(Zgen) Evil’s Bane [T]

“This place will be very important for both of us someday. That's what I feel.”

- Saria

Mara walked over to Link, towering over him like a beacon of unmovable strength. Link could see that same power of mind slumbering within Mara, the kind of power that could inspire a country. Link could see Zelda within those pale, gray eyes, and it gave him hope.

The Lady gave Link a smile. Though the pain of loss was within her as well, she harnessed it, controlled it, and made the conscious decision that she would not let grief rule her. Reaching down with her hand, she offered Link the way up; the power of friendship being stronger than death.

Wiping the rain from his face, Link took her hand, gripping it tightly and let her lift him up.

“Gone, but never lost.” The Lady of Veritas said in encouragement. “Remember that.”

“What of this one?” Cale said, keeping his blade near Sir Ironside. “He’s still got some fight left in him, I wager.”

“Let him be.” Mara walked passed the fallen knight, hardly acknowledging his presence. “Ironside knows full well what is going on here. It is but his duty and honor that brought him, not his own personal choice. He’s no threat to us now. Staying here or returning to Ersatz, he’s as good as dead whatever path he decides to take.”

Mara stopped at the pulsating rune on the ground. “Coming, Link?”

Sheathing his fanged steel, the hero arisen moved to the Lady’s side, staring at the building whirlwind at his feet.

“Step onto the triangle, and you will find your way.” Mara placed a reaffirming hand on Link’s shoulder. “Do not worry. We won’t be far behind you. If what I fear is true, then the Empress is going to try and bring Ganondorf back into the world, the hilt of the Master Sword being the key. You have faced this evil before, I can see that in your eyes.”

Mara bowed away, Giving Link room to make his choice. “Goddesses protect you.”

Link started to place one foot on the rune when Ironside sat up, Cale placing his blade near his throat. “Wait!”

Link stopped and turned to face the Gerudo knight, the hatred that engulfed him moments earlier melted into absolution.

“The Empress is not herself. Do not trust her, lest she destroy you. Something has taken over her, poisoned her mind. I would plead for you to not kill her, though I know you will do what you must.”

“Why would you betray your own Empress?” Mara asked, folding her arms.

“That creature, that ghost, is not my Empress. I would have found out the truth sooner, but she constantly kept me out of the castle and in the wilds, blind to the happenings within my own country as I made war upon others. Only when it was too late did I realize, and by then I was already powerless to do anything to do about it.”

“They call you the butcher. The vanguard of death.” Cale didn’t remove the threatening shortsword. “I don’t have the stomach to kill you, but I wouldn’t trust you as far as I could throw you!”

“I’m not asking for your trust.” Ironside was losing strength. He knew he would die if he remained there much longer. “I’m asking you to set things right where I could not.”

“If you truly wish to set things right,” Mara stooped down next to the knight. “You would help us with more than words.”

“Believe me, my words are more powerful than my steel. I was at the edge of the grove when the Sheikah told the boy to go on foot from the bridge; a death wish. If you drive at the forefront of the city, you won’t make it past the portcullis. My men are too strong for you, even with the power of the Goddesses at your command. You would need an army to do this.”

“An army we have.” Mara stared deep into the knight captain’s eyes, searching for deceptions.

“No. It would be a waste.” Ironside gingerly laid back down. “Even with your shadow-work, they are too prepared. You must strike where they don’t expect it. There is only one weak point within Ersatz, one not even known to the Home Guard nor the Empress herself. Only I know of it, and I have kept it with me for all these years in case of something happening, such as this.”

“In case you decided to take over?” Cale asked.

“In case we were conquered and had to retake the castle.” Ironside moved his sight to the woodsman. “I may be a killer, as all soldiers are, but I am not without purpose and honor. I have done things that I now regret, but I take solace knowing that I can help set things right here.”

“Then tell us of it.” Mara was watching the moon as it slowly drifted through the sky. “But do not waste our time with hollow gossip.”

“You know the underground of Ersatz well, yes?”

Mara nodded. “Better than you know your own streets.”

“Then you know of the cisterns that lay to the east? The ones that were build in the old times in case anyone sieged the castle?”

“We call them the Hallows.” Mara could see where Ironside was going with this. “That’s where Veritas gets most of it’s water.”

Ironside chuckled a little, his side hurting from the stab wounds. “Yes, I know.”

Mara wasn’t sure if she believed that last statement, so she took it with a grain of salt.

“At the roof of the cisterns, there is a vaulted ceiling made of arched rock and brick. It is impenetrable in it’s current form, but if you were to remove one of the stones....”

“The roof would collapse.” Mara finished Ironside’s statement. “The entire eastern lay of the city would fall into the underground!”

“Causing the guards to abandon their posts to help with the wounded and to assess the situation.” Ironside smiled at the simplicity. “I know my men, and they are trained to put the needs of the city first before everything else. They wouldn’t care if a couple of scraps strolled into the city while the other half of it was in a deluge of sludge and stone.”

“How would we do this?” Cale asked. “The weight on the arch must be tremendous.”

“That I do not know.” Ironside coughed. “All I know is that would be the only way to draw some of the guard away from the front gate. The other option is to fight, and believe me, they are ready and waiting for you.”

Cale smirked. “No. There has to be a better way.”

“Cale....” Mara started.

“No!” The woodsman interrupted. “I’m sorry, but there’s no way that would work. A: we don’t know if it would even work. And B: even if it did, whomever did it would most likely be trapped under there, the entire city coming down on top of them. It’s a suicide mission!”

Mara breathed deep and turned her attention to the hero. “What say you, Link? You are the pinnacle of the events here. You are tied to each and every one in ways that I couldn’t even begin to possibly imagine. I think you should decide.”

Without hesitation, Link stepped onto the glowing rune, placing his feet evenly within the triangle of light.

“Then it’s settled.” Mara stood up, motioning to Cale to put his blade away. “I saw no lie in Ironside’s eyes.”

She turned to Link. “We will return to Veritas with all haste, and with the power of our people we will bring the upper city down. And as for you, Link, you storm that keep just try and stay alive until we can do our part.”

Link nodded, feeling a strange tingling sensation growing at his feet.

