In the utter, inky blackness, there is nothing. A voice - soft, swiftly fading, mournfully laments; "I am sorry master... I have failed you..."

    A deep voice resonates in response, dripping with malice, "My time will come again..."

    **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **

    Years pass... History becomes legend... legend becomes myth... myths fade into obscurity. Many years after the knowledge of the fall of Demise faded away, the Kingdom of Hyrule has grown, and flourished. At the center, Hyrule Castle stood tall and proud, a bastion of civilization. The royal family of Hyrule reigned there, with a long history of benevolence, justice, and peace. Surrounding the castle on three sides was Hyrule field, a lush, green panorama - frequently speckled with the grazing cattle of Lon Lon Ranch, as well as merchants and farmers traveling to, or from, the nearby villages and kingdoms - and the central hub of the Kingdom of Hyrule.

    To the northeast lay Kakariko Village, founded by the mysterious Shiekah tribe, and rumored to be inhabited by their descendants. Rising above Kakariko was the jagged, stony fang know as Death Mountain, gateway to the virtually impassable mountain range beyond, and home to the reclusive Goron tribe. Just to the south of Kakariko, the Zora River flows, cutting a path along nearly the entirety of Hyrule field before emptying into the enormous Lake Hylia, in the south. Following its' flow upstream leads to the kingdom of the Zoras, the aquatic guardians of Hyrule's waterways.

    Along the southeast of Hyrule field can be found a dense forest. Many rumors surround the enigmatic Kokiri that make their homes there, protected by the benevolent Great Deku Tree and the mystical Lost Woods. Little is known of them by the outside world and they, in their seclusion, know little of the world at large in turn.

    Lastly, we come to the kingdom to the west of Hyrule field - the Gerudo Desert, where this tale begins. Here, among the blowing sands and blistering sun, can be found the Gerudo. Little is known of their history, and even less so beyond their somewhat xenophobic borders. With a well-earned reputation for horsemanship, swordplay, and archery, the exotic beauties of this all female tribe are cloaked in mystery and intrigue. Few are the men who have dared to enter their domain in the hopes of enchanting one of these reclusive maidens. Fewer still are those who ever made it out again...

  "Tonight will be the night, Koume" Intoned the first voice within the depths of the Desert Colossus, beyond the shifting sands of the desert surrounding the Gerudo village.
  "You are correct, Kotake. Tonight will be a momentous night indeed" Cackled the second.
  "The stones foretell a great coming, dear sister..."
  "Indeed they do sister, the first of three, by the stones. Do you think...?"
  "I do Koume, I do indeed. Which of our maidens is ready to give birth, sister?"
  "Only Nakori sister, but not for several days..."
  "Her child arrives tonight, sister. Let us make haste..."

