Chapter Twenty

"You ready?" he asked, looking over at Nabooru as they stood a few hundred yards away from the Spirit Temple. She put her hands into her pockets and leaned back cockily.

"Been ready."

"Good. Now go." He gently shoved her toward her troops.

She turned to him, her expression shocked. "What?"

He jerked his head toward the Zoras, who were moving as quickly and quietly as a group of soldiers could across the desert. "The Zoras have started. You have . . . about thirty seconds to prepare the next attack."

Her surprise wearing off quickly, she ducked her head down and raced through the Gorons to the Hylians, who were gathered in a terrified huddle. She muttered something that made them all stand up straighter and look over toward him.

He didn't have time to wonder what she'd possibly said, because there was a sudden scream and the Hylians all rushed forward, drawing their weapons and shouting. He dove to the side -- away from the Gorons, who'd be attacking soon -- and looked up.

The Zoras had reached the entrance to the Spirit Temple, and the Gerudo had burst out, their scimitars gleaming in the dim light. They collided, and instantly shrieks of pain and bloodlust bounced off the sand. He knew it'd only get worse as the Hylians, and then the Gorons, entered the fray.

Link watched the Gorons move forward, not quite as stealthily as the Zoras, but more so than the Hylians. They were taking advantage of the Gerudo's distraction, not that it was really necessary; the Gerudo were losing, badly. There were just too many to fight.

Something was bothering him. Where were the Moblins, the hundreds of monsters that Ganondorf had had at his disposal last time? Maybe he hadn't been able to find them in time . . . or maybe they'd refused to help him.

Whatever it is, he told himself, just take it as a blessing from the Goddesses. You have more important things to think about.

He put the nagging worry away and focused on making sure all the Sages made it to the hand.

Saria and Rauru were already at his side (since they'd be useless in a fight, he'd decided that they needed to stay near him in case they were attacked). Impa was waiting at the hand, keeping one eye on the desert for a surprise attack and one eye on the battle in case something went wrong.

Nabooru suddenly appeared next to him, panting and clutching Ruto's hand. Ruto was looking around, terrified, and didn't seem inclined to let go of Nabooru any time soon. A second later Darunia joined them, watching the battle with sad eyes.

"Come on," he muttered, leading them away. Navi fluttered out of his hat, hovering around his ear anxiously.

"Are you sure about this?" she asked.

"About what?"

"About . . . this whole idea. Sneaking into the Spirit Temple while everyone's out fighting. Isn't it kind of . . . risky?"

He rolled his eyes. "You don't say?"

She landed on his shoulder, pinching his earlobe. "Hey, don't act like that. It's not my fault this plan has more holes in it than cheese. What if you can't find the way in?"

"He wants me to be able to find my way in," he said coolly. "I'll be able to."

"But what if Zelda isn't even there? What if he moved her and is waiting to kill you?"

He shrugged. "I won't be alone, will I?"

"You kind of will be. What if the Sages can't get to you?"

"Why wouldn't they be able to get to me?"

"I don't know!" She threw her tiny hands up into the air. "They just might not! And you're not even worried about that!"

"It's not that big a deal. It doesn't matter if . . . It doesn't matter."

Navi shook her head, strands of blue hair hitting her cheeks. "That doesn't make any sense! And you're so damn not-thinking-clearly that you don't even realize it doesn't make sense!"

"Maybe you don't make any sense!" Navi gave Link a long look, and he realized that he'd just proven her point. "Whatever," he said, wincing. "We don't have time for this." He met her gaze. "I know you don't think I know what I'm doing, but I do."

Her expression softened. "How do you know?"

"I . . . I just do. Besides," he added, attempting levity, "I've gone into battles with worse plans than this one, and I'm still alive, right?"

Navi sighed, defeated. "All right. So . . . we have to get inside the Spirit Temple. And we're doing that by. . . ."

"Going through the doorway above the hand," he said, biting back an impatient retort. "Remember? We've discussed this!" He knew she was just being thorough, but Zelda was only yards away, being tortured or killed or who knew what else. Now was not the time to have doubts. Why didn't she get that?

"How are we all going to be able to get up there?"

Link opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. He looked over at Impa. She was perched delicately on the stone fingertips, still watching the battle.

Good. That was good. She was their lookout — she was supposed to be there. When they'd talked about it, she'd convinced him she knew how to get up there.

She just hadn't told him how.

Shit. Navi was right; he was screwing up. But he couldn't exactly back out now. They were too close.

