#and alttp had maidens

[smilesrobotlover]

Some worldbuilding stuff I enjoy playing with:

The highest honor a man can have in Hyrule besides royalty or the hero is to be knighted. There are soldiers but they are simply soldiers. Knights on the other hand are blessed by the queen herself, and are knighted typically because they match the qualities of a hero: strong spirit, unwavering courage, and so on. The knights of Hyrule are the strongest fighters and defend the castle if it’s attacked.

The highest honor a woman can have in Hyrule is the status of a maiden. Maidens are blessed by the queen as well and typically match the qualities of the princess with the goddess’s bloods in her veins: wise and powerful with divine magic. Though their magic is not as strong as the princess/Queen’s, together, they are significantly powerful and can help in defense of the castle.

[bokettochild]

For the febwhump:

Day 10 with little legend in ALTTP and killing a knight for the first time?

Okay, so Legend wasn't really talking (shock and grief do that, it's okay) so this is Fable's POV. I hope you enjoy it!

Rating: Teen

Wordcount: 4,985

Summary: Death is familiar to the little girl who will one day be queen. To the boy she had to ask to be her champion, not so much.

Zelda has never particularly thought about death before. 

Sure, mother and father were betrayed and killed by a dear friend, and she knows this, but it’s just as much a fact of life to her as the stones of the castle and the swords in the hands of her grandfather’s knights. Death exists and she’s seen it, seen public executions held for terrible criminals and traitors to the crown, but even to her tender years these things are simply part of life. The people who die are always faceless people who don’t matter anymore, and she’d never known her parents anyway, so why should she mourn for them? 

She’s heard the castle staff call her a ‘cold little thing’, but in a world where her destiny is to wait for the next escape of a demon she or her descendants must face, how can they blame her? Especially since most of the staff don’t seem to like her much anyway, or Grandfather. She gets the idea that the king of Hyrule isn’t liked at all by most people, but she doesn’t know why and she’s long since given up asking. The knights only assure her with their loyalty and the servants excuse themselves under the pretext of having chores to attend to. 

It’s alright, she doesn’t really care what they think. She doesn’t really care about them either. 

That is, until suddenly her maid is dead and she’s being hauled down to a dungeon by soldiers who now do not swear their allegiance with charming smiles, but who march, stone-faced, to lock her up, despite her demands to know what’s going on, what they think they’re doing, and what on earth is wrong with them. She can feel it, a heavy magic settled over them, and she doesn’t blame them for their actions, since she knows they aren’t in control, but that doesn’t make it any less terrifying when she’s tossed into the cold stone cell and left there, locked up like one of Grandfather’s prisoners. Calls into the darkness for answers go unheard, and as the night drags on, all she can do is wish, wish, wish for someone to please just answer, to get her out. 

Maybe the servants wouldn’t call her a cold little thing if they could see her curled up in her cell, pretty dress ruined and golden hair dirty, sobbing her eyes out into her skirts, but they aren’t here. She doesn’t even know if they’re alive. She doesn’t mourn them either, although there's some distant idea of sadness that their families might not see them again and that they don’t deserve to die just because of whatever it is that’s happening. Still, death isn’t a very present thought in her mind until at last, she manages to catch wind of what’s going on. 

Aganim, her father’s old friend and counselor, who’s been serving her grandfather for some time now, has betrayed them, has taken control of the minds of their knights, and now intends to re-open the Sacred Realm, which her ancestors sealed, in order to- like so many other foolish, foolish people- try and obtain the Triforce. To do it, he must first gain the power of the seven sages and the princess herself, and based on what little she knows of dark magic, she’s rather sure he’s not just going to ask them all nicely. 

She needs to get out, desperately. She needs to get out before Aganim uses her magic to open the way to the realm where Ganon is sealed! She needs to get out before he kills her, using her like an offering, just like what almost happened to the Spirit Maiden all those thousands of years ago! 

Her wishes and cries to the heavens grow more and more desperate. A call to anyone, just anyone, to please just come and help her! 

“Who's calling to me?” The answering voice startles her, makes her pull her head up and look around, trying to see the person speaking. The voice sounds almost like her own, but tired, so tired, and somewhat confused. 

She feels the same. She hasn’t been able to rest all day, attending to her studies, and now she’s spending the night in a dungeon, away from feathered pillows and heavy blankets and any small semblance of warmth. She wants out, but here, at last, someone’s heard her. 

“My name is Zelda,” she says back, wishes back. She doesn’t think there’s a person here with her, just a voice. 

She’s heard those favored by the Triforce can gain strange power, but being able to send and receive thoughts isn’t something she’d been counting on. Still, she’s not complaining, and she’s not going to question it either, just as long as she can get out of here and back to someplace safe.  

Oh heavens, is grandfather safe? Will Aganim do anything to him? He doesn’t have powers to use and he’s not much of a threat these days, not without anyone to back him up. Will the wizard maybe let her grandfather go? Just lock him up or hide him or not let him do anything? Is he under control of the wizard too, like the knights? 

“I’m Link,” the voice answers, still confused, still tired, still sounding too young to do her any good.  

She’s no adult herself, but everyone else is. Still, maybe he can tell someone? Maybe he can send help? At least someone can hear her, she’s not going to give up just because they sound like they’re her age! “Help! I’m Zelda! I’m trapped in the castle dungeons! Please, send some help!” 

Like a ribbon slipping between her fingers, the presence she could feel answering her; the warmth and light and ray of hope, slips away, no voice answering in return. She slumps down onto the stone again, sobbing. It’s not fair! She hasn’t done anything wrong! She doesn’t understand! Why is this happening? Why would her father’s old friend do this to them? Why isn’t anyone doing anything? Why is the only one to hear her a child? 

Just a boy. Just some kid out there who probably doesn’t know how to get around in a castle or how to deal with a knight or a wizard. Just a kid, and she knows, she knows, kids never get listened to! No one listens to her, and she’s the princess! So why would anyone listen to a random kid? Especially one who tries to say that the princess is in danger, when most people don’t like royals to begin with, and anyway, no one’s going to believe that sort of thing! As far as anyone outside the castle probably thinks, she’s all tucked up in her big bed, just finished with dinner, and drifting off to sleep. Who’d bother to check and see otherwise? Especially if it’s only at the behest of a child! 

Maybe some people think she’s cold, but the sobs that ring through the dungeons sound terribly awful to her, and it’s enough to make her cry harder, because try as she might, the sounds and sights of crying just makes her cry, no matter how much she fights it. Her own tears echo back off the stone, like the wailing of some tortured soul, and her mind flies off to what and who might have been here before her. 

What sorts of people have lived in these dungeons? Died in these dungeons? Where there ever any little girls like her? Did they die down here? Did they escape? Did they have mums and dads to try and get them out, to hold them, or did they get left down here like she is? Just sobbing and crying with no one to hear them until they died and did whatever dead things do. 

The old books say that dead things are monsters that wander around, long and thin with ghastly smiles, and attack heroes and knights when they come too close. What if that sort of a dead-monster is down here? Gibdoes, she thinks they’re called, or is it redeads? Whatever they are, she doesn’t want them to be down here. She’d much rather be alone and forgotten than be found by something so awful.  

Except she won’t be forgotten, her mind whispers, and it’s not such a comforting thought as she wishes it was. Aganim knows she’s here, and he wants to keep her here until he’s ready to sacrifice her, split her open and make her blood spill to give power to his spell.  

She’s seen heads chopped off before, but they were far away and not important. She didn’t care who they were, because it didn’t matter once they were dead and she couldn’t do anything about it anyway. Will other people think about her that way? Will it not matter? Impa will care, and Grandfather too- if he’s still okay, if he finds out, but who else will care? The knights who are nice to her are now mean and cold, and the servants never liked her anyway. The thought of being forgotten is worse than the idea of turning into a dead monster and trying to eat people- or something, but she’s all out of sobs and her eyes hurt from crying. 

It doesn’t matter anyways, no one can hear her either way. 

Or, rather, she thought so, only there’s the sound of feet in the hall. Feet that patter softly and do not thud and thump like the heavy boots that knights wear or swish and shuffle like the wizard in his great heavy robe. No, they creep slowly across the stone, slow and unsure, like a deer coming slowly out of the trees. They move quietly and quickly, but hesitate, and that alone tells her it’s not a rambling, long dead evil that wanders the halls, nor a servant or soldier who knows this castle. It's not feet she knows, but foreign feet are her best chance of getting out, so she pulls herself up, wipes away what’s left of her tears, and moves to peek through the bars of her cell and out into the hall. 

She cannot see anything but stone. Whomever crafted these cells had no intention of allowing the occupants to see what was happening anywhere save just in front of the door.  

She can still hear though. She can hear the quiet, unsure tapping of boots. More importantly though, she can feel, and that delicate, evasive ribbon of hope drifts back into her hands, a light presence making itself know in the darkness around her, like a candle coming alight befgore her tired and puffy eyes. 

