Threads of Destiny

Chapter 6

The ground was wet, with every step I could feel it pulling on my boots, yet it hadn't rained recently. There was a certain feeling of wrongness in the air, and a foul smell in the wind. We had received a call for aid and made to ride out here at best speed, even now my legs were chafed. The knights around me were all likewise feeling uneasy. The fields were bare, crops unattended, not an animal in sight; not even a single bird. The village would be just over the hill, and then they would see what was going on here. How I know this, I'm not sure, too many crazy dreams lately.

It unsettled me greatly that they hadn't come across a single soul; this was supposed to be a large agricultural village, well known for its fine crops and mead. Traders and caravans would travel to and fro all year round. But having not seen a single living thing on the road was worrisome. Could they have suffered a bandit attack? Possibly, but this town had well trained guards to protect it, not to mention its sturdy walls, unlikely. Couldn't have been an army, surely they would have been spotted trying to cross the borders, another unsettling thought.

With a quick order one of the knights went to go scout further ahead, riding a four legged beast of burden, we all had one. I had gotten off of mine for a while to let her rest, and to stretch my own legs. The animal huffed, unsettled and quite frankly I felt the same, I mounted the beast and the rest of the knights slowly began to form up around me as we continued. The air was thick and heavy with a foul smell, not of smoke or fire, but of almost of fear and sorrow. The sky was hidden beyond the clouds; it might finally rain, for the first time in days. The sound of the mud beneath our hooves was unsettling.

The scout was at the top of the hill, he looked frozen in place. Needing answers I urged forward to close the distance between us. The animal was not pleased; she voiced her discontent as we trudged up the last of the hill. I wish I listened to her. The buildings surrounding the stone walls of the village were all in rubble. Whatever had caused this was not fire; the buildings were not burned as much as they were shattered, as if a giant brought it down with a mighty hammer. All the idle chatter among our group died as we saw the carnage before us. Silently we all rode down the hill, double time. Perhaps the village interior was safe?

If the splintered shattered remains of the thick wooden gate were anything to go by, our hopes were dashed and crushed right before our eyes. Taking care as we entered the village we saw signs of battle, burned structures, arrows protruding from the ground and wooden barricades, quickly made fortifications haphazardly and quickly thrown together, all smashed to pieces. What on in the world had happened here. Most unsettling, there were no bodies, no remains of any kind. The deeper they ventured, the more powerful that feeling of wrongness became; it was as if the land itself was crying out in agony. Hooves echoed off of the cobblestone pavement, the only sound for leagues, even the wind had fallen silent. It was the same, all the same the further we went. Nothing just ruins, not a soul, not even a body.

I felt my heart stop as we came to the village center. There upon the great tree, was where the villagers were, at least what was left of them. The large trees were scattered across the land, legend has it that the Goddess Farore had planted the trees herself back when the world had been created. Whoever Farore was, but despite myself that name feels eerily familiar, like on the tip of my memory…

But this sacred tree, it was desecrated. Desecrated by the remains of every man, woman, and child that lived within this area. Their bodies were embedded onto its trunk with weapons, tools, whatever it seemed whatever monstrosity attacked this place could find. Those that could not be embedded were hung from the branches. Most of the bodies were partially eaten or rotting, blood pooled around the roots of the tree, forever staining the soil. Not a shred of bark could be seen. The smell was awful, and the feeling in the atmosphere felt as though it was sorrow manifest. This land had been cursed, desecrated and then destroyed, hundreds slaughtered their souls left to wander and suffer as the earth itself wept.

It was too much. I felt my innards twist at the sight as I emptied the bile in my stomach. I wasn't the only one. It's a sight I wish a never saw, a sight that will haunt me forever, what kind of dream is this? We quickly talked among ourselves, they said words, but the more I tried to focus on them, the more they just sounded like whispers in the wind. Most of the knights went to scour what was left of the village, hoping against a hope to find someone, anyone who could have survived. The rest of us, decided to try and ease the souls of the departed as best we could. Gathering as much dry lumber as we could we set it at the base of the tree to make a pyre. There was plenty of wood to be found, but every time I drew near the base, the air felt heavy as if the spirit of the earth itself was grasping at my tunic, pleading for reprieve.

And reprieve we would grant it. It was sacrilege to burn the sacred trees, they were supposed to keep the lands clean and fertile for growing, but in this case… If left unattended to, the cursed tree would fester and rot, and the land would forever inhospitable.

The search party returned nearly an hour later; we were almost finished with the pyre. There was a lone survivor, a small child, couldn't have been older than three. They had found him buried underneath a small shed along the wall in a cucco pin. His leg was obviously broken, when we gave him a healing potion we had from my saddle bag, we carefully eased him into a makeshift splint until the medicinal herbs could work their magic.

