Hyrule during the time frame of the original Legend of Zelda and Zelda II. The original game’s story takes place in the southern part of Hyrule, which had been abandoned after the events of Link to the Past. Zelda II takes place in the northern part, where many new towns were settled.

After Link defeated Ganon in the Dark World, and claimed the Triforce, he reversed many of the disasters Ganon had brought upon Hyrule. When everything was returned to the way it had been before (with Ganon’s spirit imprisoned in the Sacred Realm), it was only a matter of time before Ganon would regain enough power to mount another scheme. This displeased the Goddesses.

The Three Goddesses who created the universe conspired to change the rules of the Triforce in this era. It is unknown how many events they directly manipulated in the history of Hyrule.

The three Goddesses had created the universe to watch and enjoy the drama and fascinating goings on of mortal existence. They had created life for their own amusement, and they had been were thrilled to see such perfect embodiments of Power, Wisdom and Courage clash. Ganon simply being able to repeat his previous scheme would be redundant. So, it was decided that the Triforce would be broken again, so that pieces of it could be hidden elsewhere. As it had happened in the past, the Goddesses bestowed the Triforce on those who best represented it’s qualities.

The mark of the Triforce, as it appeared on the hands of Link, Ganon and Princess Zelda. These marks were symbolic of their embodiment of the qualities of the Triforce.

Princess Zelda (who had helped Link IV defeat Ganon) noticed the mark of the Triforce appear on her hand one day. Understanding its significance, she dedicated herself to amassing as much wisdom as she could. As she aged and became a mother, Zelda was very pleased one day, to see that the mark had disappeared from her hand, and appeared on he daughter’s hand. For hundreds of years, generations of Princess Zelda all bore the Triforce marking on their hand, and each generation passed its wisdom onto the next.

There is a world of difference between wisdom and knowledge, however. Though he lacked wisdom (his capability for such thought clouded by rage), Ganon possessed even more knowledge of the Triforce than Princess Zelda. As he expected, the Triforce of Power passed to him. This would mean that he could use it’s power to resurrect himself. However, if he wanted a physical form it would cost him.

He knew that he was able to maintain his connection with Death Mountain because of the remnants of his physical form in the mountain. If he returned to life, it would be an anomaly for him to exist physically in two places at once. If he returned to life now, he would never be able to leave the mountain, and would be more vulnerable to death than ever before. So, Ganon waited.

As for the Triforce of Courage, while Link IV awoke with the mark on his hand, he gave it little thought. As with all the previous incarnations of the legendary Hero, after their adventures were over Link IV and his uncle Error disappeared happily into obscurity. And, also like the previous Heroes, they said little of their past to their families. No one who lived with them in the Town of Ruto had any idea that they were neighbors with legendary figures.

Link died an old man, at home with his family. His family were surprised to see the mark on his hand disappear after his death, but thought little of it.

When the people of Hyrule abandoned the part of Hyrule south of Death Mountain, it was very symbolic. Leaving the land where so much suffering had been endured, they claimed a new territory, and evolved rapidly. Hyrulian politics were more advanced than ever, with the great number of towns. Though all the towns had their own mayors (and elders to advise them) and were independent to a point, they were still loyal to the Royal Family. Trade routes opened between the towns, and the population began to boom. Hyrule had entered a new era of prosperity.

Daily life was much more peaceful for residents of Hyrule in the 6000s. The establishment of many towns around the northern continent made travel easier and provided much more safety.

A handful of stubborn families refused to leave the south. Scattered about in caves and in the various temples and dungeons, these people eventually became societies of hermits. Oddly enough, they still clung to the use of rupees as currency, though they had little use other than buying things from other hermit societies. Certain forms of wildlife, like Tektites, Leevers and Octoroks flourished in the now abandoned part of Hyrule.

Certain wildlife like the Octoroks, seen here, appeared in much higher numbers in Southern Hyrule. This was another reason that the people who remained in the south were so reclusive.

One day, an emissary from The Kingdom of Calatia appeared.

Calatia was a kingdom far to the west of Hyrule, long past the deserts of the Gerudo. In fact, centuries earlier, some of the Gerudo fled Ganon’s rule and integrated themselves into Calatian society. Calatia had a similarly war town past, though it was due to the simple greed and ignorance rather than the influence of an evil force like Ganon. After many centuries of war, their land was finally united under one kingdom and they had entered a new era of peace.

One of the King’s advisers was a descendant of the Gerudo. With this new peace, she felt that the people may be ready to know that they were not the only ones in the land, and she told the King of their Eastern neighbors. The King, excited to encounter a new civilization (who could possibly become a trading partner), immediately sent representatives to seek out Hyrule.

Unfortunately, neither the King of Calatia, nor his advisers, knew anything of Ganon’s connection with Death Mountain, and the Calatian messengers travelled through the mountains. Hyrule’s royal family had declared Death Mountain totally off limits, and had in fact been considering plans to destroy the very mountain itself. Ganon was able to corrupt the messengers of Calatia, and began rebuilding his armies. Calatia, for their part, unwittingly provided Ganon with more and more soldiers, as they continued to send people to try and find out what had happened (a grim echo of Ganon’s previous army; representatives of the King of Hyrule looking for signs of the Gorons).

Ganon’s magic had become very dark by this time. He began to use sacrifice to power his spells. He reasoned that if he could sever the bloodline of Princess Zelda and claim the Triforce of Wisdom, he would be able to resurrect himself without restriction. Then he would be free to use all manner of savagery in locating the Triforce of Power.

So, he sent corrupted Calatian messengers to the Northern Palace. The members of the Calatian caravan assaulted the Royal Family in their throne room, beheading Queen Zelda. The Knights of Hyrule were able to intervene and save the King and the Princess, however. The King had the Calatians put to death and declared war on Calatia. In a cruel twist, Ganon released those who were captured from his power after their arrest. They spent their last hours in terror, being tortured by vengeful guards followed by a horrific public execution.

Princess Zelda likely would have attempted to interfere and prevent the executions or the declaration of war, but she was not there. After her mother’s death, Zelda’s instincts told her their attackers were after the Triforce of Wisdom. She enacted a rite which would bring it into physical form (in many ways, a similar spell to the ones cast by Ganon to return himself to life). The mark that had appeared on her hand a few hours earlier now disappeared. Then, she shattered it into eight pieces. With Impa, the last surviving Sheikah and her confidant, Zelda immediately set out for Southern Hyrule. She traveled to eight temples which she knew of from her studies of the Book of Modura. She hid a piece of the Triforce of Wisdom in each of them.

As they left the final temple, Ganon’s forces found them. Zelda and Impa split up, and Zelda was quickly captured. Zelda was brought back to Death Mountain, and Ganon’s minions prepared to sacrifice her. Something felt wrong though, Ganon thought. Quickly, it was discovered that Zelda had no marking on her hand. A Wizzrobe (the term Wizzrobe refers to practitioners of a specific discipline of black magic: a fringe cult of the Gerudo, fiercely loyal to Ganondorf) suggested that this may be a decoy princess, but Ganon knew otherwise. He knew that Zelda had brought the Triforce back into the physical realm.

The temples seemed like the most likely places for Zelda to have hidden the pieces, and Ganon immediately dispatched his armies to search the them. His warriors could not find the pieces, however. The ancient temples (all having been previously used to hold spiritual stones, goddess pearls and other treasures) were labyrinths. Ganon wasn’t sure if his warriors would ever find the Triforce pieces.

Ganon’s forces search the second dungeon for the Triforce piece. Though Link was able to solve the mysteries of the ancient temple, Ganon’s minions lacked the mental capacity to do so. A giant Dodongo awaits in the room before the Triforce, but the capacity to open the door is beyond it.

Even under torture, Zelda refused to give up where she had hidden the pieces in the temples. Frustrated, Ganon sent his forces to capture Impa. Then, even if Impa would not tell them where the pieces were hidden, the threat of her torture and death would be a powerful bargaining chip against Zelda. For weeks, his forces searched, finally capturing Impa in the south. A cunning old woman, she escaped shortly after her capture, and Ganon’s men split up to try and find her.

When one of Ganon’s soldiers finally recaptured her, he chained her to a tree, then drew his sword. “I’m not going through that again, witch!” Impa’s eyes widened as she saw the soldier was preparing to cut her foot off! Just as he was about to swing, however, as if from nowhere, a large rock hit the soldier in the head, killing him.

“Are you alright?” asked a young boy dressed in green.

A young boy dressed in green appears and saves Impa from Ganon’s forces.

