Malice


"Link! Link are you out there? If you can hear me, follow the sound of my voice!"

Navi's voice was hoarse as she called out into the evening air, but Hyrule field offered nothing to her, just as it had the last day and a half. The night Link had disappeared, she had circled back to see if he had run back to the lake, then when that gave her no leads, she had returned to where she lost him. A nearby copse of trees offered no help either. She had rested there, sheltering amongst the roots of an old gnarled tree until the sun rose, shivering as she listened to the sounds of wolfos and other wild beasts moving amongst the undergrowth, praying to the goddesses that she would not be seen.

This had to be all her fault, she thought. She had pushed Link too hard, perhaps, and angered him, and he had run off. Or he had gotten sick of her constant correction of his behavior, and thought he was better off without her. What if he had returned to the forest, deciding to abandon their quest because of her? Oh, then she really would never forgive herself. With the burden of the fate of Hyrule on her shoulders, Navi cried for the first time in a long time, her tears only ceasing with the morning sun.

When light began to filter down through the canopy of leaves though, she caught herself looking to the sky. What was she doing here feeling sorry for herself about? The Great Deku Tree had told her to help Link as his dying wish. Even if Link did not want her, she had to stay by his side until their quest was finished.

Her resolve steeled, Navi rose and began her search. She flew across the fields high in the air, hoping to catch sight of Link, only stopping once by the river for a drink. But now evening was falling, tinting the sky a deep orange. Storm clouds were rolling in on the horizon. She found herself losing hope once again. What if she failed to find him and something happened to him? Something she could have prevented if she had been just a little more alert to his feelings, so that they never would have been separated in the first place.

A crumbling stone wall caught her eye as she began to lower herself closer towards the ground. She would shelter there for the night, giving her a place to rest her wings. In the morning, she could try returning to the forest. Even if Link had not returned, perhaps he would have talked to Saria, and she would have an idea of where to go?

What if he had told Saria not to tell her though? Would Saria listen to him? Or would she be willing to hear her out?

She landed in a small crevice between two crumbling rocks. It was no perfect shelter - a bit damp, really - but it for the most part sheltered her from wind and from any rain that might strike. The fairy crawled inside and willed the natural light she gave off to dim slightly, enough that she might not be easily noticed. Then she turned so that she could see out of the crack.

The air had grown stagnant and humid. The storm rolling in would be a bad one, she was certain. Hopefully, Link would have found shelter by now. Not even the crickets were chirping like they normally would, the heavy air making them end their music early. She did, however, hear the sound of a large bird landing somewhere nearby. She scooted back just a bit further. Most creatures were smart enough not to prey on a fairy, but the risk to her life was not worth letting herself be seen.

She was so well hidden - she thought at least - that she had not expected to hear a voice call out for her. "Hoo hoo, you need not hide from me, appointee of the forest's spirit. Please come out, I would like to have a word with you."

Navi let out a gasp, recognizing the voice. That was… She shook her head quickly and peeked out of her hiding place and – once satisfied that it was safe – crawled back out, fluttering into the air before landing on one of the top rocks. Sitting nestled on one of the larger stones with his feathers ruffled up was Kaepora Gaebora. She stared dumbly for a moment before it occurred to her that he might have seen Link. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say anything, he held up a wing to motion for her silence.

"I'm afraid we have not much time," the bird warned, twisting his head up to look to the sky, to the setting sun, and to the ominous storm clouds. "Trouble is on the horizon, so I must ask that you allow me to speak quickly and listen carefully."

Navi froze, anxiety flaring in her stomach. His words chilled her to her core. But after a moment her senses returned to her. She nodded slowly and shifted so that she was sitting more comfortably, waiting for the bird to continue.

Knowing he now had a captive audience, the bird let out a hoot and ruffled his feathers for a second before beginning. "I can tell that you are tired, dear," he began, "but I am afraid I will have to have you put your endurance to the test. Link - no - the entirety of Hyrule is in grave danger, and time is of the essence."

At once, Navi was in the air. "Link is in danger?! Where is he? Tell me! I'll go immediately!"

Kaepora Gaebora let out a disgruntled chirp. "Hold on, hold on, let me speak please. Give me a moment." He waited for Navi to settle down a bit, then bobbed his head before continuing. "The forces of darkness are on the move, my dear fairy, and there is nothing more I can do to help you two. You must hurry to castle town, find Link, get the Ocarina of Time from Zelda, and get to the Temple of Time before it's too late. I will await you there."

"But wait," Navi said, taking just barely to the air. "Why can't you just take-" but before she could finish her sentence, the bird had taken to the air and began to fly back in the general direction of Castle Town.

The fairy let out a breath, shaking as the first droplets of rain began to fall before starting off in the same direction. A storm was rolling in, in both the figurative and literal sense. And she feared that if she did not hurry, she might only be met with ruin.


The distant roll of thunder kept Zelda from being able to fall into a restful sleep. Something about the tense atmosphere this evening made her feel uneasy. Although she should have been sleeping, or at least preparing for the next day's studies, she found herself staring forlornly out the window, watching guards walk about their routes by torchlight, her room illuminated only by a single candle.

