Sage Of Innocence Saga -OR- Two Links and a Bunch of Authors!
By Galaxy Girl

CHAPTER SIX: THE PLOT THICKENS! -or- THE SEARCH FOR TEMPLE NO. 2

Disclaimer: Me does not = Zelda's owner. Me does not = Owner of the authors in this fic. Me = My Owner and Owner of the Extra Seven Temples.



Yo, yo! LL is in the house! Well, last time, Link and me ran through the Galaxy Temple in search of my girlfriend Galaxy Girl, and we found her, but she had been evilly freaktified! We defeated this big evil guy, found the Spiral Ninja Bracelet, and we found out that GG herself was the Sage of Galaxy! (MAN, that was predictable!) Luckily, we also found out how I can change back from Doseki into my cute little Goron self.



The crystal faded, and I once again felt solid ground below my feet. Solid, ROCKY ground!
"Oh, it feels so good to step on Death Mountain soil as a Goron again!" I cheered.
"Well, don't get too excited," Link said, brushing himself off. "We have another temple to find and another Sage to save."
Yumi zipped around. "Hey look over there LL! ROCKS!"
"ROCKS?"
I squealed and scrambled over to the rock pile. Scooping handfuls of the deliciously crunchy morsels into my mouth, I feasted for a couple minutes, then fell over in bliss.
"OH WOW! I'm never eating human food again!" I moaned.
Link rolled his eyes. "Hey, we'd better go tell your dad you're OK, before he tracks me down."

We walked over to the gateway to my hometown, and stepped inside. My old pal Joe was lying near the door. He sat up, and looked surprised.
"LL! You're alive! We thought you'd starved to death on those nasty village rocks!"
"No, I'm OK." I said. "Hey, where's my dad?"
"He and the others went to castle town to rent some movies," Joe said. "I decided to stay here and wait for you."
"Well, when Darunia gets back, tell him that LL's OK, and he's with me, all right?" Link said.
"Um... sure, I can remember that!"
"Well, we'd best be leaving now..." I mumbled. "See ya, Joe."
We walked back outside, and Link pointed down the slope. "Come on, let's head for the village. Wherever the next temple is, I don't think it's around here."
Yumi flew after him, but I held still.
"Yo, LL let's go!" Link said, ushering me along.
"If you don't mind Link..." I muttered, "I've been waiting all day to do this."
I curled up into a ball, and sent myself hurtling down the trail, until I crashed into a stone wall.
I unrolled, and I could hear Link racing down after me. "Good grief! Are you OK?"
"WOOOOO! I never get enough of that!" I whooped.
"Yep, he's OK." Yumi laughed.

"Well, I know where the 'Goddess of the Sand' is..." Link pondered out loud as we walked through the village.
"Where is that?" I asked.
"In Gerudo Valley."
"Oh, great! Where's that?" I asked.
"It's to the southwest of here," Link said. "If we ride, it'll be about two hours across Hyrule Field..."
I gasped and stopped in my tracks. "H-H-HYRULE FIELD?"
"Yeah, Hyrule Field. What's wrong?" Link said confusedly.
I shuddered and sat down. "Ohhhh... Not Hyrule Field!"
"What's wrong with Hyrule Field?" Link demanded.
"Legend has it if a Goron sets foot on Hyrule Field, he'll be DOOMED! They tell of tiny evil demons that race around like mad..."
"Those would be rabbits." Link explained.
"Big... Tall... THINGS! That hurt if you hit them!" I wailed.
"Trees?"
"And small arms that reach out of the earth, group together, and entangle anyone who dares to get near!"
"Those are BUSHES, LL." Link said, almost laughing. "Are you telling me that you've never seen Hyrule Field?"
"Uh... it's been a while..." I whined. "I was two!"
"Your dad and the others don't seem to have a problem with the Field!" Link laughed.
"They don't use the field." I said.
"Whaaaa?"
"You honestly think we would risk our lives on the field when we could just tunnel to the castle to deliver bombs and the ranch to get milk?" I chuckled. "Boy, you Hylians really are stupid!"
Link scowled. "Well, there's a first time for everything, so get ready, we're going to the field."
"NOOO!" I cried. "ANYTHING BUT THAT!"

