Legend of Zelda: The Equestrian Hero

The ship arrived in the western ocean. As Luna scrutinized the water, she rolled the map and stashed it into her saddlebag. It hadn't been easy to navigate the fog, and there were moments when a storm would threaten to overcome the boat. She peeked at Link, who currently wore a blue tunic and a matching hat. Was the purpose of the tunic to help him breathe underwater? She cast a spell on herself. The spell would enable her to breathe underwater. Link dove into the water, and Luna followed. The duo descended to the seabed. Stone columns lined the path to a yawning arch. A swarm of skeletal fishes circled them. Link slashed the skeletal fishes, and as he sheathed his sword, a seapony swam to the mouth of the temple.

"Are you land dwellers?" The seapony asked.

"Yes. Why?" Luna replied.

"My friends decided to investigate the darkness inside the temple. I didn't want them to go, as they could get hurt. It's been more than a week. If you're going to explore this place, can you rescue my friends?"

"We'll do it."

The seapony smiled. "Thank you. I'll be waiting. You must be careful. The dark inhabitants can be ferocious."

The duo nodded, and they proceeded into the temple. A tunnel guided them upward. Monstrous clams and electric jellyfishes floated along the walls. The clams snapped at the duo, while the jellyfishes moved closer. This must be what the seapony meant by ferocious. Above them, an exit beckoned them. They swam to the surface, and Luna's gaze wandered over the ancient architecture. It could be a thousand years old. Like a true temple, the building contained huge staircases and timeworn carvings, not to mention sealed doors and elongated passageways. The ceilings loomed over the floor by two hundred feet. A four-legged arachnid with a red slitted eye hopped across the water. Link sliced the arachnid's eye, and the creature jumped back. He unleashed an arrow at the arachnid, finishing it off.

"This place might have tektites, lizalfos, skullfishes, baris, and shell blades. It's similar to the Lakebed Temple from my world," Link said.

"Interesting, yet perilous. It was probably around for a millennium, but my sister and I never came here," Luna replied.

"Somehow I knew the two of you weren't for temple exploration."

"Back in the day, Celestia and I preferred to face the most dangerous threats as soon as they revealed themselves. We once wielded the Elements of Harmony until I gave in to my dark side. Now, let's focus on freeing the seapony's friends and rescuing another Element bearer."

Luna and Link ascended the stairs to an inner balcony. A stone bridge spanned from one side to the other. Levers and stalactites hung from the ceiling. They continued onward, searching the balcony for clues. A treasure chest idled at one end of the platform. Link opened the chest, exposing a map of the dungeon. The map had specific markings in various rooms, indicating the locations of the seapony's companions. How did the seaponies wind up locked in this dungeon? Had Ganondorf or his minions imprisoned them? As Luna had guessed, no one was safe from Ganondorf's tyranny. The cruel stallion's ultimate goal was to oppress every kingdom. In a way, Ganondorf reminded her of Sombra. Both villains were thirsty for power and would do anything to usurp a righteous monarch.

Shaking her introspection aside, Luna cantered to a door by the opposite end of the balcony. It was locked. She led Link across the bridge, their hoofsteps echoing as they walked. A door lingered in the center of the platform, and they approached it. The door slid into the arch, unveiling a square room. The duo stepped into the chamber. A shadow lurked in the upper-left corner. Luna squinted her eyes. Could it be a seapony posing as a hippogriff? Behind them, steel bars blocked the door. Whoever resided in here clearly meant business. Link unsheathed his sword, which seemed to prompt the shadow to advance. As it turned out, the shadow was his doppelganger. The doppelganger glowered at him.

"We meet again, Link. It's unfortunate that we're ponies instead of Hylians," the doppelganger said.

"And what's wrong with that? I've been an animal before. A wolf, to be exact," Link replied.

"I'm you. A manifestation of your dark side. Even as a wolf, you have negative emotions."

"We're not the same person... or pony."

"Heh. I don't suppose you're afraid to reveal this side to the women in your life, right? The pretty lady behind you discovered the truth."

"Well, guess what? Despite looking the same, we won't join forces. You're insane if you think so."

Link swung his blade at the evil clone, parrying the blows and blocking attacks. Their swords clanged as they struggled against each other. The clone ducked a strike and rolled around him, then sliced his back. He whirled about and bashed his shield into the shadow's face, giving himself a small window of time. Then, he delivered a flurry of jabs and prepared the final blow, albeit a little too soon. The doppelganger blocked the incoming slashes and lunged at him. Their swords connected, and their glares met.

