A gentle wind scattered fallen leaves across the cobblestones leading to the steps of a castle. Dusk had already begun to paint the building and surrounding grounds with its vibrant, fading hues, while in the distance, the screech of an owl could be heard as it mingled with the quiet rustle of foliage. Though even as the quiet serenity of night approached, there lurked, around every wall, every bend and hedge, hiding beneath the very rocks on the ground and between even the smallest of crevices: the shadows. They stalked silently in any place shielded from the radiance of light, casting off an ominous, ever deepening darkness; an ancient evil that had nothing to do with the coming night. In darkened rivers, they seemed to permeate the majestic spires and ancient grounds upon which the edifice stood, twisting the regal structure in its feral, choking grasp.
This place, once drenched with the extravagance of beauty displayed through the well-manicured grounds; once alive with the splendor of each ornate piece of furniture which decorated each room; once dedicated to exhibit such regality and nobility upon those rising spires and billowing flags. Once being key, as one might have - some long time ago - thought fondly over the curved windows, detailed tapestries and magnificent rooms which so artfully adorned each separate wing of the castle. All but once upon a time now, happier days... Such a time as that was no more, nothing but a quickly fading memory as a new atmosphere descended upon the majestic castle.
To think, that a place so cherished and held in such high regard could be reduced to its current state... a state of unparalleled pain, of unreasonable fear, of unquenchable sorrow. Then there were the ashes of times long passed, which still seemed to fill the air with their withering scent of death and destruction. And finally, as the last burden laid heavily upon the already weary shoulders of a once magnificent place, there seemed to be, if one were to listen to the stillness that fell on the softest of nights, the haunting ghosts of screams, the abiding whispers of terrified desperation.
Though even then, amidst all of the echoes of lingering terror and the raging torrents of Malice, approached a young man. One who stared just as defiantly upon the ravaged land as the blot seemed to look upon everything else around it. He stood erect - for his rather short stature - with piercing blue eyes and dirty blonde hair, possessing more of a lean, muscular build that held a deceptive air of weakness; though, if someone were to overlook this, they just might see the underlying tone of unexpected strength and resilience which emanated fiercely from within his eyes. The most striking feature surrounding him was perhaps his slightly pointed ears, or maybe the majestic sword that lay across his back in an intricate blue scabbard with golden details.
His quiet footsteps could be heard as his boots tapped against the cobblestone path underfoot. He was now only a few meters away from the imposing building that rose high above him. The young man looked upon the dark castle before him with unyielding determination. It had taken him months to get here, seemingly endless days filled with hardship, fragmented thoughts, and regret...
In a flash those faint, half-forgotten memories would flicker in his mind like a candle, which only just manages to stay lit in the midst of a breeze, trying desperately to remind him of who he was. Maybe a better term would be, who he had been. Regardless, the young traveler found that it was infinitely frustrating to feel so close to an answer, only for it to be plucked beyond his reach again. The frequency of this feeling seemed almost like an endless loop. If only he could remember fully all that his life had been before. Currently, he felt as though his mind was a jumbled mess of past and present events.
Sometimes, he would start, as though being torn abruptly from a dream, believing he was still caught up in the nightmarish bits of his past he had managed to remember. Usually, he'd be immediately relieved upon realizing he was safe, separated from that time by the impenetrable wall of his fickle memory. But in those wild places, it was hard to tell just what time he belonged to. Yes, the forests had grown and flourished, moss had spread thickly over the ruins of what was, and the flowers - which bloomed vibrantly in their places - had stretched themselves further across the meadows. Yet, even then, there was still a familiarity to it all. The same breeze swept across the desert sands; the same coldness still clung to the tips of the tallest mountains; the same rivers still flowed on, weaving around and around in silver streams across the land until finally meeting the ocean. And in those moments, caught up in the wild places that never seemed to change (unless under the duress of some great catastrophe), the young traveler would forget. And when he forgot...
Something to sort through later, He thought, shaking the distraction away. When I have some more time.
Taking a deep breath, the young man forged onward stiffly, each step bringing him ever closer to the place that he couldn't recall having ever been, but nevertheless left him with such a feeling of dread that it took all of his strength to continue walking towards it. Deep within, he knew this was it. His final chance. He knew that all it would take was one mistake, just one miscalculation, and it would all be over. No more second chances.
But I won't allow for it all to have been for nothing, the traveler thought gravely.
