hi friends! i'm back from the real world (which sucks by the way).

the story is almost done!

and i'm not even close to being finished with the second book!

yay!

just a reminder of where this part left off because it's been a while and tbh when I was editing this chapter I didn't even remember what was going on

so link and friends have met with a giant mutant deku baba in the middle of the Lost Woods in the midst of their journey to find the Triforce, which is supposedly in the hands of the monkeys

saria is there too

also link is being a tiny child and climbing ruins and sh*t

I tried to make this fight scene as close to how it might be in the games as possible, and as such it is rather unrealistic. But I don't know, I think it's kind of a fun fight...?

let me know what you think!

enjoy!

will update in about a week, since that seems like a reasonable time frame?

xoxo


Chapter Forty-Eight

Monkey Shard

Link drew his sword and saw one of the heads, its teeth dripping with green liquid, begin to move. He screamed for Raazi to move—in the blink of an eye, she had rolled out of the way and drawn her daggers. While the head lay in the spot where Raazi had been, stunned for a few moments, Vukan stepped up to it and ripped the head straight from its stem. It shriveled there, leaving nothing but a seed. Link was about to give a sigh of relief, having discovered the secret of defeating this beast...but before he could, that same stem grew back. As if the first head had never been separated from it.

"Ano, out of the way!" Link cried. She put Machi down, ignoring his screams, and pulled out her spear. As another head reached for her, she drove the spear straight through its open mouth, and the scream was so loud it made the temple's ruins shake. Link grabbed onto the wall to steady himself. Raazi stood with her daggers drawn, Vukan with his fists, Anowaika with her spear. Saria, Skull Kid, and Machi were standing at the trees, far away from the Deku Baba, and the monkeys had scattered into the forest almost instantly. Twilight, it seemed, had disappeared. The five heads, one healing itself already from Anowaika's stab, were bobbing now, each facing a different direction. Link realized that he and his comrades were trapped.

We have to take it down.

All at once, the heads attacked. One at Vukan, one at Raazi, one at Anowaika...and the last two at Link, still standing on the stairs of that temple.

Piece of cake.

He was standing in front of what used to be a window, and so was completely exposed. One head reached directly toward him, and he stumbled up the stairs to avoid its fatal grip. But as he ran, the other head fell directly in front of him, crashing into those stairs from above the hollow temple walls. Link flipped his sword and drove the hilt down into it, stunned it for a moment, giving himself time to leap over it and continue up the spiraling stairs. There was absolutely no point trying to slice those heads off, because he knew what would happen if he did. So he continued running, waving his sword in the air to distract them.

He glanced over the walls at the others. Vukan was fighting off one of the heads with his clenched fists, punching again and again and again—but the head kept coming back. It managed to bite down on his arm at one point...but it had no effect. Vukan wrenched it off, and they were both back to square one. Anowaika had her spear drawn, was slashing at the approaching menace. Link never knew that she was so competent with a weapon like that (they'd never found themselves in a battle like this before). She twirled it, spun, slashed, used it like an expert. Until, without warning, the Deku Baba reared its head and sent from its jaw a glob of its green saliva toward her. She raised her arm to block it, and her scaly skin began to burn.

"Deku Baba spit, spit, buuurn!" cackled Skull Kid.

"Ano!" Link screamed, as she dropped her spear and fell to her knees, gasping. The Deku Baba approached her then, ready to feast.

But Link was faster. He drew the boomerang from his belt, closed his left eye to aim, and threw it. The force of the toss nearly sent him backward, made his hair fly. The weapon drove itself into the Deku Baba's head, sent it flailing backward. It gave Raazi enough time to pull out a vial, throw it into the air, and snap her fingers—creating a puff of smoke that completely hid the three of them. Link started running up the stairs again, reaching his arm out to catch the boomerang as it made its way back.

You sure are something, Damita.

"Boom, boom, boom-er-ANG!"

The two heads were hovering, waiting for the spiral staircase to twist back to where they stood. Link had no choice but to keep running. The other three heads were hovering, confused at their sudden blindness. They could no longer see their prey, no longer see the Zora, the Goron, or the Gerudo that had been there only moments ago. Link hoped that Raazi had a trick up her sleeve. That she had used that specific alchemy for a reason. That there was more coming.

"Skull Kid can't, can-NOT SEE!"

Suddenly, one of the heads attacking Link opened its mouth, and before he could realize what was happening, sent a flurry of Deku seeds from its jaw. Link halted in his tracks and ducked, hearing them zoom over his head and into the forest behind the ruins. He realized he was going to have to act fast if they were to destroy this. The problem was that he didn't know how.

Yet.

Link stood up and started running again, faster. The heads lunged at him, but he avoided their attacks, smacked them with the side of his sword, kicked them out of his way. He needed to get to the top of the ruins. As he ran up, he spun around and threw the boomerang at the two heads, stunning them and allowing him more time to run. Finally, he was high enough to look down and see exactly where everything was, even through Raazi's smoke. The heads down there were beginning to gain their own sight, as well. Anowaika had managed to heal her arm enough that she was standing, wielding her spear again. Vukan stood beside her...a bad idea, considering the fact that once the fog lifted, they would be right next to each other. Raazi was standing a few meters away from them, her skirt lifted and her hands moving along the bracer Damita had given her.

