Chapter 9
"Dodongo's Cavern"
Small torches lined the walls, little clumps of green at their bases standing out starkly against all the brown. The light flickered, but the sight in front of Link didn't change.
He was staring at a solid wall.
"Great," he said, rubbing his forehead with his hand. "How am I supposed to get into the cavern now?"
Scowling, he walked around the room, tapping the blocking wall with his foot every time he passed it. He paused in front of one of the torches.
"Hmm…" he mused, and pulled out his bow and an arrow—one of the ones the Kokiri had given him, it had the flammable moss on the tip. He lit it in the torch, and aimed at the wall. You never know, he thought, and released it.
The arrow flew forward, struck the wall, and shattered.
"Gah!" Link kicked at the plant at the base of the torch. His foot connected with something solid, and part of the plant rolled away. Forehead furrowed, he leaned closer. A quiet hissing noise seemed to be—
BOOM!
Link flew back, landing hard on his back. He coughed, his face covered in ashes.
"Of course the plants explode," he said, coughing again. Using the corner of his tunic, he wiped his face and sat up. "Are there any plants in this kingdom that aren't deadly in some way?" He grabbed the bomb that had grown back in the place of the exploded one, and threw it at the wall.
BOOM!
Link waved the dust out of his face, and grinned. "One hole in the wall, check."
He stepped through the new entryway, looking around the cavern with wonder. Directly in front of him was a large skull of an animal that he guessed might have been a Dodongo. Large hallways on the sides of the cave lead off to other parts deeper in the mountain. A large island sat surrounded by a shallow ring of lava. On the island, standing right in front of the Dodongo skull, was a large Goron.
The Goron watched as Link jumped over the lava to join him. "Are you Darunia?" Link asked.
The Goron nodded. "You must be the Hero of Time. Well met, though I wish it were under different circumstances."
"Me too," Link sighed.
Darunia folded his arms, and looked up at the skull—it was easily five times bigger than him. "Unfortunately, we don't have time for such wishful thinking. My people are held captive all over the cavern, the dragon stands ready to devour them, and the volcano is on the brink of eruption."
"I'll help you in any way I can."
Darunia stared at him, as though measuring his words. Suddenly, he broke out into a large smile. "Good!" He patted Link on the shoulder, almost sending the Hylian into the floor. "Go and rescue my people. They will be able to calm the mountain. I will deal with the dragon. I trust you Hero."
Link rolled his shoulder. "My name is Link."
Darunia's grin widened. "Thank you Link. May the goddesses be with you."
"And you. Be careful."
"Of course. Though I am worried… No, it can't be helped."
"What?"
Darunia rubbed his chin. "The dragon was first defeated by one of the greatest Gorons in our history, and there was a special weapon that he used to slay the dragon. But the weapon has been lost somewhere in the mountain, and we haven't been able to find it since." He shrugged. "I'll do fine on my own."
"Are you sure?" Link asked, concerned.
"No," Darunia laughed. "But it's the best we're going to get." He pat Link again on the shoulder, then walked up the jaw of the skull, and through a door imbedded in the back.
Link watched him go, then turned to face the wall on his right. He tilted his head side to side, then decided. He jumped over the ring of lava again, and walked through the wall on the right, the one closest to the front door.
The hallway was long, and dim. Remains of torches sat hanging, unlit, on the walls. "The torches are always lit," Link repeated, grabbing one of them. "Right. Sure." When he finally reached a lit torch, he touched the one he was holding to the flame. "Wonder what happened to them…" he muttered.
A digging sound came from under his foot, and he jumped back just as a large worm came squiggling out of the ground. It leapt at him, screeching. Link tossed the torch to his right hand, drawing his sword at the same time, lashing out at the thing. It let out a gargle-screech, and flopped over on its back. Link sighed, relaxing, and the thing started to flash. He jumped and rolled backwards.
BOOM!
He rubbed remains of ash off his face, scowling. "Exploding plants… exploding worms… next thing I know, my torch is gonna go boom…" He gave it an odd look, then moved on.
