The path to the graveyard was empty, and Zelda was tempted to abandon her disguise. She did not, however, and made her way through the overgrown grass toward the gate.
Her stomach was clenched tightly, her pulse deafening her. Her mind filled with possibilities, none of them even slightly comforting.
Anju's note could not have meant anything but Link's location. If Link had seen Ganondorf burning the village, he would have tried to stop him. He would never have stopped fighting unless he'd been hurt. Then again, if he were hurt, the Gerudos would have captured him and Ganondorf...
She stopped herself from thinking. The thought of Link being injured or worse was more than she could handle. She was breathing loudly, and felt herself teetering on the edge of tears.
Stepping through the gate, she looked immediately to her right at the tiny, dilapidated hut. She could see two distinct lights in its foggy window. One was a lantern's glow. The other was a dim blue flicker.
Losing all reason, Zelda sprinted toward the hut. She accidentally slammed into the door, then pulled at it, finding it locked. The noise drew a muffled shriek from inside the house.
"Navi," Zelda called in a hoarse whisper, "it's Sheik. Please, open the door!"
There was a silence, and Zelda leaned desperately against the rotting wooden frame. She clutched the doorknob with straining fingers. As the pause stretched, Zelda felt her heart begin to sink. The fear threatened to turn into actual pain. Her eyes began to sting.
"Please," she called again, unable to drive horrible images from her mind, "Please, Navi..."
A click finally sounded, and Sheik leaned away from the door as it opened inward.
Navi hovered in the firelight, her glow barely visible.
Behind her, lying on a decaying table, was the Hero of Time.
Zelda heard a halting breath escape her lips. The world became hushed. She felt herself move toward him, and was distantly aware that Navi was screaming at her. Her vision blurred with tears as a thousand voices in her head repeated the same words again and again.
He was not breathing.
A stabbing feeling in her chest caused Zelda to lean on the table beside him, and she watched the hands of a stranger reach for Link's face.
Someone had closed his eyes. Trying desperately not to collapse, Zelda outstretched her fingers to brush his golden hair out of his face once more.
The action brought more tears. She looked away, but her eyes sought out the gaping wound in his chest, and Zelda found herself on her knees. She pressed a hand to her mouth, pushing against her lips until they hurt. Her arm shook.
"Where were you?!" Navi was sobbing, "He saved your life, and you left him to die!"
Zelda opened bleary eyes, choking back a scream of anguish. Navi was right. Of course she was right.
The princess drew back her hand, staring dumbly at it. The blurred white and tan shape looked foreign to her. Her fingers twitched, and a sudden realization caused her to cry harder. Clutching herself, she doubled over.
"Oh, Goddesses..." she moaned, shutting her eyes hard.
The stinging in her hand had been her triforce mark trying to warn her. She had felt him die.
"No..." her last hope of strength faded away as she clawed at her short hair, cap falling to the ground, "No, please..."
"Will you shut up?!" Navi screamed, "You don't deserve to mourn him, you bastard!"
"I'm so sorry..." Sheik's voice repeated uselessly to the floor, "Link, I'm so sorry..."
The empty pain overtook her again, and she sprawled across the wooden floorboards, slamming a fist against them.
"Get up!" the fairy's voice cracked, "Get up, you coward!"
But Zelda could not move. For the first time, she no longer cared whose body she was in. All she could feel was the horrible, twisting pain.
She would not feel his hands again, or hear his voice. He would never know she'd been with him all along, except when he'd needed her most. She thought of his smile and wished she could stop her heart.
"Please..." she breathed, "I'm so sorry..."
Her voice became inaudible as she gave in to the sadness.
"... I loved you."
The goddesses surfaced in the Temple of Time. Din held Farore tightly in strong arms, and Nayru stood behind, nervous.
This place has changed, Din glanced over the holy building.
The structure was new, though the altar and hidden chamber were much the same. The colored glows of the goddesses sent bright glares across the white stone walls. A dog howled somewhere in the distant darkness.
We should take mortal forms, Nayru was saying, or else we will cause hysteria.
Din shrugged and looked for a place to set Farore down. The eldest goddess had not awoken since the Hero's death. Her green glimmer was almost invisible, leaving her glasslike body a cold grey-white.
Stepping into the sacred chamber, Din placed Farore gently down in front of the Master Sword's pedestal. The Goddess of Power regarded the empty stand with some disgust.
She should have known he would fail, She muttered, drawing a frustrated noise from Nayru.