The boy. 

Link. 

She isn’t sure why he’s here, alone, but at least someone is trying. It’s more than she supposes some people would do, and at least he listened to her, which is far more than most people have done! His steps are wary, but she calls out, with her mind, like before, rather than her voice, urging him closer, telling him that’s he’s close, almost there. Just a little further and he’ll be here and maybe, just maybe, they can figure out some way to get this prison open, or at least she can tell him what’s going on so he can tell someone else. 

If the Sacred Realm is unsealed, Ganon will be set free, and the people of Hyrule are not prepared for that. They need to send warning- she needs to send warning, needs to tell someone and get the word out, to give something to her people so they know that things aren’t as they seem, that they’re sitting on the edge of a precipice, too close to the fiery hell before them. Her history books talk about a time when Ganon won, when he ruled their kingdom. She doesn’t want that for them, especially because she’s heard grandfather say they’ve only just recovered from that war. They can’t take it again. Hyrule needs peace. She doesn’t think peace is likely, but maybe they can stop too much of the world from being hurt by the evil magic, if they stop Aganim before he can do anything more. 

The feet stop. 

She can hear breathing now, soft and rattling somewhat, like her own does as she tries so hard to look through the bars of her prison. Has he been crying, like she has? Come to think of it, if she, locked up and also away from anything else in here, is scared, how must it be for some common boy who’s probably never been in the castle? Or the dungeons much less? For all she knows, he might have been here before, to visit someone or say goodbye before an execution, but still! He’s got to be at least a little scared too. 

She tries reaching out, listening again. His voice had been tired then, but she’d heard it, heard it from far away (because she knows there aren’t any little boys in the castle; she’s the only one her age). She could hear it then, so he, like her, must have been able to catch ahold of her thoughts, sent out like a wish to the stars she can’t see from in here. That means maybe she can reach out and hear his! 

Except that the sound of a loud clang makes her jump, startle back and fall over, unable to see what it was that made the sound, but well able to hear what’s happening, and tell that it’s very close indeed. There’s a scuffle, a gasp that shudders before there’s panting, feet skidding over stone and another loud clang.  

It sounds like the executioner’s axe on the stone of a courtyard. 

“Shit!”  

It’s him. It's Link. That's his voice, breathing and panting and gasping as she hears another clang, this time the blade screeching off of stone. 

Desperately, she moves along the bars of her cell, trying to see out, trying to catch a glimpse of what’s happening. She’d call out, but Grandfather always told her to keep quiet if she hears things that worry her. Enemies might be close and she should never make it known where she’s hiding, because that puts her and anyone with her in danger, and princesses should not put people in danger if they can help it. So, she keeps her mouth shut, and her ears open. 

Light feet dart, this time without hesitation, a hiss of breath that maybe carries soft words on it sounding, as well as the rasping of a second voice, breathing within something. Breathing within something heavy and thick, making it echo. It sounds like a knight, one with one of those very big and scary helmets that Grandfather makes them take off if she’s around, so she can see their real faces instead of the cold iron ones. 

She hopes it’s not a knight. 

The sound of an axe hitting stone, yet again, says it might be. 

Link’s voice is panting, feet darting. She hears a hiss of steel, a sword drawing, and then there are a series of very loud blows. There’s yelps and shouts from Link, but nothing from the heavy, echoing breather, just the slam of an axe, again and again. 

She can’t do anything. She can’t help or watch and she can only hear the awful sounds, the cry of pain from what she thinks has to be Link, and the clang, clang, clang of blades on stone, on armor, or on each other. She can only sit. Only sit and hope. 

No, she can pray. Grandfather says that her lineage, that mother and grandmother and all of them, that their prayers mean something extra special, because they have power from the heavens. When bad things happen, even if he won’t let her know what, he always tells her to pray. Pray for their people and the kingdom and for him, so he’ll do what he should, or can figure out what to do. She always does. Impa takes her to the little prayer rooms in the castle, or sometimes down to the church, and she offers prayers between her studies and her meals until Grandfather tells her that things are better again. She may not be good at a lot, but she has lots of practice praying, so even though the cell floor is so dirty and the clanging of weapons is nothing like the deep ringing of bells, she still kneels and prays as hard as she can. Prays until she hears a scream and a shout and heavy thud.  

The clanging stops. 

She keeps praying. Please let Link have won. She doesn’t know how (unless maybe he’s a squire? Yes that could work!) but she needs it to be him who won. She needs to know that the only person who can hear her call for help is indeed the one who’s still standing, because she doesn’t know if she can handle having hope stray so close only to be torn away at the very last of seconds. 

Soft, gently scuffing boots creep across the floor again, heavy panting, like a fawn just escaped from a hunter, peeking out to see if it’s safe once more. 

“Link? Is that you?” She doesn’t get up, keeps her hands folded, she’s got to be ready to start praying for help again if it isn’t. 

The voice that answers back is gentle candle-light and warmth, although it shakes and stammers. “M-Miss Zelda?” She doesn’t have time to get up before feet move closer and then there’s a boy standing in front of her. He’s short, maybe her height but probably a bit shorter, with messy pink hair hastily tucked under a green cap. His eyes are wide and blown out in the darkness, but the lantern in his hand makes them dance a bit too, almost red. Red to match the blood that spatters up and across his front, covers his boots and still touches his hands and the cloak wrapped up around him. “Are you okay?” 

She blinks. Is she okay? Why is he asking that? She’s the one who just sat in here, praying, untouched, and he was the one that fought...whatever it is that he just fought. “I’m alright. Are you? You’re covered in blood...” 

He winces, looks away, doesn’t look down and instead his flickering eyes dart all over everything else, as if desperate to not think about the fresh crimson all over him. “I’m okay.” And then, a moment later. “It’s....it’s not mine.” 

His tunic is ripped a bit on one side, and she can see where damage has been done, but she doesn’t challenge him. Boys are funny, Impa says, and if you tell them they’re wrong they pout and throw a fit and won't listen to you anymore. Link’s the first person who’s listened in a long time; she doesn’t want to lose that. Instead, she just nods, doubtful, but doesn’t say anything. It’s not like either of them can do anything about it anyways. She can’t heal and there’s nothing she can offer him either. 

He glances at her, and she recognizes abruptly that his eyes are terribly vacant. He’s there, he sees her, but he doesn’t seem to register anything else, just stare at her dumbly, like he’s not all inside his head. 

“Did you happen to see a key somewhere?” It’s sort of a reach, since she doubts that the wizard would make it that easy, but the flickering crimson eyes turn back again towards the way he’d come from, and she can see him shudder, revulsion briefly marring his otherwise rather pretty features.  

He nods. “Yeah.” There’s no waiting for her to say anything, just the setting down of the lantern in his hand, an old thing but well-tended, and he moves back out of her sight again. There’s some shuddering and catching of breath, rustling and clanking, and a squelch she supposes might be blood. He’s back again a moment or so later, slower than before, but holding the keys. They’re also covered in blood. He’s got more on him too, but his dull eyes are focused on the door, on unlocking it and pushing it open, and she’s quick to stand when he does. 

She will not stay any longer, not now that there’s a way out. She’s not sure which of them took the other’s hand first, but as she tells him where to go, he leading the way with the light and with a still dripping sword on his back, and she following, it doesn’t matter. She follows past the fallen corpse of what she recognizes as the royal executioner, through the halls that run rampant with rats, trudging through sewers and mire and muck. The ground underfoot squelches, making her stomach churn. The quickly cooling blood that smears over her hand from Link’s own only makes it worse, and she fights back the urge to pull away. She has to stay with him though; he’s her only hope and only protector, there’s no other way out and she can’t do this alone. 

They walk and walk, and she’d never realized before how many traps and dangers lay between the castle and the many hidden exits it possesses. The tunnel is cold, is wet, is damp, and once they exit again into the outside world, she finds it’s much the same. Rain beats down, lighting flashing overhead and thunder booming in their ears as they dart across the open spaces of Hyrule Field. Now out of the castle, she’s not sure what they ought to be doing, but she follows him. She’s never allowed outside alone, but he’ll know this land well, he’ll have lived here. He’ll know enough to hopefully know a safe place for them to hide. Still, it’s terrifying. She’s never seen the world flash like this, never slipped and tripped and made herself this muddy before. Link wraps her in his cloak, eyes still blank and distant, hands deft and fumbling, and while it’s warmer, by just a bit, it smells terribly of blood. Still, it’s better than nothing. 

In time, through the rain, she can make out a familiar structure. Almost like a second home for how often she’s been there; the church rises up before them with it’s spires and glittering windows, bells chiming twice and twice only, just as they’re hurrying up towards the doors. She knows they’ll be unlocked. 

They are. 