The evening air brought with it a chill, just as he reached the entrance of the dreadful castle's sanctum. He came to a stop as, once again, his mind seemed to wander back to the scattered memories he had managed to regain, and again the frustration came with it. It was all so strange. He still felt like himself in the memories, but also... Different, somehow. Almost as though a part of him had been irreparably stripped away. It was confusing, he couldn't quite put a finger on it. And oh, how he desperately wanted to remember. Questions flooded his mind but with no one to answer them. And who could? Everyone who might've known was gone. His mind then shifted focus from his own worries to the sorrow he felt for the fabled Champions who had given their lives so long ago. How must it have felt for them to be trapped within those beasts for so long? Were they conscious to endure all those years of suffering at the hands of those cursed blights? Or were they blessed with an oblivion that kept them from such pain?
The tumbling of a nearby stone pulled the young man out of his thoughts as he sharply turned to make sure he was alone... Nothing but the cool wind and the gentle lullaby of a cricket greeted his ears, while all he saw was the land stretched out before him, being carefully wrapped in the blanket of night. He closed his eyes as he allowed himself to calm down a bit, listening vaguely to the tranquil sound of that cricket's song; a cheery tune which often seemed to be able to soothe away the events of the daylight hours. Though even with the serene nature of the night around him, the young man was careful not to let himself become too comfortable. He was all too aware of the clicking, whirring noises that he knew were just out of earshot, being wary to keep a hand firmly placed upon the hilt of his sword as he continued to listen intently for any sound of danger. Any subtle scrapes against stone, or the occasional clatter of rocks that would signal something unwanted was nearby.
Eventually, when he was convinced that it was relatively safe, the traveler opened his eyes and forced himself back around to face the Sanctum, knowing he was accomplishing nothing by delaying the coming fight. Just as the young man was about to take another step forward, he halted. Turning one last time, he gazed back upon the darkened, star sprinkled sky that seemed to twinkle back encouragement to him on this clear night; he looked upon the land, beautifully spread out in all its majesty; green, alive, and untouched by the evil that had been yearning to ravage it since its imprisonment nigh a century ago.
Better than the land though, he remembered the many different people he'd met on his journey. A strange travelling merchant obsessed with beetles; a young woman who lived high in the mountains to perfect her skill; an old man happy to tell the tales of his youth; a girl who dreamed to see things fly and to fly herself; a travelling bard's desire to remember the past and honor his mentor through his songs of old; a stable hand who loved to spend her days by the riverside; a wise old one who had watched over the land for many years, his deep slumber disturbed only when he was greatly needed; and many, many more. Faces and smiles, tears and laughter. Gratitude and joy, sorrow and happiness.
Everyone in the land, all that thriving life. That was what he fought for. What he knew he couldn't sit idly by, and watch become destroyed. All the people whom he had helped. To see them smile; to see them laugh; to see them live. But most importantly, to see them free. To know that they would live on without a lingering fear of the dreaded twilight that had consumed this land so long ago. To know that their biggest concerns would be the year's harvest, or the care of their livestock, or the diplomacy between the other peoples and caring for their families; not the fear that their loved ones could be swept away in the blink of an eye any day, tormented with constant attacks, suffering from the fear that one simple trip could end in another loss.
This is what he strove to fight for. This was where he found the courage to stand. Not for himself. Not to gain glory that would fade along with the other stories of old. But for the people he'd met along the way. Just as everything had its own time; now was the time to rise for the weak, for the weary, for the memory of the fallen ones and for the future of the young. Renewed courage was set ablaze in the young man's heart as he turned his fiery eyes away from the beautiful land that he'd found himself calling home, to the deep darkness enshrouded throne room of the Sanctum. Without hesitating a moment longer, and without truly even willing himself to do so, the traveler found that he had taken the few remaining steps into the lair of the beast.
High above his head, the young man could see a cocoon-like fixture suspended on the ceiling, which shuddered in small bursts, almost as if the creature contained within was outraged by his intrusion. He supposed he could understand that, seeing as how in this spacious, once richly furnished room, not even a whisper of sound could be heard, save for the tap, tap, tapping of his boots and the soft exhales of his breath. All life seemed to be muted within these walls. And if that was what this creature - no, this thing - wanted, then the traveler indeed supposed he could understand the outrage of his trespassing upon that.
