Chapter 1: The Dreams of a Hero

The world was black. Nothing existed apart from the former hero. Then he heard a voice that seemed to come everywhere at once and at the same time from nowhere. It was as if the endless void itself had been given the power to speak. "Finally, one of the cursed locks necessary to prevent my escape has been broken. Now I can end this pathetic world and they can no longer interfere."

Then a golden light appeared in the shape of two locks. Their glow illuminated a large cavern made of smooth white stone with no cracks or seams. The only opening was a hole about twenty feet in diameter, but the immense size of the cave made it look no bigger than the door to a small hut put on Hyrule Castle. Nine chains, three each of emerald, ruby, and sapphire crystals bound together in the center by the two golden locks, stretched across the opening. From his vantage point floating in the caverns center, the hero could see the twisted remains of a third golden lock on the ground beneath him, no longer shining. A black cloud swirled around it slowly condensing itself into the shape of a man. The man knelt beside the pile of twisted metal with a small smile upon his face. He wore a long sleeved shirt, pants, cloak, and leather boots that were all plain and jet black matching his hair.

"What is going on?" the hero thought. "If I hadn't seen him come from that cloud, I'd never have noticed anything strange about him at all. He looks so normal." Just then, the figure below distorted into a shadow and looked up. Its eyes burned as it spoke again. "Interesting. So one of their champions has already come." The shadows voice was cold and empty as he spoke. "Ah, and it seems this is the very one I wanted to see as well." Its voice now sounded almost happy, but that only served to make it more sinister. "I have a message for you, boy. Tell those seven fools you serve that the time of their rule has come to an end." As the last echoes died a beam of dark purple light shot from the shadow at the ghostly visitor. The hero threw up his hands to shield his face and in a flash of golden light he vanished.

"Where am I now?" Link thought as he gazed out upon seemingly all of Hyrule from the top of a great mountain. He shivered and covered his face as a strong gust of wind from the north enveloped him bringing with it cold unlike any he had ever experienced, even when at the Yeti's house. Then a voice spoke to him from within the gale. "You, who carry the Triforce of Courage, bear witness to the future of your world."

In an instant the wind died and all was silent as if the very earth held its breath. Without warning the ground trembled and the sky turned red like fire. The mountain he stood on began to collapse as something with immense power destroyed it from within. Before he could fall however, the wind returned and kept him aloft. As Link watched in horror the land around the mountains remains began to die. As the blight spread in an ever widening circle the voice from before spoke again, "Now young hero, awaken and find us." With that the wind again dissipated leaving Link plummeting through the air. He closed his eyes before hitting the ground only to have them snap back open and find himself sitting bolt upright in his bed with the Triforce shaped birthmark on the back of his left hand shining gold.

The next morning Link hurried to the ranch, hoping to distract himself from his nightmares with work. The terrible feeling that had been haunting him for sometime now was stronger than ever and by noon link was so absorbed in his thoughts that Colin was starting to worry. "Hey, Link. Link! LINK!" Colin shouted, finally able to get his attention. "What's wrong, Colin?" Link said, looking to make sure none of the rams were trying to escape. "I was hoping you could tell me that. Why are you so distracted today? Is there anything I can do to help?" Link look at him carefully and finally said, "No, Colin, I don't think you can help me with this." He paused, then seeming to come to a decision said, "Colin, I need you to find your father and meet me at Mayor Bo's house in twenty minutes. I'll explain as much as I can then so you'll just have to wait." Link gave him a serious look as he pulled out Epona's Horse Whistle and blew. "Colin this is very important and I don't have much time," Link told him as he mounted Epona. "Let's go Epona," and with out another word he sped towards his house.

When he arrived Link headed straight for the basement and for the first time in months, he wore the Hero's Clothes. Then he packed up all the equipment from his previous adventure in the magic pouch on his belt and strapped the Ordon Sword and Hylian Shield to his back. On the way out he stopped and took one last look around, wondering when or even if he would see his home again.

Mayor Bo, Colin, his father Rusl, and Ilia were all waiting at the table when Link entered the room. Immediately everyone but Ilia started bombarding him with questions. "Everyone please be quiet!" Link said, shouting to make himself heard. "I don't have much time and there's a lot I need to say. I know you will have questions, but please hold them until the end." He took a second to look each of his closest friends and confidents in the face, his gaze resting on Ilia a fraction longer than the others. "I don't know exactly how to tell you this, so I'll just say it. I need to leave for a while. I don't know where to or how long it will be before I can come back." Those words sent waves of confusion through his listeners, but the deathly serious look on Link's face kept them from interrupting.

He leaned forward to put his hands on the table and quietly said, "If the rest of the village finds out what I'm about to tell you, there could be problems because of who I am and what I've done. That is why we are here. The reason I wanted to speak to you all is that I have been growing more and more uneasy for sometime now. Something is going to happen very soon. I cannot tell you exactly when or even what it will be. All I know for certain is that it will not be good." Link paused then to let his friends process this information. He could see the worry and fear growing with every word, but he knew they had to be warned before he could leave. "Last night I had two visions and ever since my uneasiness has become like a physical pressure in the back of my mind." Then he caught them of guard with a smile before continuing. "There are a few people I can talk to that should be able to help, so you don't need to worry too much. I just want you to be ready for whatever happens in case I don't get back before it starts."

Link straightened up and his smile widened as he told them they were free to ask their questions now. "But please," he added with a laugh, "not all at once this time." That gave everyone but Ilia a sheepish grin. "Colin, I've kept you waiting the longest so you can go first." "Can I please come with you? I can help and I promise not to get in the way." It was obvious to everyone that he had only just been able to keep from asking since Link first announced he was leaving. "I'm sorry, Colin, but no. This is something I have to do alone." The unhappiness in Colin's face was painful to see. "Besides, I feel better about leaving because I know you're here to help if I can't make it back in time." Colin got a determined look on his face and he promised to do his best. Mayor Bo spoke next, "Why tell us about this if you don't really know anything yet?" "I am telling you all this because even though you can't know what exactly to expect, you at least have some warning before the trouble starts. I can't ignore this feeling, but neither can I leave the village totally unprepared for what is about to happen."

Next, Rusl spoke as Link turned to face him. "Link, I can see that your mind is made up and nothing I or anyone else says will change it, so as much as I want to I won't waste my breath trying." Rusl gave him a warm smile as he continued. "I consider you just as much my son as Colin is and I am proud to have taught you. I wish you well in your search." The surprise and gratitude Link felt hearing those words was easily apparent to everyone present. "I honestly don't know what to say. Thank you, I will try to live up to your expectations." Ilia was the only one left that hadn't said anything yet. "Isn't there anything you want to say to him, Ilia?" her father prompted when she still remained silent. Finally she said, "Just please come back safely, alright?" "I promise. It's time for me to go now." As he turned to leave Link looked back over his shoulder one last time. "There is almost no one I trust as much as the four of you and none I trust more, so I know Ordon Village is in good hands. Goodbye." When he was gone Ilia rushed after him. Colin jumped up as well, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him from following. He turned to see Rusl slowly shaking his head at him and stayed where he was. When Ilia opened the door Link had nearly reached the village gate. She called his name and he brought Epona to a stop, turning to look back at Ilia. She waved and Epona reared as Link waved back as he started off again. "Now to the Ordon Spring," he thought. "I should be able to get some answers there."

I am so sorry to anyone that was interested in this story for the extremely late update. I just recently got over some writers block on a major detail and you can thank Ultima Phoenix for that. I hope you like it and please review.