Chapter 3: Horror in Hyrule; Never-ending Struggle
Last Will of the Forest Spirit Arc
Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda, this is just a Fanfiction.
Featured Music: "Title Theme" - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time OST. Chapter Briefing.
"Creation of Hyrule" - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time OST. Scene 1 (Second Half).
"Hyrule Field" - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time OST. Scene 3 (First Half).
"Hyrule Field (Night)" - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess OST. Scene 3 (Second Half).
"Pledge of Demon" - Yakuza 0 OST. Scene 4 (First Half).
"You are the only one I can ask of this..."
Indeed, in the Great Deku Tree's vast wisdom, it would appear that through his selection in choosing the outcast and cowardly Link for his task, a great revelation has occurred. Not only have Link and his new guardian fairy shot past any previous expectations, they have went above and beyond and have overcame all obstacles lying within.
Navi and Link both have proven themselves to shoulder the burden of weight that the Great Deku Tree has planned.
However...
Only during the final exchange with the contamination inside the Kokiri god did Link reveal a new power...
… A new power that the tree himself shall soon elaborate on.
Scene 1
"Well done... Link..."
Link gasped himself awake; the Great Deku Tree's deep but calming voice pulled him out of his reverie. The dull sound of the light-blue warp that had seemed to bring him back to the Kokiri Forest soon hummed out, leaving only him, Navi and the Kokiri's god.
"Thou hast verily demonstrated thy courage...," the tree spoke calmly and slowly. Link turned his blue eyes skyward to face the forest spirit. "I knew that thou wouldst be able to carry out my wishes..."
"T-Thank you... Great Deku Tree b-but I-"
"Now I have yet more to tell thee, wouldst thou listen..."
Though the noble spirit interrupted him, Link found himself surprised otherwise.
What more could there be?
He exchanged an unsure shake of his head with Navi before finally re-facing the hardwood ahead of him.
The little blonde Kokiri put on a hardened frown and nodded.
"All right... then listen carefully..."
"A wicked man of the desert cast this dreadful curse upon me..."
In the vision Link received directly from the Great Deku Tree, he saw the back body of what appeared to be a rather tall red-haired man. With a cape, as similarly scarlet as his hair, it came down long to at least his legs and carried with it a strange symbol.
One Link had felt like he had seen somewhere before.
"This... evil man... ceaselessly uses his vile, sorcerous powers in his search for the Sacred Realm that is connected to the world... and to Hyrule."
Seemingly riding a similarly intimidating war-decorated dark-coloured horse, the nameless man's cape billowed through the flames he rode through fearlessly.
"For it is in the Sacred Realm that one will find the divine relic; the ultimate power... the Triforce."
Link listened dutifully but, completely entranced.
This was the first he had heard of this.
Not even Saria knew of this, he thought.
As if to signify a scene change, Link's view flashed brightly before soon re-focusing and adjusting to a new area; what seemed to be a sky. Rain dropped down directly from the heavens above; Link could barely catch the sight of what seemed to be three glowing dots in the sky.
"Before time began... before spirits and life existed..."
The Great Deku Tree's quiet but firm words mixed with the lashing rain; a strange but welcome mixture indeed.
"Three golden goddesses descended upon the chaos that was Hyrule..."
WHOOSH-WHOOSH
WHOOSH
Just as the Deku Tree stated, three missiles of intense and otherworldly strength plummeted down toward their position. Inside their unique colours of auras appeared to be human forms – female.
"Din, the goddess of power..."
Link watched what seemed to be a floating form of pure scorching crimson stare back at them.
"Nayru, the goddess of wisdom..."
To the left of the floating Din descended down Nayru. In spite of her flaming sister, the now named Nayru glowed with a glorious sky-blue, matching the very sky and rain she flew in.
"And Farore, the goddess of courage..."
To the right of Din plummeted the last and final sister; an emerald-shaded aura form. Link found himself entranced by her form, his eyes widened at the beauty and strength they seemed to command.
WHOOSH...
In her flight, Din left behind what seemed to be a lone flame. Though at first it exploded, it very slowly, and with growing speed as time passed, imploded within itself almost as if reversing its process. A flash brightened Link's eyes and he found himself unable to see until, finally, his vision adjusted and a new scene was brought before him.
He saw countless boulders and rocks flying through the air, dotted with what seemed to be thunder and lightning strikes in the distance.
