Chapter Six
Adrift
On an autumn evening in Hyrule market, where the sky was a blend of dim orange and whispering purple, Link stood triumphantly over a quivering heap that lay on the cold cracked street. The black and orange lanterns celebrating the festival of the fall danced between jagged grins and blanketed the startled and frightened boy that lay at Link's feet. There was a casual market town clamor whisking through the air, but the attentions of the adults were spread amongst the colorful stalls, grabbed by the tantalizing smells of the festival cooking, and pried far away from the small crowd of children that circled a predator and its prey.
"Get up, loser!" The jeers of the audience were uplifting for Link, a satisfying kind of reward for a noble victory.
The lump on the ground wiggled slightly, his hands pushing meagerly against the ground in a feeble attempt to stand up. Link smiled at the boy's face, a pudgy, leaking mess with a lump, recently formed, over his left eye. What a pitiful sight, he thought. How dare he insult the chosen hero?
As the large boy struggled to deflect the mocking of the crowd, Link slowly gazed up at the castle which provided the backdrop for his triumph. He felt a twinge of fear at what Zelda would think of him, demeaning another child as he had, but even if she were here to gaze in horror at his actions, he wouldn't feel sorry for the boy. He liked it. He enjoyed this feeling of power.
The corpulent child had risen to his knees as Link returned his gaze to the arena. His face was weak with low-slung eyebrows and an even smear of tears across each cheek. "He hasn't learned his lesson, Link!" the crowd's voices turned violent, "hit him again!"
Link felt a surge of delight course through his hand and clenched it into a fist, grinding it in the palm of his other hand. He felt the power run up his hand and through his arm. He took a step forward as he tensed his shoulder and bent his arm, packaging the rage in his hand into a swelling force.
"Stop it!" yelled a meek cry from outside the savage ring. A small girl plunged through the spectators behind the large boy and leaped upon him, wrapping what little she could of herself around the limp target.
The cheers of the supporting children were cut off with a collective gasp, a cry too meager to stop a powerful strike. Link's fist landed clearly across the small freckled cheek of the girl as she held the bulky, shaking boy.
The power in his hand stung immediately with the pain of regret. The pain was fierce, with each nerve a lightning storm of reverberating force.
A dull bulging sensation fills Link's palm and as he peers at his hand he sees the glowing purple pouch of magic powder shaking loosely in his outstretched arm. Hyrule market town fades to black and the eerie yellow light of the lanterns is replaced by the deathly purple aura of the powder.
Link looks down where there is only a furry lump staring back at him with dim yellow eyes. The pain in his arm tears at his composure as if he had just gone back to that night many years ago. His spine tingles, his eyes begin to leak small tears that shine glumly in the purple light.
He sees the ragged face of the large boy appear on the pitiful creature below him and the red cheek of the girl lying cold on the stone pavement flashes behind his eyes. Link shuts his eyes tight and reaches deep beyond the blackness. He digs within for an image, any image, of Zelda, but her face remains turned away.
With a loud cry, Link pulls his arm back, away from the body of the raccoon, and fights through the mounting pain to toss the pouch of magic powder across the dark clearing. It sails through the endless night leaving a cascading trail of sparkling purple in a clean arc before exploding into a nova of swirling fluorescent dust.
The tight pain in his arm and hand fades into the shadows as Link falls to his knees in front of the creature. He places a hand on the creature's body, his hand matting the cold wet fur. He feels around his pants and pulls out a small bottle of red liquid. Tracy's healing technique. For use whenever he wanted. Link wiggles the cork from the bottle and holds it above the raccoon, where three arrows remain lodged in its side. With a sigh that sinks his heart from his chest, Link tilts the bottle to the side, releasing a slim stream of the red medicine right onto the creature's wound.
He would be trapped forever.
A sharp bubbling sound erupts from the creature's wound as the red medicine pours into the gash. The arrows lodged in the wound slowly tip and eventually fall to the soaked grass, crumbling into black ash. Link jumps to his feet as the last drop is poured and the creature rolls upright. With a loud and jovial cry, the creature spins in place before darting around to each corner of the clearing. The display manages to lift Link's heart slightly as the sight of the revived creature reminds Link of their first encounter, a time that felt like ages ago. But Link's eyes find themselves diverted from the display after a short while. He surveys the clearing: still dark, and still ensnared in a nightmarish curse.
Suddenly, Link feels a pair of arms slide quickly around his waist, grasping him in a tight embrace. He chokes on his own fear of the attack, struggling to turn his neck to see who the owner of the arms is. But as soon as his hands touch the smooth skin of the arms, and the darkness of the clearing begins leaking a dim red light, he knows exactly who it is.
