Chapter Nine

Ancient Evil Get Thee Hence

The girl sat on the stone platform, thinking about what the dream had asked. Find the forbidden scrolls . . . why? Zelda had always told her to face her fears and now she wished she had. She sighed as a gray fog began to roll in around her. The sun was slowly rising in the sky, blotted out by the fogginess. Why, oh, why did she have to do this? And Zelda was not there to help her through it! How small she felt, wishing she could just bawl like a small child. At least she didn't have to go all alone.

She looked over at Link and snorted. He was one of the oddest people she had ever met. He was . . . well, it was hard to say. Link was plenty good with a sword, which he had demonstrated on two separate occasions. He was quite handsome, even if he was an annoying brat at times. Yet his eyes had seen too much pain for a youth like him. He began to mumble something like "At it . . at it . . . at it . ."

She let loose some giggles. One good thing about him was he made her laugh once in a while, making her happy. The sun was rising higher and she decided it a good time to wake him. She softly kissed him on the cheek. Nothing. A bit offended, she jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. He winced and rolled over, still unconscious. This time she kicked him over onto his face. As a small rock scratched his nose, he woke. He sat up and rubbed the abused spot. "What are you trying to do?" he demanded, not knowing that she had kissed him.

"Getting you up," she said, silently adding, What else? He scowled at her.

"Well, next time don't be so rough," he said stretching.

"Fine. But for now we need to get going." Link moaned. He still thought that this was a crazy idea, going to the palace and all. And what if that boulder had been moved? Well, at least they had some idea of what they were doing now. He got up and followed her.

-*-*-*-*-

Link walked up towards the main gate of the palace. Darn, he thought. Jack was the nicest guard, didn't ask too many questions, and always let Link in, no problem. Today, there was another guard and from the looks of him, he wasn't very nice. Oh, well. Just why today? He continued forward, the guard taking no notice, when he was jerked back by a small hand.

"What do you think your doing?" demanded the green eyed girl. She pulled Link around a corner by a large, thick vine crawling up the wall.

"Asking the guard to open the gate, what else?" He stared at her, as if she were a foreigner.

"You don't just expect the guard to let you in, do you? Who do you think you are? The king or something?" She began to climb the vines. Link followed, only to oblige her. When they reached the top, her pulled her down onto the lush grass.

"Why can't we just use the gate?" he asked her, "I never use this way anymore." Her mouth dropped open, and she looked stunned.

"You use the gate?" she said, after a very awkward pause.

"Of course, didn't you?" Then it hit him. Of course! he said, mentally slapping himself. Zelda's parent's wouldn't want her being with commoners. This last comment made him smile. He used to be, before he saved Hyrule. "They never knew, did they?" he said quietly. "Her parents? You snuck behind their backs for years?" She nodded, looking very curious.

"And you didn't?"

"Well," he paused, looking away. At first he had wanted to tell her all about how he was the Hero of Time and had saved Hyrule. Now for some reason, he didn't want to. "I was sent here before we became friends." At least he was telling the truth. The Great Deku Tree had sent him here.

"Why?" This was going to hurt. How could he tell her that the person she thought just to be another commoner was really the hero of this land? She had to know. Yet, something was dragging him back.

"I was called here to save Hyrule," he blurted out before he could stop himself. For a moment she looked as if she hadn't heard what he'd said. Then her brilliant green eyes opened in surprise.

"Y-y-y-ou . . . .what?" she said, spluttering. She remained silent as she stared at him, looking him over. "How? Is this your idea of a joke?" Link shook his head slightly. "But th-that's just impossible!"

"No, it isn't," said Link soothingly, " I am the Hero of Time." She laughed. He actually expected her to believe that?!? What kind of a nut was he anyway? The Hero of Time was said to be a man, who had saved all of Hyrule. One being to hold the Courage of the Triforce, to hold the Ocarina of Time, to hold the . . . she froze as a long blade was held within an inch of her nose.

She looked up to see Link, holding it out to her. He was staring at the uppermost end of it, close to the handle. Her green eyes followed where his went and she saw it. The mark of the Triforce. The design was cut so perfectly, so smooth, so . . . elegantly that it wasn't earthly or manmade. Only the Hero of Time could wield it. Only Link . . . . . . . .

