Conqueror
By Raine Ishida
Prologue
1And I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key to the Abyss and holding in his hand a great chain. 2He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. 3He threw him into the Abyss, and locked and sealed it over him, to keep him from deceiving the nations anymore until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be set free for a short time.
-Revelation 20:1-3
It had been several years since the sealing of Ganondorf in the Spirit Realm, a daunting task that had been done by the Seven Sages, aided by the Hero of Time who wielded the Master Sword. Ganondorf had not been an easy foe, the wicked man first binding many people to the world of darkness before his being done away with.
Link had been seventeen years old when he'd killed the haunting man. He'd still been in the age of innocence, practically a child. The poor boy had been given the weight of the world, a terrible burden to carry, at the age of ten. Finding important treasures, solving puzzles and risking his life had become part of his nature by the time he reached the task at the Temple of Time during which he'd met the Master Sword, the key to the future.
The only one pure enough to touch it, he'd opened the door of Time and let loose the flow of Time, allowing anyone and everyone access to the holy Triforce, the one symbol of Hyrule's existence.
Ganondorf, the King of the Gerudos, a tricky thief, had long awaited that opportunity and took advantage of the clueless little boy. He'd followed him through the Door of Time and taken the Triforce, corrupting the world Link had left behind.
Link had slept through time. Seven years he slept, passing by all the cares of the world he knew nothing of. He passed by puberty, friendship, growth, newness and knowledge. He left his innocence behind as he grew through Time. Seven years of bloodshed lay on his hands and he slept through his guilt. For years until Ganondorf's demise, Link held a lump of guilt in his heart. He was pure, having slept through most of life, yet guilty. The irony of his being was astounding. He'd killed numerous times, yet that didn't seem to stop people from admiring the innocence they thought they knew he had. Link had killed ruthlessly, even as a child. One might say he didn't know any better. Another might say he had no choice. One didn't know for sure, but Link wasn't one to stand in the way of the flow of Time.
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When Ganondorf had been sealed in the Spirit Realm, the Princess Zelda, the head of the Sages, sent Link back to the time before his awakening as the Hero of Time. She was returning him to his past. She was giving him the greatest gift of all time. His childhood.
He'd not remembered his adventures in Hyrule; in fact, his adventures were mere fantasies to him and the other children in Kokiri Forest, even though many of them knew they were merely stories, legends to dream of.
Link had one friend. Saria, the one girl with odd-colored hair, was the only person in all of the Forest who believed in him. She stuck by him, even when the other children teased him for being the only child without a fairy.
Navi didn't belong to Link anymore once he'd returned. Zelda had figured it would be for the best.
Link and Saria had a great friendship, traveling through the Lost Woods often and playing with the Skull Kids. The two of them knew there was something different about Link and the fact that he didn't have a fairy. He looked like all the other Kokiri children, but there was something…different about him. Something flowed through his veins that the other children didn't have and neither of the friends could ever figure out what it was.
Often times they would see a large owl in a tree, watching him and Saria play. It wouldn't say anything, just watch and tilt its head from side to side.
Link found the owl's presence to be unnerving and often suggested they leave and play somewhere else once he discovered the owl's whereabouts.
Saria knew Link's heart belonged elsewhere, somewhere outside of Kokiri Forest, but she didn't dare tell him. She knew he'd think it was preposterous for him to leave. There was a rule: Kokiri children couldn't leave the forest. He didn't know why, but there was a Kokiri legend that said that there was a monster just outside the mouth of the forest that ate the children before they even had a chance to see the outside world. Other legends suggested lightning strikes, odd-smelling air that choked the life from a child, and many other vicious tales.
The children never even considered leaving the forest.
Link never did.
Saria considered it, but not for her. She knew it wasn't her destiny.
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