Selphie: Seems spring semester's slightly more involved than fall semester.
Din: So five months later we make it back to the priority list?
Selphie: Basically.
Nayru: That blows.
Farore: Hey, at least it's summer break now. She'll have all day every day to write. Right?
Selphie: ...So, I got a job.
Goddesses: ...Great.
Selphie: Anyhow, it's here now. So, read on.
Darunia: Okey-day! Selphie Louise does not own anything Zelda-fied. It's all the property of Shigeru Miyamoto and Nintendo.
Tingle: She does, however, own the characters of Selphie, Sakon, Dimitra, Curt, Mace, Gremlin, Daena, Saeda, Fiyero, Sig, Lobster, and Biggoron, as well as most of those other cool Goron peeps.
Selphie: A few more characters appear, but I don't want to spoil them. So, read on and find out!
Chapter 27
The air in Death Mountain Crater wavered in the intense heat. Stone and wooden bridges, built and rebuilt countless times after countless eruptions, crossed over the lava below. Ash cones, long dormant until that very morning, sent black smoke and soot up to the sky, but the billows could not escape to the heavens, for the mouth of Death Mountain was blocked off. Creating a roof above them was a red, crystalline ceiling, below which gathered the smoke and ash and upon which sat the great Lord Valoo.
Sig suggested that they take a look at their map to figure out which of the many bridges to take. Komali watched as Sig and the others pored over the map and evaluated their options. Something seemed different about the Goron, and not just his new air of confidence. He looked physically different… Komali rubbed his eyes and squinted, trying to figure out just what it was.
"All right! This way, then," Sig declared, rolling up the map and leading the way toward a bridge off to their left. He stopped when he realized Komali hadn't followed. "Hey, Komali! This way. There's a plant over here that'll take us up the crater." Nodding as he followed over to the bridge, Komali decided to write the change off as a trick of the heat waves. Sig placed a tentative foot on the bridge and, feeling it sag a little, decided to roll across instead and proceeded to the other side quickly.
On the other side was a platform with a strange symbol on it. Into the wall they could see a stone doorway and a dark tunnel. "The Fire Temple is through there. After he and the Hero of Time defeated Volvagia there, Darunia awakened as a sage," Navi told them. "This platform here is the destination for anyone who plays the Bolero of Fire."
Sig took a few steps toward the Fire Temple and stared at the darkness beyond the tunnel. "I wish I could see it…" he said, staring longingly. The others had already gathered around a large plant with wide, flat leaves. He took a few more steps in the temple's direction.
"Sig!" He was pulled back to reality and joined the others. "Navi thinks it'll hold your weight, but just to be safe, Gremlin and me are gonna go up first. You ride up right after us, okay?" Komali said.
"Sounds good," Sig nodded. He watched from below as the plant lifted the Rito and creature off the ground and floated around the crater.
"Hey," Komali elbowed Gremlin to get his attention. "Does Sig look different to you?"
"What is means?" Gremlin asked.
"Like… I dunno. Something's changed about him, I think," Komali failed to explain.
"Hmm… Gremlin think birdie-boy is spends too longs in heats," Gremlin replied. Komali grunted in response and then sighed deeply, shaking his head. Not far from the top, the plant stopped a few inches above an outcropping, and the boys hopped off and waited for Sig and Navi. Some distance away was another outcropping, and though Komali could have flown Gremlin across the distance, Sig would have been stranded, so they opted for the door nearby.
"It occurs to me, that we are basically stranded up here and that there is no turning back," Komali said suddenly, as they walked down the passageway.
"I don't know about you, but I never planned to turn back anyway," Sig replied just when they'd reached the door at the opposite end, finding it locked with a portcullis.
"Liar," Komali smirked. Sig would have responded if he had not noticed the other occupants of the room.
"Gorons?" Sig wondered aloud at the sight of them. Ten or so of them were curled up on the floor throughout the tunnel, rough backs and yellow spots clearly visible. Upon hearing the word, the "Gorons" opened their eyes… which were positioned on their backs.
"That's not normal," Komali said, taking a step back.
"That's because they're not Gorons," Navi said.
"Nejirons!" Gremlin added. The creatures began hopping up and down angrily, making grunts that Sig, Komali, and Navi could not understand. "They says they is sos Gorons," Gremlin said.
