Chapter Text
“I'll never forget those eyes, that beautiful smile. I still remember the way you said good-bye; no matter how hard I try I can't forget about…Beautiful girl, on top of the world. Don't fall down, because an angel should never touch ground.” - Beautiful Girl, Broken Iris
The second Ruta’s lights turned red, Dorephan’s heart stopped. He’d seen Ruta when she was first excavated; no light at all. A dead thing. He’d seen how she lit up, shining blue, as soon as Mipha approached.
And now this. He’d never seen this before.
All around them, Hyrule burned.
The sky was red. Despite the mid-day hour, the moon rose in the sky, red as blood. The clouds were black. The very air smelled of sulphur and the weather was unlike anything he’d seen in all his long years: a raging hurricane one moment, shards of ice falling from the sky the next. He could see smoke and fire on the horizon. Monsters roamed in great hoards, more monsters than he’d ever seen. Fires raged, river banks burst. His knights reported the village downstream from the Domain had flooded and they hadn’t located any Hylian survivors.
When he desperately ordered his best soldiers to rescue Mipha, only Seggin returned, battered and burned.
“My king.” Seggin dropped to one knee. Out of protocol or sheer exhaustion, Dorephan couldn’t be sure. “We- we couldn’t- Ruta attacked, I’ve never seen anything like this.”
All the while, Ruta bellowed. She sounded in pain. Her shield, so rarely used, flickered to life and died again. She jerked from side to side. Her trunk rose in slow, awkward movements and suddenly slashed down, creating huge waves all across the dam.
Sidon, cradled safely in Dorephan’s arms, stared towards the East Reservoir with wide eyes.
Seggin continued his report: Ruta had lashed out with her lasers, swung with her trunk, stomped with her mighty feet. Her lights had briefly flashed blue and she’d calmed, before the lights turned red again and the chaos continued.
No, Dorephan thought. No, no, no. Not Mipha. Surely not my jewel. Any moment now, Mipha would run into the throne room and apologise for worrying him. She’d scoop Sidon up into a hug and laugh. She’d demand news of Link and rain down hellfire on anyone who dared tell her not to worry about her husband.
Link. Jabu-Jabu save them, that boy was fighting this disaster alone. Had Princess Zelda unlocked her powers? What of the other Divine Beasts? Something had happened to Vah Ruta, something had driven her out of control. Had the same thing happened to the other Divine Beasts?
Mipha was not lost to them, she could not be lost to them. Nor was Link. That boy had been fighting since he was four-years-old. Any moment now, any moment now, the world would right itself. The Calamity would cease and his family would be safe.
Then came the report that the Guardians were killing anything and anyone in sight.
They were glowing red. Just like Ruta.
Muzu let out a small, horrified noise. Sidon stared desperately at Dorephan, silently begging him to make things better.
But Dorephan knew, he knew; this was the work of Calamity Ganon. He’d turned their very own protectors against them.
That first day passed slowly and yet so quickly too. It was a blur. Trello reported the other Divine Beasts had fallen. The Champions were all trapped inside. A great number of Gorons had been killed trying to rescue Daruk. Urbosa’s little sister had to practically be held down and forced to stay away from Naboris. Desperate to save her sister, Lady Dara had tried to lead the charge to rescue Urbosa herself. Medoh was shooting lasers at anyone who came near; the Rito elder, who’d raised Revali since he was little more than a chick, fell in his attempt to rescue the boy.
There was still no news of Link and Zelda.
“Find him,” Dorephan ordered as the sun rose. He turned to Trello and Seggin, eyes blazing. “Find my son and bring him home. Protect your prince.”
Trello and Seggin bowed. Seggin, too injured to join the search, barked orders at the knights and rapidly came up with plans. Trello led the charge; they could only send a small group, but there was no shortage of volunteers.
For all that the older Zora had been shocked at Mipha and Link’s relationship, they were zealous for Link’s safety now. He made their princess happy. He was kind to their children and trained with their soldiers like any other knight. And, as Muzu once quipped, this meant the Zora now technically had two Champions. It had made Mipha giggle and Link had only shrugged with a faint smile. All the same, that one little quip became a point of pride among the Zora: they had Princess Mipha, wielder of the Lightscale Trident, the best healer in hundreds of years…And, after their marriage, they had Link. Hylia’s Chosen, wielder of the sword that seals the darkness, a prodigy in battle.
“And a great cook,” Bazz would always add.
More soldiers rushed to the reservoir, wary eyes on Ruta. As that second day wore on, the Divine Beast’s thrashing stopped. With one last roar, she stopped. She stood in the middle of the reservoir, glowing red as the terrible moon above them.
All the while, that unnatural storms raged.
