Hi! I'm from the Professor Layton universe, but I've had some time off so I thought I'd get back into writing by starting anew in the Legend of Zelda archive! Now, I will admit that I'm not so good at the timelines and I've only played a few of the games, but I love it already and wanted express that through story! Also, this is a much bigger archive to what I'm used to so excuse me for being a little scared! Please enjoy the story!

Prologue: Promise

"Link!" He opened his eyes a fraction, head pounding, heart thumping. Navi was dancing in front of him, her light blurring his vision. "You have to get up! You can't give up now!" Link groaned, but pushed himself up onto his knees; of course he wasn't giving up, he was supposed to be the hero, if he didn't save the day, who would? He raised himself to his feet, pouring all his strength into this small action, then bent over double, coughing up bile. Who was he kidding? What could he do in this state?

A wicked laugh thundered through the room. "Sorry to crush your little fantasy." Ganondorf cackled. "But little kids playing heroes just isn't enough to defeat the 'bad guy'." Link scowled at the ground. How dare he, even at his level, how dare he call him a kid! He had sacrificed everything for this moment: his home, his friends, seven years of his life just to get this far… And yet, he had failed…

Navi, having entwined her soul with Link's own, felt this depression and flew in front of him, trying to catch his attention as he fought for every breath of air. "Link, listen to me! Remember the Morpha? A-and Twinrova? Remember every monster we slayed, even when it seemed impossible?"

"Navi…"

"It looks bad, I know, but it did all those other times as well, and you always won in the end! I know you can-"

"Navi... !" This was said with all the urgency Link could muster, silencing the fairy. He looked up at her now, and something in the look he gave her, in his watering eyes and quivering lips, made Navi stop inside.

"... No… You can't! Link! No!" But the boy dropped, no longer able to support himself. His cheek slammed in the cold stone floor. He winced, pain shooting through his body, so paralyzing that he couldn't move if he wanted to. His eyes remained open, determined to get one last look at the world; from here he could see the sword, glowing softly, as if calling to him. He smiled faintly at it. Thank you for choosing me, for believing in me… I'm sorry I failed you.

The world span around him, pain filled every inch of his limp body and all he could hear was the muffled booming laughter of Ganondorf and the faint griefing cries of Navi. His head was so full of fog that, when he felt himself being lifted into the air, his first thought was that he was leaving the world for some heavenly paradise, but, as usual, he had no such luck. Soon he became aware that he had been lifted by his neck some metres off the ground, cutting off his breathing all together. His eyes met Ganon's terrifying smirk, laughing and taunting him. However, this wasn't the image that brought more tears to his eyes, but rather that just above him, where Zelda was thrashing against the sides of her prison, using every spell she knew to in order to break out, but to no avail. When she saw him looking at her, she stopped, placed a hand on the glass-like wall and broke into tears.

"Any last words?" Ganon mocked, tearing Link's eyes away from the weeping maiden. "Anything you want to say?" Then… Everything went white, and eternity passed in no time at all. Perhaps it was some vision sent by the Goddesses, or maybe it was just his dying mind trying to find some comfort, either way, it was enough to satisfy him.

With some newly found strength, he pulled at Ganon's hand to free his throat enough to speak, and horse though his voice was, it was surprisingly confident. "I-I am not the first, and neither am I the last." He managed, struggling to keep his grip. "I… I may have lost… I wasn't ready… Not… strong enough… But I warn you, time and time again, I have won, and I will win again… If you value your life, Ganon, leave Hyrule… And never return." He managed a daring grin. "... Because I will come back." Silence filled the room as Link gasped for air out of the effort of speaking. After a while, Ganon started to laugh wickedly

"Well!" He boomed. "I for one am terrified! I must say, that is certainly an impressive statement. I must also thank you for giving me something to do for the last few weeks, being a king can be most dull at times." He gave sarcastic sigh. "But now, alas, you have outlived your purpose. So long, Hero of Time!" At this, Link's body burst into flames. Zelda screamed, and Navi's wails grew louder. When the fire died out, there was no ash, bones or anything to suggest there had been a living being there just moments before. There was, however, the Ocarina of Time, seemingly untouched and hovering exactly where Link had kept it in a leather pouch on his belt. It hung there, then, as if in slow motion, fell to the ground, where it shattered into thousands of pieces. No saw this happen, though, for they were staring in awe at the golden triangle, the Triforce of Courage, dancing in Ganondorf's hands.

In case you're confused, this is meant to be the end of OoT if Link lost to Ganondorf. Please tell me what you think and I will see you soon!