Twilight Princess: Footsteps of a Hero
Twilight Princess: Footsteps of a Hero
By: C&P
Author's Note: Finally… an update. I guess high school really is that demanding and time-consuming. BTW, I have edited the previous chapter… So if you read this before I did, please go back and re-read it. There are some changes and they might play a larger role later on.
R&R please. 3
BTW – when anyone is speaking in the Twili language, the speech will have / at either end. For example, "/Jack and Jill went up the hill./" Also, I'm making Hylian the "English" of this story.
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Chapter 2: Across the Fields
He was standing in the Ordonian spring, listening to Illia's wishes for him to have a safe journey to Hyrule to deliver the Ordon sword. He didn't know why she was so worried; he was more than capable of handling any monsters on the road. Besides, it was only a day's ride away from the Faron and Ordon woods.
Epona gave a loud whinny all of a sudden, and in the next moment the gate to the spring burst apart, a wild boar charging straight at the humans, moblins astride the animal. The picture began to fade…
Now he was sitting in a dark cell, a shackle on his left leg… Somehow, he'd become a wolf. A second later he was staring in the face of some sort of she-imp, a strange mask covering the upper part of her face, except for her right eye. She started speaking in a strange language that he'd never heard in his entire life, and yet he understood every word she spoke to him…
He spun his sword around, hacking and slashing at the giant spider in front of him; it's front legs blocking most of his attacks. With a quick back flip, he managed to gain enough distance between himself and the monster, and with one good throw, his sword flew through the air, landing with a sickening thud into the spider's head…
The Twilight creature was squeezing its massive hand around his throat; he kicked and struggled, attempting to break free of the brute's grip. His vision began to falter as he felt the life draining away…
Link sat up with a yelp, sweat falling down his face, blue eyes wide in terror. He looked around at his surroundings, his heart pounding inside his ribcage. Link was lying on his pile of blankets and pillows, situated on the top landing of his tree-home. To his right was the only window of the dwelling, the moon's light filtering through the opening. The small platform had a sturdy rail and a ladder that led down to the next landing, where Link's book/memento shelf rested, pictures hanging above it on the wall. The ladder there led down to the ground floor of the house; there was a fireplace, a small table for two, a small couch, a few shelves, a couple barrels, and a hole that led down into the basement, where Link stored his winter items and extra tools in the never-ending darkness of the base of the tree.
The Hylian continued to listen to the night sounds of the Ordon Forest that ringed one side of the clearing he lived in; he could just barely hear the trickle of water coming from the village that lay deeper down in the valley. Slowly his heart calmed, returning to its normal rate as Link realized that he'd only been dreaming. How much time had passed since Illia and the others were taken? Three days? Four days? He didn't have a clear idea of how long he'd been trapped in the Twilight (maybe a day or so), and then it'd taken him at least a day to clear out the Forest Temple of all the dark creatures. In a brief flash of memory Link saw the great monster of Twilight that he had fought deep in the temple burst into pieces, reforming as the Fused Shadow that the she-imp, Midna, had been searching for. Neither Midna nor the light spirits Ordona or Faron had explained to Link what exactly was the Fused Shadow, other than that it was a dark power that he would need to take on the king of the shadows.
Fully awake now, Link got up and headed down the ladder to the ground floor below. Silently he fumbled in the dark, finally locating his lantern and lighting it. Using its bright glow he managed to get firewood into the fireplace. Once he had a fire going Link sought out some dried meat. Soon he had a soup going, the pieces of meat floating in the mixture. It was only a few hours before sunrise, but Link was ready to move on in search of the village's children. Bo, the mayor, was missing; supposedly he'd gone looking for the children the day before and hadn't returned. Link would've asked Rusl to accompany him, but two things stopped that idea; one, Rusl was badly wounded from trying to defend the village from the moblins that had invaded and taken the children. And two, Link was going to have to pass through the Twilight to find the children, and he couldn't take Rusl with him – the man would pass into a spirit, unable to see or hear Link, and therefore lost.
