Strong winds were blowing all around Link and his flying friend as they flew over the ocean, the massive waves below them crashing into each other.
He never knew flying on the back of a flying Pokémon would have been this exciting, but at the same time, he was afraid that the strong winds would blow off his hat.
It was almost five hours ago since they had left Kongo Island, behind, and yet they still hadn't found anything. Link figured that if they would simply fly in one direction, they would have found Nintendopia's borders sooner or later, but nothing like that happened.
Link really didn't know that their world was this big.
Charizard must have thought something similar, for he turned around his head after some time and shouted: "Link, do you really think it's a good idea to keep on flying like that?"
"What else should we do?" Link shouted back. "We have to find this world beyond the borders of Nintendopia, or else our Queen won't be saved."
"I know that, but still, don't you think we should ask someone who really knows in which direction the closest border is situated? Maybe we should fly back to the Palace in the Sky and tell the Queen about what we found out, maybe then she can point us into the right direction."
"But what if we don't have the time for this?" Link asked. "You know that the Twilight spreads while we are talking."
"But think about it," Charizard answered. "What if we don't find the borders in this direction we're taking? Maybe it would be quicker to fly back, ask for directions and then fly straightly to where we know we must head to."
Those words made Link muse about his decision to keep on flying in this direction. What if Charizard was right? What if they had been flying into the wrong direction from the very beginning?
"Oh, all right!" he finally sighed in defeat. "But let's keep on flying for another hour, and if we haven't found anything by then, we'll head back."
"Okay," Charizard nodded. "One more hour!"
But that hour would prove to be too much.
The two of them hadn't noticed that the sky in the distance was getting darker by the minute. In the East, a powerful storm accompanied by a massive downpour. In the West, thunder was crackling down from the skies. From the South, a searing heat wave was approaching. And from the North, a chilly breeze was blowing snowflakes and icy winds into their directions.
"Seems like a storm is brewing," Charizard grumbled after he finally saw the huge clouds in front of them. "Maybe we should seek shelter…"
"Let's not waste any more time," Link said. "We'll fly through those clouds quickly and it'll be over soon."
"I'm afraid not," Charizard said with a frown. "I'm starting to guess who might be responsible for this weather, and if I'm right, this is something we should take very seriously."
"Why?" Link wondered. "What could be so terrible?"
"I fear that the four legendary bird Pokémon are approaching us, and it looks like they want to have one of their infamous battles right here. I've heard about them, and if what they say is true, than they will try to beat each other until they grow tired of it and try it again some other time. There is no escape if we get in the middle of such a fight!"
"Well, couldn't we just fly high enough so they can't reach us?" Link suggested.
But Charizard shook his head. "I seriously doubt it, Link! And by the way, there is no place where we could land and seek shelter. Look below, there's nothing but the wide ocean beneath us."
"Then we have no other choice," Link said grimly. "We have to face them. Besides, I wanted to ask them a question anyways."
Charizard's eyes widened with terror. "Talk to them? Are you crazy? They won't listen to you! And even if you manage to catch their attention for a while, they will be at each other's throats in a matter of minutes again."
"They are coming from the four cardinal points, right? So who could we better ask for where Nintendopia's borders are situated than those four? What are their names?"
Charizard's voice was getting very grumbly when he responded: "From the North comes Articuno, Legendary Bird of Ice. From the West comes Zapdos, Legendary Bird of Thunder. From the South comes Moltres, Legendary Bird of Fire. And from the East comes Lugia, Legendary Bird of the Sea. But you, Link, can't be serious! Talking to the birds in the middle of their fight… you crazy little boy…"
By now, fleeing was no longer an option. Within several minutes, the legendary birds were upon them, firing at each other with their respective elemental attacks. Articuno was shooting beams of ice. Zapdos was bombarding the others with bolts of lightning. Moltres tried to singe their feathers with a fire breath that was at least twice as hot as Charizard's. Lugia was creating tornados that were throwing the other birds and Charizard around as if they were nothing but paper planes.
