Chapter 8: To Quell the Storm
After three or four more battles, Link was really getting the hang of fighting the undead.
The skeletons were slower than he was, though they saw perfectly well without light, and it took two decisive blows to actually defeat them. The dogs proved to be the most troublesome, since Navi was hovering just above his head- this revealed any of the skeletal warriors immediately, but the dogs, that were all the way down at his ankles, went unnoticed unless he heard the scraping of their feet on the tile or felt their teeth tear at his already bloodied and aching leg.
Another one had made its way through the dark temple, feet clacking against the tile, growling that hollow growl as it approached the Hylian. He heard it before it came too close, stooping down to be sure that it didn't get the opportunity to further strike at his injured limb. His kinked sword slashed at it straight away, catching the skeletal canine by surprise and forcing a yelp from the boney skull. When it charged, Link first missed, allowing those powerful jaws to clamp down on an edge of his shield. Rather than shake it off, the Hylian rushed forward until he found a wall and smashed the skeleton dog against it. The undead monster shrieked and fell at his feet in fragments. A sudden scrape behind him made the young boy whirl back around, sword first. The warped blade clanged against an ancient shield. Another of the skeletal warriors had emerged from the darkness, barely lit by the soft blue light that hovered overhead, its rusty weapon moving swiftly for Link's chest. The young Hylian moved, shifting out of Navi's illumination and slamming his back into the unseen wall. He winced at the impact. That damaged sword of his flew through the muggy and stale air, cracking solidly on bone. The skeleton was felled for a moment- this time, Link did not offer it the opportunity to again rise. He dropped to a knee and thrust the point of his blade through its skull, causing the monstrosity to give the usual death shriek and break apart like brittle wood. Link immediately stood and continued to make his way through the temple, room after room, skeleton after skeleton, until he found an empty room that allowed him a moment to rest.
His breath was coming in heavy pants, and a thick line of sweat lined both the brim of his hat and the collar of his shirt. In fact, his clothes were saturated in it; the air down in the dark temple was only cooler because that blazing sun was kept away, but it was every bit as dry and suffocating as the air in the open desert. It didn't make all that fighting any easier. Link flopped to the floor unceremoniously, allowing his blade to clatter carelessly onto the tile. He leaned his head back against the wall behind him and gulped the unpleasant air.
"You gonna be alright, Link?" Navi loomed close to him, not bothering to investigate the darkness around them.
The Hylian nodded. He took in a good breath and wiped his brow with the back of a glove. A twinge in his right leg reminded him of the injuries there. Pulling himself into a more proper sitting position, Link touched the leg with trepidation. The contact caused pain, and he felt a warm liquid there that was certainly his blood- his latest opponents did not bleed. Without bandages, he was forced to shred a section of his tunic and bind the wound with that. It was dirty, but it would do for now. Once he had the makeshift bandage tied on tightly he gripped his weapon, gathered his feet beneath himself and stood. From what he could tell of the echoing of his footsteps, this room was several times larger than most of the ones he had previously visited. With his breathing under better control, he ventured further into the vast room. Still holding his sword, his hand prodded blindly through the darkness for a wall that might guide him. Navi was busy floating upwards, curious as to where the ceiling was in this expansive room.
Something about the place in particular felt...strange. Like happiness spoiled. He couldn't quite place the feeling, but it spoke of regret and disappointment.
"Oh!" the voice drew his attention to the sphere of blue light floating far overhead, "Found it. Wow...this one's huge! Hard to believe a place this big's underground, huh?" She floated along, eyeing the elaborate engravings as they were illuminated.
"Yeah..." he would have given the usual nod in response, but it would have been lost in the dark. He took another step and his toe bumped into something solid, but far softer than marbled tile. He ran his fingers over the curious discovery, wondering if it was part of the decor or some strange debris. Putting the mystery aside, Link walked deeper into the room, amazed that he had not yet found an exit door. As he went, he was able to trace a finger along that cryptic debris. He found that its surface gave slightly under his fingertip, and whatever it was, it appeared to be long in shape, though it thinned some.
