The Legend of Zelda: Shadowsong
Book One - Forest

Chapter One - Courage

A veil of mist hung over the forest path, swirling eerily in the darkness. The trees above were ancient and towering, their shadowed silhouettes looming so thickly with gnarled branches that they blocked out the starlight, leaving the leafy forest floor in complete blackness. A faint whisper of wind rose rustling in the undergrowth, bringing with it the sickly-sweet scent of rotting leaves and creeping gray lichen. The path was narrow and dark, winding through the thick wooden trunks and bordered by heavy draping vines and clinging spiderwebs.

A point of dim bluish light wandered warily along the path, flickering slightly like a windblown candle. The crunch of footsteps on the dry leaves underfoot. A murmur of voices, so hesitantly whispered that they could barely be heard over the rustling of the trees. The light, tiny and quavering, emanated from a large, brass-bound lantern plated with burnished glass and bearing a thick brass ring at its peak, so that it could be fixed to the long, hook-tipped pole it swung from. The pole the lantern suspended from was also brass; thick, and taller than its bearer by almost a head. Behind the cloudy glass, a common blue forest-fairy floated lazily like a little mote of light, its wings fluttering slightly from time to time as if being flexed.

The lantern-bearer's face was lit with a faint blue light from his fairy-lantern's glow. He was young, perhaps seventeen summers in age; tall, with fair skin that darkened slightly with the sun. His ears beneath his short blonde hair were long and tapered to points, and they wavered with the slight unconscious motion of a cat's. His eyes were slanted and a deep, resonant blue, made bluer by the flickering light.

"Link?" Behind the lantern-bearer, a girl trod softly, having to skip a few steps to keep up with his longer stride. She was as old as her companion, relatively short, with long braided black hair and green eyes, and her pointed ears drooped slightly as if with fear. The lantern creaked softly as it swung, and her musical voice was barely louder. "Do you ever get... weird feelings in the forest at night? Like unseen eyes are watching you?"

Link looked over his shoulder at her and nodded. "Sometimes, Minuet. But everyone says it's just the forest spirits. Nothing to be scared of."

Minuet shivered slightly as she walked, drawing her cloak more tightly around her as if to ward off a chill, despite the warmth of the night. They both wore those cloaks: thick and woolen and woven of deep green fabric that hung heavy on their shoulders. Link's brushed the forest floor with each step, and shorter Minuet's trailed behind her and rustled in the undergrowth. Sagecloaks, they were called in the village: the sacred garment worn when visiting the forest temple. Link wore his with pride. Someday, it said, he would be a temple Sage, a keeper of the revered ruins deep within the forest. He and Minuet, if she could ever get over her fear of the dark. "I hate visiting the temple at night..." Minuet whimpered.

Link looked ahead into the darkness beyond his little pool of light. "The spirits will protect us, Minuet. Besides, we'll be Sages someday. Even the animals know not to harm us." When she didn't reply, he added, "Remember the story of the spirits? Sage Fado used to tell it when we were little. How the Kokiri spirits once looked like children, and how they used to play here in these woods, and the forest fairies would follow them everywhere. You remember? That's all you're feeling; the spirits."

"No." Minuet murmured, her ears twitching anxiously. "I know what that feels like, but you can feel the spirits watching even in broad daylight, and it certainly isn't frightening. This is something... something else."

Link shrugged and shifted the lantern to his right hand from his left, which was beginning to ache from carrying it. He had never felt one way or the other about the forest spirits, except to know that they were there. But Minuet was sensitive to these things: she could not only tell if the spirits were watching, but which spirit was. Whatever she was sensing wasn't one of the usual spirits then. The boy closed his eyes and tried to open himself to the spirit-feeling, the sense of a whisper just beyond hearing, a touch just unfelt. It was one of the gifts of those who grew up near the forest, a strange connection with it. The forest was a symphony of rustling leaves, some silent animal slinking through the bushes, a quietly shifting keese hanging with folded wings upside-down in a tree. Eyes would do no good here; he strained his senses, his nose taking in the sweet familiar smell of the forest, his pointed ears embracing the sounds of rustling underbrush, the taste of warm night air on his lips, and the brush of the wind against his skin…

And there it was. The strange sixth sense, the sensation of dozens of eyes watching from the swaying treetops. The silent whisper of a million voices mouthing: Link, Link, Link...

