Swan Castle had once stood proudly, purely white and revered. For centuries, it was the one Hyrule Castle. All the royal families of Hyrule had inhabited it over the years, and the citizens of the island worshipped its holy beauty. The island was named for the Goddess Din, who had created it and the rest of Hyrule. Each and every Hylian knew of and held the goddesses in the highest of respects. Din, Nayru and Farore were Hyrule.
It didn't stay that way. They did not remain the face of Hyrule, nor did Swan Castle remain the one castle. The Hylians, as all humans do, felt the need to migrate. They left Din's island for the mainland, and build a new, grander castle that wasn't white, but gray. They set up a new kingdom, forgot about the goddesses, and the new royal family tried to resume rule. Most people succumbed. But a select few refused. They fled to the forests and were seldom heard from again.
While the new kingdom grew, the Island of Dinn was forgotten. The towns became forests, and the forests became jungles. Monsters began to infest the island's depths. And no one dared go back.
For the first time in hundreds of years, the walls of Swan Castle stirred. Someone had set foot inside the once-white grandeur, and he hadn't come alone. With him, he brought a treasure lost for so many years, most revered it as a legend. Though the treasure was in fragments, its influence was still powerful. The Triforce of Power. Din's shard. The newcomer hadn't taken his eyes off of it since he had wished himself away to a place where no one was around. He wanted complete isolation. A place where he could be alone with his treasure. As hours became days, his mind became more corrupted by the things the Triforce was promising him. Power, glory, wealth. He wanted more. He needed more. He needed to do whatever it took in order to make the promises become reality. He had forgotten about his life back in his homeland, about all his friends and family. He had forgotten the love he felt for them. All he felt now was fury and hunger. The hunger for true power. It was strange, though all his life he hadn't felt the need to be of any importance, he was driven for this power. Influenced by an ancient evil.
Swan Castle had once housed the most honorable of Hylians. Now it was a hideout, a forsaken fortress for the greatest evil in Hyrule.
00000
The boat silently approached the shore. Link clutched the supply bag closer to his chest. He could feel his heart beating, and couldn't remember feeling so nervous since he had been attacked by the bokoblin in Faron Woods.
"Scared?" Zelda asked in a low voice.
"Terrified," he choked out.
"You should be."
She pulled the boat up onto the sand. The heat of Eldin was gone, and the chill was back. They climbed out of the boat, surveying their surroundings. They stood on a clean shore, but the forest loomed ahead of them. The crumbling tips of Swan Castle poked out of the overgrown jungle.
"Daegal's in there," breathed Link.
"Right in front of us," Zelda agreed. "This isn't going to be easy, you know. Whatever's waiting for us in there, we have to face. And I'm not just talking about Daegal."
"We just have to find Daegal and bring him home," said Link, starting towards the forest.
"I'd unsheath that if I were you," Zelda called after him, indicating his dagger. She caught up with him, then offered her hand. "You keep an eye out for monsters and I hold the supplies?"
Link nodded, handing over the bag.
00000
Din's spirit had gotten used to the heat of the Eldin sun. When her people moved, she moved with them. Her temple resided in the mountains now, surrounded by dust and rock, and cared for by the Gorons.
But Din's spirit was far from home. She had sensed the unrest on the island that was once hers, and knew she needed to go there right away.
It was cold on her island. But she endured it.
The first thing she recognized among the jungles was the old altar. The wooden parts had withered away, but the stone still stood. It had no importance to anyone now, but it made her feel more welcomed. It reminded her that she had once been revered. At the altar, she found the ashes of cremated officials from long ago. Kings, queens, soldiers, all left to rest eternally with the goddesses. Din was not alone.
"I do not mean to disturb you," said Din, breaking the silence. "All who wish to, please join me."
The souls, when they arrived, lit up the darkness. In all, there were four of them. Two were dressed lavishly, for they had been royalty. Another was dressed in a suit of armor, and the other in a dark green dress with a scarf covering her hair and face. A soldier and a servant. Din remembered the day when a servant had been cremated on the goddesses' altar. Many had objected to it. Din couldn't say whether or not she had agreed. The goddesses' altar was really for royalty and officials. Now, at least, Din was glad for the company.