The arms slide away from Link and he immediately spins around to face the woman, but all that he finds is a thin cloud of red smoke. He feels a light tap on his shoulder, "Gotcha, big guy," she says with a giggle.
Link turns back around to find Tracy, her feet turned childishly inward, in all of her scarlet beauty. He breathes out heavily as her distinct sweet aroma fills his nostrils and he remembers the feeling of relief and safety he had felt in her presence before. But her powerful influence was nothing to him at this moment. He could feel as safe and secure as he could ever want, but it would be in the confines of the woods forever.
"You're looking rather rough, big guy," Tracy's voice squeaks with the vigor of an upbeat youth.
Perhaps he did, but what did it matter?
"Hey I know," Tracy says, "Why don't you take a drink of the potion I gave you?"
Link chokes back a scream at the sound of her words. The raccoon continues to dance in the background singing its own little tune.
Tracy skips forward and grabs Link's shoulders. "Silly me, you already used it, didn't you?" Her face twists into a playful grin.
The pain in his arm begins to creep back to Link as he watches her tormenting face.
Tracy smoothly steps forward, pushing her body against Link's and wrapping her arms around him. "I'm so happy you did."
Link feels his heart twisting inside his chest at her demeanor, but before he can release the rage, a small twinkle of light catches his eyes. Up above, at the ceiling of the clearing, the bud of light multiplies in a small array of tiny star-like specks. The dark, shadowy lumps covering the clearing begin to gain definition as their black sheathes fade away to reveal the pale green veins of the leaves. The feeling of Tracy wrapped around him is lost to Link as he watches the light return to the trees, their leaves illuminated and their crooked branches waking up from their nightmares. In the distance, beyond the trees, the endless sea of black is replaced by the colorful trail of the forest path.
Tracy pushes the tips of her toes, raising her mouth to Link's ear. "Congratulations, big guy," she whispers before placing a soft kiss on his cheek.
Link coughs out a laugh. Somehow, the curse was finally gone. He looks around the clearing, delighted to see the colors returned to the grass and crumbled leaves on the ground and as his gaze washes over the area, he notices yet another lump lying conspicuously on the ground. Link raises an eyebrow. The clamor of the raccoon had ceased.
Separating himself from Tracy, Link dashes across the clearing to the heap on the other side. Link approaches the body, finding its rather protrusive stomach bobbing up and down in a peaceful rhythm. But the brown fur that once covered the creature is gone, replaced by pale, white skin dotted with tiny strands of black hair. Link freezes in place. The yellow eyes that had once been hidden behind the dark patch of fur are now closed, sleeping peacefully as regular breaths whisk the hairs of a thick black mustache back and forth. The curious raccoon had left behind its true form: Tarin.
Link feels a powerful hit to his stomach as the sight of Marin's father raises bumps on his skin. He closes his eyes and breathes heavily, the blackness behind his eyelids turning a menacing purple. Link spins around to look back at Tracy, but she and her scarlet glow are gone. The space where she once stood starts to glow purple and suddenly a puff of violet smoke erupts from nothing. Link shields his eyes from the sudden flash and when he lowers his hand, the old lady from the gaping, hollow tree stands within a haze of purple smoke, leaning on a crooked wooden staff.
With a wave of her hand, the pouch of magic powder Link had tossed across the clearing rises into the air and darts into her hand, bringing behind it a swirling trail of the purple, sparkling magic powder. The powder collects neatly in the pouch. The old lady Syrup stretches her mouth into a boney grin, still holding the magic powder aloft.
"I would hang on to this my dear," she cackles, "There's more than one way to save yourself."
Syrup tilts her hand and drops the magic powder at the base of her staff. Flashing Link another dreadful smile, she twirls her cape around her body, cloaking her entire being. A puff of smoke similar to Syrup's entrance appears beside the old lady in a scarlet flash. Immediately, the sweet aroma returns to Link as Tracy appears once more. Link can see a small tear trickle from each of her eyes. Tracy reaches behind her and pulls out another small glass bottle of red liquid and places it beside the magic powder.
With a weary wave of her hand, Tracy turns slightly towards Syrup. "Good luck, big guy," she sniffles. Syrup reveals one of her ragged and thin hands and snaps her fingers. In a final flash of light and puff of smoke, the two mysterious women vanish behind a veil of purple and red.
Link stands in the quiet clearing with only Tarin at his feet, dumbfounded by the display of the old frightening witch and the sweet young girl. The witch's final words echo in his mind. He does not know what she meant, nor does he expect to ever know. It is not important now.
