Chapter Text
Life is hard and unforgiving in the Gerudo Desert. A young male Gerudo by the name of Ganon knows that better than most. He lives at the very furthest edge of the desert in a cave overlooking the ocean with his mother, an exiled Gerudo woman named Rova. With her teachings he learned when to seek shelter, what clothing to wear, and how to hunt for the scarce food and water of the land.
Ganon quickly grew up to be tall, muscular, and wear his long orange hair in a ponytail. His clothing was made from the hides of both Fire and Ice Lizalfos for both protection from the sun and resistance to the cold. His weapon of choice is the broadsword, with hidden twin daggers being a secondary if his weapon is taken away. Rova gave Ganon only five rules to live by:
-Do not trust your eyes.
-Do not assume someone is friendly for any reason.
-Never sleep in the open or facing away from your escape route.
-Absolutely never tell anyone your name. Not even to those you trust.
-Never go to the Gerudo City, not even if you or I are dying.
He has lived by these rules his whole life. Ganon can even hunt an adult Moldorm by himself. Due to the rule about the Gerudo City he has also made it a point to make his presence in the desert unknown to the others of his kind. Ganon did feel lonely at times, but still knew why he and his mother must live this way. They were not welcome in that place, though he believed his gender was why he could not enter as with other men.
“Ganon… is breakfast ready…?” Rova asked coughing a bit as Ganon entered the cave.
“It’s nice and warm, mother.” he answered getting a bowl of soup ready for her.
“Moldorm Soup, with Lizalfos meat?” she questioned as she took a sip.
“A small group attacked me on my way home, so I used the extra ingredients from taking them out in the soup.” Ganon explained to her.
“You really have learned to make effective use of ingredients.” Rova smiled before having a coughing fit.
“Mother…” Ganon sighed gently rubbing her back.
“I’m fine.” she smiled with a bit of blood on her lip.
“You’ve coughed up blood again.” he pointed out.
“It is just an illness. It will pass.” she assured him.
“You haven’t been getting better, mother.” Ganon told her.
“One must get worse before they can get better.” she smiled putting her hand on the side of his face.
He allowed Rova to finish her meal before having her lie down again. Ganon then took the sand Seal and crossed the desert to the merchant’s trading outpost. A male Hylian scholar seemed to have been waiting for him there with a tome tucked under one arm. He had messy brown hair, baby blue eyes, and his clothing hardly looked tidy at all. In fact they had patches in them, especially his shirt.
“There you are, stranger. I’ve looked through the diseases for ones matching the disease you told me about.” the scholar greeted him.
“Did you find anything?” Ganon asked hopefully.
“Well… I’m afraid it doesn’t look good. When you described that she became ill after breathing in the pollen of an odd plant, I had a feeling it may have been Rafflesia Fever she caught. With the symptoms you’ve told me about, it’s already reached its later stages… where only one thing can save her now, she has to ingest several doses of a vile medicine known as Farore’s Drought while eating a diet of palm fruit.” the scholar explained to him.
“Well, how can I make this Farore’s Drought?” Ganon asked fervently.
“It… it’s complicated… the knowledge we have is that a Gerudo salvemaker is the only one who can make it. That means going to the Gerudo City and getting them to let you in. After that comes finding the salvemaker and hoping you can foot 300 rupees for six doses.” he answered hanging his head.
“I am left with little choice. I must go to the city.” Ganon sighed before returning to his Sand Seal.
“I never got your name, by the way.” the scholar mentioned.
“Ganon.” he answered before taking off.
Ganon put up his mouth cover as he approached the city. He hoped they would let him through for the medicine. As expected when he arrived the guards locked their spears blocking his path.
“Men are not allowed.” the left guard stated.
“Leave this place.” the right demanded.
“My mother is deathly ill with Rafflesia Fever. I need Farore’s Drought to save her.” Ganon told them.
“Rafflesia Fever? Please, everyone knows to avoid Rafflesia Flowers when you see them - they’re man eating plants.” the left guard scoffed.
“I am not jesting! My mother will die!” Ganon roared.
“The law is the law.” the right guard scowled.
“You would leave her to die?! Over a law?! I only need the medicine and then I will leave posthaste!” Ganon pleaded.
“I will ask Her Majesty if we can let you pass… what is your name?” the left guard sighed.
“My name is Ganon, son of Rova. I beg of you, hurry…” he told her and both guards began to tremble.
Both of them took a step back confusing him, and then they bolted sounding an alarm. In a mere few minutes he was surrounded by guards that then chained him and forced him to go before a fully grown Riju. Before he could even speak they made him gets on his knees.
“What crime has this one committed?” Riju asked the guards.
“He claims to be Ganon, the one destined to destroy Hyrule.” the guard answered.
“Is this true?” Riju asked him.
“My name… is Ganon… son of Rova… I came for medicine to cure her Rafflesia Fever…” he growled trying to get free.
