5 years ago, Nabooru Town, Northern Hyrule

The smell of burnt wood and stone still lingered in the air, putrid to the nostrils that dared breathed the air. The smoke, while much smaller than it was not a half day ago, still made its presence known in some of the buildings, indicating the last of the dying fires in the town. Ash blew like dust in the wind, and if one wasn't careful, might get hit by an unsuspecting spark, although it would not be enough to ignite a blaze. The most saddening feature of the desolate town was the charred bodies, either burned completely or partly, and for some, not at all. Their deaths resulted from the sword, and for some of the bodies, the sword came first, and then the fire.

It was this sight that greeted a frightened thirteen year old girl and her distraught mentor, who is falling into his late forties. Journeying through North Hyrule was dangerous, but only if you happened across the military runned by Moblins. If you didn't you were not considered lucky, as the beasts never ventured too far from the North Castle and the main fields of North Hyrule. The man led his horse through the town, his apprentice and her own steed following behind. The sight of the town remind him of what happened 13 years ago, as a soldier, while the girl, unborn then, related it to a similar event in her life three years prior. It cost her her mother and older brother, and sent her mentor in a deep, silent anger. She never knew why what happened caused her mentor to become this way, but she knew to avoid asking the question. The truth will one day come out, when she is older, and ready.

The girl did know of the dark times, and the legend behind it. A young hero rescued a princess from a demon, and they lived happily ever after. But the girl knew math, and her mentor told her this happened a quarter of a century ago, when he was a lieutenant. The girl blamed everything upon a dark throne, it's occupant unknown after news of the king's fall and the capital's total destruction. The girl hated the throne, and for all it has done, but when she questioned her mentor on its origins, he only shrugged, her only answer to her prodding.

"Midna, keep your eyes open, and wits on call. Looters might be around, and won't take kindly to…other potential looters."

"Yes sir… Auru, if the town is burned, why are we here?"

The mentor combed his graying mohawk with his hand, and sighed. "I'm hopeful not all inhabitants are dead."

Not satisfied, Midna sped her horse to her mentor's side. "May I know who are we looking for?"

"Ah, my inquisitive friend, when you see him or her, you will know. Look for the… Ah, there they are." Auru trotted forward, Midna right behind. Auru waved his hand in a triangle pattern, and ahead, two other riders did the same. Midna knew that the wave was specific to her mentor and his friends, so she released the hilt of her blade, and watched the two riders join her mentor. One of them was a buff, dark-haired guy in a purple tunic, the other, a similarly sized man with light brown hair and a red tunic. Auru disembarked from his stead, and walked over to the men. "Error, Bagu, glad to see you made it, but we're too late."

The purple guy, Error, shook his head in disagreement, and pointed to Bagu's back. "I think we're too late for who we came for, but we found another." Auru checked out the person behind Bagu, and clicked his tongue.

"A boy?"

Bagu nodded. "Aye. We found him in the town hall, unconscious, but alive." Auru grunted, and gestured to his daughter. Midna trotted over, and the man in red heaved the boy down to her mentor, who put the boy behind Midna. The girl looked to the unconscious boy, never seeing someone else with red hair, or anyone as brown as he. She herself was a medium tan, because of her Hylian father and Holodrumian mother, which her orange hair came from. By looks, he was the same height as her, if not noticeably taller or shorter, not any older than her, and had somewhat handsome features. Midna didn't know much about guys besides Auru and her brother, other than that they were occasional pain in the asses and required for future reproduction. She had heard tales of women in Northern Hyrule who wore red dresses and could seduce men into "helping" them to rest, learning the simple mindset of men and backhanded tactics of women.

Auru told Midna that there are two types of women in this world: damsels in distress, and warriors. "Never be a distressed damsel, unless you are smart enough to know a way to a warrior. Never be a warrior unless you are smart enough to know how to help the distressed damsel." Right now, she was the warrior, helping the distressed 'damsel' of a boy on her back, and followed the three men on their horses out of Nabooru Town...or what's left of it. As she rode, she listened intently on the conversation ahead of her, hoping to learn something her mentor wouldn't tell.

