I'm terribly sorry for the long update everyone! Really I had a terrible beginning at college. But enough about me, I'm so happy you all still like my story after all this time! I'm terrible for letting it go for so long. So enjoy this new chapter where Link goes back into the new world!

"When can I wake up now?" he said quietly, as he slowly dropped to his knees and began to sob.

He stared at his hands folded on his lap. No readable expression was on his face as he stared down in a slumped position.

"Princess…" he breathed out. He lifted his left hand, staring at the bare skin. He felt it tingle earlier and wondered why.

The soft mattress creaked under his weight as he stood up to get dressed. He glanced at the near by clock, frowning to see only an hour had passed since he entered the room. By now, evening would be upon him soon. Already he saw the sun outside the window ready to set.

"I'm not tired…" he grumbled, shoving his arms through his tunic, forcing himself to ignore the shooting pain. He tried desperately to forget about the scar on his back, but he couldn't erase something so mysterious and gruesome on his body; couldn't help but wonder how something like that appeared on him with no memory of how he got it. It boggled his mind to no end.

Shaking his blond head, he placed the last piece of armor of himself and marched out of the room and into the empty hallway. The corridor was silent at this time and that weighted on his mind. Nothing but the clicking steps of his boots sounded off in the long walkway. He remembered every time he even walked around a corner in the Zora Domain there was someone there to pass. It was so populated and now…

He breathed out a sigh, running a hand through his hair. Pushing those thoughts aside, he arrived at the throne room. He stopped seeing the King from behind sitting in his throne. Link was never one to be a coward in any situation and he knew he was bound to face him sooner or later, yet he was not in the mood to see the young man. Talking to him he knew would only lead into something messy. Link needed to get out fast and doesn't have time for any delays.

Backtracking his steps, he walked into another corridor to an exit he knew. Along the way, he noticed Shun standing alone in the hallway with his eyes closed. Link stared at him questionably for a second but kept his pace the same. He walked past the old Zora without a word or a nod exchanged with him. He was barely at the exit with the Zora spoke up.

"Leaving so soon?"

Link paused to look at the man before continuing to the door. "I have to go see if the princess is alright."

"She is. No need to worry so much boy." Shun said.

"But Fredrick said no one has heard from her in nearly 10 years. I can't assume she's fine. I have to find out for myself." Link said tugging at the door handle. He blinked seeing it was rusted shut and growled. And while he knight struggled with the door, Shun gave a sigh and shook his head.

"Boys these days…so stubborn for women." He mumbled. He let the corner of his mouth quirk upward however, seeing the young man yanking at the handle with all his might, letting out grunts and yelps every time he failed or slipped off. Shaking his head he walked over to grab him by the shoulder and dragged him to the side, pushing him down so that he landed on his rump. Link stared up, bewildered, and looked at him for an explanation.

"If you're going out there, you best be up to date." Shun said seriously. Link fell silent and nodded, folding his legs over the other to get comfortable for a learning session. It amused the Zora a bit to see him have his childish antics. "Alright, first thing's first; the city of Hyrule is governed by the Gurudos."

Link dropped his head. "Somehow I feel this is the best news…"

"Shut your trap and pay attention." Shun snapped, smacking his head. "Be sure to be prepared when you entered the city. They say its in a bad shape inside." He said gravely, making Link pale. "Second, it was proclaimed 10 years ago that any old ally of the dead king is an enemy."

"What?!"

"They made up some story that it was his closest ally's that made his death in order to get the throne, namely his knights. They were exiled and never seen again. YOU are one of those exiled, if not already dead, knights. Keep your face out of sight."

"But-"

"Furthermore, you're supposed to be dead. Anyone and I mean ANYONE, sees you and recognizes you, it'll be the galleys for you. That or worst. The Gerudo's will have their way with you." He said. Both he and Link shared a shudder, thinking of the unimaginable things the unforgiving female race would do to their prisoners.

"Thirdly, the Gorons are said to have retreated deep within the mountains. They cut off any communication with the outside world, same as we, the Zora's, have."

"Were they…" Link began but the question died in his throat. He couldn't bear to think his comrades in the mountains wiped out completely.

