Jasce the Jester: A memory in the mountain (Pt. 3)

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Started :pushpin: 04 jun 2025

Finished :pushpin: 13 jun 2025

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This is part 3 of ”Jasce the Jester”

If you haven’t read the previous parts, you can do it here:

Part 1 — ”A laughter in the past”

Part 2 — “A friend in the dark”

* Brackets […] are being used in this story to mark when words or parts of sentences are in italics *

𝐀 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐘 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐍

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A new friendship is created…

The walk to the stable was not far,

but would turn out to be the most important walk Zack had taken after the calamity. He watched as Jasce slowly, but with precision that only came with practice, walked with him out from the breach. It would have probably taken Zack half the time to walk up that hill, but for once, he didn’t mind the slow pace. He had to painfully it to himself that he was tired. Fighting monsters took every drop of strength you had.

Jasce was shaking his guitalele for any last water stuck in it. He carefully strummed the strings, trying to hear if the sound had altered after the exposure to water. The wood had almost dried, so he took it as a sign that no harm had been made.

“You never answered my question,” he said. “Are you a royal guard or not?”

Zack looked at him, before letting out a small sigh.

“I am. I was.”

“Hm, makes sense,” said Jasce. “You fight as if you were born for it.”

Zack didn't answer back. He tilted his head up to look at the cliffs parting, revealing the clear sky.

“Well, it’s nice finding another fellow castle worker. I didn’t think many of us survived,” said Jasce.

Silence fell between them while Jasce tried to tune back his instrument. Soon the small guitar in his hands sang like it usually did. Zack glanced over.

“You can’t possibly be a court jester,” he mumbled.

That comment made Jasce stop with a surprised look on his face.

“What do you mean by that?” he asked.

“His Majesty didn’t possibly need a jester to entertain him. He could do that in other ways,” said Zack.

Jasce gasped and placed a hand over his chest.

“Your words wound me, noble knight.”

Zack refrained from rolling his eyes, as he continued to walk. He heard the scraping of Jasce’s wheel following him.

“Fine, you think I’m a hoax…”

[“More like delusions,”] thought Zack.

“I’ll prove to you that I was a court jester, even if you were just some mere soldier who only got close enough to the castle to see the golden rooftops.”

The sound of metal sliding against each other and in seconds Jasce was faced with the dark blade. The tip was half a meter from him, but he knew that the fighter could cut him in half if he wanted to. Jasce looked up and met eyes with Zack, who seemed to breathe fire, his eyes had turned a darker colour. The comment for sure irritated Zack, he was not some mere soldier, he had been all around Hyrule, protecting the Princess and the King in travels. What took him off guard was Jasce’s expression; he looked calm and fearless. He had maybe been at swordpoint many times, or perhaps it was not the worst thing he had experienced. His expressionless face made Zack’s face soften. His words may have hurt Zack’s feelings, but he wasn’t a threat, and Zack had reacted without thought.

Zack slowly lowered his sword when Jasce started to play a familiar tune and continued their walk.

”What will we do when we have no money?

Our true love, what will we do then?

Well, we’ll walk through the town for a hungry crown

And we’ll roll it all over again”*

His singing became background music for Zack as they came up, ing the last rocks of the breach. The sun was still high, but was getting closer to the mountains in the east. The sound of birds came back, and once again peace was for a moment restored over the Hylian hills. Zack could feel how the water evaporated from his tunic in the hot sun.

“So how did you end up as a royal guard?”

Jasce had finished his song and was squeezing out a few drops of water from his braids.

“I just applied,” said Zack. “Had a friend who… thought I should.”

Jasce nodded. “What a nice friend. Are they still around?”

Zack became quiet, and his otherwise cold look turned soft. The grip around his sword became tighter.

“No, I don’t think they are.”

“Calamity?” asked Jasce.

A nod, barely noticeable, came from Zack. Jasce sighed.

“I don’t know, but you tell me. Do you think it’s worse to lose someone and have that aching feeling, knowing you really loved them, or lose someone that meant something to you, but feel nothing?”

Jasce felt a judging stare from Zack.

“I think what I’m asking is, is the burden of love heavy?”

