Author's note: Again, I am so glad people like this story. It makes me feel good about my writing when I read a comment that praises my fanfics. So thanks to those who took the time and reviewed: Viper Fangblade and SailorZeldaTheLightAlchemist. Enjoy this chapter and thanks for reading.
Chapter Three
"Wow." That was all Zelda, still in her Sheik disguise, could say when she saw Rinku step out of the Kokiri house in his new garb. He wore knee-high boots, a green tunic, and brown pants. On his arms were brown bracers, and his hands were covered by gloves. He wore chain mail under his tunic, and, when he donned the Master Sword across his back, he truly looked like a Hero.
The other Kokiri standing next to Zelda, including the Forest Sage, began talking about how much the new Hero looked like the Hero of Time.
"Do I really look like him?" Rinku asked Zelda.
Zelda nodded in reply. "Very much so," she replied with a smile. "So, we need to meet with the other sages and figure out our battle plan."
"Where are we meeting?"
"Lon Lon Ranch."
Rinku nodded. He had heard of the famous ranch, though he had never been there. No, his whole life had been spent in Dresdem, fairly disconnected from the rest of the country.
"We should get going," Saria suggested. "It's a long journey on foot."
Zelda and Rinku nodded. After they said their goodbyes to the Kokiri, the three companions headed out to Hyrule Field. Saria led the way confidently, while Rinku and Zelda walked behind her, side by side. Rinku looked around at everything, excited to see the whole world. Zelda was also looking around, though not in admiration. She was tense, her hand gripping the long dagger at her side.
Saria stopped after a while of walking, looking sadly as a small bed of wildflowers that had grown there and had died. "Ganondorf's influence no doubt," she said, kneeling next to the dried brown plants. "After Link unfroze Zora's River, things started turning green again. But I see now that it was only temporary."
"That's awful," Rinku said.
"It is," Saria replied. She sighed and stood. "We should keep going. Staying out here too long might attract enemies." She started off again.
"Enemies? What kind of enemies?" Rinku asked, following her.
"Stalchildren, mostly. Link told me once they're really easy to beat," Saria said. "But recently, I've seen other monsters: wolfos, stalfos, even a moblin or two. And Moblins aren't ones to mess with."
Rinku sighed. "And how am I supposed to fight them? I've never held a sword in my life before today."
"Don't worry," Zelda said. "We'll help you out. Besides, you'll know what to do for sure." Rinku sighed again and dropped the subject, glancing around. He thought he saw something crouched behind the dried bushes that were clumped nearby, but he wasn't sure.
The sun was low in the cloudy sky when they neared the entrance to the ranch. Zelda stopped, looking out north. She sighed. "There's Castle Town, Rinku," she said. "Once it was a beautiful, lively place. People were happy with the way things were, from what I remember as a ten-year-old. But now, it's full of dead things. And the castle once shone in the sun on a clear day, but that's gone, too, replaced with Ganon's crappy fortress."
A howl went up in distance. Zelda tensed again, drawing her dagger halfway out of her sheath. "Wolfos," she muttered. Rinku put a hand on the Master Sword. Though he was unsure how to use a sword, he would try his best.
"We could run to the ranch," Saria suggested as they heard another howl, closer this time.
"Let's do that," Zelda agreed. "I'd rather not have to get into a fight."
But it was too late. A monster jumped out at Saria. Zelda attacked it, slicing at its legs. It howled in pain and scrambled backwards, only to let by more wolfos. The monsters circled them. Rinku drew his sword, ducking as one of the creatures took a leap at him. He swiped at it and managed to get it with the tip of his sword.
"Rinku, behind you!" Saria shouted. A large wolfos jumped at him. The monster never made it very far. It landed in a heap, one of Zelda's daggers embedded in its pelt.
There was a flash of gold light coming from the Triforce of Courage, and Rinku suddenly had an insight on how to use his sword. "Get down!" he told Saria and Zelda. They obeyed, and Rinku held the Master Sword up, releasing a spin attack at the surrounding wolfos. They scattered, and the three travelers took the opportunity to run, the uninjured wolfos chasing after them.
