World Tree MUSH

  Snowpeak Garrison, Peak Province
  Northern Hyrule

  Spring is everywhere in Hyrule, except the high place of the world. Peak Province contains some of the highest and loneliest terrain in the kingdom. There are vines here that lead to Snowpeak Garrison, an old garrison once built by the soldiers of Hyrule and later abandoned. It looks lived-in, though: Nearly everything in it has been renovated in the last year or so. Stone and wood look new. The grounds are well-kept.

  In fact, there is someone out tending the grounds in the courtyard beyond the open front gate this very afternoon. Late afternoon sun slants down a the clear sky. It is clear and sunny, but breathtakingly cold -- there's absolutely nothing to temper the freezing air. The figure is a young woman, busily sweeping the yard of snow and pine needles, and the black robe she wears over fur-lined clothing may look familiar to some. It's embroidered with Hyrulean royal symbols and the sigils of the Sheikah, all picked out in bright, metallic silver thread.

  'Sheik,' she had introduced herself as; a servant and handmaid of the royal family of Hyrule. Certainly that might not be too far from the truth. If she were the princess, why would she be doing something so mundane as sweeping the front courtyard? Some are often surprised to find that this royal is so down-to-earth, though.

  For the moment, though, she is silent, focused wholly on her task.

    And why is Hawk here?

    The young adventurer is naturally curious about another Hyrule. In one of the recent brief breathers that their native Hyrule has gotten, so comes the wielder of the Master Sword of another World. Snowpeak is quite likely long gone in that other realm, or perhaps has not been founded yet? The exact place in the timeline of Hawk's world has not become clear yet.

    However, one thing that Hawk does not feel the need for is stealth. Snowpeak is unlikely to be a hostile settlement, so before the youth is within sight, the light clatter of hooves on some of the stones outside gives away the approach. The riding stag is also quite distinctive, making it easy to distinguish who it is for any who may have run into the hero before.

    Also it is a bit chilly in the mountain passes, so Hawk is wearing a cloak. "Well met! May I ask if this place is friendly to travelers?"

  There's a certain allure in learning about parallel versions of home. Who wouldn't have that kind of natural curiosity? Particularly people of a more scholarly persuasion.

  The figure sweeping the courtyard looks up, but well before Hawk arrives astride the riding stag.

  As the stag steps into the courtyard, she looks up; in the same movement, she lowers the broom and tilts her head. A hand rises to sweep the hood aside, revealing summer-blue eyes and a frazzled braid of chestnut-brown hair. A young woman's fine features. Aristocracy, at the very least.

  This one, though, is royalty. The Triforce of Wisdom is visible on the back of her right hand.

  "We do not turn away those in need, but we do not seek attention." Those summer-blue eyes look Hawk over in clear appraisal, and the corner of her mouth threatens to twitch. "The Author of Law has a sense of humour, after all..." The statement is both highly amused and annoyed in the same breath, spoken mostly to herself. The young woman half-smiles. "Master... Hawk, was it not? I had wondered when I would see you again."

    Dropping down from the stag, Hawk pats it and lets it canter... outside, though after the saddle is tugged away. Most stables aren't really equipped to handle a stag, so this is probably the normal situation. And yes, Hawk's eyes linger on the Triforce a moment, making it very clear that it's seen and understood. Or is it?

    "Yes, Hawk is what they call me. A nickname," comes the reply as the saddle is set down for now. "I'd wondered, but I knew this was likely your world. That you were HERE is just a... well, as much a coincidence as we have. Perhaps the Triforce draws fates together even in other worlds?" A glove comes off, briefly showing the mark of Courage on one hand. "Is it safe to speak here? I've only seen that mark on one other..."

  "It is too inconspicuously plain to be anything more than a moniker." The young woman eyes Hawk speculatively, considering the words in clear thought. Eventually she shakes her head. "I find it is not the way of the goddesses." Her mouth tugs in a faint half-smile. "From the writings of the Shadow Folk, the long-departed Sheikah of my Hyrule... 'Coincidences are rarer and more precious than secrets, or silver.'"

