Author's Note: There won't be a lot of dialogue in this story. I'm sure other people have already written their own dialogue for these events, and I just don't want to. So if people don't seem totally in character, this could be why.

In the colorless chamber, a thin beam of grey light shone down on the rigid sword. Even as it was motionless in the pedestal, it looked deadly. There was no doubt that this was the legendary master sword, the blade of evil's bane.

Slowly, Link approached it and placed his hands on its hilt. Then, with all his strength, he began pulling it out of the pedestal.

His arms shook as he exerted himself. It was more difficult than he'd thought, though in hindsight he should have known better than to expect it to slide out effortlessly. For a horrifying moment, it seemed as though it was permanently stuck, forever cemented in the stand.

But the feeling quickly melted away as the sword started budging. First, it was only a little quivering, then sections of it came out, until finally, the whole thing shot out of the pedestal, causing Link to almost stumbled back.

The five stone knights around him suddenly began to move. Each of them lowered its sword flat side down, one at a time. They all crossed into a perfect pentagon shape. From the pentagon hole, directly above the master sword flashed a light so bright that Link had to shield his eyes from the intensity of it.

When he opened his eyes again, he glanced around and noticed, with a shock, that color had flooded back into the room, everywhere. He looked back at his newly acquired sword with awe that quickly melted into determination. He gave it a few experimental swings, and though it was a little heavier and longer than he was used to, it still seemed to fit him perfectly.

Also, conveniently on the master sword's stand was the sword's matching scabbard...which wasn't there earlier. How strange. Link took off the shield and sword on his back and came face to face with a problem. What should he do with the sword Orca had given him?

Fighting with two swords was out of the question. Link didn't think he could master that fast enough, and besides, he was used to wielding a shield on his right hand. Not to mention that toting around two swords would be a bit of a burden. There was no other option than to get rid of something. So sadly, he would have to part ways with the Hero's sword, the first one he'd ever used, the one that helped bring him victory in all his trials so far.

But Link didn't have to do that immediately, right? It wasn't like the monsters upstairs would be unfrozen... Oh wait. Since color and time returned, they were alive again. And ready to hack him to bits.

Link figured that the best way to honor his old sword would be to return it to Orca. But Link couldn't very well bring his swords and fight the monsters at the same time. Faint clanking and snorting from above confirmed that the monsters were reanimated. He'd have to leave his sword here, kill them, and then return for it when the task was done.

In front of the master sword's pedestal, Link set down his old sword, sheathed in its scabbard. Then on his back, he strapped on his sword and shield (they were a matching set no longer) and headed upstairs.

As soon as he went back up and stepped out of the secret stairway, the statue of the hero began sliding back in place, over the secret chamber. Link realized, with horror, that his sword would be stranded there, bound to rust in there forgotten. He made a step for it, but stopped with he realized that if he went in there, he might not be able to return upstairs. The statue closed over the stairs. His sword was lost to him forever.

For a second, Link was upset about the loss. When he'd still kept it, he always had complains about the old weapon. The very tip would always be dull, no matter how much he sharpened it. And his sword was slightly crooked from a time when he fought a darknut and kept striking the hard armor. Now, he missed those flaws, for some reason.

Well, it was too late. Link drew his sword (it didn't come out smoothly from its scabbard, since he was used to drawing a shorter sword) and his trusty old shield, and advanced silently on an unsuspecting Moblin, like a hunter and its prey.

Link jump attacked it, which sent it and its spear sprawling to the ground. When it got up, the Moblin turned, saw Link, grunted, and swung a fist at him with massive force.

Link was expecting it though, and hopped safely out of the way. Wanting to end the fight, he threw his boomerang at its head before it could trot to its weapon, effectively stunning it. Then, he finished it off with a series of vertical slashes.

This sword was indeed more powerful. It took less strikes to kill it than with his former sword. Link figured he'd get used to this sword quickly, and started on the next Moblin.

Once again, a blinding light in the castle's secret room forced Link to close his eyes, although it didn't help much. When the light died down and he opened his eyes, at first he didn't think he was seeing correctly. Tetra, the brash but sincere pirate captain, had utterly disappeared. In her place was some girl he'd never seen before.

She was about Tetra's height, and had her hair color, but from what he could tell, that was where the similarities ended. This substitute was pale, and wore a long pink dress. Her vivid hair was down, and she wore white gloves on her hands.

