Chapter 9 – Into the Woods
The forest proved singularly peaceful on that fresh Hyrulean morning. Brightly colored birds darted through the vast, leafy canopy that shaded the needle-covered earth, providing mirthful chirps for the lush woodland's soundtrack. Little foxes scampered through the dewy underbrush as squirrels foraged for nuts among the brambles. A long, winding stream flowed through the dense maze of trees, its melodious song echoing through the forest as it mingled with laughing waterfalls and placid pools. A gentle breeze whispered to the lofty trees, its soft voice rousing the stiff branches from their slumber. This hidden nook of the world remained unmolested by the darkness emanating from Ganondorf's tower, its tranquility standing in stark contrast with Hyrule's turbulence.
Not every creature that moved within the verdant forest, however, embraced its peace. Nature's melodious soundtrack was interrupted when among the chirps and babbles an aggravated whine was heard. Its high pitch, an unmistakable characteristic of fairies, reverberated through the trees as it increased in volume and irritation. Curious squirrels clustered behind a large oak to observe a strange wayfarer trekking through the woods, a blue blur circling about him.
"Link! Why won't you speak?" Navi moaned, beating her wings rapidly in Link's face. In response the green-clad hero simply continued his trudge without flinching, his solemn expression unwavering. Releasing another long groan, the vexed fairy alighted on his shoulder and took hold of his ear. "Stop ignoring me, you stubborn octorok!" she fumed loudly, pinching his ear with all her strength.
The great effort that Navi put into the assault produced nothing but an irritating sting, eliciting a slight groan from Link as he waved her away. Once his pesky companion was out of his face, his eyes returned to the scenery before him, his gaze wholly fixated on the seldom used path he was following. The light streaming through the canopy of leaves fell freckled upon his face, highlighting the dogged determination on his features.
After hovering around Link's head for a few seconds to quell her exasperation, the fairy stopped before his face with a scowl. "I've been asking you for hours to talk and I'm not about to give up!" Navi announced stubbornly, placing her tiny hands on her hips. "I'm going to keep on nagging you until you tell me what's wrong, because that's what I'm here for!" Although she tried to remain firmly planted before Link's face, his unceasing stride forced her to dart out of the way.
Despite Navi's genuine concern for her partner, Link persisted in refusing her pleas. While no longer in torment, the hero's heart was still wounded, necessitating his silence lest he fall back into debilitating sulking. His conversation with Malon had been adequate enough in unburdening his mind, and now he simply wished to suppress any more hurt and continue with his quest. He knew that the moment he began answering Navi, regardless of how cryptic he tried to be, his feelings would eventually start pouring out from his heart and he would be left sullen and useless to Hyrule. Thus the topic must not be broached. "It's nothing," he muttered through set teeth, brushing past a blackberry bush as it extended its long, thorny fingers to caress him.
Navi's next groan was perhaps the most impressive of all the frustrated noises she had produced that morning, for it started very low in her throat but quickly escalated to a shrill, high squeak. "Come on, I know something is bothering you! Sure you're usually quiet, but not this quiet!" she exclaimed after narrowly avoiding a face-first collision with a tree branch. Link did not deign to offer her any more words, more interested in crossing a shallow creek by hopping across some rocks, intent on keeping his boots clean. Seeing that the boy was not about to loosen his lips, the fairy's wings began to droop as her irritated energy withered. "Ugh, I wish Sheik was here, she always knew how to make you talk…" she mumbled.
Despite Link's tremendous efforts to remain completely quest-oriented, Navi's sentiments resonated with his true longing, causing his dedication to momentarily waver and his eyes to flash with sorrow. While he quickly recovered with a solemn scowl, his sudden weakness did not go unnoticed by the perceptive fairy.
"Hey, is that why you're so upset?" she asked, hopeful to have discovered the problem. "Because Sheik's not here?"
While the hero again made no response, his pointed manner in refusing to speak was evident in the contortion of his face, the tension in his shoulders, and the quickening of his pace. His hastened footsteps caused him to miss the last rock in the creak, his left boot slipping into the muddy water. Navi had definitely struck a nerve.
