End of Legend of FIVE #2-Legend of FIVE #3

“Link…Link!” Link looked up at his friends. He was sprawled across the damp grass of Hyrule Field, staring at a sky now clear of any storm clouds. His friends looked down at him. They were awake and alive. They were still drenched in water. Their faces carried fear, especially in the eyes. Regardless, Link felt relieved for a moment. They weren’t hurt–not everything was lost yet. Link sat up. His hands clutched something, holding it to his chest. Link looked down and realized it was the blue ocarina. So, he thought. That was what she threw in the moat. This ocarina…the Ocarina of Time… He remembered Zelda mentioning it; the treasure the royal family passed down for many generations. Zelda must have always had it. She was prepared to give it up for a moment like this. “Trevor fished you out of the water,” Navi said. She looked more about Link than anyone else. “What were you thinking going in the water like that?” Link climbed to his feet. He thought of Zelda’s last word to him–run. “We need to go,” he said. “This is the Ocarina of Time. We’re going to the Temple of Time. We need to protect the Triforce. We need to go. Now.” Link rushed across the drawbridge. The rest of the Five looked on and then at one another. Navi’s worry turned to shock, then resolve. She soared after her charge. The rest of the group followed. They chased after Link, unsure of where they’d go next. All they knew was that when it came to this incredible boy–this stranger that turned into their friend–they could trust him. He would never hurt them or lead them astray. He’d only want the best for them and the world they’ve lived in these past few days. When the group rushed into the market, they saw the shambles. Carts and stands were overurned. Once-proud banners now hung in limp shreds from their strings. Tainted goods were scattered all over the city’s cobblestone streets. Castletown citizens whispered amongst themselves, subdued by what they endured. Link heard the whispers; about the white horse, the black steed that followed, the possibilities of what happened in Hyrule Castle, and of Ganondorf–he was a traitor after all. Something happened here. It looked like this meant war. Link hoped someone would say where Zelda had gone to. He wouldn’t have to be in mystery. so He couldn’t afford to stop, though. The temple awaited… In a corner of the town, there was a set of old stone stairs. Their color was a faded bronze, a muted shade of the brilliant hue they had held in their beginning. Link ran up these steps and the children followed. What they found was a sacred steeple made of the same faded bronze. Its windows had dark glass. The tops of its towers were a deep scarlet. A fountain sat at the foot of the building...but the beautiful sight was tainted by the bodies. Women garbed in purple were sprawled across the building’s grounds. Their bodies ruined the greenery’s beauty, tainting the grass with their blood. The women seemed to use long spears as weapons, but they proved to be ineffective; many of them were broken and splintered and even used against them. Almost every child looked away. Navi covered her mouth with her hands. Trevor wrung his hair in both his hands. Sheila wept and Jerome held her close to comfort her. Only Rebecca responded differently to the carnage. She ran past Link, who stood frozen in place as he stared at the fallen army of masked women who seemed to be victims of Ganondorf’s exploits. Rebecca knelt by the side of a woman with brunette hair. She was badly wounded; a spear was driven into her stomach and many cuts riddled her skin. For a moment, it looked as if all had been lost for the woman. Then, the woman’s eyes fluttered open. Mira saw Rebecca and offered a weak smile. “Ah,” she said. “The girl with Deedra’s spirit in her...hey there.” Mira winced in pain. “Hold on…” Tears poured out from Rebecca’s eyes. “...I failed you and Nabooru,” said Mira. “You shouldn’t talk.” Mira shook her head, smiling in acceptance of her fate. “Ganondorf...his men attacked Hyrule Castle before we could reach them...I don’t know if the King lived, but the princess and her attendant escaped. The sisters...they’re gone, aren’t they? I will be too...my life is almost done. Too late...to stop anything.” Rebecca clasped both her hands around one of Mira’s. “We can stop him! We have what we need! He won’t get his way, promise!” Mira closed her eyes again. Her head started hanging as if she were about to