After literally dragging me down the steps of Kakariko Village, we appeared at a big...flat... GREEN place.
"This is the field," Link said. "Nice, huh?"
"This... this is IT?" I cried in exasperation. "Where are the demons?"
"There goes a rabbit now," Link said, pointing to a small furry thing that scampered by.
"And what about the tall things?"
Yumi flew over to a tall stick-like thing. "There's one right here! This is a tree!"
I was really confused.
"And this is a bush," Link said, pointing to a small green fuzzy looking thing.
"Well, this doesn't look so bad!" I said. "But... where is Geroodoo Valley?"
"Gerudo," Link corrected. "And it's a long way that way." He pointed off towards the west.
"How do we get there? Are we going to... walk?" I gulped.
"No way! That would take us days!" Link chuckled. "We're going to ride Epona!"
"What's an Epona?" I asked.
Link pulled out his Ocarina and played a few notes. They seemed to resonate for miles and miles...
Suddenly I heard a horrible noise. I heard pounding footsteps, like a dragon or something! And then... the scariest thing I had ever seen appeared near me!
"AIIIIIIIIEEE!" I squealed.
The thing made the noise again, and I screamed and stepped back. "WHAT IS THAT?"
"That," Link said, "Is Epona, my trusty horse and partner."
"THAT'S a horse?" I said. "Gee, I thought they were scarier than that!"
Yumi giggled. "No way!"
I examined Epona carefully. "Well, how does it work?"
"SHE," Link corrected. "It's a she."
"Oh. How does SHE work?"
Link rolled his eyes. "Wow, you really are isolated..."
He stepped up to the horse and lifted his leg up into a small strap. Then, he hopped over its back and sat on it. "Like this. Then you pat her, and she runs and carries me with her!"
"Hmm..." I said.
Link patted Epona on the back. "Come on, LL. Hop up."
I walked over to the side and lifted up my foot. Unfortunately, when the straps are 2 feet off the ground and your foot only goes 1, there's no way you can make it.
"I can't get up!" I said.
"OK, well... I know!" Link said. He hopped off Epona and pointed to my neck. "Use your medallion."
"Ya mean... turn into Doseki?" I asked worriedly.
"Why not?"
"I'm worried... I won't be able to turn back!" I cried.
"You will, don't worry!" Link assured me.
"Oh, FINE!" I said. I lifted up the medallion. "But I'm not going to be flipping back and forth all the time, just to let you know!"
"INNOCENCE MEDALLION, TRANSFORM!"

~*~*~*POOF*~*~*~

I opened my eyes, and was immediately two and a half feet taller. I was seeing through Doseki's eyes for the first time since I found my way back to normal.
"I still don't like the way my voice sounds..." I whined.
"It's a Canadian accent, it's cute!" Yumi protested.
"And I will NEVER get used to this hair!"
"Oh, quit bickering. Just get on the horse and let's get moving!" Link snapped.
"OK, OK, jeez!" I got up on the horse, and to be perfectly frank, freaked out to see how high I was.
"Whoa... why is she so tall?" I moaned.
"Calm down, you won't fall," Link said. "Hey Doseki, do me a favor and pat her on the butt for me. I can't reach over you,"
I shrugged and reached back, patting Epona on the butt. Suddenly, she made that terrible noise again and split off running as fast as she could.
"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" I screamed. "AAAAAHHHHHHHH! MAKE HER STOP! SHE'S GOING TOO FAST!"
"We can't slow down, Doseki! We only have six more days until the virus destroys time!" Link explained. "And please, stop screaming."

