Legends of the Waker: Remnants of Old
Chapter XVI: Remnants of Old
-Link
I leapt back ward firing my new bow upward. A massive hand slammed down just in front of me, but I was already soaring upward. The strange monster, just a head and hands made of green stone, pounded the ground again, this time in frustration. I pulled out the last of my bombs and jammed it into the creature's mouth. The stone being flew back into the wall where it had come from, and I found myself waiting for it to speak.
As I stood calmly I felt warm blood coming down my arm and realized I'd been seriously wounded on my forearm. I reached for my soup but suddenly I swerved into the air out of control.
I went hurling end over end toward the roof, unable to fly, or even move as the ceiling rushed forward to meet me.
My eyes closed involuntarily for a second and when I opened them, I was laying on a tile floor on the roof of the tower. I groaned in pain and pulled myself to my feet, sky seeming unnaturally close so high up, and found my eyes drawn downward, towards a raised stone platform which until it became the holdings for a bell. A rotting rope fell to the floor.
Before I knew it, my hands were wrapped around the decayed rope. I let out an exhilarated yell and swung forward. Gray clouds surrounded my boots as my feet went up, then the ground went by and I was up again. The bell released a massive boom as I went, echoing outward across the water.
After the second time, the ancient cord snapped and I went flying, but the bell kept ringing. I hit the ground and in an eye-blink I was back in the King of Red Lions, floating towards a glowing ring of light in the water.
Suddenly as we entered the ring there was a flash of white and we were descending through the waves. When we stopped, we were in a tiny pond at the door of a massive castle. But I barely noticed details. There was no color. Everything was painted in blacks, whites and grays, as if something had jerked it all away. The only color came from me, mostly green, and the King, mostly red.
"Where-where are we?" I whispered, not daring, for all the respect this place commanded, to speak louder.
"Hyrule. The old land. It has much changed since your ancestors last stood here. It has become a stronghold against Ganon's terrible evil. You have proven yourself. Enter, and be not afraid." His words seemed odd, strangled somehow, but I knew I had no choice. Without a word, without looking back, I stepped into the castle.
A sadness like none I'd ever known washed over me. This had been a place of much suffering, but also, I felt, a place of hope and joy in spite of it. The cavernous hall stretched high above me, echoes of my footsteps adding to my melancholy mood. Out of place statues of Moblins, Bokoblins and Iron Knuckles gave the room a bizarre atmosphere. Another sculpture, far bigger, stood dead center at the foot of the main stair. It was of.me?
No. It was -the- Link. The first Hero, the first bearer of the Triforce of Courage. I neared the statue and looked up, then started as with a loud grate the statue moved before my gaze, revealing a flight of steps.
I walked down slowly and came out in a massive room, as big as the last, the stair stretching on to the floor, where a circle of water met it. The water surrounded a stone podium that was guarded by five giant statues. They seemed to be guarding something specific, but I couldn't tell what. Beyond the statues were stained glass pictures of seven beings. Three I took to be Hylians, one an old man, the other two women. The two looked imposing and strong, one with hair of fire, the other of ice. Then there was a little girl with emerald hair, a strange, round, brown furred man, and an evil black creature that stopped my breath.
-Ganon.-
It was Borokai, Ganondorf, in his true form. My eyes wandered and met on the last of them. Meena? It couldn't be. These windows were, with Ganon being the exception, depictions of the Six Sages. -It must be another Zora- , I thought, and walked on.
As I reached the bottom of the stairway, all light vanished, plunging me beyond the reach of shadow and into complete black. Then the Triforce symbol on my hand glowed, and I used its beam to reach the object at the center of the platform. Without warning, this last lantern went out as well, pushing me deeper into darkness. I reached out and clasped the thing, my hand closing instinctively around the hilt of a sword I'd never grasped before, yet it seemed as if I'd held this blade every day of my life.
Light returned and a voice seemed to boom across the way. "The Hero claims the mighty Master Sword. Legends long spoke of this day. I was beginning to wonder if I'd see them come true. Long has this land been little more than a remnant of old, as the strongholds of the King of Hyrule and the King of Evil battled beneath the waves, forgotten."
