Chapter 25: Fi's Call from the Temple of Time
Link was not sure how long he had spent in the northern country. All he knew was that by the time he had managed to brave the descent of Snowpeak, follow the path back through Zora's Domain, and finally return to Castle Town, night had fallen for the fifth time over the course of the journey to and from the mountain.
He walked through the city streets slowly, the thin crowd milling about and paying him no mind as they tended to their routine chores. His path toward the bar was not as populated as it usually was by day, and for that he was thankful. He did not much like the idea of being stared at and talked about at any rate, but with the weight of what had happened at the yeti dwelling, Link cringed at the thought of even having to show his sunken face to the Group. He wished there was a way around meeting them at this moment ... to give himself time to erase the visual remains of the traumatic horror from his eyes... But he needed to move on, to gain information on where the next mirror piece might have been hidden. He did not have time to rest so completely before the next leg of his journey. The streets and plains and valleys and waters of Hyrule were falling deeper into the darkness as each day passed ... and so it would continue until Zant and Ganondorf had answered for their crimes against the kingdom.
He wondered which of them he would be forced to face first. If Ashei had already returned, he was not sure what to expect from her certain wrath. And Auru would likely scold him as well, for he had already bitten back the worst of his opinion when Link's excursion into the desert had nearly cost him his life. Even Telma, it seemed, would have a word or two to add to their likely arguments. He was sure Shad would pay no mind to his behavior in Snowpeak. On the other hand, he would likely wish an account detail by detail so as to record the events. Rusl, however... Link was not sure what to expect, and he was not entirely sure he would care even if the blacksmith supported his decision to leave Ashei behind.
Regardless, prolonging the inevitable conversation would only stress his weary senses further. He would endure their harshness if for the simple fact that Telma would likely put him up for the night.
Link, having come to a halt at the top of the stairs that led down to the tavern's entrance, pressed on, trying to shed the sorrow in his eyes with each step he took toward the door. Yet, even as he opened the door and whiffed the thick smell of mead, Link had still been unable to banish the thoughts of his deeds.
Once his presence had been noticed by some of the Group, all members accounted for, Ashei immediately strode for him. Rusl spotted Link upon his companion's half-run toward him. He caught onto her arm to hold her back, stopped at the open doorway that connected the two rooms. "Why did you go ahead?" she demanded, her tone jarring the merry drinkers in the main room momentarily out of their conversations. Telma eyed Ashei from behind her bar as she attended a customer's request for a refill.
Ashei reluctantly waited for Link to cross through the room to reach their alcove. He tried to meet the gazes of the others, but found himself unable to. You have to look at them, Link, he told himself. Or they will know that you're troubled. The other part of him argued against it, though. If you look at them, they'll see it in your eyes...
Link opted for the former choice; however, for he knew that shying away from eye contact would make them more susceptible to the cloud that hung over him. Ashei and Shad were the only ones that he knew with fair certainty did not realize his state of mind. Rusl and Auru were different. If they did perceive something they either decided not to address it, or they were simply waiting for an appropriate time to bring it to light.
"Well then?" Ashei barked, shaking loose of Rusl's grip. "Why did you go on without me when I told you not to?"
Link had his answer, and it was deeper than just the fact that he was the one destined to banish the evil... But he did not supply it.
"Ashei, calm down," said Rusl.
"I will not!" she shot back. "He deliberately left me behind!" She turned her ferocious dark eyes upon Link again. "And I want to know why."
"Ashei is right, Link," added Auru, though more softly than Link would have expected. "It was dangerous to venture through Snowpeak alone."
Link contemplated what best to say in return. He burned to tell why he desired only their knowledge and not their personal involvement, but they would shoot down those worries with smiles and frowns alike. They would dismiss him for thinking the way he did … for thinking that those near to him would get hurt. Midna had been a breath away from death once before … yet his reasons went even deeper still.
Midna had to be there ... had to be with him. They were warriors of Light and Twilight on the same path, one from each realm. Everyone else…. He did not want them involved any more than they needed to be. The people of Hyrule would fight for their kingdom, and he was sure that many would die for it. But ... such needless deaths... Such horror did not need to befall them, not if he as one man, with Midna, could fight for them and spare the fields of Hyrule from such bloodshed.
Therefore, Link only offered to Ashei an apology ... and a vague truth. "I'm sorry, Ashei. I thought I could handle it on my own with the help of an IceWing."
"You very well should be sorry," she returned. Though her rage still engulfed her at the thought of him—a child in her eyes—leaving her behind, she seated herself at the table in her usual spot between Auru and Rusl's chairs.
Rusl did not join them, but looked on as argument turned to discussion.
"So ... your journey was not successful?" asked Auru.
Link shook his head, realizing his former statement had indeed implied this. "No, I found a piece of the mirror," he said, trying to lace his words with some amount of life so that he did not sound thoughtfully hollow.
"Where is it then?" the bespectacled, red-haired youth asked.
"It's—safe," Link offered, hoping they would not inquire further. His companion's presence alone would have taken the night to explain, not to mention the existence of her strange magic powers. When the Group paused to that thought, Link took the opportunity to move ahead with the conversation. "Now we need to direct our attention to the next."
"How many of these pieces are there exactly?" Ashei asked. "Did the sages happen to mention?"
It was obvious that though she likely respected such beings, she preferred to place her trust in things less mystical.
"No. But they did say that one lies in the Dragon Realms. But we all know that the Dragon Realms became Skylands. Time travel might be the key to finding that piece."
"So, we could be searching for these pieces for some time before this mirror is finally whole again," she huffed. "By that time it could already be too late for Hyrule!"