And then Link saw it.

Right in the center of the Deku Baba heads.

It looked like the bud of a plant, closed in on itself. If they opened it, they would expose the very heart of this beast, and they would win. Link smirked to himself, though he didn't have much time. The heads were coming toward him, and he didn't have anywhere else to run. He cupped his hands around his mouth and prayed that they would hear him.

"Lift the fog!" he screamed. They all looked up at where he was, the top of the Forest Temple. "Vukan, once it's lifted, grab two of them—Anowaika, distract the other. Raazi!" He pointed to where the bud was. "We need fire."

"Fi-YER! Fi-YER!"

They all nodded. And it was perfect timing. For the heads had reached him, and he was trapped. He balanced himself on the top, knowing that one bad step, and he would fall back to his death. He ducked, he moved to the side, he fought them back with aimless waves of his sword. All while looking back over his shoulder to see what was happening. With a snap of her fingers, the fog had lifted, leaving the three of them exposed. And then Link's plan went into action. Vukan, with the type of grumbling scream that could only be achieved by a Goron, curled up into a ball and rolled back and forth, until he had their attention. They lunged, he hopped from his ball, and he grabbed their stems. So tightly they couldn't move. Anowaika screamed at the third, waved her spear, and waited for it to attack. When it did, she was ready, smacking it back and forth (futilely) with her spear.

As Raazi lifted another vial from her bracer, popped open the lid, and dipped her finger in, Link knew he barely had any time left. One of the heads bit so closely that a piece of his tunic was ripped off and he had a gash in his skin. The other attacked almost instantaneously, and Link had no choice but to drop to his stomach to avoid having his head bitten right off. He scrambled back to his feet and realized that, in the chaos, his sword had fallen from the tower and was in the grass below. So, so far below.

Shit.

Raazi opened two more vials, dipped that same finger into each one. Once she had the liquid from the three different vials on her finger, she rubbed it against her thumb, glanced up at Link. He could just barely see her nod. Then, she snapped her fingers, and a flame appeared above her index finger. She blew. What looked like a snake of pure fire flew from her finger and twirled around the clearing. With all five heads distracted, the bud in the middle was completely exposed. The fire wrapped itself around that bud, burned into its flesh, until it (along with the fire) was completely gone. All five heads screamed in pain, which gave Link just the amount of time that he needed. For there, where that protective bud had been moments ago, was what looked like a mound of red flesh. It was, he knew, the heart and brain of his creature.

He faced the clearing, his toes hanging just above the edge of the ruins. He had no choice now. And he saw the heads behind him beginning to regain their composure, readying their sharp teeth for food.

Now.

Just before the heads were able to grab onto him, he crouched low, and then jumped.

Everything was moving so fast. But he was just as fast.

While he flew through the air, Link drew his bow, nocked an arrow, aimed at the heart, and let the arrow fly.

"DEKU BABA GO BYE-BYE!"

As the arrow embedded itself into the mound of flesh, each head shriveled up and collapsed, completely and utterly dead.

As Link had been hoping, Vukan caught him just before his body crashed to the ground, and his feet were soon safely on the ground.

"Thanks, bud," he breathed, and they pounded their fists against each other quickly.

They were all panting, catching their breath, grabbing their bleeding cuts. Ano's arm was burned, Vukan had cuts in his rocky skin, Raazi's fingers were scalded and her hair was falling out of place. Link put his hands on his hips and spit into a nearby bush, and could see blood in his saliva.

"Everyone okay?" he breathed. They all nodded, staring at the shriveled up Deku Baba heads. Just then, Saria, Skull Kid, and Machi approached. Twilight was still nowhere to be seen.

"Nobody has ever been able to even touch that thing," Saria said with a smile, "and you killed it. Thank you so much."

"How long has it been here?" Raazi asked. Her voice was tired and hoarse.

"Not too long—well, relatively, I mean. About seven years." Link cringed at the mention of that. He felt it resonate within him.

Seven years. The same amount of time it's been since I lost my memory.

"Deku Baba's dead, dead, dead! Deku Baba's dead, dead, DEAD!" Skull Kid was playing his flute and hopping in circles around the plant's corpse.

"It only came out sometimes. Seldom enough that the monkeys decided to take over the ruins of the Forest Temple. They found the Triforce here and have been keeping it. But maybe now that you've rid them of their parasite issue..." Saria raised her eyebrows and shrugged. Machi began squealing again, reaching up his arms toward Anowaika. With a click of her tongue, she picked him up and squeezed.

As if on cue, the monkeys appeared, screeching and hollering (in joy, Link assumed). They surrounded the four of them, hopping and clapping and pushing each other excitedly. Link smiled while Raazi and Anowaika laughed, and Vukan grumbled. Certainly he had had enough of this all-too-green forest.

"They say they're grateful," Saria translated, "and they want to give you something in return."

"How nice of them," Link grinned. One of the monkeys with the flower stepped forward, a suddenly gentle sparkle in her eyes. Link crouched down until he was at eye-level with her. She whimpered a few times, tilted her head while she looked into his eyes. She lifted her monkey fingers and touched a scratch that had made its way to his eyebrow. Then, she grabbed both his hands and cupped them together. A few other monkeys approached behind her, carrying something large in their arms. It looked like a shattered piece of gold—pure gold. He heard the others gasp, but he didn't do anything. Didn't say a word, while they placed the piece of gold into his cupped hands.

And then it happened again. Exactly what had happened back at the Snowhead Sanctuary. He heard the voices chanting around him, saw a bright light, felt pain unlike anything he'd ever experienced in his left hand. Even through the glove he could see the Triforce glowing there. He closed his eyes to try and drown it all out, but he knew there was no escape from this.

When he opened them, everything was exactly the way it had been before, except he was on his back, the sky spinning above him. His left hand was tingling, and the piece of gold was gone. And suddenly, Twilight appeared above him. Somehow, he looked sagacious. Like he was proud, wise, satisfied that Link had finished what he'd come here to do. Link sat up, and Twilight helped by pushing against his back with his head. The others crouched around him, while he grasped his wrist and tried to keep from trembling. Raazi reached forward and brushed the matted hair from his wet forehead.

"Well done, little wolf," she said. "You have reclaimed two pieces now."

Twilight rubbed his nose against Link's dirt-covered cheek, and he felt warm. Link slouched down and let out the breath he had been holding. Then, Twilight lifted something in his mouth and dropped it into Link's lap. It was his sword.

Link put his hand on Twilight's head and smiled.

Where did you come from?

"Link," Anowaika said. She was putting away her pictograph box, which he hadn't even noticed she'd taken out. "We should probably head back to Ordon. I bet Talon and Malon are worried; it's getting late."

Link hadn't even noticed, but Anowaika was right. He nodded, silently, and Vukan helped him to his feet.

"Thank you for coming to this forest to help us," Saria said. Skull Kid was still running around, screaming, and Machi cried, "Kwee!"

"To be honest, we didn't come to help you," Link sighed. "We came to get the Triforce."

"That's helping us more than you can imagine," she said. "The Triforce is a beautiful thing, but...it's been hurting the forest. It's been trying to leave, to find you. But it's been trapped here. Now that it's free, we can live in peace."

"The forest is still cursed," Anowaika said softly. "We couldn't help you."

"It has been cursed for centuries. We've lived here for a very long time. We'll continue to live here."

"If we leave," Link began, "we'll never be able to come back, right?"

Silently, with a sad smile, Saria nodded. Then, without warning, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist. She hugged him as tightly as she could and, with wide, surprised eyes, Link hugged her back.

"Thank you, Link. I've been waiting so long," she said. He felt the tears running down her cheeks. "I'll probably have to wait even longer this time. But we'll see each other again. I'll be here. Always. You know where to find me."

Link felt something so strange then. Felt as if Saria were a part of him, a part of his history and his soul and his future. He hugged her back. He didn't bother looking at how the others were reacting. He just hugged her, while Skull Kid played that melody on his flute.

"Saria's Song, Sari-YA!"

"Don't forget me, okay, Link?"

"Okay."

They separated. Link sheathed his sword and felt Twilight rub against his leg. It was time to go. Time to leave this place of hidden people, quiet languages, destroyed cultures. He looked up at the Forest Temple and wanted to cry. He could imagine how beautiful it once had been.

"Walk back through the trees. Just keep walking, and don't look back. Twilight will help you. If you get lost, listen to the sound of our music."

They all nodded. Anowaika put Machi back on the ground. This time he didn't scream. And then, while Saria, Machi, and Skull Kid stood together, she took a pictograph.

The four of them turned around and followed Twilight out of the forest, listening to the sound of Saria's haunting ocarina and Skull Kid's sad, lonely laughter.


When they emerged into Ordon, it was nighttime. They had been gone all day, it seemed, roaming in the Lost Woods. Link was walking in a haze. The triangle on his hand was glowing a little bit more brightly now. He walked slowly, hands in his pockets, a blade of thick grass between his teeth. Ordon hadn't changed at all since the night before. Still bustling, still fresh with the aromas of a farm village. Farmers returning, teenagers coming out of their small houses, the sounds of horses and carriages (and the sneers of the Iron Warriors). They all walked toward the small cottage they had been staying in, and Link realized too late that Twilight had disappeared. He woke from his haze and began looking around desperately. But the wolf was gone. Link glanced over his shoulder at the entrance to the woods. Twilight wasn't there, either. The path was completely clear.

When they all walked into the cottage, Malon was already in there. Tidying up, it seemed. With a gasp, she whirled around, and when she saw them, she dropped the bucket she was holding. Link raised his eyebrows and gave a crooked smile, because he had almost forgotten how breathtaking she was. Looking at her made him forget the ordeal he had just been through, and the fact that Twilight was gone.

"L-Link!" she cried, mouth open.

"We told you we'd be back by dinner," he said. Malon furrowed her brow and began scrambling, tucking her hair behind her ear, fixing her dress, picking up the bucket.

"What are you talking about?" she breathed. "Y'all have been gone for two weeks! We thought you were dead."