Chapter Text
Link felt that familiar pull in his gut that he hadn’t felt since he was fourteen years old, stopping him in his tracks immediately. The air around him suddenly felt charged and energized, prickling at his skin and making his hair stand on end.
Outwardly he groaned, feigning annoyance that he was expected to be a hero once more. However, he couldn’t stop the grin that was already finding its way onto his face at the sight of the swirling portal that had formed on the deck of the ship he shared with his mates.
“Tetra!” Link called as he swung himself over the ballaster of the ship and next to the door that led to his and Tetra’s room.
He landed with a thud just as the door swung open, Tetra and a few of the other crew members stepping out onto the deck of the ship. A raucous symphony of conversation erupted from the crew at the sight of the portal, although Tetra stayed uncharacteristically silent as she took Link’s hand in her own and stood next to him. Link squeezed her hand gently and smiled her way.
“So that’s what’s got my stomach all in knots, then?” Tetra looked to the boy next to her as the rest of the crew began investigating the portal, sticking appendages through it and laughing when the swirling mass of magic immediately and forcefully spat them back out and away. Link shrugged and chuckled as he watched Niko stick his head into the portal and get flung away and nearly get thrown overboard.
“It has- though it only does that when it wants ya’ to go in there,” Link answered swiftly, feeling that same, slightly nauseating tug in his stomach pull once more. He grinned and turned to Tetra, planting a kiss on the woman’s cheek and pulling her closer into his side.
“Guess it wants ya’ to come with, Tet!” He said with a smile on his face. Tetra scoffed in response and folded her arms over her chest with sass that would have made Aryll proud.
“Yeah, right,” She sneered, gesturing vaguely towards the portal. “These portals have only ever let ya’ walk in ‘em. Last time I tried it spit me righ’ on my arse.”
Link laughed at the memory, but tugged her along as he inched towards the portal.
“C’mon, Lass! If ya’ stick yer hand in you can see if it’ll take ya’ with it.”
He demonstrated his point by sticking his own hand into the portal. For the first time since the portal’s appearance, it allowed the hand to pass through without being rejected immediately. He pulled his hand back and waved his fingers at Tetra teasingly. The rest of the crew let out an awed “ooh”.
“Well? Crack on, will ya’?” Link pointed a thumb towards the portal. Tetra just rolled her eyes.
“Alright, fine! We’ll touch the portal!” She exclaimed, exasperated as she stuck her hand into the magic. Her face scrunched in a vaguely displeased way.
“Why’s it feel so cold?” She muttered to no one in particular, watching as the portal didn’t reject her presence.
Link whooped victoriously as Tetra pulled her hand away and turned to face him with a bit of shock evident on her face. He swooped in next to Tetra and placed a quick kiss on her cheek, laughing and smiling in pure excitement. The woman only blushed and pushed him away, muttering a slew of curse words under her breath.
“Looks like we’ve got t’go pack our stuff, then,” Link announced, turning to the rest of the crew with one hand on his hip and the other around Tetra’s shoulders.
“Gonzo’s in charge of ye’ while we’re gone, now!” Tetra announced, slipping out of Link’s grasp and marching to her bedroom, throwing a hand up in emphasis. Gonzo cheered and Link slapped the man on his back, throwing him a winning smile before following Tetra into their room.
When he entered the room, Tetra had already begun placing items into a rucksack. At the sound of Link’s arrival, she tossed him his own bag.
“Thanks, Lass,” Link grinned, already beginning to pull clothes and other items from his drawers to bring with.
Habit kicked in, and suddenly Link was 14 again, packing his bag before setting off towards another adventure. He smiled at the memory, nearly expecting to hear his old friends discussing a plan of action, or even just playfully ribbing at each other. He closed his eyes as he buckled the Phantom Sword’s scabbard to his belt, letting the familiarity of it all sink in.
He cracked an eye open to see Tetra turned towards him, staring at him expectantly. Link continued packing his items, turning to her with head tilt and a single brow raised.
“Y’need something?” He asked, playfully smirking as Tetra just huffed and continued packing alongside him.
“Isn’t it strange, that I’d be goin’ with, too?” She questioned. Link shrugged and chuckled lightly.
“It isn’t! I’d much rather have ye’ by my side, anyhow,” He placed a last item in his bag- the Windwaker , in all its glory- and heaved it onto his shoulder, extending a hand to Tetra in a silent offering to help her finish her packing. She handed him her cutlass as she placed one of her pistols into its respective holster along her hip.
“Strange that it wants to take us both with, isn’t it?” She shouldered her own bag and took her cutlass from Link, attaching it to her belt as well. The man just shrugged and grinned happily.