The boy helped unchain Impa, and she led him to a nearby cave. “We’ll be safe here,” said Impa, more to herself than to the young boy. Deep in the cave, between two torches, sat an old man in a dirty red robe. The old man welcomed them, and offered the young boy food. He also noticed that the boy seemed to be very tired, and offered him his bed for a few hours while he and Impa talked. The old man was a friend of Impa’s. While the young boy slept, Impa told her friend of what had happened to Queen Zelda, and then Princess Zelda. Hours later, the young boy awoke to find Impa sitting next to the bed. After he’d eaten again, she asked him to tell her about himself.

His name was Link, he said (as always, for ease of differentiation, we can refer to this Link as Link V). His father was a Calatian Knight, and his family had been ambushed during their travels to the East. Link had fled into the woods while his family was murdered by bandits (followers of Ganon, though he did not know it). He had been traveling across the land for months, and had learned to survive on his own, though he did not know where he was. The young boy rubbed his eyes, and for the first time, Impa noticed the mark of the Triforce on his hand.

Impa told Link he was destined for great things, and that he had come to this land for a reason. That reason was to save the Princess Zelda and return peace. The fate of not only this land, she said, but also Calatia was at stake. Link was eager to help. The old man then appeared and presented Link with a wooden sword and shield. The shield was simple, with a small crest, the sword was lightweight and sharpened to a very fine point.

The Old Man gives Link his sword. Other old men would give Link plenty of nonsense advice that resulted from poor translations, such as “Dodongo dislikes smoke” and “There are secrets where fairies don’t live.”

With that, Link V set out an epic journey, locating temples that had been hidden for ages, locating magical artifacts that had been used by previous heroes, including the Master Sword. He defeated Ganon’s forces that were searching the temples, and destroyed many great beasts such as the dinosaur-like Dodongos, and the giant parasitic spider Ghoma. When he had finally located all the pieces of the Triforce of Wisdom, Link then set out for Death Mountain.

Because he was the vessel of the Triforce of Courage, Death Mountain’s magic would hold no power over him. Link found the entrance to Ganon’s dungeon (which had been built around where the Tower of Hera had collapsed into the mountain) in the area known as Spectacle Rock, and entered. Deep within the huge maze, Link found a secret room which even Ganon did not know about. It was in fact, the remnants of the fairy fountain which had been a part of Death Mountain centuries earlier. There, Navi, Queen of the Fairies, gave Link the sacred Silver Arrows, which she promised would finally bring peace to the world.

In frustration over Link continuing to defeat his most powerful forces, Ganon chose to play his hand and return to physical form. “You will not survive this, boy,” he snarled as Link entered the penultimate chamber of the dungeon. The pig-like, bestial Ganon attacked Link with all his fury, for he knew this might be his last chance to finally conquer Hyrule and make it his own. Millenniums of anger and frustration at his grand plans having been foiled over and over again by mere children came out in each swing of his massive blade. When Link was able to evade his every attack, he cried out in frustration and fazed out of vision. Ganon had used his black magic to turn himself invisible, and would now be able to strike the final blow. Still, Link avoided his attacks, relying purely on the instincts of the Hero. Again, Ganon cried out in anger. Hearing Ganon’s cry, Link slashed with the Master Sword in the direction of the voice without thinking. The legendary blade cut a huge wound across Ganon’s chest, and he stumbled backwards, stunned, becoming visible once again. Ganon stared in disbelief at his blood, spilling on the ground and staining his hands, and looked up to see Link readying a Silver Arrow on his bow. Before he could react, Link let the arrow fly.

Link stabs Ganon in the final battle, rendering him vulnerable to attack with the Silver Arrows.

The Silver Arrows were powerful artifacts, blessed by the goddesses, and the most powerful fairies throughout history. When their holy tip pierced Ganon’s skin, his body burst into flames. Without screaming, Ganon staggered, collapsed and died.

The sacred fire burned quickly, with only Ganon’s ashes, and the Triforce of Power remaining. Link took the second Triforce and in the final room, found Princess Zelda. Zelda, with a proud smile said “Thank you, Link” though he had not told her his name. Zelda took his hand, and proclaimed Link to be the Hero of Hyrule, the final Legendary Hero.

The two immediately returned to the Northern Palace. The King, upon hearing that Link, a Calatian, had saved his daughter, and that those who had assassinated the Queen had been under Ganon’s power, he called off the planned assault on Calatia.

The Hyrulian people mourned their Queen, particularly Princess Zelda who only now allowed herself to deal with her grief. Without the specter of war, a massive public funeral was held in her honor, and the King told the people that “the best way we can honor her memory is to live in peace.” To that end, the King sent an envoy of his own, led by Link, to meet with the King of Calatia and send his regrets over the deaths of his messengers, as well as extend his hand in friendship. In time Hyrule and Calatia would share a very amiable relationship as they exchanged technology and worked together.

Link, however, having no family left in Calatia, felt compelled to return to Hyrule five years later. He was reunited with Princess Zelda, and though they were eager to spend some time together they would be little time to be wasted. “Something troubles me,” confided Zelda. “You are the vessel of the Triforce of Courage. When we collected the Triforces of Wisdom and Power, the Triforce should have reunited. Why did that not happen?”

They brought this question to Impa, who shared with them a long guarded secret. “It is a tale we servants of the royal family refer to as The Legend of Zelda.” It was a story from long before Northern Hyrule, or the Great Cataclysm, or ever the appearance of Ganon himself, near the beginning of the original wars with the Zoras and Gorons over the Triforce. The Royal Family at that time had two children. The Princess was beautiful, kind and wise and was greatly loved by the people. The Prince, however, was mean tempered and fueled by greed. The Prince was known for angry outbursts and terrible abuses of his power. The Prince discovered that his sister knew the location of the Triforce and the Sacred Realm. He confronted her, but she refused to tell him. Angry, he threatened her, claiming it was for the good of the people, though he only wanted the Triforce for himself. Again, she refused him.

The Prince sought the council of his adviser, a mage. Little did he know, the mage was actually a most powerful evil Wizzrobe. The mage came with the Prince to confront the Princess again and threatened to place a spell that would put her to sleep forever if she did not reveal the location of the Triforce. For a third time she refused, and the mage revealed his true form and cast his spell. The Princess fell to the ground and never woke again. The Prince, now grief stricken, screamed at the Wizzrobe to reverse the spell, but the old wizard merely laughed, and then fell over dead himself. (A detail unknown to Impa is that before his death, he had two pupils: another Wizzrobe named Carock who was still alive thousands of years later, and a young Ganondorf).

The Prince, driven mad with guilt, took his own life. The King, in his sorrow at having lost both his children, placed the Princess’ body in a secret room deep below Hyrule Castle. To ensure that this tragedy would never be forgotten, he decreed that all daughters of the Royal Family from then on take the same name as his daughter: Zelda.

The King visited his daughter’s sleeping form three times before sealing the room up, and hiding it for all time. On his final visit, he noticed an inscription on a pedestal near her, that had not been there previously. “Where there is a vessel, but Courage is absent, therein lies awakening.”

After hearing Impa’s story, Zelda was adamant: “we must search the ruins of old Hyrule Castle and locate my ancestor.” Soon, Link, Zelda and a dispatch of Knights of Hyrule searched long throughout the ruins of the castle. By chance, Link discovered a secret passageway behind the throne that led them to the hidden chamber. In a glass case, there lay the original Princess Zelda, as beautiful as she had been 6000 years previous. In the same room, Link found a chest which held six crystals and a scroll. The scroll was a prophecy, that spoke of a great Hero who would place the crystals in six statues within ancient temples, breaking the seal that keeps the Great Palace hidden. Within the Great Palace, the Hero would fulfill his destiny. Inspired, Link set off to find the six ancient statues, and save Zelda once and for all.

The six Palaces were actually ancient sites of the Wizzrobes. Long before Hyrule extended its borders to the north, Wizzrobes had erected their temples as a means of channeling magic energy far away from any interference. The mystical statues acted as a form of magical antenna to focus the natural magical energy of the world. The crystals Link intended to place in the statues were forged by combining the elements of the Spiritual Stones that once acted as a lock on the Master Sword and the Sacred Realm. If Link could place them in the crystals in the statues, they would be rendered harmless.

Meanwhile, Carock the Wizzrobe, still loyal to Ganon, decided the time had come for vengeance. Carock had discovered that there was a chance to revive Ganon, if they could sacrifice Link and pour his blood over Ganon’s ashes. Carock unleashed the remaining armies of Ganon across the land, determined to track down and kill Link.

After visiting nearby towns for information, including a chance meeting with a man named Error, a descendant of The Hero of the Triforce, Link departed for the nearby desert. A contingent of Ganon’s forces, led by the abomination known as Horsehead, followed Link to Parapa Palace, and ambushed him inside. Link battled through and placed the crystal in the statue, which shuddered with a great glowing energy. The vibration of the statue intensified, and Link fled the Temple. Just moments after Link escaped, the Temple collapsed on itself.

