Chapter 10: Aftermath, a past revealed
Link awoke with a sweat inside the cave. He looked around and saw a few lights hanging from the ceiling of the cave, his equipment in a corner, and felt the hard ground beneath him. He felt his ankles to find that they were bandaged. Link tried to get up to walk, but was too weak. He lay back down and thought about his previous battle, how intense it was, how close he was to dying. Sekim entered the room with a pot of water, and placed it down beside the entrance to the room.
"Glad to see you are awake" Sekim said.
"Wait...how did you know? I'm lying down" Link replied, slightly puzzled. "You always amaze me on how much you know, Sekim."
"I am a Sage after all" Sekim replied "But I am glad to see you are awake. I was beginning to think you would never wake up. You took quite a beating, Link. But now the dragon is dead and can never return."
"That's good," replied Link. "But my ankles, I know you bandaged them. Will they heal quickly?"
"They will heal in time. Right now it is important that you stay off of your feet and let them rest"
"Okay. You, as a sage, know a lot, right?"
"Yes, I do"
"Well, I've been on the journey for a bit now, trying to find this man named Ganondorf. I've been wondering why Ganondorf. I mean, if there really is the Triforce hidden, and it is accessible by such a method, why didn't anyone else do it already?"
"Link, it is time you knew about Ganondorf. Ganondorf is the King of the Gerudos." began Sekim.
"Legend has it that there is one male born every one hundred years to the race, and that he will lead the race. I've never believed it to that extent, I do believe that one male born every so often becomes the leader. Ganondorf became ruler of the Gerudos at the proper age of eighteen. His early years were marked by rebellions, which he quelled easily. The next few years were the Golden Age of the Gerudos. There was much peace and prosperity among the Gerudos, and a rise in culture that had not been seen in as many as the previous twenty male rulers. The Gerudos thought this would last forever, but they were wrong. On one fateful evening, a wicked wind swept into the valley, carrying with it disease. This disease killed many Gerudo women. Ganondorf was horrified. He as ruler would not let this stand. He searched everywhere for a cure, but as fate would have it he was unsuccessful. He was losing all hope. He then read many Gerudo manuscripts in his search for a cure, and one night read about the unlimited power of the Triforce in one of them. He marveled at the awesome power, and became obsessed with the power of the Triforce, wanting to obtain it, needing to obtain it. It consumed his very soul, and his desire would turn him to darkness. He forgot about his dying people and left them for dead one night, leaving the valley on his black steed."
"Over the next few years, he scoured the land for this power, but found nothing. He rode back into the valley, to reread the manuscript about the Triforce. He was not greeted kindly by the Gerudo women, who were unthankful to say the least about his return. They blocked his way. Ganondorf had no time for this, and slaughtered them on the spot. He put their dead bodies for every Gerudo to see, to serve as a warning to anyone that would oppose him. He stayed in the library for seven days searching for the manuscript, staying up all night and reading all day. He finally found the Triforce manuscript. It only revealed that one pure of heart could find the Triforce, only in dire times in order to save the land. Angered by this, Ganondorf tore up the manuscript and quickly left Gerudo Valley, abandoning his people yet a second time. He searched to the ends of the earth, and finally found how to uncover the Triforce. He found a blind man an island, who informed him that the only way to get the Triforce was to cause enough chaos the Seven Wonders of the World to destroy the barrier to the Sacred Realm, the resting place of the Triforce. Ganondorf then executed the old man so that no other man may know how to get the power. And since then he has been to here and the Gardens of the Forest."
Link stared at the ground after hearing Ganondorf's story, unable to comprehend the evils that humanity could sink to in order to achieve their own ends. Link now had a new resolve, wanting to prevent Ganondorf for succeeding in his twisted goal, and wanting to avenge the lives of everyone Ganondorf killed in his quest for power.
"I can't let him get it" Link said, still staring at the ground
"We are counting on you, Link. Drink up and get some rest. After that battle you need a lot"
Sekim offered Link the pot and Link took a big sip from it and lay back down. Link turned to one side and put an arm under his head to sleep. He dozed off and Sekim sat in a corner, resting. Link spent a week in the Cave of the Volcano, recovering from his injuries. Link was finally able to walk on his own. Link gathered his gear and Sekim helped Link descend the volcano, making sure that Link would not fall. When Link got to the bottom he went to go see the man with his horse Epona. Link thanked the man profusely and apologized for being gone so long, but the man reassured Link that there was no reason to be worried, and in fact, he enjoyed taking care of Epona. Link mounted Epona and rode off to his house. He arrived and immediately put his gear in a corner of his house. He took his fishing rod and went fishing, catching a fish within an hour. Link prepped the fish and ate it, glad to eat fish again.
He went to sleep, and planned on seeing Zelda the next day. That night Link had a nightmare of witnessing Ganondorf's cruel actions to the Gerudos, and not being able to do anything about it. He awoke with a sweat, and looked outside to see that it was still night. He decided to go wash his face in the lake and clear his head. When he stepped outside, he noticed something odd. He couldn't put his finger on it quite yet, but continued to walk nonetheless. He got to lake and washed his face, and then realized what was wrong. The eternal light atop the Lighthouse on the Lake was out. This had never happened before, and Link knew something was not right. He ran as fast as he could back to his house, still feeling a little pain in his ankles. He got dressed in his tunic, grabbed his gear, and ran back to Lake Hylia. He made his way around the perimeter of the lake to Lighthouse. He circled the Lighthouse, and found the entrance. He took a deep breath, and entered the Lighthouse.
