Chapter 33

A Chance to Breathe

We snuck silently through the woods, hoping not to catch the attention of the monsters still looking for us. We have decided to play it safe and head north, where we would remain by the woods for a while before returning back to the road.

There were a few times when we had to fight with a few of the seekers, but they never had the chance to raise the alarm. Even the whizzrobes must've given up, as we didn't see anymore of those. Once we were convinced we lost them for good, we crawled out of the trees, back into an open clearing. My heart was still racing, and I trembled, but we were safe now, and that gave me a little bit of comfort.

"I wonder if they're still looking for us in there." Tog mumbled, glancing back at the now peaceful flock of trees. I said nothing, as I was just now catching up with my surroundings. It was late in the night, which helped us with our escape. The stress and chaos has melted away into a beautiful night, like nothing ever happened. Crickets chirped all around us, and the white light of the moon combined with the gentle chilly breeze was soothing and refreshing.

The children have stayed silent and followed orders since we left the cell, and just now, one of the girls spoke up. "Does this mean we can go home now?"

And the question was answered by Tog. "Yes, you're all freed, but we won't go home tonight. I think we'll head straight there first thing in the morning." At that, all the kids began to grumble at once. Tog gave them a minute to express their disappointment before he replied. "It's too dark out to travel safely, and we all, especially all of you, have had a long and stressful night. Let's just rest until day. We'll be more awake and ready to go home then." After they stopped the complaining and complied, Tog turned and began seeking flat, dry ground for them to rest on.

But a young boy remained where he was, looking up at him. "Excuse me," He asked, his voice piped up to catch Tog's attention. He turned, regarding the child with a curious expression. But now that he was standing there, waiting for a response, the kid suddenly became shy. He looked down, bringing his hands in front of him and twindling his fingers. "I was just wondering... Why are you helping us? I thought moblins were mean."

And at that, the other kids turned around, like they also wondered how the Tog would reply, but he didn't look offended, instead, he gave a light chuckle in return. "You're right, many of them are mean. But I never supported Ganon. He's just a selfish monster, destroying innocent towns and lives, and he never cared about us anyway. Personally, I don't know how he has so many minions, I guess they just serve him out of fear. But because I didn't respond to him like many others do, my own kin treated me like a traitor, even those I thought I trusted. I couldn't live like that, so I decided to go on my own way. I like that better."

"I've never known a nice moblin, but I'm glad you helped us. Thank you."

Tog's gaze softened, like he was touched by the child's kind words. "It was my pleasure." He sniffed lightly, then turned back to the others. "Anyway, we should set up camp before the sun rises. Give me a hand, will you?" He asked me.

So I helped to spread out whatever we had in our travel gear to comfort them. After they crawled in the warm bedrolls and we fixed up a fire to ward the chilliness away, Tog and I stayed awake a while longer, sitting on logs and feeding the fire. We sat in a time of silence, listening to the embers pop and watching the red light flicker and wave. I found myself gazing into the fire until it burned my eyes. In my head, I could hear the voices of the whizzrobes, and the very same light dancing before me was burning for their ceremony; the revival of their king, Ganon.

They were ready, all they needed was my blood, and then the destruction of Hyrule would begin all over again. Except for this time, I wouldn't be there to challenge him. If it wasn't for Tog, this would have happened. I was useless! And here, I was supposed to be the hero. The fearless, strong man who is able of escaping on his own. I was nothing but a coward.

"You must be tired too." Tog said, glancing up at me while he poked at the logs. I snapped back into the present and returned the gaze. He smiled a toothy, moblin grin. "Just as I thought, I'm surprised you haven't fallen over from your seat! You should rest while you have the chance." There was an explosion of sparks coming from the logs he was poking at, like they were reluctant to giving in to the fire and offering one last complaint. Tog shrugged, leaning back and throwing the stick he was using into the fire as well. "Don't worry about it, I have some energy left. I'll stay on watch while you and the kids sleep."