"Din... with her strong flaming arms, she cultivated the land... and created the red earth."
The Great Deku Tree's words echoed out across the space in which they resided in.
"Nayru... poured her wisdom onto the earth and gave spirit of law and Aegir to the world."
Watching from what seemed to be a mountainous region in the earth, Link craned his neck up to watch the blue missile that was Nayru shoot across the backdrop. As she did, the very sky itself and its clouds were born before her; even the glaring sun high above appeared only after her intervention.
Returning back to what seemed to be the forest itself and the area in which they stood, Link's eyes found themselves rising back to the sky.
"Farore... with her rich soul, produced all life-forms who would uphold this law."
As before, one of the golden goddesses shot across the sky and, this time, colour was granted to the forest; her rich, emerald was gifted to the area.
"Before the Sainted Three made their final leave of Hyrule and the world... they left behind with them their power of 'Aegir'." The Great Deku Tree spoke, his fatherly words echoing on out deeply within the realm they inhabited.
The scene before the listening Link soon changed to a later, more developed one; before him he watched a green field populated with what seemed to be other people.
"Chosen by the Sainted Three... this man, hailed as the Sorcerer of the Divine Divide for his contribution in the Continental Divide, passed on the good, honest principles of the teachings that the Sainted Three intended for their strength of Aegir."
In the scene, Link watched a shadowy figure stand on what seemed to be a platform. A campfire lay between him and the countless people in which he spoke to; presumably the Sorcerer's form.
"With these labours completed... the Sainted Three, the golden goddesses, finally departed for their resting place; the heavens," the Great Deku Tree interrupted one, final time; as he spoke, the scene changed before the spectating Link. This time it returned to the chaotic but oddly calm sky he saw at the beginning of the vision. "Golden sacred triangles were left at the point where the goddesses left Hyrule... and the world."
WHOOSH-CRASH
In the vision Link watched the three flying forms collide and, as they did, a mild explosion erupted between them all. They vanished, leaving behind as narrated, what seemed to be three large floating golden triangles. They hummed noisily and gave off a holy aura as they rotated slowly in the air. As if to confirm their relation to the Sainted Three themselves, the chaotic sky above it began to shift from a gloomy dark to a bright yellow and then, finally, a natural blue.
"Since then, the sacred triangles have become the the basis of our land's providence... and the resting place of these triangles has become known as the 'Sacred Realm'."
–
2
Link held back from gasping when his eyes returned the vision of the area he sat in to Kokiri Forest.
He had returned.
Was all that just a story?
Or was it something more?
"Link... thou are one of the only few in the forest, nay the world who now knows this information; it is all true," the Great Deku Tree finally spoke once more; Link watched his father-like figure from his seated position on the soft marshy ground, his big blue eyes widened. "Thou must never allow the desert warrior in black armour to lay his hands on the sacred Triforce..."
The listening Kokiri's eyes widened as he paid further attention to the god-like figure.
Could this mean...?
"This curse, laid on me by that evil man that you helped rid me of... my end is nigh."
"N-No!"
Navi's sudden interruption made the listening Link wince but, all the same, agree with her.
"W-Why? What's-?"
"Though your valiant efforts to break the curse were successful, I was doomed before you started..."
"But that's..." Link began in response, his frown deepening to a saddened, gloomy one.
It was all for nothing?
"Please... do not grieve for me...," the Deku Tree spoke; a dismissive but gentle tone in his voice. "I have been able to tell thee of these important matters... this is Hyrule's... nay, the world's final hope."
Almost as if reacting in kind to his words, Link brought himself up from the ground, dusting his Kokiri tunic off as he did so.
"Link... go now to Hyrule Castle... only there wilt thou surely meet the Princess of Destiny..."
The listening blonde could only blink; he recognised the word 'princess' from the stories he had heard from Saria.
"But I didn't think there ever was such a thing?"
"Take this stone with thee; the stone that man wanted so badly that he cast this dreadful curse upon me..."
FLASH
Link had to gasp and shield his eyes very briefly before widening them and opening his arms up. A trio of items dropped from the once shining sky he looked up at.
An incredibly marvellous looking gem overshadowed the slingshot and bag that came with them. When all three finally descended down to his grip, Link allowed himself to view all three. The gem, by far, was the most interesting of the trio. A spherical like golden frame held the similarly shaped green coloured emerald within; it shone brightly back at him, entrancing him in his stare.
