Worlds Apart
Part II
By Miss Lydia

Chapter 15

The hole under the grave was rather deep, but it still didn't take long for the boys to hit bottom. They landed on the man-made brick floor of a cavern. It was an ordinary square room. Very plain. No other words can describe it, really. Although, once both Link and Gordon had landed, they noticed something rather unusual. Lydia had gone in first, thanks to Link, but she was nowhere in sight.

Link glanced around to each of the four walls, but the sorceress wasn't anywhere in the room. He saw a hallway at the far end of the room, but it had a dirt floor that didn't have any footprints on it. Link walked over to Gordon, who was still standing in the center of the room.

"...Where do you think she could have gone?" he asked, with a noticeable tone of worry in his voice. "Maybe she's playing a trick."

While Link spoke, Gordon's eyes shifted behind the Hylian and up to the corner of the ceiling. Lydia was clinging to the crack where the ceiling and walls met. She floated down soundlessly and landed about five feet behind Link, then she slowly started to creep forward. Gordon opened his mouth to give Link a warning, but Lydia shot a glare. Her vicious eyes said it all.

"Say anything, and I'll twist your head off," her eyes told him silently.

Being smart enough, Gordon looked back at Link and said "Yeah, probably...she's always doing stuff like that."

Link's eyes suddenly shifted to the side. Then he smirked and looked back at Gordon again. "Still, I thought she'd be more grown up than this," he said loudly, with an almost mocking tone. "This place is hardly the place to play tricks."

Still creeping soundlessly, Lydia inched closer to Link. When she was right behind him, she raised her hands and twisted her fingers into claw shapes, then poised her muscles to pounce on him.

Link shifted his eyes to the side again and smiled. His left arm suddenly shot behind him, and he dug all of his fingers into Lydia's ribcage. She shrieked and jumped three feet in the air. Link turned around laughing.

The sorceress glared at him. "...How did you know--"

Link only laughed at her. "--that you're extremely ticklish?"

"NO. How did you know I was behind you? I didn't even make a sound! And yet, somehow, you knew I was there the whole time."

Link smiled. "I also knew that you're extremely ticklish."

Off to the side, Gordon was chuckling quietly to himself. Lydia shot him the look of death, then looked back at Link again.

Link smiled cockily and walked closer to the dirt hallway, then turned around to face the sorcerers again. "I told you already. Nobody can sneak up on me. You've seen that several times, I'm sure."

As he spoke, a mist formed behind him. The sorcerers looked on with wide eyes as they watched the white mist behind Link soundlessly take shape. Soon, the shade of an old man floated a few feet off the ground. Lydia and Gordon were too stunned to react, so Link continued to talk.

"It's these ears of mine," he said as he stroked his right ear with his fingers. "Sometimes I'm very thankful to have them."

The shade reached forward and tapped Link on the shoulder, then whispered in his ear. "Liiinnnkkkk......"

Link stiffened and turned as white as the shade. "Aahh!" He ran forward and hid himself behind Lydia. The sorceress laughed loudly.

"Oh come ON, Mr. Triforce of Courage," she boasted. "Don't tell me you're afraid of a little old ghost...."

And suddenly she realized what she had just said.

"G-G-GHOST!" Lydia whipped around and jumped behind Link, hiding her face behind his shoulder.

Gordon, who was still too stunned to move, stared at the old man ghost. The ghost threw his head back and laughed shrilly, so it echoed through the whole cavern.

Link took a good look at the ghost. Within seconds, his face relaxed and he started laughing, too. "Geez, Dampé, you scared the crap out of me," he said through a smile. "There you go again -- always playing your little jokes on me."

Lydia peered over Link's shoulder with one eye and looked at the old man.

"My friend," the ghost said. "Don't tell me you're afraid of me, now that I'm like this?"

Link, still smiling, shook his head. "No, you just startled me pretty badly, that's all."

Lydia narrowed her eyes and looked at Link. "What was all that about 'no one can sneak up on me'? Huh?"

Link looked back at her. "Well, no one that's alive can sneak up on me, anyway."

Gordon looked at the old man. "I thought you said Dampé was alive."

"He was the last time I saw him, seven years ago. But he left me a note in his hut, asking me to come visit."

The ghost of Dampé smiled, showing that several teeth were missing. "It's great to see you again, little friend," he said happily, "although it seems you're not so little anymore. Where have you been all this time?"