A shiekah, one who was one of my closest friends, and stalwart companions handed me a torch. It was time. I took the torch, and with the child in one arm, now mostly healed from the injuries he had, no doubt still harboring more, and the fire in the other I walked up to the tree. I said a quick prayer for all the lost souls, for the village, for the land, for the very essence of the earth that cried out in anguish for a reprieve, and then I granted it. Tossing the fire into the pyre I turned and mounted my beast of burden as my companions had already done.

Turning back I saw the fire soar through the bodies and the wood. The raging inferno's flames raced and danced providing the only warmth in this now dark cold place. The gusts of hot air carried the embers, dancing among the stillness of the plaza, as if the spirits trapped here gave one final dance as they finally found rest. The oppressive feeling of sorrow still lingered, but I could feel it lessening, little by little as the fires burned. But despite it all, I felt worthless, there was nothing I could do for them, I was too late.

We couldn't stay here, none of us wanted to stay here. The fires would spread, we made sure of it. Burn the whole place to the ground and burn out what ever evil had happened here, keep it from festering and let the lost sleep eternal. As we rode back to the top of the hill from which we first arrived, I gazed back at the now burning ruins. It was getting late, the light would soon fade, and we had a long road ahead of us. A flicker of movement caught my eye.

There, less than a league away, beyond the remnants of a farm, strode a massive boar, clad in leathers. On its back was a large bulbous creature with massive horns protruding from its head. Even from such a far distance I could see the creatures face, the glee in its eyes as it noticed we finally spotted it. Was this creature the cause of such a horrific scene? Did it take pleasure in this? It appeared to laugh at us before brandishing the crude halberd from its back and descended from our eye sight.

The child in my arms groaned snapping me back to reality. We needed to move, and move we did. We galloped full speed back home, all through the night, and the day after that. We didn't stop once.

Why do I keep having these dreams?

Zelda didn't even realize she was crying until she noticed one of the tears hit the page. Snapping to her senses she quickly wiped it dry, closed the book and put it where she had first found it, taking care to remove any noticeable traces of her touching it. 'Goddess Link,' she thought to herself. In a way, while the image she had read was mortifying, she couldn't help but think that maybe there was more to the dream than Link thought. After all, recently she's been having strange dreams too. But it begged the question, why?

Getting up from Link's desk she clapped her cheeks to try and shake the image from her mind. 'No wonder he's been so tired recently, who could sleep after that?' She plopped down on his bed, the springs creaking beneath her. She had noticed that he had been sleeping lighter, well excluding yesterday; it was probably the best sleep he got in days. The thought was troubling. "How long has this been happening?" She wondered out loud.

With another shake of her head to clear her thoughts she got up and began rummaging through her basket for the heart flowers she had picked earlier. Taking them she began removing the fruity heart shaped bulbs. They were soft, but firm, similar to watermelons in the summer. She was lucky to find some ripe ones. Heart flowers were hard enough to find as it was. She set the fruits in a bowl on the table and decided to start sketching sailcloth designs as she waited for her clumsy Link to return.

It was maybe an hour later, she wasn't really paying attention when he did return. Opening the door to reveal a still slightly wet Link; his clothes clinging to his frame Zelda was only just able to avoid staring. Link on the other hand didn't even seem remotely surprised to find her in his room, granted this wasn't exactly uncommon, still.

"Hey Zel, sorry it took me so long," Link said as he closed his door, his messy dirty blond hair a wet mess. "I was trying to wash these as best I could, but, I'm sorry."

He handed her the ribbons and handkerchief she'd used to hastily bandage his arm. She honestly wasn't expecting to get them back; he even took the time to wash them. Sometimes he was sweeter than the flowers. "Thanks Link," she said with a sweet smile, taking the fabrics back. He even let them dry. She tied her hair back again now that she had her ribbons back, the cascading golden bangs no longer obstructing her vision. "I found some heart flowers, they should help with your cut," she said gesturing to the bowl.

With a smile Link sat down and took one, tossing it to her before taking one for his self. In an awkward position Zelda squeaked as she nearly fumbled the fruit. Finally getting a good hold of it she hid her embarrassed face behind the fruit while Link chuckled at her expense.

"I picked these for you, you know!" she protested. Despite herself she sat up and took a bite anyway.

"Yea I know, but I don't know about you, but I'm starving, and I know you probably skipped breakfast too, Link retorted, his mouth full.

"I might have," she agreed. Goddess these fruits were amazing. It was no small wonder they were so popular. Some farms were dedicated to growing the flowers instead of regular crops. "In my defense, I was worried you might have overslept," she inwardly immediately regretted her words. She saw his eyes flash with… fear. Not a look she was used to seeing on him. And the bags under his eyes were telling. This had been going on for a while now. How had she not noticed before?

"I couldn't get much sleep," he said quietly. "Too anxious for that fight," he tried to cover it up. She let it go, and despite her best attempts to feign ignorance, she knew that he could tell she didn't believe it. "So, what's up with the basket? Got a new project?" he shifted the topic.

