The sun set on the kingdom of Hyrule and cloaked it in darkness. The gates creaked shut and the town went quiet. Times had changed for Hyrule in these last fifteen years, it had seen its fair share of war and evil had come and gone. Tyrants were overthrown and heroes returned to the lives they had given up all those years ago. The Golden Land is safe from the hearts of mankind; it is sealed by magic so powerful and foolproof that it may never break. Even though this is true, Ganon is not an ordinary man. His return, how ever unlikely, is not impossible.
Ever since that legendary day, peace spread throughout the land, uniting the peoples of the world in friendship. They came together like never before, and all of the peoples reached the dawn of a new golden age. Prosperity was to be had by all, even the Gerudo. The once barren desert seemed less harsh, the seas were calmer and Death Mountain stopped erupting. The world was finally at peace. Armies were dissolved, friendships were forged, and the meaning of the wars of the past faded into myth.
All was not as it seemed. Men never abandon war, they simply wait for another opportunity. The time had come for the land to be soaked in blood. What better time to start a war than in a time of peace?
Darkness cloaked the men of the desert as they made their way to the city. The gate could not hold them, nor could the few guards left. No alarm was sounded and the people were unprepared for an attack. They were dragged out of their houses and forced into the town square. Their suffering filled the night sky.
Zelda awoke with a start. Her people cried into the night, calling for help that would never come. Neither her nor her kingdom could face whatever threat this was. Hyrule was far too weak and it was much too late to stop them. There was so little hope.
“Zelda! We must get to the catacombs at once!” shouted a group of castle guards. They were young, perhaps too young to face what was coming. They had never seen anything like this before and their eyes were full of panic.
“I will wait for Impa, protect the rest of the royal family.” She knew who was coming, but she had hoped her magic would have trapped him for the rest of both of their lives. She didn’t want anybody to die for her, not today, or ever again. Should she get the hero? Could he raise his sword and defend the land again? Impa would know what to do, she always did. Zelda ran to her room seeking the comfort only Impa could give her. What she found made her fall to her knees.
Impa was dead; her head was on the floor beside her.
“Princess, this is the dawn of a new day for Hyrule,” said a man’s voice.
“You monster! How can you be so cold Ganon? You have no heart, no soul!” cried the princess. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. She cried for more than herself. Her people suffered, and the one woman that was like a mother to her had died. She turned to look at the face of her killer, only to see one she did not recognize. Ganon did not stand before her.
She gazed at his face. If she saw him any other day she would have thought he was some sort of hero. He was handsome with black hair and dark skin. He must have come from the desert. Had a new king been born? That was impossible, yet she could stop from wondering. He was covered in a blood red breastplate with a gold design on it, black gauntlets, greaves, and black pants. He wasn’t that much older than she was, but he already had the beginnings of a beard on him. It seemed so strange that he would be the end of her.
Chapter 2: Hope
“Silly child, I am not the King of Evil, or at least not the man you call Ganon,” he replied. “Ganon is still in the holy realm and he will remain there until the bonds of your feeble magic wither away. Now, come with me, your life doesn’t end in this room. I want you to see something first.” Without saying another word, he dragged her over to a window facing the plaza and the Temple of Time.
He may have said something, but it never registered to her. She saw the people of Hyrule scattered around the town square, all dead or dying. The men all wore armor as black as their souls. They didn’t have any marking for any nation Zelda knew of. They all had various types of weapons ranging from swords to axes to spears. Their faces were hidden under silver or black masks. If it was not for their shining weapons and the blood splattered all over them, they wouldn’t stick out from the darkness. They were showed no mercy when they tortured people; it was fun to them in some twisted way. They were unlike anything she had ever seen before. What was behind them was even worse.
Her eyes finally shifted to the temple, and she noticed that it was on fire. A few moments later, it collapsed, sending ash down on the city. It was then that she realized that Hyrule might not make it out of this in one piece. One lone man ran out of the smoldering ruin carrying come sort of package. Zelda finally turned to the man behind her and said, “Is this what you want? All this death and destruction?”
