"…"

"Link…"

"Link!"

Link snaps awake. He jolts upward, hitting his head on the far-too-low ceiling. He swears he needs to get that raised. His bed needed an update, too. This most recent adventure of his was cut short, and his room in the castle wasn't fully prepared yet. He decided that he'd add these few concerns to the to-do list.

"Liiiinnnnk!" Zelda's voice, definitely. Link isn't quite sure what she wants, but he knows that if he doesn't get downstairs quick, he'll never hear the end of it. He quickly assembles some clothes and runs down his tower.

Hyrule had become very quiet after the mysterious disappearance of Ganondorf. Despite intelligence quickly pinpointing his location in the Arbiter's Grounds in Gerudo, he and his monsters suddenly disappeared, leaving Hyrule in a state of peace untold of in history texts. The castle had finally been restored from the Calamity a few centuries before. The economy and relations between the Zora, Gorons, Gerudo, Rito, and Hylians is the strongest in recorded history. Technology is beginning to take off, too – mysterious materials had been discovered in the Gerudo Canyon where the Guardians were once kept, leading to a technology boom that hadn't yet been seen in Hyrule.

"There you are, lazy bones!" Zelda says. "We've been waiting for you!"

"Sometimes I wonder about you, Link," Impa says.

"Give me a break! So what if I enjoy sleeping?" Link says.

"That's no way a future king of Hyrule should live," Impa says to him. "You must be up and at them!"

"Impa," Zelda starts, "cut him some slack. He's not the Hero of Wilds you desperately cling to. I'm sure that hero had his problems, didn't he?"

"Ah, yes…" Impa recollects. "The Hero of Wilds was quite the glutton, the records show. He would eat and eat and eat, as I recall. I remember hearing stories that your great, great, great, great, great grandmother constantly needed the castle pantries fully stocked for him! Why, I read just the other day…"

Link trails off a bit as Impa recollects. The table appears to be covered in scrumptious food; the best in the land, from the looks of it. Seafood from Lurelin Village. The best meats from the forests of Akkala. Chilled drinks made famous by the Rito. Fruit plates from Faron. Vegetable dishes from Lanayru. It was all here.

"Link, are you even listening to me?" Impa accuses.

"I know I'm not perfect!" Link outbursts. "I try my best, though!"

Impa gives Link a look that says, "I know, it's fine, I understand," but that's not how she follows up. "You need to learn how to be a royal, Link, if you're ever to be Hyrule's king."

"With that…" Zelda interjects, "Link. You might be wondering why I called for Impa here today."

"Now that you mention it… if Impa's here, it's usually during the later hours of the day. Why is she here so early today?"

Impa answers before Zelda has a chance to. "I sensed a disturbance in the desert as of recent. A magical disturbance."

Link looks visibly shaken. Could the demon king have returned? It wouldn't be too far-fetched, as the demon king told in legends never tires or gives up, but still…

"Could you go into more detail, Impa?" Zelda asks.

"I haven't been to the desert myself, your highness," Impa says. As such, I cannot say. Besides, you'd be much better at making a magical observation than I."

"I think we should go, Zelda," Link says. "If there's even a chance of Ganon's return, we can't take it. We have to go."

Impa is slightly shocked at Link's quick response, but nods in approval nonetheless. Both Link and Impa look at Zelda, who looks down for a moment. She brings her head back up to look at them.

"Very well. We set out at first light tomorrow. We can't let anything happen again. Hyrule as it is now is the most prosperous and peaceful it's ever been. It cannot fall again. I won't allow it."

"As you wish, your highness," Impa says.

"I'll be sure to be up for it," Link says.

There's some light chatter before everyone splits up for the day. Zelda must attend to ruling matters. Impa must return to Kakariko Village to retrieve some ancient texts that may assist in decoding what may have gone down in the desert. Link is in charge of selecting the escort detail from the castle guard.

At first light, Link and Zelda begin the march upon their horses. Epona, Link's horse, is famous for being the fastest in the land; though she will not be riding at those speeds today. Ember, Zelda's horse, is outfitted with some of the latest Sheikah gear, built to protect its rider at all costs. With them are a hundred of Hyrule's best soldiers, and for the first time, Hyrule's escort detail is multicultural – made up of Hylians, Gorons, and Rito alike. The Zora recruits requested to stay, as the dry nature of Gerudo would not agree with their need for water. Link, kindhearted as ever, obliged. The Gerudo portion of the detail scouted a hundred yards ahead of the rest, prepared to face threats head-on. The Yiga Clan of old still lingered, but luckily, it had finally been contained to Gerudo. Unfortunately for those on this trip, that meant they may need to deal with them.