Then, she turned around. She had Tetra's blue eyes also. But unlike the bold pirate, she had makeup on her face, and jewelry that adorned her head and neck. She was in an attire that befitted a princess. Princess Zelda. Yes, somewhere he distantly recalled hearing that name.

If that's Tetra-well actually it doesn't really matter-at least she looks about as confused as me, Link thought.

The girl gasped, then spoke in a small voice (that did not at all fit Tetra). "My...fate...?"

There was no trace of Tetra in this replacement. Tetra never spoke like that; in fact, she usually yelled. Tetra was bold, confident, and proud; she was not. Unless Tetra had been so surprised by this sudden turn of events that her self-confidence had all but vanished.

Yes," the king of Hyrule (and King of Red Lions) said somberly. "You are the last true heir of the royal family of Hyrule... The last link in the bloodline."

Link tensed when he heard his name. Perhaps that was why he was named Link. Because he was destined to aid the last living heir of Hyrule against Ganon.

The king's next words to the girl also confirmed one other thing. "You are Princess Zelda."

Timidly, in that annoying soft voice, Zelda asked the king about her new identity. "I'm... Zelda?"

Rather than assuring her that she was indeed the princess, he simply mused that he should have guessed that she'd be confused. Then, he told Link what he already knew: Sorry you've been caught up in our ordeals, but Ganon is going try to find Zelda, and if he does, the world will fall into despair. After all that, Link was slightly amused and also annoyed, but ultimately still very determined.

Then, the news he didn't know about. "I have a hunch about what has caused the master sword to lose its power. I need for you to return with me back to the world above and replenish its power back."

Link resolutely nodded. The king turned back on the pirate-turned-princess and commanded for her to remain in hiding in this sacred chamber, which was not known to Ganon. Afterward, he spirited away.

Wow, is that Zelda's dad? He's the worst dad ever! I mean, what kind of father-daughter bonding conversation was that? No affection, just an info-dump and curt commands. So impatient too. All that matters is his own ambitions, it seems.

Link was about to follow, but Zelda's voice stopped him. Well, that and his old sword, sitting in a corner of the room. King Daphnes Nohansen something something must not have approved of his ordinary, inferior sword lying right where the sacred master sword was, and casted it to the corner.

Vaguely, he registered that Zelda was apologizing about his ordeals, unlike her impatient dad, and was warning him to be careful, but his attention was on his sword. He had been so delighted to be returning to this room, hoping for a second chance to retrieve his sword.

He nodded and headed straightaway for the sword. But right when he was about to bend down and pick it off the floor, Zelda stopped him. "Ah, Link, if you don't mind... May I keep that for now?"

"What?"

"I will have nothing to do while I await your return in hiding," she replied. "The least I can do is practice with this. I still need to train myself so that I can do my part in vanquishing evil with you."

Link was about to answer, but Zelda quickly blurted, "And it's not only that! This sword," she gestured at it, "Is a reminder of the hope that we can triumph over evil." And a reminder of you, she thought in her head.

"Yeah, sure you can keep it. For now, I mean," Link told her. After all, he didn't want her to be holed up in this room with nothing to do.

"Thank you!" She started, but was stopped by Link holding up a hand. "But are you going to need me to show you the basics?"

The faintest hint of Tetra's trademark smirk appeared on Zelda's face. "I think I'll be quite fine on my own, thank you very much."

Link grinned. This was more like the Tetra he knew. Admittedly, he hadn't liked Zelda at first, since she seemed the complete opposite of Tetra, whom he respected. But now, he found that there was a hint of Tetra in this new girl as well as a special quality of her own that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

Stalfos were scary, Link found out. They were annoying to fight and a pain to kill. But he managed to defeat them, and approached the treasure chest. As he threw the lid back, he saw... A reflection of himself. Then, his eyes focused on the reflecting blue and white thing. He still couldn't make out what it was, so he lifted it out of the chest.

It was undoubtedly a shield. Link could tell from its shape alone. It had a hard, glossy face, as Link got to see for himself. But the best part was that it reflected light in this dark, dank cellar of a temple. This would be very useful indeed.

However, the same problem from Hyrule surfaced again. He couldn't carry two shields around, so what would he do? It looked as though he'd have to discard of one again.

