Chapter Text
Truthfully, Four was not expecting to land in an unfamiliar Hyrule when they stepped through that portal. At this point, they had all gotten used to cycling through familiar lands so getting dropped here had been a shock. Granted they learned about it after everyone else, courtesy of the portal.
Hylia, that portal was the roughest they’ve ever had the displeasure of going through. It was like they were being forcefully split apart and then smashed together, being stuffed in a body even smaller than they already were. It was no wonder they passed out the second the cursed thing spat them out, the pain was unbearable.
After waking up they’d been somewhat disoriented; They felt both like shit and like the best they’d ever felt after coming out of a portal. Vio thinks the forced nap allowed their soul to settle, settling them into their places without them awake trying to either split or pull themselves together.
They had woken up to the sound of a fight, which did not help Red’s nerves, but it was finished quickly enough. Then they’d been subjected to a feral teen, a wolf pack, and watched their brothers get used as floor wipes. Then they’d learned that what their brothers fought was a god, which everyone freaked out about. They learned that the Master Sword was practically mute right now, which was never a good thing.
And now here they were, walking into what they assumed to be the Castle Town of this era.
Immediately, their ears had honed into the repetitive clangs of a blacksmith working on a blade, and it only took a quick turn of the head for them to spot them. To the left of the entrance was a pavilion with two men under it, one of them hammering what they believed would be a sword. It was a large, burly man with a scowl on his face as he hammered at the blade while what they assumed to be his apprentice just seemed to check the forge and clean blades.
As much as they would’ve loved to go over and chat with the blacksmith, Razor and their brothers had already started walking farther into the city. Following them, they spotted a little girl with multiple flowers around her to the right of them, a woman standing primly under an enclosed canopy to their left, and further up the stairs a woman calling out to the people who walked by.
One thing that caught their attention as they walked by were the boards and signs lining the streets. At first glance, their eyes had skimmed over the letters, dismissing them as the usual strange words they had come to expect in different lands. But then Four did a double take, and the realization hit: These signs weren’t written in Hylian at all. The symbols were completely foreign — unlike anything they had ever seen in any age or version of Hyrule. Sure, language could evolve over the centuries, but… this was something else entirely.
Four couldn't shake the unease gnawing at the back of their mind as they moved on. Maybe it was just another strange dialect, they reasoned, but the thought lingered. They were still mulling it over when they passed by what looked to be a food stall. Something caught their eye—a transaction between the woman in the stall and a man. The man had opened a leather pouch and handed over a handful of… something, to the woman. Four had instinctively glanced at them, expecting to see the familiar glint of rupees. But instead what they saw were round, golden coins.
Those weren’t rupees. Not in shape, color, or design. They looked more similar to fused Golden Kinstone pieces than any currency they’ve seen, but those weren’t used as currencies.
That little piece of information — does it count as information if they just looked at it? — is even more damning than their strange, definitely not-Hylian language.
Hyrule is a land with multiple species; the main ones being Hylians, the Zora, the Gerudo, Gorons, and the Sheikah. There are smaller species that vary from time to time, like Koroks, the Rito, the Minish, and the Deku. They all have their own languages, and they also learn Hylian to communicate with other species easily. The strange language in this land could easily be explained as a local language for their species — even though this place looks like Castle Town, which should be crawling with Hylians.
The currency, on the other hand? Every species in Hyrule uses rupees, as far as they know. It’s pretty much universal; Want to buy something? Give the vendor rupees — Small, gem-looking crystals in vibrant colors.
Those are NOT small, gem-looking crystals in vibrant colors.
Just that difference sends a shock of ice down their spine. They could feel Red shrivel up at the realization that this might not be the place they believed it to be. Green was more worried about how they were supposed to pay for things. They don't have whatever they take, after all.
With that thought bouncing around four minds, Four took to speeding up to catch up with Time.
“Time,” they called, stopping next to him and lowering their voice once he turned his attention to them. “I saw someone buy food, and they’re not using rupees.”
“They’re not using rupees?” Wind's voice piped up from behind them, his worried face popping up between them. “What do you mean? What were they using?”
“I don’t know,” Four replied, their brow furrowing. “Some kind of gold coin, but it wasn’t like anything I’ve seen before.”
Time’s eye narrowed, and he cast a glance around the bustling market. “Could be a different currency,” he muttered, though his tone was uncertain. “Maybe it’s just a variation we haven’t come across yet.”
“But they’re not rupees,” Four insisted. “And the signs… they’re not in Hylian either.”
Wind bit his lip, glancing between Four and Time. “So, where are we, then? This is Hyrule, right?”