Link had considered this as well while he had been in Snowpeak, but the return journey had given him ample time to think on more than just what had happened with Yeta. "A shard remained in place when I found the mirror, and it appeared to be at least a fourth of the entire mirror. The piece I found in Snowpeak was roughly the same size, so it is my hope that—if it had been fragmented evenly—there is only one piece left for us to find in Hyrule and the one in the Dragon Realms."
"Well, that doesn't sound so bad at all," announced Telma to break the tension amassed within the room. She grabbed the seat next to Link and settled her bulk within it. "Ideas anyone?" she continued to grin.
Her smile immediately faded when Auru answered, coming into her serious self. "Darkness is spread throughout Hyrule. Isolating a point where it may infest will be difficult. I'm sure evidence like the freezing of Zora's Domain will not point us as easily in the right direction this time."
"Nonsense," said Telma. "We just need to look harder. We can start—"
"—with the Temple of Time," Rusl interjected.
All looked toward the blacksmith, but it was only Link at whom the man looked. "After you had left for the desert, Shad and I were talking, and he mentioned something about the Occoa, that they had long ago built a temple."
"Ah, yes," nodded Shad excitedly. "The Occoa are the ancestors of the Hylians. They helped the Sage of Light build the Temple of Time long ago to house a sacred power."
"I don't understand," said Link. "Would not this sacred power be—"
"—the Master Sword?" finished Rusl, and Link grew wide-eyed. "Yes, Link, we know that your ancestor used to carry it. I know you have been to the Four Sword Sanctuary."
"Then you should then also know that if there had been anything to indicate such evil, my family would have dealt with it," countered Link.
"So I do," nodded Vaati. "Since I was one of the foes your ancestors fought."
"As do I," added Rusl. "However, I believe that there may be something more in the Temple of Time."
"Then we should investigate further," Auru broke in. "The Temple rests on the Great Plateau, but it is nearly impossible to climb. The cliffs around it are nearly impossible to climb for humans."
"No," Rusl replied, "there is another way. There is a portal to the area around the Temple in the ruins of the Four Sword Sanctuary."
Again the blacksmith received stares from the others.
"I hadn't noticed that you carried the legendary blades when you first came to us," Rusl continued, gazing right at Link. "After Shad had mentioned the Occoa and the temple … I can't explain it. I just had a bad feeling. You could feel the darkness in Faron all that time ago when all that frightened us was when the children went into the woods alone." Rusl took breathed in wearily. "I've had that same feeling for some time now."
"To say the least, after our talk" —he gestured toward Shad— "I went into Faron, and when I reached the Four Sword Sanctuary ... the Four Swords were gone. And I also checked the Temple of Time but the Door of Time is still closed since the Hero of Time closed it, but the feeling was especially strong there. I thought that perhaps them being missing had caused my distress, but when Auru and I found you in the desert ... I learned it had been you had taken the blades. And so, that troubled feeling has still not left me. Something is amiss within the Temple."
The silence that ensued after Rusl had finished was enough to say that all of them understood the severity of what he proposed. If evil had indeed crept inside the walls of such a sacred temple...
"Then it's clear," said Telma. "We must investigate the Temple of Time."
"Link, Vaati, and I will go first thing in the morning," proposed Rusl, and everyone—including Shad and Vaati—nodded in agreement.
"Actually," Mipha proposed, "it might be a good idea for the Champions to come along. If my cousin is worthy of the Master Sword, I want to see it for myself."
Daruk chuckled. "I agree with you, Mipha. We were chosen to fight alongside the princess and the Hero against the Great Calamity."
"As if," Revali chastised. "Even if he is able to lift the blade from the Pedestal of Time, he might not stand a chance against the Great Calamity."
"Give the lad a chance," Urbosa criticized. "He is our only chance against Ganondorf."
"What are you talking about?" Revali replied. "Ganondorf is the king of your people. Why are you fighting against him?"
"Break it up!" Daruk bellowed. "Let's rest up. We have a long journey ahead of us."
Link opposed the idea of traveling with Rusl, the Champions, and Vaati; yet he knew that the others-Sparx included-would insist on the partnership. He decided not to disagree, for though he knew that having Rusl beside him would distract him, he forced himself to admit that the blacksmith would be an asset to his journey. Besides ... Link didn't remember the way to the Four Sword Sanctuary. It would take less time to locate it if he were along, if he didn't use his dragon form.
The meeting adjourned at that. Shad immediately went back to his readings, a frown lingering on his lips. Ashei tossed a glare toward Link before she retreated to the outside streets. Auru fell deep into thought as he remained seated. Telma and Rusl had receded to the bar, likely discussing the details of their mission for tomorrow since their voices remained low.
Link stayed rooted to his seat, mulling over everything that had been said. Facing Ashei and Auru's wrath had not been as bad as he had imagined the scene playing out in his mind. Whatever the reason that Ashei had not lashed out at him, Link was very glad that they had not wasted time with such a trivial confrontation.
Link felt a tap on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Rusl. "Come," he said. "You can spend the night here."
Rusl turned away. Link, his thoughts still numb from his excursion in Snowpeak, ripped himself from his chair and followed after Rusl. The blacksmith bade goodnight to the barkeep, and she smiled in return. She then switched her gaze to Link and noticed the long rip down the side of his pant leg. "Link!" she exclaimed, but her mouth coiled into a teasing frown. "You leave those on the table outside your room and I'll patch them up. Honestly, you'd have no clothes left."
Link nodded and followed Rusl behind the bar and up the stairs to the second floor. Rusl led him to the room that Link had occupied after returning from the SandWing fortress. Rusl opened the door, and said without pretense, "We leave at dawn. Don't try leaving without me Link."
"Actually," Link replied. "I have a feeling that Sparx should come along."