The Hylian smiled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, it's kind of a long story. I guess I can try to make it short for you."

Gordon snickered. "Just don't let Lydia tell the story. We'll be here all night."

Dampé waved one of his translucent hands. "Ah, sonny, you can tell me next time you visit." He floated closer, waving his lantern. "Anything special happening today?"

"Actually, I have a little favor to ask."

"Oh? What could a strong young man like you need from a ghost like me?"

Lydia poked her head around Link's arm long enough to speak. "We want your Hookshot," she said quickly, then she immediately hid behind Link again.

Link clenched his teeth together and looked over his shoulder. "Don't be so blunt!" he groaned. "You make it sound like a demand!"

Dampé laughed to himself. "Oh-ho-ho, it is the Hookshot you want?"

Gordon smiled at the ghost and pretended not to be the least bit intimidated by him. "Yes, please, if it is not too much trouble...."

Link tapped his fingers together. "You see, friend, uh, we're on a quest to save Hyrule, and we're rather stuck right now. We need the Hookshot to gain access to our next obstacle."

Lydia raised her head into view and rested her chin on Link's shoulder. "So," she said meekly, "would it be possible for us to have it...?"

"Borrow it," Link corrected loudly.

Gordon clasped his hands behind his back. "We probably won't need it long. It would be really great if Link could borrow your Hookshot, so we can save Hyrule and everything."

Lydia lowered her head so that only her eyes were visible from behind Link. "You see, we really, really need it, Mr. Ghost of Dampé."

Dampé suddenly let out another bellowing laugh that echoed through the whole cavern. He rubbed his head and smiled at the group.

"Friend Link, of course you can borrow my Hookshot. You and your friends don't have to try to impress me or beg me. But a word of advice first."

"What's that?" Link asked.

"Be careful with it this time. If you get yourself stuck in a tree again, I can't help you."

Link smiled meekly and looked at the floor. "Very funny."

Dampé smiled, once again bearing his toothless gums. "But as long as you're here, let's have a little competition, eh?"

Lydia sighed from her place behind the Hylian. "I knew there'd be a catch. There's always a catch."

"Ssh!" Link hushed her sharply.

"Friend Link, have you grown fast on your feet?" Dampé asked. "Why don't we have a little footrace through these twisted catacombs?"

Link tilted his head. "There are catacombs down here?"

"Oh yes. I know them very well – I've lived here for a few years now. I'll head toward where I keep my Hookshot. If you can keep up with me and not get lost in the catacombs, I'll lend you my Hookshot."

Lydia didn't like the idea one bit. For the first time, she stepped bravely out from behind Link and stood beside Gordon. "And what happens if we do lose track of you and do get lost, huh?"

Dampé's eyes narrowed slightly and he gummed another smile. Suddenly, he turned into a white mist and vanished. Three pairs of wide eyes stayed glued to where he had just been.

"Ugh!" Lydia grunted. "Now where'd the old guy go?"

Lydia, in the middle, stood her ground and glanced around. On either side of her, Link and Gordon turned to face her just in time to see the white mist form behind her. They started to giggle quietly, but didn't say anything.

The sorceress' dark eye pierced the very walls of the room as she searched for the ghost of the old man, not thinking to look behind her. Dampé fully materialized behind her and raised his hands in the air. He shook his head back and forth and let his cheeks and lips fly free. "Booga booga! Blaaahh!!"

Lydia turned white and shrieked, and with a single flying leap, she was back behind Link, clinging to the back of his blue tunic. The two boys could barely stand through all their laughter. Dampé was laughing so hard he seemed certain to fall right out of the air.

The old ghost wiped away a transparent tear and said, "Ah, Link, thanks for bringing your friends. Your girlfriend is just as fun as you are to scare!"

Link's mouth snapped shut, his eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, and his face turned the deepest red even possible. Lydia's fiery red eyes appeared around Link's shoulder and she glared angrily at the ghost.

"Girlfriend...?" she growled.

"Uh oh...," Gordon sighed.  "Here comes the hurricane."

"Is that what you just said, old man...? Huh?"

She shoved Link to the side and charged at the ghost with her right fist recoiled. She swung at Dampé, only to go right through him. The momentum of her punch took her to the ground when it didn't hit anything. She stood quickly and started kicking at him and swinging more punches. Through all this, Dampé floated there calmly with the most sarcastic look on his face. Then he looked over at Link, who hadn't moved an inch.

