Songs of the Spheres

by GMBlackjack

036 - Hyrule's Folly

Zelda may not have been the ruler of Hyrule – that honor was left to her father, the King – but she was certainly the public face of the royal family. She spoke to the people, calmed them, and performed most of the ceremonies. The people loved her, thought of her as one of them; as their voice in the way things were run.

She was also generally the member of the royal family to attend to foreign ambassadors, dignitaries, and other such visitors. Oftentimes this job was a tedious mess of trying not to upset the other person while still making her own desires known, but she had no worries about it this time. Prince Ruto was to meet with her today for the will of the aquatic Zora. He was always agreeable, kind, and understanding even when there were conflicting desires. She wouldn’t have to watch herself today, she was sure of it.

That is, she was sure of it until she actually walked into the room he was in. He was at the table, arms crossed, eyes narrowed. He never met her like that – he was always up and about, doing something, pondering some intellectual pursuit or other. He was a fan of pacing.

The fact that he wasn’t pacing put her on edge.

“Ruto, what’s-“

The fish-person took a small booklet out of his pocket and set it on the table. “I had this mailed to me today by those insurrectionists you have in your kingdom.”

“Surely you don’t believe a word they sa-“

“It’s got information about Ba’al. You. The Goddesses. Majora. What really happened. What you’ve been doing under our noses.”

Zelda took a seat, folding her hands and glaring at Ruto. “So? We’re allowed to have secrets.”

“I was hoping it was crazy…” Ruto sighed. “You really should have told us. My people won’t get angry – we’ll just cut ties. Again. But I can assure you we are definitely not the only people this was sent to. The others will be livid. I expect multiple ones to declare war.”

“That’s precisely why we didn’t say anything before,” Zelda said. “There would be too much conflict!”

“Well-placed intentions aside, it would have been better for you and your… ‘friends’ in this little booklet to have revealed it on your terms. As it is now, this is such a negative picture of the events… This is bad, Zelda.”

“...Yes. But we will stand strong, you know this, Ruto. Hyrule is the center of civilization. We will survive.”

“I know you will. The wars that come will be mixed, uneven, and a mess for everyone. I’m sure you’ll come out with the kingdom intact. But the damage will be done, and it will be a horrible next few years.” He glanced at the book. “Unless your friends do something. But I can’t speak for them.”

Zelda nodded. “…Thank you, Ruto.”

“For what? I’m not doing anything. I’m just declaring the Zora’s disapproval of your actions, and that we will be cutting ties for the foreseeable future.”

“For all the times you talked reasonably.”

Ruto let a small smile come to his face. “You are most welcome, Zelda.” He stood up, leaving the booklet on the table. “Goodbye.”

He walked away, leaving her alone.

Ten seconds later Zelda let out a panicked breath, struggling to keep her emotions under control.

The worst-case scenario had happened. Despite all the efforts she and Ganondorf had taken, the secret was out. The world of Ardent was going to enter an era of turmoil, and there was no way to look at it that didn’t place at least part of the blame on herself.

She picked up the booklet, examining it. There was no author, only a note on the back that told her it was copied from the original. She flipped through it for a minute, just enough to prove to herself that there was too much truth in it to deny. They were made.

She stood up and ran through the halls of the castle – right to the main throne room. She charged into the presence of her father. He was a large, rotund man who nonetheless had a commanding presence, and perhaps the most impressive white beard in the entire land. He was currently talking to his advisors, startled to see her appear suddenly.

“What is it, my dear?”

“They know,” she said. “The Zora have cut ties because of our secret. Who knows what the others are going to do.”

The King grabbed his royal scepter and stood up quickly. “Then we have no time to waste. We must take action. Our own people come first. That Daniel fellow left the Disclosure speeches here, did he not? Let us put them to use, if we can.”

Zelda nodded. “Yes, right away.”

“Send word to our otherworld allies as well – ask for assistance, anything they can offer. Anything at all. The road ahead will be long and difficult, Zelda. I know it. But together, we can face it.”

“Together. Those ponies really are rubbing off on us.”

“May not be a bad thing. Go, send word, find those documents. I’ll organize the advisors – and put the generals on alert.”

Zelda turned and ran through the castle to carry out her father’s instructions.

She held her face stern and pulled her unstable emotions as deep into herself as she could manage. They could not afford to mess anything else up in this delicate time – should her or her father’s resolve falter at any moment, the results would be disastrous. Such was the burden of the royal family, as it always was.