Link hears a stir at his feet and turns to find Tarin sitting up, scratching his thick head of black hair and gaping with a massive yawn. Tarin blinks his small eyes several times and groggily gazes around the forest. He spots Link looking down at him with a troubled face. "Link!" he bellows, "Have you come ta pick mushrooms with me?"
Link groans inside. The large, jolly man and his equally massive personality had not grown on him.
Tarin wiggles to his feet and dusts himself off, knocking small branches and crumpled leaves off in a cloud of dirt. He pulls his shirt down which had rolled up over his rotund midsection. "The last thing I kin remember is bitin' into a big juicy toadstool" he says.
Link rolls his eyes as Tarin plops himself back on the ground.
"Then I had the darndest dream" he says looking around the clearing once more with a puzzled expression, "I was a raccoon!" He looks back up at Link and smiles, "Yeah! Sounds strange but it sure was fun."
Fun? Link sighs. "Will you be going back to the village now?"
Tarin winces as he rubs his back, "Nah, I'm thinkin' I need a rest here for a bit." He rubs his eyes with his large hands and stretches back into a loud yawn that rustles the leaves of the trees. "You go on home…" he says softly as he falls onto his back and into a deep sleep.
Link shivers and shakes his head. It was long past time for him to go. Maybe not to the home he really wanted to find, but some place that would actually get him there.
Link rustles his hair with his hand and shakes his head, casting off what was left of the fear and confusion that had plagued him throughout his entire stay in the forest.
He peers off between the trees, finding the lightest path that carried off into the distance. He picks up his shield from the center of the clearing and straps it onto his back. The pouch of magic powder and bottle of medicine lay next to each other just a few steps away. Link stares at them in silence. After a few minutes, he picks up both of them before walking out of the circle of trees.
Under the curse, the forest had become a nightmare, and for each step Link took he had felt like he was plunging deeper and deeper into an inescapable hole. Even when he had first entered the forest to chase after the mischievous young boys, the forest seemed to exude mystery around every rock and tree.
But now as he walks through the forest with the nightmare far behind, the trees seem to point their branches ahead of him and wave him on from behind. Small animals peek out from various holes and hiding spots to analyze him as he marches on. The chirping of birds and the snapping of twigs returns Link's heart to its rightful place. Soon, the crumbled mixture of brown, orange, and red leaves gives way to soft green grass and the trees part to reveal the edge of the forest.
Link cannot hold back a smile. But he stops his rising happiness as he surveys the open area in front of him. He had expected to emerge with the familiar houses of the village to greet him, but in front of him now is a rising, rugged landscape. The small, grassy hills near the forest slowly rise and turn to sharp cliffs that extend far into the distance until they are cut off by the jagged expanse of a towering mountain range.
The thought of when he first emerged from Marin's home returns to Link. He remembers noticing the mountains from the village, but also that they were in the opposite direction from the beach. Link grabs his forehead and lets out a frustrated breath. He had come out on the other side of the woods.
Link sits down on the soft grass and inspects the mountains in front of him. He cannot make out the finer features of the mountains as they seem to meld together in a foggy blue shadow from their distance. Yet, Link finds their sheer height something to marvel at, something that reminded him of the mountains of Hyrule.
Did he really need to go back to the village? Maybe they weren't the only village on the island, and someone else could help him find a way out.
Link stretches back, propping himself up with his hands. The cool grass soothes his hands under the shade of the trees. Looking again at the mountains, he notices something peculiar about one of them. Despite being so far away, Link can tell this is the tallest of all the mountains, but it is the crest of the mountain that catches his eye. He leans forward and squints hard at the mountain. Just in view in front of the distant haze, Link makes out the shape of a giant object covered in large red dots sitting at the top of the mountain.
Is that…an egg?
The trees behind Link start to rustle louder and faster than from the slow breeze that had been shifting them. Link turns around and watches for something to emerge. A branch snaps from within the forest and a fluttering of wings splits the quiet wind. A large, brown owl with a unique zigzag pattern on its wings flies out of a tree and lands on a branch protruding from the forest.
Link starts to look back to the egg on the mountain but stops as the shadows move from the eyes of the owl, allowing the sun to reflect a piercing yellow glint, staring directly at him.
Link's eyes widen. Here they are. These are the yellow eyes. He stares back at them, peering deep within their pits for answers.
A cool wind swirls over Link and the owl, casting waves over the thick grass and whispering quietly between their standoff.
"I have been watching you boy," the owl says in a low, calm voice, "But, you already know this."
Link drops his mouth slightly. The owl's words ensnare his body in chills. Not only is this owl capable of speech, but it is brazen enough to torment him.
"You intrigue me," the owl hoots, "A lost castaway from a faraway place." The owl shifts its wings closer to its narrow beak as a human might clench their chin when thinking. "Could you really be…?"
