A/N: I am back from the land of the dead! 8[]
But I may or may not still be dead. o_o Can a zombie write good?
Ganondorf: Not with that kind of grammar.
Me: Shut up! DX I'm doing the best that I can! And aren't you supposed to be villainous in this story? 8l
Ganondorf: I can be villainous and correct your grammar.
Me: Get back into your tower where you belong! 8[] *shakes beating-stick at*
Ganondorf: That doesn't scare me.
Me: But I bet this does. 8l *holds up keyboard*
Ganondorf: O_O *flees*
Link stepped on the switch that opened yet another cage door. The old bars squealed as they slowly slipped across the rocky ground. Groggily, the Goron that was lying in the room uncurled, revealing its body to Link's eyes. The creature was smeared in dirt, more so than usual, and there were scratches covering most of its body. Link swore that he saw a rusty-red surrounding some of the scratches, but how a rock-creature bled was a mystery…Link didn't think about it too much.
"You…you're saving me? Am I free to go?" nervously whimpered the Goron. Wearily, Link nodded. This tribe…how many of them were left? He knew that there were many Gorons that lived in the mountains, and if what Link-goro had said was true…than there would be many more of these people to free from this Temple.
"Let me give you some advice for saving me…" Link started to mentally nod off, he didn't pay the least bit of attention to the Goron. He just wished that the Goron would leave for safety. Not that he didn't want to hear what they had to say, he just had already realized most of the things they were telling him. But not only that, but days in this endless heat and danger was definitely taking its toll on the hero. He needed sleep, food other than the strange heat-resistant plants that he had found in the temple, and tending to his injuries. There was a particularly nasty burn on his left shoulder that made him grunt whenever he moved it. And just was his luck that he was left-handed.
The Goron slipped past Link, briskly walking in the direction of the exit to the temple. Link watched him leave, glad to see another go free. Now if only he could be certain that they all arrived back to the Goron City safely…
For the hundredth time that day, Link brought his hand up to wipe the sweat from his brow. This heat…the Goron Tunic (as he later learned was the 'official' name for it) may have made the heat bearable, but 'bearable' didn't mean pleasant.
Link wandered around the temple, looking for something…anything that could help him. He kept hearing of this Legendary Goron Hero and his special, powerful weapon. Some of the Gorons that Link had rescued hinted that the rumor stated that the treasure was still hidden somewhere in the temple. Another Goron said something about it being a hammer. Link could use a hammer. If he ever wanted to move the rocks away from the door that Darunia had disappeared into.
…Link thought for a moment. Did he really need a hammer, when there were Gorons located within the temple that were highly capable of helping Link move the rocks away? Link could have banged his head against the stone wall if his head had not been throbbing enough already.
Ah…but the Gorons would probably be too frightened to get closer to the monster they were waiting to be fed to. He thought that perhaps it would be better to just let them go home and wait for him to the do work.
But…is that fair? I was thrust into a destiny that I never asked for…
Shaking his head, Link shoved those thoughts far away. He didn't want to think like that. He should be happy to have been chosen to save Hyrule. But sometimes…he thought that he was too young for such a job. After all…he was still just a child on the inside. His body may have grown, but what about his mind? Apparently whoever it was that wrote destiny thought that he would be fine. Link wasn't so sure.
Ah…I'm feeling sorry for myself again…
Link felt around his head for the familiar bump of his companion. He found her, although his hand had pressed down on top of her a little too hard, and Navi definitely was grumbling about that now. She poked her head out of Link's cap, just enough that if Link looked way up, he could see her face. Sticking her tongue out, Navi let her hero know just how she really felt at that time.
Probably was napping again… Link thought, swatting Navi back into the cool escape of his cap.
Link peered around the room. It seemed safe enough…there didn't really appear to be many monsters other than those Fire Keese he saw in the distance. Although…he didn't like those at all. He always got hurt in some way. Always.
He climbed up onto one of the higher platforms, taking in his surroundings.
The room appeared to be partially circular, with two paths leading to the highest raised area in the room. Only the inner winding path seemed maneuverable for Link, though. The outer one that he was currently standing on had 'steps' that seemed more like walls. At the peak of the room, Link could see one of those evil rings of fire. There had to be a switch somewhere…
After scanning the room for a few minutes, Link finally found the blasted thing. Who was the idiot that designed these temples to act more like dungeons? Yeah, he got that the people that designed this place didn't want some evil dude to storm in here and steal the treasures and such, but perhaps they should have taken into account that if they wanted their hero's to get away with the good stuff to defeat the bad guys, the puzzles had to be a bit easier than this.
"No, Link, you just need to be smarter…"
Link looked up. He could just barely see Navi's drowsy and critical expression as she peered down at him from under his cap. He was confused. How had she known what he had been thinking? Could she read minds?
"I know what you're thinking, and no. I can't read your mind. That would be torture." Link opened his mouth in protest. Hadn't she just said that she knew-
"Link, shut up." Navi snapped. Link closed his mouth. "You were thinking aloud again; pretty loudly this time. You need to stop waking me up…" Grumbling, the fairy retreated back into the comfort of her hat-home. Link rolled his eyes. All Navi cared about was sleep. He would wondered if she did anything else, because what else could she be doing in his hat all day? At least she didn't come out to bother him with useless information all of the time…that would be annoying.
One more step one more step one more step…
Link pounded his feet against the warm stone of the temple room. By this point, he could run around the circular path without falling, it was only a matter of beating the timer. He had almost given up hope by this point. But he was so close…he could practically feel the power of whatever was in that chest…
Or maybe that was the fire that had just relit.
