A/N: I'm putting the stuff that's normally up here at the end, so I can say more.

And because I've forgotten this lately,

I don't own Zelda, or any of its characters.

Aegri looked around, apprehensive. It was the dead of the night, and he was in the middle of a deserted field. Why he had come, he did not know, but he thought it had something to do with the soldier who had delivered the message. After hearing it, he had not stopped thinking about it, until he finally decided to come and met the Skull King.

"So good for you to come, King Aegri," a voice said from the shadows. Aegri spun around, expecting to see a skeleton or redead, but was instead confronted with a tall, pale Hylian in his twenties.

"I assume you are the Skull King?" he asked haughtily, masking his apprehension. The Skull king smiled silkily.

"Please, call me Valr. I would not use that title, but I must if I want the spirits I called to serve me."

"Very well then," Aegri said, relaxing. "What can I do for you, Valr?"

"I would like to talk to you about an alliance," he began, "For I can not return my King without your help. He lies trapped in the Scared Realm, and you are the only one who can open it for me." Valr was lying, but he knew that the king did not know that. Also, the lie bolstered Aegri's vision of his importance, helping him achieve his means.

"This king you speak of," Aegri said slowly, weighing each word. "Is he this king of evil that the captured undead boast of?"

"Oh no!" Valr said energetically. "I must tell them that lie, again, so they will follow me. I had hoped to raise good souls when I called the undead to me in order to accomplish my quest, but only those with evil in their hearts came. So in order to keep them with me and not go wrecking havoc on good Hylians such as Your Majesty, I told them that they were needed to return an evil king to power. But truly, I am only doing this for the good of the Hylians."

"So you care not of the other races?" Aegri asked, testing his new acquaitence. Valr smiled benignly; he had caught his fish.

"The Gorons are stupid beasts, fit only for labour. As for the Zora, I have heard that they cook up quite nicely as they are nothing but big fish. The Gerudos are parasites, living off others' fortune." Here he paused, shaking his head. "The worst though, are the Sheikah. Sneaking, conniving, they are the worst of all the lower tribes. My sister, the poor soul that she was, fell in love with a Sheikah man. He seduced her; that I am sure of. Then, after their marriage, he had his way with her and then left her out to die. No, I care nothing for the other, lower races." Aegri smiled and extended his hand.

"Let us talk some more about this alliance, my friend." Valr grinned and grasped the outstretched hand.

"Let us, friend."

Two days later, Aegri had returned to the same spot, but this time he was accompanied. With him were his niece and a guard.

"Are you sure mom and dad will be okay, Uncle Aegri?" Zelda asked softly, looking back toward the little settlement. Aegri smiled warmly, something that hurt his face.

"Of course my dear. This will give them some peace and quiet, and allow them to think out what is going on clearly." Zelda looked up at her uncle, still unsure.

"Look," he said, pointing at a patch of wildflowers. "Aren't those Periwinkles? Why don't you go pick some for your mother?" Zelda clapped her hands and ran over to the flower patch. Periwinkles were her favourite flower with their little blue-grey petals and dark green leaves.

As she was picking a bouquet, Aegri looked to the sky. It was sunset, and he could just barely see the Stalfo pair waiting in the trees, ready to pounce. He turned and went to talk to the guard, distracting him and giving the Stalfos an opening.

Zelda's scream ended the conversation, and both Hylians looked over to see the young girl being thrown over the shoulder of one of the Stalfos. The guard had no time to react, for the other Stalfo had thrust his sword through the Hylian's gut. The Stalfo then turned to Aegri and knocked him unconscious with the butt of his sword, and then gave him a gash along the stomach that looked like it was meant to be fatal, but ended up not being due to luck. The Stalfos then made their way back to their hideout, with an unconscious prisoner. Zelda had fainted from fright.

When Aegri woke, he was back in the Hylian camp in the infirmary. Dimly he could hear voices; they belonged to Kelvin and Izal. Aegri smiled to himself, for he no longer needed the Sheikah's help.

