The Legend of Kilaria

This is a Legend of Zelda Fan Fiction that I began writing as a super short story 5 years ago and never finished it. Recently I began to rewrite it, making it a more lengthy and fulfilling story. I decided to post the first chapter. But I don't know when I'll continue working on it.

The Legend of Kilaria Yo-Ru

BY

Mocha Fantasy

Prologue

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Chapter 1:

“I was born exactly one year after the very day the great Ganondorf was vanquished by the chosen hero. Twenty and two years ago, my birthday being the one year anniversary, death clouds rolled over Hyrule Castle and lightning touched the earth! It was the darkest day in Hyrule history for over one-hundred years. In Ganon’s last effort to destroy the chosen hero and the princess, he struck the castle with a final strike of dark magic that caused its foundations to collapse. With stones and pillars crashing down all around them, the chosen hero protected the princess as they sprinted out of the castle just before it fell into a hole in the earth, said to have opened up to Hell itself!

“Not long after that fateful event, Link, the chosen Hero of Time, was taken up into the clouds. It was since then he vanished and was never seen again. Legend has it he spoke with the great goddess, Hylia. After thanking him for the great deed he had done, saving Hyrule from the evil forces of Ganon, the chosen hero was sent back in time to live out his life as a Kokiri Kid.

“Since that epic battle of prophecy, the castle had been rebuilt over the last two decades and stands as tall as it once was. I, myself, have not yet seen where the great Princess Zelda resides. I wish to see her some day; and walk the ground she walks on. And maybe, just maybe see where this epic battle had taken place and see where the legend spawns from. I want more than anything else in this world to go to the places the Hero of Time went on his adventure to save Hyrule. But for obvious reasons, I don't think I ever will...

“I digress. The kids within Kokiri Forest support the legend and say that the boy left on another quest, venturing deep within the Lost Forest to search for the fairy that once helped him on his prophesied quest. Her name was Navi. This part of the legend, as many other parts, holds no tangible proof that Link is the hero the myth would suggest; if it even happened as told.

“No doubt the events I mentioned took place, though what I do doubt is whether the happenings transpired as they are told. Nevertheless, my mother’s stories are all a myth to me for this was before my time. But these stories still inspire me day by day. I’ve long left my home in Faron Woods and for the first time am able to explore the vast expanse of Hyrule! My escapades one by one have lead me to this province where the great Hyrule Castle steeples peek just over the hill tops of Hyrule Field.”

Kilaria Yo-Ru comes nigh to the end of the woods where it becomes thick. On top her steed she snags every branch as the horse slowly trots. Pushing and snapping twigs off of her face, Hyrule Field begins to open up to her. “We’re almost there, Ragnarok,” she says with excitement. Kilaria pushes entangled vines apart as her horse, Ragnarok, forces lower brush to the side. The power of the sun starts to break through!

Finally, they‘re out! The warm Hyrule sun touches upon her face gently as Ragnarok stands on his hind legs, kicking valiantly. “Hyat!” Kilaria commands Ragnarok to ride by tapping his sides! Shooting across the land, she picks the twigs and leaves out of her hair. Once free of entangled twigs, her hair dances in the rushing wind like royalty. She is free.

The grass flattens under her feet. Kilaria had leaped off her horse, running up a steep hill. Ragnarok is being guided by this adventurous young girl. She climbs to the hills edge, now a cliff. The breeze flows like a gentle river. She takes a deep breath of the wild. The sapphire-like stones that are her eyes twinkle in the Hyrule sun. Her eyes shut, breathing in. One blink. And two more quick blinks she had opened them accompanied with an exhale of unusual excitement. If she squinted hard enough, she could see the steeples of the Hyrle Castle past her open hand. "Nothing is stopping me now."

At the lower east side of Hyrule Field is a choke point in the Hylia River. There Kilaria leaps from rock to rock. She watches her reflection. "I'm the Hero of Light," she giggles. Ragnarok gaits a four-beat step, splashing the running water. If her horse could talk, he'd remind her to stay focused on the castle. But he knows she doesn't like to listen to anybody.

What is this? Kilaria caught a Male Phasmid. This is a type of stick bug mostly found in this region. Its green and glows with a golden hue, much like Kilaria's spirit. The time spent experiencing Hyrule's wild is forgiving to her. The bug flies out of her hand. Kilaria smiles, watching it buzz sporadically through the air. But she watches it for a moment too long. She fixates on it. Green is the color of the grass. The sky is blue but it wrestles with pinks and reds. The clouds are white. She takes another breath of the wild.

