Chapter 11: Truth Within Dreams
Link, Saria, and Fado sat on the bed in Link's room, staring down the hall. Impa had been in a meeting with Gaebora for some time, and he could only assume she was telling Gaebora everything. The three waited, watching for the door to open.
Fado tapped his fingers against his knee. "Do you think you're going to marry the princess?"
"Shut up," Link hissed. "No, I'm not marrying her. She's my friend."
Saria whacked Fado's arm. "Stop asking people that!"
"People? Who else has he asked?"
"Gaebora and Chef, as far as I know."
"Fado!" Link called out, accusingly.
Fado shot off the bed and stood in the doorway. "She's crazy. I would never ask everyone."
Rolling his eyes, Link crossed his arms and glared at his friend. "I'm going to believe Saria here."
Saria grinned smugly and leaned back, very satisfied with herself.
Gaebora and Impa finally emerged from the room, and Impa walked outside without a word. Gaebora motioned for Link to enter his room.
Link closed the door behind him and waited for Gaebora to say something. Instead, he stood silently with his hand over his face.
"Link," he finally said. "I am going to let you go. I just wanted to let you know how much you and the others mean to me. You're all like my own children, even Mido and the others. I will make sure that they are closely watched while you are gone, so do not fret over your friends. Trust in me and in them."
Link looked suspiciously at Gaebora. "It sounds like I'm never coming back. What did Impa say?"
Instead of responding, he pulled Link into a hug, holding him tight before letting go. "I'm sorry for worrying you, Link. Go. The Princess of Hyrule is waiting to see you."
He guided Link from the room and down to the door where Impa waited for him. Saria and Fado rushed to see him off.
With an unsettled feeling in his gut, Link hugged Saria and Fado before Impa helped him onto her white horse, adorned with all the ornaments of a royal stallion. With a wave behind him, Impa took off towards Hyrule Castle.
Link wasn't sure whether or not he should be surprised that they used another secret entrance to get him inside. She carefully led him to Zelda's room where she sat on her bed, gracefully playing a lyre.
Her eyes were closed and she was entranced with the music she played. It was a familiar tune, one that Impa had whistled into the ear of the statue. They listened until she came to the end when she looked up and saw them standing in the doorway.
She put her lyre down and her face turned red. "I didn't know anyone was there. Sorry."
Impa nodded to them both and closed the door, where she stood outside.
Link shook his head. "Don't be sorry. That was great. I can't play anything like that."
Zelda regarded him for a moment before reaching under her bed. She grabbed something and placed it on the bed in front of Link. "This is my old ocarina. I have a new one, so you can keep it. Practice and you'll be great."
Link put it in the pouch beside his small sword and grinned at Zelda. "You have to stop giving me gifts, Princess. I can't give you anything in return."
Smiling, Zelda shrugged. "I only need your friendship, Link, and for you to call me Zelda, not Princess."
"Sorry. How are you doing after the ceremony?"
She scoffed. "It was awful for the first few days. Yesterday was the first day I really got up. I can't even control the powers the Goddesses granted me! But I've been having terrible visions recently.
Zelda shot off her bed and grabbed a book. "This is what I needed to show you! When I went through the ceremony, I had a vision. I was trapped in a dungeon, locked away, and Ganon came and took me away. I was trapped, powerless and unable to move while he performed a magical ceremony over me. It was different than the one that just happened. I was trapped in a crystal and waited for you to appear because Ganon made sure you'd show up. I watched you fight him and kill him while I sealed him away. You used the Triforce and restored light to the world. Does that sound familiar?"
Link shook his head. It sounded like something he might have dreamed, but not in that much detail.
Zelda pointed to the book. On the open page, a mural was painted, depicting the scene. Below it, an accounting of a princess generations past who had sealed away darkness with the Hero of Hyrule.
"This is us, Link. I think we're meant to do it again!"
Link glanced down at his left hand. "I've got a piece of the Goddess. I don't know what to do though."
Zelda grabbed his hand. "What if I don't have it? We have to find the one who does! I was blessed by the Goddesses. Why would they give one person two of their gifts? We were meant to save Hyrule, I know that much, but I don't think I'm the one who has the spirit of the Goddess. We have to open the Sacred Realm and seal Ganondorf away again. He's the darkness, and you're the light!"