“Well,” She announced, placing her hand into Link’s. “Let's crack on, shall we?”
Wind had always known that at some point the journey across different times would end, but he never realized just how unprepared he was for when the time actually came. His hand grasped the nearest one to his own- Spirit’s, of course- and he let out a shaky breath of air.
“Is, is… is it really over?” Wind asked with a waver in his voice, taking a cautious step back and away from one of the ten portals that appeared in the clearing around the group. He looked at his family around him, his gaze landing on Legend as he let out a breathy laugh.
“Looks like we’re finally allowed to go home,” He said, his accent thicker than usual as he struggled to keep his voice steady.
The group glanced around at each other before crashing together in a tight group hug. Even Mask, the stubborn boy who rarely, if ever, let you hug him, wrapped his arms tightly around Warriors’ middle. Wind swiped a stray tear away as he felt his family surround him one last time.
“Are we ever going to see each other again, d’you think?” Hyrule said, a wistful sort of hope filling his voice as he tightened his hold on the rest of his family. The rest of them erupted into a chorus of reassurances of “surely we will” and “of course” and “you can’t get rid of me that easily.”
All too soon, the group pulled away, leaving Wind standing alone once more. Luckily, Spirit resumed his position next to him, now being joined by Mask and Warriors on his other side.
Legend was the first to walk through his own portal, wrapping Hyrule in a second tight hug and wishing the rest farewell before stepping through. The portal fell in on itself with a fizzle and disappeared behind him.
Hyrule, Four, and Sky were the next to go. Wild and Twilight followed after having a final, tearful goodbye, leaving just Warriors, Mask, Spirit, and Wind alone in the clearing. Wind whipped around, holding Spirit’s hand tighter as he looked to the Captain.
“What if we don’t want to go?” Spirit cried, taking the words out of Wind’s mouth. The Captain just looked at the three remaining kids sadly, his own eyes welling up with tears that were already beginning to slip down his cheeks. Mask let out a sob, wiping his arm across his eyes and blindly reaching for Warriors, who in turn grabbed the young boy and lifted him into the air with a hug. Spirit turned to Wind with wide eyes.
“I don’t want to leave yet,” Wind told his brother. Spirit swallowed, trying his best to give Wind a reassuring smile.
“I don’t want to go, either,” Spirit pulled him in for a hug. Warriors and Mask wrapped their own arms around the two of them as well, the latter burying his face into Wind’s chest. Warriors pulled away first, gently placing a hand on both Spirit and Wind’s shoulders.
“I’m sure we will see each other sooner than you realize,” the Captain grinned, sniffing a bit as Mask let out another sob.
“You really think so?” Spirit asked in return. The Captain nodded enthusiastically, his pristine smile bright as ever.
“Yes, I am sure!” He announced proudly, pulling them all close to him once more.
Finally, he stood, offering a hand to Mask. Mask took it and followed Warriors as he led him to one of the remaining portals.
“Come, now, Sprite. Time for you to go home, no?” Warriors said to the young boy.
The boy was still actively crying, but he hugged the man once more and turned to face his two other brothers.
I’ll see you soon, He signed. Promise.
Then he stepped through the portal, and Wind and Spirit watched as their little brother disappeared. Warriors smiled sadly, turning to Wind and Spirit one last time.
“Can I trust the two of you to stay safe without me ‘ere?” He winked playfully, but Wind could see just how genuine and caring the man was being. Wind couldn’t help but let out a laugh.
“You can,” he answered confidently. Spirit nodded in agreement.
“Well,” Warriors chuckled softly. “Perhaps we shall see each other again soon. Until next time, boys.”
He saluted the two before stepping into his portal, leaving the two behind in a silent clearing.
Wind was fully crying at this point, but to his relief so was Spirit. The two held each other for what felt like both a long time and not enough time at all.
“Sailor, I want ya’ to have somethin’,” Spirit said between shaky breaths. He pulled away, his hands working at untying the bandana around his neck before handing it to Wind.
“It’s somethin’ to remember me by, now!”
Wind smiled and wrapped his brother in one last hug.
“I’ll never forget it, either,” Wind grinned.
The two boys stood in front of their portals. Sharing one last look at each other, they smiled sadly.
“May the wind always be at your back, friend,” Wind said. Spirit beamed and nodded.
“And may the same go for you,” Spirit answered.
The portal enveloped Wind as he stepped through, the magic rushing over him before depositing him on the deck of Tetra’s ship. He smiled at the sound of Tetra and her crew shouting and singing happily together below the deck of the ship.
