Chapter 21: Some Things Recovered and Some Things Lost

Being unconscious left Maiku to think about, reflect on, and remember things for a while; mainly remembering how his life was before at home. He was an unpopular person who didn't have much friends, he hung out with a group that was mostly lively but some where quiet. He was usually moody and didn't talk very much. He had lived in a city in the middle of a valley called Temecula for nearly five years; before he moved to that city, he lived somewhere else for seven years of his life but he couldn't remember where he had lived before that for the first five years of his life.

He remembered his family though not very clearly. His memory was starting to erase itself starting with memories of his family. He could remember that his mother was usually mentally abusive, usually giving him a hard time for everything that he did and usually putting him down for it. His father, on the other hand, was like a kid and was usually there to give him support whenever he was depressed.

But now, no one was there to give him support. Ruto was gone and thought that he was dying, hanging up on that overgrown tree root bleeding to death with the Zora's Sapphire at the bottom of Zora's Fountain along with the bodies of hundreds of Zoras. He was weak; he couldn't protect them from Ganondorf. This weakness caused him to lose someone dear to his now confused heart; Ruto, his newlywed wife, the beautiful Ruto was now dead and he was dangling on the root, bleeding to his death.

*                                              *                                              *

He was surprised to find himself waking up away from Zora's Domain and was instead in the river; the face of a young boy of about ten years old with blond hair and cerulean eyes was peering down at him when he woke up. He tried to piece together what was happening but he decided it was too much so returned the gaze. Finally, the boy spoke, "You're alive!" he said.

Maiku tried to get up but felt pain rip through his entire body.

"No, don't try to get up, Maiku." He heard a tiny familiar voice say to him, "It'll only make the pain worse, just rest."

"N…. Na… vi…?" he weakly pieced the word together

"Yes, it's me."

"And I'm Link." He heard the young boy say, "I thought you were a goner like the other Zoras back there… I heard about what you had done back in Kokiri Forest and Death Mountain from Navi here. I must say, you are quite amazing, I wish I could be as brave and adventurous as you someday…"

You will, Link… Maiku thought to himself …as long as nothing bad happens to you. "If you… wish that you were so brave and adventurous like me…" he said, "Then why did you come all the way up to Zora's Domain to help me?"

"I was… wandering around Kokiri Forest and Navi came to me to be my fairy."

"I was mistaken that I was destined to be your fairy, Maiku." Navi said, "I guessed that I was wrong when I wasn't strong enough to tell you when I suspected it."

"Well... I have what you were really supposed to be after, not me…" Maiku said, carefully opening his satchel, taking out the Spiritual Stones of Forest and Fire, "I suppose that you probably found the Spiritual Stone of Water when you found me, right?"

"Yes." Link replied as he took the jewels from Maiku, "But…"

"But…?"

"Aren't I supposed to have a fourth component?"

"The Ocarina of Time…?"

"Yeah."

"How did you know about that?"

"Navi told me."

"Oh… yeah. But Zelda has the Ocarina of time; I only have my black ocarina."

"Am I to see her?"

"Yes, go now; before something bad happens to you."

"What do you mean?"

"You might run into Ganondorf like I did."

"I should be fine."

Hm… if Ganondorf pursues Zelda and Impa when Link gets the Ocarina of Time then maybe I can get the Triforce before he does. He thought to himself. "Are you sure you'll be fine?" he asked

"Yeah."

"Alright, go on."

"What about you?"

"I'll be fine, I've gone through worse." He glanced at Navi, "By the way, Navi…"

"Yes?" she replied

"How did you survive being eaten by that fish?"

"Oh, I wasn't digested or chewed up when it swallowed me; besides, when you killed it I was freed."

"Understandable. Okay you can go."

"Perhaps we'll see you later then, Maiku." Link said as he started to walk away

"… Yeah… see ya…" Yeah… see you hell, Link... or in seven years… which ever comes first… He thought to himself, I'll just wait until Ganondorf rides off, then I'll get the Triforce instead of him…

He waited until Link and Navi were out of sight and when they were, he sat up and searched around in his satchel for the other mask and his ocarina. He found both and took them out, resting them beside him. He picked up the ocarina and started to play a song that he remembered could probably help him to take the mask off. He tried to piece together the notes of the Song of Healing which was featured in the events after Ocarina of Time. 

His face felt as though it were being ripped off by unseen hands as he played the last note of the song. His body began to steam and feel as though it where burning inside and out as his physical and internal aspects of his Zora body was transforming itself into his human self. He began to breathe hard as the back his head began to reduce in size and the fin shrank away, his fish scales slowly and painfully changed into human skin, his feet became normal like a human's; once again, his eyes dissolved from his eye sockets and his normal human eyes came out, his hair sprouted from his head, and all other portions of human anatomy restored themselves.

He fell unconscious as the whole process ended.

*                                  *                                  *

He awoke to find himself human, naked, and lying in the river. Wh- Where am I…?  he thought to himself as he glanced around, realizing that he was completely nude and with a body that matched his age, seventeen years old, and he was still in the same body shape he was in when he was a Zora with small but powerful muscles.

I wonder if Ganondorf has already met up with Link….

He stood up and took a dark crimson tunic and black pants from out of the satchel which was now something like an old back pack, which he found strange that it transformed along with him, but he didn't really complain for it; he had clothes!

He dressed, put his ocarina in the pack, picked up the other mask which was lying beside him, and he walked out towards Hyrule Field.

He approached the gate to Hyrule Town Market, and he saw the ending result of Link meeting Ganondorf. He stood there for a while and didn't notice Link and Navi going away from the gate.

Well... I've got to see what this can do to me, what else do I have to lose?