"The future, my son... now depends upon thee. Thou may be young... but thou surely art courageous... have faith..."
When he put the Deku Seed bag, the slingshot and the Kokiri's Emerald into his tunic and belt he re-raised his head to re-face the Deku Tree.
"Navi the fairy... help Link to carry out this will... be at his side, always."
The little guardian fairy audibly sniffed in her squeak, her voice growing weak. "Y-Yes..."
"I... entreat... ye... Navi... good... bye..."
CREAK...
Link watched in mild horror as the once lush dark-brown of the Great Deku Tree's hardwood very gradually turned black with the echoing sound of the firm creak from his wooden body. Eventually, when the creaking finally stopped, both Link and Navi could only watch in stony silence, whether out of respect or sadness.
Finally breaking the pair out of their minute-silence, Navi spoke up.
"Let's do it; let's go to Hyrule Castle Link!"
The Kokiri merely nodded his green-hat head in response before about turning to patter off back the way he came. Navi, at first, turned to leave with him before very slowly turning back over her blue body. A melancholic tone escaped her lips to spice the final words she spoke.
"Goodbye... Great Deku Tree."
Link had slowed his jog to a light walk, lowering his head as he did so. A surprising intense, sharp pain hit at him through his heart.
I only just met the Great Deku Tree, he thought.
Why do I care so much?
When he finally turned 'round a bend to exit the alcove he nearly bumped into what looked to be a pair of familiar green shoes. Link turned his blue eyes up to find the hard-faced Mido staring back at him.
"Not now... please..."
In spite of his silent pleas, there he stood, blocking his way.
"Hey, you!"
Link chose to re-lowered his head and his eyes, unwilling to face the fiery youth. "What...?"
"What in the name of the spirits did you do?! My guardian fairy told me that something happened to the Great Deku Tree! Everyone in the forest knows it! Fess up!"
Link opted to remain silent, his eyes and his head held lowly.
Don't do this Mido, he thought.
"I can't let him see me cry."
Mido remained silent; his similarly blue eyes narrowed back at the deep frown on Link's face. He craned forward, almost as if to look for the answer within his own eyes.
"Is... is the Great Deku Tree... dead...?" Mido gasped out, his eyes widening very briefly at the apex of his sentence, taking his hands off of his hips.
Though again, Link chose not to respond vocally, his lower lip trembled; an obvious tell.
Mido's eyes widened, this time in what seemed to be a mixture of awe and consternation. "You... you did this...?"
Link's head finally re-raised back up and he shook it back at the boy but, unfortunately, the tears on his face were easy game.
He lost.
"B-But... why, Link?" The self-appointed Kokiri chief whispered on out. Though he took an unwary and perhaps even frightened step back, he suddenly growled and lunged forward; anger renewed, the bully grasped Link by the scruff of his tunic and pulled him toward with both hands. "What did the Great Deku Tree ever do to you?!"
Link opened his mouth to reply but no words came out; he could only tremble his lip and, very slowly, shut his tearful eyes in conjunction with his lowering head.
"I hate you! You should never have been born! You've never been one of us!" Mido screamed this time, his voice echoing loudly throughout the Kokiri Forest. By now, the pair had gained a sizeable audience of children watching them.
The pair of mortal enemies, softened by their confrontation and the similarly saddened teary-faces, finally finished their engagement.
"Hmph!"
With his last grunt of effort, Mido tossed the frowning Link back; the little blonde fell, sprawling to his back. He pulled himself back up very slowly, noting the watching and murmuring Kokiri spread out around the forest. Mido ahead of him merely stormed ahead, presumably to go inform Saria.
By the time he'd get to her it'd be too late, Link thought.
"I have no-one left to call a friend."
"Sorry I took so-" Navi's sudden interruption jumped in; the little blue fairy blinked as she caught the numerous Kokiri watching them. "What happened? Why are you on the ground?"
Link sniffed, lowering his head to avoid her prying eyes. He shook his head as he re-opened his own mouth to finally speak.
"No reason," he merely managed out, standing himself back upright before soon dusting himself off. "Let's go."
Navi watched him leave, blinking in surprise. She merely shook her own head however before soon bouncing forward through the air after him.
