in his face.

Even as his life drains away, his mind seethes with hatred and thoughts of vengeance. He curses them with his dying breath, swearing that if he cannot live, he will haunt them, torment them from beyond the grave. His last thoughts are of revenge, his rage fueling him until the very end.

Twilight Princess Ganondorf

Reaction: Cold, Silent Acceptance Mixed with Profound Sadness

Twilight Princess Ganondorf, a man driven by his pride and sense of destiny, would feel the weight of this betrayal like a heavy burden on his soul. As he lies bleeding out, his golden eyes fix on his SO, and for a moment, there’s a flicker of something in them—sadness, perhaps?

"You… too?" His voice is quiet, the words barely audible.

When his SO hisses their cruel truth, the flicker dies, leaving only a cold, dark void. He thought he could trust them, that they were different, but in the end, they were just like the rest—weak, unworthy, and treacherous.

He closes his eyes, accepting his fate with a grim silence. There's no more fight left in him, only a deep, sorrowful resignation. His last breath is a whisper, lost to the wind, as he succumbs to the cold embrace of death.

Hyrule Warriors Ganondorf

Reaction: Unrestrained Fury, Denial, and a Roar of Defiance

Hyrule Warriors Ganondorf, the embodiment of raw power and unyielding ambition, would be consumed by an overwhelming sense of fury and denial. As he lies on the ground, bloodied and broken, he glares up at his SO, his eyes burning with an intense fire.

"Traitor!" His voice, though weak, is still full of anger and disbelief.

When his SO mocks him, calling him pathetic, it only fuels his rage. How dare they? He had given them power, trusted them to stand by his side, and they repay him with this?

With his last ounce of strength, he roars in defiance, refusing to accept this end. His eyes blaze with hatred, and he swears that not even death will stop him. His final moments are filled with a desperate, futile struggle against the darkness closing in, refusing to go quietly.

Tears of the Kingdom Ganondorf

Reaction: Bitter Amusement, Deep Hurt, and Final Acceptance

Tears of the Kingdom Ganondorf, who was more methodical and deliberate in his approach, would experience a profound sense of betrayal tinged with bitter amusement. As he lies on the ground, his body failing, he looks up at his SO, a pained smile on his lips.

"Is that… how it is?" His voice is soft, almost amused, but there’s a deep hurt in his eyes.

When his SO delivers their final, cruel words, the amusement fades, leaving only a deep sadness. He had allowed himself to care, to believe that he could have something more than just power. And this is how it ends.

He lets out a weary sigh, the fight leaving him as he accepts the inevitable. There’s no point in struggling anymore. His last thoughts are of what could have been, as he slips away into the darkness, his heart heavy with regret.

Demise

Reaction: Rage, Shock, and a Lasting Curse

Demise, the embodiment of pure malice and hatred, would be struck with a rare moment of shock before his anger consumes him. As he lies on the ground, his dark power waning, he glares up at his SO, his fiery eyes wide with disbelief.

"You… dare… betray me?" His voice is a low growl, filled with a mixture of rage and disbelief.

When his SO spits out their venomous words, calling him pathetic, it’s as if a final, cruel irony has been played on him. He, the eternal force of destruction, brought down not by a hero, but by someone he thought he had under his control.

His last moments are filled with a deep, burning hatred, his final breath a curse on his SO, on the hero, on the goddess, and on the entire world. He swears that his malice will never fade, that he will return, stronger and more terrible than before. His final thought is a promise of vengeance, as his body dissolves into the darkness, leaving only a lingering hatred behind.

Summary: Each Ganondorf and Demise would react with a mix of shock, betrayal, and anger to such a cruel and unexpected twist. Their reactions range from rage and defiance to deep sorrow and resignation, each reflecting their unique personalities and the depth of the bond they believed they had with their SO. This betrayal would be a shattering blow, one that would leave a lasting scar on their souls, even in their final moments.

********************************************************************

BONUS: WE CANNOT LEAVE IT LIKE THIS I CRIED OK-

How would the Ganondorfs (Wind Waker, Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess, Hyrule Warriors, and Tears of the Kingdom) & Demise react to taking up, and finding it out to be all a nightmare? Their SO is jostled awake from their sudden wake up, and they are concerned. They look as loving as ever, still deeply in love with the Demon King, their wedding band on their hand even in sleep.

