Hi everyone. Another fun chapter coming right up!
Disclaimer: yawn.
Chapter 8
Skull Kid entered the caverns that made up Zora's Domain. He immediately started shivering. What the? Didn't I get enough of this freezing stuff back at Death's Head? He looked around, immediately seeing what was wrong. It was snowing. Indoors. The water in the cave was completely frozen. Remembering how Link had said that in the dark future, the Zoras had been trapped beneath the ice, he expected them to be like that now. It wasn't. In fact, it was much worse. The Zoras were sitting on the ice, looking even colder than Skull Kid. Their fins were completely blue. The woman and child Zoras were having a much rougher time than the males. Even so, they all looked miserable. Since they were fish people, winter hit them harder than it did most other species. Water is usually pretty cold, so they don't mind a little coolness, but ice was bad for them. Skull Kid wasn't happy with this. The Kokiri, Deku, and Gorons had been forced to work in harsh conditions. But the demon in charge here was being exceptionally cruel, torturing the Zoras with ice instead of putting them to work. Skull Kid looked around the main cavern, trying to see the monsters (literally) that were keeping the Zoras on the ice. He immediately spotted several Octorocks scattered around the room in all the higher tunnels. There were a few Bigocto on the main pool as well, near the edges. They seemed to have no trouble with the cold. In fact, they seemed to enjoy it. This was enough proof for Skull Kid that none of the monsters here were slaves. All were bad. He was a bit surprised that the Octorocks were comfortable on land and in the snow and ice. He would have thought that the Octorock would be freezing like the Zoras. He watched as a male Zora slowly stood up. Skull Kid watched. The Zora paused, then made a run for the unguarded tunnel that led to the Zora Shop, went through several passage ways, and finally ended up on the ledge Skull Kid was on. The Octorocks immediately noticed him from their various vantage points around the Domain. They squealed, signaling the Bigoctos. The Octorocks spat rocks at the Zora, who used the slipperiness of the ice to his advantage, sliding out of the way of the rocks. Unfortunately, the Bigoctos used the ice to their advantage as well. They quickly spun across the cave, aiming for the Zora. As they drew in close, he activated his bioelectric force field, breaking the rocks and stunning the Bigocto. Unfortunately, they quickly recovered. However, he was almost to the tunnel. Despite their flexibility in squeezing, the Bigoctos would never fit in there. But just as the Zora almost made it, the Bigoctos did something unbelievable. They spat rocks. That wasn't possible, though. Everyone knew that Octorocks spat rocks, while Bigocto span into enemies. They had been changed somehow. The poor Zora didn't make it. He hadn't known that these Bigocto could spit rocks, and he got hit in the back by four veritable boulders. He fell. His blood started to spread across the ice, quickly freezing. The Bigocto slid over to the Zora and crowded around his body. Loud slurping and tearing noises could be heard. When they slid away ten minutes later, back to their posts, there was nothing where the Zora had been but a red stain. Skull Kid was horrified and disgusted. He saw an Octorock at the edge of the ledge he was on, unaware of his presence. Good. His blood boiling, Skull Kid slipped on the Stone Mask and walked up behind the octopus. He shoved it off the ledge. It hit the ground, its impact easily splitting apart its squishy body. Octorock innards spilled all over the floor. The Octorocks looked around the room, trying to find out who had killed their brother. They wouldn't find him. "Tael, where is the entrance to Zora's Fountain?" he whispered.
Tael didn't answer. He was still in shock over the death of the Zora, and what Skull Kid had just done. Finally, he answered. "It's the tunnel straight ahead, first left, first right, second left." Skull Kid headed for the tunnel. After a moment, Tael followed. They walked up the tunnel to King Zora's throne room. When he got there, he found something appalling sitting on the frozen stream in front of King Zora's throne. Frozen in blocks of blue ice were a large group of Zoras. After a moment, Skull Kid recognized them. He saw Mikau, Evans, Japas, Tijo, and Toto of the Indigo- go's. He also saw a Zora who looked like a younger version of Mikau, sans the tattoos, and an incredibly fat Zora that could only be King Zora. Before the true horror of this moment registered on Skull Kid, he noticed that the frozen king Zora was standing up and thought, How can his little legs support that much weight? Then the horror registered. He pulled out his Fire Hammer and slammed it on the ground, trying to melt the ice. The fire didn't even cause steam. Tael spoke. "Skull Kid, that's magical ice. You can't melt it with fire."
"Then how do I melt it?" asked Skull Kid, a bit hotly.
"We have to find the monster that has cursed the water and kill it."
"You mean the demon in the temple?"
"No, I think the monster causing the ice is in the Fountain. The demon's probably done something else. Let's go to the fountain and free these people."
"Just a second." Said Skull Kid. He walked down the tunnel that the stream from the throne normally flowed down and found himself at the top of a waterfall overlooking the main cavern, still frozen. An Octorock sat at the edge of the waterfall. Skull Kid shoved it off the cliff and walked back to the throne room, hearing a splat a few seconds later. He took off the Stone Mask and climbed onto King Zora's throne, walking along the frozen stream leading into the Domain from the fountain. He reached the end of the tunnel and was out in the open air. He was now in Zora's Fountain, a large pool with a deep center. Rocks jutted out of the water on the far right side of the pool, along with a dead tree. At the edge of the pool, to Skull Kid's left, were a wall of stakes, keeping anybody from falling off the waterfall that fed into the river and normally hid the Domain's entrance. Just a few yards away from the stakes sat a large platform with four Zora pillars, where Jabu-Jabu used to be fed. Jabu-Jabu wasn't around though. The water was dark, cold, and murky. Icebergs littered the fountain. A large ramp of snow led up from Jabu-Jabu's feeding platform. Careful to stay in the shallow water, Skull kid waded to the platform and walked up the ramp. He wished he had some winter clothes, but tried to ignore the cold. He reached the top of the ramp. He surveyed the fountain. The main stretch of the pool was in front of him. Icebergs littered the place. He could see a blocked cave at the far-left side of the fountain. He looked off the edge of the ramp, into the depths of the fountain. It was pretty deep. A few Octorocks were piddling around. Skull Kid wondered where the chief monster was. He peered into the murky depths of the fountain. He suddenly noticed bubbles and a huge form coming towards the surface at the very far end of the fountain. The figure erupted to the surface, splashing water everywhere. Skull Kid gaped. It was like an Octorock, but fifty feet tall, almost a third of the length of Jabu-Jabu. It had red, pulsating skin. Its eyes were covered by a shell just like all of its kind, except its eyes were blue instead of green and were angry instead of the regular sad look and the shell over its eyes was spiked. Its mouth/snout was rimmed with teeth. It had four tentacles instead of eight. Each of its suckers was rimmed with teeth as well, and the ends of the tentacles were spiked. It bellowed and slowly paddled towards our heroes. "Tael, what…what is that? A giant Octorock?"
"Pretty close. It's a Giantocto, the most dangerous of all octopi. It can spit boulders and squirt ink, and also form whirlpools to suck you in so it can eat you. It has two mouths: one to spew stuff out, the other to suck things in."
"Wait…so you mean that the mouth that spits rocks also…"
"Yes. Yes I am."
Skull Kid grimaced. "I hope it doesn't try that as an attack. So, how do I kill it?"
"It's only weak spots are the mouth it sucks things up with and the unarmored point on its back. If you could get a bomb to its mouth, you'll damage or stun it long enough to attack its behind. You could also try using a boomerang attack of some sort."
"But bombs don't work in water. The fuses don't light."
"But Skull Kid, don't we have a special kind of bomb that would work in this case? One without a fuse?"
Skull Kid immediately got the hint. "Ohhh…but if it's inside the Giantocto, won't that count as a separate room?"
"No. The innards of a living thing don't count as a room. You'll be able to safely detonate it. Anyway, it'll probably detonate automatically when it comes into contact with the beast's internal craw. There may be other ways to stun or kill it, but I don't know of them. However, I do know that the only way you'll be able to use this strategy is if you can attack it from underwater."