After a while, I got used to riding Epona, and I even had a little fun. We went down a long slope near some reddish brown rocks, and I whooped as we went down.
"WOOOHOOOO!" I cheered.
"OK, next right, Gerudo Valley," Link called back.
"My butt hurts!" I whined. "Epona is bouncing too much!"
"Only a little longer, Doseki."
I thought for a minute, and decided that my butt wouldn't be sore if I was still a Goron... And anyway, I WAS already on the horse! There's no way I would have to get on again!
But of course, Link would be angry...
"Hey Link, can I be a Goron again now?" I asked.
"No, Doseki. You're too heavy, and Epona can't carry us both!"
"But..."
"No, Doseki. And don't even try it!"
I snorted and leaned back on Epona. Why was he always ordering me around anyway?
I looked at Epona's legs, still running at top speed. She looked strong enough to carry us both! Link didn't know what he was talking about!
I picked up my medallion again, and whispered, "Innocence Medallion, Return!"

~*~*~*~*POOOOF!*~*~*~*~

As soon as the smoke cleared, Epona neighed in fear and skidded to a halt.
"AAAAHHH!" Link screamed. "LL! NO! YOU'RE TOO HEAVY!"
Epona whinnied and I felt the horse lurching backwards. She sat down on the ground quickly under my weight, and threw Link and me backwards.
"AAAHHHHHH!" we both cried, and suddenly, I hit something hard. Then, Link crashed into me, smashing me into the tree.

I was stunned by the blow, but I could see Epona sit up, and gallop away.
Link quickly stood up and rubbed his head, just in time to see his horse running away.
"EPONA! COME BACK HERE!" he yelled.
Yumi flew out of Link's hat, looking rumpled. "Hey, keep it on the road, I'm in the hat back here!"
Link watched Epona gallop away, and turned back to me, still on the ground. "YOU!" he cried.
"What?" I said. "She looked strong enough!"
"You idiot! I told you not to do it! Why don't you listen to me?" he screamed. "ALL of our stuff was on Epona! Now, we are stuck here!"
"We CAN walk, ya know..." Yumi whispered to him.
"Shut up, Princess... uh, Yumi!" Link shouted. Then he turned back to me.
"You had better have a GOOD explanation for this!"
"I... I... I'm sorry..." I mumbled.
"Sorry doesn't bring our stuff back, LL! I can't have you acting like an idiot and ruing our mission!"
"And IDIOT?" I cried. "You... you're calling me an idiot?"
"YES!" Link screamed.
I choked on my own tears. "I'm not an idiot!"
"Yes, yes you are!" Link cried. "You're an idiot, and I can't believe that Destiny is forcing me to work with you!"
I made a little cry and covered my face. "I'm not an idiot! And... Destiny wants us to work together so we can stop the virus!" I wailed.
"Well, I don't see how working with you is going to accomplish anything!" Link snapped, turning away.
"I... I... I..." my voice was quivering. "I can't believe that Daddy EVER wanted you for a Brother!"
"WHAT? What makes me the wrong one here, LL?"
I stood up defiantly. "Ever since I was a kid, Daddy was always saying, 'Oh, Link the Dodongo Buster really saved our hides!' and 'Oh, that Link... what a great guy!' and 'Oh, Link is the best hero ever! Almost better than the great Darmani!'"
"Yeah, so?" Link said.
"Well... All this entire trip, all you've done is yell at me, and yell at me, and yell at me!" I yelled. "I... And I don't see what my Daddy saw in you at all!"
"WHAT?"
"You're no hero!" I snapped. "A hero is someone who saves people, no matter what! A person who is brave and strong and kind is a hero! Well... You're no hero at all, Link! All you are is... IS A JERK!"
I stomped over and shoved him out of the way. I was going to Gerudoo or whatever it was Valley to save the world whether or not Link was there!
"LL, no! You can't go alone!" Link yelled after me.
"Why do you care? I'm just an idiot!" I retorted.
"The Gerudos! They hate men and kids! And Gorons! You can't go in alone!"
"I know Nabooru, she'll let me in!" I said smugly.
"But you can't go all by yourself!" Link called.
"I'm not going by myself!" I said. "Come on, Yumi!"
Yumi zoomed after me, and blew a raspberry at Link.

