Link was beginning to get a little tired of this.
He stood in what looked like ancient ruins of some sort - similar, in some ways, to the Temple of Time he had visited not long after awakening in the Shrine of Resurrection. It was definitely not the Temple of Time, however. The design of the room he was in seemed almost older, more weathered. Familiar designs - the three triangles that made up the Triforce, the wings and tail that adorned the Hylian Crest - were etched on the walls.
The Hero of the Wild examined his surroundings carefully. The room appeared to be empty of traps, so he cautiously took a step forward. So far, so good.
He had just decided that there was no danger when he heard the clang of a sword behind him, and the shuffling of footsteps. Of course. Why should this have been any different from the many other times he'd been here?
Link whirled around to see two cloaked figures, dueling furiously. They moved their blades so inhumanly fast that it was nearly impossible to see what the swords looked like. Neither seemed to acknowledge, or even notice, Link standing ten feet from them.
This was already different from his other nightmares.
One of the people swordfighting was much shorter than the other - noticeably shorter, as if a child were dueling an adult. The figure was just as skilled as the taller one, however. Link, a talented swordsman himself, recognized many strategies he often used in combat. Talented as they were, though, the shorter figure was losing the battle. The taller person was stronger, and within minutes had their opponent on the ground, struggling to stand.
"Ah," the taller figure said, staring down condescendingly at who he had just defeated. "Looks like you can be beaten after all."
"You…you can't..." The voice from the figure on the ground was weak, barely above a whisper, but Link could tell it was feminine. "You have never emerged victorious. It has never been so. Her Grace will not…"
"Since when has 'Her Grace' been involved with this? With any of this?" The victor made a broad gesture with his sword to the ruined temple around them. He laughed, and the sound echoed across the room. "There's no one to help you this time. He's dying, and so are you."
This was definitely different from Link's other nightmares.
He attempted to reach behind him for his sword, the two-and-a-half foot blade that had aided him in defeating Calamity Ganon, but found nothing. Angrily and a bit recklessly, he took a step towards the two figures. The taller person's head snapped around to see Link standing there, entirely unarmed, in the middle of the ruined temple. The swordsman's ornate red cloak had a hood that made it impossible to see his face. "Well," he said, edges of laughter in his voice, "this is a development."
"Let her go," Link said, with confidence he didn't have.
The standing figure chuckled again. "You really think you're in any better a position than she is? Nice try, Link." He said the name with scorn, as if it were an insult. "This time, we'll finally win."
Without warning, the floor of the ruins disappeared, and Link was falling, falling towards the darkness that would consume him. There was only one thing that could save him from it.
"Wake up."
Link opened his eyes. Panicked, he grasped at whatever he could find, which turned out to be the hands of the person who had woken him up.
"Link," Princess Zelda said calmly, "breathe. You're hyperventilating."
The boy complied and took a deep breath. He realized how tense he was and relaxed, letting go of Zelda's hands sheepishly.
"Sorry," he muttered.
Zelda smiled and put her hand on his shoulder. "It's okay," she said. "Nightmare again?"
Link looked away. He didn't need to say anything. Judging from the couple of weeks he'd spent with her, and from his recovered memories of their time together, she was the kind of person who could tell if someone she cared about was worried about something or carrying a burden. She'd understood and hadn't asked questions when Link had told her why he was so quiet, and she knew about the nightmares that had started plaguing him after the fall of Ganon.
The hero's dreams had always troubled him, but these ones took the cake. He would be in some sort of ruined temple, and someone would attack him from behind, sending him falling into endless darkness.
Zelda sighed. "Same one?"
"Well…" Link put his hand behind his head. "It was a little different this time. There was someone else there, fighting my attacker."
The princess narrowed her eyes, considering this for a moment. "Maybe...that's a good thing?" she guessed. "I really don't know. I just...wish I could help you somehow."
Link didn't meet her eyes. Worrying about him was the last thing Zelda needed right now. She was already preoccupied enough about the fate of Hyrule, and compared to that, a few nightmares were trifling.
"I'm fine," he said. "Really. I'm used to it."
"I know you're used to it," Zelda replied quietly, looking up at the sky. "It's just that...I don't want anything bad to happen to you again. I already lost you once."
Link didn't say anything. Carefully, he put one arm around the princess' shoulders, and she smiled.