sleep. “Good...good. Do what you must. If you can...tell Nabooru...I’m sorry...so…” Mira stopped moving. She stopped breathing. Her body went limp and Rebecca felt the warrior’s skin turn cold. She stayed knelt by the body for a time, her eyes vacant of any true reaction. It was only when Trevor came forward and hugged her that Rebecca started weeping. “Link,” she said through her tears. She turned back to the forest boy and the sadness was quickly replaced by anger. “Hurry up. Let’s hurry up and get this done. We’ll wish them all back to life with the Triforce. Then, we’ll take Ganondorf out for good. He’ll pay for this.” The group rushed into the Temple of Time. It matched what Link saw in his vision; a pristine marble floor, a red carpet rolling from the entrance to the altar, and the three hollows carved into its obsidian top. When the children approached the altar, Link took out the Ocarina of Time. He lifted the Ocarina to his lips. Though his fingers trembled, he steadily played the Song of Time. After he finished, the Temple grew quiet. Everyone waited. Link’s satchel shifted and the flap that encased the Spiritual Stones folded itself back. All three treasures rose out of the bag. The Kokiri Emerald, Goron Ruby and Zora Sapphire encircled one another, rotating in mid-air. Like beings with minds of their own, the Spiritual Stones made a course for the altar. They drifted above the surface, choosing a hollow to settle over. The stones descended, hovering in their new homes. The stone slab with the sun carved into its surface cast off a glow. A fresh seam traced itself down the slab’s center, appearing as a thread of light. When the light faded, the slab parted. It was as Link suspected–the slab was a door in the temple, a gateway hidden from prying eyes. Only the most trustworthy were allowed to enter the room on the other side of the sacred door. Link stepped around the altar and walked up the steps. The room on the other side held darkness that would have contrasted with the rest of the Temple if it weren’t for the light shining down on the center of the room. A large stone platform sat patiently in the solitary chamber. Like the space behind the altar, it had steps to walk on. In the center, a beam of daylight shined down on the platform. It revealed something to Link, something that spoke to him and drew him closer to it. Distant screams. They gave Link pause. There was commotion outside the Temple. Cries for help mixed chaotically with clashing blades. Many hooves galloped, structures seemed to fall and there was even the strong wind of a fire beginning, followed by a flame’s roar. Link knew Hyrule Castletown was in peril once more. “We have to hurry,” Navi urged. The group rushed into the darkened chamber. Its shade enveloped them for but a moment. A single light shined down on the center of the room. Link didn’t know where the beam came from. He didn’t see a window or anything else of the sort. What Link did see was where the light stopped; on a pedestal elevated by a large platform of stone. One could climb up the platform via its stone steps. Protruding from the pedestal was a sword. The light highlighted the weapon’s silver sheen. The blade was sheathed upside down into the pedestal. It had a polished blue grip. The cross guard was curved and shaped like wings. Link felt a charge from deep within. Being in the sword’s presence brought forth a change–a feeling, a new essence, a way of living he’d never known before–and at the same time had always known. There was a connection. The blade beckoned to him. Link felt yet another presence; something or someone encouraging him to be brave and step forward. He was compelled to hold it in his hands and go forth from there and he didn’t understand why. “Could it be?” Navi’s voice softened in reverence. She always floated in the air, held up by her translucent wings. They barely fluttered now. Navi froze for perhaps the first time in her life, still as a portrait mounted on a wall. “It’s the legendary blade,” Navi continued, keeping her volume at a gentle whisper. “Legendary?” Link echoed, his own sounds softer than the wind. “The Master Sword, Link. It’s the most powerful weapon in the history of the world. Few amongst the Faerie have ever seen it…but we speak of it all the time. Kings have held it. The greatest knights have wielded it. Even angels–maybe gods–have had the sword in their hand. There’s nothing like it…” “What does it do?” Link asked “It smites evil.” Navi looked