We arrived in the valley a few minutes later. The walls were red, and the floor was gritty and gravely.
It was just about sundown. I shivered, because it was getting a little cold.
"I don't know... maybe we shouldn't have left Link by himself!" Yumi said warily.
"Oh, he's just a big mean jerk!" I said. "I want to change my name!"
"Should I just call you Little?" Yumi asked jokingly.
"No, I want to be... Little Darunia! After my Dad!"
"OK LL... Uh, LD. Whatever you want!"
In front of us there was a plateau with a small bit of water at the bottom. A wooden plank led up to the top where we would be able to keep going.
"I... I don't like water... or heights... but especially not water at the bottom of a large height..." I whimpered.
"LD, why don't you turn into Doseki for this one?" Yumi suggested. "I mean, no offense, but Doseki's a lot less clumsy than you. And, well..."
"Sure," I said.
"INNOCENCE MEDALLION TRANSFORM!"

~*~*~*~*POOF!*~*~*~*~

I shook off the dizziness, then stepped up to the plank.
"Hmm..." I said quietly. "This may be a while..."
"Just put one foot in front of the other!" Yumi said. "It's easy, you can do it!"
I took my first step onto the plank. It wobbled.
"WHOA!" I ducked down.
"Come on Doseki, keep your head!" Yumi said into my ear.
"OK... suck it up... rise above it..." I said to myself.
I slowly crawled inch by inch until I reached the top.
"PHEW!" I sighed.
"You did it Doseki!" Yumi cheered.
"And without stupid old what's-his-name, too!" I added. We started walking- Er, I walked, Yumi flew.
"Wow, that was the scariest thing that I've ever...
AAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Right in front of us was a bridge, crossing over a canyon. Not just any canyon...
A 1500 FOOT TALL, 16 AND A HALF FEET WIDE CANYON OVER A HUGE, GIGANTIC, RAGING RIVER OF DEATH!
"OH MY GOSH!" I screamed. I hunkered down. "Oh no, no, no, no, no!"
"Wowee, that is one big cliff!" Yumi whistled.
"I can't do it!" I cried. "I can't cross it!"
"Look Doseki, it's a big bridge! You can make it!" Yumi said, patting me on the back with her tiny hand.
"I... can't!" I said.
"Come on Doseki, just go!" Yumi said. "Prove it to everyone that you're a man too, just like your Daddy!"
I sighed. "OK... here goes..."
"Just don't look down!" Yumi added.
I took the first big step onto the bridge. It seemed steady.
"PHEW! It looks safe," I said.
I took a few steps onto the bridge, when I heard a creak. I stopped short.
"Yumi... what was that?" I said quietly.
"Nothing, just a noise!" Yumi said.
"Oh..." I replied. I took a step forward and...
CRACK!

I squealed in fear and felt my foot sink through a plank of rotting wood on the bridge.
"AAAAH! AAAAH! YUMI, I'M GONNA FALL!" I shrieked.
"No, no, you're not! Calm down!"
I screamed a little more, than I felt a sharp slap on my face.
"GET AHOLD OF YOURSELF, MAN!" Yumi cried.
"My foot... it's stuck!" I said, a little calmer.
"It's OK Doseki, just take it easy... pull up on your foot as hard as you can!"
I tried, but it wouldn't budge.
"All my weight is on one foot!" I said. "Let me change and..."
CRACK!
"AAAAAH!"
My other foot slipped through the wood. I was stuck!
I could feel the wood weakening under me. Any second, I would slip and be stuck up to my waist!
"Yumi... I'm not strong enough to pull up my legs!"
"Don't worry, I'll call for help!" Yumi said. "Just be sure not to say... those words!"
"What words?"
"You know, those one words..."
"You mean 'Innocence Medallion, Return?'"

