((Author's note: Just to note, this is purely an adventure story in a similar vein to the games. It doesn't have any romance or clever twists, or anything, it's just a typical LoZ story with one change, so my apologies if that sounds dull. Additionally, I'd like to point out that Ocarina of Time is the default for me. It's not my favorite Zelda game, nor was it the first one I played, but it is the first one that really caught me and made me a LoZ fan, so when I think of "Legend of Zelda" that's the game I think of. Because of this, it's the game that most inspires this one - the Zora will be OoT, the Gorons, ect. I only wanted to mention it because I know some people are tired of the obsession with OoT and if that bothers you, you may want to avoid this. The last note I want to make is that while I have played a lot of LoZ games, I don't pay a lot of attention to the smaller details and while I have done some research, I freely admit I've probably gotten some of the lore wrong. My apologies in advance for when that inevitably happens. If you're still with me, I hope you enjoy!))
The courageous hero held aloft his mighty sword as he stepped toward where his foe had fallen. His long journey and all the trials he had faced had all lead up to this one point, to come face to face with the darkness that threatened to devour the land and indeed the world.
It had been a long quest, but through the course of it he had been made stronger. ; through the hardships he'd faced, the mystic treasures he'd gained, and the friends he'd made along the way. What made him stand above the darkness before him was that he did not stand there alone. Beyond the sages, beyond the artifacts he'd uncovered, beyond even the very piece of the triforce itself he bore, he was aided by the wisdom of the princess who was able to guide him through this battle lending her strength to his own and helping him discover the evil one's weaknesses.
He gave her one small nod, which she steadfastly returned, before bringing down the sword and destroying the darkness that had plagued their fair land for so very long. The evil one's roars of hatred and anger echoed throughout the chamber, but it was of little use. The battle was over. When the last of the echoes finally faded, the hero and the princess stood there alone, the world around them slowly righting itself.
It was as it should always be, with wisdom and courage defeating the power of the darkness. And whenever evil threatens the land, the hero will be reborn once more to face it.
"Reading those stories again, are you, Zelda?"
The young woman looked up from the massive book spread out in front of her. "It's called studying, Impa," she replied casually, "a princess needs to know these things, after all, especially a princess of Hyrule."
Impa leaned against the doorframe, a small smile on her face, "I think you've 'studied' those old legends enough that you've got them memorized."
Zelda returned the smile. Impa knew her too well. The older woman had been a part of her life for as long as she could remember. She recalled hearing tales of Impa's bravery as a royal guard in her younger days. Much time had passed since then, however. She still served in the castle, but it was no longer as a guard. Now she stayed by Princess Zelda's side to keep an eye on her. She had been a constant presence in Zelda's life and Zelda considered her as much family as her own parents. Impa was keenly aware of her fascination with the old stories and legends of Hyrule, particularly those regarding the hero.
"Well, if I have them memorized, then I will know what to do should the darkness ever return," she said smartly.
"Certainly!" Impa said with a laugh, "if they weren't so vague about the whole thing! These legends, they never seem to give you straight answers for things."
Zelda smiled and shook her head, "That's certainly true. I think there's here for my purposes, anyway. The role of the princess is vitally important, but seems fairly simple, all things considered. All I need to do is find the hero!" She smiled fondly down at the book. As a child she had read those stories burning with jealousy at all the fun things the hero was allowed to do while the princess stayed behind. As she grew older however, it had occurred to her that as fun as those tales were to read, they would likely not be so much fun to experience.
"The hero?" Impa blinked, "how on earth would you find him? He's never named or described in the tales."
"The princess always knows," Zelda replied cryptically.
The older woman seemed unimpressed. "And who, oh wise princess, would be the great hero to save Hyrule this time around?"
"Hmmm…"as often as Zelda had fantasized about these great legends, she'd never considered them coming true before. She spoke the first name that came to mind, "it would probably be Link."
"Link? That scrawny woodcutter lad?" Impa laughed, "what makes you think he'd be chosen?"
The question caught Zelda a bit off guard. The idea of Link as the chosen hero was as strange to her as it was to Impa and she wasn't entirely sure why she'd said it. "Hm…well, the hero in the stories often comes from humble and unlikely beginnings, and he certainly gives his all in everything he does."
"That's true, I suppose," Impa replied, "The poor boy's also kind to the point of a fault."
She laughed at that and Zelda couldn't help but laugh with her. In all the time she'd known him, poor Link had had something of a tendency to let himself get walked on rather than cause any problems for others.
She thought back to when she'd first met him. She'd run away from the castle as a child, out to look for adventure. It wasn't long before she'd gotten hopelessly lost in the forest. It was Link who found her and, despite her protests, brought her back home. She had been angry with him at the time, but he had promised that if she wanted to see the forest again he would help her until she learned enough about it to face it alone. They'd remained friends ever since. "He's reliable, though," she countered.
Impa smiled broadly, "That he is. You may have a point about that one now that you put it that way."
"Anyway," Zelda said, climbing to her feet, "I doubt you came here to talk with me about old legends, Impa. Is it time for the festival?"
"It is," the older woman replied with a small nod, "it's why I thought I find you here."
"Well, a celebration of one of the hero's victories is as good an excuse as any to revisit those stories," she said, "what are my royal duties for this one?"