"She's a very entertaining girl," he said as Lydia swung a punch through his head. "You picked a good one for a girlfriend." He flashed a gummy smile.

Link was so embarrassed that he actually started to tremble slightly.

Eventually, Lydia grew tired, and just stood in place, panting loudly. She glared up at the old man with dark eyes. "I...am....not....his....girlfriend..... Do...you...hear....me....old...man...?"

"Barely, since you're so tired," Dampé replied with a chuckle. "Besides, you can't hide anything from an old man like me. I can tell a relationship when I see one."

Lydia's teeth ground against each other. "Why...you...lousy...." Placing a hand at her side, she chanted angrily. "Wind which blows across eternity, gather in my hands and—"

Link recovered suddenly and both he and Gordon jumped on the sorceress, and all three of them tumbled to the ground. She lost her concentration and the spell wavered and dispelled.

"You and your temper," Gordon grunted.

"Take it easy!" Link scorned. "Why are you getting so mad, anyway?"

Lydia looked up at Link and her face softened. She looked at the ground again. "I...I dunno." She shook free of the boys' grasp and glanced up at the ghost. "I'm sorry, old guy. I really didn't mean anything..."

Dampé threw his head back and bellowed his laugh again. "I like you, girl. You're very funny. You two make a great couple!"

Lydia and Link both turned red and crawled away from each other. Gordon laughed and smiled up at the ghost.

"You're right," he said, "they are kinda funny, actually."

Lydia pierced him with the look of death again, and he shut his mouth.

"I meet the strangest people in this world. ....Anyway," Lydia snapped, trying to drop the subject completely, "can you answer my question? What happens if we do get lost? Catacombs are supposedly places that, well, aren't much fun."

"Oh, I'll come find you," the ghost replied plainly, "if you can't find your way out. But that's boring."

"So all you're doing is playing with us?" she scoffed back.

Dampé shrugged. "All you have to do is keep up with me...."

Link looked over at Lydia. "Not such a bad game really," he said, "and we get the Hookshot if we win."

"Well," she murmured, "if you say so."

Dampé gummed a smile again. "So you're finally ready for the race? All you three have to do is keep up with me and not get lost."

Gordon looked optimistic. "Sounds easy enough."

Lydia leaned over to his ear. "Something tells me it won't be as easy as Toothless is making it out to be."

Link poked her arm. "Be nice, now...," he whispered.

"Okay!" Dampé's voice lifted and he floated toward the dirt-bottom hallway. "Follow me, then!" Without further words, he flew down the hallway. As he rounded the corner, Link jumped up and pulled the sorcerers to their feet.

"C'mon!" he said as he took off. "We have to catch up!"

Lydia ran beside him. "No need to run after the guy, you know. Ray W—"

Link slugged her in the shoulder. "No! It's a foot race, remember? Don't cheat."

"Ugh, fine."

Gordon shook his head as they rounded the corner. Honestly....it never fails.

Since they had all been on the ground at the start of the race, Dampé had gotten a head start and had already disappeared. They dashed down the hall only to hit a fork. A path went left, and a path went right. They stopped dead at the intersection and looked around desperately. They looked down the right path, which was desolate and lonely, then down the left. Link's elven eyesight caught a light far down the hallway.

"C'mon! He went this way!" Link shouted, and he took off down the left hallway with the sorcerers at his heels.

They rounded another corner and came to another fork. They were gaining on Dampé and didn't have trouble seeing the light of his lantern going down the right hallway. Even the sorcerers, with their human eyesight, could see it. The trio sprinted down the hallway.

They eventually ran into a ledge, and climbing up to the next level lost them precious seconds as Dampé continued in his flight through the catacombs. The group followed as fast as they could, with Link still in front, down a really dark hallway. The only light was the faint light of Dampé's lantern.

Link's keen eyesight in the darkness caught sight of something neither of the sorcerers could see. He pointed down the hallway and slowed his running speed.

"Up ahead!" he shouted. "A Redead! Gordon, out in front--!"

"Way ahead of ya!" the sorcerer shouted back, and he sprinted ahead. They were close enough by now that Gordon could see the outline of a figure. Sure enough, it was a Redead, leaning against the wall, waiting for them to run by. Gordon waved a hand at it.

