Chapter 8:

Link trudged through the sandy wasteland, his long, black shadow fading as the red sun died on the western horizon. He was ragged and exhausted, and the wind whipped him ever more violently with every league he progressed, almost as if the desert itself was testing his mettle. His throat was parched and his stomach begged for nourishment, and he was more confused than ever after his meeting with the sages. But he was steadfast in his determination to best the trial of the desert, and he pressed on.

As he struggled across the mesa, he pondered what he would find at the bottom of the crevice. One like the sages, but not like the sages. What could that mean? Was it possible for one of mortal flesh to live in such a place? And how would he find this person? The fissure was large, and split into multiple directions. Furthermore, he had no way of knowing how expansive the crevice would be at the bottom. And finally, he had no light source; his lantern was empty, and he had not found a chance to refill the oil ever since he had first departed from Hyrule Castle more than a week ago on the journey to the Eldin province. What an eternity it seemed since then!

I should have refilled the oil at the Arbiter's Grounds, he thought wearily. Curse my exhaustion. But it was too late to turn back now. He knew he was almost at his destination, and if he tried to cross the desert yet again, he may well collapse from the effort. He resolved to deal with each problem as they confronted him, and keep his mind at the task at hand. The princess, the Hylian Guard, the citizenry, all of Hyrule was counting on him.

Finally, as a new sun rose at the break of dawn, Link reached the great fissure which divided the land. He had purposely come to the junction point at which the three legs of the break in the land met. One ran east, one west, and one north. He glanced east and spied the peahat which floated in a circumference around the far eastern portion of the land which held nothing but an empty chest he had raided for rupees long ago. Would that I could solve all of Hyrule's problems with rupees, Link thought wryly. The kingdom would be at peace in mere hours. He dismissed the thought and gingerly stepped to the edge of the fissure, peering down. He saw nothing but a pitch dark void.

The next trial, Link thought. How to descend into the chasm without breaking my neck. He briefly considered donning his Spinner and simply flinging himself into the darkness, but he was not too keen on the idea. He debated whether he might find a large strip of cloth and build a makeshift parachute with his Double Clawshot, but there was certainly no material like that to be found for hundreds of leagues. He could try simply climbing down the cliff wall, but it was very dark in the split and the likelihood of making it all the way down while he was so exhausted was not great. The last option he considered was to try to Clawshot his way down, but that didn't seem much safer than climbing, and who knew if the sandy textures would hold?

He flopped down on his back, closed his eyes and sighed. He wanted very much to pull his tunic over his head and sleep for a good while, but he knew that wouldn't serve anyone. With the heat from the sun blasting him and his painfully empty stomach gnawing at his gut, he may not even wake up again. He forced his eyes open and tried to think, but his thoughts kept wandering. He watched the peahat float in circles around the eastern land division over and over and over, for what seemed like hours, until he lost count of how many circuits the creature made. His eyes were heavy and his bones ached. He sat up and slapped himself awake. I mustn't give up here! he thought angrily. Surely this isn't the end of my journey!

Yet there was still nothing to do but watch the peahat fly around lazily. South, over the land, west, over the chest, north, across the dune wall, east, over the chasm… over the chasm…

"Goddesses above, how foolish could I be?" Link said aloud.

He stood and produced a Clawshot from his pocket. He waited until the peahat swung back to the east, took careful aim, and let fly the claw. It struck its target and Link was yanked into the air. He swung lazily for a moment, and when the peahat crossed over the black abyss of the chasm, he switched on his Iron Boots and began the descent.

This is madness… he thought as the darkness enveloped him.

* * *

For the rest of his days, Link could not have said how long he floated aimlessly through the solid void that was the great fissure in the land. He heard nothing save the gentle whirring of the fan blades of the peahat, which was strangely soothing as he descended. He saw nothing. His world was the smooth, cold, steel handle of his Clawshot, to which he clung desperately. All told, it was a rather uneventful trip. He kept waiting for his feet to make contact with solid ground, but every time he figured he must be getting close to the surface and prepared his legs for landing, he was disappointed. Once, he glided gently into the rock wall and bumped his nose, which surprised him, but he pushed himself off again.

After what seemed an eternity of descent, Link began to surmise that perhaps the crevice was a magical crevice with no bottom, and he would simply float downward through pitch darkness until he was old and decrepit and then he would die and nothing would remain but his bones, still gripping the Clawshot, suspended in nothingness until the end of days. His shoulder began to ache and his fingers grew slippery. His eyes were heavy and he could feel himself nodding off. He was strangely comfortable with the notion of sleep in his present environment; it was silent and dark, and he was so very tired. The whirring of the peahat lullabied him and made him even drowsier. He kept finding his eyes closed, and once he was sure that he even did nod off, but he kept snapping his eyes back open and strengthening his grip.