Link places the crystal in the eye of the ancient statue.

At that instant, Carock cried out in pain, and dropped to one knee as a portion of his power left him. In many ways, Link defeated Carock at this moment. Losing some of his power caused Carock to second guess himself. He hesitated to enter the fray himself, and by the time he confronted Link at the Maze Island Palace, he had already lost half of his power. Using a reflect spell a village elder had taught him, Link easily defeated Carock.

With Carock’s defeat, Ganon’s followers faltered. Though they continued to pursue Link, they were disorganized and sloppy. Soon, he had placed the crystals in all six statues, destroying them, and had defeated the remainder of Ganon’s army, once and for all. All that remained was the Great Palace. Searching for the Palace, Link discovered a deserted ghost town called Old Kasuto. In town, he discovered a clue that led him to New Kasuto, hidden deep in the woods. The residents of New Kasuto warned him that shortly after the town had settled, evil spirits had wafted down from the nearby mountain, creating horrific visions of the darkness that hid within their hearts. In terror, they fled.

Many of the later followers of Ganon had only appeared for the first time in Link’s final adventure. The bizarre Horsehead fell to Link’s blade in Parapa Palace, and was never heard from again.

The stories of the townspeople led Link to explore the old Mountain, travelling through what was known as The Path of Fire. When he had scaled to the peak of the mountain, he discovered a massive Palace that had not been visible previously. He knew this was the Great Palace.

A mausoleum of death, the Great Palace was full of lethal traps and deadly monsters. Link endured, however, and battled through, defeating the bizarre magical being Thunderbird. As Thunderbird faded out of existence, Link entered the next room and to his surprise, found the Triforce of Courage. Why had the Triforce manifested itself here, he asked himself. Who had claimed it?

“I did,” came an answer. Link turned and saw no one. He turned back, and he saw a dark version of himself standing in front of the Triforce of Courage. With that, this Shadow of Link attacked. Link struggled to defend himself, and all his own techniques were turned against him. After the Shadow struck a glancing blow to his arm, Link back-flipped away. “You can never defeat me,” a voice in Link’s head said, as blood trickled onto his hand. He glanced at it, and saw the Triforce symbol on his hand glow through a stream of blood. His eyes narrowed.

Link cleared his mind, and focused on his fighting technique. After a stalemate for some time, Link began to see the faults in his own defense and was able to exploit those weaknesses in his opponent. The duel ended decisively when the Shadow attempted a spinning attack and Link was able to extend his sword out. The Shadow’s momentum carried him straight into Link’s blade, and the doppelganger collapsed, fading from existence as mysteriously as it had appeared.

Without wasting a moment, Link claimed the Triforce of Courage. As he did, his head went light and his vision faded to white.

“Congratulations, young hero,” a voice said.
“You have faced the darkness within yourself,” said another.
“The evil that has plagued this land has been vanquished,” a third voice added.
“May you live the your life in peace,” all three voices said together.

Link awoke outside the Great Palace, which had now collapsed on itself like all the others. He set off back for the Northern Palace with the Triforce of Courage in his possession. Once he arrived, Zelda brought the Triforce together, and they wished that the spell on the original Zelda be broken. The Princess opened her eyes, and greeted her saviours.

With the final defeat of Ganon’s forces and the collapse of the evil network of Wizzrobe magic, peace returned to Hyrule once and for all. Zelda I became an advisor to the King and the current Princess Zelda. The bonds of friendship with Calatia were strengthened, and expeditions to discover new lands were commissioned. Link would be the leader of these missions, and had many more adventures. As opposed to the previous generations of heroes, Link V became well known throughout Hyrule. As he travelled the land, he went out of his way to help as many people as possible. In time, he and Princess Zelda grew to have a great affection for one another, and for the first time in all the history of Hyrule, the Hero of Courage and the Princess of Wisdom were able to know each other without a specter of evil and war.

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That is the total of the story, until the next game comes out. Then the fun of trying to find a place for it on the timeline begins. There were also a few other games that I didn’t put into the story, as they didn’t really serve much to advance the story. If you feel like making yourself feel a little crazy though, you can take a look into Link’s Awakening, Four Swords/Four Swords Adventure, Minish Cap and the Oracle games.

Link’s Awakening is a story about Link getting shipwrecked on a mysterious island and having an adventure that may have all been a dream. Because the game had a similar style, and was released immediately afterwards, it’s generally accepted as being the same Link as Link to the Past. I read an interesting theory, however, that the game takes place in the middle of Adventure of Link, the last game in this history. During the game Link sails to Maze Island and Eastern Hyrule, and since there’s no immediate urgency to that storyline (The Princess has been asleep for 7000 years already. She’ll keep) its not too much of a stretch to have him shipwreck and have another quest in the middle.

Four Swords were the only multiplayer Zelda games, and followed Link as he split into four through the creatively named Four Sword. The game is probably around Link to the Past, since Ganon’s appearance is extremely similar in the two games. Some histories point out that this is the first place in the timeline where Ganon used a large pitchfork/trident, though the Phantom Ganon in Ocarina already used a similar weapon.

Minish Cap basically seems to explain why there’s rupees and other things in bushes and jars everywhere in Hyrule. They’re put there by the tiny Picori (also known as Minish) who leave them there to make the world a more magical place. I also read a suggestion that it’s the very first game, because it tells a story about how Link gets the hat that he has in every other game. Not a big fan of that theory. However, it is the only game in which Ganon doesn’t appear, or is at least referenced. I prefer to think it happens during the relative peace between Ganon’s attacks. Perhaps noone speaks Ganon’s name for fear of his return.

Both FS and MC featured Vaati as a villain. Vaati is referred to as a Wind Sage, and was apparently a Minish who was corrupted and used a magic hat to turn himself into a Hyrulian sorcerer. It would be interesting to see a take on Vaati appear in a future Zelda game more in the style of Twilight Princess.

The Oracle games were released simultaneously. Advocates of the parallel timeline theory (with the timeline splitting into two possibilities after Ocarina), claim that the two games take place at the same time, but in different timelines. Aside from my protests against multiple timelines, the games themselves are designed to be played one after another. When you beat one game, a password is given that restructures the other game to serve more as a sequel. Add in the fact that a third game was originally planned, and it seems like even more of a stretch that they are on two different timelines.

I am really pleased to have finally finished the main story of the game. It’s been one hell of an endeavour, but it was fun as well. We’re not done yet, however, as I have one more Zelda article left to come, a look at the evolution of wildlife and monsters throughout the series. As a part of that effort, there will probably be some study of the nomenclature of this fictional world. Soon my friends, you two will know the differences between the Helmasaur King and the Helmaroc King, and what the prefix Stal refers to. It should be fun.

At the turn of the Millenium, as young Link IV continued to grow, his Uncle Error began to feel uneasy. He sensed great trouble coming, and he stepped up Link’s training. Meanwhile, the two moved into a new home south of Hyrule Castle. The farm house was simply too big and lonely with just the two of them, and alone they could not maintain the farm. With a heavy heart, he sold their remaining livestock and crops to buy the new house.

He recalled happier times, enjoying the company of his family. His brother in law, Link I, he remembered was very quiet. Often, Link would be found sitting quietly in the corner, reading books he had checked out of the Kakariko Village library. More than a few times, it was the Book of Modura, which was now seen as a religious book.

The Book of Modura (sometimes spelled Mudora, due to the complexities of translating Hylian language to English) was a tome of great spiritual and religious significance to the people of Hyrule. Some believed the stories were the literal tales of the legendary Heroes, others believed them to be allegorical tales, meant to convey moral messages.

Error and his family had never attended ceremonies or other spiritual events in Hyrule. Their ranch and farm had been on the outskirts of Hyrule, and they were happy without the influence of religion into their lives. Error, in particular, was strongly against the religion and he would attempt to engage Link in debates. “Why do you read such nonsense?” he would ask, “It provides easy answers for simple people.” Link would usually respond simply, “There is little knowledge that is not power.”

Now, with this unbearable sense of dread filling his heart, those words echoed in Error’s head. In desperation, he travelled to the Kakariko library and began reading the Book of Modura. He would not tell young Link his specific intention, only that he was going to library and he wished to be alone. Still unsure about what he saw as a religion of false hope and easy answers, he did not want to steer the boy down what may be a bad path.

As he read the legends in the book, he was fascinated by the stories of bravery told within. The exploits of the Hero of Time, the Hero of Winds and the Hero of Light were inspiring to him. More than anything, however, he was intruiged by the knowledge he gained throughout the many historical accounts. He had thought the Zoras and Gorons were simple folk tales concocted to scare children, but he now knew them to be extinct races of Hyrule. The bloody wars fought over the Triforce were chilling to read about, though he lived in tumultuous times of natural disasters (before Agahnim’s appearance, anyway) he could not imagine open war. The Great Sea was almost inconceivable for him; how could everything he knew have been underwater for so long?