"No other survivors? Nabooru? Malladus?"

"Nay. We were here for about a good two hours before you came, enough to scour the town. Only one survivor, alone, and amazingly, not even majorly wounded. For a boy, that's amazing."

"I don't know, Bagu. He has a sword, and based on his looks, I would be surprised if he knew how to handle it like a knight."

Midna jumped when her mentor burst in laughter. He was never one to laugh. "Knight, HA! What is a knight these days?" Oh, it was sarcastic...Damn.

"I don't know, General. You are the oldest among us."

"Error, Bagu, whatever knight there were, it is in the past. We are relics of what was, not of is of now."

Error and Bagu looked at each other, confused about Auru's weird behavior. "Sir, this is not the General I knew when Her-"

Auru pointed back to Midna, who quickly looked to the many miles of plains to her left. "I cannot do what you want, Error. If the circumstances were different, do you think I would scour the ends of Hyrule for our surviving comrades? Do you think I like that my men and women are dead? Do you think revenge is not on my mind? I have Midna to look after, and I will not jeopardize her life for some crazy ideal of a rebellion!"

"Then what of the King and Queen's sacrifice? Shall we not honor that?"

"The Queen's, yes. But the King's… Despite the fact he died like one, I would never consider Vatis's act a sacrifice. He was always jealous of the lad, and how Her Majesty loved him. We wouldn't be in this situation if Link was never in hiding, or wherever he was then and is now." Midna raised an eyebrow at this new information. So this hero...Link, was it...is not dead? And no one knows who is ruling Hyrule?

Looking more worried, Bagu stopped his horse. "Then what of the Triforce? Surely we must-"

"I wouldn't be surprised if Wisdom is with Link, as he does possess Courage as well. Whoever is ruling for the North Castle certainly possesses Power."

"Sir… Courage, Power, and Wisdom are missing." Everyone paused in place, and Auru turned to Bagu, his forehead almost gone behind multiple folds.

"WHAT?"

"Link and Zelda taught us how to track the relics, and Error and I searched for years for both of them. Link's last known location was in Saria Town, but he wasn't there, and not one of the Triforces have turned up. I believe the worst has happened, and it explains why Link never made it to the North Castle."

"The only way all three Triforces could had gone missing is if they returned to the Sacred Realm, which would be Farore and Nayru's greatest blessing, or, Din damn it all, whoever is running things has them. In other words, we are screwed, and we allowed us to be screwed… Unless we fight back." Error pointed his finger into Auru's chest, and poked it hard. "General, Hyrule has people, innocent people, who have suffered because of our sins and failures. Now I'm no Hero of Hyrule, but in this day and age, one hero will not cut it. Our generation won't be the saviors, but theirs can. I see two of them now, and who knows how many there could be. But our generation can lead them. We know what Hyrule is truly, and we can make sure that the Hyrule we were born into, and that we could not save, is back. We start right here, on the outskirts of Nabooru, and we build up our resources. It might take a few years, but all we got is time. When we are ready, and we will be ready, those damn monsters won't see anything coming. Whoever sits on Vatis and Zelda's throne will know that, 12 years after on taking Hyrule from us, we are taking it back." Error held his hand out to Auru. "We just need a general to lead that resistance."

Auru looked at the hand of Error, then to Bagu, and finally to his apprentice. She looked back, as if he was asking her a silent question, and she nodded her answer. Auru turned back to Error, and gripped his hand. "Today, Error, we shall prepare our dinner tables, for when we begin our fight, we shall dine with the demon."

Bagu smiled. "That's the general I know."

Error nodded, and took his hand back. "Good, because we already started the groundwork. I got friends in Saria and Clock Town secretly rallying support. All we need is a base, and I think we have a good one in Southern Hyrule, for no town knows how to survive hell like Kakariko Town."