"Aha! So that's why!" the fairy exclaimed triumphantly, caring little that Link's frown continued to grow. Flying closer to the Hylian, Navi began to request more detail in a less than compassionate tone. "What happened, did you two get into an argument?" she asked, eager for elucidation. When the obstinate hero denied her the facts she sought, she noticed his conflicted expression and groaned. "Link, how many times have I told you not to be an idiot?" she chided as Link rubbed his muddy boot on a carpet of moss.
Link released a vexed sigh, frustrated that after only two hours Navi was able to guess the source of his turmoil. If he were to whet her appetite with information, however, his current irritation would certainly turn into a biting pain, hurling him back into despair. "Navi…" he groaned, a hidden plea in his voice.
"Oh come on!" Navi exclaimed, believing Link to be overreacting. "Whatever you two fought about can't be that bad. Just apologize and everything will be fine!"
Link's resolve morphed into a downcast expression, wishing that Navi's statement held truth. He desired nothing less than to reopen the wounds that had been so recently inflicted upon him. "Please just drop it…" he requested softly, his brow crestfallen and his eyes melancholy.
Perhaps Navi did not sense the sorrow in the hero's voice, or perhaps she cared more about satisfying her curiosity than sparing Link heartache; but whatever the reason, she remained obstinate in her endeavor. "I will not!" she declared. "Now come on, what did you two fight about? Did she beat you sparring again?" Her voice rung with a hint of humor at the suggestion.
As Navi continued to speculate about their source of conflict, Link paused in the middle of the path to catch his breath. The fairy's words began to fade into the background as he suddenly became distracted by a faint rustling in the underbrush. While originally concluding that it was produced by a forest creature, a quick scan of the area offered no signs of animal activity. Link considered this quite odd, for he could not recall a moment in his journey when critters had not scampered about in the corner of his eye or birds had not sung merrily above him. As he scanned the trees and bushes to no avail, the rustling noise was repeated. He could not determine its origin, however, for it was quickly eclipsed by Navi's prying questions. "Wait, did you hear that? Shh!" he whispered, straining his ears.
Navi, hearing nothing over her effusive voice, believed that Link was simply avoiding her questions. "Hey, you can't just shush me!" she exclaimed, flapping her wings rapidly in irritation. "I'm trying to help you but you're being impossible!"
While Link was nearly certain that the rustling noise was increasing in volume, his rebellious fairy rendered it impossible for him to discern its location. Something about the situation greatly concerned him, filling him with alarm at Navi's loud, oblivious blathering. Vexation overtook him as he reached for his hovering fairy. "Goddesses, Navi, just shut – "
Before he could utter another word, the Hero of Time found himself hurled backwards by a sudden force and bound to a tree with a pair of bolas. Before his mind could even process the shocking occurrence, his first instinct told him to remove himself from the vulnerable position. As he struggled violently for his freedom, the thick abrasive ropes began to chafe his bare skin. With his arms pinned tightly to his side, however, escape would be no easy task. While Navi was quite startled by her companion's sudden captivity, she soon overcame her paralysis and flew to Link's side. Although she tried valiantly to break his bonds with her tiny hands, she simply did not possess the strength to untie him.
The more Link thrashed, the more the ropes constricted him, tightening around his body until any movement caused intense discomfort. Still the hero persisted, fighting through the pain until his arduous efforts required him to pause for air, his breath labored as his chest heaved beneath the unyielding ropes. It was at that moment, with weary limbs, raw wrists, rising panic, and blood pounding in his ears, that the hero beheld his captors.
Out from the thorny bushes a band of monsters emerged, appearing from all directions and surrounding the imprisoned hero. Frightened by the plethora of vile monsters, Navi hastily ducked into Link's hat for protection. Craning his neck, Link was able to distinguish two Moblins, two Lizalfos, and three Wolfos slinking towards him, all eyes glowing with malice. Then through a gnarled blackberry bush strode the leader of the ambush, brushing past the long thorns without a thought, for he had no skin to puncture. A tall, gangly Stalfos stood proudly before Link, rotting teeth forming a menacing smile that was complimented by a pair of ominous red eyes.
"So this is the Hero of Time," the Stalfos marveled with amusement. His voice was much deeper and more eloquent than most Stalfos Link had encountered, causing the Hylian to study him curiously. As the villain sauntered closer, Link noted that his scanty armor was composed of much finer metals than other Stalfos; this creature was undoubtedly a favored servant of Ganondorf. "I must confess I am quite disappointed," the Stalfos commented, his grin widening. "From everyone's description, I was expecting a much stronger, nobler man. Why, you're just a scrawny boy!" Stopping directly in front of the trapped Hylian, the monster paused to scrutinize his appearance.
