World Tree MUSH

It's creeping towards midsummer on the roof of the world, in Hyrule's highest peaks. The labyrinthine maze of mountain passes and arboreal meadows are nearly impassable in the winter months, but in summer the roads are clear and the breeze refreshingly cool. A Vine lies not too far distant.

Tucked among the trees, below the main road, a half-fallow orchard spreads its boughs to the sun. It's here in the dappled shadow that travelers might pick up an odd sight: A woman in a simple white dress walking slowly between the trees, skirt hem billowing about her ankles. Her feet are bare, and she wears no finery save for an elabourate golden pendant in the shape of a crest with outspread wings. Each wrist bears a filigreed bracer bearing rays around a triangular symbol. She carries nothing in her hands.

Her hair, loose and free, is whipped by the wind; her eyes are the clear blue of summer sky, shadowed beneath but clear and intelligent. Her ears, notably, are long, slender, and tapered to a point.

Curiouser and curiouser.

    It would have been easier to travel with a horse, but alas -- that was one thing the Frye twins had not at their disposal, so a good pair of shoes would do. 

    Nevermind that she's a little well dressed to handle the heat. She's taken off her heavy jacket, and has folded it over her arm as she considers her next steps. The brunette was scribbling something in a book, in the shade of a tree when she happened to glance up and catch the most unusual vision of a woman. 

    "... an elf?" she questions, looking to the long, slender and tapered ears as the princess Zelda makes her way through the orchard.

The woman slows to a halt before one of the orchard's ailing trees, placing a hand almost gently on the trunk and looking up at the half-alive, half-withered tree.

Sensing movement, the woman turns, the motion not unlike a deer freezing and then liking straight at whatever startled it.

For a moment she stares, although something in those eyes is calculating, and there's no fear in her expression or posture -- just a healthy sense of caution.

She glances briefly back up the path -- there is a castled garrison further up, its squat tower just visible over the treetops -- and looks back to Evie. She's striding over, sure-footed and light; another flickering similarity to a deer. It isn't long before she slows before Evie's shade-tree, smoothing the hem of her white dress.

Up close, it's covered in intricate white embroidery on white fabric; detailed and finer than first glance.

"Hello." Her voice is low and clear. Sounds pretty normal for a young woman, otherwise. A brief flicker of a smile. "May I help you? This place does not often see travellers." Those blue eyes look Evie over, quick but thorough. "A traveller from the World Tree, I gather...?"

    Evie very rarely has anything to fear; she's armed (with her cane, and a gauntlet that looks a bit heavy), her brown hair braided in a crown about her head as she purses her lips at the figure in white's approach -- and hse draws herself up to a stand. She has a couple fallen leaves in her hiar. 

    "My apologies for staring, I'd come across this vine and hoped to gather information about it for my travels." she states, and gives a gentle smile to the hart-like Princess. She lowers her journal and pen, tucking them away in one of her pockets. 

    "Evie Frye, mum, out of London. How do you do?" she introduces herself plainly, giving a masculine bow to Zelda.

A cartographer, then, or at the very least, an explorer. The so-called elf's brows rise in an expression of subtle interest.

"In that case, may I offer you advice?" She glances over her shoulder again. "For all its tranquility, this is a dangerous place. Tread with great caution. The further into the lowlands you venture, the closer you draw to the curse of the Twilight. The people are afraid, and uncertain."

She eyes the journal and pen, lips thinning in thoughtful regard. Eventually she bobs forward in an almost-bow -- a gesture of high aristocracy, or even royalty. "I am Sheik, a former handmaiden of the royal family of this kingdom. You are in Hyrule, of late a place shrouded in Twilight and sorrow. An usurper sits its throne. The royal line is ended; Author of Law soothe their restless souls." She shakes her head. "You travel here at your own risk, Miss Frye. I wish I could welcome you to Hyrule under happier tidings."

    Evie's brows knit a moment. "I am always welcome to advice, Lady Shiek." Evie replies gently, but as she listens, her eyes narrow. An area fraught with danger? People at risk? A usurper on the throne? 

    She can already hear her father saying that she needs to keep to her own missions. 

    "My apologies then that I could not arrive in happier times." she states, as if it were her fault. "A usurper on the throne that has embroiled the land in darkness does sound problematic."

"No Lady am I. You need not pay me obeisance," the Hylian murmurs, shaking her head.

Turning, the woman faces the southeast, narrowing her own eyes. For a fleeting instant her eyes are as cold and hard as flint, or ice; there is venom naked in them. It passes quickly, and she is the picture of polite neutrality once more. Her small smile is just a little forced. "Indeed. The Twilight is not just physical darkness. It... changes those, caught within it. They become as bodiless spirits. I do not know how offeorlders react to it, so please step with caution if you choose to approach."

"If it is lodging you seek, I may perhaps be able to offer you accommodations." She smooths the hem of her dress with calm deliberation. "The mountain is dangerous after dark."

    "I am no stranger to danger, Miss Sheik, though it would be remiss of me to decline a generous offer." Evie replies quietly, and then at the furhter explaination, she narrows her eyes. 