Link gritted his teeth as he clung to Charizard's body. This maelstrom of elements was more than a normal person could handle. There was only one way he could get out of this.
He winced when Articuno flapped his wings and caused an icy blizzard to come his way. He fumbled around with his backpack, and finally, managed to yank out the Star Rod.
He raised it high above his head and yelled as loud as he could: "IN THE NAME OF THE QUEEN, STOP!"
Almost immediately, the four birds shut their beaks and stopped their attacks. The air all around them was getting much calmer as they gently hovered all around Link and his Pokémon friend.
While Charizard didn't believe his eyes, he still didn't have enough trust in the birds, so he mumbled quietly: "Hurry up and ask them already, so we can get out of here!"
Link nodded and raised his voice: "I'm looking for the borders of Nintendopia! Do you know where they are? Articuno, what about you?"
"There are no borders in the North," Articuno replied.
"Zapdos, do you know them?" Link asked.
"They aren't in the West," the thunderbird squawked.
"Moltres, can you help me out?"
"In all of my life, I have never seen the borders of Nintendopia in the South," he said in a gruff voice, while his fires were crackling around him.
"Lugia, what about you?"
"No borders in the East," the last of the legendary birds answered.
And as if they were one person, they asked him at once: "Who are you that you don't know that Nintendopia is endless and has no borders?"
Link was shocked. He never had expected anything like this. How should he know that Nintendopia really had no borders? Where should he search for the world Game & Watch told him about?
He almost didn't notice that the birds have started their battle anew. Powerful winds were blowing them around while Charizard had to dodge fire, ice and lightning.
"Hold on!" Charizard roared. "I'll try to get us out of here!"
Link tried to, but the rain and snow had made the fiery dragon's neck and shoulders very slippery, so Link had a hard time not to fall off. And when Charizard had to make a sharp turn to dodge an incoming thunder bolt, he slipped off… and fell down into the raging sea.
----
Pit winced. He had tried to steer Charizard through the storm, but it just was way too difficult. Hopefully that wasn't the end… he really didn't feel like replaying everything since Link had talked with Mr. Game & Watch, for that was the last time he had saved.
He was very relieved when the next image showed Link being washed up on some unknown shore.
Well, maybe that was just part of the game, and every player would have been thrown off Charizard's back at that point. It was not the first time in game history that a player was forced to take a certain route…
He looked out of his window and realized it was slowly getting dark. But he was far too excited by the game, he just couldn't stop playing now. Besides, he was dying to know what would happen to Link now…
----
Link groaned when he got up from the sand he was lying in. Strangely enough, this sand had an unnatural, dark color. And when he looked around, he noticed that everything around here was very gloomy and dark. He could barely see any plants growing around… and the sky… where was the sun?
He then realized what was going on: He had entered the Twilight! It wasn't nearly as black as the walls he had seen in Forever Forest and later, on Kongo Island, but he realized the dark clouds that were hovering over this strange land. It was entirely covered in Twilight.
Suddenly, he remembered his companion and looked skywards.
"Charizard!" he yelled. "Where are you? Hey! I'm down here!"
But he got no response. And he also couldn't find a single trace of his Pokémon friend.
Suddenly, a strange feeling was spreading through his body. He yelled when a sharp pain was jolting through his limbs, and he fell down to the ground again.
He looked at his shaking hands with horror. "What… what's happening… to… me…?"
He cried out when another wave of agony threw him down. His hands… were they changing shape? And did he see hairs growing on them?
Suddenly, the intense pain made him throw back his head and he let out a loud yell, which suddenly turned into the howl of a wild animal.
He breathed hardly and tried to drag his body away from the shore. But something was odd… his limbs were feeling all wrong.
In the end, he was able to make it to a small river that was flowing nearby. But when he looked into the murky waters, he got the shock of his life.
Staring back at him was the image of a fierce-looking, black-furred wolf.