Wang: Update!

Shadow: Yep, that was the fastest we have been in a while.

Time Stop: This next part is going to be a headache.

Shadow: I agree wholeheartedly.

Wang: Huh?

Time Stop: We don't own Legend of Zelda.

Chapter 24: It has come to this...

Silence reigned in the village. Lost stood over the unconscious Hylians as she looked out at the windmill. "Goddesses, help me help Nadai. She's going to need it."

Wanderer stirred, and groaned. Rising to his feet, he shrugged off the offer of help from his wife. "Damn, that was stronger than I thought."

Lost nodded. "I almost passed out. This next temple might be the death of them."

"And the other's did nothing but tickle them? They know the risk. They might not have known when they first started their quest, but they sure as hell do right now."

"I know." Lost curled into Wanderer's arms. "It's just ye had Link, and he was so receptive to yer teaching. We both know Nadai, she's not going to like it one bit."

Wanderer barked out a laugh. "If anyone can teach her, ye can. We both know that."

Lost nodded into his chest, and they stayed like that for some time. From the bark of laughter, Navi rose from her spot on the ground. At the same time, the mysterious Sheikah did as well. They looked over at the strange couple. Before heading over to them.

"Shiek, Navi, glad ye two could make it." Lost said.

"Lost, how did you-"

"Manage to stay up?" She finished for the Fairy. "I got over my own fears of the darkness a long time ago."

Shiek nodded. "Then what is our move? Once Nadai and Link wake up we need to separate, there are too many key factors all in one place. Gannondorf would come, and you all know what that means for me."

The rest of them nodded. Navi knew exactly what she was talking about, but did Wanderer and Lost privy to the man's secret as well? "Then what's the plan?" Navi asked.

Lost looked at the Fairy. "When Nadai and Link wake up, talk to the man for the song, ye know of whom I speak. Then, take Nadai with ye into the past, I will accompany ye to the temple. There, I will give what further instruction as I see fit. Ye need to help Nadai through the next dungeon. It will conquer her own fears."

Navi nodded. "You mean..." She glanced to the side.

"Yes. There."

Wanderer nodded. "Meanwhile, I will grab Link and talk to him. He needs to know about how to defeat Gannondorf, and it will take much more than his current skill."

Shiek looked alarmed. "Are you talking about the-"

"Yes, I am. And once I have done that, I need ye, Shiek, to accompany him and guide him to where to go. From there, once he is upgraded, fight him. Fight him, ye know which style I'm talking about. We're going to need to talk about what to do next when they are in the temple."

Navi looked at both Wanderer and Lost. "You two are more than key players, aren't you."

Lost and Wanderer flashed them a smile. "Maybe we are. Maybe we aren't."

Behind them, Nadai stirred. She opened her eyes, and found herself staring straight into Link's sleeping face. She jerked back at the surprise. Her startled reaction cause him to wake up. In waking up, his first reaction was grab whatever wonderfully warm body that was on him and bring it forward. That resulted in their faces almost touching. Link was suddenly not so happy he had to wear armor.

"If ye two are done, we got some business." A gruff voice said to them.

Nadai and Link jumped to their feet, and looked at the reactions of all their friends. They blushed horribly as Navi went over to sit on Link's shoulder. Wanderer and Lost tried to contain their mirth, but failed horribly as they began to snicker behind their hands. Shiek was as normal. Quiet.

"What do we do now?" Nadai asked.

"Well," Shiek said. "There are too many key factors here. Too many important people at the same place. If Gannondorf felt like it, he could come here right now and stop us from doing anything. We need to separate. And that means all of us."

Link and Nadai were puzzled. "What?"

Wanderer sighed. "We need to separate. That means all of us. I will take the villagers to Kokiri woods, and start training. Lost will head for the Temple of Time."

Shiek nodded. "I will go my way, but Link and I will have some training later."

Link was puzzeled. "Just us?"

Lost nodded. "Nadai and Navi will meet me at the Temple of Time, once ye three get the next song."

Nadai and Link unconsciously gripped each other's hands tighter. "And if we say no?" Nadai ventured to ask.

"Then ye are doomed." Wanderer growled. "In order to get into the next temple, ye need to go to the bottom of the well. But the evil inside the well has already moved on. Ye need to go back into the past to stop it. Nadai, you are the better fighter right now, it will be good if ye and Navi went there it can be done faster. Link, ye are needed here. Ye are good right now with the sword, but Nadai has had training almost all of her life with the blade. Ye haven't. Ye are going to go on a quest to enhance ye. In yer skills and physically."

Link gulped. "So we need to separate then?"

"Yes." Shiek whispered. "And as much as I know ye want to save Malon, it can not happen until after the next temple."

Nadai narrowed her eyes. "How did you know that?"

Wanderer and Lost looked equally surprised, Navi noted. But if they really were or just pulling an act, it would be hard to tell.

