Lion and Link emerged from their separate battles simultaneously, both descending to the top of the Citadel in a blue tunnel of magical light. Link had drawn the Master Sword while in the tunnel, while Lion was amazed at the spectacle. It was obvious to him that Link had been in those things before.
When Lion's boots touched the granite surface, he drew the Guardian Brand, its blade now glowing brighter than ever. He stood in a ready stance facing Zagorshida.
Zagorshida looked somewhat different from the wraith of himself in Hyrule Castle's Courtyard. The true Zagorshida was impossibly tall -- at least fifteen feet. Underneath the cowl of his surcoat of gray, Lion could see that his lower jaw was almost skeletal, only a thin layer of tough leather-like flesh covered the bone. It was wrinkled as well. Underneath his surcoat, he wore a long, flowing black robe, that was darker than the darkest night. It flapped in the wind, but no shadows formed in the creases -- it was as if the robe was made of shadows itself. The sleeves of the black robe were wide-hemmed -- Lion and Link and possibly even Malon could fit inside the hem. Zagorshida's arms were also skeletal, also with only a thin piece of leathery flesh covering the bones. Still, he gripped his long oaken staff with a white-knuckled grasp, his long fingernails digging into the flesh of his palm. With a hideous laugh, Lion saw that his teeth were all yellow and crooked.
"I told you what would happen if you interfered . . ." Zagorshida let his voice trail off, as he aimed the crystal atop his staff in the direction of Kakariko Village. A light began to glow inside the crystal, and suddenly, a line of orange fire erupted from it. A moment passed, and Lion could see that the sky over Kakariko Village had turned a bright orange, indicating that the city had been set ablaze.
"My home . . ." Lion murmured, tightening his grip on the Guardian Brand's hilt. He looked hatefully at Zagorshida, who laughed with a nasty and satisfied humor. Lion leapt into the air, and brought the blade of his sword into a downward slash, that glanced harmlessly off of Zagorshida's hood.
Zagorshida laughed. "Pathetic fool," he said. "Your weapon cannot harm me. I am Zagorshida the Immortal! Resurrected and seeking revenge upon those who cast me away into the void of the Evil Realm. However, now, it seems that I have only to destroy the descendants of that hero. It seems that the Guardian of Sages is but only a boy, hardly even worthy of the title! I'll make you wish you'd never heard of Zagorshida, Descendant of Agalos!" Lion's eyes widened considerably when Zagorshida called him Descendant of Agalos.
Agalos was a legend, written of in the King's Timeline. It was six hundred years ago that a man named Agalos, coming from a then city-state Hyrule, called upon Din, Farore, and Nayru, and was given the Guardian Brand, whose blade was made from a sliver of the Triforce itself. He defeated an ambitious sorcerer who wished to conquer the world, destroy its inhabitants, and become King of Ghosts. But Agalos defeated him, and placed the blade of the sword back into the Triforce, vowing that when Zagorshida returned again, the proper hero would again wield the Guardian Blade. And it seemed that Lion was that hero. Later, Agalos would guard the Sages' spirits, keeping evil from tainting their saintliness.
Link looked at Lion, and winked when Lion's eyes seemed to ask for confirmation. No doubt, Rauru had told him of Lion's destiny. It was now clear to Lion that he *must* defeat Zagorshida. Not just for the destruction of so many things already in Hyrule, but now to protect Hyrule, and the Sacred Realm.
"Zagorshida," Lion called. "Your time in this dimension had expired!" With a commanding charge, both from himself and Link, Zagorshida soon met an untimely demise, as his body was consumed by blue fire. Not to say he didn't put up a fight, but with courage and fire in their hearts, the two young heroes destroyed the evil sorcerer.
When Lion looked into the sky, the position of the sun told him that he and Link had fought away with Zagorshida for over the night. Link had disappeared from the Citadel, and was now walking out of the vicinity of the Desert Colosses -- which suddenly had been reconstructed. Link disappeared, and Lion was just turning to leave when he felt a tingle of evil go across his neck.
He thought he heard a vile laughter, and again drew the Guardian Brand, and turned to face a familiar face. Ganondorf's face hung vaporously in the air, transparent.
"Good job, boy," he said, his voice even more thunderous that that of Zagorshida's, and far more sinister. "Because of Zagorshida's brief absence from the Evil Realm, I have found a way into the Sacred Realm again. The Triforce will soon be mine, and nothing you can do can stop me!" His laughter resonated throughout the desert.
