The Legend of Link: Breath of the Wild

"Master Link!" Impa called as he walked through the threshold of the house. "Where's Princess Zelda?"

"A couple of her warriors have taken her to the Shine of Resurrection." Link replied. Impa said nothing, instead she had a pensive look on her face. "I've failed." Link suddenly muttered.

"You are the hero Zelda, and your knight needs to be saved."

Instead of Link, Zelda is sent to the Shrine of Resurrection, while Link goes to Hyrule Castle alone to contain Ganon. 100 years later, Zelda stumbles out of the shrine, with no memories and the task to defeat and conceal Ganon.

The rain pelted down on the princess and her appointed knight, soaking them to the bone. Their goal, which seemed simple enough written down, regroup at Kakariko Village. But now the Sheikah Village seemed like miles away. Zelda and Link ran past the Dueling Peaks Tavern. They came to a stop at the fork where the path on the left lead to Kakariko Village and the one on the right lead to Hateno Village, passing through the fort.

"Perhaps we should rest at the fort." Zelda said. "I mean Kakariko is still a solid few hours by foot. We're much closer to Hateno Fort. We could rest and have some of your wounds looked at." The princess spared a glance at her appointed knight. She had no doubt in her mind if she would to let go of his hand he would collapse on the ground.

"Whatever one you chose we need to go now." Link said with urgency in his voice.

Zelda hesitated for a few moments before she turned on her heel and ran towards Hateno Fort. Their feet clumsily thumped on the ground as they ran towards the small Fort. There was a slight breeze and they both shivered. The cold was eating them up alive. If Ganon wouldn't end up killing them, the hypothermia would. The thought alone was enough for Zelda and Link to run a little faster.

In the distance, both Link and Zelda could hear screams and canons firing. Reluctantly, the pair turned around and saw the guardians had caught up to them and was laying waste to the small settlement by the tavern they had past only moments ago. Link stopped, he had unsheathed the Master Sword and looked intended to run and help out.

"No Link," Zelda pulled him along. "You would be no help in your condition. I know it is a heavy loss, but we can only hope that some of the people will survive and rise." Link said nothing and pulled back, making Zelda stop in her tracks. "If you go and help, you will die. And what help to the greater Hyrule will you be then?"

Link was frustrated. Running from something like this went right up against him. He couldn't, he wouldn't. What good was it to be either a knight or hero if you couldn't help the people you cared about. Link knew deep down you couldn't save everyone, you would go insane trying. He was the hero chosen by the sword, so would the goddess really let him die like that. Link knew it was a selfish and arrogant idea. He turned to look up at the princess and saw a fierce look of determination on her face. She was going to stop him and there would be nothing he could do about it. Link eventually caved and started to lead Zelda to the fort. At the every least he will protect the princess, as he had sworn to do. He was secretly hoping she would be well protected at the fort so he could go and fight.

The Princess and Knight ran faster. As they were running towards to the fort, they felt a rumble on the ground, coming towards them, they looked up and saw most of the knights who were up in the fort had gone down and were trying to fight off the guardians. Link wanted to pull his hand out of Zelda's and run to help, but as much as it hurt him, he shook the idea out of his mind and ran even faster to the fort.

"We're almost there!" Zelda called out as she saw the gate in the distance. Link heard it first. Mechanical steps making their way through the trees surround the fort. He heard a high pitch screeching sound and was quick to push Zelda out of the way and take the blast. He flew a couple of yards before he hit a near by tree.

"Link!"

"No stay back." Link spoke softly as he tried to pull himself up from the ground. He ended up planting the Master Sword into the ground and used that as stake to pull himself up. "You need to run Zelda. Only you have the power to seal Ganon away-" Link was abruptly cut off as he saw the guardian come back, he was quick to forget about the pain plaguing him and he ran and attacked the guardian. He managed to cut off a few of the legs with the Master Sword, before as a last resort, the guardian fired up the beam again. Link planted his feet firmly in the ground and parried the attack with the sword as it fired at him. In a flash of light the guardian fell dead, as it had done in the training grounds when Link first parried off the blast with a pot lid.

