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aiden-png · 4 years ago

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to celebrate the end of 2020, I’ve decided to share the highlights of the writing I did this year! I’m going to share a few of my favorite snippets from 2020, and I think this could be a fun tag meme to invite friends to join in on so they can appreciate their progress and hard work too! I couldn’t have written so much if it wasn’t for the great online community supporting me and all my wonderfully talented friends!!

I’m gonna tag @freshie-writes @silverdragon-imagines-blog @st0rmy-writes @fuckit-hero-of-trains @no-themes-just-memes @timeturner-jay and anyone else who wants to join in, feel free! you don’t have to do this if you don’t want to, but you all wrote amazing things this year and I’m gonna appreciate you for them!!

snippets below the cut (please do this or make a new post if you wanna join, just so we don’t flood everyone’s dashboard lol!)

it’s difficult to count for certain, but across 7 google docs from April to December 2020, I wrote 324,782 words just of Legend of Zelda fanfic! it’s been a crazy fun year and I think my writing has improved a ton since I started writing fic again in April! thank you all for supporting me through the last 9 months!! <3

here’s a highlight of some of my favorite excerpts from fics I wrote this year! Smoke on the Wind and Dream With Me are two of my favorite pieces I wrote this year for angst, while Four Feet of Pure Flirtation and Lessons in Love are my favorites for crack/fluff :D the other snippets are featured bc I’m proud of how the fics turned out !

Dream With Me: June 28, 2020 Legend and Hyrule sat on the beach, a mere two feet separating them. It felt like much more. Farther than they’d ever been apart before. The other heroes stumbled onto the sand, frozen in shock as they took in the scene before them. Legend, knife drawn and hands shaking dangerously. Hyrule, knees buried in the sand and hands held over his chest, trying desperately not to reach out again. The sun was rising, pinks disappearing into vibrant gold and crushed purple and bright blue. As dawn broke, their vision wavered. Hyrule gasped, Legend blurring before him, the sand beneath him fading, the roar of the waves diminishing. Magic hour was ending. “This isn’t a dream,” Hyrule whispered, and Legend’s shoulders shook with silent sobs. “I’m real. I’m here. Legend, come with me.” Hyrule stretched out his arm, fingers splayed, eyes begging. Legend flinched back, dagger slipping from shaking fingers. He stared, disbelieving. Vertigo consumed Hyrule’s senses, his vision clouding with black dots. “Take my hand, Legend!” Hyrule cried, and Legend jumped. He sprung forward, hand grasping. Hyrule felt nothing as Legend’s hand passed through his. “Hyrule!” He blinked, and found himself in an unfamiliar field, reaching towards sunrise.

Smoke on the Wind: August 7, 2020 Wind hadn’t always had this ability, but before his second adventure, before the ghosts became tangible to his skin and visible to his eyes, he still had a sixth sense of sorts to rely on. Back then he’d called it instinct, but now he called it a curse. It never helped him do better on his adventure, never showed him the way, never allowed him to prevent someone’s demise--only forced him to bear witness to it in all its excruciatingly gory detail. Some spoke of death like a mercy, others like a boon. Wind knew death like an old friend and he despised it with all the rage contained in his tiny body. Some feared death, some prayed for its delay. Wind feared no man, god, or figment of imagination. There was no reason to fear something he couldn’t prevent, there was no reason to pray to something that would never hear or listen. Some ran from death, some hid. Wind stared death in the eye and spat in its face. He thrust a magical fucking sword through its head and banished it to a watery grave.

Four Feet of Pure Flirtation: June 26, 2020 Maybe he should have shared just a tad bit more with them, but that was a regret for future Four to deal with. And really, he hadn’t been expecting it himself, so they couldn’t exactly blame him when Dark Link materialized in their camp one morning and sent Four’s heart racing in an unfamiliar-familiar way. Four felt the heat crawl up his chest, felt his tongue loosen, felt his eyes trail over Dark’s lithe form just a bit too slow to be innocent. No one had told him Dark was attractive. Although, Vio reminded him, we are the only ones attracted to villains. We are most decidedly not! Four shot back. The denial was empty. They most decidedly were.

Hero Through the Ages: June 19, 2020 Wild sighed, chin resting on his knees. He glanced over at Sky, feeling anxiety buzz within him as a question pushed at the back of his mind. “Hey, Sky… does the sword still recognize me?” Sky froze at the unexpected question, eyes searching Wild’s carefully schooled expression. Wild felt his anxiety rise but he held his ground as the older hero tentatively reached back and unsheathed the Master Sword. He closed his eyes for a moment, and Wild tried hard not to notice the new eyes on them as he waited for Sky’s response. He knew what the answer should be, but when the other slowly opened his eyes and held the sword out for Wild, it was still conflicting to feel the familiar weight of it in his hands. Not too heavy. Not burning. Perfectly at home, as if he’d just begun his adventure and still had many years left before the Calamity struck. Wild felt a pit in his stomach as he handed the sword back, Sky’s concerned gaze not helping. “How old were you when you pulled the sword?” Sky asked quietly, and Wild stared at his hands as they trembled slightly in his lap. “Too young.”

A Shower to Remember: July 4, 2020 Enter Twilight and Wild. TWILIGHT I can see thee up th’re. Come hither. I simply wish to speak with thee.

Enter Legend to Shower Crashers. LEGEND all’s well that ends well, I believe our plan hath been a success. cheers to thee all. FOUR didst thou not see Wild running for his life not a minute past? LEGEND that is’t his problem, not mine.

Lessons in Love: July 9, 2020 The offer though, that’s what truly made Legend pause. Show you the ropes, he’d said. He should be insulted that Ravio thought he was that hopeless, but the man wasn’t wrong. Legend was absolutely, positively hopeless, evidenced by the situation he now found himself in. Should he say no and move on? Should he accept--and then what? Maybe he should laugh it off, say he was joking, or perhaps he should come clean now and tell Ravio how he felt? But he still didn’t know if Ravio felt the same, those dark eyes betraying nothing in the fading light of sunset. So, naturally, Legend continued to panic. “What do you mean by ‘show me the ropes’?” Legend asked, quick, defensive enough to pass as insulted. Ravio snorted, tasting the hot chocolate, and Legend’s eyes were drawn to his lips once more as if under a spell. “I mean no offense, Link,” Ravio laughed, seeming not to catch the blush on Legend’s face as Ravio used his name. “I just figured you might want some pointers. Flirting, hand holding, relationship advice, y’know? You don’t have to accept the offer by any means!” Flirting? Hand holding? Legend gulped. He was already an idiot. Maybe he could play dumb for a little while longer…

Scars: June 2, 2020 “I used to try and cover myself in public--I didn’t like the way people would whisper or stare when they saw. But eventually I came to accept the scars as part of me. I remembered how I got them, and I realized I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the journey that led to me getting these scars. And I like who I am…” Wild trailed off, sifting sand through his fingers as Warriors listened. “I’ve come to love my scars, because they hold such important memories for me. Even if some of the memories aren’t so great, I wouldn’t be who I am today without them, you know? And I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”

Beneath the Surface: July 13, 2020 For the first few months he had lied to himself, blaming the others or the weather or Shadow or Vaati or anything rather than admitting he had a problem. But Blue did, in fact, have a problem, and fighting and yelling it out wasn’t the healthiest solution. For the others it was easy. Green had Vio, for Wind could rarely move Earth, and Red got along with everyone he was so full of love to give. But Blue wasn’t good at teamwork, he wasn’t good at strategizing, and he wasn’t good at showing affection--he was good at being angry, and that was it. He was the protector, the toughest of them all in strength and will; but when you’re always protecting others, no one protects you. Not like Blue made it easy for the others to approach him, and he didn’t blame them for giving up. They were all struggling, they all had their own issues, and while Wind was a gentle breeze and Fire a warming comfort and Earth a steady rock--Water was impossible to hold down. He was forever changing, flowing, and while it meant that he could adapt well to new situations, it also meant that every time he felt close to getting a handle on his emotions they would slip from his grasp once more. His magic ebbed and swayed and his emotions followed their tide, not his, and so he pushed others away rather than admit he couldn’t handle himself. If protecting them meant distancing himself, then so be it.

The Point of No Return: June 19, 2020 He turned back to Four, brushing the back of his hand across his cheek. He’d wanted to share a meal with his partner. He’d wanted to see Four’s small smile--just for him--as he tried Hylian food for the first, second, hundredth time. Long ago, they’d promised to travel the world together. Four wanted to share everything with him; wanted to show him the forge, wanted him to meet his Grandfather, wanted to take him to see the Minish. After the adventure, Four had promised. He’d be free to go and do whatever he wanted, right by Four’s side. Well, he was at his side now. And this was not what they’d promised each other.

A Major Test of Strength: May 7, 2020 Even being worthy of the Triforce of Courage didn’t mean he was brave enough to act on, or even think, about how he felt about Sidon. He reasoned it was better not to say anything, especially now. He was going off to a battle he may not return from. Even if he burned to know if Sidon felt the same, it would be selfish to ask knowing he may be leaving for the last time. Link would rather go to the grave with his feelings then leave Sidon alone with them. At least if he died before confessing, Sidon would be able to move on, he hoped. Sidon was his best friend, and that was enough for now.

#aiden writes #tumblr went down right as I was trying to post this oof!#now I can finally send this and tag all my friends !#everyone is so talented and I hope you all know how much I love your work !!!#you deserve to hear how good it is and to feel proud of your accomplishments!#<3!!!

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gleam-and-darken · 5 years ago

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Zelda AU #2: The Triplets

The sketch is rough at best, but Zelda is supposed to look like she does pre-calamity, Tetra looks like the girl from the BotW 2 trailer (because it is her, I might explain that later if anyone’s interested), and Sheik has his design from Smash Ultimate. This is really just my take on the twins AU which was originally created by someone else (rockingthegraveyard, I believe).

https://triforce-princess.tumblr.com/post/627266504652668928/this-is-awesome-your-brain-is-so-good

Anyways, I was thinking of what this might actually look like as a fleshed-out story, and I decided that Zelda’s twin could be named Tetra. And then I thought, “hey, we can’t leave Sheik out!” And so here we are. Basically, thanks to her siblings, Zelda is able to stop the calamity and (almost) everyone lives happily ever after. I don’t actually plan on writing this into a formal story so this is a long post where I just dump a lot of my ideas concerning the trio. I will not be writing this into a story, because I’ve never played BotW and I fear I would get everything wrong, but you’re welcome to! If someone ends up writing something based on this, I’d love to know so I can read it. I also have lots more ideas about this, so if you want more content (aside from this ridiculously long post), just ask!

Zelda is technically the oldest, although it hardly matters since they’re triplets. Thanks to this, she is arbitrarily the one who had all of the responsibilities heaped upon her. She’s pretty similar to how she appears in BotW, except Link isn’t even a potential love interest for her. He’s just her knight whom she’s gradually grown close to - as a friend.

Tetra is the middle child, and by far the most troublesome. She is outgoing, adventurous, brash, and basically everything you don’t want in a princess. King Rhoam tried to raise her to be proper, constantly reminding her that it was the hero’s (Link’s) duty to be the courageous one, not the princess. This often resulted in her running away and threatening to join the gerudo. She and Revali got along like a house on fire, often bonding over how overrated Link is. She absolutely hates Link, because to her, he represents not her failures, but the failures of her country and family. Why can’t a princess with no triforce be the hero as well? She makes no attempt to hide her distaste for him, although she might have changed her perspective a little if she realized that Link actually greatly admired her. It’s too bad that he was too scared of her to tell her himself. Speaking of being too scared to admit things, the one thing Tetra can’t bring herself to say aloud is that she has a huge crush on Princess Mipha.

Sheik is the little brother, known as the quiet one. Unlike his eldest sister, he knows how to fight, but hates doing so. He would much rather prefer to be exploring the lonely areas of the wild, or researching ancient tech with Zelda. He’s trans, and while his sisters support him and his father respects that, King Rhoam also saw that as an excuse to ignore him. After all, the legends never told of princes doing anything noteworthy. Thus, the king, and by extension almost everyone in Hyrule, more or less forgot about their quiet prince. The champions knew about him and were varying degrees of nice to him, especially Lady Urbosa, which was more than almost everyone he met could say. He didn’t mind it too much, and didn’t even realize that it was wrong until after his father was dead.

Link had a varied relationship with the triplets. Originally, both Zelda and Tetra despised him, because he reminded them of everything wrong in Hyrule - Zelda’s own self doubt, and Tetra’s failed attempts to become her own hero. Since his two sisters were always talking about how much they hated having this royal knight follow Zelda around, Sheik grew to dislike him as well, despite having never met in person. However, there was a time in the castle when Tetra practically kidnapped Zelda and whisked her away to an unknown location in Hyrule, sending everything into chaos. Sheik was pretty sure that they were both in on it and were simply trying to prove how well they could manage without Link, but they hadn’t informed him of their plan before they left, so he really had no idea. What he did know was that they left Link behind, and now the royal knight was panicking because he thought the king would blame him for letting his daughters vanish, and feared he’d be at the very least jailed.

Link, to his surprise, was not punished - the king was too busy cursing his own tomboyish daughter - but was sent to go find them alongside a team of Hyrulean soldiers. Not wanting to look useless, Sheik joined the quest. In their travels, Sheik discovered that Link was actually a lot like himself, just in completely different circumstances (and much more reckless, unfortunately), and the knight found that the prince was one of the few people who didn’t meet him with impossibly high expectations, for which he was thankful. They became fast friends, although since they both said an average of ten words a week combined, their friendship often looked more like them being present in the same room.