    "So, then the villagers and others who might have been down there..." she trails off a moment, turning down towards the valley. "A magical element then." she remarks to herself, and she takes out her book, and pen, and with a twist writes again, making note of it. 

    "This Usurper, by what name are they called if I may ask?"

"There." 'Sheik' points downslope to the bowl of the great Hyrule Field, far below. Farm fields form patchwork squares across the landscape in more fertile areas; from the high meadow, one can just make out the moat, river, and tiny citadel of Hyrule Castle with its soaring spires and artful towers. Darkness seethes over it and the sky to the far south takes on a sickly orange cast.

"There is Hyrule Castle, burnt and broken, but still standing."

"The Castle is the most dangerous of all."

"He is called by Zant, of the Twilight Realm." The name is given with a soft, terrible coldness. "Even now his pet monsters patrol the heart of Hyrule."

    What she wouldn't have given for a spyglass now. Evie looks down across the bowl of the valley, Hyrule Fields beyond. She looks over the whole of it, and she considers a moment. "Zant." she pronounces his name with distaste in her mouth. Her eyes narrow, and she turns back to Sheik. 

    "Are there no warriors left to fight him? No swords in all this kingdom?"

"No swords to find purchase against him or his pet monsters." 'Sheik' thins her lips, the expression subtle but undeniably hostile. "The soldiers cannot fight him. They become as helpless spirits when they enter the Twilight. It is not for lack of bravery on their part."

...Yeah no Hyrule's poor soldiers are so out of their depth.

The regal woman shrugs lightly, even that small movement fluid. "Time will tell. The throne will return to rightful hands in time."

    "Unfortunate." 

    Evie continues looking down over the fields. 

    "Can this... 'Twilight' be reversed once a person has contracted it? Or does it operate as a disease does?" she questions.

"As soon as the afflicted leaves it, or when it is banished, they would appear to resume their natural state." The Hylian looks back to the field, eyes locking briefly on the tiny spires of Hyrule Castle. She doesn't move or speak for a few seconds, but her pull towards the citadel is almost palpable.

She shakes herself and looks away.

Her eyes return to Evie, regarding the woman for a long moment. There is an intensity in her gaze; the sense, maybe, of one soldier appraising another.

"You ask many pointed questions." Her voice is soft. "What is your care, for this land you do not know?" The question is probing, but gently so.

    Evie looks down to where she wanted to be jotting things down. Rogue schollar. Some sort of explorer, something she could explain away. 

    "I have a strong distaste for injustice and a fondness of helping the common man. An unjust ruler, usurper or not, that corrupts and performs such violent measures as monsters and robbing others of their safety and protections derserves neither their throne..." 

    And she flips a page, and writes 'Kingdom of Hyrule' on the very back page of the journal. It has other names -- Hartford Empire, London, Mumbai -- and she snaps the book shut. 

    "Nor their existence."

The Hylian doesn't answer st first, quietly mulling over the answers given her. Her expression never changes; whatever thoughts she might have about it, she keeps her reactions to herself.

She's silent for a very long moment, looking like one weighing one answer or truth against the other.

"Will you walk with me, up the road, Lady Frye...?"

    "Miss Frye, if anything. I'm no one of finery, Miss Sheik." Evie replies, but she motions for the elegant woman to lead the way. 

    "I apologize if something I inquired or said has offended you."

"As you wish." The acknowledgment is neutral, with an undertone of what might be approval. "By the same token, just 'Sheik' will do. I hold no title, at the moment."

Was she offended? 'Sheik' shakes her head, quickly, at the question. "No. No, of course not. You are a stranger here." The woman blinks, a little owlishly. She breezes past Evie; a ripple of her dress hem and the lingering scent of -- lavender, maybe?

She beckons with a flick of a wrist, though she doesn't raise her arm. "Come."

"Hyrule is a land of peace and prosperity that has suddenly found itself thrust into desperate times, and it will require assistance if it is to recover from the ravages of the Twilight," she explains. "Outside assistance, from beyond Hyrule's borders."

    "Sheik, then." Evie replies as she walks, her jacket over her arm. She wears a violet vest, etched with darker violet embroidery, and a silver pocket watch on a chain. She walks with the lady, and she considers briefly. 

    "You sound as if you have a question to ask of me," Evie states, "to which the answer would probably be 'yes'." 

    She snaps her journal shut again, and tucks it away now. 

    "You have said those who venture into the Twilight become changed, bodiless monstrosities, but you're not sure how fast it occurs on an outsider, if at all. That avenue is worth exploring."

The Hylian pauses near the base of a tree, crouching down and reaching behind it to pull out what looks like a plain pair of sandals. She slips them onto her feet and falls into step beside Evie with easy grace. Her stride is light and loose, with the long-legged efficiency of a deer.

"I do." Those summer-blue eyes slide sidelong, regarding Evie obliquely. "Thus far, no offworlders have become spirits, at least not that I have observed. I have reason to believe it would not affect you, but... I would still recommend against it. Monsters there are warped and changed by the Twilight, transformed into even more dangerous beings. They are all the usurper's servants." She snorts, faintly, as though it were an oath of some kind. "They have no place in this world."