The blacksmith nodded before retreating back down the hall into another room without a further word. Link was not entirely sure, but Rusl's voice sounded as if it were salted with disappointment.
No matter. Link stepped into the room, and after gazing on the torch lights flickering in the night streets, he unlaced his cloak and hung it over the head of his bed. And after removing his weapons and setting them against the wall, he stepped in front of the chest. He slipped off his hat and tousled his hair and started removing his boots.
Midna rose from his shadow then and stretched her tiny limbs with a wide yawn. She moved to hover next to the window. "Ah, good to be warm again, huh?" She giggled, but when she saw Link fumbling with the clasps on his gauntlets, she threw a concerned gaze toward him.
His fingers did not want to work properly, and he suddenly yanked at the clasps madly. When the gauntlet slid free, he banged it down hard on the chest. That was his breaking point ... when he could no longer hold the entirety of his raging emotions behind his blank stares. He leaned over the chest, hanging his face into his still armored left hand. The last time he could remember feeling like this had been after he had safely escorted Ilia, Ralis, and Telma to Kakariko. That had been the point where he had finally been able to mourn the fact that Ilia could no longer remember him. And now...
"Link? Are you all right?" asked Midna, her tone sincere.
He ignored her for a moment. Just once he wished she would not be worried enough about him to ask that question. So long ago she would have never dreamed of concerning herself over his well being.
Midna watched as he went back to unlacing his opposite gauntlet. "Yes," he affirmed quietly. Yet ... she thought she saw him wipe at his face before he returned to his task.
Before long, Link had undressed down to his white undershirt and a second pair of pants, taking his pants and placing them on the table just outside his room as Telma had asked. Link then crossed the room and plunked down onto the crisp covers of the bed. He pulled back the blankets and tried to relax underneath their warmth as he lied on his back staring at the ceiling.
Long moments had passed wherein Midna saw and heard no movement from him, and she thought him to be asleep, until he called her name softly. She moved closer to the bed, waiting patiently for him to speak.
He asked his question silently first. Have you ever harmed an innocent? But just considering what her possible answers could have been made him uneasy. That, and he was not sure if he wanted her to try console him in the matter. He did not exactly feel like talking about it.
"Never mind," he dismissed, and he rolled onto his side, facing the wall, and trying to find comfort in his pillow.
Midna watched him silently for a moment, seeing his body shifting only at his slow, deep breaths. A frown tore at her lips as she contemplated his state of mind. It was true he had been through much since she had met him. He was quite young as well. She had never asked him his age, but by his boyish and still barely wrinkled cheeks, she guessed that he had experienced life for around seventeen years.
Someone so young and having to deal with as much as he had been destined for... Someone so young and having to see his friends suffer... Someone so young and knowing that if he failed in saving Hyrule...
She hated seeing him in pain, but she turned away, leaving him to some deal of privacy. And yet, through the long hours of the night, there were a few times when she thought she had heard a sniffle.
Link awoke with a start the next morning, and though he had finally fallen into a restful sleep, a monotone voice kept on telling him to make haste to the Temple in his sleep. All he could recall was the feeling of impending grief and that voice, and he sat up in bed within wide eyes, wondering if this feeling was still the aftermath of his altercation with Yeta and his dispelled dream ... or if it was something different altogether.
Shaking the feeling Link rose from the bed, seeing that his pants had been already been mended and that Telma had already replaced them with his other garments. Link immediately took to dressing himself, and it was only after he glanced at his boots that he realized that something was missing.
Where was Midna?
Link twisted about and searched the room. She was nowhere to be seen. He gazed down toward his bare feet, looking into his shadow, but there was no red and yellow eye that met his stare. Just then, however, he saw her impish stature come into view, rising from underneath the bed. Link was reminded of the constant childhood misconception that there lived monsters underneath beds. He shook his head; perhaps children were more perceptive after all of what mysteries pervaded their world. A small grin bent Link's lips against his will.
"I see you're feeling better?" Midna asked, having seen the smirk.
His amusement immediately faded into its previous frown. Silently, he clothed himself. Midna sighed, and decided it was best to retreat into his shadow. Rusl had said they would leave at dawn, and seeing as though the sun was beginning to bring life to the town outside, it would be any moment before the blacksmith rapped on Link's door.
Within minutes, Link was fully dressed and armored once again. He stretched a hand out for his cloak, but upon gazing down at its symbols, he again remembered Zelda. His mind had been fogged by the presence of the malicious beast, but he still remembered that rainy night, remembered how her beautiful, sparkling eyes and her fair skin had dropped so lifeless once Midna's life had been restored. He wondered ... what had become of her? Did she still lie soulless on that cold, harsh floor?
He thought of leaving the cloak behind, but the reminder of her sacrifice forced him into pulling it about his shoulders. He also cringed at the thought of encountering Zant again. As long as he wore this cloak, he would never again run any risk of transforming into that foul beast of divinity.
A tap on his door reacquainted him with the world, and he realized that the brightness of the moon had now completely illuminated the streets in its early morning radiance. He turned to the door and spied Rusl through the crack.
Telma had informed Link, Rusl, the Champions, and Vaati that the townspeople and a Goron had finally pitched in to rebuild the bridge to Raaru Village. Relieved that their journey together had been considerably cut down, Link had wasted no time in gathering provisions and saddling Epona. Rusl, Urbosa, and Vaati had followed suit and borrowed three of Telma's steeds, beautiful beasts of brown streaked with white.
