Disclaimer: Don't own it! How many times do I have to say it?
Since I am immediately posting this after the previous one, I can't, uh, respond to reviews, now can I? But I'll get them in next chapter. I thought you guys and girls would rather read the next two chapters than listen to me blab to my lovable readers, such as you. So, really, in the words of the ever-annoying Navi,"this is for your benefit, dearie!"
Ahem... On with the show!
Chapter Five
The Guardian of Darkness, Sheik
"Giving the Hero of Time that horse; and while I lent my power in hijacking Lon Lon Ranch," Ganondorf said with anger and disappointment to the kneeling figure before him. "This is high treason, Ingo."
"I-I have no excuse to give, L-Lord Ganondorf," Ingo pleaded as he lowered his head. "The villagers of Kakariko who were keeping her did it at their own convenience."
Clank! Clank! Clank!
Ingo looked behind him and gaped. A huge Iron Knuckle, axe in hand, was slowly making its way to Ingo. The farmer turned to face it as it loomed closer still. As Ingo backed away on the floor, he uttered, "My Lord, please..."
"Lord Ganondorf, please wait!" an elderly female voice said.
Two elderly witches came in the study, each flying a broomstick. They were twin sisters, Koume and Kotake.
Koume, sorceress of fire, said cryptically, referring to Ingo, "This kind of person is limited by his 'change of heart'."
Kotake flashed an intriguing smile. "Just leave it to us..." the mistress of ice finished.
Ganondorf knew full well what the sisters, practically his surrogate mothers, had in mind for the foolish farmer who had dared to cross him. "Twinrova's specialty: brainwashing. Very interesting..."
The two witches cast their spell upon Ingo, putting him under their control.
"All right. Your orders are..." Kotake demanded, "to capture the Hero of Time. Now, go!"
"And do not fail us." Koume said lethally.
Ingo had a dazed and glassy look in his eye as he started walking out obediently. As he was walking out, Sheik, however, was walking in. He eyed Ingo with interest. As soon as he realized what had happened, he scowled softly in disgust. He hated Koume and Kotake's strange hobby with a passion. "Under the training of the Shadow Sage, Impa," Sheik muttered to himself, "Link is becoming still stronger. There is no way he will be defeated by the likes of Ingo."
Sheik walked into Ganondorf throne room. He went up to the Gerudo and bowed respectfully.
Ganondorf looked at Sheik and asked him quite plainly, "Why do you serve me, Sheik? You, a descendant of the Sheikah Tribe, who have served Hyrule's Royal Family for a long time... Is it revenge?"
Sheik looked up at Ganondorf and said honestly, "We are a tribe of shadows. While I was without a master, you appeared. That is the only reason."
Ganondorf eyed the boy as he teleported. As he vanished, Sheik said, "In order to assist Ingo, I will lure the Hero of Time to the Ranch..."
"Zelda," Link whispered sadly as he and Epona rested on the grassy plains of Hyrule. "I want to see you soon."
Now, more than ever, Link missed the Princess. She, other than Saria, was really the first friend he had ever had. The Hylian looked up at the clear blue sky, wondering where on earth Zelda could be... when he saw someone, a husky looking man, running across the hills. It took a few seconds, but Link realized who he was as he sprinted up to Link.
"Taron?" Link quirked an eyebrow; why was Taron, the owner of the Ranch, all the way out here?
"Oh, it's you, Link," Taron gasped when he saw the Hylian and recognized him. Then, overcome with shock, suddenly, farmer let out, "Please, can you help me? Maron has—!"
Link gasped slightly. "Maron? What's wrong?"
Taron blinked back tears. "Ganondorf, who was angry because we didn't offer him Epona, said he-he'd take my daughter in place of a horse."
Link tensed. Then he started to grow angry. He had to save Maron. "Go, Epona!" Link hollered as he and Epona sped off towards the Ranch. While on the way, Link prayed that Maron was all right.
Meanwhile, inside the stables in the Ranch, Ingo was in a rage. He was abusing the horses very badly. Maron was not subject to this abuse, but was sitting on a patch of hay, hands and upper arms bound.
Ingo cracked his whip at a horse. The straps came deathly close but didn't make contact. "This is what happens to those who don't listen to what I say!" he snarled.
Maron pleaded to him, "Stop, Ingo! Don't hurt the horses! What did they ever do to you?"
