Link and Zelda led Ike and Marth down the long castle hallways to a large library. Shelves containing hundreds of books towered over their heads. The narrow windows let light glimmer into the space. The rug had many colorful patterns inscribed on it. Dust particles slowly drifted unobtrusively in the air.
After stepping in, Zelda looked to see if anyone was following them and quietly shut the door.
"Are you going to tell us what is the Triforce now?" Ike asked.
"We would like to know." Marth added.
"Yes. The Triforce was a personal, magical treasure of the Hylians." Zelda began. "It was created hundreds of years ago to protect the kingdom from warring forces. Originally, it had three pieces, Power, Wisdom, and Courage. However, during the Great War, it was shattered into pieces."
"What happened?" Marth asked.
"Power-hungry fools managed to discover the Triforce's location, which was a secret, underground temple hidden underneath the castle. They fought over the Triforce, shattering it by accident. The Hylians managed to recover Courage and Wisdom, however Power was lost forever. Our ancestors could not find it."
Link wanted to say something at that point. However, he decided to keep his mouth shut.
"I know where the Triforce of Power is!" he thought to himself, looking at Marth's left hand.
"Princess Zelda, you said that warring forces wanted the Triforce." Ike spoke up. "Who were they?"
Zelda hesitated before answering. "The forces were two rival kingdoms. According to historical texts, they were fighting over a patch of land."
"Fighting... Over... Land." Ike thought to himself, suddenly feeling uneasy.
"This eventually dragged all of the tribes into the war." Zelda continued, oblivious to Ike's nervousness. "The Hylians tried to stay neutral, as if they choose either side, they will get violently destroyed by either opposing force. The Angels, another tribe who decided to stay neutral, allied with the Hylians in case the war worsens. Together, with their strongest magic, they created the Triforce to protect both of their kingdoms. Eventually, the two earring kingdoms discover the Triforce and tried to take its power to use it against each other. Their plan failed, as the Hylians and Angels manage to chase them off."
"Did that end the war?" Marth asked.
"No, it didn't." Zelda answered. "Just as the war turned to the worse, an unexpected plaque wiped across the land, killing millions. This ended the war for good. As lives were taken, the two warring kingdoms, and the other tribes, fled to the mountains for their lives and loved ones . Yet, my ancestors the Hylians, and the Angels, stayed. We resisted the disease and eventually became immune to it."
"Plaque... Death... Loved ones... Run... Away... Why did I suddenly sense something deathly yet familiar lurking in the air?" As Ike thought of these horrifying things, he suddenly felt light-headed and fainted next to Marth.
"Ike!" Marth exclaimed in shock, hurrying to his friends' side.
"What happened?!" Link asked, rushing towards the bluenette's side. He felt his forehead. "It's a fever! Princess Zelda, get a healer!"
"No, get Roy!" Marth said. "No wait, get both of them!"
Zelda obeyed and quickly left the library. As she hurried down the hallway, she suddenly slowed down and looked out the window with a sad look.
"I'm sorry, Ike and Marth." the Hylian Princess said, before continuing her way.
Ike was awoken by a wet cloth wiping across his forehead. With a weak groan, he carefully opened his eyes and looked around his surroundings. He was in a small bedroom with a bed stand, drawer, table, and chair. He spotted his friends standing in front of the doorway, asking each other what happened.
"Ike's awake!" Ike heard Roy exclaim.
Ike watched his friends go to his bedside, a bit relieved and worried.
"You're alright, Ike!" Marth smiled, before it fell and turned into a worried look. "What happened?"
"I'm not sure..." Ike answered, feeling a bit weak. "When I was listening to the story of the Triforce, I guess I couldn't handle the mention of plaques and death and... I guess I fainted."
"Well, the truth can kinda hurt sometimes." Samus spoke up with a smile.
"Yeah, back in our world, there was hardly such thing as a plaque and whatnot." Fox said.
"Well, there were train and work accidents, but they hardly occur." Falco added.
"I suggest you to stay in bed for the rest of the day." Roy spoke up, his voice having a slight tone of sternness. "Just because you feel better doesn't mean you are better."
"Alright." Ike replied.
Roy began to exit the room. "C'mon everyone. Let's give Ike some room."
One by one, everyone left the room; except for Link and Marth, as they wanted to give Ike some company.
"Link, I have a question." Ike said, sitting up in his bed. "Why do you and Zelda have the Triforce?"
"Oh!" Link exclaimed. "Well, after the Triforce was broken into pieces, our ancestors received it. They felt it was saver to leave the Triforce of Wisdom and Courage in their processions. As a result, the Triforce was passed down to their descendants. Zelda has Wisdom, while I have Courage."
"That's cool!" Marth said. "Is that why you can use magic?"
"Yes." Link answered. "However, our magic is limited. If we overuse the Triforce's power, it will drain our physical strength."
"No wonder why were you weak after when we saved you from Bowser!" Ike spoke out loud.
Link nodded sadly in response. "Until the Triforce of Power is found, Zelda and I will protect the Triforce within our hearts."
The sound of a door slowly creaking open grabbed the three teen's attention. Turning to the source of the sound, they saw a little Hylian around the age of twelve. He had large, dark blue eyes; fluffy, bright, yellow hair; and tiny pointed ears. He was garbed in a bright, green tunic over a long-sleeved shirt, leggings, small leather boots, and a matching floppy cap.