Time hesitated, his gaze sweeping over the unfamiliar market stalls and the people bustling around them. “It has to be,” he said, but from his tone Four could tell it was less to convince them and more to convince himself. “We’ll figure this out. Let’s keep moving and see what else we can find.”
With that, Time motioned to Twilight and Four took that as a sign for them to move on. They looked back in front of their group to find Razor looking at them curiously, waiting for them next to another small canopy with a weird pedestal to the right of the fountain.
Four suddenly remembered they were looking forward to a full meal when they arrived in the city, but now they had no money to do so. Given that Vio usually held the brain cell in this merged body, they figured that asking Razor might be their best bet... possibly. After all, he was a feral teen who lived in the woods, so maybe he didn’t have any of those gold coins either. But it was worth a try.
With that idea in mind, they approached the waiting teen.
“They’re going to talk for a bit,” Four started, trying to ignore the loud ‘What?!’ as Time broke the news to the others that they were effectively broke. “I noticed you guys don’t use rupees, but we were really looking forward to eating a full meal, and we don’t have any of the coins you guys are using.”
Razor stared down at them with confused, furrowed brows, pronouncing the word slowly, “Ru...peas?”
Well, duh, of course, he wouldn’t know what they were talking about if they paid with something else. Quickly, Four fished through their pockets, pulling out a small pouch and taking out a single green rupee. They extended their hand, showing it to him. “Rupee,” they clarified, hoping to jog some recognition.
Razor leaned in closer, inspecting the gem with curious eyes before shaking his head. “Not seen this before. You… pay, with this?” he asked, reaching forward to carefully take the rupee from their hand and look at it closer.
Four nodded. “We do.” They watched as Razor turned the rupee this way and that, peering through it with fascination. “Do you have one of those coins you use?” they asked.
The teen nodded quickly and rummaged through his pockets, pulling out a single gold coin with a triumphant noise. “Mora,” he called it, handing it over before returning his attention to the rupee.
Four studied the coin in their hand. It was small, fitting snugly in their palm but had a noticeable weight to it. As they had seen from afar, it was bright gold, and they wondered if it was made of pure gold as they traced its surface. The strange, almost triangular design imprinted on both sides caught their attention, and they brushed their thumb over the raised edges, lost in thought.
It was truly so interesting how different the currencies were. Less and less they could explain it away as simply a strange Hyrule if they didn’t write in hylian and didn’t use rupees.
“What do you have there?” Twilight asked, startling Four from their thoughts as he leaned in to get a better look at the little coin in their grasp.
Handing the coin over to the Rancher, Four explained, “The currency from here. They call it Mora.”
Twilight turned the coin over in his hand, studying it closely. “Mora, huh? Never heard of it before,” he murmured, passing it to Time, who examined it with a furrowed brow.
“Definitely not like any currency I’ve seen in Hyrule,” Time agreed, flipping the coin between his fingers. “If this is what they’re using, we’re going to have a hard time getting by.”
Four nodded, a frown creasing their forehead. “We might need to find a way to get more of these. If we want to eat, we’ll need Mora.”
Wind, always quick to see the bright side, piped up, “Maybe we can trade some of our stuff for it? I mean, that rupee got Razor’s attention, didn’t it?”
Razor perked up upon hearing his name, suddenly noticing he’d been staring at the rupee and sheepishly handing it back to Four.
They considered this, their mind racing. “It’s a start, but we’ll need a lot more than just a few rupees worth. If we’re really stuck here, we’ll need to figure out how to get Mora regularly. Maybe odd jobs, or… we could sell some of our gear.”
Warriors, who had gotten closer, frowned at the thought. “We’ll have to be careful with that. We might need everything we have if this place is as dangerous as Hyrule.”
Time nodded thoughtfully. “Let’s keep that as a last resort. First, we should gather more information. We need to understand where we are and what we’re up against.”
“So,” came Razor’s voice, “you are… lost?”
They should have guessed he would listen in. Not like they were trying too hard to keep him out of it.
But he got the right idea. They exchanged glances and nodded. “I can help,” Razor offered earnestly.
“You can help,” Wild echoed, a smile tugging at his lips.
And he could. Just having Razor with them made them look less suspicious—a group of armored strangers in a foreign land.
Warriors glanced back toward where they had come from. “Let’s start with the market. We can see what people are buying and selling, maybe even learn a thing or two about this place.”
With that, the group retraced their steps into the bustling market.
But as they walked, Four couldn’t ignore the growing sense of unease. The signs, the currency, the rounded ears of the people around them — it all started to click into place. This wasn’t just some distant part of Hyrule they’d never seen before.
No, the truth was undeniable.
This isn’t Hyrule.
With those words ringing in everyone’s mind, they all failed to notice the flash of blue hair pulling away from the railing above them.