'Sheik' lifts one hand in a gesture of concession. "Fortunately, they are simple-minded, and easily outwitted. One who is talented at hiding will have no trouble from them." Her steps are soft and light and even; a gait like a deer, unhindered by any undergrowth that threatens the road. "They are powerful, however, and hostile towards anything not of the Twilight. Such creatures are a danger to Hyrule's roads."

The woman lets her arms swing, the gesture strangely girlish; it makes her seem younger than the look in her eyes suggests. Eventually she folds her hands behind her back, stride now bobbing like a heron's, stride long and spare; no wasted movements.

"If you are certain you accept... than you are welcome to join those of us who have pledged ourselves to Hyrule's cause. I welcome your assistance with open arms, stranger." There's a long pause. "Metaphorically speaking." There's an even longer pause. "...Please do not actually hug me."

"In any case, I digress. I am grateful for your assistance. And -- I must apologise for my deception. My name is not 'Sheik,' and I am no handmaiden of the royal family's." Her eyes slide sidelong, to regard Evie obliquely. "I am Zelda." She bows her head, though the gesture seems more humbled than haughty. "I am the last living member of Hyrule's royal family, and I must thank you most sincerely for your assistance, stranger."

    Evie follows, watching Zelda's every movement as she walks, and listens to the good lady explain. 

    She studies the ways he moves, the way her feet dance without seeming to bend a blade of grass as she listens. Her own green eyes narrow a moment. 

    And she raises an eyebrow at the 'please do not actually hug me', about to question if that often happens -- 

    And then the admission. Evie does not break stride. 

    "To begin a relationship upon a deception, your highness, is to build a castle on sand. A dangerous proposal at best." she breathes out. "Fortunately, I can understand why you may have to hide your identity, but thank you for sharing your truer self." Evie gives a nod of her head. 

    "I shall do what I can to help."

The young queen listens, hands folded behind her back and head bowed. Her chestnut hair sways as she walks. Every so often, her eyes flick sidelong, watching Evie without quite looking directly at her.

Ahead of them, the path ascends the mountain, climbing at a steep angle. There are still pines clinging to the slopes, but even those are beginning to thin out.

Soon, a promontory of solid rock rises out over the orchard, leaving only one approach to the fortified garrison. Up close, it's much bigger than its location might imply. It's well-hidden for such a big structure.

"Welcome," Zelda says softly, "to Snowpeak Garrison. I have been using it as my base of operations. It was fallen to neglect before I restored it. It is not a place the usurper would think to search for me, having escaped his custody once already." She smiles, a cold and cruel smile flickering across her face. "I hope it vexes him, to think of where I could have gone. I hope it is a plague upon his sleep."

She clears her throat demurely.

    "Ah, much more suitable. No sand to build upon here." Evie replies good naturedly to the princess, and she examines the garrison with a critical eye. The eye ofs omeone used to getting into places she probably shouldn't be. 

    "Well, the first thing is first. Exploratory in the morning. It will take me a few days to gather supplies I'll need, and I should familiarize you with a way to tactically fall back, should it be required." she turns to Zelda. 

    "I have a few friends that may help, further up the vines."

  "The foundations are solid stone, and they reach deep into the heart of the Snowpeak Mountains," Zelda explains. "If they come down... the very world itself is ending."

  She falls back a little, taking long, slow strides and gaze wandering aimlessly in thought. "I will be able to help you with supplies, although that which we have in the garrison is limited. Mm. Yes. We do not have the skill, but I had hoped to install manually- and automatically-triggered traps in the courtyards. Unfortunately, I do not have any soldiers, here. It is too remote, and was never used as a permanent garrison. It was abandoned in my grandmother's time, and so I have restord it."

  Zelda folds her arms as they stride up to the curtain wall's oversized gates. She plants a palm against one and shoves without breaking stride, pushing it open and waiting for Evie to walk through. Once they're both inside, she pushes it closed, throwing home the large wooden bolt that keeps the gate closed.

  "I'm afraid it may not seem like much, but it is home." The Hylian waves a hand to indicate the courtyard. It's not quite flat, but it's close, and grass has already begun to spread in clumps. A stunted peach tree grows in the corner, with green fruit on its boughs. Archery targets stand with holes from arrowheads shredded into them, but no arrows in sight.

  Whoever used them is a scary good shot.

  Zelda breezes past them without even acknowledging them. "I will certainly take into consideration your acquaintances, Miss Frye, although I must caution you that Hyrule comes first. If I feel they are a threat to my homeland, they will not be trusted with its secrets. While it is not in my nature to be so suspicious, I cannot afford to be trusting, not in these times."

  She folds her arms as she crosses the courtyard, opening the central keep's main door and holding it open for Evie. Once they're both inside, she closes it, but she doesn't engage its deadbolts. The wind swirls the hem of her dress about her ankles as she turns to face Evie again, thoughtful once more.

  "Do you enjoy tea, Miss Frye...?"