~*~*~*~*POOF!*~*~*~*~

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"
The rest of the wood gave way, and I felt myself slipping down.
"LD, no!" Yumi shouted.
"HEEEEEEEEELP!" I cried. "HEEEEEEEEEELP!"
"SOMEONE HELP!" Yumi yelled, flying all around.
I barely caught the edge of the plank. I was hanging by my fingers!
"Yumi, I'm slipping! CATCH ME!" I cried.
"Get real, LD! YOU WEIGH 600 POUNDS!"
"HEEEELP! I CAN SENSE IT! THE ICY BREATH OF DEATH!"
Yumi stood for a second. "But that means... I'm your guardian fairy! I'M GONNA DIE, TOO!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" we both screamed.
"Oh, hold on, LD! You can do it!" Yumi shouted.
The plank creaked again.
"OH MAN! OHHHHHHHH!" I cried. "YUMI, THIS IS IT!"
I could feel the wood giving in...
"TELL DADDY I LOVE HIM!" I screamed.
"I CAN'T, I'M GONNA DIE TOO!" Yumi screamed back.

Suddenly...
The wood split.
"AAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHH!" I screamed.
I was in the air! There was nothing there but a LOOOOOOOOOOOONG way down...
Suddenly, I heard someone else scream.
I felt something snatching me out of the air by my arm.
I WAS HOLDING STILL!
"HEEEEEEELP!" I shouted.
I shut my eyes tight. I could feel myself being lifted up by some unseen force...
Suddenly, I was on land again!
I opened one eye. I saw Yumi right in my face. "Oh LD! You're OK!"
"LD? Who is that?" another voice said.
I looked behind me.
There, kneeling on the bridge and wearing some kind of shiny gold gauntlets, was Link!
"Are you all right?" he said, sounding as sincere as I had ever heard him this whole trip.
"I... I think I wet myself..."
"As long as you're OK," Link said. He kind of laughed and sighed.
"Link... you came back?" I said, kind of surprised.
"Of course! I heard screaming, and I came just in time to see you slip under the bridge."
"But you think I'm an idiot..." I said sadly.
"Only sometimes. You're not an idiot, L... whoever you wanna be now."
"I'm LL," I said. "Not Little Darunia, Little Link."
Link stood up. "I thought about what you said out there... about the hero thing... and you're right, I have been kind of hard on you..."
"It's OK," I said.
"No, it's not. I promise I'll try to be nicer to you now, OK? Just as long as you listen to me. Do we have a deal?"
"It's a deal!" I said. "Brother..."
"I'm not your brother," Link chuckled.
"Yes you are, you're my Sworn Brother Link, the Dodongo Buster and Hero of the Gorons!"
Link sighed and rolled his eyes. "I'm never going to hear the end of that, am I?"
"No," I said. "But... Link? What about your Epona?"
"Oh, it's all right. I can just call her back with that song anytime, I just overreacted." Link said. "Don't worry about it."
"I'm just glad everyone is OK!" Yumi beamed.

THAT NIGHT...

We walked into Gerudo Fortress, a big stone building built into a cliff. There were women all around, and a large gate on the west side of the fortress led to some big sandy area.
"Are the Gerudo nice?" I asked.
"Depends," Link replied. "But I'm a member, so they'll be nice to me."
Yumi burst out laughing. "You're a member of an all-woman group? AAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!"
"Oh, shut up! It was an inevitable thing." Link shrugged.
As we approached the fortress, a young woman Gerudo in a pink outfit with blazing red hair walked out. When she saw us, she turned and ran towards us.
"Kid! I mean, uh... Link!" she cried.
"Hi Nabooru, how are you?" Link said.
"I'm fine. But what brings you to this part of the world?"
"Oh, LL and me are on a mission," Link said.
"LL? OH! You're Darunia's kid, aren't ya?" Nabooru said, looking at me.
"Yep," I said. "You must be Nabooru, the Sage of Spirit! Daddy talks about you all the time!"
"Aww..." Nabooru smiled.
"He says you're a klepto!"
Nabooru kind of grinned and then scowled. "He's going to get it... Well, you're a cute one, LL."
"Thank you!" I grinned.
"So Link, ya wanna come in for some chow?" Nabooru asked as we walked past all the Gerudo guards.
"Uh, sure. But let me ask you something first..." he replied.
"Yeah?"
"Has anything..." he leaned towards her. "Has anything WEIRD happened around here lately?"
"Nothing out of the ordinary... but... oh there's all these weird people here now!" Nabooru said.
"Like who?" I asked.
"Well... come on in to the dining room, and I'll show you!" Nabooru said, motioning us to follow.