"You understand them?" Sig asked.
"They is creatures like Gremlin, so understands," Gremlin replied. "They says they is not nejirons, that they is Gorons like you is." The nejirons grunted some more. "Why else they is in mountain," Gremlin translated.
"Gorons aren't even allowed in Passing Peak anymore. It's supposed to be sacred ground, not to mention unstable. If they were Gorons, they would know that," Sig replied.
The nejirons grunted again, and Gremlin translated, "They has permissions from Older Sibling."
"It's Big Brother," Sig corrected them. "And why would GrandDaru give them permission to be in here?"
More grunts. "Um… they is specials."
"Hmm… special," Komali repeated, tapping his temple, smirking.
"Oh, please. They don't even have arms or legs. They only look like Gorons in their coloration," Sig retorted.
Gremlin translated more grunts, "They says they is better Gorons. They more evolved, not need stupid arms and legs." The nejirons grunted once more, and Gremlin rolled his eyes as he interpreted. "They says you is too stupid and not evolveds to understands."
"WHAT?!" The nejirons were now hopping up and down and their grunts were distinctly laughter-like. Sig narrowed his eyes and took a step toward them, but Komali cut in before he could do anything.
"Cool it, Sig. You can't attack them if they don't attack us first," he said.
"They're insulting my people!" Sig retorted.
"Sig, look at them. It'd be too easy to insult them. Don't let them get to you," Komali replied. Sig scowled and took a few deep breaths.
"Ah… Any chance you guys can open this door for us?" Navi addressed the nejirons.
There were a few more grunts before Gremlin's ears drooped. "Um… they not help stupids little pebble-ron …"
Sig's eyes widened. "Uh… little what?" Komali asked.
"Pebble-ron. That's a nasty term for Gorons that haven't reached their prime yet," Sig explained sullenly.
"…Sig," Navi turned toward him. "I get the impression that you have to defeat these nejirons in order to open the door. Would you do the honors?"
Sig took a deep breath, and then he smirked. "I would be quite happy to take care of these nejirons," he said, pulling out Link's skull hammer. The nejirons ceased their laughing and quickly attempted to retreat to the other side of the room.
As Sig chased them down, Komali turned to Navi, "So… prime. What the heck is that?"
"Gorons become adults when they reach their prime," Navi replied.
"So, it's like a rite of passage?" Komali asked.
"Not really, it's the physical state of their body. Gorons age differently than other races and have a higher life expectancy, around a hundred years," Navi explained. "Youth age at relatively the same rate as Hylians until they reach their prime, which can be anywhere from late teens to early thirties. Usually they grow at an even pace until they reach an adult body, but sometimes a young Goron will have a sudden growth spurt and reach adulthood at an accelerated rate, growing from adolescent to prime in a matter of months as opposed to years. This may be caused by genetics, or, in some cases, it is the result of a rite of passage. Upon reaching their prime, they are adults, and they cease to age for many years, usually around sixty to seventy. Then they begin to age normally again until they die. Other factors like bloodlines or sage-hood, apparently, can quicken or slow a given Goron's pace. "
"Wow… so that's what Darunia meant when he said Sig wasn't done growing," Komali said, looking down the corridor at his friend, who was now swinging his hammer at one of the two remaining nejirons. "So, what about the other races? Like the Zoras; how fast did they age?" Komali inquired.
"Zoras were pretty much even with Hylians and Gerudo. Kokiri aged until they turned ten and ceased to age until they died, which was impossible to predict. Sheikah were much like Gorons except that prime for them was much older, more like fifty, and they ceased to physically age at all after that."
"How about fairies?"
"We don't age at all," Navi replied. "Actually, I'm curious about Gremlin," she said, turning toward the creature. "You remember a time before the caverns, but the creature wars were over fourteen hundred years ago. You've been alive that long?"
"Ehm, Gremlin difficults explain," Gremlin shook his head, waving one hand dismissively as the portcullis over the door slid away. "'Nother times."
"Another time what?" Sig asked, approaching with the hammer over his shoulder.
"Nothing important," Komali replied. "Let's just keep moving." Sig shrugged and followed them out the door.
"It iz time."
