Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Darkness

First, a bit of backstory.

As kids, I remember a time when I use to play the Zelda series along with my younger brother, but that was about five years ago. As much as we loved playing the Zelda games, I think my brother enjoyed it more due to the fact that the Star Fox was much more my style. To an extent I understood how he felt at the time. I played the original Star Fox just as much as he did Zelda., but as time grew on I wanted to play something else. Star Fox was was fun and all, but it was so simple that I kept beating the game around an hour each day. Since Zelda took many more hours to beat in any one of the Zelda games, I decided to start where it all began, the first game.

After playing the first hour or so of Zelda on the Nintendo, I did not care for it. It just did not seem any fun at all to me. Then I played the second game. I did not like the first game, but I end up hating the second game of the franchise. It was so hard to get through anything that I ended up throwing the controller, breaking it, just after a few minuets of game play. Needless to say, my parents took away my allowance, just to get a new one. I was beginning to think Zelda just was not my thing.

So I ended up giving the series one more chance. The next game on the list was A Link To The Past. Now this one had me wrapped up in satisfaction and Zelda started to appeal to me. Being a first time player, it was not easy for me. Looking back it seemed like it took me almost a full week of game play just to defeat Ganon, but it was worth it.

A couple of months pass when my brother and I each got a Nintendo 64 for Christmas and we each got a game. I received Star Fox 64 while my brother got Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time. Star Fox 64 was awesome and never felt that any other game in the world was better, but still, it did not even take me more than a day to complete it and ended up a bit disappointed by it. After that I felt like playing Ocarina of Time, so I watched and waited for my brother to get through it. It took a few days for him to finish, but eventually I got my chance. With my brother's assistance it took me maybe half time to beat the game than it took him.

Months pass and we both kept doing our usual routine. We played the same old games as if it were a daily ritual to us. Then one day we hear the next game of the Zelda series is coming out, Majora's Mask.

That was when everything went to hell from there.

Sure we played games a lot, but we still had school at attend. Nothing unusual happened at school exactly, but it was the bus ride home that tragedy struck. The breaks on the bus failed and we ended up crashing into a few other vehicles along the way. The bus rolled a couple of times and many of my fellow classmates were injured. I received a broken rib and wrist whereas my brother suffered a concussion and fell into a coma for about a week. When he woke up here never seemed the same since before the crash.

For weeks on end he seemed like a different person. His grades started to slipped drastically and he became withdrawn from me and everyone else. All he ever did was play Ocarina of Time, but not in the same way he use to. For some reason, while he played the water temple level in the game, he always reset the game after defeating Dark Link and ended continuing where the last save point was, just to fight him again. He did this constantly. Start from the save point, defeat Dark Link, and reset then just do it all over again.

He did the same thing for days on end, non stop. I told my parents about it, but just told me to let him do what he wanted for the time being. They also said that doctor instructed that know one stress him out or his brain might shut down again. I went along to what they said for a week or so, but ended up getting too concerned. I only wanted to snap my brother out of the endless cycle of the same boss fight with Dark Link. I swear I only wanted to help him.

Reaching my limit of concern for him, I foolishly went up to my brothers Nintendo 64 and simply pulled out the cartridge as he was in the middle of his boss fight.

He lost it after that. He screamed the cliche no reaction and then began crying. After a moment of his misery he became consumed with rage and attacked me. He surprised me, knocking me down, and wrapped his hands around my throat. He kept choking me as screamed, telling me to die.

Before he removed the life from me, his grip loosened a bit and he fell on top of me with anger still in his eyes. He died.

It has been a few years since that happened and I am starting to put it behind me, but I do not think my parents ever loved me the same after what I did. Sure they took care of me, but hardly ever spoke to me and I do not blame them. I do deserve it and I still have not forgiven myself. I did not even attend his funeral because on the day of my brother's funeral I did not know about it. My parents left without telling me.

When the time was right for me I moved out and started to live my own life.

One day after work I came home and relaxed a bit with a bottle of Jack Daniels. When I drank I often imagined the good times I spent with my brother before the accident. Then suddenly, out of know where, I had the urge to play a game.

I went to my closet and dusted off a few boxes before opening them up. I pulled out my old Nintendo 64 along with a couple of games, Ocarina of Time and Star Fox 64. I thought about playing Star Fox, but still had the urge to play Zelda instead. I still was not sure why I even bothered to keep all this stuff anyway. Probably just to help me remember my brother of the good times we had even though it still bound me to the one bad memory.

I played immediately after hooking up the system with my t.v. The title screen came up with Link riding Epona across Hyrule Field as it always did then followed up with the three file selections. The game still had my old file along with my brother's, but chose to start a new beginning and selected the last blank one. I tried to select it, but could not figure out why it would not let me. When I kept selecting all could hear was a buzzing noise, preventing me from choosing the file.

I did not think too much of this. Maybe the game was a little corrupted because it had been in storage, just wasting away. Next I decided to delete my old file and start a new game that way, but I still kept hearing the buzzing noise whenever I tried to select it. Since I had been drinking a little that night I was more prone to anger,but I still kept a little calm. I got a sad feeling in my heart when I debated about deleting brother's file. Was I really going erase part of my past and also end up erasing my brothers only legacy?

