Chapter Text
Deep breath in... Long, slow exhale... Loosen your shoulders... Slow thoughts, slow movements...
A heavy breath left my chest, visible in the moonlight as a puff of fog as I tried to steady myself. My shoulders loosened, though the tension never left my arms while my bow rested steady in my grip, the string pulled taut against the strength of my fingers. The fletching brushed my cheek; the string grazing the bracer strapped over wraps covering my forearms.
The world beyond my bow narrowed to one silhouette.
Mist drifted lazily across the clearing, silvered by moonlight. Through it, I saw my target.
A Lynel.
It stood like a god among monsters. Its body was massive, five times my size at least, its every motion rippling with muscle. Golden horns curved from its skull like a crown and its mane was thick and wild, framing its face in a way that made it seem more beast than man, more demon from mortal. In one hand, it idly clutched a blade taler than I was, a weapon that would have turned any ordinary hunter into dust.
I could feel my heartbeat in my teeth, my jaw becoming sore with tension.
The longer I held, the heavier the bow became. My shoulders burned and my arms shook, screaming for release, to just let the arrow fly, but I couldn't. Not yet. The timing had to be perfect.
I bit my lip hard enough to taste iron. My heart wanted nothing more than to scream, but I forced the string down, easing the shot away.
I blinked--once, then twice--refocusing on the Lynel.
The clearing was empty.
I froze in the realization that my game had vanished from in front of me. My eyes frantically darted around looking for it and I felt my throat constrict. There was nothing. Not a sound, not a shimmer of horn, and most definitely not the glow of its bestial eyes.
No... no, no, no. Where did you go?
I crouched low, knees bent, creeping forward inch by inch. My breath came shallow, desperate to keep the silence unbroken. My eyes scanned the clearing again, frantic.
And then--
A heavy huff sounded from behind. The air froze in my lungs, my body turning cold.
I turned, slow, agonizingly slow, dread dragging my head around. There it was.
The horns gleamed like molten gold, its eyes holding the shimmer of a predator's fury. It had its sword tilted slightly, catching the moonlight.
I couldn't breathe. My chest locked and my limbs stiffened, and it felt as though I had left my body entirely, hovering outside myself in raw terror.
It didn't move and neither did I as we stared at one another. Our little staring contest stretched on, time itself breaking.
I took one step back. Then another.
The heel of my boot brushed the grass and my heart begged me to run, but I forced myself to inch backward. Just a little more and I would be far enough to turn, to bolt--
SNAP.
My eyes shot down to see a broken stick beneath my foot. The roar that followed was enough to shake the heavens and the forest exploded into chaos.
I ran, my legs moving before I knew they had chosen to. Branches tore at my arms and roots clawed at my feet. The ground quaked under every thunderous step of the Lynel and the roar still rang in my ears, chasing me into the trees.
The night blurred. Shadows streaked past, silver lines of moonlight flashing between drinks. My chest burned as though every breath were knives and my heartbeat drowned out the world.
I stumbled, nearly went down, caught myself, and pushed harder. The beast crashed after me, faster than anything so large had the right to be. Minutes stretched into a torturous eternity.
I could feel my strength failing and my legs shook, stumbling with each stride. The blades in my lungs turned to fire, my throat raw. There was no possible way for me to keep this up.
A root snagged my foot and I pitched forward, pain ripping up my leg as I hit the ground hard. By the time I rolled onto my back, the Lynel was already there.
It loomed over me, sword raised high, a shadow blotting out the moon. Its roar ripped the world in half.
"Help! Somebody help me!"
The scream broke from me without thought, cracked and ragged with terror. Tears blurred my vision as I braced, pinching my eyes shut as I raised my arms.
But nothing came.
Metal struck metal, a startling screech of sound that forced chills down my body.
My eyes shot open. Before me, a young Hylian had somehow managed to block the Lynels fatal attack--standing between me and what would have been my death. My mouth was agape at the sight and when I blinked, the beast staggered, roared, and collapsed with a crash that shook the forest floor. I lay frozen, staring at the corpse.
The boy turned, crouching to my level before his hands moved with practiced care to check my wounds. He said nothing but his expression was calm, steady as though what had just happened was nothing at all.
My voice broke as I tried to speak. "H-how did you--"
"We need to get you to the stable. It's not far." The man finally spoke, his tone clipped. "It's not far."
