The Story of Ida

Chapter 1

“And the last words he ever spoke were- “As long as the Tri-force of Power is in my hand…”

“Really?! What happened then?” the little girl asked.

Life was back to normal, peace had returned to Hyrule once more, people from all corners of the land were recalling the greatest legend ever told, the story of Link, the “Hero of Time”.

Six years had passed since Link’s epic adventures through treacherous terrain, unknown lands and forbidden worlds.  Slaughtering monsters, solving puzzles and finding courage within his own heart would lead Hyrule to a prosperous future.

“So, you want to know what happened next?” Nabooru said excitedly to the group of Gerudo children.

“Yes!” they chanted, urging Nabooru to continue.

“Oh, all right”, she said, “but you must listen carefully, for there is more to be heard of our courageous hero”.

The children sat as still as rocks, their ears pinned to every word Nabooru said.

“Are you sitting comfortably?” she said “then I’ll begin”….

All the children were listening so closely; they didn’t notice one woman standing in the shadows, listening to every word Nabooru said.

“Once Link, the “Hero of Time” saved Hyrule, he left Kokiri Forest in search of new surroundings and adventures”.

“Ooh! Where did he go?” one of the children asked.

“To a land far away.  A land even more spectacular than Hyrule, a land many thought never existed- the land of Termina”.

“Wow! What was Termina like?” one girl asked, eager to hear more.

“Now I’m afraid that’s another story”, Nabooru said.

“Aww!” the children cried in disappointment, “please Nabooru, tell us more!  You have to tell us! We want to know about Link’s adventures!”

“Like I said”, said Nabooru, “that’s another story!  It’s time for all of you to be going to bed!  Look!  Mr. Owl is flying, that means sunset has arrived! Come on all of you! To your rooms!”

The children slumped away in disappointment.

“You will tell us more, won’t you?” one child asked.

“Of course I will”, said Nabooru, giving her a kiss “just not tonight.  Another time O.K?”

“O.K”, she said  “goodnight, Nabooru.  See you tomorrow!” she said, running to catch up with the rest of her friends.

“Goodnight!” Nabooru shouted after them.  “Sleep well!”

as Nabooru turned to walk back to the fortress, she noticed the woman standing in the shadows.

“Ida!” she said, “why didn’t you join us today? You know that the children love to hear your stories, especially the ones on horseback”, Nabooru said.

“Obviously, you had more important people to talk about”, Ida said scornfully.  “Your precious “Hero of Time has had more adventures than me after all”.

“I’m sorry, Ida”, Nabooru said.  “I didn’t realise storytelling was so important to you.  Please accept my deepest apologies”, said Nabooru.

“Whatever”, said Ida, who was still full of jealousy and anger, “I have more important things to do anyway”, she said, walking away at a fast pace.

      Ida was still angry about the events earlier that evening.  To rid of her anger, she decided to take a horse and ride around the field for a while.  She mounted and galloped off into the sunset.  Nabooru caught a glimpse of her as she left.

“Oh, Ida”, she sighed  “we all care about you.  Why can’t you just see that?”

Riding strong, Ida rode towards Gerudo Valley, across the bridge over the vast river and into Hyrule field, a place she knew all too well.

“Horseback archery”, she smiled to herself, “those were the days”.

Suddenly, from out of know where, a bright, blinding light lit the night sky like a flame, followed by a mighty explosion which boomed across the field like a volcano.

Ida’s horse reared up and she was thrown off the saddle, onto the grass.  The horse was so frightened she bolted back towards Gerudo Valley.  Ida was all alone.

“NO! Wait! Come back!” she shouted, but no reply.  The horse was long gone.

She sat on the ground for a moment, thinking about what just happened.

“That…light. The explosion”, she thought, “it came from the North”.  Suddenly it hit her “Oh, no! Hyrule Castle! I’d better go see if everything’s O.K!”

Now Ida was an athlete, she could sprint as fast as any animal in the land.  Nabooru always said she had the ‘spirit of the animals’ inside her.

As she ran, she noticed the lights were on in Lon Lon Ranch and Kakariko Village.

“They must have heard the explosion too”, she thought.

She finally arrived at the castle. The drawbridge was up.

“I forgot! The drawbridge goes up at night.  There’s gotta be another way in…” she thought.

