To the Moon and Back: One Account of the Journey Through Termina During the Carnival of Time, Undertaken by the Heroes of Time in their Present Youth; Told from Perspective by One Timbre Firral(and others, where appropriate). Translated from the Original Lupine by One Kasumi Magmus.
Disclaimer: I do not own Zelda.
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Sorry about leaving it hanging like thatbut I ran out of ink, and thenwell, I got distracted. I've been too easily distracted lately, and by trivial things, too.
Kas says he'd expect that, which is why I'm still clueless as to why I'm stuck doing this. Oh well, you might as well finish what you start.
That, and the next part's gonna bereal interesting to write. All I know, is that if Tejina could read this (wherever she is right now), she'd end up on the floor, laughing. But it wasn't at all funny when it first happenedyou'll see why
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Part 3: A Terrible Fate
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As it ended up, it wasn't really that much of a fall at all. Well, it was a fall in the sense that we were traveling downward through open space at a very fast speed, but it just didn't seem right. Almost as if we were - floating.
In fact, I would've thought we were if it weren't for the vague glows of luminescene that flashed by at alarming speeds as we fell. Well, that, and that feeling like your stomach is rising into your throat. My throat didn't appreciate that too much.
I didn't scream, because I was too alarmed — and because it would have hurt like bloody murder to do it. I was alarmed because the glows were starting to resemble — pictures. Or symbols. Maybe it was just my imagination working.
check that. I just went and asked Kat about it, and she remembers seeing those symbols as well. Weird, how things like that work out. Unless, we were both hallucinating.
Our downward trip was abruptly stopped — with a splash into rather cold water. Even though the pool was shallow and I should've felt the impact a lot harder — I didn't. It still creeps me out, even after all this time. For all the falling (and reaching of terminal velocity,' I think that's what it's called), you'd think we would've all broken bones. But no — I felt more like I'd tripped and fallen than if I'd fallen off of a cliff.
My bewilderment was short lived — as I now found myself in a pile of arms, legs, and torsos. Unfortunately, I found myself at the bottom, sitting in a cold, wet puddle. I tried to choke out a few words above the commotion which was my other friends, also in varying states of confusion.
"What the-"
"We fell?!"
"Ow, who's standing on my back?!"
"Glaark." That one was me.
"Get off!"
"Where are we?!"
We were just barely beginning to disentangle ourselves when there was a sudden snap — and the white hot glare as the room we were in was quite suddenly illuminated.
We were in a cave, which was mostly covered in a few inches of water. My dazzled eyes caught a sillouette of Link as he stood awkwardly, one forearm thrown across his face to shield from the streaming light. He was down here with us, as well as Chiron. Wherever this was, it was apparently the way that the Skull Kid had taken. Link didn't look at us too much, he seemed too dazed. Instead, he tumbled off of the pile with a squelch.
And stepped right on my left forepaw (Translator's Note: he means his left hand, but there's no word for hand' in his language. In fact, whenever he uses the word paw,' he probably means hand.' You get the idea.).
"Rowwwl!"
Sond, who was sitting dazed on top of the pile of youth (she's just lucky like that), looked around at my cry, before quietly shoving Link off of my paw. Thank that girl for being observant! "What's going on?" she demanded sharply. Then more quietly, "Damn! My bow snapped!" Though we survived impact, apparently her equipment hadn't been so lucky. I felt a pang of sympathy for her. I knew what it felt like to feel so helplessly unarmed.
No teeth or clawsthen you have to fight, unarmed. And humans just aren't made for that kind of combat.
Kat, Kafei and Chiron all obliged me by getting up, allowing me to finally face the fact my entire back end was now liberally saturated with cold cave water. This was to be the least of my troubles, though.
"Hoy!"
I looked up at Chiron's shout, and saw why.
The Skull Kid was before us.
He was floating, almost reclining you could say, in mid air! I'd never known Skull Kids could do that, I thought in confusion. The two fairies floated on either side of the masked miscreant, framing his colorful face' with their respective lights.
"What's with that stupid horse of yours?!" Demanded the Skull Kid, as if we were the criminals. "It doesn't listen to a word that's said to it!"