  "So it would seem. The Triforce cannot ignore its own. Like calls to like, even across the ages, across the boughs of the World Tree..." She straightens, leaning the broom against the crook of her elbow. One delicate brow quirks. "I expected a hidden Triforce of Wisdom. Another adherent of the Author of Law." There is an archaic quality to the titles she uses; a reverence in her address of the goddesses, that marks her as priestess as much as princess. "You surprise me, Farore's Chosen."

  She looks over one shoulder, and then back to the youth. "As safe as any place in this Hyrule may be." Summer-blue eyes track back over to Hawk. "You may speak freely. What troubles you, Master Hawk?"

    Hawk moves closer, but only within conversation range, rubbing hands together. A nod, and the youth admits, "The very fact that you expected Wisdom upon my hand is troubling. I have met the bearer of Wisdom in my Hyrule, and he is certainly different. It was he who trained me, since he comes from a more martial background than I."

    Even here, in private, Hawk can't say who they are. Perhaps there are reasons beyond simple secrecy. However... a small nod, and all they do admit is, "Though given who you are and your obvious suspicion of my own origins, it does not surprise me that you'd think I bore something different..." Trailing off, eyes wander over Snowpeak. "I don't believe that this exists in my world. I wonder if I could go to this spot and find something...?"

  He? The word brings Zelda to arch a brow, but she doesn't comment. The discrepancies aren't alarming enough to warrant it, but they are quietly noted and filed away. Already the hierarchy is dramatically different than she expected it to be.

  "Perhaps that error is my judgement. You show more forethought than I ascribe to the typical bearer of Courage." The broom is brought forward and the yard swept as she speaks. "This is Peak Province, the only province of my kingdom that is not well-represented in population; too remote to settle, too harsh to support even a village. And that is precisely why I am here."

    A wry smile, one without any humor at all in it, curls Hawk's lips. "More forethought? Maybe. I can be a little fast on the trigger, but I've seen worse it's true. It looks as though neither of our Hyrules can have the princess near the throne right now, hmm? But then, I've heard that like my own realm, this place is in dark days." Somewhat literally, but Hawk may not know that, even if traveling here doubtless gave them some idea of what is going on.

    The gravity of the situation wipes the smile away though, even the humorless one. A heavy sigh, "Even the Gerudo don't know what the true cause of the chaos in my world is, and until I know more I'm not sure what I can do. I was hoping your world may give some hints, but I think this is a history that never was for me. But... I am still a bearer of the Triforce. If you have need of that, then perhaps we can surprise your own foes." It's pretty obvious what Hawk's idea is. Team up, tackle one world at a time.

  "For the first time in recorded history, Hyrule Castle has been lost to an invading force. An usurper sits the throne." There is something cold and angry in the young woman's voice, but also tightly and masterfully controlled. "I would say that dark times are upon Hyrule."

  Her head shakes as she continues her sweeping. "The Gerudo are gone from my world. No one can seem to agree on what happened to them, but it happened in my royal grandmother's time. They were still alive when she was a child."

  Those summer-blue eyes flick over to regard Hawk, though, appraising. She shakes her head. "Forgive me." The broom is laid aside. "I am a poor hostess. Something to drink, or to eat? The road here to the garrison is not a kind one. That, too, is by design."

  "I would be glad of your help, Triforce-Bearer. I would be glad of what your name really is, too, but I do not believe I will win that secret so easily." She turns, striding towards the main garrison building and beckoning for Hawk to follow. "Will you come inside? It is safe to speak here, but much warmer, there."

    Hawk nods, moving along behind. "Something warm would be welcome... especially after such dire news. At least our palace is still held by the regent, but..." There's a shake of the head, and then a small glance toward the gate, to make sure the saddle is away from harsh weather for now. With that, the young hero follows and chooses to answer the other.