When the pair reached the one bridge exit to the forest, leading through the Lost Woods, Link didn't even offer the similarly silent Kokiri on guard a nod.
A thought of his previous warnings flashed through his blonde head as he marched deathly forward.
"We Kokiri will die if we leave the forest!"
I guess we'll find out, he thought in a dry and humourless grin.
"You're leaving..."
Link's gradual march was halted, almost as immediately as he heard that familiar soft voice. His eyes widened and his head shot up before, as slowly as before, he turned his blonde head over his shoulder to find the sad-frowning faced Saria staring back at him. She stood in a lightly leaning posture, placing her hand softly against one of the big bridge's sides. The look in her eye was different, strange.
Unusual.
It was melancholic but there was an odd sense of knowing to them, almost as if she worked all of this out by herself.
Why is she here?
Didn't Mido get to her first?
Better yet, he thought...
"Why is she even talking to me?"
"I knew... that you would someday leave the forest... Link," Saria finally re-spoke, this time placing a light but obviously forced smile to her complexion. The listening Kokiri turned around and began to walk toward her, gaining what little courage he held. "Because you're... different... from me and my friends." The kind Kokiri claimed, raising her eyes with a smile to sweeten her words.
If they had come from anyone else but her, Link would have taken them for an insult.
I don't deserve you for a friend, he thought.
And now I'm leaving you.
"It's okay though... we'll be friends forever... won't we?" She asked, shutting her blue eyes and raising something in her hands' grip to rest on her green clothed chest.
"S-Saria..."
"No... don't speak," the emerald-haired Kokiri interrupted him softly, shaking her head in a similarly gentle smile as she did. "You can't make this harder than it already is... please..."
Link lowered his eyes, nodding in silent sadness.
"Here... I want you... to have this."
When he re-raised his blonde head up to frown forward his blue eyes widened in light surprise.
The instrument she used so faithfully in the past lay in her two hands; a rather large but expertly hand-crafted ocarina.
Was she giving it to him?
Reaching forward with a light wince, Link let his right hand softly graze the smooth surface of the instrument and though he flinched when he felt Saria coax her own hand over his he didn't dare move it.
The two Kokiri lifted their eyes from the ocarina in their hands to look straight into one another; words need not even be said between them. Even now in spite of his inability to understand Saria's past behaviour he could at least work out the sorrow lying behind the glassy look in her oceanic blue.
I feel the same way, he thought.
"She knows... but for how long has she known?"
"Please... don't ever forget me," Saria whispered, her delicate grip on his right hand tightening ever so slightly. "Maybe... this will help you remember."
A sudden urge to leap at her into a crying embrace took hold of him very strongly; he fought it for dear life. Shutting his eyes and keeping his grip on the ocarina in his hand, he took a few wary steps back, attempting to put on a hardened frown. Saria's light smile slowly dropped to a frown when she felt her fingers slip slowly from his. When she watched him finally about-turn and run for the exit behind him, his head held low, Saria allowed her saddened frown to take hold as she leaned against the bridge.
The sound of the crows' calls gave a strangely sad vibe throughout the Lost Woods to suit the ambient atmosphere.
–
3
The two trees ahead of him kept his mind focused dead on the forest however, in spite of that, he found himself marching slowly forward his head held low.
"Link?"
He opted not to listen to his fairy companion.
Ignore her, he thought.
He had gone through far too much to face any questions from Navi; from Mido's interrogation, his ostracising from the rest of the Kokiri and, finally, saying his goodbyes to his only friend, he had very little patience left.
"Ah... there you are."
A second voice, unfamiliar and much deeper than Navi's high-pitch, made the youth turn his head up in light surprise. Though he saw a rather large owl perched on one of the trees since turning a corner he found nothing else that could have made that sound.
So who-?
"I have been waiting for thee... 'Link'... isn't it?"
Link's blue eyes shot wide open at the revelation before him.
He quickly realised it was the owl that spoke.
"Am I dreaming?" He thought to himself silently, barely unable to stop staring at the marvelled creature.
"What's wrong?" The sizeable bird questioned him with its deep, masculine voice. It tilted its head at him curiously, as if to add to his emphasis. "You act as if you have never seen a talking owl before..."
In a comical wide-eyed zig-zag frown, Link could only stare back at the unnamed wild game.