She prayed to gods that no longer existed that they would not have to stand alone.

~~~

“You know,” Renee said to O’Neill as they sat on a crystal bench outside a Gem meeting room. “Usually it’s Eve or Daniel I do this with. How come you’ve never been around when we meet with the leaders of other races?”

O’Neill stretched his arms out in front of him. “Well, it’s like this. I don’t enjoy talking to pompous self-righteous morons, and it just so happens that usually the people in charge are pompous self-righteous morons.”

“I see. Is that why you’ve kept as quiet in the meeting as you can manage?”

O’Neill nodded. “I’d rather not start a war because I mocked some Diamond or other.”

“That Yellow Diamond is quite the character,” Renee admitted. “From what I’ve gathered from the Zircons around, we would much rather have gotten Blue Diamond. A much more… understanding monarch. I’m having difficulty believing we’ll ever get Yellow Diamond to talk to us with even the respect she gives her servants.”

“She’s listening to your Cosmo,” Adama said from a different bench, having overheard their conversation.

“And the reasons for that are probably related to Starlight,” Renee commented. “She looks like a gem, and that just makes everything slightly better.”

Discord appeared between them. “You could send me in! I could prove ourselves to have power with a little dance routine! I can imagine it now – the history books proclaiming Discord as the one who convinced the Gems that talking to flesh-beings was worthwhile!”

“Two problems with that plan,” O’Neill said. “One, they’ll only accept you, not the rest of us. Two, Lord of First Impressions, you are not.”

“Humph. At least Alushy respects me.”

Alushy’s ears perked up. “Did I hear an invitation to insult someone’s very dignity? Because holy hell, am I tired of walking on eggshells around these Gems.”

Discord created a target on his chest. “Fire when ready.”

Renee held up a hoof. “We are not doing this again!”

“What’s the matter Renee?” Alushy jabbed. “Flashbacks to Esefem?”

Renee twitched. “Alushy…”

Alushy’s eyes widened. “Oh, I meant the Blackbird flight. Not the other things.”

“And that’s the closest Alushy will ever come to saying sorry,” O’Neill announced.

“I’ll take what I can get…” Renee muttered.

An Equis Cosmic unicorn ran into the room. “Urgent news from Eve!”

“What is it?” Renee asked.

“The secret is out on Ardent.”

“Dammit, I’ve just lost a bet,” Alushy muttered.

Renee took a deep breath and sighed. “Well… We expected this to happen eventually. I was hoping it would have lasted a significantly longer time. …I don’t think it would be a good idea to leave our obligations here, though. First impressions with spacefarers.”

O’Neill nodded. “Don’t want the Gems to think we don’t care about this. Or have more reasons to laugh at our ‘pathetic little monkey games’.”

Renee turned to the messenger unicorn. “Does Eve want us to do anything from here?”

“No, but she wanted you to know, so you didn’t come back to a surprise.”

“Does Eve have it handled?”

“I… Think so? The message says she and Daniel are headed over to Ardent to see what can be done. It also says to expect the worst.”

“Much as I hate to be that guy…” O’Neill began.

“No you don’t,” Alushy interjected.

O’Neill ignored her. “…Ardent’s problem is their problem. We have problems of our own to deal with here.”

Renee nodded. “And I’m sure Eve can do something without Cosmo, O’Neill, or anyone else who’s here. I have faith in her.”

“This Eve,” Adama asked. “Is she your leader?”

“As much as all of us can have a single leader,” Renee said. “She is the Charter, the reason we’re all together.”

“I can tell you all have a great respect for her – even those of you who hardly respect anything.”

“Great scott, I think he’s talking about me!” Alushy said.

“… ‘Great scott’, really?” Discord said.

“I’m mixing it up a bit.”

Adama ignored them. “The point is, someone you all respect that much… I trust her already, and I’ve never met her.”

“Eve certainly is something, Admiral,” Renee affirmed. “Though if I’m being honest, she’s not going to be able to stop all of Ardent’s problems. There’s going to be a lot of broken trust on that world regardless.”

“What exactly did they keep secret?” Adama asked.

Renee gestured at everyone in the room. “Us. The other universes.”

Adama nodded slowly. “…I do not envy the position that world is in.”

“Nobody does.”

Cosmo poked her head out of the meeting room. “I’ve convinced her to let you all back in. I know this is annoying and somewhat degrading, but act at least a little dignified. Any rash actions will just affirm her opinion that you’re all basically animals.”

O’Neill sighed. “Here we go… Round five…”

Discord looked to Cosmo. “I could-“

“Whatever you were going to suggest, no. I don’t need her taking your words more seriously than most others.”

“Aw…”

They filed back into the presence of the gigantic form of Yellow Diamond, prepared for another onslaught of words from a ‘higher’ being...

~~~

Zelda sat at her meeting table, glancing through scroll after scroll of legal documents she had been sent in the last few hours. Word spread fast when it was big, even without the communication technologies the rest of the multiverse had. She’d already received messages from the Gorons, Rito, and Deku. They ranged from outright threats of aggression from the Deku to restrained anger from the Gorons.

Gorons almost never got angry, which made Zelda most concerned about the scroll they had sent. They usually found it so easy to be polite… They had to be trying to send a message like this.

An aide opened the door. “Miss Sparkle and Mister Jackson are here to see you,” he said.

“Let them in,” Zelda spoke, taking care not to let her voice waver.

Eve and Daniel strode into the room, taking a seat across from Zelda. Daniel’s expression was unreadable, but Eve’s was like an open book – conflict was painted all over her face, along with sadness, discomfort, and a slight bit of guilt.

“Thank you for coming,” Zelda said. “We… are really going to need your help.”

“What do you want us to do? We’ll help however we can,” Eve said.

Daniel frowned. “Within reason.”

Eve looked like she wanted to correct Daniel, but after thinking a moment she realized he was right. She said nothing.

Zelda folded her arms. “When I told you why we wouldn’t participate in Disclosure, I told you why. Because war would break out. That’s still true. War hasn’t broken out yet, but I don’t need my agents to report back to know the Deku are already readying their army to demand our cooperation. They’ll almost definitely get the Rito on their side – the birds love the sharing of knowledge, and they’ll take what we’ve done as a personal offense. I don’t know about the Gorons, but it’s certainly possible they can be convinced to take action as well.”

“Is there no hope for a peaceful resolution?” Eve asked.

“There’s a chance we could convince one side to turn away with significant effort. But it seems unlikely we can convince them all.”

“Why not give them what they want?” Daniel asked.

“What they want cannot be given,” Zelda said. “We have an advantage due to knowing you. Simply giving them technology to explore and an audience with you will do next to nothing.”

“…Can’t they see that-“

“Eve, I don’t think you realize what we are.” Zelda looked into the distance, a sorrowful expression on her face. “Our societies do not function like yours. We don’t operate on peace, prosperity, friendship, economy, or anything like that. We are closer to the demons than any of the other societies. Kingdoms have worth via honor. If one kingdom gains too much power, the others attack and pillage to ensure an even playing field. We’ve attacked them, they’ve attacked us – there is almost always a small war going on somewhere to ensure constant competition and relational changes.”

Daniel nodded. “It’s somewhat like Dark Age society in Europe. Everything was based in Honor and Power. Your kingdom has lost its honor with the secrets and lies, and now it has too much power for such a low amount of honor. It isn’t seen as right.”

“Exactly,” Zelda said. “Currently, we are the enemy of society. It’s an unpleasant place to be – we’d been used to the Gerudo having that honor for the last few decades.”

“I don’t think we can change that for you,” Eve said. “Such a deeply rooted ideology takes time to work out.”

“I’m not asking you to change them,” Zelda said. “As much as that would be preferable, its unrealistic. I’m asking for direct aid – military. A single one of your ships would protect us.”

Daniel frowned. “We may have decided not to implement a non-interference policy, but this seems like taking it a bit too far.”

Eve sighed. “I’ve had to deal with so many people complaining about how we ruin societies by barely lifting a hoof. Their complaints are legitimate. If we interfere here, directly, we will be forcing a change. Demanding that your neighbors not do what they think is right and required of them.”

Zelda narrowed her eyes. “The death tolls will be catastrophic, especially on our side.”

Eve winced. “I… I know. But what if our ship doesn’t make them stop? We’ll slaughter them. I can’t order my ponies to do that! I don’t think they’d be able to pull the trigger!”

“Your people have no qualms with following questionable orders,” Zelda addressed Daniel.

Daniel shook his head. “And unlike Eve, I’m not even sure we should try to help you. We told you we could help with Disclosure, and you refused. Zelda, we told you this would happen.”

Zelda clenched her fist. “So? You were right, we were wrong. Now we have to deal with the fallout. You offered to help us before, I’m asking for that help now. Just a single ship from any fleet to defend us.”

“…I doubt the Oversight would allow Earth Tau’ri to act,” Daniel said. “Even if I did think it was the right course of action, it’s unlikely.”

