Chapter 1

A guard bearing the Royal Family's symbol rushed into the throne room, his armor clattering in the mad rush he was in. The guard found his King in deep conversation with a Gerudo thief from the west. "The front gate has been breached!" he exclaimed. The two stopped talking, a look of surprise followed by anger passing over the King's face. The King rose from his throne.

"You!" he cried, glaring angrily at the Gerudo. "You insolent fool! You really think you can stand against the might of Hyrule?" he gestured for the guards to take the thief into custody. "Your people will pay for this." the Gerudo started laughing quietly slowly gaining volume. A burst of dark energy struck the guards leaving them incapacitated. He rose menacingly from his chair coming to stand a head higher than the King of Red Lions. The two stood there quietly for a few moments and shouts were heard coming from outside of the Throne Room. The King drew his sword and lunged at the Gerudo thief and his sword whistled past the thief's arm as the thief dodged the attack. He shot a condensed ball of energy at Hyrule's King which struck him in the chest. The door of the Throne room burst open and mercenaries from Labrynna burst into the room.

"King Ganondorf," one said. He seemed to be the one in command. "We have successfully taken the castle as well as the town." Ganondorf chuckled deeply and turned to the King who was fading into the darkness that had hit him. Crouching face to face with him, he spoke.

"You see "Your Highness", it is not my people who will suffer. My people have suffered the harshness of the desert and have become stronger than you ever hope to be." he slowly lifted the crown off of the King's head with his magic. "No, now it's your people's turn suffer." As he said this, he crushed the crown and let it fall in front of the King of Red Lions' face. That was the last thing that the King ever saw.

Seeing that the King was dead, Ganondorf rose and turned to the mercenaries he had hired. Labrynna was already under his control and Hyrule was soon to follow. "So the town and castle are secure, huh?" the leader nodded. "And where is the Princess and the Sheikah that supposedly guards her?"

"They should be in the Princess's room at the top the tower." he said.

"Should be? Have you checked and secured that room?" the mercenary stopped and considered what he would say next. Seeing this pause, Ganondorf already knew his reply. "Then you cannot say that you have secured the castle, can you?" after he had finished saying this, the leader grabbed at his throat and began to thrash about on the floor. His subordinates looked on in horror as their leader died before them. After he had stopped convulsing, Ganondorf looked at the remaining mercenaries. "Which of you will pledge your allegiance to the great and terrible Ganondorf?" immediately they all dropped to their knees and pledged fealty to the Gerudo King. "Now," he said, "check and secure the Princess's tower."

It took a few moments to clear the tower of any remaining Hylian Guards and work their way up to the top of the tower. The Labyrnnians burst into the room swords drawn and Ganondorf strode into the room. "Excuse the interruption, Princess. But I have news concerning your father and the state of your-"he stopped as he saw room was empty. His eyes went to the open window with a rope leading out of it. King Ganondorf let out a cry of rage and sent one of his minions flying out of the window into the empty space below. "FIND THEM!" he bellowed. He flew down the tower to his horse and sped on with the speed of the Goddesses.

He sped through town but by the time he reached the outside of the wall there was no trace of the Princess or her guard to be found. "Arrgh! I lost her!" he cried. Ganondorf glanced down and saw a young boy with a little sword and a wooden shield strapped to his back. "You over there! Little kid!" the kid stared blankly back at him. "You must have seen the white horse gallop past just now…which way did it go?!" he continued to stare. "Answer me!" the boy stepped back stubbornly. Ganondorf laughed.

"So," he said, "you think you can defend them from me…you've got guts kid." The kid drew his sword and Ganondorf laughed at the effort. "You want a piece of me?! Very funny! I like your attitude." He raised his hand and a weak, light energy pulsed from his hand and hit the boy. "Pathetic little fool! Do you realize who you are dealing with?! I am Ganondorf! And soon, I will rule the world!" when the boy had passed into unconsciousness, Ganondorf continued in his search. Little did he know this boy would provide the key to breaching the Sacred Realm.

5 Years Later

Ganondorf sat on his horse overlooking the valley where he had spent his youth. A soft breeze came from the basin behind him causing loose tufts of his hair to flow towards Gerudo Valley. The breeze felt soft and it reminded him of the goal that brought him out of the desert for the first time. But that was a long time ago and his goals had changed since then.

After conquering Labrynna he had first set his sights on Termina but it was too secluded and well protected by its environment and the strange magic surrounding the borders. He then set his sights on Hyrule, where his visions of recognition for his people had begun. He had achieved that goal and Hyrule was his. But he had one flaw in his plan and that was the freedom of Princess Zelda.

For five years he had been scouring the land of Hyrule for traces of the Hylian Princess and the Sheikah that had guided her to safety. This peak was one of his favorite spots to go to when he needed to think and relax. Here was where he could see his home and feel the cool breeze of Hyrule Field. At first his hope was that he could try to find a new lead to discover where his quarry was hiding but he had come to like this spot for the beauty of his surroundings. He had been there for a while when he heard footsteps behind him.

Turning around quickly, he cast a bolt of energy in the direction of the trespasser only to have it deflected harmlessly away from his target. The person standing there was quite shorter than he was and had the pointed ears of a Hylian. His long hair was black and most of it was pulled under a black cap atop his head. His skin took on a grayish tint and his eyes were deep and penetrating. Ganondorf drew his sword. "Who are you?" he asked. "A challenger come to free this land of the evil that has befallen it?"

The Hylian laughed a cold, unsettling laugh. "This "evil" as you call it has yet to befall the land of Hyrule. In fact," he met Ganondorf's gaze and a shudder ran down the King's spine, "I hope to lend you aid in your conquest of the world the Goddesses created." Ganondorf raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"You wish to help me?" Ganondorf scoffed. "How could one as small as you help me?" the stranger's demeanor turned cold. Suddenly, Death Mountain erupted into a fiery ball of ash and magma, the resulting ash soon covering Kakiriko Village in a foot of soot.

