Okay, everyone. Just a few words before you begin. This story runs as a parallel to Phantom Hourglass so there are spoilers for both The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. It is in no way, shape, or form a novelization, though it will have similar (sometimes identical) events, and Phantom Hourglass characters will play major roles.

Disclaimer: This aspiring author has never, nor will she ever, own The Legend of Zelda.

The pirate crew had just come ashore several hours previous, mapping out the island, searching for anything out of the ordinary; well, several hours later, here he was, elected to explore the 'out of the ordinary'-which was, in reality, a rather deep, and very dark hole-more thoroughly, his captain right beside him.

Link squinted into the darkness surrounding the pair of pirates, struggling to make anything out. He found something, almost immediately, as he tripped over… well…something. And by the sound of things, Tetra was having similar troubles… if the annoyed grunt from across the room was anything to judge by…

Several more minutes went by, with the two stumbling around blindly, before…

"Link!" Tetra snapped from somewhere behind the hero, causing him to jump. "You're the one who looted all those other temples-"

He grimaced at the wording…after all he meant to return the artifacts used in his quest…but seeing as they had yet to find new Hyrule…well, what was the harm…? Now wasn't the time for excuses, though, was it? Not while Tetra was still talking…

"-why don't you make yourself useful and find a way to light up this goddess forsaken chamber!"

The hero rolled his eyes, how very insightful of his supposed captain….

Almost automatically, he drew two arrows from his quiver, and- calling upon the magic granted to him by the Fairy Queen-lit the arrow heads. Idly, he waved one in Tetra's general direction, and almost immediately felt it being snatched away. He chuckled dryly, and started toward the 'door' opposite the opening they'd arrived in, pirate captain not far behind.

It was a strange room, he reflected. Granted, he'd seen many a puzzle with x amount of torches that-presumably- needed to be lit, but so many in such a confined space? Odd… And then there was that door…it was actually a stone tablet, with a hole smashed clear through. Now, he was an adventurer, not a genius, but even his thirteen year old mind could figure out that they weren't the first to venture down this pit.

It was only one turn later that they faced the second of what Link assumed were supposed to be obstacles. In front of them lie a rather short- but very deep- pit; and on the other side-as he was not at all surprised to find- plain as day was a target for a hookshot…

He handed the flaming arrow to Tetra, before pulling that very device from his satchel and taking careful aim. As planned, the tool extended, and found a solid hold on the target.

Link smirked, looking back at the pirate captain and extending his free hand.

"Coming?"

She rolled her eyes, taking the proffered hand, and within seconds, they were safely on the other side of the chasm…

And right in front of one of the most disturbing walls she'd ever seen. An almost skeletal face, set in stone, sneered at the children. On an impulse, Tetra decided to reach out and touch it…only to fall straight through said 'wall'…

She could hear her companion laughing behind her, as he pulled the pirate up to her feet. Tetra quickly snatched her arm away, shoving one of the still flaming arrows into what she hoped was his face.

Both adventurers blinked, taking in the atmosphere of this new setting… Everything was stone, and not far away stood an unlit torch. Grumbling, Tetra set off to light it, leaving Link to whatever he was doing.

What previously mentioned hero was doing, in fact, was examining one of the pillars in front of himself…not that he had smacked head first into it, because that had certainly not been the case…Holding the arrow above his head- he wasn't too proud to admit that many of the obstacles he'd faced in the past had been taller than him-the hylian's eyes widened. Several feet above the arrow was a giant skull, eye sockets the size of both his fists put together; and, he noted- as Tetra successfully lit the torch- there were five more, creating a hexagon around an elaborate, but ruined statue of goddesses knew what.

Across the room, Tetra groaned. What seemed to be the only path forward was blocked by- who would have guessed- another bottomless pit. The problem here? There was no hookshot target anywhere in sight.

"Well…" She said, turning back to her companion-who was now surveying the rest of the room. "We're not going that way."

"What? You thought the path would be straight forward?" Link asked, shaking his head wearily. "These temples never go where you want them to."

He sighed, before pointing to part of a far wall, a wall with another face imprinted into its design. "What do you want to bet one of these leads the way?"

Tetra shrugged, holding her arrow out in front of herself like a torch. Needless to say, she was surprised when it collided with the wall, instead of passing through. So not all of these things were passages, eh? She almost yelled out to Link, before a little thing called 'payback' told her precisely how to exact revenge upon a certain hero…

"Hey Link!" She shouted, trying desperately to keep from grinning. "Come take a look at this!"

As predicted, the green-clad hylian came running…until that running ran straight into the wall. Unable to contain herself, Tetra cracked up, leaning against the unidentifiable statue for support as Link stood up, rubbing his forehead, glaring at the pirate captain.

"If the queen of comedy is done, I believe I've found the way forward." He grunted sourly, headed back in the direction he'd come from.

Tetra-still grinning- just shrugged and followed him through the not-so-solid barrier…and right into the very solid boy she'd just tricked.

Why were they running into so many things in this dumb old pit, anyway? Was it because it was so dark?

Tetra didn't get to finish the thought, though; as she quickly found out why Link hadn't gone further.

They were inside of what was undoubtedly a maze, with the same wall everywhere. It was impossible to see any difference between the one they'd just emerged from, which they could still identify- being right in front of it- thank the goddesses!

