Hi and hello, Legend of Zelda fans! This is SJShark23 bringing you yet another novelization of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Yes, I know there's a million of these out there, but I wanted to test the waters here and give something like this a shot. Fingers crossed and here we go!
Disclaimer: I claim no ownership to The Legend of Zelda or any related material; The Legend of Zelda is the property of Nintendo and Shigeru Miyamoto.
WARRIOR, HERO, SAVIOUR
CHAPTER 1: PROLOGUE
A woman rides into the forest, wounded and clearly struggling to stay on her horse. One hand holds the reins; the other supports her infant child, a boy, wrapped tightly in a bundle of blankets. She dares not look back, for any pursuers might catch her if she hesitates. As she reaches a small clearing, the pain overcomes her, and she falls off the horse. She utters no sound as she hits the forest floor, nor does her child. The last thing she sees before she blacks out is several dark shapes approaching her.
Seven diminutive figures emerged from the forest, one by one, each with a disembodied shining light floating next to them that upon closer inspection would be identified as fairies. All were dressed in green tunics or dresses, with matching caps or hairbands. The curious thing was that they were all children, no taller than a Deku Scrub and looking no older than ten or eleven summers. The Kokiri were a fey, enigmatic race; they never left their forest home, were always followed by their guardian fairies, and their eternal youth was unusual for any race that populated Hyrule.
As they reached the fallen Hylian woman , one of the small figures seized the horse's reins to prevent it from running away. Another knelt down beside the woman and looked at the dampened fabric of her dress, stained red in places from her wounds; her fairy also checked the woman's condition, flitting back and forth to illuminate her still form. The others stood by and kept watch for any forest creatures; anything could emerge from those trees, so close were they to the forest's edge. One of the figures, a girl with bright green hair, spoke to the others.
"She's been badly hurt. We must get her back to the village quickly!" The girl examined the woman's injuries as she spoke, careful not to aggravate them.
"Why?" a second one with a tuft of red hair poking from under his cap responded, with the consequence of his own fairy shouting indignantly at him. "It's not our job to take care of every outsider that wanders into our forest, Saria. Let her own people find her and help her; we Kokiri shouldn't get involved with the affairs of outsiders."
"Mido, how can you be so mean?" a third figure asked with obvious annoyance. "You just want to leave her here like this? She's probably going to die if we don't help her!"
"And she's got a baby with her," added the green-haired Saria, as she found a bundle under the woman's left arm. "Now we must get them back to the village; she needs aid for her wounds, and we need to make sure this child is alright."
"Well...if we must," Mido conceded the point reluctantly. "As Boss of the Kokiri, I must respect what the other Kokiri have to say...within reason."
"Boss or not, you need help us move her, NOW!" Saria shouted at him, urgency entering her voice. "She's not going to get any better by us arguing!" The other Kokiri scurried to help Saria, managing somehow to get the woman to lie sideways across the horse's back. The Kokiri holding the reins began to lead the horse towards the village, while Saria lifted the child from the ground. "I'll take care of this little one for now."
The rest of the Kokiri living in the small forest village rushed from their homes as their friends returned. At the sight of the horse and the injured woman, they cried out in shock and terror; they had seen a few Hylians in the forest, usually lost travellers, but had never seen one hurt like this. Several of the stronger Kokiri helped get the woman off the horse and carried her carefully into Saria's house; she was something of a motherly figure to the village, and therefore her home was the best place to take the wounded Hylian.
Saria followed the others into the house, carrying the woman's child in her arms. The infant had somehow not woken up after all the commotion, and she laid him on her own bed, watching him sleep. One of the Know-It-All Brothers had come to see what the fuss was about, and Saria gave him stern instructions to watch over the baby without waking him up. The usually overconfident Kokiri, his eyes hidden by a mop of rust-brown hair, nodded solemnly and sat on a tree stump next to the bed, intently watching the small boy. Saria took one more look at the child, and then turned to the woman.
"Help me get this dress off her," she ordered two of the nearby Kokiri, and they did their best to obey Saria while respecting the woman's modesty. Saria examined the many slashes and cuts on the woman's body, shook her head sadly, and called for several healing substances.
"We must try to clean these cuts out and prevent any further damage," she said, even though her examination had been less than positive. The woman had clearly been riding for a while after being wounded; she would likely not survive for more than a day, or even for the next few hours. Still, Saria felt they had to try; she never liked to abandon anyone, whether a Kokiri looking for advice or an outsider trying to find their way through the forest.
The Kokiri Saria had sent brought the healing supplies, most of them herbal medicines and bandages, and the green-haired Kokiri began to clean and dress the woman's injuries. The woman stirred, and the surrounding fairy children jumped in surprise. Her eyes opened, and she looked upon Saria with widening eyes.
"You...it was you I saw approaching..." she said weakly, barely able to retain consciousness. "You found us...and you brought us here...I had heard tales of your race, but..." She paused, the words clearly paining her. "But I had no idea...that you would show such kindness...to outsiders..." Saria took the woman's hand in hers and smiled.
"We're doing what we can to help you. Please, save your strength. Don't try to say anymore. You're in good hands now. We'll take care of you." The woman smiled back, and then her face became worried.
