Chapter Eight: Temple of Thieves
Shane quickly stripped out of his father's tunic and put the Dark Tunic into place, then he looked at the gates. His body trembled with the feeling of evil that was overwhelming him, his heart was sick with fear, but he pushed it away and opened the gates, took Darkness' by the reigns and led him inside. The courtyard was made entirely of alabaster stone. Shane's boots padded softly on the rock, but the sound of Darkness' hooves echoed all around him. There were several fountains of crystal clear water inside and he paused to let Darkness have a drink, then he filled up one of his bottles as well before continuing toward the ominous door.
Shane stopped and looked up at the statue that would one day bear Shade's youthful face, then he looked at Ganondorf, shuddered under the statue's gaze. He walked down the line of statues, looking up at every single King and trying to make out the Gerudo inscription carved into the stone. When he had passed all eleven he stared up at the twelfth. The face was bearded, the eyes were dark and the nose was aristocratic and hooked. Shane knew it was Madorye, and he was surprised to see how confident and joyful the man looked.
Suddenly a blast of icy wind shot across the back of his neck, his hair stood on end. Darkness cried out, reared up and pawed at the air, thrashing his head back and forth. Shane yanked down on the reigns, planting the horse's front hooves back on the stone. He stroked his nose and looked into his eyes, whispered words of comfort in his ears. Slowly the horse calmed itself, but it kept its ears pinned back. Shane looked around; the icy feeling was gone, but he couldn't shake the thought that someone was staring at him. He looked up at the carved face of the first king, then at the Goddess on the wall, and continued on his way.
Ahead of him was a tall fountain, shimmering and glittering, its water running smoothly. Shane stopped and stared at it. The water was a shining black, like an onyx stone, and was translucent like melted stone. It emanated heat and the feeling of death. Shane murmured, "The Fountain of the Sun." he wasn't sure how he knew, but he couldn't shake the black feeling inside of him. He dipped his finger in the water and it sizzled and shuddered, shied away from him until not a drop was left under his finger. His skin grew dead white. Shane pulled his hand away, held his breath in amazement. He whispered to Darkness, "Shade had to drink that? Glad I'm not King of the Gerudos."
He stopped. The horse wasn't looking at him. Instead he had his head turned around to look beyond Shane. His ears were straight back against his head, his nostrils were full and his eyes were glazed and wide. Darkness' muscles were trembling and he whickered nervously.
"What is it, boy?" Shane turned to look in the same direction, stopped, stared hard in disbelief.
Coming towards him was a young woman. She had long, silver hair and shocking green eyes. Her skin was pale and perfect, far too perfect to be normal. She was dressed in a long, flowing silver gown and her crimson lips smiled gently; she spoke in a musical voice, "Hello there. Well, I can see you're not a Gerudo. I'm so glad: those brutes terrify me in a way nothing else can." She continued advancing.
Shane relaxed a little. "No, I'm Hylian. My name is Shane." He thought maybe the beautiful woman was a fairy who would bless him with something amazing.
"Ah, Shane, it's so wonderful to see another civilized being. Come and sit beside me at the fountain and let's talk." She was right in front of him now so that he could see ever flawless feature. He felt a little bewildered by her presence.
From behind, Darkness nipped Shane's shirt, whickered softly.
The woman giggled, "Your horse is hungry. Are you a knight?"
"No, I'm a farm boy." Shane grinned.
"Ah, a farm boy. The nearest farm is quite a ways away. May I ask why you came here?" She reached for him, her perfect hand soft and gentle as she stretched to lay it on his arm. Her nails were long and gleaming and black.
Before she could touch him though, Darkness reared up again, whinnying and pulling at the reigns, dragging his master away a few feet before Shane could react. He thrashed his head around and even bit Shane on the cheek, still crying out in terror. It took the boy several moments to regain control of his horse. When he was sure Darkness was okay, he rubbed his face, "Owe, he bit me."