"Do you think I just sit around when you and Link are saving the sages?" Shiek retorted, more emotion in those words than they could ever remember him having. "I do go about and strike out at Gannondorf with all I can. I was there when Ingo killed Talon and gained his powers from him."

"Talon?" Nadai gasped, falling to her knees.

Link caught her and held her. "Talon is dead? How?"

"Ingo ran him through. He himself will be hard to fight. I tried to strike at him, but right now he is too powerful even for me. And if you want to get over the wall, which no horse can jump, you need to get more powerful. The famed Hover Boots are in the next temple. If you retrieve them, they can help you get over the wall and stop Ingo."

Nadai's eyes burned with fire. "Navi? Where's this next song we need?"

Navi looked over. "It's the windmill man. He's still unconscious, but if we-"

Link was forced to let go as Nadai strode over to the man and picked him up. They watched as she shook him awake and started to talk to him. Link wouldn't want to face Nadai when she was angry, that was for sure. The man was suddenly let go and ran off to the windmill. Nadai came back, the fire in her eyes not diminished in the slightest.

"Let's go people! This isn't going to work on it's own!" Her shouts cause the rest of them to start moving. The sleeping townsfolk were still out of it all. The monster that had knocked them out the night before was strong indeed. Wanderer waited by the well with his children as Lost ran out of town. Shiek did his disappearing act, leaving the Heroes of Time waiting for the windmill man.

"So, what did you tell him?"

"That we needed to hear the song that the kid played when he was younger. He was all too happy to oblige."

"Ah."

"Yeah."

There was an awkward silence, as Link and Nadai waited for the man. Navi fluttered away, waiting a little ways away to give them space.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Link asked.

"I-I am."

"You don't sound like it." Link wrapped an arm around her. "You can do this."

Nadai smiled one of those smiles, where it is just false all the way through, and the only person she managed to fool was herself. "I know I can. I've got Navi. I'm more worried about you."

Link shook his head. "I'm more worried about Shiek. He's, he's being a lot more..."

"More what?"

"I don't know. But I am going to find out. And when he said that Ingo was too powerful for him?"

"I believe it. He made that gate a full seven feet taller with that new power of his. Ingo will be hard to defeat."

Link smiled. "Not for me. I'm going to do it. Because it is my job to do so." He got that steely cold look in his eyes. "Ingo has messed with me for the last time." Muscles tightened, and the veins in his neck stood out. "I hope that whatever training they have for me will be good."

Nadai agreed. "Yeah. It worked wonders last time you were trained."

Link nodded. "Yeah."

They waited a little longer in silence, the man still not back. From the windmill came an explosion, an the door busted down. The man stuck his head out. "Just a few more seconds! My record was stuck!"

Link laughed nervously. "Okay."

Nadai looked at the man, covered in smoke and dirt. "I hope he'll be alright."

Link nodded. "Yeah." they waited for another second before he remembered something. "Wait!"

"Wait what?"

"Back when we first came here, there was a man in the room, the one right before the drawbridge."

Nadai screwed up her face. "Wait...yeah! That guy! He said...he said-"

"If we ever raise up an army, he would get all those he could from the old guard to join us." Link finished. "Talk to him, and he can go straight to the his contacts and help us out."

Nadai nodded. "It'll be good if we had some veterans on our side. They'll be good to help teach the others."

The windmill man came out of his windmill, his record player in hand. He ran down to them, and he gasped for breath. "This is the song that the brat played." He put the needle to the record and turned the handle. The sound of a flute came out, a catchy tune came out.

Link and Nadai looked at each other, and pulled out their instruments. Flute and Ocarina in hand, they followed along. Soon enough they played the final product. A shrill sound came from the sky. Rain came down, a torrential downpour that lasted for several seconds. Then, all at once, it dulled to a light drizzle.

"It's the Song of Storms!" Navi exclaimed. "It causes rainstorms, or makes them disappear."

The townsfolk woke up from the sudden downpour, and many of them turned to Wanderer for advice and answers. The windmill man ran over there as well, and soon enough a large crowd was gathered in front of the man.

He quieted their questions with one loud shout. "Quiet!" With the townsfolk suddenly quiet, he had a chance to talk.

"What happened last night was the work of Gannondorf." Wanderer's eyes pierced the crowd, ending any and all responses. "Many of ye came from Castle Town. Others of ye have lived here all of yer life. But we all have one thing in common; Gannondorf. He has cast us out of our homes, and raised the taxes to the point that we are all living like peasants!"

"Aye!"

"That's right!"

"So what do we want to do about it?" Wanderer asked them.

"We need to stop him!"

"How?"

"Wanderer, what do we do?"

