Where did Chapter 2 go? I wrote it already... great. I need to rewrite Chapter 2... how did it go again?
Anyway, my first version of Chapter 2 was deleted somehow, so I'm rewriting it. Hope you enjoy.
Chapter 2
The Splitting of the Paths
The sun was starting to set on the horizon. A magnificent purple-red hue lit up the sky. Link and Poder were practicing sparring near the cattle ranch in Central Hyrule.
"You'll never defeat me, brother!" boasted Poder as he dodged Link's attack.
"I don't think so!" cried Link as he thrust his sword toward his brother. Poder parried and then thrusted his blade into Link's, sending his sword flying across the sky until it fell to the ground.
Panting heavily, Link stared at his brother angrily... then burst out into laughter. "Ah, I don't know if I'll ever best you, brother!"
Poder and Link wrapped each other's arms around their shoulders and made their way towards the exit of the ranch. The door to the farmhouse creaked open. The owner of the ranch, Fabi, emerged.
"What are you boys doing, making all this noise? I could've sworn you two were trying to kill each other! Your unholy chatter frightened my dear cuccoos! They started to peck at me all over the place! Do you know what it's like to have 20 beaks pinned on your nose?!" screamed Fabi.
Link and Poner stared at each other in silence. Then they tared right back at Fabi... and once again, burst out into maniacal laughter. They threw their arms around each other's shoulders and continued walking out of the ranch.
---
Night fell, and the beautiful purple sky turned to blue. Link and Poder were tucked in their beds in the safe confines of their wooden home.
"Good night, Poder. May tomorrow be as glorious as today," whispered Link.
"Good night, brother. May the goddesses be with you," said Poder.
These were the last words exchanged before Link blew out the candle, enveloping the room with darkness.
---
CUCKOO!!!
"What? Was that Ganondorf?! Jeez..." mumbled Link as he sprang out of bed, startled. "What was that?!"
"Link... what are you doing?" Poder asked drowsily. He let out a tired yawn, then slowly crawled out of bed. "You woke me up... I was having such a sound sleep. You'd better have a good explanation..."
"Sorry, brother. I think it was just a cuccoo."
Poder grumbled and half-heartedly slipped on his pants. He slapped on his robes and then stumbled down the stairs. Link followed suit and quickly put on his green tunic. As he slowly descended down the crickety stairs, he saw his brother sitting at the table.
"Greetings, brother," said Link.
"Salutations. Come and have some porridge," Poder replied. He lifted his spoon out of the bowl of porridge and slurped. "Probably want it to simmer down, though."
Link joined Poder at the table. Suddenly his nose started to tingle, and he felt a sneeze of epic proportions brewing.
"ACHOOO!!!"
The brothers heard a thump from upstairs, then heard a voice.
"What the-?! Has the evil Ganon been resurrected? No! But surely my sons will protect me!" The brothers stared at the top of the stairs as their startled father came walking downstairs.
"Boys, what was that unholy racket?" asked Corei.
"It was Link's sneeze, father," answered Poder.
"Judging by that sneeze, I could've sworn you were a giant!"
Corei stared at Link for a moment, their eyes gazing into each other. Corei stifled a guffaw and then directed his attention to Poder.
"Yes, I know, father. I didn't know Link could even make a noise that loud." Poder an his father burst into laughter. Poder was laughing so hard, he started to tear up. Corei laughed so hard that he started to choke.
"Anyway, Poder and I are going to go sparring today. Come along, brother," said Link, his teeth clenched.
"See you, father!" called Poder as he and Link walked through the door.
The brothers traversed through South Hyrule, the area where their beloved home lay. They traveled nothward towards Central Hyrule, the location of Hyrule Field and the castle.
"Say, brother, do you ever wonder?" asked Poder.
"Wonder about what?" replied Link.
"About what power we possess... we could be more powerful than the sages themselves. Remember what father said? We are destined for greatness. And with our swordsmanship skills, I wouldn't be surprised if we turned out to be the chosen heroes. We could even take over Hyrule."