Certainly! The idea of such a devastating betrayal being just a nightmare is a powerful contrast, and it would undoubtedly evoke a strong emotional reaction from each Ganondorf and Demise upon waking. Here’s how each would react to discovering it was all a bad dream, with their SO still very much in love and devoted to them:

Wind Waker Ganondorf

Reaction: Relief and Tenderness

Wind Waker Ganondorf wakes with a start, his heart pounding in his chest, the echoes of the nightmare still clinging to his mind. For a moment, he struggles to discern reality from the terror he just experienced. But then he turns to see his SO beside him, peaceful and concerned as they rouse, their wedding band glinting in the dim light.

Relief washes over him, and he releases a breath he didn't realize he was holding. Gently, he pulls them into his arms, holding them close as if to reassure himself that they’re truly there.

“It was just a dream,” he murmurs, pressing a kiss to their forehead. “You’re still here with me.”

He holds them for a long time, grateful that the nightmare wasn’t real and that he still has their love.

Ocarina of Time Ganondorf

Reaction: Disoriented but Quietly Grateful

Ocarina of Time Ganondorf wakes suddenly, his breath heavy, his mind still filled with the images of betrayal. He blinks rapidly, trying to push the nightmare away, and looks to his side, where his SO is beginning to stir, concerned by his sudden movement.

Seeing them there, so close and loving, with their wedding band as proof of their bond, he feels a wave of relief. He doesn’t say much—words aren’t his strong suit—but the tension in his body slowly eases as he realizes the truth.

He reaches out, brushing a thumb over their cheek, his usual stoic expression softened by a rare tenderness. “It was nothing,” he says quietly, though his hand lingers on theirs. “Just a dream.”

He doesn’t want to admit how much it shook him, but he’s grateful to have them beside him, more than he could ever put into words.

Twilight Princess Ganondorf

Reaction: Deep Relief and Protective Instincts

Twilight Princess Ganondorf jolts awake, his powerful frame tense, his eyes wild as he tries to shake the lingering fear from his nightmare. His heart races as he quickly scans the room, only to find his SO beside him, rousing from their slumber with concern in their eyes.

The sight of them, so warm and loving, with their wedding band gleaming softly, fills him with an overwhelming sense of relief. He closes his eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath to steady himself.

Without a word, he pulls them close, cradling them in his arms with a protective grip. “It was a nightmare,” he murmurs, his voice rough but gentle. “You’re safe, with me.”

He doesn’t let go for a long while, needing to feel their warmth, to reassure himself that they are real and that their love is still strong.

Hyrule Warriors Ganondorf

Reaction: Anger at the Nightmare, Soothing Reassurance

Hyrule Warriors Ganondorf wakes up with a start, his body tense and his mind racing from the intensity of the nightmare. His first instinct is to be angry, frustrated that his mind would conjure such a betrayal. But then he turns to his SO, who is now waking up beside him, their eyes filled with concern.

The sight of them, still wearing their wedding band, still looking at him with love, immediately calms the storm inside him. He lets out a breath, shaking his head slightly as if to dispel the remnants of the nightmare.

“It was nothing, just a bad dream,” he says, his voice steadying. He reaches out to stroke their hair, offering them a reassuring smile. “You’re here, and that’s all that matters.”

He’ll hold them close, taking comfort in their presence, the anger fading as he focuses on the love they share.

Tears of the Kingdom Ganondorf

Reaction: Subdued Relief and Gentle Affection

Tears of the Kingdom Ganondorf awakens abruptly, his heart pounding and his mind racing as he tries to shake the nightmare from his thoughts. His first instinct is to check on his SO, who is beginning to stir beside him, their eyes full of concern.

Seeing them there, looking at him with such love, with their wedding band catching the light, he feels a profound sense of relief. The fear and betrayal from the nightmare fade as he reaches out to take their hand.

“It was just a dream,” he murmurs, his voice low and calm. He squeezes their hand gently, drawing them closer. “You’re still mine.”

He presses a kiss to their temple, holding them close as the remnants of the nightmare melt away, leaving only the warmth of their love.

Demise

Reaction: Fury Turned to Protective Instincts

Demise awakens with a roar, his fiery temper flaring as he fights off the remnants of the nightmare. For a moment, he’s disoriented, his mind filled with the false betrayal. But then he looks to his side and sees his SO, waking up with concern in their eyes, their wedding band glinting in the dim light.

The sight of them, so pure and loving, calms the inferno inside him. His anger quickly fades, replaced by a fierce protective instinct. He reaches out, pulling them into his arms with a surprising gentleness.

“It was a nightmare,” he growls softly, his voice still rough but tempered by affection. “You are mine, and no one will take you from me.”