A sudden pulse rippled the air. He could not hope to explain or understand it, but Link's eyes were drawn to the side. Even without Navi close by he caught sight of a golden gleam that defied the murky shadows around them; a fragment of the Triforce.
With a happy sigh, Link walked over to where he saw the piece of the Triforce. His waist slammed into an altar that sat in the middle of the room, supporting the tiny golden fragment. He grabbed it, knowing that there was absolutely no moisture around to celebrate with its haunting tune, and hurried to add it to the collection in his pouch. A slithering at his side went unnoticed, "…Navi."
"This is so weird." the fairy gave up inspecting the ceiling and rejoined him at his side, "There's something about this room, y'know? Like it was all important, but for the life of me I can't figure out why. Maybe there were priests that gave sermons in here or something, 'cuz its sure fancy in here-"
"Navi." he had to cut her off of risk having to listen to hours of pointless speculation, "Found it. Let's go…"
"Really! That's great!" there was a happy squeal from the fairy as she darted around him. He smiled back at her, and she was quickly retreating back towards the exit. "Then let's get out of here, Link!"
He nodded, moving to follow. In a flash of blinding green-blue, the room lit up as countless plates of oil burst alive with flickering flames. A hand went to his eyes to shield them, but it offered little protection from the unexpected burst of bright light. The enormous room was revealed in its entirety, intricate candelabras overhead adding to the light from the various scattered lamps that lined the engraved walls. The tile around them shone with the blue-green hue of the flames, reflective, increasing the glow of the underground temple. The alter itself had a very large plume of green-blue fire at each corner. The carvings all around were broken stanzas, parts of some ancient text who's wisdom had been long buried under the glimmering sands of the Great Desert. Along with the occasional hourglass, the emblems that were now visible had several Triforces. Navi was right again- it was a very fancy room, to say the least.
So sudden and so bright was the light that Link lost his vision for several minutes. He rubbed furiously at his eyes, trying to wipe away the splotches that dotted his sight. Slowly, he became accustomed to the light, though all that burning oil only added to the sticky heat within the temple. Something slithered across the tile directly in front of him, and it took a few more hard blinks before he could clearly make out the mass that was somehow growling at him.
An audible gasp escaped the young Hylian as his vision focused on it. And it most certainly was an it. Its body looked vaguely like an octopus made of cured leather; it had a multitude of slithering tentacles wrapped in dry, wrinkly, brown skin that looked calloused, covered in warts. Where there should have been a head was a single, massive eye, cobalt in color, staring straight back at him. It blinked. And Link soon found his feet retreating backwards.
"What…is…that?" Navi shrieked, and the curious creature growled- though how was a complete mystery, since it had no visible mouth. The majority of its appendages moved to support it, lifting the great eyeball from it's resting spot on the gleaming marbled tile and slithering in the direction of these intruders. The tentacles not being used to move rose upwards and lashed out in all directions, smashing the marble alter, several lamp holders, and nearly Link. That was more then enough to send Navi spiraling away.
Link dodged the flailing arms as best as he could manage, striking back with his sword at any that came within range of his left arm. Each time bore the same result; the blade seemed as if it would sink in, only to be repelled by the squishy monster's flesh. Nearly pinned to the wall, he had to dive and roll away from the creature, taking a desperate slice at the tentacles that supported it. The flesh would not give way.
It was surprisingly agile, able to turn easily even with all those appendages to coordinate. The huge eyeball growled yet again and slapped the pesky boy aside.