Dimitra disappeared from her spot on the table, and reappeared next to Sakon where he relaxed on his bed. He sensed her presence and opened one eye to peer at her. "We 'ave recouped enough power. We must act quickly before zee homme finishes wiss zee dragon."
"Let's go, then. Mace! Curt!" Sakon called out, sitting up and swinging his legs over the side of the bed.
"Is it time?" Mace asked, crossing to them with Curt slung over his shoulder (reasons for this were better left to the imagination).
"Yes, now take this and do exactly as you're instructed," Sakon charged, handing a piece of chalk to Curt as Mace turned around so the Zora could face Sakon.
"Yes, Dad," Curt smirked, taking the chalk.
"Hey!" Sakon growled, grabbing Curt by the gill. "We only have one shot at this. It'll take weeks to recoup if we fail, and by then those brats will have rescued the girl and we'll have no more connection to the outside world. If you fuck this up, I swear to every god there is that I will make this eternity a living hell. You will wish you'd never attacked your king just so you would never have met me. Are we clear?"
Curt eyed him warily, deciding that this was a loaded threat. "Crystal," he replied cautiously. Mace set him down and he turned to Dimitra. "What do we do?" Dimitra made Mace move the table while she instructed Curt in the construction of an expansive and very elaborate magic circle.
"I don't think I ever congratulated you, Mace," Sakon said, stepping up next to the Goron as they watched the circle grow. "That was an exceptional bit of plotting, I must say. I'm very impressed."
"It happens from time to time," Mace replied. "I got caught before my powder keg project, but I did pull off a few other plans."
"Indeed, I recall. It occurs to me, I'll never get the chance to thank the king and his fools for bringing together the four greatest villainous minds in Termina. Their descendants will just have to feel the burn," Sakon smirked. They watched for a few more seconds. "Fooling them into saving the island instead of coming right to Ikana so that we have enough time to revive our master and allow him to follow them in to save us… genius, Mace." He patted his hand on Mace's arm before walking away toward Dimitra and Curt.
"We almost ready?" Sakon asked.
"We will be ready when we are ready. Two inchez, Curt!" Dimitra acknowledged Sakon and moved on.
"How much longer, Dimitra?" Sakon asked.
"'Owever long it takes to finish ziss circle, which may be never if Curt does not learn 'ow to draw a two-inch line," Dimitra replied.
"What do I look like? A Zora ruler? I'm doin' the best I can," Curt retorted.
"Dimitra! We have a limited time frame here! If the boy comes--!"
"I know what will 'appen if zee homme gets 'ere first, Sakon. 'Owever, ziss iz a delicate process, and I will take zee time required to ensure zat it is not screwed up too badly. Curt! I said two inchez! Not un and trois quarters, not two and one quart, two inchez!"
"Do you wanna do it yourself!?" Curt rejoined crazedly.
"Dimitra--!" Sakon attempted to cut in again.
"Sakon, if you weren't so impamtiemment, we would finish ziss much quicker, non?" Dimitra cut him off and snatched the chalk from Curt's hand. She measured two inches with her thumb and shoved the chalk back into his palm. "Zat iz two inchez! Use it for reference!"
Curt leapt to his feet and stood over her. "Screw you, Dimitra!" he shouted, throwing the chalk to the ground.
"Curt, you aliboron! Get back to work! We do not 'ave time for ziss, maudit!" Dimitra ordered him, glaring up at him.
"Finito! Vaffanculo! Non più!" he started shouting at her in his native Zoran. They continued to trade arguments and expletives in Deku and Zoran until Dimitra had soundly threatened Curt with a number of painful spells to his sensitive areas if she did not escape from their prison.
Selphie watched all of this from across the room, hiding underneath the table again after Mace had moved it. She knew precisely what they were up to, and she would have stopped it if she'd thought she were able. However, especially following Dimitra's threats on Curt, she knew that it was beyond her to halt their evil doings.
The circle was completed. Dimitra summoned her partners and directed them where to stand. A characteristic of the circle was the large triangle inscribed within and each angle was dissected by a line segment, the three segments meeting the circumference of a smaller inside circle. Dimitra stationed a villain at each point and took her own place at the center, carrying the sash with her. Sakon examined all of the lines and segments from his place. "Why are you in the middle with us at the edges here?" he asked suspiciously.