His mind was abruptly torn from his musings and his eyes widened as a brilliant, yet soft golden light shone forth from the massive chrysalis. And he heard it yet again. The voice. A voice that had called out to him from time to time ever since his awakening. A voice of guidance; of wisdom; of hope. A voice filled with a lingering sadness, regret, and despair. Beneath all of that, however, it was most importantly a voice that called out to the tattered, weary parts of his mind, acting as a calming salve would to a fiery wound. Or like a reunion with a friend that had long ago been viciously torn away from him. It came muffled at first, barely audible in the sea of suffocating quietness all around. But the little voice didn't give in, only strove all the harder to be heard, until, as though it had broken through some great wall, the clear ringing of a soft voice reached him. Her voice.
"...Link..."
A small ember of worry pierced Link's heart as he heard the frailty of his friend's voice. Her words had always held a note of strain in them, even of weariness, yet there always seemed to be a flood of unbendable strength behind that, reassuring him that the voice would continue on as always. What now laced her tone was concerning, because she almost sounded... Defeated. Like her strength to keep fighting had been all but spent.
"Link..."
She spoke once more, as though uncertain if she had been heard the first time. This time, however, she had forced more strength into her voice. But it was too late. Link had already heard it. He now knew that she was almost utterly spent, weighed down as she had been from her century-long battle with the evil that was bent on destroying their land. Her next words only acted to reinforce his theory.
"I'm sorry... but my power isn't strong enough..."
The young traveler unconsciously took a step back, bracing himself, when the chrysalis gave a violent shudder, ripples being sent out along its misshapen surface.
"I can't hold hi-"
The rest of her soft words were unheard to Link as a pair of familiar, pale blue beams tore viciously through the cocoon binding the dark creature, tearing through the stone only a few meters ahead of him before both of them swerved away in a chaotic manner. Link watched as one swooped off towards the stairs that led up to the throne, leaving a trail of fire and blackened stone in its wake. The second beam swept clean through one of the faded banners decorating the Sanctum, the severed ends of cloth catching fire as the laser then haphazardly swerved back down towards Link, its twin coming in from the opposite direction. Link instinctively raised his arms in defense, his knees slightly bent, and feet set further apart so as to anchor himself. A searing heat drove past, followed by the booming sound of the lasers as they left their trail of destruction. A ringing was left in his ears from being in such close proximity to them.
When he wasn't accosted by a burning pain or even pure oblivion, Link looked up slightly from his arms, seeing many, smaller lasers running across the chrysalis in silky patterns. They subsided quickly, and without the bright light of the beams blinding him from smaller details, Link noticed a vapor pouring from the thinnest, circular parts of the cocoon's dark membrane. Caught in a morbid fascination, he lowered his arms marginally and watched, waiting to see what might happen next. The cocoon gave a mighty shudder, stronger than any previous, before a deep bursting sound filled the air, similar to the sound of a water-filled octo balloon being popped, only deeper and louder, being magnified by size.
Malice covered pieces flew away from the chrysalis in horrible, moist shards as an enormous, twisted figure fell from the ruined cocoon, dropping to the floor with a resounding thud. The ground beneath Link's feet shook tremendously as the spider web of cracks that had been formed by the lasers were suddenly made unbalanced by the hulking form of the grotesque beast. Buckling under the weight of the Malice infested form, the thick stone caved entirely away from the creature, dropping it into darkness and upending the hollow ground upon which Link stood.
Huge chunks of stone surrounding him followed suit, sliding into the same deep darkness that the beast was falling through as well. As the ground beneath his own feet was becoming increasingly vertical, Link fell to his side, sliding down the rocky surface a short distance; his fingers scraping against the crumbling stone.
Thinking quickly, he kicked away from the deadly ground, a sudden panic filling him as he was then falling freely amongst the many giant slabs of stone tumbling around him. Light shone faintly from above, though Link was more concerned by the inky blackness below him. The orange and blue glow of Guardian parts, along with the small bits of shimmering Malice that clung to the creature's form were the only source of light he could discern in the drop.
He fumbled for the paraglider in his small pack and swiftly pulled it out, snapping open the wooden handles and letting the rushing air around him do the rest. Link's momentum declined greatly, though not without repercussions; his arm sockets suffered the weight of the rest of his body, plus the momentum he had already gained from falling. He flinched, though managed to keep a firm grip upon the paraglider.