Much later, after both princesses had returned to the castle (“of our own accord,” Tetra had reminded everyone within earshot), the king doubled down on Zelda discovering her powers. She and her knight were rarely seen around the castle, always visiting springs and whatnot, while Zelda’s siblings were left at the castle doing... basically nothing. They were both training constantly for a battle that they were beginning to believe would never come.

Their seventeenth birthday started like any other day. They were at the castle while Zelda and her knight were off at another spring to pray, along with the champions. Then all hell broke loose. (Literally.) Something monstrous decided to rear its ugly head from under Hyrule Castle, and it took over the guardians to boot. Of course, both Tetra and Sheik became extremely concerned for their older sister, since she probably couldn’t fight a bokoblin, much less corrupted ancient technology. This, combined with the fact that the castle was probably the worst place to be right then, prompted the two to bolt into the field and find their sister. They had to fight guardians the entire way, and Sheik recieved a nasty injury, but kept denying how bad it really was.

Despite the storm, she wasn’t that hard to find, thanks to that explosion of what they guessed was her divine magic that had finally decided to say hello. They found her as opposed to the sheikah, but arrived on the scene a bit to late for the hero. He wasn’t dead (or was he?), or at the very least he could be saved/brought back, but he was clearly not about to help them fight. (Still, Sheik absolutely lost his mind when he saw the state Link was in, to the shock of his sisters. Neither of them knew he was close friends with the knight.)

Zelda quickly explained her plan to her siblings, where she would return the sword to the forest and face Ganon herself, to which Tetra said “hell no.” The Master Sword was right there! Hyrule needs saving, and the princess found herself to be a perfectly competent hero. The sword could be fixed. Somehow.

This part is where I’m a little on the fence about what happens. The sword’s health and power does seem to be tied to Link’s, as evidence by how it heals with him over 100 years and can only shoot sword beams when he’s at full health (I think), but since Tetra actually was worthy of wielding the sword, Fi could have been restored when she accepted the blade. Alternatively, Tetra and Sheik could have been the sages of earth and wind without realizing it, and we’re able to restore the sword on the fly. You get to decide how the sword repaired itself.

So now Tetra has roped herself into fighting Ganon with the Master Sword, Zelda by her side, while Sheik is losing his mind over what is basically the corpse of his closest friend. It’s at this time that Zelda realizes just how injured her brother is. She knows that he can’t fight the calamity like that, so she tasks him with taking Link to the Shrine of Resurrection, like Fi said. Initially, he refuses, but he soon decides that it’s all he can do and agrees.

The triplets go their separate ways. Somehow, the sisters are able to get to the castle very quickly, and start to challenge the Calamity. Zelda uses her new sealing powers to force him into a mortal form, while Tetra beats him up with her new weapon of choice. Ganon originally shrugs them off, more or less, but as they start to win he activates Panic Mode and summons all of his blights back to the sanctum to fight the sisters. Luckily, the blights were snatched right out of their battles with the champions, who were beaten and shaken but still alive.

However, thanks to his new allies, Ganon starts to win. Just when the princesses think they’re about to die, the divine beasts - which are under the control of the champions after the blights left - strike, finishing off the Calamity. Naturally Ganon has a few tricks up his sleeve and transforms into Dark Beast Ganon, moving to Hyrule Field. By Hylia’s (late) divine grace, Tetra and Zelda are teleported to the field as well, alongside Sheik, surprisingly. He’d just set Link up in the shrine before getting pulled here. Zelda is able to summon the Bow of Light, which becomes his weapon.

Together, the three of them are able to take out the dark beast. Zelda creates weak points, while Tetra and Sheik shoot them with Master Sword beams and light arrows, respectively. (Maybe Tetra DID die, but her health was restored by a fairy, or she’s at full health for some other reason.) So now Ganon is dead. Castle town is in shambles, and multiple people are dead, including the king. But don’t worry - Urbosa quickly makes herself the new parental figure of the triplets.

Hyrule is rebuilt. The people celebrate the defeat of the calamity, and the guardians are restored to their former abilities. Tetra becomes the new Champion of Hyrule Castle, wielding the Master Sword and the Sheikah Slate. For an extra happy ending, maybe she and Mipha formally become a couple. Sheik pioneers work on improving ancient and modern technology, showing a special interest in ways to reverse aging. After many years, Queen Zelda’s son, Daphnes Link Hyrule, becomes the ruler after her reign ends.

And so, the people of Hyrule live happily ever after.

... and 100 years later, Link wakes up.

#legend of zelda #link #zelda #zelda au #the triplets #featuring low effort doodles #breath of the wild #botw #botw 2

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danni-dollarsign · 4 years ago

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A Critical Look at “Pokemon: Sword and Shield” From a Casual’s Perspective...

A/N: Hey! if you’re reading this, then thank you! I don’t know why, but I thought to myself, “Hey, wouldn’t it be cool to write a pointless essay about a Pokemon game?” And then I realized today was the 1YR anniversary of SWSH, so I figured I might as well just do it! So even though I’m late and probably nobody will really care to read all this nonsense, I wrote it! If you’re interested in all the analyses of PKMN SWSH, but aren’t too invested in the technical mumbo-jumbo used by the more hardcore fans, then maybe you’ll enjoy this.

Also, it’s worth mentioning that I’m literally just some rando on the internet saying my opinion. None of this should really be taken SUPER seriously - it’s mainly designed to provoke thought rather than try to argue any specific idea. So if I say something that you don’t agree with, you got two options: 1) Draft a constructive comment or DM to me and we can discuss calmly like adults, 2) shake your idea and ignore this. There’s really no need to get heated up over a video game essay, of all things, so let’s not do that lol.

But other than that, yeah! If you’re interested in more stuff like this from me (in-depth analyses of Pokemon games from the perspective of a low-key casual), lemme know! I’d love to chat with anyone about this awesome series.

So, without any further ado, let’s get into the essay (warning: it’s like ~8k words).

Introduction...

Welcome to the wonderful world of Pokemon! Love it or hate it, Pokemon has had a huge impact on popular culture in countless countries in a number of different ways, sparking memes, dreams, and happiness everywhere! It holds a very special place in my heart - Pokemon was a game that I got to share with my two older siblings, was one of the first fandoms I got into, and was a big reason as to why I grew to love creative writing so much after writing a couple fanfictions for the games. I’ve been playing Pokemon ever since my brother gave me a copy of Pokemon: Ruby and have been a devoted fan ever since. While I may not be super into the strategy and damn near mathematical aspects of gameplay, I’d like to consider myself a relatively knowledgeable fan with enough extra knowledge to give a look at one of these games from a casual, yet analytical view. So what game other than the newest title, Pokemon: Sword and Shield, with its release anniversary being today? In this casual online essay, I hope to describe all my thoughts of Sword and Shield (which I’ll shorten down to just “SWSH”) from the perspective of the everyday Pokemon fan.

General Gameplay...

Many top-title games of Nintendo are best known for their simplicity: in Super Mario Bros, you’re a mustachioed red guy jumping on monsters to try and save some random princess (who may or may not be in this castle); in The Legend of Zelda, you’re a green elf-looking guy slashing wildly at monsters with a sword given to you by some old guy in hopes of defeating some ultimate bad guy; and in Pokemon, you’re a child wandering around the region catching monsters who also accidentally saves the world before becoming the very best (like no-one ever was). And while the games themselves have grown from that initial stylistic simplicity, some have lost that creative in-depthness in favor of being playable for children. This is probably the biggest issue with the newer Pokemon games as of late.

Regardless, let’s look into the playability of SWSH.

It’s played like your regular Pokemon game; you’re a kid who journeys to become the Champion of Pokemon Battling with your friend, catching monsters known as “Pokemon” with pocket-sized balls dubbed “Pokeballs.” But I’m sure you’re all aware of that information, and are instead asking “Well, what’s the deeper plot?” Yeah, no, that’s it. You’re a kid catching Pokemon to become champion - oh, and you also accidentally save the world from a power-hungry businessman - but that’s neither here nor there.

Plot aside, the game is a bit barebones. It’s pretty linear gameplay (literally linear - the map of the Galar region is almost exactly a straight-line waltz from Postwick to Wyndon, which is a bit weird after dealing with the giant, sprawling maps of earlier generations) where you travel from place to place, beating gyms and catching ‘mons, before getting into a couple scuffles and becoming champion. For an RPG-styled game, it comes off as much too simplistic for older fans (I’d even reason that it’s too simplistic for younger players, as well). While I will say, I don’t exactly miss the days of hopelessly wandering around a pixel city, trying desperately to figure out how to move on to the next town because the answer to the puzzle is hidden in this giant area that my little peanut-brain couldn’t figure out at the time. But it is a bit demeaning to get “Hey, do you know where to go?” and “Hey, follow me so you don’t get lost!” and “Oh, yeah, want another tutorial on how to easily catch Pokemon for the fourth time in a row?” every two seconds in a city where there’s only two places to check out.

But we can’t really discuss the gameplay of Pokemon without discussing the highlights of the region. Ever since the transition from 2D to 3D, Pokemon games have begun a trend of gimmicks - which I like to call “battle enhancers” - that they use to add uniqueness to their games. X&Y had Mega Evolution, Sun and Moon (and USUM) had Z-Moves, and now we have Dynamax! As we all know, battle enhancers are the strategy by which the player uses some extraterrestrial/magic stone to physically enhance one pokemon at a time for a certain period of time - in the case of Dynamax, the pokemon either grows in size or changes in form, gaining the ability to use special type-based attacks for a duration of three turns.

Honestly, I think it’s a pretty fun mechanic! Dynamax combines the good components of both Z-Moves and Mega Evolution - new forms, awesome moves, and a ticking clock. It adds a bit more strategy to the battle enhancer, where the player actually has to plan out who and when to Dynamax (though it’s really not that hard - most everyone will save it for their ace or the pokemon with the type advantage at the very end of the battle, because that’s what you do). But it’s fun and creative, making the battle a bit more exciting when you see your beloved ace become gargantuan on a field while the audience chants in excitement. Initially, I was skeptical of the battle enhancer, but once I threw myself into the game and really got into it, I felt it was fun and cool for the region. My feelings were further improved when I learned that Dynamax was inspired by the idea that the Nintendo Switch had the potential to be played on the TV as well as in a hand-held mode. The idea of turning pokemon “big” on a “big-screen” is really just so cute to me, really. Overall, it’s a fitting concept that is paired well to the game when everything is considered.

But when you look beyond the Dynamx experience to find more content in the game… there’s really not much else. Many people (including me) were ecstatic to hear about the free-roam areas in SWSH - the Wild Areas. Here, you can do all the fun grinding stuff that makes Pokemon games a bit more challenging and fun - hatching eggs, shiny-hunting, running around in circles, Dynamax dens, etc. But when looking at other Pokemon games, that’s really it. Let’s examine Pokemon: Sun and Moon, for example. This game really shines not just for its refreshing setting and compelling plot-line, but also for it’s amount of cute and quirky mini-games to be enjoyed for a good while outside of the main story. Pyukumuku Chucking, Mantine Surfing, the Alolan Photo Club, Ultra Warp Ride Travel - a good handful of mini-games that appeal to different kinds of people! All of these mini-games aren’t just tossed in there, either - they have a fitting place in the culture of the world and add to it, rather than just reiterating it. But when you look for mini-games in SWSH, you won’t really find anything aside from just battling. Sure, there’s the Battle Tower, as well, but I’ll personally say that I’ve never been a fan of the concept of post-game NPC battle buildings. For a hardcore player, they might be fun, but as a casual who can’t devote the time to really dig into understanding how IVs and competitive breeding works, they’re really no fun. Not to mention that nothing is really being added or developed with these battle buildings; they don’t add to lore, they don’t add to the culture of the region, you don’t even really gain anything from it - they’re pretty much just places to battle the occasional familiar face and that’s it. While I’m sure plenty of people adore these facilities in the games, I’ve never been too partial to them (I’d even prefer those god-forsaken casinos over another goddamn battle frontier).

But my biggest problem lies with the release of the DLC. While I’m not against the idea of DLC in general, both The Isle of Armour and The Crown Tundra left a bitter taste in my mouth when I started thinking about the issue of playability in SWSH.

I have always been more invested in the storyline of Pokemon games rather than the battling aspects. Usually I’ve always just gotten through the main story, then wandered around to find extra post-game content or mini-games, and then moved on to other games. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing - I just figure that the games have served their purpose for me upon completion, so rather than bore myself wandering around and doing things that don’t interest me, I go find another game that has more story-based content. That being said, I finished SWSH in less time than any other Pokemon game (I’d say somewhere around twenty hours, complete with me running around in circles like an idiot before rushing through content intermittently); as a result, I was no longer actively playing the game by the time the DLC was announced.

I’ll be honest and say that when I learned about all that was being offered in both sets of DLC, I felt a bit betrayed. I’m well-aware that Nintendo is a corporate business, and therefore will always prioritize financial gain over their fans’ lasting enjoyment of their titles - that’s just a fact of life. But I couldn’t help but feel like I paid a bunch of money for the bundled titles, only to play a game that hardly could be considered worthwhile or satisfying without added headcanons or fan-works, and then get told that extra content is available that may or may not add satisfaction to the experience that’s already long since ended for me. It was just a bit disappointing - and I’m not talking about the whole “Dexit” deal (I actually was on-board with the idea of having no real National Dex - I felt it added realism to the games and would force players to get to know the new Pokemon instead of just choosing the same team they always have since Gen 1 or whatever). My gripe is that I paid for a whole game, wasn’t satisfied with the result, only to hear later that the content that I might have been missing is available to pay for? That’s incredibly annoying. Not to mention that I was further disappointed after learning about the contents of the DLC, but we’ll get into that later.