Eve looked at the floor. “I… I could order the Feldspar. I could even staff it with humans from the AID, if I wanted. Luna wouldn’t shy away from the trigger. But…”

“Eve, aren’t you the Princess of Friendship?” Zelda interrupted. “We’re your friends. These other kingdoms? Have you even met them?”

Eve’s expression darkened. “You are supposed to be Loyal to your friends.”

“I thought so.”

“But your friends don’t always know the right way,” Eve finished. “Zelda… I’ll talk to the nations for you, I’ll go out of my way to talk to all of them, I’ll do a lot of things. But I… I won’t fight a war for you.”

Zelda slammed her fist on the table. “Twilight! I-“

“Eve,” Eve corrected, voice cold.

Zelda’s violent outburst stopped before it could really begin. She slumped into her chair. “…You will at least bring this up with the other universes, won’t you?”

Daniel nodded. “Your request for aid will be forwarded to all parties with access to the Hub. You can expect some action to be taken – but I don’t think a military operation will be allowed.”

“…Lai might,” Eve said.

Daniel nodded slowly. “That may be…”

“Just go, spread my message,” Zelda said. “We’ll need allies if we are to survive.”

“You have allies,” Eve said, smiling sadly. “I… I might change my mind. I’ll have to talk it over with the other princesses. I’ll do something, Zelda, you can count on that.”

“…Thank you, Eve.”

Eve nodded. “We should move quickly, in case things blow up faster than expected.”

Daniel bowed to Zelda as he stood up, and the two of them left.

Zelda shook her head – there wasn’t going to be any military help. No ships. Maybe some warriors from Lai. Cosmo had some ships in orbit, but they weren’t going to listen to Zelda…

But there was still Ganondorf. The Gerudo knew just like Hyrule did, they were to be ousted as well. They could stand together.

An aide poked her head in. “Zelda, news from our sources in the Gerudo Desert.”

“What is Ganondorf’s response?”

“…There was none. It seems as if the entire Gerudo kingdom has vanished.”

Zelda rammed her fist into the table, breaking one of its legs. “I will take this message to the King. You get me a new table.”

“Yes, your majesty.”

Zelda strode into the presence of her father. He already looked weary from the day – his burden had been speaking to the public of Hyrule. It could not have been easy telling them what had been kept hidden.

“Father, news from the Gerudo.”

“It’s not good, is it?”

“They aren’t even there anymore. I suspect Ganondorf moved them to another universe.”

The King shook his head. “Coward, won’t stand and fight.”

“The others probably aren’t going to help us either,” Zelda said. “I have some hope that the Charter or Queen Luna will provide some aid, but I do not see an army or a ship being lent to us.”

“Understandable. This is in no way their fight, and is in every way our own doing. …Had this happened after Disclosure, they would have given us aid, since they would have seen the wars as their fault.”

Zelda nodded. “But now it is only ours…”

“We have made a grave mistake, Zelda.” He put a hand to his forehead. “The years ahead will be long and hard. But we have strength – and despite what the others may think of us right now, we have honor. We can fight, and Hyrule will endure.”

“…Father, there are some dishonorable ways we can attain aid. I strongly urge we refrain from using them, but you should be aware.”

“Aware of what?”

“There are mercenaries in the other worlds who will work for a price. Gardis. Sombra. We could also steal artifacts from other universes. The Twili, perhaps.”

“You are right – we should refrain. Do we have no friends we can ask directly for favors?”

“…They won’t be able to provide an army, but… But I think I can get some.”

“Make those calls. It’s time to beg, Zelda.”

