Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda.
Chapter 3
"Is it really him?" a gentle, childlike voice inquired.
"Of course! I know my Brother when I see him!" a second booming, gravely voice
replied.
"Oh, it's been so long..." the first voice said.
The owner of it approached where Link lay upon soft blankets partially awake and
listening to their conversation. He felt the gentle sensation of small soft fingers brushing
his bangs out of his eyes.
"Oh, Link. Why did you have to leave?"
The hero's eyes flew open then and the fingers were snatched away by their owner. It
took a moment for his eyes to focus but when he finally could, his eyes shot directly to
the green-haired young Kokiri girl who stood at his bedside.
"Saria?" he managed to utter, his voice sounding deprived of air. He sat up slowly to see
her better.
"Link! You're awake!" the young child exclaimed, flinging her arms around his neck.
With her momentum, she knocked him back onto the covers. Link elicited a soft yelp as
he felt a sharp pain shoot through his chest and stomach. Saria pulled back, her big blue
eyes wide with concern.
"I'm sorry! Did I hurt you?"
Link didn't reply to her, but reached beneath the sheets to press his hand against his
gauzed upper torso, that he had not realized until right then was bandaged. He flinched.
"Why does it feel like my rib cage has been crushed?" he muttered to himself.
"Ha ha! I guess that would kinda be my fault!" the second voice from earlier stated.
Link stared into the shadows to see the same silhouette from before. It stepped out of the
darkness to reveal itself to be....
"Darunia!?" Link exclaimed.
A wide smile spread across the Goron chief's face.
"My Sworn Brother! You recognized me after so long?"
Link laughed. How can anyone *not* recognize you if they've met you before, Darunia?"
Link joked. "Of course I remember my Sworn Brother!"
Darunia chuckled. "I'd come over there and give you a big Goron hug, but I see you're in
a lot of pain right now." Link looked distinctly relieved.
Saria hopped off the bed. "I'm going to tell the others you're awake, Link," she said
excitedly, racing out of the room. The Sworn Brothers watched her go.
Darunia crossed his large arms over his chest. "A lot has happened since you left,
brother," he said gravely. Link frowned, "I had a bad feeling that was the case..." the
returned hero murmured.
"Link!" a familiar voice called from the doorway.
Link looked up and grinned when he saw Malon standing in the door frame. "Malon. I'm
so glad you're ok! I went to the ranch looking for you and when I didn't find you there,
I..." he trailed off as she nodded her head.
She ran to his bedside and flung her arms around his neck and carefully but tightly
hugged him, aware of his injuries. She pulled away, tears gleaming in her eyes.
"Oh, Link! I've missed you so!" she whispered, her voice shaky. He squeezed her arm
comfortingly.
"Link, my love! You have returned at last!" another familiar voice exclaimed from the
front of the room.
Link inwardly groaned as Princess Ruto of the Zora flounced in, practically shoved
Malon aside, and squeezed him in an uncomfortable scaly embrace. She, unlike the
red-headed farmgirl, was not as gentle and the hero winced as he felt like his lungs were
being punctured by his ribs. The Zora Princess pulled away, an expression of fury and
adoration simultaneously displayed upon her visage, if you can imagine that.
"How could you leave and not tell me?! Do you know how much I worried about my
poor little fiancé?!!" she whined. Link rolled his eyes.
"Quit botherin' the kid, Ru, you *know* he doesn't wanna listen to you whine. No one
does," a female voice chastised. Ruto, Malon, as well as Link, turned to see Nabooru
leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed over her chest.
Link grinned. "Nabooru!" She nodded to him and came over to his right side. She
smirked. "You get cuter every time I see you, kid." Link blushed and scratched the back
of his head. "Uh, thanks."
Ruto clenched her fists at her sides. "Don't you ogle my husband-to-be!"
Nabooru and Link both rolled their eyes. "Don't be dumb, Ru. He's not gonna marry
you!" the Gerudo thief replied.
"He is so!"
"Is not!"
"Now, now, you two. Don't start arguing when we have so much to discuss!" scolded
Rauru the Sage of Light as he entered the room. Behind him, the rest of the Sages entered
as well, with Saria being the last, who closed the door behind herself.
Link watched everyone pile in and looked frantically for one person who didn't appear to
be there. "Why are you all here?" Link asked, a hint of worry in his tone. If all the Sages
were in this...well, wherever he was, then that couldn't be good.