Luckily, she was loaded with Gerudo fighting equipment.  She found a rope attached to her belt, with a hook tied onto it.  She swung it round and hurled it over the wall.  The hook grasped the stonework of the castle, and she began to ascend the rope.  Once she was at the other side, she saw where all the chaos was coming from.  She could see down the dark alleys of the market.  There were people with fire-lit torches, by the hundreds.  Hylian guards were holding them back.  They were demanding to know what just happened.

“Please don’t panic!” one of the guards said,  “the explosion was also heard at Hyrule Castle! Please stay calm!”

“Hyrule Castle heard it too?” thought Ida.  “Then where did the explosion come from?”

In an instant, Ida realised.

“It must have been at the Temple of Time!”

Chapter 2

Ida watched closely as the guards kept holding back the villagers.

“I’ve got to get past them and into the Temple of Time.  The guards don’t even know that’s where the explosion was!” she said to herself.

Ida began to creep forward, keeping low to the ground, meandering through crates and trees.  Luckily, the guards didn’t see her.  She made her way into the courtyard of the Temple of Time, unaware that it would soon change her life…

She treaded carefully across the grass in the courtyard, breathing heavily, she looked at the Temple of Time, dark, gloomy and eerie.  She hesitantly walked towards the entrance.  She was frightened, her eyes were glowing with fear.  She slowly looked around the open door, and to her surprise, all looked normal.  Outside, the wind was blowing heavily.  She hastily walked inside, only to find the door slam shut behind her.  She was in darkness.

Silence.

For a moment, she felt as though she was being looked on, watched, observed.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed a glowing light coming from further down the temple.  She looked towards it. 

“The Spiritual Stones!” she whispered in amazement.  She began to walk forward, slowly, along the red velvet carpet, towards the plinth containing the stones.

“They’re still here”, she said.

She noticed the Ancient Hylian script engraved on the cold stone.  By the time she read the words ‘Hero of Time’, she boiled with anger.

“Why him?” she thought.  “I could be powerful too, just like him.  If only they could see!”

She pounded the plinth with her fists and at that precise moment a light flashed beyond her.  It was coming from the Door of Time.  She jumped.

“What’s happening?” she said frightfully.

A faint rumbling began to grow stronger, she backed away from the plinth, and her eyes still fixed on the Door of Time.

“What’s going on?” she said. “Who’s there!” she shouted.

A sinister evil laugh echoed through the Temple, a voice that she knew all too well.

“No it can’t be”, she thought.  The rumbling grew ever stronger, she began to turn and run down the corridor.

Another flash of bright light filled the Temple.  She turned round in amazement to find that the Door of Time had vanished.

“Whoa…the door!  Someone’s coming through the Realm! I must warn the guards!”

She began to run again, when suddenly, the familiar voice boomed off the temple walls.

“Ida!” it shouted, “stay where you are! Don’t be afraid of me.” 

But she was.

She trembled even more.  How did this person know her name? She stopped in astonishment, like she was captured in a trance.  Slowly, she turned back towards the entrance to the Sacred Realm.  The light began to fade and ever so slowly, a dark shadow became visible, and levitating over the Pedestal of Time, he hovered, the King of Thieves- Ganondorf.

Before Ida had a chance to run, he spoke.

“I have been waiting a long time to meet you, Ida. I can’t thank you enough for setting me free.”

She stood in astonishment.

“Setting you free? No! I couldn’t have”. She thought for a moment and shouted “I don’t have the power to set you free!”

Ganondorf smiled.  He smirked to himself. 

“But you do. Do you not realise the power I have bestowed upon you?!”

Although Ida wanted to run, scream for help, she seemed curious to hear more.

“What power?” she asked curiously.

“Why, the Power of the Tri-force that I passed on to you.  It made the Tri-force of Power I hold even stronger.  Strong enough to break free of the Evil Realm”.

She stopped, her eyes fixed on the King.  She knew if she made one mistake, it would be fatal to her.

“What is this Tri-force Power I hold?” she asked.  “The legend says that only the Hero of Time and Princess Zelda hold the other two Tri-force parts”.

Ganondorf thought to himself for a moment.  “I knew I would have to explain the whole thing once I met you”.  He went on to say, “I know that Link is no longer in Hyrule”, he said.  “I know after he sealed me away in the Evil Realm, he went on to new lands, one of which was the land of Termina”.

Ida, who was still full of amazement, gasped.

“Hey, how did you know that?” she asked.

“With the Tri-force of Power, I can see everything”, he said.