Chapter 13

By Sweat and Toil

"The only thing that will redeem mankind is cooperation."

-Bertrand Russell

"What? That's not true, Canis. The Great Deku Tree said I'm a Kokiri."

"No, you're not."

My eyes shot to look at Navi and so did Link's.

"What do you mean, Navi?"

"Link, you were always a little different... When you came to the forest, a war was going on in the country. The Great Deku Tree explained it to me a few days before our journey began."

"What... what do you mean?"

"Link, there was a war that almost destroyed the land. It had a harsh effect on the citizens of Castle Town. One rainy night a woman carrying a young child rode across the field to Kokiri Forest. She was your Mom, Link... and she was gravely injured. Despite the magic working against her body, she found her way to the Great Deku Tree's meadow. She held her child before him and begged that he care for you. She was weakening in the forest, Link... Her wounds were too grave and too many..."

"You knew that I didn't belong here and lied to me?" he asked.

"Of course not, Link! I was trying to protect you..."

"You knew I was living a lie and you did not tell me..."

"Link, don't say that. You're a Hylian, yes... but you're also a Kokiri."

Link sighed and put his hand to his head. "Well, I guess Mido had every right to call me names."

Canis fell silent and I didn't say a word. It was time to let Link unload a little.

"Link... you're twice the Kokiri Mido was and you're also a Hylian... I didn't mean to hurt you... "

"No, you were only trying to protect me," grumbled Link. He looked at me. "Did you know Jack? Was this some..."
"Jack had nothing to do with it!" shouted Navi. "Don't you dare try to pin blame on him!"

Link glanced at Navi and then at me. He sighed. "Sorry, Jack."
"Apologize to Navi. You act as if it's her fault. For all you know, The Great Deku Tree told her not to tell you of your origin until now."

Link stared at me for a moment.

"Forgive and forget," said Canis. Link sighed and put his head in his hands.

"Navi... I'm so sorry. I just... feel like I've been living a lie."

"I understand, Link. You have not been living a lie. You are the Hero of Time, Link."

Link smiled again. "I don't think I've ever been this confused before."

Canis smiled wolfishly. "Destiny is confusing."

Link nodded. "It is. Canis, why don't you come with us?"

Canis sighed but shook his head (it looked like he was shaking dry).

"It is your destiny that lies in the temples, not mine."

Link nodded. "Very well." He looked up at Navi. "Again, I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Link. Now, is there anything else, Canis?" Navi asked. Canis nodded.

"There is one thing: I can't help but notice the condition of your chain mail, Link."

"Yes, it seems to be failing me," said Link, pulling at the various holes and slashes in his chain mail.

"Link, chain mail is effective for resisting ranged attacks. The cuts and slashes on your chain mail are caused by melee weaponry... to be specific I'd say... a Mongol's Sword?"

Link continued fingering the breaks and tears in his chain mail, but I've seen a Mongol's Sword before and they're... gigantic. One of the corrupted guardians of the Forest Temple used one.

"That's right," I said, amazed.

"I have to say, it's a miracle you even survived being struck by a Mongol Sword. You truly are the tempore heros; the... Hero of the Time."

Link was going to say something but Canis interrupted.

"I'd like to give you something; a stronger armor. Hold on a moment."

Canis turned around and darted into the woods leaving us alone and confused, but he returned again a few moments later with something in his mouth. It was... it was a chestplate made of something that I could not identify. It dragged against the ground a little but Canis seemed to be trying his best to keep it out of the dirt. He put it down in front of Link and bucked something off his back that I'd only then noticed. What he carried on his back were to protect Link's legs.

"This armor is used by the assassin novicius," said Canis. "It can resist heat and ranged, and weak melee strikes, but not much else. I will see if I can find stronger armor for you as time progresses, so come to the forest and see me once you finish whatever you're off to do now."

"How am I going to know when you're here or not?" asked Link. Canis sat on his haunches again.

"Play this song on your ocarina."

The wolf shut his eyes and held his head high. He howled a mornful tune... a tune of regret and remorse but also redemption. Navi and I were blown away by how beautiful the song was coming from this animal; this supposed "assassin". A beautiful smile spread across Navi's face and a look of wonder spread across mine. Link stared with amazement on his face... but it did not take long for Canis to finish his song. He opened his eyes and watched Link expectantly. Link got the picture and took out his ocarina. He played a few notes to himself, then played the song himself. He played it twice and his ocarina let off a familiar sparkle.

"The Song of Courage," I said. "How does that sound?"

"It sounds fitting for the Hero of the Time," said Canis. Link smiled at me and bowed at Canis, and then he picked up the armor.

It had what looked like the letter "A" blown out of proportion. A look of suprise came across Link's face. "This armor is very light, are you sure it can do as you say?"

Canis smiled wolfishly. "It is the armor of the assassin; that is why it is light. I assure you it is strong; stronger than what you wear now."

"Thank you, Canis. I will return when Death Mountain is cleansed."

Canis looked up at the sky and sighed.

"It is getting late and I must find somewhere to sleep. Nihil versus, omnia licita. Good luck, my friend."

Canis trotted off into the woods with a bark and we let Link have a little privacy while he put on the armor. I wondered how Canis knew what size to get, but I assumed it was a "one size fits all" kind of thing.

The newly armored Link walked out from behind a few trees carrying what looked like a tattered green cloth. He tossed it to the ground. It was his chainmail.
"How does that armor feel on you, Link?"

"Light... I have my doubts, but we shall see."

"At least you have something to protect your legs, too," Navi mused. Link nodded. "That's true."

Link still wore his green tunic, white undershirt and white stockings, but with the silver chestplate under the tunic and silver leggings over his stockings.

The silver cut chestplate had the heads of eagles on the shoulders and looked to have words carved into it. I could not read what these words said as they were in a different language, but all of the armor just made Link look... He looked tougher. Link was a tough guy before, but...

I still wanted to know what that "nihil" something or other meant. But by now Canis was long gone, and we had no choice but to move on.

We'd never spent a night in the Lost Woods before and agreed not to tonight. Navi pointed out that if a Skull Kid were to come across an adult... well, she said it wouldn't be pretty.

All the monsters we ran into in Kokiri Forest were gone. There was no trace of them anywhere. When we reached the forest we found a pool of blood- the only remaining trace of our first encounter with Tricky. Link brushed dirt over it and we moved on.

We had to leave the woods completely for Navi to be comfortable with rest. It was late at night and we slept the sleep of the dead for the first time in a long time (this figure discluding the seven-year coma, of course).

Nobody even ate. I had no appetite (wasn't feeling so good) and Navi wanted sleep more than anything. Link had no energy left after all that occured in the Forest.

I stayed awake a while longer and just picked out stars and constellations in the sky that I knew. I couldn't get what happened in the temple off my mind; was I really so weak that a clown can take me out and evil can corrupt my mind?