"Blam Blazer!" A bluish white beam shot at the monster and blew it to pieces. Link shot ahead again and they continued down the hall, all the while catching up to Dampé.

They suddenly ended up in a large room brightly lit with torches. It was a long room with pillars lining each wall. And it didn't take them long to realize that they were not alone in the room. As they ran toward the two rows of pillars, they could see that next to each pillar was a Redead. Link fell back and let the sorcerers run in front.

"Gordon, take the left!" Lydia shouted.

Lydia ran along the right side toward the right row of pillars, and Gordon ran toward the left side. As they neared the pillars, complete with an army of Redeads, the sorcerers held their hands to their sides and shouted together.

"Rah Tilt!!"

A long beam of pure white magic, about as big around as a fairly thick tree, appeared in each of their hands. They both grabbed onto their respective spells and held them like humongous swords. Lydia held her Rah Tilt "sword" out to her right side, and Gordon held his to the left. They ran between the rows of pillars, holding the spells in place. As they ran past the Redeads, the creatures were destroyed one by one as they were hit by the extended spells. The sorcerers didn't even have to swing their modified Rah Tilts to attack the zombies. Holding them out to the side as they ran by proved to be very effective – not even one of the Redeads could make a move before they were sliced in half.

Finally, they ran out of the other side of the pillar path and dispelled the Rah Tilt spells. The room ended with a small hallway, and the group didn't hesitate to run in. Though they hadn't slowed down at all, even to fight off the monsters, Dampé was nowhere in sight. Not even Link could see him anywhere. Their lungs were on fire and their legs ached horribly.

"Where is that old fogey??" she huffed loudly. "For putting me through this, I'll kill him!"

"But he's already dead!" Gordon shouted back, still fighting for breath.

"I'll kill him again if I have to!"

To the trio's despair – and Lydia's extreme frustration – the hallway ended in a path that split in three directions. There was no light from Dampé's lantern to give them a hint, either. They skidded to a stop and glanced quickly down the three paths and tried to make a quick decision.

Lydia snarled. "Let's have a little competition, friend Link." She repeated Dampé's words with a highly sarcastic tone. "It's no competition if he intentionally goes too damn fast!! We should've flown like I wanted to!"

Link perked his ears, trying to hear any sounds that may tell them where to go, but before he could decide, Lydia shouted out.

"Well," she said, "my woman's intuition says he went this way!" And she took off down the center path.

The boys grunted and followed. Link waved a fist at her. "Woman's intuition is the worst thing we could possibly depend on!" he shouted.

"It's better than what those ears of yours will do for us!" she shouted back defiantly. "Ghosts make no sounds, remember?"

"Oh, would you two stop it!" Gordon shouted. "Argue about it later! We have to find that old guy or we don't get a Hookshot, you know!"

Before the sorceress could snap back, they ran into yet another room. It was circular in shape and the path curved along the outside edges of the room. In the center of the room was what looked like a bottomless pit. The path that curved around the room led up to a ledge. There was a large metal door in the wall on this ledge. And making his way through the door was the ghost of Dampé.

Lydia smiled over at Link. "See?" she said triumphantly. "Woman's intuition."

He shrugged his shoulders but didn't stop. "Whatever," he said. Then he started running up the path. "Come on, we can't fall behind again!"

"You go ahead and take the long way – I'm tired of running! Ray Wing!" She jumped off the path and flew over the pit up to the ledge. Gordon groaned and followed.

When Link was about halfway up the path, the sorcerers landed on the ledge and dashed through the door. Within seconds after they had gone through, the top of the metal door's frame started to move. Ever so slowly, it started to lower a stone slab over the entrance way.

"Move it, Hero!" Lydia shouted down the room. "The door's closing!"

Link had already greatly increased his speed with one last burst of energy. The stone slab continued to close as Link neared the ledge. With a flying leap, he jumped over the length of the ledge and slid under the slab on his back. It shut completely just after his head was in.

The sorcerers let go a sigh of relief as Link sat up. All three of them breathed heavily, trying to catch their breath. They were in a dead-end room, and Dampé was gone. They were alone in this room, all feeling like they were about to die of exhaustion.

Lydia gasped loudly and looked at Link. "That was really close – don't do that again. That door could've squished you."

Link shrugged. "I'm better than that," he said with a smile.