The spark of energy dwindled. Kilaria on Ragnarok now, casually trot their way down a trail towards Hyrule Castle. Kilaria opens her satchel to count what was left of her food. Grabbing what is inside; she finds only bread crumbs. They float out of her hand and off in the breeze. She places her hands upon her hips and blows her hair from her face unhappily, “Well Ragnarok. We’re outta’ food. What do you suppose we do now, boy.”

Ragnarok turns his head back toward Kilaria and whinnies, answering her question. He points with his snout at a village closer than Hyrule Castle. It catches her eye. “Ooh, good thinking, Ragnarok. I bet they have some cool stuff there, don’t you? The Castle can wait, it's not like there's an impending doom like in the stories," she laughs. "Come on, boy.” With a single kick they’re off!

The dirt trail rolls over hill tops and down through bowls of grass. Kilaria and her steed pass over a wooden bridge. The drop leads into a gorge with rushing water below, carving into the earth as it weaves through. Being a woodland girl, Kilaria has never beheld such diverse terrain before. It is a true dream. The great stories of legend unfold before her eyes.

This bridge has an insignia etched into it. It is composed of three triangles stacked to form one large triangle. This was the Royal Family Crest of the Princess Zelda, the Triforce symbol!

They gallop past the beautifully crafted bridge and in front of them is a canyon into the mountain where rests a staircase. Climbing two flights of the cobblestone staircase, just before the village, their sight slowly rises above the horizon of the steps. Behold: there sat the village, nestled comfortably into the arms of a few closely nestled mountains. Grass was laid out atop the peaks and flowed over the rocky cliff faces. At the village border are two tall wooden pillars erected between two rock faces that hung a banner with the village’s name printed on it in Hylian, translating to “Kakariko Village.”

Kilaria hitches her horse just outside the town. She knows this name, "Kakariko Village". In awe, she walks in. Her boots slide through the tall patch of grass. "That sound," she smiles. Ambient notes from guitar strings picked lowers her guard. Somewhere a paired flute can be heard. The sounds serenade her. Her eyes had shut softly and her ears had opened. Cuccoos sang along, clucking and peeping. She stands swaying in the breeze. The air smelled of goats, grass and wheat mixed with fresh water. The light scented breeze combed her hair. The wind also cranked a windmill on the far side. She heard that too. Next to her is running water, falling right from the mountain tops. Not a sound conflicted and it was like every story her mother told her.

The moment in time caught up with her. She feels as though she is being watched. By the corner of her vision sits a shadow on the border fence. Quickly looking where she thinks she sees the shadow, she sees no one. Shrugging her shoulders she passes it off as her imagination. There's no reason to fixate on it, she thinks. This village reminds her of her mother and all the bedtime stories she was told. She wonders if the Village is like it was in her mother's stories. In a burst of energy, she races to see if the landmarks are still there. The ones twenty-two years ago.

"Oh my goddess!" Kilaria screamed. She had raced to the village well. She throws herself half way over its edge. The water is still. She sees her reflection. Her tunic, bright green. Her hair, blond. If you hadn't paid attention you would have missed it. The grin she had from ear to ear waivered, her eyes fluttered, and breath skipped. Her brow twitched and she smiled, self-assuring herself. The reflection disappeared in the ripples of a splash.

The water splashed as she excitingly tapped its surface. "Do you know if that lens is still below?" Her cheeks flushed red. "I don't know if I'd want to see the truth all the time, even if I could, ya know?" Kilaria's incautious mind is unbridled when interacting with strangers. A lowly villager sat at the well, on the other side. He was dirty. Hair in the shape of spikes lined his skull back down to his neck. Flies buzzed around him, maybe thinking him dead from the smell and lack of meat on his ribs.

"The well is cursed, don't you know," he said coughing loudly. "A long time ago..." he continued, "There was a man in this very village who had an eye they said could see the truth...But this fella, no, they say he had a different way of doing things..." The words violently coughed out, "His house stood where the well is now..." A feeling of dread emerged from Kilaria's once smiling face. She became a tad bit uneasy hearing this man speak, not even sparing a glance to her. He spoke to no one it seemed. Kilaria breaths in to verbalize, but no words are said. The man mumbles to himself, sniffling and groaning, and coughing too.

Swallowing to calm her upset stomach, Kilaria stutters, "Now... usually, you.. have to train your mind's eye most strenuously to actually see the truth... I think. At least, that's what I've heard." Leaning onto one arm, the man grumbles and turns. He presses his chin against his shoulder. Straining to turn, it sounded like he grunted the word "Grog". This man is decrepit and isolated.