"U-Um... I'm Navi and, yes, this is Link; I'm his guardian fairy," the little blue pixie introduced itself shakily as it rose itself up into the air to better face him. The curious owl righted its head the right way 'round before raising a large eyebrow down at her. "We've just come from the-"
"Kokiri Forest, yes?"
Navi blinked behind her soft blue light. "U-Um... yes... how...?"
"I am well-informed," the marvellous creature claimed, briefly shutting its eyes as if bowing in respect. "Fret not, young Link and Navi... for I am here to assist you in your quest."
Link couldn't help but exchange his raised eyebrow with the listening Navi. "A-And how do you know ab-?"
"Let's say I can see into the future, my young pupil," the nameless bird seemed to almost smile down at the pair in response, softly interrupting him with his voice. "Your destination is Hyrule Castle, is it not?"
"Y-Yeah but-"
"Excellent!" The owl interjected once more, a pleasant tone to his voice. "Ah, where are my manners? Please, excuse me; my name... is Kaepora Gaebora."
Link could only blink back in response.
"I don't want to sound rude," he thought in his unsure frown. "But how do I even pronounce that name, let alone say it...?"
"You may refer to me as 'Kae'; how is that?" The owl questioned, raising a second eyebrow skyward, almost as if reading his mind. Link put on a light, embarrassed smile and nodded as he rubbed the back of his green-hat head. "Good," the newly introduced Kaepora seemed to smile behind his feathery body. "Now... let us begin."
Acting on his own words, the large owl turned his body and began to flap his wings loudly, as if to take to the skies. Link exchanged another unsure expression with the watching and listening Navi before the pair shrugged at one another and followed him in a brisk walk forward.
At least the sudden and strange events had taken his mind off of everything else... briefly.
"Hyrule Castle is a ways away from the sanctity of Kokiri Forest," the flapping Kaepora crooned high above the following pair; he dropped his flight a few yards in an attempt to fly closer overhead to the travelling two. "We may not make it in time for the drawbridge to close... but we must try."
Link blinked in response to the owl's deep words, turning his eyes forward as they began to approach what seemed to be a hill with a noticeable path alongside it. Surprised he found he could read it, his blue eyes widened at the contents written on it.
Hyrule Castle
Lon Lon Ranch
Both written in comparably different colours, he studied the signpost's direction and found the hovering Kaepora flying off in its direction. Resuming his march with his guardian fairy and new companion, he opted to keep his mouth closed.
"I'm sorry; how did you know our destination is Hyrule Castle?" Navi pressed further; though Link raised a curious blonde eyebrow he chose to keep out of the conversation. The similarly curious Kaepora swivelled his head 'round to stare over at her as she re-opened her mouth to continue. "This is the dying wish of the-"
"Great Deku Tree."
Kaepora's sudden intervention (seemingly a running thing) made the listening Navi stop in her tracks, widening her eyes behind her blue body. The seemingly wise old owl nodded his large head as he re-faced the front, his feathery wings flapping strongly.
"I knew him well," Kaepora claimed, his voice almost seemingly deeper somehow as if he were speaking from a long-held memory. "A lot of people have died to realise this moment, oh guardian fairy."
The answer, at least, satisfied her for now; Navi could only stare up at him, a side of her face scrunched in silent scrutinisation. She remained mute however in her approval of the creature's response.
"M-Mr. Kae... sir?"
The owl turned its head for the second to third time, raising one of its busy eyebrows upward.
Link winced at the sudden attention he gained, not just from the listening owl, but from the frowning Navi.
"When we... get to the castle and I deliver the Great Deku Tree's message to the princess...," the youth began, stammering his words as he spoke. "Can I return to the Kokiri Forest?"
His words surprised the listening owl; Kaepora blinked down at him before shaking his head slowly in response.
"I'm... not sure; I'm sorry, young Link," the divine creature responded in his negative frown before re-facing the front. "A lot has been done to put you in this position my son; we may have need of your talents yet."
Link's eyes lowered slowly as he resumed his march forward; a similarly sorrowful feeling washed over him as he listened.
It would have been nice to have received a definite answer; to return to his home and, more importantly, to his only friend would have been the best gift he could – nay anyone could ask for.
And yet, somehow, he thought...
This wasn't just going to be a day's journey.
"There we go... that's it; yes!"
Kaepora's words of encouragement, though alleviated his anxiety somewhat, did nothing to quell the negative thoughts threatening to burst his head.