The sorceress shook her head and went back to catching her breath. Link and Gordon both sat on the ground, horribly tired. Lydia stood with her hands on her knees. She happened to glance over at the stone door again, and immediately started laughing. The two boys looked at her like she had gone nuts, even more so than she already was.

"Um, Link?" Lydia asked through a smile. "Aren't you missing something?" She laughed again and pointed toward the floor under the stone slab.

Link looked over where she was pointing and saw a blue piece of material on the floor. The tip of his hat was caught under the stone. He put his hand on the top of his head and only felt hair.

"Aw, man," he groaned. He crawled over to the door and started to tug on the hat.

Lydia and Gordon looked around the room they were stuck in. It was a square room with a low ceiling, and platform in the center. The only source of light, two torches, burned on the platform. There was a strange looking blue block in the back of the room that stood about six feet high and looked very out of place. What bothered them so much was the fact that there was no other way out of this room except for the door they had just gone through, and it was sealed off.

"Well, that's great," Lydia groaned. "The old guy led us into a trap."

"I'm sure there's a way out," Gordon replied.

"Of course. If there's no obvious way, you make your own way. Link, come over here."

Link stood on his feet and gave his hat a good tug. It came free suddenly, and Link stumbled backward, barely managing to keep his balance. He quickly gathered up his long braid, put his hat back on, and joined the sorcerers near the platform of the room.

"Stand back now," Lydia said coolly. She placed a hand in front of her, toward the stone door. "Bephis—"

"Booga Booga! Bleeehhh!!"

Lydia screamed and ran away swinging her arms, slamming both boys down to the ground in her panic. Dampé's familiar shrill laugh echoed through the whole room. Lydia stopped dead in her tracks and hunched her shoulders up, growling loudly. The boys laughed from their places on the floor.

"You nasty old guy!" Lydia snarled. She whirled around and saw Dampé floating where she had just been, complete with the toothless smile. "That race was no fair! You went too fast and there were too many turns and it was dark and.....and there were Redeads!"

Dampé ignored her and turned to Link. "Well done. I knew you'd be able to accomplish my little task."

"And now how about your end of the bargain?" Gordon asked.

Dampé soundlessly snapped his fingers. Behind him, up on the platform, a treasure chest appeared. The old man smiled again. "Thank you for visiting me again, friend Link."

Link stood, brushed himself off, and said, "I'll visit again once this whole mess we're going through is over."

Dampé chuckled. "Then I'll depart for now. They've got me haunting a family in Kakariko, and I've fallen behind with that. Oh yes, and be careful on your way back." He dissipated into a white mist and disappeared. His shrill, mischievous laughed echoed through the room and finally quieted.

Lydia's eyes darted all around the room. She waited for Dampé to jump out at her again. In the meantime, Link climbed onto the platform and opened the chest the ghost had left behind. He reached in and pulled out a really strange-looking mechanism. Link smiled and showed it to Gordon.

"This is it," he said.

Gordon took it from him and looked it over. It had a handle at one end and a pointy thing at the other end. He looked totally perplexed.

"How strange looking," the sorcerer said. "What does this weird thing do?"

"I'll show you later," Link replied. "It won't do anything useful in here."

Lydia, finally satisfied that Dampé was really gone this time, turned to face the boys. She saw the Hookshot and made a weird face. The thing looked too weird to her. She had no idea what that thing could do, but her first concern was getting out.

"'Be careful on your way out' indeed," she scoffed loudly. "Even if we do blast through this stone door, there's that matter of finding our way back through the catacombs."

Link spotted the blue block in the back of the room. He walked over to it and ran his fingers along the grooves of the strange design on it.

"There were so many turns," Lydia continued, "and we were going so fast to keep up with that old fool. It'll take us days to find our way out."

Gordon noticed Link had wandered away and glanced around the room. He saw him studying the strange blue block in the back wall. Lydia noticed it, too.

"Yeah," she called, "I saw that weird thing when we came in." She jogged to the back wall and stood next to Link. "What do you think it is?"

Gordon appeared next to his sister. "What's that strange design on it?"

Link stepped back. "Isn't this the design we saw on the Door of Time?"

As soon as Link said it, the sorcerers recognized the mark. It was in deed the carving on the Door of Time, the huge stone door in the temple that protected the Master Sword.