Overall, the playability of SWSH is very basic, but can be enjoyable if you suspend belief and just enjoy it for what it is. When it comes to storyline, it’s not much of a game, and doesn’t sport much post-game content besides battling.

Immersion and Ambience...

Many of my friends can attest that I tend to like silly, fantastical concepts because I personally love to throw myself into the universe being offered to me. Pokemon is really no different - the games have always sported a very immersive experience for me thanks to the combination of interesting regions and evocative music (especially the music).

I think that most every Pokemon fan has a specific region, city, and music theme that sparks a plethora of nostalgic emotions to the point of near tears. For me, that’s always been Pokemon: Platinum, the Twinleaf Town theme - just staring into the rippling reflection of the pond by the player’s home, listening to that beautiful synth clarinet playing that nostalgic melody - it makes my heart beat with so much fervent passion that I hardly have the words to describe it! And I think that sense of nostalgia - regardless of whether or not those memories are old or new - has always been a strong-suit for Pokemon games. They always have the ability to inspire such deep emotions in me and other alike in a variety of ways, further adding to the ability to immerse us into the game’s world. And whether your favorite area is as simple as Twinleaf Town in the Sinnoh region, or as agonizing as Rock Tunnel in Kanto, it’s the spirit of certain cities/towns/routes that further add to the immersion of the world in question. But how well does SWSH hold those values? Spoiler Alert: Not very well.

SWSH, in the end, is still a Pokemon game - so the setting is very vibrant and colorful and everything that can hold my attention for long periods of time. But the problem arises when one begins to progress through the game and continuously forgets what’s where and where’s what. A lot of the map is painfully basic (again, due to the literal linear nature of the Galar region) and the cities themselves kind of lack their own real originality. There was an attempt at unique cities that’s become iconic of the Pokemon franchise, but it doesn’t really stick. I think most people would agree with me that the only real memorable areas in the main game were Slumbering Weald, Ballonlea, and Spikemuth, and each of these areas have their own set of problems that also make them a bit difficult to fully enjoy. At their core, most all Galarian cities have the same basic set-up: basic green plants (if plants are in that area at all), the same brick roads that lead either to the gym or to a route leading in/out of city to another city, and a giant gym/key building in the center of it all. And that’s really about it. No real interesting buildings except for gyms and Rose Tower (and I guess technically the hotels), no extraneous locations that aren’t directly related to the plot or to gimmicks - it’s very bare-bones and really can take you out of the experience.

In a hard contrast, I’ll give the example of Generation 1’s region set up - every city has its own personality that also matches the feel of the region as a whole. Every city is based on colors, and each city is themed after that, respectively (i.e. Vermillion City, the city of sunsets themed around the color orange, is home to the Pokemon Fan Club and the kick-ass electric-type gym that initiates feelings of excitement; Lavender Town, the noble town themed around the color purple, is home to the Pokemon Tower and spooky spirits that inspire feelings of somberness and reticence). Obviously, this isn’t very realistic, but the trick isn’t to replicate reality - it is to inspire reality. The Kanto region is incredibly creative, and therefore is easy to immerse oneself into the world because it’s become a world we are actively interested in. We know that it could never truly be real or plausible, but that hardly matters when we are so enthralled with the colors and set-up and feeling of the towns. We don’t really get much of that in Galar. It probably isn’t such a great idea for your final city - being Wyndon - to feel blank and lifeless when compared to minor cities in the region. And even when we find cities that hold that uniqueness we desire like in Spikemuth or Ballonlea, there’s really no other reason to be there longer than just beating the gym. It’s sad, really. Spikemuth is such a interesting, creative-looking town home to such cool characters, and yet there literally is only one path to get in and out of the town - the town isn’t even given small houses to investigate like literally every other city in the region. It’s a waste of potential! The fact that I can’t investigate such a promising setting that inspires me really takes me out of the world, reminding me that this is just a video game in which you move from Point A to Point B. It’s no longer a fantasy world for me to explore, but instead a line at the DMV to get my Drivers’ License. The only real good thing about this is that fanfiction writers get so much free-reign when it comes to writing about the city - the only thing we really learn about the city is that it’s underfunded and gloomy and that’s literally it. I would have really liked to see more inspired cities around the region where things outside of the main plot can be done, but hopefully this is just a problem we’ll see in this region.

Probably the most important aspect of immersion (in my opinion) is the music. With the potential to make or break a game for me, I hold a lot of expectations on the music found in video games (I’ve been classically trained in music since elementary school, and have always had a fondness for video game music). Pokemon music has always been some of the most inspiring pieces of art in my life - whether it be the kickass battle suite of Champion Cynthia, or the somber piano melody of Emma’s Theme, the music of Pokemon has always been the first thing I notice and analyze whenever playing the latest title. That all being said, I have quite a few notes to make in regards to the soundtrack of SWSH.

I’ll start with the pros, first. Generally, every main title has had its own feel when it comes to the soundtrack - DPP was jazzy and smooth, Sun and Moon was based on popular Hawaiian music meshed together with classic Pokemon synths, RSE was all about the horn section (trombones and french horns all the way!). SWSH, at the end of the day, isn’t much different. The region is inspired by the UK, so it’s no surprise to discover that the soundtrack was inspired by popular British Rock. As a result, a lot of themes went really hard, keeping a hint of individuality even when some battle themes hosted similar instruments. The biggest appeal of the soundtrack, I believe, was found in the little moments, namely the cheers of the gym battle themes. I think it’s safe to say that most people get super hyped when they hear those rhythmical chants coming to life whenever in the final leg of the battle, right when you begin to Dynamax. That’s amazingly exciting, never failing to suck me into that exact moment to gather the power of God and anime to defeat my opponent. While I wasn’t totally rocking out to every single song that came on, I was pretty satisfied with the music of SWSH, overall. It’s not too bad, and hosts a few bops that I still seek out to get my blood pumping.

But, as to be expected, there are plenty of cons when it comes to the soundtrack of SWSH. I could go over this for hours and hours, detailing complex definitions of music theory and basic song comprehension, but I’ll just make this nice and simple: it was really bland.

Note that I said “bland” and not “bad” - the music is fine in my opinion, I just wasn’t feeling the same feelings as I had in previous Pokemon titles. It all felt like Pokemon music, but not much else. It was like remembering hints of a memory long-lost, but you don’t really care about to dig deep into your mind for context. Towns had music, routes had music, pokemon and characters had battle themes, yada yada yada, nothing really to write home about. If I had to pick a song that honestly, truly invoked emotions beyond “Oh it’s battle time, now”, it would have to be the Battle Tower Theme, and that’s most likely because it was written by someone else entirely (Toby Fox, also known as the creator of Undertale and composer of super hard-hitting jams). And the worst part is that I never would have even been able to hear the Battle Tower theme because I hate battle buildings (which is more of a personal problem, I know, but still). Honestly, I would have preferred hearing that theme as compared to Champion Leon’s battle theme - I feel like his champion theme was very bland and lifeless, simply holding all the required elements of a Pokemon battle theme just because that’s what has to happen. It’s uninspired, faceless, and corporate, only to be completely foiled by the unique blast of energy found in the Battle Theme, which just screams “Prove that you’re the best!” over and over to me (also known as a big theme in the Pokemon games, especially in SWSH).

That’s not to say that every other theme in the game was terrible. I much enjoyed Marnie and Piers’ battle themes, but for a different reason. As we know, Piers and Marnie host a more “punk rock” style when compared to literally everyone else in-game, a trademark of Spikemuth citizens. With their occasionally cold and prickly (no pun intended) personalities, their themes go a bit harder into rock-land as compared to characters like Hop or Bede. There’s no conflict of style there - it’s “punk” with “rock”, loads of guitars and bass with a hint of synths to keep that Pokemon flare, and fits a bit better in the setting of the world. Mild conflict arises when we start looking at characters who aren’t rockstars or idols - let’s look at Bede’s theme, for example. While it really isn’t a bad theme (it’s actually, dare I say, a bop), I wouldn’t exactly say that the resulting pieces fit neatly together like they do for the Spikemuth duo. Bede’s theme requires a lot of synths to accentuate his more flamboyant and immature personality, but also holds ties with the rock guitars while also trying so desperately hard to sound like a Pokemon song. Now, I don’t think “Pop Synth Rock” is anything bad, per se; I just feel like the added rock elements didn’t do much to add to the musical representation of our cliche jerk-face “rival”. It feels like the rock elements were an after-thought rather than a planned layer of musicality. I could really say the same thing about Hop’s theme, but then I would have to re-listen to Hop’s theme because I always forget what it sounds like even after listening to it a second before.

A big problem is that not many of these themes hold lastingly memorable motifs/melodies, which is a personal pet-peeve of mine in games where the music is highly esteemed. In pretty much every battle theme (except the generic pokemon encounter theme, which is the same melody in every Pokemon game, only with variations added to fit the music theme of the region) is just an on-going strip of notes that sound nice when playing the game, but if you tried to pick out the specific melody-line of that character, it’s a bit of work to really find anything. Let’s look at a more concrete example: Lusamine’s battle theme from Pokemon: Sun and Moon is up on my list of most memorable battle themes, and will do well without the extra influence of young me’s nostalgia seeping in like it would with earlier generations’ battle themes. Lusamine, as we know, was the elite antagonist of the game, being the leader of this esteemed Pokemon protection group who later is revealed to be using Pokemon for her own demented goals of perfection. Almost immediately, the player hears the signature accents of the harpsichord playing the prime motif before the piece digs into a full orchestration. It doesn’t sacrifice anything for the sake of “sounding like a Pokemon song”, nor does it sacrifice anything for the sake of keeping with the musical inspiration. Instead, it focuses on being exactly what it needs to be - a musical representation of Lusamine, hosting orchestra-based instruments (piano, violas and cellos, horns, violins, light pad synths, etc…). Most anyone can pick out a handful of memorable motifs from her theme (the main horns melody line, the harpsichord melody line, the mid-section cello and piano melody line, etc…), and those remain in our unconscious. So, it’s no surprise that when she becomes the “Mother Beast” later on, when the player hears hints of those signature melody lines becoming distorted in the madness of the new battle theme, it invokes a particular emotion that fits elegantly with the subject matter of the plot right then. In short, it’s musical storytelling done right. In SWSH, we don’t have that extra omph of emotionally-nostalgic motifs; instead, we just get songs that play in the background of this video game, and that’s really it. If you don’t like the song, good news - you’ll probably only hear it once or twice, depending on who the NPC is. If you do, then you’re out of luck for the very same reasons. This game lacks a very basic hint of soul to its soundtrack, which is really such a jarring idea especially when you realize that they paired up with a composer who arguably has mastered the idea of musical motifs (Fox).

This really isn’t just SWSH’s problem, either. I also went through a similar heartbreak in S&M during the final stretch of the main game; after battling Lusamine and saving the region from the threat of Ultra Beasts (more or less, anyway), we the player go to challenge the champion, who is revealed to be Profession Kukui since there really is no true champion for the newly-made league. It’s hard to go from an exciting, powerful battle theme like Lusamine’s to some generic, cardboard-cut-out version of a champion battle theme for Kukui. It’s hard to invoke any sort of emotional appeal when there’s no real inspiration to be felt in the music; with no emotional connection, there is no emotion. It’s, once again, just music that plays in the background of a video game. A similar experience happens in SWSH with the player’s match against Champion Leon; though we have the potential to gain an emotional connection to a Leon Theme motif, we don’t get that. Instead, we just get music that is programmed to be exciting for our championship match that will undoubtedly change our lives forever. Bland, boring, anti-climatic - all for the sake of coloring in the lines. This has been an on-going problem in Pokemon games for years in which the Championship Battle Theme is less interesting than the Evil Team Battle Theme, which probably isn’t a good idea. It’s annoying when your villain has a better theme than the literal strongest trainer in the region - it ruins the chances of likability for the region’s “good guys” and overall is anti-climatic when it is finally time to become champion.

Overall, the ability to immerse someone like me in a game is very important when it comes to retaining players. While SWSH isn’t the worst Pokemon game when it comes to immersion (considering the fact that I actually beat the main game, which I can’t say for other main Pokemon titles…), Game Freak certainly could stand to learn from the game’s shortcomings.

Creature and Character Design...

The monster design is arguably one of the most controversial topics when it comes to any Pokemon game. Some people only care about the designs of Gen 1, others accept everything but Gen 5, and a select few could rant for hours on the stupidity of literally every Pokemon design in the franchise. Regardless, the design of the Pokemon native to the Galar region is an important topic of discussion when analysing the potential for enjoyment of the game. After all, I’m an artist who loves drawing all my favorite characters as well as my favorite Pokemon, so understanding the designs of these beloved figures is vital to understanding the game in general. For sanity’s sake, I’ll only be discussing new Pokemon introduced in this region, and will be ignoring all previous pokemon that aren’t regional variants.

