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Every Link in the chain had their quirks. Twilight got all mopey during sunset. Sky had low stamina. Time was clearly uncomfortable during full moons. Hyrule panicked whenever he bled. Wild froze whenever a memory popped up in his head. Four would talk to himself when he thought no one was listening. Wind shared a lot about his adventure and definitely using that to hide the things he didn’t want to talk about. Warriors sometimes got stuck acting like an army captain.
These were all some of the quirks a few Links had. And they had more than one.
But one of Legend’s quirks was quite curious.
Legend drank a lot of water. A LOT.
He had one magic bag on him that was filled with five canteens all filled with water. The moment he got the chance when even one was empty he’d clean them all and refill.
It made several Links wonder. What did he experience that water became so important to him? Did he get stuck somewhere without any for a while and now he makes sure he wouldn’t run out when refilling was not an option?
But he drank more than the others too. Glance at him at any point and there was a good chance you’d catch him taking a sip. And rationing during hot days? Absolutely not. If anything he’d drink even more water. And though he’d usually share some water if needed he would be very possessive of every drop when the weather was hot and refills were few.
And when they arrived in Twilight’s desert at one point the veteran was almost panicked. Especially if a canteen ran out. And he drank so much water, glaring at anyone even suggesting rationing. And he was so relieved when they left the desert and found a place to refill.
No one was able to figure out why he was like that. And since he always had plenty of water on him and it was not dangerous behavior it fell under the ‘do not pry’ rule.
It was fine for a while after that. Sure, adventuring was a pain every so often. Injuries, portals separating them, monster attacks. The usual. Sometimes there were bad days and sometimes there were good days.
That’s until the latest portal.
“Weapons ready! We don’t know what awaits us on the other side so be ready for anything!” Warriors warned. Everyone prepared themselves for possible battles or rough terrain. They went into the portal, leaving the era they were exploring behind.
~~~~~~~~~~
Hyrule was the last to go through. The first thing he noticed was hot air hitting his face and soft ground beneath his feet. The sun was blinding. When his eyes finally adjusted to the brightness he realized he was in a desert.
Alone.
Of course they’d get separated in one of the least hospitable environments. He sighed. Time to look for the others.
He scanned the horizon, ignoring how the sun made the ground in the distance reflect like water. Instead he looked for dips in the terrain that might suggest lower area. It’s where water gathers, after all. And that would be the best place to look for his brothers.
Once he decided where to go he immediately headed off, hoping to give the sun as little time to burn him as possible.
And his survival instincts were right. Soon he spotted some birds headed the same direction as him and in no time at all he reached water. It was a nice little oasis. And much to his delight he spotted Twilight and Wild hanging a tarp between two trees and a stick to provide shade.
“Hey! Over here!” The traveler shouted with a wave as he tried not to fall down the dune. Wild and Twilight looked up immediately with relieved smiles.
“Hyrule!” Twilight called.
“Good to see you’re alright. Are you alone?”
“Yup. I assume it’s just the two of you?” The traveler asked as he took a spot beneath the shade, relived to be sheltered from the sun’s scorching rays.
“Us and a lizalfos that jumped us the moment we exited the portal.” Wild replied with a chuckle.
“But that’s already dealt with.”
Hyrule frowned, scanning the two heroes for injuries but relieved to find none. Still, it left him with other concerns.
“We should look for the others. This heat can’t be good for them.”
“Let’s wait first.” Twilight said calmly.
“Hopefully this portal didn’t split us up too far. Let’s see if the others find the oasis first. Otherwise I fear we’d just be running past each other constantly.”
“You have a point.” Hyrule admitted reluctantly. Every hero of their group knew how to survive in the wild. Finding water, even in terrain like this, was one thing he was sure they all knew. And with the dunes surrounding them like static waves it’d be easy to miss each other when walking on either side. Still he didn’t like not knowing where everyone was or if they were injured.
But the sound of some of the most foul curses known to man relieved his worries a little. The sailor and the captain appeared in the distance. A whoop of victory from the sailor and a quick sprint later the two reached the little shelter as well.
“Water!” Wind cheered as he splashed his feet in the lake immediately.
“Yes! We’re staying here. I don’t like this desert bullshit. Water or nothing.”
“I bet there are leeches in there.” Warriors replied as he walked past him and under the shade. Wind immediately jumped out of the lake and sure enough, there was a leech stuck to his leg.
“Eww! Get it off!” The sailor shouted while shaking his leg violently. Warriors groaned but left the shade to assist the sailor.
“Quit kicking! I can’t help you if you kick!” He scolded.
“Not even a ‘hello’ huh?” Wild mused.
“And the captain prides himself so on his manners.”
“Sun’s got to his head already.” Twilight chuckled.
“He should take off that scarf in this weather. I’m sweating just looking at it.”
