#hasai

Coming to Hyrule would be the catalyst that would not only change the Hasai people, but change Zannah's destiny forever. Fighting against Rinku pushed the princess to her limits and forged the empress that she would one day become. The war took away her entire family, and the scars she both physical and psychological would stay with her forever.

That final day of the war and the choices she made are what ultimately would save her people, and the world, from destruction.

Art by @s-kinnaly

The War of Fire was a glorious victory for the Kikai Empire. With her father dead at her hands, she was the quickest in receiving the Ruby of Eternal Flame and achieved the powers of a Demi-God. With it, she was able to finally defeat the Hero of Hyrule, helped her brother Nihilus in avenging Seras by killing Ganondorf, and assisted Grand Admiral Bellum in crushing Zelda. With Hyrule conquered, there resources were ripe for the taking. This included access to the Sacred Realm, as well The Duša Magija, an artifact of great importance to the Lorliedian people. With the Triforce, she wished for her twin to be brought back to life to rule at her side as a second in command.

Hyrule was made an example of. It's entire people either wiped out completely or made to be slave labour. Danjur was the next country to fall to the technological and now magically superior Empire. Despite being a ruler whose line only advanced thanks to the artifacts and advancements of other people, Zannah was very good at utilizing new tools.

"I don't know loss? Me?" The Empress felt the tears of rage well up in her eyes. Everything in her body felt hot, swelling up in the flames of revenge that bore inside her. "I lost my family! I've lost my nation! I never got to know my mother! My father tortured me! I watched my own twin brother be decapitated in front of my eyes, my whole other half discarded like he was nothing, then I had to help Hyrule kill my older brother in service of preserving the world. Decades later, I thought I could put their deaths behind me, then my own God brought my own twin back to life just to see which one of us was more fitting to rule. I was forced to kill Seras with my own hands to protect my family. Including the son of my mine who is now DEAD AT THE HANDS OF CHAOS! Because I chose to take half measures as a compromise for temporary peace! Seras, Nihilus, and Griffith. All the spilled blood of my family runs through my mind, their souls screaming to me to avenge them."

Whenever Zannah seeks to bath, she enjoys water at near boiling levels for complete relaxation. This can be achieved by either using her magic to heat the temperature of the water up, or by finding her nearest hot spring. Zannah can swim, but never does so recreationally. As such, she tends to bath alone, and does so without the fabrics of clothing. For the Empress, bathing in hot water is for relaxation only, a way for her body to reset and her mind to clear.

Years ago, I wrote a scenario that never made it past the draft phase. An AU of Zannah truly losing everything after the War of Fire. Ganondorf saw to it that Zannah was left with nothing. Her people erased, her Empire destroyed, and given only rags and shame to carry with her for the rest of her life. It was an incredibly dark story of how far a teenage girl from royalty could fall into the darkest underbelly of society. After the worst of suffering, right as hope looked like it could be possible for Zannah, her entire life came to an end with one explosive tipped arrow. The content of said story gave me pause though, and I never published it.

With that said, a more light hearted sketch of being Dirt Poor! In one Universe the Fire Conquering, child kidnapper lost it all on a gambling condition.

There is more than one way to get drunk. On the substance of alcohol, Zannah is rather reserved. She has a preference for saki, gin, and whiskey. When she drinks, it either with her wife or in silent isolation. Her mood is always reserved when she gets drunk, quietly focused on a subject at hand, being the love for Annuciata or musing over her past.