Skull Kid grinned. "Don't worry Tael. I got you covered." Reaching into his pack, he pulled out the Zora Mask. He slapped it on. There was a pause, followed by his screams. His body was stretching, growing into something completely different. His bones and organs shifted to match. He grew taller and taller. His bones jutted from his arms, turning into fins. As usual, his beak changed into something else, a mouth and nose. His eyes turned dark. He closed his eyes, waiting for it to end. It did. He opened his eyes and looked at himself. He was now five feet tall. His skin was a light blue, and covered with scales. His boots had grown to accommodate his feet. His gloves had gotten longer and more slender. He still had his belt and the bottom part of his tunic. He had a yellow, studded collar on his neck. His hat had sunk into his head, forming the "tail" that grew from the backs of male Zora's heads. His was reddish-brown, an unusual color for the Zora. It tapered to a point before sprouting a small tail fin. Yellow ring patterns encircled the base of the "tail." He had two extra fins like bangs growing from where his ear holes were, covering them. His eyes were still beady, but now were bluish-black. He had two large red-brown fins growing from his lower arms. He was a Zora. The Giantocto had reached him. It spat a huge boulder. Skull Kid shielded himself by enlarging one of his arm fins, but was still knocked all the way down the ramp by the impact. Shaking himself up, he quickly backflipped away as the Giantocto smashed the ramp to pieces with its tentacles. Skull Kid ran around the side of the platform into deeper water. He dodged the rocks spewed by the Octorocks and dove into the water. The Giantocto immediately grabbed him. As the spiky tendrils dug into his skin, he activated his electric force field. Screeching, the Giantocto let go and swam right over him. It opened the large mouth on its bottom, where all the tentacles met, and started sucking. As Skull Kid began to get pulled in, he pulled an Atlantean bomb from his pack and flung it into the current. It was sucked into the monster's craw. There was a pause, then the Giantocto convulsed and sunk to the bottom of the fountain. Using the awesome swimming speed of the Zora, Skull Kid dashed over to the octopuses behind. He immediately saw the weak spot. It was a large patch of purple skin, not as tough and red as the rest of the monster. Skull Kid performed a series of karate chops and kicks to the purple skin, causing the Giantocto to convulse more each time it happened. After five attacks, the Giantocto recovered, lashing out at Skull Kid with its tentacles. Skull kid knocked them away with his electric attack and waited for the next attack. Instead of trying to suck him up, the monster spat out a boulder. Since they were underwater, the boulder sunk to the floor but started rolling right for Skull Kid, who easily got out of the way. As the Giantocto kept spiting rocks, Tael targeted the beast. Skull Kid crossed his arms while circling Giantocto, avoiding the boulders. Finally, he uncrossed his arms, launching his boomerang fins at the octopus. The boomerangs stunned Bigocto long enough for Skull Kid to dart to its back and perform some more chops and kicks. When Giantocto recovered again, it was really angry. It spurted out a cloud of ink, obscuring the fountain floor. Skull Kid could not see what was in front of him. Giantocto could attack from any angle. He kept turning around, keeping his shield fin out. Tael's light was no help, since the ink obscured everything. Then, the ink cleared away ad Skull Kid was grabbed from behind by a tentacle. Before he could use his electric attack, the tentacle started to lift him towards Giantocto's mouth, which was sucking hard. Skull kid knew he couldn't just use his attack, because he would be immediately sucked in. He groped around for his pack, causing the spikes to dig in more tightly. Finally, he found a bomb and threw it. He was inches away from the craw. The bomb immediately went in and exploded, stunning Giantocto. As it sank to the floor, Skull Kid swam behind it and performed multiple attacks before it even hit bottom, scoring extra damage. But once again the Giantocto recovered. It didn't look happy at all. The Giantocto lunged at Skull Kid, knocking him across the fountain. He regained control before he hit the hard, rocky sides and swam back towards the monster. He prepared his electric attack, anticipating the charge. When the monster did charge, Skull Kid used his electric attack, stunning it as the two collided. Still electrified, Skull Kid swam to the monster's weak point and grabbed onto it, pumping gigawatt after gigawatt into the monster's body. The monster recovered, but was unable to attack as Skull Kid continued his assault. The Giantocto shrieked in pain, breaking away from Skull Kid's grasp and floated towards the surface. Once there, it fell on its back, puffed out a ring of smoke, and died. Skull Kid swam to the surface and pulled himself onto an iceberg. The Octorocks were gone. Hiding from the Zora who had slain their master. Skull Kid suddenly fell into the water as the iceberg melted. All of the other icebergs melted as well. The water started returning to its normal temperature. Back in Zora's Domain, the ice under the feet of the Zoras and Bigoctos gave way and melted. Eagerly, the Zoras sunk into the water. On the surface, the Bigoctos looked around them uneasily, not sure where to attack. Suddenly, they were grabbed from beneath and pulled underwater. Flashes of light could be seen. A red mist filled the waters. The Bigoctos floated to the surface, dead. The Octorocks quivered in fear, deciding to retreat. Skull kid swam over to Jabu-Jabu's platform and stood up, grinning. He high-fived Tael. "Yeah! We saved the Zoras!"
"Not quite, Skull Kid. Look at the water!"
Skull Kid did, and sighed. The water was now pretty murky, and the waterfall was still pretty weak. The main curse, the one from the demon infesting the temple, was still on. It looked like he was going to have to get to the coast. He walked back in to Zora's Domain, pleased to see it was no longer snowing and the ice had melted everywhere, except for one place. The Indigo-go's the guy who looked like Mikau, and King Zora were still frozen. They would stay that way until the demon at the temple was slain. He decided to act incognito, not wanting to cause any ruckus. He dove off the waterfall, splashing into the water, surprising all the Zoras. Well, so much for acting incognito. None of the Zoras paid him any heed. They were chatting and climbing out of the water to check on their own rooms and to kill any remaining Octorocks. May, however, were in tears. It seemed that Zora who had died earlier wasn't the first to suffer that fate. Skull kid decided the only thing he could do was to leave the Zoras alone and head to the temple. He swam over to the Lake Hylia shortcut, figuring it would take him to the bay. He was wrong. The shortcut was gone, blocked up just like the shortcuts in the forest. Skull Kid groaned, and spoke to Tael. "Does this mean we'll have to walk all the way to the coast?" he asked.
"I'm afraid so." Said Tael.
Skull Kid sighed and headed for the exit to the Domain. "Then let's get started."
"Shouldn't we get supplies first?' asked Tael. Skull Kid thought that over then went to the Zora shop to purchase some extra Stalchild repellent and fish. Once he was done, he exited to Zora's River. He had an idea for some fun. He dove into the water and swam with the current, instinctively picking up the twists and turns, killing the remaining Octorocks and Tektites with a small jolt of electricity. He finally made it back out onto Hymina Field. He pulled himself onto the riverbank and took off the mask. He had a thought.
"Hey, maybe we could follow the river all the way to the bay as a Zora!" said Skull Kid.
"I'm afraid we can't do that." Said Tael.
"Why not?'
"The current is too slow to cut down on travel time much, plus it would actually take longer if we used the river. It doesn't go straight to the river, it goes north across Hyrule Field, splits into the moat for Castle Town and its sewers (not to mention the moat of the castle, though Ganondorf probably disconnected his castle's moat) by going through several grates, then comes out the other side and heads straight for Gerudo Valley, where it spills down a five-hundred foot drop before going down a long, slow stream to the Bay. Too dangerous, and too impossible, even with Zora swimming. We'll have to walk."
