He felt like he was floating, drifting aimlessly in the void between sleeping and wakefulness. He would start dreaming soon. The nightmare that had haunted him these last several months would be back. He had dreamed it again, just last night.

…Wait. It hadn't been a dream this time. It had been real. He hadn't been asleep. It came back in a rush, slamming into his mind with amazing force.

A white horse, galloping towards where he stood near the drawbridge. Zelda's face, her eyes wide with terror as she called out to him. He tried to reach her, but she flew past him. She had thrown something back to him … what was it? He hadn't had time to think about it. Suddenly, Ganondorf had been bearing down on him, and then…

He struggled to push back the void that threatened to consume him again. The object Zelda had thrown-the ocarina! He had gone to the Temple of Time as she'd asked. He had opened the doors. The sword had been there in front of him. The Master Sword.

Link's eyes snapped open. Sharp blue light blinded him and he squeezed them shut again. His body felt so heavy, like he'd been sleeping for days. He felt…different, somehow. What had happened?

"Navi?" he called out weakly. Why did his voice sound so strange?

I must be bedridden, he thought, I must have passed out, and my voice sounds funny because I just haven't used it in days and am just waking up.

"Rise, Link."

The voice was unfamiliar. It was deep and solemn. A man's voice, worn with age. Link struggled to open his eyes again, intending to find the source of the voice. As his eyes slowly reopened, what he saw shocked and amazed him. He bolted into a seating position, his eyes opening wide.

The room—if it could be called that—he found himself in was indescribable. He sat on a wide, hexagonal platform that appeared to be constructed of thousands of tiny blue gemstones.

The entire floor glittered, emitting a ghostly blue light. The platform was surrounded by waterfalls of some kind, pouring from high above. The ceiling didn't exist; the water simply came from nowhere. It wasn't even water, but a liquid version of the brilliantly shining gemstones that made up the platform.

There were hundreds of these waterfalls, all different from the last, stretching on further than his eyes could see. The platform, and indeed the sources of liquid gems, appeared to be suspended in space.

Link slowly got to his feet, looking around in awe. Where was he? He never knew such a surreal place existed. He looked around again, noticing that there were altogether another six circular pedestals adorning it. Each shone with light, although only one was blue like the rest of the room. The rest were green, red, orange, purple and…Link started when he realized there was someone standing on the yellow pedestal directly in front of him.

"Link." The old man smiled at him. "The chosen hero."

The man wore a hooded orange robe, a brown sash tied around his generous middle. His balding head and full beard were pure white. Two dark eyes glittered in the old man's face as he surveyed him. Link realized his jaw was hanging open and hastily closed it. "I'm sorry, sir, but…what are you talking about? How do you know my name? Where am I?"

The old man chuckled. "Peace, my boy. I am Rauru, one of the ancient Sages who built the Temple of Time."

"The Temple of Time!" Link exclaimed. "Is that where we are right now?"

Rauru shook his head. "No, this place is known as the Chamber of Sages, located in the Temple of Light."

Link blinked a few times. "The Temple of Light…but…"

Rauru held out a hand. "I know you are confused, Link. This Temple does not reside in the mortal world. It exists in the Sacred Realm, the realm of the gods."

"So…am I…" Link frowned, trying to make sense of the impossible information he was being told.

Rauru shook his head again. "No, Link. Allow me to explain. When you entered the Temple of Time and opened the door, you took hold of the Master Sword, the evil-destroying sword that is the key to the Sacred Realm. Although you opened this door in the name of peace, intending to protect Hyrule from Ganondorf's evil, your actions allowed him to enter this realm and steal the power it held."

"The Triforce," Link said, and Rauru nodded in confirmation.

"Do not blame yourself," Rauru continued, seeing the distress on Link's face. "Ganondorf may have taken the power for himself, and used it to bring Hyrule to her knees. However, you alone hold the power to defeat him."

"I do?" Link asked, confused.

"Yes," Rauru nodded. "The Master Sword is known as the sword of evil's bane. Its power is weakened, but it can be restored and used to defeat the evil king. It is a sacred blade that evil ones may never touch. It can only be wielded by the one known as the Hero of Time."

Link paused, staring in disbelief at Rauru. The old sage smiled. "Ah, I see you have heard of the legends."

"Well…yes." Link admitted, remembering the wonderful tales Zelda had recounted to him during their days in Hyrule Castle's enormous library. "But how can that be possible? How can I be the Hero of Time!?"