I wondered what would have happened to me had I not survived. Where would I go next? I know the Great Deku Tree told me when I first arrived but what he said escapes me. I almost wished for Navi to wake up so she could explain to me but she needed rest.

My mind wandered to Link. Ever since we met the boy he'd been good as gold. Ever since we all woke up from the coma, however, he'd been acting a little different. As a child he acted as an adult. Now that he really was an adult, he acted like a robot. He did only what needed to be done and I feared what he was becoming.

As I thought to myself I drifted to sleep.

*_* (Gah, that's creepy)

"Hey... Jack. Wake up, wake up."

It took me a moment to open my eyes. I shut them again for a moment and then opened them slowly once more.

"Good morning," I said in a daze. I stretched and moved my wings a little.

"You were mumbling in your sleep. Come sit with me," she said. She walked to Link's hat and sat down.

"Link let me use his hat to sleep. I tried to ask you if you wanted to use it but you were really deep in thought. What's on your mind?"

I sighed. "Navi, what happens when we die? You know, for real?"

She looked at me. "Well... good people end up going to heaven and living with the Goddesses. Bad people go to the Void; a place like Hell for all of eternity... But Jack, we would do anything to keep you alive..."

I relaxed with a smile and looked at Navi. "I'd do the same for you guys."

She smiled back at me and hugged me, to which I returned. Navi kissed me on the cheek. I put my forehead on hers and looked her in the eyes. We stayed like that for a few moments and started inching our lips closer to each other before Link stopped my run to second base.

Damn it, Link! All advances just... ceased the moment he woke up.

"Good morning, Navi. Good morning, Jack."

Navi was blushing and so was I. "Good morning," we said at the same time. I don't think he saw, but I'm pretty sure he knew what was going on. He gave us a smile that said "I know" to me, but he didn't bring it up.

"Well... let's have breakfast, and then we'll go to Kakariko."

Link ended up making breakfast (Navi wanted me to do it but we only had stuff that I could not hold... it sucks being the size of a hockey puck).

Well, for breakfast we had some eggs (I love eggs) and some bread. It would've been nice to have toast but bread worked just as well.

While we ate I decided to ask Link what he thought of Canis. He seemed nice, but a little... off. Link shrugged.

"He may seem a little strange but he's trustworthy. All he wants is for us to do what he failed to do. I think he is trying to do what he can to ease our journey."

The trip would have been quicker if we'd used... the... the... The Prelude of Light to go to Castle Town and walk to Kakariko from there, but Navi feared the ReDeads and so did Link and I. We opted to just take the long route.

I asked Link if he thought we should stop by Lon-Lon Ranch. He shook his head. "I think Malon would appreciate more time with her Father, and I'd hate to ask to borrow the horse. What it all boils down to is I've only seen her on three seperate occasions."

I nodded slowly. "This is true."

With that the conversations fell silent as we tried to cover as much ground as possible without aid. What was difficult was looking at the field again. Although Link's attempts to free the Forest were successful, the fields hardly changed.

Link ran out of water a few hours after we began walking and he went to check the creek.

I stopped Link before he dunked his head underwater.

"I don't trust this creek, Link. If you get even a drop of water in your eyes or mouth, you might get very sick. Settle for filling your canteen and remember to boil the water before you drink it."

"...Very well."

When Link first used the creek to fill his canteen seven years ago the water was flowing. Now the water was stagnant. I asked Link how thirsty he was and he said he'd be okay for a while.

The bright side was we were around halfway to the field and we encountered no life in the field. The sky was covered by a cloud layer, but behind us in the distance the sky seemed clear.

"I want to continue moving overnight to get to Kakariko. When we get there we can rest, then we'll go up the mountain to see Darunia. I'm sure he knows something about the Sage of Fire."

I wondered how Death Mountain changed. Surely Ganondorf's influence had done something terrible to the volcano, the Gorons, or at least the village built at the foot of the volcano. I could see the growing mountain in the distance and took a better look.

I had to stop myself from gasping in suprise. You see, there's a cloud that surrounds the peak of Death Mountain. It's a cloud of dust or soot coming out of the crater and forming this "halo" around the peak. I saw it seven years ago but didn't pay much attention to it. Now the cloud was hard to not look at. It turned bright red and surrounded the peak much like it did before, only now the mountain looked like the devil's plaything. The cloud was spinning very quickly around above the peak. With each step we took forward the sky seemed to get darker. Oh, not a lot at first. It seemed like the clouds were shifting in the sky or some nonsense like that. At first.

Now it had been several hours since we started walking and the sky was almost that of night without the stars. We could hear a low continuous roar coming from the direction of the mountain. It was as if the mountain was saying "Go away, go away, go away!"

But we didn't go away. We climbed the stairs to Kakariko and our spirits soared.

"These are the citizens of Castle Town!" Navi exclaimed. It was true, many of the citizens from the doomed town had indeed survived. Link smiled again, but frowned. Many of those from Castle Town came to Kakariko, but some were missing.

The once quiet little village was now becoming a busy town to rival what was once Castle Town. A Bazaar had been constructed near the Death Mountain Pass and more housing had built up. The people of the town gladly took those who lost their homes in after whatever happened that day seven years ago.

What happened to people like that? Most people I know would cringe if told that a disaster had befallen a neighboring settlement and a bunch of survivors had to move in. The town I was born in was this quaint little eccentric town called "Southern Meadow" in California. It was notorious for being one of the least tolerant towns around. If you weren't born there you were an outcast.

We didn't live there for long. When I was about 4 years old we moved from Southern Meadow to Yucca Valley. It was in Yucca Valley that I lived the rest of my days and because of its proximity to Joshua Tree, it was my favorite town ever.

I don't know if it's because I didn't go on vacation to other towns so much or because I may have been homesick that I mentally compared Kakariko to Yucca Valley. Other than being kind and letting anyone in, the towns had nothing in common.

While we explored the new Kakariko (now complete with a "potion shop", the Bazaar, a pub, and another building with a red cross on the door) Link gathered any information he could. From all the people willing to share we put together a story of what may have happened the day we fell into the Seven-Year Coma.

"What do you think, Jack?"

We found out that Death Mountain blew its stack seven years ago on what I referred to as Hyrule's very own D-Day. (The outcome of this D-Day was entirely different). Strangely, Death Mountain's eruption had little or no effect on Kakariko. Not one villager was harmed, a fact to which the early citizens of Pompeii would envy. Instead of destroying the village built right under its nose, the Mountain completely annihilated Castle Town. The story we heard was that the volcano blew it's top just hours after a green garbed boy was seen entering the Temple of Time with two fairies. The eruption and even several earthquakes lasted until sundown.

