"You have received a new e-mail from Unknown."
"Fucking spam..." Zak said aloud to himself upon hearing the familiar bleep-bloop of the new e-mail noise. He glanced down to see who it was from. "Unknown?" he wondered. He opened up his e-mail program to see just what this e-mail was about.
The e-mail contained only 2 words. "The tree," it said. He acted confused, but both he and the sender knew what it meant. Deep in the heart of the woods, there was a large gnarled tree that Zak had spent the 1st 14 years of his life loving. He climbed all over every aged knotted branch he could in the mornings, and would spend his afternoons reading under the shade of his tree. He deleted the e-mail, passing it off as a coincidence.
* * *
His alarm blared in his ear. 6 AM. Time to catch the bus. He got up, took a brief shower, packed up his books, and went out the front door, careful not to let the screen door slam. Best to not wake mother up, he thought. Not a morning person, her.
The bus rolled in promptly at 6:45, just as it always did. Every single morning. He had always wanted something to happen to finally bring change into his life, but he knew he was the kind of person that couldn't handle change very well.
The abrupt and indiscreet 'PSSSST' of the bus doors opening jolted him out of his day dreaming. He stepped on the bus, and took his normal seat at the back of the bus as he slipped his earphones on and pressed play.
"But time...its on your side..." he sang to himself as the school bus to Edwin High bumped over the gravel road that he knew too well. "Theres no cause for con(ring)cern...and time, its on yo(ring ring ring)-What the hell is that ringing noise?" he asked the boy that was sitting next to him. He immediately regretted this. The boy looked like hed been underground for several years, pale as a rock and stiff as a stone. "I think its coming from your backpack..." the boy replied feebly. "No, I don't have anything that could be ringing," Zak replied. "Well, its not me."
Zak dug through his backpack, and the ringing grew louder. He unzipped his side pocket, and to his surprise, there was a phone.
His hand trembling, he picked up the phone and looked at the tiny caller ID screen. "Unknown," it blinked. He hit the button to accept the call.
"H-hello?" he said.
"The tree." (click)
The bus came to a stop. He drew the phone from his ear and put it in his lap. Its not possible...he thought. How could the same person who sent me an unknown e-mail put a phone in my backpack...my pack was in my closet all night...
This is where his thinking stopped, as he looked up to notice that the bus driver, Ms. Greene, was towering over him. "Give me the phone," she spouted.
"Its not mine...I don't know how it-"
"Give me the phone," she repeated. He surrendered the phone to her. She pocketed it, and started the bus again.
* * *
His hand whisked across the paper, drawing yet another doodle as his math teacher babbled on.
(knock knock knock)
He looked up to see who it was through the glass paneling on either side of the doos.. Ah, he thought. The campus security, here to give someone lucky another early dismissal.
The man stepped into the classroom and bellowed, "Early dismissal for Zak Madison?"
Zak winced. He hated his last name. His parents had always told him to be proud of his name, since they had had so many great war veterans in the family, but that didn't wipe out the fact that he thought it was a name only to be used normally as a girl's 1st name, and it was for neither a girl or a first name.
He stepped out of his seat, snapping to and wondering why in the world he would be pulled out of school early. He got his books and made his way down to the front office.
"What are you here for?" snapped the woman at the front desk, Mrs. Cobb. He despised her. She had never done anything, as far as Zak was concerned, other than give him detention. "I was told I had an early dismissal..." he mumbled. "Oh, right...wait one second." She crouched down under the desk to look through the shelves of notes left for children. "Here we go..." she frowned. "It says theres nobody here to pick you up...not here, atleast...but it says that there will be someone waiting at the tree. Any idea what that is?" she asked. "Not a clue." He stepped out the front door and left, Mrs. Cobb yelling after him to stay in the office until someone came.
* * *
Here it was. The tree. He cast his pack aside and sat down at the base of the tree. Nobody is coming... he thought. Someones playing a joke on me...im going to be waiting at this stupid tree all day. He started trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together. It must be my mom! That's it...she sent me that e-mail, she put her phone in my backpack and called it from a payphone, and now shes going to pick me up at this damned tree! He laughed. I was concerned over a prank my mom played on me. Hah. Good joke, mom, now come on out so I can get the fuck home.