The speaker revealed himself to be a large, stout, old man draped in a red robe, his craggy features crowned by long white hair, and this was topped by a large crown that his size made seem smaller. The King of Red Lions.
"But why wield you a blade of evil? How could the Hero of Time keep a blade forged deep in the earth, wielded by the Evil King?"
"I claimed it from him. It is his no longer."
"You need it no more. Cast it aside."
"I mean to end his life with it."
"You will fail. Only the Master Sword can kill him."
"I will do whatever it takes it to destroy Ganon."
"Nonetheless, the laws I, Daphnes Nohannson Hyrule, laid in place must be followed. The time for your test is now."
One by one, all five statues stirred above me.
Chapter XVII: Wishes and Smoke
-Holly
"Hmmm. I think this one needs a little more Chu jelly." I stood over a pot in a back room off the main hall, piles of bottles scattered all over the floor, some were empty, but in the two weeks we'd spent here, I'd filled most of them. I'd been moved here after turning seven Rito into seven different flavors of cheese when a potion had exploded.
Fado had spent most of his time with the old Sage. The strange bird, with his oddly curt way of talking, had completely ignored me, beyond an explanation to how he knew my trade. "I can smell potions all over you, little onion." Everyday between meals they went to a high clifftop, though I'd never seen what they did.
"A little more Kyorg fin, maybe some crushed seaflower." Fado spent every night after a light dinner (we didn't eat much there, as Ritos eat little in the way of Forest folk's preferences) playing his cello. He'd gone a long way since his first time in the thunderstorm, playing outside the entry to the mountain hall till his fingers were blistered. His music had become very pleasant to listen to, and I went out with him every night now. Fado hoped the music would reach Mako and guide him here. Between the lessons with Old Man Rito, the cello playing, and the loss of Mako, Fado had lost all his former cheer.
His familiar grin seemed to have been lost in all that had gone on. That particular night I suddenly realized I'd again worked through the evening meal. I quickly doused the fire and dipped a bottle into the pot, then stoppered the bottle and after dropping it, strode for Fado's favorite place to play as soon as I could.
He was already playing when I got there, a lilting tune mixing with the ebb and flow of the waves. But this night, something was different. Halfway through, he stopped, and dropped his bow.
"This is pointless. I can tarry no longer. We leave tomorrow." With no trace of a smile, Fado picked up his bow and fixed me with a slightly bloodshot stare. "Remember this, Holly. Hope is nothing more than wishes and smoke. Nothing more at all."
Chapter XVIII: "So close."
-Medli
"So close. So very close." Laruto whispered so quietly I had to lean to hear her.
"What.do we do now? You cannot move. Do I.go on alone?" I heard the tremble in my own voice and dreaded her answer, but I was ready to do what I had to.
"Go alone? -Go alone?-" A darkness like a thunderstorm crossed her face. I felt for a moment like I was the one crippled.
"You are ripe with weakness. You will fail." I winced at the biting, hateful words, but stood my ground with knees trembling.
"I will do what I must-"
"Stopstop. This does no goodness. Fishygirl hurt. Birdygirl, fly westwardnessly. Healer heal Fishygirl." His speech seemed to change back and forth between three different accents. I had to struggle to understand him. Laruto said nothing, collapsing inward.
"What will I do then? Bring him here?"
"No, no. The healer makes legendary soups. I will take your friend in my submarine, and you fly ahead and give them advance warning."
As I made ready to fly off, the weird creature called out towards the beach. "Eh-heh! Outward, my family! Come Cufell, Mufell, Gurgall, Wurgall, Kell, Mel, Troll, Poll, Knoll, and stinkly little Burt!" Ten Deku Scrubs popped out of the 'submarine', each one shorter than the last, until tiny little Burt, with a cloud of flies buzzing around his head.
"He won't let me bath him," Gris said, looking embarrassed.
I shook my head, and, with one last look at Laruto, I took to the air without saying a word.
