Chapter 9

The cold night air hit Princess Zelda's round cheeks as she strode outside of the church. It wasn't windy, but cold nonetheless. An ominous cold. In her hands she held a round pearl, about the size of an apple. The princess made her way over to the shore of Lake Hylia. She looked up at the moon. It was a full and glowing, much like the pearl in her hand. She then looked down at the lake, specifically, where the moon's reflection was visible in the water. She then placed the round gem in the water, where the reflection of the celestial body projected onto the surface.

The young Hylian began to pray.

"Goddess Nayru, bless this pearl with your calming light so that it may soothe the heart. Goddess Din, empower this relic so that it's power shall never wane. Goddess Farore, reflect your courage into this gem just as the water reflects the moon"

The moon's reflection in the water began to change as Zelda uttered the final word of her spell. First, it became blue, then red, then green. Despite this, the moon in the sky remained the same. Finally, the reflection changed back to it's normal hue. Zelda then placed her hand in the water and pulled the pearl out.

"Zelda?" Mother Impa asked "What are you doing out here so late?"

Zelda quickly turned to face the priest, cheeks red with embarrassment.

"I...I had a vision...and I needed to do something".

Impa then sat down on the shore, gesturing to Zelda to sit next to her.

"Please, tell me about it."

Still clutching the pearl, Zelda took a seat next to Impa.

"It was about Link, they were in trouble. They were in the desert, tired and alone. This journey we sent them on, it took a toll on their heart and somehow they were transported to the Dark World"

"You know of the Dark World?" Impa asked.

"Y-yes, I know it's forbidden knowledge but I… well I…"

"It's alright, child. Your mother kept many secrets from everyone, but she would never keep anything from you. Your knowledge doesn't surprise me one bit".

The mention of her mother put a weight on Zelda's heart and she looked off into the distance.

"Every night she would tell all of the legends of Hyrule. When I was young, she presented them as simple fairy tales, like the tales of the Skyward Sword and Minish Cap, but as I grew older, she began to tell me more about the dark side of Hyrule, the real Hyrule. All of the pain and blood that created this kingdom".

"Queen Tetra was very wise, but sometimes wisdom has its downside".

"But, even with this knowledge, I still love Hyrule. I don't regret anything I did with this information...except maybe one thing".

"And what is that, dear?".

Zelda paused before speaking again.

"The first truly dark tale of Hyrule she told me was that of the Hero of Time. I was young and didn't know what to do with this information and I wanted to talk about it with someone but… I told the story to Link one day. They asked how it ended. I told them that the Hero of Time lived, knowing that this wasn't true".

Zelda lifted the pearl up to eye level and moved it around in her hands, watching as the reflections distorted about its round surface.

"Link's journey mirrors that of the Hero of Time in many ways, and I must do everything I possibly can to make sure that his story doesn't end the same way. The Dark World causes those who enter it to take on a form based on their soul. Most are turned into monsters but Link became soft and defenceless. They managed to escape the realm but… I fear that this will not be Link's last trek into the Dark World. This is a Moon Pearl, it will prevent them from becoming transformed again if the time comes".

Zelda then held the pearl out to Impa.

"Please hold onto this until Link get's back."

"Shouldn't you be the one to give it to them?" Impa asked.

"Aganihm is after me, and if he gets his hand on me then I can't give it to them. It would be safer with you".

Impa placed her hands on Zelda's and then gently pushed them to her chest.

"You will give this to Link. If anything else goes wrong I have a plan. You have wisdom beyond your years, Zelda, I pray it will not cause you any more pain".

"My wisdom has never brought me pain, Mother Impa".