Impa and her detail of Sheikah soldiers meets Link and Zelda at the mouth of the Valley. The Gerudo Valley is a long, winding path that seems to lead to nowhere at times. The high rock plateaus that make up the walls seem unscalable, and the few water sources that exist are spread thin. The constant threat of Yiga Clan attacks make this region a stressful region to trek through. Thankfully, the walls produce large shadows, making the canyon itself bearable temperature-wise.

Link, Zelda, Impa, and their soldiers make it through the valley with no Yiga Clan intrusions. Their base of operations is to the north end of the desert, meaning they'd likely experience no issues with them here on.

The Gerudo Desert is polar opposite to the valley that leads into it. Where the valley is confined, the desert opens up into miles and miles of open dunes. The heat of the sun beats down on anything that moves, and the sand reflects the heat upwards. The canyon walls are no help here. Dryer than the canyon, the desert had claimed more than a few Hylians and Rito in its time. Gorons and Gerudo fared better, but ultimately, it's known as the second-most lethal region in Hyrule after Death Mountain. And the Arbiter's Grounds are a long ride from the mouth of the canyon.

With Gerudo Town being sexist as it is, the group stocks up on supplies before leaving the canyon. The group waits until nightfall to reduce the temperature in the desert in hopes of beating out the weather.

At nightfall, the entourage continues onward. It's a very long ride, through the barren wastelands of endless sand. The Arbiter's Grounds stood as a fortress of sorts, and many assumed it was Ganondorf's base of operations. The night is quiet, and even cool. Heat has been taken from the blistering sands by the night chill.

Finally, the group reaches the Arbiter's Grounds. It's built up much more than it was last time people laid eyes on it: a coliseum-style structure empowers the center of the area, with ruined-looking pillars surrounding it. The pillars Link and Zelda knew about from pictures the Hero of Wilds took, but the coliseum was new.

Dismounting their horses, Link, Zelda, and Impa travel inside with a Goron-Hylian defense unit. The dark palace is certainly foreboding, and it isn't a big surprise that Ganondorf constructed this place. It even appears that he began to fortify it with new rooms, much like the dungeons Link had entered previously. Ganondorf was nearly ready to make his final strike. That only begs the question… what happened?

As the group travel through the rooms, strange architectural choices are seen. Areas of unfinished floor that Zelda surmised would be areas for Stal-monsters to rise from. There are even a few puzzles that haven't been completely constructed yet. It's unfinished, but the group can see that this palace was being built as a place to test Link.

Finally, the group approaches a hallway.

"Look!" Zelda whispers. "There's some sort of light over there. I'm getting a magic reading from it."

Link takes a look from where Zelda is standing. "Looks creepy. This must be the spot."

Zelda grabs Link's hand and guides him over towards the light. She sees that it's coming from somewhere behind a door.

"Um… Zelda?" Link asks. Zelda looks at him briefly, then down at her hand. She quickly takes it back.

"Oh, sorry!" she whispers. "I forgot…"

"No, no, I like it," Link interrupts. "You can do it if you want to."

Zelda gives him a smile, and takes his hand again. He had always been the shy one, and he never seemed to want anything to do with the physical parts of their relationship. It was always incredibly slow with him, and even holding hands was something he never did with her. She was sometimes frustrated with it, but it looks as though things were starting to turn in her favor.

"On the count of three, we open the door together," Zelda says.

"On three or after three?" Link jokes.

"Link, this is serious business," Impa says, causing Link and Zelda to jump. "Just… focus on the task."

The three refocus, and the detail of soldiers await eagerly behind them.

"One," Zelda counts.

"Two," Link responds.

"Three!" the two say together. They push open the doors, and what they see is nothing less than magical.

"What… what is this?" Zelda asks to herself.

"No…" Impa says. "No, it can't be…"

"What is it, Impa?" Zelda asks.

"Impossible, he… Ganondorf must have traveled through time. I've seen portals of this nature in ancient texts…" she rifles through old texts that she brought along with her. "See! This appears to be just like the one that tied different eras of Hylian history!"

Link and Zelda study the map. Suddenly, a Goron named Rucko chimes in.

"No brothers, it isn't the same."

Startled, the three look to Rucko.

"Unless the artist of this picture is as bad at drawing as us Gorons, this portal is different than the one in front of us. And isn't it usually Hylians that document this stuff? Or Zoras? Usually you brothers are more careful with that sort of stuff than us."

"Rucko…" Zelda starts. "You're right. It does look a bit different. Impa, any other texts you wouldn't mind showing us?"