It was the first time in years that the stalchildren refused to come out of the ground. By sundown a majority of Castle Town either evacuated or was killed. The rest who had the courage to stay were driven out or killed by a horde of ReDeads coming from the collapsing form of Hyrule Castle. One of the last recognizable buildings inside Castle Town was destroyed when Hyrule Castle fell and a dark, evil looking castle seemed to appear from nothing.
"Jack?"

The ReDeads in the castle town killed a few people but also lost some of their numbers to mercenaries or thieves who were talented with a sword. Those brave enough to fight were eventually pushed back or killed by the ReDeads. Some people say that those who were killed by the monsters came out of the town some hours later with leathery brown skin, hollows for eyes, and a hollow for a mouth. Other people disagree and say that some ReDeads who came from the Castle simply found their ways out of the town and into the fields.

Any straggling ReDeads were put down by talented archers and swordsmen who escaped the disaster.

"Jack?"

After the events that drove Castle Town to nothingness, the survivors spread out. Some went to find hope in other places while others went to Kakariko.

The only thing that survived in Castle Town on D-Day was the Temple of Time. Appearantly even Ganondorf wasn't strong enough to destroy something guarded by the Goddessess... or perhaps he never intended to destroy it.

"Jack...? Heeellloooo?"

Navi's voice brought me back to reality. "Huh, what?"

Navi giggled and looked at Link. "I told you he wasn't listening!" I chuckled nervously. "Sorry, Link. What did you say?"

"I said that I'm going to wake you both up at around 1 and we'll take off, then I asked if you thought that would be okay."

"Oh, uhh... yeah, why not?"
"You guys can sleep in my hat if you need to later. In the meantime let's see if Impa would let us use her house once more."

I nodded. "Sounds like a plan. You can boil that water when we get inside."

We knew something was going on when we found a guard standing in front of the door to Impa's home. He stopped us.

"Hold on a minute there. Who are you, and what business do you have here in New Kakariko?"

"My name is Link, and we need to rest."

The guard looked Link up and down. He did a double take at Link's new armor.

"What are you doing here, Mr. Link?"

"I come to visit Goron City, but I underestimated how long it would take to make it here."

"You look a lot like the child that ran into the Temple of Time before Death Mountain erupted... Do you work for King Ganondorf, Mr. Link?"

"No, of course not."

The Guard didn't believe him. He pointed his spear at Link and Navi and I gasped. Link simply put his hands in front of him in surrender.

"Who do you work for?"

"I'm self-employed, and I mean no ill intent. All we want is to visit the Gorons."

The Guard scowled at Link. "No sale!" he shouted.

"What are you talking about?"

"Do you think I'm stupid? Everybody knows the Gorons went extinct. Unless you want to see an empty volcanoside, you don't belong here."

We were all perplexed. "Empy volcanoside?" I echoed. "Explain yourself, what does that mean?"

The Guard just... stared at us. "Wait... you truly did not know? The Gorons have been missing for the past five years. I suppose they are not really "extinct", but only one lives in their former city now. It's just as well. Tourism plummeted for them about seven years ago."

Link looked away. "I get it... so you won't even let us rest here?"

"Not until you prove that your motives are pure."

I crossed my arms while flying and pouted. "What would you have us do?"

The Guard snickered. "Why don't you go up Death Mountain and find out what happened to the Gorons? Maybe then I'll let you rest here."

Link said nothing and whirled around. "That's just what I'll do."

Link started walking off and we reluctantly flew after him. There would be no rest for the weary. I could hear the Guard laughing behind us and I wanted desperately to go back and hurt that guy. I knew deep down that Link could have ended his life without much trouble; the Guard looked like he was there for show, not power.

As we wearily headed through the path to Death Mountain we were greeted by more heat than usual and loud rumbling. The sky had become red and the path before us was bathed in an eerie red-orange light. The weird cloud above Death Mountain was taking on the responsibility of the sun, and I could sense evil and lifelessness.

"Link, look out!"

No more then 10 minutes into the trek Link was forced to dive out of the way of an oncoming boulder. He stayed out of the path as several more rolled down the path before crashing into a wall and breaking into little pieces. They may have been giant dirt-clods, but I wouldn't want to be hit by one of them.

"Nice dive, Link," I said. He panted, and kept moving.

T_T

Problems. Too many problems. Link was showing symptoms of Heat Exhaustion and dehydration (he still had the unboiled water in his canteen) and we had to dodge a barrage of boulders once every 10 or 20 minutes. Progress was slow, we were all getting tired, and it seemed as if nature was hard at work against us. Link told us earlier in the trip up that Canis' armor really did keep some of the heat out. Of course, none of us have seen it in action yet, but I had a feeing we would soon.

After an extra hour and a half of walking, we found the city of the Gorons. The banner that once stood overhead of the entry to the City was missing, and the pathway that once carried commotion from inside the city had fallen eerily silent. Link made sure to empty his canteen and fill it with well water. I was antsy about the condition of that water too, but it was crystal clear, we couldn't see any dirt in it, and it was either that or tell Link that he could drink his own pee.

The Guard was correct about the City. It looked much the same as it used to look, although there were a few differences.

The City was a ghost town. The heat was sweltering and the bomb flowers that once dotted the land, walls, and ceiling were brown and wilted. The platform suspended above a steep drop to the first floor of the City was gone. The ropes that suspended it snapped and the gigantic goron statue at the first floor was shattered by what likely used to be the platform.

I got it! It's a Splatform!

"What do we do?" I asked. Link shrugged. "If there aren't any Gorons here- oomph!"

My head and Navi's shot to look at Link as he stumbled forward and to the ground. We looked at the force that struck him from behind... that familiar rock form, those vacuous eyes... it was a Goron, and a tiny one at that! He was crouched and ready to attack again at any moment.

"Go away, human! What could you possibly want with my city? Can't you see that your King has done enough?"

Link put his hands out in surrender. "Woah, woah! He's not my King! I'd die before I bow to him! And what do you mean, 'He's done enough'?"

The Goron dropped his fighting stance at Link's words and took a step back in suprise. "What? You haven't heard?"

"We've heard that the Gorons have gone extinct, but we don't know why. Can you elaborate?"

The Goron before us sniffed. "Not extinct! Volvagia... the dragon that was sealed in the crater of Death Mountain years ago... Ganondorf woke him from his slumber and he took every Goron prisoner! He's going to eat them... my Dad went to stop him, and hasn't returned!"

The Goron stopped speaking and began to sob. I felt awkward and I heard Navi say "Aw, there, there". I looked at Link and saw an awkward look on his face, too.

"Uh... can you tell me a little bit about your father?"

The Goron stopped sobbing after a few moments and took a few breaths. "Well... M-my Dad's the Leader of the Gorons. He went to free the others... and... well..."

The Goron sighed and Link asked another question to keep him calm. "What's your Father's name?"