Ingo dropped his whip and glared at her. "Maron, you are no longer the daughter of the Ranch Master, or anything for that matter. So, by order, behave!"
Maron flashed him a questioning look. "So why do you have me tied up? Why didn't you just kick me out, along with my father?"
Ingo fingered his whip playfully. "Why," he said, mock surprise, "as bait to lure him out..."
"Him? Who?"
Link climbed down from Epona's back as he entered the Ranch. "It looks like nothing's changed..." But Link knew better than that. Things were too oddly quiet around this place. As he passed the stables, Link saw, in the corner of his eye, Maron, still bound. Link pressed his hands against the glass. "It's Maron!" he whispered shockingly to Navi.
"Hold on there, Link," Navi insisted before her partner did something stupid. "This could be a trap. Let's hide and watch."
Maron thought to herself sadly, Alas! What an unfortunate girl I am. Ever since my mother died, when I was a little, I would pour my heart out in helping Dad with the Ranch. Now, taken prisoner—!
To smash Maron out of her thoughts, someone fell right through the ceiling above and landed roughly in front of her, scaring her half to death.
It was Link!
"Geez!" Navi criticized. "Not like Impa at all!"
Link lifted his head up from the straw and said quickly, ignoring his fairy, "Y-you okay, Maron?"
Maron looked at Link as if he were crazy. She asked him forcefully, "Who are you?"
"It's me, Link," the Hylian said, standing up.
"Link?" Maron said, bewildered. "I don't know you!"
Not knowing what else to do, Link took out the Ocarina of Time and said in a rush, "Seven years ago, you taught me Epona's Song! Now do you remember?"
"Oh!" Maron said, her eyes widening. "It's you, the fairy boy from the forest! Whatcha doin' here?"
Link didn't waste time responding. He took out the Master Sword and sliced through the ropes securing Maron. And, offering her a hand up, he said, "I've come to rescue you. Come on!" Without waiting for a response, Link grabbed Maron's hand and pulled her to her feet. "If we're found—!"
But Link stopped: Ingo had just walked onto the stable and blocked the exit, along with a group of six Gerudian warriors, Ganondorf's closest followers and members of his race.
"You've completely fallen into my trap, boy!" Ingo yelled triumphantly. "I'll teach you what happens to those who oppose the great Lord Ganondorf."
Maron cringed in fear beside Link. "Who-who are they?" she asked shakily, eyeing the Gerudo.
"The Gerudo Tribe," Link answered quietly into her ear with a nervous look upon his face. Then Link did a double take. "Ingo?!"
"He's changed a bit," Navi understated.
But Ingo was tired of fooling around. "Go!" he ordered three warriors. "Capture the boy!"
Link smiled, knowing very well that he could take on all three of them at once. The first Gerudo attacked Link, who ducked her saber and parried a second thrust from another attacker. The third was standing in front of him and, since she wasn't expecting him to come charging, Link dealt her a deathly blow. The remaining two he defeated with equal ease.
Knowing that Ingo would stop at nothing to see him in the hands of the Gerudo, Link pulled out another weapon. This one was a spring-loaded chain with an iron spear tip attached to the end of it. He gripped the handle and aimed it at the wooden ceiling and fired the chain. The grapple went flying out straight into the soft wood. Link grabbed Maron about the waist and the two of them were pulled to the roof of the barn.
Navi looked very impressed and also very confused at this new contraption of her partner's. "Hey, that's pretty neat. Where'd you get it, Link?"
"It's called a Hookshot," Link told her, "I found it in Kakariko. Why is Ingo ordering the Gerudo around?"
Maron answered his question, "Suddenly, he just became a different person. He hijacked the Ranch and drove my father out. Right now, I have no idea where my dad is... But it is Dad's fault for not working," she said in a low voice. "He may have complained a lot, but Ingo was a good worker nonetheless. He adored the cows and horses, but then he started to treat them badly."
"Ingo has been brainwashed by Twinrova," a mysterious voice said behind them.
Link swirled around. "Sheik! What are you doing here, and who's Twinrova?"
"They are elderly twin witches," he replied. "The two of them raised Ganondorf. Their specialty is brainwashing." Sheik continued in a disgusted tone, "It's a rather wicked sort of hobby, I think."