Zelda had fallen to the ground on her knees. The gravity of the situation had finally settled on her. They were all going to fail because she couldn't unlock her powers in time. She felt completely helpless as she saw Link continue to fight off the two more guardians that had found them. She had never felt so useless in her life. Perhaps her father was right, if she had spent more time in her prayers instead of trying to be a scholar, she would have the power to finish this. She could have saved so many people, not to mention the Champions. All of whom were ready to help her, to follow her lead, to die for the greater good of Hyrule. Never before had she had such a sick feeling to her stomach. Urbosa, Revali, Daruk and Mipha were all gone. Zelda had rejoiced when she saw the beams of blue light erupt from each of the Divine Beasts, they had a fighting chance, they could succeed. They could do the very thing they were all destined for, but the moment only lasted a few seconds before she saw one by one, each of the Beasts turn off. As much as she wanted to have faith in the chosen Champions, she knew that Ganon had managed to best them all. Her heart had crumbled, her saving grace was when Link had keeled with her and wrapped his arms in a warm hug, something she had never imagined her stoic knight to ever do.

Helplessness flooded her as she watched Link fight another guardian. Zelda was desperately looking on the muddy ground to try and find anything that could help Link. Once again, Link was her saving grace, while he was fighting the guardians, she had found his pouch that had fallen on the ground, she knew he constantly carried an array of different weapons. She dug around the deceivingly small pouch and found a Royal Guards Bow at the bottom with a quiver of arrows as well. She had often had archery lessons when she was little, and was often found practising with her mother. They had all called her a natural as within her first lessons, she was shooting bullseyes. However, it had been years since she had shot an arrow, she had only hoped her natural talent would be enough for her to help Link and not be a hindrance

Another guardian came, Link was struggling to stand, Zelda was quick to stand in front and pull back the draw string and with a twang, the arrow was fired and make it mark in the middle of the eye.

I'm sorry my child.

Zelda turned and tried to look around to find the voice.

I know you desperately seek my power, but I can't give it to you. Instead, I'll lend this to you.

Zelda watched in awe as the bow in her hand was taken over in a golden light. The bow had changed, it was no longer the navy and purple colour, instead, it was an ornate golden bow. The light from the bow, was almost blinding. Zelda noticed her quiver of arrows had disappeared, but when she pulled the drawstring, an arrow materialised in her hands. Link had managed to stand, and was now next to Zelda. He turned to smile at he and the pair went to take down some of the guardians.

A stray guardian had found them, and aimed a beam at Zelda. Link saw this and was quick to try and warn the princess.

"Zelda!" Link called out. He ran to her. "Watch out-"

There was an almighty blast, Link was not hit by it, but the force was enough to send him flying through the air and into another tree. Zelda, had taken the full brunt of the blast and was lying only a few feet away from Link.

Zelda looked around. There was a ringing in her ears, she felt like every muscle, bone and piece of skin on her was on fire. She saw the guardian coming closer before she heard it. She reached for the Bow of Light. It was no where near her, she looked around and saw it lying by Link. The bow was casting a light over him, she could see he was struggling to lift his eyes open. When he did open his eyes, she saw the fight leave Link's eyes, but the one message in his eyes was obvious. Run. Run and leave me. Link might have admitted defeat, but Zelda refused to. She heard the whining of the guardian, it was about to land the killing blow to Link. With a newfound strength, she stood up and ran towards her knight.

"NO!" Zelda stood in front of the guardian and held her hand up. Zelda was hoping this was going to work, though she had never had much success before, she was going to try and force the goddess to give Zelda her power. She needed it, otherwise Hyrule will fall into darkness and chaos. She waited, there was nothing. Not even a tingle of power. Zelda stood there for what felt like a hundred years. But there was nothing happening, without giving Zelda any chance to move out of the way, the guardian fired three consecutive shots at Zelda. Zelda didn't even feel a thing, she had blacked out before she hit the ground, but she did hear a little voice.

I'm so sorry my child it had to end like this.

Link awoke soon after Zelda had hit the ground, without a second thought, he was up, holding the bow and firing three consecutive shots of his own to the guardian, with an almighty crash, the last guardian fell to the ground. Link looked around for the princess. Not far from where he was standing, he saw a now blackened dress. He instantly recognised the person lying on the ground.

"Zelda!" He called out. He fell to his knees by the princess. "No, no, no," he muttered under his breath as he noticed she wasn't breathing and her pulse was weakening. Link, felt defeated, the only chance they had at defeating Ganon was now gone. If only if he was faster, or stronger, they wouldn't be here. They would be safe behind the defences of Fort Hateno. It was all his fault. He had failed as her appointed knight, he was supposed to protect her from harm, not cause it. But more importantly, he had failed as a friend.

Link didn't have many friends, in fact, he could count them all on one hand. Although their relationship was rocky at the start (and was still sometimes), they had improved, and if Link dared to stay it, he loved her past what a friend should. Link could only guess what will happen, the world would be bathed in darkness and he would spend most of his time running. Maybe it was a small mercy that Zelda would never have to be exposed to it.

