Disclaimer: still applies

Well, I have gotten my first constructive criticism reviews and I am trying to take them gracefully.

PLEASE NOTE!!!! There are some names that are different in the manga than they are in the game; such examples are Malon became Maron and Talon became Taron. I got a review about that, and that's when I realized that I hadn't told you people that. I can't stray too far from the manga. Granted, I did add some of my own personalized lines in this...

Here's responses:

Lizai: I want to thank you for all the horse info. I don't know a lot about horses, except the fact that they're one of the most beautiful creatures God made. Those facts helped a lot. And, see above for your comments on Maron and Taron. And please don't tell me you've given up on my fic. This was really the first Zelda story I've ever had the courage to post. Please...

BeautifulWings: Boy, do I have a lot to say to you... I like your pen name. (That's not all.) Anyway, it's nice to see a new reviewer. So, what I was thinking is that someone who hasn't played the game wouldn't read this fic. Think about it: Ocarina of Time is/was the best Zelda game ever created. If you're reading Zelda fanfiction and haven't played OoT... ::shakes head:: That's just wrong. Okay, and as for the spelling: have you heard of typos? And, I noticed that you yourself had some of those. Reread what you write/type; I know I do, but sometimes one's eyes just glaze over such a small mistake. Okay, and you are right about not being descriptive, but this is a fanfiction; please see the bit above about Ocarina of Time on that. (I am referring to places on this next comment.) Everyone who's played OoT knows what the Market looks like and how green and lush Kokiri Forest is. (Kokiri, by the way, are not tall. They will remain children around ten years old for all eternity. Link himself was short when he thought he was of Kokiri descent.) As for describing people, everyone knows what the characters look like. I have never read a fic where it described characters like that in a book. (And I have read quite a few. Look at my faves list; that's hardly half. It's mostly Cassia and Sio's stories on Lord of the Rings. Those stories by Cassia and Sio are masterpieces. Some have suggested that she and Sio get them published. Of course, I am no where near their writing expertise, but I am only fifteen, whereas they are older than my twenty-year-old brother.) Besides, at times, it's fun to leave a little bit of the reader's mind free to wander on what people look like and where things are. But, judging by your constructive criticism, you liked my story, yes? Maybe...?

Chapter Six

The Haunted Wasteland

"Link, the Water Temple is this way!" Ruto cried as they swam through Lake Hylia's crystal blue waters.

Link, before going to the Haunted Wasteland, had enlisted Princess Ruto's help in finding and defeating the monster that swelled in the watery Temple. When the two of them had swam past the Zora's Domain Link had said, in a shocked voice, "Everything has been turned to ice...!"

It was true: everything inside the once water paradise had been turned onto one frozen icicle. Link knew instantly that Ganondorf must have graced Zora's Domain with his presence.

As they neared the boss chamber, back to the present, Ruto declared to Link, "I want to save everyone. And I want to save the Zora's Domain. Please help me, Link."

Link nodded in agreement. He wasn't exactly sure how to go about doing that, but he was willing to try. When they entered the arena, they saw nine small islands, each surrounded by bluish water. The water was so blue, it looked ready to burst alive at any moment...

Quite unexpectedly, the water began to take shape. It turned into a pillar-looking creature with a single nucleus as its center. The tentacle wrapped itself around Link's torso and neck and lifted him high off the ground.

"Link! No!" Ruto gasped from the base. "Curse you, Morpha!"

But no sooner had she finished her sentence, Morpha, the giant aquatic amoeba, had trapped her inside a water bubble prison. Having taken care of the Zora princess, the monster redirected its attention to Link and started tossing the Hylian in the air, almost making him sick. Morpha threw Link towards the ground, but Link, being so agile and nimble, landed smoothly on his feet.

Link whipped out his Hookshot, took aim at Morpha's core, and hollered, "Eat this!" He fired the hook and as soon as it touched the nucleus, Morpha broke apart to be nothing more than a puddle on the floor. Ruto's imprisoning bubble vanished along with the water beast.

"You broke the Water Temple's curse!" she said happily as a blue light started radiating from her body.

Link stared. "Ruto, you're the Sage of Water?"

"It would seem so... You've done well," she said. "Now the frozen Zora's Domain will surely return to normal. Indeed, you've only chosen me as your fiancée. Now, let's finally pledge our marriage vows!"