Overall, the designs of the latest Pokemon are satisfactory. Because of my tendency to always suspend belief in fantasy works, I’ve very rarely had much to hate about Pokemon designs (not even in Gen 5, though I don’t particularly like any of them aside from the game cover legendaries). SWSH didn’t really bring much to the table when it comes to brand-new Pokemon, but the ones introduced are fitting and interesting: the Dragapult line, all three starters (even if I did laugh for literal hours at the discovery of Cinderace’s typing), Wooloo and Dubwool, Yamper and Boltund - just to name my top favorites. And I was totally invested in the designs of the game cover legendaries, Zamazenta and Zacian, since they held cultural relations with the region’s inspiration and therefore had actual meaning within the game besides just being cool mythical creatures. Nothing really outright bothered me with the designs or pokemon choices in this game; as I mentioned earlier, I was okay with the idea of no National Dex for this region, and that all the pokemon allowed in this game matched with the region well-enough.

But, of course, it’s not without faults. I found there to be a substantial lack of original legendaries in this game - we only have three real legendaries to catch in the main-game, four if you consider the DLC. We had a similar problem in Pokemon: Sun and Moon, but it was later amended with the introduction of Ultra Beasts (which can technically be regarded as legendary Pokemon, albeit from another dimension and not technically Pokemon). In SWSH, we are only given the option of catching more than two legendaries if we buy the DLC - this is remarkably disappointing for those who are interested in seeing new, unique Pokemon designs. I know many fans are constantly frustrated with Game Freak’s tendency to overuse Gen 1 Pokemon, but the fact that nobody is bothered by the running trend of being able to easily catch a bunch of previous games’ legendaries is beyond me. It’s essentially the same thing, overly relying on the fanbase’s sentimental nostalgia rather than moving forward to create new creature designs. I know for a fact that so many people would have been excited to catch Pokemon with cultural significance (maybe like elf Pokemon that resemble that of Seelie/Unseelie fairies, or more Pokemon that resemble chess pieces, or maybe more Pokemon that follow a theme of medieval artifacts - there are many possibilities), so the fact that they skimped out in favor of making people pay for nostalgia is ridiculous to me. This was a majority of the reason why I rejected buy any of the DLC content - why would I pay for Pokemon I’ve technically caught before? I mean, I guess it can be more for the kids who have never encountered the older legendaries, but then again, wouldn’t it be more beneficial for your game to have Pokemon that actually represent the new region? Instead of just stealing other games’ legendaries for the sake of saying that you have them, they could have just worked a little harder to design maybe three or six more cool legendary designs and centered those guys around the two DLC locations instead of just having Calyrex for The Crown Tundra. At the end of the day, it’s really just a cash-grab; the only reason I could ever see myself understandably buying the DLC for SWSH would be because I wanted to interact more with my favorite NPCs, but then again, I can just look at screenshots on Twitter and feel just as satisfied.

But not all is lost in terms of designs. Now let’s get into my favorite design portion of this segment and discuss the NPCs.

First, we’ll dig into the rivals. Personally, I really enjoyed the rivals of this game; while Pokemon is definitely running on a formula, I still was able to find enough about the three rival characters to genuinely enjoy their presence whenever they came on screen. I suppose we can expect to keep seeing this new Pokemon Trainer Rival Formula: Kind of Annoying but Too Sweet to Hate BFF Rival (Hop), 2 Edgy 5 U Rival (Bede), and Some Pedo’s Waifu Material Rival (Marnie).

Hop is arguably one of my favorite Pokemon rivals of all time (right up there with Gladion from S&M). He’s one of the only Pokemon characters to get a realistic character development over the course of the game’s playable story, which really humanizes him and makes up for his occasionally annoying personality. Over the course of the game, Hop goes from silently residing in his brother’s shadow to learning to stand on his own without needed any outside validation; much to my surprise, it’s not some half-hearted transition. Hop doubts himself during the challenge, as evidenced not just by his dialogue but in the way he actively changes his team to try and be more competitive like everybody else. I remember feeling so heartbroken in realization that Hop stopped using his beloved Wooloo, which is rightfully paired up with the excitable boy. The idea that Hop uses Wooloo, a normal-type cute Pokemon that generally wouldn’t be used in a competitive team, really adds more dimension to his character; when he learns to enjoy himself instead of letting his doubts overtake him, he returns to using Dubwool and his favorite team, demonstrating how he would prefer to have fun as himself than be someone he isn’t. I found that to be a really wholesome theme to his character, one that we haven’t really seen in a Pokemon game yet - it was a pleasant surprise! Hop is sweet and kind, always wanting to motivate the player even when he’s in his own internal turmoil. With all that added with his adorable babyface and goofy/awkward preteen disposition, he really makes for a likeable rival character.

The next rival to be introduced is none other than our classic Mean Boy rival, Bede. He’s a character the fanbase is a bit more accustomed to due to previous titles’ rivals (i.e. Green/Blue/Gary Oak from in R&G/B, Silver from SGC, technically also Gladion from S&M…), so are quite a few expectations placed on his character as a result. Also true to the typical Pokemon Jerk Rival, he has a complicated homelife (he comes from an orphanage, as we later learn) and has a similarly complicated parent-child relationship to the leading antagonist of the game (in this case, Chairman Rose). Bede constantly assumes himself to be better than he is and isn’t afraid to be a total prick about it, choosing to bully Hop upon winning battles against him to boost his own inflated ego (though there’s hints pointing to Bede actually having rather low self-esteem). All things considered, I liked Bede as a character about as much as one can like a mean rival archetype, but I was more than pleased to discover his transition to a more likably mean-spirited character when he later returns to the game to challenge the player after being disqualified from the challenge. While we’ve had a likeable mean rival before (namely Gladion), Bede is something of his own entity with how he actually has an attempt at character development that leads him to a mini-redemption near the end of the game. He’s really the first mean rival to have a transition from total jerk to slightly-peeved tsundere, which was probably a good idea on Game Freak’s part so that we wouldn’t be left with a character we downright hated after the way Bede quite literally destroys Hop’s confidence. It’s nowhere near as impressive as Hop’s character development (which isn’t super impressive to begin with, but let’s ignore that fact for a bit), but it’s still interesting to see in a monster-catching game about being the best you can be.

And then, of course, we get to the cute-girl rival, Marnie, also known as the place where I get a bit mad again. I’d like to say that I absolutely love Marnie; she has an adorable design and interesting personality that captures my attention whenever she has screen time. But she serves one purpose in this game, and one purpose alone - being the main cute girl rival of the game. Marnie has the potential to be a similarly interesting rival (cute design that meshes “punk” with “cute”, has a wholesome and fun dynamic with her gym leader older brother, uses a Pokemon that isn’t considered to be a “competitive” choice as her ace, has a cool/cute personality…), and yet we probably only talk to her about five times over the course of the main game. Little is done with her character - in fact, the only real thing she does in the game other than becoming the next dark-type gym leader is that she helps the player sneak into Spikemuth after the gates have been shut by the remarkably-harmless Team Yell. I don’t think I’m alone in saying that I would have loved to have seen more done with her character. With the boy rivals being more fleshed out than her, it leaves a sour taste in my mouth because the female rival is the one left with a blank personality (and I’m not just saying that because she hardly smiles - that’s really one of the only things we get about her that gives her an actual personality). My frustrations are further exacerbated because this has always been an issue in Pokemon games, in which the girl rivals are so barebones for seemingly the only purpose of serving as some neckbeard’s waifu that they can input a personality they desire despite the fact that she’s canonically a minor. Why put in the time to give dimension to Hop and Bede, but not Marnie? And we know for a fact that Game Freak has to recognize the lack of personality given to Marnie, especially since they had previously come out with Lillie’s wonderfully sweet character arch in S&M and USUM. Personally, I feel that it was because they didn’t feel like having a more punkish girl character who also had traditionally feminine-coded interests (she’s known to have been distracted during the gym challenge by the boutiques) and ultimately decided to just not give her any further personality other than that, perhaps fearing that it would dissuade the gross creeper fanbase from latching onto her. But that’s really just speculation, so don’t take any of my nonsense too seriously. Really, I’d just rather we had a girl rival with more personality to match the other two rivals so it wasn’t so annoyingly unbalanced.

Moving on from the rivals, we get into the designs of the League Staff of the game. In most other Pokemon games, I’d never really been too interested in the gym leaders; they had always been more of minor bosses, just faces that you saw for a couple of seconds before pummeling their ‘mons and moving to the next city. But in this game in particular, there was a sudden transition from simple puzzle master to a full-on celebrity figure. I really enjoyed this! It was so nice to actually have some information on the gym leaders other than what type they sported; suddenly, they have personalities and interests - they become real to the player. Not to mention that there really is a gym leader for everyone to enjoy, thanks to their unique personalities and styles.

I’ll be a bit honest and say that some of their clothing designs are remarkably stupid for even an anime-based RPG game (I mean, I know we joke about Leon’s terrible sense of fashion in the fanbase, but can we just pause and ponder what Piers’ wears? I mean, a leather jacket with spandex? Metal boots and a work-out tank??? What is he wearing?!), but it isn’t exactly distracting. In Western cultures in particular, we can see a trend towards the glamourization of the “athleisure” style, or athletic wear designed more for everyday use rather than just working out. It was kind of fitting to see this be the primary style for the gym leaders, who can basically be described as hierarchical sports stars. Weird? Sure. But in the context of the world, it all fits together, and once again adds to the immersion aspect of the game.

Looking at our main antagonists, they are designed quite well. Chairman Rose is designed to be quite easy and fun to hate (at least for me) - he’s an important-looking businessman who’s very impressed with himself, paired up with a beautiful yet terrifying subordinate woman who does most all the hardwork for him (...actually, they kind of remind me of an antagonistic Cl. Mustang and Lt. Hawkeye from Fullmetal Alchemist…). They also had noteworthy battle themes that popped a bit more than other battle themes in the game.

While they hardly count as antagonists, I’d like to also make a brief mention of Team Yell. They’re more annoying than anything, which is a trend that I’m not too sure how I feel about yet. It was definitely more likable coming from Team Skull, that’s for sure. I would have liked Team Yell doing a bit more damage, having them be a bit more unruly and controversial before evening them out with the whole emotional appeal of them cheering on for Marnie in hopes of saving their ruined town. But they weren’t too terrible in my opinion.

I could talk for hours on the champion of the region, too, Champion Leon. He’s a really fun and charming character overall, less of the supremely wise and powerful champion that we’ve seen in older gens and instead being a more quirky but worthwhile opponent on the path towards the crown. But I definitely preferred him more as a character than as a champion; even though his team changes depending on your starter, it’s not too challenging of a fight if you know what you’re doing, especially when you immediately know what his ace pokemon is (something we don’t really learn in other gens about the champions). While I’m sure the idea of a powerful but transparent champion can be done, Leon doesn’t really stand up as a powerful trainer when compared to other champions in the franchise. But he’s definitely still a fun, interesting character concept that I am grateful for in this particular game.

When it comes to the designs of the primary NPCs and Pokemon, SWSH continues to talk that line just above mediocrity. Not too bad, not all that great, but definitely not something to be forgotten. I’d reason that the primary strength of this generation lies within the characters that are introduced.

Uniqueness vs. Status as a Pokemon Game...

In regards to the uniqueness - how well this game stands on its own as an individual concept rather than just another Pokemon game - I’m a bit divided. On one hand, I’m a bit saddened by the watering down of content and constant reliance on concepts from older games. But I can also see that SWSH introduced a lot of interesting ideas that have inspired so many fans for this generation. And while yes, this gen didn’t have much to offer in terms of new Pokemon, new scenarios, or new lore, I do think that it does hold its own when compared to the other games in the main series. New characters are introduced to the player, all of which having good (and bad) traits that allow for lots of fan-created content with their essence; a new look into a brand-new battle enhancer that requires a different strategy than those of previous battle enhancers; a new culture found within the Galar region that can inspire many more thoughts and theories on the Pokemon world as a whole in a number of ways. We cannot pretend that SWSH isn’t an influential game just because it wasn’t ground-breaking; even with my extreme distaste for the Black and White games, I still admit that they led to important decisions and ideas that led to the creation of games I did enjoy. So, as its own entity, I think that Pokemon: Sword and Shield really has a lot of offer and would probably be an amazing game for a younger player who’s just getting into the Pokemon universe.

But I think that a lot of us long-time fans can agree that this game doesn’t quite match up with the others in terms of giving those real “Pokemon game” feelings. The problem with big-titles like this is that the company tends to lose sight of what really makes a franchise so influential isn’t the stuff found at face-value. It’s not the creatures or NPCs or game mechanics or design or any of that garbage - it’s the feelings we get when all of those things reach that perfect harmony. It’s the rumble in my chest whenever I listen to that famous intro-sequence of my old Pokemon: Ruby game; it’s the fire in my eyes when I went back to challenge Pokemon Trainer Red for the tenth time that night back in my old Pokemon: Heart Gold game; it’s the tears I cried when I watched the only interesting character, N, leave my playable character after his emotional spiel following the defeat of Ghetsis in my long-since abandoned copy of Pokemon: White. At the end of the day, Pokemon is more of an emotion I get rather than a game I play, and I think this is an idea that few people can recognize for themselves. And while I’m aware that I literally just spent several thousand words bagging and praising this game for all those face-value aspects, I also know that when you add that extra little bit of care to your work, go a little further with a character you know someone will adore, or try something new with that new battle theme, there comes a sensation that goes beyond that of love for a silly fantasy game. I’d like to think it’s something akin to inspiration.

Conclusion...