Master,

Link looked for the voice and saw the Master Sword glowing.

She can still be saved, but we must act fast. She needs to go to the Shine of Resurrection.

"But what of Ganon?" Link asked aloud.

We have little time, but I'm certain that we can conceal him until the time is right.

"Master Link!" Link looked up and saw to Sheikah Warriors make their way over to him.

"Where's Princess Zelda?" One of them asked. Link said nothing but adverted his eyes down to the princess' form on his lap. Both of the warriors staggered back, obviously shocked to see the princess had fallen.

"She must be taken to the Shine of Resurrection." Link spoke softy to the warriors.

"Of course, but what about you?" One asked as he stepped forward to take the princess.

"I'll be fine. I just need to take to Lady Impa about a few things." Link looked down at the princess in his arms. He knew if they didn't her there soon, they would lose her forever. Link brought his head down and rested his own foreheads against the princess'. "Be strong Zelda, you can get through this —I know you can. I'll see you soon." Shakily, Link brought his lips to her forehead and rested there for a moment before he gave her over to the Sheikah Warriors.

Link stayed there and watched the small trio retreat into the distance. Zelda was strong, there was no doubt in his mind that Zelda would survive, his only worry, was if he would survive. Link picked up the Master Sword and put it back into its scabbard on his back. He reached down and held the Bow of Light. Then he carefully, placed it on his back and made his way to Fort Hateno. Through the fighting, himself and Zelda were doing, they had more than less made it to the entrance of the Fort. Link hadn't really been posted here during his time as a knight before he was a Royal Guard, but he knew the lay out of the fort and made it into the infirmary. There was a small mirror in the room and Link made his way over and peeled off his tunic and saw the damage. There were a lot of old scars, most from picking fights with other knights when he was younger. But the thing that was more concerning was half a dozen gashes across his torso. He when looking for some bandages and wrapped them securely around his midsection before wrapping a few over his arms.

He walked out to the courtyard, there was nothing left, it appeared when the guardians had gotten closer to the fort, everyone retreated back into Hateno Village, not far up from the fort. But Link was very lucky to find a horse still there in the courtyard. And to his surprise, the horse was all ready saddled up, the daunting task of making it to Kakariko Village seemed a lot easier. It made him think why they just didn't grab a horse in the first place, but he was quick to banish the thought out of his head, there was no point in thinking what could have been.

Forcing the horse to run as fast as it could, Link set off to Kakariko Village. On the way, the clouds seemed to clear, Link could clearly see the sun setting over the hills. When he rode into Kakariko Village, there was a quiet, sober feeling filling the village. There were few people walking about, mostly mothers with their children. Every abled-body person was out trying to contain the guardians and help. It was strange to walk up to Impa's house, there were a lack of guards and the front doors were pulled wide open.

"Master Link!" Impa called as he walked through the threshold of the house. "Where's Princess Zelda?"

"A couple of her warriors have taken her to the Shine of Resurrection." Link replied. Impa said nothing, instead she had a pensive look on her face. "I've failed." Link suddenly muttered.

"I'm sorry?" Impa said confused.

"I'm the person who is supposed to protect the princess, but she protected me, so I've failed. I've failed as her appointed knight, I've failed to up hold my knights oath, and I've failed as the Hero of Hyrule." Link brought his head down in shame. Both for failing his duty, and now his emotional out burst in front of Impa.

"Nothing about that matters now." Impa said slowly and stared approaching Link like he was a wild horse. "All you can do is look forward and plan your next move. Which I'm assuming you have,"

"The sword believes we can conceal Ganon until Zelda awakes from the Shine." Link explained.

"Hmm," Impa was deep in thought. Never before has the roles been switched. The Hero always defeated Ganon and the Princess always sealed him away. There were bound to be implications from this. But if the sword had told Link it's possible, I must be. "If that's the case, you must make haste to Hyrule Castle."

"Before I go, can I give you something to give Zelda?" Impa nodded, although her eyebrows rose when he called the princess by name. Link was glad he had managed to find his pouch before he left the Ash Swap. I shuffled through the contents before he found what he was looking for. "I've over heard her conversations with Purah, she might have slight memory loss." Link handed Impa a tunic, riding pants, boots and a jacket. "There are pictures on the Sheikah Slate that will help her, can you guide her for me? Once she has remember who she is could you give her these, this is her own champions outfit."

"Is there anything else?" Impa asked before Link left.

"It might be better for her to learn about what happened to later, you can tell her when you think she's ready." Link didn't wait for Impa to reply, instead he left her house. He had one last stop before he was going to Hyrule Castle.