She approached the lavishly-dressed couple first, since she recognized them as King Leo and Queen Saige. The two monarchs hadn't ruled together. Queen Saige was about a hundred years older than King Leo, but at death, they looked the same age.
"Your Majesties," Din greeted them, remembering that humans received compliments well and liked to be respected.
The king and queen bowed their heads in response. Their dated appearance was comforting to Din. They were dressed differently from the people she was used to seeing in the Eldin region. Queen Saige wore a long, modest gown of black and royal blue, and a dark veil over her curled hair. She did not wear a crown of any sort. King Leo wore no crown either; there were no precious minerals on the Island of Dinn. The Eldins made jewelry after they had moved and become Eldins. The Gorons had shown them how.
Din addressed the four souls in front of her. "You have each been here at this altar, watching, since your deaths. This island was once your home. Do you feel the new evil, as I do?"
"There is unrest at Swan Castle," answered the soul of the servant girl in the green scarf. Her voice was slightly muffled.
"Yes," answered the soldier. "At Swan Castle." The soldier's entire face was obstructed, and Din couldn't remember his name. His identity was a mystery.
"He is an outsider," added Queen Saige.
"The reincarnation of Demise," said King Leo.
"in processed what she was hearing. It had been a long time since she had heard anyone mention the Demon King Demise. People had stopped believing in him just as they had stopped worshipping Din. They thought the story of the Demon King trying to take over the world was only a legend, but in truth, it was historical fact. The new royal families of Hyrule had no time for magic, anymore. It would most likely be impossible to warn them about the reincarnation of Demise.
"I see no more point in trying to help the senseless people of the mainland," Din retorted.
"Only they will be able to stop Demise," the servant girl disagreed.
"You are trying to persuade the wrong goddess," replied Din, glaring at the girl. "If you want the Hylians to be granted compassion, you should appeal to Farore. She feels no contempt, even though she has lost their worship. I, however, feel as though I owe these Hylians nothing. For they feel as though they owe me nothing. I created their land, and now they are ruling it foolishly."
"You are suggesting we let Demise be?" asked King Leo. Queen Saige began to shake her head in worry.
"There is nothing we could do, anyway," replied Din. "Demise can only be defeated in two ways; by the Goddess Hylia or a human. Goddess Hylia denounced her divinity centuries ago. She is long dead by now. And as for the humans, they will not believe us. It is useless to try to alert them."
"Perhaps not as useless as you think," the servant girl's soul replied in a soft voice.
Din turned to glare at her again, but this time she stepped forward to face her
"Why do you wear that scarf over your face?" she asked dryly.
The girl's scared, brown eyes darted to the faces of the king and queen. "As a servant, I was required to hide my face," she answered.
"In death, you are no longer a servant," said Din. "Remove it."
The girl hesitated, and then did as she was told. Unwrapping the green fabric from around her head, she revealed black hair cut short, crudely shorn, and an innocent face. She let the scarf fall to the ground.
"What is your name?" Din asked, squinting her stern, dark eyes.
"Sheikah," the girl responded.
Din tried to make her obsidian eyes more stern and her gaunt face more intimidating, but then remembered that she didn't have to intimidate these people. They already revered her, even in death.
"Sheikah," she crooned. "Why is it that you think humanity still has hope?"
Sheikah was quiet for several seconds.
"He is not the only outsider," she finally said. "There are others. A boy and a girl, who have just arrived. They have come after Demise. They think Hyrule can be saved."
Din scoffed. "The only way for Hyrule to be saved is if I let it destroy itself, so it can start over. What do these children think they can do?"
"Farore sent them," said the soldier. "Because Demise possesses a Triforce shard."
"Whose shard?" Din asked.
"Yours."
Din wasn't sure if she felt more embarrassment or pride. More embarrassment, she supposed. But she wasn't going to let that show.
"So they are after the shard, not Demise?"
"The girl is after the shard. But the boy is after Demise. He does not realize Demise is evil. He believes he can save him from the power of the shard.