He looked up at Impa, shading his eyes from the sun. "Impa!"

She turned her attention to Link, a throwing dagger at the ready. "What?" Her voice was thick with tension. "Are you okay? Did something hit you?"

"I'm fine. Listen, Impa! How the hell did you get up there?"

She looked confused for a second. "I" — she suddenly teleported and appeared in front of Link — "teleported. Is something wrong with the plan?"

"No idea," Navi said wearily. "Link's not exactly speaking coherently."

"That's not helping, Navi!" he snapped, running his hands through his hair and glancing over at the battle. They were hidden for now, but nearby there was a Gerudo battling desperately with two Zora. If they came any closer. . . . "Shit!" He turned to Impa. "Can you teleport other people?"

She shook her head. "Sorry."

"Of course you can't. That would be useful." Everything was falling apart. What was he supposed to do? "How are we all going to get up there?"

"I can try to find another way up —"

"No. You get up there and watch the battle. I'll find something." Link looked wildly around. How did he get to the hand before? Oh, right — he'd gotten there from the inside. And he couldn't climb up, because that would just be too convenient.

If Ganondorf had rigged this, he'd done a pretty sucky job.

Suddenly his eyes landed on a leafy plant, its leaves moving slightly. He probably wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't been so desperate. "THAT!" Link cried out, pointing the plant.

"What?" asked Impa.

"That plant! When you land on it, it floats! We can get up to the hand!" He glanced over at Darunia. "Do you think it can support your weight?"

Darunia shook his head, laughing. "I don't need a plant," he said. "I'll be fine."

Link didn't doubt him. He turned to the others. "Okay — I want someone on that plant now. We've wasted enough time."

Ruto stepped onto the leaf, gasping as it rose into the air. "This is not my favorite way to travel!" she called down.

Darunia picked Saria up and set her on his shoulders. "I can give her a ride," he said with a grin. He pulled his arm back and skammed his fist into the rock, leaving an indentation large enough for him to step into. He punched another one and began climbing, already two feet off the ground. "Easy." It didn't take long before he was at the hand.

"Will this carry me?" Rauru asked Link.

"It'll have to," he replied, gesturing for Nabooru to climb the wall using the footholes Darunia had made. She scrambled up it like a monkey.

Rauru hesitantly stood on the leaf. It shuddered as it carried him up, but it didn't fall. When he reached the hand, he practically fell onto it, breathing a loud sigh of relief. Link followed, and watched the leaf flutter back to the ground.

"Okay," Link said once they were all up there. "See that?" He pointed toward the entrance from the hand. "That's our way in. Let's move."

They moved quickly and silently, glancing over at Link every few moments. His hair was standing on end and damp with sweat, his shoulders seemed to be permanently hunched with stress, and his eyes were wild. His desperation was tangible, and only grew with each passing second.

"Link," Navi said tentatively.

He turned halfway toward her, guarded and defensive. Whatever she could possibly say, he'd have a comeback. Still, she continued. "Are you positive this isn't too . . . reckless?"

Something snapped. Hands balling into fists, he whirled around to face her completely. "Positive? Am I positive? Well, let's see. I was positive that Zelda wouldn't get captured by Ganondorf. I was positive the other races would help us out without having to spend days convincing them. I was positive we wouldn't waste any time getting to the hand. I'm been positive about a whole lot of things, Navi, and I've been pretty damn wrong every time. So no, I'm not positive. I'm hopeful. Hoping and praying to the stupid Goddesses that whatever I do, it doesn't make things worse. That Zelda won't die, and that none of us will, either. Because if anything, anything, happens to us, it's going to be my fault." He lifted his hand so fast that Navi was afraid he was going to smack her. But she realized that he was showing her his left hand, where she could see a faint outline of a golden triangle. "I'm Courage, Navi. I can do the brave thing. I can do the reckless thing. But I can't do the smart thing. Zelda can do the smart thing. And, yeah, if our roles were reversed, she'd know exactly what to do. Hell, she'd probably have done it already. That's why she's the leader. I'm not a leader. I'm just some stupid kid who's gotten lucky a couple of times, all right? So if you can come up with something that isn't reckless, be my guest. Because I can't." He was breathing hard by the time he'd finished, and he let his hand fall to his side. Part of him wanted to cry. Part of him wanted to hit something. He couldn't do either of those things, though — he had to save Zelda.