It was most likely the booze controlling part of my actions, so I decided to erase my brother's file and it worked. I had just erased what was left of my brother and felt guilty, now regretting my actions today.

I expected other things in the game to be corrupted, but so far everything seemed to be working fine. I defeated the first three bosses of the game, earning all three stones to enter the temple of time, but this was where every thing took a turn for the worse.

After receiving the water stone from Ruto I made made way to Hyrule Castle where I remembered Zelda and Impa would ride a horse through the entrance while being chased by Gannondorf.

After arriving at the gate to Hyrule Castle a cut scene happened, but it was different. I only beat the game once, but I remembered this was not part of the game.

The gate had lowered, which was the only part of the cut scene that seemed legit. Next came, not only Zelda and Impa, but Gannondorf at the same time. As they rode on their horses Gannondorf ordered Impa to take Zelda to Gerudo Valley. Impa nodded at Gannondorf and fled with Zelda, but he did not follow. He stayed behind and noticed Link. He stared at Link for a moment then rose his left hand and the Triforce of Power began illuminating it's light.

At the time I did not know what was going on or why cut scenes in the game were changing.

I thought Gannondorf was about to attack me, but instead he surrendered his part of the Triforce to me. It now glowed on Link's hand as well as the Triforce of courage.

This did not make any sense. I never recalled Link having two pieces of the Triforce in any of the zelda game. I did not have much choice but to continue with the cut scene.

After Gannon gave me the Triforce he teleported me straight to the temple of light where the master sword was kept. After that was I was to continue playing the game.

Snapping out of my state of confusion I decided to just go along with it and continued playing the game.

Another cut scene happened after I approached the area where Link placed the three stones on the pedestal and a door opened where Link was to pull the master sword. Surprisingly, this cut scene was normal from what I had remembered all those years ago when I played the game back then.

After Link pulled the master the seven years went by and Link was now an adult.

I thought I was suppose to talk with the sages, but that never happened and I found myself face to face with Sheik and Impa, still in the Temple of Light.

They asked for Link's help when they told him what happened seven years ago. The story was that a young version of Dark Link had killed the Happy Mask Salesman and stole an item called Majora's Mask. While Dark Link wore the mask he killed the king of Hyrule then attempted to steal the Triforces of Power and wisdom and conquer the world.

Apparently, Gannondorf had planned to do something similar. His plans were foiled because of Dark Links power and the two of them fought each other. In the end Gannondorf lost then forged an alliance with Zelda and Impa. Zelda and Impa knew they needed his help and assisted him to obtain the Triforce of Power.

With Gannondorf's new power the three fought Dark Link again, but were unsuccessful. In the end they had attempted to escape and seek refuge in Gerudo Valley. Gannondorf remained behind into order to buy time for Princess Zelda and Impa to escape and then gave his part of the Triforce to another.

Gannondorf was killed by Dark Link and stole the Ocarina of Time. He then infected the ocarina with dark powers bestowed to it by the mask before he destroyed it. With the ocarina, Dark Link turned Hyrule into a desolate world where the zora's, the gerudos, and the gorons were all slaughtered. Not even the fairy kids, from Kokiri, survived and Kakariko Village was burned to the ground.

Link agreed to help then Sheik turned into Zelda and gave her Triforce to Link.

With Link in control with all pieces of the Triforce he was able to make one perfect wish and it would come to pass.

Before Link was able to make the wish a menacing laugh echoed throughout the Temple of Light and Dark Link appeared from the entrance.

Dark Link then pulled out he the Ocarina and started playing the Nocturne of Shadows. After the song had been played the Triforce, that was once emitting it's gold light, now turned black and a deep purple aura surrounded it. Dark Link then seized control over the corrupted Triforce that now appeared on his left hand.

Dark Link let out a a vibrating roar and the temple of light started crumbling to pieces. The debris, that fell from the roof, crushed Zelda and Imp, killing them instantly.

Blood stained the floor as Dark Link snapped his fingers making Navi, my fairy, explode into nothing more than dust.

Since this was just a game I kind of smiled when Navi was killed. I never liked having her as a companion anyway.

"Hello brother," Dark Link said in subtitles.

I dropped my controller in disbelief when I read that.

"I will kill you for what you did to me."

"Jamie?," I asked when my eyes started to water.

"Why did you kill me Alex?, Why did you remove the cartridge that day?"

I could only respond by repeating my brother's name.

"It does not matter anymore," Jamie stated. "I want you in here with me Alex. You fight me and when I defeat you I willed released."

Without anymore words I unplugged the system and t.v. as Jamie kept laughing. I threw the system and game in the garbage and spent the rest of the night drinking in the bathroom, afraid to come out until I felt like it.

I spent the next two days hiding in the bathroom, drinking alcohol, until I ran out.

When I emerged, looking for some Aspirin to cure my hangover, I fled my home when I saw my Nintendo 64 and the game cartridge sitting in front of the bathroom door. Even on my way out the front door I saw the words "Let me out" and "Release me," scribbled everywhere.

No matter where I run, every time I look into something that is reflecting, I keep seeing the image of Dark Link everywhere. I hear his voice in my head as I sleep. I do not know how much longer I can take it.

"I'm sorry Jamie."