Riding through Hyrule made Link sick. Although he was riding in the night, he could finally see the destruction Ganon had caused. What were once thriving villages and settlements were now rubble, it was the only hint that people lived there, in the distance he could see Hyrule Castle, it was over taken by an angry reddish, purplish mass. Link counted himself lucky when he came around Hyrule Castle and was making his way through the Lost Forest, he no longer could see Hyrule Castle, he couldn't see his failure.

He hadn't been to the Korok Forest since he heard the call of the Master Sword and freed it from the stone. He felt like it was the best place for the Bow of Light to be safely hidden until Zelda was able to come for it. The morning was breaking as he past through the forest, Koroks were all coming out of hiding to see Link.

"Great Deku Tree," Link said as he came to a stop on the pedestal, where the Master Sword was. "I need you to keep something safe for me."

"Of course Hero, what it is?" The Deku Tree asked.

Linked pulled the Bow of Light from off his back. "You're the only person in the kingdom, whom I trust to hold it. It was given to her by the Goddess."

"Placed it in the amber." Link did as he was told, the amber slowly harden until it would impossible for the bow to be pulled out. "If I may be so bold… what is it you are planning to do next, Hero?"

"The Master Sword had spoken to me. It seems I still have a duty to fulfil." Link said honestly when he turned to look at the sword on his back. "Great Deku Tree, I ask of you, when she returns, can you please relay this message—"

"Words intended for her would sound much better in the tones of your voice, don't you think?"

Link paused in thought. He supposed the words 'I love you' would sound better from himself and not an ancient tree. "Yes,"

Link was now at the South Entrance of Hyrule Castle by the docks. He had removed everything from his horse. He gave the horse's coat one last brush and fed him an apple. "I would like to thank you," Link muttered to the horse as they ate an apple from out of his hand. "You've certainly helped me, and now you're free."

Link left the horse and walked through the docks. Link couldn't guess the state of the castle, he could only hope most was still standing. He made his way up one of the secret passage ways and into the library. While being Zelda's appointed knight, he had often spent a lot of time within the library, if she was castle bound. Never before has he seen it in such disarray. There was a hole in the side of the library, books were spread everywhere and tables were turned over. Link carefully walked through the castle. In one hand he had the Master Sword, in the other was the Hylian Shield, the very one the king had gifted to him when he first had gotten the Master Sword.

Among all the destruction, Link was glad he didn't see a single person. He was hopeful most people were able to escape the castle and make it out to other parts of Hyrule. He walked out of on of the many exits and started to make his ascend to the Sanctum. As he was yet to find anyone, Link was hopeful even the King would have made it out. Although, his heart-ached for his King, he would have lost his kingdom and his daughter in the same day. Link's heart stopped when he saw a person lying down, just in front of the entrance to the Sanctum. It was the King.

Link went over and nervously looked over the King. "I'm so sorry I've failed you Your Majesty. But Zelda is safe, but she won't awake for another 100 years. Please, I have no right to ask this of you, but can you please be there for when she wakes up? I would love to, but I'll be busy at the time."

Link walked away from the King and squared his shoulders and walked into the Sanctum. There was malice everywhere, the moment he stepped in he felt it drain the energy out of him. But there was no time for a breather.

"Would you look here." Ganon snarled at Link. "The little hero has come to play. This is a fight you won't win boy."

"It's a good thing I'm not going to fight you." Link turned his back and assumed the pose he had been doing most of the time while guarding the princess. He unsheathed the Master Sword from his back and held facing down with both of his hand on the hilt. Link knew the moment his sunk the sword into the stone, he would be in a 100 year battle with Ganon. He hoped he had the strength. As he drove the sword into the stone, the back of his right hand got warm, he spared a glance and saw the Triforce on it.

"No!" Ganon called out, trying to stop Link. But it was too late, the sword was firmly wedged into the stone and Link disappeared in a brilliance of golden light.

A/N: This has been an idea jumping around my mind for the past while. When I first heard of Legend of Zelda when I was about 8, I thought Zelda was Link. Imagine my shock we I found out we didn't play as Zelda, but Link instead. I might carry this on, it is actually supposed to be a one shot, stand alone. I got the idea to use the Bow of Light in this from another story I read on AO3. I would link it or give you the name, but I have forgotten (please don't shoot me).

I would love feedback! I feel like I completely rushed the whole last half of the story. I'm still working on another, so when I get the time I might go back and fill it some more and make some changes. I also hope I did Link and Zelda justice. I have never written a Legend of Zelda fanfic before, and I've only played Breath of the Wild, Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword (and I don't think playing as Link in MarioKart counts either).