Auru nodded, and looked to the mountains in the south. "We'll have to cross Death Mountain. Why Kakariko? I thought the village was destroyed years ago?"

"Territory, sir." Midna rode up, and looked to her mentor with determined eyes. Auru saw a reflection of him in each of them. "If the resistance should have to fall back, we would have a safe zone. Plus, conquering...or in your case, retaking Southern Hyrule will be more of a statement. The mountains are an advantage strategically because everyone and their mother wouldn't dare cross Death Mountain unless they are prepared." Midna looked to the mountains, sounding hopeful. "The day we take the mountains, the day this resistance...no, The Resistance, will show the world we can give them monsters a whipping to their hides."

Bagu looked to Auru, smiling. "Where the hell did you find this lass?"

"Funny enough, in another hell."

Some time later…

"HYAAAH!" The clickety-clack of the horse's hooves battering the stone ground of the city began to annoy the rider, but it was necessary. He had to chase down...wait, why was he chasing anyone? Where is he anyway? "What is going on?" He followed the scene until he rode up to a lowered drawbridge, and stopped his horse. The rider recognized the greenery, for it was without a doubt Hyrule, but… The town he just exited was unfamiliar. He tried to turn around, but his focus was directed upon a young child in green. He didn't care for the boy. He wanted to know where on Din's earth was he! The gaze turned back to the open fields, and the rider tried to make out some landmarks, but the darkened skies and the rain were totally against sight.

His black horse neighed, and the boy turned to face the rider. He continued to face the fields, and sighed. "Arrrgh! I lost her!" "Who am I...whoever, looking for?" The view switched back to the green kid, who looked surprised to see the rider. "Hey. You. Little Kid! You must have seen the white horse gallop past just now… Where did it go?! Answer me!" The kid simply backed up, but his glare was enough to tell the rider his answer. "So, you think you can protect them from me...You've got guts, kid."

"I got more than guts." The boy took out his miniature sword and shield, and held them before the rider. The watching, as he realized he was a watching the scene unfold, silently screamed for the kid to run instead of fight.

The rider was amused as a bubble of air began to swell up inside him, and slowly release itself. "Heh heh heh… You want a piece of me?! Very funny! I like your attitude!" He raised his hand, and a purple aura surrounded his hand until it morphed into a bright ball in his palm. It flew towards the boy, and he screamed in pain as he was sent to the ground, dropping his weapons along with his body. After a moment, he raised his upper half of his body, still holding on to that glare.

"...I...I can fight you, for her."

"Pathetic little fool! Do you realize who you are dealing with?! I am-."

The name never was revealed, for the watcher's view began to grow hazy, and then complete darkness, but voices still rang in his ears.

"Though this is not the end. My hate...never perishes."

"The Triforce pieces are resonating..."

"I never imagined a boy like you could me so much trouble."

"It is born anew in a cycle with no end!"

"Hey…"

"Gwoh hoh hoh… Gwah hah hah… Destroy...all… Kill ALL!"

"Those like you...those who share the blood of the goddess and the spirit of the hero… They are eternally bound to this curse…"

"Welcome to my castle…"

"I coveted that wind, I suppose."

"Hey…"

"An incarnation of my hatred shall ever follow your kind, dooming them to wander a blood-soaked sea of darkness for all time!"

"I will return, sooner than later."

"HEY! Are you alright?"

The darkness turned to light, and all senses ignited at once. A calling for oxygen was prevalent, and the person rose up, gasping. The second thing he noticed was the pressure on his arms, and that he had indirectly lunged his head into someone's chest. It took no time to realize it was a female's torso, and the person back away in shock, holding his right hand out (which stung for some reason), stammering their apology. "Iamsosorryaboutthatididn'tmeantodoitwhereamiwhoareyou?" The girl spontaneously grabbed back onto the boy, and gently rubbed hid hand. It was soothing, especially when she began to hum a tune. The song itself wasn't soothing, but it was enough to get the person to relax and take a deep breath. It had been...some time since he had heard music, and it was the girl's humming that reminded him to look around. They was in a house, and it looked to be one's personal tent, most likely the girl's since she was in here. They were both on a large bed, fitted for the both of them, and they could see many desks and drawers in the room, along with a few pictures. Finally, the person looked at the girl, astonished by her bright orange hair, her unnatural red eyes, and tan skin, covered by a black tank top, shorts, and socks.

