Disclaimer: I do not own any characters, ideas, places or plots, etc. All Legend of Zelda characters belong to Nintendo. The only things I own are my incarnations of the characters and the assembly/creation of the plot. Thank you and enjoy the story.

The Legend of Zelda: The Eye of The Storm

by: Aegis Runestone
email: aegisrunestone@comcast.net

Prologue: The Legend and The Princess

There is a well-known legend in Hyrule that occured over hundreds of years ago. A dark man named Majora, wearing a wicked mask attacked the land of Hyrule for no real purpose except to cause pain and suffering. He was a dark shaman who performed horrible rituals on his victims. The King rallied his armies to attack the menace, but it was to no avail.

But then a warrior wielding the blade of evil's bane stepped forward and slew Majora. He had travelled through time to save Hyrule and it's people, and because of it, became known as the "Hero of Time." After Majora's destruction, the Hero vanished into his own time.

Time passed. Hyrule grew and prospered. And many forgot the horrors of Majora, but never would they forget the legend. All seemed peaceful, but unbeknownist to the people, a new legend would soon be written. In fact, there was a prophecy spoken of by the Sages, but the people were so joyous that they did not listen. This is the story of the fullfilment of that prophecy...

§

It started a long time ago. Not too long ago, in fact it started four and half years ago when the Princess disappeared. She had just vanished one day. No one could find her anywhere at all. Some say that she was taken by monsters. Others blamed the King. Whatever the reason, she was gone.

The King was devastated. He had lost his wife just a few years prior and now his kingdom's survival was threatened with the disappearance of his only heir to the throne. The winds blew, the seas rushed against the sides of Hyrule and the small islands surrounding it, and the kingdom seemed doomed.

Even worse, a new terror emerged from the Great Sea. A gang of mischievous pirates set their sails to these islands. They terrorized the villages, burned them and took any valuables and possessions. It was miracle the fact that no one had been killed or captured by the malicious thieves, they seemed only interested in the money.

In response, the King set up tighter defenses against these criminals. Word had spread on the wings of the breeze, rumors that the pirates were planning an attack on Hyrule, even an attack against the Royal Family itself. The King scoffed at this, alleging that these new defenses would protect anything, including the sacred Ocarina of Time from any evil hands.

Unfortunately, it was not the pirates the King should have kept his eye on...

------

Chapter 1: Islander

"'Hoy Miss Tetra! Time to get up!"

Tetra jumped, she shook her head vigorously like she just had awakened from a painful trance. The sun was already halfway in the sky, Tetra could tell because she could see the beams of light coming down into the cabin of her ship from the door opposite her cabin. She rubbed her eyes and cursed herself for sleeping in.

"Finally!" A voice in front of her said, Tetra looked up, Gonzo was staring at her. Gonzo was a tall man, at least to Tetra. He had a thick build, wearing a dirty-green shirt with sleeves that had jagged ends. His nose was slightly red and he had black hair. Most of which you couldn't see, considering he wore a purple scarf around the top of his head. He also had crimson sash around his waist and he wore white pants. He wore thick black boots, neither of which were very shiny. He was a pushy person, always looking out for Tetra, although she really did not need it.

"Finally!" He repeated, "I thought you had gone to sleep fer good! Is there something bothering you, Miss?" Instead of being friendly, though, Tetra scowled at him.

"Hmmm...." She said, a bit sharply, her shining blue eyes glaring at him, "Yeah, there is something bothering me. And it's standing in my cabin doorway." she added rather nastily. She was not in a good mood. Gonzo hung his head in shame, standing there in the wooden doorway of the cabin.

"I'm... sorry, Miss Tetra." He replied, almost whimpering, which was strange, considering Tetra was only twelve years old and Gonzo was a fully-grown man, "I just worried about ye."

Tetra sighed, "Oh very well, I'll be up on deck in a few minutes. But you better be up there before me, Gonzo!" He turned to leave, but Tetra stopped him, "Hold it! Get everyone on deck and get ready for a short briefing. I've been doing some thinking. Don't ask now!" Tetra added, seeing Gonzo about to open his mouth, "Get up there!"

"Aye-aye, Miss!" Gonzo saluted her and dashed up the stairs like a frightened rabbit.

