This next story was requested by Reclusive Dork (No, I'm not mocking him, that is his username), I thought at first that it would be a bit of stretch from what I usually do. But hey, I've gotten better since I started writing. And I have to admit, the story he recommended sounded pretty cool. So, without further ado, I give you The Legend of the Starlit Hero.


The Legend of the Starlit Hero

Chapter 1

The Hooded Demon

"Hold it right there!"

He couldn't believe it. He had worked for so long to earn his place in this gang. He was even pretty high up the food chain, earning a bounty of 2,000 Rupees.

And on his tail was one of Hyrule's most feared bounty hunters, the Hooded Demon.

The Hooded Demon was a highly feared man, and a very skilled fighter. His entire guard was decommissioned when they were assaulted by a hooded man with a bow, knocking them all out with well-placed shots so as not to be lethal.

"Atlas Fang, running will only make it worse. Stop now and maybe I'll put in a good word with the guards. If not..."

The criminal, Atlas, winced as an arrow whizzed by his head and stuck itself into a tree nearby, an audible 'thunk' as it slammed into the tree.

"I'll only get half the Rupees."

Atlas kept running, not willing to risk his capture, even to the Hooded Demon. Running behind a nearby oak, he stopped to catch his breath. The Demon was persistent, he'd give him that.

"But he'll never catch Atlas Fang."

Before he could continue his run, he was caught by a metal wire wrapping around the tree, impeding his movement.

And of course, the Hooded Demon walked out from behind that very tree.

"How much are you willing to bet?"

Atlas swallowed nervously. He'd never seen the Hooded Demon before, but he did hear things from his fellow gang-mates. The Hooded Demon, hence his name, always wore a black cloak with a hood that provided a deep enough shadow that hid all but the lower half of his face, displaying the fact that he bore long blonde side locks, and a small scar on his chin a little to the left. However, his clothing was easy enough to identify by itself. Aside from the cloak, he wore a green tunic with black trim on top of silver chain mail, as well as beige pants tucked into brown leather boots with silver plating on the front for protection. He could tell due to a faint glint that he bore at least a silver chest plate, and likely bore armor on his upper arms. Over his shoulder he could see he bore a simple sword and bow, and Atlas also thought he saw a shield as well.

"L-Let me out of this, you freak!"

"Sorry, but I can't do that. You're worth too much. Like the wanted poster said, 2,000 Rupees is nothing to scoff at. You'll pay for the next few months to say the least."

The Hooded Demon said the last part with a smirk, causing Atlas to squirm even more.

"Goddesses dammit, let me out of here, before I kill you!"

Before he could speak another word, he found himself looking down the blade of the Demon's sword. And judging by how sharp it was, Atlas could tell it would zip through his skin like a hot knife through butter.

"Okay okay, look, how about I double that amount? My employer could easily dish out 4,000 Rupees. So if you let me go, I'll make it worth your while."

He expected release; not the Demon's blade slamming into the tree next to him, sinking its sharp blade into the wood with ease.

"T-Triple! Please, just let me go!"

"You know, I'd be fine with 1,000 Rupees if it got you out of circulation, Atlas. So why are you digging your grave deeper? Trying to bribe a bounty hunter... Tch. Bad choice."

Atlas winced as the Demon lifted his sword, only to feel his bindings slacken. And the to feel his face meet the hunter's fist.

"I swear, they always try to buy me out. Typical criminal. They only ever talk big when they have an advantage. But the moment they lose that advantage..."

He snapped his fingers as if to prove a point.

"Like night and day. Anyway, time to get him to the local guards. I bet Sis is worried by now."

Throwing the dazed criminal over his shoulder, the Hooded Demon brought his fingers to his lips and whistled very loudly.

"You should feel lucky. You took longer than other criminals for me to catch. Guess that means that you aren't just bark, you've got some bite."

"F-Fuck... you..." Atlas managed to cough between ragged breaths.

"Hey now."

The Demon bounced Atlas, driving his shoulder uncomfortably into his gut, causing him to cough.

"You get blood on my cloak, and you'll be paying for more than your crimes."

Shortly after reprimanding his latest catch, the Demon turned to the sound of a galloping horse making its way through the forest.

"Hurry up, girl. This guy's a little heavy for my taste."

Atlas spit on the Demon's cloak, earning a sudden turnaround that slammed his head into a tree.

"Huh? You say something?"

The Demon smirked again as he felt Atlas go limp, the strike to the head knocking him out. After a few more seconds, a brown mare with white tufts of fur near her hooves, a white main, and a white tail. The Demon patted her, reached into the saddlebag on her back, and fed the horse an apple.

"Good girl. I can always count on you for my hunts."

The hunter wasted no time in placing his latest catch on the horse's back, saddling up shortly after.

"Alright, girl, let's head out!"

Placing his legs against his mount's haunches, he urged her to a canter, easily making his way out of the forest he had found Atlas.

And headfirst into a group of at least 12 more gangsters.

