Aria: Hello everyone! How was everything while I was handling time shifts?
Anri: Farore freaked Tiana out last chapter by eating a lot of things in
one mouthful, Lady Aria.
Farore: What? I was hungry.
Aria: *sweat drops* Now, I'm scared.
Anri: Lady Aria, if I may, can I ask about the voice in the witch's mirror?
Aria: Sure. Well, remember how Nabooru said that the witch had a magical
mirror in chapter thirty-three? Well, the mirror has the power to talk as
well and it seems to have picked up on the witch's rather distasteful
attitude.
Tiana: That explains a lot.
Farore: Where are Din, Nayru, and Twister? I haven't seen any of them
lately.
Aria: Ah, well, Nayru is still attempting to teach Twister and Din, um, had
an allergic reaction and she's still recovering.
Tiana: What happened?
Aria: Vitamin C overdose. I had to get someone to pump her stomach. She
can't touch another orange for the rest of her existence, though.
Tiana: Oh dear!
Aria: She's okay. But, she's upset she can't have her favorite food
anymore.
Kaepora: Can we just get on with the bloody story so I can sleep for
another bleeping day?!
Aria: You don't need to be cross, Kaepora. Go and do the disclaimers.
Kaepora: Finally. Aria Zephyr is the authoress and owner of this story.
She does not own the Legend of Zelda games, their characters, and etc.
Aria: Finally, in this chapter we learn where the Hero of Time is and Zelda
saves her hero! Sweet romantic moment ahead! Enjoy!

Chapter 39: Within the World of the Dark Void

Zelda felt as if she was falling. Not, falling as if from a cliff, just
falling; always and eternally falling. She had felt a sharp pain when she
had begun to think about Link, but it had ended quickly. She didn't know
why.

She eventually, or so it seemed, landed. She got to her feet and tried
looking around her. Everything was completely and totally dark. It was
very frightening, really. There was also an unwelcoming chill that the
place possessed.

Ignoring these discomforts, Zelda started walking. At first, she had
minded the chill and the darkness, but as she walked blindly on, she didn't
mind them so much. However, very soon, that changed.

Zelda was hit by something. Not physically; it just felt like something
was nearby and whatever it was it had extreme power. Zelda walked in the
direction the feeling had come from and was sucked into something very like
a nightmare.

She heard a thunderous screech and she turned her head to see the Helmaroc
King bearing down upon her. She ducked, but wasn't quick enough.
Strangely, the bird's claws passed straight through her and kept going.

She blinked in astonishment until she heard the terrified cry of a young
girl. She looked and saw the bird snatch up a girl with blond hair kept in
two short, braided pigtails. The Helmaroc King and Aryll vanished.

She then saw Link's grandmother, sitting in a chair. Zelda thought this
was odd until she approached the old woman and saw that she was very sick.
Just like before, she too vanished.

Then, she saw, bizarrely, an image of herself, vanishing in a flash of
light.

Finally, she found herself on the beach at Outset Island. There was a wild
thunderstorm out and the wind and rain was blinding. She saw a boat,
carrying a man and a woman, on the far side of the island. They seemed to
be heading for a small dark shape near them. The other boat sailed back to
the village, but a giant wave caught the boat with the man and the woman on
it and slammed it straight into the rocks nearby.

That was when Zelda realized what the spell was doing. She realized that
it was tormenting Link with his worst memories; the memories where he
nearly or did lose someone he cared about. When she came to this
realization, she could hear a voice nearby. She ran towards the sounds and
saw Link standing there.

Just as she tried to run to him, something stopped her and she looked up.
Ganondorf stood before her, leering at her with a terrible smile. He was
giant sized. Zelda stumbled back in horror and he smiled more widely.

"What's the matter, Princess Zelda? Afraid?" he boomed. She didn't reply
and backed away. "Oh, do I scare you? Your precious hero must not be
worth more than your fear, then," he mocked. Zelda looked around him and
saw that Link had a look of terror that matched her own.

"That's where you're wrong!" she called to the laughing giant. He stopped
his laughter and said, "What was that?" "I don't care about my fear. The
only thing worse than anything you could inflict is if I left Link when he
needed help the most willingly!" she yelled. Ganondorf's face twisted and
he vanished.

Zelda immediately ran to Link. "Link! It's me! Zelda!" she called. He
looked at her and blinked in surprise. "I was so worried about you!" she
said, throwing her arms around him and hugging him for all she was worth.
She could feel tears of relief coming to her eyes, but she didn't care.

Gently, she felt Link return the hug. "Where were you? After I was
kidnapped, I thought you might have been hurt," he whispered into her ear.
"I'm not sure what I could call that place, but all I wanted was to see you
again, safe," she replied, her eyes shining. He brushed a tear away from
her cheek and said, "I wish you wouldn't cry; I'd hate to think I made you
cry." "Don't worry; I'm just glad to see you," she replied, resting her
head on his chest.