In conclusion, Pokemon: Sword and Shield is far from perfect. With a number of faults and disappointments, I can understand why a lot of fans were less than interested in giving this game the time of day. But I also want to say that this game deserves to be understood and appreciate for what it is, for what it’s done. Who knows what sort of new ideas this game has inspired? Whether it be in the name Pokemon game or someone else’s passion project, I am confident in the potential that this game has to bring someone’s dreams to fruition. It already has inspired so much amazing fan-content from the community; after so many years of being away from the fandom, SWSH was the game that drove me right back, giving me the drive to once again indulge in my middle-school days of sketching out my latest comfort character or writing out a million headcanons in a way-too plot-heavy story. Many fan-creators in this community feel the same as me, I’m sure, so it would be untrue of me to say that this game was anything less than what it was: a fun, simple game that prides itself in its characters and potential rather than complex combat mechanics or some corkboard-plot nightmare. It’s a game meant to be enjoyed, so we must remember to find our enjoyment wherever it can be found. For me, Pokemon can’t really do much wrong, but also is held up to a level of expectations that I can’t quite understand even for myself. This, at the end of the day, is a video game from my all-time favorite franchise; so long as I can find enjoyment there in it, then it’s worth it. In a world filled with nihilism and cynicism, it’s nice to visit a land where you’re wise to try and be the very best like no-one ever was, to be the next best Pokemon Master.

#pokemon #Pokemon Sword and shield #pokemon swsh #swsh #sword and shield #game review #game #analysis #review #post mortem #(does this count as post mortem???)#casual gamer #essay #video game #food for thought

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soph-goat-stories · 5 years ago

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Zamba at Zambo

Zamba was another special girl, and from another era. Zamba would have been 247 years old by the time Zelda was born, and 225 by the time Zoodoo was born. It just was not in the cards for her to ever know those two, and perhaps she never would have wanted to. Zamba was exceptionally bright, but in a way that only a young child could be. Since her birth she had gained considerable knowledge of the world already. Proving to be a rather bright girl for her class, she always had responded confidently, quickly, and accurately to questions on just about any fact that she had once heard. She didn’t necessarily have a photographic memory, but still had the ability to relay accurate factual information or any memorized non-factual information with considerable reliability. There was more room in her brain for growth and malleability when it came to knowledge retention and capacity to plan and critically analyze, yet her distinct personality was already set in stone. When asked about her “favorite” anything, she already had an answer at the top of her head. Zamba did exhibit keen understanding of others’ emotional states, though at times decided to act against predisposed notions of politeness in spite, contempt, or for reasons she couldn’t comprehend at that moment in time. She sometimes avoided debates that would arise, understanding how they could get out of hand, but wholeheartedly enjoyed being correct.

Zamba could predict some elements of the future based on her current modest trajectories her brain could manage. She assumed that people would act according to the change in their environment, and know that for a fact, so she understood the future as flexible and ever changing, and she was right. But Zamba could not predict the details. The flying helicopters dropping fresh water weekly by the doors. The drones piling in dumpsters alongside old personal vehicles. The people meeting in support groups to share information and cash for fleeing hurricanes and fixing their properties. What Zelda was 5 she saw for the first time the news document 2 hurricanes within one year of each other occur in upstate New York, a previous safe haven for those from the southeast. And though Zamba was this way, the creatures at Zambo knew from previous experience that humans of her age could not survive in the conditions they were predisposed on putting her in.

After moving to a new state due to better job opportunities in the Solar Boost field for her parents, Zamba had worked her way through the social insecurities of the first day at her new school. At the end of one day the bell rang and she heard sharp whispering from some adults around 25 feet down the hall. She was curious as to what they were concerned about, and carefully approached them. What are you whispering about? They looked down in surprise and quickly hushed, motioning for her to pass ahead and help herself to basement lunch food. Zamba hesitated, but decided to inquire herself without being noticed. She hid behind a protrusion on the wall and staggered between some cleaning supplies. She heard the adults, and one she recognized as a class visitor as well, talk about how Zamba herself was subject to being expelled!

Zamba was not incredibly emotionally attached to her school, and knew she was capable of teaching herself about the world, but knew this was a bigger deal in bigger ways. There was no way she would have upset any student besides the ones she would occasionally bully. Unfortunately she did not make out some details of the conversation due to the passing line of children heading to lunch, but she knew her plan: demand from the principal the next morning answers. She needed to prepare for whatever was about to happen, tell her family, friends, and if possible fight against the decision. She didn’t want to deal with negative outcomes from her family, who are already surprised at how she had turned out.

However little did she know the word “expelled” was a code word for “Admitted”. Quite an opposite meaning, but in this case it meant both. The thing that she was going to be Admitted to she would only be able to know on the spot, at the time of Admittance. The few educators and staff of the institution on her case were precisely the type of people with the scrutiny to decide of which child in the school was fit for Admittance. The thing to be Admitted to was a special school that no one had ever heard about besides the educators carefully undercover (though known to use code words to speak outside of closed doors). They went through the program themselves, and came out with special intuition about the future. They needed younger people to learn the same knowledge and be educated on why it was necessary to keep it a secret. Zamba was more or less the type of student who could understand this, even at her age, though would need to be edged out of deviant behavior and her passion for being open about her thoughts before she was allowed back into regular society.

Zamba left the hallway where she heard to conversation and went about the rest of her day, went home, and had dinner with her family. She kept the conversation she and her utterances of a secret, of course, daring not to spark any drama among her sensitive household. The next day she came back to school with some skepticism that whatever she had heard about was even important. It made absolutely no sense to her why she would need to be expelled, and honestly her name used could have been for another Zamba. Maybe she was overthinking all of this and didn’t have anything to worry about overall, and her life would continue normally. However her concerns came to a head when she heard yet another utterance of her name once through a small hole between two administrative rooms, once during recess in her classroom, and once in a dream she had overnight, where all she could hear was the word “expel”, and at a room with dark drapes and a conference table. Now Zamba was officially worried about this, and decided to finally seek out an answer from the administration. She remembered the few professors who were originally conversing about her a few weeks back, and approached one of them after school one day with a simple question. “I have heard rumors about me being expelled, is this true?”. The educator was taken aback, but then leaned forward and in a low voice said “yes”, you must prepare immediately. Come with me.

And then Zamba followed them to another room hidden by a curtain against the wall she was previously unaware about. The educator, tall and serene, and dressed in a uniquely dark coat with a purple tie, admitted her into the doorway centered in the wall, and they went through together. Then Zamba couldn’t believe what she saw: a gaping hole, black all the way through, inside the wall that they now stood before. What she was looking at was the Black Hole, the hole that changed any individual walking through it by way of simple physics, and maybe a hint of magic, though debated. Suddenly they were in a new cavity. She thought she saw some gooey maroon substance on the walls before turning her attention back to the strange administrator, who was eying her suspiciously, drawing a blade out of his coat pocket. This made her heart beat even faster, and as she began to tremble, her legs jerked like a spark and she flew down the hallway underground. This is where she finally confronted Zidi for the first time, who was the messenger for Zambo, and who would be the ultimate director of her travels and tests to prepare her for the real world.

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alinkbetweenportraits · 8 years ago

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Taste of Hyrule 1: The Cooking Pot

I know what you’re all thinking.

“Wow okay you just said you’d explore other Zelda games too in your intro why focus on Breath of the Wild only this time?”

Well, since Breath of the Wild is a game that emphasizes travel and culture, it could be interesting to look at how the food comes into play. Also I can be an inconsistent fuck sometimes.

With that being said, the cooking pot does hold significant value in Hylian culture and can translate into other games as well. The pot is where travelers of all kinds come to gather, rest, and most of all, cook after a tiresome day. Villages even have outdoor pots for the public to use, making them the most readily available culinary tool in at your disposal. It seems only natural that cultures and ingredients will blend in a single pot.

Let’s start by taking a look at the design. This one was a model taken from E3 2016, which I feel gives a better detail than in game screenshots I can find.

So what we have is a heavy “pot” with steep edges and generously sized handles. It’s suspended over an open fire by a steel rack, leaving your hands free from doing any more than the bare minimum. Chances are, you’re making the same assumption I made at first.

“You’re over analyzing it. It’s just a normal wok, simple as that!”

And well... Yes. You’re absolutely right. It’s a wok. And why wouldn’t it be a wok? It’s by far one of, if not the most, versatile cookware in the culinary world. These are some of my favorite tools to work with for multiple reasons. First, all you really need to actually make food is a wok, the highest heat you can get (like an open campfire by the stable perhaps?) and something to mix it all with. The high heat however is the critical element to proper stir frying. Typically, woks are cooked at up to 25 times higher degrees than the usual american stove tops and can easily hit temperatures of up to 3600F. This is referred to as the wok hei, or “breath of the wok” (ha it’s fitting get it???). Next, it uses relatively little oil compared to western pans. Because the base surface area is small, a little can go a long way, and combine that with the high heat and you’ve got some hella browning that boosts the flavor profile of anything you’re cooking. This isn’t just good for dieters, but also in an environment where oil simply isn’t openly available, such as out in an open field or on top of a snowy mountain. Woks aren’t just used for stir frying, either. They can be used to deep fry, steam, boil, simmer, stew, poach, you name it! I personally used to flip it over an open fire and bake pita bread on these babies. There’s multiple reasons why people believe woks have been so popular for centuries. Some believe that the wok allows for variety of flavors when food is short, using the different levels of heat, water, and fat to provide different results in the same pan. Some also believe that limited fuel sources meant that woks had to use readily available sources in order to function, and while high heat is preferable you can easily cook over dying coals. Others also believe the wok became popular because of its simplicity, making it easy to adapt to any kitchen around the world. I believe all three hold true, especially for a land such as Hyrule. Whether you cook for a crowd or just for one, the wok is a traveler’s best friend and has been for thousands of years in our world.

However, there is one major problem with the carbon steel wok we all know and love that keeps it from being readily available in campsites.

Rice.

It is worth noting that just about every village you run into provides rice in their grocery stores. It is also one of the most readily available crops when cutting tall grass in the game. A majority of recipes (fried rice, rice balls, beef bowls, ect) involve cooking rice to tender, meaning that low and steady heat is required and must be distributed evenly because, to put it simply, starch loves to burn. While a wok can be used, carbon steel woks are usually very thin, meaning it can be extremely difficult to maintain a steady heat over a fire without outright charring what you have. And during times of survival, it is absolutely critical that you not waste what you have. Anyone who has cooked rice over a stove top knows that you have to do it right or else it will either be crunchy, mushy, or ash. Unfortunately, a steel wok simply isn’t a good cooking tool for such a readily available ingredient. Add to the fact that carbon steel is usually more expensive and you’ve got a disaster waiting to happen.

This is where the magic of stone comes into play! Truthfully, I had considered the possibility that cast iron was being used instead of stone. Of course, the closest I could find to a stone wok in our world was the Korean Dolsot. I imagine it would work in similar ways to a wok. Plus, I’ll let suspension of disbelief be a thing for this part. And hey, it has a matching lid to boot!

The stone pots are thick, meaning that it takes longer to heat and distributes heat far more evenly than the steel counterpart. It’s perfect for not only cooking rice, but often times there’s a seared layer that is recooked and eaten again for a snack or even dessert in some countries. Despite the time it takes to heat up to the same levels as a carbon steel wok, when seasoned correctly and handled with care, it can still provide that sear that’s so prized in the culinary world. It’s also worth noting that the most commonly available meats are typically those of highly active animals. High active muscles are things such as the legs or shoulders of animals, and as opposed to being marbled with fat, they instead have a marbling of collagen. Unlike fat, which melts quickly at high heat, collagen curls up on itself and hardens. It needs a low and steady heat in order to melt and break down. This is why if you tried to grill beef stew chunks you usually end up with the equivalent of a rubber shoe. The low and slow cooking is perfect for travelers who are looking to take a rest by the fireplace before heading out to the field. Consider the fact that there’s plenty of stony terrain and that Gorons are expert craftsmen with rocks and it’d make sense that stone cookware was far more widely available and popular around the country of Hyrule.

So now for the big question everyone is waiting for! What does that translate into the food when you put it in your mouth?

Here’s the catch: stone is porous. And usually grease is liberally applied to stone before its first use in order to season it. It’s highly advised that you never wash a stone pot with soap since it will absorb into the stone. Some people argue that there is a distinct charred flavor in older and more well used stone or cast iron surfaces after multiple uses and is the appeal in these utensils. However, I personally find these flavors neutralize over time so I find it to be a load of crap. However, stone also tends to reach extremely high surface temperature and can retain its heat longer than steel. This means that unlike thin carbon steel, you can drop in cold ingredients and still keep the heat of the pan relatively the same, giving your food a better sear, caramelization, and maillard reaction. What you’ll be left with is smokiness, a more crispy exterior, and a satisfying roasty toasty flavor that can only be compared to a warm hug in the mouth, a welcoming comfort after spending all day on your feet. But that’s only if you decide to go with a basic stir fry. With a wide variety of ingredients to collect and a unique cast of travelers with their own recipes to share, the possibilities are endless!

Thank you so much for reading my observations on the cooking pot in Breath of the Wild. I did the best that I could, but please feel free to contact me if you feel I’ve made any mistakes. I am glad to listen and tweak what I can from this post. If you have any requests for the next part, feel free to let me know in the comments and I’ll be certain to at least consider it. Until then, see you all in part 2. Take care!