There was a ringing silence as everyone except Impa stared at him in shock. None of them seemed to know what to say. Link took off his hat and ran his hand through his hair again, wishing they'd stop looking at him.

Saria placed her hand on his shoulder. "Link?"

He cringed, not wanting to hear what she would say. He didn't want pity; he couldn't handle pity. Pity, understanding, even an apology would probably cause him to break down completely.

"Link!" Impa's voice was sharp and panicked. He turned, grateful for the distraction, even though it couldn't be good.

"What is it?" he asked, joining her at the fingertips.

She pointed, seemingly unable to speak.

His breath caught in his throat, and he stared, horrified, at the battlefield.

Storming the desert from the direction of the Gerudo Valley were too many monsters to count.

Zelda lay on the floor of the stone room, doodling in the sand. She hadn't run out of air yet, so she assumed she wasn't going to suffocate.

Now she was afraid she was going to go insane.

The shadows (how few there were in an empty room with only one occupant), seemed to writhe on the walls and floor in agony. The silence pressed on her ears like a pillow. Talking didn't help — her voice echoed off the stone and bounced back to her sounding warped and not at all like hers.

"You've done pretty well for yourself," she said, listening to the strange voice come to her from a dreamy fog. "Lying on the floor of your prison, not even trying to escape. It's pathetic."

I can't escape, she thought before she could stop herself. There's no way out.

"Some Triforce of Wisdom," the voice scoffed; well, why not have a conversation with herself? It wasn't like anyone else would talk to her. Besides, it didn't even feel like she was talkng -- the words flowed out of her mouth easily, and with that stranger's voice, it didn't sound like herself. "When you're smart, there's always a way. Unless, of course, you're just weak. Maybe Ganondorf was right after all."

Maybe he was.

"It's easier to be the damsel in distress, to wait for someone to save you, than to do anything by yourself. Imagine if you'd been able to escape. You'd have kept all those people back home from worrying about you. What a shame." The voice was intoxicating, seductive, and had a life of its own. She couldn't have stopped it if she'd wanted to. "Everyone loves to worry."

Link. . . . Not for the first time, his face appeared in her mind. He must be so worried.

"You think he's worried. But is he actually?"

Why wouldn't he be?

"He's got to get sick of having to save you all the time. I would."

He loves me.

"He does, does he? Has he ever said it out loud?"

He doesn't have to.

"What if he decides that you're too difficult? Decides you're a spoiled, pampered princess who can't do anything for herself?" The voice became smug. "He'd have a point."

Zelda closed her eyes, picturing the person who belonged to that voice. She was like herself . . . sort of. Her hair was longer, as were her ears. She was taller. Her eyes, though the same blue, were hard and cold enough to look completely different. There were lines on her face, lines that she was too young to have.

She was Zelda — older, more ruthless, less caring. This older girl was Zelda after immeasurable suffering.

She kept her eyes closed, keeping the older girl's picture in mind. The girl knelt down next to Zelda, smiling humorlessly. "You're speechless," she mocked. "You know I'm right."

Why would you be right?

"You see these things in yourself. You know you're sheltered. You don't think about others as much as you could. That beautiful farm girl, Malon — what do you think of her?"

She likes Link.

The girl smirked. "Yes. That's right. But what else do you think of her?"

What do you mean?

"You mean you don't think anything of her beyond the fact that she also loves Link? You mean you're jealous of a girl who has virtually nothing? Who spends her time dreaming she was you? Are you really that selfish?"

I'm not selfish.

"Have you ever thought of how hard her life must be? How hard your family's making her life?"

We are not.

"Taxes could be lowered — it's not like you're suffering."

I . . .

The girl's smile widened, though her eyes hardened. "No wonder Link hasn't come to save you. Malon's much more his type. He'd never think so little of others."

He's coming.

"Really? Would you come?" She reached out and touched Zelda's cheek, smiling sympathetically. "You don't even think you're worth saving."

I . . .

"If you really thought you were worth saving, you'd be gone already. If you honestly believed that people miss you, you'd be home with them, not making them worry."

There's no way out.

"That's bullshit. You just refuse to find it. You don't think you're worth it. And that makes you even more worthless. Malon would try to escape. Of course, Malon wouldn't be stupid enough to get caught in the first place."

I . . . I had to.

"You had to. You had to fight Ganondorf on your own? Seeing as you've never been able to defeat him before?" The girl leaned forward. "Why did you really go after him? Let's explore that, shall we?"

It's not my fault. I didn't try to get captured!