He holds them close, as if shielding them from the darkness of his mind, grateful that the nightmare was nothing more than a twisted vision.

Summary: Each Ganondorf and Demise would experience a mix of shock, relief, and deep gratitude upon realizing that the nightmare was not real. Their SO's presence and unwavering love would ground them, soothing the lingering fear and hurt. Whether through tenderness, quiet reassurance, or fierce protectiveness, they would find solace in their SO's love, cherishing the bond they share more than ever.

[hyliasblade]

I am not smart Enough for math Or Riddles unfortunately

But I am very good at Puzzles

If they do Not have words or Numbers

[triforce-of-mischief]

Blupee Blood

Rating: T

Warnings: physical restraint, lots of panic, and excessive descriptions of a needle/pseudo medical procedure.

Word count: 2300

Summary: Inadvertently transformed into a bunny, Legend is kidnapped by a gang of Yiga who are looking for blupee blood. Legend knows that they have the wrong bunny, but the Yiga are determined to have their prize one way or another.

Notes:

Adjacent to Overcome, just a bonus story because I don't want to fit this into the main timeline.

As always with my Bunleg fics, please don't think about the semantics too much.

AO3

Please show your support with a reblog! Likes do nothing.

Legend could feel eyes on him as he walked away from their camp. Four’s quiet worry, Warriors’ underlying protectiveness, Hyrule’s curiosity. The constant attention was exactly why he had suddenly announced that he was going on a quick walk for some fresh air, no need to accompany him. Wild had sworn that there were no monsters around, so Legend didn’t bother to grab any weapons other than his fist ring and an ice rod.

The ambient bustle and chatter of camp quickly faded, replaced with buzzing insects and tall grass rustling in the breeze. Legend closed his eyes, walking aimlessly and breathing in the crisp air. This was what they were fighting for. A peaceful kingdom, untouched by evil.

Evil, of course, chose that moment to touch Legend.

An unexpected misstep brought Legend’s boot to a sticky, miasmic substance that, as he gasped and looked down at it, sent red tendrils to climb and cling. They darted up and around his boots, reaching his knees in a matter of seconds. It burned on contact with bare skin, but he had no time to react before he fell to the ground, catching himself with-

Paws. Pink, furry bunny paws.

Legend wanted to scream.

So he did, though it was more of an embarrassingly high shriek. It wasn’t like there was anybody around to hear him, so he did it again for good measure.

Just how had it not crossed the champion’s mind to warn them about random puddles of sinister gunk? If Legend had known, he would have brought his moon pearl but just this once, he had considered himself safe to leave most of his gear behind for a simple walk.

Whiskers twitching as he grumbled murderous thoughts, Legend turned tail and began to hop back in the direction of camp. Only a few hops later, he was stopped in his tracks by an explosion of hanafuda.

A gloved hand grabbed the scruff of Legend’s neck, hoisting him up to come face-to-face with a white mask bearing an upside-down symbol of the Sheikah. The wearer of the mask was tall and lanky, wearing a red skintight bodysuit and flanked by two seemingly identical individuals.

Legend glared and ground his teeth. Just act like a normal rabbit and they’ll let you go, no harm done. There’s no way you can fight one of them like this, let alone three.

“Is that really a blupee?” one of them asked, tilting his head to the side. “I thought it would be more… blue.”

Another elbowed him. “It’s a magic bunny, idiot, you think they can’t come in more colors?”

Legend showed no signs of understanding their banter. Not a magic bunny, just a normal one, now let me go.

“Both of you shut up,” the one holding Legend snapped. “If this is a blupee, the color of its fur won’t matter. It’s the inside that counts.”

“Yeah!” the first one nodded along. “Blupee blood… rumored to be one of the most magically potent liquids in Hyrule! Imagine what Master Kohga could do with a store of the stuff!”

“Glory to Master Kohga,” the three intoned in unison.

That was a bit concerning. Legend prepared himself to slip free and bolt away the instant one of them raised their weapon. There was only one way these goons could harvest his blood, he thought, very much aware of the vicious-looking sickles on their backs.

His kidnappers gave no warning before teleporting, the peaceful field vanishing in the blink of an eye. Legend sneezed as a fluttering paper brushed his nose, then observed his new surroundings.

They were in a cave now, cool and damp with moss-covered walls and lit by a few luminescent plants. A simple wooden table and stools were shoved against a curved wall. A crude bamboo cage sat, empty, on top of a crate in a corner of the cave. Drawings and diagrams of rabbits and recipes decorated the walls.

