The Legend of Zelda: Time Gate
A Short Interlude
The four creatures stood in the darkness of the forest, unaware of their fate. Their wings remained close to their bodies in fear, and their bodies shivered like they were in pain.
"Uzuki, everything is going to be alright, okay? Calm down," the man hushed. He wrapped his arms around her body, trying to calm her down.
"Mitsuhiro, we're not going to survive this!" Uzuki sputtered through tears and coughs. "The Society will find us! And when they do, they won't hesitate to kill us! I don't want to die again!"
"We're not going to die," he whispered. "Shuto found the Hero of Time. He told him the plan. We just need to make sure that dang fairy keeps his end of the bargain."
"So, you're going to meet him in Clock Town then?" Yashiro snickered, and folded her arms. "I thought you detested the fairies!"
"I do, but if it's for our own survival, then I'll work with them just this once, even if the Reapers are supposed to be the ones to hate the fairies."
"Don't worry, he'll hold up his end of the bargain," Shuto assured. "He is the Hero of Time."
"What about Jun and Iwata? With those two on our tail, nowhere is safe anymore!" Yashiro yelled.
Uzuki let out a short wail.
"Yashiro, you're making it worse!" Mitsuhiro grumbled. "Calm down, Uzuki. When we get back to the base, I'll get you some pencils and paper, okay? Drawing always makes you feel better."
"Oh yeah, and you know what makes me feel better?" Yashiro interrupted. "Giving someone a good punch in the face! Come on, let's go destroy the enemy! I want to destroy them!"
"Yashiro, shut up!" Mitsuhiro yelled."Now, we'll head back to the base, and when we get there, I want you to be the night watch, okay? Do something with all that energy."
Yashiro growled. "Fine, I'll be the night shift." She pulled out a bag of potato chips, opened it, reached in and put a chip in her mouth. "But hiding won't get us anywhere!"
The Reapers spread out their wings, and disappeared into the night, leaving behind nothing but torn black feathers.
Chapter 4: Night of the Carnival
"Hey Link, do me a favor and pass me that slab of wood!" Byrne yelled.
"Um, kinda busy at the moment!" I yelled back as I positioned the multicolored flags for the tower. "Hey, Kafei, does that look straight to you?" I looked down at Kafei, who was watching me put up the flags on the tower while he prepared the last of the balloons. He looked up at me and tilted his head.
"Uh, a little higher!" he corrects. I attempt to lift the flag string higher.
"How about now?" I ask again, straining to hold my arm up.
"That's perfect! Just tie it down and you're all done!"
I took the string and tied it to the wooden tower beam.
"Link! Pass me that slab of wood!" Byrne yelled again, losing his patience.
"Alright, alright!" I growled. I jumped off the ladder and grabbed one of the wood slabs. I put the slab on one of the lifters, and pulled the rope, sending the wood upwards. Byrne took it and hammered it down to the tower.
"We're almost done, Link! I just need a few more slabs of wood, and some tiles! Could you send those up too?"
"Sure thing, Byrne!" Things were working out perfectly. The tower was probably going to get finished this year, allowing others to enter the Clock Tower and admire it at a full view. Byrne and I had finally gotten the carpenters to do their fair share of the work, and we had hired a few other folks to help out with the balloons and flags. Kafei being in charge of the balloons, he was working with the mayor, Anju, and the Deku Scrubs from the city (they could get the job done especially fast when they put their hearts into it.) And of course, the Bombers were in charge of the fireworks (granted that they had adult supervision, much to their dismay. You can never trust a Bomber alone with a lit match and a box of fireworks.)
I grabbed four more slabs and multiple tiles and placed them on the lever again. I pulled the rope, sending the materials to Byrne, and he grabbed them, putting them onto the tower. We continued this pattern for a while, until the tower was finished.
Byrne jumped down from his ladder and laid down in the hammock he set up next to his shop. He stared up at the immense tower and smiled. I walked over to him and sat down next to the tree supporting the hammock.
Byrne yawned and ruffled my hair. "Good job, Link. We did it. The tower is finished, and the carnival is set to go!"
"Hey, did you figure out what you're going to wear for a mask yet?" I asked him.
"I think I'm wearing the Keaton Mask this year. I talked to Kafei, and it turns out that he's wearing the Bunny Hood. What about you?"
"I think I'm going to wear the All-Night Mask. That'll look cool."
"Hmph, good choice." Byrne began to swing the hammock, until he fell asleep.
I stood up from the ground and stretched my arms out. It was six o'clock, and the sun was beginning to set, the moon showing its face beyond the horizon.
