The Land of Eleria

On a distant land, an army of incredible mass sweeps across the population, killing all, destroying all, with no rest, without stopping. Many have tried to stop the destruction, at the very least slow it.... all have failed. This army is controlled by one man, ruthless, heartless, cruelty and blood as black as night fills his veins. Like his army, many have tried to defeat him, once again, all have failed. If the army can not be stopped, it will make it's way across all lands, even the peaceful kingdom of Hyrule will not be safe, and it is in Hyrule that the story begins.

"Come on Link, the contest is about to start," Zelda said, pulling a somewhat reluctant Link by the arm.

"I told you I didn't want to enter this 'Swordsman Soul' contest. You know i don't like to draw attention to myself," Link replied heavily.

"Oh well," he thought to himself, "might as well just get it over with."

The contestants were lined up in the courtyard, many of them Link recognized as soldiers or the palace royal guard. One man stood out from the rest though, dressed in white from head to toe, even the guantlets on his hands. He stood with the hood of his cloak covering his eyes. Another feature Link noticed is that the contestants held some type of weapon on him, except the man in white, who just stood there with his arms crossed.

"Greetings warriors of Hyrule," boomed the king's voice, "I welcome you all to the Swordsman Soul contest. Here the best of the warriors shall prove themselves in combat against one another. The winner of the match shall come back out here and wait for another opponent, loser leaves the arena and shall be treated for his wounds. The matches shall be held in private, letting no one in the contest see the fight. I wish each of you good luck."

A guard came up to Link and said, "Match number one, Link and Bora. Follow me please."

Link did as he was told, but he kept an eye on the man in white, and saw he had a match as well. His attention was quickly reverted as he stepped into the arena and saw the man he was fighting. He held a club in his hand and was eyeing Link, boring him into the ground. A gong sounded and the man, though big as he was, quickly attacked Link, knocking him back. Link regained his senses and, drawing his sword and shield, sprang into action. Bora went for him again, but he dodged, rolling around behind him then knocking him unconcious with his shield.

"Match one winner is... Link. Please go back outside and await your next challenge."

As Link stepped out into the courtyard, he noticed that half the challengers had already been defeated, but the man in white came out just as he did. "I've never seen that guy around here before, I wonder who he is," Link thought to himself.

After three more matches there were only two contestants left, Link and the man in white.

The last guard came to Link and asked him to follow, the other man had to do the same. They were taken down seperate corridors, and led into the arena by two doors opposite each other.

"The final match is about to begin," came the king's voice, "Hyrule's very own hero, Link, and the stranger from another land, Sessono. Good luck to you both."

They walked towards each other, stopping only a few feet away. Link drew his sword and shield, waiting for Sessono to draw his. The stranger lowered his hood, revealing pointed ears and long silver hair, along with a blue mark on his right cheek which consisted of a large dot with a large wavy line and a smaller wavy line next to it. Sessono reached back behind his cloak and unsheathed two swords. They both had the almost same hilt made of a dragon with the blade coming out of it's mouth. The blade in his right hand was a fiery, red, crystaline substance, and in the hilt's golden dragon shape, so was the eye, and the jewel placed in the hand guard at the bottom. The blade in his left hand was identical except that it was an icy, blue, crystaline substance.

The two forces crashed together, neither able to get the upper hand in battle. For an hour they clashed together, both evenly matched. They crouched, leaning on their swords for support.

"You're... not.... half bad," Link said, panting.

"Same.. to you," came the reply.

A commotion in the audience caused the two warriors to look up. Zelda was standing, a look of emptiness took over her eyes, "Something is coming, something... incredibly powerful... and evil, full of malice, hate, and destruction."

The king could do nothing, he knew Link would save them, but Zelda's premonitions never came out like this one, which worried him. Zelda collapsed in her seat. Link and Sessono ran up to her, she replied by opening her eyes a small amount then saying to Link, "You can't defeat this opponent on your own Link, it's too powerful," she then lost conciousness.

Sessono looked at Link, "Take me with you to help, this is what i was worried about, this is why i came to Hyrule, and if the enemy I think your princess is talking about is who I think it is, you'll need my help."

Link wondered about it for a moment, then deciding quickly, reached out his hand as a sign of agreement. Sessono took his hand, sealing the partnership.

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