The Goron sniffed. "Darunia. He named me after a little boy that came to our mountain seven years ago and freed our Cavern from another of Ganondorf's curses... His name was Link, so my name is Link." (To avoid confusion I'll call the Goron Link Link-Goro and our Link... Link. Clever, eh?)

I smiled and Navi giggled. "What have you heard about Link?" I asked. Link-Goro thought for a moment.

"Well, I heard that he freed the Cavern from a curse of Dondongos with the help of two fairies... In return Dad gave him the Ruby that kept the City cool... and he's never been seen since. He's one of our Brothers... but Dad says he's very busy and very distant."

A warm smile came across Link's face (our Link). "He's right; I have been."

Link-Goro took a step back in suprise. "Oh, my Goddesses! Link! That's really you! Link, Navi, and... uhh... John!"

Link and Navi laughed and I faked a smile. "Actually, it's Jack..."
"Oh, I'm sorry! Link, Navi, and Zack!"

Link and Navi laughed again and I nodded with an ever-so-fake smile on my face. "Yes, yes... It's Zack," I muttered.

"Oh, uhh... Link, listen... I'm sorry to ask this of you... but do you think you could go into the crater and help my Dad?"

Link nodded. "Sure thing."

The hard of hearing Goron threw himself into Link with the strongest embrace I think I'd ever witnessed. I didn't look at Link because I was laughing too hard and so was Navi.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!"

He released Link after a few moments and everything fell silent for a second, during which I seized my opprotunity to say "Hey, Link. Does that armor work?"

He tried to knock me out of the air and Navi giggled. I flew out of the way of his hand and he growled. I chuckled. "It was worth it!"

Link-Goro beckoned for us to follow him and we did. As we walked, we talked... or rather, he explained some stuff to us.

"Hey, the Crater can be entered from the top of the mountain or through a secret passage in my Dad's room. I just so happen to know where the passage is... but even if you used it you'd probably cook wearing what you're wearing now. I can give you a tunic that we Gorons make for humans. It allows you to resist the heat in the crater and slows dehydration. It's simply called the "Goron Tunic"... just a second, let me get it for you."

Link-Goro vanished into another dark corridor and left us baffled for a few moments, but he returned quickly too.

He carried a tunic similar to the one Link wore right now. It was red and the outside was made of scales while the inside was made of fabric. Link-Goro showed Link to a room to change in and we waited outside for him.

"So Navi... where did you and Zack meet Link?"

Navi smiled. "We were assigned to him seven years ago so to aid him in his quest. We've been inseperable ever since."

"Wow. You've been with him for seven whole years?"

We nodded.

"How old are you?" I asked.

"I'm eleven. What about you guys?"

"I'm 26 and Zack is 25."

I shot a look at Navi and she returned it with an innocent smile. "What? Isn't that your name?"

I was about to say something but Link came back dressed in the Goron Tunic. It even came with a hat for Link to wear and had some kind of leather armor covering the shoulders. With the armor Canis gave him over it, he looked like some kind of humanoid-shiny tomato.

"Okay, show me to the passage."

Link-Goro nodded at us and then started walking again. He led us into Darunia's room and to the back where a stone statue stood. With a mighty push, Link-Goro moved the heavy statue with ease. Almost immediately a heavy wave of heat greeted us. Navi and I thought we were able to stand up to it, and even Link seemed okay. Link-Goro waved at us and ran off, and we walked into the oven.

~.^

We were in a lot of trouble. Navi had passed out and I was seeing double. The heat was unforgiving and we were sitting in Link's hat, where everything was strangely cool. I rested Navi's head on my lap and did what I could to elevate her legs.

"Jack, is she awake yet?"

"That's a negative!"

"I have to get across this gap, come out for a few moments and carry her."

With that I lifted Navi and flew out from under Link's hat. When I was clear he took out his hookshot and fired.

The heat was unbearable and I was worried sick about Navi. I felt faint too but I wouldn't be falling into the lava with a passenger! I pushed the clouding out of my head and flew to Link.
He was sweating but not the way you'd expect. Instead of being soaked he was only lightly sweating... as if he just went for a jog.

I knew Navi and I would be spending most of the time in his hat. That's exactly where I went the moment Link settled on the ground. Navi muttered a little and I got situated. Her eyes flickered open and my hand was playing with her wing.
"Mmm...Jack...What's going on?"

I was overwhelmed with relief. She was waking up at last! I pulled her into a hug and she returned it in a daze.

"Was I asleep?"

"No, Navi... the heat got to you. You passed out..."

"Did... Did Link leave Death Mountain?"

"No, we're in his hat... You had me worried."

"I'm sorry..."

I smiled and Navi yawned. "It's nice in here... nice and cool."

"I know... I feel bad for Link."

"I can hear you guys."

Navi giggled and I just smiled. Link spent the next several minutes running and I felt kind of bad for spending our time in his hat.

Suddenly he came to a stop.

"You have come to realize your true identity," -I pushed my head out from under Link's hat- "and have awakened the Sage of Forest. Good work, Hero."

"Sheik... how do you do?"

The mysterious sheikah shook hands with Link and bowed.

"I do well, but I now wish to tell you more of your next objective."

Without waiting for Link to respond, he continued.

"With the Forest in check, you must cleanse the Temple of Fire. It is within the Temple of Fire that the world's balance between destruction and restoration thrives. Should it fall to Ganondorf, the Mountain along with other volcanoes on the planet will erupt relentlessly... The molten innards of the world will flood the surface, the people and animals will die, restoration of the planet's life will cease and your cleansing of the Forest Temple will no longer make a difference. Link, should you wish to turn back for a short while and get supplies or rest, you may play the song of burning fury to return to this spot, The Bolero of Fire!"

The song Sheik played on his harp was... it was incredible. Every note rang out full of strength and passion. It was as if the song could pierce Death Mountain itself. Link played the song once on his ocarina and again like he always did. The ocarina glowed another color and I felt myself become a little bit stronger with the song, my determination to help this boy save the world glowing brighter then ever before.

No, not "this boy". Link was no longer a boy; he was a man. He was going to get through this. I knew it, Navi knew it, and I'm sure Ganondorf knew it deep down somewhere.

Sheik bowed. "Alas, I have no information on this temple that I may report to you, but I have heard of your encounters with the cursed wolf in the Lost Woods. Be wary around that one. While his motives appear to be true, keep in mind that he was once an Assassin. His type are not to be trusted so easily Link."

Link crossed his arms. "I trust him against your words. His motives aren't just true; they are modest. He does not want me to exact revenge on Ganondorf for him, he wants me to do what he failed to do and allow him to "rest". His goals stand not on the notion of vengeance or lust for power, but on simply fulfilling what he was unable to."