Introduction

#legend of zelda #headcanon #taste of hyrule #ooc #I know I ramble a lot but I at least hope it's entertaining enough

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sebastiansmalls-blog · 8 years ago

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My Zelda fanfic: Princess Zelda's Birthday Party... Of Danger

Hi tumblr!! So a while back, I was feeling a little fed up with how Zelda games started out kind of slow (this was before Breath of the Wild), so I wrote a fanfic as if to say, this is how a zelda adventure SHOULD start. For the record, I love how breath of the wild starts... I love many things about that game in fact. But, partly just to share a fun part of my artistic past, and also to share my two cents about what I love about legend of Zelda... Submitted for the approval of the midnight tumblr society, please enjoy my first and only fanfic, princess zelda's bday partay... OF DANGER FanFiction Just In Community Forum More Princess Zelda's Birthday Party of Danger by bah2501 Games » Legend of Zelda Rated: K+, English, Adventure & Romance, Zelda, Link, Words: 9k+, Favs: 7, Follows: 7, Published: Feb 23, 2010 5 Princess Zelda's Birthday Party…of Danger By Bennet H. Hyrule castle town had been excited and busy for the past few weeks, and with good reason. Princess Zelda's birthday celebration was fast-approaching, and the King had spared no expense in making preparations. After all, this was no ordinary birthday party. Not only was Zelda a princess, which was obvious, but it was customary in Hyrule for a young girl to be regarded as a young woman, beginning on her 16th birthday. On top of that, it was widely rumored that the King of Hyrule had a husband in mind for his daughter, and some even suspected that he would make an announcement to that effect at the celebration. Princess Zelda had heard about all these rumors, and, it suffices to say, she was not at all pleased. When she first heard of the rumors from one of her close friends a week ago, she confronted her father immediately. Now, her father the king was considered by many to be a clever man and a shrewd diplomat, but Princess Zelda could read him like an open book, and his lack of a satisfactory answer to these accusations made Zelda angrier than she had been in a long time. She had not spoken with her father since. As the early morning sun shone in through her tower window, and the noise from the castle town, as well as the morning birdsongs, were just commencing, Princess Zelda was already up and dressed, but not in one of her normal extravagant dresses, befitting a princess of Hyrule—she was dressed as common as any girl that might be found. Her striking pale features and long, light blond hair were hardly complemented flatteringly by the dark brown garment. Her birthday was only a day away, so she was planning an unannounced trip. Impa, Zelda's caretaker and guardian since birth, who always seemed to have a sixth sense about such things (and this drove Princess Zelda absolutely mad sometimes), knocked on Zelda's door. "Impa, I know that is you. It is always you. Leave me alone." Princess Zelda did not know how Impa did it. It was as if Impa knew that Zelda was planning to rebel even before Zelda noticed the thought inside her head. "I am not planning to stop you," Impa assured her through her locked door. "I just want to talk." This both confused Princess Zelda and made her very happy at the same time. Her mind had been speedily pondering ways to escape from her room without Impa stopping her (perhaps out the window with bedsheets tied together?), but she was not coming up with anything satisfactory. Her window was very high up. So, Impa's offer not to stop her was an unexpected yet welcome pleasure to her pointy elf ears. Yet it left her very suspicious. Princess Zelda opened her door and Impa calmly strode in, closing the door behind her. Impa, of the Sheikah people, was dressed in her usual attire—a cloak, fancy enough to befit the guardian of royalty yet modest enough to be inconspicuous and blend in, whenever Impa felt so inclined, which was often. While impossible to tell from looking, Zelda knew Impa's robes concealed light armor and more weapons than Zelda would like to guess. While Zelda's sworn protector by occupation, her relationship with Zelda had become complex ever since Zelda had stopped seeing her father as being perfect, when she was about 9 years old. While Impa made it no secret that she respected the King of Hyrule and was always on his side when it came to what he thought was best for his daughter, somehow Impa managed to balance this authority-figure role and remain Zelda's closest girlfriend as well, despite her relatively advanced age. Sometimes Zelda secretly suspected that Impa was able to always stay on her good side by using some sort of Sheikah mind-control voodoo. However, this was a suspicion that Zelda was never able to confirm with proof. Impa was squeaky clean, even after much Zelda investigation and spying. Impa looked at Zelda with one of those looks that let her know she was about to say something important. "I do not know what you are planning to do, but there is something you need to know." Impa sat Zelda down on the corner of her bed, sat beside her in a chair pulled from a nearby table, looked back into Zelda's eyes, and continued. " Zelda, ever since you were a young girl, protecting you has been my whole life. Even though Hyrule has been as peaceful these past 16 years as it has ever been, if not moreso, the price of keeping it that way is that we never get lazy or careless. But, the way I have been keeping you safe is going to have to change. I will always be here for you, but there comes a time when you need to take responsibility for your own safety. I cannot keep you safe by denying you the ability to make your own choices, take your own risks, and live your own life. It is not fair to you, and it does not work. I cannot help you if you need to push me away to live your life, it is better if we face whatever may be coming as a team, even if that means doing it on your terms." Princess Zelda squinted and studied Impa's expression. There is NO WAY Impa is going to use reverse-psychology trickery on me, Zelda told herself. Finally, however, Zelda caved. There is no way to stay suspicious of Impa! She is always right! "Thanks, Impa. It really is nothing, I am just going to Hyrule forest to see Link. As out-of-the-loop as Link can be when it comes to gossip, I worry he may have heard the rumors that my dad is planning to introduce me to a future husband. I do not know how he would respond to that kind of news. I mean, he has always been a good friend, and marriage can change things, sometimes. Not that I am planning on going through with any of my father's evil schemes, the rumor itself is the problem." "I could deliver any message, if you like," Impa offered. "No, thank you, Impa." Zelda replied. "I think not bothering to visit personally sends the wrong message in and of itself! This is something I want to do, and I want to do it alone. So I would appreciate it if you let me go, and if you gave me a little privacy, meaning no stealth spying. If anything goes wrong, I will just have to rely on the years of training you have given me, turning me into a killing machine." "As I said, you are all grown up now. I cannot stop you. Even your father knew this day would come. I suspect that is why he is so eager to marry you off, the thought of a completely independent Princess Zelda, running around Hyrule field and casting magic spells on Octorocs or unsuspecting travelers, terrifies him." Zelda smiled. This was freedom she always told herself she wanted, and yet some part of her missed Impa bossing her around. No matter, she told herself, every stage of life has its advantages and disadvantages, and the most important thing right now is that I do not have to worry about how Link is feeling, I can go and see for myself. Princess Zelda walked to her trunk, and, opening it, removed a small dagger from her belongings. She tucked it hidden away in a slit in her common dress. Leaving Impa in the room, she walked to the stairs, starting to make her way to Hyrule forest. The early-afternoon sun shone through, in small patches, through the dense forest overgrowth. Everything was simultaneously bursting with life, and yet completely silent. Even a nearby brook seemed to babble peacefully and quietly, its sound muffled by every patch of dirt, by every plant, and blocked by every tree. Link, after bathing to minimize any smell that might tip off his quarry that a hunter was approaching, had covered himself in dirt and sap, to complete the illusion. If an animal was lucky enough in its final moments to smell him, Link would smell as much like a forest plant or animal as he could muster. Link, no more than 15 years old (but there was no way he could be sure about that), had seen his share of danger in life. Good with a sword, he had never met his match in a fight. Being thin and not incredibly strong, his strength came from his agility and courage. Many he beat at swordplay later commented that Link knew no fear. His dirty-blond, long hair stopped just short of his shoulders, and it usually stayed out of his intense green eyes. Link breathed quietly and easily. Being invisible was a matter of preparation, patience, relaxation, and intelligence, he knew both instinctively and from years of practice. He silently walked in an upwind direction, his bow strung and arrow ready. Before Link caught site of any deer, he heard a noise, and he got as low to the ground as possible, still making no noise. His every motion was even more peaceful, relaxed and silent than the brook, babbling softly more than fifty paces off. His dark green tunic made him instantly indistinguishable from a distance from the nearby ferns, growing at the base of a large tree. After a moment had passed, he knew that what he was hearing was not any deer. Link smiled. One of the reasons Link loved hunting was because it was ideal preparation to sneak up on Princess Zelda and startle the life out of her. However, the downside was that his dirt-and-sap regimen left him feeling somewhat lacking confidence that he was looking presentable, even by his standards. He removed a cloth from his tunic and wiped his face and neck as best he could. He unstrung his bow and secured it to his back, and he covered his quiver of arrows. Feeling as prepared to meet a princess as he could possibly make himself, he decided to climb the nearby tree—as the tree was knotted and extremely leaning, he could almost walk up its sloping trunk until he could look down on Princess Zelda from high above. As if in honor of her presence, the forest seemed to Link to lighten up all around her. Colorful butterflies shone in the rays of sunlight beaming from above, and even the nearby dragonflies seemed to take on a jollier attitude at her coming. Perhaps part of it was that Princess Zelda seemed to choose the more open and spacious paths across the forest floor, which were of course somewhat brighter, compared to Link skulking through the shadows and dense undergrowth, where he could be most hidden. While Link was fully aware of the happiness that seeing Princess Zelda always gave him, he regarded such strong emotions as more of a hindrance than a help to him. Of all the people Link had met in Hyrule or during his travels, only Princess Zelda seemed to ever be more than a stranger to him, as if only she could truly understand why he lived such a solitary life in the forest. He was not like the other people of Hyrule, just like Zelda was not either. In a way, they had both always been alone, and they would go on continuing to be alone, forever. Because of this, Link knew, staying friends with Princess Zelda was what mattered to him most, even if that meant bowing out gracefully should Zelda ever choose a husband that did not happen to be him. Despite being a bit of a hermit, Link knew enough about people to know what things could happen when feelings of love were expressed hastily and went unrequited. Link was no coward, but neither was he eager to risk everything he had with Princess Zelda to keep her entirely for himself. Zelda paused. Just like Impa seemed to have a sixth sense for knowing what Zelda was going to do before she did it, Zelda was starting to develop a sixth sense about when Link was going to surprise her with one of his sneak-attacks. Resisting the urge to call out his name, and possibly attract forest bandits or moblins in the process, Zelda instead chose to act as inconspicuous as possible, as if she did not sense Link's presence. "If Link was planning a surprise attack, she would just have to let him," she supposed. Part of her felt a surge of pride. "I will just have to ACT surprised if he attacks me, because I know it is coming! Poor Link, he managed to surprise me so many other times, but not this time," she assured herself smugly. She casually glanced in every direction, and peeked above her. No sign of Link. Maybe I was wrong, she started to tell herself. She walked deeper into the forest, and began to feel annoyed. "Okay, either I was wrong about Link sneaking up on me, or I am right, and he is keeping me waiting long enough for me to get nervous. I hate him so much sometimes!" Finally, just as she had finally given up and convinced herself she was imagining things, Link dropped as fast as lightning from above, and somehow landed softly. Princess Zelda jumped with shock, and Link grinned ear-to-ear. "I got her," he thought to himself. Despite the intense physical training with Impa that Zelda frequently endured, even she was amazed by Link's seemingly reckless falls. Judging by his speed, he must have been falling from at least as high as my towering bedroom window, Zelda observed to herself. As the shock from Zelda's fright should have been wearing off, Princess Zelda was not regaining her breath as quickly as she had expected. Looking at Link, she suddenly realized that part of her was more scared that she would be getting married than she previously admitted to herself. What if her father and this mysterious suitor were not planning on taking no for an answer? Am I prepared to be disowned and locked in the dungeons on account of my marriage preferences? Or would I compromise and become all the things I hate, when push came to shove? On top of that, the thought that Zelda might be losing Link made her see him in a different light than she had throughout their childhood. To her, being with Link had always made Zelda more free to be her true self—out here in the forest, no one ever expected her to keep a straight face, be rigidly dignified, and regal all the time. She could even crack jokes, if she felt inclined (not that she frequently stooped to such nonsense, mind you). But as Zelda was beginning to realize, it was more than that. Being with Link was not merely a passport from superficial displays of maturity and royalty. It was more than just permission to be free from responsibility. Link saw her as the person she wanted to be, a person who not only was more than just a crown-sporting political figurehead, Link expected her to be as outgoing, as adventurous, and as good a person as she always saw herself as being. Sometimes people like her father and even Impa got so wrapped up in practical necessities and political compromises that they forget to put the most important things first, like ideals and compassion, no matter the cost. Princess Zelda and Link were two people who did not know the meaning of compromise, and up until recently, neither of them felt they would ever have to. But after a few moments, Link suspected something was troubling Zelda. As if sensing that he knew, Zelda decided to speak first: "Link, how would you feel about me getting married? To someone else, I mean." Link's smile faded and he looked down, gathering his thoughts. He did not know what to say. As set as he seemed moments ago that he would bow out of Zelda's life is necessary, he somehow could not or would not bring himself to say that to her now. Instead, looking up, his expression unusually indecipherable, he took her hand and led her into the forest. "Where are we going, sir? Am I being kidnapped?" Zelda half-joked, but the solemnity that accompanied the topic that she herself had brought up moments before could not be dispelled with joking banter, and she knew that. Link led her, winding down a steep hill, to a part of the forest she had never seen before. Somehow, the mood of the forest itself changed, as if despite the silence remaining, the peacefulness was gone. But it was not the conversation topic that was to blame. The area itself was somehow different, but Princess Zelda could not tell why. Then, suddenly, she got her first clue. As Link pressed aside a wall of tall ferns, Zelda saw past the opening what appeared to be a