As he usually did when stepping into the Still World, Ganon took a moment to look around and regain his bearings – it was always disorienting to step into this world where trees could grow sideways and upside down and the sky surrounded him on all sides. He saw a forest, broken up into pieces (including half of the Great Deku Tree; Ganon shuddered when he saw it). In front of him and Zelda was a pedestal with a triangular marking on it – the same as the marking on many of Zelda's dresses. Was this where the Prime Energy was meant to rest? It didn't seem to be there now.
There was, however, a man. And the sight of him made Ganon's blood run cold.
Before he could even reflect on what he was doing, his hand was on his trident. The green-clad man's eyes widened a fraction, then he held a sword out in front of him, legs bending into a fighting stance. Ganon raised his trident, taking aim.
"Ganon, stop!" Zelda cried, running in front of him.
"Get out of the way!"
"He's not an enemy!" Zelda said quickly. "Ganon, that is Link."
"He wants to kill me," Ganon gritted through his teeth. "I know he does." He could see it in his mind, him fighting this man. Him losing, and dying, again and again and again. "I need to kill him first."
She touched her hand to his chest plate. "Ganon –"
"I won't let him kill me again." He was nearly shaking in anticipation. "I won't. I need to –"
"Ganon!" Zelda snapped. "Look at him! Does he look like he wants to kill you?"
Of course he does. Link was still standing in a defensive stance, sword at the ready. But when he forced himself to look closely at the man's face, and his narrowed eyes, he did not see hate or malice there. If anything, he saw confusion.
"Let us talk to him first," Zelda said, more softly now. "Alright? Link is the one who saved me from Null before; I do not think he means us harm." She reached for his arm, and tentatively he allowed her to lower his trident. She gave him a small smile. "And if he does try to kill you…" She glanced back over her shoulder to where Link was still standing, watching them warily. "I will protect you."
Ganon snorted at the thought that between the two of him, he was the one who needed protection. Though seeing the pleased glint in Zelda's eyes, he wondered whether she had just said that to make him laugh, to help him calm down.
"If he tries anything," Ganon said slowly, "I will kill him."
"And I will not stop you," said Zelda. (He watched Link's face change from confusion to alarm.) "But let's give him a chance, alright?"
Ganon breathed out, forcing himself to relax. "Alright."
"Thank you," Zelda said. She reached down to give his hand a squeeze, before stepping away from him, towards Link. She gave him a bright smile.
"Hello, hero! I have heard so much about you; it is nice to finally meet you!"
Link said nothing, eyes flickering between Zelda and Ganon. He did, however, lower his sword.
"Oh, that's right," Zelda said. "You can not speak, can you?"
Link shook his head.
"That's alright." Zelda smiled. "I must thank you for rescuing me earlier." She lowered herself in a curtsy. "I am Zelda, the Princess of Hyrule. And you are Link, yes?"
Link nodded.
"I have heard much of you from Lueberry," Zelda said. "I am glad to finally meet you. And this is Ganon." She gestured to him. "The real Ganon."
Link eyed him with suspicion, which Ganon was certain he was mirroring.
"The Ganon you fought was an echo," Zelda continued. "That is what captured me. The real Ganon is much nicer."
Link raised an eyebrow.
"Usually," Zelda amended. She nudged Ganon's arm. "Will you introduce yourself?"
"I have nothing to say to him," Ganon muttered.
Zelda frowned. "Have you two… met before?"
Link shook his head at the same time as Ganon said, "Yes." Then, "I don't know." He glared at the ground. "I am so sick of not knowing!"
Link tilted his head in confusion.
"Ganon was trapped in a rift by Null," Zelda said to him. "He has lost his memories."
Ganon turned his glare to her, annoyed that she would tell the hero about his personal problems. Then he glared at Link, who smiled at him sympathetically. Link gestured at the violet sky around them, then to his own throat.
"The rift took your voice," said Ganon.
Link nodded.
"I am… sorry," Ganon said gruffly.
Link shrugged. Used to it, he mouthed.
"Lueberry thought defeating Null may restore your voice," Zelda said.
Link shrugged again, though the mention of Null had his eyes alight with anger. He gestured deeper into the Still World forest.
"Is that where Null has taken the Prime Energy?" Zelda asked.
Link nodded. He took off, gesturing at them to follow.
"He isn't so bad, is he?" Zelda murmured to Ganon.
Ganon huffed. "We'll see."
They made their way through the Still World as quickly as they could, though Ganon was beginning to realize that this was larger than any other section of the Still World they had experienced. He kept a suspicious eye on Link as they travelled, a hand on his trident. The hero did not appear to notice, intent on moving forward. Zelda clearly did notice; she chattered endlessly in what Ganon assumed was an attempt to diffuse tension, telling Link all about her journey (with a large emphasis on anything Ganon had done to help her). Ganon paid little attention to her words; he had heard all of this before. As they progressed deeper into the Still World, the terrain became more treacherous, and enemies more common, and eventually even Zelda fell silent. Ganon found that he felt more uneasy without the comforting sound of her voice.
When they reached one particularly large islet, Link stopped moving, his breathing heavy.
