Chapter 28

The Ironknuckle, Rebonack

Tog charged ahead to the footholds in the bark, and we climbed higher. And when we made it up to the top of the tree and opened the large, double doors, we were disappointed and confused. Rather than looking like a guardian's chamber, it was the exit out of the palace. We stood in the open outdoors, on top of a long staircase going straight down to the sand. "But this makes no sense!" I cried aloud. "The exit is always through the guardian's battlefield!" Glancing around, I even tried to spot the statue for the gem's resting place, but there wasn't one.

"Maybe we missed something?" Tog asked, starting to turn his body back to the door.

But I shook my head. "There wouldn't be an exit here. No, there's something here, we need to try and look." Then, without waiting for the others, I marched down the stairs. It was too quiet, nothing stirred, not even a bird. And most of all, I felt like I was being watched, but from where?

Tog and His Highness joined my side, and only watched as I scanned the perimeter. "Do you feel that?" I whispered.

"Someone's watching us." Was the prince's reply. Tog only nodded and brought his spear around, ready for an attack.

But the attack didn't come from an enemy, weapon, or trap. It came straight from the ground we stood on.

I heard it before I felt it, the slight rattle of sand and rocks. Then, I began to move on a small current. Even with my quick reflexes of yelling to my companions and trying to reach the stairs wasn't enough. It escalated too quickly. What started as a slow churn then expanded into a large lake of spinning quicksand. Yes, just like that, it was sinking in fast and rough enough to break the staircase in pieces. Then those pieces fell in with us, doomed to sink below the surface. In seconds, the sand already engulfed my thighs.

I tried my hardest to fight it, from looking for something to grab, using "jump", to using my sword as a cane I can lean up on. When my desperate fight was up though, nothing changed, my luck has ran out. The sand was now reaching my chest. Tog and His Highness continued to scream defiance and hopeless plans, but I wasn't even listening anymore. The weight of the sand was pressing and rubbing against my skin, and soon the sand was pushing my shoulders down under. I was so vulnerable here, I'd never thought I'll be stuck like this with no way out. It was too late, I'm so sorry I brought you two into this. We should have gone back inside. Zelda, I owe you an apology as well. Who will wake you up once I'm gone?

With the last question unanswered, the sand engulfed my head. I closed my eyes and sank deeper. I couldn't breathe, and even the sound was muffled into nothing. My memories swallowed the last of me, like I fell asleep.

I didn't even feel myself fall free through a sand waterfall and tumble to a stone floor.

I don't know how long I was lying there. I felt lightheaded and faint. But after sometime, I slowly came to. Confused, dazed, and just now catching up with my breath, I looked up through a darkened vision. I was being showered by small trickles of sand that fell away from the main body of sand pouring down. The ceiling gave me a vision of a stone hourglass. Like, despite the amount of earth falling above us, a thick stone ceiling determined how much was actually falling in here. The ceiling was not letting much come in either, the hole was small, and as I realized, it was not accidental. It was hard to tell with so much deposit, but it looked like the hole was perfectly round. It wasn't cracked.

My eyes stung from falling particles, so I turned my head back to the floor. Unlike the rest of the temple, the floor didn't smell like old, dusty rock, but like fine polished stone. It was even smoothed and cleaned. My companions also made it down here as well. Tog was lying closer to the spilling sand, and His Highness closer to me. The latter was sprawled in an odd position on his back, with his arms outstretched in different angles.

I pushed up to my knees and crawled over to him first. He moaned when I shook his shoulders and his eyes slowly flickered open. They were blank and unfocused at first, then they popped with recognition and he sat up. "Where are we? What happened?" He cried.

I shrugged, having no answer, then I crawled to wake Tog. Once I saw he was all right and awake, I stood up and inspected the room. I gasped when I realized this was the guardian's chamber. It was large and empty, but the familiar face of the statue stood at the opposite side, next to stairs leading up. The only thing odd about this was the lack of a guardian. The quicksand was planned, it was needed to take us here. But it happened right when all three of us were right in the middle of it, and that watchful gaze I felt, was it the guardian? Was he watching us, and did he trigger the quicksand? I don't know, but the fact that he wasn't here was making me a little nervous. There was nothing more to do than to make our way to the end.