"Okay," Lydia said quietly, "...we know what this mark is, but....well, not to sound rude or anything...but....so what?"

Link stepped back and reached into his tunic. He pulled out the Ocarina of Time and raised it to play. Sad notes flowed from it and filled the room. The sorcerers remembered this song as the Song of Time. Gordon and Link both felt their Triforce pieces flicker with power as the song was played.

As soon as Link finished the song, the blue block was surrounded by a blue light that extended up to the ceiling. Everyone stepped back as the blue column of light glowed brightly. The column grew smaller and smaller, and with it, the huge blue block dissolved and disappeared. Behind it, in the wall, was a passage and a flight of stairs.

Gordon gave the Hylian a pat on the back. "You're very clever."

"I've just learned to try everything," Link replied.

Lydia stepped forward and gazed up the stairs. "So," she said, "where do you think this goes? To more catacombs?"

Link walked ahead and the sorcerers followed closely. "There's only one way to find out," he said as they began the climb.

As they neared the top of the stairs, they began to hear strange music. The sorcerers thought it was the weirdest thing they'd ever heard, but Link recognized the music.

"That's...I think that's the tune the windmill guy always plays....," he said.

"Windmill guy?" Lydia asked.

"Yeah, the windmill in the east side of Kakariko. A guy lives in there and is always playing this tune."

When they reached the top of the stairs, they stood in a doorway. Down below them, a large wooden column was turning, and off to the side, a strange looking man was turning the crank on a box. The box played the strange music they were hearing.

"I knew it," Link said with a smile. "This is the inside of the windmill."

Lydia looked around. "So, we're back in Kakariko?"

"I guess so."

Gordon smiled. "Well, that's convenient," he said. "Dampé must have known Link would figure that blue block out."

The sorceress looked at him. "But...But we didn't tell the old guy about the Temple of Time or anything. How could he know?"

Link's eyes narrowed. "Maybe my old friend knows more about my travels than he's ever let on."

"Could he have been spying on you, even when we were all children?"

The Hylian shrugged his shoulders. "Not sure. It sure would be easy as a ghost to get around. I guess he's just been keeping up with what I was doing. He's just been playing dumb all this time. When I was younger, before you two came, I got two Spiritual Stones by myself. When I visited Dampé, I told him all about it."

"He knows more than he lets on," Gordon added, "that's for sure."

Lydia sneered. "Sneaky old coot."

Link smiled. "Well, it doesn't really matter, anyway. Let's get going."

The trio jumped down and landed on the spinning column. They stood on it until they reached the wooden door. Gordon opened it and sunshine rushed in. Outside was Kakariko Village.

Link stepped out and pulled out his Hookshot. Lydia's face brightened and she tugged on Link's tunic like a child.

"Hey, show us what that thing does!" she said eagerly.

Link climbed up on the fence held the Hookshot toward the wooden roof of the closest house. The pointy end of the Hookshot suddenly shot out, pulling a long chain with it. The point dug into the wooden roof and the chain contracted quickly, pulling Link with it. He flew off the fence and sailed along the chain, landing hard on the roof. He turned and waved to the sorcerers.

Lydia turned to Gordon and smiled. "Well, that's certainly....different."

"Yeah," Gordon replied, "but what a cool thing it is!"

They climbed down the stairs and started to make their way toward the house where Link was. Link sat down on the edge of the roof and let his legs dangle off the side.

"Pretty neat, huh?" he called.

"That is a pretty cool trinket," Lydia replied. "Can I try it sometime?"

Link scoffed playfully. "You'll just get yourself stuck in a tree or something."

"Oh, sure! Like you're the one to talk."

The Hylian laughed. "I know! I know! I'm just kidding!"

Gordon laughed, too. "Well, we should get going back to the lake. We have our way into the temple now."

"We'll go in the morning," Lydia said. "The sun's about to set."

"I guess so. It'd be smart to start a new temple when we're fresh and rested."

The sorcerers started to walk toward their house, which was right next door to the house Link was sitting on. Lydia looked up at him as she passed under him. "Good luck getting down," she said with a laugh.

"Yeah, thanks," Link replied sarcastically.

He stood and walked to the side of the house, then aimed the Hookshot at the roof of their house. He let it go and flew right over the sorcerer's heads. He put the Hookshot away once he was safely on their roof. As the sorcerers neared the door, Link jumped down in front of them. He opened the door and waved Lydia in.