The moon.
If it was three years ago, I would just have to look up to see the moon only meters away from the Clock Tower, its terrifying face looming towards mine, its eyes glowing a bright orange, and its mouth baring huge teeth that could shred my body limb from limb...
I shuddered from the thought. The moon now, however, was the same as the moon in Hyrule, a soft white, that rose at night, and left at dawn. Just a plain old moon.
I still don't know how long I stood there, staring at the moon, because before I knew it, it was already at the top of the sky, looking down on all the townspeople who wore masks and silly costumes.
Byrne ran past me with a Keaton Mask on his face. "Hiya, Link, where's your mask?"
"Huh?" I blinked. Time had moved too fast for me to comprehend. It was the festival already? I took out my All-Night Mask and placed it on my face. The black coils wrung around my chin, neck and ears, and I could see through the bright white and red eyes. I also pulled out a black robe and put it on over the black tunic I decided to wear. I pulled the hood over my head, obscuring a bit of my face, but enough to reveal just a few coils and the glowing eyes. It went perfectly with my mask.
Byrne lifted his mask off his face and pushed it onto his forehead. His expression was stunned. "Uh, where did you get the robe?" he asked.
"I bought it. Can you believe it was the only one in stock?"
"Yeah, I can. It makes you look evil."
"Nothing wrong with being on the opposite side of justice for a carnival, right?"
"Hmm, I guess not. Pretty good idea Link!"
"Ha, I'm full of 'em"
"Don't push your luck, kid." Byrne pulled the mask back over his face and ran to the town square to celebrate with the townsfolk. I wanted to run off with him, but I had something more important to do.
The mission I was given still had to be finished.
I walked through the crowds, keeping an eye out for anyone else wearing a black robe. It was hard to tell, because it was dark outside, even with the torches lit and fountain fairies running amok in the streets. People were dancing everywhere, all of them wearing crazy masks, some of which I recognized, some of which I didn't even think existed. There were people playing multiple instruments, like the flute, the lute, and a few playing their own personalized ocarinas. I felt compelled to join them with my ocarina, but I decided not to. It was nine o'clock, and I figured I only had until midnight to find this person.
I held my Time Gate and my Ocarina tightly in my arms, which remained hidden under my robe, as I looked for the person. I didn't think Shuto would make it so hard! I continued to look, until the clock stricked ten. At this point, I groaned, and decided to join the party. Ever since my encounter with Shuto, I kept telling myself to never trust the Reaper. And you know what I did? I trusted the Reaper. If the Goddesses existed in this world, Farore would probably be thinking, 'What a stupid kid! Falling for a trick like that!' and then Din would probably curse me for eternity.
Me and my imagination, running wild again. But as I walked through the crowds, I noticed a familiar straw hat moving around the bodies. I ran over to the person, and was overjoyed.
"Skull Kid!" I laughed. He looked towards me, smiled, and jumped at me, arms spread to hug me. I grabbed him as he flew towards me, and I swung him around happily. "How are you doing buddy?" I asked him.
"I'm doing great, Link! I almost didn't recognize you with that robe and mask on!"
"Tell me about it," I chuckled. "Where's Tatl and Tael?"
The Skull Kid lifted his hat, revealing the fairy siblings. They zoomed up from his head, and flew towards me, their little round bodies overtaken with excitement.
"Link!" they both shouted at the same time.
"It's been so long you two!" I said to them, and held out my hands, allowing them to land.
"How are you, Link?" Tatl asked.
"I'm great! Never better!"
"Go on any adventures lately?" Tael asked next.
"No, not much. Only a couple deliveries outside the city walls. By the way, have you two and Skull Kid happened to see a guy wearing a black robe? I'm supposed to find someone like that before the carnival's over."
"Well, besides you, no, I haven't," Tatl answered. She turned to her brother. "What about you Tael? Did you see anyone like that?"
"Uh, I think I did see someone. He was tall, and his face was covered with a black hood supported by a robe. I think he was over by the back end of the Clock Tower."
"Really? Thanks you guys. Have fun!" I released them from my hands.
"You're leaving already?" Skull Kid whimpered.
"Don't worry, I'll be back," I said back, and left them alone in the town square. The back end of the Clock Tower? Why hadn't I searched there yet?
I ran around the tower, next to the entrance to Northern Clock Town. I waited, for a sign, anything, that he was in this town.
The next thing I felt was a hand around my mouth and a switchblade held to my neck. Whoever was holding me down, I could feel their breathing on my neck. I looked next to me to see a hooded face peering out from inside the tower wall.