After a long walk through many twisting tunnels in the fortress, we appeared in a large well-lit room. Many other Gerudos were eating at a table. But three of them in the corner...
"Those three," Nabooru whispered. "They just appeared here yesterday morning, and they think they've been here for years!"
I turned my attention to the three new Gerudo. I immediately recognized all three of them as authors.
Blossom Waters was trying to eat soup, but the other two, who were quibbling, were making it hard for her.
Chica burst out laughing at a comment by Angered Fairy, and the two of them started shouting again.
Angered Fairy was the loudest. "Yeah right, Meli! I fight a LOT better than you!"
"Oh sure, Lili! I scored the most money from those Zora salesmen the other day!" Chica (Or Meli, as she was going by) retorted.
"Both of you, shut up!" Blossom Waters said. "I'm a better thief than both of you, and I got the most money of all of us yesterday!"
This caused an uproar with the rest of the Gerudo, and soon, they were all screaming and slapping and pulling hair.
"Boy, dinner sure is lively around here, huh?" Yumi said.
Nabooru shrugged. "They should all quit fighting. I'M the best thief around."
All of the Gerudos stopped their argument, turned towards Nabooru, and shouted, "YEAH RIGHT!"
"Nabooru, we have an explanation for you, but it may not make a lot of sense." Link told her.
"Well, is it really confusing?" Nabooru asked.
"Yes, it is! I still don't get it!" I commented.
"It's also private. Let's head somewhere else," Link added.

"So... let me get this straight... All of the authors from Fan Fiction.net were sucked into Hyrule by this virus..."
"Right," Link said.
"And they all lost their memories, and think they're natural citizens..."
"Correct," Yumi said.
"And if you don't find five more Author Sages by 6 days from now, time will be messed up and we'll be forced to relive the past over and over?"
"Exactly," I said.
Nabooru's eyes widened. "For seven years, I was a monster..."
Then, she freaked. Grabbing Link by the collar and shaking him, she screamed, "YOU HAVE GOT TO FIND THOSE SAGES!"
"I know, I know!" he said. "And to make things even weirder, we find out that LL here is a Sage of Innocence, and he can turn into an, in his own words 'Hot and tempting Canadian accent speaking human'!"
"Wow, that is weird..." Nabooru said. "How hot and tempting?"
"Sorry Nab, but there are some more important things at hand." Link said. "And we have a basic idea of where the next temple is, but we can't find exactly where!"
"That's a problem," Nabooru said, standing up off of her bed. "Hey, I know!"
"WHAT?" Link and I asked at the same time.
"I'm a Sage! I can use my power and see if I can find out anything for you!" Nabooru said, snapping her fingers. "Impa can see visions, why can't I?"
"Link..." I whispered. "Who's Impa?"
"That would be helpful, Nabooru," Link said.
"OK... let me concentrate..." she said, sitting back on the bed.
She took a few deep breaths and closed her eyes. Then, she turned and glared at us.
"Come on boys, out!"
"Why?" I asked.
"I don't feel comfortable when people WATCH me use my Sage powers!" Nabooru said, as if stating the obvious.
"Oh, sorry," I murmured.
Link and I walked out of the room, and Yumi followed us. Nabooru walked after us and slammed the door shut.

After about 10 minutes, Nabooru opened the door. Her eyes were wide.
"Wow... I'm never doing that again!" she said.
"Well, what did you see?" Link asked impatiently.
"Three figures... They were standing by the Spirit Temple... there was a flash of light, and then one of them vanished!" Nabooru said. "Then I passed out..."
"Fascinating," Link said, rolling his eyes.
"Hey man, don't diss the POWERS!" Nabooru yelled.
"Well... can we go to the Spirit Temple tomorrow?" I asked Link.
"Sure," Link said. "The temple is somewhere around there."
"Well, until then..." Nabooru started. She kneeled down and put an arm around my shoulder. "You look pretty tired, LL."
"I am," I said. "I'm up past my bedtime..."
Nabooru giggled, and snapped her fingers. Two Gerudos in purple clothing ran in.
"Yes, O exalted one Nabooru?" one of them asked.
"Could you show Link and Little Link here to a room? They'll be staying the night," Nabooru said.
"Yes, your exaltedness," the other one said.
They motioned for us to follow. Link went first.
"Goodnight Nabooru!" I called.
"Goodnight Link, Little Link!" Nabooru called back.