With chest still heaving with shallow breaths, Link glared at his captor venomously, for that was the only rebellion of which his fatigued body was currently capable. "Who are you?" he asked brusquely.
Straightening his bony spine, the Stalfos held his head with an air of great importance. "But of course, where are my manners?" he said genteelly. "In all this exhilaration I have not yet introduced myself. But surely you have heard of me! I am Stallord." As his fleshless face contorted into a conceited grin and his naked ribcage expanded, he continued to advance with a haughty stride.
As his chafed hands began to burn from fruitlessly picking at the rope, an idea formed in Link's mind. A possible escape plan existed, but it required time and subtlety, obliging the hero to keep the contemptible creature occupied. He wasn't certain what the Stalfos had planned for him, but it certainly needed to be delayed as long as possible, for it was clear that the other monsters would not act until commanded by their leader. "Who?" he asked dully, blinking his eyes in disinterest.
The arrogant grin on Stallord's hallow face momentarily faded, shock overcoming his features. With all that he had accomplished for his great master, he could not believe that this inferior creature bore no knowledge of him. "Stallord!" he repeated, his voice rife with disappointment and annoyance. "Legendary cutthroat, loyal subject of King Ganondorf, favored captain of His Evilness' army, responsible for the Ranu Village massacre." He looked expectantly at his captive, hoping to have jogged his memory.
"Ranu Village?" Link inquired curiously. After taking a moment to ponder, he concluded, "Never heard of it."
"Precisely," Stallord responded, his lipless mouth curving into a wicked grin. All vexation was dispelled as he paused for a moment to recall his glory days, remembering every delicious slaughter in vivid detail. Link returned the Stalfos' vile satisfaction with a vicious glare, his disgust at Stallord's deeds quite evident. The hero's righteous indignation only served to amuse the fiend, eliciting a guttural chuckle. "It's so good to have finally caught up with you, O Hero of Time," he said caustically. He then continued to approach the bound Hylian, branches crackling under his feet as his bony limbs creaked.
While Link greatly desired to end the murder's miserable life, his escape plan required more time. Thus he invented more ways to stall Stallord. "Hyrule is vast – how did you and your brainless army manage to find me?" he asked boldly, meeting the Stalfos' eerie red orbs undauntedly. A number of the "brainless" Wolfos appeared to possess some cognitive abilities, for they resented Link's remark with low growls.
Stallord paused his stride with a satisfied smirk. "Oh, it was actually quite simple, Mr. Hero," he began nonchalantly. "Buying the Kakariko merchant's allegiance was easy enough, and he informed us of how your Sheikah dog" – here Link furrowed his brow – "instructed you to travel through the forest. And after that we could have found you blindfolded in the dark thanks to your fairy. She really does love to run her mouth." He threw an amused glance to his troops, who by this time had finished their sluggish advance into their positions. They now stood in a complete circle around Link's tree, awaiting their master's commands with bloodthirsty eyes.
The Hero of Time eyed the monsters with little concern, having defeated many similar beats in the past. "Yeah, but you get used to it," he responded with a shrug. While Navi's loud pestering had been irritating, he chose not to blame her for the ambush, seeing no point in dwelling on the subject. All that mattered now was escaping with his and Navi's lives, and the fairy's current location under his hat rendered that task slightly less complicated.
Placing his hands on his hipbones, Stallord began to eye Link as a ravenous beast eyes its dinner. "King Ganondorf will be exceptionally pleased when I return with your severed head," he stated, horrible excitement coloring his voice as he undoubtedly envisioned the scene. Holding his head with immense arrogance, he brushed his ribs with his phalanges. "I daresay I may even be promoted." Pride oozed from every cavity in his skeleton.
As Link's glare remained fixed on the conceited Stalfos captain, he discreetly finished the first phase of his plan. The strategy could not be completed, however, until Stallord was standing close enough to strike. The skeletal creature was currently paused in a moment of self-adoration, requiring Link to lure him closer; and that self-adoration would prove quite useful in accomplishing the task. "I wouldn't bet on it," the hero scoffed. "I doubt he sees you as different from any other Stalfos slave."
