A/N: I made up Toan, even though his name comes from Dark Cloud, so I own the character in this story at least.
The Highest Place of the Lowest Place
Destiny and Zelda calmed, had a mug of hot cocoa together, and went back to bed. However, only Zelda went back to sleep. Destiny remained awake for a time. A glowing ball of deep blue light with black wings hovered at her shoulder.
"You're not going to sleep again tonight and you know it," said the light gently."I know it," said Destiny heavily. "But Toan, I know something's going to happen to Papa. It may have happened already. I can't just go back to sleep and fool myself into thinking that nothing's wrong. I have to do something!" She sprang out of bed and began to pace furiously. Suddenly she stopped, as though she felt something. A mirthless smile crept slowly over her mouth. "Father was right," she said softly. "I understand now. I know I'm ready."
"Ready for what?" asked Toan. "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to the highest place of the lowest place," she said. "I'm going to the Kokiri Forest. Tonight. Now." With that she went to her wardrobe and pulled out a loose white shirt and a pair of black leggings. These she put on, as well as a pair of black boots. She tied her hair back in a braid and turned to leave. "Are you coming with me, then?" she asked her fairy companion.
"Of course I am!" Toan said. "Somebody's got to watch out for you, you reckless sprite. Besides, your parents would not be happy if I just let you go out alone." Destiny smiled gratefully at him.
"I think don't think that Navi would be too thrilled if you let me go out alone either," Destiny pointed out.
"Don't bring Mother into this," muttered Toan. Destiny laughed softly.
"We have to go now," she said, and with that the two snuck out of Destiny's room, down many halls and around many corridors, out the back to the stables. Once there, Destiny got out and tacked Dante. Then they road like a silent wind away from the castle. When they had left the Castle Town, Destiny stopped Dante and looked back at the castle in the distance. She looked in silence for a moment, then spurred Dante on faster, thinking, 'I must go quickly. And come back as soon as I can.' They raced to the Kokiri Forest with all speed, waking a few Kokiri children who shouted at them and tagged them as 'hooligans' and 'insolent ruffians'. Destiny did not, could not, care. She directed Dante to a tall treehouse in at the bottom of a low slope. The lowest place in the Forest, which was the lowest place in Hyrule. The treehouse itself, however, was the tallest thing in the Forest, besides the entrance to the Lost Woods. As soon as they were at the bottom of the ladder, Destiny leapt off Dante and zipped up the ladder and into the treehouse. Once inside, she began searching everywhere she could think of. However, she found nothing. Exasperated, she threw herself on the floor. In doing so, she noticed something under the little bed. Curious, hardly daring to be hopeful, she reached under and groped around for whatever she had seen. Her face lit up when she felt something.
"Ah, here it is!" she exclaimed, as she pulled out a bundle of green material, something brown and wooden, and something long. "Turn your back, would you Toan?" she asked, straightening. Toan sighed, but did as she asked. He heard her moving around behind him, and when she at last told him he could turn back he saw a feminine, slightly older, version of Link when he was a child. Destiny had dug out her father's old Kokiri tunic, Deku shield, and Kokiri Sword and now wore them. Toan just stared.
"Destiny, you look…" he stammered, then found he was unable to tell her how she looked. Destiny just smiled.
"Thanks Toan," she said. "These were my father's. He was wearing them when he first met Ganondorf. He actually drew his sword to challenge Ganondorf when he demanded to know where Impa and Mother had gone. He ended up on his ass, but it's the courage that counts." Toan laughed.
"Let me guess. You're going to confront Ganondorf wearing your father's old getup, right?" he asked.
"Right in one!" replied Destiny. "Now come on, we have to hurry."
"And where do you propose we go?" asked Toan.
"The Temple of Time, where else?" asked Destiny. "We have to see if my father's there, and trapped in time. If so, we have to save him. But there's something else here…" she broke off, bent down by the bed, and searched under it again. A moment later, a triumphant cry sounded, telling Toan that Destiny had found whatever she had been looking for. She rose and showed Toan the ocarina she held. "This was a gift from my father's best friend Saria. She's now the Sage of Forest, but I believe that she can still hear if this ocarina's played again. And her spirit and connection to my father and mother pulses gently in the notes that issue forth when this ocarina is played. I can feel it." She looked down at the ocarina a moment longer, then tucked it securely under her shield. "Let's go Toan," she said. With that, the two left the house to where Dante waited patiently for their return. Destiny slid down the ladder effortlessly, though cursing mildly when a splinter planted itself in her palm. She simply plucked it back out again and cast it away. When she mounted Dante, she froze and frowned for a moment, as though listening for something. Suddenly her eyes widened.