"What a magnificent animal, here, let me see your face, perhaps I can heal it, I know a bit of magic."
Shane turned to her and his heart stopped beating. The maiden's eyes were hollow and dark, her flesh was gray and her teeth were sharp. Curved, violent horns had sprouted from the top of her skull. She was coming at him quickly, mouth gaping, "Give me your blood!" She cried.
With a yelp, Shane jumped back, but it was too late her hand was on him, her teeth were against his neck.
A loud, high-pitched hum shot through the courtyard, Shane felt his body tingling all over and the ground suddenly shook. There was a blast of red light from around his neck and the woman fell back, howling in pain and vanishing into a vaporous smoke. Her voice cried, "You have the King's Medallion! I didn't know you had the medallion!" the vapor vanished, shooting away towards the door. Shane watched it go in amazement, looked down at Shade's medallion. It was still glowing vibrantly and it was warm against him. He tucked it back under his tunic and looked around. Darkness was calm, and the courtyard was empty again. Shane sighed and whispered to his horse, "It's okay now; everything should be okay. I'm going to leave you out here, all right? I have to go inside."
Darkness whickered again and nuzzled his master's shirt. Shane got out an apple and fed it to the stallion, then he released him. He didn't want to tie him up, just in case something attacked the horse. He wanted him to be able to get away.
Then Shane set his jaw, turned toward the door and started toward it, ready to walk into its blackness.
The Temple of thieves was large and darker than night. It was cool and smelled like must, a few candles burning with blue flame light the rooms, but aside from that Shane was no more that a black shape outlined by a slightly lighter darkness. He groped his way through the rooms, sword ready, breathing quietly. There were many monsters inside the dark temple: levers and keese of course, but there were also Lizalfos, Armos, Fire Bubbles and Beamos. He could hear Razor Traps sliding across the room, grating over the stone. There was a constant smell of incense in his nostrils and he was constantly tripping and stubbing his foot against rocks. All around him was a dark shroud and a feeling of inescapable evil. Here and there he saw a Poe Ghost, drifting in and out of visibility. Shane wasn't very worried about being attacked. The Dark Tunic provided him with amazing cover from enemies, and most of them couldn't even see him until he was already upon them, and by then it was too late. The only things he really had to watch for were the Keese, which could find him in the dark via echolocation, as well as the Beamos and the Wall Masters that occasionally dropped from the ceiling to attack. And in the mean time the King's Medallion protected him from the evil forces. For the most part the Blade of Fire lit his way, and he had long since overcome his fear of the place.
Up ahead now, Shane could see the vague outline of a door in the wall. He paused under a torch and looked his map over, munching a piece of bread from his wallet as he tried to determine his route. The map was difficult to decipher in the crushing black, but he could see that the room up ahead was considerably small and that immediately after it was one that was fairly large. Shade hadn't marked anything special on the map other than the location of the Pendant of Wisdom; Shane guessed that it was because the King of Gerudos had never been inside and had no idea where to look for the Staff or anything else.
Satisfied with where to go next, Shane drank a little red potion and immediately felt better. The few scratches and bruises he'd acquired during the journey through the temple were soothed and the aching in his head ceased. He breathed a sigh of relief, wiped his lips and went on his way, keeping his eyes open for a fairy of any kind.
When he reached the door it slid open easily allowing him inside. The room was pitch black without so much as one candle to light his way, it was cold and smelled like dirt, a crisp breeze rushed across his face, feathering his cheeks. Shane waited several minutes for his eyes to adjust, but when they didn't he merely slid his palm along the room, groping his way along into the room.
The first step, his black boot crushed down on something soft and there was a loud hiss. Something slipped away from him, brushing against his boot. Thinking it was nothing, Shane moved on. His steps found him stepping on several more hissing, soft creatures and soon he felt as if he were standing on soft mud. A little afraid, Shane stopped moving, feeling the strange sensation of a number of creatures squirming over his boots and wriggling under his feet. He breathed softly for a moment, listening to the hisses, then quietly murmured a little magic his father had taught him. Immediately a small flickering flame was born on his open palm. Shane stared down in horror.
