"Hey! Get up, you sleepyhead!" a masculine voice barely made it to the boy's ears in his unperturbed state of rest. No response.
"LINK!" Bright blue eyes shot open to the shout of his name. The boy called Link was so startled that he fell off of his wooden bed, his head landing on the floor with a loud thud. He sat up, rubbing the back of his dirty blonde bedhead. Poking his head out the window, he noticed the source of his wake-up call.
"Fado? What's going on?" Link inquired while rubbing his sleep deprived eyes and yawning.
"I need your help rounding up the goats today. Hey, by the way, where's Epona? When you find her, be sure to come help out, alright?" the muscular man replied.
"Yeah, I'll be down in a second." Link dressed in his usual everyday clothes and headed out the door, only to see that Fado had already left. "This is bad," he thought, "Why did Epona have to disappear today of all days?" The young Hylian sighed as he recalled the conversation he and Rusl had the other evening.
A beautiful, divine spring lay outside the village. The water gracefully rushed into the spring from shallow waterfalls. The sun was resting on the hills, illuminating an fiery glow on the surface of the water. Two men sat beside one another, gazing at the scene before them. Half of the sky had already been consumed by darkness The light of the sun seemed to be struggling to release more power into the atmosphere as a last hurrah before the end of the day.
"Tell me, do you ever feel a strange sadness as dusk falls?" asked a blond adult man with a sword slung across his hunched back.
Link shrugged, "I guess."
The swordsman turned his head to his young apprentice. "They say it's the only time when our world intersects with theirs - the only time we can feel the lingering regrets of spirits who have left our world. That's why loneliness pervades the hour of twilight," he paused and inhaled deeply, "But enough talk of sadness. Link, I have a favor to ask of you."
"What is it, Rusl?" Link pondered. He couldn't fathom what great task would be handed to him.
"You see, Mayor Bo set me the task of delivering something to the royal family of Hyrule. But I was wondering...could you go in my stead?"
"Sure," Link nodded happily. He would do anything to help his mentor.
"Good, thanks. You've never been to Hyrule, have you?"
Link shook his head.
"In the Kingdom of Hyrule," Rusl began, "there is a great castle, and around it is Castle Town, a community far bigger than our little village. About ten years ago, a tragic fire erupted within Castle Town, and many people perished. They say that it was the work of a demon who has the skin of a human girl, a Hylian like you. I suppose what I'm trying to tell you is: be careful. There's talk of a strange girl being seen around the area. If you ever see a girl with hair as white as the moon, steer clear and get to safety. The last thing I want is for you to be endangered. Anyway, it's getting late. Let's head back." The mentor and his apprentice stood to leave.
Link's thoughts remained on the mysterious girl of whom Rusl spoke. Was there really a demon lurking in the dark forests of Hyrule? He found himself at the entrance of the spring where he had been the previous evening. The voice of a girl he knew all too well broke his pensive state.
"Oh, hi, Link! I've washed Epona for you," she smiled lovingly at him. The teenaged boy loved her smile and the way her innocent eyes lit up at the sight of him.
"Thanks, Ilia." He returned the grin.
"But listen, Epona's a girl, so you have to treat her like one too! I suppose you do need her to help Fado at the ranch, but don't make her work so hard. Girls like to be pampered. Remember that," Ilia teased. Link chuckled and left for the ranch. On the way, he stopped to chat with Sera the store owner, her husband Hanch, and her spoiled daughter Beth. He saw Colin playing with his new fishing rod while his father was practicing sword techniques. Jaggle and Pergie watched as Malo sat around with Talo beating bushes with a stick.
It was a struggle to get all of the goats in the barn. Link had to really work to get Epona to steer the goats in the right direction. But his hard work paid off, and he had some extra time to ride Epona. Fado set up a few fences lined up for Epona to practice jumping over. She had jumped over all the fences flawlessly. Leaping over the fence back to Ordon, Link rushed to see the Mayor before heading to Hyrule Castle.
"Mayor Bo," Link greeted, dismounting Epona. Ilia stroked Epona, brushing her hair.
"Ah, Link," said the heavyset Mayor, "the royal gift Rusl told you about is ready. You are to represent Ordon, so better be on time and on your best behavior, got it?" Mayor Bo smiled cheerfully down at Link, who nodded in response.
"Wait, what's this?" Ilia scowled, examining Epona's leg. "She's injured, isn't she? Link? How could you! I bet you hurt her leg jumping fences!" She glared daggers at Link.
"Now, now, Ilia-" Mayor Bo tried to calm his daughter down.
"Don't be so easy on him, father! You're the MAYOR, it's time you started acting like one!" Ilia pointed her finger accusingly at the two men and stormed off to the spring with Epona.
"Oh, no, Link...talk some senses into that girl! Without Epona, the gift won't arrive in time!" Mayor Bo panicked.
Ilia washed Epona's leg with the cool healing water from the spring. She locked the gate so that Link couldn't get in. She had let Colin in, who told Link to sneak in through the secret passage along the side. As soon as he got into the spring, Link approached Ilia with haste.
"Ilia, I'm sorry, I can explai-"
"Link, Colin told me everything... I guess Epona still loves you more than me. Don't worry about her; she's fine. I'm sorry, Link." Ilia stepped towards her childhood friend. "You can take her with you. But, Link, just promise me...don't do anything out of your league. Please. Just come home safely." A soft, gentle smile washed over his previously worried features. Of course he would be safe. After all, it was just an errand that wouldn't take more than two days.
Before Link could find the words to say, there was a low rumbling and the earth shook. It was unusual and unlike any regular common earthquake. Rather, it sounded as if a thousand cavaliers were charging into battle. It all came too suddenly, too quickly. A now shattered gate hit the dirt, splinters flew everywhere, and delicate lilac flowers were crushed under the hooves of an enormous bullbo, a boar-like creature with eyes as red as the blood they spill. Sickly green beings mounted on the bulblins flashed by. It was all a blur. Ilia let out a scream as she was knocked to the floor, unconscious. One of the bulblins aimed an arrow dipped in fire at Colin. Link reached out to help his friends, but he came face to face with the side of a blue bullbo that was much larger than its comrades. The immense King Bulbin sounded his horn, whacking the young goatherd on the side of his head, covering his vision in black.
When Link finally came to, he was alone. Blood flowed from where he felt the impact of the blow. Dizziness overpowered him as he attempted to stand on his two feet. Ilia and Colin were gone. The gate still rested in pieces on the dirt, which was covered in hoof marks. Epona was nowhere to be seen. The trickling water was his only company.
"Colin...Ilia!" The wounded boy ran. His head throbbed with every step. But he was determined to get his friends back.
Crossing the lengthy, wide, swaying bridge, Link came to a stop. A tall barrier, black as death, stood in between him and his kidnapped friends. The strange wall glowed with gold linings and haunting designs. It was peculiarly beautiful, and he was drawn to it. He got close enough to fully observe its greatness. A low hum resounded from the wall. Without warning, a giant, mysterious looking hand of the same design extended from within the wall and wrapped its stone hard grip around its victim, pulling him through the wall. Shrouded in darkness, Link fell on all fours. A searing hot pain ripped through his legs, spine, arms, and head. He cried out in agony, feeling his bones morph into something else. The torment he had to put through made him collapse, and he was out like a light.
The shrill, playful giggle of a girl could be heard from within the shadows. And in the forests near Castle Town, a melancholy, solemn voice echoed from its owner's heart.
~•~•~•~•~•~•~
