Link found himself in complete darkness. He raised
his hand in front of his face, trying his best to at least see a glimpse
of it. He started out with it at arm's length away and slowly moved it
closer. Even as he brought it in toward his face, he couldn't see it. The
absolute darkness didn't shine even the faintest light, as Link found out
when his hand touched his face, still unable to see it. He slowly pulled
his hand away from his face, and looked left, then right. All that he could
see, or rather couldn't see, was darkness.
He remained where he was, not daring to move from
his current position. There was no way he could know what lay in front
of him, or behind. All his senses seemed to be dead, or perhaps the entire
place was dead. There was no sound or smell. He was just there, but he
had no clue where there was. The darkness was seemingly seeping into his
body. He could feel the coldness overcoming him, and feared that for some
reason, he would be damned to this place forever. The despair of his surroundings
was too much for him, and he tried to cry. But no tears came. This place
would not allow it.
Then, out of the darkness, came a faint sound. Link
focused onto his surroundings once more, praying that he had not imagined
the sound. A few tense moments later, the sound echoed once more throughout
the eternal darkness. Not just a sound, he thought, a voice.
The thought of contact with another person was very appealing to him, and
he had to calm himself down, for fear of losing track of the mysterious
voice. He waited for it to speak out again.
"Link."
He heard it clearly. The voice was no longer just
a faded out sound. It seemed as if it came from a live person, and very
strong. He listened more.
"Link. Follow the trail. Link. Follow the trail."
Follow the trail? he thought to himself.
"What trail?" he yelled out to the unseen source.
"Follow."
"Follow where? I see no trail! Please tell me where
to go!"
"Follow. Link."
The voice began to drown out, but Link knew what
it was saying. Follow the trail. He stood there still, unsure of
where to find this trail that the voice spoke of. He turned right, then
left. He checked behind him, and even below where he was standing. And
what he saw then intrigued him.
Below him, still quite a distance away, was a point
of light. As he watched it, he could tell that it was moving closer to
him. The point became larger and larger as it came closer. Soon, it filled
his entire view, and he realized what it was. Land and sky were rushing
up to meet him, or he was falling down to them. This he couldn't tell,
but either way, he was prepared. The next moment, his feet came into contact
with the ground of this mysterious place.
He stood on the edge of a large field. The grass
was green and the dirt was brown, but the sky was golden. Trees surrounded
him on all sides except for directly in front of him. Looking in that direction,
he saw a small, beaten path that stretched out into the distance. He looked
up at the golden sky and noticed that there was no sun, but it was as bright
as midday. Fluffy, white clouds spotted the golden sky. As he stood there
taking in his new surroundings, the voice returned.
"Link. Follow the trail."
The voice seemed even clearer now that he was out
of the eternal darkness. Strange, he thought, that voice sounds
oddly familiar. Intrigued by the identity of the voice's owner, Link
felt even more compelled to walk down the path laid out for him. Taking
one last quick look around him, he set off on his way.
For many hours, he trudged along the dirt path.
His true travel time he couldn't tell. Time seemed to have no meaning here.
It was just as bright out now as it was when he first arrived. And though
he had been traveling for so long, he didn't feel thirsty or hungry. There
was no doubt in his mind that this place was a very magical one.
All around him were endless fields of grass, spotted
with trees every now and then. The scenery seldom changed as he walked
along the path, but he could feel that he was getting close to something.
The path now led up a small hill, and he began the ascent. As he got close
to the top, he could see over the hill into the fields below. But one thing
caught his eye. Up in the distance, and seemingly right in the way of the
path, was a bright light. He couldn't tell what it was, but he knew that
it was his destination. After a brief pause on the top of the hill, he
began to descend it and continued his journey down the path.
Again, he traveled for many hours. The bright light
was very near, and he had to shield his eyes slightly to protect them from
the intensity of the light. The fields began to give way to more trees,
and he guessed that behind the light was a forest full of big, healthy
trees. He continued his way down the path, never wandering astray from
it.
Within another hour, or so he thought it to be,
he was just over a hundred yards from the light. Its intensity now was
too much for him, causing him to close and cover his eyes. Unsure of what
to do next, he stood there.
"You have done well in coming this far, Link."