"/Why up so early?/" a strange voice asked suddenly. Link gave out a yelp, falling back in surprise. A twisted giggled sounded from all around; a second later Link's shadow moved, altered, and transformed into Midna's shadow-form, her image reaching to him from within the Twilight. The male shot her a dark glare as he sat up properly, wondering why on earth was she bothering him.
"/You're funny sometimes, you know that?/" Midna asked him in a cheerful voice, her strange language flowing from her lips. Why Link understood the language, he had no idea, and neither did Midna apparently.
Midna floated around Link's home, her eyes wandering around as she examined the objects. Link watched her in silence, once again choosing not to speak. He hardly ever spoke to anyone, preferring silence and actions.
"/I thought that you'd want to spend more time in your home before you leave it for a long time, if not forever/" the mysterious she-imp commented, turning back to Link. "/But here you are, wide awake and preparing to leave before your precious sun even peeks at the horizon./"
Link studiously ignored the female, tending to his food. He ate in silence as Midna watched him carefully, a slight smirk on her face. He didn't understand it, but everything Link did seemed to amuse the she-imp. Link didn't care much for Midna, but he needed her help to get into the Twilight and find the Tears of Light that would restore each guardian spirit of the provinces of Hyrule. Midna hadn't explicitly said it, but Link figured that she needed his help in retrieving the Fused Shadows; it was obvious Midna couldn't get them herself.
Finishing his food and cleaning up, Link gave Midna a pointed look and the she-imp disappeared back into his shadow. The Hylian quickly changed into his Hero's Clothes - the green tunic, off-white leggings, bronze chain mail, brown greaves and bracers, and the green hat. Link strapped his Ordonian sword and shield on, attaching his magical pouch to his leather belt at the last. Finally he slipped his brown boots on, wiggling his toes experimentally. He was ready.
As quietly as he could, Link slipped out his home, closing the door behind him and climbing down the ladder to the ground. The sun was just barely rising, its faint glow lighting up the tops of the trees. Giving one last glance at the path that led down into Ordon Village, Link turned and followed the other path, the one that lead into the forest.
The sun rose higher and higher as Link jogged along the familiar path, his breathing light and regular, muscles flowing with ease. Link was physically in perfect condition; herding and tending to the village's goats all day had strengthened his muscles over the years, along with the training he had occasionally done with Rusl. He was a little over average height, and around the age of manhood. His blonde-brown hair was always messy, parts of it falling into his blue eyes; the eyes of his mother, Rusl had told him a few times.
Link knew that Rusl's family had taken him in since he was a tiny babe; he had been told the story of how his mother had come running into the village, chased by moblins until she died from exhaustion and terror. The only information she'd given had been her son's name; Rusl and Bo, present at the time, assumed Link to be about a year old or so, so they decided that exactly one week before his mother's death would've been Link's first birthday. This information had bothered Link at first, when he had first come into his teen years; since then he had learned to deal with it. The only thing that had ever set him apart from the Ordonians had been his pointed ears and heightened senses, features that he had inherited from his Hylian mother.
Link reflected on all of this as he ran through the Ordon Forest and into Faron Forest. He listened to his own breathing and footfalls as the creatures of the forest spoke to him. Link had always been good with animals, understanding them better than people usually. He felt a pang of sadness as his thoughts drifted to his faithful horse, Epona. No one in the village knew what had happened to her during the moblins' assault on the forest and the village, and Link missed her terribly. He silently prayed to the goddess Farore that Epona was safe somewhere, and that he would find her soon.
X
Harsh sunlight beat down on the southern Hyrule Field, heating the very dirt road that lead from the fringes of Faron Forest and into other parts of the land. Link stood in the shade of the two great trees that stood on either side of the road at the end of the forest, his eyes scanning the land in front of him. For quite a ways there was only grassland, with gently rolling hills, most of them sloping towards the right, creating a small vale to the left of the main road. In the distance Link could spy a great rise where some trees grew; a cliff was situated on the left side, with more trees growing down below. Of course, the only reason he could see this was because of the gifted Hylian sight that he had inherited.