She followed behind Impa who began rattling off a list of ceremonies and greetings that Zelda would have to attend. As they left the room, however, a faint voice seemed to come from the emptiness, "…enough…"
She paused for a moment, concerned. The whispers had a menacing air to them, but when no further sounds could be heard, she dismissed it and continued towards the festival.
The festival that evening in the castle square was a flurry of speeches, greetings and toasts for Princess Zelda. Most celebrations ended up being more work than play for members of the royal family. As exhausting as it could be, though, it was never work she terribly minded. All the people of city and surrounding lands, and even traveling in from far away were coming into the main square to have fun and celebrate together. Seeing that lightened her spirits no matter how tired her body felt. Many of these people barely knew what the festival was celebrating, they just knew it was a big party and that was reason enough to enjoy the festivities. It all added to the fun, so as far as Zelda was concerned, it was reason enough.
Even so, it was with relief that she returned to her seat as fireworks exploded in the sky to mark the end of the festival…the official festival at any rate. All of the scheduled events were over now, but people would be celebrating in the streets long into the night.
As she sat in the darkness, enjoying the show herself, she again heard the voice that seemed to have spoken earlier. "…'ve…enough…"
"Impa, did you hear that?" she asked the woman sitting at her side. She looked around them, but nothing seemed out of place.
"I'm hearing a lot of things, Princess," Impa replied with a laugh, "it is a festival, after all. Was there something in particular I was supposed to hear?"
"A voice," Zelda said distantly, still searching the crowd for its source, "someone trying to speak to me…I heard it earlier in the castle as well."
"Did you?" Impa asked, "what did this voice say?"
"I…I'm not sure," Zelda shook her head, "I can't quite make it out."
"Well," the older woman stood with her hands on her hips, "let me know if you hear any more from this particular voice of yours. In the meantime, the fireworks have ended, why don't we try to enjoy the festival some."
"About time!" Zelda replied, getting to her feet and stretching, "I've been smelling the food from those stalls all evening!"
By the time they'd descended into the crowd and gotten herself some festival snacks from one of the vendors, the unease the voice had made her feel was already fading. It was difficult to keep a dour attitude in an atmosphere like this surrounded by the street musicians and the sounds of laughter and merriment.
"Look there, princess!" She heard Impa's voice over the din, "your hero made it to the festival as well."
She followed Impa's outstretched hand to see Link in the midst of a group of dancers. He had clearly been pulled there by the owner of the flower shop who was still enthusiastically cavorting with her grudging partner. The young woodcutter on the other hand didn't seem to know much about dancing, but he seemed to be doing his best to oblige.
Zelda laughed to herself a bit. Even the normally quiet and reserved Link was able to cut loose and have some fun this night.
She turned to Impa, to say she was going to join in on the fun herself, when the voice returned, more insistent, but no more understandable. She froze in place as the voice grew in volume.
"Princess? Princess, what it is?" She could barely make out Impa's words over the escalating noise. It sounded like an enraged scream; unintelligible and grating.
"It's back!" she cried desperately, "the voice is back! It's coming here! We have to stop it!"
Impa took her shoulders, face full of concern, and tried to say something, but Zelda could no longer discern any of her words, nor could she respond in any way. There was an overwhelming feeling of dread in the air that felt as though it were crushing her. Turning, she could see the dancers stopping to look her way, joyful smiles giving way to worry, which then turned to fear as they began looking around in panic. Apparently the voice had grown the point that everyone could hear it.
"ENOUGH!" the voice roared, "I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!"
Without being sure why, Zelda turned to find Link. She found him still where the dancers had been, looking around with everyone else and trying to find the source of the sound. He then turned and scanned the crowd until he met Zelda's eyes. The moment he did, he began running for her, his eyes fixed on her in stern determination.
Before he had gone more than a few steps, however, a brilliant bright light opened up at his feet. He stopped dead in his tracks, as though his legs had been frozen in place, leaving him standing in the midst of a blinding circle. He looked down at the ground in shock as the light seemed to engulf him and he started to slowly sink into the earth.
"YOU MISERABLE WRETCH!" the voice intoned, "YOU HAVE DISRUPTED MY PLANS TIME AND TIME AGAIN! THIS TIME I WILL NOT GIVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO TRY! I WILL REMOVE YOU BEFORE YOU HAVE A CHANCE TO BECOME A THREAT TO ME!"
Link struggled to pull himself free from the light, but it did him no good. He had now sunk up to his waist and showed no signs of slowing.
The shock from everything that had happened faded from Zelda's mind as she looked in Link's face. Without stopping to think she darted forward away from Impa and towards where her friend was sinking into the earth. She felt like she was swimming through a sea of negative energy, but she kept her focus on Link as she dodged through panicking festival guests.
He was sinking fast, it was up to his shoulders now. "Link!" she cried as she approached, "Link, give me your hand!"
He looked up, his face full of desperation, and threw out his left hand before his worried expression disappeared into the pool of light. She reached out for his outstretched hand; all that was left.
Her hand gripped his fingers, and for the briefest moment, she thought it would be enough, but the force pulling from below was too great. His hand slipped from her grasp and disappeared into the light…