The Legend of Zelda: The Dream Walker
Chapter 19
"The leader of the Murgg"
By MEGAMANX411

Link awoke the next morning, and decided to go and see if Kisha was alright still. She had just lost her brother last night, after all. He walked over to Septimus' house, where she was staying at, and knocked on the door. The door opened rather slowly to reveal Kisha.

"Hello Kisha," Link began, smiling pleasantly. "Are you feeling ok?"

Kisha nodded.

"Yes, I'm fine," she replied. "Thank you Link."

Link smiled.

"That's no problem."

"Oh, and by the way, Meia was looking for you," Kisha added.

"Meia was?" Link replied. "Oh, ok, thanks Kisha."

Link waved to the young girl, and turned around to make his exit. Just as he got outside, he bumped into Meia.

"Oh, are you alright?" Link asked, noting that he almost knocke the person over.

He then realized it was Meia. Link's worrysome expression was replaced with a smile, and he extended a hand to help her up.

"Oh, sorry about that, I was looking for you. What is it you wanted?" he asked.

Meia reached into her pocket to remove a shining green stone.

"Here, take a look at this," she replied.

Meia handed a strange stone to Link, and he juggled it a bit in his hands.

"What is it?" he asked, returning his gaze to Meia.

"I found it on one of the Murgg's bodies. Septimus believes that it may be the key to opening the entrance to the Murgg's fortress," she replied.

Link's eyes widened.

"Really?" he replied. "It could lead to the Murgg's fortress?"

Meia shrugged.

"Well, you should have it anyway, I have no use for it."

Link graciously accepted, and nodded.

"Thank you Meia," he replied. "I'll think I'll go check that out."

"Just be careful," Meia warned. "The Murgg are very vicious creatures," she added.

"Don't worry, I'll watch my back. I'll try to come back soon," he replied.

With that, Link walked off, making his way to the forests. Link had heard rumors that the Murgg Forest was by the mines, so he decided that would be a good a place as any to begin his search.

As he approached the gargantuan forest, he noticed a rather large stone was blocking his path. But what seemed rather odd about it was that there was a hole in the middle of it. Link eyed the stone in his hand, and then returned his attention back to the supposed stone barrier.

"This must literally by a key..." Link muttered.

Link slowly brought his hand close to the hole, and placed the stone there. He pushed it in further with his other hand. Nothing happened.

"Well, I suppose it couldn't have been that obvious," Link thought aloud.

Just then, the large rock began to tremble, and shifted to the side, allowing Link passage.

"I suppose it really was a key," he muttered. "Well, Imay as well press on."

Link's expedition into the Murgg Forest soon escalated when he noticed several of the creatures trying to attack him. Link tried to avoid being struck, but the Murggs' numers proved too great, and Link was soon knocked unconscious. He awoke soon after in a primitive jail cell. Another cell was next to his, and a man was there.

"They got you too, eh?" the man asked, sounding a bit sarcastic.

"It looks like it...but I'm gonna get outta here!" Link replied.

The man smiled back at him.

"Good luck to you then. Tell you what, if you rescue me, I'll help in whatever way I can. I'm a keysmith. But those damned Murgg stole my tools," he explained.

Link nodded and toke note of the situation at hand.

"Don't worry. I'll get your tools back and get you out of here," he replied.

Link took a quick look around his cell. The bars appeared to be made out of a simple wood, but they did appear tough, and those Murgg had confiscated his sword. He tried bashing it with his shoulders, but the bars were suprisingly tough.

Link didn't want to risk injuring the man by using his magic, but even that wasn't an option because his pack was gone too. He looked at the back wall, and noticed it was greatly crumbled.

"Maybe I can get through there easier..." Link muttered, feeling the cracked wall with his hand.

Link backed up, and prepared to run.

"Just what are you doing?" the man asked.

"Just watch," Link replied.

Link quickly released himself from his starting point, and hurled himself shoulder-first into the wall. The force of his assault shattered the weak wall, and revealed a hidden passageway behind it. Link took a step inside, but remembered the man in the other cell, so he poked his head back out.

"Don't worry, I'll be back, and I'll come to get you!" Link shouted.

Link went through the passage, and it took him outside. Apparently, the Murgg's fortress was a gigantic tree with several small houses in and around it.

"I need to be careful so I'm not noticed," Link whispered, stealthily moving in the available shadows of the trees.

Link went around, and went into the jail area from the front door. As Link entered the jail from the front, he noticed his things were scattered on a table, as were the tools the key smith mentioned.

"My equipment!" Link exclaimed.

He picked up his gear, and checked his pack. Nothing was missing.

"Thank goodness, this will certainly speed things along," Link muttered.

He was about to reach for the key smith's tools next, but the sound of scurrying interrupted him. Link turned around to see Murgg flooding into the room.

"Just my luck," Link muttered.

"Die, furless one!" the Murgg chanted.

Link quickly unsheathed his sword, and stabbed at the incoming Murgg with lighting fast moves. The first Murgg was sliced in four before it could even comprehend the sheer idea of attacking Link, and the second was impaled on Link's second attack.

The next one tried to get the jump on Link, quite literally, but his attack was rendered useless when Link used his shield. The creature was hurled to the floor, and Link finished it with a quick blow from his sword.