Zelda nodded and turned to gather whomever she could.

~~~

Corona Shimmer strode into the throne room of Hyrule Castle, sunglasses on her face. Memories were swirling around her head – memories of Ba’al’s invasion, of the people she had killed, of what she had to do to Pinkie…

Stop thinking about the past. Sombra’s text informed her.

“I’m only here because of the past,” Corona whispered back. She took a moment to take in her surroundings – the throne held the King, Zelda at his side. There were only a handful of others in the room- Link, Toph, Lieshy, Vivian, and Lady Rarity. Corona caught the end of a conversation.

“-basically, Luna couldn’t send anyone because her ponies don’t like the outside worlds,” Vivian summarized.

“Came completely on our own,” Toph said. “The Queen definitely didn’t wink at us.”

Link nodded. “Definitely not.” He turned to Corona. “Glad you made it. Is Iroh coming?”

Corona shook her head. “He said that you needed to fight your own battles. …I respectfully disagreed.”

“Do you think we can expect Eve to do anything?” Zelda asked. Corona could tell from her voice that she was extremely strained.

Corona nodded. “She said she’d do something, so she’ll come through. I don’t think she’s willing to fight. I am though. I fought for this place once. Now that I have gotten to know it, I have even more reason to fight for it.”

Link bowed to Corona. “You are too kind. Thank you for stepping down to help us clean our mess.”

The King nodded. “It is an honor to have friends such as you.”

Suddenly, the Happy Mask Salesman was in the hall. “King Daphnes Hyrule, may I be of assistance?”

The King blinked. “…I did not expect you to come.”

The Happy Mask Salesman was standing right next to the King. “I happen to find this kingdom worthwhile. No matter how long I’ve lived, Hyrule has been the source of the heroes to face the darkness. I wish this kingdom to live long enough to see if it can do that without help from deities.”

“I thank you, Salesman.”

Midna popped out of Link’s shadow. “Told you he’d show up.”

Link shook his head. “I’ll never understand you, Salesman.”

“Depends on if you live long enough,” the Happy Mask Salesman responded, now an inch from Link’s face. “If this multiverse exploration goes far enough, you might find some answers.”

“After this is over I’m going back to my farm and my family,” Link said matter-of-factly. “I think I can live with the mystery.”

“Yes… you can,” the Happy Mask Salesman said, sounding almost disappointed. He turned to Zelda. “Princess, surely you have a plan?”

Zelda took a breath. “It is not much of one. The Kingdoms the Deku have convinced to join them in war will have to send declarers of war to Hyrule. They could be coming today, or in a week, but no later than that. There are a few ways this could go – we may convince them to engage in the art of settling dispute by one-on-one combat to the death, we may have to show them a power play to make them think twice against attacking us… But if that fails, we will have to fight directly in the wars.”

“Just hold their declarers hostage,” Lieshy suggested.

“We will not resort to dishonorable means,” the King declared.

“Good,” Lady Rarity said. “I will not serve a King who would consider such things.”

The King nodded. “I need to know what all of your experience with war is – Link, I already know yours. No need to speak.”

Midna raised her hair-hand. “I was trained in Twili military theory, though never really got to command any Twili battalions.”

Lady Rarity hefted her hammer. “I have served Queen Luna for decades, fought many battles as a wandering knight, and served under Starcei in many secret battles for the Arcei. I also have a natural predatory instinct, should such a thing be required.”

“Uh… I was part of a military group,” Vivian said. “But I never really got to do anything.”

“I lived with the demons,” Lieshy said. “Aside from the jaunts with these people, nothing else.”

“I fought in the Hundred Years War against the Fire Nation,” Toph answered. “I’m best with small groups.”

Corona shook her head. “I’m just well educated in the way of physics, the only war I was actually in was the war against Ba’al. But I can give you this…” She pulled a large, rounded device out of her saddlebags. Circuitry on it flashed a dull red. “This is a modified portal device purposefully calibrated incorrectly. It tries to tunnel to a universe we can’t reach from here, and in the process will destabilize any space it comes into contact with. It could easily be used as a weapon.”

The Happy Mask Salesman went last. “I’ve caused and ended entire wars with my presence. Is that enough information?”

“Yes,” the King said. “Salesman, you have the abilities beyond our understanding. You can be the scout. Move in and out of places quickly and gather all the information you can.”

The Happy Mask Salesman nodded – and was gone.

“Corona, how many of those weapons do you have?”

“Seven,” she said. “Well, only this one, but I can calibrate the other devices I have in my bags in a few minutes.”

“Good. You’ll train our generals in their use. They are to treat you as an equal. Link, your honorary rank still stands as one of those Generals.”

Link bowed respectfully. Midna rubbed her hands together at the prospect of wielding a fancy space gun.

“Lieshy, I understand you are good with words?”

“Language is my clay.”

“You’ll talk directly to those who threaten us. Do whatever you can to gain information or get them to call off their attack.”

“It will be done.”

“Toph, you take Vivian and Lady Rarity. You will be given the best of our knights to form a task force. When the war starts, you will infiltrate one of the enemy kingdoms, taking them down from the inside.”

Toph twirled the Master Sword. “Got it.”

“And-“

It was then they heard the screams coming from outside the front doors.

Everyone drew their weapons. The King stood as tall as he could manage, slamming his scepter on the ground. “GUARDS! TO THE ENTRYWAY!”

Guards in full plate armor filed out from the hallways behind the King, taking up position at the front doors. The screams got louder.

“What is going on out there?” the King demanded.

Toph slammed her foot on the ground. “It’s hard to tell… It’s like a whirlwind is moving through your courtyard. …Your soldiers are being tossed to the side like they’re nothing.”

The King knew what this meant. “Men, fall back to me, stay behind our allies!”

The guards did as instructed, shuffling behind Link, Corona, and the others. Lieshy fell back as well, taking her position next to the King. Zelda herself stepped down, readying her magic for a fight.

The front doors imploded into a swirling void of blackness, letting the sunlight wash into the room. A man floated into the room – he had gray hair, wore a black cloak, and his skin was a pale white. His eyes glared at them, a piercing, unnatural red.

“What is the meaning of this!?” the King shouted, slamming has staff on the ground again.

The man produced a copy of the booklet and dropped it to the ground. “Your gods are gone, old man. Hyrule is no longer a protected, favored kingdom. You have no triforce, no power of light to protect you from the downfall you so rightly deserve.”

“Who are you?”

“I am Vaati. And I’ve been waiting for the moment to bring your pathetic privileged bloodline to an end for a long, long time.”

Toph gripped the Master Sword. “Just try it.”

Vaati obliged – he pointed a finger, and a bolt of shadow left his finger. The King caught the beam with his scepter, deflecting it to the side. “We may no longer have the gods on our side, but we are Hylians, dark wizard.”

“And not all their power of light is gone,” Toph said, holding the Master Sword high.

“The Triforce no longer gives that blade power.”

Toph smirked. “It’s not just the Triforce that was in here.” She swung the sword in the hourglass shape, freezing time. It was somewhat difficult to sense Vaati’s location, but she was able to triangulate from the direction everyone was looking. She drove the Master Sword through his body a dozen times before time resumed. “Somethin’ called the Phantom Hourglass, I think.”

Vaati’s body fell to pieces – then turned to dark, black smoke. The billowing smoke reformed the dark mage’s body in seconds. He fired a bolt of shadow at Toph. She tried to block it with a shield of earth, but the bolt moved too quickly. It hit her in the hands; forcing her to the ground and making her drop the Master Sword. “It is not enough,” Vaati said.

Corona fired her weapon, creating an unstable portal inches from Vaati. It tore off one of his arms, sucking it into a void of nothingness. He leaped back, holding the stump where his arm had been just a moment ago. Corona watched as he shrunk in size, reforming the arm with extra dark smoke.

“Just whale his form down!” Corona shouted. “It’ll be eno-“

Her gun was blasted out of her telekinesis. She was able to block the next spell with some minor difficulty. “Come on guys! Attack!”

Link drew his bow of light, firing holy arrows at Vaati. Vivian brought a spark of fire down on the shadow creature. Lady Rarity swung her hammer from a long distance. Zelda cast protection and healing spells on all her allies.

Vaati was expecting this. He let most of the attacks hit him, the fire and hammer doing absolutely nothing. He devoted all his time to dodging Link’s holy arrows, always moving closer to the hero in green.

“Midna!” Link shouted. “This isn’t working!”

“Shall we try darkness?” Midna asked.

“…You sure you want to do that?”

She nodded, producing a strange red Twili device. In its presence, Link’s form changed from that of a human to that of a dark, black wolf. Midna took her place on his back, hair forming a powerful limb in the air. Midna pointed a finger at Vaati and grinned. “Fight fire with fire.”

Twili power surrounded Link, a mixture of darkness and strange, red magic. He bounded toward Vaati, mouth open in a roar. Zelda cast a power spell on him, and Corona added her own buff.

Vaati held out his hand, shooting another bolt of shadow, but Link and Midna absorbed it.

“What’s the matter?” Midna mocked, grabbing Vaati with her hair. “Can’t take your own power?”

Link drove his mouth right into Vaati’s chest, opening him up. Midna reached for the part of him that was his soul, attempting to rip it right out of the dark mage’s body. Corona aided with a well-aimed death spell, shaking the soul to its core.

But just like how Midna had absorbed Vaati’s power, he absorbed the darkness flying at him. Without emotion, he kneed Link in the jaw. The wolf went flying, whimpering from a broken jaw.

Midna stood alone, still holding onto Vaati’s soul. “You’re not getting rid of me.”

Vaati flicked her. She did fly off of him, but as she did so her power tore into his soul, forcing him to scream in pain, a scream that should have come when his arm was torn off but a few minutes ago.

Corona and Zelda moved as one, trying to trap Vaati in a cage of light magic.

He punched right through. “The light of this world has faded, princess. Your powers are no longer absolute. Nor is your hero’s. And this unicorn can do nothing to me.”

Corona growled. “Ideas?” She muttered.

I got nothing, sorry, came Sombra’s reply.

Corona shook her head. She fired a beam of light, but Vaati stopped it with nothing but a hand. The feedback shorted Corona’s horn out.

Zelda took a step back. “Where… Where is this darkness coming from? Our light was taken, but so was the darkness!”

“This darkness is my own,” Vaati said.

“And my light is mine,” The King said, stepping down from his throne. “Vaati, I-“

Vaati shot the King again. This time he wasn’t able to deflect it with the scepter – he fell to the ground.

“Father!” Zelda shouted, running to him. She would have been shot too, were it not for Lady Rarity placing her hammer in just the right place to stop the attack.

For her troubles, the spirid was tossed to the side with another burst of dark energy.

Vaati appeared above Zelda and the king, holding up his hand for a killing blow.

“Vaati,” Lieshy said. “Do you not wish to explain yourself to your victims?”

“They know what they did.”

“I doubt they do. Who are you? Why has their success insulted you? What did they do – these individuals – to deserve this?”

“I am Vaati. My people are the Minish. We were crushed by your existence. You plowed through everything, not stopping to think that maybe there were tiny people living where you decided to make home. You cleared us away, thinking we were worth nothing, thinking we were legends.”

Zelda’s eyes widened. “…Wait…”

“You should have been the Minish this time, crushed by what you found beyond. But you weren’t. You were shown appreciation where we got none. You were protected. You were seen. That is a grace you didn’t deserve. You deserve to fall.”

Lieshy continued. “That may be the case, but don’t you thi-“

Lieshy got a shadow spark to the face for her words. “I grow tired of your stalling.”

Vivian grabbed Vaati by the leg. She tried to pull him ínto her pocket void, but he destroyed the very ground she was trying to drag him into.

Some of the guards thought they should try to do something, but they were tossed aside like bowling pins. He moved toward the forms of the King and Zelda. “Hyrule ends now.”