"Ladies first," he said.

Lydia rolled her eyes as she passed. "You show off," she said with a sarcastic smile.

"What can I say? New toys are fun." Link followed the sorcerers inside and closed the door behind him.

***

All night, Lydia slept restlessly. She kept waking up and glancing around her, just waiting for Dampé to pop out from under the bed or something. She could just hear the old man's shrill laugh and could almost see his toothless smile. She pulled the blankets up to her ears and sighed loudly.

Hmph... I dunno if I'll ever have a good night's sleep again.

She fell asleep quickly, only to have another nightmare. Not about Dampé, however. Though she wished it had been a nightmare of the old ghost. Instead, a dark force surrounded her and tried pulling her in several directions. She lost control of her body. She started casting various spells against her will. At one point in the dream, she thought she saw Link and Gordon in the distance.

As much as she fought it, the dark force made her cast a wind spell to blow her brother out of the way. And then she advanced on Link. She watched herself yank her longsword from the nothingness. The sorceress tried with all her might to resist, but her arms kept slashing at the Hylian. He pulled his own sword out from behind his back. Lydia watched as he only defended himself – he refused to fight back – he refused to hurt her.

What came next was the worst part. The darkness forced her to start chanting a spell. She resisted the darkness with so much willpower that tears began to fall from the corners of her eyes, but it was still too strong. She watched in horror as she threw the spell, hitting Link in the head. He was dead before he hit the ground. The darkness released the sorceress suddenly, and she screamed at the top of her voice in terror and anger.

The ground suddenly vanished from underneath her feet and she fell even further into the abyss of this horrible place. Then she heard the voice again.

Allies will fall, evil will rise. Even when all seems lost, the last resort will fail. Only the power of all will defeat the evil. Ultimate power will restore the land.

Lydia awoke screaming Link's name. She sat straight up in bed and started shivering violently. Her sheets were soaked with sweat. In her confusion and panic, she continued to call for Link. Within seconds, she felt strong hands on her shoulders. Startled, she looked to the side to find Link sitting on her bed next to her, shaking her gently.

"Hey, hey," he coaxed. "I'm right here. What's wrong?"

After an moment of disbelief, the sorceress hugged Link tightly and began to sob violently. Link rubbed her back, ignoring the tears that were soaking into his nightshirt.

"It's okay now...," he kept repeating quietly. "Sshh..."

Gordon appeared and sat down next to them on the bed. His sleepy face was wrinkled with worry. "What's wrong with her?"

The Hylian looked up at him as Lydia continued crying on his shoulder. "I think she had a really bad nightmare."

"From the looks of it," Gordon replied as he patted his sister's shoulder, "it was terrible!"

Lydia's sobbing quieted slightly and she began to tremble. Link rocked back and forth gently in an effort to calm her down. He figured he had better not ask her about whatever nightmare she had just had until later.

Gordon squeezed Lydia's hand and stood up. He opened his mouth to speak, but Link answered his unasked question.

"She'll be all right," he said quietly. "You can go back to bed."

"Are you sure?"

Link nodded. "I'll stay with her until she falls asleep. Go ahead."

Reluctantly, Gordon nodded and trailed back to his bed. He listened to Lydia's quiet crying as he pulled the sheets up to his head.

She's had weird dreams before, but nothing this bad. What could she have seen in her sleep that would scare her so badly?

With this worried thought rooted in his head, he drifted off to sleep again.

Eventually, Lydia's crying quieted even more and eventually stopped as Link held her. After a few moments, her trembling stopped as well. Link glanced at her face, and saw that she had cried herself back to sleep, still clinging tightly to his shirt. He couldn't help but think it was kinda cute.

He held onto her for a few minutes longer until she was completely asleep. He gently laid her down on her pillow, carefully pulled his nightshirt out of her clenched fists, and pulled her sheets up. In her sleep, she reached for the sheets and clung to them for security.

Poor thing....

He quietly slipped back into his bed and rolled over. A million and one thoughts ran through his head. It took him some time to get drowsy again. Even after he had started to drift off, his main thought stuck. Lydia tends to have dreams about what will come. At least, that's what seems to be happening. What horrible thing is coming? What could have possibly terrified her like that?

As he fell asleep, one more thought nagged at him.

Sometimes, I regret bringing her here. I regret having to put her through all this.