Minuet was right. There was something else, the feeling of a voice not speaking, of one pair of eyes watching in silence. And as strange as that was, its silence seemed to drown out all the other voices, until Link found himself floating alone in a void, with the silent presence... waiting...

"Waiting for what?" Link murmured aloud, and the sound of his own voice broke through the fragile barrier of sensation. He opened his eyes and squinted against the sudden brightness of the fairy-lantern.

"You felt it too, then!" Minuet gasped, quickening her pace to be nearer the light. "Then it isn't just me. There's something in the forest, something that shouldn't be here!"

"Is it dangerous?" Link asked, trusting Minuet's superior senses.

The girl shook her head. "I don't know. I've felt it before. I guess I've always been able to feel it, but it was just one of the spirits. Only now it's not. Now it's... becoming more real, and it... It scares me, Link."

Link was tempted to ask what "it" was, and how it could be a spirit and then suddenly not a spirit, and for that matter, what becoming "real" meant, but he knew better than to voice the question. Not even Minuet understood how her sensitivity to the spirits worked, and when she got her feelings she often couldn't explain them. He wasn't going to add to her anxiety by asking her questions she didn't have the answers to. "It could be nothing." he murmured, the heavy lantern shifting hands again. "Just a spirit getting closer than usual." But he had to admit, that silent presence hadn't felt like one of the familiar spirits.

The trees all around opened up suddenly, spreading wide on either side to form a sort of road and flooding the world with starlight, and the dirt and leaves underfoot became large slabs of marble paving-stone, cracked in places, and with grass and weeds growing between them, but the grandness of it still sent a shiver of excitement up Link's spine. Out of the darkness loomed carved stone pillars, the feeble lantern-light illuminating their bases as they towered toward the stars. Link ran a hand over the smooth stone of one as he passed, his fingers tracing weathered carvings of an ancient picture: the form of a man with an elaborate sword in his left hand. Link's own left hand tightened unconsciously on the lantern pole, as if he had for a brief moment envisioned it as a blade. Stop having fantasies, he scolded himself, and act the part of a Sage for once.

And the part of a Sage began with the forest temple. Rising out of the darkness before them was a massive structure of stone, so intertwined with vines and the branches of towering trees that it was impossible to see where the stone ceased and the forest began. No matter how many times he had seen it, Link couldn't help but take a deep breath in awe of the temple, and behind him he heard Minuet do the same. Side by side, they walked slowly up the stone steps to the temple doors, the lantern creaking on its pole as it swung. Link found himself humming quietly, a simple six-note tune, and stopped.

At the top of the stairs, the lantern-light glowed eerily against the heavy stone doors of the temple, which were carved with more images of the sword-wielding hero. "I wonder who he was." Link murmured thoughtfully, raising the lantern so it shone on the hero's face. "He must have been important to have his image carved into the temple like this."

"He was one of the Kokiri spirits." Minuet said, and when Link gave her a funny look added, "Well, he must have been. He's dressed in that green tunic the Kokiri wear in stories, and all the pictures show him with a forest-fairy. Now hurry and open the doors. I don't like being out here in the dark."

Link leaned his lantern pole against the side of the temple and braced his back against the doors. They opened slowly, their stone hinges squealing from neglect as he thrust his weight against them. The darkness within the temple beyond was absolute, and Link reclaimed his pole lantern again before venturing inside. Afraid to be left alone in the night, Minuet followed. "Let's get this over with quickly." she hissed, casting worried glances around at the darkness. "That watched feeling is getting stronger."