Nice and homey, Legend thought. Hopefully this isn’t too far from where I was… Wild’s era is so massive, I could escape and never find the others.

It wasn’t going to be nearly as easy to escape now, though. Who knew how many tunnels connected to this room? Legend couldn’t even see a hint of sunlight coming from the entrance.

“You, get the stuff ready,” the not-Sheikah holding Legend ordered. “I’ll need help holding it down-”

Absolutely not. Legend drew the line there, not giving them the chance to draw their sickle before he twisted and bit down on fingers that were only protected by a single layer of fabric. The goon shouted in pain and surprise, fumbling Legend and dropping him. The pink bunny sprinted away, weaving around feet and slipping on wet moss. He was once again thwarted by a shower of hanafuda and two pairs of hands finding purchase on his body.

“You’re as slippery as a banana peel, I’ll give you that!” one of them exclaimed. Legend had lost track of who was who but he supposed that it didn’t matter at this point.

“We’re not even going to kill you!” the other added. “You should consider yourself lucky that you’re a goldmine of magic. Yes, we’ll keep you alive for as long as we can use you, don’t you worry.”

Legend tilted his head to the side, confused. He hadn’t expected them to have actually thought this through. Not that he trusted those sickles for a second. A careless slash could still injure him badly enough to bleed out in minutes.

They carried Legend back to the table, firm hands keeping his head and legs in place. His attempts to kick, twist and bite were easily quashed. The realization that he might not be able to escape set in, along with a looming sense of panic. He had forgotten how his rabbit form intensified fear; his heartbeat increased to an unnaturally fast staccato and his senses were more oversensitive than ever.

The not-Sheikah arranged Legend on the table, keeping him restrained with pressure on his head, back, and legs.

“Hold it still. I don’t want the needle coming out just because you can’t handle a ‘slippery banana peel.’”

Legend skipped a breath, a heartbeat.

He had to have heard that wrong, there was no way-

He managed to turn his head enough to see the third kidnapper, and everything came crashing down.

In one hand, the not-Sheikah held a few small glass vials, empty and waiting for so-called blupee blood.

In the other, an empty syringe with a very long needle on the end.

With a surge of desperate strength, Legend squirmed but the hands only tightened around him. He didn’t have time to weigh the pros and cons; his mouth opened and a frantic stream of words tumbled out.

“Wait, WAIT! I’m not a blupee- I’m not even a magical rabbit at all! You won’t gain anything from my blood!”

The dangerous one paused, peering at Legend through his expressionless mask. “You talk?!”

“Yes, yes- I can talk, and blupees can’t talk, so you can tell that I’m not a blupee after all. Now this is all a big misunderstanding and you can let me go now-”

All three of them started to laugh, and Legend’s heart dropped.

“Let you go? After you just gave away the fact that you can talk? You may not be a blupee, but you have to be a magical bunny of some kind. We’ll find a use for your blood one way or another.” With that, he disappeared from Legend’s line of sight. Legend heard him set the vials near his hind leg, and resumed his futile thrashing.

“No- no- I’m not magical- you don’t have to do this- leave me alone- just let me GO!” Legend wailed, nails digging into the table as he scrabbled for purchase in the wood.

His head was pressed down, his jaw aching as it met the hard surface, limiting his mouth to simple vocalizations.

He couldn’t talk, he couldn’t move-

The not-Sheikah, none too gently, pushed the needle through to Legend’s bloodstream, and all he could do was scream.

Small and helpless and restrained and terrified and screaming-

It was too familiar, too real.

It lasted longer, this time.

Long enough that he almost lost his voice, only the need to express his pain and fear giving him the strength to gulp a desperate breath before continuing.

The not-Sheikah had to reposition the needle a few times, adding an extra layer of horror to the fact that he was leaving it inside for too long as he drew Legend’s blood. Legend tried to pull free, instantly regretting it as he felt the needle scrape inside his leg.

“Quit that,” one of the goons snapped.

Legend whined; it wasn’t like he was willing to try that again.

Eventually he grew lightheaded, gasping for air in between raspy cries. How much blood were they going to take?

“Don’t let go. I’ll open the cage.”

Legend whimpered as the needle was finally removed and set aside. Black spots danced in his vision when he was tossed into the cage, the jarring impact causing him to pass out from exhaustion and pain.

He was roused sometime later by the sound of panic and the smell of lightning. He winced, curling protectively around his leg. Why couldn’t they just leave him alone…

The not-Sheikah were yelling. They were so loud.

