CHAPTER 13
After checking the equipment and what little rations they had remaining, the four where one there way again. The other tunnel started out the same way the other did, moblins and fireslugs, keeses skydiving from the ceiling, but nothing all too challenging. The tunnel started sloping upwards and the rocky floor was replaced by pale green tiles.
The rough surface of the cave gave way to polished black marble and stained glass windows of the monsters that Link had faced while dealing with Ganon.
"Why dae I hear organ music?" Sage asked to no one in particular.
"It sounds somehow, familiar...but I can't place where I've heard it before." Zelda said thoughtfully.
"I do." Link said coldly, drawing the master sword and mirror shield. "Time to die Ganon." He ran off into the dim light, the others rushing after him.
When the three caught up to Link he was standing in front of a huge green door with a golden sun inlay. Link simply stated 'Open' and the door rose from the ground revealing a huge room. It's walls where nothing but stained glass windows, and along the far wall stood a huge pipe organ. The top had two winged gargoyles with permanent sneers on their faces on each side of the organ. There was a figure of a man playing it.
Ganon stopped playing and stood up. Turning around with an evil smile, he said. "Look familiar, Hero of Time? It should."
"Yeah!" Link shouted smugly. "It looks like the same room where I kicked your sorry ass the first time. And I bet this time too."
"Strong words, boy. Can you back them up?" Ganon asked condescendingly.
"Nae if I get tae him first!" Sage screamed rushing forward, his claymore ready to taste the blood of Ganon.
As Sage was about to bring his claymore down on Ganon, the evil Gerudo swung his fist and connected with Sage's chest. The blow was so strong that it made Sage hit the wall and make a dent. "Ouch." Sage breathed as eyes rolled into the back of his head and his body slumped to the floor.
"SAGE!!" Emily yelled in horror. Looking over at Ganon, she shrieked. "Now you burn! BALEFIRE!!!" Explosions of fire and brimstone erupted beneath Ganon and from Emily's hands, causing the hole room to seem as it was on fire with the intense heat.
After the spell from the fires of hell dissipated, Ganon's body reappeared from the fading smoke. "Ooh, you seemed to almost have singed my hair." Ganon said with venomous laughter.
"N-no way! He just absorbed it! H-how?!" Emily said terrified in amazement.
"Of course I absorbed it foolish girl!" Holding up his right fist, the Triforce of Power glowed. "I have the Triforce of Power!"
"And I will still beat you over and over until death is final!" Link shot back.
Roaring in a rage, Ganon sent out waves of dark energy, making them fly up against a wall, making them to yell out in pain, surrounding them in black lightning.
Walking over slowly to Link, he picked him up by the throat. Squeezing hard his eyes glowed yellow. "Not this time, boy. Not this time." Then he threw Link bodily across the room causing him to hit another wall. Link got to one knee, but passed out from the pain.
Looming over Zelda, Ganon sneered. "Now for the wisdom triforce, I can't wait to take it from y-" Ganon's eyes bulged and he looked down to see Sage's blade covered in his blood sticking from his stomach.
"Rule one, ne'er turn yer back oan yer enemies." A beaten and battered Sage laughed. Looking out from behind Ganon, Sage continued. "Zelda, get Emily out o' here!"
"Sage I'm not going to leave you!"
Ganon reached behind him and started pulling out the blade.
"I said gae! Noo!"
Ganon reached behind him and sent out a energy ball, but it missed Sage and hit a pillar. Chunks of the ceiling started falling all around them.
"I'm buying ye time! Get Link and leave!" Sage pleaded hurriedly.
Ganon finally pulled the blade from his stomach. He turned around and faced Sage, his eyes glowing red with rage.
"So, Sage you've finally come for your revenge on me?" Ganon formed an energy ball and threw it at Sage, hitting the ground in front of him and sending him rolling on the ground.
While Ganon was busy with Sage, Zelda and Emily carried a now unconscious Link from the room. Going through way they came they found a passage that took them to a plateau on death mountain.
"You know if you stay here you will be crushed as well!" Ganon said as a boulder fell from the ceiling in between the two, shaking the floor.
Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Sage said, "I dinnae care! I'm gaun tae stop ye from daen tae other people from wha' ye did tae me!"
"Bold words coming from a dead man!" Ganon threw another ball of energy at the Scot. Sage barely had enough time to jump out of the way before it hit the wall behind him.
"DIE!!" Ganon screamed as he shot out a beam of black energy. Sage held up his sword and blocked Ganon's blow.
The blade of the claymore started to glow in a rainbow of colors running up and down the metal. "Yer own power will be yer doon fall Ganon!" Sage swung his claymore and the swirling rainbow hit Ganon square in the chest, knocking him to the ground hard.
Breathing heavily, blood coming from the many wounds he had suffered, Sage ran over to the fallen man and plunged his claymore into his black heart.
"Sage!" Ganon hissed as his last breath passed his mouth.
After Sage wiped the blood from his claymore on Ganon's cape, he got up and ran for the exit. However, before he could get to it, a pile of rubble fell in front of it, blocking his way. Cursing to himself, he frantically ran about the room trying to find a way of escape, but found none.
"Well, at least Emily will be safe noo." Sage said, sitting down cross-legged and waited to die as the ceiling crashed down around him.
******
From the outside, all the trio could see was the snow capped peak in front of them implode.
"Sage! Noooo!" Emily screamed with tears in her eyes as she started running toward the rubble. Link grabbed her arm.
With tears welling up in his eyes Link said quietly. "Em, no, he's gone now, you can't help him."
Zelda walked over and hugged Emily, tears streaming down both of the women's faces for the loss of their friend. Link was looking down at the ground as he heard a noise.
"You heard it too?" Zelda asked.
Ganon then burst from the rubble. "Hey Link, remember this?" Ganon asked laughing evilly as his body emitted a blue-white light as the triforce of power glowed on the back of his hand.
"Oh, man, not again!" Link whined as Ganon transformed into the huge pig-like monster once more. "And me without the light arrows."
"Zelda, Emily hit him with a blast of the power of light!" Link shouted while ducking at swipe from one of Ganon's huge swords.
Raising their hands, the two women shot out the pureness of the triforce's power at Ganon. But, Ganon saw it coming and ducked the wide, golden beam.
"Oh no!" Zelda said terrified as Ganon turned his attention to the heroens.
Emily's head was filled with the sound of her pounding heart. Raising her hands into the air, she brought the heavens down upon Ganon with her lightning crash spell.
A huge lightning bolt hit Ganon from above, enveloping him in a blinding white light, it's fingers dancing in and out of Ganon's mouth, ears, and eyes as he dropped to his knee, leaning on one of his swords.
"Link," Emily said with a strangely calm and echoing voice. "Kill him! Run the master sword through his head!"
Doing as Emily said, Link drove the master sword through the skull of Ganon right between his eyes with a forceful grunt. The huge figure of Ganon let out a screech that could be heard through the whole of Hyrule. He tried to stand up once more, but slumped down to the ground and finally died.
The trio backed away from the evil king's dead body waiting for him to stand back up again. After awhile Link put his arm around Zelda and said. "C'mon, let's get out of here."
Turning to leave, Zelda and Link heard sobbing. Looking back they saw Emily on her knees crying by a huge pile of rock and glass. Link started to walk over to her, but Zelda grasped his arm and shook her head. The couple stood in silence with tears in their eyes as Emily cried for the loss of Sage.
After the long silence, Emily weakly stood up, her tears made streaks down her dirt covered face and said good bye one last time. When she caught up to Link and Zelda, they all started walking away.
Link heard rubble shifting and rolling around. 'You have got to be kidding me Ganon has to be dead!' He though as he drew the master sword, turning around.
"Link what's wrong?" Zelda asked frightened.
As a hand burst through the rubble, Link's terror turned to joy. Re-sheathing his sword, he rushed laughing over to the out stretched hand, Zelda and Emily following behind with looks of hope on their now smiling faces. Digging frantically away at the rubble, they found Sage's head, smirking up at them.
"Nice tae see ye guys again." Sage said hoarsely.
After pulling out the weakened Sage, he said. "Ach, I thought I knew what pain was before."