The entire floor was a black, wriggling mass of snakes, large and small. Some he recognized as poisonous, others were apparently harmless. The were slithering through each other, caught up in knots. One large, black snake with a cotton-white mouth was coiled right at his feet, hissing and reeling back as if to strike. Shane stepped away and made his way as carefully as he could from the threatening snake. He looked uncertainly through the room. Was there any chance of getting through without contracting a venomous bite? He doubted it. Would his red potion heal him of the sickness? He didn't know that for sure either, and he didn't really want to find out.
Shane looked his map over again, making sure there wasn't a different route. To his dismay there wasn't.
Decisively he squelched the magic flame in his hand and stood again in the darkness, closed his eyes and uttered an even more powerful spell, feeling it draw some of the strength in his own body. Flame burst around him, burning close to his body so that he could smell it singing his hair, but he didn't worry. The fire shield flourished about him like a flower, going throughout the entire room, burning the snakes, which hissed and writhed as they died. A powerful, sweet, feminine voice said in his head, "Be not afraid, my child, I am with you," and Shane felt infinitely calmed and grateful to his father for teaching him the magic he'd always viewed as worthless.
When Din's fire had burned out and Shane was sure that all of the snakes were dead the boy continued on his way, leaving through the far door.
The new room was a huge contrast from the one he'd come from. It was brightly lit with torches, adorned with silver and gold and red carpet. Shane stopped to look around, making sure that there were no enemies present: he only saw a tall, muscular statue in the center. It was a suit of black, shining armor with a thick helmet with horns on its top. It held a heavy battle axe in both hands and stood up perfectly straight. Shane approached it with interest, looking at the fine craftsmanship of the steel armor. He thought of how nice it would be to have a great suit of armor like the bravest knights of Hyrule. Perhaps the Queen would give him one as a gift. Or maybe this suit would fit him.
The teenager brushed one wistful finger over the material, thinking of how heavy and how protective it would be.
Instants later the suit came to life, it swung one huge arm at Shane and hit him right across the face, sending the boy sprawling back on the floor. Shane sat up, a little confused, shaking his head to make the dizziness go away. The armor was moving steadily toward him, its heavy footsteps echoing in the room around them. It stood over Shane and hefted its axe back, ready to bury its blade in his brain.
Horrified, Shane rolled away, jumped up and drew his blade. The monster swung its axe anyway and got it stuck in the floor. The teenager stared, unable to believe the impact or its affects.
It was only a moment before the creature had pulled its weapon back from the floor and was attacking again. Shane barely managed to accomplish a backflip in order to avoid the onslaught, and instead the axe slammed against a nearby pillar, shattering it. A few rupees fell out and Shane scurried to collect them as the Iron Knuckle swung again. This time it hit against the wall, once again lodging the blade there.
Shane stared at it indecisively. It was obviously very occupied with freeing its axe, leaving its back wide open for assault. Both doors in the room were locked with bars, cutting off any hope of escape. Though he did desperately want to escape his foe, he knew he had to opt for something better. Holding the Blade of Fire tightly, Shane attacked, slashing at the Iron Knuckles back, denting the armor. The Knuckles cried out, obviously pained by the attack and Shane chopped again, creating a small crack.
The monster ripped its axe from the wall, whirled around and struck Shane across the shoulder with the blunt side of the axe, shattering it. Shane screamed, holding the room and writhing in pain. The Knuckles stood over him again, ready to strike. Doubled over from pain, Shane was barely able to evade the new attack. He held his sword in one hand and slashed at the Iron Knuckle's armor, enlarging the crack.