"They say they have been annihilated, but I highly doubt that. Gorons are almost as though as we are." Shun said with a nod. Link chuckled at the dry humor. "Ok…anything else?" he hummed, tapping his chin in thought. Link shifted around on the ground, growing impatient. When the old Zora looked completely lost he stood up to his feet.

"Well, thanks for the update your Majesty." Link said, bowing respectively. "Please give my regards to Fre-The King." He said catching himself.

"Yeah, yeah." The Zora said, still deep in thought. Link grinned and walked to the door.

"By the way, you have some bad memory. I don't care if it was 10 years either." Shun said out of the blue, confusing the knight while he tugged again at the handle.

"Why's that sir?" Link said in a tensed tone from his muscles straining to open the door.

"It opens out."

Link blinked. He looked at the door, as though it grew a nose and spoke to him. Slowly he pushed it and it freely swung open. A stupid grin spread over his face, rubbing his cheek while blushing at the smug Zora.

"W-Well, I'll be off then!" he laughed and turned to leave.

"WAIT!"

Link stopped abruptly, turning to see the King running down the hall as fast as he could. The Zora stopped short, panting and looked up at the startled knight with an awkward expression. "Link, remember one thing…"

The knight waited and stood still for the King's next words.

"The world is much more dangerous than you remember it Link. Monsters run wild. They even come out during the day. So listen well." Fredrick said, taking a deep breath to calm his excessive panting. He stared up at him with that same serious expression that made Link almost forget there was ever a laughing and carefree boy in him. "When the sun is out, stick to the shadows. When the Moon is neigh, don't go out to the darkness."

A silence fell between them. Shun in the sidelines hummed in thought, waiting for a reaction. Not much to the old Zora's surprise, the knight began to grin and nodded.

"Thanks buddy."

Fredrick too smile back.

"Eh, not what I was trying to remember, but sounds about right." Shun said scratching his head. Link laughed out loud while Fredrick gave a dry look to his elder relative.

"Well, I'll be off then." Link said turning into the dark tunnel that led out through the mountain.

"Farewell Link! And good luck!" Fredrick yelled after him, waving. When the king could no longer see the blond, he closed the door with a sigh. "You are going to need it-"

"DOH!"

The little Zora yelped at the sudden exclamation of the elder one, who held a hand in the air like he discovered a brilliant idea. "What?!"

"I forgot to warn him! Dang this old mind of mine…" Shun cursed himself, rubbing his head.

"What?"

"About the new guardian monsters Ganondorf got himself!"

"….OH Sweet…CRAP! THAT'S RIGHT!" the king exclaimed. Both he and Shun turned to the door with a sinking feeling in their stomachs. "I hope he gets to the castle before it gets dark…"

"Ok…from here I go…which way again?" Link mumbled to himself. He held the lantern up, lighting up the two open pathways in front of him. They both looked the same, and he faintly remembered that there was a trap in one of them. "Hmm…" Link hummed as he scratched his head. "Now where…" he went to the right, holding up his lantern to peer into the darkness, seeing nothing in the yawning shadows. He stepped over to the left but had the same results.

"Now what was it I did to remember the way again…?" he mumbled, rubbing his head. He blinked and then grinned from ear to ear! "Oh yeah!" He slapped a hand over his eyes, held out his lantern and walked forward. At first he rammed into the corner intersection. He laughed at himself and moved into an opening.

He moved into the darkness blindly, completely confident in his decision he chose the right way. After a few moments, he felt light on his face. Lifting his hand to see the outside world, the setting sun in the distance over the mountains, he grinned.

"Ha! Never fails!" he yelled triumphantly. Turning off his lantern he quickly made his way down the narrow pathway. He passed lanky trees and jagged rocks, reaching a clearing. "Now to just find that old water slide…" he mumbled, digging through the tall bushes and shrubbery. "I know its here somewh-EREEEEEEEE!"

Link screamed the whole way down the slippery slope, half way turning into laughter. The ride ended to the lake, sending a small wave across the surface. At the floating house, the man gave a start, looking wildly around.

"Now who's screaming?!" he yelled, stomping over to the edge. "Come on! Come out and quit your games!"