"Oh!" she exclaimed clapping her hands together. "So guess what, when I went to go see my father about why Gross, Cawlin, and Stritch made the cut for the race and I didn't," she started; Link chuckled at their long time nickname for Groose. "Well, it turns out," she started getting bashful. "They wanted me to play the role of the goddess in the ceremony."

"Really? That's great Zel! Congrats!" Link was sure she'd make a great goddess, she was kind, sweet, and beautiful, she was the goddess of his world. She nodded.

"Thanks!" she beamed. "But tradition says that I have to make the sailcloth myself, so I thought it'd put my heart and soul into it! After all, I know you're going to win the race," she admitted shyly. Link blushed at her confidence in him. "So promise me, promise me you'll win the race? So that we can complete the ceremony together," her eyes pleaded with his.

"Absolutely, will win no matter what," Link promised. His words reassuring her.

She smiled gratefully back up at him. "You never break your promises," she answered.

"Never have, never will," Link gloated. "Now come on, let's go get some real food," he said getting up. As he turned he picked up the betroval belt and slipped it on. Zelda couldn't help but blush behind him. So what if she broke tradition a little? No way was she about to let some other girl get their hands on her Link, especially Peatrice. Zelda knew the other girl was pining after him and she'd rather not have any rivals. So, so what if she basically declared them engaged with the belt, he didn't know that, and after an awful long earful her father relented as well, there were "rules" he established, but he approved in the end. Zelda mentally thanked her mother a million times that night. Besides, what Link didn't know didn't hurt him.

Leaving her basket to come back to later Zelda leaped up behind him, straightening out her tunic as she did so. "Want to go find somewhere in the Bazaar?" she heard him ask.

"Sure! Beats getting mobbed in the cafeteria about that fight," Zelda replied, waiting as he checked up and down the hall to see if anyone was out there. She rolled her eyes, there were no rules about having friends in your dorms, there were rules about staying in there together for the night, and having spare keys, both rules they had broken multiple times over the course of their childhoods.

He locked the door behind them and together they left the academy, laughing and joking the entire way.

Gaepora was still massaging his temples, trying to fight off the leftover migraine from the "discussion" he had with his daughter last night. Ultimately, as his wonderful wife Aryll had put it, it was their lives to live, and their happiness to enjoy; besides it's not like he didn't approve of Link, he certainly wasn't the worst option out there. Zelda was just his precious daughter.

"Headmaster," his attention was taken as Eagus stepped into his office. "Do you have a moment sir?"

"Oh of course, what can I do for you?" Gaepora asked, thankful for something to take his mind off things.

"As I'm sure you're aware, there was a duel between Groose and Link this morning," the quartermaster began.

'Oh goddess take me,' Gaepora thought to himself as he felt an all new migraine coming along. "Indeed I am," he answered. "I'm sure you are aware I do not condone personal duels here at the academy."

"Yes sir, I am aware, and should there be any consequence I will take it, I approved their duel after all," the knight stood at full attention. "However, it was about a young man defending his friend's honor, I could not let it go unresolved!"

Gaepora sighed quietly. He already heard about everything. Word travels fast in a giant city in the sky after all.

"But that is not what I can to see you for sir," the knight continued. He laid two broken sword hilts on his desk, nearly indistinguishable. "Notice anything peculiar about these swords sir?"

Taking a careful look at the two broken weapons, the headmaster couldn't see what his quartermaster was getting at. Looking back up at the bulwark of a man he shook his head. "Both appear to be finely crafted steel, and yet they are broken, did we get bad steel?" he asked.

"No sir, I forged these swords myself," he admitted. He picked up one of the hilts. This blade was Groose's, notice anything about the edge?" Looking closely the headmaster could see the broken steel's edge was smooth. "A perfect cut, straight through the steel. And this one was Link's," he said holding up the other blade. By comparison the second hilt was far more jagged and uneven; it looked like a crude piece of junk.

"I don't know about you sir, but I know blades, Eagus said. "I made certain to make these two swords sturdy and dull, and yet despite that Link sliced straight through one until the blade itself couldn't take the strain. Sir, I'm telling you, that boy is a sword prodigy."

Gaepora listened as his old comrade continued to regale him with how the duel played out, but in the back of his mind he couldn't help but wonder about the sword that was kept a secret inside the goddess statue, and how recently, for the first time in known history the blade has begun glowing. A baby mysteriously arriving in Skyloft one fateful evening, and now as he reaches adulthood the sacred blade of legend is awakening, was it a coincidence or destiny…

FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS I HAVE SLEPT well, not really but it has been a long time, if anyone is still following this story, thank you very much, it was not-is not abandoned. I was going through a bit of a rough patch and a hop, skip, and jump later things are finally getting back on course. That dream entry had been planned for years. If you haven't noticed from the prologue, the ancient war (in my opinion) was very dark, and may be explored further as our heroes are thrust forward by destiny. Will things repeat, or is there another factor twisting the strings of destiny? Please let me know what you think of this. As always, thank you very much -Knownobody