The Legend of Zelda: Triforce Revival (contiued)

CHAPTER 12

“Did you do that?” Link asked the smirking Hero. He nodded his head, still smiling. “Was that you fighting?” Link asked.

“No, it was a different Link. He was the Hero of the Winds. That battle you saw took place between Link and Ganondorf, Ganon’s human form. The young girl you saw was one of the many Zeldas throughout time. That battle took place in order to seal Ganon away, along with Hyrule.”

“Hyrule? But I thought that this was Hyrule.” Link said, confused.

“It is one of many Hyrules. Hyrule has been destroyed by Ganon and brought back by the Hero a couple times in our history. The Hyrule that was in the vision was my Hyrule: the one that I had fought for in the past. Ganon managed to take it over once I was gone, and the gods sealed it away under the sea to keep him from ruling. The Hero of the Winds sealed Ganon beneath the sea, and founded a new Hyrule, along with Zelda. Unfortunately, Ganon found a way to escape, and came back to attempt conquering the new Hyrule.”

Link stood still, staring at the ground, doing his best to grasp the concept of different Hyrules.

“Are you ready to test your courage?” asked the Hero.

Link looked up and was about to say “what?” when a circle of fire surrounded him. He held up his shield and sword, preparing himself for a hidden attack. From out of the ground in front of him emerged a creature, cloaked in shadow, with green, burning eyes. Out of the shadows slid a slim but sharp sword, with a sound of metal being unsheathed piercing the air. The shadow being flew up into the air and glided with amazing speed toward Link, its sword in front of it. Link held his shield out in front of him to prevent the shadow beast from skewering him on its sword. Link closed his eyes and was sent backward with the impact of the blow. He looked down at his side and saw the creature’s sword stuck in the ground. When he lowered his shield, he saw that the shadow had been stunned by the vibrations of the blow. Link saw his chance and jumped into the air, slashing downward with a vertical slice. The shadow let out a garbled death scream, and disappeared, leaving no corpse.

Link was very pleased with himself for defeating the shadow, but was confused about why the flames had not subsided. He turned around to look at the Hero, but was surprised to see a figure of his own height and build standing in his way. This person also held a sword and shield resembling his own, and also seemed to wear the garb of the hero. Though the being seemed almost identical to Link, he was also cloaked in shadow, but with shining red eyes. This Shadow Link did a back flip and sliced at Link, who took a step backward to evade the attack.

Link could see the being smirk, and then he jumped into the air and slashed at Link. Link put out his shield and blocked, then stabbed at the Dark creature. Shadow Link jumped into the air and landed lightly on Link’s blade. He smirked at Link again, did a back flip off of the sword, and continued his attack. Link kept sending attacks at the shadow, but the shadow nimbly dodged all of Link’s blows. He was starting to worry that this was an enemy that he could not defeat.

Link kept slashing with all his strength, but he was starting to wear out. The shadow could elude the blade eternally, even by dissolving to let the cold steel pass though him. Shadow Link laughed merrily in a high-pitched chortle at Link’s vain attempts to harm him. That smug face tormented Link at every turn. As Link wore out, the shadow took to the offensive. Link held his shield high, feeling each reverberation of steel on steel as the shadow’s weapon bounced off of it.

“I have to continue, I can’t give up…” Link mumbled. The shadow simply sneered. Link continued to block Shadow Link’s attacks, feeling his energy draining from him. He was soon down on his knees, holding his heavy shield above him. The shadow hacked downwards, and the shield flew from Link’s hands. The shadow laughed again. With one last desperate effort, Link put all of his might and hope into one final blow, and stabbed upwards into the shadow. Link heard a gasp, and then looked up to see the shadow dissolve into the air. The flames disappeared, and the Hero was visible once again.

“You have proved your courage by defeating the shadows.”

A bright light filled the room, and Link felt his energy restored. He felt a tingling sensation in his left hand, and looked down to see the likeness of the Triforce on it, with the bottom right triangle glowing gold.

“You have proven yourself worthy of the Triforce of Courage.”

CHAPTER 13

“The gods have seen you fit to carry the Triforce of Courage within you. It now gives you strength and bravery to supplement your own.”

Link stared at his hand, feeling the energy from it radiate into his soul. He felt stronger, and felt as if he could take on anything that came his way.

“The gods sent a test for you, Link. You overcame that trial by defeating a Garo Robe and Shadow Link.”

“A Garo? What is that?” Link asked.

“The Garo were a race of…shadow ninjas, if you will. In Termina, a land I once saved, I fought them throughout a kingdom called Ikana. They were the ghosts of a long-forgotten tribe who spied on the Kingdom of Ikana. By defeating the Garo, I helped to free their souls. I also believe that you would like to know who that other shadow was? His name was Shadow Link. During the quest of another Hero, who had the power to split into four beings, Shadow Link terrorized Hyrule and worked to bring Ganon to power. Shadow Link was stopped and destroyed by this Link and also Zelda. However, he still managed to come back during my time.” The Hero suddenly grimaced in pain and became momentarily transparent. “Oh no. It seems that my time here in this world is to come to an end soon.”

“What? You can’t go yet! I still have no idea what to do next!” Link yelled, worried by this news.

The Hero of Time laughed. “Do not worry. I shall guide you from above. I can just no longer be on this plane of existence.”

