The Legend of Zelda: Wisdom and Courage

Chapter 34: Fallen Hero

As Veran reveled in her victory over the corrupted hero and the fallen princess, all of Hyrule felt the immediate effects of her triumph. With the kingdom's last two lights of hope finally extinguished, the sorceress used the power of the Triforce to cover the land in an immense pall of shadows, spreading catastrophes far and wide. The earth trembled and split open throughout Hyrule and from the fissures, creatures of pure darkness crawled forth to torment and slaughter the few remaining people. The soldiers anxiously awaiting the return of their ruler near the gates of Castle Town immediately waged war against these beasts, but they clearly stood no chance against their incredible might. Many of them were killed easily, but a few, including Nabooru, remained resilient in the endless fight, while others, such as Ganondorf, had fled the battlefield at the first sign of trouble. The Gerudo queen scoffed at the selfishness and cowardice of her hated predecessor, knowing that he had only ran because it was clear that there was no winning this war against the sorceress, but even so, her and her braves continued to fight, even through exhaustion and death itself.

As violent battles such as these raged on, every province of the land seemed to face mass devastation all at once: Death Mountain suddenly erupted, covering Goron City and the burnt remains of Kakariko Village in molten lava. Zora's Domain and Lake Hylia both flooded over, as did many parts of Hyrule Field near them, and the water was so polluted by the blood of the dead that the Zoras were no longer able to survive in it. A massive sandstorm covered Gerudo Desert, burying any sign of civilization in the thick dust and making the air unbreathable. Kokiri Forest burst into flames, threatening to destroy all life there, including the frightened children of the forest. Knowing that she had no other choice, Saria ordered that everyone evacuate to the Sacred Forest Meadow, even though she knew that they would not be safe even there. All the while, the girl's heart was breaking as she looked to the huge violet vortex that dominated the sky all over the land, a sign that certainly her best friend had lost his life in the great deciding battle and that Hyrule, bereft of a savoir, was now lost forever.

The terrified and painful screams of all people of all races throughout Hyrule could be heard echoing across the suffering land as they cried out to the goddess, desperately pleading with them for salvation from this chaos. Veran heard their collective cries of anguish from her place within the Temple of Time and laughed mercilessly, knowing that no matter how hard they prayed, there would be no one who could possibly save them now. She had won, and her victory would be eternal.

But perhaps what made her victory even sweeter was the fact that she had conquered the seemingly incorruptible Hero of Time, breaking his heart and soul and bending him to her absolute will. The sorceress smiled deviously as she looked up into the empty, expressionless face of the Deity as he stood tall and unmoving before her, the ultimate trophy of her greatest success. With a taunting laugh, Veran circled around the corrupted hero, placing her hands on his armored shoulders as she used her magic to float up to his level and lean her face in close to his.

"Look at the great Hero of Time now…" she said quietly, her tone mocking and cruel. "The chosen one of Farore, the one destined to rescue this worthless land… Reduced to nothing more than my loyal slave when you could have been a king! But even so, I must commend you, Link… You certainly put up a good fight, but in the end, you were nothing compared to my power. Everything you once were has been wiped away by your own choosing… And now, you belong solely to me, not that you even know it. I know you can't hear me, hero, but if you could, then I would want you to know that you have gotten exactly what you deserve…"

With another hateful laugh, the sorceress drew herself into the unfeeling Deity's face and kissed him passionately, even if he did not return it. As she pulled herself away, she still lingered close to him, letting her plans for him run through her mind as she let out another small chuckle of wicked delight, overjoyed that after so long, she finally had everything she ever wanted.