massive doorway in the side of the hill, made of stone in the shape of a giant, gothic lion's head, its mouth grotesquely gaping open as the entrance. Made of a dark-green stone that Zelda did not recognize but knew was not naturally found in this part of Hyrule, the doorway was almost other-worldly in appearance. Finally, Zelda remembered, from her studies, what this was. "This is a doorway to the Underworld, isn't it?" Zelda asked. "Long ago, when our ancestors were engaged in a war with Ganon, these ancient underground labyrinths were used to hide fragments of the Triforce of Wisdom from him. How or why they were built originally, no one really knows for sure." Zelda remembered the legends. She continued, "if Ganon had managed to get a hold of both the Triforce of Power and Wisdom, he would have been unstoppable. Later, when Ganon was defeated by a hero wielding a magical sword and silver arrows and Ganon's spirit was sealed forever in the Temple of Time, peace returned to Hyrule, and the monsters that used to fill these dungeons disappeared… or so they say. You probably never took me here before because you were protecting me." As Link and Zelda grew up, their fear of monsters gradually faded. Now, they merely had a healthy respect for the danger that the forest presented—despite the possibility that monsters may still lurk in such a place, Link and Zelda knew it was unlikely they would meet anything the two of them could not handle. "But why did you bring me here?" Zelda asked. Link was not sure of that himself. His mind introspectively brainstormed on ways to answer that question. Perhaps he just did it to avoid talking about his feelings for Zelda. Of all the places that were a short walk from the part of the forest they were in, this was by far the most awe-inspiring, and on top of that it was the only one that he had not shown Princess Zelda before. Zelda gazed into the distorted, gaping mouth of the stone-lion archway, down the sloping hallway into darkness. She smiled a kind of ironic smile to herself. In a weird way, the demonic doorway reminded her of a married life without Link, a prospect looming just before her, inviting her into an unholy, unsolvable maze of despair, darkness, confusion, and ultimately death. She gritted her teeth and made a decision. "Link, I am having a birthday celebration tomorrow. It is kind of a big deal. Part of it is open to the public, but part of it is a private party. You know, for royalty, and certain guests." Zelda frowned as she imagined her father and this mystery suitor, ganging up on her like a pair of dodongos, preparing to charge. "I know you and my father have never really gotten along so great, when you have seen each other at all, but I want you to come. Here, take this." Reaching into a slit in the side of her dress, she pulled out an embroidered card, and handed it to Link. He held it momentarily above his head in both hands, looking up at it. "This is a royal invitation. If you show it to the castle guards, we can spend my whole birthday together! Also, take this letter. If you show it to a merchant in Hyrule castle town, they will know that I am paying for you to wear something so you fit in at the party." Link suddenly felt extremely awkward. Not only had he never really spent any time with Zelda's father, he had never gone anywhere in Hyrule that had a dress code. Zelda sensed this, and added, "Link… I think my father wants me to get married. I think he might announce this tomorrow. If he does, I am going to make my own announcement. I will tell everyone that I do not want to get married… unless it is to you." And at once, Link had an emotion much more powerful than awkwardness. He was happy. Zelda's plan was just crazy enough to be something he could get on board with entirely. Link liked to think of himself as a wild, free-spirited forest boy, but he knew that it took a woman like Princess Zelda to truly make his life crazy. He smiled. Tomorrow was going to be an interesting day. The King of Hyrule woke the next morning about the time he usually woke up: very early. He had beaten the sun in the race to get up so many times, the sun stopped trying to compete. He lit his red candle and washed his face, looking deeply into the mirror. His eyes looked tired. He washed his face more, tightened his bearded jaw, and looked again. Ah ha, he told himself. This time I look determined. Not tired at all. He memorized the face he just made. He would be making it all day, at least with his eyes when his mouth smiled slightly in honor of his daughter's birthday. As a King, he could not afford the luxury of weakness. His people could not afford for him to be weak. He had to be strong for them. And he did not get any breaks. He even had to be strong with matters relating to his beloved daughter. He knew the way men were, and he knew the types of men who would want to marry Princess Zelda. For wealth. For power. If he did not choose a husband for his daughter, the other men of the world would essentially choose for her, and that would be disastrous. For Zelda to have a chance at happiness, and for his people to have a stable future, he had to choose for her. Someone that could be trusted. The sun, finally catching up with him, prepared to rise, and the dim light of dawn crept through the windows, rendering his red candle less necessary. He blew it out. He looked again at the mirror. His beard had seemed to gray overnight. He may not be old yet, but he could not look out for Zelda forever. Besides, no matter who Zelda found on her own, he could not be better than Harkinian. No soldier had ever risen in the ranks of the Hyrule guard faster than Harkinian. The King had met with him on many occasions and felt he was a man of good character, and he was of good birth. Of all the men the King had considered worthy of Princess Zelda, none had come close to comparing to Harkinian. He was the most impressive man the King had ever met. The King knew of Zelda's friendship with the forest boy Link. He had met Link on several occasions, if only to be kept aware of his daughter's activities. The King had nothing against Link, but the idea of a Princess marrying someone like Link seemed impossible to him. Link was an unmannered hermit. Come to think of it, the King had never even heard him speak! No, the King told himself, I am doing the right thing here. After dressing in one of his finer robes and donning his stately crown, the King proceeded the dining room. Breakfast was ready, but Princess Zelda was late, as she often was, especially on special occasions. The King sat down and unfolded his napkin, placing it in his lap. He started eating his toast. After his toast was gone and he was starting on his eggs, Zelda arrived, in a much better mood than he was expecting. She was wearing one of her finest white dresses, and her hair was extravagantly arranged, partially pinned up in a bun in the back. Seeing Zelda happy confirmed in his mind that he was making the right decision. Her week of not speaking with him was just a phase, he told himself. Zelda smiled, they talked about nothing and everything and ate their breakfast in peace together. This cordial, friendly mood continued until guests started arriving for their private reception. Relatives and friends from near and far had come to pay their respects to Princess Zelda on her special day, but what was unexpected was one guest in particular. He was dressed in a silk, white shirt with an unbuttoned, stand-up collar, a grey jacket and pants, made of cashmere. His shoes were of shining black leather. He even had gotten a haircut—while his dirty blond hair was long, it was no longer falling near his shoulders. At first, she did not know who he was. Then, Princess Zelda could not contain her smile when she recognized him—to her, he looked utterly ridiculous (but in a good way), standing there awkwardly sporting fine clothes for the first time in his life. However, she could tell that to everyone else, he looked perfectly fine for the occasion. She rushed to him and gave him a hug, sparking the curiosity of everyone present, including the King. "Who is that," the King asked a bystander. Walking over to greet the new guest, the King shook his hand and asked him who he was. "Dad, do not be silly, you know Link!" Zelda interjected. The King did a small double-take. "Link? I could not recognize you, looking like that. Well, what a pleasant surprise to see you here!" The King was perfectly polite with all of Zelda's friends, but secretly Zelda knew that the King was concerned that this may interfere with his marriage plans for Zelda. After a bit of mingling, it was time for the King and Zelda to make their first public appearance. The room they were using had a balcony overlooking the marketplace, which was where the main party was taking place, and it had been in full swing for some time now. The marketplace was packed with people from all over Hyrule and beyond, many familiar faces and many new ones, all having a fun time. There were games, contests, puppets shows and live street performers and magicians, and lots of merchants. Even soldiers were on hand to keep an eye on everyone. As the King, Impa and Princess Zelda made their way toward the balcony, it was then she saw the King first greet Harkinian, and instantly she suspected he was the mystery man her father had in mind for her. Wearing his full dress uniform, he certainly looked impressive, with his black hair tied in a short ponytail behind his head. A neat goatee rested underneath his long, somewhat-pointed nose, and his eyes were serious and narrow. She disliked him instantly. She beckoned to Link to follow her. Part of her felt guilty, using Link as a sort of marriage shield, but she was not coming up with any other ideas to get out of her predicament, so she ignored her guilt. As they stepped on to the balcony, the people below cheered. Zelda smiled and waved and they cheered louder. She took Link's arm and held it close, clinging to him with a grip like a vice. I am NOT going to stand next to Harkinian, she told herself. As was customary, the King stepped forward to make a speech, and the noise subsided. "Welcome to the birthday party of Princess Zelda!" Cheering ensued. "As you all know," he continued, as the noise subsided again, "…she is turning 16 today. And, a bit later, I have an important announcement concerning her that I am sure many of you have been expecting!" They cheered again. Princess Zelda faked a smile, since it seemed the appropriate time to smile, but it was a little difficult to manage. "But in the meantime, it's time for the traditional fencing tournament. As you all know, today is not only my daughter's birthday, it is also the anniversary of sealing Ganon, King of Evil, in the Temple of Time. Zelda is the last in a long line of descendants from the woman who, along with six other sages, joined their power to seal Ganon away forever." The crowd definitely cheered for that remark. "While many of you have never known war, we must always be ready, which is why it is important to teach our children swordplay and to encourage them to serve the crown. Let the tournament begin!" The King turned to Harkinian. "Would you do me the honor of representing the Royal Guard in the competition? I have heard only the best things about your talents with the sword." Harkinian smiled and agreed. "All in good fun," Harkinian added. He removed his jacket, spun over the railing and, dropping himself to hang from the floor of the balcony, he let go and fell gracefully to the cobbled street below. "Show-off," Zelda thought to herself. As much as Princess Zelda disliked Harkinian, this was her favorite part of her birthday parties. While secretly she knew she could probably be quite respectable in such a competition, she just enjoyed watching. People from all over Hyrule and beyond showed off their strange yet effective swordplay techniques, and it was fascinating to see. Harkinian was not at all bad either, Zelda admitted to herself. Zelda observed that he frequently bested and disarmed his opponents in the opening moments of a match, with a minimal display of effort. As it became clear that Harkinian was the front-runner, they began calling for volunteers. Can no one stand up to the Royal Guard? a soldier yelled mockingly. Zelda smiled to herself impishly. Not that it mattered, but she would love to see the look on Harkinian's face after having a match with Link. Come to think of it, she thought, I would want to see my father's face as well. Zelda turned to Link. "I know you do not usually care for this sort of thing, but would you do it, for me?" She asked him. Link had long given up on seeking fame and glory for himself. If he wanted to be popular, he would not live the life of a hermit in the forests of Hyrule. But Zelda did not need to ask him twice. He would do anything for her, and besides, he had been intrigued by watching Harkinian's talents. He had not faced such a worthy adversary in quite a while. So, though no pride showed on his face, he nodded and removed his jacket. Laying it on a nearby chair, he took one step and, quite suddenly and unexpectedly, sprung into the air and forward-flipped over the railing, flipping one more time through the air to land on the cobbled street below. The crowd gasped, and then cheered wildly. The King frowned, not sure what to make of Link. Impa smiled. She was looking forward to seeing the match between Link and Harkinian, not sure what to expect. She had heard of Link's skills many times from Zelda, but was never sure whether or not Zelda was exaggerating. "We have a new challenger!" the announcer yelled, egging the crowd on to even greater levels of volume. While before, several matches had been taking place simultaneously in different corners of the marketplace, including matches for different age groups such as the sword-swinging youngsters, for this match the crowd instinctively cleared a large space in the middle of the marketplace, and everyone prepared to give the match their full attention. A man came and gave Link his choice of wooden swords. Link picked a medium-weight blade, and gave it couple practice swings. He was ready. He looked across the arena at Harkinian. Harkinian did not seem concerned. "It is just as well, he will not see this coming." Link told himself. Noticing that he was starting to take this match and himself a bit too seriously, Link smiled a goofy smile and turned in a circle, greeting the crowd with a wave. They cheered, as always. "That's better. I should not take this too seriously, it is just a game," he told himself, but he only half believed it. Harkinian stepped toward the middle of the ring, and Link followed suit. They bowed out of courtesy, and Harkinian began circling Link. In most of his other matches, Link had noticed, Harkinian's opponents had rushed him, hoping to catch him off guard. They were playing right into his hands, and often lost quickly. Link was in no hurry. As a few moments passed, the impatient crowd turned their anger to Harkinian. Why should he be afraid of this stranger, when he beat everyone else, they wondered. However, the crowd's taunting had no effect on Harkinian's resolve or patience. "Fine. If he will not attack first, I will, but CAREFULLY," Link told himself. Link sprung forward, bringing his sword from overhead down at an angle toward Harkinian, who parried. Link continued with a fierce combination of swings, accenting each strike with a feral cry, each louder than the one before. Harkinian did not stay on the defensive long before returning the favor. As Link expected, Harkinian skillfully dodged one strike completely, hoping to throw Link off-balance by breaking his pattern and not deflecting the blow, and returned a horizontal counter blow with lightning speed, aimed straight for Link's collarbone. Link, by anticipating, returned Harkinian's same favor an instant after Harkinian offered it, and ducked completely beneath the incoming blow, despite its incredible speed. Then, in one fluid motion, Link parlayed his downward momentum into a sideways roll across the cobblestone, half-circling around Harkinian in a fraction of a second. Harkinian was only caught off guard by Link's agility for split-second, but that was all Link needed, transitioning seamlessly from his roll to a spinning, upward strike, catching Harkinian squarely on the back of his dominant shoulder, launching him into the air and sending him spinning wildly to the cobblestone. The crowd, needless to say, had been instantly worked into an absolute frenzy. They had not seen a match like this in years, if ever. Even the King, who was trying his best to be on Harkinian's side, could not help but be impressed by Link's apparent mastery of the sword. He hardly stifled smile that, though small, encompassed not just his mouth but his eyes as well. "I probably look old, smiling