The two had been traveling across the kingdom, carrying only a couple of blankets they'd found in Hyrule Castle to sleep on and a few medical supplies. Traveling was easier now that the Guardians were no longer corrupted, but the walking was still long and tedious, even for Link. A few days ago, he had remarked that the walk would have been more interesting had there been more enemies to defeat along the way. Zelda had scoffed at this, saying that something like that only would have hindered them. Now, Link was glad he didn't have to deal with combat at the moment.
"We should get going," Zelda said after a while. "If we want to get to Rito Village today, we have a long journey ahead of us."
The Hylian champion nodded and stood up, stretching. He then reached behind him for the Master Sword, and breathed a sigh of relief when his hand touched its hilt. Only a dream, but he could never be too careful. That sword was too important to lose.
Link and Zelda folded up the blankets they had slept on, and Zelda picked up her weapons - a simple bow with a quiver of arrows, and an ornate dagger that she kept sheathed at her side. Link had no idea where she'd gotten the dagger, but he figured it was better not to ask.
"Ready?" Zelda asked.
The boy nodded, and the duo set off for Rito Village.
It should have been just like any other day. A few other travelers passed them on the way, and, as usual, no one recognized them. The sky was clear save for a few well-defined clouds in the distance. But suddenly, about three miles from their starting point, something felt...off.
As they walked through a lightly forested area, Link noticed that Zelda kept glancing over her shoulder worriedly, then closing her eyes and shaking her head. He tried to stay focused on the path ahead, but the fact that she clearly also felt that something was wrong made him uneasy.
"Zelda?" he asked. "Are you all right?"
"I thought I just…" She trailed off, looking behind her again. "It's nothing. I just had the weirdest feeling…" The girl put a hand to her head. "That's strange. It's gone now."
The unease had disappeared from Link, as well. It had felt as though someone was waiting for him, watching for the right moment to strike, and then quit before trying to attack. The disappearance of the feeling, in his opinion, was almost as suspicious as the feeling itself. Link looked around warily. Had there been an active Guardian nearby? Were there still any active Guardians?
"I felt it, too," Link stated. "We should be careful."
Zelda put one hand on her dagger's hilt. "I agree," she replied. "Let's keep wa-"
No sooner had she started speaking than a red, pig-like monster hopped out from behind one of the larger trees. Upon spotting the two Hylians, it took a horn made of bone that had been tied to its side and blew. Four others appeared from behind trees and surrounded Link and Zelda, holding their clubs and spears aloft.
"Bokoblins?" Zelda said. "Again?"
Link sighed. These things were still everywhere, even though their master, Ganon, was gone. The princess unsheathed her dagger, and the knight reached behind him for his sword.
It wasn't there. The Master Sword was gone.
Thinking quickly, Link grabbed a large, heavy piece of wood nearby and managed to knock the nearest bokoblin out of commission. He grabbed its spear and turned to face two of the others, easily deflecting their blows. The spear was extremely light and felt fragile, but if he could hold on a little longer he'd be able to defeat them.
To his right, Zelda delivered a fatal blow to one of the bokoblins she was fighting and dodged a strike from the other. Link had to admit how impressed he was with her combat abilities, despite her not having much experience. He had no time to watch what she was doing, however. He had to focus on his own battle.
One of the bokoblins raised its club, allowing Link to stab it in the chest. The monster evaporated, and its companion let out a cry of frustration, swinging its weapon towards the Hylian. When Link tried to deflect it, the spear he was holding snapped in half, and he was knocked off his feet.
The bokoblin prepared to strike Link, and it would have successfully done so had Zelda not appeared behind it and attacked it from the back. The monster screeched and disappeared in a cloud of violet mist.
Link sighed with relief and stood up. "Thank you," he said to Zelda, breathing hard. "You're a pretty good fighter."
She blushed. "I'm not that great," she said, picking up a spear one of the bokoblins had dropped. "Why did you have to fight with one of these, anyway? Why wouldn't you use your sword?"
His sword. In the midst of the battle, he had completely forgotten that it was missing. Link desperately scanned the forest floor, hoping to spot the familiar blue crossguard of the Master Sword, but he saw nothing.
This was bad. This was very bad.
"Link?" Zelda asked, more severely.
"I don't know where it is," Link said sadly. "The Master Sword is missing."