“Be careful, Link.” Mara stepped close, giving the boy a tight-lipped smile. “Give us time, and we’ll give you what you need to stop the Empress from doing whatever she intends to do.”

Link returned the smile just as he was wrapped in a cocoon of light and wind, his body disappearing into the moonlit sky.

“Are you sure about this, Mara?” Cale asked as the grove settled. “If we do this, Veritas could be crushed under the weight as well. Even it survives that, then you are at least destroying your main source of water.”

“There’s no stopping that now.” Mara placed a hand on Ironside’s armored chest. “So, Sir knight, would you stay here and die with your fellow soldiers, or would you fight against them?”

Ironside had the answer to that question before it was asked. “I would bring honor back to my people.”

Mara motioned for Cale and the other Highlander to help get Ironside to his feet. “Then let’s go.”

One by one, the four stepped onto the triangle and were warped away out of the ruins to some unseen destination. Taking Zelda’s body with her, Mara cast one last spell onto the grove as she passed onto the rune, the entire domain beginning to glitter in perpetual twilight.

“Let this place become lost, so none without purity of heart may tread upon it again.”

Mara gazed out one last time at the Pedestal of Time and the surrounding ruins, knowing full well she would never see them again. Letting the power of the wandering souls take her, the rune collapsed and snuffed into darkness, the wind blowing over the shapes in the dirt until they disappeared.

Ahh, Doran. I am glad to see your work beginning to tie up some of the lose ends. I am interested in learning what the stones do, although I think the answer may be obvious. Great work, you are a very talented writer and no doubt your book will be successful.

Now, with that out of the way, I do have to relay one thing. Link's persona has come to seem very dark. The things the embody him as the Hero of Time seem to be lacking. While this in itself isn't a bad thing, I believe it has more to do with your style rather than the story I think. Maybe it's just me, and that I just view it differently, but ultimately it comes down to how you best portray your ideas about Link's character. If that made any sense to you at all, then let me know, because I don't think I explained it quite clearly enough. Anyways, looking forward to more, as always.

Originally Posted by Layke

Now, with that out of the way, I do have to relay one thing. Link's persona has come to seem very dark. The things the embody him as the Hero of Time seem to be lacking. While this in itself isn't a bad thing, I believe it has more to do with your style rather than the story I think. Maybe it's just me, and that I just view it differently, but ultimately it comes down to how you best portray your ideas about Link's character. If that made any sense to you at all, then let me know, because I don't think I explained it quite clearly enough. Anyways, looking forward to more, as always.

I hear ya there. It wasn't until after I wrote all of this madness when I, too, realized that Link had become rather shadowy himself. It does conflict with the whole “his heart is pure” thing that I wrote in earlier, and had I not been half-drunk when I wrote the last couple of chapters I would have caught it.

To take claim of my own quasi-inebriated faults, yes, I’ve dropped the ball here. I’ve made Link into someone else entirely, rather than staying true to his given essence. I suppose I just wanted to bring Link down a notch, to show that he is fallible with chinks in the armor; to give him some respite from the gallant hero he is always portrayed as. I wanted to explore the idea that he does have a breaking point, and this was one of the worst things I could think to do to him. It doesn’t seem right, I know, but that’s just how I feel about it.

Besides, we need to ask how Link would truly react if something like this were to happen to him. Yes, my way is the dark way, antagonism and blind vengeance, but he’d at least twitch a little.

P.S. Just to inform everyone, this work is in no way, shape, or form, a tragedy. It is dark, twisted, depressing, and violent, but, as all Zelda stories go, things will come around.

Just a quick FYI, these remaining six chapters of Evil's Bane are going to be long, epic, deep, possibly violent , and hopefully not confusing as hell. I apologize if I don't accurately portray the message I want to get across, but if perchance I do, then I will feel it a job well done.

As usual, ANY feedback to be had would be immensely appreciated!

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoy!


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“The Ocarina of Time opened the door. The Hero of Time, with the Master Sword, descended here.”

- Inscription in the Temple of Time

His mind awash with the blinding color of a thousand supernovae, Link fought the urge to faint as he tumbled and tossed through the ethereal plane of the wandering souls. He couldn’t tell what was happening around him, as all he could see was flying stars and streaking rainbows, but he had the distinct notion that he was traveling at a great speed. Like a falling star caught grazing across the heavens, he cruised the wrinkles of eternity, oblivious to the passing of time and space in his wake.

He felt as if he could travel this way forever, a blessed immortality of fire and light, seeking out new worlds and charting the cosmos. Never before had he felt so small, so insignificant, as if his troubles were but flecks of paint on the grand canvas. He knew the importance of his task, but failed to grasp the greater meaning. Content to take things at face value, he continued his pilgrimage throughout the nebulae and expanses of darkness at his feet, the power of the Goddesses propelling him across the void.

Then, as if snapping awake from a dream, Link found himself standing in the center of a great chamber, one made of shimmering fountains and columns of pure, unfiltered light. Surrounding him in a circular fashion were six colored pedestals, his own in the shape of the Triforce. He knew this place, almost as well as he knew the trees and the rocks of the Lost Woods.

It was the Chamber of Sages within the Temple of Light. He was in the Sacred Realm.

Link gazed in awe at the simple beauty of the chamber, noting the sleepless waterfall at his feet, pouring over the edges of the transcendental platforms as if the downward-rushing streams were holding him up. Nothing in the mortal realm of Hyrule even dared to contrast itself next to this hallow place, and yet, it seemed curiously deserted.

Gazing around at the pedestals of forest, fire, water, shadow, spirit, and light, his face bore concern over the fact that they were empty. Each and every one was without it’s accompanying sage, the chosen ones that helped seal Ganondorf within the Master Sword and bring balance back to Hyrule.

Link’s thoughts wandered to Saria. Where had she gone? Why had the six sages left the Temple of Light? Why had Mara sent him to this place, only to leave him there without means of escape?

“Link?” The high-pitched voice of a long-lost friend rang out into the chamber.

The hero looked beyond Rauru’s pedestal of light and saw a dainty little blur of blue rushing towards him. He squinted his eyes, not trusting what he was seeing.