"What?!" Link said reproachfully. The colour in his face drained significantly and his eyes became the size of his Hylian Shield.

"...Which is what I'd like to say, but I have my duty as Sage of Water."

Link let out a sigh and closed his eyes as a sign of relief. Thankfully, Ruto did not notice. "Oh, okay. How disappointing..."

"Where are you headed now?" she asked kindly.

Link replied with a smile, "To the desert!"

After about half a day's traveling, Link, Epona and Navi finally arrived in the desert in the western corner of Hyrule. They stopped at a market so Link could buy food and supplies. It would be a long and difficult journey across the plains of the Wasteland...

"I'll take two canteens of water, jerky and a bundle of arrows, please," he said to the saleswoman, pointing out the requested items.

Before he mounted Epona, one of the owners of the booth, both elderly women, said, "Please wait, boy. You look as if you're looking for someone."

Link looked at the woman. "How do you know that?"

"Our fortune telling has never failed," the woman uttered from under her cloak's hood. "Go forward to the Spirit Temple. You may find who you're looking for."

Link looked warily back at the women as he turned Epona and went on. Navi whispered to him, "Just ahead is the Gerudo's territory. We have to be careful."

When the Hylian was out of sight from the ladies at the stand, Sheik appeared next to their tent. "Now, Sheik," Koume said, pulling her hood back, "it's your turn."

"Why must I?" he asked lazily.

"Oh, so you can't do it, huh?" Kotake challenged. "Well then, is the rumour that you've been lending your power to the Hero of Time true?"

Sheik said nothing.

Koume laughed lightly. "I wonder what your true form is then. You say you're of the Sheikah Tribe... Is that true?"

Sheik remained silent for a while, before saying, "Ridiculous."

"Then, go!" Kotake pressured. "That is, if you truly vow loyalty to Ganondorf!"

So, not knowing what else to do, he went. Back at the old ladies' shop, a redheaded young woman, who looked to be a little older than Link, approached. She was a Gerudo, the second-in-command, in fact.

"Nabooru, you use your strength to capture the Hero of Time," Koume said to her.

"Then," Kotake went on, "keep an eye on Sheik to see if he'll betray us or not."

"Very well, Mistress Twinrova," Nabooru said with an evil glare in her eyes. "Considering I am Lord Ganondorf's most loyal servant..."

When the Gerudo had left, Koume flew into the air on her broom. Spreading her arms out wide, she enchanted this spell: "Oh, wind and sand! Rage forth and hamper the Hero of Time's progress!"

As soon as she uttered the words, the spell seemed to immediately take affect: out in the Haunted Wasteland, which was the route in which Link had taken, a fierce sandstorm was unleashing its fury upon the Hylian. Koume and Kotake could just barely make out the young man's silhouette off in the distance.

Out in the desert, Link was experiencing major difficulties in his trek across. The wind picked up a great amount of agility and there seemed to be more sand than was usual to be floating around in the air.

The sand particles were so thick that Link had a hard time walking. Soon, it had reached his ankles. But it kept on growing; it reached his waist. Deeper still, the sand was burying Link: it was already up to his torso! Link could walk no further, and Epona was not too far behind, experiencing the same troubles.

"At this rate," Link hollered into the wind between coughs, "we'll be buried in this sand!"

He was quite right; soon, the sand had reached his neck...! Then, suddenly, it surpassed his head! Link was completely entombed in sand! The only part of his body above the surface was his right hand. But he knew full well that the odds of someone coming along and seeing it were slim to none, especially in this condition.

Link desperately thought, 'I am going to die... I'm going to suffocate. I can't believe this... I let everybody down. Zelda, I am so sorry...'

All of a sudden, Link felt a hand grab his own! Someone pulled him up out of the sand! He was saved... by Sheik!

"Hang on!" he yelled atop the wind, after making sure Link was all right.

They walked quickly and lightly over the desert. After about an hour of harsh conditions, it all stopped: the wind, the sand... everything. Things were calmed enough for the Sheikah and Hylian to make camp.

As they settled around the small fire, Link thought that it was very odd for Sheik to be out here, and at the fact he seemed to help Link when he was in the direst situations. The young man voiced his questions in a polite way, "Why is you always appear right ahead of me? You always come to my aid when I need it most, or I don't know where to go next; why is that, if you don't mind me asking."