Wanderer drew his sword. "We are not alone in Hyrule. Kokiri, Gorons, and Zoras are all gathering in the Kokiri forest to prepare for a war that will go down in the history books as one of the greatest battles every fought. Tell me, my fellow citizens? Are we in?"

A shout came from the crowd, deafening Navi's ears. "Then let us all go and tell our friends, our neighbors, those in hiding. Let us prepare ourselves for war!"

The entirety of the Kakariko Village followed Wanderer down past the Heroes of Time to Hyrule Field. Soon enough, others would stop and run back, heading to Death Mountain. Still others ran across Hyrule field to hidden settlements of survivors from Gannandorf's rampage from seven years previously. Link and Nadai were alone, for the first time in what felt like a life time. Well, Navi was still there, but she didn't count.

Link looked after the people. "I should be going with them."

Nadai looked to the where the Temple of Time lay, just out of sight. "I should have left a while ago."

"And yet," Link said. "Here we are." He leaned down and pulled her close.

"We should be leaving now." Nadai whispered.

"Not yet." Link pressed his lips against hers in a gentle kiss. Damn...it was a fight like no other not to keep on kissing her. He released his kiss, and took a deep breath to steady himself. "Now I can go." Turning around, he started off at a jog to catch up to Wanderer.

Behind him, Nadai almost fell to the ground. She had heard about breath-taking kisses, but ones that leave her on the ground? That was new to her. And she liked it.

Link managed to catch up to Wanderer without much difficulty. He went at an easy pace with the man and the two started to talk.

"Link, ye are a good swordsman, but not that good."

Link narrowed his eyes. Who was he to tell him he wasn't that good? He might not be able to beat Nadai or Wanderer, but he could most certainly beat anyone else he came across. "How?"

"How what?"

"How do I get better?" Link relented.

"There is one way."

"'One way?'"

"It won't be easy."

"Explain."

"The Master Sword is not paralleled in combat. It is the best sword out there. But some, like my own, can be made to be as strong. Nadai's daggers, and my wife's. Gannondorf will have a weapon or weapons that are as tough as the Master Sword."

"What does this have to do with me then?"

"Ye know only part of it. The Master Sword can be enhanced, much like when the Sages give ye their medallions."

"I see."

"So what ye need to do is enhance yer sword, and that can only happen when ye bring it to the right person."

"This is starting to sound like a wild goose chase."

"But it isn't boy! There is a Goron, his name s Biggoron. He creates weapons called the Biggoron Sword. A masterwork weapon, it is as strong as the Master Sword."

"You want me to get the Biggoron Sword?"

"If ye let me finish ye will know yer task! Once ye manage to get to him, instead of taking the sword, offer him yers. Once he sees it he will understand what to do. It will take four days for him to enhance yer sword. Once ye do, ye need to go to Shiek and fight him on top of Death Mountain. He will train ye to be better than ever before."

"So, get Master Sword upgraded, and fight Shiek?"

"Correct."

"Alright, where do I start?"

Wanderer stopped Link, and pointed him in the direction of Shiek, who was waiting for him at the entrance of Kokiri Forest. "While ye go to Shiek, I shall take the army to Lake Hylia. It's bigger there, more room to work."

"Why point me to Shiek?" Link asked.

"Ye don't have a guide, Shiek will be that guide."

Wanderer smiled that smile of his, causing Link to squirm in worry. This wasn't going to be such an easy training session as he first thought.

A few minutes later, and Nadai had successfully regained motor control of her lower body. She ran out into Hyrule Field, where a large dust cloud was headed to the south. Navi landed on her shoulder. Nadai turned to look at Lon Lon Ranch, and a fire returned to her eyes. Ingo, he will be dead soon!

She started off at a fast run, forcing Navi to hold onto her hair to keep on. With the Fairy safely secured, Nadai gained ground faster than before. Before too long, she stood panting before the broken drawbridge. Her jaw clenched as she remembered the dangers that lay ahead. ReDeads. She gave an involuntary shudder. Her hands went to her hair as she remembered the supernaturally strong hand gripping. The sword cutting...

She tore herself from the past. Gulping away the last of her hesitation, she jumped over the drawbridge, and into Hyrule Castle Town. She entered the side room, and there was the former guard, dressed in rags and selling his Poe spirits.

"Girl. You returned."

"I have."

"Then I suppose you're here to tell me you have raised an army."

"I am. Everyone in Hyrule is fighting for our cause right now."

The man stood up, standing at his full height for the first time in years. "Everyone? Even the Gerudo?"

Nadai shook her head. "Not them. We haven't even thought about that yet. But the rest of Hyrule is up and at arms. We have an army. We just need you and your contacts."

The former guard frowned. "Many of my fellow associates are in Termina, hiding away for years. I can go and get them, but it will take a good long time."

Nadai nodded. "Take as much time that you need, within reason. Wanderer is the only man right now able to teach the Hylians how to fight. The other races I am not worried about, but the Hylians are towns folk. They are not fighters."