"I don't have time for this."

With his horse rearing back intimidatingly, he drew his blade and urged her to a sprint past the new group of offenders. After the initial shock of seeing a feared bounty hunter carrying their leader, they angrily gave chase.

"Get back here, punk, and maybe we'll only take one limb!"

The Demon laughed and let loose his mare's reigns, and standing up from the saddle, pulled out his bow and picked off three within the blink of an eye.

"Lay off and maybe I'll only take one more man!"

Giving a smirk and a two fingered-salute, he spun around and landed back onto his saddle, laughing.

"Kill him and get the boss back!"

The Demon turned around, only to see that one of the gangsters had a pretty quick horse, quickly shortening the gap between himself and the bounty hunter, approaching on his left side.

"Get back here, you little freak!"

The Demon took a swing at the gangster, catching him off-guard and leaving a gash in his upper arm.

"Gah! You brat!"

With his non-wounded arm, he tried to grab the Demon, but only succeeded in pulling down his hood, revealing blonde hair, blue earrings, startlingly blue eyes, and a boy who appeared to be 17 years-old.

"You shouldn't have done that."

Thinking fast, he spun around and kicked the man in the face with his right leg, a very difficult maneuver to pull off, slipping back into his saddle after knocking the offender off of his horse. He smirked again, something he appeared to do often.

"Better lay off! I'll take out every last one of you if I need to!"

The remaining eight were hesitant, but did as they were warned and backed down.

"Next time, you won't be so lucky!" shouted a gangster.

The Demon smirked yet again and urged to mare to a greater speed, pulling out of sight.

Letting out a sigh, he slowed his horse to a trot and sheathed his sword.

"Whew. I thought they weren't going to buy the tough guy act. Well, I better turn him in and get the money home to Sis. She's got to be worried sick by now."

OOO

A young girl, likely 16, was pacing back and forth in front of a door in her house, clearly waiting for someone or something. Or both, if you really think about it.

She was quite cute, to be honest, bearing long blonde hair and blue eyes, blue earrings, a brown skirt down to mid-thigh, a green shirt and cap, as well as brown boots with white thigh-high leggings.

She turned to the door when she heard it open, and gave a breath of relief when the Hooded Demon walked through the door.

Or, as she called him...

"Brother, you're back! How did it go?"

The Hooded Demon pulled down his hood, displaying a shy smile. "For a while back there, I thought that they would catch me. But thankfully, they didn't see through the tough guy act and bought it."

"You know I hate to ask, but did you get the bounty?"

"Full 2,000 Rupees. This should be able to pay for the next few months."

He pulled out a bag from a pouch on his belt, handing it to the girl. She gladly took it, checking the contents.

"Yep, that looks like it's the full 2,000. Good job, Brother! This should be more than enough to pay for food for a month, maybe more!"

"I'm glad. It's been getting hard to find high bounties that are easy. On that Atlas job, someone managed to remove my hood. We may have to lay low a bit, alright? Don't be frivolous with that money, and spend only what you need so as not to draw attention."

"Okay, Brother. I plan on heading out tomorrow to get food and such. Would you be willing to come along to help carry everything home?"

"Hehe, yeah, no problem, Ryla." (1)

"Thanks, Link."

OOO

The rest of the day passed by without incident. Link and Ryla spoke of the boy's most recent hunt, what to do with Link's recent haul, casual conversation.

Bidding Link goodnight, Ryla went upstairs and went to bed. Link merely sat down in front of his fireplace, contemplating his recent hunt. He's had to get bolder and bolder with recent bounties in order to pay for Ryla and himself, taking down criminals higher up the food chain. Sighing, he grabbed his sword and began sharpening it.

"What if one of these days... I don't come back? Ryla isn't ready to go out for hunts yet, and there's no other work she could do..."

Shaking his head, he looked down at his blade. Though it was a standard sword, he took very good care of it. The blade was finely honed, and shone brightly in the light of the fire. The handle was simple with a standard leather wrap, brown in color. The cross guard was sky blue, and the grey blade bore a small fuller around half the length of the blade. The scabbard matched to sword very well, being predominantly brown with sky blue markings and gray metal braces at the opening and near the end. (2) Sheathing the blade and placing it by his chair he closed his eyes.

"But I can't leave her alone. Not yet. I'll only be able to let her on her own when she can take care of herself. But for now, I have to care for her. I have to protect my kid sister. Mom and Dad wanted me to, I know it."

Dowsing the fire, he placed his sword on the mantle along with his shield, removed his cloak and armor, then made his way upstairs. As he made his way past Ryla's room, he couldn't help but smile. Ryla was sleeping peacefully, having fallen asleep in the middle of reading a book. Even the light was still on.