"This can't be happening," Kilaria cries to herself. The piercing silent gaze of Grog's eyes, strained into their corners, frightens her. She covers her mouth and thinks again, "Hyrule is...it's... But the stories were always so... It's darker than she led me to believe. I don't believe this is happening." One step back, then two, she inches away backwards in awe.

Inside the local Bazaar are many interesting items Kilaria wishes she could get her hands on. Looking within her purse she finds only a few green rupees and one of each blue and red. Dumping the last of what she has on the front counter, the cashier scratches his hairy belly and fills Kilaria’s bottle twenty rupees worth of red drink (known to have medicinal properties). She proceeds to purchase bread with the blue rupee she has. Handing it over, it twinkles by the candle light a last goodbye and she is saddened, wagging her head.

“Thank you, sir.”

The cashier then grunts in return, stroking his oversized beard, “Come on back soon, little lady. Got some good things being mailed in from Windfall Mountain, stranger!” Kilaria comes near the exit when something on the shelf catches her eye. It is a fairy trapped in a bottle. She leans down and looks into the glass at the fairy. Floating around it seemingly is communicating for help, though it speaks no words to her. Kilaria tilts her head and rolls her lips in with interest and asks the man, “How much for the little fairy?”

“For you, stranger…fifty rupees would do.” Kilaria turns back at the fairy with a decisive brow and springs straight up, “Sorry, buddy.” She turns back to the man. “No thanks!”

Just outside Kilaria sees a sign that says, “Shooting Gallery.” Her eyes open wide, “Ooh!” Walking inside, the place is relatively large with a range for targets dressed to look like the wilderness. “Twenty rupees!”

“Excuse me?” inquires Kilaria. “To shoot,” the man clarifies. Seeing the wall behind the man full of hanging bows, she swiftly steps to the counter and leans against it, marveling the arsenal. She envies insomuch that she requests the price to get one. Laughing mockingly, the man told her that one is probably worth more than her own self. The overweight man tilts his cap away from his eyes and says, “Haven’t seen you ‘round, kid. This ain’t no place for outsiders.”

“I have you know, I’ve dealt with any and all situations back within the woods I’m from. Would you sell me that one for…” Thinking quickly, Kilaria whips out her slingshot from behind, under her belt, “…a trade with my sling shot?!” She pauses with her stance wide and arm stretched forth in the salesman’s face. “. . . No.”

Looking down she tries again, “You leave me no choice…A slingshot A-N-D… …TWO GREEN RUPEES!” She stands there resting the rupees between her fingers with the back of her hand fanned out at the man.

Outside without a bow or arrows and not more than three rupees to her name, Kilaria decides it was time to go anyway. The sun is setting and the moon is climbing. With the night, all have gone to their own homes; all but one. Being her first night in this province, Kilaria is reasonably cautious with her right hand free incase her sword need be drawn.

Again the shadow is returned. She feels eyes on her back and prepares to fight. Kilaria bravely draws her sword and quickly turns to face her adversary! Leaning against the dirt wall is a middle aged man holding a lantern, his face eerily dimmed. “You dare venture into the shadows?” the man says with a raspy voice. “What do you mean, old man? Have you been the one watching me?”

“Oh not so…I’ve known your presence only. But I can assure you eyes have been following you though they are not mine.” Kilaria sheathes her blade and requests his reasoning for addressing her. He repeats, “You dare venture into the shadows? The nocturnal ones; they will find you. I implore you that you beware! Though the great evil has been dormant, the Kindgom of Ikana is still upon us! Beware!” Shocked at the old man’s passion, Kilaria asks of him, “May I inquire your name, wise man?”

“Iroh, son of Shikashi.” Immediately, the light of his lantern is snuffed out. Kilaria is disturbed and her heart speeds up a beat. The wise man looks around sporadically with shifty eyes, “The Shadow Folk…pay respect to the legend of the Shadow Folk. I must go. Beware the Stalchildren, Wonderer!” The man escapes into the night. Fearing the worst and not knowing how to react, Kilaria does the same.

Making use of every movement as she sprints to her horse, she swings her satchel around her shoulder and pulls it tight! She then leaps upon Ragnarok while simultaneously unhitching him from the post. “Hyat!”

She and Ragnarok race from the shadows within Kakariko Village. Only to soon find that she is riding right into the very darkness she was running from.

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If I can get 3 tokens donated I'll write and post chapter two.