Link swayed in the saddle as Epona walked forward. His eyes drooped with exhaustion, and he was hungry, thirsty, and sore. He had run out of food two days ago. He had used up the last of his water that morning.
"Don't worry girl. I'm sure Navi is around here somewhere," Link murmured as he patted Epona's neck encouragingly. She glanced back at her master with concern. Link hadn't been acting well for the last few hours. He hadn't seemed entirely himself since they had set out on this quest a few weeks ago after Zelda had returned him to his proper age. Now that Link was ten once again and no longer on a quest to save Hyrule, he had decided to find his faithful companion Navi.
Their quest had taken them deep into the Lost Woods, where Link suspected that Navi had gone. Before that they had gone to the young Deku Tree, and before that they had gone to all of the Fairy Fountains. Nowhere had they seen any trace of the small fairy.
"Can't be much farther now," Link slurred. Epona neighed.
Link spotted a glimmer of light ahead, and he squinted his eyes. The light was too far to make out any details, so he wasn't sure if it was a figment of his imagination or not. Then he heard a familiar voice.
"Hey! Look!" came Navi's familiar tinkle.
There she is! Told you we'd . . . find . . ." Link mumbled before slumping forward in the saddle. Epona turned to look at her master, but he had lost consciousness. With a toss of her head, she picked up the pace and hurried forward.
When Link opened his eyes, it took them a moment to adjust to the bright sunlight. He had a sharp pain behind his eyes, and his mouth had a foul taste in it. He turned his head from side to side, trying to take in his surroundings.
He was lying under the shade of a palm tree on a small patch of grass. Several other palm trees were nearby, as well as a pond of clear water. Beyond the grass and palm trees stretched white sand and clear blue sky as far as the eye could see.
Link staggered to his feet and glanced around. Epona was grazing nearby, but otherwise the area appeared deserted. When she saw that link was awake, she tossed her head and neighed a greeting.
"Hey girl," Link said while slowly walking to her side. "Glad to see you're ok." Link heard a soft swish behind him, and spun around while reaching for his sword. To his dismay, it was gone. He was completely unarmed and facing a kid about his own age.
The kid had red hair and tan skin like a gerudo, as well as shocking blue eyes which were not customary for gerudo. He wore a violet tunic similar to Link's, as well as a purple cap. In his hand was a sword which was pointed directly at Link.
"Looking for something?" the kid asked.
"Who are you?" Link demanded.
"I'm the one asking the questions here. Your horse was much more cooperative than you," the kid commented.
"Her name is Epona," Link growled.
"You're lucky to have her. When I found you both, you were passed out from dehydration and nearly dead," the kid mentioned.
"I would thank you, but you're pointing a sword at me," Link said sarcastically.
"First you answer my questions. Then I lower the sword. What's your name, and where did you come from?"
"My name is Link. I'm the Hero of Time, and I'm from Hyrule," Link explained grudgingly.
"Hero of Time? Are you some sort of replacement? And I've never heard of Hyrule. Are you trying to rip off my look?" the kid demanded.
"What do you mean 'rip off your look'? This was my look first!" Link protested. The kid held up his left hand, displaying something that was glowing faintly. Link struggled to hide his shock. On the kid's hand was the triforce, only none of the three pieces were glowing. Instead, the upside down triangle in the center was the one that was lit up.
"Obviously you're some sort of hero wannabe. If you want to be the Hero of the Sand, be my guest. I have enough to deal with without the painful training and the high expectations. You can have the stupid triforce of essence," the kid declared.
"Triforce of essence?" Link chocked out. The kid rolled his eyes.
"You've never heard of the triforce of essence? Finally I find the one interesting and maybe not entirely stupid person in all of Ordonia, and it happens to be on the day I'm scheduled to meet with the princess. And I'm already late. Well Link, it's been cool, but I should get going," the kid said while sheathing the sword and walking away. Link hurried after him.
"Hold it! You never told me your name!" he called.
"The name's Ravio. You might want to follow me if you don't want to end up scyther food," the kid responded.
"Hold up! Let me get Epona," Link said. Epona tossed her head as Link climbed into the saddle. He glanced at Ravio.
"How are you going to keep up?" Link asked. Ravio laughed.
"I'd like to see Epona keep up," Ravio said. Link couldn't see how Ravio could outpace Epona, but as soon as Ravio started running Link realized that Ravio hadn't been kidding. Ravio seemed to fly more than run, legs nothing more than a blur. Within moments he had traveled an extraordinary distance.
"Follow him!" Link commanded Epona. Epona broke into a gallop and raced after Ravio. They raced across miles of endless desert, keeping an impressive pace all the time. Finally, Link spotted something in the distance. It was a green smudge that was growing all the while. As Ravio and Link approached it, Link started to notice the details. It was a large green oasis surrounded by tall sandstone walls. Ravio and Link slowed as they neared the large wooden doors.
"What is this place?" Link asked in awe.
"Link, I present to you Takushi, capital city of Ordonia, and home of Princess Hylda. Come on, I'll give you the tour on the way to the castle," Ravio said with a smile.