Prologue

On Outset Island, everything was the same, except that there was a returning figure in the distance. Aryll, who had been in the watchtower with her telescope, zoomed in on the figure in the boat. She gasped with shock and delight.

"Grandma, Grandma!" she hollered, racing down the ladder and towards her house. "Grandma, Link's home! Big Brother's home!"

Grandma came out of the house and gasped. "Great Goddesses, he has come home! But he went off with Tetra and her gang, did he not? Where are they?"

Aryll was laughing and crying because she was happy that her brother had finally come home. "Who cares? Grandma, quick, let's get a celebration started!"

"That's quite on the spur of the moment, Aryll, but..." Grandma's face broke into a wide smile. "Hey, we can manage. Why don't I make some of my Elixir Soup?"

But Aryll was already dashing away, yelling joyfully, "Link's coming back! Link's coming back!"

Link stopped the King of Red Lions and gazed at the Island he left so long ago when he was a mere eleven years of age. He had gone off to save Aryll from the Helmaroc King, but it turned out that he was the Hero of the Wind! His trusty boat, the King of Red Lions, or the King, as Link now called him, was the only boat to talk. It seemed like only yesterday that he had met Tetra and demanded her to let him go on her boat to save Aryll. He had faced all sorts of trials but, finally, he had lodged the Master Sword into the head of Ganondorf Dragmire, or Dragman Ganon. Ganondorf had then turned into stone, for the Sword of Evil's Bane had too much magical powers of goodness for him. The sea had then crashed down upon Hyrule, where the last battle had taken place. The King of Hyrule did not want to live again in some foreign land. He wanted to die down there with Ganondorf, to prove that he was he was really the King of Hyrule. Tetra, who was really Princess Zelda, and Link had tried to save the King, but he refused to go up to the world above.

"Well, King, here we are. My home." Link patted the boat.

"Yes. The home that you fought for," the King replied in a low voice.

Link sighed. "I hope that Aryll isn't too ecstatic."

"She loves you, Link. It's evident."

"I love her too! Why else would I have gone after her and that accursed bird?" snapped Link angrily. He then stopped, grimacing. He was fourteen now, and his temper was always getting the better of him.

He then wondered how old Aryll was. She was probably eleven now, the age that he was when he had Come of Age. No, she would be ten. With a jolt he realized that her birthday was in two weeks and she had not gotten Aryll a present.

"I can get her one later," Link thought aloud.

"Get who one what?" asked the King.

"Aryll a birthday present. I can do that later though." Link was about to put up the sail when he saw a fin poking out of the water. "Aw, crud..."

"Gyorgs," the King stated. "Draw your bow, Link, before they attack."

"They hit you even before I draw the bow! They recognize you, King, and me, being the ones who slew their Master," retorted Link.

WHAM!

"Ugh, what did I tell you?" spluttered Link as he surfaced on the water. He hated being forced underwater when he was out in the boat with Gyorgs circling him. He did not want to share the same grave as the King of Hyrule.

He leapt onto the boat and grabbed a light arrow, aiming it at the approaching fin. The water grew higher and taller around the fin as the Gyorg came faster and closer.

Ziiip – bam, splash!

The arrow hit the shark-like water fiend. Link fired another arrow and slew the Gyorg.

"Link, there are too many! Direct the wind on a direct course to Outset Island and, well, full speed ahead, I say!" yelled the King of Red Lions as another Gyorg hit him, making Link lose his balance and throwing him overboard. Link clambered into the boat and played the Wind's Requiem, making the wind go due South. He then threw up the sail and he and his boat were off.

Aryll saw what was happening through her telescope and cried out, "Grandma! Look at how brave Big Brother is!"

Aryll tossed her telescope to her Grandma, who looked through it, smiling. "Aye, he's a brave 'un, alright. He'll take out those Gyorgs, don't worry you."

Aryll took back the telescope and plastered her eye to it, gazing at her brother.

'He really is something, ain't he?' she thought to herself. She watched as Link pulled out a white strip of wood and seemed to act as a conductor. Suddenly, the wind blasted in Aryll's face. She shook herself and then the wind slowed down, and Link was speeding towards Outset faster than before.

Aryll shut her telescope and wondered about her brother. 'He's special, no doubt about that. He says he is related to the Hero of Time.' As she made her way to visit Sue-Belle to ask her to help her carry water on her head, a thought struck her full in the face. 'If he's related to the Hero of Time, then so am I!'

She changed her course to Orca's house.

"Orca, Orca!" she cried, throwing open the door. Orca dropped a spear and the handle shaft cracked a jar.

"Good Goddesses, girl, what's the fuss?"

"If Link is related to the Hero of Time, shouldn't I be too?" panted Aryll.

Orca's face broke into a smile. "Yes, girl, I suppose ye should be."

"Well, I must be the Heroine of Something, right?"

Orca's smile faded. "No, Aryll, no."

"No? What do you mean by that?" blustered Aryll, outraged.

Orca closed his eyes and shook his head sadly. "Aryll, you cannot just be the Hero or Heroine of Something because you are related to a Hero."

Aryll scowled angrily. "Well, curse the Hero of Time, then!"

She stormed furiously away.