He shifted in his bed, alerting the nurse on duty. She performed a cursory check, and then went to get Kelvin and Izal. The two entered the small area that was separated from the rest of the infirmary.

"Are you alright?" Kelvin asked, worried. Aegri managed to smile.

"As good as I can be," he said, confidently. A little too confidently for Izal, but he kept that to himself.

"How long have I been out?" he asked.

"Almost four days," Kelvin answered, relief flooding his features.

"Is Zel alright?" Aegri asked, feigning ignorance at his niece's capture. Once again, Izal noticed something array, but he again kept silent. Kelvin's face struggled to keep its composure as he shook his head.

"She was captured by the Stalfos that attacked you Aegri." Aegri managed to put a passable look of surprise on his face. Those nearby put it off as shock and allowed him the moment of incorrect behaviour.

"Did you get a look at your attackers?" Izal asked softly. Aegri shook his head.

"No, but they were completely silent. That removes the Gorons and Zoras from being the attackers."

"Then you were attacked by the Gerudo or the undead," Izal concluded, daring Aegri to name the Sheikah as his attackers. Strangely though, Aegri only agreed. Kelvin sighed as he turned toward the door, excusing himself.

"What is wrong?" Aegri asked, concerned about his brother.

"Selen's health has gone down rapidly since Zelda was captured," Izal said softly. "She is bed ridden, and Kelvin spends most of his time with her now." Aegri felt a pang of grief for causing Selen's plight, but it was only a pang and a small one at that. There was more to be accomplished, or so he believed.

"We must do something Izal," Aegri said after a few minutes of silence. "We need to ask council of the Sage of Light before this gets anymore out of hand." Izal raised his eyebrows at the king's change of heart, but said nothing; he only nodded in agreement.

"As soon as I am well," Aegri promised, "We shall go to the Temple of Time." Izal nodded again, his eyes sparkling in relief. It seemed even the most arrogant could come down.

Link, meanwhile, was not in a good mood. The entrance to the Gerudo camp was heavily guarded; it had taken him days to get through the pass. Untacking the horses, he softly gave them orders to stay where they were. He then set out to get in, something that was no small feat in itself.

After many sweat soaked hours, he was finally in the fortress itself. However, the ordeal was not over yet. While the fortress was less populated due to the raiding parties and outside guards, he still had to be silent and cautious. Blind corners kept him from seeing very far, and the acoustics of the building worked against him. It had always puzzled him how well sound traveled in this place.

Link slowly made his way to the center of the building, where Nabooru's quarters were in his time. He reasoned that the leaders kept the same quarters to facilitate the living plan. He was soon proved correct when he looked into a room with a lush welcome carpet. Inside was a desk loaded with papers, an unoccupied bed with plenty of bed sheets, and a majestic sword that hung on the wall across from the door.

Silently Link made his way to the sword. As he removed it from the wall, it scrapped against the wall hangers, making a small noise. Link winced, but didn't worry too much. That was, until the bed sheets moved. A man with long, silver streaked red hair sat up and looked around. He had been completely covered by the blankets and pillow, masking him from Link's vision. Link silently cursed and brought the sword the rest of the way down, waking the man completely. Upon seeing Link with the sword, he stood up and stared at the young man.

"It is impressive that you made it this far, Hylian," he commented at last.

"I'm not a Hylian," Link said softly in Gerudo, "I'm a Kokiri." The Gerudo's brow furrowed in confusion, and he asked,

"Who are you?"

"Azaman," Link said, "is my name in this time. I'm from a time in the future."

"You speak of the impossible!" the Gerudo hissed. Link rolled his eyes; how many times was he going to have to go through this?

"No, it is very possible. Look, in my time there have been three Gerudo males since you, and I am very good friends with the Gerudo queen. She was the one who taught me Gerudo; does it sound odd to your ears? A little off?" The Gerudo king growled, annoyed.

"I don't need a young man, barely old enough to have his first horse, telling me how something should seem to me." Link backed off; he had pricked the Gerudo's pride a little too hard.

