Prologue

Taking place on a very rainy night, out in the middle of a vast ocean, there is a small rowboat carrying a person wearing a dark brown, hooded robe. The right shoulder part of their robe is stained with blood and has a hole in the center of the bloodstain. Though obviously in pain from their wound, the person continues to row.

After a while, the person looks over their right shoulder to show their face, which is of a man. From the shape of his face, he is a bit on the chubby side as it's rather round. He also has a round nose and underneath it is a bushy, black mustache. Patches of his black, curly hair can be seen from underneath his hood.

The man is looking at a large mass of land that seems to have a raging fire occurring as the glow lighting up part of the night sky.

He starts to have a flashback:


The setting is a large bedroom elegantly designed with the lavish combination of white and gold, made even more posh with the cream colored blanket on top of the bed, as well as the stylishly intricate red, green and yellow of the lavish carpet. Here, there are two men. One is the same man in the rowboat, only his clothing visible with the light blue shirt and black vest accenting his chubbiness, as do his black boots. And his brown pants are held up by a tan belt with a buckle containing three gold triangles set to be a larger triangle, seeming to give him a subtle air of importance.

The other man is a taller, slender man who seems like he could have a bit of muscle on him, despite most of his body being hid by the massive armor that shines with the color of gold, made even more impressive by the well-crafted lion head on his breastplate, as well as the lavish cape colored violet. His straight, silky black hair goes down to his neck while having quasi-impressive volume. The black mustache and goatee accentuate his defined face. And the long sword held in the brilliant black scabbard on his waist works with the armor to give a truly commanding appearance. Though both men look similar, they both share the same pointed ears and blue eyes.

The man in gold armor is looking at a pair of babies lying on the bed, each wrapped in a swaddling cloth colored brown. One is of a boy with blonde hair, and the other is of a girl with golden brown hair. Both of the babies look to be asleep.

"Brother..." says the chubby man. "...please, let me fight with you."

"You know very well that cannot happen, Joseph." says the other man. "We have to keep to the visions my wife has had recently."

Joseph then replies, "I know that very well, Gabriel, but you can't do this on your own! You could die out there without my help!"

"If destiny wills it..." says Gabriel with a solemn expression. "...not to mention if it means my children will continue to live on, then so be it."

"Don't say such a thing, brother." responds Joseph. "Destiny willing or not, you should be allowed to live. And if destiny says that you must die, then all the more reason I have to fight with you to make sure that you don't."

Gabriel puts on a light smile and says, "Your kind words do help me ease my mind about this, brother." But then, Gabriel looks at Joseph with a look of seriousness and, as he walks towards Joseph, he continues with, "But that does not change what must be done, or what is happening right now. Even as we speak, a vile miasma is coming from the desert of the Gerudo. A miasma so strong that it could choke the life out of even the most pure-hearted of individuals. You know what that means, don't you, brother?"

Joseph asks, "What?"

"Though you feign ignorance, Joseph, I'm pretty sure you already know what it means." says Gabriel. "He's returned. The dreaded demon that our ancestors and the Goddess, Hylia fought against so long ago. Demise has returned in a new form."

"Which means..." Joseph starts to say.

"He will be after my children." Gabriel finishes Joseph's sentence for him. "Yes, they are both in grave danger, as is the newborn princess."

Joseph then says, "So, this war for the Sacred Realm... it's nothing but a cover up for what Demise will really be after?"

"No, he's after the Triforce as well." Gabriel says. "But after being defeated by the Hero of Legend so long ago, he will be bitter towards those who carry his spirit, as well as the spirit of the Goddess that the Hero had united with. We all carry the blood of the Hero and Goddess, but as my wife has sensed, our children and the newborn princess are strong with their spirit."

"Do you think Demise already knows that they possess those spirits of the Hero and Goddess?" Joseph asks.

"I should hope not, but if he finds them, then no doubt that he will try to slay them." says Gabriel. "For all we know, he's still primarily after the Triforce. Even so, we cannot risk the safety of the children."

Joseph then says, "The way you talk, brother, it sounds like you already know who the new form of Demise is."

Gabriel puts on a thoughtful look and replies, "It's just a hunch, but ever since with the new king, Ganondorf taking over the rule of them, the Gerudo race has become much more violent and destructive. It may be a hunch, but it's a strong hunch that he is the new form of Demise. After all, I did say the miasma was originating from the desert, did I not?"

