This chapter will be shorter as I previously stated. It should be a lot of fun to write too.

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(Chapter Eleven: The Master Sword)


"Now, with the blessing of the Gods, we go forth into the land under the waves, to retrieve that which may defeat Ganondorf!" King stated, proud and bold. Link nodded in determination as the pair rode into the circle of light.

The boat descended into the water, Link held his breath in mild panic. Then he drew in a long breath from… the strange grey ocean. After a short time, they landed in a pool of crystalline water. Link stepped out immediately, feeling around to check if his surroundings were real.

They were.

"King… what is this…?"

"A land forgotten by its people, and forsaken by its gods!" King sounded almost angry.

"This… doesn't feel natural. It's air under the sea, so of course that's strange. There's more though… something in the air. Why's everything grey?"

"I couldn't say for sure…"

Link nodded, not caring much for this place, "Tell me what to do so we can leave!"

Something seemed off in the boat's eyes… indignant and sad. "Very well…" He indicated the hallway behind Link. "Follow this path, and you shall face a puzzle. Solving it shall give you the weapon to defeat Ganon. Now go… I don't want to be here longer than we need to."

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Link shouted, turned, and advanced down the hallway.

This was a castle… clearly. Royal emblems, flags, and cloths of every flamboyant color decorated the halls. Most of it in tatters, no doubt with age. The damage seemed to escalate the deeper Link adventured into the abandoned castle. No sense could be made of the destroyed furniture and ripped tapestries, until he saw something he didn't want to see often. Blood. Hard to tell as it was grey in this monochrome world, but it was blood Link could just feel it.

Hissing through his teeth Link sprinted deeper into the castle. Demons didn't bleed. Humans did, but demons cause it, "Damn it!"

Sure enough, the main chamber held most of them; other hallways had a few as well, but all throughout the castle…

Were Ganon's minions, the darknuts and the moblins.

"Damn damn damn!" Link shouted. Very quickly, it became apparent that these beasts were frozen in time. Although this thought didn't make Link feel very much better. "How…" Link walked aimlessly through the monsters, who were, for the most part, appeared to still be in combat. "Why…?"

He reached the ground floor again and looked around, only seeing large blocks and a large painted symbol. "Link… you've your destination, now find the hidden door to the basement… the puzzle before you bars the way."

"I see…" Link noticed the triangular shape of the blocks, smirked, and made quick work of the puzzle.

The last block slid into place. The whole of the blocks fell into the design disappearing, but the design bled bright gold light into the world of grey. The light assaulted Link's senses and near blinded him for a moment. When the light dimmed and Link regained his vision, something else assaulted his sense of hearing and deafened him for a while. Holding his ears closed Link looked up to see the statue of a warrior… dressed like him… "… The Hero of Hime…" Link murmured, remembering the old legends. He advanced to the moved statue, and down the newly revealed stairs.

The basement of a castle, Link huffed in amusement. It was still nicer than anything on the great sea. The many stained glass windows surrounded the moat, which surrounded the island where a pedestal sat.

The pedestal itself had a blade protruding from it. A large sword with a blue hilt and stainless steel blade. Link approached it carefully. "This is…"

"… The Master Sword." King's voice coming from the stone sent ripples through the air.

"This can defeat Ganondorf?" Link tilted his head.

"No…"

The green clad warrior felt a vein pop in his head, rage barreled up his throat to scream at The King. "WHAT!" He was livid. "You said this could defeat him!"

"The blade wont defeat him… you will. The sword's just here to help!"

Link smirked and let off a chuckle. "Could you be any cheesier?"

King didn't reply, but Link took a deep breath and placed both hands on the legendary blade. With a swift pull and a grunt, Link pulled the blade almost effortlessly from its pedestal. When the blade left its resting place, an invisible energy filled the room. It swirled around Link and through the air, and color drained back into the world. It only made Link even more aware of how wonderful this castle looked. The suits of armor that surrounded Link lowered their blades in respect. Link nodded, gave his new weapon a look over, then did a few test swings. "Not bad!"

"Does it work for you?"

"It'll do!"

"Oh don't be cocky lad!" King chided him with a laugh. "That's a blade forged by the gods made of pure steel. Show it a little respect."

"Now now King, I agree it's a nice sword. Certainly I'll enjoy having something that's hilt is not equal to the size of the blade."

(A/N: Seriously… it is the damn blade you start with that's how it is)

"Now lad, I don't wish to alarm you, but you should understand that life has returned to this place."

Link said nothing, his expression didn't change. Though anyone who looked close would see that his knuckles holding the sword had turned white with strain. "On it!"

The monsters were surprised, to say the least. All of their prey from moments ago were now gone. The demons all shared an incredulous look, then began patrolling the area.

Climbing up the stair set, Links knuckles turned blue with the strain of holding his sword so tightly. The statue of the hero of time slid back into place, loudly reminiscent of nails on a chalk board.

This, of course, did not go unnoticed by the surrounding demons. Two moblins charged Link, spears flying. Link ducked the first spear and knocked it away with his shield. The other moblin dropped its spear in surprise, thus leaving it open to be torn apart by several quick slashes. Link spun around and decapitated the first.

A darknut clashed swords with Link, then our hero parried the blade and tore apart the armor. He defeated the beast with a few more swipes.

This continued with a few more hours while Link slaughtered demon after demon. Moblins were decapitated; darknuts were disemboweled. Every demon that fell reminded Link how many they undoubtedly killed themselves. It didn't really make him feel any better, although he felt an enjoyment as the blood of his enemies flowed through the ancient halls.

"Just wait 'till I see you Ganon. I'll do a lot worse." Link muttered as he made his way out of the 'now' empty castle.

"Very good! You have the Master Sword!" King near cheered as the two began their assent.

"Let's go kill Ganon…" Link said with an extremely dark inflection.

"And save your sister!"

"… Right." Link grunted affirmatively.

Chapter end


It may surprise some of my readers to know that I have actually written a few chapters of this story in advance. (I was on a roll) So unless I'm murdered in some racial conflict, you can expect regular posts, (probably weekly) until the stories complete.