"Fool," muttered Din. "Would the girl, by chance, happen to be Princess Zelda?
"Zelda will never be given the chance to be a princess," answered Queen Saige. "But yes, it appears to be Zelda."
"Who is the boy?" Din asked.
"A farmer from Hillwind," replied King Leo. "Both sent by Farore to save Hyrule."
"Farore has always had a soft spot for her humans, especially those that come from the forest," sneered Din. "But that does not mean she is right in doing this. Farore will be disappointed when her humans do not succeed."
"Apologies, Goddess Din, but is it necessary to sabotage Goddess Farore's plan?" asked Sheikah.
"As a goddess, it is necessary for me to do what is best for Hyrule. I created this land, so I will do what I can to protect it. The people who live on the land are not my particular concern. They forgot about me, and Nayru, and Farore. I do not understand, then, why she insists on letting them live. They are obviously faulty if they cease to worship their creators."
"But what are you going to do to stop these heroes?" asked the soldier.
"They are not heroes," snapped Din. "They are puppets. And I can control them as easily as Farore can. This island is full of monsters. And between the five of us, we must keep them away from Swan Castle."
00000
Link swung at a low-hanging vine with his blade, clearing the way ahead. They followed no particular path, but had come across several landmarks on their way through the jungle; a cemetery littered with headstones, a crumbling well, and a rotting market stand.
"You think we're going the right way?" Link muttered. For the first time since he met her, Link was glad for Zelda's company.
"Why don't you climb a tree, hero?" was Zelda's sarcastic reply, causing Link to remember the long journey through Faron Woods, and also no longer feel glad for the company.
"Why don't you?"
Zelda rolled her eyes in mockery. "Because, I'm a lady."
"Sure," said Link under his breath, and Zelda pretended not to hear.
The forest was getting darker, now that the sun was slowly disappearing from the sky. Through the tops of the trees, Link could see the clouds beginning to purple.
"It's getting dark," Link said, stating the obvious.
"Thank you for your observation."
"I mean, should we stop?"
"We can't stop," Zelda replied harshly. "We're out in the open, and we don't know what's out there. We can stop once we've found something that resembles shelter."
"How about that?" Link pointed straight ahead. Zelda squinted in the fading light at the crumbling stone altar that he was indicating.
"It's an altar for the goddesses," she remarked as they got closer. "Look." Zelda gingerly traced a finger over three different symbols carved into the stone; one that resembled swirls of wind, one that looked like three crescent moons, and one that imitated ripples in water. "Din, Nayru, and Farore."
They looked down at their feet, and saw that they were standing on another slab of stone that was engraved with yet another carving. Three connected triangles surrounded by what looked like wings, or rays of sunlight.
"The crest of the Goddess Hylia," said Zelda. "You know what that is, don't you?"
"I'm guessing it's the Triforce," replied Link, staring down at the eerie carving.
"That it is. You're smart. It's what the Goddess left behind. I'm surprised this is still standing. It's hundreds of years old." To Link's surprise, Zelda dropped to her knees in front of the altar. He didn't do the same, but he remained silent so Zelda could pray.
When she was done, she stood up and sighed. "Too many people don't pay their respects to the goddesses anymore. I may not respect them much, but at least I know they're real."
"They basically want us to save the world they created," Link muttered. "I just want to save Daegal."
"I know," Zelda said gently. For a few seconds, she stood awkwardly, as if she wanted to do something to comfort him but it wasn't in her nature. "Let's stop for the night."
In the shelter of the altar, Link laid down his dagger and placed the supply bag between them. Zelda pulled out the food that would quickly spoil: the bread, corn, and bacon.
"Want me to make a fire?" Link asked.
"Better not," replied Zelda. "Besides, it's warm enough." She shivered.
Link was used to the chill, and he knew Zelda wasn't. He felt slightly sorry for her. Zelda passed him his share of the food and retrieved a jar of water.
"Is this what it's like living in Hillwind?" she asked.
"No," said Link, taking offense to the comment. "We do have houses, you know."
"Imagine that," Zelda exclaimed. "And here I thought all Hillwinds were wild and uncivilized."
