The Missing Link

V1.4

(or: All our Moblins in a Row!)

By: The Kirby Kid ( thekirbykid@hotmail.com )

Disclaimer:

12 days and counting until Spider-Man comes out in theaters, and only 5 days 'till Resident Evil on Gamecube!!! Ack! What to do till then? How about learning about Copyright rules? For example, The Legend of Zelda™ is copyrighted by Nintendo.

Note from the author:

No real news. I wanna thank those who reviewed...those who did all those months ago when I first started this story ( before my hiatus ), and those who are reviewing now. Thanks.

Just remember, these aren't characters from the games. They are their descendants ( or ascendants ...hee hee. ) that just happen to have the same names. Since this is a sequel to my last fic, The Gerudo Keepsake, you might find characters from this fic in the other fic. If you didn't read it...I'd recommend reading it to help you out with this fic. (Shameless plug #2).

As always, please review...it'll only take a moment, and it'll last a lifetime. (Lame...I know ). Above all, enjoy the read.... or else ;)

EXTRA: At the time this was being written I found out that Lisa Lopez.. "Left Eye" from the group TLC was killed in a car crash. Now I know last time I 'mourned' the loss of The Lone Gunmen, but this is different....real. Miss Lopez was a real talent, and the R & B world is going to miss her a great deal. My prayers go forward to her family.

Don't want to miss a thing.....

Last Chapter:

Gadzooks! Of all the lousy circumstances!! Just when the young Link's life was beginning to settle into a routine of training with Invincible, hobnobbing it with the Royalty (well...not really), and drinking lots of free tasty Milk... an unsuspected attack renders the Hylian Knights of the First Rank and the King himself unconscious, and the Princess of Hyrule missing! What's a Link to do? Go there and take care of it himself, of course! And so, his inspection of the a mysterious anomaly at the scene of the crime seems to have sent him to a strange new World...

In which he's a pink rabbit. Well don't that beat all.

************

Holding her husband's hands in her own, the Queen of Hyrule concentrated all the powers of Wisdom she had on the comatose form lying in the bed in front of her. Invisible to all but Impa, the multitude of shimmering blue threads of magic whipped around from Zelda's body and into the body of King Rile of Hyrule. The threads bounced off and ran along his form, that was now covered with thick coverings as he lay in their bed in the Master Bedroom. Beads of sweat formed on the Zelda's face, and her breathing became more and more shallow as she tightened her grip on his hand.

Finally, Zelda let out a long shuddering breath and loosened her grip. Rile's breathing was steady, but it was so slow that at first glance one might think he'd already passed away. Physically exhausted, she gently rested her head on the King's heart. He lustrous blonde curls were strewn about as she felt the slow rise and fall of his chest.

Impa stood quietly on the other side of the voluminous bed, arms crossed and looking on sadly at the scene. "Nothing?", she asked quietly.

Zelda shook her head and moved her hand over Rile's chest. "A little something...but it's not enough to help. Whoever...whatever did this to him...it's too strong."

"Then he'll have to awake on his own, then."

Zelda looked up at her old mentor and friend and sighed. "Yes. He will. What have you heard from Link about my daughter?"

"Word is they've found nothing.", Impa said solemnly, but upon seeing the depressed look on Zelda's face, quickly added ", but don't despair. Once he returns, we can begin planning a way to find and rescue her. And there is a way, Zelda. There are many courses we can take here."

Her blue eyes narrowing, Zelda got up to her feet and glanced at the older woman. "I'm not waiting for Link to return from the search Impa.", she told her bluntly. She left the room, and headed towards the Study with her mentor keeping up close beside her.

************

"Now this isn't right.", Link thought logically, looking at his wide pink furry paws. His nose twitched involuntarily and it caused him to run a padded hand down his sloped forehead. He realized that if he were to take everything he saw and felt as the truth, then he would be, in fact, a pink rabbit.

He laughed to himself inwardly, half-crazed. "Naw...of course that's not right.". He looked up into the hazy purple sky, closed his eyes, and slammed his paws together into a ball. "No...no it's not. This has to be a dream, a dream caused by that strange light. If I concentrate on waking up, I should wake up. That sounds logical, it should work.". Taking in several deep breaths, Link willed himself to wake up from the dream. After a few seconds, he held his hands up in front of his face and opened his eyes in a flash...

...and in front of his eyes were cute furry pink paws.