down at her charge, finally mustering the nerve to move. “Befitting of the moment. Isn’t that right, Link?” Link stopped breathing for a moment. The whole world may as well have stopped. Was Navi saying what he thought she was implying? That this sword–this weapon that existed through every great warrior’s destiny–was intertwined with his own? He heard Navi’s confidence. It pierced him like an arrow, cutting straight through his heart. The strike held and spread. In the very depths of himself, Link believed Navi. She was telling the truth. Without ever having seen the sword, nor hearing of it, Link believed her. He reached out for the sword. His fingertips imagined the grip’s ridges, both firm and smooth. Everything around him remained still–the friends he made along the way, the fairy he grew to trust with his very life, life itself and the world that contained it. Everything stopped–then reality shuddered the Temple. A powerful boom crashed from behind the the Five and Navi. Link looked back. An ominous flood of crimson filled the space where the temple doors once stood. The tall wooden slabs lay flat on the marble, splintered and scattered in mahogany shards. The red rush stormed forth, brandishing lethal silver. “No…!” Link heard Trevor exclaim. The other children stepped back on their heels towards Link. Did seek his protection–or to protect him? Maybe a combination of both, Link didn’t know. The crimson army must have been Ganondorf’s, Link thought. Who else would come after the children so intently? They didn’t creep towards the children. The men charged. Their blades pointed straight at the chamber where the Master Sword rested. Each weapon felt like an accuser, like a persecutor waiting to dish out torment. Link had the instinct to grab the sword and hurry. He had no choice. Before he could make the move, Rebecca ran towards the Temple’s main hall. She headed straight for the crimson army. With a primal shout, Rebecca pushed both palms towards the chamber opening. Emerald energy–the power that Link learned to know her by–blocked the chamber entrance. It filled the gap and even shoved a line of crimson warriors out of the room where the children stood. Rebecca planted her feet. Her body trembled but she proceeded to hold the army in place. “They won’t come close,” Rebecca said, looking over at the group with glimmering eyes full of pain. “I’m fighting to the end. The rest of you guys–protect Link.” Sheila reached out to her best friend. “Becca!” she shouted. Rebecca shook her head. “If I die,” she said. “Just wish me back to life with the Triforce. I know it will work!” “No you don’t!” Jerome shouted. “Rebecca,” Trevor said. “Come on, don’t leave us again!” “I won’t!” Rebecca managed to look Link right in the eyes. A strain persisted in her own. “Do what you got to do,” Rebecca told him. “It’s up to you now…” Rebecca faced the army. She let out a shout. Her energy surged forth, driving the crimson army back. A woman with two scythe swords manifested from the emerald wave. The wave’s essence came together to craft the image. When the woman fully materialized, she went to work against the army. She swung her sword. The movements caused a wind to blow, driving the men back. Their coverings rippled in the strong air’s midst. Before he could truly think, Trevor fled the pedestal. He gripped his Zora spear with both hands, pointing the tip at any crimson foe he could find. One soldier suddenly doubled-over seconds later. He was on the spear’s sharp end, impaled by force of Trevor’s run. Trevor forgot how to breathe. He downed many enemies in his short time in Hyrule. This kill felt more important than any other; everything was on the line, with Ganondorf being the last possible obstacle. “TREVOR!” Trevor looked at Rebecca. Her eyes turned wild with a mix of shock and rage. “Go with Sheila and Jerome!” she snapped as she held up her arms. “They need you!” “You’re not dying on us!” Trevor argued. “I won’t let you!” “I won’t die!” “You don’t know that!” “Go back into the room!” “Not without you!” They fought the army as they argued. They fought each other as their skills contended with crimson waves of intruders. Though the pair of youths were small, not a single masked soldier advanced past them into the Chamber of Time. The defense felt like something that lasted forever. Trevor soon felt hands clawing at him. They tore at his skin. The soldiers were hunters rending prey apart. Weakness and pain settled in. The spear stopped