Chapter 34: The Lost Hero

When Maple saw that the Poes were nearing the destruction of the second wall, she fought all evening without rest. She no longer thought as she slaughtered through the masses, flicking her wand to and fro, the Poes continuously dropping from the sky. But despite her struggle, and despite Elsor's defeat, the Poes continued to close in on the village.

The Hermit gave the orders to abandon the second wall, and the soldiers all retreated to safety as the Poes blew it open, gliding across the crumbled remains.

"What are we going to do?" Maple asked, watching as the Poes flew over the rubble of the fallen wall. "I fear that by tomorrow, this war may be over. But even if we swallowed our pride and surrendered, they would not accept it on any terms. The Poes will not rest until all of us are dead."

She looked up and saw the Hermit holding an ant in his palm. He crushed one of the ant's legs, and it squirmed in his hand, trying to break free and run away. "It is strange," the Hermit began, "how even posed with a threat that he can never even understand, much less overcome, the ant still struggles for survival, fighting against all odds to break free and," the Hermit gave out a faint gasp as the ant bit him and tumbled off of his hand to the ground below, "run away."

"But we can't run away," Maple said strongly. "These people will not leave their home. I will not leave my home."

Maple felt something odd even before it happened. She looked up to see the sky turn black. She watched as all color drained from the world. The vivacity in her face faded, leaving nothing. She looked down, watching as the ant scurried through the grass, the darkness swallowing everything around it.

As quickly as it came, it disappeared. Color returned, and the world seemed unchanged. There were no signs of what had happened –no indicators of it ever occurring again.

"What happened?" the Hermit asked.

Maple looked up into the horizon, seeing Death Mountain in the distance. Within moments a cloud of fire and smoke overtook the peak of the mountain. "It's Link," Maple said. "He's in trouble." She bit her lip, turning to the battle –to the desperate soldiers- then back to the mountain. "I must go. I caused Link much pain in the past. I cannot let him feel such pain again."

"Why should you go?" the Hermit asked. "Do you think you can really help him? He is fighting the Phantom out there. If anyone's going, it should be me."

"I'm going no matter the odds. Like the ant, I will squirm for my survival. As for why it shouldn't be you, well, I am the one with the broom." Maple jumped atop her broom and kicked into the air before he could argue further. "Good luck," she said, and flew off into the night.

A voice shouted in Link's head, "Wake up! Wake up!"

He opened his eyes to see Navi beside him, tugging his shirt. Link groaned and rolled over onto his back. He stared up into the sky, through the layered bed of leaves above him. Link looked around and saw that he was back in the forest. How far had the Phantom thrown him?

"Wirlin!" Link screamed. He waited but heard nothing. "Wirlin!"

What do you want? The spirit asked.

"Heal me," Link pleaded. He surveyed his torn body, noticing the ugly burns and bloody scrapes. He tried to rise but fell back to the ground. "Please, Wirlin."

Why should I heal you? I gave you the chance to defeat the Phantom, but you failed. I should just let you die now. You are of no more use to me.

"There is more," Link said; each word felt like a stab to his heart. "The Phantom isn't the only one you should fear."

Speak.

"The Phantom mentioned that he serves another. There is more to his plot than just his army of Poes. If you don't heal me, more gruesome beings will come, and then your forest will truly be threatened. Heal me, Wirlin, and I will stop the Phantom. No matter what it takes."

What could you possibly do?

"Please…" Link said, clutching his burning arm. "You must." Link heard a sigh whispered in the wind, and then felt the wounds upon his body disappearing. The cuts and sears and bruises slowly healed, leaving his body clean and untouched.

Link arose and inspected his body, impressed by Wirlin's work. "Thank you," Link said, but he heard nothing but silence.

With Navi beside him, Link walked forward. He saw something just a few yards away and felt drawn to it. It was a statue of a warrior, Link noticed. He was just out of boyhood, and he held a sword outstretched into the sky.

"His clothes look like yours," Navi observed. Link nodded in agreement, touching the marble statue.

"Navi, why is this here?" As if to answer his question, the statue began to glow, stirring. A ghost with the same body of the statue awakened, rising into the air out of the statue, a luminous, translucent spirit.

"Who awakens the Lost Hero?" the spirit called into the night.

"I am Link," he answered, watching as the ghost lowered down to his level. He was a handsome man, about a foot taller than Link, with wavy hair and bright, blue eyes.

"You have come to me," the Lost Hero began, "because you need my help. We are connected, you and I. In a way, we are the same. I am a Hero that lived hundreds of years ago, in a place so very far away from here. A war had been going on, like here, and I was the one everyone counted on to stop it. But this war was not fought with swords and shields. I was fighting against something you cannot wound –you cannot touch. It was called the Twilight. Have you heard of it?"

"The Oracle mentioned it to me," Link said, remembering. "The Goddesses were forced to flood Hyrule in order to stop it."

"Indeed." Link could see that the ghost's eyes were tearing. "I failed in my quest to destroy the Twilight, and for that I have been forgotten. I chose a different path instead. I chose to fight Ganondorf. When I failed, and the Goddesses flooded the world, my people carried me over to this place. Have you ever wondered why the people here seem so familiar, Hero? They share the same origin as your people. They all came from the original Hyrule. They were all spawned from the same home."

It all made sense to Link now. These people that he was fighting for were his people. Even if they lived different lives, they all traced back to the same place.

"When they arrived, they buried me here in the forest, and here I have slept for years. But you awakened me, Hero. The Triforce of Courage lives within you. Remember, Hero, that as similar as we are, you can still choose a different path. You do not have to repeat my mistake. You can succeed. But first you must accept what you have become. You must realize that in order to defeat your enemies, you must shed all doubts and insecurities. You must accept the fact that you can't do everything, that no reward comes without struggle."

"And if I fail? Will I be forgotten and lost like you?"

"Being remembered is not what makes a Hero. Even if you do succeed, there is no way to know that you will be a legend. I have lived in the shadow of the Hero of Time's legacy my entire life. I strived to be like him when it was impossible. Be your own person, Hero. Remember the past, but do not repeat it. Construct your own future."

"Thank you," Link said. "I think I am ready now."

"Good," the Lost Hero said, slowly seeping back into the stone statue. "I am sorry, Hero, but yet another threat will face you now. It is my fault. Like the Twilight, I failed to defeat him, and now it is left to you to finish my task." He disappeared beneath the Marble. "But unlike me, you will succeed, Hero. You will go on. You will not be lost."

"Wait!" Link shouted. "What threat? Who's coming?"

"So after all this time," a voice said from behind him, "you have still forgotten what I promised you." Link turned around and stared into the man he thought was dead, into the man who he had hoped to forget. And there he was, as if back from the dead: Ganondorf, the King of Darkness.