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“Enough!”
Frigid wind tore through the world and carried her voice. Neon signs dimmed to the endless barrage of fallen stars. Fire bloomed with each impact. Radiant towers prized by Hyrule’s finest buckled and plummeted. Twilight never teased the floating metropolis; the skies bled crimson—the same color as the blood seeping towards her boots.
The same as the high bun and cashmere shawl donned by the suited man opposite her, regarding the horizon instead of her ire.
This had happened before. She understood now.
How many times had they done this? How many lives wasted—their own and millions upon millions of innocents? Zelda blinked and no longer teetered on the hovering balcony soon to crumble with her corporate empire.
There were deserts overflowing with vibrant colors and music.
There were forests whispering secrets in the form of riddles.
There were caverns forged by intrigue and desperation.
There were oceans promising anything but the ordinary.
Every life, every world... she existed. So did he.
Together. Apart.
As strangers. As friends. As comrades. As lovers. As enemies.
She fled the throne over sweet nothings whispered into her ear. She tangled in countless sheets to chase after a fleeting high. She wept tears for eons, begging for him to return, to leave her alone, to stay, to die with her, to pretend it was all a lie.
They ruled those seas as pirates.
They explored twisting tunnels in search for ruins and answers.
They hunted one another on horseback throughout dense woods.
They returned to the expansive sands with the intent to mend what was broken.
It didn’t matter what they accomplished; it always ended the same way.
Best to finish it quick. Repeat the cycle. Hope for a better head start and try again.
And yet he savored this destruction.
Zelda scoffed. An ancient hymn swelled on her lips. Fingers flitted like a conductor. The wind shifted and obeyed. What magic lingered in their cyber-savvy era glimmered to life, carving the outline of a weapon. Finishing the incantation, Zelda seized the hilt and light flashed to reveal a rapier.
She brandished it at him, teeth clenched and eyes wide. “This ends now, Ganondorf. The Chosen Hero is dead. You’ve completed your summon and Hyrule is falling. You won. Happy?”
Finally, he tilted his head. “Happy?”
A white-knuckled grip steadied her rapier as he pivoted. Brilliant eyes caught hers. Neither amusement nor elation riddled his features.
He almost appeared... relieved.
“My dearest Zelda,” he said, his voice a gentle rumble mimicking the chaos, “whatever brought you to that conclusion?”
“Don’t mock me,” she snarled.
“Ah, to be happy.... Is that not what we all strive for?”
Ganondorf stepped over the corpse. A young man—just a kid, Zelda remembered—sprawled prone on the marble floor in his own blood. The malice once festering his limbs like a puppet abated, only because of what she had to do. He donned clothes reserved for the street punks branding corporate buildings with revolutionary graffiti, albeit in green. Even with the legendary sword and immense courage, he was too late.
They all were.
“It pains me to admit that no, I am not happy,” Ganondorf continued. He ambled closer, highlighted by streaks of vivid light and flames as yet another star claimed another building. “But what is true happiness, Zelda? What do you want?”
“Stay back!” Zelda hyperextended her arm. The sleeve of her blazer slid, revealing two glowing marks on her hand.
Ganondorf paused to regard them. “You possess all the courage and wisdom in the universe. One final piece and you are greater than the gods who fashioned this sick game.”
“Don’t toy with me.”
He coughed up a laugh, but grimaced. “Oh, how I wish that was true. But you—” Ganondorf gestured to her, the light in his eyes changing, as if he admired the woman who dared to eviscerate him. “You understand now, do you not? We are bound to this eternal cycle. You... you’ve seen it. You must have.”
“Seen what?”
He cocked his head.
“We were happy once,” he purred.
The atmosphere thickened. The floors quaked.
“We explored the ends of this world for a means to break the cycle.”
The skies split open.
“I tried to retain what we learned in each life... but sacrifices must be made.”
The moon—not theirs, but another—dipped into view, wearing a dreadful grin.
“This was the best I could manage, but this time? I believe we have a chance.”
Another step and she lunged. Blood trickled from his cheek into his well-groomed beard. A mildly amused breath escaped him. Raising two fingers, he nudged the blade aside.
And she allowed him to approach.
“All that’s left,” he murmured, “is for you to make a wish.”
Zelda’s jaw set. “A wish? You make it sound so easy.”
His lovely eyes evaded her, just briefly. “If only it was.”
“Dare I ask what I wish for?”
He raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t see it?”
She blinked and it flooded her. Again.
Them. Together. Then not.
Forever and never.
What was one to do with such knowledge?
“Zelda.”
Ganondorf slipped an arm around her waist. Their foreheads met. Tears cascaded down her face and he kissed them away.
“When I said I’d bring the stars down for you,” he whispered, “I meant it. So please. Finish this.”
Before she complied, before the moon from another world obliterated Hyrule, Zelda stole a hard kiss—to distract them both, honestly.
Besides, a taste of power was all she needed to muster the courage to drive her rapier through him.
And he smiled. “I’ll see you in the next life. From the beginning. We’ll fix this. Together.”
She closed her eyes and held him as he died, as the scorching flames burned her alive, as she wished for the one thing she refused to utter for so long, as the gears of time shifted and whirred in reverse.
And this time, she finally believed him.