Link scowled fiercely. "Where's Epona? Tell me right now!"
Sond instinctually drew her bow, and stared helplessly at the two broken halves of it. She looked desolated.
Skull Kid ignored her. "There's no point in riding a thing like that, so I did you a favor and got rid of itHee hee!!"
"What?!" Link looked outraged at the mocking, childish tone of the thief.
"You better not have touched my guitar!" Chiron threatened. He already had the hammer, his favorite weapon (besides the blade in his guitar - but you didn't hear that from me, ok?), out. He looked ready to kill something.
"Or my trumpet!" Kat added.
"Aww, boo-hoo," mocked the Skull Kid, miming a person bursting into tears. His behavior was infuriating. He adopted a simpering voice. "I just thought I'd have a little fun with you"
I started to growl, about the only thing I could do with my voice. The Skull Kid — or maybe it was the mask itself, seemed to look questioningly over at me. But then the gaze turned towards the others as their insults continued.
"Don't mock us so lightly," warned Chiron. "We're not ones to be trifled with."
"Yeah!" Added Kafei, who despite this gesture looked slightly less confident.
Link drew his sword. "We've defeated people much stronger then you!"
"Stronger? Hee hee hee!" The Skull Kid described a flip in mid air. As he laughed, that chilling second voice suddenly echoed through the cavern. The mask seemed to shake on its own. "Oh come now," it seemed to say, rather than its wearer. "Do you really think you can beat me as I am now? Fools!"
At the word fools,' the eyes of the mask suddenly flashed, and I found myself completely paralyzed. My eyes were locked rigidly with the gaze with those of the mask. I tried to struggle, but it was if my whole body had turned to stone. Similar grunts and cries around me meant that my friends were similarly snared.
Whatwhat's happening?! II can't move!
I don't know if it was the Skull Kid, or another hallucination, but I swear I heard a chilling hiss, whispering all around me. It kept reciting a rhyme in a sing-song voice, which unfortunately I can still partially remember, and it still gives me the creeps:
Six little children, caught in a spell,
Down in the cave where the shadows dwell,
Majora deems the start- his game will be played,
Now he begins their masquarade
Helpless to resist whatever the Skull Kid had in store, I and my friends simply waited, caught hopelessly in that cruel gaze.
To my horror, I realized that the mask was shaking back and forth on its own. After every shake, waves of violet energy, flecked with lightning bolts, undulated from the mask. Those sickly waves of energy snaked ever closer to our end of the cavern, though their travel seemed cruelly slow, allowing us to agonize completely at the inevitability of our situation.
The violet lightning bolts homed in, and as they wrapped around all of us, I felt first-paw what it was like to be struck by a powerful curse.
Two words: it hurts. Little rivulets of pain slammed down every inch of my body, licking tiny fires of bright agony up and down and through my skin. Even my eyes hurt. The paralysis seemed to dispel, just in time for me to arch in pain. And I tried my hardest to scream, only nothing came out.
Black.
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Ok, I'll admit, I was stuck at this spot for days. For one thing, just remembering that cave, and that rhymeit still creeps me out, and visits me on dark nights. Majora knew just how to make that fear rise up in you, yet to him it was all just a game. But now I'm hesitant. I mean, how do you just go on about something terrible that happens to you? It wasn't so much what became of everyone, as the events that took place right after, I guess. We were all in for a rough haulthough I guess I can't speak for the others
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The first thing I was aware of was a splitting headache, to compliment my throat. The second thing, though this was much fuzzier, was a sudden scream. The scream was one I'd never heard before, something between a wail and a squeak, very high pitched. I cringed, because it was making my aching head ring.
Then words. "What did you do?!" came a shrill voice.
"Heehe! Now that's a good look for you!" I could already recognize the Skull Kid's voice.
"Thisisn't reals'gotta be a dream or something," I heard the other voice mutter. It somehow soundedfamiliar?
"You'll stay here looking that way for-ev-er!"
"No, waitcome back here!"
"Hehehehee!"
"No! Get out of the way, you stupid fairy! Ow!"
"Pbbbbbt!"
The cackling of Skull Kid was getting fainter, then I heard one of the fairies yell.
"S-sis! Come on! S-sSis!"