Then without warning, I was startled when an anonymous voice filled the chamber. "Only the chosen one with the Triforce on the back of his hand may battle me. The other two may not interfere! Shall we begin?" It was a male voice, loud and deep. But it was impossible to pinpoint where it was coming from with his voice bouncing off the walls.

I turned back to my companions, and the prince was already shaking his head. "I can't just stand back and watch you fight! You're going to need help."

"Something tells me he's not giving you an option." I answered. "Stand back for all our sakes and let me fight. Promise me you won't get involved."

His Highness looked like he was trying to argue further, but instead remained silent and gave something like a pout instead. It was Tog who nodded, despite seeming angry about it as well. I wanted the prince to agree as well, but I couldn't wait much longer. Turning, I called back to the mysterious voice.

I expected to see the speaker come around from a dark corner, or maybe a secret perch he was watching from, but he did neither of these things. Instead, I made out a transparent form right in front of me. I'm not sure when I first noticed it, or how long it was there, but I knew it must have been the guardian. At the top, it looked like a huge man covered in heavy armor, very much like an ironknuckle. But I couldn't tell what was under him. Was he sitting on it? Whatever it was, it was larger than he was, like some kind of beast.

It didn't take long for him to become solid and clear. I gasped, nearly choking on my own breath. He was on a steed, but I didn't expect to see anything like it! It was in the shape of a horse, but it was fully mechanical, making it seem creepy how it never moved and just stared blankly ahead. What made it worse though, was that it had no legs, it instead just hovered off the ground.

"I am called Rebonack," The ironknuckle remarked, drawing my attention off his strange steed. "And I have guarded this palace for thousands of years, waiting for the chosen one to show. Finally, here is a battle worth fighting!" He lifted a jousting lance I didn't notice before and hurried his "horse" to the end of the room.

I drew my sword and watched him closely. He lowered his lance and charged forward, his steed still hovering with that blank expression. I waited for him to draw close before I leapt out of the way, when I did, he continued to soar past me to the other side of the room. Then, he stopped, and turned the still unmoving "horse" around before charging again. So he's going to see this as a jousting match? Very well, I didn't want to come too close to him or his steed then, but I had another idea. I casted "jump" and waited.

I watched carefully, trying to judge my distance right, then I jumped. My target was Rebonack, all I need to do was plunge my sword into his armor. But as I was falling, I realized that my estimate was a little off. Instead of landing on top of him, I was going for the horse's head, and by the time I realized that, it was too late.

At the same time, I saw Rebonack pointing the lance upward. I couldn't change where I was falling now, but I may still have a chance to save myself from that lance! I took my shield and aimed it down right when he stabbed the lance to me. As soon as it bounced back, I was already tumbling down the horse's neck and rolling into Rebonack. I nearly sent him flying off the saddle, but somehow he stayed on. At first, he was trying to shove me off the still flying steed. Then, after I awkwardly sliced his thick armor, just missing a joint, he suddenly dropped his lance. It slammed against the stone floor, already many yards back, and sending a terrible echo in the room. Then he went for a long, heavy sword on his hip.

I knew he had the advantage here, and I considered dropping down, but I decided to try my luck and stay on. He tried to stab me, but he struggled to find a way around my shield. He tried multiple angles, but I blocked every one. However, he also didn't allow me enough space or openings for me to strike back. So instead, I pushed back against the sword and into his armor. If he expected me to retaliate, he would have been able to fight against it, but now he was almost off the edge again. I hesitated, because I was also falling over after shoving him with so much force.

He was just starting to recover his balance again when the horse suddenly turned slightly, and ran us into a stone wall. I just remember a sound like an explosion, being showered by dirt and rocks, and sliding off the horse's back all at the same time. I landed on my back, still sliding a bit on the smooth floor.

When I propped my head up, I saw Rebonack was quickly trying to stand back on his feet, no doubt rushing back to the unaffected steed. I suddenly felt the need to beat him to it. I ignored the pain in my back and scramble to the still mount. Rebonack would have reached it first, but the heavy armor slowed him down. I jumped into the saddle and took the reins, trying to lead it away from the broken wall. To my surprise, it obeyed. I was expecting it either only listened to its master, or I wouldn't be able to urge it to move in time. It moved very well, just like you would move a real horse.