He sailed cautiously through the dim light, trying to stay as close as he could to the walls without crashing against them. For the most part, Link managed to avoid the falling debris that seemed to surround him on all sides, though one large slab of stone did manage to nick one of the edges of his glider, and he could hear the groan of the paraglider's strained wooden frame above him.
Suddenly the tight wall fell away from him, and Link looked in shock at the cavernous room that stretched out below him. The room was vast, spherical in shape, and with the ground being about where the diameter of the circle would be. Along the walls and sweeping upward along the ceiling in starry patterns was a mess of constellations, which glowed a deep red.
Using the larger space to his advantage, Link sailed through the dusty air, distancing himself even further from the massive chunks of debris which threatened to crush him from above. Link fixed his eyes back upon the monstrous form of the Calamity just as the creature fell thunderously upon the ground below, sending clouds of dust and small rocks upwards and around it, concealing it from Link's sight.
He squinted through the haze, trying to see the foul beast that he would soon confront. To see the face of the monster responsible for countless deaths... Deaths that he had been unable to prevent.
Through the particles of dirt and stone, Link saw a familiar, bright orange blade, which swept through the air as the Calamity brought up its malice infested limbs to support a hulking, spidery form. The creature was an amalgamation of ancient technology and oozing malice, glowing with a pale blue and stark orange light on its mechanical body pieces and a wicked magenta on the corrupted bits of inky malice. Crimson hair was spread thickly over its crowned head jaggedly, and its face looked sunken, almost skull-like, with a gaping mouth filled with crooked, gapped teeth. And its eyes. Its eyes shone with a powerful red light, fury and a longing for revenge emanating from within them in thick waves.
Link angled the paraglider to swoop down lower and reached the ground, landing in a skid as the abomination spun around to face him with its searing, hate filled gaze.
For a moment, the hero and the monster stared at each other; Link with courageous determination, and the Calamity with unbridled loathing. The moment passed when the creature brought itself up to its full height - which towered over Link in comparison - and let out an earsplitting roar, one that seemed to be part machine and part beast, deep and resonating in its intensity. The Calamity sliced it's thick, orange blade through the air in warning as it crashed back down to Link's level, holding itself up with the many spindly legs that adorned its misshapen body.
Before either could engage the fight, a deep rumbling filled the air and shook the earth above and below them, sending small chunks of rock and dirt down around the two. Link stared on as beams of blue light fell upon the Calamity's form, further illuminating its vile body. The creature's own gaze shot upward as the brilliant light focused solely on it, followed by a brief pause, and then Link's senses were overcome by deafening noise and blinding light. Anchoring himself and holding up his hands to marginally shield his eyes from the light, Link could do nothing to block out the noise. It sounded as though hundreds of the Guardian's lasers had been concentrated into one powerful ray, and the reverberations tore through his head mercilessly in a horrible cacophony. The creature's pained scream mingled with the rest of the noise as it flailed helplessly under the onslaught of centralized beams.
Link was certain it couldn't have lasted for more than a few minutes, but the onslaught to his ears made it feel much longer before one last explosion sent clouds of blue light outward, and the Calamity fell unceremoniously to the ground in a heap.
When the dust finally settled -and more than a little ringing was left bouncing around in his ears-, Link looked at the prone figure of the mechanical monster, waiting tensely in the silence that followed. He took on a defensive position as a rustle came from the mangled form of the Calamity and the creature snapped awake and pushed itself back up. It looked weaker and was drooping a little more than previously, but the hatred and disgust in its eyes still shone just as brilliantly back at Link as they had done before, and he mentally shuddered under the intensity of it. The Calamity rose up again and let out another roar, as though almost a taunt to inform Link that the Divine Beasts had been unable to harm its thick hide.
Link frowned as the creature slammed back onto the ground, mechanical pieces twitching and whirring as it waited for him to make the first move. Very well then. He would oblige.
Refusing to tear his gaze away from the Calamity, Link brought his arm up to the hilt of his sword with practiced ease and solid intention, conveying in silence to the beast that he was not afraid, only ready. The blade slid smoothly out of its scabbard and Link swiftly sliced a thin line in the air as he held the Master Sword out to his side, the Blade of Evil's Bane shining with a pure, blue-white light and letting out a chime of anticipation.
Knowing that the time had finally come, Link darted forward to confront Calamity Ganon. The final battle had begun.