Sweat poured down his forehead as the Evil King prepared for the final blow. Greasy red hair hung pitifully over his face as blood began to drip from his scalp. His fists tightened in fierce anger around the shackles, wanting to break free from the pain. But he knew there was no way out. And there would never be one.
He cried out in agony as the sword punctured his heart, spraying crimson across his muscular chest. The blade was released almost instantly after his scream had died down, and the Evil King watched as two figures stalked away from his prison, holding the bloodied blade that had entered his body.
He let his head go limp as an ache began to overwhelm his heart. Rejuvenation was always the worst part. The terrible pain in his heart would last for days upon days until it finally became whole once more. Then the Sages would stab it again. And again. Then the cycle would repeat. He never had any food, any drink. This realm had no time for petty needs.
As he lay suspended there, in midair, he began to recollect his past events. His past lives. His past attempts to seize the outside world. The land of Hyrule. He clenched his fists tighter as he thought of his old nemesis and opponent: Link. The Hero of Time.
How pathetic it must have looked to be defeated by a young boy decades of times! To have failed to confiscate such a weak world governed by such weak rulers! They should have had a rightly appointed king. A dictator. One with powers given to him by the goddesses of the Triforce themselves!
Before he knew it, he had dug his nails so deep into his skin that his palms had begun to bleed. He unconstrained the pressure in his grasp, and decided to let that awful thought float about for now. After all, what good is it to complain about something that was well behind him and would cease to be set straight? He'd never get out of here. The realm had been secured too tightly since his last escape to have ever had its seal broken again by his hands.
He closed his eyes as the pain from his heart began to increase. The cold feel of death began to creep up his spine. But he knew it would never reach the top. No. The Sages weren't that merciful.
He struggled to resist the tear that dropped from his closed eyelid, landing on the floor with a silent splash.
"What a pity." A deep voice said.
The Evil King's head gradually rose. His eyes opened widely to reveal a dense foggy blur, but it quickly cleared up. A cloaked silhouette stood right in front of him, head completely invisible from view.
"I expected the Great King of Evil to be a little more… brawny."
That same question was always the first.
"Who are you?" he asked.
The figure chuckled in a high-pitched distorted voice, bringing up that frail little dose of fear that had been driven far down in the Evil King's heart; it was easily plagued by his other, stronger emotions. In fact, he doubted that it even existed.
"The question is not who I am, but who you are." The figure spoke.
"I am Ganondorf." He replied with a stern tone. "The Great King of Evil, and the Beholder of the Triforce of Power."
"So you are." Another voice said.
Ganondorf turned to the darkness of the room where he saw a single red eye open. He cringed at the sinister ambiance originating from its presence, but felt safe. In fact, he felt its familiarity opening an all-too recognizable door.
"Vaati." He said. "I thought you were sealed away as well."
"Not even a cell made by the goddesses could contain my rage." Vaati told him. "Of course, I had help from my new friend."
"Is your friend a god?"
"No." the hooded figure muttered. "But close to one."
Vaati approached Ganondorf's containment, showing off his grotesque demonic body in the bright light that shined overhead. The Evil King began to feel unstable. He knew that these two wanted something from him. But he ceased to know.
"What do you want from me?" he asked.
Vaati seemed to smile.
"Only the help of the Evil King." He answered simply.
"But I suppose that we all want to rule the world?"
The unknown figure stopped him there.
"Not quite. We all have different ambitions."
"For instance," Vaati cut in, "You wish to conquer the world."
"Correct."
"My wish is nearly the same. I want to become the most powerful being in the universe. Not necessarily taking over the world, however."
Ganondorf nodded.
"And yours?" he asked the figure who still refused to give a name.
The darkened outline leaned closer.
"I wish to destroy the world and all that exists within it."
The room seemed to darken at the sound of the words. The Evil King pursed his lips, becoming anxious. Vaati's desire was clearly close to his. They both wanted to become almighty. They both wanted to feel like they could strike down anyone that opposed them.
But this other one… what is to gain by destroying the world? What kind of psychotic maniac would want to prove a doctrine that could just as easily be established by taking over Hyrule? Or even Termina for that matter.
But a better question of course would be: who was this strange being? And what kind of grudge did he, or she, have against the world?
Did they all share bitter memories with the Hero of Time?
"But, we shouldn't let those things carry us away." Vaati said, knocking Ganondorf out of his thoughts. "After you help us, we'll settle our quarrels."
"And what do I get in return… if I help you?" he asked apprehensively.
The cloaked humanoid loomed towards the shackles, and held out an arm to one of Ganondorf's metal captors. He quickly noticed that this baffling stranger had absolutely no hands at all! He shook his head, but as the figure warned not to dismiss, he turned to see multiple red, slimy tentacles slithering out of his cloak, and wrapping around his shackles with a bizarre grip. They pulled free the celestial steel that had held the Evil King captive for so long, allowing him to fall head-first onto the stone floor.
"Freedom."
Ganondorf looked up at his two new associates, a new fury burning within his red pupils. He stood up on one knee before steadily making his way up to two feet. The hole in his chest quickly renewed itself, burning with a sensational passion that made the Evil King grin.
"Remember," Vaati said, "We are not your servants. We are your allies."
Ganondorf turned to him.
"Understood." He said in his revived voice.