Sheik's brow furrowed in anger. "What do you know about the Assassins? They are cowards! They strike when one is vulnerable and do not stay to fight. The Assassins are weak and rely on the element of suprise!"

"I thought the Assassins were wiped out."

"You can never completely wipe out a stronghold or a brotherhood. It will return time and time again..."

"Like Cholera," I said, chuckling. Navi giggled and Sheik let out a grunt.

"Well, regardless I trust in Canis. He simply wants closure and rest. I plan to deliver, and if you have a problem with it Sheik, I'm just going to say there's room for you in this sea of lava."

Sheik stared at Link for a while and Link stared back. At that point I could see Sheik and Link likely would not become friends... They'd remain allies and allies only. The Sheikah turned away and dropped something that blinded us all with a flash, and he was gone. Link stared in the direction the man stood a moment ago with a scowl on his face. After a few moments he turned away and started walking again. I still was peeking out from under his hat and saw a ladder no more than 10 feet ahead of us. It led straight down. With a sigh, Link grabbed the rungs of the ladder and began to descend out of Death Mountain and into what could have been Hell.

_-_ (It's an upside down face.)

Wandering through the Fire Temple was strange. Navi and I spent much of the time in Link's hat like I predicted and I'd peek out from under it once in a while to make sure all was well.

We ran into Darunia about a half hour after we started exploring the temple. Our conversation was very brief. With his brothers in jeopardy, Darunia lost all hesitation. He didn't stick around very long to reunite with Link, he didn't argue with Link, he didn't shout... instead he turned about and said:

"Well, I'll be... is that you, Brother?"

Link nodded in the affirmative. "Yeah, I heard you were having trouble, Darunia."

Darunia grinned and threw his arms out in a wild gesture. "Look at you! All grown up... And yes, my race has been imprisoned in this temple by the dastardly Volvagia."

Oh, Volvagia! I thought it was "Volvo-Gogo"!

"So I've come here to free my brothers and destroy that evil dragon once and for all, of course... it may not occur in that order."

"Darunia, leave that up to me-"

"Hey, that's a good idea Brother! Why don't you see if you can find my brothers and save them?"

Link nodded. "Sure, but what will you do?"

Darunia wore his proud smile and turned away. "I'll be defeating Volvagia!"

Link did everything he could and so did I but to no avail. I'm usually good at persuading people, but there was no persuading this stubborn Goron to listen to us. He opened a door across a pit of lava from us and vanished inside. Some type of magic surged through the room and put chains over the door. To top it all off iron bars slammed down, too. Comforting.

The Fire Temple looked like it was once a prison. Bars blocked windows and beyond the windows were vast expanses of magma. What were likely once holding cells were now buried under feet of dried lava. In some cells I saw the shapes of people buried under the lava; forever encased in slumber under sheets of once liquid fire.

The Temple was not like a maze as the Forest Temple was, but it was very difficult to navigate. Link had to carefully time each movement. When we first touched down I warned Link to test the ground he was about to step on with his foot before he used it. Sometimes solid lava isn't actually... solid.

The most nerve racking moments of the temple were when Link had to leap to the next platform. If the lava wasn't totally solid...

When Link made it into one room we all heard a voice.

"You!"

Link had his hand on his sword and whirled around. We almost fell out of his hat. I poked my head out from under the hat and Navi did the same.

"Human... please help me!" said a Goron with a terrified look on his face. He was sitting in a cell. Just outside the cell was a switch.

"What's..."

"Be careful! There are monsters nearby... they imprisoned us for Volvagia!"

I was about to say something when we heard something land behind us... actually, we heard three things land behind us. Link whirled around.

"Red Tektites and a Like-Like... Link, be careful around the Like-Like! If it eats you up... it'll take something of yours, chew on you a bit, and then spit you out. It'll eat anything!"

Navi and I flew out of Link's hat and were greeted by the heat.

Link stumbled back as one of the Red Tektites lunged at him and jabbed him with its front legs. The legs came to sharp points but Link's new armor resisted the attack. Even if it didn't the Tektites weren't very strong. He blocked the other Tektite with his shield and swung at the monster with his sword. He cleaved it down the middle and quickly downed the other before it could react.

And then he started trying to wrestle his shield free from the suction of the Like-Like. It didn't get to eat him up but it grabbed his shield and he couldn't get it back. He pulled and pulled but only managed to cause a struggle. He stumbled back and fell to the ground as the Like-Like pulled away with his shield.

My vision started to blur and my breathing was even heavier. I heard a high pitch ringing sound again and my heartbeat was pounding in my ears too. Navi must have seen that I was having trouble because she put her arm around me and helped me stay up.

Link slashed at the parasite-like body of the Like-Like. His shield was still stuck on its mouth so he had no immediate danger of behing eaten by it. It looked like it was having trouble with his shield. Link stabbed at the Like-Like and quickly pulled his sword back. The Like-Like didn't recoil or succumb. Instead it spit the shield out- and managed to hit Link in the torso with enough force to knock him down. In spite of all the trouble with my hearing and my rapid loss of consciousness, I could still hear the sickening sound of ribs breaking... it is a sound that plays itself in your head for days after you hear it like the sound of saw on bone.

Link howled and groaned on the ground in the worst pain I think he ever felt. The Like-Like didn't show any mercy. It slowly lumbered toward the poor boy. Link stayed on his back with his sword in his hand. As the Like-Like towered over him ready to eat him up, Link took a deep breath.

What happened next is kind of difficult to describe. With a shout to encourage himself, Link shot off the ground faster than I expected. With my vision failing on me I only managed to see Link standing behind the Like-Like with his sword outstretched. The Like-Like had ceased all movements and slowly it slid apart at the cleave down the middle Link had created.

Link fell to one knee and his sword clattered to the ground. He began to cough and hack, and his breathing was shallow and strained. He let out a low groan as his knee likely was burnt by the ground, and looked up at Navi and I.

"The armor protected me... from... wounds, but not from trauma..."

"No armor fully protects the body from harm," I said. Link weakly nodded, and he rose to his feet.

"Link, I think now would be a good time to get Louis to heal you. You've broken some ribs," I said. Link shook his head.

"No, I can keep going... if it gets worse I'll ask him for help."

He didn't let us argue with him. He picked up his shield and walked back to the cell holding the Goron. Navi half-dragged me back into Link's hat and set me up in the cool sanctuary. I took a few deep breaths and listened to the sound of a switch being flipped and a cell door grinding its way open.

"Thank you, Brother! Yes, I remember you from seven years ago. If you save us again, we'll be in your debt two times over... Please find my brothers! They are in this temple; this prison!"

Link nodded (and almost caused Navi and I to fall out of his hat). "I understand."

The Goron said no more. He ran out of the cell and disappeared around a corner.

Link sighed and we continued into the temple.