"Dammit", Link thought. "Okay come on Link. You can't do anything like this. Wake up boyo, wake the heck up!". He slammed his paws again into a ball and closed his eyes again. Taking in three deep breaths, he concentrated and slowly creeped his eyes open...

... and his eyes were met with the eyes of another.

Link yelped and backpedaled away from the eyes until he backed into a tree. Now having a better view, he realized the eyes belonged to that of a girl of 12. She stared after Link with her large purple eyes. He saw that her dark hair was done in braids that ran cleanly from her forehead, and were separated into shoulder-length pig-tails that were tied with two huge ribbons. Her slight frame was covered with a thin diaphanous dress that barely reached the bottom of her hips, yet underneath she wore black pants and a short black top with long sleeves. Her wrists and ankles were protected with thick silver bracelets, and her dark leather boots were short in length, with inch long flat heels.

Link couldn't understand what was going on. When his eyes were last open, there was no indication of this girl being around. Now all of a sudden, there she was, directly in his face. His pink furry rabbit face. This was madness!

He tried to back up further, but couldn't budge against the old tree he forgot was there. Before he could blink again, the girl was in his face. So close up now, Link could see that her eyes were slightly sunken in, causing tiny bulges underneath them, and two hollow red circles were dotted directly above each eyebrow. The girl smiled at him, and her eyes turned into a pale blue. With that change, Link suddenly thought the girl's face looked a lot like the Princess.

"What a cute wittle bunny!", she cooed. She reached out with thin fingers and pinched Link's cheek. He let out another yelp and pushed the girl away, bounding to the left at the same time. His move was clumsy though, and he landed in a heap in the underbrush. The girl looked after him curiously. "What's wrong bunny?", she asked innocently.

"Stop calling me that!", Link yelled. His ears were twitching, and his muscles were trembling. He had an overwhelming instinctive need to run, but he held his ground. Seeing the girl turn towards him, he struck out a paw and pointed angrily. "Just stay where you are!! Don't come any closer!"

"You know, you're very high-strung for a pink rabbit."

"What are you, stupid!?", Link said, raging. He was becoming much ruder than normal, but at this point, he didn't care. "I'm not a rabbit! Stop calling me that!"

The girl smiled, her eyes turning a dark shade of purple once more. "If it smells like a bunny and hops like a bunny...."

Link's shoulder's fell and his face fell even further. "B...but I'm not like this. I'm really....". He brought his paws up to his face and wiped at his eyes. He didn't want to do this, to cry like a baby, but for some reason the tears began to flow. "I...I'm not a rabbit...", he sniffed fitfully.

Before he could stop it, the girl had his arms around Link's thick furry neck and was squeezing. "Awww don't cry bunny!", she cooed as Link gagged. The girl smelled like light potpourri, and he noticed a slight flurry of pink little petals settle to the ground when the girl had grabbed him. "Don't be crying now. It's just so heartachingly cute and pathetic I might break down. Pweese?"

"Stop talking like that! I'm telling you I'm NOT A RABBIT!" Link shouted, and he pushed himself forcefully out of her embrace. "And 'heartachingly''s not even a word. Geez, what's wrong with you?"

The girl's eyes narrowed dangerously. "I'm just trying to be supportive. Most people wouldn't even bother trying to cheer you up. They'd rather just roast you over a spit.". The girl then shook her head, her braided pigtails swaying across her face. "If you're not a cute little bunny rabbit, or even a rude little bunny rabbit, then just what are you?"

"I'M A HYLIAN!"

The girl paused, and then put a finger to her bottom lip. "A Hylian...well that explains it.". Then she curtsied politely towards the hapless elf-turned-animal. "Welcome to the Dark World, 'Hylian'. I hope you enjoy your stay, and your new body.". She smiled at him and placed her hands behind her back. "Well...bye.", she said quickly, and then turned away.

"W-Wait!!", Link said quickly, and bounded in front of her with his powerful hind legs. The girl stopped and looked at him plaintively. "What do you mean, 'Dark World'?", Link asked with a groan.

The girl thought for a moment, then asked, "Where are you from?".

"Hyrule.", Link answered cautiously.

"Well you're not there anymore. You're in the Dark World. The Izen Region to be exact. I've heard of 'Hyrule', but that's in the Light World. That's not here. This is the Dark World.". She raised her left hand. "Light...", she said, and then raised her right hand. "Dark.". She dropped her left hand, and waved her right in the air. "You are heeeeere! Hey....are you okay?"