He hauled me up with surprising gentleness, whistling sharply, and within moments the sound of pounding hooves cut through the dark. A horse burst from the trees, snorting steam. He helped me onto the saddle, swung up behind me, and urge it forward.
The forest blurred into streaks of black and silver as we rode. My body was shaking, pain settling in as the adrenaline bled away. My leg throbbed, the bruise I could only feel on the other burning immensely.
"I never got your name." I nudged him with my arm.
He was quiet for a moment. "Link."
I blinked in surprise. It was a name I was well familiar with as was most of the kingdom. "Huh... Well, my name is (Y/n), I don't know how I can repay you for helping me."
"Don't worry about it. I do this a lot." He chuckled quietly, looking back with a charmed smile.
I winced at my head which had begun to ache followed by a spot on my torso. My body was certainly starting to feel its wounds now and exhaustion was trying to pull at my eyelids, "You wouldn't mind if I dozed off for a second... right...?" I muttered, resting my forehead on his shoulder.
He stiffened. "Don't. Not yet. We don't know how bad your injuries are so you have to stay awake." His voice was sharper now, edged with urgency that should have worried me.
I tried to heed his words, but the world was already slipping away. Voices rose as we reached the stable and I could just barely make out shouts of alarm and orders exchanged. Hands pulled at me, lifted me, and carried me while Link's voice faded into static.
Darkness swallowed me whole.
-
In a quick instant, I was waking up to the smell of cold air and wood smoke.
I blinked against the light. Above me, the ceiling was open to the sky with small windows circling the highest point of the structure. The walls were more suggestions than solid, half open to the outside. A chill breeze brushed over me, raising goosebumps on my arms.
As I tried to cover myself with the thin blanket that had been put over me, my arms felt as though they had been turned to stone, stiff and heavy. I couldn't help but to hiss in pain. Bandages wrapped around my arms and torso, fresh and tight. One leg was splinted; the other was wrapped thick around the ankle. A cast of some kind encased my thigh.
I was dressed in a loose gown, my head screaming with a fierce headache as I sat up to inspect it. I put a cold hand up to my temple, hoping to make the buzzing stop as I kicked my feet over the side of the cot.
"You're awake!"
I turned my head and found myself staring at a Rito with feathers as soft pink as a sunrise. She hurried to my side.
"Careful! You're not exactly fit to be moving right now," she said, steadying me.
My voice was dry, my voice rough. "Where... am I?"
"Rito Village." She laughed lightly, as if it should have been obvious.
My heart thudded. "How did I--"
"A man named Link brought you. You were barely holding on at the stable, so they rushed you here. You were lucky. Most don't survive Lynel attacks."
The memory slammed back into me. The horns, its roar, the steel of its blade. I pressed my hands to my face, breath shaking.
The Rito's voice softened. "You're alive. That's all that matters."
Her name was Alora, I learned. In the days that followed, she became my anchor. She explained my injuries in detail: a concussion, a sprained ankle, bruised ribs, cuts across my arms, and worst of all, a fractured femur that would keep me grounded for months.
I couldn't even remember when it had broken.
"You said you tripped right before Link appeared? That must've been the moment it broke," Alora guessed, her brow creased in thought. "But the damage is... odd. I'm surprised it isn't worse."
Three weeks crawled by before I could hobble with a crutch. By then, the village had become familiar in strange ways. Alora checked on me daily, fussing when I tried to do too much. Children flocked to me, curious about the injured heal staying among them. Their laughter chipped away at my gloom.
The first daughter I managed to climb the stairs, the sight stole my words.
The entire village spiraled around a colossal stone pillar, huts clinging to the cliffsides. Stairs wove up and around like ribbons. At the peak, silhouetted against the sky, an enormous machine perched: a bird wrought from steel and magic, wings spread wide as if it could launch into the heavens at any moment.
"Wow..."
"You're finally up!" shrill voices called.
I turned as three children ran toward me, feathers ruffled from excitement.
"(Y/n)! (Y/n)!"
Three of them ran up to me excitedly and I laughed, "Hey, kids. What's going on?"
"You're walking!" one of them cried, bouncing in place. "Come on, we'll show you around!"
Their wings flapped with barely-contained energy, and I couldn't help but crack a wide smile. "Well... I would have no one else as my guides. Where to first?"