Link yelped as he skidded to a stop just before running straight into the fire. He didn't quite understand…he was wearing a tunic that resisted heat. What was fire? Heat. So why did these fire walls actually act like walls? It wasn't as if fire was a solid object. But…that was how the world worked, and he couldn't change it just because he didn't like how it worked. It was probably a magical fire, anyway…
Sluggishly, Link trudged his way back to the bottom, where the mystical switch awaited his foot's press. He looked back and forth between the switch and the ring of fire at the top of the path. Running didn't really seem like a good idea at that time, as he hadn't given himself a break in at least an hour. Feeling somewhat dejected, Link sat down on the stone floor. Dust clung to his tunic, and Link felt a bead of sweat fall from his forehead and dribble down the side of his face. He could feel an ache start to build behind his right eye, and Link shut his eyes to see if that would slow the headache he knew was coming on.
Breathing heavily, Link waited for his heartbeat to slow. It seemed to be jumping around inside of his chest, not knowing when to stop. The heat of the volcano mixed with the workout he just had put himself through was not a pleasant mix. But Link knew that he could only stay on the ground for so long. He had to keep going. Had to find the treasure…
Grunting, Link pushed himself into a standing position. He placed the switch between himself and the raised path. He took a deep breath, he could do this…
With all the energy he had left in him, Link sprinted towards the stair-like trail leading to the ring of fire. He made sure to stomp on the switch as he ran over it, not wanting to waste his burst of energy and speed. His heart pounded as he ascended closer and closer to the treasure. This would be the time…he could feel it.
But by this time he also had learned to tell when the timer would run its course, resulting in the return of the fire. He didn't have much time left, and yet he was still too far away from it…
Link pushed his legs to go faster, not caring how close he was getting to losing his footing, slipping off of the edge and failing once again. He couldn't go again. He was too tired, and much too aggravated with this puzzle. As he saw the very top of the fire starting to crawl back up, Link gave a howl of irritation. This couldn't be happening again! In one final act of desperation, Link launched himself off of the ground, tackling the treasure chest as if it were a fluffy mattress waiting for him with open arms.
Unfortunately, it was not a mattress that Link tackled, but instead a thick, heavy wooden box. As Link's face came into contact with the surface, he was sure that he heard something crack. Whatever it was…it couldn't have been good. He sat there, too stiff and shaken to move. But after five minutes of sitting there, the meaning finally became clear to Link.
I…I'm hugging the treasure chest…
Link's eyes snapped open. He was…hugging the treasure chest. That could only mean one of two things. Either the chest had waltzed out of the ring of fire and tackled Link head-on, or Link had tackle-hugged the chest. He wasn't sure which seemed more likely at this point in time…
Wearily, Link crawled to his knees. With shaking fingers, he unlatched the bolt that kept the trunk shut. A silver glow seemed to seep from the cracked hinges as Link lifted the lid.
Inside was a polished silver hammer. It didn't look as if it had been kept in storage for how many hundreds of years, but instead looked newly crafted. Link unhurriedly lifted it from the bottom of the box. Holding it up in front of himself, Link could clearly see a distorted version of himself staring back at him. The shape was so interesting, and it made his reflected self's head look three times smaller than Link knew it should have been.
Navi even poked her upper body out of the sanctity of Link's hat to gaze at the hammer with delight in her eyes. Navi had a passion for shiny objects. She was known to collect the arrowheads of Link's discarded, used arrows and clean, polish and collect them for her liking. Link only found it slightly off-putting.
"Well Navi…" Link spoke to the fairy's reflection in the hammer, "I do believe that we have a wall to smash down." A small smirk appeared on Navi's face. She would enjoy watching Link hammer away at the rocks, but more importantly, she would enjoy watching Link struggle to hammer away at the rock pile. The next hour or so would be quite amusing…
Link had surprised both himself and Navi. He was doing exceptionally well as to beating down the rock slide. The hammer was too heavy for one hand, and Link had to keep it in a death-grip to keep it from falling out of his grasp at every swing. But the rocks crumbled like hollow nut shells under the weight of the hammer, and for that, Link was grateful. He really didn't want to deal with not only a heavy hammer, but also rocks that would break as if Link were trying to crunch bricks under his feet. But he guessed that's why this was a magical hammer…
After what seemed to be an eternity of smashing, and with much dust and gravel at his feet, Link finally was able to remove enough of the rubble to form a substantial hole that he could crawl through. Placing the hammer in his pouch, Link climbed up and through the small entrance he had made. He wasn't too keen on facing whatever would be on the other side, but Link knew that he had to do it. Not only for Darunia's sake, but for all of Hyrule. Facing his fears was perhaps the greatest challenge Link had ever come across yet. It took so much courage to place one foot in front of the other and continue to trudge on. Link wished that it were easier, but the fact that he came through every time was what really mattered, he supposed.
"Ready, Link?" Navi had moved herself so that she was fluttering beside Link's head. She would be prepared to help Link.
In response, Link said nothing. He only grabbed the hilt of his sword and silently drew it from its sheath.
It was time to face his dragon.
A/N: Alright folks, I've managed to evade Ganondorf for the time being, so tell me what you think of my story in the review box! :D It would make me a very happy author if you were to do so. I always love to see who's reading my work, and in turn, check out their stuff, too. I feel pretty open right now, so if you have any suggestions about my story (or what kind of shampoo I should use), feel free to send me a PM. I'm always glad to know what my readers think about myself and my work!
And don't forget to be nice to Link on your way out! :D He needs a hug.
Link: o.o' I never agreed-
Hoards of fangirls: 8[] *tackles Link*
Link: DX