“It is you!” The little fairy, Navi, said with a glee that only a child could command. “Link! I thought he was playing a trick on me!”

The boy couldn’t help but smile and raise his arms. He couldn’t believe it. He thought Navi was dead. The little fairy had taken the hit of a ball of dark energy back in Ganondorf’s tower and disappeared into the night, saving Link’s life in the process. It was a miracle that she was still alive, let alone in a place such as this.

“You lazy boy!” The fairy scolded in a reminiscing tone. “I thought you’d never come!”

Navi nuzzled close to Link’s left shoulder, the hero giving the fairy a gentle hug in return.

“Let me have a look at you.” Navi fluttered back a few feet and looked the boy over. “Well, you’re a little worse for wear, aren’t you? Been up to your old tricks again?”

Link chuckled and nodded.

“Well, I know you wouldn’t have it any other way!” Navi turned back to where she came from and started to leave. “Come on, let’s go! There’s someone I want you to meet!”

Link gave the fairy an awkward stare, seeing nothing but an immeasurable chasm at his feet and no way to cross.

“Oh, sorry!” Navi fluttered back. “I forgot you can’t fly. Here, take my hand.”

The Hylian blinked and his eyebrows arched. The fairy’s previous statement was better.

“Oh, for the love of Deku Nuts.” Navi flew in close. “Close your eyes...and no peeking!”

Giving the fairy a distrusting smile, Link relented and dropped his eyelids, dubious of what to expect. He thought for sure one of Navi’s practical jokes was in the works, but figured he’d let her have an easy one for old time’s sake.

“There, now do you see?”

Link’s jaw dropped. Even though his eyes where shut, there were streaking lines and circles that filled his mind. He could see the temple around him, immense and extraordinary, but within itself it had changed. Dressed in pale blues, whites, and grays, the bottomless crevasse had turned into glistening marble floors, arching staircases that climbed into the very heavens, and prodigious chandeliers of all colors of crystal. But the room wasn’t the only change to be seen.

Standing before him was a young woman, frighteningly beautiful, with the most intense crystal-blue eyes he had ever seen. She had azure-tinted blonde hair, a sparse dabbing of freckles around her dainty nose, and long, pointy ears, just like a Hylian. The look of a great fairy wrapped in seraphic garb stood before him, playing with his mind.

“Hey, I said no peeking!” The voice was Navi’s, but it came from this other form. “Now, take my hand.”

Link opened his eyes, the chamber reverting back to the room, and the Navi, he knew before. Unsure if it was a dream, he closed his eyes again, that sultry shape coming back into his mind’s view.

“Time may have no meaning here, but you haven’t even that to waste, Link.” Navi’s eyes were warm, but stern. “Come! You must hurry!”

Not one to argue with a fairy, let alone one that was as big as he, Link clasped the other’s wrist.

“Keep your eyes closed!” Navi’s face grew wild with excitement. “And hold tight!”

Link felt a strong pull at his arm, his feet lifting off the ground. Holding on to the fairy’s hand he felt the world rush him by as the two flew through the Chamber of Sages, rooms and chambers of indescribable beauty streaking by. Link wanted to see them all, but was helpless to stop Navi’s invisible wings as they flew.

Coming to a crystalline tower of opaque glass, Navi started to climb, flying higher and higher. Passing through beam after beam of life-infused light, the tower below looked like a glittering web, beams of rapturous brilliance being the master’s weave.

The Chamber of Sages left far behind, the roof of the tower slowly began to funnel until it reached it’s apex, a stair-less ledge and an archway awaiting Link and Navi’s entry close by. Letting Link down with surprising grace and gentility, Navi drifted through the arch, giggling, and beckoned Link to follow.

“Remember!” The fairy warned as she zipped away. “Don’t open your eyes!”

Breaking out into a sprint, Link pursued after Navi as she wound and bobbed through vaulted archways and around sky-scraping columns, barely missing white-hot torches and dangerous ledges. Leading him on a hearty chase, she finally brought him to a stop near the entrance to a grand hall, a slight wind picking up as they approached.

Link all the sudden was washed over by a feeling of dread, as if something sinister was lying beyond the threshold into the next room. He stopped just before the crack in the marble, not sure if he should cross or turn back. The lay may have been shut to his worldly eyes, but his instinct proved sharper than his perception.

“Link?” Navi came back and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “Come on, we don’t have any time to dilly-dally.”

Link dourly gazed into Navi’s eyes, but saw no deception reflecting back.

Arming himself with courage, he stepped through the arch and found himself in a spacious rotunda, one of the largest he had ever beheld. Encircling the outer wall were fourteen stained-glass windows, tall and powerful like solemn knights holding evil at bay, each with lettering and design he had never before seen. The encompassing light passively filtered through the glass, creating slashing streaks made colorful by the miscellany of crystal.

Looking at the floor, Link could see the beams of light were creating intricate patterns with their soft touches. Each window a piece to the puzzle, they all overlapped and twisted amongst each other, creating a tapestry of heroic warriors and fabled weapons, the mark of the united Triforce clearly settled at it’s eye.

“Isn’t it beautiful?” Navi said quietly, not wishing to disturb the spirits in their slumber. “This is the Hall of the Heroes. A monument to those who have been chosen by the Goddesses throughout the mists of time to answer the call to defeat evil.”

Standing in the back of the room, shrouding himself in the shadow of a column, the frame of a man shifted, causing Link’s awe to revert back to that sense of foreboding he felt before entering the room.

“Welcome back to the Sacred Realm.” A gruff, booming voice echoed around the exalted arcs of the rotunda’s roof. “I’ve been waiting for some time.”

Stepping out of the shadow and walking towards the center of the room, Link saw a cloaked man, tall, broad, and powerful looking. Dressed in white and gray robes, his outline glimmered as he stepped through the multitude of light beams, making the shapes on the floor shift and coalesce into one another. He couldn’t quite make out the man’s face, but the general shape seemed to be familiar in some way.

“As I was intended, you now know.” The man said. “With your heart, you gaze upon me in blind truth, your eyes no longer skewing the reality.”

Navi grabbed Link by the hand, as if to steady him for some blow. “Don’t be afraid. Go ahead, open you eyes.”