BOOM.
I flinched, and forced myself more awake. The loud noiseit sounded as if a huge door had just slammed shut. Blearily, I opened my eyes and blinked a few times. UghI felt a little groggya little disorientedand quiteoff-color, too.
I sat up, and turned my face in the direction of the noise. Though my vision was still cloudy, it was clearing. It was then that I was greeted by the strangest sight.
The gold-ish fairy was angrily orbiting a little prone figure I couldn't quite recognize. The fairy bobbed, and flew over towards the door' that I'd heard close, slamming its body against the door repeatedly.
"Whoa! Whoa! Skull Kid, wait for me! I'm still here!!! Tael, you can't leave without me!"
The other figure groggily stood, and I finally nailed the species down. It was a Deku Scrub, though why here of all places-
"You!" screamed the fairy in irate female style, whirling on the Deku, "If I wasn't dealing with you, I wouldn't have gotten separated from my brother!"
The scrub just shook his head, and I noticed something weird. It was wearing a long green hat that nearly trailed along the ground. That was a very familiar hat.
That's Link's hatwhat's it doing, wearing that?
I decided I'd been quiet too long, and tried to yell out Hey!'
It came out very wrong. Now honestly, my throat had just been sucker-punched, I wasn't expecting total clarity, but I hadn't been prepared for what I did do: I squeaked. Not even like a choked one. An actual "Squeak!" sound.
Chargrined, I clapped paws over my snout. Where had that come from?!
Waitsnout? Humans don't have a-
Confused, I tried it again. And again: "Squeak!"
The Deku and fairy whirled, staring at me. I jumped, and then the scrub was running towards me. To get to me, he seemed to have to pick his way though a bunch of discarded bushes. He stopped suddenly, helped me up, and brushed leafy-blond hair out of his eyes. "T-tim? Is thatyou?"
I stared. How'she know my name?
"Whassa matter?" snided the fairy. "Scrub got yer tongue?"
Something clicked. And I looked up at the Deku. He was taller than me. And had blonde hair. Leaves. Sort ofand then it hit me as I suddenly recognized that confused look.
Link?! What the?!
I tried to say his name, and it came out: "Squeak?!"
Even at that point, I had to realize the awful truth. It was Link, and he was a Deku Scrub.
And so was I.
I reeled slightly, looking down at myself in shock. It wasn't the first time I'd woken up to a dramatic self-change. Though thiseven being human was better than thisat least then I'd been able to talk-
I must have looked completely devastated, because Link squinted at me, somehow managing to look concerned.
"Y'alright there?"
No, I wanted to say angrily. Of course I'm not!
"Squeak! Squeak-n-not!" I jumped. I'd spokenwell, sort of.
Link looked around, then back at himself. "This is weird," he admitted. "I didn't know Skull Kids could do stuff like this"
"They can't, it was because-" the fairy started to blurt. Link and I looked at her expectantly, and she blanched and changed the subject. "W-welllook! Your little friends are waking upheh, they'll be in for a shock," she said, nastily.
They were. Those bushes that I'd seen before ended up not being bushes after all, but were actually the rest of my companions, sprawled about after that Skull Kid's curse. Kat and Sond woke up first, and Link tried to disjointedly explain what had happened to all of us. The girls took the Deku thing in stride, almost as if it didn't bug them that they'd completely changed forms.
Then again, it had never happened to them before.
Kafei and Chiron didn't take it nearly as well. Chiron's first words were curses, mostly aimed at the Skull Kid, though a few were flung around at fate in general for putting him through this humiliation. Actually, Kafei yelled a bit, too. He looked really weirdever seen a Deku Scrub with purple hair? Trust meit looks a little funny. Kafei did still have his Keaton Mask on him, which he'd apparently sat on while being cursed. It didn't fit him very well in his current form, so he had to leave it pulled up on top of his head, more like a hat than anything.
I, meanwhile, was left mostly to myself. I sighed, dreading the time I'd have to face my new reflection. The first time had been worse enough. That time, I'd been completely taken by surprise, not even knowing what a human was. You can imagine me wondering what kind of horrible monstrosity I'd become.