Long ago, the Sages had held some sacred duty; a post with the fate of the entire world in the balance. Or so Sage Fado said, for to Link and Minuet the entire world was their village and the forest, and the ancient duty was long lost. Now the duty of a temple Sage was to come once a season to the forest temple and spend a day and a night praying to the forest goddess, Forore, in order to bring about peace and good luck for the village. That would be Link's duty as well, once he completed his training with Sage Fado. The duty of an apprentice Sage was to visit the temple once a month, to take care of its upkeep and scare away any wild animals, such as rats or keese, that might have taken refuge within it. It wasn't a big job, as only the entryway and outer rooms needed to be kept. The inner sanctum was kept securely locked, and only a Sage could enter it.

Link set his pole lantern in the gilded lamp stand in the center of the entryway, illuminating the room just enough to reveal a cavernous hall, its walls creeping with ancient vines and its roof hidden in shadow. An oil lantern would have given off better light, but tradition dictated that no fire was to be brought into the temple, as much for ritual's sake as that there was so much to burn. Looking around, the hair on the back of Link's neck prickled slightly, and he tried to ignore it. The feeling of being watched was stronger here, but if he didn't think too hard about it, it really was no different than the spirit feeling.

"Oh, would you stop humming!" Minuet murmured anxiously. Realizing he had been humming that six-note song again, Link quickly stopped.

They split up on their routine check of the temple, delving into the shadowed doorways of the outer rooms, glancing around as quickly as they dared before dashing back into the entryway to be nearer the light. In each room, Link found nothing amiss, only darkness, a few cobwebs, and that eerie feeling of being watched. At last he came to the final door, hidden far back in the shadows of the entry hall. The doorway that led to the inner sanctum. He knew it was locked, but out of habit he pushed softly on the wood of the door to make sure. And with a creak, the door swung open a few inches and a rush of dry air blew past his face. Link jumped back and gaped at it. It shouldn't have been. The door was locked, had always been locked, would always be locked, and yet there he was, staring at an almost foot-wide gap of darkness between the door and its frame. He shook his head, trying to think. The door had been locked when he and Minuet came here last month, and Sage Fado hadn't been to the temple since then either. So why is the door unlocked?

It wasn't his business. The inner sanctum was the worry of a Sage, not a Sage's apprentice. He should just close the door again. He should close it and walk away. Close it and walk away. Definitely not open it wider and walk inside. Definitely not go inside. If only his feet would listen to what his head was telling them. Link took a step towards the door. And then another. One more and he could push past it. One more step and he would be inside the forbidden inner sanctum, see what none but the Sages had seen. One more...

A shrill scream echoed chillingly through the temple, and Link grabbed the door almost guiltily and slammed it shut. Another frightened scream tore through the semi-darkness, before even the echoes of the first had died, and Link whipped around and sprinted the length of the entry hall, pausing only to wrench the lantern pole out of its stand before tearing towards the darkened doorway from which the screams had come.

The blue lantern light played across the vine-covered stone walls of a tiny room off the entrance hall. The floor here was dirt, and bore only a few patches of weed-choked and overgrown grass. Link looked around in confusion for the source of the scream, but all was silent now.

"D-don't come in..." A choked sob rose from the far corner of the room, and Link hoisted the lantern high enough to illuminate the tear-streaked face of a very frightened Minuet, huddling against the cold stone as if afraid to be any nearer the center of the room. Link gaped at her. There was dirt smeared up the front of her robe, and a cut under one of those green eyes, as if she had fallen flat on her face.

"Minuet, what happened?" he gasped, beginning to walk towards her, but she shouted: "DON'T COME IN!!!" and huddled farther back into her corner, a look of terror on her face.

Link ignored her warning. "Minuet, you're hurt! Did you trip over something in the dark? Look, you're bleeding..." Minuet whimpered and buried her face in her hands; afraid to look at him. "Minuet, what's..."

Something huge and heavy seemed to vault out of the floor under Link's feet, and he felt something pound into his chest and send him flying backward through the doorway. He hit the ground with a thud, his head smacking into the stone pavement of the entryway with a sharp crack of pain. Violent whorls of color swam across his vision, and distantly he could hear Minuet screaming again. She's in trouble! Get up, come on...