"Um… well, let me see…" Impa stutters.

A female voice erupts from the detail.

"I don't think this is something that has happened before, guys!"

Everyone turns to the voice. Zelda is the first to break the silence.

"Who said that?"

The crowd parts to show a young Hylian girl taking off her official Hylian guard outfit.

"Link…" Zelda says. "Why is there a woman in our detail?"

"Linkle is one of our finest warriors, Zelda," Link replies. "She's incredibly skilled. I thought she'd make a great asset to our journey."

"Did you say Linkle?" Zelda asks. "As in, Link? Your names are as similar as you look."

It's true – in everything but gender, Link and Linkle look exactly alike, and honestly, they look rather similar as well. It's truly an oddity to see the two next to each other like this, almost like seeing double.

"You're missing the big picture!" Linkle says. "Everyone in Hyrule knows the legend of the Triforce. Ganon, the dark power, takes the Triforce of Power, then a spirit of a hero and a princess of goddess' blood come to save the day. Yes?"

"Yes," Impa says, "but your point is?"

"No legend has ever recorded Ganon stepping out."

"She's right," Zelda says, "isn't she, Impa?"

"Hmm… I can't say I've heard of Ganon leaving Hyrule unconquered, no. It is rather odd, isn't it?"

"Then this portal must be something greater, yes?" Linkle says. "Something never-before-seen?"

Link is the one to burst in. "That's the only logical option, isn't it? It must have a greater meaning than anything we've ever seen before."

There's some murmuring between everyone in the room. Everyone begins to come to that same conclusion on their own.

"Link," Impa says, "you still need to prove yourself, don't you?"

"What? What are you talking about?" Link asks.

"Impa! I must ask that same question! How could you say that to Link?" Zelda interjects.

"Well, Link has not defeated Ganondorf or sealed him away. He hasn't proven himself to be the legendary hero we need him to be."

"And…? Your point is?" Zelda asks. The entire room is now fixated on this conversation.

"Your highness, shall Link pass through the portal first?"

"I'll do it, Zelda," Link says. "I'm not afraid of what's beyond there."

Zelda is visibly disturbed. She knows it's Link's job to handle things like this – it's his calling. But as his girlfriend, she can't help but feel guilty about letting him charge headfirst into danger like this. It just doesn't feel right.

"Fine," Zelda finally says. "But if you feel as though you're in danger, you get out right away, alright?"

"Okay, Zelda, I will."

The room goes quiet as Link approaches the portal. He takes a big gulp as he takes his first step. The portal itself feels cold – not dark or evil as he had imagined, but cold and uninviting. He suddenly feels himself falling forward into the unknown, tripping over his own foot. He falls into the portal.

"Link!" the entire room shouts at him. To his surprise, he can hear them just fine, though he isn't sure where he is. A cliffside with blue crystals rising into the air and falling into a deep abyss… Hyrule had sights to be sure, but nothing like this.

And just in front of him, he sees another portal. He turns around to make sure the portal he came from is still there – good, it is. He sees a figure fall through it – right on top of him.

"Auggh!" Link yells.

"Oh! Ohhh…" Zelda moans, clearly confused. It takes a moment for her to realize where she is.

"OH!" she yells. She scrambles to get off of Link. "I'm sorry Link! I didn't mean to!"

"It's okay, Zelda, I know. That portal really takes you, doesn't it?"

"Yeah…" Zelda trails off. She looks around, seeing the sights that took Link so far off-guard. "Where are we?"

"No clue," Link replies, "but it certainly isn't Hyrule."

Another second goes by. "Link…"

"Yes?"

"Look around you."

Link starts to look less at the scenery and back at the ground the two of them were standing on. The portal they came through was still open, but now, dozens of new portals had opened up in the area. The two noticed that each portal had a strange symbol over them – one appeared to be a sword of some kind, one a spotted egg, another a star – and some completely indefinable. They looked back at theirs to find the Triforce over theirs. The portal suddenly took on a red coloration. The noise that was coming from the other side was suddenly silenced.

"What… what is this place?" Link asks.

"I don't know," Zelda replies, "but it certainly raises a lot of questions."

"You're tellin' me!" says a voice from behind them. Link and Zelda, startled, jumped into combat positions facing the new foe they'd encountered.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Calm down! I'm not your enemy!" said the boy. He was unlike anything they had ever seen. He had wings and what looked to be a crown of some sort. He carried with him some kind of blade – no, some kind of composite set of blades.

"Who are you?" Zelda asks. "And what is this place?"

"It's a bit of a long story," the boy says. "My name is Pit."