She looked up into his eyes and saw, not a hero, but a friend. "So you are," she murmured. Link nodded and sheathed his sword again. The girl stood up very slowly, and they began to climb down the vines, Link strolling along and his friend in a half daze.

-*-*-*-*-

"I just can't believe it," she said, "I mean, I have been traveling with the Hero of Time!" Link had been telling her about all of his adventures in Hyrule, and about, well, his whole life. She was quite amazed at everything her had done, risking his life for Hyrule. Over all she was astonished, but not enough to treat him differently.

After that, they went to see their majesties and tell them what they had found out. Or rather, Link told them and the name-less girl stood shyly in the corner, watching and smiling when mentioned. By the time this was done, it was dark and the queen was sending servants to prepare rooms for their guests and bring them some supper.

The girl was so fascinated by the room, that she hadn't time to snap at the servants, as they helped her into a light cotton night gown. The bed was so soft! She had never had this much comfort in her life. The room was very tall and roomy. A window was open letting a cool breeze pass the translucent curtains. There was a small dresser with a wash basin and pitcher, a wardrobe of clothes and . . . a shelves upon shelves of books! She ran over to them and began rummaging through the shelves for a likely title.

In the little time she had had her father, he had taught her to read. Books were so wonderful and fascinating to her. Her favorite had been about a deadly pirate in search of a buried treasure on the island Gosume, and he had found a race of people, hidden under a waterfall with all of the treasure. Her hand passed an old brown book in a language foreign to her.

As she flipped the pages, she saw pictures of fantastical creatures, some of which Link had tried to describe to her. Absorbed, she sat on the bed, looking at the pictures over and over again. A very ghostly looking creature that was holding a lantern, a cylinder of oily-colored goop, a Wolfos she recognized, and a strange creature that had a very commanding gaze. It was like the shadow of a horse, a horn on top that shone blue, yet it's body was black and misty, almost not there, and eyes that were a menacing violet. Her eyes slowly drooped as she kept staring at the creature, wondering what it could be.

-*-*-*-*-

Link woke from a very peaceful dream. Then, he looked outside and almost keeled over. The sun was up and going for noonday. He quickly pulled on his freshly-cleaned tunic and ran to the dining room, where he hoped there was still some breakfast.

He entered the room and found the king and queen talking to a very pretty young girl. It took him a while to realize that this was his new friend. Link had never seen her wear a dress, for one thing. And her hair had been done in a braid, twined with gold ribbon, flowing over her hair. He gaped at her, his mouth hanging open.

The king was the first to notice he had entered the room. "Well, don't just stand there like a codfish boy! Come over here and get some food in you." Link slowly sat down next to his transformed friend. She seemed a bit nervous and agitated from the look on her face. I suppose she doesn't like to wear dresses, he thought, nibbling a bit of toast.

The meal was a bit tense, the thought of sleeping Zelda looming over them, and so it ended quickly. The king and queen told a gardener to help them find their way around and then left. Link was still a bit uncomfortable with the way his friend looked, but tried to think about what would be in there, under that rock.

"S'pose y're look'n fer that big ol' rock then," said the old gardener. "Been try'n ta get 'em to lemme move it fer years." He led them down a long passageway of bushes twice as tall as them, past a fountain with cupid on it, through a small court yard with white stone floors, and into a grove a trees. Inside was the boulder, moss-covered and smooth from erosion.

"I'll leave ya ter do what'efer it tis y're goin' ter do," and with that, he left the two teenagers alone in the circlet of trees.

"So," said Link, "how exactly do you open this thing?"

"See this patch of moss?" she said pointing, "Lift it up." Link pulled it away fairly easily and was surprised. A large purple gem lay underneath. "What am I suppose to do with that?" he asked, fiddling with his cap.

"You press it dummy!" she said a bit apprehensive. "Honestly! Can't you even figure that out? I don't know how you got through those temples, but . . ." She sighed as Link pressed his hand on it. Nothing happened. "Here," she said, putting her hand on his and pressing. She ignored the warm, strange sensation that she felt as she did this.

They heard a scraping sound and the boulder began to move, small bits of rock remaining where it had been. Just as she had said, there was a spiral staircase, leading down from it.