Doing as told, Link’s eyelids peeled open. The room stayed the same, as well as the light on the floor, but the pious figure before him was gone.

Standing before him, enveloped in that dark desert garb, was Ganondorf Dragmire.

Link jumped back and reached for his sword, the dark blade’s call ripping through the air as it was drawn. Breathing in the light of the Sacred Realm, it glinted and cast reflections all around the room, it’s ominous teeth ready to strike.

About to lunge, Link caught himself just as Navi flew in between him and the dark lord, barring him direct passage to his foe.

“Link.” The fairy said, trying to calm the boy down. “It’s all right. Just close your eyes.”

Unwilling to let himself become victim to Ganondorf’s dark scheming yet again, Link kept his eyes lidless and he moved to go around.

Herself just as stubborn, if not more so, Navi again placed herself in the middle of the two.

“Do you not trust me?” The fairy’s countenance seemed to droop just slightly. “After all this time, has that, too, failed?”

Relenting, Link lowered his blade and stepped back, but kept himself at the ready. He had trusted Navi from the very beginning. He had trusted her ability to help him through even the starkest times. Even unto the very ends of the world, he had trusted her. If it were to put himself in jeopardy at this moment, he knew he would trust her still if she were to but ask for it.

“Go on, Ganondorf.” Navi fluttered to the side. “Tell him what you told me.”

Link closed his eyes, the brightly-burning man in white again taking the place of the infamous dark lord.

“First, Link, I must thank you.” Ganondorf planted his feet on the bottom corners of the Triforce mark on the floor. “For giving me this one chance to see, unhindered, the choices I have made through my lifetime.”

The boy blinked. Ganondorf seemed different. Even when he saw him with his waking eyes, something about him had changed. He didn’t glean that sense of penetrating evil from him as he should. He seemed...noble.

Ganondorf clasped his hands behind his back. “Now, with clean eyes, I can spend what little time we have to tell you what you need to know.”

“When you sacrificed yourself to imprison me within the Master Sword, both me and you were trapped within it’s sacred blade. This is true. You also know that your shadow could not withstand the sword’s power, and so he was left behind. And I am sure that you also were told that my shadow is also loose in the world, causing havoc and destruction in his wake.”

Link nodded. Zelda had told him all about the shadows. He considered it nothing, but then the thought hit him.

“And so you now see?” Ganondorf smiled. “I am what I was intended to be. I am Ganondorf Dragmire, King of the Gerudo, and my soul is pure, just as yours.”

Link couldn’t believe it. He looked to Navi, who nodded in return.

“The Master Sword cast out our evil, leaving it behind while you and I were sealed away to await this fateful coming. Unfortunately, our shadows were also left waiting, wanting. This spelled trouble for the entire world while they were loose, shifting the balance of power in their favor.”

“My phantom somehow found a way to break the seal on the sword, causing the blade to rust and decay. Only the hilt proved far too powerful for him to destroy. You were able to escape, by a flit of chance, but I had to stay behind, here, in the Sacred Realm.”

“And from here I was able to ensure you and I would meet. Zelda’s daughter knew those Keystones could give anyone instant transport to anywhere their hearts desired, but she didn’t know they were shards of the Spiritual Stones of legend. She intended for you to go to the gates of Ersatz, but I was able to bring you here when you entered into the hands of the wandering souls. The alignment of the stars made this possible, as Hyrule now holds a direct connection with the Sacred Realm until sunrise.”

“Which brings me to why you are here.” Ganondorf took a couple of steps forward. “My phantom, impaired as he is, is seeking to reacquire his other half; me. Just as your shadow has done, he longs for the domination of his own.”

One of Link’s eyebrows arched.

“You know it to be true. You can feel it in your heart. Your shadow didn’t die when you struck him. He couldn’t die. As long as you are alive, so shall he be. It is the way of things. He is within you, now, coursing through your veins. You are complete again, Link, the power of light and dark at your command.”

“You suffered greatly at his hand, all those you know and love becoming lost in his tide, but that was a mere nuance to his true revenge. Once he broke your spirit, he was able to rejoin with you and again make you one. Shoving the tip of the Master Sword into his heart only made the meld possible, him transferring back into you like a poison that is drawn into a wound.”

Navi’s true form stepped in and put a hand on Link’s shoulder. “I saw it happen, Link. It’s true. You completely lost control over yourself after the fight. You became entrapped within the hatred, the sorrow, the want for revenge. You even summoned Tears of the Goddesses: the sign of ultimate pain. No one, not even Ganny here, has seen that happen since the forming of the world.”

Ganondorf took another couple of steps forward. “For a short while, you became evil. But, with the Tears of the Goddesses and the Power of the Triforce of Courage, you were able to contain the hatred within yourself. Fate has always smiled upon you, Link, even when it didn’t seem as such. You now hold the power over your own destiny. If you were to take up Evil’s Bane once more, you would remain whole, as your inner darkness was vanquished from within you, not from without. With your entire essence complete, you have become more powerful than any hero could possibly imagine.”

Link relaxed his taut muscles and placed his sword back in it’s dark scabbard. He felt he hadn’t the need for such a weapon anymore, now knowing that his shadow was forever gone.

“But, there still is the matter of my own phantom.” Ganondorf folded his arms. “He holds the hilt to the Master Sword and an entire army lay within his control. I am vulnerable in this state, Link. If he were to open up a gate to this realm, he could take me for his own. He is much stronger, much more perverse, than your shadow could ever be. I wouldn’t stand much of a chance against him in my current state.”

“When I was taken into the blade, the Triforce of Power stayed behind. That power was so entrenched within my own darkness that the good in me had no chance of clinging to it. It was stripped away, and as such my phantom is even more dangerous than he was when you battled him in the Forest Temple. Existing without one shred of good within him, and with the power of Din, he is evil absolute.”

“So what are we going to do about it?” Navi had heard this story already and was anxious to get to the point. “Link is here, your phantom is out there. There’s already a bit of a disadvantage.”

Ganondorf took in a deep breath. “You are going to have to kill me, Link.”

Navi first looked at the Hylian, then back to the Gerudo. “What, here? Now?”

