The Legend of Zelda: The Search for Hope
Chapter 7: Worldwide Exodus
Sunset was less than a few hours away. Darunia had been riding this gigantic boar for nearly six hours. The desert heat was permeating his body's cooling systems. The sweat just wasn't enough anymore. When he had been in his wolf form, Darunia was not affected by the heat, but since taking a true body again, the sun's rays became a burden to him.
After the Zora had left him, Darunia had made his way to the front door of the giant, oddly proportioned building. The odd round man that welcomed him in had a warm smile for as early as it was. Darunia had wasted no time with pleasantries and had shoved the note written by the young Zora King. Astonished, the man ran his fingers through his thinning mop of hair as he read the short letter.
"I don't know if I can do this anymore, boy," said the strange man in the bright morning light. "But I'll try. You see, I run a small amusement attraction here. This home actually houses a canon that I can use to fire you to the top of the ridge. I used to be able to shoot people into the desert as well, but that's long since been disabled. In fact, the last kid I sent there was by appointment from one of my oldest friends."
The man must have noticed that the look on Darunia's face meant him imminent danger, for he continued, "But uhm, I just remembered! You see, that same strange kid that I sent brought me another larger canon. I could probably fire you most of the way across the desert. That would save you several days on the journey! How's that sound?"
Darunia agreed and followed the man out the door. After walking for several minutes, the large canon came into view just beyond a ridge. The river on its right reflected the sun's light perfectly. The scene was beautiful. Darunia wasn't enjoying this slow pace. He knew the man meant well, but he also knew the man did not understand the imminent danger.
After arriving at the canon, the man quickly readied it and turned the gigantic apparatus around to face the desert. Darunia thanked the man for his kindness and the man muttered something under his breath. Darunia thought he caught the words, "danged Zora."
The flight was actually rather intense for Darunia. He had never been through anything like this before. It was just as silent as his plunge into the lake, however. The air was cool and the descent was going to be hard. As Darunia cleared the cleft of the desert, the air warmed several degrees. He could already feel the air being more saturated with sand particles. The flight began to sting slightly. Below him, he crossed the point at which Link had landed years ago. Ahead of him, Darunia saw his eventual destination, near the Gerudo Mesa.
He came in low and fast. He was unsure of how Link had managed to land gracefully, if at all, and he was now confronted with the same dilemma. Luckily for him, his body had managed to find a soft spot in the sand and his body slid only ten feet before coming to a halt. The lowness that he had flown in removed much of the physical damage that his body would take before falling apart.
As Darunia stood to his feet, he noticed two things. First, a wild giant boar often used by the Bokoblins was sitting in the cool shade of the Mesa. Second, and not so fortunate, Darunia could tell that the impact of landing had removed some of Faron's magic on his body. His left shoulder was slightly faded and see-through. Beneath his fading shoulder, he could make out a small glimmer of golden fur. His spiritual form was returning slowly. This wasn't going to be an easy task.
The boar was still hurdling on through the sun baked desert. It was mid-afternoon now. Only a couple precious hours before sunset and he still had no idea where he was going to find this Ocarina. The boar was heading towards the massive coliseum complex that was the old prison grounds for the most hardened criminals in all of Hyrule.
Darunia had been there once before, in his spiritual wolf form, to teach the new Hero a few of his old bag of tricks. That journey had simply been a matter of warping his form, traveling by blood and flesh was much trickier. After all, it had been a few hundred years since he had last done so. The limitations annoyed him.
The Bokoblin strongholds outside the old Arbiter's Grounds had long since been burned away by Link in his last journey here. Darunia could make out new huts and freshly put out fires. There seemed to still be Bokoblins in the area. He wasn't worried; they were largely unintelligent and certainly not capable of taking down the Hero of Time.
An arrow fired past Darunia's shoulders. A second arrow slammed into the right shoulder of the gigantic beast he was riding. Angered by the arrow, the boar sped forward, straight toward one of the huts an arrow had come from. Darunia was now completely out of control of the beast.
Much to his satisfaction, the monster decided to slaughter the enemies for him, all he had to do was grab his shield and attempt to protect himself from arrows. He wasn't entirely successful either; he took a couple nicks on the back of his legs.
The ride ended abruptly, after the monster had done away with its attackers, near the base of the Arbiter's Grounds. A small watering hole that looked like it was stocked with water was shimmering in the hot sun and the boar was thirsty.
Dismounting, Darunia looked at his surroundings. The Grounds were vast and tall. He had no clue how to even start searching for the Ocarina. He had watched as Link and Midna had made their way to the top of the coliseum to the Mirror Chamber. He was unsure how, but he knew of the Mirror Chamber. It had always existed here just past the Gerudo Desert. He did not, however, visit it during his journey. In fact, he hadn't passed the Mesa last time. The Mesa used to be what he had dubbed the "desert" temple, just past the Gerudo encampment.