"Ladies first," said Link, smiling. The girl tossed her hair in his face, whipping his cheek, and descended down the stairs. It gradually got darker as they went until Link shot a fire arrow at one of the torches. "Always be prepared," he said as the girl collected herself from the shock.

After what seemed like an eternity, they reached the bottom. The room was small and smelled musty and a bit like mothballs. There was a bed, with a black trunk at the bottom, a fireplace and a small chest of drawers. All of the furniture was very old and worn. Leading off from the room was a single door, barred with a wooden latch.

"Where are we suppose to go now?" he asked, as the girl opened the black trunk, sending out a large cloud of dust.

"Nowhere," said the girl, rummaging through the trunk. Link was puzzled by this. "Um, did I just hear you say nowhere?" he said, as she pulled out a pile of cloth.

"Not until I get out of these ridiculous clothes!" She moved towards the bed and shut all the curtains. Link sighed and decided to look around the room for a while and found nothing else, except more clothes in the trunk. When his friend finally came out, she was wearing a tunic and some breeches, both a brilliant red. Her hair was still in the previous style, but Link felt much relieved. His friend was just another girl when she wore a dress.

"I guess we can go," she said a bit hoarse. She pulled up the wooden latch and the door swung open into a dark tunnel. Link stepped in after her and carried the light with them. The tunnel was dark and damp, water dripping off the earth walls. The light of their torch was reflecting off of small puddles on the floor, the walls dancing in the silver light. Link stopped.

"Which way do we go?" he asked. There were two tunnels as their own separated.

"Well, umm," she said, twisting one of her fingers. Link felt his stomach sink. She was suppose to know where to go! "I think we should go that way," she declared, pointing at the left tunnel. "If you say so," said Link, and they started down that tunnel.

It seemed as if they were going in circles and they came to four more junctions, the girl sounding more lost each time. Their light was growing dimmer and would go out soon. Link looked at the bit of tunnel he could see and there was still nothing but blackness ahead of them. Concentrating, he stumbled on a rock and the torch fell into a pool of water, extinguishing it

"Well, now you've done it!" exclaimed a voice, "Now we'll never find our way!" Not like it matters, thought Link, We were lost anyway. They continued ahead for what seemed like years until . . . .

SMACK!

"Ouch!" yelled Link. He had hit a very solid piece of wall, not even earth.

"Great! You found the door!" She walked ahead and fumbled around for the latch. Yeah, great, thought Link sarcastically. Behind the door was a large wall of trees, a small dirt path barely visible, was winding its way around the trees. It was like a miniature forest, only underground. They followed it and the trees began to thin out after a quarter of an hour. They came to a clearing at the edge of the woods and Link's mouth dropped open in wonder.

It was a marvelous sight. It was like a city underground. Light was pouring in through the solid ceiling somehow; trees that looked like umbrellas with twisted canes; flowers of every kind; small circular buildings with a window and a small triangular door; and temples of crystal, crumbling with pillars about to collapse in.

"How does it do that?" asked Link, looking at the ceiling.

"I don't know," said the girl, walking down a cobblestone path. "I think some of the Tredess's wizards did it."

"Tredess?"

"The people who used to live here," she said, not even looking back at him. "The Goddess people, the Tredess."

"How much do you know about them," he asked, stumbling a lot while looking at everything.

"Well I only know how they got here and why they were here." She paused, pulling a blue piece of fruit from a nearby tree. "Catch." Link stared at the strange fruit. It looked like a bunch of grapes inside a skin. He took a small bite and then took another. It was delicious, a twist of mango and kiwi, but with as many seeds as a pomegranate. He ate it, or rather spit seeds, while she talked.

"In old times, there were some people who were more in-tune with the powers of the Goddesses. They were getting bigger and better ideas, but many were afraid. They were cast away from everyone and left to find a new place to live. They built this underground city and began to make records of magical plants, spells, messages from the Goddesses, and their history. They named themselves the Tredess people and have lived here ever since."

"So what," Link spit some seeds, "happened to them?"

"Well, I don't know exactly," she said, pausing. "The last record was written very fast, quite hard to read, and it was a monster or something that they had created. It was made for good, but I guess it got out of control or something."

"So are you saying that this monster killed them all?" Link had finished the fruit and was stunned by her casual way of saying this. A whole race of people had died!

"I don't know for sure!" she said, getting impatient. "It isn't like the Pyist scrolls tell you everything!"