A day's ride on this road would lead directly to the pass that led to Hyrule Castle Town; that's what Bo and Rusl had told him before all this madness had begun. On foot, it was about two days. Now Link's path was to the east, to the Eldin Province. He had no knowledge of the land of Eldin, save for that it was home to the Gorons, a race of rock-dwellers that mined Death Mountain. Link stood for some time in silence as the sun rose on the grasslands, contemplating on how to get to the east. He could follow the north road and hope that there was an eastward-bound route to follow at some point. It was either that or take the open grasslands without any guide except for the sun's position. He had only brought enough supplies in his magical pouch for two, maybe three, days; after that he would have to hunt for food and water.
Midna's shadow form suddenly appeared beside Link, her arms crossed. "/What's taking so long?/" she demanded of him, her tone slightly agitated. "/You do know which way is east, right?/"
Link ignored her comments and began walking down the road north; his eyes and ears alert for any sign of life other than his own.
"Hey wait up!" Midna called, slipping into Hylian in her haste to follow Link. "/You do know that you're going to the wrong way, right?/"
"The road's safer," was all Link said, his voice low and quiet and he kept up a brisk pace. He would have to hurry to reach Eldin if he wanted his supplies to last until he could pass into the Twilight safely.
"/Hylians./" Link looked at Midna, his face puzzled. She gave one of her dramatic sighs in response; "/Always doing what they think is right. How can you even be sure there is an eastern road to Eldin that hooks up with this one?/"
Link just gave her a shrug in response, his expression neutral. Midna gave another sigh and disappeared into Link's shadow once more. Left alone with his own thoughts, Link began to watch the countryside as he continued on, enjoying the natural beauty all around him. He was finally traveling through Hyrule, and though circumstances were not ideal, he planned to benefit from every minute of it. The silence of the grasslands didn't bother him in the slightest; instead, he listened to the sounds of the birds and small rodents, and the breeze in the trees. Link didn't hum or whistle any tune; he much preferred the sound of nature to any man-made creation.
The entire day passed in this fashion as Link strode through the rolling land, stopping only twice for rest and water. At dusk he had neared the end of the grasslands; he'd made better time than he had thought. He hadn't seen anyone other than himself on the road all day; nor had any monsters shown their faces. He quickly found a spot to camp out for the night under the cover of a rather large hill, downwind and all that. It wasn't as sheltered as he had hoped, but he didn't like traveling on in the dark either. The emptiness of the field disturbed Link quite a bit; for an area that had just come out of the control of the mysterious Twilight, it was rather deserted. He wondered if all the Hylia had hidden away in the villages and towns to the north and east.
"Midna?" he called softly, his voice barely carrying more than five feet. Within a few seconds the she-imp appeared, her face cast in a grin.
"Yes?" she asked.
"What can you tell me about the Twilight?" the Hylian asked quietly, feeling awkward at having to speak. Even in Ordon, no one had expected any more from him than a nod or a smile. His body language had always said everything for him; now he was forced to use his voice thanks to Midna and her obnoxious, bossy ways.
"That depends on what you want to know," she replied teasingly, bouncing around through the air for a moment. Link didn't respond to her words, lost in thought. He should ask her who this "king of shadows" was, or who she herself was. Princess Zelda had obviously known Midna rather well when Link had escaped from imprisonment in the castle dungeons and had met the Princess.
"What exactly… is it?" Link finally asked. He didn't think that Midna would trust him with the whole truth just yet, especially after the way she'd skirted telling Link what exactly the Fused Shadows were. All the light spirits had said was that they were dark powers bound years and years ago…
"Hm. That's a hard one." Midna's voice sounded strange in Hylian; Link had already grown used to her speaking her own language. "We have a way of explaining it in Twili that makes sense, but you probably wouldn't be able to make sense of it. It is rather bizarre how you can understand my language though." She smirked at the end at the male.
"Twili… that's your language?"
"Yes."
"So your kind… The Twili?"
Midna didn't respond; she kept her eyes on the northern horizon where the wall of Twilight was just somewhat visible now. "/Get some rest/" she told him. "/You've got a long way to go yet./" She then disappeared before Link could say another word.
This is getting stranger and stranger by the day, the Hylian thought to himself as he ate a small, cold meal, not daring to light a fire. He then lay back against the rising ground and fell quickly asleep, dreaming of Ordon and her people.
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