Link was absolutely astonished and dismayed at what his brother had just stated.
"But Poder... I don't really believe we are the chosen ones. What are the odds of that? Plus, I wouldn't want to be The Hero Chosen by the Gods. Even more, I don't want to rule Hyrule," said Link. He waited for his brother's response, but a long silence followed after Link spoke his words. Finally, Poder answered.
"Think about it, though. The Sacred Realm is now within our grasp. Ever since it has been introduced to the public, it has been more vulnerable."
"But the Sacred Realm is protected by an indetructible magic barrier. We couldn't get in if we tried!"
"My foolish, foolish brother..." said Poder mockingly. "If we are indeed the chosen ones, we have the power to enter the Sacred Realm. The seven sages would have to obey us, and we could rule this land!"
Link was too shocked to say anything. He just stood in the middle of the field in silence. Poder stared at Link, and vice versa. Link had never seen this side of Poder, and it frightened him. What was happening to Poder?
---
Two years later, their relationship had worsened. The wedge between the brothers had expanded to epic proportions. In search of the ultimate power, Poder had joined a cult designated to resurrecting Ganon. Poder's power and leadership eventually made him the head of the cult, quenching his thirst for power. He had control over an entire army. In that time, Link had started to resent his brother more and more. The carefree, loving brother Link once knew was no more. Since their last true conversation, Link and Poder had never spoken. Poder was a greedy, filthy dictator who wanted nothing more than to have absolute control over everything. What other way than to resurrect the King of Evil himself? Poder had left his mark on the land of Hyrule, and the results were devastating. To resurrect Ganon, Poder has to kill all seven sages, destroying the seal that protects Hyrule from Ganon. He had already killed three sages, and his cult had grown in numbers and power. They had posession of black magic, the kind Ganon had used. After killing the first sage, a small part of Ganon was resurrected - his conscious. The dark lord granted a small fraction of his power to the cult so they could kill the remaining sages. With Ganon's destructive power in hand, Poder killed two more sages, freeing Ganon even more. The remaining four sages used their magic to contain Ganon, for even with less than one half of his true self, he could wreak havoc on a huge scale. Dark days are upon the citizens of Hyrule as the resurrection of Ganon draws near. But there is only one flaw in Poder's plan: the source of the black magic is a tablet. This ancient tablet was split into four pieces, but that wouldn't be enough to stop The Hero Chosen by the Gods from destroying the tablet, thus destroying the source of the cult's power. Poder created four terrible creatures using Ganon's black magic to guard each piece: Whiplashia, Dracomuerte, Firegohma and Dantemalia. Link finally understood what his purpose was. He was meant to protect the sages and destroy the tablet before Ganon's return. Link's only chance of defeating the great peril is by obtaining the fabled Master Sword, the sword of evil's bane. To have enough power to kill the four remaining sages, Poder requires Ganon's evil blade. Fate has pitted brother against brother. The legend begins.
Chapter 3
The Seven Sages
Link sat on a bench, gazing up at the evening sky. How beautiful. How carefree. His heart told him to forgive his brother, but his brain thought otherwise. He slowly stood up, and was ready to embark on his quest. He had previously tried to stop the death of the third sage, but was greatly overpowered. Link was determined to stop the evil intentions of his twin brother this time around, but didn't know where to start. He thought that he could gain wisdom by visiting the Sacred Realm where the remaining four sages hide from Poder's army. The Sacred Realm lay in Hyrule Castle, so Link knew where his next destination would be. He traveled through Southern Hyrule, a small but beautiful section of the kingdom. Trees and plants surround every inch of the forest terrain, and every morning, the early light of a new day would always shine through the leaves. Link walked on and on and on, passing by bridges, gates and easily dispatched moblins. Finally, he stepped foot into Central Hyrule. The trees were dead and shriveled. There was no wildlife in sight, nor had there been any for nearly two years. The grass was a putrid yellow, and the air smelled of death. While the cult had not yet affected the Southern or Western parts of the kingdom, the damage caused by them was clearly visible in the once-beautiful Hyrule Field. Link looked over at Death Mountain. When Death Mountain is in its normal state, a small ring of smoke always appears on top. After the cult stepped in, the wonderous Death Mountain became a wasteland. No longer did a small cloud of smoke hang on top of the montain, but now a demonic spiral cloud spins overhead. Link sighed at the state of Hyrule, and then pressed on. As Link neared Hyrule Castle, a member of the cult appeared from the shadows.