Despite its age, it never broke on the onslaughts of countless monsters. It had served him well. Leaving it to rot in this place would be an unjust reward for all it had done for Link.

Still, this time he decided to bring it with him, lest he be in the same predicament as last time and have it trapped forever in this dungeon. And this time, someone else, namely Medli, could hold onto it while he fought or solved a puzzle, and if they had to fly, Link would hold onto it with his feet or something. If he couldn't bring it back with him immediately, he would entrust it with Medli, who was going to stay in the temple, and get it back later. But there was no way he was going to give it up!

Link decided that if-no, when-he got back home, he would place it back in the wreathe at his grandma's house, where it was before. He supposed that if he had any sons, when they turned twelve years old, they would have to wear the snug hero's clothes and maybe tote the shield around, though he had just a sneaking suspicion that after him, there would be no need for that tradition anymore.

He hefted the new shield, getting a feel for its weight, although this was merely a formality, since after attaining the power bracelets, there were no gadgets or gizmos that he couldn't easily carry. Even so, having two shields at once was bothersome. He found that he liked it quite a bit already. It was bigger, shinier, and newer than his other one.

He explained his idea to Medli about her holding in to it, who simply nodded and took it in her hands, though she looked confused as to why such a decrepit shield held so much sentimental value to Link.

As they left the room, Medli suddenly cried, "OW!"

"What is it?"

"Your shield gave me a splinter!" She wailed. Link was reminded of Tetra's words from way, way back, and tried not to laugh as he gingerly pulled the splinter out from the Earth Sage's finger.

Link rushed into the secret chamber, though it wasn't really secret anymore. The statue of the ancient hero guarding it was chopped to pieces, and the entrance forced open.

Zelda was there, inside. Link exhaled in relief. Perhaps the evil forces were defeated by her, wielding his bequeathed sword. Maybe the sight of his sword in Zelda's hands gave her the extra motivation she needed to dispatch them. Or, most likely, she had somehow hidden from them or was not even visited by any evil.

He smiled in greeting when he approached her. She turned, closed her eyes and, in a flash of light, shrank into nothing. She was gone.

A voice that sounded like Ganon's resonated around the room. "Fool...did you think you were safe in this castle? Your precious Zelda is in my grasp. Now that my power is restored, there is no safe haven for you."

The room darkened. "And here, you will fall into eternal slumber!" The edge of the round platform the hero was on erupted into scorching flames, cutting off any escape. They were also the only source of light now.

From the hole in the ceiling, two darknuts literally dropped in. You're not welcome here, Link thought as he prepared himself for the oncoming fight.

These two darknuts were very special. They wore pitch-black armor, with impressive helmets to match. They had the usual giant sword and shield, and this time, a cape too.

They were obviously stronger than average darknuts. Equipping the hero's charm, Link saw that they could-and would-take a lot of hits before going down.

Ganon's two minions simply brandished their swords, and advanced on Link.

Link knew the trick already for dealing with darknuts, so these should be no different. Just use the parry attack until their armor and/or helmet came off, then knock them out with the boomerang and go for the kill. And this wasn't the first time he'd fought more than one darknut at a time.

He randomly chose the left darknut and waited for it to attack him first. But of course, right before Link had to chance to parry, the other one had come up behind him and slashed at him. Wimp.

What wasn't wimpy at all was this monster's massive strength. As Link was knocked to the ground, he felt the wind being knocked out of him. No darknut he'd encountered before came even close to being as tough as this one. And he had to fight two at the same time. Splendid.

He got up, and rolled to the side as the offending darknut cleaved downward, and shot upwards, bringing the master sword up into a deadly slash.

But rather than hearing the monster's armor clang on the ground, he only heard a light shredding sound. What?

It was the cape he'd cut. Wow. And he didn't even cut it all off, just a corner.

Okay... New idea. Link had never tried this on a darknut before, but he'd also never met one with a durable cape before.

He pulled out his bow and arrows, and tried to focus on a fiery feeling within. Instantaneously, the fire fairy the fairy queen had sent to him responded by taking some magic and setting the arrowhead on fire. He drew it back on the bowstring, and fired at nearly point blank at the same darknut. Not focusing on the burning darknut, he drew out another arrow, waited for the fire fairy to recharge and light his arrow on fire, and when the arrow was ablaze, shot it at the other darknut. Then, he tried to catch his breath and go see what his efforts had yielded him.