“Get out of here! This is our hideout and we’re not letting you have it! We’ve got important research in here and-”

“I’m not in the mood to argue. Either leave now, or this cave will be your grave.”

That… that wasn’t a goon’s voice.

Legend blinked his eyes open, he didn’t dare hope-

The entirety of his view beyond the cage was curtained with royal blue. A familiar scarf, Warriors’ scarf, that Legend would’ve sobbed to see if he had been physically capable of it. Legend couldn’t know if Warriors had even noticed him, and the captain kept his back to him as he presumably stared down the not-Sheikah.

Legend heard the telltale poof of smoke and paper, and saw Warriors visibly relax before taking a step away. Legend yelped and hit the bars of the cage with his paw, and Warriors froze. The captain whirled around, sword still drawn and ready for battle, and Legend cowered as Warriors took a few seconds to register that the threat was simply a bunny. No further recognition appeared in Warriors’ eyes, and Legend was suddenly reminded that he didn’t know.

…Maybe he wouldn’t have to.

Legend stayed silent, scratching at the cage again. Warriors sighed and picked at the lock, calling over his shoulder.

“They’ve got a rabbit in here. No sign of Lege, though…”

A deeper voice answered inquisitively, “A rabbit?”

Oh no. Oh no no no.

“Yes, though I’ve never seen a pink rabbit before. We can release it outside, it doesn’t deserve to go through whatever those idiots were doing to it.” Warriors pulled Legend out of the cage, gently cradling him to his chest. He turned to his companion, whose eyes widened when he saw Legend.

It was Sky. Of course it was Sky. Legend had been humiliated enough, couldn’t he at least shift back in private, where Warriors would be clueless to the fact that he was a coward and a bunny? He bared his teeth at Sky, hoping to relay that now was not a good time.

The birdbrain, unfortunately, did not receive the message. “Um, Wars? That’s… not just a bunny.”

Warriors stiffened, grip tightening around Legend. “What do you mean? Is it another disguised assassin?”

“No, no, he’s- here, let me help.” Sky held the Master Sword out, ignoring Legend’s squirming as he pressed the flat of the blade to a pink paw.

Warriors was unprepared for Legend’s sudden shift to his Hylian form, and the vet slipped out of his hold. Legend crumpled to the ground, biting back a cry of pain as the impact sent shocks of pain up his aching legs. He sat between the other heroes, head bowed and ears down, unwilling to face either of them.

“…Lege?”

Legend opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was a broken whimper.

Sky was there, offering Legend a hug that he was too tired to refuse. The vet pressed his face into Sky’s shoulder to hide rising tears, feeling the velvety sailcloth wrapped around him.

“Lege, what happened? We didn’t expect them to be proficient enough with magic to turn you into a rabbit, how-?” Warriors was asking too many questions, focusing on all of the wrong things.

“T-table,” Legend gasped, and Sky repeated it more clearly. Warriors was quiet for a moment, turning back to examine the table that Legend had been pinned on earlier.

“Is this… blood?” Warriors asked, dangerously quiet.

Legend burrowed deeper into Sky’s sailcloth, not bothering to confirm what Warriors already knew.

“Yours?”

Legend whimpered, unable to stop it from turning into a sob. Sky stiffened around him and protectively pulled the sailcloth tighter.

“Sky,” Warriors said, voice shaking with the effort of keeping it steady. “Get him out of here.”

Legend felt Sky nod and shift his arms to support him as he stood. Sky sounded short of breath almost immediately, but he determinedly carried Legend out of the cave.

The click and ignition of Warriors’ borrowed fire rod echoed through the tunnel as Sky’s boots met the transition of dirt to grass. Tears stained the sailcloth, a mixture of sunlight and relief and exhaustion overwhelming Legend all at once. He was still crying when they reached camp, and his brothers rushed to offer potions and sugar and blankets.

Warriors returned soon after, the smell of burnt paper clinging to his scarf as he draped it over Legend’s shoulders. Legend buried his hands in the fabric, grateful for Warriors’ close presence and Sky’s comforting hold.

He was surrounded by his brothers, who wouldn’t let anything happen to him. Finally, Legend felt protected and safe.

[lscholar]

A SEMI-REASONABLE 40 CHARACTER SMASH ROSTER

An exercise in indulgence and egoism, and posted as the same.

THE RULES:

1. Characters shall be semi-reasonable! Beatoriche I love you but this needs to be a roster composed of characters who could conceivably actually make it into Smash. They should be from video games, and ideally ones people care about.

