NOTE: For those of you who may have chosen to read this without knowing the abilities of certain masks, the Mask of Truth in Majora's Mask not only has the ability to extract information from Gossip Stones, but the mask was altered in the game so that you can read certain small animal's minds. Yes, I am aware that Epona does not constitute as a small animal.

Chapter 14: Frozen Fairy and the Chilling Eye

Epona was starting to feel a breeze, and shivered slightly. Oh, come on! It's cold enough already! I'd like my nice stables back! The sun was starting to descend past the horizon, illuminating the Gerudo Valley in a very beautiful way. The stone walls glowed red-hot, and the sands were turning a most deep shade of orange. The sky bled forth an interesting tinge of ruby, and Epona quelled her annoyance a little while to watch the scenery. The dying tree she was tethered to also seemed to stop stirring in the wind as if to say, "See? life isn't so bad". Epona's eyes sparkled. She snorted. Ahh... If I ever loved one thing about these dangerous ventures of his, it's things like this.

Link, now bowless, had just come back from the Gerudo Fortress, where he had to apologize to all the Gerudo and serve guard duty for seven and a half hours. Link did two shifts and took the penalty of one hour for the Gerudo that were supposed to take the place of Miku and Kona. Indeed, it was a very trying and boring task. But he'd fulfilled the request completely because the guards were also watching him, just in case he decided to play the Elegy of Emptiness to skip his duties. Although, they expressed jealousy of the ability to make a statuesque self-replacement. During his half-hour break, he was tasked with eating in the mess hall where the Gerudo took their breaks, most of the time. However, Link also had to ingest the grotesque red concoction as well. It turned out the Gerudo made it from Leevers, and it was full of proteins and other nutrients to make them fit warriors. It didn't taste awful, but the smell was killing him. When his odd half-choking fit subsided, he questioned if all the Gerudo patrolled like this, 24/7. It turns out, half the Gerudo ever really patrolled, and the rest normally stood in line to practice archery on horseback or something similar. Others took relaxing baths in their living quarters. They had their hobbies, too.

The bright side of all this was that the Zola had been obtained and was now following Link obediently, eyes unblinking, gills flapping slightly every few seconds or so. Link eyed the mysterious creature. Zolas really appeared much different than Zoras. They had fringed white necks and fierce, unfriendly eyes. Their black heads had two white ear-like fins and their mouths seemed a little swollen. Could it be from the heat of their own accursed fireballs?

Link was twisting to and fro, trying to relieve the stiffness of guard duty, and approached Epona. She snorted and whinnied slightly. Perfect timing as always, Link. Now I'm not going to enjoy the rest of the sunset. Link patted Epona's saddle, which this time, actually soothed her slightly. He looked at the sky and the rocky path's luminescence. Smoothing out his hat from under his cloak, he stroked Epona's shoulder and asked her if they could just sit back and relax to watch the sunset for awhile. The noble horse almost seemed to be nodding its head in agreement, and backed up to get a better view of the sunset as Link untethered her. Link himself just sat down with his back to a nearby rock. As the sun went down, Link almost started to snooze, gazing at the peaceful scenery. Link's head fell back, though, and he jolted awake.

Upon hitting his head on the sand, he glimpsed a pattern on the rock he was situated on. It was familiar. The intricately carved lines in the sunset burned bright red in an unnatural manner, as if responding to it. Three triangles observing the eye under it, that had an iris that burned brighter in the twilit sun than the rest of the pattern, which bled a single tear, leading into the arcing mouth, angled up in a smirk. The rest of the rock was light gray. There was no mistaking what the rock was, now. It was a Gossip Stone. But Link had never seen a Gossip Stone in this part of the landscape. When did it get there? Getting up and brushing himself off, Link searched his tunic for the tool he needed to extract a secret from the mysterious stone. The stones apparently had excellent hearing, and overhead interesting things and recorded them in its memory. Or maybe it read minds?