“Hey!” called a voice from under the Hero’s hat. “Can I help? Please?” Navi the fairy flew out from under the Hero’s cap and flew around his head.

“Hmm. Link, would you mind if Navi came along and gave you my instructions? She is able to communicate with those in a different realm. During my quest to save Hyrule, she helped me to converse with one of the sages in the Sacred Realm while I was in Hyrule.”

“Uh, okay. That could work,” Link said, somewhat relieved that he wouldn’t be alone on his journey.

“Hooray!” squealed Navi. “I get to help another Hero! Thank you Great Deku Tree! Thank you Link!” She flew around the Hero’s head and then around Link’s head. “Are you ready to go Link?”

The Hero looked at Link and Navi with a smile on his face. He waved goodbye and then disappeared in a blast of green light. His voice echoed throughout Zora’s Domain, “Go to the Lost Woods. More will be revealed to you there.”

Navi flew to the entrance of the chamber. “Come on! We have to hurry.”

Link climbed up to the entrance. It was nice to have a light source with him. It was even nice to have some company on his journey. He just wished that his company didn’t like to talk so much.

CHAPTER 14

They were finally at the entrance of the Lost Woods. A copse of dead trees marked where the entrance was. Luckily, there had been no trouble getting there; the fairy seemed to frighten away any beasts that would want to attack the boy. Unfortunately, he had to listen to the fairy talk about everything unimportant the whole way there. He thought that he would hear something of interest, either because she was a fairy or because she had traveled with the Hero of Time. As it turned out, Navi spoke only of the obvious. For example, one of her long speeches went something like, “Listen! We have to go to the Lost Woods. Shouldn’t we be there yet? You’re so slow! Hurry up! We have to hurry and get to the Lost Woods! Are you deaf or something? Hey! Are you even listening to me? Look! There it is over there! Come on! Hurry! Link told us to go there! This place is really big, huh? It looks so different from my Lost Woods…are you still heading for the Lost Woods? You’d better be.”

Link had trouble not screaming at the fairy or grabbing her out of the air and pushing her under his hat. But they had finally made it, and the fairy was oddly silent. He heard a slight sniffle, and then realized that the fairy was crying. “Uh…are you okay?” Link asked tentatively. “What’s wrong?”

The fairy sobbed, “I’m just remembering my home in a different Hyrule. I miss the Kokiri Forest, where the Kokiri and the Great Deku tree lived.”

“What are the Kokiri?” Link asked.

The fairy seemingly brightened up, relishing the fact that she would have an audience for her reminiscing. “They were a people that never aged. They stayed children forever. Well, on the outside anyway. They were brilliant people. They were peace loving, but also brave. In fact, they made the blade that you’re wielding. They also were secluded from the world outside the forest. Their father was the Great Deku Tree, who created them and watched over them and the forest. He was also a father to the other fairies and me.”

“Wow,” Link said, genuinely amazed by the story of a long-forgotten race.

“Yes,” said the fairy. “Well, we’d better continue. Let’s go!”

Link walked into what was left of the forest. Since most of the trees had been destroyed, light was able to stream into the clearing that was once the Lost Woods. Link sat down for a moment and opened his pack. He realized that he hadn’t eaten anything in a long while, and pulled some dried dodongo jerky out of the pack, as well as his canteen of water. As he pulled off a piece of meat with his teeth, he looked up at the fairy hovering about. “Do fairies eat?” he asked.

“No, I’m fine. I don’t need to,” she said. “Wait…look! What’s going on?” The sunlight seemed to ebb away from the clearing, and darkness set in. Link looked up and saw a dark green, leafy canopy forming above, blocking out the sun. He looked back at the entrance of the woods and saw a group of spikes pop out of the ground, blocking his exit. Link hurriedly stood up, unsheathing his sword as he did so and putting his shield out in front of him.

He was suddenly blinded by a group of lights in front of him. Strangely, there were six of them, each a different color. They were green, red, blue, yellow, orange, and purple. Suddenly, the balls of light transformed into human shapes. The green one changed into a young girl dressed in green, the red into a goron, the blue into a female zora, the yellow into an old hylian man, and the orange and purple into women. Navi gasped. “The sages! These are the six sages! Why are they here?”

The hylian man spoke, “We are only the spirits of the sages. Like the Hero of Time, we are only here momentarily. I am Rauru, Hylian Sage of Light.” He then gestured to each of the sages in turn, “This is Saria, Kokiri Sage of Forest, Darunia, Goron Sage of Fire, Ruto, Zora Sage of Water, Nabooru, Gerudo Sage of Spirit, and Impa, Shiekah Sage of Shadow. We were the Sages when Ganondorf and the Hero of Time surfaced, and we helped the Hero to seal away Ganon. You shall now be tested.”

Link was taken aback. Another test? Already? He had just earned the Triforce of Courage less than a few hours ago. What would he have to do now? He shivered at the thought of fighting another Shadow Link, or something worse.

“Are you prepared?” asked Rauru.

Link gulped and said, “Yes.”

Rauru nodded to the other sages, and each raised their palms to the sky. Six orbs of colored light rose into the air and merged to form a large silver sphere. Link stared up, surprised to see the sphere coming down on top of him. He shivered and closed his eyes as it came down around him and enclosed him. It felt cold and wet, but left no moisture. He opened his eyes to find Navi and himself in a temple that seemed to pulsate with an evil power.