Hyrule raised a brow as he looked at the rancher.
“That’d be that wolf pelt you haven’t taken off yet, Twilight.” He said, pointing at the thick black fur coat.
“You’re just asking for heatstroke.”
To his credit, Twilight actually listened and took the pelt off, storing it in a magic bag.
“I just feel naked without it…” He muttered as the last bit of fur disappeared from sight in the bag.
The group waited for a bit longer. Soon Time arrived. Sky was with him, already exhausted.
“You’d think…” Sky said through exhausted gasping as he dropped under the shade.
“You’d think that…” He smacked his lips.
“…Earrings capable of protecting you from an active volcano’s heat…” A few coughs.
“…Would protect you from the desert’s heat… But no.”
“Need some water?” Warriors asked. Sky quietly nodded.
Time immediately checked to see who had arrived already. He was just done when Four appeared on the other side of the oasis. His blade had blood on it but he wasn’t injured himself. He quickly made his way over to the group.
“I’m late to the party, aren’t I? Sorry. I got interrupted by this stupid giant green bird. It kept puking rocks on me… I shot it out of the sky and stabbed it. Am I the last one here?” He asked.
“Sounds like a Hrok to me.” Sky answered, having recovered a bit.
“And no, you weren’t the last.” Hyrule continued.
“We’re still waiting for Legend.” He was worried. The last time they were in a desert made very clear that Legend hated them. He hoped the veteran was ok.
“He’ll be here soon enough.” Wind said, pulling Hyrule out of his thoughts.
“That guy is addicted to water. I bet he smells the oasis from wherever he is and is rushing here as we speak.”
Hyrule took a breath. Wind was probably right. Legend would arrive here soon enough.
- - - - - - - - - -
“Can we be worried now?” Hyrule asked anxiously. When night had started to creep in they thought Legend took shelter somewhere else. But now it was noon the next day and Legend still hadn’t appeared. And Hyrule was incredibly worried.
And he wasn’t the only one. By now everyone was looking over the dunes with a frown, hoping to see Legend somewhere. All eyes turned to Time. He was their leader so it was his decision to make.
“Legend should have been here already.” Time said. His voice was just a tad bit too even. He was worried too.
“Hopefully he’s just at another oasis but we can’t be certain. It’s best we go look for him.”
Hyrule could cheer. He was about to run and look immediately but Warriors grabbed him by the collar of his tunic.
“Refill your waterskins first. Wild, you were making heat resistant potions, right?” Warriors looked at Wild as the champion scrolled through his slate.
“Yes. I managed to make quite a few. We should be able to pass through this desert safely.” Wild replied.
“I got some heat resistant items too. It’ll help us safe on potions since we won’t know how long we’ll be in the heat.” He pressed on his slate and changed to the desert voe outfit.
“I have two sapphire circlets and Wind’s tunic”
“You what?” Wind asked confused. Wild pressed on his slate again and Wind’s lobster tunic appeared in his hand. He threw it over the sailor’s face.
“Why the fuck do you have a copy of my tunic?!”
“Found it.” Wild replied simply. He handed a circlet to Hyrule and Warriors. He ignored Wind’s confused sputtering as he handed out potions.
Four claimed the second lobster tunic as it was closer to his size.
“We match!” Four said with a grin, grabbing his shield. Wind grabbed his own shield, the exact same handed down through generations, And the two copied each other’s poses.
Once potions were handed out and waterskins were filled to the top they climbed to the top of a dune. Sky tried dowsing with Fi and got a weak signal.
With him leading they hoped to find Legend quickly. They wandered the scorching sands. Any wind that blew over the desert was hot and did nothing but kick up sand that blinded them. The sun beat down without mercy but Wild’s items and potions helped them resist it.
Hyrule squinted against the light trying to shine in his eyes. A mirage in the distance making a false promise of water. He took small sip from his waterskin.
Sky had been walking in a nearly straight line for a while but when he was the first to reach the top of yet another dune he suddenly stopped. When Hyrule reached the top as well he saw why.
There was a giant chasm going through the middle of the desert. It was so broad not even the longest longshot would be able to cross it. They’d have to find a way around.
So they wandered beside it. They walked until it became night and they were forced to set up camp.
Hyrule couldn’t sleep. He wondered where Legend was. Was he alright? Did he finish all of his waterskins already? That man couldn’t ration water to safe his life. And safe his life it would. Running out in this heat was a death sentence.
He looked up at the stars in the clear night sky. None were familiar to him. He sighed. They better find Legend tomorrow.
- - - - - - - - - -
It took them two more days. One to find a way across the chasm and another of wandering straight to where Fi said Legend was. But Sky finally said that the signal was getting closer. The were getting close to Legend. It had taken so long Hyrule wondered if Legend had been walking away from them by accident. No matter. They were finally close to the veteran.