Sheik looked at Link and shrugged. He said airily, "Who knows? It's only that sometimes you're headed where I'm headed. Perhaps we have the same goal in mind."

Link looked sharply at him. Did he mean what the Hylian thought? "Do you mean to say, that you're against Ganondorf as well?"

Sheik chose to ignore Link's question. He replied, instead, "Over to the west is the Haunted Wasteland... Would you like me to guide you?"

"Please do," Link accepted gladly. As he stood up and mounted Epona, Link thought warily, 'Can I trust him? I don't know hardly anything about the Sheikah Tribe, except that Impa is one... But that doesn't really mean anything in Sheik's case. I hope I'm right to trust him.'

As Link rode Epona and Sheik walked, Link asked Sheik, "I've been wondering this for a while... why is it you always hide your face? Is it a scar, or something?"

Sheik remained silent.

'Okay, so much for starting a conversation...' he thought. Then he voiced as another question entered his mind, "What does the eye symbol mean on your clothes?"

On Sheik's clothing, on the chest, there was the emblem of a single eye with a teardrop falling from it.

"It's the Sheikah Tribe's symbol. Before this particular insignia, it was nothing more than an eye," he said. "Since long ago, the Sheikah were protectors and guardians of the Royal Family of Hyrule. However there was an instance of betrayal from the Royal House. At that time, our tears were added to this seal... A tragic history."

Without stopping himself, Link said, "Do you bear a grudge even now?"

Sheik replied, without meeting Link's gaze, "It's a story from long ago; it has nothing to do with me."

As night fell, the Hylian and Sheikah stopped, built a fire and settled in for the night. Before they went to sleep, Link decided that, since Sheik told him of his past, he would share his past. He was glad he had trusted Sheik...

"I was bought up thinking I was a Kokiri, then told that I'm actually a Hylian... And, now I'm the Hero who will save Hyrule. And, I'm fighting with the Gerudo Tribe and Ganondorf. It's not that I'm complaining!" he said quickly, not wanting to give Sheik the wrong impression. "It's just..." Link paused, unsure of what to say next. "Everyone else had those 'seven years', but I didn't.

"For me, parting with Zelda was but a short time ago, but for her, seven years have passed. I know I can't chase after her forever... And, actually, I'm a bit nervous about meeting her again."

Sheik sighed. He considered Link lucky, almost, to have not had to live during those seven years. "You have no idea how lucky you are, to not have had to suffer through those seven years, for they were not at all pleasant," he said under his breath. "If I could only bury them..."

"Why are you saying that?" Link looked up.

Sheik shook his head. "Don't worry about it."

The two of them stayed up for a little bit longer. Sheik told Link about all the battles that had happened while he was sealed in the Sacred Realm, something he'd wanted to know about for a while. In turn, Link told the Sheikah all he'd had to face in his childhood and since he became the Hero of Time.

"Being the Hero must be tough, huh?" Sheik laughed kindly.

Link chuckled softly. "No, not at all."

Soon, the two companions fell asleep in the cool night air of the desert.

Link felt awful. He hadn't slept at all well that night. He'd had nightmares about Volvagia, his pet dragon, Zelda, Saria and all his other friends... he'd also had to witness what would happen if he were to fail in his quest. It was like someone had shown him a special mirror, a cursed mirror, that was filled to the brim with all of Link's hopes, dreams, failures, and, perhaps, his futures...

Rubbing his eyes and sitting up, he said, "At last, dawn..."

As he stood up, Sheik doing the same next to him, Link saw something on the horizon. It looked like a small dust cloud, and it was making it's way to them. It took about five minutes for the cloud to reach them and, when it did, Link realized too late what it was...

"It's the Gerudo!" he hollered.

But it was too late. The band of thieves had formed a circle of about thirty warriors around the two of them. As Link turned around to reach for his Sword and shield, he saw Sheik raise above his head the hilt of his dagger above Link's head. A look of terror mixed with shock crossed Link's face just before he brought it smashing down upon the Hero.

Link, dazed, fell to his knees, looked at Sheik and said wearily in a disappointed and unbelieving way, "Sheik...why...?"

Then the Hylian slipped out of consciousness and fell on the ground, senseless. Now Link's fate was in the hands of the Gerudo, Ganondorf's closest followers.

(A/N: Now, if I were really mean, I would break it off there. But I'm not quite that mean...)