"Why are you here?" he asked me. His voice was cold and cruel. He released his hand from my mouth, but he kept the blade against the skin on my neck.
"What are you talking about?" I stuttered in fear. Sweat began to form on my face.
"Don't act so innocent, you fool! You're trying to destroy the Hero of Time, aren't you?" He held the knife deeper into my skin, until I was sure that I was going to start bleeding.
"What the? You idiot, I am the Hero of Time!"
"What? But... that robe..."
"Is a costume!" I interrupted. "For the carnival! And guessing from that robe you're wearing, I'm guessing you're that Reaper I was supposed to meet up with?"
The man pulled his knife away and folded it back up. It was then that I realized his body was mushed in with the tower wall. His face was the only thing showing, and the rest of his body was shown in the wall as a black ripple.
I held up my left hand, revealing the glowing Triforce mark on the back. The man nodded, and pulled himself back into the ripple.
All that was left to do was meet up with him at midnight.
I played my ocarina with the band, my emotions filled with happiness and excitement. I planned to enjoy this day, until midnight struck. Kids and adults were laughing and singing as I played my instrument with the other ocarina players. We didn't play together that well, but we still sounded pretty awesome. I could see Byrne clapping with the crowd.
After we were finished playing, everyone began the countdown to midnight. We counted down from ten.
Five, four, three, two, one...
Fireworks burst into the sky, illuminating the town square with rainbow colors. The pillar on the Clock Tower fell forward, opening the door to the top of the tower. That was my cue to run to the basement.
I ran towards the tower without saying a word to Byrne, and pushed open the heavy wooden doors. Inside, after closing the doors, I could hear the muffled cheers of people, and the sound of running water. This place was also one of the water support stations, next to the laundry area. I sat down on the steps, examining the area for the cloaked man.
"What do you know, you held up your end of the bargain." I heard a voice say. A man stepped out from the darkness, his entire body disguised in a black robe. "I guess I owe you an apology. Not all fairies are disgusting creatures."
"Hey, what do you mean by that?" I asked angrily.
"Oh, you didn't know? Reapers and fairies have been longtime enemies. And I am no exception. As a Reaper, I continue to detest your kind. But Shuto and Uzuki's hearts are both too soft. They propose that we all work with you. So here I am, standing in the presence of one of the last few fairies on earth. Your kind is rare these days, you know."
I looked to the ground, ashamed. "Yeah, I know."
"Then I can make this quick," he muttered, as he reached his hands up towards his hood. He pulled the fabric down, revealing a thin face with black hair that fell over his black eyes. "My name is Mitsuhiro Minamimoto. I'm Reaper number one in my squad, and our goal is to protect you from the evil that chases after you. My teammates' names are Uzuki Kasahara, being second, Shuto Kaniji, being third, and Yashiro Takahashi, being fourth. Link, our mission is important, and for us to be able to successfully complete it, I need you to come with me to my Realm."
"But, I can't!" I protested. "I belong here, in Clock Town! I can defend myself perfectly fine!"
"Are you kidding me? Based on what I heard from Kaniji's report, you were flipped onto the ground in mere seconds, and he just used one hand and one foot. Face it, you can't defend yourself from the evil that is seeking you."
"Then I can become stronger! Just watch me!"
"If it's power you seek, then I suggest you come with me to my Realm. My world isn't as prosperous as yours, but I'm sure you'll find it to be very... welcoming."
"And if I don't?" I asked boldly.
"Well, I guess I can let the Reaper Society, the group that is hunting you down, chow down on your delicious flesh. Reapers love the taste of that red fairy blood you create. I'm surprised that I'm not killing you right here!"
I shuddered. Were Reapers really this creepy, eating the flesh of fairies? I didn't want to go with him, but he seemed to be on Shuto's side, so I guess I could trust him.
"Fine. Take me to your world. But after I meet your companions, I want you to send me back here, okay?"
Mitsuhiro pulled his hood back over his face. "Sure thing." He waved his hand towards the wooden door, and a black portal opened.
A portal of darkness.
He walked up to it and stepped through it. "Come on! I'm not waiting all night!" He held one of his hands out from the darkness. I grabbed his hand, and he pulled me into the shadows.
It took me a while to realize where I was. There was no light to support my vision. After my eyesight cleared however, I knew exactly where I was. Huge black birds flew in the sky, and black flowers blossomed on the rolling gray grass hills. Surely the Goddesses had sent me to my own personal Hell.
I was in... the Dark Realm itself.