Chapter Text
A boy hunkered down beside a wall, desperately trying to hide from the insults and cruel remarks. Other children made a circle around him, taunting him. He looked up indignantly and said “Is this how you will treat your king someday?”
“King?!” A girl with strawberry hair scoffed. “You will never even make it past the first Trial!” The rest of the children, all girls with pink hair, started laughing as well. They froze in mid screech when a cold voice echoed through the alley.
“We aren’t talking about you, now are we, Dalia? He will rise above all challenges that come before him, and he will be the best King the Gerudo Tribe has ever seen! Now run off before someone gets hurt.” She added that last part with a glint in her eyes. Dalia and the other girls ran off, whistling some sort of lover’s tune.
“Hmph, cowards.” Muttered the brunette, so different from the other girls’. She extended a calloused hand to the boy. “Ya know, if you let them insult you like that, they’ll think they’re better or some shit like that.”
“I know, I know. It’s just that they remind me of my step-mothers, and they’re scary.” He took her hand and she pulled him up. Then he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. “Thanks, by the way, Amandi.”
Amandi smiled and snickered at him, “Anytime, shortie.” He puffed his chest indignantly and glared murderously at the three-inch difference between them. “I’ll be taller than you someday, just wait!”
“I’ll believe it when I see it!” The boy rolled his eyes good naturedly and turned to walk away when Amandi punched him in the arm, far harder than she had any good reason too, and yelled “Tag, you’re it, Ganny!” Before cackling and running off.
“Hey, that’s cheating!” Ganondorf laughed and started chasing after her.
SEVEN YEARS LATER
Ganon, now 17 years old, was dealing with the most boring speech of all time from his surrogate mothers, Kotake and Koume. They kept ranting about darkness and how hate ‘is the path,’ whatever the hell that’s supposed to mean. As if he were paying attention, he sat with his back against a wall, his fist tucked underneath his chin, wondering what it was like outside of the massive wall that kept intruders out.
“Gaaaannnny!”
Ganondorf perked up when he heard the familiar voice echo through the stone walls. He jumped to his feet, avoiding the icy and fiery glares sent his way. Grabbing his trident and scimitar on his way out, cheerfully yelling “training time, gotta go!” Twin shrieks followed him on his way through an arch, screeching “Do not irk our teachings!” In perfect sync. Ganon flinched and rubbed his ear, ignoring them for now.
As he stepped out of the dark halls and into the sunlight, he saw Amandi leaning against the limestone behind her.
There was not a cloud in the sky. He could hear the laughter and chatter from the marketplace, as a warm wind brushed his red hair back from his face. Amandi’s her green eyes glowed with mirth while some strands of her hair came free of its trademark bun, flowing around her face. Her blue shirt with her family's’ green insignia on the front came up around her belly, showing off her abs. Her tan skin was free of any blemish, except the couple freckles on her cheeks. She had a playful smirk dancing on her lips, making her even more beautiful, thought Ganon.
“Bad disciplinary lesson?” She asked sarcastically, her smirk growing into a full smile when he glared at her.
“Ha ha ha ha.” He said flatly, though a hint of a smile played at his lips. “You are truly the most funny person I have ever met.”
“C’mon, let’s go.” She laughed and took his hand and dragged him over to the training arena.
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“Be alert! I could have slipped my sword right through your pathetic excuse of defense and you would be bleeding out on the ground now!”
Ganon raised his shield to block a fiendishly hard blow aimed towards his side, wincing as his teeth rattled with the force of it. Afoari, the Gerudo War General, swung her two-handed golden claymore with such speed it was a blur. Ganon ducked under the shiny death weapon, and jabbed forward with his trident, towards her throat. She leapt backwards with the grace of the lynx who prowled in the night. With ease she spun the claymore above her head and down in a downwards stroke which had the strength to lop a sand seal in half cleanly. Ganon sidestepped it and directed his trident towards the General’s exposed side. She pulled the blade towards her and turned it, catching the three-pronged spear and halting it in its tracks.
Ganon had time to think ‘oh shit’ before Afoari twisted the claymore more, effectively ripping it out of Ganon’s hands. He jumped back, unarmed, with his weapon lying to the side where she had tossed it. “Come, vehvi, prove your worth,” she taunted. The sword was raised and ready to strike at a moment's notice. Ganon felt sweat gather on his forehead, adding to the droplets dribbling down his neck.
Think, think! Ganon thought furiously, berating himself for allowing himself to be disarmed. She is right arm dominant, meaning she’ll swing from her right. In a diagonal slice, she’ll have covered most of her defenses. But there is the slightest opening the moment she needs to raise it up. Dammit, she’s playing with me. Whatever, it’ll be her downfall. I’m fast, and if I can just-
Afoari took a step towards him, her face schooled in an unreadable mask. He took a step back, his foot slipping underneath the loose sand. He paused. Sand. An idea took place in his mind and began to unfold. I’ll need to get in close quickly though, since her weapon has a long reach.