No answer came to him, and the man had to glare out into the lake. He paused, seeing some bubbles appear a little ways off. For a moment, he looked confused. There weren't any fish in the lake, so why…

The bubbles grew and were moving. Towards him! Like a squirrel, he leapt back on his seat, getting as high as he could get from the water's edge. Running over the bridge would only corner him halfway he knew, and being on a floating thing on water proved more of a trap than anything at the moment. He would run into the cannon's mouth and lock himself in, but that would be the last resort. Right now, he can only stay up and away from the water.

He sweated bullets as the bubbles moved towards him and the closer it got, the more of a dark shape began appear under the surface. He turned white with terror and hugged the chair's back to his chest, waiting for his doom. All those years of ignoring ghost's of the lake were finally coming back to haunt him. Surely they were the spirits coming to drag him to the bottom for his home floating in their lake.

"It was good while it lasted…" he grumbled, despite his undying fear.

As soon as the bubbling mass came to the wooden platforms, a head burst from the water's surface. The man gave a shriek, literally jumping away while still on his chair. He watched with wide eyes as the soaked body dragged itself up, clawing at the wood with pale fingers. Hair and clothes dripped with droplets as it gasped and gagged, shoulders hunched over to hide its disfigured face.

The man gulped, shaking on his toes that stood on the seat, hiding as best he could behind the back of the chair.

The creature gave a inhuman gurgle, coughing out a wad of seaweed. After that, it proceeded to slowly stand to its full height, almost going 6 six, towering over the little man. The setting sun played as an amplifier to shadow his features, scaring the man speechless. Bright blue eyes that could only belong to a Hylian stared down at him, no doubt a fallen solider from years ago to take him as his prisoner. A gangly hand reached out to him. This was it…

"Hi there!" the ghost greeted, grabbing the man's petrified hand to shake. "Thank you for this weird contraption on the water. If it weren't for it, I was sure to drown a second time!" the ghoul joked. "At first I thought it looked weird but now I see why the Zora's don't mind it so much from underwater. It's painted really pretty underneath! You outdid yourself, that you did sir!"

Again, the man stayed speechless and stared at him with wide eyes.

"Well, it was nice chatting with you but I best be off." He said, and with that, he patted the man's shoulder and turned to run down the wooden bridge, something a watery ghoul shouldn't be able to do.

Once the ghoul was gone and out of sight, the man fell over his chair, unable to speak anymore than a few shocked words.

"The sprits…are kinder…than I thought…"

Link jumped over another rock pile, eyes showing their full detest of a wall blocking the pathway to the lake. What's more, he only discovered another way around the pile once he reached the top. Adding to his frustration he climbed over a mountain of rocks for no reason. He reached the grassy land with a jump and took off in a run. The sun was almost gone, setting the land in twilight. A soft glow setting over the lands like a magical spell. If he wasn't in such a rush, he would have relished the sight.

Link ran over the field, his thoughts occupied by the princess when he suddenly tripped and fell over! He groaned loudly, rubbing his sore nose that landed on the ground first. He moved to stand again when his foot was tugged in the opposite direction. Quirking a brow, Link looked over his shoulder to see a vine wrapped around his ankle. It grew up his leg, alerting the knight to take out his sword and slice at the vine. A loud screech went off as purple liquid spurted out of the vine that proved to be a vein for a snapping Venus flytrap monster. It spouted from the ground, teeth gnashing together and slimy tongue slinking in its mouth wildly.

Link narrowed his eyes at the beast, jumping to his feet to take a stance to fight. He then remembered he was loosing time and quickly sliced at the beast's head. In his adventures, that would always still the monster. However, this one was much more vicious than he thought.

The head bounced on the grass, spitting out venom madly even without a body. Link stared at it in shock for a split second, and a second too much. With the maddening rush that only a carnivore would have, he jumped at his waist, digging its teeth into his body! The beast was smarter than it looked he noticed, for it attacked his arms first to keep him immobile from his sword. He gave a thankful breath of air to feel none of the teeth struck his weak spot. If that would to happen then he would REALLY be in trouble.

