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Zelda had lost track of time since she had been kidnapped by a monstrous blue beast named Ganon.There was a legendary folktale that spoke of a monstrous, two-legged boar that was told more to children so they would behave, yet even with very little information available from the royal family archives, he was a dangerous threat that could destroy the entire kingdom if he wanted to. She just never imagined that this monstrous being of legend was truly real. She had lost track of time already, yet she remembered when Ganon had kidnapped her in the dead of night. She had been unable to call for help because she had been deprived of a good night's sleep when she was only half awake.Despite being known as a brute, Ganon did not kill her. Instead, he chose to seal her inside a pink crystal so she couldn't escape. Zelda's hands gently pressed against it, feeling the chill seep into the palms of her hands. The crystal casing was too hard for her to break on her own, making her feel close to hopelessness. With nothing much to do, she wondered why a beast of his size would be so wary of her trying to escape. Why didn't he dare to outright kill her? What was so special about her that he dared not to let any of her blood be spilled?It was questions like these that made Zelda puzzled by the beast known as Ganon.The only thing she could do to pass the time whenever she was awake was to lean against the casing of the interior of the crystal in the hopes of getting any sleep. It didn't help that occasionally Ganon would wake her up by tapping on the hard surface of the crystal to make sure she hadn't fallen unconscious to the point of death.Sometimes Zelda's mind would wander, thinking about if her father was okay.
He's likely worried sick for my safety by now. Perhaps he sent out the general and his men to discover where Ganon's lair was. I can only hope that none of them get seriously hurt.
Her drowsiness almost made her fall asleep again, but the loud noise caused by Ganon tapping his massive claw against the outer shell of the crystal kept her from sleeping for long periods of time.Zelda was growing restless and annoyed that he would choose to cruelly play around with her. She wondered if she could kick his butt for torturing her for so long if she wasn't trapped in a crystal strong enough to hold her within. Princess or not, she wished she had the chance to prove herself.She soon noticed something had finally drawn Ganon's attention away from her crystal prison. Zelda pressed against it to get a better look, she was relieved that someone was finally able to find her and help her out of her predicament.She hadn't expected it to be a lone swordsman she was unfamiliar with, one who looked around her height. She doubted the person who walked up to Ganon was even an adult.Ganon himself looked like he was monologuing to the mysterious swordsman who wore some kind of tunic underneath a hood. Zelda couldn't hear very clearly what he was saying due to the crystal.When the mysterious swordsman finally uncloaked themselves, Zelda's suspicions about the swordsmen were true. He was a young Hylian around her age, but one who didn't look deterred from going against Ganon.Yet there was something about his soft-looking face that oddly looked familiar to her, a part of her wondered what about it made her feel that way.The boy unsheathed his sword, and Zelda saw that Ganon had summoned his halberd, this time looking eager to engage in battle with it against the courageous heart of the Hylian that dared to fight him head-on."Challenge me if you dare, foolish Hylian! You won't leave this room alive!" she managed to hear Ganon's booming voice this time through the thickness of the crystal.Ganon struck first, thrusting his double-sided halberd toward Link's direction in an attempt to attack the young Hylian. But no matter how fast Ganon lashed out with his halberd at the young swordsmen, he dodged each attempt to hit him. Though it looked quite close each time. Both of them had their eyes focused on the other.For someone looking around her age, the young swordsman was light on his feet compared to the knights that served the kingdom. Zelda could tell he wasn't as well trained in swordplay as the general was. But she could see that he was determined to save her from Ganon's clutches. It made her wonder how he learned to fight with a sword.Zelda knew that any mistake he made would lead the young swordsman to take a life-threatening blow that would have his blood staining the floor in a pool of blood. Yet even so, the only injury he could get was bruises whenever he messed up his landing from avoiding blow after blow from Ganon, who was only getting more enraged. It was hard to keep watch over the intense battle from the crystal due to seeing more of Ganon's back than seeing the mysterious boy in view.She was still puzzled about him, certain that she remembered those golden locks. But her mind was not being helpful at all with helping her remember where she could have seen them before.Both of them looked evenly matched in strength and speed, even when the battle led to them parrying orbs of magic that Ganon had thrown at Link only for him to send them flying back. It was fascinating to Zelda, knowing this was just like the legend written about Ganon's existence.Finally, when the last orb struck Ganon in the chest, Link slashed at him enough that he nearly fell to his knees.He stabbed the floor of the dungeon with his halberd but didn't use it to help himself up. While Zelda couldn't see the face of the monstrous boar, the cruel laughter in his voice made her unnerved that he didn't seem unhappy about being defeated. Ganon exploded into a large puff of purple smoke, leaving only his halberd behind. The young swordsman who saved her life was finally able to catch his breath after an exhausting battle.For a moment the hero studied the halberd that remained standing before his eyes. The mysterious Hylian who had saved her from Ganon then pulled his attention away from the remaining weapon and approached her crystal. He was likely wanting to find a safe way to free her from the casing of the crystal.But what drew her attention away from him was the purple cracks beginning to form on the floor below the halberd, it instantly filled her with dread when she saw the weapon sink into the purple void below. She had seen this before, a rift that was a gateway to the void of no return."Look out behind you!" she tried to shout through the crystal as the rift got bigger, her hand movements became frantic in her attempt to point out the impending danger right behind him.She didn't know if it was the fast movement of her lips or the frantic movement that got his attention to turn around at last, but he had a look of terror on his face when he turned around too late to see a rift was already at his feet. The young swordsmen was being pulled into the purple void.Panic arose in Zelda.
