|caption= A stained glass window depicting the Great Flood that sealed away Ganon and Hyrule
|game= TWW
|location= {{List|[[Hyrule]], [[Great Sea]]}}
|occurrence= Ganondorf escapes the Sacred Realm and returns to attack Hyrule. The Golden Goddesses flood Hyrule to stop him.
|resolution= Hyrule is sealed underneath the Great Sea. The people build a new society on the mountaintops.
|theme=
}}
The {{Name|Fan|Great Flood}} is the name often associated with a deluge that befell the land of [[Hyrule]] many generations after the end of {{OoT}} in the [[Adult Timeline]]. Described in the introduction of {{TWW}}, it occurred when [[Ganondorf]] escaped from his imprisonment in the [[Sacred Realm]] and returned to Hyrule, after the departure of the Hero of Time.<ref>{{Cite|The great evil that all thought had been forever sealed away by the hero...once again crept forth from the depths of the earth, eager to resume its dark designs.|N/A|TWW}}</ref>
==Overview==
===Return of Ganondorf===
Many generations after the departure of the [[Hero of Time]], the seal of the Seven Sages began to weaken for an unknown reason, and [[Ganondorf]] managed to escape his imprisonment. Ganondorf intended to make good on his threat to the Hero of Time and the Seven Sages that he would escape one day to make their descendants pay for his imprisonment.<ref>{{Cite|Once, long ago, this land of Hyrule was turned into a world of shadows by Ganon, who sought to obtain the power of the gods for his own evil ends.|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|TWW}}</ref><ref>{{Cite|Someday...When this seal is broken....That is when I will exterminate your descendants!!|Ganondorf|OoT}}</ref> As the darkness was covering the land, the people of Hyrule prayed that the Hero of Time would once again come to save them, but the hero did not appear.<ref>{{Cite|The people believed that the Hero of Time would again come to save them. ...But the hero did not appear.|N/A|TWW}}</ref>
{{clear|left}}
[[File:Ganon and the Great Flood.jpg|300px|thumb|right|A stained glass window depicting the Great Flood that sealed away Ganon and Hyrule.]]
===The Divine Deluge===
The '''Great Flood''' is the name often associated with a catastrophic deluge that befell the land of [[Hyrule]] many years after the end of ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time|Ocarina of Time]]'' in the Adult Timeline. It occurred when the Dark Lord [[Ganon|Ganondorf]] escaped from his imprisonment in the [[Sacred Realm]] and returned to Hyrule in a fiery rage.<ref>{{cite|The great evil that all thought had been forever sealed away by the hero...once again crept forth from the depths of the earth, eager to resume its dark designs.|Introduction|The Wind Waker}}</ref> After discovering a way to deactivate the [[Master Sword]]’s power by means of disposing of the [[Sage]]s that safeguarded its power, Ganondorf attacked the land of Hyrule with his army of evil creatures.<ref name=quote2>{{cite|After his defeat at the hands of the Hero of Time, Ganondorf was sealed away...but not for all time. He was revived, and he returned to Hyrule in a red wrath. He attacked this temple and stole my soul, knowing that he had to remove the power contained in that enchanted blade.|Laruto|The Wind Waker}}</ref><ref>{{cite|Once, long ago, this land of Hyrule was turned into a world of shadows by Ganon, who sought to obtain the power of the gods for his own evil ends.|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|The Wind Waker}}</ref> Because the Hero of Time had left this timeline and no apparent Hero could take up the Master Sword, the kingdom was left nearly helpless against Ganon’s onslaught.<ref name=quote5>{{cite|The people believed that the Hero of Time would again come to save them. ...But the hero did not appear.|Introduction|The Wind Waker}}</ref><ref name=quote4>{{cite|My power alone could not stop the fiend, and our only choice was to leave the fate of the kingdom in the hands of the gods...|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|The Wind Waker}}</ref>Appealing to the [[Golden Goddesses]] for their aid in saving them from evil, the people’s prayers were answered when the Goddesses instructed the people to take refuge on the mountaintops of Hyrule and brought down a torrential downpour from the heavens that buried the land of Hyrule beneath a vast ocean that came to be known in time as the [[Great Sea]].<ref name=quote6>{{cite|Faced by an onslaught of evil, the people could do nothing but appeal to the gods. In their last hour, as doom drew nigh, they left their future in the hands of fate.|Introduction|The Wind Waker}}</ref><ref name=quote7>{{cite|When the gods heard our pleas, they chose to seal away not only Ganon, but Hyrule itself...and so, with a torrential downpour of rains from the heavens... Our fair kingdom was soon buried beneath the waves, forgotten at the bottom of the ocean. Yet all was not lost.[...] So, before the sealing of the kingdom, the gods chose those who would build a new country and commanded them to take refuge on the mountaintops.|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|The Wind Waker}}</ref>
[[File:TWW Scroll of the Hero of Time 5.png|250px|thumb|left|The people of Hyrule pray to the Goddesses for deliverance, resulting in the Great Flood.]]