"I don't care about what you think of me," Link shouts. He rises from the grass and takes a few steps towards the perched owl. "I just want to go home."
"That may be the problem…"
"What problem?!" Link tosses his arms up in frustration as the owl calmly strokes its beak.
"The golden mark on the back of your hand."
Link peers at the back of his hand. The golden triangle barely visible, but he knows it is there. "What do you know of this?" Link says with disgust. You have no idea.
The owl hoots softly closing its eyes, almost sorrowfully. "I believe it is why you are here."
Link scoffs at the owl's remark, crossing his arms and turning away to look at the mountains.
"Do you see the Egg perched high above this island?" the owl says, "That is where the Windfish, guardian of Koholint, slumbers."
Link looks at the giant egg once again, his arms still crossed. "Why should I care?"
"You will never be able to leave this island without his aid."
Determined not to make eye contact with the owl, Link digs his feet into the ground. None of this makes any sense. What is it about this island that makes him feel like a caged animal? If he washed ashore on this island, he could sure enough sail away from it. Why could he not just go home?
"If you want the aid of the Windfish, then you must heed my advice." The owl flutters its wings and swoops down from its perch to flap steadily behind Link. "Meet me on the Toronbo shores. Your journey must begin again at sea."
With a heavy gust from its wings, the owl flies up and away over the woods. Link cannot help but watch the owl from the corner of his eye.
Link sighs and lets his arms unfold. What choice did he have? As the owl disappears over the trees, Link walks back into the mysterious woods.
The return journey through the woods seems like only a fleeting dream for Link that is finally broken by the sight of Mabe village under a swirl of twilight sky. The tiny houses are lit up with candles filling the windows with yellow light and puffs of smoke sway out of the chimneys. As happy as Link is to see the village at his front with the forest fading away at his back, his stomach sinks at the thought of the villagers showering him with their relief for his safety and their graciousness for the safety of the quadruplets. He has to hear the owl out before being ensnared by the villager's arms.
Link slips through the village, tiptoeing past each house after checking every window for even the slightest movement or sound of conversation. He heads down the hill past to the cliff and down the steep incline, sliding behind the last house in the village before the sands of the beaches. Link takes the shadowed route around the house, but before he can pass the last window he darts to the ground at the sound of voices.
"Papa said he saw him while he was collecting mushrooms. He should have come back by now."
"It's alright sweetheart. If what my boys said was true, I believe that boy is doing alright."
The voices are unclear and muffled by the walls but Link still groans silently at the words. He crawls forward and stands at the edge of the house. The front door opens around the corner and someone steps out. Link carefully peers around the corner and finds Marin standing with her head down. Her face is covered by her red hair, but Link cannot help feeling sorrow at the sight of just her stance.
As soon as Marin walks around the other corner of the house, back to the village, Link races down the hill and onto the sandy beaches of Toronbo shores.
Link remembers his visit to the shores when he had first awakened. In the broad daylight, the shores were bright and blinding, and he had been too occupied at a potential remnant of his ship to take them in. But under twilight, Link finds the shores calm and peaceful. Perhaps this was simply because he was closest to where he had come from?
Wading through the soft sand, Link navigates the small maze of palm trees and rocks to reach the water's edge. He gazes around at the purple and red sky and at the crest of the palm trees, watching for the owl. He steps from the edge of the tide and onto the wet sand until the water wraps evenly around his feet. He picks up a stone from beneath his foot and juggles it in his hand before tossing it as far as he can out to sea. Where would the stone end up? Would the waves carry it away or would it sink to the bottom never to be seen again?
Just beyond the splash in the water, where the stone had turned over its fate, a dark object rises slowly from the water and grows larger as the waves carry it closer to shore. Link offers the object only a fraction of his attention. A palm leaf most likely. He turns around to scan the palm trees again, but the owl remains absent.
Link turns back to look at the object and finds it floating further to his right but closer to the shore. The shadows formed by the distant sun have faded around the drifting object and Link notices a silver glint wink at him from the last light of the retiring sun. He takes as step closer to the object as it nears the shore. Link feels his heartbeat pick up as the mysterious object floats closer and the outline of the figure comes into view. It is the figure of a body.
Splashing the rolling tide aside, Link races across the shore to the body as it catches the sand and stops. Link stumbles in a heavy clump of sand just before reaching it and falls flat on the ground. He scrambles on his hands and knees until he is directly over the castaway.
In one hand, the body clutches the handle of a gleaming sword and in place of the other a sharp hook latches onto the blade of the sword.
Link's face falls into horror at the sight of the Captain, soaking wet, and silent as a skeleton resting on the banks of a nightmare.
