Disclaimer: The Legend of Zelda series do not, repeat, not belong to me. They rightfully belong to Miyamoto. (May he continue to make exellent games for the rest of his days) What does belong to me are Cleo, Finn, Joseph, Emetaly, Pacha, Paulo, Prince Hassan, Abner, and Oi and Ollo.
Chapter 11
The bull elephant started touching her with his trunk, probably to check her over. "I'm fine!" Cleo said with a laugh. But her laugh faltered when she remembered Kaepora. "What am I gonna do? I can't continue this quest without him. And they'll fire at me once I come within ten feet of them." She looked up at the elephant. She'd like to give him a proper thank you and good-bye before she attempted a rescue. She put on the fox mask to change.
The elephant let out a trumpet of surprise and, for the first time, she heard a voice she understood as though he was human. "Whoa! What just happened tae the wee lass? She was thare a second ago!"
"Uh, hi! It's me! I'm the girl that rescued you! I can turn into this fox, you see?"
"Oh really? I didnae know humans could dae that."
"Well, I can. Listen, thank you for helping me back there, but I need to go now. There's a friend of mine that needs me. He was captured by those poachers."
"I see... Well at least let me come along. I can help ya save your friend."
"I don't know. Those poachers are ruthless. Are you sure you want to come."
"Aye, it's the least I can dae! Ye saved ma life, I am forever in your debt. Ye may hae tae cover your ears." Then he let out the loudest blast he could muster which carried across the savanna. After a moment of blaring, a whole heard of elephants started coming toward them. "Thae ruddy poachers hae hurt ma kin, but after seeing ya fight them off like it was nothing I now know we can too." He lowered himself onto his knees. "Climb on ma back an hold on tight lass!" Cleo, smiling, took off her mask and hopped on.
"Oi, are you sure she's here?"
"Of course I'm sure Ollo! The boss told me so earlier!"
"Oh, okay. Whatever you say bro."
Oi and Ollo were hiding in a orchard. "Now my sources tell me she was spotted just over that hill and is coming this way."
"Uh, yea?"
"So, as soon as she comes close we attack, this time, without mercy."
"Here she comes! Here she comes!" called another bokoblin.
"Okay remember, no mercy," Oi commanded.
"No mercy," Ollo repeated.
"No mercy!"
"No mercy!"
"NO MERCY!" they both shouted as one and then charged out of their hiding places toward their target, screaming a war cry. They stopped dead, their raised machetes dropping along with their jaws. Then they turned right around and ran the other direction, screaming even louder. Instead of just Cleo coming over the hill they were watching, there was also a stampeding herd of elephants. They ran back into the orchard, Ollo slammed into a tree in his panic, causing a strange, lumpy protrusion in the leaves to shake violently. It fell and landed on top of his head.
"Ollo, are you alright?"
"Swirly honey, swirl-" Ollo's muffled voice said before he suddenly started screaming and going crazy, trying to get it off him. Oi helped him pull it off with a pop, within seconds, the air became thick with buzzing and stinging as angry honey bees attacked them both. Soon the whole hidden army of bokoblins where overwhelmed by bees and were forced out of hiding, only to get trampled by the elephants.
Oi and Ollo were left, hiding in the trees, covered in large lumps, watching Cleo leave with the herd. "Again, she thwarted us! It must've taken her all morning to plan this trap!"
"So uh... what do we do now bro?"
Cleo rode the herd toward the poacher's camp, coaxing them to charge in a stampede. The poachers were caught off guard and totally unprepared, all they could do was run. The elephants trampled on the tents and knocked over the equipment. Cleo used her sling shot against the hunters, knocking them out. The poacher who shot at Cleo earlier (evidently he was the leader) grabbed his dart gun and fired away at random members of the herd. She saw him and leapt off of her mount to face him.
"Wha-? You?!" he shouted in anger. He shot a Cleo again, but she blocked it easily.
"There will be no more of your cruel hunting! Let them all go, starting with the owl, now!" she commanded, pointing her sword at him.
"Why do you care? They're just dumb animals! What's the point of their existence if we can't enjoy the thrill of the hunt?"
"You sound like someone I know, someone I HATE!" Cleo spat the last word at him. "You make me SICK!"
"Bring it girly!" He pulled out his long dagger and lunged at her. Cleo parried and countered, again, hitting only with the flat side of her sword. He managed to slice her on her arm and, in her brief moment of intense pain, kicked her. She fell on the ground and narrowly moved her head out of the way before she felt another stab of pain shoot through her cheek. The man wasn't showing any mercy, he was aiming to kill.