"If that's the case..." says Joseph. "...then we have to let the people know what's going on!"

"As much as I would love to do that..." says Gabriel. "...I'm afraid we cannot. As Mystic Knights, we must keep the true secrets of Hyrule protected, even if the people might hate us for it. You should already know that by heart, brother."

Joseph replies with a sigh, "I do, brother."

"Then you also know what you must do to help preserve our peace." Gabriel replies back.

Joseph just solemnly nods to Gabriel.

Gabriel smiles, then puts his hand on Joseph's shoulder, following with him saying, "Do not worry so much, little brother. Though we may be withholding the absolute truth from the people, it is for the better of the kingdom of Hyrule, as well as the whole world we live on."

Just then, the white bedroom doors open, and through them runs a very beautiful woman wearing a long dress of blue and white. Her blonde hair is like molten gold and is quite long, and her face has a soft paleness about it. Like both Joseph and Gabriel, her ears are long and pointed, and her eyes are a deep blue.

Gabriel takes notice of the woman that just came in, and says, "Sophia, is the royal family safe in the underground barracks?"

"Yes." says Sophia. "I just got word from the guard and they all made it there safely."

"Good." says Gabriel. "In that case, we can now begin the next task. You and Joseph know what to do, right?"

"Indeed, my love." says Sophia. "I am to take our son, Jason to the Lost Woods, where he should be kept safe among the Kokiri."

Joseph then says, "And I'm to take Aryll away from Hyrule as far as I can. Hopefully, I can still find some boats docked at Lake Hylia."

"Alright, as long as you know what to do and can get it done, all should go with no problems to speak of." says Gabriel. "Since the battle is taking place in the main part of Hyrule Field, you should both take the secret exit out of here to make sure your escape goes according to plan."

"Right," says both Joseph and Sophia in unison.

After that, Sophia goes over to pick up the baby boy, which would be Jason, and Joesph goes to pick up the baby girl, Aryll.

As the babies are gently taken up in the respective arms of the persons carrying them, Gabriel goes over to Sophia, then looks down at Jason with a warm smile and says, "Jason... you're too young to understand the matters that are happening right now, and I hope you never have to learn them too soon, but one day, you will shape the future of this land, if not the entire world and others beyond it. Eventually, your strength and courage will be tested to the limit, and you will need to bring everything to bear if you are too succeed. Fear not, though, for you will be blessed with great power to help you in your trials across this land as the heavens have marked you to be the Legendary Hero. Because of that, magic flows through your very blood. Magic that will rid the world of tremendous evils that ordinary men could never vanquish. But, you must never forget that while you will possess such gifts from the gods, it is nothing if you don't possess the right amount of courage to do so. For that, never lose courage in what must be done. Though your first name is Jason, the people will know you by your other name, the name that the former Hero went by when he saved the world from evil. And when the day comes that the world must learn of your name, then your very birthright, the Master Sword will be awaiting you in the Temple of Time, but only when you truly need it. Though I regret that I may never see you grow up to be the amazing young man my wife has envisioned you to become... I will always be with you in heart. With that said, take care Jason... or rather... Link, the Legendary Hero."

Gabriel gives a soft kiss to "Link" on his forehead, being sure to not wake him up.

Afterwards, he turns to Joseph, then looks down at Aryll and says, "And Aryll... though it will most likely be a very long time before you are ever reunited with your brother, I know that it will happen one day. And when it does happen, help your brother the best you can. Because you are his twin sister, you too will possess special powers. One such power will allow you to see visions. They may not always be clear as to what each one might mean, but if you can figure them out, you should be able to aid your brother with even the most perilous of tasks. If you feel a vision, do not be afraid to let him know as it could save his life... as well as your own. The other will allow you to communicate with the heavens as you will allow your brother to gain knowledge and the ability to vanquish evil. While your brother has great power on his own, it may not always be enough if you don't share your strength with him, especially considering that the greater the danger, the more of your power he will need to make use of in battle. To that sense, you will become a translator for the heavens, taking their magic and letting your brother use it in your battles. Allow Link to use you has an unstoppable weapon in combat, and I guarantee that he will become an impenetrable shield for you, protecting you as you guide him in battle. Help each other, and I can assure you that it won't be long before Hyrule is on the right track to a glorious age of prosperity. Like I said to your brother, I am sad that I will not be able to see you grow up to see exactly what my wife has envisioned you to become, but I will be with you in spirit, now and forever. Be well and take care, my daughter."