Tetra sighed again, perhaps she was being a little harsh on him. Then again, he was told never to wake her up, unless she asked ahead of time. Well... she thought, you did sleep in, so it is your fault. Tetra got out of her bed, her feet touched the wood floor, which was cool. She smiled contently, that's what she liked about wood floors, they did not become cold like those stupid marble and stone floors, which were always freezing.

Tetra pushed herself out of bed and changed into her usual outfit, a light pink sleeveless shirt and a blue vest. Like Gonzo, she wore a red sash across her waist. She also wore white pants that went just a bit above her ankles and brown sandals. Her favorite part though was the red neckerchief she always tied around her neck. It was always so comfortable around her neck. Buckling a small curved sword to her sword, Tetra set about fixing her hair.

Although Tetra was not a very vain girl, she made sure she still looked good. She always rolled her golden blond hair up in a curl. Her skin, like the rest of the pirates was very tan. Like everyone else in the world, she had long pointed ears, most humans did yet no one knew their origin. Even for a twelve year old, she was quite attractive and that's the effect she wanted.

Ah, looking good as usual, She thought as she winked at herself in the mirror. Tetra grinned and then turned to proceed out of her cabin and out the door onto the main deck of her ship. As she opened the door and stepped on the wood deck, which was warmer then the floor inside, the young pirate leader was pleased to see all of her lackeys there, all waiting for her. Gonzo, Senza, Nudge, Mako, Zuko and even Niko were all there, looking a bit puzzled and somewhat anxious.

"Oh, good." She said, smiling, "Despite the rude awakening I got this morning, I'm pleased to see you're all on your toes." She sized them all up, and then she took stock of the ship, gazing around carefully. The large pirate flag was in place, and the sails were all rolled up so the ship would not drift while Tetra was holding the meeting.

"Uh... Miss Tetra?" Gonzo put his hand up and pointed to the sky, "It's uh... the afternoon." He corrected her with a slightly anxious look on his face.

Tetra blinked and looked up, "Whatever... you know what I mean, Gonzo." She replied indifferently, Gonzo nodded. Nudge, another one of the large pirates approached her. He had a large chin and long black hair, he wore a light blue shirt and an orange scarf around his head in similar fashion to Gonzo, he also had a large build and usually tended to guarding Tetra's cabin while she was out.

"Miss Tetra... what is it you've called us here for?" Nudge asked her. Tetra smiled and began to pace in front of them.

"Gentlemen," She said, they all swallowed at once, Tetra almost never called them that unless it was important, "I've been thinking it's time to pull a raid on the mainland. Specifically, on the Royal family." The pirates' eyes all widened, they had never done a raid on Hyrule before, let alone an attack on Hyrule Castle. "As you all know, " She continued, as did so, she began to pace back and forth on the deck in front of them, occasionally glancing at the anxious group of men, "In a few days, the King of Hyrule is holding his annual Swordsman Tournament." Pirates remained silent, as Tetra glanced on occasion, she examined each pirate, quickly to make sure that he was paying full attention to her. Gonzo stood in the middle of the group, Nudge to his left, to Gonzo's right was Senza, a rather masculine-looking pirate with a thick black beard. Tetra favored him more than others considering he usually did not ask questions and he was usually very relaxed and friendly.

Tetra turned her head and continued her plan, "We have been going to this tournament for quite some time and I've been taking notes." She grinned and added, "The King is quite clever and at the same time, very stupid." She glanced at them and her eyes found Zuko, the first of the smaller pirates. Zuko wore a red cap on his head and blue horizontally-striped shirt. He wore dark-green pants and black boots like the rest of them. He had large brown side-burns. Zuko, Tetra was pleased to notice, was paying attention. "You all know about the arena and how its rules are set up, but do you know what's behind the Arena?" She asked them.

They were all silent for a moment, none of them knew, except Mako, of course. He was the smartest of the pirates save Tetra. Described by his peers as a "bookworm", Mako always carried around a large book and a head full of knowledge. He wore a pair of cracked glasses, which made him look smart. He also wore a red hood and had dark pants. Mako stepped forward to present his knowledge.

"The Temple of Time is behind the Arena, Miss Tetra." Mako replied. To this Tetra smiled, Mako was one of the other pirates that she appreciated more than the others. To her, he was one of the more useful of the bungling sailors. Sadly, he was not, in any way strong.