Link grimaced. So this place was like the Earth Temple, huh? He pulled a nearby pot into a position in front of the wall, and drew two more arrows, handing his original to Tetra once more. This time, he enchanted one with a light spell, thrusting the tail end down into the pot, so a beam shone onto the ceiling like a beacon; before freezing the entire thing with an ice arrow.

The crystal-like ice sent the beams of light in every direction. Now if that didn't catch their attention in the dank cavern, he didn't know what would.

Taking back his arrow- which wouldn't hold a proverbial candle to the light spilling from the pot- Link glanced back at Tetra.

"Who says I'm not smart?"

The captain rolled her eyes. "Well then, let's get going boy wonder." She grumbled, headed off without saying another word.

Link- who had taken to observing the walls again- shrugged, and followed her example, squinting suspiciously at a design closer to himself.

It wasn't until several minutes later that he realized the light he had been following was reflected from the ice, and that now he was quite alone…

The young hero groaned, leaning against a nearby wall and- predictably, by now- falling through it. He sat up, leaning against an actual non-decorated, stone wall between the one he'd just collapsed through, and another identical one on the other side of the short corridor.

His head tipped back and his eyes closed in an effort to calm himself and find a way out of this mess. Well, Tetra would…n't see the way forward…

What?

Link shook his head. Surely, Tetra would return to the…

…What in the name of Hyrule was that noise?

Focus. Link told himself. Tetra will go back to the beacon, when she realizes I'm not following her. I just need to retrace my steps and-

Again, the noise came, interrupting his thoughts…only this time he could hear…words…

"…ill will…" The…voices... seemed to whisper…

It was only a matter of seconds before they returned, louder than before.

"What is hidden in darkness…" The disembodied voice hissed, almost directly in his ear.

"Tricks full of ill will!" Cackled the same voice, on his other side.

"Can you see the way forward?" It enquired, Link opened his eyes, glaring accusingly into the nothing in front of him…Strange, he'd been sure it was just Tetra, 'punishing' him for getting lost.

Link pushed himself up, off the wall; rotating on the spot, holding his makeshift torch out to illuminate the entire room. No pirate. Anywhere.

The young hylian had to stop himself from biting his lip.

Which passage had he fallen through?

Well, that doesn't make a difference. He figured. If it's the wrong passage, then I just head through the other one…

Before he could stop himself, he answered the voices.

"No," He said, more calmly than he felt. "I can't see the way forward, but that won't stop me from getting there."

And with that, he walked through the wall.

-------------------------

Tetra huffed. "Dead end" She announced, unnecessarily. It was plain to see that there was nowhere left in front of the pirate to explore…but, had she been looking, she'd have realized that there was nobody to announce that ground breaking concept to…

The pirate shook her head, without turning around. "Jeeze Link." She moaned to the silence. "The silent treatment isn't going to get you anywhere. Grow up, would you?"

She peered intently at a small plaque, the one thing that made this wall different from any of the others.

Shadow Temple

Here lies Hyrule's bloody past

Of greed and hatred

Tetra whirled around, only to face the empty maze. Finally, the gravity of the situation hit her.

She'd managed to lose her traveling companion

In a maze filled with illusions

Inside the death trap of Ancient Hyrule

Goddesses help us…

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The chamber Link walked into was definitely not the one he'd been hoping for; though it was a break in the pattern he'd been seeing thus far. The ceiling of the room must have had a hole in it, or something, as a weak light was trickling down into it.

That wasn't the only thing, though. Six thin pillars stood in a hexagonal arrangement around the room. Link cursed his lack of foresight. He should have taken a better look around that first room…

Though, looking at the arrangement, it was very obvious that this was hardly an exact replica of that room… The chamber itself was round, for one thing, and not composed of stone… It was a muddy brown color, which meant that it was most likely dirt.

Plus those pillars were white, not black, and much, much thinner than the ones he'd seen earlier.

He lifted his arrow to look at the top of the nearest pillar. No. That definitely wasn't a skull…it was more of a-

In a lightning fast movement, the pillar shot forward and…snatched…the flaming arrow away, before casting it across the room.

Before Link could react, another pillar caught him around the head.

…It was more of a hand…

He could feel claw-like nails sticking into his skull, fingers finding a better grip around his neck. The appendage forced his head down, and his eyes widened at the sight below.

His gaze met the empty sockets of a nameless face, embedded into the ground…there were…hundreds of them…

It was several moments before he realized that he couldn't breathe.

Not in the dramatic sense, though it would have been quite fitting. No, the sensation would be due to the hand clutching at his throat, strangling him.

The next few moments passed in a haze, his vision quickly faded, until his eyes were as useful as a cucco in a field of bombflowers, and he was left with his other, more reliable-though still impaired- senses.

Link felt his head being tipped upwards, and the pressure on his throat lessen for a moment. Distantly, he thought he heard something…something…maybe someone… moving. Sort of a scuffle…

Then the strangest sensation…before complete agony- as though every wound he'd ever received had been reopened- and blackness.

-------------------------

Tetra tore through the maze at an alarming speed, bellowing Link's name every few steps. She'd passed the crystalline marker at least five times already!

There must have been a path…

She kept one arm steady against the right hand wall as she took another lap. Her calls still went unanswered, but despite that, she was in luck. Her hand went straight through one of the walls, and the pirate immediately ran through it and the second wall like it, into a dimly lit chamber…

Hope you've enjoyed the first chapter of Tempest Sea. Reviews would be appreciated; constructive critisism or whatever you care to offer.