Rauru fixed him with a look. "It is your spirit. You have been chosen by the goddess. However, when you pulled the sword from its resting place, you were too young to assume your place as the chosen hero, so your spirit was sealed here for seven years…"

Link gaped at him. "S-seven…years!? I've been here for seven years!?"

Rauru nodded solemnly. "Link, do not be alarmed…Look at yourself."

For the first time, Link noticed the things he had been ignoring in light of Rauru's revelations. His body still felt heavier than it should; denser, somehow. Rauru was a grown man, yet Link was looking down at him instead of up. His voice still hadn't returned to normal, either; it was too deep, and every time he spoke he felt his chest rumble with the vibration.

Link held his hands up in front of his face, his eyes not comprehending what he saw. His hands weren't his own. They felt so familiar, and yet looked so foreign. They had grown from a child's into a man's. Shaking, Link lowered his hands, looking down at himself. The ground was further away than he was used to, and his eyes struggled to adjust. His mind was reeling at the thought that he had skipped over the last seven years completely. He wasn't a ten-year-old child anymore, he was a grown man. How could it be possible?

"Link," Rauru's voice distracted him from his chaotic thoughts. "You must strengthen your blade and awaken the power within you. You must return to Hyrule and find the remaining Sages."

"The Sages?" Link asked, still struggling to absorb the mountain of information.

"Together, the Sages can seal the evil king in the Void, and return peace to Hyrule. However, you alone are able to defeat him and return balance to this land. Link, do you understand?"

Link was silent for a moment. His mind finally caught up as he absorbed everything Rauru had said. Any other person might have gone insane, hearing that the fate of the entire world rested upon his shoulders. Link closed his eyes.

Zelda's face appeared, smiling when he'd told her he believed her prophecy. A prophecy that had partly come to pass, it seemed.

Link remembered the words of his guardian, the Great Deku Tree, warning him of the coming trials, telling him of a destiny beyond the forest. It echoed the pull he'd always felt, tugging at the back of his brain, telling him that there was something more waiting for him, just beyond the forest's safety.

Link opened his eyes.

If what Rauru said was true, his choice had already been made. Ganondorf's face flashed in his mind. He wasn't sure why, but it strengthened his resolve. If Hyrule was threatened, he would protect it.

"Yes…" Link said slowly. "I will find the Sages, and I will save Hyrule."

Rauru smiled again, raising his arms to the infinite ceiling. "Then go, Hero of Time, and take my power with you."

Link frowned, unsure of how to return to the Temple of Time. The answer came quickly though. There was a flash of yellow light, and before him appeared a small, golden medallion. Engraved upon it was the symbol of Light. Link reached out for it; it was slightly larger than a coin, and twice as heavy.

"Take it with you," Rauru told him. "It contains the last of my power."

Link nodded as the beautiful blue room started to fall away. His vision blurred as he felt that sensation of floating once again. He fell, too slowly, through the endless expanse of glowing blue and blackness, the platform getting smaller and smaller above him. The blurred edges crept inwards until there was nothing but darkness.

~oOo~

Snowhead Cottage, Termina

The cottage door creaked open and Dark walked in, stamping the snow off his boots. Sienna glanced up momentarily, beckoning him over. She stood in the kitchen area; a large circular room on the first floor. In the center of this room a section of floor had been sunk to accommodate a place for a cooking fire. Sienna currently held a piece of kindling in her hand, trying to encourage the fledging fire beneath her cooking pot to grow.

Dark watched her vain efforts as he unloaded the stack of firewood he was carrying. He arranged the wood neatly in rows against the wall before coming to her aid.

"Allow me," Dark said, nudging her aside.

Dark rubbed his palms together and sparks burst to life there, dancing along his fingers. He snapped the fingers on his left hand, creating a small flame that floated in his palm. Kneeling next to the dying fire, he thrust the palm with the flame in it beneath the cooking pot. Flames shot from his hand, engulfing the struggling fire and fortifying it.

Satisfied, Dark stood and a solitary spark winked out on his pointer finger as Sienna watched, fascinated. As always, his hand remained unburned. Dark's "specialty" in magic had always been fire. The control he maintained over it so effortlessly was almost unheard of.

"I will always envy that." Sienna sighed, nodding at his hands.

Dark shrugged. "It's not like you couldn't learn it. I could teach you!" he suggested, grinning at the idea.

Sienna laughed. "You have a natural talent for it. I would most likely burn myself on the first try!"