Rauru sighed. "There is much to tell you, Link. As I tell our tale, please, please do not
interrupt until the end," the old man answered, his voice solemn. Link nodded, slightly
perturbed.
Rauru began, "A year after you left Hyrule, Hero of Time, a race of Dark Elves came
across our land and took over. Their leader, Serephin, captured Hyrule Castle in a matter
of days after the battle for its claiming began. The Elves wiped out the Hylian army and
their leader crowned himself the King of Hyrule.
"We Sages managed to escape with the Princess, but he found us and captured Zelda after
a deadly battle that left us all wounded and therefore unable to save her. We have heard
rumors that he has married her, but none of her being with child.
"We know that his objective here in Hyrule is to collect all the pieces of the Triforce. He
had heard of its power and wished to experience it for himself. He has taken Zelda's
piece and managed to pry information out of someone on the whereabouts of the other
two.
"He learned that Ganondorf in the Evil Realm held a piece and he somehow was able to
break the seal and enter. He battled Ganondorf for the Triforce of Power and defeated
him easily. With the seal broken, Ganondorf was able to escape the Evil Realm, but not
with his Triforce piece. He was greatly injured from the battle, so Serephin found him as
no longer a threat and left him.
"Now that Serephin has two pieces of the sacred relic of the goddesses, he is nearly
unstoppable. He is still in search of the final piece, the Triforce of Courage, which you
hold Link, and keep safe. The reason Darunia was forced to knock you out at the ranch
was because you might cause too great a commotion. Serephin has had troops out
searching for you because he is aware that you possess the final piece. If he has the
Triforce of Courage as well, he will have completed the Triforce and there would be
nothing that could stop him."
Link frowned, staring at his sheets. Everyone watched him, waiting for his reply to the
story. He finally lifted his head to look up at the old Sage. "So, what must I do?" he
asked. Rauru's face became even more solemn than before. "You shall do nothing," he
replied firmly.
Link's eyes widened in surprise. That was certainly *not* the answer he had been looking
for! "I will do *nothing*?! Zelda is in the castle with that horrible man and Hyrule is
under his rule, and you want me to do *nothing* about it!?" he exclaimed, infuriated.
Rauru nodded and Impa continued, "Yes, Link. You will do nothing. The last person
who will do anything about this is you. You have exactly what he is looking for and
barging into the castle, sword aswinging, will only give him what he wants without him
having to go through too much trouble to get it."
Link clenched his fists at his sides. "So what are we supposed to do?!"
Nabooru spoke up this time, "We will formulate a plan that will give us the upper hand
on those filthy Dark Elves," she said. She shrugged her shoulders. "Although, that's been
our objective for the past two years, and we've gotten nowhere with it."
The others mumbled in agreement. "We hoped though, that when you returned, things
would start looking up," Malon said. She smiled at Link. "You were always our good
luck charm." Link kept her gaze before Impa's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Link, there is something else you should know..." she said, slowly, almost as if she was
afraid of his reaction to the rest of the news. Link nodded to her, seriously. She sighed
and motioned for him to follow her. "Come."
His wounds were not so grave that he could not walk. He stepped carefully out of bed,
the others clearing a path for him and followed Impa out of the bedroom and into another
across the hall. This room was dimly lit by a lone candle by the bedside. It illuminated a
lump in the sheets, and Link instantly wondered who it could be.
Darunia stepped in behind them and created a nice sizable flame in the palm of his
enormous hand that lit up the whole room like it was day time. It was currently evening,
Link could see from the window. The moon was shining in but only brightened the floor
beneath the window.
Impa cautiously crept toward the bed, with Link following, and gently shook the lump
beneath the covers. They grunted and rolled over, the sheets falling from their face to
reveal their identity. Link's eyes widened in horror.
"Ganondorf?!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
My theory is that the Hylians are descendants of Humans and Elves, and therefore are
*not* Elves. That really would only apply to this story, for now. If I have another story
with Elves and Hylians in it, my theory would apply to that too. I don't really believe this
is true, but I just want it to be that way, is all.
I've already begun thinking about chapter four, so it won't take long for it to come along
and you won't have to shoot me for the next chapter. ^_~
As always: Review me!