CHAPTER 15

“Oh my! What a familiar place!” said Navi. Link looked around him, taking in the new environment. The temple was huge and made of stone. The walls were draped with moss, vines, and lichen. The air was very moist and humid, and stank of death. Link was standing in a long hallway, facing a wooden door. As he looked at the door, it suddenly blew off of its hinges and flew at Link. He jumped out of the way and pressed his body up against the wall. The door smashed to pieces at the end of the hallway, sending splinters flying across the hall. In the doorway stood a strange robed creature, its face hidden behind a hood. Link could see a wand protruding from the right sleeve of the creature.

As Link tightened his grip on the sword in his left hand, Navi spoke up, “Oh! I know this! Link, this is a Wizzrobe. He, uh…” Navi paused as the wizzrobe held up its wand and shot a fireball at Link. “He uses magic, as you can see.” Link held up his shield and was thrown backward by the force of the fireball. Comprehending that it would not be easy to get close to this enemy, Link drew out his slingshot and a few stones. The wizzrobe appeared again, and Link let fly a stone. The stone bounced harmlessly off of the magician’s robes, and the wizzrobe fired another blast at Link. Link dropped his slingshot and jumped to the side to avoid being consumed the fireball. It hit the ground where he had just been standing, catching the slingshot in its blaze. The wizzrobe let out an odd laugh and disappeared. Seeing that his slingshot was unsalvageable, Link quickly ran through the doorway where the wizzrobe had disappeared, hoping to catch it in the next room. As he passed through a wooden door slid into place behind him and Navi. He turned around to look and found a set of metal bars sliding into place to prevent any exit.

Link turned around again to take in the new room. The room had two levels, the floor and then another level a few feet above. These two levels were connected by stairways at intervals along the circular room. A slight fog filled the chamber, making everything hazy. However, he could see mirrors along the walls, spaced at intervals. Vines hung from the ceiling, giving the room the feel of a forest. Link suddenly heard another wizzrobe laugh, and readied himself for battle.

The wizzrobe appeared a few feet in front of Link, hovering in the air. It raised its wand, and then shot a beam of multicolored light at Link. Knowing the force that the impact would bring, Link jumped to the side to avoid the blow. The energy hit the mirror, and was reflected back at the wizzrobe. A wavering scream was heard throughout the room, and the wizzrobe disappeared.

To take the downed wizzrobe’s place, two more wizzrobes appeared to hassle Link. One, clad in a blue robe, shot a ball of ice at Link. Link ducked, and the ice hit the wall, spreading cold and spikes of ice out from the epicenter of the hit. Another wizzrobe, wearing red, shot a fireball at Link. Link jumped down from the second level and rolled as he hit the floor, feeling the heat of the fireball on his back. He ran to the other side of the room, dodging blasts of fire and ice. He turned his back to a mirror, and then jumped out of the way, allowing a blast of ice to rebound off of the mirror and hit the red wizzrobe. The creature froze in midair, hit the ground, and shattered into hundreds of pieces. As the other wizzrobe turned to stare at what was left of his downed comrade, Link took the opportunity to jump up through the air and cut down his enemy. The wizzrobe let out a yelp of pain, did a flip through the air, and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Torch brackets on the walls suddenly lit up, and cast flickering firelight on the walls and floor. Four torch pedestals in the center of the room lit up as well, each in a different color. One was red, one blue, one green, and one purple. Link heard a strange laugh that sounded strangely like a poe. “Look!” Navi yelled. Link turned around and saw two poes closing in on him, one blue and one red. Link held up his shield and blocked the poes’ attacks as they swung their lanterns at him. He did a spin attack with his sword, cutting each of the poes. They each spun around, and disappeared. However, Link could still see their lanterns and hear them hovering. The poes swung their lanterns at Link again, but he easily blocked them. When the poes reappeared, Link was ready. He swung his sword through the air and slashed each poe in turn. The poes dropped their lanterns, and were consumed by red and blue flame, respectively.

Link looked around the room again, prepared for a new attacker. He had noticed that there were four different colored flames in the room, and he had only killed two colored poes; he was waiting for green and purple to come. As if on cue, a green poe appeared behind him. Ready for it, Link dispatched it quickly and mercilessly. He was tired of putting up with these numerous monsters, and had developed a knack for killing them. He stood in the center of the room, waiting for his next victim.

The purple poe appeared, but Link wasn’t expecting its strategy. Four poes surrounded him, floating around him in a circle. He stabbed at one, but it just chuckled and disappeared. He tried to hit another, but it also disappeared. He felt a blunt object hit him from behind, and he realized the real poe had struck him on the head with its lantern. The four poes got into formation again, but now Link also had a strategy. He spun around, striking each poe with his sword in turn. The three fakes disappeared, but the real one threw its arms back and dropped its lantern. Link jumped and sliced downward, ending the poe’s existence. The chamber dissolved away, and Link found himself back in the Lost Woods.

CHAPTER 16

“You have proven yourself once more,” said Rauru. As he said this, a ball of pink light came down from above the forest canopy. The ball manifested itself into the form of a woman, and landed lightly on the ground. She was blond and wore a pink dress adorned with the emblems of royalty. The woman was also translucent and seemed to hover inches above the ground. Link realized that this was another spirit sent by the gods. The woman moved forward and took Link’s hand. He felt warmth and joy spread through his body, and a smile flitted across his face. The woman took a step backward, then dived into Link’s body. He felt another rush of warmth, and then felt a tingling on his left hand. He held it up and saw that the bottom left triangle of the Triforce on his hand had lit up and shone as brightly as the right triangle. The top triangle, however, was still dim.