Link heaved a leg to kick at the plant. It stayed put however, digging its teeth even deeper into his skin. Growling, the knight pushed against the teeth on his arms, ignoring the fact it only made the teeth sink into his skin more. He took a better grip of his sword, and in one upward slash, sliced the beast from the inside of his mouth! Two halves of the beast bounces away from him, wilting away in seconds and then bursting in a cloud of smoke.

The knight huffed and looked at his attire. He grinned. This was how his tunic was supposed to look like. Full of tears of his adventures and bloody from battles. The eerie clean sense was gone for the moment, and for that, Link was thankful for he felt normal for the first time. Back in his own time…at least for the moment.

Shaking his head, he turned to run at full speed to the gates. Because of the beast, he now was running against time that seemed to be not his friend. The sun setting made the gates begin to close. Link knew that the guards of the gates were over the bridge, so shouting would do no good. Using the last bit of energy, Link ran to the gates, jumping through the crack of the opening, just as it closed! He landed on the wooden bridge with a slam, somehow coming to his feet from the clumsy fall, and hitting the wall, overturning the side to fall into the river!

"Oy! What was that?!" one of the guards shouted out in alarm of the splash.

"I heard nothin'. You be a'right Ginny ol' boy?"

"Now I know I 'eard something! I ain't crazy!"

"You're more loony than a bag of squirrels. Its nothin'."

"But you know outsider's aren't allowed in! Just let me have a look..."

Link swam under the bridge's shadow as a lantern was pointed down at the river. He remembered all too well of Shun's warning. Keeping out of sight was the best he could do to stay alive. And after what he overheard from the men, he guessed that he would have to stay hiding no matter what.

Link gave a grumble, swimming to the walls of the castle from the moat. Scrutinizing how tall the walls looked from his spot. He could use his grappling hook, but that would alert the guards. But maybe if he did it at the right time and spot…

Link's thoughts came to a spot as he heard a low growl from behind. The knight whipped around to see three dark forms moving towards him in the water. In the shadow's, he couldn't make out what the beast's were. But whatever they were, they didn't seem friendly.

"And me without my Zora suit…" he mumbled angrily to himself for being unprepared. He backed away from the monsters, placing his hand on the wall. He failed to notice the glow his hand gave to the wall, and only felt it cave in, letting the water, including him, inside! He gave a yelp as he flooded into the opening, slamming into something rock solid. The opening behind him closed on its own, the glow of a mystical symbol fading away as soon as it came.

Link unstuck himself from the mass of rock he was sent flying into to, shaking his head slightly. He blinked at the darkness surrounding him, giving a hum. He dug into his sack and withdrew his lantern to light up his world.

A skull met his sight.

Link gave a small shriek seeing the thing jump out at him. He took another look to see it was just a harmless skeleton, tied to the wall by chains. He moved his lantern around to see he was in a small room made of stone. Putting two and two together, he realized he was in none other than the dungeon.

"Huh…I guess this is as good of a place to start." He said with a grin, tucking the lantern to his belt and moving to the gate. Not to his surprise, he found it locked. "Now why would they need a lock for you old friend? Obviously you earned your good behavior freedom, right?" he joked, smiling at the grinning pile of bones.

He dug into his pocket and withdrew a small device. "It's a good thing I found this little bugger years ago…no more searching for useless keys for me!" he almost sang happily as he inserted a magic skeleton key into the lock and stepped out with ease. Once he was out, Link gave a loud gasp!

Skeletons everywhere. All were tied to a sort of chain or locked away. The sight was almost frightening to the knight to see in the peaceful kingdom. There were literally hundreds of skeletons in the many cells. None of them looked too old, which meant they were just recently this generation.

Almost 10 years…

He gritted his teeth, tightened his fist, and growled out loud. Unable to keep in fury contained, he punched the wall beside him. The numbing feeling of the blow sent electric vibes of pain up his arm, but he could care less. His blue eyes were lit aflame in the darkness, boiling over with relentless anger.

"Damn you Ganondorf…"

After a second blow, he heard the clatter of chains. Link stopped to look around, hearing soft moaning from within the cells.