~~~

Eve turned to the three friends that were with her. “I’m sorry to ask you to do this. I know none of you like war, violence, or anything like it. But Zelda is our friend. I cannot help her as the Charter – but I can help her as the Princess of Friendship.”

“I understand,” Flutterfree said.

“We still try all nonviolent options first,” Eve reminded them. “I’d much rather Renee be with us, but… She’s occupied. So it falls to us.”

Pinkie nodded. “We’ll do our best!”

“But prepare for the worst,” Nova added.

Eve pulled out her dimensional device. “We should go right to Hyrule Castle. Don’t provoke the guards by shouting this time, okay?”

Pinkie rolled her eyes. “That was one time!”

“One time that should never have happened,” Eve insisted. She activated her device, tearing a hole through space and time.

The four of them saw the carnage of a battle that was not going well – unconscious bodies everywhere, blood spattered on the ground, and a dark mage hovering over Zelda and her father, a hand raised.

Eve wasted no time. She launched a spell at Vaati, throwing him into a nearby wall. His smoked form repaired all the damage to his back quickly. He clenched his fist. “You just keep coming…”

Eve, Nova, and Pinkie stood firm while Flutterfree rushed to tend to the King. Eve cleared her throat. “I don’t know who you are, but you will not hurt our friends.”

“You are mistake-“

Eve teleported herself, Vaati, Nova, and Pinkie out of the castle hall and into the courtyard. “I don’t think I am.”

Vaati’s expression remained flat. He pointed a finger, launching a bolt of darkness. Eve absorbed it into her horn and cast a dark spell in return – a swarm of razor sharp knives hit him from all sides. Pinkie followed this up with a smash from a warhammer, knocking him to the ground.

“How did… You touch me?”

“I’m cheating,” Pinkie said.

“So am I,” Nova said, somehow in three places at once. Each location shot a beam of light at Vaati, burning him on all sides. With a quick motion, he repelled all their attacks. He shot a dark sphere of energy out from his center, forcing Nova and Pinkie to retreat to a safe distance.

Eve did no such thing; she took the full force of the attack head on, once again channeling it into her horn. This time she attempted a magic lock spell on Vaati, successfully chaining his leg before it dissipated into smoke.

Pinkie appeared behind Vaati and trapped him inside a giant lantern. She flicked the on switch, baking him in the light designed to pierce the darkness.

Vaati transformed into smoke, shifting out through the cracks in the glass, appearing again nearer to the castle. His form was smaller, but just as powerful. He moved faster than before, unleashing two powerful snakes of darkness from his fingers, both aimed at Eve. She could not absorb these quickly enough – they tangled her up in an ever-tightening knot. She was forced to teleport out of the hold.

Nova darted in from the side, moving far faster than any pony had any right to. She hit Vaati six times with her hoof before he caught her, hand right on her leg. He twisted it, forcing her to the ground with a snap. She yelled out in pain, shuddering from the intense sensation.

Pinkie put on the Bomb Mask, exploding to drive Vaati away from Nova. She played a quick round of golf with the black sage, tossing him through the windows of three separate residences with a single stroke. “Fore!”

Eve teleported above Vaati, charging magic into her horn. She blasted him from above, driving him far into the road of the city. Nova took the opportunity to fashion a splint for her broken leg, forcing herself to stand up on her three remaining limbs. She teleported to the new scene of the fight.

Vaati let himself explode again, taking out several buildings in the process. The tremor shook the entire city, lighting fires in the streets.

Zelda could no longer see the fight from where she was, but she could see the smoke, the fire, and feel the explosions.

Her city was being destroyed.

The war hadn’t even begun.

“Hold still!” Flutterfree told the King. “You shouldn’t be walking on that!”

“I have to,” he said. “My people need me to stand strong against all darkness. I must fight to the bitter end! Never give in!”

“You’re hurting yourself!” Flutterfree chided. “You can’t fight at the expense of yourself! It’ll just kill you!”

“But it may help my people. Come, we must address the army. We can give your friends assistance…” He limped toward a door in the side of the throne hall, using his scepter as a cane. “We will not be able to win the war if we do not resolve this quickly. They will strike us when we’re down…”

Zelda nodded. “Right, father. Come, Flutterfree.”

“…Okay. I still think this is a bad idea.”

Zelda matched pace with the King. “What is our plan now?”

“Fight with what we had all along – Hylian power. The Hylian army. We will prove our honor through the battle stacked against us. Vaati will not be allowed to do much more damage – the Charter-Princess outclasses him, I am sure. What damage he has done will not ruin our army. We will fight a long, brutal war, likely more brutal than any other war we’ve been in. But we will not fall.”