As she watched, she noticed a guard run up to another pair. The trio quickly split up, abandoning their routes running across the grounds. How odd. Perhaps someone had intruded? She wondered if the skull kid from before was the cause. Had he returned already? She could only pray to the goddesses that his journey was drawing to a close; the longer it took him, the more antsy and worried she became.

Her chamber door clicked. Zelda whipped back around and let out a gasp, expecting to see some tutor had come to tell her get back to bed so that she would not be sleepy for the morning lessons. But instead, the in the doorway was her trusted nanny, Impa, her body covered by a durable cloak, illuminated by a lamp that she held in her hand. It was hard to see her expression in the dim light, but she was quite sure Impa was frowning.

"My dear Zelda," the old shekiah began, her voice hushed and urgent, "please get dressed, hurry."

Her serious tone sprang Zelda into action. She stood up, hurrying to her wardrobe, and removed the simplest dress she had, one that would only require a few buttons and the laces in the back to be pulled taunt and tied, something that Impa only had to spend a moment to do with practiced ease.

But while Zelda had been getting ready Impa stepped into the room, quietly closing the door behind her, and began gathering up a few items: a small pouch of money that Zelda kept on her, a single spare dress and under garment, a cloak for the rain, and Zelda's night clothes, once the princess was dressed. She already had a couple other bags with her.

Zelda gave a quizzical look as she began to pull a pair of flat shoes on. "Impa? What's going on?"

Impa approached the door, held a finger up to her lips to shush Zelda, and put her ear up to it, listening. When she seemed satisfied, she stepped away and opened it, gesturing for Zelda to follow. "We have to leave, my princess. Come, quickly now."

The tense tone in which Impa spoke gave Zelda reason enough to obey wordlessly. She stood up and hurried to Impa's side, following her out the door. "Wait, what about the candle?" she asked. "Shouldn't we put it out?"

"Leave it," Impa instructed. "We want them to think you're still there."

"Want… who?"

The woman took Zelda's hand and pulled her close to her walking lightly around a corner, keeping close to the wall and concealing her torch as more light and rushed footsteps poured down the hall. A pair of guards rushed by across the intersection. Zelda caught Impa letting out a relived sigh.

Once they were by, Impa picked up the pace, pulling Zelda along down the halls and down flights of winding stairs, occasionally pausing to let someone pass. They reached the castle courtyard and continued along the side, headed to the stables, ducking low to hide behind bushes when possible.

Across the way, Zelda caught sight of movement. But this time they were clearly not the guards or castle staff. No, in the dim light she could make out only bits and pieces, but there was no mistaking the stout bodies or bulldog-like faces of moblins.

Impa's grip on her arm tightened as they rounded a corner, coming to a sudden stop behind a fountain. For a moment, they stood still with Impa at attention, poised to move. Then she bolted, nearly dragging Zelda down the path towards the stables.

"Going somewhere, princess?"

Impa nearly skidded to a stop, Zelda running into her backside. The woman pushed her just a bit more behind, pushing her back again when she tried to peek around her protector's form. In front of them, blocking their escape, were two moblins. And of course, in the middle, the one who let them in: Ganondorf, standing with his arms crossed, letting out a grim chuckle as he looked them over.

Impa's movements were slow, methodical. Zelda couldn't see what she was doing, but she felt the woman's grip on her loosen, though only for a moment.

"Ganondorf, you filthy pig," Impa growled, her words coming out venomous. "What have you done?"

"Just paying back Hyrule the kindness they extended to my people." He grunted, flipping his head towards one of the moblins. "Seize them."

Several things happened all at once, too quick for Zelda to fully comprehend what happened. The first moblin to Ganondorf's left readied his weapon and charged forward. The one on his right moved only a second later. She felt Impa's grip tighten. In one swift, fluid movement, the woman threw something hard on the ground. There was a loud "Crack!" and a flash of light. She felt Impa lift her off the ground in both arms and bolt. Next thing she knew, they were more than halfway to the stable, Ganondorf and the moblins still recovering. She heard the gerudo man let out an enraged scream.

Her attention turned to fast approaching stables. Afraid to watch and see if they were already being pursued. How could everything have gone from fine to wrong so fast?

A soldier met the pair at the entrance to the stables, leading a white horse laden with a saddle and loaded bags. Impa lifted Zelda up into the saddle before hoisting herself on. "Did you bring everything I asked for?" She asked the soldier.

"Rations, water, money, spare horse gear, it's all packed away," the soldier responded with a grunt. "Godspeed to you two."

Zelda turned her attention to Impa. "Wait, where are we going?"

"We're going to hide on the far side of Death Mountain, to keep you safe, Zelda."

"But wait, what about the Ocarina of Time? What about Link, the forest boy we were waiting for? We have to wait for him! He needs the ocarina, and he won't know to go to the Temple of Time!"

Impa shook her head but paused to pull something from inside her cloak: the ocarina in question. "We can't wait any longer, Zelda, we have to go now. We'll keep it safe until we can get in contact with him. But just in case, do you remember the magic of memory I taught you?"

Zelda hesitated, but nodded slowly, lowering her gaze. "If it's the only way…"

Satisfied, Impa turned her attention to the soldier. "Thank you so much for getting the horse ready for us. May the goddesses bless your soul."