"For zee same reason zat I told Curt 'ow to make zee magic circle: ziss is a complicated spell and zee language and wording are very precise," Dimitra explained. "I may 'ave trusted you wiss zee pronunciations. 'Owever I would not trust zose two wiss zee gods' alphabet."
"What's that got to do with where you have us?" Sakon pressed.
"Instead of trying and failing to teach all of you 'ow to say zee spell, I will say it myself and zee circle will channel your magic to me so zat zere will be enough power to complete zee spell," Dimitra replied.
"Forget I asked," Sakon rolled his eyes.
"You wanted to be sure zat zee spell would work, non? Well, ziss is zee only way to do zat wiss such limited time," Dimitra stated. "We 'ave several hours extra as a result of Mace's plan, but zat is not much and it is not enough to prepare zee sree of you. Now, do you want to raise our master, or shall we rot in 'ere forever?"
"Oh, just get it over with," Sakon returned, waving his hand dismissively.
Dimitra turned away and lowered her head, closing her eyes. Then she began chanting in a low, faraway voice. They did not understand the words she spoke, but they knew sounds were working when the lines on the floor began glowing. Suddenly the chamber became lit up as light shot out of the floor within the circle, blinding all present. A few seconds later it dissipated slightly, allowing everyone to see again.
For Curt everything was gold-washed, for his corner of the triangle was now emitting yellow light. He looked about in bemusement and amazement as Dimitra continued her chanting. Mace's sight was pink-shifted from the light in his corner. He stood there with his arms folded across his chest, simply waiting for it to be over, not much caring for this flashy type of magic. Sakon saw everything through teal light. His arms were also crossed over his chest. However, his stance was decidedly more tense, his left hand gripping his right arm tightly. As she chanted, Dimitra caught sight of the nervous gesture and looked Sakon square in the eye. He stared back searching for reassurance, a sign that their plan was still on track. She nodded to him and continued chanting.
At almost the same moment, the light surrounding the three men seemed to sink back into the floor, absorbed into the lines. And then, it shot back out again, conducted through the line segments toward the center, toward Dimitra's circle, which instantly radiated orange. The light swirled around and around her and began to expand once more to the outer circle, reaching higher and higher until it seemed to pierce the ceiling of their prison. Everyone seemed to realize at the same time just how loud Dimitra's voice had become. While before it had seemed to come from a far off place, it now echoed and sounded through everything and everyone, coming from within and without.
And then it stopped. The boys glanced around at each other, unnerved by the sudden stop. "So…" Mace broke the silence almost a full minute later.
"Was that it?" Sakon asked, still not stepping from his place as Dimitra still had not moved either.
"'Was that it?!' Were you paying attention?! What more did you want? A twenty-one fin salute?" Curt exclaimed incredulously.
Sakon ignored him and focused on Dimitra, whose head was lowered once more, hiding her expression. "Dimitra."
"Oui. Zat was it," she replied.
"Finally!" Curt threw his hands up in the air, and retreated with Mace.
"Why was my light pink?" Mace asked. Sakon nodded and turned around, walking back to his bed. Dimitra looked up with a triumphant smirk on her face.
"It iz done."
Far from Extendere Febelis, in the northern waters of the Great Sea, only three souls remained in the dark and foreboding bastion of Forsaken Fortress.
A year ago, Mila, the former debutante turned pauper, and Maggie, once destitute now prosperous, were on rather bad terms. They had since become very good friends, all because Mila was willing to ferry Maggie across the Great Sea to see her boyfriend, Mo, a moblin.
Mila docked her boat inside the fortress' harbor, and the two climbed out. "When we were trapped in that dingy, little cage a year ago, I would have given anything to never see this place again. Now I'm making weekly trips here!" she commented, tying her boat. Maggie started her way up the stairs to find her boyfriend. "And who would have guessed my visits would be to one of the very guards who kept me locked up here?" she called to her friend.
"I just know Mo will be glad to see you again. He was worried you'd been caught in a storm on your way to work the other night. You know he's taken to watching the weather lately," Maggie replied from the first landing. "I wonder where he is? Mo!" she called out through the fortress. Mila finished with her boat and joined her. "Mo!"
