XXX
Interlude
As Sheik entered Goron City and paused to take a look around, she couldn't help but notice that something seemed…off. There appeared to be less Gorons roaming freely around the caverns, and the few that were appeared to be frantic and troubled, not their usual carefree selves.
"Sheik!" a familiar voice shouted. Sheik smiled as a familiar smaller-framed Goron approached.
"Link!" Sheik hugged the son of Darunia, who was honorably named after Hylian Link. "It's been a long time."
Goron Link pulled away to frown at Sheik concernedly.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm ecstatic to see you're okay…but what, may I ask, brings you here?"
Sheik sighed.
"Well Link, turns out the other Link was injured pretty badly in Kakariko and he's in critical need of some Red Potion."
"Kakariko, huh? Well, how our the villagers? We saw the smoke from here."
"To be completely honest, I'm not quite sure how many fatalities there were, as I was preoccupied with trying to treat Link's wounds. Many were injured, many lost their homes, the enemy kidnapped Impa…things are getting pretty bad now…" Sheik sighed and stared at the floor. A brief thought crossed her mind as to whether she should just turn herself in to Vaati hoping he would quit terrorizing others - including the sages - in the hopes of finding her. But it seemed almost pointless, as this would only result in greater chaos brought on by Ganondorf himself should he return.
Goron Link stared up at Sheik concernedly.
"That's why as soon as he saw the smoke and got word of Impa gone missing, my dad ordered everyone to evacuate to the Fire Temple. He asked that I stay here and make sure everyone gets out safely before joining them."
"Well, where is Darunia?"
"The Chamber Of Sages. He said he was going to meet with Rauru and Princess Ruto - the last of the Sages apart from you that have not yet been kidnapped - to discuss a plan of action. It's become clear to him as well as Ruto that the enemy will likely seek them out next." Goron Link sighed. "Why are they doing this?"
"Their intent is to free Ganondorf." Sheik took notice of Goron Link's sudden tenseness at the mention of Ganondorf's name. "But the plan they've set forth is futile. They need all six Sages, not including myself, to break the seal if I'm not present."
"Then what is the point?"
"That's what I keep asking myself. Either they don't know that they need Rauru, or…" Sheik trailed off, refusing to believe they were just taking those close to her to use them as bait.
"Anyway, you said Link needs Red Potion?" Sheik was snapped out of her train of thought by Goron Link's question.
"Um, right."
"We'd definitely be glad to help out. Hey, Takechi!" A Goron carrying a large sack that had been walking by paused. "Can I please have a bottle of Red Potion? The Hero of the Gorons needs some!"
"Of course! here, take three or four. We have plenty extra!" Takechi placed the sack on the ground, opened the sack, and handed Sheik four bottles. Sheik stashed them and smiled.
"Thank you. So you're stocking up for the evacuation, huh?"
"Yeah. Just in case, we're taking all our resources." Takechi responded. Goron Link sighed as Takechi headed in the direction of the Fire Temple.
"Anyway, I hate to ask this. But in order to defeat this enemy, this may be our only hope."
"What is it, Sheik? I'd be honored to assist you in any way necessary!" Goron Link smiled up eagerly.
"Well, Link seems to think it'd be in our best interest for him to reunite with the Master Sword."
"The Master Sword?" Goron Link's face lit up at this.
"Yes, the Master Sword. And the only way to go about retrieving it is to collect all three Spiritual Stones. So…"
"Of course! My father left it in my care. He'd be delighted to hand it over to you and Link!" Sheik breathed a sigh of relief that Goron Link had the stone. She'd thought for a minute she'd have to warp to the Chamber of Sages to retrieve it from Darunia.
Goron Link handed the ruby (which was wrapped in cloth) to Sheik, who took it gracefully and stored it in her pouch.
"Thank you so much, Link."
"Don't even mention it! Anything to aid in the protection of our great nation! And should it come down to a fight, well, the Gorons are here for you!" Sheik smiled.
"We definitely appreciate it."
XXX
Interlude
"Yes! Great dodge!"
Malon lunged for Jasmina, wooden sword in hand, and used it to pin her against the wall. Jasmina grinned.
"Ah, raised as a Hylian. But the fierceness of our people runs in your blood. Keep this up, and tomorrow I will teach you our secret spin attack."
Malon pulled away and dropped the wooden sword dejectedly.
"Jasmina, while I appreciate all this, I will never be a Gerudo. True, my mother was one - a great one at that - but I will never measure up to your people. I'm a measly farm girl. That's who I am, and that's all I'll ever be."
Malon walked to the stone step that encircled the training room and plopped down with her head in her hands. Frowning in confusion, Jasmina also dropped her wooden sword and sat next to her.