Several more of the exploding worms attacked him as he made his way down the hallway. Eventually, he reached an area that split into three ways. Picking one on the right, he entered a small room. Behind a row of metal bars sat a shivering rock. Link walked forward, looking at the rock, holding his torch up high.
"P-Please don't eat me…" the rock said. "I w-wouldn't taste very good…"
"Uh, hello?"
The rock uncurled, revealing a Goron. "Are you going to take me to the dragon?" He whispered in a voice filled with dread.
Link gave him an odd look. "No, I'm not." He looked around, and spotted a large button on the floor in the corner. He stepped on it, and the row of bars slid away into the wall. "I'm here to rescue you."
The Goron stood completely up, smiling. "You are? Thank you! How can I repay you?"
"I'm going to be releasing the rest of the Gorons," Link said, turning to face the way he had come. "Darunia says that the volcano is close to erupting, and that you and the rest of the Gorons would know how to control it."
"I do know something of that," the Goron said.
"Then get going. There's only a one Goron and a Sheikah up in the crater trying to keep it under control. They're going to need help."
"Oh my. Yes they are. Thank you again." He pat Link on the shoulder, bruising him, and headed out.
"Oww…" Link moaned, rubbing his shoulder. "If they keep this up, I'm not going to stay in one piece much longer…"
In the next room over, he found another shivering Goron. They repeated the process of freeing, explanation, and unintentional bruising, and that Goron went to join the first.
Link rolled his shoulder, back out in the hallway. He lit torches as he went along, and attacked the exploding worms as they came at him.
The next Goron explained to him about the exploding plants.
"These are the Goron's 'special crop,'" he said, pointing to one of them out in the hall. "Bomb flowers. They grow best in the dim caverns on the mountain. Since you're big, you'll be able to pick them easily. They'll blow a short time after you do, so don't try to carry them too far."
I noticed that, Link thought dryly.
"They'll grow back right away, so feel free to use them as often as you need to." He straightened, and turned to go.
"Wait," Link said, and the Goron turned back. "Is there a way to safely carry them? I mean, can you stop the fuse from going until you need to?"
The Goron shook his head. "Not the bomb flowers, no. There's a bomb shop in town that will sell you normal bombs, and you can carry them safely using a bomb bag. I'm pretty sure you can get one of those in the bomb shop too, if you ask the owner nicely." The Goron smiled, and headed out.
"Isn't this mountain just full of treasures…" Link muttered quietly, and left the room.
-0-
Kalec wiped a layer of sweat off his forehead. Lava boiled angrily, several hundred feet below.
"Are you sure this is the right place?" He called to Goroka, standing below.
"I think so," she called back.
Great… Kalec thought, shifting his grip to look closer at the rock. Ganondorf couldn't have left behind an expert on the volcano… we had to get a teenage girl…
"You need to go down several feet."
The new voice startled him, and he nearly lost his grip on the wall. He scrambled, trying to find his hand holds again. A hand reached out and grabbed his arm, pulling him back towards the wall.
"Thanks," he puffed at the new Goron on the wall next to him.
"Sorry to startle you. Got a grip?"
"Yeah."
The Goron let go and pointed down and to Kalec's left, at a patch of rock that was slightly different than the others. "That's the rock that needs to be blown out," he said, moving down towards it. "There's quite a few of these extra vents around the caldera; they help get rid of the excess steam, take the pressure off the mountain." He drew back a giant fist and punched a hole the size of Kalec's upper body. The wall shook under Kalec's grip.
"Uh-huh," Kalec said. "I see." He looked around, and spotted another patch of discolored rocks. He made his way up, and wedged a small bomb in a crack. He set the timer, then scuttled to the side and turned away, waiting.
BOOM!
Rocks fell with a satisfying crash to the ground below. Kalec watched them fall, and saw several more Gorons enter the volcano. Some started to climb on the walls and open up the holes, and others went down, closer to the lava. He grinned.
"Excellent work Hero," he muttered. "Good to know you're not slacking in there."
-0-
Link leaned against the wall, gritting his teeth against the pain. A Dodongo nearly as big as he was had managed to catch him in its fire. The parts of his body that were under the fire tunic were fine, but the back of his legs and his fingers were burned, and it hurt.
