Hello all! Long time no see!
I have not been active on this site for a long time. I originally started writing this story several months ago and finally feel comfortable posting it.
Please note this story is loosely based on OoT and is rated T for violence and dark themes.
A description of the German terminology:
Schadenfreude=taking joy from other's misfortune
Doppelgaenger=in this context, evil twin (lit. "double walker")
Thank you in advance for reading this story. I am a bit rusty but hopefully you will still find it worth your time. As always any reviews are appreciated. So without further ado...
Doppelgaenger
Link placed the back of his left hand against the door, using the glowing Triforce symbol to open the magical seal. The door creaked open, and Link slowly went inside. Suddenly he was thrust forward into the room, as if pushed in by someone with great strength. He heard the door slam and lock behind him, and turned to look just as a row of metal bars jutted upward, narrowly missing him as they barricaded him inside.
Observing his surroundings, he noticed he was in a massive chamber with a high ceiling. The chamber was barren of anything save several portraits hanging on the walls, which were cement and several feet thick. Each portrait was of a man clad in black armor, his only distinguishing features being his flaming red eyes, the same shade as his hair and eyebrows.
Although it had been years since Link last saw him, he easily recognized the man from the portraits, as the man had not changed in appearance since they last encountered each other. He was none other than Ganondorf Dragmire, leader of a group of thieves named the Gerudos, and holder of the Triforce of Power.
But why was Link in this room? Ganondorf had recently made an alliance—however shaky it was—with the King of Hyrule. Although Link didn't trust Ganondorf, even he had to admit that the King of the Gerudos had been holding up his end of the bargain thus far…
But Link had no further time to think, as he was disrupted by a loud noise. Instinctively grasping the hilt of his sword, he moved to the center of the chamber, and gasped as he realized he was suddenly face-to-face with…himself?
It couldn't be. For although the being displayed Link's likeness, he had a dark appearance, contrasted by the only bit of color on him, his red eyes. However, despite his shadowy nature, he was as tangible as Link.
"Hello, Brother," the being hissed. "So we finally meet. My master has told me so much about you, Hero. Too bad your heroics will end here. And so will your life."
"I don't know who—or what—you are, or whom you speak of, but I intend to do whatever it takes to defend myself," Link growled, drawing his sword.
The Doppelgaenger just laughed. "Fool, you know not who I am? I am your twin, a living, breathing manifestation of your own reflection. It is the evil thoughts inside of you—the ones in your unconscious mind—that give me life. They also give me the strength and knowledge to defeat you.
"If only your fair princess were aware of the inherent evil in you, that even you are not immune to having your mind poisoned against her. Surely she too would scoff at the thought of you protecting her, and thank me for wiping away all traces of you and your 'good influence' from this kingdom."
The more his "twin" spoke, the angrier Link became. How dare he—or it?—insult Link? Not to mention Princess Zelda and her kingdom!
"Enough!" Link said. "I will hear no more of this ridiculousness."
"Then I will tell you this instead, Brother: I brought you here to this lovely little battle chamber to fight you mano a mano. And once I have you on your knees, begging for mercy, I will grin with delight as I overshadow you and extract the Triforce of Courage."
Dark Link chuckled. "But since you caught me in a good mood, your death won't be as slow and painful as I was planning. Maybe I'll just decapitate you and make it easy. A bit messy, but I'll deal with it."
Link put his sword to Dark Link's throat. "You speak too soon, and mere words mean nothing. Even if your hand is as quick-moving as your mouth, you know not what you go up against," Link hissed, surprised at how arrogant he sounded.
"Oh, I love your anger. It's so…delicious," Dark Link answered with a smirk. "Thank you, Brother, for giving me some extra energy to defeat you."
Link watched in horror as Dark Link unsheathed his own sword, fending off Link. The two, now facing each other, started moving in a circle, each watching the other and waiting for him to make a mistake.
As the two continued to circle, remaining in their battle stance, Dark Link suddenly stabbed at Link, a move which Link easily sidestepped. Link countered with a stab of his own, which Dark Link blocked with his shield.
The two carried on as such for what seemed like several hours, but was hardly a few minutes. Each time one made a move, the other fended it off. Link became more frustrated upon observing that his Doppelgaenger seemed to have no weaknesses.