During his adventures, Link IV encountered many creatures of significance. Here, he is shown meeting the King of the Zolas. Though the Zolas were violent and attacked humans, the King admired Link’s persistence and sold him a pair of Zola-designed flippers.

As he neared the end of the book, he was happy to read that after their trials had ended, the Hero of Winds and his descendant the Hero of Light were able to live peacefully as farmers. Error paused in his reading, stunned by the thought that had occurred to him. He frantically flipped through the Book, rereading certain passages and descriptions of the later lives of the two Heroes. Error’s head dropped into his hands, and he wept, overwhelmed. The descriptions in the book were too familiar: it was his family’s ranch. They were the descendants of the legendary Heroes!

The Hero of Light, it seems, was as modest as the Hero of Winds, and never told his wife or children about the full extent of his exploits. Knowing the truth of his ancestry, Error knew he had to be ready. His feeling of unease was replaced with an urgency to be ready, whatever the cost. Though he was already an adult much older than the legendary Heroes had been, he was determined to be ready to do whatever was necessary.

Of course, unbeknownst to Error, his brother in law had been the time-displaced Hero of Time (modesty, it seems, is a trait shared by all the Heroes). Thus, young Link IV was a very special child, as he shared the bloodlines of all three legendary Heroes. As Error trained his nephew, little did he know he was training a child fated for heroism.

Meanwhile, Agahnim had gained the King’s trust enough that he was widely respected within the castle. The King had also made it known that if anything were ever to happen to him, Agahnim would rule in his place until Princess Zelda was old enough. Zelda had cunning beyond her years, however, and suspected Agahnim, though she had no proof. She would attempt to spy on his actions, often being caught and returned to her room by the Knights of Hyrule.

Late one night, Agahnim approached the King claiming urgent business that needed discussing. He lied to the King, telling him that he had heard talk of an attempt on the lives of the seven descendants of the Sages who had sealed Ganon away. The only way to save them, he claimed was to reveal the identities of the descendants to Agahnim so he could save them. The King (knowing that the bloodlines of the Sages were essential to keeping Ganon sealed in the Sacred Realm) immediately told him six of the descendants were young girls from various places in Hyrule, and instructed him on where to find them. Agahnim demanded to know who the seventh girl was. The King turned away, almost embarrassed at having to share this, his most closely guarded secret.

The seven Sages of the era following the Hero of Light seal Ganon’s spirit in the Sacred Realm. It was their hope that travel between the two worlds would impossible.

“The seventh descendant is Zelda,” he sighed. “You’re the only person I’ve ever told that too. She doesn’t even know.” The King had time to exhale once before he felt his throat close up. Agahnim was choking the King with the very same rope he had used on his father an eternity ago. “Ganon appreciates your candor,” he laughed as he garrotted the King into unconsciousness. He then laid the King on an altar he had prepared. Using evil magic he had recently perfected, he transported the King into the Sacred Realm.

Agahnim immediately left the room and went to the Knights of Hyrule. “Evil conspires to kill the descendants of the seven Sages,” he announced, “The King has ordered you to come with me and save them!” Without question, the Knights left with Agahnim, and for three weeks they traveled Hyrule rounding up the girls. They acted in stealth, snatching the girls without leaving a trace. When these tactics were questioned by the soldiers, he replied, “It is better this way. The forces of evil could torture their families into revealing that we have told them. Better that their families know nothing until we can assure their safety.” With the girls rounded up, Agahnim had them placed in the basement prison of the Castle. Again, the soldiers questioned this, but Agahnim assured them. “There is little difference between a fortress and a prison. Both can serve the same purpose. This is the safest place.”

By this time, it was apparent that the King was missing. Agahnim claimed to know nothing about it, even shedding fake tears when he was informed. Agahnim ascended to the throne of Hyrule, declaring that he wished he did not have to do this, but it would be necessary until the King was found. As such, his first decree was that a squad of Knights under his direction would begin searching for the King. His second decree was that the disappearance of the King would be kept secret; better not to worry the people until he have more information, he reasoned.

It was clear to the Knights of the Castle, however, that something had changed in Agahnim. He was more cold, more intimidating. His orders became more peculiar, though now that he was the highest authority in Hyrule, none dared question his authority. The Knights complied when he ordered Princess Zelda be locked in the prison. Then, every night for a six days, Agahnim ordered one of the girls be brought to his personal chamber. After this, the girl would never been seen again. One Knight dared question Agahnim about this, and was immediately put to death. There would be no further questions from the guards.

As the descendants of the Sages were banished and imprisoned in the Sacred Realm, Ganon could feel his strength returning. He waited at the Triforce, biding his time until he would have a corporeal form, and claim it’s power. As his power grew, the Sacred Realm slowly transformed to reflect Ganon’s evil wishes, taking the form of a twisted mirror image of Hyrule. Once he claimed the Triforce, he would be unstoppable.

The Triforce in its resting place in the Sacred Realm. Ganon’s spirit was unable to claim the Triforce, but his evil presence was able to corrupt what had once been known as the Golden Land.

Meanwhile, Error and Link had been suffering horrible nightmares. In the dreams, young girls were screaming for help trapped in crystal prisons as they were taunted by dark beasts. Error did his best to convince Link that they were only dreams, and they would pass. He was not so convinced himself, however. On the seventh night, as he lay in bed during a violent rainstorm, he heard a voice cry out. “Please help me…” He heard his uncle stir across the room and he wondered if he heard it too. The voice continued.

“I am a prisoner in the dungeon of the castle. My name is Zelda. The wizard, Agahnim, has done…something to the other missing girls. Now only I remain. Agahnim has seized control of the castle and is now trying to open the seven wise men’s seal. I am in the dungeon of the castle. Please help me…”

Error got out of bed and grabbed his sword and shield. “Link, I’m going out for a while. I’ll be back by morning. Don’t leave the house.” Link tried to ask his uncle if he was going to the castle, but the door slammed before he could. Link sat for a while, thinking about what had happened, and he was overcome with an urge to help this girl. Grabbing a lantern, Link left the house and set off towards the Castle. As he came upon the Castle, he saw that the Gate was closed, but he felt drawn to the eastern side of the outer walls. There, behind some bushes, he found an open grating that led into the sewer system beneath the Castle. “Go in,” he heard the voice say.

Shortly after entering the sewers, he was shocked to find his uncle slumped against a wall. Error, now realizing that Link was Zelda’s only hope, and perhaps that it was Link, not himself, who was fated to be a Hero, gave Link his sword and shield. Link began to cry, at his uncle’s side. Error put his hand on his nephew’s shoulder and told him simply, “Grieve for me later. You must save Princess Zelda. You must do it now Link.” Link nodded, wiped his tears on his sleeve, and continued through the maze of sewers.

Link’s uncle Error dies in the sewers below Hyrule Castle. Though he would eventually avenge his uncle, Link’s motives were beyond simple retribution. The youth felt an indefatigable urge to save the Kingdom.

The voice in his head guided him through the Castle. He avoided most of the guards, and made his way into the prison. Looking through the dimly lit prison, he saw only one cell with an occupant. As he approached the cell, the voice in his head yelled, “duck!” Link did, and a massive spiked mace crashed into the wall behind him. Turning, he was faced with a Knight of Hyrule, brandishing a ball and chain. Remembering the training his uncle had given him, he dodged the guard’s attacks. The guard was hindered by his unweildy weapon, and Link was soon able to slide his sword through a weak point in the armour, killing him. He found a key in a satchel tied to the guard’s belt, and used it to unlock the cell.

“Thank you, Link,” said Princess Zelda. Before Link could ask how she knew his name, Zelda explained that there was no time to lose and they had to flee. Zelda led Link to the throne room, where there lay a secret escape route, known only to the royal family. The route led back through the sewers and eventually came out in the Sanctuary to the north. The priest who lived there was shocked to see Zelda, and he and Link both listened intently as Zelda explained about the other six descendants. “I know he has something to do with the disappearance of my father, as well,” added Zelda. The priest and Zelda discussed their next move until dawn, while Link finally took a moment to grieve his uncle in the back of the Sanctuary.

He was drawn out of his own thoughts when he heard Zelda cry out, “You never received it?!” The priest explained to Link, “we believe the only way to stop Agahnim is with the blade of evil’s bane, The Master Sword. The sword has a lock, of sorts, involving three pendants. One of those pendants was supposed to be delivered to me, but I never received it.” They immediately suspected Agahnim would have it, but couldn’t know where he would hide such a thing. Zelda smiled. “Sahasralah would know, he is wise to matters like this.” The priest explained to Link that Sahasralah was the elder of Kakariko village, and marked his house on Link’s map. “Find him, he will help us.”