When Link came to, he immediately took in his whereabouts. The Gerudo had taken him to their hideout on the other side of the desert, across the Valley of the Gerudo. They had taken him to one of their dungeons, chained his hands behind his back and left him lying on the hard stone floor. The manacles were connected to a chain that was, in turn, ironed onto the wall. And, he knew full well that Sheik, a person whom he had trusted with his life, had betrayed him. That Sheikah had sold him out to Ganondorf.

"Sheik tricked me," he said very softly to himself as lay on the ground. "He was a spy for Ganondorf... Nothing more." But now, a new feeling entered Link: fear. He had felt fear many, many times before in his life, especially upon recent events; indeed, he couldn't remember the last event in which he had been as frightened as the night when he last saw Zelda. But this situation was very different: Link was finding himself a captive of his greatest and most deadly opponent. He had no idea what lay in store for him now. Were the Gerudo going to execute him outright? Hand him straight over to Ganondorf and let the Gerudo King himself deal with Link? Would they perhaps... torture him for knowledge on Zelda's whereabouts? If such were the case, they would be wasting their time, as Link had not the vaguest inkling of where the Princess was; in fact, he himself still needed to know.

Thinking of Zelda inevitably led to feeling sorrow, particularly now that he knew not what was going to happen and was in hardly any control of it. If he were killed at the hands of the Gerudo right now, on this very day... Well, Link didn't even want to dwell his thoughts on what would happen to the fair country. But he could no longer live in his reverie: someone was coming. Link closed his eyes softly, praying to the higher powers that he would be able to breathe just to defeat Ganondorf.

Coming on from the hot sunlight, a Gerudo came in the dungeon. It was Nabooru. She walked up to Link, looking at him as if he were some kind of insect, and whispered, "So, he's the Hero of Time who's resisting Lord Ganondorf, huh?" She scoffed. "He's just a little boy."

'Little boy?' thought Link. 'She knows not what she speaks.'

She walked closer to him and, thinking he was still knocked out, kicked him very sharply in his stomach. She barked, "Wake up, boy!"

Link would've clutched his aching gut had his hands not been bound behind him, as she had kicked him so harshly that he had risen off the floor. Then, surprising the Hylian, the Gerudo reached down and grabbed the collar of Link tunic and held him up.

Link looked into her face with terror as she said wickedly, "Tomorrow, at the crack of dawn, I'm going to make you a shooting target. I have a special method in mind for you, boy."

She threw him very roughly back on the ground, making Link crush his own hands. As Nabooru turned to exit the dungeon, Link slipped his hands out of the chains and reached above him for a saber, which was hanging on the wall. She undoubtedly heard him and turned back around, unsheathing her own sword.

"Sorry," Link said happily, "but I slipped out of those chains a while ago, just before you graced me with your presence. Your friends should've tightened them a bit more."

"Cheeky, aren't you?" Nabooru said angrily. "And I'll be sure to tell them to tighten them when we recapture you. I might want to tell them, too, that you should be gagged, because you need to learn when to hold your tongue!"

"I think a little differently than you do," Link said as he raced towards her, ready to defend his freedom. As the swordplay raged on, Link thought, 'She's tough! No comparison to the Gerudo before her!'

Suddenly, Nabooru leaped up and behind Link. She flicked his sword out of his grasp and then grabbed his left hand and forced it behind and up his back, holding Link in a vice-grip. Her other hand clamped over the Hylian's mouth.

"I told you, you can't defeat us," she whispered in is ear. "And now, you shall pay the price."

Then, surprising both of them, Navi flew in! "Link!" she hollered out in fear for her friend. She flew up to Nabooru, straight in her face, scaring the woman to death. She released Link and he fell to the ground.

Navi looked up at Link to make sure he was okay. "Link, are you all right?"

Link replied as he picked up his fallen blade, "Yeah, I'm fine..."

"You need to break the jewel on Nabooru's forehead!" she screamed at Link, seeing that Nabooru was quickly approaching Link.

"You little cockroach!" Nabooru screeched in anger. "You and your annoying little fairy will pay tenfold for that!"

But Link was one step ahead of her. As she approached, he leaped behind her and out of Nabooru's sight. "Where is that little—!"

But Link had just appeared in front of her, sword and raised, aiming for the large gem on her head. He came down and struck the ruby; it instantly shattered. Nabooru snapped her head back and screamed. Then, she collapsed to the floor.