As he expected, they were unfazed by the fires that were trying to consume them, and kept walking towards Link. Even without the hero's charm (Link didn't wear it during battle often; it made him cross-eyed), he could tell the flames didn't impair them in any way. The fires were gone a moment later along with their blackened capes. Link wondered if the fire smelted their armor into a single piece of metal. If that was the case, cutting off the armor straps at their backs wouldn't do a thing.

No time to worry about that now. One of his opponents held its sword high, casting a long shadow across the floor. He prepared to parry, but seeing a bow in his hand startled him long enough that the attack connected. He was brutally knocked to the ground once again.

Wearily, he got up. Link barely raised his shield in time for the other darknut's attack. Finally he drew out his own sword. The master sword hummed with the power to repel evil.

Wasting no time, Link instinctively rolled to the side as one darknut tried to chop him up and sprang up, his blade effortlessly cutting the armor straps. The opponent's armor clattered to the ground.

The darknut was still looking around for Link. This always amused him, the cluelessness of these mighty warriors. The other one, however, had caught sight of Link and dashed the short distance between them. Rather than slicing down, the enemy did a spin kick that Link just barely avoided. They waited, tensing up as they tried to predict the opponent's next move.

Link didn't have to wait long; the darknut soon brought his sword down to the side. Link jumped over it, cutting down its helmet as he flipped over it, then landed on the other side, where he proceeded to cut down its armor.

This darknut was now reduced to a clueless, nearly defenseless warrior. Both of them were closing in on Link like a pincer. He waited for them to come closer...closer...

The two were knocked back by Link's spin attack. They jumped up, but before the helmet-less darknut could go anywhere, Link halted it with a smack of the boomerang. It stood dazed, but Link knew it still had some use to him. Alternating with the boomerang and the grappling hook, Link stole his crest, a few rupees, a jar of magic, and some healing hearts, although unfortunately it didn't mean that he drained the monster of its life. Why didn't it work that way?

He couldn't pillage the poor darknut for long though; the other one had already reclaimed its weapon and was rushing in. Link expected the attacks and held up the mirror shield, which was proven to reflect beams of light as well as enemy attacks.

Unfortunately, the force of the attack sent Link skidding backwards into the wall of flames. Link had to momentarily abort the mission to put out the fire that was catching on his clothes. After a bit of rolling, the fire dissipated, save for a few sparks drifting in the air.

Both darknuts were back in action. They marched toward Link, their steps loud but lacking the clank of armor. Link decided to focus on the one he'd stolen from earlier and after stunning it, unleashed a flurry of attacks on it. Keeping it at bay, Link delivered the same series over and over again: vertical cut, cut, uppercut, spin attack. If the other monster got within Link's range, it was promptly knocked back from one of Link's spin attacks.

The enemy feebly tried to defend itself, punching and kicking when given the chance. But Link would hold his shield up, jump attack it, and mercilessly attack it over and over again, until finally, it was defeated. A large color-shifting pearl dropped onto the floor.

Took long enough, Link thought as he focused on the other one. Link noticed that the remaining darknut had a sword in its possession. It was small, slim, and the hero's sword.

Wait... THAT'S MINE! Link could see that it was worse for wear; there was a long dent running along the bottom of the blade, and the crooked curve of the sword was much more prominent. Zelda must have put up a good fight before being captured. And this also meant that the Zelda he just saw was some manipulation. And Link couldn't tolerate being manipulated.

Ironically, this sword reminded Link of Zelda, and that she was part of the hope that kept him going. Link was also livid about the fate of Zelda and his old sword. Not only was Orca's gift to him permanently marred, it was being used against him.

He easily parried the slice coming at his side, and jumped over the darknut, removing its helmet as he went. Link could have stunned it with the boomerang and kill it then, but he felt like that would cheapen Zelda's hard but failed efforts of survival. So he gave it a real fight.

Link parried yet again, this time rolling around it and swiping upwards behind its back, tossing it to the ground. Before Link could lunge for the enemy, it got up, and ran to get his sword, which had been flung away. It darted to Link, trying to cut him down with his former sword. Link back flipped out of the way, and got a sudden idea. Although he didn't really need it, Link gulped the last of grandma's soup, feeling the elixir power up the master sword. It was twice as powerful now.