The [[King of Hyrule]], [[Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule]], attempted to use his magic to stop Ganondorf, but failed. Left with no other choice, the people pleaded to the three Golden Goddesses.<ref>{{Cite|My power alone could not stop the fiend, and our only choice was to leave the fate of the kingdom in the hands of the gods...|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|TWW}}</ref><ref>{{Cite|Faced by an onslaught of evil, the people could do nothing but appeal to the gods. In their last hour, as doom drew nigh, they left their future in the hands of fate.|N/A|TWW}}</ref> The Goddesses eventually answered the peoples' prayers, instructing those chosen to flee to Hyrule's mountaintops in order to escape the coming flood and to prevent Ganon's wish of the destruction of the land. Once the people were safely away, the Goddesses caused a torrential downpour, covering the land and turning the mountaintops into islands.<ref>{{Cite|When the gods heard our pleas, they chose to seal away not only Ganon, but Hyrule itself...and so, with a torrential downpour of rains from the heavens... Our fair kingdom was soon buried beneath the waves, forgotten at the bottom of the ocean. Yet all was not lost. For the gods knew that to seal the people away with the kingdom would be to grant Ganon's wish for the destruction of the land. So, before the sealing of the kingdom, the gods chose those who would build a new country and commanded them to take refuge on the mountaintops.|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule|TWW}}</ref> The king chose to remain behind with his doomed kingdom. He split the [[Triforce of Wisdom]] into two parts and instructed the [[Princess Zelda#Antediluvian Princess|princess]] of that era to keep one piece and flee to the mountaintops with her servants.<ref>{{Cite Book|quote= The gods chose which of the kingdom's subjects would ascend to the new land, telling them to escape to the tallest mountains. They then flooded the world, sinking Ganondorf and Hyrule to the bottom of the ocean and sealing them away. Though the king was sealed along with his kingdom, the princess took a piece of the Triforce that had been broken in two by the king and managed to escape to the ocean's surface with several of her retainers.|book= HH |publisher= |page= 123}}</ref>
==Reconstruction==
Ganon's army had already infiltrated [[Hyrule Castle]] when the goddesses sealed the kingdom within an enchanted air chamber that prevented the water from destroying it. A magical seal was also cast over the Master Sword and the Pedestal of Time that froze the entire land of Hyrule and Ganon's army, freezing them in time and draining the entire kingdom of color.<ref>{{Cite|By the way, boy... When you drew that sword of yours out of its resting place... Did you by chance notice how all of the monsters frozen in time down there suddenly began stirring again?[...] While that sword is indeed the blade of evil's bane, at the same time, it has long played another role... You see, it is also a sort of key... a most wretched little key that has kept the seal on me and my magic intact! By withdrawing the blade, you have broken that seal...|Ganondorf|TWW}}</ref>
[[File:Hyrule-The Wind Waker.jpg|thumb|300px|right|An aerial view of Hyrule as it looked at the time of the Great Flood.]]
After the Hero of Time defeated Ganon and returned to his own time, as seen in ''[[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time|Ocarina of Time]],'' the land of Hyrule began the long process of healing in the wake of Ganondorf's reign of terror. [[Hyrule Castle]] was eventually rebuilt near the center of Hyrule on an island in the center of what appears to be [[Lake Hylia]] (as seen in ''The Wind Waker''), which is fed by a river that is believed by some to be [[Zora's River]] itself (since Zora's River was known to feed into Lake Hylia). Hyrule's people began to rebuild their shattered kingdom, and the Hyrulean monarchy was eventually restored with [[Princess Zelda]] likely having led the effort to rebuild Hyrule and restore it to its former glory. For unknown reasons, the Master Sword and the Pedestal of Time were moved to a special chamber in the basement of Hyrule Castle (protected by a giant statue of the [[Hero of Time]] himself), where stained glass windows depicted the [[Seven Sages]] and the sealing away of [[Ganon]]. So Hyrule knew peace for a time, thanks largely to the efforts of the Seven Sages and the Hero of Time, who became legendary in Hylian lore.