Stallord's blood red eyes immediately turned on his prisoner, glowing viciously as he gritted his grimy teeth. His previous genteel composure was completely derailed by the hero's offense. "Slave?" he exclaimed indignantly. "No, you scum, I am a valued and indispensable servant of King Ganondorf!" While his posture became more defensive, he remained in his same position a few yards from the tree.
"Ganondorf values nothing but his own precious power and would willingly sacrifice you and everyone else for it!" Link retorted confidently, enjoying the Stalfos' agitation. "You are nothing but a pawn to him, and I'm sure he'll be happy to discard your worthless bones when he's grown tired of you, you arrogant bonehead!"
If Stallord had possessed any skin on his bones, it would have undoubtedly turned crimson in his rage. "That's enough, Hylian vermin!" he snarled, beginning to rapidly advance. "How dare you speak to a servant of the King in such a brazen manner?"
Link raised his head defiantly as Stallord continued to approach like a charging moblin. "But I'm not speaking to a servant of the king because Ganondorf will never be king!" he retorted boldly, feeling a warm satisfaction pervade his body. That had been his battle cry since the moment he woke in the Temple of Time, and it felt very fulfilling to declare it to one of the Evil King's servants.
Link's denunciation of Ganondorf proved highly sufficient in coaxing the Stalfos captain closer, rubbing salt on his already aggravated wounds. In a flash the cold, lifeless orbs were face to face with the hero's blue eyes, and the putrid stench of decay filled the Hylian's lungs. "Insolent boy!" he hissed vehemently, spitting in Link's face. "You will regret speaking about your king in such an impudent manner!"
Harsh bony knuckles collided with the hero's fresh skin, delivering a powerful blow that jarred Link's senses. Blood dripped from his mouth and trickled down his chin, his bottom lip split open by the skeleton's rigid joints. Ignoring the dark blotches that clouded his vision, the hero utilized his captor's proximity and immediately enacted the final phase of his plan. In the palm of his hand was Din's Fire, a small flame carefully nurtured and concealed while Stallord had droned. In a blur of green and orange he burned through the ropes, freed himself from their remains, and struck the Stalfos' skull with every ounce of his strength. As Stallord's self-absorbed head fell to the needle-covered ground, Link's bleeding lips curved into a triumphant smile. "I have no king! Princess Zelda is the only true ruler of Hyrule," he declared, drawing his sword. Hearing his victory, Navi instantly immerged from her hair-covered refuge to aid Link in the rest of the battle.
The liberated hero was in the process of turning towards the other monsters when a rattling noise claimed his attention. Before his startled eyes Stallord was reassembling himself, the decapitated skull floating in the air before resting between its master's shoulders. It then celebrated its complete reattachment with a wicked, vengeful grin.
"Crap, I forgot they did that!" Link exclaimed, slapping his forehead. It appeared that defeating the egotistical abomination would require much more effort on the hero's part. Bracing himself for combat, he tightened the grip on his sword and reached for the shield on his back. Sweat-drenched cloth was all that met his seeking hand; no shield could be found. A rush of panic flooded his veins, heating his cheeks and hurling his stomach downward. "Oh gods, my shield!" he cried as he frantically searched his body. When he failed to locate the shield on any part of his person, he concluded in great dismay, "I must have forgotten it in Kakariko!"
Alarm flooded Navi's mind as she realized how Link's ill-timed stupidity could render their situation dire. With frenzied flapping she began to circle around her companion. "Link, you idiot!" she screamed. "How could you just forget your shield? What's a hero without his shield?"
Navi could barely finish her scolding before she and Link were forced to dodge any incoming attack. Stallord released a delighted cackle at the hero's misfortune, appreciating how the blunder simplified his job. Narrowly escaping the sting of his cold, crooked blade, Link swung the Master Sword fiercely at the monster. A metallic clang echoed through the woods as his attack was deflected by the Stalfos' sturdy iron shield. "I'm sorry, I must have been distracted!" Link responded to Navi, parrying a series of strikes with his sword. As sweat formed on his brow, the Hylian became so absorbed in the heat of battle that he allowed a thought to escape before he could properly contain it. "If Sheik hadn't broken my heart…" Gritting his teeth, he narrowly blocked a blow to the face.