Wiping away any remaining tears and clearing his throat, Link went to greet his crew.
Stepping through portals was never something Link had particularly enjoyed doing, simply because of how overwhelming the magic could be. He remembered this sentiment as soon as he’d stepped through, hand in hand with Tetra as the swirling mass of purple magic swallowed them.
The feeling of electricity crackled lightly along his skin and the air was momentarily knocked out from his chest. The feeling of the magic made his head spin and his stomach turn, but it ended nearly as soon as Link stepped through the other side of the portal and out into whatever world he and Tetra had found themselves in.
Tetra cursed and stumbled upon exiting the portal, holding a hand outwards as if to balance herself.
“Gods above, that was brutal, wasn’ it?” She murmured as Link placed a hand on her shoulder and righted her.
“S’a bit nauseatin’ the first few times, now,” Link reassured her, although he was looking elsewhere, examining the view before them and searching for a familiar face.
To his slight disappointment, there wasn’t anything near the portal that they had just exited. The view before them, however, was a nice one. A thick forest of trees surrounded them, the leaves only just starting to turn to their fall colors. Nearby, a creek burbled as it wound between the trunks of trees. A slight breeze blew through the air, rustling the leaves of the trees and causing goosebumps to appear on Link’s uncovered arms. Tetra scooted just a bit closer to him.
“Seems autumn is on its way, wherever we are,” Tetra noted, kicking at a distinctly orange leaf that crunched beneath her boot. “Ya’ recognize this place at all?”
Link took in the sights around him, examining the area and trying to find any evidence that someone had been nearby. He examined the forest as well, hoping that something would stick out and jog his memory. He had been in forests just like this one in so many of the hyrules he’d visited, but they all were so similar he couldn’t easily pick them apart. Finding nothing of use, he just shook his head.
“No clue. I won’t be able to tell ‘til we reach a town, and even then I may still not know.” Tetra nodded in acknowledgement.
“Well, then, let’s find us a town,” She announced, choosing a direction to go. Link laughed and followed along happily, beginning to whistle a jaunty tune as he did so.
The two of them walked for about two hours with no interruption. Other than the occasional deer or small forest animal, there was still nothing in the forest that allowed Link to pinpoint exactly where they might have ended up.
“Ya’ would think that after nearly eight years adventurin’ and travelin’ through places like this, we would’ve found someone better t’do with our time,” Link thought aloud, swinging Tetra’s arm back and forth as he held her hand. Tetra just laughed and shrugged a bit.
“Havin’ a crew of more than two people helps a lot with that, sure,” She chuckled.
Link smiled, thinking of the crew back on his and Tetra’s ship in his own world. His thoughts then drifted to his nine brothers, wherever and whenever they were.
With them all by his side, he found it hard to get bored, even when traveling through the dullest of locations. Whether Twilight had been carrying him on his shoulders or Mask was dragging him through the underbrush of a forest, Link had never really found himself unoccupied the way he was now. He spoke this thought aloud to Tetra.
“You could carry me on your shoulders, if you miss it so much,” She suggested, a wicked smirk curling her lips. Link shoved her, pushing her off to the side with a laugh.
The two continued casually conversing and teasing each other when suddenly there was sound in the distance. Leaves rustling caught Link’s attention, and nearly as soon as he heard the sound his sword was in his hand. Tetra had seemed to notice as well, as she had one of her pistols pointing in the direction of the noise. The rustling occurred once more, a little louder and obviously this time, before a shape burst from the treeline.
Link held his shield up as a bokoblin bounded forward, the blade in its hand colliding with a deep “thunk”. Link heaved the shield out, throwing the bokoblin backwards and causing it to roll before getting up once more. Tetra fired off her pistol at the monster, hitting it square in its chest with a bullet made of water and infused with magic. The monster recoiled from the impact and screamed in retaliation. Although slowed significantly by Tetra’s pistol, it still barreled forward with its sword pointed at her.
Link stepped to the side and brought the Phantom Sword up quickly, clashing against the bokoblin’s sword and knocking the monster off balance and backwards. Tetra leaped forward with her cutlass next and slashed at the monster. She cheered as it finally fell to the ground and burst into dark smoke, leaving behind only the dull blade it was carrying.
More branches cracked nearby and Link readied his sword as he swiveled around, scanning the area in search of any other enemies. He nearly lunged forward as a second, larger shape burst from the trees, but Tetra pulled Link back by his collar as the horse that appeared reared up in surprise. Link choked and shouted out a swear as he toppled backwards, urging the wind to cushion him as he hit the ground.