Zelda glanced out a window to ponder this. She noticed a lot of flashing lights. “What are they doing?”

“Teleport-based fight,” Flutterfree answered. “They try to outmaneuver each other by appearing in random locations and teleporting each other around.” She stared at the colorful battle herself. “…Sometimes I wish I could help them at times like this.”

“Not everyone’s place is the battlefield,” the King said. “Our roles may involve intelligence or finesse in the battle. We all fight in our own way. It doesn’t matter how, so long as you are willing to go to the final breath.” The King wheezed.

“Do you have a doctor here?” Flutterfree asked.

“I’ll see the doctor when I’m done with this…”

Vaati teleported in front of the King with a flash of darkness, his body currently the size of a housecat. In an instant, he drove a bolt of darkness right through the old man’s heart.

“Father!” Zelda yelled. Had Eve not teleported in front of her with a shield, she would have been next. Nova pulled Vaati out of there with her own teleport. The encounter with the teleporting fight had lasted only a few seconds, but it was enough.

Zelda saw her father on the ground. He wasn’t breathing, his eyes were vacant, but his lips were still moving.

Must keep fighting, he mouthed, over and over. Had he been able to speak, it would have been a mantra.

Flutterfree pulled her hoof away from his arm and looked at Zelda, tears in her eyes. “I’m… I’m sorry.”

Zelda turned away from her father and Flutterfree, walking toward the entryway. She walked down the stairs into the castle courtyard and fell to her knees. She rammed her fists into the ground and started bawling her eyes out, screaming toward the heavens. She wanted to shout to the gods, to demand why, to blame them.

But she knew they were no longer there.

She only had herself to blame.

This was her folly.

She felt a hand on her shoulder – it was Link, back in his Hylian form. He was limping, but very much alive.

“You… You don’t need to say… Anything,” she said.

He didn’t. He just kept his hand on her shoulder.

Zelda forced herself to look forward – and she saw them. A Goron, a Deku, and a Rito. Rock, bush, and bird. They were clearly warriors. Here to declare the war, coming to her despite the explosions all around. They were serious.

Why did they have to show up now…? She wasn’t presentable. She couldn’t be presentable. There was no way this was okay, none at all. Everything was wrong, and they were just here to make it worse. They…

Vaati fell out of the sky, currently the size of a mouse. Twilight lit her horn, driving a white sphere into his essence. He dodged – but fell right into Nova’s trap. A swirling sphere of blackness absorbed the rest of his essence. He said nothing as he became nothing. He didn’t even let his face shift to anger – merely maintaining contempt.

“Got him!” Nova said. “We-“

“YOU ARE BRUTES!” the Deku scrub shouted. “VIOLENT, HORRID, HONORLESS BRUTES!”

Eve strode up to them. “I assure you, this being was one of darkness, attacking the Hylian family without provocat-“

“BRUTES!” the scrub screamed again. “You are not worth our time! Princess Zelda, tell your father we are at war!”

“Skipping the formalities?” Link spat.

“You don’t deserve formalities, not after what I’ve seen here.”

Zelda looked the Deku shrub in the eyes. “My father is dead.”

“Then we declare war on you, Zelda Hyrule.”

Zelda wiped her eyes, turning to the Goron and the Rito. “Does he speak for all of you?”

The Rito nodded. The Goron hesitated a moment, but did as well.

“Very well,” Zelda said.

Eve turned to Zelda. “Zelda, I ca-“

Zelda stood up tall, looking around. Much of her city was destroyed. The courtyard was a horrid mess. Those people she could see were either scared, or angry. Many of these emotions were directed at Eve and her friends. …The spectacle had not helped matters.

Must keep fighting…

“No,” Zelda said under her breath.

“What was that?!” the scrub demanded.

“There will be no war.”

“WE’RE NOT GIVING YOU A CHOICE!”

Zelda turned to Link for a moment. She shook her head. “There will be no war because…” She hung her head. “Hyrule surrenders unconditionally.”

The three messengers blinked. Eve blinked. Link was the only one who didn’t look surprised.

Zelda held out her hands. “Take me and do with me what you will.”

“Zelda!” Eve called. “Think about-“

“This is how it needs to be, Eve. Don’t try to help me. You were right not to fight the war for us.”

“I… was?”

“Yes. …This is how you change people. Doing something different. I won’t fight for honor. Honor does not come from fighting to the bitter end.”

Eve turned to Link. He sighed, saying nothing.

“Go to your world,” Zelda said. “This one will not want anything to do with you for the foreseeable future.”

Eve held out a hoof to Zelda. “I’m… I’m sorry.”

Zelda shook her hoof. “I’m sorry too.” She glanced at Link, then back at the Deku Scrub. “…Actually, my surrender has one condition.”

“What?” the Scrub demanded.

“…You must leave New Termina alone.”

“Done,” the Goron said.

Link bowed to Zelda. “…Thank you.”

“Live your life, Link.”

“…I will.”

“Goodbye,” Zelda said. The Rito tied her wrists up and led her away. Eve, Flutterfree, Nova, Pinkie, Link, and Midna watched her go.

“…This is wrong,” Flutterfree said.

“There was never any way this was going to end withsomething right,” Eve said. “Let’s go. We aren’t welcome in this world anymore. Link… It was nice getting to know you.”

Link bowed to her. “Eve, you’ve done so much for us that we will never repay. Go and do the same for other worlds. Do not let their rejections deter you – what you do is good. Don’t forget that.”

“I won’t,” Eve assured him. “…You’re welcome in the Hub anytime.”

“I still have my device,” Link said. “Don’t worry. I’ll visit.”

“Good.” Eve opened a portal back to Equis Vitis. “But also… Live your life, Link. Your family needs you.”

Link nodded. “I’m not planning on abandoning them for anything.”