All around them, their land burned.
It took two days for news to arrive. Trello and his group of soldiers returned with a surprising guest: Lady Impa of the Sheikah, followed by three guards.
The rain had stopped, but the wind hadn’t. The red moon vanished but the clouds were still black. The smell of sulphur was gone, replaced by smoke, blood and death. It was hardly any better.
Vah Ruta stood in a terrible vigil. Mipha had not returned.
Link was not with Trello, nor was he with the Sheikah.
Lady Impa, always a stubborn, earnest and dignified young woman, had clearly been weeping. Zelda was not with her either. It was strange not to see her at the princess’s side.
She looked at Dorephan and her eyes watered. She looked at Sidon and quickly looked away again.
“I’m sorry,” she said hoarsely.
Muzu inhaled sharply, more like a hiss. Dorephan clenched his fists and tried to steady his racing heart.
“Where is Link?” he asked. Sidon looked up, peering around the soldiers and Sheikah guards, like he expected Link to be hiding behind them.
“There was…A great battle at Fort Hateno,” Impa said haltingly. “Link…The Princess, Zelda, she- she told me he’d already been hurt on the journey there. They were chased by Guardians and monsters the whole way. And Blatherchy Plain, it was…” She swallowed heavily. Dorephan hardly dared to breathe. “It was swarmed with Guardians, Your Majesty. The Master Sword was damaged, Link was…His wounds were…Fatal, Your Majesty.”
Dorephan ceased to hear her. Mipha, dead. Link, dead. The Calamity raged, the world was ending and two of his children were gone.
There was a great ringing in his ears. The room spun. All he could do was sit there and try to breathe. This wasn’t real. This wasn’t happening. He’d blink and wake up. He’d go to breakfast and hold Mipha close. He’d smile at Link and get that rare, lovely smile back. He’d sit with his family in peace and watch them all proudly.
Because they weren’t dead. This wasn’t happening. It wasn’t. This was all some dreadful nightmare…
But then he felt Sidon’s tiny hand on top of his. He heard his son’s uncertain whimper.
Reality slowly came back. This was a nightmare, but it was real.
“All hope isn’t lost,” Impa was saying desperately and Dorephan slowly returned to the present, as the ringing left his ears. Muzu was shouting.
“How could you possibly say that!?” his dear friend demanded. His breathing was raspy, he was on the verge of tears. He pointed at Impa accusingly “This is your doing, you and your people! Your technology has done this! Our princess is trapped, our prince is dead. Hyrule is destroyed and your princess couldn’t even use her powers as she should have!”
“Don’t you dare talk about her like that!” Impa shouted, moved from desperation to rage. “And Link will return!”
“In another lifetime, maybe, when the Hero’s Soul reincarnates!”
“He’s in the Shrine of Resurrection!” Impa screamed, right in Muzu’s face. “He will return. Princess Zelda is holding back the Calamity as we speak. Didn’t you notice the change? Her powers have awoken, she’s gone to Hyrule Castle.”
Shocked silence reigned. Trello looked uneasy. Dorephan had never seen the man look so unsure.
Dorephan felt sick. The thought of Zelda, freshly seventeen, facing down the greatest horror in the world all alone, made him want to weep. The thought of his son-in-law, his dear Link, lying dead in some field made him want to break down entirely.
“Shrine of Resurrection?” Dorephan could hear how weak his voice was. “What is that?”
Impa stepped back, her shoulders slumping again. She was such a young woman, but she looked old. Old and exhausted.
Dorephan quite knew the feeling.
“It’s…A little hard to explain,” Impa said. “My sister would know more. But it’s an ancient shrine; Robbie and some of the others found it hidden on the Great Plateau. It’s meant to heal any injury, no matter how grevious. Given enough time, it can bring the dead back to life.”
Relief crashed into him like a tidal wave. Tears stinging his eyes, he pulled Sidon onto his lap and held his son close, one giant hand covering the child. Link was not lost to them. And, perhaps, if they could rescue Mipha from Ruta…Perhaps they could even bring her to this mysterious shrine too. All was not lost. There was still a chance, they could still-
“However…” Impa looked uncertain. She looked guilty.
“What?” Dorephan asked, more sharply than he intended.
“The records of the shrine were woefully incomplete,” Impa admitted in a rush. She spoke faster and faster, as if to get it over with. “We can’t be sure if there will be side-effects. We don’t know how long it will take Link to wake up.”
“Side-effects?” Muzu asked sharply. Even Impa’s guards looked nervous.
Impa sighed. To her credit, she met Dorephan’s gaze and she continued; “The records were missing much information. We don’t even know for sure if the shrine was used successfully before. But the records were clear on one thing: there is a high chance that the Slumber of Restoration will deprive Link of his memories completely.”
