notes: no capitalization, second person point of view
time's end i
if you want to, please listen to theophany's remix of majora's mask if you haven't already! the "time's end" series is already turning out beautiful and it would be great if y'all can support the cd's.
01—majora's mask
a scream echoed in the forest, filled with darkness and some sort of...haunting feeling. it's unclear what this sensation is, but you don't like it and it's causing shivers to reach even the deepest confines of your bones. there's something lurking there, in this terrifying darkness, and while you're tempted to look further into it, your—
a laugh. a laugh unlike any laugh you've heard before. you tremble as your horse guides you further through the misty forest. this is the start of an adventure, you tell yourself. you're searching for your best friend that had left you, and this path is the only one out of hyrule.
or maybe there was another and you just made a big mistake. you're not sure.
epona whinnies and you continue on, ignoring the sense of someone staring at the back of your head. there's no time to waste.
02—the clockworks
after that horrible meeting with that imp, you stumble across what looks like a giant water wheel inside of a tower. when you listen carefully, the running water calms your heart and allows you to breathe again. it's a refreshing feeling to be able to just let your anxiety flow with the current.
in your head there's a...melody playing. a soft tune, healing in nature, and you want to find out where it's coming from. you head up the ramp at your left side, careful about how you walk because this deku body is most uncomfortable but there's nothing you can do about it. that masked imp made you this way out of what couldn't be anything other than spite.
there's a large door atop the wooden ramp, and a small stream of light coming through the slightly open crack. the fairy at your side mentions into your ear that it must be the way out and you want so bad to step outside into the warmth of the sun after so long of being in caves.
03—terrible fate
but you aren't that lucky. a man steps from the shadows and stops you. for a second you think that he is with the imp, with those jeering eyes looking into your soul. but he knows that healing song. so he can't be that bad.
"there's a mask," he says. "a magical, purple mask with glowing gold eyes. spikes of the color of the rainbow. have you seen it? it was stolen by an imp."
you tell him that yes, you've seen it. that very imp stole your ocarina so you have a bone to pick with it.
he smiles a scary smile. "i see," he replies. "is it too much to ask you to get it back?"
what's in it for you?
"your previous body, hylian."
you can't say no. tatl perks up and asks what the deal with that evil mask was and why it corrupted her friend. the man just laughs and looks up at the ceiling. "it's majora's mask. that's what it does."
there's a sudden feeling of sadness in your wooden bones. you don't like this man anymore. you take a cautious step back, and knowing he won't follow you push open the heavy wooden doors.
"by the way," he catches you right as you take your first step outside. "i leave in three days. Do make sure to get it back by then, alright?"
the sun has never felt better as you take in the fresh air. but this isn't hyrule.
the man's laugh still echoes in your head as the heavy doors close behind you with a loud sound. he stays in the tower? why? three days? has he gone insane?
you look up and notice the large clock on the tower. three days. not much time to get back at the imp.
seventy-two hours remain.
04—clocktown
the hustle and bustle is most welcome. the folks around the tower are chattering happily with each other, and it's enough to almost distract you from the face of the moon above that hangs threateningly. you decide to explore this clocktown. what's the harm?
the southern square is filled with construction workers and a busy postman rushes on by, muttering to himself about how he has a strict schedule to work under. there's a dog running around, but he attacks you. that's fine.
the eastern square houses a pair of jugglers, preparing for the festival of time, they tell you. there's a gathering of shops and an inn, as well as a milk bar by the exit. the mayor's office is here as well, although he's in a bit of a bind when you go visit, thanks to the moon.
the northern square is a grassy area dedicated to the park. there's a kid trying to pop a balloon, and not much else apart from a cave on a small ledge. you remind yourself to step inside later.
the western square is clearly the shopping area. bazaars, the bank, the post office, a bomb shop! how incredible, this town has nearly everything!
and the people are really nice too! the rosa sisters tell you you're cute and a few of the bomber gang kids ask you to play hide-and-seek with them some time.
as much as this isn't hyrule, you have to admit that it actually isn't that bad of a place.
even if the guards are a little rude. can't they see the hero of time in front of them?
oh. right. deku body. you forget that little detail.
this town is so blind, though. you have to save it before it's all too late. before your time runs out and the moon hits.
05—healing the great fairy
"the imp shattered my body. please help me."
when you stepped into that cave on the ledge, past the boy with the balloon, you didn't expect there to be a fairy fountain. or that the great fairy in question has been broken into pieces.
she begs you, please, hero, find my lost pieces. one over by where clothes are washed when the sun is shining, and the other by performers when the sun goes to rest.
and so you get the misplaced fairy and the great fairy returns to her normal self. "there are my four sisters, still," she says with a worried face after blessing you with her magic. "i fear that the imp has gotten to them too. please, hero. go find them and help them as you've helped me."
you agree, because great fairies have been an amazing help in the past. but where are her sisters? there's nothing here apart from the town. unless...
were the others outside of the town walls? you haven't been close to leaving yet. as you step back out into the sunlight, you think about the promise you just made.
what if you can't find her sisters before the three days are over? how will you live with the guilt?
you crouch down and tatl flutters around your head.
this is just too much.