Link went clear across the room. Refusing to be thrown down, his feet skidded across the polished tile as he struggled against the force of the monster's blow to keep his footing. It was the continued ache in his leg that drove him to one knee, the bottom of his heavy shield clunking as it touched the ground. The monster very quickly closed the distance between them and again attacked. Link's sword moved to meet the arm, inflicting no damage at all. That time he was thrown down despite his better efforts. Still half open, the pouch at his side spilled its contents onto the tiling with a clattering. He nearly swore out loud. His first priority was to grab the three pieces of the Triforce and shove them back inside, then his compass and map, then a few personal effects. He had a hand on the deep blue ocarina that he had claimed from another room when the impervious eyeball slipped an appendage about his midsection and pulled him from the floor. He gave a startled noise, sword sliding from his grasp and onto the floor.
"Link!" Navi could think of nothing she might do to help.
The hideous creature lifted him high into the air, then brought him down onto the tile with a sickening thud. The impact scrambled his sight almost as badly as the light had, making everything go white for a moment or two while he was again lifted into the air. The monster looked as if it intended to smash him into a pulp with this method. He saw that huge eye staring up at him, close enough that he caught his own reflection on it's dark surface. Thinking quickly, Link clenched the blue ocarina in his teeth and grabbed his shield with both hands. He brought the bottom of the shield down onto the tentacle wrapped around him several times, hoping to jar himself free from it's grip. It proved in vain. The creature kept its solitary eye trained on him as it slammed him again into the ground. The air was forced from Link's lungs…and into the ocarina he still kept clamped tightly between his lips.
At the sharp whistle of the little instrument, the grotesque creature recoiled. It withdrew its leathery appendage and slunk backwards to where the rubble of the alter lay scattered about.
Link took a few dizzy moments to recover from that. He pulled himself upright, taking his ocarina in hand so he could take long breaths. Link was pretty sure he'd broken at least a rib from the assault. When his head cleared, his first thought was to grab for his distorted blade. His second thought was …where'd it go?
The monster had its eye trained on him unblinking. It was continually advancing and retreating, unsure whether or not it was safe to attack this little target.
The young Hylian stared at it, confused at this new behavior. Deep blue sapphires then fell to the instrument held lightly in his hand and slowly the connection was made. Had that shrill note really scared it so badly? Link's gaze again went from the dark eyeball with its arms waving to the miniscule by comparison ocarina laying in his glove. He brought the instrument to his lips and played the same note, loud and piercing. The eyeball gave a low rumble of displeasure, slithering backwards away from the source of the sound. That note was unpleasant even to Link's ears. He took a long breath and played, any note that came to mind, half of a song that he had thought was long since forgotten. He picked through the musical scale, playing an arrangement of notes that belonged to no particular song, but sounded far more melodious to his ears than the initial sharp note had.
Before his eyes the monster shook and swayed, and seemed to shrink down. He dismissed it as an optical illusion at first, brought on by the flickering lamp light and one too many blows to the head. But by the time he had reached the end of his tune, the massive eyeball that had taken up a good section of the large room was only as tall as his waist. The Hylian's lips fell from the ocarina, stunned, not sure what to make of the shriveled monster now. He tucked the musical instrument away and readied his sword. That dark eye reflected a degree of fear, trying to scurry away, but Link's blade was too swift. This time, the flesh was cut. The once impervious creature gave a snarl as it bled onto the marbled tile.
The fight was much easier now. The once huge eyeball whipped its appendages around fruitlessly, lashing against the heavy shield that was now able to fully protect its owner. Link hacked at the monster, severing several arms that tried to defend against the onslaught from the warped blade. A fatal blow went through a tentacle and straight into the dark eyeball, splitting the pupil clean in half and causing the creature to fall limply into a puddle of its own gore.
Link breathed a sigh of relief down at the deflated monster.
Navi floated back over towards him, her light almost lost in the green-blue shimmer of the room, "Well. You sure get points for dumb luck, you know that?"
He leveled a look at the fairy.
"Seriously. Who would've thought? Good thing you trashed the place and stole that flute thingy, huh?"
His eyes narrowed softly, "…ocarina."
"Whatever."