"Exactly, Mako." Tetra replied, she had stopped pacing and was facing them in full, "You see, the Arena can only be accessed when a tournament is being held, whenever a tournament is not being held, the Arena and anything that requires its path is off-limits to the public. That includes the Temple."

"So we're going to raid the Temple of Time, Miss Tetra?" Zuko asked with a scratchy voice, "Just what are we going there for?" Tetra grinned at him, her blue eyes glinting a mischievous glow. She advanced forward towards them, still grinning.

"For the Ocarina of Time, of course." She answered, a wave of awe passed over the Pirates. The Ocarina of Time was the Royal Family's most prized possession, according to legend, it was the key to the legendary Golden Power known as the Triforce. Anyone who touched the Triforce could have their fondest wish granted, "It's going be a tough raid, so I don't want any fooling around, you got that?" Tetra said sternly, "I don't want to screw this mission up, it's very important."

"Well then, Miss!" Gonzo said excitedly, he approached her with a drawn sword, smiling, "I'll be your swordsman." Gonzo was waiting for an approval from the young pirate leader, but Tetra just stared at him for a few moments, making him feel very uncomfortable. Suddenly, Tetra snatched the sword from his hands, she giggled slightly.

"Sorry, Gonzo, you can't be it." She replied, "I need someone else," she added, but suddenly, all the other pirates jumped forward, including Niko, the swabbie, to be the swordsman in the tournament, however, Tetra did not agree with any of them.

"No!" Tetra yelled at all of them, "None of you can be the swordsman! It's too obvious!" all the pirates hung their heads shamefully, "Look, we're going to need someone, a swordsman, obviously to get us into that Arena. It can't be any of you because you'll be recognized by the way you fight!" she added, dropping the sword she took from Gonzo on the ground next to her.

"But I'm good fighter!" Gonzo pouted.

Tetra smiled at him, "I know that, Gonzo, however I'm going to need you for the raid." Gonzo's face lit up.

"You're going to need me, Miss Tetra?" He asked hopefully. Tetra nodded at him, "Alright! But, who's going to be the Swordsman then?"

Tetra crossed over to the door of the cabin and wiped her hand across the handle, "Good question, Gonzo." She looked up at them and began to advance slowly towards them, letting her body swing as she walked, she began to grin, "We'll need someone who's easy to control... a sap." She stopped in front of them and raised her head. She put two fingers over her chin and grinned, her eyes never moving from the stunned pirates.

"Someone who we could easily... manipulate."

§

It was noon at Outset Island. The Sun was up high in the clear skies. The island was a couple of isles with two large hills, each, flat and angled at the tops. The two islands were connected by both a bridge at the bottom and a rope bridge connecting the two tops of the hills. On the eastern island, there was a path which winded around the hill to the top, where, if one was careful enough, could walk across the rope-bridge to the other hill. On the western hill, there was a large forest, which most of the Islanders, except maybe Old man Orca, kept their distance from the ominous woods. There were a few houses on Outset, more on the west isle than on the eastern one, they were very quaint, small homes, but the islanders did not think much of it.

Outset was different from the mainland, the people were kinder, always smiled and were generally peaceful. The atmosphere was so claim and tranquil that no one feared to sleep under the stars at night.

One of the houses, a fairly large one as compared to the other homes, faced east with its left side looking out to the Great Sea. The house was built on a slanted hillside that rose above sea level and over the beach. Thick wooden poles held up the balcony on the sea-facing side of the house and supported the home's weight.

The door to the house opened and out jumped a seven-year old girl with blond hair, rolled into two very short pigtails on each side of her head. She wore a light blue gown with a painted yellow and pink flower on the lower left side of her gown. In her hand, she carried a red and gold telescope that looked clean and well-kept. Behind her was an old, cheerful-looking lady. Her white hair was pulled into a ball and tied around by a ribbon. She was wearing a dark-purple robe.

"'Hoy big brother!" The girl cried out, despite her loud voice, seagulls gathered around her, picking aimlessly at the floor near her feet. She paid them no mind. The girl turned to the old lady, "Don't worry, Grandma. I'll find him."

Grandma smiled, "Why don't you try your lookout tower, Aryll? Your brother goes there often to sleep." Aryll giggled at this. "Be sure to have your brother come to the house as soon as you find him." She nodded in response.

