Part IV: "A Call to Arms"

Link and the Princess awoke well before dawn. It would still be hours before the first hint of sunshine appeared from over the distant horizon. There was much preperation to be done.

Link solemnly walked up the stairs of the tower. Up to the attic-like room that housed the weapons he had never wanted to use again. He quickly loaded them into his pack -- the bow and arrow, Megaton Hammer, Longshot, and so on. Once packed, he returned to his wife's side in their private little room. Link sat down next to Zelda glumly, no longer able to hide his emotions.

"She was your one true friend, wasn't she?" Zelda asked with a concerned look on her face. Link could only nod. "You poor man," she continued. "What has this hero thing done to you?"

"They *gutted* her, Zelda!" Link stammered. "Took her and hung her from a tree. Hung her from a tree and left her organs to hang out. For her blood to drip on those below. It was the most horrid thing I'd ever seen."

The tears finally came, and Link leaned over and cried. Cried on his wife's shoulder. Cried until the sun crept over the distant mountains.

With the crack of dawn came Rauru. He appeared just as the first ray of sunlight succeeded in clearing the mountains and shining directly onto Hyrule Castle.

"Come!" Rauru said. "To the Temple of Time! Hurry, time is of the essence!"

Together, the three walked quickly to the old temple overlooking the market. As they opened the door, it was evident all was not well. The Door of Time stood opened, and Impa and Darunia were just outside, looking grim.

"Where's Princess Ruto!?" Link asked nervously.

Impa spoke up, "She was found dead this morning in her chamber. Apparently an assailant came in last night, killed her, and then fileted her like a fish. We still haven't found most of the pieces."

Link cringed. He had had enough of death in his twenty-one years. His face showed none of this, however. He had a job to do, and he would do it.

All five ventured through the Door of Time to the pedestal where the Master Sword rested. Around the pedestal were the marks of the sages, except that now the marks for the Sages of the Spirit, Forest, and Water had disappeared. As if they were never there.

Rauru explained what was at hand.

"When you are ready, we will open a door from this world into the Sacred Realm. Once through it, you will be in your own. We can use our power to monitor you, but no more. Once you have completed your task, we will call you back quickly before the seal completely reforms. Good luck, and may Din, Farore, and Nayru watch over you!"

Link and Zelda stood hand-in-hand on the pedestal as the three remaining Sages gathered their powers together. As Rauru said a few words in Hylian, the pedestal took on an eerie blue glow. Suddenly, a vortex opened beneath Link and Zelda, and they were sucked inside...