Hyrule moved on. It was over six years since the Princess’s disappearance, and it was concluded that she was dead. Impa, Zelda’s guardian, was still mourning for her.
One night, she went to bed and had a very hard time getting to sleep. Her troubled thoughts were filled with the missing princess. When she did drift off, she had the strangest dream. She was on the beach at Great Bay. There was the boatman, offering to rent her a boat. He told her there was something happening in the southwest. 50 miles southwest of the Zora Meteor isle, past the reef where they found the smashed boat. There would be seals, gulls, and on the horizon, an island. Impa saw one the shore two people. They were waving at her. It was the princess and her escort, Link. Were they alive? Even after all this time, they were alive? Was it possible? Should she even think it? Then three women, blue, green and red, appeared. They nodded as they smiled. They were alive. And she knew where they were.
“King Hyrule!” she shouted. “Your highness! They’re alive! I know where they are!” Impa ran down the hallway, waking every person in the castle. She arrived at the king’s room and pounded the door. A sleepy eyed man opened the door and asked what the fuss was all about. “Sir, I know where she is. I know where Zelda is. Sir, I had a dream and the Goddesses themselves appeared and told me.”
“Good gracious, woman! Let’s go!”
Sea travel did not agree with the king. But he had to see if Impa’s premonition held any truth. The Zoras had led them to the meteor island and according to Impa, southwest. They passed the reef where they found the boat and sailed past it. Then, a tiny speck appeared on the horizon. It continually got bigger and bigger. Then they saw a wisp of smoke rising into the sky and Impa knew she had been right. They neared the island and saw a small figure running along the highland. A bigger person ran behind it and stopped. It shouted and waved its arms. From the deepness of the shouts, they could tell it was a man. Link! A woman, Zelda, ran to the group and added her shouts. The boat was anchored and the king and Impa rowed out to shore. Link, Zelda and the smaller person now stood on the beach, awaiting the rescue party. Zelda could hold back no longer. As soon as the boat hit land, she threw herself at the people inside it.
“Daddy! I thought I’d never see you again!”
“Oh my darling! I thought you’d drowned!” The king was crying as he held his daughter. Then he took a look at her and noticed her bare top. “Zelda! You’re naked! And what is that you’re wearing!?”
“Sealskin. It’s too hot to wear a top. With no one else around, it’s a little hard to be self-conscious. Oh, and this is Link. The one who persuaded me to come on this vacation.”
“I sincerely hope that this was not planned.”
“No, daddy. We were going to go with the Zoras but our boat drifted. We had no choice.”
“But how did you survive?” the king wondered.
“Link knew how to live off the land. We’ve been doing it for six years now. Oh, and daddy, I want you to meet Impa.”
“But Impa is right here!” the king motioned to the Sheikah behind him.
“No, your majesty. This is our daughter, Impa.” Link said, bringing a shy four-year-old girl forth.
“You’re joking. I am a grandfather? Oh, this is wonderful! Impa, do you hear that? I’m a grandfather!” The king was overjoyed. First his Zelda survived and on top of that, she gave him an heir! Link and Zelda showed their cave to the group, and explained the ways in which they lived. Zelda recounted her pregnancy and how it came to be. Link gave very detailed explanations for everything he made. Then he was struck with inspiration. They were leaving, and he had to take something and leave something of great importance. He grabbed a drying clay platter and with a sharp stick, began to write something. He finished and said, “Well, I’m ready to get out of here.”
The party boarded the boat, and Zelda and the king and Impa II leaned heavily over the rail. Sea travel still did not agree with them. But as Zelda heaved she took a last look at the Island. Link came over to the edge and presented his love with an ivory carving. It was a diagram of the island, carved in amazing relief. It was three inches high and three tiny people stood on the shore. On the back was inscribed the farewell he carved on the platter. It read:
To those who find this Island:
Zelda Hyrule, Princess of the Land of the Goddesses, Link, the Hero of Time, and Impa II, the Daughter of the Sea, spent six years on this Island. They faced the challenges of life, love and family together. Equipped only with the will to live, some stone tools and some kelp, they made it. They survived. If you are looking at a dire problem, keep the Eternal Words of the Book Of Mudora in your Heart: “Only when all is lost can Hope shine the Brightest.” I hope that when I return to the land of my Heart, I will not forget the lessons learned. I hope that whoever may find this in one hundred years, three hundred years, five thousand years, my words still ring true, for a shall never forget the Unmarked Passage of Time on this Island in Isolation.
