Chapter 3: Link's Beginning

Link grew up an orphan, his mother died during birth and his father when he was the age of five. Link was placed in an orphanage, and spent most of his childhood there. While there he learned how to fish, how to hunt, which berries on which trees were edible and which were poisonous, and in general how to get food for himself when he became old enough to leave the orphanage.

When he was twelve, he went to boarding school. The orphanage was unable to afford boarding school, so they made an agreement with the boarding school that Link would do various odd jobs and chores around the school, and call it even. While there, Link was picked on because he was the only one there who had to do so many chores and odd jobs. Everyone thought he was being a teachers pet and a suck up, but Link was too embarrassed to admit that he couldn't afford to come here and had to do all that work just to learn. Link did take solace in the fact that he would be a better person for having endured all of that, and went on with his education Link learned how to become a swordsmith, and became quite apt at it. When Link reached the age of seventeen, he left the boarding school, having become a more than proficient swordsmith and having learned everything that a Hylian male should need to know.

A week after leaving the school, Link bought a small house near Lake Hylia, and opened his swordsmith business there. He made a living making and fixing swords, and catching fish for meals. He became renowned as the finest swordsmith available. He was so famous that the King of Hyrule employed Link as a swordsmith for the guards of the castle. Link would deliver new, sharpened, and repaired swords each month. Each time he went, he made it a point to go and see Princess Zelda and she him. They were quite fond of each other, and often went on picnics together after Link had made a delivery.

"This is the life", thought Link one night in the middle of his eighteenth year, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

That night, Link had a dream that would change his life, his destiny, forever. As the legend goes, the Spirit of the Master Sword came to him in a dream and talked to him.

"Link", the Spirit said, "You are about to reach a crossroads in your life."

"Who are you", questioned Link.

"Link, I am the Spirit of the Master Sword".

"Okay...this is a little weird"

"This is merely a dream. Link, the crossroads you are about to face will determine your character, and the fate of this very land".

"Crossroads? What crossroads? I'm but a swordsmith who has an easy life."

"Tomorrow you will face your crossroads"

"What is the crossroad which I will face?"

"You will be faced with two paths to take. I can not yet reveal them to you, they will be revealed to you soon. The only thing I can tell you that I have not already told you is to see Princess Zelda tomorrow. Goodbye, young one. Our paths shall cross again, and hopefully you will have taken the right path".

Link woke up with a sweat. Thoughts of his dream were racing in his head. It didn't seem like a dream to him, it seemed so real.

"Why did the Spirit mention seeing Princess Zelda? I'm due to go deliver swords today anyway; could it be more than a coincidence? Surely Zelda will have an answer, she's so smart. I could just look into her eyes and have all my problems float away".

Link looked outside, and saw that it was nearly dawn. Deciding now was as good of a time as any to start the day, since he was already awake; Link got out of bed, got dressed, and went fishing. Fishing relaxed him, and besides, he needed to eat as well. It didn't take long for Link to catch a fish, at which point Link proceeded to prepare the fish, cook it, and eat it for breakfast. After about half an hour of reflecting upon his dream last night, Link packed the swords, and began to walk into the sunrise toward Hyrule Castle.