"This is impossible! What are you doing here, you royal wench! You're
ruining everything!" a terrible voice said. Both Link and Zelda looked and
saw a dream version of the witch standing there. She stomped up to them,
her face contorted in rage. "You brat! How dare you ruin my perfect
plan!" she screamed at Zelda.

Before she could move, the dream witch grabbed Zelda by her hair and pulled
her away from Link. "You'll pay for this! You'll never leave this world!"
the witch shrieked. "I don't think so," Link said. The dream witch
glanced up and was struck by a light arrow. The force and magic from the
arrow shoved her back and she let go of Zelda.

Link ran to her and helped her up. "Are you okay?" he asked. "I'll be all
right. Thanks," Zelda replied, smiling. "You.little brats," the dream
witch snarled feebly. "Don't you ever hurt her again, do you hear me? If
you do, you'll regret it," Link said to her, his eyes burning with anger.

"You still won't leave this place alive. Not with me still here," the
dream witch said. "I beg to differ," Zelda said, "This world is not much
more than a dream and you are a dream too." "You won't get away. Even if
this place isn't real, you won't live much longer in the real world," the
dream witch said. "We'll see about that," Zelda said, readying herself for
an attack of Din's fire.

"Link, let's both attack her on the count of three and let's end this bad
dream!" she said. Link nodded and nocked a new arrow to his bow. "One,
two, three!" they counted and they released their attacks. "YOU WRETCHED
BRATS!" the dream witch screamed and she was gone.

The void twisted and churned with her end. "Now what?" Link cried as the
place rippled. "Now that the main part of the spell had been destroyed,
the rest of it is collapsing!" Zelda said. With a sharp jerk and the sound
of something shattering, the spell ended.

The princess was still watching the unmoving bodies of Link and Zelda.
Their spirits still hadn't returned! Just then, suddenly, Zelda's eyes
blinked and recovered their brightness. Link groaned and squeezed his eyes
closed. "How long were my eyes open like that?" he mumbled.

Zelda lifted her head and rubbed her eyes slightly. "Ugh, my head," Zelda
said, putting a hand to it. "Is that were the dream hurt you? I thought
that wouldn't have any effect here," Link asked. "No, I just moved too
quickly," Zelda reassured him. He pushed himself up on his elbows and made
an attempt at sitting up.

"You're all right! I was almost worried that you wouldn't make it back!"
the princess said, capturing their attention. Zelda smiled at her, but
Link was staring in confusion. "Tet-I mean, Zelda, who is that?" he asked.
"That's my ancestor; she helped me get here," Zelda said.

"Are you a ghost, ma'am?" he asked. "No, just a spirit whose time out of
her place is waning," the princess said. "What do you mean by that?" Zelda
asked. The princess smiled sadly and said, "If you haven't noticed, I'm
starting to fade. I can only stay outside of the Land for so long and I'm
pushing my limits."

"But, you can't go now! We still don't know were the Hero of Time is!"
Zelda said. "No, we don't. He's inside that bottle on the shelf," Link
said. Zelda stared at him in shock and he gave her a sheepish look. "He
kinda tried to hide it from me, but I guessed right in the end. He kept me
company when I was lonely," he explained.

"That's wonderful, but I must tell you two something before I leave!" the
princess said. They both stopped talking and looked at her. She took a
breath and said, "The witch has the Triforce of Power, giving her,
obviously, a great deal of it. She is very strong right now. You must
find something pure that is stronger than power itself. When you do, the
witch will be destroyed and her spirit sent to the Evil Realm. That is
all. Good-bye and good luck to you." She vanished.

Tiana: Oh, that's so sweet! He was worried about her!
Anri: I must say, however brief the moment, it shows that Link obviously
cares about Zelda.
Aria: Personally, I love that scene.
Farore: When are they gonna kiss?
Aria: Not yet! They don't even know if they're in love or not! You're
jumping ahead, Farore.
Farore: Sorry. What happens next?
Aria: I'm posting three chapters today and you're not satisfied? I can't
tell you what happens now!
Farore: Darn. I was hoping I could make you tell.
Aria: Tough luck. You gotta wait like everybody else. Except Tiana and
Anri, that is. They're allowed to read chapters I've already written that
no one else has seen.
Farore: WHY???????
Aria: Because, they're excellent helpers and they don't blab. Okay! What
does everyone think so far! Don't get the idea that the adventure is
ending too soon! There's still one very big problem left: the witch!
Until next time, read and review! Bye! Anri, you can visit your master
and brother now.
Anri: Really?!! Thank you! *flies off*
Aria: I love it when my helpers are happy. ^_________________^!!!!!!