They started to walk faster, eager to meet up with their lost brother. But as a mirage faded in the distance it instead showed a shape lying in the sand.
“Legend!” Hyrule shouted. He ran ahead of the others, skidding to a halt next to the veteran and immediately checking vitals.
Legend was unmoving but breathing. His breaths came out rough and dry. He was severely dehydrated and his skin was severely burnt by the scorching sun and sand. Sky quickly used his sailcloth to create shade.
While Hyrule checked the veteran’s pulse Legend’s eyes opened just a bit.
“…Roolie?” He asked. His voice was far too weak for Hyrule’s liking.
“Legend! What happened?!” Hyrule shouted. He wanted to hug the veteran the moment he heard his voice but decided against it considering the burnt skin.
“…Water...” Legend replied, weakly reaching for the waterskin on Hyrule’s hip.
Hyrule sighed. Of course the veteran hadn’t rationed his water. Still, he shouldn’t be this dehydrated considering how much water he carried on him.
He gently helped Legend sit up, Twilight sat down behind the veteran so he could lean on him.
“Drink slowly.” Hyrule instructed as he pressed the waterskin to Legend’s lips. Legend frowned at the instruction but did as told.
The others scanned the area, looking for possible shelter. But Legend didn’t collapse in a good environment. There was nothing but scorching sand. Their best chance was heading back to oasis.
“What did I just say?!” Hyrule scolded as Legend unsurprisingly tried to drink way too much water in one go.
Warriors looked at their footprints in the sand. It took them a while to get here. He hoped they’d be able to carry Legend back to the oasis before his condition got much worse.
He turned to look at Twilight. A silent conversation passed between the two and Twilight gave a nod. The rancher stood and lifted the veteran in his arms. They had to make their way back as quickly as possible.
- - - - - - - - - -
Legend was getting noticeably weaker far too quickly. He became increasingly less responsive, only ever asking for water and not wasting his voice on anything else. He slept most of the time.
But the thing that worried Hyrule the most was Legend’s skin. It was burnt, yes, but burnt skin shouldn’t flake like… this. The way Legend’s skin dried and flaked off was more reminiscent of scales falling off a fish. Raw skin exposed beneath that dried up quickly as well. Where too much had flaked off was now irritated and bleeding. Not even Wild’s heat resistant elixirs could prevent it from happening.
He expected the first night to be the scariest. Not knowing what to expect of Legend’s current condition yet and staying awake just in case something went wrong. But it was the later nights that were the worst thanks to Legend’s quickly worsening condition.
He didn’t complain about the heat of the day or the chill of the night. He just asked for water. But they had to ration it between all of them until they reached the oasis. Even if Legend’s throat sounded as dry as the desert itself. They’d get nowhere if all of them were dehydrated.
As their footsteps were being buried under a new layer of sand behind them and the sun did its best to blind them from above a whoop of victory could be heard from the sailor.
“I see birds overhead! We’re close to the oasis, I’m sure of it!” The young hero shouted.
The promise of rest motivated them all. Just a bit more and they’ll be able to get water and shade. They’ll be able to take care of their veteran.
Legend barely responded to the call and increased pace. He was awake but zoned out. Still being carried by Twilight. Only when they crossed the last dune and the sparkling oasis water met his eye did he rouse a little.
Wild, Wind and Warriors reached the oasis first. They quickly set up the tarp again for shade. They were so fast it was ready when Twilight arrived with Legend.
A bedroll was placed down for the veteran while the others quickly went to refill waterskins.
Hyrule checked on Legend’s wounds, making sure to clean and disinfect them. But, despite being very weakened, Legend tried to push himself up and away from him.
“I know cleaning wounds isn’t fun but please stay still. I’m trying to help.” Hyrule said as he gently guided Legend back down. Legend ignored him and still tried to get up repeatedly.
“Wa…ter…” Legend murmured. Hyrule sighed and offered a filled waterskin. But to his surprise Legend pushed it away and tried getting up again. Only when Hyrule followed his gaze did he realize he was looking at the lake.
“…Don’t tell me you want to go for a swim right now.” Hyrule asked jokingly. Only to get a genuine nod in reply.
“…ARE YOU MAD?! You can’t swim like this! Also there are leeches in there. Do you want to swim with leeches?”
“…”
“…”
“…Yes.”
“Legend, what the actual fuck.” Hyrule said exasperated. He wasn’t going to let the veteran in the water when on this state. He was too weak to swim and those wounds would get infected! He’d have to be crazy to allow that.
…But Legend looked at the water with such desperation. He still tried to get up and go towards it despite all of Hyrule’s protests.
And then Legend looked at him. Tired, pleading eyes staring into his.
“Please?” The veteran asked. And it gave Hyrule the feeling that this was very important.
The traveler sighed, running a hand over his face.
