Zelda Timeline/Fallen Hero Timeline

The Fallen Hero Timeline is the timeline branch in which Link, the Hero of Time, despite his best efforts, was defeated by Ganondorf in their final battle. Ganondorf obtained the remaining Triforce pieces from Link and Zelda, and was subsequently sealed within the corrupted Sacred Realm by the seven Sages. This timeline branch contains the events of, and , , , , , and  in that order.

Prelude
After the Hero of Time is defeated at the hands of Ganondorf, the King of Evil extracted the Triforce of Courage from Link and the Triforce of Wisdom from Zelda. Obtaining the true power of the complete Triforce, he then transformed into the Demon King Ganon. In a desperate last resort, the Seven Sages seal Ganon along with the complete Triforce away in the Sacred Realm, which was already transformed into the Dark World as a reflection of Ganondorf's evil heart.

The Imprisoning War


Hyrule enjoys a brief period of peace, but as rumors spread of the Golden Power lying in the Sacred Realm, greed-ridden Hyruleans traveled to the Sacred Realm seeking it, never to return. Within the Dark World, they were transformed into monsters by the power of the Triforce and became a part of Ganon's army. As this army grew larger, it poured forth from the Sacred Realm and attacked Hyrule.

The King of Hyrule commanded the Seven Sages of that era to seal the gateway to the Dark World shut in order to halt Ganon's invasion of the kingdom. The Seven Sages did so under the protection of the Knights of Hyrule. The Knights of Hyrule took the full brunt of the attack from Ganon's monsters, and while they fought courageously to the end, they were nearly wiped out entirely as they did their duty. Their lives were not lost in vain however, as they bought the necessary time for the Seven Sages to create their seal, trapping Ganon's forces in the Dark World and halting the invasion. Though it had come at a very high cost, with this, the war ended in a victory for Hyrule. The people of Hyrule rejoiced nonetheless at the restoration of order and peace to their kingdom, thanks to the efforts of the Seven Sages and the Knights of Hyrule.

Following the destruction of the kingdom during the Imprisoning War, the bloodline of the Hylians diminished significantly compared to how it was in the Hero of Time era. The sages' power waned as well, and the kingdom became a mere shadow of its former glory.

A Link to the Past
The Kingdom of Hyrule remained at peace for many years, until the land was suddenly plagued by a series of misfortunes. The King of Hyrule offered a reward for anyone who could put a stop to them; it was then that the dark wizard Agahnim appeared. Using previously unheard-of magic, the mysterious stranger put a stop the disasters. He was proclaimed a hero and said to be the second coming of the Seven Sages. As a reward for his services, the king appointed him chief adviser and priest at Hyrule Castle. Agahnim used this position and his magic to brainwash all of Hyrule's Soldiers, dispose the King of Hyrule, and make six of the Maidens, the descendants of the Seven Sages, disappear into the Dark World. He did this in order to break the seal on Ganon, so that he could rule both the Light and Dark worlds. His last remaining victim was Zelda herself. As the princess lay in her prison cell, she used telepathy to call out to Link, who lived near the castle with his uncle.

Link awoke in the middle of the night to find his uncle leaving the house armed with a sword and shield. Despite his uncle's warnings, Link followed the telepathic call to the castle dungeon, where he found his uncle dying. With his last breath, Link's uncle bequeathed him the sword and shield, and told Link that he was the heir to the Knights of Hyrule. Link stormed the castle and rescued Zelda, leaving her in the care of the priest at the Sanctuary. The priest told Link to seek out Sahasrahla, the elder of Kakariko Village.

Sahasrahla told Link to seek out the three Pendants of Virtue in order to discover the Master Sword hidden deep within the Lost Woods. Link found these pendants in the Eastern Palace, ALttP:, and Tower of Hera. Once he had obtained the legendary blade, however, Agahnim's forces attacked the Sanctuary and kidnapped Zelda. Link ventured into Hyrule Castle once again, only to see Agahnim send Zelda into the Dark World before his very eyes. Link defeated Agahnim atop Hyrule Castle, but Agahnim used the last of his magic to draw Link into the Dark World as well. This was a twisted dimension that transformed anyone into a reflection of their true selves. Link's dark world form was a pink rabbit. He was only able to remain in his human form with the help of the Moon Pearl.