(crunch crunch)
Someone was coming. He leapt up, expecting to see his mom. But he only say one person, that of whom was definitely not his mom. Standing in front of him was a tall, limber man, mid thirties, with a great beard that he could have very well tucked into his belt if he had wanted to. "Excuse me, but who are you?" Zak asked.
"That's not important. Whats important is you coming with me."
"Are you the one that's been setting all this up? Who are you?"
"My identity is not important. What is important is your identity."
"I know who I am...Im Zak Madison, and im having a prank played on me by some crazy guy with a 3 foot beard..."
"Incorrect. I see you've yet to discover who you really are."
"What are you talking about?" Zak said, yelling now.
"Your name is not Zak Madison. It is Link. You come from a long line of Hyrulian Knights. The world of Hyrule is in trouble. Lord Ganon has razed all of the Hyrulian towns, looking for the princess."
"Link? The princess?"
"Silence...let me explain. Ganon has been in search of the princess. A little over 7 days ago, he started to tire of his vein search for the new daughter of the family of Hyrule...my daughter, and started looking in this world. He found you quickly. He found her quickly and took her into the world of Hyrule. He is now holding her hostage in his tower. I have come to you in need of help-help to save my daughter...Princess Zelda."
"Youre lying. My name is not Link. There isn't any place called hyrule. There is no Princess Zelda, and theres nobody named Ganon..."
"Whether you believe it or not, its true. Youre the only boy in your family currently living. And that means that youre the Hyrulian Knight who is destined to destroy Ganon."
The world was going black. "No..." he moaned. "Its not true...Im Zak Madison....Im Zak Madison...."
"Calm down! I will take you to Hyrule."
"THERE IS NO HYRULE!!!" he screamed. His knees buckled underneath him, and he stumbled back onto the tree.
"Yes, there is. And you are the one chosen to save it."
A veil was dropped over Zak's brain, and he hit the soft ground with a dull thud.
"Fucking spam..." Zak said aloud to himself upon hearing the familiar bleep-bloop of the new e-mail noise. He glanced down to see who it was from. "Unknown?" he wondered. He opened up his e-mail program to see just what this e-mail was about.
The e-mail contained only 2 words. "The tree," it said. He acted confused, but both he and the sender knew what it meant. Deep in the heart of the woods, there was a large gnarled tree that Zak had spent the 1st 14 years of his life loving. He climbed all over every aged knotted branch he could in the mornings, and would spend his afternoons reading under the shade of his tree. He deleted the e-mail, passing it off as a coincidence.
* * *
His alarm blared in his ear. 6 AM. Time to catch the bus. He got up, took a brief shower, packed up his books, and went out the front door, careful not to let the screen door slam. Best to not wake mother up, he thought. Not a morning person, her.
The bus rolled in promptly at 6:45, just as it always did. Every single morning. He had always wanted something to happen to finally bring change into his life, but he knew he was the kind of person that couldn't handle change very well.
The abrupt and indiscreet 'PSSSST' of the bus doors opening jolted him out of his day dreaming. He stepped on the bus, and took his normal seat at the back of the bus as he slipped his earphones on and pressed play.
"But time...its on your side..." he sang to himself as the school bus to Edwin High bumped over the gravel road that he knew too well. "Theres no cause for con(ring)cern...and time, its on yo(ring ring ring)-What the hell is that ringing noise?" he asked the boy that was sitting next to him. He immediately regretted this. The boy looked like hed been underground for several years, pale as a rock and stiff as a stone. "I think its coming from your backpack..." the boy replied feebly. "No, I don't have anything that could be ringing," Zak replied. "Well, its not me."
Zak dug through his backpack, and the ringing grew louder. He unzipped his side pocket, and to his surprise, there was a phone.
His hand trembling, he picked up the phone and looked at the tiny caller ID screen. "Unknown," it blinked. He hit the button to accept the call.
"H-hello?" he said.