"You should talk, Miss Hylian," Link retorted, even though Zelda was joking.
"How nasty. I'll have you know that I'm not like other aristocrats. I, for one, care about the outcome of the kingdom. That's why I'm doing this, instead of following in my father's footsteps." Zelda shook off the agitation. "But enough about that. I've never been to Hillwind. Tell me what it's like."
Link couldn't help but smile. To think of Hillwind while in a place like this, with dark mists and faraway cries of beasts, was to feel like he was at home with Jørn, sitting at the kitchen table with a Tetran fish in the oven, sizzling warmly.
"It gets really cold," began Link after finishing his bread and bacon. "Especially now that summer's over. In the morning, you wake up and there's frost covering the grass, and the air is chilly and the wind is blowing leaves off the trees. But at home you've got a fire in the hearth and you're surrounded by family. In the summer I work in the fields, growing produce for the town's supply and for exporting. In the fall we harvest it all and we like to have a feast to celebrate the end of the year. On days I have off, I take Daegal into the woods and we spend the day there, just enjoying each other's company." Link's smile dropped as the memories came back. He missed Daegal's smiling face. "We shouldn't rest for long. We have to find the castle."
"We'll find it," Zelda assured him. "So, Athol. Is she your. . ."
"Friend," Link finished. "What's royal life like?"
Zelda didn't smile the way he did. "You wake up to a hot breakfast at your bedside, prepared by servants who are underpaid and often abused. But the food is good. So that takes your mind off the mistreatment of the servants. Someone dresses you, as if you can't do it yourself, and escorts you about your day, which is all planned out for you. First you study endlessly, learning everything there is to know about the kingdom, its history, and its future. You learn the trading routes and the regulations of all the territories, how we can be doing more to control them. You attend meetings and public forums with the king, listening to subjects complain about the way things are being run, and you can't do anything about it. You can only listen to the king laugh and send them away. You witness countless executions of criminals, mostly Alfs, who were really only trying to make a better life for themselves. And you fear for your life every day, you fear that the citizens of Hyrule will think you're the very image of the king, just another cruel monarch waiting to happen, when you're useless to do otherwise." Finally, Zelda's smile came. "How does that sound? Want to give up your peaceful Hillwind life for that?"
Before he could answer, Link was startled by a glowing light not far away from where they were sitting. Link grabbed his dagger, and Zelda looked around in confusion.
"What is it?" she asked.
"I don't know," answered Link in a low voice. The light was coming closer, and Link wasn't sure whether he should attack it or try to scare it off, but then it began to materialize into a human's form. A girl's form.
Zelda hurriedly packed up the water jar in case they had to run, but she stopped when she saw Link lower his dagger.
"What are you doing?"she hissed.
"I don't think it's going to hurt us," Link replied hastily. He called out to the glowing shape. "Who are you?"
"I am the soul of one who once lived here," the voice answered. Definitely female, though Link still couldn't see her clearly. "My ashes reside at this altar. I was cremated along with my master."
Link and Zelda both glanced over at the altar. Several ceramic containers adorned the surface of the altar, though there was no way of telling which one belonged to the voice.
When Link looked back, the young woman had completely taken shape, through she was still emanating beams of light. Now, he could see her short black hair, deep brown eyes, and the plain green dress she wore.
"My name is Sheikah," she said. "And by the Goddess Din's orders, I am not supposed to be assisting you. You are trespassing on Din's island, going after Din's shard. The Demon King Demise awaits you at Swan Castle. The goddess says you must not succeed."
"Why does she say that?" demanded Link. "We're just trying to save my friend."
"And the kingdom," added Zelda. "Which, I like to think, should be important to the goddess who created it."
"I am afraid to disclose Din's reasonings to you. I may be dead and gone but she would find some way to punish me if she found out. However, I can help you. I believe two heroes such as yourselves can go on to save Hyrule from the Demon King."
Link had heard of the Demon King before. He remembered Domhn mentioning him the night he brought the Triforce shard home from the forest. But he knew nothing about the Demon King, and didn't like to think that Sheikah was referring to Daegal when she said it.