Now all that remained of that temple was the Mesa. Sand had long since covered the rest of the temple with its ornate carvings and beautiful artistry. On top of the Mesa was a hole that led to the wildly legendary "Cave of Ordeals." He wasn't so sure what was so awesome about it, he had beaten the enemies in that temple when he was but a child. After letting his thoughts wonder for just a second, Darunia decided to attempt whatever needed to be done to find that Ocarina.
Climbing the first set of gigantic steps into the massive establishment, Darunia felt sufficiently pressured. The sun was nearing the western horizon and the unknown pressure was getting to him. He had to find it fast. It was sudden, but he felt a presence just above his head.
"Link, follow my voice. I'll lead you where you need to go."
"We need to contact every Zora and commence with the evacuating of the realm into the temple."
The Zoran King made his royal proclamation to his close subjects and other royal figureheads. The time had finally come to put their temple to its actual use. He was aware, as were all the leaders of each race, that each other race also had a similar prophecy and a similar temple. Word had already been sent out to the forest folk of the south, the Goron of the west and the frigid people of the east. The Hylians were going to have a much tougher time seeking shelter from whatever apocalypse was about to face this world.
While the Hylian King and royal bloodline did have a similar prophecy, they had abused their time and decided against building temples and locating to specific areas of the world. They had spread out and individualized themselves into provinces and sectors. The Zoran King could only feel pity for the humans now, for their King and country had been destroyed by an invading force and they now had no hope of surviving whatever divine punishment was about to come.
With the royal proclamation, every Zora within the lair made their way out into the river that would eventually carry them to the water temple. Droves upon droves of Zora swam close enough to each other to make swimming difficult, even in this vast river.
To the west, the Goron Patriarch made a similar proclamation. Kakariko Village was cleared of Gorons, as was the pass to their temple. Carrying only what they could, Gorons were making their way inside Death Mountain and the mines contained within.
To the south, the Forest Temple was being bombarded by small child like elves, each with a fairy. Besides these children and unbeknownst to them, a smaller race, almost unseen, the Picari, were also making their way inside. The monkeys also made their way in.
The human world was in much more of a panicked state. Word had reached Kakariko Village when the Gorons were leaving that the world seemed to be ending. Most chose not to believe it, but some did attempt to save their own lives. Ordon Village was not informed of the ensuing madness. The last Sheik in the old abandoned village had been bed riding for quite some time. She now died painlessly with a smile on her face, knowing that the age old prophecy was about to take place. She had felt it in her chest.
No one had bothered to warn the two funny old men running the amusement show on Lake Hylia and the prisoners in Hyrule Castle were in just as poor a state as those two men. Not to mention, they also had a few thousand Bokoblins roaming around them.
The surrounding provinces outside of Hyrule we oblivious to all that was happening. Certain tribes and races had their own prophecies regarding the coming of a destructive force from the goddesses that had created the world long ago. Most of these did not believe, however, in the existence of such a being.
The Zoran King stood atop the waterfall that lead to his throne room. Below him he could see the flocks of Zora leaving their domain for who knew how long. He wasn't sure he'd even be able to see this realm again. He glanced up to see Hyrule Castle in the distance. This beautiful sight had long been a source of encouragement and hope. Tonight, it seemed like a dark omen of evil things. To his right, the bottom tip of the sun had just tipped the horizon. The twilight was nearly upon them. With one last prayer to the goddesses for the safety of this world, he dove into the dark waters below and joined his kinsmen and their journey towards safety.
Midna felt her body slowly floating forward. Beyond the veranda, she could see that her people had again been turned into the mindless shadow beings once used by Zant to do his bidding. She had lost interest in screaming at her surrogate son and her body felt drained by all the physical struggling she had done.
The small form of Jashir could be made out walking into the room.
"I've got news for you, mother," Jashir stated with a spiteful glance. "Ganondorf just killed Zelda. One part of the Triforce is now moot. Link is all that is left in the Triforce to stop Ganondorf, and I'm sure you'll be wonderfully glad to hear that he is fighting Link as I speak!"
Midna's face fell open. Her mouth was wide and she could barely choke back the tears. She had watched from afar as Link had battled with Ganondorf the last time. The battle had nearly claimed Link's life. It was only by luck, and a bit of Twili magic, that the bottle containing a fairy had been smashed by Ganondorf. She was not going to be there this time and she knew Link did not have the upper hand. If Ganondorf's spirit was able to cross the realms on one shred of hope to revive his body, surely he was more powerful now. After all, Jashir had told her that this was his main attack and that last time was merely a diversion. As tears rolled down small impish face, Jashir continued.
"Ganondorf will win this time. Link has no one at his aid. Both the King and Queen of Hyrule have been killed. The citizens of Castle Town have been rounded up and there is no one near Link other than Bokoblins. Link is done for."
Midna leveled her eyes to Jashir's. Her tears were flowing now, both for Zelda and for Link.
"You were and still are my son. I know that you are being used by Ganondorf. I'll fight for you, Jashir. I'll fight for you and for Link."