    The twin witches cackled into the voluminous night sky, as astride their misshapen broom handles they soared out, above the colossus and across the desert sands toward the Gerudo village. Their departure was noted only by a pair of crows - nestled near the top of the one, scraggly, nearly dead tree - whose intelligent gaze marked their passage with little more than a casual interest. With a brief ruffle of feathers and an abrupt, uninspired 'Caw!' they returned to their slumber as the coarse laughter of the sisters faded away.
    Intent on their goal, they flew swiftly over the deadly, shifting sands below, taking little interest in the long abandoned traders' post beneath them, or the Poe, cursed to wander between it and the Colossus for eternity (and visible only to those with magically enhanced vision) Instead, they headed directly into the village, not needing the sounds of labor to guide them to the correct dwelling.
    The sisters landed outside of Nakori's home just as one of the other maidens came hustling through the hanging rawhide door, coming to an abrupt stop the instant her eyes fell upon the withered visages of the aged sisters.
    "What... when... why...?" she stammered, clearly flustered. Suddenly her eyes expanded and her gaze flashed back to the door through which she had just passed, her jaw snapping shut with a 'click!' of teeth as the significance struck her. "Nakori.... the King!" she exclaimed.
    Koume and Kotake exchanged a brief glance, then turned back in unison to the flustered maiden.
    "Indeed, " began Kotake, the ruby adorning her forehead glinting in the limited illumination.
    "Nakori bears the King" finished Koume, her matching sapphire similarly sparkling.
    "I must tell the others!" proclaimed the maiden, taking a single step before Kotake halted her with an upraised hand.
    "No, not yet child." she declared
    "At least... the midwife...?" she offered, looking perplexed.
    "No Mokeeru, " continued Koume, "not yet. We will inform the maidens..."
    "When the time is right." finished Kotake.
    "As... as you wish." responded Mokeeru, dipping to one knee in acquiescence."What would you have me do?"
    "Stand ready outside the door," responded Koume, dismissing her broom in a cloud of blue-tinted mist with the dextrous wave of her leathery, gnarled hand.
    "Yes, permit none to enter..." spoken as the second broom was similarly dispatched to an extra-dimensional pocket in a puff of ash and smoke, tinged with tiny, glowing embers.
    "... and come to us if you are called."
    "Very well." Mokeeru replied, "I shall obey."
    The sisters nodded briefly in acknowledgement and shuffled through the door into the dwelling. There, upon the simple bed, lay Nakori, clearly well into her labor. Bearing the copper hair and bronze skin common to the Gerudo maidens, her eyes were squeezed shut against the intensity of a powerful contraction. Sweat, clearly visible even from across the room, gathered in pronounced beads upon her forehead, soaking both her normally vibrant hair and the nondescript pillow beneath it. Gradually the tension began to recede from her expression, her jaw slowly unclenched, and her eyes eased open. As her vision cleared, her golden eyes instantly widened upon taking note of the sisters' approach. Her mouth opened and closed, but released naught but a choked gasp.
    "Do you know why we are here, Nakori?" inquired the pair together. Nakori's mouth opened and closed again soundlessly, and instead she simply nodded. Her hands clenched fistfuls of the blanket adorning her bed, as a sharply indrawn breath indicated the onset of yet another contraction. A faint whimper slipped through her clenched teeth, but was abruptly choked off.
    Koume and Kotake quickly shuffled over to Nakori's bedside, one sister producing a clean cloth from thin air wiped some of the copious moisture from the maiden's brow, as the other took a position at the foot of her bed. Koume's sapphire radiated a faint light as she cooled the cloth she held before applying it once again to Nakori's forehead. Kotake, meanwhile, made a quick, sweeping gesture and summoned a large bowl filled with water upon a simple stone table. Another, similar, gesture called forth a pile of clean linen to her left. Her ruby adornment flickered to life as she waved her hand in a circle above the water bowl; within moments, wisps of vapor rose from the surface to dissipate into the room.
    As the strain of the latest contraction eased from Nakori's face, the witches exchanged another momentary look. Koume resumed dabbing the moisture collecting on the maiden's brow as Kotake drew back the lower part of the blanket and adjusted Nakori's legs in preparation.
    "It is time, Nakori." stated Koume, once again cooling the cloth before resuming her task.
    "Yes Nakori, our King is eager to enter the world!" proclaimed Kotake. "When you feel next contraction you must push!"
    She nodded her head in understanding as Koume produced a finger-sized cut of some sort of branch and placed it in her mouth.        "Bite Down if you must" she advised the maiden, who mumbled her assent. As the next contraction clutched her womb in a vise, bite she did.

    **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **

    As the sun crested the eastern horizon eight hours later, it was greeted by a single high-pitched wail, along with the scarcely hushed clamoring of the Gerudo maidens conversing in small groups outside of Nakori's domicile. As the cry of the newborn faded away, so too did the chatter among the separate clusters of maidens gathered nearby. Several pairs of golden eyes turned toward the rawhide barrier, and the lone maiden standing wearily by it.

    A few moments later, the interceding drape was drawn back to reveal Kotake with the naked, glistening babe cradled against her bosom. She looked out over the assemblage and held aloft the child, announcing "Ganondorf, King of the Gerudo, our King, has arrived!"

    The gathered maidens in turn each bent at the waist, arms crossed over their chests in deference to the newly born Ganondorf. As they did, Kotake stood, holding the newborn and appraising the crowd, gauging the sincerity displayed in their homage. The trace of a smile lighted briefly upon her chapped, leathery lips and was just as quickly gone as the maidens returned to an upright posture and resumed conversing, albeit in more subdues tones, and began to disperse. The old witch took a moment to watch the clusters break off and return to their own dwellings before turning back to the partition serving as Nakori's door.

    When Kotake re-entered the room, all was as she had left it. Nakori - looking both positively exhausted and supremely content - still lay upon the bed. Koume, alternatively cooling her cloth, and applying it to the spent maiden's brow, remained seated near the head of the bed. The withered old crone shuffled back to the bed, still holding the child cradled in her arms, but stopped short of his mother's outstretched arms.

    "Nakori, We, the Twinrova witches, tasked with the safety and welfare of the Gerudo, have decided it would be best if we foster the child, our king..."