Walking in, he took the book and placed a bookmark in it, closing it. Seeing the cover, he smiled again. Ryla had been reading one of the books they had about the old heroes. According to legend, whenever evil threatened the great land of Hyrule, a hero wielding a legendary blade baring an unbreakable spirit would stand up, ready to face the great evil regardless of the odds. The thing about the stories is that while the heroes were remembered, their names weren't. The last hero that Hyrule had the honor of raising was the Hero of Twilight, the Hero rumored to have the greatest natural strength, swordsmanship, and the ability to change into a wolf.

He changed the typical Hero formula, using the Dark One's own magic against him in the form of that very wolf.

Link couldn't lie. The thought of saving the world and getting the princess would be nice, but for right now he had his own world to save, and his own princess.

He put out the light and pulled the blanket further over Ryla, giving her a small kiss on the forehead. A small smile was present on her face after he did so, and he had to smile too. He loved his sister very much. He'd gladly give his life if it meant he could protect her. Closing the door behind him, he walked to his own room, hanging his bow up on a hook. Link had never been really proud of his bow. It was a bow he lifted off of a criminal from a hunt back when he was 13. The criminal he took it from was pretty bad, and was even worse at maintaining his weapon. He managed to bring it back a little, but it still was nothing to gawk at.

"I need a new bow badly."

Removing his tunic, chain mail, and boots he sat on his bed, twiddling his thumbs.

"At least I can rest easy for a while. Atlas set us up very well."

Crawling into bed, he closed his eyes, falling asleep in mere minutes.

OOO

"Where... Where am I? Ryla? Where are you?!"

Link had no idea how he got here, or even where he was.

"Hahaha... Ryla? Your sister? I'm afraid to say that she isn't among the living anymore. A state of being you're about to be familiar with!"

Drawing his sword, Link looked around to try to find his attacker, but saw nothing but unending darkness.

"HA! Your fear smells delicious! If I'm not careful, I may sample a taste before I'm allowed to!"

Link suddenly felt a cold presence looming over his shoulder, and spinning around quickly and skillfully, rent whatever stood behind him.

"Narrator, shut up. He didn't kill me."

Wait, what? Who are you?

"Oh, you know full well who I am. Hey, reader, I bet you wish you knew who I was! But guess what! If you find out, I might not kill you!"

Whoever you are, stop breaking the fourth wall! I work really hard to keep it in one piece.

"Pffft. Like you really try. Does your manga have the same code, keep it in the pages?"

I really have to apologize to all of the readers out there. Mr. Voice-

"Screw you."

*AHEM* Mr. Voice was not supposed to break the fourth wall. However, I can say he made this a bit more interesting. Thank you, Mr. Voice, you may continue with whatever you were doing.

"Ha, like I needed your permission. Anyway, where was I?"

Link, after mentally questioning what he just witnessed, turned to finally meet his attacker, a shadowy figure with red eyes that stood out from the background.

"Oh, right, I was getting ready to reunite you with your sister!"

In a burst of speed that no Hylian nor beast should have been capable of he found a silver blade with a red aura aimed at his neck. He merely closed his eyes. and...

"Monster!"

Link looked around, realizing he was in his room. He looked down, realizing the shirt he wore overnight was drenched in sweat. Taking it off, he cast it to the side of his bed. Placing his head in his hands, he let out a deep breath.

"Nightmares... Why won't they stop? Always the same being..."

"Link? What happened? Is there something wrong?"

Ryla was shakily holding a short sword, one that he used to train her. Just because he'd always protect her didn't mean he didn't want her to learn to protect herself.

I... I don't want her to get scared, so I better not let her know what I saw.

"Just a bad dream. Pay it no mind, Sis."

"Well, if you say so. I have breakfast ready downstairs, so come down when you're dressed and ready, okay?"

Link nodded, being sure not to let Ryla know how scared he was. He was the man of this house, her protector. He didn't want to scare her with something that neither he nor she could fight.

"I'll down in a minute, thanks."

He had no idea what his destiny was to bring him. Be it war or peace, love or hate, it was his fate to meet with the greatest evil the world had ever known.

"Oh, and he's going to LOVE IT!"

Darn it, Mr. Voice!


MR. VOICE STRIKES AGAIN. Before I mention today's points, I'd like to point out that this is a collaboration with Reclusive Dork, so he is also to be thanked for this one. I have help with all of my stories. (Yes, I'm not just magically this good. I have wonderful people to help me.) So, I'll mention those points.

(1) Ryla is the name of Link's younger sister. I was going to go with Linkle or Lino, but I found Linkle to close to Tingle, which I felt was a nono, and Lino was pretty close to Link's. Therefore, Ryla! I was also considering Lyn, but Mr. Reclusive talked me out of that, as it was also a bit close to Link's name.

(2) Basically the Ordon Sword from Twilight Princess, only recolored to resemble the Goddess Sword from Skyward Sword a bit. He has the Banded Shield from Skywards Sword as well, as it matches the sword very well in terms of appearance and practicality.

Chuck Norris was originally planned to be included in Mount Rushmore. However, they found the granite to be far too weak for his beard, and instead changed it to Abraham Lincoln.

OniHelix out!