Link found the mask he needed. It had the same pattern of the Gossip Stone, except the eye pattern was without exception, always red. The mask was white with a yellow iris that seemed to have the glow of a curious person's eyes. Taking off the Keaton Mask and putting the Mask of Truth on his face, Link looked through the transparent yellow of the eye. He placed his hand on the Gossip Stone's eye and it responded accordingly. It spoke in an airy mysterious manner. "To know who you are, you must know who your enemy is. Tell me, courageous Hero of these lands. What is it you fight against? Why do you fight them?" Link discarded the question, even though his mind flashed to Zelda, Malon, the Zola, and every kind and good person he'd met in his life. He queried when and why the stone got here. "Ah, my boy, that is exactly it. You know my kind. We are Gossip Stones, and will always be here when there is sweet knowledge to be obtained. If you weren't protected from my gaze, I would have extracted just who you think you fight for." Link's expression under the mask was of irritation. What exactly was protecting him? He asked the Stone what information it yielded. "I know many things, Hero. For one, I know a youth came in here not too long ago. This person walked in the same gait as yourself. You two are very similar, give or take a few years." Link tensed. "My brothers and sisters tell me you might very well know this person. In fact, many of them are dead certain of it. Tell me, coveted Hero, who might this person be?" The Stone seemed to be playing with him. None of the other Stones were so mouthy.

Link thought through a list of people it might be, knowing that he was trying to guess who the Zola was. It's not like Link hadn't though of it before. Who would he know that could take him Epona? The only people that fit that requirement lived in Termina. Could it be Romani? She and Malon should be about the same age, now... That could be why the Zola panicked whenever it was in her presence. Perhaps being a Zola makes you sound more masculine? Romani's good at fooling people. She could have ditched her odd speech pattern. Link's eyes wandered to the Zola behind him. It certainly didn't look like anyone he'd known. It opened its mouth and closed it again, making odd slurping noises. Link viewed this with slight confusion and turned back to the Gossip Stone. "Hehehe... Figured it out yet? It looks like you're onto something..." Link thought this comment was very suspicious. He settled on the Romani theory. He decided not to ask if this was right.

Link and the Gossip Stone stared at each other unblinkingly for minutes. The sun was going down and the Zola breathed in and out in an unnerving manner. "So, Hero. Let me ask you again. Who do you fight for?" Link scowled and kicked the Stone in agitation. "Now, now. It's rude to kick stones." Link scowled a bit deeper and turned around, walking towards Epona. The sun had finally disappeared beyond the scalding horizon. "Oh, and Hero." Link turned his head while mounting Epona. "Don't swing your sword at the obvious." The Gossip Stone was silent, with Link staring at it for a few minuscule seconds. Without warning, the Stone let out a cackle as it beeped, blinking a bright red. Link's eyes widened. He grabbed the Zola by the hand, pulled him onto Epona's saddle, and turned Epona around with a commanding shout. The horse did as commanded, and braced herself. She'd heard and understood every word made by the sinister Gossip Stone. She didn't trust this sudden action either. As the Stone continued cackling and beeping and blinking red, Link's ears were ringing. He looked back. The Stone was blinking ever faster, taking an abnormally long time to detonate. Upon looking into the Gerudo Fortress' entrance path, he saw the malevolent cackling had forced many Gerudo to light lanterns in their window as they were jarred from sleep.

Epona didn't take time to wonder why Link was hesitating. She ran to the beginning of the entrance path, turned sharply, and ran full speed towards the canyon. Jumping, she let out a very loud thought and a whinny. Seriously, Link, I'm going to kill you!