"He's so lazy." She said, still giggling. She then ran off towards the lookout tower, almost bouncing as she ran. Aryll put the Telescope to her eye, she looked up to the lookout tower, no one seemed to be there. Despite this, she still ran over, someone sleeping there could very well be hidden by the guardrails of the tower.

The lookout tower, which Aryll and the rest of her family referred to as 'Aryll's lookout' since it was her favorite place to go, was situated next to a long dock which connected to Outset's east isle. Aryll climbed the ladder on the dock up to the top of the tower. She looked in and smiled.

"Big brother!"

There he lay, fast asleep. His face lay flat on the floor, his eyelids completely shut. He looked to be about twelve years of age. He wore a blue shirt that had a white design of a lobster sewn into both the back and the front of the shirt. He had thick yellow hair, which, while was clean, was not combed properly and was shaped a bunch of stretched cotton balls.

His name was Link, Link Kishoke. He had heard Aryll calling for him, but it took him a couple of seconds to open his eyes.He pushed himself up a bit with his hands. Link's emerald green eyes moved to the ladder of the watch tower. No one was there. Without giving it another thought, Link got up, stretched and yawned. He was very tired.

"There you are!" He turned around, standing behind him was his cute little sister, Aryll. She was beaming at him. "I've been looking for you all morning. You sure do know how to hide, huh?" Aryll was almost bouncing as she beamed at him.

Normally, Link would have smiled back at her, but he was just too tired. He had this dazed look which was somewhat humorous in appearance and any bystander watching this would be snickering.

"You're still half asleep, aren't you, brother?" Aryll giggled.

"Mm... asleep?" Link muttered, still looking quite dazed, "No, no, Aryll, I'm wide awake." Contrary to his word, Link began to doze off, his head nodding downwards.

"Don't tell me you forgot!" Aryll exclaimed loudly, pulling Link out of his trance, but not quite enough to wake him up completely.

"Mm... forgot what?" Link asked, rubbing his eye.

"It's you birthday, Link!" Aryll exclaimed happily, Link's eyes popped open in surprise. He was awake now, "And... it's your twelfth birthday, isn't it?" she grinned at him, but he still seemed to be lost in dream land; the words hadn't fazed him at all.

"Twelfth birthday?" He repeated slowly, in a trance-like voice.

Aryll giggled, "Yes! Isn't that the special birthday?"

"Special birthday..!" He repeated the words slowly and then suddenly it dawned on him, his eyes popping open. It was his twelfth birthday, a very important year for a boy living on Outset Island. It was the year that a boy was finally recognized as a man, "Is Grandma looking for me?" he asked her worriedly.

Aryll nodded, "Yep. She's been looking for you all morning." she smiled innocently and added, "You'd better go see her."

Link nodded and said good-bye to his sister and climbed down the ladder, Aryll waved at him as he went down. Great! He thought, The day I sleep in is the one I don't want to miss! Link ran across the fields and across the water bridge to the other isle. He could not believe that this day had come already. If he had known, he would have gotten up a little bit earlier that day.

Link walked up the wooden ramp to the door of his house. He, Aryll and Grandma all lived in this house. On the bottom floor, there was the kitchen where Grandma fixed Aryll and Link dinner. In the corner, there were two beds. One for Grandma and a bunk-bed for Aryll and Link. Aryll got to sleep on the top. The second floor, the smaller one was really the ceiling of the first floor, one just had to climb a ladder to reach the top.

Link opened the door and entered. Inside, Grandma was waiting on the second floor for him. She noticed him enter the house. "There you are, Link! Come on up, dear." She called to him.

Link walked over to the ladder and climbed up to the second floor. As he walked over to Grandma, he noticed that she had her arms outstretched, holding a pair of green clothes. He looked at them disappointedly, he had been expecting them, but he did not really want them, he would have rather gotten a sword or something that would, at least in his opinion, made him seem more like a man now.

"Here you are. I made them this morning for you." Grandma said, handing him the clothes, "What's with the long face?Today is a day to celebrate." Link let out a discouraged sigh, and took the clothes rather depressingly, "Now, Link. You must realize that this is part of the tradition. You are just about the same age as the Hero of legends, so it would be appropriate if were to wear this green tunic, which is very similar to the one he wore. It's part of the tradition. These clothes mark your coming of age, Link."