Eve smiled sadly. Then they left the world of Ardent – a world that had once been filled with friends, that was now a world of enemies.

~~~

Renee stared at the messenger that had ran up to her the moment she left the meeting with Yellow Diamond. “She did what while I was in there!?”

“Zelda surrendered,” the messenger mare said. “I don’t know why.”

“Wh – why? We weren’t able to help her, but… She could have fought! She- Ugh, I should have been there.”

O’Neill shook his head. “We were busy.”

“What did we accomplish today, O’Neill? Not that much. They have ‘agreed’ to be ‘friends’ but really they still think of us as basically animals. Most of them will only treat us with anything approaching respect because we have something they want. I admit, that’s good, but was it really worth being here instead of there?”

“She found the solution with the least death,” Adama said. “You may not be able to see why she would surrender, but I do.”

“Some things are more important than winning,” Cosmo said. “…There will be times where the right answer is giving up.”

Renee blinked. “But how can we know that this was one of those moments?”

“Renee, we were never going to fight Zelda’s war for her, not like this. You know this, you know why we wouldn’t.”

Renee nodded. “It would set bad precedent and prove our most vocal detractors correct, yes, I get the idea. But there were other things we could have done.”

“Perhaps,” Cosmo said. “But we don’t know the entire situation from here. It’s likely that other paths of assistance were given – or wouldn’t work for other reasons. Given how fast the situation escalated, I think it would have exploded regardless of what any of us did. Adama is right – this way, there will be little to no death on any of the sides. We won’t have to make a show of power to stop the war in its tracks, Zelda won’t have to lead her entire kingdom into battle, and the opposing armies won’t even have to march across the land.”

“She was willing to sacrifice her pride,” Adama said. “It’s something I wish I saw in more people.”

“Her pride and her honor…” Renee said, mulling the thoughts over. “I still don’t like it.”

“I don’t either,” Cosmo said. “Giving up, even when it is the right move, is something horrid to experience. We will need to stand by her in these tough times, not as allies, but as friends.”

The messenger coughed. “Ardent is moving to cut off all ties to any other worlds, and Zelda has been taken prisoner. That will be difficult.”

Cosmo sighed. “They projected on to us, didn’t they?”

“Yes.”

Cosmo shook her head. “Depressing.”

“I can go change their minds,” Discord offered. “Wouldn’t be that hard.”

“Using force to twist an internal conflict our way is what we wanted to avoid in the first place,” Cosmo pointed out.

“What is the line?” Renee wondered. “Where is the line between ‘let them sort it out themselves’ and ‘we need to get involved’?”

“It’s a poorly defined line,” O’Neill said. “But, the way I see it, it’s like this. Is one of the sides evil? Yes? Then we fight them.”

Renee frowned. “A poor definition…”

“This kind of policy cannot be definitely defined – nor should it,” Cosmo said. “The multiverse is so wide and vast, making even a vague regulation for interference could ruin anything. We have to admit that we’ll make mistakes – lots of them – in what we choose to help, hinder, or just observe.”

Renee looked into the distance at the beautiful Gem cities of their Homeworld. “And this time… This time we made the ‘right’ decision as politicians, as leaders. But was it the right decision of a friend?”

“You will have to decide that for yourself, Renee.”

“…I know.”

~~~

Link sat on a hill, looking down at Hyrule Castle and the city that surrounded it. Most of the smoke had cleared, revealing that there hadn’t been too much damage in the battle with Vaati. But all was not right – all of Hyrule’s flags had been taken down. Replaced with nothing. Already squads of Rito, Gorons, and Deku had moved around the city, subjugating it. There were some citizens who tried to fight, but they were few, far between, and rarely any real threat to the ‘invaders’.

He wiped a tear from his eye.

Midna shifted on his shoulder. “…I want to go down there and kill them all. We could do that, you know.”

“The real armies would arrive,” Link said. “We couldn’t stand against them all.”

“Resistance is an option.”

“Zelda made her decision Midna, we just have to let this happen.”

Midna sighed, folding her arms around her knees. “Some heroes of Hyrule we are.”

“…The line of heroes ended with the Triforce,” Link said. “We are the last calling.”

“I know. What a way to end.”

“The source of most of the darkness in our world will never harm anyone again. Majora’s influence will fade from this world in a few years.”

“But what of the darkness Vaati found?”

“There will always be darkness and light, Midna. It’s needed. But there will be no more need for us to be there.”

The Happy Mask Salesman was standing next to them. “I was hoping I could make that not be the case. But even I cannot change something so fundamental.”

Link laughed bitterly. “Back from your trip?”

“I know precisely how to destroy all three opposing kingdoms with carefully executed plans. I could still tell you.”

“Don’t bother.” Link shook his head.

The Happy Mask Salesman looked through reality itself, at something Link couldn’t see. “For once, I am uncertain of something. I do not know if this is destiny, a change in destiny, or a lack of destiny.”

“Mixture of all three?” Midna suggested.

The Happy Mask Salesman let out his signature unnerving laugh. “You are wise beyond your years, Twilight Princess.”

“That title is defunct and you know it.”

“It fit,” he said. “I don’t think I’ll be returning to this world. Everything is done.”

“No more darkness?” Link asked.

“Malladus is gone, Ganondorf is gone, Vaati is gone, Beldum is gone, and Majora is gone. The great evils have either left, been vanquished by you, or by otherworldly powers. No longer will these powers constantly be reborn time and time again. There is no more source of darkness to perpetuate them.”

“But the Goddess of Time won’t bring us back, either,” Link said. “I… Am the last of the heroes of courage.”

“In this universe, at least,” the Happy Mask Salesman confirmed. “It may not look like it, but this world has been saved. Completely. Forever. You should be proud, even in this time of sorrow.”

Link nodded. “Thank you, Salesman, for these words.”

“I do what I can.” He gave a wave – and then vanished. Behind him stood Toph.

“What a weirdo,” she commented, sitting down next to Link.

Link glanced at the Master Sword she had in her hand. “How’s the blade treating you?”

“It’s pretty sweet,” she said, flipping it over and over in her hands.

“You need to take it away from this world,” Link said. “I think it may be the last source of eternal power we have to offer. The Sands of Life themselves are infused in that blade. They’re what give it power over time. This world no longer needs such a powerful artifact within it – and I think it knew that the moment Majora was defeated. That’s why it lets you wield it. It knew there would be no foretold heroes after me, so it gave itself to you.”

Toph clutched the sword in her hands. “Why?”

“I don’t think even it has a purpose in mind. It found you worthy, and felt it needed to do something out there. Anything.”

Toph nodded. “…Why didn’t it hurt Vaati?”

“It did,” Midna said. “He just tried not to show it. All darkness hates the sword. Even I don’t like being near it.”

Toph smirked. “He ever stab you with it?”

Midna smirked. “Oh, you haven’t heard the story?”

Link facepalmed. “That was one time! I thought you’d turned into a demon!”

“And I don’t look like a demon now? …Or do you mean I looked like a giant bug?”

Link shook his head. “Seriously, sometimes I wonder about you.”

Midna nudged him with a playful smile. “Come on, you’d be bored without me.”

Link smiled. He pulled her in and gave her a noogie.

“Hey! Hey! Stop it! Ackpth!”

Toph chuckled. “You two… You sure Romani isn’t jealous?”

“I’m sure,” Link said, releasing Midna.