"Your help is appreciated," said Zelda, clutching the supply bag. "As is your enthusiasm to disobey your goddess."
Link thought the last part wasn't really necessary, since they didn't want to scare the servant girl away. But he was also glad for the assistance.
"The walls of Swan Castle are nearby, and the gate faces north. The gates will be locked, so you must summon the spirits of the gatekeepers." Sheikah pulled a handful of dirt from a pocket in her dress. "This dust came from their graves. It will be enough to wake them. You must tell them you have come to see the king, and they will let you in. The Demon King resides in the palace. You must go through the courtyards to find him. I wish the two of you good luck in your quest."
Zelda took the handful of graveyard dust from Sheikah and stored it in her own pocket. "Thank you," she said.
Sheikah gave her a warm smile. "For the good of Hyrule." And with that, she was gone.
Link and Zelda were once again left in the darkness, listening to nothing but the rustling of leaves and singing of crickets.
"We just have to find the wall," said Zelda. "And then make our way to the north gate."
00000
Swan Castle was named so because of its color, but centuries after it was named, it no longer looked white. The outer walls were made of stone, and towered over Link and Zelda's heads the next morning, but they could see the grandeur of the tips, all falling away and withering. Link wondered which tower Daegal occupied.
"Hard to believe," Zelda remarked. "We're the first people in centuries to see this castle."
It was impressive, but Link wasn't concerned about that.
"Let's find the north gate," he said.
They followed the wall north, knives drawn, ready to strike at any sound. The supply bag was strung around Zelda's shoulder, and Link could hear the swishing of the water jars. After hearing Sheikah's words, Link had a disconcerting anger forming in his mind. Anger at the Goddess Din for trying to keep him from Daegal, for completely disregarding the good of the world just because she wasn't popular anymore. It was selfish. He didn't care that Din could probably smite him where he stood. It was selfish and idiotic and he decided right then and there that the only goddess he didn't hate was Nayru, since at least she hadn't gotten involved. Nayru, the goddess the Zoras worshipped, was probably enforcing peace and doing magic at that very moment. Then Link realized why Athol wanted to see the Zoras so badly.
"I can hear you fuming," remarked Zelda in a low voice.
"Aren't you angry?" Link asked.
"Angry? Of course not. It's typical. And being angry isn't going to help. What will help is getting the Triforce from Daegal and proving to Din that humans are not completely useless and incompetent. That's our goal right now. Keep your head clear, because once we're inside we'll have to think on our feet. Anything could be waiting for us in there."
Link didn't answer. He couldn't help but worry what they'd find. Farore had promised that Daegal was alive, but that had been several days ago. Something could've happened in the meantime. Daegal didn't know how to defend himself against danger, which was why Link was always at his side. His heart began to pound at a sickening speed, and against his own will he started reciting an apology in his mind, an apology that he might have to repeat to Athol and Nichol and the rest of Hillwind.
I failed.
The north gate was a drawbridge, and was much bigger than Link had expected, but to Zelda, it looked slightly miniscule. It looked like the shell of a castle, a ghost. It seemed to swallow them both up, inviting them to join its dark depths forever.
The guard towers were empty. The gate's chains rattled in the breeze, and the hinges squealed.
Zelda pulled the handful of graveyard dust from her pocket. "I wonder how we're supposed to summon the gatekeepers," she said to Link.
Link called up to the empty guard towers. "We've come to see the king," he tried.
No gatekeepers appeared, but they heard a clang and a moan, and the gate began to lower.
"I thought we'd be able to see them," said Link.
"I guess the souls are only preserved if they are cremated at the goddesses' altar," Zelda replied.
The gate fell at their feet, squealing, and revealed the stone bridge that stretched to the castle courtyards. The courtyards had once been well-tended, that much was clear. But they had now been taken over by weeds and vines and moss, a gentler jungle. The early sun broke through the thick treetops, casting speckles of light upon the tangle of plants. Link and Zelda made their way through the ancient gardens and looked straight ahead; the doors to the palace had fallen off their hinges and were now lying facedown in the courtyard. When they looked inside, they could see nothing but darkness.