By now, the party of three had set up camp to the north-east of Hyrule Field and the Kokiri Forest; a running river of water made Link trace it to a large pool or fountain. Both Navi and Kaepora informed them of its origins to the 'Zoran' people in the area; a fish-like race of populace that largely kept themselves in isolation.
Link could understand why.
Having gone to grab provisions for a fire and extra twigs for a tent, Link was lucky in the sense that time previously spent with Saria helped him in this regard.
I still owe her so much, he thought as he placed the last remaining twig down on the growing pil in the centre.
"Now we need to get the fire going; I suggest the use of a Deku Nut!"
Kaepora's words called over to him excitedly, almost as if in effort to raise his morale; he faced him very briefly before reaching inside his green garb for one. Soon taking it out he frowned as he lightly tossed the nut skyward with a flick of his wrist. It spun through the air soundlessly before, eventually colliding with the group of twigs.
FLASH
True to Kaepora's words, the Deku Nut ignited the wooden branches in a glorious flash of fire and the frowning Link and Navi were treated to its warmth.
"Excellent, excellent!" Kaepora sung over in approval; the smile across his face told all. "Now... I'm going to scout on ahead and be certain that our road shall be unimpeded by any danger; you two remain here for me to return to. We have a big day in the morning!"
Navi and Link both exchanged a frown together but, in essence, gave the owl exactly what he was looking for in a similar-faced nod.
"Good! I shall see you in a few hours; stay safe!"
His wings gave an inevitable hard and echoing flap as he took to the sky and swivelled around to fly off, presumably in search of Hyrule's very field itself. Link sighed quietly through his nose as he lay down in a seated position, his blue eyes watching the dancing sparks of fire below him.
"Link?"
The named Kokiri turned his eyes away from the fire in avoidance, almost as if it had said that word.
He knew who it was calling on him.
"Are you angry at me?"
Vaguely annoyed at her tone, Link could only roll his oceanic eyes in response to her words.
She can't be serious, he thought.
Read between the lines.
"No, of course I'm not," he murmured out childishly, a light frown adorned on his expression. "It's just been... overwhelming... the past couple of days."
Thank you for teaching me that word Saria, he thought silently to himself.
"I get that...," Navi's soft voice echoed on out as she chanced herself closer; placing her small bulbous blue body on his green-garbed shoulder. "I'm always here... if you need to vent...?"
The frowning youth briefly turned his head in his sat up position to face her, raising a blonde eyebrow at her.
He didn't want to discourage her efforts...
"But I've only just met you..." He thought in silent conflict with the little fairy's statement.
Better to be polite about it, he speculated quietly to himself.
"Th-Thanks..." He forced a smile out in response as he watched her stare back at him in her soft blue light.
He didn't want to tell her half of what was on his mind, let alone the main thing.
I still can't even remember what happened with Gohma, he thought.
"I remember fighting her up to a certain point," the little Kokiri pondered quietly, raising his already raised left arm and hand to bite at his left thumbnail in a display of thought. "But I don't remember killing h-"
"Link!"
–
4
The blonde youth snapped his head in Navi's direction, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise; his eyes widened along with them when he very briefly caught the sight of a skeleton swinging one of its bony arms for him.
Moving to action immediately, he grunted softly as he leapt to his right in evasion, rolling across Hyrule's green field. He skid in recovery, eyes narrowing forward at the revelation before him. Not one but two of these skeletal intruders shambled towards his camp, clearly aiming for its owner. The second shot its arm across the fire he had painstakingly made, successfully knocking it out and turning it alight with it.
"Navi... what are they?" Link whispered out, his sky-blue eyes darting between the pursuing pair suspiciously.
"Th-They're Stalchildren...," the little guardian fairy stammered out as she bounced toward him, her form shaking as she flitted down to hide behind him. "D-Don't be afraid! You have a sword!"
Easy for you to say, he thought in a comical dead-pan frown as he briefly re-faced her fearing form.
Acting on her words regardless however, the little Kokiri warrior reached for the small-sword on his back and the Deku Shield that went so well with it. Though his fingers still trembled with it in his grip he attempted to keep his mettle together as he watched the two Stalchildren shamble toward him. One was already covered in fire, he thought.
That's one job down; just let it die by itself.
When the first one slowly shuffled toward him however, he set his eyes on it carefully, watching for any weaknesses.