"Link!" he exclaimed, scampering towards the older Hylian like a mouse.
With a wide smile, Link gently picked up the smaller Hylian and gave him a huge hug. "Toon!"
"I knew that you'll be back!" Toon said, snuggling against Link. "I knew it!"
Marth awkwardly spoke up as Ike watched. "You're Toon? Are you Link's...?"
"Yeah!" Toon replied quickly with a bright smile. "I'm Link's little brother!"
As he stroked Toon's fluffy hair, Link said, "He inherited most of my father's looks. That why we don't look related."
"My, what do we have here?" an unfamiliar, unsettling voice asked.
As the four looked up at the voice, they spotted a strange man dressed in an odd outfit that resembled a male dancer's. His skin was an icky gray, his eyes were pitch-black, and his straight, white hair was parted to the left. At the sight of the man, Link growled quietly, protectively hugged Toon tightly, and shot a glare at him. Marth and Ike trembled, as they felt a wave of disgust and uneasiness wash over them.
"Ghirahim, what are you doing here?" Link spat out.
"Nothing at all." Ghirahim answered cooly, shooting a chill down Ike's and Marth's spine. "I heard that you returned. I wanted to see if it was true." Ghirahim took notice of Ike and Marth. "Oh, who are you two? Are you Link's friends, I presume?"
"Yes, they are." Link bluntly answered. "Their names are Ike and Marth if you're curious."
"Ike? Marth?" Ghirahim asked out loud in curiosity. "Those names sound familiar... Is the thread of fate binding them together?"
His statement was followed by Link's annoyed growl. Getting the idea, Ghirahim turned to leave. "Fine, I am leaving."
After when Ghirahim left, Link sighed in relief. With a worried, scared look, Toon cuddled closer to his older brother. Ike and Marth were shaken by Ghirahim's sudden appearance.
"Who's Ghirahim?" Ike asked.
"That man is a terrible, manipulative man." Link answered, his voice holding a tone of anger. "He is Princess Zelda's advisor. Although some believe he is great at his job, my family and I disagree. Lately, he hadn't been seen at the castle. This makes me suspicious. What is he doing?"
"I don't like." Marth softly said.
"Me neither." Ike agreed. "He creeps me out. Especially when he said something about Marth and me being bounded together by fate."
"Do you know what he meant?" Marth asked.
Link jumped before answering. "Well..." he began nervously, trying to think up of an answer. "I think he meant that he sees how close you two are!"
"Well, if you say so." Ike replied.
Unbeknownst to the teens, Ghirahim was listening to their conversation. With a sly smile, he disappeared into a ray of diamonds before anyone caught him eavesdropping.
That night, Marth was in the library, curiously browsing through books. Although their words and texts were scribbles and nonsense to the bluenette, Marth tried to understand the topics by looking at its illustrations.
After hearing Zelda's story of the Triforce, Marth was intrigued by the history of Hyrule. He dearly wanted to learn more about the past, from the war, to the present. Sadly, he could not learn much due to being illiterate to Hylian words.
"Well, it looks like I need to ask Link or Zelda to translate these words." Marth said sadly, closing a book.
A sudden knock on the door caught Marth off guard. With a startled gasp, he jumped and quickly turned around. Who was it?! Was it a mischievous ghost of some sort? Link did mention that the castle was haunted by ghosts, but he could be joking. Swallowing nervously, Marth slowly approached the door, his fingers tingling and his stomach fluttering.
"W-W-Who's there?" Marth shakily asked, opening the door. He peered around the shadowy hallway. The glittering moon light shone through the large glass windows. Deformed shadows froze on the walls.
"H-Hello?" Marth asked out loud, his voice echoing down the hallway.
There was a sudden flash of light behind Marth. In jolt, Marth turned around and quickly covered his eyes, which were burning from the abrupt beam of light. He whimpered, hoping that he was not blinded from the sudden ray of light.
The light died down and there was a small thud followed by a chuckle. Wondering who it was, Marth hesitantly looked up before he was blinded by another gleam of light. He heard a small zap before the light vanished into the darkness.
Shaking, Marth looked around and saw no one. Letting his eyes adjust to the darkness, he noticed a dusty, thick-covered book sitting on his seat. Marth raised a suspicious eyebrow. That book was not there a minute ago...
Was he seeing things? Marth slowly approached the book and picked it up. It was heavy, as it had hundreds of pages. He had not read it before... Should he?
Hesitantly, Marth calmly flipped to a random page, before taking notice of the shocking illustration that struck him like a punch in the face. With a small gasp, Marth could only gaze at the image like a deer caught in headlights. After a few moments, he shook out of his gaze, shut the book, and quickly exited the library.
"I need to show Ike this!" he said to himself, trembling uneasily. "What... What is this?! Who is this man?!"
Author's Notes: I'm still alive, everyone! Don't worry!
Sorry for the late update. Not only I had writer's block, I also strained my wrists. So, I needed to take a break. (Idon'tthinkeveryonemindssincethisstoryhasn'tgottenmanyreveiws.)
This chapter pretty much build some background and suspense to future chapters, so hopefully it's not boring all of you guys out. The next chapter will focus on the main story line of this fanfic.
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Story Questions:
Why did Ike faint while Zelda told him and Marth about the story of the Triforce?
What (or who) was the beam of light in the library?
Who do you think is the man Marth saw in the book?