He breathed slowly, looking around for something—anything—that might help with a burn. There wasn't much around him: rocks, the remains of a torch, pots, what could only be Dodongo droppings…
One of the pots rattled.
Eyebrows furrowed, Link tipped the jar over. It broke, and a fairy came zipping out.
"Oh thank the goddesses!" She said, weaving up and down in front of him. "I thought I was never going to get out!"
"Umm…" Link said.
The fairy stopped, and hovered right in front of his face. So close Link could just make out the shape of a tiny person under the glow. "Are you the one who freed me? Oh, thank you thank you thank you!"
"Um, you're welcome."
"What can I do? Is there anything I can do for you? Oh, I hate leaving debts unpaid like this; is there something I can do for you?" She spoke very quickly, and Link wondered when she breathed.
"You can't heal by chance, could you?"
The fairy started bouncing again. "Oh yes, I can do that! I can heal! I'm not as good as one of the Great Fairies, but I'm a pretty good healer if I do say so myself! Healing is the first thing I mastered after flying, which isn't that hard you know—"
"My hands and legs are burned," Link interrupted.
"Oh! Right, right, right. Sorry! I tend to get carried away with talking, especially when there's someone to listen to me talk, which there wasn't anybody else in that jar, and talking to inanimate objects means you're going insane you know. But you said you have burns? Oh, that's easy. Burns are common here on the mountain, and I've healed lots of Gorons here. It takes a lot to burn one of them, because of their thick skin you know. They're almost like rocks!" As she spoke, she bounced up and down over Link's legs and hands, shedding pink sparks, despite her blue glow. Where the sparks touched him, they would pass through his clothing and into the skin—a nice, cooling touch. Link sighed with relief, and the fairy continued to chatter, landing on his knee.
"So, but really, those were some pretty bad burns! I can't believe you managed to move around with burns like that. But I do feel better now for helping you since you've helped me, and—LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!"
Link rolled to his right, drawing his sword and barely dodging the fire blast from another Dodongo. The fairy shot straight up and hovered near the ceiling. Link rolled to his feet, readjusting his grip on the sword and shield and facing down the lizard. It took a deep breath, and Link dodged again.
"His tail! Go for his tail!" the fairy yelled from the ceiling.
Link ran around its fire and struck. The Dodongo made the same screaming sound the exploding worms did, and collapsed. Link jumped back, and made it safely out of the blast radius.
"Thanks," he called to the fairy. "Those things have been giving me trouble for quite a while."
"Oh, it's no trouble, no trouble at all!" She said, floating down and sitting on top of his sword hand. "Those things aren't very hard to deal with if you know their weak points and have the right equipment you know."
"Uh-huh," Link said, looking around for more Dodongos and tuning her out a bit.
"You know, I don't think we've been properly introduced. My name is Navi. What's your name?"
"I'm Link." He walked out of the room and into the hall, looking right and left and trying to decide which way to go.
"Link, huh? That's an interesting name. I don't think I've ever heard it before. But you know, I can tell you're someone important Link."
He raised an eyebrow at her. "How?"
She bobbled in the air over his hand. "It's the Triforce. I can feel the power here, on your hand. You must be someone very important, to have been chosen by the goddesses like that. They don't just latch onto anybody you know. Say, would you like some help here in the Caverns? You look kind of lost, and I know this place really well. If you don't mind me traveling with you, that is."
"I could use all the help I can get," Link said, looking at her.
"Then I'll help you!" She said, sitting on his head. "By the way, what has been going on here? I've been stuck in that pot for what feels like forever, but I've heard lots of sounds traveling through the Cavern, a lot more than normal. Something feels wrong. You want to go right, by the way."
Link glanced up, shrugged to himself, and went right. "The dragon Volvagia has been brought back to life," he said, "and an evil man named Ganondorf has captured most of the Gorons and is threatening to feed them to the dragon."
"What?! Oh, that's horrible! I didn't know there was anybody in all of Hyrule who could be so mean!" Navi huffed, and Link could see the glow of her agitated flying bounce off the walls. "Why would he want to try to kill all the Gorons like that? That's such an awful way to die, being eaten alive!"
