Description: Hyrule is once again under attack. The hero is called upon to save it, but Link finds that he can't take the new challenge without the help of some old friends... and some new ones.
AN: This is a story that I originally started a few years ago, that I actually haven't finished yet. I know that it's taking forever, but since I started it so long ago when I went back to reread it, and re-familiarize myself with it, I discovered, that in fact, I really don't like it. The basic plot is still ok, but the way I wrote it, doesn't sit well with me at all. Not that I've really gotten too much better, but I'm pretty sure I can fix the biggest problems. (Like… I don't know, the spelling *cough, cough*)
However I don't plan on changing everything little thing. I'm going to just do a thorough edit. I don't plan on deleting the first one, because I don't want to upset someone because I changed his or her favorite line, or something. This isn't going to hinder the update of anything else, because I've got writers block on most of them, or something else already delaying them. Anyway I'm going to go ahead and get started.
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The palace ground shook violently. Lightning flashed overhead. Wind howled. Inside the castle pottery smashed to the ground, furniture fell over, men and women ran scared through the halls, half convinced the end of the world had come.
In her chamber Princess Zelda was frantic. Someone or something was attacking the castle. Worse yet she didn't know what it was. The only thing she knew was that whatever it was emitted a dark and powerful aura.
'What is this great evil?' She wondered, risking her safety by standing near the window to again search for the source of the attack.
A bang on the door startled her. "Permission to enter!" Came the loud, urgent voice of her head knight.
Zelda composed herself. It was no time for her to be panicking. It was her kingdom, and she had to be able to face whatever situation she was faced with. She hurried over and yanked open the door. The much older man stood at attention, awaiting her orders. . Another quake rocked the castle. Part of the ceiling collapsed not far from where they stood. 'This castle cant take much more of this...' She thought with a huff.
Determined she squared her shoulder and stood to her full height. It didn't seem to matter that she still barely reached his chest. "Get everyone out of here! Find someplace safe. I don't want anyone to get caught in this." She ran back to her desk and quickly scrawled something on a piece of paper. "Go! I'll catch up!"
He shook his head, and barked her orders out the door to some one out of sight. "My duty is to protect you Princess. I will keep you safe." He crossed his arms as though daring her to make something of it. Even if she ordered him to go, he sure as hell wasn't moving.
She almost took the time to laugh at herself. Of course he wasn't going to leave her. She expected nothing less from her head knight. "Then follow me to the tower. I need to send a message. Make haste." She ran passed him towards the message tower. It was quite a sight to see the fully-grown man struggling to keep up with the light-footed princess. Damn full body armor.
Bird cheeped, and squawked as they opened the tower door. Zelda motioned the knight to stay back, while she approached the pleasant creatures. A gorgeous patient hawk stretched from his nap, before cocking his head at her. Zelda didn't hesitate to approach him. The bird was her most trusted messenger, and she had been the one to train him. "Hurry..." She whispered to him gently, tying the note to his leg with one of her hair ribbons. "Deliver this to the Hero Link. Fly as fast as you can." She held the bird out the window as the castle shook again. The hawk snapped proudly, raising his brown feathered head and taking off into the dark stormy sky. Zelda clasped her hands in prayer. "May the goddesses guide your way."
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"Epona!" Came a light cry across the field. "Epona! Oh where did you run off to now you silly horse?" The young red-headed Malon wondered out loud, putting her bucket of carrots on the fence and examining her fathers ranch. 'I'll bet she's off playing with Link again. I might as well just give her to him.' She laughed and shook her head. 'Yeah right, when he pries her from my cold dead hands!'
The rumbling in the distance made her look towards the castle. The horizon was pitch black with storm clouds. A cold feeling ran up her spine and she shivered despite herself. 'That's a nasty looking storm. I sure hope it doesn't spread over here...' She took her bucket and hurried to the house.
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Not far from the ranch, a young Hylian was stretched out on a hill fast asleep. A soft breeze shifted his yellow blond hair, and the tall grass brushed against his pointed ears, making them twitch. He was dressed in a traditional green tunic and hat that made him near invisible to anyone not looking for him. Not far to his left was a long sword and shield. Neither had seen much use in as long a while. A time of peace had finally reached Hyrule. After years of eradication, they seemed to have seen the last of those foul beasts that had been left from Vaati reign.
A hawk's cry pierced the air awaking the young Hero with a start. Link sat up alarmed, his body tensing instantly as he searched out the cause of his disturbance. The hawk spotted him and circled overhead catching his attention.
'A messenger bird.' He realized relaxing. He had received enough of them during his adventure for one reason of another. Yawning, annoyed that his nap had been interrupted, Link held out his arm, and whistled to it. "Who are you looking for?" He called out.