But he was dizzied from pain and fatigued from the constant movement of the fight. He knew if he didn't do something quickly his enemy would defeat him. He thought about the bottle of potion he still had, but he didn't have the hands to pull out the cork and hold his sword and the bottle at the same time, and at this crucial moment he had no time to put the blade away.
Another idea struck him and he darted away from the iron knuckles, hiding behind a nearby pillar. He watched the Iron Knuckles over his shoulder. As expected, it saw him and swung its axe, knocking it against the stone and making it crumble just as Shane dashed away. A bundle of arrows fell out but Shane didn't have time to pick them up. Instead he staggered to the next pillar, struggling to push away the pain he felt. The pillar contained more rupees and the following housed bombs. Shane began to feel discouraged when there were only three pillars left. He knew he had to start fighting back if he wanted to win, but it would be impossible with only one arm.
Fortunately the fourth pillar contained exactly what he needed. The rocks crumbled and there was a spray of pink light accompanied by a tiny, shrill cry of protest. The wandering fairy flurried away from the Iron Knuckles, drifting throughout the room uncertainly; Shane ran to it, and gazed into the small, heart-shaped face, whispered as gently as possible, "I need your help, please."
The little fairy looked up at him doubtfully, it's wings fluttering rapidly in order to stay afloat.
Shane repeated himself a little desperately, "I need your help! That thing's going to eat me alive if you don't help me!"
Bobbing up and down a little, the fairy spoke in its unknown tongue and smiled a child's grin. She nodded ever so slightly and Shane managed to smile back as she flew around his head and neck, sprinkling her fine dust over his body. No sooner had she unleashed her magic, Shane felt better. The pain in his shoulder subsided, the dizziness was zapped away and he felt completely rejuvenated. He smiled back at the fairy and said quietly, "Thank-you."
The creature only smiled and flew away quickly, just as the Iron Knuckles approached, its slow, steady footsteps a tell-tale sign of how close it was.
Shane turned to face it, mouth set in determination. He clutched his blade strongly and went at the Iron Knuckles, dodging as it attacked and striking its armor twice in the now-familiar metallic ring of sword on metal. The armor shatter and fell on the floor, leaving the wearer more exposed but also lighter.
It ran at Shane, metallic footfalls rumbling. It shouted at him ineligibly and swung, barely brushing the teenager's cheek and cutting it a little. Shane ignored the cut and danced away from the Iron Knuckles, allowing it to lodge its axe once again in the floor before moving in and slicing into its soft, unprotected body. Blood splattered over his blade as he stabbed and slashed, it sprayed across his face and stained his tunic and trews. The Iron Knuckles slumped over, unable to move, dying quickly from the blood loss, but Shane plunged his sword deep into the monster's chest, piercing the heart, just to be safe. A moment later it was dead and motionless on the floor. Its axe still wedged in the stone.
Reluctantly, Shane turned from it to face the door, watched as it opened. There was a magical hum and a swirl of light as a chest appeared before him. He approached it expectantly and hefted it open. Inside was a long, silver rod with a bulbous, ruby end. All along the shaft it was carved with foreign runes and markings and decorations. Shane saw the sign of the Sun Goddess and lifted it carefully from the musty chest, held it up to the light to examine the ruby on the end. He looked into the gleaming stone and saw his own face. The staff wasn't very heavy and it felt relaxed in his grip and easy to wield, but it was warm, burning with a dull fire. Shane swung it, half expecting flames to spew from the end. Much to his surprise, nothing happened, and he tried several more minutes, swinging it back and forth in an attempt to use it. At last he sighed in resignation. Shade had said that the Staff of Thieves had unbelievable powers, but maybe it was only made as a seal for Argoka'shomen. He only had to take it back, that didn't mean it was a weapon. He hooked it onto his belt beside the Devil's Mallet.
Shane drank a little water, ate a little more food, and then gathered up the things from the broken pillars before moving on.
