This is my first fanfic ever, so be gentle. Other chapters are to come, and in abundance throughout the year or so. This prologue, like any good one, does not directly deal with the plot, but instead displays the tone of the story. future chapters will delve into more familiar territory, as well as a plethora of new stuff. So stay tuned! Oh, and I like to write long chapters, so be prepared in the future. Anyway, without further ado, check out this prologue, set before Skyward Sword.
Prologue: the Legend Begins
Power, Wisdom, and Courage. Those were the only terms he could use to describe the Three Golden Goddesses. Din was absolute power, Nayru has absolute wisdom, and Farore was absolute courage. He could not compare. True, the Demigod was something of a deity himself, but in the presence of his creators, he stood as a lesser being. There was no question why he envied their power, if only a little.
His brother and sister were at his sides. All three of the minor gods hovered over the new world, and the Goddesses floated above them. The light from their perfect forms brightened the night sky, and when they spoke, nothing else was heard.
This world is our gift to you, the creators said in unison. It and its people are yours to govern, and to protect.
The Demigod dared not to take his eyes off the brilliance that stood before him, but nevertheless he sensed the joy emulating off his brother's face. And his dear sister, he could tell, had a slight smile on hers that cleverly disguised the true level of her affections. The Demigod knew this because he knew his family, and discounting the land below, it was the only thing that mattered to him.
Suddenly, the Goddesses disappeared into the clouds, taking their golden light with them.
"Where did they go?" his sister Hylia asked.
"You're the wise one, you tell me," the Demigod said.
His brother, who was given no name, remained silent. He was the last of the minor gods to be created, behind Hylia. The Demigod was the eldest, and thus it was he who was given the most power. When the Goddesses left, it would be his authority that would rule over the creatures of this world. Hylia was to be his advisor, but their brother had yet to be given an assignment. Thus, the Demigod suggested that he become his ambassador to the humans, since he was already so fond of them while the Demigod was not. This pleased Brother greatly, and the Demigod counted it as his first act as a just ruler. It still puzzled him, however, as to why the Goddesses kept Brother's role in the new world a secret. The Demigod was also left without a name, but the Goddesses had at least given him the Master Sword to protect the world from dark forces. In addition, Hylia received the Goddess's Harp to guide rulers toward peace with its melodious notes. But their Brother received nothing. What was his role, then? What was his part to play in all of this? The Demigod had thought long and hard about this, but it was of no use. Not even Hylia could answer such a riddle.
This mystery lost itself in the back of the Demigod's mind, however, when he noticed a faint light glisten over the horizon. It shined red over Eldin, the land of fire.
"Look, above the mountain!" he cried as the light shot towards him.
"No, the ocean!" Hylia replied. "A blue light approaches!"
"The forest, it glows green!" said his brother.
The Demigod glanced at each star, red, blue, and green, as they flew into the night and painted the sky with their colors. Then, once the world was full of beauty, the lights met in the clouds far above him. The world turned white like lightning, and loud thunder broke the air. When the Demigod opened his eyes, he was met with the world's first drops of rainfall. Then he saw it.
In place of the three stars, one great, golden light shined. It descended with the rain to meet with the minor gods. As it lowered itself, the Demigod could discern the source of such beauty. Beneath a veil of white fire glowed three, small, golden triangles. The water around them was evaporating off the bright flames, giving off thick steam that rose back up into the sky. Yet this sight paled with the objects themselves. The Demigod could not take his eyes of them.
This is our final treasure, the manifestation of all our power. This is the Triforce.
The Demigod's eyes widened as he heard the Goddesses words. This was a taste of what it was like to be a true god, he thought. This was divinity, an inheritance for him and his family. He kept his gaze on the golden power as a smile grew across his face. Slowly, the individual triangles connected to make one large Triforce, and at its peak was the Triforce of Power. Absolute power. Without haste, he raised his hand and touched it.
Nothing happened.
The smirk on the Demigod's face quickly diminished as he pulled back. The voice of the Goddesses thundered through his ears.
NO, THIS IS OUR GIFT TO MANKIND. YOU MAY NEVER HAVE ITS POWER, the Goddesses thundered.
The three triangles suddenly came apart and flew away. He turned to see them reconnect behind Hylia. His sister showed as much surprise as he did. She quickly turned her head to see the treasure that now rested in her protection, and then back to the sky in confusion.
The one to whom we have given a name shall receive our treasure. She is the wisest of all of you. She shall guard it until the time is right to pass it to man.
This made no sense. Only the ruler of this realm should be bestowed such an honor. Hylia was intelligent, to be sure, but she lacked the passion to lead. And man was too weak. Surely the Goddesses were mistaken!
"But I am more powerful!" the Demigod shouted. "I should be the one to guard it! I should be the one to wield it against our enemies!"
You cannot. You will use your own power to destroy the evil that approaches from below the surface. If you deny your duty, it will mean the demise for us all.
The Demigod opened his mouth for another retort, but a quick hand appearing on his shoulder urged him to stop. It was his brother's, and his eyes pierced through Demigod's anger as he shook his head in silent disapproval. The Demigod looked back at Brother's compassionate face, then down as shame started to weigh on him. He eased the tension of his body and nodded.
"What of Brother?" he said as he stared back into the now dark sky. "He has yet to be given a responsibility."
No response echoed through the sky. The Demigod turned back to face his brother, and he noticed Hylia do the same. Easily the weakest of the minor gods, Brother tried his best to seem unaffected by the Goddesses' silence, but it showed regardless. Soon, it was his head that was lowered as Hylia and the Demigod each laid a hand on his shoulders. Seconds passed, then minutes. Eventually, they all decided to descend into their new home.