"You're as formidable as ever," the clone jeered. "Anyone can see that, so-called hero."

"Whatever you say," Link replied, and their blades clanged.

The blades emitted white sparks as Link pushed against the impostor. The battle lasted for several minutes. Once the clone fell onto its back, he plunged the blade into its chest. His dark counterpart hollered in agony before vanishing into thin air. At the same time, the steel bars disappeared. He studied the map, then continued across the room. The next entryway guided the stallion and the alicorn down a spiraling staircase.

They found themselves in a sloped room. An underwater cage stood in the right corner, holding a seapony captive. A cluster of tektites leaped forward. One by one, Link stabbed the tektites. He widened his stance and performed a spin attack, flinging them in various directions. When all the tektites were gone, a key dropped from the ceiling. Luna gathered the key and unlocked the cage.

"You can go back to Seaquestria," Luna said.

"Thanks. Those spiders were getting on my nerves. Also, my name is Coral," the seapony replied.

"Be careful when leaving the temple."

Coral jumped into the air and transformed into a hippogriff. "I'm going home. My family's probably worried sick by now. More than seven days ago, Aqua, Pearl, and I attempted to explore the temple. Some hideous bipeds captured us."

The hippogriff fled the room. Luna spied an arch that would lead into a hallway. She trotted to the hallway, and Link trailed behind her. The hallway resembled an intersection. A lizalfos charged at them. Link dodged the creature's blade and swiveled his own at the lizalfos' skull. The impact sent the lizalfos tumbling backward. The biped dropped its weapons and let out an annoyed growl. Link sprung at the lizalfos, allowing his sword to pierce the monster.

Luna surveyed the corridor, wondering where to go next. She unfurled the map and stroked her chin. The three doors would lead to either a second basement, another room, or the main chamber, respectively. She chose the door that would take the duo to the adjacent room. They strode to the nearby room. Sure enough, she detected a makeshift cell. A small box lingered by the door, beckoning Luna to it. She unsealed the box and retrieved a key. As she peered at another entryway, winged skulls encased in blue flames hovered by the cell. Link shoved an armos statue onto a floor switch, and the cell door swung open. A hippogriff emerged.

"I'll meet up with Meri and Coral," the hippogriff said. "I'm Aqua."

"Is Meri the seapony who didn't want you to come here?" Luna asked.

"Yes. Did you meet her?"

"Of course. She's waiting for you."

"I've been here long enough. It's as perilous as I imagined it to be."

Aqua left in a hurry. Luna and Link moved through the adjoining passages and vaults. At times, the monsters would ambush them. But they didn't find a seapony named Pearl yet. Was the seapony stuck on the final floor? The duo returned to the main chamber, where they had crossed the bridge. Who knew that an archaic building would contain ancient technology? It had levers and traps in each den. The dungeon reminded Luna of a complex maze. Her silver-blue aura enveloped a lever, and she yanked it. The bridge spun around. She and Link ambled to the opposite platform and unlocked a door.

They descended into a third basement, navigating the area. White flames burned above the torches. A hallway stretched before them. They trotted into a contiguous room. Shell blades and baris idled in the vicinity. The monsters appeared to be guarding a cell. The baris floated toward the duo. Shell blades bounced closer. Link retrieved a hookshot from his saddlebag and aimed the metal claw at a bari. The metal claw ripped a nucleus out of the bari's body, instantly defeating the beast. He attacked the other baris with the same method; grab the nucleus and vanquish the creature.

Luna fired several kinetic blasts at the shell blades, and they dissolved into clouds of smoke. The steel bars receded, and a hippogriff walked to the exit. The hippogriff's name must be Pearl. She peeked at the map again. The boss was located on the opposite side of the basement.

"When we came here, I expected the temple to be completely underwater. Somepony must have intended to strike a balance," Luna said.

"The Lakebed Temple's interior isn't completely underwater, either," Link replied.

"Speaking of temples, I think the seaponies wanted to confront the monsters in this place. According to Seaquestrians, the temple is meant for honoring the water spirits. It's uncommon to encounter a water spirit. The legends made them sound important. Sometimes if Seaquestria is in danger, the inhabitants will wonder if they have provoked the spirits. However, Ganondorf endangered the seaponies by cursing the ocean. The wicked doesn't care who gets harmed. I've seen villains take drastic measures to fulfill their sinister plans, such as threatening kingdoms and usurping rulers. Celestia and I have defeated the worst of foes."