"What is your name, stranger?" asked the mysterious hooded figure.
"My name is..." Link could not think of a good response. Then he remembered his resemblance to his brother. "... Poder."
"Oh, really... stranger..." the hooded figure lifted up his hood and revealed a grotesque face. There were burn marks all over the left side, the hair was also missing from that side, and he was missing his right eye. All that showed was a pink socket. "Then come on in, Lord Poder."
Link saluted the strange man and entered the castle. Castle Town was completely overrun by the cult. Everything from the shops to the broken windows had "evil" written all over it. All Link could hear were the chatter of the cult members and cult members that owned businesses.
"Come get your red hot poison over here!"
"My lord, you will not find a more fitting rapier than right here at The Cult Blacksmith!"
"Black magic potions - they will give you temporary powers - only 100 rupees per bottle!"
Link squeezed his way through the enormous crowds of cult townspeople. He never could've imagined the cult's numbers would be so vast. As Link pushed on, he noticed the town became nicer as he worked his way in. They must use a cache system, and the cult members of less importance live in the outer ring, while those of more importance live deeper within Castle Town. Link decided it was time to ask someone where the Sacred Realm was - Castle Town had changed so much in just two short years. He found a rather good-looking fellow and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Excuse me, sir, but I am looking for the Sacred Realm. Where can I find it?" Link asked.
The stranger turned around. Something was familiar about his look... Link just couldn't figure it out...
"Link?! Is that you?!" yelled a familiar voice.
It finally struck him - the stranger was none other than Poder himself!
"So, Link... I recall that you have previously tried to thwart our plans," Poder said in an accusing voice.
Link was frozen in place. Before Poder could say another word, Link pulled out his sword on swung at Poder. He ducked under, then commanded the guards to attack. Several cult guards charged at Link, but he fended them off with his sword.
A spear thrusted towards him, but he quickly sliced off the tip and ran through a crowd of cult members with his sword stuck in front of him. Link felt his sword make contact with a few people while he charged the crowd, so he looked back. Sure enough, a few men and women behind him had been wounded. The guards looked angrier yet, and began to throw their spears at Link. He swayed side-to-side, trying to avoid all of them. A spear headed right towards Link, but he knocked it away with his blade. A guard came in from behind, trying to knife Link in the back, but Link quickly shuffled to the side, grabbed the guard's arm and threw him into the crowd. Many were stunned by his tremendous show of strength, so he used it as an opportunity to make haste. The multi-colored barrier could be seen now, not far off. Link rushed towards it with dozens of cult guards not trailing far behind. Houses and shops zoomed right past him in a blur, as his eyes were fixated on the barrier. He came closer and closer and closer to the Sacred Realm - he could almost taste it. Link approached the barrier and tried to stick his hand through, but it was of no use. The magic barrier shocked his hand, and he withdrew it. The guards came closer, closer, closer... and time was running out. Link closed his eyes, hoping for a miracle. A guard spear came within an inch of contact with Link, and then a hand grabbed the back of his tunic and pulled him right through the barrier.
"Who-?!" Link felt his chest, then his face. "I'm... alive?!"
A very strong young man stood over Link. He had the appearance of an honorable warrior. The man was clothed in royal Hylian armor and had thick, brown hair.
"The chosen one has come to us," said the man.
A young woman and a small puppy emerged from the darkness. Link looked around him. He was inside some sort of temple with ancient Hylian architecture decorated on every inch of the interior.
"Good. Young one, can you help us?" asked the woman.
Link didn't have any words to say. This was all too much. He was slowly losing consciousness...
Great post once again