“Nayru has seen that you are worthy. Zelda has bestowed upon you the Triforce of Wisdom,” said Rauru, in his mystical tone. Link felt the warmth in him recede as Zelda left his body. “You now have Courage and Wisdom. You must now find power. Go to the desert,” Rauru continued. With those words, the Six Sages became orbs of light once more, and drifted off toward the heavens. The woman known as Zelda blew Link a kiss, then turned into a ball of light once more and disappeared. Link gasped, realizing that he had just seen his mother, the last Zelda to have the Triforce of Wisdom in her possession.

Light began streaming into the forest again. Link looked up and saw that the leafy canopy was disappearing: the forest was going back to its lifeless state. “Link!” called Navi. “The Sages told us that we need to go to the desert!”

“Yeah, I just heard them say that, Navi. Please, calm down.” Link exasperatedly told the fairy.

“Oh. Well, hurry up! You have to revive the Triforce! There’s only one more piece!”

Link, recovering from the meeting with his mother, didn’t argue any more, and left the forest. He was amazed at how beautiful and graceful she was; however, he was saddened that she had given up her life for him. Now that he thought about it, his father had as well. Why hadn’t his father appeared to him too? Wouldn’t his father have to give him the Triforce of Courage? Or did he already have it inside of him, and it just needed to be awakened? Link pushed the questions out of his mind and focused on the task at hand. The desert. It was to the south, far to the south of the Lost Woods. Link adjusted his pack, and set off to the south.

The sun was setting, casting long shadows across Hyrule Field. Link no longer had to worry about traveling in darkness now that he had a fairy. As he traveled along, he became somewhat uneasy. He had only been attacked on his way to Zora’s Domain so far. He had seen no monsters on the field whatsoever since then. He had assumed that he hadn’t been attacked because of having Navi with him, but were the monsters planning something? No, he thought. They’re monsters. What could they possibly do?

As he thought this, a bony hand broke the surface of the crusty earth a few feet behind Link. Link, however, did not hear it. Though the boy did not, the fairy did. “Link!” she whispered. Absorbed in thought, Link did not answer. Two more hands broke through the surface and began to pull skeleton bodies from their crypts. “Uh, Link…we’re passing through where Kakariko graveyard used to be. Did you know that?”

“No,” Link mumbled. “What does that matter?”

“Well, maybe you should look behind you and see…”

“What?” Linked asked the fairy. Confused by her request, Link turned around and found himself looking at three armored skeleton knights.

“Stalfos,” Navi told him. “I’d get my sword out if I were you…”

CHAPTER 17

The stalfos wore rusting armor and carried old bucklers and nasty-looking swords. I do not want to be cut by that, Link thought. A burning red glow was emitted from the eye sockets in the empty skulls. Teeth were broken and missing from their mouths. Tattered clothes hung limply from the creatures’ bones. The lead demon let out a war cry that seemed to come from beyond, and then charged at Link. Link jumped out of the way and sliced at the creature. His sword bounced harmlessly off of the stalfos’ shield, creating a few meager sparks. The stalfos turned and charged at Link again. This time, Link swung at its head, knocking it off. The stalfos, seemingly bewildered without its head, dropped its sword and bucker, fell to its knees, and started searching for its head.

“Link! Destroy the head!” Navi yelled. Link looked around frantically for the skull, found it a few feet away, and slammed his sword down on it. A crack opened up in the skull, but did not break completely. The other two stalfos, desperate to help their comrade, attacked Link in order to get him away. Seeing them coming, Link kicked the skull at the charging stalfos, hoping for the best. The skull hit the bucker of one of the stalfos with such force that it shattered. Next to Link, the decapitated stalfos paused in its frantic search, and then fell apart. The sound of bones falling on bones and bones against armor broke the silence of the plain.

One of the stalfos made a strange growl and, with a hand motion to his fellow, attacked Link. Link put up his shield to defend against the stalfos’ wild attack. Both came at him with amazing speed and agility; he could barely get in an attack. Link ducked as one of the stalfos swung its sword at his head. Seeing a space between the two aggressors, Link rolled forward in-between them. One of the stalfos grunted and jumped at Link. Holding his sword over his head, Link sliced downwards, sending the stalfos flying backwards. It hit the ground and broke apart into separate bones. That’s two down, Link thought. He turned his attention to the other stalfos, thinking the other was gone.

The remaining stalfos flew into a rage, throwing himself at Link with the full wait of its armor, hoping to crush the young boy. Link rolled off to the side, avoiding the assault easily. The stalfos swung its rusty blade downwards, and Link brought up his shield to defend. The weapon bounced off harmlessly. Preparing to finish his opponent, Link lifted his sword to attack, but found himself lying on his stomach, his mouth full of dust. He rolled over, and found himself looking at two stalfos once more. “Oh yeah…” Navi said sheepishly. “If you don’t destroy a stalfos, it is able to reform in a couple of minutes.”