With a final screech, the hawk descended gracefully landing on his out stretched arm. A small smirked tugged at Links lips. "Me huh?" He enjoyed getting mail. It could get lonely at times since he took his mission. He scratched the bird's chest gently in a way he knew the creature would like. "What training you must have to find me out here…" He muttered, examining it over. "Actually you look familiar…" The pink ribbon caught his eye. Then the royal family symbol. 'Its... from The Princess.' He quickly untied the letter, barely taking notice of how fast the hawk took off after.
The text was shaking and Link tensed again. Something was happening at the castle. He made it about halfway through the explanation that they were under attack by some unseen force, when a violent wind ripped the letter out of his hands, and blew it far away. His head snapped upward. The sky, that had been clear blue seconds earlier, had turned to gray then black. Thick heavy rain began to fall, drenching him instantly. 'I've got to get to the castle!' He thought springing to his feet. "Epona!"
His voice was lost under the thunder, and for a moment he doubted his call had reached. Neighing seconds later proved him wrong, as a rich red-brown mare came galloping towards him. She didn't even slow her action a second, as Link preformed a perfectly executed running mount. With a soft tug on the rains he headed her back towards Lon Lon Ranch.
They arrived in recorded time. Epona snorted as he dismounted. She was ready to run. Link patted her nose softly. "Just give me a minute." He promised. Not bothering to knock he opened the door of the small ranch house, and stepped inside. "Malon! Are you here?"
The girl came down the stairs. "Link? Did you bring Epona back? I'm worried about her in this type of weather..." she looked out the window, then back at him.
Link scratched his head kind of guiltily, earning him a suspicious look. "I did bring her but... I need to borrow her afain."
His long time friend fumed instantly. "In this weather!" She snapped, pointing to the window in disbelief. The wind howled, the rain hitting the glass like arrows. It was insane for any living thing to be caught in such a storm. "Didn't Nayru give you any sense! Look at you! You're soaked to the bone! And you want to take my horse out, when she could be resting safe and dry in the barn?"
He stood firm, not saying anything. She was right, and he didn't want to risk Epona's health anymore than his own. But he was a knight, and when his Princess, and his kingdom was in trouble nothing was going to stand in his way.
Her expression faltered as she found herself face-to-face with his determination yet again. That same stubborn expression that had originally convinced her to let him barrow the mare for his mission.
'And I finally got her back too…' She sighed, looking back out the window. "This storm isn't natural is it?" She asked then waved her hand to dismiss both him and the question. "Never mind. Take her... but remember! If she comes back with a single scratch, I will skin you alive!"
Link nodded, not sure whether he should take her threat to heart or not. Nodding goodbye, he dashed outside. "Ready to go?" He asked over the rain, mounting. Epona tossed her head, and hoofed the ground eagerly. "Then let's go!"
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The rain was coming down even harder, flooding the streets of Castle Town. The water and frequent earthquakes, made it difficult to maintain a steady speed, but Epona was stubborn, and so was her rider. The castle came in to view, and Link leaned forward. Hooves pounded against the stone path. They rushed past the front gates, with out meeting any resistance. Not a soul was around, human or other wise. The letter said they we're under attack but where was the enemy?
The emptiness of the usually so lively place was disturbing. He slowed Epona to a stop at the large front door, and looked around puzzled. "Go find shelter." He said as he dismounted. He trusted Epona to understand his order, and she trotted off towards the stables as he pushed open the familiar doors.
'This place is in ruins...' Link observed sadly. The quakes were farther apart and less intense then they were, but the damage was already done. 'How did this happen? This castle should have been able to stand against the earthquakes. Too many maybe…?' Making his way over piles of collapsed stone, and under leaning pillars he worked through parts of the castle, checked all the rooms not completely destroyed. He was relived when he didn't find any bodies. "Zelda must have moved everyone." He muttered to himself, finding himself in a hall that was still mostly intact. He took the break to ring out his hat, and the bottom of his tunic. "The question is where did they go…?"
"I know." Came a voice behind him.
Link spun around alarmed, drawing his sword in the process. He was in shock that he hadn't noticed someone following him. However the second his eyes had adjusted to the lack of light, the voice clicked in his mind, and he almost dropped the weapon in surprise. "Shadow!"
The dark haired Link stood just out of reach smirking at him smugly. "What's up Hero? Miss me?"
Link felt a huge smile come to his face, and he had to restrain the edge to embrace his old friend. "Shadow! Goddesses! Of course I've missed you! It's been five years!" (1)
Shadow was his shadow, from the Dark World. Physically they looked almost identical, minus the coloring. Link found himself surprised by the change Shadow seemed to have gone through since he'd seen him years earlier. Shadow had always been incredibly pale, from never having been in the sun, but his skin had become even lighter. His eyes which had been a much lighter blue, had darkened to a blue-black, and his hair as well, only had a ting of purple left in it. His tunic was a black mirror of the blonds, instead of the one they had worn in their youth.