"Yeah, you're right." Said Skull kid, a bit disappointed. He knew the bay was to the south, so he headed that way. Time passed much as it had the last two trips across the field. They had plenty of food and supplies, but lost time because they couldn't travel at night. After two days of walking, Skull Kid spotted something a half-mile to the west. Curious, he walked over to it. He discovered it was an archway, burnt and falling to pieces. It was part of a long picket fence that stretched as far as Skull Kid could see to the left and the right. The fence was broken and burnt in several places. He could just make out some words painted onto the arch. They said, "Romani Ranch, home of the Chateau Romani". He looked through the arch and saw several buildings, about a half a mile away. He walked through the arch and noticed that this place was lacking in grass, just like the rest of the field. There were a few trees, dead and brown. As he walked across to the buildings, he could see the picket fence that encompassed the entire area. Skull Kid estimated the ranch encompassed about five square miles of land, excellent for grazing. Or it used to be excellent. He reached the buildings, which were near the center of the ranch. Along the way, he saw a few cows, scrounging at the little grass there was. They looked a mite thin. In the not-too-distant distance, he saw what looked like a racetrack for dogs and a huge cucco pen. Both were empty, the fences burned and broken. Skull Kid approached the buildings and was distressed. Just like the rest of the ranch, they were in poor condition. The paint was all gone, the walls burnt black. He could see a big farmhouse, a stable, an empty and broken horse corral, and two barns, each different. He despaired that all on this ranch were dead, then considered the possibility that everyone was still alive, but inside. He walked over to the door and reached for the doorknob, not noticing the shadow looming over him. Tael saw it and turned around. He yelped and started jingling in distress, alerting Skull Kid. He turned around. Before he could see what was behind him, it hit him on the head with a club, knocking him out.
Skull Kid groaned and woke up. He was in a cellar, probably in the barn. He could tell because he heard cows mooing. He stood up, getting off the pile of straw he had been lying on. Tael fluttered over his head. "Skull kid! You're alright!"
"Of course I'm alright Tael. Did you really think a mere blow to the head could take me down? Now, what's going on?"
"There are some people over there, talking. Shall we listen?"
Skull Kid nodded and crept behind some crates in front of the straw, peeking over to see what was around him. He saw the stairs leading to the main barn and shelves of canned food. Not too far away, he could see a group of four bickering people, two men and two women. The strange thing was that the men looked identical, as did the women. Both men were tall and skinny, with pale yellow skin and really ugly faces, hidden behind two cheesy moustaches. On closer observation, one of the men was a bit younger than the other. As for the women, they were exactly identical, in age and clothing. Both had purple ankle-length skirts with brown mops. Both had white, short-sleeved shirts. Both had yellow cloths tied around their neck with a brooch shaped like an ugly turtle. Both had astounding blue eyes and waist-length red hair. To an average person, they would have appeared beautiful. Skull Kid wasn't the average person, though. As an imp, he had no interest in the beauty of females of different species. As far as he knew, there were no female imps, so he had no vision of beauty to compare to these women. In any case they were arguing. The older of the two men said, "I say we just kill him and get it over with. Little bugger's butt- ugly and probably has rabies."
One of the two women angrily retorted. "Gorman, he has a beak. If he has a beak, how can he infect you with rabies? He has no teeth to puncture the skin. The beak is too small and blunt for that reason. Besides, I seriously doubt he would just go up to the front door of the farmhouse and try to open it if he had rabies."
The younger man snorted. "Miss Malon, you have no experience in the ways of these kinds of animals. He clearly has rabies. I'm sure of it."
The other women spoke. "Gorman, have you actually ever seen an animal with rabies?"
"Why yes I have, Miss Romani. One of our finest horses, ain't that right Gorman?"
"Mm-hmm. One of our best horses, losing his mind. He foamed at the mouth and kept trying to bite us."
"Are you sure that wasn't because you kept feeding it your 'special Gorman milk'?" asked Malon. Both the girls tittered at the expressions on the two brother's faces.
The older Gorman finally spoke. "Looky here, I'm going to take this here pitchfork and run that dang animal through while he's out cold!"
Skull kid decided now would be a good time to make his entrance. He stepped out from behind the crates, startling the people. "I'm afraid that will be quite impossible, my good man."
The four stared at him in surprise. "H-h-he's up!" stammered oldest Gorman.
"H-h-he talks!" stammered youngest Gorman.
"H-h-he's so cute!" mock stammered both of the girls, making fun of the Gormans.
Oldest Gorman didn't like that. "Now see here, little missy…"
"Oh, shut up Gormans." Said Malon. "I'm sure Dad or Ingo could use some help outside."
The Gormans headed up the stairs, grumbling. "That no good Talon, laziest man alive." Muttered Talon.
Romani snorted once both jerks were gone. "As if. Your dad is the hardest working man on the ranch." She said to Malon. She turned to Skull Kid. "Now what're your names, you two cute little things?"
"Well, my name is…wait, you're calling me cute?" asked Skull Kid incredulously. The girls nodded. "I can't remember the last time I've been called cute…in fact, I don't remember ever being called cute!" He blushed. "Well, uh, my name's Skull Kid, and this is my partner Tael."
"Hiya." Said Tael.
"I'm Malon, and this is Romani." Said Malon. "Welcome to Romani-Lon Ranch."
"The sign said Romani Ranch." Said Tael.
Romani grimaced. "That sign's a relic from…before the merge." She didn't look too happy. Then she brightened up. "Would you like to come up so we can show you the ranch?"
Skull Kid shrugged. "Sure."
The girls took him up into the barn. It was empty, since the cows were out to pasture. "This is where the cows are kept at night." Said Malon.
"And the second barn is where my big sister Cremia milks them." Said Romani. They took him outside. They walked over to the doggie track, which was now full of dogs. Skull Kid was quite uneasy. Malon noticed. "What's wrong?"
"Well, um, dog's don't like me for some reason."
Romani chuckled. "You don't need to be worried of anything. These dogs are harmless. Go on, pet one!" she shoved Skull Kid into the pen.
Every dog in the pen suddenly turned their heads towards the imp. "Ulp. Uh, hello?" said Skull Kid meekly. The dogs growled and viciously lunged at Skull Kid, who ran outside the pen, with all thirty-six mutts chasing after him, barking and howling. He ran down the racetrack, trying to get away from the hounds. As the girls and Tael stared in amazement, Skull Kid ran past them at incredible speed, the dogs just yards behind him.
Mamamu Yan, who had been watching nearby, noticed and timed him. "Oh my! You've incited my doggies to break all of their previous records! I don't know why, but my pooches really seem to hate you so much that they want to tear you to pieces, causing them to move extra fast!"
Skull Kid's response to this was screaming. "Uh, shouldn't we help him?" asked Tael.
Romani glanced at him. "Do you want to try to get in front of all those dogs?" she asked.
Tael flew away to try to find help. He found what he was looking for at the Cucco pen. He jingled loudly and wiggled in the air, trying to get the Cucco's attention. As he flew back towards the doggie track, the Cuccos followed. Grog immediately noticed. "Hey! Come back here with my Cuccos!"
Skull Kid panted. He was running out of breath and energy. He wished he had eaten an early lunch. The dogs were almost on him. He could already feel the dogs sharp fangs ripping into his flesh, tearing him from limb to limb. What a way to go! He thought. I've survived being nearly frozen to death, a giant skeleton, a giant dinosaur, a giant octopus, and two mighty demons, only to be mauled to death by dogs. He rounded the bend once more, knowing he would only be able to make one more lap at best before falling. Then he saw something coming towards him. It looked like Tael, followed by a flock of…Cuccos? What was Tael doing with chickens? Tael guided the chickens right behind Skull Kid, into the path of the angry dogs. Now, you all know what happens when you attack a Cucco don't you? If you don't I'll tell you. If you attack a single Cucco, it'll call all of its friends, who will then proceed to peck you to death. Literally. And the dogs were now occupied as the Cuccos proceeded to kill them. The dogs retreated with their tails between their legs, barking in fear, the Cuccos right after them. Relieved, Skull Kid fainted. Mamamu Yan gasped and went after her dogs, yelling at the Cuccos to stop attacking her dogs. A few seconds after she ran after the animals, Grog came on the scene and chased after her, yelling at the dogs to stop baiting the Cuccos. As they ran towards the cows, the stupid bovines panicked and ran. The dogs were immediately distracted from the ravenous chickens on their tails and ran after the cows. They all ran past the corral, causing all the horses to panic and jump over the fence keeping them in. Ingo ran after them, screaming and waving his pitchfork. The horses were running wild at the head of this bizarre parade, with the cows second, the dogs third, the Cuccos fourth, Mamamu Yan fifth, Grog sixth, and Ingo at the end. Romani and Malon stared as the parade of peoples and animals ran across the fields, eventually reaching the path of Ingo and the Gorman Brothers, who had been carrying tanks of milk into storage. When they saw what was coming towards them, they screamed, dropped the milk, and ran, now at the head of this strange parade. Malon and Tael glared at Romani. "What? What did I do? He's the one who unleashed the Cuccos!" she protested, pointing at Tael.