Link looked at the Sheikah in front of him a few yards away. He asked in a soft voice, "How do you know this? And why are you telling me?"
Sheik shrugged lightly. "I hear various things as I travel. I am simply a minstrel." As he began to step back, he said, "You'd best go to the Haunted Wasteland. I heard a rumour that Princess Zelda has been seen there."
Link gasped. "Zelda?"
But Sheik only responded with, as he disappeared, "The key that is manipulating Ingo is the gem in his ear." Then he vanished completely.
"Sheik, wait!" Link hollered as he ran towards where the boy used to be. When he neared the edge, a Gerudo sprang up in front of him, two sabers in hand. Link spun back around, grabbed Maron's hand and the two of them leaped down off the roof at the other end. Down on the ground, however, there were even more enemies.
Link stood in front of Maron and took out the Master Sword and Hylian Shield, eyeing the Gerudo. Then the two "groups" met. Link was not sure that he would come out of this battle alive.
As Link was fending them off, Maron was feeling left out. She seized a nearby pitchfork and hollered savagely, "Well, this is no time for chit- chat!" With that, she belted a Gerudo right on her face, knocking her senseless to the ground.
Link and Maron stood back to back. "Wow," Link said over his shoulder when the opportunity came. "Way to go, Maron!"
"I trained here at the Ranch!" she said brightly. "Comes in handy, huh?"
Then, an arrow came whizzing through the air and broke the head of Maron's weapon off. She and Link looked over and saw Ingo with a crossbow in his hands; the weapon was loaded again.
Ingo aimed directly at Link's heart and said, "Die, Hero of Time!"
Link, however, was much quicker than Ingo. He whipped out his Hookshot again and sent the chain to flick the crossbow out of Ingo's hands. Having Ingo stunned gave the Hylian the time he needed to rush forward and aim for the gem wedged slightly in Ingo's ear. Link went in with his Sword and chipped it out.
Ingo, as soon as the jewel was extracted, blinked a couple times and said groggily, "What have I been doing? Oh, it's you, Miss Maron! Where's your father, Taron?" He looked up kindly at Maron. He didn't remember anything but at least he was back to normal.
Back at Ganondorf's study, Koume and Kotake knew very well that Link had freed Ingo from their spell.
"He broke the brainwash?!" Koume hollered, outraged at Link.
Then the two of them saw Link, Maron and Ingo start to flee to the exit, away from the Gerudo.
Kotake scoffed. "Do you think we'll let you get away, boy?"
Link was fighting off more Gerudo: warriors Koume and Kotake had sent to capture him. "Let's get out of here!" Link hollered out. "Epona!"
The mare came galloping up to Link. He grabbed onto her reigns and mounted, as did Maron. As they were rushing past, Link seized Ingo's outstretched hand and helped him up, seating him behind Maron. He looked up and saw the Gerudo closing the gate that led out to the exit. There was no way they were going to make it before the door would close: the gate embedded in the ground with a soft "thud!" They were trapped... Or so it seemed. Link urged Epona on, going faster still.
"No, don't, Link!" Maron pleaded. She knew that Link was going to have the horse try to jump over the fence. "We'll hit it!"
Link guided Epona, ignoring Maron's plight. He was right to trust the mare: she made it clean over and onto the plains of Hyrule. Since the Gerudo couldn't capture or kill Link now, they returned to the desert, their plans foiled. Lon Lon Ranch returned to its original tranquil state.
"Take care, Epona," Maron said kindly.
"Don't worry, Maron, I'll take excellent care of her," Link said after he had helped Maron and Ingo down and remounted. "I'll be sure to come back 'cause the Ranch's milk gives me strength." Link turned Epona around and headed into the west.
Maron hollered to Link, "Come back again, Fairy Boy—no, I mean, Hero Boy!"
When Link, Epona and Navi were out in the Fields of Hyrule, Navi asked Link, "Who do you suppose Sheik is? Do you think it's true, what he said about Zelda?"
Link looked up at her sharply. "Why do you ask?"
Navi shrugged, "I don't know. Listening to his harp makes me think that... But where else are we going to go? Let's go check out the desert he mentioned!"
Link smiled at the thought of maybe, by chance, seeing Zelda again. "Okay! To the Haunted Wasteland... on a trip closer to Zelda."