It was a few more hours before Shane stared hard at his map and realized he was about to enter the very last room in the temple. He'd been marking the rooms he'd been in as he went along, and now there was only one unadulterated area left, one place he hadn't been. He nodded to himself and wrote 'Pendant' inside the respective square, then he marched forward, hand on the pommel of his blade, ready to face whatever ill-tempered monster beyond the last door.
He stopped before entering and realized that he was shaking all over, his breath was uneven and he felt cold, his memories were going back over and over to the last temple he'd been in and the horrible monster he'd fought there. Thoughts of death clouded his judgment and he found that it was difficult to swallow. This time there were no friendly gorons and no helpful Sheikah to worry about him. Shade claimed that they were bound by blood now, but did that mean the King of Thieves would come looking for him? He doubted it. Shade couldn't even enter the temple!
Pushing aside the feelings of doubt, Shane focused on what Vash had told him. He had his own powers, he had his own reservoir of strength, and he didn't need any fragment of the Triforce to accomplish his goals. He was going to save his sister, and as with the Dragon, no monster was going to stop him.
Bravely, he entered the room.
It was large, larger than the room he'd fought the iron knuckles in, and much to his surprise it had windows carved from the stone with ragged, crimson curtains blowing in the breeze. Outside he could see he was quite a ways up in the air, the Gerudo Fortress was a distant speck-he must have climbed all the way to the stop of the spire of the temple. The sun was starting to set, painting the desert sky vibrant pink. That reminded him that the harvest moon was the following night and he didn't have time to waste.
Shane looked around the room, ready to see his enemy anywhere. Instead he noticed that he was standing on red carpet, followed it with his eyes up some steps onto a dais where there was a throne carved of polished, gleaming obsidian. There was a crusty, old skeleton seated there, garbed in black, red and gold. There was a small, golden circlet on its head and a scraggly gray beard that fell to its chest was still partially attached to its chin. The eyes, for some reason, looked sad. Shane approached it reverently, looking it up and down.
When he was at the bottom step the bones twitched, the head shifted and the skeleton moved, Shane went breathless and stared in fear as the skull twisted around and focused on him, bones creaking as it did so. A ghostly, deep voice filled the room. It was gentle and calm but also booming like distant thunder. "What foolish mortal dares to enter the throne of the king?"
Shane discovered that he was trembling again, his voice was unsteady, "M-my name is Shane, I-"
"Silence mortal! I have no need of your name: I am the Exulted Madorye, the First and Last true King of the Gerudo Tribe! How dare you enter this place, man-child, you have defiled my resting place and now you shall surely die!"
"I-"
The boy didn't get to finish his objection: Madorye leapt up from his throne, engulfed in an eerie green aura. A glimmering sword with a twisted steel shaft appeared and the dead king clenched it in bony, white knuckles. Shane found he was frozen in place by supernatural powers, and no matter how hard he struggled or what he told his body to do he was unable to move. Madorye laughed hysterically, crying out, "Die now, mortal!" He swung his weapon over his head with every intention of slicing into Shane's skull.
The boy yelped in fear and faced his death in horror.
A brilliant flare of red shot out and enveloped Shane in a misty diamond of crimson. The blade's edge struck the barrier and ruby lightning shocked up the shaft, flinging it out of the dead king's grip so that it clattered against the far wall and fell to the floor with a dull ring. The skeleton was also electrified and for a moment he glowed red, then collapsed on his knees before Shane. For a split second it was as if life were restored to the king. He had pink flesh again and blue eyes. His beard retained some momentary color and Shane could have swore he saw tears in the dead man's eyes. "That medallion…" he whispered in his ghostly voice, "I wore that for so many years in my youth…but you…you are not my descendent…"
The red glow faded but Shane didn't feel worried without it seeing how the King was reacting now. "No, I'm not, but I was sent by him."
"Then, you are a messenger of one of my own sons?"