"There was one left back in Goron City," Link said quickly, before she could go off on another rant. "I met Darunia when I first came in, and I've managed to free a lot of them that were here. I don't think any of them had been fed to the dragon yet, and I think I've covered most of the Cavern. I'm not sure how many are left though."
"Well then, let's go find them!" Navi said, zipping off his head and down the hallway. She stopped at the end, bobbing impatiently up and down. "Come on, come on, we have to hurry if we want to save them all from being Volviaga's dinner!"
Link took a deep breath, digging deep to find patience, and followed the talkative fairy.
-0-
Kalec took a deep breath, then coughed at the heat seared his lungs.
"Are you okay?" Goroka asked, giving him a concerned look.
"I'll be fine," he said, massaging his chest. "The question is now whether the mountain will be fine or not."
"It should be," she said. "I mean, we've managed to open the vents and cool the lava a bit."
Not enough, in my opinion, he thought, still massaging his chest. "That's true, but we still have the dragon to contend with."
"What do you mean?"
"Volvagia is a true being of fire… it can control the mountain. If it were to unleash it's fury in the wrong direction…" he waved a hand around the caldera, "well, no amount of vents could help us."
"Oh…"
They were silent, watching the Gorons work, and the mountain trembled a little bit under their feet. Goroka jumped. Kalec frowned, and pulled down his sleeves.
"Come on. Let's get back into the City. We'll be safer there than in here."
-0-
Link walked into the final room of the Caverns, and found another shivering Goron. He stepped on the switch, opened the door, and the Goron stood up.
"I'm free…?"
Link nodded. "Yes. Get back to the City; quickly, before Ganondorf comes back."
"Thank you!" The Goron turned to go, then paused at the doorway. "Did you, by chance, find a Goron left in the City before coming here?"
"You mean Goroka?"
The Goron visibly relaxed. "Yes! She was okay?" Link nodded, and the Goron's face burst into a smile. "Oh good! I'm so glad!"
Link tilted his head towards the side a bit. "You're her brother?"
The Goron nodded. "I am. I'm Goroko."
Creative parents… Link thought. "She was scared, and a little bit shaken up, but she was fine. She's back in the City with Kalec."
Goroko nodded. "Good. Thank you for finding and reassuring her." He gave Link a bone-crushing hug, then scurried out the door.
"Oof…" Link rubbed his rib cage. "I don't think Gorons realize how easily they can hurt Hylians…"
"Oh, the Gorons are very strong. It comes from eating rocks I think," Navi said from her perch on Link's hat. "You can't eat rocks and punch through walls and not expect to be strong. That, and you Hylians are rather fleshy beings. You're easy to bruise."
Link sent a dark look in her general direction.
"But you're easy to heal because of that," she rattled on. "I mean, I told you earlier, about how hard it is to heal Gorons—that's because their skins are so thick, from being strong and keeping the mountain under control and working around lava and things like that. I mean, it makes sense that they're built the way they are, so they don't get hurt easily, but when they do—"
Link tuned her out, like he had been doing most of the time since he met her, and turned to head back out into the hall, when a glint from the cell caught his eye. He turned back, and noticed something sitting in the corner. It was a treasure chest. He knelt, flexed his fingers, and opened it. Inside was a giant silver-head hammer. He picked it up; its heavy weight felt comfortable in his hands, though there was no way he could use it one-handed.
"Ooo, I know what that is!" Navi bounced around the cell. "That's the Megaton Hammer! The Hero of the Gorons used it a long long long time ago to defeat the dragon—at least, that's what Darunia told me. And I thought he said it had been lost too… but now you've found it! Didn't you say that Darunia was going to fight the dragon? We'd better go find him and give this to him! It could come in handy, wouldn't you say? I mean, it really should help Darunia fight against the dragon, and not get eaten like everybody else was supposed to be."
"Yeah… yeah, let's go get it to him." Link nodded, and put it away. It fit snuggly in his pouch next to his bow. "What's the fastest way to the main room by the entrance, with the giant skull in it?"