Well, that's that!!
See ya next post!
Since I am immediately posting this after the previous one, I can't, uh, respond to reviews, now can I? But I'll get them in next chapter. I thought you guys and girls would rather read the next two chapters than listen to me blab to my lovable readers, such as you. So, really, in the words of the ever-annoying Navi,"this is for your benefit, dearie!"
Ahem... On with the show!
Chapter Five
The Guardian of Darkness, Sheik
"Giving the Hero of Time that horse; and while I lent my power in hijacking Lon Lon Ranch," Ganondorf said with anger and disappointment to the kneeling figure before him. "This is high treason, Ingo."
"I-I have no excuse to give, L-Lord Ganondorf," Ingo pleaded as he lowered his head. "The villagers of Kakariko who were keeping her did it at their own convenience."
Clank! Clank! Clank!
Ingo looked behind him and gaped. A huge Iron Knuckle, axe in hand, was slowly making its way to Ingo. The farmer turned to face it as it loomed closer still. As Ingo backed away on the floor, he uttered, "My Lord, please..."
"Lord Ganondorf, please wait!" an elderly female voice said.
Two elderly witches came in the study, each flying a broomstick. They were twin sisters, Koume and Kotake.
Koume, sorceress of fire, said cryptically, referring to Ingo, "This kind of person is limited by his 'change of heart'."
Kotake flashed an intriguing smile. "Just leave it to us..." the mistress of ice finished.
Ganondorf knew full well what the sisters, practically his surrogate mothers, had in mind for the foolish farmer who had dared to cross him. "Twinrova's specialty: brainwashing. Very interesting..."
The two witches cast their spell upon Ingo, putting him under their control.
"All right. Your orders are..." Kotake demanded, "to capture the Hero of Time. Now, go!"
"And do not fail us." Koume said lethally.
Ingo had a dazed and glassy look in his eye as he started walking out obediently. As he was walking out, Sheik, however, was walking in. He eyed Ingo with interest. As soon as he realized what had happened, he scowled softly in disgust. He hated Koume and Kotake's strange hobby with a passion. "Under the training of the Shadow Sage, Impa," Sheik muttered to himself, "Link is becoming still stronger. There is no way he will be defeated by the likes of Ingo."
Sheik walked into Ganondorf throne room. He went up to the Gerudo and bowed respectfully.
Ganondorf looked at Sheik and asked him quite plainly, "Why do you serve me, Sheik? You, a descendant of the Sheikah Tribe, who have served Hyrule's Royal Family for a long time... Is it revenge?"
Sheik looked up at Ganondorf and said honestly, "We are a tribe of shadows. While I was without a master, you appeared. That is the only reason."
Ganondorf eyed the boy as he teleported. As he vanished, Sheik said, "In order to assist Ingo, I will lure the Hero of Time to the Ranch..."
"Zelda," Link whispered sadly as he and Epona rested on the grassy plains of Hyrule. "I want to see you soon."
Now, more than ever, Link missed the Princess. She, other than Saria, was really the first friend he had ever had. The Hylian looked up at the clear blue sky, wondering where on earth Zelda could be... when he saw someone, a husky looking man, running across the hills. It took a few seconds, but Link realized who he was as he sprinted up to Link.
"Taron?" Link quirked an eyebrow; why was Taron, the owner of the Ranch, all the way out here?
"Oh, it's you, Link," Taron gasped when he saw the Hylian and recognized him. Then, overcome with shock, suddenly, farmer let out, "Please, can you help me? Maron has—!"
Link gasped slightly. "Maron? What's wrong?"
Taron blinked back tears. "Ganondorf, who was angry because we didn't offer him Epona, said he-he'd take my daughter in place of a horse."
Link tensed. Then he started to grow angry. He had to save Maron. "Go, Epona!" Link hollered as he and Epona sped off towards the Ranch. While on the way, Link prayed that Maron was all right.
Meanwhile, inside the stables in the Ranch, Ingo was in a rage. He was abusing the horses very badly. Maron was not subject to this abuse, but was sitting on a patch of hay, hands and upper arms bound.
Ingo cracked his whip at a horse. The straps came deathly close but didn't make contact. "This is what happens to those who don't listen to what I say!" he snarled.
Maron pleaded to him, "Stop, Ingo! Don't hurt the horses! What did they ever do to you?"