like this," he thought to himself. Harkinian did not stay down long. He got to his feet, and his face showed sincere emotion for the first time for as long as anyone there had ever known him. He was mad. Not even Harkinian's fellow soldiers had ever seen this side of the man, a man who was usually so composed and seemingly good-natured. Apparently, he was not good loser. Harkinian shouted, "I'll smash in your puny skull, boy!" He growled and came at Link with everything. Link, while athletic and strong for his age, was nowhere near as strong as Harkinian. Link, being only a boy of roughly 15 years, was probably outweighed by Harkinian by at least 75 pounds, and he towered over him. At first, Link tried to block Harkinian's blows directly, but soon gave up that tactic as each blow was delivered with such staggering force that the resulting vibrations through his wood sword stung Link's fingers intensely, despite his firm grip. Instead, Link deflected the blows indirectly, one by one, and when he got a split second opportunity, did a back flip, putting some much-needed space between him and his enraged aggressor, giving himself a moment to think. A moment was all he would get, as Harkinian immediately continued his savage assault. Link's mind raced, when was the last time he was in a jam like this, against an opponent who has me outmatched in almost every way, he asked himself. Link was beginning to feel fatigue, but then it occurred to him, Harkinian probably was too, even if he did not show it. So Link just held on, dodging and blocking, for as long as he could. If he could not beat Harkinian, he would outlast him. And, sure enough, despite Harkinian's exceptional skill, Link started to notice cracks in the armor of his technique. Perhaps an opportunity here, a misstep there, Link observed as he deflected blow after blow. Still, I will wait for the perfect moment, I may only get one shot at this, Link concluded. Then, leaning forward, he rolled the proverbial dice. He spun his sword around Harkinian's with unusual speed and force, almost signaling in advance that Link was about to make his move. It was as if Link was daring Harkinian to stop him, knowing full well that Harkinian was more exhausted then he was letting show. As Harkinian's blade was spun in a clock-wise circle, Link released the sword lock and brought the flat of his blade, in a downward motion, into the back of Harkinian's calf, just below the knee, sweeping Harkinian's feet out from under him—but Link did not stop with that. Without the slightest bit of hesitation, even before Harkinian had landed on the cobbled street, Link leaped high, straight into the air, gathering all his weight and focusing into a downward finishing blow. Harkinian landed with a heavy thud, and before he could lift his blade in defense, Link's knee came down on his chest, and his sword came to a sudden halt, just before Harkinian's neck. It was over, and Harkinian was beaten. Realizing his defeat, Harkinian regained his composure. Perhaps I can save face and lose with a little class, he told himself. Getting to his feet, he took Link's hand, as if he were the referee, and raised it up, signaling Link's victory. He smiled and patted Link on the back. It was then that the King thought the moment was right. "Let's hear it for Harkinian, as humble and dignified in defeat as he is in victory!" The crowd's response was less than enthusiastic, why is the King calling for recognition for Harkinian in Link's moment of triumph? The King continued, "I have nothing but the utmost respect and admiration for Harkinian, as he has distinguished himself in my service as an honorable warrior and a trusted ally. Over the past few years, Harkinian has become less like a soldier to me, and more like a son. And so, it is with great pleasure and pride that I announce to you all that I have asked Harkinian to consider taking my beloved daughter, Princess Zelda, in the holy bonds of matrimony, and he has agreed! Trust me, ladies and gentlemen, there is not a more fitting choice in all of Hyrule for the man who will take Zelda's hand in marriage, and, in time, succeed me as the King of Hyrule!" The suddenness of the announcement caught all present off-guard, but the crowd warmed quickly to the idea of an upcoming wedding for Princess Zelda, and all the partying that that entails. The noise level of the rejoicing rose. Harkinian threw his arm over Link's shoulder and smiled at him. "Let's rejoin them up on that balcony and see how Zelda is taking the good news, shall we?" Link nodded. Harkinian continued, "Say, where did you learn to fight like that? We could use a boy like you in the Royal Guard!" Link shrugged. He had not really learned his sword-fighting all in one place, so he was not sure how to answer. The two of them passed by the guards and into the building, and walked up the stairs toward the second floor. On the balcony, the King shook Link's hand and congratulated him, leaving Harkinian to approach Princess Zelda. Harkinian took Zelda's hands and she smiled at him. But as he leaned in to kiss the Princess, she turned away, and her smile vanished. The crowd took notice from the marketplace below. "I cannot continue this for the sake of appearances," Zelda told herself. "There is no way I will marry Harkinian while my heart belongs to Link," she thought. She walked to Link and took his hand, and she turned to address the marketplace, with him at his side. "My dear people," she began. "Thank you so much for attending my birthday celebration. I am grateful to each and every one of you, and I have been having the most wonderful time." But her expression turned more serious. "I may live in the palace with my head in the clouds…" the crowd laughed lightly, "but that is not the same as living under a rock. I know that there has been so much talk about my getting married, and now it seems even the King is believing it!" The crowd got dead silent. "The truth is, I am not ready to be married. Not to anyone. As flattered as I am by Harkinian's interest in me, it is a proposal that I cannot accept. He deserves a girl who is capable of giving him her whole heart. Someday, maybe someday soon, I imagine I will be ready for marriage, and when I am, I promise that I will love that person completely and forever." She looked at Link, half happy, to have gotten that out, but half sad, that she did not say more. Zelda was sad that she could not announce her love for Link, as she planned. Something was telling her the timing was all wrong. She finished, saying, "That is all." What happened next came suddenly and without warning. Harkinian, interestingly, seemed strangely unemotional about both what had just happened and what was beginning to happen. He remained calm, serious, and unreadable. There were scattered shouts of agony, from different corners of the marketplace, and soldiers began to fall. Zelda screamed in terror, followed quickly by the crowd, and panic ensued. It was an ambush. From the ranks of the previously joyful spectators came assassins, brandishing small, hidden blades and dispatching soldiers systematically, with ruthless skill and without mercy. Of everyone else present, only Impa seemed to keep a cool head. She protectively grabbed Princess Zelda and, jumping off the railing, carried Zelda to the roof of the building in an instant. Then they were gone. As a man began climbing the outside of the railing of the balcony, holding a knife made of bone, Link swiftly kicked him in the face, sending him crashing to the street below. Link knew of Impa's loyalty and skill, but he had a hunch that she would need help. It hardly seemed coincidental that this uproar occurred after Zelda's announcement that she would not marry Harkinian. On top of that, Harkinian was behaving most strangely, doing nothing and showing no remorse that the Royal Guard was being slaughtered all around him. Link had no time to worry about Harkinian, he followed Impa's footsteps, springing to the roof in close pursuit. "By the Gods, Impa moves fast," Link told himself, barely catching a glimpse of Impa, with Zelda in her arms, disappearing over the far side of the rooftop, swinging down from a rope she apparently had grapple-hooked into a nearby open window. She was making a dash for the safety of the palace, Link told himself. Sprinting to the edge of the rooftop Impa just left, Link looked all around, determined to make a decision quickly rather than carefully. Hardly pausing for more than a second, Link jumped from the roof to the ledge underneath the row of windows on the second floor. Only staying on the ledge half a second to partially break his fall, he jumped again, landing on the street below with a forward shoulder roll. It was only then that Link realized he had unconsciously been holding the wooden sword this whole time! Carrying the sword was second-nature to him, and he only now realized that it may come in handy. Looking ahead, Link saw a problem. Princess Zelda and Impa had reached a dead end. Someone had closed the Palace's outer gates, and they were not opening it. On top of that, since it was situated in a canyon with tall rock walls, Zelda and Impa were trapped, their only escape being back the way they came, into Hyrule marketplace and through an army of assassins. It was here they would have to make their stand. "Good of you to join us, Link. I think those skills of yours are about to come in handy." Impa said. Princess Zelda wrapped her arms around him and kissed him, tears streaming down her cheeks. She had failed to show her love for Link earlier that day, and it was a mistake she apparently was not keen to duplicate. Link felt a tinge of melancholy—he realized that he had often wanted Zelda to kiss him like that, but never under such tragic circumstances. Their chances of survival seemed slim. And a crowd of assassins approached, being led by a cloaked figure, and followed closely by Harkinian. Apparently, he is showing his true colors, Link thought. The cloaked figure pulled back its hood, revealing her long, jet-black hair, and black markings around her eyes. She was like a Sheikah, the sworn protectors of the Royal family, only not—something was off about her. "Here, take this, Link," Impa said, handing him a steel short sword. He actually preferred the wooden sword, so he decided to wield the short sword in his left hand, the wooden sword in his right. Zelda wielded her favorite dagger, as lethal as it was beautiful. Impa held nothing, but somehow Link knew she could have any number of weapons ready in an instant. Zelda, Impa and Link glanced at each other, and then at the woman. "Who are you?" asked Zelda. "My name is Merai." She said, her voice steely and cold. "Hand over Princess Zelda, and we will let you live." "What do you want with her?" Impa asked. "We are loyal to the true King of Hyrule, Ganon. We know that Zelda is the key to restoring Ganon to power. We will have her, and her secrets, or we will kill you all. It's your choice." Both Merai and Harkinian shared the same expression, a cold, lethal gaze with a bloodlust lying just beneath the surface. Zelda stepped forward. "No, stay back!" ordered Impa. Zelda turned around. "They have archers," argued Zelda. "They have an army, and we are cornered. You live because they allow it." She looked directly at Impa. "This is MY decision. We are beaten, for now. You will serve Hyrule best by surviving." She looked at Link. "Goodbye, my love." Merai disarmed Princess Zelda, bound her wrists and ankles, and took her onto a black horse and rode off, toward back toward the marketplace and presumably away from Hyrule. A number of their ranks followed on horseback, to provide a protective escort, leaving Harkinian and a still-formidable number of assassins behind with Link and Impa. "I am never going to forgive myself for letting her go," Impa said under her breath. She and Link, standing in front of the closed inner gate of Hyrule Palace, were trapped between two walls of a high rock canyon. The traitorous Harkinian, leading a group of merciless assassins, blocked their only path of escape, a lethal look in their evil eyes. Harkinian smiled. "Now, about that offer to let you both live," he began, "…it was utter crap. I am going to enjoy teaching you a lesson, boy. Slowly, painfully, until you learn, and until you die." he said, looking at Link, his face twisted into an even crueler expression than ever before. The mob of assassins, led by Harkinian, crept forward. Just when all hope seemed to be lost, from above, round, blue metallic bombs with lit fuses fell from atop the canyon wall. Harkinian looked up, his expression changing from hatred to terror. "Take cover!" He yelled, but it was already too late for many of his men. The explosions were deafening, and men's tattered bodies were flung through the air. Harkinian, with his speed, followed many of his men and avoided a quick and painful death. They looked up, and backlit by the high afternoon sun, a large, menacing silhouette stood, triumphant in the sky. Then, leaping from the canyon wall, directly for Harkinian, came the King of Hyrule, a glistening longsword clutched above his head, poised to strike. Harkinian dove for safety, and just in time. The King's strike missed and he landed with a heavy crash onto his foot and knee. It looked painful. The remaining assassins, having regained their senses following the bombing, charged at the King and readied their arrows, but Link and Impa stepped into the middle. Impa, throwing metallic blades concealed in her cloak, killed the archers before they could let their arrows fly, and Link, wielding the two swords like the true master he was, charged into the middle of the mob, dropping his attackers with startling speed. With his hope of backup diminished, Harkinian turned his attention to the King. "I am like a son to you, old fool?" He asked. "Well, as your son, I look forward to giving a moving speech at your funeral!" The King swung his longsword for Harkinian's head, who ducked. "Fool me once, you die!" retorted the King. The King fought bravely, but he was no match for Harkinian. As Link and Impa together dispatched the last of the assassins, they turned to offer assistance to the King as quickly as they could, but they were not in time to save his life. The King, with a reckless rage, ignored Harkinian's threatening move and desperately drove the tip of his longsword through the center of Harkinian's chest, even as Harkinian's blade found its mark as well. They had stabbed each other at the same time. Harkinian mumbled, "Stupid fool," and crumpled to the ground, letting out his last breath. The King, still standing, turned to face Link and Impa, the sword still in his chest. Pulling out the sword, he chuckled ironically, "And today I was feeling younger than I have in years!" The King fell to the ground, and Impa and Link rushed to his side. Holding him, they listened. The King said, "Link, there is something… I want to tell you. I was wrong. It is funny… I have the benefit of… years of experience, dealing with people, and yet, what I…" the King coughs, blood splattering to his lips. "…What I knew about Harkinian…with my head… wasn't as true as what Zelda knew…about you…all along…with…her…heart." It took all his effort to finish his dying apology to Link. He trailed off, then closing his eyes, and he was at peace, at last. The King of Hyrule no longer had to be strong for anyone. Link closed his eyes and bowed his head in respect. Today was interesting, Link thought, but not at all as he had expected. Not only was Zelda gone, but if what Merai said was true, Merai was inches away from resurrecting Ganon, the King of evil. Apparently, Impa was thinking the same thing. "Link, I know what you are thinking, but there is still hope. Zelda is but one of seven lines of sages who have protected the seal of the Temple of Time for hundreds of years, and they all must be alive for the magic to be undone. I do not know this Merai, but I know of her kind. Like the Sheikah people, who are sworn to protect the Royal Family of Hyrule, Merai and her people are sworn to bring Ganon back to life and rule at his side, and if she is anything like me, she will stop at nothing to bring her plans to fruition." "Link, I can guide you, but you alone are able to become the hero Hyrule needs, a hero who can stop Merai's plan. I know you have it within yourself. You must be brave." Link lifted his head, and looked into the Hyrule sky. It appeared a great adventure was before him. This is my first Legend of Zelda fanfiction. I hope you like it. Email me at for any feedback ,tips or suggestions. Thanks! Review Share: Email . Facebook . Twitter Story: Follow FavoriteAuthor: Follow FavoriteContrast: Dark . Light Font: Small . Medium . Large . XL Desktop/Tablet Mode . Blog . Twitter . Help . Sign Up

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