Navi directed him, and Link jogged the whole way there, feeling the weight of the hammer bounce under his shield. They made it to the main room; the door Darunia had gone through opened with a touch of his hand and a flash from the Triforce. A wave of heat burst through the door, catching Link by surprise. He coughed and swallowed, trying to moisten his suddenly dry mouth, and walked inside.
They must've been in the crater of the volcano, or somewhere nearby; a large platform made of volcanic rock sat in the middle of a giant lake of lava. Two figures were standing on it: one was a Goron, laying on the ground, and the other…
"Ganondorf!" Link called, jumping over to the platform, as the Gerudo male bent down and easily picked up the Goron—Darunia… he looked beat up; patches on his arms and legs were rubbed raw, a large purple bruise was forming on his side, and long crack ran from the top to bottom of his rocky back.
Ganondorf ignored him, instead speaking to Darunia. "I grow tired of this," he said, his low voice easily carrying over the bubbling of the lava. "Where is the Stone?"
"You can't have it," Darunia said, grabbing at Ganondorf's arm. "You were not meant to have it; you would just use it to serve your evil purposes. I do not bargain with those who threaten my people!"
Link's lips pulled back in an angry grimace. "Ganondorf!" He yelled again.
The wizard looked up and finally noticed him. "Ah… so here you are, Hero," he said, his own lips curving into a smile. "Just the person I was looking for. You have the Emerald, do you not? Perhaps you have the Ruby already… give them to me, and I will spare the life of this… thing." He gave Darunia a little shake.
Link grit his teeth. He felt Navi's wings brush against his ear as she flew past into his hat.
"Fool…" Darunia said, "He'd never give them to you. The life of one Goron isn't worth the whole of Hyrule."
Link swallowed, and hoped Darunia knew what he was saying. Ganondorf gave Link a long look, and Link tried his best to look threatening and defiant.
"Is that so…" Ganondorf whispered, and that whisper was terrifying. "If that's the case…" he glanced sharply to the back of the crater, and with a scream and splash of lava, a large, long, red shape snaked into the air.
Link gasped as the dragon flew overhead, blowing flames all around him. The heat was staggering, and he ducked to keep his head from getting singed off.
"Volvagia! Great Dragon! Accept this meal!" Ganondorf leaned back, and threw Darunia into the air, the dark purple light of his magic lending him strength.
Link watched as Darunia flew into the air. It felt as though time slowed as he watched the dragon curve, swoop, and swallow the Goron in one gulp. "No…"
Ganondorf's laughter brought him back to focus. "Isn't the dragon amazing, Hero? Let that show you his power! But perhaps, if you act fast enough, you can save him. Or," he spread his arms out, "you can attack me instead. What will it be, Hero?"
Link drew his sword and leapt, bringing it down and slicing cleanly through one of Volvagia's horns. "I'll save you Darunia!" He yelled, not sure if the Goron could even hear him. "Just hold on a minute more!"
Ganondorf's laughter echoed around the caldera. "So be it, Hero! We shall have our face-off in another time… and there, you will die… if you can survive the dragon, that is!"
Link looked back just in time to see Ganondorf disappear. "You coward!"
"Link, look out!"
He ducked as the dragon weaved overhead, breathing fire. He pulled his shield off his back, and rolled over to face Volvagia. The dragon let out a piercing scream-cry, and dove at him again, blasting flames.
Link took the flames full in the shield, holding it against the attack. The metal under his hand heated up, and he grimaced against the pain of the burns.
The flames stopped as Volvagia flew past, and Link dropped his shield. A line from the handle had scorched through his glove and burnt into his skin. He hissed against the pain, and dodged to the side as the dragon flew overhead again. Volvagia dived; Link slid to his knees underneath its belly and sliced upwards. The dragon screamed and flew further up, away from his sword.
Link hissed again. "That should've killed it!"
"Stupid! You need the hammer!" Navi yelled from inside his hat.
The dragon belched flames, and Link rolled to dodge. The flames caught his back; the tunic saved him from the burns, but he was still shoved forward by the force of the blast, to the very edge of the island. Volvagia breathed flames again, and Link was pushed off the edge.
He grabbed hold of the ledge as he went over, flames passing just barely over his fingers and roasting them. He yelled in pain.