“I never started this war. Long ago, my people suffered at the hands of one of your kings.” he replied.
“Your people? Even if that is true, this is heartless and cruel!”
“My people come from the most ravaged part of the earth, deeper in the desert than most animals go. King Maximus of Hyrule and the Zoras forced us there long ago. I do this for them; I do this for their freedom. I am tired of seeing us suffer.”
“We could have given you shelter, food, anything to avoid war! Stop this!”
He said nothing; he simply stood there looking at the carnage below. She thought she saw a tear roll down his cheek, but it couldn’t be. Moments passed in silence until there was a knock on the door. “Enter,” he whispered.
A man came into the room, handed him something wrapped in cloth then left. Her eyes widened in horror, it was the Master Sword. “And now princess, you have only moments left to live, I—” he was cut short by a loud noise in the hallway. There was some sort of fight; perhaps it was the guards coming to save her. Then she heard a man shout, his voice sounded so familiar to her, like one in some forgotten memory.
The Hero of Time kicked down the door and went after the caped man as soon as he saw him. The man dropped the wrapped sword and drew his own. It was a shining silver sword with red letters covering the blade. They locked blades and Zelda couldn’t help but be afraid. If this man could take control of this kind of army, he must have been skilled more than any other man in the land. Link’s first attack sent him flying across the room. The man couldn’t keep up with his expert swordsman skills. Link had nothing to worry about.
His swordsmanship was beyond anything she had ever seen, but the man was able to avoid any serious injury. Link fought with god like grace and speed, he parried and dodged attacks from every angle. Link aimed a thrust at his head, but the man ducked it and then tried to stab Link’s stomach. Link spun back then hit the man in the face with his shield, breaking his nose. Blood streamed down his face. Link never let down his attack or his guard, he pressed him and gave no rest to the other warrior. He fought for more than just the princess; he was the sole hope of Hyrule.
“Enough games,” said the man. The engraving on his sword began to glow red. His eyes narrowed and he got ready to fight.
His speed increased tenfold. Link ducked a horizontal slash, but his hat was cut. He went up with a vertical slice but the man leaned to the side and dodged it. He swept Link’s feet out from under him. Link rolled to the side, but he was too slow. The silver sword slid through his stomach. Link’s eyes darted to Zelda, he spat up blood and his eyes shut. The hero had fallen.
She couldn’t speak. This had to be a dream, it wasn’t possible, Link couldn’t die---he was the Hero of Time!
“And now princess, I want you to realize that your people have no more hope,” he said in a low rasp between pants. He put his sword into the scabbard and got the other one. He then dropped it on the ground, flattened his palm and muttered a few words. A ball of light shot out of his hand and hit the sword, shattering it. The Blade of Evil’s Bane was no more. “They are just like mine. Hell awaits our souls, but yours will go there first. Know that I am not heartless; I just do what I must. The royal line must be broken tonight, for if it continues one much worse than I will come to this land. Forgive us.” His knife then slid through her throat. She fell to the ground dying, who could save the people now?
The land was without a guardian, a leader, and its most powerful weapon of all.
Chapter 3: Fallen Kingdom
“Wake up child, it’s time to save your world. Shed no tears for the dying, remember them only in fondness, they will never truly be gone unless you forget them. Stay strong and never fear for we will never leave you. The gods themselves are on your side. Always remember there is hope.”
These words echoed through the hero’s mind when his eyes opened. What had happened? Why was he here? Men grunted outside and the building seemed to shake. Stones fell all around him and smoke started to filter through the door. They were destroying the castle! When his eyes darted around the room in search of the exit, he noticed that there was a body on the floor. Zelda was dead. And then it all came rushing back to him, Zelda, the man, the army, and his death. Hatred mixed with fear and curiosity within him. Link wanted justice, but he wanted to find answers more than anything. What terrible power had this man found?