-LunaRyuu
Chapter 3
"Is it really him?" a gentle, childlike voice inquired.
"Of course! I know my Brother when I see him!" a second booming, gravely voice
replied.
"Oh, it's been so long..." the first voice said.
The owner of it approached where Link lay upon soft blankets partially awake and
listening to their conversation. He felt the gentle sensation of small soft fingers brushing
his bangs out of his eyes.
"Oh, Link. Why did you have to leave?"
The hero's eyes flew open then and the fingers were snatched away by their owner. It
took a moment for his eyes to focus but when he finally could, his eyes shot directly to
the green-haired young Kokiri girl who stood at his bedside.
"Saria?" he managed to utter, his voice sounding deprived of air. He sat up slowly to see
her better.
"Link! You're awake!" the young child exclaimed, flinging her arms around his neck.
With her momentum, she knocked him back onto the covers. Link elicited a soft yelp as
he felt a sharp pain shoot through his chest and stomach. Saria pulled back, her big blue
eyes wide with concern.
"I'm sorry! Did I hurt you?"
Link didn't reply to her, but reached beneath the sheets to press his hand against his
gauzed upper torso, that he had not realized until right then was bandaged. He flinched.
"Why does it feel like my rib cage has been crushed?" he muttered to himself.
"Ha ha! I guess that would kinda be my fault!" the second voice from earlier stated.
Link stared into the shadows to see the same silhouette from before. It stepped out of the
darkness to reveal itself to be....
"Darunia!?" Link exclaimed.
A wide smile spread across the Goron chief's face.
"My Sworn Brother! You recognized me after so long?"
Link laughed. How can anyone *not* recognize you if they've met you before, Darunia?"
Link joked. "Of course I remember my Sworn Brother!"
Darunia chuckled. "I'd come over there and give you a big Goron hug, but I see you're in
a lot of pain right now." Link looked distinctly relieved.
Saria hopped off the bed. "I'm going to tell the others you're awake, Link," she said
excitedly, racing out of the room. The Sworn Brothers watched her go.
Darunia crossed his large arms over his chest. "A lot has happened since you left,
brother," he said gravely. Link frowned, "I had a bad feeling that was the case..." the
returned hero murmured.
"Link!" a familiar voice called from the doorway.
Link looked up and grinned when he saw Malon standing in the door frame. "Malon. I'm
so glad you're ok! I went to the ranch looking for you and when I didn't find you there,
I..." he trailed off as she nodded her head.
She ran to his bedside and flung her arms around his neck and carefully but tightly
hugged him, aware of his injuries. She pulled away, tears gleaming in her eyes.
"Oh, Link! I've missed you so!" she whispered, her voice shaky. He squeezed her arm
comfortingly.
"Link, my love! You have returned at last!" another familiar voice exclaimed from the
front of the room.
Link inwardly groaned as Princess Ruto of the Zora flounced in, practically shoved
Malon aside, and squeezed him in an uncomfortable scaly embrace. She, unlike the
red-headed farmgirl, was not as gentle and the hero winced as he felt like his lungs were
being punctured by his ribs. The Zora Princess pulled away, an expression of fury and
adoration simultaneously displayed upon her visage, if you can imagine that.
"How could you leave and not tell me?! Do you know how much I worried about my
poor little fiancé?!!" she whined. Link rolled his eyes.
"Quit botherin' the kid, Ru, you *know* he doesn't wanna listen to you whine. No one
does," a female voice chastised. Ruto, Malon, as well as Link, turned to see Nabooru
leaning against the door frame with her arms crossed over her chest.
Link grinned. "Nabooru!" She nodded to him and came over to his right side. She
smirked. "You get cuter every time I see you, kid." Link blushed and scratched the back
of his head. "Uh, thanks."
Ruto clenched her fists at her sides. "Don't you ogle my husband-to-be!"
Nabooru and Link both rolled their eyes. "Don't be dumb, Ru. He's not gonna marry
you!" the Gerudo thief replied.
"He is so!"
"Is not!"
"Now, now, you two. Don't start arguing when we have so much to discuss!" scolded
Rauru the Sage of Light as he entered the room. Behind him, the rest of the Sages entered
as well, with Saria being the last, who closed the door behind herself.
Link watched everyone pile in and looked frantically for one person who didn't appear to
be there. "Why are you all here?" Link asked, a hint of worry in his tone. If all the Sages
were in this...well, wherever he was, then that couldn't be good.