Once trapped in the Dark World, Link could use the Magic Mirror to travel back and forth between worlds and rescue the maidens who were trapped in the Dark World palaces. During his adventures, Link learned that Agahnim was merely Ganon's pawn. He climbed Ganon's Tower and met Agahnim at the top. Link defeated Agahnim once more, but then saw Ganon rise out of Agahnim's crumpled body. Agahnim was in fact Ganon's alter ego. Ganon then fled to the Pyramid of Power in the center of the Dark World, with Link in hot pursuit. They faced off in one final battle, with Link emerging victorious. Following Ganon's defeat, he found the Triforce within the Pyramid of Power, whereupon it spoke to him. He touched it, and his wish restored Hyrule to peace. The king and Link's uncle returned to life, and Link entrusted the Triforce to the Royal Family.

The Trial of the Triforce
After the defeat of Ganon, his surrogate mothers, the witches Twinrova, plotted to revive him. For this ritual, they required three flames to be lit: The Flame of Destruction, the Flame of Sorrow, and the Flame of Despair, and follow these with a human sacrifice. In order to obtain these flames, the witches sent their minions: General Onox, General of Darkness, to Holodrum; and Veran, Sorceress of Shadows, to Labrynna.

One day, when Link visited Hyrule Castle, the Triforce beckoned him into its chamber. Once he placed his hands on the Triforce, it transported him to the distant land of Holodrum, where a new adventure began.

The Adventure in Holodrum
Upon awakening in Holodrum, Link met with a group of traveling performers who were watching after a dancer named Din. Link danced with Din, but suddenly a whirlwind appeared and snatched Din away. Din was actually the Oracle of Seasons, and her capture by Onox meant that the seasons in the land of Holodrum were thrown into chaos. The only way to restore balance to the seasons was to collect the eight Essences of Nature scattered around Holodrum. Link quested for the essences, using the mythical Rod of Seasons in order to manipulate the seasons as he went.

Once Link defeated Onox and rescued Din, he was magically transported to the land of Labrynna, the setting of his second trial. However, even after his death, Onox's actions caused the Flame of Destruction to be lit.

The Adventure in Labrynna


Upon waking up in Labrynna, Link met Impa, who had been attacked by monsters. He helped her by moving a block with the Triforce crest on it. Then, both of them met Nayru, who was singing to animals.

Suddenly, a shadow came out of Impa and possessed Nayru, who was actually the Oracle of Ages. It was Veran, who had used Impa's body to trick Link. Veran used Nayru's time-traveling abilities to go back in time and alter the past. Veran influenced Queen Ambi in the past to build the sinister Black Tower. Link had to use the Harp of Ages to travel back and forth between the present and the past in order to collect the eight Essences of Time and challenge Veran atop the Black Tower. Link was able to drive Veran out of the body of Queen Ambi and defeat her, but he was too late: the Flame of Sorrow had been lit.

The Return of Ganon


In order to light the third and final flame, Twinrova kidnapped Princess Zelda who had arrived in Labrynna. This would complete their dark ritual and light the Flame of Despair. However, Link challenged them and killed them in battle. As a last-ditch effort to complete the sacrifice needed to revive Ganon, the witches offered their own bodies and revived the King of Darkness. However, because the ritual was incomplete, Ganon returned as a mindless beast. Link battled Ganon and defeated him, restoring peace to Holodrum and Labrynna.

His quest to stop Ganon's revival complete, Link departed Labrynna by boat.

A Hero's Adventure within a Fleeting Dream
On his sea voyage back to Hyrule, Link ran into a terrible storm. The waves and winds overpowered his boat and sunk it. Link awoke, washed ashore on an island known as Koholint. He was rescued by Marin, a young woman who bore a striking resemblance to Princess Zelda. Upon his attempts to leave the island, its inhabitants insisted that there was nothing beyond the sea. He learned that the only way to get off the island was to collect the Instrument of the Sirens and wake the Wind Fish who slept in an egg atop Mt. Tamaranch.