"But Grandma," Link complained, "These clothes... They look too hot to wear in this weather." He added, noting the green clothes in his hand. Grandma just smiled at him.

"Oh, just wear them." She said kindly, yet with force, "You only have to wear them for a day, after that you won't have to ever touch them again. Is that fine? Come on, Link, put them on. I want to see how you look in them.", she added excitedly.

"Yes, Grandma." Link said, he went down the ladder to the lower floor to change. After a few minutes, he came back up the ladder. While Link thought the clothes were sweltering hot, he did not realize that he looked very good in these clothes. He was wearing a green tunic which also had a green long-sleeved shirt underneath the tunic. He wore a brown leather belt which had a yellow spiral-shaped buckle around his waist. He wore long white pants on his legs and little brown shoes on his feet. Covering his cotton-like yellow hair, or at least, most of it, was a green cone-shaped hood.

"Awww!" Grandma exclaimed, "Why look at you, Link. You are almost the striking appearance of the Hero himself. Those clothes fit so well." Her smile was broad and pleasant, "I'm sure you'll get used to them, when a cold day comes, you'll be glad you have them."

Link nodded, he waited for a moment because he was expecting Grandma to say more, but she did not. Link breathed in, he had something else to talk to her about. "Grandma?" He asked. Grandma looked at him, "It is my birthday... my twelfth birthday and I remember talking to you about that a few months ago."

Grandma's smile faded. She was afraid he would ask that, she had hoped this day would not come. A few months back, Grandma had a talk with Link. She remembered that he wanted to leave Outset and go to Hyrule, the mainland, on his own. He wanted to go to the swordsman tournament and had been working hard all year. She had told him that he could not do so because he was too young at the time. She had promised him that she would let him go on his twelfth birthday, when he came of age.

"I see..." She lowered her head, Link was biting his lip, "I was hoping you'd forgotten about that.", she looked up at him,

"My boy, Aryll and I still need you, but... I did promise you."

"Grandma..." Link said, "Don't be sad, I'm not going to leave you and Aryll for long. I will come back!" He added, noticing her saddened face, "It's just that... this has been my dream and I want to fulfill it."

Grandma nodded, she went to the wall. There, she had hung a wreath around a shield. It looked old and rusty, but it had shape of a bird and of the Triforce imprinted on the shield. Underneath the shield were two wooden swords crossed diagonally. Grandma looked at the shield with a sight longing for a few moments. Then, she walked over and took it off the wall. She turned to Link. Link looked at her and then the shield. He looked back at her and saw a smile on her face.

"If you are really going to go, Link." She said, tears beginning to crawl down her cheeks, "Then take this shield with you. I have a feeling that you will need it." Link looked at her for a moment, tears were also forming in his eyes. After a moment he took the shield and put it on his right-arm(since he was left-handed).

"Grandma," He said, "I won't forget you, or Aryll."

"I know that, Link." She smiled, "I know that."

§

About a half an hour later, everyone on Outset Island had gathered together to wish Link good-bye and luck. Some were even there to give him gifts. There was Orca, the only person left on Outset who was a master at fighting. Orca was fairly old and frail looking, but Link had trained many times with Orca before and he knew better then to think that this old man was defenseless. He was practically the most dangerous thing on the Island. Next to him was his brother Sturgeon.Sturgeon was Orca's opposite, he read a lot of books and his head was almost as large as his body. Both had long white beards and carried sticks. Sturgeon carried a walking stick, and Orca carried a spear. It was nice to see those two standing next to each other calmly, considering how often they argued with each other.

Aryll was standing in crowd, she was looking a bit sad. Link knew that Aryll loved him more than any other person on the island. She thought Link was the best brother she could have ever had. He also knew that she wanted to go with him, but Link knew it was too dangerous for her to go. It would be better if she stayed behind.

Some of the townspeople had prepared a blue wooden boat to Link which he would use to travel to the mainland.Everyone knew Link was going to the mainland for only one reason: to participate in the Annual Swordsman Tournament at the arena near Hyrule Castle. Link, after hearing about the tournament the previous year, increased his sword training with Orca by tenfold. He also increased his studies with Sturgeon, hoping that knowledge would bring him a shaper wit.