Anxious to do all he could to help, Link set out on his quest. In Kakariko Village, he found that many of the villagers now feared him. He soon found out why; there were signs everywhere declaring that he was a bandit who had kidnapped Princess Zelda. Sahasralah’s family, however, knew Link from earlier, and happily pointed Link in the direction of the former encampments near the Eastern Palace. There, Link met Sahasralah, who told him that the first Pendant lay in the Palace. Sahasralah would attempt to find out where the remaining pendants were in the meantime.

Link battled through the temple, finding an ancient bow that was once used by his anscestor there, and used it to defeat the Armos Knights and claim the Pendant of Courage. His battle finished, Link revisited Sahasralah, who had discovered the locations of the remaining pendants: in the desert and high atop Death Mountain, in the Tower of Hera.

Link set out on a massive journey that saw him aid many people along the way to recovering the Pendants. He recovered many ancient weapons, such as the Icerod (constructed by the Yetis of Snowpeak long ago), the Firerod (imbued with the fires of Death Mountain by the Rito when they lived there), and the magical Ether, Bombos and Quake Medallions. These medallions had been studied extensively by Agahnim, and had allowed him to call the severe natural disasters that had plagued Hyrule.

Soon, he had defeated the Lanmola in the desert temple, recovering the Pendant of power. Then, he scaled Death Mountain. Along the way, he met an old man, who he helped through the mountain. The old man talked about a granddaughter who had disappeared, and hoping to find her again someday. As a gift, he gave Link a mirror which he said contained great magic (the mirror had been created by the same Sages who had created the Mirror of Twilight, eons earlier). As he climbed the mountain, the Tower of Hera was in sight, but he could find no way to pass; there was no good footing. In the area, however, Link discovered a bright, blue glowing light emanating from the ground in one specific area, roughly a meter around. Link leaned in to investigate, and was almost hypnotized by the swirling mass. Without thinking, he reached out and touched it. When he did, everything went white, and he lost consciousness.

When he awoke, it appeared to be night and he saw that the path to the Tower of Hera was somehow easier to climb now. He started off in that direction, and prepared to scale a small rock face. He brought his hand up to find a grip, but was horrified to see a bright pink paw. Link only now realized that he had somehow been transformed into a sort of rabbit-like creature. In his panic, he turned to face Hyrule and was shocked to see that every plant and tree he could see appeared to be dying. Kakariko Village was in ruins. Even the desert now appeared to have massive storm clouds over it. In a panic, Link reached into his bag. He pulled out the magic mirror, and gazed into it. The mirror showed his true reflection. He looked at the mirror for a time, then closed his eyes and cried. “I’ve failed,” he thought “I cannot defeat evil like this, I can’t even grasp my sword.” When he opened his eyes, however, he was back in the Hyrule he knew, now standing in front of the Tower of Hera.

Link eventually discovered that he had been transported to the Sacred Realm, which at the time, was still being formed by Ganon’s evil thoughts. In the realm, one took on a form that was a twisted vision of the content of their heart, in Link’s case, a rabbit, representing the timid compassion in his heart. If one were to stay in the Sacred Realm too long, these forms would become permanent. In the Tower of Hera, however, Link discovered a relic called the Moon’s Pearl which would keep one in their natural form, protecting them from magic like that of the Sacred Realm (Ganon had planned to use it to keep Agahnim from reverting to an uncorrupted version of himself if he ever came to the Realm). On the top floor of the Tower, he defeated the Moldurm and claimed the Pendant of Wisdom.

Link immediately set out for the Lost Woods, where the Master Sword was said to rest. Deep in a grove, he found the sword’s pedestal, and feeling the power flowing through him, pulled the sword from the stone. Almost as soon as he had pulled the sword, he heard Princess Zelda cry for help, the same way he had that rainy night. He raced for the Sanctuary, but was too late. The soldiers came from the Castle and had taken Princess Zelda, the priest told Link with his dying breath. Fueled by anger, Link stormed the Castle. He fought through dozens of Knights, all the way to the highest tower, where Agahnim’s chamber was. He arrived just in time to see Agahnim send Zelda to the Sacred Realm.

“I’ve done it! My master can rule forever now!” Agahnim cackled with joy. Then, turning his attention to Link, gleefully engaged him in combat. He launched a ball of pure mystic energy at Link, but was shocked when Link struck it with the Master Sword, reflecting it’s evil magic back at him. Knowing he was defeated, Agahnim, laughed, and used his energy to draw both of them into the Sacred Realm.

Link awoke on top of a great golden pyramid, where the Castle used to be. Looking around, he noted that as he had seen before, the world had become a dark, disturbing version of itself. Sahasralah, using telepathy much like Zelda, contacted Link and told him that he was now standing in what had been the Sacred Realm, and could now be called The Dark World. He told Link that Ganon’s Dark World was connected to the Hyrule Castle gate, and evil energy was drawing people into the Dark World. If Link could recover the seven maidens, perhaps they would have an answer.

The Dark World, formerly the Sacred Realm, was a dark reflection of Hyrule and the evil in Ganon’s heart. Major differences include the desert now being a swamp, Kakariko Village now being inhabited by thieves, The Lost Woods now being a graveyard for giant beasts, and the Hyrule Castle is replaced by a golden pyramid.

On instinct, Link traveled to where the Eastern Palace had been. There he battled through a totally different dungeon than he had faced in the Light World, but nonetheless prevailed. To his joy, one of the maidens had been trapped in there. She directed Link to the locations where he could find the remaining girls, and thus began the second part of Link’s quest: piecing together the informations the maidens (still trapped in their crystal prisons which had the unintended effect of protecting them from the shape shifting effects of the Dark World; Link, on the other hand, was protected by the Moon Pearl) to determine where the others were and saving them. Finally, after many trials, he saved Princess Zelda from the Turtle Rock Dungeon on Death Mountain. The maidens led him to Ganon’s Tower, a giant construct where the Tower of Hera had been. Using their magic, the maidens broke the seal on the Tower, and Link entered. Link battled tirelessly through the massive monument to evil, facing foes old and new alike. In the final room, he was shocked to see Agahnim, who Link defeated once again.

It is worth noting that Agahnim was a key part of Ganon’s plan, but he was uncertain what would happen when his servant entered the Dark World. He worried that the realm would change Agahnim back to the innocent child he had been. With the immeasurable power he had gained since his father led him to Death Mountain hundreds of years before, Agahnim could possibly stand up to Ganon. Thus, the moment Agahnim entered the Dark World, Ganon possessed his body, guiding his moves. Ganon maintained his control over Agahnim until the moment just before he was struck by a ball of dark force, reflected back by Link.

Agahnim’s body was seemingly ripped apart by the force of the magic. From his corpse, smoke began to rise which eventually took the form of bats. Link was stunned as the bats formed one giant bat and crashed out the window. From the window, Link watched as the bat flew toward the pyramid. Shortly afterwards, the highest level of the pyramid seemed to explode. Link made his way there, and prepared for the ultimate battle.

Link during his battle with Ganon. The pig-like form Ganon assumes here is at this point his true form, his humanity having been long lost. The trident Ganon is seen wielding is an ancient weapon. The story of how he came to acquire that weapon is told in Zelda: Four Sword Adventures.

Inside the pyramid, Link came face to face with Ganon. Ganon told Link that he was all powerful, and would soon rule both worlds. Link, attempting to stall his massive foe, asked if he possessed the Triforce, why did he not already rule the world? “The answer is simple, young fool,” laughed Ganon. “I do not wish to conquer Hyrule through magic. My victory will be sweeter by force. I will amass my forces here and launch an invasion of your pathetic Hyrule. The soil will be stained forever with blood and I will rule both realms for all eternity!” Link attacked Ganon in anger, but he was clumsy and unfocused. Ganon easily grasped his foe, and hurled him off the platform, down to the pit below.

Link should have perished in that great fall, but instead he awoke in a golden room with a pool of water before him. As he approached the pool a rotund, ugly fairy appeared. “You must be the descendant of the Hero of Time,” she said. “I am Navi the fairy. Long ago I fought alongside your ancestor, and now I shall aid you, young Hero.” Navi took Link’s arrows and infused them with magic power. “Now you have the power to defeat Ganon,” she explained. “I did not always look like this. It was the corruption of the Triforce and this land that distorted my looks and took away most of my power. But you can fix this, O Hero. You can use the magic in those arrows to light our darkest hour. Indeed, you are the Hero of the Triforce. The love in your heart will shape the power of the Gods into an instrument of peace.” With that, Navi disappeared, and Link immediately left to face Ganon again.