She swept a stray curl out of her eyes, only to have it stubbornly fall back. Dark reached over and caught the strand of hair between his fingers.

"You have enviable natural talent in other areas," he murmured, securing the captive curl behind her ear.

Sienna's cheeks turned pink from his touch and she self-consciously ran a hand through her hair. "Like what?"

"Being beautiful," Dark replied. He grinned wider as the color of her face deepened to crimson.

"Dark!" Sienna exclaimed.

She hurried past him, busying herself with setting the small, wooden dining table. Dark chuckled to himself, bending down again to keep watch on the fire. Sienna stole glances at him over her shoulder as she moved about the kitchen.

There had been a time when his touch had not elicited such a reaction from her. But they had been children then, and the touches of a child were innocent. Now that they were grown, however, every touch between them seemed to mean something. It frightened her to think of what that something might be. She dared not ask him for fear she was wrong.

Several years ago, there had been something. Their childhood affection for each other had unsurprisingly carried over into their teenage years. However, as was also to be expected, any romance between them soon fizzled out. They hadn't spoken of it, and the close friendship they'd shared had returned to replace it. If she was truthful with herself, though, she could admit that she still held a torch for him, and might always. What was still unclear was whether Dark still had any feelings left for her.

Her musings were interrupted by Fierce's arrival. She greeted him with the usual smile, becoming accustomed to seeing him as an adoptive big brother as Dark did. Fierce gave her what approximated a smile for him, settling himself in his usual chair.

The table and chairs were old and worn; they had probably been carved by the original owner of the cottage. They hadn't bothered to buy new furniture. Dark and Fierce had managed to fix up the old cottage and the leftover furnishings. They only had as much money as Dark could garner doing odd jobs in the nearby village. As such, any money they had was spent frugally on food and new clothes if Sienna could not mend them with a needle.

Sienna seated herself, bringing with her the large bowl of soup that was their supper. She didn't mind the modest surroundings; she had lived her entire life in them, and had grown accustomed to their small comforts.

As she watched the pair of them eat—Dark with a fury a wolf would envy—she couldn't help but wonder how strange it must be for Fierce to adjust to the changes. He had never complained, but it couldn't be comfortable to live this simple life after having been a god.

Fierce looked up from his modest bowl of broth. He held his spoon with the grace of a king. His table manners were simply impeccable. They would make any nobleman's tutor cry tears of joy.

"Yes, Sienna?" he asked politely.

"Um…ahh, how is the soup?" she stammered, embarrassed that she had been caught staring.

"Excellent. Thank you."

Sienna nodded her thanks, turning her gaze sheepishly back to her own bowl. They finished their dinner and Dark and Sienna began cleaning up. As they worked, Fierce slipped out the back door of the kitchen.

The earth-bound god cast a glance over his shoulder. The two teenagers were busy cleaning the dinner table, chatting idly. He smiled. At least they kept busy. He strolled out into the night, filling his lungs with a deep breath of air. It wasn't truly necessary…he just enjoyed the simple feeling of it. The inhale of cool air shocking his insides, the exhale a small relief as the air escaped again.

It has been a long time since I've felt this human, he mused to himself. Tapping a thoughtful finger against his chin, he moved soundlessly through the mountain forest.

After a few minutes of walking, he came upon a clearing in the trees. He settled himself cross-legged in the center, his usual meditation spot. The trees here grew oddly close together, bending in such a way that they seemed to enclose the tiny space; protecting it. The branches were barren now with their leaves stripped by winter and laid to rest under the blanket of snow.

Fierce took another deep breath, holding on to the air in his lungs as long as possible. He exhaled slowly, his breath crystallizing in the air in front of him, displaying his mortality. He felt another smile form on his lips. At least mortality hadn't stripped him of all his powers.

Fierce closed his eyes, seeking the presence he had felt earlier in the day. A presence that had not been felt in seven years. A spark that had winked out as the world was engulfed by darkness.

You have been sleeping too long, Fierce thought. It is time you returned…

Fierce's eyes opened again as he reached out and pulled the sleeping spirit back into the world.

Hyrule needs you…Hero of Time.

~oOo~

Temple of Time

When Link next opened his eyes, he was back in the Temple of Time, standing in front of the Master Sword's pedestal. He blinked, clearing away the out-of-body feeling that still clung to him. He could see the larger room just beyond the door to the Master Sword's resting place. The huge cathedral was empty; exactly the same as he'd left it.

Had seven years really passed?

