The Madness of the Mask
Chapter three: The old, dead tree.
A mad gallop, all the way into the depths of the forest, far beyond the furthest borders of
Hyrule they went, riding the sweating, panting black stallion. Behind them, the maniacal
laughter of the dark god, Etregan, resounded off the trees in the misty gloom.
Looking back, for only the briefest moment, Ganon saw several trees get felled swiftly,
as the god, flying through the forest after them, cleared his way with the double helix-like
blade.
"Uh oh… we got company." He said and urged his horse on even faster.
Saria looked back, and saw just how close Etregan was.
"Not for long." She said, and raised her hands, gathering a bit of power.
Suddenly, a particularly large tree seemed to fill out tremendously and become a giant,
wooden, human hand with short leafy branches coming off the fingertips. The hand came
to life, and batted the god backwards into a boulder where he lay still for a second before
flipping nimbly up to his feet.
"It won't stop him, but it'll hold him off for a bit. C'mon, over that way, I think we can
loose him in the under brush for a bit longer…" Saria said, urgently.
Ganon, looking back at the monstrous wooden appendage that actually seemed to be
holding it's own against the warrior, nodded slowly before he turned the horse off in that
direction.
* * * *
The hand seemed to be working well as a distraction, as they didn't hear him come after
them for about 15 minutes when Saria suddenly leapt off the horse for no apparent
reason.
"WHOA!" Ganon called out as he stopped his horse, and Zelda almost flew off.
"What the heck was that for?" she demanded, glaring back at the Gerudo male.
"Don't look at me, your little forest friend must've gone nuts, she just jumped off a
second ago… look, she's standing at that tree stump over there."
Indeed, Saria was standing at the base of a rather large tree stump, they could see her
from the side, so they couldn't see what it was that she was so interested in.
Ganon walked his horse over to Saria's side, and Zelda hopped off.
"Hey, Saria, is everything alright?" she asked the girl.
Saria looked up at Zelda, shook her head, and pointed at the side of the stump.
Zelda looked at the stump, and gasped.
There was a crudely scratched image in it, of four, strange creatures, consisting of a
huge, rounded head, with legs and arms. A pair of fairies, what looked like a skull kid,
and the unmistakable image of link as a boy.
"What does this mean Saria?" Zelda asked.
Ganon, who had dismounted to examine the markings as well, was equally perplexed,
and was scratching his chin in thought.
"Maybe this was made by someone the boy befriended before he became possessed?"
he said.
Saria looked up at him sharply, then back at the skull kid that was holding link's hand.
"I think I know how to find out."
"How?" both adults asked.
"Get back on the horse, and follow my directions Ganon, I know where we have to go."
Saria ordered, almost frantically.
"Better hurry up about it then haven't you?" came an all to familiar voice.
The three of them looked up to see Etregan sitting cross-legged in a high tree branch,
arms crossed, grinning down at them with his glowing white eyes.
"That trick with the tree was very impressive Saria, very entertaining. I wonder, have
you any other rabbits to pull out of your hat?"
Saria stood there stunned for one second, then clapped her hands together. A collection
of roots and vines shot from the ground, bearing rock and soil in their twisting and
gnarled lengths. All of them came together in a kind of earthy, plant based golem, easily
three times Ganon's height.
"SMASH HIM!" Saria yelled to the creature she had summoned, knowing that at best
it'd probably only slow him down.
The golem's eyes glowed brightly, and swung out at the tree Etregan was sitting in.
Etregan himself leapt nimbly of the tree, off the golem's head in a kind of hand standing
flip, and into another tree, where he summoned his sword.
Meanwhile, the three survivors jumped onto the horse and took off, following Saria's
directions once again.
* * * *
Eventually they stopped at a small, hallow arch. There they had to dismount, and Ganon
smacked his stallion on the flank, telling it to go home.
"What do we do here?" Zelda asked.
"We go through that arch, and into a hallow, giant tree trunk in the next little field."
Saria explained.
"Why not add a little insurance to out endeavor, hmm?" Ganon asked, and snapped his
fingers, opening a dark portal.
A mirror image of Ganon himself, riding astride what had to be his horse's twin, rose
from the portal. The only difference was that the man riding the horse was wielding a
rather nasty double lance, one end having a triple bladed tip, the other having one larger
one. Also, the tri tipped end had a glowing red gem set in it.
The mounted Ganon pulled his own face off, to reveal the horned bony mask that
covered the shadow face of the phantom Ganon that Link had defeated in the forest
temple.
"Go, and hold the warrior off for as long as possible, do not give up until you are no
more." Ganon instructed the apparition.
The phantom nodded, and rode off at a gallop, rising into midair along with the horse it
rode.
Saria and Zelda looked at Ganon for a moment then turned and went to the arch.
Once through the arch into a tiny field, they had to leap a few tree trunks. Zelda, not
wanting to ruin her dress any further, changed into her Shiekah outfit.
Once past the trunks, and the huge fungal growths on them, they screeched to a stop just
at the edge of a huge drop.
"Oh, great, now what do we do?" Zelda asked.
"Simple." Ganon said, grabbed both of them under one arm each, and jumped into the
pit.