“No, that is not possible.” Ganondorf unfolded his arms and took another couple of steps forward, now only a few feet away. “It will have to happen when the portal is open, when you can get us both at once. While we are apart, one will inevitably revive the other wether they choose to or not. We are tied to the same spirit, and as such we cannot be defeated separately. You will have to wait until just before we are joined. Only then is the weakness exposed.”

“But...you’ll die.” Navi had spent a long time with what was left of Ganondorf’s pure spirit, and feared she would never be able to speak to him again. “You are a good person. Link couldn’t kill you. Sure, you may have had a bad streak, but that’s over now, right? It isn’t you out there, now, trying to destroy the world! You’re past that!”

The Gerudo shook his head. “There is no other way.”

Ganondorf stepped closer still and placed both his hands on Link’s shoulders. Being so near, Link could see beyond the white glow into his face. He was the same man, only in balance. He wondered how the world might of been had the Gerudo King been able to control his lust for power. Maybe it was his surrogate mothers, the witches, that perverted him in such a way. He wanted to know, and all the questions he had were threatening to burst out, but knew that dreamy thoughts weren’t important now.

“If I could take back all I have done to Hyrule and the world, I would see it happen.” Ganondorf gave Link a warm smile. “But, the past cannot be changed. Only the future. See to it, Link. And, Goddesses willing, I will see you on the other side.”

Before Link could respond, his inner and outer sight was filled with a blinding white, the room and the floor vanishing from beneath him. He could feel Navi’s invisible hand gliding across his face as he left, but no words reached his ears as the tips of her fingers regretfully slipped away.

He wasn’t sure, as it was very faint, but he felt as if a single tear had fallen onto his cheek, sinking into his skin like a memory. He passed it off as naught but a fleeting trick of the mind, but knew that even if it weren’t true, he would treasure it always.

He felt relieved to know that even though so much had been lost, not all was forsaken. Perhaps there was a chance to save the good man that was locked away within Ganondorf’s soul. Maybe in doing so the world would become a better place and things could be set back into the balance that had long since been shattered.

Momentarily standing in the blanket of white, Link suddenly entered back into that streaking river of stars, gliding through space and time to the mortal realm. He knew he was returning to the dark, gaping maw of Ersatz, enveloping shadow growing legion as sunrise neared.

His sight coming into focus, Link could make out the distinct shape of Ersatz’s towers and walls, a hail of flaming arrows launching into the sky to halt his approach. Gripping the hilt of his sword, but leaving it in it’s scabbard, he readied his shield as his feet gently touched the ground.

Strength renewed, Link gazed up at the shower of glowing bolts coming his way, lighting up the night like the fireflies of summer. He knew that this would be the fight of his life. So much was at stake, and he was the only one that could save the people of this strange Hyrule from Ganondorf’s fiendish double. And with that in mind, he knew that if there was to be a battle this night, and if light were to fall to the coming darkness, it would be a victory that would not be given lightly.

I was shocked when I read this chapter. The reunion between Link and Navi is what I always wish to see in a future game but Im afraid they most likely will not continue the hero of times adventures.

I would have never thought it possible that Link would come to peace with Ganondorfs pure side but I am glad it did because it twists the traditional zelda theme.

So far Evils bane has been the most enjoyable read Ive experienced in ages. Keep up the good work my friend

ray

Originally Posted by rayburn

I was shocked when I read this chapter. The reunion between Link and Navi is what I always wish to see in a future game but Im afraid they most likely will not continue the hero of times adventures.

I would have never thought it possible that Link would come to peace with Ganondorfs pure side but I am glad it did because it twists the traditional zelda theme.

So far Evils bane has been the most enjoyable read Ive experienced in ages. Keep up the good work my friend

Thanks again for the boost Ray - it really helps drive quality and originality when you know someone is out there that wants to read more and is expecting a level of quasi-professionalism (pretentious, I know ). Honestly, if I wasn't getting the feedback and the comments that I have been getting here at ZU, this story probably wouldn't have gone past the first chapter.

So I guess what I'm trying to say here is thanks to everyone. Like being in rehab, it's friendship and honesty that wins the battle, not standalone individual achievement.

The next chapter, tentatively titled "Backslide", is almost finished and just needs some tightening and cleaning up before it's post-ready. I'm hoping to get to it tonight, but if not you will most definitely get it tomorrow morning/afternoon.

“You are a courageous boy....”

- Impa

Reacting by instinct, Link threw his shield over his back and ducked, running towards the castle’s massive stone and iron gate as the barrage of fire arrows whistled to the ground. Some striking off his shield, some firmly planting near his feet, they scattered all across the field, catching some of the yellowed grass ablaze. Noting one laying flat, he saw it’s barbed tip glistening in the firelight; the shape of a scorpion cut in visceral twists and hooks.

The castles’ massive drawbridge was raised to it’s end, barring all passage into the city. Seeing no other means of entry up front, let alone with the archers above letting loose all their defensive fervor, Link skirted the edge of the moat, looking for some weakness in the outer wall.

Seeing the river to be deep and murky, Link dove into the water and swam towards the bottom, arrows whizzing past and sticking in the muddy sediment some fifteen feet below. Lucky for him, the arrows were stirring up a flurry of mud and rock, clouding the water even more so Link could pass across unseen. Random arrows still dropped down from the narrow murder holes up above, but without a target most chose to conserve their munitions.

As Link neared the bottom, he could see little dragons writhing in the sludge: Water Drakes, burrowing holes and making nests. He thought it strange that Drakes would be here, down out of the mountains, as he thought they were only in New Kakariko. If only Ersatz knew of the treasure that lay at their feet, a veritable well of life and healing, they would be even more of a force to reckon with then they already were.

As Link started to drift downstream, no portholes or waterways present as he had hoped, the Drakes took notice of him and began swirling about. Long and sinewy, their blue bodies glistened in the faint moonlight, and they all began moving in a single direction: back upstream.

Curious, Link made a unseen trip back to the surface to take in a subtle gulp of air, and then sank back down. Following the little dragons, they led him to a particular spot in the mud and swam around in little circles. As the hero neared, he saw what looked like undistinguished rotting tree limb, protruding from the soggy earth like a raising arm of a skeleton.