"That settles that," Link muttered, grabbing the tools.

He quickly went over and handed the key smith his tools, and he unlocked his cell.

"OK, you shold go somewhere safe until I figure out how to get outta here," Link began. "Judging by the activity I've drawn here, I don't think it's safe to remain here."

"OK," the key smith replied. "And I'll fix any keys if you need to," he added.

Link nodded.

"Thanks, I may need that," he replied.

Link headed off towards the central tree, and saw that the door to it was locked. He could see the main entrance, but he needed to proceed on first.

"Gotta find that key!" Link shouted, frantically searching the nearby area for any objects that closely resembled a key of some sort.

The key smith then barged into the room.

"No problem!" he replied.

Link quickly turned his head to see the man.

"What? I thought you were going to go somewhere safe?" he asked.

The man smirked back at him.

"I had to help you in return for helping me, besides, you can't be of much good if you can't infiltrate their fortress, now can you?" he replied.

Link shrugged.

"I understand, but be safe, ok? You should head back to the village."

"Got it."

The man pulled out a tool he had in his pack, and began fiddling with the lock. Link was eagerly anticipating the results of the man's trial. Within a moment, the man's finesse with his tools proved to be successful, and the lock was opened. The door swung open with a slight touch, and the man smiled at his work.

"Well, I hope this helps. I'll be heading back now, be careful, ok?" he warned.

Link nodded.

"Yeah, just be careful on your way out."

Link walked through the door, to notice that it brought him to a stairway. The stairway scaled up the tree, going in and around it, until it finally brought him to the very top. Link was in awe of how high up he was, and how mammoth this tree was. However, his appreciation of nature was cut short by a loud rumbling noise.

"Who dares invade my territory??" a loud voice boomed.

"What the..?!" Link shouted, looking at his surroundings to see the origin of the rumbling.

Then, a large creature descended from the trees. Link saw before him a gigantic ape, at least 17 feet tall, and had muscles bulging. He saw a specter of Melzas behind him. Link was in awe of the sheer size and power of this massive creature.

"You are the leader of the Murgg?" he asked, his voice surprisingly firm under the circumstances.

"That's right," the massive ape replied. "I am Zazan, follower of Melzas. For invading the Murgg Woods, I shall feast on your quivering entrails!!"

Zazan rushed at Link with a punch, but Link managed to dodge it by sidestepping. Zazan quickly followed up on his attack, and grabbed Link. His two massive hands began squeezing, and Link needed to think of something fast. Link grunted as he fought against Zazan's death grip, trying to pry himself free.

"Take this!" he shouted.

Link loosened his Master Sword, and stabbed the creature's hands. Zazan's grip on Link loosened, and he fell to the ground. He quicky regained his composure. Zazan became furious, and leaped high into the air. He was going to come down on Link hard with a dive. Link looked side to side frantically as he looked for an idea.

"Need something quick....aha!" he muttered, reaching into his pack.

Link pulled out his Earth Scroll as Zazan descended.

"Time to die, puny furless one!" Zazan shouted, his massive body appearing like an ill omen in the sky.

Link smirked.

"I'm afraid not!" he challenged.

Link read the enchanted parchment, and huge boulders shot out from it, spraying all over the area. When Zazan came down, he came head first into a barrage of boulders which battered him, and crushed his body. Zazan fell to the ground, and was caused increased damage because he wasn't able to break his fall. Link stood over the beaten and bruised ape.

"Surrender," he offered, motioning for Zazan to leave in peace.

Zazan gritted his teeth, and stood up, ready to attack again.

"Never!!" he screamed.

"If that's the way you want it!" Link shouted.

Link then pulled out his Fire Rod, and lit the giant ape ablaze. Despite the pain inflicted upon him from the flames, he continued to try and attack. So, Link readied his bow, and then let loose some arrows. Link's arrows hit Zazan straight in the eyes, and he was felled with a gigantic crash.

His body crashed onto the ground, making a rather loud noise, and he moaned as he drew his last breath of life. Link sighed.

"That takes care of that...what?" he muttered, noticing something odd.

He saw that at the end of the platform where he and Zazan fought were two crests.

"Those must be the ones the Murgg took!" he observed.

Link rushed over and collected the crests, and then headed back to Inoa. On his way back, he felt violent tremors occuring.

"What is this?" Link thought aloud, a bit concerned at what could be going on.

And what's worse, they grew stronger and stronger over time. When he reached Inoa, and Septimus and Meia were waiting for him.

"What's going on?" Link asked.

"It looks like Mount Torla has become active..." Septimus replied.

Link hadn't heard of this particular mountain before, although he had seen it in the distance.

"You mean it's a volcano?" he asked.

Meia nodded.

"Yes, but it's supposed to be dormant. This is probably the work of..."

"Melzas," Link spat.

Septimus nodded.

"Yes, exactly. You must head to Mt. Torla and extinguish the cause of the problems. But you will need a sacred artifact if you so wish to enter the volcano," he added.

Link was a bit curious as to what this 'sacred artifact' could be.

"What is this artifact?" Link asked.

"The Ice Rod," Septimus replied. "The Ice Palace is northeast of Inoa, in the general direction of Mount Torla. Stop there first."

Link nodded in confirmation of the information he had just received.

"Alright then, I'm on my way!" he boasted.