"Hey, Mo!" Mila joined her calls, but they got no response. "He's here, right?"
"Mmmaybe he's sleeping," Maggie suggested, leading the way up the next flight of stairs toward the arena-like area there and to the large wooden doors on the other side. Walking in, Maggie called out, "Oh, Moby-poo! Your little Mag-pie is here!"
"I think I may be more disgusted with your relationship now than when you two started dating," Mila rolled her eyes upon hearing the pet names. "Is he in here?" she asked as they looked around the big room.
"I don't kn--." Crack! The girls looked about, startled. "What was that?" Maggie asked nervously. Mila didn't respond but moved toward the door. The cracking continued outside the door. "Was that Mo?"
Mila shook her head slowly, unsure of what exactly it was that she was seeing. Maggie joined her at the door to see for herself what was occurring. Suspended about twenty feet above the ground was a large rock with a something stuck in the top of it. It was an eerie-looking stone; it rather resembled a person. In fact, as they watched, it began to look more like a person and less like a boulder until suddenly, with a large snap! and a burst of light, the rock exploded into pebbles. The girls shielded their eyes from the light. When they opened them again, the boulder had been replaced by something far more frightening.
Mila turned around, ashen. "Hide!" she hissed. There were barrels in the corner, and Mila grabbed Maggie by the arm and pulled her toward them. Just as they'd hidden beneath the barrel, the double doors flew open. A large, dark figure stepped into the room. They peered through the cracks in the barrel, and Maggie gasped audibly. The figure turned in their direction, and Mila quickly covered Maggie's mouth to muffle the sound. He moved in their direction, and they cowered in their hiding space, cornered with nowhere to go. Just as it seemed they would be discovered, he stopped and turned around.
"Hmm… the creatures have all left… I shall need those four minions more than I expected…" he mused to himself. "I shall make myself comfortable in the interim." From nowhere, a comfortable chair appeared next to him and he sank into its velvet cushions. A moment later and the flames sprang to the torches on all the walls, inside and out. Mila caught a glint of something on the ground outside beyond the door. It appeared to be a sword, a sword whose blue hilt was wrought with wings and a golden triangle.
The girls had seen that sword before; it belonged to the boy who'd saved them… from the man in the chair.
Tetra paced back and forth in her cabin. Link was sitting in the chair, staring at the book, and Medli stood next to him, dazed. Tetra shook her head. "How is that possible?" she demanded.
"It's right here in the book--," Link replied.
"I know that, but how is it possible?" she repeated crazedly. "I mean, there was no indication. I know the country's been gone for hundreds of years, but for the gods' sakes, there had to be something. I mean, Komali's the Rito prince; Daena's the daughter of her village mayor; Sig's the great-whatever grandson of the Gorons' Big Brother. Why didn't he stand out? And how do we talk to him now? 'Oh, hello, your highness, royal prince of Ikana. How's it going? By the way, sorry for treating you like dirt all these years!'"
"I'm sure he'll under--," Medli started.
"You know how he got aboard the ship? He was seven; he was an orphan; we took him in on charity-- charity! He never got special treatment! Nothing! I'm a princess, so what'd I get? Captain! He's a prince, so what'd he get? A mop and bucket!"
"Tetra, will you please calm down?" Medli requested.
"I'd love to, Medli. Really, I would, but I'm freaking out here! I just found out one of my pirates, one of my men, is one of the royal heirs we've been looking for, and I've been ordering him around most of my life. How do you think that looks? And how do we tell him? How do you tell a person that?"
"Tetra, someone had to tell you, if you recall," Link interjected.
"That's different! I at least had a piece of the Triforce as proof. What do we have to show Niko, huh?"
"Show me what?" They each started at the sound, turning to the door to see Niko standing in the frame.
"You-- you're-- the--," Tetra stammered. "I can't. I can't do it!" She turned to Link and Medli, "You do it."
Niko looked at each of them uncertainly. "Uh… what's going on?"
"Well, uh… we came up here to find out where we can find the Ikanan, and, well, we found something kind of interesting," Medli explained. Niko nodded for her to continue. "The Ikanan is already on the ship… and has been all along."
Niko stared confusedly for a moment before his eyes widened. "Oh, no! Selphie's the Ikanan, isn't she?!" he exclaimed.