Taking a deep breath, Link walked forward, back towards the main room. His ears twitched as he heard a noise behind him. He wouldn't have heard it if the cathedral hadn't been so quiet. Whoever it was, they were virtually silent on their feet.

Link spun, drawing his sword instinctively. The person stepped out of the shadows and Link stopped. It was a boy, around his own age. He was unarmed. Link lowered his sword an inch, but stayed wary of the newcomer.

He moved in front of the pedestal, crossing his arms across his chest. "I've been waiting for you, Hero of Time."

Link's eyes widened in surprise. The boy's voice was muffled by a fraying, greyed scarf he had secured around his neck. It covered the bottom half of his face. His head was covered by a bandana. Link could only see that the boy had wisps of blonde hair struggling to be free of the bandana, and darker skin. He was a strange-looking boy. His eyes, most of all. His irises were a deep shade of red.

"Who are you?" Link demanded.

The boy blinked. "I am Sheik, survivor of the Sheikahs."

Link straightened from his defensive stance. "A Sheikah?"

He had only ever met one Sheikah—Impa. He didn't know much about them except that most people considered them to be nearly wiped out. They were a mysterious race that had mastered the arts of both disciplines of magic. They were said to be particularly powerful, even gifted with knowledge of the future.

"Yes," Sheik replied. "I am here to guide the Hero of Time."

"Guide me, what are you talking about?" Link asked, still skeptical of the young man.

The stranger nodded. "You seek the Sages, do you not?"

Link stiffened. "Yes…you know where to find them?"

Sheik nodded. "The first Sage is waiting in the Forest Temple. The Sage is a girl I am sure you know. The forest has been overrun by evil, and her power has been sapped."

Link knew immediately who Sheik must be referring to. "Saria!" he exclaimed. "I have to go find her!"

"Wait," Sheik said, stopping Link in his tracks. "As you are now, you cannot gain entrance to the Temple."

Link frowned. "What do you mean?"

"If you believe what I am saying, you must head first to Kakariko village. You will find what you need there."

Link studied Sheik, trying to read what he could of his face. Why was he being deliberately vague? Link took a step towards Sheik, and the boy immediately leaped backward with acrobatic fluidity. Shocked, Link watched as Sheik threw something to the floor. The object emitted a flash of light that blinded Link. When he could see again, Sheik was gone.

"What the—"

"Link!"

Link spun on his heel, recognizing this voice. "Navi!"

The tiny blue fairy sped towards him, flying in circles around his head. The high-pitched sound of bells came from her; fairy laughter.

Link laughed as Navi landed on his nose, her tiny fairy features visible now as he crossed his eyes. "Navi! What are you doing here?"

"Same as you," she replied, flying away from his face so he could uncross his eyes. "I'm glad to see you're back in one piece!"

Link laughed again. "Yeah, me too,"

"I like the new outfit, by the way," Navi commented, indicating his clothes.

"Hunh?" Link looked down. He'd barely taken notice of the upgrades to his wardrobe.

He still wore his customary green tunic, with a few extras. Underneath he wore chainmail, as well as a simple white shirt with a collar that stuck out of the front of his tunic. On his hands he wore strong leather gauntlets. He also wore white riding pants and sturdy traveling boots on his feet. Around his waist he found his pouches and other items still tied securely to his belt. Finally, on his back rested the Master Sword and his Hylian shield.

Navi flitted around him, inspecting the changes. "Hmm. You still look like the same old Link to me. Just grown up."

Link laughed again. "It's kind of nice, knowing I still look like me."

Navi giggled. "Well of course, who else would you look like?"

Link's expression turned more serious as he remembered Rauru's words. "There's a lot to fill you in on, Navi," he told his fairy companion.

"I know," she said, her bell-like voice echoing in the domed room. "You can tell me on the way to Kakariko. It'll take a few days to walk there."

"Kakariko?"

Navi rolled her eyes, zinging close to his face. "I heard what that Sheikah boy said. You have to go to Kakariko village."

Link looked up at her. "You trust him?"

Navi's tiny shoulders lifted in a shrug. "He's a Sheikah, that much I could tell. They're a bit strange, but they don't make a habit of lying."

"I guess we'll need whatever is in Kakariko village to save Saria…" Link mused.

"Well, let's get going!"

Letting out the habitual sigh at Navi's hop-to attitude, yet finding himself comforted by the small familiarity, Link let the tiny fairy lead him out of the cathedral and back into the world he'd left behind for the last seven years.