Wisdom and Courage: A Mother's Love
Story: Wisdom and Courage
Setting: Pre-story, set about seventeen years before, during the Hylian Civil War
POV: Thrid Person
Characters: ... largely a surpise... ;)
Pairings: None, really
Genres: Drama, Tragedy, action
Summary: War is raging in the land of Hyrule, and in the midst of it, two mothers, both in very different situations, share the very same goal: to keep their children safe from the danger all around them....
The land of Hyrule was in chaos.
The skies above the once-prosperous land were painted black with a seemingly eternal night that spread to every inch of the kingdom, filling the hearts of all of its inhabitants with fear. Its lush earth was soaked red with the blood of those who had died in this raging war that had torn a rift between all people. And all because the greatest threat to beset the land in ages had come, vowing to stop at nothing until she claimed the golden power.
She called herself Veran. Where she came from, few knew and even fewer cared. All the people cared about was the fact that this black-hearted sorceress of shadows was turning all of the tribes against each other and inciting a bloody civil war. The extent of her magic was strong to be sure. It had brought about devastating fires, famines, and floods throughout the land, causing great hardship and turmoil. Yet despite the troubles that she had wrought upon the people of Hyrule in her lustful search for the Triforce, few knew of her presence in their land and how she had set this time of trouble into motion. But there were some who were wise as to the mastermind behind the tragedy the kingdom was facing. And they knew that if Hyrule was to ever be united again, Veran had to be stopped and sent back to where she came from.
The Sheikah were known for being a perceptive, if mysterious, group of people, but none of them could have expected this. Veran had descended upon their village like a sudden storm, vowing to destroy them all if they did not reveal to her the hiding places of the keys to the Sacred Realm. Such were secrets that the Sheikah knew and guarded well, and in this sacred duty, they bravely refused to relinquish this information to the evil sorceress, knowing it would lead to the downfall of the kingdom if she were to get her hands on the Triforce. In her fury, Veran set fire to Kakariko Village, the tribe's ancestral home, but not before going through the entire village and using her destructive power to slaughter every last member of the Sheikah race.
Save for one.
Hiding in the dark shadows of the night, Impa raced towards Hyrule Castle, not even bothering to look behind her as her home burned to ashes and her people were killed. She had a responsibility to take care of, one that was much too important to fail. The middle-aged Sheikah woman knew well that if Veran were to discover her and kill her, all would be lost. And so all she had to do was avoid getting caught. Easier said than done.
The wooden drawbridge to Castle Town had been burned to a crisp, no doubt by Veran. Impa made easy work of the moat that stood between Hyrule Field and the city, and even as she entered into the marketplace, she kept out of sight, only taking a brief moment to glance at the troops of elite Hylian Knights preparing to face the sorceress of shadows on the battlefield in just a few hours. Based on that, Impa knew that she didn't have much time left; she had to hurry to the castle before it was too late to save them.
Still keeping to the shadows, the Sheikah woman evaded the legion of guards surrounding the castle, in the hopes of protecting it from Veran if she came near. Impa knew that it wouldn't do any good though; there were none who were safe from the sorceress's tyranny, not even the royal family itself, which was exactly why Impa had come in the first place.