No! Fight back! Don't let it take you!
The young boy had said something, but Zelda couldn't understand what he was saying because of the thickness of the crystal.Although he tried to struggle to free himself from the void that tugged him deeper at a quicker pace, it shocked Zelda when she saw him use the last of his energy to take out his bow and allow his last arrow to be fired with his hands.The arrow swiftly struck the center of Zelda's crystal prison, startling her. It wasn't enough for the arrow to pierce through the crystal, but enough to make it crack. She banged hard on the fractured crystal, just as the young swordsmen fully disappeared into the purple void.Her crystal prison finally shattered, sending fragments of the crystal scattering around her. She thankfully landed on her feet, finally able to stand on solid ground. But she still felt immense guilt for being too late to save the young swordsmen from being swallowed up by the rift.If she had never been captured, none of this would have happened.She had caught her breath for a moment to stop herself from panicking over what had just happened before her eyes when she spotted a bright yellow light watching her from above. The orb of light moved at a gentle pace, moving gracefully around until it stopped on the other side of the room.Zelda quickly followed the light until it hovered above the cape that the swordsmen had worn on the way into the twisted maze of Ganon's lair. Zelda picked it up and held it close to her chest.
He's got to be still alive, there's no way he would give up without a fight. I'll find him and return him his cape.
Zelda felt the floor beneath her rumble, looking back she could see that the rift was growing faster, she knew she had to leave before it took her too.She ran as fast as she could, knowing any change in speed would result in her being taken by the rift like the young swordsman who saved her life. Even as Ganon's lair shook beneath her feet and the ceiling caved in around her, she continued on with haste.As she exited the room and into the next, the stairway on the way down collapsed beneath her feet. Luckily the fall wasn't too big, thankfully right in front of the entrance of the lair.
I'm almost there, Hylia give me strength!
Zelda was almost out of breath as she escaped to the outside world and away from the crumbling lair. But she hadn't been focused on where she was running and fell due to tripping on the uneven ground beneath her feet.Turning back she was terrified to see that the ever-growing rush of the rift had followed her outside. Zelda raised her hand up and closed her eyes, fearful and accepting her unfortunate fate.But Zelda felt no force working against her. She feels...fine?When she placed her hand down and opened her eyes to see her surroundings, she was unnerved by what she saw.The lair of Ganon had been completely swallowed up by the rift. So large in fact that she could see chunks of land floating within. Yet from where she stood looking into the void, she could not see any signs of Hylian life down there.She rested for a moment. Exhausted from running for her life. She still couldn't believe she had been able to survive from being swallowed up by a rift.When she was fit to travel, Zelda began to walk. She wasn't sure how far away the castle was, but she was determined to find her way back. The cliff she approached after not walking too far from the lair, she immediately spotted Hyule Castle in the distance past the lush forest.
It won't be much longer till I'll be home.
"Princess Zelda!"Zelda was startled for a moment until she looked behind her and saw two knights running toward her. Both of them looked so relieved to find her. They were quick to bow respectfully in her presence. "We almost lost hope in finding you, the king has been worried sick hoping that one of the knights would be able to find you. I can only thank Hylia that you're safe!""Indeed, it's a miracle that you're all in one piece," the other guard added, "But I must ask, where have you been this whole time?"Zelda paused for a moment, she didn't know if it was wise to spread panic that Ganon was in fact not a folk legend and was plotting something for Hyrule's downfall. Yet she knew she could never lie to her people."I think we should ask her when she's ready, she looks quite shaken up about her ordeal," the first knight spoke up, which made Zelda feel relieved that he had."I need to get back to the castle, I must speak with my father"."Of course, Princess Zelda".Zelda led the way as the knights who found her made sure to watch her back. Yet Even so, Zelda had a bad feeling that something much worse had yet to come. She knew if anyone could help her, it would be her father.