Shane shrugged, "You could say I'm his…brother…"
"Brother?" The
king's once-again-empty eyes looked Shane up and down, focused a
long time on the Staff of Thieves. "Ah, I see you bear the house of
Kashomen, the Spirit of the South Wind. What have you come to this
place for, boy? Why do you bring that wizard's rod with you?"
"I'm
looking for the Pendant of Wisdom," Shane said as strongly as he
could.
"…the pendant…what does a child want with such a precious item?"
"It's to save my sister from Kashomen. I have the first two and I must have the third or she will die."
The old king seemed to fade a little, his voice was very quiet, "You hold the Staff of my kin, and come in the name of one of my own descendents, you must have some special destiny about you. Tell me, what is your name, child?"
Shane hesitated. He was a little nervous about speaking to an immortal about anything, let alone revealing his identity to one. He saw how carefully the skeleton watched him and felt the anticipation in the air. At last he answered, "I'm Shane."
"And you, a mere boy, would confront Kashomen?"
Shane felt as if Madorye were looking down on him, sneering at him and telling him he couldn't do it. He was very tired of being underestimated and laughed at. He said firmly, "I will if it comes to that. I'll do whatever I have to do in order to save my sister."
Madorye chuckled: it was loud and strong and booming, filled the room and made Shane's heart beat a little faster, "You speak with a strong will but I can feel that there is fear inside of you. Do you not know? Only the Goddess can seal away Kashomen, for he is as strong and untamed as the wind itself, I sacrificed my life and the life of all of my children to keep him trapped within the bounds of this temple, now that he is once again loose I fear that none can stop him. It is clear that this world must end, don't you agree? I gave up all I had to keep Kashomen bound forever, but my life and the life of my descendents must be worth very little after all. I was not born of royal blood, you see, I was not even born within the boundaries of this desert. My father died when I was a child and the people of our village blamed my mother, they said she was a witch because she could use such powerful magic. She fled with me to this desert and we found refuge with the Gerudo women. They saw my strength and made me their king. I built this temple for myself, I took a wife, she bore me a son, I had everything I could ever need or want for, but the temple was twisted by the darkness of the South Wind, my wife was stolen from me by Kashomen and my son fell ill.
Madorye's voice was very soft and filled with a sadness that crept into Shane's heart, overwhelming him. "I went to the Goddess for help and asked that she would destroy Kashomen. She took my life, imprisoning me here and said the lives of all my male descendents belonged to her. But even she could not protect us from Kashomen; he roams free again. There is nothing anyone can do to stop him, this curse will go unbroken, all of Hyrule will fall into darkness, the way is closed to us. Go home, boy, spend what remains of your days with what is left of your family, never hope to see your sister again, she has fallen another victim. You have not the strength nor the courage to put an end to this, it is something not even a king was able to accomplish. Go home lad, do not waste your life thus, it is obvious that you are not the kind of warrior required."
At the words, Shane's face turned beat red with anger, he clenched his fists and chin, watched the immortal king turn back toward his throne. "NO," he said, voice trembling with fury, "I must have that pendant! You may not think it's worth it to confront Kashomen, but you don't have anything to lose—you're already dead, there's nothing left for you: no home, no loved one, no dignity! The Goddess broke you, your wife and son are dead, your life is gone, but not I! I have a father and a mother, I have people who love me, a home and I have a future, and a sister who needs me more than anything else in the world, and I will not turn my back on her! Do you understand? I didn't come all this way and nearly die to be turned away by the likes of you!"
The immortal king looked at him sharply, "Do not trifle with the immortals, boy. You know not who you sneer at."
Shane spat, "The living rule over the dead, I know that much. You must give me that pendant, I will not take no for an answer."
"I see you are a brash lad, Shane," Madorye said quietly, "it is an audacious move to speak thus to me. Do you not value your own life?"
"I value the life of my sister and parents, as well as the prosperity of my King, Queen and home land, these are things I will fight for, even if it means to the end of me."