Once I was away from Rebonack, I brought the reins into what would have been a gallop if the beast had any legs. It was too odd, I felt like I should have been on a live horse, but this one was cold metal, and didn't give that gentle sway when it walked. Regardless, it did speed up into the right pacing.

I turned the horse around and charged back towards the ironknuckle. He was picking up the fallen lance, then he just waited in the middle of the floor.. The helmet kept his expression secret, I wondered if he was shocked or prepared. Seeing how confident he is though, I'd think it to be the latter. If so, I knew he was going to joust me before I could strike him, I had to catch him off guard.

I unsheathed my sword and raised it high, like I was going for a tall overhead chop. Rebonack took a balanced stance and waited, lance firmly gripped at his side. But when he was close enough to jab it forward, I was already abandoning my pose and lowering my torso against the steed's back. The lance flew above me and I stabbed low, hitting him in the chest. It wasn't enough to give him a bad injury, or even enough to draw blood, but it had to hurt. He flinched and grabbed his chest, and I sped ahead.

When at the end, I turned it around and started to charge for him again. Then, I caught a glimpse of my companions, they were staring, both awestruck and horrified. And I think I saw the prince's hand gripping the hilt of his sword. Will he stay out of this? Or was he just waiting for an excuse to jump in and fight? There was nothing more I could do about him now.

I turned back and looked for Rebonack. Then I hesitated, if I was charging on foot, I would have stopped, dumbfounded in confusion. He was still right there, where I left him, holding his lance and waiting for me to come closer. He had to have some kind of plan! I knew he wasn't stupid enough to fall for the same trick twice, so what was he doing? One thing's for certain though, I wasn't stopping. I had to continue the charge with caution. I was only a few yards away now, and I prepared my weapon and was ready to duck down like before. But I didn't understand, Rebonack still refused to move, not even to point or pull his lance back.

Then he leapt, at the last possible second with his shield suddenly in hand, in front of the horse. I was nearly knocked over from the collision as Rebonack pushed against the machine. I saw him sliding backwards, the horse was strong and still running, but Rebonack was stronger. The horse came to a slow stop.

I couldn't believe what I just saw. What power! But I was held speechless for too long, and Rebonack had come around to the side of the horse. I was thinking to reach for the shield on my back, but he was already moving to strike. My first response was to urge the horse forward again, but it was just puffing out bouts of steam instead. I then moved to strike him myself, but my time to act was over, and he ran the tip of the lance through me. In a single second, I remember horrible pain striking through my chest and right shoulder, and then falling off the other side of the saddle.

I landed on my back and struck my head pretty hard before I heard a clank I knew was from my sword bouncing away. Pain resonated from my now torn shoulder, and I tried to turn it off so I could focus better on healing it. I didn't know how much time I had, but I knew it wasn't much. After healing most of the wounds, I looked for my sword, praying I didn't take too long. Rebonack must have made it back to his horse, and now it was running fine with the exception of extra steam pouring out.

Finally, I caught sight of my sword lying just a few feet away. But now Rebonack and his horse were practically on top of me, I was too late! Rebonack brought the lance up and was about to stab down for me. I held up my shield, blocking the hit, but he was finished, he just kept stabbing and kept stabbing. There was nothing more for me to do, there wasn't even time for me to stand or fight back, and he never went away. I tried crawling back and away, still trying to reach my sword, although, I'm not sure how it can help me now. But now amount of crawling was fast enough, the horse followed my every move and kept its master close enough for him to continue piercing my shield. It was only a matter of time before I would grow too tired to defend myself.

I felt trapped. I was a goner, my quest was on the edge of failure. I looked back up to the Ironknuckle on the hovering mount and spat the first thing on my mind. "You call this a fair strategy?" I had to scream above the ongoing attacks. "You told me I had to fight you myself, and yet you hide behind that... that horse!"