"Malon, what's wrong? Yesterday you were all excited when I offered to teach you how to fight! Plus, you're a natural! I was expecting much less, to be honest."
"It's just, I really look up to you. I always have, even before I knew we were sisters. You say our mother was some incredible fighter, and then I look at you. You've had this harsh life, trained from a young age to fight, your mother was run out of the fortress…but you've turned into such an amazing girl. And here I was raised milking cows, riding horses, raising chickens…I'm just a farm girl. I'll never amount to you or Farah. I don't want to end up disappointing you if I can't be the Gerudo you are or the Gerudo that she was." Jasmina put her arm around her sister and pulled her close.
"None of that matters. Who cares how you were raised? Who cares that the only thing you know how to do is raise livestock? The blood of Farah runs through your veins, and she was probably one of the most valued Gerudos we've ever had. I don't care about the fact we've led such completely different lives. All I care about is the fact that you're here, you're safe, and you're my sister." Malon returned the hug.
"Thank you."
Jasmina pulled away to frown at her.
"You know, we need to do something about your self-esteem issues."
"Self-esteem issues?" Malon sniffled.
"Yeah. You're consistently putting yourself down. Why is that?"
"I-I don't do it consistently…" Malon looked away.
"Yes you do. You don't exude the confidence you should. Even when I made you wear those clothes, you kept trying to conceal yourself and kept blushing madly."
"Well yeah, where I'm from, this attire would be considered indecent…no offense."
"I understand that. But you're amongst hundreds of women that do wear this attire…if anything, you should've been more embarrassed wearing that tattered old dress. You've got a nice figure! You truly do look nice in that uniform!"
"Thanks…"
"And Malon, it goes deeper than that. I haven't known you long, but in the short time I've spent with you, I can tell you're genuinely a good person. You should be exuding confidence more radiantly than anyone else I know. I was able to talk Vaati into letting you out of the confines of your cell, and each day that passes, your hero is one step closer to coming for you. Everything will work out wonderfully."
"How can you say that? I'm not entirely sure how long it's even been, but Goddess-forbid he's injured or worse. What if…what if he never comes?" Jasmina blinked.
"You've got to have faith, Sister. Sometimes, it's the only thing that keeps people going. Vaati can take you away from your man, he can take your freedom, he can take away your rights, even your life…but the one thing he can never take, the one thing nobody can take from you, is your faith. So have some. It won't do anyone any good for you to just sit here and stew in your negativity. So let's kill some time! Let's practice sparring every day, and before you know it, the time will have come for you to reunite with Link. Trust me, it'll go by a lot faster if you find ways to pass the time. Not to mention, you'll have some knowledge of how to defend yourself should you ever need to."
Malon sighed, but smiled.
"What would I do without you?" Jasmina smiled and patted Malon on the back as she hopped to her feet.
"Alright, Girl. Break time's over. Grab your sword and let's get to it!" Malon smiled and picked up her wooden sword, eager to see what else Jasmina was going to teach her about sword-fighting.
XXX
I awaken to someone plopping on the side of my bed. Looking up through blurry eyes, I see Sheik pulling out a bottle filled with red liquid. Soon I feel her hand snake under my head and the bottle being pressed to my lips.
"Drink." I oblige and let the liquid trickle down my throat, trying to ignore the overwhelming taste. Soon the bottle is empty, and I cautiously attempt to sit up, and am soon satisfied at the fact it didn't hurt me to do so.
"Thanks." I tell Sheik. Sheik can't seem to stop grinning.
"That's not all I brought you." She pulls out something wrapped in cloth and delicately unfolds it. Sitting there is the Goron Ruby, shining brightly.
"Ah! You're the best!" I take the small jewel gingerly and wrap it back up, then proceed to place it in my pouch. Sheik speaks.
"I was wondering, what will we do if it turns out Saria has the Emerald of Forest? She's being held prisoner by Vaati." I frown.
"I didn't think of that." I sigh. "Well, if that turns out to be the case, I'm going to have to make do with a normal sword. I take it you didn't find the one I lost?" Sheik shakes her head. "Alright. We'll check the forest next, that way if it turns out Saria has the emerald, we wouldn't have wasted our time searching for the sapphire. What do you say?" I hold out my hand, and Sheik accepts it, helping to lift me out of bed.
"I say we head to the forest immediately."
XXX
Interlude
Vaati was awakened the following morning by the sound of knocking at his bedroom door.
"Ugh…" he groaned, rubbing his eyes tiredly. With the aid of his wind powers, his blankets were pushed back to allow him to slip out of bed and to slip into his robe, which had been flown to him from the other side of the room.
The knocking continued.
"Enter!" he shouted, annoyed that the person wouldn't stop knocking.