Link's knife was shaking in his hand. Zelda saw it, and looked into his eyes, trying to comfort him with words she couldn't find.
"Are you ready?" she asked.
In a moment, Link's mind had already raced through all the possibilities of what they might find. A changed, disturbed Daegal. A dead Daegal. An evil Daegal. Or maybe even nothing.
"Do you think he'll be okay?" asked Link, his voice wavering.
Zelda's eyes changed, and Link couldn't interpret them.
"Yes," she said. Her tone was a mystery.
Link steadied his grip on his dagger and was the first human to enter Swan Castle in countless years.
00000
Link struck a match from the box he had bought in Kakariko. It barely lit up the great hall they were standing in, but they could see walls of marble, and stained glass windows with eerie depictions of human-like figures; a young emerald girl, a golden Goron, an indigo Zora, a violet woman, an old man in crimson, and a thief in orange. To Link, they seemed like magical characters that had been imagined.
"Those are the sages," whispered Zelda.
"What do they do?" Link asked.
"No one knows for sure," Zelda replied, studying the mystic faces of the windows. "But they must have been important. They're illustrated in almost every Hylian history book."
The match was beginning to run low, so Link blew it out and struck another.
"Don't waste those," Zelda reprimanded him. "There are probably lamps around here."
When they looked, they found wrought-iron lanterns mounted on the walls of the great hall. When lit, they made the hall glow warmly, but it didn't make Link feel any more at ease.
Their footsteps echoed as they tried to walk silently down the corridor, ears strained, waiting for a noise. At the end of the hall, they found marble columns and staircases, most of which had been knocked down or corroded.
"Let me take your knife," Zelda ordered.
"Why" asked Link.
"Just do it."
Link handed his Kakari dagger over to the princess, who intercepted it without gratitude. Their eyes drank in the sights of the palace; shredded tapestries with illustrations they could no longer make out, faded portraits of previous royal families, cobwebbed chandeliers, archways, staircases, and so many doors. Link was afraid to find out where they all led, but for the first time, his curiosity was piqued. He had never been inside a castle before, nor had Jørn. The first thing he would do when he got home, after giving Daegal a stern reprimanding, would be to tell Jørn that castles really weren't that bad.
Zelda, who was familiar with the anatomy of castles, pointed at a staircase between two crumbling columns, which led to a door more elaborate than the others.
"That probably leads to the throne room," she said.
Link took the lead, testing each step before continuing to make sure the staircase wouldn't collapse beneath their weight. They reached the upper balcony of the main hall, which would be a long way down if the floor decided to give way.
"Daegal?" Link called out weakly. There was no answer. Zelda readied the dagger as Link's fingers grasped the handles of the throne room doors. He twisted, and the doors creaked open.
"Daegal. . .?"
The glow from the great hall seeped into the throne room. The two thrones cast shadows all the way down from where they stood to Link and Zelda's feet. The queen's throne was empty. The king's throne seated a slumped figure, shrouded in darkness.
"Is that you?"
When the figure's head turned, all Link could see were the glinting, golden eyes. But they no longer looked innocent. Now, they were fierce, accusatory.
"Go away," the shadow growled. It was Daegal's voice, but it had changed. It was a snarl. A warning.
Link didn't obey. He stepped closer to the king's throne, and felt Zelda at his back, having left the supply bag at the door. He wished she would lower the dagger. It wouldn't do anything except make Daegal feel more afraid.
"It's going to be okay, Daegal," Link murmured. "It's me. I'm here to take you home, so you can see your dad and Athol. Your family misses you. I miss you."
Finally speaking to Daegal made Link feel nauseous. He had wanted it to go differently. He had wanted Daegal to be glad to see him.
"I don't have a family," snarled the shadow that was Daegal. His golden eyes narrowed as Link drew closer. He eyed the dagger, not with fear, but regarding it as a challenge.
"You do have a family," said Link. "I'm your family. Don't you remember?"
The slumped shadow seemed to consider. "I don't remember you."