Just like with Link, Gabriel gives Aryll a soft kiss on the forehead, though making sure to not wake her up.

Suddenly, a knight wearing a full suit of silver armor that covers all except for his mouth runs into the bedroom as he cries, "General Gabriel, sir!"

Gabriel, Joseph and Sophia turn to see the knight.

"What is it?" asks Gabriel.

The knight replies, "We've got big trouble, sir! The front gate has almost been breached! We can't hold them back much longer!"

"That's not good." says Gabriel with a look of worry on his face. "Go tell our men to steady themselves and prepare for battle! I'll be out there to join them shortly!"

"Yes, sir!" says the knight before he goes off to do his job.

"Joseph! Sophia! We haven't much time! I need to go out there and hold them off as long as I can for you two to make off with the children!" says Gabriel.

"Gabriel, my love, before you go..." says Sophia.

"What is it?" asks Gabriel.

Sophia approaches Gabriel, then says, "We may never see each other again, so just in case we don't, let me give you a parting gift."

Using her right arm to hold the baby Link, Sophia brings her left hand up to the side of Gabriel's head, then brings her face close to his as she slowly but passionately kisses him on the lips. Feeling her warm lips, Gabriel kisses her back.

After a while, they pull their faces back from each other and Sophia says, "Take care, my love."

"If you make it to your destination, Sophia..." says Gabriel. "...watch after our son closely."

"I will." says Sophia. "I promise he will make it safely."

They look into each others eyes and after that, they both go back in for another kiss, this time more intense than before.

As they get finished, they look at each other once more before Gabriel strokes his wife's face.

After that, he goes over to Joseph, grabs him by his shoulders, then says, "Brother... take care of my daughter with the greatest of your strength. Aryll is in your hands now."

"I will... brother." says Joseph.

"But don't forget to take care of yourself, as well." says Gabriel.

"I'm going to miss you, Gabriel Artemis." says Joseph after a bit of silence as he wants to cry, but tries to hold back the tears painfully so.

"I'm going to miss you, too, Joseph." says Gabriel before he wraps Joseph in a hug. Using one of his arms to continue holding Aryll, Joseph hugs Gabriel back with his other arm.

After the two brothers finish their hug, Gabriel nods to Joseph, then turns and begins to run to the bedroom doors to exit the room.

Just before Gabriel can make his exit, Joseph says, "Brother!"

"Yes, Joseph?" asks Gabriel as he turns around to look at his brother one last time.

"I just wanted you to know that..." Joseph begins to say before he pauses. "...I did sense the miasma coming from the desert, as well as the return of Demise. But that just made me want to fight even more against them."

"I understand, brother." says Gabriel. "But you have to remember that this is not up to us. We don't possess the power necessary to vanquish it. But my children do, as my wife has foretold."

"I know that very well." says Joseph. "But it won't change at all how I feel about fighting for justice in this land."

Gabriel smiles, and says, "I'm honored to have you as a brother and fellow knight, Joseph. May we meet again in another life, my brother."

"Same here." says Joseph.

The two brothers smile at each other for a while before Gabriel puts on a serious look and says, "I better be off now."

Joseph also puts on a serious look and says, "Go!"

Gabriel nods once to Joseph, then turns around and runs out of the bedroom, never to be seen again by his wife or brother.

"I guess we'd better be on our way." says Sophia after a moment silence.

Joseph follows up with, "I should be out there fighting with him."

Sophia looks at Joseph and says, "I know, Joseph, but you heard what Gabriel said: this isn't up to us, but to the children. They will possess what's needed to destroy the evil of this world, so we must make sure they are kept safe until they are old enough to be able to vanquish it and many others should they follow suit."

"I know that." says Joseph. "But it doesn't make things any easier for me to accept."

Sophia smiles then says, "You're a good man, Joseph. Gabriel was and will always be fortunate to have you as his younger brother. So I know he will be even more proud to have known you kept our daughter safe for him."

Joseph smiles somewhat and says, "I suppose you're right, Sophia."

Sophia nods softly to Joseph, then says, "Let us go now. I prepared a couple of steeds for us to take. I also prepared some robes for us to wear. I hear the weather is about to get really bad."

Joseph then says, "Guess we better hurry before it starts to rain, then."

"Indeed." says Sophia.

Both Joseph and Sophia begin to leave the bedroom, taking the babies with them.