In came a Green-clad Gerudo.
"Lord Vaati, Lady Rai requests your presence in the throne room." The girl gave a curt bow and proceeded to leave.
"Hold it!" Vaati shouted. The girl turned to stare at him. "Did I permit you to be dismissed?"
"Well, that's all I came in to say, Sire." Vaati blinked in confusion, taken aback by the fact this Gerudo was being so…well, calm in his presence.
"Oh, well…then you may go." The girl turned and exited.
Vaati frowned, wondering if these girls were getting used to him and therefore not as frightened of him as they used to be.
Shrugging off the matter, Vaati proceeded to dress then zap himself a quick meal. Soon he headed down to the throne room.
"Rai?" Vaati asked as to announce his presence. Rai turned to stare at him.
"Took you long enough. I sent Sidona up to fetch you over half an hour ago."
"I had just woken up and decided to eat a quick breakfast. Not that that's any of your concern, for I am your ruler and shall take as long as I feel necessary before meeting with you. Which brings me to ask, what do you want?"
"Well for starters, the Sage of Shadow admitted to sealing off the Hero's shadow. She wouldn't speak of how this was done, however."
"I knew it." Vaati plopped down in the throne and stretched across it as he liked. "Anything else, Rai?"
"Yes. We're running out of food."
"I'll zap in some more. You're excused, unless you have anything additional for me."
"Nope. That's all."
"Good, now get out."
Rai hissed something under her breath as she left.
"What was that, woman?" Vaati demanded.
"Nothing!" she called over her shoulder as she exited the throne room. The sarcastic grin she wore as she left hadn't escaped Vaati's attention.
Vaati shook his head, envisioning numerous ways he could torture the elderly woman as soon as Ganondorf returned.
As Vaati's imagination wandered, he stretched out even further across the grand chair, and closed his eyes tiredly.
Not a minute later, there was a knock at the door.
Vaati groaned and sat up, rubbing his tired red eyes.
"Enter!"
In came a Gerudo in white.
"What is it?" he snapped.
"We're running low on food, Sire."
"Yes, Rai already brought that to my attention."
"Okay." The girl turned to leave.
"One moment!" Vaati shouted. The girl turned to stare at him, sighed, then gave a bow. "There. Now you're permitted to leave."
Vaati stared at the girl in surprise as she left, wondering what was going on to make these women who once cowered before him have such a sudden lack of respect for him.
Dark appeared out of one of the shadows a minute later.
"Hey Dark." Vaati greeted.
"What's going on? You looked…confused, maybe?" Dark questioned almost amusedly.
Vaati sighed.
"I don't know what it is, but…these girls seem to be treating me differently. They used to shake like leaves if I so much as stared at them, now out of nowhere they're forgetting to bow, they're dismissing themselves from my presence…is it possible I've lost my intimidation?" Dark stared in surprise.
"You honestly have no idea what's going on here?" Vaati blinked confusedly. "That girl in the gold uniform…Jasmine, I think her name is?"
"Jasmina?" Vaati questioned.
"Yeah, whatever. Word's been going around that you and 'Jasmina' have a little…you know…thing going on. They think you've gone soft. You permitted what could be our most important prisoner - the farm girl - to have free roam of the castle. All because she and 'Jasmina' are the best of friends."
Vaati stared in shock.
"They've think I've gone soft?"
"Vaati, that farm girl is probably the most important person in the Hero's life. If she were to escape…"
Vaati stared at the floor.
He could imprison the girl once more, but he gave Jasmina his word…
"They think I'm soft. Well, let them think that. How about I let them starve for a couple days before zapping them in more food? Then they'll see how soft I really am!" Dark stared at Vaati in shock.
"You're not going to re-imprison the farm girl?"
"Dark, Jasmina isn't stupid. She won't let the farm girl go free. If it brings her joy to have a little friend to hang around with, then let her. Regardless, the Hero doesn't stand a chance against me, and each day brings closer his demise!" Dark shrugged.
"If you say so."
Just then, Rai burst through the doors.
"Vaati! Our food?" she demanded. Annoyed, Vaati raised his hand. Next thing she knew, Rai was flying through the air and was harshly slammed into the wall. Rai cried out in pain as she crumpled to the floor, and stared up at Vaati in shock as he approached her.
He grabbed her face in his hand and squeezed, digging firmly enough to leave marks.
"Tell your damned women I will provide them with food when I feel like it. Got it?" he then let go and sauntered back to his chair. Rai let out a barely audible-whimper, got to her feet, then slowly exited the throne room.
Dark stared in shock. Vaati exchanged a look with Dark and shrugged.
"Well, Dark…was that 'soft' enough for you?"
XXX