There was also something else Link noticed—instead of tiring, Dark Link seemed to be getting stronger. And Link couldn't figure out how.
Then suddenly his mind flashed back to something Dark Link had said earlier during their conversation. "It is the evil thoughts inside of you—the ones in your unconscious mind—that give me life. They also give me the strength and knowledge to defeat you."
That's it! Link realized. As long as he feeds off my anger and frustration, he will get stronger, and I'll get weaker. So now I need to focus on something else—something that will weaken him.
But there was one problem; as long as Link failed to get a good attack going, he would only get angrier, and thus make his evil twin even stronger. As Link contemplated this issue, another idea struck him.
Dark Link had acknowledged that he was a tangible version of Link's reflection. Assuming this true (and Link had no reason to doubt it), that meant that when Link created this dark reflection, all his flaws also went into it. For even the Hero of Legend had his weaknesses, and not just mental, but physical.
In fact, as a child, Link had fallen from his treehouse in the forest, where he lived with the Kokiri. And although no serious harm came of that, every so often he still suffered from a bit of sensitivity on his left side, especially when straining his muscles during intense swordfights.
Link had already observed that Dark Link held his sword with his right hand, not his left, even more proof that he was indeed a mirror image of Link. Link took a deep breath, hoping for the best as he readied himself to use his new tactics.
First Link decided to think of something soothing, in hopes of weakening his evil twin by using positive thoughts. Link thought back to his childhood, when he first met Princess Zelda. He watched Dark Link with intent eyes as he pondered his recollection.
Dark Link had been contemplating his own methods of attack, but he lacked one thing that Link had—experience battling all kinds of enemies, both external and internal. And this lack of experience would prove to be his downfall.
Inexplicably, Dark Link faltered slightly. Stunned, he regrouped and went back into his battle stance. Yet he couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss, something beyond his control.
Seeing his Doppelgaenger weaken increased Link's confidence, and a smile creased his face.
This same smile caused sharp pain to ripple through Dark Link's body. And then, much to the surprise of both himself and Link, his sword clattered to the floor, leaving Dark Link with only a shield to defend himself.
Reacting quickly, Link immediately stabbed at Dark Link's right side. The sword pierced the latter, causing him to screech and jump back. Flashing with anger, he leaned over to pick up his sword—only to have it kicked away by Link.
The evil twin's overconfidence melted away and was quickly replaced by fear and the overwhelming need to fight for his survival. He stood up and looked at Link with pleading eyes.
"Brother, surely you will give me back my sword and make this a fair fight," he begged. But the point of Link's sword again met with his throat.
"You still have your shield, do you not? And why should I take mercy on you, when you are a mockery of all that is good and fair?" Link answered.
Saying nothing, Dark Link appeared ready to surrender. But in a flash, he jumped away and ran for his sword. Link could not react in time and quickly found himself in a defensive position.
Dark Link attacked with renewed vigor, but Link countered every stab while managing to return a few. During one effort, Link managed to hit his evil twin's weak spot yet again, forcing him back momentarily.
Link had had enough, and charged at Dark Link as he attempted to regroup. The latter was beginning to weaken significantly, and easily lost his sword.
Not wanting to give him another chance, Link remained on the offensive. As Dark Link tried to hide behind his shield, Link attacked his legs, causing him to fall to his knees in pain.
Dark Link's shield clattered to the floor, and he again looked at Link with pleading eyes. "Please, Brother, spare me. You have caused me enough pain, have you not? First you cut off my source of energy by thinking such good thoughts, and then you injure me physically. Please, must it come to this?" he implored Link.
"You brought me here to end my life, and since I won this battle fair and square, I only see it right that I return the favor. But I am a fair man, so perhaps I will spare you. That is, if you swear your allegiance to the kingdom."
Dark Link's arrogance again got the best of him. "Ganon is my master, and I swear my allegiance only to him. Never will I align myself with an orphaned Fairy Boy from the forest."
Link could feel his anger welling up inside of him, but he caught himself, knowing that this was only a trick to upset him, so Dark Link could feed off of his negative energy.
"Then so be it," Link said with deadly calm. He raised his sword high above his head, preparing to eliminate his foe. Chanting a spell, he struck his sword down into the floor, right in front of where Dark Link knelt in a pool of his own blood.