Link pushes them open with some trouble, more than they require at any rate, but it’s only then that she realizes that he’s shaking. Not from cold, she doesn’t think, otherwise it would have started far earlier, he would have been shaking when he first came to her, because he was soaked then too, wet and spattered in muck from the sewers as well as the blood. No, now he’s shaking so violently that she finds herself reaching to take the lantern from his hand the moment they're inside the dimly lit sanctuary. 

“Princess Zelda?” The familiar voice of the church Father catches her attention, making her turn from her companion to face the man. It’s two in the morning by the ring of the bells, and she can’t fathom why he’s awake, but there’s a candle burning and the smell of incense in the air, familiar and, like Link himself, an assuring presence that makes her heart stop the pounding in her chest, settling instead with a heavy sigh and soft cry she didn’t know was still left in her. 

The Father hurries towards them, and while she’s always been taught to be reverent, she can’t help but throw herself into open arms, shaking and trembling herself as his hand soothes her hair, warm, creaking voice- ancient as the trees she thinks sometimes, sounding in words she doesn’t bother to hear. 

They’re brought in and given warm blankets, and the bell-ringer appears to offer them warm tea, which she drinks slowly while the Father sits between them. Relief is a strange thing, a foreign thing, but she accepts it the same way she’s been taught to accept her other confusing feelings, sitting and listening to her heart and letting her mind spin until it finds itself too tired to keep on spinning. Soft prayers and the sound of rain fill her ears, and when at last she’s got a handle on herself again, she turns to look at her savior. 

Link is still shaking, arms wrapped tightly about himself and eyes vacant. 

She reaches out, not with her hands, but with the thoughts in her head, like before, and this time there’s no sudden noise to disrupt it. Link’s thoughts are far more jumbled and spinning than even her own. 

‘-didn’t mean to, I didn’t! I- oh heavens, I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to, I really didn’t! I- he's dead, I killed him he died and I- I- oh heaven help! I didn’t want to! I didn’t-” he’s shaking, teeth gnawing his lip and eyes slipping closed. ‘We’re safe, we’re safe, we’re safe. I got Miss- Princess Zelda is safe and I got her here and I didn’t end up crying and I didn’t let her down. God, she must have been so scared, I know I was, let her be okay? It must have been awful being locked up in there! I- I couldn’t-” he’s shaking his head, hands plucking at is sleeves, at the blanket. Even with the rain, there’s still bits of blood stuck about his nails and the cuffs of his sleeves, and he seems acutely aware of that fact. His mind spins so much she’s dizzy just listening, hearing him worry first for her and then be washed over with regret at killing, only to them have his mind drift to death and watching people die and- 

Zelda is struck with the sudden realization that Link, unlike herself, is not accustomed to death. She’s seen it enough times that seeing a body only brings disgust and discomfort, but sadness does not wash over her to see an enemy laid low. She’d only thought to avoid the pooling blood as passing the slain knight outside of her cell, but Link is actively experiencing regret for ending said knight’s life. 

“Link? 

The Father turns at her words, but the boy does not, instead rocking slowly as too fast breaths escape him. 

“Link, dear boy, can you hear me?” It’s such a relief to release it to the Father and let him try to get the attention of her savior, the man turning fully towards the curled up little boy, one hand settling on his shoulder.  

Link does not respond. 

The father’s hand slips to rub across trembling shoudlers, steady, soothing motions as his voice, warm and soft, continues. “I do not know what brought you here at this hour, but you are safe here, my son. It is alright.” 

“M-Miss-” 

“The princess is alright.” The Father assures. “She is safe here as well, and no one will hurt her.” 

There’s a small sob from her companion and she can hear his thoughts, the raging swell of the becoming less and less an effort to hear, instead pushing back against her, pushing out and demanding release, pouring into her own mind with terrifying clarity. Pain, anguish, regret, fear, guilt, overwhelming sadness. The ever-present thought of “be strong for her, she looks so scared” makes something inside her own heart twist up and her own breath catch. 

“You got me out,” she murmurs, because speaking aloud seems almost wrong in the silence and peace of the otherwise empty church, “thank you.” 

Dull eyes fall, Link burying his face in his arms with a sob that has tears pricking at her own eyes all over again. Shre’s always been weak to tears, a fault that Grandfather has warned her must be controlled, lest it be used against her, but she can’t help but cry along with the boy beside her, even as the Father comforts them. 

Maybe she’s used to death, but he isn’t. More so though, he’s the one who swung the blade. He had killed a man, killed for her and soiled hands that no doubt had never caused harm further than a fight with friends or other such mischief that common children are allowed to get up to. Blood is new to him, terrifying still, not something he was raised watching be spilled, not something he expects. 

His clothes are soaked with it. Even though a potion was given to him, prompted slowly to his lips and choked down dumbly, he’s got his own blood and that of the fallen knights both spattered over him, staining his clothes. It’s not only theirs though, because her peeks into his thoughts grant her visions of a man, in the same dungeons as they had been, wounded and bleeding out, of this same boy, only moments before finding her, finding said man and pleading, fighting against the flow of blood, of tears on his face and hurt in his heart. He’d lost someone just before coming to her. He’d been blank even before killing, forcing himself onwards to help her, guided only by the final words of the dead man in the sewers. He’d wandered and been chased, had faught a foe three times his own size, been forced to thrust a sword that’s too big for him into the heart of a man after just seeing the effects of the same.  

Death is following this boy, biting at his heels tonight, and the more their thoughts bleed together in her head, the more the weight of what has happened hits her. 

He’s killed for her, and with the knights taken over and the only ones on her side being the Father and this boy, she might have to ask him to do it again. 

[yashahimewasamistake]

Links, families and their social standing

LoZ/AoL. Hyrule is recognized by everyone as Hyrule's saviour/hero. He is fated to become king. In a comic, he is said to come from a place named Calatia where his parents live.

ALTTP. Legend has an uncle. The maidens recognized his Hyrule's Knight Blood and told him that he is fated to save Hyrule. In the oracle manga, he has grandparents.

OoT. Time was raised by the Kokiris, who see the Deku Tree (rip) as their father. His mother died saving him. In MM, Link and Zelda are friends and she gives him a family heirloom. What Hyrule thinks of him is unknown.

TP. Twilight lives in a community of round-eared humans. He is regarded in high esteem by the community though he lives outside the town. He is involved in Hyrule's salvation and reconstruction. He is recognized by both the light spirits and political/religious leaders as Hyrule's saviour.

WW. Wind has a grandma and a younger sister. He is appreciated by his community and on his adventure gets the respect/good will of deities and the Rito. Currently, he is sailing along Zelda to find New Hyrule.

FSA. Four has a grandpa, Zelda is his bff and he is seen as capable enough as a warrior to save/protect Zelda. In the manga, he has a father and both are knights.

SS. Sky is Zelda's childhood friend and lives in the Academy. He is respected by his teachers and he used to get bullied by Groose. People in Skyloft are unaware that he is/was in a divine mandated quest.

HW. Warriors is Hyrule's Hero. He gives hope to the common folk. He might be predestined to marry Zelda. Linkle might be his sister. In LU comics, he gives hints that he doesn't have any blood relatives.

BoTW. Pre-calamity, he had a father, his status was high and his talent was recognized by everyone. Post-calamity, people can recognize him as the hero/champion or assume he is his own descendant.

[loz-furbies]

Four Swords Adventures Zelda

Design

That is the original Four Swords Zelda on the right for comparison's sake, by the way. There's no proper art of FSA Zelda, or at least any I could find.

Returning from Zelda 2, we have another case of completely different characters sharing the same design. Which is about the biggest crime you can commit in my book. Her ponytail is a little different and I like both versions, so I'll have to find some comfort in that.

Character/Role in the story/Relationships

No point in doing these separately since there's not much to talk about any of them specifically, and all of my criticisms point to the same direction anyway. But anyway, if you ask me, FSA is the lowest point of storytelling in the franchise. Sure there have been games with less story and more specifically character, but it's like, the NES games and even ALttP are so old, and the original Four Swords was just a bonus mini game, so it's like whatever, it is what it is. But FSA is a full console title from 2004 with a lot of text about the story, and none of it is interesting and most importantly conveys any character (for the major characters at least). I'd expect better at this point.

In the beginning Zelda and six other maidens investigate a seal that imprisons the "end boss", but of course the seal breaks and they all get captured. The maidens are the biggest issue, how is it possible to have so many colour-coded characters and somehow not give any personality to any of them? Zelda herself has her usual "nice princess who gives exposition" personality, but so do all the other girls. If the maidens at least had some stock anime personalities (the fiery redhead, shy blue girl, prissy yellow girl etc), then Zelda could at least differentiate herself from that with being the nice and polite one. The end credits give her one chance for some character acting, but it's just her gazing out of a window alone and then leaving quietly while everyone else celebrates outdoors, and I don't really get anything out of that either. Or at least anything that reflects how she's portrayed in the rest of the game. As for relationships, unsurprisingly Zelda doesn't have any substantial interaction with the maidens, or Link (with whom she's already friends) for that matter.