The girl ignored her. Her eyes were dancing — she delighted in Zelda's misery. "Maybe it was to try and prove yourself, prove you're worth something after all. Or maybe it was a test to see if Link would come after you if you got captured — again." She laughed. "Well, whichever it was, you failed miserably."

Leave me alone.

"Oh, great comeback. You won't even stand up to yourself now." She drew back her arm and slapped Zelda hard, making the entire side of her face go numb. "You're pathetic."

"YOU'RE NOT REAL!" Zelda opened her eyes and bolted up, looking around the room in a panic. It was empty. Her face still tingled from the blow . . . although she hadn't been hit. Or had she?

She rested her forehead on her knees, listening to the silence. For once, she was grateful for it.

Thud.

The sound made her scramble to her feet — she was extremely jumpy all of a sudden.

Thud. Thud. The sounds were footsteps, and they were heading toward her door.

Zelda stepped lightly — almost noiselessly — and stood outside the door. She closed her eyes and turned into Sheik.

I can save myself, she thought defiantly. Watch me.

She wasn't sure, but she thought she'd heard a ghostly laugh in reply.

The door opened, but before she could move, something crashed into her forehead. She felt a stab of pain. . . .

A wave of dizziness. . . .

Then nothing.

"Link?"

He looked down at Saria, whose eyes, brilliantly green and wide with terror, were locked on his.

"What do we do?" she asked. Everyone climbed out the entrance of the Temple to see what was going on.

Don't ask me, he thought. But he was their leader, no matter how much he wished he wasn't. He was the only one who'd get them out of this.

He had to decide. "We go," he said, stepping over to the entrance.

She stared at him in horror. "You mean. . . . We can't just leave them."

"We figured Ganondorf was going to have monsters, didn't we?"

"Yeah," Nabooru said, looking out over the battlefield, where the screams were growing louder every second as more and more people realized what was coming, "but we didn't expect them to show up when part of our army was already wiped out."

"Then we'll move quickly and hopefully save whoever's left." He stared at them. Saria was looking at Link like she'd never realized what he was capable of. He met her gaze until she glanced away.

Yes, he could be ruthless. He didn't want to, but he had to. He had to make the difficult decisions because no one else was willing to.

Impa and Nabooru had already turned their eyes away from the battle and were slipping into the entrance. They understood the best — they'd both made their fair share of tough decisions. Slowly the others followed suit, entering the Temple one by one. Link took one last look at the battlefield, just long enough to see a Hylian man picked up by a Moblin and thrown, screaming, through the air. He landed hard on his head and crumpled like a piece of parchment. He didn't get up.

His fault. It was all his fault.

Link ducked out of the sunlight into the cool chamber where the others were waiting and looked around, feeling the sharp spike of adrenaline.

They were in.

Ganondorf knelt down and peered at the young man lying on the floor. Sheik, his name was — if he remembered correctly. He wondered vaguely where she'd acquired the boy's form; the Sheikah were all dead, save for the one Sage.

The Sheikah's chest rose up and down, so Ganondorf knew he was still alive. A thin trickle of blood flowed from his hairline down the side of his face. Lifting up the boy's bangs, Ganondorf saw that there was a shallow cut but no further damage. He picked the princess-turned-warrior-boy and carried him to the center of the room, dropping him unceremoniously on the floor. He pulled out a long length of rope and tied it around his wrists and ankles in a hopelessly complicated pattern. He sat back on his feet, studying his handiwork. It was perfect — Link would never be able to untie it, at least not quickly.

Ganondorf heard the scrape of a door opening. It was faint, so he figured it was to the entrance of the Temple, not the passageway. Still, he had to move quickly. Murmuring a few words, he made sure everything was in place before ducking into a shadowy corner and standing perfectly still. Though far from invisible, he was still hidden, and Link would most likely run to Zelda without a thought for him. With a little luck, he wouldn't see him until it was too late.

With a little more luck, Link would come alone, not surrounded by the other Sages. They'd be nearby, of course, but he only needed a few minutes to do what he'd planned.

It'd only take a few minutes to kill Zelda.

Growing tired of all the delay, Ganondorf pressed himself against the wall and prepared for another long wait.

Link dropped to the floor below the entrance, looking around warily. Of course, the huge room was completely still — Ganondorf didn't want Link to die before he reached . . . wherever he was going.

He heard several soft thuds as the others joined him. They stood in silence, their eyes searching the room for something out of place (though only Nabooru and Link could really be the judges of that, as they were the only ones to have ever seen the inside of the Temple).