The man gave a gruff grunt, tightening his grip on his spear. "It's been an honor to serve the royal family. I'll hold off Ganondorf's forces for as long as possible here, to buy you time.

"And if I see the forest boy you're looking for Zelda," he added, "I'll be sure to tell him what you said, and where you're going."

Slightly comforted, the princess gave him a slight smile. "Thank you."

Impa's head snapped up as the sound of a pained yell filled the air, followed by angry shouting. "We're out of time. I hope to see you again, soldier." With that, she yanked the reins and spurred the horse into action. It let out a shrill whinny before taking off at a gallop, racing away in the darkness towards the Castle Town gates.


The clouds had opened to a light drizzle by the time that Link gathered up his belongings, scarfed down a small serving of the bread Malon had provided him, and managed to leave Lon Lon Ranch, distant thunder rolling overhead.

He traveled in silence for nearly half an hour. But something nagged at his mind. Something that he felt important enough to do, especially after the discovery of the loss of his flute. As worked his way through a patch of tall, damp grass, he reached into his bag for his ocarina and took hold of it, fingering the tune before bringing it to his mouth to play a soft rendition of Saria's Song.

"Link, are you there?"

He let out a sigh of relief, hearing Saria's voice. She was okay. Why wouldn't she be? His dream was just a dream, and nothing more. "Yeah, I'm here. Are you and Skully doing okay?"

"We're… fine," she replied.

He paused, her tone causing him to stop walking for a moment. "Just fine? Is Skull Kid with you?"

There was hesitation in Saria's voice. "He's… gone out into the woods to check something for me. He said he saw some Mad Scrubs leaving the forest today. Which is odd… Usually only the more business-minded scrubs choose to leave the woods, you know? So, I asked him to check out what's going on."

Link's face fell slightly, knowing now that he would not get a chance to talk to Skull Kid now. He found himself silently thankful that Saria could not see it, however. He began walking again as he felt the wind and rain begin to pick up. There was a flash of lightning in the distant clouds, illuminating the spires of the castle in the distance, followed shortly by a distant roll of thunder.

"I see…"

"He hasn't come back yet, sorry Link. Do you want me to tell him you contacted me?"

"Yeah, that would be nice."

He heard Saria giggle. "Okay, I'll do so. I wish we could contact you, but unfortunately the magic I used doesn't work that way. Just try to call back in a few hours, maybe? By the way, how is your quest going anyways?"

"Oh, right! Actually I… I just got the last stone yesterday. I'm on my way to Castle Town to deliver them now!"

"Oh that's great Link! So you and Navi should be back soon, right?"

There was a moment of silence where Link said nothing.

"Link?"

"We… well… I got kind of mad at Navi yesterday, and we got separated. I'm… hoping that she'll be waiting for me at the castle, but if she's not… I'll have to look for her first."

"Navi's missing?" Saria asked. There was a moment of silence on her other end. "No Tali, I don't know yet, give me a minute."

"Is everything okay between you two? Do you mind telling me what happened?"

"She thinks I'm a monster!" Link blurted out, everything coming out at once now that he finally had a chance to let his anxieties and frustrations out. "She and everyone else out here. They just… View me as nothing more than a monster. Some of them put up with it. Darunia was nice enough, and Malon was really nice, and so were Impa and Zelda but… everyone else just seems to think of me as a nuisance to be careful around at best, and a mean-spirited monster to chase – or worse, kill – at worst. And Navi won't hardly lift a wing to defend me!"

Saria was silent for a long time. Long enough that, for a second, Link thought for a moment that maybe she was internally agreeing too.

"Oh, Link… Saria began slowly. "I'm sorry things are like that for you out there. The Deku Tree used to tell me that it was dangerous out there. That most people were scared of things that they did not know. And, well, skull kids leave the woods little more than the kokiri do."

"It's not fair," the skull kid whined.

"I know it's not fair," Saria agreed. "But I want you to look on the positive side of things. When you're done, and you've reunited with Navi, you'll be able to come back here to me and Skull Kid, and know we care about you and like you just the way you are."

Link was quiet for a moment. "I suppose you have a point… Thanks, Saria. It's not much, but… I guess it means a lot, with how I've felt lately."

"Now hurry along Link, I'm looking forward to seeing you again. And you know Skull Kid is."

"Tell him I'm ready to see him too." He paused to look up, realizing he was a lot closer to Castle Town than expected. "I think I better go. I'll let you know once I've delivered the stones."

"Take care, Link."

The storm had grown stronger by the time he ended the connection to Saria. And by the time he grew close enough to see castle town when lightning lit the land, it had turned into a deluge, wind whipping rain around him. He lamented the fact that he was getting soaked yet again, just when he was starting to dry out, and held his bag closer.

As he neared the protective wall, he remembered his first time he visited castle town, and realized with dismay that he would be stuck waiting outside in the rain for hours until the sun rose, and the gates opened.

Or so he thought.

Even over the sound of the pouring rain and rolls of thunder, he could hear something else; a loud creaking and clicking noise. In a flash of lightning, he caught sight of the drawbridge slowly lowering open. He stepped back, cautious.