"What do you mean?" Navi asked, gawking in confusion. "How could she break your heart?"
As Link aimed another strike at the Stalfos' spine, an acute pain suddenly assaulted his left calf. Releasing a startled yelp, the hero whipped around to find the strong, ruthless jaw of a Wolfos attached firmly to his leg, drawing streams of blood with every agonizing bite. Urgently Link thrust his sword into the beast's back, quickly ending its life and breaking its hold of his leg. Instantly after his mangled leg was jerked free, the hero had to tumble to the side to avoid Stallord's pointed jab. As he hastily scrambled up from the ground, his throbbing leg brushing against a pinecone with an excruciating scrape, Link's efforts were so focused on fighting through the increasing agony that he couldn't prevent his next words from escaping his lips. "I love her, Navi!" he declared with a grunt, wincing as he stood upright and put pressure on his mangled limb.
Navi did not receive the proper time to experience shock, ask Link to repeat himself, and convince him he deserved better because her planned words were stolen upon sighting a Lizalfos behind Link. "Link, watch out!" she squealed, frantically buzzing around the monster to warn her companion.
Whirling around with his sword raised, Link found himself looking cross-eyed at the clash of deadly steel, having narrowly countered a strike to the face. Immediately he exploited his opponent's opening by executing a roundhouse slash, slicing completely through the Lizalfos' legs. With an agonizing shriek the Lizalfos sank to the ground, feeling its life begin to drain. While the hero turned back to Stallord, however, the expiring creature used its final breath to deliver a scorching huff of fire. As the heat of the conflagration seared Link's right arm, the hero instantly jumped away, hastily patting the flames from his tunic. While his arm began to blaze with pain, he had no time to give his burnt arm another thought, for Stallord was suddenly before him.
"Why don't you just make this easier on all of us and give up?" taunted Stallord, grinning with vile self-confidence. Slashing at Link with his jagged blade, he longed to see his sword dripping with Link's blood. Link leaned backwards, however, receiving from the powerful swipe only a small cut under his eye. But Stallord was undeterred by the Hylian's adroit dodge and continued to deliver a series of rapid blows. "You seriously can't be so foolish as to think you will survive," he laughed as Link hastily parried his attacks, releasing grunts that betrayed his exhaustion. "Taking on my entire army would be utterly reckless!"
As sweat beads started dripping down his forehead to intermingle with his blood, fatigue began to invade Link's body. Having acquired no sleep or food during the past twenty-four hours, and still nurturing burn wounds from his previous fight, the hero suddenly realized how strenuous the battle was proving. He had suffered through far worse, however, and his rushing adrenaline was doing a fine job in promoting his stamina. "That wouldn't be the first time I've done something reckless," Link responded, feeling warmth pervade him as he recalled Sheik's scolding. For some unknown reason, while captivated in battle, thoughts of Sheik did not wound him. Perhaps his preoccupation with a greater cause effectively aided in banishing any thoughts of self-pity.
Blocking another jab with his sword, Link proved quite dexterous even without his shield. While he aimed at Stallord's head, the Hylian suddenly changed directions and sliced off the skeleton's exposed arm, performing a feint that successfully confused the Stalfos and rendered him vulnerable. Before the skeletal creature could again raise his impenetrable shield, Link executed a quick spinning slash, releasing a battle cry as he effectively separated Stallord from his lower half. "And what army?" the hero responded triumphantly, casting a glance at the other monsters. "Looks like they're just over there chasing butterflies."
With his twitching arm and two body halves lying in the pine needles, Stallord craned his neck to observe his living troops standing uselessly on the sidelines. "Ugh, you buffoons!" he bellowed in rage, his upper body irately shaking. "Attack him!"
While Stallord worked on reassembling his bony body again, the other creatures obeyed their master and finally entered the fray. Two growling Wolfos, a hissing Lizalfos, and two huge, burly moblins approached the hero, weapons and fangs poised to kill. Slowing backing up with both hands raised, and holding the Master Sword diagonally in front his body, Link cautiously waited for the monsters to make their move. While his hearing occasionally turned to the sound of rattling bones behind him to monitor Stallord's current state, his eyes were fixated completely on the monsters, unnerving the fierce but relatively brainless beings.