==Return of the Dark Lord==
The people of Hyrule would then go on to build a new civilization on the surface of the [[Great Sea]] and, with the passing of time, largely forget the memory of the old Hyrule that still existed deep beneath the waves.<ref>{{Cite|The memory of the kingdom vanished, but its legend survived on the wind's breath.|N/A|TWW}}</ref>
[[File:Normal opening 4.png|thumb|300px|left|The Hero of Time journeys through the currents of time to return to his own age.]]
Many years after the departure of the Hero of Time, the seal of the Seven Sages began to weaken for an unknown reason (possibly because the Master Sword and the Pedestal of Time were taken from their original place near the portal to the [[Sacred Realm]]), and the Dark Lord [[Ganon|Ganondorf]] saw his chance to escape his imprisonment. Using the might of the Triforce of Power, he was able to successfully shatter the seal, reopening the gateway between the worlds and returning to Hyrule in a red wrath, intending to make good on his final threat to the Hero of Time and the Seven Sages that he would return one day to make their descendants pay for his imprisonment.<ref name=quote2/><ref name=quote3>{{cite|Someday...When this seal is broken....That is when I will exterminate your descendants!!|Ganondorf|Ocarina of Time}}</ref> Ganondorf reconstructed his [[Ganon's Tower|tower base]] not far away from the new site of Hyrule Castle and attacked Hyrule with his army of dark creatures. The Dark Lord knew the only threat to him lay within the very weapon that defeated him an age before, the Blade of Evil's Bane known as the [[Master Sword]]. He sought to render the blade powerless against him and discovered its power was protected by Sages, the Sage of Earth and the Sage of Wind. Using the power granted to him by the Triforce of Power, Ganondorf crafted two horrible monsters, the giant Poe [[Jalhalla]] and the great sand worm [[Molgera]], and ordered them to invade the two temples with his army and dispose of the Sages. Molgera invaded the Wind Temple and settled into the shrine chamber at the heart of the temple after wiping out the [[Kokiri]] Sage of Wind, [[Fado (The Wind Waker)|Fado]].<ref>{{cite|I had been praying here so that the power to repel evil would continue to be contained within the blade of the Master Sword... But I was attacked by the evil Ganondorf... and this is what happened to me.|Fado|The Wind Waker}}</ref> In turn, Jalhalla invaded the Earth Temple and also settled into the shrine chamber meant for the Earth Sage, wiping out the [[Zora]] Sage of Earth, [[Laruto]].<ref name=quote2/> The only consolation for the Sages was that their two special instruments survived the invasion of the temples, and both were passed down to their descendants in turn. There in the depths of the two temples, their spirits would linger on, waiting for their successors to take their rightful place as the new Sages of the Master Sword.<ref>{{cite|Nothing can stop the flow of time or the passing of generations...but the fate carried within my bloodline endures the ravages of all the years. It survives.|Laruto|The Wind Waker}}</ref> With the Master Sword now deactivated and thus powerless against him, Ganondorf continued his attack on the kingdom of Hyrule. Everywhere he went, he rained much death and destruction all throughout the kingdom as the realm descended into darkness. The [[King of Hyrule]], [[Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule]], attempted to use what magic he wielded to stop Ganon, but he was not powerful enough to stop the fiend since Ganondorf possessed the Triforce of Power and had its full strength at his command.<ref name=quote4/> The people of Hyrule prayed that the Hero of Time would once again come to save them from the very evil he had once helped seal away and thus deliver them once again from evil's grasp.<ref name=quote5/>
==The Divine Deluge==
===Aftermath===
[[File:Normal opening 5.png|300px|thumb|The people of Hyrule pray to the Goddesses for deliverance, resulting in the Great Flood.]]
{{Main|The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker}}
The Hero of Time did not appear to save Hyrule as had been hoped, having been sent back across the flows of time to his own age. Left with no other choice, the people of Hyrule cried out to the three Golden Goddesses for their help in delivering them from Ganon's evil and destruction.<ref name=quote6/> Ganondorf was on the verge of completely conquering the land of Hyrule, his troops having even penetrated the majestic [[Hyrule Castle]] itself. It was then however that the Goddesses answered the peoples' prayers, instructing them to flee to Hyrule's mountaintops in order to escape the apocalypse they were about to unleash upon the land to halt Ganondorf's invasion.<ref name=quote7/> King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule remained behind with his doomed kingdom, though it is suspected he sent his descendant, [[Princess Zelda]] (seen in one of Hyrule Castle's portraits) away with their people (as evidenced by Tetra's revealed lineage in ''The Wind Waker''). Once the people were safely away, the Goddesses caused a torrential downpour, covering the land and turning the mountaintops into islands.