Link was too angry and frightened to respond. He quickly rolled away to avoid being cut by the downswing of a stalfos blade. He clumsily got to his feet and brought up his shield to defend himself. The stalfos made a sound remarkably like a laugh and then continued their assault. With all the power he had, Link swung his blade vertically at the nearest stalfos. It hit precisely at the monster’s sternum, shattering the ribcage. The creature roared and fell backward, no longer able to support the heavy armor protecting its shoulders. Once again, the stalfos shattered, sending bones everywhere. Not wanting to deal with this stalfos a third time, Link went directly to the head and destroyed it with his sword.

Now comprehending that it was in a dire situation, the final stalfos allowed itself to be destroyed. It dropped its sword and buckler, and simply fell apart. Feeling vastly relieved, Link sheathed his sword and put his shield on his back. “Good job, Link!” Navi cheered. “Now, on to the Desert!” Link sighed, but continued on. No rest for the Hero, he thought. He could just make out the canyon that was the entrance to the desert. Seeing as how Hyrule Field was now a desert itself, he wondered how bad the actual desert would be.

CHAPTER 18

Navi and Link had made it to the desert. The name of this desert had been lost to the ages, and Link knew nothing about it. All he knew was that it existed, nothing more. However, he had heard rumors of an ancient tribe of women that had lived there at one time. Maybe they were even there in the days before the Great Cataclysm. For all he knew, the race could still be there, living amid the sands. It was Navi who pulled him out of his contemplation, with her trademark useless information.

“We’re at the desert, Link! What do we do now? I wish Rauru had been more specific.”

“Maybe we need to go further in?” Link suggested.

“Sure, why not? I hope you have a lot of water though…”

Uh oh, Link thought. It had suddenly struck him just how dry the over world was. He had almost used up the little precious water he had. And there was no chance of him finding water out in the desert. Even if an oasis had ever existed, it would have dried up for sure by now. Well, he thought, it’s too late to worry about that now. There’s only one piece left. I can do this. He stepped between the two pillars of natural stone that marked the entrance to the desert. The columns were partially worn away by the winds that blew sand throughout the canyon. A sudden wind blew grit into his face, forcing him to close his eyes and raise his hands to shield them from sand granules.

He took a few steps forward, and abruptly the winds stopped blowing. Silence permeated the canyon, as well as an overpowering feeling of evil. The feeling brought Link to his knees, pressure building inside his skull. He felt as if it would burst open from the power in the canyon. Before he fainted from the pain, the last thing he heard was an echoing laugh.

Link opened his eyes and found himself in a dark chamber. He somehow knew that he was very high up, and the power of evil was still around him. His eyes pierced the darkness and made out the figure of some gigantic, malevolent being. A hole in the ceiling allowed a small amount of light to enter the chamber. Unexpectedly, a figure fell through the hole and hit the floor of the dim room. Link could just make him out in the beam of moonlight allowed in by the gap. He was a young boy, no older than Link himself, and he also wore the same green garb as the Hero. Link realized with a start that he must be having another vision of a past Hero’s battle with evil.

Four torches located near each of the corners of the rectangular room suddenly lit themselves, as if on cue. Link was horrified at what filled his view. A monstrous, pig-faced, demonic creature that radiated pure wickedness stood in the center of the room, looking down upon the boy lying on the floor. The boy quickly got up, clearly frightened by the sheer size and hideousness of the being. He put his shield out in front of him, and squinted against the sudden glare of light filling the room. The boy drew his sword, and brandished the blade before him. The monster wielded a massive Trident, and held it in the air above him. He spun it around quickly through the air, and used it to lift himself off the ground. Link gasped at this magnificent feat.

In an incredible display of speed, the monster warped around the room, stopping occasionally to attack the boy. He swung his Trident through the air, narrowly missing the boy. The boy rushed around the room, doing his best to try and strike the monster with his sword. The monster stopped again in the middle of the chamber and spun the Trident over his head once more. A ring of fire formed around him, scorching the floor. The boy jumped backwards to avoid being burned, just escaping the flame. The fiend then continued warping about the room, doing its best to keep the boy from having a chance to attack. After many minutes of this, the boy finally managed to catch the beast when he came out of a warp; he plunged his sword deep into the pig-man’s flesh. The monster let out a hideous scream, and then the lights went out.

A menacing laugh filled the chamber, and Link heard the swoosh of the brute flying through the air once more. He saw a small glow coming from one end of the room, and realized that the boy had a lantern and was doing his best to light the burned out torches. One, two, three torches lit up. The evil creature was become easier to see. The boy lit the fourth torch, and light flooded the room. The giant creature suddenly turned to stone, and the bow pulled out a bow. He nocked a glinting arrow, and let it fly at the beast. The creature became flesh and blood once more, and let out a shriek of pain. The torches went out once more, and the room plunged into darkness.

The creature now seemed even angrier then it had been. The battle became long and grueling, the boy lighting torches and shooting at the monster, and the monster continually attacking the boy. Sometimes the boy would light all four torches, the beast would turn to stone, and then, in his haste, the arrow would miss its target. The monster’s tactics became nastier. He began to summon indestructible fire keese to attack the boy. He could do nothing but dodge the attacks of the small creatures. Finally, after what seemed to be ages, the boy delivered the final arrow to its target, and the monster ceased to be.