He saw lots...
But his confidence in taking advantage of them was a different story.
He used the Deku Shield in his right arm to block the inevitable swing the Stalchild gifted him and grunted as he was sent skidding a very small distance back; acting on instinct, he swung his Kokiri Sword in a horizontal slice, yelling in the effort he gave.
SQUELCH
In spite of the Stalchild's constitution, Link's eyes widened when he audibly and clearly heard his small-sword cut through what seemed to be flesh.
What in the name?
The little skeleton's head was sent careering from its shoulders in response and, as if to react in response, the poor little Stalchild began to inevitably turn its body as if in vagrant search for him, swinging its arms at nothing but air.
Link stared at it with widened eyes of his own, pleasantly surprised by his effort.
His initial surprise and dread seemed to be laughable by comparison now.
When he began to lose the adrenaline he normally carried, the wide-eyed youth was nearly struck by the aflame Stalchild on his sharp-right; the Kokiri abruptly leapt to his left side urgently, cutting through the air as he did. The fiery skeleton growled as its blazing arm shot across the air savagely, striking and alighting the nearby grass on fire with it.
"Don't get overconfident!"
Gee, thanks Navi, he thought sarcastically.
Acting on previous experience, Link narrowed his blue eyes as he roughly swung his small-sword in another diagonal motion, this time in the opposite horizontal direction.
SQUELCH
Once again, the Stalchild's head was torn from its shoulders and it began to blindly shamble off in search for him.
"They can't see me..." Link murmured on out as he narrowed his blue eyes at the pair of skeletons scuffling away.
Maybe this was the best option, he thought.
Don't kill – just lead them away.
He realised how stupid that notion sounded, especially considering the Stalchildren's species, but this could be the best course of action.
This quest will be over soon anyway, he thought to himself.
"Better to cherish life, just as the Great Deku Tree taught me."
His eyes widened for what felt like the umpteenth time however when he caught the sight of two more Stalchildren shuffling toward him, malice in their non-existent hearts.
"What?!" Link couldn't help but exclaim, his eyes darting across at the other two Stalchildren wandering away from his position.
Why are there two more so soon?
What is going on?!
One on the left rushed him with another swipe at his face; he grunted as he swung his Kokiri Sword across at it, easily hacking off its skeleton limb. When the fourth Stalchild attacked him from his undefended right, his eyes darted in its direction but he was already too tired to have reacted in time.
"Link!"
Navi's urgent call came far too late; the fourth Stalchild's swing finally made its mark and, with surprising strength, sent the yelping Link sprawling through the Hyrulean air. The youth used his shield arm to rake at the grassy ground beneath him to slow his flight; he crunched his right eye shut, a new and visibly painful wound struck across his face. When his fall had finished and his movement stopped, he gasped as he attempted to pull himself to his feet.
Very slowly he opened his right eye and winced at the blood that gradually dripped from his new and open wound, staining the grass below him.
"Are you all right?"
"Mostly...," Link replied, using his sword arm to wipe at the long and noticeable cut on his right cheek that would inevitably turn to a scar. "Do these things just keep coming?"
"I'm not sure... but I don't like this!" The little guardian fairy admitted in her usual high-pitched whine, flitting her blue light down to hide behind his green-garbed form. "Where's that owl when you need him?!"
Link's hard-eyed frown twitched in response to her frantic words.
He couldn't help but agree.
His eyes widened when he caught sly movement to his undefended side on his left; with a sudden side-jump to his right he came flying down the grassy knoll, skidding his Kokiri boots across it roughly. The little forest boy watched the new Stalchild from his side shamble down the hill after him, as if a zombie of some kind.
Another one?
As if to act further on his silent worries however, a presence behind him made his eyes widen in terror for what felt like the last time.
Another one?!
He barely got his Deku Shield up in time to block the attack, 'rounding his body around to face the growling Stalchild behind him. Though it brought him to his left knee, Link grunted as he shot his Kokiri small-sword at it in counter-attack, eyes narrowed.
He didn't even see the pursuing Stalchild behind him ambush him with a swipe of its arm.
SMASH
"Argh!"