Shuddering, Lion dropped the Guardian Brand, which clanged on the ground. An image of Rauru, the Sage of Light, and the full form of Kaepora Gaebora appeared before the trembling hero.
"Lion," Rauru said, his voice priestly. "It is time for you to replace the Guardian Brand into the Triforce."
"But . . ." Lion stammered. "But Ganondorf . . . He said . . ."
"Worry not, young Hero," said Kaepora Gaebora. He extended one of his wings. "Look that way, Lion." Lion did, and say that the sky had returned to normal. "The sky you see reflects the condition of the Sacred Realm. As Guardian of Sages, young Lion, it is your job to keep the blue sky pure."
"And also," Rauru added, "the Guardian Brand is the most holy blade of Sacred Realm. Its power can only be used against the evil that Zagorshida wielded. Much of what you saw around you in your journey had been corrupted by Zagorshida's evil magic. Even dear Malon was plotting to kill you. But her will was too strong to be consumed completely. Without a doubt, you and the Guardian Brand saved Hyrule from certain darkness. Again, someday, the power of the Guardian Brand may be needed, but until then, it must remain in its proper place in the Triforce."
Lion picked up the sword, and examined it. "I will do so, to protect Hyrule -- and the Sacred Realm."
"Good," answered Kaepora Gaebora. "Grab my talons, and I will take you to the Temple of Time."
*** A New Beginning: The Guardian of Sages and Demiblade ***
Lion was still awed by the Temple of Time; its white marble walls, red carpet, obsidian alter . . . everything. The image of Rauru followed him.
When Lion entered the room where Link stood -- a room that was hidden by the Door of Time when he was last in there -- Rauru began to give him instructions.
"Lion," he said saintly. "It is time for you to reside in the Sacred Realm, a mirror of this Hyrule. Everything will be the same -- Malon, your friends, Kakariko village, everything. The only differences are that you will know the Temple of Time as the Temple of Light, that only you will be able to see the Triforce itself floating in the sky, and any monsters you may encounter will only be seen by you, and your actions against them -- even if performed before friends and strangers -- will be unknown to those in Hyrule.
"When Link replaces the Master Sword -- the key to the Sacred Realm -- a tunnel will surround you and him. When the tunnel of light disappears, you will be in the Sacred Realm, only to be released if the Master Sword is again drawn of the Pedestal of Time. Link will remain in this dimension, as he is unaffected by the effects of time travel -- after all, he *is* the Hero of Time. Only if his help is direly needed in the Sacred Realm will you be able to call him. But as the Guardian of Sages -- or, more correctly as the Guardian of the Sacred Realm -- you should be able to keep Hyrule safe. Do you understand?"
"I do," Lion said, every muscle in his body ready for the task as Guardian of the Sacred Realm. With a motion from Rauru, Link stepped up to the Pedestal of Time, and drove the Master Sword into it.
As explained, the tunnel of light surrounded them both, and Lion could certainly feel himself being drawn away from that dimension. When the tunnel disappeared, Lion felt no different that he had only moments ago. His clothes were the same, as were Link's. He then noticed that a massive golden triangle was descending from the cieling in the Temple of Time -- Temple of *Light* now. There was no mistake -- Lion was staring at the Triforce, the essences of the Golden Goddesses: Din, Farore, and Nayru.
He drew the Guardian Brand absently, and pressed the blade to the Triforce. A blinding glow erupted, and soon vanished. When he pulled the sword away, its golden luster was gone, now only a shiny steel with a crescent-shaped emblem engraved above the hilt, pointing skywards, with an owl's face in the center.
The Triforce again floated into the sky.
"Lion," said the physical form of Rauru from behind him. "That sword you now carry is called Demiblade, the weapon used by your ancestor, Agalos. It is the sister weapon of the Master Sword, and its power is equal in that no evil entity can touch it. It is yours now, forever."
"Forever," Lion said, his voice not at all wary. He was confident, and filled with a new sense of purpose. He was to protect the Sacred Realm, and Hyrule, from all evil. Lion left the Temple of Light, and stepped out into the small garden that surrounded the Temple of Time. It was as Rauru said: everything was the same.
Sheathing Demiblade into his belt, Lion departed the Sacred Realm's Hyrule Castle, and set forth to investigate Ganondorf's threat.
But that is another story . . . . . . .