Before he attempted another stab at her, a loud trumpet roared and the bull elephant charged at him. Before he could put up a defense, the poacher was sent sliding across the dirt, and was unconscious. But the elephant wasn't done, he headed towards him and was going to flatten him. What a way to die, by the very thing he had hunted so passionately.
Cleo bolted toward them and stood between her new friend and the poacher she despised. "NO! NO! BACK!" she scolded at the bull. He seemed to understand her in her human form and obeyed. Feeling relieved and grateful to him for sparing the poacher, she grabbed a rope and used it to tie up all the poachers. After phoning the local police to come pick them up, she went to free all the animals.
Cleo was soon reunited with Kaepora, who was now conscious. "You okay?" she asked.
"I'll be fine, I'm still a little tipsy. Hoooo-" He did look a bit drunk from the sedation.
"You may have to avoid flying for awhile. I've got a new friend you can ri-" Something clicked in Cleo's mind. "A new friend..." She turned toward the elephant, Kaepora almost falling off her arm, and realization dawned. "...who's loyalty is as strong as his mind." She placed Kaepora carefully on the ground and put on the fox mask. "Hey," she called. "Can you do me another favor."
With the bull elephant's help, Cleo was able to push aside both the tree and the boulder, revealing much softer soil underneath to dig. Soon, she found the Fire Coral Earrings and replaced her sapphire studs.
She changed to a fox (the new earrings remained visible) to talk to her friend again. "Thanks for everything, it's been fun!"
"Nae problem lass! So where ya be heiding?"
"I'm going inside Mount Kilimanjaro."
"Really?" He sounded a bit concerned. "Are ya sure ya shuid be gaeing thare?"
"Yeah, I have to. There's something in there I must get."
"Hm, then let me gie ye a word o warning. Thay say that a demon elephant roams the heart o the mountain. I'm nae sure if the story is real or just a legend. But well, ye may need tae be careful doun thare, mind."
"Okay, thanks for telling me. I'll keep an eye out for it."
"I wan't forget ya, Cleo!" the elephant called to her as she left.
"No surprise there," she said to herself. "Hey Kaepora, is it true there's something in there besides the circlet?"
Kaepora, who had finally recovered, answered "I'm pretty sure there's suppose to be something guarding it. Lava alone may not be enough against intruders."
As a fox, Cleo climbed the mountain easily. But it took awhile to get to the cave, there were teetering, rocky pillars she had to hop across, with a bit of help from Kaepora since some of them crumbled the moment she landed on them. They went down into a cavern that looked like it was untouched by humans for a long time (there were african paintings of various animals on the walls), until they hit what appeared to be a dead end. Careful examination revealed a small opening. Again, she couldn't take Kaepora with her.
Still in fox form, Cleo crawled though the narrow tunnel. It wasn't very long before she reached the other side, but already, she was in a fiery place. She could feel the intense heat from the flowing rivers of lava and some of the glowing coal walls, but it wasn't affecting her at all. There were creatures here that could undoubtedly survive, lizalfos, fire bubbles and armos. After braving the flame traps and falling boulders, she found a whip called the Grappling Cobra which she used to swing over the lava or pull off weak stalagmites to create bridges. One stalagmite crashed into some geysers which she utilized as an elevator-like platform to get to higher ground. She let loose a boulder to open up a wall containing hot water to create a rocky raft in the lava river. She rode it to the final cavernous room.
Inside was a narrow hallway, it's walls adorned with tribal paintings of faces, all with looks of fear or anguish. Every way Cleo looked, the hallway seemed to curve as though it might be a circle. She heard booming close by and getting closer, then came an elephant's trumpet, except this sound was far more monstrous. Then she saw the source of the sounds as it appeared from around the curved wall.
Magma Demon Lord:
Chargnar Firaugn
Indeed, it was a demon elephant, it's body seem to glow as though it was on fire. The moment it saw Cleo, it charged, she dodged out of the way in time. It ran on all fours, racing round the circular hallway. Cleo tried to follow, but it was too fast, even when she chased it as a fox. It wasn't long before Firaugn came back from the other side and knocked her roughly aside. She spotted an unsteady stalagmite and got an idea. She used her whip to grab and pull it down. It was a little sturdier than she thought and the monster was approaching again. Pulling with all her might, it finally fell across Firaugn's path. It tripped and fell, she ran to slash at it. After receiving several hits, it got back up and was now paying more attention to Cleo. It lashed at her with it's trunk, which had a mouth with rows of sharp teeth on it's end. It breathed and spat flames at her, but she grabbed it with her whip and cut it off, then grabbed one of it's legs to trip it again. Finally, she charged in for the finish.