After a while has passed, Sophia and Joseph are just outside of the Castle Town walls, and a good distance away from the main fighting of the war. Each one is on their own respective steed, with Joseph's horse colored black and Sophia's horse colored brown. And each of them is wearing a dark brown, hooded robe. The sky looks to be ready to send down a massive downpour any second.

"So..." Sophia starts to say. "This is where we part ways, is it not?"

Joseph then replies, "It's hard to believe I may never come back to Hyrule for a long time. Despite its problems, I really do love this land."

"I know, Joseph." says Sophia. "But we are out of options at this point, and this is the only solution that we can think of if destiny is to set in motion."

"As Gabriel has been telling me for quite some time." replies Joseph. "Don't worry, though, Sophia. Aryll will be in good hands."

"I know she will be." says Sophia. "I wish I could take this time to say good-bye to her, knowing this could be my last moment on this world, but we have to hurry before we're noticed."

"Right." Joseph says back.

"Of course, if I do die..." Sophia continues. "Then I will be happy to have at least been able to live this short life as a mortal."

Joseph gives a single nod.

"Anyway." says Sophia. "We better be off now. Farewell, Joseph. I hope we can meet again on the other side of this life."

Sophia on her steed races off to the south where the Lost Woods lies.

"Godspeed, Sophia." says Joseph after Sophia is long gone.

Not wasting any time, Joseph looks to the west and begins to ride off in that direction.


After a long while of riding towards the west, Joseph suddenly hears a very shrill scream of pain coming from the far south. Stopping his horse in time to look back with a look of dismay and sadness, he knows whose voice that was.

"Sophia... no." says Joseph in thought as he wants to desperately cry right now.

However, his personal sorrow is cut short when he sees several riders in the distance coming towards him, each armed with a bow. Not wasting any time, Joseph continues his ride to the west to reach Lake Hylia. As he does, the riders begin to fire arrows at him to stop his journey. While almost all of them miss, one manages to hit him in his right shoulder. Joseph feels a massive tinge of pain, but he rolls with the blow and keeps going. Despite his chubbiness, Joseph was a very strong man.


The flashback ends with Joseph in the rowboat as he's still looking at the land of Hyrule, now covered in the flames of war, which the rain can't seem to even put out right now. Eventually, Joseph turns his head to look forward again and a single tear comes from his right eye, even through all of the rain. Joseph continues to row with all of his strength, despite the wound he received not too long ago.

After a long time of rowing, Joseph finally sees what could be land in the distance. Looking happy, he starts to row harder and harder so he can get to the land.

Eventually, he makes landfall, and as he does, he gets out of the boat while taking Aryll with him as she's still in her swaddling cloth. Though very dark, he can make out that he's on a tropical-type land as there are several palm trees and exotic plant life not found in Hyrule. And as he looks even harder, he sees a clearing through the jungle that resembles a road. Not worrying whether or not there is any dangerous flora or fauna out there, Joseph presses on with Aryll.

After a while of walking, Joseph happens upon a village and enters it to see it is filled with huts that are designed in a more nomadic fashion, or at least what we can make out in the dark of night and the constant rainfall.

Getting far enough into the village, Joseph begins to look around and tries to call out for help, but unfortunately for him, he has lost a lot of blood from his wound and eventually, he starts to pass out. He slowly collapses nearby a hut, and as he does, Aryll falls out of his arms. Though she was in the swaddling cloth, the light fall doesn't hurt her, but the loud thud does wake her up and she starts to cry very loud. Everything then goes dark.


Going by a first person perspective as a person's eyes open up to see a ceiling made from wood and straw. Sunlight comes through the nearby window which was what caused him to wake up. After that, the person whose eyes were opening was that of Joseph as he's in bed, and is waking up. Removing the sheets off his body, he sees he's not wearing his shirt or vest, and his shoulder has been bandaged up where he received the wound as he checks it. Surprisingly, he's not feeling any pain at this point, but still feels quite woozy.

"Ah, it's good to see you're awake." says a feminine voice.

Joseph looks to see an incredibly beautiful woman to his right. Her long hair is a scarlet red that looks like it belongs to a Gerudo, her skin has a mild tan complexion, her ears are pointed like a Hylian's, but they seem shorter and her cat-like eyes are a bright amber instead of blue. She's wearing white robes with black trim as well as bits and pieces of green and yellow that crosses in front and covers almost her her whole body save for a small portion of her cleavage, her ankles and most of her left leg, and is held in place with a black sash. And she's wearing white, sock-like coverings on her feet that don't cover the very front or very back of the feet, leaving them exposed. She looks to be carrying a brown tray with a red and white ceramic bowl of food, which looks to be soup (as well as a spoon).