Something about this felt vaguely familiar.

For a second, nothing happened. He swore he heard shouts from the other side of the wall. Then he knew he heard the sound of something click-clacking against stone, growing closer. Less than a moment later, a great white horse came tearing past him. In the lightning, he caught a glimpse of two riders. One wore a heavy cloak. And the other…

"Zelda?!"

The girl must have either heard or caught sight of him. Because a second later, she shouted something that he could not make out. The other person yelled something back to her. She reached for something and threw it back in his general direction. It sailed in an arc and landed with a splash in the moat behind him. He turned to look back for a second to try and figure out what it was, but a loud whinny caught his attention.

He turned his head back towards the drawbridge and could not help but let out a cry of alarm as lightning flashed yet again. The rain began to lessen ever so slightly, the clouds becoming just a bit wispier as he stared down the horse reared up in front of him. And on the back was the source of almost all of his recent problems: Ganondorf.

The darkly clad man patted a hand against his horse's neck, calming it slightly. Link tensed as the man began to yell.

"Arrrrgh! I lost her!" Link could not make out his body language, but he could hear him let out a long huff of air. He began to back up slowly. A flash of lightning lit up his form, however, and alerted Ganondorf to his presence. The gerudo man turned his head. Link swore he saw angry grit teeth twist into a smile.

"You over there! Forest Spirit!" The man shouted to him. "You must have seen the white horse gallop past just now… Which way did it go?!" When Link said nothing the man's voice rose even louder. "Don't just stand there, answer me!"

Link took a cautious step back then froze in place, glowing blue eyes staring down Ganondorf. He steeled himself, then slowly began to reach for his sword, holding it defensively in front of him.

His sign of aggression was not missed by Ganondorf. The man grit his teeth… but then he chuckled, a sound that sent chills down Link's spine.

"So," he began, "you think you can protect them from me… Heh! You've got guts, kid, I'll give you that." He chuckled again, flashing his teeth at the skull kid. "You really want a piece of me? Ganondorf? Very funny! I admit, I like your attitude." Link hesitated as he noticed the man move, raising a hand up towards him. Dark energy began to gather around his hand. But he did not let his resolve waver.

"You could join me, you know," the man continued nonchalantly as energy continued to build in his palm. "I could use more courageous pawns like you in my army. The job comes with a lot of power, you know."

Link quickly shook his head, readjusting his blade. He had heard enough; he could try to end this right now. Try to buy Zelda a bit more time. With an angry yell, he charged forward.

Ganondorf did not waver in the slightest. "Tch, how unfortunate, Well, willing or not, I'm sure I can find some sort of use for someone like you." The spell had finished charging, glowing bright around his hand.

Link had no time to process the statement. He leapt, only for a bolt of magical energy to hit him square in the chest, stopping his momentum and sending him tumbling backwards to the ground.

He managed to climb to his feet, but instead of being a single blast that only painfully knocked him away, the energy continued to coarse through him. The magic remained anchored in Ganondorf's hand, buzzing tendrils of lightning-like energy connecting the two of them. From where they hit his chest, he felt… something, something he could not describe welling up, energy painfully worming its way in and flowing through his body - down into his legs, into his arms, even working its way up into his head making him turn dizzy. It was like when he'd been zapped by the jellyfish, but far, far worse. Unlike the short, paralyzing electrical sting, this persisted, like a sensation of flaming bugs eating him from the inside out. He could not help but scream.

But more terrifying than the pain, than how much it hurt and how loudly the pain made him cry out, was when he suddenly found himself unable to scream any longer. When his voice died in his throat, and his body felt heavy and sluggish. When his vision blurred, and everything felt distant. When the pain stopped, even though magic still connected the two of them.

His arms dropped to his sides; his blade fell from his hands. Only then did Ganondorf cut the connection, only a small bit of energy remaining in his hand. Link gasped and slumped forward, then fell to his hands and knees, still feeling heavy, sluggish, and distant. A few droplets dark energy dripped off his chest, evaporating into a dark vapor as they hit the ground.

He heard Ganondorf let out a harrumph before speaking up again. It took him a minute to focus and try and understand what he was saying, his ears ringing. "...long enough. You had a surprisingly resilient spirit, kid. I'll give you that. Now, I'll ask you again: which way did the white horse go?"

Link tried to open his mouth to protest. To say he would never answer. But he could not seem to get himself to speak. Instead, to his horror, one of his hands began to raise up. He tried to make it stop. But all he managed to do was make it shake with effort. A pounding pressure built up in his head the more he fought it.

Ganondorf clenched the fist still holding magic, the dark energy flaring bright for just a moment, and his resistance failed him. The last thing he saw before his will failed him entirely was his arm pointing to the left. The last thing he heard was Ganondorf's horse whinny. And then, darkness took him, and Link could resist no more.


Navi had traveled for two whole hours, fighting against exhaustion first, then the wind and rain as she raced against the storm towards Hyrule castle.

Fairies were known for being able to fly fairly quickly… for something of their size. But Fairies were not built for long distance or endurance. And her exhaustion from the day of searching was only impeding her.

But she would not let herself slow down. She could not. Not with everything at stake now. Even if it was almost impossible to see in the dark and in the whipping rain if she was going in the right direction.