    "Yes," added Koume, "his education will be more..."

    "Comprehensive." finished the first.

    Nakori's expression morphed from fatigue, to confusion, before settling on steadfast denial. Her mouth tightened into a thin line and her eyes narrowed as she shook her head briskly. "No." She stated with finality, the intensity of her gaze, though focused on Kotake, caused the other sister to recoil and drop her cooling cloth. "We Gerudo defer to your wisdom on many things," she continued. Despite her languor, her gaze remained resolutely affixed on the witch and her voice did not quaver. "But... not on this. I will raise my child."

    The sisters exchanged another glance - Koume's visage revealing a hint of apprehension, Kotake's a peculiar blend of stoicism and an almost imperceptible irritation. After a moment, Kotake nodded in acquiescence, handing the babe into Nakori's still extended reach.

    "Very well, Nakori, you may rear him." Nakori's expression had begin to ease as Koume chimed in.

    "But, as it is written, we shall tutor him in the ways of magic, "

    "...and statesmanship." finished Kotake.

    The weary maiden simply nodded her assent as she brought her son in close against her breast. As she and her child drifted off to sleep, the aged sisters rose and slipped out.

    "That impudent whelp!" bellowed Kotake, back within the desert Colossus. "The ungrateful cur!" Clearly seething with impotent fury, her frustrated tirade was punctuated with bursts of flame, expelled outward without regard. Koume wisely held her tongue, occasionally dodging a wayward incendiary. Each one burst against a surface - walls, floor, ceiling - in a shower of sparks, leaving a series of random scorch marks throughout the chamber where the sisters currently held council. Gradually, her invective began to subside, and with her diminishing fury so, too, did the pyrotechnics slowly ebb.

    Koume took the opportunity to settle in upon the floor, reaching wordlessly into one of several suede pouches lashed to her robes. Chanting softly, she tossed her hand into the air, releasing a dozen small, assorted bones. They hovered for a moment, then the old witch uttered a final emphatic syllable - "Ka!" - and made a sweeping downward gesture with the same hand. The bones tumbled to the floor, jostling for a moment, before coming to rest.

     Unable to resist, Kotake had stopped pacing and shuffled over to where her sister sat, peering silently over her shoulder at the seemingly random array. Both remained nearly motionless, scrutinizing where they had landed, when Koume let out a gasp.

    "There, sister, do you see it?"

    "What? I don't... ooh, wait, I believe I do..." she reached out with her left hand and extended a single digit, pointing at what appeared to be (and was) a child's finger bone, balancing gingerly on its' side, almost (but not quite) resting against a bone that had come from the wing of a raven.

    "You see, sister?" pressed Koume, smirking slightly as she collected the lot. "Have patience. We will see that Nakori gets hers, and we will have that which we seek."
 
    "We have waited nigh unto 400 years," mused the other crone, withered hand stroking her chin contemplatively, "what is a few more...?"

    The pair shared a raucous cackle, already laying plans for their vision of the future.

    **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **     **

    The years passed swiftly, as they often do. Nakori taught Ganondorf to read & write; how to hold and use a sword; how to shoot a bow and arrow; she raised the developing king of the Gerudo with grace and civility. She also sent him to his lessons with the Twinrova, though each time she did with a sense of foreboding. Each time he returned with what she could only describe as a dark, cloudy smudge in his aura. In time it would fade, and he wold again be himself, but with each visit, each 'lesson' with the witches, it seemed to take longer, and longer, leaving him brooding and moody until it dispersed.

    "I do not entirely trust the Twinrova." Nakori confided one day. She was perched atop the lookout tower guarding the gate to the deeper desert and the desert Colossus. "I fear what they are teaching him..."
 
    Mokeeru stood alongside her, digesting the words and considering them carefully before responding. "You may be right to worry." she finally conceded. "I know that the Twinrova are supposed to be tasked with the welfare of the Gerudo, but there is something... unnatural... about them."

    Nakori nodded, brow creased with worry. She held a hand up to shield her eyes from the sun and scanned the horizon, searching for the dark spot that would be Ganondorf returning from his 'lessons'. Still not spying him, she sighed loudly. Mokeeru grasped her shoulders and turned the other maiden to face her.

    "They may be strong," she began, "but a mother's love is stronger. You may have no gift for sorcery, but you have the gift of Love." She stared into Nakori's eyes, her unflinching gaze boring straight through to her soul. She stared back at Mokeeru, accepting the assurances and warmth of her stalwart companion.