“Ugh, fine. We’ll sit in the shallow part for a bit. Twilight? Can you help me carry Legend to the water?”
“Uhhh sure?” Twilight said confused, picking up the veteran.
“Why?”
“Because he’s insisting on making poor decisions and he somehow convinced me. Now place him in the shallow water.”
“What?!” Warriors shouted.
“That’s the worst idea! I know we’re in a desert but that doesn’t mean the water has been boiled free of bacteria! If anything it has been a breeding ground!”
Legend lifted a weak middle finger towards the captain.
Time looked at the scene confused, turning to Hyrule.
“Traveler? Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“Nope. Definitely not.” Hyrule simply answered while moving Twilight along with the veteran.
“But Legend seems to think that this is a good idea though. So let’s see.”
Twilight shrugged at Time. When he reached a shallow part of the lake that was deep enough to have one’s legs submerged when sitting he placed Legend down, allowing him to lean against his leg (Twilight was NOT going to sit down in there, thank you.)
“Happy now?” Hyrule asked, also standing in the shallow water. He only got a nod and content sigh in reply.
“Ok because I’d like to get you out and clean those wounds as soon as possi-” Hyrule stopped, watching in awe as Legend’s skin seemed to smooth over. Flakes and wrinkles disappeared as if they were never there. Only the spots that reached actual wound status remained. Suddenly it was as if the severe dehydration of his skin was never a thing.
“What the…” Twilight murmured. Surprised to see the seemingly healing properties of the water take effect.
Legend blinked a few times, immediately seeming more alert.
“Ugh… fuck…” He muttered under his breath as he pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes.
“Legend? What happened?” Hyrule asked. But Legend waved him off with a ‘later’ motion.
“Sorry about the next part…” He muttered, voice suddenly strained as if he was in pain.
“What next-” Hyrule’s question was interrupted as the sound of bones breaking and Legend’s scream filled the oasis.
“LEGEND?!” Panicked, Hyrule and Twilight wanted to drag the veteran out of the water. But when they tried Legend, clearly in pain, swiped at them with surprisingly sharp nails.
“Don’t.” The veteran said through gritted teeth. Hyrule and Twilight reluctantly backed off.
Everyone watched as Legend’s legs seemed to melt and merge together. Pink and gold scales pushed through skin. His nails became claws and slits formed in his neck. Whatever transformation was happening it was clearly painful but, considering Legend’s reaction to them trying to stop it, necessary.
When the horrid sounds of snapping bones and sinew stopped, when Legend’s screams turned to gasps, the veteran’s legs had become a fish tail. The veteran had become a mer.
“Cool.” Wind muttered softly from the side.
“Are you ok?” Hyrule asked carefully, approaching the veteran.
“Yeah… I’m fine… Fuck…” Legend responded. His voice suddenly melodic.
“Sorry.”
“Sorry is right!” Warriors shouted from the edge of the water.
“What the actual fuck, vet?!”
“Shut up, pretty boy!” Legend hissed back. That melodic voice both beautiful and threatening.
“Though I do not agree with the captain’s choice of words…” Time started, getting a glare and muttered ‘look who’s talking’ from Warriors.
“I do agree that we’d all like an explanation. So if you would be so kind.”
Legend groaned, annoyed.
“Yeah, fine. That’s fair I guess. Alright. Find a nice spot next to the water. I’m delaying transforming again for as long as possible.”
- - - - - - - - - -
So the chain learned a few things about the veteran.
It honestly shouldn’t surprise anyone that he picked up a curse at some point. Though it being a curse that transformed him into a mer was not on their bingo card.
They learned that this curse was the reason he drank so much water and despised deserts. Him technically being a mer meant he’d need to keep skin far more hydrated than your average hylian. Be it through swimming or drinking water.
The transformation hurt. They all witnessed that. But they could’ve done without the details. Legend asked Hyrule to not be paranoid after each time he went for a swim but they all knew the traveler would insist on checkups because ‘that’s definitely not healthy, Legend, what the fuck?!’
It was also involuntary. He just had to be submerged enough and he’d transform. ‘makes taking a bath a pain in the ass.’ According to Legend. ‘You only turn into a half fish in a tiny bathtub once before you learn your lesson.’
They also learned that it’s not just pink hair that honestly looks good on the veteran. A pink fish tail did wonders for his looks as well. Just don’t tell him that. He’ll kill you.
Despite the chaotic start and the surprise fishman in their team it was nice to take a break at the oasis. But of course that wouldn’t last forever. Luckily they didn’t have to travel through the desert. A portal opened up nearby. Eager to get out of here Legend was the first to head through.
It led to Wind’s world.
It threw the poor veteran in the ocean. (The rest landed neatly on Tetra’s ship)
Legend was pissed.
Oh well.
Time to continue their adventure!