"Did you help me?" Joseph asks the woman in a groggy tone.

"Not alone, but yes, I did." says the woman. "Anyway, I figured you'd be up soon, so I prepared some food for you. You must be hungry."

"Thank you." says Joseph with a small bit of a smile. "Just set it down. I'll get to it eventually."

The woman sets the tray on a nearby table.

Just then, Joseph gets out of bed and tries to sit up, showing us he's also not wearing his boots.

"Careful, sir." says the woman in a concerned tone. "You don't want to reopen your wound."

"Did you take care of it?" asks Joseph.

The woman smiles and says, "Yes, I did. It's an old remedy of my tribe, carried down from generation to generation."

"Well, thank you again." says Joseph.

Just then, a tall man with navy blue hair that's long and tied into a ponytail with an orange headband around his head, a pencil-thin mustache, short-sleeved, nomadic-style shirt colored orange and yellow, orange wrist-bands, white pants and orange sock-like wear similar to what the woman was wearing comes in. He's followed by a small boy of three who has turquoise hair with a red headband around his head, red nomadic robe that covers his whole body and red sock-like footwear, also similar to what the man and woman are wearing. Like the woman, they both have shorter pointed ears than that of a Hylian and have bright amber, cat-like eyes, as well as a mild tan complexion.

"Well, it's good to hear you're up." says the man with a pleasant smile on his face. "Luckily, my wife knew exactly what to do to patch you up."

"I suppose you were the one to carry me in?" says Joseph as he can see the man is quite muscular.

"Indeed, I was." says the man. "Please, call me Takumo. I am the chieftain of the village of the Mor'qai. The woman that nursed you back to health is my wife, Nakima. And the little boy with me is our son, Danorli."

"Well, I thank you again for saving me and..." says Joseph before realizes that Aryll isn't with him. "Wait a minute! Where is Aryll? Where is my niece?"

"Relax, my friend." says Takumo. "Your niece is in my wife's and my bedroom. She's sleeping soundly. I was tending to her before coming in here. Everything is okay."

Joseph breathes a sigh of relief and says, "Thank you, sir."

"No problem at all." says Takumo with a big smile.

"Anyway..." says Nakima. "You must be really hungry now. Why don't you eat?"

"Yes, and if you don't mind..." says Takumo as he pulls up a chair and sits in it. "I'd love to hear your story on how you got here. It's not everyday the Mor'qai village gets a visitor from the outside world, or at least one not native to our land."

"Well... I suppose I have all of the time in the world, so I'll tell you." says Joseph.

After a while has passed, we see the bowl of soup is empty.

"And that's how it goes..." says Joseph's voice.

We then get a shot of Joseph talking to the ones who saved him.

"So..." Takumo starts to say while putting on a thoughtful pose. "Your land was embroiled in a massive war. Am I getting that right?"

"Yes." says Joseph with a great deal of sorrow in his eyes. "And according to my brother's wife, she said that her vision told her that their son and daughter must be raised separately from one another if destiny is to set in motion, as well as assuring their survival. That's all I can tell for now. As a Mystic Knight, I am sworn to never reveal the major secrets of the kingdom of Hyrule, nor the world."

"Hrmmm..." says Takumo. "Well, given the hardships you've been through, as well as the fact the tragedy of not being able to be with your brother or his wife again... I'd say you've definitely earned a free stay in our village."

"You really mean that?" asks Joseph.

"We Mor'qai possess the ability to see when people are being honest or not." says Takumo with a smile. "And from the look of your eyes, honesty is pouring out of you. I think we will be fine in having you and your niece stay with us in our village as long as you'd like until you feel it's best to return home."

Joseph has a warm smile appear on his face as he says, "Thank you so much. You don't know how much we need this right now."

"I have a feeling you need it a lot." says Takumo. "Of course, I apologize already if what you will be living in doesn't compare to living in a castle."

"Don't worry." says Joseph. "At this point, anything sounds good."

Takumo nods and says, "I'll get some of my men to help me in building a hut for you to live in. Until then, you just take it easy in here."

"Thank you, again." says Joseph.

"Welcome to our village, Joseph of Hyrule." says Nakima.

To Be Continued in Chapter 1.