"Yes, but you're the one who forced my best friend to almost get mauled by the dogs." Said Tael fiercely.
"Uh, well, er…" Romani couldn't think of a response to that.
Skull Kid woke up later to find himself in a comfy bed. Tael was nowhere in sight. He looked around and saw he was in a small guest bedroom, somewhere in the farmhouse. He got out of bed and walked through the door. He looked out a window and saw it was night. He was in a small corridor with a few bedrooms. They had signs over each. The one he had steeped out of said, "Guest Bedroom." The others were, "Mamamu Yan's room", "Grog's room", "Talon's room", "Ingo/Gorman/Gorman's room", and "Bathroom." There were two sets of stairs, one of which led to the attic, the other which led to the first floor. The attic door had "Romani/Malon/Cremia's room" on it. Skull Kid walked down the stairs and found himself in the dining room/kitchen. There was only one person sitting at the table, the man in charge of the farm, Talon. He looked a little tired. Skull Kid walked over to him. Talon looked up from his empty dish. "Hmm? Oh, you're that imp that the dogs chased and Gorman knocked out with a shovel, aren't you?"
Skull Kid frowned. "I would not like to be reminded of those events right now."
Talon blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, sorry. Your name's Skull Kid, right?" He nodded. "Good. Your dinner's on the counter. If you'd like to keep me company, I'd sure appreciate it."
Skull Kid got his dinner and sat at the table. He ate a few bites, then decided to talk to Talon. "I've heard you're the laziest man in the country."
Talon scowled. "I WAS the laziest person in Hymina. I slept seventy-two hours straight quite often. But then…" he stopped.
"Then what?"
Talon looked at Skull Kid, shuddering at the memory. "Then…HE came. Majora."
Skull Kid almost spat up his dinner. "What did he do?" he finally asked.
Talon closed his eyes, then opened them. "It was the day of his dawn, his arrival. He came to the ranch at noon and told us he hated horses and chickens and cows. He didn't have a problem with dogs, so he made a slight concession in our favor. He began to burn down the ranch, but because he liked our dogs, he spared our lives. He left the ranch in flames, giving us the privilege of putting out his own handiwork. However, he took one thing with him when he left. One very, very important thing. Two things, actually."
"What were they?"
"The first thing he took was our hopes, dreams, and freedom. The second thing he took was my daughter's prized horse, Epona." He sighed. "After that, I realized we had to rebuild the ranch. And I knew I had to help. I've been working along side everyone else to rebuild this place, and discovered that I didn't really need as much sleep as I thought I did." He said nothing.
Skull Kid had another question. "Tell me about Epona."
Talon started another tale. "It all began with my mother, Epona. The ranch had been in our family for generations, ever since it was first built. She had a mighty mare, a horse named Laura. When I was twenty, I met and married Malon sr. We jokingly renamed the ranch Lon-Lon because the last syllable of our first names matched. My grandmother died a few years after, but she had two requests for us. First, she wanted my daughter to be named Malon as well. Second, she wanted Laura's new colt to be called Epona. After she died, Malon and Epona were born. The two were best friends. Malon sr. even wrote a song that bound Malon and Epona together, so Malon could call her horse from any distance by singing that song. But fifteen years ago, something horrible happened. The Gerudo War began, and the Field was the perfect place for any battles to be fought. Our Ranch was in the middle of it all. One day, a Gerudo scouting party tried to turn our Ranch into a base. We fought back, driving them off, but…my wife died. After that day, I became lethargic, feeling I had nothing to live for. Until now, of course. I realize that I should have been focusing more on Malon than on my naps. Now her soulmate is gone, and I don't know how to help her."
"She seemed fine when I met her." Said Skull Kid.
"That's Romani's influence. That girl has never had a horse, so does not truly understand Malon's loss. Since their personalities are exactly identical, Malon has something to feed off of, to act on, anything to keep Epona out of her head. But I have heard her tears at night when I have to make my regular trip to the john at midnight, and…" he could say no more.
Skull Kid decided to change the subject. "DO you know where my fairy is?"
"Hmm? Oh, he's helping Romani and Grog round up the Cuccos. We wouldn't want them to escape or anything. You know, it's getting late. Why don't you go to bed?" Skull Kid wished there were something more he could do for this poor man and his family, but he could not. Yet.
He walked up the stairs, and went into the bathroom to take care of certain hygiene-related issues. As he walked into the guestroom, he looked out the window and saw the moon, grinning evilly from overhead. Skull Kid glared at the moon. "Someday, Majora," he whispered. "Someday." He got into the bed and went to sleep.
The next morning went routinely. After breakfast and bathing, he picked up Tael and left the ranch with a few complimentary bottles of Lon-Lon milk and Chateau Romani. He felt sorry for the farmers. He swore that the demon would pay for this as well. As they headed south, Skull Kid asked Tael how it had been to find Cuccos at night. "Awful." Grumbled Tael. "Even with my light, it was too dark to see anything. Romani kept stumbling over Cuccos and getting nearly pecked to death. But we got them all by morning. Do you mind if I go to sleep? I'm really tired."
Skull Kid took off his hat, allowing Tael to get in, whom immediately fell asleep. Their trek continued. They kept heading south, taking their time. It took two days, but they finally reached their destination. The trail to the beach used to be fenced off, but no longer. It looked as if they had been ripped off of their posts. They probably had been. A sign above the ripped-off fences said "Hymina Bay." Skull Kid and Tael got to the end of the trail and looked at the beautiful bay, extending all the way to the ocean. The beach was made of golden sand and old beach towels and umbrellas littered the area. The water looked murky. Far to Skull Kid's right was a strange building that looked like some sort of laboratory. It had a tower sticking from the top with a ladder leading up the side and what looked like a giant pirate's hook at the top. To Skull Kid's left were two houses, one the old Skulltulla House (now inhabited by a paranoid young man who was certain the moon would fall the next day) and the other was the Fisherman's Hut, which had the Fishing Pool right behind it. Built into the cliffs surrounding the bay were the walls of the Pirate Fortress. Out in the bay itself were three things: the abandoned Zora Hall, the far-off Pinnacle Rock, and the storm-enshrouded Hymina Bay Temple. There only seemed to be one way to get to the temple, and that would be to swim for it. Skull Kid donned his Zora Mask and dived into the water, speeding through the murky water towards the temple. Tael's light helped to pierce the murk of the water. He wasn't sure how he would get through the storm, but he figured it would be no big deal. He didn't know how wrong he was. He suddenly found himself heading back towards the beach. He had gotten lost somehow, and was turned around. He climbed onto the beach, took off the Zora Mask and pondered what to do next. He then remembered that there was a turtle sleeping at the back of Zora Hall who would be able to take him to the temple. He was about to don his mask once again, when a net was thrown over his head. He didn't have time to register this when suddenly the net thrower started dragging him away, intentionally dragging him over sharp rocks and shells. He looked up and saw who his captor was. It was a Gerudo Pirate. She was dragging him towards a rowboat with a bunch of other Pirates. Tael, who had not been caught by the net, was unsure what to do. "Tael!" yelled Skull kid. "Go get help!"
"From whom?"
"Anyone! It doesn't matter! Just get help before it's too late!" That was all he could get out before the pirate threw him into the boat and set off for the fortress.
Cliffhanger ending, huh? We know the Gerudo brutally tortured Skull Kid before, what new tricks have they worked up? Find out next time!