By some stroke of luck though, the rain eventually began to die down into nothing more but a drizzle. The moon and stars began to peek out from behind thinning, wispy clouds, giving her a clear view of the castle spires sticking up against the night sky. She adjusted her route slightly to head more directly towards it.

As she neared the castle gates, she noticed the form of a single person sitting on the ledge of the moat that surrounded the protective wall. As she grew closer, she could make out the vivid red of their soaked clothing, and the dark, ashy color of their skin.

"Link!" The fairy called out as she picked up speed, recognizing him immediately.

He raised his head up to the air, then slowly turned back. Perhaps a bit stiffly. It took him a moment to notice Navi, but once he did, he shifted to stand up.

As she got closer, she noticed that he had something in his hands, his fingers shifting over it. At first, she thought it was the fairy ocarina, but as she got closer, she realized that the color was all wrong. Instead of the more natural brown, the instrument was instead a vibrant blue.

She decided to hold off on asking that information until later.

"Link, there you are! Thank goodness you're okay! I've been looking all over for you. Don't scare me like that again! Where have you been? Are you alright? Kaepora Gaebora said you were in some sort of danger." The words spilled from Navi's mouth like a waterfall, one rapid fire statement after another until she was forced to catch her breath.

Link stared at her for a moment and said nothing. The silence stretched on for so long, that she began to think something might be wrong. His fingers had stopped moving.

"...Link?"

"We have to go to the Temple of Time," the skull kid finally responded, nearly monotonously, in a way that made Navi uncomfortable, and twisted her stomach in knots. Something about the way he said it did not sound like him.

"... Okay. We'll do that when the drawbridge comes up in the morning. We have to wait for that anyways. Is that okay?"

There was another long break of silence. "The drawbridge will raise soon."

His voice was blunt, cold almost. Navi was almost certain that something was wrong, off. But… perhaps it was her? She chose her words carefully. "Link… is everything alright? Did I do something to upset you?"

Link did not answer, only turning his head to look back towards the drawbridge before sitting back down on the edge of the moat.

Navi sucked in a breath before fluttering over to land on his shoulder. He made no motion to move or swat her away but did not acknowledge her either. Something certainly felt off, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

Hoping he might talk if she changed the subject, she spoke up after clearing her throat. "So… about that ocarina. Where did you get it?"

His head tilted ever so slightly to the side. Silence followed the simple motion before he finally spoke in barely a whisper. "Zelda gave it to me."

"You saw the princess?" Navi asked. "Then why are you out here? Why aren't you already in town? Did something happen that made you have to sneak out again?"

His head turned to the side. "They're lowering the drawbridge."

"Wha- why would they be doing it now?" Sure enough though, she could hear the tell-tale creaks and clicks of the bridge being lowered. The skull kid stood up, keeping the ocarina in his hands, and began to walk towards the bridge.

"Link, this doesn't make any sense! Why would they lower the bridge at this time of night? What if it's a trap? Please wait and answer me!"

The skull kid ignored the fairy's pleas, walking stiffly, yet confidently towards the bridge. "They're waiting for me."

Navi hesitated for a second before flying after him to catch up. "Link wait! You're acting really weird. Who is waiting for you?"

"We have to go to the Temple of Time."

With the only other option to leave him behind, Navi steeled herself for whatever might be happening and settled down on her spot-on Link's shoulder, tightly gripping the fabric.

Castle Town's central square was totally different at night, hardly a soul out and about. Several dogs were running loose, but otherwise the only people in the courtyard were a young couple standing on the far side of the fountain, standing watching the castle with their hands held, speaking in hushed whispers. Navi hesitated, then took note of the direction Link was heading before breaking off to fly over next to the couple. "Excuse me, is everything okay?" she asked.

The man paused looking over in surprised before offering in a hesitant voice, "well… we were just trying to figure out what was going on at the castle. Two horses came running through here about… a half hour ago?" He paused to look at the woman. She gave him a nod in response. "We saw a guard head towards the Temple of Time not long after. He did not look in good shape… And then a couple of guards just headed towards the drawbridge watchtower… I wonder if something's happened?"

Navi glanced back; Link was nearly out of sight. "Thank you for letting me know," she said to the pair. Then she turned back to catch up to Link. His strides had only become more confident since he'd reached the path he was on now, passing by the mask shop she remembered him stealing from before.

She landed quietly on his head. If he noticed her, he did not say anything, continuing on the path he was taking without a second thought.

"Link," she tried again. "How do you know where you're going?" Perhaps Zelda told him? Or was there something else at play here? Link did not answer verbally, though he did raise a hand to point a finger at the spires of some large, extravagant building in the distance.

The fairy let out a sigh. She wanted to talk to him, to give him a stern lecture about avoiding talking to people. But she feared that it would only drive him further away. "Just… whenever you're ready to talk, let me know, okay Link?"

The skull kid failed to respond yet again. Navi could not tell if that was a good or a bad sign, and that bothered her to no end! She was the guide; she was supposed to know things. And if she was clueless like this, not able to tell how Link was feeling, what good could she do?

"Did… you say your n- hngh – I mean… his name was Link?"