The whole forest seemed to fall silent as they stood at a standstill on the blood-covered path, each side waiting for the other to attack. Even Stallord paused his hasty reassembly to watch, breath bated as he hoped that his troops would prove useful. Under Link's piercing glare he perceived the monsters' every fidget, from a Wolfos' twitching ear to the Lizalfos' rapidly blinking eyes. He could discern from their stances that his keen concentration was rendering them quite disconcerted, but he refused to move until one of them first attacked.
As the faint cry of a bird sounded in the distance, the trance was finally broken. Agitated by the sudden noise, the Lizalfos leaped wildly at the hero, releasing a piercing shriek as it flew through the air. Anticipating the moves typical to its species, Link made a quick somersault around its approximate landing space, delivering a poignant slash to its tail as it hit the ground. After a few more hits the tail was sliced off, earning a pained shriek from the poor, ill-prepared Lizalfos.
Even without his tail, however, the Lizalfos proved a more unyielding foe than his dead compatriot. Instantly it whipped around swung its sword violently at Link, delivering fierce attacks that demanded a rapidly moving Master Sword to block. As the hero focused his energy on deflecting the reptilian monster's frenzied assault, he was pushed back into the claws of a Wolfos. Standing up on its hind legs, the Wolfos began to slash his back with razor-sharp claws, shredding the tunic and leaving long, bloody gashes on Link's skin.
A cry of pain caught in Link's throat as he attempted the arduous multitasking of warding off the Lizalfos' spastic attacks and escaping from the Wolfos' vicious claws. He could feel the warm, wet sensation of blood trickling down his raw back, his marred flesh burning as it begged for relief. While the Lizalfos' continuous thrusts and slashes kept his sword occupied, the hero was able to elbow the rabid Wolfos in the gut, causing it to lose its balance and topple over. The dogged beast did not stay grounded for long, however, lunging forward again at the Hero of Time. Link, sensing that it had leapt toward him, instinctively ducked to the ground. As a result the savage creature soared directly over his head, and the blood-soaked claws that were meant for him collided with the Lizalfos instead. The Wolfos, so consumed by ferocity and bloodlust, did not immediately realize that it was not devouring Link, only recognizing its mistake after it brutally ripped the Lizalfos to shreds.
While the Wolfos was still finishing off its unfortunate prey, Link threw a quick glance to the Stalfos captain. Stallord still lay in pieces on the ground, but he had successfully reattached his missing arm. It would not be long before the arrogant monster could reenter the battle, rendering the remaining seconds precious and few. Link, finding himself in a rare moment of respite, started towards the vulnerable skeleton with every intent to end him. Leaping over a number of enemy corpses, he was a few feet from Stallord when a sudden force hurled him backwards.
Releasing a startled shout, the Hero of Time crashed to the ground with a loud thud, his body contorted in a most uncomfortable position. A moblin had rammed its massive body into him, rendering him completely winded as he lay on the forest floor. Sharp pine needles drove into the lacerations on his back, irritating his scorching flesh and intensifying the pain. His chest heaved with shallow breaths, every inhalation agonizing as the needles lodged deeper into his back. The Master Sword lay only a few inches from Link's grasp, but as he attempted to reach for it, his aching, exhausted body would not respond. Still his fingers strained to grab it as he gritted his teeth and hissed through the pain. His entire body was burning and damp, for the places not caked with blood were drenched with sweat.
A long, dark shadow suddenly fell over Link. Raising his eyes from the unobtainable sword, he beheld a hideous wart-covered moblin face blocking the sun. Beneath the face was a massive, powerful body poised to kill, pointing its razor-sharp spear at the hero. As Link struggled to dispel panicky thoughts of his dire situation, he scrambled desperately to reach his sword, trying with great effort to twist his unresponsive body and wincing as pain shot through every vein. Even as his battered body begged for respite, his determination would not relent, fighting with every ounce of strength for his sword. As his blood-covered fingers inched closer and closer with every agonizing grunt, the moblin smiled a despicable, toothy grin at its prey's vulnerability. With a dark, throaty chuckle the monster pulled the spear back, preparing to thrust. Link's eyes shut tightly as he strained arduously to reach his sword.