CHAPTER 19

Link woke up in a damp, rocky room, presumably a cave. Wait, he thought, How is the room damp, when I was just in the desert? He looked around and saw a small stream running along the floor of the cavern. He looked around further and saw Navi hovering about another part of the cave. Strangely, in the glow of the faint light she gave off, Link thought that he could see the outline of someone’s head. The head turned, showing a beautiful woman’s face. She came nearer, seeing that Link was awake. Link could see brilliant red hair pulled back, revealing startlingly green eyes. Link tried to get up and speak, but the woman hushed him. “What’s going on?” he mumbled.

“You passed out at the entrance to the desert. You’re fairy called for help, and I came to your aid. You are quite fortunate that the gerudo still live in the Desert of Doubt,” the woman said.

“What…what are the gerudo?” Link asked the woman.

“A nomadic tribe of desert dwellers. We have lived in the many Hyrules, always in the desert.”

“Who are you?”

“Simply one of the gerudo that survived in this desert after the Great Cataclysm. Many died when the heat became unbearable and conditions unsuitable for any life, but some, like me, moved into the caves of the canyon, where some water remained. My name is Nabooru.”

Link sat up, surprised. “Nabooru? The Sage of Spirit?”

The woman pushed him back down, trying to get him to rest. She looked at him quizzically. “How did you come to know of the Great Nabooru?” she asked. “It does not seem likely that the name of one of the greatest gerudo in our history would be known to some roving boy. But no, I am not she. I am merely named after her.”

Link had thought that a Sage had come to rescue him, or at least to show him what to do next. But maybe, this desert woman having the name of a Sage was not a coincidence…

“Do you know of the Hero of Legend?” Link inquired of her.

“Yes, I know of him, but not much. About the only thing I do know is that a hero once passed through these sands, tracking a great evil. He had a blade that allowed one to split into four. In fact, he used that power to later defeat that evil, and sealed it inside the blade. Unfortunately, the evil that was sealed was one of the gerudo, an evil man named Ganondorf, or so the legends say.”

Link gasped, recognizing the name. Maybe this desert did have something to do with the Hero. “Where did the hero go while he was here?” Link asked, a twinge of excitement in his voice.

“Hmm, I believe the legends say that he had entered from the south, then traveled north to the ancient pyramids. The pyramids should be south from here. I would wait for nightfall if you plan on going there though. Though it gets very cold, you stand a better chance of surviving in the frozen night than in the scorching heat of day.”

“Thank you very much,” Link said to her. “I need to go. Thank you for rescuing me. I’m sorry, but I don’t have much to give you…”

“Do not worry,” Nabooru said. “Just purge the evil from this land.” Nabooru winked at Link, and with that, the woman disappeared, as well as the cave. Link found himself in the desert, at night, with the canyon behind him. In the air above him, he could just make out an orange orb of light rising toward the skies.

CHAPTER 20

Nabooru was right, Link thought. It was freezing. The air around him chilled him to the bone. Navi flew underneath his hat for extra warmth, so now Link was cold and blinded by the darkness as well. He had to go by the meager light of the deadened moon and stars. The effects of the Great Cataclysm seemed to even reach into space itself.

He continued southwards, hoping that something would appear to him, allowing him to fulfill his quest. He walked on for hours, seeing nothing but sand and feeling nothing but cold. He began to wonder why he had had that overwhelming sense of an evil near at hand. The Sage had said that Ganondorf, Ganon’s human form, had once been a gerudo from the desert. Was it possible that he was feeling Ganon’s power? When he had passed out, he had seen the vision of a young Hero battling a monster. Could it be that the monster he had seen was none other than Ganon, King of Evil? Link shuddered at the thought. How was it possible for this evil monster to keep regaining life after being struck down so many times? Link began to feel a great respect and admiration for his predecessors. They had all stood up to this grotesque being, and managed to overcome him. Link felt proud of both his parents for finally destroying the beast.

The ground began to shake, and the sands parted. A wide chasm was opening up beneath him. The desert sands began to pour in, carrying Link along to the edge of the growing pit. He tried in vain to gain his footing and escape, but the sands were pulling him under. As he was slowly buried in sand, he clutched desperately at anything to pull himself out, but all his hands found was more sand. He saw the ground level rise above him, and he fell. Link screamed as he fell into the great abyss, knowing that he had nothing to hold onto or stop his descent. He seemed to fall for ages, finally crashing into the piles of sand awaiting him at the bottom.

Link shook his head, shaking the sand off of him. He steadily got to his feat and brushed the sand from his tunic. He pulled off his hat, trying to get the sand off, when he realized that Navi was still in it. She flew out from underneath, flying in little circles. Apparently, the fall had affected her as well.

“What happened?” Navi said, dazed.

“We fell hundreds of feet into a giant pit and landed in a large pile of sand.” Link told her.

“Oh, is that all,” Navi responded sarcastically. She gasped. “L-l-look!”

Link pulled his cap on again and turned around, expecting the worst. However, he was not expecting the worst of the worst. A monstrous being stood before him. This creature emitted a powerful evil that almost overpowered Link. The monster was hideous and colossal, rising many feet above the young boy. Enormous muscles bulged underneath black armor. This ogre wielded a massive Trident, and wore an elaborate cape around his vast form. A small helmet was placed over its head, outlining a piggish face. Red eyes glared at Link from fleshy sockets. This creature was none other than the King of Evil himself, Ganon. And Link was terrified.