Link's progress slowed dramatically as hours passed. He'd managed to find a few more Gorons (he had to fight for their freedom. Each time he fought he was weaker and struck more often.) Finally, he collapsed to his knees and coughed up blood. I managed to catch sight of Link coughing up blood and darted out of his hat. He looked up at me with blood dripping from his lips.

"Link, you might have punctured a lung. Get Louis."

"Jack, I-"
"Link. NOW," I ordered. He stared at me for a few moments before holding out his hand.

"Louis..."

The pink fairy had been asleep in the bottle. His eyes flickered open and he looked up at Link. He smiled and waved.

"Hey, bud!"

With his words he pushed the cap off of the bottle and darted out of it, flying around Link a few times.

"What seems to be the problem?"

Link took a few breaths and pointed a shaky finger at me.

"Jack... thinks I need... to be healed..."

Louis' playful manner suddenly stopped. He looked over Link and took a long stare at the blood dripping out of his mouth. He flew closer to Link and gently tapped his ribs. Link groaned as he hit a few and coughed.

"Look up and take a deep breath," instructed Louis. I flew closer and by now Navi had come out to watch, too.

Link did as he was told and Louis pointed to Link's windpipe as he breathed. He looked at me.

"There. You see how it's moving to the left more? We have two breathing organs in our chests. This movement tells me that his right one was punctured by a rib. If we don't fix it, he'd die."

Well, Navi was the one to ask the obvious question.

"Can you fix it?"

Louis grinned and nodded. "Sure can! I wonder what Farore's up to..."

He suddenly frowned. "This is kind of sad... I won't see you guys again after this..."

We were all silent for a moment and Louis piped up again. "...But I know you can do it, Link!"

He glowed a brighter pink color and flew around Link. The magic surging from his body seemed to land on Link's skin and any injuries he'd sustained vanished like that. As Louis began to fade away to meet the Goddesses and recharge, he smiled at us and waved.

"If you happen upon a healing fairy named Marcus, tell him Louis says hello!"

And suddenly Link was left with an empty bottle. He wiped the blood from his lips and took a deep breath. A smile spread across his face and he felt his ribs.

"Wow, that really did the trick."

"Told you, Link," I said. He smiled again and held up his hat for Navi and I to return to. Once we were situated again, Link took off with renewed energy.

We found several more Gorons at a faster pace now. The City wasn't that populated to begin with. Still, I knew that Darunia's fate weighed heavily on Link's mind. I know I feared what may have happened to him. We reasoned that the sooner Link found the remaining Gorons, the sooner we could return to Darunia's aid. Maybe along the way we'd find a key or some way to jimmy the lock!

The Fire Temple was like Alcatraz gone to Hell, but Link was only halfway done with his canteen. If only he had this tunic seven years ago... and if only it came in fairy size.

Sometimes we'd come across Gorons imprisoned and have to leave them behind. The switches that operated their cell doors were rusted and Link couldn't use them. It felt terrible to have to leave Gorons behind, even if it were only two of them or so.

One room we entered will haunt my mind forever. The door behind Link slammed shut and Navi and I had to get out of his hat. We knew something was about to go down.

"Link, something's amiss here... Be careful..."

The heat in this room wasn't as severe as the other rooms. I looked at the door we came through and saw iron bars blocking it. The room we were in now was almost empty with the exception of a platform in the center. Link drew his sword and a figure fell from an opening in the ceiling. It was bright and heat radiated from it...

...But something was wrong. Heat really did radiate from this thing's body. It was made of flames. It got off the platform and began skating around the room as if it were on ice.

"It's a Flare Dancer! Fire protects the body! Try to get the nucleus hiding inside the body!"

Link rolled out of the way as the "Flare Dancer" glided over the ground he stood moments before. He drew his hookshot and tried to take aim but had to dodge out of the way once again.

"I'm starting to lose my patience!" he shouted. The Flare Dancer continued gliding around the room and Link had to dodge again. The Flare Dancer started weaving to the sides so Link couldn't stay in one spot for very long. The moment he stood again, Link took aim, waited for a clean shot, and...

The flames that gave the Flare Dancer his or her name vanished and all that was left was a nucleus stuck to the end of the hookshot. It wiggled free and Link slashed at it with his sword a few times. It tried to flee and Link tried to pull it back again but it managed to get away.

Link growled in frustration. The nucleus was quickly surrounded by fire again. The flames surrounding it now were blue-hot. (Before they were white-hot). The Flare Dancer started gliding around the room again, only a little bit faster. I feared what would happen if Link got hit by this thing.

It probably wouldn't hurt... The fire... it's... too hot, you see? The heat seals the nerve endings shut, killing them... he'd go into shock... and all he'd feel is...

...cold. Then he'd smell burning flesh... and then it'd start to hurt.

"Link, stay on the defensive until you find an opening! Don't rush!"

"Crazy creature!" he shouted. He dodged to the side again and rolled to his feet, aimed, and...

He missed.

Link almost threw his hookshot to the ground but he didn't. If he broke his hookshot...

Well, let's just say he'd be in trouble.

He moved out of the way again and readied his hookshot. A few moments later when it came around the bend again, Link fired.

He was stabbing at the nucleus again and slashing away at it. It wouldn't stay on the hookshot no matter what he did. He tried to grab hold of it but he pulled his hand away with a gasp.

"That was pretty stupid!" he shouted. He slashed at it again and it managed to slip out of his reach. He went for his hookshot again and tried to bring it back but once again it was protecting itself.

This time, the flames were red... a flame that burns red is cooler than a white-hot or blue-hot flame. I took the change in color as a sign of weakness and encouraged Link.

"Just like that! Do it again, Link! You're winning!"

He didn't respond to me (I wouldn't want him to. He's in the middle of a fight!) and rolled to the side again, this time just barely missing being hit. The Flare Dancer was definetly getting faster, but how?

I didn't bother questioning it.

The Flare Dancer passed by Link once more without managing a strike. Link turned around as he was falling to the side and fired. Out of sheer luck he managed to get the nucleus. Time seemed to slow to a crawl. As Link's hookshot brought the nucleus of the Flare Dancer to his person, he drew his sword with his free hand and outstretched it.

The nucleus of the Flare Dancer let out some kind of loud shriek as it was impaled by Link's sword. It tried to wiggle its way off the blade but could not succeed. Link let it stay on his blade for a few more moments before he swung the blade and sent it careening across the room into the wall. It splattered against the wall began a slow descent to the ground as a puddle.

The iron bars blocking the exit rose up. Link didn't head straight for the door. I guess he sensed something was off... He climbed on top of the platform and Navi and I followed. My wing twitched and I fell to the ground on the platform. Link picked me up with two fingers and put me in his hat, and then we were lurched upward by the platform.

Wait, it was an elevator? Hah, super cool!