Rauru sighed. "There is much to tell you, Link. As I tell our tale, please, please do not
interrupt until the end," the old man answered, his voice solemn. Link nodded, slightly
perturbed.
Rauru began, "A year after you left Hyrule, Hero of Time, a race of Dark Elves came
across our land and took over. Their leader, Serephin, captured Hyrule Castle in a matter
of days after the battle for its claiming began. The Elves wiped out the Hylian army and
their leader crowned himself the King of Hyrule.
"We Sages managed to escape with the Princess, but he found us and captured Zelda after
a deadly battle that left us all wounded and therefore unable to save her. We have heard
rumors that he has married her, but none of her being with child.
"We know that his objective here in Hyrule is to collect all the pieces of the Triforce. He
had heard of its power and wished to experience it for himself. He has taken Zelda's
piece and managed to pry information out of someone on the whereabouts of the other
two.
"He learned that Ganondorf in the Evil Realm held a piece and he somehow was able to
break the seal and enter. He battled Ganondorf for the Triforce of Power and defeated
him easily. With the seal broken, Ganondorf was able to escape the Evil Realm, but not
with his Triforce piece. He was greatly injured from the battle, so Serephin found him as
no longer a threat and left him.
"Now that Serephin has two pieces of the sacred relic of the goddesses, he is nearly
unstoppable. He is still in search of the final piece, the Triforce of Courage, which you
hold Link, and keep safe. The reason Darunia was forced to knock you out at the ranch
was because you might cause too great a commotion. Serephin has had troops out
searching for you because he is aware that you possess the final piece. If he has the
Triforce of Courage as well, he will have completed the Triforce and there would be
nothing that could stop him."
Link frowned, staring at his sheets. Everyone watched him, waiting for his reply to the
story. He finally lifted his head to look up at the old Sage. "So, what must I do?" he
asked. Rauru's face became even more solemn than before. "You shall do nothing," he
replied firmly.
Link's eyes widened in surprise. That was certainly *not* the answer he had been looking
for! "I will do *nothing*?! Zelda is in the castle with that horrible man and Hyrule is
under his rule, and you want me to do *nothing* about it!?" he exclaimed, infuriated.
Rauru nodded and Impa continued, "Yes, Link. You will do nothing. The last person
who will do anything about this is you. You have exactly what he is looking for and
barging into the castle, sword aswinging, will only give him what he wants without him
having to go through too much trouble to get it."
Link clenched his fists at his sides. "So what are we supposed to do?!"
Nabooru spoke up this time, "We will formulate a plan that will give us the upper hand
on those filthy Dark Elves," she said. She shrugged her shoulders. "Although, that's been
our objective for the past two years, and we've gotten nowhere with it."
The others mumbled in agreement. "We hoped though, that when you returned, things
would start looking up," Malon said. She smiled at Link. "You were always our good
luck charm." Link kept her gaze before Impa's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"Link, there is something else you should know..." she said, slowly, almost as if she was
afraid of his reaction to the rest of the news. Link nodded to her, seriously. She sighed
and motioned for him to follow her. "Come."
His wounds were not so grave that he could not walk. He stepped carefully out of bed,
the others clearing a path for him and followed Impa out of the bedroom and into another
across the hall. This room was dimly lit by a lone candle by the bedside. It illuminated a
lump in the sheets, and Link instantly wondered who it could be.
Darunia stepped in behind them and created a nice sizable flame in the palm of his
enormous hand that lit up the whole room like it was day time. It was currently evening,
Link could see from the window. The moon was shining in but only brightened the floor
beneath the window.
Impa cautiously crept toward the bed, with Link following, and gently shook the lump
beneath the covers. They grunted and rolled over, the sheets falling from their face to
reveal their identity. Link's eyes widened in horror.
"Ganondorf?!"
~*~*~*~*~*~
My theory is that the Hylians are descendants of Humans and Elves, and therefore are
*not* Elves. That really would only apply to this story, for now. If I have another story
with Elves and Hylians in it, my theory would apply to that too. I don't really believe this
is true, but I just want it to be that way, is all.
I've already begun thinking about chapter four, so it won't take long for it to come along
and you won't have to shoot me for the next chapter. ^_~
As always: Review me!
-LunaRyuu