Emily threw her arms around Sage's neck and pulled him down and kissed him. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, do you hear me Sage McIntire?" A relieved smile crossed her lips.
"Yes, ma'am." Sage said slyly as her kissed her back.
******
After a day of descending from the peak of death mountain, Sage peered up at the looming mountain and remarked. "I hope I ne'er have tae gae through that again!"
"Well," Zelda said with a hint of laughter in a voice. "After what Em did to Ganon, I doubt that he'd want to either!"
When they reached their awaiting horses, they mounted up and rode slowly back to Hyrule castle. Zelda and Link rode side by side as Link held the rein's of Perrin's horse, while Sage and Emily rode together on Stardancer.
******
When they made it back, Deeana greeted them with open arms. "Oh, Zelda, Link you're back! We thought that you didn't make it!! Oh and Sage I have some wonderful news! We have found a way to get you home!"
"Really?!" Sage asked excitedly.
"Oh Sage that's wonderful!" Emily said smiling at Sage.
"Yes, its really quite simple all we have to do is get all the sages together and, um where's Perrin?" Deeana asked.
The four looked down sadly at her question. "Ganon, he opened up a hole in the ground beneath us...Perrin broke his neck when he landed." Sage answered slowly and sadly.
"Oh by Nayru's love! How awful!" Walking up to Link, the old woman continued. "Are you all right, poor boy? I know how that he was like a brother to you."
"Yeah," Link answered distantly. "I'll be fine."
Looking over at her husband with worry, Zelda dismounted. Her hair fluffed as her feet met the ground. Giving her horse to a stableman she led Deeana a little way back from Link so that he couldn't hear them.
"Deeana, please get the funeral preparations ready for Perrin in the Temple of Light, I don't think that Link wants to be bothered with that at this particular point in time."
"Yes dear, I'll get things ready."
******
A light drizzle marked the day of the funeral for Perrin.
It was a funeral fitting for the hero that Perrin was. Everyone in Hyrule was crowded into the temple. After the ceremony, a carriage drawn by six snow white horses headed the funeral line followed by Link and Zelda side by side, then Sage and Emily beside each other, and finally the nobles of Hyrule all wearing solemn faces as they made their way to the graveyard in Kakariko Village.
Passing the graves of Hyrule's past heroes they stopped at the freshly dug one for the teen. After the graveside prayer service, led by Rauru, the Sage of Light, most of the people left, leaving behind Link, Zelda, Emily, and Sage. Sage and Emily left a short while later, leaving behind Link and Zelda.
"You going to be all right, Link?" Zelda asked.
"Yeah, just give me awhile, go back to the castle."
After she kissed his cheek and said good bye Link was all alone.
The gentle breeze blew Link's blonde hair across his face as tears once again fell from his eyes as he stared at the grave of his prodigy.
"Link." A voice said.
Looking up from the ground, Link saw Perrin sitting relaxed on top of his tombstone, swinging a poe lantern in his hand. A silver light emanated from his body.
"P-Perrin?" Link whispered amazed, not believing his eyes.
Jumping down from his perch, Perrin's spirit walked over to Link.
"But shouldn't you be-?"
"Dead?" Perrin interrupted. That mistevious smile of Perrin's came to his lips. Chuckling warmly, he continued after Link nodded his head confused. "Yes, I am quite dead, but its not your fault or Sage's" He quickly added before Link could blame Sage again for his death.
The wind cut through Link and he pulled his overcoat tightly around his body. "I know, its just that, well...."
"What, that you never got to say goodbye?
Wiping away a tear from his cheek, Link nodded in agreement.
"Trust me, it won't help," Perrin's spirit began. "I don't know how many times I said good bye to my parents as they laid dieing on the ground when Ganon's minions attacked us during the Imprisoning War and I still didn't feel any better, so just forget about it Okay?"
"I guess so." Link sighed.
Nodding once, Perrin responded, "Good, I'm glad I got to see you one last time, but my time here is growing short, I must be leaving now." Perrin started to fade away.
"Farewell Link, thank you for all that you have done for me!" Then the spirit of Perrin was gone, leaving Link once again, alone.
Looking at the grave one more time, he turned around and headed back to the castle, a relieved smile shown on his face.