Painfully, Link pushed himself into a sitting position, his head spinning and the world swimming in and out of focus as he fought to stay conscious. Stronger than ever were those eyes drilling into the back of his head, the silent presence, but suddenly it seemed… accusing, as if ashamed that he couldn't even shrug off a little fall in order to help Minuet. Get up, get up! He struggled to his feet, willing himself not to sway and fall, and stared into the doorway where Minuet was trapped. The lantern had been smashed to bits against the ground when Link fell, and the little blue fairy now buzzed energetically around the room, enjoying its newfound freedom. In its glow the boy could make out Minuet still huddled against the far wall, and between her and the door...

A huge plant, lying hidden before in the tall grass, now towered as tall as Link in the center of the room. Supported by a twisting, vine-like stem, its head was a massive bulbous pod, split down the middle by a scarlet mouth lined with razor-sharp thorns for teeth, drooling sap between its woody lips. It lurched its creeper body, snapping at the circling fairy. More painful than a stinging nettle was Boko Baba, the man eating plant.

"Minuet, don't move!" Link shouted, and Minuet whimpered again.

"I know! I k-know! What do I d-do?!"

Link cast around frantically for some way to distract the killer weed so that Minuet could make a run for the door. There, on the stone pavement at his feet lay the lantern pole, the heavy lantern still fixed to its end, glass shattered and frame bent. "I've got an idea!" he shouted, grasping the long brass pole in his left hand and dragging it upright. "When the time comes, run!"

"How w-will I know w-when to run?" Minuet sobbed frantically, and a look of steel crept into Link's blue eyes.

"You'll know." Link stepped slowly through the doorway, lantern pole in hand, and the Boko Baba's ugly head whipped around to face him. He envisioned the hero carved into the temple door, tried to tell himself he held not a lantern but a sword. "That's it, come get me." The plant's fanged pod thrust forward and Link swung the lantern pole like he imagined one would swing a blade. With a smash of breaking glass and crumpling metal, the lantern collided with the Boko Baba's woody head, and Minuet shot forward, sprinting past both the stunned plant and Link in her hurry to reach the door. Link swung the lantern again, bashing the plant on the head and feeling the shock of impact travel up his arms. Again he hit it. Again. Again! AGAIN!!!

"LINK!" Minuet grasped his arm to stop him from swinging the lantern, and he looked into her tear-streaked face. "Link, you can stop. It's dead."

Breathing hard, Link stared down at the crushed remains of the Boko Baba, oozing sticky sap and already beginning to smell of decay. "It's dead." he repeated slowly. "And I killed it." A small grin crossed his face. "With a lantern."

"With a lantern," Minuet agreed, smiling slightly as she wiped the tears from her face. "That was really brave..."

Link nodded. "Are you alright? Did it hurt you?"

Minuet touched the cut on her cheek. "It just knocked me down. Are you hurt?"

Link winced as he was reminded of the pain in the back of his skull. "Truthfully, my head really hurts right now."

Minuet smiled sympathetically. "Let's go home then. I've had just about enough of my apprentice duties for one day. We can finish up tomorrow when it's light out. Besides, someone has to tell Sage Fado we have a Boko Baba infestation."

The fairy long gone, they made their way back to the towering stone doorway in the dark. Minuet grasped the carved stone door handles and pulled with all her might, thrusting all her slight weight into dragging the doors open. After a moment, she paused, panting, and looked up at Link, but in the darkness he couldn't make out her expression. "What's wrong?" he asked, and she whimpered slightly.

"It's... it's locked! We're locked inside the forest temple!"

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Thoughts from the author:

Well here it is, the first chapter of Shadowsong. I'm excited to finally get my fan-novel off the ground! This by no means my first fanfic, but it is the first one that I'm actually taking seriously, so feedback would be appreciated.

The context of this story is a bit fuzzy; it occurs sometime between Ocarina of Time and Twilight Princess, and the Link we see here is a new character, not the Link of any previous game. Going into this I wanted to create a brand-new Zelda storyline, with all the adventurous feel of the Nintendo games. A lot of place and character names have been recycled, but Hyrule has changed a bit and there will be a lot of new places to explore and people to meet as well.

There are three main characters. Link was the first. In the next chapter we meet the second; a Gerudo boy who bears the triforce of Power.