After traveling all over the island and obtaining the instruments, Link journeyed to the top of the mountain and played the Ballad of the Wind Fish and fought the Nightmare. Upon the Nightmare's defeat, it revealed that if the Wind Fish were to awake, the island would disappear, as it was just a dream of the Wind Fish.

Once Link had defeated the Nightmare and awakened the Wind Fish, he awoke clinging to the driftwood of his ship, adrift on the open seas. Link's whereabouts after this are unknown.

The Triforce, Split Apart
Sometime after the events of the Great Cataclysm and the defeat of the Demon King Ganon, and after Link's adventures in Holodrum and Labrynna, the Triforce was split apart. Ganon, despite being sealed in darkness following his defeat at the hands of Link, obtained the Triforce of Power, which remained sealed with him. The Triforce of Courage's location is unknown, but said to be hidden in the heart of the eternal hero.

A Link Between Worlds
Centuries after Ganon's defeat, the peace of Hyrule is once again shattered by the sudden appearance of a mysterious and enigmatic wizard known as Yuga. With his cruel magic, he invades Hyrule from another world, transforming the descendants of the Seven Sages into paintings. Link, a young apprentice of the Blacksmith attempts to halt Yuga in his ambitions, but Yuga succeeds in not only acquiring all Seven Sages in the form of paintings, but Princess Zelda as well. He retreats to his world, that of Lorule, while Link chases after him, using the power of a bracelet given to him by the mysterious peddler, Ravio.

Link is too late to stop Yuga. Using his magic and that of the Seven Sages, he is able to release Ganon. Along with the Triforce of Power, Yuga and Ganon are joined as one, and using this power, Yuga desires to consume both Hyrule and Lorule. Link is protected from the beast's onslaught by Hilda, the princess of Lorule and the dark counterpart of Zelda, who urges Link to rescue the Seven Sages who have been sent to the far reaches of Lorule. With Hilda holding back Yuga and guiding Link in his quest, he succeeds in rescuing the Seven Sages and, with their power, awakens the Triforce of Courage in himself.

Taking the Triforce, he rushes to challenge Yuga in Lorule Castle, only to find Hilda waiting for him in the Throne Room. Here, she reveals the truth; it was her who sent Yuga to obtain the Seven Sages and release the Demon King. Taking the Triforce of Wisdom from Princess Zelda's portrait, she explains the history of her kingdom. Lorule once had it's own Triforce, but was destroyed by her ancestors long ago to stop endless wars over it's power. However, with the Triforce gone from her world, the kingdom crumbled, monsters arose and the world turned to darkness and corruption. Upon hearing of another world with it's own Triforce, she sent Yuga to obtain the keys to unlocking the Triforce of Power, and manipulated Link into obtaining the Triforce of Courage. Summoning Yuga, she demands he obtain the Triforce of Courage from Link. Yuga, using Ganon's power, unleashes his might upon the hero. Link fights valiantly however, and defeats Yuga, upon which point Hilda demands he relinquish the Triforce of Power to her. However, Yuga disobeys his ruler, and using his magic upon her he takes her portrait and her Triforce of Wisdom into himself, becoming stronger than ever. In a desperate final battle, Link, with the aid of Princess Zelda, finally defeats Yuga. Upon his defeat, Hilda and Zelda are returned to normal, yet Hilda still desires the Triforce to save her doomed kingdom. At the last moment, Ravio appears and reveals himself to be Link's Lorulean counterpart and once Hilda's loyal subject, and pleads with her to let Link and Zelda return to Hyrule with their Triforce. Finally relenting after seeing the senseless fighting that had led to this was not what her ancestors wanted, she helps Link and Zelda return to Hyrule with the last of the bracelet's power, through the first crack to appear between the worlds in Lorule's Sacred Realm.

Returning to their own Sacred Realm with the connection between worlds gone, Link and Zelda find the Triforce once again whole. It awaits for Link to make a wish upon it, and with his wish, Lorule's Triforce is restored to it's former glory, and a new, brighter age dawns upon both Lorule and Hyrule.