The room shook even harder; there was no time for this now. He dashed to the door and slipped on some shiny thing on the floor. The Master Sword was shattered. The sword had been a symbol of justice; with it evil could never prevail. It couldn’t stay here so he took it with him. Even a shattered sword still has its worth, and the blade could be repaired. Deep down, he knew he would need it again. The door was only a few feet away and beyond it, the empty hall.
There were no guards, just bodies and the scent of blood mingled with sweat. The castle itself didn’t have that much time left and Link knew it. His muscles ached, but he had to run faster and push himself harder. There was this strange strength that kept him going, it was like he was drawing power from something else. Whatever gave him back his life was still with him. He kept sprinting until he reached the main gate, which was closed. Always a step ahead, Link pulled out his bow, the gate could be burned down. Drawing on the magical power of the gods, he shot some fire arrows at it and started hitting it. The wood splintered and broke, showering Link with light from outside. He had to get to safety as fast as he could, there were too many guards for him to fight around here. He needed to be fast and quiet. Unfortunately, stealth was never something Link was good at.
There was no way for him to cross the open meadow without being seen and he couldn’t stay here. This was true, but Link wouldn’t have to worry about it. He was seen by a small group of soldiers before he even moved. Luck certainly wasn’t on his side today.
These soldiers were different from the ones he fought earlier. They wore red armor, black swords and horned helmets or detailed facemasks. None of their skin was exposed at all. Their swords were silver and some had gems on the hilt. One of them stuck out from the crowd, he wore entirely different armor and a cloak.
This cloaked soldier was the most interesting; because he looked nothing like the others. Under his cloak, he had light black chain mail instead of the far heavier armor of the others. A dark aura surrounded him; he must be of some great importance. His sword was gold with an emerald on the hilt. He had silver greaves and his gauntlets were gold with black edges. He raised his head and looked into Link’s eyes. His eyes glowed as red as blood. When he looked at Link, he stared into the very depths of his soul.
“Surrender,” said the cloaked soldier. “Do you know whom before you stand?”
Link gave no reply; he drew his sword and cut down the first soldier he could reach. Link took no chances with him, so he cut off his head. There was no blood, only black sand. As shocked as he was, Link couldn’t stop here. The cloaked soldier laughed and never drew any weapon. Link cut down another soldier, then another and another. They fought well, but Link had fought much stronger foes. They couldn’t keep up with him, but the cloaked figure could be a different story entirely. His laughter drowned out every other sound. The world around Link turned black and started to spin when the sand began to swirl around him. He couldn’t breathe or see and he was at the mercy of this man.
“We can never truly escape death. We all have our prisons,” he said.
Link paid no attention to him; he knew his end was near. He fell to his knees gasping for air and struggled to no avail He finally collapsed and gave in to the darkness. The last feeling he felt was warmth from the sun. He even heard Zelda’s voice, saying:
“The gods never leave the chosen alone. Go forth hero, save your people.”
A cold breeze brought him to. He somehow got out of the castle and was in the middle of the field. Link realized that the gods saved his life, not once, but twice and that Zelda had given him her strength. They wouldn’t let him die so soon. With what seemed like the last bit of his energy, he took out his Ocarina and called Epona. While he waited for her, he took a look around the field. It was never this empty or quiet; there weren’t any people at all out here. Karakiko was probably fortifying itself now. When the battle came, Link would be there, but he needed some sort of help with him. The horse would come and they would go to safety. But where would that be?
The Kokiri couldn’t fight and Link didn’t want to endanger them after all they had done for him. Kakariko was probably under lock down and the ranch looked deserted. The only way to Death Mountain and the Gorons was through that city, so all that was left was Zora’s domain. They were his only hope. Perhaps they could get word to the Gorons for him. Epona arrived and off they went.
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