"I bet you had quite the adventure in the distant past."

Luna guided Link through the adjacent corridors. "Yeah, we did. When Equestria was young, the land wasn't as safe. Grogar once created various monsters. Gusty the Great eventually banished him. The vicious beasts were why ponies used to fear the night. Even after my sister and I took the throne, the beasts still roamed the fields at night."

Link nodded as he listened. "It reminds me of when I navigate Hyrule Field after sundown. A ghostly voice added to the atmosphere."

Meanwhile, Chrysalis brought Cadence, Shining Armor, and Flurry Heart to Canterlot Castle. Ganondorf snickered at the family's reaction. The trio had been muzzled, and their magic was restricted. He told Chrysalis to imprison them, and she obeyed. Everything seemed to work in his favor... at least for now. The fog hadn't confused Link and the cloaked mare. He groaned in exasperation. Oh, that was probably because the "hero" had traipsed through the fog back in Faron Woods. Also, the mare's magic appeared to have an effect on the haze. The moment he lured her here, he would render her useless. Besides, she was too helpful. If she had stayed in the castle instead, she would be a prisoner.

"It's always that one female," Ganondorf complained.

Chrysalis cleared her throat. "Make it more than six. In my case, they stopped me twice. First, the Canterlot wedding. Second, the disappearance of Equestria's most beloved ponies. Unfortunately, I haven't captured Starlight or her 'reformed' allies."

"It sucks to have a plan, only for it to backfire. In my case, I've reincarnated several times and tried to take over Hyrule. But then, Princess Zelda would have a prophetic dream and tell her knight beforehand... or beforehoof, equinely speaking. I usually kidnapped her, as she's the weakest of us three. She barely even put up a fight each time. And she'd scream whenever it happened."

Chrysalis chuckled. "Sounds like Twilight Sparkle's panic attacks. I'll give you an impression of her."

Ganondorf smirked. "Go ahead."

"Watch..." Chrysalis transformed into Twilight Sparkle. "Oh no, if I don't save Equestria, we're all DOOMED! I'll fail Celestia!"

"Classic. Some ladies get scared so easily."

Chrysalis reverted to her changeling form. "So true. I recall Fluttershy being a shrinking violet."

Ganondorf stepped toward his pipe organ and began playing an eerie tune. This garnered Celestia's attention. The alabaster alicorn stormed past the throne and glared at him from behind. Would she criticize the music as much as Zelda did? He cackled at the notion. Both princesses were damsels who enjoyed acting feisty, no matter how frightened they were.

"Cancel the racket!" Celestia demanded.

"Why should I?" Ganondorf retorted.

"It's awful... just like your evil self."

"It's my theme."

"Fine."

Luna and Link reached a large chamber. A small pool of water drew them closer. She peered into the water and glimpsed a strange shape. She didn't have a good feeling about this, as the shape resembled a bari's nucleus. A transparent tentacle emerged, and she backpedaled. Water droplets plummeted to the floor. Link unsheathed his blade. The metal glinted, and he lunged forward.

"I knew it wasn't safe," Luna said.

Link aimed his hookshot at the nucleus and grabbed it. As it bounced on the floor, he hacked and stabbed the nucleus. It fell into the water. The tentacles swung at the duo. The tendril on the left wrapped around Luna as she attempted to use magic on the beast. It squeezed into her body, and she conjured a teleportation spell. Her hooves were on the ground again.

Link yanked the nucleus out of the tendril a second time. He thrust the sword into it and sprung into the air. He sliced the creature, and it stopped moving. Luna trotted to a cell, and the door opened, revealing Rarity. The white unicorn surveyed the area, then looked up at her. Rarity bowed. In response to this, Luna shook her head. There was no need to be formal, and this certainly wasn't the time.

"You're going to Ponyville," Luna said.

"That thing was dreadful. I can't wait to be home. Oh, and have you found the others?" Rarity replied.

"We rescued Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie."

"Are you referring to both yourself and the stallion?"

"Yes. Let's go to the ship."

Rarity nodded. "Good idea. Sweetie Belle's probably wondering where I am."