    "I'm not sure if I can tell you, directly, but I think you already know my name. There are few who would be able to guess as readily as you," Hawk replies. "I'd ask you not to speak it aloud, just in case, but I think I can trust you to know why I'm so familiar with the royal line, and why you'd be unsurprised if I said I knew where my Hyrule's princess was at this exact moment. If the enemy finds her, things would get far worse, I think... her freedom, and Ganondorf's location, are the two greatest secrets we have."

  The saddle outside seems as though it might not be in any immediate danger. Though the sun is weak, the sky is clear. There don't seem to be any dark clouds on what's visible of the horizon.

  "An option less bleak than this one." Zelda shakes her head as she picks her way across the yard. Snowpeak Garrison's doors are stout and carved with Hyrulean royal sigils as well as Goron rock-runes. She pushes them open by setting her shoulder to one and shoving, apparently not being a particularly delicate princess.

  She'll hold it open for Hawk before letting it close with a reverberating thud. "The doors are not original," she comments, with a blade-thin smile. "I had it reinforced."

  "You are Farore's Chosen." The princess turns a look over her shoulder at Hawk, unconcerned. "The Lifegiver is by far less concerned with identity and blood. The Author of Law is exacting in her consistency. She of the Red Earth..." Something troubled flicks across Zelda's face. "I am afraid I cannot claim to know Her motives."

  She takes Hawk on a short but straight trip to the kitchens, hanging her cloak on a peg just inside the door. Beneath, she wears nothing royal, but a simple homespun dress and fur-lined boots. "Still." She crouches before the hearth, prodding the coals beneath it; rewarded by the puff of a tiny flame. "You are welcome in these halls, far though they may be from Hyrule's heart."

    "Mn," Hawk sighs. Stepping through, the young hero glances at the door in mild surprise. "I suppose the originals might have rotted. You're um... more worldly than I am I think, you'd know better." A polite way of saying 'older', simply because this hero seems to be in the teens. "About reinforcing and things. I never had much training for that, just for how to deal in the moment. My mentor did his best."

    On to the topic of blood and blessings, Hawk's head is shaking. "Something is different this time, that's... that's the problem. I shouldn't have this." Again, lifting the hand. "I'm trying to live up to it, but it isn't right. The Triforce has had a very few bearers not of the original three, I'm told, but never... different like this. I think that may be part of the problem. But if I have Courage, then I think it's because I can't leave another Hyrule without help either." The boots start to come off so there's a chance to relax. "At least I know where to go to contact you."

  A bit more prodding of the hearth coaxes a little more flame to heat the kettle. It's a big cast-iron affair, scoured and clean, blackened where the metal's been seared over the years. As that heats, she turns to prepare a few stoneware mugs, glancing up to regard Hawk curiously as she does.

  "I should be the Queen-Regent of Hyrule," Zelda points out, with shake of her head. "It is my business to know these things, if it means the safety of my people. While I hardly expect these to keep out the things that are hunting me, it will keep out any of the monsters that do occasionally roam the mountains. I hope that stag of yours is swift-running. Hyrule's roads are not safe, of late, and have not been for years."

  "That is, I regret to say, quite directly my own fault. Yes, you may find me here, under most circumstances, but this is hardly Hyrule Castle. This is Snowpeak Garrison, a stronghold constructed in my royal grandmother's time. Construction was halted and the manor eventually abandoned, although I have yet to discover the purpose for its construction, or the reason for its abandonment." Zelda shakes her head again, wrapping the handle of the kettle with a cloth rag and heaving it over to the counter, pouring out both mugs and returning it to its hook.

  Folding her arms and leaning her hip against the counter, she cocks a summer-blue eye down to the mug, watching the water gradually darken. "Heh. I am willing to offer you help, if there is any need for my abilities in your Hyrule. I am at an impasse, here, until I have the opportunity to seek allies and bolster my position here. I cannot march on the castle, yet, but I may prepare for it while the passes are still somewhat navigable. Spring and summer are coming, but when autumn and winter come, the passes and high roads will be buried in snow."

  "And you, as well, are welcome to remain here as long as you wish. If you wish to keep your stag in the stable, you may; I expect Miss Branford will attempt to befriend him, and I will personally see to him. Elsewise, he will find forage in the orchard, or down the pass."