"I am more powerful in every kind of magic than you will ever hope to be, thief." A darkened aura started to visibly emanate from his body. "I could have you dethroned from your place of power in an instant and take all you have gained if I so desired it. But I need someone like you who can wield the responsibility it takes to rule this land." He led out his hand to strike a deal. "Do we have an agreement, King Ganondorf?"

Ganondorf thought about the offer he was made and contemplated his decision. After a moment's thought, Ganondorf grasped the stranger's hand and forged a deal that would change the world forever. The stranger smiled to reveal long, sharp incisors. "What would you have me do, sire?"

2 Years Afterwards

Link made his way up the staircase where Ganondorf had made his lair. The lavish red carpet of the stairs were a blood-red color providing the illusion of a waterfall of blood. He had come so close to recovering the Princess for the sake of Hyrule back in the Temple of Time. But Ganondorf had finally located her and used his dark power to capture her right before his eyes. But now he would defeat the Evil King once and for all and Hyrule would be safe. He didn't know what would come after he defeated Ganondorf but he hoped that the world would pull itself back together. He finally reached the gold patterned door and proceeded into the chamber.

The room had a cathedral ceiling lined with gold painted rib-like ivory supports. At the end the room was a massive red and gold organ where the Dark King sat playing an ominous tune that had echoed throughout the castle. The door behind Link shut itself behind him and the sound rang through the room. Ganondorf stopped playing and sat up straight from his hunched over playing position. His voice rang out from his seat.

"So you've finally come to challenge me…" he stood up and turned to face his visitor. The visitor wore the tunic of a Hylian Warrior from long ago and the Sword of Evil's Bane was attached to his back. This could be a problem he thought.

"Link, is it?" he asked. "It has been a long time since I last saw your insolent face. Seven years have gone so fast. And I have gained more power every day since you opened the Sacred Realm." He raised his hand as the Triforce of Power started glowing on the back of it. "The Goddesses have chosen me to hold their might. They have chosen you to hold their courage." Link's hand began to glow. "And they have chosen the Princess to hold their wisdom." Link started at the name of Princess Zelda. Ganondorf laughed and started to hover and the surroundings started to disappear as if it was just an illusion. Link drew his sword and the battle for Hyrule's future began.

The stranger looked on the battle between Ganondorf and this supposed hero with amusement. They honestly thought that they were the pinnacle of the powers that they represented. There had been greater powers than even himself before the land of Hyrule was inhabited by the Hylian race. He looked at the prism that contained the Princess, whose hand was glowing a bright gold color. He couldn't believe that his plan was working so perfectly. All of the pieces of the Triforce had gathered together in one place and it was his for the taking. Once Ganondorf had stripped the power from Link and then proceeded to take it from the Princess, the stranger would then take the whole of the Triforce from the King of Thieves. It was all working perfectly.

A little too perfectly.

He couldn't put it to words but there was a feeling he had had since he met with Ganondorf those years ago. It was like there was a little monster chewing at the back of his mind that left little hints of doubt strewn about his thoughts. But he couldn't pay any attention to that right now.

His thoughts wandered back to the fight for the Triforce of Courage. It took him a moment to figure out what exactly was happening but when he did he couldn't believe what he was seeing. This brat was beating the great and terrible King of Evil! The stranger laughed a laugh that echoed throughout the chamber. Then he stopped and considered the possible threat this boy was. He couldn't have Ganondorf losing to this kid. That would cause some…complications on his plan. The stranger then decided that he had let Ganondorf have his fun and now it was time to get to business.

He warped into the room behind Link just as he was about to strike the King down. Light flashed into the room, illuminating the walls in a dark purple light. A clash went through the room as the Master Sword struck the ground and Link collapsed, the Golden Power still glowing on his hand. The stranger stood over the boy as Ganondorf regained his position from the ground.

"What are you doing, Stranger?" he growled. "I could have defeated him on my own." The stranger shot him a cold glare which silenced him.

"The fight had continued longer than you promised me," he countered, "and from where I was standing it didn't look like you had it under your "control" as you so put it." Ganondorf looked at the stranger and turned to look at the Hero on the ground out of frustration. He pointed at the Hylian on the ground.

"What am I supposed to do with him then?" he demanded. The stranger looked at him as if he had asked a stupid question.

"You seize the Triforce and continue on to the Princess. That is the only way you will hold dominion over the Sacred Realm."

Ganondorf exhaled deeply and moved down to inspect the boy. He let out a startled gasp and then a frustrated yell. "It's gone!" he threw the hand away from him in disgust. "The Triforce has been taken from him!" Ganondorf turned to look at the stranger but he was gone. "STRANGER!" he exclaimed. He stormed up to the tower he was holding the Princess and found the stranger already there. He grabbed the collar of the stranger only to be blasted away to the other side of the chamber. The stranger rose from the ground over the King of Thieves.

"How dare you try to assault me, thief." This was said in a cold, calm voice. "Was it not I who taught you to harness your power until you gained the Triforce of Power? And you attack me?" he descended back to the ground and Ganondorf rose up from the ground.

"I apologize, Stranger. My anger sometimes seems to take over from time to time." He saw that the prison where the Princess was being held was empty. The stranger spoke before the King.

"Yes." He stated. "The Goddesses have once again thwarted a rightful holder of Power from reaching his goal."

Ganondorf let out a bellow of fury and stormed out of the room. Across the land of Hyrule, in the refugee camps on the border shared with Termina, a cry was heard ring out as a new Hero was born into a land thrown into chaos. The next morning, Princess Zelda awoke with no memory past her capture in the Temple of Time.