"Link!" Navi flew out from his hat. "Hold on Link!" He felt her grab the back of his tunic and tug, straining to pull him up. "I've got you; don't worry!"
Link laughed, a desperate sound. Comedy in a life-threatening situation. How strange.
He heaved himself over the edge, nearly squishing the fairy in the process. Volvagia's shriek-scream came from somewhere near the ceiling. The ground trembled underneath him, and large boulders fell from above.
Link swore and rolled out of the way onto his feet. He made it to the other end of the platform and the boulders stopped falling. Volvagia dove at him again, mouth opening for blast more fire. Pulling out the hammer, Link sidestepped the flames. Volvagia flew right where he had been standing, and he brought the hammer down on the dragon's back, near the neck.
It gave way with a sickening crunch, and Link grimaced. The dragon roared and collapsed at his feet. Not hesitating, he switched the hammer for the sword and struck. Head separated from body—it twitched one last time, then fell still; the skull fell with a thud several feet away. Purple flames raced over the body, disintegrating it to ash. Tremors shook the ground as it disintegrated, then the earth stilled.
Link let his sword drop from burned hands, and he fell to his knees, bent over. Sweat ran down his face under his collar, welcome cool drops after all the flames.
"Oh goddesses…" he whispered, throat dry and sore. "Never again. No more fire. I'm done."
"Link! You did it!" Light twirled happily over his head. "You defeated the dragon! I can't believe you managed to do it! You know, I thought you were in serious trouble at the end there, when you got pushed off the edge, but you pulled back up and WHAMO! No more dragon! Haha! Wait… where's Darunia?" The blue puff of light hovered over the ashes of the dragon. "Shouldn't he be here somewhere? I mean, you would think…"
Link looked up, pain in his hands forgotten. "Darunia?" He called, getting to his feet and walking over to join Navi. "Darunia?!"
Silence.
"No…" Link fell to his knees, face in burned hands. "I wasn't fast enough…"
"Oh Link…" Navi said, resting on his shoulder. She seemed to be out of words for once. They sat there for a long moment, then she floated over and tugged on one of his fingers. "Here, let me get rid of those burns for you."
Link held out his hands and she shed sparks over them. The pain and burns faded, though his gloves remained scorched.
"Come on Navi," he said, standing up. "Let's get back to the City. Maybe someone there knows where the Fire Temple is." He walked back to the door, stopping to pick up his shield, silent tears carving a streak into the ash on his face.
As they passed Volvagia's skull, a quiet groan rumbled from the inside.
Link froze, staring at the bone. It groaned again, and twitched.
He ran over to it, pushing with all his might. With a creak, the skull flipped over, revealing a very burnt, very hurt, but very alive Goron.
"Darunia!" Link called, kneeling down beside the Goron chief. "Darunia, it's Link! Can you hear me?"
Darunia shuddered, breathing shallowly. "Link…? Did the… dragon eat you… too?"
Link laughed again, this time with relief, and waved Navi over. "No, I killed it. You're safe, and so are the Gorons."
Darunia smiled as Navi shed her healing sparks over him. "Good work… knew I could… count on you… Hero… Link…"
He closed his eyes. Navi bobbled up and down, clearly agitated. "I don't know how to heal partly digesting beings!" She said. "He's so badly burnt too… there's only so much I can do on my own Link. We have to get him out of here and to the City. There's a magical shortcut there that can lead us to the forest. The fairies there are better at healing than I am, and it'll be a lot easier to heal with there's a whole bunch of us working together."
Link knelt beside Darunia, frowning. "All that remains is to actually get him to the City... There's no way I can carry him on my own."
"Oh! OH! I've got an idea! Wait right here and make sure he doesn't die!" Navi zipped out the door, leaving a faint after-image of blue behind her.
"Um…" Link said, looking down at the Goron. "Make sure he doesn't die… right."
He put a hand on Darunia's shoulder, not sure what else to do, and waited. After what felt like forever, but must've only been a few minutes, the door flew open again, and half a dozen Gorons came spilling into the room, followed by one very familiar figure in black. Navi lead the Gorons over and "oversaw" the carrying of their chief, and lead them back out into the Cavern. Link watched, and Kalec sauntered over.
