The Daughter of Time

The Hero's Shade

The wolf stalks closer to me, its golden fur shining in the dim light of the forest. Slightly surprised, I step away, and the wolf seems to bark at me. "I wouldn't do that if I were you" chides a voice from behind me, making me whip around. "What are you doing here?" Dark Link laughs, smiling smugly. "I was here to help you... But seeing as someone has already come... I suppose I will not yet be of use" The wolf growls at him, and raising an eyebrow, his hand moves to his sword. "Don't. Even. Try. It" I take out my own blade, and he chuckles. "That blade is nothing without the sages... you are but a child holding a blade at this point... Hero... remember that"

With a snap of his fingers, he disappears into a puff of smoke. The golden wolf once again growls as I turn back to it. "What... Are you....?" it doesn't respond, but instead, jumps at me. light blinds me as I seem to go tumbling through a portal. When I finally open my eyes, I'm no longer near the forest temple. The ground looks like water covering a completely white marble floor. In the distance, Hyrule Castle is like a ghost. Turning around, I find that the wolf is gone. In its place is a skeleton with one glowing red eye, golden armor, and a sword in its hand. "Who are you?" 

It doesn't answer me, in fact it doesn't do anything. "Why am I here?" I try, looking around. "I thought you would know better than anyone who I am" says a familiar voice. I take a few steps backwards, stunned. "No... your... dead... I saw you die" Once again, he doesn't answer. "Is Goro here too? And mom?" Slowly, he shakes his head. "When I died... I had regrets, a regret that I had never trained any of you to be the next hero. Your mother is in the after life... happy, that you two are still alive" I look up at him quickly. "Ruto's alive" his face seems to harden. "Unfortunately, I'm not here to talk. I'm here to help you become the next hero. You may hold that sword, but that doesn't mean your worthy of it"

"Then what do I need to do to be worthy of it?" If he were alive, he'd be smirking right now. "Strike me down, try it. When you can do that, you're worthy of becoming a hero" My jaw drops. "I can't do that... I can't..." he stops me. "Kill me? That ship has sailed Kokiri, I'm already not in the world of the living. Nothing can change that" I take a deep breath, trying to stop the memory of his death from crossing my mind. "It won't hurt me Kokiri... I promise" his voice softens. I take a deep breath, and run for him, sword raised. Without hesitation he pushes me back with his own, sending me flying, and toppling to the ground. 

"You may be the hero, but the title alone will not be enough to defeat Ganondorf. Try again, this time clear your mind" I take a deep breath, and run for him again, this time ducking as the sword swings at me. I hear the metal as it just barely touches my face, luckily not drawing any blood. I back flip from that, and disappear in a puff of smoke as the sword comes around again. "You won't always have your abilities as a Sheikah" my father says as I appear in front of him, sword raised. "And your forgetting where you get those abilities from" he disappears and appears behind me, knocking me down again. 

I scramble to my feet, sword at the ready for the next swing of the blade. Raising the Gerudo Shield, I block the fatal blow and kick out with my legs, surprising him. Raising my sword once more, I send him flying backwards with a powerful swing. He lies there for a moment, on his back, and then gets to his feet. "Learn to finish off the enemy while you have a chance daughter, otherwise you will never kill so much as a bokoblin" his voice is almost in a taunting tone, and I glare at him in response, rushing forward again to meet his blade. "Your getting better at this, but the king of evil will not give you the liberty of repetition" he swings around in a spin attack, surprising me. I go flying backwards once again, this time losing my blade. Kicking it aside, he points his at my face. I swear under my breath, and roll to the side, avoiding the killing blow as I reach for my blade and back flip over him, landing a fatal blow to his head. 

This time, when he falls to the ground, I waist no time jumping into the air, and plunging the blade into the skeleton's chest. 

When he stands again, sheathing his sword, he nods at me, almost smiling. "There's much more you need to learn, daughter, but for now, save the Kokiri people. They are your name sake after all" I bite my lip, almost drawing blood. "You talked about Ruto... is she really still alive? And if so, where?" his face darkens again. "Kokiri, your sister is alive, but like you, she has changed. She has taken advantage of the fact that she is a Gerudo princess.... And is not someone that you want to encounter. I warn you now not to go after her, during or after your journey. If the fates allow it, she will find you. But I guarantee this" the world begins to fade around us. "You will not be friends"