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legend-of-binkus · 3 years ago

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The Master Sword of the Downfall Timeline

As promised in my last post, here it is! My little deep dive into Legends sword and how I think it will affect the story going forward.

(Also, I loved reading everyones thoughts on that post. Thank you so much for sharing!)

(art is from Nintendo Player's Guide (SNES) for A Link to the Past, pg 17. AND Jojo's LU comic, Divine Dark Reflections pt7)

Sorry this took a little longer then planned, but I came across some new interesting details while researching this and it took me a bit longer to compile my thoughts.

Let’s quickly start off by discussing some points that were brought up by others on my last post.

Is it possible for two Master Swords to coexist in the LU?

YES. In fact it's happened in canon before!

“At the end of Skyward Sword, because of the time travel involved, the Goddess Sword and Master Sword exist simultaneously. The Master Sword is within the Sealed Temple while the Goddess Sword is up in Skyloft.” —https://zelda.fandom.com/wiki/Master_Sword

Is the Spirit of the sword still in Legends sword?

Again, I would say yes. Not only is this supported by the Tempered Sword glowing in response to the Master Sword after Legend regains his human form, but also if BotW is the ending point for all the timelines then that means the spirit of the sword lives on, as it's HEAVILY implied that Fi is the one who tells Zelda that Wild can be saved.

—

Ok, now let's jump into the predictions and theory!

First, gotta start off with some context.

This actually all began when I came across this old quote from Jojo while making my The Chains Secrets post (and my thoughts just kind of spiraled from there...)

“they know a Hero before failed, it’s nothing personal to them, it’s simply the world as they know it. But it gives weight to their responsibility seeing as the Hero of Hyrule’s home is still suffering the consequences. but this did give me some good ideas so Thanks for this Q!”

This quote is regarding Hyrule and Legend’s knowledge of the death of a previous hero. They haven’t mentioned it yet to the others (and I highly doubt they realize that the Hero who died was an alternate version of Time), but it’s not like it’s never crossed their minds… for instance, I bet you anything that when Twi was discussing the Master Sword with Legend that the thought of the previous hero’s fate crossed Legend's mind.

It’s a small but important detail. Legend is aware of the fate that met the hero before him, but hasn’t said anything about it yet. I’m not entirely sure why, but I can see how this knowledge would weigh heavy on him.

So how does this relate to Legend's version of the Master Sword?

Strap in, we're diving into a lot of lore!

As I delved further into research for this theory I noticed something very peculiar about the Master Sword in ALttP that I have never noticed before.

The Master Sword changes forms when pulled from the pedestal.

Now you might be thinking, Binkus, come on... the developers had to simplify the sword cuz originally it was like the size of the player. And yeah... true. BUT while looking into official art for the game I noticed that the sword is also depicted in two different ways from when it's resting in its pedestal VS Link wielding it. Take a look.

See how the sword is depicted in the pedestal in comparison to outside of it? Even the box art and the games title screen feature the two different versions of the sword.

To my knowledge, there's no in-game explanation for this. It just happens.

(quick side note... I am once again floored by Jojo's attention to detail here! She took elements from various depictions of the Master Sword when designing her version of the sword that Legend finds. There's the shape and coloring of the modern depiction of the sword, the lack of a spike on the on the cross-guard and the different rain-guard on the ALttP version of the sword in the pedestal, plus the cloth/leather wrapping from the golden hilt version. Just amazing.)

Now, it's not unheard of for the Master Sword to take on different forms. It has slight variations in all the games it appears in, with the largest changes to its design happening in Skyward Sword, Wind Waker, and (of course) A Link to the Past.

Ok... but why? Why change forms upon being pulled out of the pedestal? And specifically why change to look so beat up? Is this the swords true form? The sword in the art with the golden/orange hilt isn't looking it's best. Just look at the sword on the box art for the game, it's all dinged-up.

(This is probably why Legend tempers the Master Sword in the first place)

But you know, Legends Master Sword reminds me of another— the Master Sword from BotW. Specifically it's depiction in the final memory.

During that last battle, Wild is dying and the state of the sword reflects that. He wasn’t suddenly struck down with a surprise killing blow. He was struggling to even stand and was running only on adrenaline and determination to protect Zelda. The moment she accesses her powers and saves them he just collapses.

Zelda's dialogue in the game also implies there's a connection between sword and master.

“We pray for your protection, and we hope that… that the two of you will grow stronger together, as one.” — Zelda (Breath of the Wild)

So it seems that if the sword's master dies, there's a negative impact on the Master Sword itself.

Even though Wild was brought back through the Shrine of Resurrection, the Master Sword is definitely not in the best of shape and constantly breaks (and the BotW 2 trailers further support this with the sorry state of the sword in those previews)

Now, remember what happened to the swords previous master before Legend?

He died...

And the Master Sword's true state after being pulled from the pedestal in ALttP reflects this.

Legend inherited the burden of a suffering kingdom and a dilapidated sword mourning for its lost master.

"Thank you, Master Link. May we meet again in another life…" — Fi (Skyward Sword)

Time was only the swords second wielder— Fi finally got to meet her master again, however this time he was only a child. The spirit of the sword probably did what it thought was best by putting a young Time into a seven year sleep, but unfortunately we know that decision didn't turn out too well in any timeline...

One he's essentially erased from and Ganondorf returns, another he regains his lost time but dies full of regrets, and the last (which Legend is a part of) he dies fighting Ganon.

Maybe it would have actually been worse if the sword had never put him to sleep, but we'll never truly know...

Ok, so where can this take the story in regards to LU?

Well... there's two character's in particular that I've already mentioned that I believe could be impacted by both Legend and his version of the Master Sword; Wild and Time.

And perhaps part of the reason Legend has yet to mention the nature of his sword is just for story telling purposes. You know...for the ✨DRAMA✨

I've touched on Wild's complicated feelings towards the sword in a previous theory, and we know that he's currently struggling under crushing guilt at the moment.

Legend is probably not someone's first choice when seeking out comfort, but I believe Legend's unique experiences could help him understand what Wild is going through. Legend knows that Wild is not the only Hero to die. He knows what it's like to not be able to save everyone you care about. He knows what it's like to wield a battered sword. He knows what it's like trying to save a barren land. He knows that none of what happened was Wild's fault, and that the blame falls solely on Ganon.

I'd love to see these two have an interaction where they open up about their experiences.

With Time, I ponder the possibility of his views on the Master Sword changing slightly. Or maybe just healing the spirit of Legend's sword. He would never willingly use the sword that Sky currently carries, but imagine a circumstance where he unknowingly takes up Legend's blade, and he wields the sword that has been mourning his death for centuries. This could be an interesting way for everyone to find out more about their weird timeline split. (plus Time finding out he died in one of them is delicious drama/angst)

Having said that however... Seeing how the Hero before Twi (AKA Time) left the sword in perfect condition in the woods where he grew up PLUS the fact that the Hero's Shade carries the Master Sword's scabbard when teaching the 5th Hidden Skill leads me to believe that Time's feelings towards the sword may soften up a bit.

I'm leaning more towards the Legend & Wild interaction theory more so then the Time & Legend's Sword theory, BUT let me know your thoughts! I always love to hear them.

Also, if you like my long rambling then feel free to check out my other LU Theories!

Thanks again to everyone who read up to this point! You're the real Heroes! <3

#linked universe #linkeduniverse #lu legend #lu theory #thanks for letting me ramble!#i stayed up way too late writing this...#probably ton of typos #meh #i'll fix it later

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