The man on the back of the horse yelled too, his sword falling out of his hands as he attempted to stay on the back of the animal.
The horse returned to standing normally, trotting anxiously in place. The rider looked just about as anxious as his horse did, his face pale as he caught his breath and patted the horse’s neck, cooing at it softly.
“Gods above, the two of ya’ scared the hell out of us! What’re you even doin’ out here? Dontcha know it’s dangerous ‘round here?” The man made eye contact with Link and Tetra and his face paled even further.
Link’s jaw dropped at the sight. Behind him, Tetra stiffened as well.
Link examined the man with wide eyes. He wore a navy blue coat adorned with a handful of medals and had a cap pulled over his messy blonde hair. His eyes were nearly the same color as his own, just a tad more blue than green. On his face were an assortment of scars, but Link immediately noticed the two scars that ran from just below his chin to just under his left eye. A smear of grease made itself seen on his cheek.
Link let his expression shift into a wide grin. Other than the fact that he had grown up, losing his remaining baby fat, gaining a couple of more scars, and looking a little more sleep deprived than usual, Spirit looked nearly the same as Link remembered him.
“E-Engineer?” Link tried questioning, frozen in place as the man on the horse let out a gasp.
“Sailor?” Spirit answered in return, his grin blinding.
Link let out a shocked laugh as Spirit jumped off the horse and nearly face planted into the dirt below. Link forced himself up and bounded to the man, wrapping his arms around the boy he hadn’t seen for six years . They crashed into each other, both laughing in shock and disbelief as the situation began to settle in their minds.
Spirit pulled back first, holding Link’s face in his gloved hands and examining him sharply, as if checking over him.
“Gods above, ya’ look the exact same as you did before,” Spirit laughed and Link rolled his eyes. Tetra also let out a sharp “ ha !” at the comment, obviously finding joy in the implied message of “wow, you still look like a fourteen year old” . Spirit turned to her as he registered her voice and his jaw dropped.
“Oh my goddess, is that Tetra?” Tetra bent down in a sarcastic bow.
“The one and only,” She said pridefully. Link pulled her close and Spirit hugged her too.
Rather than putting on a performative and nonchalant act like she would have done normally, Tetra genuinely returned the embrace.
“It’s good to see you again, Conductor.” She pulled the hat off of the mechanic’s head and ruffled his hair. Spirit squawked in protest but chuckled once Tetra returned the hat to his head, albeit crooked and leaning to the side.
Link just put his hands on his hips and smiled happily at his two best friends.
“It’s been so long since I’ve seen you two!” The Engineer threw his hands out in excitement. “Did the two of ya’ just get here, now?” Spirit turned back to Link as Tetra rejoined his side. Link nodded but made a “so-so” gesture with his hand.
“We landed a handful of hours ago. Been walkin’ ever since. Speakin’ of,” He gestured to the surrounding forest. “Any clue where we are? Are any of the others here as well?”
Spirit’s grin turned sad and Link felt his heart twist in disappointment. Tetra squeezed his hand and placed a small kiss on his knuckles as a small comfort, which Link was grateful for. The Engineer just waved them over as he returned to his horse and gathered his sword, speaking as he went.
“I take it that the two of ya’ found the bokoblin I was chasing, then?”
Link nodded and nudged the sword the monster had left behind with his foot.
“Good. It’s gettin’ late, we’ve got to head back to camp,” he said, waving a hand as he gathered the reins of the horse. He tilted his head in a “come on” gesture. Link and Tetra obeyed, joining his side as Spirit led them in the direction of whatever camp he was headed back to.
“None of the others are here then? Really?” Link asked, trying to keep his voice steady. Disappointment swirled in his gut at the thought of his brothers really not being here and he frowned. Spirit grimaced at the question.
“Well, sort of,” he worried his lower lip with his teeth before continuing on. “The Captain is here, but he’s not- he doesn’t know us like we know him. He’s younger in this timeline.”
Link was genuinely taken aback by this news. His mind whirled as he began to process this information. Traveling through different times had always been something he tried not to think about too hard as a kid, but the idea that he was now older than someone he used to consider his older brother made his head hurt.
Something clicked in his brain: old memories from when he was still a kid. The Captain telling a story as the sun set, Mask joining in and adding his own comments here and there. The memory was a pleasant one, full of laughter and joy, but Link felt his heart drop into his stomach.
“Does that mean… all of those stories he told us…” his voice trailed off as Spirit picked up in his absence.
“About the war he fought in? Yeah, they haven’t happened yet,” Spirit spread his hands out to the side, turning to the two others and stopping in his tracks as he faced them.
“Welcome to the War of Ages, mates.”