With a single pain-filled yelp Link was sent rolling across the air and the grassy field of Hyrule. Now a sizeable distance back from his man-made camp, he grunted as he attempted to push his body off of the grassy ground below him. With surprising strength and athleticism he didn't know he had, Link managed to turn his rolling sprawl into a revolving recovery in mid-air. In his landing he clocked yet another growling Stalchild in his way, watching him hungrily.
He brought his Kokiri Sword up and widened his sky-blue eyes as he plummeted back down to earth.
CRASH
Time slowed down for the scowling and scrunched-up faced Link and wide-eyed Navi; with both arms on the hilt of his weapon he managed to easily tear apart the gasping Stalchild's body. It erupted into a glorious show of skeletal parts and green-shaded fire. His mind moving a mile-a-minute, Link's eyes widened as they darted to his far left, catching the sound of approaching footsteps. With an effort-filled, grunting leap, the agile little Kokiri used the adrenaline gifted to him by short-hopping backward through the air, narrowly avoiding the next Stalchild's inevitable slice. He grunted a second time as he shot his small-sword across the air horizontally, savaging tearing apart the skeleton's body.
As Link landed, skidding heavily down back the knoll he came from, his eyes darted to his far-left a second time, hearing the sound of more enemies behind him. Bending his body downward and forward he managed to avoid the Stalchild's wide and wild horizontal slice before he grunted again as he swept the ground with his boot. The Stalchild growled in its own wide-eyed stare, knocked from the grassy ground; as it dropped to the earth below it, the narrow-eyed Link spun around in place before yelling in effort as he brought his small-sword crashing down to meet the defenceless skeleton.
CRASH
As before, the Stalchild's sizeable body burnt up in shards of green flame, its many limbs and body briefly hovering into the air in his eyes. Again the poor youth was given little to no time to recover however; his eyes widened and blood from his first wound spurt with the sudden arch he made with his head as he faced his right.
CLUNK
Though he shot his Deku Shield up to block the inevitable attack he was faced with he gasped when he found his strength finally lacking; the Stalchild's strength was too much for his battle-weary form and it was sent careering through the air. Though he was protected from the attack temporarily he was now without a defensive tool; he grunted as he was sent stumbling backward. His eyes widened and, his adrenaline running high, managed to catch the movement of another hostile form behind him.
CLANG
He swivelled his body around directly behind him and shot his Kokiri Sword up in a defensive manoeuvre, eyes glaring at the skeleton glowering back at him. Sparks emitted from his weapon and he found himself dropping to his knee in the sheer effort he put through.
Is this the end, he thought.
"No..."
It can't be.
"NO!"
HACK-SLICE
With a last-ditch effort, Link's eyes widened as he broke the skeleton's hold and sliced through its body in two swipes; as with its brethren, its body erupted into a marvellous show of emerald flame before him. He gasped continually in his growing and high fatigue, sweat dripping from his brow; his eyes widened for the umpteenth time however when he caught a second Stalchild swinging at him from his right. The little agile Kokiri warrior shot his small-sword up defensively to block the attack but, as expected...
CLANG
He yelped as his one saving grace was knocked from his grip, sending him sprawling in failure to his back; the grass almost seemed to whine with the wind for him as he fell upon it.
Now, finally, spent of all of his physical and spiritual energy Link could only stare up at the ebony-shaded night sky and the many blinking stars overlooking him and Hyrule's glorious field. The pain he slowly succumbed to made his eyelids grow weary and heavy; he slipped in and out of consciousness.
"Link...!"
Navi's urgent call began to sound far off, as if in a distant tunnel somewhere.
This really was the end, he thought.
As he lay on the grassy ground beneath him his thoughts began to wander back to his home of Kokiri Forest and of his days with Saria.
Why did this have to happen, he pondered sadly.
I won't get to see her again.
"I wish I could have told you...," he began in his mind, his cloudy vision catching the blurry sight of approaching Stalchildren above him. "How I feel..."
SQUELCH
The hovering skeletons above him exploded in an incredible show of grassy blaze. Link's concerns were gone; he didn't even care that they'd seemingly been defeated above him. Succumbing to his immense fatigue and his wounds he barely caught the sight of a frowning person kneeling down to face him. A young girl wearing what seemed to be a bright and white dress; her long red hair went down to the small of her back. Her body, and her face, began to morph however into the form he found most familiar.
The softly smiling Saria stared down at him in her familiar motherly expression. Her name was the last thing to escape his lips before he finally fell unconscious.
"S-Saria..."