Author's Note: Thanks to those who've left reviews! I'm glad people have been enjoying this, it's super-encouraging for me! This chapter's a bit on the shorter side, and I haven't re-read and done that much touch-up on it yet, but thought I'd get it out there anyway because blah. I'll probably flesh it out a little more later on, but for now enjoy!
Never in the life of the forest had it ever faced such a fierce storm. The raging wind howled through the trees, shaking boughs and uprooting the few whose grasp of the earth grew too precarious. So much rain poured that in moments the entire earth grew swollen and loose, unable to keep up with the onslaught. The Kokiri's haven fared little better, with most of the forest children sitting on their furniture or steps as they watched forlornly as water began to pool in the floors, then cower as the wind shrieked past their doorways and lightning arced across the sky.
By Farore's will, what madness is this?
The Deku Tree stared ahead in a grimace, concentrating with all its fledgling strength to keep the storm at bay. His heavy branches moved in a tangled frenzy as the wind whipped around him, battering him, and water pooled around his trunk. He could feel the earth grow loose around his roots, many still no thicker than a child's arm, and in desperate self-preservation he refocused his power on drying the earth surrounding him. He could feel the wind press down heavier on the trees, animals and creatures caught up in the maelstrom, and groaned as he directed his energy back to the war. He felt everything hanging on the precipice at that moment as he struggled between self-preservation and protecting the forest, his solemn duty.
Completely oblivious to all of this, lying face down in his still-too-small bed in a very uncomfortable position, was Link, snoring obnoxiously loud and having quite possibly the best sleep he'd had in several years. A goofy smile was on his face as he dreamed no doubt of lovely memories and all of the things he missed about home.
And it was because of this that he did not hear the loud clatter as his ladder fell apart outside his door, or the loud cursing that immediately followed. Nor did he hear the solid kchnck-kwhirrrrrrrrrrrrr above his doorframe, followed by the heavy footsteps of a completely soaked woman breathing heavily as though she had ran a triathlon and decided to swim the entirety of Lake Hylia for sport. Nor did he hear his name being called between gasps the first time, or the second.
Feeling rather irritated and having left her patience behind several Stalfos ago, Impa gathered herself and marched over to Link's side, knelt down next to his ear, and said in a perfectly calm and not-at-all-loud voice, "Wake up, boy, the Princess requires you."
Cursing, Link nearly shot out of bed and fumbled for his sword before his mind registered where he was and who was speaking. "Impa?" It took him several moments to recognize her disheveled appearance, and then the weather outside. "What in the world is going on? Is that the storm outside?"
Impa watched him silently as he made his way to the doorway, his eyes wide in shock as he looked out at the grove. Broken branches littered the ground and were still falling at an alarming rate as the wind tore through, and he was certain he saw several Deku Babas flying through the air, maws snapping to and fro as they tried to find solid ground. "What in the world… is everyone, is the Deku Tree…?" The question hung in his voice for a moment, and he readied himself to face the wind if Impa didn't give him the answer he wanted.
Apparently she expected the reaction and stepped forward and laid a restraining hand on his shoulder. "Fine? No, of course not. No one is safe in this, though here is safer than almost anywhere else in all of Hyrule right now. The Deku Tree still lives, and he fights a battle that you cannot help him with."
Link nodded slowly, expecting the answer yet dreading it all the same. "It's magic, isn't it? Is this Ganondorf? The Triforce?" He turned around slightly as he studied Impa's reaction.
She stared at him for a moment, then shook her head. "I don't know. The Princess… she suspects something, but I do not know what. Ganondorf alone was not powerful enough to conjure, well, whatever this storm is. But with the Triforce?" She trailed off, her eyes looking ahead. "All things are possible then. But I do not know."
Link nodded, feeling for his sword and shield. The dark steel blade gave him small comfort, and briefly he thought of the Master Sword, resting in that solitary pedestal miles away. In all his time away, no sword ever felt so right in his hands, ever felt so natural to hold. Even what he affectionately called the Stranger's Sword, forged by a master smith in the lands of Cosmaçai, was nothing in comparison. And that was to say nothing about the battered piece of metal that constituted his shield now. How long had he had that? Five years now? How many battles had it withstood, unyielding against countless blades, talons, and spears?
Part of him wondered whether he was expected to fight off the storm somehow. He hoped very much this wasn't the case. "Okay, what do you need me to do?" He felt ready, that surge of adrenaline that always filled him before an adventure, but for a brief moment he felt an overwhelming pang of anger and sadness. What in the world had that been?
"The Princess requires you at the Wind Temple."
Wind Temple? That was a new one. Just how many temples did Hyrule have exactly? "Just tell me where to go." His hands itched toward his sword again, his body tense in anticipation.
Impa quirked a small smile. "Unless you happen to grow wings, you'll have a hard time reaching it. Very few know of its existence, let alone its location. I will send you there." She motioned for Link to step outside.
