Let me guide you.

"I am going to die."

You haven't yet fulfilled your destiny. I can save you. There is still time.

"No."

There is still hope. Princess Zelda needs you.

Link sat up, opening his eyes. He knew that voice. The darkness was so complete that his surroundings looked like the same featureless abyss whether his eyes were open or closed. The hero closed his eyes and tried to steady his breathing so that he was not consumed by the darkness surrounding him. He imagined it entering his body and choking his lungs….

Stop that. Focus on me.

This proved difficult to do, since Link did not hear the voice so much as feel it. It wasn't a voice at all, really, it was more like an entity that he perceived with a sense that was not entirely physical. The Hero unsheathed his sword from his back and cradled it in his lap, stroking the steel carefully to avoid being cut by the sharp edge. The physicality of the object in his hand made him feel somewhat better, though he knew he was still defenseless. Somehow, he didn't sense a threat.

"Am I already dead?" the hero wondered.

The being seemed to emanate a strange sense of amusement, and Link felt the itch of a laugh in the back of his throat. There was something innately female in the presence.

"Midna?" he called out, feeling his eyes fill with tears. Maybe she had not dissolved into the Twilight after all! Could he be in the mirror? Link scrambled to his feet, forgetting the sword in his hand. It slid out of his grasp as he stood, and he felt a sharp pinch in his right hand followed by a seeping wetness that dripped off his fingertips.

Link ignored the wound and held his arms in front of him as he staggered through the blackness, his eyes open wide but unseeing. "Midna where are you? Please, let it be you. I'm so happy—"

No. Your friend Midna is still gone.

"Who are you?" an animal growl of anguish ripped itself from his throat when he realized he had been wrong – this spirit was not Midna. That had been the foolish hero's own wishful thinking. He felt his heart fall and let himself collapse on the ground, his limbs spread out in a complete sense of despair.

Stop wishing for what cannot be. He heard the voice in his head, demanding his attention now. My name is Fi….. I reside in your sword.

Link felt a warmth on the back of his hand and opened his eyes, gazing at the light on the back of his hand. It glowed in the shape of a triforce. Link sat up and saw his sword resting on its side a few feet away. The light of his hand reflected the blood—his own blood—on the edge of the blade. He looked around but could not see anything else. This area was as featureless as the white mists where the hero's shade remained. But here, white was replaced by black and everything grew convoluted and dark. Link watched as his sword slowly rose up from the ground and emanated a light so bright he had to shield his eyes. He wondered if this was anything like the vision he had seen at Lake Hylia – were the goddesses communicating with him?

I predate the goddesses. I have returned after a long sleep to bring you back to your ancestor. You must learn…

Link went to reach for the sword but it spun out of his grasp.

Stand up, hero. It is time you accepted your final fate.

Link did as he was told and reached for the weapon.

!