Ruined. That was the only was to describe it.

His home was ruined.

The tree that had he had lived in his whole life was wreathed in flames, with many other tree top homes toppled. Ash fell from above, like hellish rain. The once clear air and sky that Link had so much nostalgia towards was dirty, clouded with black smoke. The ground was upturned by roots sprouting from the ground, many of which were burnt. The village would have been silent is not for the crackle of flames.

But that wasn't the worst.

Their were corpses sprawled all around the place.

Corpses of children.

Corpses if people he knew.

Corpses of his friends.

Link ran to the nearest body and fell to his knees nest to it. They were on their back, with a large hole in their chest, his shirt sticky with blood. His nose was broken, with a dirty footprint over their face. Other than that, they looked peaceful in death. But it was obvious that it hadn't been painless.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, he saw a small, crushed figure, in a pool of their own blood. The Kokiris fairy. Lifeless and colourless, it would be impossible to know what it was if not for the wings, the only part of the guardian that hadn't been crushed under a thousand feet.

Link felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked up to see Impa, who was silent but still sorrowful.

"It's all my fault." He sobbed.

Impa shook her head. "No. It isn't."

"Yes. It is." He looked at the dead Kokiri. "I made a decision that killed them. You said that's what, right?"

Impa looked away. "Come. There must be survivors." Link didn't move. "Link, please."

Slowly, Link stood up and moved towards the other bodies. He barely registered what was happening, numbly moving from body to body. Some were disembowelled, others were burned away, and some were little more than red smears, trampled into the ground.

Impa was more thorough, checking their vitals of those that could still be alive.

Link kneeled down and, gently, picked something off the ground. Impa, seeing this, walked over to him. "What is it?" She looked over his shoulder, only to see what was in his hand and recoil in shock. "What in the name of-?!" She took a deep breath. "Is that a… a fairy?"

Link nodded.

Impa shook her head. She had never seen a dead fairy. Hell, she didn't think it was possible for the to leave corpses behind when they died. She bent down to get a closer look.

Even in the hands of a child, the fairies body was small, about an inch in total, with their wings twice as long as the body. It looked like a young girl, with short hair and wearing a dress. Without the glow of life, her skin was grey, pale enough for Impa to see her motionless heart and fragile bones.

"Hylia above…" Impa hissed. "This is… horrifying." She turned to Link. "How? How did this happen?"

Link numbly shook his head. "Kokiri and Fairies are linked. Share a life force. If a Kokiri dies, their fairy can't live without them." He closed his eyes, fighting back tears. "Their life is blown out like a candle."

Link wiped his eyes with his free hand and let out a shuddering breath. Impa looked once more at the fairy, and thought. "No light means no fairy… but light means there is one."

Link looked up, confused. "What?"

Impa ignored him, scanning the area, her eyes passing over every inch of village. "There!" She pointed towards the stream. "I see a light. Blue, but faint."

Link short up, hope in his eyes. "Are you sure?"

"It's hard to tell with the smoke, but I definitely saw a light."

Link carefully place the fairy back on the ground before bolting towards the stream, with Impa by his side. Sure enough, bobbing wearing in the air was a fairy. Link ran over to it and cupped his hands underneath, to which the exhausted fairy gratefully collapsed into.

"Alive!" Link said joyously. "Someone's alive!"

Impa placed a hand on his shoulder. "Can they take us to the survivor?"

Link nodded. "Right." He looked to the fairy. "Can you fly?" Seemingly without a word, Link got his response. "Please, take us to your Kokiri."

Weakly, the fairy rose out of his hand and floated towards a limp body next to the stream.

Link ran up and gasped. "Mido?"

"A friend?"

"Kinda." Link muttered.

Mido had seen better days. His chin had a nasty cut, and his right eye was bruised shut. His tunic was torn up, his cap sitting next to him, and he had lost one of his shoes, with the foot crushed. In his right hand, he held a broken and bloody deku stick.

"We have to move him." Link muttered. "Take him to the Great Deku Tree."

Impa nodded. "Don't worry, I can easily carry him, but I have no way to ease his pain."

"It's fine. He's alive. That's all I care about."

Impa carefully reached down and picked up the boy, who cried out in pain.

"Wha?" He groaned, still half unconscious. "Dian? Where are you? I can't… it hurts…" He collapsed, falling once more into unconsciousness.

Link picked the cap off the ground, offering it to the fairy, who gladly flew into the small, hidden pocket, before Link placed it on Midos head.

With the boy firmly held in her arms, she looked around. "Are there any more?"

Link spun around, searching. "I don't think so… but there has to be, right?"

Impa was quiet. "Let's get this boy to safety first, then we can think about others."

With that, they moved through the burning wreckage of the village, avoiding the harsher flames. It seemed that the worst of the blaze has passed, as the smoke was beginning to clear. Link could see most of the village clearly now.

"Wait!"

Impa froze. "What is it? A threat?"

"I saw…" He squinted. "Yes! Over there! I see another fairy!"

"Link, wait!" But it was too late. Link was already running towards the flickering light. Growling in frustration, the Sheikah chased after him.

When he arrived at the light, Link punched the air. "I told you! I told you I saw another one!"

Sure enough, hiding in a bush was a Kokiri covered in dirt and soot.

"Link?" The young boy trembled.

"Yes, It's me." Link grinned. "We're here to save you."

Impa glared at Link. his recklessness had strayed them from the plan. This intimidating nature made the kokiri boy whimper and his fairy buzz nervously.

"Hey, hey, it's fine!" Link held out his hand. "Can you walk?"

The boy took his hand and nodded. "I think I banged my knee on a rock."

Link slung his sword arm around the boy. "Don't worry, I've got you."

Impa glanced around. "We have to hurry. Get these two to the Guardian, then we plan from there." She turned her gaze to Link. "No distractions."

"Got it."

She knelt down next to the kokiri boy. "We'll take too long with hobbling around. Get on my back." The boy hesitated. "Hurry. I can carry both you and this one." After a moment, he climbed onto the Sheikahs back. "Lets move."

The returned the way they came, with Impa only slightly slowed. Though she could probably carry another two children, she couldn't fight like this without dropping one of them. She didn't like feeling exposed, without a way to retaliate. All the more reason to move swiftly.

There was a sound behind them.

Link stopped, and Impa scowled. They weren't going to take another detour, no matter what he said. She went to refuse him, only to find that he wasn't looking around.

He was frozen.

The noise was getting louder, and Impa turned to where she thought it was coming from, but the smoke hid whatever the source was.

It was easier to hear the noise now. It was footsteps, heavy ones. Impa shifted her balance, ready to move in an instant. "What's that noise, Link? Some beast?"

Link didn't answer. He found the strength to move, looking behind him.

Impa saw it now. A form in the smoke. Human. There was something else she could hear. Clinking. Impa stepped between them and Link.

Slowly, the figure emerged from the smoke.

The Swordsman.

Fuck.

I forgot to do an April Fools day post. Damnit. I'm a failure. Forgive me.

Sorry for taking so long with this. I just had no motivation. I've been failing maths, and my mum has been tearing apart. Guess that made my mind has been taxed too much by this crap. I want to be able to post more than one chapter per month, but I don't know if I can do that. Sorry guy.

BTW, Midos fairy, Dian, is another pun. Guardian! Right? Right? I know, I'm sorry.

One of my biggest fears with this thing is making is making the made up character seem too important. I want to create a world for people to be drawn into, one that people can believe happen between OoT and TP, while keeping the characters we all love in the spotlight. I think I've done a good job so far, but I dunno, could fail at any moment.

Anyway, see ya. Hope I'm keeping you on your toes.