The hero darted for the monster and unleashed the same series of attacks as before. Link kept at it, never giving the opponent another chance to hurt him. He managed to push it up against the flames, but as before, it didn't seem to affect it at all. The enemy was so battered that it let go of his sword. The darknut was also nearby the remains of its partner, so it lashed out at Link, trying to push him off. Instead, it missed, kicking open the treasure trove.

Link helped himself to some arrows, then returned to his task of avenging Zelda and his sword. The darknut didn't put up any resistance and died with a loud bellow.

The fire still remained. Link considered shooting an ice arrow at it, but he didn't need to; it put itself out a moment later. Link smashed open the orb, took the coveted knight's crest, and went back upstairs, with the disfigured sword in hand.

Many things had happened, but the only thing that mattered now was that Zelda and Link were going to fight against Ganon. Right now though, he managed to weakly get up from the ground from when Ganon had defeated him (the second time!). He wondered where the king disappeared off to. And his sword too. Where had it gone?

He heard Zelda laugh at Ganon. Despite her long nap, she seemed just as tired as the hero. "What are you laughing at?" She taunted. "You're insane." She wielded the master sword with two hands expertly, proving to Link that she did indeed put her training to good use. But it shook in her hands. Was she scared? Or was it just the stinging rain and fierce winds?

Her attitude was anything but afraid. She winked at Link. "Come on, Link. We must return back to the world above. Back to our ocean!"

He shared a tried smile with her and accepted the offered sword. In this exchange, it seemed as though hope was also exchanged between them. Both of them had seen Link's swords as emblems of hope. Perhaps that was the king's wish for hope and a future for the children being granted right then and there. Ganon would try to dash out that hope.

But there was no chance of that.

The world had been saved. Zelda was once again Tetra the moment they surfaced on the Great Sea. They were back at Outset, and Link was finally reconciled with his little sister. But Link still had a job to do. Two, in fact.

He went to his grandma's house first. Aryll cheerfully greeted him. He smiled warmly at her, but otherwise seemed to ignore her as he climbed the ladder. As he got to the second floor, he wordlessly and reverently returned the shield back to its old place. He stepped back.

It was quite damaged. Nevertheless, the design had remained intact, and the dents and cuts in the wood merely served as a reminder of all he'd gone through to save his sister.

He hasn't noticed Aryll coming up, but she must have silently joined him up there. She slowly approached it and softly stroked the shield. She caressed a particularly deep dent.

"This is what you went through for me?" She asked quietly, as though one loud word might split it in two. Link nodded.

She ran up to him and hugged him. Link returned the hug, silent tears streaming down his face.

In the corner of his eye, he could see his grandma holding Aryll's telescope at her side, which she used to view the shield from below. She smiled sadly and returned to her bubbling soup.

Link's next stop was Orca's. The old man didn't even seem to notice Link arrive, but he then turned around and his eyes widened. Link knew why. He hadn't visited him since he learned the hurricane spin, which was a long time ago.

They were both silent, staring at each other. Finally, Link presented him with the hero's sword. Orca took it in his hands, wordlessly disapproving it of its condition. Link didn't offer any defense as to why it was so damaged beyond repair.

The silence was unnerving, so Link piped up. "I'm sorry about the sword. But thank you for giving it to me."

"No," Orca replied. "I'm glad its like this. It shows that you have been through many trials and prevailed over them. For that, I commend you. My gift wasn't a waste."

Without warning, Orca chucked it back at Link. He reflexively caught it by the handle. "For a hero like yourself, you need a challenge every once in a while," Orca stated. Link decided not to tell Orca of his many challenges, especially his last one. "Let us duel," the old man said.

Link nodded and was about to take out the master sword. The King of Red Lions had told him that just as Tetra was Princess Zelda below the waters, he was the king of Hyrule there and the King of Red Lions on the Great Sea, and the master sword is a manifestation of repelling evil. Evil was abound everywhere, whether it was above the sea or under it. So Link's master sword now existed in two places at once.

Orca stopped him. "That wouldn't be a challenge." He then pointed at the bent sword.

"What? No! No way!" Link protested. " I'm supposed to use that?" It now felt incredibly light to him. And awkward.

Orca chuckled. Link sighed, and concentrated on the upcoming duel. It began in earnest.

Author's Note: yay, a battle scene for anyone reading Monster Room. I think I'll update that sometime. I don't know when though.