Link had no time to feel sick. The shadow stood up then, and the changed image of Daegal made Link's stomach drop. His features were no longer round and happy. Now they were gaunt, stern, and dead-looking. His red hair had been shorn off so his golden ear studs were visible. In all, Daegal looked crazed, ill, and many years older than he was.
Demon King, Link recalled.
It had to still be Daegal inside. His mind was being poisoned, but he had to still be there somewhere.
"What do you mean, you don't remember?" Link didn't want to cry, but when Daegal made eye contact to glare at him, the sickening unfamiliarity of the situation became too much. Link choked out the words. "You're my best friend. I—I love you."
"I said go away!" his voice boomed. The golden eyes flashed with rage. "I want to be alone! Leave my castle."
Link was close to him now, with Zelda right behind him.
"Will you lower that?" he hissed to her, but she refused.
"Leave me alone! Leave me alone!" Daegal's screams were deafening.
"Please, Daegal—"
"Don't call me that!" the boy shouted with pain, devastation and fury ripping through his voice. "My name. . .is Ganondorf."
"Where is the Triforce?" Zelda demanded, finally speaking.
"I am the Triforce," came Daegal's lunatic reply. "I am power, and I am alone!" He began making noises that sounded like a mixture of crazed laughter and gross sobbing. His eyes were gleaming. "I am finally power."
Link didn't know what to do. He was frozen with tears on his face. He couldn't even bring himself to say his friend's name.
To his surprise, Zelda raised the dagger and charged at Daegal, intending to give a deadly blow.
"No!" Link shouted, but before he could grab her, Daegal delivered his own retaliation, a burst of dark magic that seemed to explode from his fingertips. Link had never seen anything like it. The energy flung Zelda back, dagger in hand. She crashed onto the floor of the throne room, tangled in her skirt. The dagger clattered to the floor.
"Are you all right?" Link panted, rushing to her. He didn't wait for her answer. He helped her to her feet and grabbed his knife.
"We have to get out of here, Link," she said, trying to pull him to the door, and gathering the supply bag.
"No, we have to make him remember!" Link shouted.
"Look at him! He's forgotten. It's too late, Link. Come on!"
Link allowed himself one last look at his friend. Daegal's expression had darkened, his eyes glinted, and he readied himself to fire more magic if need be. Without another word, Link slipped through the door with Zelda in the lead.
00000
The forest was brighter in the daytime, but Link still couldn't see clearly because his vision was blurred by anger, confusion and tears. He let himself be blindly dragged along by Zelda, who was trying to remember the way to the beach where they had left their boat.
"The sooner we get off this cursed island, the better," she was saying. At that moment, Link didn't care what happened to them.
After they had run as far as they could, Zelda stopped and looked around frantically.
"I don't think we're going the right way," she stated.
"What do you mean?" Link panted.
"We should have found the altar by now. I must've gotten us lost back there somehow. Okay, we just need to retrace our steps. The deeper we go into the jungle, the more dangerous it is. We haven't run into any monsters yet so I'm guessing Din is saving the best for last."
"Did she have anything to do with Daegal?" Link asked, his voice dripping with hatred. "Did she do that to him to discourage us?"
"Honestly Link, I doubt it. I think that's just the sheer power of the Triforce," Zelda replied hastily.
"But it's her shard. Doesn't she have some control over it?"
"Din had nothing to do with this. Long ago, someone found the Triforce and tried to make a wish, but it didn't work, so the Triforce split. Your friend just happened to stumble upon the Triforce of Power. It's not anyone's doing, it's just bad luck," said Zelda.
"He can't even remember me," Link muttered to himself. "He doesn't remember anything. He's the best friend I've ever had and he can't even remember me."
"This isn't really the place to talk about this," Zelda answered. "We need to get off this island. And I'd like to do it with as few run-ins as possible."
Link sheathed his dagger since he didn't have the energy to keep it at the ready. The two tried to walk as quietly as they could through the ominous forest, crunching on a leaf or a twig every now and then, taking turns eating and drinking. They finished the potatoes and the dried fruit, and the last of the first water jar. They didn't check to see how much they had left. They didn't want to think about it right away.