Reaching out for the stick, Link felt around in the mud and soon found it to be a marker, an iron ring and a grate under the sludge being it’s target. Taking hold of the ring, he planted his feet and pulled with all his might, but the grate wouldn’t budge. He tried again and again to make it free, but he just didn’t have the strength needed. The gate looked as if it hadn’t been opened for centuries, judging by the thick growth of rust on it’s gritty iron surface.

Nearly giving up on the attempt, Link again quietly surfaced for a brief moment and took another large breath before sinking back to the grate. This time however, the top layer of silt removed, Link caught eye of a lynch pin at the base of the gate; he had been pulling on a locked door. Shaking his head at his own silliness, he removed the thin bar of iron and pulled up again, this time the grate slowly creaking upwards, allowing him passage.

It was a tight fit, Link’s shield barely fitting through the narrow square at an angle, but he managed to squeeze through and dropped into what looked like an underground waterway that led beneath the city. About four feet in height, comprised of ancient stone and brick arches, Link wound his way about the branching aqueduct, searching for a way up into Ersatz.

It was a maze in the watery underground. Link barely able to see, every corner and arch looked exactly like the last. He didn’t know if he was heading in the right direction, or if he was swimming in circles.

His breath was giving out. After a few minutes in this claustrophobic catacomb of water, even the largest of lungs wouldn’t last long. Becoming desperate, he looked behind him for the way he came in, wishing to return to the surface, but couldn’t see much past his own circle.

Swimming harder into the dark, the oxygen in his veins failing, Link began to feel light-headed. His mouth struggled to remain closed, as if his body were tying to force him to breath against his will. Rounding column after column of analogous rock, he was on the verge of collapse when he saw something in a near corner.

Moving to the huddled mass, Link saw the remains of a Hylian, lying in the water as if he had fallen asleep there. Presumably once a man, the entire body was starved, no flesh left to speak of, but a scorpion-tipped arrow protruding from the chest spoke of his ill-fated demise. Dressed in what remained of a gold and blue tunic, one that looked as if it could have been royal of some sort, the body held a sense of honor and duty, as if he had given his life to sneak into the castle. Or perhaps he was trying to escape? He didn’t know, and at this moment he didn’t think he would get the opportunity to find out.

Fate again shining upon him, Link looked at the man’s face and saw exactly what he needed. Fortuitously waiving in the water like a flag, a bastion of hope, was a black Zora mask.

Link quickly pulled the fabric from around the man’s skeletal jaw and held it up to his own, breathing sweet air into his strained lungs. Holding still there for a moment, letting his body return to a normal state, he took in a deep breath and then removed the mystic fabric so he could tie it around his face properly. Ensuring it was tight and secure, he looked back at the corpse that lay before him, searching him for clues about why he was there.

Fumbling through the man’s shredded clothing, Link didn’t find anything of value. There was a crumpled piece of parchment gripped in his bony fist, but it was long since destroyed by the rushing waves, it’s ink faded and smudged. It almost looked like a layout of the underground waterway, but it was too far smeared and fragile to be of any value.

Knowing himself short of time, Link let the body be and pushed away, heading back to his search for an exit. Frantically moving down wall after wall of the labyrinth, he was about to backtrack to the beginning when he felt the water push against him, a wave flowing through the current. He was unsettled by the wave, as that meant he wasn’t alone.

Sticking close to the outer barriers of rock, Link moved in what he thought was the northern direction, keeping an eye out for any sign of movement in the dark waterway. Stopping in what seemed to be a central room, four possible directions at his feet, he spied something writhing in the distance. Squinting his eyes in the waving water, he saw the blue and silver scales of a Water Drake.

Link thought it close, like one of the small dragons he had caught in his cup back in New Kakariko, but when he realized that it was actually far away his eyes grew wide and he put an unsure hand on the hilt of his sword. This Drake had to be at least forty feet long.

The creature twisted and swooned in the murky liquid, seemingly content in it’s water-weaving dance, but came to a stop when it saw the intruder within it’s sacred lair. It’s eyes flashed orange and it’s jaw came to a close, bubbles flowing from it’s nostrils like smoke from Death Mountain.

Serpentinely rippling through the water, the Drake darted towards Link faster than any dragon in air could have possibly imagined. Like the screaming shaft of an arrow, a piercing shriek and howl filled the waterway, causing Link’s eyes to blur and his mind to soften. It was like a murderous song, enchanting in the shrill notes, bidding it’s target to surrender to it’s ravaging thirst.

Barely able to keep himself together, Link barrel rolled to the side just as the Drake coursed by, nearly missing it’s streaking claws as it gripped at him. Not waiting for the gargantuan beast to recoil, he pushed on towards where it had come from, a faint light cutting down through the water and illuminating the ground.

Enraged at the boy’s presumptuous escape, the Drake wheeled and swam to it’s right to turn around, winding around columns like a thread through fabric. It’s feral screech continued to flutter through the waterway, Link barely able to stay ahead of it’s numbing harmony.

Nearing the patch of blueish light on the aqueduct floor, Link turned his head behind him to look for the Drake, but it had disappeared. Not stopping to ponder the thought, Link pushed on, legs churning.

Moving into the faint moonlight, sky being visible up above, Link spied a long vertical shaft that was barred with another grate. Moving towards it, Link despaired when he saw that the strips of iron were set directly into the rock; no possible way of opening it.

Link sank back down to the bottom of the waterway, planting his feet on the slick rock floor. Keeping his sword readied, he looked about for the aquatic dragon.

And there it was. Dashing towards him, the Water Drake’s jaw split wide, seeking to swallow the Hylian whole if it could. Waiting for the perfect moment, Link crouched and shoved upwards with his feet, shooting into the tunnel and towards the grate. Bracing himself in a corner, sword pointed downward and close to his body, Link awaited the beast to follow.

Follow it did. Shooting into the tunnel with furious expedience, the Drake barely missed Link and his barbed sword, slamming through the grate and into the upper level of the waterway, it’s shriek growing even more rancor.

The dragon slipping by, Link took hold of it’s tail and gripped it tightly, being drawn along faster than the owl flies.