Link thought for a moment and shook his head. "No. You have the other piece of the Goddess. You're special, so they gave you both of their blessings. I know it."
Suddenly, a warning bell began to toll from outside, and they both ran to the window. Impa burst into the room and stood behind them.
"Impa?" Zelda asked. Staring into the distance, Zelda's voice grew more panicked. "Impa!"
"He's already here," Impa whispered to herself. She grabbed Zelda's hand, and Zelda reached for Link. They held each other tightly as Impa raced them through the halls. She grabbed a soldier by the collar and pinned him to the wall.
"Soldier! Find the king! Tell him I've gotten his daughter to safety and he must not wait for her! Make haste to the throne room! From there, they'll take care of you!"
The soldier nodded and ran back in the direction he came. Impa continued her run the way she and Link had entered.
The two children kept tripping as Impa's strides proved to be too much. She made sure to keep her hold on Zelda's hand as firm as she could, though her other hand rested at a small knife at her belt.
Market Town was pure chaos. What was usually a crowded, bustling city became a death trap as frantic mobs of people tried to flee or make for safety at the sound of warning bells. Screams of panic and fear bounced off the buildings and right back.
When they made it out, Link's sweaty hold on Zelda's hand was loose and he'd nearly slipped away from her several times. Impa rushed them to where she'd left her horse and quickly hoisted both children up before sliding in behind them before spurring her horse away from the castle.
She rode hard and fast until she forcefully fell forward into Link and Zelda, causing her horse to buck the three of them off. Impa lie in the grass, twitching with small sparks dancing off her back. Link and Zelda scattered together, staring up at the dark figure looking back at them.
Great yellow eyes were piercing into their blue ones as his red hair was slicked back, highlighting the large crown that he wore on his forehead. A great cape billowed behind him in the wind, and the very sky seemed to darken with his presence.
"Princess Zelda, how nice of you to stop for me."
Zelda let go of Link and threw a small fireball from her hand at Ganondorf's face. He swatted it away and laughed.
"So! The Goddesses blessed you!" He dismounted from his horse and slowly stalked towards them, never stopping. "Go ahead, Princess, seal me away."
Zelda tried again, but Ganondorf extinguished the fireball with a swipe of his cape.
"I could feel the moment you accepted the powers of the Goddess. We're the same, in some ways. We both are bound to the Goddess Hylia herself."
He held up his hand, revealing a tattoo-like Triforce on his hand with only the top piece glowing. "Tell me, Princess, do you have courage or wisdom?"
Zelda stumbled backwards as she tried to put distance between her and his still-approaching form.
Link pulled out his sword and stepped between them. "Stay back!"
For the first time, Ganondorf stopped. He laughed. "Well, you've got guts, kid."
"Stay there, or I'll kill you!" Link shouted.
"I like your attitude! It's too bad you're standing between myself and something that I need. You'll have to die."
A large ball of energy built up in his hand and he shot it at Link, sending him flying with a loud scream. Zelda ran over to him and tried to shield him as Ganondorf approached again. She could see that Impa still wasn't getting up. It wasn't long before Ganondorf was standing over them.
To everyone's surprise, Link gasped and managed to crawl to his knees. He grabbed his sword again and held it out, with his other hand holding Zelda behind him.
"What—" Ganondorf whispered as he watched Link.
Link coughed and dropped his sword, clutching his side. With a few deep breaths, he looked back at Ganondorf. Holding up his fist, his own Triforce began to shine from the back of his hand. Ganondorf's face couldn't have hid his shock if he'd wanted to.
"It's not her!" Link yelled. "She's been protecting me!"
Ganondorf finally regained his composure. "Courage from the most unlikely hero… a small boy. Very well. I came here for a spirit bearer, and I'll have one!"
Link shoved Zelda away from him as Ganondorf hit him with another energy ball. This time, he didn't get up and the world went dark. The last thing he could hear was Zelda calling out his name.
"Link! Link!"
Link woke up on a cold floor with something tugging at his arm and pain emanating throughout his entire body. In front of him were bars and a locked door, and clasped onto his left hand was a heavy chain.
Pain seared through him once again and he couldn't breathe. He felt the cold ground once again as he fell, and his name echoing through his head as he fell asleep once more.