When afternoon came, they were arguing about which way to go. They had made no progress and still hadn't found the beach, and Link was beginning to worry that they'd have to spend another night on the island.
"There has to be something else around here," Zelda was saying. "What did we pass on the way to the castle? A graveyard, a market stand, a well, and the altar. We haven't seen any of those things. We should just go back the way we came. If we find the castle again—"
"Wait," Link interrupted. Zelda was quiet for a moment and listened for what Link was hearing. It was a musical clattering, like chimes in the wind. And the creaking of old wooden beams. They followed the mysterious sounds a short distance, until they came to a clearing that had probably once been clearer.
What they saw were buildings gradually turning to dust, made of wood and stone. Their glass windows were mostly broken, but some dirty ones were still intact. Some stood several stories high, some had collapsed long ago. Some resembled huts, and some were obviously made by the skilled for the richer. And the entire clearing was empty and silent, except for the hollow singing of wind scraping across broken glass, and the eaves of the houses swaying.
"It was a village," breathed Zelda.
An impressive majority of it was still standing. Dust and sand blew across the ground that had been cleared of trees. Link and Zelda left footprints in the ancient roadways. Looking up and down the streets, examining the homes, Link imagined what kind of people had once lived in them. What sort of lives they'd lived, and what had driven them away. What they were in the middle of doing when they had left. If they'd had children, loved ones, enemies. If their souls were watching him now, begging to be remembered. Link shook the thought away. It gave him chills.
Neither of them knew what to say. They were too busy drinking in the mammoth sight of so ancient a civilization, lost to the current age. Nobody back in the mainland dared venture near the Island of Dinn, so it gave Link and Zelda a satisfied feeling to be the only ones to look upon the village.
They were soon snapped out of their astonished trance by a ferocious, dog-like snarl. Link and Zelda whipped their heads around to see where it was coming from. Link shakily drew his dagger and Zelda watched with keen eyes for any sort of movement.
The most either of them had expected was a wild animal that had made shelter in the village and wanted to protect its territory. What they saw instead, what lunged at them from a second-story balcony, was too wild, too fierce, to hippopotamic to be an animal. It was a monster. At first it looked wolf-like, with a growling jaw and fangs dripping with saliva, until they noticed that each of its limbs looked human, though they were covered in dark fur and were each as long as the creature's body. At the end of each blackened finger was a talon, sharp as a needle. The monster had no eyes, but it didn't seem to need them. It roared at Link and Zelda, towering over them. Link's dagger seemed useless in comparison to the monster's claws and fangs. Without meaning to, he stepped back in fear, and was glad when he saw Zelda doing the same. It was a bold move, on Goddess Din's part.
"It has a weak spot," stuttered Zelda. "I've read that every creature has a weak spot. You just. . .have to find it."
"This isn't just a creature," Link replied in an equally wavering voice. "Every part of this thing is pure evil."
"Just hit it somewhere that looks vulnerable."
"None of it looks vulnerable," Link hissed.
The wolf monster roared again, and advanced closer to them, fangs dripping and tail twitching. Link's fist was growing sweaty, and his grip on the dagger was beginning to slip.
"What if we've come all this way for nothing?" he almost whimpered.
Shockingly, Zelda's gaze matched his frightened one.
And then there was a flash of white light that blinded them, and seemed to blind the wolf creature that was closing in. The light died down, and in its place stood a glowing woman, dressed in long, lavish skirts and veils. Another spirit, Link supposed.
The magnificent woman turned to the monster, obstructing its path to the children.
"Begone," she ordered fiercely. When the beast did not obey, she redirected her gaze to Link and Zelda.
"For the good of Hyrule," was all she said, before she raised her hand and sent another beam of blinding light towards them. It swallowed them up before they could react at all, and suddenly both Link and Zelda felt as if they were flying or falling or being pulled apart limb from limb. All they could see was white. And then, they couldn't see anything.
When they opened their eyes again, they found themselves in an unknown place. But wherever they were, they supposed they were no longer on the Island of Dinn. They could tell by the copious voices of humans. The sound of a city.