This time, Link remembered the lessons of his uncle, and fought calmly against his opponent who became more and more reckless as the battle raged on. Soon, he was able to get close enough to strike Ganon with the Master Sword, stunning him. In that moment, Link fired a Sliver arrow which struck Ganon between the eyes, killing him.

In the next room, Link found the Triforce waiting for its new master. He grasped the mystical totem in his hands and felt a wave of power rush through him. The words of Navi echoed in his mind “The love in your heart will shape the power of the Gods into an instrument of peace.” He felt his heart swell and Link lost consciousness.

Link was surprised to wake up back in his own bed. Had it all been a dream? “You look as though you’ve seen enough adventure to last you for an eternity,” laughed his uncle Error. Link leapt out of bed and hugged his uncle. Together they travelled to Hyrule Castle and met with Princess Zelda. Zelda explained to Link that he had been successful. He had defeated Ganon, and the wishes in his pure heart had restored Hyrule to the peace they had known before Agahnim’s treachery. Many who had perished during the battles were restored to life, and all appeared to be well.

Unfortunately, that was not the case. Link’s wish in his heart had been simply for things to “return the way they were, before all this.” This wish, in its innocence, had the unforeseen side effect of resurrecting Ganon’s spirit in the once-again shapeless Sacred Realm. He was severely weakened, however, and it would take him many centuries before he would be able to spread his evil influence over Hyrule again.

In the meantime, Hyrule attempted to move on. With the Hyrule ravaged by millenniums of war, the people moved north of Death Mountain. With this, what had previously been known simply as Hyrule was now known as South Hyrule. A new castle was built for the Royal Family called the Northern Palace. Then, as the population boomed in a time of peace, many new towns were founded. Taking their cue from the Book of Modura, the towns were largely named for the Sages of legend. As prosperity reigned, the people of Hyrule lived peacefully. As for Link and his uncle, they settled into the new town of Ruto, and lived happily in obscurity for the rest of their lives.

With the Twilight month (as the mass hallucination-like effects of Zant’s efforts to cover Hyrule in Twilight became known) in the past, the people of Hyrule hoped that their hardships would be over. There would be no such luck.

Shortly after the turn of the millennium (though the people did not know it; after the Great Flood and the re-population of the world afterwards, any records of how long the world had existed had been lost), Ganon’s spirit was renewed enough to regain consciousness and awareness. When Ganon had been killed by Link III, his body had been thrown in the fires of Death Mountain and the Sages conducted a rite that would contain Ganon’s spirit in the Sacred Realm. This may seem like folly, but the rite was designed to separate spirit from power and physical form. Ganon’s spirit would rest harmlessly without any power.

The Sages underestimated Ganon’s evil magic, however, as he was able to establish a connection with what remained of his physical form. With his body having been cast into the volcano, some of his physical being escaped into the air as an ashy smoke, covering the mountain side. Through submersion in the lava, Ganon’s body was spread, diluted through the very rock formations of the mountain itself. If his body was still whole, it would have been little problem for Ganon to resurrect himself, but he trying to establish a connection with millions of tiny molecules of his former physical form is another matter entirely. As such, it took him over 300 years of intense concentration before Ganon was could extend his magic past his own body. Once he was capable, Ganon’s magic cast an intangible presence over Death Mountain.

Ganon, as he may have appeared in the Sacred Realm. The Sacred Realm is reflection of the Triforce, so when one claims it, the Realm changes to suit their wishes and personality. When no one has claimed it, the Sacred Realm is a shapeless void. Without a physical form in the Realm, Ganon could not take the Triforce, though he could sense it.

Ganon’s first victims were the Gorons. Through his powerful magic, the very rocks of the mountain that the Gorons ate to sustain themselves slowly turned poisonous. Within a year, 90% of the Gorons perished. It remains to be seen if the Gorons are completely extinct. The next victims were the Zoras. Sensing the evil magic surrounding them, the Zoras fled their waterfall which was also part of Death Mountain. They took up residence in the Lake Hylia and various other bodies of water.

When contact with the Gorons stopped, the King of Hyrule became suspicious. He commissioned a group of explorers to see if they could find the Gorons, and if not, what had happened to them. The group included four of the knights of Hyrule, three scientists, a mage (and member of the long lost Sheikah tribe, who were for the most part extinct) and his son/apprentice, the half-Sheikah, half-human Agahnim. After a few days camping on Death Mountain, Ganon was able to influence their minds. Of the group, the four knights and Agahnim were the most susceptable to Ganon’s magic. Agahnim would be of particular use, with his Sheikah lineage giving him unaturally long life. Soon, the group turned on each other. Early one morning, the knights slaughtered the scientists, throwing their bodies over the mountain. Convincing the mage that they had simply fallen, the knights then left father and son alone. In a final symbol of Ganon’s control, Agahnim killed his own father, strangling him with a rope.

Agahnim, spent his earliest years as the son and apprentice of a powerful mage. After Ganon poisoned his young mind, he killed his father and spent years learning black magic and sorcery. Later he would exploit his Sheikan heritage to position himself as a saviour.

Agahnim and the four knights soon set up permenant shelters in the caves once inhabited by the Gorons. There, Agahnim matured, learning much of the ways of magic from his father’s texts, and more from Ganon’s influence. By age 18, Agahnim was a much more powerful sorcerer than his father, almost as powerful as Ganon had been. Through Agahnim’s magic, the bodies of the four knights would be restored, essentially giving them long life as well. By this time, the King realized there was something evil on Death Mountain, and forbid anyone enter there without his permission. Now it was time for Ganon’s plan to begin.

With his spirit suspended in the Sacred Realm, Ganon determined that if the Sages seal was broken, he could reclaim physical form in the Sacred Realm. Then, he could claim the Triforce for his own without anyone to stop him. The seal was powered by the bloodline of the Sages, thus if they could remove the descendants of the Sages from the world, the seal would be broken. The identities of the Sages’ descendants, however, was a closely guarded secret. There were only two in the Kingdom that knew: the King of Hyrule and the current Princess Zelda.

Agahnim would have to infiltrate the loyalties of the royal family. To do so, he would have to cost them their faith and bring the people to their lowest point. Thus began a long period of disasters, called the Second Cataclysm. For over 300 years, Hyrule was almost constantly beset by “natural” disasters that would have drastic effects to the terrain. New and old Kakariko Villages were destroyed in an earthquake, that also caused Snowpeak Mountain to collapse. Later, a huge heatwave would cause all the snow to melt. Lake Hylia dried up, and the rock faces surrounding collapsed in the earthquakes, leaving the area a marshy wasteland. Parts of the Gerudo Desert were rained out in a massive storm and the Arbiter’s Ground prison sank deep into the wet ground. The rain also caused a huge forest to grow in the reckage of Snowpeak Mountain, creating a natural maze of trees around the pedestal where Link III had laid the Master Sword to rest. Then, the Zolas, long thought extinct made their resurgence under the influence of Agahnim’s magic. The Zolas emerged far more violent than their previous “Fishmen,” guise and immediately launched a war against the Zoras. The Zoras were unprepared for battle and for years it seemed as though all the water bodies in Hyrule ran red with the blood of the Zoras. Much like the Gorons, the Zoras appear to have gone extinct as a result. This was also a period of apostasy, as the people believed that the Goddesses had abandoned them.

Hyrule after the Second Cataclysm. The terrain was shaped dramatically by the constant earthquakes, deluges, and other effects of Agahnim’s magic. The three Triforce markings denote the approximate locations where the Hero of Winds placed the Goddess’ Pearls to raise the Tower of the Gods. The Pendants, which were made from the Pearls, were then moved to Palaces not far from each location.

After three centuries of these disasters, Agahnim revealed himself. He claimed to be sent by Din, the Goddess of Power, to save the land. In the courtyard of Hyrule Castle, before a large crowd and the royal family, Agahnim performed a ritual he claimed would beseech the Goddess to use her power to save the land. In reality, he simply halted the earthquakes that he himself had created. A loud cheer rose up from the assembled crowd. Agahnim had saved Hyrule, they said, we have a new saviour. In appreciation for his work, the King of Hyrule gave Agahnim the position of his chief advisor. Agahnim’s four knights were even rejoined the other knights of Hyrule, slowly turning their loyalties to Agahnim rather than the King.

Princess Zelda, sensing great trouble ahead, decided to hide the Three Pendants. The Pendants were simply the Goddess Pearls used on the Great Sea attached to a chain. The Pearls themselves were actually made from the Spiritual Stones of the old tribes of Deku, Goron and Zora. They still functioned as a lock on the powers of the Master Sword, as one would need all three to be able to draw the Master Sword (if they could find it).