A tremendous force struck the hero's body, eliciting a strangled shout. The blow was not sharp and excruciating like Link expected, however, but rather heavy and staggering. Opening his eyes, the hero was not met with the sight of a gory spear in his gut, but a much more surprising picture. The moblin lay motionless upon him, a small dagger protruding from its neck.
It was with great confusion that Link reached out to touch the dagger. The glint of its steel, the curve of its blade, its indigo hilt – something about it seemed oddly familiar to the Hylian, as if he had once felt its cold steel against his throat. Yes, he definitely remembered that dagger. A mix of emotions bubbled within him, an exhilarating and nauseating combination of excitement, anxiety, hope, and fear. All bodily injury was momentarily forgotten as his mind buzzed with a flurry of thoughts. Did he dare to hope? It surely could not be possible! It was almost certainly another cruel trick of the goddesses, aiming to stifle his spirit! He could not succumb to such futile wishful thinking when his life still hung in the balance and so much depended upon his survival. It was simply impossible that this notion could be legitimate!
Yet what was that strange sound: that crunch of leaves and pine needles, those Wolfos growls, that shuffling, those grunts? Was it just Link's imagination, an echo of the blood that pounded in his ears? But what about the sight he beheld when he looked past the moblin on top of him? The angry snarling Wolfos, clawing ferociously at their assailant; the figure in the midst of them, dodging their attacks with agile movements of her lithe body, slashing with daggers and piercing with needles; the golden curtain of hair that concealed one crimson eye and revealed the other; the long braid that had been jostled loose from her bedraggled turban during combat; the close-fitting garments and plethora of bandages, their blue, grey, and white hues now sullied with blood and dirt; the very familiar shield strapped to her back; the impassioned grunts that emanated from the mouth behind her veil – were all these vivid details just the makings of an elaborate dream? Had Link, fatigued, injured, and losing considerable amounts of blood, strayed into a hallucination? No matter how improbable and impossible the situation was, the figure appeared simply too real to be a specter. Forgetting all hurt, dispelling all reservation, and abandoning all doubt, Link found himself instinctively calling out the name that was ever on his lips. "Sheik?"
As her nimble body continued to evade the savage claws, Sheik's gaze flickered to the Hylian, crimson and blue orbs uniting at last. While Link's eyes radiated the purest joy at finally beholding the love whose absence had made the past hours feel eternal, Sheik's eyes flashed with a mixture of sorrow and guilt before returning to her opponents. "I am sorry about the moblin, hero," she stated, her voice considerably placid as she viciously stabbed a Wolfos. "I shall remove him from you momentarily."
Watching the adroit movements of his beloved shadow warrior, Link's heart palpitated rapidly as a smile graced his bloodstained lips. Forgetting the burning of his arm, the stinging of his leg, the throbbing of his back, the soreness of his muscles, and disregarding all hectic signs of battle, a peculiar blanket of tranquility washed over him, rendering the hero completely at peace. All pain, physical and emotional, had been abated by the sight of his shadow lover. He knew not what the circumstances with Sheik were, nor what they would be, but at the present moment he did not give a care. He was simply grateful to be in her midst, beholding the woman he had considered lost to him. Perhaps he would not only get a glimpse of her in his dreams and when learning warp songs; perhaps she would travel and fight by his side, proving unbeatable against Ganondorf's minions; perhaps she did truly love him and would declare so unabashedly – perhaps he was getting ahead of himself. But Link, reunited with his elusive, shadowy, and considerably adorable other half, had not a care in the world. Not one happy thought was wasted on the prospect of freeing himself from underneath the moblin to finish Stallord, for the Stalfos captain was the furthest thing from the amorous hero's mind. As the smile spread wider across his face, he decided to engage Sheik with a casual question. "So what are you doing here?" he asked, drumming his fingers against gory moblin flesh.
As Sheik delivered the final blow to one of the Wolfos, the spray of blood bespattering her tabard, she responded, "I don't believe that now is an ideal time to converse." Releasing a grunt, she plunged her dagger deep into the remaining monster's hide.
As Link considered with some disappointment how large and distant her choice of words was, his state of quietude was suddenly shattered. His blue eyes, so serene and affectionate, instantly grew wide with terror as he beheld the creature behind Sheik. Towards the Sheikah the other moblin had lumbered, and now it stood with its spear poised to throw. Panic cascaded through his veins, shredding the blanket of quietude and pumping his body with the burning heat of desperation. He knew that in a second Sheik could be struck with a fatal blow, and even her expert agility could not help her escape when thus engaged with the Wolfos. Immediate action was required to save Sheik's life.
