*Arbiter's Grounds*

"Awaken youth of the Twilight."

Your eyes remained clamped shut as a voracious pain consumed your muscles. When you finally managed to open them, you saw six billowy silhouettes peering down at you.

Their eyes were lifeless slits from where you lie. The more you observed, the more it dawned on you that they actually had no eyes. Only hollowed-out scoops where eyes should have been. No wonder they looked lifeless. It's because they were. That's when a terrifying thought nabbed you.

"Goddesses, I've died!" You sat up straight, your spine tingling with fright. You attempted to stand, only to feel your limbs rustle with dead air.

You were levitating.

"I've died? I'm dead! Am I dead?" You folded your hands together in prayer. You began to bow to the vestiges of souls that floated above you. As you bowed, your back made a startling crack. "Wait, how can my body crack if I'm dead? Shouldn't I feel nothing at all? Isn't that what it means to cease to exist? An exodus from suffering?"

You began to frantically wrestle with the air around you. You flapped your arms and kicked your legs hysterically. "Wait! Link! Is Link alright?! That creature attacked him many times. Has he bled to death? Please tell me Link has at least survived!" You felt your throat choke on a sob.

"Goddesses, even in death, I still manage to shed tears. I-"

"Fear not, youth of the Twilight. The hero is well. It would take much more to kill him. As it would you. You are very much alive." One of the voices moaned above you, bringing to attention six spirits cornering you. Were they even spirits? They could be poes, yet something about their stoic reserve made them not quite ghoulish enough to be considered poes.

You began to gently float towards the ground. As you descended, another spirit chimed in. "Stand on your two feet. See for yourself. You are in the mirror chamber." As your feet steadied on the ground beneath you, you turned to see the broken frame that once held the Mirror of Twilight. Fragmented energy buzzed around it in the forms of a holographic Midna, Link, and Zelda. You slowly proceeded forward, watching the spectral play in front of you.

Their mouths moved, but no sound could be heard. You saw Midna blow a kiss toward Link. A single teardrop flew from her eye. Ah, you knew what would happen next. It was odd to see Midna cry. It never made sense to you. If Midna could cry, then couldn't she feel? Was she able to feel all along? Could all the Twili feel? Is that what Midna's mission was? To expose them to emotions? Then they could be more like their light-inhabitant counterparts. If dusk is the representation of twilight in the realm of light; what was the representation of light in their realm? There was no dawn in their realm. And so, it wasn't something you could physically see, but something you could feel. 

Feelings. It must be.

You felt like you were on the brink of a monumental discovery until you saw Midna's tear gravitate towards the mirror. This is where the mirror breaks, sealing their realm off from the light. Everything was playing out in accordance with what you knew. Until you noticed another tear on Midna's cheek, subtly trickle down, allowing her to stealthily catch it with her left hand.  As she vanished through the mirror, there was one last tear. Only it wasn't on Midna's face.

It was on Zelda's.

"The shard... this isn't a shard of the Mirror of Twilight. These are tears. Tears of the princesses." You couldn't believe what you had just witnessed. You also couldn't believe that yet again, you found Midna intertwined with another lie.

"Indeed. The Mirror of Twilight has been destroyed. The tears of Princess Zelda and Princess Midna act as seals for each realm. These seals are necessary to fight off the missing pieces of fused shadow."

Before you could concede with more questions, another spirit cut in. "Child of Zant the Usurper. Zant the mad. You have come to save your realm. To destroy the fused shadow that resides within you. To be a hero."

Well, now I'm convinced I'm dead. You stared up at the six figures. Each one was perched atop a column. The columns extended up against the backdrop of the blackened sky, emblazoning their phantasmic silhouettes. "Forgive me, but may I ask who you are?"

They said nothing, almost as if you should know the answer to your own question. Then you remembered Princess Zelda and her command. "The voices of the past will have words for the future."

Wait a second; these are the voices of the past. The six sages. The ancient protectors of the Mirror of Twilight. It's only natural that they would continue to protect each realm, respectively.

"You are the sages," you bowed in reverence once more. "Thank you for your dedication all these centuries to protecting our realm. I ask, are you certain the hero you mean to call upon isn't Link?"

"The Hero of Twilight will continue to fulfill his duty with each passing breath. That is his destiny. As you, daughter of the usurper, will continue to uphold yours. Deep within you is a fused shadow passed down through your bloodline. Sometimes a hero's calling isn't to save a land and its citizens; but to vanquish the evil within themselves. For your next assignment, you must go to the Temple of Time. Consult with Princess Zelda to break the seal that has been recast on the Rod of Dominion. You will also find an Oocca to assist you on this next leg of your journey."

Their appearances began to crackle beneath the weight of the stars. They were fading away.

You began to internally compartmentalize the information you just received. You reached your hand up into the sky, pleading them not to leave. "Please, wait! I have so many questions! How do I destroy the fused shadow within myself? Is there more fused shadow that we will need to face in the future? How do I keep the shadow within me at bay? Why did you call him Zant "the mad?" Please!" You shouted up at them. Your voice echoed in desolation around the barren colosseum.

"All will be revealed." One of the sages groaned before succumbing to his dwelling amongst the vast sky. One by one, the other sages followed suit. One sage remained; he held his hand up as he imparted one last statement. "The Hero of Twilight has found you. Has found..." The sage's body dissipated midair. His hand still held upward, as if he were hanging on to a star that kept him grounded in this realm. The hand slowly began to evaporate.

"Has found what?!" You shouted. You began to circle in place, gazing up at the expansive galaxy above you. You continued to holler. "What has he found? Please! What has Link found?!"

With a sky full of stars, in a colosseum of ghostly residents, beneath the obscurity of clouds of rolling darkness...

Once again, you stood alone.

A/N: Edited 1/22/23

It seems you have been saved, with a distinct set of instructions. The next part of your journey will take place in the Temple of Time.

Reclaim the Rod of Dominion and meet with the Oocca, who will assist you from there. The stipulations given are straight-forward; but how to purge the fused shadow within you is not.

The Realm of Twilight has always spoken of a great hero; will the Realm of Light challenge your idea of what a hero is?

Or will it serve to reinforce it?

Check out my other completed OOT Zelda work- No Woman Beyond