Ingo dropped his whip and glared at her. "Maron, you are no longer the daughter of the Ranch Master, or anything for that matter. So, by order, behave!"
Maron flashed him a questioning look. "So why do you have me tied up? Why didn't you just kick me out, along with my father?"
Ingo fingered his whip playfully. "Why," he said, mock surprise, "as bait to lure him out..."
"Him? Who?"
Link climbed down from Epona's back as he entered the Ranch. "It looks like nothing's changed..." But Link knew better than that. Things were too oddly quiet around this place. As he passed the stables, Link saw, in the corner of his eye, Maron, still bound. Link pressed his hands against the glass. "It's Maron!" he whispered shockingly to Navi.
"Hold on there, Link," Navi insisted before her partner did something stupid. "This could be a trap. Let's hide and watch."
Maron thought to herself sadly, Alas! What an unfortunate girl I am. Ever since my mother died, when I was a little, I would pour my heart out in helping Dad with the Ranch. Now, taken prisoner—!
To smash Maron out of her thoughts, someone fell right through the ceiling above and landed roughly in front of her, scaring her half to death.
It was Link!
"Geez!" Navi criticized. "Not like Impa at all!"
Link lifted his head up from the straw and said quickly, ignoring his fairy, "Y-you okay, Maron?"
Maron looked at Link as if he were crazy. She asked him forcefully, "Who are you?"
"It's me, Link," the Hylian said, standing up.
"Link?" Maron said, bewildered. "I don't know you!"
Not knowing what else to do, Link took out the Ocarina of Time and said in a rush, "Seven years ago, you taught me Epona's Song! Now do you remember?"
"Oh!" Maron said, her eyes widening. "It's you, the fairy boy from the forest! Whatcha doin' here?"
Link didn't waste time responding. He took out the Master Sword and sliced through the ropes securing Maron. And, offering her a hand up, he said, "I've come to rescue you. Come on!" Without waiting for a response, Link grabbed Maron's hand and pulled her to her feet. "If we're found—!"
But Link stopped: Ingo had just walked onto the stable and blocked the exit, along with a group of six Gerudian warriors, Ganondorf's closest followers and members of his race.
"You've completely fallen into my trap, boy!" Ingo yelled triumphantly. "I'll teach you what happens to those who oppose the great Lord Ganondorf."
Maron cringed in fear beside Link. "Who-who are they?" she asked shakily, eyeing the Gerudo.
"The Gerudo Tribe," Link answered quietly into her ear with a nervous look upon his face. Then Link did a double take. "Ingo?!"
"He's changed a bit," Navi understated.
But Ingo was tired of fooling around. "Go!" he ordered three warriors. "Capture the boy!"
Link smiled, knowing very well that he could take on all three of them at once. The first Gerudo attacked Link, who ducked her saber and parried a second thrust from another attacker. The third was standing in front of him and, since she wasn't expecting him to come charging, Link dealt her a deathly blow. The remaining two he defeated with equal ease.
Knowing that Ingo would stop at nothing to see him in the hands of the Gerudo, Link pulled out another weapon. This one was a spring-loaded chain with an iron spear tip attached to the end of it. He gripped the handle and aimed it at the wooden ceiling and fired the chain. The grapple went flying out straight into the soft wood. Link grabbed Maron about the waist and the two of them were pulled to the roof of the barn.
Navi looked very impressed and also very confused at this new contraption of her partner's. "Hey, that's pretty neat. Where'd you get it, Link?"
"It's called a Hookshot," Link told her, "I found it in Kakariko. Why is Ingo ordering the Gerudo around?"
Maron answered his question, "Suddenly, he just became a different person. He hijacked the Ranch and drove my father out. Right now, I have no idea where my dad is... But it is Dad's fault for not working," she said in a low voice. "He may have complained a lot, but Ingo was a good worker nonetheless. He adored the cows and horses, but then he started to treat them badly."
"Ingo has been brainwashed by Twinrova," a mysterious voice said behind them.
Link swirled around. "Sheik! What are you doing here, and who's Twinrova?"
"They are elderly twin witches," he replied. "The two of them raised Ganondorf. Their specialty is brainwashing." Sheik continued in a disgusted tone, "It's a rather wicked sort of hobby, I think."
