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Dark Link, also called Link's Shadow or Shadow Link, is an artificial wraith-like being created in the image of the Hero of Time by Ganondorf in order to combat him and future heroes.
History[]
Dark Link was created during the Imprisoning War by Ganondorf with the purpose that he would challenge the Hero of Time in the Water Temple and, with all of his abilities, defeat him.
He failed, and upon return to Ganondorf, was promptly punished; along with Phantom Ganon, he was forced into the Gap Between Dimensions.
Physiology[]
Dark Link was created to resemble the Hero of Time, a Hylian, and his first combatant, perfectly.
Though his facial features, height, weight, and build are identical, where the Hero of Time's hair was blond, Dark Link's hair ranges from being light gray to raven-wing black depending on his mood and current power level (light being the most benign and the weakest, and dark being extremely annoyed or angry and at maximum power).
While the Hero of Time's eyes were a crystal blue, Dark Link's eyes are a glaring red, and lack a pupil, iris, or any other features of a human eye. The Hero of Time had a pale complexion, but Dark Link's complexion is a sickly-looking gray.
Dark Link wears an identically-made tunic to that one the Hero of Time wore, though his, instead of being forest-green, is black, and his boots are the same hue, while the leggings are gray.
Dark Link's lifespan, if not infinite, is extremely long, as he is the same incarnation that has fought with the Hero of Time and the heroes long after him.
Personality[]
As a result of his lonely existence, Dark Link is extremely antisocial. He talks to others only when it would be beneficial or he absolutely must.
Though not exactly shy, Dark Link is withdrawn, and dislikes a lot of attention, especially from women and girls.
He is also extremely reluctant to trust others, and cares only for himself, as he feels anything else is a waste of time.
While Dark Link is capable of feeling emotions, those that he feels most intensely are greed and hate, and the emotions on the other end of the spectrum he has trouble understanding, and even openly resents (love, for example).
Dark Link isn't receptive to the anger or frustration others feel around him, and he keeps a cool and detached persona at all times while speaking his mind to all. Harsh words spoken to him mean nothing.
Dark Link can, however, be condescending, and isn't partial to helping others unless something is in it for him. He has little patience for the weaknesses of others, and can be cold to their suffering.
Abilities[]
Being a replica of the Hero of Time, with the Sword of Tears, Dark Link's swordsmanship is nearly unparalleled, and his style is an exact copy of the Hero of Time's.
Dark Link can travel long distances rapidly using his Shadow Blending technique, which allows him or him and another person to bond to the shadow; that is, sink completely into it. Dark Link is invulnerable to attack while doing this, and can use it to gain the element of surprise by sudden appearance. Tied in with this, Dark Link can Shadow Warp himself or others, which allows him to enter places that humans or other light beings would not normally enter.
Dark Link can see perfectly in the dark, and has a resistance to poisons and other dark magic. His senses are far more receptive than a human's, and he can detect the movements and presence of other dark beings.
Dark Link does not need to sleep or eat, and he never tires unless weakened by magic.
Weaknesses[]
Dark Link most powerful weakness is his immense vulnerability to light and the forces of good; he is instantly repeled by objects that can only be handled by those with a pure heart - The Master Sword, for example.
Even natural sunlight, though not enough to kill him outright, is unpleasant, and causes him consistent minor physical pain if he is exposed to it over long periods of time (to combat this, he often wears a cloak during the daytime, and sticks to the shadows). But the light wielded by heroes and priests is extremely deadly.
Dark Link doesn't see well in the sunlight.
Appearances[]
The Legend of Zelda: Shadows of Mastery[]
In The Legend of Zelda: Shadows of Mastery, Dark Link appears early in the game as an ally, though a grudging one, and assists Link in combat and in the overworld through his abilities. After a recent run-in with Aurora, the Priestess of the Dawn, Dark Link is severely weakened and discovered within inches of his life just outside the Gate of Shadows, and rescued by Link and company. Dark Link agrees to become Link's ally after recognizing his powerlessness, but only until his full power has been returned, and the quest to recover Dark Link's power becomes its own arc within the game.
Dark Link is the first in-game character to suggest (or, more accurately) to hint at Zara's deceptive nature, as he lightly teases her about her dishonesty when Link is present, but avoids going into much detail.
Throughout the adventure, his actions and words become increasingly suspicious, and he even tries to kill Link in several instances, which, after being questioned furiously by Zara, he insists that it was an accident, or Link got in the way.
Much later on, after Aurora becomes Link's ally, Dark Link is revealed to be an agent of the Master of Shadows, who is working to spread darkness over the land after Ganondorf's downfall, though he was never loyal to him to begin with, and, after being forcibly captured, learned to resent him. But Dark Link had no power to defeat him, and upon attempting to flee, was caught and severely punished.