Unwittingly shooting out of the water and onto a solid surface, Link and the Drake found themselves in the main square of Ersatz, near where Link was nearly killed those few nights ago. Rolling away from the Drake, Link crouched underneath a table and readied his shield, unsure of what was going to happen next.

Unlike it’s miniature counterparts, this Drake seemed to have no problem being out of water. It’s gills ceased to flutter and what appeared to be lungs started to heave and bellow out smoke. It’s howling shriek filling the streets and alleys, the shouts of men and the pounding of armored feet echoed in return.

Link backed away towards a near wall as knights and infantrymen flooded the square, pointing their hooked blades, spears, and axes towards the massive Drake. Staring down at the minuscule men in armor, the Drake’s wiry body stood up and stretched out it’s neck, standing taller than some of the nearby buildings. It’s paralyzing call rang out in the open air, the ear-splitting tone traveling louder and wider that it could in the waterway.

Most of the men cowered in fear, but one, a knight captain burnished in golden armor, stood firm and raised his sword in defiance. Calling out to the high tower wall, a volley of arrows were unleashed into the fray, their entangling barbs deflecting off the Drake’s hardy scales as if they were but blunt splinters of wood.

The city guard distracted by the Drake, his own presence gone unnoticed, Link slipped into a near alleyway, clinging to the shadows as he went along. Stopping in a far corner, he gazed up at the impenetrable tower standing firm in the escaping moonlight. Jutting out from the tower was that balcony, the one that he saw the Empress on before, nearly ten stories up from the ground. Squinting his eyes, Link could see that she was there again, leaning over the railing to gaze upon the Drake at her feet.

Gazing around the city, it almost seemed deserted. All that was roaming the streets were soldiers, no civilians to be seen. Link wondered where everyone was as his eyes scaled the outside of the tower for some sort of way to surmount it. Biting his lip, the powerful stone surface granted nothing; it was solid, flawless. He would have to take it from the ground.

Moving around to the rear of the tower, his weary eyes locked on the distant figure of the Empress, Link was nearly struck by an arrow, it’s scorpion tail cutting across the bridge of his nose. Jumping back against the outside of the curved wall, a slight trickle of blood coming down his face like tears, he crouched in the shadow and held his shield in front of him, blade at his side. If it weren’t for the archer’s poor marksmanship, Link, in his stupor, would have certainly been hit.

Shaking the pain and his haughtiness away, Link slowly moved along the curvature of the stone, keeping his eyes lidless for the would-be-assassin. Seeing him on the outer wall, another arrow strung and ready, Link’s eyes dropped to the ground level, the archer now being the least of his problems.

Shoulder to shoulder, shield to shield, was an entire platoon of swordsman barricading the entire street, ready to charge. Melodramatically chuckling at the absurdity of his disadvantage, Link scrambled and ran back towards the square he had come from, the soldiers breaking ranks and giving chase close behind.

Flying back into the commons with reckless abandon, arrows and javelins following at his feet, Link charged into the fray. The Drake having already dispatched some twenty men, their bodies horribly mangled and strewn about the square, he threw himself at the unsuspecting soldiers, knowing that this was going to be the place in which he had to hold his ground. He hoped that Mara and the Highlanders were going to be able to do their end, else the battle in the streets would outlast the night.

Dragon's teeth and men with steel; time's edge bleeds deeper still.

 “I don't know what it is...I have this feeling of dread.”

- Saria

Ironside, Cale, Mara, and her one remaining inarticulate bodyguard made their way through Ersatz’s rat-infested underbelly, traveling silently in the frugal light. The air stale and clammy, Cale and Ironside found it difficult to breath, coughing up wet dust and mold from their lungs along the way. In contrast, the Highlanders were accustomed to such facets of their clandestine life, but found breathing to be difficult when topside.

They had entered the underground by way of the western catacombs, warping in very near the concealed entrance that was a few hundred yards away from the city. Mara wanted to get in closer, as time was short, but decided it too much a risk. A risk, it seemed, that might have been a better choice. Somehow, Link hadn’t warped in with them. He went first, and as such he should have been right at the entrance to the caves, but he wasn’t. The Lady thought that maybe he had went on ahead, charging the keep without hesitation, but doubted it. Something had taken him out of the stream, or redirected him elsewhere. There was someone else playing the strings that night, and Mara didn’t like it.

Moving as fast as sure feet would take them, the four went in a single file line, Mara in front and the other Highlander in the rear, winding through the indirect passageways and random changes in elevation. Mara’s kind knew these passages by heart and could move through them at breakneck speed, but the two others in tow wouldn’t be able to keep up, let alone find their way if they got lost. The old underground was layer upon layer of past joining present, and not even the most clearly written of maps would be of any help in such a place.

Passing through the crypts, the resting place of the kings of old, the group came to a stop at the entrance to the cisterns, the smell of standing water filling their nostrils. Cale walked in first and put his hands on the railing, looking over into the nearest basin and gazing in awe.

Four in all, clustered in a massive square formation, the cisterns were a marvel of ingenuity and foresight, giving Ersatz enough water to easily outlast a siege for months, if not years. Encased by domed ceilings of hand-set brick and stone, it was nearly a four story climb to reach the dank arches, and one not done easily. Now lost to the memory of time, the city having no real enemies to speak of for so long, the basins sat unused for centuries until they were discovered by the Highlanders. By redirecting a small aqueduct, Veritas had secured it’s own ability to sustain life in such stark circumstances.

Mara bit her lip. This plan they were following was to be the rubicon of this chain of events. If the cisterns were buried, and if the city did fall, Veritas, in time, would also succumb. This one choice, this one doom, was to be for all, not just for a scant few. It was either going to be victory and the emergence of the Highlanders back into the upper world, or Ersatz simply adding another layer to the twisted caverns of rock and earth.

Ironside moved passed the others, spying something drawn on the nearby wall. It seemed to be a picture drawn with chalk, three persons being the subject. They seemed like happy people, warm smiles on their faces as if they were captured in the time when they were most content. It was two men with moustaches; one tall and thin, the other short and bulky; and a young woman standing between them. Behind their faces was an etching of the sun, filled in with a faded yellow tint.