"Where is my child?" she asked, trying in vain to look around. "I hope he hasn't been found by...by those warriors. Those black-armored warriors who attacked us..."
"He's over there," Saria answered, gesturing towards the bed. "He's been asleep since we found you. We will watch over him as well. Now please, try to rest. You're in bad shape." The woman, relieved that her baby boy had not been hurt, fell unconscious again, and the Kokiri continued to try and help her.
Hours later, the Kokiri came to the sad conclusion that the woman could not be saved by any of their methods. A council was called, and all of them, even Mido, decided that they would take her to the Great Deku Tree to see if the forest's guardian spirit could help. Carefully, they helped the woman onto her horse and rode through a narrow forest corridor to the gigantic tree, which stood in a secluded grotto not too far from the village. The woman got off gingerly, and stood before the great tree, whose trunk was marked by growths that could, if one looked hard enough, resemble a humanoid face.
"Welcome, outsider." The spirit within the tree spoke with a deep, even voice, one that exuded calm throughout the clearing. "These children of the forest, whom I watch over, hath told me of thy plight. I regret to say that even my power is useless to help thee. I am sorry."
"I...I knew it would likely be impossible, honored spirit..." The woman was having difficulty speaking now, knowing that she was nearing the end. "I thank you and the children of the forest for rescuing me, and especially my child." The tree murmured in acknowledgement, then spoke again.
"We doth feel compelled to help anyone in need, my friend," the spirit said, and the woman nodded weakly. The spirit read uncertainty in the gesture, despite the woman's undoubted gratitude. "Something troubles you?"
"Yes, honored spirit," the woman answered, her voice thin. "It is...it is difficult to say what it is, but..."
"If it is not objectionable, I have a method of discovering what is wrong. May I?" The woman considered, then nodded. The Deku Tree reached out with his spirit sense, forming a psychic bond with the woman's mind, and read the images within:
Massed armies, fighting viciously and attacking anyone nearby. No effort made to discern soldier from civilian. People running from these warriors, desperately trying to escape the violence. A woman running from a group of black-armored soldiers, shielding her child despite being severely wounded...
The tree broke the psychic link then, and the woman choked out her next words.
"Please...honored spirit...take my child and...and raise him among the children of the forest. I would never forgive myself...if he became another victim of this bloody war...it has rent Hyrule asunder..."
"It shall be done as thou wish." the Deku Tree reassured her, feeling her life force ebb away slowly. "But pray, tell me, what of a name for your child? Surely thou shalt not forgo the parental honor of naming this boy?"
"His father and I...thought hard about just that," the woman said, visibly struggling to form the words. "We decided...we believed...that he had solidified the bond we shared, and named our child as such. Link...the boy's name is Link."
"An appropriate name. He hath brought a Hylian outsider together with the children of the forest, however brief that connection might be. I do sense that your son shall be a child of destiny; he shall help change the future of our great land of Hyrule. We will keep watch over him, and no harm shall come to him. You have my word." The woman smiled as the Deku Tree finished this pronouncement, and spoke her last, pained words.
"That's...good enough...for me..." The woman coughed several times, let out a ragged final breath, and lay still. The Kokiri standing around the grotto were visibly upset, and several of them cried out in despair; although they were nearly immortal, the other living things in the Kokiri Forest were not, and despite the Deku Tree's reassurances, mourned whenever something in the forest died. It pained them to see this woman, this brave outsider, lose the battle for her own life. Saria wiped tears from her eyes and took command of the situation.
"Alright, this has to be done quickly. Fado," she said, addressing a blonde-haired girl to her left, "get to the Kokiri Shop and tell them to get to work. We need a box to bury this woman in. You two!" Two more Kokiri snapped to attention as Saria called them. "Once that box is done, get digging. We've got a lot of work to do." The two boys nodded and rushed away, leaving just Saria and Mido.
"So...she's really gone, huh?" Mido was still shaken by the Deku Tree's words. "How can a child make any difference to Hyrule? No Kokiri has ever left the Forest, they'll die if they do."
"It's not up to us to find out," Saria told him sadly, looking on the woman's still form. "Destiny is something that no-one can figure out. It'll be up to him in the end." With this thought, the two Kokiri helped those who remained in the grotto to move the woman's body, and prepared to lay her to rest.
A long way away, a green-skinned figure in black armor led his forces past the gates of Hyrule Castle Town, and stopped to gaze at the tremendous barricade. For years the fighting and sieges had raged, and none knew whether or not the city would fall. Thousands had died on both sides of the fighting, and this man had been responsible for many of those deaths. Ganondorf narrowed his eyes as he remembered that this was a delay in his grand plot, but then relaxed as he reasoned with himself. War was a messy affair, but he had to let the conflict finish so he could continue his evil aspirations. This Civil War was a nuisance, but it had to be fought, and he had to ensure things were within his control before he acted. Only then could his plans come to fruition.
"The Sacred Realm," he breathed, as he stared at the great fortress beyond the walls. "I will find you, and I will rule you...whatever it takes."
So ends Chapter 1. How was it? Any good? Lousy? Something in between? Let me know! Any feedback is appreciated, and will help me gauge the reactions to this project.