The game does have one defense for itself and that is that it's made to be a multiplayer game; if you're playing with your buddies you're probably busy messing around together and not interested in becoming emotionally invested in the characters, and you'll probably just want to mash through the dialogue as fast as possible. But if that was the case, there's just too much generic plot text for this to be a game where you're not supposed to care about the plot. They even add a second set of characters to rescue, and they have just as little personality as the maidens. So if you're going to have a lot of text anyway, I would rather that it was rewritten with some more character.

Finally plot-wise Zelda at least gets to do something in the final fight, where she is an active gameplay element, which is more than many other Zeldas manage.

Sorry this has very little to do with Zelda in a character review sense and I'm just bitching about FSA writing in general, but I really wanted to do that and there's not much to talk about Zelda. On her own she's not any worse than any of the other characters in the game, and many Zeldas before her have had a lot less presence in the story too. But in its release context, story-wise FSA ends up being a disappointment and its Zelda as one of my least favourites.

[fanartfunart]

A Mirror of the Past

Chapter 1.

Summary: Link is the Hero of Legend, an adventurer who fought Ganon, rescued maidens, controlled time and seasons, fought Ganon again, and Ravio gladly sought out that Hero when he could. But before all that: Ravio was… just a scared kid, with a lot of people expecting him to be more while a war for the Triforce broils over Lorule.

Linked Spirit AU Ravio's version of alttp- but literally no need to know the au tho, its pretty much just Lorule alttp

Warnings: canon character death, violence, angst

Ao3: here!

---

The Legends of Lorule speak of a Golden Land… in which lays the triforce, a divine object, left behind as the great goddesses ascended to the Sacred Realm. Lorule prospered under the shadow of the Triforce, a golden mirror of the sacred. However, the Triforce held a wish making power. Soon people began to fight for such power. The desire to hold the mighty triforce drove many to madness, undoing the very order and unity it was made to represent. The royal family have kept it secured against intruders, where none can touch it. But war brews in Lorule. Many aim to take the Triforce, even if it means dismantling the throne. Sickness, thievery, and distrust is sewn into the land. A strange haze of evil seems to hang in the air, waiting to strike… 

“Ravio… I am Princess Hilda of Lorule… The Wizard Drahnim has destroyed all but one barrier to the Triforce, I am the last seal… You must find me… Help me… Please.”

Ravio startled out of bed. He fumbled hastily with blankets and stumbled out of bed, nearly tripping over himself. 

“What are you doing?” his uncle asked, frowning softly. He secured a leather bracelet to his wrist and a sword to his back.

Ravio took in a deep, calming breath, “I… had a nightmare.”

“Go back to bed,” he said, voice steady and sure, “I’m going out, I’ll be back in the morning.”

“...Where are you going?” Ravio asked, shuffling closer. He looked up with big green eyes, hoping for a hint of reassurance. His uncle frowned.

He turned around, running a nervous hand over his pink-blond hair, “...I’ll be back. Just stay inside tonight.” His uncle opened the door to a howl of wind and rain, and shut it, disappearing into the night.

Ravio took a step back away from the door and crawled back into bed, wrapping his blankets around his shoulders. It only made sense, to stay inside, as his uncle said. The howling winds were treacherous enough, let alone whatever else lay behind the door. He curled up into his blankets, considering how to occupy his mind away from the downpour and the dream.

“Help… me…please,” The voice from the dream whispered again. Weak, with a sense of broken pride in the words. As if she had exhausted all other options. 

Ravio took in a deep breath, covering his ears, “Look mysterious voice, I’m sure this is super important, but perhaps you can find another person who’s better built for-”

“I’m in the castle dungeon… HURRY”

He yelped at the urgency in her tone. He jumped out of the bed, racing over to grab his hood and boots. Stumbling, he got up to the door, then paused. A lantern. He half tripped over himself. He leaned half his body into the chest to grab the lantern. He raced out of the door, tugging the hood closely around his face, nearly covering his eyes. The downpour of rain obscured his view and beat down on him hard. Ravio nearly ran into a tree. 

“Ohhh this is a bad idea- bad idea-” He gasped his breaths, turning to find the proper path to the castle. He cowered behind a bush as he spotted a soldier pass. He didn’t need anybody else telling him to go home, or else he would just do it…. At least it was the right spot. He looked around and dashed across the grounds of the castle, weaving through until he was able to find a pathway obscured by a bush. 

He whined a little and took in a deep breath as he jumped into the dark passage. His boots were muddy against the stone of the castle. Ravio swallowed, slowly following the passageway. He heard someone cough and he stumbled backward, flattening himself against the wall. The large shadowed figure ahead slouched against the opposite wall, and eventually fell entirely against it. Ravio’s eyes strained in the dark. “Uncle?”

The man looked up at the sound, “...Ravio?” he coughed again, “Boy, come here”

Ravio inched closer, eyes widening at his uncle's state. Wounds deep, clothing staining darkly. Ravio took a step back again. “Un-Uncle- What- what do I-”

“No, come here. I had hoped to protect you from destiny, but it appears I can not…” His uncle reached up and grabbed his small hand. It marked him red. “Take this bracelet-” he pushed the old leather bracelet and a sword into Ravio’s hands. “I hope it will protect you….” 

Ravio looked at him wide-eyed, fumbling with the sword and pushing it back into his uncle's hands. “No- no no, I can’t do this!”

“Find the princess….she is…your-” With a slow rattling breath, his uncle fell limp.

“Uncle?” Ravio shook his shoulder, “She’s my what? Uncle?” He shook him a few more times, frantic, "Uncle wake up! Wake up!" He looked around. Ran back towards the opening he came through. But the passage was obscured again, and there was no stairs or ladder. He jumped and strained, but it was futile. 

He stood under the passage entry, glancing back at the limp figure. “Uncle?” He asked quietly, voice breaking. He dabbed at his face, pulling his hood closer over his head. Quietly, he walked back to him, gently leaning to press his forehead against his Uncle’s. He sobbed, sniffling and gasping his breaths. “I love you,” he whispered, “I’m so sorry-”

He let out a breath. He stood and turned to run down the passage.

Ravio quietly sneaked into the castle proper. Carefully, he tiptoed along the edges of the walls, hiding behind a statue. He watched the soldiers patrol the room, eyes flickering across their path. He waited until their backs were turned, and rushed across the room, the heat of lava warming his face. 

He raced down a hall and took the first door. The one straight ahead was locked. He turned to the door on the right. The door clicked behind him. In front of him, a soldier turned and looked at him. 

“Intruder!” he announced. The soldier raised his sword. Ravio screamed, raising his hands up to shield his face. He stumbled backwards in a panic, back hitting the wall. A twang of power. The bracelet glowed a vibrant purple hue. The sword hit the purple light and a painted sword clashed back against it. Ravio stared wide-eyed. The soldier attempted another swing, and the magically drawn sword mirrored its arch, clattering against it again.

Ravio stumbled away from the wall, eyes flickering to the key on the soldier’s belt. The magical sword vanished. Ravio circled around the soldier, snatching the key and scrambling to the door, fumbling to unlock it. 

“Halt!” the soldier shouted. 

Ravio shut the door with a slam and jumped back as a thunk rang against the door. He scrambled to lock the door again.

He heaved his breaths, and glanced at the bracelet. "Ah." He whispered, swallowing. "That's what you do. Never would’ve imagined that."

He closed his eyes, letting himself rest for a moment… The voice came back, “Where are you?! Hurry!”

“My heart needs to restart! Come ON,” Ravio shrieked to the air. He turned to the locked door ahead and tested the lock with the soldier’s key. The door clicked open. He sighed in relief. He slipped through and began the rest of the journey to the dungeon.

He followed twists and turns, hiding behind statues, throwing pottery to distract soldiers and scrambling deeper and deeper into the castle. He found the dungeon nearly on accident, stepping down the stairs to avoid another soldier’s view. He glanced into the room, a barred cell visible in the corner. Ravio slowly inched down the rest of the stairs, leaning around the corner of the wall. A soldier with a flail stood guard beside the princess’s cell. The keys jangling against the soldier's hip.

He looked around nervously. Surely he could do something to avoid this. The lamp. He threw the lamp across the room. It landed with a thunk and rolled into a banner, catching the fabric on fire.

"What the-" the soldier swore several times, and fumbled to attempt to put the fire out. Ravio dashed forward and unlatched the key loop. The soldier turned at the sound. “You!” he shouted. Ravio ducked and dashed into an open cell. The soldier’s flail grated against the bars. The soldier growled and followed him into the cell. Ravio dropped to the ground, rolling out of the way of another swing. He rushed to lean against the cell. He grinned awkwardly at the solider as he turned to look at Ravio. He let out a wordless shout as Ravio shut the door on him, and locked it. The soldier roared and swore, crashing his weapon repeatedly, almost blindly, against the metal.