He now knew the identity of the voice's owner and
wanted to get a glimpse of him. As he slowly opened his eyes, he noticed
that the light had completely died down, and in its place stood a man that
looked much healthier in death than he did in life. The man stood there,
dressed in light brown pants and a white shirt. On top of his head was
a dark brown hat that had a full brim that went around the entire hat,
and his boots were pitch black. Link instinctively reached for his sword,
but realized that it wasn't there.
"You don't need weapons here, Link. You should now
that. And besides, I'm no threat to you."
"Yeah, that's what I thought the first time I met
you, Ian. But we know how that turned out."
Ian let out a small laugh. "Touché, Link.
Although, I hope you don't hold my actions in the former life against me.
I was, after all, tricked by Ganondorf."
"Even so," retorted Link, "why should I trust you
now?"
"Because I'm in the same boat as you, Link. I just
got on board in a different way."
"Oh?" Link was intrigued. "And what boat is that,
exactly?"
"We are both stuck here in this place until we do
what it is they want us to do," Ian said while looking up to the sky. He
turned to face Link again. "Sit down, my friend. We have much to discuss."
Ian walked over to a nearby boulder and sat upon it. Link followed the
man and sat on an old log nearby. "Where shall we begin?"
"Let's start with this place. Where are we?"
"Purgatory, my good friend."
"Purgatory? Am I not good enough for the heavens?"
A bit of shock and anger crept into his voice.
"Oh, yes. You are indeed worthy for the heavens.
But they are not ready for you. It's not your time yet."
"They? Who are they?"
Ian looked at Link quizzically. "The Goddesses,
of course. Who else would they be?"
The simplicity of the answer made Link feel childish.
Of course it would be the Goddesses. They're whom I've been fighting
for all my life.
"So why are you here? You said you came onto this
'boat' in a different way."
"Ah, yes. Yes I did. You see, even though I was
not fully responsible for my actions in your kingdom, the Goddesses still
held it against me."
"So shouldn't you be with the demons?"
Ian smiled. "Thanks for the support." Link flushed
from embarrassment as he realized he had just insulted the man.
"Sorry, Ian. It just slipped out."
Ian smiled even wider. "It's alright, Link. It's
understandable. But it is for those things I did in the latter part of
my life that keep me trapped here. I said that the Goddesses didn't hold
me fully responsible for my deeds. But to get into the heavens, I must
repent."
"And how are you going to do that?"
"They have instructed me to aid you in your quest.
Upon the successful completion of it, I will have done my deeds and they
would allow me entrance into the heavens. But until that time, I have been
stuck here, waiting for you."
"You've been waiting for me? You mean, they knew
I was going to be killed, yet did nothing about it?" He was greatly upset
and disturbed at the thought of such a thing.
"No, that's not what happened. They could not foresee
your death because of the power of Ganondorf. His evil placed a shadow
over the land which they could not see through."
"They how is it that you were waiting for me?"
"Have you noticed that time flows differently here?"
Link nodded. "Well, when they found out that you had been killed, they
instructed me to wait for you. And so I have been for a good amount of
time."
"A good amount of time? I just died!"
"On the contrary. You have been dead for six months."
"Six months?" Link's voice rose to almost a scream
and he jumped up off the log.
"Yes, six months. And unfortunately, a lot has happened
in Hyrule over the last six months. And nothing good, I might add."
"What's happened?"
"Well, when you were killed, Ganondorf obtained
your piece of the Triforce. With Power and Courage, he easily took over
the land of Hyrule, and even the surrounding lands. Most of the land is
in ruin and the people are all scattered. They are hunted by his creatures
and brought before him so he can torture them."
"What about Zelda?" The concern in Link's face was
unmistakable.
"The Princess has not been captured yet, but her
time is running out."
"Then what are we waiting for! Send me back!"
"I know how you must feel, Link, but we can't send
you back to your Hyrule just yet."
Link became irate. "What? You mean I can't go back
and save Zelda and Hyrule?"
"If they sent you back now, you would have no chance.
Ganondorf easily defeated you before and he had only one piece of the Triforce.
Now he has two. How could you possibly fight against him?"
Link was beginning to understand the situation.
He regained his composure and sat back down on the log.
"Alright, fine. So how am I supposed to beat him
if he has two pieces? Obviously they think that I will defeat him at some
point, otherwise I wouldn't be here. So what is it?"
Ian sighed. "Well, Link, you cannot and will not
be able to defeat him by yourself."