"Umm, Pie-ist?"

"The Phyist Temple scrolls, their history!" It was so annoying to explain it all to him!

"Oh, right. So why did Zelda want us to go here? What good will it do?"

"Weren't you listening to me? They have records of magical plants they found. Maybe they know something about the one that did this to her." She stopped again, looking at the road. "This way," she muttered, and started down one path. Link tried to take another path but found he bounced back, like off an invisible wall. "This is why you need to follow me. The next set is worse." Link was sure he didn't want to find out what it was, but silently followed her.

As their journey continued, she pointed out the many temples to him and what they were for. The Miclarn, used for storing messages sent by the goddesses; the temple of Queck, the forces of the Earth, weather and other natural things ; the Vajgi, a large temple for spells; Cundrook, for apprentices to learn from their masters and practice their skills; and last the Kusmi, used for the bathing of tears ritual.

Still they walked, the sky never changing, and the village as silent as ever. The green eyed girl stopped in front of a very different looking temple. All the others had been of a pure white stone, crystal, or a pearly azure. This temple was a rough cut building, black ivy vines engulfing half of its bulk. The others had sent out rays of singing light, while this was sending out, if anything, a haze of coldness.

"This is Fantson, the temple of magical plants and herbs."

"We have to go in there?" he asked, looking at her.

"It's the only way," she said shakily. They both stood there for a moment and finally stepped inside the doorway. It was again total darkness and they had no torch. Link began to stumble forward, tripping over a rock and hitting what felt like a chair in the process. Suddenly, he heard a loud snap, which echoed throughout the temple. A light shone from behind him, as the girl walked over to him, carrying what looked like a large stalk of bamboo. It was a long stick with fire shooting out of the top, yet the stick never burned.

"One of their magical plants," she said, seeing his amazed look, "We keep a lot of these at the entrance of each temple, just incase."

They moved down a corridor with many small desks or tables accompanied by a chair, some quills and parchment. At the end were two heavy doors which swung open before they could be touched. Inside was another writing table and many other tables with plants of all sorts, glass bottles of liquid, tongs, and many other things Link didn't know about.

"What is all this?" asked Link, reaching for a small bottle of amber liquid.

"Don't touch that!" she yelled and pulled his hand away.

"What?" he said. He had barely touched the bottle with his little finger before she had pulled it away. He took a second look at it and stepped back. The liquid was shooting out of the top and everything it touched was melting; the tables, chairs, other bottles, tubes, even the floor.

"Sorry," he mumbled, as the girl reached for a similar bottle with an acid green liquid inside. It reacted the same except it restored all the damage.

"You had better be more careful," she snapped. They continued through many sets of doors, none containing any scrolls or writings. Finally after about three hours, they opened the door to a huge room filled with nothing but scrolls. They had been scattered all over the floor, in various heaps and messy stacks.

"Alright," said the girl, "might as well get started." Her voice was still a bit quavery, but she felt a lot better. This temple sure had looked scary, but there was nothing to be afraid of in here. Now she wondered why these scrolls had been forbidden.

The two of them set to work, looking through every scroll, trying to find a likely sentence or paragraph.

"Here's one. Many plants can be dangerous and harmful to humans, however most of them have no cure. Well, that doesn't help us!"

"Hey, I think found one! Berligo, the master planter, has discovered a very strange plant. It has the power to make anyone who smells it fall asleep forever. Now we must find a cure to protect ourselves. Berligo has chosen it's name to be the Siesta Flower. Must have been when they first discovered it."

"Here's an interesting one. Our experiments have been proved correct in their theory. We may have discovered the key for turning plants into animals they resemble. Testing this process will be very carefully monitored and small. Nothing is to be hurt. When we have reached a conclusion that it does work, we will be able to test it on more complex plants. Our hope is to find a cure for the one plant we cannot destroy, the Siesta Flower."

"Why would turning the plants into animals help them?" asked the girl.

"I don't know," said Link, thoughtfully. He put down his scroll and reached for another, but as he did a small flicker of blue caught his eye. Turning to see what it was, Link saw a shadowy corner. Shaking his head, he turned back to the scrolls. Yet again, he saw the flicker, this time purple.

"Did you see that?" he whispered.

"See what?" she asked looking up.