That, and I was still largely unable to talk, and rather disgruntled about it. How come everyone else could, at least audibly? It seemed sounfair! I tried to say something again. "Squ-reek-aaawrrrugh."
All five of them turned and looked at me strangely, making me stop in mid-squeak. "You alright there?" Sond asked, hobbling over. She felt my forehead with a little wooden paw. "Not sick or anything?"
I sighed, and shook my head no.
"I don't think he can talk," Link observed.
I glared. Thanks for stating the obvious, Link.
"Really?" Sond's red eyes angled sadly. "That's awful! Poor Tim!" She whirled me around, and hugged me tightly.
Bleh! I wriggled away, sulking. It's weird to have a bush clinging to you, even if you're a bush yourself. Also, I didn't like being hugged back then. At least when they were sprung on me without me expecting it.
The fairy, however, wasn't paying attention. She whirled back on a hapless Link. "So, now what? We gonna get out of here or what? Open the door!" She jingled. "Well, don't just sit there, Deku boy! Do something!"
"Like what?" Chiron snapped back at her. "You expect us to just bow to your every whim after what your friend's done to us?"
"Well," the fairy started.
She was transfixed by the glares of a dozen Deku Scrub eyes, and she seemed to falter a bit.
"why are you looking at me like that? What, is there something stuck on my face?"
Still the glare.
"Will you stop staring and just open that door for me?!?"
Link quirked a nonexistent eyebrow. I'm still not sure how that worked, so don't ask me. The fairy hovered over towards the door, wings drooped.
"Please," she finally said simperingly, "C'mon, a helpless little girl is asking youso hurry up!" Turning towards the door, she murmured something I didn't catch.
Link looked at all of us. "Wellshe's right about one thingwe don't get out of here unless we open that door."
"But can we?" said Kat.
"Looks kind of heavy," Chiron muttered. "And I don't know about you guys, but all my stuff is gone!"
There was a mass shuffle as people looked for their equipment. I looked down. My trenchcoat was still with me, though it had shrunk as much as I had. Not enough for it to stop trailing the ground, though. My gloves were still on my paws, I noted with relief. If I didn't have those onwho knows how neurotic I'd get?
Oh, just on an off-notenever ever try and get a wolf to take their gloves off, even if it's just temporary. It'snot good, kind of like asking someone to remove random parts of their body. We don't take it very lightly. Let's leave it at that.
Not everyone was as lucky as me in the equipment department, though. Chiron's hammer, Sond's (broken) bow, and Link's sword were mysteriously gone. Kafei still had his favorite stick though.
"We can pry up the door with this, I s'pose," he said, still looking very depressed about it all.
We tried it. It took a couple of attempts, though the screeching fairy didn't help any. Eventually, we got the door to prop open. We all piled through, and then Kafei pulled his stick back with a yank, closing the door behind us once more.
"Where are we?!" Link yelled, his small voice echoing.
We seemed to be in a cavern, marred with huge crevasses, creating little rocky islands' of land. On every island grew a single solitary pink flower. The flowers were huge. I could probably sit on one as a human comfortably.
"Hey, wait for me!"
It was that damn fairy again. I'd never wanted something to shut up more than I did her. But she just kept talking anyway. "So, um"
"What do you want?" Chiron muttered.
"That stuff back there," she said quickly. "I umapologize, soso take me with you!"
"Squeak?!"
Everyone shook their heads in amazement.
"What, you just expect us to forgive you just like that?" Sond said incredulously.
"Well, you wanna know about that Skull Kid who just ran off, right?"
We all nodded.
"Well, I just so happen to have an idea of where he might be going. Take me with you and I'll help you out. Deal?"
Fickle little beast! I shook my head, still not trusting her. Last time we followed her, we'd ended up like this. How did we know she wouldn't just betray us?
"please?" she added, looking desperate.
Link looked at all of us, and sighed. "Looks like we've got no choice, guys."
"And gals," Kat added. "If we don't know how to catch up to that guy, we might lose all our instrumentsthat, and we'll be hard pressed to find a way to get back to normal"
"Think there is a way to do that?" Kafei murmured, sounding desperate.
"'Course there is," Chiron stated. "Every curse has its counter, that's something you learn in basic magic. All we have to do is find that Skull Kid, and make him undo what he did."