Orca put his spear down and approached Link, in his arms, he held a wrapped bundle of dusty-looking cloth. Link knew what was in it and he became excited. "Link," Orca said with a scratchy, yet honor-filled voice, "It's time to give you this. You are twelve years old now. Just about the same age as the Hero. I believe you are ready to own this."

Orca stretched out his arms and handed Link the bundle of cloth, Link took the bundle, with failing attempts to suppress his excitement. He unwrapped the bundle and his predictions were confirmed. Link found himself holding a small sword, the one he had practiced with for so long in his hands. To him, the sword was about the length of a short sword, its brown, leather scabbard looked in fairly good condition, considering how many times Link had used it.

He beamed, "Thank you, Orca. It's really great.", he added, suddenly remembering to bow to his master. Link strapped the sword to his back, he placed his shield in front of the sword, as he adjusted the hilt to make sure he could reach it with his left hand, Orca spoke again.

"It's the sword you have you been using all this time." He explained, "I decided that it would best to give you that one since you're so used to it." Link smile at him, finally getting the sword adjusted properly, "Remember," Orca added warningly, "never use that sword for anything dishonest or cruel. The sword is a weapon of righteousness, never use it for wicked deeds."

"I will not disappoint you, Orca." Link said, bowing, "I'm going to come back a champion."

Sturgeon shook his head, "A tournament." he muttered sadly, "What about your studies? You were doing so well, Link! I thought you were going to become a scholar or something like that because of your progress, but now..."

"Let him be." Orca said, "He is a man now and he can choose his own path. Besides," he added snorting, "I have not found any use for the mind in all my years."

Sturgeon glared at Orca, "That's because you spend your life slamming your fists into a wall! What kind of life is that?Rubbish!" It looked as though a fight was going to break out between the two, but Link jumped in almost immediately.

"Hey! Stop it!" Link shouted, putting himself between the two, "Can't you guys not fight for a single day? Its not like it's a bad thing to be genius or powerful." Link turned to Sturgeon, "As for the studies, I started making so much progress because I heard about the tournament. If I'm going to Hyrule, I've got to know a few things and I might remember something useful while I'm fighting." Orca and Sturgeon looked at each other, they had not thought about it that way before.

Suddenly, Grandma came running down from the house, "Wait! Link!", the people moved for her so she could get to him.She was carrying two glass bottles with her, each tightly closed with a cork in each. She looked tired, but she was smiling, "Take these, Link." She said, handing him the bottles, "One is filled with fresh water and the other is filled with two helpings of my soup. I'd thought to give you them since you might get hungry on the sea." Link put them in his pouch and he smiled at her.

"Thanks, Grandma." Suddenly, the wind picked up and began blowing north, Link turned to all of them and waved, "It looks like it's time for me to go, everyone.", he said, trying to hide the tears on his cheeks, "I promise to come back." Everyone waved at him as Link got into the boat. He began to tie up a white sail to the mast when Aryll ran over to him.

"Wait! Big brother!" She cried, she stopped in front of him as Link turned his head to look at her, "I-I... " she stammered for a moment, "I want to give you this." She handed him her red and gold telescope. Link looked up at her in surprise.

"Aryll..." He said, and he laughed softly, "I can't take this. It's your-"

"It's my favorite treasure.", she finished for him, "Since it's your birthday, I want you to have it. Just because you're my special brother." She beamed at him, "Aren't you lucky?" she giggled.

Link looked at her, "Aryll...", he said softly, "I'll... I'll take good care of it. I promise I won't break it." Aryll nodded and Link continued, "You're the big kid in the family now. And while I'm gone I want you to take of Grandma, okay?", Aryll nodded again, "Good."

Aryll moved over to Link and hugged him, "I'll miss you, big brother.", she said, "I'm not gonna cry though..." Link smiled at her.

"I know you won't.", He released her and put the telescope in his pouch. Link finished tying up the sail and looked at Aryll and then to everyone else, "I'm off!", He said cheerfully, still trying to suppress his tears, "Wish me luck!"

The wind picked up and the sail pushed the boat out into the sea. With his hand on the rudder, Link waved to his friends on Outset. He could see Grandma in the distance and he waved high to her. He looked at Aryll and he could clearly see that she was crying.