For a second, Link stopped, turning his head at the sound of his name. Navi spotted the guard first, sitting leaning against the gate between two carved stones. His armor was spattered with blood, arms clutching his abdomen, his weapon discarded to his side. Navi fluttered down to get a better look.

The man let out a pained moan and spoke again. "Unnngh...are you the boy from the forest...?"

"This is Link," Navi answered. Only now that she was close enough could she see how seriously injured the man was, that much of the blood was his own. He tried to reach an arm out towards the skull kid, who stood back just a bit. "Don't move," she chided the man, forcing herself to sound calm and gentle. "You're hurt, you'll only injure yourself further. "

"I-I-it's too late for th-at," the man stuttered. "L-let me speak, p-please. I-I-I have something to t-t-tell you… important… Ganondorf, the gerudo King of Thieves, and a handful of turncoats, betrayed our King… Th-the king has fallen."

"No!" Navi cried out, jingling with alarm. "We're too late?"

"W-wait, listen… Zelda's nanny, Impa, sensed danger and escaped from the castle with

our princess...I tried to stop Ganondorf's men from chasing them...but…" He trailed off. There was no need for him to continue; his injuries said it all.

"The princess wanted to… wait for a boy from the forest...that's you… right? She wanted to give something to the boy… If you received it from the Princess, hurry… The Temple of Time is nearby…"

Navi glanced back to the object in Link's hands. Perhaps the ocarina was what the guard was talking about. Link had already turned and began to walk away. Something about that struck Navi as… very wrong. But she pushed it away for just a moment.

"Thank you for telling us," she said, fluttering just a bit closer. "Now please hold still, let me try to heal you. I'm not well versed in healing magic but… I'll try."

The man shifted his head slightly. Even that seemed to take great effort. "I appreciate… the th-thought… but… it's too late… please… save Hyrule… for… us… all…" He shuddered, taking one last gasp of air and was still, breathing his last.

Navi was still for a moment, sorrowful. If only she had done more. If only she'd had Link carry a potion with him, maybe they could have saved the man.

Wait, Link! Where was he? Her attention was taken away from the unfortunate soldier as she realized he really had kept going and was now halfway up the temple steps. She rushed ahead to catch up to him, landing on his shoulder again.

Something about the way he had acted thus far - failing to listen to her at all, failing to answer, ignoring a dying guard - none of that was like him. Surely, he could not have changed that much in this short of time? Her thoughts were temporarily pushed away, however, as they entered the temple of time.

Link's footsteps echoed in the large, nearly empty chamber inside. It was dark, the only light being a bit of moonlight that filtered through the windows. But she could make out the grey stone walls, the colorful glass windows, and intricately carved pillars. The floor was made of polished tiles - white and gold, she thought - with a red carpet leading straight down the middle.

They stepped across a podium with the Triforce on it on their way up the hall, Link not even stopping to take in the scenery – another oddity, another red flag. Navi forced herself to turn her attention back to her charge. But what could she do if he would not speak to her? Besides that, they had to do this to save Hyrule, just like the guard had said. Even if she could get him to talk, it could just lead to losing precious time against Ganondorf.

She began to formulate one final string of questions as they reached a stone slab standing in their way. The slab had three indentations in it. As Link reached for his bag, Navi was able to deduce what they were for. First, he pulled out the Spiritual Stone of Water, a trio of sapphires as deeply blue as the waters the zoras swam in. Then came the Spiritual Stone of Fire, the chiseled angular ruby that represented both the goron's power and the mountain it came from. Then finally, the Spiritual Stone of the Forest, an emerald, round like the cycle of seasons, green like the new buds of spring, like new hope.

Link's hands were shaking as he let go of the final stone, almost as if it was difficult for him to let it go. She supposed that was understandable; the Kokiri Emerald had been what started their journey in the first place and had taken him away from everything that he knew. It was only natural that he be emotional about letting it go.

He reached back for the ocarina, which he had placed on the slab while retrieving the gemstones. Shaky hands brought the instrument to his mouth, which let out the shaky notes of a short tune that she did not recognize, a tune that felt almost sad, or mournful in a way.

When the song came to an end, he placed the instrument in his bag, looking up at the door at the end of the hall expectantly. To Navi's surprise, the doors began to slowly and magically open, scraping and creaking as they pulled into hidden compartments, revealing another chamber that had been hidden behind it.

Link turned and stiffly began to walk around the stone slab and up a short set of stairs onto a stage of sorts, then continued on through the door into the chamber beyond. The room was nearly as empty as the first. A thin layer of dust covered the floor, kicked up as Link passed on towards the center of the room. Navi flew ahead to get a better look. In the very center was a pedestal. And lodged into the pedestal was a sword. A sword with an ornate purple hilt, wings carved into the design. Navi let out a quiet gasp. She had heard of a sword described like this one. The Deku Tree had mentioned it a few times in his legends. Which meant that this could only be…

"The… Master Sword." If that was here then… "Link, this is it! This is what we need to beat Ganondorf!" She turned back to look at Link. He had stopped just at the edge of the steps up to the pedestal, mumbling.

"Link?" She flew back closer so she could hear better.

"Take the sword…" His words came out barely above a whisper.

