Chapter 9

Sheik arrived at the Spirit Temple, and not a minute too soon. Link was just about to enter the temple when Sheik cried out to the hero.

"Link, wait up," he shouted. Link did a double take at Sheik, then watched him walk towards him, giving him a stern look.

"I thought I told you to stay at the castle," scolded Link.

"You can't do this alone. Remember when we fought Ganondorf the first time? You did all of the fighting, yes, but I was there to summon the sages to seal Ganondorf away. You need my help so we can do that again."

"But what about Ganson? Do we seal him away, too?" Sheik frowned.

"We can try, but I think we only have enough power to seal away Ganondorf."

"So you're saying I..." Link's voice trailed off, knowing that he had to kill Ganson. He's killed monsters before, yes, but he's never killed a person. A hesitant look came across Link's face. Sheik noticed the change and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I know it won't be easy, but it must be done, for Hyrule's sake. In times of war, people are killed, whether they're innocent bystanders or evil sorcerers corrupted by their father's power. You must remain strong. The Goddesses will forgive you, I know it." A small smile came across Link's face.

"Thank you, Sheik," he replied softly. "Now let's go kick some Dragmire booty!" Sheik then burst into laughter. "What's so funny?"

"Never...ever...in my time of knowing you, have I ever heard you say something like that!" Link then realized what he just said and started laughing himself. Sheik was happy to hear him laugh. He hadn't laughed since the whole incident started. "Come on, we don't have much time left. We must hurry."

"Right."

Chapter 10

Link and Sheik searched every room of the Spirit Temple, but there was no sign of Ganondorf or his offspring. They sat down for a while to take a break and catch their breath. Link stood up after a while and started walking around the room idly, looking around. As Sheik was sitting, he received a telepathic message from Impa.

"Zelda, do you read me? It's me, Impa," contacted Impa, sounding a bit shocked about something.

"Yes, loud and clear. We've searched the Spirit Temple and we can't find any trace of them. Impa, what's wrong," asked Sheik.

"I've been doing some research on Ganson's background in the archives, and I found some disturbing news about his mother."

"What did you find out about her?" There was semi-long silence. "Impa?"

"Ganson's mother...is Link's mother. Ganson is Link's older brother." Sheik's eyes widened in surprise.

"Are you saying that Ganondorf is--"

"No. Link's father was a Hylian knight, not Ganondorf." Sheik relaxed a little bit. Link looked over at him with a worried expression and walks over to him.

"Hey, Sheik, you okay," asked Link. "You look a little pale." Sheik quickly turned to Link and looked at him.

"Impa, Link's here, what do I tell him?"

"Wait until you return to the castle. We'll tell him there."

"Sheik," asked Link again.

"Link...we need to return to the castle. Impa found more information on Ganson." Link frowned, looking at the expression in Sheik's eyes. Something was obviously wrong.

"Let's hurry back then."

Chapter 11

Disappointed about not finding the two fiends, Link and Sheik returned to the castle. Link was worried about Sheik the entire way back. He hadn't said a word and often stared off into space. Link had to shake him a couple of times to get him to pay attention to where he was going. They made it back to the castle just before they closed the gate for the night. Sheik then changed back into Zelda as they entered the castle. They looked around for Impa, then eventually found her in the throne room, speaking with the king. He, Impa, and even Zelda shared the same expression, which greatly worried Link. The king, looked up and welcomed his daughter and Link.

"Impa, what is it that you needed to tell us," asked Link, eager to figure out what was wrong. The king stood up, walked over to Link, put an arm around his shoulders, and lead him to the throne.

"I think you should sit down for this news, son," explained the king. This worried Link more, but he did as he was told and slowly sat down into the throne. He then looked at Impa. She gingerly cleared her throat, then looked at him evenly.

"I found some disturbing news about the origins of Ganson," started Impa. "When I was looking through the archives, I did a background check on Ganson. He's been living in the outskirts of Kakariko Village with his foster mother--"

"Foster mother," asked Link.

"I'm getting to that. After his foster mother died when he was fifteen, he figured out who his father was. He started practicing sorcery to free him, and that power corrupted him. His mother...his real mother..."

"What?"

"Link...Ganson's mother is the same as yours, though you have a different father. Ganson is your older brother." Link's eyes widened in horror, his heart sank. Ganson, the evil freak that mentally tortured him is his brother!? He couldn't believe it.

"You're...You're lying. He's not my brother," he cried out. The king frowned and put a hand on Link's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Link," he started. "I wish this weren't true, but the archives never lie." Link quickly stood up, his skin pale.

"I...I need some fresh air..." He took a few steps, swayed a bit, then closed his eyes and collapsed, the king quickly catching him before he hit his head on the throne.

"Link! Oh Gods, is he okay," cried out Zelda worriedly, rushing over to him.

"He's fainted from shock," explained Impa worriedly. "He needs to rest."

"Men don't faint, they pass out," stated the king. He then scooped Link into his arms, and the three took the unconscious hero to his room to rest.