"Hello…?" a voice whined pathetically. Link moved quickly down the corridors, checking every cell. He stopped at the last one, seeing a body tied to the wall. Its head full of tangled white hair stayed down as he hung by his hands. "Please…help…me…"

Link scrambled with the lock and ran to the man's side, unlocking the chains holding him up. Once he was free, he fell into Link's arms. He laid him in his arms as best he could, as the man tried to regain his consciousness. His kind eyes opened up to Link's, and he smiled.

"Ah…I was hoping the grim reaper would appear as someone I once knew…and of all people, I'm glad its you." He said in a raspy tone. His throat sounded dry. Link dug into his pocket to withdraw a bottle of water and held it to his trembling lips. "Oh…how kind of you spirit…" he mumbled, sipping the drink slowly, savoring it.

"How long have you been here?" Link asked.

"Weeks…" he croaked out, half way done with his drink. "These damn guards hardly ever come in the cells for meals, so it's a miracle I'm breathing…"

"You're a strong man." Link commented.

"Heh…in my profession, you're going to have to."

It took a Link to take in the man's large build. Signs of fat missing from his body gave clues to why he was alive for so long. Burly arms reduced to sticks with flabby skin sat on his lap with the wrists bruised with the handcuffs mark still fresh on them. Thick eyebrows grew to the very edges of his face, almost going out of the sides of his face. By the energy by the bushy brows, they could have stood up in the air on their own.

It was then Link knew this man, and knew why he knew him!

"Mr. Kaepora?!" he exclaimed. Link knew this man from his visits to the astrology shop and the medical ward! A doctor in both divisions. "W-What are you doing here?!"

The man gave a dry chuckle. Link still remembered that it came out few times and those times were full of rich laughter. The laugh felt like an insult to the man he used to be. "I got a little to friendly to some strangers and word spread quickly. Guess the king doesn't like being friendly."

Link held his breathe, almost afraid to ask, but he had to know. Shun didn't give him a straight answer, and even if he did, he wants to hear it from a trustworthy friend to see if it was true and not a sick joke. "Who….who is the king?"

The smile stayed on the man's lips, but it was from other matters that he was smiling at when he answered. "Ganondorf."

Link's shoulders sunk down. The fact he is in the future was now officially true.

"He took the throne when the good king was killed in the massacre." He added, giving a sigh. The knight smiled at the man, glad to hear someone remembered the old king as the good king. With a nod, Link moved his arms around the shoulders and heaved him up. It wasn't hard. He hardly weighed anything.

The man blinked at him, frowning that same frown the young lad remembered when he was thinking. "What's going on? What are you doing?"

"I'm getting you out of here." Link said grinning ear to ear. "You can make it out of here, right Mr. Pora?" he said, using his old nickname he hated so much.

The man stared at him, giving a real look over. He felt his hands, wincing as he did. He took another look at Link, his frown deepening. "What sorcery is this?" he asked seriously.

Link only grinned again. "Just lending a hand to you Mr. Pora. What's the matter? Ghost got your tongue?"

"I don't believe in ghosts." He replied in a snapping tone as he was taken out of the cell. Link looked both ways for any guards and walked in one direction.

"Then I must be real." He replied evenly.

"I don't believe that either." He said. He kept staring at Link, but the knight paid no mind to him, too focused to find an exit. "You look the same as I last saw you."

"Really?" he said stepping up a winding stairway, carefully keeping mind of his weak friend. "What was I doing when you last saw me?"

"I remember it like it was yesterday…you came in with a ridiculous grin and asked me for a favor."

"Did I?"

"Yes. I asked you what you wanted so you could leave and you laughed. You asked if you could borrow a telescope to show the princess the night skies. It was two days before you disappeared."

Link grinned. He said disappeared. Not died. "Sounds about right. She liked to stars by the way. Said they looked lovely. But I think your missing something."

The man quirked a brow as Link grinned at him. "I ran out calling you a tight wad hooting owl!"

The thick eyebrows on the man rose up slightly, and it was the most surprised look Link saw on the man. "You really left at terrible timing boy."