2. Characters shall be gender balanced! I separated my picks into four categories: GUYS, GIRLS, and CREATURES AND CHARACTERS, TYPICALLY PLAYER, OF EITHER CARDINAL GENDER (like Pikachu or the Animal Crossing Villager). the number of GUYS shall be EQUAL TO OR LESSER THAN the number of GIRLS. I set this restriction on myself and so should you.

3. Characters shall be 40 of them! but you could tell that from the title.

GUYS

MARIO - You have to have this guy. also like it's been like 20+ years since Sunshine can we not give him something other than FLUDD?

DONKEY KONG, LUIGI, NESS, BOWSER, FOX, WARIO - You also have to have these guys. I cut Captain Falcon, as we already had Fox as a Smash original character.

LINK - Someday we will be able to put Link in the CHARACTERS OF EITHER CARDINAL GENDER list, but not yet.

KING DEDEDE - Sakurai made this so his faves get a little extra attention. I claim that same right.

SNAKE - Updated for MGSV, naturally.

SONIC (Palette Swap: SHADOW) - I really really don't care about these guys. I kind of actively hate them actually. but they deserve to be here, even if all their moves are the same (turning into a ball and the ball flies at you).

CLOUD - The iconic Final Fantasy pretty boy. Would I prefer Lightning? yeah. but this is the semi-realistic roster.

PHOENIX WRIGHT - I know, preaching to the crowd here. This guy is a tumblr darling behind only his boyfriend Miles Edgeworth. But they've put him in fighting games before! And he totally has a moveset, right? Presenting his badge as a jab, shooting OBJECTION and TAKE THAT! (HOLD IT! is a grab!), submitting paperwork and random items hoping and praying that they'll be accepted as evidence...

Barely missed the cut: Sans Undertale, Sekiro, Shulk, Solaire, Paper Mario, Sora.

GIRLS

SAMUS - You have to have this girl.

PEACH/DAISY - Ideally Daisy would get Luigified (this is the very technical term for when a Smash character starts out as a clone and then gets differentiated) as the Mario Sports Game Representation. But that probably wouldn't happen. Peach is fine. kind of

ZELDA (Breath of the Wild/Tears Of The Kingdom) - The opposite of the Smash Ultimate dynamic. Smash Lscholar Link is old-school Link; Zelda is newer Zelda. Like in Hyrule Warriors she fights using runes on her magic ipad/wii u pad/nintendo switch game console. Bombs, Ice Block, Ultrahand - and the ability to Recall all of them, sending them flying backwards along their trajectories when the attack is reinput. An evil zoner but let's be honest: she already is. Maybe she has a "take a picture" that can stun?

ISABELLE, ROSALINA - both need reworks. Isabelle in particular has the potential to be a Kirby for new players - but hitting with her is so hard that most try her for a round and play Toon Link instead.

BAYONETTA - No notes.

HORNET (Hollow Knight: Silksong) - Clear moveset, fan favorite, zero questions.

D.VA (Overwatch and, fine, Overwatch 2) - The single most popular Overwatch character by far, and a much needed female heavyweight character. Would translate pretty well to Smash as a pushy zippy tank-type.

EDELGARD VON HRESVELG (Fire Emblem: Three Houses/Three Hopes) - big smashy axe, avowed militant atheist, Vriska, Fire Emblem rep. Smash Lsclr's Ike. Slow but dangerous, with surprising range, much like Byleth; unlike Byleth she is an actual character. also her axe twirl has to be a taunt. Also she's canonically bisexual. which would make her the second bisexual smash character after Snake, and the third in my heart after Cloud Strife (Byleth isn't real).

REIMU HAKUREI (Touhou) - Iconic rep from possibly the single most important indie game series.

CHUN LI (STREET FIGHTER) - Honestly surprised they put Ryu in Smash. I feel like if you asked anybody to name a Street Fighter character Chun Li would be first?

UNDYNE (Undertale) - Fine. Susie (Deltarune) is also acceptable.

VI or JINX or SOME LEAGUE OF LEGENDS GIRL (LoL) - as with Sonic I don't care for these but they have undeniably earned their places. Arcane was better than it should have been and I really hope Mel Medarda survives into s2.

SABER (Fate/Stay Night) - It's Saber! I know this seems like a meme pick but I really do think she deserves to be here.