"Time to take a break?" Zelda asked.
Link nodded gratefully.
Ganon narrowed his eyes. They hadn't been moving that long, had they? Though… How long has this man been trapped in here? Ganon always found the Still World draining; perhaps it was how hard his mind had to work to process the wrongness of everything he saw there. And I have always had Zelda and Tri with me. He could not imagine how it would feel to wander this place all alone for the length of time Link had.
"Would you like a smoothie?" Zelda dug into her bag and removed a jar with a liquid that was bright orange.
Link opened the jar and smelled it warily.
"It's made of pumpkin," Zelda said proudly. "And salt."
Link's face twisted with distaste.
"Or there's one with apples and grapes."
This one Link accepted, and Zelda shook her head.
"Both of you need to be more adventurous," she announced as she handed Ganon his mango smoothie.
"You need to get your sense of taste checked," Ganon retorted.
Link snorted.
"See? He agrees," said Ganon.
Zelda sighed. "Tri? You would drink this, wouldn't you?"
"I do not need to drink," said Tri. "But in observing those around us, I believe that many of the smoothies you have invented would be considered… abnormal."
Zelda pouted. "The Business Scrubs always say that my recipes are great."
"They're part of the same group of people who think spider webs are candy," Ganon said dryly. Zelda's face pinkened, much to Ganon's enjoyment.
Link cleared his throat. When they turned to him, he held out his hand. Zelda's eyes lit up.
"You want to try it?" She handed the orange smoothie to Link, who took a large gulp. Immediately his eyes bulged, and he started coughing. How much salt did she put in that thing?
"It's good, isn't it?"
Link gave her a thumbs up. The effect was a bit lost, however, by his lingering coughing.
"Don't encourage her," said Ganon.
"You can have the rest if you'd like," said Zelda.
Link's eyes widened, and he quickly gave the smoothie back.
The deeper into the Still World they got, the more it became apparent that this was not the same as the other rifts they had entered. Soon they saw not only pieces of the Eternal Forest, but other landscapes – sandy deserts with cactuses, deep oceans, snowy peaks and lava-filled crevices.
"Everywhere we've been repairing rifts," Zelda murmured.
"Does that mean Null is opening them again?" Ganon asked.
"I don't know." Zelda shook her head. "We need to move quickly."
They also began to encounter more dangerous monsters as they progressed. Ganon quickly realized that Link was a formidable swordsman; the hero sliced through monsters with ease, was able to shoot flying monsters out of the air from far ranges, and switched between sword and bow extremely quickly as the situation demanded. And this is while he is exhausted from being stuck here. It was encouraging, Ganon supposed, to know that he would have this ally against Null, but it also put him on edge. If it came to a fight between them, Ganon was not certain he would be the one to emerge victorious.
Once I have the Prime Energy, it will not matter.
Zelda, for her part, summoned echo after echo to help them push forward. (This did include a Lynel, which, Ganon was annoyed to see, was incredibly strong.) Ganon stayed close to her as he fought, intent on taking down any monster that realized she was the source of their reinforcements. It was the strategic thing to do, he thought. And, well, maybe some part of him could not stand the thought of her being harmed.
Even with the three of them fighting together, the sheer numbers of monsters being thrown at them was becoming overwhelming. Null is scared, Ganon thought. It is terrified that we will defeat it.
Zelda had told him all that the goddesses had explained to her about Null. That it was as old as the golden goddesses themselves, and found the world they had created to be an irritation. Why? Why could Null not just leave them alone?
Why does a person quash an insect? Null was so far removed from the people of Hyrule, it saw no reason not to. And, Ganon guessed, it is scared of change. How would it feel to be bathed in darkness for all of eternity, and then suddenly dragged into the light? Suddenly asked to share.
In a way he felt nearly sympathetic to Null. Not sympathetic enough. Null had captured him, stolen his memories, and impersonated him. By the end of this day, he vowed, it would be gone.
He was so engrossed in his own thoughts that he ran directly into Link, who had stopped suddenly.
"Say something before you do that," Ganon snapped.
Link crossed his arms and looked at him expectantly.
"Never mind," Ganon muttered.
"What is it, Link?" Zelda asked.
Link gestured, leading them towards the edge of the island they were on. (Ganon imagined pushing him off, but decided he did not want to see Zelda's wrath if he did.) He pointed out into the distance, over the sea of islets, all taken from different locations of Hyrule. At its edge, far in the distance, was a blackness darker than anything Ganon had seen before. Part of the rift?
"There's nothing there," he said.
Link let out an annoyed breath, then pointed more aggressively.
"In that darkness," Zelda murmured. "Do you see it?"
Ganon squinted, confused. Then he saw, at the centre of the dark mass… there was a shining golden light. Even from so far away, it warmed him. And something about that light stirred something in him. A familiarity… He wanted it desperately.
"That's the Prime Energy," said Zelda.
Link nodded.
"And that darkness… that is Null." She swallowed. "As it appears in this realm."
Link did not need to nod for them to know she was correct.
She straightened, holding her head high. "Then that is where we need to go."