Ravio could've nearly laughed and cried at the same time.

He raced to the Princess's cage and fumbled with the lock with numb hands.

“You- you found me” the princess whispered as she stood, trembling. Her eyes watching his each move carefully, “I sensed you were near…” she said, she gripped his hand, hard. Her brows furrowed in determination, “Ravio, listen now and listen well. The wizard is magically controlling all the soldiers in the castle.” She spared a brief glance at the captured soldier, “…My father is likely doomed. We must not trust anyone. The wizard is a powerful and formidable opponent. Do you understand?”

Ravio stared, eyes wide. He nodded silently.

“We shall find an escape in the throne room. We will need to go as soon as possible, before he detects us.”

"He-he knows I'm here?" Ravio whispered, panicked. “We have to go into hiding! I have to-”

Hilda shook her head, taking Ravio's hand. "Not yet. Thus, why we must hurry. This way."

Hilda led the way through the Castle. However, whatever struggle she had with the wizard before had clearly taken its toll. Ravio fumbled to push her back to hide from soldiers and tiptoe through the lava-filled halls. He created distractions with hastily thrown objects. The Princess found pathways to direct them.

Finally, they reached the throne room. Hilda took a step back. "We must push this back. I can not do it alone."

Ravio nodded. Straining, Ravio stumbled and shoved against the stone. Hilda pushed her whole body weight into it. The passage opened. He sighed in relief. "Almost thought I'd be too scrawny to help," he chuckled awkwardly.

"You are scrawny." The Princess confirmed, walking through.

Ravio blinked, then stumbled after her.

They weaved through dark passages. When the rats got too close, Ravio screamed and flailed his lantern at them. The rats ran, and the Princess tried not to giggle.

Ravio pulled the lever to open the door, straining.

“Princess! You’re safe!" A familiar voice announced softly. The keeper of the Sanctuary tilted his head as he spotted- "Ravio?”

Hilda stepped forward, “It was Ravio who aided me to safety." She turned to him, "When I was captive the wizard said, “Once I’m finally done with you, the path to the Triforce shall finally reveal itself” she looked down, brows furrowed, “Ravio, we must not let the land of Lorule fall into further chaos. If he releases the seal my family placed on the Triforce, evil power will overwhelm this land. Before that happens… before it’s too late… we must destroy the wizard before he destroys all of Lorule!” Hilda exclaimed.

"But- but how?" Ravio whispered, "I'm just-just a kid."

"You came to my summons, it proves you are the Hero of Legend. You must."

Ravio looked down, frowning.

The Sanctuary keeper grabbed Hilda by the arm. "Good, now that you've found him, nothing can stop Drahnim from bringing the triforce to us."

Hilda hissed, thrashing, "This is madness! You can't truly believe anything good will come of it?!"

"Dear Princess, the royal family has kept the wish-granting powers of the triforce to itself for too long. We deserve our share."

Hilda bit the keeper. He yelled, clutching his arm. Ravio rushed forward to pull Hilda away, and ran.

The pair raced through the rain and dark. The keeper shouted behind them. "We will find you! Don't think you can hide!"

Ravio and Hilda ran and ran. After what felt like an hour, Ravio skidded to a halt and tugged on Hilda's dress. He looked around quickly, before directing the Princess to a small cave. The pair stumbled in, and Ravio quickly collected vines and plants to cover the entry with. Hilda slumped against a wall, sliding to the floor.

"You… you need to find the bow of light. To fight the wizard," she said. She coughed and shivered. "There's three pendants- if you can-"

"I'm not leaving you," Ravio said quietly. He walked over to her, "You're tired, and hurting, I'm not going to leave you alone."

Hilda looked at the ground. "It's our destiny, to protect Lorule."

"As long as he doesn't find you, how much can he do? Right? You're the last part of the seal. You said so. I can't leave you."

She covered her face in her hands, shoulders shaking. Ravio shuffled to sit next to her, pulling his lamp close to warm them. Hilda leaned gently against him, sighing lightly. An uneasy quiet settled over the night. Ravio stared into the dark, musty cavern, as he felt Hilda’s body lax into a fitful rest. He did his best to remain awake and vigilant, looking around intently. Tears slipped down his cheeks. He balled his sleeve into his hand and rubbed at the tears, swallowing thickly.

[loregoddess]

1, 7, 11, and 36 for the tloz asks? (hope you feel better soon!!)

Thanks for the asks! (And I am on the mend, even if it's a bit slow-going, it was just a common cold luckily).

1) Is there a Zelda game(s) that you associate with each season or time of year? Not...particularly? There was no set pattern to how or when I would play/replay LoZ games, even when I was in school I was so efficient with my homework that I always had time to play games in the evening before bed, so I don't even have a "summer break" game per se. I do kinda associate certain games w/ periods of my life, like aLttP was the first game I played so I associate it w/ the first house I lived in, and WW and TP were the two games that I played a lot during middle school, and SS came out when I was in high school and also around the same time I got seriously into timeline theory for fun.

7) Favourite dungeons? If we count FSA as "oops all dungeons" where every stage is basically a dungeon, then The Village of the Blue Maiden, The Swamp, all three stages of The Dark World, the Pyramid, and the Tower of Winds were probably my favorites (although the entire game is a favorite, there isn't a single bad level in it). The Tower of the Gods was also an extremely cool dungeon from WW, and WW has the coolest "mini-dungeon" designs in general. I loved all the dungeons in TP, but my two favorite are Arbiter's Grounds and the Snowpeak Ruins, and TP's Hyrule Castle is one of my favorite iterations of Hyrule Castle as a dungeon (although aLttP's Hyrule Castle is a close second). I also have to say that EoW's dungeon design was S-tier, not a single bad dungeon in that game either, but my favorite was the final dungeon (redacted for spoilers) bc it hits sooo many design aesthetics that I love.

11) Favourite Ganon characterization? WW Gandondorf, hands down. As a certified villain-enjoyer, I like it when a villain has both a cool design and also some sort of narratively interesting motive beyond "heehee, I'm evil", and WW Ganondorf is the only Ganondorf to come close to that for me, since "envy of Hyrule's resources" is a more interesting motive than "I want power to rule the world/destroy it and remake it" (although world destruction to be remade by the antagonist can be a really interesting motive/narrative element, but LoZ does not execute it in the way that makes my brain want to spin like a centrifuge). In general I don't rely on LoZ for interesting villains, bc while Ganondorf's designs are usually very cool visually, his writing is rather flat, and even my beloved WW Ganondorf isn't as complex as some of my favorite villains/antagonists from other games.

36) Which game had the most engaging story, in your opinion? Most of the LoZ games are narratively engaging for me, since they all have interesting stories in their own right. My personal favorite is TP, because the time spent at the beginning of the game establishing Link's "normal" life was a bit longer, and really made the kidnapping of the Ordon children feel personal--and then how the rest of the story unfolds just, haunts me, haven't stopped thinking about TP since I fist played it.

[gloriousmonsters]

Yknow something else that rly grinds my gears about TotK's storyline. So in most Zelda games there's always the "King Of Hyrule" w/ no mention of the queen even though there's always the implication that sacred power of the family is matrilineal. This is even made explicit and is a plot point in BotW, and obviously the assumption is that they got this power from SS Zelda's bloodline.

BUT THEN TOTK COMES IN AND IS LIKE "um actually they got this power from a man. The sealing and light power is from Rauru and Sonia has time powers instead. btw we're gonna stick her in the fridge while we're at it. So yeah this power that only manifests in the royal women that is passed down from mother to daughter and is said to be the goddess's power is actually from a man, not a woman you stupid fucking idiot."

It's just. Whyyyyyyyy

even MORE belated reply, but YEAH--it's honestly just very weird to me how Raaru and Sonia are treated like Zelda's New, Cooler Parents and her powers being split between them feels like part of that, even though it makes... very little sense (are you saying that if we just did some intermarrying with the Zora and Gerudo sages the next Zelda could have Spirit/'''''''lightning'''''''*, water, light, sealing, AND time powers? We are rapidly entering Lightlark territory and that is the worst possible place to be).

But yes, suddenly introducing 'there was a man from a different, Even More Superior race behind the powers that have been solely characterized as belonging to Zelda and associated (though I have very mixed feelings on SkSw) with the Hylian/Zelda's patron goddess' feels pretty damn sexist, especially paired with how Sonia's character is pretty much 'Wife, who is also Motherly' with a very child-of-nature, barefoot and Primal design, because women are Primal unlike men who are smart and science and have robots dont'chaknow. Paired with, yknow, taking away Zelda's pants and her main scientific/technical interest and putting her in a white dress so she can cry and be pure of heart and a sacrificial maiden. It's pretty awful, especially since while BotW is awful about some women, Zelda's character is one of my favorite things from it because she got to be a little less traditionally feminine and had scientific/technical interests.** It's another case of 'it's not just you fucked up, but you fucked up SO badly it's hard to comprehend' in TotK's story and characterization.