She asked this suddenly because Link's eyes were glazed over, staring into empty space. Link had heard of the Dark World. As a child, he was told that was where bad people go where they die. All children were told this. But if this was hell, why was he a cute bunny? What kind of sick and twisted God would imagine this kind of damnation?

Then Link realized the answer. The storied grownups told him also eluded to the fact that the King of Evil resided in this place. That's what made it Hell.

His red rabbit eyes came into focus and looked at the girl in confusion. "So... I'm really in the Dark World? I'm really where Gano-"

Before he could finish, the girl had knocked him onto the ground, knees to his chest, and hands clamped over his mouth. Her eyes bulged in anger and fear. "What the hell's wrong with you?", She hissed. Link's eyes gave an 'I don't know...please stop crushing my sternum' look, and she released him. "Don't you ever say that!", she said, rising to her feet.

Link nodded slowly, and looked off into the ground for a second. "Wait...so, is this where Gan-"

Once again the girl was on him, her face flushed with rage. "What the hell did I just tell you!!?", she practically shouted. Link's bunny face was changing from pink to blue, so she quickly added, "Don't say his name aloud, or next time I won't let go!". At that point she slowly withdrew her hand from Link's mouth.

He gasped and took in deep breaths before glancing towards the girl carefully. "Why can't I say his name?"

"Because then He'll wake up, and no one want's God to wake up. Especially an angry God like him."

Link just stared, shocked. If this girl believes the King of Evil is God, then he must really be in Hell. He felt something in him deflate. It was his own fault. He wanted so much to be like Invincible, a fearless hero. Now he was stuck in this awful place, in this awful form. All this, and he was alone as well. At least, he wasn't alone yet.

"Go away.". He said roughly and then turned and began to shuffle away into the forest. The girl ran in front of him and held her hands to her hips in anger.

"What do you mean, 'go away'? You're the one who was asking me questions!"

"And now I'm done, so please, just go. Or stay here and don't follow me.". The girl stared at him for a moment, and then scoffed in disgust.

"Fine.", she said, and then Link watched amazed as the outline of her form shimmered slightly before she quickly rose into the air and on top of a nearby tree. From there she flipped an angry hand at him, and then skipped along the treetops and off into the distance.

Link watched her go, before resigning himself to his lonely journey through the dark woods.

************

He was about thirty minutes into his trek when he heard and felt a rumbling in the ground and air. His sensitive bunny ears perked up, and he involuntarily sniffed the air, before snatching his nose in anger. He really didn't want to get used to acting the role of the anthropomorphic rabbit.

Link held his ground and looked around him. The sound was like a herd of horses stampeding...if they stampeded in perfect unison. He also heard a deep rhythmic chanting...

"left! left! left right left right! Left! Right! Left right LEFT RIGHT!"

Before Link could move, they burst forth from the tree line. Link had never before seen creatures like this. Their were short and stocky, much like his Uncle Adrel. The tallest one was only a few inches taller than Link was at his 'regular' height. Their faces were like bulldogs, with floppy cheeks, beady eyes, short ears, flat muzzles and large lower choppers. They all had a round buckler shield strapped to their chest, and wore round shoulder-pads.. Metal flaps covered the side of their legs, and a long cloth loincloth covered their...well...loins. Only one of these creatures had a stylized marking on their chest shield.

"MOBLINS! HALT!", the stylized-shielded creature bellowed. In three more thunderous steps, the rest of the creatures...these 'Moblins' as Link surmised, came to a stop. All except for one of them, who was just a little out of step from the rest.

"Sthep One Two!", the Moblin drawled as he fell into rank with the others. The Stylized-shielded Moblin just shook his head. Link couldn't believe this. As the dust was settling, all these creatures were just standing there in silence, with a pink rabbit square in the center of their ranks.

Link was perfectly still. Maybe they would never notice him. Maybe they were color blind...or something.

The stylized-shielded Moblin, the one with a scruffy furred face, looked over the rest of his troops carefully before howling, "AT EASE!". The Moblins relaxed visibly and began to shuffle about. None of them noticed that Link was there amongst them.

"Okay troops. Good workout.", the stylized-shielded Moblin started. "As the Moblin Mercenary Force, we've got to keep sound in mind and body. That means what!?"

The Moblins stared at him blankly.

"That means exercise and food!"

The Moblins turned to each other and began to mumble in agreement. The slow Moblin near the back raised his hand. "I'm hungry, General Kapten!", he drawled.