For a moment, Dorephan was sure he’d misheard. His memories? His memories? That couldn’t be right. He tried to imagine a Link who didn’t remember Mipha. He tried to imagine Link looking at him with blank, dead eyes. He tried to imagine Link not smiling at Sidon.
Link, not proudly talking about his little sister, Aryll. Link, not mimicking Revali when his back was turned. Link, not laughing at Bazz and Rivan’s theatrics. Link, not even remembering Zelda.
Link, not knowing and loving Mipha.
It was impossible. It made no sense.
“No,” Dorephan said, but Impa only looked at him sadly.
“So you have killed him twice,” Muzu said bitterly. “Vah Ruta has trapped Princess Mipha. Your Guardians killed Prince Link and now your shrine will take him from us all over again.”
“Princess Zelda left the Sheikah slate with him,” Impa said. “We believe that, if his memories are lost, there’s enough information on there to help trigger them again.”
“And why should we trust your princess’s plan?” Trello suddenly demanded, breaking his silence and slamming his spear on the ground. “She failed.”
Impa drew herself up, eyes sparking. “Don’t you ever-”
“That’s enough,” Dorephan said heavily. Sidon was clinging to him and Dorephan leaned heavily against the back of the throne. “All of you, leave us. Muzu, take Sidon. I would speak with Lady Impa alone.”
Muzu protested. Loudly. One warning glare was enough to silence him. Trello’s soldiers were rough with Impa’s guards as they escorted them out. Muzu carried Sidon, murmuring gently as the child began to cry, asking for Mipha, demanding to know when Link would wake up.
In moments, they were alone. Just Dorephan and Impa, staring at each other tiredly.
The journey to the Domain could not have been an easy one. The road was all but destroyed and there were so many monsters.
“Once the roads are safe enough,” Dorephan said. “I will have a group of knights guard the Great Plateau. I will not allow my son to wake alone.”
“Your Majesty-”
“I am not asking permission, Lady Impa. I am merely informing you.”
“It’s not safe,” Impa argued. “If Ganon realises that he lives, he won’t stop until he destroys the entire Plateau.”
“And if he realises while Link is all alone?” Dorephan leaned forward, holding Impa’s nervous gaze. “He is my family. Beloved of my dear daughter. Beloved by me. I will not leave him alone.”
Impa swallowed. She nodded.
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty,” she said quietly. “For everything. For your losses.”
Dorephan sighed. He felt chained down by sheer exhaustion. He couldn’t imagine ever rising from his throne again. He couldn’t imagine tomorrow, or the day after. He couldn’t imagine a future at all.
But Dorephan was not Muzu. He was not one to lay blame at the feet of an innocent. None of this was Impa’s doing.
“For whatever it’s worth,” he said. “I’m sorry for your losses too. Now…What exactly is Zelda’s plan?”
Thus began the Age of Burning Fields. Reports trickled in; reports of great armies of monsters; entire villages, towns and cities destroyed. Akkala Citadel fell the day after Dorephan met with Impa. Death Mountain continued to erupt. Landscapes were torn apart; rivers changed their courses, entire forests were ripped up by their roots. Fires raged all over the land, utterly out of control. Lurelin village was nearly washed away. Dueling Peaks stable was little more than a pile of ashes and charred wood. Fort Hateno just barely stayed standing. According to eye-witnesses, that was largely thanks to Link.
Despite everything, Dorephan felt a flicker of pride when he heard that.
At the end of the month, the moon turned red at midnight. Smoke rose from the ground, embers sparked in the sky and sulphur burned Dorephan’s nose. Within the hour, an exhausted Trello reported that the monster den they’d slain that day was suddenly repopulated.
Similar reports came in. Within two weeks, the moon turned red again and the same reports reached Zora’s Domain. People quickly began to call it the blood moon. Somehow, for some reason, when it rose, slain monsters returned to life.
It didn’t matter how many monsters they killed, how many monster dens they destroyed. At some point (and they could never be quite sure when), the blood moon would rise and undo all their work. An eternal stalemate.
It was an exhausting prospect.
Castle Town was destroyed, swamped in dark, gloomy air and covered in patches of a strange substance called malice. Guardians roamed the ruined streets freely. The Calamity twisted around Hyrule Castle like some warped dragon, a cloud of red and black. And, at its heart, where the throne room used to be, was a flicker of golden light.
Princess Zelda, trapping Ganon within the castle. Holding the worst of his powers at bay.
Of course Dorephan was grateful. He added the poor child to his prayers, hoping for her safety and success with all his heart.