The maelstrom had hardly abated, and Link eyed it askance for a moment before complying. Immediately he felt the wind whip around him and his hand reflexively went up to his cap, which felt as though it was tugging at Link's scalp in a vain attempt to fly away from its owner. How could wind be this fierce! Even the sandstorms of the Forbidden Dunes weren't as powerful as this! He held onto the small wooden fence for support as he watched Impa duck through the small doorway. She looked up for a moment, searching around as though trying to find a specific point in the sky, then nodded to herself.
She motioned for Link to stand. "—over her, there's – she used to be!" Impa shouted at him, though the wind made it impossible to understand most of what she said. He just nodded; probably to save the princess or keep her safe. He knew Impa well enough to understand that. The Shiekah appeared satisfied, and she brought her hands together, summoning forth her spiritual energy and directing it toward Link.
His eyes were blinded by light; his body flashed with searing heat for a moment, then tingled with that strange numbness that he remembered a lifetime ago. The world around him drained of color besides a deep indigo, and he watched in curiosity as he sped high into the air. It surprised him how quickly he lost sight of his home, the storm being as thick as it was. In seconds he broke through the forest canopy, soaring ever higher. The tumultuous treetops faded away quickly, obscured by the rain. For several minutes, he was simply surrounded by a gray void, occasionally broken by falling hail or debris.
Then, in an infinitesimal moment, he felt as though every inch of his body and mind had burst into an inferno. Searing heat wracked through him, and he felt his mind scream in agony. The world began to turn an impossible white as an impossible surge of energy beyond all comprehension flowed through him. He felt nothing, understood nothing, but agony. He could not feel his mind, could not think. Could not see. Could not be.
Flowing through the energy was a resonating scream, an overwhelming cry of anger and jealousy beyond all understanding. A primal need that could never be satiated. To soak up all of creation, to absorb every last ounce of energy, to become power incarnate.
Slowly, impossibly slowly, the energy began to fade away, the scream turning to a roar, then a moan, then a whisper. The impossibly bright light broke away, and the gray void returned. Thought slowly returned to Link, and he could feel himself moving once more, and behind him he felt the loud echoes of thunder resonate in the sky. Shakily a thought crossed his mind as he tried to comprehend what had just happened. Lightning?
He tried to think about what happened, but his mind was still reeling in shock. He needed to breathe; why couldn't he breathe? The void was getting darker. Why was it darker? Why can't I feel anything? Why can't I scream!? Panic wracked his thoughts, pushing aside all reason. He was swallowed in complete darkness. I must escape! I have to get out of here! I MUST ESCAPE!
The darkness surrounding him broke away, revealing the bright cyan sky filled with huge white clouds tinged with purple. His sanity shakily returned to him as he began to remember what was going on. He was going to the Wind Temple. That must have been a lightning bolt, though he wouldn't have expected it to feel like that. Overwhelming. The roiling black cloud lay wide below him, and he saw flicks of white and plumes of gas jettison from the top as it unleashed bolt after bolt of lightning to the land below. The storm cloud was massive, stretching as far as he could see. What in the world could cause such a thing?
He drifted through the sky for what felt like hours, watching in endless fascination at the mammoth clouds moving past him and the ominous one rumbling below. Finally he caught sight of his destination: a sculpted cloud hovering still in the air, stylized so that it looked like the flows of a gentle breeze. Its surface was all smooth curves and gentle swishes. There was no mistaking it for the Wind Temple, though he wondered how he was supposed to get in. It had to be solid, but he saw no windows or platforms that suggested a way inside.
The bubble ascended to the top of the temple and he spotted a stairwell in the center. That answers that question then. He felt himself lower down to the ground, which was starting to feel uncomfortably close, and the spell began to unravel itself. Searing heat flushed his still-absent body and once more he felt that familiar tingling sensation race through him as he reappeared. Almost immediately he felt his legs buckle under him and a powerful pain in his chest as collapsed, gasping to breathe. The tingling sensation didn't go away this time, like it always had before. Instead it pounded at his nerves until almost all sensation was gone. His heart was pounding as though it were trying to beat out of his chest.
He spared not a moment and reached behind his shield for a small potion he had purchased at the docks several days ago. It had been in case he got lost in the forest and the Stalfos began to overwhelm him, but now he was thankful that never happened. His uncooperative numb fingers fumbled as he twisted off the cork stopper on top. He felt his strength fading fast, his heart beating much too hard. Last chance. Summoning his strength, he held the bottle with his mouth and rolled over onto his back, letting gravity empty its contents into his mouth. There was so much pain, it took everything he had not to wrap himself in a ball. All he could do was focus on swallowing and hope the potion would work in time.
He swallowed until his throat was raw. He kept swallowing even when the bottle tumbled out of his mouth. At some point he felt himself try to curl up into a ball anyway, but there was no strength left. He was fading.
Link slowly cracked his eyes open as consciousness returned to him. The sky was a brilliant amber and gold, which he would have appreciated far more if not for the pounding headache he had, or the feeling that he had just raced the marathon man across Hyrule while wearing heavy steel restraints around his ankles.
This has quite possibly been the worst day of my life.