Without a second thought, he darted in and watched as she raised the blade, reminding him of a cobra about to strike. Ganon reached down and grabbed a handful of sand from the arena, throwing his hand back and to the side, then forward. It was finely ground from the generations of being crunched by hard soles and was basically a soft powder at this point, nothing like the hard grit found throughout the rest of the desert.
The sand formed into a golden cloud, and Afoari let out a low grunt as she was blinded. Ganon jerked his arm toward his trident, lying on the ground next to the general’s feet. Sliding his right hand forward till it was close to the point and his left hand back down the shaft of the weapon, he spun in close to his mentor who was temporarily blinded and jammed it at the throat, the sharp prongs pressing against the soft flesh. She immediately froze.
“I yield.” She rasped, choked by the mini sandstorm that Ganon had sent her way. He grinned in victory and jammed the butt of his trident into the sand. Afoari set the tip of her claymore on the ground in front of her, holding it steady with one hand, the other pulling out a handkerchief, seemingly out of nowhere, and wiped her eyes.
After blinking a couple of times, her eyes focused on him. She gave him a proud smile and Ganon felt his heart swell with pride. “You did well. Good job in making use of your surroundings, that will bode you well on your battles ahead.”
He heard a whistle and a slow clap from underneath the shade of the wall, protecting them from the afternoon sun. Amandi stepped out, still clapping. “And he has finally defeated the old hag. Long live the king.”
“Watch it, vehvi, or you will be here before dawn training.” The general said threateningly, though fondly. She had been mentoring the duo since they were eight sun cycles old. She regarded them as her own, though she would never admit to such. And they were the only ones who got away with calling her ‘old hag,’ and ‘vaba.’ One of the other apprentices had tried that once, the other candidate for earning the Scimitars of Fate, and had been gone the next two days. She returned from the desert exhausted and dirty, and had asked to leave the very same day. Of course Amandi still had to earn the blades, not just anyone can handle the blades of fate, nobody could just win by default.
Ganon strutted over to Amandi, breathing heavily but smiling triumphantly. There was a little smudge of dirt on his cheek that Amandi gently wiped away with her thumb. Ganon rubbed the back of his head, a flush starting to creep up his neck. Then Afoari stalked over and put a massive hand on both of their shoulders, smiling proudly at them. No words were exchanged after that, all that was needed to be said was said with a look. The general excused herself, saying she had a meeting with the chief. They bid their goodbyes and the two walked away from the arena together in a comfortable silence.
“Are you prepared?” Asked Amandi quietly. Normally he would play innocent and ask what, but this was not that situation. His heart pounded harder in fear and anxiety, thinking of the Trials ahead.
In three days time, he, as the only male born into the Gerudo Tribe in a century, as prophesied, he would complete a series of trials to earn the right to lead his people. The current chief of that time would announce a successor, whom they deemed fit to lead the tribe. Oftentimes this was a hereditary matter, but they often found those with worthy souls to bear the burden. And since he was a simple voe, he would later fight even harder to be King. The Trials were created ages ago, and they consisted of four challenges.
He was to seek four sacred crystals from the ends of Hyrule and bring them back to the tribe as a token of his worth. First was an aquamarine gemstone, said to be held in the Zora’s stronghold in Lake Hylia. He must earn the Queen’s good faith and be gifted the precious talisman. Then he was to travel directly from the famous Bridge of Hylia to the west. There stood the sulfurous volcano, Death Mountain. He was to beat the mighty Gorons there in a battle of strength. It would be difficult to even get to the mountain because of the huge canyon in the earth that even the Gorons had trouble with. Vulcan Chasm. Then the warrior would head North, past the silent assassins, who called themselves the Skeikah, to the range of snowy peaks that were a killer themselves. The below zero temperatures made it so no one could ever hope to live there. Through Pitfall Ravine and to the mountains where he would venture into the snowy unknown, relying on the old texts as to where the diamond was. This was to be his ultimate test of endurance. From there he was to go south, across a huge field and past the Hylian Encampment. To Spirit Woods, to the ancient grove where an age old being was said to reside and present him with an emerald.
Then Ganon would bring back the ruby, aquamarine, diamond, and emerald gems to the Gerudo where he would be proved worthy to be King, and would be crowned that very day.
Sometimes the warrior in the legends never returned. He would be tried and tested in every way, and he couldn’t die. He couldn’t die, he thought fiercely.
“Ganondorf?” Amandi questioned, stopping in the pathway. Her caramel skin was pulled into a concerned frown. Realizing that she was genuinely worried for him, he smiled softly and gently grabbed her hand.
“Yes, I have worked with the best warriors of our tribe. I have practiced since I was a vehvi. And I’ve trained alongside you, and that’s got to count for something.” He laughed lightly and bumped his hip into hers. She smiled, and squeezed his hand before letting go.
“I’m coming too. I said I would help you no matter what, and that’s a promise I intend to keep.”
“I’m not sure if that’s allowed, but okay. Want to go shield surfing!?” He had more to say, but kept it in. “Besides, the Trials shouldn’t be too hard! Quick in and out. Easy!” They laughed and went to find their sand seals. But little did neither Ganondorf or Amandi realize of the evil that was stirring in Hyrule.