"Ye-- wait. What?" Link blurted.
"That can't work! She can't play that song from down in Ikana. She's going to be trapped there forever!" he rambled.
"Niko! Selphie's not a princess! Remember she told us she's from a small town, soldier father, seamstress mother," Link elucidated. "And besides, she's not the one in the book."
"But she's the only Ikanan on this ship," Niko pointed out. "Unless you count me, but what are the chances of that happening, right?"
The others were silent. Link and Medli glanced between each other while Tetra stood in the background, trying to keep herself in check. "…Wait… what are you saying?" Niko asked slowly.
Link replied, "Well, Niko, it just so happens that--."
"Oh, for the gods' sakes! You're the heir, Niko!" Tetra exclaimed.
Niko didn't respond at first, but then he smirked and nodded his head. "Oh, okay. I get it. Good one, guys. You really had me going there. 'Let's tell Niko he's a prince! It'll be a great laugh!'"
"Niko, in case you haven't noticed, but now's not the time to be playing practical jokes!" Tetra rejoined, pointing to his soulless friend in the corner and then out the window where they could just see Valoo at the top of Passing Peak.
"But… I mean, it has to be a joke. I can't be a prince. I'm the bottom rung on the pirate ladder! You're a captain; Komali's a prince; what am I? Huh?" Niko responded.
"A prince," Link replied.
"It all makes sense now," Medli added. "The attack two nights ago? They weren't going for the door; they were going for you!" Niko considered this when something else occurred to him.
"My dream," he murmured.
"Your what?" Tetra asked.
He looked over at her. "The night we got attacked, I… well, I fell asleep on duty," he replied meekly. "But when I did, I had this dream that I was back in Ikana, at the ceremony where the Elegy of Emptiness was made. I… I dunno. It seemed so real. And when I sat on the throne…"
The others stared at him for a moment. Suddenly he turned on his heel, "I need some air," and disappeared from the room.
"…I'd say he handled that pretty well," Link said.
"You realize this means we have all of the heirs now, right? All we have to do is get that song book Navi told us about," Tetra said. Link nodded and sighed.
"So much for getting a bearing; Navi never told us where to find it," he replied. Suddenly they heard a rumbling noise: it was Link's stomach.
"Hungry, mate?" Tetra smirked. "I'll have Niko--." She cut off. "…Oh…"
Selphie: So, some of you guessed it. Yes, Niko is the Ikanan prince. Woohoo! Y'know, I thought about having him faint as a throwback to when Selphie found out she'd traveled through time... um... but I guess that's in the new version of that chapter, the one I haven't uploaded yet. I'll finish that soon, I promise, and then this will make sense! Um... anyway... so, it appears that the villains have resurrected their master, and anyone who's ever played a Zelda game should know who it is. For those of you who haven't, however, I will not spoil for now. But there was a lot of foreshadowing in the part in the CCC. You'll look back on this later and think, "By Nayru! It all fits together now!" Curt's native Zoran, by the way, is Italian in our world. Not very elaborate. Then, we have Forsaken Fortress. I'm going to elaborate on Mila and Maggie's friendship in a side story/stand alone, which I already have planned. I think it will be very sweet.
Darunia: And, by the way Mila and Maggie belong to Shigeru Miyamoto and Nintendo.
Selphie: Last (first chronologically, I know) is Death Mountain. Sig's growing up, eh? Yay, self-esteem! Nejirons, for those who don't know, are the freaks that attack when you cross through that path in Ikana to get to the river in Majora's Mask. ...Yeah. Anyway... I dunno why I don't have much to say this chapter, but I don't. I do want to let you guys know that I've uploaded the new prologue, and you guys should totally read it. It's better now. Also, I entered a contest on deviantArt. We had to draw some of our favorite characters from different fandoms, only they had to be wielding keyblades from the Kingdom Hearts series. I drew Niko, so you guys should go take a look. It's adorable! Also, I updated the sprites there, so take a look at that, too. I do have a job now, so while I will be busy during the days, I'll attempt to use my evenings for writing. Oh, also, in addition to having moved home from college, my family moved to a new house, so, good times. Next chapter or the spin-off soon I hope. I start work in the morning. Hasta for now, folks. R&R and KIT&KIR.