We kept moving upwards and suddenly came to a stop. I poked my head out from under Link's hat again and all I saw was a treasure chest. Carved on the front of the chest were the words "Megaton Hammer". Link approached it and checked it for traps, and then he opened it.

A big hammer was inside. It looked like a sledgehammer and it looked like it weighed a ton. Link had trouble pulling it out of the treasure chest, but it looked like it would be a strong weapon.

Link needed to use both hands to hold the hammer. He smiled. "This might come in useful for those rusty switches."

"Hey, Link! Look over there!"

Navi was outside of the cool hat pointing at something on the ground. Link went to investigate and she flew back into his hat with me.

She was pointing to a part of the ground that seemed a little loose. It had cracks forming around it and looked like it could be knocked loose and sent to whatever was below.

Or it could cause the entire floor we were standing on to crumble and send us all screaming to our deaths a few hundred feet below.

Link stared at the ground for a few moments before raising the hammer with both hands and sending it slamming onto the suspicious ground.

We didn't get sent hurtling to the ground. It turns out Link just knocked a giant stalactite loose and sent it to the ground hundreds of feet below us. Link sighed in confusion.

"What do I do now?"

"Find the Gorons we couldn't get to before," suggested Navi.

Link sighed. "That means retracing our steps and finding every Goron between here and the first floor."

"Well, there's always the fast way down Link," I said.

Link reluctantly started walking back to the amazing elevating platform. "Alright, alright. Let's go find those Gorons."

_*_ (An upside down guy with a chinstrap)

"Hi...ya!"

Several hours after we found the hammer we'd made it to the final Goron we couldn't get to earlier. He was on the first floor of the temple. Link was now aching from using the Megaton Hammer so often. The last Goron stopped just outside and met with Link.

"While I was trapped in there, a treasure chest just... appeared. It looks really important but I was too scared that it might be a trap so I didn't touch it... You can have whatever's inside as reward. Unless it's a bear trap and it takes your face off..."

Link nodded slowly. "Thanks."

"No, thank you. Thank you for not forgetting me."

Link nodded again (I almost slid out of his hat and out of reflex I accidently grabbed some hair to keep steady).

"You're- ow... Jack!"

The Goron looked confused.

"No, my name's not Jack."

Navi giggled and the Goron took a step back in suprise.

"Your hat... it's laughing!"

"No, my fairies are in there and one of them has my hair and hasn't let go yet!"

Oh, right! After he hinted at it so subtley, I let him go. I wondered how he knew who was the culprit... but this is Link. He's done a lot more to amaze me.

"Thank you."

The Goron started walking away from his cell muttering "strange" to himself. Link watched the Goron until he vanished from sight and walked into the cell. He opened up the chest... but he proved the paranoid Goron wrong. There were no traps on it and all that was in it was a key. Link picked it up and turned around.

"I'll bet this key is how we're going to get to help Darunia. Nothing else makes sense. Guys, if Darunia wasn't able to defeat Volvagia and I have to battle it... You'll have to get out of my hat. If it gets really bad then I'll let you back into it but not unless it's necessary, okay?"

"Sounds like a plan!"

"Okay, Link."

I had a bad feeling about this temple. Was this the place one of us would die or was it a bad case of nerves?

...Come to think of it, I get like this whenever we're about to do a showdown with the master of a temple.

Maybe I shouldn't fear the worst. Link was strong enough to overcome many foes.
Link hopped across the platforms to the locked door. He sighed.

"Let's go."

He jumped for the lock and missed the first time but managed to unlock the door the second time. The lock on the door clattered to the ground and the chains blocking it fell to the side while the iron bars rose up along with the door. Link ran into the room and Navi and I flew out of his hat.

"It stinks of coward in here," said Link.

The room was not as hot as the other rooms we'd seen. It was very strange, considering this room was a pit of lava with a few pillars surrounding a larger pillar in the center of the room. Link hopped onto a smaller pillar and then onto the big one.

"Darunia!"

There was no answer. I took a long glance at lava spouts dotted all around.
"Link, watch your..."

A loud screech interrupted me. None of us took the opprotunity to look up when we entered.

The source of the screech was a dragon. A really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really, reeeeeaaaallllly long dragon. It looked to span maybe 30 meters in length. It was red and black with razor sharp claws, hair, it breathed fire, and it was mad.

"Volvagia. Link, I've heard about this dragon! All of these lava spouts converge under this platform! Volvagia will try to trick you and pop out of a random one, but try to keep an eye on all of the spouts as often as possible. When it pops its head out to attack, try to hit it with something heavy... like your Megaton Hammer!"

The dragon took about six seconds to fully submerge itself under one of the spouts. Link started spinning around slowly with the Megaton Hammer in his hands.

"Link, try to avoid the lava pit that Volvagia comes from," I suggested. "Because fire is hot."

Volvagia burst out of the lava pit behind Link, sending little drops of hell spraying everywhere. I weaved out of the way of one of the drops and caused my wing to twitch. I recovered before I began to sink out of the ground and looked at Link. Volvagia began to inhale slowly and Link ran forward. He bought the Megaton Hammer up and Volvagia poked its head toward Link a little, probably to sniff him and register his scent... or bite him.

But Link didn't let him do a thing. He swung his hammer down on Volvagia's noggin. A loud crack echoed the room and Volvagia screeched in pain. It swung its claws at Link (missed) and flew into the air again. Link looked up at Volvagia and immediately shouted "Watch out!"

Rocks ranging between the sizes of pebbles and the sizes of automobiles fell from above. It was as if they appeared out of nowhere; as if Volvagia used magic to form them.

"You know you're gonna die, right?" I shouted to Volvagia while dodging left and right. My wings weren't acting up on me as often in this temple... I guess the heat had some calming property for them.

I glanced over at Link and saw him expertly weaving in and out of the paths of boulders. I looked over at Navi and saw her holding her hands above her head and straining. A big boulder fell above her and I began heading toward her to move her out of the way but the boulder bounced off of some kind of force field.

"Jack," she shouted. "Focus your power into your hands and imagine a barrier surrounding your body. Do as I do and do it quickly!"

I did as she told me and felt something press down on some kind of barrier above my hands. I don't know how I figured out how to do it so quickly, but I guess it was either learn how to do as Navi did or dodge boulders until my wing finally gave out and got me killed.

Fear is a good motivator.

Suddenly the rumbling ceased and the last of the boulders fell to the ground. I opened my eyes and lowered my hands to see Volvagia diving into the lava spout opposite of me but to the right of Link. Link stumbled back to avoid a splash and Navi and I joined him in the center of the platform. Link stumbled around in circles slowly.

This time, Volvagia jumped up in front of Link and made him recoil in suprise. It took a deep breath in and Link composed himself, but not before Volvagia released a long breath of fire. Navi casted her shield from before and escaped damage. I didn't react in time and had to fly out of the way. Link had no way of avoiding the flame and tried to use his shield as a last ditch effort to escape injury.