“Who’re they?” Cale turned and faced the mural, leaning back on the railing, elbows up on the iron bars.

“Nobody knows.” Mara answered. “No tale, no writing, no song ever speaks of them; their story is lost to time. But here, within this drawing, we think of them as immortals.”

Cale softly smiled. “They look...happy.”

“I’m sure they were.” Ironside had been in dark situations before and knew exactly what was going on. “We’re stalling, and time isn’t something that is readily available. If we’re going to do this, we should do it fast.”

“Quite right, captain.” Mara turned and faced the others. “So...how should we do this?”

Ironside gazed up at the dripping vault of the first cistern, seeing how all the supporting columns wound up to their peaks and back into a central pillar of solid rock that lay at the rooms eye. As thick as the largest of trees, it looked as if it wouldn’t give way easily.

“Dropping one wouldn’t do. The others would just hold the weight and make it even more difficult to accomplish the goal. We need to destroy that center column.”

“How?” Cale was quick to protest. “That thing is thicker than a castle wall. There’s nothing that could cut through that.”

“Maybe not cut...” Mara signaled to her guard to come forward. “But we have something that might be able to do the job.”

Both Ironside and Cale were entrenched in their skepticism.

Reaching into the folds of his cloak, the imperceptible Highlander produced a cloth bag, something bulky and odd-shaped inside, and handed it to Mara.

“We found this some years ago, deep within one of the western tunnels. There were three of them at one point in time, but the others were used to help with the city when we needed to...increase usable space.”

Unwrapping the parcel, Mara produced something that neither Ironside nor Cale had ever seen before. It was triangular shaped, boxy with sharp edges, and had the general look of a mouse to it.

Thinking the device almost comical, it was all Cale could do to keep from laughing at it.

“What is it?” Ironside was still doubtful.

“This, my friends....” Mara had a proud smile on her face. “Is the solution. We didn’t know what they were for the longest time, until one was accidentally set off. It ran off on it’s own, as if it were possessed by some spirit, and when it came to a stop it destroyed an entire chamber of solid rock. Turned the very ground to glass.”

“It’s a bomb?” Hope came to Cale’s eyes. “You mean, all we got to do is plant that thing, run like fear, and boom! Down it comes?”

“Well, that’s the problem.” Mara didn’t want to have to be the bearer of bad news. “This one doesn’t sit still once you awaken it. You have to have the timing just right and aim it towards your target from a distance. If you let loose too early, it will go off before it reaches it’s mark. Too late, and it’ll climb right up the wall and along the ceiling. Frighteningly random it seems, and none of us were ever really able to figure them out.”

Ironside reached up and rubbed his hand across the stubble on his chin. “You say you found them in the west?”

Mara nodded. “Deep. Almost to the desert.”

The knight captain rapped his knuckles on the wall and started pacing. “When I was a boy, I remember an old man telling me the story of the Bombchu: a race of fire deities that resided within the bodies of desert mice. He said that when someone would make it mad, it would scurry along the floor, winding back and forth like a snake with legs, and explode, completely destroying anything and anyone in it’s path.”

“Bombchu, eh?” Cale folded his arms. “Well, I guess there’s no time to argue, if we are set on doing this.”

Mara walked to one of the crossing pathways, one that gave a straight shot to the imposing column. “So, here’s the plan. We drop the Bombchu and let it run to the column. We run for safety through the way we came, and pray that the rest of the caverns and tunnels don’t collapse with this one.”

Mara looked to the other three, wanting a collective agreement for what was to be done. No quarrel was given, and so the Lady gently set the apparatus on the ground, aiming the nose towards the pillar and opening a small hatch on it’s back. Removing a bit of stuffing, cotton strips to keep the item from setting off randomly, a simple switch became visible.

“Just one thing, before we let it go.” Mara looked to Ironside. “If you knew we were siphoning water, why didn’t you stop us?”

“You’re not the only ones with problems.” Ironside started to back away towards the tunnel, ready to bolt for his life. “I don’t kill without reason. And until that night, those few days ago, you hadn’t done anything to us. I figured let it be until it became a concern.”

Mara gave a warm, tight-lipped smile. “Then I guess we owe you our lives, Sir Ironside. Let us hope it wasn’t a mistake.”

Ironside returned the kind gesture with a simple nod.

“Okay. Everyone ready?”

Mara was about to throw the switch and bolt when a familiar voice filled the cavern, making her freeze in her tracks.

“I wouldn’t do that, Mara.” Loud and arrogant, the voice reflected off the water’s surface and around the arching domes. “That would cause quite a mess.”

Mara would know that voice if it were drowned in sand. “Jarilo.”

“You guessed it.” Stepping out of the pillar, wisps of smoke at his feet, the second in command of Veritas entered the room with three other shadow-Hylians in tow. “I can’t let you do this, Mara. You’ll destroy everything.”

“Only everything worth destroying.” Cale said. “Ersatz has been moonlighting for long enough.”

“Silence, day-spawn!” Jarilo seemed on edge, as if some great weight was upon him. “Any more talk from you and I’ll rip out your filthy tongue!”

“Step aside, Jarilo.” Mara stood to her feet and hovered over the Bombchu, shielding it with her body. “You know this must be done.”

“And doom Veritas to darkness and thirst? You would destroy our city, our people gone with it, and for what? To knock down a wall? Ersatz can’t be conquered in such a way. And even if it could, you’d kill us all in the process.”

Ironside gripped the hilt of his sword, Cale did the same.

“You know what?” Jarilo stepped to the side of the pillar. “Go ahead. Drop the roof on our heads. I care not. But....”

The shadow reached into his cloak and retrieved a small red orb, it’s surface swirling with liquid fire. “Before you do, perhaps you should consider this.”

Jarilo lazily tossed the trinket into the water. Sinking towards the immeasurable bottom, it soon began to pulsate and glow, seemingly expanding as it fell. Then, in a flash of light, the four cisterns became fully illuminated, something hidden underneath the stagnant exterior becoming visible.

Encased in crystal spheres, there were hundreds, if not thousands, of people in the water, frozen in a wakeless slumber. However motionless, they still looked alive,