Finding that the collision with the moblin corpse had jostled his body slightly, Link was finally able to reach the Master Sword. Without a moment of hesitation the hero grabbed the weapon and hurled it towards the moblin, yelling Sheik's name as both a warning and a prayer. The Master Sword spun through the air, reflecting the diffused sunlight off a single glistening patch on its blood-drenched blade. Blood splattered from its steel in all directions, its flight appearing in slow motion to Link's anxious eyes. Perhaps it was the hands of the goddesses that directed it, or perhaps the Master Sword was its own guide, but in some fortunate way the blade managed to reach its target with impeccable timing. The moblin released a gut-wrenching howl as the sword penetrated its skull, the spear slipping from its grasp as it crumbled to the ground.
While the whole ordeal seemed quite lengthy to Link, it had, in all actuality, occurred in a matter of fleeting seconds, allowing Sheik's honed senses little time to react. As the Wolfos gnawed on the blade of her dagger, she whipped around to find a moblin whose spear was pointed directly at her, falling dead to the ground as an airborne blade pierced his skull. The Sheikah warrior flitted her gaze to Link in astonishment, her chest heaving with labored breaths as her heart pounded rapidly. She was allotted no time to thank her hero, however, for a terrible sight immediately met her eyes.
Link, releasing his bated breath at the monster's demise, felt relief again flood his body. Turning his head towards Sheik, confusion overcame him when he saw that instead of offering him a cryptic but grateful glance, her eyes were besieged with terror. All was made perfectly and horribly clear, however, when he turned his head back to behold the malevolent, bone-chilling grin of Stallord emerging from behind the moblin corpse.
And then, before the hero could even blink, it happened. Without a single moment to process what his eyes had beheld, the hero was suddenly struck with an intense force that jolted his body. Link's eyes expanded in horror as Stallord's jagged blade ripped through his skin and plunged deep into his left shoulder, creating a gruesome, indescribable sound as a fountain of blood bubbled up. While his face blanched and his stomach churned, his baffled mind struggled fruitlessly to comprehend the situation. Then suddenly it assaulted him; a terrible, excruciating pain pierced through the blanket of shock, fire shooting through his veins as he felt the cold, metal blade penetrate his flesh, twisting to increase the agony. His entire body burned as if engulfed in flames as blood flowed from the wound, coating himself and the ground in a gruesome red.
As acute agony overwhelmed his faculties, Link's senses were extremely compromised, his suffering body unable to properly function under such torment. The hero could not even scream, his mouth falling open soundlessly as blood trickled out. The sharp, biting sting of the sword lodged in his shoulder elicited a stream of tears from his eyes as he prayed for relief. The edges of his vision began to darken and feather while expanding blotches danced before his eyes. Colors dimmed and blurred together, the world falling into ethereal shadows. Over the waterfall of blood that rushed through his ears, Link could faintly fear an echo of Sheik screaming his name in horror. Another higher pitched sound resounded, and through the thickening fog he could distinguish a blue blur darting towards him.
Two ghastly red orbs glowed in the increasing blackness as the echo of a venomous cackle reached Link's ears. While his assailant's eyes shone with contemptible pleasure, the hero did not possess enough strength to retaliate with even a glare. As his mind started spinning the image of streaming blood, he could no longer bear the sight and turned his head away, resting his chin on his right shoulder. Through the growing shadows he could see the blurry silhouette of his beloved Sheik as she viciously slayed the last Wolfos and bolted desperately towards him. Deep shouts and enraged cries reached his ears in faint whispers – perhaps Sheik and Stallord had engaged in battle, but it was impossible for Link to discern. He strained to distinguish Sheik's figure through the black mist, but his vision had now grown completely dark. As the whirling in his brain accelerated to incredible speeds, a sudden weightlessness enveloped his body. It was during this dizzy soaring sensation that an odd peace enshrouded him, banishing all agony and fear from the hero's mind. As all other sounds faded into oblivion, one last cry from Sheik resounded until a blinding white light burst before the Hero of Time's eyes.