The place they settled was a large opening in the forest, with only a few large stones to distract them from the fields of grass that encompassed it. The stars shined above them, and the bright moon rose high. But the most radiant object of the night was the Triforce. It illuminated the entire field with golden fire, like it was the sun itself come down to join the minor gods as they comforted their Brother.
The Demigod refused to look at his sister the whole while. His anger started to rise inside him again, and he clenched his fist tightly. Why did the Goddesses giver her their ultimate power? It was not her place to have such a thing. It was his. He was the oldest, the one fated to rule this land. And yet she was the one given a name, the one the goddesses most trusted. Why not him? Why shouldn't he have the Triforce for himself?
It was this last statement that snapped the Demigod back into reality. Was he beginning to resent Hylia? No, he thought to himself, that was preposterous. Gods are above such feelings. Besides, he loved his sister. He would never betray her affection and her trust over something so pathetic as jealousy.
Slowly, his thoughts shifted to Brother. Why did the Goddesses reject him once again? Why would they, in all their superior judgment, leave such a gentle being out of the minor god's inheritance? If anything, it was he who deserved a name, not his sister. They Goddesses had failed him.
"Why would they do such a thing?" he said, no longer able to contain himself. "Why would they cast away Brother like he was insignificant?"
"Contain yourself," said Hylia. "Your arrogance has already done enough."
"But it isn't fair! Why would they give him nothing, and then give you their ultimate power?"
Hylia's face remained the same cold, serious expression, but the tone of her voice became like the heat of a blazing fire. To anyone else, she would have seemed like judgment itself. "Is that what this is all about? You're angry because you weren't given this power? Do you not realize you would not be able to wield it anyway?"
This statement took the Demigod back. "What do you mean?" he asked, still trying to keep a foothold in the debate.
"The Goddesses said it was mine to guard, not to use. And you were unable to harness it when you touched it. Therefore, the logical explanation is that none of us can wield it."
"Then who can? Men?" He laughed at that notion. Men were valiant, but they were not divine. They could be swayed easily.
"Yes. The Triforce is mine to protect until the appointed time for men arrives." Hylia then shifted her gaze to the holy relic, as if she was still unsure of something and searching it for answers. "Although, I do not know what they meant by that."
The Demigod continued to plead with Hylia, but she kept refusing him. At the same time, their Brother still refused to acknowledge what had happened. At first, the Demigod thought it was because his brother was in shock, but now he saw that the opposite was true. The minor god stood on the green floor of the new world, gazing at the teeming life that lay at his feet. The grass stood a few inches above the dirt, and insects patrolled the leaves around them. A single, blue bird landed at his feet to turn up the grass for food, like it was unaware that before it currently stood a deity. Soon the minor god was kneeling beside the bird, and the Demigod almost thought Brother was going to command the bird to leave his presence. But he didn't. He instead scooped the animal into his hand, holding it firm enough to keep it in its place, but loose enough to keep it comfortable. Then he took seeds into his hand and held them in front of the bird, and the bird began to eat it. After a moment of this, he released the bird back into the free sky, where it flew high into the trees until it could be seen no more.
By this time, Demigod had long ended his argument with Hylia, and they both were staring at their Brother. Brother smiled brightly to both of them and was beginning to leave when he stopped short. The three minor gods stared back into the sky, sensing the presence of their masters returning. Then they heard the Goddesses' last message.
The one given a name shall guard our treasure.
The one given power shall be given a name.
The one given nothing shall find his own name.
And with that, the Golden Goddesses left the world.
Slowly, each of the three minor gods left their place of meeting to attend to their separate duties. Hylia summoned a large bird with crimson feathers and, with the Goddess's Harp in one hand and the Triforce in the other, flew off and into the clouds. Brother, barren of any inheritance but still smiling, walked on into the shade of the forest trees, with only the moonlight to guide him.
The Demigod was the last to leave, and he called for the largest and sturdiest animal to take him across the nearby valley and into the mountains. Soon, a tall horse exited the trees where Brother had disappeared. Its hide was deep black, with no shine, and its mane was like ruby. It approached the Demigod and bowed its head accordingly. The Demigod smiled and mounted the beast. With one hand holding onto the mane and the other clutching the Master Sword, the blade of evil's bane, he kicked the horse into a gallop. The two rode through forest and into the fields, but the minor god slowed his steed when he felt the presence of an unknown entity. He turned the beast around. They rode back through the familiar path they had made. When they were in the same field they departed from, the Demigod dismounted and walked back into the spot where he was standing.
The grass had not yet risen back up from where his feet had stood, and it was there where the Demigod felt the entity. He knelt down and rubbed his hand along the surface. Nothing was physically there except the blades of grass. Yet he could feel something else there, something malevolent. He stood back up as he felt a tremor coming from the Master Sword.
Suddenly, the ground shifted and began to collapse. The result was a small, narrow hole, but it was far from simply being a strange occurrence. This was where the dark forces were to appear out from under the surface, the space where the Demigod had stood during his moment of weakness. This was the evil the Goddesses spoke about.
He found a nearby boulder and sat upon it, staring at the spot in the ground. He tried to keep hold of his blade, but soon the shudder became too much of an annoyance and he dropped it on the ground. His horse trotted beside him, but he paid no attention to this either. He looked only to the place where the evil was beginning to surge from, the place where he learned he was denied the power of a god.
Then the words of his creators came back to him. You will use your power to destroy the evil that approaches from below the surface. If you deny your duty, it will mean the demise for us all.
Demise, he said within his deepest thoughts. That was the name of this darkness. That was the name of this power.
The one with power shall be given a name.
Demise.
Hope you enjoyed a little backstory to my fanfic as well as a different take on the LoZ mythology, and be sure to review and dish out any criticism you wish. Just keep it clean and constructive if you would be so kind. And if you liked, stay tuned! More is to come, that is for sure.