Disclaimer: yawn.
Chapter 8
Skull Kid entered the caverns that made up Zora's Domain. He immediately started shivering. What the? Didn't I get enough of this freezing stuff back at Death's Head? He looked around, immediately seeing what was wrong. It was snowing. Indoors. The water in the cave was completely frozen. Remembering how Link had said that in the dark future, the Zoras had been trapped beneath the ice, he expected them to be like that now. It wasn't. In fact, it was much worse. The Zoras were sitting on the ice, looking even colder than Skull Kid. Their fins were completely blue. The woman and child Zoras were having a much rougher time than the males. Even so, they all looked miserable. Since they were fish people, winter hit them harder than it did most other species. Water is usually pretty cold, so they don't mind a little coolness, but ice was bad for them. Skull Kid wasn't happy with this. The Kokiri, Deku, and Gorons had been forced to work in harsh conditions. But the demon in charge here was being exceptionally cruel, torturing the Zoras with ice instead of putting them to work. Skull Kid looked around the main cavern, trying to see the monsters (literally) that were keeping the Zoras on the ice. He immediately spotted several Octorocks scattered around the room in all the higher tunnels. There were a few Bigocto on the main pool as well, near the edges. They seemed to have no trouble with the cold. In fact, they seemed to enjoy it. This was enough proof for Skull Kid that none of the monsters here were slaves. All were bad. He was a bit surprised that the Octorocks were comfortable on land and in the snow and ice. He would have thought that the Octorock would be freezing like the Zoras. He watched as a male Zora slowly stood up. Skull Kid watched. The Zora paused, then made a run for the unguarded tunnel that led to the Zora Shop, went through several passage ways, and finally ended up on the ledge Skull Kid was on. The Octorocks immediately noticed him from their various vantage points around the Domain. They squealed, signaling the Bigoctos. The Octorocks spat rocks at the Zora, who used the slipperiness of the ice to his advantage, sliding out of the way of the rocks. Unfortunately, the Bigoctos used the ice to their advantage as well. They quickly spun across the cave, aiming for the Zora. As they drew in close, he activated his bioelectric force field, breaking the rocks and stunning the Bigocto. Unfortunately, they quickly recovered. However, he was almost to the tunnel. Despite their flexibility in squeezing, the Bigoctos would never fit in there. But just as the Zora almost made it, the Bigoctos did something unbelievable. They spat rocks. That wasn't possible, though. Everyone knew that Octorocks spat rocks, while Bigocto span into enemies. They had been changed somehow. The poor Zora didn't make it. He hadn't known that these Bigocto could spit rocks, and he got hit in the back by four veritable boulders. He fell. His blood started to spread across the ice, quickly freezing. The Bigocto slid over to the Zora and crowded around his body. Loud slurping and tearing noises could be heard. When they slid away ten minutes later, back to their posts, there was nothing where the Zora had been but a red stain. Skull Kid was horrified and disgusted. He saw an Octorock at the edge of the ledge he was on, unaware of his presence. Good. His blood boiling, Skull Kid slipped on the Stone Mask and walked up behind the octopus. He shoved it off the ledge. It hit the ground, its impact easily splitting apart its squishy body. Octorock innards spilled all over the floor. The Octorocks looked around the room, trying to find out who had killed their brother. They wouldn't find him. "Tael, where is the entrance to Zora's Fountain?" he whispered.
Tael didn't answer. He was still in shock over the death of the Zora, and what Skull Kid had just done. Finally, he answered. "It's the tunnel straight ahead, first left, first right, second left." Skull Kid headed for the tunnel. After a moment, Tael followed. They walked up the tunnel to King Zora's throne room. When he got there, he found something appalling sitting on the frozen stream in front of King Zora's throne. Frozen in blocks of blue ice were a large group of Zoras. After a moment, Skull Kid recognized them. He saw Mikau, Evans, Japas, Tijo, and Toto of the Indigo- go's. He also saw a Zora who looked like a younger version of Mikau, sans the tattoos, and an incredibly fat Zora that could only be King Zora. Before the true horror of this moment registered on Skull Kid, he noticed that the frozen king Zora was standing up and thought, How can his little legs support that much weight? Then the horror registered. He pulled out his Fire Hammer and slammed it on the ground, trying to melt the ice. The fire didn't even cause steam. Tael spoke. "Skull Kid, that's magical ice. You can't melt it with fire."
"Then how do I melt it?" asked Skull Kid, a bit hotly.
"We have to find the monster that has cursed the water and kill it."
"You mean the demon in the temple?"
"No, I think the monster causing the ice is in the Fountain. The demon's probably done something else. Let's go to the fountain and free these people."
"Just a second." Said Skull Kid. He walked down the tunnel that the stream from the throne normally flowed down and found himself at the top of a waterfall overlooking the main cavern, still frozen. An Octorock sat at the edge of the waterfall. Skull Kid shoved it off the cliff and walked back to the throne room, hearing a splat a few seconds later. He took off the Stone Mask and climbed onto King Zora's throne, walking along the frozen stream leading into the Domain from the fountain. He reached the end of the tunnel and was out in the open air. He was now in Zora's Fountain, a large pool with a deep center. Rocks jutted out of the water on the far right side of the pool, along with a dead tree. At the edge of the pool, to Skull Kid's left, were a wall of stakes, keeping anybody from falling off the waterfall that fed into the river and normally hid the Domain's entrance. Just a few yards away from the stakes sat a large platform with four Zora pillars, where Jabu-Jabu used to be fed. Jabu-Jabu wasn't around though. The water was dark, cold, and murky. Icebergs littered the fountain. A large ramp of snow led up from Jabu-Jabu's feeding platform. Careful to stay in the shallow water, Skull kid waded to the platform and walked up the ramp. He wished he had some winter clothes, but tried to ignore the cold. He reached the top of the ramp. He surveyed the fountain. The main stretch of the pool was in front of him. Icebergs littered the place. He could see a blocked cave at the far-left side of the fountain. He looked off the edge of the ramp, into the depths of the fountain. It was pretty deep. A few Octorocks were piddling around. Skull Kid wondered where the chief monster was. He peered into the murky depths of the fountain. He suddenly noticed bubbles and a huge form coming towards the surface at the very far end of the fountain. The figure erupted to the surface, splashing water everywhere. Skull Kid gaped. It was like an Octorock, but fifty feet tall, almost a third of the length of Jabu-Jabu. It had red, pulsating skin. Its eyes were covered by a shell just like all of its kind, except its eyes were blue instead of green and were angry instead of the regular sad look and the shell over its eyes was spiked. Its mouth/snout was rimmed with teeth. It had four tentacles instead of eight. Each of its suckers was rimmed with teeth as well, and the ends of the tentacles were spiked. It bellowed and slowly paddled towards our heroes. "Tael, what…what is that? A giant Octorock?"
"Pretty close. It's a Giantocto, the most dangerous of all octopi. It can spit boulders and squirt ink, and also form whirlpools to suck you in so it can eat you. It has two mouths: one to spew stuff out, the other to suck things in."
"Wait…so you mean that the mouth that spits rocks also…"
"Yes. Yes I am."
Skull Kid grimaced. "I hope it doesn't try that as an attack. So, how do I kill it?"
"It's only weak spots are the mouth it sucks things up with and the unarmored point on its back. If you could get a bomb to its mouth, you'll damage or stun it long enough to attack its behind. You could also try using a boomerang attack of some sort."
"But bombs don't work in water. The fuses don't light."
"But Skull Kid, don't we have a special kind of bomb that would work in this case? One without a fuse?"
Skull Kid immediately got the hint. "Ohhh…but if it's inside the Giantocto, won't that count as a separate room?"
"No. The innards of a living thing don't count as a room. You'll be able to safely detonate it. Anyway, it'll probably detonate automatically when it comes into contact with the beast's internal craw. There may be other ways to stun or kill it, but I don't know of them. However, I do know that the only way you'll be able to use this strategy is if you can attack it from underwater."