“Rova, exiled for treason secretly allowing a voe to enter the city through her home if memory serves… so she had you out of that illegal relationship. Looking at your eyes, I can see the evil in them…” Riju spoke narrowing her gaze at him.
“What evil?!” Ganon roared managing to snap the chains binding his hands startling the guards making them back up readying their weapons.
“On your knees, filth…” Buliara growled readying her weapon.
“I will not be bound to a title you believe me to hold… I care not for what superstitions you Gerudo hold. I deal in facts. One such fact being that my mother will perish if she does not receive medicine soon.” Ganon growled not noticing the dark aura around his fists.
“You will be given your medicine. I shall waive its price on the condition that you never return here again.” Riju spoke startling Buliara.
“Chieftain?!” Buliara exclaimed in disbelief.
“I see no problem with that.” Ganon nodded as the aura vanished.
Ganon was presented with a bottle containing six doses of a green liquid and sent on his way. He didn’t look back once, but could tell that Riju had archers aimed at him should he do anything untoward. It was already approaching nightfall as he arrived back at the cave. His mother was sitting up against the wall looking paler than when he’d seen her this morning.
“Mother, I brought you medicine. It will cure you.” Ganon told her as he readied a cup.
“You’ve been tricked…” she coughed.
“What do you mean?” he asked with wide eyes.
“This is not medicine… I may be sick, but I can still recognize poison when I see it.” Rova answered with weak eyes.
“No… no…” Ganon stammered shaking a bit.
“This poison is designed to deliver a painless death over time with its doses. Lady Riju… she would not help me, but did not wish me to suffer…” Rova smiled taking the poison from his hands.
“Mother, no… I-I’ll go back and…” Ganon told her tearing up as he tried to reach for the bottle but she put his hands back down.
“Ganon… everything that I’ve taught you… was so you would be different. You would not hate your fellow man… you would bear no evil in your heart… but you would be pure of heart, untouched by greed or hate. I can only hope I did enough…” Rova told him smiling warmly shedding a tear.
Ganon could only watch as his mother downed the entire bottle of poison. With the last of her strength she set the bottle down and hugged her son one last time. She passed peacefully there in his arms. With tears running down his face, Ganon dug a grave for her. He fashioned a headstone from her old sword and shield. The dark of night brought the cold, and an emotion Ganon was not familiar with raged to the surface. No… that word… “rage”... that suited how he was feeling perfectly. It felt like his chest was on fire… something… was changing…
The morning sun shined down as Link and Zelda rode up to be greeted by smoke and fire in Gerudo City. The citizens and soldiers were all attacked in some shape or form. A majority of the soldiers had been slaughtered as if by a monster of some kind. In the palace Riju had bandages tightly wrapped on the stub where her left arm used to be along with some bandages on her head. Buliara’s legs had been mangled completely and her sword was broken in two.
“What happened here?” Zelda asked her.
“Ganon happened…” Riju groaned trying to stand prompting Link to help her onto her throne.
“Ganon?!” Zelda gasped.
“The fault is mine for tricking him… but I did not expect such a drastic transformation… my guards did not stand a chance. It would seem that what Rova said upon her banishment truly did come back to bite us… our outdated customs did bring ruin to our town.” Riju told her.
“Where did Ganon go after he attacked?” Zelda asked her.
“I don’t know… I lost consciousness shortly after losing my arm.” Riju answered.
“Someone had to have treated you though, or you’d have bled to death by now.” Link stated.
“Ganon’s return is so sudden… it’s only been a generation…” Zelda mumbled thinking on it.
“We need to find him as soon as possible.” Link urged her.
Not too far from Gerudo City at the Oasis Bazaar, Ganon came to laying in the wreckage of a booth. He felt sore all over even if he appeared unharmed. When he exited his very uncomfortable bed he spotted a robed man hiding his face with an odd-looking stone mask and a ronin’s straw hat.
“Who are you?” Ganon asked him.
“To you, a friend. I do not come from this realm, but I’ve had my eye on you for some time, Ganon. I did have to intervene to keep innocents from harm though.” he answered.
“I asked you who you are.” Ganon growled.
“Ah, your rules. Very well. I am called Nightmare, and where I come from I am a prince. I wish to see your cycle broken, but to do so very specific steps must be taken.” he introduced himself formally.
“Oh? How can I trust your word?” Ganon asked while palming one of his hidden daggers.
“An excellent question. I guess you’ll… have to trust me?” Nightmare chuckled pondering the question.
“Suppose I did… what are these ‘specific steps’ I must take?” Ganon asked.
“First, whenever you are reborn into this world so are your usual minions. The first step is gathering them all. I am still looking for intel on the others, but for now Lady Gohma needs your help. Head for the settlement a little ways north of here just outside of the desert, a quaint little town called Nabooru.” Nightmare instructed him.
Gohma… that name is foreign to me, and yet… I feel as if I do know someone by that name. Is this what this masked clown means when he says reborn…? I knew this Gohma in a previous life…? There is nothing for it if this turns out to hold water… I must go to Nabooru.