Zack kept quiet as the road flattened and Jasce could unhook his wheel.

[“Yeah, it’s heavy,”] was his thought.

Jasce turned to hum on another song as he played it loosely on the guitalele. Zack studied him as he lightly kicked the ground, making him spin and turn on his wheel.

”Sleeping by the way

But it’s okay

Because I would do anything for you…”**

The jester sure knew how to follow the atmosphere. Zack studied him; his way of moving, his playful smile and the humming that occasionally became coherent words. That man couldn’t sit still, or be quiet for a moment. It made Zack sigh involuntarily, but perhaps because it was so unlike what he knew. That both of them had existed in the inner circle of the royal family felt absurd. The King, who Zack knew as a fearless and headstrong leader, couldn’t have such a flamboyant and unserious man to entertain him. Zack couldn’t wrap his head around the mental picture he had created.

They where rounding Lindor’s Brow when Jasce said,

“Oh look, there’s a fox!”

He pointed to his right. There, on the barren land, stood a fox. It licked its paws, before jumping down, disappearing from their sight. Jasce sighed happily.

“Foxes are quite cute, don’t you think?”

Jasce’s interest in animals took Zack by surprise. He had barely known this man for more than a few hours, but he had gone from a man with a knife, to an annoying one who asks questions, to now an animal lover. He felt a sting of envy in his chest. Some just had it so easy to be themselves.

“What’s your favorite animal?” Jasce asked.

“Erm… wolf.”

“Hm, interesting. Well, I… my favorite one… well, I do think foxes are cool, but so are eagles, and sand seals…”

Jasce’s voice once again became background noise to Zack. The road started to decline between Lindor’s Brow and Salari Hill. Jasce had to stop and secure his leg again before they could walk.

“How… erm,” started Zack, “did you lose it?”

Him asking a question made Jasce’s face light up.

“Oh, well, I got smashed by a Guardian while saving a kid. Memories are blurry, but I got pulled out of there, and somewhere outside the castle walls I lost consciousness. Next thing I knew, Sheikah people.”

Just thinking of losing a body part was a living nightmare for Zack. Never could he be as happy and joyful as Jasce if that ever happened to him, and talk about it all so lightly…

“Do you have a request for a song, Mr Soldier?” Jasce asked, turning around to look at his walking companion while they ed a traveller on their horse.

Zack shocked his head, and Jasce turned back.

“Oh well, I guess I just have to start composing my own then.”

Zack focused on the ruins that could be seen by the canyon from the road. Like usual, Jasce’s vague notes that flew in the air became nothing but mushy noise along with the birds and rustling in the bushes by the road. Jasce greeted another traveller they met, and Zack had to awkwardly nod his head towards them.

“La la la… they lead me along…” Jasce mumbled as the scenery around them grew greener. The stable was now visible, its giant horse head poking out from the pine trees. Zack followed Jasce, as it seemed like he had come up with something.

“The children hum a hymn… la la… and I’d like to run away… la la, how does it goes again?”

Zack felt how his legs were screaming at him to stop and rest, but the only thing that kept him going was the thought of a warm bed and somewhere to wash himself off. [Almost there,] he thought.

Jasce strumming on the guitalele kept going into Zack’s ear, and flying out the other, until his humming and mumbling struck something in Zack. Zack turned his attention to him, as the jester sang,

”Six legs, tippy tappy toe,

Climbing to the podium on a Sunday

I was a tadpole at the time

So I don’t much

About what he had to say”***

The melody repeated itself, and a wave of memories washed over Zack. He was in Hyrule Cathedral, the sun shining through the colourful stained glass and the clocks ringing low. Dust particles danced in the air. There, by the benches, stood the one his heart ached for, humming.

”Isn’t it a nice song, to think that the bugs also have sermons here on Sundays?”

“Zack, are you ok?”

Zack was pulled out from his daydreaming, meeting eyes with Jasce.

“You froze for a moment, did you see anything?”

Zack blinked away the tears that had gathered in his eyes.

“Erm… monsters…” he waved with his hand towards the canyon.

“Oh, where?”