After checking the equipment and what little rations they had remaining, the four where one there way again. The other tunnel started out the same way the other did, moblins and fireslugs, keeses skydiving from the ceiling, but nothing all too challenging. The tunnel started sloping upwards and the rocky floor was replaced by pale green tiles.
The rough surface of the cave gave way to polished black marble and stained glass windows of the monsters that Link had faced while dealing with Ganon.
"Why dae I hear organ music?" Sage asked to no one in particular.
"It sounds somehow, familiar...but I can't place where I've heard it before." Zelda said thoughtfully.
"I do." Link said coldly, drawing the master sword and mirror shield. "Time to die Ganon." He ran off into the dim light, the others rushing after him.
When the three caught up to Link he was standing in front of a huge green door with a golden sun inlay. Link simply stated 'Open' and the door rose from the ground revealing a huge room. It's walls where nothing but stained glass windows, and along the far wall stood a huge pipe organ. The top had two winged gargoyles with permanent sneers on their faces on each side of the organ. There was a figure of a man playing it.
Ganon stopped playing and stood up. Turning around with an evil smile, he said. "Look familiar, Hero of Time? It should."
"Yeah!" Link shouted smugly. "It looks like the same room where I kicked your sorry ass the first time. And I bet this time too."
"Strong words, boy. Can you back them up?" Ganon asked condescendingly.
"Nae if I get tae him first!" Sage screamed rushing forward, his claymore ready to taste the blood of Ganon.
As Sage was about to bring his claymore down on Ganon, the evil Gerudo swung his fist and connected with Sage's chest. The blow was so strong that it made Sage hit the wall and make a dent. "Ouch." Sage breathed as eyes rolled into the back of his head and his body slumped to the floor.
"SAGE!!" Emily yelled in horror. Looking over at Ganon, she shrieked. "Now you burn! BALEFIRE!!!" Explosions of fire and brimstone erupted beneath Ganon and from Emily's hands, causing the hole room to seem as it was on fire with the intense heat.
After the spell from the fires of hell dissipated, Ganon's body reappeared from the fading smoke. "Ooh, you seemed to almost have singed my hair." Ganon said with venomous laughter.
"N-no way! He just absorbed it! H-how?!" Emily said terrified in amazement.
"Of course I absorbed it foolish girl!" Holding up his right fist, the Triforce of Power glowed. "I have the Triforce of Power!"
"And I will still beat you over and over until death is final!" Link shot back.
Roaring in a rage, Ganon sent out waves of dark energy, making them fly up against a wall, making them to yell out in pain, surrounding them in black lightning.
Walking over slowly to Link, he picked him up by the throat. Squeezing hard his eyes glowed yellow. "Not this time, boy. Not this time." Then he threw Link bodily across the room causing him to hit another wall. Link got to one knee, but passed out from the pain.
Looming over Zelda, Ganon sneered. "Now for the wisdom triforce, I can't wait to take it from y-" Ganon's eyes bulged and he looked down to see Sage's blade covered in his blood sticking from his stomach.
"Rule one, ne'er turn yer back oan yer enemies." A beaten and battered Sage laughed. Looking out from behind Ganon, Sage continued. "Zelda, get Emily out o' here!"
"Sage I'm not going to leave you!"
Ganon reached behind him and started pulling out the blade.
"I said gae! Noo!"
Ganon reached behind him and sent out a energy ball, but it missed Sage and hit a pillar. Chunks of the ceiling started falling all around them.
"I'm buying ye time! Get Link and leave!" Sage pleaded hurriedly.
Ganon finally pulled the blade from his stomach. He turned around and faced Sage, his eyes glowing red with rage.
"So, Sage you've finally come for your revenge on me?" Ganon formed an energy ball and threw it at Sage, hitting the ground in front of him and sending him rolling on the ground.
While Ganon was busy with Sage, Zelda and Emily carried a now unconscious Link from the room. Going through way they came they found a passage that took them to a plateau on death mountain.
"You know if you stay here you will be crushed as well!" Ganon said as a boulder fell from the ceiling in between the two, shaking the floor.
Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, Sage said, "I dinnae care! I'm gaun tae stop ye from daen tae other people from wha' ye did tae me!"