THE NEXT DAY...

I woke up when I sat up and fell off of the bed Nabooru had provided for us. "OWWWW!" I wailed.
I looked around the room. Link was nowhere to be seen!
I stood up, picked up some gravel off the floor to snack on, and decided to go looking for Link.
I peered out the window, and was surprised to see all of the Gerudo outside in a large group. Nabooru and Link stood in the center, and Nabooru was barking orders to the rest.

After wandering around the fortress for a while, I found my way outside to the group.
"You two," Nabooru said, pointing to two Gerudos in white. "Go search around the river! Dira, Inda, you two go look around the field."
Link had a stern look on his face. I tugged his sleeve. "Link, what's going on?"
"Chica, Angered Fairy, and Blossom Waters disappeared last night!" he said. "They think they got lost in the desert!"
"OH NO!" I cried. "What if they never get found?"
"Relax, relax, Nabooru is sending out Gerudos to look for them now."
I sighed and sat down in the sand. Suddenly, I remembered Nabooru's vision! Three figures near the Spirit Temple... and one disappeared!
Seconds later, I heard a horrible moan.
"AAAAAH!" I shrieked. I spun around, and saw a Gerudo girl just in time to see her faint near the gate to the desert.
"Hey, look!" I cried.
The others turned and gasped. All 25 Gerudos, Nabooru, and Link raced over to her.
It was Angered Fairy!
"Get her some water!" Nabooru cried.
"What happened?" a Gerudo asked quickly.
"Tira and Meli and me..." she moaned. "We went out in the desert to prove who was the best... and we got separated!"
"Oh no!" I said. "That means they're lost!"
"Someone has to go out and find them!" Nabooru said. "They're not even real Gerudos, they're in BIG trouble if they're dumb enough to go into the Spirit Temple... if they even made it that far..."
"We'll go!" I said. "Link and me! We gotta go anyway!"
"That's right," Link said. "LL and me, we'll go find them!"
"Hey, who cares about them? I WANT SOME WATER!" Angered Fairy choked.
"Are you sure? Do you want one of us to come?" another Gerudo asked.
"We'll be OK," Link said. "Come on, LL, Yumi! We gotta get moving!"
"HEY! WHERE'S MY WATER?" Angered Fairy screamed after us.

We had just turned off on the path to the "Haunted Wasteland" as Link called it, when he stopped us. "I don't even want to try crossing the sand with someone as heavy as you!" he said. "No offense, but..."
"Yeah, I get it..."

~*~*~*POOF!*~*~*~

"OK, let's hurry!" I said. "Who knows where they are now?"

A few steps later, we were in a huge, sandy, stormy BLAH area. Nothing but sand as far as you could see!
"Once we pass this first crate, DO NOT go any further!" Link yelled. "I'm serious this time!"
"I'll listen to you from now on!" I said.
Once we passed the crate, I saw a large dip in the sand.
"It's the River of Sand!" Yumi cried. "You can't walk on it, or you'll slip and sink down!"
Link pulled out the hook thingy on a chain. "Grab on!" he said.
I grabbed his sleeve, and he fired it (the hook, not his sleeve!) at a crate across the river.
We went flying over it.
"WOOOOO!" I cried. "AGAIN!"
"No time, come on! Follow me closely!" Link ordered.
We wandered through what seemed like circles for about half an hour, and finally, I saw something in front of us besides sand.
"Hey, there's a building!" I called.
"I know, now we have to go on top, and..."