Din stood, holding out her arms and gathering her power. Red light blurred the shape of her body until she could not see. When the light faded, she was mortal, an ordinary Gerudo with angry red eyes.
She turned, and Nayru glanced back at her, a blue-haired Hylian.
"We should seal her here," Din said, new voice rough.
"Yes," Nayru rubbed at her throat, "but be careful. The magic flare must be small."
"Fine."
"If your host sees it---"
"Yes, my host, who lives still," Din snapped, readying her tanned fingers, "Will you help me or not?"
Nayru moved lightly up the steps to stand beside her sister, pale form shaking. She extended her hand over Farore's unmoving body. The green goddess was barely breathing.
Their magic glowed white, fine tendrils of energy floating down over Farore to cover her weak frame. The brightness intensified, then faded, and Farore had vanished. Din reached down to touch the invisible body of her sister, face concerned.
"We have little time," she said.
"I know."
"I will travel to the West. You take the opposite path, and the first to find a suitable sacrifice lights a signal."
"But, Din..." Nayru began, already grieving, "Farore ordered us not to."
Din closed her eyes, "I suppose you would rather watch her die and see Hyrule plunged into darkness."
"No... of course, no."
"Then do as I say."
Nayru held out a pacifying hand, "Din... Farore still clings to the Hero. If she does not bestow her gift on a new host, then..."
"So we stop her," Din stood, facing Nayru with fury spread across her features, "I will not lose my sister and my land in one blow."
"It is her choice!" Nayru protested, "We agreed Hyrule would never fall to---"
"I will make her choice for her," Din growled.
The finality of the statement caused Nayru to recoil, and she held her arm up in a vague display of self-defense. Din laughed at her.
"Your methods have failed, sisters," Din looked from Nayru's pitiful stance to Farore's unconscious form, "I have waited long enough."
Nayru shook her head in terror, "Din, please, you cannot do this."
Din's body was illuminated with red light, and Nayru charged at her, trying desperately to catch hold of her before she could warp out of the temple.
"It is the age of Power, Sister," Din called as she disappeared.
Nayru listened until the echoes faded, then began moving stiffly away from the hidden chamber. A false wall materialized behind her as she stepped past the altar. In a flash of blue, she pulled herself from the last safe haven and back into the world of her creation.
She had precious few days to save Hyrule from Din's wrath.
Zelda had lost track of the hours long before the hut's door finally reopened. Two footsteps on the wooden floor and a drawn gasp indicated Impa's presence. The door was shut heavily.
"How..." came Impa's weary voice.
From her place on the floor, Zelda could not answer. With bloodshot eyes, she stared into the dark recess beneath the table where Link's body lay. The sound of her breathing filled her ears and awakened her hatred.
"Zelda..." Impa sounded almost childlike in her horror, "How could this... He..."
The name stabbed at the princess, but she said nothing. There was no harm in it. Navi had flown off some time ago, too overcome to stay.
"Here," Impa's hands were around Zelda's shoulders, "child, sit up."
Zelda did so, hearing the desperation in her guardian's voice. She turned her exhausted eyes to face the Sheikah.
Impa's face, usually calm or serious, was carved with grief. Her wide eyes searched Zelda's for even the smallest hope. The expression frightened the princess, and she reached shaking arms around Impa's familiar frame.
"It's my fault," Zelda whispered into the Sheikah's shoulder, "Should have stayed. Should have... told him."
"Hush," Impa's hand was running over Zelda's shortened hair, "hush, dear one, we could not have known."
But the gentle drops of water sliding down Zelda's neck told her Impa was crying, and this knowledge hurt her almost as much as Link's lifelessness. She clutched Impa tightly, whimpering.
"There, child," Impa's voice was barely controlled.
Zelda buried her face into Impa's shoulder, closing her stinging eyes. She had run out of tears, and all that was left was the cold emptiness. She shivered against it and moaned.
Out of some remaining instinct from Zelda's childhood, Impa began to hum quietly. Zelda's grip on her protector tightened as the royal lullaby reached her ears. She wished she could cry again to drown out the comforting sound.
The lantern finally flickered out, leaving the women to the early light of the new day.
The morning came without the sun, the grey clouds hanging low over northern Hyrule letting out small bursts of rain. Ganondorf watched the dreary weather from a high window.
Standing in a private study, he contemplated his plan with great unease. A rider had been sent to the soldiers in Kakariko. She would return with their casualty report. Hopefully they had not killed too many villagers.
Ganondorf needed as many Hylians as he could gather. He planned to confront the princess directly. He would kill one Hylian for every day she remained out of sight. She would have to face him eventually.