"Bold words coming from a dead man!" Ganon threw another ball of energy at the Scot. Sage barely had enough time to jump out of the way before it hit the wall behind him.
"DIE!!" Ganon screamed as he shot out a beam of black energy. Sage held up his sword and blocked Ganon's blow.
The blade of the claymore started to glow in a rainbow of colors running up and down the metal. "Yer own power will be yer doon fall Ganon!" Sage swung his claymore and the swirling rainbow hit Ganon square in the chest, knocking him to the ground hard.
Breathing heavily, blood coming from the many wounds he had suffered, Sage ran over to the fallen man and plunged his claymore into his black heart.
"Sage!" Ganon hissed as his last breath passed his mouth.
After Sage wiped the blood from his claymore on Ganon's cape, he got up and ran for the exit. However, before he could get to it, a pile of rubble fell in front of it, blocking his way. Cursing to himself, he frantically ran about the room trying to find a way of escape, but found none.
"Well, at least Emily will be safe noo." Sage said, sitting down cross-legged and waited to die as the ceiling crashed down around him.
******
From the outside, all the trio could see was the snow capped peak in front of them implode.
"Sage! Noooo!" Emily screamed with tears in her eyes as she started running toward the rubble. Link grabbed her arm.
With tears welling up in his eyes Link said quietly. "Em, no, he's gone now, you can't help him."
Zelda walked over and hugged Emily, tears streaming down both of the women's faces for the loss of their friend. Link was looking down at the ground as he heard a noise.
"You heard it too?" Zelda asked.
Ganon then burst from the rubble. "Hey Link, remember this?" Ganon asked laughing evilly as his body emitted a blue-white light as the triforce of power glowed on the back of his hand.
"Oh, man, not again!" Link whined as Ganon transformed into the huge pig-like monster once more. "And me without the light arrows."
"Zelda, Emily hit him with a blast of the power of light!" Link shouted while ducking at swipe from one of Ganon's huge swords.
Raising their hands, the two women shot out the pureness of the triforce's power at Ganon. But, Ganon saw it coming and ducked the wide, golden beam.
"Oh no!" Zelda said terrified as Ganon turned his attention to the heroens.
Emily's head was filled with the sound of her pounding heart. Raising her hands into the air, she brought the heavens down upon Ganon with her lightning crash spell.
A huge lightning bolt hit Ganon from above, enveloping him in a blinding white light, it's fingers dancing in and out of Ganon's mouth, ears, and eyes as he dropped to his knee, leaning on one of his swords.
"Link," Emily said with a strangely calm and echoing voice. "Kill him! Run the master sword through his head!"
Doing as Emily said, Link drove the master sword through the skull of Ganon right between his eyes with a forceful grunt. The huge figure of Ganon let out a screech that could be heard through the whole of Hyrule. He tried to stand up once more, but slumped down to the ground and finally died.
The trio backed away from the evil king's dead body waiting for him to stand back up again. After awhile Link put his arm around Zelda and said. "C'mon, let's get out of here."
Turning to leave, Zelda and Link heard sobbing. Looking back they saw Emily on her knees crying by a huge pile of rock and glass. Link started to walk over to her, but Zelda grasped his arm and shook her head. The couple stood in silence with tears in their eyes as Emily cried for the loss of Sage.
After the long silence, Emily weakly stood up, her tears made streaks down her dirt covered face and said good bye one last time. When she caught up to Link and Zelda, they all started walking away.
Link heard rubble shifting and rolling around. 'You have got to be kidding me Ganon has to be dead!' He though as he drew the master sword, turning around.
"Link what's wrong?" Zelda asked frightened.
As a hand burst through the rubble, Link's terror turned to joy. Re-sheathing his sword, he rushed laughing over to the out stretched hand, Zelda and Emily following behind with looks of hope on their now smiling faces. Digging frantically away at the rubble, they found Sage's head, smirking up at them.
"Nice tae see ye guys again." Sage said hoarsely.
After pulling out the weakened Sage, he said. "Ach, I thought I knew what pain was before."
Emily threw her arms around Sage's neck and pulled him down and kissed him. "Don't you ever scare me like that again, do you hear me Sage McIntire?" A relieved smile crossed her lips.