They just entered the ranch when the monsters were upon them. A yell split the air and a wall of fire went up behind the travelers. Saria looked up. "Darunia!" she exclaimed. Rinku looked up as well and saw a massive Goron.
"Those mongrels didn't hurt you, did they?" Darunia asked as Zelda, Rinku, and Saria got to their feet, sheathing their weapons.
"Almost," Zelda replied. "But they didn't, thanks to you."
Darunia thumped a gigantic fist against his chest. "You're welcome, Sister. Come, the others are already here."
"Others?" Rinku asked Zelda as they followed Saria and Darunia.
"The rest of the sages," the disguised Princess replied. As they walked further into ranch, Rinku heard the sound of a horse neighing frantically and pounding hoofbeats.
"Someone catch her!" a girl shouted as a horse careened toward them. Darunia waved his arms and the horse skid to a stop, rearing with another frantic neigh. A red-headed girl ran up and caught the horse's halter when it hit the ground. "Come on, Epona! Behave!"
The horse neighed again, pulling against the girl's grip. The girl held the mare steady, nodding a greeting toward Zelda. "Hey, Princess. Long time no see."
"It sure has been a long time, Malon," Zelda replied as Darunia and Saria, their jobs done for the moment, went further into the ranch. Zelda walked up to the horse. "Hey there, Epona," she said, reaching a hand out for the mare to sniff.
The horse pulled against Malon again, nearly getting free. Malon huffed. "You want to help me out, Hero-boy?" she asked, glancing at Rinku, who nodded. He grabbed Epona's halter, and the horse went nuts again.
"Epona's not very fond of strangers," Malon said as they led the horse to a small corral, singled off from the rest of the horses on the ranch and attached to a small barn. They released her into the corral, where she took off running, neighing and trying to find a way out.
"Is that why she ran off in the first place?" Rinku asked.
"No. She's been like this for almost a year and a half. She once belonged to Link, and he was able to get to her so that she obeyed his every command without a single fight. You should have seen them together: if there's any true connection between species, it was shown clearly through Link and Epona. I used to have a bond with her as well through singing, but I can't get to her anymore." Malon sighed. "She's put up a shell ever since she realized Link wasn't coming back, and she won't come out until she sees him again, which won't happen."
"What did you sing to her?"
"This." And Malon began to sing. The tune was like a lullaby, and Epona paused in her cantering, her ears pricked as she trembled. Then she let out a piercing neigh, one that held so much sadness in in, like she was calling out to her long-gone master. Malon stopped singing, sighing sadly. "Poor girl. You miss your master, don't you?" Epona snorted and took off again around the corral.
"She liked that song," Rinku said softly, reaching into his bag for his ocarina. He pulled it out and placed it to his lips. Malon saw what he was going to do and began singing again. Rinku joined in, willing the troubled horse to calm down. Epona stopped in her tracks, her eyes never leaving Rinku and his ocarina. She took several steps toward him. She nosed his arm, and he petted her gently, rubbing her forehead while still playing the melody with one hand.
"Are you some sort of horse-whisperer?" Malon asked softly as Rinku finished the song. Epona remained quiet, enjoying the rub Rinku was giving her.
"No. I've just got a way with music."
"That's amazing." The ranch girl reached out and stroked Epona's mane. "She hasn't been this calm in ages." She looked up at the sound of another person approaching. It was the ranch hand, a sour look on his face.
"I found your father, Miss Malon. He's asleep in the hay loft."
Malon sighed. "Thanks, Ingo. I'll go wake him up." She smiled at Rinku before walking away with Ingo. Rinku turned back to Epona and stroked her forehead again. The mare whinnied quietly and sadly.
"You miss him, don't you?" Rinku asked softly. "You're not the only one. Everyone I've talked to has missed him. I never knew him, but he's done so much for Hyrule and for everyone. You probably know that, being his horse and all." Epona snorted, shaking her head.
"Hey, Rinku! Come over here!" Navi called.