Link sheathed his sword awkwardly, wincing at the prickle of pain in his side. Yeah, at least one rib had been cracked. It was a small miracle that he had survived the fight at all, really. It truly had been dumb luck…but that was never a pleasant thing to hear. Dumb luck or otherwise, it hardly mattered now. The important thing was that he had another piece of the Triforce in his possession, "…that makes three."
"Five more to go." Navi piped up, figuring that the math would have taken Link several moments to do on his own. He sensed her implication and glared.
The two of them began exiting the dark, suffocating heat of the temple. As they went, Link opted to leave the stone doors wide open- the light that pooled in from the brilliant turquoise flames of the large room made the trip back easier. By the time he reached the first room, that distant light reached just far enough to give him the impression of the stairway.
He ascended to the scorching sands of the desert, finding that the sun was now beginning to sink from the sky. His sight took a second to readjust to the sunlight, and when it did he noticed that the curious old woman was no where to be found. All that remained at the odd temple entrance was his ever faithful horse and the half buried chain that allowed access to the structure underneath. His gaze went over the shimmering sand dunes for a while, trying to figure out where she might have gone to. As he looked, her words came back to him. Whatever he had faced down in the Temple of Time would be nothing compared to the horrors of the desert at night. Considering what he'd just faced up against, walking skeletons and a hideous eyeball creature, he had absolutely no desire to see what the desert would throw at him once the sun had set. It broke his heart to do it, but he climbed up onto Epona's back. She gave a weak whiney, and stirred in protest.
"…sorry…" he had lost count of how many apologies he had been giving the poor animal since entering the desert. But going on foot would surely have meant getting caught in the unforgiving desert at night, with Goddesses know what other un-worldly creatures slinking around in the darkness. Link pressed his heels to Epona's sides, having to spur her more than once to get her moving. The horse obeyed, galloping over the soft sands as quickly as she could bear to go.
Link reached the fringe of the desert just as the sun became hidden below the horizon, leaving behind it a ribbon of scarlet that bordered the deep blue of oncoming night. Just out of the corner of his eye, he thought he caught something moving. And he could have sworn that there was an eerily soft laughter at his ear. A shiver of fear shot up his spine.
Apologizing to Epona again, he kicked and hurried away from the haunting feeling that seemed to settle over the sand dunes.
…...
Castle Town slowly but surely began to regain itself. The Royal Knights had no idea who had dispatched the awful lizard that had been skulking within the Holy Sanctuary, but they were not about to take the situation for granted. With it defeated, a handful of the invasive moblins had retreated. Those remaining were swiftly and mercilessly dealt with. The Knights were again gaining a foothold in their city, repairing what little they could and driving out any further intruding beasts.
The night had just begun to fall over the once more peaceful city as a figure dressed in long white robes strode passed the imposing front gates. For the most part, the Royal Knights were too preoccupied with their individual tasks restoring the city to take real notice of him. The robed figure walked carefully around bricks and concrete that still very much littered the streets.
A high ranking knight looked up as he passed, and recognized the man, "High Priest Agahnim?"
Agahnim stopped, turning to the man with an air or feigned indifference. The knight gave a low bow and, in false benevolence, Agahnim waved it away, motioning for the other man to straighten himself. Though in reality, all of these filthy peons would be bowing before his greatness once Master Ganondorf had taken over.
"High Priest, it's a pleasure to see you again, that's for certain, but the city is not yet safe. Structures fall on a nearly daily basis."
"Yes." Agahnim stared out from behind his veil, "That much is clear. But we have retaken the city, have we not?"
"We have, sir. With the death of that monstrous dodongo we were able to."
Agahnim faked surprise. Of course, he had already heard about the fate of one of his master's favorite pets, "Oh? And…do we know who in particular killed the beast?"
The Knight shook his head, "No sir. But if you do find out, sir, please let me know. I'd like to buy the guy a drink."