"Yes, ma'am." Sage said slyly as her kissed her back.
******
After a day of descending from the peak of death mountain, Sage peered up at the looming mountain and remarked. "I hope I ne'er have tae gae through that again!"
"Well," Zelda said with a hint of laughter in a voice. "After what Em did to Ganon, I doubt that he'd want to either!"
When they reached their awaiting horses, they mounted up and rode slowly back to Hyrule castle. Zelda and Link rode side by side as Link held the rein's of Perrin's horse, while Sage and Emily rode together on Stardancer.
******
When they made it back, Deeana greeted them with open arms. "Oh, Zelda, Link you're back! We thought that you didn't make it!! Oh and Sage I have some wonderful news! We have found a way to get you home!"
"Really?!" Sage asked excitedly.
"Oh Sage that's wonderful!" Emily said smiling at Sage.
"Yes, its really quite simple all we have to do is get all the sages together and, um where's Perrin?" Deeana asked.
The four looked down sadly at her question. "Ganon, he opened up a hole in the ground beneath us...Perrin broke his neck when he landed." Sage answered slowly and sadly.
"Oh by Nayru's love! How awful!" Walking up to Link, the old woman continued. "Are you all right, poor boy? I know how that he was like a brother to you."
"Yeah," Link answered distantly. "I'll be fine."
Looking over at her husband with worry, Zelda dismounted. Her hair fluffed as her feet met the ground. Giving her horse to a stableman she led Deeana a little way back from Link so that he couldn't hear them.
"Deeana, please get the funeral preparations ready for Perrin in the Temple of Light, I don't think that Link wants to be bothered with that at this particular point in time."
"Yes dear, I'll get things ready."
******
A light drizzle marked the day of the funeral for Perrin.
It was a funeral fitting for the hero that Perrin was. Everyone in Hyrule was crowded into the temple. After the ceremony, a carriage drawn by six snow white horses headed the funeral line followed by Link and Zelda side by side, then Sage and Emily beside each other, and finally the nobles of Hyrule all wearing solemn faces as they made their way to the graveyard in Kakariko Village.
Passing the graves of Hyrule's past heroes they stopped at the freshly dug one for the teen. After the graveside prayer service, led by Rauru, the Sage of Light, most of the people left, leaving behind Link, Zelda, Emily, and Sage. Sage and Emily left a short while later, leaving behind Link and Zelda.
"You going to be all right, Link?" Zelda asked.
"Yeah, just give me awhile, go back to the castle."
After she kissed his cheek and said good bye Link was all alone.
The gentle breeze blew Link's blonde hair across his face as tears once again fell from his eyes as he stared at the grave of his prodigy.
"Link." A voice said.
Looking up from the ground, Link saw Perrin sitting relaxed on top of his tombstone, swinging a poe lantern in his hand. A silver light emanated from his body.
"P-Perrin?" Link whispered amazed, not believing his eyes.
Jumping down from his perch, Perrin's spirit walked over to Link.
"But shouldn't you be-?"
"Dead?" Perrin interrupted. That mistevious smile of Perrin's came to his lips. Chuckling warmly, he continued after Link nodded his head confused. "Yes, I am quite dead, but its not your fault or Sage's" He quickly added before Link could blame Sage again for his death.
The wind cut through Link and he pulled his overcoat tightly around his body. "I know, its just that, well...."
"What, that you never got to say goodbye?
Wiping away a tear from his cheek, Link nodded in agreement.
"Trust me, it won't help," Perrin's spirit began. "I don't know how many times I said good bye to my parents as they laid dieing on the ground when Ganon's minions attacked us during the Imprisoning War and I still didn't feel any better, so just forget about it Okay?"
"I guess so." Link sighed.
Nodding once, Perrin responded, "Good, I'm glad I got to see you one last time, but my time here is growing short, I must be leaving now." Perrin started to fade away.
"Farewell Link, thank you for all that you have done for me!" Then the spirit of Perrin was gone, leaving Link once again, alone.
Looking at the grave one more time, he turned around and headed back to the castle, a relieved smile shown on his face.