His most recent mission was to find and destroy the Forces of Light, a mission that the Master of Shadows knew would effectively be a suicide mission, but was interrupted before it was carried out. In the game's finale, he at last becomes a full-fledged member of the team and faces down the Master of Shadows in the final battle. In the epilogue, as all of Hyrule rejoices the Master's fall, Dark Link disappears without uttering a word to anyone.
The Legend of Zelda: Dark Legacy[]
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Dark Link from Dark Legacy.
The Dark Link who appears in The Legend of Zelda: Dark Legacy operates as the game's protagonist. He starts out neutral in his ideals, not remembering who he is or why he got where he is. Over the course of the game, the player is able to make various choices that sway him towards either the dark side and revival (Ganon's Forces) or the light side and redemption (the Kingdom of Hyrule).
In this game, Ganon decided to do away with his nemesis for good through the creation of a fourth piece of the Triforce, referred to as the Dark Quadforce, which would serve to complete the Triforce pyramid and both enhance the strength of those pieces it is lined up with while weakening those it is wielded against. The intention of this was for the Dark Quadforce to strengthen Power (Ganon) while weakening both Wisdom (Princess Zelda) and Courage (Link), allowing Ganon to far more easily overtake all realms. Though artificial in nature, Ganon poured enough of his and his minions' energy into the object to give it immense power and allowing it to function as intended. However, Ganon soon discovered that each of the pieces requires a guardian in order to properly function, and because of this he was required to create a proxy guardian for the Dark Quadforce in order to wield it in battle. With this he chose to utilize his darkest magics to create a Dark Link which would do his bidding and would have the same prowes in battle as Link himself. Through this magic, Ganon created a doppelganger Hylian body in a similar manner to his creation of other, weaker Dark Links, but since the Quadforce's guardian needed a soul, Ganon yanked one from the Twilight Realm; this soul happened to be a shred of the Minish sorcerer Vaati's soul reincarnated last into the body of a Twili.
The power of the Dark Quadforce then gave this Dark Link his own weapon to wield to rival that of the hero, a sword known as the Sword of Villains. The power shoved into the Quadforce was so powerful at this early stage that the Sword of Villains instantly rivaled the power of the Master Sword, and through the two weapons' clashing Ganon hoped to nullify the Master Sword's power. This technique is partially successful, as the instant that Link's Master Sword and the Dark Link's Sword of Villains collide against one another, a temporal rift is torn open, shoving Dark Link through it and out of the tower and freezing Link in his place, each character negated of their strength and abilities. Both opponents would have been frozen in place but Ganon poured his own power into keeping Dark Link alive in order to drastically improve his chances of success against the legendary blade. The process of temporal displacement from the swords' clashing severely weakened Dark Link, even to the point of rendering him an amnesiac.
Initially he had no recollection of who or what he was, but when he first encountered townsfolk they excitedly referred to him as the great hero of the land, Link. Assuming they knew what they were talking about, he accepted this and performed various tasks for them. However, he also discovered that the forces of Ganon would part for him as well, referring to him as their "Dark General". Dark Link had to decide which side to take between the two engaging forces, cutting ties with either the people of Hyrule or the armies of Ganon.
During his adventure, Dark Link would travel to many numerous realms and nations, including Hyrule, Arcadia, Calatia, Gamelon, Holodrum, Koridai, Labrynna, Subrosia, Termina, Amalgia and The Sky. Each of these realms would appear at least for a short time during the course of Dark Legacy, and each would feature at least one dungeon.
Eventually, Dark Link would return to the tower where Link lay in stasis and Ganondorf stood in patient contemplation, having returned to his natural Gerudo state due to wasting too much energy in keeping Dark Link from the stasis his former rival was now left in. Ganon insisted that the three natural pieces of the Triforce were instinctually trying to reject the power of the artificial piece as if it were a virus and they were the antibodies, and that the only way to truly integrate as one of the powers was to remove one of the others and take its place — although Dark Link had regained much of his power over his adventure, Link would need to be freed by clashing Master Sword and Sword of Villains again and someone would have to be slain. Dark Link would strike Link's outstretched sword with his own dark blade, and would be forced to choose between aiding Link or supporting Ganon.
In the Redeemed Ending, with the Dark Quadforce ultimately destroyed and Ganon simply forced back into the Dark World and not truly slain, Dark Link's power wanes. He begins to realize what his soul originally was and realizing that he, too, was once an evil being, he accepts his fate as he fades from existence. Link and Zelda are left to speculate as to whether he has truly passed away or if he has simply been returned to his home dimension.
In the Forsaken Ending, Dark Link sides with Ganondorf once again, who subsequently transforms into Ganon again. The two double-team Link and eventually subdue him. With Link weakened, Dark Link takes the opportunity to slay the would-be hero and claim through a dark ritual claims the Triforce of Courage as his own, corrupting it into the Triforce of Despair. He and Ganon then make plans to lead a crusade against the other nations and dimensions now that no hero could stop them. The look on Ganon's face and the way he chooses to speak hint that he may be plotting against Dark Link, as well.
Gallery[]
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