The Winds of Time

By Sonic TH

Prologue Part 2

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own the LoZ series.

Time: 3 years after the events in Wind Waker

Place: somewhere on the Great Sea

Character: Link, the 16-year old Hero of Winds (I'll assume he was about 13 in Wind Waker, only real difference in his appearance is he grew his hair out and pulled into a ponytail, he's still got his green tunic)

It's been 3 years since Link, the young boy from Outset Island, set sail to rescue his sister, Aryll, and awaken the sleeping power of the Master Sword, the legendary blade that can repel any dark force. His adventures across the vast sea brought him knowledge and wisdom. Since sealing away the evil Ganondorf with the magic of the Master Sword, he's traveled across the ocean taking on other adventures and tasks. As the Hero of Winds, Link feels that he needs to uphold the legend of the Hero of Time: protect the realm of which he lives from the forces of evil.

Link has come to call Outset his home. Since his journeys across the ocean, many things have happened. Aryll grew up and took care of their grandmother until she passed on about a year earlier. Since then, Link has returned home using the magical Ballad of Gales when he has a free moment to help Aryll around the house. Recently, Link's travels brought him to Windfall Isle, where he met an unusual old man…

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Link woke up in his boat, The King of the Red Lions, about midday. The cawing of the seagulls above stirred him. He had laid down for a nap before continuing his sailing.

It gets lonely out here sometimes, Link thought to himself. It's been 3 years since I beat Ganon and saved this world from his torment.

Link looked down at the back of his hand at the small Triforce insignia on the back of his palm. He remembered all that he went through to recover the Triforce of Courage and stop Ganon from covering the world in an evil blackness.

"Hoo, it's getting hot," Link said to himself. "Better get going."

Link raised his sail and the boat started to move in the wind. Link thought back to his encounter with the strange man who sent him on this quest.

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Back on Windfall, about a day earlier…

Link was wandering by the shops and houses on Windfall Isle. He had stopped off at the island to pick up some more supplies before sailing for other waters. He walked by the potion shop when a hooded old man walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hi, who are you?" Link asked.

"My name is unimportant. All that is important is that I found you," the man said. His voice was strained and feeble.

"Found me? Did you need me for something?" Link asked, puzzled that someone would ask him such a question but they had never met.

"You are the one they call the 'Hero of Winds' are you not?"

"Yes," Link said, starting to understand a bit more.

"Then take this," the man said. He handed Link a tattered scroll. "I am an ancient Hylian who was one of Ganon's servants in the old kingdom of Hyrule. However, Ganon believed I betrayed him. So he cast a spell on me giving me eternal life without eternal youth. I have searched the lands for a warrior who could save the ancient kingdom of Hyrule and prevent Ganon's return to power. You are that one. You are the one who wielded the great blade of legends, defeated Ganon in the lost kingdom, and saved this world from the horror that once was. However, Hyrule could have been spared, Ganon prevented from ever reentering this realm, and you may be able to do it."

Link was clearly confused about it but only replied with a promise to do so. When the old man left, he unfurled the scroll. It was a treasure map similar to the ones he's collected before. However, on the middle of it was the insignia of the Royal Family, the Triforce, and the "x" was in the middle of the 3 golden triangles. The map pointed to the region west of the Forsaken Fortress.

Well, I always like some adventure. It's been slow lately, I'll do anything... Link thought.

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Back on the Great Sea…

Link pulled out his Sea Chart. He noted he was about in the right area. He looked east and saw the crag of rock that was the Forsaken Fortress. As usual, he saw the column of light to indicate where he was to recover the treasure. Link pulled the King of the Red Lions next to the column. However, unlike the normal columns, this one didn't disappear when he approached. Link set up his grappling hook salvage crane and dipped the hook into the water.

"Hm…what could this be?" Link said. The water was pretty deep where he was so it took a few minutes to lift the chest out of the water. When the chest finally rose above the water, it didn't look like any he's encountered before. He pulled into his boat and studied it. It was lined with a gold trim and had a Triforce insignia on it also etched in gold. He popped off the lock and opened the chest.

"Eh? What's this?" he thought out loud. He pulled out an instrument from the chest. It was a silver flute with about 7 holes and the seal of the Royal Family on it. He looked at it for a moment. It had a small knob on one side where the player would blow air through the instrument.

"Wonder what it does…" Link said. He put the instrument to his mouth and played a few notes. Suddenly, everything around him vanished and he was standing in a sea of white light.

"What is this?!" Link said. The white light wasn't coming from anywhere in particular and it looked endless. He felt something tingle on his back. He pulled out his sword. Right before his very eyes, the sword started to change from his old Hero's Sword he kept for years after his adventure into the Master Sword.

"Th…th…the Master Sword?" Link said in awe. "But, I sacrificed it to stop Ganon, how can it be here?"

The body of a young woman materialized in front of him. She wore similar attire to Princess Zelda, whom he had met on his journey to stop Ganon.

"Who are you?" Link asked, mesmerized by her sudden appearance.

"My name is Princess Zelda," the girl began. "However, I am not the one you know from your time. Rather, I am another Zelda from the age of the legendary Hero of Time."

Link stood there and was spellbound. "You are? You knew the Hero of Time?"

"Yes. I do. However, something is wrong. He has apparently disappeared. That old man is actually my servant, not Ganon's. He has been searching for the one who can possibly save Hyrule from its fate at the hands of Gardoc and Ganon. I have finally found you. The next warrior who wielded the Master Sword after the Hero of Time. Someone who can possibly save the realm of Hyrule and the Hero of Time with it. I used my power to return the Master Sword to you as it is necessary to save Hyrule."

"You are asking me to return to the Golden Age to save Hyrule from the one you call 'Gardoc'?" Link asked.

"Yes, however, to do so, you must understand this: if you decide to undertake this task, the world as you know it will change. Gardoc was the one who released Ganon from his eternal prison between dimensions and brought him back to your world. Should you do this task, Ganon will have never entered this world, therefore changing many things you know. Is this clear?"

"Yes. And I am willing to do this to save you, Hyrule, and the Hero of Time from Gardoc."

"Thank you. To accomplish this, I must teach you this song. It has been passed down from generation to generation in the Royal Family. It is the 'Song of Time'," Zelda said. A flute similar to the one Link was holding appeared in her hands. She started the play the tune long forgotten among the Hylian people. Link mimicked the notes on his flute.

"You have now learned the Song of Time. The instrument you hold used to be mine and then the Hero of Time's. It is called the 'Ocarina of Time' and has many magical properties. Farewell Link and good luck. The fate of Hyrule, its people, and the legendary Hero of Time rests on your shoulders…"

With that, she vanished and everything returned to the way it was. The white plane that used surround Link disappeared and once more, he was standing on the King of the Red Lions. He thought about everything he had been told. He looked back down at his sword. It truly was the Master Sword he thought was lost in the sunken kingdom of Hyrule when he defeated Ganon. He considered everything that might happen if he did this. How his world would change, what would happen to him, and having to learn everything that happened.

"I…I…I don't know…no!" he said to himself. "I am the Hero of Winds. This task is part of my destiny. I must save Hyrule! I must stop Gardoc and save the Hero of Time from his fate."

He raised the Ocarina of Time to his mouth again and played the Song of Time. Instantly, a yellow column of light surrounded his body. He was raised into the sky and pulled through space and time. He was about to enter the Sacred Realm, the kingdom of Hyrule.

NEXT CHAPTER: LINK ARRIVES IN HYRULE!