Skull Kid grinned. "Don't worry Tael. I got you covered." Reaching into his pack, he pulled out the Zora Mask. He slapped it on. There was a pause, followed by his screams. His body was stretching, growing into something completely different. His bones and organs shifted to match. He grew taller and taller. His bones jutted from his arms, turning into fins. As usual, his beak changed into something else, a mouth and nose. His eyes turned dark. He closed his eyes, waiting for it to end. It did. He opened his eyes and looked at himself. He was now five feet tall. His skin was a light blue, and covered with scales. His boots had grown to accommodate his feet. His gloves had gotten longer and more slender. He still had his belt and the bottom part of his tunic. He had a yellow, studded collar on his neck. His hat had sunk into his head, forming the "tail" that grew from the backs of male Zora's heads. His was reddish-brown, an unusual color for the Zora. It tapered to a point before sprouting a small tail fin. Yellow ring patterns encircled the base of the "tail." He had two extra fins like bangs growing from where his ear holes were, covering them. His eyes were still beady, but now were bluish-black. He had two large red-brown fins growing from his lower arms. He was a Zora. The Giantocto had reached him. It spat a huge boulder. Skull Kid shielded himself by enlarging one of his arm fins, but was still knocked all the way down the ramp by the impact. Shaking himself up, he quickly backflipped away as the Giantocto smashed the ramp to pieces with its tentacles. Skull Kid ran around the side of the platform into deeper water. He dodged the rocks spewed by the Octorocks and dove into the water. The Giantocto immediately grabbed him. As the spiky tendrils dug into his skin, he activated his electric force field. Screeching, the Giantocto let go and swam right over him. It opened the large mouth on its bottom, where all the tentacles met, and started sucking. As Skull Kid began to get pulled in, he pulled an Atlantean bomb from his pack and flung it into the current. It was sucked into the monster's craw. There was a pause, then the Giantocto convulsed and sunk to the bottom of the fountain. Using the awesome swimming speed of the Zora, Skull Kid dashed over to the octopuses behind. He immediately saw the weak spot. It was a large patch of purple skin, not as tough and red as the rest of the monster. Skull Kid performed a series of karate chops and kicks to the purple skin, causing the Giantocto to convulse more each time it happened. After five attacks, the Giantocto recovered, lashing out at Skull Kid with its tentacles. Skull kid knocked them away with his electric attack and waited for the next attack. Instead of trying to suck him up, the monster spat out a boulder. Since they were underwater, the boulder sunk to the floor but started rolling right for Skull Kid, who easily got out of the way. As the Giantocto kept spiting rocks, Tael targeted the beast. Skull Kid crossed his arms while circling Giantocto, avoiding the boulders. Finally, he uncrossed his arms, launching his boomerang fins at the octopus. The boomerangs stunned Bigocto long enough for Skull Kid to dart to its back and perform some more chops and kicks. When Giantocto recovered again, it was really angry. It spurted out a cloud of ink, obscuring the fountain floor. Skull Kid could not see what was in front of him. Giantocto could attack from any angle. He kept turning around, keeping his shield fin out. Tael's light was no help, since the ink obscured everything. Then, the ink cleared away ad Skull Kid was grabbed from behind by a tentacle. Before he could use his electric attack, the tentacle started to lift him towards Giantocto's mouth, which was sucking hard. Skull kid knew he couldn't just use his attack, because he would be immediately sucked in. He groped around for his pack, causing the spikes to dig in more tightly. Finally, he found a bomb and threw it. He was inches away from the craw. The bomb immediately went in and exploded, stunning Giantocto. As it sank to the floor, Skull Kid swam behind it and performed multiple attacks before it even hit bottom, scoring extra damage. But once again the Giantocto recovered. It didn't look happy at all. The Giantocto lunged at Skull Kid, knocking him across the fountain. He regained control before he hit the hard, rocky sides and swam back towards the monster. He prepared his electric attack, anticipating the charge. When the monster did charge, Skull Kid used his electric attack, stunning it as the two collided. Still electrified, Skull Kid swam to the monster's weak point and grabbed onto it, pumping gigawatt after gigawatt into the monster's body. The monster recovered, but was unable to attack as Skull Kid continued his assault. The Giantocto shrieked in pain, breaking away from Skull Kid's grasp and floated towards the surface. Once there, it fell on its back, puffed out a ring of smoke, and died. Skull Kid swam to the surface and pulled himself onto an iceberg. The Octorocks were gone. Hiding from the Zora who had slain their master. Skull Kid suddenly fell into the water as the iceberg melted. All of the other icebergs melted as well. The water started returning to its normal temperature. Back in Zora's Domain, the ice under the feet of the Zoras and Bigoctos gave way and melted. Eagerly, the Zoras sunk into the water. On the surface, the Bigoctos looked around them uneasily, not sure where to attack. Suddenly, they were grabbed from beneath and pulled underwater. Flashes of light could be seen. A red mist filled the waters. The Bigoctos floated to the surface, dead. The Octorocks quivered in fear, deciding to retreat. Skull kid swam over to Jabu-Jabu's platform and stood up, grinning. He high-fived Tael. "Yeah! We saved the Zoras!"
"Not quite, Skull Kid. Look at the water!"
Skull Kid did, and sighed. The water was now pretty murky, and the waterfall was still pretty weak. The main curse, the one from the demon infesting the temple, was still on. It looked like he was going to have to get to the coast. He walked back in to Zora's Domain, pleased to see it was no longer snowing and the ice had melted everywhere, except for one place. The Indigo-go's the guy who looked like Mikau, and King Zora were still frozen. They would stay that way until the demon at the temple was slain. He decided to act incognito, not wanting to cause any ruckus. He dove off the waterfall, splashing into the water, surprising all the Zoras. Well, so much for acting incognito. None of the Zoras paid him any heed. They were chatting and climbing out of the water to check on their own rooms and to kill any remaining Octorocks. May, however, were in tears. It seemed that Zora who had died earlier wasn't the first to suffer that fate. Skull kid decided the only thing he could do was to leave the Zoras alone and head to the temple. He swam over to the Lake Hylia shortcut, figuring it would take him to the bay. He was wrong. The shortcut was gone, blocked up just like the shortcuts in the forest. Skull Kid groaned, and spoke to Tael. "Does this mean we'll have to walk all the way to the coast?" he asked.
"I'm afraid so." Said Tael.
Skull Kid sighed and headed for the exit to the Domain. "Then let's get started."
"Shouldn't we get supplies first?' asked Tael. Skull Kid thought that over then went to the Zora shop to purchase some extra Stalchild repellent and fish. Once he was done, he exited to Zora's River. He had an idea for some fun. He dove into the water and swam with the current, instinctively picking up the twists and turns, killing the remaining Octorocks and Tektites with a small jolt of electricity. He finally made it back out onto Hymina Field. He pulled himself onto the riverbank and took off the mask. He had a thought.
"Hey, maybe we could follow the river all the way to the bay as a Zora!" said Skull Kid.
"I'm afraid we can't do that." Said Tael.
"Why not?'
"The current is too slow to cut down on travel time much, plus it would actually take longer if we used the river. It doesn't go straight to the river, it goes north across Hyrule Field, splits into the moat for Castle Town and its sewers (not to mention the moat of the castle, though Ganondorf probably disconnected his castle's moat) by going through several grates, then comes out the other side and heads straight for Gerudo Valley, where it spills down a five-hundred foot drop before going down a long, slow stream to the Bay. Too dangerous, and too impossible, even with Zora swimming. We'll have to walk."