staying firm in Trevor’s grasp. His fingers loosened. The steel’s shiny surface turned slick from sweat. Hands pinned Trevor to the Temple’s marble. His face collided with the hard surface as a metallic taste stained his tongue. He remained sprawled, waiting for the end. His friends took forever, they needed to escape, why are they taking forever? Trevor closed his eyes. No water would save him. He failed to hear a hum, a sound similar to the whoosh that made Trevor pause when Rebecca sprung into action. Warmth enveloped his body. The hands that held him down evaporated from his body. He opened his eyes to a gale of green light. It swirled around him like a cyclone and swept the crimson soldiers away. They flew in the air, scattering across the Temple’s main chamber like neglected slips of paper. Rebecca stayed nearby. She stood tall and proud, though her outfit earned fresh tatters. Small red cuts riddled her bottom lip, along with a gash on her left cheek and more red running from one of her nostrils. The energy endured in her eyes. It lived in both her fists. It spurred on her determination. It saved Trevor once again. She looked down at Trevor, her glance turning soft. A layer of pleading reached out to Trevor. She kept shaking in anger, but the trembles subsided. “Trevor,” she whispered. “Run.” A blue light shined behind them. Trevor and Rebecca looked to see their friends in the midst of it. Their backs were turned to the chamber. It looked as if Link had pulled the sword from the pedestal. The blade stood high above his head, free from the slumber it took. Everything surged within the chamber. Trevor’s jaw dropped. Rebecca had equal astonishment. Jerome and Sheila turned around. They reached out for their best friends–and then they disappeared. Everyone–Link, Navi, Sheila, and Jerome–faded away. Trevor screamed towards the emptiness. He reached out to where his friends once stood. The crimson soldiers tried advancing. Rebecca’s grief showed but she turned back at the army and flung emerald energy at them. They flew in the air, landing hard on the Temple floor. Trevor rose to his feet. He stumbled as he struggled upward. Rebecca helped him finished the rise, clasping at his forearm. It was as if they both knew that their friends wouldn’t come back–that it was ruined, destroyed, and over. They silently looked at one another. The crimson army started recovering. Trevor picked up his spear and Rebecca’s hands couldn’t stop glowing with energy. The two charged. Their goal was the front of the Temple of Time. Where they’d go from there, neither knew. The destination would be better than here in the Temple. They refused to perish in this battle. Trevor drove a spear in the gut of another foe. Like the first soldier he’d slain, this one fell as well. Rebecca shot bulbs of emerald spirit energy at the crimson soldiers. Each projectile struck them square in the chest. Trevor knew what he had done; even in self-defense, it felt strange taking life. He wasn’t sure if Rebecca killed any of the men that blocked their path. They ran through the barrage. Pushing back against the weight of such opposition would have worn down common men, the normal kinds of people. Trevor and Rebecca were anything but normal. They lived different lives this entire time, with destiny bringing them to a place where they’d see their power more than ever. As the pair pushed towards the front entrance, a light started twinkling in Trevor’s heart. What awaited on the other side wasn’t home–that was probably lost forever. However, it was safety, something to keep him away from the chaos, something to shelter him until another way could be found. There probably wouldn’t be another way. Regardless, Trevor and Rebecca strived for the door. Rebecca used what seemed to be the last of her energy to knock them down. The two grabbed at the brass knobs of the Temple’s entrance–and stopped. Ganondorf’s fierce eyes blazed with wicked triumph. His demeanor was darker than before. He smirked at the children before his mouth twisted it into a mischievous smile. Trevor would never forget the grin–not that he had much time. No. No. NO!!! Trevor couldn’t even scream. His thoughts were all he had left. Trevor squeezed Rebecca’s hand as the two stepped back, helpless in the shadow of the treacherous thief. Electricity crackled. Ganondorf stepped inside the Temple. Trevor closed his eyes and the echo of the exiled Gerudo King’s steps echoed like a terrible prelude to a bad end.