Barely missed the cut: Karlach or Shadowheart, The Silent, Arle Nadja, Vriska

CREATURES AND CHARACTERS, TYPICALLY PLAYER, OF EITHER CARDINAL GENDER (like Pikachu or the Animal Crossing Villager)

PIKACHU - You have to have this thing. Brand recognition on par with Santa Claus or Jesus. A creature for sure, even if its tail indicates biological gender.

KIRBY - This is technically a Guy but in practice this is a creature. also I have one less Guy than Girl so I could put him there, but I chose not to.

YOSHI/BIRDO - Put a trans woman in Smash. She's just a Yoshi reskin and that's fine.

MARTH/LUCINA - The other Fire Emblem rep. Why does Awakening get like three characters? may have to make Marth a bit less floaty to make this work but they really should consolidate these two.

POKEMON TRAINER (Charizard, Ivysaur, Squirtle) - good on nintendo for making it possible to play pokemon trainer as a guy or girl.

POKEMON TRAINER 2 (Gengar, Gardevoir, Lucario) - We have so many pokemon and here's three more. swap out one of your choice for Jigglypuff or Mewtwo or Mimikyu or Greninja or whatever, as long as your substitution isn't from Kanto. This pokemon trainer is a bit more of a tryhard, and wears darker clothing. also their pokemon are category balanced: one is a guy, one is a girl, and one is a creature.

INKLING - Kind of a creature and definitely not of either cardinal gender. these kids squids are nonbinary. A good addition to smash; may they goop and bloop for many games to come.

Wii FIT TRAINER - Mix in Wii Sports and Ring Fit and whatever else.

ANIMAL CROSSING VILLAGER/MINECRAFT STEVE AND ALEX/PACMAN AND MS PACMAN - CHARACTERS OF EITHER CARDINAL GENDER

NOAH AND MIO XENOBLADE (XENOBLADE 3) - Like Pyra and Mythra but less gross. Mio has faster short range chakram attacks and mobility; Noah has slower harder-hitting moves.

THE ASSASSIN (Assassin's Creed) - Snake represents Solid, Naked, and Venom; why can't The Assassin be Altair, Ezio, and whoever else?

Barely missed the cut: Duck Hunt, Toad/Toadette.

if you got mad at me about removing your favorite character reply and I'll tell you why I took them out. probably because I didn't care about them.

[echoesofwisdomcountup]

25 Days until Tears of the Kingdom Release. Is it really? Haha the smaller the number gets the more I doubt reality. I've just been waiting for this game for so long that even with all the marketing and the trailer analysis it's hard to believe its actually happening.

Spoilers under the cut for the last batch of screenshot trailer analysis.

So this tear has the recall chicken symbol on it. I checked. Zelda also has the Master Sword with her. Either she's fixing the sword and that's something only she can do or Zelda is in the past so the sword isn't broken yet and she is leaving something there for Link.

Ganondorf, mummy version I'm assuming, spewing red malice stuff but much brighter red this time. I wonder if Malice is just Ganondorf's version of fuse. Link gets green glue and Ganondorf red. After this there is a shot where the red stuff hits the sky and starts summoning monsters. The trailer transitions it to make it look continuous but once we get into the game we'll most likely find that it's separate cut scenes or different parts of the same cut scene but not continuous. Honestly, I think this might be where Link and the Master Sword get attacked but I'm still not giving up on the possibility that the malice emerges from the Master Sword outwards as Fi looses control on Demise.

I'm pretty sure I mentioned the lack of lynels in the other analysis I did. Welp here they are with their massive antlers (oof on the damage those things will probably cause) and the sword looking thing sticking out of one of their heads. I wonder what fusing Lynel horns to shields, swords, or arrows will do. I think I'll fight some just for that.

What else do I have to say? It's the main man, Ganondorf. I can't wait to kick his ass again.

Never seen this enemy in any of the Zelda games I've played. However, I will look forward to this boss fight/mini boss fight and whatever skill or item we need to defeat it. Maybe ascend or some ice weapon? I heard that ascend works on certain enemies and I'm very curious about which ones. It'd be interesting if this enemy tries to swallow Link and Link just ascends through the roof of its mouth.

This is Hylia or some version of Zelda from the past (yeah I'm aware that Hylia is technically a version of Zelda but whatever.) I think she's very pretty, super amazing, and very strong considering she laser beams a bunch of Molduga with no sweat.

RIJU!!! Look at my girl double wielding swords (Can we do it too as Link? Nintendo?? I wanna duel wield.) Riju appears to have grown into her own and mastered her lightning powers without needing the Helm. I'm so proud of her and I can't wait to fight along side her.