Several years after the events of, Link leaves the kingdom of Hyrule and ventures to the kingdom of Hytopia. In order to hide his identity as a hero, Link dresses in the casual Bear Minimum Outfit. Despite this, he is recognized for bearing the traits of a hero in Hytopia: namely pointy ears and sideburns. Because of this, he is recruited by the Witch-Hunting Brigade to help defeat the evil witch, Lady Maud, who has cursed Hytopia's Princess Styla into wearing an irremovable, brown jumpsuit.

The Golden Era


Following the defeat of Yuga and the recovery of the Triforce, Hyrule entered a Golden Era of peace, in which great and wise rulers governed the land with the strength of the united Triforce at their command.

The Tragedy of Princess Zelda
When the last of the kings to use the Triforce anticipated his death, he hoped to find someone with the innate qualities that were fitting of a worthy possessor of the true Triforce; for if it were to fall in the wrong hands, evil would befall Hyrule. Unfortunately, he was unable to find any such person during his lifespan. Since his own son did not fit this archetype, the King elected to split the relic into its three component parts. Upon his death, the prince, instead of receiving the entire Triforce, inherited only the Triforces of Power and Wisdom. The prince frantically searched for the remaining Triforce of Courage, but in vain. Then, a wizard came to the prince and told him that his younger sister, Zelda, knew the location of the mystical object. The prince demanded that Zelda turn the information over to him, but Zelda refused and, in a rage, the wizard put Zelda into an eternal sleep, himself dying in the process. Overcome with grief, the prince sealed his sleeping sister in the North Castle and ordered that all female descendants of the Hylian monarchy were to be named Zelda. As Zelda was the only one who knew the location of the Triforce of Courage, the relic was lost and the royal family was no longer able to rule using the power of the unified Triforce. No one worthy of using the Triforce appeared and the kingdom was divided and reduced in size.

Evil Creeps In
Many years later, an evil army attacked the little kingdom of Hyrule and stole the Triforce of Power. This army was led by the Demon King Ganon, who once again had been revived and sought to plunge the World into fear and darkness under his rule. Fearing his wicked rule, Zelda, the princess of this kingdom, split the Triforce of Wisdom into eight fragments and hid them throughout the realm. At the same time, she commanded her most trustworthy nursemaid, Impa, to secretly escape into the land and go find a man with enough courage to destroy the evil Ganon.

Braving forests and mountains, Impa fled for her life from her pursuers. As she reached the very limit of her energy she found herself surrounded by Ganon's evil henchmen, until a young lad appeared who skillfully drove off Ganon's henchmen. Hearing Impa's story, this young traveler, named Link, set out to recover the eight pieces of the Triforce of Wisdom. After doing so, he fought his way to Ganon's lair in Death Mountain. Link fought and destroyed the King of Evil, recovered the Triforce of Power and saved Princess Zelda.

The Hero's Quest to Reunite the Triforce
Although Link had defeated Ganon, his underlings remained. Waiting for the return of their master, they continued to cause chaos and disorder in Hyrule. The key to Ganon's resurrection was the blood of Link—the valiant lad that overthrew the King of Evil. The Demon King would be revived by sacrificing Link and sprinkling his blood on the ashes of Ganon.

Meanwhile, Link remained in the little kingdom of Hyrule and lent his hand to its restoration. One day, a strange mark resembling crest of the kingdom appeared on the back of Link's hand as he approached his 16th birthday. Link went to Impa, Princess Zelda's nursemaid, who was shocked when she saw the birthmark. She took Link to the North Castle and told him of the tragedy of the Princess Zelda of old. In order to revive the eternally sleeping Princess, Impa entrusted to Link six Crystals and a scroll so he could reunite the Triforce. The scroll revealed the location of the long-lost Triforce of Courage, which was hidden in the Great Palace in the Valley of Death. Link set out for the six palaces to defeat their Guardian Deities and, using each of the six crystals, dispelled the barrier around the Great Palace. After defeating the final Guardian, and his own shadow, Link retrieved the Triforce of Courage and awoke Princess Zelda from her sleep.

With the Triforce reunited for the first time since Zelda was put to sleep, the revival of Ganon was prevented and peace finally returned to the Kingdom of Hyrule.