Not many Zora shared that opinion. Like Muzu, many of the adults and elderly blamed the Sheikah, Zelda and Rhoam for the destruction they faced and their heavy losses. Every day, Zoras gathered at the reservoir to watch Ruta. There were three more rescue attempts with more loss of life, before Dorephan was forced to call them off. They couldn’t afford more losses.
Mipha, forgive me, he thought desperately. He looked at the Lightscale Trident, Mipha’s beloved weapon and finally allowed himself to break down and cry in the privacy of his chambers.
Muzu insisted Mipha was merely trapped, but Dorephan knew. His daughter was gone. Gods help him, but he couldn’t save her. He couldn’t protect her.
He could not send more soldiers and knights on such a suicide mission.
Mipha could not be saved, but Sidon still needed him. One day, Link would wake up and be expected to fix all of this. Eventually, Hyrule would look to Link, the weight of the world on his slight shoulders, and they’d watch every move he made all over again.
They’d be back where they started; expected a teenager to save the world.
Dorephan had to be ready. He had to plan.
He would not let Link do this alone.
It took a whole year for the road leading from Zora’s Domain to be safe enough for travel. It was still shattered, still uneasy, but almost free of monsters. Most of them had moved on, looking for more populous areas; more prey to hunt.
Trello marched right into the throne room, head held high.
“I volunteer to guard the Great Plateau, Your Majesty,” he said. “It would be an honour to defend Prince Link and bring him home.”
They did not know when Link would awaken. It could take a hundred years or more. By the time he woke, Trello might not be in any fit state to guard him. All the same, he was steadfast, determined. For all they knew, Link could wake up next week.
He’d need help. He’d need a guide. Someone needed to bring him home.
Dorephan gladly accepted. Trello was swiftly joined by more volunteers. Bazz and Rivan were among the loudest. Trello didn’t look thrilled by the prospect of letting his son accompany him into the wilds of Hyrule, but Rivan would not be turned away.
“Go with my blessing,” Dorephan said. “May the gods smile upon you.”
How was he to know his plan of a guard couldn’t last forever?
Another year passed. They tried to send Mipha’s trident down the river as a memorial and a miracle occurred- Mipha spoke to them all, loud and clear.
“No,” she said. “Do not. Please, you must not lose yourselves to grief. Weep when you must, but learn to live again. Do not mourn me forever. Just promise to remember.”
Muzu looked like he was about to faint. Kodah began to cry. Gaddison leaned heavily on her spear, eyes wide.
“Mipha?” Sidon whispered, looking all around him.
“I’m always with you,” Mipha continued. “Be at peace.”
Dorephan didn’t even realise he was crying until Kapson gently patted his back and murmured, “She’s a brave girl, Your Majesty.”
Indeed she was. His Mipha, always strong and brave. Always loving and kind. One of the brightest stars of Dorephan’s life.
She was right. They couldn’t mourn forever. They had to move on.
That very evening, Dorephan began the plan for the Champion’s Festival, in honour of Mipha and Link. At the end of the week, young Ledo approached with a sketch for a statue of Mipha and Link, looking shy but determined as he proposed his idea.
It was a beautiful design. Exactly what the Domain needed.
Construction began right away.
Years passed. Sidon grew into a bright young man, beloved by all. Gracious, but he even had a fanclub (something that got a laugh from Dorephan.) Lady Yona and her family visited, braving the dangers of the wilds, to pay their respects and offer aid. They were, as far as Dorephan knew, the only people to visit from outside Hyrule. The rest of the world seemed determined to forget them.
When ninety years passed, Trello reluctantly retired at last. Rivan and his daughter took over guarding the Great Zora Bridge. Bazz, captain of the guard, took over guarding the Great Plateau when he could and arranged the soldiers who'd guard it in his absense.
But then, after one hundred years, disaster struck yet again.
Monster numbers rose. The roads and cliffs surrounding Zora’s Domain turned treacherous once again. Vah Ruta bellowed and began to spew water…And more water…And more water and it didn’t stop.
Hyrule field, always incredibly dangerous, got even worse. Monsters joined the Guardians; they received more and more news of young adventurers meeting terrible ends in the field. The Great Plateau had been inaccessible since the Calamity struck, caving in the entrance, but now monsters moved into the Outpost Ruins. The blood moon seemed more frequent.
Zelda can’t hold on forever, Dorephan thought with rising dread. As another knight returned from his post at the Plateau with horrible wounds, Dorephan had to make a decision that weighed heavily on his heart.
Link, my boy, I’m so sorry, he thought. He could only pray Link would find his way home.
Choking on his words like the poison they were, Dorephan ordered Bazz and the others to return home.
The words had barely left his mouth when Ruta bellowed again and the constant rains fell even heavier.
It was hard not to see it as an omen.