His tunic caught fire and he screamed bloody murder. He ran around to Volvagia's delight. The dragon looked on as if to say "Yes! Yes! Die! Burn! Burn! Buuuuurn!"

Link's armor was heat resistant, but Canis failed to mention it was also flame resistant. Any flames that licked at his armor vanished and shortly after Link wasn't on fire anymore. He was suprisingly not harmed.

Oh, Volvagia was pissed. It let out a screech of annoyance and Link held up his Megaton Hammer. Volvagia clawed at him but failed to hit him again. Link smashed the Megaton Hammer down on Volvagia's head again and the dragon let out another screech of pain. Link leapt backward and Volvagia exploded out of the pit of lava. It flew above us again and I tried my hardest to cast my shield again.

I failed. I darted out of the way as one big boulder crashed down where I was floating moments before and proceeded to avoid the rest. Link got hit by a few smaller ones and let out shouts of pain. One boulder crashed right beside me.

"Too close!"

Volvagia dove into the same pit it came out of a moment ago. Link began to spin around slowly to keep an eye on his surroundings. Volvagia began to come up out of one pit but ducked back into it after a moment. Link continued spinning around and Volvagia came up behind him slowly. Before he was able to see it, the dragon swiped at him with it's massive claws and managed to create three long slices across his shield. He stumbled forward and whirled around. Volvagia swiped at him again but he was alert now. He leapt back and rolled forward (the hot ground doing little to harm him because of only a brief contact) and brought up his Megaton Hammer.

Volvagia tried to block the strike with its arms but the hammer easily broke the defense and crashed down on its skull. Grey matter slowly leaked out of open cracks in the skull of the dragon now. It gurgled, and weakly flew out of the lava pit again for one final round.

We didn't have to dodge the falling boulders this time. All Volvagia was able to do with a bruised brain was manage a few pebbles and some dust. It tried to dive into a lava spout but missed the first time and hit the platform. Link tried to hit it again but Volvagia still managed to knock him out of the way with a mighty paw. As the rest of the dragon slowly settled to the ground, it crawled into a lava pit and kicked at Link. Three long scratches became visible on Link's torso from the dragon's toes, and our boy stumbled back.

The rest of the dragon gradually sunk into the pit of lava. Link regained his composure and looked around.

It took longer than the previous attempts for Volvagia to come up from one of the pits of lava. We were so close... Volvagia's skull was severely damaged and Link was only lightly injured.

We heard a bump and a rumble under the platform (probably Volvagia bumping its head on the ground). The simple sound and movement was enough to give away the spout Volvagia intended to come out of.

But it never came out. It must have known that Link was aware of its plan and so it changed its plans.

Still, Volvagia couldn't stay under the platform forever.

It tried to sneak out of the lava and hurt Link again but it made a noise again. Link whirled around and ran to Volvagia. As the dragon prepared to claw Link, he swung the Megaton Hammer in a horizontal slice and knocked Volvagia's head to the ground before him. He slowly brought the hammer above his head.

"And now you lose," he said. He brought the hammer down hard on Volvagia's head and the dragon's body jolted and seized a few times before finally falling still again. More grey matter leaked from the skull and Volvagia's paws twitched a few times.

We all heard Ganondorf's voice again, however briefly.

"It seems I have underestimated your skills again. No matter. My troops will rip your soul from your body... but for now you have successfullly postponed your death once again."

"I will find you Ganon!" shouted Link. "And I will kill you!"

Ganondorf didn't respond and all was silent for a few moments. Finally, Navi came forward and said the magic words.

"I cast Farore's Wind!"

9.9

We appeared in the Sacred Realm once again. Saria was nowhere to be found and neither was Rauru. Darunia stood before us on a red medallion. He had his arms crossed with a proud smile on his face.

"You did well, Brother. From your doings my friends and family have returned to the City. Some of our population will be missed, but we can't bring back those wronged by Volvagia."

I smiled and put my hands behind my head.

"Always glad to lend a hand," said Link. Darunia stared out into the abyss with that proud smile never leaving his face.

"I apologize. I should not have been so hasty to find and defeat Volvagia. I did more harm than good and forced your journey in this temple to lengthen. As my apology and thanks for your work in my stead, I'd like to give you this medallion. With it and the medallion you can receive from the Sage of the Forest, you can endure the extreme temperatures of this mountain without a tunic, and even survive in the desert of the Gerudo."

Darunia took a few steps forward and placed the red medallion in Link's hand. Link took the Forest Medallion from his pocket and held it next to the Fire Medallion. They floated out of his hands, rotated around each other a few times and joined together. One side was Green and had the symbol of the Forest; the other was red and had the symbol of Fire. We all gasped in suprise (save for Darunia).

"Brother, do you know what this means?"

Link looked up at Darunia. He sighed in sadness. "I cannot see you again."

Darunia put his hand on Link's shoulder (he didn't knock him down this time).

"Be that as it may, understand that I will aid you in your final fight against Ganondorf. Don't forget that you are always a friend among the Gorons."

Link nodded and smiled.

"Where would you have me go next?"

Darunia stepped back onto the red medallion. "Try Zora's Domain. I hear bad things have been going on there as well. See if you cannot cleanse the evils that hide in the temple there."

A bright light enveloped my field of vision. We were being returned to the land once more.

"Be strong, Brother! The might of the Gorons is on your side!"

End of Chapter

That surgery took more out of me than I thought it would. I got through very little of the chapter those 4 days off. (That surgery was the worst pain I've ever endured. I almost passed out. Don't tell me that it couldn't be that bad.)

I originally intended for the death of the character as mentioned by Eden to occur in this chapter but I pushed it at the last minute. I have a better idea that doesn't involve simply killing someone in the middle of a story. It wouldn't bode well with readers and didn't settle well with me.

If you see "Darmani" written in here anywhere instead of "Darunia", that's my bad. I mix them up sometimes, especially when fatigue sets in.

Fun fact: I re-wrote the Navi/Jack scene about five times because I hated it each time it came out until this one.

I think it's become blatantly obvious by now that I don't have any intention of using the concept of "Heart Containers" in this story. I was able to get away with Link simply having a high pain threshold in previous chapters, but if someone gets cleaved down the middle by a battleaxe (lolwut?), it doesn't matter how high your pain threshold is. I don't want to use Heart Containers because they make it as if Link has a determined amount of health. Thus, Canis will have a larger role than I originally intended: He will bring Link armor as a substitute for health containers.

Unrelated note: Canis speaks English as a second language. He was born Latin and while he has English down pretty well, there are some words he doesn't know and replaces with the Latin phrases. Latin phrases as spoken by Canis will be italicized.

Next chapter covers the Sage of Woo-Tah.