Link usually becomes our spokesman, though I'm not sure why. He manages to get us into enough trouble with that big mouth of his sometimesbut then again, he's usually the one least inclined to getting completely tongue-tied. So he turned back to the fairy. "Alright, you've got a deal. But you'd better-"
"Good! So then it's settled!" The fairy looped around him before he could finish. Turning to face the group, she angled her wings slightly. "My name's Tatl."
Knowing protocol, we all introduced ourselves. "I'm Link."
"And I'm Sond!"
"Chiron here."
"Kat."
"Kafei Dotour."
My turn. "Squeak-" I coughed, determined not to lose this time. I screwed my eyes shut, and tried to force my voice into something faintly audible. It worked, barely. "Teembruh," I managed to wheeze, finally.
I swear Tatl rose an eyebrow at that one, though it's kind of hard to tell with fairies. "Isee."
Sond patted me on the shoulder. "S'okay, Tim" I drooped, feeling rather foolish. Was I going to have to spend the rest of my life needing an interpreter? Or would I just have to get really good at Charades, instead?
"Well, ok." Link posed. "Now that that's all donehow the heck are we supposed to get out of here?"
"Across this way, of course," Tatl replied, hovering over the abyss, and indicating an exit far across, beyond our reach."
"how are we supposed to get across that way, might I ask?" Chiron questioned, snidely, with crossed arms. Even as a Deku he managed to look cynical.
"Fly. Duh." Tatl replied in the same tone.
"Um. Right"
"Geez, don't you see the flowers, and-" She paused, mid-thought. "Oh, that's right! You wouldn't know, cause you aren't really Deku Scrubsheh. Forgot."
I felt the intense desire to throttle her, then and there.
"Y'gotta use the flowers t'jump."
We all blinked, confused.
"Let's allow a demonstration. Ey, squeak-boy, come over here." Tatl bobbed over my head, and indicated the flower.
Stupid, stupid fairyif you weren't helping us outI reluctantly approached the blossom, though I heard Link snicker behind me. "Heh"
Face burning, I turned and glared at him, but while I was off-guard, that dumb fairy nailed me square between the eyes, sending me sprawling down onto the flower.
or should I say, into it?
The thing swallowed me, and I kind of panicked. I flailed around, making little distressed squawks as I tried to lever myself out, when-
POP!
Next thing I know, I'm hovering ten feet in the air, clinging onto a hovering flower for dear life. Yeah, I know, weird, huh? Guess you kind of have to try it yourself to know what I mean. While I dully realized where I was, I heard the fairy start to yell again.
"Now tilt forwards!"
I did, and with a little coaching, found myself sailing over that awful abyss, landing lightly on one of the raised platforms. There was another flower here. It seemed we could get across here with relative ease — if we did it in a few jumps.
After my initial voyage, it got easier as everyone learned the trick. By the end of that cavern, some of us were already old paw. Sond had a real knack for it, I remember. I for onewell, I like firm ground, y'know, though I'll admit it's kind of fun to hover around like that, as long as you find something solid to eventually land on.
Well, anywaywe made it to the exit we'd spotted, walked past a very weird-looking tree (we weren't aware that this would later be important), and into the doorway. Or portal. Whatever you want to call it.
It made me dizzy, just to walk though there, kind of like the whole room was spinning, and I couldn't stop it. Really similar to the Forest Temple's hallways, if you've ever been, that is.
We ended up in a large room with a waterwheel. High above us, we heard the grinding of millions of mechanical gears, and a rhythmic clunking noise. Kind of likeclockwork.
Yeah, get it?
Tatl flew on ahead towards a doorway, leading us up a small flight of stairs on the way. "S'around herethis'll bring us up into town."
"Town?" Link asked.
"Yeah, bit of a roundabout route, but we'll find Skull Kid there."
"Great!" Sond said. "Then what are we waiting for?"
The six of us trundled up towards the door. Link had one wooden paw on it, and was about to give it a tentative push, when we heard a tinny, chilling chuckle from behind us.
"You've met a terrible fate, haven't you?"
Well, if that wasn't the understatement of the century