[[File:TWW Final Battle in Hyrule Artwork.jpg|200px|thumb|right|The final duel between Ganondorf, Link and Zelda in Hyrule's final moments.]]
Many centuries after the initial flood, Ganondorf broke free of the seal binding Hyrule and returned, intending to reunite the Triforce pieces to reconquer the sunken Hyrule.<ref>{{Cite|Do not fear. I will not kill you... I merely have need of the power that dwells within you.|Ganondorf|TWW}}</ref> This caused a new incarnation of Link and Princess Zelda to appear to challenge Ganondorf again, as had their predecessors. After uniting the Triforce, and at the will of the old King, the sacred pieces rise into the air and vanish as the air chamber above them begins to collapse, allowing the Great Sea to pour into Hyrule. After Ganondorf is defeated, Hyrule is completely swallowed by water, leaving Link and Princess Zelda to create a new Hyrule above the waves.
This was not the complete end of Hyrule however. The goddesses sealed the kingdom within an enchanted air chamber that prevented the water from destroying it. A magical seal was also cast over the Master Sword and the Pedestal of Time (now located within [[Hyrule Castle]] itself) that froze the entire land of Hyrule and Ganon's army in it right where they stood, freezing them in time and draining them of color.<ref name=quote8>{{cite|By the way, boy... When you drew that sword of yours out of its resting place... Did you by chance notice how all of the monsters frozen in time down there suddenly began stirring again?[...] While that sword is indeed the blade of evil's bane, at the same time, it has long played another role... You see, it is also a sort of key... a most wretched little key that has kept the seal on me and my magic intact! By withdrawing the blade, you have broken that seal...|Ganondorf|The Wind Waker}}</ref> The Golden Goddesses then crafted a great [[Tower of the Gods|tower]] that would serve to test any aspiring Heroes, to see if they were worthy of wielding the Blade of Evil's Bane and thus destroy the evil that had haunted the land of Hyrule.<ref>{{cite|This tower, which the pearls of the gods have caused to appear, is a place that the gods of the ancient world prepared so that they might test the courage of men. Only one who is able to overcome the trials that await here will be acknowledged by the gods to be a true hero.|King of Red Lions|The Wind Waker}}</ref> Only one who conquered the trials of this tower would be permitted to open a portal that would safely transport him to the remains of Hyrule Castle deep beneath the waves and take the up the Master Sword. This tower could only be raised from the bottom of the sea by one possessing the three special [[Goddess Pearls|Pearls of the Goddesses]], one for each Goddess.<ref>{{cite|Once you have placed each of the pearls in its proper location, the proving grounds for your courage will become apparent.|King of Red Lions|The Wind Waker}}</ref>
==Trivia==
*The Goddesses flooding Hyrule to cleanse evil from the land, at the sacrifice of most life while allowing a select few to survive, is similar to many {{Wp|flood myth}}s from real life.
The people of Hyrule would then go on to build a new civilization on the surface of the [[Great Sea]] and, with the passing of time, largely forget the memory of the magical kingdom of Hyrule that still existed deep beneath the waves.<ref>{{cite|The memory of the kingdom vanished, but its legend survived on the wind's breath.|Introduction|The Wind Waker}}</ref>
{{clear}}
{{Ref}}
==Aftermath==
{{Categories
[[File:Final Battle in Hyrule.jpg|300px|thumb|left|The final duel between Ganondorf, Link and Zelda in Hyrule's final moments.]]