"Never mind," he mumbled. He must be seeing things. Then he heard something worse. A low, evil sound was filling the air. It was a growl yet it was tinkling like glass, so soft he could barely hear it yet it seemed to fill his very being with volume that pained him. He slowly looked up to see a dim pair of purple gems gleaming in midair with a long silver-blue horn above it.

"Oh, Link I think I found the next part," she exclaimed, not noticing what he was looking at, or hearing the sound. "We have been successful in changing plants into animals. Today we have tested the Siesta flower. It has turned into a strange mythical creature that we have found only in ancient scrolls of the first beings of this land. It appears to be a shadow of a horse with eyes and horn that glow violet and blue, translating to the colors of the petals. It is tame for us, yet seems to want freedom from it's cage. We fear we may never find a cure." The girl sighed heavily. "It was so close," she said. She sat down her scroll and picked up another. When Link didn't answer, she turned around.

"What in the world--," and then she froze. In the back corner of the room was the very creature she had just described, as well as seen in the old brown book. It stepped out of the shadows, itself being a shadow, pulling the darkness with it. It's eyes narrowed and it bent it's head, the horn pointing menacingly at them.

"On the count of three, run. I'll hold it off." Link was staring at the creature, hate filling his eyes.

"I can't leave you," she said, her voice almost unheard.

"You have to get out of here. I'm the hero remember? I can handle this. One, two, three!" The girl leapt to her feet and began to run. The creature ran towards her, but Link blocked it with his sword, the metal scraping the horn, sending sparks flying out. It turned towards him, it's eyes reduced to slits and charged. Link did a back flipped to get away and for the first time, wished Navi was there to help him. The beast charged again, this time cutting Link's side, and he winced. It felt as though an acid tipped sword had cut him. He sliced at it with his sword, but miraculously, it didn't work. The sword had slipped right through the creature, as if it weren't there.

"Uh oh," said Link. Annoyed with the sword, it charged again, this time cornering Link. He jumped away just in time and the blue horn went ramming into the wall. The horn fused with the stone, holding the creature. It struggled, making the low, vile moaning louder than before. Link had to cover his ears, the sound was so painful. He had to do something!

He began to try different weapons on the beast, while his wound grew deeper and the horn began to break free of the wall. Nothing affected it. They all went through it. Link finally resorted to his magical attacks, grimacing with agony. He used a spin attack. Nothing. An ice arrow. Nothing. A fire arrow. Again, nothing. Was this creature invincible? He shot a light arrow and the beast reared in the air, pulling it's horn free, breaking some of the stone. So, it's weak to light, thought Link smugly, holding his bleeding side as he ran through the doorway, locking the door.

A loud crash hit it as a blue spike went through the door burning it. He pulled a light arrow ready to fire. The door shattered, leaving pieces of blue-hot wood littered on the floor. Link released the arrow and it hit the shadows chest. Again it reared, this time leaping towards it's foe. Turning, he ran as the beast thundered behind him, gaining speed. The doors flung open as before and he was let out into the light of the city of the Tredess.

"Your safe!" yelled his teary-eyed friend. She ran towards him and hugged him. Link was a bit startled by this, but grabbed her hand and ran as fast as he could, blood spattering the cobblestones as they went. "We've got to get out of here," he said, not looking back. They were getting closer to the forest, the agonizing sound growing fainter and Link dared to look back.

The creature was staggering as it tried to run after them, as though it's leg were broken. Link saw it as it collapsed on the ground a few feet from them, taking in great shuddering breaths, it's life almost gone. He pulled back an arrow and sent it at the beast. It writhed and the moaning grew so intense that Link and the girl were absolutely screaming in pain from it

It grew quiet and they both looked towards the body of the beast. It was sinking into the ground, the horn was evaporating but the eyes grew more vivid, larger. Soon only those mesmerizing eyes were all that was left and they stared at them, suddenly growing larger and larger ...

"Run!" The eyes were shooting at them, chasing them into the forest. They ran as fast as they could until they reached the wooden door. Link pulled it open and then slammed it shut. The outside of the door was smoking and then is finally burned through. Two eyes had been branded into the door as a mark to remember what had happened here. Link grinned as he sat down, the pain in his side too much for him to stand, not realizing that the second vision had come true.