Madorye held his sword out; "You challenge me for the pendant then, do you? Very well, I shall teach you and show you the ways of your own foolishness. Cross blades with me boy!"
The pair stood apart from each other and crossed swords, Shane staring intensely up into the empty sockets of the dead king. He whirled his blade suddenly, trying to cut into Madorye's arm, slashing and hacking with the Blade of Fire. He danced away as Madorye attacked in full, sweeping swings trying to slice through Shane's flesh in the arms, leg or torso. He managed to clip a lock of the boy's hair before Shane leapt away, watching carefully for the movement of his foe's torso that would give away his next strike.
Madorye held a hand up to the ceiling, shouted loudly and a ball of fire appeared on his open palm. He flung it at the boy and it flew at Shane dancing and flickering bright orange. Shane felt the heat on his face, yelped and dove away, barely avoiding incineration.
With a battle cry he charged the immortal king, sword glowing red, the ring of steel on steel carrying through the room as the two swords hit together. Shane swung around, trying to get between Madorye's sword and chest to stab where the heart should be, but the immortal lunged away, then back again, slashing his blade tip close to Shane's face.
The teenager yelped in fear and surprise and was able to bare evade the onslaught, lifted his shield into place and the king's blow smashed against it, sending pain lancing up the boy's arm to his shoulder. His fingers went numb almost immediately but his arm retained its usefulness. Keeping his eyes on his foe, Shane jumped away and Madorye's sword caught him on the thigh, tearing the trews and part of the Dark Tunic. Fortunately it only left a shadow of a scrape on the skin and Shane faded back, twirling his blade so that it met again with Madorye's enormous weapon.
On and on the two went through the room, spinning and lunging and parrying each other's attacks, locking their bodies together and trying to knock each other down. In an odd way it looked like they were dancing, crossing between and through the shadows, the cold of the temple making Shane's movements a little stiff. Soon he realized that while he was heaving and panting and sweating Madorye remained completely unaffected by the rigorous physical demands. Sweat was pouring down Shane's forehead, dripping off his chin and streaking his cheeks. He was afraid that it would get into his eyes and blind him, leaving him open to Madorye's attacks. That will be the end of the Great Hero. He reminded himself a little bitterly.
A little desperately, the teenager did a backflip to put distance between himself and his opponent. He stood back and watched as Madorye approached, floating more than walking, engulfed by an eerie violet aura. "What's the matter, little one?" the king asked quietly, "do you not want to fight anymore? Can you also see how futile this is?"
Shane spat and rubbed his face without taking his eyes off the foe, "It isn't futile—I will get that pendant."
"Such a shame that one so young insists on throwing his life away, but regardless lad, I cannot allow you to have the pendant. I must send you away into the darkness of sleep now." Not warning Shane any further Madorye created a large, green-black ball that hummed and glowed with a supernatural energy, flames of a brighter green sprouted from the floor and roared around Shane, and though they emanated no heat, the boy knew that to touch them was to die a gruesome death. They were growing closer though, forcing him to step in towards Madorye. The teenager held his sword tightly and watched the ghost king with tired eyes. He waited until he saw the stiff twitching movement in Madorye's torso and was able to anticipate the moment when he threw his weapon then barely escaped it. He used the opportunity to dash back in close to his enemy, sword flying.
Madorye hadn't expected Shane to be so well prepared for his fire ball and was clearly surprised that the youth was rushing at him. He tried to lift his sword to block the attack but he was too slow and Shane's red blade cut into the king's chest, shredding his already tattered robes and breaking the old bones there. The king cried out and stumbled, fell to his knees, holding the bloodless wound.
Shane stood over him, screaming, lifted his sword to behead the king.
Suddenly a bright, golden light was flowing around him, shooting out from Madorye's body. It stopped Shane's attack, immobilizing him and holding his arms over his head, sword and all. Shane struggled to follow through with his blow but he couldn't make his arms move. It was as if some invisible person were holding his arms back. Slowly, against his own will, his arms lowered and were pinned at his sides. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't lift them again, and worse yet, he couldn't move even one foot, as if both boots were made of stone.