*someday, i will reach a kind of peace with Spirit being taken from the Gerudo to be given to the NEW Super Godly Race that they Sinned against. it is not that day and will not be for a while

**Nayru, Zelda's patron/associated goddess before everything became the Hylia Show, is said to be the goddess of science as well as magic in ALttP's lorebook <3 so Zelda being a researcher/scientifically minded feels especially right to me

[syntheticspades]

so im watching my brother's playthrough of a link to the past, right?

at the end of one of the dungeons, the blue maiden claims link is "the last in the bloodline happens to be the chosen hero."

we knew oot link canonically had children. alttp link canonically doesn't.

[journalsouppe]

A LINK TO THE PAST!!!! I love and adore this game so much. I love and adore my little pink son he's so sweet despite witnessing some fucked up things. This is one of my favorite spreads, I love the color combination I chose plus the stickers are really cute :').

I bought two different sticker sheets: The pixel inventory stickers are by Comstock Cafe The chibi/character collection is by Pashmakshop

Writing typed below!

Rating: 8.5 Played: Fa 2022 Port: SNES Switch Online

Comments

I am so glad the switch has save points

I love that Ravio is dressed as dark world link, also glad I played ALBW first!

Harder to figure out in between dungeon objectives

I love how this is the game that is the origin of human Ganon

The game is a lot more cryptic than intuitive

Flute boy is so dark but also so interesting

Moldorm was so annoying

oh Link is the last of the Hylian knights

yay new decrease damage armor! idk why the hat isn't also blue

i think turtle rock island was at the lake in ALBW ... interesting

when you start the game, why do you start with 1/2 health?

I'm still surprised the 7 sages were originally the 7 maidens

i hate ice dungeons T-T

the design of ganon's tower is really cool

omfg the mirror shield is so big it covers most of link's face

i like the bunny beam

you can see all the insp ALTTP had on OOT

i think the blue and red mail should be farther apart (play time wise)

omfg the lynels are terrifyingly fast T-T

LMAO vulture recap

THANK GOD NO DEAD MAN'S VOLLEY AHHHHH

Ganon's tower is SO LONG

oh? talking directly to the triforce essence? interesting

UNCLE ISN'T DEAD? AHHHHH

Sumary:

I can see why this game is so popular, it revolutionized the Zelda franchise. It is still a pretty cryptic game at times, but it was a lot of fun and very charming. There was amazing character and world designs, the artists absolutely killed it. I love how this game was the origin to a lot of things for the future: human Ganon, the ocarina, the dark world, the lost woods (although it was technically in zelda 1), ahhh it's so cool. I'm glad ALBW changed and improved on many things, giving more depth to the dark world, but I will say both have their fair share of annoying bosses. I hope Nintendo will continue to expand on the dark world in the future, especially because it's never been 3D. What a very charming game, I think I might replay it in the future since it's such a short game. I'm excited to finish the rest of the 2D games!

[thebleedingeffect]

oh i am so about to become an unskippable cutscene. ok so

my zeldaverse concept is that they all get stuck in the time AFTER the golden goddesses made hyrule but BEFORE hylias creation. each zelda has a varying amount of time since their adventure ended (i.e. totk zelda has been back home for a little less than a month. st zelda is in the MIDDLE of her adventure. sheik only sent link back to her time a week ago. its been 9 months since midna left tp zelda. zelda i zel's adventure ended 5 years ago and her great aunt from zelda ii ended one year ago. etc etc). the idea is that they all wanna get home, so they decide to try and use the triforce, but none of them know which one would be Worthy of it (as in having power wisdom courage). they go to termina [sksw zeldas idea. shes reaaaally trying not to let on shes hylia but still wants to be helpful] bc the fierce deity is their best shot at knowing which one can do it. FD (who appears as their links to each one of them respectively as to "present as something theyre more familiar with." ie botw zelda sees botw link, tp zel sees tp link, etc etc. they end up changing into malon for sheik bc hes still got baggage over link and impa and anyone else so FD chooses someone he barely knows instead.)

anyways FD tells them that all of them are capable of it if they focus in but their best bets are sheik, botw zelda, tetra, and hilda + albw zelda if they do it together (one from each branch of the timeline. kind of). so the gang splits off to find the triforce and erm yeah 🕺💃

also theres two oot zeldas. one for the adult timeline (sheik) and one for the child timeline, who never knew the horrors of war and got to know oot link unlike sheik. oops.

anyways herez my names wooooo (also they all chose them themselves hehe)

BOTW/TOTK - Coreulea (part of the scientific name of wild blueheart tulips which are the closest visually to silent princesses irl, so. shes named after her fav flower...)

OOT (ADULT) - Sheik (later Sage. this zelda awoke as the leader of the sages while the other oot zelda did not have to.)

OOT (CHILD) - Coda (the part of a song where you go back and repeat a portion you've already played before. get it. Coda says she wants something music related and Sheik is the one to suggest the name to her.)

MINISH CAP - Stonie/Quartzie (what her link calls her! used to think it was mean but shes rlly missing him so ..)

TP - Archer (bow of light. prefers to be called 'the archer' specifically if possible, lol)

ALBW - Hilda and Hue (like color. like painting. Hue liked the alliteration of their names hehe)

ALTTP - Maiden (describes herself as a maiden in game. theres more to it but ohhgh thatd require a lot of analysis and this is already so looong)

ZELDA I - Ura (in the og game u had another mode called ura zeruda after u beat the game which literally translated to "other zelda." its a little joke abt how many zeldas there are! she chose it bc its her real first name; zeldas only her middle name!)

ZELDA II - Somnia (from "insomnia." also the name her family uses to differentiate her from her great great niece. she thinks its pretty, if a little on the nose, but she cant blame her relatives for being that uncreative when shes been dead for 100 years, took the money they gave her to not claim the throne, and ran off with her boytoy lmaooo)

WW/PH - Tetra. she wanted a silly nickname too though so they will also respond to Captain

SPIRIT TRACKS - Spectra (like spectral! shes still a ghost here and has a good sense of humor abt it!)

SKSW - Lyre (another name for harp and sounds like "liar" because shes got a bit of a track record for not being entirely truthful about who she is ,,,,)

bonus zeldas who dont appear but i love them anyway:

80S CARTOON - Fresh/Freshie (MY DESIGN GIVES HER SCRUNCHIES AND LEGWARMERS💥) (AND SHE TALKS WITH 80S SLANG OK SORRY)

CDI GAMES - Gamelon

Mario Kart - Chassis [pronounced chass- ee] (Link's pitstop captain! no thats not how mk works. no i do not care <3)

SSBU - Hitbox

ok cutscene over. thank u 👍

YOOOOOOOOO your zeldaverse concept sounds so cool!! I've never even thought of the idea of time travelling to after the golden goddesses created everything but before Hylia's creation! :O that's such an interesting time period, I've never really thought about all that.....

Also them going to the fierce deity is so cool cause I have so many questions!! How does sksw Zelda know of the fierce deity? Does she have memories of him during her time as Hylia? Does fierce deity recognize her? If he does, does he willingly keep her secret from the rest of the Zelda's as he's correctly guessed that she's hiding it? How does the fierce deity correcting know of just who would be the most familiar to present as and does he know of all the Link's?

There's just so many questions and it's so funnnnnn to think about!! Also I like how he says that all of them are capable but Sheik, botw Zelda, Tetra, and Hilda are the most capable of wielding the full triforce... while sksw Zelda is right there... HMMMMMMMM........ sksw Zelda I have questions for you but I fear if I speak any of them out loud you'll combust <3333 love her though <333

The choices for all the Zelda's is so fun and cool to! I've never really thought about including both oot child and adult! I can most definitely see that being a major source of pain and angst for Sheik and I'm just super curious about Coda would react to that :o also I'm just a fan of such Zelda incarnations such as MARIO KART and SUPER SMASH BROS being involved in the middle of this.

idk that's just great to me, peak vibes, ideal even, CDi is also here SJSJJSJS

also?? These names are so so damn cute?? Genuine question, would you be okay with me using some of them? They're just that damn good but I totally understand if you would rather me not! I'm particularly in love with Coreulea for botw Zelda and Lyre for sksw Zelda <333 that's so so good and fits them so well, what da Hell.......

Also just to respond to your other ask here- I'd love to hear you talk about their personalities!! Lowkey I'm so happy that you decided to include spirit tracks Zelda, she's so underrated and amazing I love her a lot :((( and Spectra as her name?? That's so, so, I'm having a moment that's so damn CUTE

[karama9]

Happy Birthday to two great games

Especially since they share my own, so I got wonderful games released on my b-day twice. Not to mention the ones that were released just a few days before.

Ocarina of Time and A Link to the Past are pretty much my favorite Zelda games. I played both without the benefit of extensive walkthroughs and stuff on the internet and the challenge of having to figure everything out was really good for that time in my life (I HAD time back then).