The girls screamed.
Chapter three: The old, dead tree.
A mad gallop, all the way into the depths of the forest, far beyond the furthest borders of
Hyrule they went, riding the sweating, panting black stallion. Behind them, the maniacal
laughter of the dark god, Etregan, resounded off the trees in the misty gloom.
Looking back, for only the briefest moment, Ganon saw several trees get felled swiftly,
as the god, flying through the forest after them, cleared his way with the double helix-like
blade.
"Uh oh… we got company." He said and urged his horse on even faster.
Saria looked back, and saw just how close Etregan was.
"Not for long." She said, and raised her hands, gathering a bit of power.
Suddenly, a particularly large tree seemed to fill out tremendously and become a giant,
wooden, human hand with short leafy branches coming off the fingertips. The hand came
to life, and batted the god backwards into a boulder where he lay still for a second before
flipping nimbly up to his feet.
"It won't stop him, but it'll hold him off for a bit. C'mon, over that way, I think we can
loose him in the under brush for a bit longer…" Saria said, urgently.
Ganon, looking back at the monstrous wooden appendage that actually seemed to be
holding it's own against the warrior, nodded slowly before he turned the horse off in that
direction.
* * * *
The hand seemed to be working well as a distraction, as they didn't hear him come after
them for about 15 minutes when Saria suddenly leapt off the horse for no apparent
reason.
"WHOA!" Ganon called out as he stopped his horse, and Zelda almost flew off.
"What the heck was that for?" she demanded, glaring back at the Gerudo male.
"Don't look at me, your little forest friend must've gone nuts, she just jumped off a
second ago… look, she's standing at that tree stump over there."
Indeed, Saria was standing at the base of a rather large tree stump, they could see her
from the side, so they couldn't see what it was that she was so interested in.
Ganon walked his horse over to Saria's side, and Zelda hopped off.
"Hey, Saria, is everything alright?" she asked the girl.
Saria looked up at Zelda, shook her head, and pointed at the side of the stump.
Zelda looked at the stump, and gasped.
There was a crudely scratched image in it, of four, strange creatures, consisting of a
huge, rounded head, with legs and arms. A pair of fairies, what looked like a skull kid,
and the unmistakable image of link as a boy.
"What does this mean Saria?" Zelda asked.
Ganon, who had dismounted to examine the markings as well, was equally perplexed,
and was scratching his chin in thought.
"Maybe this was made by someone the boy befriended before he became possessed?"
he said.
Saria looked up at him sharply, then back at the skull kid that was holding link's hand.
"I think I know how to find out."
"How?" both adults asked.
"Get back on the horse, and follow my directions Ganon, I know where we have to go."
Saria ordered, almost frantically.
"Better hurry up about it then haven't you?" came an all to familiar voice.
The three of them looked up to see Etregan sitting cross-legged in a high tree branch,
arms crossed, grinning down at them with his glowing white eyes.
"That trick with the tree was very impressive Saria, very entertaining. I wonder, have
you any other rabbits to pull out of your hat?"
Saria stood there stunned for one second, then clapped her hands together. A collection
of roots and vines shot from the ground, bearing rock and soil in their twisting and
gnarled lengths. All of them came together in a kind of earthy, plant based golem, easily
three times Ganon's height.
"SMASH HIM!" Saria yelled to the creature she had summoned, knowing that at best
it'd probably only slow him down.
The golem's eyes glowed brightly, and swung out at the tree Etregan was sitting in.
Etregan himself leapt nimbly of the tree, off the golem's head in a kind of hand standing
flip, and into another tree, where he summoned his sword.
Meanwhile, the three survivors jumped onto the horse and took off, following Saria's
directions once again.
* * * *
Eventually they stopped at a small, hallow arch. There they had to dismount, and Ganon
smacked his stallion on the flank, telling it to go home.
"What do we do here?" Zelda asked.
"We go through that arch, and into a hallow, giant tree trunk in the next little field."
Saria explained.
"Why not add a little insurance to out endeavor, hmm?" Ganon asked, and snapped his
fingers, opening a dark portal.
A mirror image of Ganon himself, riding astride what had to be his horse's twin, rose
from the portal. The only difference was that the man riding the horse was wielding a
rather nasty double lance, one end having a triple bladed tip, the other having one larger
one. Also, the tri tipped end had a glowing red gem set in it.
The mounted Ganon pulled his own face off, to reveal the horned bony mask that
covered the shadow face of the phantom Ganon that Link had defeated in the forest
temple.
"Go, and hold the warrior off for as long as possible, do not give up until you are no
more." Ganon instructed the apparition.
The phantom nodded, and rode off at a gallop, rising into midair along with the horse it
rode.
Saria and Zelda looked at Ganon for a moment then turned and went to the arch.
Once through the arch into a tiny field, they had to leap a few tree trunks. Zelda, not
wanting to ruin her dress any further, changed into her Shiekah outfit.
Once past the trunks, and the huge fungal growths on them, they screeched to a stop just
at the edge of a huge drop.
"Oh, great, now what do we do?" Zelda asked.
"Simple." Ganon said, grabbed both of them under one arm each, and jumped into the
pit.
The girls screamed.