"But," the king continued, "What you say makes sense. So please, tell me, why are you after the Master Sword?" He stood in front of Link, his arms crossed, waiting for an answer. Link sighed, wondering how much to tell the man.

Well, the legends have to come from somewhere, he thought.

"Because I can wield it as the Hero of Time," he said simply.

"Hero of Time?" The king asked skeptically.

"All I can tell you is this; there will be a time when a great evil comes over the land. Then the princess of destiny will find the Hero of Time, and with the power of the Sages, they will stop the evil, and the land will be peaceful again." The Gerudo king raised his eyebrows, once again, and was about to ask a question, when shouts of alarm reached them. Indecision darted across the king's face, but he made his decision quick.

"I'm told that sword can kill undead, and keep them dead. Shall we see if that is true?" he asked, and then ran down towards the shouts, grabbing a sword on the way. Link frowned and followed, recognizing where they were heading.

When the two arrived at the cells, the battle was very clearly defined. Both the Gerudo and undead were grouped on opposite sides, protecting someone. The Gerudo were around the cells, and the undead grouped on the other side of the short passage way. However, upon the arrival of the king, the undead attacked. Link darted in front of the Gerudos and hit the attack head on. He put all the frustration he had felt over the past few weeks into the fight, leaving few undead to reach the Gerudo behind him. Soon only one undead was left, a young girl. Link straightened up as he saw her; something about he was vaguely familiar. Her pale blonde hair was filthy, and her violet eyes lit up with a malicious light, but she still retained some essence of her former self that reminded him of Princess Zelda.

"Well, Hero of Time," she hissed, "It looks like you retrieved that damned sword."

"And who are you, little demon?" Link asked.

She laughed; a harsh sound that grated on the ears. "I am Zelda, servant to the glorious Skull King."

"Does this Skull king serve anyone?" he asked, praying that he acted alone.

"Oh yes," she gloated, her face lighting up in perverse joy, "He serves the Great King himself, Ganon. And soon, this pitiful little land will belong to the Great King, and you shall be dead, along with that sniveling wretch." Her eyes narrowed at the mention of the wretch, prompting Link's next question.

"Who is this wretch?"

"MY UNCLE!" She shouted, "The bastard that sold me to the Skull King! He shall receive all the pain that I went through twice more and then he shall die twice!"

"Zel," a soft voice said, "Zel, what happened?"

Zelda grinned as she recognized the voice.

"I died, dear brother, and was raised from the dead. But before that? Do you want to know? I was raped, many times, by the Skull King. He gets bored having only the undead around him, and they aren't any good for the pleasures of the bed. And then, his few human soldiers had their fun. It took two nights before I had enough, and then," she paused, savouring the moment, "And then, I killed myself. I slit my wrists and watched the blood flow. It was beautiful. Then he came in and sat beside me. He laughed as he saw the blood flow, and then I died. The next night, I was on my two feet again. Lovely story, isn't it?" Link could just imagine Aedan's face, horrified not only by what happened to his sister but also by what she had become.

"And, if I kill you, dearest brother, I get to move on; I'll be released." She began to move forward, and Link blocked her path.

"I will not kill you with this sword, for I swore to protect the royal family with this blade" he said softly, "But there are other ways to kill an undead should you continue farther."

"How?" she spat, angry.

"The sun."

Her eyes grew wide; she was not powerful enough to stand even the smallest amount of sunlight yet.

"You wouldn't!"

"Watch me." And, to prove his point, Link pulled out his ocarina. He could not call the sun with it, but Zelda did not know that. Hissing, she sank into the ground, returning to wherever she called home now.

Sighing in relief, Link turned to the Gerudo king, who was over by Aedan now. The prince had sunk to his knees and was shaking. Link walked over and knelt by the prince.

"I am sorry," he whispered, "I will do everything I can to release her soul."

Aedan just shook his head, too much in shock to register what Link was saying. The Gerudo king pulled aside two thieves and had them take Aedan to the hospital wing. He then motioned for Link to follow him, allowing everyone else to disperse.

"Your Majesty," Link began, but was cut off by the king.

"My name is Havlah, and I would prefer you to call me that."