ALTTP was my first true Zelda game, I only sort of dabbled with the original two because I never owned them, and basically I've been obsessed with Zelda ever since the little pink haired dude got woken up by Zelda's voice in his head, on a stormy night in Hyrule. I finished it so many times, and I'm working on a novelization! I know, I know, SUPER original idea. But Holy Crap Two Cakes right?

Ocarina of Time is also one of my favorites because it expanded the universe and the lore so much, and it was just such an awesome game to play. The story, the gameplay, the exploration, the ability to muck about with nothing to stop you except Navi's constant pleas to get back on track... and I didn't even mind the Water Temple that much. Ironically, the one that kind of stops me when I play through again is the Shadow Temple, I just plain don't like it.

ANYWAY!

I have no art. Here are some stories instead:

For Ocarina of Time:

For A Link to the Past:

And I'll just paste this here too... it's part of Moving On, but this scene is just the Hero of Legends making his wish.

Moving On, extract from Chapter 1: A Link to the Past

Link clutched the Triforce to his chest, eyes closed tightly.

He didn't know what to wish for: Ganon had done too much harm, and Link suspected some of it couldn't be fixed, even by the Triforce: his uncle was dead, and so was the King; the maidens' souls had been freed, but their lives remained lost, even the Princess's.

What was there left to wish for? Ganon had already taken everything. Even the mystical Golden Realm was gone, the reflection of Hyrule's hopes and dreams turned into a nightmare by the demon.

There were many things Link wanted and could have wished for, but they were all so selfish he couldn't bring himself to do it. He wanted his uncle back, he wanted the maidens back. He wanted all the guards Aghanim had made him kill to be alive and themselves again, and to forgive him. Above all, he wanted the Princess back. He wanted her to look at him like that again, like she had when he had saved her, as if he was the sun itself. [...] He'd happily settle for her just to be alive again, even if she never again so much as stood in his presence.

If he were to wish for any one of those things, however, wouldn't it mean giving up on the others and on everything else Ganon had soiled or destroyed? He couldn't pick one wrong to right, he wanted it all: he wanted ALL the harm Ganon had done to be undone; he wanted everything back just like it was before Ganon had gotten his paws on the Triforce.

As soon as the thought formed in Link's mind and before he even realized he had effectively made his wish or dared to hope such an all encompassing wish could be valid, the Triforce started shining, so brightly as to hurt Link's eyes right through his closed eyelids. It shone brighter and brighter, and Link had to fight back the urge to let go of it to cover his eyes with his hands. He turned his head sideway as far back as it could go instead, but it didn't help: the glow of the Triforce was filling the whole room.

Then, as suddenly as it had started, the glow was gone. Link opened his eyes warily, afraid the Triforce may start shining again. It was still in his arms, but it was back to normal and thankfully stayed that way. Link looked around instinctively for any visible effect from his wish, and gasped: through the door to the room where they had fought, Ganon was scrambling up, whole and seemingly unhurt. Link's eyes went from the Demon to the Triforce and widened.

The Triforce had granted his wish, all right: everything was back, just like before Ganon had claimed the Goddesses' artefact… including Ganon.

Link's eyes went back to the pig and met the beast's own. He stuffed the Triforce into his tunic and took out his bow and arrow, expecting Ganon to charge at him. The Demon did no such thing, however; he hissed, and before Link had even had a chance to shoot a single arrow at him, he vanished with a puff of smoke.

Link's breathing accelerated. Just like that, Ganon had escaped and it was anyone's guess where he'd resurface and what he'd do - and whatever it was, Link felt it would be his fault. He clenched his teeth, re-sheathed his sword and took out the mirror that had the power to bring him back to the Real World; the first thing to do was to let the King know Ganon was loose. After that, assuming he didn't get thrown in the dungeon, Link would happily do whatever was asked of him to fix things.

As Link looked into the mirror, the room around him faded and was replaced by the castle's inner court and the sound of deafening cheers.

Link had never felt LESS deserving of cheers. He ignored them and looked around frantically, looking for the Princess; he found her standing next to her father, beaming at him. Link's heart skipped and for one glorious second, he was happier than he would ever have thought possible.

Then, reality came crashing back.

"Your Majesties," he said, addressing both of them, "he…"

"Come inside," the King cut him off, setting off towards the entrance to the throne room. "Close the door behind you," he added without turning around.

Zelda and Link followed him.

"He doesn't want a panic on his hands," Zelda explained in a whisper as they walked, "and since you obviously have bad news…"

Link nodded without meeting her eyes.

Zelda closed the door behind them once they were inside, shooing the few who had followed away with an apologetic smile.

"Firstly," the King said as he sat on his throne, "Link, I must express my gratitude, and I hope to do so properly once you have told me your news and we have dealt with it. You need to know that nothing you might tell us will change the fact you have single-handedly saved not only my daughter and myself, but the whole of Hyrule."

"He's back," Link blurted out, barely hearing him. "Ganon. And he ran off… I messed up, I really messed up. I'm so sorry… I didn't realize, I was just thinking, and the Triforce did it…"

He collapsed to his knees, shaking. He could still hear the cheering outside and it was making him feel worse. Here was everyone, so happy that all was well…

"Young man, are you saying Ganon is still alive?" the King asked.

Link nodded without raising his eyes. He felt a hand on his shoulder and the next moment, Princess Zelda's face was inches away from his own, looking serious but thankfully not angry. His heart automatically started hammering in his chest.

"Is he in the Dark World?" the Princess asked.

Link nodded again.

"Light World," he corrected. "I think. I didn't look outside, but…"

"What about the Triforce?" she interrupted him.

"I got it," Link said, pulling it out of his tunic. "But Ganon ran away, he could be…"

Link didn't finish his sentence, having suddenly lost his train of thoughts: the Princess was smiling at him. He swallowed and made a valiant – if doomed - effort at reassembling his thoughts. Zelda got up from her crouch and pulled him along so that they were both standing again.

"The only place Ganon can possibly be is the Light World," Zelda said gently, still smiling. "Remember, even with his power increased by the Triforce, he could not escape from there – that is why he needed the maidens: he wanted to use them to break the seals and thus escape his prison. Now that he has lost the maidens and that the seals are back to the level they were before Aghanim captured them, Ganon will not be able to escape the Light World, at least for a while."

Link sighed in relief and nodded to signify he understood.

[elstreem]

Worked on one of the Zelda design concepts I had (which was really just focused on the hair buns, so the dress isn't all that creative :b) But now that I worked on it, I'm not sure if it works as a Zelda design.

Also new signature because I've been using the one I had for the longest time and I think it needed updating...

wips below

I changed up a lot of stuff from the initial rough sketch, though I still hope one day to draw a Zelda with hair buns and a crown, similar to the sprite used in the Oracle games. The 2nd sketch leaned a bit more towards ALttP Zelda's maiden dress though, so to make it a bit more unique I changed the skirt, but it kind of ended up looking generic.

[legend-of-binkus]

HEADCANON TIME: In skyward sword Zelda says that Hylia gave up both her "immortal form" and "divine powers" when she chose to be reborn. I interpret this as meaning that once SS Zelda eventually died, Hylia no longer had a body and can exist only as a spirit. Now in LoZ canon we see spirits aren't completely powerless, but they often need the help of the living (think Darmani the Goron, Queen Rutela of the Zora, the Champions from BotW, argubly even the Hero's Shade, etc).

With her divine powers and immortality gone, Hylia faded into obscurity. I can imagine that during her life, SS Zelda wouldn't go around casually announcing that she's the goddess reborn (it was probably something only shared with family). And so those that would eventually become the Royal Family may have retained the knowledge of their ancestry... but who knows. Maybe they didn't and it was lost for a time.

Amazingly enough... you can find subtle references to Hylia in LoZ games that came out before Skyward Sword. Obviously these were unintentional, but still neat.

You brought up Lake Hylia already, which seems like it has become an etymological mystery to the people of Hyrule. The lake has always been called Hylia, and no one can remember why.

Another small reference can be found in Zelda 2. There's a quest where Link helps a women who had a statue stolen from her. In the english version of the game, the statue is called a trophy, HOWEVER according the the Zelda Wiki the Japanese translation is 'Goddess Statue'. Plus, just look at it!

It looks pretty close to the canon goddess statues we've seen in the games.

Also in A Link to the Past, one of the Maidens say this line.

"Only a person of the Knights Of Hyrule, who protected the royalty of Hylia, can become the Hero… You are of their blood-line, aren't you? Then you must rescue Zelda without fail."

One interpretation (and the one I choose to believe) is that when she says "royalty of Hylia", she is referring to the royal family as the people of Hylia's blood.

So yeah.

I like to believe that most knowledge and worship of Hylia was lost for thousands of years, but it must have been partially uncovered sometime before the events of BotW. I say partially because it seems that it's believed that Hylia still has divine powers. Zelda prays and pleads with a spirit who once was a goddess, but unknown to the people of Hyrule, she gave up her powers and immortality long ago. The most it seems Hylia can do now is grant you a heart container.