06—moon's tear
when you played with the bomber kids, they gave you a code to the underground sewer system.
you never would have guessed that the underground sewer system would lead to a beautiful room with a multi-colored staircase, leading to a platform with a telescope. an observatory! the scientist there is so very happy to let you sit and look through.
there's so much beyond the walls! in fact, this very building is sitting by the forest! you look around, spotting a few birds. there's snowy mountains there, a beach over there, and a canyon! so many places!
and then, on top of the clock tower, is the imp.
it must know that you're looking because he's talking with the moon. when you pan up, it seems as though the moon cries a single tear, and then looking back at the imp he's simply shaking his behind at you before jumping off to goddess' know where.
"did a moon's tear fall?" the scientist asks, because the sound the object made was loud and sounded like it was very close. "go get it, young man. those are very valuable."
you run out the door and grab the tear. it's warm in your hands, and pulsating like a heartbeat. you look back up at the moon, whose face hasn't changed in the day you've been here. the only difference is that it's closer and still coming. the rain hits your wooden face with small splashes. tatl whines that her wings are getting wet so you both rush inside.
"may i?" the scientist asks, and you hand him the tear. he examines it for a second before handing it back. "it's been quite some time since one fell. i'll let you have this one. take good care of it, it will do you very good. very lucky."
you sell it to a deku merchant for a flower spot because there's a piece of heart on the high ledge of the clock tower. such a valuable thing, indeed.
07—lover's mask
anju and kafei's story is a heart-breaking tragedy, you think.
and you feel for her, not knowing where her fiancé has gone. you think about all the people you had met in hyrule, and how while you know where you are, they'll never know. they'll never even know you exist beyond the ten-year old boy they saw.
it's the third night, the festival of time is going to begin soon and anju is just crying in her room, alone. you can hear her sobs through the door, and she's speaking, quietly. tatl chastises you for eavesdropping but you swat her away. "i am so sorry, kafei. i couldn't find you. i love you, please come back."
you step away from the door, heart turning at the broken sound of her voice. everyone else in the inn has already left, in fact, probably most of the people in the town had. is she really thinking of just staying her? of waiting for her demise?
"wherever you are," she continues, and you press yourself close again. "let's greet the morning together."
you clench your teeth. that imp is going to pay. you hussle downstairs and out the door, right for the large clock tower. it's a little bit until midnight, and you're ready to get that mask back and make everything right.
this is for anju, you swear to yourself as the clock finally strikes twelve and fireworks begin shooting off. for anju, for kafei, and for their eternal love.
08—majora's wrath
the imp simply laughs at you once you make it to the top of the tower. he's hovering just under the moon's nose, your pretty blue ocarina of time in his hand. "what is it? do you think you'll defeat me as i am now? pathetic."
he pulls down the moon a little more and the ground shakes underneath you. "this is for all you humans have done to me! suppressed my powers! it's all that traveler's fault! if he hadn't interfered—"
you shoot a snot bubble at him and it stuns him, causing your flute to fall from his hand. you rush to it.
the song of time is played.
the moon stops in its tracks and tatl screeches. for a second, you think it's too late.
but time begins to run backwards. and as you watch the scenery fade to black you feel your body fall backwards. the fireworks are still on your mind.
09—final hours
you didn't get the mask back.
thinking back onto the final few hours of the world, you didn't get the mask.
you had the opportunity, in fact, it presented itself quite nicely, but your fear of being crushed by the moon stopped you at the last minute. when you come to, you're breathing heavily at the mere idea of death, and you're back in the clock tower, in front of the heavy wooden doors.
are you dead? you can't tell. you're still a deku scrub, so you don't have any skin that you could pinch to try and figure it out. actually, wait, if you were dead you would probably be back as a human.
you curl in on yourself, and tatl hovers by your head. she calls your name, but you don't respond.
you don't know if you succeeded or failed.
10—time's end
the salesman asks for the mask.
you look at him with wide eyes. you don't have it.
for a second, with the calm anger on his face, you're tempted to run down the ramp through the doors you originally came here and go back to hyrule. he shakes you in anger, "how dare you not get my mask back?! you were so close!"
and you take it, because there's nothing else you can do.
but he's not angry for long, and he returns you to your human form. a mask falls to your feet and in reflex you jump back. but it looks suspiciously like the face you just wore.
"three days," the salesman says as you bend down to pick it up. "i assume you realize that you only have three days to save this world."
you nod, thinking of all the people that would have perished had you not turned back time.
"remember what my brother said?" tatl asks. "the swamp, the mountains, the ocean and a land of the dead. something about people waiting for us."
"the giants," the salesman confirms. "they will help save us. that song i just taught you eases the suffering of souls. i'm sure it will be helpful."
you hold the ocarina in your hands, watching the instrument shine in the dull light. "please, hero. save this land."
you stand up straight, feeling the sword and shield shift against your back, and with the mark of the hero on your hand you exit the clock tower into the sunlight.
three days until it falls, and the moon is still there, with that same face, looming ever closer.
three days until it falls, you tell yourself as you head for the nearest exit and pass the guard.
three days until time ends, you say as you step outside the clocktown walls for the first time. the wind blows through your hair.
seventy-two hours remain.
author's notes:
this is based off of theopany's "time's end i" cd, which as previously stated is amazing and you guys should totally go take a listen! both parts are currently available on youtube.
i did a little experiment with my writing and every part was written with the time span of the individual songs, which are the titles of the ten sections. i'll be doing this with the second part as well as any parts that follow suit!
thanks for reading! love you guys!