Chapter XVI: Remnants of Old
-Link
I leapt back ward firing my new bow upward. A massive hand slammed down just in front of me, but I was already soaring upward. The strange monster, just a head and hands made of green stone, pounded the ground again, this time in frustration. I pulled out the last of my bombs and jammed it into the creature's mouth. The stone being flew back into the wall where it had come from, and I found myself waiting for it to speak.
As I stood calmly I felt warm blood coming down my arm and realized I'd been seriously wounded on my forearm. I reached for my soup but suddenly I swerved into the air out of control.
I went hurling end over end toward the roof, unable to fly, or even move as the ceiling rushed forward to meet me.
My eyes closed involuntarily for a second and when I opened them, I was laying on a tile floor on the roof of the tower. I groaned in pain and pulled myself to my feet, sky seeming unnaturally close so high up, and found my eyes drawn downward, towards a raised stone platform which until it became the holdings for a bell. A rotting rope fell to the floor.
Before I knew it, my hands were wrapped around the decayed rope. I let out an exhilarated yell and swung forward. Gray clouds surrounded my boots as my feet went up, then the ground went by and I was up again. The bell released a massive boom as I went, echoing outward across the water.
After the second time, the ancient cord snapped and I went flying, but the bell kept ringing. I hit the ground and in an eye-blink I was back in the King of Red Lions, floating towards a glowing ring of light in the water.
Suddenly as we entered the ring there was a flash of white and we were descending through the waves. When we stopped, we were in a tiny pond at the door of a massive castle. But I barely noticed details. There was no color. Everything was painted in blacks, whites and grays, as if something had jerked it all away. The only color came from me, mostly green, and the King, mostly red.
"Where-where are we?" I whispered, not daring, for all the respect this place commanded, to speak louder.
"Hyrule. The old land. It has much changed since your ancestors last stood here. It has become a stronghold against Ganon's terrible evil. You have proven yourself. Enter, and be not afraid." His words seemed odd, strangled somehow, but I knew I had no choice. Without a word, without looking back, I stepped into the castle.
A sadness like none I'd ever known washed over me. This had been a place of much suffering, but also, I felt, a place of hope and joy in spite of it. The cavernous hall stretched high above me, echoes of my footsteps adding to my melancholy mood. Out of place statues of Moblins, Bokoblins and Iron Knuckles gave the room a bizarre atmosphere. Another sculpture, far bigger, stood dead center at the foot of the main stair. It was of.me?
No. It was -the- Link. The first Hero, the first bearer of the Triforce of Courage. I neared the statue and looked up, then started as with a loud grate the statue moved before my gaze, revealing a flight of steps.
I walked down slowly and came out in a massive room, as big as the last, the stair stretching on to the floor, where a circle of water met it. The water surrounded a stone podium that was guarded by five giant statues. They seemed to be guarding something specific, but I couldn't tell what. Beyond the statues were stained glass pictures of seven beings. Three I took to be Hylians, one an old man, the other two women. The two looked imposing and strong, one with hair of fire, the other of ice. Then there was a little girl with emerald hair, a strange, round, brown furred man, and an evil black creature that stopped my breath.
-Ganon.-
It was Borokai, Ganondorf, in his true form. My eyes wandered and met on the last of them. Meena? It couldn't be. These windows were, with Ganon being the exception, depictions of the Six Sages. -It must be another Zora- , I thought, and walked on.
As I reached the bottom of the stairway, all light vanished, plunging me beyond the reach of shadow and into complete black. Then the Triforce symbol on my hand glowed, and I used its beam to reach the object at the center of the platform. Without warning, this last lantern went out as well, pushing me deeper into darkness. I reached out and clasped the thing, my hand closing instinctively around the hilt of a sword I'd never grasped before, yet it seemed as if I'd held this blade every day of my life.
Light returned and a voice seemed to boom across the way. "The Hero claims the mighty Master Sword. Legends long spoke of this day. I was beginning to wonder if I'd see them come true. Long has this land been little more than a remnant of old, as the strongholds of the King of Hyrule and the King of Evil battled beneath the waves, forgotten."