To my surprise, he heard every word. "You don't think this is fair?" He asked, slowing his attacks but still trying to find an opening. "Good, because the challenges prepared for the chosen one are not! And the prophecy states that only you may fight the guardians, only you may search for the Triforce of Courage. Hero, I am not your toughest opponent. From this point forward, your quest will only become more difficult, both physically and mentally." Suddenly, he stopped attacking and the lance retreated back to his side. "However, if you want a 'fair' fight from me, I'm fully capable of defeating you on the ground!" He then dropped the lance to the floor and dismounted.

Now, I had the remarkable chance to stand and collect my sword. And when I turned back to him, his mechanical horse was already dissipating in thin air again. Rebonack paid it no mind, but slowly came closer while unsheathing his sword and shield. I haven't told just what kind of sword it was yet, but it was a giant two-handed sword. That's right, he was wielding it with one hand. Just one fine sweep with that could easily break bones.

Rebonack stopped when he was a few feet away, taking a readied stance. "I'll let you move first, human." He said, emphasizing the last word like it was an insult.

I hesitated for just a moment. I always hated when my opponents wanted me to strike first, but I didn't object. I started by aiming for an easy move, then turning mid swing, instead striking where his shield was a second ago. But he countered it with his sword. "Not bad." He remarked before stepping forward and swinging that heavy sword down.

I jumped to the side and jabbed forward, but he responded with an overwhelming shield bash. I stumbled back, nearly losing my footing. Laughing at my clumsiness, he struck again. This one almost took my left ankle, but it took the floor instead, making the whole floor quake and scatter. He had incredible strength, But does he have the speed to keep up with me?

Quickly striking a weak hit just to distract him, I bounced away from his counter and almost reached his back when he dropped his sword arm. I held up my shield, but the attack pushed me down on the ground. If the shield wasn't magical, it would have been seriously dented, if not useless altogether. I was unharmed though, and I could still make use of this angle. I plunged the tip of my sword into a joint of the armor and into his leg.

He roared and fell to one knee, but he wasn't completely helpless. He swiped towards me, and I jumped back, losing my balance yet again just from the wind of the blade, then something amazing happened. He began to stand back on both feet again. I could tell there was some pain there, and he was slow, but powerful to fight through it.

I hesitated, and when I reacted, it was too late. I ran forward, blindly taking a swing, making the mistake that he was still distracted. But Rebonack stood straight and shoved his shield in my face, pushing me to the ground. A running liquid tickled my nose and slid down to my chin, but I didn't have time to worry about that now. Rebonack was lifting that sword for an overhead swing.

I rolled out of the way of the first strike, debris still showering over me, but already he was going for another one, but that one was interrupted when a figure ran to his side and tried to stab through his defenses. I began to panic once I recognized him to be the prince. I yelled at him to stop, but I'm pretty sure he couldn't even hear me.

For a second, I thought I saw Rebonack flinch with the first stab, but then he quickly turned to the prince full of rage and sliced diagonally. His Highness leaned out of the way, but Rebonack was the quicker and the end of the sword ran over his arm. "I said no one may interfere!" He yelled as the prince of Hyrule tumbled back and fell down.

I couldn't believe what just happened. I told him to stay back! I rolled to my feet, but Rebonack wasn't going to let me go so easily. His sword cracked on the floor next to me, keeping me from helping the wounded noble. But luckily, Tog was there to help, he ran to his side and tried to move him out of the battle. I could only pray he was all right.

In the meantime, I needed to focus on winning this fight. I danced around his every swing, countering and striking when I had a chance. I expected, after a while, Rebonack's injured leg would continue to slow him down, but he never did, and he never grew tired. I was going to need a new strategy. I needed to surprise him, but how?

I spun out of the way of another earth cracking swing, then casted "jump". I began by baiting him to swing low, and when he did, I jumped over his head and slid my sword into his back. He didn't yell, just fell to his injured knees and dropped his sword and shield. It was at this point when I noticed the lack of blood, come to think of it, there was no blood when I stabbed him in the knee either.

Rebonack slouched forward. "…I believe I have underestimated you as my opponent." Then, with no farewell or congratulations, he bowed his head and vanished in thin air, leaving only his sword and shield behind.