Great, a devil girl… a hot devil girl who loves to hum. My lucky awakening. The girl stopped her humming, and removed her hands from the person, her face expressing a comforting smile. "I'm sorry for scaring you. I didn't expect you to wake up so suddenly after so many years being unconscious."

Years? No...

"My mentor, his friends, and I brought you here. I don't know if I'm suppose to tell you why we're here in Kakariko, but I should anyway, if you are up for it." The girl realized the her companion was zoning out, and snapped in his face. The person snapped at command, and nodded their head, still in deep thought over whatever he had previously occupied his mind with. "My name is Midna. What is yours?"

The person took a breath, and spoke their first words in months. His voice was very rough and dry, but he could make out the words he said. "My name is… Gan."

"Gan," Midna tested the person's name in her voice, and smiled, "that's a nice name for a guy."

That's just a third of it. Gan nodded, and shifted uncomfortably on the bed. He looked at his appearance, noticing her was wearing someone else's clothes. Midna noticed. "Oh, we bought you clothes. Hey, I brought some food. I fed you when you were out, and if you aren't feeling up to doing it yourself, I don't mind doing it again. It is quite interesting, a girl taking care of a guy instead of the other way around, huh? I think I earned the 'man' in 'woman.'" Gan looked to the bowl with a yellow liquid in it, and admittedly wasn't feeling up to the task of feeding himself. He body ached after so much misuse, and moving them earlier in his panic only made the pain worse. Gan sat back, and nodded his acceptance of Midna's help. "Great." She picked up the bowl of soup, and gave Gan a spoonful of the noodle soup. He engulfed it, and savored the taste before swallowing the food. "Good?"

The soup made his throat a little less dry, but he kept silent, only nodding his answer. It was indeed very good. Midna grinned. "Great. I made it myself this morning. With the Resistance picking up numbers, we needed more cooks, and I tried my hand in it. You are the first to try my food as I know it. My mother was an excellent cook as well… I think…"

The second and third spoonfuls revitalized Gan enough to speak, and the mentioning of Midna's mother and her quieting voice thereafter was a sign of information not wanting to be told. He didn't bug her for it either, for it was her life to tell, not for him to get involved, and quite honestly, he had baggage he didn't wish to open as well. He decided to change the topic a bit. "Resistance? For what?"

"The Resistance, as I coined it, is still small, but we plan for it to grow bigger in the upcoming years. However, we have made some moves. Yesterday, we ambushed an Imperial camp and lost no one. Give it some time, and we could take on the Imperial army."

"Imperials? You mean the monsters?"

Midna shrugged. "Yeah, but we needed a fancy name for them. I said to name them 'Ugly Mofos,' but nobody liked that. Error came up with Imperials, despite the fact there is no empire...yet."

Gan nodded, and took the bowl from Midna, feeling up to the challenge of feeding himself. Before she could protest, he asked another question. "How long was I out?"

"It has been...16 months, I believe. Yea, almost a year and a half. You missed a lot of boring stuff though."

Gan groaned to himself, and slurped the soup down. He was going to panic again, but thought of how lucky he was Midna and her allies found him alive all those months ago. He sighed as he gave the bowl back to Midna, his face downcasted. "I was the only one?"

"Yeah… I'm sorry. I mean, I do how it is like to be the only survivor and how it feels to lose family and friends. I did as well."

"Is that why you looked after me, because you know my pain?"