"We cannot waste time; I need to take the prince and go to the Hylian camp." Havlah nodded in agreement.

"I know, but he is in no condition to travel now. Tomorrow, he will be still shaken, but his wits will have returned. It is too late for you to travel now anyways." Link sighed, but could not argue with the Gerudo's logic. He just hated waiting around.

The next day Link and Aedan set off; Link on Lugh and Aedan riding Arin, whose hoof was now healed. They made for the Temple of Time and planned to make it there before nightfall. Aedan was silent, but Link did not blame him; he too would be silent if he had been confronted by his sister's undead form.

The weather was kind to them, and they made good time. A few hours before dusk, the rising tower of the Temple greeted them. However, there was more. Two horses stood outside the Temple, grazing. One bore a Sheikah saddle, the other one of Hylian make.

"Those are my uncles' horses. Why are they here?" Aedan asked, speaking for the first time. Link turned to look at him.

"Izal and King Aegri, correct?" he asked, and Aedan nodded. Link frowned, wondering what was going on.

"Stay here; if anything happens, turn Arin towards the mountains. She'll take you to the Sheikah camp." With that, he dismounted and entered the Temple.

Aegri could not believe his good fortune; Izal had gone along with everything. They were in the Temple of Time, and he was weaponless, as custom demanded. Aegri, to all appearances, lacked any weapons as well. Izal stood before him, reading the inscription on the stone block that was in front of the Door of Time.

"I am afraid that we will not be able to reach the Sage of Time," Izal said, still facing the stone.

"That is most unfortunate," Aegri lamented, and drawing a dagger hidden in his sleeve, stabbed Izal as he turned around. He missed the heart, but managed to hit a lung, and the Sheikah leader fell to the ground.

Izal gasped in pain as he hit the ground, forcing the dagger farther in. Anger and shock registered in his mind, but the pain dulled them. His vision swam, but he managed to focus it when he heard the temple door open and close. Standing there was a young man, either in his early twenties or late teens, with golden hair and ice blue eyes, which were wide with shock. They quickly narrowed in anger and his mouth disappeared into a small line as he frowned. Izal's own eyes widened at the sight of this youth, for he reminded him of what his own son may have looked like, should he have lived.

Link charged Aegri, yelling. The king had barely enough time to grab his own sword from the steps were he had set it before Link reached him.

"Who are you?" he demanded as he narrowly avoided having his arm chopped off.

"Your death," Link hissed. Aegri's eyes opened wide with shock, and he struggled to keep his balance.

"What have I done to you?" he protested and managed to get one of his own moves in, instead of just blocking Link's.

"Nothing direct," Link snarled, "But I swore to protect those who would harm the royal family, and you sold your niece to the undead. And you tried to kill an innocent man." That and he's may very well be my father, Link thought to himself, but kept it to himself.

Aegri scowled, and attempted to defend himself against Link's verbal attacks. He soon had no reason to, for he parried Link's next attack clumsily and wasn't able to defend against the next one. The Master Sword cut through Aegri's hidden armor, and he fell back, dead. Link stood there, panting and glaring at Aegri. He then hastily wiped his blade and sheathed it, and then went to check on Izal.

Izal was still breathing, and as Link knelt down beside him, he regained his conciousness. He opened his eyes, and after studying Link's face, he smiled.

"You look so much like her," he whispered, and blacked out again.

Link cursed under his breath as he pulled Izal into a sitting position. He heard the door open, and looked over to see Aedan enter.

"I thought I told you to stay outside," Link shouted over.

"Blame that horse of yours," Aedan replied, running over. "Is he alright?" He supported Izal, allowing Link to slowly pull out the dagger.

"As alright as one can be after being stabbed in the back," Link muttered, glaring at Aegri's form. Aedan noticed the glare and paled.

"Uncle Aegri. . . he didn't, did he?"

"Oh yes," Link hissed, putting pressure on the wound. Aedan stared at Link, deciding what to do.