|Wars
Many centuries after the initial flood, Ganondorf broke free of the seal binding Hyrule and returned to haunt the people above the waves once more, intending to reunite the Triforce pieces and to use the united relic to drain the Great Sea and take over Hyrule as he had in the past.<ref>{{cite|Do not fear. I will not kill you... I merely have need of the power that dwells within you.|Ganondorf|The Wind Waker}}</ref> This caused a new incarnation of Link and Princess Zelda to appear to challenge Ganondorf again, as had their predecessors. They rediscover Hyrule's remains at the bottom of the sea and a quest is begun to recharge the Master Sword by Link and the King of Red Lions (the alterego of Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule's spirit). Crossing the sea, Link finds the two new Sages of the Master Sword, a [[Rito]] named [[Medli]] and a [[Korok]] named [[Makar]], and installs them into the [[Earth Temple]] and the [[Wind Temple]] respectively.<ref>{{cite|Hmm... What a mysterious song... It sounds so familiar. It's almost as if something I've forgotten is trying to be remembered...Just now, a sage spoke to me. She spoke so gently... There is something... something I must do. Link... Thanks to you, I've been awakened to the knowledge that I'm a sage of the Earth Temple.|Medli|The Wind Waker}}</ref><ref>{{cite|This sacred song that you've conducted has awakened me... I know myself now! I am the sage of the Wind Temple...|Makar|The Wind Waker}}</ref> After succeeding in restoring the Sages of the Master Sword and returning the power to repel evil to the sword's enchanted blade, Link and the King of Red Lions return to the land of Hyrule beneath the sea, only to discover Zelda has been captured and imprisoned in [[Ganon's Tower]] by Ganondorf himself.<ref>{{cite|Link, I have fully restored the power to repel evil to your Master Sword.|Makar|The Wind Waker}}</ref><ref>{{cite|Did you think you'd be safe inside the castle? Foolish... Now that my power has been restored, there is no safe haven for you! I have taken your precious Zelda.|Ganondorf|The Wind Waker}}</ref><ref>{{cite|I am certain that the Princess Zelda is being held captive in Ganon's Tower.|King of Red Lions|The Wind Wakerr}}</ref>
}}
Link conquers the trials of the tower and faces Ganondorf atop the roof, where, looking out over the beautiful land of Hyrule, the villain reveals his true reasons for wishing to conquer Hyrule: Ganondorf coveted the lush green fields of Hyrule because the winds there brought life and happiness, whereas he and his people only found death in the winds that blew across the harsh landscape of the Gerudo Desert.<ref>{{cite|When the sun rose into the sky, a burning wind punished my lands, searing the world. And when the moon climbed into the dark of night, a frigid gale pierced our homes. No matter when it came, the wind carried the same thing... Death. But the winds that blew across the green fields of Hyrule brought something other than suffering and ruin. I coveted that wind, I suppose.|Ganondorf|The Wind Waker}}</ref> Ganondorf then reforms the united Triforce and attempts to wish for the effects of the Great Flood to be undone, therefore exposing Hyrule to the rays of the sun once more with himself as its ruler.<ref>{{cite|Now! Let us put an end to that which binds us together! Gods! Hear that which I desire! Expose this land to the rays of the sun once more! Let them burn forth! Give Hyrule to me!!!|Ganondorf|The Wind Waker}}</ref> However, before he could touch the golden relic, Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule appears and touches it first, instead wishing for Link and Zelda to have a future and for Hyrule to finally be washed away for good, along with Ganondorf and himself.<ref>{{cite|He who touches it will have whatever he desires granted... That is what you said, is it not, Ganondorf? Gods of the Triforce! Hear that which I desire! Hope! I desire hope for these children! Give them a future! Wash away this ancient land of Hyrule! Let a ray of hope shine on the future of the world!!! [...] Ganondorf, may you drown with Hyrule!!!|Daphnes Nohnansen Hyrule|The Wind Waker}}</ref> The Triforce pieces rise into the air and vanish as the air chamber above them begins to collapse, allowing the Great Sea to pour into Hyrule. Ganondorf then engages Link and Zelda in a final duel in Hyrule's final moments, but ultimately is defeated when Link plunges the Master Sword into the villain's head, turning him to stone. After a final encounter with the King, during which he instructs them to find a new land<ref>{{cite|Ah, but child... That land will not be Hyrule. It will be YOUR land!|Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule}}</ref> the water overtakes the entire world, finally and completely destroying Hyrule as Link and Zelda drift to the surface under the Triforce's magic, where they then set sail across the sea in search of the new land of their own.
The Great Flood is the name often associated with a deluge that befell the land of Hyrule many generations after the end of Ocarina of Time in the Adult Timeline. Described in the introduction of The Wind Waker, it occurred when Ganondorf escaped from his imprisonment in the Sacred Realm and returned to Hyrule, after the departure of the Hero of Time.[1]
Many generations after the departure of the Hero of Time, the seal of the Seven Sages began to weaken for an unknown reason, and Ganondorf managed to escape his imprisonment. Ganondorf intended to make good on his threat to the Hero of Time and the Seven Sages that he would escape one day to make their descendants pay for his imprisonment.[2][3] As the darkness was covering the land, the people of Hyrule prayed that the Hero of Time would once again come to save them, but the hero did not appear.[4]
The Divine Deluge
The people of Hyrule pray to the Goddesses for deliverance, resulting in the Great Flood.