“I’m like a built in sister, or something,” Midna commented. “I am going to be the worst aunt. Literal devil on the shoulder.”

“I am so not looking forward to that,” Link muttered.

Toph smiled, standing up. “I think you guys will be fine. See you around. I’ll tell you what me and this sword get up to.”

The two nodded and waved as Toph earthbended down the hill on a wave of rock.

There was one more visitor to the hill before the day was over.

Renee stepped out of a portal, the Mask of Truth on her face. Link looked at her, frowning.

“This is how I came to you first,” Renee said, looking at him with the eye of the mask. “I had broken myself by taking everything too far. You showed me what was really going on, what people really were, and… And helped me onto the path to be what I am now.” She removed the mask from her face and adjusted her hat. “I should have been here.”

Link smiled sadly. “Maybe… But the more I think about it, the more I think this needed to happen this way.”

“I’m not saying I would have changed anything by being here, I’m saying I needed to be here,” Renee explained. “This place… It’s important to me. And I left it so I could deal with some aliens.”

“Your job is important, Renee.”

“So is this world.”

The two fell into silence.

Midna sighed. “Look, both of you. What’s done is done; you don’t need to keep trying to feel guilty about it. Chin up and get on with your lives. Seriously.”

Renee allowed herself to smile sadly. “Midna, you’re right. What’s done is done.”

“There isn’t much we can do about it now,” Link continued.

“In the future, maybe Ardent will want to join with us again,” Renee said. “But if they don’t, that’s their choice. It’s always been their choice.”

Link nodded. He reached into his pack and pulled out the Bow of Light. “…Renee, I want you to have this.”

“Dear…”

“I have no need for it anymore. It’s not as powerful or as legendary as the Master Sword, but… But it’s something.”

Renee levitated the arcane artifact toward her eyes, the holy energy exciting her senses. “…Is it okay if I give this to Flutterfree? She’s been needing something to use in a fight.”

Link smiled. “Giving someone strength is the best thing that bow can do. I trust her to only use it for good.”

Renee smiled. “Thank you, Link. For… Everything you’ve done.”

“Thank you Renee, for everything you’ve done.”

“Oh come on…” Midna facepalmed. “This isn’t goodbye. You’ll still see us around!”

“Right,” Renee said, smiling sheepishly. “Ahem. In that case, I’ll... see you around.”

Link bowed his head. “Until then, Renee.”

She left, leaving Link alone with Midna to watch the sunset.

Corona watched it from another hill, eyes sorrowful. She did not know what to think about these events. She didn’t think she ever would.

She knew Sombra was sending her messages on her sunglasses, but she wasn’t in the mood right now. She just… wanted to watch the sunset here at least once.

It was beautiful.

~~~

Roughly a week later, the sun rose on Equis Vitis. A handful of minutes later, Princess Celestia looked up from her pad at Luna. “At least something good has come from this Ardent debacle.”

“Oh?” Luna said, looking up from her own pad.

“The activists attacking us for too much interference and destruction of culture have finally lost their fire,” Celestia explained. “There’s now an argument of if we should have interfered or not. Significantly better than outright condemnation that we couldn’t really disprove.”

Luna smiled sadly. “That’s good.”

“It needed to happen. Those voices were getting loud enough to destabilize everything. …To be frank, it was probably one of those voices who leaked the information to Ardent. I wonder if they’re happy with the result, whoever they are.”

“I like to think not. I like to think they’re filled with rage that their plan didn’t work. But now they can’t do much. Their movement has lost its fire.”

“And for that, we can be thankful. I was afraid their complaints would actually come to something – but we learned quickly. It’s much better to argue about which situations should be interfered with than to have a general consensus that we interfere too much. That argument actually goes somewhere and helps us develop as a people.”

“You’re speaking like we’re all one people, Tia.”

Celestia smiled coyly.

“…You have that smile, Tia. That smile that says you know something.”

“Oh, really? No, I never know anything.”

Luna smirked and rolled her eyes. “Fine, keep your secrets. I’m sure you’ll tell me eventually.”

Celestia nodded. “Well, I, for one, want some breakfast. There’s apparently a new dish from ‘Earth Ottoman’ that we’re going to really love.”

“I reserve the right to judge the meal harshly at a later time.”

Celestia chuckled.

Somewhere else, in a distant plane and planet, another Luna looked at the same report Princess Celestia had seen.

The Mistress looked to Siron and Ganondorf. “…Our ideas are being worked out.”

Ganondorf folded his arms. “We never needed their sympathy.”

“It would have helped, but it was never necessary,” Siron added.

“So… Nothing has changed?” the Mistress asked.

“Nothing,” Siron assured her. “Our power is still building, and they will know what it means soon. The question of interference will be the last thing on their mind when everything comes to fruition.”

Comments

[Efadd]

Ganondorf is planning something with Queen Luna and Siron, isn’t he?

[the other sans]

she’s not going to be able to stop all Ardent’s problems

1. She's not going to be able to stop all of Ardent's problems.

8914545
It involves the Binary world (or rather, what remains of it) and their entire warrior cultured race. The question is whether they'll extend to the rest of the multiverse and consequently provoke a response for a multidimensional war or just stay on that world and maybe, just maybe affect that world alone.

Chances say the latter isn't going to happen without consequences.

[Efadd]

8914611
I know... most of that, I just meant that in such a way as this is an Ardent chapter and the Gerudo king was nowhere to be found.

[Blaster M]

It's the end of an empire

[Isshiki Kotonashi]

8914545
It has seemed that way to me for a few chapters now, it was practically screaming it. How is it you are only asking this now?!

[Efadd]

8916196
As I said previously,

I know... most of that, I just meant that in such a way as this is an Ardent chapter and the Gerudo king was nowhere to be found.

[FanOfMostEverything]

Note to self: Never allow this story to accrue multiple unread chapters. There's no way I can leave a comment that properly appreciates all of the developments. (That said, I do love how Team Four Star must defeat Team Four Star.)

In any case... yeah, this was a tricky one. The moral ambiguity will likely only get worse when they find out about the Gem universe's Earth. As for Ardent, the loss of epic scope is good in the long run. These societies can build without fear of yet another ancient evil wrecking everything for the umpteenth time. It may take some time for them to break out of the medieval cultural crab bucket, but n time, they'll hopefully be ready to rejoin the multiversal community. I doubt their friends will allow the truth of other worlds to fade into myth.

Of course, there's still the matter of Ganondorf and company...

[AppleTank]

I am suddenly wondering if speedrun Hyrule exists.

[My name is R]

“There was never any way this was going to end withsomething right,” Eve said.

Missing a space.

[son_of_heaven176]

Well, it's an end of an era on Ardent. Here's hoping for peaceful transitions.