"Yeah." Midna looked up to Gan's tearing yellow eyes, and felt hers doing the same. "But my lost was almost four years ago, while yours, almost two, yet everyday, I feel the pain of losing my older brother and mother. I never wished the same for anyone." She bowed her head, but Gan slowly raised it back up, smiling.

"That's why you are a part of the Resistance, so no one else will know your pain. Midna, these Imperials will pay, and I will help you make them pay. You saved my life, and the least I can do if help you save others."

"Well, son, that's nice to hear." Gan and Midna looked to Auru, who slowly made his way to the bed. Gan rapidly dropped his hand from Midna's face, and the girl began to miss the warmth of his fingers on her cheek. Whether or not her mentor acknowledged the movement was unknown to her as he sat in the chair beside the bed, and folded his arms. "I was wondering what was taking you so long to return, Midna, but now I see our guy has finally stopped hibernating. Welcome back to the world, boy. What's your name?"

Gan looked from Auru to Midna, and then back. "My name is... Gan, sir. Gan Dragmire."

"Dragmire?" Auru chuckled as he leaned into the chair. "I knew a Dragmire. Her name was Nabooru, married to King Malladus. I suspect there's relation?"

The mentioning of his parents drove a sword through Gan's heart. "...They were my mother and father."

"Aye, sorry about your lost. She was a formidable warrior in her days. Hell, if it wasn't for her, you wouldn't be here. And Maaladus... He was a great man. Only man I was totally scared of, yet he was kind in heart. They were the reason we came to your town." Auru leaned forward, and patted the boy on his back. "I'm sure you are just as formidable as them, and you will be a valuable asset to the coming war." Auru turned to Midna, and stood up.

"Midna, he's your responsibility for a little while longer. Once he has his strength back, he begins training. I suggest the two of you get to know each other, not only in mind, but in style of fighting. Bonds formed off the battlefield are stronger on it."

Few weeks later

Midna walked over to the weapon rack, picking up two wooden blades. "Gan, you're sure you want to do this?"

Catching one of the swords Midna threw to him, Gan twirled it in his hand and gave it a few swings. "Sure. What is the worst that could happen?"

"Me beating your in ten seconds...or less." Midna began to tie her hair into the weird lock she trademarked, splitting her hair into two large ponytails and then interlocking them with a bow at her neck. She then tossed aside her cloak, revealing a black training crop top that exposed her tan abdomen and arms, along with black pants and boots. She picked up her sword again, and pointed it at the boy chuckling in front of her. "What is so funny?"

"If I knew this was happening, I would have brought a few greens."

"Baby, I'm worth reds." Ducking quickly from Midna's quick swing, Gan flipped back, landing a bit awkwardly, but still on his two feet. Midna came to him quicker than expected with a vertical attack, causing Gan to block in a compromising position. However, despite his still weakened state, he was barely stronger than Midna, turning her advantage into a balanced contest. His smirk was ever present.

"Impressive. Most impressive."

Midna, however, had a determined frown on her countenance. She hadn't expected her opponent, given that he was still not 100 percent from his long-term slumber, to give her a fight so quickly. "I'll show you impressive." The girl leaped and whipped her right leg, knocking the sword of the stunned Gan out of his hands, and him to the ground. He rolled away as her sword came down, grabbing his sword and kneeling on the ground. She attempted another kick, but the boy was prepared this time, and grabbed her foot as he stood prideful, grinning some more.

"Nice moves, but you forget I have faced mostly women my entire life. Oh, and nice legs."

"Thank you, what a nice sob story, and thank you very much." Gan spun the girl around, and once again their blades were locked in a battle of chance. Midna, feeling as though Gan was toying with her, pushed all her strength into her sword. "Stop playing around with me, and be serious."

"I don't toy with the weak. I eradicate them."

"Spoken as if he has never been weak his entire life."

"I know weakness." Gan pushed Midna packed, and attacked her with a flurry of strikes that she barely managed to block. "It is a curse the gods put on those who should be strong and powerful, but we cannot have that, can we? After all, power isn't innocent, is it?"