He nodded his head. "I understand. I'll need to hurry. The fastest way into Termina is through the Lost Woods. Once I get them back here, we'll meet the rest of the Hylians and we will start our training and our planning."

He shook off the enveloping cloak he wore to reveal his old uniform. "I've been waiting years for this day. Let us not ruin it."

He ran out, armor clanking slightly. Nadai left the room, and made her way to Hyrule Castle Town center. There were dead ReDeads around, and Lost sat patiently on the broken fountain for her. Her lone dagger was sitting on the stone beside her, bloodied and dripping. "I've been waiting for ye Nadai."

Link stood before Shiek for a long time. Silence greeted him, and the Hero of Time nervously shuffled his feet.

"Link. You are ready to begin?"

Link nodded.

"You do know that in the four days we are going to be waiting I will be training you unmercifully."

"Yes."

"Good." Shiek stepped forward and took out his harp. "This task is going to be a hard one. It's going to test your endurance, the the endurance of your horse."

"Epona?"

"Yes."

"Wait, the only reason I would need Epona is if I am going long distances and I need to do it in a hurry. Why can't I use the songs to warp?"

Shiek shook his head. "Some of these items are very delicate, becoming nothing and something again all too quickly will destroy it. For that reason, riding Epona is the only way. And in this fashion, it will not only test your endurance, but also your balance."

"I see."

"Not only will it take that, but during the four days of us fighting, your endurance will be tested like never before. Since we will be fighting in Death Moutain, it will be best if you had your protective red tunic."

Link nodded, patting his backpack. "I have it ready."

"Good. Not only your endurance, but also your skill. We will fight, you using the Megaton Hammer against me. This time, though, no shield."

Link nodded. "Alright."

"And let us hope the fight we have will be as good as the one you and Nadai had."

Link shrugged. "We'll figure it out later. What is my first task."

Shiek played his harp, and out of no where a blue cucco appeared in Link's hands. The blue cucco squawked loudly, causing Link to grimace in pain.

"This is Cojiro, the legendary bluie cucco. You need to wake someone up."

Lost led Nadai into the Temple of Time. The heavenly sound rang through the giant white hall as they waled in silence. Navi hovered close by, as they reached their destination, the pedastal.

"So." Nadai started out.

"No." Lost interjected. "Nadai, I know that ye have a deep fear of the ReDeads. And not only them, but the shadow world as well."

Nadai was too shocked to answer. How had she known?

"Death is a part of life, and the shadow world is just a part of life we don't know about yet." Lost lectured. "Ye have a fear of it, and rightly so. In order to fight this fear, I have decided the next dungeon will be good for ye. The bottom of the well will test yer nerve against this world."

"And what if I can't do it!" Nadai shrieked. "I frickin' hate it in there! The death, the dark! Why me?"

"Because we all have our own trials. I used to be afraid of that side of the world too, but it was only when I faced it and conquered it did I find myself more powerful than it."

"I don't believe you."

"I know ye don't. Nadai, one bad incident doesn't rule the life of us all. Let this be a good time, a time to learn from our mistakes. To become the best fighter we can."

Navi landed on Nadai's shoulder. "It's true. If you want to prove it to Pani-"

Nadai growled, her pride shaken. "Don't talk to me about her! I will do it!"

"Good!" Lost laughed. "There isn't much I can train ye with. But over coming yer fear is a powerful thing indeed. Not only that, but trusting in yer friends and guides will help as well."

"Hm?"

"Trust in Navi, she knows more than ye think. She will guide ye right."

Nadai nodded her understanding. "Wait. Link isn't here. How do I go back in time?"

Lost pointed to the three points of the triforce etched in the ground below them. "The Master Sword is just one way. The other is in the daggers and belt ye have on now."

Nadai looked down at her weapons.

"Yes, those. There is a small notch where they can fit. Put it in and ye will go back in time."

"So, I put these in the notches, go back in time, fight something dark and nasty, and eventually return?"

Navi nodded. "Sounds right!" She chirped.

Lost looked at the daggers in Nadai's hands, lost in thought. "Three things before ye go. I will be here to guard ye, it will take four days so I will watch and guard this place until then. Secondly, ye must not be seen at the same time as yerself from the past. If ye are caught, it will unravel all of us. And third, ye must bring back the Lens of Truth. Navi and explain what that is about when ye get it."

Nadai nodded her understanding.

"Then off with ye. The Goddesses with ye in yer journey."

Lost stepped off the pedastal as Nadai placed her weapons and belt in their proper places. Then, a flash of blue light, and Nadai and Navi were lost from sight.

Shadow: Next part up soon, can't believe we are almost on chapter 25.

Time Stop: It's a fun ride this one, we'll get it up soon. And yes, that's a promise.

Wang: Please Review!