The Crossing of the Paths
By MMM/AJ
Part III: Of Darkness and Light

A/N: Like Part II, I plan on posting this one in chunks as well. If I were to wait to post the whole of Part III, it would be over a year before you heard from me again! I plan on making this Part just as long as Part II, if not LONGER. You heard me, longer! Hard to believe? Summer is coming soon, and once we reach the end of May I will be able to at least double my writing speed. At least, if I don't get too lazy. Then you can feel free to wail on me all you want. In the mean time, things will be as slow as ever.

Prologue

Five years have passed since that fateful day when the Empires fell. Despite the horrible catastrophe that was averted, many Gerudos still died. Having lived off of food stolen from the Imperial towers, hundreds of Gerudos suddenly found themselves without a way to live. There was only one path left for the scattered Gerudos, an idea so unheard of for thousands of years that many refused to accept it; they had to leave the desert. They salvaged what was left in the remains of the towers and went their separate paths.

Traveling together, the Red and Blue tribes were able to recover Imperial hover cars and put them to use. They packed all their food and accompanied by Mewtwo, moved South. Hadara remembered tales of a rich swamp in the far south, so she rallied them to leave. Only eight villagers out of both tribes were missing.

The Green Tribe to the North was never heard from again. Through their travels to the south, the unified Red and Blue Gerudos met up with the Southern dwelling Yellow Tribe. The Yellow Gerudos were in a state of panic and disarray, without food and water many of them were starving to death. The Red and Blue Gerudos offered places in their wagons and food from their dwindling stockpile. The remaining Yellow Gerudos gladly accepted.

It was almost a month after they had initially fled that the Gerudos finally found the Southern border of the Vile Desert. A great looming mountain marked the transition between desert and swampland, and the stolen hover cars easily traversed the rocky slopes of the snow covered peak. As they reached the pinnacle in the frigid air, the great marshlands stretched out before them for hundreds of miles. Rich with vegetation and life, it was an awe inspiring sight for the Gerudos; a new hope was blossoming for them.

Now, five years later, the new hope had blossomed forth into a wonderful life. The Gerudos had flourished, clearing a section of swampland and building a small city in the elapsed time. The swamp provided everything they needed, including food, water, and building materials. The rusted hulks of the now useless hover cars lay as a monument on the edge of the Gerudo town, half dissolved by the richly moist swampland air.

Since the merging of the Red, Blue and Yellow tribes, the Gerudos ceased to think of themselves as of one color. Separate leadership for each of the tribes was no longer needed, and since the previous Yellow Elder had died of starvation, Hadara had been chosen to lead the newly unified Gerudo society. She taught Ciela and Ruru more of the Hylian Legends, hoping that they would grow into fine leaders as well. Ciela's madness had taken most of her memory from her, so she did not remember most of her childhood. She looked into the future with now eager eyes.

All the Gerudos looked to the future with hope, but their revered hero, Mewtwo was slowly being consumed by doubt. Ever since he had overthrown the Empire, Mewtwo had been idolized by every Gerudo he met. Even Hadara bowed to him, and he always felt uncomfortable when she did. Gerudo children were almost scared of him because of his powers, and his status as the age's greatest hero was intimidating to him. Only Ruru seemed to be willing to spend time with him. And the Gerudos who had come from the Yellow tribe were never able to act completely casual with him around. They had never met him before, and some doubted the tales of his defeat of the Empire.

Mewtwo had mixed feelings about the Empire's end. At first, he only half expected the time continuum to change. But as the years passed in peace, he fully realized the scope of what should and shouldn't be happening. He now knew fully what would ever happen if his essence were split, and he was seriously intent on never letting it happen. And without Darkest here to split him manually, then the time-space continuum should have shifted by now. If Mewtwo never splits, then there never would be an empire to conquer this world, and the Deserts should disappear. The Gerudos shouldn't still be alone on this entire planet, but nothing had changed. When he tried to think farther into the matter, he realized that already there were many paradoxes apparent. Without Imperial control of this planet, he should not have been sucked down into its dimension, and therefore be going to witness the disaster that caused the split. But then the events with the Empires would occur, and henceforth the paradox. His head hurt every time he tried to think about this, and he was becoming more and more ridden with doubt with every passing month.

Chapter I

"Ok, give it to us!" Hadara shouted.

Mewtwo slowly lifted the heavy wooden log into the air with his powers, and floated it over to the group of Gerudos. He set it in their arms and they slowly tilted it upright into place. The frame for the new wooden house would be complete soon.

"Thanks! Now we need to tie this up with some rope." Hadara said, and someone handed her a thick coil of braided plant material. She lashed it down to the other logs with the assistance of the other Gerudos.