"Link?"

"I must… take the sword..." He was shaking. This whole time she'd been worried, but now she was positive something was very, very wrong.

"Link please answer me. You've been acting really strange. Please tell me what's going on!"

Link did not speak again. He began to step forwards, towards the sword. Navi few into his path. He walked around her. She flew into his path again. "Would you stop and talk to me or at least listen please!?"

He paused looking down at her. Was he looking at her though? His gaze seemed to go right through her… "Navi? I…"

And then he raised a hand and knocked Navi out of the way.

She let out a startled cry, tumbling through the air, landing on the ground with a slight bounce. "What is wrong with you?!" she cried out. She took to the air again, intent on buzzing in his face and getting his attention one way or another. He had reached the sword now, his hands on the hilt. She rushed towards him.

A dark chuckle behind him made her stop dead in her tracks. Slolwly, almost hesitantly, she turned to look back towards the doorway. A dark form stood in it, framed by moonlight.

"Geh heh heh, excellent work," the man said, his shoulders bouncing as he laughed. "I had a feeling you had the keys to the door of time. Looks like my intuition paid off."

Navi whipped around, whispering the man's name. "Ganondorf…" Then as everything clicked into place, she shouted in anger. "What did you do to him?!"

The man did not answer, though he still spoke up. "You have led me to the gates of the Sacred Realm... I owe it all to you, kid!"

Navi stared for a second, before what he said dawned on her. She spun back around. "Link, wai-"

Link pulled the sword.


"Sorry, I couldn't find the scrubs we were looking for, but I did find this cool rock;"

Sarai turned her attention away from the sky, watching as Skull Kid appeared in the clearing in a flurry of leaves, tossing a rock up and down in his hand. She smiled politely, but said nothing, choosing to sit back down on a tree stump. She held her ocarina in hand, brow knit with worry.

"Hey, hey," Skull Kid started, noticing her unease and wanting to alleviate it, if only slightly. "What if next time Link contacts us, we throw him a rock concert?"

"Mmmh…"

Sensing that she wasn't amused by his antics, he still laughed, tossed the rock behind him. And plopped down next to the kokiri. "Aww boo hoo, don't go looking all sad like that, Saria. Why the long face? Come on, that was funny! Don't worry. I know Link will come back. He promised he would, after all."

Saria turned her gaze to the side, looking out to the thick copse of trees and fog. "It's probably nothing. But… I just can't shake this feeling that something terrible has happened."


It was nearly midnight when Darunia got the call that a horse adorned with regalia of Hyrule's royal family had been spotted coming up the mountain. He lamented the fact that his much-needed sleep had been interrupted, but regardless rolled out to meet the with whoever had come to speak with him.

It was no more than another half hour before the horse reached the outskirts of Goron City, being led by a cloaked figure. A smaller person rode on the horse's back, leaning against the neck in a resting position. Goron eyesight was not the best in the dark, but torchlight gave him an idea of the person's features. Was that… the princess?

Darunia stepped forward into the moonlight to meet them. "We weren't expecting any visitors, especially at this time of night, so I'm afraid we have nowhere prepared for you to rest. How can we help you?"

"That's quite alright," the standing figure replied, before pulling the hood of their cloak back, revealing a familiar older woman. "I'm afraid we won't be staying long anyways."

"Impa?" Zelda spoke up, raising slightly from her resting position. "Why have we stopped? Are we there already? Will my father be joining us soon?"

The older woman flinched, an action that Darunia read like a book.

"I'm… afraid your father will not be able to join us, Zelda." She turned her attention back to Darunia. "Hyrule castle has fallen to Ganondorf. As far as I know, we were the only ones to escape.

Darunia frowned, sucking in a breath. "I take it you're requesting protection passing through the mountain, then." When the woman nodded, he turned his head to the goron to his side. "Brother, fetch Gormi and Darmi, tell them they're needed immediately." Then he turned his attention back to Impa. "I'll have you escorted through the mountain, but I'm afraid that's as much as I can offer. With us being the border between Hyrule and the wildlands on the other side of the mountain we need to prepare for the danger that will approach us, should Ganondorf not be stopped."

"But Link will stop him, won't he, Impa?"

The older woman looked over to Zelda. "I hope so, dear princess. I hope so."


"It's terrible!"

Ruto was awoken by the sound of feet splashing through shallow water. She rose quietly, plipping through the shallows after the zora that had come running through, heading straight for her father's chambers.

She stopped just outside, not wanting to alert them to her presence, only listening. "Slow down," she heard her father say before pausing to yawn. "Start from the beginning, tell me what you saw."

"Well, I went to check on Castle Town, like you requested, to try to find information about what might have caused Jabu Jabu's illness, but when I got there… there were people gathered in the town square. They said something was going on at the castle. So, I swam in through the moat and. Oh there were moblins everywhere! And bodies. So many bodies, mostly of Hylian soldiers..."

There was a pause. Ruto could only guess that her father had held up a hand to silence the panicking zora. "This is troubling indeed. Have the word put out. Starting immediately, no one enters our domain but our kind, and no one leaves except to go to the observatory at lake Hylia for news. If something has happened, we have to protect our people first. Understand?"