The speaker revealed himself to be a large, stout, old man draped in a red robe, his craggy features crowned by long white hair, and this was topped by a large crown that his size made seem smaller. The King of Red Lions.
"But why wield you a blade of evil? How could the Hero of Time keep a blade forged deep in the earth, wielded by the Evil King?"
"I claimed it from him. It is his no longer."
"You need it no more. Cast it aside."
"I mean to end his life with it."
"You will fail. Only the Master Sword can kill him."
"I will do whatever it takes it to destroy Ganon."
"Nonetheless, the laws I, Daphnes Nohannson Hyrule, laid in place must be followed. The time for your test is now."
One by one, all five statues stirred above me.
Chapter XVII: Wishes and Smoke
-Holly
"Hmmm. I think this one needs a little more Chu jelly." I stood over a pot in a back room off the main hall, piles of bottles scattered all over the floor, some were empty, but in the two weeks we'd spent here, I'd filled most of them. I'd been moved here after turning seven Rito into seven different flavors of cheese when a potion had exploded.
Fado had spent most of his time with the old Sage. The strange bird, with his oddly curt way of talking, had completely ignored me, beyond an explanation to how he knew my trade. "I can smell potions all over you, little onion." Everyday between meals they went to a high clifftop, though I'd never seen what they did.
"A little more Kyorg fin, maybe some crushed seaflower." Fado spent every night after a light dinner (we didn't eat much there, as Ritos eat little in the way of Forest folk's preferences) playing his cello. He'd gone a long way since his first time in the thunderstorm, playing outside the entry to the mountain hall till his fingers were blistered. His music had become very pleasant to listen to, and I went out with him every night now. Fado hoped the music would reach Mako and guide him here. Between the lessons with Old Man Rito, the cello playing, and the loss of Mako, Fado had lost all his former cheer.
His familiar grin seemed to have been lost in all that had gone on. That particular night I suddenly realized I'd again worked through the evening meal. I quickly doused the fire and dipped a bottle into the pot, then stoppered the bottle and after dropping it, strode for Fado's favorite place to play as soon as I could.
He was already playing when I got there, a lilting tune mixing with the ebb and flow of the waves. But this night, something was different. Halfway through, he stopped, and dropped his bow.
"This is pointless. I can tarry no longer. We leave tomorrow." With no trace of a smile, Fado picked up his bow and fixed me with a slightly bloodshot stare. "Remember this, Holly. Hope is nothing more than wishes and smoke. Nothing more at all."
Chapter XVIII: "So close."
-Medli
"So close. So very close." Laruto whispered so quietly I had to lean to hear her.
"What.do we do now? You cannot move. Do I.go on alone?" I heard the tremble in my own voice and dreaded her answer, but I was ready to do what I had to.
"Go alone? -Go alone?-" A darkness like a thunderstorm crossed her face. I felt for a moment like I was the one crippled.
"You are ripe with weakness. You will fail." I winced at the biting, hateful words, but stood my ground with knees trembling.
"I will do what I must-"
"Stopstop. This does no goodness. Fishygirl hurt. Birdygirl, fly westwardnessly. Healer heal Fishygirl." His speech seemed to change back and forth between three different accents. I had to struggle to understand him. Laruto said nothing, collapsing inward.
"What will I do then? Bring him here?"
"No, no. The healer makes legendary soups. I will take your friend in my submarine, and you fly ahead and give them advance warning."
As I made ready to fly off, the weird creature called out towards the beach. "Eh-heh! Outward, my family! Come Cufell, Mufell, Gurgall, Wurgall, Kell, Mel, Troll, Poll, Knoll, and stinkly little Burt!" Ten Deku Scrubs popped out of the 'submarine', each one shorter than the last, until tiny little Burt, with a cloud of flies buzzing around his head.
"He won't let me bath him," Gris said, looking embarrassed.
I shook my head, and, with one last look at Laruto, I took to the air without saying a word.