Once they were set, Link, Rusl, Urbosa, and Vaati guided their horses toward the eastern end of town, Sparx hovering over Link's shoulder and Mipha at his heels. Link could feel Rusl's eyes turning to him occasionally, as if he were making sure that he was well. Some of the folk had glanced or stared in their direction, and Link and Rusl both knew that the sight of horses travelling the streets was not the true focus of their attention. The guards paid careful attention to the group as they departed the town—but it seemed to Link as if they recognized his face, too … even though they were not the same two soldiers that had stopped him before, demanding the that he remove all his weapons.
Again, he had been thoroughly recognized by most as the symbol that his face had become associated with. He would not openly oppose the people of Hyrule for marking him as a hero, for it had been exactly that which the goddesses had branded him, but it still bothered him. Though he would defend Hyrule and their lives with his own, he hoped that they had at least some courage. Why did he have to carry the weight of all their courage combined?
If he failed ... they would need to finish what he had begun.
As they moved out of the town; Link unconsciously scratched at the back of his gauntlet. It was here that Rusl mounted his steed, looking down to Link who had just then been awakened from his thoughts by the quick movement. "Let's get going," said Rusl, obviously ignoring how Link started at his voice and immediately removed his hand from the gauntlet.
Nodding, Link climbed into Epona's saddle, tousling his long bangs so that they covered most of his forehead and pulled Mipha up to sit behind him. He still did not want anyone to find out that he had, upon many occasions, transformed into a lupine animal ... especially Rusl. Link did not want to even think about how his boyhood mentor would react to such knowledge. Perhaps there would be a day after peace had once again returned to Hyrule in which he would at last tell the tale of his long journey to those who asked it of him.
Yet why would it matter to Rusl? Link thought, as he kicked Epona into a gallop and riding hard alongside the older man and causing the Zora Champion to wrap her arms around his waist. Did he not lie to me for years about Flash being my father to just one day tell me that all I had ever known was a life I should have never had? Why should I not tell him the terrors I have been through and the many lives that I have taken? Let him feel the same pain in knowing that the boy he raised has turned into a monster.
But Link could not bring himself to be so cruel. It was not in his nature to intend to be so spiteful. Rusl, Flash, and Nina had raised him better-
Rusl. The name resounded. The man who only pretended to be a father to me, and now ... it's like he completely disowns me... Rusl's son, Colin, was like a little brother to Link and Sparx, and to finally have had the fact that he and the boy were from two entirely separate worlds smacked coldly in his face... It hurt.
Since the day Nina and Flash had told him the truth of his aunt, Link had never felt the same. He felt as though he did not belong anywhere. Life in Ordon had treated him well, had given him friends who cared for him and he for them, but there was something missing. He supposed he had always felt the hollowness within him. His parents had abandoned him, and with that thought there were many others that constantly bubbled up within him as well.
Why did his parents leave him with his aunt? Did they have a choice? Had he been the result of some Castle Town scandal? Had they known he had been branded by the gods, or had they thought his mark a curse? How old were his siblings? Had his parents told them about him? Had anyone in his family ever gone in search for him? Did they sometimes think of him as he so relentlessly thought of them?
Was his mother still alive?
Had there ever been a time when they had loved him ... if only in the smallest part of their hearts?
Link's lips grew into an angered line, and he tried his best not to frown so obviously while within Rusl's eyesight. He had blamed the old man for his abandonment some time ago, though he had tried so desperately not to see him in that light. When living in Ordon, Link had tried to hide the deep part of him that resented the blacksmith, had tried to bottle the feeling so that it could never escape to hurt the man. But why?
His journey had given him time to think on so much, and Link had now come to almost abhor the man's supposed care for him. Was it care when one openly rejected ever having been a father figure? He had said as much when he had encountered him in the bar for the first time. "Link here is from my village. He rescued my son and the other children..." That comment had hit Link deeply. There had been no indication, no profession of ever having raised him, and Rusl had marked his statement further by saying how different Colin was from Link. My son... The words echoed, scarred Link. Then what have I become? All I am to you now is just someone from the same village? Is that what I am to you now? You helped Flash and Nina raise me since infancy, and now ... am I so much less of a son to you? Was I just a burden to you?
The boundary of the Lost Woods had come into view; and Link, Rusl, Urbosa, and Vaati weaved quickly through the northern field of Hyrule, Sparx hovering over Link's shoulder. They paid little mind to the guards stationed there, only enough to evade their arrow assaults. The bokoblins could be rather formidable in battle, but Link and Rusl knew that they would only travel so far into the sinister woodland before they would become frightened and turn back. Link did not expect they would encounter much resistance once inside the heart of the forest, toward the Kokiri Village.
And so Link traveled, numb to his attackers' attempts to unseat him from his horse. He had grown so used to their tactics that he swerved on instinct when he needed to without having to place much focus in watching their every move. Once they crossed the woodland periphery, Link and his companions were soon able to lose the pursuant sentries. Underbrush and low boughs blanketed the Ordonians, Zora princess, Gerudo warrior, and Wind Mage from view, and they delved deeper into the Lost Woods without grief from further enemies. As they had believed, Zant's—or rather, Ganondorf's—forces preferred not to journey deep into the mysteries of the darkened wood. But what evil lurked within them that would alert even the brute followers of such a powerful man to remain at a distance?
Indeed the Lost Woods had its monsters. As did Faron. The Diababa creature that Link had encountered what seemed ages ago had been proof enough to support that, but even then, the long dead ogre and its cohorts who had captured Ilia, Colin, and Epona had ventured deep enough to find Ordon Village. Now, though, it was as if a sudden apprehension overcame the bokoblins even upon looking into the trees.
At least Link knew by this that Rusl had indeed been correct in assuming that something else sinister lurked within the sacred temple. He only now wished that he could remember the path so that the blacksmith would have no need to shadow his footsteps. When they at last slowed their horses to better gauge their surroundings and find the indirect road to the sanctuary, Rusl looked over to Link.