I can't tell you how cool it is to see that Link will be working and fighting alongside other citizens of Hyrule. The resistance in Twilight Princess walked so that TOTK NPCS can run. At least that's my hope. Also neat looking sword Link.

Now this part of the trailer nearly gave me a heart attack. I was like no freaking way will the new champions literally fight besides Link and not just in a cut scene. How sick is this? Of course, I heard some people say co-op but I don't think that's what's happening. You see the blue glowy stuff on Sidon? Yeah it was on Tulin too. I think the new champions might be like summons, automated companions. I think Nintendo took the wolf link amiibo and the Yunobu follow quest and beefed it up. I'm very excited about it.

So Riju doesn't have a tear that we can see and they haven't shown Yunobu but Tulin and Sidon have different tears. I'm very curious about what these things do. I'm also amused that Sidon got blue and Tulin green considering the colors of Mipha's Grace and Revali's Gale. I'm not sure about the symbols on them since I don't think they correspond to any of the abilities icons unlike recall. Anyway, it's just another thing that can't be answered until the game is out.

Giant fire gleeok or three headed evil dragon or whatever it's called, it's a sick looking boss that I can't wait to fight. Also the weapon that Link is using looks so other worldly. It's got the shape of a wing and its probably ice related. I wonder what enemy Link got it from but it does remind me of Naydra so maybe it's a dragon part? Nintendo really popped off with the Fuse ability.

So Ganondorf is most likely what this mural figure represent but look at the Hylian (i think it's a hylian, could be a Zonai) beneath him. I think the figure with its hand raised represents either Link or the person who owned the ancient hand and sealed Ganondorf.

It's a bit hard to see but see these four warriors? I think they might represent the four champions since these guys are the only warrior figures in the middle of the horde of monsters. The warriors that aren't yet in the midst of monsters must represent the other NPCs, the citizens of Hyrule that are also fighting back. I think the mural is neat and I wonder where we might see it in the game.

Lastly, Zelda holding the Master Sword and saying "You must find me Link." The first time I watched the trailer I went "Zelda?? If Link has to find you then where the heck are you??" And that's where time travel to the past is looking like a more and more likely theory. The only other theory I have involves realms/alternate worlds since A Link Between worlds exists and so do the Twilight and Silent Realms. But again, I think we'll just have to wait and see what the game has in store.

Thank you for coming to the end of this analysis with me. I'm ecstatic to have my questions answered on May 12, 2023.

Edit: It has been brought to my attention that Riju does in fact have a visible tear and I even posted a picture where it is visible. Guess my brain was so focused on how badass she looked while duel wielding swords that I missed it. Welp that's three for three tears so I'm expecting Yunobu to have one.

[the-delta-42]

No Longer You

No Longer You

Link stumbled over the rocks, he’d heard of a prophet from the Skullkid. They said that he could see the future, he could tell Link the way back to Hyrule. He had to get back to Hyrule, he had to get back to Zelda, and Darunia, Ruto, Nabooru, Impa, Saria. He had to get home.

He dislodged some rocks, knocking them into a deep, endless pit. Swallowing, Link continued onwards, before coming to a large circle, with someone sitting on the ground, facing away from him.

Link opened his mouth, before the man spoke.

“I am the prophet,

with the answers you seek.

Time, I’ve unlocked it,

I see past and future running free.”

The Prophets voice was almost melodical.

“There is a world,

Where I help you get home.

But, that’s not a world I know.”

“What?” Rasped Link, ice filling his veins.

“I see a song of past romance,

The sacrifice of man.

I see portrayals of betrayals,

And a warriors final stand.

I see you on the brink of death!

I see you draw your final breath!

I see a man who gets to make it home alive,

But it’s no longer you.”

Link staggered back, “No. No, this can be,” He panted, “I’ve suffered and sailed through the toughest of hells and now you tell me, my effort’s for nothing?!”

“I see your kingdom,

Coated in red.

Faces of friends,

Who had long believed you’re dead!

I see the Princess,

with a man who is haunting.

A man with a trail of bodies.”

“WHO?!” Bellowed Link, grabbing his sword, Zelda was going to be in danger.

“I see a song of past romance,

The sacrifice of man,

Portrayals of betrayal

And a warrior’s final stand.

I see you on the brink of dead,

I see you draw your final breath!

I see a man who makes it home alive.

But, it’s no longer you.”

With that last word, the prophet vanished, leaving Link along in the cave.