At the time of their original meeting Shadow had been aligned with evil. He had been the one to kidnap the Princess, and destroyed as much as he could, setting monsters after his light side, and innocents. He had been tired of being ignored. Having no choice but to follow Link without any acknowledgement. Link remembered tricking the shadow into thinking he had switched sides in order to find out his weakness (2). That was when they had become friends. When Shadow found out he was lying, he'd tried to kill him. After wards he had been to one to destroy the Dark Mirror, the only thing keeping him and Vaati in the world of Light.
Link sheathed his sword. After Shadows sacrifice, he would trust the other with his life. "How are you here now?" He asked. "Without the Dark Mirror?"
Shadow smirk only grew. "Oh that's ones easy. The thing that was attacking this castle earlier is pulling things out of my world into yours. The wall between them is thin enough that I can slip through with ease."
Link felt his spirit sink drastically. Things from the Dark World? How 'like Ganondorf' did that sound? Was the king of evil back for revenge? Was it a repeat of five years prier? "Well that's… just great!" Link said feeling almost depressed. "I don't suppose you brought any more good news?" Shadow laughed, bringing up his mood. It really was great to see him. "And where is The Princess?"
"Don't worry, don't worry. I got the answers. You're right. Zelda had every one flee. They went to Death Mountain, because this evil hasn't reached there yet." He strolled forward as the ground shook again. Link stumbled, but Shadow didn't have a problem. "You seem to be having a bit of trouble." He said still smirking. Link glared, but stopped when Shadow moved away. "Follow me. There's something you need before you leave."
Link chased after him obediently. "So have you seen this new evil? Where did it come from?"
Shadow looked back. "I've seen it. But I was too interested in returning here, I didn't really take the time to get anything good. It's a shape shifter, of sorts." Link looked around surprised as he suddenly realized where they were headed. "Link... I don't think you can't defeat him alone."
Shadow pushed open the doors to the Four Swords sanctuary. The grassy shrine built to hold the Four Sword. It wasn't a part of the castle, but it could be reached from there, so it was amazing that the stonewall behind the sword was still in tack. The Four Sword, a sword with the power to split its wielder into four separate people. The weapon that had separated him into Green, Blue, Red and Vio, so that he would be able to save The Princess. The sword that taught him how important teamwork was, and made him realize later how lonely traveling alone was.
"Shadow... why are we here?" Link asked, his eyes landing on the golden pyramid surrounding the sword, with a sort of longing. "You know I can't draw the sword again. Zelda, and the maidens sealed it up."
The Dark being nodded. "Listen to me. This thing is too strong for you. It's too strong for both of us together. You know how strong you were when there were four of you."
"But Shadow-"
"Think about it." He interrupted rudely, grabbing a hold of Links shoulder. " How did they seal it?"
Link huffed annoyed. "They... they prayed to the goddesses. Why?"
He ignored the question. "Exactly! So all you have to do... is pray to unseal it!" He grinned and pushed him a step closer to the sword. "Your a Hero. That has to count for something up there."
Link scowled, trying not to get his hopes up. "What are you talking about? There is no way that would work."
"Well, how are you going to know, unless you try."
He gave him a look, but after a minute knelt in front of the sword. He was already soaked by the rain, so it didn't really matter if he knelt in the wet grass. He clasped his hands before him, and sighed. 'Nayru, Din, Farore…'
"Say it out loud." Shadow encouraged teasingly.
Link glared again. "Knock it off." He closed his eyes. 'Goddesses… Please unseal the Four Sword. I think I need it to save Hyrule. And I might not be able to without the sword.' He opened one eye, but when he saw no change he stood up. "See?"
Shadow looked disappointed. "Try again."
"There's no point." He argued. "That didn't work so I'll have to find some other way to-"
The seal cracked. The crack spread, branching out threw the yellow glass like structure, all the way to the bottom. Then it shattered and The Four Sword was free.
Shadow grinned motioning Link forward when he just stood there shocked. The young Hero approached slowly, and grabbed the hilt of the sword. Tossing a hesitant look at Shadow he pulled the blade, still half expecting it not to work. It slid from the stone easily in his hand.
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Well there you go. The first remake. I think it sounds better at least. If you think so too, or maybe disagree, tell me. I want to know what you think. And it only took like two days. So whenever I'm suck on things I'll be working on this, I guess…
And for those who haven't read the original, for this story, if you don't like yaoi, then you don't have to read the in between chapters. They are made so that they don't have to have anything to do with the actual story, if you're not interested in that sort of things. Just skip any chapters that have .5 after it, or have a big warning on the top.
(1) I had originally started this story thinking that they had been 15 during Four Swords Plus, but after research I've decided that I actually think that they were 12. Either way, in this story they are supposed to be about 16 to 18. Vaguely stated: whatever you prefer.
(2) This sentence is based on my belief that Green is not the 'original' so when they returned to one, Link remembered doing everything as himself. So it should be… at least I think so.
Comment please.
LoZ © Not me.