"So I was told." Link said, stopping at the large iron door. He peeked inside, seeing the hallways were empty at the moment. He dug into his pocket and put his key through the slot for an easy opening. "Shun of the Zora clan informed me of the world today."

"A lot has changed. The stars themselves seemed to have changed because of this insanity." He sighed. He glanced at him and gave a breath that passed for a chuckle. "You look good for your age. You haven't changed a bit."

"And you look older than those skeletons." The knight joked.

"Watch it boy. If you had half the luck I have, you would be thankful to be this old."

"I'm sure. But I think I would rather be dead than-" Link stopped, hearing the pitter patter of footsteps. Link narrowed his eyes at the soft light growing in the distance around the corner.

"Hang on." Link whispered.

"Wait, what-" the old man stopped as Link jumped upward, with the old man in arms. He had no idea what happened, but he found himself hanging from the narrow corridor with Link hanging onto the beams with his bare hands! Kaepora knew Link to be reckless but as to grab onto a crumbling beam just meters away from being discovered with another man on him was ludicrous! He would have voiced out his thoughts when the guard of the female Gerudo came walking around the corner, lantern in hand.

Mr. Kaepora looked at Link worriedly. The knight seemed completely confident, smiling a crooked smile down at the guard. But Kaepora noted the sweat gathering on his brow and the barely contained breath. He was in pain obviously. But he was fighting it off as best he could. They were too heavy!

The Guard walked under the two without so much as a glance up at them, letting out a long tired yawn. She mumbled something out loud about another boring shift and disappeared. Link dropped to the floor silently and moved fast down the hallway.

"We have to hurry. It would be a matter of time before she notices the only occupant is missing." The knight said hurrying down the stone steps. He moved till he saw another door and opened it, glad to see he was outside at last into the dark world. "You have any friends you could stay with?"

Kaepora, who had been studying Link's short of breath and sweaty face, nodded. "An old friend on the market place would hide me I'm sure. So long as they didn't do anything to him."

Link frowned and moved forward.

The first thing he noticed was the dirty streets filled with lifeless people walking about. They seemed dead to the world and walked like zombies. Some moaned with some kind of problem while others laid on the ground in a bundle to keep warm. Link's heart wrenched at the sight.

"Link. Gerudo guards move constantly through the city! We have to move!" Kaepora hissed at him. Link woke up and moved again with urgency. He was thankful the streets hadn't changed since he was gone and found the walk ways the same as he walked though them a week ago. Or, a week ago in his mind. In the dark he could barely see, but he would have preferred this. One, it made blending into the shadows easier, hiding from the occasional guard walking around. Second…he doesn't think he could handle the true sight of the city in the sunlight.

Link finally reached the marketplace, with Kaepora pointing him in the right direction of which shop door to knock on. The blond guided them to the backdoor and knocked a certain way the old man told him to. It was a code knock to show a friend was in trouble. Once he did, Link quickly placed the man on the doorstep.

"What are you doing?!" Kaepora hissed!

"I can't be seen Mr. Pora. You understand don't you?"

"But Link, these are good people, I've known them for years. And you still need to explain to me about-"

"I'm sorry, but I have t go. I'll come back another time and explain everything. I promise." Link said, and turned away to hide in the shadows just as the door opened.

To leave the old friend behind hurt the knight more than he'd ever know. He believed him so easily, just as a good friend should. But he had matters to attend to, important ones. Questions that need to be answered that are left unsaid.

Link kept to the shadows, ducking Gerudo females without a problem. He had dealt with them before and knew where to hide and how to hide his body. It was much easier than the Sheikah, who could sense someone standing a mile away. He was glad that they were a proud race who would never dwell on matters like war.

Link moved towards a certain destination. And it came into view once he spotted the flaming torches of the colossal gate. Tall towers met the dark skies as he saw the grand castle in view.

"Finally…I'll see you princess."

Tadah! Cliffhnager!! Sorry, he doesn't meet with the princess yet, but I'm sure you all know what's going to happen right? Link made some new friends! Some knew who he was and some didn't. LOL And yes, I got to use that wise owl from the Ocirna time game as a human. And to not use the man on the cannon house would have been an insult. He seemed too funny.