The King of Hyrule, Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule, attempted to use his magic to stop Ganondorf, but failed. Left with no other choice, the people pleaded to the three Golden Goddesses.[5][6] The Goddesses eventually answered the peoples' prayers, instructing those chosen to flee to Hyrule's mountaintops in order to escape the coming flood and to prevent Ganon's wish of the destruction of the land. Once the people were safely away, the Goddesses caused a torrential downpour, covering the land and turning the mountaintops into islands.[7] The king chose to remain behind with his doomed kingdom. He split the Triforce of Wisdom into two parts and instructed the princess of that era to keep one piece and flee to the mountaintops with her servants.[8]
Ganon's army had already infiltrated Hyrule Castle when the goddesses sealed the kingdom within an enchanted air chamber that prevented the water from destroying it. A magical seal was also cast over the Master Sword and the Pedestal of Time that froze the entire land of Hyrule and Ganon's army, freezing them in time and draining the entire kingdom of color.[9]
The people of Hyrule would then go on to build a new civilization on the surface of the Great Sea and, with the passing of time, largely forget the memory of the old Hyrule that still existed deep beneath the waves.[10]
The final duel between Ganondorf, Link and Zelda in Hyrule's final moments.
Many centuries after the initial flood, Ganondorf broke free of the seal binding Hyrule and returned, intending to reunite the Triforce pieces to reconquer the sunken Hyrule.[11] This caused a new incarnation of Link and Princess Zelda to appear to challenge Ganondorf again, as had their predecessors. After uniting the Triforce, and at the will of the old King, the sacred pieces rise into the air and vanish as the air chamber above them begins to collapse, allowing the Great Sea to pour into Hyrule. After Ganondorf is defeated, Hyrule is completely swallowed by water, leaving Link and Princess Zelda to create a new Hyrule above the waves.
Trivia
The Goddesses flooding Hyrule to cleanse evil from the land, at the sacrifice of most life while allowing a select few to survive, is similar to many flood myths from real life.
References
↑"The great evil that all thought had been forever sealed away by the hero...once again crept forth from the depths of the earth, eager to resume its dark designs." — N/A (The Wind Waker)
↑"Once, long ago, this land of Hyrule was turned into a world of shadows by Ganon, who sought to obtain the power of the gods for his own evil ends." — Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule (The Wind Waker)
↑"Someday...When this seal is broken....That is when I will exterminate your descendants!!" — Ganondorf (Ocarina of Time)
↑"The people believed that the Hero of Time would again come to save them. ...But the hero did not appear." — N/A (The Wind Waker)
↑"My power alone could not stop the fiend, and our only choice was to leave the fate of the kingdom in the hands of the gods..." — Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule (The Wind Waker)
↑"Faced by an onslaught of evil, the people could do nothing but appeal to the gods. In their last hour, as doom drew nigh, they left their future in the hands of fate." — N/A (The Wind Waker)
↑"When the gods heard our pleas, they chose to seal away not only Ganon, but Hyrule itself...and so, with a torrential downpour of rains from the heavens... Our fair kingdom was soon buried beneath the waves, forgotten at the bottom of the ocean. Yet all was not lost. For the gods knew that to seal the people away with the kingdom would be to grant Ganon's wish for the destruction of the land. So, before the sealing of the kingdom, the gods chose those who would build a new country and commanded them to take refuge on the mountaintops." — Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule (The Wind Waker)
↑"The gods chose which of the kingdom's subjects would ascend to the new land, telling them to escape to the tallest mountains. They then flooded the world, sinking Ganondorf and Hyrule to the bottom of the ocean and sealing them away. Though the king was sealed along with his kingdom, the princess took a piece of the Triforce that had been broken in two by the king and managed to escape to the ocean's surface with several of her retainers." (Hyrule Historia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 123)
↑"By the way, boy... When you drew that sword of yours out of its resting place... Did you by chance notice how all of the monsters frozen in time down there suddenly began stirring again?[...] While that sword is indeed the blade of evil's bane, at the same time, it has long played another role... You see, it is also a sort of key... a most wretched little key that has kept the seal on me and my magic intact! By withdrawing the blade, you have broken that seal..." — Ganondorf (The Wind Waker)
↑"The memory of the kingdom vanished, but its legend survived on the wind's breath." — N/A (The Wind Waker)
↑"Do not fear. I will not kill you... I merely have need of the power that dwells within you." — Ganondorf (The Wind Waker)