He scowled at the blackening sky as lightning began to fork down. Once he had Zelda within his grasp, he would have to improvise. He could not take her power without the Hero's triforce piece, and in order to obtain this, he would have to find the next Hero. He only hoped this process would not take years rather than months.
"Ganondorf."
He whirled, furious.
"How dare you?!" he shouted at the Gerudo who'd interrupted his thoughts. He had ordered his people not to disturb him. And if they wanted to live, they knew better than to address him without a title.
The Gerudo appeared unfazed, and awarded the dark king a pacifying look.
Enraged, Ganondorf stalked across the room, drawing his sword.
"Choose your words well," he leveled the blade at her throat, "they will be your last."
"Strong words," she smiled, "I chose you for a reason."
Ganondorf was too taken aback to kill her. Instead, he stared at her eyes, which shone a curious shade of red. He had not seen her before, and was momentarily distracted by the way her long hair fell free beside the curve of her neck.
"What are you talking about?" he asked roughly.
She stared evenly at him, "Set aside your weapon and I will explain."
"You will explain now."
She sighed, "You should sit down."
"You---"
He found himself thrown backwards through the air. He hit the wall beneath the window with some force, slamming his head against the stone sill. His sword fell from his hand.
Catching his breath, he grimaced at the woman standing over him. Her magic had cut through his shields without effort.
"Better," she smirked, "You ought to be on the ground before your goddess."
Had she not tossed him across the room, Ganondorf would have assumed she was insane. But her power and the glow in her eyes were enough to quell such thoughts. He simply breathed, waiting for her to continue.
"Do you realize what you have done?" she asked, smile vanishing.
"Yes," he chanced.
She knelt down before him, cupping his cheek in her hand. He made a move to stop her, but was suddenly immobilized. He growled at her.
"No," the glow in her eyes faded as she ran her fingers along the length of his beard, "You have no idea. But that is to be expected. We are Power, not Wisdom."
Ganondorf would have responded to the insult in vicious words, were his throat not frozen in place. He glared furiously at the woman, thoughts rushing.
"You do not believe in me," she seemed to realize, grasping his chin, "You wish for further proof."
She stood and moved back. She reached out her arms and her body burst into flames. Motionless on the ground, Ganondorf half-hoped he was hallucinating.
The fire died away, and the woman stood as she had been, untouched. Even her crimson clothing was intact. Her red eyes continued to glow like the flames.
"And yet you are still unconvinced," she seemed amused, "But no matter."
She knelt before him again and waved a hand. Ganondorf's body relaxed against the stone wall, mobility returned. He rubbed his sore arm, wary not to reach for his sword.
"Forgive me for being skeptical," he muttered, "the goddesses left the land thousands of years ago."
"The ancient texts have led you astray before, have they not?"
He stared at her then, her words filling his mind.
She stood up, crossing the room to inspect a shelf full of scrolls, "You have need of my help, and I have need of yours."
"What---"
"When you killed the Hero, my fool sister refused to let go of his soul. You did not force her to let him go because you failed to unite the triforce before running him through."
Ganondorf noted the barb in her voice, "An oversight I do not intend to repeat."
"Calm yourself, I already said the tales themselves led you astray. In any case, you have --- inadvertently," she turned to acknowledge him, "created a serious rift in both our plans."
The Gerudo king began to take the woman seriously as the word both settled into his consciousness. He was not above admitting he needed help, and as this madwoman was clearly a powerful sorceress, he could do worse in the way of allies.
"Go on," he urged.
"Have your attention now, do I?" she tilted her head to the side, red hair cascading over her shoulders.
"What rift?"
She crossed her arms, looking displeased, "Due to the stalemate you created, Farore is dying. Her power has not been passed on. If she dies, the Triforce will be forever broken, and this land will be destroyed."
Ganondorf considered this in the silence. The thought both horrified and appealed to him. The notion of a destroyed Hyrule pleased him greatly, but he would prefer it destroyed on his terms.
Holding the back of his head, Ganondorf stood slowly. He faced the newcomer, the beginnings of a dark smile on his lips.
"What do you need?" he asked her.
She grinned, a gesture which very nearly frightened the Gerudo king.
"I believe," she stepped closer to him, until she was leaning against his breastplate, "a Hylian sacrifice is in order."
The triforce mark on his hand flashed momentarily. Looking into the fires of her eyes, Ganondorf allowed himself to be convinced, and returned her savage grin.
"Anything you wish, my goddess."