Side note: I don't believe that every Zelda is a reincarnation of Hylia. That only applies to SS Zelda. Both BotW Impa and Demise's curse distinctly state that it is the spirit of the hero and the blood of the goddess that are eternally cursed.

"Though this is not the end. My hate… never perishes. It is born anew in a cycle with no end! I will rise again. Those like you… Those who share the blood of the goddess and the spirit of the hero… They are eternally bound to this curse. An incarnation of my hatred shall ever follow your kind, dooming them to wander a blood-soaked sea of darkness for all time!"

I believe that the hero's spirit is reborn, and that it is the goddesses bloodline that is cursed, not her spirit. It's Hylia's blood that gives the royal family their power.

Interestingly enough, there is another line in ALttP which brings up Hylia that relates to this...

"They say the Hylia people controlled mysterious powers, as did the seven wise men. But the blood of the Hylia has become thin over time. We who carry the blood of the seven wise men do not possess strong power any more, either."

By the time of BotW, Hylia's blood has become even thinner within the royal family than in was in ALttP, which may be one reason why Zelda had such a hard time unlocking her power.

But then again, who knows. This is just my crazy headcanon. And with a new game just around the corner... New information may be revealed that contradicts something I've said here.

ANYWAY

Long ramble over.

I'm impressed if anyone read this far.

Thanks.

Hylia is a Lake

[yashahimewasamistake]

Just watched ALTTP cutscenes. For lore.

Anyway. Small details:

*The palace guards call Link "son" and say he should be sleeping.

*Zelda knew Link before they met at the dungeon. She's also pretty casual about knowing Link, so they might be acquaintances.

*People give Link info and items because Link himself reveals he has the blood of the Knights of Hyrule.

*The Knights of Hyrule used to serve the people of Hylia (the race that used to live in Hyrule).

*Link, as the hero, has access to magic which others don't.

*The maidens (Zelda included) don't have the magic power that their ancestors had.

*According to legend, The Master Sword was created by sages.

*The Triforce has a Spirit/Essence that explains how the Triforce works.

*The Wish can rewrite reality to the point that the lands are healed and the previously dead King is alive again.

[dogshit-enchantment]

Just finished Four Swords Adventures and man. I'm glad I finally got the chance to go back and beat it but my god. Some of the later levels were kinda awful. Idk if it's just that I've fallen out of things with puzzle games or what but there were so many puzzles in the last 3 levels where they didn't explain it before hand, give any hints or idea as to what they could be, and never repeated them. Like there's one puzzle where u have to use a boomerang to hit a switch on the opposite side of the wall (like from another room), something I didn't know you Could do and something they never did before and never repeated after. Like most of the more difficult to parse puzzles had a little slab or ghost or something being like 'hey u gotta do smth with This Thing' but this one was stone cold Figure It Out.

I felt like the Tower of Winds was one of the best levels in the game, really utilizing the fact that you got Four Guys and really putting all the previous puzzles' efforts to the test. Really good level. Followed by the Palace of Winds which was fucking dogshit and felt like a slog of running back and forth exchanging items over and over. (Also the tower of winds being a primarily side scrolling level that utilized the Gameboy adapter as the primary way to explore rooms was really well done)

Also the gerudo desert was fucking god awful. I've been through some rough levels before but I fucking HATE the 'oh u gotta pick one of three directions. Oh you chose wrong cuz it's fucking random so we're sending u back!!' like I get it's supposed to be imitating the lost woods but the lost woods has sound and visual clues, this was just At Random and fucking sucked shit oh my god.

The parts I really enjoyed were the sound design, the way it meshed alttp and Minish Cap type graphics together, and the unique puzzle solving for having four dudes in formation. Probably the best puzzle (and one I had to fucking look up the solution for cuz it was a No Clue No Tutorial Final Level puzzle) was one where u have to go into the shadow realm, pick up ur other link from the light realm and carry him across a gap from between dimensions. Exceptional puzzle love that so much, WISH THEY HAD SET UP THE TUTORIAL PROPERLY SO I COULDVE SOLVED IT cuz there was at no other point any indicator that that was a thing you could even do.

Like it felt like they were doing way too much way too late, adding in new mechanics that should have been in earlier, and then reusing the same boss over and over again. I think you fight the fuckin color coded claw mini boss like 4 times, every time it's equally as easy and annoying. Also the gohma enemies were rly annoying, having homing attacks you can't block/dodge and go way too fast, not rly challenging so much as just smth to brute force. Also it never felt like there was real skill required in combat until like, vaati's fight which even that was just timing bomb throws. (And don't get me started on how mad I am that vaati never shows up in his hottie form, he's just in his fuckin balloon monster form and I'm sad about it)

The overall vibe of the game and speed of progression felt nice, the levels that were rly enjoyable (the Village of the Blue Maiden, both Hyrule Castle segments, the Lost Woods, and Kakariko) were huge highlights, the sneaking segments especially felt like a real test of skill and cheese and I really enjoyed it even if they were a bit frustrating to fail. And the segments that were more quest oriented were really good, there's something about a looooong quest line that they did really well.

The difficulty level of this game felt... Strange. It was like they didn't know how to create a difficulty curve. Repeat enemies made things boring and too easy, but since links hp resets with each stage they backed themselves into not being able to ramp it up. Also a lot of the 'unique' (not premade) enemies were... Kinda ugly, tbh. Like not as in monsters have to be cute, but as in the quality of the pixel art was really disjointed. Honestly all of the art was like that. Some assets that were blown up u could see the fuzzy pixel anti aliasing, where as all of the particle effects were Really crisp. Like downright the best part of the game kinda crisp. I fucking LOVE the particle effects in this game, as well as the lighting as a whole it's really pretty in that regard.

Idk this game has been something I've wanted to beat since I rented it as a kid so finally getting that chance I... I don't know. It feels like most of the game (especially the later parts) I was mostly just frustrated, but when it was good it was great.

TLDR; I think I would reasonably give it a 6.5/10, it's fine, it's got some great moments but has a lot of issues that make it frustrating.

[fourswords]

in canon i accept that four swords adventures is placed after twilight princess in the child timeline because fine whatever i can't really dispute that but realistically i think four sword adventures would make a lot more fucking sense if you placed it after four swords and just had that reincarnation of ganon time travel back from the child timeline into the force era because. i mean. gesturing incoherently at the entire deal with vaati and the four sword sanctuary and oot/mm/tp happening before that AND the deal with the palace of the four swords in the fallen timeline. because yes yes i know four swords did not exist when alttp was released and this is the legend of zelda we're talking about but THEORETICALLY. given the information we have NOW. there is NO reason for the fallen timeline at that point in time and the child timeline to have. like. a differing place where the four sword rests. because if the four sword at the end of four swords is sealing vaati then. if one attempted to move or tamper with the four sword. vaati would. be released. and there is no vaati present in the fallen timeline. yes ganon was sealed into the four sword at the end of fsa but honestly that provides more of an explanation for the dark versions of the links in the palace of the four sword than anything else. if maybe that ganon's life force faded after time but his dark magic remained and contaminated the four sword to a certain degree (bolstered by the fact that the ganon of the fallen timeline was already wreaking havoc with HIS dark magic. the barrier created by the maidens around the four sword could potentially have failed in that timeline as the result of the sacred realm being turned into the dark world. so they built a palace around that bitch in the false hope that it would provide the barest minimum of protection or smth).

and that's not even getting INTO the whole mess that is oot/mm/tp (tp definitely less so but oot definitely).....like if there was an extra sword laying around that could have stopped ganondorf/ganon that was easily accessible in the four swords sanctuary. that the royal family knew about. would that not have been hypothetically easier to acquire than the master sword. even if it wasn't actually easier thanks to the barrier left behind by the maidens if you KNOW where a magic sword capable of killing/sealing away evil is and your first thought is not "let's figure out a way to get past this barrier and get this powerful magic sword that is Very Much Within Reach" but "ay yo link can you do this complicated quest to break into the sacred realm instead" (yes i know this is a video game i'm talking about and it was necessary for gaming purposes) then like. what's even happening at that point. there is no knowledge of or worry about vaati or the four sword sanctuary whatsoever. this is entirely normal on its own except when you consider the fact that four swords adventures starts with zelda + the maidens needing to check the seal on the four sword because shit started happening across hyrule and their first thought was "fuck what if it's vaati what if it's the seal." which is NOT really the first thought someone from a timeline that has seen ganon defeated twice over would think. they would be more likely to think it was ganon again. it's what someone from the force era where vaati has been a very real and present threat would think. i feel like i'm going insane i could write a thousand page thesis on this i genuinely think four swords adventures should be placed after four swords in the timeline. i do not think i can accept it as canon actually i changed my mind while writing this post