"Yeah, you're right." Said Skull kid, a bit disappointed. He knew the bay was to the south, so he headed that way. Time passed much as it had the last two trips across the field. They had plenty of food and supplies, but lost time because they couldn't travel at night. After two days of walking, Skull Kid spotted something a half-mile to the west. Curious, he walked over to it. He discovered it was an archway, burnt and falling to pieces. It was part of a long picket fence that stretched as far as Skull Kid could see to the left and the right. The fence was broken and burnt in several places. He could just make out some words painted onto the arch. They said, "Romani Ranch, home of the Chateau Romani". He looked through the arch and saw several buildings, about a half a mile away. He walked through the arch and noticed that this place was lacking in grass, just like the rest of the field. There were a few trees, dead and brown. As he walked across to the buildings, he could see the picket fence that encompassed the entire area. Skull Kid estimated the ranch encompassed about five square miles of land, excellent for grazing. Or it used to be excellent. He reached the buildings, which were near the center of the ranch. Along the way, he saw a few cows, scrounging at the little grass there was. They looked a mite thin. In the not-too-distant distance, he saw what looked like a racetrack for dogs and a huge cucco pen. Both were empty, the fences burned and broken. Skull Kid approached the buildings and was distressed. Just like the rest of the ranch, they were in poor condition. The paint was all gone, the walls burnt black. He could see a big farmhouse, a stable, an empty and broken horse corral, and two barns, each different. He despaired that all on this ranch were dead, then considered the possibility that everyone was still alive, but inside. He walked over to the door and reached for the doorknob, not noticing the shadow looming over him. Tael saw it and turned around. He yelped and started jingling in distress, alerting Skull Kid. He turned around. Before he could see what was behind him, it hit him on the head with a club, knocking him out.
Skull Kid groaned and woke up. He was in a cellar, probably in the barn. He could tell because he heard cows mooing. He stood up, getting off the pile of straw he had been lying on. Tael fluttered over his head. "Skull kid! You're alright!"
"Of course I'm alright Tael. Did you really think a mere blow to the head could take me down? Now, what's going on?"
"There are some people over there, talking. Shall we listen?"
Skull Kid nodded and crept behind some crates in front of the straw, peeking over to see what was around him. He saw the stairs leading to the main barn and shelves of canned food. Not too far away, he could see a group of four bickering people, two men and two women. The strange thing was that the men looked identical, as did the women. Both men were tall and skinny, with pale yellow skin and really ugly faces, hidden behind two cheesy moustaches. On closer observation, one of the men was a bit younger than the other. As for the women, they were exactly identical, in age and clothing. Both had purple ankle-length skirts with brown mops. Both had white, short-sleeved shirts. Both had yellow cloths tied around their neck with a brooch shaped like an ugly turtle. Both had astounding blue eyes and waist-length red hair. To an average person, they would have appeared beautiful. Skull Kid wasn't the average person, though. As an imp, he had no interest in the beauty of females of different species. As far as he knew, there were no female imps, so he had no vision of beauty to compare to these women. In any case they were arguing. The older of the two men said, "I say we just kill him and get it over with. Little bugger's butt- ugly and probably has rabies."
One of the two women angrily retorted. "Gorman, he has a beak. If he has a beak, how can he infect you with rabies? He has no teeth to puncture the skin. The beak is too small and blunt for that reason. Besides, I seriously doubt he would just go up to the front door of the farmhouse and try to open it if he had rabies."
The younger man snorted. "Miss Malon, you have no experience in the ways of these kinds of animals. He clearly has rabies. I'm sure of it."
The other women spoke. "Gorman, have you actually ever seen an animal with rabies?"
"Why yes I have, Miss Romani. One of our finest horses, ain't that right Gorman?"
"Mm-hmm. One of our best horses, losing his mind. He foamed at the mouth and kept trying to bite us."
"Are you sure that wasn't because you kept feeding it your 'special Gorman milk'?" asked Malon. Both the girls tittered at the expressions on the two brother's faces.
The older Gorman finally spoke. "Looky here, I'm going to take this here pitchfork and run that dang animal through while he's out cold!"
Skull kid decided now would be a good time to make his entrance. He stepped out from behind the crates, startling the people. "I'm afraid that will be quite impossible, my good man."
The four stared at him in surprise. "H-h-he's up!" stammered oldest Gorman.
"H-h-he talks!" stammered youngest Gorman.
"H-h-he's so cute!" mock stammered both of the girls, making fun of the Gormans.
Oldest Gorman didn't like that. "Now see here, little missy…"
"Oh, shut up Gormans." Said Malon. "I'm sure Dad or Ingo could use some help outside."
The Gormans headed up the stairs, grumbling. "That no good Talon, laziest man alive." Muttered Talon.
Romani snorted once both jerks were gone. "As if. Your dad is the hardest working man on the ranch." She said to Malon. She turned to Skull Kid. "Now what're your names, you two cute little things?"
"Well, my name is…wait, you're calling me cute?" asked Skull Kid incredulously. The girls nodded. "I can't remember the last time I've been called cute…in fact, I don't remember ever being called cute!" He blushed. "Well, uh, my name's Skull Kid, and this is my partner Tael."
"Hiya." Said Tael.
"I'm Malon, and this is Romani." Said Malon. "Welcome to Romani-Lon Ranch."
"The sign said Romani Ranch." Said Tael.
Romani grimaced. "That sign's a relic from…before the merge." She didn't look too happy. Then she brightened up. "Would you like to come up so we can show you the ranch?"
Skull Kid shrugged. "Sure."
The girls took him up into the barn. It was empty, since the cows were out to pasture. "This is where the cows are kept at night." Said Malon.
"And the second barn is where my big sister Cremia milks them." Said Romani. They took him outside. They walked over to the doggie track, which was now full of dogs. Skull Kid was quite uneasy. Malon noticed. "What's wrong?"
"Well, um, dog's don't like me for some reason."
Romani chuckled. "You don't need to be worried of anything. These dogs are harmless. Go on, pet one!" she shoved Skull Kid into the pen.
Every dog in the pen suddenly turned their heads towards the imp. "Ulp. Uh, hello?" said Skull Kid meekly. The dogs growled and viciously lunged at Skull Kid, who ran outside the pen, with all thirty-six mutts chasing after him, barking and howling. He ran down the racetrack, trying to get away from the hounds. As the girls and Tael stared in amazement, Skull Kid ran past them at incredible speed, the dogs just yards behind him.
Mamamu Yan, who had been watching nearby, noticed and timed him. "Oh my! You've incited my doggies to break all of their previous records! I don't know why, but my pooches really seem to hate you so much that they want to tear you to pieces, causing them to move extra fast!"
Skull Kid's response to this was screaming. "Uh, shouldn't we help him?" asked Tael.
Romani glanced at him. "Do you want to try to get in front of all those dogs?" she asked.
Tael flew away to try to find help. He found what he was looking for at the Cucco pen. He jingled loudly and wiggled in the air, trying to get the Cucco's attention. As he flew back towards the doggie track, the Cuccos followed. Grog immediately noticed. "Hey! Come back here with my Cuccos!"
Skull Kid panted. He was running out of breath and energy. He wished he had eaten an early lunch. The dogs were almost on him. He could already feel the dogs sharp fangs ripping into his flesh, tearing him from limb to limb. What a way to go! He thought. I've survived being nearly frozen to death, a giant skeleton, a giant dinosaur, a giant octopus, and two mighty demons, only to be mauled to death by dogs. He rounded the bend once more, knowing he would only be able to make one more lap at best before falling. Then he saw something coming towards him. It looked like Tael, followed by a flock of…Cuccos? What was Tael doing with chickens? Tael guided the chickens right behind Skull Kid, into the path of the angry dogs. Now, you all know what happens when you attack a Cucco don't you? If you don't I'll tell you. If you attack a single Cucco, it'll call all of its friends, who will then proceed to peck you to death. Literally. And the dogs were now occupied as the Cuccos proceeded to kill them. The dogs retreated with their tails between their legs, barking in fear, the Cuccos right after them. Relieved, Skull Kid fainted. Mamamu Yan gasped and went after her dogs, yelling at the Cuccos to stop attacking her dogs. A few seconds after she ran after the animals, Grog came on the scene and chased after her, yelling at the dogs to stop baiting the Cuccos. As they ran towards the cows, the stupid bovines panicked and ran. The dogs were immediately distracted from the ravenous chickens on their tails and ran after the cows. They all ran past the corral, causing all the horses to panic and jump over the fence keeping them in. Ingo ran after them, screaming and waving his pitchfork. The horses were running wild at the head of this bizarre parade, with the cows second, the dogs third, the Cuccos fourth, Mamamu Yan fifth, Grog sixth, and Ingo at the end. Romani and Malon stared as the parade of peoples and animals ran across the fields, eventually reaching the path of Ingo and the Gorman Brothers, who had been carrying tanks of milk into storage. When they saw what was coming towards them, they screamed, dropped the milk, and ran, now at the head of this strange parade. Malon and Tael glared at Romani. "What? What did I do? He's the one who unleashed the Cuccos!" she protested, pointing at Tael.