Jashir laughed at her and spat on the ground.
"What do you think you can do? My magic vastly out powers yours. I have more magic than Zant could have ever hoped for. In just a couple of minutes, I'm going to open the warp to Hyrule Castle. Link should be done for by then. We'll make our way to the courtyard entrance."
With that, Midna's body began silently floating its way in the courtyard. Her body came to a rest the exact spot that it had several years ago when she originally left Hyrule. A few minutes later, the squat form of Jashir made its way slowly across the yard.
"Here we will wait for the opportune time. Once Ganondorf has finished Link, he will open the passage way."
Midna clinched her teeth and kept her silence, through her tears.
Darunia followed the strangely familiar voice through the bowels of the long dead prison. The way was lit and the torches seemed to have been burning for a long time. A few wild animals had attempted to make an easy meal of Darunia, meeting the same end as every other attacked Darunia had ever faced.
There were no skeletal warriors, no ghostly faces, no angry demons, and no poes. Darunia was quite saddened by this lack of activity. His other adventures had always included much more action. He wasn't exactly sure, but he felt like he had been traveling the same route Link had taken several years ago. The surroundings also felt very similar to the old Desert Temple he had bested as a child.
The trek wasn't too challenging. The voice led him through many corridors and finally to a statue. At the base of the statue, the figure seemed to be riding some sort of mechanical board.
"Take it. You'll find that it is easily removed."
Darunia grabbed the round mechanical device and pulled. Surprisingly to him, it separated from the marble crafted wall quite easily. He wasn't even sure what it was but figured it must be needed to get to where this voice needed him to go.
After retracing all of his steps, Darunia had followed the voice right back to the center room he had started in. In front of him was a massive ornately decorated wall with what seemed to be a groove running around the diameter of the room.
"Use the device there."
Darunia knew he had heard that voice before, but he still couldn't place it. Trusting, he took the metallic edge of the device and attached it to the groove in the wall. Instantly, the device started pulling from his hand. It was all he could do to pull the machine from the groove.
"You must ride it."
Throwing caution to the wind, Darunia quickly attached the mechanism and hoped on. What followed was a dizzying and fast ride up the wall. Eventually Darunia could stand up and not fall. The magical staircase was taking him up to the top floor. As he flew up the wall, he could see through several equally placed windows that the sun was half set behind the horizon.
After scaling the wall and walking through a massive room with a gigantic pit, Darunia ended up on the top of the Arbiter's Grounds. In front of him he could see the giant rock that served as the actual metaphysical portal to Twilitia. Just in front, he noticed the circlet that had once contained the Mirror of Twilight. The shards could be seen glinting in the sand, each as tiny as a particle of sand itself. It was a dazzling display, here during the sunset.
Darunia walked up the small staircase leading to the circlet. He saw a few shards still remaining from the destruction. He could feel a pang of sadness in his chest. He had lost a friend too, just as Link had.
As his memories began to waver, the ground shook. It began slowly, but quickly garnished speed. Darunia was flung from his stance and dazed. Just above his head, he heard, "HEY LOOK!"
Ahead of him, a gigantic skeletal body had thrown the large black boulder to one side and was now emerging from below the sand. Excited to finally have something worthy to battle, Darunia readied his sword and shield.
Those last words had finally clicked the memories in his head. Over his shoulder, with a smile on his face and tears in his eyes, he shouted, "Thanks for leading me here and I hope you can help me with this battle. I need to finish it quickly. Let's go, Navi!"
The clash of blades could be heard throughout the Castle Grounds. The Bokoblins far below were too drunk and busy fighting amongst themselves to realize that an amazing battle was being fought overhead. Link was now alone. Before, Link had the combined powers of the Twili and the Triforce of Wisdom. Link now possessed neither. He now only had his precious Triforce of Courage and its limits were being tested this time around.
During the immense battle, Link managed to see that the sun was now half set. Only half an hour left before my time expires. He thought.
After slaying Queen Zelda, Ganondorf had turned in mocking fury and fired a new weapon at Link. It was a small projectile. After slamming into his knee, Link could feel liquid being inserted into his veins.
"Hah! I've finally gotten you both! Link, that dart had a deadly poison etched into the point. You have roughly an hour before that poison claims your life. Before then, your body will begin to weaken. I've already killed you!" Ganondorf had screamed in fury at the time. Since then, Link had managed to prove a worthy adversary, despite his wound and lack of help.
Every minute, Link could feel the poison slipping closer to his heart. His body seemed to achieve a sort of auto-pilot and his mind began to wander. Thoughts of his beloved came to mind. Memories of their journeys together. Then sadness, that he would never again see her, nor their dreams come true. Then anger, that this man had so cheaply and easily beaten him. He knew he wanted to kill Ganondorf at whatever cost. He wanted to kill the man that had ruined his life, even though he knew his time was up. When the sun set, Link would die.