I thought about the offer for just a second before deciding that I wouldn't be able to sleep anyway. "Thanks, but I'm doing fine."

Tog wasn't in the least convinced. He glared at me sternly. "I can tell from here you're not fine. I'm changing my mind, this isn't an offer, I'm going to insist this one." He said, standing up and pointing at a clear space near the kids.

I shook my head, amazed at how much I could have doubted him, even for the few minutes I did. "What's going to happen now?" I asked as the question came to my mind. "To you and your kin? You were already struggling with their trust, and after this, they know your true colors for sure. There's no way you can go back to them after what you did for us."

He lowered his arms and relaxed, regarding the question in full. "I don't know," He answered honestly. "But I already knew I would be betraying them for good. And still, I chose it. After I heard the news they caught you, I couldn't pretend I didn't and do nothing. I needed to do all I can to help, even at the costs." He sighed and crossed his arms, staring down at the fire like he was seeking inspiration for his next thoughts. "But I don't know what will come next. I suppose, in the end, I'll always have you and the prince by my side. But honestly, I would like to be accepted among the hylians. I would like to walk safely in their towns and visit with the people. You remember what the prince of Hyrule said before I left? He said I would always be welcome in his kingdom. I would like that more than anything else, but I also want to be a part of it without causing fear."

I couldn't hide the chuckle when I heard that last part. "I don't think that'll be a problem. I'm sure you're well on your way of being accepted by the hylian people, starting when you helped the children. They're grateful for what you did, and they're not afraid."

He laughed and looked back at the row of bedrolls. "Yeah, I suppose you're right, maybe." And when he turned back to me, he was back to being stern. "Anyway, you distracted me. Go on to sleep now."

There was no point in arguing further. I was still thinking I couldn't sleep if I tried, but at the same time, sitting here has finally showed me how tired I was. I stood up and slowly moved past the campfire and Tog. He said back down in front of the fire as I rolled out my own bedroll and curled up in it. It was a lot colder over here, and the ground was hard, but I found a little bit of comfort in the cloth covering me. I closed my eyes and listened to the sounds around me, trying to distract my mind on something other than the fears that overwhelmed me a while back.


Surprisingly, sleep took me quickly that night, even though it was riddled full of nightmares still. When I finally awoke, it was late in the day, almost noon. Tog was here still as well, and he was fixing breakfast. I stood up and joined him, and once the food was ready, we woke the kids up and ate.

The children were excited and full of energy, they finished their meal quickly and were more than ready to head home. But they had to be patient, as we still needed to pack up the camp. "I was wondering, Link," Tog began as he was finishing up his meal. "If I should take the children home. I was thinking about our conversation last night, and you're right, I think they'll be fine with that. And that'll also allow you to continue for the Maze Palace, because otherwise, you'll be taking more time than you need for this and you'll still need to come all the way back."

I had to pause to think about that for a minute. I knew what he was preposing was smarter, but I just didn't want to think about going back into the maze. What if I'm captured again? What if they're still in there? I would rather go along with them to Darunia and not ever have to worry about coming back, but I knew I still needed to find the Maze Palace, and I doubt I could find a different way to enter it.

"Don't worry, they were just there to set up a trap using the children." Tog said, like he was reading my thoughts. "I know them, and more than likely they are already filing out of that place, trying to come up with a different strategy."

I hoped he was right, I thought.

"Listen, I don't know what happened, but you've always been the most fearless man I've known, and back there, I saw you give up. I didn't ever think I'd see that, especially in front of all those lizalfos."

At that, a rush of shame raced it's way through my body, and I looked away. "Oh, no, I didn't... I mean..."

"Forgive me," He interrupted, a glimpse of sympathy crossing his eyes. "That came out too harsh. You are not weak, I know you will find the Triforce, and you will do it and live! You saved the kingdom six years ago, and no one thought it was possible, but you did it. And now, you have more experience. Ganon and his minions should be the ones fearing you! Not the other way around!"