CHAPTER 21

Link stood there, frozen in terror. In front of him was the single most evil creature in the universe. “Link…”Navi said in a wavering voice. “I…I don’t know what to say…”

“QUIET IMP!” Ganon bellowed. He smacked the poor fairy away with his Trident, sending her careening across the room. Wanting to protect his friend, Link drew his tiny sword, which paled in comparison to Ganon’s massive Trident. Upon hearing the sound of metal unsheathed, Ganon let out a laugh that shook the small chamber. “Do you really think that puny weapon can defeat me, when even the power of your father and mother combined with that of the Master Sword could not?” From a hidden pocket, Ganon drew out a beautifully crafted sword, and threw it in front of Link. Something about it was odd. It looked as if it were dead.

“Here is the evil banishing blade, key to the sacred realm,” Ganon remarked with a nasty grin. “Even it could not survive the Great Cataclysm, but I did.”

“H-how is it that you were not destroyed?” Link said, dismayed.

Ganon glowered at the boy. “I wished for the power to destroy Link and Zelda. I had thought that once they were gone, Hyrule would be mine. Most unfortunately, my master plan backfired. Though Link and Zelda were destroyed, so was Hyrule. I, being weakened after the battle, retreated to the desert, my homeland. No one realized I was here, except for the remaining gerudo. They were still able to sense my presence. We are, after all, connected.”

Link stared in horror at the Master Sword lying before him. “And what of the Master Sword?”

Ganon chuckled. “I suppose there is not harm in telling you. It is dead. It cannot be revived, however you try. I cannot be defeated. You have no Master Sword, no Light Arrows, and no Silver Arrows. You have no way to defeat me.” He contemplated the boy in front of him, sizing him up. “I will be gracious to you, boy. I shall make your death quick and painless, forever ending the line of the Hero.” Ganon raised his Trident into the air, preparing to strike Link down, when from the sky came three golden figures, bathed in red, blue, and green light.

The figures smashed into the ground in a triangular pattern, sending up large clouds of dust. Link looked up at Ganon, and could see fear in the monster’s eyes. In front of Link, the Master Sword rose up out of the sand, its blade pointing upward. From each of the figures came a blast of golden light, aimed directly at the Master Sword. A golden jewel set in the hilt of the weapon seemed to wake up, and power rushed into the blade. The sword shone with a white light, which filled the room. Commanding voices resonated from the three figures. “Link! Take the sword of evil’s bane and strike down Ganon!”

Not wanting to defy the powerful beings, Link picked up the blade. “NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!” Ganon screamed. He slammed his Trident downwards, just narrowly spearing Link. With the Master Sword in his hand, Link felt energy rush through him. His fear subsided, and he was ready to take down Ganon. Ganon raised his hand into the air, and an orb of dark magic formed. He shot it at Link, who stood there, unaware of what to do.

“Hit it back at him with your sword!” Navi called to Link. He swung the Master Sword downward, hitting the sphere of energy back at its creator. It hit Ganon full in the face. He fell to his knees, stunned. Link leapt through the air, slicing Ganon’s face. He rolled as he landed, steadying himself for a counterattack. He saw Ganon clutching his face, green blood trickling from between his fingers. Ganon, now full of rage, raised his Trident in the air once more. A massive ball of energy grew from the forks of the Trident, growing larger every second. “Uh, Link?” Navi called again. “Um, I would run if I were you…”

Link dashed away toward the back of the room just as the ball of energy burst open. A cluster of magic bombs flew out and went directly for Link. They swirled through the air, their white tops glowing brighter as they neared their target. Link jumped and dove for cover in the sand piles in the corner of the room. He turned and saw the magic bombs smash into the wall where he just was, sending reddish smoke and rock in every direction. A smoldering hole remained when the smoke cleared. Link looked over at Ganon once more and saw another ball of dark energy heading his way.

Link pulled himself out of the sand and sliced at the dark orb coming toward him. It went back to Ganon, who hit it back at Link with his Trident. Link hit it back, and it hit Ganon in the face again. Link rushed forward once more and slashed at the beast. Ganon regained consciousness, and attacked Link once more. This time he threw his entire bulk at Link, hoping to crush him. Link jumped out of the way, turned, and leaped onto Ganon’s back. He climbed up the elegant cape to Ganon’s shoulders, and ripped the helmet off of the monster’s head. Ganon frantically tried to shake Link off, but to no avail. Link plunged the Master Sword down into Ganon’s skull, and the room became silent.

CHAPTER 22

Ganon let out a horrendous roar. Link was thrown off of the creature and landed in a pile of sand. The three golden figures, which had been watching the entire battle, closed in on the dying beast. They raised their hands to the heavens, and a bolt of lightning came and struck Ganon. The flash forced Link to close his eyes, and when he opened them, a strange crystal enclosed the once-great Ganon. A pit in the earth opened up, and the crystal sank into it. The gap closed itself, and the three Golden Goddesses rose back up to the heavens. A shining mark in the shape of the Triforce was left on the ground. “Go over to it Link,” Navi encouraged.

He stepped onto the mark, and his left hand tingled again. He held it up to see the top triangle glowing as brightly as the other two. “You now have the Triforce of Power within you.” Navi said. The back on Link’s back suddenly became very heavy. This confused Link, because the bag was supposed to make all things as light as a feather. The bag burst open, and the three pieces of the Triforce, united as one, emerged. Oddly enough, the Sacred Triangle spoke to him.