Mewtwo smiled at the teamwork the Gerudos had achieved. Ever since they had thrown off their tribal colors to survive together, all the rivalries had been thrown down and they worked together in harmony. They had built a significantly large town within almost five years, including a new square, a market, strong wooden houses and guard towers with stone taken from the mountain. Hadara had called this mountain Snowhead, and told him that used to be the home of mountain dwelling rock peoples, but since the coming of the Empire, they disappeared like many others. They had found no evidence of such a civilization crossing the mountain.

Further explorations also revealed several sights new to the Gerudos. To the slight Northeast of the Swamp was another Desert, only much smaller and isolated from the Vile Desert. In the center of this dry patch was a great canyon with a small river running along its bottom. Ancient remnants of a castle and further East still showed unrecognizable stone wreckage. Hadara knew little of either, except that the land had once been a kingdom called "Ikana". And to the Northwest of the Swamp, an amazing sight after the desert, clear sandy beaches met the lapping edges of an ocean. The Gerudos had never seen such a large amount of water before, and it was a discovery of monumentous proportions.

"Come on, are we going to finish building this house or what?" Hadara asked, and Mewtwo snapped out of his remembrances. He lifted a few smaller logs up to where Hadara was perched on the frame and she grabbed the out of the air, placing them on the frame.

With the finishing of the new house, the Gerudos clapped each other on their backs and went about to their own business. Mewtwo decided to take a short walk along the border of the town. The hustle and bustle passed him by and the stone on the square was hard under his feet. The moist air was filled with many different fragrances, baking breads, flowers, and the somewhat muddy smell of the marshland. Passing the last house, the line of hunched trees squatted like a wall of dark green bars. Moss and lichen hung from the gnarled branches, and here and there Mewtwo saw signs of environmental change. A few scant flowers grew up out of the damp soil, and there were dry spots strewn about. Mewtwo walked along the swamp's border, curving Northwards towards the small field that lied there. The town was located on the top border of the swamp, and north of the town was an open field. From the field you could go North to the mountain, West to the ocean, and East to the canyon. Mewtwo decided to walk to the ocean.

The beach slowly widened into view as Mewtwo slowly strode down the slight slope. The gentle breeze and the constant crashing of the waves filled the air with serenity and calm. Sea birds hovered lazily in the still cloudless sky, and a small stone shrine faced the never ending oceanic horizon. The Gerudos had built this shrine as a place to lay the Master Sword, Light Arrows and Elemental Medallions to rest. If there should ever be a need for them again, then they would be able to be retrieved and used. As Mewtwo walked down to the shore, the small breaking waves slowly came up to meet his feet. The water was cool and bracing, like dipping his feet into ice. The sun lazed in the noon sky amongst the drifting gulls and all was peaceful in the world.

Mewtwo began walking again, parallel to the shore and across the sand. The sands here at the beach were a lot friendlier than those in the Vile Desert. The sands of the beach were soft and yielding, while the Desert sands were abrasive and harsh. The feeling of sands between his toes caused Mewtwo to remember back to the desert. He remembered the bravery of the Gerudos and the sacrifices they made. How he had found friends in Ruru, Indiru and Kalana, and the good times they all shared. He wished that Kalana was still with him. It would have warmed her lonely heart to see that there was more to the world than the Vile Desert, even this somewhat smelly marsh would have been Nirvana for her. He remembered her warm smile, and how she used to support him, and he stifled back a small sob. A single tear rolled down his face and fell.

Grand adventures often start with but a small object, and this small glistening orb of water was the gate to a new time. Before it hit the ground, an ancient soul slowly influenced it to guide it's creator on a new path. Mewtwo didn't notice it at first, but the tear stopped in midair and hovered. It slowly floated back up to his face, and he stopped abruptly in surprise. He felt a powerful presence in the air, but not an evil one. The tear suddenly came into motion again, moving down the beach. Mewtwo followed curiously, only feeling a slight bit anxious. He followed it for almost a quarter of a mile down the beach, until it came to stop over a small stone slab. It then fell out of the air and landed on the grey stone inaudibly.

Mewtwo stared at this simple grey square slab for several minutes before his mind cranked to life again. "This is a sign." He thought to himself. The stone was unmarked and covered with several layers of thick and verdant lichen. Its edges showed evidence of once being relatively smooth, but erosion and high tides had worn it down into more of a disc shape. And most importantly, a feeling of energy was radiating from underneath it. Mewtwo slowly lifted the stone with his mind and set it aside on the sand. Underneath laid a bare, bleached white set of bones. There was no flesh left; this grave was obviously extremely old.

Mewtwo recoiled in shock and horror, not expecting the stone to be a headstone. But nothing, not even a rotting smell showed any trace of foulness. And still he could sense to evil presence, so Mewtwo leaned back over the grave and studied its contents carefully. The bones were bare and clean, and there were no signs of clothes. Amazingly, a small knapsack lied untouched next to the skeleton. It looked like it had not seen a day of age. Mewtwo hesitated, and then reached in to grasp this backpack. He carefully laid it onto the sands and opened the drawstring. The contents seemed quite a random arrangement of things. There were several bundles of wooden arrows, some funny looking masks, four empty glass bottles, a small notebook, and other items. Mewtwo wondered how these items could be intact after many years, maybe they had been planted. He doubted it, since the headstone seemed undisturbed.