"But, to be honest, I'm not sure how I did it the last time. And that was so long ago. I've been having these weird dreams where Ganon is the final guardian guarding the Triforce."

His eyes perked and he regarded what I said in all seriousness. "Ganon's been showing up in your sleep? Whoa, that's horrible! So do you believe them, do you think, somehow, he's waiting for you at the end?"

I shook my head, the notion of hearing that out loud came out as more ridiculous as ever. "No, not really. But I've been having them a lot lately, and Rebonack warned me that my quest will be more difficult, that I will be challenged further than I ever have been. So that, coupled with those dreams, I guess I played on that idea for a while. But in the end, I don't think there's a chance he's there."

"I agree, the only way Ganon can come back to this world is if his minions succeed in killing you. And trust me, that'll never happen, well, it'll ever happen if you give up. So believe me when I tell you; never give up, Link!"

But that brought a question to mind. "But why didn't they kill me? Why did they bother bringing me back to the camp?"

He scoffed. "That chief is arrogant, that's why. He wanted to parade around the camp with his trophy, that's the only reason I can think of. I mean, you saw how I challenged him on why he didn't even bother telling the whizzrobes he had you. And I count us on being very lucky for that arrogance."

"You're right, if it would have been someone else, I would be dead right now, for sure."

Tog shrugged, standing up and brushing the crumbs from his clothes. "Maybe, maybe not. It was a close encounter with death, but you don't need to read too much into it. There would be no point, good or bad, to dwell on the what ifs."

"You know, you're very wise, especially for a moblin." I laughed, then pushed up from my seat on the log. "I'm sorry I doubted you back there, even if it was for just a moment."

He shrugged it off. "I understand, and I'm not bothered by it."

"Can we go now please?" One of the boys cried from several feet away. "We want to go home."

"Yes, we'll leave here very shortly." Tog answered back. "Just give me one moment." Then he turned back and offered his last piece of advice. "You'll be fine, and don't worry about it too much. Just know that the whizzrobes are very powerful, they're the most powerful magic-users in Hyrule, and very few others can do what they do. Magos tend to only specialize in fire magic, and even hylian wizards, unless strengthened by some other dark force, cannot cast spells so choatic and evil. Just be careful and don't give up."

I thanked him and helped to pack up camp, then, when all was done here, he gathered up the children. "I'll see you around." He wished the farewell, then they picked up the pace, heading west. And here once more, I was alone, standing in the midst of what remained of a campsite. And still, the only thing I wanted to do next was to chase them down and join them.

The talk we shared helped me become a little more confident, even if all I did was just show him these things I've been struggling with silently. But I still felt the sickness in my core, I couldn't even turn back to look in the direction of the maze, like that alone would ring the sirens to the monsters again. Do this for Zelda, I thought to myself, if you do it for nothing else. I spun around, falling into a daydream of our best times together.

I could see her, she was speaking to me with her sweet, soft voice. I just wanted to listen to the sound of it, so I missed what she was saying to me. But she started to point away at some landmarks, as I then remembered we were outside the castle, looking across the green Hyrule in its beauty of late spring. The breeze was so real, the refreshing chill took my breath away and then tasseled her red hair. She smiled, her face turning a little pink. It carried the scent of fully bloomed flowers.

Everything was peaceful. The kingdom was prospering, and few monsters troubled themselves with towns, and most of all, Zelda was awake and fine. It occurred to me how much I took these times for granted. For many years, I was often running around the land, seeking thrill and adventure. But now, I wanted those quiet times back. And this time, I will take them for granted no more, I promised. And finally, I opened my eyes.

And saw only the trees.

Author's Note: It's been a long time since I uploaded, I'm sorry about that. I'm recovering from a big move, and I still don't have internet at my place. I'm not going to be able to post as often as I used to, but don't worry, I'll post as often as I can. We'll see how that goes. As a matter of fact, since I've been gone so long, I'm posting two chapters for you guys today. Thank you for your patience. I'll see you later!