The priest suppressed a grunt. Finding out who had done it would have supplied him with a wonderful little treat for his master, and a target for the murderous Gerudo to take his rage out upon. "Well, excellent then. It is comforting to receive such good news during such trying times. "
Smiling, the knight nodded. He stooped to clear some rubble, thinking the conversation had ended.
"And what of his majesty?"
"Oh." the knight straightened back up, clapping dust from his hands, "The King only returned to the castle today. He's…physically well. But he's sick to death over the princess."
Agahnim was very grateful for the veil that ever concealed his face; a slight smirk had made its way onto his lips, "Ah, yes. That is to be expected. Tragic, really."
"Do you think the princess is alright, sir?"
"That remains uncertain." he gave a solemn nod, fixing the mask of a loyal priest firmly into place, "I would not be overly surprised to find the opposite true, though."
"…yes. I can see that happening…" the knight fell into a somber silence.
Such care and concern for their princess. It was sickening. Why would any man ever place such loyalty in such a disgustingly weak woman as Princess Zelda? Or any member of the Royal Family for that matter? It was beyond Agahnim. Master Ganondorf was the one who commanded true loyalty- he was powerful, and ruthlessly strove for his goals. He was strong enough to take that which he desired and crush those who would stand in his way. That was the man that Agahnim would follow. The man that seemed certain to attain absolute power. Then all of these pathetic fools would be made to bend to his, and his loyal spy Agahnim's, every whim. Agahnim kept his smile in check as he furthered his interrogation, "Speaking of the princess."
"Sir?"
"What have you heard, noble knight? Are there yet plans to seek her out and rescue her?" Agahnim spoke, the words and the false concern burning his throat like bile.
The knight again shook his head, "No, sir. None. We aren't even sure where that villain took her. We are still having a hard time getting things together here."
"I see." years of practice made it effortless for Agahnim to pretend as if he were concerned over the welfare of an unsightly girl that he had grown to despise.
The knight continued, "I had heard that Miss Impa went after her right away. But we haven't heard from her for several days, since the incident. Everyone is assuming she's been killed."
"…oh?" He had to mask the pleasure in his voice. So that meddling nursemaid had finally died, huh? That was excellent. That damned Sheikah woman had kept a wary eye on him since his employ at the castle, and she proved to be immoveable when it came to casting a blind eye at less than reputable actions. Her and that brat princess. Neither of them had fallen fully for his façade, though countless knights, guards, and even the king himself had. With them out of the way, the priest was free to dig his claws deeper into the monarchy. Master Ganondorf would surely be pleased to hear of this. For once, Agahnim would be able to deliver completely good news. He had to struggle to keep his sneer down or risk revealing himself, "A shame. Miss Impa was a truly superb guardian. She will be missed."
"Yes." the knight bowed his head in respect to the dead.
Agahnim nearly snorted. "Mm. Well, his Highness is back at the castle, you say?"
"Yes, sir, High Priest Agahnim. I cannot tell you where though. Last I saw, he was leaving his throne to retire for a while. As I said, the loss of the princess is weighing heavily on him."
The priest nodded, "Yes, thank you. I believe I will see to the King. Perhaps I can offer some comfort in these trying times." Yes, comfort. Comfort and a few well-placed suggestions that would keep him from doing anything that might interfere with Master Ganondorf's plans.
The knight rose a hand to salute and Agahnim bowed. He left the man to clean up garbage; a fitting job for a lowly royal knight.
It was exactly as Master Ganondorf had predicted. Their ambitions had not been halted, only delayed. The king would certainly be a mess with his daughter still missing- a situation that Agahnim was planning to worsen by suggesting horrible ways in which she may have been slain, mostly to cloud the king's judgment with worry, but also for Agahnim's own personal twisted sense of pleasure - and without Impa around to grab control, that would leave one person capable of running the country now in its darkest hour.
The noble and wise High Priest of Hyrule, Agahnim.