While airborne over the canyon, he gripped the uncaring Zola with one hand and wrapped the other arm around Epona. Beneath the whinnying of his horse, the insane Gossip Stone's laughter, and the flapping of his cloak in the wind, he could hear a death threat aimed at him. He would have assumed it was the psychotic Gossip Stone if it didn't sound a lot like a girl. Link assumed it was a memory of Tatl being played back in his mind during this dire situation. As soon as Link and Epona, joined by their amphibious guest, got out of the moonlit Gerudo Valley, they heard the echoing of mad laughter before they saw a huge burning red cloud of debris and sand which exploded from the space they were previously occupying ten seconds before. The blast's force made Link cover his ears and Epona rear on her hind legs. The wind was carrying in their direction, slightly east, as it had been since that afternoon, and they were showered with millions of grains of sand and the echoing of one defective Gossip Stone. Epona closed her eyes in agitation. This is doing nothing for my hair!

Link would have heard Epona's dilemma if he weren't absorbed in thought. He looked back at the cloud, eyes protected by the eye in his mask. He wondered why the Stone acted so abnormally and if the Gerudo would think they did it. Why would they blow up an unimportant part of their canyon? Link's queries were almost immediately answered as he heard incredibly loud thuds and splashes that shook the ground during the shower of sand. Link's eyes widened further. That explosion was stronger than it looked-- and that was saying something! The Gerudo Canyon's river would have immense boulders in it and the exit would be even harder to pass through. He'd have a lot of explaining to do. The laughter of the Gossip Stone died long after its owner, fading only after all the sand had settled. It seemed the awful thuds of the collapsing west side of the canyon stopped for a little bit, but as soon as Link got comfortable, a thud that overshadowed even the previous crashes of rocks engulfed his hearing. Epona sulked slightly, mourning the loss of her dying tree friend, which had kept her company for eight hours. Idiot...

! ! !

The Gerudo were in a panic, some of them leaving their sleep, carrying their lanterns and spears outside wearing nightgowns and sloppily applied uniforms. The Gerudo Training Grounds guardswoman was ordering everyone to their positions as the fortress leader applied similar directions, wearing her leopard spotted two-piece uniform over her nightgown, hair in a very sloppy ponytail. "To your defensive posts! Kona! Yaru! Investigate the explosion! Archers! Get to higher ground and await your orders!" Kona rubbed her temples, wearing a pink bathrobe over her hastily thrown-on uniform, clutching a spear halfheartedly. iAgain, I'm ordered to investigate the weird stuff! What is it with these people?/i The Gerudo collectively watched the billowing cloud of smoke and debris blowing eastward. The Training Grounds instructor continuously barked orders, "Do not reveal your position or presence until we hear from Kona and Yaru! If they aren't back in ten minutes, then the Green section shall advance forward with caution! That is all!" The Gerudo with a similar uniform to the Head Gerudo, with the exception of its green color, nodded, holding two curved bucklers.

! ! !

Link waited, listening to the mayhem of the Gerudo, thinking about what to do. Should he go back and explain that it wasn't his fault? Link patted Epona, still wearing the Mask of Truth, and dismounted her, instructing her to not go anywhere. Epona sat still, not complaining a bit. The Zola on her back was licking his lips and his eyes of the offending sand with his long tongue.

Link put his Mask of Truth back in his pocket, equipping the familiar Keaton Mask as he ran as fast as he could to the canyon edge, all the while hearing, "Show yourself!" being brought to his ears by the ever fiercer wind. Link waved his arms to the Gerudo, shouting words of apology and explanation, but the Gerudo couldn't hear him over the wind. He heard them, though, their voices almost amplified in the howling wind, which was starting to chill him to the bone. "You! Did you betray us and prevent our exit!?" Link shook his head vigorously, still shouting that it wasn't his fault. The Gerudo didn't appear to be getting Link's message. "We don't know what you're saying! You didn't do it?" Link nodded his head this time, pointing to a boulder that sat next to him, trying to get them to see it was a Gossip Stone. Kona frowned. "Yaru... What is he doing?"
"Pointing to a rock."
"I thought so."
"HEY! Is what caused this still around?", Kona shouted.