Rinku nodded and gave Epona a final pat and went over to where Zelda and Saria sat with Darunia, a Zora, and a Hylian. Saria was busy growing a flower in the center of the circle while talking with Darunia and the Zora. The Hylian seemed to be sleeping, while Zelda was talking with Navi. The Princess looked up and smiled at Rinku. "You're a man of many hidden talents," she said, referring to the fact that he had gotten Epona to calm down.
"I just played some music," Rinku replied, sitting next her.
Zelda shook her head. "You've got a magical talent there. Music and magic can be very powerful, and when combined with a piece of the Triforce, it can be one of the most powerful forms of magic."
"Basically," Navi added, "you're special." Rinku smiled at her comment.
After a few moments of silence watching Saria's flower bloom and grow taller than the Forest Sage herself, they were joined by the last two sages: a Sheikah, who Zelda greeted happily, and a Gerudo.
Rinku was formally introduced to the sages: Impa the Sheikah Sage of Shadow had once been Zelda's nursemaid and bodyguard when the Princess was young. Nabooru the Gerudo Sage of Spirit was the only Gerudo sane enough not to follow Ganondorf. Rauru, the Hylian and Sage of Light, preferred to stay in the Chamber of the Sages in the Sacred Realm, where once the Hero of Time had woken and was told of his destiny. Ruto the Zora Sage of Water, had known Link when he was a boy and had proclaimed her love for him. And Darunia, the Goron Sage of Fire, had also known Link when he was a boy, and had officially declared the young Hero a brother to the Gorons after he had helped them out of a tight spot.
Once the introductions were done, they all decided that Rinku would need to train so that he would be able to face Ganondorf with enough skill to beat him. The meeting was adjourned around midnight. As Rinku walked back towards the house and barn, Epona called out to him, straining against her fence. The young Hero walked over to her and she calmed down a bit, pawing the ground like she was begging him to play another song.
"Not now, Epona," he said. "Tomorrow, ok?"
The chestnut mare snorted and moved away from the gate, dropping her head to graze on the trampled grass.
Rinku walked away from the corral, but he turned to look back at the horse, feeling like he had made a friend in her.
Three weeks passed, and Rinku quickly learned how to use both his sword and the bow Zelda had given him on his second day on the ranch. As the third week came to a close, Rinku decided to test his trust with Epona and try to ride her. He had been slowly gaining her trust by spending at least an hour after his training was done in her corral, usually playing his ocarina.
As the sun sank low to the horizon, Rinku led Epona into the larger corral, now cleared of the horses that usually stayed there. Malon walked with him, eager to see how this would go. "Remember," the ranch girl reminded him, "if she flips out, get off right away. We don't need you with some broken bones."
"Got it," Rinku said. He stroked Epona. "Be a good girl, Epona."
The mare snorted but otherwise stayed still. Rinku mounted lightly into the worn saddle. Epona tensed, but didn't go crazy. Malon looked up at Rinku. "So far so good," she said, backing away from the horse and rider.
Rinku nodded and nudged Epona forward. The mare relaxed and willingly obeyed. After a few moments, Rinku picked up the pace, going straight into a canter. Epona dashed forward, her stride eating up the ground. The sages, who were watching from the side of the corral with Zelda, Navi, Ingo, and Talon, the ranch owner, all cheered on the Hero and his horse. It was almost too good to be true, to see a Hero riding his horse across the grass.
Then things went wrong. Epona, who had been enjoying herself, tensed up, halting suddenly and nearly throwing Rinku from the saddle. Rinku looked around, knowing the horse was afraid. Epona reared, catching her rider off guard. He fell to the ground, stunned, as Epona took off around the corral. Rinku heard the distinctive sound of an arrow being released from the bow string. He rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the fiery arrow, which embedded itself into the grass.
The Hero looked up and saw a strange green creature standing on top of the nearest barn's roof. It gave a low barking howl, waving its arm in the air, only to be cut off by Nabooru's arrow. But it was only the beginning. The gates to the ranch burst open and enemies filled the place.
Author's note: Any guesses about what monsters the "green creatures" are? Hint: they're a real Zelda enemy. Whoever guesses correctly gets a free (virtual) cookie!