Link looked at the Sheikah in front of him a few yards away. He asked in a soft voice, "How do you know this? And why are you telling me?"
Sheik shrugged lightly. "I hear various things as I travel. I am simply a minstrel." As he began to step back, he said, "You'd best go to the Haunted Wasteland. I heard a rumour that Princess Zelda has been seen there."
Link gasped. "Zelda?"
But Sheik only responded with, as he disappeared, "The key that is manipulating Ingo is the gem in his ear." Then he vanished completely.
"Sheik, wait!" Link hollered as he ran towards where the boy used to be. When he neared the edge, a Gerudo sprang up in front of him, two sabers in hand. Link spun back around, grabbed Maron's hand and the two of them leaped down off the roof at the other end. Down on the ground, however, there were even more enemies.
Link stood in front of Maron and took out the Master Sword and Hylian Shield, eyeing the Gerudo. Then the two "groups" met. Link was not sure that he would come out of this battle alive.
As Link was fending them off, Maron was feeling left out. She seized a nearby pitchfork and hollered savagely, "Well, this is no time for chit- chat!" With that, she belted a Gerudo right on her face, knocking her senseless to the ground.
Link and Maron stood back to back. "Wow," Link said over his shoulder when the opportunity came. "Way to go, Maron!"
"I trained here at the Ranch!" she said brightly. "Comes in handy, huh?"
Then, an arrow came whizzing through the air and broke the head of Maron's weapon off. She and Link looked over and saw Ingo with a crossbow in his hands; the weapon was loaded again.
Ingo aimed directly at Link's heart and said, "Die, Hero of Time!"
Link, however, was much quicker than Ingo. He whipped out his Hookshot again and sent the chain to flick the crossbow out of Ingo's hands. Having Ingo stunned gave the Hylian the time he needed to rush forward and aim for the gem wedged slightly in Ingo's ear. Link went in with his Sword and chipped it out.
Ingo, as soon as the jewel was extracted, blinked a couple times and said groggily, "What have I been doing? Oh, it's you, Miss Maron! Where's your father, Taron?" He looked up kindly at Maron. He didn't remember anything but at least he was back to normal.
Back at Ganondorf's study, Koume and Kotake knew very well that Link had freed Ingo from their spell.
"He broke the brainwash?!" Koume hollered, outraged at Link.
Then the two of them saw Link, Maron and Ingo start to flee to the exit, away from the Gerudo.
Kotake scoffed. "Do you think we'll let you get away, boy?"
Link was fighting off more Gerudo: warriors Koume and Kotake had sent to capture him. "Let's get out of here!" Link hollered out. "Epona!"
The mare came galloping up to Link. He grabbed onto her reigns and mounted, as did Maron. As they were rushing past, Link seized Ingo's outstretched hand and helped him up, seating him behind Maron. He looked up and saw the Gerudo closing the gate that led out to the exit. There was no way they were going to make it before the door would close: the gate embedded in the ground with a soft "thud!" They were trapped... Or so it seemed. Link urged Epona on, going faster still.
"No, don't, Link!" Maron pleaded. She knew that Link was going to have the horse try to jump over the fence. "We'll hit it!"
Link guided Epona, ignoring Maron's plight. He was right to trust the mare: she made it clean over and onto the plains of Hyrule. Since the Gerudo couldn't capture or kill Link now, they returned to the desert, their plans foiled. Lon Lon Ranch returned to its original tranquil state.
"Take care, Epona," Maron said kindly.
"Don't worry, Maron, I'll take excellent care of her," Link said after he had helped Maron and Ingo down and remounted. "I'll be sure to come back 'cause the Ranch's milk gives me strength." Link turned Epona around and headed into the west.
Maron hollered to Link, "Come back again, Fairy Boy—no, I mean, Hero Boy!"
When Link, Epona and Navi were out in the Fields of Hyrule, Navi asked Link, "Who do you suppose Sheik is? Do you think it's true, what he said about Zelda?"
Link looked up at her sharply. "Why do you ask?"
Navi shrugged, "I don't know. Listening to his harp makes me think that... But where else are we going to go? Let's go check out the desert he mentioned!"
Link smiled at the thought of maybe, by chance, seeing Zelda again. "Okay! To the Haunted Wasteland... on a trip closer to Zelda."
Well, that's that!!
See ya next post!