On and on and on… he was so very tired…

I shall just rest my eyes for but a brief moment

He dreamt of old days… better days… days in a sleepy village nestled in a thick forest in the corner of the world, with friends and food and the bright, cheery sun greeting him as he opened his wooden door in the tree house every morning… he would open the door, shout a greeting to her and the children, and leap out into the day… leap out and fall…

He was falling.

The Clawshot was gone. The air rushed up to meet him as he dropped through the void. He yelped, fell for a few seconds, and then landed with a thud. He had fallen asleep and lost his grip right as he made it to the bottom.

He tried to stand and found his feet glued to the floor. For a moment he was confused, but then he began to regain his wits.

Right… the Iron Boots…

He switched them off and stood. He quickly grasped around in the darkness, hoping foolishly that he might be able to find the Clawshot attached to the peahat, but of course it was already rising back up to the world above, and with it went all his hopes of returning to the desert. Now his Double Clawshot was a Single Clawshot, and he had absolutely no way of scaling the crevice walls without a second Clawshot or the peahat. He sighed and resigned himself to his fate at the bottom of the crevice, whatever it may be.

Immediately, he began slowly walking around and feeling outward, trying to gain some bearings. Before long, however, he was interrupted by an unexpected event; two torches sprang to life and gave a radiant glow, illuminating his surroundings. Link was shocked, and covered his eyes; he had been in the dark so long now that the fire stung his eyes. Slowly, he adjusted and began to steal glances from between his fingers. He found that the two torches were on either side of the narrow path, hanging off of the cliff walls. There was an old, decorated carpet on the ground, leading away from the torches. He unsheathed the Ordon Sword and crept forward. As he stepped onto the carpeted area, two more torches sprang to life alongside him. He kept walking, and more torches ignited, always one on each side, forming a path down the walkway.

The torches and the carpeted area ended abruptly at a small altar. Beyond lay darkness, but Link had eyes only for the contents of the altar. On it he found a veritable feast; two tall jugs of ice cold water to drink and food that made his mouth water simply from the aroma. There was a large, golden roasted cucco, two baked salmon, a loaf of buttered bread, boiled potatoes, two ears of roasted corn, apples, dates, a wheel of cheese, and finally a bowl of cold pudding. All were laid out neatly on plates and bowls, with a full assortment of cutlery and a dining cloth.

For the briefest of moments, Link forgot himself and grabbed the roasted cucco, ready to take a giant bite from the wing. But before he could tear a portion off, his suspicions got the best of him and he set it back down. What in the name of the Goddesses was such a feast doing here, at the bottom of the world? It made no sense. There was no one here so far as he could tell, but this food was obviously fresh, and seemed prepared just for him. It was too queer.

Only after a moment of agonizing inner debate did he notice a small note pinned underneath the pudding bowl. He yanked it out and stepped back a bit to read by the light of the torches.

O' vassal of courage

Thrice thou art blessed

Receive our humble feast

And thou shall know rest

For a journey is naught

But a series of deeds

And thy journey concludes

When the Goldorm concedes

He let the note fall to the floor and pondered for a moment.

It seems this note was left just for me… perhaps a bit of mercy from the man who lives in the fissure. It seems I must prove myself in battle against a monster before I may see him. He glanced at the feast on the altar and practically drooled. So be it!

He went to work devouring the food. First he drained one of the tall jugs of water completely; it was ordinary, ice cold water, but he had never tasted anything half so sweet. When the jug was empty, he grabbed the cucco once more and hungrily devoured it. All told, by the time he was finished, most of the food was gone. A few choice morsels remained, ones which would keep their freshness the longest, which he wisely stuffed into his pockets for later use. Then he washed it all down with the second jug of water.

Afterwards, his stomach was bursting and he felt rejuvenated. He would have welcomed a few hours sleep, but now he was very excited to know that there was indeed a man in the fissure, a man who obviously knew that great and terrible things were happening, and who may be able to help. So he marched forward beyond the altar and waited. As expected, a new row of torches burst to life and revealed a new path. Onward he went, with his path illuminating magically for many dozens of feet.

Eventually, he reached the end of the twin lines of torches and suddenly, all at once, a magical structure seemed to emerge from the darkness and blinded Link with a radiant glow. He found that the narrow path he had been walking opened into a gigantic underground cavern which housed a magnificent palace. The palace was a beautiful sight to behold; the walls seemed to be made of the brightest, purest light Link had ever known. Brighter and more intense than the rays of the sun, it was truly very difficult to look upon from the outside. Link noticed that the doors and windows were all gilded, and ornate designs covered them. There were illuminated steps leading up to the large, golden door in the center.

Link, now well fed and with some of his energy recovered, gathered his resolve, drew his Ordon Sword, and stepped into the Palace Of Light.