Mewtwo gently opened the frail yellow pages of the notebook and examined them. All of the text was written in Hylian symbols. Mewtwo was suddenly very glad he had continued his lessons in Hylian with the Red Elder after they had settled in the swamp. He could now read Hylian text proficiently and understand the spoken language well. He just needed practice speaking it. That didn't matter though, since he was now absorbed in what was now apparently a journal in Hylian script. He began to read.

Day 32

It has been a long time since I first left Hyrule, and I now wonder how my old friends are faring. But then I remember that in reality, it's only been three days. This time traveling is beginning to wear on my sanity, and having to earn and re-earn the same people's trust over and over again is becoming extremely frustrating. At least Tatl is not as talkative as Navi used to be, although I miss Navi very much.

With every repeat of these three days I move closer to my goal and closer to stopping this murderous moon once and for all. I still don't understand why Skull Kid is doing this, he used to be a nice person, but now he's trying to bring this doom to us all. I know that if I fail here that Hyrule will be destroyed as well, so failure is not an option. I just wish I could stop the mindless monotony before I go mad.

Mewtwo skipped ahead about thirty pages and began reading again.

Day 67

I've finally freed the last giant from his slumbering prison, and I am ready to stop this whole nightmare for good. I've had enough of that moon's evil gaze and the cackling laughter of the Skull Kid every time midnight approaches on the third day. The giants will put a stop to his mad plan and I will finally be able to leave this time death trap. I'm waiting out until the third day and then I'm going to confront the Skull Kid one final time.

Mewtwo flipped two days ahead and read.

Day 69

I fear this may be my final entry into you my companion. Just as I said, I've waited and faced the Skull Kid, and the Four Giants were successful in stopping the moon from crashing down. But alas, things have gone awry. It was not by Skull Kid's will that these events have taken place, but by the will of the Mask itself. It is renewing the moon's strength and I have followed it inside the depth of the moons evil bowels. I write to you inside a dreamlike field of grass inside the moon's interior, on the eve of the final battle with the evil mask. I must go now, and put a stop to all this. To whomever finds this; If I should be found dead, and then bury me by the Eastern Sea where the Zoras live along with all of my possessions. I pray to the Goddesses that my quest has not come to naught.

The next page was blank except for a small note written in a different handwriting;

"You've saved us all, but paid the ultimate price. In death, I wish for you to only know that I love you as you leave this plane."

The signature under the note was scratched and smudged beyond recognition. Mewtwo slowly closed the olden book and laid it on the ground. He sat there for a long time, quizzing and mulling over the Journal's contents. It appeared to date all the way back to the Hylian Era, and the person who wrote it had came south here from Hyrule. The only thing that didn't make sense was the fact that it and all the other items were preserved so well, after around 7,000 years they should have been reduced to dust. Mewtwo poked his hand into the knapsack again and pulled out one last object.

The smooth cold surface of metal met Mewtwo's hand, and he pulled out the object, revealing it to be a small, vibrant blue glass musical instrument. It was oval shaped and polished, and a small mouthpiece extended outward with a gold band around it. At the base of the mouthpiece the symbol of the Triforce was embossed in gold plating. On the body of the instrument were holes, each one for a different note. Mewtwo's mind suddenly made a leaping connection. In the back of the book were what appeared to be musical notes written on the inside cover. They might pertain to this flute-like instrument. He reached back and opened the book to the back cover. Sure enough, the markings there were now easily seen to be musical notes. There were several lines, each one containing a separate short tune. Mewtwo held the instrument in his hands and impulsively brought it up to his mouth. Following the notes on the book, he slowly put his fingers to the holes and blew into the mouthpiece.

The song did not last long, but when it was over, Mewtwo gasped in astonish as a great outpouring of energy flowed from the small blue instrument. Reality itself bent around him and the beach suddenly disappeared. As the world disappeared into darkness, Mewtwo's vision went completely out of focus and his ears rang as the tune he had just played echoed loudly and repeatedly around him. He was swept away by the notes, out of thought and consciousness and he was lost in some sort of time-dimensional rift. He blacked out under the great strain of the interdimensional forces.

A/N: I know this first chunk was a bit short, but it was only the intro to this next book. Things are about to get very interesting for Mewtwo, so you'll be repaid in the next two or three chunks. And as for my outburst I had awhile ago at the end of Book II, I'd like to apologize for the immature way I acted. I was in a fit of extreme depression and I was emotionally strangled. I'm sorry if I offended anyone and I hope you all can forgive me for losing my self control like that. Just enjoy the next few chunks as they come, reviewing optional as my way of saying sorry for being such an ass.