The moment the youth had been dreading.
"It has been a while since we ventured together into the forest, huh?" Rusl said with a conversational grin. At Link's silence, he sighed. "And how our world has changed." There seemed to have been a double-meaning in his words, but Link was unsure if Rusl had indeed also intended to imply that he had changed.
Rusl tossed a glance toward Link, and shook his head. Link had tried so hard to shield his true feelings from shining through, that he had taken to observing every leaf that shifted in the breeze. In the course of doing so, however, it had reeled Rusl's attention onto him more overtly. "You know," the grey-bearded man started, "I understand that you must have grown used to watching every little detail, but there is someone with you this time."
Link could not help but break his determined concentration to send a look over at Rusl.
"What I mean to say, Link," he said, and he fumbled for a moment, trying to find the words, "is that you don't have to be alone. Why do you insist otherwise?"
"It might be because when it seems that he's alone, he actually isn't," Mipha proposed. "Grandmother told me that she fought alongside an imp named Midna during the War Across the Ages."
"The War Across the Ages?" Rusl asked. "What is that?"
"It was a war that has, is, and will happen at the same time," Mipha explained. "The war's starting point is yet to happen, but several of its battles have already happened due to rifts in the spacetime continuum."
Link passed another glance toward him, but turned away, ducking under a branch as they passed through a denser part of the wood. But his bangs had shifted with the movement, and before Link had even realized that his hair had parted, he heard Rusl's voice. "What's that on your forehead? A scar?"
Suddenly uncomfortable as if he had at last been cornered in battle, Link defended himself. "It's a long story." With that, Link messed his hair once more, surrendering to the fact that there was no point in pretending it was not there.
"It's a long journey," Vaati pointed out.
Link breathed hard through his nostrils, expelling a deep exhale thick of irritation. "I don't want to talk about it. Let's just say that Zant gave me a severe concussion."
That answer seemed to satisfy the blacksmith at this point, for he raised a hand in his defense, showing Link in that small gesture that he would let the subject rest. They trudged on in silence for some time more before Rusl again became disturbed by the quietness between them. Perhaps it was that Rusl could feel the tension within him, Link thought.
And again the blacksmith spoke, "How did you get your trident, Lady Mipha?"
The Zora Champion blushed. "I was given the Lightscale Trident at my christening."
"Oh," Vaati realized. "That makes sense."
Rusl looked at Link. "Have you had any word on Ilia's condition?"
Link had been expecting another inquiry as to his physical state, and the question regarding Ilia had been the last thing he had predicted would come from the man. After Link tossed an initial glance, infused of sorrow and pain and frustration at the mere mention of her name, Link looked back to the path. "No," he returned shortly.
"You shouldn't worry so much about her," Rusl advised.
Link shot him a narrow-eyed glance.
"All I mean to say," he defended, "is that you worry too much. Have faith that her memories will return." Link turned away again, as Epona guided him and Mipha over an unearthed tree root. "Link," Rusl called, steering his horse alongside the red mare so that he could speak directly with the youth. "When I saw you come into the bar that day, I saw that you had become a man. But your eyes were and are still hollow. What has happened to you? Where is the boy I once knew?"
Link replied plainly. "I'm not a child anymore."
"Surely not," Rusl agreed. "There is great pain and fatigue in your eyes that comes only from knowing the true way of the world. And yet," he said, Link's total attention finally upon him, "I know that I still see the strength and courage of the boy I knew. I know your burden is great, and I only want to know that its weight is not crushing you."
Rusl's words stirred an understanding within Link then. His eyes flickered under the light of the sporadic beams that poked through the thick canopy above them. That's why you trained me in battle. That's why you taught me about the many creatures of our world... "Why didn't you tell me?" Link demanded. "You knew of the mark that has branded me since I arrived in Ordon as an infant."
Rusl slouched within his saddle. He had known the day would have come when Link asked this of him, but he had never thought his pupil would have regarded him with such a hostile tone. "It was something you needed to find out on your own. I did all I could to prepare you, but only you could find your path."
No, Link objected within his thoughts. If you had told me of this long ago, just as Flash and Nina had about my aunt, I would have been ready when the spirits instructed me on my task. Instead, you shadowed me, and for what? I have come close to death so many times. If I had known ... I would have had more time to realize what my life would become.
Link tried to disregard the swelling fury within him. This was not who he was. Flash and Nina had taken him in, cared for him, and educated him with Rusl's help until the age of seven when he started going to Jade Mountain Academy. Why did he feel the desire to hate him for it then? Nevertheless, this was not the time to think on his personal relationship with Rusl. They were in the woods to locate another mirror shard, and that was the issue at hand on which Link needed to concentrate his full focus. They would need to cooperate in order to survive whatever ordeal awaited them within the grove.
Just as those thoughts arose, Rusl informed Link and the others that they had arrived within the ancient wood. Link tried to push aside all thought of their conversation, but he could not help the sporadic pangs of agitation that bounced within him when he would look to the blacksmith.
"It's not far now," said Rusl in a hushed tone. "Follow closely."
The aged man guided Link, Mipha, Urbosa, and the Wind Mage through the narrow and wide paths beyond the Kokiri Village. Link could remember this place vaguely. He had stumbled through its mysteries on his way back through it, and he had felt so lost that he had known he would have never been able to have escorted himself back to where the Four Swords had once laid with merely his recollections of the winding, twisting, confusing paths. He wondered how Rusl had learned of the correct road through the ancient grove, but the question would only stir more conversation that would likely stray elsewhere.