Link watched as the Triforce mark on the back of his hand began to glow. Dark Link was taken aback as he suddenly found himself surrounded by clouds of red, green, and blue dust. The clouds soon materialized into the goddesses themselves—Din, Farore, and Nayru.
"For what reason do you call us, Hero?" asked Farore, the Goddess of Courage and guardian of the Triforce contained within Link.
"I wish to banish this…thing to the Sacred Realm as punishment for treason and other crimes against Hyrule. For he refuses to swear allegiance to the crown, and I believe he is the one rumored to have been impersonating me and wreaking havoc on the kingdom."
"Link, you are very just for having spared his life," said Nayru, Goddess of Wisdom. "And we have indeed bore witness to the crimes he committed while pretending to be you. As such, we shall do as you request."
"But first we have one request of our own," Din, the Goddess of Power, added. "Understand Link that we give you this task because it is you who created him unwittingly, and you whose negative thoughts sustained him. Although you know not when your reflection created him, it is your negativity that allowed him to become so powerful. As such, we feel you must be the one to seek out the Dark Mirror.
"You must find the mirror, embedded within this fortress, and shatter it to permanently seal Dark Link in the Sacred Realm, and to prevent the creation of more beings such as him. You have one hour to complete this task. Should you fail, we have no choice but to leave him in the Realm of Hyrule, until such time as you two should meet up again in battle."
Before Link could say a word, the goddesses vanished, with bits of red, green, and blue dust being the only remnants of their presence.
Thinking about what the goddesses had just said, Link realized that in order to accomplish his task, he would need to keep Dark Link from regaining his strength. Although the Doppelgaenger appeared mortally wounded, Link knew he couldn't trust his opponent for a second. The two had battled countless times before, and all with the same end result—Dark Link would suffer defeat at Link's hands and be banished to the Sacred Realm once again, only to reappear months later, stronger than ever.
As Link pondered this he observed a mysterious orb appear over his enemy's head. The ball of light grew bigger and bigger, until it encased all of Dark Link. Once he was fully engulfed in the energy field, the orb suddenly hardened into a crystal.
Link knew immediately it was the work of the goddesses, and approached the task at hand with renewed vigor. Gathering his sword and shield, he approached the door. The metal barricade had already lowered, and not wanting to risk getting trapped in or out of the room upon his return, Link used one swing of his sword to demolish the door. He then sprinted up the stairs, on his way to the top of the tower housing the Dark Mirror.
Link ascended several steps to the top of the turret, not once stopping to catch his breath. He reached the double doors and finally took a moment to collect himself. Not knowing what to expect upon entering the room, he drew his sword once again and prepared for the worst.
The massive doors, having rotted and splintered from years of disuse, creaked as they were pushed open. Link peered into the room, looking around with bated breath. After what seemed like an eternity he finally stepped cautiously into the room. He sighed with relief upon realizing it was empty.
As Link gazed about he immediately noticed it shared the same common theme as that of the room he was last in—portraits of Ganondorf hung everywhere. His likeness was even sewn into the thick drapes hanging over the windows, blocking out much of the light. However, seeing such "artwork" was the least bit surprising to Link, as he knew that the King of the Gerudos' megalomania was rivaled only by his Narcissism.
Link quickly found himself distracted by the portraits, as the red eyes seemed to burn through his soul. Reminding himself of his task, he shook off the discomfort and pressed on. Turning his attention to the center of the massive room, he saw it at last—the Dark Mirror, sitting on a pedestal. As he approached it, he couldn't help but feel like he finally had some control over his destiny.
Link quickened his pace as he neared the object, but suddenly stopped short. This seems too simple, he thought. How do I know there isn't a trap somewhere?
Just as quickly as these thoughts occurred to him, Link shrugged them off. He had no more time to waste pondering what might happen; he would deal with it all as it came.
Once Link was mere steps away from the mirror, he could feel the dark power begin to affect him. His mind was overrun with thoughts of such an evil nature, he knew he could never share them with anyone. He then remembered that Dark Link exemplified Schadenfreude and feared that his nemesis would once again feed off his negative thoughts. Using every bit of mental strength he had, Link fought to push the negativity from his mind. However, once he finally stood before the mirror, preparing to shatter it, something unexpected happened.