"We're all hungry, Private Sharp. That is why it our new mission is to procure rations for our next bodily ingestion.". Kapten pointed to a few Moblins dispersed in the ranks. "You and you, probe the western woods for venison. Private Jeeks and Molhalin, you'll take the west for stag, bear and polliwog. Priva-"

"Um..General?", a Moblin wearing spectacles started, raising his hand.

Kapten gave him a tired look. "What is is Lieutenant Eguber?", he asked roughly.

" Well...there's a pink rabbit over there", the slightly smaller Moblin resumed, thumbing at Link's direction. "...why don't we eat him?"

"Show Some Respect To Our Honorable General!", shouted a tall, stout Moblin. Eguber looked at him over his glasses.

"Shove it out your ass, brownnoser!"

"That's enough!!!", Keptan bellowed. He angrily put his fists on his hips and then paused. "Now Lieutenant Metson, you're right that Lt. Eguber has a discipline problem...but he's right about this. We will procure the rabbit for our evening repas- hey, where'd the meat go?"

Eguber and the rest of the Moblins looked back. Sure enough, Link was no longer in their ranks, but was running hard in the other direction. Quick as a flash, Metson whipped out a leather rope from his side, twirled around a lasso, and flung it towards the fleeing rabbit. Link tried to sidestep the attempt, but the lasso fell underneath his foot and caught around his ankle. The cord tightened hard, and Link fell flat on his face.

Kapten grinned at his star trooper. "Well done Lt. Metson. Bring that meat over here.". As Metson dragged Link back into the group, the other Moblins reached for him greedily, grabbing at him and pulling his ears, and yelling things like "Give me a thigh", or "I want a piece of ass!". Metson batted them away with a large paw and hog-tied the hapless rabbit. Through it all, Link was strangely silent.

General Kapten walked through the horde and held Link up, pointing to the others in disgust. "Fools! You want to be like those useless Elves! Greedy and without regard for the bounties of the Land?". He hefted Link by his ears and continued. "We must be more like our Moblin cousins from the North, and utilize every part of this creature, and waste not!".

Metson nodded eagerly. "We Can Cut Off The Head, Remove The Ears, And Use His Head As A Ball. We Can Then Play Team Sports To Build Rappot Amongst Our Fellow Moblins Warriors!"

"And we can use his earsth as a tickly thingies.", said Sharp.

"Very good Pvt. Sharp, Lt. Metson.", nodded Kapten. "Now on to our next task. To eat food, we must first cook it. Onward men, and bring the meat, we're going to look for firewood! ATTEN-HUT!!!". The Moblins fell into attention in unison...all except for Pvt. Sharp, who was a bit slower than the rest of them. Eguber raised his hand again. The General sighed. "What is it now, Lieutenant?"

"Uh..sir...we're in the middle of a dry forest.", the spectacled Moblin said calmly. "I mean..it's really dry in here. Someone could fart and start a fire...".

"Hmm...fine then Lt. Eguber. Since you've got all the answers, you've got the task of collecting firewood. Hup to it Lieutenant!"

Eguber rolled his eyes, then bent and picked some wood off the forest floor. After tossing it into a pile, he took in a deep breath, and then spit out a thin stream of fire. The campfire started instantly, and the rest of the Moblins looked at Eguber strangely.

"...My mother was a dragon.", he shrugged. The others nodded in understanding.

General Kapten shook his head, and then looked past the grinning Eguber and to his troops. "Uh...good job there soldier... ( I guess ). Now Metson, hand me your small weapon."

Metson unhooked an ax the size of Link's body and tossed it to the General. Kapten smiled and brought the ax up. "Now, hold this thing down tight, and get ready. Once I cut off his head with this big sharp ax, I anticipate there will be a lot of blood splatter...and the body will twitch a bit."

Link groaned.

"Dibs on the assth! The best meat's in the rump.", said Sharp.

General Kapten brought the ax down on Link's neck.

NEXT: Uh-oh. Link's in trouble. He's gonna need some help here... and that help just might come in the pleasant fragrence of potpourri. (Now don't think the girl is a Mary Sue. I try to make all my characters well-rounded, as you have and will see, so give her a chance.). Just how will Link get out of this and get his old body back? What are Queen Zelda's and Invincible's plans to save Princess Zelda? And what of little Zelly anyway? Stay tuned in V1.5: Flower Petals in Your Ear! As always, please review! Questions and comments are always welcome. Ciao. (o'.')o