Based on charts of the Great Sea, Zelda discovered that the Hero of Winds had placed the three Pearls in the locations that were now the Sacred Grove, the Holy Sanctuary, and the remains of encampments that had been at the southern foothills of Death Mountain, before they collapsed. The Pendant of Power would be hidden in the Desert Palace, near the Sacred Grove. The Pendant of Courage was taken to the ruins of the Eastern Palace, near the former mountain camps. The Pendant of Wisdom would be entrusted to the priests of the Sanctuary. Unfortunately, the knights in charge of delivering the Pendant of Wisdom were loyal to Agahnim. Under his orders, the Pendant was brought to Death Mountain. Agahnims’ minions (now numbering in the hundreds, largely comprised of knights and wanderers seduced by the dark magic of Death Mountain), placed it on the highest floor of the Tower of Hera, a giant construct where Agahnim would commune with Ganon.

Zelda’s fears were unwarranted, however, because Ganon and Agahnim knew they could never wield the Master Sword. Being well aware of the past and how often a new legendary Hero would appear, it was in their interest to keep anyone from claiming the Pendants. Agahnim led a battalion of soldiers into the Eastern Palace, and using a dark ritual, transformed them into an army of Armos Knights, mindless warriors. Next, he summoned giant sandworms called Lanmolas to infest the Desert Palace. Finally, a fierce insect-like berserker called the Moldorm was set to protect the Pendant of Wisdom in the Tower of Hera.

Zelda was unaware that evil had conspired to keep the Pendants from any future Heroes, but even still she worried. Was the Bloodline of the Hero still intact?

Interlude - The Hero of Time, Termina and Majora’s Mask.

The Hero of Time during his adventure in Termina, a parallel world to Hyrule. Here we see the large clock tower for which Clock Town is named.

During the adventure of The Hero of Time, Link I came to know a Skull Kid in the Lost Woods. After Link’s defeat of Ganon, the Skull Kid discovered an interdimensional portal in the Lost Woods. This portal took him to the alternate dimension where Hyrule was called Termina. There, the skull kid came became friends with four giants who were dedicated to protect the land. The giants enjoyed the company of the Skull Kid, but they couldn’t play forever. The giants knew they would have to use their strength to save the world at some point, so they travelled, one in each compass direction, to find places to hibernate until their power was needed.

The Skull Kid, wearing Majora’s Mask.

The Skull Kid took this as an insult, however. He felt that they were abandoning him. Bitterness and sadness consumed him and the Skull Kid became a bitter trickster and thief. In spite of this, he became friends with two faeries, Tatl and Tael. The three of them played happily, though some of their games involved robbing people. Skull Kid took the two faeries back through the portal and they soon spied the Happy Mask Salesman travelling through the woods. Skull Kid knocked the Mask Salesman out, and looted his bag. The Skull Kid had intended to steal all of his masks, but he stopped and stared when he saw an ancient artifact known as Majora’s Mask.

Majora was a massive many-legged, insect-like beast that had killed thousands of warriors in an ancient society whose name has long been lost. Finally, a warrior known as the Fierce Deity approached Majora, and played the Song of Time on an ocarina. The song entranced Majora, causing the beast to dance. Majora could not help himself, and danced for three months solid, eventually dropping dead. The Fierce Deity then carved Majora’s Mask out of the carcass of the beast, sealing the monster’s power inside it.

The Fierce Deity was a legendary warrior in Termina, who was said to have slain the beast Majora by enchanting it with music. He then carved Majora’s Mask from the remains of the monster. The Fierce Deity resembles the Hero of Time in his adulthood, and during his time in Termina, Link I obtained the Fierce Deity’s Mask, which would allow him to assume the Deity’s powers.

When the Skull Kid put the mask on, he was slowly corrupted by Majora’s vengeful spirit. He soon returned to Hyrule to find new travellers to rob and came across Link who was now searching for Navi the faerie. Skull Kid stole the Ocarina of Time and Epona the horse from Link. Link pursued the Skull Kid and ended up being falling through the portal to Termina. Once there, the Skull Kid used his power to transform Link into a Deku Scrub. It turns out that Majora, through the Skull Kid, was using his powers to draw the moon down into the earth, killing everything. The four giants would save the world ordinarily, so Majora had each of the giants sealed away by different giant monsters.

The Happy Mask Salesman pleaded with Link to get him back Majora’s Mask before something terrible happened.

At the end of third day the moon was about to hit, but Link managed to knock his Ocarina away from the Skull Kid, and after playing The Song of Time, the world seemed to drift away. Link found himself back three days earlier. With the Ocarina of Time recovered, the Happy Mask Salesman taught Link the song of healing, which restored his original form. Link proceeded to live those three days over and over again, each time learning something more, another key piece of information that would help save the land. Finally, after spending the equivalent of six months reliving those three days, Link finally was able to call the giants to stop the moon and then he defeated the mask (who had gained sentience, no longer needing to use the Skull Kid as a puppet), sealing the evil energy back in the mask.

The moon, corrupted by Majora’s magic, slowly fell to Termina as the doomsday clock counted down to the millennial celebration.

Feeling his work in Termina was finished, Link left and found the portal back to Hyrule. When he came through the other side, he was shocked to see crags and rock instead of the Lost Woods. He didn’t know it, but Link had returned on the same day that Agahnim had deceived the people and infiltrated the royal family. Looping the flow of time around over and over again had disastrous effects. While Link had only spent six months in Termina (of his time), the damage to the time stream caused him to reappear 4000 years later.

Thinking he had arrived in yet another alternate reality, Link searched around to find out as much as he could about this new world. A roadsign pointing the way to Hyrule Castle brought him much confusion and he headed to the castle in search of Princess Zelda. As he approached, he saw a crowd gathered and joined them, soon learning of the day’s events and Agahnim’s “miracles.” On a balcony, overlooking the crowd, he saw a girl wearing a beautiful dress and crown. When the crowd called her name, he was shocked to discover that he had never seen this Princess Zelda before.

In his confusion, he set out to learn as much about the land as possible. The elder of Kakariko Village, Sahasrahla, directed him to the Book of Modura. Link was shocked to read about his own adventures, and the horror that had occurred when he was not their to fight Ganon a second time. He felt very guilty for abandoning the people of Hyrule, but reading of the deeds performed by the Hero of Winds and the Hero of Light filled his heart with pride. Knowing that other Heroes had arisen to save the Hyrule gave him closure; he finally knew that his battles were over.

He got a job working on a small farm, eventually marrying one of the farmer’s daughters and settling down. They had a son, who they also named Link (Link IV, in relation to the other important Links in history). With his new family, Link felt peace in his heart like he had not felt since his youth with Saria and the Great Deku Tree. He hoped to live out the rest of his life in happiness.

Sadly, Agahnim felt the need for another disaster to further cement his hold on the royal family.  He unleashed a plague upon the people of Hyrule (carried on the mists of Death Mountain), killing half the population before he “miraculously” stopped it. Link, his wife, his sister-in-law and father-in-law all perished during the plague. With no other options, Link’s brother-in-law, Error, raised young Link as his own. he did his best to raise Link to be a good man like his father had been.

Error, the brother-in-law of the Hero of Time and surrogate father to his son, Link IV. Error ran his father’s farm and hired Link I, where he met and fell in love with Error’s sister. Error admired Link, and learned much about sword play, archery and honor from him. He would teach those skills, to the best of his ability, to Link IV.

As the millenium drew to a close, Link IV was becomming a young adult. His uncle taught him swordfighting and many other skills that would serve him well. Link IV was, literally, a link to the past, as the bloodline of the Hero of Time had returned to the world after 4000 years. It would be just in time, as Agahnim was finally ready to launch the final step of his plan.

A map of the Great Sea, as seen in Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. Note the locations of some islands, such as The Tower of the Gods, The Forbidden Fortress and Dragon Roost Island correspond with Hyrule locations such as Hyrule Castle, The Arbiter’s Ground and Death Mountain.

Much like it’s biblical equivalent, when the Great Flood occurred most of the human/Hylian population was wiped out. The same could not be said for the other races of Hyrule.

The Gorons have no lungs, and as such, had no need for air. Most of the Goron society was left beneath the waves, either adapting to life underwater or hibernating. There were only four exceptions. Once the island societies established themselves firmly, these four became traders. The four simply set up trading posts on their respective islands, waiting to exchange goods with seafarers.

One of the Four Goron Traders. The Goron on the islands seemed to be trying to conceal their identities, by covering up with more clothing than they have ever been seen to wear. Perhaps this was to prevent the sea spray from landing on them and causing mold to grow on them.