Link saw people waving at him and he laughed joyously.

"Look, King, home! We're home!" he shouted, waving back to his Grandma.

"Link, Link, Link m'boy, look how much you've grown!" sobbed Grandma happily.

"Grandma! Mesa! Zill! Joel! Rose! Abe! Sue-Belle! Orca! Sturgeon!" Link hollered hoarsely. He then saw two unfamiliar faces, a man and a woman. He waved to them. They looked down their noses at him and the man sniffed.

Link jumped out of the King of Red Lions and swam the rest of the way, laughing delightedly. He got to the beach and hugged his Grandmother.

"Where's Aryll?" he whispered to her.

"Nowhere to be found, dear, but not to worry. She's probably making you a gift." Grandma adverted her eyes to the man and woman. "Those are Uriel and Arella. They have a son named Yaphet. They moved here a few weeks after you left." Link smiled at Uriel and Arella and went to shake their hands.

"Hello. My name is Link." He held out his hand to Uriel. The man looked at it and raised his eyebrows.

"Yes, yes, very nice, I suppose, but what about us?" He had that droning voice that everyone imagines pompous and bored people to have. "I am Uriel and this is my wife Arella. We have a son, Yaphet."

"Pleased to meet you," lied Link.

"Yes, I am sure you are," droned Arella. She had the female version of Uriel's voice. "Can we get on with the feast?"

Grandma showed Link to behind their house, where a large feast was set up. Link smiled happily and helped himself to food and drink. He was so happy that he did not even noticed when Zill and Joel snuck away.

"I wish that we could 'ave adventures like Link," pouted Joel.

"Yeah! Then we wouldn' hafta listen to Momma and Dad tellin' us what to do," Zill agreed. They crossed a bridge to the other side of Outset Island.

Aryll was carrying a dagger that had been her brother's. She heard voices and hid behind a tree, but it was only Zill and Joel. She came out and smiled at them.

"Why aren't you at the feast?" Aryll asked of them.

"I'm not 'ungry, and this thickhead always gotta follow me 'round!" Joel elbowed Zill.

"Well, how about we go up to the Forest?" Aryll showed them her dagger.

"How'd'ya know that we wanned t'go up to the forest but couldn' get past th' trees?" gasped Zill.

"Oh, I don't know..." Aryll shrugged and began heading up the path to the Forest. She slashed down the trees and the shrubs and they made their way to the bridge. It had been halfway fixed. Aryll sheathed her dagger and began to race across the bridge. She took a flying leap and...

"Aryll!" yelped the two boys, racing to the edge of the bridge. Aryll had not fallen down to the waters, but had grabbed hold of part of the rope from the bridge.

She put one hand in front of the other as she slowly made her way to the solid ground. When she had made it there, Aryll called back, "Take a big running start and leap over the gap. I'll catch you, I promise!"

Joel ran first. He jumped over the gap and Aryll grabbed him as he began to fall. She set him down and then it was Zill's turn. He soared over the gap and Aryll grabbed his hands as he fell down to the ocean. Joel and Aryll pulled him up and they headed into the Forest together.

A scream wrenched through the air as the Islanders started their third course of desert.

Link jumped up and immediately took out his bow and his Skull Hammer.

"Who screamed?" shouted the lazy Mesa, but Link was already running to the other side of Outset Island. He saw that the path to the Fairy Forest was ruined and that the plants had been sliced down. As Link began to make his way up the path, he heard a noise that filled him with dread.

"Duh-dink, dink dink, duuuuh-dink."

"Not now!" groaned Link. Waves of Miniblins jumped on top of him. He slammed the Skull Hammer on the ground, sending shockwaves to the Miniblins. Link pounded the Miniblins down and they exploded in puffs of purple smoke. Link picked up the rupees they left behind. When he had killed off most of them, the remainders quickly scrambled away.

Link cursed himself for having to stay and fight the trident-wielding fiends. Another scream burst through the night air and Link began to run. He came to the bridge and soared across the gap. Link entered the Forest and saw...

No! It couldn't be. Link shook himself and closed his eyes and rubbed them. He then opened his eyes.

It was there. The Helmaroc King. But if the Bird King was out and about, then there was only one person who could control it...

"Leave them alone!" screamed the voice of Aryll. She had Link's old dagger in her hand, brandishing it at the evil bird that had once kidnapped her, mistaking her as Tetra, who the Bird King had known was Princess Zelda...

"Aryll!!" shouted Link, holding the Skull Hammer tightly. The Skull Hammer was the very Hammer that had defeated the Helmaroc King before...

"LINK!" Zill and Joel darted from beneath a bush towards Link.

"Aryll, quick, take them back! I'll take care of the Bird King!" Link held out the Skull Hammer threateningly. The Helmaroc King suddenly snatched Aryll up in his beak. Link gave a cry of surprise and ran at the Helmaroc King, who slapped Link away with a claw. The Helmaroc King then grabbed the two brothers in his claws and took off.

Link's head was bleeding but he didn't care. He ran out of the Forest and jumped after the Bird King, like he did last time but, unlike last time, there was no Tetra and no pirates to save him from the long, terrifying drop.

"Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!" Link screamed as he fell. He landed with a smack in the water, and remembered no more.