Jasce looked towards the fields, and Zack took the opportunity to create some distance. He only managed to walk a few meters towards the stable before Jasce was beside him again. Jasce tried to find the melody of the song, but it was gone just like the wind that had ed them. Zack collected himself, before asking,

“Where… did you hear that song from?”

“Hm? Oh, what I just sang?” Jasce asked. “Well, I think I heard it from my childhood or something. Some old song I can’t really , but it’s right there on my tongue…”

Zack exhaled, hoping that Jasce didn’t catch on the flashback he had. Jasce kept humming until they got to the stable. By then, the sun had reached the highest tops of the mountains.

Zack properly washed himself at the stable while Jasce tinkered with his instruments. Later Zack found Jasce by the door, jotting down something on a small piece of paper. His presence was enough for Jasce to look up.

“Oh, do you also want to put something on the Missing Board?”

Zack looked at the wall by the door, covered with missing adverts, some so small, just a few lines of the person they were looking for, and others bigger, with pictures and details of their last whereabouts. Jasce’s note was small, it said, ‘You who play the flute, come and find me.’ Zack pointed at it, and Jasce said,

“Oh, I’m looking for another castle worker. I met him down by the Coliseum, the… erm, yeah, the Outskirt stable. I didn’t get to talk much with him before he left, but I have a feeling that he has answers to my questions.”

Zack thought that was a noble cause. He looked at the wall, casually reading some of the adverts, before he asked,

“Where are you headed?”

Jasce made a clicking sound with his tongue.

“Well, I don’t know. I’m just aimlessly searching, you know. Though… I thought of maybe going east, I’ve heard it’s freezing cold past the canyon. And north of here is just ruins and forest.”

Zack nodded, and with that their conversation ended for the day. Zack was out the moment he placed his head on the pillow.

Jasce expected that Zack would’ve left the stable by the time he woke up, and at first it seemed to confirm his suspicions when he saw that his bed was empty. But when Jasce got up, he saw the soldier sit, straight and proud like a tree, by the ashed fireplace outside the stable. Jasce got dressed and walked out to greet him. The sun grazed the rough mountains with its soft morning light.

“I thought you had left,” said Jasce and stopped beside Zack.

The soldier turned slowly and looked up at the jester.

“I was waiting for you,” he said.

“Me?” Jasce was genuinely surprised. “But why–”

Zack’s silence filled the space. Eventually he said,

“I’m travelling across the hills, the plains, around the castle to Woodland stable.”

There was another pause where Jasce had time to slowly raise his eyebrow in confusion.

“Would you… like to me on that trip?” That question made Zack’s body bubble like the warm springs in Eldin. Better off at the bottom of the Tanagar Canyon, he told himself to ease that feeling of being genuine for once, that embarrassing moment, the fear of being rejected.

“I thought,” he continued, hoping it would help his cause, “the woods are dangerous, I can protect you… and you–”

“Yeah, I would love that.”

Zack looked up at Jasce, who was carrying that smile he always did.

“Well, I would’ve said yes before you started to ramble about protection, just so you know.”

Zack felt his cheeks go red.

“When do we leave?” Jasce asked.

Zack got himself together, grabbed his sword and got up.

“When… when you’re ready.”

“OK!” Jasce said. “Give me… 20 minutes! I’ll be done in 20 min!”

And so the jester jogged back inside, and Zack was left watching him disappear, all reminding the soldier of a Sage in Hyrule Cathedral, who, just like Jasce, took notice of the tiny, unimportant things and spoke his mind. In the presence of the jester, Zack itted that he felt rather seen, in a world who had long believed him dead.

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* Lyrics from “What Will We Do?” By Morningsiders

** Lyrics from “overgrown garden” by Beetlebug

*** Lyrics from “The Chapel” by Madilyn Mei

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:pushpin: 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞:

:sparkles: Big thanks to Will for letting me borrow Zack! :sparkles:

This and part 4 was supposed to be one, but realised that I had too much to say, so splitting them up so you don’t have to read essay long blogs. Don’t worry, we get more action and exciting things happening in part 4. Hope you enjoyed this rather calmer and cozy part XD

Proof of no ai: