The Legend of Zelda: After the Wild

by KingArthur99

10 years after the defeat of Calamity Ganon, Hyrule was met with a time of prosperity and rebuilding, but underneath the shadows an uprising from the Yiga Clan has started to threaten to normal lives of the people in Hyrule. A squad of unlikely friends find themselves stuck in the heat of the conflict, as well as a special task that Queen Zelda herself wants them to complete.

The Legend of Zelda

After the Wild

a fanfic made by Arthur Weisse

AUTHOR'S NOTES

The events of this story take place 10 years after The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017). Link in this story has tamed all 4 Divine Beasts, conquered all 120 Shrines plus the Champion's Ballad Shrines, managed to get a house for himself as well as assist with building Tarrey Town, claimed the Master Sword and awakened its power through the Master Trials, and has defeated Calamity Ganon. Link did all of this in a total time of 5 in-game months. Link managed to gather all 900 Korok seeds after defeating Calamity Ganon. I have written this story to apply to the Zelda canon as accurately as possible.

This fanfic started writing on December 18, 2019. I finished writing this on March 29, 2020. I have based this story off of a Dungeons and Dragons campaign that I hosted from April 9, 2019 to March 1, 2020. The only references to the upcoming Sequel to Breath of the Wild (202?) are taken from the first E3 trailer. Any other plot points that could appear in the upcoming game are purely coincidental.

Every location in this fanfiction belongs to Nintendo, and any names referencing other locations from the Zelda universe are all based off of Nintendo's property. Almost every character in this fanfiction belongs to Nintendo, unless they are original characters. Original characters were created by the players of the DnD campaign. Any other original character names are courtesy to the website known as Fantasy Names Generator, or .

There is a lyrical song written in Chapter 7 which was performed and written by the YouTuber known as Lizz Robinett.

I have put a lot of effort into this fan fiction, as it is 550 pages long. I implore you to read it in its entirety, as I feel very proud of myself in making this. If you have any questions, comments, or revisions you would like to bring to my attention about this fanfiction, you can ask me on my Instagram arthur_aesthetic or on my Twitter Sir_Likes_A_Lot.

Prologue

Red clouds streamed through the sky. Tired and weary from his quest but still filled with the determination that got him to this moment, Link knocked the final light arrow and aimed straight for Dark Beast Ganon's open forehead. He let the arrow go and it shot straight into the final opening. Landing back onto his horse, Link noticed Zelda appear before him. Using the power of the united Triforce, Zelda then used her magic to seal Dark Beast Ganon away. A bright light encompassed the immediate area, and then the red clouds went away. Both the awakened Princess and the Hero of the Wild took a moment to look at each other, now knowing that their mission to defeat the Calamity has finally come to an end, correctly this time.

Overlooking Hyrule Field just a few days later, the two started to work on rebuilding Hyrule back to its former glory. As the Silent Princesses bloomed all around the Hero and the Princess, they set forth.

On one faithful day, three triangles lit up on Link and Zelda's hands. These triangles sent them to the Zonai Ruins in the heavily forested Faron Region, where they found a dried up carcass that possessed another set of three triangles. The dried up body looked at the two of them with glowing eyes, and Link and Zelda quickly contained it in a cage, where it stopped moving. They took the body down deep into the dungeons of Hyrule Castle, where they implemented a research facility that would look over the dead body, which never moved again.

Over the next 10 years, Link and Zelda, with assistance from the other Hyruleans, as well as people from other lands off the coast, were able to rebuild Hyrule Castle and it's Town. They established a new government structure, which allowed for more order across Hyrule. Islanders that lived away from Hyrule heard the news that Hyrule was free of the grasp that the Calamity had over the land. The Islanders were able to establish some estates on the mainland, away from life at sea, slowly becoming a part of the rebuilt Hyrule.

Underneath the shadows, the Yiga Clan, reeling back from the loss of their former leader, Master Khoga, gathered their forces in secret amidst the reformation of Hyrule. They went under a new leadership, one from a mysterious being that claims to have existed in the world over 100,000 years ago. Looking at the Yiga's rather primitive mindset, this new leader thrusted them forward into a new age, using Sheikah tech, a practice that they never fathomed doing beforehand.

Peace was restored in Hyrule for the citizens of the land. With the Curse of the Blood Moon lifted due to Ganon's collapse, the number of monsters across the land started to dwindle. Due to their scarcity, monster pieces fetched for high prices, that got higher and higher as each year passed by. Soon enough, it seemed like there were no monsters at all. Zelda, wanting to try to keep the balance of nature and education, noticed the dwindling numbers of monsters, and so she sent Link to escort the monsters to three safe havens across Hyrule. Zelda and Link were the only people in the land that truly understood how important the monsters were to the land, however because of the Calamity's control, people were always scared of them, and had good reason to slay them as soon as they saw them. Hoping to establish a greater understanding of what the monsters meant to Hyrule, Zelda went hard at work to try and find the best solution to the problem. She sent Link out to sea to search for an island suitable for their survival.

The new Champions of Hyrule were able to settle their own problems in their own domains. The Divine Beasts served their purposes of defeating the Calamity, so they fell dormant, and sat atop their mountains, lifeless and untouched. Although sometimes people noticed the faint spark of light coming from inside the carcasses of the dormant beasts.

Prince Sidon, the Champion of the Zora Tribe, discovered a new type of magic that involved commanding water. The Zora Tribe practiced this new magic with great success, although it was somewhat limited as they needed to be near a body of water in order to use this magic.

The Sheikah Towers and the Sheikah Shrines that dotted the land were put to good use for people navigating the continent, as the production of personal Sheikah Slates started to spark into a business. They were all really expensive, so they were mostly given to the people who guarded the Royal Family. Only people with the rupees for it were also able to gain a Sheikah Slate of their own.

Link arrived back to the mainland of Hyrule after successfully finding an island suitable for the monsters, going back to Zelda as her appointed Knight. The ghosts of the previous champions lived with Link in his homestead in Hateno Village, coming to his aid whenever he needed it most. The domesticated Hyrule lent itself to much fewer battles and outbreaks, causing the Hero a small sense of tranquility. Link sharpened his sword skills in order to prepare for any possible Yiga Uprising. Knowing that the Yiga would rise again, the Royal Family put their trust in the Sheikah Clan to bring new Sheikah Warriors into the force, to guard the Royal Family and the people associated with them. Very few Sheikah Warriors were able to rise, due to how hard and grueling training was to become one. A very small group of 15 Sheikah Warriors were able to come from Kakariko Village, tasked with keeping the Royal Family safe.

Everything seemed perfect and according to plan, but things started to become very uneasy in the more recent years, as an increasing number of Yiga attacks started to paint small portions of the land in blood. The citizens of Hyrule started to grow much more tough and aware, and patrols of soldiers were stationed around every settlement across Hyrule.

10 years after the Defeat of Calamity Ganon, the Knight, Link and the Queen, Zelda faced whatever the future held together, but they also needed assistance from every area they could find.

Chapter 1: The Monster Squad

Hyrule Castle Town was thriving as great as ever. The busy streets of the town were met with activity of all sorts, from shopkeepers to street performers to wandering travelers to the inhabitants of the town. The place was crowded.

Poump, a young Hylian male who recently made it through his year at knight school, shared a drink with his friends in a tavern. "Another one, you big fat cow!" Poump very rudely said to the barkeeper.

"That'll be some extra rupees you washed up oaf." The barkeeper replied, washing her glasses. Attempting to scrounge for some rupees, Poump wasn't able to cover his next drink.

His friend interjected. "It's alright buddy, I'll pay for you."

"Bah!" Poump suddenly jumped off his chair and headed for the door, but then passed out on the floor.

Observing a weapon shop, a Sheikah Warrior browsed for fitting weaponry for his arsenal. "And how much will these arrows cost me?"

"For these, a stash of 50 will go for 25 rupees for normal customers, but seeing as you are an all important Sheikah Warrior," the shopkeeper paused as he observed the Sheikah Warrior's weapons on his back, "I will sell a stash of 50 at a discounted rate of 15 rupees. Just for you."

"Thank you kindly." The Sheikah Warrior traded the rupees, and took the arrows in his quiver.

"Would you like anything else, sir?" The Shopkeeper asked.

The Sheikah started eyeing some of the bombs in stock. "No, nothing else." And then he started to walk out. He noticed a female Zora from the outside looking through the glass window at the weapons in the store. "Hello there, Zora. I don't see many of your kind around this town."

The Zora looked back at the Sheikah and said "Well I don't see many of your kind around at all. The only place I've ever seen any Sheikah Warriors were in history books or plays, never in a weapon shop."

"Consider yourself lucky to be in my presence." The Sheikah replied. "What brings you to this weapon shop?"

"Weapons." The Zora replied, as she walked right in.

Meanwhile at the tavern, Telma, the barkeeper, asked Poump's friends about getting him off the floor. "Are any of you gonna do a thing about your buddy on the floor?"

Poump's friend got off his chair and started to pose dramatically, "Don't worry about it, lady. This is a job for Groose and the Gang!" Poump's two other friends sat on their chairs, facepalming at Groose's behavior. "Come on guys! We need to have ourselves a name for when we're all banded together!"

"We're just picking up the washed out body of our friend. There's not much heroic energy coming from this." The female friend added.

"Ah alright whatever." Groose said as he picked Poump right up and hastily plopped him back onto his chair.

Poump began to awaken again. "Wh-what happened?" Still feeling a bit woozy from his last drink.

"Not much, don't worry." Groose said in reply. "Here, I'll pay for the rest of whatever you need to eat."

Poump begrudgingly insisted that he would pay for whatever he was having. "Are there ANY BOUNTY HUNTING JOBS that I can TAKE in order to get some damn rupees for MYSELF!"

Telma replied "Honey, it ain't that easy. Bounty hunting is just a profession that is used in plays. As of now, Hyrule only wants people joining the military, or the shopkeeping businesses. There's a handsome pay for people who work at Lon Lon Ranch just south of here, or you can put that Knight school to good use and apply to work for the Hylian militia. I hear they pay well also."

"Oh Hylia, I wish I wasn't too young on the days when monster hunts were abundant. The idea of going out into the world in search of a monster to slay and bringing its body parts to a shopkeeper for a handsome reward just sounds so exhilarating!" Poump said as he sobbed himself into the bartop. "All of these current jobs are boring and require standing around hoping that you aren't stabbed by a Yiga spy!"

The whole tavern went quiet at the sound of someone saying "Yiga spy". Even though most of the town hasn't been met with Yiga attacks, they've seen the newsboards showcasing what they've done in other parts of Hyrule. The very possibility that Yiga assassins could be hiding right under everyone's noses is a paranoid subject.

"You're scaring my customers, Poump. I suggest you leave, before you start any trouble."

"Alright, fine then." Poump replied to Telma. As he got up off his chair, another customer zoomed right by him in a hasty speed. Feeling around his waist, Poump realized his rupee wallet had been stolen. "Hey, get back here!" And so Poump chased after this person outside the tavern.

"There he goes." Groose's friend said in disappointment.

"Ah give him a break, he had a hard semester at knight school. This will probably be enough to bring his spirits back up." Groose replied.

Running through the streets, the thief wore a cloak. Poump pursued him through the narrow streetways crowded with other civilians. He passed right by the weapon shop that the Sheikah Warrior and the Zora were at. They noticed the two individuals in a chase and took a pursuit after them. The curious individual dashed into the main plaza and disappeared into the crowd.

"Dammit!" Poump exclaimed.

The Sheikah and the Zora caught up to Poump. "What's the matter?" The Zora asked.

"My wallet's been stolen by a thief! And he's somewhere in this crowd!"

"A petty thief? I have more important matters to attend to." The Sheikah Warrior said as he walked off in the opposite direction.

All of a sudden, the crowd in the main plaza started to disperse and scream as they scrambled off to any indoor areas that they could make it into. At the center of this area, appeared to be the hooded figure, with a sickle to a civilian's neck. "Children of the Royal Family!" the hooded figure proclaimed, "Watch as the Yiga take back the land that we truly belong in!"

In a gust of wind, the Sheikah Warrior appeared behind the Yiga and stabbed him through the stomach, causing the Yiga to lose hold of the civilian and fall to the ground, dead. The civilian thanked the Sheikah, and hastily ran for the nearest indoor area. The Sheikah Warrior picked up the wallet that the Yiga had stolen. "This is yours?" He asked Poump.

"Yeah, it is." Poump said in reply. The Sheikah tossed him the wallet. The Zora, in shock by what had happened, took a brief dip in the fountain to regain her senses. "I thank you for retrieving my wallet from that thief, but I have other places to be." Turning around, Poump started to feel uneasy. Two more Yiga assassins appeared from the shadows, making a go at the poor Hylian. The Zora took out her spear at the sight of the other Yiga assassins, and the Sheikah brandished his sword. The Sheikah swiftly defended Poump from the incoming Yiga attacks. Poump took out his own sword and his wooden shield and started flailing his sword at them. They were rather fast opponents, and weren't very easy for the young Hylian to get a good cut in. The Zora waved her spear around, and some of the water from the fountain came out and engorged one of the Yiga assassins in a block of water. The slowed down Yiga was easy to hit for Poump, and the Sheikah made quick work of the other Yiga assassin. One last Yiga appeared in the area, but decided that the fight wasn't worth it. The last Yiga teleported to the rooftops, where he was promptly killed by a figure with a glowing sword. The figure looked down at the group, and left their sight.

After the fight, some Hylian soldiers lined themselves into the area and observed the situation. One of the soldiers walked forward, wearing different armor from the others. "You have done a great service at standing up against these Yiga spies! The Queen would like a word with you!"

"The Queen?! As in, Zelda?" Poump thought to himself. He had seen her in history books and trading cards, but never in person. Following the soldiers, the Sheikah, the Zora, and Poump walked through the gates of Castle Town towards Hyrule Castle. The Castle was a grand monument. It was large with spires that stretched out into the sky, and purple ribbons with the Royal Family's Crest were draped over several archways. Some spider-like robots, commonly known as Guardians, were patrolling around the courtyard. Poump only knew of the courtyard because of his time in knight school, and the Zora only knew of this castle as a landmark in the distance.

They passed by a cuckoo coup. One of the cuckoos looked at the group of people walking by, and jumped out of the coup. It followed the group.

The group was soon enough presented within the throne room of Queen Zelda herself. At the throne, was Zelda, standing in her regal uniform. To her left, was an old man wearing a red robe. "I suppose you know why I summoned you here?"

Poump almost opened his mouth, but was silenced by the Sheikah's glare. The Sheikah answered, "We were summoned here because we defeated those Yiga spies, correct?"

"That's part of it." Zelda replied. "I also summoned you here because you are one of the few Sheikah Warriors across all of Hyrule that is willing to accept help from a team of others. The Zora warrior and the young Hylian trainee look like they make good companions for you, Sheikah."

"It is true, your highness, we Sheikah Warriors aren't known for cooperating with other people. But surely there is another reason I am here before you right now?"

"Yes indeed." Zelda then motioned to the other soldiers in the room to leave, as well as the old man. Zelda walked up to the group, as they were now alone. "I have you here because I have an important mission that I've been overlooking for the past 8 years. The monsters are rare in numbers, but pose a danger to passersby in the mountains of the Hebra region, the desert of the Gerudo region, and the canyon area just north of the Akalla region. I want you all to work together and kill off the last of the monsters, for a high price."

Feeling satisfied with these words, Poump spoke out, "How many rupees are you talking about?"

"5,000 rupees. For each of you." Zelda said. She handed them a Sheikah slate. "Here, this will be of some use to you. You can use it to communicate with me if you ever need my help. I trust that you will be fulfilling this mission cleanly. Get this done, and I will have all of you promoted. Any questions?"

Poump replied "I got all my answers, lady!"

"As long as the pay stays good, I'll be happily enjoying this mission." The Zora said.

"We will heed your advice, Queen." The Sheikah added.

"B-b-b-b-BACKAW!" The cuckoo exclaimed. Everyone looked at it, and it looked around at everyone else.

"I hope you make it back in one piece. That is all for now. Use the Sheikah Slate if you ever wish to contact me again." Zelda said, as she headed back to her quarters.

The soldiers reappeared and guided the group back out to the Castle Town. The group all looked at each other. "Well well well, we have a royal mission to attend to now!" Poump exclaimed. The Sheikah and the Zora looked at Poump and his enthusiasm.

"I will allow you to say your goodbyes to the people you know in this town." The Sheikah said. "The Zora and I will meet you at the front gates."

Poump went back to the tavern and said his goodbyes to his friends. He went to his house and collected his belongings and walked to the front gates. There, the Sheikah and the Zora were on their own horses, and Poump went onto his own horse that the stable had cooped up for him. The cuckoo jumped onto Poump's horse.

The group set their sights for the Hebra mountains, which was the closest place to Hyrule Castle. On the ride there, Poump decided to start up a conversation.

"So… uhh. My name's Poump." Poump said. "What are your names?"

"I don't like saying my name. I don't like how it sounds. Just call me Zora." The Zora said.

"Oh, alrighty then. What about you, Sheikah Warrior?" Poump asked the Sheikah.

"I've never said my name in a long time. And it's for a very good reason." The Sheikah replied. "I won't say my name. Not now, not here."

"Oh. Okay then." Poump said. An awkward silence overwhelmed the group as they galloped along the road to the Hebra Mountains.

They went through a checkpoint on a bridge. The guards on the checkpoint checked their belongings and allowed them to pass. They passed by a stable, and eventually started to enter the cold and snowy weather of the Hebra mountains. The Zora started to feel herself freeze up.

"G-g-g-guys. We should head back." The Zora said, as she started to feel the chills run all over her. Poump and the Sheikah also felt cold. The others listened to her and headed back towards the stable that they passed.

"What are we gonna do to help ourselves get through the cold weather?" Poump asked.

The Sheikah replied, "We could buy her warm clothes, but those were sold back at the castle town, which is quite a ride from here."

"OOOOOOHHHHH!" The group turned towards a skinny individual with a large backpack. "A heat potion is what you are in need of!"

"Who are you?" The Zora asked.

"I am Beedle! Seller of bugs! I love bugs a lot! Did you know that you could mix them up with other ingredients to create different potions of varying effect?"

"We don't need any silly bugs, weird man." Poump said, rather rudely.

"OH-HO-HO-HO! Since you are customers in need of a special type of potion, I will give you some heat potions, for the low low price of 5 rupees per bottle!" The Sheikah immediately jumped at this offer and paid for 5 bottles of heat potions. "THANK YOUUU!" Beedle exclaimed.

"With these, we can get through the cold weather of the Hebra region." The Sheikah stated. The group all got on their horses and rode for the Hebra region again. The cuckoo was still with them. They drank up on their potions, and rode through the snow. Eventually, they noticed the faint silhouette of someone looking at them through the blizzard. The Sheikah knocked an arrow and shot it at the figure.

"AAAAAHHHH!" The figure exclaimed. They took a closer look and realized that it was a Rito. "Why did you do that?"

"Oh I'm sorry. You startled me." The Sheikah replied.

"You hit my wing."

"Here, have a heat potion."

"Ah thank you. With this, I can be able to walk to the nearest shelter. I'll pay you back once I see you again." The Rito then walked in the direction the group were coming from.

They rode forward along the path, and eventually came up to the entrance of a cave. The Sheikah Slate started to vibrate. Poump picked it up. Zelda was calling over video call.

"You have arrived at the monster hideout. There is an entire dungeon's worth of challenges through that cave, which will eventually take you to where the monsters are. Be safe." She then hung up.

The adventurers got off their horses, and proceeded into the cave. The Zora took notice of the cuckoo following them, and she carried it in her arms. The cave started to gain some walls as they walked deeper into it. They ended up in a corridor which had some bones on the floor. The bones fixed themselves into a skeleton and it ran right for the adventurers. They made quick work of the skeleton. "That was crazy." Poump said, feeling a bit shaken.

"Whatever we agreed to, there's plenty of rupees in it for us." The Sheikah said.

They eventually found a chest with a key in it, and they were then greeted by a slime creature, that the Zora recognized as a Chu-Chu. Poump almost fell into what seemed like a bottomless pit. They went through a door and found themselves in a room with a bridge to the left and a gaping chasm to the right. They looked across the bridge to see a chest, and a large statue of what looked like a knight. They walked across the bridge and it collapsed.

"Just great." Poump said. "At least we have big ol' knighty to keep us company." He then kicked the statue of the knight, and then it all of a sudden brought its foot up and walked towards Poump. It raised its large sword towards Poump, and he dodged just at the right moment. The Zora took her spear and started jabbing at the walking statue. The Sheikah attempted to slice at it, but the statue knocked him off to the side with it's large shield. The cuckoo went right up to the statue's boots and pecked at it. The cuckoo pecked at it enough to the point in which it's armor fell off, revealing chainmail underneath the armor. The statue kicked the cuckoo away. This sparked an idea amongst the travelers. They all banded together and struck at it's armor until all of it fell off. The statue, with most of the armor off, threw away the big sword and shield it carried and brandished a new skinnier, but still tall sword. Without the armor, the statue moved much faster and made life for the adventurers a hell. It danced passed all of their attacks, and managed to fracture Poump's shield. Unaware, the statue was being stabbed in the back by the Zora's spear, and the Sheikah attempted to cut it's head clean off. However, the Sheikah's blade didn't seem to cut off it's head, but rather create a small incision in its neck. The resilient statue turned to the Sheikah and then the cuckoo flew right up to its face and brought it down to the floor. All of the adventurers plunged their weapons into the statue's chest. It cried out in pain and then seized any signs of life within itself.

"Whoa, that was crazy." Poump said, exhausted.

"Well it looks like there's something in this chest that might help us." The Zora said. They walked up to the chest and discovered it's contents. It appeared to be two clawshots! Convenient instructions within the chest explained what the clawshots did. Poump equipped them and then yanked at the chain ceiling from above him. He propelled up to it and climbed his way to the other side and yanked at a switch, that reengaged the bridge across the pit. The adventurers walked across and eventually found themselves at a big locked door. They navigated a door behind them, and poump used his clawshots to propel himself towards a chest that contained a big key. He got himself back towards the others and they entered the big door.

On the other side, they saw a large cave, being held up by what looked like a large fish's skeleton. At the end of the cave, the adventurers saw the elusive monsters that they were after. They brought out their weapons, ready to reap in their rupees when all of a sudden the Sheikah Slate started vibrating. Poump picked it up. It was Zelda. "Hello. I take it that you have navigated your way through the dungeon?"

"Correct!"

"Good. Now I am going to ask you something very important that I have only kept to myself and a select few people in all of Hyrule. Do NOT kill the monsters."

"What? Why?"

"It's a very long story. My main mission that I have been trying to complete for years is to escort these monsters off of the mainland of Hyrule and onto an island that I believe will work as a good habitat for them to live in peace, away from the Hylian intervention that would lead to their extinction. I chose you lot to work on this job for me because I believe that you are skilled enough to carry out this job better than most people. I want a small party to know about this because if the word spreads that monsters are being spotted across Hyrule, the Hylians of this land will attempt to kill them for their parts. So please, I beg of you, do NOT kill these monsters. I have already spoken with the Rito population about accommodating the monsters next to their village. They have agreed to take this lot of monsters under their wings. In order to escort them through the mountains to the Rito Village, you're going to need a flute, and a song of the forest. The flute resides in Kakariko Village, and the song of the forest can be learnt inside of the Lost Woods, just East of Hyrule Castle. Mind you, the flute is a special flute that emits magical energy unlike any other flute, so you can't use any old flute. I'd advise you to meet my partner before you enter the Lost Woods. He lives in Hateno Village. He is among the few people in all of Hyrule that knows of my plan."

"Wow, that's a lot of information to take in." Poump replied.

"And I can trust that you can use this knowledge for your greater good. I will still pay you 10,000 rupees for getting this part of the job done. Thank you. And good luck." And then Zelda hung up.

The adventurers all looked at each other. As they all walked out of the cave, they spoke to each other about this mission.

"It will pay well for us." The Sheikah stated.

"If we fulfill this mission, we might even be considered heroes of Hyrule." the Zora said.

"We need a name for ourselves." Poump said. "How about we call ourselves… The Monster Squad!"

"BACKAW!"

Chapter 2: Collecting the Flute

The Monster Squad made it back out of the cave and got on their horses. They rode back into the direction they came from. They passed by the stable that they got their heat potions from. They met up with the Rito from earlier, who was chucking down a health potion. His wing suddenly propped back up in perfect flying condition. He noticed the squad arrive.

"Thank you for giving me that heat potion earlier. Here are some rupees that I promised you." The Rito then handed them 50 rupees. "Come to think of it, you all look very tired. Stay at the stable for a bit and have a chat with me."

The Rito ordered a meal for the squad to eat and they sat down at one of the tables in the stable. The cuckoo decided to feed on some corn that was leaking out of a nearby bag.

"So what brought you all to the Hebra region?" The Rito asked them.

Poump replied saying "We wanted to take in the sights of the snowy mountains for ourselves."

"Interesting." The Rito said, as he started to examine their clothing. "If you really intended to take in the sights across the Hebra mountains, the lot of you would be outfitted with the Snowquill Outfit. That is something that hikers in the area need to be wearing if they want to slow down and take in the sights of the mountains."

Poump, dumbfounded, couldn't think of anything else to say. The Sheikah spoke up. "We currently don't have enough rupees to buy ourselves full sets of it for ourselves. All we needed were the heat potions."

"Ah-ha, but the heat potions only heat up your insides for so long. You all seemed to be out there for much longer than a heat potion would allow." The Rito looked at the squad with a suspicious look. "You happened to wander into a cave, correct?"

"Correct." Poump said hastily, almost starting to sweat.

"Ah I see, you decided to go looting." The Rito said now with a more relaxed tone in his voice. "Lots of people tend to go looting out old areas in hopes to get some rupees off of what they find. Since you went into a cave, I assume you found some good stuff in there."

The squad started to feel less stressed. Poump replied "Yes! That's exactly what we did!" He then revealed the two clawshots they found in the chest. "We only found this weird old piece of junk, but I bet it'll sell for a ton of rupees!"

"Fascinating!" The Rito exclaimed. "I trust that you can probably put these to good use." The Rito then got up from the table. "Nice chat, kind strangers. I'm going back to Rito Village, so if you ever feel like meeting with me again, I'll be there."

The squad all waved goodbye to the Rito as it flew off towards the mountains. The Zora then added that she was very tired and that they should all take a rest, so they all paid to rest at the stable. The cuckoo found a good spot of hay to sleep in.

Unanimously, they all opened their eyes to find themselves in what looked like a large white field, with Hyrule Castle in the distance. Strange snake-like creatures swirled above them in the sky. One of them opened their mouths and apparently spoke some words. "We are the three dragons of the Triforce. You are seeing us right now because you have been blessed by the Goddess Hylia to fulfill her mission. Fulfill her mission while keeping yourselves pure at heart, and you will be able to see us in your normal lives." And then in a moment, they all faded away and the squad awoke, this time in the stable that they were sleeping.

Poump decided to go outside for a stretch, and then a group of stable children ran up to him, carrying masks. "Hey funny guy! Play hide and seek with us!"

"Really? Why?"

One of the kids handed him a mask. "Because you are going to be Bowser! We are going to be the Mario Bros and you have to find us!" The kids then put on their own masks, which depicted two brothers, a princess, a green creature, and a mushroom person.

"What the…" Poump decided to put the mask on as the kids started to find their hiding positions.

Meanwhile, the Sheikah and the Zora bought themselves another meal to eat.

Poump managed to find one of the kids but then told all of them that he couldn't spend more time there so he gave the Bowser mask to one of the kids and left.

The squad boarded onto their horses and started travelling towards Kakariko Village. They passed by many points of interest along the way, but made haste towards Kakariko for the sake of time. They arrived at the village, being its own peaceful set of land somewhat tucked between several cliffs. The villagers greeted the travelers with warm welcomes, especially with the Sheikah Warrior in their party. Some villagers were tending to their pumpkin crops and their cuckoos. The children of the village were more fascinated by the water puddles that had formed on the floor than anything else. The squad dismounted from their horses and followed the Sheikah Warrior into a shop that sells musical instruments.

"I haven't seen your face around here for weeks!" the shopkeeper said to the warrior. "What interests you?"

"I am here for a flute. Not just any old flute, but a flute with magical abilities." The warrior said in reply.

"You want a magic flute? All of my flutes in this store are only made with man made materials, free of magical influence. If you were to find anything magical in this village, you would need to speak to the village elder, Impa."

"Okay, I see. Thank you Rola." The Sheikah replied and then gestured to the others to follow him.

"You're welcome and please do come again!"

The squad walked over to Impa's place, which overlooked most of the village. As they walked in, they observed Impa sitting at the center of the room. She seemed to already know they were arriving.

"What brings you here, warrior?" Impa said as they approached.

"We're here to collect a magical flute." The Sheikah responded.

"A magical flute? Why would you need our sacred heirloom?"

"Zelda wants us to fulfill a mission of hers and we need it."

"I hate to say it, but the magic flute has been stolen by some Yiga assassins. They have a camp just south of here. It was stolen recently, so you could possibly catch them closer to the village."

"How do you know they were Yiga assassins?" The Sheikah asked.

"They are the only group of people that would go through the trouble of stealing precious heirlooms from our village." Impa replied. "Get it back, and it will be yours, although do make an effort to tell me it's in the right hands once you get it."

"We will do this with precision, my lady." The Sheikah said as he bowed down to Impa and then exited the building. The squad proceeded back to Rola's shop, since the Sheikah said that they should be well equipped before they face the Yiga camp. They bought some bombs. The Zora then asked Rola a very weird question.

"Do you have any cuckoo armor?"

"Cuckoo armor? For a cuckoo? Why would you give a cuckoo armor?"

"Because this little guy needs some armor." And then the Zora held up the cuckoo that was in their party.

"Oh. Uh. Okay. I'll tell the village blacksmith to work on some armor to fit a cuckoo. Expect it to be ready in a day."

"Thank you." The Zora said as she pet the cuckoo's head.

Night had fallen. They then mounted their horses and headed south down the hilly cliffs that overlooked a large field with the remains of old and run down guardians. A lot of the area remained untouched by people, as it was a historic sight. The only form of hylian implementation in the area were clear cut pathways with information cards set up at certain areas.

The squad was able to make out a small campfire just off the beaten path, with two tents set up in the area. They got off of their horses and followed the Sheikah Warrior's lead. "Poump, you take the tent on the left and plant a bomb next to it. Zora, find the nearest water puddle and be ready to use your magic on any Yiga that come out. I will be listening for conversations to make sure we don't blow up the tent with the flute in it." The other two agreed and got into position. The Sheikah started listening to the people from inside the tents.

A voice from inside the tent started speaking. "Are you sure no one spotted us stealing the flute?"

Another voice replied saying "Yeah, they wouldn't have noticed. The elder was outside when I stole it, and that assistant girl is totally oblivious."

"What's her name, Paya?"

"Yeah, Paya."

"Are you sure they wouldn't have noticed the heirloom wasn't in it's spot?"

"What's the worst they can do? Send some people to come and kill us?"

"Yeah, I don't feel like dying over just stealing a random flute."

"But this is a magical flute that the boss wants us to have."

"And that's the problem. Our new boss is making us take way too many things from the Sheikah clan, when the whole point of the Yiga clan was to go away from the traditions of the Sheikah. We're already using Sheikah tech to our advantage, why would we even need this?"

"We need this flute because it has magical energy that the boss wants. Honestly, that's all I know about."

"I guess you're right."

The Sheikah then motioned to Poump to set the bomb down, and he ran away for cover. The tent blew up and the Yiga in the other tent walked out prepared for a fight. Unaware of the Sheikah warrior from behind, one of them was stabbed in the back by the Sheikah, while the other Yiga assassin teleported away briefly to assess the situation. The Zora tried to use the water nearby to drown the Yiga, but he noticed the water start to form and charged for the Zora. The Zora used her spear to combat the Yiga, and she eventually pinned the Yiga to the ground by his neck. The Sheikah, Poump, and the Cuckoo made it to the Zora and her victim. The Yiga was choking with the spear to his neck.

"Will you just die already?" The Zora exclaimed.

Under the pressure of the spear, the Yiga replied "No way! I will die with honor!"

The Sheikah and Poump walked into the tent trusting that the Zora would kill the Yiga. Eventually the Zora was fed up with this persistent Yiga and released him. "You don't mean to kill me?" The Yiga said, just before he teleported away. Poump searched through the tent and eventually found an ocarina that was colored purple.

"This is it, right?"

"Yes, that should be it." The Sheikah said. The squad rode their horses back towards Kakariko Village and entered Impa's building. As the squad walked in, they revealed the flute to Impa.

"Ah yes, I see that you successfully recovered it." Impa said, feeling relieved at the sight of it.

"Of course. We intend to use this, but once our mission is over, we will give it back to you."

"I know what you plan on doing with it."

Dumbfounded, the Sheikah warrior couldn't come up with a response.

Impa continued, "You plan on escorting different hordes of monsters across Hyrule to fulfill Zelda's mission to keep the monsters away from our civilization."

"How did you know?"

"I am one of Zelda's most well trusted friends of course. Why would I know all of this in the first place? That flute you possess isn't just any enchanted flute, but the Ocarina of Time. That flute contains a magical aura powerful enough to influence people all around you, something which cannot be replicated by any other flute. Use it well and take good care of it."

"As you wish my master." The Sheikah said as he bowed to Impa. The squad left the building. Paya, Impa's assistant, was a bit puzzled by this choice. She was sweeping up the room but didn't really understand the whole situation.

"Why would you just give them our heirloom like that?" Paya asked.

"Because they are on a very important mission given to them by Zelda." Impa replied.

"Oh."

Chapter 3: The Hero's Guidance

The squad set forth immediately for Hateno Village, knowing that that was the place where Zelda's contact was living at. Under the night sky, they rode their horses through the historic sight and through the hills. They passed by a large tower, and even a few strange structures that were glowing blue. They got closer to the village, as they started making out the faint glow of the village. Most of the light from a distance looked orange, although some of the light looked blue as well. They all of a sudden heard a scream just off to the side of the path. "HELP! THIEF!" The squad investigated this and found a lone cabin in the woods. They entered it.

Inside, there was a hylian female, who was picking up ingredients off the floor and putting them back into bags. "What happened here?" Poump said.

"A thief stole my stuff of course." The hylian replied.

"What did they look like?"

"I could only make out a beige outfit that they were wearing. They swiftly came right in and stole my ingredients before I could even get a good idea who they were."

Poump looked around the cabin, but didn't bother helping with the mess. "You look like you sell ingredients. Mind if we see what you have for sale?"

"Oh yes, please buy some ingredients. Having a shop in this part of the world doesn't net me many customers, and that's how I like it. You'd think living next to one of the nicest towns ever would exclusively bring nice customers, but it seems every place needs to have a thief these days."

"How much do these cost?" Poump said.

"For regular mushrooms, that'll be 15 rupees each. If you want hearty mushrooms, that's about 30 rupees each. You can get a handful of nuts for 5 rupees, and the hearty truffles, a favorite of mine, are sold for 45 rupees each."

Poump didn't seem very satisfied by these prices. "You think you could give us a discount for these?" Poump asked.

Feeling offended, the shopkeeper insisted that he would buy it at full price. "I would only give you a discount if you found the culprit who stole my ingredients. Right now, however, all I see are a bunch of people taking up my time and space for no reason. Either you pay, or you get out."

Poump and the others left the cabin. "I was just trying to be nice."

The Zora replied saying "Asking a random person for discounts for the first time you ever see them is pretty rude. We might find the thief and then we'll be able to make it up to her."

The squad rode for Hateno Village and eventually made it to the gates of the village. They were greeted by two guardsmen. "State your business."

"We're here to meet an accomplice of Zelda's." The Sheikah said.

"Ah. It is the great Hero you seek then. If you were to find him here, he has a house just off to the right across a small bridge. Sometimes he's there and other times he isn't."

"Thank you."

"Oh, and by the way," the guardsman added, "If you happen to see any suspicious characters, please contact any soldiers stationed around the village."

"You got it." Poump said. The squad stationed their horses just next to the gate. They walked in the direction the guardsmen pointed them and they walked across the small bridge he mentioned. The homes appeared to be very square and samey, with a light color palette for each. They arrived at a stone house with a horse stable nearby. The stable didn't have a horse in it. The Sheikah concluded that Link wasn't there, but Poump decided to check the window. He saw what looked like someone shuffling around a bunch of items inside, but the window was tinted in a way that made it hard to make out who was there.

"I'm just gonna knock the door." Poump said. He knocked on the door and in a few seconds the person inside opened it up. The person was wearing some blue pajamas that displayed a lobster on it, and their hair was really messy. He looked really tired with bags under his eyes.

"Who are you, why are you here, and what do you want?" The tired individual said.

The whole team was confused as to who this person was. This surely couldn't be the great Hero. The Hero was always depicted with either a green tunic and a hat, or a blue tunic with a proud look on his face, a sword in his left hand, a shield on his right hand, and a bow with many types of arrows in a quiver.

Poump chose to speak up. "We are looking for a friend of Zelda's. She says that you can help us with getting the monsters out of Hyrule, and that we needed your help with navigating through some woods."

"Oh yeah, Zelda told me that a group of some people would come here soon. It looks like you guys are that group, so come on in here. Sorry for the mess by the way." The Hero invited them in. On the walls of his house were different weapons. The Zora recognized one of them as the former Zora Champion Mipha's weapon. However, it smelled terrible. The floor was littered with monster parts, as this Hero was in the middle of sorting them out and putting them in boxes. "By the way, I should introduce myself. I am Link."

"I am Poump, and these are my friends. We call ourselves the monster squad!"

Link takes notice of the cuckoo with them. "That's a catchy name I guess. And why do you have this cuckoo with you?"

"It's our cuckoo." The Zora said. "And we're gonna give it armor soon."

"Intriguing." Link said with a hint of enthusiasm. Link started picking up some of the monster parts and putting them into his boxes. For certain monster parts, he put them into a special container that used Sheikah tech. "What is it that Zelda wants me to help you with?"

The Sheikah spoke. "We have this Ocarina that Impa gave to us, and Zelda told us that we would need to learn a song from a place called the Lost Woods."

Link's eyes opened when he heard the words, "Lost Woods". "You want to go into the Lost Woods? That is actual suicide without proper guidance. I see why Zelda would tell you guys to involve me in guiding you. You are seeking the Deku Tree."

"What's so special about the Lost Woods, and this Deku Tree?" Poump asked.

"The Lost Woods is a mystical place that disorients anyone who walks into it. Anyone who walks into it is usually in search of the Deku Tree, although nowadays people walk in there thinking that they can find some monsters to kill. I navigated through the Lost Woods many years ago to meet the Deku Tree, which it then presented me with my signature weapon, the blade of evil's bane." Link walked up to the corner of the house and picked up a huge sheath. He unsheathed the sword and revealed a long blade glowing with energy. The sword looked way too big to be held in one hand, yet Link carried it as if it were a broadsword. "That is the place where I found the Master Sword." He put the sword back into its sheath.

"How did you make it through the Lost Woods?" Poump asked.

"10 years ago, all I needed to do was follow the wind to where the Deku Tree was. I did it by using the embers of a torch and following them."

"We have our answer!" Poump said.

"Uhp-uhp-uhp!" Link said, pointing his finger at Poump. "It's not that easy anymore."

"Dammit I should've known." Poump said dryly.

"Then how are we supposed to go through there now?" The Zora asked.

"Well since the pathway started to become more apparent, the forest started to shift it's passageway around. At random, it will change it's methods to navigate through the place. Eventually, I got tired of learning the new pathways, so I just decided to teleport myself directly to the Deku Tree whenever I need to visit that place."

"Teleport? How?" Poump asked with intrigue.

"How do you not know how to teleport? You have a Sheikah Slate with you. If you register it at a Sheikah Shrine, you'll gain instant and unlimited access to teleport yourself to that Shrine whenever you want and wherever you want. I've registered all 120 shrines and then some, so I can get around Hyrule a lot. Teleporting has also saved me quite a good amount of times. If you don't know what a shrine is, it's a blue glowing structure coming from the ground. Since you haven't met the Deku Tree yet, you obviously can't teleport there, but when you get the chance, make sure you register yourself at any shrine you see."

"Ah okay, thanks for the information." Poump eyes a monster part on the floor and picks it up.

"What are you going to do with that?" Link asked.

"Oh uh, I think I want to keep it." Poump said.

"Go ahead, keep it. I already have a large stash of these anyways. If you ever get the chance, you might be able to meet a friend of mine who only appears at night time. He's in a big purple hot air balloon. You can also sell it for quite a sum, but I'd say you should at least look at the other guy's stock before selling it. I know a lot about monsters, probably more than every single person in all of Hyrule."

"Can you tell me about what life was like when monsters were abundant?" Poump asked with curiosity.

"Oh boy, it wasn't a time you would've wanted to live in. The monsters lived all across Hyrule in their own camps, and they would terrorize anyone who decided to pass by. There are plenty different types of monsters." Link pulled out his Sheikah Slate and flipped through some photos he took of the monsters. "Bokoblins, are wild little guys that love hunting for meat. They are also intelligent enough to understand how to ride horses and use different weapons. Moblins are bulkier monsters that mostly use heavy weapons. Despite how they look, they are very smart. They even know how to use bows. These guys are pretty cool. They are the Lizalfos. Lizalfos are really good swimmers and specialize in boomerangs. They love boomerangs so much, that their own arms function like boomerangs! If you were to go swimming, you'd best hope that a Lizalfos wasn't in that body of water you were in, otherwise they would snatch you right up and drag you underwater." Link looked at Poump's face. Poump seemed to have an interest, but was also somewhat terrified by what these monsters could do. Link continued. "Oh yeah, and this right here is a Lynel. Lynels are some of the most ferocious fighters you could ever meet. These beasts carry massive weapons, can breathe fire, can ram themselves into you, and can shoot three arrows into the sky and hit you with precise aim. They sound daunting, but I ate these dudes up for breakfast." Link all of a sudden puts the Sheikah Slate down and looks at his sword with a look of longing. It has been years since he fought something as powerful as a Lynel, and he's faced even worse.

The squad took a look at Link as he sat there looking at his sword. He then sprung back up and started going through some of his boxes. "So uhh… are you gonna help us?" Poump asked.

"Oh of course I'm helping you guys." Link replied, as he started undressing in front of the squad as if they weren't even there. "I'm just putting on a different outfit. I need to get into my mojo." Link then brought out a green tunic, and green hat and put them on. He then picked up the Master Sword in his right hand and put it on his back. Additionally, he also put a sturdy looking shield on his back. "Once you're ready, you can meet me in front of the Lost Woods." Link walked out of the house with the squad following him and then he whistled with his fingers. A horse suddenly appeared in blue light right in front of him. "In the meantime, you guys should get some sleep. There's an Inn just up the road in this village. Check it out if you want." And without even giving them a chance to ask a question, he rode out of town.

"He's such a nutcase." The Zora said.

"I can agree to that." Poump added.

The squad walked up the road. There were few people walking around the village at night, mostly patrols of guardsmen. They passed by some lanterns with blue flames in them. Eventually they came up to a larger building that had a sign up front that read "The Great Ton Pu Inn". They entered and were greeted by a young girl at the desk. "Hullo and welcome to The Great Ton Pu Inn! My name is Narah! What would you want to have today?"

The Sheikah asked "How much for a bed here?"

Narah replied "Only 30 rupees a night! 60 rupees if you want to sleep with extra comfort!"

Poump looked around a bit. Then said "I'll sleep outside. And the cuckoo sleeps with me." and then he walked outside carrying the cuckoo in his hands.

The Zora said "I will sleep in a comfortable bed." and handed the receptionist 60 rupees.

"Up the stairs and to the right!" Narah said with enthusiasm. The Zora went upstairs and slept in an elegant suite. At least as elegant as this farm village could get.

The Sheikah asked a strange question. "Would it be alright if I slept at one of the tables down here?"

"Uhh… yeah!" Narah replied with uncertainty. The Sheikah looked around and sat at an empty table. He then started napping.

Poump when he was sleeping outside at one point woke up to see the hazy image of a figure jumping onto a roof. However his crusty night eyes shut themselves shut and him and the cuckoo slept for the rest of the night.

The sun started to shine and the party started waking up. Poump wasn't satisfied when he woke up, since a Donkey was licking at his face, and cuckoo was making really loud noises in his ears. He walked back into the Inn and saw that the receptionist was different this time.

"Hey where's Narah?" Poump asked.

"I am Prima. I own this Inn. Narah is an apprentice of mine, but she's done a terrible job at telling customers that SLEEPING AT THE TABLES ISN'T ALLOWED." And with her shouting, the Sheikah woke up with a brief startle. The other two people at the table he was at were also startled, although they weren't sleeping, they were playing cards. Poump was feeling pretty shook with Prima's loud voice so he walked back outside.

The Sheikah sitting at the table looked at the other two that were playing cards. The older looking card player started speaking to the Sheikah. "That's Prima for you. She has a strict paying policy here since way too many people like sleeping down here instead of paying for a bed. Especially since a thief has appeared in this village and started stealing people's rupees and belongings."

"How long has this thief been around here?" The Sheikah asked.

"Just about 6 days so far. It's been a new thing. I really dislike having a thief in our village because it means that Hyrule has to station more guards around the village. I hate it so much."

"Why would you hate it? Shouldn't you appreciate this protection?"

"Normally we wouldn't need this protection in the first place. Do you know what Hateno stands for?"

"What?"

"Hateno stands for 'Village at lands end'. When this village was established, it was intended to stay independent from the kingdom of Hyrule. Also since this village is so far away from other settlements, not much drama happens here. The most dangerous thing to happen here were a few monster attacks, and that's pretty much over with since most of them have been hunted out. Now we have to worry about some sneaky person stealing our belongings, and now we have all of these heavily armed guards all around the village, with their bright and shiny armor and sharpened swords." The old man continued rambling on as he also played his card game. Prima went up to the Sheikah in the midst of the old man's monologue.

"HEY!" Prima shouted. "Are you going to pay or what?"

"I'm short on rupees." The Sheikah replied.

"That's no excuse. Give me 30 rupees now."

"Alright then." And then the Sheikah gave Prima 30 rupees. At that moment, the Zora was walking down the stairs from her guest room. Prima walked up to the Zora and thanked her for being a good customer and handed her a freshly baked apple pie. The Zora ate it right up, and shared a slice with the Sheikah.

Meanwhile, Poump was outside with the cuckoo, and he was staring at a donkey. He was wondering how much stuff you could pack onto a donkey until it collapses. One of the villagers noticed him observing the donkey. "Why are you looking at my donkey?" the villager asked.

"Cause it looks cool." Poump replied. At that moment, The Zora and The Sheikah walked out of the Inn.

"We're going now." The Sheikah said. "Get your horse."

Poump looked back at the donkey and said "You're lucky this time." The squad all got onto their horses and rode towards the gate of Hateno Village. Poump overheard a conversation some people were saying.

"Have you seen Nebb lately? I haven't seen him anywhere."

"Nebb? Didn't he say he was going to spend some time at Lon Lon Ranch?"

"You're right. Maybe he's just there." Poump dismissed the conversation and kept on riding forward.

They passed by the log cabin they were in earlier, but decided to ignore it given the person inside of it would probably revolt at their presence. Their horses carried them across the East Necluda region. They decided to make a quick stop at Kakariko Village. The Zora went into the armor shop with the cuckoo.

"Is the armor ready yet?" The Zora asked the blacksmith.

"Yes, it is. Although I've never made this type of armor before." And then the blacksmith handed the Zora the cuckoo armor. The Zora put the armor onto the cuckoo. The cuckoo looked up at the Zora with it's new armor, weighing it down some. It was chainmail armor. "That will be 100 rupees." The Zora gladly paid the blacksmith and went back outside to her horse.

The squad continued riding into the direction of the Lost Woods. Since they were told that these woods were located between Hyrule Castle and Death Mountain, it was pretty easy to find them. Death Mountain is a very iconic landmark in Hyrule, as it is the tallest mountain across the whole kingdom, and it even has a unique cloud ring surrounding the top. It's also very volcanic and hot, making it a dangerous place for people to traverse through. Thankfully for them, they didn't need to go through the mountain's climate. The woods were up ahead of them, with a fog emanating from the trees. It looked like there was a large tree, with cherry blossoms, and it's branches reached way above the whole forest. They came closer and eventually noticed that Link was standing around the entrance of the forest, with a different horse next to him. Link had a Sheikah Slate out, appearing to be motioning it around the area. The squad dismounted their horses, and Poump walked up to Link with curiosity.

"What are you doing with that?" Poump asked.

"Ah, the question is what am I NOT doing with it. Right now, I'm taking pictures with my Sheikah Slate right now. It's been a while since I've walked through the Lost Woods, so I'm ready to have my camera function ready." Link put the Sheikah Slate onto his waist. "If you ever feel the need to learn more about something, don't be afraid to take a picture of something, since the Sheikah Slate has an extensive database on just about every single thing you can find." Link started walking towards the forest but then quickly turned around, "Oh! Oh! Oh! And by the way! You can take pictures of yourself with the camera function! Take a look at this picture I took one time!" Link brought the screen up to the group, and it appeared to be a picture of him naked with a bunch of red lights pointed right at him. "I almost died for this!" Link finally put the slate down and walked towards the woods. He took a torch and lit it up.

"I'm telling you, he's a real nutcase." The Zora said to Poump.

"Yeah, I know right." Poump replied.

Link and the squad got deeper and deeper into the fog of the forest, and eventually they couldn't even see the sky, even though it was day time. Somehow the forest was still illuminated, by the noticeable amount of fireflies lighting the place up. It also smelled like mud. They were walking on a stone road that ended at some ruins. "Ah-ha, this is the farthest the pathway stays the same. After this, the forest will randomly change it's pathway to disorient anyone who would try to walk through here." Link proclaimed. "As long as you stay close to me, I might find us a way through."

However, after Link had finished his sentence, Link discovered that Poump and the Sheikah weren't even with them.

"Man I really can't stand that guy." Poump said. "Why is he the supposed Great Hero of Hyrule?"

The Sheikah was growing tired of Poump's personality. "He was able to save all of Hyrule from the Great Calamity, which would've enveloped the world in darkness. Without him, none of us would be alive. You should be grateful. Especially that he's giving us this guidance." The Sheikah then looked all around him and Poump. "Wait a second, where is Link? And the Zora?" Poump looked around as well. They seemed to be lost now, with no sight of Link anywhere.

The Zora called out for the others. "Where are you two?"

Poump and The Sheikah heard The Zora's voice. Poump decided to walk towards the sound, but as he walked closer, it started to feel more distant. He looked around and couldn't even see The Sheikah anymore. Then what sounded like the rattling of bones started surrounding him. He looked around and saw a countless amount of red eyes peering out of the darkness. They came closer and closer and appeared to be a bunch of skeletons, equipped with swords and shields. They surrounded Poump. Poump took out his own sword and shield and prepared for a fight. He hit one of the skeletons and managed to knock it out with the swipe, but the others started beating down on his shield so hard that it broke. He started getting cuts from all angles, and then eventually the cutting stopped. Poump observed the area and discovered the Cuckoo standing above several mounds of bones. The Cuckoo started walking in a direction, which Poump followed in. As he and the Cuckoo continued walking, the forest started to get darker and darker, with the noticeable lack of fireflies around the woods. Poump and The Cuckoo looked up into the trees and noticed a single eyeball looking down at them. Then it turned into two eyeballs, then three, then four, then six, then nine, until an uncountable number of eyeballs were looking down at them. Then some loud squeaking noises came from the eyeballs and they started fluttering right past Poump and The Cuckoo in all of their numbers. They didn't seem to be scathed in any way, although The Cuckoo made a loud "BACKAW!" and laid an egg. Poump quickly pocketed the egg.

The noise from The Cuckoo was able to guide Link and the others closer to them. They reunited. "Let's try to stick closer together this time, shall we?" Link said with some haste in his voice.

Link and the adventurers continued walking through the forest. Eventually, the torch started to lose it's light. Link motioned to the others to hold still. He extinguished the torch and then rose a shining blade into the air with his right arm, illuminating the forest exponentially. He was holding the Master Sword. The trees were a lot more visible now.

"With this, we should be able to see any clues to where the path wants us at." They walked around a bit. Link eventually noticed that the bushes seemed to be rustling. A rock came hurtling towards the party, and through fast instincts, Link took his shield out and parried the rock back at where it came from. "An Octorock." Link said. "These guys don't normally attack groups of people." He walked up to where the rock went and the party discovered the carcass of a deflated octopus-like creature. The subtle noise of bushes rustling around them started to get louder until the party saw a bunch of inflated balloon type creatures looking at them. "Stay close to me." Link said, and the party huddled together. The Octorocks all spat out their rocks, and then Link all of a sudden formed a transparent orange barrier encompassing the whole party, and the rocks bounced right back to the Octorocks. As the rocks hit the shield, a ghostly looking Goron appeared above them.

"Whoa." Poump exclaimed. "What was that?"

Link looked at Poump. "An old friend of mine." And then he carried on through the forest, with the party following along. Link looked at a bush. "Ah-ha, the entrance." And then he swiped at the bush to reveal a set of stairs going down into the ground.

"After you." The whole party said to Link.

"Gladly." Link said.

Chapter 4: Skull Kid

They descended into a dungeon, with mossy stone walls. There were torches on the walls, illuminating the area. Ahead of them was what looked like a gravestone with words carved into it. It read, "Sometimes the answer is to go outside and inside again."

At this, the Zora came to a conclusion. "We should go back outside again!"

Link quickly replied. "Now now, we should look around first. See if we can find any other possible exits."

"You're right." Poump said. "We should explore a little more and risk ourselves getting caught by any unpleasant surprises we might find ourselves in right now."

"I hope you remember that we were surrounded by Octorocks outside, among other dangerous things." Link replied. "Here, grab a torch and let's start exploring this place." He handed all of the party members different torches from off the walls. He started walking and all of a sudden some roots started growing from the wall and overwhelmed him. "AUGHK!" Link exclaimed. "DON'T FORGET TO USE THE SLATE!" and then the roots sunk back into the wall.

"Good riddance." Poump said dryly.

"Why do you say that?" The Sheikah replied.

"He would've just dragged us around the dungeon for no good reason."

"He's an established adventurer, Poump. He's lived through much worse."

"All that matters to me is that he's gone now."

"What about that protection he offered us outside? Without him, we wouldn't even be alive in the first place."

At this, Poump started to see the Sheikah's point. "Fine." Poump said, although he persisted with the idea that Link wasn't a good addition to their team. The party walked to one end of the room and found a large boulder obstructing a passageway.

The Zora pointed down at the Cuckoo, which seemed to be walking somewhere. "Hey look, the Cuckoo is going somewhere." They followed the Cuckoo to what looked like a mossy door. They opened it up and found themselves in a rather off putting room. A small bush with berries was in the center of the room, and the Cuckoo started eating away at the berries. The Zora and the crew looked at the Cuckoo eating the berries off the bush, but were then distracted by the sound of moving stone. Behind the stone walls revealed some coffins. The coffins opened up to reveal tall, stalky, skeletal looking beings, with wooden masks on their faces. They started lumbering towards the center of the room.

"In the name of the Chief, what are those things?!" The Zora exclaimed with horror. Poump attempted to pick up the Cuckoo, but it bit his finger. Poump picked it up again and proceeded for the door, only to realize it had bars covering it. The undead people lumbered slowly towards Poump.

"Looks like we have to deal with these things!" Poump said.

"Never fear." The Sheikah said. "We'll be able to defeat these things in no time." The Sheikah then brought out his sword and started slicing at one of the terrible creatures. It fell down, although the rest of them continued lumbering towards Poump.

One of them then let out a terrible screeching sound. "AAAAAAAHHHHHHH" and the whole squad was petrified, unable to move. One of the creatures started grabbing the petrified Sheikah, and started biting away at his neck.

"GAUGH!" The Sheikah said in great pain. Whatever these things were, they started grabbing the whole party as they were petrified. Eventually everyone was able to struggle out of their holds and they ran to the other side of the room before they could get grabbed again.

"That slate!" The Zora yelled to Poump. "Remember what Link told you about it? And how it could give you information?"

"Oh yeah, that's right!" Poump then grabbed the Sheikah Slate and selected the camera function. As he hovered the slate in front of him, the screen displayed the image of the creatures walking towards them. Poump touched a round button on the screen. Then the image cropped itself to the creature. Some text appeared on the side of it. "REDEAD" the screen read. "Undead creatures capable of petrifying it's victims and then eating them alive. They can be defeated by toppling them to the floor and then bombing their crippled bodies."

"Alright! Now we have our answer!" Poump said. The group got to work on cutting the Redeads down. The Zora stabbed at them from afar with her spear, the Sheikah very carefully slashed at them and hopped away from them, and Poump foolishly threw his sword at one of the Redeads, but was able to successfully knock it down. The Cuckoo pecked at a large blueberry on the floor, but it started glowing red, so the startled Cuckoo kicked it and it rolled towards the downed Redeads and blew them all up.

Poump turned around to look at a gravestone with some more markings on it. They read, "Collect the bracelets, and rocks will be feathers."

"What bracelets?" Poump said, perplexed. He turned around and saw a treasure chest appear out of thin air. Poump walked up to it with the party watching him. He opened it up and found two golden bracelets inside. He took a picture of them and the description read: "POWER BRACELETS. With these, you can lift large rocks out of the way, and toss around other things that are much heavier than you."

"These are awesome!" Poump said, and he put them on his wrists. The bars at the door receded back into the ground, and the party continued onward. They passed by the first gravestone and made it to the large boulder from earlier. "Stand back." Poump said, and he started lifting the boulder out of the way. The boulder felt very light to him, but he dropped it with a thud and it shook the ground nearby. The other side was a set of staircases that lead upwards.

The party walked up the steps and found themselves in the woods again. This time, the scenery looked a little bit different. And they even saw a large stone wall covered with moss. They turned around and then heard a sound that sounded like a child.

"Hee-hee-hee!" The laughing was coming from behind them. They turned around and only saw a burst of leaves. "Hello!" They turned around and saw a strange, scarecrow-like being, standing on a tree stump.

"Who are you?" Poump asked it.

"Ah-ha!" The scarecrow replied. "The question... really is, 'What am I?'." It started dancing around them wildly. "Why, I am the Skull Kid! I live in this forest!"

Poump started speaking to this Skull Kid. "Well hello there Skull Kid!"

"What brings you to... my forest? I don't see many people of your kind... around here very often." The Skull Kid seemed to be speaking with stutters.

"We are here to meet with the Deku Tree, to learn a new song that will assist us in our quest."

"Oh? You're on a… quest?" The Skull Kid seemed intrigued. "That's a shame." And then the Skull Kid disappeared into a sudden burst of leaves.

The Zora was perplexed. "What just happened there?"

"I have no idea." Poump replied.

"We must stay vigilant." The Sheikah added. The party looked around the area a little bit and found another set of stairs under another bush. They descended down the stairway.

They found themselves in a room with some goop dripping from off the ceiling. The goop started to form into some slimy creatures, which were recognized as Chu-Chus by the Zora. There was another set of stairs at the other side of the room, so the party ignored these Chu-Chus.

The next room they ended up in had almost nothing in it, but then some skeletons and Redeads raised from the ground. The skeletons had swords and shields like from before. The Skull Kid reappeared.

Taking the opportunity, Poump asked the Skull Kid a question. "Hey kid, what did you mean by 'That's a shame' earlier?"

"Oh… I said that? Oh yes, I thought it was... a shame that you were on a... quest. That means... you don't have any time... to play with me. Oh well... I can get to see how you fare against... my old toys. I'll consider this a test run…" And then the Skull Kid disappeared into a burst of leaves.

The skeletons and Redeads started clambering towards the party. The party split their efforts and knocked the skeletons down, which Poump was able to identify as Stalfos with his Sheikah Slate. The Redeads proved to be a lot more tough, but their previous tactics were easy to replicate and they blew them up with the nearby blueberry bombs that the Cuckoo was so attracted to. Once the room was cleared, another gravestone was discovered at the end of the room. It read, "Play this song and the monster will follow." A catchy tune started playing, sounding very relaxing and forest-like. The music continued, even after the party went back to the previous room with the Chu-Chus.

The Cuckoo walked up to a blue Chu-Chu and started sipping at it until it was no more. Poump was interested in this, and decided to try sipping at a yellow Chu-Chu. This caused his insides to start feeling electrocuted, and he fell over, with waves of electricity flowing through him. The Zora quickly waved her spear above Poump, and extracted the yellow Chu-Chu from his insides.

"Don't do that again." The Zora told Poump.

"Don't worry, won't do that again." Poump said to her. The remaining Chu-Chus the Sheikah tried slicing at, but they kept splitting into two with each slice, until there were 8 small Chu-Chus on the floor. The Zora stabbed at the small Chu-Chus and managed to bottle up their slime.

"With time, Chu-Chu slime will become drinkable and will aid us with benefits like healing and magic regeneration." The Zora said, as she bottled up the last slime.

The music was still playing, and was even getting louder when they were going back up the stairs into the woods. They arrived back at the large mossy stone wall, and the music seemed to be even louder now. They noticed the Skull Kid up in the trees with a trumpet-like instrument. It stopped playing music as it noticed the adventurers down below.

"Oh… hi again…" The Skull Kid said disappointed. "All... I want to do is... play with you all."

"Well then come down here and play with us!" Poump said enthusiastically.

"But you would never… submit. You wouldn't enjoy my… play time."

"What would it involve?"

The Skull Kid paused for a moment. "Your deaths." And then the Skull Kid disappeared into a burst of leaves.

The party didn't like this and descended down another set of stairs covered by another set of bushes. They ended up in a corridor with mossy stone walls. The music was coming from the end of the corridor, so they proceeded to where the music was coming from. They eventually reached the end of the corridor, and light started coming back into their visions. It was an open area with many trees surrounding a huge pile of bones.

The Zora was getting a bit angry, "Ugh, more skeletons?"

The Skull Kid reappeared on a branch from one of the trees. "I see you've… made it here."

"Yeah, of course we have. And now we're leaving." Poump proclaimed and turned around, only to find that a bunch of roots had blocked the passageway to the corridor.

"You are NOT LEAVING!" The Skull Kid yelled. "YOU WILL BE MY NEW PLAY THINGS. I WILL END YOU AND YOU WILL SERVE ME AND MY ARMY!" The Skull Kid then blew on it's trumpet and the large pile of bones started moving. They assembled themselves into a large creature with one eye. "NOW DIE!" The Skull Kid said, and then he disappeared.

The large skeleton started looking around, grabbed one of the trees, and threw the tree at the adventurers. They all rolled out of the way, but the Cuckoo charged towards the creature. The Cuckoo started to climb up the moving skeleton.

Poump took out the Sheikah Slate and took a picture of the beast. "STALNOX: The undead variation of a Hinox. It's weakness is its eye." Poump realized that the Sheikah was the only party member with a bow.

Poump commanded the Sheikah, "Hey Sheikah! Fire at it's eye!" The Sheikah nodded and brought out his bow. The Stalnox grabbed a tree and started swinging it around. The Sheikah was able to dodge its first swipe by leaping over the tree and shooting an arrow at it's eye. The Stalnox was shocked by the arrow in it's eye, so it tossed the tree away into the Zora's direction and the tree hit her down. The Stalnox held it's eye and reopened it and started making steps towards the Sheikah.

Meanwhile, the Cuckoo was holding onto the Stalnox for dear life. It continued climbing until it reached its skull. The Cuckoo quickly pecked at the open eyeball and then the eyeball fell out of its socket, onto the floor. The bones of the Stalnox collapsed, but the eyeball seemed to keep on moving. With quick urgency, Poump and the Sheikah wailed their swords at the eyeball, but it drifted towards the pile of bones. It eventually reattached itself into its socket and then the Stalnox arose once again.

"Quick! Fire at it's eye again!" Poump said to the Sheikah.

The Sheikah was nocking an arrow when the Stalnox suddenly threw a part of its own arm at him, rendering him unconscious. The Zora got out from under the tree and noticed the Sheikah was knocked out. She quickly ran right up to him and dragged him behind a nearby rock for cover. Poump looked at the bow and attempted to use it. He aimed but the arrow hit just below the eye. "How does he do it so easily?!" Poump exclaimed. The Stalnox then grabbed Poump, and started bringing him up to his mouth. Poump quickly pulled out his sword and sunk it into the Stalnox's eyeball.

The Stalnox fell over and it's eyeball fell to the floor again. Poump picked himself up and stabbed at the eye one more time, and then the eyeball fell limp. The bones degraded rapidly into small chunks. Poump and the Cuckoo went to check on the Zora and the Sheikah. "Are you alright?" Poump asked the Sheikah.

"He's alright." The Zora answered. "The Chu-Chu jelly from earlier healed him right up."

The Sheikah started moving. "What hit me?"

"Let's just say, the enemy disarmed itself to defeat you." Poump then looked at the others, and then the Cuckoo. All of them looked back at him, and then started laughing.

The laughing stopped when they heard the Skull Kid's voice. "NO NO NO NO! This wasn't supposed to happen!"

"Guess what kid, it did." Poump replied.

Angered at his behavior, Skull Kid raised his arms and then some roots appeared from the floor and grabbed Poump. They pulled him under the ground. "Hyrule will be mine…" the Skull Kid then waved his hand and some of the trees moved to reveal a pathway. Skull Kid then disappeared.

Poump awoke, but saw nothing. Just pure darkness. He heard the small squeaking noise of something in the darkness, and then a few eyes peered out at him. He felt for his Sheikah Slate and took a picture of the eyes. A flash from the Slate sparked. The screen displayed, "KEESE. Small flying creatures that usually travel in large herdes." The Keese hanging from the ceiling were startled by the light, so they all flew right past him, scratching him up in a bunch of areas. All he had was the rather dim light of the Sheikah Slate to guide him through the cave. Eventually, he noticed a bright light coming from around the corner. He readied himself for a fight. He turned the corner, sword in hand, only to realize that it was Link! He was holding the Master Sword to generate light.

"Hey there Poump, you look terrible." Link said at the sight of him.

Poump put his weapon away. He didn't know what to say.

"Can you still speak, or are you turning into a Stalfos?"

Poump walked right up to Link and hugged him. "I'm so glad you're alive." And then he passed out.

Chapter 5: The Song of the Forest

The Zora was extremely upset that Poump was gone. "We can't just leave him down there!"

"There's nothing we can do right now. If we stay here, we don't know what that strange child will do to us. Let's go down that pathway now, since we've got each other and that Cuckoo." The Sheikah was very adamant on leaving the forest. Even if it meant that they couldn't find Poump again.

"Oh alright." The Zora gave up and walked down the pathway with the Sheikah.

Meanwhile, under the ground, Poump awoke once again, only this time there was a warm fire illuminating the cave, and he was sitting right next to it. He saw that Link was sitting at the other side of the fire. "Ah yes, you're finally awake." Link said. "Here, have some meat that I cooked up."

Poump took the meat and ate it right up.

"Haha, you remind me of myself when I was younger. I'd always wolf food down like that. A lot of people looked at me funny but I didn't have a care in the world." Link then brought out his own Sheikah Slate and started flipping through some different screens.

Poump didn't like the fact that he was compared to Link. He preferred to be his own person, but right now, he was thankful for it. What would've happened if Link didn't find him down there? He thought to himself how crazy it was that he was sitting next to the Great Hero of Hyrule himself. He finished up his food. "Hey Link, what are you looking at?" Poump asked him.

Link turned his Sheikah Slate off. "It's nothing." He stood right up and took a torch to the fire. "I take it you're conscious enough to walk out of here with me. Follow me." Without delay, Poump followed Link through the cave, with the light of the torch's fire being their only guidance.

As for the Zora, the Sheikah, and the Cuckoo, they continued walking down the path, until they found themselves at an area of the woods that the sun shone through the leaves. A large tree with what looked like a faintly distinct face on it overlooked most of the area. At the center of the area lay what looked like a stone with a small slit in it. As they observed the stone, they noticed a bunch of leaves swarming around them. The Cuckoo started raising it's feathers at the strange phenomena.

"YA-HAA!" One of the leaves made this noise.

"YA-HAA!" And then another one.

"YA-HAA!" And another one.

"YA-HAA!" And again.

"YA-HAA!" And that was it.

"What the heck are these things?" The Zora said. Her and the Sheikah started to notice that there seemed to be a wooden doll-like build behind the leaves. The leaves went even closer to them, and then they noticed that they had very peculiar faces drawn on them.

"ENOUGH." A loud booming voice was heard from the direction of the tree. The Sheikah could've sworn he noticed the tree's mouth move. The leaf creatures started dispersing away and looked at the group from afar.

"Who said that?" The Sheikah said as he looked around the area.

The tree with what looked like a face started moving its mouth. "I apologize for the scare done by those little rascals. It appears that three travelers have decided to greet me, the Deku Tree. What could bring you three all the way through the Lost Woods, and alive, to see me?"

The Zora had no clue how to respond, but the Sheikah stepped up to the Deku Tree, willing to speak to it. "We are here because Link, a friend of ours, guided us here. We have come here to learn a song of the forest."

"Oh-ho-ho, you want to learn Saria's Song, a song passed down through the ages. It is a sacred song made to represent the youthfulness of the forest. If you would like to learn it, you may speak to Hestu. He is just over there." And then a light shone from above towards a strange tree looking creature that was holding maracas in its branches. "Before you ask Hestu for help, I recommend you wait for the right opportunity."

"Right opportunity for what?" The Sheikah asked.

"For your friend to come closer. I know you have one more person in your party that you are waiting for."

The Zora and the Sheikah (and the Cuckoo) looked at each other. "Alright, we'll do whatever you say, ol' wise tree." The Sheikah replied. The three of them sat down on a tree stump and made themselves at home at the rather inviting atmosphere that the place gave off.

As for Poump and Link, the two of them were still surrounded by darkness. Link nonchalantly strolled forward with the torch in hand, and Poump followed behind.

"Hey Link, are you ever scared of anything?" Poump asked him.

"Scared? Of what?" Link replied, surprised by the sudden question.

"Oh you know, like, anything. Like how people are scared of heights, or the dark."

Link went silent for a bit, but continued walking. "Myself."

"Excuse me?"

"I am scared of myself."

"Why would you be scared of yourself?"

"Did you know that being the Great Hero of Hyrule creates a huge burden on your shoulders? Practically everyone around me expects me to be the most perfect Hylian alive. Yeah, I climbed up entire mountains and did some death defying gliding. Yeah, I defeated countless monsters and destroyed the Great Calamity. Yeah, I sailed across the mostly undiscovered ocean in order to find new land. Every single time I think I can get a moment to myself, I'm sent off to solve some problems. And the thing is, I enjoy it. Because that's who I am, a hero. Since so many people revere me, I just can't let them down. What if someday I get killed? And no one will be there to find my body?" Link stopped walking and turned around to Poump. "Poump, you know why I am scared of myself? I have created a huge reputation for myself. What if I become the very thing I was meant to destroy? Some nights, I have these dark thoughts. And in those nights, I can feel my insides hurt like as if a small knife was cutting them from inside. As the Hero of Hyrule, I am destined to do good, and only good. If I even consider doing an evil act, then I might just die on the spot. Or worse, my evil side would take over, and terrorize the people of Hyrule. Who was once their protector, will then become their reckoning. I have had dreams in which this has happened. And if I were to ever cross that line, then I'm as good as dead."

Poump stood there looking at Link. "Whoa. That's uh… a lot to take in."

"Now do you understand why I'm scared of myself?" Link asked.

"Yes. Yes I do." Poump replied.

"Now I want you to know Poump, that if I ever fell to the side of evil, you should run. Don't face me. You're a good kid, and I wouldn't want you dying by my hands."

"But what if there's nowhere to run?"

Link solemnly looked at Poump. "Then you'd be done for." The two of them became silent for a few seconds. "Well, let's keep going. Hopefully the walk through this cave will lead us somewhere."

Meanwhile with the Zora, the Sheikah, and the Cuckoo, they were throwing sticks at the leaf-life creatures. The leaf-like creatures threw them back gleefully. "HA-HAA!" One of the leaf creatures proclaimed, as it snapped a stick in half. "You don't know what we are called!"

The Zora looked at the little leaf creature. "Why yes, we have no clue what you are."

"We are Koroks! We were slightly surprised to know that you can see us, but if you can see us, then that means that you are serving the Goddess Hylia!"

"Doesn't everyone serve the Goddess Hylia?"

"NUH-UH! Only a small tree of people can see us normally! You are special because you aren't even from that tree!"

The Zora was confused by the Koroks words, but decided to play along and act like she knew what it meant.

All of a sudden, the Deku Tree started speaking. "Travelers, you may now speak to Hestu. The others are nearby. When Hestu plays the music, it will draw them closer."

"I hope he's right." The Zora said to the Sheikah. They walked up to the small tree-like creature, which appeared to be a big Korok as signified by its leaf mask. It had a bag toted around its body, and two red maracas in its hands.

"SHALAKA!" The tree proclaimed as it raised it's arms into the air. "You wish to learn Saria's Song?"

"Yes." The Sheikah said. "And I will need to be able to play Saria's Song by using this Ocarina."

"Then you've come to the right Korok! Take a listen and try to mimic my rhythm!" Hestu started shaking his maracas around to a certain rhythm. It was an upbeat and joyous rhythm. The Sheikah started blowing into the Ocarina and played along with the rhythm of the maracas. It was a harmonious piece. All of the Koroks around the area started dancing along to the music.

As for Link and Poump, they continued walking through the cave. They eventually started hearing upbeat music coming from the passageway behind them.

"You hear that?" Link said. "Stay close and follow me." Poump decided to follow Link, but thought to himself that the music was way too suspicious to follow.

"What if it's a trap?" Poump replied.

"Dammit Poump, just follow me." and then Link forcefully grabbed Poump's arm and took him in the direction of the music. The music got louder and louder and eventually they saw daylight at the end of the cave.

The two of them walked out of the cave and found themselves ascending towards the Deku Tree. Link recognized the excited energy of a bunch of Koroks dancing around to the music. Poump, however, thought that this was still a trap.

"They're luring my friends into a false sense of security! They're gonna die!" Poump said as he brought his sword out.

"Hey, stop you fool!" Link then brought out his Sheikah Slate and pressed a button. Poump all of a sudden ceased all movement, as if he was in stasis.

The Sheikah and Hestu stopped playing the song, as The Sheikah was adequately able to perform the song on his own now. Poump broke out of the sudden trance and looked around at all of the Koroks and his friends, which were all looking at him.

"These are my friends, Poump. Introduce yourself to the Koroks!" Link said, motioning his hand around the area.

Poump fainted.

Poump woke up inside of what looked like the inside of a big tree. He noticed Link and the others were nearby, eating some food. "Where am I?" Poump asked.

"You're inside the Deku Tree." Link said. "Make yourself at home. The Koroks don't get many visitors around here often."

Poump sat down and looked at the Koroks running around joyfully. He instantly felt relaxed at the warm aura the inside of the tree gave. And the very festive Koroks posed no threat to him anymore. He ate away at some of the food that was being made.

"UGH, what is this?" Poump asked, after feeling disgusted with what he ate.

"You just ate a fried Octorok." Link blankly stated.

All of a sudden, Link's Sheikah Slate started making noise. He brought the screen up and saw that Zelda was calling. "LINK! We need you over here right now!"

Chapter 6: The Siege of Hyrule Castle

The party was shocked at what Zelda had said. "The Yiga are attacking Hyrule Castle right now, we need all the help we can get!"

"Don't worry Zelda, I'm coming!" Link replied, and then Zelda hung up.

Poump was worried about what was happening at Hyrule Castle. "I'll join you."

The Zora objected to this, "No way, we have our own mission to deal with. I believe Link can handle it."

Link was making sure he made it to Hyrule Castle swiftly. "You all can talk this out. I'm going to Hyrule Castle right now. Oh, and by the way, don't forget to register the Sheikah Shrine just outside!" Then Link pulled out his Sheikah Slate, pressed a button, and disappeared in a stream of blue streaks.

The party walked out of the Deku Tree, right passed a group of Koroks. "We have to help the people of Hyrule Castle!" Poump exclaimed. He brought out his Sheikah Slate and walked right up to the Shrine and registered it. Then a blue marker appeared on his map.

"But they will have Link to help them!" The Zora replied.

"I think we should be helping Zelda out in anyway we can!"

"Which includes dealing with the monsters! She trusts us and only us to deal with those monster colonies!"

Poump was finding his words. "But that can wait!"

The Zora looked towards the Sheikah. "What do you have to say about this?"

The Sheikah had his arms crossed. "As a warrior of the Sheikah Clan, it is my duty to protect the Royal Family from any of its enemies. That is why I say we should split up. You three should deal with the monsters, and I will assist with the forces at Hyrule Castle."

The Zora didn't like this at all. "No, we need to stick together. We can't just split up like that."

"BACKAW!" The party stopped arguing for a moment.

The Sheikah then came up to his conclusion. "Alright, we will focus on dealing with the monsters." Poump didn't like it, but reluctantly agreed to it. The Sheikah turned around to the Deku Tree. "O wise Deku Tree, how may we find our way through the forest?"

The Deku Tree started speaking. "Ah-ha, you will need a Korok navigator. Oaki!"

"WAH!" And then a Korok walked right up to the Deku Tree. "What is Great Deku Tree?"

"Guide these adventurers through the forest safely. They have matters they need to attend to."

"Oh! Okay!" And then Oaki started walking towards the edge of the area towards the woods. "Come on guys! Follow me!" The adventurers followed the little Korok through the woods. Somehow, quite inexplicably, the trees seemed to be parting ways, opening a path for the squad to walk through.

"This will take us out of the Lost Woods, right?" Poump asked the Korok.

"YA-HAA! Of course! It's a shame all of you couldn't stay any longer, but we know you adventurers never liked staying in one place for a long time!"

Very quickly, they started to see the moon light outside. The Korok guided them to the edge of the forest, and the adventurers saw their horses standing around. "Okay, bye!" And then the little Korok walked back into the forest. As it walked back, the trees started moving into the pathway.

The squad got onto their horses and started riding off in the direction of the Hebra mountains. They made haste in the moonlight. The pathway that leads to the Hebra Mountains passed right by Hyrule Castle. Poump couldn't help but notice the plumes of smoke coming from the castle. The party rode right passed Hyrule Castle, however Poump felt something inside of him. He turned around and rode straight for the Castle Town gates.

Poump approached the gates, and the gatekeepers noticed Poump riding closer. "The whole Castle Town is on lockdown right now, there is a siege! We aren't permitting anyone entry!"

"But I need to get in there! I work with Zelda!" Poump proclaimed.

The gatekeepers noticed that Poump had a Sheikah Slate. "Ah, I see! Well if that's the case, don't die in there!" They opened up the gates. Poump got off of his horse and ran towards Castle Town.

It didn't take long for the Sheikah and the Zora to notice that Poump was gone. They both knew where he went. "We can't split up! We need to pursue Poump!" The Zora said to the Sheikah. The Sheikah agreed and the two of them rode towards the Castle Town gates. As they approached, the gatekeepers prepared to speak.

"You can't go in there, it's a siege! The whole town is on lockdown!"

The Sheikah spoke up. "A friend of ours is in the town right now. That's his horse right there."

The gatekeepers looked at each other with looks of malcontent. "Oh, you mean that weakling who is as good as dead?" All of a sudden a poof of smoke concealed the guards, and in their place were two Yiga assassins! "You two will die!"

The Sheikah hopped right off of his horse and sliced down on one of the Yiga assassins, killing him instantly. The Zora stabbed the other Yiga assassin with her spear, but the Yiga got right back up. The Sheikah traded blows with the Yiga, until the Zora threw the Cuckoo in it's armor at the last Yiga. The armored Cuckoo was able to ground the Yiga, and the Sheikah quickly plunged his sword into the Yiga's chest, killing him. The Sheikah looked around and found the lever to open the gates. Shortly after, the two of them ran into the Castle Town.

Poump was trying to make it directly to Hyrule Castle, however, there was a huge battle happening on the streets of Castle Town. Soldiers and Guards were fending off the Yiga assassins in the streets, and all of the shops were barred up from the inside. Poump took out his sword and made way towards the Castle gates. A Yiga assassin noticed him running for the gates and quickly teleported right in front of him. Poump guarded the Yiga's attack and attempted to swipe at him, but they kept trading blows. Eventually, the Yiga managed to slice Poump just a little bit, and started tiring him out. Just as the Yiga started to land his finishing blow, a sword stabbed right through the Yiga's stomach. A soldier was at the other end of the sword.

"What are you doing out here, citizen?!" The soldier screamed.

"I've come to help Zelda with the siege!" Poump replied.

"You aren't a registered soldier! And you're only a child!" An explosion went off, so this made the soldier bring Poump behind a tipped over carriage for cover.

"I am 17 and Zelda trusts me with her mission!" Poump said in reply. All of a sudden a Yiga appeared behind the soldier. "Look out!"

The soldier quickly gripped his shield and bashed the Yiga down to the floor. The Yiga quickly got up and teleported away. "We can't stay here! I'll take you somewhere safe!"

"Why don't you take me to the castle?! We can work together over there!"

The soldier looked at Poump. "Alright then, but stay close to me!" The soldier raised his shield and motioned for Poump to walk behind him. They walked through the streets of Castle Town towards the castle gates.

The Sheikah, the Zora, and the Cuckoo made it to the main plaza. The heated battle made it hard to find Poump. The Sheikah started running through the town, slicing away at all of the Yiga foot soldiers that didn't notice him yet. Then a large and bulky Yiga Blademaster quickly grabbed the Sheikah from out of the air and slammed him to the ground. The Blademaster raised his large sword into the air and violently slammed it down towards the Sheikah. The Sheikah quickly teleported away before getting sliced. From the rooftops, the Sheikah brought out his throwing stars and started throwing them down to the unalert Blademaster. The Blademaster felt the throwing stars, but didn't mind them much. He looked right up to the rooftops and noticed the Sheikah. The Blademaster teleported onto the rooftop right next to the Sheikah.

Meanwhile, the Zora waved her spear around and commanded the water from a nearby fountain to envelope some of the Yiga footsoldiers. She managed to capture about three of them in her water. The three of them struggled for air, and eventually fell limp. The Zora noticed the Cuckoo run up to her flippers with a panicked expression. She looked behind herself and noticed a Gerudo woman and a bunch of soldiers slicing away at the Yiga footsoldiers. She continued looking around the town to see if she could find the Sheikah, and noticed that he was on the rooftop facing off against the big Blademaster.

The Sheikah kept on trading blows with the Blademaster, but the Blademaster's sword was much bigger. The Sheikah kept on getting close and slicing at him, but each slice didn't seem to bother the Blademaster by much. The Blademaster sunk his sword into the roof and then a gust of wind appeared to be blowing from out of the rooftop. It traveled towards the Sheikah, but the Sheikah was overwhelmed and the gust of wind pushed him high above the rooftops. Up here, the Sheikah managed to get a good look at the whole town. He saw fights happening all around. The faint glint of Poump's Sheikah Slate appeared in his vision, and he saw two figures walking towards the castle gates. Getting battle ready, the Sheikah took this as an opportunity and pointed his sword straight down towards the Yiga Blademaster. He sliced the Yiga right down the back.

"AUGH!" The Blademaster proclaimed. The Sheikah swiftly chopped the Blademaster's head clean off. He went back towards the Zora, who had been fending for herself for sometime.

The Sheikah ran right up to the Zora. "I know where Poump is, follow me!" And then the three of them rushed towards the castle gates together. They noticed that it was a soldier who was leading Poump to the gates.

"It's a trap!" The Zora said. "Those gatekeepers allowed Poump in here, so I believe that soldier is leading Poump into a trap!"

Without hesitation, the Sheikah teleported right behind the soldier next to Poump, and attempted to slice the soldier. "Whoa!" Poump exclaimed.

The soldier's armor got sliced, but it protected him from getting killed. The surprise attack from behind caused the soldier to retaliate against this surprise attack, so he shield bashed the Sheikah.

Before they could trade blows, Poump spoke up "Wait! This guy saved me! Why are you attacking him?!"

"He is a Yiga disguised as a Hylian Soldier!" The Sheikah replied.

"Wait, what?" Poump looked at the soldier.

The soldier was baffled by what was happening. "There is no way in all of Hyrule that I would join the Yiga forces!"

"He's lying!" The Zora exclaimed.

"No, actually he's telling the truth." The Sheikah said. "If he really were a Yiga, he probably would've killed Poump by now."

"Goddess thank you! I am so glad you have some sense in yourself!" The soldier said with relief.

Poump looked at the castle gate. "We're here now, let's go in there and help Zelda!" The team opened the gate and ran towards the courtyard. All of a sudden, the large spider-like robot looked at them with red eyes, and a red pointer pointed right at the soldier's head.

"The Guardian! Watch out!" The Sheikah said, and he hurriedly grabbed everyone around him and teleported them all behind cover. The soldier looked back at the area where they were previously at and the Guardian fired a huge laser at the spot where they once stood.

"That's new! Guardians aren't supposed to be fighting against us!" The soldier said, out of breath. "Why would they fight against us?!"

"That is a mystery to solve later, do you have any ancient arrows?" The Sheikah asked the soldier.

"No, we have those locked up somewhere else in the castle. I don't have any on me because I was stationed to patrol through the streets of Castle Town."

Poump was confused. "What's an ancient arrow?"

The Sheikah quickly explained it. "Ancient arrows are extremely rare types of arrows that excel at destroying Guardians. Because of their rarity, they aren't used a lot within combat against regular foes. It is said that ancient arrows completely dissipate whoever is hit by one. That is why they are only useful against Guardians."

The Zora peered from behind the cover, and noticed the Guardian walking around the courtyard. "How are we supposed to defeat that thing? Can't we just use our weapons?" The Zora asked.

"No." The Sheikah replied glumly. "We can't. That would be suicide."

Poump was getting worried. "Is there anything we could possibly do to keep it from seeing us?"

"The only thing that we could do to distract the Guardian would be to send live bait outside." The Sheikah observed the party. "The problem is that no one here wants to be bait." As soon as he said that, the Cuckoo walked out from behind cover. It's movement alerted the Guardian, and it started targeting the Cuckoo.

"Nooo! The Cuckoo!" The Zora cried in fear for the little poultry's life.

The Cuckoo obliviously strutted along, with the red light pointed right at it. The Guardian let out a bright flash from its eye and then a laser blasted the Cuckoo. The Cuckoo cried in pain, "COCK-A-DOODLE-DOOO!" Then, as if from out of nowhere, above the castle walls appeared an army of Cuckoos. They all fluttered towards the Guardian and swarmed it wildly. They pecked away at the Guardian's legs, confusing it in the process. It wildly blasted away in its confusion. It blasted at a part of the castle, which crumbled down upon impact.

The soldier came out from behind the cover. "What a day. What a lovely day!" Poump watched in suspense as the soldier ran right up to the Guardian, sword in hand. The soldier ran through the clouds of Cuckoo feathers and plunged his sword right into its eye. The soldier let go of the sword and ran away with the sword still stuck inside of its eye. The Guardian violently flailed its legs around and then exploded. The Cuckoos dispersed and formed an orderly line. They walked out of the courtyard.

"Oh no, baby!" The Zora cried to the Cuckoo. The Cuckoo was lying on the floor, it's armor slightly damaged. The Zora brought out a health potion and force fed it to the Cuckoo. Shortly after, the Cuckoo popped right back up, making noises. The Zora hugged the Cuckoo.

The soldier looked through the wreckage of the Guardian's parts trying to find his sword. He discovered its hilt, but the blade was shattered to pieces. The soldier started picking the pieces up, with . Poump noticed this. "Why are you picking the sword's pieces up?"

"Because this sword was a family heirloom. For several generations this sword was in the family, but now all it is a bunch of metal shards spread across the floor." The soldier took out a bag and put the pieces into it. "However, it served its purpose. This sword saw many battles. I will put these pieces on display in my homestead to remind myself of the sacrifice I had to make."

Poump looked at this and wanted to join in. "I'll help you pick these up."

"Don't, these are the shards from my sword, so it is my responsibility to bag these up. You lot should go and assist Queen Zelda since you're here. I'll get a new sword and hold defense soon enough." The soldier bagged up the last sword shard.

"Alright, we'll go now." Poump said, and the rest of the team continued their mission through Hyrule Castle. They ran past an area with weapons. Poump took the opportunity and grabbed a large golden shield, and a much more elegant and sharper sword than what he had originally. These weapons seemed to belong to the royal guard, as Poump noticed a bunch of guardsmen pouring out towards castle town wielding the same type of sword and shield.

All of a sudden a hailstorm of arrows came from the sky. The team took cover underneath the nearby roof and looked back out and saw a countless number of Yiga Footsoldiers running towards Hyrule Castle, coming to blows with the castle guards. It was madness. Bodies were getting sliced and diced and many fell to the floor from both sides of the fight. The Sheikah pulled out one of his bombs and aimed it at the crowd of Yiga footsoldiers. As the bomb rolled on the floor, plenty of the Yiga were too late to notice the death weapon. It promptly blew a lot of the Yiga up, some of their body parts splattered against the stone walls of the castle. Taking advantage of the outrage, the team sliced their way through the crowd of Yiga with assistance from the castle guards.

Despite their efforts, eventually some of the Yiga forces managed to flank the castle guards and the team. The Yiga thinned out the numbers of the guards, although the Sheikah Warrior proved to be much too difficult a foe for many of the Yiga enforcers. Poump's new sword attacked with great rage, and his shield protected him really well. However, it seemed to be never ending, as the Yiga forces never seemed to tire out. Soon enough, they overwhelmed the team and brought them to the ground. The team was outmatched, and surrounded by Yiga.

"What does the boss want us to do with the Sheikah?" One of the Yiga asked another Yiga.

"I remember he said he wanted any Sheikah Warriors to be kept as a prisoner." The Yiga replied.

"That seems kind of weird. Our old boss would've ordered us to kill all of these guys on the spot."

"Well we have to do whatever he says. Remember what happened to the other guys that disobeyed his orders?"

"Oh yeah, he killed them."

"No stupid head, he forced them to run in the desert for 3 hours. The boss only wants toughness from us, he would never just kill us dead like that."

"Oh. Alright then." The two Yiga stood around for a bit, surveying the area. The whole castle looked like it was overrun by Yiga. Poump looked all around and couldn't see any sign of assistance, given that most of the castle guards in the area were dead.

Then, as if from out of nowhere, an arrow slitted it's way right through one of the Yiga footsoldier's heads, and the Yiga dropped dead. Before the other Yiga could even get the chance to react to the other Yiga dying, he suffered the same fate and fell over dead. The team observed the immediate area and noticed the Yiga had all shifted their focus behind them. Standing proud behind them, was Link, in his green tunic, with a bow in hand. The Yiga started rushing towards Link in a massive herd. Link started knocking three arrows, which had a noticeable electric current, and then the arrows flew through the air and shot more of the Yiga down, electrocuting some of them in the process. Link then pulled out the Master Sword. It was glowing brightly against the red outfits of the Yiga footsoldiers leaping right at him. Link swung the sword in a circular motion and sliced many of the Yiga clean. Legs, heads, arms, and organs were flying everywhere from the visceral force from Link's single swipe of the powerful sword. He brought out his shield and parried an incoming attack from one of the Yiga assassins and sliced him right in half, with the torso and legs separated. Link dodged an attack from two incoming Yiga, and then flew right back at them with 6 quick and consecutive swings of his sword, reducing them to meat chunks on the floor. He continued slashing away at the seemingly endless amounts of Yiga footsoldiers.

The Sheikah got up, followed by the Zora, followed by Poump, and then followed by the Cuckoo. The Yiga were way too occupied with trying to kill Link to notice the others getting up. They desperately wanted Link dead, because of his reputation with them. However, Link was way too powerful for most of the Yiga.

Link shouted at the party after he stabbed a Yiga dead. "Hey, you guys! Find Zelda! I can hold myself here!" Soon enough, Link's clothes were soaked in blood, and some of the Yiga footsoldiers started running away from the battle. Never tiring, Link kept on fighting valiantly, as if he was a beast instead of a Hylian.

The team started running up towards the throne room, where they expected Zelda to be. Instead they found another battle of clanging metal and grotesque amputations between the castle guards and the Yiga footsoldiers. All of a sudden, a thunderous display of electricity flashed in the room, electrocuting the Yiga to death. "Hail to the chancellor!" The guards in the room proclaimed.

A figure wearing red robes appeared before the team. "Who might you be, and what are you doing here?" The robed figure asked, and then motioned for the guards in the room to go outside and deal with any Yiga elsewhere.

"We're here to find Zelda, Link sent us up here." The Sheikah replied with haste.

"You must be her special task force." The robed figure pointed at a door at the edge of the circular throne room. "There is a special passageway to the docks through that door. She is on her way there now. You may be lucky enough to run into her. Good luck."

"Thank you very much, your royalty." The Sheikah said with a slight bow and made haste for the door with the others following him. Poump looked back at the hooded figure with suspicion, but the rush of the occasion kept him going with the team. The Sheikah opened the door and found a room filled with books and a table that displayed a map of Hyrule in its entirety. There were markers on the map, showing off trade routes and battle plans. The Zora looked at the map and was really glad to see no battle plans positioned around her home, Zora's Domain. The Sheikah however, was in no need of looking at the map since he wanted to make it to the docks quickly. He felt around the bookcases and eventually found a book that didn't feel loose. He gave it a tug and the bookcase opened up a passageway down a set of stairs.

The team descended the stairs and eventually found themselves at a rocky area without much of the stone structure of Hyrule Castle. The place was very well lit, however. They noticed that the cave they were in was quite huge. Down below looked like a small docking area with a boat in the docking bay. They followed some stairs down and noticed that three Yiga foot soldiers were on the boat, observing it. The Sheikah took his throwing knife out and threw it at one of the unsuspecting Yiga, which then fell and splashed into the water nearby. The other two Yiga noticed the absence of the other Yiga. They proceeded to check the area out. The Zora then waved her spear at the water and made the water rise and suck the two Yiga down, pulling them under the water.

After a sufficient amount of time, the Zora proclaimed "They're dead." and lead the team up to the boat. There seemed to be no sign of Zelda anywhere on the boat. "Where is she?" The Zora asked.

The feminine voice of Zelda's sounded from behind them. "Right here." It was Zelda standing right before them. "I'm glad you took good care of those cretins for me. Would be less blood on my clothes." She strutted onto the boat.

The Sheikah was content with this. "Good to see you again your majesty." And he kneeled before her.

Zelda looked at the Sheikah and the team with a sneer. "Now I have you where I want you." She raised her arms and a magic aura started appearing above her. Poump tried to pull out his blade, and the Zora raised her spear. And then as if it went by in a split second, Zelda was sliced in half. Her body fell to the floor. Except it wasn't her body. It was the body of a Yiga assassin, mask and red clothing included.

The Sheikah looked at the dead body, and then up towards a tall, slender figure wearing a Sheikah outfit, with a katana in hand. "That was a close one." The other Sheikah said with a feminine voice.

"Sheik." The Sheikah proclaimed. "It is good to see you again. Where is the Queen?"

"She will be arriving here shortly with her boat crew. Stay here. There is no more danger." Sheik stated very blankly. "It's good to see you too, fellow warrior." Then in a sudden gust of smoke, Sheik disappeared.

"You know her?" Poump asked the Sheikah.

"Yes. She's an old friend of mine. She taught me most of my warrior knowledge." The Sheikah replied.

The team waited at the boat and eventually noticed some people coming towards the boat in the docking bay. One of the people from this group was a tall, buff, and dark skinned fellow. The other person was a smaller, light skinned fellow with a striped shirt and a blue bandana. And behind them was Zelda.

Poump and the Zora were paranoid. "Zelda, is that really you?" Poump asked her.

"Why yes Poump, of course it's me. I have two of my trusty royal servants with me after all." As Zelda got onto the boat, she pointed at the other two people with her. "This valiant fellow is Alfonzo. He's a great ship captain. And this little fellow is named Niko. He's a useful navigator."

"Tell me something only Zelda would know!" Poump said as he brought his sword out.

Zelda blankly looked at Poump. "I have sent the lot of you to deal with escorting several hordes of monsters to an island off the coast of Hyrule."

Poump took his sword down. "I'm sorry my Queen. I've seen a lot today."

"We all have." Zelda said.

The team made themselves at home on the boat, and then the boat was maneuvered through the water out of the cave. The boat itself was reasonably sized, and it even had a lower level with some beds. The Sheikah set down his weapons and immediately slammed himself onto one of the beds and started snoring as soon as he was settled on the bed. The Cuckoo sat down in an area next to the bed with a pillow. Even though the pillow was already pre-occupied by a cat, the cat didn't seem to mind the Cuckoo. Poump set his new sword and shield down and plopped himself onto the bed, half awake. He was thinking to himself about how differently this would've played out if Link didn't show up to save them. Did they really need to deal with this seige? Poump had never seen that much violence in his whole life.

As for the Zora, she was mostly awake, walking on the main deck. As the boat slowly glided out of the cave, she saw the faint glimpse of sunlight since the sun was starting to rise. She also noticed something slowly falling towards the boat. This something turned out to be someone. It was Link, gliding towards the place with a paraglider. She recognized the glider since she saw him arriving at Zora's Domain with it before. Link landed onto the boat, covered from head to toe in blood. He smelled awful. He walked through one of the doors on the boat. The Zora dismissed this and went into the sleeping quarters to give herself a nap.

Chapter 7: Party at the Ranch

Poump awoke in the sleeping quarters before the others woke up. He grabbed his sword and shield and walked back out to the main deck. The cat that was sleeping next to the Cuckoo noticed Poump walking out and followed him. Poump discovered that they were on a large river that cut across the East region of Hyrule Field. He could tell since he saw the castle in the distance, and since Death Mountain was also much closer to them. He felt something near his feet and heard a "Meow!". It was the cat. Someone all of a sudden climbed onto the boat. It appeared to be Link, and he wasn't wearing a shirt or pants. He was only wearing his trunks. He had a spear in his hand.

"Hey there Poump." Link said nonchalantly. "Y'know, I really love cats. They remind me of myself."

"Why do you say that?" Poump asked.

"I feel like I can relate to them on a spiritual level." Link then picked up the cat. "They are really good hunters. Did you know that cats can see very clearly in the dark?"

"Yeah, I knew that." Poump replied.

"Awesome." Link put the cat down and grabbed his spear. He looked over board with his spear and positioned it to aim straight down. Swiftly, he stabbed the spear into the water, and brought it back up, with a fish skewered onto the tip of it. "Looks like we have breakfast!" The cat longfully looked at the fish on the spear and made noises as Link brought it towards a barrel and placed the fish onto it. He brought out a knife and started cutting the fish into different pieces. He handed one of the pieces down to the cat, which started nibbling away.

The Sheikah and the Zora woke up at the same time as each other. They both walked outside to the main deck. They saw Link sitting at a cooking pot with Poump at the other side. Link was tossing the pieces of fish around with a ladle and adding in some mushrooms. He then took some sticks and skewered the fish and mushroom bits together.

"Fish and Mushroom Skewer!" Link proclaimed. "Simply done, and simply filling!" Link handed each of the party members a skewer for each of them. The meal was quite filling as he said. They felt their energy coming back to themselves. Zelda approached them.

"Looks like you lot are having a fine morning." Zelda looked at all of them munching away at their meal. She sat down next to them. "I'd like to thank you for your assistance with the Yiga attack. All of you. We need all the help we can get. Although do try not to be so reckless. I need all of you alive to help with escorting the monsters."

"At least they are alive in the first place." Link replied, with a mouthful of mushrooms.

"At least they are alive. You're right Link." Zelda observed the sword and shield that Poump had. "Little Poump, stealing from Hyrule Castle's forge?"

Poump was befuddled and looked at his weapons. "I needed better gear, your highness."

"No worries about it. You serve under my mission, so it is fair that you are given weapons like these. These are Royal weapons, made to be wielded by people that serve the Royal Family. Since you serve me, it is alright that you have them."

Link wolfed down the last bit of his meal, got up and stretched. "I'll dress myself up." He headed towards the door at the other side of the boat and went inside.

Zelda waited a few seconds and then turned to the party. "Since you all risked your lives at the siege, I will reward you 5,000 rupees." She pulled out a wallet sack and handed the Sheikah 5,000 rupees.

The Sheikah had plenty of questions to ask. "What will happen at Hyrule Castle now that you're gone?"

"Oh yes. I've left the Chancellor in charge of Hyrule Castle. His name is Agahnim.. The Yiga Clan desperately want members of the Royal Family dead, and since the Yiga decided to attack Hyrule Castle, I need to stay as far away from there for now. Agahnim isn't a member of the Royal Family, however I trust that he will look over Hyrule with good intent." Zelda looked at Hyrule Castle in the distance. "I have immense trust in that man."

"Why do you trust him so much?" Poump asked.

"You are all familiar with the Great Calamity, correct?"

The party collectively nodded their heads. The Zora knew about the Great Calamity because of her very long lifespan. Zoras can live up to 200 years. She is 67 years old, so she is well acquainted with what life under the Calamity was like. The Sheikah is 39 years old, and the Sheikah Clan was very efficient at recording the history of Hyrule. And although Poump was only 17, he paid enough attention in history class to understand what life was like under the Calamity.

"Good. So as you know, the Great Calamity started 110 years ago. When it started, Link, the Champions of Hyrule and I attempted to stop it, but we couldn't. The remaining Royal Family members assisted the citizens from Hyrule Castle Town in an attempt to evacuate. Some made it out, but most others fell to the carnage of the Calamity. The remaining Royal Family members with the surviving citizens managed to get to an emergency line of boats we had stationed on the East coast of Hyrule. They sailed away and settled on an island that wasn't too far from the mainland. As for the remaining heroes in Hyrule, the champions were defeated, and Link almost died, forcing us to put him to sleep and wait for his return. 10 years ago, Link was reawakened, and managed to defeat Calamity Ganon, freeing me and the country of it's reign. As we rebuilt Hyrule with assistance from the new Champions of Hyrule, the settlers from the island came back to the mainland. One of the settlers from the island was a man with magic powers, named Agahnim. He helped a lot with rebuilding Hyrule to its former state, and even reintroduced me to the Royal Family that had lived on the Island." Zelda had an awkward smile on her face. "It was so strange. I still had the body of a 17 year old, so I looked younger than some of my little cousins. Nevertheless, I trust Agahnim greatly for everything he did for this country."

Poump was taken aback by an overload of information. "It seems like you really trust this person. A lot."

"Yes, I do. I also trust that he will look over her gently." Zelda looked at the back of her hand. Three triangles were on the back of her hand, almost as if they were ingrained on it like a tattoo.

"Wait a moment, who do you mean by 'her'?" Poump asked with curiosity.

Zelda looked at her hands and slowly looked back at the party. "Do you promise that you won't tell Link about what I am about to tell you?"

"You have our everlasting trust, your highness." The Sheikah said, as the Zora and Poump nodded in agreement.

"Alright." Zelda took a deep breath. "Link and I have a child. He doesn't know this yet. Her name is Hilda. She is 8 years old."

"Why would you keep this a secret from him?" Poump asked.

"Because I know Link. Since I am the Queen of Hyrule, this would technically make him the King of Hyrule. However, he wouldn't like to be in such a role. He never liked politics that much. He prefers being able to go out and adventure around the landscape. Being around the people of Hyrule. The role of a King is very limiting to that lifestyle." Zelda had a worried expression on her face. "If he knew, I have no idea how he would react. So please keep this a secret."

"Have no fear, Queen. We will keep this secret to ourselves." The Sheikah said, with approval from the other party members.

Zelda had a sigh of relief. "Thank you very much."

"So what are you going to do since you're not at the castle anymore?" Poump asked.

"Oh yes. This river leads itself down South to a very well hidden settlement named Lurelin Village. This village was so far away from the reach of the Calamity that it remained almost completely untouched. In fact, even the Yiga Clan hasn't discovered it yet because of how out of the way it is. I will be there until the conflict at Hyrule Castle is over. I cannot risk myself during such a siege." Zelda then stood right up. As she stood up, Link came out of the door wearing his green tunic, and his sword and shield on his back.

"Hey Zelda, I take it you're discussing the monster quest with our guests?" Link said, as he walked right up.

"Yes, we are." Zelda then turned to the party. "In fact, how are you doing progress wise?"

"We've managed to learn the song of the forest, and we were actually headed towards the Hebra Region to escort that monster colony to Rito Village." The Zora replied.

"Oh yes, very good. I must warn you that the Hebra mountains are very dangerous, so you must prepare yourself for them." Zelda turned to Link. "Link, are you alright with assisting them in the Hebra region?"

"I was actually planning on going to the Gerudo region today, but I can help them out. They'll need a navigator." Link said.

"Not so fast." Poump interrupted. "I believe that all of us by ourselves can deal with escorting the monsters."

"Have any of you ever hiked through the Hebra mountains?" Link asked. The whole party was completely blank. None of them had previous experience with hiking through the Hebra region. "Don't be so boneheaded, Poump. I sometimes have difficulty traversing through those mountains. Tell you what, I'll meet you there tomorrow morning. It's currently mid-day, so I'll go off and do my own thing." Link turned to Zelda. "Zelda? Is it alright if I investigate the Yiga outbreak in the Gerudo region?"

"Yes Link. That is fine." Zelda replied.

"Thank you, my Queen." Link said. "See you guys around." Link brought out his Sheikah Slate, clicked on the screen, and then dissipated into blue streaks into the air.

"After what you witnessed last night, I believe a time for relaxation is overdue for all of you. From where we are, if you ride towards the Hebra Region, you should be able to pass Lon Lon Ranch, an establishment made for weary travelers. There is a festival going on at the ranch, so indulge yourselves with the entertainment. You deserve it."

"Thank you very much, your highness." The Sheikah said.

"You may go off of the boat whenever you're ready." Zelda said.

The party immediately started packing things up. Alfonzo steered the boat towards a small docking area and let the party off. The boat left and continued going down river. It took them just a few steps to realize that they were missing something. "We left our horses at Hyrule Castle Town!" Poump exclaimed.

"Oh by the Goddess, does that mean we have to walk across the whole field? It will be night time before we even reach Lon Lon Ranch!" The Zora said. She didn't like the idea of walking on dry land. Zoras are exceptional swimmers, but Zoras never really lent themselves best to walking long distances.

"Let's not fret over it." The Sheikah said. "I'll bottle up the nearby water so that way you can pour it on yourself if you become too dehydrated."

"I guess that will help." The Zora said, although she still had doubts on being able to walk across the whole field.

The squad walked across Hyrule Field. The mountains of the Hebra Region were mere silhouettes to them. As they walked across the field, Poump took notice at the large towers that seemed to be around the landscape. He never paid much attention to them on horseback since when they were on horseback, they only had their destination in mind. The Sheikah and the Zora knew about the towers and their importance. To them, they're useful for navigation.

Eventually, as time went on, the Zora used up the water on herself. This didn't prove to be very effective because she was still tiring out. It was also past midday. "I don't think I can make it." The Zora said, feeling exhausted.

"Is there anything we could do?" Poump asked.

"No, leave me. I'll just be a burden on your shoulders."

"We will not leave you." The Sheikah replied. "We need each other, Zelda is counting on us. If we lose one of ourselves just like this, then it is all for nothing." As the Sheikah stated this, he heard the neighing of horses from over a nearby hill. He motioned for them to follow him. They scoped out a harras of 7 horses. "Let's try to tame them." The Sheikah said. "Follow my actions."

The Sheikah snook right through the grass, and the others watched him from afar. He arrived at a brown horse with white spots. He immediately climbed onto it, startling the horse in the process. The horse flailed around wildly, trying to buck him off. The other horses of the harras decided to run away, but not too far away. The Sheikah tried his best to hold onto the horse, but with one jerk in the right direction, the horse bucked the Sheikah right off. It ran away to the rest of the horses. The Sheikah was left tumbling through the grass.

"Ooh, that's gotta hurt." Poump said. The Sheikah crawled back to the group. "Are you alright?"

"Never better." The Sheikah replied, while massaging his arms. "I should've fed it something, usually they like it more when you feed them something. You've tamed a horse before, right Poump?"

"I never tamed one, I just kinda got one to own for myself and I understand how to ride them." Poump's other horse was gifted to him when he was younger, so he never got to tame it. It just grew on him.

The Sheikah pulled something from out of his pockets. "Here, take some of this wheat. Go up to a horse and feed it some of this. It might like it more."

"Alright, got it." With the wheat in hand, Poump trudged through the grass towards the nearest horse in the herd. It had black fur. Very gently, he brought the wheat closer to the horse, and got closer to its mouth. The horse noticed the wheat and happily ate at it while salivating on Poump's hand. The horse looked at Poump but didn't move much. Poump took this opportunity and went on top of the horse. The horse was fine at first, but then it neighed loudly and all of the other horses started running. The black horse ran wildly along with the herd, with Poump holding on for dear life. He tried petting it, but it didn't help. Eventually the horse ran so quickly that Poump fell off and landed belly first into the grass and dirt below.

The Sheikah didn't like this. So he impatiently decided to teleport directly on top of one of the horses. The horse that he teleported onto was instantly startled and attempted to buck the Sheikah right off. The Sheikah held on tighter. The other horses decided to run into Poump's direction. "Poump! Watch out!" The Sheikah exclaimed.

Poump quickly got up and saw the horses running at him. Instead of running to the side, he ran right at them, and grabbed onto one of them and mounted on it. The horse he went on started running even faster, but he held on even better than last time. The horse slowed down, as well as the other horses. The Sheikah pulled up right next to Poump's horse. "I've got this one. Let's go get the Zora and book it for Lon Lon Ranch."

"Good idea." The two of them rode up to the Zora, and she hopped onto the Sheikah's horse, while the Cuckoo hopped onto the Poump's horse. They rode off in the direction of the Hebra mountains.

As they rode across the field, they eventually came upon a ranch, with a big sign at the front. "LON LON RANCH" it read. It looked like there were some festivities inside. The sun was starting to set, so the party rode their horses into the ranch.

The ranch was chock full with many different people from around Hyrule. There were Hylians, Gorons, Gerudos, Ritos, Zoras, and even some Sheikah villagers. A lot of food stands were set up, among other vendors. There also appeared to be an auction, with people betting their rupees on several items.

"Hello, and welcome to Lon Lon Ranch!" A jolly fellow exclaimed at the sight of the party on their two horses. "Right now we are having a harvest festival, in which we celebrate the coming of Spring! My name is Talon, I will humbly put your horses into the stable here so that way you can enjoy the festivities to their best!"

"Thank you very much, Talon." The Sheikah said, as he got off his horse, followed by the Zora. Him and Poump handed Talon their horses.

"You have no saddle for these stallions! Did you just tame them out in the wild?" Talon said.

"Yes, we did." Poump replied.

"Surely you would like to name these horses?" Talon brought out a notepad and a quill.

"W-we don't need to name them. We only used these horses to transport our Zora friend here." Poump didn't like the idea of replacing his older horse.

"I see that look in your eyes." Talon said as he looked at Poump's face. "You're feeling emotional because you have another horse and you feel like you're replacing it by having a new one. Have no fear! The Lon Lon Ranch Stable System will allow you to register up to 5 horses! You've already registered 1 since you already own a horse, so a second horse will be just fine. What would you like to name your horse?"

Poump thought for a bit. "Bessie."

The Sheikah patted his horse softly. "I will name mine Mia."

"Alright, it is settled! If you ever want to ride on these horses again, just find a stable and request for the horse that you want." Talon, wrote the names down. "Normally we charge people for registering a horse, but since there's a festival happening right now, registration is free! Now go and enjoy the festivities, I will take care of these horses." Talon brought the horses into a stable area.

The squad looked around the festival. The Zora was instantly enthralled with the auction. The items that were up for bidding looked very interesting to her. The auctioneer was a Hylian woman wearing a long and elegant dress. "Come one, come all! We are bidding off for these wonderful and rare items! From left to right, we have a Diamond Ore! These usually fetch very high prices, so a good bid here could get you a real deal! The Diamond Ore starts at 300 rupees! The next item is an ancient core! This is an essential part of the Guardian's anatomy, and it too is quite an expensive and rare find! The ancient core starts at 250 rupees! The next item is a Hinox Toenail! Hinoxs have been hunted to extinction in Hyrule, so getting your hand on an artifact like this one will be great for your own collection! The Hinox Toenail will start at 400 rupees! And last but definitely not least, a Hylian Shield! Only 15 of these exist in Hyrule, as they are made of some of the rarest material ever found! This extremely durable shield will start at 1,000 rupees!" The Zora didn't like the prices for a lot of these items. Even though Zelda gave them a really huge sum of rupees, the Zora didn't like the idea of bidding for something that wouldn't offer them much use during their travels. She also knows of someone in Zora's Domain who has a much better deal on getting diamonds.

"I bid 1,050 rupees for the Hylian Shield!" Poump shouted out at random with his hand raised, determined to get the shield for himself. The Zora looked at Poump with a look of confusion.

"Alrighty good people anymore takers for the Hylian Shield?" The auctioneer lady observed the crowd.

"I'll bid for 1,100 rupees for the Shield." A Hylian man raised his hand. He was wearing rich attire. Poump took this as a challenge.

"I bid 1,500 rupees for the Shield!" As Poump declared this, the crowd fell in awe at the amount of money this kid was bidding for. They all looked at the Hylian man.

"I bid 2,500 rupees." The crowd went hysterical. The man was bidding quite a lot.

"I bid…" Poump took a deep breath. "5,000 rupees!" The whole crowd went bonkers at Poump's tenacity. The rich man stood there with his eyes closed. Poump saw victory!

The auctioneer was wondering if anyone else wanted to add in their own bids. "Going once. Going twice. So-"

"Wait." The man pronounced. "I bid 10,000 rupees for the Shield." The whole crowd was stunned at this man's wallet. Even Poump couldn't do anything about that, since he didn't have anywhere close to that amount of rupees on him or the other party members.

"Going once. Going twice. SOLD! The Hylian Shield has been claimed for 10,000 rupees!" The Hylian man walked up to the stand with the item. "May I ask what your name is so that way the crowd knows who you are?"

"Of course, my name is Bruce. Bruce Payne." Poump looked in envy at the Hylian Shield being held by Bruce. If this guy wasn't here, he could've snatched it for himself! For a relatively low price as well! The Zora was glad Poump lost the auction, since she thought that a purchase like that would be a waste.

"Poof. Bruce Payne. Who does he think he is." Poump said as he kicked some dirt walking away from the auction.

"Let's just be happy that we still have all of that money on us." The Zora proclaimed. The Sheikah nodded in agreement.

"I guess you're right. Let's look at other things around this festival." Poump was still a bit salty from his loss. The party walked towards an area that had bleachers and a race track. There were horse races happening on the race track.

"It looks like Roach is picking up speed!" An announcer said. A brown horse with black hair was starting to lead itself into first. A warrior with white hair was on the back of this horse. "And Roach pulled right through and crossed the finish line!" The rider got off of the horse. "Gerald of the Sheikah is a mighty opponent not only in a sword fight, but even in a horse race!" The Sheikah recognized Gerald. As Gerald was fiddling with his horse's saddle, the Sheikah took the opportunity to speak to him.

"Long time no see old friend." The Sheikah said. Gerald turned around.

"Oh hey there, I haven't seen you in a while buddy. I heard you've been watching over the Royal Family at Hyrule Castle." Gerald replied and he continued fiddling with the saddle.

"As we should be. So you decided to go into horse racing?"

"Yes, it's a fun past time when I'm not out and about making sure those traitorous Yiga Clan members meet their graves. I find this sport to be liberating." Geralt finished fiddling with the saddle. "Also being on this ranch allows me to make sure no Yiga members attack this place, so I'm killing two birds with one stone." When he said that, the Cuckoo raised its head in concern. "You have a Cuckoo with you?"

"Yes." The Zora said. "And it is our Cuckoo. We even gave it armor."

"Well. That's pretty insane." As Gerald took a moment to observe the Cuckoo, the race announcer spoke again.

"The next race starts in 3 minutes!"

"It's been nice seeing you again old friend. I'm going to go into this next horse race, but if you'll need me, I'll be here on the ranch most likely." Gerald got onto his horse.

"Take good care of this place, Gerald." The Sheikah said.

"I sure will." Gerald then diverted his attention to the race track. "Run, Roach." And then he galloped onto the race track.

"How many friends do you have?" Poump asked.

"A lot." The Sheikah stated. The party continued walking around the festival. There were many food stands, some selling fruit, some selling vegetables, others selling meat. But the strangest of them was one that was just selling rocks. The other stands had either Hylians or Ritos behind them, but the one with rocks had a Goron commandeering the stand. Poump had an unreasonable hatred for Gorons. He found all of them to be annoying.

"Buy a tasty rock. It'll reinvigorate the iron inside of your body." The Goron said with it's slow and heavy voice.

"No!" Poump screamed at the Goron.

"I wasn't talking to you, Hylian. You guys don't even eat rocks, that would shatter your fragile teeth. I was talking to those brothers behind you." Poump turned around and saw three Gorons walking towards the rock stand.

"Mmmmm. Rocks." The Gorons said in unison.

"Yes, very good and very tasty. Only 20 rupees each." The Goron seller said.

"That is a very good bargain. I'll buy four rocks."

"Let's get out of here right now." Poump said to the others, and they all agreed to go elsewhere. Since it was night time, they decided it was good to get some sleep and readjust their sleep cycle. They went into the Inn, which had some food. The Sheikah paid 200 rupees for a meal for them to enjoy.

"Would you like a drink with that?" The waitress asked.

"What do you have?" The Sheikah asked.

"We have Pumpkin Juice, made with pumpkins from Kakariko Village, Noble Pursuit, which is a Gerudo specialty, fresh drinking water from Zora's Domain, and our own special drink, Lon Lon Milk, coming from our very own cows here on the ranch."

"I'll have a Noble Pursuit." The Sheikah said.

"I'll do just fine with water." The Zora said.

"I'd like to try out that famous Lon Lon Milk." Poump said.

The waitress was counting out the purchases. "Alright, that will be 50 rupees extra."

"Here you go." The Sheikah paid an extra 50 rupees. The party chatted a bit and then the meal was served. The Cuckoo was walking around on the floor, picking up dropped pieces of food. After their meal, the party decided to sleep. The Sheikah and the Zora paid for their own beds to sleep in, but Poump decided to sleep in some hay in the barn instead. The Cuckoo joined him.

Poump was awoken the next morning by something wet. He opened his eyes and realized that a dog was licking his face. The Cuckoo made a chuckling noise as the Hylian Retriever continued licking his face. "Get off me, dog." Poump said, as he got up. The Hylian Retriever followed him through the barn, which had cows walking around. Poump made it to the main restaurant room, which had a stage set up. Talon walked on stage with an announcement.

"Ladies and gentlemen, in 10 minutes, the lovely Malon will be performing a new song!" Talon said with enthusiasm.

Poump saw the Sheikah walking out, with the Zora following behind him. "We're going to the Hebra Region now. We can't stall much longer." The Sheikah said.

"But what about the music? Don't you want to stay for the music?" The Zora wanted to stay just a bit longer.

"We've stayed as long as we should've." The Sheikah replied.

"You're not much fun." The Zora submitted and followed him. Poump followed along too, knowing that objecting to the Sheikah wouldn't do much. They walked out of the building and noticed a commotion at a Hylian's fruit stand. Some guards were there.

"Do you know why we have a problem with these bananas?" The guard asked the shopkeeper.

"Oh let me guess. It's because the Yiga treasure bananas above their own lives. Yeah, I've heard this time and time again, these bananas have been plucked by my very own hands!" The shopkeeper replied.

"You're going to need a much better argument for yourself." The guards started grabbing the shopkeeper and dragging him away.

"Hey! You can't do this to me!" The shopkeeper was helpless.

"We will confiscate your stand's items, including fruits that aren't bananas. This will show you to not mess with matters you don't understand." One of the guards said.

Poump stepped in. "Hey you two." The guards turned around. "Put the guy down, he's just selling regular fruit. It's not his fault that bananas are a common fruit that people enjoy eating."

"Yeah!" The shopkeeper said. "You hear that! I'm just running a business, and bananas happen to be on demand by a lot of people!"

"How do we know those people weren't Yiga assassins in disguise?" The guard replied.

"That's not up to me to decide. Business is business! I need to sell my fruits to anyone who wants them!"

"You could be helping the enemy!"

"Put him down!" Poump said. "How about the both of you face me in a fist fight, and if I win, the shopkeeper can stay where he was. If I lose, you can decide what you want with him!"

The guards looked at each other. "You think that you and your scrubby little arms could take us both? You've got to be joking!"

"No. Stick 'em up! We fight fair and square!" Poump said, and he brought his fists up.

"Alright then, this'll be easy. Let's try not to hurt the kid." The guards said. They stood the shopkeeper up and put their fists up. Poump shuffled forward towards the guards. One of the guards went in for a right hook, but Poump dodged it and landed his knuckles square into the guard's stomach, knocking him down to the ground. "Whoa!" The other guard was in shock, but decided to try and uppercut Poump. Poump anticipated the attack and dodged, and then he landed one blow onto the other guard's stomach, knocking him to the ground as well.

The guards were winded by the attacks and still on the floor. "How did you do that kid?"

"I'm just really strong." Poump said. He wasn't actually that strong, his Power Bracelets from earlier proved to be very good for punching, so he wanted to test it out on two people who looked like they could take the hit.

"Alright, well then the fruit seller can sell whatever he wants. Ooof." The guards got up, feeling their stomachs.

"Thank you so much kind sir." The shopkeeper said to Poump.

"You're welcome." Poump then took this as an opportunity. "Would you be willing to give me some fruit for free?"

"What? No! I got these fruits fresh myself. I don't offer discounts to anyone I know!" The shopkeeper went behind his stand. "If you want a fruit, I'll gladly allow you to buy any of them."

Poump looked at the fruit stand thinking to himself. "Sure, why not. I'll have two apples and a banana."

"That will be 15 rupees." The shopkeeper said.

"Here you go." Poump handed the shopkeeper 15 rupees. Poump got the fruits and gave them to the other party members.

The shopkeeper started mumbling to himself. "Man, people outside of Lurelin Village are really mean."

"You did a good thing, Poump." The Zora said. "Keep that up, and you might find yourself as a good body guard or something like that." The party started heading out of the Ranch. All of a sudden, a girl from inside the restaurant ran outside.

"Malon is going to be singing in 2 minutes everyone! Come inside!" The girl ran back in.

"Are you really sure we should be leaving right now?" The Zora said to the Sheikah. "We might have a really fun time with this!"

"Alright then, we will stay for the music and nothing else." The Sheikah and the party went into the restaurant.

There were people at all of the tables inside. The party was able to grab themselves the last available table. The lights went dark and a light shone down onto the stage. "And now presenting, Malon!" A cute girl with red hair walked on stage. She looked like she was around 23 years old. She looked at the audience.

"I've been practicing this song for a long time. This is the first time I'm performing it in front of a crowd. I dedicate this song to all of the horse enthusiasts I know." Malon then took a deep breath. Some guitars started playing, and after a few seconds, she started singing.

Epona, Epona

Where is it you roam?

Grazing among the fields

Never far from home

Epona, Epona

Can you hear this song?

Singing from in my heart

All along

As the song went on, all of the people in the Inn started swaying to the rhythm of the song. Some of them even brought out their own instruments and started joining in.

Even if you're wandering far away from here

Listen for this melody calling you

Remember that you have a journey to complete

I trust that you know what to do

Soon enough the whole Inn was swaying along with their own instruments. The Sheikah took the Ocarina of Time and started whistling along.

Even if you're galloping far away from here

Listen for this melody calling you

Following the sound, you will find your way to him

Trust that he will know what to do

Epona, Epona

Please don't be afraid

Run fearlessly into

Whatever awaits

Epona, Epona

Loyal as you are

Don't you forget that home's

Never far

The music stopped, and the whole Inn roared with applause. The applause died down. "Thank you so much for listening to my song! It means a lot to me. Now enjoy yourselves!" Malon then walked off stage and the lights in the room returned.

"See, that wasn't half bad!" The Zora said to the Sheikah. "You even enjoyed it!"

"It was a good idea to stay for this." The Sheikah replied. "That was quite soothing."

"I really liked it as well!" Poump said.

"Backaw!" The Cuckoo said. The party started walking out of the Inn, but they were stopped by Malon.

"I really liked that you had an Ocarina! I've always wanted to sing that song with an Ocarina's tune to it." She said to the Sheikah. "By the way, if you play that song, your own horse will come running back to you!"

"Thank you for the advice, Malon." The Sheikah said.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I have other fans that want to speak to me!" Malon walked towards a large crowd of people and brought out her quill to sign her signature.

"That was great! Now we even have the ability to call out horses to ourselves!" Poump exclaimed. The party walked out of the Inn and weaved their way through the crowd outside.

"We're going to the Hebra Region now." The Sheikah said.

"Did someone say, Hebra Region?" The party turned to a stand that was being handled by a Rito. It looked like it sold clothes. "If you want to travel to the Hebra Region, you'll need a lot more than heat potions!" The Sheikah squinted his eyes and recognized that this was the Rito that they helped out a few days ago.

"Nice to see you here." The Sheikah said to the Rito.

"And it's nice to see you as well! Alive and thriving! I'm selling several Snowquill sets to people for discounted prices here! And for you, I'll give an even better offer! Usually buying a full set of Snowquill gear will set you back by 2,150 rupees a person, but for you guys, I'll sell them for 500 rupees a person!"

"Well that's quite a steal, take my money good friend." The Sheikah handed the Rito 1,500 rupees, and the Rito then gave the party three full sets of the Snowquill outfit.

"Thank you for coming here! Have a good day!" The Rito waved goodbye to the party, and they waved goodbye back. They made their way to the entrance of the Ranch. Their horses were in the stable. A rather unenthusiastic fellow handling the stable.

"Would you like to check your horses out?" He asked in a boring tone of voice, as one of the horses munched on a carrot he was feeding it.

"We'll be fine without them, thanks anyway." The Sheikah said and the party headed right out of the ranch.

"Phooey." The ranch hand said to himself.

The party walked out onto Hyrule Field. The Sheikah pulled out the Ocarina of Time. He whistled Malon's Melody. Shortly after that, all of the party's previous horses ran up towards them from the direction of Hyrule Castle.

"It worked!" Poump exclaimed. The party got onto their horses and rode towards the Hebra Mountains, with plenty of day ahead of them.

Chapter 8: The Hebra Mountains

The party had traveled for a long time passing by many stables and caravans on their way to the Hebra Region. They finally arrived back in the Hebra Region just before noon. They had put on their Snowquill outfits and were comfortably navigating the snowy pathway back to the cave that they previously went through. As they arrived at the area with the cave, they noticed a fire was set up in front of it with a tent and a horse nearby. They rode closer to the fire and discovered that it was Link in his own Snowquill outfit.

"Well well well, if it ain't The Monster Squad." Link said at the sight of the party.

"I thought you said you'd leave the job to us." Poump said. Although he understood where Link came from more, he didn't like having him around.

"I never said that. I said I'd meet you guys here in the morning. As of right now it's almost noon, but that's fine because you guys needed your rest as well as the travel time to get here. Since I was waiting for you, I was able to do a bit of scouting around the area." Link got up from the fireplace. "So, shall we begin?"

"Yes, let's do this." Poump said, getting off of his horse, and the others got off of their horses as well.

"Alright. Here, follow me." Link said and he motioned for them to follow him. He walked away from the cave.

"Wait, the cave is that way." Poump said to Link, pointing at the cave.

"Of course it is! I'm showing you guys where you need to go once you get the monsters out of the cave." Link stopped walking. "Up there." He pointed up a rather steep looking hill. "A good friend of mine has set up a camp for the monsters to rest at when we're escorting them. Her name is Selmie. She probably knows these mountains even better than me. She also has a cabin up there which you will be able to take a rest at." Link turned around to the party. "Any questions?"

"No, we're good." Poump said after a brief pause. Link and the squad walked into the cave together. They walked through the dungeon, which was mostly desolate now since the enemies inside of it have been slain. They then made it to the big doorway.

Link stopped the team at the doorway. "Alright, I should've asked you this question on the boat. What color was the Lynel's mane in this colony?"

"Color?" The Zora said. "We're supposed to remember what color it's mane was?"

"Yes, their color can determine how strong they are. A red mane is when they're at their weakest, but they still pose a threat even when they're red. Blue is just above red, just slightly more powerful. White-maned Lynels are even more deadly. They have some of the best Lynel weapons and their sheer power is almost unparalleled. The final color for a Lynel's mane is silver, but we shouldn't need to worry about that since Ganon is dead. The silver-maned Lynels only existed during the time of Calamity Ganon's control." Link looked at the party. They were mostly intimidated by the idea of facing a Lynel that could possibly crush them very easily.

"I have an idea Link, since you've killed so many Lynels before, you should go in there and kill it." The Zora said. She remembered the time when he killed the Lynel in order to get shock arrows to board onto Vah Ruta.

"Our goal is to escort the monsters, not kill them, but the Lynels weren't really a part of the deal. They're too smart to follow a few Hyruleans like us. We would also risk ourselves getting killed by it outside in the snow. Big chances are the Lynel will get killed, but if we do that in front of the monsters, then they will think of us as an enemy, so we have to get them out before we even think about battling the Lynel." Link looked through the doorway and through the tunnel. "Let's go take a look. There are two tunnels along this way. One of them will lead to an area overlooking the cave with the monster colony, the other is the ground level entrance that we will need to use for escorting the monsters out of the cave." Link took out a mask that looked like a Bokoblin's head. The mask looked like it was haphazardly put together, with buttons for eyes. "Now, I will try to blend in with the monsters and communicate with them. This mask works all the time."

"Did you make that?" The Zora asked Link.

"Huh? No. I bought this from someone who only sells items during the night time at specific locations across Hyrule. He doesn't meet many people, I am one of his few customers. He usually likes it when you have monster parts on you, but since the monsters have become endangered in Hyrule, he hasn't had much business lately." Link looked at Poump. "You took one of my monster parts. Maybe you'll meet him one day, he'd like to see a new face."

"How do we meet him?" Poump asked.

"Whenever he wants. Let's get going before these monsters get hungry from the lack of food." Link was very impatient with all of the questions. He's usually used to doing things by himself when he can take things at his own pace, and he usually does things at a very fast pace. Link motioned for them to follow him. "Come on!" He said, and they followed him through the tunnel. They arrived at a fork in the tunnel. "You lot will take the right pathway. That will lead to the overlook. I will go down there and hopefully keep the monsters calm. I will also keep the Lynel calm as well. No matter what, do NOT draw your weapons, because it will hear you and probably shoot you dead on sight, so don't do anything until I give the signal." Link then went down the left pathway, and the squad took the right pathway.

The squad made it to an area that overlooked the whole cave, just as Link mentioned. The roof of the cave was still fortified by the huge skeleton of the fish creature. And the monsters were all walking around their own little village, which was built with animal bones, wooden logs, and fur skins draped the roofs of some of the homesteads. Poump identified that this village had Bokoblins, Moblins, and Lizalfos. He looked down and almost had a heart attack when he saw the Lynel walking around. It had a Silver-mane, as Link had said. It also had some really mean looking weapons on its back, and it had extremely muscular arms and a dangerous looking six-pack. It's horns on its head added to the menace. Despite its pure power, Poump thought to himself about scenarios of fighting it face to face with this beast.

After a minute, Link came out from the tunnel. The squad looked down at Link with his Bokoblin mask on. The Lynel turned around to Link, curling it's nostrils at the sight of him. Link kept a reasonable distance away from the beast, and it didn't bother with confronting him. Link walked up to the monster village. The monsters collectively gathered around him. Link then pulled out a large wad of meat and even threw a few apples at them and they started digging in voraciously. Link looked at the Lynel, which had ignored him, and then he looked up at the squad. He gave a signal to come down. The Zora turned around to back through the tunnel, when all of a sudden she heard something that caused her heart to sink.

"BACKAAAAW!" It sounded like the Cuckoo fell down! The Zora instinctively ran towards the Cuckoo's cry, and ran past Poump and the Sheikah who also had looks of horror on their faces. She saw the Cuckoo had landed next to the Lynel. The Lynel looked at the Cuckoo for a little bit. Link looked at this in horror.

"DON'T EAT HER!" The Zora said, and she jumped right down, spear first at the Lynel. Poump jumped down as well and instead of pulling out his sword, he jumped down fist first at the Lynel. The Sheikah decided to join them, but instead teleported down behind the Lynel. The Zora landed on the Lynel's back and stabbed at it while it flailed around. Poump made it down towards the Lynel with his fist meeting its face. The Lynel knocked itself to the side and bucked the Zora right off of it's back and also accidently knocked Poump over with its legs, causing Poump to ragdoll on the floor. The Lynel turned around at the squad and looked at them with infinite rage. It took out its weapons and roared a bloodcurdling roar that shook the whole cave. It raised its weapons way above its head.

"Run away you fools!" Link screamed to the squad. The Sheikah ran away and the Zora picked up the Cuckoo and ran away from the Lynel, but instead Poump ran straight at the Lynel. "You idiot! Don't go towards the Lynel!" Link yelled to Poump, but it was too late and the Lynel plunged its sword into the floor causing an eruption of flames to surround itself. Poump saw the burst of flames erupt and despite covering his eyes, was blasted back by the pure force of the flames. He landed on his back inflamed by the Lynel's attack. He tried patting the fire off of himself. The Zora looked around the cave and noticed a small water pond, and waved her spear to bring the water towards Poump and wash the flames right off of him.

The monsters took out their weapons and started screaming, but Link turned around to them and waved the Master Sword right in front of them. The monsters immediately stopped their outcry, as they squinted their eyes at the brilliant light that the sword was emanating. Link pointed their sword behind them and they went back towards their homes. He sheathed the Master Sword and ran straight for the squad as they were dealing with the Lynel. "Hey! You lot! Escort the monsters out now! I will deal with the Lynel!" Link yelled as he threw his Bokoblin mask right off and requipped his Snowquill headdress. Link stopped right in front of the Lynel and brandished his Master Sword and held his Hylian Shield in his other hand. "Get them out of here now!"

The squad ran right up to the monsters. The Sheikah pulled out the Ocarina of Time and started whistling Saria's Song. The monsters looked at the Sheikah with intrigue, and started putting on their own fur coats and followed the sound of the music. The Sheikah observed the monsters coming closer and started walking towards the exit of the cave. Poump and the Zora stayed next to the Sheikah. The monsters followed in a line behind the Sheikah and started going out of the cave. Poump looked back at Link, staring down the Lynel which was 5 times the size of him. He was inspired by this. The Lynel swiped down towards Link and Link responded to the swing with a bash from his shield, which blew the Lynel back. Once all the monsters were out of the cave, Poump was still behind, watching Link fight the Lynel. He dodged one of its attacks, flew back and swiped multiple times at the Lynel's legs. Link noticed that Poump was watching.

"Run! Now!" Link said, as he pulled out a bow and knocked an arrow towards the cave above Poump. The arrow flew through the air and just in time, Poump noticed that there was smoke coming from the arrow, so he swiftly ran back into the tunnel and then the entrance collapsed into a rock pile, blocking the passageway to the cave. Poump didn't worry much about Link. Despite his fascination with Link's bravery, he could care less if he died in there. Plus, Poump knew that Link was going to be fine because of all of the stories of Link facing forces much greater than it. So he followed the line of monsters out of the cave and into the snow.

The Sheikah continued blowing the tune into the Ocarina, and the Zora decided to lead the Sheikah up the hill they had to climb. It was a long, steep, and arduous hill, and it was snowy no less. The Sheikah, the Zora, and Poump switched places on the Ocarina in order to preserve their own energy along the way up the hill. They didn't care much about using the Ocarina another person's mouth touched because they understood how important this mission was. Each time one of the party members didn't have the Ocarina, they turned around to the monsters in order to make sure they didn't trail off the beaten path. The Zora would hold the Cuckoo when she wasn't blowing in the Ocarina.

They finally made it to the top of the hill. At the top, they saw a log cabin, and a small camp set up under a protruding rock that gave cover from the snow. The Sheikah walked towards the camp and waited for the monsters to settle down at the camp. They noticed some campfires set up at the camp, as well as some meat on a few spits above the campfires. The monsters contently sat down around the campfires and started digging into the bountiful amount of meat. The Lizalfos didn't seem to be cold in anyway, in fact, they weren't even wearing any fur coats. They still sat aside the other monsters peacefully. Poump was very tired but noticed that there was a blue Shrine glowing nearby. He decided to not bother with it.

Someone walked out of the wooden cabin. It appeared to be a female Hylian. "Oh! It seems this Monster Squad has arrived here right before my very eyes! Come on in and make yourselves at home." The party walked into the cabin and plopped themselves onto some of the furniture inside. There was a fireplace on one of the sides of the cabin. The Cuckoo took this as a good opportunity to warm itself up and parked itself next to the fire.

The party started fading away and eventually fell asleep.

After the snoozing, the party woke up. They looked around the room and couldn't help but notice the walls were decorated with many different shields. "Ah yes, I'm a big fan of shields." The Hylian woman was stirring away at some ingredients in a cooking pot. "Do you know who I am?"

The whole party looked at her confused.

"Well come on now! You're in the one and only abode of Selmie the Shield Surfer! Y'know! World record holder for the longest Shield Surf across Hyrule!" She looked at them as they stared blankly at her. "Oh right. Shield Surfing isn't a very popular sport. And I also live up here alone in the Hebra Mountains so there's that." She stirred away at the cooking pot and eventually took some bowls and scooped the pot's insides with each bowl. "Dig in, you must be hungry. You guys knocked out for an hour!"

The squad sipped away at the bowls of food. It was warm and energizing, filling them all with more stamina. "So your name is Selmie?" The Sheikah asked.

"Yes! And I will help you guys with your monster quest!" Selmie replied with enthusiasm.

"Why do you live out here alone in the Hebra Mountains?" The Sheikah asked Selmie.

"I like it out here. Far away from any settlements. The only people who come up here are either daredevils willing to race me in Shield Surfing, or hikers that are fortunate enough to brave the cold of the mountains. I like adventurous types." She walked towards the window of the cabin and looked outside. "So those are the monsters. Man, they look mean, don't they. I'm so glad that they will be out of Hyrule soon. My friend already talked to me about the plan to get them off of the mainland."

"Your friend's name is Link, right?" Poump said.

"Why yes, if not the Great Hero himself." She looked out of the window and widened her eyes. "Speak of the devil." She opened up the door and Link walked inside, bathed in blood, breathing heavily. He seemed to have something large on his waist. "By the Goddess! What happened?"

Link walked in feeling extremely weary and walked right up to the cooking pot, scooped some of the soup out and drank it with his bare hands, despite how searing hot it was. "I had to fight a Lynel. I killed it. Took its head, its organs, its hooves. Boy oh boy, I haven't fought one in a while."

"Well get some rest Link. You look miserable." Selmie said, as she covered him up with a fur pelt. Link looked at the squad, and then back at Selmie.

"Deal with them. The monsters. Help guide these folks down the mountain to Rito Village, Selmie." Link said as he scooped up some food from the cooking pot, this time with a bowl.

"What?! You expect me to help them guide those carnivorous and foul creatures?" Selmie replied with distaste.

"Yes. You know these mountains even better than me, Selmie. All you need to do is take them to Rito Village. Zelda and I have already discussed with the Chief of the Rito the plans on what to do with the monsters." Link took a sip from the bowl. "Now guide them, Selmie. I'll meet you guys down at the Rito Village. For now, allow me to heal myself up."

"You got it, boss." Selmie replied. She turned to the squad. "You heard the man, let's take these vile creatures down the mountain now!" She grabbed one of the shields on the wall, lit a torch and headed out into the snow. The party followed.

They walked up to the monsters which had eaten all of the meat in the camp. "Alright Selmie, just give us the directions and we'll follow." The Sheikah said. He pulled out the Ocarina and started whistling the tune. The monsters followed him, and Selmie started walking down the hill. Poump quickly registered the Shrine nearby and followed suit.

It was a very uneventful hike. The party did their thing by taking turns using the Ocarina, while Selmie marched ahead with the torch shining brightly. Out of nowhere, a large rock started moving and appeared to be walking towards them. The Zora waved her spear and caused the snow underneath the rock to melt and made it fall down the hill far away from them.

Another interesting run in was with a bear. The bear approached the party, but was intimidated by Selmie waving her torch in front of its face. The bear ran away into the snow. The party eventually noticed the faint outline of a tall rock in the distance. "We're close." Selmie said after a long time of silence.

They walked down further and further until the snow stopped and they could clearly see the tall rock. They took notice of some Ritos flying towards wooden structures built on the side of the rock. "Welcome to Rito Village." Selmie said, as she put her torch out. Some Rito approached the party.

"You appear to be the fabled Monster Squad that Zelda has sent over here. We have an area in the woods nearby that will be sufficient for them to live in, so follow us and we will handle them." The Rito led the party towards a wooded area and then Poump stopped blowing on the Ocarina, exhausted from all of the blowing. The Rito both turned around to the party.

"Good job guys." Poump heard some rustling in the trees above and noticed a Rito untying a rope, and then a large and elaborate wooden cage erupted from the floor and encaged all of the monsters. The monsters all looked around angrily and started beating on the wooden cages while making loud noises. "Serves you right, scum!" One of the Rito said, as it spit at the monsters.

"Whoa whoa whoa, you don't need to do all of that!" The Sheikah said to the Rito.\

"And why not?" The Rito turned around to the Sheikah. "These brutes used to eat people, not only Hylians, but us Rito as well!"

"I know that, but we can't be mean to these monsters right now! We mean to only escort them off of Hyrule away from the mainland. Far away to an island that will allow them to live at peace with themselves. Zelda's plan is good, trust me. We shouldn't be agitating them even more now." The Sheikah put his hand on the Rito's shoulder. "Think about this, the future of Hyrule lies in our hands. We need to be kind to these monsters if we want them gone."

The Rito begrudgingly accepted the Sheikah's words. "You're right. Lower the cages." The other Rito lowered the cages around the monsters. Immediately some Rito started throwing meat onto the floor.

"Now, be a good bunch of Rito and make sure these monsters are well taken care of." The Sheikah said.

"Don't worry, we will." The Rito replied to the Sheikah. "We've had a bad history with these monsters, but that doesn't mean we need to make them more aggressive."

"Have you built a camp for these monsters?" The Sheikah asked.

"Why of course we have. Those were the orders." The Rito walked just a little bit into the woods and showcased an area where the monsters can camp. "We had this set up to be a playground for young Rito, but for now, it will have to work as a camp for these things. There's good animal hunting around this area, and monsters don't usually travel away from an area where they set up camp. We'll take good care of them. Thank you, Sheikah, for opening my eyes to the bigger picture."

"You're welcome." The Sheikah said.

"Since you're here, take a rest at Rito Village, you should be exhausted."

"That we'll do." The Sheikah turned around to walk towards the Rito Village. Poump took the opportunity to try out the Sheikah Slate's camera function, so he snapped a pic of the monsters with the Rito.

The party walked back towards the tall rock with wooden buildings around it. They noticed the tall rock came out of a circular and steep fall, with water at the bottom. The only way into the village was across a few wooden bridges that lead to different land masses. They crossed the final bridge and were greeted by two guardsmen Rito holding their spears with discipline. The Rito allowed them to enter.

"I haven't been in this village for a while." Selmie said. "You guys can do whatever you want, I'll be doing my own thing. Good job out there." Selmie continued walking up the steps of the village.

The Monster Squad made it to a place with a sign titled "SWALLOW'S ROOST". There was a Rito at the front of the place. "Welcome to Swallow's Roost!" The Rito said with a welcoming vibe. "A normal bed will be 20 rupees, and a Rito Down Bed will be 80 rupees!"

"We'll take the normal beds please." The Sheikah said as he handed the Rito 60 rupees.

"I wanted to sleep somewhere else!" Poump said with distaste.

"That's not normal, Poump. You're sleeping with us whether you like it or not." The Sheikah said. He had grown tired of Poump's insistence to sleep in random places. It dishonored the establishments they went to and also put a bad face to themselves. Mostly he didn't want to repeat the same mistake that they did back in Hateno Village's Inn. The party settled into their resting areas. "Call Zelda with the Slate." The Sheikah ordered.

"Alright." Poump took his Sheikah Slate out and proceeded to call Zelda.

Zelda picked up. "Hello, what has happened so far?"

"We managed to escort the monsters successfully to Rito Village, your highness." Poump said. He then sent an image of the monsters to Zelda.

"Ah yes, very good. I'll send all of you your 10,000 rupees. I'm sending it to Rito Village by mailman, so don't leave the village until then. Hang out and relax. You still have plenty of challenges ahead of you." Zelda hung up.

The party noticed that the sun was in the middle of setting. It had been a long day. The Sheikah and The Zora decided to take a nap. The Cuckoo likewise took a nap. Poump decided to walk up the Rito Village because he was curious about other things. The calming and welcoming vibe of the village made him feel at home. He noticed lots of areas where Rito flew into and out of the village. They looked like landing pads. The largest one had an emblem that looked very familiar to him but he couldn't pinpoint where he remembered it from. He ascended the steps until he made it to an area with grass and a Shrine. He noticed a Rito that he knew before. This Rito was playing an accordion as he watched the sun set.

"Kass?" Poump said with a little bit of doubt.

The Rito turned around and stopped playing. "Poump! My former music student!" Kass was a rather large Rito with light blue feathers. He's a very well established music maker, and even hosted many music classes all across Hyrule. He taught music at Hyrule Castle Town and knew who Poump and his friend group were. "Here, sit with me and watch the sunset." Poump sat right next to Kass.

Poump awkwardly sat next to Kass. He didn't know what to say.

"So I heard that Zelda has trusted you with a mission to escort the monsters out of Hyrule?" Kass said to break the silence. He played the accordion very softly.

"Yes, she has. We managed to escort the first colony of monsters into the woods nearby. We just have two more colonies to deal with now."

"Good. Very good." Kass looked at the sun sinking into the horizon. He seemed quiet. His accordion was playing very quietly, but with a recognizable tune. "Do you believe in destiny, Poump?"

"Destiny?" Poump replied.

"Yes, destiny. The idea that you are destined to fulfill a role in life. That you are needed for a specific purpose. Much like how the sun is destined to set, and the moon is destined to rise in its place."

Poump thought about this a little bit. "I never really thought about being defined by destiny. From my perspective, everyone across Hyrule is doing their own thing, living their own lives."

"What about Link? And Zelda? You've heard of what they went through in order to bring Hyrule back, right? If you look through the history of Hyrule, you'll see that there is always a Hero clad in green, protecting or assisting a Princess against a Malicious force. And they are always bound by three triangles, the Hero, the Princess, and the Malicious force. Do you know what they are called?"

"They're called the Triforce, right?"

"Yes, precisely." Kass said. "Each of these individuals are destined by the Goddesses to appear all throughout Hyrule's history. It is said the Hero possesses the Triforce of Courage. The Princess possesses the Triforce of Wisdom. And the Malicious force possesses the Triforce of Power."

"Why would the Goddesses give an evil being one of the Triforces?" Poump asked.

"That is unknown. History books like to write it in their own ways. Some say that it was as if the Goddesses made a divine prank to give this Malicious force the chosen power of the gods. Others say that this was made as a part of a curse to doom Hyrule into a constant state of repeating its own history." Kass continued playing softly. "I could go on about this, but I know you have other things you need to worry about."

"Thanks for the history lesson, Kass." Poump said. He was half listening, but didn't want to disrespect his former music teacher. "I'll go off and do my own thing now."

"As you should be." Kass said, as he turned to look back at the horizon, which the sun had now completely receded behind.

Poump walked up to the Shrine and registered it. He started heading back to Swallow's Roost when he heard a noise behind him. It was Link, this time wearing his Green Tunic. "Hey there Poump. Just came here to check in with some folks." Link walked past him and headed down the village walkway. Poump walked down as well but didn't want to be too close to Link. He still didn't like him much, but was very fascinated by his bravery. He still thought of him as a nutcase.

Poump made it down to Swallow's Roost and slept in his bed.

Chapter 9: A Surprise at Rito Village

It was during the middle of the night when Poump woke up and heard something rustling around his bed side. He noticed a strange small figure looking through his bag. "What the?" Poump said aloud, and the small figure quickly jumped at this. The moonlight revealed this strange person had an egg-shaped head.

"WHOA!" The small figure exclaimed with surprise. "I didn't know you were awake!"

Poump drew his sword. "Who are you and what do you want?"

"Oh please don't murder me! I'm just fascinated by the fact that you own a monster part!"

"Huh?" Poump put his sword down.

"I'm sorry for being so rude and not introducing myself. My name is Kilton, and I am the owner of the Fang and Bone! Have you ever heard of it?"

"Fang and Bone? I remember some crazy people talked to me about it, and you seem a lot like one of them."

"Oh-ho-ho, of course! I'm a very crazy Hylian mainly because of my obsession over monsters! I just love them!" Kilton looked down sadly. "However, it seems the monster population is extremely endangered, so I haven't gotten the chance to see many monsters in so long. Up until this night when I was flying around here and I found a whole camp of monsters just sitting outside of this village!"

Poump quickly interrupted with some questions. "Hold up, you can fly? Second up, what exactly is the Fang and Bone?"

"Oh yes! The Fang and Bone is my shop that I own! It's also a hot air balloon, so therefore I can fly to many places! I only ever do this at night time by the way."

"So it's a shop? What items do you sell and for how many rupees?"

"Rupees? Oh that's silly! I use mon as my currency! I sell very unique items like monster masks, ingredients, and special weapons like the Spring-Loaded Hammer!"

"Wait a second, you mean to tell me that you have a whole shop with items and stuff and you only use a special currency for that shop? That's called a monopoly!"

"What? What's a monopoly?" Kilton was confused.

"It's basically when you manage to make a business that's exclusive in it's supply and tra-"

"Okay okay okay okay, I get it. I was never one to listen to politics." Kilton didn't like being questioned this intensely. "I'm not very in tune with society at large, which is why I am such a freak to people." Kilton then banged his large forehead onto a wooden beam, making a loud noise. This woke up the others who were sleeping just fine before hand. The Sheikah noticed Kilton and drew his throwing stars.

"What the heck is that thing, Poump?" The Sheikah said, feeling paranoid.

"He's not a thing, he's a Hylian named Kilton." Poump said quickly. Kilton nodded in agreement.

The Sheikah put his throwing stars away. "Oh. Alright then." Then the Sheikah fell back to sleep without a moment's notice. The Zora was still awake however.

"So, Kilton, why are you here?" The Zora asked as she walked up to him. Kilton was very intimidated by how tall this Zora was. He normally doesn't have many people approach him when he's outside of his shop, and the large spear on the Zora's back didn't help much with making her look friendly.

"Ahh, I'm here because I know you're in possession of a monster part, specifically some Bokoblin Guts."

Poump reached through his bag and pulled out the Bokoblin Guts. "You mean this?"

"Yeess! Precisely! I haven't seen a monster part in my eyes for so long!" Kilton marveled at the sight of it. "For that, I will give you 300 mon to spend at my shop!"

The Zora quickly objected to this. "We can probably get more rupees with this monster part than whatever the heck 'mon' is."

"Wait a moment, but we can get some cool and unique items from his shop if we get some mon from him." Poump replied in support of Kilton.

"Hmm, alright then." The Zora allowed Poump to give the monster part to Kilton.

"Yes!" Kilton said with great enthusiasm as he held the Bokoblin Guts in his hands. He then handed some coins with skulls on them. "Here's 300 mon! If you want to find my shop, it's a hot air balloon with purple lights, and it appears only at night time!"

"Alright, got it." Poump said.

"See you later, friend!" And then Kilton ran swiftly out of Swallow's Roost.

Poump and the Zora decided to sleep for the rest of the night.

The sun started to rise and the Cuckoo noticed. "COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO!" The Cuckoo screamed with great heart. The whole party started waking up at the sound of their feathered companion.

"Good morning!" The Rito who owned Swallow's Roost said with great enthusiasm. "I hope you had a pleasant night!"

"That we did, fair bird." Poump said, "That we did."

The squad had plans for some shopping for the day. They walked through Rito Village to look at what the shops had to offer. There was a marketplace that was selling some food, but the prices were insane for their own sakes. Poump brought out his two apples and his banana from earlier and the party ate away at those while they browsed some more stores.

They eventually arrived at a weaponsmith. The Rito that was working the metal had all white feathers. The party walked into the weaponsmith's shop.

"Hello there travelers. What would you like me to work on?" The Rito said.

"I'd like a wooden spear." The Zora replied. "And a small shield for this Cuckoo."

"Ah, I see. But why would you want a wooden spear? That doesn't work well in water, and you're a Zora."

"Excuse me, wooden spears are very useful for underwater hunting because of how light they are."

"But the wood would get soaked up and would be too heavy for you to use, as well as shrinking down and becoming moldy."

"There are other types of wood that are water resistant. You can use that water resistant wood to make a suitable spear for me."

The Rito had a look of shock. "There's such a thing as water resistant wood?"

"Of course." The Zora said a little bit annoyed.

"Oh damn, I never knew that." The Rito said as he looked down feeling so embarrassed.

"Well what about the small shield?" The Zora said.

"For the Cuckoo? I can make that for you. That will be 50 rupees once it's done."

"Okay, thank you. When will it be finished?"

"In an hour. Come back in that time and I'll give it to you." The Rito said as he started work on the shield.

The party walked out of the weaponsmith's shop. "What a birdbrain, am I right?" The Zora said to the others. "Rito are usually very knowledgeable about different types of weapons and especially different types of wood. What I find even weirder is that Rito have wooden spears, and they usually like fishing with them, so I don't understand how that guy couldn't understand the concept of water resistant wood."

"He didn't seem right to me." The Sheikah added. "Something's off." As they conversed, a female Rito with light pink feathers butted into the conversation.

"Are you speaking about the weaponsmith?" The Rito asked.

"Yes." Poump replied.

"He's my husband, Teba. You say that he's acted strangely, and I understand where you're coming from. Even I have some suspicions about him because he hasn't been acting like himself in the past few weeks." The Rito paused for a bit. "My name is Saki by the way."

"Nice to meet you Saki." The Zora replied. "We'll keep an eye on him."

"Thank you. To make matters even worse, Teba's the appointed Champion of the Rito, which means he has a stake of responsibility to hold onto. I hope you guys figure this out."

"We will." The Sheikah replied. The party continued walking around the town and noticed Link standing on one of the landing pads talking to Selmie. Poump recognized this as the large landing pad with the familiar emblem.

Poump interrupted Link and Selmie's conversation. "Hey Link, do you know what this emblem on the landing pad means? I remember seeing it somewhere before."

"This emblem on the floor? Ah yes, this is the Rito Emblem. You remember seeing it somewhere before because it's design can be seen on paragliders, which Hylians can use to glide across large distances, simulating a Rito's ability to fly." Link paused for a moment. "This is also the famous landing pad of my old Rito friend Revali. Revali's Landing, that's what this pad is called." Link looked out into the horizon. "Man, I miss him and the others so much." Link stood there silently looking out to the mountains.

Selmie turned around to Poump. "You touched a really sensitive subject with him. I don't blame you, you're a curious person it seems, but try not to ask him too many questions."

"Oh, alright." Poump said, although he didn't feel bad at all about asking the question. The party walked around the village a little bit more until they all of a sudden heard a loud.

"HEEEEYYYY!" A skinny man wearing short shorts and wearing a backpack full of letters ran right up to the party. "Queen Zelda told me to deliver this to the lot of you!" The man reached into his backpack and handed them a letter, with a wallet attached. "Alright, off to more deliveries." And then the mailman ran away.

The Sheikah opened up the letter and read it.

"Thank you for accomplishing such a difficult task for me. You still have two more monster colonies to deal with. I will reward you greatly for dealing with all of them. Here's 10,000 rupees for your efforts. Signed, QUEEN ZELDA."

The party looked into the wallet and found 10,000 rupees in it.

"Well it looks like we're winning big today!" The Zora said.

"Yup. Let's keep this up." Poump added.

The party went back to Teba at the weaponsmith shop. "Hey there, Teba. Are you finished with that shield?" The Zora asked.

"Why yes. Give me 50 rupees." The Zora handed Teba 50 rupees. "Here you go." Teba handed the small shield to the Zora. "And you know what else I'll finish?"

"What was that?" The Zora said feeling a bit flustered.

"You!" And then Teba's feathers turned red. The Sheikah noticed that the Rito was now wearing a uniform that had the mark of the Yiga on it. The Rito jumped out of the shop and flew around. He pulled out a bow. The Rito knocked an arrow and almost hit the Zora.

The Sheikah brought out his own bow. "Get to cover!" He screamed. A bunch of Rito noticed the commotion happening and flew away panicked. The enemy Rito shot a double batch of arrows into the shop.

Poump looked outside at the flying Rito, who was now flying below the shop. "I'm gonna do this!" He said as he freefalled out of the shop and landed onto the Rito.

"AAHH!" The Rito said with surprise as they both plummeted down closer and closer to the water below the village. "You'll kill yourself!"

"That's what I'm planning!" Poump said, although he misheard what the Rito said. He thought the Rito said 'You'll kill the both of us.'

"Fine by me, then!" And then the Rito broke free from Poump's grip and flew back up. Poump was still in a free fall. He saw his life flash before his eyes at the dizzying scenery surrounding him. Just as he was about to hit the water, a Rito came and grabbed him from out of the air.

"Hold on, you big dumb dumb!" The Rito said to Poump.

Meanwhile with the party, they were still pinned down by the hostile Rito's onslaught of arrows. The hostile Rito eventually reached for a different type of arrow. The Sheikah knocked another arrow and looked out from behind cover only to find out that a bomb arrow was headed their way. The explosion went off and nearly killed the Zora, the Sheikah, and the Cuckoo. Clinging onto his own life, the Sheikah pulled out another arrow and managed to make it hit the Rito. The Rito landed back into the weaponsmith shop, touching his wound.

"I'll finish you off properly right now." The Rito pulled out a spear and prepared to stab the Sheikah dead, but an electric arrow went right into the Rito. "AAAHHH!" The Rito was electrocuted and dropped his weapon. The electrocution stopped and the Rito looked around and then quickly teleported away. The party members looked up and saw that Link was holding a bow. He walked right up to them and made them down some health potions.

"That was insane! How could something like that happen?!" Link said as he investigated the area. Poump was dropped off by the Rito that saved him. "People who work for the Yiga Clan are usually people who were indoctrinated into believing that the Yiga's purpose is right. The bulk of the Yiga forces are former Sheikah clan members and Hylians, so the fact that a Rito can be a Yiga clansman is so strange."

The Sheikah was done with healing. "What do you think caused the Rito to become a Yiga assassin?"

"That's a very good question." Link replied. "I'll do some investigating. You guys can do whatever you want. Oh, and by the way, since you're here, buy some paragliders. They're really useful. The store is at a higher level."

"Alright, thank you Link." The Sheikah said.

"No problem." Link continued his investigation.

The party walked past a crowd of Rito that were looking at the site of the explosion. They continued walking until they made it to a store at a higher level of the village. "Hello there!" The Rito said. "Something wild just happened down there and I heard that a Hylian fell off of the village."

"That's me." Poump said.

"Oh dang." The Rito said. "Well it looks like you deserve a paraglider. That'll be 100 rupees each."

"Deal." The Sheikah said as he handed the Rito 400 rupees.

"Why would you need 4 paragliders?" The Rito asked.

"Because of the Cuckoo in our party." The Zora said as she picked up the Cuckoo.

"Oh, uh, you do know that Cuckoo's can glide on their own, right?" The Rito replied.

"Oh, I didn't know that." The Zora replied.

"I'm humoring her." The Sheikah replied. "Besides, this Cuckoo is wearing chainmail armor, so it won't be able to glide on it's own."

"Well you could just keep the armor on someone else and let the Cuckoo glide on it's own." The Rito replied. "Oh well, 400 rupees is 400 rupees. Have fun." The party collected their paragliders. The Rito said under his breath, "What a bunch of nutcases."

The party made it to Revali's Landing. The Zora equipped the paraglider onto the Cuckoo. They all collectively ran off of the landing pad and glided down. The wind blew past them with a gentle breeze. Some Rito even decided to fly beside them. One of them was Kass! Kass saluted the adventurers and flew off with the rest of the Rito.

They landed next to a stable just outside of Rito Village. The glide was very exhilarating for the whole team. Poump noticed a stable worker cutting away at a tree with a Woodcutter's Axe. The tree cutter noticed their landing. "That was amazing!"

"Thanks fatass." Poump said rather rudely.

The tree cutter was actually very muscular. "Hey, that's not very nice. I worked for these guns!"

"Don't mind him." The Sheikah said. "What's your name?"

"Ponthos!" The man replied. "My name is Ponthos, and I've been working here at this stable as a wood cutter for the past 6 years!"

"Here Ponthos, have this." The Sheikah handed Ponthos 200 rupees.

\ "Ah, thank you so much stranger!"

"I know hard work when I see it." The Sheikah replied.

"Great! I will put these rupees to good use." Ponthos said as he pocketed the rupees.

The party walked towards the stable. "You need to learn to be less rude to people, Poump." The Zora said to him.

"I don't like other people that I haven't met before. What if that guy was a Yiga?" Poump said.

"If he was a Yiga, he probably would've killed you in a second." The Sheikah said. The party looked back at Ponthos, who continued chopping wood. Eventually a Hylian Retriever ran right up to him and he started petting the dog with great enthusiasm.

"He wouldn't hurt a fly." The Zora said.

"Whatever. I'm not trusting anyone we see anymore." Poump replied.

"Well we're getting our horses and we'll be off." The Sheikah replied. He pulled out the Ocarina and whistled Malon's Melody, which summoned their previous horses. The Sheikah put his own horse into the stable and traded it for his new horse, same with Poump.

The party rode off through the Tabantha Frontier. They decided that they would visit Hyrule Castle Town, so they set their sights on going there. The horses galloped through the serene territory. There were fields of wheat grass all around, and the party wasn't too offended to stop and make their horses eat some of the grass along the way.

Chapter 10: The Checkpoint over the River

The party continued galloping their way through the curving hills of the Tabantha Frontier. The Sheikah noticed a Sheikah Tower in the area and used it to orient himself around the roads. "Follow my lead, I know where we're going." The party followed him and eventually made it out into Hyrule Field. They saw Hyrule Castle in the distance. They followed the main roads, passing by several wagons and caravans that were headed in the opposite direction.

They made it to a fortress that had a very long line of people being checked on. It was a checkpoint that was monitoring any people that decided to pass through the area. There appeared to be a Guardian walking around the front of the fortress. It was set up on a bridge that crossed a large river.

"What the?" The Zora said surprised. "I don't remember a checkpoint taking this long to look at people."

"Do you think something's up?" Poump asked the Sheikah.

"I have no clue." The Sheikah said. "Wait here, I'll walk up to the fortress and ask some questions."

"Alright, try to convince them to let us pass faster." The Zora demanded.

"I'll try my best." The Sheikah replied and got off of his horse and walked to the front of the fortress. He walked up to a guardswoman who was stationed off to the side of the checkpoint. "Hello there.."

"Ah, a Sheikah Warrior. What brings you here?" The guardswoman asked.

"I'd like to know why this checkpoint is taking much longer to check on people. The line usually isn't this long to get through."

"New orders from Chancellor Aghanim. He's the new power in Hyrule Castle. He wants us to thoroughly check everyone to make sure they aren't a Yiga in disguise."

The Sheikah knew that this was a good point. "That's a very good reason to check on people so thoroughly." He looked at the front of the line and noticed a few Hylians that were being carried away by some guards.

"Let go of us! We're not Yiga assassins, we're just bards!" One of the Hylians in the group said, trying to escape from the guards' grasp.

"You're carrying suspicious items on your persons, you must be further investigated." The guard replied. The Sheikah looked back at the guard he was speaking to.

"This doesn't look like something Zelda would've wanted." The Sheikah said to the guard.

"It's Aghanim's orders, and we need to follow them. Zelda trusted Aghanim with looking over Hyrule, so in the long run we're carrying out her orders." The guard replied. "I'll admit it, I myself don't like this one bit, but I have to carry it out. It's just my job."

"Well would you kindly allow my friends and I to pass through here?" The Sheikah insisted.

"I'm sorry, but even a fabled Sheikah Warrior is going to need to wait this out. We can't just let anyone through right now."

"Alright then. I won't bother you anymore."

"Thank you for cooperating." The guard replied. The Sheikah made it back to Poump and the Zora.

"We'll have to wait this out." The Sheikah said to the party.

"Dammit." Poump said.

"Well dang. At least we have each other to keep company, right?" The Zora said.

"Sure, why don't we play a game? Like 'name the cloud'?" Poump said to the Zora.

"That sounds like fun." The Zora replied.

The Sheikah however had some major suspicions about the checkpoint. He observed that both sides of the bridge had two small towers. He wanted more answers. "You two can wait here some more. I'm going to do some investigating." The Sheikah said to the party.

"Oh, that's a bummer. It would've been nice to play with him." The Zora said "He seems very serious all the time."

The Sheikah walked up to a nearby tree and climbed it. He made it above the leaves and started scoping out the checkpoint from above. In the middle of the bridge there was a Turret Guardian stationed in a way that allowed for people to go around it in both ways. He noticed the Guardian's eyes were blue, which was a good thing since it meant they were working with the Royal Family. He teleported out of the tree and on top of the tower and snuck in through the door making sure there was not much noise. The Sheikah tip-toed through the fortress and eventually found a room with a map of Hyrule. There was no one else in the room, so he looked at the map. The map had red lines and blue lines drawn across it, leading to other fortresses across Hyrule. He noticed a note next to a red line that was headed South into the Gerudo Region. 'We'll strike this area first.' The Sheikah was intrigued by what that meant, but he heard the door to the room open up. He jumped onto the ceiling and held himself between the wooden beams that held it up. Some guards walked into the room.

"Patrolling this damn place is such a headache." One of the guards said to the other guard.

"I know it is, but keep your eyes open. You don't want the other guards to find us out." The guard placed his helmet on the table. "Now where were we with this map?"

"Oh yeah, supposedly a bunch of our guys are coming to attack this checkpoint soon."

"That's great. Let's hold our disguises for now until they arrive. Then we'll unleash hell on these fools." The guard walked to the other side of the table and sat down. He downed a drink. "Don't you think it's amazing? That Ghirahim managed to appear before our fallen forces and build us back up as a Clan?"

"Yeah, almost convenient. Our old master, Khoga, was a dufus. He held us back way too much. With Ghirahim's orders, we've been able to spread our fear across Hyrule much better."

The other guard started to have a worried expression. "What do you think would happen once we face the Hero?"

"You mean Link?"

"Yeah, him."

"He's not much."

"I don't know man, I heard that about 30 Yiga foot soldiers were killed by him at Hyrule Castle. And I heard that from a few guys that managed to escape."

"Really? He killed 30 of us?"

"Yeah, they described Link's fighting style as beast-like, without any sign of stopping. He even had good form as well. They said he dodged three incoming attacks at the same time."

"That sounds like a lot of phooey if you ask me."

"You might doubt it, but I've heard Link has killed hundreds of us throughout the years. He's the most dangerous thing to the Yiga Clan right now."

"Someday I'll get to face Link myself and prove to you how wrong you are. I bet he'd go down really easily."

"You are so fucking full of yourself, man."

"What did you say?"

"Hundreds of Yiga have died by Link's hands. Do you really think that he'd be that easy to face in combat?"

"I trained my whole life for combat. I even faced Link myself one day. I'll admit that I nearly died, so I teleported away, but I knew that I could've killed him really easily. His form was lacking. That huge glowing sword he had was carrying him through the fight, I could feel it."

"Ugh, I can't wait to see your foolishness be the death of you."

"Keep wishing buddy."

At this point, the Sheikah heard enough. He drew out his katana and dropped onto the guard that was speaking so highly of himself.

"AHH!" The guard exclaimed as the Sheikah sliced his katana across the guard's neck. What the Sheikah didn't notice was that the guard had some armor on the neck area, which saved him from getting cut. "Intruder!"

The other guard made it to a window in the room and sounded off a horn. The Hyrule citizens started running away from the sound of it. The Sheikah was clashing sword to sword with the confident Yiga. The other Yiga in the room didn't know when to butt into this fight, so he teleported away to fight elsewhere.

Poump and the Zora noticed the commotion. "What's going on?" The Zora said. They looked at the Guardian walking around and noticed a Yiga sneak from behind it and plant something into it. The Guardian's eye turned red and started pointing a red light at one of the fleeing Hyrule citizens.

"No way!" Poump exclaimed. He rode his horse up towards the Yiga that was behind the Guardian, but the Yiga teleported away. Poump took out his sword and swung at the Guardian. The Guardian diverted its attention to Poump. Poump's horse panicked and bucked him off. He got back up and looked at the Guardian which was now staring at him. He grabbed for his shield but it was too late, the Guardian's laser fired and blasted Poump back, putting him on fire. The Zora waved her spear next to the river and caused a small amount of water to surround Poump and put the fire out. The Guardian still chose its sights on Poump.

The Sheikah was going blow for blow with the Yiga in the room. Both of them were very skilled swordsmen with good form. The Sheikah decided to teleport behind the Yiga and attempted to kick him down by going for the Yiga's leg. The kick knocked the Yiga down and the Sheikah managed to knock the helmet right off of the Yiga's head. The Yiga turned around and swung wildly but the Sheikah dodged the attack. "You're good. Where did you do your training?"

"I'm a Sheikah, where do you think I would learn it?"

"Ah yes, a Kakariko Village warrior. Wait a moment, do I know you from somewhere?" The Yiga got up and circled around the table. The Sheikah circled on the opposite side of the table. They both had their blades raised.

"Maybe you do, but I don't care." The Sheikah replied. "Stand down right now, or else I'll end you."

"I wouldn't think about standing down, but I would like to battle you again in the future, in a more controlled environment."

"Where would we meet?"

"You'll know. And you'll regret ever telling me to stand down." And then the Yiga teleported away. The Sheikah observed the room for any other enemies and was thankful there weren't more. He grabbed the map, pocketed it, and climbed out of the window. He noticed that the Guardian at the front of the Checkpoint was shooting at Poump and the Zora. The Zora took cover from the Guardian, while Poump was running in plain view in front of the Guardian, just barely dodging its blasts. The Sheikah looked to the other side of the bridge and noticed a herd of about 12 horses with Yiga assassins on their backs arriving to the bridge. The Sheikah teleported to the other side of the bridge and stood on top of the other tower and readied his bow. The guardsmen at this side noticed the Yiga coming and prepared their weapons for battle. Out of nowhere, the Turret Guardian on the bridge started shooting at the guards on at the front of the bridge. The laser blast managed to hit one of the guards while the others ducked down for cover. The guards had spears, swords, and bows ready to take on the incoming Yiga forces.

Meanwhile, Poump was running straight at the Guardian. The Guardian's 8 large legs allowed it to walk away very quickly from Poump without much effort.

"What are you doing Poump, that's suicide!" The Zora screamed.

Poump took out his shield and the laser hit the shield, cracking it a lot in the process. Then he felt a sudden idea. "This'll show 'em some hurt!" He exclaimed as he brought out his clawshot and propelled himself towards the Guardian. Once he was closer, he grabbed the Guardian's leg and with the strength of his Power Bracelets was able to swing it around in a circle. The Guardian's large body was ascending from the floor, dragging and damaging its legs in the process. The Guardian was in a panic and shot around wildly, almost hitting the Zora and the Cuckoo behind their cover. Poump swang the Guardian around for a good 7 seconds and threw it into the river where it landed head first into the water.

"Are you mad?!" The Zora said to Poump.

Poump was taking deep breaths. "Let's just say I had a stroke of inspiration."

Meanwhile with the Sheikah, he decided it was best for him to take care of the Turret Guardian in order to keep it from shooting the guards in the back. They already had 12 Yiga assassins to deal with. The Sheikah teleported behind the Guardian and sliced at it several times with his katana. His damage didn't seem to do much, but the Guardian turned its attention towards him, which is what he wanted. He swiftly jumped to the side of the bridge and climbed down the side of it and narrowly avoided the Guardian's laser.

The Zora noticed the Guardian at the center of the bridge was shooting at the Sheikah. "Poump, we need to help him out!"

"I'm on it." Poump ran straight at the Guardian. It diverted its attention to Poump. All of a sudden a blob of water rose from the river and covered the Guardian's eye. Poump turned around and noticed the Zora was waving her spear around. He looked back at the Guardian and punched it, although the punch did absolutely nothing. The Zora let go of her water magic and the water splashed down and caused Poump to slip and fall. The Guardian raised it laser towards Poump again, and just as it was about to fire, the Guardswoman that the Sheikah spoke to jumped right in front of Poump with her shield raised up and parried the laser right back at its eye, causing the Guardian to blow up.

"You're so foolish trying to take these Guardians on up close, but I will say that was an impressive throw earlier." The Guardswoman said to Poump.

"Where did you learn to do that?" Poump said as he was fascinated by the ability to reflect a Guardian's laser.

"That's called a Shield parry. It's a very risky technique that puts your opponents off balance." She pulled Poump up. "It's a special technique that was taught to me by the Hero himself."

"Oh… Link…" Poump said under his breath. The Zora rode up to the two of them on her horse.

"That was crazy!" The Zora said.

"It sure was, now you two must go now." The Guarswoman said. "The Yiga are attacking this checkpoint right now. You must leave!"

"We were headed to Hyrule Castle!" The Zora said.

"Hyrule Castle?!" The Guardswoman said with a panic. "You'll need to get through those Yiga assassins!"

The Sheikah appeared from behind the group riding on his horse with Poump's horse following behind, and what seemed to be a few Hylians on their own horses. "Get on!" The Sheikah said to Poump. The Sheikah shot an arrow and managed to hit one of the Yiga off of their horses. The Yiga and the Guards were fighting it out.

Poump got onto his horse and rode beside the Sheikah and the Zora and made it through the otherside of the checkpoint. As they passed by, the Sheikah threw a throwing star at one of the Yiga and killed him in the process. Poump turned around to look at the Guards fighting the Yiga. They seemed to have it handled.

The party rode their horses forward for 5 minutes, and then they stopped at an area where everything was calm. "Thank you so much for freeing us, Warrior!" One of the Hylians said to the Sheikah.

"It's no problem." He replied. He noticed there were notably fewer Hylians than he freed. "Wait a moment, weren't there more of you?"

The Hylian on the horse looked around him and saw much fewer Hylians behind him. "Oh, we might have lost the others back at the checkpoint."

The Sheikah gained a sneaking suspicion. He pulled out his bow and shot the Hylian off of his horse, and he landed onto the ground wearing Yiga attire. The other Hylians booked it on their horses back towards the checkpoint. The Sheikah shot another arrow at one of the fleeing Hylians but ended up missing. He rode off towards the checkpoint. Poump got off of his horse and went up to the fallen Yiga, who was barely alive.

"What really happened with those other guys?" Poump said, interrogating the Yiga.

The Yiga was coughing blood, but seemed to be laughing. "Those guards, we outnumber them now. That checkpoint is ours." Poump punched the Yiga in the face and dislocated his jaw.

The Sheikah rode up to the checkpoint. He saw several Yiga tossing the bodies of the guards into the river. After scoping out the area a little bit, he determined that there were 5 Yiga outside on the bridge itself. He teleported behind one of the Yiga and sliced their head clean off. This alerted another Yiga, but they were promptly stabbed from behind by the Sheikah. The Sheikah turned around and threw three throwing knives at the remaining three Yiga on the bridge, causing them to fall over in pain. A Yiga footsoldier charged from behind him, but the Sheikah parried their attack with his sword and stabbed them through the abdomen. The Sheikah ran across the bridge towards one of the towers, which a Yiga assassin was shooting arrows from. He cut each of the arrows in mid-air, ran up the wall, and sliced the Yiga as he made it to the top. He stopped suddenly once he saw two Yiga assassins with their swords above the Guardswoman from earlier.

"Don't think about anything funny, Sheikah!" One of the Yiga exclaimed. "Move one step, and she's dead! She's the last of the guards here!"

The Sheikah calmed his mind down. He'd seen this before, and it cost his whole world.

"Don't do it, Warrior." The Guardswoman said through bloodied teeth.

"Put your weapons down and she lives!" The Yiga said.

The Sheikah put his sword, bow, and quiver down.

"And don't forget to remove your other weapons!"

The Sheikah put his throwing stars and throwing knives down. He reached behind his back and pulled something off.

"Yeah, that's right. Disarm yourself! That's what we like to see!" The Yiga said.

The Sheikah then teleported behind the both of the Yiga and slammed their heads together. He took one of their weapons and sliced one of their heads off, and then kicked the other one in the ribs. He grabbed the one he kicked in the ribs, teleported out of the tower, dropped the Yiga, and teleported back in.

"AAAAHHH!" Splat. The Yiga had a broken neck after the fall, and couldn't live any longer.

"Are you okay?" The Sheikah asked the Guardswoman. He helped her back up. He picked his weapons back up as well.

"I'm going to need medical attention. They cut me up really badly." The Guardswoman replied, feeling her sides.

"I'll take you with me. We'll make it back to Hyrule Castle." The Sheikah said, as he carried her down the tower's staircase. "What's your name?"

"My name is Priscilla."

"Alright Priscilla, we're gonna make it. We're going to drop you off at Hyrule Castle."

"And what is yours?" The Gaurdswoman asked.

"Excuse me?" The Sheikah said, confused.

"Your name. What is your name?"

The Sheikah stayed silent for a little bit. "My name is…" He paused for a moment. "Zhago."

"Zhago? That's a nice name." The Guardswoman replied. "Why did you hesitate to say your name, Zhago?"

"Because…" The Sheikah continued carrying her. They were already out of the tower and were walking across the bridge, which smelled awful because of the dead Yiga and dead guards on the floor. "Because I haven't said my name since…" He propped her up on the horse and got on and rode back into the direction of Hyrule Castle.

The ride back was quiet. The Guardswoman didn't feel like talking, especially after seeing all of the other guards dead. She knew she hit a sensitive subject with the Sheikah, so she didn't want to make it worse for him. She watched as the bridge went further and further into the distance. Her vision went blurry, but she wasn't dying. She knew she was safe, so she closed her eyes.

Zhago decided to break up the silence. "You promise not to say my name to anyone else, right?"

"Yes." Priscilla said softly.

The Sheikah pulled towards the other party members. "Hey, who is she?" The Zora asked the Sheikah.

"Her name is Priscilla, she was the guardswoman that helped both of you at the bridge." The Sheikah replied.

"What about the other Hylians?" Poump asked with a hint of concern.

"They're dead now. They were Yiga in disguise." The Sheikah replied dryly.

"And what of the other guards at the checkpoint?" The Zora asked.

The Sheikah solemnly looked down. "They died in combat. She is the only survivor." He looked down at the Yiga with the dislocated jaw. "Is this what you wanted?" The Sheikah got off of the horse. "To paint the land in blood, and for what, a cause?!" He started kicking the Yiga on the floor. "Do you have any idea what it's like to lose someone you care so much about?" He kept on kicking the Yiga with great fury.

"Whoa, you should tone that down." The Zora said trying to calm the Sheikah down.

"Absolutely not!" The Sheikah said as he kicked the Yiga even more. The Yiga's Hylian face was crying in agony from all of the physical pain.

"Stop…" The Hylian said just barely audibly. "Stop it please…"

"No!" The Sheikah kicked the Yiga to death. He breathed heavily, and went back onto his horse. "We'll ride for the castle now."

The Zora and Poump looked at the dead Hylian on the floor. Poump felt a bit distrubed.

Seeing what looks like the face of someone who could've been him. The Zora comforted Poump and they both got onto their horses. They silently followed the Sheikah on their way to Hyrule Castle.

Chapter 11: The Shadow in Castle Town

The party rode up to the gates of Hyrule Castle Town. The gatekeepers stopped them. "What is your business here?" One of the gatekeepers asked.

"We're here to speak to the Chancellor." The Sheikah replied.

"The Chancellor? You would want to speak to Chancellor Aghanim?" The gatekeeper replied.

"We are working with Zelda." The Zora added.

"And we also have this Sheikah Slate." Poump said as he showed the Slate to the gatekeeper.

"All of you bring up very good reasons. Open the gate." The gate lowered. "You may come in." The party left their horses at the stable just outside of the gates and walked into the Castle Town. The Sheikah fireman carried Priscilla.

"Home again, at last." Poump said to himself. They walked through the crowded and busy streets of the town. There were a few buildings that were being rebuilt, and there were considerably more soldiers patrolling the streets. Next to the fountain in the main plaza there was a Gerudo and a Rito playing music, and they had a box in front of them, which people passing by dropped some rupees into.

"Poump?" Someone said from the crowd. "Poump!" a big guy with red hair came running up to Poump and hugged him so hard he squeezed him. "It's so good to see you again! I thought you died!"

"Groose!" Poump replied as Groose put him down. Poump held onto his stomach. "It's been a while man, how are you holding up?"

"I'm doing great! We missed you so much, we thought you were killed!" Groose replied. Some of Poump's other friends walked up from behind Groose.

"You had us worried sick, dude." One of Poump's friends said.

"Well guess what guys, here I am, alive and well! Good to see you again, Netrea, Cawlin, and Stritch." Poump replied feeling really happy to see his friends again.

"Say man, you want to go watch a play with us?" Groose offered. "We need to catch up with each other."

Poump looked at the Zora and the Sheikah. "You should spend some time with your friends, Poump. It will be good for you." The Sheikah said to him.

"Thank you, I'll meet up with you guys later." Poump said to the Zora and the Sheikah. Poump went with Groose and his friends towards the theater to watch a play.

The Sheikah looked at the Zora. "What would you like to do?"

"I'll stay with you. Whatever you're up to." The Zora replied. "What will we do with her?"

"We will take her to the medical wing in the Castle. They will heal her up." The Sheikah weaved his way through the crowd with the Zora and made it to the Castle gates. One of the gatekeepers in front of the Castle noticed the Sheikah with the guardswoman. "Lower the gates for us." The Sheikah said to the gatekeeper.

"Oh yes, a Sheikah Warrior. We'll let you through. Aghanim will speak to you." The gatekeeper lowered the gate and allowed them into the Castle. The Zora followed behind while holding her Cuckoo.

They walked through the courtyard. "Looking for directions to the Medical Wing?" A knight in the courtyard said to the two.

"Yes, we need to bring her to the Medical Wing." The Sheikah replied.

"Here, follow me." The knight led them to the Medical Wing, where they saw plenty of other people sitting on hospital beds being cared for.

"Ohh Priscilla!" One of the medics exclaimed at the sight of her. "What happened?!"

"Long story." The Sheikah replied. "She'll tell you it when you heal her."

"That we will." The medic said as she placed her on the medical bed. "Thank you for bringing her here!"

"You're welcome." The Sheikah said. He walked out of the medical wing with the Zora. They proceeded to walk towards the throne room.

Meanwhile with Poump, he and his friends were in line to get into the theater. "So what is this play we're watching?" Poump asked.

"Oh yeah! This is Super Mario Bros., the stage play!" Groose replied. "They say this is one of the best stunt shows ever performed!"

"Oh, nice." Poump's thoughts drifted to the Hylian Yiga from earlier. He thought about all of the Yiga he saw killed. How many of them were just like him? How would he know if he was surrounded by a bunch of other Yiga assassins?

"Hey man, you look a bit troubled." Groose said as he read his face. "What's the matter?"

"Tell me something only Groose would know." Poump said to Groose.

"Wha?" Groose replied.

"Here, do our special handshake." Poump said. They started the special handshake and managed to perform it flawlessly. "Good, you're Groose."

"Of course I am, old chap!" Groose replied. "What brought this up?"

"Oh Goddess. It's a long story." Poump said.

"Don't worry man, this is a long line. Tell us everything."

"Alright." Poump started telling him about everything that happened after they last saw each other.

As for the Sheikah and the Zora, they arrived at the front of the throne room. There were some guards at the front. "The Chancellor has been waiting for you, Warrior. We will allow you to come through, however your Zora companion won't be allowed in here."

"Why is that so?" The Sheikah asked.

"The Chancellor wants you and you alone to speak about his business."

"It's alright, we'll wait out here." The Zora said as she was petting the Cuckoo.

"Alright then." The Sheikah said. The guard opened the door for the Warrior and allowed him in. The Sheikah walked through the large throne room and saw a few people speaking to the figure in red robes that he recognized from earlier. The figure in red robes motioned for the other people to go out of the room, and so they did.

"The fabled Sheikah Warrior." The figure in red robes said. "We've met before, but not as formal."

The Warrior kneeled down. "My name is Zh-"

"No need to tell me your name. I want only your skill. Oh and by the way, no need to be kneeling." The Sheikah stopped kneeling. "As you know by now, my name is Aghanim. I take it Zelda has told you about how I assisted her?"

"Yes, that's right. She told me everything." The Sheikah replied.

"Very good. Here, come walk with me." Aghanim motioned for the Sheikah to follow him. They walked behind the throne and he opened up a backdoor that led out to an area that overlooked Castle Town. "You're a very experienced fighter, correct?"

"That is how I became a Warrior, yes."

"We have a problem in Castle Town right now. There is a rat in the night time that loves to create problems for the citizens of Castle Town. Many soldiers have come close to catching this criminal, however they seem to always escape. A man of your talents should be able to find this wretch. Bring me their head, and I will reward you greatly."

"Are they associated with the Yiga?" The Sheikah asked.

"Very likely." Aghanim responded.

"What is this reward you're promising me?"

"I will give you 20,000 rupees if you can bring them to me dead. Bring them to me alive, and I will give you 25,000 rupees."

The Sheikah thought about this.

"You can also work with your companions on this mission." Aghanim added. "All of you will be rewarded for completing this."

"Is there a catch to this?" The Sheikah asked.

"I won't allow any of you to go out of the walls of Castle Town until you find this criminal for me."

The Sheikah thought for a bit to himself. "I'll do it."

"Very good." Aghanim replied. He quickly remembered another question he wanted to ask. "I also heard that you brought back an injured soldier from a checkpoint that was close to the Tabantha Region. What happened there?"

"A Yiga attack happened at that place. They seeded themselves into the bridge and attacked with strategy. They killed all of the guards there."

"That is awful." Aghanim replied. "If I could kill every single member of the Yiga clan in a snap I would do it without hesitation."

The Sheikah agreed with him. "You would like what I found then." He pulled out the map of Hyrule he found in the tower. "These are battle plans that two Yiga were talking to each other about."

Aghanim's eyes widened at the sight of this. "Well done! This will be very useful for us! Follow me." Aghanim walked back into the throne room and through the door to the small library with the table. He placed the map onto the table.

"It looks like they will be attacking the Gerudo Region first." The Sheikah said to Aghanim.

"The Gerudo Tribe are very good fighters. They will need help from our forces here at Hyrule Castle. I will send a platoon of soldiers to the Gerudo Region in order to assist with the Yiga attack. I will also add extra garrisons to the other fortresses that will be attacked."

"I agree with this." The Sheikah said instinctively. He thought to himself in a few seconds that the more troops are out in the field, the greater the chances that a lot of them could die. He didn't want to object to Aghanim's ideas in order to stay on his good side.

"Very well." Aghanim replied. "Thank you for this map. Now you may go. Do whatever you must to find the wretch in Castle Town. They say they appear during night time the most. That would be the best time to go after them."

"I will do this with ease, Aghanim." The Sheikah said.

"I trust you will." Aghanim replied. The Sheikah walked out of the library and then out of the throne room.

"What did the Chancellor want from you?" The Zora asked.

"He wants us to catch a criminal in the Town. He says that this criminal appears most often at night." The Sheikah replied. "We can even be rewarded greatly for doing this job successfully.

"How much?" The Zora asked.

"20,000 rupees. 25,000 if we do it better."

Meanwhile with Poump, he finished speaking to Groose about his adventures.

"Oh damn, man. That sounds really rough. I'm glad you're okay though." Groose said.

"We're all glad you're okay." Netrea added, and the other two friends nodded.

"Seeing as Zelda probably wants you to do this quest for her, we won't expect you to come around here very often. Let's spend as much time as we can, eh big boy?" Groose said to Poump.

"Yeah, let's enjoy ourselves." Poump replied. At this moment, the whole line poured into the theater. The next show was starting.

Meanwhile with The Sheikah and the Zora, they walked around Castle Town asking questions to the citizens. The Sheikah and the Zora split their efforts and spoke to multiple citizens.

The Sheikah managed to get the attention of a rich woman. "Hello there mistress. I'm very sorry to bother you, but have you ever seen any criminal activity during the night time?"

The rich woman had an impatient aura to herself but she didn't want to come across as rude. "I don't ever go on night walks. Normally I'd be indoors by night time. Under the night sky, it's much easier to be assassinated by a Yiga, so I never even toy with the idea of going out in the night time."

"Understandable. Have a good day." The Sheikah replied.

The Zora walked up to the Gerudo and the Rito playing music next to the fountain in the Main Plaza. Between one of their performances, the Zora asked them about any criminal activity.

"I wouldn't know anything about criminal activity. Although during night time occasionally we see this large dark figure fly by our window." The Rito said.

"A few nights ago I heard some screaming in one of the alleyways and then it was silenced." The Gerudo added. "I went outside to check on it, and there was no blood or body or anything in the area."

"Interesting. Thank you." The Zora replied.

As for Poump and his friends, they watched the stunt show. It was absolutely fabulous. The stunts were amazing, as the actors on stage were jumping around, doing death defying stunts. They even had a section in which one of the actors held their breath for 2 minutes to swim underwater. It was a very advanced stage, as it was able to shift itself with modern Sheikah technology in order to create different settings. In the final act, the main actor fell over.

"Mario!" The other actor on stage screamed. "I need someone in the audience to help me bring Mario back!" The actor looked around the audience. "You!" He said as he pointed at Poump. A spotlight shined down on him. "Come up here and help me revive Mario!" Poump shuffled his way through the seats and made it on stage. "What is your name?"

"Poump."

"Alright Poump, stuff this mushroom into Mario's mouth!" The actor handed Poump a green mushroom prop. Poump looked at the mushroom and then stuffed it into the actor's mouth. The actor disappeared right in front of him and then reappeared right before him in a second.

"Luigi! I'm back!" The Mario actor said to the other actor. "Thank you so much, Poump! We can finish what we started because of you!" The crowd applauded and then the Mario and Luigi actors did an amazing attack on the large Bowser actor, knocking him down. Then an actress wearing a pink dress appeared on stage.

"Thank you very much! Let's have a cake together!" And then the curtains closed and the audience started clapping.

Poump and his friends walked out of the theater. "That was great, Poump!" Groose exclaimed. "You wanna go to Telma's and have some drinks with us?"

"Yes, I'd like to." Poump replied. At this exact moment, the Sheikah and the Zora managed to find Poump.

"Hey Poump, we're going to need your help." The Zora said.

"Right now?" Poump said, feeling a bit distressed. He wanted to spend some more time with his friends.

"It's alright buddy, you can do whatever you need to do." Groose said.

"Oh no, it's alright. We actually can wait for the night to fall right now." The Zora added.

"Oh, great!" Poump said with relief. "Then we can all share some drinks at Telma's!" The party and Poump's friends went to Telma's Tavern and had a good time with each other. They shared stories across the table. The party's hefty rupee income allowed them to buy a lot of food and drinks for themselves.

"Well, Poump. Looks like you cleaned yourself up." Telma said as she served the party.

"I sure did!" Poump replied, as he downed a drink.

"So I heard that you got a job from the Queen herself?" Telma asked.

"Yep, we did. And we're being paid well for it." Poump replied.

"Nice! So glad to see you putting your skills to good use." Telma said. She started serving some other people.

"So what's this new thing we need to work together on?" Poump asked the other two.

"The Chancellor, Aghanim trusts us with finding a criminal who hides in the darkness during the night time." The Sheikah said.

"Hey would you look at that Poump, you're going on a Bounty Hunting job!" Groose said as he patted Poump on the back. The other friends kept on eating their food but were also really glad to see that Poump was going places.

"And the reward is great. If we get this job done, we might not even need to work on the rest of the monst-" The Zora was quickly silenced by the Sheikah putting his hand on her shoulder.

"Were you going to say monster?" One of Poump's friends said to the Zora. The table went quiet for a little bit.

"Yes, I was going to say that we should not be working on monster part salvaging." The Zora said. "It's a very dangerous job that involves exploring some of the deadliest areas in Hyrule."

"Oh, alright then." Poump's friend said and they started digging back into their food.

"Good one." The Sheikah said to the Zora. "We'll talk later." The party continued eating and eventually the night time fell.

"Alright guys, see you later." Poump said to Groose, Cawlin, Stritch, and Netrea.

"See you later little buddy!" Groose said to Poump. "Do a good job and be careful!" Poump waved goodbye to his friends and they waved back at him. The party walked through the alleyways of Castle Town and made it out to the Main Plaza, which was the most illuminated because of the moonlight.

"You did some good improvising back in the tavern." The Sheikah said to the Zora. "However you don't intend to stop working on Zelda's job once we get this one over with, right?"

"Why would we need to? She'd pay us 10,000 rupees for each monster colony we dealt with. The lowest income for this job is 20,000 rupees, so we'll be rich and won't need to finish the job. This job will pay us as much as Zelda will pay us for two more jobs, plus more if we do it right." The Zora said. "Do we really need to be risking our necks for this? We had to go through a snowy mountain and an enchanted forest in order to get just one of these colonies done. Zelda mentioned that one of them is in the Gerudo Desert, and you know how well we Zoras deal with extreme heat and dehydration."

"Well the other one is in the Akkala Region, which is relatively close to your home, Zora's Domain. Once we're done with that monster colony, you can settle down at Zora's Domain and you won't need to go through the dry desert. Plus, you'll get even more rupees since you'll have dealt with a second monster colony." The Sheikah replied.

"You have a good point." The Zora said. "Plus, that means I can adventure with this Cuckoo for a little bit longer." She said as she patted the Cuckoo's head.

Poump was looking at the buildings for any sign of something criminal. He noticed some movement at the top of the buildings. "Hey guys, did you notice that?" Poump said to the others.

"Yes, I saw that." The Sheikah replied. "I'll chase after it." The Sheikah teleported onto the rooftop and noticed someone running on the rooftops. They had a black cloak of some kind. They jumped down into an alleyway. The Sheikah swiftly followed. Poump took out his Clawshot.

"You can try to catch this person when they're on the ground." He said to the Zora. Poump used the Clawshot to go onto the rooftops and attempt the chase above.

The Sheikah chased the strange black figure down into the alleyway and looked around. He saw the black figure running around the corner and pursued it. As he turned the corner, he heard the sound of breaking glass and noticed that there was a window that was broken. He went through the broken window and found two people on the floor, knocked out. They still had a pulse apparently. The Sheikah looked around but couldn't see any hint of this strange figure anywhere.

As for Poump, he walked across the rooftops observing all angles. He liked it up there. It allowed him to see very clearly, especially with the moonlight. He could practically see half of the town while on the rooftops. He noticed something pop up a few buildings away from him. He chased after this thing. It appeared to be the dark figure. He pulled out his Clawshot and aimed at the dark figure. The Clawshot's chain almost reached the dark figure but then it suddenly turned around and raised its arm. Poump noticed it had a single illuminated eye at where its head should be. It wrapped the chains around its arm and pulled so that way Poump fell over. It quickly unwrapped the chains and kept on running. Poump looked up but the figure was gone.

The Zora and the Cuckoo were walking through the streets of the town. A horse carriage was riding by so she stepped off to the side. She averted her attention away from the carriage until she noticed something move on it. The dark figure was on top of the carriage. The dark figure threw something at the person driving, which knocked them off of. The horse started making noises but the dark figure went right up to the horse and fed it a carrot. The dark figure grabbed the person who fell off of the carriage. The Zora threw her spear at the dark figure but it pulled out something similar to Poump's clawshot and propelled itself back onto the rooftops.

The Sheikah walked out of the house he was in and noticed the carriage that was stopped and ran right up to it. He saw the Zora was nearby. "What happened to the carriage driver?"

"Something in a dark outfit showed up and snatched the driver clean and then it went back to the rooftops. I threw my spear when I thought the moment was right but I missed."

Poump got up and then he saw the dark figure running across the rooftops with someone in its arms. Poump continued chasing this person. Since they were weighed down by carrying the person, it was easier for Poump to catch up to this thing. Poump leaped right at the figure but then it somehow created a rope with its arm and swung down into an alleyway. Poump carefully climbed down the side of the building and went deeper into the alleyway. There seemed to be an entrance to the sewers that was open. Poump ran right up to it and then the dark arm quickly reached out to the manhole cover and put it in place.

The Sheikah ran back up to the rooftops, but the Zora and the Cuckoo stayed back down. The Zora noticed a manhole cover open up and the dark figure climbed out of it. The Zora waved her spear and some of the water running along the side of the road formed into a wet ball and she threw it at the dark figure. The dark figure swiftly took cover behind the carriage without a driver. He opened up the door to the carriage.

"Hey! Who are you and why is this carriage stopped in the middle of the street?!" The person in the carriage said. The dark figure punched this person square in the face and knocked them out. They dragged the person back into the sewer and closed the manhole.

"Dang it, he's too fast!" The Zora said. The Zora opened up the manhole cover and the Cuckoo pursued her into the sewers. She walked off to the side of the sewage. She saw the dark figure with the body and it opened up an area in the wall. She ran right up to the wall and slipped right through it before it could close. It seemed to be a secret passageway of some sort. She traversed through the passageway and found herself on a small catwalk just outside of the Castle Town walls. She followed the catwalk with the Cuckoo following along and it eventually led to an area underneath Hyrule Castle itself. The catwalk started descending into the moat under Hyrule Castle. She quickly thought to herself and then fell down with the Cuckoo and caused a body of water to carry herself into the open tunnel that lead underneath Hyrule Castle. She kept walking and eventually passed through a door. She discovered she was in the prison cell area of the Castle, and the driver and the person in the carriage were tied up next to the cell. The dark figure emerged from the wall next to the Zora and ran hurriedly back out of the prison. The Zora kept on running after the dark figure and managed to use the water underneath to propel herself even closer to the dark figure. The water enveloped her and she made it to the dark figure. She swiped her spear at the dark figure's legs and it fell over. She got out of the water and pointed her spear at the grounded figure. "Enough."

The dark figure spoke back with a monstrous voice. "Not quite." The dark figure said as it knocked the spear off to the side and it sweeped at the Zora's legs knocking her over as well. "You need to work on your stance." The dark figure said as it receded back into the Castle Town sewers.

Poump looked around and just when he thought he couldn't see the dark figure anywhere, it emerged from one of the sewer grates and made a beeline towards the building right across from it. Poump followed behind and the Sheikah also noticed the dark figure being chased by Poump. The Zora emerged from a manhole cover and managed to be just behind the dark figure. All of the party members trailed right behind the figure. It leapt right through a wall as if it were nothing, leaving the party confused.

"Did that thing just jump right through the wall?" Poump said.

"It apparently did." The Zora replied. The Cuckoo walked forward into the wall as if it were nothing. "Let's follow the Cuckoo, we have nowhere else to go." The Zora said.

The party walked right through the wall. It appeared to be a small room with absolutely nothing in it except for the dark figure standing at the end of it. It looked at them with its one eye. Almost like a Guardian's eye. "Hello there." The dark figure said, still in it's monstrous voice. It seemed to be formal.

"Uh, hi?" Poump said. "Who are you?"

"To all of you, I'm a target, a hit. I know who sent you. It was Aghanim who sent all of you."

"How do you know that?" The Sheikah asked.

"He's been wanting me dead for some years now. Of course he would hire someone to catch me. And it looks like he hired three people to catch me." The dark figure said. It seemed to be completely calm, despite being cornered.

"Oh yeah, what's stopping us from walking over there and beating you up?" Poump said.

"Try it." The dark figure said, still not moving.

The whole party walked forward and then a cage fell down from above them and captured all of them. "Bah, I should have known." Poump said to himself.

"Now that I have you hostage I'll-"

The Zora interrupted. "You'll what, kill us? Imprison us? What are you even planning to do with us?"

"I never kill. That's never a good way to deal with human lives. I have you in this cage right now because I want to reason with you, and I can't trust you if you're able to hit me." The dark figure walked around the cage and then went back to the wall at the furthest side of the room. It hit a hidden button in the wall and the whole room started moving as if it were an elevator.

"Where are you taking us?" The Sheikah said to the dark figure. "Do you work for the Yiga?"

"I'm taking you to a place where we can speak to each other more freely, and no, I do NOT work for the Yiga. They are killers, and I am not." The dark figure walked to the other side of the room and then the room opened up and revealed a large underground cave with keese flying around. It was well lit. It had Sheikah technology around the area. The cage was on a track and it landed onto a platform and opened up, allowing the party to walk around.

"Who are you?" Poump asked again.

"Some people call me the Guardian because of my one eye and armor. However," the dark figure paused for a moment. "I prefer to be named Keeseman."

"You named yourself after a flying rodent?" The Zora said.

"A flying rodent that strikes fear in people. This outfit I made for myself was made to be practical and efficient at scaring people away. Looks like you guys weren't too scared, and that must mean you were coming after me for a large sum. The only person that I know of in all of Hyrule that would want me dead this badly, with that kind of reward money would be Aghanim." Keeseman turned around and went to an area with a bunch of large screens.

"Why would Aghanim want you dead?" The Sheikah asked.

"He wants me dead because I ruin his diabolical plans."

"Diabolical?" The Sheikah said. "He wants what's best for Hyrule. He wants the Yiga to be killed off. He even works with the Royal Family and is a close accomplice of Queen Zelda."

"That's exactly what he wants people to see. Before you ask, I believe that Zelda has her heart in the right place. Under her rule, Hyrule would be thriving. Chancellor Aghanim however weaved his way into the Royal Family by taking advantage of the Calamity's fall. He knew exactly what the community wanted to see from him. However, to get himself to that power, he's done too many evil deeds." Keeseman brought up some pictures on the large screen. They displayed pictures of people being executed in the Castle's dungeon. "The people you see in these pictures were completely innocent. They died because of Aghanim's paranoid ideal that they were Yiga spies. Among that, he also wants to rule Hyrule with an iron fist, with total control over everyone's lives."

"Zelda would never want this." The Zora said, feeling sick to her stomach.

"Exactly. He planted himself into a place of power and gained the trust of others in order to rule a country that was never his to begin with." Keeseman walked up to the party. "I take it you can trust me now?"

The Sheikah didn't want to believe it, but he knew this Keeseman was right. "I can trust you. What do you want us to do then?"

Keeseman turned the images off on the computer. "I'd like you to hear my story, where I came from and how I began my case against Aghanim. It all started with my family on Windfall Island, which is an island off the coast of Hyrule. I come from a family of great wealth. They had an estate on the island. My family also had a bad history with Aghanim's family. Once the Great Calamity was finished, the people from Windfall Island, including my family and I, moved to Hyrule. About 9 years ago, when Castle Town was still in construction, the theater was opened for citizens to watch plays at. I went there with my two parents and my friends to watch it, and as my parents left the theater, they were killed in an alleyway by one of Aghanim's lackeys. I discovered that they were killed and it drove me into depression, but I came back from it by finding answers. Slowly but surely, I found out that Aghanim had ordered my parent's death. I used my wealth to help fund the rebuilding of Castle Town, so that way I could fully understand the geography of the Town, and that's also how I was able to install so many secret passages throughout the place. This large cave happened to be a part of the extensive tunnel system that Link and Zelda made in order to find the old decrepit body of Calamity Ganon. The family estate happened to be built directly above this very cave we're standing in right now."

"Wait a moment." Poump interjected. "You mean to tell me that the fancy mansion just outside of Castle Town is yours?"

Keeseman looked at Poump. "Wait a moment, I know you."

"You do?" Poump replied.

"Yes. Do all of you promise to keep this a secret?" Keeseman asked all of them.

"Yes." The party said in unison.

"My real identity is" Keeseman took his helmet off. "Bruce Payne."

"You were at the auction in Lon Lon Ranch!" Poump said.

"Yes." Bruce put his helmet on a stand. "Since you all are probably tired, I will welcome you to my mansion, where you can stay for the night. Follow me." Bruce walked up to a Sheikah lift that was big enough for all of them to stand on. The lift ascended and then Bruce pushed on the wall revealing an elaborate living room behind it. "Welcome to Payne Manor."

An old man walked up to Bruce and the party. "Master Bruce, who are these people?"

"They are guests, Alphie." Bruce said to the old man.

"The last time you brought guests in from this way, you either began teaching them your ways, or you decided to-"

"Alphie, not in front of the kid." Bruce said in reference to Poump. "Prepare the guest rooms please. These folks are tired."

"Alright then, Master Bruce. I will prepare the guest rooms." Alphie walked upstairs.

"Have some food in the dining room. There's plenty to go around." Bruce said as he walked them through the manor. "Help yourselves, I'll be right back." Bruce left the dining room.

Poump looked at the team. "Today has been one wild ride."

"That it has. We deserve a solid break like this." The Zora said.

"This type of hospitality is something we shouldn't take for granted. Let's eat up." The Sheikah sat down at the table which already had some food prepared. He looked around the house's ceiling and saw a small guardian head rotating in the corner of the ceiling, observing the dining room. The team ate up and then Bruce came back into the dining room with a more formal outfit.

"I'm pretty sure all of you know this by now, but I will be willing to pay you if you manage to help me defeat Agahnim. He has possession of extremely powerful magical abilities, making fighting him dangerous. That is why I never faced him head on. You will need all the help you can get to defeat Agahnim."

"What if we have to kill him?" Poump asked.

"If it ever comes down to that, I won't be the one to do that. If it is absolutely necessary to kill him, then do it." Bruce grabbed a pie off of the table and ate it. "And as for the reward, I will pay you 30,000 rupees for bringing him down."

"That's a deal." The Sheikah said without hesitation.

After the meal, the party went upstairs to their guest rooms. On the way, they saw a young boy using a staff on a training dummy. Poump also took notice of a Hylian Shield on a wall, displayed with a bunch of other shiny shields. Each of the party members got into each of their own guest rooms and they all fell asleep, except for Poump, who was awoken by the sound of the Sheikah Slate turning on. It was Zelda who was giving him a call.

"Hello there Poump, I know it's late but I feel like it's important that I should tell you this. You remember how I mentioned my daughter, Hilda, right?" Zelda said with a look of concern on her face.

"Hilda? Oh yes, I do remember you telling me about her on the boat." Poump replied.

"Well, I want you to check on her. She's very young and she lives in the Castle. I trust that Aghanim can take care of her well, but I also trust you. There are a few guards in the castle that know about her presence. Ask for Roldi. She's the guard that I trust the most with keeping a watch on Hilda. Good bye, and take care Poump." Zelda hung up. Through crusty eyes, Poump looked outside and saw a hot air balloon with purple lights, but he decided to fall to sleep as he was extremely exhausted from the day.

Chapter 12: The Little Princess

The next morning came along and all of the party members went out of their guest rooms and walked downstairs. Alphie walked up to the party. "What would you like for breakfast, our honored guests?"

"Just about anything, please." Poump replied.

"I'll prepare something you will all enjoy." Alphie said as he walked towards the kitchen. The party sat in the dining room and marveled at how elaborate the interior of this house was.

"Hey, what's up with the chicken?" A little kid said to the Zora as she was at the table.

"This is a Cuckoo, and she's our friend!" The Zora said to the kid. "Who are you?"

"The name is Richard." The kid replied. "I've been training to be an excellent fighter, just like Bruce."

"That sounds wonderful." The Zora replied.

"Yeah. I use my talents to their best. There's someone I know in Castle Town that really likes my moves!"

"Who are they?" The Zora asked.

"Why would I tell you? It's a secret!" Richard replied. He then ran out of the room motioning his hands as if he was on a motorcycle.

"What a funny kid." The Zora said as she started eating again.

"So what's the plan guys?" Poump asked.

"Here's what we'll be doing." The Sheikah said. "We will walk around Castle Town and ask around to see how the public views Aghanim and if they know about his actions. We will also go to Hyrule Castle and ask the guards what they know about Aghanim, and if he has any weaknesses."

"Sounds like a plan." Poump said. "I'm going to try and disguise myself as a new guard and walk around the castle to see if there is any chance of finding a weakness from inside the castle itself.

"That's a good idea." The Zora said. "The most important thing is that we need to be careful. Make sure we're on Aghanim's good side, until we know for certain what we can do to defeat him without much loss."

"Backaw." The Cuckoo added.

The party finished eating. Bruce appeared. "Since you are done eating, make sure you go back to Castle Town through the cave. Aghanim still wants you within the town's walls, so it's better that you don't risk going in through the front."

"Got it." The Sheikah replied. The party went through the secret entrance and walked their way back through the cave to the lift that brought themselves back into the alleyway they went in.

"We'll split up now." The Sheikah said. "Just be natural." The team split up.

Poump made his way towards the Hyrule Castle gates. "Hello there gatekeeper." Poump said. "Zelda said that she's fine with me roaming the Castle."

"How do I know you're working with Zelda?" The gatekeeper asked.

"Because I have this Sheikah Slate." He brought up the Slate.

"Good. Very well, you may pass." The gatekeeper opened the gate for Poump. "There are a few more places you can visit in the castle while you're wearing our special uniform. If you want to gain a uniform, speak to the smithy in the courtyard."

"Thank you." Poump said, and he walked into the castle.

The Sheikah and the Zora asked around the Castle Town for knowledge about Aghanim. Most of the citizens replied saying that they hope that he would enforce good rules, while some citizens didn't even know that Zelda wasn't in the castle. A handful of citizens even responded by saying that they don't have a good feeling about Aghanim's rules, saying that they put too much faith in militarism. When asked about the difference between Zelda's rules and Aghanim's rules, most of the citizens say that they prefer Zelda's rules.

"From what I gather here, it seems like Aghanim is already pretty shady to the average citizen." The Sheikah said to the Zora.

"That is agreeable. I mean, his name sounds like 'agony'. How are we supposed to trust someone like that?" The Zora added.

Meanwhile with Poump, he found the smithy, who was working on some swords and armor. There was a shop set up behind the smithy. "Hey there mister uh.. what's your name?" Poump asked the smithy.

"My name's Smithy. Funny coincidence, eh?" The smithy said as he put his hammer down. "What is it you need?"

"Oh uh, I'd like to have a guard uniform. To wear."

"How could you be in the castle grounds and yet you haven't had a uniform yet? You even have a Royal Broadsword and a Royal Shield on your back! Well guess what man, you came to the right place. A single uniform is 1,000 rupees. That's a very good price for this set of armor, as it used to be 3,000 rupees a while back."

"I'll take it." Poump said and he handed the 1,000 rupees to Smithy.

"Thank you!" Smithy said.

"Hey by the way, do you know anything about a guard named Roldi?"

"Roldi? You're a new guy, huh? She's usually stationed in the Hall of Heroes. Tell her I said hi." Smithy replied.

"Thanks again, Smithy." Poump said. Poump went into the changing room behind the armorer and changed into the guard armor. "Alright, Hall of Heroes." Poump noticed that there were signs around the castle. He followed them towards the Hall of Heroes.

He arrived in a large corridor with really tall statues. He observed each one. One of them was Link, holding his Master Sword in his left hand, with his Hylian Shield in the other hand. The other statues showed a Goron named Daruk, former Champion of the Gorons. There was a statue showing a Zora named Mipha, former Champion of the Zora. There was one showcasing a Gerudo named Urbosa, former Champion of the Gerudos. And then finally one depicting a Rito named Revali, former Champion of the Rito. He tried reading the plaques, but he started thinking about the Hylian Yiga again.

"New recruit?" A feminine voice said that almost startled Poump.

"Uh, yeah." Poump replied. "Are you Roldi?"

"Why yes, that's me. Do you need something?" Roldi asked.

"Yeah, Zelda herself told me to find you so that way you could show me a secret."

"You wish to find a secret? The castle holds many secrets."

Poump looked around. He whispered into Roldi's ear. "The Princess."

Roldi looked back at Poump. "Well, that makes it very important then. Follow me." Roldi lead Poump down a few halls. Despite the fact that Poump had been in Hyrule Castle before, it seemed like with each visit, the castle itself became bigger and bigger.

Roldi arrived at a wall. "Watch this." She walked through it as if it weren't there." Poump followed through.

"I've seen this before." Poump said.

"No way!" Roldi replied.

"Yeah, it's freaky."

"Ain't it always."

"Say, why does that wall lead to another wall made of bricks?"

"Because we have to remember the combination." Roldi pulled out her sword and tapped on four different bricks on the wall. The brick wall opened up and inside looked like a small room for a child, with a bed, some books, some toys on the floor, and a window. "Hilda?" Roldi said as she walked through the room.

"Boo!" A small girl, about 8 years old pretended to attack Roldi from behind. She had purple hair and a small dress.

"Oh you silly little girl." Roldi said with a smile on her face.

"Are you going to take me on that walk again?" The little girl said to Roldi.

"Not today Hilda, he will." Roldi pointed at Poump.

Hilda walked up to Poump and circled around him examining him. "Who is this imbecile?"

"Oh goodness Hilda. Don't be so judgemental. His name is Poump and he will take good care of you because your mom trusts him. Also where did you learn that word from?"

"I read books because that's all I can do in this room." Hilda replied with a hint of frustration.

"You do know that right now is a time where you need to keep you safe? Trust me little one, in a few weeks, you won't need to be holed up in here. Right now the country is at a civil unrest, and we can't risk you being found. Do you have any idea how bad my punishment could be if I lose you? If I lose you-"

"The Queen will sentence you to a 5 hour map making lesson from Tingle the Map Maker. Yes, I know this, you told me 12 times this week."

"Really I told you 3 times. I just want you to know the importance of why we're keeping you in this room for now."

"Well I know that. It doesn't mean that I am obligated to like it here." Hilda looked at Poump. "So, funny new guy, what will we do today?"

"Whatever Roldi tells me to do, young one." Poump replied. He had no clue what to do with Hilda.

Roldi looked at Poump. "Do whatever you want with her as long as you don't leave the Castle Walls. You have looked over children, right?"

"Sometimes, yes." Poump replied.

"Rule number one is to just keep her near you at all times." Roldie said with great seriousness in her eyes.

"Alright, you got it boss." Poump said feeling slightly intimidated.

"She's all yours." Roldi said gleefully and then she exited the room.

Hilda looked up at Poump with an impatient aura. "So, what are we going to do, new guy?"

"Whatever you want, Princess." Poump said.

"Alright, then read me a book." Hilda replied.

"Which book?" Poump asked.

"This one!" Hilda handed Poump a book titled 'Paper Mario'. "I finished Chapter 7, so read me Chapter 8." Poump opened up the book and started reading.

As for the Sheikah and the Zora, they came to the conclusion that most of the citizens in Castle Town didn't like Aghanim. "They don't enjoy Aghanim's obsession with control and order." The Sheikah said. "We need to make sure we put Zelda in power soon."

"The only way we can do that is to kill Aghanim. But it would be suicide to do that right now." The Zora added. "Zelda might not like it if we kill him, but we have no other choice."

"Let's buy some items at some shops that could help us with the worst case scenario. From what I remember, Aghanim apparently had electrical abilities, and you Zora are weak to electricity."

"That we are. Let's start shopping." The Zora and the Sheikah started shopping for items and weapons. They mostly ended up buying health and magic potions, but never came across a weapon that looked like it could be particularly useful.

Poump finished reading Chapter 8. "The star spirits were reunited and Mario and friends went back to their normal lives. The end." He closed the book.

"I want to go outside." Hilda said. "I want to go on great adventures just like Mario!"

"Now now, we can't just be going outside right now." Poump said to Hilda.

"I want to go out! I do it all the time!" Hilda replied. She walked up to something draped over a chair and pulled it above her. "Now I have a cloak that disguises myself! Let's go to Castle Town!" Hilda ran out of the room and forcibly pulled Poump's hand to follow her. Poump moved along because he didn't want his power bracelets to accidentally hurt her.

Poump and Hilda walked through the castle's hallway. She seemed to have something in her hand that resembled a Sheikah Eye. "Alright, now we walk through here!" Hilda walked into a wall that revealed a small passageway. As her and Poump continued walking, the wall to their right side opened up. It was Kilton!

"Kilton!" Poump said. "What the heck are you doing here in Hyrule Castle?"

"I tried to make you spend your mon last night but you didn't bother coming into my shop." Kilton replied. He noticed Hilda with Poump. "Oh and it looks like you're taking care of the Princess!"

"Look here Kilton, I like you but if you put your crabby looking hands on her, I will murder you." Poump replied. He didn't like the idea that Kilton knew who Hilda was. Kilton raised his arms as if he was about to be stabbed even though Poump didn't draw his weapon.

"Don't be so mean, Poump!" Hilda interjected. "Kilton is a good friend of mine! He showed me a frog pond the other day!"

"With the supervision of Roldi the guard lady." Kilton added. "I would never be allowed near the Princess, and I wouldn't be near her without someone I know because otherwise I would be killed by an unknowing guard!"

"He speaks the truth Poump! This weakling wouldn't survive if someone like Roldi wasn't there to protect him!" Hilda said.

"I guess you're right." Poump said. "So what is it you want to sell me?"

"Take a look!" Kilton walked into the secret room and showcased his wares. "This right here is a Spring-Loaded Hammer! Gives your opponents a real bounce! Next to it is my collection of monster masks! Use these if you want to blend in with monsters." Kilton walked to something that was covered by some cloth. "And finally, the best item in stock that I have here. A fairy!" Kilton uncovered the item and revealed it to be a bottle with a fairy in it.

"Let me out of here you weirdo!" The fairy exclaimed to Kilton.

"Now now now little sprite, I have a buyer here!" Kilton said to the fairy. "Fairies are very rare and elusive! It is rumored that they can cure death!"

"That's because we CAN cure death!" The fairy replied. She tried to kick the bottle from the inside but it wouldn't budge.

"How much for this fairy?" Poump asked.

"500 mon!" Kilton replied.

"Kilton, how is anyone going to get this fairy if that price is so high?"

"Just bring me more monster parts!"

"There are no more monsters in the land, and as far as I know, the only living monsters left need to be kept safe."

"You have a very good point." Kilton thought to himself for a moment. "Tell you what, here's a bargain. If you can manage to defeat the tyrant in the Castle, I will give the fairy to you for free!"

"That's a deal." Poump replied. "I'll be back later." Poump walked out to the passageway and had Hilda follow him some more. They eventually made it to a door that opened into a small alleyway.

"Follow me! I have a place that I like the most around here!" Hilda said as she hurriedly started running forward. Poump followed behind closely. They ran through the marketplace weaving their way through the crowds. Hilda eventually made it out of Poump's view. He continued walking forward and eventually saw Hilda running across the main plaza in her cloak. She stopped to pet a dog that ran up to her. Poump took this as an opportunity to catch up to her.

"You shouldn't be running this fast, it's hard to keep up with you." Poump said to her out of breath.

"Roldi doesn't complain this much." Hilda said as she was petting the dog.

"Remember Princess, I'm a new guard who is new to this job." Poump replied, still catching his breath.

"Then get used to it, newbie." Hilda said. The dog looked at someone else and ran up to them for some more petting. "Now that the dog has averted it's attention, let's continue!" Hilda started running across the Main Plaza, and Poump tried his best to catch up. He was following her quite well, and the fact that he was wearing a guard uniform made a lot of people in the crowd move off to the side. The commotion attracted Groose and his friends, who happened to be shopping for bread.

"Hey guys, is that Poump?" Groose asked his friends.

"It sure does look like him." Netrea replied. Cawlin and Stritch nodded their heads in agreement.

"Let's see what he's up to!" Groose said as he and his friends followed behind.

Meanwhile with the Sheikah and the Zora, the both of them decided to go into Hyrule Castle. "From the orders of Chancellor Aghanim, we are allowed entrance." The Sheikah said to the gatekeeper.

"I never said you weren't allowed in." The gatekeeper said with a hint of sarcasm. "Open the gates." Both of them walked into the courtyard and they saw Smithy working on some metal. This sparked an idea in the Sheikah's head.

"What if we could get that smithy to work on something that could repel magic attacks?" The Sheikah said to the Zora.

"That's a very good idea, let's ask him about that." The Zora added and the both of them walked up to the smithy. "Hello there."

"Why good day to you two and your feathered friend, how may I assist you?" Smithy replied.

"We would like to know if you can make something that is capable of repelling magic attacks." The Sheikah said. "A shield would be preferred."

"Oh I see, you're in need of a Mirror Shield. I can whip that up for you but it'll cost 2,500 rupees."

"That's a deal. Here they are." The Sheikah handed Smithy 2,500 rupees.

"I'll get to work on it." Smithy started smelting some metal and used a tray to get the shape of the shield correct. The metal he was using seemed to be made of an ore that was mostly found in Death Mountain. "May I ask who you plan on fighting?"

"Excuse me?" The Sheikah replied confused.

"No one ever comes up to me asking for a Mirror Shield unless they're planning on fighting someone with magic abilities." Smithy let the metal steep for a bit and looked around to make sure no one was listening. "You plan on rebelling against the Chancellor Aghanim himself, right?"

"Uh… no." The Sheikah replied.

"Of course you are." Smithy replied. "Just know that I'm on your side. I know that Aghanim isn't the best person to be in power right now. There's even been talks amongst the guards of this castle that said they wanted to rebel against Aghanim, however they fear the consequences of doing such a thing. It is well known among the guards that Aghanim possesses great destructive magical abilities. We've been in the middle of coordinating a rebellion against Aghanim. Some castle guards went to Death Mountain to gather these ores so that way we could craft this fabled Mirror Shield. You two managed to come at the right time to have it for yourself, since you bought it after all. Because you're helping us, you can keep this shield after all of this is over."

"Thank you for your help, smith." The Sheikah said. "We really needed it."

"You're welcome, Warrior." Smithy replied.

Meanwhile with Poump, Hilda pulled out her purple Sheikah Eye at a wall and then ran right through it. Poump followed behind really closely. Hilda took off her cloak once she was behind the wall. The other side of the wall was an entrance to a staircase that lead up to the top of a really tall tower. They ascended the rather tall staircase to the tower and arrived at the top. The tower had a full 360 view of the kingdom. "I really like it here!" Hilda exclaimed. "Not many people walk around this area. I can see all of the mountains from here!"

Poump looked across Hyrule Field, looking at the landscape with the Sheikah Towers in the distance. Poump couldn't help but notice the Sheikah Tower that seemed to be standing on a landmass, or a plateau way off in the distance. Despite how significant this plateau looks from a distance, it never really was in Poump's mind as a place of importance, despite its appearance.

"I can name all of the mountains!" Hilda said. She pointed towards the mountains in the West. "That mountain range is called the Hebra Mountains, and that other mountain right there is called Satori Mountain!"

"Very interesting." Poump said. He pretended to be interested as he didn't want to hurt her feelings.

"Can you name the mountains to the East?" Hilda said to Poump.

"Uh." Poump looked at the mountains on the East Side of Hyrule. Poump noticed two peaks in the distance. "Those are the Twin Peaks, right?"

"No they aren't, those are the Dueling Peaks." Hilda said.

Poump looked at the large mountain with a ring above it behind Hyrule Castle. "That's Death Mountain." Poump said as he pointed at Death Mountain.

"Correct! That's an easy one but I can at least give you that." Hilda shifted her attention towards the plateau in the distance. "Do you know what the place is called?"

"Uh, I hear it's called The Great Plateau." Poump replied with uncertainty.

"You are right! They say that someone of great importance was resurrected there. I wonder who that would be." Hilda said.

Poump started sweating. He knew it was Link who was revived on the Plateau, and Link was also the father of this girl. "Do you know about-"

"Link? Yeah of course I do! He's the Great Hero!" She looked across the land once again. "Someday I'm going to climb all of these mountains, just like Link did! It will be a grand adventure, with plenty of danger around every corner!" Hilda gleefully pantomimed herself swinging a sword and shooting an arrow from a bow. "I hear that Link is a really good friend of my Mom's!"

"Of course he is." Poump sweated profusely.

Hilda noticed Poump's behavior. "You look like you're stressed. Let's go back down to Castle Town, you don't seem to enjoy heights like this." Hilda walked back down the stairs of the tower with Poump following behind. Hilda put her cloak back on. They made it back to ground level and walked through the wall. Groose and friends were walking around the alleyway searching for Poump, and turned around just at the moment Poump had fully emerged from the wall.

"Poump! We've been looking for you! What's with the get up?" Groose said. "Have you been promoted to working as a guard for Hyrule Castle?"

"Yes." Poump replied. "And I'm watching over this little rascal." Poump pretended that Hilda was a criminal that he was catching. "They stole an apple."

"That's an awful cute thief right there." Netrea added as she looked at Hilda with her face half concealed by the cloak.

"They come in all shapes and sizes." Poump said with great confidence. "Now move along citizens, I have to take this thief to the cell block."

Hilda started laughing. "You're a terrible guard." Hilda mimicked Poump's stance and deepened her voice. "Now move along citizens, I have to take this thief to the cell block!"

Groose and friends started laughing at this. "She's very funny!" Groose said, holding onto his sides from laughter. "Sorry man, it's just, y'know, that was really funny."

Poump shook it off. He thought for a moment. "Will you guys keep a good secret?"

"Us? Of course!" Groose said. "Anything for my best friend!" Groose's friends nodded.

"Alright, this little girl is actually Queen Zelda's daughter. I've been put in charge of looking over her from her highness herself."

"Whoa that's pretty cool!" Groose said with great enthusiasm. "You're in the big leagues now!"

Hilda looked at all of Poump's friends. "Would you all like to do something with us?"

Poump looked at Hilda. "I'm not sure if I'm allowed to do something like that. What would we do together?"

"We would go ride on horses!" Hilda said excitedly.

"Isn't that against the rules? I have to keep you inside the castle walls." Poump said to Hilda. He did not want to be confronted by Roldi.

"No it isn't against the rules! Let's go horse riding! On the field!" Hilda said to Poump.

"What do you think, guys?" Poump said to Groose and the gang.

"I say you should do it." Groose said. "She looks like she really wants to do it."

"Alright then." Poump looked at Hilda. "I'll go get my horse." Poump, Hilda, and friends walked through the gates out to the stable in front of Hyrule Castle Town. Poump took out his horse, and the others did too. Poump had Hilda in front of him and put her hands on the horse's reins. "Don't let go of these reins at all. You hear me?"

Hilda started to get a little nervous. "I've never ridden on a horse before. It's so high up." She was used to standing on a tall tower that didn't move as opposed to a living animal that did move.

"We're here now. All you need to do is focus ahead of yourself, and know that I have your back." Poump said to Hilda. She gained some courage.

"Okay." Hilda replied. Poump pumped at the reins and his horse started running, with Groose and the gang's horses following behind them. The wind came across Hilda's face in an exciting breeze. Her worries no longer existed as she watched Hyrule Field coming at her at 40 miles per hour. She slowly let go of the horse's reins and spread her arms out catching as much air as she possibly could. "Woo-hoooo!" She screamed, feeling so exhilarated. Her hair blew violently in the wind, getting into Poump's face, however Poump didn't mind the hair in his face as he knew his horse was good at guiding itself. Poump's friends rode up to the side of Poump's horse in formation, making a wonderful display of coordination amongst all of them. The team rode back towards the Castle Town gates, stopped their horses, and then put them back into the stable outside. "That was amazing!" Hilda said feeling extremely excited. "Thank you so much, Poump! I love you!" She hugged Poump's legs with affection.

"This is amazing, Poump! You're doing well in the eyes of the Royal Family!" Groose said feeling proud of him. A few castle guards walked up to Poump.

"You're coming with us." The guards said to Poump. Hilda let go of him. "Chancellor Aghanim wants to speak with you."

"Uh oh." Poump said under his breath.

"And you, Princess Hilda. You're going back to your room." The guard said.

"What are you going to do to him?" Hilda said to the guard.

"Whatever Aghanim wants." The guard responded.

"I have something else I need to do." Poump replied.

"You can do that after you speak to Aghanim." The guard said to Poump.

Hilda slipped something into one of Poump's pockets. "Fine, take us in." Hilda said. Groose rubbed the back of his head. He knew something bad was going to happen.

Poump and Hilda were escorted by the guards back into Hyrule Castle. Just before Poump was separated from Hilda, she quickly told him something. "Use the Eye!" And then Hilda was brought back to her chamber by the guards.

Chapter 13: The Deathmarch

The guards brought Poump to the throne room. Aghanim was sitting in the throne above the room. "Ah yes, the guard in charge of the Princess." Aghanim motioned to the guards to form a circle around the room and he motioned to another set of guards to leave the room. He walked down the steps to greet Poump. "So, Roldi put you in charge of looking over the girl?"

"Yes." Poump replied with impatience. "Zelda herself put her trust in me to take care of her."

"Your name is Poump, is it not? You've been training at the Knight Academy for the past 3 years."

"Cut to the point, Grandpa." Poump said with conviction.

Aghanim didn't like this much. "You want to know why I brought you here. It is because I've had growing suspicions that you are a Yiga. A Yiga assassin, integrating themselves into our society, attempting to uproot it from the inside. And you did quite an impressive job at disguising yourself this far. Even as far as making it to take care of Hilda, the daughter of Zelda."

"I'm not a Yiga!" Poump screamed. "I am NOT affiliated with them!"

"That's what they all say." Aghanim replied. "Since it is my third day in charge, you are the perfect start to establishing a new rule of mine."

"And what's that?" Poump said feeling really uneasy.

Aghanim peered his evil eyes at Poump from under his hood. "Public execution."

The Sheikah and the Zora had seen the guards taking Poump to the throne room coming back in their direction. "What's going on with that guard?" The Zora asked one of the guards.

"They have forsaken the name of the Royal Family under Aghanim's jurisdiction." The guard replied.

"What is Aghanim going to do to that guard?

"Aghanim is going to publicly execute the guard for being a Yiga spy." The guard responded.

"Good riddance." The Zora said. To the Zora, all that mattered was the safety of the party, and as far as she knew, the guard that was being escorted wasn't even Poump.

"Alright, your Mirror Shield is ready to use." Smithy said as he finished banging the metal together. Smithy poured some water over the hot and steaming shield in order to cool it down. Smithy handed it to the two of them. "Good luck to both of you. Make sure you have some back up along with you. Some of the guards around the castle are brave enough to face Aghanim themselves, while most of them can't get themselves to do it, knowing it could result in their death."

"We will make sure we do this with ease, Smithy." The Sheikah replied.

Poump was in the throne room, surrounded by guards. "The execution will begin in one hour." Aghanim proclaimed. "Guards, lock him up temporarily." The guards in the room swarmed Poump and dragged him towards a secret staircase that was underneath the throne. He tried struggling out with his Power Bracelets which managed to knock out one of the guards but another guard used the butt of their sword to knock Poump out.

Poump woke up in a small cell just minutes after he was knocked out. He thought to himself about any possible options he could do to get out of this predicament. He remembered that Hilda slipped something into his pocket. He pulled it out, and it seemed to be the purple Sheikah Eye that Hilda was using earlier. He pointed it around the cell looking through the Eye. He noticed something strange about one of the walls. Whenever he pointed the Eye at the wall, a switch appeared. When the Eye wasn't pointed at the wall, there was no switch. Using the Eye, he pushed at the switch and then the wall parted ways revealing an exit. He walked through the passageway and eventually found himself in the same area where Hilda's room was hidden. He used the Eye on the wall and saw a portion of it completely disappear. He walked in and came face to face with the brick wall to Hilda's room. He tapped each brick accordingly and the wall opened up. Hilda was looking outside of the window and then turned around happy to see Poump.

"You made it!" Hilda said. "They actually listened!"

"What do you mean they listened?" Poump asked.

"You might be surprised how much power I have here. I ordered the guards to put you in that specific cell because it had a secret passageway that lead over here!" Hilda closed the brick wall. "You might want to know what that item your holding is. It's called the Eye of Truth, and it reveals things that are unseen from the human eye, like those false walls that we walked through earlier today!"

"Oh, that's interesting." Poump replied. He handed the Eye of Truth back to Hilda. "I believe you should keep this though."

"No no! You should keep it! You deserve it! You gave me the happiest moment in my whole life!" Hilda walked up to her bed and sat on it. "I know about the evil deeds that Chancellor Aghanim has done. I even know what truly courses through his veins thanks to the Eye of Truth." She got off of her bed and walked up to Poump. "Please be careful, newbie. I don't want you to die because of a misunderstanding."

"I laugh in the face of death, Hilda. Aghanim doesn't scare me." Poump said with confidence.

"Death is something you SHOULD be scared of." Hilda said with serious eyes. Poump lost his confidence and thought to himself about the dead Hylian Yiga.

"You're right, little Princess." Poump replied. "Don't you worry, I'll get rid of Aghanim and I'll be fine afterwards."

"I hope so." Hilda replied. Poump walked out of the room and waved goodbye to Hilda. He snuck his way through the corridors and eventually found himself back at the Hall of Heroes. He was sneaking behind one of the statues when all of a sudden he accidentally bumped into a guard patrolling the area. It was Roldi!

"Poump! How did you escape your prison cell?" Roldi asked.

"I escaped the prison cell with my own method that I won't tell you since you're an agent of Aghanim's." Poump said, he began to draw his sword.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Do you actually THINK that I would be on Aghanim's side? I thought the idea of publicly executing you was a terrible idea."

"So you mean to tell me you're not working for the Chancellor?"

"Technically speaking, yes I am working for the Chancellor. However I serve Queen Zelda whether she is in the castle or out of the castle, and Aghanim's idea of what Hyrule should be is a terrible idea. We and the guards have been planning to rebel against the Chancellor since we've gathered enough evidence that he is a purely evil person who does wicked things. With this evidence, we will be able to cover ourselves as guards, and the General of the Knights of Hyrule will take Queen Zelda's place at that point."

"Who is this general?" Poump asked.

"You're looking right at her." Roldi responded. "Zelda trusts me a lot, so the guards and I have made the decision that I would be fit for ruling in Zelda's stead. We even consulted her ourselves with my very own Sheikah Slate."

"Well that's great! Where are the others that we're waiting for right now?" Poump asked.

"They're joining us right now." Roldi said as 7 soldiers started pouring into the room, followed by the Sheikah and the Zora.

"You two!" Poump said excitedly.

"And our Cuckoo friend." The Zora added, as she patted the Cuckoo.

"Well team, let's overthrow the Chancellor!" Roldi said as she raised her sword into the air. The soldiers raised their own swords into the air as well, and the whole squad started marching to the throne room. They passed by some guards who watched them march along. The guards solemnly watched as the rebellious soldiers marched in a rhythm. The ones that stood by started joining in the march and soon enough 10 more guards had joined their ranks, as they made a death march towards the throne room. This boosted their ranks up to 20 people, counting Poump, the Sheikah, and the Zora. The soldiers started chanting. Their chanting was a familiar tune that Poump had heard before in Kass' music class. It sounded like the Song of the Hero, which was composed as a song dedicated to Link, the Hero. Even though Link wasn't around to assist them with their mission, the soldiers chanted his theme as a form of working up their courage. Poump joined in the chanting, and soon enough the Sheikah and the Zora did as well. A lot of these soldiers knew this could very well be their last day alive, so they chanted with great honor, knowing that they were fighting for a great cause.

Once they entered the room and were face to face with Aghanim, Poump pulled out the Eye of Truth and pointed it at him. He seemed to notice a purple energy emanating from inside of him, as if his blood stream was completely visible. The soldiers lined up, preparing their weapons.

Aghanim had his back turned to the soldiers. "So, this so-called rebellion that I've heard about for such a long time was true." Aghanim turned around with his hands behind his back. "It appears your supposed mission will be put to an end however. Why would you even want to live in a Hyrule in which the Yiga Clan still continues to exist?"

"That is genocide, and your ways of going about killing the Yiga is flawed." The Sheikah said. "Your paranoia has harmed many Hylians across Hyrule, and you have falsely executed many people. We are here to put an end to your tyranny."

"This is only the beginning of my New Order." Aghanim said stoically. "The Royal Family's way of dealing with its enemies is a slow process. My Order will begin with your heads, and soon enough, I will have taught the Princess, Hilda, about my ways. Leading to a future of Hyrule where the Yiga don't exist, one where this rebellion doesn't exist. Only a Hyrule ruled with complete power in my hands."

"Don't you fucking TOUCH Hilda!" Poump screamed as he pulled out his sword and rushed at Aghanim. Poump didn't get close enough to Aghanim when Aghanim raised his hand and an electric shock blasted him back. Poump was reeling from the attack while he was on the floor.

"Foolish move." Aghanim said. He waved his hands around and 4 wizard-like enemies appeared around him, carrying special magic rods. "Wizzrobes, attack!"

The soldiers all got in formation. 3 of them formed a shield wall in front of Poump who was grounded. The Zora lead the charge while holding the Mirror Shield up in front of herself. 1 of the Wizzrobes blasted a magic attack at the Zora's Mirror Shield, which reflected back at it and caused it to fall over. Behind the 3 shield formation, Poump was fading fast. One of the soldiers who had a shield up tossed a bottle towards Poump. "Drink up!" Poump drank the contents in the bottle and got back up feeling good as new. "Let's fight him with strategy!"

"Good plan." Poump responded. Aghanim blasted some electricity at the soldiers with their shields up and they continued pressing on. Aghanim didn't know this, but the soldiers had wooden shields that were painted to look like metal, so therefore the electric current wasn't able to shock any of the soldiers. 4 of the soldiers held their shields forward and stabbed their swords at Aghanim, who got cut a little bit. Aghanim all of a sudden disappeared and appeared behind the soldiers and blasted them with an electric shock up close, killing them instantly. The 3 Wizzrobes in the room were confronting 6 of the soldiers in the room. The soldiers coordinated their attacks and managed to kill 2 of the Wizzrobes, however the last Wizzrobe was crafty and managed to dodge their incoming attacks. It danced around in the air and waved its Magic Rod and summoned a ball of fire that landed onto 2 of the soldiers. The fire roasted them alive, leaving them charred on the floor. Another soldier pulled out a bow and knocked an arrow tipped with ice and shot the remaining Wizzrobe, killing it instantly.

The Sheikah circled around the room waiting for an opening to attack Aghanim personally. He watched as 2 more soldiers died to Aghanim's lightning. He teleported right in front of Aghanim and sliced his sword at him, causing a cut to form in his robes and skin. The Sheikah couldn't help but notice the skin seal itself back together., right before Aghanim gave the Sheikah a shock that almost killed him. Aghanim prepared to blast at the grounded Sheikah, however the Zora jumped in front of him with her Mirror Shield in hand. The lightning reflected back at Aghanim, causing him to be stunned.

"Now! Attack!" The soldiers said as they ran towards Aghanim and attacked him with their swords. Poump joined in but noticed a small electric force field starting to form around Aghanim.

"Quick! Out of the way!" Poump said and he and several other soldiers rolled away from Aghanim, who swiftly formed an electric force field surrounding him. The force field moved really fast and claimed the life of 1 of the soldiers. The Sheikah downed a health potion and got up, ready to fight again.

Aghanim walked towards the group of soldiers. The soldiers backed away, some switched to using bows. They dispersed in order to keep themselves away from the deadly field surrounding Aghanim. He blasted some lightning at one of the fleeing soldiers, but barely missed them. The Zora held up her Mirror Shield towards Aghanim, but Aghanim wasn't deterred by her attempt. He ignored her knowing that the Mirror Shield would reflect his magic back at him, and went after Poump

"Catch!" The Zora said to Poump, and she tossed him her Mirror Shield. Poump grabbed the shield in mid-air and charged right for Aghanim shield first. Poump ended up inside of Aghanim's electric field. Despite the pain, Poump knew this was working, since the Mirror Shield was reflecting most of the magic against Aghanim. The magic overwhelmed Aghanim, and caused his electric force field to recede. Aghanim was on the floor, riddled with his own energy killing him from the inside. Poump swung his sword at Aghanim.

"This is for killing the others!" Poump swung again, "This is for threatening Hilda's life!" Poump swung one more time. "And this is for Hyrule!" Poump's final attack stabbed Aghanim right through the face, killing the tyrant in a final blow.

A purple energy started emanating above Aghanim's body and formed into a purple eye ball. It looked around the room and noticed the Cuckoo. It zoomed directly towards the Cuckoo and went inside of it. "Backaw." The Cuckoo said. "BACKAW!" The Cuckoo screamed in immense pain and all of a sudden the Cuckoo started growing into the shape of a Hylian. The feathers fell off and what replaced them was a large oversized cloak. The party looked at the Cuckoo's new form. It had large horns on its head, and was apparently a Hylian female with white hair. It looked around the room. "M-m-m-meat." The Hylian Girl said.

"What in the world?" The Sheikah said.

"What happened to our Cuckoo?" The Zora exclaimed.

Poump brought out the Eye of Truth and examined the Hylian Girl. The purple energy that was emanating from inside Aghanim was emanating inside of her now. "Looks like something-" Poump's attention shifted to what was behind him. This new happening could be sorted out later, he thought to himself. He walked across the room. Only 8 of the 17 soldiers were alive. General Roldi walked around the room, looking at her fallen comrades. Poump noticed one of the dead bodies on the floor. This person looked familiar. Poump thought for a few moments and learned that this was the soldier that helped him live through the Yiga Siege on Hyrule Castle. He knelt down to his body and closed his eyes. Roldi kept her distance from Poump, knowing that he was emotionally distraught, and also really young. The soldiers mourned their losses, while the Zora and the Sheikah also kneeled in silence.

A day passed after the battle was finished, the bodies of the soldiers were taken outside of the walls of Hyrule Castle to be buried. They were buried north of the castle, in a special graveyard dedicated to the soldiers of Hyrule. Roldi was at the graveyard, burying their bodies with the assistance of the other soldiers. The families of the dead soldiers were also at the burial. Even Link himself joined in watching the burial. He knew what it was like to lose friends in combat… too many times to count.

As for the party, they were in the courtyard at Hyrule Castle. The Zora was mostly bamboozled by the fact that the Cuckoo had turned into a Hylian Girl. They noticed that her white hair started to turn red coming from her scalp, but ended at a certain point. "We're going to need to come up with a name for her." The Zora said.

"Alright, how about Tipa?" The Sheikah asked.

"Tipa?"

"Yeah, Tipa."

"That sounds good." The Zora replied. "You are now named Tipa." The Zora patted the Hylian Girl on the head.

Poump decided to check on Hilda after all of the madness that happened. He went back to her room and saw that she was nowhere to be found. "Hilda? Princess? It's over, you can come out now."

A gust of leaves appeared. "Hee-hee-hee-hee." It was Skull Kid. "Looking for my friend?"

"What did you do with Hilda you little shit." Poump said to Skull Kid. He'd lost all patience, especially when it involves Hilda.

"Oh yes, Hilda is being kept in the Akkala Region, in a place where we can play together."

Poump pulled out his sword and swiped at Skull Kid, but Skull Kid teleported out of the way from the attack. "Give her BACK!" Poump screamed.

"You'll have to come to the Akkala Region if you want her again. You would be a great guest for our play time. See you!" The Skull Kid disappeared in a gust of leaves. Poump punched a wall and put a dent into it.

Poump walked back to Kilton's shop. "Give me the fairy. Now." Poump said with extreme urgency.

"You killed Aghanim, so here you go." Kilton handed Poump the fairy in the bottle with his hands shaking. Once Kilton gave Poump the fairy, he raised his hands up in fear. "Don't kill me!"

"I'm not here to kill you." Poump replied. "Give me one of those monster masks." Poump handed Kilton 30 mon, and was given a Bokoblin Mask. "Thank you, Kilton."

"You're… welcome." Kilton was still shaking at Poump's authority.

Poump was walking back to the others while he looked at the fairy in the bottle. "Get me out of here!" The fairy said.

"No way, what if you fly away?" Poump replied.

"I won't!"

"I doubt that. There's a saying that goes: 'If you open a bottle with a fairy, it's useless.'"

"Phooey!" The fairy kicked itself around the bottle and then gave up.

Poump made it back to the others. "We're heading to the Akkala Region. Now." Poump said.

"We need to stop by Keeseman in order to get our money first." The Sheikah replied.

"We'll do that first, but it's straight to the Akkala Region we go."

"Alright then, the sooner we get this monster colony done, the faster I can be back at Zora's Domain." The Zora added.

The party walked through Castle Town on their way back to Payne Manor. A lot of people in the Main Plaza looked at the party, but mostly Tipa. Her large horns on her head made her a strange sight for many of the citizens. "We need to get to the Akkala Region as soon as we possibly can." Poump said with urgency. "We need to get a map so we can navigate around there easier."

"Did someone say they're headed to the Akkala Region?" A light and dumpy voice said from the party's right. A rather fat guy wearing green tights and red underwear was manning a booth.

"Yes, we're headed there right now." Poump replied.

"Looks like you're in need of a map! For if it isn't I, Tingle the Mapmaker! Come closer!" The party came closer to the stand. "If you would like to have a map of the region, I can give you a paper version of the map for 500 rupees!"

"500 rupees? That's too much. Is there any other map option we can buy?" Poump replied.

"I see you have a Sheikah Slate on you! I can download the map data of an area directly onto your Sheikah Slate for 1,000 rupees!"

"That's still too much for a basic map." Poump replied.

"I can give you a-" Tingle paused for a moment and looked at a bottle on Poump's waist. "OH MY GOODNESS IS THAT A FAIRY?!"

Poump looked down at his bottle. "Yeah, it is."

"If you give me that fairy, I will give a map to ALL of Hyrule for FREE!" Tingle said. He was ecstatic at the idea of keeping a fairy for himself.

The fairy, however, didn't like this idea at all. "No way! Nuh-uh! Do NOT give me to this freak! I already spent a whole week with another freak!"

Poump thought about the offer for a solid 15 seconds. "No, I won't give you the fairy. Here's 1,000 rupees for the downloadable map." Poump handed Tingle 1,000 rupees.

Tingle was a bit heartbroken that he couldn't get this fairy for himself, but he accepted the 1,000 rupees anyway. Tingle brought the Sheikah Slate up to a weird crystal which put a small drop onto the screen. "Here you go customer." Tingle handed the Slate back to Poump.

"Thank you. Now let's go." Poump and the others started walking out of Castle Town and boarded their horses. They made it to Payne Manor and were allowed inside.

"Here are your 30,000 rupees." Bruce said to the party. "By the way, what's up with this girl and why does she have horns on her head?"

"That's a long story. Basically our Cuckoo turned into her after we defeated Aghanim." The Zora replied.

"Interesting." Bruce said. "I recognize these horns. They appear to be Lynel Horns." Bruce walked them towards a hall in which he had several monster parts on the walls. "If you look at this horn, you'll notice that it matches up with how these horns look. There has never been a recorded moment in history that involved Hylians taking on the features of a monster before. It looks like all of you witnessed history yesterday, both with the discovery of this new creature, and the defeat of Aghanim. Thanks to all of you, the people of Hyrule won't have to suffer for whatever his plans could've been. You are welcome to this house whenever you feel like coming by."

"Thank you so much Bruce." The Sheikah replied. "We will stop by once our adventures allow us to come by."

"By the way, I will outfit her with something a little more practical than an oversized cloak." Bruce brought Tipa into a room and brought her back out. She was now wearing what looked like a Sheikah outfit. It wasn't the outfit of a Sheikah Warrior, but it was an outfit that was fit for doing battle. Tipa also had two katanas on her back. While although Bruce never wanted himself to kill others directly, he knew that in the current times the people of Hyrule were way too on edge. It's a frustration of his, knowing that many human lives have ended across Hyrule, however he knew that the best he could do was to help the community at Castle Town.

The party ate some food in the house and then got out of the house and headed straight towards the East, where the Akkala Region is. They rode their horses forward for quite a while, but then Poump felt his Sheikah Slate vibrate. The party stopped, it was Zelda. She seemed to look distressed. "Hello there team, I heard about what happened at Hyrule Castle. Roldi told me everything. It's such a shame that Aghanim wasn't who I thought he was. It seems you can't really trust everyone these days. Anyways, what's been happening with the lot of you?"

"We're headed to the Akkala Region in order to get the next monster colony." Poump replied.

"And our Cuckoo friend also seems to have transformed into a monster/Hylian hybrid of some kind." The Zora added. Poump angled the Slate to show Zelda the new party member.

"Wow, that's quite interesting." Zelda said feeling a bit unfocused. "Something's wrong. I can tell. I can see it in your eyes, Poump."

"What do you mean?" Poump replied.

"What happened to Hilda?" Zelda said, with a lot of distress.

"Hilda…" Poump paused for a moment. "Hilda has been taken to the Akkala Region by someone called Skull Kid."

"HILDA HAS BEEN TAKEN? AWAY FROM HYRULE CASTLE?" Zelda was furious.

"Yes." Poump replied, feeling really scared. Zelda hung up the call and as if from out of nowhere, a loud screeching voice echoed through all of Hyrule.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" The scream sounded like Zelda's, and it was petrifying. After a few short seconds, the party regained their ability to move, and then clouds started covering the sky. Rain started pouring. The Zora felt refreshed, however the other party members felt miserable. But for Poump, he didn't feel miserable from the rain. He felt miserable from what had happened.

Chapter 14: The Akkala Region

The rain poured constantly as the party rode towards the Akkala Region. They followed the roads and the road signs and they eventually made it to a fork in the road. One of the roads had a large bridge that lead to a fortress, and the other road went downhill towards a field with trees and a few houses dotted about. The party followed the road downhill and rode passed the houses across the large field. Poump took out his Slate to look at the map of the area. "There's a town called Tarrey Town just south from here." Poump said. "If we want answers, we might want to go there."

"I agree, let's go over there." The Sheikah said. The party rode the horses south. They eventually saw a small town in a circular area with the only way of travel to it by a land bridge. They crossed the land bridge and got off of their horses in Tarrey Town. Most of the inhabitants of the village were indoors, except for one Goron child who was jumping in a water puddle, and a rather muscular Hylian with a big belly and a Gerudo who were underneath an overhang to their house. The party walked up to them.

"Excuse me, would you have happened to hear about a Skull Kid around here?" Poump asked the Hylian and the Gerudo.

"A Skull Kid? I don't even know what that is!" The Hylian responded.

"Wait a moment, are you the Monster Squad?" The Gerudo asked.

"Why yes, how did you know?" Poump was confused as to how this Gerudo knew about them.

"The Queen told us about a group of people assisting her with her mission. It consisted of a Hylian, a Sheikah Warrior, and a Zora. Looks like there are two Hylians here, so that must mean you guys found another friend to tag along with you. You even have a Sheikah Slate on your waist, and only rich folks or people that work under Zelda have one of those. All the evidence points to all of you being the Monster Squad that she talked about. We're even good friends with Link, who is a part of this squad. You've met Link, right?"

"Yeah, we have." Poump replied.

"Nice. Without that man, our lives wouldn't be the same." The Gerudo said and then she and the Hylian kissed each other in the lips without any regard for the party watching them. They stopped kissing. "Say, Link told us to prepare the area around this town for keeping hold of a bunch of monsters. He says it has to do with Zelda's plan. We'll be ready to do anything for Link, even if it means keeping a hold on a bunch of foul monsters near our town."

"Actually, that reminds me, would you happen to know where monsters would live?" Poump asked.

"If you asked us this 9 years ago we would answer correctly. Right now, it's a blind guess." The Hylian said. "We have never seen a single monster in a long time, so you're going to need to ask someone else about the monsters. For as far as we're concerned, we will just be holding them for a while."

"Alright then, thanks anyway. Know of any place where we could ask for some more information about Akkala?"

"Directly North of here if you follow the road, you will find the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab. That would be a good place to get more information at."

"Alright, thank you. What are your names?" Poump asked.

"My name is Hudson." The Hylian said.

"And I am Rhodson." The Gerudo stated.

"And my name is Poump. Take care." Poump waved goodbye to them. They waved back. Poump looked at the Goron child jumping into the puddles. A vein appeared on his head.

"You're becoming a respectable public speaker, Poump." The Sheikah said.

"I guess I am." Poump responded. The party rode their horses up North across the large fields of the Akkala Region. The rain continued. They eventually passed by a stable on the road. They quickly stopped by to buy some supplies and then they continued riding forward. They reached a building that looked quite interesting. It had a large telescope pointed out to the ocean beyond the cliffs. There was a Guardian patrolling the area, but it had a blue eye, so it was fine. The party put their horses in an area under a roof and walked up to the door and passed some blue flames.

"I hope Robbie recognizes me." The Sheikah knocked on the door. Someone answered.

"Hello who is it-" the person behind the door paused. "Warrior! It's you! Come in!" The door opened. A short guy wearing a weird set of goggles observed the party. "Wow, it's been so long since I last saw you Warrior! And I see you have some friends along."

"Yes, this is my friend Poump, a Zora, and Tipa. Would you happen to have any knowledge about what's happening with Tipa? A purple eye flew into a Cuckoo and turned it into this Hylian with horns on their head."

"Intriguing!" Robbie scuttled towards a large bookshelf area. "Jerrin! Can you find a book with knowledge about Malice! I think we've found a discovery!" A female Sheikah slid down a ladder.

"Discovery? About Malice?!" Jerrin replied.

"Yes! Can you believe it?!" Robbie and Jerrin grabbed each others hands and jumped for joy, although Robbie was slightly being carried because Jerrin was much taller than him. Jerrin looked through all of the 100s of books on the shelf. Robbie pulled a bed out of the wall. "Let's have Tipa rest on this." Tipa was guided onto the bed. Robbie pulled out a small device that scanned Tipa's body. "So it appears the Malice went entirely inside her bloodstream. Observe her hair. Notice how some of it is red and the rest of it is white?"

"Yes."

"This is because her blood, which is tainted with Malice, is accumulating into her hair, causing the red pigmentation. Jerrin, you're writing this down, right?"

"Right!" Jerrin was writing in a notebook.

"What is extremely interesting about this, is that whenever the Malice used to bond with another being, it would always latch onto them on the outside, so the fact that it's inside of the bloodstream is entirely new in our findings!" The device beeped. "What's this?" Robbie observed it some more. "A CUCKOO?! This girl was a Cuckoo beforehand?!"

"Yeah, apparently whatever this malice is was inside of a person that we killed, and it immediately chose to possess the Cuckoo that was traveling with us." The Sheikah elaborated.

"Is there anyway we can turn her back into a Cuckoo?" The Zora asked.

"Not that I would know of. This is way too new of a finding. I will contact Purah, another scientist like myself who lives in Hateno Village. She runs her own Tech Lab around there. We will collaborate on this research and see if we can find a way to harmlessly remove the malice from Tipa. That is if it is possible at all."

Tipa silently shook her head. She didn't like the idea of becoming a Cuckoo again. She now had the ability to hold things with thumbs and she had just become accustomed to walking.

"One more thing. The Malice will erupt every 3 days and will transform Tipa into a ferocious Lynel. There is no telling how much sense Tipa could have as a Lynel, so be careful. Perhaps her progress could be linked with how her hair looks." Robbie put the device away. "So, do you have any more questions?"

"Yes actually, I would like to know if you happened to see a Skull Kid around the Akkala Region." Poump asked.

"A Skull Kid?" Robbie said. "I have no idea what a Skull Kid is, but there is a place just off to the West of here called Skull Lake. That would be the best place to find whoever this Skull Kid is. I advise you don't go yet. How many days has it been since Tipa gained the Malice?"

"Just one day." The Zora said.

"Here, if you sleep here in the Tech Lab, that will get another day out of the way. Then tomorrow, if you happen to find whatever Skull Kid you're looking for, Tipa will awaken in her Lynel form and can probably fight them for you! Hopefully by tomorrow this rain will stop."

"Sounds like a plan." Poump said.

The party spent the night in the Tech Lab. The sleeping area was very cramped, but comfortable enough for each of the party members to sleep at. Poump was awake looking at the fairy in the bottle. "When will you get me out of this bottle you big buffoon?" The fairy screamed.

"When we can trust you to not fly away. If you fairies can cure death, it would be really nice to have you around in case one of us dies." Poump replied. "Say, what's your name?"

"My name is Tatl." The fairy said. "I've been separated from the Great Fairy that overlooked me. That weirdo Kilton snatched me up and put me up for sale."

"Sounds awful." Poump replied with a sarcastic tone.

"Tell me about it. It is so embarrassing being stuffed in a glass bottle and being unable to move around for so long."

"Let's make a deal. If I release you out of this bottle, you promise that you won't leave us until one of us dies and you revive us?"

Tatl made a face that didn't look very convincing. "Yes I will stay by you until one of you die."

"That wasn't a very convincing face, Tatl." Poump replied. "I'll free you from this bottle tomorrow."

"No! No no no no no!" Tatl kicked around the bottle and tired herself out. She fell asleep and so did Poump.

The next day the party looked out the window from the tech lab. It was still raining. "Try to call Zelda, Poump. Update her on what's happened so far." The Zora asked.

"Alright, I'll try." Poump prepared to call Zelda. Instead of Zelda, someone else ended up picking up. It appeared to be an upside down Zora.

"Oh my, who are you people and why are you upside down?" The Zora on the other side said.

"Prince Sidon?!" The Zora replied.

"Oh my goodness, if it isn't Uten!" Sidon said. "How have you been? I haven't seen you in weeks!"

"I've been doing well, Sidon." Uten replied. "I'm working with Queen Zelda. By the way, you wouldn't happen to know what happened with Zelda, right?"

Sidon looked down. "She's been passed out for a day. She just screamed so loudly that it almost deafened everyone in Zora's Domain." The camera awkwardly moved to show Zelda sleeping on a bed in Zora's Domain. They noticed that Link was sitting beside her.

"Zelda was in Zora's Domain? She said she would go to Lurelin Village." Uten said.

"She told you that? She went here, to Zora's Domain. She said there was a siege at Hyrule Castle so she decided to come here." Sidon replied.

"That's kind of shady." The Zora said under her breath. The idea that Zelda lied to them about where she would be going made Uten feel uneasy. "Is there any way you can wake her up?"

"We tried everything. She's just been sleeping away for the past day." Sidon replied.

"Alright then. Thank you for updating us, Sidon." Uten said.

"Nice to see you're alright. Now how do I turn this thing off?" Sidon looked at the Slate very confused. Uten turned the Slate off.

"Since that's over with, let's head over to Skull Lake." Poump said. "I don't want to waste any time trying to find Hilda."

"And the monster colony." The Sheikah added. "By the way, Zora, your name was Uten the whole time?"

"Yes." Uten replied. "I didn't like people saying that name a lot. Since you guys have heard it, I guess it's fine you refer to me as Uten from now on."

"I think it's a great name." The Sheikah said. "Don't feel ashamed."

Uten felt a lot better. "Thank you Sheikah Warrior."

The party went downstairs to the door of the tech lab. Robbie was down there messing with something mechanical. "Oh hey there! I didn't get the chance to introduce you to Cherry! It's a robot I made that is capable of dispensing ancient technology. There's even a model of Cherry that is in Hyrule Castle. It recycles ancient parts from Guardians and turns them into weapons or armor. If you ever have ancient parts, you can give them to a Cherry unit in order to gain some guardian wares!"

"Very nice knowledge. We don't have ancient parts, but we will bring some here if we ever find any." The Sheikah said.

"Good to know. See you later adventurers!" Robbie said and he started looking in a book.

The party walked outside. It was still raining a lot. They heard something in the distance. "HEEEEYYYY!" A skinny Hylian man wearing red short shorts and a large backpack was running towards the group. "I have two letters. One is addressed to a Sheikah Warrior, and the other one is to Poump." The mailman handed them their letters. "I have other letters I need to deliver, so I have served my duty. Hup!" The mailman turned around and ran away into the distance. Poump looked at his letter. It was addressed from Roldi.

"Dear Poump. I want to thank you for assisting us with defeating Aghanim. It came with great losses, but what we did was important for the future of Hyrule. Who knows how bad Hyrule could've been under his jurisdiction for a full month. As the General of the Castle, I will announce you as a soldier for Hyrule once you come back to the Castle. However, I won't allow you into the Castle Walls until Hilda is found. Signed, Roldi."

The Sheikah opened up his letter. It was addressed from Paya in Kakariko Village.

"Dear Zhago. Impa has fallen really ill. You should come by Kakariko Village sometime soon. We don't know how much time she has left. We've also noticed that some of our crops have started withering. Please come by as soon as you can. From, Paya." The Sheikah didn't like that Paya directly referred to him by his name. This meant it was a serious matter, and it involved Impa as well.

"I need to go to Kakariko Village." The Sheikah said.

"No, you can't. We need you to help us with finding Hilda and the monster colony." Uten said.

The Sheikah looked very worried. "I guess I can stay with you for now. We should carry ourselves over to Skull Lake."

The party rode their horses across the Akkala fields and eventually found themselves at a large hole in the ground. There was a rock spire that was elevated above the hole. It even appeared that there was a blue Shrine on top of it. The party looked down the hole. The rain fell down into what looked like an unknown abyss. It had been raining so much that a small waterfall had formed in an area off to their right. "Hey Poump, would that fairy happen to help us with scouting out the bottom of this hole?" Uten said.

"I'll see." Poump said. He brought the bottle up, with Tatl inside. "Hey, Tatl."

"What is it?" Tatl said.

"We might need you to help us right now."

"Did someone die?" Tatl responded.

"No, not yet." Poump replied with a light chuckle.

"Oh man, that sucks."

"No no no, we need you to scout out the area down there." Poump said to Tatl. He pointed her to the endless abyss.

"You want me to fly down there?" Tatl said.

"Yes. We want you to see if there is anything of importance at the bottom of the hole, so that way we don't trap ourselves while we're down there."

"Okay. So you'll free me then?" Tatl said.

"Yes."

"Can I stay out of this bottle for the rest of my time with you?"

"Sure, just don't go flying off."

"Alright then. Open it up." Tatl said.

Poump opened up the bottle and Tatl flew out. She looked down the abyss. "Now go down there."

Tatl didn't like the idea of going there and getting caught, but it was all she could do for them. "Now go." Poump said to Tatl.

"I hope I don't regret this." Tatl flew down the abyss. The yellow light that emanated around her went down and got fainter and fainter until it completely disappeared. The party stood around for a while in the rain.

"Are you sure that the fairy wouldn't have betrayed us?" The Zora said to Poump.

"I hope not. Uten, you're a Zora. What if you dived down there and found Tatl?"

"What if there are sharp rocks at the bottom?" Uten replied.

"The place is called Skull Lake. And it's been raining for a long time. I bet you there's a good amount of water down there."

"You're right. I'll even be able to swim up that small waterfall once I'm down there." Uten prepared to dive. "Here goes." Uten ran off of the edge of the hole and dived straight down into the abyss. She moved so fast through the air that the rain drops moved at the same speed as her falling. After around 30 seconds of falling, she splashed into a body of water. She swam to a small island in the lake that she landed in and looked around. She saw Tatl's faint yellow glow off to the side and followed it. There was a large pile of rocks and Tatl was looking at it. "Alright Tatl, time for us to go." Uten said to Tatl.

"Wait up a moment, there's something behind these rocks." Tatl said as she kept looking at the rocks.

"We need to go back up."

"But!"

"We need to go now." Uten grabbed Tatl and made it to the waterfall and swam right up it. She made it to the top of the waterfall and reunited with the others.

"No sign of anything down there?" Poump said.

"Yup, no sign of anything of worth. Just a pile of rocks down there." Uten replied.

"Wait a moment." Poump felt a vibration from his Sheikah Slate. He picked it up, and Link was calling them.

"Hey Squad. How are you doing? I saw that you were calling Sidon earlier." Link said.

"Yeah. We did." Poump replied.

"You guys might want to know where the monster colony is, right?"

"Yes, we've been trying to find that out. Along with the location of Hilda." Poump quickly regretted saying that. He was so nonchalant about Hilda in front of everyone else that he forgot about keeping her a secret to Link.

"I'm sorry, did you say Hilda?" Link said. "Who's Hilda?"

"Uhm…" Poump was extremely stressed. If it weren't raining, his sweat would be visible. "She is Zelda's daughter." The Sheikah didn't like Poump being so uneasy under pressure like this.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Link hung up. In a few short seconds, a blue light appeared on the Shrine on the rock spire. It formed into a person and that person glided down towards the party. It was Link. "You mean to tell me that Zelda had a daughter the whole time and I didn't know?"

"Y-y-y-yeah." Poump was a bit shaken. "She is your daughter as well."

"Oh my goodness oh my goodness oh my goodness oh my goodness." Link repeated to himself. "I'm a father to a Princess. This means that I am a… King. I can't believe she never told me." Link didn't know what to do with himself, so he regained his composure. "What are you guys doing here at Skull Lake?"

"We're trying to find the Skull Kid. We suspect he's around here. He even has Hilda hostage." Poump replied.

"So not only do I have a daughter, but she's also been kidnapped." Link said. He paced around wildly, dangerously close to the slippery edge. "So this Skull Kid says it has Hilda somewhere here in the Akkala Region?"

"Yes." Poump replied.

"There are only two places that I know of here in the Akkala Region that would involve something important like the Skull Kid. Either here at Skull Lake, or at the Akkala Citadel which looks over the Akkala Region. Here's the plan. You guys can stay together and explore one of the areas, while I will explore the other area. Which place do you want to go to?"

"I'd like to go to the citadel." Poump said.

"Me too." Uten said.

"Likewise." The Sheikah said.

"Meat." Tipa muttered.

"So it is settled then." Link said. "I will explore Skull Lake while the lot of you will deal with exploring the Akkala Citadel."

"Alright then. We'll head our way over there." Poump said. The party got onto their horses. Link jumped down into the hole. The party rode their way towards the Akkala Citadel. There was a Sheikah Tower that was also at the Citadel's location, which made it easy to find. The party went uphill and arrived at the fork on the road which lead to the Citadel. They rode up towards it. There were plenty of Hylian soldiers patrolling around the area. They were stopped by a soldier standing in the road. The soldier observed them and noticed that one of them had a Sheikah Slate.

"You may pass." The soldier said and the party rode closer to the Citadel. They parked their horses at an area with cover. The Sheikah noticed that Poump had an item in his bag.

"Is that an Eye of Truth?" The Sheikah said to Poump.

"Yes, it is." Poump replied. "Hilda gave it to me."

"That will be really useful for us if we ever run into anyone disguised as a Yiga. Look around these patrols of guards and see if one of them is a Yiga." The Sheikah instructed Poump to look around the area with them. Poump looked through the Eye of Truth and looked at the patrol of guards. None of them looked different, however there was a single Yiga footsoldier standing next to a door. Poump took the Eye of Truth out of his vision and noticed that the Yiga looked like a regular guard. Poump looked through it again and saw the Yiga walking into the door.

"I found one. Let's follow him." Poump said. The party followed him and they went inside of the door into the room. It was an area with bookshelves on the walls and a table with battle plans written on it. The guard noticed them inside.

"Who are you lot?" The guard said.

"We're here to kill you, Yiga." The Sheikah said.

"Oh blimey, my cover is gone." The guard gave up on the disguise and revealed himself to be a Yiga. Uten, who had been soaking in lots of water from the rain, thrusted her spear at the Yiga, plunging it right through their leg. "AHH!"

"Enough! What are you doing here and do you know anything about Hilda?" Uten said to the Yiga.

"Hilda? I have no clue who you're talking about- AAHHHH!" Uten twisted her spear inside of the Yiga's leg.

"Don't play dumb!" Uten said.

"I actually have no clue who you're talking about!" The Yiga said. "However, Sheikah Warrior." The Yiga looked at the Sheikah in the room. "A curse has fallen onto Kakariko Village. You best be going there right now!"

"I plan on it soon." The Sheikah said and he stabbed the Yiga through the stomach, killing him. "Let's look around the room for any clues."

Poump used the Eye of Truth to look around the room. He noticed a wall disappear, and behind it was a blue circular platform that looked like it was made out of Sheikah tech. "Hey guys, behind the wall." The party followed Poump behind the wall and walked through it. They made it to the platform.

"This is a lift." The Sheikah said. "We can use this to go underground. Wherever that may take us, let's hope it doesn't kill us." The party got onto the lift which managed to fit all 4 of them, and they descended into darkness.

Chapter 15: The Citadel's Basement

The lift went down into darkness and then it stopped. As if by something activating, Sheikah technology lights lit up the room. It was a corridor. Eerily enough, it looked like the walls were built with skulls on the walls. The wall even displayed some information plaques. The place seemed to be functional, but it didn't feel like somewhere the party wanted to be at.

"I don't like it here." Uten said. She got back onto the lift, however it never allowed her to go back up.

"Hee hee hee hee!" The Skull Kid's laughter reverberated around the room. "You're stuck down here with me! You will become my playthings! And soon enough me and my Princess will have so many new toys!" The Skull Kid's voice disappeared.

"Great, now we're locked down here with ourselves and that psychopathic child." Uten said. She did not like the circumstances they were in.

"Guess what Uten, we have nowhere else to go but forward." Poump said. "We made it this far in trying to find Hilda, so we need to commit ourselves to this challenge."

"You're right." Uten said. "The sooner we press on, the faster we are out of this hell hole." The party walked forward and arrived at a gaping hole in the ground. There was a door to their right, so they walked through the door. They came into a room that had a statue in the center of the room. Poump pulled out the Sheikah Slate in order to see what this statue was since he had seen it before. The screen said 'DARKNUT'. The statue awakened and brought out it's weapon and lumbered towards them. Some tombs came out of the wall behind it and 6 Redeads walked behind the Darknut. "Seriously?!" Uten said.

Tipa brought out her two Katanas and prepared to fight. Despite the fact that she never wielded a sword before, she mostly understood the basics by watching the others use weapons while she was a Cuckoo. She flailed her swords at the Darknut, which swiped at her and with it's large sword hit her on her back. "Uten, you should deal with the Redeads back there. You have a spear, which is useful because it will keep them far away from you." The Sheikah said to Uten.

"Alright then." Uten brought out her spear and dodged out of the way from the Darknut's attack and made it to the Redeads. She stabbed her spear at some of them and managed to knock them down.

"Bomb's away!" The Sheikah said and Uten rolled out of the way. The Sheikah threw some bombs at the downed Redeads and they blew up. Only 2 more Redeads were in the room.

Poump and Tipa looked at the Darknut. Despite the fact that Tipa tanked a hit from the Darknut, she seemed fine. Her skin healed up by itself. Poump and Tipa took turns swinging at the Darknut's armor. Some of the pieces of it's armor fell off, which gave Poump an idea. He pulled out his clawshots and pulled at the different armor pieces. One of them was carried off, however the second clawshot was interfered by the Darknut pulling at it and smacking Poump into the ground. Tipa jumped up to the Darknut's helmet and stabbed through the eye hole and left her sword in it. The Darknut continued walking around the room with the sword in its head. It trampled on the remaining 2 Redeads and then it pulled the sword out of it's head and walked through a door. The Sheikah bombed the remaining Redeads.

"What in the world." The Sheikah said. "It walked away. But it wasn't even limping. It must be planning something." The party walked through the door that the Darknut walked through. They found themselves in a small room with a door to their left, and a treasure chest in front of them. The walls of the room seemed to display some artwork showcasing what looked like a figure in a green tunic holding a bow and pointing it at a pig-like creature. The walls had even more artwork showcasing the figure in the green tunic in battle with the pig-like creature, and each art piece had a different artstyle. The Sheikah opened up the chest in the room and looked through its contents. The chest contained a mask of some sort that looked like a hawk's face. Tatl looked at the item the Sheikah was holding.

"That looks like a Hawkeye. You can look through it to see things from far away. You can even combine it with a bow in order to shoot things from far away." Tatl said.

"This will be very useful." The Sheikah said. The Skull Kid appeared above the party.

"So... it looks like my guests… have survived so far." The Skull Kid said.

"That we have." Poump said to the Skull Kid. "Where is Hilda?"

"Hee hee hee hee hee. You don't... want to rush yourself. That's considered harmful for your mental health. Hee hee hee hee." The Skull Kid disappeared into a gust of leaves.

"I am going to pulverize that child once I get the chance." Poump said.

"That is once we find Hilda." Uten added.

"Correct. Let's keep moving." Poump and the party walked through the door. It was a long corridor that lead only to a door at the end of the hall. The party walked through the place and saw some art on the walls. It depicted what looked like the Royal Family sending the Sheikah clan into exile. The artwork told a story as they walked through the corridor, showing the Royal Family members eventually executing some of the Sheikah warriors. Some more artwork showcased the Sheikah clan finding ancient technology and using it for themselves, and then the Royal Family took their technology and didn't allow them to use it. The artwork showed off some Sheikah members creating their own cult by turning the Sheikah Eye upside down. The Sheikah knew what this was. It was the birth of the Yiga Clan, however he didn't know that this was how they came to be. The Sheikah thought that he was well acquainted with the history of Hyrule, but he didn't even know about what the Royal Family did to the Sheikah clan in the past. The artwork looked very old and ancient, which told him this happened a long time ago. They kept walking through the corridor and then all of a sudden a Guardian turret appeared at the end of the hall. The Guardian turret pointed at each of the party members. Poump got in front and pulled out his Mirror Shield. He remembered what Priscilla did on the bridge. The Guardian's laser blasted and then Poump parried the attack back at the Guardian's eye. It looked back at them again but this time the Sheikah pulled out his bow and shot at its eye 5 times and then it blew up.

"That was a close one." Uten said. The party continued towards the door and found themselves in a large room with a bunch of pitfalls. Poump noticed the chain link ceiling and used the Clawshot on it. He used both of them to find his way across the ceiling. There was a large door with chains on it and to it's left was a smaller door. He noticed a Stalfos patrolling around the smaller door. He dropped onto it in hopes of beating it but the Stalfos beat him down. Poump drew his sword and sliced at the Stalfos while he was on the ground, eventually knocking it down into one of the gaping holes. Poump walked through the door and found himself in the room with walls made of skeletons again. This time he was on the other side of the gaping hole, as he could see the lift on the other side. There was a treasure chest on this side, but in front of it rose another Stalfos, this time wielding a sword and shield. Poump pulled out his sword and shield and fought against the Stalfos. They traded blows but then the Stalfos thrusted his shield towards Poump causing him to lose balance. The Stalfos bashed Poump against the wall with the shield multiple times causing him to become really dizzy. The Stalfos slashed at Poump, but his outfit saved him from getting hurt too badly. Poump quickly shield bashed the Stalfos back and knocked its head right off, causing it to fall over dead. Poump opened up the treasure chest and found a large key with horns. He walked back out of the door and noticed a switch on his side of the room. He pulled at it and all of the holes were closed up, allowing the other party members to walk across the room. The party looked at the large door with chains.

"This key should open it up for us." Poump said. He put the key into the keyhole of the chains and then the chains fell off of the big door. Poump used his power bracelets to push the door to the side and the party walked forward. They found themselves outside in an area with stairs that lead down to a forest-like area, however the area around it seemed to be completely made of rocks. The sky was also cloudy, but it wasn't raining anymore. Beyond the small forest-like area was the large skeleton of what looked like a huge fish. Poump looked down into the forest. The Skull Kid appeared before the party. "Hey Skull Kid, where is Hilda?"

"She's just down there!" The Skull Kid pointed down the stairs towards the small forest-like area. "Join us, and you can play with us forever!" Poump immediately ran down the stairs, but the other party members didn't run after him.

"Wait, it might be a trap!" The Sheikah said to Poump who was already making headway down the stairs to the forest.

"Hee hee hee! It looks like you're just in time for the awakening of an ancient leviathan! You see that skeleton over there?" The Skull Kid snapped his fingers. The bones of the large fish started trembling and then levitated into the sky. "Join us, as we play with you for the rest of your lives!" The Skull Kid disappeared. The large skeletal fish floated slowly through the sky and started directing itself towards the party. All of a sudden, three snake-like beings appeared from the sky and rammed themselves into the floating bones, redirecting it from where the party was.

As for Poump, he made his way through the small forest to a clearing. In the center, he saw Hilda sitting on a log, playing on a harp. "Poump! It's so good to see you again!" Hilda said. "This harp belongs to my mother. The silly Skull Kid allowed me to bring it with me. You want me to play you my favorite song?"

Poump walked up to Hilda. "We need to get out of here, it's dangerous."

"I'm alright, Poump! Listen to this song, my mom likes using this to put me to sleep." Hilda started strumming at the harp and played a very soft and relaxing tune. It was such a soft tune that it started to make Poump feel sleepy.

"H-Hilda." Poump was stumbling, trying to keep himself awake. "W-w-we need to go."

The Skull Kid appeared in the clearing. "Listen to that. The sound of an angel's." The Skull Kid started sleeping. "So good to know that we still have SO MUCH TO DO!" The Skull Kid waved his hands around and then some roots rose from out of the ground and snatched the harp from Hilda's hands.

"Hey! I was playing with that!" Hilda said to the Skull Kid.

"We have plenty of other things to do before we can listen to your music!" The Skull Kid said. "We have guests here, and that means we have new toys to play with!"

"I want our guests to listen to my music!" Hilda said. "Give me the harp back!" Hilda reached at the Harp which was being carried away by some of Skull Kid's roots.

"No! Now sit and watch as our guests perform for us!" The Skull Kid raised his hands and then the Darknut from earlier rose from the ground in front of Poump.

The other party members paraglided down into the forest clearing. Uten noticed the snake-like creatures wrapped themselves around the leviathan's bones in a way that covered almost the whole skeleton. The party landed into the clearing next to Poump and they were ready to fight the Darknut.

"Let the playtime, BEGIN!" The Skull Kid said as he clapped happily. Hilda reluctantly watched the party. The Darknut leaped at them and the party members dodged the attack. They split up and attacked the Darknut from 4 different sides. Uten stabbed at it with her spear and kept her distance. The Sheikah was being reckless and danced around the Darknut's blade and got a few licks in. Tipa swung her swords at the Darknut and remembered to dodge at the right moment. As if she felt a certain energy emanate from inside her, she leapt straight towards the Darknut and slashed multiple times with both of her swords at it. The Darknut's armor fell off from the portion of its body that was attacked. It leapt back and threw away the rest of the armor on its body to the side. Poump attacked the Darknut but it pushed him to the side. It lunged at Tipa and almost scored a hit on her. It turned around towards Tipa when it noticed something. Tipa's red hair had completely replaced Tipa's white hair. She dropped her swords and fell to the floor. Her body started growing at an abnormal rate. Her muscles started growing large and her face turned into a beastly face. Her hair surrounded her neck and she grew horse-like hooves on not one, but two different sets of legs. A large sword and a large shield materialized on her back, and she roared loudly. She had turned into a Lynel.

"Oh my goodness!" Uten exclaimed.

"No! No no no no no!" The Skull Kid did not like this. "This was not how I wanted play time to happen! Fine then, I will join in this myself!" He turned into a gust of leaves and appeared in front of Poump. "So, let's fight!"

The Lynel wielded her weapons and charged at the Darknut. The Darknut was extremely surprised by this turn of events and was knocked over by the Lynel. The Darknut recovered and tried slashing at the Lynel but the Lynel overpowered it by parrying the attack and then followed it up by slicining at the Darknut's torso.

Poump raised his sword and shield and prepared to fight Skull Kid but all of his attacks kept on missing. Poump threw his weapons to the side and started grabbing at Skull Kid. He managed to grab the Skull Kid and bring him to the ground. He started punching at Skull Kid while he was on the ground but he noticed that in between each punch the Skull Kid would teleport in between each punch of his. The Skull Kid stopped teleporting and then grew in immense size, causing Poump to awkwardly slide off of him. The Skull Kid was now 2 times bigger than Poump. Poump didn't care though, because he landed an uppercut onto the Skull Kid's jaw, causing the Skull Kid to get knocked back. Poump noticed the Skull Kid's roots were becoming weaker and Hilda's harp started coming closer to her. Hilda was thrilled by the sight of the fight, but she was mostly concerned with being able to play with her harp again. She reached up to the harp but couldn't even touch it at all.

The party continued the fight in the forest clearing but suddenly stopped fighting. Even the Darknut and the Lynel stopped tussling with each other and they looked up. The small figure of someone with a glowing sword was falling from the sky. It was Link, and he had the Master Sword pointed straight down. "HYAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" Link plunged the Master Sword right through the Lynel and the Darknut, causing the both of them to stagger back from his attack. "Bring me Hilda!" Link started slashing away at the Lynel and interchanged blows between the Lynel and the Darknut, keeping a perfect rhythm between the two of them and blocking and dodging them at the right moments.

"Wait! Link! Don't attack the Lynel!" Uten said to Link.

Link formed a force field around himself which caused neither the Darknut or the Lynel to do damage to him. "Huh? Why not?" Link said to Uten.

"Because the Lynel is actually one of our friends!"

"What? HOW?" Link dodged out of the Darknut's attack and then pulled out his Sheikah Slate. He pointed it at the Lynel and forced it into some sort of statis.

"It's a long story, just don't kill the Lynel!" Uten said.

"I'll take your word for it!" Link said. He positioned himself behind the Darknut and then the Lynel attacked at the Darknut, causing it to fall to the floor. Link took the opportunity and flew into the sky and plunged the Master Sword into the Darknut's chest, killing it.

"No fair!" The Skull Kid raised his hand and some roots started to cover Link up.

Poump noticed Hilda reaching for the harp, and the roots started to become weaker and weaker. He reached for it with his Clawshot and handed it to Hilda. "Play the music!"

"What would you like me to play?" Hilda responded.

"That song you played earlier!" Poump responded.

"Okay!" Hilda started strumming at the harps and played the peaceful melody that she was playing earlier. Poump started falling asleep from the music. The Lynel looked around the area and then fell asleep. The Sheikah and Uten also fell asleep. The Skull Kid started to feel drowsy, and then he also fell asleep, although he made sure he fell asleep amidst the leaves of the trees. A small tremor happened but that didn't bother Hilda. The roots surrounding Link went back into the ground. Link slowly walked up to Hilda who was sitting on the log peacefully playing the harp. Link approached her quietly. He didn't know if he should say anything. He then sat next to her on the log, listening to her play the music. Hilda looked up at Link and a smile came onto her face. She continued playing the harp and eventually let go because she herself fell asleep. Link picked the harp up himself and continued playing the harp. For the first time in a long time, Link felt at peace with the world. He continued playing the harp for the rest of the night.

The next morning came and Tipa reverted back into her Hylian form. Her horns were still on her head, but her hair turned completely white. The party woke up and saw Link still playing on the harp. He stopped playing and then Hilda started opening her eyes. The Skull Kid was still sleeping in the branches above the party. Poump picked up a rock and threw it at Skull Kid. "AH!" The Skull Kid dropped from the branches and landed in front of the party. He looked at the party and then at Link with Hilda. "Oh boy…" Skull Kid said to himself. "I'm not fit to be beside her. She belongs with him, and you guys."

Poump knelt down to the Skull Kid. "So you promise you won't mess with Hilda again?"

"Hilda is past me. She belongs with her people, which is all of you." Skull Kid said.

"You won't attack us anymore in that case?"

"Yeah, I have my sights on other things. I have plenty of other toys that I like playing with anyways, so all of you are alright."

"Nice!" Poump said to the Skull Kid. "You can do what you like best without messing with us anymore."

"That's right. Oh, and one more thing." The Skull Kid snapped his fingers and the forest behind Link and Hilda opened up revealing the bones of the leviathan on the ground. The Sheikah looked through the Hawkeye and saw a bunch of monsters inside of the bones of the leviathan. "I hope you do well on your quest, I guess. See you later." The Skull Kid disappeared into a gust of leaves.

Poump looked at Link. "So, what now?"

Link looked back at Poump. "I guess I'll take Hilda with me back to Zelda. Seeing as the monster colony is right here, I can trust that you guys can deal with it."

"To Tarrey Town, right?"

"Yup, next to Tarrey Town. Hopefully Hudson has prepared Tarrey Town to hold a small colony of monsters. I can trust that you guys can make the walk there. The Akkala fields aren't that bad of a walk, all that you need is enough stamina to reach Tarrey Town." Link got up from the log. "So, you guys will deal with the monster colony?"

"Yes." Poump replied.

"Great. Now I'll take Hilda with me to Zora's Domain so that way Zelda can know she's safe." Link said to Hilda. She looked up at Link.

"Hey, Link! Can you bring me to my mom by riding on a horse?" Hilda said. She knew Link's adventures always involved horseback riding.

"You'd like to ride on horseback?" Link said. "I'll do exactly that for my little Princess." Link whistled with his fingers and then a brown horse with a white mane ran into the forest. Link propped Hilda up onto the horse and then mounted the horse. "I wish you luck, Squad. See you guys later!" Link guided his horse out of the forest and he rode off.

The party walked up towards the leviathan bones when all of a sudden the Sheikah fell over with a sharp pain in his chest. He heard some voices in his head. "Help us! Help us! Come to Kakariko Village! There is a curse!" The Sheikah recovered himself. Uten helped him back up.

"What happened?" Uten asked.

The Sheikah solemnly looked at Uten. "I need to go to Kakariko Village."

Chapter 16: The Curse on Kakariko Village

"Kakariko Village? Now? We have this colony of monsters to deal with right now." Uten said.

"I know that. If we make our way to Tarrey Town, we will be getting closer to Kakariko Village, so therefore we can deal with the monsters and go to Kakariko in the same time frame." The Sheikah replied.

"Oh. Well you know what you're doing so I'll follow your lead. I will help you with whatever is happening at Kakariko Village, and after that I will stay in Zora's Domain." Uten said.

"Sounds like a plan." The Sheikah clutched his sides. Poump took out a Bokoblin mask.

"Here, give me the Ocarina. You look like you'd hurt yourself using it too much." Poump said to the Sheikah.

"You're right. You will lead us to Tarrey Town." The Sheikah handed the Ocarina to Poump. Poump put the Bokoblin mask on and walked into the monster colony. The monsters looked at Poump. There were several Bokoblins, Moblins, Lizalfos, and a Lynel. There even appeared to be a bunch of tents set up as well as wooden forts that were built by the monsters. Poump took out the Ocarina and started playing Saria's Song. The monsters followed Poump instantaneously. He led them out of the Leviathan bones and walked them towards the Akkala fields. Uten, the Sheikah, and Tipa kept watch of the monsters within the line. The grassy fields were damp and wet, but thankfully it wasn't raining. The Akkala fields on a clear day looked beautiful. The red and yellow leaves of the trees were a pleasant sight. The squad passed by some travelers who were on horses. The travelers mostly stayed away from the group. The random travelers did not want to toy with the idea of messing with these monsters, even if their parts fetched for such high prices. The fact that there was a Lynel in the pack of monsters also made the idea even worse in their heads.

After trading turns between Tipa, Uten, and Poump, the Squad managed to escort the monsters to Tarrey Town. Hudson and Rhodson were standing in front of the land bridge that leads to Tarrey Town. "Oh my goodness!" Hudson exclaimed. "Those are a lot of monsters!"

"It's a good thing we allocated enough room for them in the nearby forest. We have set up a camp with plenty of food for them to eat from. We will take good care of these monsters, right Hudson?" Rhodson looked at Hudson, who seemed flabbergasted by the idea of keeping monsters so close to Tarrey Town.

"Y-you're right." Hudson replied. "Let's get these things nice and situated."

"Thank you for holding them for us." Poump said.

"You're welcome, Poump!" Hudson replied. "The Monster Squad strikes again!"

"That we have!" Poump said pumping his fist. "Now team, let's head over to Kakariko Village and help them with whatever is happening."

"Let's get our horses." The Sheikah said. Poump played Malon's Melody and their horses ran up to them. "Make haste. I don't know how much more time we have." The squad got on their horses and made haste towards Kakariko Village, which was relatively close to the Akkala Region. They made it past the bridge and through some more main roads and ended up at Kakariko Village. The air seemed to be thinner. The farmers outside looked like they were struggling to even walk. The pumpkin crops were wilted over, and the Cuckoos in the Cuckoo pen were all sedentary and huddled together. The Sheikah himself started to feel a little more sick, however the other party members didn't seem to fall ill in the same way the whole village had. The Sheikah walked up into Impa's place, feeling like he was about to die. The other party members followed behind, and they all walked inside. Impa was at the other side of the room, and Paya, her assistant, was taking care of her.

"Zhago!" Paya exclaimed. "You're finally here!"

Zhago clutched onto his sides. "What has happened here at the village?"

"A curse." Impa said. "A curse has fallen onto Kakariko Village."

"Do you know what caused it?" Zhago asked.

Impa looked up at Zhago. "The Yiga Clan. They put a curse on…" Impa coughed a little bit. "A curse on the Great Fairy Fountain."

"Where is that?" Zhago asked.

"Somewhere in the forest nearby." Impa replied.

"Very well, I will go there." Zhago said. "You three, stay here and keep an eye on Impa and Paya for me." He walked out of Impa's place and headed towards the forest near the village.

Paya had tears streaming down her face. "Impa, we're going to get through this, right?"

Impa looked at Paya with a solemn look on her face. "No, Paya. You are going to get through this."

"What do you mean?" Uten said to Impa.

"It is too late to save me. But you can save the rest of the village." Impa said. She coughed some more.

"I have an idea." Poump said. "Hey Tatl, bring Impa back to health." Poump looked around and realized Tatl wasn't anywhere nearby. "Tatl?"

Zhago walked up towards the pathway that lead to the forest nearby. All of a sudden, a Yiga footsoldier appeared and shot two arrows at Zhago. Zhago dodged out of the way of the arrows and shot an arrow back at the Yiga, killing the Yiga instantly. Three more Yiga jumped from above the cliff. Zhago placed a bomb and then teleported out of the way. The three Yiga were blown up by the bomb while Zhago continued walking into the forest. The grass and the trees seemed to be dead and grey. Zhago decided to sneak around some of the tall grass. He pulled out his sword and then stabbed behind himself. "AUGH!" A dead Yiga fell to the ground behind Zhago. He continued sneaking through the dead grass some more and then realized that in the trees above him, the masks of about 15 different Yiga were looking down on him. Sword in hand, he prepared to fight them.

"Warrior!" A commanding voice said somewhere on Zhago's level. "We meet again, Sheikah." The person speaking was the Yiga that Zhago was fighting back at the checkpoint the other day. The one that had the armor, except this time, the Yiga was wearing a Blademaster's outfit. The Yiga commanded the other Yiga to come down from the trees and circle around. A black portal appeared in the sky and coming from it were a bunch of black pillars that circled around the Sheikah and his opponent. They created a magic barrier that the other Yiga footsoldiers couldn't walk through.

"Do I know you?" Zhago said.

"Of course you do. We battled each other at the checkpoint. I said that we would meet again, and it looks like my plan worked. I put a curse on the Great Fairy Fountain that resides in these woods. That fountain grants health to the people of Kakariko Village. I knew that you came from this village, so I knew you'd come around once you've gained word that this village was under a curse." The Blademaster and Zhago started circling each other, swords in hand. "Heh, that puny assistant, Paya, was so easy to manipulate. Here's the wager, in the unlikely situation in which you defeat me, Kakariko Village's curse will be lifted. In the opposite situation in which I defeat you, Kakariko Village will become a stronghold for the Yiga Clan, and the people of the village will have to either submit or die."

"That second option won't happen." Zhago stated, making sure he kept his focus.

"I like your confidence." The blademaster spun his sword around. "Weapons only, no items or assists from either side. A fair trial for both of our swordsman ships. Now… fight!"

As for Poump, Uten, and Tipa, they were keeping a watch on Impa and Paya. However Poump really wanted to know where Tatl went. "I need to find Tatl!" Poump said. He walked out of the doors of Impa's place and looked around. He heard some footsteps on the rooftop and saw a Yiga footsoldier about to ambush him. Poump decided to use his Clawshot on the roof and swung out his sword against the Yiga. The Yiga dodged the attack but Poump gained his footing and used his sword and shield against the Yiga. He struggled to get a hit onto the Yiga with the sword, but eventually thrust his shield forward and managed to stagger the Yiga enough to knock them off the roof. Poump plunged his sword straight down just as he remembered Link doing back in the forest clearing. The sword landed square onto the Yiga's body and killed him. Poump kept on looking around to see if he could find Tatl anymore but then 4 more Yiga footsoldiers appeared. Tipa and Uten ran outside of Impa's place and joined Poump. They fought against the Yiga together.

Meanwhile with Zhago, he and the Blademaster stopped circling each other and then ran straight for each other. Their blades clashed over and over, as both of them were really skilled and understood how to dodge and parry each attack they blew out. Eventually Zhago teleported behind the Blademaster, however the Blademaster anticipated it and almost cut Zhago, but Zhago saw the blade coming at him. Zhago jumped back a bit. The Blademaster swiped at the air and then a beam of wind came from the air and knocked Zhago off balance. The Blademaster ran up to Zhago and sliced at him, however Zhago managed to dodge the attack yet again by the skin of his teeth. Zhago slashed his blade towards the Blademaster and managed to get a cut in. The Blademaster jumped back and planted his sword into the ground. A pillar of air started travelling towards Zhago. Zhago tried to dodge it but then the pillar reached him. A rock came out from the ground and thrusted Zhago into the air. The Blademaster pulled his sword back and then threw it at Zhago falling back down. The sword managed to cut Zhago as he was falling. He hit the ground. The Blademaster teleported back to his blade to pick it back up and then approached Zhago. Zhago teleported out of the Blademaster's sight.

Poump, Tipa and Uten managed to defeat the 4 Yiga by combining their efforts. The three of them were trying to find Tatl. They walked up the cliff and into the forest nearby. Uten saw the Sheikah in combat with the Blademaster, so she ran up to the magic barrier which the other Yiga footsoldiers were outside of. They didn't choose to hurt Uten since the match they were watching was more important than trying to kill some random Zora nearby. Poump and Tipa continued walking through the forest and eventually came upon a large flower bud. "Tatl!" Poump shouted. "Tatl!" He kept walking around the place and then saw a single fairy respond to him.

"Y-you're talking about my sister, Tatl, right?" The fairy said, sounding weak.

"Yes! Do you know where she is?" Poump asked.

"I don't know." The fairy responded.

Meanwhile in the arena, Zhago kept on teleporting around the Blademaster. The Blademaster kept on looking at the teleportation pattern. The Blademaster closed his eyes and then raised his sword to his left and stabbed Zhago mid-teleport. "AUGH!" Zhago said with blood coming out of his mouth.

"This is what happens when you tell me to stand down." The Blademaster said. "It is fitting that you would be the first one to fall by my hand. First you, then the village. And finally…" The Blademaster licked his lips. "That girl Paya."

"You're missing one part of that death list." Zhago said.

"Huh?" The Blademaster looked at Zhago and noticed that he smothered some bombs onto himself and they were lit on fire.

"You."

"Nooooo!" The Blademaster and Zhago were both claimed in the blast of the bombs. Zhago started to see darkness take over. And then he saw Her.

"Not now. Not here." She said, "Keep fighting, for the sake of our people." Then the light came back into his eyes. He saw Tatl twirling above him, breathing life back into him. Zhago looked at the Blademaster on the ground, burning on fire. Somehow, the Blademaster was still alive, barely alive, as he was crawling forward towards his sword. Zhago kicked his sword back and leapt towards the Blademaster's burning body and sliced his head off. The corpse of the Blademaster turned into black particles and the particles flew up into the black portal in the sky. At the same time, the black pillars that caused the magic barrier also flew back into the black portal. The Yiga footsoldiers looked in shock at Zhago.

"You're too dangerous for us. We will leave Kakariko Village alone now! You won that fight fair and square." The Yiga footsoldiers all teleported away. Zhago felt better, and then the forest around him started to turn alive and green again. A small strange blue creature leaped from out of some nearby bushes and passed Uten. Zhago and Uten followed the blue creature towards Poump and Tipa next to the large flower bud. The bud opened up revealing a sparkly and flowery water fountain. A large woman erupted from the water in the fountain.

"Thank youuuuu!" She sang. "Thanks to you, I can lend my magic and energy to the forest and Kakariko Village again! I am the Great Fairy!" She looked down at the party. "Tatl?! Is that you?"

"Yes mother, it is me." Tatl said. The fairy that was speaking to Poump earlier flew up to Tatl and hugged her.

"I missed you so much, sister!" The other fairy said.

"It's okay Tael, I'm right here." Tatl replied, patting her brother on the head.

"Thanks to you, Brave Warrior, the people of Kakariko Village are safe again." The Great Fairy said. "And it is also good to see that you took good care of Tatl for me."

"Anything to help Tatl out, Great Fairy." Poump replied.

Eventually one of the villagers ran up to the party. "Zhago! Come quick! It's Impa…"

Zhago and the party made haste for Impa's place. The crops of the village were plump again and the Cuckoos in the Cuckoo pen were walking around full with life. A crowd of villagers were pouring inside of Impa's place. The crowd made space for Zhago as he ran up to Impa, who was now lying on her bed. Paya was sitting to the side, crying her eyes out.

"Impa." Zhago said to Impa, as she looked like she was losing it.

"Zhago…" Impa said with her dying breath. "You have done a great deed in taking care of the curse. While you were able to save the rest of the village, the curse had already decided my fate." Impa started to close her eyes. "You've done well… You've done well, Hero." Impa's life force left her body. Paya couldn't hold back any tears, she was crying and sobbing loudly. Zhago, despite his demeanor, also started crying as well. All of the villagers in the room started kneeling in respect, and Poump, Uten, and Tipa also kneeled down.

12 hours later, the village lined themselves up in a pathway that lead to a tree that overlooked Hyrule Field. In the middle of the pathway, Impa's coffin was being carried next to where the tree was. There was a hole in the ground for Impa's coffin, at a reasonable distance away from the tree. The coffin was lowered into the ground. Zelda, Link, and Hilda were there, as well as Prince Sidon. Everyone was sad, but Paya was the saddest out of everyone.

Chapter 17: Remembering Old Friends

Shortly after Impa's burial, the village convened into Impa's place. Tables were set up, with food. And positioned on where Impa once sat, a painting of Impa was in her place. The party was eating food with the rest of the villagers. Link, Zelda, Hilda, Prince Sidon, and Paya were looking at the painting of Impa. Prince Sidon eventually walked back to the tables, as he wanted to speak to Uten about something important. Sidon chose to start eating, but didn't want to startle Uten because he knew she was quite skittish. Link, and Zelda went back to the tables, with Hilda having her hand held by Zelda. Paya was left looking at the painting, crying her eyes out even more. She couldn't take it anymore and walked upstairs to be alone.

The only sound that existed in the room were light sobs and the munching of food. The food being served was Pumpkin Soup, Veggie Cream Soup, Pumpkin Pie, Honeyed Apples, and Meat Stuffed Pumpkins. A 15 year old girl served the food, as she made it with the help of her sister. "Thank you, Koko." Zhago said to the girl serving the food.

"You're welcome, Zhago." Koko replied. She kept serving food to the other tables.

Eventually, Sidon managed to break the ice with Uten. "So, Uten, how have you been holding up?"

"I've been alright." Uten replied after eating some pie.

"That sounds great!" Sidon said with some enthusiasm. He looked around at the villagers and how sad they were and quietly sipped some soup. He didn't like hurting others' feelings, and also hadn't been to an event like this in a long time. The only person who he truly lost in his life was his older sister, Mipha, and she died when he was a small child then, so he didn't have a good recollection of what it was like during the time of her death. Also having the burden of being the Zora Champion of Hyrule meant keeping the representation of the Zora Tribe in a positive standing, and while although he himself is a positive person, he knows about respecting the boundaries of others. But he really needed to say something important. "Uten, what do you plan on doing after this?"

Uten finished her slice of pie. "I plan on going back to Zora's Domain and staying there. I have a new friend right here named Tipa, and I want her to stay with me." Uten showed the Hylian girl with horns on her head to Sidon.

"That's very interesting. How did she get horns on her head?" Sidon asked.

"It's a long story. Did you want to tell me something, Prince?" Uten replied.

Sidon took his eyes off Tipa's horns and back to Uten. "Oh yes, I have something important to say about my father."

"King Dorephan?!" Uten exclaimed.

"Yes, he has caught a rare disease, and he's been sick for a week. When Zelda was with us, she identified that this disease could be cured by something found in the Gerudo Region."

"So who's going to retrieve it? Surely enough none of us Zora can deal with even existing in the Gerudo Region. That place would dehydrate us in a moment's notice." Uten quickly understood why Sidon was speaking to her about this. "Wait a moment, you don't mean you're expecting me to go there, right?"

"Precisely, I believe you would be the best person for the job. I've heard of your travels so far and while none of them have brought you to a place as hot as the Gerudo Desert, you still managed to pull through in each of your adventures." Sidon said this and smiled greatly at Uten.

"I haven't done anything amazing or as cool as you, Sidon. Don't make me blush." Uten said sarcastically.

"You traveled through the Lost Woods, correct?" Sidon said.

"Pardon?" Uten replied.

"You made it through the Lost Woods and lived. That's a place that has eaten whole lives and you survived going through it, and here you are, alive and well! Not even I have bothered entering the Lost Woods!" Sidon grabbed a Meat Stuffed Pumpkin and started eating it.

"Well to be fair, I would've died without the assistance of my friends and Link." Uten said.

"And that's where your friends come in. Zelda told me all about your quest for dealing with the monster colonies across Hyrule. She said that you had some friends along who helped you out, and there even is a monster colony in the Gerudo Desert that Zelda wants you to deal with."

"Hold on now, I'm still not going to the desert, even if it means that there's a monster colony there for me to deal with. I've already dealt with two of them, and I even have enough money to go off and live by myself if I want to. That third monster colony is something that I don't want to be involved with." Uten wolfed down another slice of pie. "And by the way, about the rare disease that can be cured by something in the Gerudo Desert, why don't you yourself deal with that? You are Prince Sidon, Champion of the Zora after all."

"Uten, I can't risk myself to the desert. Hyrule needs me because we have lost contact with two of the other Champions of Hyrule. As I'm sure you've seen by now, the Yiga Clan hasn't been easy on the people of Hyrule as of late, so I am needed in places where I can be most effective. Also, I am much bigger than you. The resources needed for a new suit would be wasted on me because of how large I am. You are much smaller and the new suit can be used by you the best."

"Wait a moment, new suit? What are you talking about?" Uten said as she stressfully stuffed a Honeyed Apple into her mouth.

"So Zelda and a few Zora researchers have been working on finding out ways to hydrate the Zora Tribe in hot climates. After many failed attempts, we came to a prototype suit that fits on a Zora that is capable of hydrating us with water tanks while we're out and about away from any body of water." Sidon saw Uten's eyes lighten up at the idea of this suit.

"That means that I can freely visit anywhere I want in all of Hyrule without having to rehydrate all the time!" Uten stopped stress eating her Honeyed Apple.

"Well, not really." Sidon replied blankly. Uten's optimism went away.

"What do you mean?"

"The current suit that we made is our 3rd test suit. The other 2 had critical flaws that caused them to fail in our testing runs, and we didn't even bring those suits to the desert. The suits are really expensive to work on and maintain, so like I said earlier, making a suit for big old me at the current state of the suit's functionality would be catastrophic. That is why you are chosen, because you are one of the most experienced and smallest Zora in the tribe. The current suit should be capable of hydrating you for an amount of 5 hours at a time, and that is the best amount of time any of our suits were able to achieve."

"Why can't we wait for the suit to be better and fit you?" Uten replied.

"Because we don't know how long King Dorephan has left to live with that rare disease he's carrying. As of right now, I'm in charge of Zora's Domain since he is ill. He is in a health center built just to the west of our Domain in order to keep the disease from spreading to anyone else. If we wait any longer, he might just die, so we need you to retrieve the cure as soon as you possibly can." Sidon looked at Impa's painting and started feeling his optimism going away, knowing that his own father could suffer from the same fate.

"I'm in." Uten said.

"Huh?"

"I'm in. As soon as I get that new suit, I'll go to the Gerudo Region and retrieve the cure. This is really important and I understand now why you are so desperate for my help. As soon as the sun is up, my friends and I will arrive at Zora's Domain." Uten said this with certainty.

"That's great! We will go there together in the morning!" Sidon continued eating his food with Uten.

Tipa and Poump were both curious about Paya's emotional state, so the both of them walked upstairs to check on her. A cat that was sitting in the corner of the room noticed the two of them go upstairs and followed them up the stairs. Tipa and Poump saw a single door that was closed. Poump put his ear up to the door and heard some loud sobbing coming from inside. The cat walked through the cat door at the bottom of the door and walked inside meowing. Poump and Tipa heard Paya speaking to the cat with sniffles in her voice.

"H-hello Amo…" Paya blew her nose on a handkerchief. Poump looked through the crack of the door and saw Paya sitting on her bed petting the cat. The cat looked straight at Poump. "What is it, Amo?" Paya said to the cat. Amo leaped out of her lap and walked up to the door and pawed at the door handle. Paya opened it up and saw Poump and Tipa. Paya looked miserable. Her eyes were watering up so much that they were red. "What are you two doing here?" Paya said, sounding really tired.

Poump didn't expect her to discover them so fast. "W-w-we came up here to check on you. We wanted to keep you comfortable." Tipa nodded in agreement.

"Come inside then." Paya went back to her bed and sat on it. Amo jumped into her lap and she continued petting her. Poump and Tipa chose to sit on the floor. "It's nice that you two decided to check in on me. I'm fine just so you know. Just-" Paya started bawling her eyes out some more. Amo looked up at her and decided to stay curled up in her lap, knowing it would keep her at ease. While Paya was crying, Tipa turned around to look at the other side of the room and he saw Link's Hylian Shield and Master Sword. Paya opened her eyes and saw Tipa looking at the weapons. "A fascinating artifact, the Master Sword is." Paya said recovering her voice. "It is said that whoever is pure of heart can be able to touch the Master Sword." Poump looked at the sword and knew immediately he wouldn't be able to use it. He knows about how bad he's been over the years, and he didn't even want to toy with the idea of holding all of that power and the responsibility of being able to wield it.

"Hey Tipa, do you think you can use it?" Poump said to Tipa. Tipa looked at Poump with a look of discovery on her face and walked up to the sword and reached for it. All of a sudden she heard a Malicious voice.

"NOOOO! DO NOT TOUCH IT! IT IS OUR ENEMY!" The Malicious voice said. Poump and Paya were also able to hear the voice. Tipa kept reaching for the sword but then felt a sharp and painful sensation tingle through her veins. A purple eyeball emerged from Tipa's arm and looked at her with great anger. Amo arched her back and hissed at the sight of the eyeball. "WE MUSTN'T DABBLE WITH THE POWER THIS SWORD POSSESSES! IT IS MEANT TO KILL US, NOT HELP US!" Tipa took some steps back away from the Master Sword and she felt fine again.

"It must be that purple stuff inside of you." Poump said.

"She possesses Malice." Paya said as she was petting Amo on the head. "The Master Sword is said to be the Blade of Evil's Bane, and seeing how she reacted to the sword, it appears the Malice doesn't want her touching it."

"How do you know about what's inside of her?" Poump asked Paya.

"Because I have this." Paya pulled out an Eye of Truth. Poump reeled back as he didn't even notice her use it.

"How did you get that?" Poump said.

"The Eye of Truth is an ancient Sheikah relic used to reveal the truth of anyone and anything. As a member of the Sheikah Clan, I have one of my own. Well, it belonged to Impa, but now it belongs to me." Paya almost started crying but didn't. "I see you have one of your own as well."

Poump felt the pocket that his own Eye of Truth was in and brought it out. "Of course I have one. I got it from-"

"Hilda." Paya said, interrupting Poump.

"How did you know?"

"Because she is the only other person I know in Hyrule who has one. Occasionally I would visit Hyrule Castle with Impa in order to discuss things with Zelda, and I got to know about her child, Princess Hilda." Paya looked down at Amo and kept petting her. "I also know that Hilda is Link's child as well. She has his eyes."

Poump sat down thinking to himself. "Wait a moment, Hilda is skilled with playing a harp. What if she could play some music to brighten up all of the villagers' moods?"

"That sounds like a good idea. Let's go down there and set the place up for her to perform." Paya put Amo off of her lap and walked downstairs. The villagers were conversing between themselves at the tables. Paya, with Poump and Tipa behind her, approached Zelda and Link.

"Hello there, Paya." Zelda said, feeling a bit sad herself. "What is it you need?"

"I was wondering if you could have Hilda play the harp for the villagers right now? It could lighten up the place a bit." Paya replied.

"You know how to play the harp?" Zelda said to Hilda.

"Yes, a kind Sheikah lady taught me how to use it." Hilda said.

"She is good with a harp, I've heard her play it before." Link added. Zelda looked at Link.

"I'll take your word for it." Zelda looked down at Hilda. "You may play whatever your heart desires, little one." Link handed Hilda the harp. Zelda whispered into Link's ear. "We'll talk later."

Hilda walked up next to Impa's painting and brought up her harp. "This is a song that I learned from a Sheikah lady that calls herself 'Sheik'." Zhago's interest peaked as soon as he heard Sheik's name. Hilda started playing the harp. The music she played was soft and melancholic. Despite the sad undertone of the music that Hilda played, the villagers actually liked the performance, and found her talent to be a lot of fun to watch. The song ended and Zelda immediately commanded for Hilda to join her at the tables again.

Paya felt much better emotionally. "Thank you for the suggestion, Poump."

"Don't mention it." Poump said. Tipa just stood there and decided to pat Paya's head.

Zhago and Paya both noticed a bright light coming from outside of the window. No one else in the room was reacting to it. Both of them walked out of the double doors and saw something floating in the air. It was Impa's ghost. "Hello, Paya. And hello, Zhago."

"Impa!" Paya exclaimed. She almost burst into tears again but kept it in this time around.

"If you are wondering why I am speaking to both of you, I came here to say that I have become a member of the Sacred Realm. Because I am here, you will always be able to speak to me whenever you are in your greatest need for advice. Zhago, I have arrived to give you my blessing, for saving Kakariko Village from the curse." Impa waved her arms around and then a spiritual orb formed in her hands. She pushed it through the air and into Zhago's body. Zhago felt a great power surge inside of himself. "That is my blessing. With it, you will be able to defeat members of the Yiga Clan much easier. As for you, Paya, I offer this." Impa forms another spiritual orb and pushes it into Paya. "With that, you are given my blessing for looking over Kakariko Village."

"But Impa, I don't think I am fit to look over the village!" Paya replied.

"Yes you are, Young Paya." Impa motioned to Zhago to go back inside and he went back inside. Paya was left outside looking at Impa's ghost. "The future of the Sheikah now rests on your shoulders, Paya."

"But what can I do? What should I do?" Paya said as her mind was racing.

"Do what you think is right. From here on out, everything the Sheikah Clan does is in your hands. And I trust you to make the right decisions." Impa smiled at Paya. Paya felt her own chest. A boost of confidence permeated throughout herself.

"I can do it." Paya said proudly.

"I know you can." Impa disappeared, leaving Paya outside looking at the night sky. She confidently turned around and walked back into Impa's place, now known as Paya's place.

The next morning came. The people of the village slept in their own homes. Zhago and the party slept in his own house. Paya, Link, Zelda, and Hilda all slept in the upstairs bedroom in Paya's place. One of the Cuckoos woke up and walked around it's pen.

"COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO!" The Cuckoo screamed. It was early in the morning. Zhago walked out of his house before any other villagers were awake. He noticed that Paya was already at the Goddess Statue that was next to the water pond. He prayed at the Goddess Statue next to Paya. Amo the Cat was sitting beside Paya. Poump, Tipa and Uten woke up shortly after and walked outside. Poump noticed that Tipa's hair started becoming red again, with the white hair at the end of it. They walked past Paya and Zhago praying. Amo the Cat noticed them and started walking towards the place where Impa was buried. Zhago noticed the cat walking in that direction and decided to follow it with the party. They saw Link standing next to the tree looking at Hyrule Castle in the distance, with 4 ghosts around him. They were the ghosts of a Goron, a Gerudo, a Zora, and a Rito. Uten recognized the Zora as Mipha. The party stood behind Link in ear shot.

"It's crazy guys, I have a daughter. With Zelda. That means that I'm the King of Hyrule." Link said.

"That must be a huge burden on your shoulders." The Gerudo ghost said.

"When is the world not being a burden on my shoulders?" Link replied.

"The world doesn't revolve around you, Link. You don't need to fix everything you ever see. You act like the whole world is your problem, when sometimes it's someone else's problem." The Rito ghost replied.

"Go easy on him, Revali. Link has seen a lot of stuff. He even has the strength to deal with helping so many other people." The Goron ghost said to the Rito ghost. "No wonder you always go running into trouble when you see it, eh big boy?"

"That's right Daruk. That is why I always feel obligated to fix problems." Link replied to the Goron. "It's like a curse of its own. Being the Hero. It's as if the world calls for me all the time. Being a Hero and a King would be so much worse. The world would be calling for me even more."

"Just know that we have your back, Link." The Zora ghost said. The other ghosts nodded in agreement, even the Rito. "But I also think you should know that the world really doesn't revolve around you. Your actions can and have inspired others to follow in your footsteps."

"You're right, Mipha." Link started rubbing his eyes. "I miss all of you guys. And I already miss Impa. I wish I could spend one more day with all of you again, in the flesh. One more day on the battlefield with you guys would be a dream come true."

"That's a very thoughtful point, Link, but uh, we have some people looking at us right now." The Rito ghost pointed behind Link. All of the ghosts and Link turned around to see the party just standing there, looking at him. The ghosts disappeared.

"How long have you guys been standing there?" Link said, slightly surprised.

"For a minute." Poump replied.

"How much of that conversation did you catch?" Link asked.

"Not much, don't worry." Zhago said. "We won't mention this to anyone."

"That's good, I guess." Link looked at Impa's burial spot. "Well I guess we're back to business. What are you guys planning on doing?"

"We're going to the Gerudo Desert to deal with the monster colony and to find something that can cure a rare disease." Uten replied.

Link's eyes widened when he heard 'rare disease'. "You seek a battle with a Molduga."

"A Molduga?" Uten replied.

"Yes, a Molduga. It's a large sand whale that lives in the desert. It's guts are capable of curing this rare disease that you speak of. I've defeated many Moldugas 10 years ago."

"Wait a moment, so since you defeated all of those Moldugas, wouldn't that mean you have your own Molduga guts in your possession?" Uten asked.

"Well you see here, that's where the big problems come in. First up, the last time I hunted for and killed a Molduga was 9 years ago. Eventually, the Gerudo Tribe declared that the Moldugas were endangered, as we were only able to keep track of one active and alive Molduga in the whole desert. After that hunt, Molduga hunting was banned in the desert for the sake of keeping up research on the last Molduga." Link thought for a few moments to himself and saw the look on Uten's face. "The person with the rare disease is King Dorephan from Zora's Domain." Uten nodded. "Prince Sidon mentioned it to me a few days ago. When he said rare disease, I didn't think it was the same disease that could be cured by the Molduga guts at the time since it has been so long since I've had to deal with them like that. I donated all of my own Molduga guts to a medical facility in Gerudo Town, mainly because that is the only place where the rare disease ever occured. That being said, they probably used up all of the Molduga guts since the last time I brought them a new Molduga gut was 9 years ago."

"So what are we going to do then?" Uten said feeling a bit stressed.

"We might not like it, but we're going to need to kill the last Molduga." Link said, feeling a bit distraught. "I will meet you guys in the Gerudo Desert once you're ready to face the Molduga. If I can't meet you there however, speak to Lady Riju in Gerudo Town. She would know what's best to do with the situation."

"Okay, Lady Riju, got it." Uten said. As the conversation finished, Prince Sidon walked up to the party.

"Hey there Uten, are you ready to go to Zora's Domain?" Sidon asked Uten.

"Yes, I am ready." Uten said. "What about you guys?"

"We're ready to go wherever you go." Poump said, and the others agreed as well.

"To Zora's Domain we go." Uten said to Sidon. The squad got on their horses and rode away from Kakariko Village. Link looked at them ride off into the distance. Zelda walked up behind him.

"Is she asleep?" Link asked Zelda.

"She still is." Zelda said to Link. "Now let's talk."

Chapter 18: Courage and Wisdom

Link and Zelda walked into the field together, but not too far away from Kakariko Village. They both looked at Hyrule Castle in the distance and stood in silence for a little bit, taking in the scenery, the wind, the sounds, the breath of the wild.

Link chose to break up the silence. "So, uhm… How long has it been since we actually slowed down to talk to each other?"

"A month." Zelda replied.

"Oh really? I thought it was 4 months." Link said sarcastically.

"That's because you can't help it when I'm not near you. The last time we were truly separated, it took us 100 years to reunite." The both of them sat there for a few seconds and then they started laughing together. They laughed so much that they fell to the grass in laughter. They didn't care that their clothes were getting dirty from the grass, it was a part of the fun for them. They both regained themselves and sat in the grass together. They looked at each other and then kissed each other on the lips profusely. They disengaged from the kiss.

"What about those 2 years I spent out at sea?" Link said after some silence.

"I will admit, it was a long time in Hyrule without you." Zelda fell silent. "What was it like?"

"Huh?"

"What was it like finding out that we have a child?"

"Oh. Well uh… it felt-"

"Don't sugarcoat it. Please tell me your honest thoughts on our child."

Link collected his thoughts. "Well in complete honesty, I am really happy to know that we have a child. I would be willing to do anything for our little girl. I will add that I don't like the idea of becoming the King of Hyrule." Link looked at Zelda. "Is that why you chose to keep her a secret from me?"

"Yes, that is why. I didn't want you to feel worse after knowing that Hyrule has you as it's King. I know that you love being out and about, and so do I. But as you know, looking over a kingdom, especially one that is currently at an unrest, is stressful work." Zelda curled up. "If it makes you comfortable, I can keep you as a Knight. That would involve breaking a lot of rules."

"Would rule breaking be a good thing for the people of Hyrule? Let's do it. Hopefully the court will allow it."

"I'm the Queen, so therefore I can overrule the court. And since Chancellor Aghanim has been killed, the only other person in power right now would be Roldi, the General of the soldiers."

"Did Roldi know I was the father?"

"Yes, she knew all along, and kept that fact a secret to everyone else. The soldiers around Hyrule Castle know that Hilda is my daughter, they just don't know that she is also your daughter." Zelda thought about Hilda for a little while and almost had a mini heart attack before knowing that she was safe and sound in Kakariko Village.

"Y'know, it's kinda funny." Link said breaking the silence again.

"What's funny?" Zelda asked.

"Sometimes when I was in Hyrule Castle, I actually saw Hilda. I just didn't know she was my daughter. I just thought she was some fan-girl who happened to live around the Castle."

Zelda looked at Link with a look of major judgement. "So you saw her before… and didn't think she was our daughter?"

"Well she has purple hair, and both of us are blonde. How would she have purple hair?" Link quickly thought of something else to save himself. "Also, we had sex before I went out to the sea and I was gone from Hyrule for two years, so all I saw was just some little girl that was chilling out around the Castle sometimes. I honestly thought she was someone else's daughter."

"Oh Link, you don't need to save your face for me." Zelda replied. "A lot has happened in the kingdom for the last 10 years, so I don't blame you for not knowing." Zelda thought to herself a little bit. "You never met my mother."

"Your mother? True, I never met her. I read that your mother died suddenly when you were 6 years old."

"Yes, that is the truth. I don't remember much about her, however, I do remember one thing about her."

"What was that?"

"She had purple hair."

"Whoa, really?"

"Yes, my father had blonde hair which gave me blonde hair. This meant that there was a gene for purple hair somewhere in my gene pool, which evens out." Zelda went quiet for a moment. "My father always said that my mother died suddenly, but I have a feeling that he was hiding something. I never got to see her body after she died."

"Do you think he just buried her somewhere really well hidden?"

"That is a possibility. I never knew my mother much, so I never had the curiosity to investigate her death any further." Zelda stopped talking for a while. "Let's change the subject please."

"As you wish." Link thought about something else to talk about. "What's your take on Chancellor Aghanim's death?"

"Aghanim… I trusted him so much because of all he did to keep the citizens of Hyrule safe. And he also proved to be useful for dealing with the Yiga Clan, however he was way too paranoid about the Yiga Clan members. He wrongfully executed so many people, and I didn't even know he did all of that. I don't want to think about what Hyrule would be like under his rule. Without him now, we need to gain a new Chancellor, one who isn't so power hungry." Zelda felt her mind drifting. "That special task force, the ones that call themselves the Monster Squad. What do you think about them, Link?"

"Oh yeah, the Monster Squad. I think they're a good bunch of people. Apparently they had a Cuckoo in their team and they say that it turned into that Hylian Girl with the Lynel Horns after they defeated Aghanim. They told me it was malice that was coursing through her that caused her horns to come out, and she can even turn into a Lynel at some points."

"That's strange." Zelda replied.

"Yup. Besides that Hylian Girl, there's also that Sheikah Warrior. I can trust him. That Zora woman, Uten, seems a bit rude, but I know her. She's just really wary about everyone she meets. Then there's Poump."

"What do you think of him?" Zelda asked.

"Poump is a very interesting person because he has no signs of self preservation. When we were dealing with the monster colony in the Hebra Region, he ran straight for the Lynel that was patrolling around the colony. I called him an idiot, but to be frank, that was something I did a lot when I was his age as well. I actually admire his bravery. He seems to be a bit unruly, but I'm pretty sure we can have him be a part of the soldiers of Hyrule. I see a lot of potential in that kid. He's shown me a side of myself that I haven't seen in a long time."

"That's really thoughtful. This squad has fared a lot better than the previous squads." Zelda said.

"Previous squads?" Link asked.

"I've been trying to find a good group of fighters to help us with escorting the monsters off of Hyrule for a long time. There were 3 previous squads before them. They only wanted to do it because I promised them that they would be fighting monsters and could harvest their expensive monster parts. I tried finding different ways to tell them that they needed to escort them out instead of fighting them, but sadly each squad failed to understand my plan."

"What happened to each of them?"

"The first squad tried fighting the monsters themselves but 2 of them were killed and the other 3 fleed out into the snow, where they died of hypothermia. I tried meeting them at the monster colony myself to tell them not to kill the monsters, but it was already too late. I feel terrible for leading them to their demise. They just wanted some rupees and went into the mission under prepared. The second squad prepared themselves more and ended up killing a few of the monsters, which caused the Lynel in the colony to kill all of them. The third squad was on their way to the colony and then they were attacked by Yiga Assassins along the way there."

Link was feeling a little bit angered with Zelda. "You lead all of those people to their deaths? Promised them money and with a lack of communication, inadvertently caused their deaths?"

"Link…"

"No way, I can't believe this. What if those outcomes happened to the current squad?"

"It wouldn't have happened because I finally figured out a way to call via the Sheikah Slate. Once researchers found out the way to communicate over long distances with Sheikah Slates, I knew that my plan would turn out much better." Zelda looked down. "I know that those deaths were mostly my fault, and I feel absolutely terrible for allowing them to go into such a mission with such limited information."

"Zelda… after all we've been through, you could've easily told me to join those other squads, maybe they wouldn't be dead."

"I sent them to the monster colonies during the time you were away at sea searching for an island for the monsters. I wanted the monsters out of their colonies here on Hyrule as soon as possible, so I wanted to get the mission done quickly."

Link walked around frustratedly. "Should I keep this a secret to the others?"

"Please do. We can tell the current squad about them after the mission is done. They have already successfully dealt with the monsters in the Hebra and Akkala Regions. I hope they can deal with the monster colony in the Gerudo Region. You will help them, right?"

"Yes, I will." Link closed his eyes.

"I hate myself for doing it. Leading those people to their deaths. I was way too optimistic with my mission that I didn't stop to think about the consequences. Please forgive me, Link."

"I forgive you, my Queen." Link said with honesty. "Let's just not mess this up with the current squad." Link hugged Zelda, and she hugged him back.

"Do you want to drink this away?" Zelda said to Link.

"Sure, let's do that." Link and Zelda started walking towards Kakariko Village when they saw Amo the Cat running towards them really fast. Hilda was chasing Amo for fun. The cat ran up Link's body and Link held the cat in his arms. Hilda noticed both of her parents looking at her with stern faces.

"I'm sorry." Hilda said looking down feeling guilty. "I just wanted to pet the cat but it kept running away from me."

"Don't be sorry." Link and Zelda said in unison to Hilda.

"I would do the same if I was 8 years old as well." Link added. "Just don't try to scare it too much again."

"Come here, Hilda." Zelda said to Hilda. Hilda walked up to her and Zelda picked Hilda up. "We will all go back to the village and play a game together."

"Why don't we ride on horseback?" Hilda asked. Link and Zelda looked at each other.

"We can do that too." Link put Amo down and whistled with his fingers. A brown furred horse with a white mane ran up to them. Link climbed onto the horse and Zelda propped Hilda up onto the horse.

"Are you ready?" Link said to Hilda.

"I'm always ready." Hilda replied with a smug smile on her face.

"HYAH!" Link caused the horse to start running across the fields that overlooked most of Hyrule Field. To Hilda, this was extremely magical. The wind on her face always felt good to her. She felt like she would never tire from this. Zelda held the cat in her hands and smiled happily at the sight of seeing Link interacting with their daughter. To her, this was the ideal life. Zelda thought to herself that once the monster colonies are done and the Yiga Clan was done for, they could finally live a life like this peacefully. Link brought the horse back up to Zelda and stopped it.

"Let's do that again!" Hilda said.

"We'll do that again, Princess. But first." Link got off of the horse and carried Hilda off of it. Zelda brought out her Sheikah Slate and turned on the camera function. "Smile!" Zelda positioned the slate in a way that took a picture of all three of them and the cat. They all looked at the camera and smiled.

"This is going on our wall back at the castle." Zelda said. "A good reminder of what the future holds for us once this is all over."

"Mom, join us!" Hilda exclaimed to Zelda as she walked back towards the horse with Link. Zelda blew on her fingers and a horse with white fur and a white mane ran up to her. She got onto her horse and rode beside Link's horse. Amo the Cat looked at the two horses riding around the field and then turned around to go back to Kakariko Village.

A few hours later and Link, Zelda, and Hilda made it back to Kakariko Village. They got off of their horses. "That was a lot better than drinking, right Zelda?"

"Yes. We should do this a lot more often. That was the most fun I've had in a long time." Zelda replied to Link.

"Will we ride on our horses some more?" Hilda asked.

"We will, sweety. But first, we must speak to Paya." Zelda replied.

"Okay."

Zelda and Link walked up to Paya, who was sitting in the place next to where Impa once sat. "Hello Paya. How are you doing?" Link asked her.

"I'm doing great, Link." Paya said. She was looking at the painting of Impa in the room.

"We miss her too." Zelda said. Her and Link walked up to Paya and hugged her together.

Chapter 19: From Zora's Domain to the Gerudo Desert

The party arrived at a river with Sidon and Uten. "Ride me!" Sidon said in reference to Poump and Tipa.

"What?" Poump replied.

"This river leads us directly to Zora's Domain." Uten said. "We Zora can easily swim through this river. Normally you would need to spend 2 hours hiking through these mountains in order to reach the domain, but since you have the Mighty Prince Sidon and I, we can make it there much faster together."

"Yup, she's right. Now hop on my back!" Sidon said and he positioned himself next to the river. Poump and Tipa latched onto Sidon's back, while Zhago went on Uten's back. Sidon and Uten dove into the river and as if it were nothing, the both of them weaved through the water like it was nothing, even with the other people on their backs. Sidon is built a lot bigger than most other Zora, so he is able to carry multiple people on his back. Uten is a lot smaller than Sidon, but thankfully Zhago is the same size as Uten as well.

It took around 10 minutes for the team to see the blue and glistening structures of Zora's Domain. Zora's Domain is located in a very secluded area, with cliffs surrounding it like a very steep bowl. There are waterfalls that fall from the domain itself that the Zoras use by swimming up them towards the main plaza of the Domain. Sidon and Uten swam the other members up to the main plaza. "Feel free to do whatever you want right now. I must check on the King." Sidon dove off of the main plaza and swam to a small facility that was built into the side of one of the cliff-faces. Uten and the party walked around a bit. After so much time away from home, Uten felt so at ease. Zora's Domain has a water system that allows for about 3 inches of water on the ground at all times, making the people of the Zora feel refreshed all the time. Uten walked into the blacksmith's area.

"Hey there, Dento." Uten said to the blacksmith Zora.

"Ahh, Uten. It's been a long time. What brings you here?" Dento replied.

"I'm here on business concerning King Dorephan."

"Oh yes, I've been expecting you. Sidon told me to make this outfit work on you. You are the smallest Zora from your family, the-"

"Runt of the family, I know." Uten said, feeling a bit impatient.

Dento looked back at Uten with a bit of offense, but didn't take it personally. He's had many customers ask for armor and weapons before and had them bite back at his words. He also knew that Uten was a lot more aggressive than most other Zora. "Here, take a look at this armor. Using Sheikah technology, I outfitted it to cycle water around these canisters on the back. They will hydrate you periodically, allowing you to be on your A-game all the time. Even in the Desert heat, this should provide you with enough hydration to survive the harsh environment."

"Thank you so much, Dento." Uten took the outfit for herself.

"Make sure you put this outfit on only when you need it. You can also refill it with a water bottle. In the desert, it should provide you with 6 hours of hydration. The outfit will make a beeping noise when it starts to run out, so refill it when that noise starts up." Dento made a face of concern. "And most importantly, be careful."

"I will be." Uten proclaimed.

"Very well." Dento started working on other weapons while the party walked outside to the main plaza of the Domain. Uten looked at the statue in the center of the plaza that depicted the former Zora Champion Mipha. She never got to meet Mipha in person, but knew about her significance to the Zora tribe. She remembered how Mipha's ghost apparently was speaking to Link, which made sense given that she knew about her relationship with Link. Uten panicked knowing that King Dorephan could die any time now.

"Can you look after this outfit for me, please?" Uten said to Zhago.

"Yes, I will." Zhago replied. He knew she had something urgent to look at.

"Thank you." Uten ran up to the side of Zora's Domain and dove off. She splashed into the water below and swam directly towards the medical facility. She arrived there and walked inside. There was a door that led to another set of doors.

"Hold still, this is for safety reasons." A voice said above her. Some red laser lights scanned Uten. "You're clean. Put on a mask and come inside." A mask that had a water filter dispensed in front of Uten. She put it on and walked inside.

There were a few Hylian researchers, as well as a few Zoras in the room. Sidon was at the other side of the room, making sure he kept himself calm. King Dorephan, in all of his greatness, was laying on a large medical bed. Tubes were pumping through him. Sidon walked up to Uten. "Uten… it's worse than we thought."

Uten felt her heart sink. "What do you mean?"

"We only have three more days to keep him alive." Sidon said with great worry. "You must hurry now. We have very limited time, so by the Great Jabbu Jabbu, find the cure and bring it here as fast as you can."

"No second thoughts about it. I'll get going. To the Desert." Uten hurriedly went out of the medical facility and swam back to Zora's Domain. She met up with the others. "We need to go to the Gerudo Desert. NOW."

"Wait a moment, I was gonna buy myself some red potions." Poump said, feeling nonchalant.

"Buy them, and we have to go NOW." Uten said. She gathered up the red potions around the store that Poump was in and paid up all the rupees they needed to buy them. The total was 350 rupees. They equipped their potions. Uten walked up to some other Zora around Zora's Domain. "Can you help transport these folks with me up the river towards the Lanayru Wetlands?" She said to the other Zora.

"Sure, we'll help you out. We'll do anything for you or your friends." The other Zora prepared themselves to dive off of the Domain. The party members propped themselves onto the other Zora and they all dove into the water. The Zora swam swiftly through the river and made it to the Lanayru Wetlands in no time.

"Thank you for transporting my friends." Uten said to the Zora.

"You're welcome! Any time." The other Zora replied.

The party mounted their horses and started galloping in the direction of Kakariko Village. The party knew that the Gerudo Desert was far away in the South West, so using the sun and the landmarks across Hyrule allowed them to orient themselves on the correct pathway. They rode past Kakariko Village. Zhago knew that Uten was in a very urgent hurry, so he didn't want to halt her progress. The team continued riding their horses on the main pathway and followed the road signs pointing them towards the Desert. They rode past the Great Plateau. It had a large Sheikah Tower sitting proudly on it.

The road took them towards a dusty valley area, and there were only a few wooden bridges allowing them to ride across to the other side. As they continued riding forward, they noticed something in front of them. There were 4 Guardians with red eyes chasing after what looked like a platoon of Hylian Soldiers on horses. Uten didn't want to stop, so she ordered the party to keep on galloping.

Then as if from nowhere, an explosion went off and sent all of the party members tumbling off of their horses. Their horses ran away in panic. They regained their senses and noticed about 5 Yiga Clan Footsoldiers running at them. Zhago pulled out his katana and battled it out with 2 of them. Impa's blessing invigorated Zhago with more power, so he overwhelmed the 2 Yigas and killed them. 1 of the Yiga Footsoldiers attempted to attack Poump, but he parried the attack and slashed them dead. The other 2 Yiga Footsoldiers attacked Uten, who dodged out of the way and stabbed one of them with her spear. Tipa managed to get the drop on the last Yiga footsoldier. She pulled out her two katanas and stabbed them from the back.

The party looked around for their horses amidst the chaos. Some horses rode up, but on their backs were a few more Yiga. They raised their bows and shot at the party. Poump blocked some of the arrows while Uten got sliced by an arrow. Zhago jumped towards a nearby rock and spring vaulted off of it. He pulled out his bow and shot two of the Yiga soldiers off of their horses. The other Yiga surrounded Zhago on their horses, and the other party members couldn't do much to help him. Zhago prepared his sword and one of the Yiga tried attacking him. Zhago swung his sword and caused the engaging Yiga to fly away in two pieces. The others started to converge when all of a sudden a large figure jumped above one of the Yiga, causing them to be forcefully dismounted from their horse. Zhago looked at the large figure and saw a Gerudo Warrior with the Yiga soldier falling dead off of her spear. The other Yiga pulled out their bow and tried shooting the Gerudo Warrior and they brought out a shield and parried the Yiga's arrow right back at him, causing him to fall off of his horse. The Yiga recovered from the arrow attack, but the Gerudo swiftly rolled after the recovering Yiga and kicked them to the ground.

The Gerudo looked at the adventurers. "What are all of you doing here?! This is a war zone! I can understand you, Sheikah Warrior, but you three?!"

"We are trying to get to the Gerudo Desert!" Zhago replied. "These three are a part of my team."

"Oh, well if that's the case-" The Gerudo looked up. "Get down!" She raised her shield above herself. The team looked around and noticed some Hylian soldiers raising their own shields in formation. Instinctively, the party raised their own shields, while Tipa and Zhago took refuge under the other shields. A hail of arrows fell from the sky. They looked outside from under their shields and noticed Yiga soldiers on the sides of the valley, armed with bows. They were using some wooden walkways built onto the side of the valley. They continued firing their arrows down at the soldiers, the party, and the Gerudo. The Yiga were periodically firing at a specific manner that allowed every other Yiga to knock a new arrow while the others would fire their own arrows. They repeated this process for the next 18 seconds. The Gerudo Warrior put up her shield and started slowly walking towards a rock for cover. She made it to the rock and brought out a bow. She knocked an explosive arrow and fired it blindly at the Yiga on the side of the valley. The explosion caused about 6 of the Yiga to die and the explosion also destroyed a part of the walkway. The other soldiers who had shelled themselves together with their shields traveled together in formation. One of the soldiers took down their shield and another soldier within the formation brought out a blue glowing arrow. They launched it at the Yiga. A small blue energy emitted at the area where it landed, and then slowly the other Yiga stopped firing their arrows and ran away. The party got out from under their shields and started trying to find their horses. The soldiers assumed a different formation and started running deeper into the valley.

"What was that thing that the soldier used?" Poump asked Zhago.

"That was an ancient arrow. It's used to destroy Guardians with ease." Zhago replied.

"That must be a really powerful weapon. We should get a few of these soon." Poump said.

"We will, but first we need to get out of here." Zhago said. He looked around and saw that their horses had taken shelter underneath a wooden structure. He motioned for the party to follow him and they got back onto their horses. Zhago rode up to the Gerudo. "Where is the best route for making it to the Gerudo Desert?"

"Through there." The Gerudo pointed towards a long pathway that would bring them through the valley. It still looked like chaos. "That is the only way to get to Gerudo Desert. I wish you luck!" The Gerudo started running at an immense speed towards a group of Yiga that were running towards the party. About 6 other Gerudo Warriors joined her in the fight and they overwhelmed the Yiga. The party rode on their horses following Zhago through the chaos of the battlefield. Arrows flew, and Guardian lasers shot through the air. A large group of Gerudo warriors banded together with some Hylian soldiers and they stormed a small fortress that was being occupied by Yiga soldiers. One of the Guardians noticed the party, so it focused its gaze on Poump. Poump tried riding to the side to shake it off but it kept chasing him. The Guardian shot it's laser and barely missed Poump. Zhago pulled out his bow and shot at the Guardian's eye with a normal arrow, which reoriented the Guardian's gaze towards Zhago. They noticed a gate ahead of them which was starting to close. They rode their horses in with great hurry. The door continued closing while they made it to the other side. The Guardian's laser shot at Zhago causing him to fall off of his horse. The door was fully closed.

"Holy shit!" A Hylian on this side of the door exclaimed. They were wearing a stable outfit. "You guys actually went through that hell hole!" Some stable hands tended to Zhago's wounds. "You must be here for a very important reason it seems."

"We are." Uten said with haste. "And we need to go into the Desert right now. We need to speak to Lady Riju."

"Now, now, slow down. Your friend is hurt badly. Spend the night here at the Stable so you can freshen up after that battle." The Stable Hylian brought their horses into the Stable and the team ate some food.

Some time passed. "Looks like the sun is going down. That means that the desert is going to freeze anyone who dares to try and traverse it." The Stable hand said. "So you need to speak to Lady Riju about fighting a Molduga?"

"Yes." Uten said. Zhago was asleep while Poump and Tipa played with some Hylian Retrievers that were at the Stable. "Do you have any clue on where to find a Molduga?"

"That is something that I wouldn't be able to say. Mainly because I was sent to work on this stable just two months ago, and the only place in the Desert that I've been to is Kara Kara Bazaar. Aside from the Bazaar, there is Gerudo Town, but that might as well not exist to males like me."

"How come?"

"There is a strict rule in Gerudo Town that prohibits any men from entering the place. Only women are allowed in there. It's a part of the custom, so I never bothered going in there. Since you are a female, you will be allowed into Gerudo Town." Something just dawned on the Hylian. "Wait a moment, you're a Zora!"

"Why yes I am."

"I've never seen a Zora come here to the desert! The place would fry a Zora whole."

"Not this Zora."

The Hylian thought for a bit. "Ahhhh. I see. I wish you luck. You'll need it. The Gerudo Desert isn't nice to anyone."

"I'll keep that in mind." The sun set on the desert. Uten felt a chill breeze and walked inside of the stable. She fell asleep and awaited the next day.

The next day came. Tipa's hair had started to become even redder. "Looks like the Lynel will awaken again soon." Poump said.

"We have a day." Uten said. "Let's get this done. Zhago, are you feeling alright?"

"I'm alright." Zhago said. "Our horses can't go into the desert, so we'll have to walk."

The area around the stable offered a lot of shade, as it was sandwiched between two rocky cliffs. Uten put on her special water outfit. She felt hydrated immediately, as the suit pumped water into her. The party walked down the pathway towards the searing hot desert. The bright sun made the sand look really bright. The stable hand stopped them right next to an animal pen. "Hold on there, you don't plan on actually walking through the desert, right?"

"We can't use horses." Zhago said.

"True, however you can use Sand Seals." The Hylian pointed into the pen. A few creatures that were very round with tusks in their mouths were inside of the pen. "These animals are called Sand Seals. You can use them to go across the desert really fast. As long as you have something to keep your feet in check, like a sled or something."

"How much for a Sand Seal?" Zhago asked.

"Just 30 rupees per Seal. If you need a sled, that's an additional 15 rupees. And although the Stable System doesn't want me to tell you this, I'll tell you anyway. If you have a shield, you can use it to sled across the sand behind a Sand Seal."

"That's just great! Two of us have shields!" Poump said.

"I'll pay for 4 Seals and 2 sleds, please." Uten said.

"Alright, here you go." The stable hand handed them their Sand Seals. "Oh and by the way, if you lose your Seal out there in the wild, the Stable System isn't obligated to any refunds!"

"What did you- AAHH!" Uten's Sand Seal started zooming ahead. She held onto the reins that her Sand Seal had. The other Sand Seals started swimming forward through the sand as well.

"AHRF!"

"AHRF!"

"AHRF!"

"AHRF!"

"AHRF!" All of the Sand Seals were making loud noises, as if they were communicating with each other. The party was trying their best to hold onto the reins of the Sand Seals. They quickly learned how to steer them. They noticed an area with a building and some trees, so they headed straight for it. The outpost got closer and closer and then the Sand Seals stopped abruptly, sending all of the party members flying face first into the sand. They looked up and saw a market place, with many people walking around. A Gerudo Guardswoman noticed the team.

"Welcome to Kara Kara Bazaar. I take it all of you are new here." She noticed the Zora. "A Zora! We don't see your kind around here much, if at all. You are welcome to look at the different shops around this Bazaar, and you can even visit Gerudo Town which is just West from here."

"Thank you for welcoming us." Uten said. The Gerudo nodded at her and continued her patrol around the Bazaar. "Alright guys, I am going to go to Gerudo Town with Tipa, since both of us are females."

"Why can't we come along?" Poump asked.

"Because Gerudo Town doesn't allow men." Uten replied.

"Ah. That makes sense." Poump replied. He noticed a body of water, so he decided to sit next to it.

"We'll stay here at the Bazaar." Zhago said.

"Alright." Uten turned to Tipa. "Come on, Tipa. Let's go to Gerudo Town." Tipa nodded her head and followed Uten. Uten quickly refilled her water for her suit with the nearby body of water and then got her reins back onto the Sand Seal, and Tipa followed suit. They rode their Seals off to the North, above the dunes and out of sight for the other two.

Zhago and Poump looked at some of the stands and bought some fruits which they immediately ate. They noticed someone standing on top of the building in the area. They were motioning for them to come up. "Hey, that person looks like they want something to do with us." Poump said.

Zhago pulled out the Eye of Truth and looked at the person on the building. They didn't change at all. "Let's see what they're all about." Zhago and Poump climbed a ladder towards the top of the building. It was pretty high up and even allowed them to see around a lot of the desert. They even noticed Uten and Tipa riding up to a settlement of some kind, which was definitely Gerudo Town.

"Hello there, fine customers!" The person said. They seemed to be a guy who had a light voice and were wearing feminine clothes. "Do you want to go into Gerudo Town?"

"Uh, yeah. We'd like to." Poump said.

"Alright, I'll let you in on a little secret. If you buy my clothes, you will be able to fool the guards and they will let you into the town." The clothes seller pulled out some threads. "These are worn by Hylian women as a way of being comfortable in the desert heat."

"That sounds like a good offer, but I think I'll pass." Poump said.

"Me too." Zhago added.

"W-what?!" The clothes seller said, feeling surprised.

"Cross dressing is an experience for another time." Poump said.

"Neither mine." Zhago added.

"B-but… men always buy my outfits… and it always works. They're allowed inside of Gerudo Town…" The clothes seller looked at both of them, "Don't you want to go into Gerudo Town?! And see all of the pretty sights for yourselves?"

"We don't have much of a reason to go there right now." Poump said. "We're just waiting for our friends."

"Damn… well you know what, it's fine that you didn't buy my clothes. I'll respect your decision. I just don't usually get this reception."

"Should we kill him?" Poump said as he looked at Zhago.

"WHAT?!"

"No, we don't need to. He just seems to be a troubled individual." Zhago replied.

"Alrighty then." Poump put his hand off of his sword.

"You guys are crazy." The clothes seller said. He turned around to look at Gerudo Town and made a heavy sigh.

Meanwhile with Uten and Tipa. They rode their Sand Seals right in front of Gerudo Town and managed to slow them down enough so they didn't fall. The Guardswoman at the front of Gerudo Town approved of their presence. "Sav'aaq, vai." One of the Guardswomen said.

Uten had no clue what that meant, so she awkwardly waved hello to her and walked through the doorway that lead into Gerudo Town. The Town was marvelous. A line of Gerudo women walked around carrying large boxes, there was a marketplace filled with fruit, jewelry, and clothes. Uten was sort of intimidated by all of the really tall red haired Gerudo women. She was short in comparison to a lot of people that she met, but she never was surrounded by this many Gerudo before. Tipa looked at the different shops with great interest. She noticed a shop that sold stuffed toy Sand Seals. Tipa pointed at them.

"We won't be buying that, at least now. Come on Tipa, we need to find Lady Riju." Uten said. She continued walking around and saw two Gorons. "Wait a moment…" Uten walked up to the Gorons. "Why are you two here?"

"Us?" One of the Gorons replied.

"No, I'm talking about the two pots that are behind you. Oh of course I'm speaking to you two Gorons. How are you allowed in here? You Gorons are exclusively men."

"Oh yeah! We get that question a lot. The Gerudo Tribe allow us inside for two reasons!" The Goron raised his hand and showed two fingers. "Reason one! We excel at mining! We mine so many ores at Death Mountain, and the Gerudo Tribe loves buying our ores, so we sell them here for good profit. Reason two! Because we Goron brothers are all one gender, they allow us in here on principle! It would be unfair to exclude an entire species just because we're all male." The Goron looked at Uten's special outfit. "Say, we don't see many Zora around here, but that suit looks like it will be really useful for the future of the Zora Tribe in traveling here to the Gerudo Desert!"

"Oh well thank you." Uten said. She realized she had no reason to thank them, but the Goron wasn't judgemental about it at all.

"You're welcome!" The Goron said. The two Gorons turned around and started shuffling through their bags.

Uten looked around Gerudo Town some more. She saw a bunch of steps leading up to a palace of some kind. It had a rock spire built above. She assumed this was Lady Riju's place, so she walked up the steps. The Guardswomen at the front of the palace blocked the doorway with their spears. "What brings you two here?"

"We've come to speak to Lady Riju." Uten said.

"What for?"

"Regarding the Molduga in the desert."

"The Molduga?!" The Guardswoman looked at the other Guardswoman. "This must be serious. You may enter." The Guards took their spears and stood in position to the side of the door. Uten and Tipa entered the palace. The ground was dressed with a red carpet, and there were also a bunch of Sand Seal sculptures dotted along the side of the carpet. The carpet led to a throne, and sitting on it was a Gerudo woman, about 22 years old. There was a bulky Gerudo Guardswoman, a lot bulkier than the other Gerudo women, and that's saying something because Gerudo women are naturally really bulky. This bulky guard was standing next to the throne, and a fancy looking piece of headgear sat on it's own pedestal off to the side.

"Lady Riju, who are these two? We have never met them before!" The bulky Guardswoman said.

"Buliara, no need to be so upset. We have guests here with us!" The Gerudo woman sitting on the throne looked back at the two. "We are meeting them now, so we don't need to be so alarmed."

"But Riju, what if they are Yiga assassins?!" Buliara said with a bit of hot headedness.

"They can't be Yiga assassins. How would this Hylian girl have horns on her head? We have also been informed by Sidon that we would be meeting a group of people which included this horned girl and this Zora. What is your name?"

"Uten."

"Uten! Very good. Sidon told us to be expecting you."

"How do you know Sidon?" Uten asked.

"Because he is the Zora Champion of Hyrule, and I am the Gerudo Champion of Hyrule. Therefore we know each other."

"What if the Yiga clan killed them and took on their forms as a disguise?!" Buliara said feeling paranoid. "We've had 8 Yiga sightings in this town recently, and I'm not too keen on having them walk right in here like this."

Lady Riju sat in thought. "You have a point, Buliara. We can't risk having the Yiga in our town, especially in our palace no less."

"We aren't Yiga assassins!" Uten said.

"Prove it." Buliara said. She walked towards a table in the room that had lots of food on it. She grabbed some bananas and put them right in front of Uten's face. "You want it, don't you."

Uten stood there in confusion. Then she remembered the guards back at Lon Lon Ranch that almost arrested someone over selling bananas. "I don't eat bananas." Uten said blankly.

"You Yiga are becoming more and more resistant to this. It shows you are evolving." Buliara said with great determination.

"But, I really don't eat bananas." Uten said. "I don't like eating them."

Buliara looked at Lady Riju. "Enough Buliara. She is not a Yiga assassin. She would've voraciously eaten those bananas right up in the past 12 seconds."

"Fine." Buliara put the bananas back onto the table.

"She is the real deal, and she has something to speak to us about." Riju looked at Uten. "I take it that you're here to find the cure for King Dorephan."

"Yes, that is exactly why I am here." Uten replied. "I am here to find and hunt after the Molduga."

"Ah yes, the Molduga. We have only ever seen one of them out in the desert. The last Molduga usually travels around some ruins to the North of this town." Riju got off of her throne. "Walk with me." Uten and Tipa followed Riju while Buliara followed behind closely with her great sword in hand. Riju led them towards an outlook that overlooked the Gerudo Desert. "I just realized, you had to travel through Gerudo Valley to get here. That place is a war zone right now. I sent many Gerudo Warriors there to deal with the Yiga forces. Chancellor Aghanim, when he was alive, sent more Hylian forces to assist with our efforts to drive the Yiga away. I heard he even sent Guardians with the Hylian soldiers. There must be chaos in that valley."

"It really is chaotic over there." Uten said. She looked across the desert back to the cliffs where Gerudo Valley was.

"Anyways, you've come to me regarding the Molduga. In that direction, you will find the ruins where the Molduga usually travels. We've installed a tracking device on it, and any Sheikah Slate will be capable of tracking the device. Sometimes we see the device lose its signal, but we see it come around again. It probably loses signal because of the sandstorms. Once you've made it to the ruins, you can attract the Molduga with vibrations on the ground. Make enough noise, and it'll come right for you. Be careful though, it could swallow you whole."

"Thank you for the advice, Riju." Uten said.

"Now before you deal with the Molduga, I must ask you about something concerning the monster colony here in Gerudo Desert."

"How do you know about it?" Uten asked.

"Zelda told me about it. You are a part of the squad that deals with escorting the monsters away from Hyrule. I am one of her closest friends, so I know how important her mission is." Riju walked to the other side of the outlook. "Over there to the South lies a place called the Arbiter's Grounds. Link has investigated the place. He's said that he found Divine Beast Vah Naboris stationed in the area, as well as a whole squad of Yiga assassins patrolling outside the structure. He says they seemed to have excavated a large temple of some kind." Riju walked to the other side of the outlook. "In that direction, there lies a large skeleton of a leviathan. The monsters were forced to live there, and because of the harsh desert environment, they never bothered straying away from their colony. Except for the Lizalfos. Those monsters specifically can travel a great distance in the desert. Because of the harsh desert, we need to escort them with the assistance of Vah Naboris."

"You mean to tell me that you also need me to go through a whole Yiga stronghold in order to get a Divine Beast? Last I heard of them, they just stopped working. Even if we managed to get to the Divine Beast, how would we have any hope in making it do our work?"

"You will be able to make it work because you will have Link on your side. He's dealt with all of the Divine Beasts before. He told me that there was a mysterious device within Arbiter's Grounds that was capable of controlling the Divine Beast, so perhaps that would be the key you're looking for. I will call for him to assist you when you are ready. For now though, you can focus on dealing with the Molduga."

"Alright then. We will deal with it as best we can."

"Very well." Riju said as she ordered them to walk back down to the palace.

As for Zhago and Poump, they stood on top of the building overlooking the desert. Zhago equipped his Hawkeye and looked around the desert. Through it he noticed a strange structure towards the South. "Alright Zhago, I'm gonna go down to the bazaar and do some shopping."

"That sounds like a good idea, Poump." Poump climbed down the ladder back to the marketplace and shopped around. Zhago brought his gaze down to the Bazaar and noticed something peculiar. He wore the Hawkeye and the Eye of Truth at the same time. All of the visitors and Gerudo Guardswomen didn't change at all through the Eye's gaze, except for one single person in the crowd. Without the Eye of Truth, that one person looked like a hooded figure, wearing white robes with a red lining. Through the Eye of Truth, the hood disappeared and revealed a tall and slender man, wearing what looked like a white outfit. Zhago didn't like the sight of such a strange individual, so he teleported down into the crowd next to the strange figure. "Who are you?" Zhago said as he raised his sword to the strange figure.

The strange figure turned around. "Oh, the people of this land. So violent, so enraged! It is a delight!" They had a somewhat chilling voice, despite their somewhat light, albeit menacing voice.

"You didn't answer my question." Zhago said with his sword still pointed at the figure. The crowd stopped what they were doing and looked at the two in their confrontation.

"Who am I, you ask? Why would I say my name to a lowly individual like yourself. Especially a stupid individual, like you."

"Enough!" Zhago swung his sword at the strange figure and as if at lightning speed, the stranger's hand grabbed Zhago's blade mid-swing. "What the?"

The strange figure tucked at Zhago's blade causing him to lose his grip. The strange figure now had Zhago's sword. "You don't know when to pick your fights, don't you?"

Poump weaved his way through the crowd and saw the strange figure confronting Zhago. Poump drew his sword. "Back off from my friend, you creep!" Poump swung his sword at the strange figure and then the strange figure teleported out of the way of the attack. Poump felt the metal of Zhago's sword meet his neck.

"Dead." The strange figure said. They removed the sword from Poump's neck. "Looks like the Goddess cooked up a land of idiots who don't know self control!"

"I don't care!" Poump swung his sword at the strange figure again, but this time the figure also grabbed the blade of the sword. The strange figure took Poump's sword for himself.

"Foolish! I could kill you two in a myriad of ways!" The strange figure looked at the crowd surrounding them. "In fact, I could kill all of you in 3 seconds if I wanted to!"

The crowd gasped. One of the members in the crowd spoke up. "You can? Prove it!"

The strange figure snapped their fingers and then a bunch of knives started revolving around the figure. The figure snapped their fingers and the knives floated right up in front of everyone in the crowd's face. "Move one step, and you will all be stabbed all over your body multiple times without a chance of survival!" The people in the crowd stood there. The Gerudo Guardswoman noticed the commotion.

"Halt!" The Gerudo jumped into the center of the crowd's circle and attempted to slice at the strange figure. The strange figure teleported away from the attack and then reappeared. The floating knives all went away from the crowd and surrounded the Gerudo on all of her sides.

"Good night." The strange figure snapped his fingers and the knives all stabbed the Gerudo from all sides. She tried escaping the storm of knives but they were too much for her. She fell to the floor, bloodied. The crowd ran away in fear and escaped the Bazaar. Amidst the chaos, the strange figure grabbed Poump and teleported away with him.

"No!" Zhago exclaimed. He looked around and eventually noticed that the strange figure was on top of the building. He teleported up there and saw the strange figure holding Poump hostage with a sword to his throat.

"Move any bit closer, and he dies! Move any bit farther, and you die!" The figure said with a new menace to their voice.

"Put him down and tell me what you want!" Zhago said.

"Oh, is that a semblance of intelligence I see before my eyes? I would've expected you to say that earlier, Sheikah Warrior." Poump tried squirming out of the figure's hold but they kept him held up. "I am here to meet with my old master, Demise!"

"Demise? Never heard of it."

"You never heard of it because YOU WERE NEVER GIVEN THE RIGHT INFORMATION! Demise walks upon this land. I've felt his presence for quite some time now." The figure closed their eyes. "He is near!" The figure let Poump go from his grasp. Poump felt his neck and recovered his wind. The figure looked out at the desert. He took special note of two people coming towards the Bazaar on their Sand Seals. "There he is!"

Uten and Tipa rode up to the Bazaar on their Sand Seals. They arrived and saw someone crouching in fear. They also noticed the dead Gerudo on the floor. "What happened here?" Uten asked.

"Someone… almost killed me. They are up there." The person pointed up the building. Uten and Tipa climbed the ladder and made it to the top.

"Demise!" The figure said at the sight of Tipa. "What a strange choice to house your body in. It's weak!"

Tipa all of a sudden had red eyes out of nowhere and a malicious voice spoke from out of her mouth. "Funny you say that, Ghirahim. You weren't the one who had to survive in this realm for a long time."

"According to my findings, you had this land in a bind 10 years ago! What gave way?"

Tipa walked up to the figure. "The Mischievous Hero. He destroyed my host and vanquished a large part of myself across this forsaken land." Poump looked really confused when he just realized that Tipa was talking with such a menacing voice. "I've had to find other hosts in order to survive and keep my curse alive. This girl is the best option for me right now, despite being weak in nature."

"Actually, that's not a girl, that's a Cuckoo." Poump interjected. Tipa and the figure both looked at Poump.

"Shut up." Tipa's malicious voice said.

"Well I don't care about what form you take, I am so glad to see you here again!" The figure stated.

"Wait a moment, did she call you Ghirahim?" Zhago said.

The figure looked at Zhago. "YES SHE DID. SPEAK ONE MORE TIME AND YOUR THROAT WILL BE DISLODGED!" The figure summoned more floating knives and sent them at Zhago's face. They floated just in front of him.

"They are gullible." Tipa said to the figure. "Together we will accomplish what we set out to do 100,000 years ago. For now, I must reside within this body. We will meet again at the Arbiter's Grounds."

"Very well, my Master." The figure teleported away and left Poump and Zhago's weapons on the roof. The knives in front of Zhago's face disappeared as well, and Tipa's eyes went back to normal. She looked at the party with a look of confusion.

"Whu happene?" Tipa said with difficulty.

"A lot has happened. And I have no clue what any of it meant." Poump replied.

Chapter 20: Hunting the Molduga

The party recovered themselves from their encounter with the figure, who was apparently named Ghirahim. "Ghirahim. I heard that name before." Zhago said. "Some Yiga Clan members said his name in reference to him being their leader."

"When I was speaking with Lady Riju in Gerudo Town, she said that the Yiga have created a stronghold in a place called the Arbiter's Grounds." Uten looked at Tipa. "I guess that evens out, since he wants to meet with Tipa, or whatever is inside of Tipa." The party walked around the Bazaar. The marketplace was closed because of the recent happening. Some Gerudo soldiers ran into the Bazaar and set up a crime scene. They asked the remaining people about what happened to the dead Gerudo on the floor. One of the Gerudo soldiers turned around and looked at the party.

"You must be Uten. Riju sent us here to check on the commotion that was reported here, and to also give you the tracking frequency for the Molduga." The Gerudo handed Uten a small metallic chip. "Plug that into the Sheikah Slate in your possession and it should be able to track down the Molduga you're looking for."

"Thank you." Uten said. She handed the chip to Poump. Poump plugged it into the Slate. He clicked on the screen for a bit and eventually saw the map pop up. The Gerudo Region wasn't mapped out, but it did show Poump's location, and he saw a small icon to the North of where they were. He tapped on the small icon and then the Sheikah Slate started beeping slowly.

"Beep….Beep….Beep…"

"It looks like we have to follow this beeping sound." Poump said.

"Yes, we need to follow it. Let's go to Gerudo Town for a moment." Uten said. She refilled her water suit with the body of water at the Bazaar and then she got onto her Sand Seal. The party followed behind her. They made it in front of Gerudo Town. Uten pointed out a blue Shrine next to the town walls.

"Oh, that's smart." Poump said. "We will be able to teleport here again when we need to." He walked up to Shrine and registered it with his Sheikah Slate.

"Great, now let's discuss the plan on fighting the Molduga." Uten said. The party huddled around her. "There is a ruins site North of here where the Molduga likes traversing around. Riju told me that Moldugas are attracted to vibrations on the ground. First up, Tipa will turn into a Lynel tonight. Riju said the Molduga could swallow us whole, but if we have Tipa turn into a Lynel while she's inside of the Molduga's stomach, then that can give us a big advantage. Second, Zhago will shoot a bomb arrow at the sand to attract the Molduga. Third, the rest of us will have our Sand Seals positioned off to the side so that way once the Molduga arrives, we can chase it down. With Tipa killing the Molduga from the inside as a Lynel and us attacking it from above, we should be able to kill it quickly."

"Sounds like a plan. Let's do it." Zhago said. The party steered their Sand Seals towards the beeping sound. The beeping sound became more frequent.

"Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep..Beep." They saw a ruins site.

"Now we wait." Uten said. The party set themselves up around the ruins. The sun started to set, and Tipa walked out onto the open sand. The party noticed the sand around the area shifting a lot, but nothing was happening too much. Zhago knocked the bomb arrow and fired it at the sand a few yards away from Tipa. Tipa noticed the movement on the sand starting to move faster. The moon started rising and then she felt herself become bigger and bigger. She turned into a Lynel and roared. The moving sand swam up to her quickly. A large gaping whale-like mouth came out of the sand and swallowed the Lynel whole. From afar, the party saw the large Molduga leap entirely out of the sand. It was magnificent. It went back into the sand and started swimming away through the sand. Uten, Zhago, and Poump got onto their Sand Seals and chased after the Molduga.

Inside of the Molduga's mouth, the Lynel closed its eyes since there was so much sand pouring into the mouth. Slowly and slowly the sand went out of the Molduga's mouth since it blew the sand out with it's mouth very slowly. The Lynel looked around the mouth now that it was clearer and brought out it's weapons. It started slicing at the tongue and then the roof of the Molduga's mouth with its weapons. The Molduga jumped at the pain and caused the Lynel to bump into the roof of its mouth. The Lynel's horns caused some pain to the Molduga, but the Lynel also got a little bit dazed from being hit in the head.

Outside, the party followed the Molduga's moving sand mound. They saw its spine come out of the sand a few times. Poump decided to use his Clawshot on the spine when he got the chance. He aimed at the spine and the Clawshot fired and pulled him onto the back of the Molduga's spine. He still had his shield he was surfing on, but the Sand Seal he had decided to swim away. Zhago tried firing a bomb arrow at the exposed spine, but accidentally hit Poump in the process. Poump rolled on the sand which put the fire out, but he was pretty knocked out. Uten tried swooping Poump up off the floor but instead she sort of dragged him along. Poump woke up and grabbed onto the shield that Uten was using.

Inside of the Molduga, the Lynel recovered it's senses and started breathing fire through the Molduga's throat. This caused the Molduga's tail to fly out of the sand and create a huge wave of sand that fell onto the party members. Uten's water outfit got a little sand inside of it, which caused her to cough uncontrollably. She still held onto her Sand Seal, but she wasn't feeling good. Uten ordered Zhago to follow her. She positioned the Sand Seals just to the left of the Molduga's path. The Lynel inside of the Molduga decided to climb through the Molduga's throat and into its stomach. There were a bunch of rusty treasure chests inside of it's stomach, but the Lynel didn't care about those. It swung its weapons around, causing one of its inner organs to start bleeding. The Molduga's blood was very harmful and started pooling around the stomach. The stomach acids started damaging the Lynel, but it kept on slicing away.

Zhago and Uten with Poump in tow noticed the Molduga was swimming towards a Mesa of some kind. The Mesa got closer and closer until they made it there. The Molduga's tail flipped out of the sand and launched the three and their two Sand Seals into the air. They were in freefall. Apparently the Mesa had an open whole above it that lead to a large sand bed area within the Mesa. They pulled out their paragliders and landed safely on the floor. The Molduga surfaced out of the sand, let out a holler, and then fell over, limp. Uten saw a small Molduga and another large Molduga approach the corpse of the dead Molduga.

"AHK! AHK!" The small Molduga said when it saw the dead Molduga's body. Uten saw movement coming from inside of the Molduga's body. The Lynel's weapon cut the stomach open from inside and roared victoriously. It looked at the party members and without hesitation charged right at them. They rolled out the way from the Lynel's attack.

"Uten, Poump! Gather the Molduga Guts! I can take this thing!" Zhago exclaimed. He brandished his katana and prepared to fight the Lynel.

Uten and Poump ran up to the Molduga's open stomach. "Scan for the Molduga Guts with the Sheikah Slate!" Uten said.

"Right!" Poump brought the Slate out and scanned the inside of the Molduga. He scanned a few organs and the Slate classified them as Molduga Guts. "These ones!"

"Got it!" Uten took Poump's sword and sliced the guts out and put them in a bag. She gathered about 4 Molduga Guts before her bag was full.

The Lynel raised its weapon and swiped at Zhago. Zhago dodged the attack, but the Lynel's shield slapped him out of the air. The Lynel ran after Zhago while he was rolling on the floor and swung at him with its weapon, causing Zhago to hit the wall really hard.

"I really need to heal." Poump drank up a health potion and noticed Zhago on the floor at the other side of the area. "Hey Zhago, catch!" Poump threw another health potion right at Zhago, but it landed in the sand just many yards away.

"Thanks." Zhago said inaudibly while regaining his breaths. The Lynel's attention was diverted to Poump. Poump ran out to try and grab the health potion but the Lynel smacked him to the side with its shield away from the health potion. The Lynel chased after Poump, but this is what he wanted. Zhago crawled after the health potion in the sand, but he had competition. The small Molduga crawled up to the health potion and scooped it up between its lips. "Give me that." Zhago said with little energy to the small Molduga. The small Molduga dismissed him and turned around, slapping him in the stomach. Zhago curled up into a fetal position from the immense pain he suffered.

Uten noticed the small Molduga had the health potion in its mouth. She took her spear and tried poking the potion out of its mouth. The small Molduga was really adamant on keeping the potion for itself. It crawled towards the other big Molduga. "AURH!" The big Molduga said to the small Molduga.

"AHK!" The small Molduga spit the health potion out of its mouth to Uten. She caught it off the ground. She ran up to Zhago and force fed him the potion. He felt better after that.

"Let's get out of here." Uten said.

"Good idea." Zhago looked at Poump who was currently running away from the Lynel.

"CLIMB!" Poump pulled out his clawshot and latched onto a piece of vegetation on the side of the wall. He started climbing up the side of the wall hurriedly. Zhago brought out some climbing gloves and started scaling up the wall with Uten on his back. The Lynel looked at the party members climbing the wall. It punched the wall causing them to lose their grip a little bit, but they kept on climbing. The Lynel put its weapons on its back and started digging its fingers into the wall. It positioned its hooves into a walking position on the wall and started scaling the wall. Poump looked down at the Lynel climbing up at them. "WHOA!" He exclaimed. Poump tried climbing faster and faster but the Lynel caught up to Poump and grabbed his leg. The Lynel slammed Poump straight back into the sand below. Poump regained his vision after the impact. "My scrotums." He faintly said.

Zhago kept on climbing with Uten on his back but he saw the Lynel starting to climb sideways towards them. They were almost at the top of the Mesa. Zhago stopped climbing and awaited the Lynel. Uten panicked. Zhago pressed his feet onto the Lynel's face and springboarded himself up the wall. He teleported to the top and dropped Uten off. "Wait here." Zhago dove off of the side straight onto the Lynel. The Lynel grabbed Zhago and slammed him into the wall, causing some of the rocky wall to fall down towards Poump. Poump noticed the rocks falling and rolled away from them. Zhago pulled out a bomb, laid it on the Lynel, and teleported away from the Lynel. The bomb went off, causing the Lynel to collapse next to Poump. Poump brought out his sword and poked at the large Molduga's tail which had its back turned to them. The large Molduga flinched at the poke and waved its tail up, vaulting Poump sky high. He looked around him. He saw what looked like an endless desert, and to the other side he saw the cliffs where Gerudo Valley was. He free fell out of the sky and released his paraglider and safely landed on the outside of the Mesa. Zhago and Uten also paraglided down, and their Sand Seals swam out from under the sand to join them.

The Lynel swiftly climbed up the inside wall of the Mesa and made it to the top. It looked at the party with malicious intent. "WE MUST KILL THEM!" The malicious voice said inside of Tipa's head.

"No, we can't." Tipa replied to the malice within her.

"WE ONLY WANT BLOODLUST. CHAOS. WE MUST SLAY THEM." The malice was getting impatient. Tipa shook her head. "GO!" As if by instinct, Tipa fell forward towards the party.

"Fucking go!" Poump said to the others. Zhago and Uten got onto their Sand Seals and Poump clawshotted onto the back of Uten's shield. They rode forward with great hurry. The Lynel was chasing them across the desert. They came across what looked like a large fish skeleton, and they saw some light underneath it. The party went up to it and saw a monster encampment inside of it. They rode through the monster encampment. They passed by some Bokoblins and Lizalfos that were roasting some meat, and they noticed them sledding through. One Bokoblin on top of a small wooden structure blew into a horn, which caused all of the monsters in the encampment to look at the party sledding through with the Lynel behind them. The Lizalfos started chasing after them, but the Lynel slapped them to the side. The party made it to the other side of the monster encampment, where the monsters weren't able to see any of them. However they saw another problem. They saw Tipa the Lynel challenging another Lynel to a fight. Both of the Lynel's started punching each other, but Tipa the Lynel had stronger attacks. She knocked out the other Lynel with a right hook to the face. The monsters started celebrating at the Lynel's victory.

"Well that's something, but we need to get her out of here now!" Uten said.

"The Ocarina, should we play a song for them?" Poump said.

"No, Riju doesn't want us escorting them without the Divine Beast." Uten replied.

"Divine Beast?! When was that a thing?!" Poump replied.

"I'll explain later. We just need to get Tipa out of here and stall her out in the desert until morning." Uten said.

"Alright." Poump walked into the monster colony and made a loud noise. "Over here!" The monster all looked at him and started to draw their bows on him. The Lynel chased right after Poump. "Shit shit shit shit!" Poump grabbed onto Uten's shield and they rode across the desert away from the monster encampment. The Lynel chased them in the moonlight for a while. They kept on riding, no matter how tired they were. It took a long time, but with their will power, the sun rose again. The Lynel turned back into Tipa. Zhago carried Tipa on his back and the team sled forward towards the cliffs where Gerudo Valley was.

They arrived at the Stable. "Wowie! You guys actually kept two of your Sand Seals!" The Stable hand said excitedly.

"Yeah, we're efficient like that." Uten said, feeling exhausted but still in a hurry. "Give us our horses, we need to go through Gerudo Valley!"

"You want to try and go through that warzone again?!" The stable hand replied.

"We did it before, we'll do it again." Uten said.

"Alright then, here are your horses." The stable hand gave them their horses. The team mounted up. "Open the door!" Someone standing next to a crank started to crank the door open. "Good luck!" The team rode their horses through the door and back into Gerudo Valley.

Everything seemed fine at first, but then a few Guardians rushed out from behind the corner of some large rocks. They targeted the team, but a few Gerudo warriors ran right up to the Guardians and slashed at their legs, causing them to be stationary. The Guardians blasted their lasers, which some of the Gerudos blocked but a few others got hit and fell to the floor. The team kept on riding forward through the fight. Arrows flew from a platoon of Hylian soldiers towards a group of Yiga footsoldiers. Zhago quickly swiped his sword at a few Yiga assassins, killing them. A Guardian was shooting at the Yiga as well with its laser, but then a Yiga planted a device into the Guardian which caused it to start chasing the party. The Guardian pointed its laser at each of them periodically, deciding to see which one it wanted to blast to smithereens. A Hylian soldier rode up beside them and fired a blue arrow at the Guardian's eye, killing it instantly. Zhago knew that was an ancient arrow. He never got the chance to fire one before, but didn't want to stop to stack up on supplies since it was an active battlefield. Two more Guardians started chasing them, and the Hylian soldier was shot off of his horse by the Guardian. The team rode across the wooden bridge, with the Guardians still in pursuit. Zhago pulled out a bomb arrow and shot at the wooden bridge, causing it to break down the middle. One of the Guardians pushed the bridge to it's breaking point, causing the bridge to break and crumble into the ravine, with the Guardian falling down as well. The other Guardian stayed on the other side of the bridge, looked at the team for a bit, and then walked back towards the battlefield.

"That was intense." Zhago said. "I am so tired right now."

"Me too, but we have to keep pushing towards Zora's Domain." Uten said. The party rode across the rest of the wooden bridges and made it next to the Great Plateau. All of a sudden they heard something.

"HEEEEEEEYYYYY!" The mailman in his short shorts came running up to the party. They stopped their horses. "I have a few letters addressed to the lot of you!" The mailman handed the party two letters. "That's it for now, see ya later!" The mailman ran off into the field towards Hyrule Castle.

"We will look at these letters later. For now we need to go to Zora's Domain." Uten's outfit was sand ridden, but still functioning. It continued pumping water into her, making her feel more energetic than the rest of the party. Their horses passed the Great Plateau, and then a few stables as well. They arrived at the Lanayru Wetlands and made it to the river that lead to Zora's Domain. "I'll meet you guys there." Uten said to the party. She dove immediately into the river and swam straight for Zora's Domain.

Zhago, Poump, and Tipa looked at each other. "I guess we need to hike through the mountains then." Zhago said. They rode up to the beginning of the pathway that leads to Zora's Domain and dismounted their horses since the pathway didn't allow them to ride their horses.

Uten swam through the river and arrived at Zora's Domain. She swiftly swam for the medical facility where Dorephan was being taken care of. She entered the building. "Hold still." The lasers scanned her and she equipped the mask that was dispensed to her. She went into the medical room with the bag of Molduga Guts. Sidon got up.

"By Jabbu Jabbu you did it! Hopefully you made it in time." Sidon said. Uten offered the Molduga Guts to the Hylian researchers.

"Thank you for retrieving them. With these, the operation will be successful. You can rest now." One of the Hylian researchers said to Uten.

Uten gave a sigh of relief knowing that King Dorephan will be alright. She walked out of the medical facility and swam back up one of the waterfalls to Zora's Domain. She met up with Dento. "Ahh! My design worked! You're alive and well!" Dento said feeling relieved.

Uten gave Dento the suit. "You should make it work better around the sand. Some of it got inside and made me nauseous."

"Thank you for the advice, Uten. I will test around that design for future versions." Dento took the suit and set it up on an armor stand.

"By the way, I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier." Uten said. "About the 'runt of the family' speech you gave me."

"Oh it was never a big deal to me. I'm just glad you're alive and well." Dento started working on a weapon and Uten walked up to a water pool in the room. She dunked herself into the cool water. She became relaxed with the soothing sensation of water overcoming her skin on all sides. To a Zora, this is exactly what heaven feels like.

2 hours later, Zhago, Poump, and Tipa arrived at Zora's Domain. They all hadn't slept in a day, and also came back from the desert escapades extremely tired and weary. They dragged themselves to an area in the Domain with a sign that said 'SEABED INN'. "Three beds, please." Zhago said, feeling really tired.

"That will be 60 rupees, please." The Zora behind the counter said.

"Here." Zhago handed the Zora 60 rupees and immediately passed out on the bed. Tipa also put herself to sleep. Poump sat on his bed for a bit and then got off of it to look around the Domain. He walked around the place, finding its elaborate architecture to be exquisite. Just being in Zora's Domain was soothing in it of itself. He walked around a bit and noticed a blue Shrine in an area underneath a large set of stairs. He walked up to it and registered it, although he was curious about something else. He noticed that every Shrine he's been to has a lift of some kind. He remembered the lift they used to go down to the basement of the citadel. He walked up to the lift and it lowered down slowly.

The lift took him down into a rather mysterious looking place. The walls seemed metallic, made of a metal that he didn't recognize. He looked ahead of him and saw a slope with water flowing down, and a bunch of boulders rolling down the slope. There were apparently a few tubes on the ceiling that seemed to be jetting the boulders out onto the slope. He looked down and saw what looked like an endless pit, although he was able to make out the faint sound of boulders possibly falling into some tubes down below. The lift stopped and allowed him to walk forward. He walked forward a little bit, and then stopped. "Eh, no point to it." Poump walked back onto the lift and it sent him upwards back to Zora's Domain.

Once Poump made it back to Zora's Domain, he went back to the Inn. He looked through the party's belongings and found the two letters.

The first letter was from Queen Zelda.

"Thank you very much squad, for dealing with the monster colony in the Akkala Region. I am really happy that you found success in dealing with two of them so far. Attached to this letter is a wallet with 10,000 rupees. Once you're finished dealing with the Gerudo Desert monster colony, you will need to deliver them on a boat that has been built in Lurelin Village. For now though, take a moment to relax. If you have more questions, speak to Lady Riju in Gerudo Town. Signed, Zelda."

The second letter didn't seem to be addressed by a clear name.

"Once again, I thank you for dealing with Aghanim. Anyways, the Mask Festival is going to happen at Castle Town in 3 days, and I've been investigating a crime that seems to be linked to a few of these masks. If you can, I'd like you to stop by to help me with this mission. Sincerely, The Guardian."

Poump put the letters in the bags as well as the 10,000 rupees and then he fell asleep.

Chapter 21: The Mysterious Arbiter's Grounds

The party slept for a lot of the day but awoke in the early morning. Uten was already awake, as she was waking up the party members. "Hey guys, follow me! We did it!"

"Huh?"

"The medicine from the Molduga Guts, they worked!" Uten caused the party to wake up and they started following her up the staircases of the Domain to the Royal throne room. King Dorephan sat on his throne once again, with Prince Sidon ecstatic at Uten's arrival.

"Uten! I could hug you!" Sidon said. He ran up to Uten and hugged her really hard. Sidon stopped hugging her and she recovered herself.

"Thanks to you Uten, brave Zora, I am back to my old self again!" King Dorephan said with a hearty voice. "Seeing as you were not only brave enough to test out the prototype water suit made by Denton, you also managed to hunt and kill a Molduga, something that no other Zora has ever done before!"

"Well in all honesty, a lot of my teammates did the work." Uten said humbly. She looked back at her teammates.

Zhago stepped up to Uten. "We might have done the work, but you were the one who strategized for us, and you even harvested the guts yourself."

"I'll admit, I didn't even do anything to hurt the Molduga. It was mostly your job that you managed to pull off correctly." Poump said.

"Thanks guys." Uten said to the others.

"For all of your hard work, I reward the two Hylians and the Sheikah Warrior with specially fitted Zora armor, just for you!" King Dorephan's servants presented them with Zora armor. "With this armor, you will be able to swim about as fast as a Zora, and you can even scale waterfalls!"

"Thank you so much for your rewards!" Uten said.

"Thank YOU for saving my life! You have put a really good deed on your family name, so cherish it." The party grabbed their Zora armors and the servants went back next to King Dorephan. "You are welcome to come to this throne room whenever you feel like it. You are dismissed." The party walked out of the throne room together.

"Alright guys, what's our next course of action?" Uten said to the others, feeling much more confident in herself.

"If I remember correctly, we need to go back to Gerudo Desert in order to investigate the Arbiter's Grounds." Poump said.

"Oh wait, but I destroyed the bridge that went to Gerudo Valley." Zhago said, feeling a bit displeased with himself.

"Hey, I registered at the Shrine next to Gerudo Town. We can teleport there together!" Poump said holding his Sheikah Slate up.

"Are you sure we can teleport all at once?" Uten asked.

"We should try. Here, grab me."

"Wait a moment, let me put on the survival suit." Uten equipped the water outfit. "Now I'm ready."

Everyone grabbed Poump. He pressed on the Shrine that was located in the Gerudo Region and then all of them turned into blue streaks that floated into the sky.

Instantaneously, the party found themselves teleporting on the Shrine just outside of Gerudo Town. All of them were present and accounted for. "You two can stay out here. Tipa and I will go into Gerudo Town in order to speak to Lady Riju about our mission.

"We'll wait out here. Damn it's hot out here." Poump walked towards the shade with Zhago and they sat there.

Uten and Tipa walked into Gerudo Town. They headed straight for the palace. The guards stopped them. "What's the hold up?" Uten asked.

"If you wish to speak with Lady Riju, she is at an outpost to the South of this town." The Gerudo Guard said to Uten.

"Oh, alright. Thank you." Uten and Tipa started walking out of Gerudo Town until they realized that they didn't have any Sand Seals. Uten looked around and saw a group of Gerudo women sitting around a table together. Uten approached them. "Hi, excuse me, would you happen to know if Gerudo Town sells any Sand Seals?"

"You want Sand Seals?" The Gerudo pointed in the direction of a through way. "Through that alleyway and to the left. Then make a right. There's a place where they allow people to rent their Sand Seals."

"Alright, thank you." Uten followed the directions and they made it to the Sand Seal rental shop. There was a pen filled with Sand Seals wading about, and an open entrance around here for people using Sand Seals to travel. "Hi, I'd like 4 Sand Seals and 2 sleds please."

The Gerudo who was attending the rentals asked for the money. "140 rupees, please."

"Here you go." Uten handed the rental keeper the 140 rupees. Uten and Tipa got onto their sleds and reigned the Sand Seals. They steered them towards the other entrance to Gerudo Town, where they met up with Zhago and Poump. "Hop on." Uten commanded. Zhago and Poump got onto some shields and started riding the Sand Seals South. They saw an outpost on their way there. They stopped at the outpost since they knew Riju would be there. Buliara was standing at the bottom of the outpost.

"I see you've arrived." Buliara pulled at a crank and a ladder was lowered to the ground. "Lady Riju is up that ladder. She will brief you on what you need to do."

The party climbed up the ladder one at a time. They all made it to the top of the outpost, where Lady Riju was standing. Zhago pulled out his Eye of Truth on her. She didn't change in appearance at all.

"You see me for the first time and the first thing you do is see if I am not myself?" Riju said when she noticed Zhago looking at her through the Eye.

"We've had a lot of run ins with Yiga, so I'm just being cautious." Zhago replied.

"Very well then." Riju looked at the rest of the party. "May I ask what happened with the Molduga hunt?"

Uten spoke up. "We successfully killed the Molduga, but it swam towards a Mesa of some kind where two other Molduga are living. One of them looks fully grown, the other one looks like a baby."

Riju was happy to hear the news. "Wonderful. Our research on the Moldugas can continue." Riju changed the subject. "I have gathered you here in order to speak about what you should do while you are in the Arbiter's Grounds. Link has told me that he had suspicions that two of Hyrule's Champions are locked in there. Teba, the Rito Champion, and Yunobo, the Goron Champion. Besides freeing them, you should also investigate the mysterious device that Link said he found at the bottom most level of the excavation site. He said it might be linked to powering up Vah Naboris. And as for Vah Naboris, you will need to find a way to command it to walk across the desert towards the monster colony." Riju looked out into the distance. "There will be many Yiga footsoldiers stationed around there, as Link said it's their new stronghold for their weapons manufacturing. Be very careful when you go in there." Riju turned to look back at the party. "Any questions?"

Poump spoke up. "Will Link be able to join us?"

"He might be busy right now, but you can try to have him join you in there." Riju replied.

"Well uh, why would we want to even go in there in the first place? Sounds like a death trap to me."

"You want to help with Zelda's mission, right?" Riju said with a bit of impatience. "If you get Vah Naboris, you will be able to deal with the last monster colony. Plus, if you go in there, you could be able to save the other champions and help bring order back to Rito Village and Goron City. You've already gained a good reputation, so hold true to it." Riju walked towards the ladder. "Take your time, but get it done." Riju went down the ladder.

Zhago pulled out the Hawkeye and looked into the distance. He scoped out what looked like a really deep excavation site, with a very tall tower erupting from the ground. He looked from the excavation site to the outpost they were on and noticed the sand level was getting higher and higher. As if the sand formed a bowl around the excavation site. "Poump, you need to stop speaking against authority figures like that." Zhago said after some silence.

"Hey, we literally killed an authority figure and then our Cuckoo turned into a girl. I'm feeling antsy about a lot of people right now." Poump replied.

"You're too antsy. It kills our image." Uten said to Poump. "We have good standing with Zelda, King Dorephan, Paya, and Lady Riju, so we shouldn't act like people are against us all the time."

"Eh, you're right." Poump said.

The party went down the ladder and walked up to their Sand Seals. They saw Riju and Buliara riding away on their own Sand Seals towards Gerudo Town. The party rode their Sand Seals down towards the excavation site. As they approached, a sand storm started blowing across their area. The party closed their eyes and trusted the Sand Seals to carry them to the Arbiter's Grounds with ease.

After some time, the sand storm let up and revealed the large building that was the centerpiece of the excavation. The building provided very ample shade, and they could see what looked like a large mechanical camel standing behind the tower. They made it to an area with a bunch of wooden scaffolding, which was draped with flags depicting the Yiga insignia. There were 4 towers set up where Yiga Clan archers were standing on. The party hid behind a wooden fence that blocked the Yiga archer's view of them. Zhago equipped the Hawkeye and looked at the towers with the archers on top. He pulled out his bow and with the extra accuracy of the Hawkeye, shot at all 4 of them, causing them to fall off of their towers, dead. Zhago looked down and saw a circle of Yiga clan members surrounding a fire, and they were set up in front of what looked like a stairway to a door. The party sneaked around the scaffolding and made it to one of the dead Yiga bodies.

"I will wear this as a disguise." Poump said. He started taking the Yiga's clothes off.

"Are you sure that would be a good idea?" Uten asked.

"It could work. Try and see if the disguise will work." Zhago said.

Poump put the Yiga outfit on and equipped the Yiga mask. He wore it above his normal clothes. "Here, Uten, Tipa, you will pretend to be my prisoners."

"Really? We're Yiga prisoners now?" Uten said with a bit of annoyance.

"It's a part of the roleplay." Poump said from under the mask. "Just play along and we will be able to get in there no problem. Zhago will cover us."

"I hope this works." Uten said reluctantly. Poump grabbed both Tipa and Uten by the hands and walked them towards the fire where the other Yiga were.

The Yiga that were sitting around the fire turned to look at Poump with the prisoners. "Hey, would you look at that. New slave workers I suppose." One of the Yiga said at the sight of Uten and Tipa.

"Yes, new prisoners for us to have." Poump said with a slight nervous energy. He noticed there were 7 Yiga sitting around the fire, with weapons all around them. 2 of the Yiga footsoldiers got up and took Tipa and Uten by the hand.

"We'll take them to the conveyor belts. Thanks for your service." The 2 Yiga took Uten and Tipa inside of the door.

One of the Yiga from around the fire looked at Poump. "Sit down man." Poump sat down with them. They all chatted for a bit, with the exception of Poump.

One of the Yiga noticed he wasn't speaking. "Hey, you. New guy. We haven't heard you say a thing in the past minute. Something wrong?"

"It's that arrow slit through his mask. Knocked his brain right out, so he can't say anything." Another Yiga pointed out how there was an arrow slit on Poump's mask.

"How did you get shot by an arrow and survive? That should've knocked you out dead."

Poump thought about something to say. "I fell on some flint and it caused this."

"So you fell onto a sharp rock and didn't get punctured in your own forehead? Even if you did survive that, that hole looks like it was made by a fast moving arrow."

"How would you know that?" Poump replied.

"Smart ass. We've seen action before, we know what an arrow through one of our masks looks like. Either you're an undead freak, or you stole one of our outfits." The 5 Yiga around the fire pulled out their Vicious Sickles and attempted to attack Poump. Poump brought up his Royal Shield and blocked their attacks. An arrow flew through the air and zipped right through one of the Yiga's heads. "Someone else is here!" 2 of the Yiga teleported away, while the other 2 remained with Poump.

2 of them teleported close to Zhago, but not in eye shot of him. They looked around the area in search of the archer. One of them looked around the scaffolding trying to find the shooter. Zhago jumped down from above and sliced the Yiga's neck open, causing them to fall to the floor dead. The other Yiga heard the noise and investigated. Zhago snuck up behind the other Yiga but the Yiga turned around and noticed Zhago before he could strike. "There you are!" Zhago swung his sword at the Yiga. He dropped a smoke bomb and teleported away. "Ahk, where did you go?" Zhago waited for the smoke to clear. He was above the Yiga on some scaffolding. He pulled out two throwing knives and sent them flying at the Yiga, crippling his leg. "AUGH!" Zhago jumped down and stabbed the Yiga through the stomach, killing them.

Poump pulled out his sword and eventually parried one of their attacks with his shield. He slashed at the one he parried, causing them to fall back. The other Yiga tried back attacking Poump, but then an arrow went right through the Yiga's ears. The Yiga dropped his weapons and fell to the floor. "AHH THE PAIN!" The Yiga said with the arrow going through both of his ears. Poump slashed at the Yiga that fell back and killed him. He turned around to look at the Yiga on the floor with the arrow in his head. Poump stabbed the Yiga through the stomach. "OUGGH!" The Yiga exclaimed as the sword went out of his stomach. "WHY CAN'T I DIE?!" The Yiga screamed again. Zhago ran up, feeling really confused as to what was happening. Poump shrugged his shoulders at Zhago, as even he had no clue what was going on. Poump took off his disguise and followed Zhago inside of the building.

As for the 2 Yiga that were escorting Uten and Tipa into the building, they made it through a few sets of doors and through a long hallway. The sides of the hallway had glass windows, with what looked like a conveyor belt. On the conveyor belt, there were some Sheikah tech devices that were working on reasambelling what looked like the shards of a mirror. Uten took the opportunity to speak to the Yiga footsoldiers. "Hey, you should kill us now." She said.

"What was that?" The Yiga replied.

"Kill us now so this can be done with." Uten said.

"Wait a moment." One of the Yiga said. "Didn't Ghirahim want to see a girl with horns?"

"Oh yeah, that's right. I'll take her right to him." The Yiga grabbed Tipa and teleported away.

"Tipa!" Uten brought out her spear and attacked the Yiga with it. The Yiga dodged out of the way and punched her in the face. Uten felt her water suit give her energy, so she wielded her spear with better form and stabbed the Yiga dead onto the wall. "Where is Tipa?!" Uten ran through the corridor. Poump and Zhago walked through the few sets of doors and saw her running at the other side of the corridor. They ran up to her.

"What happened to Tipa?" Poump asked.

"They have her." Uten replied.

As for Tipa, the Yiga teleported inside of a room with a glass dome that overlooked the whole desert. She even looked outside and saw that Vah Naboris was about 3 stories below them. The glass dome closed up, blocking out the sun. Tipa looked around and eventually saw the figure, wearing a white outfit, and with silver metallic skin. "You have done well in bringing him to me. Resume your patrol, there are trouble makers amongst us." The figure said to the Yiga. The Yiga walked up to a lift with about 6 more Yiga soldiers going onto the lift as well. The lift descended out of the room. "Now, Demise. Shall we restart our plans to get what we wanted for so long?"

Tipa's eyes turned red and her voice sounded more malicious. "Yes indeed, Ghirahim. Together, we can take back what was rightfully ours. The Goddess won't stop us now!"

"Demise, don't get ahead of yourself. We can't risk fighting the Hero right now." Ghirahim replied with worry. "Say, I've been researching what the people of this world have experienced. I've read so many history books that speak about what your curse has done for the past 100,000 years. But no matter what your curse does, that Hero is always there to stop you!"

"He won't stop us this time!" Demise replied.

"If I remembered correctly, you defeated the Hero 110 years ago, but 10 years ago, that same Hero came back and destroyed you!"

"He didn't destroy me! He destroyed Ganon! The host of my evil!"

Ghirahim thought to himself for a little bit. "Wasn't Ganon a Gerudo before? Many history books have referred to him as a Gerudo King, a Prince of Thieves. And countlessly through time, another Hero comes along to kill Ganon, no matter what form Ganon is taking. Who even is Ganon?"

"Ganon was a being that possessed great power. The Goddesses foolishly granted him the Triforce of Power. When I was looking for a new vessel to carry my curse, I chose Ganondorf, since he would be destined to meet with the Hero and the Goddess incarnate through the rest of eternity! Every time Ganon failed, I would reincarnate his life essence again and again as a fail safe for my plan! This land, Hyrule, has and will continue to be doomed by my curse, and it will still be held through Ganon's body. We need to find it. His body."

"Where would you expect me to find it?" Ghirahim said to Demise.

"You will find it in the Castle that stands in the center of Hyrule. Deep inside of the dungeons lies the old decrepit body of Ganondorf himself."

"Ganondorf?"

"That is his given name when he appears to be more humanoid. He still possesses the Triforce of Power, as well as a powerful male Gerudo body. He is much stronger than this weakling that I am inside of right now."

"What must we do in order to regain your power?"

"IDIOT!" Demise screamed at Ghirahim. Ghirahim knelt down. "I just told you how we can regain our power!"

"I am sorry, Lord Demise." Ghirahim said, shaking a little.

"The last time we were together, we were bested by the second Hero of this world. Here we are, 100,000 years later, in a world with not one, but three Heroes."

"Three Heroes?" Ghirahim said, surprised.

"Yes. One of them lives off the coast, on an island away from Hyrule. He possesses the other Hero's blood. He is too young to fight us, so we can kill him easily."

"What about the other Hero?" Ghirahim asked.

"The other Hero resides here in Hyrule. And she could be a great danger to all of us."

"She?" Ghirahim asked.

"Yes. She's been a thorn in my side for the past millennia. Always driving me away in a time when another Hero wasn't around. And she always appeared just at the moment when I was closest to victory. If we kill Her now, we will be able to take the future of Hyrule in our hands, in our vision. The land will belong to the monsters once again after so long!"

"We will win this, Demise." Ghirahim said.

"Very good. Firstly, we must kill the meddling party that is here."

"Oh Demise, don't worry about them right now. I have sent many Yiga footsoldiers after them. And I also have something I want to show you." Ghirahim walked to the center of the room and snapped his fingers. A broken mirror with black patterns appeared from the ground. "I've been asking for assistance for our take over. From another world that has never been seen by any Hyrulean in over 10,000 years!"

"What is that?" Demise said. It looked familiar to him.

"A mirror to another realm. The Twilight Realm."

The party walked through the corridor and made it to a large circular room with windows above them. They saw a lift descend to their level with 7 Yiga coming off of the lift. Zhago, Uten, and Poump drew their weapons. The Yiga circled around them and then as if in formation started hitting and running with every other attack. Their tactics managed to damage Uten's water suit, and they even broke Poump's shield. Zhago threw three throwing knives at the Yiga and managed to ground two of them. Zhago pulled out a bomb arrow and lit it. "Roll away!" He yelled to the other party members. They rolled away from the bomb and Zhago teleported away. The Yiga also rolled and teleported away from the explosion, making Zhago's strategy useless. He instead threw his sword right at one of the Yiga footsoldiers and killed them instantly. Poump spun his sword around and defeated three of the Yiga soldiers, and Uten waved her spear and made the water from her water suit tank travel up the Yiga's noses and drown them. All 7 of them were dead.

"Tipa must be up there." Uten said. She walked up to the lift. It seemed to have an electric cage surrounding it, and a switch next to it. Uten pulled at the switch.

"Access denied." The machine said.

"Come on now, we need to get up there!" Uten kept on pressing around the switchboard.

"Access denied. Access denied. Access denied. Access Denied. Missing: Key"

"Oh just great. We need to find a key now." Uten said. "I'm not going anywhere until we reunite with Tipa."

"We might need to cut our losses, she could be working against us now for all we know. You remember when she had those red eyes, and the malicious voice?" Poump paced for a bit. "And also how she turns into a Lynel that tries to kill us? Whoever that Ghirahim guy is, he is going to use her to kill us."

"You have a point, Poump." Uten said. She looked at the other side of the circular room and saw another lift, that wasn't caged off. "Let's go down that lift. That might be the only thing we can do right now."

"Wait, before we go down into whatever death defying adventure wherever that lift would take us, let me call Link." Poump pressed a button on the Sheikah Slate and it initiated a video call with Link.

Link looked down at the screen with a look of annoyance. "I'm in court right now."

"We're in the Arbiter's Grounds right now." Poump said.

"For Hylia's sake…" Link turned off the video call.

Poump looked at the others nervously. "I think I called him at the wrong time."

"I guess we'll wait." Zhago said. They waited in the room for a few minutes, and then they saw the door open and Link walk through. He had a stern expression on his face.

"You came!" Poump said at the sight of Link.

"Yeah, and now I have to postpone my court session." Link lightened up. "But, since it's for you guys, I will help you guys out in any way I can. I take it you are already acquainted with our goals here, right?"

"Yeah, we need to get Vah Naboris and free two of the missing champions." Poump said.

"Good. Say, where's the girl with horns?" Link looked around and saw she wasn't with them.

"Oh yeah, about that…"

"A Yiga soldier teleported away with Tipa." Uten explained. "We don't know where she is, but we did run into someone named Ghirahim who called her by the name, Demise. We have a feeling that Ghirahim must have Tipa."

"Ghirahim… why does that name sound familiar…" Link rubbed his chin in thought.

"I heard some Yiga soldiers speak about him being the current leader of the Yiga Clan." Zhago added.

"I've heard rumors about that." Link replied. "It seems you have discovered that the rumors are true. What makes me more concerned about Ghirahim is who he is. I read through the historical archives and learned that he was apparently really close to putting an end to the world 100,000 years ago, with the assistance of a being called Demise."

"Are you saying this could be the same Ghirahim from the past?" Poump asked.

"It's very unbelievable, but that might just be the case." Link walked up to the lift with the party. "I investigated this facility a few months ago. It already looks like they've managed to turn the whole place into a working factory of some kind, even with working lifts." Link walked onto the lift with the party and they descended to the lower level.

As the lift descended, they noticed a large assembly line of some sort filled with Hylians tinkering on some weapons. They seemed to be manufacturing an arrow of some kind. Link took a closer look at the Hylians and recognized them as Hateno Villagers. There were 6 of them.

"Oh my goodness!" Link exclaimed. "Those are Hateno Villagers! Some of them are my neighbors!" The lift made a stop and Link walked up to the assembly line. The villagers looked up from their conveyor belts to see Link.

"Oh, Hullo there Link!" One of the villagers said at the sight of Link.

Link waved hello to them but had a bit of skepticism in seeing them in a Yiga stronghold. He made a notice at them wearing coats with the Yiga insignia on it. "Medda, how did you and everyone else get here?"

"Oh wow, that's a long story." Medda and the villagers continued working on the arrows on the assembly line, but Medda continued speaking as he worked on them. "It happened about a week ago. A few Hylian soldiers came into Hateno Village and promised us that we would be put into a job that would pay us farmers 300 rupees an hour. The villagers and I agreed to it and we filed into their wagon. They rode us to the Gerudo Desert and said we had a very important thing to do for the people of Hyrule. Then some strange guys in red outfits with masks who call themselves the Yiga Clan welcomed us inside of this tower and put us to work. When we came in here, we even saw some other Hateno Villagers that we hadn't seen in a long time. One of them was Nebb by the way. Nebb said that he had a bad feeling about these Yiga members, but he said we should go along with their plans for now." Medda picked up one of the finished arrows from the assembly line. "Do you know what type of arrow this is, Link?"

"That's an ancient arrow." Medda handed Link the arrow. Link inspected it. "These work best against Guardians, but do something horrifying to anything without a Guardian's properties. It's impressive that these ancient arrows are being made in large numbers."

"Yeah it sure is." Medda replied. He looked around and then spoke to Link with some more intensity. "We plan on rebelling against the Yiga Clan. Once we're given the money, we'll escape from here. We've mapped out the place for ourselves, and have an escape route ready, but we're not too sure if we will survive the escape." Medda looked behind Link and widened his eyes. "Everyone! Into the emergency bunker!" Medda and the other villagers hurried into a small room nearby and pressed a button. Some doors closed, shutting them inside of the room.

Link turned around and discovered three small Guardians approaching them with a few special and blue glowing weapons. Behind them, five Yiga footsoldiers approached them behind. Poump, Uten, and Zhago pulled out their weapons. "Guardian Scouts." Link said. He pulled out his Master Sword and Hylian Shield. The Yiga stopped in their tracks at the sight of the Master Sword, and as if by command the Guardian Scouts stopped as well.

"How do we fight these Guardian Scout things?" Poump asked.

"First we need to separate them. And those 5 Yiga soldiers behind them aren't going to do much good either." Link started observing the enemies. "Zhago, you know what to do with the Yiga soldiers. Make them hurt. Poump, try to move the Guardian scouts away from each other. That way they will be easier to fight individually. Uten, use your spear on the Yiga soldiers. They can't reach you if you defensively fight with your spear."

"Alright, got it." Poump said.

One of the Yiga soldiers became impatient. "What the hell are we doing guys, they're just standing there talking. Fight them!" The Yiga members ran forward and passed the Guardian scouts. Link, Zhago and Uten clashed with the Yiga members. Poump flanked behind the fight and walked up to one of the Guardian Scouts. It turned around and looked at him with it's red glowing eye.

"Nuh-uh." Poump said. He used his Power Bracelets and grabbed the Guardian Scout and threw it to the other side of the room. The other two Guardian Scouts noticed Poump and pursued him with their weapons drawn. Poump took notice of the Guardian Scouts' blue weapons. One of them had a large axe with a shield, and the other one had a spear, a sword, and an axe. Poump lunged at one of them to punch them but the Guardian scout with the spear jabbed at Poump with the spear and caused him to roll on the floor.

Link confronted three Yiga soldiers at the same time. He blocked their attacks and then once the opportunity arrived, he dodged one of their attacks. He flew right at the three of them and slashed his Master Sword at them with rapid strikes in quick succession. The three Yiga members fell to the floor in bloody pieces. Zhago threw one of his throwing knives at one of the Yiga members. The Yiga blocked his attack but got stabbed in the back by Uten, and then Zhago stabbed behind himself and defeated the last Yiga member.

Poump got back up and pulled out his Clawshot. He used it on one of the Guardian Scout's axes and pulled the axe out of their robotic hand. Poump looked at what he got and it didn't look like an axe. It just looked like a metallic stick. He pushed around the stick and then ignited the blue axe out of it, as if it were made of pure energy. Poump ran up to the two Guardian scouts with his new axe and managed to slam it into one of them, but the other one blocked both of his attacks with it's shield. The attacked Guardian Scout retracted itself and started shooting a laser on the floor. It spun around while it was shooting the laser to the floor, forming a circle in which the laser was rotating in, creating a gust of wind somehow. The other Guardian Scout got hit multiple times by the laser attack, causing it to explode and drop it's weapons. "Wow, that was incredible Poump!" Link exclaimed at the sight of his battle.

Poump jumped up a little bit and brought out his paraglider. The glider caught a gust of wind which was somehow coming from the Guardian Scout's laser. Poump was sent into the air above the Guardian Scout. He thought of a cool idea. He pulled out his blue axe in mid-air and slammed it down onto the Guardian Scout below him, causing it to explode. Poump hurt himself a little bit, but he was mostly alright.

"Marvelous!" Link said at Poump's performance. A laser sight aimed itself at Poump. "Watch out!" Link ran up next to Poump with his shield out face first. Poump turned around and saw the other Guardian Scout pointing it's red laser sight right at him. Link ran in front of Poump once the Scout shot out the laser. Link parried the laser with his shield, causing the laser to be sent right back to the Guardian Scout, making it blow up from the impact. Link reached his hand out to Poump. "Here, take my hand."

Poump took Link's hand and was brought back up to his feet. The party walked around the room for a bit. They noticed some ropes being lowered down to their level. On the ceiling above them, they saw more ropes being dropped from the scaffolding. About 20 Yiga footsoldiers started sliding down the ropes towards the party. The Yiga Clan members drew their bows. "Get down!" Link screamed to the others. Zhago grabbed Poump and Uten and then teleported towards the assembly line and hid behind it. Zhago grabbed a few ancient arrows and put them in his quiver. The Yiga members rained their arrows down onto Link. Link pulled out his shield and then an orange force field surrounded him. The arrows all pelted themselves across Link's force field. The ghost of a Goron appeared and some of the arrows reflected back at the Yiga, causing about 3 of them to fall down to the floor, dead. The other 17 Yiga members made it on Link's level and surrounded him. Link made a stance with his Master Sword. All of the Yiga charged right at him at the same time and then Link spun his sword around, and then the ghost of a Gerudo appeared, followed by a shock of electricity in the air. All of the 17 Yiga surrounding Link fell down to the floor dead, fried by the electric attack. Poump, Uten and Zhago walked away from the assembly line towards Link.

"That was a lot of Yiga assassins." Zhago said to Link.

"And there will be more." Link sheathed his weapons. "Alright now, a few things. Those Guardian Scouts dropped some really good weapons. I'd advise you all to take their weapons, and their shields especially. Next up, we should find the other champions, wherever they could be. With them, I can escort the Hateno Villagers out of here. Let's go through that door. I remember hearing that there were some cell blocks in that direction." Link and the party walked towards the door. Link waved his Sheikah Slate at the door and it opened. "They're using that now." Link muttered to himself. The party and Link walked through a corridor that lead to a lift and a door. The wall had a glass window showing some Sheikah tech robot arms piecing together the pieces of some shards from a mirror. "I wonder what that could mean." Link said when he observed the mirror shards. Link looked at the lift and the door. "Which way should we take guys?"

"I think we should go through the door first." Poump said.

"I agree." Zhago and Uten said in unison.

"In here we go." Link waved his Slate in front of the door and made it open up. They walked inside and saw a Goron in a cell. "Yunobo!" Link exclaimed.

"Haha yeah, it's me, Yunobo! You're best Goron friend!" The Goron in the cell said with a gruff voice.

"Hey Yunobo, you seem kind of off." Link replied.

"But I'm me! I'm right here!" The Goron replied with a lighter voice. "Let me out of here!"

"Hmm, alright then." Link looked at the lock on the cage. "We need a small key to unlock this. Or, you could just punch the bars down since you are a tough Goron."

"Oh no, I can't do that! I've been starving here, so my strength has started to wane!" The Goron sat on the floor trying his best to look helpless. Link saw a door in the room.

"Wait here guys, and make sure he's okay." Link said to the others. He walked through the door. The party looked at the Goron and made sure he didn't croak and die. After a minute, Link walked out of the door kicking some spiders off of himself, and he also had a large stone hammer in his hands, and a key on his belt. "I found the key." Link unlocked the cage with the key and allowed the Goron to go out of the cage.

"Thank you very much, Hero!" The Goron aggressively swiped his hand at Link causing him to fall over. The Goron balled up and rolled towards Poump. Poump used his Power Bracelets on the Goron and tossed him to the wall, but the Goron rebounded. Poump rolled out the way and knocked Uten and Zhago over. The Goron went out of its ball form. Zhago pulled out the Eye of Truth on the Goron. The Eye revealed a Yiga member using Sheikah tech disguised to look like a Goron. It was quite the convincing disguise. Link got up.

"This isn't even a Goron, Link!" Zhago said to Link.

"Of course I am a Goron, I am the Goron Champion, Yunobo!" The Yiga Goron slammed his fist onto the ground.

"If you are Yunobo," Link said to the Yiga Goron. "Tell me how we managed to get to Vah Rudania."

The Yiga Goron stopped to think for a moment. "The both of us caused Rudania to fall down Death Mountain, and then the both of us leapt down the mountain to board onto it."

Link smiled at the Yiga Goron and then made a frown. "No, that's not what happened." Link pulled out his Sheikah Slate and pointed it at the Yiga Goron. He pressed a button on the screen and caused the Goron to freeze up entirely with a yellow energy surrounding him. Link attacked at the stationary Goron several times, but the Goron didn't move a single inch after each hit.

"What are you doing?" Poump asked.

"Prepare to punch with those bracelets." Link said after he slashed at the Goron one more time. "Now!" The Goron all of a sudden very violently rolled into the wall and then rebounded straight towards Poump. Poump pumped his fist forward at the Goron that was speeding towards him and then punched the whole disguise right off of the Yiga. Zhago swiftly stabbed the Yiga while he was down.

"So that wasn't Yunobo." Poump said.

"This can't be, I have a feeling he's here." Link looked around the room trying to find Yunobo. Zhago decided to look through the Eye of Truth again. He looked around the room and eventually noticed the wall next to the cell had a Goron stuck inside of it. As if they were completely encapsulated by the brick walls surrounding them.

"Hey Link, look at this." Zhago showed Link what the Eye of Truth was showing.

"Yunobo!" Link walked up to the wall with the Goron inside of it. He pressed a button on his Sheikah Slate which summoned a blue glowing square bomb that he placed right next to the wall. "Stand back everyone." Everyone stood back and then he detonated the square bomb opening up the wall. The Goron fell out of the wall.

The Goron was coughing a lot. "I've been stuck inside of that wall for I don't know how long!"

"Yunobo! So good to see you again!" Link walked up to the Goron who was still coughing on the floor.

"Oh my goodness, Link, is that you?!" The Goron tried to hug Link but stopped because of his exhausting pain.

"How do we know he is the real Yunobo?" Poump asked with uncertainty.

Link looked back at Yunobo. "Do you remember what we did to get to Vah Rudania?"

The Goron coughed a little more but started to feel better. "Oh yeah, we snuck around some Guardian Skywatchers. And you fired me out of a few cannons at the Divine Beast. Then Rudania climbed into the center of Death Mountain and you glided down there in order to tame it."

"That's exactly what happened. This is Yunobo everyone." Link turned to the party. "This is Poump, Uten, and Zhago."

"Hi guys." Yunobo said, feeling his head. "I haven't eaten anything in a long time. I'd be a burden on all of you."

"It's okay Yunobo. I'll take care of you." Link looked at the party. "Okay guys, you should try and find Teba, the Rito Champion. I have a feeling he might be down that lift we saw. I'll take care of Yunobo right now."

"Alright, we'll deal with finding Teba. You can trust us." Poump said.

"That I do." Link replied. He started tending to Yunobo and the party walked through the door and walked onto the lift and made a descent.

Chapter 22: Bad Decisions

The party descended down the lift and found themselves in a room with another assembly line and 7 more villagers. The villagers looked at the party but didn't make much of a fuss at the sight of them. They continued on their assembly line of ancient arrows and the party walked through a door to another corridor.

There was an aqueduct with water flowing on the sides of the room, as well as a few columns. They walked through the corridor for a little bit and then 5 Yiga appeared in front of them from behind the columns, and another 5 Yiga came out from behind the columns behind them. The party drew their weapons. Uten waved her spear and used the water on the side to form a square towards the 5 Yiga behind them. The square of water encapsulated the Yiga. Uten manipulated the water in a way that would push the 5 Yiga into the center, not allowing them to swim out of it. They drowned to death and then Uten let go of her water magic. She downed a green potion. Zhago pulled out his bow and knocked three ancient arrows. The 5 Yiga noticed his choice of arrows and tried to run away. Zhago pulled the bowstring and made the arrows fly right into three of the Yiga soldiers, causing them to completely vanish without a trace. The other 2 looked at this in horror but Poump took out his Clawshot. He pointed it right at one of the Yiga member's legs and dragged them towards him. He pulled out his Royal Broadsword and stabbed at the Yiga once he made it right in front of himself. The last Yiga hesitated to do anything for a moment. "You are monsters." He said. And then he teleported away.

"Us? Monsters?" Poump said to himself and the party.

"We aren't monsters. The Yiga are monsters." Zhago said.

"What happened to their bodies? The ones that you shot with the ancient arrows?" Uten said, sort of confused.

Zhago stood in thought for a bit. "Whatever those arrows did… they felt powerful."

"You completely wiped them out of existence, dude!" Poump said to Zhago. He thought about something terrifying. "What if we get shot with one of those?"

Zhago and Uten shuddered at the idea of being killed by an ancient arrow. Being not only killed instantly, but with no body left to bury, to be remembered. Zhago, however, was glad he was in possession of these arrows. For years he heard about what ancient arrows could do, and here he had a whole quiver full of them. Together they could be unstoppable. Arrows that could kill Guardians quickly and instantly kill any opposition. "That is why we will use these arrows. In order to kill any possible enemies that we will meet in the future."

"Don't you know how much power we have now?" Uten said.

"We have all the power we need." Zhago put his bow away and walked forward through the corridor. The image of the vanishing Yiga soldiers flashed in Poump's head 6 times a second. He was standing next to something that could do exactly that to himself. He had been desensitized to killing Yiga with a normal weapon, but this new ancient arrow crossed the line for his willingness to kill them, no matter how bad they might seem. They reached the end of the corridor and saw two doors. One to the left and one to the right. They went through the right door.

They entered the room and some bars popped up behind them, locking them inside of the room. They surveyed the room and saw an armored statue that was holding a ball and chain in both hands. It started to move at their presence. It started swinging the ball and chain and then the party drew their weapons. It threw the ball right at Poump, who rolled out of the way of the attack. He pulled out his Clawshot and aimed it at the armor, taking off a piece. Zhago and Uten attacked at it from behind. The statue swung the ball and chain behind itself hitting both of them in the process. Poump kept on pulling off the armor pieces with the clawshot until it revealed some sort of scaly skin underneath the armor. Zhago pulled out his bow, knocked an ancient arrow, and aimed it at the open skin. The ancient arrow hit the creature and made it disappear entirely. Not a trace of the armor left, but the Ball and Chain remained on the floor as the only thing left of the creature. A treasure chest materialized in the room. Poump opened it up and found a key. He scanned it with his Sheikah Slate. The Slate told him about how this key was able to unlock not only cell doors, but also a lift within the location.

"We will be able to reunite with Tipa with this." Poump said. "It can take us up the lift towards the level that Tipa is at. And we can also save the last Champion." The party walked through the door which unbarred itself and allowed them through.

They proceeded through the left door and found a cell room with a Rito inside of the cage. The Rito seemed to have white feathers. "Hey you three, let me out!" The Rito said from inside of the cage.

Zhago pulled out the Eye of Truth on the Rito. Not much changed except for the colors of a few feathers. He looked around all of the walls in the room with the Eye but saw nothing different at all. "Unlock him." Zhago said to Poump.

Poump unlocked the cage and allowed the Rito outside. "Ah, thank you!"

"Link is here, we will be able to take you to him." Poump said to the Rito. "You're safe now."

"Very well then!" The party escorted the Rito out of the room. They walked through the corridor with the dead Yiga inside of it.

"Let's put on some disguises so that way we won't get into more trouble." Poump put on a Yiga outfit over his own attire and the others also put on their own Yiga outfits. They walked back through the corridor with the Rito and made it back to the door that led to the other assembly line. One of the villagers took a notice of the disguised party escorting the Rito.

"Why are you escorting that Rito right now?" The villager asked.

Poump thought of something to say. "We are relocating his position in this dungeon."

"Oh, that makes sense." The villager went back to work on the assembly line. "Carry on."

Uten took offense to hearing someone tell him to 'Carry on', especially since she was disguised as someone who was in a higher power than a village slave. "What did you say to us?" Uten said.

The villager had a panicked look on his face. They pressed a button in complete stress and then two Guardian scouts popped out from the ceiling prepared to fight the party. Zhago shot an ancient arrow at one of their eyes and blew them up into pieces. Poump decided to pick up and throw the other Guardian Scout directly at the villagers. The Scout managed to hit 1 of the villagers down. "They're here to kill us! We must fight now!" The villagers all grabbed their weapons which consisted of a few sickles and pitchforks. They defensively approached the party with their weapons. Uten prepared her spear. One of the villagers pulled out a bow and grabbed one of the ancient arrows off of the assembly line. Uten saw this and pulled out her Mirror Shield. The villager aimed for Uten's feet and shot the arrow right at her. The ancient arrow hit her feet and then in a hot second, she vanished without a trace. Her Mirror Shield dropped to the ground.

"Uten!" Zhago screamed. He pulled out his sword and teleported to the villager with the bow and stabbed them dead. Poump brought out his Guardian Scout shield and blocked most of the villager's incoming attacks. Poump slashed at them from behind the shield, managing to cut one of them down. Zhago pulled out a bomb arrow and aimed it at the group of villagers huddled around Poump. He let the arrow go and the explosion killed them all. Poump's shield blocked the blast. Their dead bodies were on fire. All of the villagers were dead.

"What happened to Uten?" Poump said to Zhago.

Zhago went onto his knees. "She was killed by them." Zhago hit the floor with his fist. "Not now. Not here."

Poump looked around him and noticed the Rito wasn't nearby. "Great, and we also lost the Rito guy." Poump kicked at a weapon on the floor. "So much for these disguises." He took the disguise off, and so did Zhago.

The lift in the room came down to their level, and Link walked up to them. "Hi there-" Link stopped talking. His smile and his optimism went away at the sight before his eyes. He walked up to the dead bodies on the floor and fell to his knees. "Did you do this?" Link said with a stutter in his voice.

"I can explain…" Poump replied.

"DID YOU DO THIS?" Link screamed at Poump with tears going down his eyes. He looked at Zhago as well.

"Yes… we did." Poump said. "But they were enemies of Hyrule! They are working with the Yiga Clan!"

"THESE PEOPLE WERE MY NEIGHBORS." Link said to Poump. "DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN JUST END THEIR LIVES LIKE THAT?!" Link closed his eyes. "These people… they were put in here as slaves, and you killed them…"

Poump thought to himself some more. "They asked for it, because they killed Uten."

Link looked at Poump. "They probably killed Uten because you chose to make this battle about yourselves!" Link sat down on the floor and then laid completely still. His shadow on the floor started to move and then materialized into a somewhat visible form. It was a faint transparent black, wearing Link's tunic and with red eyes. It looked at Poump and then pulled out a weapon that looked like the Master Sword except darker. This Dark Link started attacking Poump. The sword cut right through Poump's body. Even though it didn't leave any visible scratches on his body, Poump felt a sharp sensation travel through his insides. Zhago pulled out his own sword and tried to attack the Dark Link. The Dark Link parried Zhago's attack and pushed his sword right through Zhago's stomach, giving Zhago the sensation of being stabbed, but with no actual puncture wound. Poump and Zhago tried their best in attacking the Dark Link, but it seemed like their attacks did absolutely nothing to it. A thought crossed through Zhago's mind. He looked at Link and decided to try and chop his head off. An orange force field surrounded Link, keeping the attack from hitting him. Poump continued having difficulty with battling Dark Link. Poump thrust his sword forward and then the Dark Link hopped onto Poump's blade. The Dark Link looked behind himself at Zhago trying to kill his own body. Dark Link hopped off of the sword and sliced Zhago's neck, making Zhago feel like his own neck was going to fall off. The sensation of the pain that Dark Link caused started to overwhelm the two.

"AUGH!" Zhago said, feeling like his insides were going to explode.

"AUGH!" Poump fell to the floor feeling like a sharp blade actually stabbed him in the heart. Was the pain real? It really did feel like it, and the pain got worse and worse. Poump noticed something on Link's belt. He saw a fairy in a bottle attached to his waist. Poump crawled up to Link's waist and grabbed the fairy in the bottle. He crawled up to one of the dead bodies and let the fairy out. It hovered above the dead body and revived the villager back to life. Link's body started to flinch a little bit.

"GASP!" The villager felt the air come back into his lungs. He looked around himself. "What happened?" The villager noticed Link kneeling on the floor. "Link?" The villager looked at the other two. "Who are you two?"

The Dark Link looked at Poump and Zhago. A menacing voice came from it. "I will kill you later."

Poump felt the pain go away, and so did Zhago. "A lot just happened right now." Poump replied.

The villager looked around and saw the dead bodies around himself. He realized what just happened. He looked at Poump angrily. "These were my friends! And they were killed by a few Yiga assassins!" Link started to move again and got back up. "Link! Sort those two out for me, will ya?"

Link looked at the alive villager. "Nebb. You're alive." Link hugged the villager feeling his happiness come back just a little bit. Link turned around to look at Poump and Zhago. "You two, I am going to need to deal with you later. What you just did was not only against the law, but immoral. At the least of it, you will be put in a court session and hope to goodness that you won't be put in prison. At the worst of it, you will be executed for killing these villagers. I don't want you two to be executed. I kind of liked both of you before, but after this," Link's eyes started to get a faint glow of red in them. "I hope to see you suffer for what you did."

"We kinda already did suffer." Poump said, feeling his neck.

Link took a few deep breaths. He suppressed his dark thoughts. "Look here you two. I'll try the best I can to keep this between us and Nebb right here. Right Nebb?" Link looked at Nebb.

"Riiight…" Nebb said. "This will be between all of us…"

"Good. I hope to put you two on a fair trial, and I will ensure that you won't suffer the death penalty. You've done a lot for Hyrule in the past few weeks, so I will try to control this situation in the best way I can." Link looked around the room. "Where is Uten? I don't see her body."

"She was struck by an ancient arrow." Zhago said.

Link's eyes widened and his heart sank. "That is a real travesty." Link put his hand on Nebb's shoulder and looked at the dead villagers with him. "Yunobo the Goron Champion should be with us soon. Say, where is Teba?"

"He left us." Poump said. " He just walked out of the room without giving us a moment to see him."

"You guys are terrible at this." Link said to Poump and Zhago. The lift arrived at their level and Yunobo arrived.

"Hi guys, what do I need to do?" Yunobo asked Link.

Link looked at Yunobo while putting his hand on Nebb's shoulder. "You will take Nebb here and these dead people with you. They need a proper burial. Take them to Hateno Village, with the other villagers as well."

"You got it boss." Yunobo walked up to the dead bodies and scooped them all up in his large Goron arms. "Eugh, this is something I didn't want to ever do in my life." Yunobo walked back to the lift with Nebb and Link joining them too.

Link spoke to the two before he went back up the lift. "I will clear out the path for them so they can make it to Hateno Village. The villagers will be out of here soon and I will be able to meet you guys later. Try not to die on me anymore." The lift took Link, Nebb, and Yunobo with the dead villagers up to the next level.

Poump and Zhago sat in silence in the room for a little bit, thinking about how much they lost today. They haven't seen Tipa in a while, and Uten just died in the most unceremonious way a few moments ago. Zhago looked at the ancient arrows in his quiver and vowed to only ever use them on Guardians from now on.

Uten awoke in a strange world that materialized before her. It looked like a harmonious but silent realm that she appeared in. An old man wearing a red outfit appeared before her. "Hello. My name is Rauru, and I am the Sage of the Sacred Realm. The place you are standing in right now is a place where all spirits go when they serve the Goddess." Uten looked around and saw a few other people appear before her. A Goron, a Gerudo, a Sheikah, a Small Forest Child, and a Zora who she recognized as Princess Ruto, the princess of the Zora tribe from a long time ago.

"W-wow. This is crazy." Uten said.

Rauru walked towards a pathway that started to form out of an abstract matter. "Walk with me, young Zora." Uten followed Rauru on the path. The sky seemed to be dark blue, although it didn't seem to be a sky of some sort, but rather a dimension of some kind that she was in. Rauru took her to an area that started to materialize itself to look like a part of Hyrule, with a Sheikah Tower protruding into the sky.

"You must climb the tower." Rauru said to Uten.

"How?" Uten asked.

"By climbing it." Rauru grew large wings and turned into an owl. The owl flew up to the top of the tower and spoke down to her. "Hoo-hoo, reach me you must."

"Well then." Uten started climbing the tower. With difficulty, she couldn't get a very good grip on the side of the tower. She saw that it had rungs placed on the surface of the wall that would allow her to climb easier. She carefully and methodically put her slippery Zora hands onto each rung. The tower very generously had several resting points at certain intervals of the wall's surface. Uten took the opportunity to rest at each resting point in order to regain her stamina. After a strenuous 27 minutes of climbing, Uten finally reached the top of the tower. She was panting heavily from the climb, and then Rauru the Owl hopped up to her.

"Well done." Rauru said to the exhausted Uten.

Uten wanted to make a quippy remark to the Owl, but she was way too out of breath to speak. Rauru flapped his wings and glided himself closer to the side of the tower.

"Do you see that light over there?" Rauru said to Uten, pointing at a blue light in the distance.

Uten regained her breath. "Yes, what about it?"

"If you wish to go back to the land of the living, you must make your way towards that light."

"I guess I need to glide over there?" Uten asked.

"You catch on quickly." Rauru walked off of the side of the tower and flew away. Uten walked towards the side of the tower and prepared her paraglider which materialized just at her thought of it. She looked down and saw nothing but an abyss. No sign of the floor or a landing place anywhere. Just the blue light in the distance. Uten walked to the center of the tower and then ran straight for the edge. She used the momentum and jumped right off with her paraglider in both hands. She glided across the abyss, and she couldn't help but look down into it. At first there was nothing, but then all of a sudden she started to make out a few pieces of Hyrule Field. She saw what looked like some monsters preparing their weapons. They were going face to face with a battalion of Hylian soldiers. The image then turned into Hyrule field, except the floor was covered in bones. Not only the bones of Hylians, but the bones of the monsters as well. A figure wearing black armor walked atop the bones and then looked up right at Uten. The figure in the dark armor seemed to make a noise that shook Uten to her core. The blue light got closer and closer and then became discernable. It appeared to be Impa, sitting inside of a large blue glowing cube.

"Hello, Uten. Friend of Zhago's. Savior of King Dorephan." Impa said from inside the cube. "We grant you passage to the land of the living for a very important purpose. The Goddess needs you. You have two options for regaining the ability to go to the land of the living. Either you return in your very own body at the place where you were born, with your own items in tow. Or you can return inside of another person's mind. You will possess their abilities and attributes, and you will also keep all of the knowledge that you have gained. You won't have your previously obtained items, however. What is it you wish for?"

Uten without a second thought made up her mind. "I'd like to return to the land of the living with my own body."

"Very well then. It is done." Impa pushed her hands forwards and then Uten fell backwards.

She felt like she was falling for a long time, but then she met with the pleasant surprise of water hitting her back. Her eyes adjusted and she found herself in the water of Lake Hylia, a Lake that was underneath the Bridge of Hylia. There was even a river nearby that led back to Zora's Domain. Uten swam around the lake getting a feel for herself in the living again. She felt really free, finally swimming in Lake Hylia again after some time, but then the image of the bones and the dark figure flashed in her head. She stopped swimming and just drifted aimlessly underwater. For all she knew, Poump and Zhago were still in Arbiter's Grounds, probably worried sick about her. She drifted in thought for a while, and then went back to swimming again.

Poump and Zhago were still reeling from what happened to Uten. They didn't know what to do with themselves. It had been just a minute since Link left through the lift. Poump got up. "We should keep on going."

Zhago reluctantly pulled himself up as well. "You are right Poump. We've come this far, and even without Uten, we can at least keep on pushing the fight forward." Zhago and Poump walked up to the lift in the room and waited for it to reach their level. They got onto it once it came to them and made it back up to the room with the door and the hallway. They walked back to the main room and noticed that the Sheikah tech arms were only working on one more shard of the mirror. They transported it upwards to the next level and then they stopped moving.

The two of them walked back into the main room and noticed that there was another lift in the area, besides the one they came from. Poump looked at the map on the wall of the tower and saw that there was one more level underneath them, with a suspicious looking image displayed in the center of it. "Let's go down there." Poump said.

"And possibly die?" Zhago replied.

"Link mentioned that there was a mysterious device down there. We should check it out."

"You can go down there. I will keep a watch on this level to make sure you aren't ambushed should you return."

"Don't worry, I will return." Poump replied. He walked towards the lift and saw that the lift required his key. He put the key into the machine next to it.

"Access granted." The machine said. The lift opened up and Poump walked into it. The lift went down and brought him to what looked like a room with large bones on the floor, as well as something covered in smoke. The lift stopped on the floor and then Poump walked off of it. He cautiously walked towards the smoke. The sound of something mechanical making noises was inside of the smoke. Poump looked at the bones, preparing for a fight if they started moving. The smoke cleared away and then he saw Ghirahim standing in front of whatever the strange device was.

"Surprise." Ghirahim said to Poump.

"Die!" Poump pulled out his sword and ran for Ghirahim. He swung his sword at Ghirahim and then Ghirahim caught the blade.

"You rats never learn." Ghirahim threw Poump's blade to the side and it landed in the sand and planted itself blade first into the floor. Poump tried punching Ghirahim but he also stopped Poump's punch in mid-air. "Fools!" Ghirahim twisted Poump's arm and threw him to the floor. "Hylia has created a land of fools! Fools who think they can just walk into any situation and come out of it just fine!"

Poump shuffled himself back up off of the sand. "What are you talking about, weirdo?"

Ghirahim looked at Poump with a look of menace in his eyes. "The reformation of this land. This world belongs to the monsters! Demise! Me!" Ghirahim snapped his fingers and then the large bones in the room started shaking.

"Of course." Poump said under his breath at the bones moving. Poump noticed the mysterious device was in plain view. It was spinning in place on some sort of mechanism.

Ghirahim saw Poump taking notice of the spinning device. "That artifact you see before you is known as the Spinner. It is the only way you can even have any hope of defeating Stallord."

Poump walked up to it while the bones were still shaking. He tried to reach for his sword but it sank into the sand, so he put on a pace towards the Spinner.

"Fool. If you remove that Spinner from its place, then the whole facility will go on lockdown. You will have no way of escaping here alive with your friend." Ghirahim said to Poump. "Your life, or your friend's life?"

Poump made it to the Spinner. It was spinning so fast, but Poump wanted to use it so badly. "Both of our lives." Poump replied. He hopped on top of the Spinner and then it spun right off of its spot. The lights in the room dimmed down and the small hum of electric power ceased to sound out across the room. The only sound in the room was shifting sand and the sound of the Spinner spinning across the floor. In a few short seconds, some torches on the sides of the wall started lighting up with flames, bringing light back to the room. Poump noticed the sand starting to sink in the middle, and the bones started rising high and formed into a large skeleton beast of some sort. Whatever was inside of it's eye hole started glowing red, and then the skeletal monster roared. Poump tried redirecting his Spinner back to the side of the room, but the sand caused him to sink down to where the giant beast was occupying. The spinner arrived at the spine of the skeletal monster and bummed into it. Poump then thought about trying to redirect the Spinner and then accidentally caused it to jump slightly, generating enough power to knock a piece of the skeletal monster's spine off. The hit even jolted the Spinner to the side of the room, which it attached immediately to some railing that was perforated onto the side of the rail. Poump liked this since it gave him a clear view of the beast in its entirety. Poump observed the beast some more and saw his shiny sword was planted onto its head.

Poump jolted the Spinner and it carried him swiftly to the skeleton's spine again, except this time a few skeletons rose out of the floor blocking his way to the spine. Poump maneuvered around them and made it to the spine and jolted the Spinner yet again, knocking another piece of its spine off, and sending him back to the railing on the side. The beast started generating a purple energy from inside of its mouth and shot it right at Poump. Poump brought out his Guardian Shield, which broke on impact with the blast. The skeleton prepared another blast but Poump decided to jolt the spinner down to the spine once again. More skeletons rose from the sand and Poump ran into a few of them. Surprisingly, they had enough durability to withstand the Spinner's hit, causing it to glide back to the railing on the side. The skeleton blasted again but Poump went for the spine again as well. He dodged past all of the skeletons that blocked his way and arrived at the spine, knocking off another part of it.

The whole giant skeleton monster collapsed into the sand and the sand levels started to even out. Poump got off of the Spinner, which stopped spinning as soon as he got off of it. He held it in his hands while he walked up towards the sword inside of the skeleton's head. The red glow disappeared from inside of it, and then Ghirahim appeared above it, slow clapping.

"Well done, well done. You remind me of the Hero. A fool stepping into an affair that is none of his concern." Ghirahim stopped clapping. "The world will become a playground for the monsters once again. And you won't be there to stop it!" Ghirahim teleported away.

"Ah man." Poump said. He walked around the room which still lit with fire exclusively. He noticed perforations on the wall that resembled the railing that the Spinner stuck itself to. The perforations traveled up to the next floor, or at least a secret entrance to the next floor it seemed. Poump got onto the Spinner and it spun right onto the perforations. The Spinner guided him up to the top of the room and to a door. He walked through it and found himself in the same area with Zhago, and apparently everything was fine, as the electricity in this room was still active. "What the, why is there still electricity?" Poump said, confused.

"What do you mean? There always was electricity in this facility." Zhago replied.

"Weird, because that Ghirahim guy told me this spinning device gave the whole building power, and the power went out down there." Poump showed Zhago the Spinner.

Zhago took a look at the Spinner. "Interesting that he would tell you that. Maybe he wanted to trick you."

"That might be the case."

"Well, the only way now is up. Let's go to that lift and finish this."

"Sounds like a plan." Poump and Zhago walked to the lift and put the key into the device.

"Access granted." The machine said. The two walked into the lift and it carried them upwards. The lift was taking them to the highest level of the building. Throughout all of the floors, they noticed that no one was in the facility anymore, besides the dead bodies of some of the Yiga they killed. The lift moved very slowly through its travel to the top. They made it back to the ground floor and then all of a sudden a Rito flew in front of the lift.

"Going somewhere?" The Rito said. He pulled out his bow and shot a few arrows into the lift. Poump and Zhago got down, but one of the arrows managed to hit Poump.

"Ow!" Poump said once the tip of the arrow hit him hard in the leg.

The Rito flew by again preparing another attack of arrows. Zhago pulled out his bomb arrows and missed the Rito, causing them to hit the wall, which brought the wall down, making it collapse. The lift shook a little bit. Zhago looked at Poump. "Fight for us." He teleported off of the lift and onto the Rito.

"AUGH!" The Rito exclaimed at the surprise of a heavy Sheikah body on his light bird body. The both of them were plummeting to the floor underneath them. "You'll kill both of us!"

"That's what I want." Zhago replied and lit up several bombs on himself, hugging onto the Rito.

"Noooo!" The Rito exclaimed at the sight of the bombs and then they blew both of them up. They both hit the floor really hard. Zhago opened his eyes with difficulty and looked at the Rito on the floor nearby, burning. "You… madlad. I knew you were strong… the moment I fought you at Rito Village..." The Rito stopped moving and roasted alive, it's feathers flying into the air in embers. Meanwhile, Zhago was also burning. He looked up at the lift escaping to the top floor, but it was blurry in his vision. He reached his hand up, but then it fell limp, and all he saw was blackness. After some time, he saw Her.

"Zhago. Is this how your story ends?" She said.

"Yes." Zhago replied. "This is how I die."

"A part of you lives in Hyrule. A part of us." She said.

"You mean… He is alive?" Zhago asked.

"Yes. He is. Take in his footsteps as He should've yours." She said.

"But, I want to join you." Zhago replied.

"Not now. Not here." She replied. "You will meet with Impa. Perhaps she can allow you a second chance in the same way He was given one."

"I will heed your advice, my love." Zhago said. She disappeared from his view and then all he saw was blackness.

"Zhago!" Poump screamed to the lower level. He lost Tipa, Uten, and now Zhago. Poump started losing his confidence, which was something that was very hard to happen to him. The lift made it to the level next to the top level and stopped. Link was there. Poump brought out his sword at Link. "Don't kill me." Poump said, shaken by the past few hours of his life.

Link looked understandably at Poump. "Put the sword down. You're safe." Link said with a soft voice.

"You will strike me down in anger with whatever that Shadow form of you is. That or you could be a Yiga in disguise." Poump said, with his sword shaking in his hand.

"Calm down, Poump." Link replied with a soft voice once again. "Take a few deep breaths. Use the Eye of Truth on me."

Poump shuffled through his pockets and aimed the Eye of Truth at Link. He appeared to be completely the same, no Yiga clothes. The only thing different was the faint out of sync movement of his dark self moving inside of himself. Poump put the Eye away but pointed his sword at him again. "Please don't kill me." Poump said again, his voice shaking.

"I'm not going to kill you." Link walked up to Poump and pushed the sword to the side. Poump let the sword fall and he started tearing up. "What happened to Zhago?" Link asked.

"He… didn't make it." Poump said with his voice shaking a lot. He could barely speak it out, but Link understood what he said. Link reached out both of his arms and embraced Poump.

"There there." Link said quietly to Poump. He patted Poump's head, putting him at ease. Poump didn't hug back for a while, but then he hugged him once he felt more comfortable. "I've lost many friends in combat before." Link said. "It's a feeling that I wish I had never felt before. No matter how many times it happens, I can never shake that feeling off of myself." They stood in silence for a while. Link put both of his hands on Poump's shoulders and looked him in the eyes. "Look into my eyes, Poump." Poump looked at Link's eyes through tears. "What do you see?"

Poump didn't know what to say. "The eyes of a… Knight?"

Link shook his head. "While that is technically true, I am much more than a Knight. I am your friend, and I am here to help you, emotionally and physically."

"We can't face Ghirahim…" Poump said under his breath. "He's too strong."

"Not true!" Link replied. "Together, with our friendship combined, we can defeat Ghirahim. Without you, I wouldn't be in this building right now. Look at you. You are Poump. You defeated Aghanim, you watched over my daughter Hilda, you managed to deal with two of the monster colonies."

"But I did all of that with help from other people…" Poump said.

"Yes, but you were a part of those other people. You are the last surviving member from your group. You are strong, courageous, and brave." Link wiped a tear off of Poump's cheek. "Now show me that brave and confident Poump that I know and love."

Poump started to rub his eyes and felt better. He felt his confidence start to come back to him. "I won't disappoint you, Link."

"You haven't already. Now let's see who this Ghirahim guy is and give him a proper greeting. For all of our friends." Link and Poump walked onto the lift and ascended to the next level.

They reached the top level. The ceiling seemed to be a dome shape and they walked off of the lift. Ghirahim in his white slender splendor stood in the center of the room. Tipa seemed to be floating in mid-air as if she was being held by invisible cuffs around her arms. "How good of you two to join us! I see that the others have been consumed by my forces. A shame really, means I have less blood to clean off of my blade." Ghirahim materialized a rapier in his hand. "And you, Hero! It has been a long time since we have met!"

"I don't know you." Link replied to Ghirahim. He pulled out his Master Sword and his Hylian Shield. Poump also pulled his sword out.

"We've met before. A long long long time ago. You were a different person then, but you share his…" Ghirahim looked up and down Link's body. "Qualities." Ghirahim disappeared from Link's vision and appeared right behind rather uncomfortably and then he stuck his long tongue out next to Link's ear. "I want to eat you."

Link swung his sword behind himself and Ghirahim teleported away before it could hit him. "I'm into a lot of stuff, but that is not one of them." Link replied.

"Fine!" Ghirahim said with impatience. He touched Tipa's chin. "Demise's power is weak right now, but maybe we can finish you right now." Tipa's eyes glowed red.

"AUGGHH!" Tipa's scream turned from her light feminine Hylian Girl voice into the deep masculine voice of Malice. "Our power isn't strong enough! I need a better host!" Tipa said with her eyes glowing red and her voice filled with Malice.

"Hush, master!" Ghirahim replied. "We have two servants of the Goddess to murder!" Ghirahim snapped his fingers and Tipa fell to the floor. She got back up and couldn't feel her own emotions anymore. She pulled out both of her katanas. "Let the games begin!" Ghirahim and Tipa charged at Link and Poump. They clashed their blades into each other. Link clashing with Ghirahim, and Poump clashing with Tipa. They traded sword blows.

Eventually, Poump started getting overwhelmed by Tipa's double katana attacks, so he rolled away and brought out his Clawshot and tried grabbing one of Tipa's katanas. He managed to pull away one of the katanas but it felt really hot on his hands so he threw it to the side. Tipa now had one sword in her hands. Poump waited and then Tipa ran right at him. Poump parried an attack and sliced at Tipa, but noticed her skin seemed to form back as soon as he hit it.

As for Link, he was going blow for blow with Ghirahim. Ghirahim seemed to block almost every attack and seemed to be in the advantage, but then Link feinted for one of his sides and swung at the other side causing Ghirahim to fall back from the pain. "AGH!" Ghirahim said. "It seems she still has the upper hand after all these millenia."

"What do you mean she?" Link replied.

"Your sword." Ghirahim swung at him again with his sword.

Poump continued battling with Tipa, who seemed to be getting stronger and stronger by the second. Poump took Tipa's other katana off the ground and stabbed at her with both of his swords, causing the blades to sink right through her torso. "AUGHH!" Tipa said with her voice of Malice.

"Demise!" Ghirahim said with surprise.

"I told you, this body is not strong enough. She does not possess the Triforce of Power, or the body of Ganondorf." Tipa said with both of the swords inside of her. She pulled both of them out and her wounds healed up immediately. "We must meet again once I have the other body."

"Are you saying we should stop fighting?" Ghirahim said, as he struggled to keep Link's attacks from hitting him.

"Yes!" Tipa said with a deep voice. "We can deal with these people later."

"Fine then!" Ghirahim stopped fighting and teleported away from Link. "You will never be able to defeat my accomplice from the Twilight Realm!" He teleported away and then Tipa's eyes turned back to normal. She fell over.

Link caught Tipa from her fall and brought her back up. "Ghirahim wants us to meet whoever this accomplice of his is. We should see who they are and deal with them."

"I'll be by your side." Poump said.

"Meat." Tipa said.

The dome ceiling opened up, revealing the glass dome that overlooked the desert. The moon was looking inside, as it was night time. The center of the room opened up and a black mirror rose from it. A strange circular pattern lit up in it, with several circles with strange writing endorned on them. A dark figure walked from the center of the mirror closer and closer to the group. It arrived at the mirror's exit and as if there was nothing between it and the mirror, walked right through to the other side. The dark figure wore a strange otherworldly mask and black armor. It looked at all of the adventurers and then made a strange blood curdling noise. "I have finally arrived." The figure said with a deep voice.

"Who are you?" Link said, as he cautiously brought out his Master Sword.

"My name is Lord Veerus. As you know, I am an accomplice of Ghirahim's." Veerus looked through the glass dome. "So this is the land that Hylia created. And you three can prove to be quite a nuisance. I've heard much about the one wearing the Green Tunic."

"And you'll hear from me!" Poump ran straight for Veerus, but then Veerus pulled out a black weapon that appeared to be a sword with red lining surging through it.

"Poump! No!" Link screamed. He pulled out his bow and knocked an ice arrow onto it and aimed for Veerus. Just before Veerus was able to swipe at Poump, Link shot the ice arrow right at Veerus, freezing them completely. Poump tried to attack the frozen enemy but Link pulled out his Sheikah Slate and froze Poump mid-attack. Tipa decided to also go for the frozen enemy, but Link quickly put the Master Sword right next to her causing her to fall to the ground in pain. Link ran right up to Poump and took out his stone hammer and smacked at the frozen Poump with the hammer two times. After a few seconds, Poump went flying in the direction that link hit him in, and then the frozen enemy broke out of the ice.

"Quite impressive. I will make sure that won't happen again." Veerus pressed on something on their arm and then the armor started to grow small platelets that seemed to radiate heat. Veerus attacked Link with their sword but Link rolled out of the way of the attack and grabbed Poump in his arms. Link pulled out a bomb arrow and shot the glass dome open.

"We're gonna jump down there! To Vah Naboris!" Link said as he put Poump down. He ran right for the Master Sword and grabbed it off the floor. Tipa felt fine once it wasn't near her. Link stared right at Veerus and slashed his Master Sword into the air towards the foe. A slash of light cut through the air from the Master Sword's blade and hit Veerus' armor, causing it significant damage.

"No way…" Veerus said. "The legends are true… You have won for now, I cannot face the wielder of the Master Sword." Veerus aimed their arm up to the glass dome and shot a purple blast at the glass, causing the glass to shatter in its entirety. Link ran right for Poump and Tipa and then formed the Orange Force Field around them, ensuring they didn't get cut by the falling glass. A black portal appeared in the sky and Veerus looked back at the group. "A descendant of the Hero of Twilight, I see…" Veerus turned into small black squares and the squares all flew into the black portal above. Link, Poump, and Tipa saw Vah Naboris down the building. Link ran up to the lift and found out it was jammed.

"We're gonna need to jump." Link said. "Grab your gliders."

Poump and Tipa prepared their gliders and they all ran off of the building together and started gliding down to Vah Naboris. They landed on it. It seemed to just be a cream colored machine that didn't move at all, with no signs of movement. They walked inside to a room that seemed to be structured within a circle. "Alright, you have the Spinner, right Poump?" Link asked Poump.

"Here it is." Poump pulled out the Spinner.

"From what I remember, Zelda and I discovered this same type of Spinner appear from inside of Vah Ruta, the Divine Beast next to Zora's Domain. It was spinning on some sort of power function that allowed Vah Ruta to move."

"You mean this one?" Poump said as he pointed at a perforation in the floor that fit the Spinner's shape.

"That's right! Glad you know what it looks like, it's been a long time since I saw one." Link walked up to Poump holding the Spinner. "Alright, now gently put the Spinner into the hole and then rev it up."

Poump slammed the Spinner into the hole and got onto it. The Spinner started spinning and then all of a sudden the noise of power surged through Vah Naboris' insides. The room started moving. It appeared they were on a platform that was in the center of Vah Naboris' stomach, and the walls were slowly spinning around them.

"You got it working!" Link said with exclamation, and Tipa pumped her fists in victory.

Vah Naboris walked away from the Arbiter's Grounds across the moon-lit desert. A device that allowed a Sheikah Slate to be placed in it emerged from the floor. Link walked up to it and placed his Sheikah Slate inside of the hole. "Choose map location." The device said. Link pressed on an area to the West of their location.

"Next stop, the Leviathan Bones!" Link said.

Chapter 23: Making Amends

Vah Naboris walked across the desert once again. It was heading West and then eventually the three party members saw the large Leviathan bones which encased the monster colony. Link pressed a button on the Slate inside of the console and then Naboris contracted it's legs down to ground level. A ramp allowed them to walk directly to the monster colony. Poump brought out the Ocarina and walked in front of the monsters. He blew into the flute and played Saria's Song, which all of the monsters were immediately hypnotized by and they followed Poump's lead into the Divine Beast. Poump was really glad he didn't need to walk across the freezing temperatures of the desert at night, especially while blowing on a flute for however long that could take. The monsters boarded themselves onto Vah Naboris and Poump stopped playing the music. He quickly Clawshotted his way back up to the walkway that overlooked the whole room. The monsters were on the lower level mingling amongst themselves.

"And that wraps up the last monster colony for the Monster Squad." Link said patting Poump on the back.

"What happens now?" Poump asked Link.

"Now all of these monster colonies will be taken to Lurelin Village, where we have a large boat docked that will carry the monsters to an island that they will live at. You of course will join us on the boat, since this is your mission after all. Zelda said that the reward for getting them delivered to the island will be 40,000 rupees for each of you." Link looked at Poump and Tipa. They didn't seem to have anything to say. "Any more questions?"

"How soon can we get started with going to the island?" Poump asked.

"As soon as all of the monster colonies have been guided onto the boat. We have whole caravans of wagons ready to carry them from Rito Village and Tarrey Town. I'll take care of transporting this batch of monsters. As for once you two make it to the boat, we want to make sure Tipa doesn't have the ability to turn into a Lynel again. Purah, a scientist in Hateno Village, said that she's been observing the phenomenon of Tipa's malice and says that she can possibly take it out of her. After that, if you have any other things you want to do in Hyrule before going out to sea, you should get that done."

"Alrighty then." Poump said. Link looked at the map displayed on his Sheikah Slate.

"We're nearby Gerudo Town. We should check in with Lady Riju before going." Link pressed a button on the Slate and then Vah Naboris stopped walking. The monsters didn't seem to mind the stop, they were just fine hanging out at the bottom of Naboris' belly. Link, Poump, and Tipa walked up to a catwalk outside of Vah Naboris and then they all paraglided down to Gerudo Town. They landed in the sand nearby. Link walked up to the gateway into Gerudo Town.

"Greetings Voe. Sav'orr." The Gerudo Guardswoman said at Link's appearance.

"Sav'orr." Link replied and he walked into Gerudo Town. Poump tried following behind.

"You aren't allowed, you are not a Vai." The Guardswoman said to Poump.

"But you just let him in." Poump said to the Guardswoman.

"He is a Champion of Hyrule, and a close friend of Lady Riju's. He is allowed entrance for all he's done for the Gerudo Tribe."

Tipa silently walked into the gateway and the Guardswoman allowed her in. Poump still didn't like this. "I went into Arbiter's Grounds and managed to save Yunobo as well as assisting Link with getting Vah Naboris."

The Guardswoman thought to herself a little bit. "I will allow you in here, but don't be seen by anyone else. I don't want the people of Gerudo Town thinking that the rules have been broken. That means more people will talk about it, and inadvertently more Voe will try coming in here."

"You make a good argument. I won't go in then." Poump said.

"Good." The Guardswoman said. Poump waited outside of Gerudo Town and eventually Lady Riju walked out of the gateway with Link and Tipa.

"Thank you very much, Poump. It's a shame what happened to the others, but Link here told me you braved through a lot of the dangers with great confidence. My condolences to your friends." Riju looked at Vah Naboris. "That is a sight to behold. Here Poump. Have 300 rupees, on me. I can't give you more but you are welcome to Gerudo Town as long as you disguise yourself as a Vai."

"Alright, cool." Poump said. He pocketed the 300 rupees.

"We have this handled now." Link said. "I'll contact you once we have all of the monsters boarded on the boat. Feel free to do whatever you want around Hyrule until then."

Poump looked at Tipa. "Well Tipa, hold my arm." Tipa held Poump's arm and then Poump hit a button on the Sheikah Slate which turned both of them into blue streaks that floated into the air.

They teleported to the Shrine in Zora's Domain. This was the only place that Poump knew for certain would be safe for both of them. He put on his Zora armor and Tipa also put on her Zora armor. They walked by a few Zoras chatting and then dove into the lake underneath the Domain. The Zora armor they were wearing allowed them so much freedom in swimming around. They swam around the lake a bit to get used to the armor and then swam towards the river that would bring them closer to the Lanayru Wetlands, where their horses still were. On their way to the Wetlands, a Zora swam with them through the river. They didn't get a good look at who they were until they made it to the Wetlands. "Uten?" Poump said once he got a good look at the Zora.

"Yup, it's me." Uten replied. Tipa hugged Uten.

The sky was dark blue, being formed together by a bunch of mechanical cubes, as if they were being built together. A house formed around Zhago and he found himself laying on his bed, with Her. She disappeared out of his view. He was now standing in his living room, where She was sitting at the table sipping tea. A young boy, his Son, ran into the room enthusiastically, and She smiled at both of them. She disappeared, as well Him. They were now in a field, surrounded by Yiga. She looked at Zhago and pulled out a bag of bombs and blew herself up, destroying all of the Yiga around them. Zhago got up and found her body burning on the ground. The image disappeared before him and then he found himself on a cliff, a familiar cliff, with Him. He looked back at Zhago, and then He jumped right off of the cliff. A white flash encompassed his vision and he discovered himself being trained by Sheik in the ways of the Sheikah Warrior. He was being handed his sword and outfit by Impa, and then he felt himself falling through the air with no signs of it ever stopping. And as if it were there the whole time, he landed on his bed in Kakariko Village. It was night time, and the air was real. He walked through the house and opened his door to see the sky back to normal and the village's night sounds playing in harmony. He went back inside of his house and then he turned around to hear the gallop of horses riding into the village. They arrived.

"Zhago! We were worried sick about you!" Uten said as she got off of her horse. Poump and Tipa remained on the other two horses.

Zhago didn't know what to say. "How am I alive? How are you alive?" He asked Uten.

"The Sacred Realm. It allowed us a second chance at life." Uten replied. "And Poump told me that the mission was a success, we just need to wait for the other monster colonies to be taken to a boat in Lurelin Village."

"And we also need to go to Hateno Village in order to get this malice out of Tipa, so that way she doesn't turn into a Lynel while we're on the ship." Poump added.

Zhago was still adjusting to being alive again. "It is night time right now. We should get some rest and then go to Hateno Village in the morning. And by the way, thank you Poump, for taking care of my horse."

"You're welcome." Poump replied and then the party all settled down for the night.

The next day came. "COCK-A-DOODLE-DOOO!" A Cuckoo exclaimed at the sight of the sun. Everyone in the village woke up and started working on their crops and going about their morning routines. The party got out of Zhago's house and got onto their horses.

"Hey! Wait a moment!" A shopkeeper ran up to Zhago holding a shield. "I was supposed to give you this after the day of Impa's death, but you went away too quickly." She handed the shield to Zhago.

"Thank you, Rola." Zhago replied.

"This is a Shield of the Mind's Eye. It is given to Sheikah Warriors who have done a great deed, and you are very much worthy of the honor this Shield has." Rola said this while Zhago looked at the shield. He thought about how he killed the villagers and how he used the ancient arrows on a few Yiga.

"I don't need this." Zhago said to Rola.

"You do!" Rola replied. "Paya would've given this to you but she's on official business right now. She says you are very much deserving of this shield because of all the good you've done for the village."

Zhago thought to himself some more. "I suppose you're right, Rola. I will use this shield until it breaks on the battlefield."

"That's the spirit!" Rola said. "Now I have to go back to work, so bye!" She ran back to the store she runs and then the party rode away from Kakariko Village on their horses.

They galloped across the roads that lead through the ruins of Guardians which had turned into a historic site. They rode through a ruined wall with moss growing around it. A sign displayed 'Fort Hateno' and the travelers followed the road through it. They passed by many mountains and eventually found an area with stones, and someone using a shovel and a pile of dead bodies was next to them. The party didn't want to involve themselves with that, so they kept following the road forward.

At one point, Poump's Sheikah Slate started vibrating. Poump decided to pick it up and the party stopped to look at who was calling. It was Zelda. "Hello team. I've heard you've dealt with the last monster colony in the Gerudo Region."

"Why yes, we did that." Poump said.

"That's good, I'm sending you the 10,000 rupees to Lurelin Village. Once you make it there, don't forget to pick them up." Zelda gained a serious tone of voice. "Speaking of rupees, I have something I want to say."

"Yes?" Poump asked.

"I have been sent camera footage from a hacked Guardian that shows the 4 of you riding across the ONLY bridge that leads into the Gerudo Region and then one of you DESTROYED it." Zelda said with a stern voice.

"We didn't do that, a sorcerer made it look like that happened." Zhago said.

"No, I can see that footage clearly. Footage from a Guardian's eye is never wrong." A small video appeared in the corner of the Sheikah Slate's screen. It showcased Zhago pulling out the bomb arrow to destroy the wooden bridge. "I know it was you, Sheikah Warrior. For someone of your caliber, I'd assume you would come up with a better way to make the Guardian lose you."

Zhago looked down at the ground in shame.

"As a result, you will have to pay 5,000 rupees in order to help with rebuilding the bridge. Done and done." Zelda hung up the call.

Poump looked at Zhago. "Well damn." He said. "Let's just keep on moving then."

"Agreed." Zhago said.

They made it to a more forested area and saw the log cabin that they remembered being in from a few weeks ago.

"We should stop in there." Poump said. The party got off of their horses and walked into the cabin. The Shopkeeper Lady saw them come in.

"Welcome to-" She stopped talking and observed them closer. "Wait a moment, I've seen you lot before. You asked me for a discount!"

"Don't worry, Miss. We're not here to ask for discounts anymore." Poump replied. He pulled out 200 rupees. "How many Hearty Mushrooms can this give me?"

The Shopkeeper looked in awe at the amount of rupees Poump had. "You can get 6 Hearty Mushrooms for that!" Poump handed her 180 rupees and got the 6 Hearty Mushrooms from the ingredients seller.

"Thank you for shopping!" She said gleefully. "Ooh, today has turned out to be great so far!"

"Why is that?" Poump asked.

"Not only did you come here to pay for my ingredients, but the 13 lost villagers have returned! Granted, 6 of them are dead, but at least we are able to bury their bodies and remember them. It is sad knowing that they are gone, but it's also great knowing that we have their bodies. A Goron told me they were kidnapped by Yiga assassins, so it's good that we still have some of them alive in the first place."

Poump started sweating a little bit. "Yeah. Good to know they're back. See ya!" The team left the cabin and got back on their horses.

"They know that some of them are dead now." Zhago said. "What do you think will happen if we go into the village? Will they kill us on sight?"

"That's what I'm thinking." Poump replied.

"We won't know until we go inside of the village. And if they try to attack us, we will try to convince them to let us meet Purah." Uten suggested.

"Okay, we'll go then." Zhago made his horse ride forward and the other horses followed. "And by the way Poump, I'm proud of you for paying for those ingredients at full price."

"Don't mention it." Poump said and they rode up the road towards Hateno Village. The buildings got closer and they were greeted by a Guardsman.

"Hullo. State your business." The Guardsman said.

"We're here to meet with Purah, the scientist. Link sent us here." Poump said.

"Very well then. You may pass." The Guardsman opened the gate and allowed them to enter the village. They rode their horses through the place and then the villagers started looking at them.

"Hey! Aren't those the guys that Nebb talked to us about?!" One of the villagers said.

"Yeah! A Sheikah Warrior and a Hylian!"

"And they even have a freaky abomination with horns on its head!"

"Do you remember if he said they had a Zora among their group?"

"No clue, but they must suffer!" The villagers started pelting rocks at the party and they rode their horses faster until they were stopped by a bunch of villagers with pitchforks pointed at them.

"Well well well." Nebb was at the front of the pack holding a Royal Broadsword. "If it isn't the infamous 'Monster Squad'. Decided to come here to kill the rest of us then?"

"No, we're here to speak to Purah." Poump replied. "We have no interest in killing you."

"Why would you want to speak to Purah?" Nebb asked.

"This right here is Tipa. She has horns because she is infected with a virus that Purah says she will be able to cure." Poump said as he pointed at Tipa.

Nebb nodded his head. "We will only allow Tipa to see Purah. She lives on top of that hill at the end of the road."

"Alright then, here you go." Poump told Tipa to get off of the horse and then she got off and walked towards the crowd of villagers. Two villagers took Tipa and brought her up the roadway.

"As for you three." Nebb said. "A thief has been in this village for a few weeks now. The guards stationed around this village haven't got a clue where they are, but they are among us, stealing our rupees and our goods. This thief is also possibly the one that kidnapped me and the other villagers. We won't allow you out of this village until you find that thief, and bring them to us, dead or alive. And before you ask, you will be rewarded for finding them. As of right now, we have our eyes on you three. Do whatever you need to get the job done, but don't get any funny ideas."

"Whatever you say." Poump replied.

"Good. Don't disappoint us." Nebb looked at the other villagers and ordered them to put their pitchforks away. They all walked back to their own daily tasks, and some Hylian guards patrolled the area around the perimeter of the village. The party put their horses into an area with shade and started walking around the village to investigate.

As for Tipa, the two villagers that were escorting her climbed up a rather steep hill that lead to a building at the very top. "Purah will know what to do with you." One of the villagers said to Tipa. "We hope whatever she wants with you goes well!" The two villagers took some shields off of their backs and shield surfed down the hill. Tipa liked the sight of it and then she walked to the double doors in front of her. A scope of some sort examined her through the door.

"Well if it isn't my patient. Come inside." A small feminine voice said. It sounded like the voice of a little girl. The doors opened up and Tipa walked in. The place was stacked to the walls with books. A big guy walked up to Tipa writing down some notes on a notepad.

"Intriguing." He said in observance of Tipa's horns.

"Symin, our patient is waiting." A 6 year old girl walked up to Tipa and looked up at her. "So, you're the horned girl that Robbie told me about?"

Tipa looked down at the girl with a confused face.

"I know. Both of us have something strange about ourselves. My name is Purah, I run this lab. Robbie told me all about you and sent his notes here in order to research your condition. Come, sit on this table for us." Purah guided Tipa to the table and Tipa sat on the table. "Now lie down." Tipa started to lie down on the table and it lowered to Purah's arm level. "Very well now." She pushed a button and a screen of some sort scanned Tipa's body, revealing the malice from inside of her blood veins. "As you probably know by now, the malice is within your bloodstream. The process will take some time, and has a 40% chance of your death. We will pump new blood into your veins in order to replace the malice once we've removed the malice. Thankfully, the malice has never touched your heart. This means you have a pure heart, untouched by bloodlust." Purah brought up a screen that popped up from the table. "You were a Cuckoo before?! Symin, write that down!"

"On it." Symin said as he wrote the notes down.

"Okay, now this shouldn't be too painful." Purah pulled out a syringe and planted it into Tipa's arm. Her vision blurred up and then she went to sleep.

Poump, Zhago, and Uten walked around the village together. "We should split up to cover more ground around here." Poump suggested.

"Sounds like a plan." Zhago replied.

"Alright then, we should investigate the different shops around here. Those places would be hit by the thief the worst." Uten said.

"Agreed. Let's do that." Poump and the others dispersed in order to investigate around the village. Poump saw a clothes store and walked inside of it. There was some armor on stands inside, as well as clothes for people to wear casually. Poump walked up to the store clerk. "Hi there."

"Hullo." A girl said from behind the counter. "My name is Sophie, how can I help you?"

"I'm here to ask for information regarding a thief that has been stealing things around this village." Poump said. "Know anything?"

"One day I woke up and looked at our stock of clothes and found one set of our Soldier uniforms gone, with no payment. A lot of people bring up the thief and their sightings of them, but I have never seen them for myself. You should speak to Sayge and Senna at the Kochi Dye Shop for more information about this person."

"Alright, thank you Sophie. Where is the Dye Shop?"

"Just down the road. There's a large sign out front that should say 'We live to dye!'. You can't miss it."

"Thanks again." Poump walked outside and headed down the road.

Zhago looked inside of the Great Ton Pu Inn that he remembered visiting before. He wanted to try and make the manager of the Inn not view him as a nuisance because of what happened last time. He walked inside and was greeted by Prima, who was behind a counter.

"Hullo there and welcome to the Great Ton Pu Inn!" Prima sized Zhago up. "Wait a moment, I know you… you thought you could get away with sleeping in the table area. Phooey! Get out of my sight!"

"Wait a moment, Mistress. I'm here to talk to you about the thief that's been in Hateno Village." Zhago replied.

"You want me to tell you about a thief? You practically were a thief, sleeping in that chair, dozing off, not paying a single rupee until I forced you to. If it weren't for the laws of this land, I would have slaughtered you."

Zhago was surprised at her tenacity towards him. "Here." He reached into his pocket and handed her 300 rupees. "I have plenty to spare for myself now."

Prima accepted the rupees. "Well I'll be damned." She said to herself. "A suspicious acting villager walked in here and ordered a room upstairs last night. I knew their face, but their mannerisms didn't match up. Second floor, door farthest to the wall. They haven't been out of there since last night."

"Got it." Zhago walked up the stairs feeling some levity at calming Prima down. He doesn't like having people hate him. He walked to the farthest door to the wall and opened it up to see what's inside. It was a rather small room with only a bed and desk. There seemed to be a cup that was knocked over, with water dripping out of it. The floor wasn't very wet, meaning whoever had this cup of water already drank most of the water out of it. Zhago felt a light gust of wind coming through the window and noticed it was opened just a crack. He opened the window and looked outside and only saw the villagers outside going about their daily lives. He looked at the walls to his sides and saw nothing else significant about them. He closed the window and decided to look under the bed. There was nothing under the bed except for a single strand of hair which he collected for himself. He took notice of a few water droplets that seemed to be fresh on the floor. They were trailing from the cup. He observed the hair strand. A familiar aroma came from the hair strand, but he remembered it from. He looked out of the window again and pulled out the Eye of Truth. The villagers all looked the same through the Eye, so he put the Eye away and walked back down the stairs.

Uten walked to a small body of water and dipped herself in it to rehydrate herself. She then walked towards a shop. A girl was sweeping up the floor outside. "Hullo, what brings you here to the East Wind General Store?"

"I'm here to learn about a thief. Has a thief ever been stealing from this store?" Uten asked.

"Come inside and see for yourself." The girl had Uten follow her inside. A man stood behind the counter.

"Welcome to East Wind General Goods! How may I help my guest?" The man said.

"She wants to know about the thief." The girl said.

"Yes." Uten added bluntly.

"Oh yes, the thief. Take a look right here." The man pulled out some shelves from behind his counter and Uten looked at them. They were empty. "This is where I stash my rupees, but they all disappeared two days ago. I have a key for this drawer, and my key is only ever in my pocket. I never have it off of me. To make matters worse, this drawer seems to be undamaged, making me believe they took this key while I wasn't looking, opened it up, and then gave it right back to my pocket. All under my nose."

"Do you remember anything out of the ordinary when this happened?" Uten asked.

"Well, my daughter, Ivee, who you just met outside, was restocking the items for this store. Then as if from out of nowhere, she was walking inside of this door and the Ivee that was restocking the items disappeared completely. My son, Azu, and my wife, Amira, didn't seem to notice this at all. They were in the room the whole time, but they were playing with cards at the other side of the room, so they didn't even notice it. They said I was crazy, but I knew what I saw."

"Thank you for this information. Did you ever get a glimpse of the thief for yourself?"

"I saw someone wearing beige clothing jump through an open window. I didn't get a good look at them because of how fast they were, so all I know is they were wearing beige."

"Thanks again. I will take this information into account." Uten replied.

"You're welcome. If you ever find my lost rupees, be sure to bring them back here."

"Actually, I'd like some of those fish you have right there." Uten said, pointing at the raw fish in a basket.

"That'll be 10 rupees each."

"Here." Uten handed 20 rupees. The man gave her two fish.

"Y'know, I heard that-"

Uten wolfed both of the fish down raw. "Thank you for your service." She walked out of the store.

"What a character." The man said to himself.

Poump walked up to the Kochi Dye Shop. The sign out front read 'We live to dye!'. He walked into the place and was greeted by a man with a large forehead. "I'm looking for Sayge." Poump said.

"You're looking right at him." The large forehead man said. "You are standing in Kochi Dye Shop, the first dye shop in all of Hyrule, besides the one that we've opened in Castle Town. What brings you here?"

"I'm here to ask questions regarding a thief."

"Ah yes, a thief. Look here." Sayge brought Poump to a bunch of bags that had different colored dyes within them. Poump observed that one of the bags had less dye in it than the others. "That color right there is beige. Not many customers buy this color, yet I noticed that it seems to be the least in stock right now."

"Strange." Poump said, rubbing his chin. He looked at the rooftops around the village and noticed that they were also colored beige. "Thank you for the input, sir." Poump said to Sayge.

"Anytime." Sayge replied.

Poump, Zhago and Uten walked towards each other and started discussing what they found. Uten started. "The people in the general store over there got their rupees stolen. The thief has been described wearing beige clothing, and they also seem to have the ability to disguise themselves as others. At least that's what I'm thinking.

"The Inn had a person staying inside of one of the rooms. I found this one hair strand under the bed, as well as a tipped over cup of water. The window was slightly open, although there were no strange signs of activity around the window." Zhago added.

"Uten, it's funny that you mentioned the thief wore beige. The Dye Shop owner told me that his beige dye has been stolen. Also another fun fact, look at the rooftops around here." Poump pointed out the rooftops to the others. "Beige."

"I know this type of stealth." Zhago said. "A huge blindspot for Hylians or anyone for that matter is what's above them. Combine the fact that people don't look up very often with the fact that this thief is wearing beige to blend in with the roof's color, it's no surprise that they haven't seemed to be caught yet."

"And your observation about the window being opened checks out. This thief probably uses the rooftops as a way of traversing the village." Poump said.

"Hey you three, I have one more thing I'd like to add." The party turned around and saw Nebb walk up to them. "This thief, I hear they are most active at night time. Everytime something is stolen, the owner of the stores notice this in the morning. Rarely during the middle of the day."

"So what you're saying is we should wait until night time to see if we can find this thief?" Poump said to Nebb.

"Yes. I recommend you three find this thief by going to a high area. I heard your conversation, and you said you have concluded that they use the rooftops for travel. The best vantage point would be next to the Ancient Tech Lab up the hill, where Purah is currently operating on your friend. Here, take these shields. A friend of mine named Selmie gave them to me, but I'm personally more of a sword fan myself." Nebb handed the party two Soldier's Shields. "She tells me they're great for shield surfing. You could need them for surfing down that hill."

"Ah gee, thanks Nebb." Poump said as he took the shields for the team.

"Good. Now don't disappoint us." Nebb said as he turned around and walked towards three guards and they all walked together along a patrol path.

"That was strangely intense." Poump said.

"Well, we killed him before, so it makes sense why he'd be so adamant on keeping an eye on us." Zhago added.

"We should go up to the Tech Lab and see if Tipa is alright now." Uten said.

"Yeah, let's go." Poump said and they walked up the road of Hateno Village, passing by several lamps lit by blue flames.

Meanwhile with Tipa, she started to gain her vision back. She looked around the room and saw a commotion going on. Purah had a bottle in her hand and she was trying to swipe it at a large purple energy that was bouncing all around the room. "Symin! Take a bottle and try to catch this thing!" Purah said to Symin.

"I've been on it, but it's just too fast." Symin said as he dove for the purple energy darting around the room. The purple energy stopped mid-air above Tipa and opened up to reveal an eyeball.

"You are no longer a good host for me! You have HIS blood now!" A Malicious Voice sounded out. It then zoomed right into the wall and disappeared.

The three party members walked right up to the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab when they saw a purple eyeball fly out of the wall and look at them. Then it zoomed far away into the distance, to the North East. "Whoa, was that the eyeball that turned our Cuckoo into a girl?" Uten said. The door to the Tech Lab opened up and Purah looked into the distance.

"No! It's too late!" Purah said. She looked at the other party members. "You saw that, right?"

"Yes, the purple eyeball, we saw it." Poump said dryly. "It flew off into the distance."

Purah shook her head. "This is bad, really bad." She stopped shaking her head. "Oh well, looks like we can't fret about this anymore. Your friend looks like she's just fine, she survived the blood replacement process."

"That's good to hear." Uten said.

"Come and take a look." Purah guided them inside of the Tech Lab. She pointed to Tipa, who's horns had receded into her skull, with the exception of some smaller horns now. She also had completely white hair now, with no hint of red anywhere on it. "Her Lynel form will no longer be an issue for all of you. You can take her wherever you want without the fear of the transformation overcoming yourselves."

"Thank you so much, uhh… you're Purah?" Poump said as he looked at her.

"Yes. I know. I look like a 6 year old. Believe it or not, I'm actually really old. I'm Impa's older sister."

"What?! No way!" Poump said. "I remember seeing you at Impa's funeral! I didn't even know you two were related."

Purah picked a picture of Impa and her inside of the Tech Lab. "We never saw eye to eye on a lot of things, but if there's one thing for certain, we were sisters, and we loved each other."

Zhago patted Purah on the back.

The party waited for nightfall. The moon rose and the land was illuminated by the moon's light. Zhago looked through the Hawkeye in order to see any strange activity on the rooftops. "Once I say go, sled down with your shields." Zhago said to the others, who were prepared with their shields. Zhago looked at the rooftops some more and then noticed some movement around one of the chimneys. "Go!" Zhago teleported himself down to Hateno Village and the other three followed behind by shield surfing. Zhago made it to the rooftop of the building where he saw the movement. He looked around and then he heard the creak of a window open up, and then the slight pitter patter of feet running up a wall and onto the next building nearby. Zhago saw the person. They were running on the rooftop. Zhago teleported to that rooftop and tried to catch them, but they dodged out of the way. The person looked at Zhago and then leapt inside of the chimney nearby. Zhago followed suit. He slid his way down the narrow shaft of the chimney. He fell out of the fireplace and into the house, covered in soot. He noticed some footprints through what little light there was and followed them. They led to a staircase, which made him climb them and he followed the footprints into a room. The room didn't have anyone in it, except for what was most peculiar about the room was the collection of different swords and weapons on display around the room. Zhago heard the sound of a sword slightly being picked up off the ground and turned around to see the sword's shiny metal going around the corner. He followed through the hallway and then saw only a closed window at the end of the hallway. He opened it and it made a loud creaking noise. A light turned on behind him.

"Hey, is someone there?" A tired voice said from behind Zhago. Instead of going through the window, Zhago quietly climbed to the ceiling and crawled above the tired individual. "Why was this window still open?" They closed the window. Zhago snuck down the stairs and saw someone standing in the dark look at him, with the sword in hand. Zhago pulled his own sword out and tried to charge for the mysterious figure, but then they teleported away from his attack. Zhago looked around again and then heard the faint click of something being unlocked. He turned and walked towards the sound and saw the sword lying on the floor next to an opened drawer, which had some rupees inside of it.

Poump, Uten, and Tipa shield surfed down to the village and saw someone jump from outside of a house's first floor window. It noticed the group and then ran right up the side of a wind-mill. Zhago teleported out of the house and saw the figure running up the side of the wind-mill and followed it. Zhago ran right up to the figure's leg and grabbed it, but then they both teleported away onto a rooftop. The figure stopped to look at Zhago for a while. Zhago looked at the figure and realized they were wearing Yiga garb. The Yiga teleported away out of Zhago's sight, but Zhago knew where they had teleported to. He could feel it.

Zhago teleported to an area in the nearby cliffs around Hateno Village. A small hut was sitting in the area, and the Yiga member looked at Zhago. They took off their mask and revealed their face. "Dad?" The Yiga said.

"Son?" Zhago replied. "Is it really you?"

"Yes, it's me… I can't believe you're alive." Zhago's son fell to his knees. "I can't believe you have found me, like this. How long has it been? Since Mom's passing?"

"It's been 7 years, son." Zhago replied. He walked up to him.

"Don't touch me! How do I know you're not here to kill me? They sent you to find me, rightfully so." Zhago's son spoke with a hurried expression in his voice. "I've done so many bad things. I kidnapped those 13 villagers. I stole their items, exploited their appearances in order to attack them from the inside. Then I hear that 6 of those 13 villagers were killed in the Arbiter's Grounds… oh no. I caused their deaths." Zhago's son looked up to Zhago. "Kill me, father. It is the only way I want to go."

"No, son. There is such a thing as redemption. You might have fallen in league with the Yiga Clan, but if you stay with me, I can make you a member of the Sheikah Clan once again." Zhago looked at the hut behind his son. He noticed lots of stolen goods were inside of it, as well as different clothing. "Paya sometimes told me she missed seeing you around, talked about how you were so cute when you jumped in the water puddles. Your name is Pokh, and you were born in Kakariko Village."

"But, what is the point in living anymore, knowing that I have done so many bad things? And Mom, she's still dead."

"She might be dead, and you might have done all those bad deeds, but there is a way to redeem yourself. You still have a lot of your life left ahead of you. No one knows you're alive yet, son. We can start anew. Kakariko Village, they have no knowledge about your misdeeds."

Pokh took some deep breaths and got himself back up. "You will be there for me, right father?"

"Yes, son. I'll welcome you back home. A lot has happened since then, I suspect the other villagers will be happy at your arrival."

Pokh walked up to Zhago and they both shook hands. "Not so fast." Zhago turned around and saw Nebb. "That's the very thief that's been terrorizing my village. My home." Nebb had a sword drawn. "I don't want to see you two coming out of this alive. Both of you must pay for what you've done to the other villagers. You." Nebb pointed his sword at Zhago. "You killed my friends. You thought it was your choice to end their lives all because of your foolish bravado. And you!" He pointed his sword at Pokh. "You kidnapped my friends, stole many people's precious items around the village. You are a member of the Yiga Clan, so therefore you should die." Nebb carried his sword into a fighting stance and approached the two of them. "Archers!" He screamed. And then multiple arrows flew out of the trees nearby. Zhago pulled up his shield and blocked the arrows from hitting him and Pokh. Zhago grabbed Pokh's arm and teleported away.

The both of them teleported into Hateno Village in front of the other three party members. "Whoa!" Poump said at the appearance of the two. "Is that the thief?" Poump asked Zhago.

"Yes, he is the thief, but don't draw your arms on him! He is my son." Zhago said as he put his hand on Pokh's shoulder. Pokh waved at the three of them. Tipa waved back.

"You had a son this whole time?" Uten said with minor confusion.

"I thought he was dead, but it turns out he was alive and well here." Zhago looked at Pokh. "Speaking of that, how did you survive after all these years?"

"It's a long story. I can go over it once we've made it to Kakariko Village." Pokh said with his voice shaking a little bit. "We need to get out of here, these villagers will want me dead."

"Wait a moment!" Zhago said. "Poump, can you write down a note?"

Poump brought out a piece of paper and an instant ink quill pen in his hand. "I'm listening."

"Write down: Thief's hut has been found in the cliffs nearby. All of the stolen goods are present and accounted for."

"Got it." Poump finished writing the note down.

"Now we need to make sure we let the leader of this village know about the hut's location." Zhago looked around the village. "Where would the leader be?"

"The leader of the village is in that building over there, with the Goddess Statue." Pokh said as he pointed at a building with a Goddess Statue next to it.

"Ah, thank you son. Alright, Poump, Uten, bring this note to the person inside of the house. They will know where their belongings are."

"On it." Uten said with Poump tagging along. They walked up to the house, which seemed to still have its lights on. Uten knocked on the door. The door opened up and a Hylian man answered the door.

"Hullo. You are speaking to Reede, leader of Hateno Village, and a not-so heavy sleeper right now. What is it you need?" Reede quickly recognized the two of them. "Oh, you two. You're supposed to be finding that thief that's been terrorizing the village."

"We're here to give you this note. We found the place where the thief had hidden himself, and all of the stolen items as well." Poump handed the note to Reede. Reede read it over.

"This is phenomenal! I'll send some guards over there to collect the stolen items. I can finally have my beauty sleep." Reede motioned to some people inside of his house and then 6 guards filed out of the doorway. "Thanks again! You guys will now be able to go out of the village! Now if you'll excuse me." Reede closed the door and in a few seconds, the light inside of the house turned off.

"Awesome." Poump said to himself. Him and Uten joined back with Zhago, Tipa, and Pokh.

"We delivered the news to the leader. Their guards will deal with the hut. Now let's get out of here." Uten said to Zhago.

"Good idea." Zhago and the others got to their horses and started riding for the gateway. Then all of a sudden, Nebb and 8 guards came from behind the wall. 6 of the guards had spears and 2 of the guards had bows, with arrows that seemed to be tipped with fire.

"You all are going nowhere." Nebb said to the party. "I want my revenge, and I want it cold. Not only do you guys have the thief with you, but technically three of you were responsible for the deaths of 6 of my friends. And I cannot forgive you for that."

Poump looked at Zhago hoping he had a way with words. Zhago spoke up. "The hut, where the stolen items are. You could bring them back to the village and you can say that you found and killed the thief. The whole town would call you a hero."

Nebb thought about this for a bit. "Being called a hero would be nice I guess, but you still can't undo what you did to my friends." The two guards with fire tipped arrows aimed their bow right at Zhago and his Son. "Give me three good and solid reasons why you should live, and I'll allow all of you to pass through here."

"Alright then." Zhago thought for a bit. "First up, this thief is my son, and I'm taking him back to Kakariko Village so that way he can reform his ways away from the Yiga Clan. Second up, we will serve in court at Hyrule Castle, so that way we will be given a trial regarding the 6 dead villagers. Thirdly, from our point of view one of the villagers killed Uten with an ancient arrow, causing the both of us to go into offensive positions."

Nebb thought about what Zhago was saying. "I suppose you aren't too at fault. I guess everyone is obligated to be given a fair trial, because with different people comes different perspectives. Lower the bows." Nebb ordered the two archers to lower their bows. "You will still pay for what you did, but I will take your advice in returning the stolen items and claiming I killed the thief. I suppose this thief isn't that bad afterall." Nebb ordered the rest of the guards to stand down. "Maybe sometime soon I will see you again, after the trial. Then maybe we can toss up some drinks or something like that." Nebb and the guards walked into Hateno Village and allowed the party to go through the gateway. Nebb waved goodbye to the group, but Tipa was the only one who was looking back. She waved back with a smile on her face, and a smile also overcame Nebb's face as well.

Chapter 24: The Mysterious Mask

The party rode across the roads from Hateno Village back to Kakariko Village. They arrived, and it was still night time. Zhago got off of his horse and had Pokh follow him into Paya's Place. "Paya, I have something very important to show you."

"What is it, Zhago?" Paya saw Zhago's son walk from behind him. She didn't recognize him at first but then it clicked in her head. "Pokh? Little Pokh?!" Paya got up from her seat and excitedly ran up to Pokh and hugged him. "By the Goddess, he is alive!" She exclaimed as she hugged him tightly. She then held both of his shoulders. "How are you still alive?"

Pokh spoke up. "Well, it all started on the day when I jumped off a cliff. My body landed in a river, barely alive. It drifted to a camp where several Yiga Clan members saw my body. They took me in, nurtured me back to health and then trained me in the ways of the Yiga. Their leader, Ghirahim, assigned me on many different missions across Hyrule of varying degrees." Pokh put his face into his hands. "I've killed so many people. Innocent people throughout the 7 years of my time in being a Yiga Clan member." Pokh put his face out his hands. "For my latest mission, I was tasked with kidnapping the Hateno Villagers and bringing them to the Arbiter's Grounds in the Gerudo Desert. And then after a few weeks of working on that mission, Dad came along and managed to pull me out of the Yiga Clan."

Paya pat his head. "It will be alright. You're safe here in Kakariko Village. You will be another member of the Sheikah Clan, like you were before."

Zhago nodded his head in approval. "You will look after him now, right Paya?" Zhago asked.

"Yes, I will Zhago." Paya said to Zhago. "He is in safe hands now."

Pokh turned around to look at his father. "I'm glad you found me, father."

"I'm glad too, son. Now I must leave because we have business to attend to."

"That's alright Dad. See you!"

"See you around kid." Zhago walked out of the door and walked down the stairs. "He's in safe hands now. So, what will we do with our time right now?"

"Link told us to deal with the Lynel within Tipa but we got that settled down." Uten thought about other things to do. "Didn't that Keeseman guy want us to go to Hyrule Castle Town and participate in the Mask Festival or something like that?"

"Oh yeah, he did send us that letter. We should check in on Hyrule Castle Town in that case." Zhago said.

"We can also get our pay for the last monster colony from Zelda herself." Poump added. "I can even get to say my goodbyes to my friends before we go on the voyage across the sea."

"Sounds like a plan. Let's ride." Zhago made his horse ride forward and the other party members followed behind. Their horses rode through the moon-lit roads of Hyrule Field. They passed through a checkpoint across a bridge which didn't take much time to go through. They eventually rode up to the walls of Hyrule Castle Town and docked their horses into the stable outside. They walked through the gates and to the main plaza.

There were great festivities going around, and there were lights that stretched across the rooftops across the Main Plaza. People danced to music being performed by a band of Gerudos, with a Goron blowing on a horn to add to the music. Their music infected the people of Castle Town, who all seemed to be wearing different masks. The party walked out of the crowded area and next to a few outdoor shops, one of which was selling masks.

"Hello lovely people, may I interest you in purchasing a mask?" The salesman said from behind the counter. He had a really big smile that seemed somewhat creepy. Poump looked at the different masks on the stand.

"What are these masks named and how much for each one?" Poump asked.

"Ah-ha! I'm glad you asked! From left to right, this yellow mask with pointy ears is called the Keaton Mask. Kids love wearing this, as it is a family favorite icon here in Hyrule! This next mask takes on the appearance of the popular fictional character, Mario! Observe the red hat and the accentuated mustache! Finally, this is the Skull Mask! Most people like wearing this mask when they want to frighten people! Each mask is 50 rupees."

Poump looked at the different masks. "I'll buy all of them." He handed the mask salesman 150 rupees.

"My my! What a wonderful customer! Here you go!" The mask salesman gave the party the three masks.

Poump put on the Skull Mask, Tipa put on the Keaton Mask, and Uten put on the Mario Mask. "Zhago, do you want a mask?" Uten said to Zhago, who was maskless.

"I don't need a mask." Zhago replied.

"Come on, there's a festival going on! The least we could do is be a part of the celebration!" Uten walked up to the mask salesman. "Do you have any other variety of masks on sale?"

"Ah-ha-ha, why yes I do!" The salesman shuffled through his large backpack and pulled out another set of masks. "It is 50 rupees for any mask!"

Uten looked at all of the different masks. She looked at a mask depicting an Octorok. "I'll have that one!" She handed the salesman 50 rupees.

"Here you go!" The salesman gave Uten the Octorok Mask. Uten gave the mask to Zhago and he reluctantly put it on.

"See! That's not so bad now, is it?" Uten said to Zhago.

"Let's just get this over with and be done with it." Zhago said with his arms crossed. The party walked into the crowd partying it up with their masks. A dance circle formed in a part of the crowd. A Gerudo Woman was dancing with another Gerudo Woman in the circle. They both had a wonderful display of synchronization. At the end of their dance, they both looked at each other and kissed each other right in the lips. The crowd cheered, and then the next song started being performed. At the other side of the dance circle, Poump noticed someone wearing a uniform with what looked like a Guardian Helmet. He knew that was Keeseman. Poump motioned for the others to have them weave through the crowd towards Keeseman. As Poump approached Keeseman, he walked into the dance circle, much to Poump's surprise. Keeseman was in the dance circle alone, with his really expensive outfit on. The music started and then Keeseman started breaking out some dance moves to the rhythm of the music. The music was very intense, so Keeseman reflected that in his dance moves. At one point, he pointed his arm out to the party members from in the crowd and motioned his fingers to make them come inside of the circle with him. The party walked into the circle and Keeseman continued his dance moves. Then once the music hit a drop, Keeseman hit the floor with a smoke bomb which concealed all of the party members. The smoke cleared up and the crowd looked in silence at the empty circle. Then they cheered loudly, because they thought that was really cool.

On the rooftops of Castle Town's buildings, Keeseman looked down at the crowd with the party members. "I would've never taken you for being the dancing type." Uten said to Keeseman.

"Dancing is a very important skill when it comes to coordination. It allows you to think on your feet and practice your stamina usage." Keeseman started clicking on something on his arm. "Dancing also helps with learning how to fight, as a fight in and of itself is like a dangerous dance." A screen popped up on his arm. "Take a look at this." Keeseman showed the party the image of a mask with large eyes and spiky sides on certain parts.

"What is it?" Poump asked.

"This is an ancient artifact known as the Majora's Mask. It is said to house a dangerous power within itself. It is currently in a shipping container that is being sent to an island off the coast of Akalla, where it will be locked up and examined. However, it is said that the mask manipulates the minds of many people, making them lust for unlimited power. I intend on getting the mask and locking it into my Keese Cave where it will be locked up by all of my technology, and only a few people will even know of it's real whereabouts. It is best that as few people know about it as possible."

"What if the mask causes you to lust for power?" Poump asked.

"It won't. My own mask has a frequency that blocks its powers from overwhelming my mind. And if it does ever overwhelm me, kill me and destroy it."

Poump widened his eyes. "Whoa, we went from dancing in a circle to discussing an evil power hungry mask in mere seconds."

"The crate should be shipping soon. It's in Hyrule Castle's courtyard. Investigate it. The other possible location of it could be somewhere here in Castle Town. Which crate would you like to investigate?"

"The one in Hyrule Castle." Poump replied. The other party members nodded.

"It is settled then. I will investigate the crate here inside of Castle Town while you deal with the crate inside of Hyrule Castle. I wish you luck." Keeseman ran off of the building and glided down with his cape.

"He's so extra." Uten said.

"Alrighty guys, let's go deal with that crate." Poump said. The party grabbed onto Zhago and Zhago teleported them down to the Main Plaza. They walked up to the gates to Hyrule Castle. A guard stood before them.

"The Castle is on lockdown right now." The guard said.

"What? Why?" Uten asked.

"Because an incident has occurred inside the Castle. We can't risk having these gates open while the incident is occuring. There is a party going on right now, and the possibility of the incident causing harm to the citizens is something that can't be toyed with. I'd advise you all to go back to the party and enjoy your lives." The guard stood into a stoic position and didn't move anymore.

The party walked into an alleyway away from the Main Plaza. "Maybe we can check on Zelda." He pulled out the Sheikah Slate and pressed a button. In a few seconds, she called back.

"I am terribly sorry Poump, but right now is not the best time for calls." Zelda had a look of distress on her face.

"What has happened?" Poump asked.

"An explosion went off deep within the dungeons of Hyrule Castle. A malice explosion right at the area where we were operating…" Zelda looked off of the camera. "Oh no." She hung up the phone.

"That looks like it could be serious." Poump said. "Do you think we should check on it?"

"We can look at it after we've dealt with whatever these crates are." Uten said. "Speaking of those crates, how do we even plan on making it into Hyrule Castle in the first place?"

Poump brought up the Eye of Truth. "With this." They walked to the Castle's wall and Poump brought out the Eye. He pointed it at the wall and walked right through it. The others followed behind him. They walked through a small passageway and then made it to a closed door. They listened to what was happening on the other side. The scurry of soldiers running across the floor could be heard.

"To the throne room! We must protect the Queen!" One of the soldiers screamed.

Once the scurry of footsteps stopped happening, Poump opened the door and found himself in the courtyard. There was a crate that was loaded onto a wagon. "Let's take a look at this." Poump ordered the group to follow him and they made it to the wagon. There were no guards in sight. They looked at the crate and Poump pried it open with the strength from his Power Bracelets. They looked inside to see several masks displayed inside of the crate. There were perforations made for each mask, but one mask was missing. It resembled the shape of the mask they were looking for. There was a single playing card inside of it's spot. Poump picked it up and turned it around to discover it was a Jester card.

"Hahahaha!" The loud cackling noise of someone laughing sounded outside of the wagon. Poump and the others walked outside and saw someone wearing clown makeup dancing on top of the roof of the blacksmithing area. "What a night! A big boom distracted all of the soldiers from their duties, so the opportunity came and I took it!" The Jester pulled up the Majora's Mask in his hands. "Who knows how much power this could hold!"

"Not enough for me!" Poump used his Clawshot and propelled himself towards the clown. The clown threw a few playing cards at the Clawshot's chain which somehow caused it to lose it's grip, sending Poump flying into the wall underneath.

"Hahahaha! What an evening for my grand Play!" A poof of smoke concealed the Jester and then they disappeared. Poump got back up and looked at the others.

"Why didn't you guys shoot him or something?" Poump said to the others.

"We thought he was just some entertainer from the Mask Festival that wandered in here." Zhago said and Uten nodded.

Poump looked at them in disbelief. "He is holding Majora's Mask! Y'know! The power mask that grants evil power!"

"Oh." Zhago and Uten said in unison. Tipa walked up to Poump and looked at Uten and Zhago.

"Meat." She said aggressively to the Sheikah and the Zora.

After a few minutes, they walked through the secret passageway and back into Castle Town. "That clown mentioned a grand Play. And I think I know what that means." Poump said. The team followed Poump to the theater and saw what was showing. 'The Legend of the Majora's Mask' was the title of the play. Poump and the gang shuffled inside of the theater. Poump brought up his Sheikah Slate to all of the bouncers. "Official Queen business." The bouncers allowed them inside and they made it to the stage room. People were seated, but the curtains were closed. "Okay guys, we'll need to split up if we hope to find this Jester."

"Will do." Zhago and Uten agreed and walked through the chairs, while Tipa followed Poump up to the stage. Poump walked behind the curtains and met up with a few of the cast members. One of the cast members was wearing a green tunic.

"Hey young boyo, what are you doing back here?" The actor in the green tunic said.

"I'm looking for a Jester of some kind. One who is in possession of the Majora's Mask. Do you know where they might be?" Poump asked.

The actor looked at the stage assistant and they shrugged their shoulders. "If they are anywhere right now, they are probably downstairs. That's the other actor, who plays the villain of the play."

"Alright, thanks." Poump walked downstairs with Tipa and made it into a locker room. Some actors were putting makeup on and different costumes, but the Jester was nowhere in sight. "Hey, have any of you seen the Jester who has the Majora's Mask?" Poump asked them.

The actors scratched their heads and looked at each other. "The last time we saw him was 3 hours ago. He hasn't been in here since, although the play will be starting soon, so he should be around here soon." One of the actors opened up their locker and then a blue glowing circular object rolled out of it.

"Ahhhh! It's a bomb!" The actor said, and they ran away from the bomb. The other actors also ran away from it.

"Great. A Yiga presence of some kind. The show's gonna need to be cancelled."

A voice sounded from above them. "Actors, get ready."

"Okay boyos, to positions!" The actors walked out of the room up the stairs. Poump looked at the bomb in the room. He tried thinking about what to do with it. He took out the Clawshot and dragged it with him upstairs. He was going to try and take it outside. He climbed the stairs and heard an announcement.

"And now presenting, from the Lon Lon Ranch Entertainment Association, The Legend of the Majora's Mask!" Music started playing. The green tunic actor walked out on stage and bowed to the crowd. Zhago and Uten were originally trying to ask people questions around the crowd, but the play's starting peer pressured them into stopping to watch it.

The green tunic actor ran in place. "I am the Mighty Hero Link! Off onto a grand adventure to the land of Termina!" The other actors showed up on stage, dressed up in different outfits that showcased different monsters.

"Brave Hero Link, we will stop you in your endeavors!" The monster actors said to the Link actor.

"Not if I can help it!" The Link actor pulled out a prop sword and started attacking the monster actors. They fell to the floor, playing dead.

"Noo! The Great Hero has slain us!" The monsters cried out. Another monster walked up from behind Link. Just as this was happening, Poump emerged from behind the curtain with the blue bomb in his hand.

"Bombs!" Poump exclaimed to the crowd with panic. Just as he said that, the Link actor pulled out some prop bombs and threw them at the monster that was sneaking up on him. Smoke covered up the area where the prop bombs landed. The crowd applauded, but Zhago and Uten had a feeling something was wrong.

Poump held the bomb above his head some more and then it detonated within his hand. As it went off, several other bombs behind the curtains went off. Poump recovered himself from the explosion and Tipa ran up to him to help him up. Both of them were on stage. The crowd thought it was a part of the play, so they cheered some more. The Link actor turned to the others.

"What are you two travelers doing here? Don't you know these are dangerous lands?" The Link actor said to them.

"You need to go, now!" Poump said to Link, and Tipa nodded in agreement.

"I'm sorry, humble citizen. I shall not go because I am Link, the Hero of Termina!" The Link actor raised his sword into the air. From behind the curtains, the Jester appeared with the Majora's Mask. "Evil doer! I shall slay you!"

The Jester put the Majora's Mask on and then the room lit up red. Once again, everyone thought this was a part of the play. The Jester raised his hands and then a stream of energy blasted the Link actor to the floor. "DOOF!" The Link actor hit the ground and slid across the floor. He struggled getting back up. Poump and Tipa ran right up to the Jester but the Jester also blasted them with energy making them fall back as well. Zhago and Uten got out of their chairs and ran right down the aisles towards the stage and hopped on, but the Jester's attacks were too much for them. Then, as if from nowhere, Keeseman jumped from the ceiling onto the Jester. He was holding on the mask, trying to pry it off, but then the Jester shook Keeseman right off and into the crowd. The Link actor crawled off stage and it was at that moment the audience knew that this wasn't a part of the play. They ran out in a panic, leaving just the 4 party members, the Jester, and Keeseman left in the room.

Poump tried to attack the Jester again. He Clawshotted the mask and used his Power Bracelets to try and power pry it right off of his face. The mask was almost pulled off, but the tug sent Poump flying right at the Jester who attacked him again. 7 more people in clown makeup appeared on stage. Some of them were only armed with knives, while the others were bare handed. Uten took her spear and stabbed at some of them, sending them flying back. They tried overwhelming her, but then the Jester blasted Uten down with more energy.

"Yes! With this mask, I can become immortal! An instrument of chaos! All the potential!" The Jester screamed out like a maniac. "And that Keeseman will be doomed!" The Jester traveled towards the seats and tried to find the Keeseman, but he was nowhere in sight.

Tipa decided to ram herself horn first right into one of the clown actors, knocking them over. Zhago pulled out his sword and pointed it at the actors, but then the black swoosh of Keeseman's cape danced around all 7 of the actors and then they all were left on the floor, bruised and beaten. Keeseman looked back at the Jester. The Jester looked back at Keesman, with the mask radiating great power. Keeseman pulled out a device and pressed it, which created a loud noise throughout the whole room. The party members covered their ears, but the Jester seemed to have difficulty with the loud noise.

"Ahhh! My ears! The noise!" The Jester fell to the floor. Keeseman pulled out a grappling line and fired it at the mask, grabbing it and pulling it towards himself.

"Poump, take this mask!" Keeseman threw the mask at Poump. The Jester got back up and Keeseman punched him right in the face. The Jester was knocked out immediately by this attack.

Poump held the mask in his hands, and then an overwhelming feeling started to overcome him. He felt like putting it on. "Use me! You could become more powerful than any being in all of Hyrule!" Poump started putting it towards his face but then Keeseman quickly snatched the mask out of his hands. Poump felt the urge go away immediately.

"What the heck is that thing?" Poump said in reference to the mask.

"Something really dangerous." Keeseman said. "I'm glad I got your help, that way we were able to divert this crisis before it could get any worse. I'll pay you with a few rupees soon. I will take this to the Keese Cave where it will be locked down far away from any being willing to use its power."

"What about the crate with the missing mask?" Poump asked Keeseman.

"I've already put a replica of the mask in its place. It's good that I learned of the mask's true whereabouts when I did. Otherwise things could've turned out much differently." Keeseman pulled out a smoke bomb and then disappeared once the smoke was gone.

"He really loves doing that, doesn't he." Poump said to himself. He picked up his teammates who were down. People went into the theater. One of them seemed to be wearing a green skin tight suit.

"Ah it's a mess!" The person in the green skin tight suit said.

"Wait a moment, Tingle?!" Poump said when he noticed the guy in the skin tight suit.

"Kooloo-limpah!" Tingle replied. "Even though this whole thing was unfortunate, I will reward you all for trying to stop it. Here's 100 rupees." Tingle threw the rupees across the seats, which the party quickly gathered up for themselves. Tingle walked up to the Link actor. "Are you alright?"

Poump looked at this and made a heavy sigh. He reached into his pocket and pulled out 1,000 rupees and gave them to Tingle. "You deserve this more than us." Poump said as he gave them to Tingle.

"What?! Really?! For little old me?!" Tingle said.

"Yes. Now get better security for these shows." Poump and the gang walked out of the theater and passed the crowd.

Poump was still curious as to what was happening in Hyrule Castle, so he made the team follow him back to the secret entrance. On their way there, a Goron got in their way. "Hey, Poump! It has been a long time!"

Poump made a heavy sigh. "Goggodu. I would know that face if I ever put a look on it."

"Yeah, without your buddy Groose to help you, I can finally get to slam you for all of those times you bested me in the Knight Academy!" Goggodu hit his large Goron stomach.

"I'm very busy right now, bully me later." Poump replied as he tried passing him.

"Nuh-uh! We're gonna fight! And your other friends are gonna watch you fall over!" Goggodu prepared to punch Poump but then Poump used his Power Bracelets to stop Goggodu's punch and then he punched the Goron square in the stomach, sending him rolling down the alleyway. "OOFH!"

"I don't have the time for this, bye." Poump and the gang walked passed Goggodu who was recovering from the attack. He was very flustered.

Uten looked at Goggodu and then back at Poump. "Who was that?"

"His name is Goggodu." Poump replied. "He bullied me during my time in the Knight Academy."

"That's so unnatural though, Gorons are usually nice people." Uten said.

"Not that one." Poump said. The party made it to the secret entrance through the Castle Walls and they walked through the wall and into a passageway. They reached a door. Just as they were about to open it, the Sheikah Slate started vibrating. Poump pulled it up and saw that Link was calling them.

"Hi guys. The monsters have been put onto the boat. Once you're ready, come to Lurelin Village. We're preparing for the voyage, so we just need all of you to come along and we're tip top. Do take your time though." Link turned off the call and the party looked at each other. They opened the door and found themselves in the courtyard again. They walked up the road of the Castle and made it to the throne room. Guards were standing in front of the throne room.

"Halt! You mustn't pass!" The Guard said. "A strange incident has occurred inside of the building!"

Poump brought up his Sheikah Slate. "We are some of Zelda's closest contacts. May you allow us entrance?"

The Guard observed the Sheikah Slate. "You may pass, just be careful there." The Guard opened the door for them and they walked inside of the Throne Room. The room had a large gaping hole in the center of it, and the soldiers were circled around the whole room, looking down the hole, with Roldi in front of them all. Zelda was also looking down the hole and quickly noticed the squad walk inside.

"Stay back. This is dangerous." Zelda said to the party.

"Can we have our rupees for the desert monster colony?" Uten asked.

Zelda looked up with disappointment at her. "This very dire circumstance is happening now and you ask for rupees? The rupees are being delivered to Lurelin Village. You can collect them there."

Uten felt Zelda's pressure and shut up. Poump spoke up. "What has happened here?"

Zelda looked at Poump. "I guess I must tell you everything about what that thing is down there." She pointed down the hole. "Down there, we were running tests on an old decrepit body, which we recognized as Ganon, or Ganondorf. Link and I discovered three triangles form onto our hands one day and they lead us to this body, which mysteriously also had three triangles on it's hand. It was locked deep in the dungeons of this castle in a research facility. For 10 years, it didn't move. Until now." She looked down the hole again. "Wait a moment, it was just there! Where did it go?!"

Out of nowhere, a tall dark skinned Gerudo Male with red flowing hair and a red beard appeared before everyone in the Throne Room. He was holding Princess Hilda, who was sleeping in his arms. The soldiers around the room aimed their bows at the Gerudo Male.

"Wait! Don't shoot! He has Hilda!" Zelda screamed at the archers. They all put their bows down.

The Gerudo Male looked around at the people in the Throne Room with a menacing look in his eyes. "The Royal Family must pay in blood!" The Gerudo Male started grabbing his head as if it was in conflict. Hilda was still sleeping in his arms, as noticeably the Gerudo Man made sure he didn't drop her.

Roldi and the soldiers in the room looked at Zelda with nervousness. Zelda didn't know what to do. Poump, Zhago, Uten, and Tipa brought out their weapons and approached the Gerudo preparing for a fight. Then to break up the commotion, a Sheikah Warrior teleported into the room. Everyone looked at this Warrior.

"Sheik?!" Zhago and Zelda exclaimed at the sight of her.

Sheik looked around the room and then at the Gerudo. She pulled out a harp and played a song that seemed to stop time completely. She was able to walk around, while everyone in the room was completely still. She observed the soldiers readying their weapons, and the look of shock on Zelda's face. She observed the party members, taking note of each of their appearances. She gave a slight chuckle. She ended her walk by looking at the Gerudo Male standing with Hilda in his arms. "So, Ganondorf. This is how it all began."

The Gerudo didn't move an inch, however he spoke back as if his mind spoke to Sheik. "Began? What do you speak of? Who even are you, and how do you know my name?" Ganondorf replied with his mind.

"You have met me. We've seen each other a lot throughout the ever flowing river of time. You just haven't seen me yet. In fact, you are meeting me right now." Sheik replied.

"What silly joke is this?" Ganondorf replied, trying to mentally escape this temporal disturbance he found himself in.

"That girl you hold. She will answer your greatest flaw. You must ride to the Great Plateau and speak to Rhoam Bosphoramus Hyrule." Sheik said to the suspended Ganondorf.

Ganondorf searched his thoughts. "That man! Why would I speak to someone who despises me so much?! Why would I go to a place where the Hero was revived and speak to the man that made him defeat me?!"

"You are making assumptions, Demon King." Sheik replied softly. "Time will tell why you must go there, for if I tell you why you must go, you would possibly not go in the first place."

Ganondorf thought about what Sheik was saying.

"The curse. You want to break free from it. It's bound to you, forcing your spirit to be reborn over and over with the same goal of wanting to cause chaos and destruction. I know that deep down inside of yourself, you want to live a normal life. One away from the tedium of this endless cycle." Sheik circled around Ganondorf. "You must bring her to the Great Plateau. Find Rhoam and enter the Temple of Time. All of the answers to your questions will be solved there. You must exercise your restraint. I can trust you to come through on this." Sheik walked up to Zelda who was still suspended. "I'm sorry mother." She played the harp and then everyone around the room started moving again. Except for Zelda, who fainted over and the soldiers quickly carried her away.

"Soldiers, we must defeat him!" Roldi the General said to the other soldiers in the room. They raised their weapons and charged at Ganondorf. Ganondorf turned his back to the soldiers in order to ensure Hilda's safety. The soldiers' weapons met with Ganondorf's skin, which all of them broke upon impact. Roldi's squadron of soldiers stepped back a few paces seeing their weapons had done absolutely nothing to the absolute unit that was Ganondorf. The party tried attacking Ganondorf, but didn't actually hit him when they realized what Ganondorf did to the soldiers' weapons. Ganondorf looked at Hilda in his arms, who was still sleeping.

"I don't want to do this, but it seems like I must." He thought to himself as he walked out of the Throne Room with Hilda in his arms. Poump didn't like seeing this mysterious being carry Hilda like that.

"Hey you! Don't you dare harm her!" Poump said to Ganondorf as he followed behind him.

Ganondorf turned around to look at Poump with eyes so evil that even Poump's heart sank at the sight of them. "I must take her to the Great Plateau. I have been told so by a mysterious person. They knew who I was, so I must listen to them."

Poump reconfigured his mind and spoke to the Demon King. "No way I'm leaving you alone with her."

"If you must follow me, then follow me. Just don't be a nuisance." Ganondorf replied. He walked through the courtyard and then to the gates. The remaining guards outside looked at Ganondorf with caution and weapons raised. He looked at all of them with a face that was filled with such a lust for blood that it intimidated all of the guards to allow him through. Ganondorf walked into the Main Plaza, where the Mask Festival was being held. The party followed behind him. The crowd at the Mask Festival was at first really lively, and then slowly but surely the music stopped. The people in the crowd were confused and then made way for Ganondorf to walk through. They all looked at him. Some members of the crowd had no clue who this was, but the Gerudo Females amongst the crowd took issue with the appearance of this Gerudo Male. The crowd looked in disapproval of Ganondorf's presence, at least the people in the crowd that knew of what he looked like. Ganondorf's gaze was still enough to make anyone in his way walk to the side. In this moment, Ganondorf almost felt the rage overcome him. So many eyes from so many people, judging him. He could've turned the whole Main Plaza into a bloodbath if it weren't for Hilda who was in his arms. For some reason, she emanated an energy that kept his dark thoughts at ease. He walked through the gates of Castle Town out to the horse stable outside. He whistled with his fingers and then a large horse much bigger than any other horse the party had seen appeared before Ganondorf. Ganondorf put his hand on the horse's head. "Phantom. It is so good to see you again." Poump was surprised by Ganondorf's rather humanly approach to this horse. Ganondorf got onto his horse. "I must ride for the Great Plateau. Tonight." Ganondorf said to the others.

Poump still didn't like seeing Hilda with the Gerudo Man. "We will ride with you, but you must give me Hilda."

"No, I can't. She belongs with me." Ganondorf replied.

Poump understandably looked at Ganondorf. "Okay then, as long as you don't hurt her."

Uten quickly spoke up. "Wait, can you wait for us to buy a few things here in Castle Town?" She asked.

"I cannot wait. I must ride for the Great Plateau as soon as I possibly can." Ganondorf said to Uten.

Zhago looked at Uten. "Looks like we have to play by his rules for now." Uten nodded her head in defeat and the party saddled up onto their horses. They all seemed to be hesitant towards accepting Ganondorf, except for Tipa. The party rode their horses into the moon-lit Hyrule Field towards the Great Plateau, with the Demon King himself leading the way.

Chapter 25: The Demon King and the Hero of Time

Ganondorf and the party rode their horses across Hyrule Field. The moon started setting, and the sun started rising. Zhago decided to pull out the Eye of Truth and examine Ganondorf, who had a purple energy flowing through his veins. They rode up the Great Plateau, which was a landmass that overlooked all of Hyrule Field, and it even had a Sheikah Tower on top of it, which rose into the sky quite magnificently. Ganondorf rode up to the side of the Plateau and got off of his horse, with Hilda in his arms. "We're here." Ganondorf said to the party.

Uten looked up the side of the Plateau. "You want us to go up there? I'm not sure if all of us can go up there."

"If you don't want to join me, then so be it. However, I must take her with me up there, into the Temple of Time." Ganondorf carried Hilda in one of his arms and approached the wall.

"We'll follow you, since you have Hilda with you." Poump said. Uten didn't want to join though.

"Shouldn't we be going to Lurelin Village right now? This doesn't concern us." Uten said to Poump.

"This does, because he has Hilda, and knowing what I've read in the history books, this Ganondorf guy could possibly want to kill her." Poump looked at Uten. "I know you just want to get your rupees and finish the mission, but this right here seems to be a lot more important than another 10,000 rupees."

Zhago noticed Ganondorf scaling the side of the Plateau with one arm. "If we really want to go up there, we should do it now. I can go either way."

Poump looked at Tipa. "What do you think, Tipa? Where should we go?"

Tipa looked up the side of the Plateau and then pointed up.

"It's settled then. Let's climb." Poump walked up to the side of the Plateau and brought out his Clawshot and propelled himself up to a patch of vines, which he used to climb up. Tipa pulled out both of her katanas and planted them into the side of the wall, using them to scale the wall. Zhago bent down to allow Uten onto his back and despite her reluctance, she climbed on. Zhago pulled out some climbing gloves and scaled right up the side of the Plateau.

The party all managed to make it onto the Great Plateau. They turned around and were breath taken at the view from up there. Poump however wasn't interested in the view for much longer as he wanted to try and see where Ganondorf was. It didn't take him long to find the red haired Gerudo walking amongst some ruins with the purple haired Princess. Poump ran up to Ganondorf and noticed that Hilda was awake and pointing at different things around the area.

"What is that?" She asked Ganondorf.

"That is a rock." Ganondorf replied.

"No, I know that, silly. I was asking about that large building behind the rock." Hilda pointed at a large ruined cathedral.

Ganondorf looked at it thoughtfully. "That is the Temple of Time. We must go there, but first I need to speak to Rhoam."

"Rhoam? That is my grandfather's name!" Hilda exclaimed to Ganondorf.

"That is because the Rhoam I am seeking is your grandfather." When Ganondorf said that, Hilda widened her eyes.

"Momma told me he's dead!" Hilda said.

"That's because he is." Ganondorf replied.

"How did he die?" Hilda asked.

Ganondorf closed his eyes. "You don't want to know, child."

"I want to know!" Hilda said with authority.

Ganondorf widened his eyes at her tenacity, and the fact that she had not a single sign of hostility towards him. "I killed him."

Hilda didn't believe it. "But you never moved before! You couldn't have killed him!"

Ganondorf was extremely confused by what Hilda said and then he remembered that he was being looked at deep in the dungeons of Hyrule Castle, where he never moved. For as much as Hilda knew, he was just a large reanimated corpse. This still confused Ganondorf, as the idea of such a young girl getting along with such a large and mean looking reanimated corpse seemed extremely alien to him. "I didn't kill him. He just died one day of old age."

"That makes sense!" Hilda replied, as she accepted this answer. Ganondorf however was very uncomfortable with this. He DID kill her grandfather, but she wouldn't know. She's so innocent. Hilda turned around and saw Poump following them. "Poump!" She exclaimed at the sight of him.

Ganondorf stopped and turned around to look at the young Hylian. "So you did climb." He turned around and continued walking through the ruins.

"Yeah, I did. It is somewhat my duty to protect Hilda, the Princess that you're holding right now." Poump said to Ganondorf. "And if I'm not mistaken, you're Ganondorf, right? The one from the history books who reappeared at different points in time in order to try and bring chaos to Hyrule?"

"Yes, I am Ganondorf. The Demon King, the Prince of Thieves, the Wielder of the Triforce of Power. History has painted me as the villain in many circumstances."

"Then you should get your hands off of Hilda. She shouldn't be carried by someone like you."

Ganondorf violently turned around to Poump. "WHY DO YOU THINK I'M HERE?!" His voice was so loud and terrifying that it made Hilda start to tear up a bit.

"Don't scream at my friend, meanie!" Hilda said to Ganondorf through small tears.

Ganondorf collected himself and kept on walking. Poump was also shaken a bit but kept on following him. They walked in silence across a small field of grass and into a small forested area. Inside of the forested area there was a log cabin, and someone was outside of the cabin, chopping at some wood with an axe. They appeared to be an old man wearing a brown hooded cloak with a big white beard flowing outside of the cloak, and they also had a lantern on their waist. The hooded figure stopped chopping the wood. "Ahh, you have finally arrived, Ganon."

"Rhoam, I am not here to hurt you. I need your help." Ganondorf said to the Old Man.

"I know you aren't here to hurt me." The Old Man resumed chopping more wood with the axe. "You are here because you want me to assist you with your quest."

"My quest, yes. Someone named Sheik told me to come here and speak to you." Ganondorf looked at Hilda who looked back at him. "And to bring this girl along with me."

The Old Man stopped chopping the wood and looked at Ganondorf, Hilda, and Poump. "Who is this other child you have with you?" The Old Man said in reference to Poump.

Ganondorf looked at Poump. "He just tagged along."

"I'm looking over Hilda." Poump interrupted Ganondorf's sentence. Ganondorf almost lost his self control.

"There there now Ganon." The Old Man said to Ganondorf.

"Stop calling me by that name." Ganondorf replied to the Old Man. "Anyways, what is it you wanted to tell me?"

"Ahh, the girl you have with you. She will be the key to breaking you free from your curse. The curse that makes you drown the land in blood in an endless cycle, no matter what happens."

Ganondorf looked at Hilda. "She will be the key?"

"Wait a moment, what would that mean?" Poump asked the Old Man.

"That would mean that Hilda would need to enter the Temple of Time and go on a long and arduous journey. One with great danger and that will test her will in many ways." The Old Man said to Poump.

"But that makes no sense!" Poump looked at the large ruined cathedral in the distance. "You mean to tell me that that building will allow Hilda to go on a journey inside of that building?"

"It will be a journey that will have her go through time. And you will play a part in making it happen."

Poump didn't like the sound of this. "When would we need to start this?"

"Anytime today before the sun sets." The Old Man replied.

As for Zhago, Uten, and Tipa, they noticed a Rito flying above them at a high altitude. The Rito dove straight for a body of water and flew right back out of it with a fish in its mouth. They landed at a small camp area, and the three of them ran up to it to see who it was. They saw a Rito with white feathers, feasting next to a cooking pot. The Rito looked at them. "Come come!" He said to them. "What brings you three to the Great Plateau?"

"A friend of ours convinced us to join him up here. My name is Zhago."

"Mine is Uten, and this is Tipa."

"Meat."

"What is your name?" Zhago asked.

"My name is Teba!" The Rito replied.

"Wait a moment." Zhago pulled out the Eye of Truth on the Rito. His feathers didn't change color at all. They were completely white. "You are the missing Champion!"

Teba looked surprised. "Missing? How long have I been up here?!"

"You didn't keep count?" Uten said.

"Well, I guess it would make sense." Teba said. "When I came here I got rather carried away by the bountiful amount of hunting I could do in here. Maybe that is why the time didn't feel like so long. How long have I been missing?"

"The people at Rito village say that you have been gone for a month." Uten said to Teba.

"A month?" Teba looked up into the sky and saw another Rito fly onto the Plateau. They landed near the Temple of Time, which was a considerable distance away from where they were at. "Who could that be?" Teba got up and started walking towards the Temple of Time. The other three followed him.

Poump and Ganondorf with Hilda still in his arms walked with Old Man towards the Temple of Time. "What will happen when Hilda goes onto her journey?" Poump asked the Old Man.

"I cannot tell you." The Old Man said back to Poump.

"Why not? I should know!" Poump said.

"Because if I tell you, you might not follow through on your part of the story. I will tell you once we are in the Temple of Time and ready to begin." The Old Man said.

"Poof." Poump said to himself. He didn't like how convoluted the Old Man was. They entered into the Temple through a large entrance which was covered in moss and cracked in certain areas. Inside of the Temple at the end of the long room was a huge Goddess Statue, which was much bigger than any Goddess Statue that Poump ever got to see. As everyone was inside, the flapping of large Rito wings came from the entrance. They turned around to see a Rito with blue feathers. "Kass?!" Poump said once he saw the Rito.

"Poump! How good of you to join us!" Kass said to Poump. There was an accordion worn around Kass' neck.

"What do you mean 'us'?" Poump asked Kass.

Kass walked further inside of the Temple. "I am of course speaking about our red haired friend and the Princess. It seems that since you are here, you will see destiny at work."

"Why are you here?" Poump asked.

"For a reason I can't tell you right now." Kass said to Poump.

"Again with the theatrics." Poump thought to himself.

Zhago, Uten, Tipa, and Teba arrived at the Temple of Time and saw the people inside. "Kass? What are you doing here?" Teba said at the sight of Kass.

"I think the real question is what are YOU doing here." Kass said to Teba as he walked right up to him. Kass started playing the accordion and started singing. "You may feel it's right to be here. You may feel it's fine to ignore. But deep down in, deeeep doown inside of you. You want to be with your family, after such a long time awaaay. Much like I, 10 years agooo. Make amends and go back hooome. For if you don't, you'll be in graaave danger. So go back home, and be with your familyyyy." Kass stopped playing the accordion. Teba looked at Kass thoughtfully.

"I will go back home. I've ignored my duties as a Champion and a Father for enough now, so I must go back." Teba proceeded to go out of the Temple and fly out into the horizon in the direction of Rito Village.

The party turned to the Old Man. "Now, Hilda must meet her destiny. She will be accompanied by Ganondorf and Kass on her journey."

"Why not me?" Poump interjected.

"You have a different role, and you are needed here." The Old Man said. "Ganondorf, is there anything else you wish to do before you enter your journey with Hilda?"

Ganondorf thought for a bit. "I wish to spend a little time here, before I go. Once Hilda is ready." He looked down at her.

Hilda looked at the large Goddess Statue. "I will be ready but first I want to look around the Plateau a bit. And you two, Ganondorf, Poump, will escort me around." She got out of Ganondorf's arms and landed onto the floor. She started running for the Temple's entrance. "Come on!" Poump and Ganondorf looked at each other, but they decided to go along with her commands.

Four hours passed. Hilda had a good enough tour around the Great Plateau, looking at the different nooks and crannies around the place was enough to satisfy her need for adventure. She sat on a tree stump and watched as Ganondorf swung an axe into multiple trees, cutting all of them down instantly with each swing. Poump was a little bit miffed with what could be happening to Hilda soon. Ganondorf put down the axe and walked away from the area that he had been cutting up. A pile of logs were left in that area. Zhago, Uten and Tipa were mostly looking at the sky trying to make out what the different clouds looked like. And Kass was eagerly waiting for the Old Man to initiate the journey.

"We cannot wait any longer now." The Old Man said to Ganondorf, Kass, and Hilda. "You three must come with me." The three of them followed the Old Man into the Temple of Time, and then the four party members also followed along.

Inside of the Temple of Time, the Old Man stood next to the Goddess Statue. He looked at Poump. "Young Poump. You must play the Song of Time using the Ocarina. It's instructions are written on the wall here." The Old Man pointed out an inscription on the Goddess Statue.

Poump brought out the Ocarina. "What will happen?"

"You will see for yourself." The Old Man replied. "Ganon, Hilda, Kass. Into your positions."

The three of them lined up in front of the Goddess Statue. Ganondorf and Kass held both of Hilda's hands. "Are you sure I can't join them?" Poump asked.

"Your role is needed here." The Old Man said to Poump.

Poump looked at Hilda. "It's okay, Poumpy. I'll be fine with these two!" Hilda said when she noticed Poump hesitating. Poump looked at the other two and they nodded in agreement. Poump looked at the Ocarina of Time and blew into it. He followed the instructions on the wall, as he played an enchanting and timely sounding song. A portal appeared before them, one that looked like a gear shaped door that stretched into the inside of it. Ganondorf, Hilda, and Kass walked into the portal together. Hilda gave one last look to Poump but Ganondorf turned her attention back to what was ahead of her. The three of them receded deep into the portal until they disappeared. The portal closed up, and Poump stood there, speechless.

"How long will this take?" Poump said to the Old Man.

"For us, hours. For them, years. Many years." The Old Man replied.

The party stood in the room. Poump wanted to know more. "Now that that happened, are there any details I'm missing here?"

The Old Man looked at Poump. "You wish to hear more about Hilda?"

"Yes. I want to know more about her, why she's going through that, and why I can't join her."

The Old Man walked up to a stone bench. "Sit down, Poump. Allow me to give you a history lesson." Poump sat down next to the Old Man. "130 years ago, I met the love of my life. She was beautiful, talented, and was willing to marry into the Royal Family of Hyrule. She married me, and became the Queen of Hyrule. I was the King of Hyrule. 3 years after we met, we had a child, named Zelda. She was our Princess. When Zelda became 6 years old, my wife needed to go back to her world, a parallel world to Hyrule, that is known as Lorule. She was needed in Lorule, as she was of the Royal Bloodline to that world, so after having to say goodbye to her, she vanished into the world of Lorule, never to be seen again. Zelda didn't know this. I told her that she died suddenly, and that is how the Kingdom has seen it since. As for Hilda, she technically possesses the Royal Blood from the bloodline on Lorule, meaning she belongs there. When Zelda gave birth to Hilda, she gave birth to the missing Royal Family member of Lorule. It is why my wife had to go, since she didn't belong in Hyrule, and she was very saddened knowing that she mixed the Royal Bloodlines together between both worlds." The Old Man looked at Poump. Poump's mind was racing with different thoughts. This was something that he had trouble grasping. "As for why Hilda is going through that journey, she is allowing Ganondorf a chance to redeem his wrong doings across the ages. She must go on the journey with Ganondorf, as she radiates energy from Lorule, which is capable of keeping Ganon's Malice from overreacting. You cannot join her, as her destiny isn't yours. You belong here in this time period, with your friends. Do you understand now?"

"Just a little bit." Poump replied.

Six hours passed. The sun was beginning to set. The party sat in the Temple of Time speaking to each other, except for Poump who was way too obsessed with the portal that closed a few hours ago. The Old Man was standing still and sleeping, but then as if he never was sleeping, he walked right up to the portal. "It is time." He said to the others. Poump eagerly watched the portal in anticipation.

In a blinding flash of light, the portal opened up again. Poump and the others had their hands block the light from their eyes. The light's intensity died down and they looked inside of the portal. Ganondorf, Kass, and what looked like a 21 year old woman with purple hair and a Purple Tunic much like Link's Green Tunic walked towards the party. They made it out of the portal and looked at the party. The purple haired woman spoke up. "We have gathered forces throughout all of time. They are ready and waiting for the Battle for Hyrule. As for you four." The purple haired woman said to the party. "You must finish your quest to deal with the monsters. You all play a part in that battle. There is no time to waste."

Poump looked at the purple haired woman in disbelief. "Hilda? Is that you?"

She looked back at him with thoughtful eyes. "Yes. It is I. I would never forget you, Poump." Hilda turned to Ganondorf. "As for him, he has atoned for all of his evil that he has done throughout the ages. His struggle with Demise ends tonight." Hilda walked outside of the entrance to the Temple of Time. "Come with me." She said to the party members. "With Demise's curse weakening on Ganondorf, comes the Beginning of the End." She watched the horizon with the others. The sun was fully set by now and the moon started rising, except it had a strange peculiarity to it. The moon was red. "The Blood Moon rises again, and with it, the Calamity will rise again. The forces that I mentioned earlier will play a critical role in putting this conflict to an end, and as for you four, you must carry out your mission as you have been doing. You all play a part in putting this to an end."

"The Blood Moon?!" Zhago exclaimed at the sight of it. "That means…" As soon as Zhago said it, a dark purple energy emitted through the air. The clouds turned into a violent red, and then as if from nowhere, purple smoke clouds enveloped around the immediate area and from them came a few Bokoblins. Hilda pulled out a bow on her back and shot all of the Bokoblins in the area in the head, making them all fall over dead.

"You four must hurry. Meet with my mother and my father in Lurelin Village. Finish your quest, as Hyrule needs you to." Hilda looked up into the sky to see a dark portal appear. A bunch of small black squares came out of it and they formed into Ghirahim and Veerus. "Leave now." She said to the party.

"I can't leave you!" Poump said to Hilda.

"You must." Hilda put her hand up and then a magic blast came from her hand, which blasted the four party members away from her. Hilda and Ganondorf approached Ghirahim and Veerus.

"Ah-ha! It is so good to see you again, Demise! And you are in your best body now!" Ghirahim said at the sight of Ganondorf.

"Demise is beneath me!" Ganondorf said. "You can have him!" Hilda slammed both of her hands together towards Ganondorf, which caused the Malice of Demise to go out from inside of him.

"YOU CANNOT DO THIS!" Demise's voice said to Ganondorf. "AFTER ALL WE'VE BEEN THROUGH?! DESTINY FORCES YOU TO BE BONDED WITH ME FOR ETERNITY!" The Malice was sucked completely out of Ganondorf's body by Hilda, and the Malice formed into the shape of a tall figure which possessed much of Ganondorf's stature, with skin entirely made of Malice, and hair that looked like fire.

Ganondorf fell to the floor, breathing heavily. The Triforce on his hand lit up. "I am above Destiny! I am Ganondorf Dragmire, and I will no longer be your plaything!" Hilda waved her hands into the air and pointed them right at Ganondorf, which created a bright flash of light and then he disappeared.

"NO! WHERE DID HE GO?!" Ghirahim said at the absence of Ganondorf's body.

"Somewhere." Hilda said to Ghirahim. She pulled out a sword that looked extremely similar to the Master Sword, and she also pulled out a Hylian Shield.

"Demise! She is radiating too much power for us right now! We must retreat and gain more power!" Ghirahim said to Demise.

"You are right, Ghirahim. There is a great time to strike. We must rally our forces! Now that I have this body, with no other mind, just my own desire for dominance and complete control! Come now, Ghirahim. The Goddess' land will be our stomping ground!" Demise and Ghirahim both vanished into thin air, leaving the dark armored Veerus standing ground in front of Hilda.

Hilda approached Veerus with her weapon out, and Veerus pulled out their weapon as well. Hilda swung at Veerus, sending a laser right for Veerus' armor. Veerus dodged out of the way of the attack, with some flames coming for their armor's legs. It allowed them to sidestep with ease away from the laser blast from the sword. Veerus gripped onto their weapon and lunged right at Hilda and swung their sword. Hilda blocked the attack with the Hylian Shield and counterattacked with the Master Sword, slicing a hole open in Veerus' armor. The two of them fought each other for another minute. Hilda was breathing heavily, as she put all of her strength into the fight. Veerus' armor was wearing out. The both of them were at an even level of power, as they outmatched each other. Hilda looked to her side and saw Poump and the party still watching them. "You must leave!" Hilda screamed at the party. Veerus tried to take advantage of Hilda's distracted state and almost hit her, but she dodged out of the way of the attack. Hilda quickly slammed her hand onto the ground and then a circle of flame started to surround her, encompassing Veerus, and growing closer to the party. The party quickly ran for the side of the Great Plateau, as the flame grew larger and larger. The party pulled out each of their paragliders and jumped right off of the plateau and glided down back to their horses. The circular flame stopped and Hilda was surrounded by flames. Veerus stood inside of the flames, feeling the heat overcome them. Veerus looked at Hilda. "You wish for a world to be steeped in the same cycle, don't you?" Veerus said to Hilda.

"It's a lot more complicated than that." Hilda said to Veerus among the flames. Hilda was wearing some earrings that allowed her to stay in the fire without catching flames, however Veerus' armor started to give in to the flames.

"You are drunk on power." Veerus said to Hilda, and then Veerus disappeared into the black portal above them.

As for the party. They boarded onto their horses under the red clouds of the night. They weren't near the monsters across the land, but they knew of their presence. As the party rode forward across the road, the noises of battle horns sounded across all of Hyrule, and the sounds of the monsters permeated across the land. It was as Hilda said. The Beginning of the End has begun.

Chapter 26: The Return of the Monsters

The party rode forward across the road. They just needed to get moving, as the air around them felt a lot more hostile than it ever was before. 6 horses approached them, and on top of them were 6 Bokoblins. Noticeably 5 of them were red and one of them was blue. 2 of them had spears, 3 of them had bows, and 1 of them had a club. Zhago prepared his bow and Uten gripped her spear. Zhago shot a few arrows and managed to knock down 2 of the Bokoblins. Uten quickly ran her horse right by one of the Bokoblins and stabbed at it with her spear. The Bokoblin screeched and fell off of it's horse and onto the floor, dead. 3 Bokoblins remained. The Bokoblins with spears waved their spears around in a circle, which almost knocked Zhago off of his horse. Tipa pulled out one of her katanas, dodged right under the spear and sliced the Bokoblin off of their horse. Poump had his sword ready and held it out to the side, knocking one of the Bokoblins off of their ride as well. The last Bokoblin, which was blue, used it's bow and shot Zhago in his shoulder. "AUGH!" He exclaimed at the arrow penetrating his shoulder. Zhago recollected himself and shot an arrow at the blue Bokoblin, knocking it off of it's horse, however it got back up and tried to get back onto one of the horses. Poump rode up next to it and swung his sword at it, slicing it's head off.

Uten rode up to Zhago. "Are you alright?" She said to him.

"Nothing a little healing can't fix." Zhago said as he pulled the arrow out of his arm. Uten gave him a red potion, which he downed and felt better afterwards.

Poump rode up to the others. "Not to interject or anything, but do we even know the way to Lurelin Village?"

The party looked at each other, and they had no clue where they should actually be going. "Link said that the village would be to the South, so would that mean we go across the Bridge of Hylia?" Zhago said.

"Yes!" A small voice exclaimed. Poump looked around and then saw the yellow glow of a fairy.

"Tatl?!" Poump said once he saw the fairy, flying out and about.

"Yes, Poump! It's me! The Great Fairy sent me to guide you all! Follow me!" Tatl started flying quickly into the direction of the Bridge of Hylia. The party followed her onto the bridge, but then she stopped. "AHK! Monsters at the middle of the bridge!"

Zhago equipped the Hawkeye and looked at the middle of the bridge. There were 3 Lizalfos using 2 boomerangs and a bow. There was a blockade on the bridge, and Hylian Soldiers were pinned down by the 3 Lizalfos. Zhago took out his bow and shot one of the Lizalfos down. The other 2 noticed the arrow shot and started progressing towards the party. Zhago knocked two arrows and shot both of the Lizalfos down, dead. Tatl resumed flying across the bridge and the party continued following her. They passed by the Hylian Soldiers who continued their patrol on the bridge. Tatl made it to the other side of the bridge and the party followed her into a road that led to a heavily forested area. As they rode through the woods, they heard someone screaming. "Help!" They heard it to their left. Tatl stopped to allow them to investigate. They got off of their horses and found 3 Bokoblins, 2 red and 1 blue, above the beaten bodies of two Hylians. The 2 red Bokoblins were dragging the Hylians on the ground while the blue Bokoblin watched over them. The blue Bokoblin turned around to see the 4 party members and squealed at the sight of them. The other Bokoblins stopped dragging the 2 Hylians and prepared their clubs for battle. Poump went forward shield first to the Bokoblins and Zhago and Tipa flanked the Bokoblins to the sides. The Blue Bokoblin swung at Poump's shield with it's club, which Poump blocked the attacks and then attacked back by thrusting his sword at the Bokoblin, which knocked it back. The other two Bokoblins faced off against Tipa and Zhago. Zhago made quick work of his Bokoblin and Tipa's two katanas overpowered the last Bokoblin. Uten carried the two Hylians off of the ground and back to their horses. The blue Bokoblin got back up and Poump swiped his sword right at it, knocking it down again. Poump jumped into the air and planted his sword right into the Bokoblin's stomach, killing it. The party got back onto their horses and continued following Tatl.

Poump had one of the injured Hylians on his horse, and they started gaining consciousness again. "Are you alright?" Poump asked to the injured Hylian.

"It's as if they came out of nowhere. We were just walking through the forest like we always do, and then these Bokoblins just appeared out of thin air. We thought they were extinct." The Hylian replied, touching their head. The party kept on riding through the forest. They passed by some ruins. A Lizalfos leaped out of some bushes and grabbed Tatl.

"AGH! Help me!" Tatl said as the Lizalfos breathed it's nasty breath into Tatl's face. Zhago tried shooting the Lizalfos with his bow, but the Lizalfos ran off into the ruins nearby.

"We need to save Tatl!" Poump said to the others.

"Wait here." Uten said to the Hylians.

"I will look over them, you three should find Tatl." Zhago said to the other party members. Poump, Uten, and Tipa ran into the ruins site. They were covered in large foliage and moss. Poump looked at some of the stone work around the area, which depicted large owl-like beings. The place was also filled with bodies of water. The party looked around and then a Lizalfos leaped out from behind them and grabbed Poump and dragged him into the water.

"Poump!" Uten dove into the water and saw the Lizalfos dragging Poump deeper into the water. Uten took her spear and plunged it right through the Lizalfos' body. She grabbed Poump and escaped the body of water. Poump was recovering his breath, but they looked up and saw 4 Lizalfos attacking Tipa. Tipa tried her best to fight against them. She killed 1 of the Lizalfos but one of them shot an electric arrow at her, disarming her of her katanas. Uten pulled out her spear and waved some water around the 3 remaining Lizalfos, although they swam out of the water and continued attacking the disarmed Tipa. Uten tried stabbing at some of the Lizalfos but they moved out of the way of the attack, and the Lizalfos with the electric arrows shocked Uten, causing her severe pain. Since Zoras are weak to electricity, she fell to the floor, barely alive. Poump approached the three remaining Lizalfos with his shield and spun his sword in a circle around him. This killed 1 of the Lizalfos, but the other 2 were still alive, and the one with the bow kept itself at a distance away from him. Poump blocked the electric arrows with his shield and anticipated an attack from a Lizalfos, however since he'd never faced a Lizalfos in combat, he wasn't too sure about what to look out for. The Lizalfos opened its mouth and rolled out its long tongue towards Poump's shield. The Lizalfos' sticky tongue pulled Poump towards it and the Lizalfos striked at Poump with its weapon. Tipa crawled on the floor towards Uten's dropped spear and collected it. She rolled in front of the Lizalfos and stabbed it repeatedly with her spear, killing the Lizalfos. Poump recovered from the attack and helped Uten up. He shielded the arrows coming from the Lizalfos from far away. Tipa prepared her spear and then threw it at the Lizalfos, causing it to be penetrated by the spear and fall down dead.

Poump looked around the area and found another batch of stone work leading to a temple of some kind. There was a small camp in front of the temple, where 5 Lizalfos were sitting, and Tatl was being held hostage by them. Poump felt a raindrop and then looked up. The pitter patter of water drops started hitting the foliage around the forest. In just a few short seconds, it was raining tremendously. Uten, despite the pain she took from the electric shock, felt extremely refreshed by the rain in the air. She took her spear back from Tipa and looked at Poump. "Wait here." She said to Poump.

"Wait!" Poump said to Uten, except she already was walking towards the camp of 5 Lizalfos. The rain drowned out Poump's words, so she didn't even hesitate to stop. 2 Lizalfos snuck up on Poump and Tipa, but they were quickly able to gain their senses and defeat both of the Lizalfos. They turned around and couldn't see Uten at all through the thick fog in the air.

The 5 Lizalfos sitting at the camp didn't see Uten yet. She observed them from afar, taking note of each of their weapons. She had battled Lizalfos before during the time of the Calamity, when the monsters were around the land. They were all over the river from Lake Hylia to Zora's Domain, so she had a fair amount of run-ins with them. She saw that 1 of them had a bow, 3 of them had spears, and 1 of them had a boomerang and a strange horn on their heads. Normally a Lizalfos' horn is just there for them to ram into their opponents with, much like how a goat would have horns, except this horn that the Lizalfos had was permeating an electric green color. Uten took a special note of that. The rain was very soothing for Uten. The sting of the electricity from before didn't persist anymore. She sat in the tall grass for a few seconds more. She saw that they had tied Tatl to a stick and were about to roast her above a fireplace, but because of the rain, the fire was gone. The Lizalfos furiously slammed the stick into the ground.

"AHK!" Tatl exclaimed as the stick went onto the ground. She thankfully wasn't hurt too much. One of the Lizalfos noticed the shine of Uten's spear in the grass, however. The Lizalfos pulled a battle horn off of it's waist and blew into it, alerting the other Lizalfos of Uten's presence. She rushed out from the grass and stabbed right through the Lizalfos' torso, killing it instantly. All the other Lizalfos around the camp already had their weapons out and prepared to attack Uten. One of the Lizalfos pulled out it's boomerang and threw it right at Uten. She dodged out of the way from one of the Lizalfos' spear attacks and knocked it to the side with her own spear, then stabbed that Lizalfos dead. The boomerang almost met her head but she ducked right under it, and then threw her spear directly at another spear-wielding Lizalfos, killing it. She rushed through several different attacks from the other Lizalfos and reclaimed her spear. She stood in a fighting stance looking at the other 2 Lizalfos left. The electric horned Lizalfos with the boomerang and the one with the bow were left. She rolled towards a wooden log which was big enough to cover her, which made the Lizalfos with the bow miss it's shot. Uten waved her spear around and encompassed all of the rain that was falling down into a circle. She launched it blindly towards the 2 Lizalfos. All she heard was a splash and then the sounds of both of the Lizalfos' getting closer to her. Their low growl got closer and closer and then she popped out from behind the log to try and stab at both of them. Both of them dodged her attacks and ran right up to her and grabbed her by the arms. She lost a grip on the spear and they pushed her to the floor. The electric Lizalfos' horn started to spark up and then generated a force field of electricity that encapsulated it's immediate surroundings. This shocked the other Lizalfos, causing it to die. But worst of all, it shocked Uten so hard that she saw lights flash before her eyes. The pain permeated throughout her Zora skin, a pain worse than anything she ever suffered from before. The Lizalfos screamed wildly, as if it enjoyed shocking the Zora so thoroughly. Her vision began to blur.

The faint sound of a sword slicing through flesh sounded through the air. And then from what she could make out, the blade of a sword stabbed through the Lizalfos' stomach, causing the electricity field to go away. The Lizalfos fell limp onto Uten, it's dead weight almost crushing her shocked and fried body. The Lizalfos' body was pushed to the side by what looked like human hands and then the hand reached out to her. She couldn't make out who this was supposed to be. It was so blurry, but the hand she knew for certain it was real. She grabbed the hand and was pulled up, barely breathing. Whoever they were, they seemed to be strong, as they carried the Zora in both of their hands with ease. Uten's vision was terrible, but she could make out the dead bodies of even more Lizalfos around the area. They brought her body towards the other party members, who had reconvened back at the horses.

The person spoke with a hearty but feminine voice. "Don't worry, she'll be safe if you give her medical attention." The Woman said to the party members as she propped the Zora up onto one of their horses.

Poump looked at the woman. "What about our fairy?" He asked.

"She is present and accounted for as well." She pulled out a glass bottle which had Tatl inside of it. She opened it up and Tatl flew out.

"Ooh, I'm so glad that's over." Tatl said.

"Who are you?" Poump said to the woman. She was wearing a warrior's outfit, one that accentuated her beauty while also being practical.

The Woman looked at Poump. "My name is Glory." She turned around and walked away. Then she stopped and turned to look at Poump. "Although sometimes people call me The Wonderous Woman." She then prepared to jump and shot into the air, out of sight among the trees above them.

"Wow." Poump said in awe at the intensity of this woman's jump. "Well now, let's get back to business. Tatl, keep on showing us the way."

"You got it boss." Tatl saluted to Poump and then started flying down the pathway and the team kept following her. As they were riding, Tipa rode Uten's horse, with her in tow. They passed by a Stable.

"We'll drop these two off here." Zhago said. He got off of his horse and took the two injured Hylians towards the Stable. A Stablehand saw the two people injured.

"Goodness! What happened to them?!" The Stable Hand said in shock. She called for two more Stable Hands to come and take the two injured Hylians.

"Monsters attacked them." Zhago said.

"Monsters? That's impossible!" The Stable Hand said in reply.

Zhago got onto his horse. "It's possible now. Get any weapons you have around here, lock the Stable down. The monsters are back." Zhago's horse started trotting along while following Tatl. The Stable Hand, as flustered as they were, believed the Sheikah's words.

The party rode their horses across a large wooden bridge. To the left of them was a magnificent waterfall. The bridge was very tranquil, it provided them enough resting time to recuperate. Uten, however, was losing her breath. The rain made her feel somewhat better, but the overwhelming pain of the electricity caused her insane harm from the inside. She coughed up some blood. Tipa heard this and felt terrible, but she knew she had to hold onto the reins for a little bit longer. Zhago and Poump saw Uten coughing out the blood. They tried to stop but Tatl turned around to them. "If you want to save your friend, you must reach Lurelin Village! There is nothing you can do out here to help her!" Tatl said to the party.

Zhago and Poump listened to the fairy and kept on following her across the bridge. They made it to the other side of the bridge which had another road leading through a heavily forested area, but eventually the foliage cleared out and they were galloping across an open plain of grass. Tatl kept on flying and they reached a sandy beach. The light sound of waves crashing onto the land was very soothing, and the rain stopped pouring. The warm lights from a village of some kind were ahead of the crew. And in the water nearby there was a humongous boat of some kind, with blue lights coursing through it's geometry. The lights around this village allowed the party to see plenty of huts made from wood and straws, as well as tall palm trees which were punctuated throughout the village. There was also a pier, and several Hylians were fishing on the side of it. The party got off of their horses and Zhago carried Uten with him. The night sky combined with the waves made for a pleasant area that put the party at ease after what they went through. Poump looked around and then saw someone walking towards them. It was Link!

Link had a surprised look on his face. "Zhago and Uten?! You're alive?!" He exclaimed.

"It's a long story." Poump replied.

"I might be alive, but Uten could be dead in a few minutes." Zhago said as he kept his grip on Uten's limp and dying body. "This fairy told me to bring her here to this village, and that this place will give her the necessary healing for her to survive."

"Come with me." Link said to the party. He walked towards a hut that was positioned next to the waves of the water. "What caused her to be like this?" Link asked.

Poump explained. "We were fighting some Lizalfos in some ruins in the Faron Region, and then we lost Uten. The next time we saw her, she was heavily damaged and also being carried by a warrior woman of some kind." Poump looked to the floor. "Those Lizalfos were a lot bigger than I ever expected them to be. Speaking of Lizalfos, how are we going to deal with the other monsters?"

"The other monsters that have risen because of the Blood Moon?" Link asked. "There's too many of them. We'll have to kill them. Our mission was to escort the three monster colonies on Hyrule onto an island. If we tried to wait to capture more of them, it would be fruitless. We'll deal with the monsters that we have." Link observed Uten's wounds. "She looks like she was electrocuted by an Electric Lizalfos. Those guys are nasty, especially to Zora." Link shuffled his hands through his bags and found a few ingredients within it. He dropped the ingredients into a cooking pot which was in the room. He bottled up the contents that were made from it and started pouring it into Uten's throat, which he forced open. After a few seconds, Uten started moving again. She felt her senses come back.

"Ugh, what happened…" Uten said, feeling woozy.

Zhago, Poump, and Tipa were happy to see her alive and moving again. "Thank you so much, Link." Poump said, shaking Link's hands.

"Anything for my favorite Squad." Link replied. He turned to someone who was inside of the building. "Hey Chessica!"

A female Hylian ran out from a room and into the room the party was in. "Yes, Link?" She replied.

"Get these 4 fine folks some beds. Fluffy beds." Link said. He handed her 160 rupees.

"As they will receive." Chessica replied. She guided the party to their beds and they slept for the night. Link concocted more of the potion that he made to keep Uten safe and periodically gave her a dose every 20 minutes through the whole night.

The party woke up and walked outside of the Inn they were sleeping at. Tatl flew up to Poump. "You're in Lurelin Village now, and today is the day you will set out for sea, so I have fulfilled my duty and I must return to the Great Fairy."

"Will I ever see you again?" Poump asked Tatl.

"You will. But for now, I must return to her. Bye." Tatl flew away into the distance and out of Poump's sight. The party walked around the village a little more. Children were chasing after each other, Fishermen were fishing on the pier, and the large boat in the water created a rather intimidating image. Comparably, this boat looked like it was just slightly smaller than the size of the Divine Beast Vah Naboris. Very slightly. It was still massive and unlike anything the party had ever seen before. Eventually Link walked up to the party, with Zelda walking by his side. Zelda had a look of concern on her face.

"Bringing these monsters to that island is extremely important now than it ever was before. The monsters across the land have returned because of the Blood Moon's rise, and the fact that Ganon has returned makes this even more concerning." Zelda looked out to the sea. "Because of this epidemic, I have raised the reward to 500,000 rupees for each of you." Uten's eyes widened at this statement. "Once you've completed this mission, you will receive your rupees here on the mainland. I cannot stress enough how important it is that you do this mission for us."

"We will finish this job with grace, your honor." Zhago said to Zelda.

"Are you all ready for departure?" Link asked the party.

"Actually wait a moment." Poump said. "Ganondorf is good now. He's not evil anymore."

Zelda looked at Poump with disbelief. "That is impossible! Ganon is pure hatred and evil incarnate! How could he have redeemed himself after such a history?" Link also had a funny feeling about this.

Poump spoke up. "Your daughter, Hilda-"

"Was captured by Ganon, I know." Zelda interrupted.

"No, it was a little bit more complicated than that." Poump said. Zelda almost spoke up until she heard a sound from above. She looked up and saw someone falling.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" A body was falling from the cliffs above, flailing helplessly in the air. It hit the ground violently. "OOOOFFH!" The body was on the ground, dead as it could be. The body seemed to be of a girl, most likely 19 years old, wearing armor. Then very quickly, a fairy hovered over the dead body which brought life back into the previously dead girl. She got up and looked around. "Am I late? Is this the right time?" She looked at Poump. "Oh, there you are!" She pulled out a sheath with a sword in it and handed it to Poump. "You will desperately need this." The girl pulled out an Ocarina which looked strikingly similar to the Ocarina of Time in the party's possession and blew on it. She sang a song that sounded like the Song of Time that Poump sang in the Temple of Time and then she vanished into a spark of light.

Zelda looked at the party. "Do you know her?" She asked them.

Poump observed the sword he was given. "No, I have no idea who she was."

"That armor didn't even look like it's been manufactured in recent times." Zelda said. "It appears as if it was made in very ancient times. The archives back in the Castle showcased an emblem that depicted just a single piece of the Triforce, and that armor had just that. One piece of the Triforce engraved on it. And that sword that she gave you, it must be important." Zelda walked towards the boat with the party. "A lot is happening right now. Get onto the boat, get acquainted with the shipmates, and get this job done before my head explodes from all this madness." Link looked at Zelda with concern. He motioned to the party to get onto the boat. They walked up a ramp that led to a bridge that got them onto the boat. It was very high up. They could see all of Lurelin Village from up above.

Meanwhile, Link was very concerned with Zelda's mental state. "Zelda… it's gonna be alright." Link said to Zelda.

"You always say that." Zelda said, biting back at Link. "Hilda is gone for all I know, Ganon has come back and has also apparently managed to convince these people that he's good now, and the monsters have returned to Hyrule. Not to mention that you told me about that mysterious Mirror in the Arbiter's Grounds which brought someone else who was working with the Yiga. Tell you what Link, I am stressed and I have plenty of good reasons to be."

Link looked to the ground, feeling a bit hurt. He felt like telling her something, but he didn't have the courage to say it. He decided to say something else instead. "Trust me Zelda, once we've brought these monsters to the island, things will get better." Link put his hand on Zelda's shoulder. Zelda was starting to have a tear come out of her eye.

"I don't want this to happen again." She said with a little bit of shakiness in her voice. "It's feeling like the Calamity all over again." Zelda thrusted herself into Link's arms. Link patted her on the back.

"I promise you. The same mistakes won't happen again." Link said to Zelda. "We will surely deliver those monsters properly. You should just make sure you deal with this situation with the dignity that I know you have."

Zelda looked up at Link. "I just want a peaceful Hyrule again. One without all of the bloodbaths and the constant worry of destruction. One where we could live with our daughter together as a happy family."

"And we will get it soon. For now we need patience. We don't want to make the same mistakes we made 110 years ago." Link replied. He pet Zelda's hair to comfort her. She felt content. She stopped the embrace.

"Be careful out there, Link. I want you back in one piece." Zelda said, rubbing her eyes.

"I will. And as for you, keep up that demeanor I know you for." Link said to Zelda. He started walking up the ramp onto the boat. Once he was on the boat, he looked back at Zelda on the pier. She waved at him, and he waved back at her. The boat's engines started moving and it traveled away from the pier out to the sea. It set its course to move to the East Sea. Hyrule became smaller and smaller in the distance. It turned into a silhouette, and then vanished in the horizon.

Chapter 27: Visiting Windfall Island

The party situated themselves on the boat. The boat had plenty of rooms for the crew to sleep in. Link walked up to the side of the boat and looked into the distant sea with concern on his face. There was no sign of land in sight around the whole boat, just the endless blue ocean around them. After situating his belongings in his cabin, Poump walked out to the main deck and saw a Goron playing some cards with a Female Rito. The Goron noticed Poump. "Hey brother! Wanna play a game with us?" The Goron asked.

"It's lots of fun." The Rito added.

"I'll think about it." Poump replied.

"Take your time bro, being out at sea is something a lot of us need to be accustomed to." The Goron said.

Poump looked at the ocean. "The thing is, I've already been out at sea before. It's been a long time." He walked towards the railing of the boat and stood next to Link, who was looking out at the sea.

"Hey there kid." Link said when he felt Poump's presence. "How long has it been?"

"Wha?" Poump was confused by the question.

"How long has it been since you've been with your folks? On Windfall Island." Link replied. He looked at Poump in order to read his face.

"Oh yeah." Poump replied. "The last time I was on Windfall Island I was 7 years old. When the news came around that the Calamity in Hyrule was gone, my parents sent me to Hyrule in order to get a new life for myself. It's a good thing my friends also came along."

"That sounds great. Do you remember what it was like living on Windfall Island?" Link asked.

"I only remember small bits and pieces. It's kind of a blur." Poump said.

Link looked at Poump understandably. "I've been there too, Poump." Link then looked out to the ocean with a look of worry on his face. Poump decided to step away from Link and acquaint himself with the other crew members on the boat. He noticed that besides the Goron and the Rito, a Zora and a Gerudo joined in the card game they were playing. Poump decided to sit down with them.

"Mind if I join?" Poump said as he sat down to play.

"Sure thing!" The Goron said. The Gerudo took some of the cards and dealt them out to Poump. He picked up 7 cards and read the back of them.

"Pokemon?" Poump said to himself.

"Yeah! Never played Pokemon before?" The Goron said.

"I've heard of it, just never took the time to play it before." Poump replied to the Goron.

"Tell you what boyo, I'll explain the rules to you!" The Goron started explaining the rules to Poump. Poump started getting a hang of the rules and started playing. About 2 hours passed by, but him and the others were having tons of fun playing the game with each other. The Gerudo would shuffle the cards out of a deck of about 170 cards after every round was done. A standard round of Pokemon took about 25 minutes to play completely. After who knows how many rounds they were playing, Poump started to feel a lot more comfortable with the crewmates. Poump also started hating the Goron a lot less. Goggodu from Castle Town gave him a sour feeling around a lot of Gorons, but seeing how nice this Goron was made him think differently about Gorons, just a little bit.

Uten was in her cabin, slurping away at the last of the potions that Link gave her. The potions helped her tremendously, but she could still feel the small but painful shock of electricity permeate through her body every now and then.

Zhago decided to explore the ship a little bit. He saw a small Hylian wearing a blue pirate's cap and a striped shirt walk inside of a door. Zhago followed them, sneaking behind them. He brought out his Eye of Truth and examined the Hylian. They didn't change at all. He kept following them, as he had a suspicious feeling about them. The shipmate walked into another room and Zhago followed behind. He found himself in a room that was lined up with cages stretching from one end of the boat to the next. This gave Zhago a unique perspective on how big this boat was, as the cages seemed to be lined out so far that you could just barely see the other end of the boat. Zhago looked inside of the cages and saw the monsters inside of them. Bokoblins, Lizalfos, and Moblins. There were also 2 Lynels, who were separated from each other. The small Hylian picked up a few buckets and tossed some pieces of meat inside of each of the cages. He also tossed some fruits and vegetables inside of the cages as well, which surprised Zhago as he only knew of these monsters as carnivorous types. The small Hylian turned around and flinched a little bit when he noticed Zhago.

"How long have you been following me?" The Hylian asked.

"A minute." Zhago said. "I just came in here to admire the majesty of these…" Zhago noticed a Bokoblin wolf down on some meat, and then immediately picked its nose. "Divine beings."

"As terrible as they look, they do have lives. We're just not accustomed to them." The Hylian said. "My name is Niko by the way."

"And I'm Zhago." Zhago replied.

"Pleased to meet you, mighty Sheikah Warrior." Niko said. He continued throwing the food into the monster's cages. "These monsters don't attack people when they're well fed. They only ever kill for food. I'm pretty sure you know what it was like in the days of the Calamity. The monsters were always attacking people because of how hungry they were. They made crude weaponry that could hunt for animals and any ill sighted adventurer who wasn't equipped enough to deal with them. Then Link came along and thinned their numbers. The Blood Moon revived any and every monster back to life, which made fighting them feel superfluous. However, many people in Hyrule claim that Link enjoyed the rise of the Blood Moon, as it allowed him to slaughter more monsters for fun. Some Hyruleans told me that they could hear Link's battle cries in the night, followed by the sound of a monster losing it's life. They even told me they could sometimes hear him laughing." Niko looked up at one of the Lynels in the cage. "He even told me about how much fun he had fighting these Lynels. I don't know any person on the continent that would be mad enough to fight and kill these Lynels just for fun. Some say he killed them for their weapons, others told me he killed them for the thrill of it. I'd like to believe it's a little bit of both." Niko looked up at Zhago, who was somehow snoring while standing up. Niko kept on feeding the monsters in their cages.

Zhaga all of a sudden woke up. "Keep talking."

"Oh." Niko said when he heard Zhago's sudden voice. "Well, once the Blood Moon went away, the monsters weren't able to be brought back to life. After Link killed a majority of them, Zelda and he realized they needed to get the monsters away from Hyrule, instead of creating a mass extinction. Link sent the monsters to three safe havens across Hyrule where no Hyrulean would even think to look. You dealt with the three of them already, which leads us to the final part of Zelda's mission, bringing the monsters to the island. We're doing that right now." Niko noticed Zhago starting to fall asleep a little bit. "Do I talk too much? A lot of people say I talk too much."

"No no. You're alright." Zhago replied. He didn't want to hurt Niko's feelings.

"I think I should make a picture show or something like that. To make it more interesting for young people. I'd call it: Niko's Picture Show."

"That sounds great." Zhago said.

"Thanks." Niko kept on feeding the monsters for the next few minutes and then a voice came from some speakers on the walls of the room.

"Attention all crew members, attention to all crew members. This is Captain Alfonzo speaking, we're going to dock at Windfall Island in a couple minutes." The speakers stopped speaking and then Niko finished his feeding session. Zhago walked out of the cage room and then saw Niko zip right by him up the stairs.

Niko arrived at the main deck and ran up to the crew members playing Pokemon. "We're docking into Windfall Island right now! This will be the last time you'll be able to see anyone besides us on the boat for the next few days." Niko said. Poump got up from the table where everyone was playing and arrived at the railing. He saw Windfall Island. It was a little different from what he remembered, but it had been 10 years since he'd been here, so it was surely going to be a little bit different from how he remembered it.

The boat docked at a large pier that went on the island, and then a ramp lowered down onto the pier allowing the crew members access to the pier. The party walked onto the pier with Link walking with them. A bunch of other smaller boats were also docked next to the pier. Some of the boats had some people on them, just chilling out. There were also a few boats off the coast. The team got a good look at the island. It was a pretty big island which spanned across their horizon lines, with no sign of the Island ending at either side. The Island was dotted with many buildings and trees, and at the very top of the Island's tall mountain was a magnificent windmill, with a stone trail climbing up towards the windmill. Link looked at the others. "I have some business to attend to. Feel free to do anything you guys want, although I do recommend you should check out the armorer's shop and ask for rubber armor so that Uten can wear it."

"When will we know when we have to leave?" Zhago asked.

Link looked behind the party back at the ship's ramp. "Hey Alfonzo!" He yelled.

"What is it boss?" A buff Hylian replied.

"We will leave this island by sundown!" Link yelled.

"Got it!" Alfonzo replied with a thumbs up.

Link looked at the other party members. "Do whatever you want until the nighttime falls. We will continue our voyage at that time. Anyways, I'll deal with my business right now and then we'll get on our way."

"Alrighty then." Poump replied. The party nodded in agreement. Link walked off of the pier and in the direction of the residential district. There was a handy map displayed on the pier which showed the way around the island. The map also had a population count on it. 'Population: 1,638'. The party pinpointed the location of the armorer's shop and headed in its direction. As they walked to the armorer's shop, they saw a bunch of children chasing after a pig. Tipa wanted to chase the pig but Uten held her back. They paid no mind to them and kept on walking. The streets of the town started to become more familiar to Poump. Some of the citizens of the town were sitting on little porches that overlooked the stone road that the party was walking on, and down below them there were herds of cats walking across the streets. A few other citizens were also pulling at some wagons which had some produce. Uten looked around, still feeling a bit of electric shock inside of her system.

"So many Hylians living out here." Uten said.

"Yep, for a lot of people, me included, this was home and it was the only home we knew for a long time." Poump said. "It's been such a long time since I've been here." The party made it to a shop with a sign out front that said 'ARMOR PARADISE'. "Here we are." Poump said, and they all walked inside.

A Hylian woman was behind the counter, banging her hammer at different slabs of metal. She looked up and her eyes widened once she saw Poump. "Poump?! Little Poump?! Is that you?!" She said.

"Yes, it's me… uhhh..." Poump tried remembering her name.

"The name's Hamei." She took her gloves off. "I understand you not remembering my name, it's been a very long time since you were sent to Knight School at Hyrule. Speaking of that, how's it been when you were at Hyrule? How's Groose and the Gang?"

"They're doing fantastically." Poump said. He had slight concern in his voice knowing that Groose and his friends were still in Hyrule, a Hyrule with resurrected monsters and the Yiga Clan still being active. "Knight Academy has been a great experience, I actually just graduated from it about a month ago."

"Ahh that's great!" Hamei said. "Say, your own folks are upstairs. Maybe they can say hi-" As Hamei said that, two Hylians walked down a spiral staircase that was behind the counter, and then they took a good look at Poump.

"Poump!" The two Hylians said. They looked like they were in their 40s. They ran right through a door through the counter and started hugging Poump out. "It's been such a long time!"

"Parents?" Zhago said to Poump.

"Precisely!" One of the Hylians said. They stopped hugging Poump. "What brings you here to Windfall Island?"

"I'm on a mission that's been appointed to me by Queen Zelda of Hyrule." Poump replied. "She's put her trust in me and my friends here." Poump pointed out Zhago, Uten, and Tipa.

"That's excellent, although how could we be sure that Zelda sent all of you and that you just decided to come here on your own?" Poump's Mom said.

"We have this." Poump pulled out his Sheikah Slate.

Poump's Dad looked at it for a bit. "That looks like a pretty expensive toy. Still in your childhood I see?"

Poump took a brief amount of offense from it, but he knew his parents were like this. "This is an extremely advanced device called a Sheikah Slate." Poump turned on the camera gallery and scrolled through some of the pictures he took. "Take a look."

Poump's parents looked at the images. "Some of those are pretty scary looking, especially that dead looking person right there." They pointed at the picture of the Redead.

"That's because it IS dead." Poump replied.

"I'll say this tech is pretty impressive but what else do you have that could prove you're working with the Queen?" Poump's Dad said.

"Me." Zhago said. "I'm a Sheikah Warrior appointed by the Royal Family to protect them from crisis. I've killed countless enemies of the Queen, and Poump has as well."

The parents looked a bit shocked. "Were you hurt Poump?" Poump's Mother said.

"Mom, it's knight business. Of course I was hurt a little bit." Poump said.

"More like a lot." Uten added. "But don't worry, we've healed him up good enough for each altercation, and he's here in one piece."

The parents seemed a bit horrified by the prospect of their child being in battle, but they were able to accept the idea since they did send him to Hyrule for the sake of the Knight Academy. "I've been on plenty of adventures." Poump said. "It's been a lot to deal with."

"Well I suppose going on adventures runs in the family." Poump's Mother said. "Your brother Bomp has been adventuring across Windfall Island's Wildlands for quite a bit. We expect to see him tonight. We'll be eating at the Lumpy Pumpkin."

"The Lumpy Pumpkin?!" Poump said with excitement.

"Yes! The owners will be happy to see you again after all this time!" Poump's Father said. "And Bomp will be especially happy to see you again!"

"Ah yes! That's great!" Poump said, feeling ecstatic. "You guys wanna stay for dinner at the Lumpy Pumpkin?" Poump said to the others.

"We can stay but we should ask the other crew members about staying." Zhago said.

"Especially Link." Uten said.

"Did you say Link?!" Poump's parents said in unison.

"Yeah."

"You've been adventuring with the fabled Hero known as Link this whole time son?" Poump's Dad said to Poump.

"More like for a few weeks." Poump replied.

"That's incredible!" Poump's Father said.

Uten coughed into her arm a little bit. A small electric surge overcame her body. Hamei the Armorer observed this in shock. "Whoa!" She exclaimed.

"Actually, Link told us to get some Rubber Armor from here." Poump said. "It's for her."

"Step right back here. I will fit you up with some Rubber Armor." Hamei said to Uten. "This will take a while, so come back later." Hamei said as she guided Uten into a backroom.

"Well sonny boy, you can go off and do whatever you want right now." Poump's Father said.

"We're glad to see you safe again." Poump's Mother added. "Maybe we will see each other at the Lumpy Pumpkin!"

"I'll make an effort to join you all." Poump replied. He hugged his parents goodbye and walked back out to the stone streets of Windfall Island's marketplace. Zhago and Tipa followed him around. Poump took advantage of the time in the day they had and explored the settlement a lot more.

"Is it true that about 4,500 Hylians lived on this Island?" Zhago asked at one point.

"Yeah, and I was one of them." Poump said.

"No wonder it was referred to as the Great Hylian Migration." Zhago said. "Was it overcrowded here?"

"Not that I would remember. It's kind of a haze." Poump replied. They eventually walked up a road that brought them to a gate and behind the gate was an elaborate mansion. A sign in front of the gate read 'Payne Family Estate'. "It's crazy to think that so many people I met in Hyrule also came from here."

"Aghanim also came from this island." Zhago said.

Poump thought about the Yiga Hylian that Zhago killed that one time. "Would that mean that…" Poump didn't want to finish his sentence, and Zhago knew what he was going to say. He patted Poump on the back and they kept on walking. Tipa also patted Poump on the back. They walked down the stone road back to the coast of the island, which they were able to see since they were at an elevated part of the settlement. The settlement smelled nice, as many of the citizens had farms in their backyards. It actually reminded Poump of Hateno Village. The only difference is that Windfall Island's settlement was a lot more industrialized. They eventually made it to the coast of the island and took in the breeze of the sea. Poump, Zhago and Tipa turned around because they heard some yelling coming from inside of one of the houses.

"Why are you here?! I told you not to come back?!" A Woman's voice was yelling from inside of the house. The window was open so everyone nearby could hear.

They continued listening to the house but didn't get too close so that they could be seen. They heard a faint voice respond. "I just wanted to see him." The voice said.

As the three of them were eavesdropping on the conversation, they heard a young voice come from behind them. "Who are you people?" The young voice said. They turned around and saw a 7 year old boy looking at them. He had a stick in one of his hands.

"We're pirates." Poump responded. "Rawr."

"Haha, that's funny! I like playing pirates as well!" The boy replied. He raised his stick in the air.

"How does one play pirates?" Poump asked.

"You have to chase the pig! And then you grab the pig! Then you throw it into the water and watch it swim back to you! Then you allow the pig a chance to rest and then you chase it again after it's done resting!" The child said. Tipa liked the idea of this game.

"That sounds like a lot of fun." Poump replied.

"It is!" The kid said. "Say, why are you next to my mom's house?"

"Because we… wait what?" Poump said.

"Actually, I know why. It's because she's usually not this angry. I tried going back inside and I saw her talking to some guy in green clothes." The child responded.

"What's your name, child? My name is Poump."

"I am Pep!" The child responded.

As the child said that, the door to the house opened up. A Woman was slapping someone out of the house. That someone was Link. "I never wanted to see you again! Get your ass out of my house!" She slapped Link in the face and it caused him to lose his balance as he exited the doorway.

"YAH!" Link fell on his back. He got back up and looked at the woman in the house.

"Don't you ever see me again, and keep Pep out of your business, you hear me?!" The Woman furiously slammed the door shut. Link collected himself and walked to the coast. He noticed Poump and Zhago but didn't feel like speaking to them. Link walked along the beach of the island. Pep excitedly ran towards Link. The woman inside of the house noticed Pep running towards Link, so she opened the door up and yelled to Pep. "Pep! Get back in here! He would be a bad influence on you!" Pep looked at Link and then back at his mother. He walked with somberness to his house and then the woman closed the door once Pep was inside.

"Did… did I just see that?" Poump said.

"I did too." Zhago replied.

"Does this mean that… Pep is Link's son?" Poump said.

Tipa looked at Poump with a serious face and nodded her head.

"Do you want me to go talk to him?" Zhago said to Poump.

"Go ahead." Poump said. A lot of the respect he gained for Link went away at this revelation, although Poump did know that there was a lot more to this than what he saw, so he understandably wanted to give Link a chance to redeem himself. "I'll meet up with my family. The sun is starting to go down. Oh and by the way, ask Link if we can stay a little bit longer here on Windfall Island."

"Got it, I'll tell him that." Zhago replied. Zhago ran up to Link and caught up with him.

"You're going to ask me about that woman, aren't you?" Link said to Zhago.

"Yes, that is why I decided to speak to you." Zhago replied. "So, that child Pep. He's your son, correct?"

"Yes. He is." Link replied dryly. He kicked at the sand a little bit. Zhago couldn't help but shake the feeling that he just noticed Link's shadow move out of sync. Zhago tried to find something to calm Link down.

"Well, I learned that my son is still alive just a few days ago." Zhago said.

Link looked at Zhago. "Your son? He's alive? What was his name… Pokh?"

"Yes, Pokh is alive. I found him and brought him back to Kakariko Village safe and sound."

"That's nice I suppose." Link said with a bit of dismissiveness.

Zhago searched his thoughts for something else to say. "You know Link, Poump says he wants to stay on Windfall Island a little longer. Is it possible that we could stay?"

"For what reason?" Link asked.

"Poump met his family again, and they said that they wanted to eat at the Lumpy Pumpkin, which is a restaurant somewhere on this island. They want to eat there for dinner."

"Hmm." Link thought to himself.

"The dinner could be relaxing, and enough to get this whole debacle off of your mind. All we need is just a few more hours on Windfall Island and then we will be able to sail off to the sea once more once it's done." Zhago said.

"That's a good idea actually. I'll tell the rest of the crew mates to join us in the Lumpy Pumpkin for dinner then." Link replied. Link started walking down the beach back towards the big boat.

"Oh yeah, one more question." Zhago said.

Link stopped and turned around to look at Zhago. "What is it?"

"Some say that you enjoyed killing the monsters. During the time of the Calamity." Zhago said. "Why did you enjoy killing them so much?"

Link looked at the boat and then back at Zhago. "I found it to be exhilarating. One time, I had a very weird dream that involved Zelda and a bunch of monsters. After that dream… killing them was just a lot easier." A red glint started appearing in Link's eyes. "To hear the monsters lose their life from their very own vocal cords. Watching their blood spill onto the floor… I'll admit it, I almost drank it." The red glint faded away just a little bit. "I could never get enough of finding a band of monsters and slaying them, watching their insides fall to the floor." Link touched his head, as if he had a major headache. He looked back at Zhago, who was preparing to pull his sword out. "You don't need to pull that out." Link said to Zhago.

Zhago looked at Link's eyes. The red glint disappeared in his eyes and was replaced by blue eyes. Zhago put his hand off of his sword and got out of his battle stance.

"I'll go get the other crew members. Meet up with Poump and the others." Link walked back to the boat with more of a pep in his step.

One hour later, Poump and the party arrived at a building on Windfall Island that was built to look like a large pumpkin. "Where's Link? You said he'd be here." Poump said to Zhago.

"There's a lot of shipmates on that boat. He's probably gathering all of them up right now." Zhago replied. As he said that, they turned around and saw Link walking towards them with the Gerudo, the Rito, the Gerudo, and the Zora behind him, as well as Niko and Alfonzo.

"The party is present and accounted for." Link said. He clapped into the air. "May we feast, in honor of the Monster Squad." Link and the party all walked into the pumpkin shaped building. A sign out front read 'THE LUMPY PUMPKIN'.

They walked inside to the warm aroma of pumpkin soup. The center of the restaurant had a large and intricate chandelier, which seemed to be decorated with rupees on it. Someone behind a counter greeted the team, rather unenthusiastically. "Welcome to the Lumpy Pumpkin. My name is Peatrice. How many are in your party?" She said, as she leaned her head into her arm with a surprising amount of laziness.

Link brought up his fingers. "15 please." Link said as he showed his ten fingers and then quickly and awkwardly showcased just five fingers up. "4 more people will join us soon."

Peatrice found this amusing. "Heehee. Right this way." She guided the party to a table in the center of the room which had 15 seats. "Make yourself at home." All of the party members settled down on their seats. The Goron in the group didn't want to sit down on the chair, so he moved it out of the way and sat on the ground. He was big enough to see the top of the table. Link was at the side of the table opposite to the Monster Squad. Uten was wearing her Rubber Armor now. As uncomfy as it sounds, it made Uten feel much better. The electricity shocks were no more to her, so she sat in comfort. Poump decided to whisper towards Zhago.

"Is it just me, or Link feeling more chipper than he normally is?" Poump said to Zhago.

"It's not just you. I can see it too." Zhago said.

"Maybe he's like this because he's happy to be here." Uten added. Tipa looked around the room and saw all of the other tables with their food ready. She got up but then Uten grabbed her back down. "No Tipa. We can't steal other people's food. Not here." Tipa disgruntledly crossed her arms.

Eventually a waiter arrived at their table. "What do you wish for?" The waiter said in a dumpy voice.

The party looked over the menus and they all ordered their food, with drinks as well. They had the rupees for a lot of food. The order totalled out to 4,300 rupees, which was practically nothing to them now. They would have ordered more food, but they didn't want to overstuff themselves, as this order was already going to do that anyways.

"Very well then." The waiter said. "Your food will arrive momentarily." The waiter walked away. Poump looked up to the entrance and saw his mom and dad walk in with Hamei, and behind the three of them was an insanely buff Hylian who was only a few years older than Poump.

"Bomp?!" Poump said when his parents arrived at the table with the other two. They seated themselves next to Poump.

"Poump. It has been such a long time without you bro." The buff Hylian got off of his chair and hugged Poump right off of Poump's chair. He let go of him and set him back down. "So, how's it been?"

"It's been one wild ride in Hyrule." Poump said to Bomp. "How about you?"

"Oh, just a little farming, a little live stock watch. Then I take a few hikes in the wildlands with some people and then we throw back a few." Bomp said this with a deep voice.

"Is that your older brother?" Uten said to Poump.

"Yep, that's him." Poump replied.

"Ahh, hello there Friends of Poump." Bomp said to Zhago and Uten. Bomp looked across the table. "And you're even dining with Link, the Hero of Hyrule. This is one heck of a night." Bomp said with a rough softness to his voice. The pure confidence that radiated from his bulky frame made the whole table feel happy. Alfonzo across the table, who was also a very buff guy, nodded in approval to Bomp's strength, and Bomp nodded back.

"Are you taking good care of my claymore?" Hamei said to Bomp.

"Ah heck yeah." Bomp replied.

"You use claymores?" Link said from the other side of the table. Link saluted to Bomp. "Respect, fellow claymore warrior."

Bomp saluted back. "Respect to you too, Link, Hero of Hyrule." The drinks arrived at the table for everyone, including the parents, Bomp, and Hamei. Poump took his glass and then raised it into the air.

"To Link, for giving us this wonderful occasion!" Poump said, with his glass raised in the air.

Everyone else took their glasses up into the air. "To Link!" They all said in unison. Except for Tipa, who just raised her glass in the air since everyone else was doing it.

Link took his glass into the air and raised it to Poump. "To Poump, for being a great fighter and a great leader."

Everyone else raised their glasses. "To Poump!" They all said. Link's compliment gave Poump a fuzzy feeling inside of himself. Despite what he saw earlier today, he knew that Link was in actuality a really nice guy. He wanted to ask him about the Woman and Pep, but he decided he should save it for later.

The food arrived at the table shortly. Pumpkin soup, pumpkin pie, cooked fish, omelettes, meat patties, and ribs. There was a lot of food to go around, so the whole table ate right up.

After some minutes of eating, Bomp decided to say something. "Let's play a game." Bomp said.

"What should we play?" Poump asked.

"Never have I ever." Bomp said.

"Oh goddess." Poump said to himself.

"In case if you haven't played Never have I ever before, here's how you play. One person will say 'Never have I ever' and then they say something. For example: Never have I ever dove underwater for more than 2 minutes. Then, the person who has done this activity, which in this case is diving underwater for more than 2 minutes, will take a swig of a drink."

"This is a drinking game made for alcoholic beverages." Poump said. "Not everyone here has that in their possession."

"That's fine. You don't need alcohol to play this game." Bomp replied. "You just need to drink whatever you have. Oh, and by the way, we'll break the rules a bit. Normally the person saying 'Never have I ever' has never done the thing they were talking about, but for this game, you can say whatever you actually HAVE done before. Alright, who's first?"

Alfonzo raised his hand. "I'll go first." He said with his deep sailor voice. "Never have I ever broken a bone." Everyone around the table took a drink. "Huh, looks like all of us have been on dangerous occasions."

"You betcha!" Hamei said, looking slightly buzzed.

"We'll go counter clockwise." Bomp said.

"Looks like it's my turn now." Niko said. "Never have I ever fired an arrow from a bow." Most of the people took a drink around the table, except for the two Zoras, the Goron, and Tipa.

"Never have I ever rolled down a mountain." The Goron said. Link was the only person that drank up. "Hauh." The Goron laughed dumbly.

The Gerudo's turn was next. "Never have I ever made love with someone from the same gender." The Gerudo said. Uten and Link drank up.

"I thought you were straight!" Uten said to Link.

"I'm bisexual." Link replied dryly.

"Who did you do it with?" Uten asked.

Link leaned across the table very clumsily and whispered to Uten. "Prince Sidon." He said. Uten covered her mouth in shock.

Eventually the table reached Bomp's turn. "Never have I ever befriended an animal that wasn't a horse, a dog, or a cat." Bomp said. Link drank up. "What animals did you befriend?"

Link counted with his fingers. "A few deers, and a bear." Link said.

"That's pretty cool." Bomp said.

It was Poump's turn now. "Never have I ever…" Poump didn't know what to say. He almost wanted to say 'Never have I ever ended the life of someone else', but he decided to change the subject. "Never have I ever cross dressed." Link took a swig, as well as Bomp.

"Bomp?!" Hamei exclaimed. "I would never take you as the type of person to cross dress!"

"It was an experiment." Bomp replied. "The clothes fit me pretty well though."

"How cute." Hamei said.

It was now Uten's turn. "Never have I ever been struck by an arrow in combat." Almost everyone drank up, except for Bomp.

"Never have I ever had a near death experience." Zhago said. Everyone drank up. Poump took an extra swig. The waiter refilled their drinks.

"Meat." Tipa said. Everyone looked at her and then took a drink.

The table finally ended at Link. "Never have I ever ridden a horse." Link said. Almost everyone around the table drank up, except for the Goron, Hamei, Bomp, and Poump's parents.

Poump looked at them with a look of concern. "Why haven't you all ridden a horse before?" Poump asked them.

"There are no horses here on Windfall Island." Bomp replied. "I wish there were though."

"Well there are plenty of horses on Hyrule." Poump said. "Someday I'll be able to teach all of you how to ride a horse. It can be a family gathering thing." He said.

"That sounds wonderful." Poump's Mother said.

Alfonzo patted Link on the back. "Look at you! You drank at every question, and you're drinking Islander Ail. The strongest type of alcohol available here!"

"I'm just a very durable drinker." Link said, right before he slammed his face into the table. Alfonzo looked at him a little more.

"He's knocked out cold from all those drinks." Alfonzo said.

"Well snap." Poump said. Alfonzo shook Link a little bit and then he got right back up.

"Whoo. What did I miss?" Link asked.

"Not much." Alfonzo said.

"Hahaaha!" The whole table laughed. After an hour of feasting, the party went out into the cold night air of Windfall Island and they made it back to the boat.

"Do come by and see us again!" Poump's Mother said as she was waving to Poump.

"Don't worry, I will make sure I stop by once I get the chance." Poump said.

As Poump was saying goodbye to his folks, Zhago noticed a small person run onto the ramp and into the ship. He dismissed this. Poump and the others all got onto the boat. "See you again bro!" Bomp said to Poump.

"You bet we will!" Poump replied. The boat's ramp got onto the boat and shortly after, the boat started moving out of the dock, and out to the dark sea which was only illuminated by the moon in the sky. The party got into their cabins and they slept for the rest of the night.

Chapter 28: The Monster Island

Poump awoke in a strange land billowed in darkness. Black squares floated into the air, and a dark palace with red energy coursing through itself stood in the distance. He noticed that his friends were there as well. Eventually, a few black squares formed into a dark figure, who Poump recognized as Veerus.

Veerus started speaking with their mask on. Their voice must have been amplified by the suit they were wearing. "Hello, beings of Hyrule." Veerus said. "I am speaking to you through your mind. The place that you are in right now is known as the Twilight Realm. It is my home. I take it you have met Ganondorf before. I saw you on the Great Plateau, assisting that meddlesome princess. I want to kill Ganondorf for many reasons. Many ages ago, he manipulated a mentally ill Twili named Zant. Ganondorf forced Zant to do many terrible things, not only to the people of the Twilight Realm, but also to the people of Hyrule. As a result, the Hero of that time period had to end Zant's life, with the assistance of my ancestor."

Poump opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

"You cannot speak until I am finished." Veerus said. "That same Ganondorf, sometimes referred to as Ganon, has ravaged Hyrule throughout the ages. Never tiring at his one goal of bringing chaos to Hyrule. I want to kill Ganondorf for all he's done to Hyrule, as well as put an end to something else. You've met Ghirahim before. We've been working together to find ways to bring me here in order to assist him with his conquest to be reunited with Demise. His logic was to generate chaos so that way Demise would find his way to him. I worked my way into the top, found my way here, and now I pretend like I am an ally of Ghirahim's. I am mostly using him as a means to an end. The being known as Demise put a curse onto the Goddess' Land, which subjects it to an endless cycle of torment. Ganondorf would always be there to carry out whatever the curse wanted him to do. The Goddesses also foolishly gave the Triforce of Power to Ganondorf. I suppose you have heard of the Triforce before. The other two Triforce pieces belong to the Queen that you know as Zelda, and the Hero known as Link. It is said that when all three pieces of the triforce are united, you can touch it to make your wish come true. I know that Demise and Ghirahim will want to kill the three wielders of the Triforce, so when they do, I will take advantage of the opportunity and use the United Triforce in order to wish for a world in which Demise's curse doesn't exist, as well as the Royal Family, for as long as they live, Demise's curse will continue." Veerus paced back and forth and then stopped. "I should properly introduce myself." Veerus pulled off their helmet to reveal a somewhat tall and slender head, colored with a light blue color, and orange hair. They also seemed to be feminine. "My name is Midna the 17th. And I am here to put an end to the endless conflict that Hyrule is tormented with. You may speak now." Midna the 17th put her hand forward and then pulled at the air. The party felt their vocal cords return.

"Why would the Royal Family be involved in this?" Zhago said. "All they ever did was well intentioned."

Midna the 17th looked at Zhago with a surprised expression. "This is surprising coming from a Sheikah Warrior like yourself. Do you know what the Royal Family did to your kind back then?"

Zhago shook his head. "Whatever they did, that was in the past."

"Also, if you want to destroy the Royal Family, wouldn't that mean you would need to kill Hilda as well?" Poump said.

"Yes. That is the means to my end. I wish to create a new world, one where Demise's curse doesn't exist. One where the Royal Family's messy history wouldn't exist. It says a lot when you, Sheikah Warrior, don't even know of their wrongdoings." Midna the 17th looked at her helmet. "This helmet's design is based on what Zant's helmet looked like. It works as a reminder to tell me that the past is full of mistakes. Repeated mistakes. The saying known as 'History repeats itself' must die." Midna looked up at them. "Would you wish to join my conquest?"

"No." Poump said.

Midna the 17th had a disgruntled face. "You never learn." She snapped her fingers, and then the area around them blurred away. It was the next morning, and they were in their cabins on the boat once again.

The party members went about their own duties on the boat at their own pace. Poump decided to look at this sword that was given to him by the Armored Girl. He pulled it out of the sheath and discovered it was a sword glowing in power. He took out his Sheikah Slate and scanned the sword. 'MAGIC SWORD: This sword was made from silver arrows. It possesses half of the energy of the Master Sword, but it can still do great damage. If you are feeling at your best health, you may even fire a laser from this sword." Poump really liked the idea of having a sword that could shoot lasers, so he took it with him outside to the main deck. He pointed in the air and noticed a beam of energy fly into the sky. Link noticed this, because he was on the main deck.

"Is that the sword that you were given by that armored girl?" Link said.

"Yes! And it can also shoot lasers!" Poump replied.

Link looked up into the sky and saw the energy beam disappear in mid-air. "Impressive."

Poump sheathed the Magic Sword. "Say, Link, I wanted to talk to you about that kid named Pep back on Windfall Island."

"Okay then, let's talk about it." Link went to a table on the main deck and sat down with Poump. "Hit me."

"What was the story behind that woman?" Poump asked.

"Well, when I was sailing across the seas in search of an island where the monsters could live, I ended up stopping by Windfall Island for a rest break. As I was resting on Windfall Island, that woman saw me looking out at the sea and decided she wanted to hang out with me. We spent a week together. She was very nice. Her name is Efiath. She really liked me for my looks, and said I was a lot more handsome than anyone on Windfall Island. She told me that she wanted to raise a child. I told her that I couldn't live on Windfall Island, as I had duties to work on in Hyrule. She then consoled me, saying that she would be happy with raising a child all by herself. After a few hours of thinking about it, we eventually went ham. After that day, I had to say goodbye to her, and she said to never return."

"Why doesn't she want to see you again?" Poump asked.

"Because I told her about how I am the Hero of Hyrule, a Knight to the Queen, and a bunch of other titles that were very important. She said that she didn't want her child to be involved with the busy lifestyle that I had, and that if I ever returned, I would be a bad influence on the kid. All I ever wanted to do was see him again."

Poump chuckled a little bit. "Both you and Zelda kept secrets from each other. She kept Hilda a secret to you, and you kept Pep a secret from her."

"I've been meaning to tell her about it, but I don't know how she would react, so I think it's best I keep it a secret from her." Link said.

"Well, maybe you can-" Poump was interrupted by some commotion. The door to the main deck opened up and a pig ran across the main deck.

"Get back here!" A child ran out of the door and chased after the pig. The kid caught up to the pig and held it down. He looked up at Link and Poump.

"Pep?!" Link said to the child.

"That's me!" Pep replied.

The Rito landed next to Pep and picked him up. "Looks like we have a stowaway." Pep was struggling to get out of the Rito's feathers and then he bit her wing. "AUGH!" She exclaimed at her wing being bit, and she dropped Pep. Pep backed away from the Rito with the pig in his hands. He spit out a few feathers. "We should toss this scamp overboard!" The Rito said.

"No, we shouldn't." Link said. Amidst this commotion, more of the shipmates looked at the child. Uten made a notice of the pig.

"We should cook that pig up for food." Uten said.

"No! Don't kill it!" Pep said as he hugged the pig a lot more.

"Oink." The pig said.

"We don't need to kill this pig Uten." Link said. "We have plenty of food on this boat." Link kneeled down to Pep. "Would you like to take a walk with me?"

Pep hugged the Pig and looked at Link's face. "Momma yelled at you yesterday."

Link had a poker face. "Yeah, I know." Link replied.

"But you look really funny. Hold my pig." Pep gave Link the pig. "Let's go away from these weirdos." Pep said in reference to the other ship mates.

"Oh. Okay then. Just remember though, these guys aren't weirdos, they are our friends." Link said to Pep in reference to the ship mates. Link and Pep walked off of the main deck and onto the Captain's wheel where Alfonzo was. Poump and the gang looked at each other.

"Well that just happened." Uten said.

"Your Rubber Armor looks neat by the way." Poump said.

"Ah thanks." Uten replied.

Hours passed on the boat. Not a single landmass was in sight, with the exception of only 2 lonely rocks on the sea. Other than those rocks, there was not even the silhouette of an island in sight. Poump and the gang played with the Pokemon cards and it made the time pass by a lot more. Eventually Link joined in their game, which he also had Pep join in as well. Link taught Pep about how to play the game. Eventually, Link saw a card that had a squid monster on it and then he remembered something.

"Oh crap." He said. Everyone looked at him.

"What's happening? Got a bad deck?" The Gerudo said to Link.

"No, I just remembered something." Link replied.

"What is it?" Uten asked.

Link looked around the table. "When the Blood Moon rose into the sky a few nights ago, the monsters across Hyrule were revived. When I was out at sea, a large squid monster which my crew named the 'Big Octo' attacked the ship. We were able to kill it, and since then the waters around it's area have been calm. But, with the Blood Moon's occurence, that could mean the Big Octo could theoretically be back in it's waters again."

"How would we be able to defeat it?" Zhago asked.

"When I first faced it, I used a boomerang to defeat it. It has 6 eyes on its surface, and it tries to pull in any boat that passes by it by creating a water current that pulls a boat closer to it. Using the advantage of it's circular water current, I was able to target all of its eyes with the boomerang. Any boomerang, if targeted right, can hit all 6 of its eyes, causing it to be blinded. The current would go away, and then we made the ship fire its cannons at the Big Octo, which killed it after an exhausting amount of time." Link looked around the table. "Any questions?"

"None from me. As long as I know how to defeat it, I'm good." Poump said.

"Good. Let's keep on playing then." Link said and then everyone got back to playing cards.

The day went by and then it was night time. The party members situated themselves in their cabins and slept the night away.

The next day arrived. Niko excitedly was ringing a bell on the boat, and Alfonzo spoke over a loudspeaker. "Good morning crewmembers, this is Captain Alfonzo speaking, we have land ho. Repeat, we have land ho."

The party got out of their sleeping cabins and ran up to the main deck and saw an island coming closer and closer to them. Link walked behind them. "There it is. Our monster quest will finally come to an end."

"We'll be rich." Uten said ecstatically.

"Yup. That we will be." Poump said.

The boat eventually docked itself near the beach of the island. There was not a single sign of Hylian life on the island. The only thing the crew members could see from so high up were the faint red dots on the sand which they knew were crabs. The crewmembers lowered the ramp down onto the island. Pep walked out onto the main deck with his pig, but Link quickly walked up to Pep.

"Son, go back into my cabin. It's too dangerous out here." Link said to Pep.

"It's not dangerous, all of your friends are walking down that ramp." Pep replied.

"Because they know what they're doing. You however can't go onto this island with us, it would be too dangerous for you. Go back into my cabin, and we'll be right back in a jiffy."

"Okay fine. Come with me, pig." Pep said to the pig and he walked back into the cabin doors.

"Niko, watch over him right now." Link said to Niko.

"You got it boss." Niko replied, and he walked into the cabins with Pep.

Link walked down the ramp and onto the island, where all of the other party members were. "Alright guys, you see that tall stoney spire right there?" Link said, while pointing out a tall rock spire.

"Yep." Poump replied.

"We are going to place this Travel Medallion on the very top of it. That way we will be able to return to this island with the press of a button." Link said. He pulled out a circular device and handed it to Zhago. "Poump, follow me." Link walked with Poump up to the other crew members which were at the hull of the boat. "The cages are going to be opened now, right?" Link said to the other crew members.

"Yup." The Rito said.

"Poump, prepare to play the Ocarina." Link said to Poump. Poump brought out the Ocarina of Time and prepared to play it. Alfonzo pressed a button and then a ramp erected from the boat's hull. A door opened up, and then the monsters came out from inside of the boat. Some of them covered their eyes from the sun, but they quickly adjusted to the light. "Play it now." Link said to Poump. Poump blew into the Ocarina and performed Saria's Song. The monsters followed him onto the island. Every single Bokoblin, Moblin, Lizalfos, and the two Lynels were escorted out of the boat. Alfonzo observed the cages and was happy to see that all of the monsters were out of the cages. The cages were completely empty. Alfonzo pressed a button again and the doors closed and the ramp went back into the hull of the ship. Link was guiding Poump and the monsters into a deeper area on the island. They eventually arrived at a lush green area with trees that provided ample shade. There also seemed to be a bunch of resources laid out around the area. Link put on a Bokoblin Mask. "Aaaand stop." Poump stopped playing the Ocarina. Link quickly handed Poump a Bokoblin Mask and he wore it. Link motioned for Poump to follow him back to the boat so they navigated through the greenery of the island jungle back to the boat.

"What was up with the set up back there?" Poump said to Link.

"When we prepared this island for the monsters, we made sure we would give them a good starting area for them to work off of." Link replied. The two of them arrived at the boat area. "Now anyone who feels like climbing that rock spire can come along with me."

"We'll stay on the boat boss." The Goron said. The other crew members nodded in agreement and they walked up the ramp and back onto the boat.

"We'll join you." Uten said. Tipa, Zhago, and Poump nodded as well.

"Alright then, let's climb that rock spire." Link said. They all walked up to where the rock spire was. It was a lot taller up close. Thankfully the jagged edge of the rocks allowed for good climbing for the team. Zhago used his climbing mitts and had Uten cling onto his back. Tipa decided to use her bare hands and climbed up using the rocks on the edge. Poump Clawshotted up as far as he could and then climbed with his bare hands. Link jumped a little bit and then a gust of wind developed underneath him. He pulled out his paraglider and then shot into the air with the wind guiding him. A Rito ghost flew around him, and then he clinged to the side of the rock spire and climbed up with his bare hands. Eventually the 5 of them made it to the top of the spire, which was completely flat. Surprisingly, there was enough room up there to probably hold about 20 Hylians. "Now we just need to place the Travel Medallion down on the center of this flat surface." Link said. Zhago almost placed the Travel Medallion down onto the floor, but then he handed it to Poump.

"You should do the honors, Poump." Zhago said.

Poump humbly rejected the idea of himself doing it. "I shouldn't do it. We should do it." Poump said. He motioned to Uten and Tipa and the 4 of them placed their hands on the Travel Medallion. They placed it on the floor, and then a blue circle formed around the Travel Medallion.

"Now we need to link this Medallion up to both of our Sheikah Slates so that way we can teleport to it whenever we want." Link showed Poump how to link the Travel Medallion with the Sheikah Slate. "Good. Now, we can sit back and take in the view from up here." Link sat at the edge of the spire and looked across the island. The boat was still sitting on the coast of the island.

Poump looked around. The view from above allowed them to see almost the whole island. They could see from one coast to the next. The other side of the mountain had a volcano of some kind. Poump had some concern with it. "Is that volcano active?" Poump asked Link.

"No, we made sure it was dormant when we chose this island. Most islands have volcanoes on them anyways, but thankfully that one won't be spitting out fumes any time soon." Link replied. The party spent a few more minutes on top of the spire.

"I'm a little hungry right now." Uten said.

"I am too." Poump added.

"Same." Zhago said.

"Meat." Tipa stated.

"Well then, looks like we all have one thing in common. Let's glide back down to the boat then." Link and the party pulled out their paragliders and ran up to the edge of the spire. They jumped off and the gliders carried them through the air above the lush jungle of the island. They looked down and saw the monsters gleefully running around the island, having the time of their lives. Link looked down at them with soft eyes. What he saw in them before he didn't see anymore. They really were just misunderstood and put in the wrong place, which was Hyrule. Monsters living on an island alone like this were bound to be a lot better for them, and the results mere minutes after the fact proved that point. Their gliders approached the boat and they landed onto it. Link looked at the other party members. "Thank all of you so much for helping Zelda and I out. We really appreciate your help. I cannot thank you all enough."

"Thank YOU for bringing us on this grand expedition, Link!" Poump said.

Link saluted to Poump. "You betcha." Link looked up to the captain's deck. "Alfonzo, hit it!"

"On it right now boss." Alfonzo started the boat's engines up and it started moving away from the island. Poump looked out to the island's beach, and he couldn't help but shake the feeling that he saw some of the monsters waving goodbye to him. He waved back and the monsters started dancing with each other. Poump felt really happy with seeing this, seeing such creatures mingle with each other like this.

After some time, the island turned into a silhouette and then it vanished into the horizon.

A few hours passed. The team was mostly nonchalant on the boat. People were resting in their cabins, and the only activity on the outside deck was that of Alfonzo steering the ship's wheel. Alfonzo felt a water drop his shoulder. "Huh, neat." He looked up and saw dark gray clouds start to cover up the blue in the sky. In just a minute, rain started pouring on the main deck. "A little rain has never hurt a Hylian before." Alfonzo said as he kept a hold on the steering wheel. Then a violent jolt caused the boat to move a little bit. Alfonzo looked down the side of the boat and then he couldn't help but notice the faint outline of a creature under the water. He walked up to the loudspeaker. "ATTENTION! ATTENTION! THIS IS CAPTAIN ALFONZO SPEAKING! ALL CREW INTO BATTLE POSITIONS RIGHT NOW!" This announcement woke everyone on the boat up. Everyone rushed out to the main deck. Pep tried going out of Link's room.

"No son, you can't go out there." Link said to Pep.

"But I want to fight too!" Pep said.

"Take care of your pig in here, you'll be safe in this cabin." Link told Pep.

"You're not as fun as momma." Pep said.

Link looked down at Pep with a face of minor annoyance. "Then maybe I am. Stay put, child." Link shut the door and locked it with his key. He ran through the corridors of the ship, which rattled once again from another jolt. Link was sent flying into the ceiling and he hit his head. "Oooh. That's gonna hurt soon." Link said as he rubbed his head. He kept on running through the corridor a little more and made it out to the main deck. It was raining tremendously, and the crewmembers ran up to the sides of the main deck. Some cannons erected from the floor and the crewmembers manned them. Poump and the other party members also ran outside to the main deck.

"What's happening?!" Poump shouted to Link.

"We're being attacked." Link said.

"By what?!" Poump shouted.

Link looked out to the ocean and then a large squid monster emerged from under the water, with 3 eyes visible. "The Big Octo. It's here." Link said. A circular water current formed around the Big Octo, and it started slowly pulling the whole boat closer towards it. Link handed a boomerang to Zhago.

"I trust you know how to use this?!" Link shouted to Zhago.

"Yes, I know how to use a boomerang." Zhago said.

"Good! Now remember what I said about targeting its eyes!" Link said. He then ran off into an indoor area.

"Where's he going?" Uten said.

"Whatever it is, it's something important." Zhago said. "Now let's show this squid who's boss!" Zhago ran up to the edge of the main deck. The cannons aimed for the Big Octo. The cannons fired cannonballs that minorly pierced the Big Octo's skin. Zhago aimed with his boomerang at the Big Octo's eyes. The Squid was rotating, which revealed a second set of three eyes on the other side of it. Zhago focused on each eye and threw the boomerang. It hit each eye, causing them to shut themselves out. The boomerang flew back to Zhago and he caught it.

Link ran back outside, wearing some Zora Armor. He ran up to the edge of the boat and dove down into the water beneath them. Tipa saw this so she also ran inside and grabbed her own Zora Armor. She equipped it onto herself and ran back outside. She also dove into the water, just like how Link did. Under the surface of the water, Tipa saw an endless blue void underneath her, but in front of her was the squid and it's 8 tentacles. 3 of the tentacles aimed themselves at Tipa, but she swam around all 3 of the incoming tentacles. She made it under the squid and saw its beak, opening and closing. Inside of it seemed to be, weirdly enough, one more eye. She noticed Link swimming swiftly through the water, wielding the glowing Master Sword. Link sliced 1 of the tentacles right off, and it floated up to the surface of the water. Tipa was inspired by this, so she pulled out one of her katanas and tried slicing at one of the tentacles with her blade. It gave the tentacle a really small cut, and then the end of it swam itself right up to Tipa and grabbed her.

Outside of the water, Zhago threw the boomerang at the other 3 eyes left, but one of the tentacles rose up and protected one of the Squid's eyes from being hurt by the boomerang. Zhago was astonished by this. The boomerang returned to him, nevertheless. Poump pulled out his Magic Sword and decided to shoot its energy beam right at the Big Octo's skin. When the beam hit it's skin, the Octo's skin opened up a lot more. The people manning the cannons looked at Poump's sword, and then got off of their cannons. The cannons went into the floor and they ran downstairs to man different cannons with different ammunition. The ammunition from these cannons were bombs, which exploded on contact with the Big Octo's skin.

Under the water, the Big Octo's grip on Tipa let go. Tipa looked up and saw Uten swimming through the water, stabbing at the Octo's tentacle. Tipa smiled, and no water went into her mouth because of the Zora Armor's mask. Link cut off another tentacle which floated up to the surface. The remaining 6 tentacles grabbed Link, and Tipa looked up at the chopped tentacles which were horrendously reforming again. She sunk her katana blade into the reforming tentacle, which started to form around her sword and then it formed around her arm. Uten swam up to Tipa and grabbed her second katana. Uten sliced at the tentacles multiple times and then it cut right off, freeing Tipa's arm from the forming tentacle.

Above the water, Zhago and Poump aimed their boomerang and their Magic Sword respectively at the two remaining eyes that were open. The Magic Sword's beam hit the eye, and the boomerang hit the other eye. The Octo flung itself around wildly and the circular current disappeared. The Big Octo submerged itself under the water. "Did we beat it?" Poump said.

"I think we did." Zhago said.

Under the water, the Octo sank deeper into the depths of the ocean, but it grabbed Link, Uten and Tipa with its tentacles. Link sliced a tentacle off and was immediately grabbed by another tentacle. He prepared to slice at it again, but the pressure from the tentacle grabbing him made him lose his grip on the Master Sword. It floated up past Uten and towards Tipa. Tipa reached out to the Master Sword's hilt and grabbed it. As if by instinct, Tipa swung the Master Sword into the tentacle that was gripping her and it sliced cleanly. She swam downwards towards the Big Octo's beak. On the way there, 2 more tentacles tried grabbing her, and she sliced at the both of them, causing them to float up. She freed Uten from the tentacle that was grasping her by slicing it off. Tipa pointed to the surface for Uten to swim up, and Uten listened. Tipa kept on swimming down towards the Big Octo some more. She sunk the Master Sword into one of the Octo's tentacles, using it to slide herself down even faster. She arrived at the tentacle that was holding Link, and she cut him free. Link suspended himself in the water for a bit, he was recovering from the grip of the Big Octo's tentacle. He looked down and saw the glow of the Master Sword go deeper and deeper into the darkness of the water. He swam down after it.

Tipa made it to the beak of the Octo and she attached one of her katanas to her waist, and then stabbed it into the Octo's skin around the mouth. She stabbed the Master Sword into the Big Octo's mouth, causing it's last eye to bleed profusely. The Octo let out a sound that radiated around the area of the water, and then it fell limp. The water pressure became too much for Tipa, she felt like her head was going to explode. Link swam down to her and took her off of the Big Octo's limp corpse, which floated up to the surface of the water. The surface only looked like a faint light in the distance now. Link sheathed the Master Sword on his back and carried Tipa gradually towards the surface. Link made sure he didn't move too fast, so that way the water pressure wouldn't crack both of their skulls open. He took periodic stops for extra safety.

Poump looked into the water and saw Uten emerge. Uten used her spear magic to make the water carry herself back onto the boat. "Where's Tipa and Link?" Poump asked Uten.

"They're down there." Uten said as she pointed into the water. After a minute of anticipation, the nasty carcass of the Big Octo floated up to the surface, with its chopped tentacles also suspended on the surface as well. 7 more minutes passed, and then eventually Link and Tipa emerged from under the water. Uten waved her spear and caused the water to carry the two of them onto the main deck. "Are you two alright?" Uten said.

"We're both doing swell!" Link replied. Tipa nodded her head in approval.

"Was it just me, or did Tipa use the Master Sword down there?" Uten said to Link.

"You saw right, she did in fact use the Master Sword!" Link patted Tipa on the back. "This means she has a pure heart. And also, when the malice was removed from inside of her at the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab, they used my blood which I donated." Link chuckled a little bit. "From a certain point of view, this means she's my daughter, and an heir to the blade."

"Your daughter is a Cuckoo." Poump said.

"Yup." Link replied. "If it weren't for Tipa, I don't think I would've made it down there. The Big Octo seemed to have a different fighting strategy this time around, like as if it got smarter."

"That's interesting, but I think we should settle back down in the cabins again." Zhago said. "This was exhausting."

"I agree." Uten said. "Let's all recuperate now."

The shipmates all got back into their cabins, and Alfonzo made the boat go back on course towards Hyrule.

Chapter 29: The Hero's Dark Side

Two days went by. Nothing very eventful happened on the boat, aside from the party playing with the Pokemon cards and Link getting to know his son a little bit more.

The night time fell and the party fell asleep in their cabins.

Uten had a dream in which she was swimming through the deep ocean, and eventually she saw two red eyes look up at her through the darkness. The two eyes ascended and revealed a body that looked exactly like hers, just completely dark. It swam up to the surface and then she looked up. Her eyes opened for real. She looked up and saw her cabin, and in her cabin there were two red glowing eyes looking down at her. It raised a sword and sliced at her torso, which hurt her insides tremendously. She got off of her bed and rushed through the corridors to the other cabins.

"Help! Someone's here!" Uten screamed. She turned around to see the two red eyes looking at her through the darkness.

A cold and evil voice sounded from where the red eyes were. "You chose to kill them! You thought it was your decision to end their lives!" The red eyes approached her, and Uten kept on running through the corridor. Poump awoke and came out of his cabin, as well as Zhago and Tipa. They noticed the red eyes following Uten.

"That can't be good. Not at all." Zhago said.

"I think I know what this is about." Poump said. He pulled out his Magic Sword and pursued the red eyes. Uten eventually made it to a large room, where she barred herself in. The room had plenty of areas to hide. Poump tried shooting his energy beam at the red eyes, but they seemed to move out of the way from the attack. Then the eyes walked right through the door into the room Uten was hiding in. She tried hiding behind the different barrels in the room, but the red eyes found her very quickly. Uten got a better look at the eyes and discovered that it had a body, a silhouette of some kind. It shared the shape of Link with his green tunic.

"What in the-?" Uten exclaimed as the Dark Link thrusted it's sword into Uten's face. Even though her face didn't open up in reaction to this sword, it felt really sharp and painful, as if the sword's cut sunk itself through her head. The pain felt real, even though her head was completely fine. She fell to the floor in immense pain from the attack.

Zhago, Poump, and Tipa made it to the barred door. "It's barred." Zhago said as he tried pushing it open. "Hold on." He said as he grabbed Poump and Tipa. He teleported through the door and into the room, accidentally landing on a barrel, causing it to combust and the barrel's contents rolled across the floor. The Dark Link looked at the other three who landed in the room.

"This is going to be fun." Dark Link said maniacally with his voice of menace. He walked through the room and approached the three party members with his sword ready to attack. Tipa and Zhago tried attacking the Dark Link, but it parried both of their attacks and sliced through them, making them feel pain on the inside. Poump thrust his Magic Sword forward towards the Dark Link, which noticeably caused him to flinch just a tiny bit. Poump stabbed at him again, but this time the Dark Link hopped onto Poump's sword and looked at him. He felt weightless on the sword. However, Dark Link's energy froze Poump in place. All Dark Link did was stare at Poump for a little bit, and then he hopped off of the sword. Tipa ran up to the barred doors and opened them up.

"Where are you going Tipa?!" Poump shouted to Tipa.

Tipa looked back at Poump and then ran out of the room. She went through the corridors and eventually arrived at Link's cabin, which was locked. She looked both ways through the corridor and then flinched a little bit when she saw Link standing right behind her with a blank expression on his face. She waved her hand in front of his face. "Wake up." She said.

Link all of a sudden shook himself out of whatever the heck he just went through. "Tipa?"

Tipa put her hand out. "Gimme sword." She said.

"You mean this?" Link said as he pointed at the Master Sword on his back.

"Yuh." Tipa said.

"You can't have this." Link said with a slight red glow in his eyes.

Tipa decided to improvise. "Follow meh." She said. Link followed her through the corridor to the room where Dark Link was. She opened the door and Link saw Dark Link dominating the three party members inside. The Dark Link unnaturally shifted its gaze onto Link, as if it snapped it's own neck. The Dark Link paused and assumed Link's stance. Link walked into the room towards the Dark Link and then the Dark Link also walked forward at the same exact pace as Link's. The party recovered from the pain and looked up to see Link and Dark Link mimicking each other's movements exactly the same. Link made a feint, but Dark Link also made a feint as well. Neither of them managed to hit each other. Their swords waved away. Link decided to back up and the Dark Link also backed up. Link charged forward with his sword out front and Dark Link did the same exact thing. They bumped into each other and fell back. Link felt hurt, but he noticed the Dark Link was also hurting. The two of them clashed their blades together, both of them having the same exact movements, as if it was a reflection.

The party members watched the fight for a bit. Zhago came to the conclusion that if Link gets hurt, the Dark Link gets hurt as well. "We need to hurt Link if we want to hurt that thing!" Zhago said.

"Hurt Link? What if we kill him?" Uten said.

"That might be just what we need to do." Zhago said. He pulled out his sword and went for Link. He stabbed at Link, but Link parried the attack. The Dark Link forced itself to move Link into attacking the downed Sheikah Warrior. Link jumped into the air and stabbed the sword straight into the ground, but Zhago rolled out the way just in time.

"They want to kill us, just like they killed our friends." Dark Link said to Link.

"These people are my friends!" Link said to Dark Link. "They didn't fully mean to kill them! It was a big misunderstanding!"

"They are a detriment to us! We must let their blood spill!" Dark Link said.

"AUGGHH!" Link screamed in excruciating pain as Dark Link slid himself into him. The Master Sword dropped out of Link's hand. Tipa picked it up, but dropped it as she noticed it seemed to be burning hot. Link, merged with Dark Link, became a much more visible version of Dark Link. Link's blonde hair turned white, and his blue eyes turned pure red. His whole tunic turned from green into black. "There is no more Hero, there is just US!" Dark Link said. The Dark Link pulled out a dark version of the Master Sword with a red crossguard instead of the purple crossguard. Dark Link swung his sword into the ground and it created a dent in the floor. "I can hurt you all now. For real this time." The Dark Link swung his weapon at the party members. Poump held the Mirror Shield in front of him, which blocked the sword's attacks. Tipa rolled up to the Master Sword and grabbed it. It wasn't hot anymore, and she was finally able to use it for herself. She slashed at Dark Link and managed to cut him just a bit. Dark Link fell to the floor and disappeared.

"Look out Tipa!" Uten screamed to Tipa. Tipa turned around and saw Dark Link approaching her from behind and she quickly blocked the incoming attack. As the battle happened, Poump noticed 4 ghosts appear around Link. They were the ghosts of a Goron, a Rito, a Zora, and a Gerudo.

"Break out of it Link! We know you're better than this!" The Zora ghost said to Link.

"Let go of your dark feelings!" The Gerudo ghost said.

"Link is no more! There is only Dark Link!" Link replied.

Poump watched Tipa and Dark Link clashing with each other a little more and then remembered something. He rushed out of the room and ran through the corridor to Link's cabin. The room was locked, but Poump decided to punch the door open. He saw Pep standing in the center of the room with his pig next to him, looking out the window. Pep looked back at Poump with a worried expression on his face. "What's going on?" Pep said, sounding a bit worried.

"Come with me." Poump said. He picked up Pep in his arms.

"AAHH!" Pep screamed and then bit Poump's arm.

"OW!" Poump exclaimed and then he dropped Pep onto the floor. Pep got up. Poump felt his arm a little bit. The bite wasn't too bad. "Just follow me kid."

"Okay." Pep said. Poump ran through the corridor and Pep followed behind. They reached the room with Dark Link and entered. Tipa was still clashing with Dark Link, and Uten and Zhago were watching from a distance. Poump presented Pep into the room and Dark Link paused to look at him. Then as if by instinct, Pep ran up to Dark Link. "AAAHHHHH!" Pep screamed like he was in pain. He jumped right up to Dark Link with his arms out and then he embraced the evil beings with his arms.

Everyone's visions turned blurry. They closed their eyes and then opened them again. They found themselves in a flat plain, which seemed to be endless. The ground was wet, allowing them to see their own reflections in the water. The only thing they could see around the endless plain was a single wilted and dead tree, and Link standing in unison next to Dark Link. Pep stood in front of both of them.

From Link's perspective, he saw Pep standing in front of him, not moving at all. Then, next to the dead tree, a bunch of Dark Links rose from the ground. An uncountable army of them walked in formation towards him and surrounded Pep. Pep spread out both of his arms and levitated into the air. The Dark Links all looked at Link and then pointed at his feet. Link looked down and saw Dark Link looking at him in the reflection. The Dark Links lined themselves up in a single file line behind Link. Link marched forward, with the multiple Dark Links marching behind him. Pep was levitating away from him. He tried running, and the Dark Links also ran. No matter how fast Link ran, Pep would always levitate away much faster.

After what felt like an exhausting amount of time, Link stopped running. Pep was still suspended in the air above him. He looked behind himself and saw the dead tree. Link realized all his running got him nowhere. The tree was still in relativity to where he was. The line of Dark Links were also looking back at the tree. Link looked forward and then saw the back of another line of Dark Links. They were looking forward. Link walked to the side and they walked to the side in sync with his movement. He looked up at Pep and then saw the horrifying image of Pep slowly being overtaken by Malice, becoming a demon. The Dark Links all pulled out their swords and Link pulled his sword out as well. They all pointed it at Pep.

"Kill the child." The Dark Links chanted together. "Kill the child."

"Kill the child."

"Kill the child."

"Kill the child."

"Kill the child."

"Kill the child."

The Dark Links started to walk out of sync from Link. They all piled on each other, some of them stabbing themselves with their swords. Their bodies fell limp as they piled up, creating a mound of dead bodies that lead up to Pep. Without thinking, Link climbed up the dead bodies of the Dark Links. As he climbed the bodies, he started to see familiar faces on the bodies. He saw Revali, he saw Mipha, Urbosa, and Daruk. All of his former friends from 110 years ago. As he climbed, he eventually saw the faces of Yunobo, Teba, Riju, and Sidon, all dead. He kept on climbing the mound of dead bodies, that seemed a lot more tall and endless than what he remembered it looking like. More faces appeared. The faces of Poump, Zhago, Tipa, and Uten, all dead. Then he saw the faces of himself, with white eyes. He kept climbing and then he saw the dead body of Zelda sandwiched between the dead bodies of the Dark Links. He stopped to look at her and put his hand on her face. She was cold with her lifeless face limping lazily. Then her eyes opened.

"No… NOO!" The dead Zelda screeched. This startled Link a little bit. "This can't be happening! Hyrule is no more! It belongs to Demise now!" She continued screeching and then her dead arms grabbed Link's shoulders. "This is all because of YOU! Everyone is dead! The only hope we have left rests on that island!" Zelda let go of Link's shoulders, and he continued climbing the tower of dead bodies. It seemed endless. The faces of the citizens of Hyrule appeared. He knew all of their faces. Among them were Selmie and Nebb.

After what seemed like several minutes of climbing the dead bodies, Link made it to the top of the tower. He walked across the skeletons of many monsters. He saw Pep, suspended in the air. He walked towards Pep, but then the arms of the skeletal monsters reached up and grabbed his legs. Pep stopped being suspended in the air and landed on the floor. He wore a green tunic and the Master Sword on his back. Pep also seemed to be older. The skeletons of different monsters rose to attack Pep, but Pep defended himself and killed them. More skeletons rose from the floor and then generated flesh around their frames. Pep dodged out of the way from their attacks and smote them with the Master Sword. He used a cracked Hylian Shield to defend himself from incoming attacks. After killing the last monster, Pep turned around to Link and ran to him. Pep tried pulling Link out of the grasp of the skeletal arms, but then the skeletal arms pulled Link deeper into the tower of bodies. As Link sunk into the ground, Pep screamed in fear, but Link couldn't hear him. Link could barely see a thing as he was crushed by the bones of the monsters. The bones then started to clear out into a cube shape, making a room where Link could stand up in. The walls were made of bones. The skulls on the wall turned to Link from all corners of the room and started to glow red in their eye sockets. The bones around the room configured themselves into an abomination that Link had never seen before. It was just a jumble of bones made to create an original creature. Link felt behind his back but he didn't feel a sword at all. He tried feeling his back but he couldn't even feel his own back either. He put his hand back into his vision and found out he had his own spine in his hands, covered in blood. His own blood. The abomination rushed at him, and he dodged out of the way. He threw his spine at the creature, causing it to combust instantly.

The bones around the room started to rattle and then they stopped rattling. The room disconnected itself and then the bodies surrounding him started to enter a freefall and he fell as well. He couldn't see any sign of the floor at all. Just an endless abyss, and the dead bodies surrounding him. Then the body of Calamity Ganon appeared beneath him. It was quite large. He landed on it, feeling no pain at all. He looked up and saw Calamity Ganon's face look up at him. "You were the evil that carried out my desires. YOU caused the Calamity in the long run. And now, you must face your own child in combat. HE is what stands in the way between US and our victory." Link looked at his hands. His hands were covered in darkness. He now wielded the Master Sword, but it had a red crossguard, and it radiated evil energy.

He looked up from the sword and Calamity Ganon's body landed in the plain of water with a splash. The ripples died down in seconds, and Calamity Ganon's body disappeared. A lone figure in a green tunic approached Link with the Master Sword in hand, and the cracked Hylian Shield. It was Pep, and for certain, he looked like he was 18 years old. Pep went into a battle stance. "I'm sorry for what I have to do, father." Pep said. "You became the very thing you seeked to destroy, and now I must put an end to your turmoil. Demise sleeps within you now, and the only way for it to be gone, is for me to kill you." A body fell onto the watery surface behind Pep, making a splash. Another body hit the floor. Link looked up and saw the whole sky filled with falling bodies, forming a circle around the area where he and Pep were standing. He looked into his reflection and saw himself with red surging eyes. He was wearing armor now, made of pure Malice. The bodies rained from above and piled up in a circle around him and Pep. Pep circled around Link, readying his weapon. The two of them circled around each other, waiting to strike. The two of them rushed at each other and Link swiped at Pep. Pep feinted his attack and dodged Link's attack. Pep pointed his sword right at Link. The two of them kept the fight going on for a long time. The bodies piled around them until they could only see the sky through the hole that the bodies created.

The two of them waited in anticipation for the next attack. They stared at each other with great intensity. Pep's Master Sword glowed brightly in the reflection of the water, and Link radiated pure darkness from his being. Pep sheathed his sword and his shield. He stood still, without any intention of fighting. Link ran up to Pep, feeling the blood lust overcome him. Then, as if it happened in a split second, Pep pulled out the Master Sword from his sheath and striked at Link's body, causing Link to fall to the floor. Pep threw his shield to the side and jumped into the air with the Master Sword blade first into Link's abdomen. The sword pierced right through Link's torso, and Pep looked down at Link's face. Tears came out of Pep's eyes. "I'm sorry it had to be this way."

Then blackness. Link couldn't see a thing anymore. Was this what death looked like? Then he saw the face of Efiath, the woman on Windfall Island, appear before him. She had a face of pleasure. He blinked and then saw her naked body beneath him. She was moaning loudly, gripping hard onto the bed frame above her head. Link looked to his right and saw Dark Link looking at him.

"This is the moment in which We were rising." Dark Link said. "A mistake We made for our own pleasure. A mistake that would haunt our mind for the next 8 years. You wondered why the Master Sword would sometimes reject you, and this is the moment where I bonded myself into your consciousness. A secret you kept for your selfish desires. Something that the Spirit of a Hero wouldn't possess, yet you kept on being the Hero. This mistake you made will never be undone…" Then the Dark Link disappeared. Link looked down at Efiath. She closed her eyes and moaned.

"Oooh yes!" She said. Link felt a sweet release, and then Efiath disappeared from his vision. He saw blackness once again.

Then, as if it were an echo, he heard a feminine voice amidst the darkness. "Link." There was a pause. "Link." Another pause. "Father." Link found himself sitting on the grass field, just outside of Kakariko Village. Hyrule Castle was in the distance, completely fine. The field was peaceful. He looked to his left and saw a 21 year old woman with purple hair and a purple tunic sitting in the grass next to him.

"H-Hilda?" Link said.

The purple haired woman nodded. "Yes father. It is I, Hilda."

Link looked at Hyrule Castle in the distance and then back to Hilda. "What's happening?"

"A lot is happening." She put her hand onto his shoulder.

"How are you… Hilda?" Link said. "What I just saw, it felt so real."

"Don't fear father." Hilda said. She looked behind herself and she saw Zelda walking up to them with two horses following her. "What you just saw will never happen now."

"Really?" Link said.

"Yes. You can trust me. You feel conflicted right now because of the mistakes you made in the past. What you have done in the past can't be undone, but you have to face your fears and overcome your previous failures. You need to make the best of what you've done."

"But the Master Sword…" Link looked at his hand and saw the Master Sword materialize in his hand. "I'm not worthy of it. I have many regrets. I've done many horrible things." Link started crying. Hilda scooted up to Link and put her arm around his shoulders.

"You have done horrible things, but all of them can be redeemed. Your anxiety is making yourself believe that you are much worse than you really are. That woman you bedded with on Windfall Island. There are many things you can do to redeem yourself with her." She started petting Link's hair. Hyrule Field stopped moving, the wind stopped, and the light movement of the grassy fields came to a halt. "You can overcome yourself if you believe in yourself." Hilda looked at Link and then she disappeared from his vision.

He saw blackness once more. He blinked again and found himself in the plain with the wet reflection on the floor once again, with only the wilted dead tree in sight. He looked down and saw the reflection of Dark Link looking up at him. He walked past the dead tree and then looked into his reflection again. He saw nothing but himself in his own green tunic looking up at him. He turned around and looked at the dead tree. Dark Link stood next to the dead tree, with it's sword drawn. Link looked at Dark Link with a calm expression on his face. Link didn't draw his sword, and he stood still watching it. Dark Link slowly approached Link with it's sword drawn. Link stood completely still as his Dark self approached with a gradual increase in speed. Dark Link came up close enough to Link and then prepared to attack. In a split second, Link reached behind his back and pulled the Master Sword out of his sheath and then in one fell swoop, he striked Dark Link causing it to fall on the floor. Then Link jumped into the sky with the Master Sword pointed down at Dark Link's body and then he plunged it deep into Dark Link's abdomen.

"NOOOOO!" Dark Link exclaimed. "We were supposed to go hand in hand! You would use my power to exemplify your wrong doings! Your mistakes that you made will never go away!"

"You might be right about mistakes never going away, but if there's one thing I know for certain, I can learn from them." Link said as he plunged the Master Sword deeper into Dark Link's being. "And that's something that you would never understand."

Dark Link reached his arm out to the sky. "This… can't… be happening…" Dark Link's arm fell to the floor limp. Link got up, with the Master Sword still inside of his dark persona's body. Link looked up at the dead tree. Magically, the dead tree started to bloom with flowers, and it corrected it's wilted state. The tree stood proudly in the vast empty plain of reflection. The tree's reflection was of itself. Link looked behind himself and then he saw his former Champion friends. Mipha, Revali, Daruk, and Urbosa all smiled at Link. They made way for three people that came into his vision. It was Zelda, 21 year old Hilda, and little boy Pep. Zelda and Hilda held both of Pep's hands. They let go of his hands and allowed him to walk forward towards Link. Pep slowly walked up to Link, and Link kneeled down. Link brought both of his arms out for Pep. Pep ran forward and hugged Link. Link hugged Pep. Both of them closed their eyes. Link opened his eyes and then he saw the citizens of Hyrule looking at the two of them, all smiling and clapping.

Link closed his eyes once again and then opened them. He was still huggin Pep, but they were on the boat, surrounded by the Monster Squad and the other crew members.

Zhago pulled out the Eye of Truth and examined Link with it. Link didn't change at all, nor did he have a shadow form inside of him anymore. It was just him and Pep. Dark Link was no more.

Link and Pep finished their embrace. Link looked around at everyone in the room. "Well that was quite the unfortunate event. Let's get ourselves settled down now. We're approaching Windfall Island tomorrow morning, so we should rest up right now."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Poump said, with bags under his eyes. The rest of the crewmembers got into their sleeping cabins. Link and Pep went into their sleeping cabin as well and then they fell asleep for the rest of the night.

Chapter 30: Hyrule in Chaos

The next morning came. The crewmembers woke up in their cabins. Poump and the squad walked out of the main deck, where Link and Pep were looking off into the distance. The silhouette of Windfall Island approached them in the distance. Poump walked up to Link. "Will we stop by Windfall Island once again?" Poump asked Link.

"Yup." Link said. "I'll have to drop Pep off and we will also spend a little more time on the island as well. Once nightfall comes, we'll head straight for Hyrule."

"Sounds great." Poump said.

The boat docked itself onto Windfall Island's pier. Link and the party walked off of the boat and onto the pier. "We'll toss one up for our successful voyage." Link said. "But first, I need to do one more thing." Link had Pep follow him to the residential district of the town.

Poump and the others made it to Armor Paradise. "Hey there Hamei!" Poump said as he entered the armor shop.

Hamei was smelting something, but she paused her progress on it once she saw Poump walk in. "Hey there Poump!" Hamei said with enthusiasm. "Good to see you again! How was the expedition?"

"It was great! A very nice adventure." Poump said.

"Oh, and thank you for the Rubber Armor." Uten said to Hamei. "It's helped me a lot in the past few days. That electric shock that was going through my system is gone now."

Hamei smiled. "I am so glad you're feeling better now! I've read about how nasty an electric injury is to a Zora, and the fact that your pain is gone now is really good news to me!"

"Hey Hamei, where are my parents right now?" Poump asked.

"They're up the hill checking out the windmill. If you want to talk to them, they'll most likely be there." Hamei got back to smelting, but she was still open for conversation. Zhago decided to lean on a wall in the shop and observe the different armor pieces that were around the place. Tipa obsessed over the axe that was on the wall, as she wanted to observe it in all of it's details.

"Thanks for the info Hamei. I'll be back!" Poump walked out of Armor Paradise and walked up the stone road. He followed the road up to the windmill which was at the highest point of the island. The climb was very steep. Only people with a high endurance for climbing stairs would ever bother going to the windmill. Poump took a brief rest break on the stairs to catch his breath. He looked behind himself and saw the town of Windfall Island in its entirety. Their boat was still nice and visible in the harbor. He looked up the stairs and saw that the windmill wasn't too far from where he was now. He walked up the remaining steps and arrived at the windmill. He saw his parents sitting next to the bottom of the windmill.

"Hello son! Nice to see you again! We're glad you came by to see us again!" Poump's father said.

"When we saw the boat dock into the harbor, we knew you'd take a moment to visit us." Poump's mother said. "By the way, we made you some cookies with help from your brother, Bomp!" Poump's mother pulled up a basket and inside of it was a bunch of cookies.

"That's very nice." Poump took a cookie out of the basket and ate it. "Say, where is Bomp right now?"

"He's down in the fields behind the windmill. You can say hi to him!" Poump's mother said.

"I will." Poump wolfed down another cookie and walked behind the windmill to see a whole field of flowers, and a few animal penns. Bomp was walking around the field with his claymore on his shoulder, and walking next to him was a giant pig. Bomp turned around and saw Poump. Bomp started waving.

"Hey bro!" He said. Poump ran up to Bomp and walked next to him. "How was the expedition?"

"It went great." Poump said. "Once I'm back on Hyrule, the Queen will give us 500,000 rupees each."

"Ah dang that's awesome bruv!" Bomp said. He patted the giant pig next to him.

"What's up with the big pig?" Poump asked.

"This pig was eating up crops all over the island. The town sent me to kill it, but then I learned that pigs favor a wide variety of different vegetables, so I gathered a bunch of veggies and trapped it in an area where it would only see me and my big supply of veggies. After about two weeks of feeding it, it no longer wanted to run around the island like a mad animal, so then I tamed it. It chases away any unwanted vermin from this farm, so I take a lot of pride in saying that I tamed 'the Windfall Pig of Doom' as people called it." Bomp patted the pig a little more and then it gave out a hearty oink.

"Amazing." Poump said.

Meanwhile with Link and Pep, Link carried the pig in one of his hands and held Pep's hand in the other hand. He arrived at Efiath's house and then he put the pig down onto the ground. The pig looked up at Pep. Link gave a heavy sigh and then he knocked on the door. The door opened and Efiath was there. She was rubbing her eyes with a handkerchief. "Oh… it's you." She said, slightly sobbing. She looked down and saw Pep.

"I have your child right here for you." Link said. "He decided to stowaway onto our ship, but I took good care of him."

Pep walked up to Efiath and hugged her. Efiath looked up at Link. "Thank you for taking good care of Pep for me. I missed him dearly." Efiath said. Then she threw her handkerchief to the side and forcefully kissed Link on the lips. Link didn't expect that to happen, as his eyes were wide open. She stopped the kiss. "I still hate you, but since you brought Pep back to me, I'm alright now."

"Wait a moment." Link said. "I want to tell you something."

"What is it?" Efiath said with minor annoyance.

Link paused for a moment to look at Pep walking deeper into the house. "Do you really think you're able to take care of him by yourself? I talked to Pep a lot on the boat, and he told me a lot of things about how you wouldn't be there to pick him up from his school. Or whenever a big party or event happens you never go there with him. He said that he's always being watched over by other people, and that you only really take care of him when he's in the house. I think you would benefit greatly if you had a partner to help you out." Link kept his hand on the doorframe. "When you said you wanted to raise a child by yourself, I don't think you were ready for it. And well, the thing is I can't come here to this island and live my life out here with you, because I have a lot of responsibilities to attend to in Hyrule."

"Don't you remember the time when I told you that no one here on Windfall Island was as handsome as you?" Efiath said. "No one else on this island looks good to me."

"Well that is a very simple way to look at it." Link said. "I believe you aren't looking around enough. From what I understand, Pep says that you don't socialize very often."

"Why would I choose to socialize with so many people?" Efiath said. "I don't like talking to others, because I feel like they wouldn't understand me. You are the only person that understands me."

Link shook his head. "That's not true. You wouldn't know if people could understand you if you didn't go out in the first place. If you go out and talk to people, you could be surprised with what you see. Being alone is something you shouldn't do to yourself, especially if you want to raise a child."

Efiath looked at the ground. "Walk with me then." She said.

"Alright then." Link said.

"And Pep, you can walk alongside us." Efiath said back to Pep. The three of them walked out of the house and walked alongside the beach. The pig followed them. Link looked at the message boards around the town and noticed one of them was advertising a bonfire on the beach nearby. Link walked with Efiath towards where the bonfire was.

The three of them made it to an area that was set up with a few huts and a big fireplace. A bunch of Hylians were crowding around the area. There was food and even some people were dancing to music. Link walked through the place with Efiath and showed her the different activities around the set up. Efiath looked at Link. "This reminds me of what we did 8 years ago." She said.

"Yup." Link replied. They eventually found a place where people were sitting around in a circle, telling stories to each other. Link sat down with Efiath in the circle. An hour passed. The whole circle told many different stories, which allowed everyone a chance to say something interesting. Efiath had her own story to tell, and it made everyone around the circle clap gleefully. She felt a bit happy, and then looked at Link. "See. It's not so bad going outside and socializing with other people."

"It's easy for me to do because you're with me." Efiath replied.

"Well in that case, find someone here you can feel comfortable with." Link said. The two of them got up and walked around the party together. When they were in line to get some food, someone accidentally bumped into Efiath. She turned around and saw a Hylian woman.

"I'm sorry!" The woman said humbly.

"It's okay." Efiath replied.

The woman paused for a moment. "I like your hair and the way you braid it. You should show it off to more people."

Efiath touched her hair. "Ohh I just do this for comfort." She replied.

"Comfort's good." The woman said. "Maybe I can show you different hairstyles that you could also like."

"Will you charge me?" Efiath said.

"Not at all!" The woman replied. "I find it relaxing just messing with people's hair. Your hair looks so nice. What's your name?"

"Efiath." Efiath said. "What's yours?"

"My name is Ophea." The woman replied. She looked behind Efiath. "Who's that hunk behind you?"

"His name is Link." Efiath said.

"Link? The Link?" Ophea said in disbelief. "I thought that green tunic was just some get up! You must have a lot of cool friends if you're hanging out with Link!"

Efiath looked at Link with concern in her eyes and Link looked back at her with a warm expression in his own eyes. "Link, come with me for a moment." Efiath said to Link. "Pep, hold our spot in line."

"Okay." Pep said, as he held on the pig. He looked up at Ophea who looked down at him. "Hi." He said to Ophea.

Link and Efiath walked away from where the huts were. She looked at Link with a look of concern. "I can't do this!" She said.

"You were doing great out there." Link said. "All you need to do is keep that conversation going. Ophea seems like a nice woman."

"She thinks I have friends." Efiath said. "I don't have any friends."

"You do now." Link said. Efiath looked up at him with a realization in her eyes.

"What do I do now though?" Efiath said.

"Just keep on doing what you were doing. Carry the conversation. Treat it like a game of ball. When the ball's in your court, you toss it back to them, and then they toss it back to you."

"But what if I'm not comfortable enough?" Efiath said.

Link put both of his hands on her shoulders. "You will be. Trust me, I've been in a time in my life when I was like you before. Whenever I saw someone who wanted to talk to me, I wouldn't speak to them a lot. And then, when I eventually surrounded myself with more people, I became a lot more comfortable around other people. Once you get the ball rolling, you won't stop socializing with others. So get on out there and talk to people. Otherwise you'll be missing out on a lot of experiences."

Efiath wiped a tear from her eye. "Thank you Link." She said with sincerity. "I'll talk to Ophea some more."

"Good." Link said, and the two of them walked back to the line for the food. They met up with Ophea again.

"What'd the two of you do? Kiss each other?" Ophea said jokingly to the two of them.

"No. Not now though." Efiath said.

"Ahah!" Ophea laughed. "You're funny! I like you!" Ophea said with a few more chuckles.

Link smiled at the sight of this, but then he felt his Sheikah Slate vibrate a little bit. He viewed the screen and saw that Zelda was calling him. "One moment." He said to the two of them. Ophea looked at Efiath with a surprised look on her face.

"He talks?!" She said.

Link got himself out of the noise and commotion from the huts. He answered the call. The call seemed to have a bit of static. "Link! Hyrule is in shambles right now! And the Divine Beasts... they're moving again! And some of them are terrorizing the main settlements! We haven't gained contact from Yunobo, Teba, or Riju! Sidon is the only Champion that has contact with us right now! And the monsters… they seem to be working with the Yiga Clan! It's impossible, but it's happening! Link! We need you in Hyrule as soon as you can possibly come!" The call fizzled out and ended. Link walked back to the huts and spoke to Efiath one more time.

"I must leave right now." Link said to Efiath.

"Ah man, but we were having fun!" Efiath said.

"I'll be back soon enough, but the people in Hyrule need me right now." Link said. He held her hand. "I promise I will come back to you, as a friend. But for now, I must go."

"I understand. Ophea and I are already having a lot of fun now, so you can go now." Efiath said. "Oh, and by the way, please don't die." She said to Link.

"I won't." Link said.

"Good." Efiath replied.

"Bye!" He said as he waved goodbye to her and Pep.

Ophea looked at Efiath. "Link is so funny."

"He kinda is." Efiath said.

Link ran across the beach towards the boat. He pulled out his Sheikah Slate and called Poump. Poump picked up. "Poump! We're gonna need to cut our time here short, Zelda needs us in Hyrule right now! Say your goodbyes, because we need to be sailing away pronto!" The call hung up.

Poump put his Sheikah Slate on his waist. "I'm sorry Bomp, but I have to cut this meeting short."

"It's alright bro. You're welcome to come back here later." Bomp said.

Poump hugged Bomp one last time. "I'll be back!" Poump said. He rushed towards the windmill where his parents were sitting. He quickly waved goodbye to his parents. "I need to go back to Hyrule right now!" Poump said to his parents.

"Do come back!" Poump's mother said.

"I will!" Poump said as he ran up to the edge of the staircase with his paraglider ready. He jumped and caught the wind and then glided down the mountain towards the town. A few seagulls almost flew into him while he was gliding down. He saw the armor shop's rooftop and landed onto it. He ran down the staircase past the living area and then into the main shop, where he saw the rest of the party and Hamei hanging out. "We need to go to the boat now!" Poump exclaimed.

"Why?" Uten said, feeling a bit flustered.

"Link told me we need to go back to Hyrule as soon as we can!" Poump exclaimed. "He looked like he was in a hurry to move it, and that means this is serious!"

Hamei washed some metal. "Take care of yourself Poump." She said.

"I will!" Poump said to Hamei. The other party members filed themselves out of the shop, and Poump looked back at Hamei just one more time. "I'll be back."

Hamei hugged Poump before he could go. "Do your best out there!"

"You got it!" Poump said. Hamei stopped hugging him and then he rushed out of the shop. The party ran through the stone streets of the town and eventually made it to the pier. Link was there in front of the ramp to the boat. The party members got onto the boat and Link got on as well. As the boat's ramp lifted up, Link looked back at the beach near the pier. Pep had run all the way towards the pier with his pig. Pep waved goodbye to Link, and Link waved goodbye to Pep. He saw Efiath and Ophea run up to Pep. They looked up at him and waved goodbye as well. Link waved goodbye to the people on the island and then the boat moved itself out of the harbor really quickly.

Alfonzo was hitting the boat's engine real good, making sure it could move faster through the water than it normally did. He spoke over the loudspeaker. "Attention. Attention. This is Captain Alfonzo speaking. Get yourself saddled down in your cabin because this boat's going to go really fast." Because they didn't have any more monsters to keep hold of, the boat was able to move a lot faster now. It zoomed across the water at a ludicrous speed. At a few points, the large ship seemed to jump just a little bit above the surface of the water with how fast it was going. Alfonzo hit a switch which made the boat erect a few extra keels to keep itself balanced.

It was mid-day by the time they could see the silhouette of Hyrule in the distance. Alfonzo slowed the boat down a little bit. The silhouette became clearer and clearer and eventually they were able to see Lurelin Village clearly. Alfonzo slowed the boat down a lot more and then eased it into the dock. The ramp lowered onto Lurelin Village's pier and the crewmembers got off and walked into the village.

As the party walked themselves into Lurelin Village, they saw a tent with the Royal Family crest on it. Link and the party walked into it to see Zelda standing at a table with a few people in armor. Among them, Roldi and Nebb stood by Zelda.

Zelda was pointing at different areas on a map of Hyrule, which was on the table. Zelda looked up at Link and the party members with a stern look on her face. "You've finally arrived. Good timing. Hyrule is in extreme disarray right now. We've lost contact with three of the Champions, and the dizzying frequency in monster attacks and Yiga attacks is not helping us much. Before I continue, may I ask how the mission with the monsters went? My Sheikah Slate located the Travel Medallion on the island."

"We managed to deliver all of them flawlessly." Link said. "These guys did a very good job."

"I even took a few pictures." Poump said as he pulled his Sheikah Slate up. He showed them to Zelda.

"Very good." She said hastily. "I will pay you your rupees soon. They are in Hyrule Castle right now, which Roldi told me is overrun with an explosion in plant life."

"Should we deal with going to Hyrule Castle first in that case?" Uten said.

"No, I want the four of you to deal with saving the Gorons on Death Mountain." Zelda said.

"Death Mountain?!" Uten exclaimed. "The atmosphere over there is enough to cook someone up alive! It's even worse than the Gerudo Desert!"

"That is why I have someone at the base of Death Mountain that will be able to outfit all of you with the necessary armor to survive the hot climate. Talk to them first. They will give you all an outfit for free." Zelda reached in her pockets. "By the way, this is your pay for dealing with the monster colony in the Gerudo Desert." She handed the party a wallet with 10,000 rupees. "All of you left in such a rush that you forgot to collect them."

"Well cha-ching, consider me well fed." Uten said as she bagged the rupees.

Zelda turned to Roldi and Nebb. "As for you two, I need you to go to Rito Village in the Tabantha Frontier. Find Teba and rally their forces to Fort Hebra so that way we can approach Hyrule Castle with the Rito forces."

"We will get that done, your highness." Roldi said. Nebb nodded in approval.

"What do you want me to do, Zelda?" Link said. "Should I go to the Gerudo Region and rally the Gerudo forces?"

"No, I want you to do that later. I want you to lead the squad up Death Mountain. That place is going to be a lot more dangerous now that the monsters have returned, and you're the only person here who's scaled up that mountain with monsters constantly attacking you. I need you to find Yunobo and the Gorons and bring them to Akkala Citadel." Zelda looked at the map and pointed out a few markers on the map. "As for the Gerudo Region, it is suffering from an explosion of Yiga soldiers and monsters, and as I told you before, they seem to be working together. I have sent several garrisons towards the Gerudo Region. Of course, SOMEONE decided to destroy the main bridge that leads to the Gerudo Valley." Zelda looked at Zhago. Zhago scratched the back of his head with a bit of guilt. "I've outfitted the garrison with grappling hooks that will allow them to climb to the other side of the broken bridge and they are also wearing Guardian Armor, so I trust that they can deal with the problem in the Gerudo Region well enough."

"Guardian Armor? You deployed the Guardian Commandos to the Gerudo Region? That's understandable then." Link said. "I will assist these guys with traversing Death Mountain in that case."

"Very good. Now get to work everyone. We have an apocalypse to cancel." Zelda hurriedly walked outside of the tent. Link followed her outside.

"Zelda, everything is going to be fine." Link said to Zelda.

"You tell that to me all the time!" Zelda snapped back at Link. "Hyrule has gotten so much worse in the time you've been gone! I. I. I-" Zelda forcefully kissed Link on the lips. She dislodged from the kiss. "I missed you." She said, as she licked her lips.

"I missed you too-" Link was interrupted by Zelda kissing him in the lips once again. This time around, they were tongue tied. They were practically eating each other. They stopped kissing.

"Please don't die Link." Zelda said to Link.

"Don't worry Zelda. I'll be safe." Link said.

"Show the monsters on Death Mountain who's boss!" Zelda said to Link.

"I sure will." Link walked away and waved goodbye to Zelda. He felt like telling her about Efiath on Windfall Island, but that would have to wait as he knew that Zelda was way too focused on strategies and wartime right now. He hopped onto his horse and looked at the party members. "Alright guys, let's ride for Death Mountain." Link said to the party.

"Alrighty then." Poump said. He and the party boarded onto their horses and they followed Link down the road through the forested area of the Faron Region. Uten rode up to Link.

"Will we be seeing any monsters through the forest, Link?" Uten asked.

"No, it's only been 5 days since the rise of the Blood Moon. Since Zelda has some battalions stationed in Lurelin Village, that should mean that they killed a lot of the monsters in the forest along the way to the village." As Link said that, the party rode across the bridge that had the large set of waterfalls to their right. The party made it to the other side of the bridge and they kept on trekking through the forest. There were some Hylians riding on horses along the way, wearing armor and fighting away at any monsters they ran into. Link had the party follow him some more and then they eventually made it out of the forest and onto the road next to the Bridge of Hylia.

They followed the road across the Bridge of Hylia, where only a few battalions were stationed. They allowed the party to pass through, and so they did. The party made it to the other side of the bridge. Zhago rode up to Link's horse. "Kakariko Village is just a short ways off from where we're headed. I want to stop by there really quickly."

"That's reasonable." Link replied. "We'll stop by there briefly. Get some time to recuperate." Link followed the road and then eventually 8 Bokoblins riding on horses rode up over a hill. 2 Yiga soldiers were also on horses, making it a total of 10 enemies.

Poump pulled out his Magic Sword and shot the sword's energy beam at one of the Yiga soldiers, causing them to fall off of their horse. The Yiga soldier tried getting up, but Poump rode right by the Yiga soldier and sliced his head off. Zhago teleported onto the other horse with the last Yiga on it, and then stabbed them through the stomach, causing them to fall down. 3 Bokoblins surrounded Zhago. Tipa pulled out both of her katanas and hit 2 Bokoblins off of their horses, killing both of them. Uten stabbed her spear at a riding Bokoblin and killed it. Link jumped off of his horse into the air and as if it went by in a second, Link let out 5 arrows which killed the remaining Bokoblins. Link got back onto his horse and Zhago did as well. They kept on riding down the road. Hyrule was an actual hellscape. Guardians were running across the fields, monsters had already established camps along the sides of the roads, and the Yiga Clan had whole garrisons riding across the fields. Hylian soldiers were also active, as they were fighting away at the Yiga soldiers and the monsters. A lot of the Guardians on the field were hostile, however some of them were allied with the Hylian soldiers, which gave Link some extra hope, knowing that they had Guardians on their side. The sky was filled with clouds, but it wasn't raining, despite the way the clouds looked.

After a long and stressful ride, the party eventually made it to Kakariko Village, which didn't have any problems going on inside of it. The only thing different about the village was the presence of more Sheikah Warriors. Zhago got off of his horse and greeted one of the Sheikah Warriors. "It is so good to see you all here right now. What's the occasion?" Zhago said as he looked around the village.

One of the Sheikah Warriors spoke up. "We are positioned around Kakariko Village in order to protect the villagers." The Sheikah Warrior took a second look at Zhago. "Zhago? Is that you?"

"Yep, it's me." Zhago said.

"We feel really bad about what happened with Impa a few weeks ago. We knew that you were the one Sheikah Warrior that freed this village from the curse. We didn't even know it happened, so we weren't even able to say goodbye to Impa." The Sheikah Warrior said with a minor somber voice.

"It's alright. That happened in the past, right now all we need to do is hold this place secure from any Yiga attacks." Zhago said.

"That is precisely why we are here. We were inspired by your status as Hero of Kakariko Village, so we came here in order to keep a crisis from not happening again, especially in this chaotic time we're in right now."

"Very good. Where is Paya right now? I need to return something." Zhago said.

"She's in the Chief's House." The Sheikah Warrior pointed to the building where Impa used to be in.

"Thanks." Zhago said as he proceeded towards Paya's Place. He walked up the steps and through the double doors. He saw Paya sitting in the spot where Impa once sat. She was petting Amo the Cat. She looked up and saw Zhago walk in.

"Zhago! How good to see you again!" She said ecstatically.

Zhago walked up to Paya. "My friends and I have finished Zelda's mission." Zhago pulled out the Ocarina of Time "We no longer have any use for this Ocarina. It belongs here now." Paya took the Ocarina of Time in her hands.

"Thank you for bringing it to me. This is a very important heirloom to the Sheikah Tribe. I am glad you got to use it to it's best potential." Paya got a washcloth and started cleaning the Ocarina.

"I am happy you're happy. By the way, where is Pokh?" Zhago asked.

"Pokh is currently on the cliffs surrounding the village, ready to shoot at any incoming Yiga assassins with a bow." Paya said. "Almost every Sheikah Warrior is here in Kakariko Village right now. The only warrior who isn't here is Sheik."

"Where would she be?" Zhago asked.

"She headed towards Death Mountain last time I saw her." Paya replied.

"I'm headed there right now actually." Zhago said.

"Say hi to her for me." Paya said as she continued cleaning the Ocarina.

"I will." Zhago said. He headed for the double doors and exited the building. The other party members were eating some food, and Link was preparing his horse for the ride to Death Mountain. Zhago looked around the village and saw all of the other Sheikah Warriors patrolling around the village. He looked up one of the cliffs that surrounded Kakariko Village and teleported onto the top of it. He saw Pokh with a few other Sheikah Warriors with bows, ready to shoot at any intruders. "Hello son." Zhago said.

Pokh turned around. "Hello father. I heard that you're going to Death Mountain." Pokh looked out to Hyrule Field, which was dotted with smoke and flames. "Look at the times we're living in."

"Don't worry son, we will pull through this together." Zhago said.

"I will stay strong." Pokh said.

"We will." Zhago said, before teleporting away. Zhago teleported next to where the party's horses were. "We will head to Death Mountain now." Zhago said.

"Very well then. Let's go team!" Link got onto his horse and the other party members got onto their own horses as well. They rode out of Kakariko Village. The party made the trek towards Death Mountain.

Death Mountain loomed in the distance, with the pouring lava coming from its highest peak making highlights down its sides. Along the way, a red-eyed Guardian noticed the party and chased after them. The laser pointed at Link. Link slowed his horse down to allow the party members to get ahead of him, and then he pulled out his bow. He knocked an ancient arrow onto his bow and aimed right for the Guardian's eye. He let go of the arrow and it shot directly into the Guardian's eye, causing it to blow up instantly. He caught up with the other party members and had his bow out at the ready. On the ride to the mountain, some more horsebound Bokoblins and Yiga soldiers rode up to the party in large numbers. Link and Zhago shot at some of them with their arrows, but there were still too many of them to shoot. Then a garrison of Hylians rode up into view and pulled out their bows, aiming their arrows at the Bokoblins and the Yiga. Link took a closer look at their arrows and noticed that they were tipped with a glowing blue energy. "Ancient arrows?!" Link exclaimed. The Hylian soldiers shot the ancient arrows at the Yiga and the Bokoblins, which caused all of them to disappear completely without a trace. Some of the horses they were on also disappeared. The soldiers rode off over the hill and out of sight. Link looked at the party members. "Keep going to Death Mountain, I'll be there with you!" Link redirected his horse towards the battalion of Hylian soldiers. And caught up with them.

The soldiers noticed Link riding up to them. "Ahh Link!" One of the soldiers exclaimed as they were riding forth with Link next to them. Link had a disgruntled expression on his face.

"Did I just see all of you use your ancient arrows on those Yiga soldiers and monsters?" Link said.

"Yes, we did. They're very effective, aren't they?" The soldier replied.

"Ancient arrows should only ever be used as a last resort if you're pinned down or if you're facing a Guardian. NEVER waste them like you just did!"

The soldier looked at the other soldiers with a confused face, and then back at Link. "But Lord Aghanim trained us to use them on any Yiga soldiers that we ever see!"

"Lord Aghanim is dead!" Link exclaimed. "It is not right to use ancient arrows on anything that isn't a Guardian!"

The soldier explained why they were doing what they were doing. "We've just come from the Gerudo Region, we were trapped on the other side for a week, but then we eventually found a way through the Gerudo Highlands and back into Hyrule Field, where we eventually saw the explosion in the monster population as well as the bigger numbers of Yiga assassins. Aghanim sent us to the Gerudo Region in order to deal with the Yiga and to use any weapon we could use, ancient arrows included. We never heard of the news that he was dead until just now, we've mostly been fighting for the past few days."

"Well soldiers, new orders. Don't use your ancient arrows at all unless you're facing a Guardian in combat. You hear me?"

"I hear you Link." The soldier said. They turned to the others. "Everyone, don't use ancient arrows on enemies like the Yiga or the monsters anymore. Only use them on Guardians!"

"Agreed!" The soldiers said in unison.

"Thank you, now keep on fighting!" Link rode his horse back onto the pathway to Death Mountain. He eventually caught up to the others. A few more battles ensued along the way, with the party members victorious after each battle.

They made it to a Stable that sat at the base of Death Mountain. The climate around the area was just a little bit hotter, but it wasn't too close to the mountain, so everyone was fine. Link got off of his horse, and the party got off of their own horses as well. "So, who is this contact we need to speak to down here in order to get our free lava-proof outfits?" Poump said.

Link looked at the stable and examined the people around it. "He doesn't seem to be here." Link said. All of a sudden Link heard something.

"Oh noo!" A loud high pitched voice yelled not too far from the Stable.

"Come with me!" Link said to the others. He pulled his sword out and looked through some bushes. 2 Bokoblins, one of them blue, the other one black, were beating up someone with their clubs. "Oh Goddess." He said. Link rushed into the area with his Master Sword ready. The 2 Bokoblins looked up at him and screeched as a battle cry. They readied their clubs for fighting, but Link quickly slashed his blade at the air, which caused an energy beam to form out of it and it hit the Black Bokoblin down. Link used his Hylian Shield to parry the Blue Bokoblin's attack, which knocked it's club out of it's hand. Link slashed at the Blue Bokoblin two times, which killed it quickly. The Black Bokoblin got back up but Link bashed his shield into its face and then jumped into the air, slicing it's head down the middle. The Black Bokoblin fell down, dead. Link landed and looked at the downed person. "Take my hand."

The Hylian got up, they had a large backpack on. "OOOHHHHH! Thank youuuu so much!" The Hylian said. Poump and the others walked into the area.

"Beedle?!" They all said in unison. Even Tipa said it too.

"Oh my goodness!" Beedle exclaimed. "You're working with Link!"

"Yeah, they're the people you're going to need to outfit with the Flamebreaker Armor, including the specially fit Zora variation." Link said to Beedle as he helped him up.

"You came to the right man at the right time!" Beedle shuffled through his huge backpack and then pulled out a few red sets of armor. "Put them on nice and tight!" Beedle said to the party as he gave them the armor. The party wore the armor over their clothes. The armor was metallic with a red tint to it. The helmet was also metal and had a spiky plume on the back of it. Uten's armor fit her shape perfectly, and it even had an extra water pumping system attached to it that the others didn't have. Link put on his own set of Flamebreaker armor as well.

"Alright gang, we'll need to scale up Death Mountain. Our horses won't take us very far up there without starting to burn up, so we'll have to walk up there ourselves." Link and the others walked towards the base of Death Mountain. The terrain started to become rockier. The ground had many small lizards running across it. Eventually, the heat of the mountain started to become noticeable, but the armor made the party feel fine while they were cooped up inside of it's cool interior. Link raised his fist into the air, which commanded the team to stop for a moment. "Hold on." He pulled out his bow and aimed it at some rocks. He let an arrow go and when it hit a rock, the rock turned into a Lizalfos and then fell to the floor, dead.

"Lizalfos can do that?!" Poump exclaimed.

"Yes." Link said. "They can disguise themselves with any terrain. Since they're back here in Death Mountain, we need to be careful on the walk up."

"Hmm." Zhago pulled out the Eye of Truth and examined the rocks around the place. It revealed 5 more Lizalfos sitting in the area. "There's 5 more around here." Zhago said.

"Orient me." Link said as he prepared his bow. Zhago pointed to the different camouflage Lizalfos and Link shot 3 of them dead. The remaining 2 Lizalfos hopped out of their hiding spots and rushed straight for the party really fast. Poump took out the Magic Sword and shot an energy beam at one of the incoming Lizalfos, which caused it to fall over briefly. The other Lizalfos ran up to the team with a spear and stabbed at Tipa, but she dodged the attack and sliced the Lizalfos with her two katanas, killing it. The last Lizalfos got up and then Link shot the Lizalfos one more time with another arrow. "That settles that, let's keep moving."

The party kept on trekking up Death Mountain. The walk was long and strenuous, but Link knew they still had about an hour and half of more walking ahead of them.

Chapter 31: The Past Materializes

The Monster Squad and Link kept on walking. They periodically stopped to make sure there were no Lizalfos along the way. With the combined ability of the Eye of Truth and Link's sharp eye, any camouflaged Lizalfos along the way weren't a big problem for the team. Eventually, a boulder fell down the pathway. "Watch out!" Link exclaimed to the others and they ran out of the way of it. The boulder fell down the mountain. Poump looked up and saw the main crater of Death Mountain had a large mechanical creature of some kind. It looked like a salamander.

"Is that Vah Rudania?" Poump asked.

"Yup. That's it." Link said as he observed it a little bit more. "Those red lights don't look good. The last time they were like that, Calamity Ganon had control over it."

"What happened when Rudania was under control of Calamity Ganon?"

"A lot of bad things, but among them, meteor showers and falling boulders. They happen more frequently the closer you get to it, and right now, we're getting pretty close. Let's keep walking." The party kept on walking. They eventually made it to a rocky area that had a rock formation formed like a huge tunnel. There were 16 Gorons holding pick-axes that were looking inside of the tunneled area. They turned around to see Link.

"Oh hey there brother!" One of the Gorons said at the sight of Link. "I'm pretty sure you've seen it already, but Vah Rudania has been acting weird lately. Reminds us of what happened during the Calamity."

"All of us have seen it for ourselves, Tanko." Link said to the Goron. "Why are all of you out here right now? Where's Yunobo?"

"Yunobo is at Goron City right now, protecting the other Gorons from Vah Rudania's attacks. There's also a big amount of monsters swarming around the place. Yunobo told us to get out of Goron City, so we did." Tanko looked down the mountain. "From what we could tell, it looks like there's more monsters down the side of the mountain. We don't know where we should go from here, Hyrule looks like it's in a lot of danger."

"Zelda sent me here to escort you all to the Akkala Citadel." Link told Tanko. "There's 16 of you Gorons. My friends and I have cleared out a bunch of the monsters along the way up here, so I trust that all of you can make your way down to the Akkala Citadel yourselves. It's a tall building, can't miss it."

"How can we go down there without Yunobo?" Tanko said.

"You can make it because all of you are strong." Link said to Tanko and the other Gorons. "Roll to your heart's content! You can make it to the Citadel by yourselves!"

Tanko scratched his chin. "Huh, you're right!" Tanko turned to the other Gorons. "Come on brothers! Down the mountain we go!" Tanko and the other Gorons walked behind the party, rolled up into a ball form, and then rolled down the mountain at a really fast speed.

Uten turned to Link. "How can you tell the Gorons apart? They all look the same to me."

"Sometimes it's just luck." Link said. "Alright, let's get moving through this tunnel now." Link and the party walked into the tunnel. Some ores were on the ground, as well as several hot rocks. Tipa looked at some of the hot rocks and noticed a few lizards sitting on one of the hot rocks. She decided to walk up to the lizards and tried to catch them. She jumped down and managed to catch one of the lizards. She held it tightly in her hands and felt it squirm. Uten noticed Tipa with the lizard in her hands.

"Tipa, don't eat that!" Uten said to Tipa.

Tipa turned around with the lizard in her hands and looked straight at Uten's eyes. "Meat." She said. She put her helmet off and then stuffed the lizard into her mouth. She maintained her eye contact with Uten. Tipa felt the lizard wiggle around inside of her mouth, and then she spat it out, allowing it to run away. Tipa put her helmet back on, stood up, and then exclaimed "HOT! LIZARD HOT!" Link walked up to her and reached for a potion on his waist. He force fed the potion to Tipa, and then her mouth felt better. "Thanks." She said.

"You're welcome." Link replied.

Poump looked at the ground. He noticed a few small hot rocks started moving a little bit. "Whoa! What the?!" Poump exclaimed. Link looked at the ground as well. The moving rocks emerged from the rocky floor and started lumbering towards the party.

"Oh snap, Stone Pebblits." Link said. "Punch em, Poump!" Link said to Poump.

"Okay!" Poump ran up to the Stone Pebblits walking up towards the party and punched them with his fist. The Power Bracelets allowed Poump to destroy them instantly.

"If these Pebblits are here, then that means-" The ground quaked underneath Link and the gang. A bigger rock in the area started moving and then rose from the ground. It looked like a Stone Pebblit but a lot bigger. "An Igneo Talus." Link said. The large rock creature permeated a fiery light within itself. Link pulled out his bow and knocked an ice arrow. He fired the ice arrow at the Igneo Talus, and then it's fiery light disappeared. Link ran up to the Igneo Talus and climbed up the surface of it. The Talus tried shaking him off, but he held on for his life. Link made it to the top of the Igneo Talus and pulled out his Master Sword. He whacked at a protruding piece of rock on it's back, and after a few hits, the Talus fell to the ground and then exploded into a bunch of ores.

"Well that just happened." Poump said blankly.

"It always rests in that spot." Link said. "Here, take these ice arrows in case you run into another one of these again." Link handed Zhago 5 ice arrows.

"I will make sure I use these correctly." Zhago said as he put the ice arrows into his quiver.

"Alright, let's keep trekking." Link said to the others. They kept walking forward and climbed up a rocky wall. After a quick break to catch some stamina, they kept on walking through the tunnel and they eventually saw the sky again. Zhago looked forward and saw someone wearing a Sheikah Warrior uniform.

"Sheik?" Zhago said as he squinted his eyes a bit. The heat of Death Mountain made it hard to discern what things looked like, especially since they were getting even closer to the volcano itself. The Sheikah Warrior disappeared and then in their place stood the dark armor of Veerus. Veerus let out a loud screeching sound, and then all of a sudden, the party felt themselves disappearing elsewhere. Link noticed them disappearing.

"Wait, what?!" Link exclaimed. He looked at where Veerus stood, but she wasn't there either. Link looked around the place in a panic. He couldn't see the party members anywhere. They were completely gone. He kept on walking around the path trying to see if they were anywhere nearby. "Poump! Uten! Zhago!" Link shouted, but none of them answered. After a minute of searching for them, Sheik teleported in front of Link, and standing next to her was a large Gerudo male. "Sheik!" Link exclaimed. "Where have you been, and who is this?!"

Sheik looked at Link. "Someone who you should know." Sheik said.

Link looked the Gerudo man up and down. "Who are you?" Link asked.

The Gerudo man stood up proudly. "I am Ganondorf. And you are Link I presume."

"Ganondorf?" Link said with slight confusion. He noticed Ganondorf's triforce on his hand. "Wait a moment, you were that strange body Zelda and I found!"

"Well there's a lot more to him than just that." Sheik said.

Link and Ganondorf stared at each other with an uneasy energy, with Sheik making sure they didn't get into a fight.

Poump fell onto the ground. The ground vibrated as if it were a drum. Zhago, Uten, and Tipa also landed onto the vibrating ground with Poump. They stood themselves up. And looked around themselves. Wherever they were, it was pitch black, except for the floor underneath them, which was visibly white. Veerus materialized in front of the party. "Hello again." Veerus said through her mask. "It appears you four have fulfilled your mission that was given to you by Zelda."

"Yeah, what about it?" Poump said.

"You served Zelda, which meant that you served the Royal Family. I am sure you are tired of me telling you about Demise and his curse, but I must remind you that for as long as Zelda and Link live, Demise will return time and time again throughout all of time, in an endless cycle." Veerus looked at Zhago. "Sheikah Warrior, if you are well acquainted with the history of the Royal Family, you would know that they did terrible things to your people." Veerus waved her hands and then the area surrounding them changed into a dig site, where multiple Sheikah researchers were discovering ancient Sheikah tech. It felt real, as if the dust from the dig site got into the party members' eyes. One of the Sheikah researchers blew up a chunk of rock and underneath it was a Guardian.

The area surrounding the party changed in appearance. People wearing the Royal Family crest approached the Sheikah researchers. One of the Royal Family members spoke to a Sheikah researcher. "You must give us your findings, or die." The Royal Family member said. They turned around and appeared to be one of the oldest kings of Hyrule, from 10,000 years ago.

The area around the party changed into a temple with a large Goddess Statue. It looked a lot like the inside of the Temple of Time, just a lot neater and less mossy. A Sheikah researcher prayed in front of the Goddess statue. "Please Hylia. Oh Goddess Hylia, what have I done to deserve this?" The Sheikah researcher said with panic in their voice. "All of our efforts, all of our research, all of it is for nought. Why do I continue praying to you when the Royal Family also prays to you?! Why do you favor them instead of us?! Please Hylia, forgive me!"

The area around the party changed once again, and now it looked like a field. Members from the Sheikah Tribe were lined up in shackles and brought to a chopping block. The old King of Hyrule stood next to the chopping block and ordered an executioner to kill the Sheikah researcher. The axe fell and the Sheikah researchers head rolled. Standing next to the old King of Hyrule was a Sheikah woman, who seemed perfectly fine with what was happening, as the expression on her face didn't change at all.

The area around the party changed once more, now appearing as a hideout area in the Gerudo Desert. Several Sheikah warriors sat in a circle around a fire, with a Sheikah warrior preaching next to the fire. "The Royal Family has betrayed us! We have served them for generations, and as soon as we found a technological breakthrough, they took that from us! Look outside, friends! They are slaughtering us by the dozens just for us wanting to keep our free will and our own findings! We must fight back against the Royal Family, and all of the other Sheikah members that would wish to continue living like this!"

The Sheikah warriors in the crowd raised their weapons into the air and started chanting. "Maz Koshia!"

"Maz Koshia!"

"Maz Koshia!"

"Maz Koshia!"

"Maz Koshia!"

The area around the party members changed into an area with a castle that was draped with the crest of the Royal Family. The Sheikah Warriors were ravaging the guards of this castle. As if they were being taken by them, the party members were floating alongside the Sheikah Warriors and into the castle's main chambers. The Sheikah that was preaching to the other warriors was in the throne room, and he stabbed the King and Queen of Hyrule dead. He looked at the other Sheikah Warriors in the room. One of the warriors ran up to the Sheikah that killed the King and Queen. "They have a daughter. A princess somewhere in the castle." The warrior said to the preacher.

"Find the princess! Kill her too! We cannot have any of their bloodline left!" The preacher proclaimed and the Sheikah Warriors raised their weapons with bloodlust.

The area around the party members changed again, this time showing them a field not too far away from the castle. The Sheikah woman who was standing next to the King was riding on a horse across the field, with a small body covered in a cloak on her horse. An arrow fired from the distance and hit the horse, causing it to fall over. The woman grabbed the small body in the cloak and landed onto the floor. The woman set the small body down. "Stay put." She said to the small body, which was standing upright while wearing the cloak. The woman turned around and saw the Sheikah preacher approaching her. "Maz, is this what you wish for? Solving violence with violence?" The woman said.

"No Impaz, this is exactly what I wish for. We deserve much better, and the Royal Family gets in the way of tradition! Our achievements!" Maz said to the woman, wielding a katana.

"You are blinded by bloodlust! The Royal Family might have mistreated you, but that doesn't mean you have to kill them!" Impaz replied.

"Then you are my enemy!" Maz ran for Impaz. Impaz pulled out a sword and parried Maz' attack. Maz stabbed Impaz through the torso.

"AGH!" Impaz said. She dropped her sword and then performed a pattern with her hands. This caused the both of them to teleport away, leaving the small person in the cloak behind. Eventually another Sheikah warrior appeared before the small person wearing the cloak. The small person ran away from them.

"Don't fear, you're safe with me." The Sheikah Warrior said to the small person in the cloak. The cloaked person turned around and ran immediately towards the Sheikah.

"Oman Au!" The small person said with a squeaky voice as they grabbed onto the Sheikah Warrior.

The area surrounding the party members changed again, this time showing Maz and Impaz sitting at a spring together, praying to a Goddess Statue. "Time will heal our wounds." Impaz said to Maz. "You must let go of your violent tendencies, and we may have a brighter future ahead of us."

Once more, the area changed around the party members. This time, it was a group of bloodied Sheikah Warriors, all huddled together. One of these Sheikah Warriors started preaching. "We may have lost Maz Koshia, but we will not lose our ways! We are no longer the Sheikah Clan, we are now the Yiga Clan!" The warriors around the preacher started pumping their weapons into the air.

The party members rearrived in the dark room with Veerus. Veerus started speaking. "Do you see what happened to your ancestors? How the birth of the Yiga Clan was caused by the Royal Family? How could one forgive such a terrible thing? The Goddesses of Hyrule rejected not only your people known as the Sheikah Clan, but they also rejected my people known as the Twili. I will spare you the details about my world, but I will offer you a choice. If you join me, you will find yourself in a perfect world in which the Royal Family and the Yiga Clan don't exist." Veerus stepped to the side and revealed someone behind her. It was Zhago's wife. "You could live in a perfect world in which she is still alive."

Zhago looked longingly at his long dead wife. He started walking towards Veerus and his wife. Then he stopped and shuddered for a bit. "As tempting as that offer is, I'd rather live in this world where I could make my decisions and live with the consequences!" Zhago pulled out his bow and shot an arrow at Veerus.

The arrow hit Veerus' armor and fell to the floor. "So you choose to live in a world where mistakes are made over and over again. If that's the case, then you will be executed by one of the many methods in which the Sheikah Clan suffered from." Veerus levitated into the air just a tiny bit and then slammed her feet into the ground, which created a vibration on the floor again. "Meet your doom to a ghost of the past. Bongo Bongo!" Veerus disappeared from their view and then two disembodied hands floated out of the darkness. The hands banged on the floor, like a drum.

"What in the goddamn world did we find ourselves in?!" Uten exclaimed.

"An ancient torture chamber." Zhago said. The floating hands drummed on the floor, making it vibrate enough for the party to lose their balance. "We need to jump constantly!" Zhago said to the other party members. They started jumping in between each vibration, which allowed them a surprising gain of focus. The hands got closer and closer to the party. Zhago shot at one of the hands with his bow, causing the large hand to retract. He shot at the other hand, which also caused it to retract. Zhago pulled out the Eye of Truth and examined the room some more and then saw a large eye staring at him. He pulled out an ancient arrow and aimed it right for the eye. The ancient arrow shot out of the bow and pierced through the disembodied eye. A loud screeching noise was hurt and then the hands disappeared into a puff of smoke. The eye exploded, and then the drum underneath the party faded away.

They blinked and then found themselves on Death Mountain once again. They were closer to the area with the Divine Beast. A bright flash of light appeared on the main pathway. The party members blocked the light from their eyes and then looked at it again. A figure wearing dark clothing appeared. The party approached the figure with their weapons drawn. The figure turned around to look at them. They seemed to have a slim body, with pale blue skin with a few dark spots, and orange hair. They appeared to be feminine. "Where am I?" The slim figure said. She looked at the party members. "Who are you?" She said.

The party members looked at each other. Poump spoke up. "We're the Monster Squad. Who are you?"

The slim figure looked at each of them and then spoke. "My name is Midna." She said.

"Midna?" Poump said. "Are you working with Veerus?!" Poump pointed his sword at her some more.

"Veerus? Who is Veerus?" Midna said.

"You don't know? Maybe you'd know her by her real name, Midna the 17th."

"Midna the 17th?! My name is used for that long down my line?!" Midna walked up to the side of Death Mountain and she looked down the side of it to see Hyrule Field in the distance. "How far into the future have I come?!" She exclaimed.

"Wait, you're from the past?!" Poump said.

Midna turned to Poump. "It appears I am… in the future now." She looked up to the highest peak of Death Mountain, which had the Divine Beast walking on it. "This place we're standing in, is it Death Mountain?"

"Uhh. Yeah." Poump said.

"I've been here before. A long time ago. This place has changed so much." Midna observed a lava river that was pouring down the side of the mountain.

"Well, uhh… we need to get to Goron City right now and meet up with Link again-" Poump was cut short by Midna.

"Link?! Did you say Link?!" Midna said with hopefulness in her voice.

"Seems like you knew him before. Here, follow us before you confuse me more." Poump said to Midna.

"I am always confusing, Hylian." Midna said back with a little bit of sass to her voice. The five of them walked up the road to Death Mountain. They looked up and saw a few meteors falling towards them.

"Those are the meteors Link mentioned!" Uten exclaimed. The party ran forward away from one of the meteors. Uten accidentally tripped on a protruding piece of rock and fell over. She looked up at an incoming meteor that was about to hit her. The other party members turned around and looked in shock. Midna quickly rushed up to Uten and then her orange hair miraculously turned into a large orange fist that punched the meteor out of Uten's way. The large orange hand shrunk down a to the size of a normal hand and picked Uten up. "Whoa, thank you for that." Uten said to Midna.

"I will always help people like you, just like how Link did." Midna said. The party kept on walking up Death Mountain's road. More meteors descended onto the party, so Midna used her orange hair to create a flat surface that blocked the meteors from landing onto them. They continued walking with Midna's hair above them.

"So wait a moment, if you know who Link is, which Midna are you?" Poump asked.

"What do you mean by which Midna?" Midna said.

"I mean like, we met Midna the 17th, and your name is Midna as well and you look like her too." Poump said.

"I am Midna the 1st, which means they continue to use my name for that long. Since you all know about someone named Link, I wonder if they would know who I am." Midna said to herself. She had a strange longing in her voice when she said Link's name.

The party kept on walking and they eventually made it to an overpass with a sign. The sign was titled 'GORON CITY', and behind the overpass were several rock huts and bridge structures. Some Moblins and Lizalfos were walking around the area with weapons in their hands. A Goron was hiding underneath the overpass. The Goron looked at the party. "The five of you are off your rockers!" The Goron exclaimed to the party as they went under the overpass. "You actually climbed all the way up Death Mountain in a time like this!"

"We're off our rockers, just like you said big guy." Poump said to the Goron. "Why are you here right now like this?"

"Monsters have been swarming Goron City right now! And it doesn't help much that we're also being bombarded by falling rocks from the sky!" The Goron pointed to the Divine Beast that was walking across the main mountain on Death Mountain. "Vah Rudania is the cause of the meteors! The only people who we knew how to get Vah Rudania out of here are Yunobo and Link, and we haven't seen Link in a long time!"

"Where's Yunobo?" Poump asked.

"In there!" The Goron pointed to a big rock hut in the area.

"We'll free him." Poump said to the Goron. "Come on guys!" Poump and the others went into Goron City with their weapons ready. Any incoming meteors were being dealt with by Midna, as she punched a lot of them out of the sky with her orange hair. Several Moblins and Lizalfos noticed the party and approached them. Poump used the Magic Sword's energy beams to his advantage and managed to blast a Moblin into a lava pool nearby. Tipa used both of her katanas and spun them around wildly, slicing a lot of the Lizalfos into pieces. She got dizzy after all of that spinning, but Uten defended her by stabbing any incoming monsters away. One of the Moblins had a large club, and they prepared to swing it at Zhago. Zhago dodged under the attack and stabbed his sword into the Moblin. The Moblin flinched from the attack, but moved itself to the side, with Zhago still holding onto the sword. Zhago lost a grip of the sword and was flung just next to a lava pool. Zhago felt the heat of it come closer and he quickly got himself back up. He pulled out some throwing knives and shot them at the Moblin. The Moblin used the club to block the incoming knife attacks and swiftly ran up to Zhago. Zhago noticed his sword was still stabbed inside of it's stomach, so he teleported right in front of the Moblin, grabbed his sword, and then sliced it to the side, pulling it out of the Moblin's flesh. The Moblin fell over screeching and landed right next to the lava pool. It let go of it's club and gripped onto the rocks on the side of the lava pool. Zhago took his sword and sliced at both of the Moblin's hands, which caused it to fall into the lava pool.

After a few minutes of fighting, a huge swarm of Lizalfos overwhelmed Uten and Tipa, attacking the both of them. Uten tried holding her ground but eventually one of the Lizalfos disarmed her of her spear. Tipa sliced away at a few incoming Lizalfos, but 4 of them managed to gang up on her and pin her to the ground, where she couldn't do anything with her swords. Zhago tried attacking the swarming Lizalfos but eventually they overwhelmed him too. The Lizalfos let out a very long tongue that was very sticky. They were about to eat them. Midna approached the Lizalfos and with her hair, she pulled each of them away from the party members. She smacked down on any Lizalfos that came her way, and with a few strands of her orange hair she handed the recovering party members their weapons back. Poump looked around the place and noticed something peculiar. A lot of the meteors in the location were fixated on landing on one specific mound of rocks, which seemed to be getting bigger because of the meteor's frequent hits. Poump walked up to the mound of rocks and prepared his fists. With the power from his Power Bracelets, he punched away at the rocks and made sure the meteors wouldn't hit him as he was punching away at them. Eventually he found enough rocks to be easy enough to carry, so he picked them up and rolled them out of the way. After some time, he saw the orange color of a Goron underneath the rocks. He picked up the remaining pile of rocks and then the Goron underneath managed to break himself free.

Poump recognized the Goron as Yunobo. "Yunobo! We need your help!" Poump exclaimed to Yunobo.

"Ohh-" Yunobo looked up and saw a storm of meteors heading straight for him. "Run for it!" Yunobo ran out of the way of the meteors, and Poump rolled out of the way from them. He noticed that the meteors seemed to be chasing Yunobo as if they were magnetized to his being. Poump took notice of the large weapon he was carrying. Yunobo turned around and smacked at the incoming meteors with his weapon but ran away a bit as well. Poump took out the Magic Sword and shot some beams of energy at the meteors, which managed to shoot them out of the sky with ease. Yunobo was able to deal with the incoming meteors much easier, and so he smacked away at them. There were more coming his way, so Poump ran up to Yunobo and kept on shooting at the incoming meteors with the magic energy beams.

"Yunobo! We need to deal with Vah Rudania!" Poump said to Yunobo as they were taking turns smiting away the incoming meteors.

"That's what I was thinking we needed to do!" Yunobo said as he exerted his energy into smacking the meteors. "These meteors are a big problem though, they don't seem to end!"

"That's because they seem to be targeting you!" Poump said to Yunobo as he blasted away at more of the incoming meteors.

"Oh really?! No wonder why they seem so abundant! Rudania must hate me right now!" Yunobo put his weapon on his back and prepared to roll into a ball. "I need to get there!" Yunobo rolled into Goron City and ran over the swarm of Lizalfos, sending them flying. A Moblin tried stopping Yunobo's roll, but Yunobo plowed right through the Moblin like it was nothing. The meteors continued aiming for Yunobo, but his speed was tremendous which made the meteors hit the ground behind him.

As for Poump and the party, the meteors around Goron City stopped landing around it, with Yunobo out of it's vicinity. This left just a few more Moblins and Lizalfos to take care of. Noticeably, one of the Moblins walked forward to the team with gold skin, and a big weapon that was reminiscent of the one that Yunobo was carrying. "A Golden Monster?!" Uten exclaimed. "I have never seen one of these around ever!"

The Gold Moblin ran up to the team with it's weapon ready and then slammed it into the floor. The party members rolled away from the attack. Tipa sliced at the Gold Moblin from its side with her swords. The Gold Moblin looked like it was just annoyed a little bit by Tipa's attacks, and then it kicked her out of the way. Tipa rolled on the floor a little bit and got back up. Poump shot his magic energy beam at the Gold Moblin, but it didn't seem to be phased much by the attack. Poump kept on shooting the Moblin but then the Moblin swung it's weapon at Poump, sending him flying across the air and then rolling on the ground. He got back up and tried shooting an energy beam at the Moblin, but the Magic Sword didn't let out any energy beam like it usually did. Uten dodged some of the Gold Moblin's attacks and then stabbed at it with her spear. It didn't flinch much from the attack and prepared to swing at Uten again. Zhago teleported himself on top of the Gold Moblin and tried slicing it's neck with his sword. The Gold Moblin let out a screech and then shook Zhago off of itself. Zhago landed on the floor and looked up at the Gold Moblin's neck. The wound sealed up completely, as if it was healing itself from the inside. Zhago looked to Midna for assistance, but he saw her slamming her massive orange fist at the swarm of Lizalfos that were coming her way. Her fist smashed through countless Lizalfos, making them fly everywhere.

Zhago was fed up with the Gold Moblin, so he pulled out his bow and brought out a bomb arrow. The bomb arrow exploded as soon as it escaped Zhago's quiver because of the hot atmosphere of Death Mountain. The explosion sent Zhago flying towards the Gold Moblin, which took the opportunity to smack Zhago out of the air with it's weapon. Zhago slammed against a hard rock and he fell to the floor. He struggled to get back up, but his body needed to recover from the attacks he endured.

Uten rushed towards Zhago in order to heal him. Tipa and Poump ran towards the Gold Moblin together with their weapons ready. The Gold Moblin prepared to swing at the both of them. Poump brought out the Mirror Shield and Tipa got behind him. Poump blocked the attack and then the two of them ran right in front of the Gold Moblin and started double teaming it from both sides with their weapons. Tipa slashed the Moblin from the back, while Poump sliced the Moblin from the front. It tried to kick Poump, but Poump rolled out of the way of the attack. Tipa started to dig both of her katanas into the back of the Gold Moblin and scaled up it's back as if it were a wall. Tipa sliced the Gold Moblin on the back a little bit more, which caused it to fling it's weapon around wildly. Poump blocked the attacks with the Mirror Shield and then dodged under one of them. He rolled behind the Moblin and yelled up to Tipa. "Tipa! Turn it around to me!" Tipa nodded her head and then directed her swords into slashing it's back to the right. The Moblin lunged around to look at Poump and then Poump chopped at one of the Moblin's legs, causing it to fall over. The Moblin's large head was in front of Poump. "Jump off!" Poump said to Tipa. Tipa jumped off of the Moblin's back and then Poump punched his fist into the Moblin's face which sent it flying backwards. The Moblin was on the ground for a bit and then it started getting up again. "What?!" Poump exclaimed. "This thing just doesn't know when to die!"

Then an ice arrow shot through the air and froze the Moblin solid. Zhago had used an ice arrow and Uten was running right towards the frozen Moblin with her spear ready. She stabbed the Moblin while it was frozen, which caused it to fly back even more from the attack. Zhago shot another ice arrow at the Moblin which froze it again. Poump and Tipa ran up to the frozen Moblin and combined their attacks together. They sliced the Moblin together, which made it release from it's frozen state. The Moblin reached it's arm into the air and then fell down limp. It was finally killed.

"Well that took a while." Zhago said as he was breathing heavily. The party noticed the Lizalfos swarm that Midna was dealing with started to dwindle in numbers. Soon enough, a large group of Gorons rolled into Goron City carrying pickaxes and claymores.

One of the Gorons screamed "Brothers, for Yunobo!" and then they all charged forward past Midna and started attacking the Lizalfos horde, sending them flying away into different directions. Midna turned to the party.

"These Gorons don't seem to change much, I remember they acted like this quite a lot." Midna said.

"Gorons don't change much in the first place." Poump said. He looked at the huge wave of Gorons fighting back against the Lizalfos. Eventually, there were no more Lizalfos left as either most of them were dead or they ran away. The Gorons waved their weapons into the air in victory.

"What's our next move?" Uten asked.

"Our next move is to go to Vah Rudania." Poump said. "Yunobo rolled away into that direction, so we should try to help him out over there."

"Alright then, we'll follow your lead." Uten said to Poump. The party started running towards the large mountain with the Divine Beast perched atop it. Streams of lava poured from the top of the mountain. The area was getting even hotter the more they made it towards the Death Mountain volcano. They noticed Vah Rudania shooting the meteors from itself, which meant that the Divine Beast itself was the cause of the meteors. The meteors were landing towards an area behind the volcano. The party kept on running. They ran across a metal bridge that took them across a lava river and they found themselves directly underneath the Divine Beast. As it walked across the side of the mountain with it's many legs, several boulders rolled down the side of the mountain and towards the party. Midna held up her hair to stop one of the incoming boulders from hitting them, but the impact from the boulder made Midna flinch quite a lot.

"AUGH!" She exclaimed in pain. She let her hair toss the boulder to the side. Vah Rudania above them made a loud roaring noise and then a few things started flying out of itself. The party observed them a bit and then it became apparent that they were flying Guardians, with a red Guardian eye and everything. The flying Guardian aimed it's laser down at the party with no particular party member in mind.

"Everyone, run!" Poump said to the others. The party ran alongside a road on the side of the volcano away from the Guardian's laser sight. The flying Guardian let out a laser and it almost hit Zhago, but he dodged out of the way from it's attack at just the right moment. He turned around, knocked an ancient arrow, and shot right for the flying Guardian's eye, which caused it to fall down and explode. A few more flying Guardians were starting to fly around the corner. Zhago shot some more ancient arrows towards the incoming Guardians, which made all of them fall down and explode. Zhago found himself with only 4 more ancient arrows left, but there were a lot more than 4 flying Guardians coming for them. Midna tried reaching for one of the Guardians with her hair, but the Guardian flew out of the way from her attack and continued it's gaze. Then, as if it came out of nowhere, a large weapon fell from the top of the mountain and landed onto one of the flying Guardians, which caused it to fall to the ground. A Goron landed on top of one of the other flying Guardians, and punched the Guardian down to the floor and then they grabbed the large weapon back.

"Yunobo?!" Poump exclaimed at the sight of the Goron.

Yunobo looked at the party. "What are all of you doing here?! Being here would be suicide!" Some meteors started to come from the sky towards the party and smashed the flying Guardians out of the way. Yunobo smashed the incoming meteors out of the way and then rolled into a ball. He rolled across the side of the mountain and then the meteors were starting to chase after Yunobo. Any flying Guardians in the sky started making an effort to chase after the Goron Champion, instead of the party. The party started running forward some more and then they saw what looked like a cannon. The meteors and flying Guardians surrounded the cannon, and the balled up Goron Yunobo was inside of the cannon. Zhago noticed someone wearing Sheikah clothes planting a bomb into the cannon, and then Yunobo launched out of the cannon shortly after. Yunobo cut right through the flying Guardians and the meteors and shot straight for Vah Rudania. The Goron hit Vah Rudania and then a large impact was seen on the Divine Beast's body. Vah Rudania roared loudly and then it started to tighten it's legs into the mountainside. Then, as terrifying as it sounds, the magnificent Divine Beast springboarded itself off of the mountain and propelled itself into the air. A bunch of boulders were falling down towards the party, and Vah Rudania sailed through the air. The Beast landed it's four legs onto the ground of Death Mountain and then it marched itself down the mountain towards Hyrule Field.

The boulders violently slammed themselves down the mountain side. "Jump!" Poump said to the others. They all jumped off the side of the mountain and brought out their paragliders. They glided down the side of the mountain. Some of the boulders just barely missed the party on their way down. Everything seemed fine, until one of the boulders slammed itself right onto Zhago, sending him falling straight down to a pool of lava underneath him. Then, just before he could hit the lava, he saw a hand land onto his face and then he teleported elsewhere. Zhago didn't land on the floor painfully, but felt two arms keeping him up. He recovered his wits and got back up. He noticed the person who saved him, and it was Sheik.

"Even in your age, you sometimes forget your most important lesson." Sheik said.

"To stay calm no matter what situation I would be in. I'm sorry, Master." Zhago kneeled to Sheik.

"Don't be sorry, I know you can do better." Sheik said to Zhago. "And by the way, you have no more need of referring to me as Master."

Zhago looked up at Sheik. "What shall I call you then?"

Sheik started unwrapping her head dress. "You shall call me by my real name." As the head dress was being unwrapped, a few strands of purple hair fell out of it. "My real name... is Hilda." Hilda looked back at Zhago with her face fully revealed.

Zhago had a shocked expression on his face. To think that he was trained by someone much younger than him made him feel a little bit pathetic, but the training she gave him was what kept him alive for this long, so he was grateful. "Hilda. Princess Hilda." Zhago said to himself. "So, you were here in Hyrule the whole time?!"

Hilda answered him. "I know what you're thinking. You're confused as to how I was here in Hyrule this whole time, when my younger self lived in Hyrule Castle. During my journey through time which started in the Temple of Time, I learned many techniques and fighting styles. I trained with many Sheikah Warriors throughout the ages, learning their own unique abilities and styles and applying them to my own skill set. Once my training was complete, the Sheikah Warriors told me that I could pass my knowledge down to any Sheikah Warriors I could meet. Therefore, I chose to train you and the other current Sheikah Warriors for your 2 years of training. However, training all of you Warriors took me only 6 months of my own time, as I would use the Ocarina of Time to skip myself forward to each training lesson, and I would interchangeably visit other points in time in order to continue my journey to redeem Ganondorf." Hilda looked at Zhago's face, which was in disbelief.

"So that means that you… taught your own self how to play the harp?" Zhago said with great confusion in his voice.

"The more you think about it, the more it will hurt." Hilda said. "Now I must leave Death Mountain. My fireproof elixir is wearing out."

"Paya says hi." Zhago said.

"See you later, Zhago." Hilda teleported away in a puff of smoke. Zhago looked around the mountain and then looked up. He saw his party members gliding in the air above him, and down the side of the mountain, Vah Rudania was continuing it's walk towards Hyrule Field. Midna appeared before Zhago.

"Ah-ha! I was looking for you!" Midna said at the sight of Zhago. She looked up and saw the party members paragliding above them. She snapped her fingers and then the three gliding party members appeared on the floor.

"Whoa!" Poump and the others exclaimed as their feet met the ground. They stumbled for a bit, and then regained their balance.

"Good, now all 4 of you are safe." Midna said at the sight of the party members together again. She looked up the road of Death Mountain and then saw a bunch of Gorons rolling down the road. She widened her eyes and then made a pushing motion with her hand, which caused the party to be shifted off of the main road. The Gorons rolled by in the dozens. The last Goron of the group unrolled from his rolling state and looked at the party. It was Yunobo.

"Goodness!" Yunobo said at the sight of the party members. "It is so good to see you guys alive and well! Not many people survive that close to Vah Rudania, granted that it's now walking down towards Hyrule Field, and that's a really bad sign. But, it is good to see all of you alive. These Gorons and I are headed to the Akkala Citadel to prepare the Goron forces, as Link told me to do."

Poump gave a thumbs up to Yunobo. "Keep on rolling, Champ!" Poump said.

Yunobo also gave a thumbs up. "I sure will! Keep on running, Poump!" Yunobo balled up and continued rolling down the mountain with the other Gorons.

"Nice to see these Gorons are doing well for themselves." Midna said.

Poump took out his Sheikah Slate and initiated a call with Zelda. She picked up. "Hello Zelda, we've managed to finish the job. The Gorons are going to the Akkala Citadel right now. What is our next mission?"

Zelda responded. "Come back to Lurelin Village. I will give you the full details on what you need to do next. And by the way, good job out there, I'm glad you're alive." Zelda hung up the call.

"Well guys, I guess we'll have to make the trek all the way back to Lurelin Village." Poump said. Uten sighed a little bit. The party walked down the road of the mountain, which thankfully was really close to where the Stable was. The party got onto their horses and then Midna walked in front of the party on their horses.

"I can take all of you to where you need to go. Just tell me, and I'll be able to bring you there." Midna said.

"Oh, that would be quite nice actually." Poump said. He looked at the others who nodded in approval.

"Alright then, I hope this works." Midna put her hand onto the ground and then all 4 of the party members and their horses turned into small black squares. They jettisoned high into the sky, and then as if the feeling was instant, they found themselves rematerializing in Lurelin Village, next to the boat. It was night time right now. Midna landed next to them and looked around the place. She was quite intrigued with the tall trees and the wooden huts. "It has been a long time since I've been in this world."

"Yeah actually, what's your story?" Poump asked Midna as he and the other party members took their Firebreaker Armor off. They were still wearing their clothes underneath, so they weren't naked.

"It's quite a long story." Midna said as she shifted her toes through the sand. It didn't occur to the party that Midna wasn't wearing anything on her feet, so seeing this made her look very alien to them. They realized that Midna was barefoot on Death Mountain, which should've been so hot to her, but she was unflinching to the heat on the mountain. "I'll spare you all the nitty gritty details, I met someone named Link, and they assisted me in dealing with someone named Zant. When I-" Midna stopped talking and widened her eyes at the sight of two horse riders that were riding into the village. She walked towards the horse riders and ignored Poump and the others.

Poump looked at the other party members. "Well dang." He said.

Midna approached the two people on their horses and looked at them get off, taking note of one of them wearing a green tunic, and the other person being a large man with red hair. "Link?" Midna said as soon as Link could get her attention.

Link looked at her with a slightly confused expression.

"Link, do you remember me?" Midna said with some hope in her voice.

Link kept on having a confused expression. "Who… are you?" Link said feeling really clueless.

Midna looked down to the ground in defeat. "Ah." Midna said with minor despair. "Nevermind." Midna took a closer look at the Gerudo male that was with Link. "Wait a moment, are you Ganondorf?!" Midna said with slight anger in her voice.

The Gerudo male looked down at her. "Yes, I am Ganondorf." The Gerudo male said.

"You're supposed to be dead!" Midna exclaimed, and her orange hair burst out in anger, prepared to pummel this man. She punched at him but Ganondorf quickly raised his arm in order to block the incoming attack.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Link said to Midna with his hands raised. "Chillax! What is the dispute here?"

Midna looked at Link with an angry expression. "This man, he tried to kill me! He threatened all of Hyrule, and the Twilight Realm!"

Ganondorf, who still had his guard up clarified what was being said. "I remember her Link." Ganondorf said. "Your name is Midna, correct?"

"Yes indeed." Midna replied with menace in her voice.

"In one of my many incarnations, I caused great trouble for her, and someone who was very much like you Link. However, that is in the past now. I have changed now." Ganondorf said as he put his guard down slowly.

Midna stopped her attack stance and calmed down a bit. "You don't seem to be ill intentioned, but I will keep my eyes on you." Midna started to walk in a huff towards the waves of the beach and then she sat down to think a little bit more.

Link looked at Ganondorf. "Looks like that bad history of yours is gonna need to shake off a little bit."

"It sure will have to, buddy. It sure will have to." Ganondorf replied.

As Ganondorf said that, Zelda walked out of the tent where she was making her battle plans. "Link!" She noticed Ganondorf standing next to Link. "G-Ganon?!"

"It's a long story." Link said.

All of a sudden a bright flash of light appeared next to Link and then materialized into someone. They were a Hylian boy who was most likely 14 years old, wearing a green tunic and the Master Sword on their back. Link took an extra notice at the cracked Hylian shield on their back. The kid stood up and looked at Link with a shocked expression. "Dad?! You're alive?!"

"What?!" Link and Zelda exclaimed in unison.

Chapter 32: Courage and Power

Link, Zelda and Ganondorf stood in shock at what just happened. "Pep, is that you?" Link asked the Hylian boy.

"Yes, my name is Pep." The Hylian boy replied. He looked around. "I was told by some girl wearing a purple tunic much like the one I'm wearing that I was needed here, and here I am now. Goodness, Dad, it is so good to see you alive again."

Link walked up to Pep. "Well, I'm here now." Link looked up and saw Zelda marching up to him with an angry expression.

"What is this?! Is he your son?! How do you know him and I don't, am I missing something?!" Zelda said in a huff of anger.

"Look here, I can explain." Link said as he was trying to de-escalate the situation.

"I've seen enough!" Zelda looked at Ganondorf. "What is he doing here?! Link, you must kill him!"

Ganondorf face palmed himself. "Ughhh, more of this." He said under his breath.

"Now now Zelda, a lot of stuff is happening right now! Lemme catch you up here." Link pointed to Ganondorf. "This is Ganondorf. As unbelievable as it is, he is actually working with us. He is a good guy." Link pointed to Pep. "This is Pep, or at least a future version of him. He is my son that I meant to tell you about for a while, but here we are."

"Spare me the details." Zelda said with haste in her voice. "You can tell me the rest of your story later. Right now, we need to be making moves, so follow me into the tent." Link looked at Pep and Ganondorf and then he followed her into the tent. Poump and the other party members were already inside of the tent. Link looked at the map of Hyrule which had a Rito marker set on the Hebra Region and a Goron marker set on the Akkala Region. There was also a Zora marker which was positioned next to the Lanayru Region. Zelda pointed out the Gerudo marker on the map. "The Guardian Commandos that I sent to the Gerudo Region haven't answered back for the past 24 hours. Everything must be hectic in the Gerudo Region, and the thought that they failed their mission is very concerning. I want you to go to the Gerudo Region, find the Guardian Commandos, and bring the Gerudo forces to Hyrule Field. From there, the forces across Hyrule will converge at Hyrule Castle, so that will be your next destination." Zelda turned to Poump and the squad. "As for you 4, I want you to go to Hyrule Castle and deal with the overgrowth of plant life. Your rupees are stored in a safe somewhere in the castle, so all you need to do is make it there and find out what caused the abnormal plant growth. Be careful, because I have lost contact with everyone that I have sent to the castle." Zelda looked at everyone in the room. "Any questions?"

Poump spoke up. "Is it alright if me and my friends can recuperate here in Lurelin Village?"

"Yes Poump. It is fine that you 4 can rest here for a bit. Once you're done resting, make haste for Hyrule Castle."

"Thank you Zelda." Poump said and then he and his friends walked out of the tent.

Zelda looked at Link. They were the only people left in the tent now. Link broke up the silence. "I meant to tell you for a while now."

"No, I understand." Zelda said.

"Wh-what?" Link said, as he was a little bit confused.

"That son of yours, Pep." Zelda looked to the exit of the tent and back to Link. "When you were out at sea for so long, I knew you would find yourself bedding with someone else. Both of us were young then, it's just something that happens. If you're asking for my forgiveness, then I forgive you. Secrets just boil underneath our skin for too long and it makes us feel worse to keep them in. I am also guilty of it with our own daughter, Hilda. From now on, no more secrets. Once this is all over, we'll talk more about this child. Speaking of the child, how old is he in the present?"

"Oh, Pep is 7 years old." Link said.

"Interesting." Zelda said. She looked at the map a little bit and then she forced herself onto Link and kissed him on the lips. She disengaged the kiss. "That Ganondorf. If he really has turned good, then he will join you on your voyage to the Gerudo Region."

"You think that's a good idea?" Link said to Zelda.

"The Gerudo Tribe might not like him, but if I can forgive you for what you did out at sea, then perhaps the Gerudo Tribe would also be capable of forgiving him."

"Well there is a huge difference between having a kid with someone else and a whole Gerudo man who was known as the Demon King throughout many generations." Link replied sarcastically.

"Haha." Zelda chuckled a little bit. "Your unwavering humor never ceases to amuse me."

Link awkwardly stood in the tent. He had no idea how to reply to this. "I guess I'll be going now."

"Do your best out there, Link." Zelda said as she waved goodbye to him.

"You too, Zelda." Link waved goodbye back and walked out of the tent. He saw Ganondorf standing next to their horses and speaking to Pep. "Hey, Ganondorf. Hop onto your horse, we're going to the Gerudo Desert."

"By the Goddess, of all places to go, we're going there?!" Ganondorf said with a nervous energy in his voice.

"Zelda wants me to go there, and you're coming with me." Link replied with certainty. "Pep, you should stay here in this village. I don't want you outside of this village because of how wild it is out there."

"Fine Dad." Pep said with a bit of impatience and then he walked around the village.

Link got onto his horse and Ganondorf got onto his horse, which was much bigger than Link's horse. "Hyah!" Link commanded his horse to ride forward and Ganondorf rode alongside him. They galloped through the forest. After a while of silence, Link spoke to Ganondorf. "Why wouldn't you want to go to the Gerudo Desert?" Link asked.

"Because the Gerudo Tribe would look at me with great disdain. I gave them a bad name a long time ago, and I even learned that a few Gerudos in this time period also have a big problem with me. My bad history gives me an unfavorable view in many people's eyes, especially the Gerudo. I don't want to face them right now. Maybe later I'd be fine with it."

Link understood where Ganondorf was coming from. "I've been in your place before. Of having to face my fears. I'll tell you what, the sooner you get it done, the better you'll feel about yourself. It might be painful, but you just have to endure that pain."

Ganondorf though for a bit. "You have a good point. I will trust you with your word. I will endure this pain with you by my side."

"That's more like it!" Link said with enthusiasm. The two of them ended up riding out of the Faron Woods and then they followed the road up to the Bridge of Hylia. They rode across it together and made it to the other side. Link noticed something on the Great Plateau to their left. "Is that Vah Rudania?!" Link saw the giant salamander Divine Beast with it's red lights glowing, perched on the Great Plateau. It had its mouth open and ready to fire at Hyrule Castle. "That can't be good!"

"Oh, one of the Divine Beasts." Ganondorf said. "Hopefully we won't have to deal with more of them." As Ganondorf said that, they noticed a large looming shadow shaped like a bird coming from the direction of the Hebra Region. It was approaching the Great Plateau.

"Vah Medoh?!" Link exclaimed.

"Damnit." Ganondorf said dryly.

"We have to keep riding forward then!" Link said to Ganondorf.

The bird-like Divine Beast known as Vah Medoh prepared to land on the Great Plateau. As it landed, the ground quaked in the nearby area, even causing some trees to fall over and birds flew into the air. The Beast positioned itself facing Hyrule Castle, with a laser sight coming from its beak. Link looked at this in disbelief, but kept on riding with Ganondorf behind him. Eventually, a horde of Bokoblins on horses appeared before Ganondorf and Link. Link pulled out a bow and knocked three arrows onto it. He aimed and shot, hitting three of the Bokoblins in the head and causing them to instantly die. Ganondorf's giant horse was very intimidating, so it made some of the horses run away in fear. The Bokoblins on those horses tried shooting at the two of them with their own bows. Some arrows flew towards Ganondorf, but he brought his arm up into the air at each arrow and they all broke upon contact with his skin. Ganondorf leaped off of his horse towards the Bokoblins and ran towards them. Link was shocked at how fast he could run and keep up with the other horses. Ganondorf personally grabbed each Bokoblin off of their horse and choked them to death. He choked a few of them so hard that their head would pop right open. Ganondorf ran right back to his horse and boarded it again. Link shot a few more arrows at the remaining Bokoblins, causing the monsters to either die or flee.

Link and Ganondorf kept on trekking along the pathway passing the Great Plateau. Link noticed a coliseum to their right with a platoon of soldiers riding into it. They kept on riding their horses forward, and they eventually made it to an area with multiple bridges. Their horses stomped past each bridge but then they noticed the last bridge in the area was destroyed. "The bridge is gone!" Link said.

Ganondorf looked down at Link on his horse, who was still going full speed. "Don't tell me you're going to do what I think you're to do." Ganondorf said.

"We're gonna jump to the other side with our horses!" Link exclaimed.

"Okay then." Ganondorf replied. The two rode their horses full speed towards the collapsed bridge, with a tall ravine in between them and the other side of the bridge.

"Let's do this!" Link exclaimed maniacally. His horse jumped right across the bridge and landed on the other side, and then Ganondorf's horse also jumped across. Despite its size, Ganondorf's horse was very powerful and had very good jumping ability. His horse landed on the other side of the collapsed bridge.

"Whoo, you have a lot of courage to do this, boy." Ganondorf said to Link. He looked back at the ravine. "How are we going to get the other people across? We surely aren't going to be forcing them to jump across this bridge."

"Don't worry Ganondorf, we'll find a way to get them across that doesn't involve jumping across a tall gap." Link kept on riding forward into Gerudo Valley and Ganondorf followed behind him. It didn't take them long to come face to face with more monsters. Bokoblins, Moblins, and Lizalfos were shooting at the two of them with their bows from small wooden towers. Ganondorf reached his hand out to Link.

"Toss me a bow." Ganondorf said to Link. Link secured a bow and tossed it to Ganondorf. Ganondorf knocked an arrow and pulled at the bow's string, but then the bow broke before he could even get to shoot with it. "Are you serious right now?" Ganondorf said as he tossed the bow's remains onto the ground.

"Don't worry, I always carry more bows with me." Link said. He pulled another bow out and started shooting arrows at the monsters. Each arrow went cleanly through each monster's head, causing all of them to fall off of their wood towers, dead. One of the Lizalfos that Link sniped got back up from the arrow to it's head and ran up swiftly to Link's horse. Link noticed this and shot at the Lizalfos one more time, and then it finally fell to the floor dead, twitching its leg. "Maybe I can get you a-" Link heard a loud roaring sound ahead of them. Link looked forward. "A Lynel?! With Gold skin?! What the hell is this!" As if by instinct, Link jumped off of his horse and fired 6 arrows into the Gold Lynel's face, and then Link landed onto the floor. It flinched a little bit from the heavy fire and then charged at Link. Link dodged out of the way of the charge and struck at the Gold Lynel's skin with the Master Sword. After his flurry of attacks. The Lynel started to breath fire from its mouth. Link ran away to the side from the Gold Lynel, making sure the fireballs it spat out didn't hit him. He'd fought many Lynels before, so he knew the routine in killing one. Except he looked back at the Lynel's skin and saw it start to form back together. "They can heal now?!" Link exclaimed with great confusion. Ganondorf got off of his horse and ran straight towards the Gold Lynel with its back turned to him. Ganondorf grabbed the Lynel's back legs, which caused the Gold Lynel to slide onto the ground from Ganondorf's grab. Ganondorf started spinning around in place with the Lynel in his hands and then he let go of it, throwing it hard against a big rock. The Gold Lynel picked itself back up and roared gloriously and then pulled out it's weapons. It charged straight at Ganondorf. Ganondorf stood still and let the Lynel come to him. The Lynel swung it's weapon at Ganondorf, and then Ganondorf caught the weapon mid-attack with his bare hand. Ganondorf punched the Lynel in the face and took the weapon for himself. He swung the massive club-like weapon furiously at the Lynel, causing major damage to it. Link took advantage of the distracted Lynel and climbed onto it's back. He swung the Master Sword onto the Lynel several times, and the combined efforts of Ganondorf swinging the giant weapon and Link's Master Sword caused the Lynel to fall to the ground, limp and dead.

"You had to fight monsters like this one a lot 10 years ago?" Ganondorf said as he wiped some of the blood off his new weapon.

"None of them were ever golden like this one, but a lot of them did pose a huge challenge to me." Link said.

"Hah, I admire your bravery boy. You're a lot smaller than these Lynels, and I'm told that you ate these guys up for breakfast." Ganondorf said.

"They were a hearty meal, that's for certain." Link said. He observed the weapons that Ganondorf was holding. "You're holding a Savage Lynel Crusher. That weapon will probably do you a lot more good than most weapons you can find from lesser monsters."

Ganondorf held the Savage Lynel Crusher in his hand, observing the way it's crafted and how hard it could hit. Seeing what it did to the Lynel gave Ganondorf a good smirk. "This will do well for me." Ganondorf put the weapon onto his back. He noticed the Lynel's body also had a large metallic bow attached to it. Ganondorf pulled the large bow of the Lynel's body, which fit perfectly in his hands. "Now we're talking." He said as he put the bow onto his back with his Savage Lynel Crusher.

"Nice, now you have two weapons that will stay durable for a lot longer now!" Link said.

"Yes. Now let's keep riding." The two of them got onto their horses and started riding down the valley. More monsters tried attacking them, but Ganondorf and Link's combination of using the Lynel Crusher and the Master Sword ended up spelling doom for every monster in their way. Bokoblins got their brains splattered, Lizalfos lost their limbs, and Moblins were demolished by the Hylian and the Gerudo. As they rode through the valley, they painted the road in bloodied monster pieces. Link was taken aback by how sheerly powerful Ganondorf's attacks were, but neither of the two did any heavy lifting. They eventually found themselves in an area with wooden scaffolding, and then some arrows rained from above them. Ganondorf used his horse and his body to shield Link away from the hail of arrows falling down at them. The arrows broke against Ganondorf's skin. "Throw me some arrows boy." Ganondorf said to Link.

"Here you go!" Link reached into his quiver and gave Ganondorf a handful of bomb arrows. Ganondorf leaned himself back into position and knocked three bomb arrows onto his massive bow. Ganondorf and Link's horses slowed down in a way that allowed Ganondorf's bulky frame to keep the arrows from hitting Link. Ganondorf let go of the bow's line and the bomb arrows flew through the air towards where the hail of arrows were coming from. One of the bombs blew up in midair because it interfered with one of the arrows, but the other two bomb arrows hit the wooden scaffolding, exploding upon impact. The hail of arrows stopped. Ganondorf and Link looked at where the arrows impacted and then they saw the tumbling red bodies of Yiga Clan members among wood and rocks. "Yiga Clan members. Let's keep on going." Link said, and then the two of them kept on riding through the valley. 3 Guardians ran around the corner and targeted both Link and Ganondorf. Link jumped off of his horse and used his bow to shoot an ancient arrow straight into one of the Guardian's eyes, causing it to blow up instantly. The other two prepared to shoot, but then two more ancient arrows flew through the air behind Ganondorf and Link and they destroyed the remaining 2 Guardians. They turned around and saw a group of Hylians wearing Guardian Armor, and riding atop horses outfitted with their own Guardian armor as well. "Guardian Commandos! You're alive!" Link exclaimed.

"That we are, Link." One of the Guardian Commandos said. "You two can keep on going through there. We will join you back here. There are more Guardians coming."

"You got it!" Link said to the Guardian Commando. As Link and Ganondorf rode away, the Guardian Commandos turned around to see a swarm of Guardians, legged and flying coming their way. They charged straight for them with their Guardian weapons ready for fighting.

Link and Ganondorf eventually approached a gate that seemed to be blown open, as it had a rough hole cut right through it. Link and Ganondorf got off of their horses and ran through the hole together. They reached the Stable that was next to the Gerudo Desert. A Hylian stablehand was being attacked by some monsters, noticeably some of them were golden.

"What is up with these Golden monsters? I don't remember ever seeing them during the time of the Calamity." Link said.

Ganondorf replied. "I remember now. It's because my power as Calamity Ganon was very limited in creating stronger monster types. These Golden monsters seem to be the cause of Demise's power."

"Huh, would've been a doozy if I had to fight these Golden monsters during the Calamity." Link said. "Let's show them pain."

"Gladly." Ganondorf said. He pulled the Lynel Crusher off of his back and ran towards the Golden monsters. One of them was a Golden Bokoblin, and the other one was a Golden Moblin. Ganondorf swiped his Lynel Crusher at the two of them, causing them to smack against the rocky wall really hard. Ganondorf reached his unoccupied hand down to the Stablehand. "Get up." Ganondorf said.

The Stablehand picked themselves up. "When I was hired to work next to the Gerudo Desert, I did NOT expect all of this madness to be happening." The Stablehand said feeling exasperated.

"You're safe now." Ganondorf said. As he said that, the Golden Bokoblin and the Golden Moblin picked themselves up off the floor and recovered from their wounds.

"No I'm not safe, they're alive again!" The Stablehand said in a panicked voice.

"You're safe now." Ganondorf said. "Link, get 'em!"

Link pulled out an ice arrow and shot it at the Golden Moblin, freezing it in place. He pulled out a shock arrow and shot it at the frozen Moblin, which created a shockwave that shocked the Golden Bokoblin. Link ran up to the two monsters and slashed at the Gold Bokoblin with his Master Sword multiple times, which sent it sliding across the ground. Link turned around to Ganondorf. "Throw your Lynel Crusher to the frozen Moblin!"

"Sure." Ganondorf prepared his Lynel Crusher and threw it through the air directly at the frozen Moblin. The Lynel Crusher's massive weight caused the Moblin to break out of the ice in great pain. Ganondorf ran up to the Moblin as it started to recover and then he jumped into the air. He landed both of his feet onto the Moblin's torso, causing it's stomach to cave in and combust with blood leaking out if it's golden skin.

As for Link and the Golden Bokoblin, Link kept on smacking his Master Sword onto the shiny Bokoblin, but all it did was cause it to slide across the floor a lot. "Just die!" Link screamed. The Bokoblin got back up and squealed at him, and then Link thrust the Master Sword straight through the Gold Bokoblin's open mouth. The end of the sword that pierced through the Bokoblin's skin was bathed in blood, and Link pulled it out of the Bokoblin's mouth. The Golden Bokoblin fell to the floor, limp and dead, with blood leaking out of it's head. There were no more monsters in the area anymore.

The Stablehand fell to his knees. "Oh thank you two so much for repelling those evil creatures away from the land of the living!" The Stablehand started bowing down to Link and Ganondorf.

"You don't need to do that." Link said to the Stablehand.

"Yeah, it's embarrassing." Ganondorf said. "To you."

The two walked passed the Stable Hand towards the desert and gave each other a fist bump. Link shook his hand a little bit after having it impact with Ganondorf's fist. The Stable Hand looked at the two of them very flustered. "Whoa." He said quietly to himself.

The Stable was extremely run down. It's woolen fabric roof had holes in it, and the wooden structure around it was falling apart, but there were still a few Stable Hands around the place making sure they kept the Stable well functioning. A few Stable Hands were looking out into the moon-lit desert. Link and Ganondorf joined alongside them. One of them turned around to see Link and the large Gerudo man walking up to them. "Link! The Hero we need! And…" they looked at Ganondorf. "A male Gerudo? That's impossible!"

"It is possible." Ganondorf replied back dryly.

"I don't mean to sound like we're in a rush right now, but do you have any idea what's happening in the Gerudo Desert right now?" Link asked the Stable Hand.

"It's a wild fucking ruckus out there. Monsters are roaming across the place, Moldugas have been seen again in large numbers, and those red asshole Yiga Clan members are going to town!" The Stable Hand said.

"What do you mean 'are going to town'?" Link asked.

"They're going to Gerudo Town!" The Stable Hand said.

Link looked at Ganondorf. "That can't be good." He looked back at the Stable Hand. "Do you have any Sand Seals for sale?"

"To traverse the desert? Nah, we don't. They all ran away." The Stable Hand said.

"Damnit!" Link exclaimed. "We need to get to Gerudo Town as fast as we can!"

Ganondorf kneeled to the floor with his back to Link. "Hop on my back." Ganondorf said.

"Wha-?"

"Hop on my back." Ganondorf repeated.

"Okay then." Link climbed onto Ganondorf's back, positioning himself next to the Savage Lynel Crusher and the large bow. Link secured himself onto Ganondorf's back.

"Are you ready?" Ganondorf asked.

"I always am." Link replied.

"Good." Ganondorf stood up and then started running through the Desert. The Stable Hand stood in shock at how fast Ganondorf was running. Link held on tightly. He looked down and saw Ganondorf's legs running swiftly across the sand. The ground moved by really fast. Ganondorf wasn't running as fast as a Sand Seal would swim through the sand, but Ganondorf's pace was fast enough to have Link grip onto his green cap. Then Link got an idea. He took his Hylian Shield off of his back and attached it to his feet. Then he took a rope that he had on his waist and tied it around Ganondorf's torso. "What are you doing?" Ganondorf said through heavy panting.

"Improvising." Link replied. He jumped off of Ganondorf's back and held onto the rope. He landed shield first onto the sand and started sledding across the sand. "Haha! Now you're a Sand Seal- AHH!" Ganondorf's running kicked up the sand into Link's face.

"Silence." Ganondorf said as he continued running through the desert. They eventually saw the Kara Kara Bazaar. There was a big fire going on around the area.

"Take us here!" Link said to Ganondorf as he tried angling his face away from the sand.

"Alright then." Ganondorf ran towards the Kara Kara Bazaar and then he spun around randomly.

"What are you doing?!" Link said as he was holding onto the rope for dear life.

"Improvising." Ganondorf replied. He grabbed the rope and untied it from his torso, and then he spun the rope above his head several times. Ganondorf then threw the rope towards the Bazaar, with Link still holding onto it.

"Ahhhhh!" Link screamed as he flew through the air and closer to the flames at the Bazaar. Ganondorf looked up at him and then gave a slight chuckle. Link landed shield-first onto the ground and then he lost his balance. He ended up rolling through a few flames and then dropped into a body of water, where the flames were doused away. He quickly swam back out of the water and looked up to see 6 Yiga assassins looking at him. They raised their bows and pointed them at Link, but then Ganondorf's large body ran into them, sending them flying. One of the Yiga assassins got their jaw dislocated by Ganondorf's knee as it smacked into their face. Ganondorf raised the Savage Lynel Crusher above his head and swung it down with a great force towards the last living Yiga assassin. The Yiga was crushed to death instantly by the weapon, and their blood sprayed into a bunch of different directions. Some of the blood sprayed onto Ganondorf's legs, but a lot of it sprayed onto Link's face as he was crawling forward. "AH!" Link dipped his face into the water to wash the blood off and then he got back up.

Ganondorf pointed forward. "More enemies!" He said as 7 more Yiga assassins came running towards them, with an armed Golden Lizalfos trailing next to them.

Link pulled out his Master Sword and armed his Hylian Shield. "Let's mess 'em up." Ganondorf prepared to swing his Lynel Crusher at the incoming Yiga assassins. He swung, but they dodged his attack. One of the Yiga assassins tried stabbing Ganondorf in the back, but their blade broke upon impact with Ganondorf's skin. Ganondorf turned around and smacked the Yiga assassin off to the side with a backhand. 6 Yiga assassins surrounded Link. 2 of them ran in towards him and with two swings of the Master Sword, both of them fell to the floor dead. The other 4 Yiga attacked at the same time, but Link gave out a quick spin attack which hit all 4 of them. Their heads rolled on the floor towards the last remaining Yiga, who noticed a head roll up to them. They looked up and saw Ganondorf ready to slam the Lynel Crusher into them. The Yiga quickly teleported out of sight and Ganondorf slammed the weapon onto the ground. Link saw the Golden Lizalfos run up to him with a metallic boomerang in its hand. The Lizalfos prepared to open its mouth and then it let out a big tongue that caught Link by surprise. The tongue punched Link away and then he rolled on the floor for a little bit before regaining his balance. The Golden Lizalfos threw it's boomerang towards Link. Link pulled out his Sheikah Slate and pressed a button which created a stream of magnetic energy coming out of the Slate. The magnetic energy caught the sharp metallic boomerang in mid-air, and it was spinning around in place. Link walked forward towards the Lizalfos with the metal boomerang spinning in the air. It cut into the Gold Lizalfos like a buzz-saw. The Lizalfos screeched wildly from the pain and then eventually the spinning stopped. Link jolted his Sheikah Slate upwards, which sent the metal boomerang high into the air. He pulled out the Master Sword and prepared to fight the Golden Lizalfos. It rushed towards him and it tried licking with its tongue again, but this time Link parried the tongue attack and slashed the Lizalfos multiple times. The Lizalfos slid backwards and then the metal boomerang fell directly onto the Lizalfos, cutting it right down the middle. "You know what they say; boomerangs come back." He looked at Ganondorf.

Ganondorf shook his head in disapproval. "Was that supposed to be a joke?"

"Yes." Link replied.

"That was terrible." Ganondorf said as he put the Lynel Crusher onto his back.

"I know." Link said.

"Is there anyone around here?" Ganondorf said as he looked around. He looked at some empty fruit stands. No one was there. Then a Gerudo woman walked out of the building in the area.

"Hey, you two! Come here!" She said to the two fighters. They ran up to the Gerudo woman. "I saw you guys take out those Yiga assassins! They're giving us big trouble all over the desert! Even in Gerudo Town!"

"Is there anyone else here at Kara Kara Bazaar?" Link asked the Gerudo woman.

"No, it's just me." The Gerudo woman moved to the side and showcased a dead Yiga body with a spear in it. "We had to evacuate this Bazaar, but I slept through the evacuation. I've been defending myself in this building for a while now."

"Dang, you really know how to put up a fight." Link said. "As all Gerudo do."

"That's right." The Gerudo woman looked at Ganondorf. "Do I know you from somewhere? You look handsome with that red beard on your face."

Ganondorf blushed a little bit. "Uh, maybe we did meet somewhere."

"Man! I wanna smother my face into your chiseled abs!" The Gerudo woman said happily.

Ganondorf looked down at Link. "Let's go to Gerudo Town before I get seduced by this witch."

"Okay bud." Link said. "See ya."

"See ya around, handsome!" The Gerudo woman said in reference to Ganondorf.

The two of them walked back outside of the building. Link looked up at Ganondorf. "Dang, already getting a good first impression. From the ladies no less!"

Ganondorf corrected Link. "From a lady, and that one woman seemed way too enthusiastic to see a Gerudo male like me."

"You never know, a lot of stuff has happened since the last time you ravaged the land." Link replied.

"That's true." Ganondorf said. The two of them looked at the sand dunes.

"Gerudo Town is in that direction." Link pointed.

"Alright. Get onto my back again." Ganondorf said as he knelt down.

"Gladly, handsome." Link said as he started climbing onto his back.

Ganondorf chuckled a little bit. "No, you're handsome." He said back.

Link fully secured himself on Ganondorf's back. "No you're handsOOOOME!" Ganondorf ran quickly across the sand dunes into the direction that Link pointed. It didn't take long for them to see a few plumes of smoke coming from the horizon. They saw Gerudo Town in the distance, with flames around the place. A Lizalfos ran alongside Ganondorf and was searching for a moment to strike. Link latched himself onto the large bow and pulled out his own bow. He hung off of the bow with his two legs and fired an arrow at the Lizalfos, killing it instantly. He recovered himself back into Ganondorf's back. Ganondorf slowed down and grabbed Link off of his back, setting him down on the sand in front of Gerudo Town. There were no guards at the gate, but the sounds of violence and screams came from inside of the walls. The two of them jogged into the gates of Gerudo Town.

"So this is Gerudo Town." Ganondorf said.

"Yep." Link said. "Usually they only allow women inside of the town, but if you crossdress convincingly enough, you would be allowed inside of Gerudo Town." Link watched as an explosion went off inside of the town. "Right now however, it's all hands on deck! We're allowed in!"

"That's good." Ganondorf and Link ran inside of Gerudo Town to see a lot of the structures on fire. There were also many Gerudo Warriors fighting away against Yiga soldiers. A Yiga soldier teleported right next to Link, which he prepared to fight, but then a spear flew right into the Yiga's head and pinned them against the wall. A Gerudo Warrior ran right up to the spear and took it out of the wall, which caused the Yiga to fall limply to the floor.

"Link! Lady Riju is in the palace!" The Gerudo Warrior screamed to Link.

"Don't worry, I will assist her!" Link said.

"Good!" The Gerudo Warrior exclaimed. She looked at Ganondorf with a glare and then she ran back into battle to fight some more Yiga soldiers.

"You heard the vai! Let's fight!" Link exclaimed to Ganondorf. He pulled out the Master Sword and the Hylian Shield and ran forwards into the fray.

Ganondorf lightly chuckled and pulled out his Lynel Crusher. Ganondorf swung his weapon around in circles above his head, which intimidated a bunch of the Yiga soldiers around the area. Link chopped his way through a horde of Yiga soldiers and he ran up the steps towards the palace. Ganondorf smacked a few Yiga soldiers away and followed Link up the stairs. He also shot a few more bomb arrows out into the Town, which managed to kill another wave of incoming Yiga soldiers.

As the two of them ran inside, there were a few Yiga soldiers running around, fighting at some Gerudo Guardswomen. Link and Ganondorf ran in and wrecked the rest of theYiga up, sending a few of them flying out of the horizontal window that was at the end of the room. Ganondorf accidentally swung and hit a statue in the room, which fell down and shattered. Link looked at Ganondorf with widened eyes. "Oopsie daisy." Link said.

"Hah." Ganondorf laughed a little bit and got back to killing more Yiga soldiers. Eventually, a Gerudo female wielding an ornate shield and a sharp scimitar fought her way into the room. She looked at Link and smiled.

"Lady Riju!" Link exclaimed.

"Link!" Lady Riju replied.

"I see you have Urbosa's weapons!" Link said.

Lady Riju sliced away at a few more Yiga soldiers. "Why let them sit and collect dust! Come with me! I need you for something!"

"Alright then!" Link said. Link and Ganondorf followed Lady Riju up the stairs of the palace and up to the highest point of Gerudo Town. There was a catapult on the top of the structure. "What's with the catapult?" Link asked.

"I'll get to that in a moment." Lady Riju said as she looked down to see Gerudo Town in chaos. "You know about the Yiga stronghold known as the Arbiter's Grounds, and we've heard word that they are planning on releasing something big in there!"

"What could it be?" Link asked.

"No idea! That's why I will launch you from this catapult." Lady Riju said as she showed off the catapult.

"Wait what?!" Link exclaimed.

"You up for it?" Lady Riju asked.

"I sure am!" Link said as he huddled himself onto the catapult immediately. Lady Riju started cranking the catapult.

"Fire!" Lady Riju screamed as she let go of the catapult's crank, which made the catapult spoon fling forward with a visceral force, and Link went flying through the night air at an extremely fast pace.

Lady Riju turned her attention to Ganondorf. "A Gerudo Voe, I see." Riju said.

"Yes, a peculiarity that a lot of people like to notice." Ganondorf replied.

"I would have a different point of view of you entirely if you were here during a time of peace, but right now a war is breaking out, so I will make an exception for you. Your name is Ganondorf, correct?"

Ganondorf sighed. "Yes, my name is Ganondorf."

"History likes to paint you as someone who made conflict. But in the current circumstances in which I saw you working with Link, I believe you can help us greatly. Follow me." Riju said to Ganondorf.

"Where are you taking me?" Ganondorf asked.

"To get you armor worthy of a Gerudo voe like yourself." Riju replied.

"Booyahahaa!" Link screamed as he flung through the air at a dizzying speed. He saw the tower of Arbiter's Grounds come closer to him and then he released his paraglider. He was still moving forward at a very rapid rate. He glided towards the very top of the tower, which was a flat platform with broken glass. Link landed on the top of the tower and took a notice of the mirror in the center of the platform. "That must be the Twilight Mirror." Link said to himself. He walked up to it, and then the ground underneath him shook a little bit. The broken glass on the floor vibrated, and then the top of the tower started lowering itself, as if the whole floor was a lift in and of itself. The platform rotated in a circular motion in it's descent. Link looked into the moving patterns of the Twilight Mirror, and then saw someone walking out of it. Two people actually. They arrived at the exit point of the mirror and observed Link. The two people included a Yiga Blademaster who had a dark outfit with red highlights, and the other person was a strange person with light blue skin, dark hair and yellow eyes.

"Ahaha!" The Yiga Blademaster exclaimed. He looked to the other person who came out of the mirror. "That's Link!"

The strange individual with yellow eyes spoke back with an aggressive tone. "He is the one who killed you?"

"No, a Sheikah Warrior killed me!" The Yiga Blademaster replied. "Link almost killed me 10 years ago! Hey, Link! Do you remember me?"

Link looked at the Yiga Blademaster. "To be frank, I don't. I faced a lot of people like you 10 years ago." Link said as he readied the Master Sword in his hand.

The Yiga Blademaster pointed ecstatically at the Master Sword. "That's it! That's the sword, Vaarc! The sword that carried him in combat!"

"...It glows with power." The individual with yellow eyes said inquisitively.

"Knock it out of his hands!" The Blademaster commanded the individual.

"I only take orders from Veerus. Still, that sword could be useful... and is far too dangerous in his hands." The individual with yellow eyes, in just a few short seconds, turned into a wolf.

"What the?" Link said. The wolf ran up to him at an alarming speed and tried biting at Link's arms. Link dodged out of the way from the wolf's bites, swinging his blade towards the wolf, which sent it rolling away before regaining its balance. Link walked up to the wolf before it disappeared at an incredible speed. Before he could react, Link felt something hit him on the back and he dropped the Master Sword. It slid across the ground amongst the glass on the floor. Link ran up to it and then a few pillars started to surround Link and the Blademaster, creating a barrier. The individual with yellow eyes appeared on the other side of the pillars, next to the Master Sword, examining it.

"You did it Vaarc! Now I can fight this Menace fairly!" The Blademaster said to the blue skinned individual. The Blademaster reached for an extra sword on their back and tossed it to Link. "Now, Hero. Prove yourself in a fair fight, with no Master Sword in your hand!"

Link picked up the sword and stood in a battle stance. "Well then, do your worst."

"I will." The Blademaster approached Link with their weapon ready. They cut their blade into the air and then a blade of wind came from the sword. Link sidestepped out of the way of the attack and advanced towards the Blademaster. The Blademaster swung their blade towards Link and then he shield parried the Blademaster's incoming attack. Link retaliated with a swing of his sword, and surprisingly to Link, the Blademaster parried back his sword attack. Link backflipped away from the Blademaster's next attack and then rushed straight for the Blademaster, slashing at their body multiple times. The Blademaster flinched from the attack and planted his sword into the ground. A gust of wind traveled towards Link, jutting a lot of the small pieces of glass into the air. Link almost decided to paraglide from the gust of wind, but he ran away from it instead, as he knew the glass shards wouldn't be fun to glide into. The wind pelted the glass shards towards Link, so Link pulled up his shield and turned towards the gust of wind in order to block the glass shards from his face. He allowed the shards to pelt against his stomach and legs, as they were protected by armor underneath his green tunic. The gust of wind caught up to him and then a rock popped out of the ground, sending him flying into the air. The Blademaster teleported up to the place in the air where Link was and attempted to strike him, however Link brought up his Hylian Shield to block the incoming attacks mid air. Just before he hit the ground, Link pulled out his paraglider and landed safely on the floor. The Blademaster teleported behind Link and almost hit him, but Link ducked underneath the Blademaster's attack. He took the opportunity and stabbed his sword into the Blademaster's stomach. "OUUGH!" The Blademaster exclaimed as the sword dug itself into his stomach. He fell to the ground, and Link took the sword out of his stomach. "You fight well, Hero. Even without that Master Sword. Looks like I underestimated you. You beat me fair and square, and that's all I ever wanted, to see which one of us would come out on top in a fight like this." The Blademaster looked at the individual with yellow eyes. "Thank you, Vaarc, for giving me this chance to fight him one more time." The Blademaster turned to Link. "Now, kill me."

Link looked down at the Blademaster. "Why would I kill you?" Link said. "You seem pretty intelligent. Join me and maybe you'll have another chance at life, like what that Vaarc guy gave you." Link handed the Blademaster a red potion.

The Blademaster was speechless. "After all I did. All of my actions. You actually seek to forgive me? You killed countless Yiga Clan members! Why exclude me?!"

"Because I can read you. The fact that you challenged me to a fair duel and even were given a second chance at life shows me that you can change yourself." Link looked at the individual with yellow eyes, whom Link now recognized as Vaarc, on the other side of the barrier. He was looking at the Master Sword on the ground.

"The power emanating from this blade." Vaarc said as he looked at the Master Sword's glow. "It's power in my hands would bring honor to the Twilight Realm." Vaarc grabbed the hilt of the Master Sword and then his hand started to catch fire. "AHH!" He threw the sword back onto the ground. "Curious. Why does it reject me!?" It was the first time he had spoken to Link directly.

Link looked at Vaarc. "Because only someone pure of heart can wield that blade, among other prerequisites."

The Blademaster snapped his fingers and then the pillars that created the barrier flew up into the sky. Link took the Blademaster's mask off. "Why shouldn't I spare you?" Link asked.

The Blademaster's face was revealed, with a sad face full of regret. "Because… because… I was the one who put the curse on Kakariko Village. I caused Impa's death." The Blademaster cried into his hands.

Link looked at the Blademaster with almost murderous intent. "YOU were the one who caused Impa's death?! YOU put the curse on Kakariko Village?! For what?!"

The Blademaster sobbed more into his hands. "B-because… I wanted to prove that the Yiga Clan was a deadly threat to the Sheikah Clan. I met a Sheikah Warrior who tempted me to stand down, and so I decided the best way to get back at him was to put a curse on the village that he came from. He killed me, but it was too late, the curse took Impa's life."

Link paced on the floor, looking at the sword in his hand, and then to the red potion in his other hand.

"Kill me!" The Blademaster said as he looked up at Link. Link looked at the Blademaster and he held his sword in a neutral position. "Murder me! I've done too many wrongs in my life!"

Link closed his eyes. "No. You were already killed before. You have been given a second chance at life for a reason. You should make the best of it."

The Blademaster looked at the ground at the fractured glass. He saw his own face in the reflections of the broken shards. It felt poetic, to look at himself, a jumble of pieces. He looked back at Link and struggled to pick himself up. He covered his stab wound with his hand, and the blood dripped between his fingers onto the glass shards. "Link. You are the greatest person I ever met." Then he pulled out his sword, and stabbed himself in the chest. Link widened his eyes. He fell to the ground, his face smashing into the glass shards on the floor. A bloody mess coming from his face.

Link looked at the Blademaster on the floor. "No way…" Link said with a somber voice. "He could have been so much more, had he not ended his life so soon, especially after being given another chance." Link looked at Vaarc. Vaarc had seemingly not noticed the event, instead still focused on the Master Sword. Link walked up to the Master Sword and reclaimed it for himself.

"Your name…" Vaarc said. "Link… it echoes itself through the history of the Twili. A Hero much like you, who shared your name, brought peace to the Twilight Realm many millennia ago. They said that he wielded a weapon that looked exactly like the one you're wielding right now. I am sure you met with someone named Veerus before. She is my cousin. Her ultimate goal is to wipe out the past by using something called the Triforce, and to recreate the world into a land of peace, much like what your predecessor did for the Twilight Realm. I don't understand how that could be viewed as a bad thing, a Hyrule at peace."

"Then you clearly cannot see the big picture." Link said. The rotating lift platform stopped, and then a few doors opened up, leading to the cool and chilly weather of the Gerudo Desert outside. Link looked at the Twilight Mirror. Then he looked up the inside of the tower towards the night sky, where a black portal was suspended in the air. Small black squares came out of the portal and then formed into the black armor of Veerus. She looked at Link.

She spoke with a menace through her mask. "I see you have met my inferior cousin, Vaarc. He is a much weaker warrior than purebred Twili, but he has his uses."

"Veerus, your plan is insane! You can't possibly think it will work! What makes you think you have the right to remake the past?" Link replied.

Veerus showed no emotion because of the mask in front of her face, however Vaarc knew that Veerus was growing angry underneath her armor. "I will be a just and kind ruler in my new world, as I have been for the denizens of the Twilight Realm. I learned how to make Vaarc harness his wolf transformation, even when other Twili would rather have seen him killed. I gave the Twili a new purpose to work towards. I even revived the disgraced Blademaster. And yet here you are, resisting my plan, despite the clear proof that I am what Hyrule needs."

Vaarc stepped away from Link, clearly knowing what Veerus was about to do. "She's going to do something terrible to you right now. You should run." Link stood his ground and showed no intent on leaving.

Veerus looked at the Twilight Mirror and let out a terrifying sound. Link looked inside of the mirror and saw something approaching from inside of the mirror. It came closer and appeared to not be an it, but a them. Multiple strange and beastly dark creatures with red lines flowing through their skin. Link stood still and watched as the army of these beastly creatures came out of the portal. "The Hero of old defeated these Shadow Beasts in large numbers, but never numbers as big as these." The Shadow Beasts came out of the portal at an alarming rate, and they poured all over around the room. Some of them approached Link, but Link slashed at them with his Master Sword. Noticeably, the Shadow Beasts seemed to be scared of the Master Sword's glow. Link drank the red potion in his hand and shot an energy beam towards the Shadow Beasts. They screeched awfully at the beam's proximity. Link ran for it through the doorways to the outside. Vaarc transformed into a wolf and ran after Link. The Shadow Beasts were hesitant to chase them, but Veerus looked at them.

"Chase him, Shadow Beasts." Veerus exclaimed to the Shadow Beasts. The Shadow Beasts looked at Veerus in fear and then ran through the doorways to the outside where Link was, Vaarc still in pursuit. They kept on chasing after him as he ran through the sandy terrain outside, vaulting over the different pieces of wood that fenced the area. Link felt a vibration on the floor and looked up to his right. He saw Vah Naboris, with red glowing lights walking straight for him. Electric balls permeated around it, and they summoned a lightning cloud that prepared itself for Link. Link looked up and closed his eyes. He heard thunder, but nothing happened. He opened his eyes and saw Lady Riju on her Sand Seal, wearing the Thunder Helm, which is known for keeping lightning strikes from hitting their targets.

Lady Riju looked at Link underneath her Thunder Helm. "It fits now, doesn't it?!" Riju exclaimed.

"Riju, I love you!" Link said.

Riju threw Link a reign that was attached to the same Sand Seal. "Grab this reign! We need to go!"

Link grabbed the reign and hopped onto his shield. The Sand Seal carried him away from the Arbiter's Grounds. Riju looked behind herself and she saw the horde of Shadow Beasts coming their way, running through the sand. Thankfully they weren't as fast as the Sand Seal. They rode up the sandy dune and eventually were greeted by hundreds of other Gerudo Warriors riding on their own Sand Seals away from Vah Naboris. Riju looked behind herself again and she saw the Shadow Beasts running across the desert sand. Then the large gaping mouth of a Molduga came out of the sand and ate the Shadow Beasts up whole.

Link looked to the side of his Sand Seal and saw Ganondorf ride up to the side of him, wearing a set of Desert Voe armor. The armor covered Ganondorf's legs completely, and he had a shoulder pad with armor going down one side of his arm. The armor exposed the chest and stomach, which accentuated the powerful muscles underneath. "That looks good on you!" Link exclaimed to Ganondorf.

"I think it would look good on YOU!" Ganondorf replied.

"Well excuuuuse me, handsome!" Link snapped back gleefully. The Gerudo Warriors rode their Sand Seals to Gerudo Valley. Vah Naboris was closely behind the group. There were horses ready for most of the Gerudo Warriors, but the warriors that didn't have horses started running forward through Gerudo Valley. Link, Ganondorf, Riju, and the Gerudo Warriors all charged through Gerudo Valley, past the dead bodies of the monsters. The Guardian Commandos were ahead of them, killing the last Guardian in the area. They took their horses and charged with the Gerudo Warriors out of Gerudo Valley towards the broken bridge. One of the Guardian Commandos stood next to the broken bridge and had a Sheikah Slate held up, using magnesis on a metallic slab. The metallic slab was being suspended above the ravine for the horses to run across. Each horse ran across the metallic slab which thankfully held up because of the horses' ability to understand stable ground. Three horses went at a time across the bridge, and then eventually after a few minutes, Vah Naboris started walking around the corner through Gerudo Valley. Once everyone had made it to the other side, the Guardian Commando let go of magnesis and whistled. Their horse teleported next to them and they rode with the rest of the Gerudo Warriors across the bridges away from the Gerudo Region and into the distance towards Hyrule Castle.

The sun started to rise, however Link looked back and saw Vah Naboris perching itself on top of the Great Plateau, joining the other Divine Beasts. It prepared a laser sight. Whatever was going to happen, Link knew it was bad, but the army marched onwards to Hyrule Castle across Hyrule Field.

Chapter 33: Skull Kid's Last Laugh

It was night time. The moon was in the air at Lurelin Village, and Poump and the others had finished restocking themselves on potions and other necessities. Poump walked up to Zelda in her tent. "We're ready to go to Hyrule Castle now." Poump told Zelda.

"Very well then. Be very careful out there at the castle. It's overgrown with excessive plant life, and Roldi told me a few of the soldiers have even been eaten by some of the plants. Take care of yourselves in the castle. Once you've secured the castle, the armies from the different colonies will converge at Hyrule Castle, where we will make our stand against the army of monsters and Yiga soldiers." Zelda showed them a route on the map that could cut across Hyrule Field, and also showed them what to look out for. "Any questions?"

"Where would the vault of rupees be?" Uten asked.

"Hidden in the courtyard somewhere. Bollocks, do you think I would tell you where a vault of rupees are?" Zelda replied with a sense of dullness. "Zhago, keep her in check, before she performs a heist in the middle of a country-wide crisis."

"As you wish, my Queen." Zhago said, bowing down to Zelda.

"Any important questions?" Zelda asked again.

"No, we're good here." Poump said. "We'll be making our way to Hyrule Castle right now and get to the bottom of whatever's been causing that plant life."

"Good." Zelda said. "Then I trust all of you can deal with the task greatly. Once you reach Hyrule Castle Town, call me."

"Got it. Bye." Poump said as he and the others walked out of the tent. Zelda heard them get onto their horses and then gallop away from Lurelin Village. Zelda took a look at the map again, coordinating different attack routes. She noticed a lot of the monsters across Hyrule seemed to be sporadic in nature, which was unusual to her since the monsters would usually contain themselves in one area. Then, she heard a noise outside. A warhorn from Bokoblins sounded in the air across Lurelin Village. Zelda looked at a Royal Broadsword, a Royal Shield, and a Royal Bow in the room and picked them up. She stocked up a quiver full of different types of arrows and marched out of the tent. The villagers around Lurelin Villager were in a panic.

"Bokoblins?! In Lurelin Village?!" One of the villagers screamed. The villagers all ran into their homes and locked themselves in. They had never anticipated something like this, as Lurelin Village even in the time of the Calamity was never struck directly with monster attacks. It was a very secluded village, far away from anywhere else in Hyrule, which made it the most relaxing place to go to. However this time, Zelda knew that the forces of the monsters were even more tenacious than they normally would be. Zelda saw a horde of Bokoblins running into the village. She aimed her bow into the sky and let loose several fire arrows. They shot through the night sky, illuminating it. Then she aimed her bow at the horde of Bokoblins rushing towards her. She knocked an ice arrow to it and shot the ice arrow at the horde of Bokoblins, which froze one of them in place. Zelda knocked a shock arrow and shot it at the iced up Bokoblin, which created a field of electricity surrounding the iced Bokoblin. This electrocuted a lot of the Bokoblins to death, but more of them were coming her way. Zelda stood her ground and brought out her sword and shield. An incoming Black Bokoblin held a Royal Broadsword and whacked it at Zelda, she blocked the attacks and slashed at the Black Bokoblin's stomach. The Bokoblin's guts fell out of its stomach, and then it fell to the ground dead. A swarm of Bokoblins surrounded Zelda. They all had spears, and some of them were colored white, while a few others were colored blue. They all squealed and prepared to attack her. Zelda put her shield above her head. A few fire arrows rained from the sky and hit each Bokoblin surrounding her. If they didn't hit the Bokoblin, the flames from the arrow caused them to catch fire. The Bokoblins screeched wildly as they tried rolling on the sand to douze their flames. Zelda ran up to one of the Blue Bokoblins on the floor and planted her Royal Shield into its neck, spraying blood from the area and killing it in the process. Zelda booked it towards a wooden tower in the area, which had a ladder to climb up on. A few of the Bokoblins caught up to her and they grabbed her by the legs. Zelda was brought to the ground, but she grabbed her sword and turned around and flung her sword at the Bokoblins that grabbed her. She knocked a Black Bokoblin away from her, but the other Bokoblin grabbing her was a Golden Bokoblin. Then a large orange fist slammed into the Golden Bokoblin, sending it flying away from Zelda. Zelda looked up and she saw Midna, who helped her back up.

"Royalty should never work alone." Midna said. She slapped away at more incoming Bokoblins with her hair. Then joining Midna's side was Pep, with his own Master Sword. Midna and Pep battled away at the incoming horde of Bokoblins.

"Keep doing what you're doing, I have a plan." Zelda said to Midna, and then she kept on running towards the wooden tower. She grabbed onto the rungs of the ladder and climbed right up the wooden tower. She looked down briefly and saw a few Bokoblins circling around the tower, and a few started to climb up the ladder as well. Zelda pulled out a bomb arrow, lit it's fuse, and then dropped it down to the horde of Bokoblins. They all blew up, scattering into different parts that bounced across the now blood streaked sand. Zelda made it to the top of the wooden tower and surveyed the village from above. Bokoblins were running all over the place, but Zelda saw Midna and Pep fighting away at the Bokoblins with ease with each other. Zelda looked at the large boat in the dock and she formulated a plan. She pulled out her Sheikah Slate and called Alfonzo, who was still on the boat. "Alfonzo!" She said.

Alfonzo answered the call. "It's a swarm out there! I've been on this boat for the past night making sure the boat is still in tip top shape. Is there anything you would like me to do Zelda?!"

"Prepare the cannons on the boat, but don't fire them yet, I have a plan." Zelda said to Alfonzo.

"You got it, Zelda." Alfonzo saluted and hung up the call.

Zelda looked down the side of the wooden platform and saw the horde of Bokoblins attempting to climb up again. She fired some more ice arrows down into the Bokoblin horde, which caused a bunch of them to freeze up completely. She used another bunch of shock arrows and electrocuted all of the other surrounding Bokoblins to death. Zelda leaped off of the wooden platform and paraglided herself onto the top of one of the village huts. She used her Sheikah Slate to place a bomb on top of the roof and detonated it, causing the hut's roof underneath her to give way. She was now inside of the hut and saw a few of the Lurelin Villagers inside of the hut.

"Whoa!" One of the villagers exclaimed at her explosive entrance.

Zelda looked around the room and saw several different fishing tools around the room. "All of you, grab whatever you can in here and fight your way outside. Go to the boat." She commanded.

"But we'll die!" The villager replied.

"You can either die in here if you don't fight for yourself, or you can die outside fighting some Bokoblins." Zelda said.

The villagers looked at each other. "We'll do it!" They all exclaimed. They grabbed all of the fishing tools around the place and made makeshift spears. Two of them grabbed a whole fishing net, which looked pretty heavy. Zelda placed two bombs at the doorway of the hut.

"Stand back everyone." Zelda said to the villagers. She detonated both of the bombs, and the hut's entire doorway exploded into the horde of Bokoblins, which had enough force to send a whole ton of Bokoblins flying away into the ocean nearby, where they sunk underneath the water and drowned to death. If they didn't land in the water, they violently slid across the floor and slammed into another wooden hut. Zelda shot a few bomb arrows from her bow, which cleared out dozens more Bokoblins from her way. "Charge!" Zelda screamed to the villagers. The villagers charged forwards with their makeshift weapons and attacked the incoming Bokoblins. The two villagers that had the heavy net threw it onto another batch of Bokoblins, which pinned them to the floor underneath the heavy net. The net caught about 6 Bokoblins underneath it, but one of the Bokoblins, a White Bokoblin, was starting to gnaw away at the net's strings. Zelda slashed at all of the incoming Bokoblins, killing a lot of them in the process. Zelda and the villagers made it to another hut where more villagers were in. Zelda climbed up the side of the building and blew up a whole into the roof. She leapt inside and looked at the villagers. "Grab anything you can get!" She screamed at them. She ran up to the entrance of the hut. The villagers outside knew what Zelda was going to do, so they ran out of the way of the entrance. Zelda blew up the entrance and the debris from the explosion propelled itself across the Bokoblin horde. She already saw that their numbers were thinning out, but the Bokoblins were still big in numbers. "Get to the boat!" Zelda screamed to the other villagers who also had their own makeshift weapons now. Zelda and the villagers ran across the beach, fighting away at the horde of Bokoblins. One of the Bokoblins managed to knock out one of the villagers with their club, and then another horde of Bokoblins stabbed their weapons at a few other villagers as well, causing them to die.

"Sebasto!" One of the villagers screamed as they saw the other villager die. They stabbed away at the Bokoblins and ran up to their dead body.

Zelda turned back to them. "There's no time to mourn them now! We need to go to the boat!"

The villager hesitated. "But-" At that moment, a Bokoblin chopped the other villager's head off, causing them to fall to the floor.

"No!" Zelda screamed as she let loose a bunch of bomb arrows towards the Bokoblins that were charging at them. She ran with the other villagers towards the boat. The ramp lowered. Midna and Pep ran up to the boat as well and boarded onto it. The ramp went back onto the boat and a few Bokoblins tried jumping onto the ramp. A few of them fell into the water below and drowned, but one of them, a Gold Bokoblin, managed to get onto the ship.

The Gold Bokoblin screeched and swung it's sword at Zelda, but Zelda blocked the attack with her shield and shield bashed the Gold Bokoblin off balance. She hit the Gold Bokoblin with her sword multiple times, sending it rolling to the side of the boat. The Gold Bokoblin was saved by the railing on the boat and got back up. It screeched at her and swung it's sword around in a circular fashion towards her. The limited space on the walkway made Zelda back away from the Gold Bokoblin's attacks with her shield out front. She noticed the Gold Bokoblin's skin starting to heal from her sword cuts. Zelda charged right at the Gold Bokoblin and shield parried the Gold Bokoblin's attack. The Gold Bokoblin stumbled a little bit but then recovered itself, using the momentum from the parry to its advantage and swung at Zelda again. Zelda backflipped away from the surprise attack and ran up to it, slicing the Gold Bokoblin up in a bunch of nasty ways, her sword penetrating it's golden skin. The Gold Bokoblin fell to the floor and dropped it's sword as it rolled across the floor. Zelda threw her shield to the side and grabbed the Gold Bokoblin's sword. She ran up to the Gold Bokoblin, which stood itself up, but then Zelda plunged both of the swords into the Gold Bokoblin's skin, which made it screech loudly. Zelda pinned one of the swords onto the wall with the Gold Bokoblin still clinging onto it's life. It tried to bite her arm, but she pulled her arm back. She stabbed it multiple times across different parts of its body. "AAHHHHH!" Zelda screamed as she maniacally mutilated the Bokoblin's different body parts. She slashed it in the groin which made the Gold Bokoblin squeal in agony. Then she sliced the Gold Bokoblin's neck clean off, making it's golden head fall to the floor. Zelda's face was full of the Gold Bokoblin's blood, and she breathed heavily. She looked to the side to see one of the villagers look at her with a shocked expression. They climbed up the stairs to the main deck. Zelda walked up to the main deck as well, with her entire body bathed in Bokoblin blood. She looked at Alfonzo and Niko on the main deck.

"Your highness!" Niko said in shock.

"Fetch me a handkerchief, Niko." Zelda commanded.

"As you wish!" Niko said and then he rushed towards the inside of the ship.

"Alfonzo, launch the cannons now. There are no more villagers in the village." Zelda said.

"Okie dokey." Alfonzo said, also mesmerized by Zelda's insane look. "Fire the cannons!" Alfonzo commanded.

The crewmates fired the cannons onto the village. The ammunition rolled onto the sandy beach next to the Bokoblins and then exploded wildly, sending them flying into the air and falling back to the floor dead.

After a few minutes of cannon barrages, the entirety of Lurelin Village was left in a fiery ruin. The villagers looked at their smoked up village, and mourned over the losses of the few villagers that they lost. The few remaining Bokoblins fled away from the village, as if they all had the same idea to escape.

Zelda wiped her face clean of the blood with a handkerchief. She turned to Alfonzo. "Take these villagers off shore for now. Midna, Pep and I will go back onto the land and ride away to join the Zora forces at Zora's Domain." She felt her Sheikah Slate vibrate. She picked it up and saw Poump on the video call. "Poump! Have you made it to Hyrule Castle Town?" She asked.

"Yes, we have arrived at Hyrule Castle Town." Poump replied. "The place is overcome with plants, just like you said."

"Be careful when you're in there, squad." Zelda said.

"We will." Poump replied.

"Good, now I have business to attend to." Zelda said, and then she hung up.

Poump and the others stood outside of Hyrule Castle Town's overgrown gates. Uten spoke up. "She seems really on edge lately." Uten said. "Is it just me, or was there a little bit of blood on her face?"

"I saw that too." Poump said. "Something must have happened back at the village and it must be the cause of her stress."

"Among other things." Zhago added.

"Yup." Poump replied. "Now let's get to business." The Monster Squad looked at the overgrown gate outside of Hyrule Castle Town. They cut their way through a few vines and walked into the Town. The whole ground was covered in roots, which moved all over the ground very eerily. A few bodies were being dragged by the roots, and a few of them even seemed to be encased in them. "Now that's yucky." Poump said. They observed the fountain in the center of the Main Plaza and saw it draped with plant life overcoming it. The Royal Family's crest, which was displayed on the fountain, was torn into pieces by the plant life that grew over it. Poump took a notice of a path of stone that was on the ground, around the roots. He looked up and saw a Hylian holding a torch. "Groose?!" Poump exclaimed. The Hylian holding a torch turned around.

"Poump!" Groose exclaimed at the sight of Poump. He walked up to the group with his lit torch. Poump noticed the roots on the floor parting ways away from Groose as he approached them. "It has been such a long time without you buddy! Hyrule has plunged itself into a wild world!"

"Well, I got to see a lot of that for myself." Poump replied. "How are Cawlin, Stritch, and Netrea doing?"

"They're safe inside of a bunker just on that side of town." Groose pointed to an area with buildings. He then showcased his torch. "It appears that these roots don't like fire, so the bunker that they are in has lit torches. This keeps that place safe. I'm walking around out here searching for anyone else I can find."

"Do you know what caused this overgrowth?" Poump asked.

"I have no idea, but I have a feeling it's coming from the castle." Groose pointed out the castle. "The plant life over there is insane. I could've sworn some of it had teeth!"

"We'll go to the castle then." Poump said.

"Wait! Don't do that!" Groose said. "You could die."

"I've almost died a lot in the past few weeks, Groose." Poump replied. "I'll be fine."

"Wait a moment, remember that Goron that used to bully you in the Knight Academy?"

"Goggodu?"

"Yeah, Goggodu told me he found an interesting weapon inside of Hyrule Castle, so he decided to go back inside to get it. He never came back."

"Good riddance." Poump replied.

"Now now, just because he was mean to you then doesn't mean he'd be mean to you now." Groose said. "If you find him, he might give you the weapon he was looking for."

"I wouldn't count on it but I'll think about it." Poump said.

"Now enough talk, I should take you guys to the Hyrule Castle gates and light a few more torches for you all. Follow me." The party followed Groose up to the Hyrule Castle gates. Groose took a few torches in a bucket and lit them with his own torch. He handed each party member a torch. "Be careful there."

"Don't worry Groose, we will." Poump replied. They walked through the gates towards the looming shadow of Hyrule Castle, which looked deadly silent in the night. Without the faint glow of light coming from it, the castle looked more menacing than it ever did before. Only the two laser sights from the Divine Beasts that aimed for Hyrule Castle were a sign of light, but it barely illuminated the area at all.

The glow from their torches lit the ground beneath them, and they saw the roots clear out of their way as they walked forward. They followed the road and eventually saw the faint glow of something. Poump and the others decided to take a look at it. Once they arrived at the area, they could see a Goron overcome with roots. Poump knew that this was Goggodu.

Goggodu was struggling to get out of the roots. "Poump, is that you?!" Goggodu said as he was trying his best to get out of the tangle of vines.

"Yes Goggodu, it's me." Poump said.

"Get me down from here!" Goggodu said. Poump looked up at Goggodu. As much of a bully he was during their time in the Knight Academy, Poump knew that his expression was genuine. Poump raised his torch up to the roots, and they receded away from Goggodu. The Goron looked at the ground and then back at Poump. "I can't believe it. Puny Poump actually saved me. You know, I always touted you as a weakling, but seeing what you look like now, I believe you're stronger than any Goron I know on Death Mountain."

"You're really saying this?" Poump said.

"Yes. Genuinely." Goggodu said. "Follow me." The party followed him. "This thing, it glows like a fire. A sword of fire. I saw it here and tried to take it for myself, but I believe all 4 of you deserve it more than me."

Poump looked at Goggodu. "Well, brother. I guess you're right." Poump said.

Goggodu smiled and slapped his belly. "That's right, brother!" Poump picked up the fiery sword. He looked at the others. "Who wants this?"

Tipa raised her hand. "Me." She said. Poump handed her the fiery sword. As she held it, more of the roots in the area started to go away. They discovered a cache full of lanterns.

"What a convenience." Uten said. The party walked up to the lanterns and lit the inside of it with a torch, and they each had a lantern on their waist, so that way they could use both of their hands. Poump handed his torch to Goggodu.

"You'll need this." Poump said.

"Yup." Goggodu said as he took the torch. He walked back towards Castle Town, and then his light glowed away into the darkness.

The party walked forward, and their lanterns made all of the roots around the area get out of the way, but then one group of roots were hesitant to move out of the way. All of a sudden 6 plants came out of the floor and they apparently had teeth. Uten stabbed at the plant's stem, which caused it to fall to the ground. It bounced towards her and bit her in the leg. "AUGH!" Uten exclaimed.

Zhago stabbed the disembodied plant through the head, and then it shriveled up. Poump took out the Sheikah Slate and scanned the plants. 'DEKU BABAS: Plant creatures that will attack anything as long as it's meat for it to eat. Recommended strategy is to strike it's head first.'

Poump pulled out the Magic Sword and blasted at 3 of the Deku Babas heads, which killed them instantly. Tipa slashed her fire sword forward and the remaining 2 Deku Babas shriveled up and died instantly. The party continued walking up the stone road. They knew what road this was, it was the road that led to the throne room. The 4 of them walked up the road. They ran into a few more Deku Babas along the way, but they were easy to take care of with their equipment. They ended up at the entrance to the throne room, which was filled with roots. There also seemed to be someone stuck inside of the roots. They weren't moving much, but they appeared to be breathing. Tipa put her fire sword up to the roots and then they went away. The person dropped down. They were wearing Guardian Armor and a black cape. It didn't take them long to realize this was Keeseman.

"I thank you for freeing me from those roots." Keeseman said.

"Do you know what happened here, Keeseman?" Poump asked.

Keeseman collected himself and stood up. "The Majora's Mask. When I stored the mask in my cave, I intended for it to not be found. Then 3 days ago, a strange child of some sort found his way into my cave. They found the Majora's Mask, and put it on. The power ravaged the entire cave, and I escaped from the blast. I've been trying to find where the Majora's Mask was, and I pinpointed it's location here. I made several different gadgets through the past 3 days that could've possibly assisted me in dealing with the Majora's Masks effects." Keeseman pulled out 3 spherical bombs from his belt. "These bombs that I have made have the capability to counteract against these roots to great effect, even greater than the fire you're holding. If you combine these bombs with that Flame Sword in your possession, you should be able to defeat the wearer of the Majora's Mask. I have scanned the mask for weaknesses, and these bombs will be your best bet."

"Will you fight alongside us?" Poump asked.

"I will not fight alongside you, because I know the bombs I created have the ability to kill whoever is wearing that mask. And while destroying the mask is the best option, it would also kill the wearer of the mask. Therefore, I don't want to be the one to do it. Even in the face of such an evil, I wouldn't want to kill them."

"Is there any other way we could defeat them?" Poump asked.

"No. Killing will be the only option." Keeseman replied. "I know you can do that, as that is what the 4 of you have done before on many occasions. Now, I must leave." Keeseman pointed his arm up to a ledge and propelled himself up into the air. He let his cape fold out and then he glided down towards Hyrule Castle Town.

Poump looked at the other 3. "So guys, are we ready?" Poump asked them.

"It is why we're here. If we die doing this, then we die in glory." Zhago said.

"As much as I value my own life, I also value the life of the people who have to live here in Hyrule, and this castle is pretty much the thing we were assigned into saving. So let's get this thing done with. Together." Uten put her hand forward. Tipa put her hand onto Uten's hand. Zhago and Poump joined and then they all had their hands together.

"Let's do this." Poump said. The party walked up to the door to the throne room and opened it. The room was dark at first, but then it illuminated with red lights. The room was decorated with roots around the place, the bodies of fallen soldiers were clung to the walls and the ceiling. And at the center of the room, there was a small creature floating in place. They turned around to look at the party. This creature wore the Majora's Mask on their face.

"AhAHAHAHA!" The creature exclaimed with laughter. Poump recognized this laughter.

"Skull Kid?" Poump said.

The creature floated down to the floor, but didn't approach them. They made their voice louder. "You are quite the observant Hylian, Poump!" Skull Kid replied. Their voice had a menace behind the mask. Their typically lighter voice was only faintly heard. "Yes, it is I, the Skull Kid! Earlier I set out to find a way to bring myself to greater power, in order to toy with the lives of the people of Hyrule! I wanted to play with so many new toys, and this mask gave me the best ability to play with them! And now the 4 of you have come into my sights! I will use your bodies to create the best toy I can possibly play with!" The Skull Kid raised his hand into the air and then a ball of energy came from his hands. The ball of energy smashed through the throne room's floor, and all of the party members started to fall down. They all pulled out their paragliders and gilded safely onto the floor below. The room around them illuminated red. Some roots on the walls sucked the debris on the floor into the walls. The Skull Kid floated down to the party, with the Majora's Mask energy glowing viciously around him. "I don't want to hurt you too much now! Just enough to kill you all, in order to keep my playthings in good condition!" The Skull Kid said as they landed to the floor on the party's level.

Poump held onto the 3 bombs and waited for an opportunity when he could use them. Zhago and Uten ran up to the Skull Kid with their weapon ready. Skull Kid raised his arm forward, sending a tangle of roots towards the two of them. Zhago grabbed Uten and teleported behind Skull Kid with her. They both attacked Skull Kid from behind, but he blocked their attacks with a force field of some kind. He summoned some energy from his hands and blasted it at the two of them. Uten pulled the Mirror Shield in front of herself and repelled the attack back at Skull Kid. Skull Kid hit the energy back again, and Uten held the Mirror Shield up again, repelling it one more time. The energy attack hit Skull Kid, causing him to spaz out in the air. He wildly flung around the room and then the room started shaking. As if the gravity underneath the party members started to shift, they fell onto the wall around them. It was a circular wall, which sort of caved upwards. The Skull Kid summoned some roots from the wall that started to snag at Uten and Zhago. Tipa ran up to them with her flame sword and brought the sword's flames right next to the roots, which caused them to rot immediately. Poump fired a beam of energy towards the Skull Kid. The Skull Kid attempted to block the beam, but the energy cut through his defense and hit him. He shook around a little bit, and then brought his hands into the air. A bunch of tiny spiders started coming out of the floor and crawled hastily towards the party. Poump didn't want to waste this opportunity, as he noticed the Skull Kid was still preoccupied with waving his hands in the air. Poump pulled out 1 of the 3 bombs and threw it right at Skull Kid. The bomb exploded next to Skull Kid, which sent him slamming violently to the ground. A magical energy of some kind surrounded the Skull Kid. Poump ran up to the Skull Kid and swung his Magic Sword at him violently. "OUCH! OOF! STOP THAT!" The Skull Kid screamed.

As Poump kept on slashing the Magic Sword at the Skull Kid, he noticed the Majora's Mask start to crack from the impacts. Then the Skull Kid emitted a wave that sent Poump and the others flying backwards. Skull Kid reached his hands into the air and then the gravity in the room reverted back to the floor. The party landed on the floor and prepared their weapons again. Poump pointed out the Majora's Mask to the others. "Keep on fighting guys, we'll make it through this!" Poump said to the others.

The Skull Kid shook himself a bit and then went onto the floor. They grew larger, around the size of a Lynel, and charged at the group. Everyone dodged out of the way of the Skull Kid's charge. Uten looked at the roots in the room and then thought of something. She waved her spear, and with intense pain in her head, managed to succle some water out of the roots with her water magic, causing the roots to shrivel. Uten looked at Zhago and then Zhago pulled out an ice arrow. Uten pushed the water towards the Skull Kid and Zhago shot an ice arrow at the body of water, turning the entirety of it into a ball of ice. The ball of ice smashed into Skull Kid and then Tipa and Poump ran right up to the Skull Kid and plunged their swords forwards into the Skull Kid's larger body. The Skull Kid squealed in pain and shrunk down to his former size. Poump prepared to swing at the Skull Kid but a root grabbed him and started to squeeze him. Tipa sliced the root into pieces, and Poump collected his breath again. Zhago teleported on top of the Skull Kid and bashed him with his shield. The Skull Kid was a bit dazed, but then the Majora's Mask glowed red. Chunks of the floor came out of the ground with a red energy around them and then they flew through the air towards Zhago. Zhago jumped away from one of the chunks and teleported away from the other chunk. He landed his blade onto the Skull Kid and pierced his body. "AHH!" The Skull Kid exclaimed.

"Poump! Now!" Zhago screamed to Poump.

Poump pulled out the second bomb and threw it at the Skull Kid, which exploded around him and grounded him to the floor. Poump and Tipa teamed up on the grounded Skull Kid and slashed their blades at him multiple times. The Majora's Mask grew a few more cracks, and then Skull Kid let out another wave of air. Poump tried anticipating this wave, but it caught him and sent him and the others rolling away. Uten picked herself up. "I didn't come all this way to die. I came here to get my rupees." Uten said. The Skull Kid summoned some more roots that grabbed Uten. Tipa slashed her out of the roots, but then the roots came to Tipa. Her fiery sword kept the roots from hitting her, so she slashed at more of them over and over again.

The Skull Kid's mask started speaking. "NOOO! THIS CAN'T BE!" The Mask said. "YOU ARE TOO WEAK, CHILD!"

"But Master Majora! You promised me unlimited power!" The Skull Kid replied.

"AND YOU ARE PROVING YOURSELF TO BE TOO WEAK! I MUST REJECT YOUR INNER THOUGHTS IN ORDER TO MAKE YOU GAIN ULTIMATE POWER!" The Majora's Mask exclaimed to the Skull Kid.

"No! Wait! OOUUGGHHH!" The Majora's Mask bonded itself onto the Skull Kid's face. "There is no more SKULL KID. There is now MAJORA!"

Poump breathed heavily from all of his past exertion. "Goddess, I have seen this same thing somewhere else before." Poump brandished his Magic Sword out and charged for Majora. "And I am TIRED of seeing it happen again!" Poump threw the last bomb at Majora, which exploded and caused the Skull Kid to pause in place. Poump jumped forward and plunged the Magic Sword through the Majora's Mask, causing the mask to fracture significantly.

"No. NOOOO!" Majora screamed.

Poump dug the Magic Sword deeper into the mask, and then pulled it out. Then he slashed at the mask multiple times, causing it to fall into pieces on the floor.

The pieces glowed a little bit. "...it could have been… so much more…" The pieces of the mask said. The glow disappeared, and the pieces of the mask sat on the floor, empty.

Poump looked on the floor and saw the Skull Kid, laying on the floor, barely moving. He walked up to the Skull Kid and knelt down to him. He picked up the Skull Kid, and the Skull Kid looked back up at Poump. "...You… Poump… the Hylian..." The ground underneath the party started vibrating and the floor ascended back up to the Throne Room. "All I ever wanted… was to play… with my toys…but… in the end… what I really needed… were friends… I'm glad it was you… Poump… I'm glad you were the one who ended me… I wouldn't have wanted it any other way…" The Skull Kid fell limp in Poump's arms. Poump held the Skull Kid in his arms as the other party members watched him. The floor reached the Throne Room's level.

The roots and plant growth around the castle's walls shriveled up and landed onto the floor. Any dead bodies that were stuck on the walls also fell down with a crack upon landing. Then, they heard the sound of something rattling. Several Koroks flew on little shamrock leaves into the Throne Room, alongside a few other Skull Kids as well. They walked up to Poump, who was holding the dead body of the Skull Kid in his arms. Poump handed them the body, and the other Skull Kids looked up at Poump. "Thank you." They all said in unison with the other Koroks. The Skull Kids and the Koroks disappeared into a gust of leaves. Poump, Zhago, Uten, and Tipa were left alone in the Throne Room, with only the pieces of the now broken Majora's Mask. Poump picked himself up, and looked at the others.

They walked out of the Throne Room and down the stone road. As they walked down, the roots on the walls and the ground shriveled up. Any remaining Deku Babas fell to the floor and shriveled up as well. They made it to the courtyard and rested on the stone benches around the courtyard. They took a breather after what had happened. Uten walked around the party members and gave each of them a red potion to heal themselves, and she also gave herself a dose of a red potion. After a few minutes of sitting in the courtyard alone, Keeseman vaulted above the castle wall and landed onto a walkway. He descended the stairs and approached the party. He saw how exhausted they were. Instead of speaking to them, he decided to go up to the Throne Room to collect the pieces of the Majora's Mask.

A few more minutes passed and Keeseman made it back to the courtyard. "I don't mean to interrupt your peace, but you should walk onto the walkway and see where those laser sights are coming from."

Poump looked at Keeseman and got off of his seat. He walked up the stairway to look above the castle walls. His eyes followed the two laser sights from Hyrule Castle through the air and to the Great Plateau to the 2 Divine Beasts perched atop it. He already saw Vah Rudania and Vah Medoh sitting on top of the Plateau, but then he saw Vah Naboris approaching the Great Plateau as well. It terrifyingly brought it's legs onto the Plateau and positioned itself. Then, a laser sight came from it's head and pointed itself to Hyrule Castle. The sun started to rise and Hyrule Field became clearer, the green field being revealed by the yellow glow of the rising sun.

Even though the sun was rising, Poump had a sense of dread. This sun rise might be the last sun rise he'd ever see in his life.

Chapter 34: Hyrule United

The third Divine Beast sat atop the Great Plateau with the other two. Their laser sights pointing ominously at Hyrule Castle. Poump looked out onto Hyrule Field and saw an army approaching. After looking at the army for a while, Poump noticed they were the Gerudo Warriors. Poump looked up and he saw a whole flock of Rito flying into Hyrule Castle. Soon enough, the Gorons rolled up to Hyrule Castle Town and filed themselves into the castle. And approaching from the moat underneath the castle, the Zora Tribe jumped out of the water and onto the bridge that led to Hyrule Castle. The forces from all over Hyrule had united here.

Link looked out into the distance and he saw Zelda riding up on her horse, with Midna and Pep on two other horses as well. They arrived at Hyrule Castle and everyone huddled together around the courtyard.

Zelda looked at everyone in the courtyard. Link, Ganondorf, Poump, Zhago, Uten, Tipa, Roldi, Nebb, Keeseman, Paya, Teba, Sidon, Riju, Yunobo, the Guardian Commandos, the Gerudo Warriors, the Rito Warriors, the Goron Warriors, the Zora Warriors, and the Sheikah Warriors were all present and accounted for. She had everyone huddled around a 3D map of Hyrule Castle, pointing out defensive positions in front of the castle. "There will be a full scale assault on the front of the castle. The lasers from the Divine Beasts will possibly end up leveling the castle in its entirety, so the best we can do is protect Hyrule Castle Town. We'll need everyone on the front lines. Everyone who can fight. We will outfit everyone with Guardian Shields, as it has been reported that the enemy has a large supply of ancient arrows. For right now, take your time to say goodbye to any of your loved ones, because there is a high probability that a lot of us will die in the coming battle." Zelda looked around at everyone. "I would say good luck, but I have a feeling even luck won't be on our side today. Once you've said your farewells to each other, prepare yourselves at the frontlines of Castle Town." Zelda finished speaking and everyone around the courtyard started scattering about in order to meet each other for the last time. Zelda looked at the Monster Squad. "By the way, Uten. I'm sorry for snapping at you back at Lurelin Village."

"It's okay." Uten replied. "I might not even get the chance to use my rupees anyway. And we're also in a very bad situation right now."

"I'm glad you understand." Zelda said. "By the way, the rupee cache is here in the courtyard." She pulled out her Sheikah Slate and pressed a button. A part of the floor opened up, revealing a glass case with rupees inside of it.

"Whoa." Uten said to herself.

"This is 2,000,000 rupees all together." Zelda said. "It's the best way I can thank all of you for dealing with the monsters."

"You're welcome." Uten said as she started to salivate at all of the rupees before her eyes.

Poump walked up to Keeseman because he noticed Keeseman messing around with something on his arm. Keeseman pressed a button and then a streak of blue light materialized before him into a motorcycle of some kind. "Wow, what's that?" Poump asked.

"This is known as the Master Cycle. It's a motorcycle that belongs to Link. He gave me permission to use it for myself in combat." Keeseman pressed a few more buttons on his arm. Someone leaped over the castle walls and landed next to Keeseman. They appeared to a woman in a warrior's outfit. Keeseman looked up and descending from the sky appeared to be a Hylian man with a red cape billowing in the wind. Keeseman looked at the two of them, and then to Poump. "We'll be out on the frontlines now. I wish you luck for the coming battle." Keeseman got onto the Master Cycle and rode off towards the frontlines of Hyrule Castle Town, with the two others following him. Noticeably the Hylian man was floating alongside Keeseman, and the warrior woman was running at a jogger's pace next to the motorcycle.

Zhago stood on top of a walkway and looked out to Hyrule Field. He saw a group of red outfits riding on horses approaching the castle. He knew this was the Yiga Clan. He pulled out his bow and prepared an arrow, alongside a few other Hylian soldiers, and then they looked down at them in shock. Every Yiga Clan member raised a white flag. Zhago put his bow down, with the other soldiers as well. The Yiga Clan members rode into Hyrule Castle and met up with the Sheikah Clan members inside. The head of the Yiga Clan members looked at all of the Sheikah Warriors and then at Paya. They got off of their horses and kneeled down. "We know what Ghirahim's plan is. He wants Hyrule to become a land full of monsters, a place where only chaos reigns. He used us for his own gains, and as a result we have done many terrible things in order to bring him closer to his goal. We wish to be killed by you, Sheikah Warriors, as it is the only fitting way for us to go."

Paya looked down at them and then a voice sounded out from behind her. "No!" Zhago turned around and saw his son, Pokh. "There is redemption in all of you." Pokh said. The Yiga Clan members looked up at Pokh. "Your lives are better spent helping us put an end to Ghirahim's plan. Fight alongside us, and you will have redeemed yourselves for all of your wrong doings."

The Yiga Clan members all looked at each other. They all pulled their masks off and looked at them. "We are no longer the Yiga Clan." A Yiga soldier said. They all flipped their masks upside down and tied blue ribbons onto their arms. "We are now members of the Sheikah Clan!" Each Sheikah Warrior raised their weapons into the sky, as well as the other Sheikah Warriors. Paya and Zhago looked at Poump and smiled.

A bright flash of light appeared in the area, and materializing out of it was a 19 year old girl wearing a purple tunic. She saw Link and Zelda, and the two of them saw her as well. "Hilda?" Link and Zelda said in unison.

She looked back at them with tears in her eyes. "Mother… Father…" She ran up to both of them and hugged them, and they hugged her back. "Today could be the last day we are ever together."

"What do you mean?" Zelda said, also starting to develop tears in her eyes.

The hug ended and Hilda backed away from them with tears still streaming down her face. "I can't tell you. Not now." Hilda pulled out an Ocarina, played a song, and disappeared into a bright flash of light.

Zelda looked at Link. Both of them were starting to develop tears in their eyes. They brought out their Sheikah Slate and looked at the picture they took with Hilda near Kakariko Village. Any possibility of continuing a life like that seemed impossible now. Ganondorf approached them as well and sat down. "It's going to be alright." Ganondorf said.

Zelda looked at Ganondorf through tears. "How will it be alright, when Hilda has appeared like this before us?"

Ganondorf put his hand onto Zelda and Link's shoulder. "I can assure you, Hilda is the greatest daughter you could've ever had. She's achieved a lot in her life, and I am here to tell you right now that you should be proud of her."

"I don't forgive you for what you did to Hyrule throughout the ages, but I am glad you're here to help us." Zelda said.

Poump walked around the castle and eventually saw a gust of leaves appear before him. A Skull Kid and a Korok stood in their place. "All of us in the Korok forest thank you for dealing with that Skull Kid. It was unfortunate that he had to pass away, but his lust for power was what drove him over the edge. The Majora's Mask makes its wearer do terrible things. If he had never gotten it, he could still be alive. It is a good thing that you destroyed the mask. You are welcome to return to the Korok Forest whenever you wish."

"Good to know." Poump replied.

"Bye bye." The Korok said, and then the two of them turned into a gust of leaves and disappeared.

Goggodu walked up to Poump. "Poump, once this is all over. Heck, if we even get to live through this, I'd like to challenge you to a sumo wrestle in Death Mountain."

"You bet we will." Poump said. Groose and his friends walked up to Poump. Groose was wearing armor. "Groose? You're going to join the battle?"

"What's all that Knight Academy training worth if I don't help defend the country I was trained to protect?" Groose brought his hands up. Poump and Groose performed their secret handshake flawlessly. "I'll be out there on the frontlines, with you buddy."

"I will be there too." Poump said.

Groose, Goggodu, Cawlin, Stritch, and Netrea all marched to the frontlines in front of Hyrule Castle Town.

Zhago sat down, looking at the Sheikah Clan practicing with their weapons. Then, as if it were a ghost, the ghostly body of Veerus appeared before him. She looked at the Yiga, turned Sheikah, and then back to Zhago. "Amazing what redemption can hide for many people. An entire clan. Turned to their opposite side. Queen Zelda, she is your enemy."

"How so?" Zhago said.

"Follow me." Veerus' phantom form said to Zhago. She floated towards a building, and Zhago slipped through a secret entrance. Veerus pointed out a book on the table. 'Zelda's Diary', it was entitled. "Read this, and tell me you're on the right side of history." Veerus' phantom form disappeared and Zhago picked the diary up. It had entries from 8 years ago inside of it.

Zhago approached Zelda. "So, my Queen."

"What is it, Zhago?" Zelda replied.

Zhago pulled up the diary. He flipped open the pages and found a date from 8 years ago. "This is your handwriting, right?"

Zelda looked at her diary in Zhago's hands with a little bit of displeasure. "Yes, that is my handwriting. How did you find this?"

"I found this because of a…" Zhago paused for a bit, and then shifted the conversation. "Even though I knew I shouldn't have looked in it, I decided to look in it anyway."

Zelda looked at the entry he had opened. It was her entry about the squads who failed to deal with the monster colonies. "Oh. This. It's a bummer you had to discover it this way."

"So… could we have ended up the same as those other squads?" Zhago asked.

"No. Those squads were from 8 years ago, when I didn't have the communication to talk to people from far away. Read the next few entries." Zelda replied.

Zhago read the entries following them. Zelda wrote about how she greatly regretted sending them out so unprepared, and that if she could ever send another group, she would send a group with the right preparations. "It appears, you regret it deeply."

"I do. If I could, I would bring all of their lives back, but they're long gone now because of my mistake."

"I forgive you." Zhago said. "Poump, Uten, Tipa and I were able to fulfill your mission with great success, and all of the previous squad's lives aren't in vain anymore."

Zelda looked at Zhago thoughtfully. "Thank you very much for being understanding."

Link stood in the Hall of Heroes, looking at the statues of himself and the other Champions. Poump walked up to him with a question. "Hey, I noticed that your statue is holding the Master Sword in it's left hand. But you hold in your right hand. Why is that?"

Link turned around to look at Poump. Even though his mind was racing with what was happening, he was happy to see Poump ask a question like this. "The reason why is because throughout history, the different Heroes of the land always carried their sword in their left hand. Or at least a large majority of them. I am right handed, but to honor the rest of the Heroes that shared the Master Sword, this statue makes me hold it in my left hand."

Poump was feeling really enlightened. He meant to ask him this question for a long time, ever since he first met Link at Hateno Village. "Thanks for answering me, friend." Poump replied. He walked out of the Hall of Heroes and left Link alone.

Link was taking one good look at each of the statues of the former Champions. "If only I could ever get to see you guys again. In the flesh. Just one more time, for one more day."

Then, Link felt a strange vibration on his back. He pulled out the Master Sword and felt it vibrating a bit. It glowed and then as if words came out of it, he heard something. "Master." The sword said. Then, a blue being came out of the Master Sword, one who looked elegant and statue-like. "Thank you, Master. Thank you and all of the Heroes that preceded you." The strange feminine figure went back into the sword.

The day passed by as everyone around the castle prepared for battle. Soon enough the sun started to set.

Zelda stood on the walkway, looking across Hyrule Field with a telescope. The three Divine Beasts sat menacingly atop the plateau, and a whole horde of monsters and strange dark creatures were lined up next to the Great Plateau, as well as the remaining Yiga Clan members. Ganondorf joined Zelda's side. "Across that field stands Demise, the curse that kept me in an eternal cycle of reincarnation, bringing blood to the land over and over again."

Zelda looked at Ganondorf. "Is that true?" She asked.

"It is true." A voice sounded behind Zelda. She turned around with Ganondorf to look at who spoke. It was King Rhoam. "Ganondorf will no longer pose a threat to Hyrule anymore. He is an ally for us now."

Zelda looked at Ganondorf again. "He speaks the truth." Ganondorf said. "All we need to do now is vanquish Demise."

"Father…" Zelda said. "I believe you. I will work with Ganondorf."

"Good." King Rhoam replied.

"Oh, and before you leave." Zelda said. "Ganondorf, I must ask him a personal question."

"I will give you two all the time you need." Ganondorf said as he walked down the walkway.

"Yes, daughter, what is your question?" King Rhoam asked.

"Mother." Zelda said. "How did she really die?"

"She died suddenly." King Rhoam replied.

Zelda thought about Hilda. "I know that's not true." She said. "Tell me what really happened."

King Rhoam closed his eyes, and then he opened them again. "If I tell you now, you will feel much worse."

Zelda thought for a bit. "I understand. Father."

"As you always will." King Rhoam said, and then he disappeared. Zelda turned around to look at Hyrule Field again and she saw something terrifying. Vah Ruta, the last of the 4 Divine Beasts, was marching towards the Great Plateau. It positioned itself next to the other 3 Divine Beasts, and let out a laser sight directed towards Hyrule Castle. The Sheikah Tower that was on the Great Plateau got knocked over by Vah Ruta as it planted itself onto the Plateau.

Then, as if it came from the sky, the voice of Ghirahim landed upon everyone's ear drums. "Ahahaha!" He laughed. "Finally! My ultimate plan of creating a world where monsters roam is almost complete! I cannot wait to watch all of you suffer! The flames of my new world will dance wildly above your bodies!" Ghirahim's voice echoed away, leaving everyone around Hyrule Castle slightly shaken.

Veerus' phantom form appeared before Midna. Midna looked at Veerus. "I anticipate meeting you in battle, ancestor." Veerus said to Midna.

"Wait a moment, who are you?" Midna asked.

"I am your great descendant. We will meet on the battlefield, where I will speak to you for a longer while." Veerus' phantom form disappeared.

Link, Sidon, Riju, Yunobo, and Teba walked out to the frontlines. Joining them were Poump, Uten, Zhago, and Tipa. All of them marched to the frontlines and joined with the armies in front of Hyrule Castle Town. Everyone at the frontlines was outfitted with Guardian shields, and there were even a few Guardians that were assisting the army. Link was on his horse, as well as many others. Zelda and Ganondorf rode by his side on their own horses as well. Link nodded at the both of them, glad to see them with him. Zelda put her hands forward, and a Bow of Light descended from the sky into Zelda's hands.

Link looked across the field to see the 4 Divine Beasts, looming in the distance with their lasers pointed at the castle. He turned to look at all of the forces that were behind him. "People of Hyrule! 10 years ago, I awoke from a 100 year slumber in order to bring an end to the Calamity. Lots of people will tell you that I did this alone, however, that is not true. I saved Hyrule with the help of everyone around me! History would like to paint me as the one savior of Hyrule, but in the long run, it was the people that I met that saved Hyrule. Without their help and assistance, I wouldn't have been able to defeat the Calamity. Here we are, 10 years later, facing off against a force that is even greater than the force of the Calamity. This time, I'm not the Hero who saves Hyrule. WE are ALL the Hero that saves Hyrule! We will all fight until our very last breaths! So, with great courage, let us END this together!" Link raised his Master Sword into the air and everyone raised their own weapons into the air as well. Link turned to the field and his horse ran forward, with everyone following behind him. As Hyrule's Army galloped forward, Link noticed a blue glow shoot into the sky from the Great Plateau. With that blue glow, another blue glow came, and another, and then soon enough, the sky was painted with many blue glows. The blue glows came closer and Link widened his eyes. "ANCIENT ARROWS!" He screamed. The army pulled up their guardian shields and blocked the incoming ancient arrows, although some of their shields ended up breaking and the arrows hit some of them, causing them to vanish completely. The Guardians on their side were blown up into pieces. The Monster Squad hid under their Mirror Shield, and Poump had a Guardian Shield which blocked the incoming ancient arrows. After what felt like a terrifying 30 seconds, the hail storm of ancient arrows stopped.

Link had his Hylian Shield up, and he brought it back down. He saw that it was cracked in the same way it appeared in his dream. The same way how 14 year old Pep from the future had it. He looked up at the Divine Beasts and saw all of them generate a bright flash from their laser cannons. They all shot their lasers across Hyrule Field towards Hyrule Castle. Link closed his eyes and awaited the destruction.

Then, inexplicably in the sky, a large force field appeared around Hyrule Castle and blocked the laser attacks. "What?!" Link exclaimed at the sight of the force field. Link and the army stood in shock at what just happened. A bright flash of light came from behind Link and the army, and he turned around to see a light portal of some kind. 4 silhouettes walked out of the light.

"Long time no see." A familiar voice said from inside of the light portal.

It took Link a few moments, but then he started to recognize the silhouettes as they came closer to him. "Mipha? Revali? Urbosa? Daruk?" Link said.

The 4 silhouettes fully came out of the portal, fully recognizable. It really was all 4 of them. The Former Champions of Hyrule. "Yes Link, we're all here." Urbosa said, proudly.

"And we wouldn't have made it here if it weren't for your own." Mipha said. The 4 champions made way for someone riding a white horse, wearing a purple tunic and holding the Master Sword. She had purple hair, and appeared to be 21 years old.

"Hilda?" Link said.

"Yes, father." Hilda replied with a wise voice. She looked at Zelda, who was next to Link. "I will make all of you proud." She raised her Master Sword forward and then a few more light portals appeared behind her. Walking out of them was an army. An army of Hylians wearing Green Tunics, raising their own Master Swords into the air and joined the Hyrulean forces. Another light portal opened up, over 120 Sheikah Warriors walked out of the light, marching onto Hyrule Field. Then, many more light portals opened up. The screech of a bird was heard, and then more screeches sounded through the air victoriously. Flying above the forces of Hyrule, everyone saw large birds carrying Hylians on their backs. The portals widened up, revealing the Hyrule of armies throughout all of Hyrule's History. "Today, father. Today, mother. We fight with allies across all of time." She raised her Master Sword and pointed it to the sky, an energy gleaming up towards the tip of it, and then it glowed brilliantly. "Today we fight with Hyrule's History!"

With all of the forces behind Link's back, he stood proudly in front of the enemy force and got into a battle stance. "FOR HYRULE!" Link screamed and then the whole army across all of time ran through Hyrule Field towards the enemies, which were also charging forward as well. The two armies met in the middle of Hyrule Field, with Hyrule's forces at a great advantage. Hilda led the charge, and The Battle for Hyrule began.

Chapter 35: The Final Battle

Hilda's army ran valiantly across the field, battling through the horde of incoming monsters. The army of Heroes Clad in Green overwhelmed the Shadow Beasts and the monsters greatly, with their swords slashing through all of them with ease. The Sheikah Warriors overwhelmed the Yiga Warriors with their mass numbers. The large birds flew above the battlefield with the Hylians on their backs dropping bombs onto the army of monsters underneath them. The forces of Hyrule charged forwards with their fighting tactics from each tribe being put to great effect.

The former Champions, Urbosa, Mipha, Daruk, and Revali, met up with the current Champions of Hyrule, Riju, Sidon, Yunobo, and Teba. They all teamed up with each other and ran across Hyrule Field towards the Great Plateau where the Divine Beasts were. "Who would've thought my successor was as skilled as I was!" Revali said to Teba.

"We all excel at archery, old timer!" Teba replied, and the two of them flew swiftly through the air, shooting arrows from their bows to the enemies beneath them.

"Together, we roll into battle!" Daruk said to Yunobo.

"That's right, brother!" Yunobo replied proudly, and the two of them rolled across Hyrule Field, smashing through any and every monster that got in their way.

"My my, look at how you've grown!" Mipha said to Sidon.

Sidon smiled back, showing all of his teeth. "It is so good to see you again, sister!" Sidon waved his trident and created a pillar of water for the two of them to surf across the field on.

"You look like a worthy successor to my title, and that Thunder Helm fits you really well!" Urbosa said to Riju.

"I think it would look even better on you!" Riju replied. The two of them sprinted across the field defeating all of the enemies that approached them with ease.

The 8 Hyrule Champions arrived at the Divine Beasts on the Great Plateau and boarded onto each of them. Revali and Teba landed onto Vah Medoh, Daruk and Yunobo rolled onto Vah Rudania, Mipha and Sidon surfed into Vah Ruta, and Urbosa and Riju climbed their way up onto Vah Naboris. In each Divine Beast appearing before each Champion were 4 different amalgamations of Demise.

Demise's voice echoed through each Divine Beast. "My Blights have killed 4 of you before! How could you have any hope of winning this time around?!"

Each of the former Champions spoke in unison in each of the Divine Beasts. "Because this time around, we have each other! And we also have our successors with us! Together, we won't fail this time!"

"Double the Champions, double the blood!" Demise replied. Each of the Blights started fighting each Champion duo. Each of the Champions teamed up with their successors and fought valiantly against each of their respective Blight.

Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf ran across the field together, smashing away at a bunch of monsters. A large Black Hinox challenged the three of them. Zelda shot the light arrows from her Bow of Light into the Hinox's eye, which caused it to fall over. Ganondorf jumped into the air plunging his weapon onto the Hinox's arm, and Link ended it by running on the top of the Hinox's large stomach and sliding his Master Sword across the stomach, dissecting the giant alive.

Poump, Zhago, Uten, and Tipa rode on their horses through the battle. A few Shadow Beasts approached them. Poump's Magic Sword made quick work of a lot of them, and then a wolf jumped from out of the horde of Shadow Beasts and bit Zhago off of his horse. Zhago tumbled on the floor and threw a few throwing knives at the wolf. They hit the wolf, causing it to tumble over. Tipa jumped off of the horse she was on and slashed her katanas at the wolf. The wolf backed away but was barely cut by Tipa's attack. Poump leapt off of his own horse as well and punched down into the wolf's face. It fell to the floor, and then transformed into a light blue skinned individual. This individual didn't move at all. The party without hesitation kept on trudging through the battle. Eventually, they noticed Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf were confronting the being made completely of Malice, Demise. Ghirahim stood next to Demise, appearing in a dark color. Ghirahim turned into a large sword and Demise picked him up from the ground, and then a ring of fire erupted around Demise and the three of them.

Demise observed the three Triforce Wielders, and also took a look around the battlefield, observing the way Hyrule looked. "So. This is what the Goddess has created. Quite impressive." Demise looked at Ganondorf. "And what's most impressive is that YOU, Ganondorf, managed to escape my curse. It is quite fitting that I would wipe your blood across the land that you tainted before." Demise then glared at Link and Zelda. "And as for you two, bound to my eternal curse. Forever tormented throughout the ages. It is also fitting that I end your lives with the one who attempted to do so many times. All three of you… meet your DEMISE!" Thunder started to crack amongst the sky, and dark clouds started to blanket the sun set land. Link had his Master Sword ready in a battle stance, Zelda held her Bow of Light proudly, and Ganondorf erupted with power from the inside.

Poump and the party members saw this, but they couldn't enter because of the ring of fire that surrounded the Knight, the Queen, and the Gerudo King. They turned around and noticed Midna battling her way through the battlefield. Midna stopped fighting once she noticed Veerus in her armor approaching her slowly. Midna elegantly approached Veerus. The party ran up to them, and then a black portal appeared in the sky. Several pillars surrounded Midna and Veerus, but the 4 party members managed to get themselves inside of the barrier before it formed. They all looked up to see what was happening.

Midna looked at Veerus with soft eyes. "Take that helmet off. I want to see my descendant." She said. Veerus quietly took the helmet off. It disengaged from her armor and she grabbed it off of her head with both of her hands and then she held it in her arms. Veerus' real face looked strikingly similar to Midna's face. Slender, light blue, and with orange hair. "Look at you. You are so beautiful." Midna said to her. "That mask, it isn't beautiful. It hides who you are, where you come from. Midna the 17th is your name. Proof that my name carried throughout the generations."

Veerus looked at Midna with thoughtful eyes and approached her. "You are Midna the 1st? The beginning of my true name?"

"Yes." Midna replied. Veerus made it in front of Midna. Midna lightly put her hand onto Veerus' cheek. "I know you can do better than this. This mindless warfare."

Veerus looked at Midna with soft eyes. "I wish for a world without war." She said.

"Then you can do that." Midna replied. "Learn from your mistakes, and make the world a better place."

Veerus put her hand onto Midna's shoulder. Then she gently put her other hand on Midna's other shoulder. "If only it were that simple." Veerus said. Then Veerus violently brought her hands to Midna's neck and started choking her. Midna gasped for breath helplessly. Poump and the party stood in shock at this turn of events. They looked outside of the barrier and noticed a Hero Clad in Green. This Hero looked a lot like the Link they knew, but different. This Link looked through the barrier in horror at Midna being choked. He hit the barrier wall multiple times with his fists, falling to the floor in agony at the sight of Midna losing her life before his eyes.

"Don't… do this…" Midna said through her clenched throat.

Veerus stared at Midna with no emotion in her eyes as she gripped Midna's throat even harder. Then, she snapped Midna's neck, and tossed her to the floor. The Link on the other side of the barrier fell to his knees with tears in his eyes. Poump, Zhago, Uten and Tipa approached Veerus warily, with their weapons ready. Veerus looked at the 4 of them, with decisive eyes. "Midna was the start of my bloodline, the name I carry. However, all she proves herself to be is another barrier in the way of success. History is messy, full of mistakes that no one ever learns from." Veerus pulled out her weapon, a dark sword that glowed with red lines coursing through it. She pointed it at Link, Zelda, Ganondorf, and Demise in the barrier next to them. "Do you see those three fighting over there? The being they are fighting, the being known as Demise is bound to the three of them, locking them in an endless conflict with one another. History chooses to remember them throughout the ages, with the bravado of the Hero against the Evil Demon King always celebrated, as the people of the world suffer in agony from this eternal conflict. What will we be remembered for? We will be mere footnotes on a page. Why would you wish to live in a world where such a conflict can never be ended? A world in which mistakes were made? My world, the one that I wish to create, would be a perfect world. One without a history. One without mistakes. One without the Hero. One without the Royal Family. One without Ganon. Those three that will be remembered and honored by time carry the three pieces of the triforce. Once they die, I can take the united Triforce for myself and create my own world in my own image. As the four of you expire from this broken world, no one will know who you were." Veerus brandished her dark sword, and the party prepared themselves for battle.

The Link outside of the barrier stood himself up. He grabbed his own Master Sword off of his back, and then threw it above the barrier and it landed into the ground next to the party. He looked at the party members. Tipa put her katanas to the side and approached the Master Sword on the ground. She picked it for herself and felt the power emanate through her being. Poump and the others looked at Tipa with the Master Sword in her hands and looked back at Veerus with determination in their eyes. It was all the four of them, and the one Twili in armor. Veerus put her helmet back on and approached the party, ready for blood.

Zhago ran up to Veerus with his sword out. Veerus swung her weapon at Zhago, which he dodged several times, and then he hit one of her joints on her leg armor. She fell over and Uten stabbed her spear repeatedly at Veerus. Then she caught Uten's spear with her hand and pulled Uten towards herself. She slammed Uten into the floor with her fist and prepared to stab her into the ground. Poump pointed the Magic Sword at Veerus, which caused her to flinch away from attacking Uten. Tipa attacked Veerus from behind with her Master Sword and sliced at her armor multiple times. The armor noticeably became more and more cut up with each Master Sword slice. Veerus' armor created a jet of wind that jettisoned herself away from Tipa's attacks. Poump looked at Tipa and the others. "The key to defeating her looks like the Master Sword. We need to weaken her first, and then go to town on her."

"Got it." Uten replied. She prepared her spear and her and Zhago stood together with their weapons ready. Tipa and Poump slowly approached Veerus together with their blades pointed towards her.

Veerus felt the sting of the Master Sword's energy surround her suit. "There is no ability to counter its energy. I must focus on killing that girl." Veerus thought to herself. She jettisoned herself towards the two approaching her and hit them, causing them to fly back and roll onto the ground. She targeted Tipa, but Zhago threw a few more throwing knives at Veerus' armor. The knives bounced off of her armor, but one of them hit the back of her armor, which caused her to slide onto the floor. Uten pulled out a bottle of water and poured the water out of the bottle. She waved her spear and sent the water flying towards Veerus' armor and caused the water to seep underneath her helmet. Veerus took her helmet off and the water poured out of it. "This helmet is imperfect. I must forget it." She smashed the helmet and it crumbled to the floor in pieces. She hit a button on her arm, and then another helmet formed around her head, this time with extra padding around her neck area. Uten tried putting the water back into Veerus' helmet, but the water pressed against Veerus' helmet without any effect. "That won't happen again." Veerus said.

Poump shot another energy beam at Veerus, hitting her in the torso of the armor. It was minor, but he noticed a part of her armor start to chip away from the energy beam. Tipa ran up to Veerus and slashed at her with the Master Sword, but Veerus backed away from the attacks. Veerus attempted to swing her blade back at Tipa, which caused Tipa to dodge under the attack, unbeknownst to Tipa, the weapon swung back around at her and hit her onto the floor. Uten vaulted herself into the air with her spear and stabbed it onto Veerus' armor, which managed to hit her arm joint. Uten was smacked to the side by Veerus' hand. Zhago ran up and teleported behind Veerus, striking at her leg joint, causing her to fall over again. Poump ran up to the fallen Veerus and slashed his blade into her helmet multiple times. It caused plenty of dents with each strike, with a noticeable chipping away happening. Veerus punched her fist forwards into Poump's gut, which sent him rolling away on the floor. He picked his Magic Sword up and knew he wasn't able to fire another energy beam. Veerus stood up and turned her whole body to face the battle with Demise. Her new helmet might have the ability to keep water out of it's cracks, but it forced her to move her entire body in order to see.

Demise battled against Link, Zelda and Ganondorf. Demise knocked Link and Zelda out of the way with an attack, and then he stabbed Ganondorf. "NOO!" Link and Zelda screamed in unison. Ganondorf stood still and then fell to the floor. A bright golden triangle floated out of his body and positioned itself in place. Link and Zelda fought Demise with more anger in their attacks.

"It begins." Veerus said coldly. She brought out her weapon and then pressed a button on it's hilt. The sword she carried disconnected multiple times into a chain type weapon. Then she started to swing it around in circles above her head. The chain hit each of the party members down, but Poump crawled underneath the chain's circular motion. After a few seconds, Veerus reconnected the chains together and then the sword became one again. Uten tossed each of the party members a few red potions. They all drank them up and felt healthy again. Tipa and Uten charged forward. Veerus made a few more attacks which the two of them dodged. Then she raised her arm and then a purple energy blasted from her arm, shooting at the two of them. Uten blocked the attacks with her Mirror Shield, but then the shots eventually were too much and blasted her back. Veerus charged up a bigger blast and aimed it at Tipa. She shot it towards Tipa, the purple glow illuminating the floor underneath the blast. Tipa slashed at the purple blast, which sent it flying back to Veerus. Veerus hit the blast again, causing it to fly back to Tipa. Tipa slashed at it again, which made it rebound back to Veerus. Veerus attempted to hit the purple ball of energy again, but it hit her armor which caused her armor to overload and electrocute her. She fell to the floor, panting for breath.

"Now!" Poump screamed.

"On it!" Zhago exclaimed. All four of the party members ran up to Veerus as she was downed and attacked her with their weapons. Each of their weapons did heavy damage to her armor, most noticeably the Master Sword and the Magic Sword did the most damage with each strike. After a few seconds of wailing their attacks on her, Poump noticed Veerus reaching for her weapon again.

"Everyone! Run away!" Poump screamed, as he ran away from Veerus with the other party members. Veerus picked herself up and swiped her weapon at the air in rage. It barely missed Uten as she was running away. Veerus disconnected her weapon again into its chain form. She swung the weapon in circles above her head once more. The attack missed each of the party members, as they anticipated the attack this time around. Veerus grunted to herself and then the chain weapon swung even faster, and managed to hit Uten and Zhago onto the floor. She reconnected her weapon again and then looked at the battle with Demise again.

Link slashed his Master Sword wildly at Demise's blade. Demise overpowered Link and pushed him to the side. Zelda shot a light arrow at Demise, which stunned him a little bit. Link picked himself up and rushed at Demise, but then he broke free from the stun and charged at Zelda. He slashed at her violently, causing her to fall to the ground, dead. Another golden triangle floated out of Zelda's body and joined by the other floating triangle's side.

"It is almost complete." Veerus said with menace. A purple energy erupted around Veerus' armor. The four party members teamed up on Veerus, but then she knocked everyone down. She raised her chain weapon into the sky and slammed it into the floor towards Zhago. The attack cut Zhago up down the middle, and the chain weapon slid back into Veerus' sword. Zhago reached up into the air with his dying breaths.

"Keep… fighting…" Zhago said to the other party members. His head fell to the side, and all signs of life from him disappeared.

Uten was filled with rage. She ran right up to Veerus and attempted to stab at her again with her spear. Veerus blocked the attacks with her hand, and then slammed her sword into Uten, which caused her to fall to the ground with a large open wound on her skin. She scrambled for a health potion on her waist, but then Veerus ran up to Uten and stabbed her sword into her stomach. "OUGH!" Uten exclaimed. Veerus pulled the sword out of Uten's stomach, with Uten's blood seeping out from underneath her. Uten's head fell limp to the side and her vision turned blurry. Then she saw black.

Poump and Tipa stood together with their weapons ready. Tipa was furious at seeing two of her friends die in front of her eyes. Poump looked at Tipa. "Keep your calm. It's the only way we'll be able to beat her."

Tipa looked back at Poump. "I will remain calm." Tipa replied.

Veerus looked at the two remaining party members, emanating her purple energy around herself. She charged at the two of them with rage. She sent her sword flying at Poump, but he dodged the attack and retaliated with a slash from his Magic Sword. Tipa took the opportunity and slashed Veerus from behind. Poump rolled away from Veerus and shot an energy beam from his Magic Sword towards Veerus' torso armor. This caused a deeper chip into her armor. Poump noticed the Mirror Shield on the floor and picked it up for himself. Veerus charged for Poump at an alarming speed and hit her weapon at him. Poump blocked the attack with the Mirror Shield. Veerus turned around and sent her weapon into chain form and made it fly at Tipa. Tipa barely dodged the attack and tripped onto the floor. Poump tried to attack Veerus with her back turned but she elbowed him in the face, which sent him sliding across the ground again. He felt his nose and saw blood on his fingers. Veerus wrapped her chain weapon around Tipa's legs and dragged her towards herself. Tipa gripped onto the Master Sword and stabbed it forward into Veerus' leg. This caused her to lose her grip on her weapon and she fell to her knees. Tipa pulled the Master Sword out of Veerus' leg and slashed at her armor some more. Veerus' armor started to give way, and Tipa started to see her skin underneath. Poump lumbered towards Veerus with his Magic Sword in hand. He prepared to attack her again, but then Veerus did a circular sweeping motion with her feet, causing the two party members to fall to the floor. Veerus raised her weapon above her head and slammed it down towards Tipa. Tipa rolled out of the way of the attack and the large weapon frighteningly hit the ground next to her. Poump backed away from Veerus and picked himself up. Veerus looked at Demise's fight again.

Link and Demise were going at it, their blades clashing into each other. Link raised his shield to block Demise's attack and Demise knocked it out of the way. Link parried each incoming attack from Demise with his sword. Link fought bravely with tears streaming out of his eyes and blood coming out of his mouth. Link attempted to land his sword straight into Demise's stomach, but Demise parried the attack and plunged his blade right through Link's body. "AUGH!" Link exclaimed as Demise's sword penetrated him.

Demise raised Link up to his face. "You are the current Hero? How pathetic."

Link was suspended on Demise's blade, raised above the floor in a way that his feet couldn't touch the floor. However, Link was still holding onto the Master Sword with what little life was left in him. Link looked straight up at Demise. "HYAAAAHH!" He screamed as he plunged the Master Sword straight through Demise's abdomen.

"OOUGHH!" Demise said as the Master Sword penetrated through his malice-born skin.

"If… I'm going down… then so are you!" Link said as he let go of the Master Sword and let it sit inside of Demise's stomach. Demise fell down to the floor with widened eyes. Link struggled his way out of Demise's sword and landed to the floor, with an a hole through his stomach, and the Master Sword planted into him. Link looked up at the sky and watched as it blurred out of focus. He closed his eyes, and lay on the floor, with a puddle of blood developing underneath him. The fire barrier surrounding all of them died away. A third golden triangle floated out of his body and united with the other two golden triangles. The three triangles all glowed brightly once they were all united. They were now forming the Triforce.

"Finally." Veerus said at the sight of it. "My goal is in reach. Opportunity arrives." Veerus looked at the two bruised and beaten party members remaining. "And you two stand in my way."

Poump and Tipa both stood their ground and prepared their weapons. "As we should be." Poump said.

"That's right." Tipa added.

"You two are naive." Veerus said as she looked at the two of them through her cracked helmet, her eyes showing from underneath. She lumbered towards the two of them with her damaged armor and her purple energy surrounding herself. She let her weapon turn into a chain form once again and swung it at the two of them. The attack was blocked by Poump's Mirror Shield, but then the chain wrapped around Poump. Veerus pulled him towards her, but then Tipa aimed her sword into the sky. Light filled the Master Sword and Tipa slashed the blade right at Veerus, sending an energy beam flying into Veerus' helmet. The blade cut her helmet clean off. The helmet fell to the ground. Her head was still intact, but Poump plunged the Magic Sword right into her torso armor, at the spot where he started chipping it away. "AUGH!" Veerus exclaimed as the Magic Sword sat through her armor. She let go of Poump, causing him to roll on the ground behind her. He looked up and saw his Magic Sword's blade on the other side of her armor, with her blood dripping off of it. Veerus dropped her sword on the floor and stood there. She waved her hands and the pillars surrounding them returned into the black portal in the sky. The Link on the other side of the barrier ran up to the dead body of Midna. He clutched her in his arms.

"YAAH!" Tipa screamed and then she plunged the Master Sword into Veerus' open torso.

"EAAUGHH!" Veerus exclaimed as the two swords sat in her stomach. The purple energy surrounding her disappeared. Her armor, as beaten as it was, walked her forward towards the Triforce. Her armor lumbered her forward. She felt herself dying and motionless. All she needed was for her armor to get her to the Triforce before she expired. Then, the Triforce started to glow tremendously. "What?! NOO!" Veerus exclaimed. The light adjusted in her eyes and she saw on the other side of the Triforce, Hilda putting her hand onto it. "...Impossible…" She said, with an empty voice. "I was… this close to victory…"

Hilda looked at Veerus through angered eyes. "You never were." Hilda said as she continued touching the Triforce.

Veerus awoke in a black space. She saw that her armor was still torn and had the two swords plunged into it, but she felt like she could speak clearly again. "Where am I?" She said.

"You are in your head." Hilda's voice echoed. Veerus saw a blur approach her, and then it formed into Hilda, wearing the purple tunic, and the united Triforce floating behind her.

Veerus looked at Hilda and tried to move, but she couldn't. "What are you doing?!" She screamed with hatred.

"I'm here to tell you your fatal flaw." Hilda said with a stern expression on her face.

Veerus sat there. "What is it?!"

"You forgot your history from your people. Were you ever told the story of the Interlopers?" Hilda said.

"The Interlopers?" Veerus asked.

"The Interlopers were Hylian sorcerers from this world. They attempted to use their magic to harness the Triforce's energy for themselves, however the Golden Goddesses forbade them from using their magic to claim the Triforce for themselves. The Goddesses condemned the Interlopers to a realm away from Hyrule, the Twilight Realm. They soon became known as the Twili, your people."

Veerus sat in thought, furious with this. "Then the Goddesses made a terrible mistake!"

"No, Midna the 17th." Hilda said. "The Interlopers made a terrible mistake."

"Curse you! Curse you and your realm of the Goddess!" Veerus furiously screamed in agony, as she couldn't move. "If it was their mistake to take the Triforce's power for themselves, then why should that mistake be brought upon me?!"

Hilda looked at Veerus. She walked up to her in her armor and brought her face up to her face. "Because you made the same mistake that they made." Hilda said. She pulled out the Master Sword off of her back and sank it into Veerus' chest.

The two of them were in Hyrule Field again. The sky was bathed in the twilight of the sun setting. There were no more dark clouds in the sky. Veerus sat there, with the three swords sinking through her body. She looked around Hyrule, seeing the sky and how it looked. "...It… is beautiful…" Veerus said. Hilda raised her hand up, and twisted it in a motion that looked like she was grabbing onto something. Veerus looked up at her doing this, and then she felt something touching her heart. Hilda squeezed her hand together. Veerus felt her heart burst from being crushed. She coughed up a ton of blood, and then fell onto the floor. Veerus was finally no more.

Poump and Tipa saw Hilda, they tried walking up to her. Hilda walked up to the dead bodies of Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf, and then a bright light enveloped the whole area.

Hilda stood in an abstract dimension, which had a bright crack at the end of it. Poump and Tipa were standing in this dimension as well, and then they saw that Zhago and Uten were also here, alive as well. Poump turned around and saw Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf, all alive and well. Hilda looked at Zelda and Link. "This is the part where I say thank you. To all of you." Hilda said as she looked at everyone.

Zelda looked at Hilda. "Hilda… what is happening?" She said through tears.

Hilda looked back at Zelda with a look of sadness on her face. "I am saying my goodbyes to you, Mother." She looked at Link. "And to you, Father." She looked at Poump. She remembered her first horse ride she ever had in her life. "And to you. Poump." She said. "I must return to the realm where I belong. Lorule. I am a part of their Royal Bloodline, so I am needed there, now that I have achieved what I needed here."

"Hilda…" Zelda said with a shaky voice. "What did you wish for?"

Hilda smiled at Zelda through tears. "You will find out soon enough."

Zelda couldn't hold it in anymore. She started pouring tears from her eyes. "Will we ever meet again, Daughter?"

"We may never meet again. The future is uncertain." Hilda looked at the bright crack of light at the end of the abstract dimension and then back to Zelda. "Now I must go. Goodbye, Hyrule." Hilda walked towards the bright crack at the end of the abstract dimension.

In a bright flash of light, Poump found himself on Hyrule Field again. He looked around and saw Tipa, and joining beside her were Zhago and Uten, alive and well, in the flesh. Poump turned around and looked at the Great Plateau. All of the Divine Beasts sat atop the plateau, motionless, with no light from inside. The 8 Champions arrived from the Divine Beasts, all alive and well. The four former Champions saw Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf, also alive. Link and Zelda were crying with each other. They fell to their knees in sadness. The four former Champions disappeared into a bright flash of light, with the current Champions standing in their place. The over 120 Sheikah Warriors also walked into a bright light, and disappeared. The large flying birds flew into the sky, and disappeared into a flash of light as well.

The Link that was clutching the dead body of Midna sat in sadness, and then he felt her body moving in his arms. He opened his eyes and saw her looking up at him, alive and smiling. He smiled back gleefully at her. The two of them got up. The Link reclaimed his Master Sword and then Midna and he walked into a bright light, disappearing together. All of the other Heroes Clad in Green walked into different bright lights, returning to their time periods. 14 year old Pep from the future also walked into a bright flash of light.

The remaining Shadow Beasts transformed into beings with light blue skin. All remaining Yiga Clan members were confronted by the Sheikah Clan members. All of them submitted themselves and joined with the Sheikah Clan members, knowing that their alliance with them would be much more beneficial to them.

All of the monsters that were still living lost the malice within their eyes. Any Golden or White monsters turned into either Black or Blue monsters, devoid of any ill content.

Veerus' dead body was on the floor, with one sword left inside of it. Poump walked up to her dead body and reclaimed his Magic Sword. He looked across the field at all of the different tribes of Hyrule. The Gorons, the Zora, the Rito, and the Gerudos. Poump looked at the Magic Sword and raised it to the air.

Demise's body and his sword turned into a loose energy of malice, that was sucked into Link's Master Sword. The Master Sword glowed brightly, and then the glow went away. Only the metallic shine of the Master Sword's blade was left.

Despite the turnout of the battle, Link and Zelda were still crying on their knees. Their daughter, while alive in another realm, might as well be dead to them. Any hopes of them living with their daughter were gone now.

Epilogue

After the battle was over, Zelda ordered the Monster Squad to bring the remaining monsters to the monster island out at sea. Because of Hyrule's previous experience with dealing with the monsters, everyone was glad that the rest of them were being shipped away. Poump, Zhago, Uten, Tipa, and Link took the last bunch of monsters on the boat with them to the island. One more guest appeared on the boat, Kilton, the owner of the Fang and Bone shop. He wanted to live with the monsters, so Link allowed him to stay on the island. As all of the remaining monsters were dropped off on the island, Poump decided to name the island, Koholint Island. Kilton now lives on the island with the other monsters. The monsters themselves set up their own clans, and built structures for themselves to live in. The monsters even started to learn different farming concepts from Kilton, as he demonstrated to them how to plant crops and how to herd wild animals.

On the way back to Hyrule, the party stopped by Windfall Island once again. Efiath thanked Link for teaching her about speaking to other people. Her and Ophea became best friends, and from that friendship, Efiath had many more friends on Windfall Island. Efiath allowed Pep to stay with Link, as she wanted a fresh start with her life on the island. Link accepted this and took Pep in with open arms.

Poump spoke to his family about coming to Hyrule in order to visit. They chose to visit Hyrule with Poump, and in their visit, Poump taught them about how to ride on horses. Poump also showed them his friends and how much they grew. Bomp and Groose met each other after such a long time and flawlessly performed the secret handshake together.

Since Link took Pep with him to Hyrule, he and Zelda looked over the child. They even had another baby on the way. By Zelda's jurisdiction in the court, Link was allowed to keep his status as Knight. She respected his decision to not be crowned King. As for Ganondorf, he would visit Link and Zelda at Hyrule Castle in order to watch over Pep sometimes. He taught Pep about different fighting styles, and how to use them.

Lady Riju of the Gerudo allowed Ganondorf to be accepted as a part of the Gerudo Tribe. He assisted them greatly with his combat skills and ability, and joined their ranks as the General of the Gerudo, next to Captain Buliara. With the recent resurgence of the Moldugas, the Gerudo Tribe set up new rules in the desert, allowing for no hunting. The Gerudo put their efforts into conserving the Molduga's species. If a rare disease were to ever arrive again, they would have enough Molduga Guts to go around.

As for the Shadow Beasts turned Twili, they all went back to their home in the Twilight Realm through the Twilight Mirror. The Gerudo Tribe took control over the Arbiter's Grounds, and managed to turn it into a working facility for themselves, with the assistance of the Royal Family. They were in good relations with the Twili, as they had no qualms with Veerus' death.

All of the former Yiga Clan members were in Kakariko Village. Paya anointed all of them as members of the Sheikah Clan. Impa's ghost blessed each of the new Sheikah Warriors, as all of them had redeemed themselves. Zhago and Pokh walked into their homestead together and saw a familiar face at the table before them. "You two look healthy!" Zhago's wife said as they entered. Zhago smiled, now knowing that his ideal life was put back together. Additionally, Zelda allowed the Sheikah Clan to use any Sheikah Tech they wanted to, which allowed Purah and Robbie to excel at their research.

Uten and Prince Sidon continued testing on the water outfit. She put 10% of her newly accrued lot of 500,000 rupees into further research of the suit. As a result of this, more Zora were able to visit the Gerudo Desert, and see new sights for themselves.

The horns on Tipa's head fully receded into her skull. She now appears as a normal Hylian girl. Link and Zelda adopted her, accepting her as a part of the Royal Family. She was given speech lessons, which sharpened her ability to speak.

Poump made amends with Goggodu the Goron, and the two of them wrestle on a regular basis on Death Mountain. Additionally, Poump also visits the Korok Forest a lot, in order to play with the Koroks and the other Skull Kids.

Nebb walked into Hateno Village, feeling exhausted from all of the combat he had to endure. As he walked in, the 6 villagers that were previously dead walked up to him alive and with warm welcomes. The next time he met Poump, he fully forgave him. The two of them would challenge each other to a friendly sword duel, as a way of becoming friends.

Roldi the General took a count of all of the soldiers of Hyrule. All of her fallen friends were alive and accounted for. She felt overwhelmed with happiness, as seeing her old comrades again gave her a warm feeling inside. Roldi accepted Poump as a member of the Soldiers of Hyrule, and announced him as the Hero Who Defeated Aghanim.

Keeseman continues his crusade on crime in Hyrule Castle Town. Even with the Yiga Clan gone, there are other criminals who live among the people in Castle Town. He made sure that nothing bad could ever happen in Castle Town again, with his new acquaintances assisting him, as well as Link, who recognizes him as a being of pure heart.

Ganondorf regularly prays to the Goddess, as a way of thanking her for driving Demise's curse away from him, no longer subject to reincarnation. He has the normal life he wanted at long last, after being bound to such a long and grueling curse. Ganondorf even looks up into the sky and sees three serpent-like dragons flying above. A smile overcame his face.

Zelda ordered every Guardian Unit and ancient arrow to be locked away. There was no need for Guardians anymore, as they were considered more of a detriment to their ranks rather than a blessing. Without any Guardians on the field, every single ancient arrow across Hyrule was locked away on an island where the Guardians were also kept. Ancient arrows were considered unethical in warfare, and the Hyrulean Garrison already had enough weapons to keep ancient arrows out of their repertoire.

Tatl occasionally visits Poump from time to time, aiding him with fresh fairy gossip whenever he wants it.

Yunobo and the Gorons host many racing competitions on Death Mountain. Their mining business thrives, as Goron City is at peace once again.

Teba lost any need to isolate himself again. He kept himself close to his family and the Rito Tribe. They would all fly together, wherever they went.

The bug seller, Beedle, and the map maker, Tingle, formed a merger and now work together as a business. Beedle's useful items and Tingle's insightful maps gave citizens a noteworthy business to buy from. They even celebrated their shop by throwing a party at Lon Lon Ranch, where everyone celebrated gleefully.

Selmie and her brother shield surf across the Hebra Mountains together, and she even leads a hiking group. She was able to walk across all of the different mountains across Hyrule with friends by her side. She even opened an exhibit in Castle Town that showcases her expansive shield collection.

Zelda ordered the reconstruction of the bridge to Gerudo Valley. Zhago even donated 5,000 rupees to assist with the bridge's reconstruction.

Each of the party members spent their rupees well, as their accumulated wealth and lessons they learned on their adventures allowed all of them to help every asset of Hyrule Kingdom.

Poump walked through the library in Castle Town, reading several history books with Kass. Poump was at first saddened, knowing that if Hilda really went on all of those adventures through time, she should've been covered in his history class. Kass opened up one of the history books and pointed out several illustrations that depicted a Hero in a Purple Tunic, with purple hair. Poump was glad to see this, so Kass and him got into revising the history books to include Hilda's adventures as well.

The voice from the Master Sword gave Link one more request. To return to the Korok Forest. He returned to the Korok Forest and appeared before the Great Deku Tree. The Deku Tree told him about how Demise's malice is slowly being torn apart inside of the Master Sword's blade, and the only way to truly contain it is to keep the Master Sword in its resting place. Link placed the Master Sword gently back into its pedestal. The Master Sword now sits inside of the Korok Forest, containing Demise's evil inside of it. The blade's metallic shine and mystical energy made for a very serene area for the creatures of the forest to inhabit.

The Divine Beasts all sat together on the Great Plateau. Completely lifeless and devoid of any movement. The ghosts of the Champions chose to leave Link, as they had fulfilled their duties. They now live on the Great Plateau, with the ghosts of all the previous Champions that preceded them living there as well.

With Hyrule at Peace at long last, Link and Zelda were able to settle down and finally have a family life with Pep, Tipa, and the new baby that was coming. However, they always looked at the picture of them with Hilda with sadness. Looking at the possibilities of what could've been, had she not left Hyrule.

6 Years Later.

Today is a grand day in Hyrule Castle, as all of the Heroes who fought in the Battle of Hyrule are assembled inside of the Dining Hall. The tables were long and seated everyone. Food is abundant on each of the tables, and everyone digs in happily. Poump, Zhago, Uten, and Tipa are all feasting at this momentous occasion. Zelda and Link sit at the table with them, as well as Ganondorf, Pep, and their new child, Zelda the 2nd. They notice something from outside of the room that no one else notices. "Keep a watch of the children." Zelda says to Ganondorf.

"I will do as I always do." Ganondorf replies.

Zelda and Link walk together out of the Dining Hall. Poump is curious about this, so he follows them as well. Zhago, Uten, and Tipa also follow behind Poump to see what is happening.

Zelda and Link hear the sound of a song. Zelda recognizes this song as 'Zelda's Lullaby'. They walk through the corridors together with Poump and the others following behind. They continued to follow the song, the soft playing of a harp became clearer and clearer to them. They eventually arrived at a balcony that overlooks all of Hyrule, and in the center of the balcony stands a woman with purple hair, playing the harp. She stops playing it, and turns around to look at the people who arrived. She appears to be 27 years old. Zelda and Link looked at her in disbelief at first, but then they understood who she was.

The purple haired woman spoke. "Let's make up for lost time now, shall we?"

THE END