"What is it?" asked Toan, fearing the worst.
"Something's happened," said Destiny slowly. "I don't like this. I don't like what I'm feeling." Toan had barely enough time to dart under Destiny's cap before she spurred Dante on out of the Forest as fast as he could go. They raced down the path to Castle Town, but Destiny stopped Dante just as they came over the hill. "Oh dear Goddesses," she breathed. "Toan, get out here!" Toan quickly did as she said, and followed her horrified gaze. She was looking at the castle. It was surrounded by a noxious-looking black cloud. No, not just that, the castle itself was black!
"Oh no," whispered Toan. "No! He's taken the castle already! He must have gathered his old followers and taken over so much faster than those years ago when he first came!"
"Then it's a damn good thing I left when I did, or else I'd most likely be dead or awaiting death," said Destiny softly. "But…Mother…" Hot tears stung her eyes, but she blinked them away quickly, shaking her head. 'Keep it together Des, it's gonna get tougher,' she thought. But despair was starting to hurt her heart. She tried to ignore it as she urged Dante on all the faster. He refused point-blank, however, to go across the splintered bridge, so Destiny dismounted and left him behind. The town was crawling with ReDeads! Everything had been ruined and burned, the fountain was dry, and the air had a fetid, nauseating taste of death that choked Destiny. Fighting her way through the ReDeads, she raced to the Temple of Time. She managed to make it without getting bitten by a ReDead, and darted inside. She immediately saw that the Door of Time had been opened, and rushed to and through it, hoping that the Goddesses and her parents would forgive her this once for running in the Temple. She hurried up to the Pedestal of Time, and saw that the Master Sword was gone. Just above the Pedestal was a swirling sky-blue vortex. Was that where her father had gone? What lay beyond that vortex? Destiny started to go into it, but a voice cried out, "NO!" Destiny looked around in confusion and saw a young man in Sheikah armor with red eyes standing near her.
"Sheik!" she gasped. "It can't be!"
"It is," Sheik replied. "Don't be confused, it's really me, not your mother in disguise. You're late, but had you been here before you would have been captured. There is much you have missed and I can tell you. The first thing is that you must NOT go into that vortex. That is Time and we can't have you traveling Time, you'd never get back. That vortex appeared when your father drew the Master Sword from the Pedestal. That's because this time he's old enough, and ready to use the Master Sword. Therefore, he does not need to travel Time. However, the Master Sword is the key to Time and thus, when it is drawn from the Pedestal, it has to open Time whether someone will travel it or no. This time, it did not have to automatically propel your father forward in Time, so it opened the vortex as an option, I suppose."
"Where is my father?" asked Destiny.
"Ah, I knew you'd ask that," said Sheik sadly. "I'm afraid that Ganondorf is stronger and cleverer this time around. Your father's been captured. He and Zelda are now prisoners in the dark castle that you undoubtedly saw on your way in. And Ganondorf has taken possession of the Master Sword."
"No," whispered Destiny in wide-eyed horror.
"I wish it wasn't this way, but it is," said Sheik heavily. "And now you are the only one who can save them and Hyrule. Only you can wield the Master Sword now."
"But I don't have any of the experience that Papa has," protested Destiny wildly.
"But you do," said Sheik gently. "It's there inside you. It flows in your veins with your blood. You only need to tap into it."
"So how do I do that?" asked Destiny.
"That you will know when the time comes," said Sheik. "I cannot teach you, for it is not something that can be taught. But just believe, and let your heart and passion guide you to where you must go."
Destiny was silent. Tears once again stung her eyes, and suddenly everything went black. But she was sure she was still conscious. She realized that she was crying into Sheik's shoulder, crying hot tears of fear for her parents, anger at Ganondorf. She finally calmed and drew back.
"Don't I need a better sword?" she asked. Sheik smiled.
"Your father challenged Ganondorf with that one when he was younger than you, all the power you need to get to him is in the sword slung over your back," he answered. Destiny smiled mirthlessly.
"Then, if there's nothing else I must know, I have an evil maniac to overpower," she said.
"If that's how you feel, then there's nothing more for me to say," Sheik replied. "Goddesses speed, Princess Destiny Trifosa." Trifosa was Destiny's middle name. It meant Triforce in the ancient Hylian language. Destiny smiled and nodded to Sheik and walked out of the Temple. But as she did so, she was painfully aware of the evil voice that whispered, "The dream's coming true. The nightmare is alive!" into her ear.
A/N: Trifosa doesn't mean Triforce, as far as I know, I just thought they sounded a lot alike. Oh and Stefani Kitchel, I finished this story two days ago, but no one had reviewed so I didn't update. More reviewsmore new chapters!