Creation and the War Between Light and Dark
(As told by the elder in the inn)

In the beginning, all was nothing. Neither shape, nor form, nor emptiness itself existed -as we mortals understand it. Our world was a blank, knowingless void.

Then the three Great Goddesses of Gold came to this nothingness.

Din, the Great Goddess of Power

Nayru, the Great Goddess of Wisdom

And Farore, the Great Goddess of Courage

The three beheld the chaos of the void and were displeased by it. With their divine will, they brought "creation" into existence.

Din, with her strong, flaming arms, cultivated the land and created the red earth from her thoughts.

Nayru, poured her wisdom onto the earth and into the heavens, creating the laws of our world. By her command, the sun and stars turn above, and the tides ebb and flow according to her will.

Farore, with her rich soul, poured her spirit into the world, and created life. All things which grow, crawl, or walk upon the earth, she created. All would live according to the law and care for the world the Goddesses had created.

As they looked upon their creation, the Goddesses smiled. Beauty and harmony reigned across all things.

But in time, the Great Goddesses were beckoned to leave our world and return to the heavens.

The Three became fearful for their creation. While peaceful and plentiful, the creatures of the earth were simple and ignorant. They could not protect themselves from any harm that may come without the Goddess' guidance.

Working together, the three created the lesser goddess Hylia. To her, they commanded that all of creation be guarded and balanced with love and care. "Not until our return, shall you be released from your charge!" They warned.

The Three Great Goddesses, their labors now complete, departed for the heavens. And the Golden Sacred Triangles remained at the point where the Goddesses left our world.

For untold eons, the goddess Hylia watched over the earth and stars, carefully guiding and shepherding the creatures of the land and the fish in the sea.

Though their development was slow, humankind steadily grew from their innocent, child-like forms and became more learned and evolved.

She gave to them language and speech. She taught them of the stars; their patterns and how they turned, Of the cycles of the sun and the moon, and of how the plants of the earth might be gathered and harvested for food.

And so, the divine guided the mortal, and the mortal worshipped the divine.

Small tribes became great nations. Great nations became mighty empires. Ever the humans sought to spread themselves across the earth and discover its hidden boundaries.

Great temples and places of worship were built – throughout the land – and glorious rituals of praise and thanksgiving were performed; both to the goddess Hylia and to her mothers.

On and on it went - until a shadow began to draw over the goddess' heart.

One day, as the Goddess meditated with her attendants, a sudden and violent surge of power rippled upward through the earth, and gripped at her heart. A great shadow of evil had manifest itself and would soon breach its way into their world. Swiftly, she gathered her people into their strongest houses and urged them to prepare for the coming attack.

But the inhabitants of the earth had few weapons that could be used against the demonic horde that was approaching – mostly bows for hunting or hammers for smithing. So, the Goddess and her wisemen resolved to create a divine weapon. Through which, she hoped, the demon and his dark forces could be destroyed.

Gathering all of their power together, Hylia and her councilors brought together the three sacred flames. With these, they then forged the Sword of the Goddess. She named it "Fi" or "faithful" in the ancient tongue. Within, the Goddess poured much of her strength - creating a new spirit, which inhabited the blade itself.

Only this sacred blade would carry enough power to harm the demon.

The monster shattered through the surface of the earth and unleashed his bloodthirsty horde upon the humans. What warriors they had gathered, were swiftly cut down and eaten by the beasts, as he angrily hunted for the goddess and the triforce.

Hylia, desperate to protect her "children" commanded the humans to flee to the highest mountains, while she would attempt to fight the demon alone. Most fled, as she wished, but a few valiant hunters remained beside her, in an attempt to delay the onslaught.

He came to her, concealed beneath a maelstrom of shadow and flame. The humans could only see a terrible storm approaching them, but within the cloud, the Goddess could see the glow of his hate-filled, red eyes.

They clashed fiercely, light against dark, as the humble warriors tried, desperately, to hold off the monsters from the pit. For days, good struggled against evil and was slowly beaten back.

When the last of her warriors were slain, the Goddess was forced back to the base of the mountains – where her children cowered in terror. The great demon threw her down – knocking her sword from her hand.

"Surrender, goddess! I give you only this one chance: serve me, as your master, and I will spare your life." He commanded.

"And cover all of creation in darkness and blood?! Never!" she hissed.

Enraged, the monster slashed his sword across her chest – tearing open her sacred body and scattering her blood upon the ground beside her. The Goddess' Sword – laying upon the ground at her side - suddenly rang out and a brilliant flash of light shone upon the landscape. As the great arch-demon reached his claws to tear out the Goddess' heart and consume her soul, the sacred blade suddenly crashed down upon his scaled arms.

Taking up the blade of the goddess, one young man had turned back from the fleeing masses, and came to protect his beloved Hylia.

Her hope restored and the demon distracted, Hylia quickly used her power to lift the mountain her children were sheltered upon, and sent it skyward – far from his reach. Once they were safe, she returned her attention to the battle before her.

She was amazed at the human's ability to fight such a powerful demon. Though he was much smaller and much slower than his enemy, the monster's true weapon – fear – did not seem to touch him. Back and forth they clashed as the goddess struggled to rise against her injury.

On the edge of the great chasm – formed by the removal of the mountain – the Hero of the Goddess struggled valiantly to make the killing blow. But the demon was powerful and cunning. No matter how quickly the man moved, no strike seemed to reach the monster's heart. And he was growing weaker.

The goddess, desperate to save her champion, now made the ultimate sacrifice. Using all of her divine strength, she forced the distracted demon over the edge and laid a seal over his body. The demand was so great… our beloved goddess was forced to sacrifice herself – to ensure the beast was never set free again.

The demon's cry echoed and faded as the door of his prison was closed. Hylia's body began to fade as the last of her power was drained to keep the seal in place. Her knight, dropping the sword and rushing to her side, gently held her hand and cradled her head. "I-it… is over." She whispered to him.

The Hero begged his Goddess not to die, but she softly touched one finger to his lips. "It is… as it needs to be." She murmured.

As her body faded from sight, the light of her form great in magnificence until it outshone even the sun. The knight shielded his eyes and rose, watching her departure.

In a final, brilliant flash, she was gone from our world and committed to her last charge.

Overcome with grief, the man returned to his people in the sky. There they built a wonderful temple in the Goddess' honor and laid Fi within its inner sanctum. "One day, she will return to us. When she does… we cannot fail her." He whispered, as the great stone door of the temple was sealed -awaiting another hero, in another age.