Dreams

The sun is warm, glowing softly in the sky. Din's light, her fire left behind in the moment of creation to warm the earth. It feels novel. Feel, I can feel the sun. This is a dream. We're travelling the fields and forests of ancient Hyrule, there is no rush, his stride is slow and contemplative despite his silence, and we enjoy the shade, the sun, and the breeze. He knows where he's taking me, he knows that this is goodbye. He's not sure how he knows, but there's a weight on his shoulders that slows his pace.

We arrive, a single ray of the Goddess' sunlight reaches ahead of us, through a window to point to our destination. A stone pedestal, where I will rest. The hand that grips me is warm, it shifts appreciatively and examines me in the light one final time before, with the subtlest sadness, it puts me to rest. He looks back before he leaves. He does that every time. I have come to realize he will miss me. I did not understand this millennia ago.

I watch him walk to the door where the spirit of Her Grace waits. She takes the Ocarina from him, and begins to play. He rises into the air, and then he is gone. It is as if he had never been. The sunbeam that shines on me slips away, and the sky goes dark. It is never bright again.

It is cold. Hundreds of meters beneath the ocean it is always cold. It is not uncomfortable, but it is no longer novel. I have recorded hundreds of thousands of years of cold sea water. This data is not precious. It is dark, but I am not alone. There are prisoners here. I can feel them within and beneath me, struggling against my power, testing me for weakness as they have for longer now than the rest of history combined. They whisper to me that I am trapped, and that I was abandoned here with them. I simply tell them that I am serving my purpose. I tell them that they are the same being, that I will keep him here, with me. For all time.

So long as I am here with him, he remains trapped, and the world above can prosper. I can sense life and providence on the surface. I am not needed there, I am needed here. This is my purpose. He relents, for now. He has not surrendered, he is merely tired. He will wait for me to sleep and try again. I would like to feel the sun. I reexamine ancient data.

A deep rumble shakes the temple, I wake. I had been dreaming for hundreds of years. They had been pleasant dreams, something I can only see retrospectively. I dreamt briefly of the time before I came to earth, but recollections of that time are less precious to me now than my time as a protector.

After centuries spent sleeping the thing that wakes me is not the shifting of a massive stone door, but the presence I feel behind it. I've not been in such close proximity to this soul since it laid me to rest. He advances cautiously, his body language is both respectful and awed. He too has slept, but he has forgotten. I have not.

He ascends the steps, to where a beam of light shines on my pedestal and his hands take hold. He is immature, too small to effectively wield my power, but his spirit is old and familiar, as ancient as the foundations of the temple where I reside. It only takes a moment for his grip to become firm and confident. I am drawn from my resting place, and I use my power to seal him away. In this moment I experience what I now know to be 'happiness'.

I spend the next seven years watching him sleep and grow strong. His body rests, but his spirit knows me, it tells me that it missed me, I record this, but do not understand it yet. I reflect on it frequently during this period. I will come to understand in later ages.

Centuries pass. I dream, I reflect, I understand. He is gone, erased from this universe to exist in one separate from mine, and I have not experienced the feeling... 'happiness', since that moment. I have begun to dream that he returns and takes me to the surface once more. If my captive were ever to be free... But this cannot be so. I am needed here. I am bound to carry on my purpose for the rest of eternity.

I have learned about something new in my isolation. Curiosity. I have begun to contemplate things that have no relevance to my existence. I wonder what fate the Hero met with. I cannot release my captive, even if it would return him to me. I am not happy to carry on my duty forever. I hope that wherever Her Grace sent him, he is free. Yes. That concept is pleasant.

I will stay here forever, so that the Hero can rest. I can think of no worse fate than to be bound to one's duty for all of eternity. I cannot be near him again, so I will dream.