"Very nice job, Hero," he said, nudging the dragon skull with the toe of one of his shoes. "It got a little iffy there at the end, when the volcano almost blew, but the Gorons managed to calm it." He paced around the skull, and threw Link a grin. "I'm sure Ganondorf's really fuming right about now."
Leather squeaked as Link clenched his fists. "He's got a lot to answer for," he said, voice low and threatening.
Kalec glanced at him, and completed his circle around the skull. "Indeed…" he agreed quietly.
Silently, they watched the Gorons carry Darunia out, the faint light of Navi bobbing ahead of the group.
"I need to get to the Fire Temple," Link said. "Darunia said the Stone was there."
Kalec nodded. "Darunia's son can take you there. I believe the boy's name is Rogu."
As they stepped out of the Cavern, Link was surprised to see the sun coming up. I was in there all night? He rubbed his eyes. I need to sleep. Badly.
Inside the City, it wasn't hard to find Rogu. The boy was sitting by his father, who rested in a large room off the side of the throne room. He acted about the same age as Goroka, though he seemed more aware of things around him.
"Navi's gone to the forest to get more fairies," he told Kalec and Link when they arrived. "She should be back soon…" He gave Link a long look. "I'd like to stay with Dad until then."
Link nodded, and sat on a stool in the corner of the room. "That's fine. Wake me when it's time to go," he added to Kalec, who was leaning against the doorway. The Sheikah nodded, and Link closed his eyes for a well-deserved nap.
In no time at all it seemed, Rogu was prodding him awake.
"Mr. Link? I can take you to the Fire Temple now."
Reluctantly, Link opened his eyes. A light show of fairies were dancing over Darunia's body, raining different colored sparks all over him.
"Right," Link said, standing and stretching. "Do I need the Goron tunic anymore?"
"Only if you don't want to be fried," Kalec said from his post in the doorway. "The Temple's in the middle of the caldera, surrounded by lava. You'll get burnt to a crisp without it."
Link sighed. I've had enough of volcanoes and lava and fire for a lifetime…
Back through the throne room, the passage behind the statue, and to the right this time, up to the caldera of Death Mountain. It was hot, but not as hot as the room where he had fought Volvagia.
Until they got closer to the Temple.
They went down a ladder on the cliff overlooking the caldera. Down, closer to the lava, until they were almost level with it. The Fire Temple sat under the cliff, carved out from the stone. It was beautiful, in a blocky sort of way.
"Nice location," Link said, wiping the sweat off his forehead and fanning himself with his hat.
"Hey, I didn't pick it," Rogu said, and lead him inside.
It was arranged the same way as the Forest Temple, though with red undertones instead of green. On the wall behind the Stone's pedestal was a carving of a tall woman with outstretched arms.
"Din," Rogu said, when he noticed Link looking at the carving. "She's the one who created the earth, and from the earth came the Gorons. She's our mother, in a way."
Link nodded, and stepped forward to the pedestal. The Stone was a giant ruby, resting in gold shaped like a V. He picked it up; it was warm. His Triforce mark glowed softly in response, and he could feel the answering warmth from the Kokiri's Emerald in his pack.
"The Goron's Ruby…" he whispered, turning it over in his hand. "Now I have two Stones…" He looked up, towards the front door of the Temple and to the volcano beyond. "Just one more…" His grip tightened around the Ruby.
"And then, Ganondorf, I will bring you down."
You guys. These chapters.
WHY ARE THEY SO LONG UGH
I don't even know.
I promise I haven't forgotten about this fic. It just takes me ages to write one of these chapters. The dungeon chapters have been MASSIVE (10 pages, with size 11 font, single-spaced. That's a LOT of words)—I think longer than chapters I've written for any of my other works.
I'm also several days ahead with my NaNoWriMo word count… AND I've already made it past my best efforts in the past couple of years. Hehehehehehe… this year is FANTASTIC. I think I might actually hit 50k! WOOO
Next time!
It's back to the future to see how Zelda's army is growing and preparing for war…
(ALL THE REFERENCES)
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