A sweet, melodious voice entered his head. It was whispery, like a gentle breeze over the sand, and bright and somehow powerful like the afternoon sun. "You've done well, young one, but you'll not slay my servant." He looked around frantically for the owner of the voice, but it was still just himself and the ghost king. Madorye's entire body was glowing with that incredible light now. Something about the golden light made Shane feel warm.
At his feet, Madorye whispered, "M-my Lady…you protected me…?"
"Of course I did, my servant, did I not promise to you that I would?"
"But…but you…?"
"It was a high price to pay, I know, but you gave your life for my service and in turn I swore to protect you. This boy has a powerful role in what will become of your people, but I cannot allow him to kill you."
Shane looked around again, half-expecting to see the Sun Goddess standing nearby, but still there was nothing but the heavenly light filling the entire room. The voice spoke to him.
"Listen to me young one, your trials have been many and your journey has been difficult, but you have proven both your courage and your strength; you shall receive what you came here for. King Madorye, grant the youth his prize."
Madorye stood up slowly, hand still over his would, he looked down at Shane, his face covered with pale flesh again, his eyes leaking tears and his gray beard blowing in the unnatural wind. "My Goddess…how can I ever repay your generosity."
"You've already fulfilled your duty to me, my son, today you shall come home to the land of your mothers." The light began to fade, growing paler and paler until at last it was only natural sunlight streaming through the windows and Shane was left to face the aged, but flesh and bone man.
"Shane," Madorye whispered, "do you know what you've done? You've awakened the compassion of my Goddess, she has chosen to spare us both, and although I am not sure how I know, I am sure that it is because of you. For so long I have been bitter over my losses and even over some of my gains, for so long I have watched the world through blind eyes, hoping to see one who could bring hope to my people and my descendents, and now you have come to me, not to trick or deceive me, not to take for your own gain, but with selfless love in your heart. For this, I am grateful. I believe that the Goddess is right, the future of my people will change because of you, you are there future. At last I believe that everything I've done has been for the best of those around me, and because of that I am thankful. You opened my dead eyes."
He lifted both hands and an orange light shimmered above them and there was a brilliant flash. A moment later Madorye was holding a pale, orange pearl in his hands: the Pendant of Wisdom.
"I want you to take the pendant, Shane, as far as I'm concerned you've earned it and you deserve to save your sister. Please save my people from Kashomen, please seal him away again." He handed the pendant to the boy ceremoniously and Shane accepted it, eyes wide with awe.
As soon as the final pendant was in his hands Shane felt different. His entire body hummed with unnatural energy, it began to glow a bright, powerful purple. It flowed through him, burning in his blood and making his limbs numb, his head spun with dizziness and it was hard to breathe. He found that he couldn't grip his sword and shield anymore, dropped them. The Pendants of Courage and Power came from around his neck and all three of them rose into the air, circling over his head and glowing their respective colors. Shane was trapped in a trance, his body still immobile, his lungs unable to draw breath. He couldn't even blink or move his lips. Then there was a brilliant flash of light and Shane lost his sight for several minutes, the humming was loud in his ears and his body was light as a feather. Then the hum began to die, became softer and softer as the seconds ticked away, and soon it was gone. Shane could see again but the Pendants were gone, as was Madorye. He was alone in the ancient throne room.
Able to move again, Shane looked around the emptiness, trying to make sense of what had happened.
Madorye's voice came to him, "I go to join the gods and my ancestors today, but you still have much life ahead of you: the Pendants are inside of you, giving you their power, their wisdom, and their courage. Go now, Shane the Hero, and slay Kashomen, set my people free of this terrible curse and bring hope to the Last Gerudo King. And…thank-you, my young friend, you've blessed an old man in ways you cannot imagine."