* * *

A few hours later, he emerged into Goldorm's lair with his new Gilded Megaton Hammer in tow. He was now incredibly tired from all his journeys and battles since Ordona, not the least of which were the hordes of enemies and puzzles he had just overcome in the palace. But Link knew that if he could somehow overcome this last trial, he may find rest and the answers he sought. He timidly stepped into the large, cavernous lair, with rocky terrain, gilded walls and a brightly lit ceiling overhead. There were also a few large boulders scattered around the area.

He was almost to the center of the cavern when he heard a low rumbling. He steeled himself, expecting what was coming. Before long, an earth-shaking screech shook the lair and a giant, grotesque worm clad in gilded armor burrowed to the surface. It sent rocks and dirt flying in all directions as it protruded from the surface. The light from the ceiling reflected off of its polished, shiny armor. It raised itself upright and stared Link right in the face, loosed another shriek, and began to attack. It dove in his direction and slithered over the ground more quickly than Link had anticipated. He only had time to raise his shield in defense before Goldorm rammed into him and sent him reeling back to the wall. He crashed into the wall in a heap and fell to the ground. He got up quickly.

Just before the monster had rammed him, Link had noticed hundreds of tiny, razor sharp teeth in his gaping maw, so he knew that it would try to devour him if given the chance. He tried to think of ways he could use that to his advantage.

Before he got very far, however, Goldorm came in for another attack. This time, it came straight at him but paused before it reached him and swung around its backside, swiping at him with a sharp pincer on its tail end. Again, Link was unprepared and took the hit full on, getting knocked again into the wall. His breath was knocked out of him and he coughed up blood. Goldorm roared and chased after him again. Link scrambled to his feet and took off running. The beast was right behind him as he sprinted around the cavern.

Link stayed on the move, and eventually Goldorm retreated back underground, and all Link heard was a low rumbling as the creature stalked him by the vibrations in the ground from Link's steps. Link reached one of the boulders and quickly scrambled up the rock, balancing himself on top. He remained still while the creature continued to burrow around, searching for his prey.

Link suddenly had an idea, and decided it was time to go on the offensive. He took out a bomb, lit the fuse, and threw it to the closest approximation he had of where the creature was underground. The bomb landed and rolled a few feet. Goldorm sensed the disturbance and immediately sprung upward, devouring the bomb as he shot up from the ground, expecting Link. He swallowed the bomb and in a few moments, there was a muffled boom and his body shook from the inside out. He fell to the ground, dazed. Link immediately leapt down from the boulder and pulled out the Gilded Megaton Hammer. He ran to the creature, raised the Hammer, and swung down with all his might. The force of the blow rocked the entire chamber, and Goldorm wailed as a piece of armor chinked off and fell to the ground. Link swung again and knocked off another piece. Goldorm grew infuriated and lashed at him with his pincer, but Link leapt out of the way at the last second.

Now he had a strategy, and all that remained was to fool the dumb creature into repeating the process. He did so, being very careful to not take any more direct hits from it, and eventually all of the beautiful golden armor was stripped away. When it was, he unsheathed his blade and began inflicting as many wounds on the creature as he had time for. He stabbed and cut at his eyes and head and body, but the stubborn creature would not die. Link used the last bomb in his bag to stun the creature one last time, and went in for one last flurry of strikes. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. He pulled out the Gilded Megaton Hammer one last time and ran to the tail end of the creature. He took careful aim and brought down the Hammer as hard as he possibly could on the pincer, and Goldorm wailed, shuddered, bled, and then died with a pitiful whimper.

Link, breathing heavily, sighed and sank to his knees, and then laughed. It was over. He wanted to rest for just a brief moment, and then he would look for a way out.

Before he could, however, a hidden door opened in the gilded wall and a most bizarre creature emerged. Link leapt to his feet, ready to fight again, but the creature was small and didn't look very threatening. Link sensed no immediate danger and so relaxed his grip on his blade. Indeed, though it was an odd creature, the likes of which Link had never seen before, it didn't look like it could have hurt Link even if it had wanted to. It was short and looked like a rodent, though it walked upright on two legs like a man. It had dark fur mottled with brown spots, big, watery black eyes, floppy ears, and a pink tail.

Though Link didn't expect the creature to attack him, he was still cautious, not knowing what it was or what it wanted. He approached timidly, wondering what to do. But suddenly, the creature spoke.

"Traveler in green, you're mighty strong, to complete a task so hard and long…"

"You can speak?" Link said, surprised.

"Aye, I speak, I walk and talk. And I've been watching you like a hawk!"

"You speak oddly… are you the one who left that note for me? And the food?"

"Aye, I did, I baked and cooked, and left it where I knew you'd look. I was bid so by my master, who thinks you'll help with this disaster."

"What disaster?" asked Link. "And who is your master? Who are you?"

"Troubled times and terrible wars, the fate to end these things is yours. Goodly Degu is my name, ask my master, he'll say the same; he's a wise man, born and raised, now prepare to be amazed! You won't believe he's of this age, but he's the one, the only, the original Light Sage!"