Before long, they came upon the cracked spires of the once grand Palace of Winds where the Four Sword Sanctuary resided in. Link paid closer attention to the details upon this visit, for the last time he had been here he had only been focused on leaving once the Four Swords had been gifted to him by the will of the gods. The sanctuary had been flooded with overgrowth, vines and tree branches now having become a part of the construction that held together what remained of its walls. They entered into surely a once magnificent area that bore a faded Triforce symbol upon the moss-covered stones of the floor. To their right stone steps rose up to a higher level where what looked like a door and rested upon a balcony. A large statue stood on the door's concealed side, and crumbled stones were attached to it, covered in verdant life. It was obvious that the high walls that it had once been partner to had long ago cracked apart over time. Perhaps it was that collection of stones that had collapsed onto the steps making the second level inaccessible, the dual path crushed and displaced from the pressure.
There were offshoots from the main area where the walls were cracked apart as if there were other rooms that had been constructed, however, it appeared to Link, that these other rooms were simply areas that the trees and plants had grown full, marking off sections to appear as though they had been a part of the original design. Within one of these particular areas, Link thought he saw human figures lying upon the floor. For some reason he recalled the smell of rotting flesh and turned away from the sight, holding back the gagging sensation that crept up his throat.
Off to the left was the doorway through which Link had exited from attaining the Four Swords. On opposing sides of the entry, the statue guardians remained at their posts, ever watchful with their unblinking eyes as if they truly were a part of the living world.
"Perhaps we should start by—" Rusl's voice faded from Link's ears just as he had begun speaking, and the blacksmith noted the youth's glazed eyes. Rusl followed his gaze which stared ahead. Finding nothing out of the ordinary, he turned back to Link.
He knew that Link was not looking over the walls since his sight rested unflinchingly upon one location. Yet, he also deduced that the young man was not simply thinking on some other subject entirely, for his eyes did not appear unfocused as one's gaze normally did upon meditating a thought. "Link?" he called, trying to pry the young warrior from his state.
But Link did not respond to his attempt.
What lay before him was the familiar figure from which he had learned a lost art. Its red eyes stared back into his. The skeletal frame appeared as a ghost this time instead of its previous form as the walking dead. Coherent words could not escape his jaws, and Link assumed that it was due to the fact that it now rested among the netherworld.
No longer did the Shade border the living and the dead.
The ancient hero's voice came in a hush of whispers that converged upon Link from all corners of the ruined temple it seemed. Link tried hard to hear its voice, straining his Hylian ears to heed the words the shade so desperately tried to speak.
"Link?" The youth faintly heard his companion call his name once more, but his attention followed the ghost of the temple as it retreated into the chamber that housed the pedestal of the mighty Four Swords.
Link slid down from Epona, helped Mipha down, and started after the soldier. But Rusl, Urbosa, and Vaati had dismounted their steeds as well and stepped up to the seemingly dazed Link. The blacksmith's face alone shook Link from his objective, and Link finally focused on his partner. "Did you not see it?" Link asked.
Rusl's brow furrowed in confusion and worry. "Nothing," he said plainly.
Link's lips pursed together in another state of bewilderment. As Rusl wondered how Link could claim to have seen anything abnormal, Link did not understand why only the shade chose to appear to him. Though, disregarding how strange it may have seemed, Link pushed on into the passage that carried him to the circularly shaped room. Rusl and the others had no better course of action than to follow.
Once within the chamber, Link looked about and after a moment he again distinguished the fading figure of the armored skeleton. It hovered near to the pedestal, and as Link approached slowly, the others pursued at a distance.
The crimson eyes looked downward, and the warrior pointed a bony hand down to where Link had taken up the blades of the Picori.
Somehow, Link understood without needing words, without needing a sign of any other kind. He looked down to the pedestal as he reached back for his saber. Sword in hand Link gazed back up to his mentor ... but the helmed face had already faded back into the haze of the forest that had overcome the room.
Link knew what he had to do though, and he twisted the blade about within his grip so that its point faced the slit from where he had once lifted it free. Rusl held back his doubts, convinced that perhaps Link had seen something ... or at least that by some divine knowledge he knew how to uncover the evil that nested in the Temple of Time.
Link plunged one of the Four Swords back down into its ancient home. A loud hum coursed from the niche and reverberated up the length of the blade. A melodic ring chimed from within the main room, and Link jerked his head back toward Rusl. Link's gaze was questioning, and he noted that the others, too, wore expressions deep of puzzled curiosity. Link drew up the legendary weapon again, and he and Rusl meandered cautiously back into the other room.
At first, neither of them could point out anything from which the sound may have come. The room appeared to be the same as it had been, but they were both quite sure that the sound they had heard had not been imagined. Rusl pulled up his arms to rest upon his hips as a short sigh of frustration blew from his nose, but just as it appeared to the blacksmith that nothing in the room had changed, Link spotted something. There had been nothing added or changed.
Instead, something had been deleted.
Link pointed up toward the door that sat on the balcony. "Look. There was a statue on the other side."
For a moment Rusl's instant of contemplation startled Link, making him think that perhaps the statue also had only appeared to him. But Rusl nodded. "And now it's gone."
That was when they heard it. That monotone voice that haunted Link's sleep.
"Master," it said. "Make haste to the Temple. The sacred blade awaits you."
"What was that?" Mipha asked.
"I don't know," Rusl replied.
"It might be the Master Sword," Vaati proposed.
Link, Rusl, Mipha, Urbosa, and Vaati simultaneously approached the smashed up stairway after tying the reins of their horses to nearby trees. There would be no way to ascend to the higher level by these steps, and Link considered using his clawshot on the balcony railing, but his logic disagreed. This sanctuary was too old to trust the integrity of a meager railing. If walls had collapsed, the balcony would likely come apart at the mere impact of the claw.