"The tree." (click)
The bus came to a stop. He drew the phone from his ear and put it in his lap. Its not possible...he thought. How could the same person who sent me an unknown e-mail put a phone in my backpack...my pack was in my closet all night...
This is where his thinking stopped, as he looked up to notice that the bus driver, Ms. Greene, was towering over him. "Give me the phone," she spouted.
"Its not mine...I don't know how it-"
"Give me the phone," she repeated. He surrendered the phone to her. She pocketed it, and started the bus again.
* * *
His hand whisked across the paper, drawing yet another doodle as his math teacher babbled on.
(knock knock knock)
He looked up to see who it was through the glass paneling on either side of the doos.. Ah, he thought. The campus security, here to give someone lucky another early dismissal.
The man stepped into the classroom and bellowed, "Early dismissal for Zak Madison?"
Zak winced. He hated his last name. His parents had always told him to be proud of his name, since they had had so many great war veterans in the family, but that didn't wipe out the fact that he thought it was a name only to be used normally as a girl's 1st name, and it was for neither a girl or a first name.
He stepped out of his seat, snapping to and wondering why in the world he would be pulled out of school early. He got his books and made his way down to the front office.
"What are you here for?" snapped the woman at the front desk, Mrs. Cobb. He despised her. She had never done anything, as far as Zak was concerned, other than give him detention. "I was told I had an early dismissal..." he mumbled. "Oh, right...wait one second." She crouched down under the desk to look through the shelves of notes left for children. "Here we go..." she frowned. "It says theres nobody here to pick you up...not here, atleast...but it says that there will be someone waiting at the tree. Any idea what that is?" she asked. "Not a clue." He stepped out the front door and left, Mrs. Cobb yelling after him to stay in the office until someone came.
* * *
Here it was. The tree. He cast his pack aside and sat down at the base of the tree. Nobody is coming... he thought. Someones playing a joke on me...im going to be waiting at this stupid tree all day. He started trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together. It must be my mom! That's it...she sent me that e-mail, she put her phone in my backpack and called it from a payphone, and now shes going to pick me up at this damned tree! He laughed. I was concerned over a prank my mom played on me. Hah. Good joke, mom, now come on out so I can get the fuck home.
(crunch crunch)
Someone was coming. He leapt up, expecting to see his mom. But he only say one person, that of whom was definitely not his mom. Standing in front of him was a tall, limber man, mid thirties, with a great beard that he could have very well tucked into his belt if he had wanted to. "Excuse me, but who are you?" Zak asked.
"That's not important. Whats important is you coming with me."
"Are you the one that's been setting all this up? Who are you?"
"My identity is not important. What is important is your identity."
"I know who I am...Im Zak Madison, and im having a prank played on me by some crazy guy with a 3 foot beard..."
"Incorrect. I see you've yet to discover who you really are."
"What are you talking about?" Zak said, yelling now.
"Your name is not Zak Madison. It is Link. You come from a long line of Hyrulian Knights. The world of Hyrule is in trouble. Lord Ganon has razed all of the Hyrulian towns, looking for the princess."
"Link? The princess?"
"Silence...let me explain. Ganon has been in search of the princess. A little over 7 days ago, he started to tire of his vein search for the new daughter of the family of Hyrule...my daughter, and started looking in this world. He found you quickly. He found her quickly and took her into the world of Hyrule. He is now holding her hostage in his tower. I have come to you in need of help-help to save my daughter...Princess Zelda."
"Youre lying. My name is not Link. There isn't any place called hyrule. There is no Princess Zelda, and theres nobody named Ganon..."
"Whether you believe it or not, its true. Youre the only boy in your family currently living. And that means that youre the Hyrulian Knight who is destined to destroy Ganon."
The world was going black. "No..." he moaned. "Its not true...Im Zak Madison....Im Zak Madison...."
"Calm down! I will take you to Hyrule."
"THERE IS NO HYRULE!!!" he screamed. His knees buckled underneath him, and he stumbled back onto the tree.
"Yes, there is. And you are the one chosen to save it."
A veil was dropped over Zak's brain, and he hit the soft ground with a dull thud.