"And so a new age of darkness begins."
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A sea of trees began to flow across Link's line of vision as he awoke. The gloomy clouds of daytime were just beginning their morning stretch; their calm grey look only contributed to the dismal feel of the rain. He blinked a few times to fully push himself into consciousness, then nearly panicked after he noticed the ground was shaking.
After recollecting yesterday's memories, he was able to restore his sanity. He remembered hopping on the train at Lynna City last night as a transport back to Hyrule. There was nothing to be afraid of.
As his eyes were rid of their sleepy atmosphere, he forced himself to take a look around the train. He quickly noticed that he was still wearing the thin sweatshirt from yesterday, and that he had used his messenger bag as a pillow for the night's rest.
It also turned out to be very congested in the train. Around seventy people appeared to be in this section, all headed for Hyrule. He wasn't surprised. It seemed like everyone was going to see the inauguration ceremony for Princess Zelda to become a full queen of the entire land. It was a pity that her father and mother died so early in their second halves of their lives. They had been great monarchs to Hyrule. Link hoped their daughter would be just as good.
While he continued to look around, fascinated by the diversity of the people, a young man pulled open one of the door at the far end of the coach. His striking blue coat and hat told Link that he was perhaps a service man on the train.
"We will arrive in Hyrule City soon." He spoke, his loud voice waking up some of the drowsy passengers that were still in slumber. "We would ask that you please ready your luggage by the time we arrive at the station."
That was easy for Link. He reached under his seat where he found his single suitcase, all packed with extra clothes. He reached over to the messenger bag and pulled it towards him, knowing that his wallet was inside, containing five hundred rupees. Taking one hand, he reached inside and grabbed the wallet, which he knew he would need for the disembarking fee. His felt its rough surface for a few seconds to check the money situation, then they placed it lightly in the large pocket in his factory pants.
His eyes flew to the window as he heard the screeching brake of the train. The vast trees that had once been there were now replaced with the stone walls of Hyrule City's train station. His mouth dropped and his eyes went wide as he spotted the tall towers of Hyrule Castle in the distance, extending high into the heavens. He knew that in that castle's courtyard he would be watching Princess Zelda's ceremony.
As the train finally came to a halt, all the passengers arose at once to exit the train.
"Everyone!" the service man yelled, "Please remain in your seats until I have been given proper confirmation!"
Link chuckled at the sight of everyone's determination. He knew the ceremony was very well an honorable event to be at, but it seemed as if everyone wanted to be the first to get there. Positions in the crowd did matter with timing, but they also mattered with money.
He looked down at his pocket, pulling out a small ticket. It was a bad place to put it, but right now that didn't matter. The service man would want to see it before he got off, so he kept it tightly in his palm.
As people finally began to finally make their way out of the train, Link stood up, and slung the messenger bag around his shoulder and picked up the suitcase. His arm instantly began to ache with morning struggle. He winced as he cut into the isle of the coach, and began the short journey down to the exit.
"Ticket, please." The service man said as Link reached the open door of the coach.
His hand offered it without hesitation, handing the silver slip with a single light. He almost yelped as a jolt of pain went up his arm as he pulled it back. The service man seemed to take notice of his pain, but kept to himself.
"Everything checks out." He said, handing it back to him. "Have a nice day."
"Thank you." Link replied before exiting the train.
As he exited the coach, the bright sunlight blinded him, sending his arm across his face and causing another spark of pain to enter his body. Thankfully, it wasn't enough to throw it down from its position above his head.
His eyes quickly adjusted to the sun, letting his arm break free from its locked stance in the sky. He instantly focused on the train station, which he quickly noticed was placed on a tall hill next to the main city. Hyrule Castle stood tall and firm among hundreds of buildings and industrial structures placed around its stone walls.
He could hardly believe that this structure had survived almost a thousand years. The castle had been a battleground countless amounts of times when Hyrule was at war with many neighboring countries, including Labrynna, Holodrum, Termina, and even Koholint across the sea.
It had been occupied only about four times, but the tyrants that had taken control of it had been lost in history. One of them was said to be a Gerudo from the desert out west, but that can't be proven by anything. Only myths. And no one believed those anymore.
Hyrule itself had a past of legends. It was said to have been created by Din, Farore, and Nayru, the three goddesses of the almighty Triforce. They had forged the world out of their own celestial selves, forever creating an ultimate empire that ceased to fall.
Early on in the nation's development, an evil force viciously snatched the land out of the hands of the present king, sending Hyrule into a dark age. He governed the land with an iron fist, killing all that opposed him. The people knew that this diabolical ruler had to end. And that's when the Hero of Time's legend began.
A young boy dubbed the Hero of Time journeyed through Hyrule to defeat this entity. He traveled through time to complete his task, finally ending its reign in a finishing conflict. It was only after this that the hero left and never returned to Hyrule, even when the Great Flood washed away the ancient world for a long but temporary time.
This legend had been passed down in Link's family for generations. It was a timeless epic that would never lose its power. But, then again, it was all just legends. Hyrule's true history still remains a mystery.
And one that has continued to be overlooked.
Link took a toque out of his messenger bag and slapped it on over his head.
"Onward to Hyrule Castle." He said, beginning the long walk down the cobblestone road to the bustling city of Castle Town.