Chapter Twenty-Four: Licking Their Wounds

When Ganondorf and his forces returned to his fortress on Death Mountain, he ordered his commanders to meet him in the Throne Room. Onox, Veran, and Shanzom stood facing their angry master, who had just settled back into his throne. "Curse them!" he growled to himself. "Damn that Link and Vaati!"

Veran was the first to speak, her smooth, silky voice doing nothing to ease Ganondorf's frustration. "My Lord, the sorceress you speak of seems to be more trouble than she is worth. Why waste your time trying to capture her?"

"Because she possesses a strange power of unknown origins, and I want it!" Ganondorf roared. "I could sense it! A power as dark as my own!"

"My Lord, you already possess incredible power," Onox began, wincing as the pain from the wound he had received from Buster spiked in intensity. "Why search for…"

"IDIOT! WHY IN DIN'S NAME DO YOU THINK I'M TRYING TO CAPTURE THE ENTIRE TRIFORCE IN THE FIRST PLACE, YOU BRAINDEAD FOOL?" Ganondorf screamed in fury.

As the Dark Lord spoke, the room seemed to grow darker, what little life in the atmosphere melting away from the waves of darkness. Onox, Veran, and Shanzom all shrank back in pure terror. "I require more power because the Triforce of Power isn't enough! The Hero of Time possesses the Triforce of Courage, which allows him to best me every time we get into conflict! I need more power so I can overwhelm him!"

The villains had all completely forgotten Zelda was right there, still trapped in her crystalline prison. As a small smile creased across her face, she interjected, "You don't get it, do you, Ganondorf?"

All eyes turned towards the princess, the three minions glad that Ganondorf's attention was now directed towards someone else. "And just what exactly do you mean by that?" Ganondorf said, his blood boiling even further.

"Link defeats you because he's never alone. Every time you've sealed away the sages, he frees them because the Triforce of Courage gives him the strength to defeat any opponent. Then they add their power to his, making him even stronger. And now, he has two very powerful sorcerers at his sideand an entire army ready to stand and fight against you. Once again, you're outmatched, Ganon. You may have been able to beat him if he only had the Triforce of Courage, but unfortunately for you, he's a good person, and therefore people are willing to help him. You, however…"

"SHUT UP!"

Without warning, a burst of purple lightning shot out of Ganondorf's hands and struck the crystal, charging it and Zelda's body full of evil energy. Zelda screamed as pain wracked her entire body before she fell into unconsciousness. Everyone else's eyes were as wide as saucers as they realized just how pissed off their master really was. But they all silently breathed a sigh of relief as Ganondorf seemed to calm down slightly. "All the more reason for me to pursue more power," he said in a somewhat-creepy monotone. He looked at his three commanders. "Tend to whatever wounds you may have. Rest awhile. In the meantime, I will prepare a stronger army to counter Link and Vaati. Now leave my sight."

Onox, Veran, and Shanzom hastened to obey, and quickly left the Throne Room. Ganondorf slouched in his throne. You're going to pay for this, fools, he swore to himself.

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Meanwhile, after the bodies had been tossed onto a funeral pyre, and the Hylian dead buried, Vaati began summoning more monsters to replace their losses. Raven had tried to convince him to rest first, but the Wind Mage had insisted on summoning at least enough monsters to replace the ones that had been killed in the battle. Giving up, she and Link rented rooms at the local inn, Raven paying for two so Vaati would have somewhere to sleep when his weariness got the better of him.

Raven got into her bed and was asleep in a few minutes.

She suddenly saw a young-looking man with a smiling face walking through the dark fields of Hyrule. An obscenely large sack was slung over his shoulders, with several masks displayed on the bag. As the mysterious man was walking, a shadow rose up behind him. The shadow soon sprouted a single eye with a sickly-green hue that gleamed of ill intentions. Too late did the man realize someone was behind him. The shadowy creature sprouted an arm with a spiked ball for a hand and struck the man in the back, knocking him to the ground. Had the bag not been on his shoulders, the blow would probably have killed him.

The man looked up in surprise at his attacker. But instead of begging for mercy, his smile simply widened. "You know, it's quite rude of you to trip me. I could have gotten hurt."

"Spare us your humor, and sit there until we have found what we are looking for!" the being hissed with a voice that instantly made Raven's blood run cold.

It couldn't be…but it had to be. There was only one whose voice sounded like that, only one who would refer to itself in such context.

Dethl, Raven thought in horror and confusion. But how? I thought…

Dethl rummaged through the man's pack, and moments later, the demon pulled out something. Raven couldn't make out what it was, but she could clearly see two fiery orange eyes glaring at her. As Dethl's laughter rang through her head, Raven suddenly jolted awake.

Vaati stumbled into her room, horrid bags under his eyes. He looked absolutely miserable. Even in his exhausted state, Vaati was quick to notice Raven's worried look. "I didn't mean to wake you," he half-mumbled in apology.

"Vaati, I just had a dream…I think it was a premonition."

Vaati settled down in the bed across the room and said, "Of what?"

"Dethl was in it."

Vaati sat bolt upright, his eyes wide with fury. "Tell me everything."

Raven did so, and Vaati's eyes narrowed. "That bastard. He wouldn't."

"Wouldn't what?"

"If I remember what I've read in the libraries, that smiling man you saw carries a highly dangerous item of immense power. I don't know the specifics, but if Dethl gets his hands on it…"

"Do you think he might be preparing for something? Maybe he has a feeling we'll somehow make it back."

"He's right."

"Should we talk to Link about it?"

"Perhaps. I remember something about the first Hero of Time being involved in a chain of events concerning that item the smiling man was carrying. Tomorrow, we'll ask."

They bade each other good night and settled into their beds for a good night's sleep.

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Dun dun DUUUUUUUNNN! Yes, your suspicions are correct, if you're thinking of a certain Happy Mask Salesman. Oh, if only Vaati knew the details…

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