"We can't leave his body in here; it will desecrate the Temple. We can just dump it outside. However, we may not want to mention that you killed him, even if it was to avenge his backhanded attack." Link nodded in agreement, relieved that Aedan was not going to heckle him about his uncle's death. It appeared even his family had misgivings about him.

After they bound Izal's wound, they carefully carried him outside and managed to make a stretcher of sorts between the two horses. Aedan stayed outside with them while Link went back in to drag Aegri's body out. As he dragged it down the stairs, a small object fell out. Link let go of Aegri's legs and picked it up, smiling. He had the Ocarina of Time now. He then dumped Aegri's body beside the steps and walked over to where Aedan and the horses waited.

"It will be hard, getting him to the camp without being attacked," Aedan said as the two began to lead the horses towards the Hylian camp. Link smiled as he shook his head,

"No, we'll be fine. Your uncle had the Ocarina of Time on him."

Aedan stared at him, perplexed. "How does that help us?"

"I can change night to day using it. The Sun's Song summons the sun, and turns day to night. Or, if I so wished, I could turn day to night using it, but I don't think I will." Aedan just nodded, looking no less confused. Link smiled.

"You'll see in a couple of hours," he promised, and Aedan nodded.

It took them a total of three days to reach the Hylian camp, with Link dutifully playing the Sun's song each time night fell. They would take turns sleeping on one of the horses, but all in all, they received very little sleep. Concern for Izal's health kept them going; his condition grew worse each day. Curiosity pestered Link; did he really look like his mother? Was the woman Izal spoke of his mother? Unfortunately, he had no one to ask, and so his questions remained unanswered.

When they arrived at the camp, they were challenged by two guards. Link wanted to strangle them, but Aedan used his most princely tone and was able to gain them immediate entrance. Izal was taken to the infirmary, and Link and Aedan were ushered to soft beds by a worried looking Kelvin. Both were asleep as soon as their heads hit the pillows as the past few days took their toll.

Fires danced around them. She held her son close to her, trying to protect him from the blaze.

"Lady Xyli!" someone called. She turned to see a man beckoning to her. She could not see his face; it was covered by his cloak, but the urgency of the situation forced her to trust him. She ran over, and he led her to the stables. Miraculously, they were still intact.

"Ride for the forest," he said once she mounted, handing her wailing son to her. "Ride to the forest and ask the help of the Deku Tree. Understand?" She nodded, trusting this man despite herself. Turning the horse, she spurred him on. As they passed through the gates, she risked a glance backwards; the man was gone.

An arrow arched towards her, burrowing itself in her right arm. Crying out with pain, she dropped the reins and clutched her son closer to her. He wailed at the sudden pressure, and she relaxed her grip. Two more arrows followed, one hitting her side and the other slicing across her leg before it buried itself in the ground. Urging the horse on, she continued on her way.

One and a half days later, she had made it to the forest. Her horse was dead, killed by the undead. Limping, she made her way into the forest, weak from exposure and the many wounds she had acquired. Suddenly she was in a glade before a huge tree.

"Deku Tree…" she whispered.

What hadst happened to thee, Hylian child?

"Too much," she said shaking her head. "Will you take him in?" She held up her son, who was silent.

"His name is Link," she breathed and managed to set him down before she collapsed, dead.

Link rocketed up, gasping. Sweat dripped from his forehead and his hands grasped the sheets. He unclenched his hands; his nails had made divots in the skin through the sheets.

"Azaman?" Someone asked through the door.

"Yes?" he said, managing not to sound like he was going to kill the speaker.

"Are you alright? I thought I heard shouting."

"I'm fine," he said, exasperated. He had shouted? "It was just a nightmare."

"Ah, well, the evening meal is ready if you wish to eat."

"Thank you," he replied, and he heard the speaker's footsteps fade away.

Standing, he wiped his hands and his face on the sheet and then went to pull on his shirt and tunic. Both were noticeably worse for wear, but he would live. Running his fingers through his hair, he then walked out of the room, and joined his host in the kitchen.