"Look normal?" Link asked in an undertone; the overwhelming stillness of the stone room made him paranoid.

Nabooru shruggged. "Seems to."

Link nodded, sighing. "All right, everyone, fan out and look for anything that could help us find Zelda."

"So look for . . . anything?" Saria repeated, eyeing the giant statues that loomed over her. He saw her point: with no clear goals, the sheer hugeness of the Temple was daunting.

They moved quietly, running their fingers over every surface and peering into every crack. None of them wanted to give up on this room and move into the next, where many dangerous obstacles were sure to be lurking.

"Link! I found something!"

He hurried to Impa's side, breathing a sigh of relief before even realizing what she'd found.

The silver-haired Sheikah pointed at one of the snake statues. "Are they supposed to have no eyes?"

Indeed, the snake's eyes had been gouged out clumsily, leaving gashes in the stone.

"This one's the same," Darunia said, leaning forward to inspect its face.

Link pulled out the small jewel he kept in his pocket, holding it up to the snake's eye socket. It fit perfectly.

"Yes!" he exclaimed, making everyone in the room jump. "We're getting closer. Here's what the eyes look like. There are three others, and we're going to find them, so spread out again."

"No need." Nabooru crouched down, picking up something at Link's feet. "Here's another one."

He took it and stared at the two jewels in his hand for a long time. His brow was furrowed, and his eyes held a glimmer of thought. Suddenly his hand closed tightly around the rocks, and he met the Sages' eyes. His face was glowing, like whatever idea he'd been pondering had panned out. "She's here."

Ganondorf heard a thunderous scuffling sound and froze. Nothing but the faintest of murmurs, too quiet to make sense out of. But it didn't matter what was being said.

A smile spread acorss his lips.

Link had found the passage.

Finally.

The Sages and Link looked down into the hole in the floor where the snake statue had been previously. There was nothing but blackness — it was impossible to tell how deep it was.

"You're going in there?" Saria asked softly.

"I have to." Link tried to make something out in the gloom. "If Zelda's down there. . . ."

He didn't have to finish. If Zelda was down there, they had to find her.

"Fine," Nabooru said, drawing her scimitar, "but let me go first."

"No."

She raised one red eyebrow. "'No'?" she repeated incredulously.

"You — all of you — need to stay up here. I think it has to be me and Ganondorf, at least in the beginning."

They all watched him with surprised expressions. "But how will we find you again?" Rauru asked.

"I'll whistle if I need help."

"Ah, the subtle approach," Nabooru said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey, I'd rather live and have him prepared than die without any of you knowing I need help."

Impa nodded. "We'll be listening," she assured him.

Nabooru threw her hands up into the air. "This is ridiculous! I say we just go down there and send him back to the Sacred Realm now. What's the use in dragging it out?"

No one answered, though Impa was looking at Nabooru sympathetically.

Link swung his legs over the side of the hole, letting them dangle in the darkness for a moment. "I'll be back," he promised, before dropping into the passage below.

It was not as deep as he'd thought. However, it was deep enough that on impact his knees buckled and he fell forward. "I'm okay," he called up as loudly as he dared. "It's not so bad."

"Sure it isn't," Navi whispered, fluttering in front of him in an attempt to light his path. "Not if you enjoy the feeling of walking through a grave."

He held a finger to his lips, and they began walking. After about a foot or two, though, they had to stop. The path split into two branches.

"What do we —" Link grabbed her waist gently in his hand, pulled her toward him, and put a finger over her mouth.

"Shut up," he hissed. Still carrying her like this, he held her toward the ground, so that her glow lit up the floor.

Navi mumbled resentfully against his finger, but he ignored her; the blueish-white light had bounced off a third snake eye. He stepped over to it and looked up; it was at the mouth of one of the corridors.

He was getting close. And the terrible agony that had been welling up in his chest — the equally strong desires to cry and hurt something — was only growing. His strides grew longer, his breathing more irregular. Where was she?!

"Mmph!" Navi finally pulled Link's finger off her mouth and slapped his knuckles. "Look!" she whispered, pointing at something behind him.

He turned around and saw it.

Lying on the floor, twinkling innocently in the dim light, was the fourth and final jewel.

Behind it was a door. Link let out the breath he'd been holding, feeling vaguely like he'd been punched in the stomach.

Zelda was just behind that door.

He'd found her.

Finally.