"Then why am I here?"
"Because you will find those who will help you in
your battle against the Evil King. Then, and only then, will you and your
companions be able to defeat Ganondorf."
Link was puzzled. "I need to find help? Is that
part of your deed? To help me defeat him?"
"In a way, yes."
"What do you mean, 'In a way'?"
"I will aid you in your quest to find those that
will help you, but I will not fight Ganondorf."
Link nodded in understanding. "So the ones I seek,
they're fighters?"
"Most definitely. They have come from a long line
of fighters and are destined to be heroes."
"Then how come I've never heard of them before?
Surely, if they were that renowned, they would be quite famous."
"Indeed they are, or rather, will be."
"I'm missing something here. These heroes. are they
in Purgatory as well?"
"No. They are far from it."
"So they're in the heavens? Or are they still alive?"
"Neither."
Link was thrown for a loop. Ian's cryptic speech
wasn't much help either. "Do you mean to tell me that I will be asking
the help of demons?"
"I am telling you that the ones you seek have not
even been born yet."
"Now that doesn't make sense at all."
Ian shifted his position on the boulder. "Doesn't
it? What is so hard to believe about it?"
Link felt like he was stating the obvious, "If they
aren't born yet, how can we bring them here?"
"Have you forgotten your first adventure in Hyrule
already? Did you not travel back and forth through time?"
"So what if I did? It was only seven years."
"Don't you think the Goddesses have more control
over time than that? They control everything. From the trees to the grass,
the sun to the moon, the insects to man. Time is in their control. They
can do with it as they please."
Link began to accept the fact that extensive time
travel was possible, though he still didn't like it. Such power made him
feel small and insignificant. But compared to the Goddesses, everything
was small and insignificant.
"So who are these heroes that I, we, will be searching
for?"
"Haven't you figured it out already?" Ian looked
at Link as though the answer were right in front of him. In a matter of
speaking, it was.
"No."
"Your descendants."
"My descendants?" Link looked at Ian with a puzzled
expression on his face. "You mean to tell me that my descendants will still
be fighting?"
"Yes. The blood of the Hero flows through their
bodies. It is their true calling."
"But, won't I have many descendants?"
"Of course you will. Why do you ask?"
"Well, how will we know which ones are the right
ones?"
"Ah, I see. Well, the choice is rather simple. Even
though all your descendants will be strong willed and able-bodied, two
of them stand out above the rest, for they will save Hyrule from a familiar
evil, just as you have."
"You mean, they fought Ganondorf as well?"
"They each fought against his most evil form, Ganon."
"Won't we ever be at peace? To keep on fighting
the same evil over and over and over again seems almost pointless."
"That is true, but as long as your line continues,
they people of Hyrule will be safe, for the most part. That's why you must
complete this quest. For if you fail, your line will end with the death
of Evan at Ganondorf's hands."
The somber reality of it all hit Link like a ton
of bricks. He had dreamed of peace for all his life, and it was here, staring
at him in the face. The heavens were so close, yet he knew what he needed
to do. For the sake of Zelda and Evan, and the sake of all the people of
Hyrule. Overcome by a sudden feeling of bravery and courage he had seldom
felt before, Link jumped up off the log and stood next to Ian.
"Well, then. If we're going to finish the job, we'd
better get going." He reached down his hand and grabbed Ian's. Pulling
him up from the boulder, Link's eyes were twinkling with renewed confidence.
Ian too, was relieved that the Hero had a sudden change of mood. It was
his ticket to the heavens.
"Very good! Now, before we begin, there is something
you will need behind that boulder." Ian pointed to the boulder he had just
been sitting on.
Link walked behind it and found on the ground his
precious items from Hyrule: the Master Sword and the Hylian Shield. Excitedly,
he picked them up and slung them over his back. The familiar feel of the
weapons on his back brought back many memories of victories against evil.
He jogged back to where Ian was standing.
"Ready to go, Link?"
"Ready as I'll ever be!"
"Then follow me. We still have further to go to
get to our first destination."
Ian picked up his bag of supplies and the two travelers
walked down the path once more, Ian in front with Link two steps behind.
They walked away from the field and sky into the enclosure of the nearby
forest. Link stopped momentarily at the edge of the forest and looked back
over the fields. It was such a beautiful place, but he was almost glad
to see it go. There was much to do.
New Fan Works