From the Author
The Hero of Men is intended to be not only a sequel to Skyward Sword, it is also supposed to serve as a stand-alone story that's accessible for Zelda fans and non-Zelda fans alike. The Hero of Men is a backstory exploring the truth about some past events recollected in not only the Minish Cap, but other Zelda games as well. The story is told from the point of view of various characters, and the thoughts of the characters are based on not only their individual personalities, but also information they know or have been told.
For example, if a character doesn't know another character's name, they describe them until a name is found out. Since most fan fiction stories are being read by fans of the series, writers can introduce Link, or Zelda, or Malon and readers know exactly who that means without any further description. That's not the approach I've taken in this story, but there's nothing wrong with that approach. I enjoy those stories as well. Most of the characters appearing are original creations, while some are interpretations of characters fans know like Link and Zelda.
A character's understanding of historical events may be shaped by the stories they've been told as opposed to the information found in the preceding games (in this case Skyward Sword). It doesn't mean that the character is contradicting something from the game, the character being incorrect merely represents a disconnect between the truth and what they've been told. I feel like there are many instances of this dynamic in the games. Of course, The Legend of Zelda is all fictional, so "truth" simply means something confirmed in the games. I am trying my best to be consistent with what was established in the games.
Although I will admit I am mainly interpreting things from the games that are debatable and unconfirmed. Such as how exactly the story of the Picori Blade and the Hero of Men actually played out. It may not be as straight forward as the oral history of the Minish Cap suggests. I aim to tell stories that feel true to the fans, but I feel to best enjoy this story one must read it with an open mind and leave their prior knowledge of Hyrule somewhere safe. Where they can come back to it once they've read the story and see how they feel about what they've read. Some of my story decisions are bold, and I don't begrudge anybody for not being into the kind of twists and turns I've written/ intend to write.
My ultimate goal once the story is finished is to pitch this to Nintendo as either a story to adapt into a film or series. At the very least see if I can get authorization to publish it. For that to prove successful, my attention to detail and the overall feel of the story inevitably has to stand up to the scrutiny of casual readers and hardcore Zelda fans. That's where you as the reader come in. I'm not arrogant enough to think I always get things right, I welcome constructive criticism or corrections about where I may have gotten the lore of the games wrong. I thank you for taking the time to read this story.
Update 9/8/2018 - Thank you for the reviews so far! I've taken the suggestions I've got into consideration and updating the story as I go.
-Liam Trotman