"Yes, but you're the one who forced my best friend to almost get mauled by the dogs." Said Tael fiercely.
"Uh, well, er…" Romani couldn't think of a response to that.
Skull Kid woke up later to find himself in a comfy bed. Tael was nowhere in sight. He looked around and saw he was in a small guest bedroom, somewhere in the farmhouse. He got out of bed and walked through the door. He looked out a window and saw it was night. He was in a small corridor with a few bedrooms. They had signs over each. The one he had steeped out of said, "Guest Bedroom." The others were, "Mamamu Yan's room", "Grog's room", "Talon's room", "Ingo/Gorman/Gorman's room", and "Bathroom." There were two sets of stairs, one of which led to the attic, the other which led to the first floor. The attic door had "Romani/Malon/Cremia's room" on it. Skull Kid walked down the stairs and found himself in the dining room/kitchen. There was only one person sitting at the table, the man in charge of the farm, Talon. He looked a little tired. Skull Kid walked over to him. Talon looked up from his empty dish. "Hmm? Oh, you're that imp that the dogs chased and Gorman knocked out with a shovel, aren't you?"
Skull Kid frowned. "I would not like to be reminded of those events right now."
Talon blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, sorry. Your name's Skull Kid, right?" He nodded. "Good. Your dinner's on the counter. If you'd like to keep me company, I'd sure appreciate it."
Skull Kid got his dinner and sat at the table. He ate a few bites, then decided to talk to Talon. "I've heard you're the laziest man in the country."
Talon scowled. "I WAS the laziest person in Hymina. I slept seventy-two hours straight quite often. But then…" he stopped.
"Then what?"
Talon looked at Skull Kid, shuddering at the memory. "Then…HE came. Majora."
Skull Kid almost spat up his dinner. "What did he do?" he finally asked.
Talon closed his eyes, then opened them. "It was the day of his dawn, his arrival. He came to the ranch at noon and told us he hated horses and chickens and cows. He didn't have a problem with dogs, so he made a slight concession in our favor. He began to burn down the ranch, but because he liked our dogs, he spared our lives. He left the ranch in flames, giving us the privilege of putting out his own handiwork. However, he took one thing with him when he left. One very, very important thing. Two things, actually."
"What were they?"
"The first thing he took was our hopes, dreams, and freedom. The second thing he took was my daughter's prized horse, Epona." He sighed. "After that, I realized we had to rebuild the ranch. And I knew I had to help. I've been working along side everyone else to rebuild this place, and discovered that I didn't really need as much sleep as I thought I did." He said nothing.
Skull Kid had another question. "Tell me about Epona."
Talon started another tale. "It all began with my mother, Epona. The ranch had been in our family for generations, ever since it was first built. She had a mighty mare, a horse named Laura. When I was twenty, I met and married Malon sr. We jokingly renamed the ranch Lon-Lon because the last syllable of our first names matched. My grandmother died a few years after, but she had two requests for us. First, she wanted my daughter to be named Malon as well. Second, she wanted Laura's new colt to be called Epona. After she died, Malon and Epona were born. The two were best friends. Malon sr. even wrote a song that bound Malon and Epona together, so Malon could call her horse from any distance by singing that song. But fifteen years ago, something horrible happened. The Gerudo War began, and the Field was the perfect place for any battles to be fought. Our Ranch was in the middle of it all. One day, a Gerudo scouting party tried to turn our Ranch into a base. We fought back, driving them off, but…my wife died. After that day, I became lethargic, feeling I had nothing to live for. Until now, of course. I realize that I should have been focusing more on Malon than on my naps. Now her soulmate is gone, and I don't know how to help her."
"She seemed fine when I met her." Said Skull Kid.
"That's Romani's influence. That girl has never had a horse, so does not truly understand Malon's loss. Since their personalities are exactly identical, Malon has something to feed off of, to act on, anything to keep Epona out of her head. But I have heard her tears at night when I have to make my regular trip to the john at midnight, and…" he could say no more.
Skull Kid decided to change the subject. "DO you know where my fairy is?"
"Hmm? Oh, he's helping Romani and Grog round up the Cuccos. We wouldn't want them to escape or anything. You know, it's getting late. Why don't you go to bed?" Skull Kid wished there were something more he could do for this poor man and his family, but he could not. Yet.
He walked up the stairs, and went into the bathroom to take care of certain hygiene-related issues. As he walked into the guestroom, he looked out the window and saw the moon, grinning evilly from overhead. Skull Kid glared at the moon. "Someday, Majora," he whispered. "Someday." He got into the bed and went to sleep.
The next morning went routinely. After breakfast and bathing, he picked up Tael and left the ranch with a few complimentary bottles of Lon-Lon milk and Chateau Romani. He felt sorry for the farmers. He swore that the demon would pay for this as well. As they headed south, Skull Kid asked Tael how it had been to find Cuccos at night. "Awful." Grumbled Tael. "Even with my light, it was too dark to see anything. Romani kept stumbling over Cuccos and getting nearly pecked to death. But we got them all by morning. Do you mind if I go to sleep? I'm really tired."
Skull Kid took off his hat, allowing Tael to get in, whom immediately fell asleep. Their trek continued. They kept heading south, taking their time. It took two days, but they finally reached their destination. The trail to the beach used to be fenced off, but no longer. It looked as if they had been ripped off of their posts. They probably had been. A sign above the ripped-off fences said "Hymina Bay." Skull Kid and Tael got to the end of the trail and looked at the beautiful bay, extending all the way to the ocean. The beach was made of golden sand and old beach towels and umbrellas littered the area. The water looked murky. Far to Skull Kid's right was a strange building that looked like some sort of laboratory. It had a tower sticking from the top with a ladder leading up the side and what looked like a giant pirate's hook at the top. To Skull Kid's left were two houses, one the old Skulltulla House (now inhabited by a paranoid young man who was certain the moon would fall the next day) and the other was the Fisherman's Hut, which had the Fishing Pool right behind it. Built into the cliffs surrounding the bay were the walls of the Pirate Fortress. Out in the bay itself were three things: the abandoned Zora Hall, the far-off Pinnacle Rock, and the storm-enshrouded Hymina Bay Temple. There only seemed to be one way to get to the temple, and that would be to swim for it. Skull Kid donned his Zora Mask and dived into the water, speeding through the murky water towards the temple. Tael's light helped to pierce the murk of the water. He wasn't sure how he would get through the storm, but he figured it would be no big deal. He didn't know how wrong he was. He suddenly found himself heading back towards the beach. He had gotten lost somehow, and was turned around. He climbed onto the beach, took off the Zora Mask and pondered what to do next. He then remembered that there was a turtle sleeping at the back of Zora Hall who would be able to take him to the temple. He was about to don his mask once again, when a net was thrown over his head. He didn't have time to register this when suddenly the net thrower started dragging him away, intentionally dragging him over sharp rocks and shells. He looked up and saw who his captor was. It was a Gerudo Pirate. She was dragging him towards a rowboat with a bunch of other Pirates. Tael, who had not been caught by the net, was unsure what to do. "Tael!" yelled Skull kid. "Go get help!"
"From whom?"
"Anyone! It doesn't matter! Just get help before it's too late!" That was all he could get out before the pirate threw him into the boat and set off for the fortress.
Cliffhanger ending, huh? We know the Gerudo brutally tortured Skull Kid before, what new tricks have they worked up? Find out next time!