    Hawk does a slow shake of the head, "Who can know? Let's just hope some hidden danger wasn't the reason for the abandonment, but it sounds also as if you have offworld allies... something I sorely need for my realm. Another reason to offer my help. I'm... not the warrior Link is. Even Ganondorf has more martial prowess than I do. But I have the Master Sword, and my magic to aid me." A hand touches the hilt. "Hopefully combined they're greater than the sum of their parts."

    Taking a seat for some of the warm liquid, the youth sighs, waiting just a little while it cools enough to drink without burning the tongue. "Acheron will be fine," comes the reply. "He doesn't take well to stables, but he won't linger here. I'll have to whistle for him when I leave, but he's more a wild beast than a horse. We just have an... understanding, I guess."

  "I suspect there is something more at play, but I do not have the resources to investigate available to me at this time." Zelda glances off to one side, eyes narrowing thoughtfully. "My royal grandmother was indeed wise, but I have a growing suspicion that she was involved in something that has been covered up and hidden through the generations."

  She picks up one mug, setting it on the island counter for Hawk. The other Zelda takes for herself, cradling it in her hands. "In any case, there is nothing I can do for it right now. When I have the royal archives back under my control, it may be worth some research... if anything in the archives has survived."

  "The castle was burning as I was fleeing it, so I have little hope for Hyrule Castle's famed historical archives." The young woman shakes her head. "But perhaps I might find more information elsewhere, when travelling Hyrule is safe again."

  "A curious choice of steed," Zelda comments mildly, eyeing Hawk with muted curiosity. "A horse would be by far simpler, I would think, but if the arrangement works for you..." A shrug. That's all that matters, the gesture seems to say.

  "What will you do now...?"

    Hawk grimaces. "I was... being trained about matters but..." The youth gestures glumly. Far too young to have this burden upon them! Then again, sometimes the heroes were young, weren't they? Though how much of that is in the records may not be clear. This one is older than some, but still green, and not in the clothing choice.

    Or, at least claims to be. Knowing magic does give them an edge.

    Sigh, "The archives... we'll hope. Maybe your Hyrule had protections on them, or firebreaks or... copies exist somewhere." Hawk's head lowers, staring into the mug after taking a long drink. There seems no need to talk about Acheron though, so that topic is skipped in favor of... plans.

    "Do now?" The youth looks up. "I'm going to venture out into the larger world. Seek out allies of my own. Help out where I can, too. And maybe find a way to track down Link before he... causes problems again."

  "But there was not enough time..." Zelda sighs, shaking her head as she holds her mug up higher, inhaling the fragrant steam. "I understand that all too well. I wish, sometimes, that my grandmother were still alive. She was not killed in the coup, but I miss her experience and wisdom all the same. She was much closer to the goddesses than I feel I am."

  She turns her head to regard Hawk's glumness, though, something sympathetic in her eyes. "Perhaps it isn't in vain. I can teach you what I know, if it may be of some use. I am a passable archer and fencer. I would say I have been riding since I could walk, but I think you need little enough guidance in that regard. Still... I also steward the secrets of the royal family." She meets Hawk's eyes, serious. "If they may be of some help in winning back your Hyrule..."

  "Perhaps." To the archives, she looks dubious, but seems willing to entertain the possibility. "The fire was spilling out the windows, but perhaps something is left. Unfortunately, if there are any materials salient to the Twilight Realm, they are -- or were -- in the castle. I may as well lend aid where I can, in the meantime; I cannot do anything with haste for fear of being detected."

  "Rumours of my death are greatly exaggerated, but until I can win back my throne, they are also extremely //useful//, however much they may damage the morale of my people. I cannot have the usurper tracking my progress."

  To the issue of Link causing problems, she lifts her gaze from her mug, frowning slightly. "Link? Yes, I suppose he no longer possesses the Triforce of Courage... perhaps you should start at the beginning, and tell me everything of your Hyrule. It sounds as though a number of key commonalities are quite different. If I'm to have any hope of understanding and lending aid to the situation there, I must know everything, laid out as clearly as you are able."