Link shook his head from across the canyon. Kona sighed and rubbed her eyes with her free hand, other hand still aiming the spear in Link's direction. "Okay, but how are we going to fix this?" The platform that once lead to the entrance to the Gerudo Fortress was half gone. Link couldn't see the damage to the Gerudo Canyon's river, as it was too dark, so the damage was vague. Link gestured a "Halt!" to them, as if to say, "Wait here!" Once the message was confirmed with an "Okay! We expect your return!... Or else!", Link dashed back to Epona, mounted her, and took off towards Hyrule Castle.

Since it was night, Stalchildren awoke from their slumber, enearthing their skeletal bodies at every corner. Epona plowed through them, pushed onward by Link's frantic yells. In half an hour of mad galloping, they finally made it to the drawbridge of Hyrule Castle Town. It was up, though, to prevent nocturnal enemies like invaders or Stalchildren. Link halted Epona, who was foaming. The Zola was just sitting on Epona's back, breathing in his unnerving fashion. Link tensed as he saw the closed bridge. What could he do? Stalchildren started to emerge from the ground rapidly, cornering them with their glowing red eyes and toothy grins. Epona squirmed uncomfortably. Do something, Link! Link's mind was racing. What could he do? Link eyed their grins with nervousness. He couldn't possibly take them all. There were almost a hundred coming their way. The small army of skeletal offenders reached their short arms out, ready to damage Link in their twisted fun. Were they laughing at him? Laughing...

Link's eyes widened as the answer came to him.

Link entered the cursed house seven years ago... It was astoundingly creepy. The house's only occupiers were many Golden Skulltulas and a host of laughing Stalchildren, who didn't care at all if Link cut them down. The whole scene was mocking him in its supernatural oddity. All they did was laugh, all day, without exception. They sat on book shelves and laughed. They never attacked Link, which almost made them more disturbing...

He inserted a hand into his tunic, trying to make out which mask he was in desperate need of. The Stalchildren were within ten meters of Link and company when Link finally dropped his Keaton Mask into his tunic and donned the Captain's Hat, a skeletal memento of the previous Captain. The Stalchildren collectively stopped moving with their mouths agape. Suddenly, their fixed mouths seemed to stop smirking at them. They all straightened up and saluted Link. "Welcome back, Captain! We weren't expecting you! May we be of assistance?" Link nodded and ordered them to make a chain of themselves over the moat, then make a ladder of themselves over the castle walls. "Yes sir!" The mass of bone constructed an entrance over the gate in under fifteen seconds, and Link was satisfied, a bit impressed with the monsters. He walked over them, careful to avoid stepping on their faces, and climbed the literally monstrous ladder. Link, now on top of the castle wall, shouted down to the guard supervising the bridge to let it down. Link's face was familiar in the torchlight, but what was that bone-chilling hat of his? The guard nervously complied, striking the pavement with his spear, which seemed to be the universal signal for, "Let them through!"

The guard's hearing was visited immediately by a series of splashes followed by distinct, "Gack!" noises. When the gate was fully open, the guard noticed many unnerving things. There was an army of monsters at the bridge. Link grabbed onto the chain of the descending bridge and hopped off near the end of his ride. What was more unnerving about the monsters was how Link ordered them around. He heard Link issue an order to stay on standby until the next time he ordered them to arise, which meant they would be in the ground until the next time he needed them. The collective group of Stalchildren saluted him, "Yes sir!" They spun into the ground simultaneously, and Link mounted Epona. The guard was heavily confused, scratching his head under his helmet. Is that a Zola on his horse? Indeed, Link rode through town sporting a monster on his horse, which was licking its eyes with an indifferent expression. The guard's demeanor went from stiff and attentive to slackjawed and disbelieving. Link shook his hand, and thanked him. Upon letting go, the guard's arm went limp. As Link rode towards Hyrule Castle, the Zola repositioned itself on the horse to observe the guard. It stuck its long tongue out at him, still without expression, and the guard seemed to give up. He called for the bridge to be pulled up and he lied down, falling asleep.

-Chapter End-