Chapter Eight – What Once Was Done
Link watched as the world strung itself back together. The Tune of Ages echoed slowly back into the world as Link ceased playing. He swung the Harp back over his shoulder and looked around.
It was sunrise. Tiny raindrops fell softly down, but they did not sting when they hit. Instead, it felt as if someone was spraying Link with a fine mist.
Link turned to look at the cave. The rocks were gone, and in their place was a large cave entrance. Link drew his sword and cautiously entered the cave.
There was nothing in the cave. Literally nothing. Link knew he was standing on a floor, but there was no light to see anything by. He could see where he came in, but the cave walls seemed to go on forever in the darkness. Link walked forward for a little bit to see if he could find a wall, but there was nothing but air. Link sighed and walked back to the entrance.
Outside, the rain continued. Link walked southwest, back toward the Mysterious Forest. There had to be something he could find in the Past. He backtracked through the Mysterious Forest, noticing that it was far easier this time through. He quickly found himself standing in Mabe Village, but everything was different.
Instead of the usual assortment of a few houses here and there, only one house could be seen. It occupied the now-vacant lot beside Marin and Tarin's house. Link cautiously approached it and knocked on the door.
The door all but exploded open. A burly man stood in the doorway, holding a large butcher knife.
"Who're you?" he demanded.
"Link," Link replied. This man looked dangerous, but there was something about him that wasn't deadly.
The man thought for a moment. "Alright," he finally said. "What can I do fer you?"
Link replied by describing his events at the Bottle Grotto, leaving out the rocks and time travel. After his tale, the man nodded thoughtfully.
"Don' sound too good. Dem caves are always actin' up. Jes' last week dat Turtle up dere started spewin' flames everywhere. I goes up there yesterday, I did, and da entire place is froze over."
"That's… a bit strange. A turtle, you say?"
The man nodded. "Yep." He went on to describe the turtle and what could usually be found in the cave. As he talked, Link felt himself getting dizzy. All this talk of the cave was starting to make him feel lightheaded. However, when the man started talking about large, black, bulbous snakes that spat fire, Link passed out.
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An explosion almost knocked Link's feet out from under him. The large Dodongo Snake towered over him, roaring. It started sucking in air. Link, thinking quickly, grabbed a Bomb and shoved it in its mouth. The Dodongo Snake pulled back, surprised. Seconds later, it exploded.
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"Hey, yo! Little dude, wake up!" the man shouted.
Link found himself lying in the dirt, the man towering over him. He bolted awake and shot up.
"You 'kay?" he asked.
Link rubbed his head. "Yeah, decently enough. I think I need to get back, though. Thanks for telling me about the turtle."
The man nodded. "Alright. If dere be anyting you need, feel free t' swing by."
Link nodded. "Okay. I'll see ya later!"
The man nodded and walked back inside the house.
Link walked back into the Mysterious Forest. Again, it was a piece of cake to get to the other side, and within a minute he was standing in front of the Bottle Grotto. He quickly ducked inside.
"If things are calm in the present, and freaking out in the past, what if I force myself into one from another?" he schemed. He entered the empty cave and pulled out the Harp of Ages. Again playing, his fingers instantly found the Tune of Ages and Link watched Time rip apart again. He watched as his own time again formed around him, but this time he was on the other side of the boulders. Other shapes, too, began to appear, filling in the missing cave. As the music faded, Link looked around at the newly completed Bottle Grotto.
The Grotto was filled with pots. Not like the pots back in Hyrule type of pots, either. These were heavy-duty pots that weighted easily three times as much as the Hylian pots. Luckily, Link had the Power Bracelet already.
The Grotto was also filled with cracks. Over time, it seemed that the cave had worn down. Parts of the wall were missing, making travel much easier for Link. Link headed deeper into the cave. In the next room, he found two of the normally well-lit lamps broken and in a heap near a door. He walked through it slowly.
Link passed by the next two rooms with no problems whatsoever. He, however, didn't run into any enemies. With that gnawing at the back of his mind, he went into the next room.
Inside this room, Link found two statues in the center of the room. He drew closer, and quickly decided that they weren't statues. Every step he took toward them, they would twitch forward. Every step left he took, they would pull right, but just barely. He left them well alone and went right again. That room was empty except for a few blocks, so he continued north.
In this room, Link discovered pots everywhere. He proceeded to smash every one, not because he was mean and violent like that, but because pots had a habit of containing useful items like bombs and arrows and Rupees and stuff. These pots were long empty, though, so Link investigated the rest of the room, looking for another way out.
On the north wall, Link found an ancient owl statue. Its beak was missing and it was riddled with thin cracks. Thinking quickly, Link pulled out the Staff of Nevara. Remembering the explosive power of the bombs he had used against the Dodongo Snakes, he concentrated on harnessing that power for himself.
Right before the Staff started to change, Link stopped. If he turned the Staff into a Bomb, it could very well explode and vanish forever. He started again, but this time he focused on the Bomb Bag. As he did so, he could feel the Staff's texture change. It wrapped around itself and Link soon held a nice strong bag with Bombs inside. He reached in the Bag, pulled one out, and shoved it into the owl statue's beak hole. He ducked behind a block as the statue exploded. When the dust cleared, Link saw that he had made a hole in the wall. He concentrated on the Staff and it returned to normal. Link strode through the hole and toward the gaping maw of a door ahead. As he walked, he could hear a voice echo around him.
"Link… Come in… and face your Nightmares!"