Link caught sight of his reflection in the mirror. The mirror no longer had enough power to cast a dark reflection of him and thus create another Dark Link. However, as Link gazed into the mirror, entranced by something inexplicable, his negative thoughts suddenly reemerged and began to take shape in the mirror.
Link watched, horrified, as images of Ganondorf flashed before him. He quickly realized that these thoughts were repressed memories of his previous interactions with the man. Link squeezed his eyes shut, trying to fight off the thoughts, only to have them reappear as soon as he opened his eyes again.
Link cried out in a combination of terror and anger as the battle with his inner demons continued. The images in the mirror seemed to taunt him, daring him to become angrier. Link's body shook uncontrollably as his repressed emotions took over. Losing control, Link struggled to overcome his emotions and complete his task. Firmly grabbing the mirror from the pedestal, he lifted it up and, with his last bit of strength, threw it down to the floor.
With an ear-splitting sound, the cursed object shattered into millions of pieces. A strong breeze blew into the room out of nowhere, scattering the pieces about until they were no longer visible. The portraits of Ganondorf crashed to the floor, and the tapestries were torn from the windows. Nearly blinded by the sudden flood of daylight, Link was overcome by shock and emotion and collapsed.
As he regained consciousness, the familiar clouds of red, green, and blue dust swirled around him. The goddesses once again materialized, using their powers to replenish his strength before helping him to his feet. Once he regained his composure, they teleported him back to the room where the battle with Dark Link had taken place.
Upon once again taking in the sight of his nemesis trapped in the crystal, the full realization of what had transpired hit Link. The goddesses caught him just as he was about to collapse again.
Farore, as the goddess with the closest connection to Link, was the first to speak. "Link, Hero of Hyrule, you have done well. You have accomplished the task of shattering the dark mirror. But more importantly you have conquered the inner demons that have troubled you for so long. So now we must honor your request to forever banish Dark Link to the Sacred Realm. And to shield others from his influence, he shall remain in his crystal prison."
Din and Nayru nodded in agreement and smiled at Link. "Link, you have proven yourself more than capable of preventing even the darkest powers from poisoning your mind permanently and affecting your physical strength," Din said. "As such I grant you the power to be king of all Hyrule. I will speak with King Daphnes personally and ensure that you are next in the line of succession."
Nayru was the last of the three to speak. "Link, you have shown your ability to use the wisdom handed down through the ages to complete such a monumental task. In addition to the power Din will grant you, I will see to it that you grow into a wise and just ruler. I will also see to it that you find a suitable bride to rule by your side."
Listening to the goddesses speak, Link recalled that Princess Zelda, his dear friend, was the only child of the king, and as such was next in line for the throne. So with the goddesses telling him that he would one day rule the kingdom…could it mean…?
The goddesses laughed as they read Link's expression, causing a blush to come to his cheeks. "Link, we know of your love for her," Nayru said. "And we know that it is genuine, and that it is reciprocated. The king will be very proud to have you as a son-in-law and heir to the throne. And one day you and Princess Zelda will produce an heir of your own."
And only one year later, the wishes of the goddesses came to fruition, as Link and Zelda welcomed their firstborn son. Link had easily settled into the royal lifestyle, assisted by his wife and his father-in-law, the King of Hyrule.
Meanwhile, Ganondorf used magic to observe the royal family from the battlement that once contained the Dark Mirror. Angry that the Doppelgaenger had once again failed to defeat Link, he pledged to reign destruction on Hyrule. After months of plotting he was finally ready to start a revolution.
But there was one thing for which Ganondorf had not prepared—the power, courage, and wisdom instilled in Link by the goddesses himself. Link was so pure of heart and so strong in character that he did not need the last piece of the Triforce to embody the full power of the goddesses.
As Ganondorf made the last of the preparations, he heard the doors of the tower creak open. Turning around, he was met by the point of Link's sword.
"Ah, so we meet again," Ganondorf chuckled. "I see that you have come uninvited. No matter—it saves me the time of tracking you down. Unfortunately that means missing out on the joys of seeing all of Hyrule suffer on my quest to destroy you." The King of the Gerudos grinned maliciously as delicious thoughts of Schadenfreude filled his head.
But his own joy quickly became misfortune as Link slashed his throat and a light arrow from Zelda's bow pierced his heart.