Rusl called to him, and Link turned to see the man staring up at what remained of the walls. "These walls were made for climbing," he said.
Link thought it unlikely, however, and his raised brow was enough to press back Rusl's grin ... but only for a moment. "Link, time has crushed this sanctuary, but the forest has stabilized these walls. Look at it. It's beautiful!" His grin grew even livelier. "The vines that have weaved through these stones are holding it together. It's like the woods have provided us with a path."
Though Link thought Rusl staked too much faith in this oddity, it was, however, quite apparent that the vines had presented them with the perfect, natural ladder. Rusl had immediately reached out for the wall and begun his climb, and Link soon followed after along with Vaati, Mipha, and Urbosa. They tugged at the vines and branches, propelling themselves upward. Link found a certain joy within himself, as if his boyhood was again resurfacing. He could remember many a day when he had spent his time within Faron exploring the many routes and high places.
Once they had inched overtop the mass of stone that had collected as a barrier; Rusl, Link, and the others made their way carefully back down the wall. Rusl reached the second floor first, landing softly. Link and Vaati, on the other hand, released their grip from the wall to fall the last few feet, plunking down onto the ground perfectly balanced. Link slapped the dirt from his hands with a clap as he turned to Rusl and Vaati. The older men had stepped up to the door as Link turned to help Mipha and Urbosa up.
Link, Urbosa, and Mipha moved along the floor, grass having sprouted through the cracks, to reach their companions. Link stepped up alongside them, and regarded the doorway. The doors were nearly twice his size, and carved into its surface was the familiar loftwing figure that was associated to the ancient age of the Hyrule kingdom. Yet below its geometrically-shaped talons rested an inscription in a language that not only could Link not read ... but he had never before seen this type of text. By the pensive look on Rusl's face he, too, did not understand the meaning.
Nevertheless, this was their only clue, and Link stepped up to the door, inches from its dented majesty. Rusl said nothing in objection when he saw Link reached out to touch its surface.
The feel of it was cool, almost refreshing, and a whirl of some strange power resonated within the door, coursing back through Link's veins. He closed his eyes at the pulsating sensation, taking in the radiant light that seemed to pour through the stone and within him. He could sense the others behind him and could hear the short gasps that escaped them. Link's breath caught and his eyes popped open. A blue light flooded through the symbols, and once its shine had dissipated, the doors opened outward.
Link stepped back as the doors squealed and came to rest at their widest arch. He, Sparx, Vaati, Urbosa, Mipha, and Rusl stepped up to the wonderment that assailed their vision in that moment. Beyond the opening was a view of the grounds around the Temple of Time. They exchanged looks, and they at once stepped to the side to peer around the doorway. The room below was still in disrepair, but when they again stood at the ancient doors, it was as if by magic that the Temple of Time shined brightly in all its glory.
Without wanting to fully understand how exactly it had happened, Link realized that he had, in fact, opened the portal that Rusl spoke of the previous night.
He corked the remaining hesitation within him and plunged into the temple courtyard beyond the gateway. Rusl and Vaati followed warily. Upon entering the doorway, a white haze clouded around them as if sucking at their bodies. Link felt as though his body was being groped at from all sides, and a hot, sick feeling attacked him. Yet, an arctic blast of energy seemed to hum within him at the same moment. Before Link could truly comprehend the range of feelings that stabbed at him, the pressure that had been ripping and pushing into him had vanished.
They stood within the courtyard of the Temple of Time. In all its wonder and glory. Flowers of immense beauty grew in the flowerbeds.
"About time you got here," Revali called from the doorway.
"Stop being impatient, will you, Revali?" Daruk bellowed.
They entered the temple. They were now in the temple's grand hall. In all its wonder, in all its grandeur, the stones glowed brightly upon the many thick beams of light that poured into the hall from gigantic windows. They descended the staircase before them and stepped slowly along. The walls rose high, and the ceiling showed no signs of the age that it endured over countless centuries.
They came to the Triforce symbol on the floor and took a moment to breathe in the magnificent detail of the markings. The golden triangles were painted within a circle containing the fanciest of coiling design patterns Link had ever seen. He then looked to the two statues that stood ever watchful. Their bodies having been rooted to these positions so long ago amazed Link that they still retained an untouched strength.
The entire magic of the place enchanted Link. It was as if he had stepped into a dream world.
Just then, that voice from Link's dream spoke once more.
"Look carefully, Master," it said. "The journal of your ancestor and the Spiritual Stones hide within these walls." Link looked toward Rusl.
"Did you hear that," Link asked.
"Sure I did," Rusl replied. "It seems that the Master Sword is calling out for you."
After heeding the voice's words, Link and the others searched the grand hall. After what it seemed like hours, Link discovered a loose stone in a wall. He pulled it out of the wall, reached into the secret crevice, and pulled out four objects. The first was a book that had an image of the Ocarina of Time on it. The remaining three were gems of immense beauty.
"Found something," Link called. Rusl, Sparx, and the others rushed to the young hero's side.
"Flip through the pages," Vaati urged. "The Hero of Time must have left something concerning the Song of Time." Link searched the pages and found a tune labeled "The Song of Time". Link then pulled the Ocarina of Time from one of his pouches.
"I think that we need to play it on this," Link stated. He faced the Door of Time and saw three indents in it, shaped like the stones that he found. He placed each stone in its respective place, placed the Ocarina of Time to his lips, and played the ancient tune that the Hero of Time played long ago. Once the song ended, the magnificent Door of Time opened.