"Of course power is not innocent. It is always a destructive force that corrupts the minds of men."

"Wrong!" One powerful strike from almost cost Midna the lost of her sword, but she was able to keep her composure. Gan, however, seemed to be losing his. "Power is innocent. Men corrupt it. Women corrupt it. Even the littlest of children can corrupt it. Across Death Mountain is a king or queen that has corrupted power, wisdom, and courage."

Slightly annoyed of Gan's views on power, Midna countered another strong strike by grabbing onto the wrist of Gan's sword arm, twisting it just a bit to emit pain. The boy yelped, and Midna pushed him away as it became her turn on the offense. "How is wisdom and courage corrupt?"
"It is wrong for a man to be unwise and afraid, or overconfident and foolish in his actions."

"Sounds like you speak from experience." Midna's jab seeped into Gan's mind, and it caused him to lower his defenses. Midna caught this, and used her legs once more to trip the boy to the ground. Implanting the sword in the space between his right arm and torso, as if she was impaling him, Midna smiled as she captured her victory.

Gan, however, was still stunned by the girl's words, and as Midna stood away, leaving the sword between his arm and chest. Standing up, as if he was really impaled, Gan glared 'angrily' at Midna, and clenched his fists. "Do not think it ends here… The history of light and shadow will be written in blood!" After a few more groans, Gan took a final breath and lower his head to 'die' standing up. Midna resisted the bubble of air forming in her stomach at her friend's actions. However, after a moment, he still stood in his position, and the laughter that threatened to explode within Midna came out as concern.

"Gan?"

"I remember those words. They were the last thing I heard as I slipped into my coma. I...fatally wounded the leader of those who attacked my village, and I think that person said it, but… Bagu said there was no bodies around me when you guys found me. I was… I was foolish and afraid. Weak, so to speak."

Midna walked over to Gan, and took her sword from him. Tossing it aside, she held the hands of the barely taller boy, and led him away from the training field to a nearby bench. "Gan, I'm sorry to bring up horrible memories. It was just...a jab, you know."

"I know. I don't blame you. It is just that, whenever I think of that day, I think of the two people I lost. Three, actually."

"Who?"

"My sisters, Aveil, Koume, and Kotake. I was the oldest of three between me and the twins Koume and Kotake. Aveil isn't my blood sister, but she was like one to me… She died protecting me, and I failed to protect my sisters. In retrospective, I'm glad you were only a child when you lost your mother and brother, and not older. Sure, the pain is there anyway, but when I see your mentor, I can truly empathize with him. Survivor's guilt is one hell of a pain." He turned to Midna, a ghost of a smile on his face. "That is why I am here, Midna. Revenge is all some of us have driving us. I don't know what else drives a man more besides love, friendship, and power." The boy took his gaze to the sky, and sighed. "I lost all three of those."

"Hey," Gan looked back to Midna, who, despite her teary eyes, held a smile on her face. "You got me as your friend, so that counts for friendship. One day, we will return Hyrule to whatever power it had beforehand, so there's that. As for love… Well, you have fun with that, and whoever the girl turns out to be will have to pass my test. Maybe she'll be a princess." Gan snorted, breaking the sad mood that had brewed over the past few minutes. Midna looked up at the sky, and gasped as she suddenly remembered something. "Oh, I have to see my mentor. I guess I'll see you later." Midna pecked Gan on his cheek, and moved away from the bench, picked her cloak off the ground, and ran off for the big red brick house on the hill. Gan woefully watched her leave him behind, and subconsciously rubbed his wet cheek as he looked away from the brick house to the well in the middle of town.

"Maybe I already found her… Princess Twilight." Gan grimaced at the words, and decided to change them. Thinking of the dark cavern the subject of his eye leads to, he came up with another title. "No… Twilight Princess. Much better."

How he got that from a well, only he knows.