    "Thank you." she said simply, sincere gratitude apparent in her tone. Her gaze lingered another moment before a flicker of movement in the direction of the Colossus drew her attention aside. Again shielding her eyes, she could make out the silhouette of her son soaring over the desert upon one of the witches' brooms. Her smile widened as she looked back to Mokeeru, who smiled back in turn. Nakori practically flew down the ladder and sprinted back to her dwelling to meet him. The faint smell of brimstone informed her that he had already landed, and that Kotake's broom had already been dismissed.

    The maiden drew aside the leather curtain and entered, but abruptly stopped. There at the foot of his own bed sat Ganondorf Dragmire, the anointed king of the Gerudo; her son, now 8 years of age. His entire body was limned in purple/black flames, which did not seem to burn him or his surroundings, but felt almost sentient, and malignant. In one hand he held a ball appearing to be made of the same stuff. As he sat there, with his back to his mother, he tossed the ball of dark flames to his other hand, then back again. Back and forth. Back and forth.

    Nakori shuddered and took a tentative step back; as she did, Ganon whirled around, the hand holding the flame ball drawn back to throw, teeth bared in a maniacal grimace, golden eyes blazing. She froze, as did the boy, clearly torn. They both held for what felt like an eternity; then, he started to sway, his eyes rolled up into his head, and the dark flames outlining his form winked out. He fainted, the ball of fire striking the floor and sizzling there a moment before disappearing with a low 'fwumph' and a wisp of black smoke.

    Ganon hit the floor as well, fortunately striking the woven rug rather than the bare stone. Nakori rushed to his side, lifting him and cradling his head against her breast. She felt around for any major trauma and, finding none, sighed with relief. They remained so for several minutes before he gradually came to.

    "M... mom?" he asked groggily. "When did you...?"

    "Just now my son." she replied. "I found you on the floor and was worried you'd hurt yourself."

    "My head hurts," he conceded, rubbing his eyes with one hand, "right here."

    She looked him over again, paying particular attention to his eyes. Seeing nothing amiss, she informed him as much. He attempted a meek smile back, though it was short-lived.

    "I think... I would like to rest." he muttered, rubbing between his eyes. Nakori smiled and nodded, nimbly rising to her feet and laying her son gently into his bed.

    "Take your rest my son; tomorrow we will be traveling to Hyrule Castle town, along with Mokeeru and a few of the other maidens."

    "I thought they were evil?!" he asked, some measure of his fatigue apparently forgotten.

    "No, they are not evil, though there are undoubtedly evil men among them... where did you hear such a thing?"

    "The Twinrova told me that all people who are not Gerudo are evil, and that the Hylians banished us to the desert. They say that is why Hyrule is rich, and we must struggle. They say..."

    "Ganondorf!" she interrupted him. He quieted immediately, eyes wide as she continued. "The Twinrova do not know everything, my son. Yes, Hyrule has prospered, and yes, our way of life is more challenging; we were not, however, banished here, we were led here by our Goddess, and we, too, have flourished, though perhaps not in the same way." Ganon, enraptured, listened intently as his mother proceeded. "The people of Hyrule are prosperous, and because of their easy life they are soft. Many of the Gerudo resent them for their easy prosperity, and I can see why; but if anything I pity them more."

    "Why do you pity them mother?" he inquired.

    "Because of their softness." she responded without hesitation. "When your life knows little or no hardship, you never have cause to become better, stronger - you become lazy. To my mind, that is not a life I would want."

    Ganondorf sat, contemplative, absorbing her words. "Then why are we going to Hyrule town?" he asked at last.

    A wistful smile tugged briefly at one corner of Nakori's mouth as she reflected on the question. "Occasionally, " she began at length, "there is an exception. Even against a posh upbringing, some become exceptional." A look of contentment decorated her features as she reminisced. "Your father was one such." She looked back at Ganondorf, still smiling. "Perhaps I will tell you more of him another day. Suffice it to say, we go to Hyrule occasionally to look for comforts we cannot find here." Her smile took on a mischievous edge and she added "of course, we also sometimes go to grant some of the... softer... citizens a little bit of hardship."

    Ganondorf nodded as though he understood perfectly what she meant. 'He may very wall have!' she thought to herself as he stretched and yawned, his weariness returning to corral him off to slumber. Nakori stood, suppressing a yawn of her own as her son drifted swiftly to unconsciousness, and wandered back out into the village. 'Perhaps Mokeeru may be up for some... comforts... tonight...' she considered, turning back toward the tower where she would be finishing her watch. 'I shall have to see...'