(As an aside, the physiology of the Gorons is a source of debate. As well as lacking lungs, reproduction amongst the Gorons is a mystery. All of the Gorons appear to be male, and refer to each other as “Brother.” Baby Gorons have been seen, in spite of this. They may be hermaphrodites, or they reproduce asexually. Future games may fill in the blanks.)

The Zoras have a far more complicated story. Most stayed underwater, living in their natural habitat. Others, however, craved interaction with the people above. With their homes at the bottom of sea, they knew their bodies were too frail to make regular journey’s to and from the surface. As such, for those who wanted to see the surface, they would have to make significant changes. Withing the insular society, Zora wizards were able to develop powerful magic, and two different “Zora cults” emerged amongst those who wished to see the sun.

A member of the Zola (Fishmen) cult. The Fishmen would fill in the Sea Charts of those who gave them food.

The Zola cult, numbering 49, were led by a shaman cast spells on his people, changing their physiology into something more fish-like, but with human facial features. Feeling that knowledge may one day equal power, the Zola spread out across the sea, gleaming as much knowledge as they could about the new world. As the Zola slowly revealed their presence to the residents of the Great Sea (usually if food was left for them), tales of the Fishmen grew in notoriety.

The Rito Postman. The Rito can been seen on almost any island in the Great Sea, their wings allowing them to travel far easier than any other race.

The other main cult, the Rito, followed a wizard with a far different path. The wizard had gathered information about a dragon known as Valoo, who he believed to have be the reincarnation of the former patron deity of the Zoras, Lord Jabu-Jabu. He lead his tribe to the peak of what was once Death Mountain, where Valoo was known to live. The wizard communed with Valoo, beseeching him to use his magic to help the Rito tribe survive a life above the waves. Valoo, using only a small portion of his magic, screamed into the sky, and the Rito fell into a deep sleep. Three days later they awoke to discover that their bodies had changed. Valoo had merely sped up the course of evolution, changing them from being fish-like to bird-like. With their wings, they could now soar all over the Great Sea with ease. In honor of Valoo, the Rito changed the name of their new home from Death Mountain to Dragon Roost Island.

Valoo the Dragon diety of the Rito. Valoo may be a relation of Volvagia, the red dragon Link I fought in the Fire Temple during the events of Ocarina of Time.

Valoo was not without a sense of humor, however. To remind the Rito that it was his magic that gave them their new forms, children would be born without wings. Once they came of age, they would have to climb to the apex of the mountain and Valoo would give them their wings. To facilitate this process, one Rito would be named Valoo’s attendant. At the time of the events of Wind Waker, a young Rito named Medlii was just taking over the position which had been held by her recently deceased grandmother. As a way of engaging in the trade which had become a necessity for the small island communities, the Rito became the postmen of the Great Sea, establishing contact with all the peoples and building mailboxes.

Ironically, though the Rito believed Valoo to be the reincarnation of Lord Jabu-Jabu, he did have a descendant. A giant fish called Jabun travelled the waters, making his home, initially, at what would become known as Greatfish Isle.

The Great Deku Tree at the time of the Wind Waker.

As for the Deku Tree and the Kokiri, when the flood occurred the magic of the forest caused a bark giant bark wall to erect around the entire Kokiri village. Inside these walls, the Deku Tree (as we recall, not the original tree, but the new tree grown from a seed of the original tree that died after giving Link the Kokiri Emerald) decided that it would be the mission of he and the Kokiri to help spread vegetation across the new world, which in turn would nourish the Deku Tree. With that in mind, he transformed them into the Korok: smaller, lighter bodies, seemingly wood brought to life, with faces carved into small, mask-like leaves. This new form would help the Korok travel across the Great Sea, using leaves to glide on air currents.

Makar, of the Koroks. The Koroks were the evolved form of the Kokiri and helped spread vegetation across the sea.

Just outside of the village, now known as the Forest Haven, lay the former Deku Tree. Much of the magic power of the original Deku Tree still lay in this dead wooden shell, and before long that magic was manipulated by evil. The dead tree grew until it was almost the same size as the Forest Haven, and the corrupted magic grew into the giant plant form known as Kalle Demos. Soon the dead tree became a maze of thorns and carnivorous plant life, known as the Forbidden Woods.

Link II looking around Windfall Island.

As for the human and Hylian populations, they were limited to settlements on Outset and Windfall islands, and some smaller islands throughout the sea. Windfall was the commercial capital of the world, and by far the larger area, population wise. Outset was merely a small island of farmers and fishermen.

In terms of politics, the Great Sea demonstrates no central government. Presumably, Windfall Island has some sort of governor, or perhaps a democratic committee. For all intents and purposes, however, each island in the sea is a country unto itself.

Technology had advanced, out of necessity, and a variety of sophisticated mechanical apparati were built, including submarines and various ocean-going ships. The level of technology present varies greatly, however. For example, Outset Island is very simple, while Windfall Island features much more impressive technology in a windmill and other ameneties, such as a store dedicated to pictographs (the Hyrulian equivalent of photographs).

A script of the Hyrulian Legends passed down on Outset Island.

Hyrule society was lost to history. Everything that had been accomplished before the Great Flood was forgotten by most, but not all. Outset Island had been founded by descendants of the Knights of Hyrule, and they told stories of a lost kingdom and shared the legends of the Hero of Time. In fact, in honor of the Hero of Time, it became custom to clothe boys in the green colors of the Hero when they reached a certain age. There were no more great wars to fight, but they hoped that the youth would at least know the courage of the Hero of Time.

As the Wind Waker adventure begins, we find a young boy named Link on his birthday, putting on the celebrated green clothes of the Hero. This Link is part of the Knight’s bloodline, but is not related to the Link of Ocarina of Time directly. If clarification is needed, he can be referred to as Link II or, The Hero of Winds.

A millenium after the events of Ocarina of Time, and 900 years after the Great Flood, Link begins his adventure, which is initially to save his sister Aryll. With the aid of a band of pirates, led by a girl named Tetra, Link found his sister in the Forbidden Fortress (a massive structure built around the higher levels of the Arbiter’s Ground prison where the Gerudo were sent to the Twilight Realm 1000 years prior), but was unable to rescue her. Before being cast into the sea by the Helmaroc King, the giant stone-masked bird that had kidnapped his sister, Link caught a glimpse of a dark-robed figure with an impassive face.

The King of Red Lions, a living boat and the magical form of the King of Hyrule.

Link awoke in the middle of the sea, laying in a small red boat. The head of the boat turned around and spoke to Link. Introducing himself as The King of Red Lions, he told him that the man he saw was named Ganon and that he was a man of great evil power. Impressed by Link’s determination, he charged the young boy with saving the land from the evil of Ganon.

The King of Red Lions was actually a magical avatar for the King of Hyrule who had called down the great flood in the first place. Knowing that Ganon had restored himself to physical form somehow, he guided Link to protecting the land. Though Ganon had resumed a physical form, his magic was still locked underwater with the rest of Hyrule. Ganon knew, however, that if he could find Princess Zelda’s descendant, he could use her intuition with the Triforce of Wisdom to loosen the magic lock on Hyrule and reclaim his power. This had been why Aryll had been kidnapped: Ganon was kidnapping blond girls with Hylian ears in the hopes of finding Zelda. Trying to amass enough power to stop Ganon, while not disturbing the seal on Hyrule would prove to be a difficult task.

Link initially collected pearls that were symbolic of the power’s of the goddesses who created the land, and placed them on pedestals created on the three Triangle Islands. With the three pearls in their sacred positions (positions with, geographically, would be very important more than a millenium later), the magic of the goddesses raised the giant Tower of the Gods up above sea level. After battling through the tower, Link had opened a portal which would allow him access to Hyrule Castle, which had been frozen in stone during the flood. In the basement of the castle, in the middle of a shrine to the original 7 Sages, Link discovered the Master Sword. After learning as much as he could about the sages, Link drew the Master Sword, in the hopes that it would allow him to defeat Ganon.

Unfortunately, the Master Sword was once again operating as a key. This time when the Master Sword was pulled, the lock on Ganon’s powers was released. The Master Sword had also lost much of it’s power. The King of Red Lions advised Link to seek out the Sage of Wind and the Sage of the Earth. The sages, they discovered, had died long ago, but still fulfilled their duties until recently. Laruto, a Zora, was the Sage of the Earth, until Ganon imprisoned her soul. Fado, a Kokiri, had assumed physical form and had then been killed by Ganon. Without these sages, the power of the Master Sword had faded. To restore the sword to it’s former glory, Link helped the descendants of the Sages awaken. Makar, one of the Koroks awoke as the Sage of Wind and Medlii of the Rito awoke as the Sage of the Earth. With the Master Sword at full power, returned to the Forsaken Fortress and freed his sister.