Link looked to the opening door between the two statues and passed glances to the others. They met the youth's gaze, nodding. Simultaneously, they stepped into the corridor and walked through it as it brought them to another set of stairs. They climbed these together, coming at last into the chamber that was a legend within itself. Stained-glass windows lined the walls, the sunlight passing through them infusing the room with an otherworldly glow.
At the feet of a statue of the Goddess Hylia lay the Master Sword, the Blade of Evil's Bane, in the mystical Pedestal of Time. A hilt of pure blue, its blade a shimmering testament that time could never dull its surface nor weaken its resolve against evil. A bright yellow diamond-shaped stone was firmly nestled into the blue, and an ornate symbol of the legendary Triforces of Hyrule and Lorule had been engraved upon the smooth steel of the blade.
Suddenly, the blade began to glow and an orb of light emerged from it. The orb then took the form of Fi, the Spirit of the Master Sword. Everyone stared in awe.
"Link Avalon of Ordon," Fi stated, "we meet again." Link looked at the others in confusion.
"What are you talking about," Link asked. "I haven't been here in my life. Who are you?"
"Sorry for not introducing myself," the spirit replied. "My designation is Fi, the Spirit of the Master Sword. I once helped the Hero of Skies on his journey and helped him, the Hero of Time, and yourself in the War Across the Ages." Link was obviously confused. "Take up the Master Sword so I may call you Master."
Link stepped up to the raised pedestal, and prepared to pull out the legendary blade from its resting place. When he grasped the hilt, the Master Sword glowed faintly, as if waiting for him to pull. The mighty blade came out of its ancient home with a little effort. Link raised it skyward.
Mipha gasped. "The majesty of this moment is..."
"Pah," Revali exclaimed. "He isn't anything compared to the Hero of Time."
"Master Link," Fi stated, "you are destined to save Hyrule many times over. Your journey will take you to the lands of the past."
Just then, there was a flash of light coming from the temple's grand hall. Link rushed back down the stairs with Sparx, Fi, and the others following behind him. Just as they started down the stairs; Link grabbed a blue scabbard that had golden highlights, clipped it to his back (placing it where the Ordon Sword did), and placed the Master Sword inside it.
When the group entered the grand hall, they were shocked to see a dragon staring at them. Its scales were a brilliant blue and wore a robe of a royal blue with gold lining. Underneath a sleeve of the robe was what seemed to be a sword.
At the sight of the dragon, Link remembered the description of a being known as the Chronicler. He approached the creature.
"Are you the Chronicler," he asked. The dragon turned its attention toward Link.
"Indeed I am, Spyro," the Chronicler replied. Link looked at the others in confusion. How could he, Link Avalon, be the one being that he idolized, the legendary Spyro?
"How can I possibly be the Purple Dragon of Legend," he asked. "I haven't been to the Dragon Realms before."
"You'll figure it out in due time," the ancient dragon replied. And with that, the Chronicler disappeared.
"Master," Fi called, "you must return to the chamber beyond the Door of Time."
"Right," Link acknowledged. He turned around to return to the pedestal chamber, Sparx on his shoulder. Rusl, the Champions, and Vaati tried to follow but Fi stopped them.
"Where Master Link and I go," she stated, "you cannot follow. He must do this alone." Rusl and Vaati nodded in understanding.
"But he's my cousin," Mipha exclaimed.
"I understand that, but in order for the flow of time to be maintained, you must stay behind," Fi replied. "We will meet again in no time."
Fi turned and followed her master back to the chamber beyond the Door of Time.
Link, Sparx, and Fi re-entered the chamber where the Master Sword once rested. The sword spirit faced Link.
"Since the Master Sword merged with its Lorule counterpart, it has regained abilities that had been lost over the millennia of keeping Demise sealed away," she stated while turning toward the stairs. "See that hovering symbol over the stairway? Raise the Master Sword skyward, letting it charge with heavenly energy. Once it's charged, slash toward the symbol."
Link realized what Fi was trying to teach him. He was learning how to use the Skyward Strike, a power that only the Master Sword possessed. He raised the Master Sword skyward and did what Fi instructed him. A sword beam shot from the blade and struck the symbol. it spun around twice and began to glow. A swirling portal appeared in front of the stairway.
"You have activated the Gate of Time," Fi informed him. "It will take you to the past where you will find two mirror shards." At that, Fi turned into an orb of light and entered the Master Sword.
Link and Sparx neared the portal and charged right through.
They emerged from the Gate of Time and looked around. The walls of the chamber seemed younger, showing less of the age that they had in the present. But like the present, the Master Sword was missing from the Pedestal of Time.
Link approached the pedestal once more, prepared to do what he did in the Four Sword Sanctuary. It seemed only logical that the same process would call forth another path for them to follow, as the erasing of the statue had done. It was worth a try at any rate.
He plunged the Master Sword into its ancient resting place, and this time a power from within the blade itself stirred and channeled into the stones as a bright light emanated up from the pedestal and the steel of the sword. Before their eyes, a staircase emerged from the front of the hexagonal shape of the platform that the pedestal rested upon. Its steps appeared as if on cue, one after the next, rising higher and higher until finally the greenish steps had created a path leading toward one of the stained-glass windows. They hung there by some enchantment.
Regardless of the foreboding feeling that sailed through their nerves, Link and Sparx approached the first step, testing its solidity. Satisfied that their appearance had not been devised of some wickedness, they climbed their length, and upon coming to the glass ... it vanished. It had only been an illusion of some kind.
Link had been through so much in the past, encountered many horrors. Why then did the recess of his mind continue to bark warnings and objections? Why did he feel—as he stepped through the door that had been veiled from sight—that he would somehow regret entering it?
His footfalls seemed to echo the ominous feeling that screamed out from his soul.