"Link! Doseki! Look up here!" someone yelled.
We peered up onto the top of the building, to see who else but Sheik!
Sheik flipped down, and motioned for us to follow him. "Here, inside this fort! We can talk there!"
I passed through the doorway and climbed down a long ladder to the basement. Well, I TRIED to climb down, but I slipped and tumbled down to the hard stone floor.
"OOF!"
"Are you all right?" Sheik asked.
"I'm... fine!" I groaned. "My... spleen!"
Link dropped down, and Yumi after him, and Sheik bowed to us. "I see you have found the right way to the next temple."
"It wasn't easy!" Yumi laughed.
"Yeah, yeah, well, I suppose you've heard about the three Gerudo girls. You know that all three of them are really authors?"
"Yeah, we know," Link said, hurrying him on.
"Well, I bet you didn't know that one of them is the next Sage!"
"REALLY?" all three of us said at once.
"Yes. Now, for my little philosophical muse thing I am required by contract to say."
He pulled out a long piece of paper and started to read off of it.
"It is something we need to live. The energy to function, the energy to love, the energy to create. From the deepest depths of the soul, your energy comes to assist your mind and body to create, to love, to live. This is the Etude of Energy. Remember this song well, because you must use it to open the door to the temple in the sand."
He pulled out his lyre/harp/lute/ukulele thing, and played the song.






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Link repeated the melody on his Ocarina, and I tried my best on my drum.
Soon, we had it down, and Sheik put his lyre/harp/lute/ukulele thing. "Good. Now, Link knows the song to take you the rest of the way to the temple. Once there, you must find the correct spot in the sand, and play the Etude of Energy to uncover the temple."
"Got it!" I said.
"Good. Link, Doseki, I'll see you again at the next temple."
Sheik took a few steps back, threw a marble at the ground, and disappeared in a puff of smoke.
Link scratched his head. "OK... right... the song... uh..."
"You don't know it, do you?" Yumi laughed.
"I know it! I just... Forgot?"
After a few minutes of pondering, Link pulled out his Ocarina. "There we go! I know!"
He played the song, and then, an orange glow surrounded us. The inside of the fort began to vanish, and seconds later, we appeared near a huge towering mountain with a Gerudo woman carved onto the front of it.

"One of these palm trees!" Link said.
"One problem." I replied.
There had to be at least 25 palm trees around the oasis!
We were wondering which tree to start at when we heard a moan.
Yumi gasped. "GUYS! LOOK! OVER THERE!"
Blossom Waters lay propped against a tree, and we rushed over to her.
"You came to save me!" she gasped.
"Where's the other one? Chic- uh, MEli?" Link asked.
"We... we were walking, and it was incredible! The sand just formed a huge whirlpool... and it swallowed her up!" Blossom said.
"Oh no!" I moaned.
"Um, I'm worried about Meli and everything, but could you PLEASE get me some water?" Blossom asked angrily.
Link pulled an empty bottle out of his pocket, handed it to Blossom, and played "The Song of Storms" on his Ocarina.
It began to thunder, and rain poured down in sheets! The bottle filled up with water, and Blossom grinned.
"Hey, thanks!" she said. "Now, hurry! You gotta find Meli!
"OK, now where do we start..." Link pondered out loud.
"Um, hey, guys?" Blossom called.
"What?" I called back.
"Not to be annoying or anything, but... I was wondering if you could PLEASE hurry up and find Meli... because... I... well, call me crazy, but I think something really bad is going to happen to her if you don't find her!"
"Why is that?" Link asked.
"Well... again, call me crazy, but... as soon as the whirlpool appeared... I heard an evil voice laugh, and I heard Meli scream, and I hear someone say...
'No one can stop me from destroying Hyrule this time!'"



Well, THAT'S something you don't wanna hear when you're trying to save the world! Where did Chica disappear to? Will Link and Doseki and Yumi EVER find the correct palm tree? And most importantly... Who is the evil voice?

Find out the answer to SOME of these questions in the next chapter:

ENERGY AHOY!

-or-

THE WEIRDEST TEMPLE YET TO BE DISCOVERED IS DISCOVERED!