    Hawk thinks that over... then nods. "I'd like to help where I can. And I'd welcome help in solving mine, but it's going to be difficult." Looking up again, Hawk considers. "I have promises to keep, and even when I do tell you, it's a longer tale than I can give tonight. I'd fall asleep before it was over, but I think I can give a quick summary to let you know where things stand."

    Hawk settles back into the chair and thinks for a few minutes first, before giving that summary. "Monsters are on the rise. Some... power is attempting to take Hyrule, but for what reason we don't know. Link is... not himself, and the Triforce of Power gives him so much strength he's a danger to everyone. I don't even know who is really behind it. Ganondorf and I are doing what we can to find out, but he can't act easily, and I have to work carefully. Ganondorf says that normally he would be the one to be worried about, that he is reincarnated with a hunger he can't satisfy... and I suspect there's still a little of that in him even now. But he knows he has to be the one to face Link in the end. Something has gone very wrong, and it's tearing at the tapestry of Fate itself."

  "Your help would be much appreciated. I will not insult your integrity by lying to you about your task here, either. The situation is bleak." Zelda lifts her mug, sipping carefully, relishing the heat as much as the taste. It may be spring in Peak Province, but that doesn't mean much. The sun is weak in the roof of the world, and it isn't up for very long before the craggy peaks hide it. It certainly doesn't look like the kind of climate she'd choose for herself. She's shivering as she takes her mug more firmly in hand, sidling towards the kitchen fire. "I should know. I am the one who created it, and the first queen of Hyrule to willingly surrender Hyrule Castle to the enemy."

  She sips at her tea in silence, looking distant-eyed and thoughtful. "Certainly. I would appreciate a longer version, later. It may be that I am Queen-Regent of Hyrule, but I am a scholar at heart." Her mouth quirks in what's almost a smile.

  It sobers in record time as Hawk explains the situation.

  "Link; corrupted? The Hero, subverted? I--I do not understand. How can that be?" Zelda seems completely taken aback by that revelation; not disbelieving like a cynic, but disbelieving with the honest shock of the devout. "The Golden Goddesses set those plans in motion when Hyrule was in its infancy. How can such rules be turned aside, bent; broken?"

  She quiets to let Hawk finish, though, and her mouth pulls into a thin line of displeasure by the end of it.

  "Goddesses be good," she murmurs, blanching. "I see what you mean about a longer tale. I will need to hear the details of this, later, but perhaps there is something I can do to help you. I... do not know about the Princess Zelda of your Hyrule, but I am not just the princess or the queen, but also first among priestesses who serve the Goddess Nayru. I would be willing to ask her guidance, if you do not mind assisting me in the ritual."

  Zelda falls silent again, glancing down, eyes sliding out of focus. "Mm. Yes. I will explain to you the finer nuances of my own situation another time. In summary, my throne has been usurped by Zant, of the Twili, the descendants of criminals who had once been banished to the Twilight Realm. The number and audacity of monsters rises daily throughout the kingdom. Hyrule's government has collapsed entirely. My people are reduced to small and fearful settlements throughout the countryside, and I have heard nothing from my age-old allies, the Zora of Zora's Domain and the Gorons of Death Mountain. I would need all of their combined help, along with my offworld allies, to overthrow Zant."

  "Link has vanished, along with the Master Sword. Gannondorf... yes, I know that name." Her lips thin. "A Gerudo criminal in my royal grandmother's day. I do not remember the full nature of his crimes, for he was apprehended well before I was born. Let me think..." Her eyes hood, and she takes another sip of tea, slow and deliberate, mind working furiously behind her calm visage. "Only one male is born to the Gerudo every hundred years, and he is their king. It was my grandmother who encountered him, and for his crimes he was tried and sentenced to banishment to the Twilight Realm. He slew a Sage of the Seal on his way in. His physical form was destroyed, and he was reduced to an incorporeal form..."