“Hero! You have revived the Triforce. What is your wish?”

Link was stunned. He had not expected the Triforce to talk to him, much less that it would ask him his wish. He thought for a moment, trying to think up a wish to set everything right. The right wish suddenly came to him. “I wish that Ganon did not get the Triforce. I wish that he had never been able to wish for the power to destroy Hyrule and my parents. I want things to go back the way they were before Ganon killed my parents. I want my parents to win.” He touched the Triforce, and golden light filled the room. He was flying, up above the desert, above Hyrule, above the planet. He closed his eyes, and remembered no more.

CHAPTER 23

“Look out!” Zelda yelled to her husband. Link easily rolled under the Trident as is came crashing down. Zelda nocked a Light Arrow into her bow, and let it fly at Ganon’s head. He roared as it pierced his right eye, partially blinding him. Link took the opportunity to thrust his sword into Ganon’s side. Ganon, in his fury, swiped at Link with a claw, producing gouge marks in his chest. Link bowed over in pain, and Ganon slammed his fist down over Link’s head.

“No!” Zelda screamed. She dropped the bow and fired a shot of magic at the monster from her palm. It hit Ganon square in the back, forcing him to fall forward as he stood over Link. Recovered from Ganon’s blow, Link rolled out of the way to avoid being crushed by the beast. He took his sword in his hand once more and jammed it into the horrible creatures spine. Ganon went into thrashing spasms, hurling Link yards away. Zelda ran over to her spouse, to see what she could do for him.

As Zelda did her best to care for her husband, she did not see Ganon get up off of the ground. He stumbled toward the couple, the Master Sword still wedged in his backbone. With the back of his hand, he swept Zelda away, wanting to finish off Link. Ganon raised his hands above his head, and a ball of dark magic began to form between his gigantic palms. Link struggled to get up, but did so in vain. Knowing what was coming, Zelda also raised her arms, and quickly charged a ball of light magic. A powerful wind swept through the Castle grounds, the two magic adepts charging their finishing attacks.

She let the blast of magic go, directing it at Ganon. Ganon, in turned, twisted his huge body and faced the Princess. He released his super-charged magic, aiming for Zelda. The conflicting magic met head on, creating an enormous blast, wiping out everything. The blast ripped Hyrule Castle from the ground, disintegrating the bricks. Trees burned and disappeared where they stood. The very mountains shook with the accompanying shockwave. When the dust cleared a few minutes later, a massive crater stood where the two blasts met.

Everything was still and silent. Nothing moved or showed any sign of life. Abruptly, dust rose back into the air. Trees reformed, Hyrule Castle materialized back in its old location, the Hero, the Princess, and the King of Evil returned. Link looked around, thinking that he had just been a bodiless soul. He looked up at the hideous Ganon and realized that he was frozen in time. Ganon’s arms were still raised, but the ball of energy was no longer growing. Link turned to look at Zelda, and found her to also be frozen. A flash of light high above in the night sky caught Link’s attention, and he looked up to see three golden triangles, hovering over the battle that was frozen in time.

“The Triforce?” Link whispered in amazement. A bolt of lighting from the sky struck the magic ball forming between Ganon’s palms, and it disappeared. Time’s flow went back to its normal state, and Zelda let go her blast of magic. Ganon, horrified that his ultimate blast of magic was now gone, put his hands out in front of him in a hopeless attempt to shield himself from Zelda’s magic. Zelda put her hands in front of her, and flung her ball of light at the King of Evil. Ganon screamed as the magic consumed him, and he disappeared. Link got up slowly, the pain from Ganon’s claw still great, and went to Zelda as quickly as he could. She fell into his arms, and he embraced her, then all went dark.

* * * * *

Link gasped. He pushed himself up from his bed, and looked around the room. Yes, he was in his room in Hyrule Castle. His wife was next to him in bed, and his infant son was in his cradle next to the bed. Zelda mumbled in her sleep, then opened her eyes. “What’s wrong?” she asked him. He looked out the window, the desert far in the background to the south.

“Nothing,” he said. “Just a strange dream.”

“What was it about?” Zelda asked, suddenly very interested.

“I dreamt that we were fighting Ganon. He wiped out all of Hyrule, but then the Triforce came and stopped him. It was like time was reversed. The event had already happened some time back, but it happened again with a different ending. The strangest thing is, I could have sworn that it did happen.”

Zelda sat up and caressed Link’s arm. “Well,” she said, “the strangest dreams often do seem real.”

“Yes, you’re right.” He kissed her, and then lied down again.

A few minutes later, after Zelda fell asleep again, Link got out of bed and went over to his son. The baby boy was sleeping soundly, occasionally making little noises. Link smiled to himself. The boy still needed a name. He would have to talk with Zelda about it in the morning. He went over to the window to look at Hyrule Field. His room faced south, allowing the desert and Kakariko Village to be visible. In the southeast, Lake Hylia’s waters shimmered in the moonlight. Hyrule Field’s long grasses swayed in a slight breeze. For no particular reason, he looked up to the stars, just to admire their beauty. To his surprise, he saw a golden light fly across the sky. Surprised by this, he quickly went to bed, and contemplated the dream no further.

THE END