"O-of course, your majesty! Right away!"

Ruto pressed herself up against the wall as the zora ran by. A moment of silence passed, but as she began to leave, she heard her father's voice once again.

"Ruto? I know you're out there. A word, please."

She flinched, upset at being caught, but headed up the ramp into the king's room regardless. "Yes, father?"

There was a pause; the king sighed. "I know you want to do things your way but. Please, just this once, follow the rules. I don't want to risk losing you again. Not when I just got you back."

Ruto wanted to argue. But the words wouldn't come to her mouth. So, she finally gave in, nodding. "Okay…"

"That's a good girl. Now, off to bed dear."

Ruto began to make her way back down to her chambers. But as she did, she couldn't help but think back to Link.

Don't let me down now, forest spirit!


As much as Impa wanted to keep going, she, Zelda, and their two goron bodyguards were forced to stop in a particularly treacherous part of the path, too dark to safely travel it at night. They sheltered under a rocky outcropping, laying out bedrolls for herself and Zelda, but did not dare make a fire, not even as the cold seeped in though the stone. She allowed Zelda to sleep next to her, keeping the first watch as the princess and two gorons slept, sitting resolute with her back to the wall.

She had not sensed any sign of Ganondorf following since they reached Kakariko, but she could not rest easy. If he was not chasing them anymore, then it meant that either he had returned to the castle to finish the job, or else had gone after Link. Neither sat easy with her, but she could only hope that the skull kid would be able to open the door of tiem and give pursuit.

The uneasy feeling in her stomach did little to quell her concerns, however.

Sometime into her watch, she felt Zelda shift beside her. She said nothing until the princess spoke up.

"Impa?"

"Hm?" She did not take her eyes away from path up to their shelter.

"My dad… he's dead, isn't he?" There was a since of finality to the girl's words, as if she had already realized it.

"I'm… I don't know for sure, my dear Zelda. But I think it best that we prepare for the worst. I'm sorry."

There was nothing for several minutes. At first, she thought perhaps the girl had managed to sleep again. But then she felt her sit up and lean against her. Of course she would. If her father truly had been killed, then Impa would be the closest thing to family she had left.

"Impa?"

"Yes, Zelda?"

"What… what are we going to do? If Link fails?"

"Do you think he's going to fail, princess?"

"I don't know," she admitted. A pause. She felt the princess wrap her arms around her waist. "I hope not, but I can't shake this bad feeling…"

The woman considered for a moment. "I don't know," she finally said. "But if he does then… well… I'm afraid it may be up to us, princess. We can try to make contact with the sages in the sacred realm, but there's no guarantee that they'll be able to do anything, if Link's unable to stop him with their help."

"I see…" A long silence stretched out before them. "Impa?"

"What is it, my princess?"

"I want to find a way to help, if everything goes wrong. I don't want to have to hide out for the rest of my life. Is there anything we can do?"

The woman hesitated. On one hand, she did have an idea. But it was an idea that she did not want to do, unless it was absolutely necessary.

"I'll, think about it."

"Promise?"

"I promise."


Desert sand whipped about in harsh wind, concealing everything around the young woman as she walked. Was it foolish to travel through the wastes at night, especially alone? Yes. But she had good reason to, she thought.

Ganondorf was going too far. His quest for power would destroy their people. His people. Her people. The vengeance for what he planned would be swift and merciless, should he fail. And should he succeed? It would spell doom for not just the gerudo, but for all those living in and around Hyrule.

She grunted as the sandstorm finally began to die down and her destination came into view. The Spirit Temple had long ago fallen out of the gerudo's religious practices, due to the constant sandstorm that made it nigh inaccessible. But the Desert Colossus that overlooked it was just as beautiful as she imagined her to be.

Nabooru muttered a quick prayer to her goddess as she stepped into the darkness of the spirit temple, holding up her lamp to get a better look at the chamber and look for a spot to rest.

She knew there were weapons stowed here. Unique weapons that would give her a chance at fighting Ganondorf one on one.

And she would do anything to stop him if it meant saving her people.


A great bird landed atop one of the Temple of Time's spires, watching the stiffly moving forest spirit below. Even from here, he could sense the darkness that had asserted control over Link. He shook, fluffing out his feathers, waiting for the boy to enter the temple.

"Hoo… this is not good…" the bird muttered to himself. "But this isn't the end, oh no. It's only the beginning. We best be ready for a rough few years…" With that, he took to the air again. As he flew away his physical form began to fade away to nothing but a sprinkling of glimmering light and shimmering dust.

Preparing for the worst, Kaepora Gaebora returned his spirit to the Sacred Realm.


A/N: So... that happened. I'm going to be honest, this was not how I originally planned this chapter to go pretty differently, but when I was working on the Jabu Jabu section, inspiration hit. I hope it doesn't feel too out of left field! I can't wait for everyone to see what happens and all the things that'll be affected by it. So we should see what happens come September, right?

Hopefully. Classes will be starting, and I may be limited in time to write. I also want to go back and clean up some stuff from this first part of the fic before we delve into the temples, so I may not get a chapter out in September. Hopefully I'll be able to get at least one out. I'll be posting updates on Tumblr. So keep an eye out.

Until next time!