Aedan was also there, still groggy. He held a cup of steaming liquid; Link hoped it was coffee. It was, and he soon had a cup of his own to sip on. Aedan's father, Link could not remember his name, was silent until they had finished eating, which took a while as they were both starving. Then the questions began.

Aedan answered his father's questions; Link remained silent. The answers obviously did not satisfy Kelvin, for he kept asking more and more specific questions. Finally, he asked one that Aedan dared not answer.

"Who killed Aegri?"

"Don't know," his son said around a hastily bitten piece of bread. Kelvin raised his eyebrow; Aedan was a horrible liar.

"Neither of you leaves this house for any reason until I find out what happened." Link looked at Aedan, both of them wide eyed. Over the trek from the Temple of Time to the camp, the two had become good friends, and Aedan was not going to give Link away that easily.

"Now boys, not next decade," Kelvin ordered. When neither answered, he sighed and began to clean the table.

"Fine then. Help me clear the table and then make yourselves comfortable; the townspeople seem to think you have something to do with Aegri's death, and they're upset. This is for your own safety, as well as Izal's." Link made a face, and Aedan sighed.

"He stabbed Izal in the back," Link began, and Kelvin turned around.

"I had wondered," Kelvin muttered, "Continue, I won't tell the townspeople every little bit."

Link sighed, wondering how to phrase the next part. "This goes no farther than this room. I killed Aegri; I had entered the Temple just as he stabbed Izal, and I attacked him. We fought, briefly, and he died. I then dumped his body outside; the dirt bag deserved it." Kelvin said nothing at Link's confession, but he did raise an eyebrow at his choice of words.

"Well, this is going to make that a difficult topic. Alright," Kelvin sighed, running his hand through his hair. "I have one more question, how did you two make it all this way with a wounded man on foot without being attacked by the undead?" Link laughed at this.

"That one is my trick," he admitted. "Aegri had the Ocarina of Time on him, and in my time I'm known as the Hero of Time. I can move time with it, so using the Sun's Song I was able to turn night to day." Kelvin shook his head at this, but was interrupted when a gasp from the bedroom hit their ears. Paling, he rushed over to the room and to the woman inside. Aedan followed him, just as pale, and Link made his way over slowly.

The pale woman inside, Link assumed she was Aedan's mother, was gasping for air, clutching Kelvin's hand.

"Aedan, get the healers," he said grimly. Aedan turned to go, but was stopped when his mother spoke.

"No," she gasped, "No, it is my time. I want you all to be here." Link turned to leave to give the three their privacy, but he too was stopped by the dying lady.

"Stay forest child, I would like y…" she drifted off, and Link turned to face her. Kelvin held her hand still, his face twisted by grief and anger at his helplessness. Aedan stood, his hand resting on his father's shoulder, as tears made their way down his face.

Selen soon could not breathe as her body was racked by spasms. Kelvin was shaking; he could not bear to see his wife in such pain. Aedan turned his face to Link's, his eyes begging Link to do something.

What can I do? He asked himself bitterly. All I do is play songs. Songs that move me places and raise Temples. He fingered his ocarina, and suddenly remembered the Song of Healing. Bringing it out, he began to play, softly at first, and then louder when he saw that it was helping Selen. Her breathing calmed and slowed until it was no more. He stopped when her chest stopped rising, and Kelvin stood.

"Thank you," he said softly, his voice dead. Link opened his mouth to offer comforting words, but screams interrupted him. The three of them ran outside to see what the cause was.

Standing in the middle of the square in all her terrible majesty was Zel. Hearing them approach, she turned to face them, her face lighting up with a malicious smile.

"Hello Daddy."

…………………….

A/N: Hehe, poor Kelvin. Today isn't his day, especially since his daughter has become such a bh. So now you know, Link is half Sheikah and related to the royal family. Now how did he get that dream? We shall see….

Allyanna: Thank you! Umm… I don't remember the specific amount of years (my notebook with all the numbers was left at home when I left for college) but it was over three hundred years that Link was in the forest. He's old.

Justin Time: Thank you, glad you like my attempts to connect the past with the future.

Selah Ex Animo: Thank you! Glad you like it.