Link turned to Navi and said between his gasps, "How did you know about the gem?"

Navi looked at her partner slyly. "You'll see..."

On Link's right, all of a sudden, he saw something drop from a window. He ran over to the item and gasped.

"My Hookshot! But who...?"

But he didn't have the time to dwell on his thought. He quickly used the tool to latch onto the wooden panel above the window. He appeared at the very top of the great fortress, standing on the ledge that was about a foot wide. Link quickly observed an obvious fact as he scanned the Gerudian stronghold:

"The guards and warriors are all women..." he said to himself as he nimbly leapt down to a lower platform, making almost no noise. "Is it because the Gerudo race is only female...? No, because there's Ganondorf..."

"Over there! Seize him!" Three of the soldiers had just seen him.

"Oh, no...!" Link groaned as he stood and starting running. He did not want to be their prisoner again because this time he had a strong sense that was telling him that they wouldn't waste much time with chains... But then he realized something terrible, absolutely wretched: "The Master Sword?! Where is it?"

The Hylian raced all throughout the fortress, not missing a single alleyway, searching for the Sacred Blade. By the time he had reached the last one, a group of thirty, at least, was tight on his heels, intent on capturing him. And there, at the end of the corridor, was Sheik, Link's betrayer. Link glared at him with anger in his eyes; but when he saw what the Sheikah carried, his expression changed to one of shock and relief: the boy was in possession of his Master Sword and Hylian Shield.

Sheik was still approaching the Hylian and since there were Gerudian warriors behind him, Link had nowhere to run. But Sheik did not attack Link, like he had in the past: he merely laid the Hero's Sword and Shield on the dusty earth before his feet. When he stepped back a few good paces, Sheik unsheathed his long knife. In the meantime, Link had buckled the scabbard for the Master Sword around his chest once more and brandished his awesome weapon.

The Hylian glared at Sheik. He was angry at Sheik for selling him out to the Gerudo; he wanted retribution. "I guess this means we fight."

Sheik did not respond; instead, he turned sharply around, away from Link and deflected a ray of magic that was aimed at Link. Sheik had just saved the Hylian's life.

This did not go unnoticed by anyone, namely Link; but Koume and Kotake, who had sent the magic to kill Link, had also seen Sheik's action and were infuriated. The witches flew down on their brooms and screeched in rage.

"Curse you!" Koume shouted. "I knew you would betray us!"

Sheik scoffed. "What do you mean 'betray'? I was never on your side to begin with."

Link looked up at Sheik and gasped, a smile across his face. Did this mean what he hoped it meant, that Sheik was not an agent for Ganondorf? Perhaps all that work with the Gerudos was just a façade?

Suddenly, Link saw the man in question a mere foot away and heard him shout, "This way!" The two of them worked together to break through the thirty Gerudian warriors stationed behind them. Link, on more that one occasion, cover Sheik's back and he, in turn, protected Link's. Once they broke through, Sheik turned his head and said in a very honest tone, "I'm sorry about hitting you earlier."

Link looked at Sheik and thought, 'I think he means that sincerely.' He smiled and hollered back, "Don't worry about it. All is forgiven!"

Just then, in front of Link, Sheik stopped. Not wanting to collide with him, Link halted on his heels, sending sand and dust into the air around his ankles. He looked at Sheik questioningly, then looked up and saw what had caused him to stop: Koume and Kotake were directly in front of them, naught but ten feet away.

"You will pay for your betrayal to Lord Ganondorf!" Kotake screeched as she held up her hand and prepared a deadly ice beam, and, directing it at Sheik, she hollered, "Die, Sheik!"

Link saw Sheik turn around and lunge at him. The Sheikah pushed Link out of the way, so he wouldn't attain the slightest injuries, but he had placed himself in even more danger than before. Link fell to the ground and watched aghast as his friend was hit by the spell, then fall senseless to the earth.

Link got up from the ground and rushed over to Sheik and rolled him over on his back. The man's eyes were closed but that was not what had caused Link to gasp as he did: Sheik's right hand had fallen over his chest and it looked very, very unorthodox...

"Wait a minute," Link whispered as he gently reached for the pale hand. The back of it had... a golden Triforce emblem on it. "This is the crest of Hyrule's Royal Family... So, Sheik...isn't a Sheikah...?

Wow, that took forever and two days to type! So, so sorry! I made a couple of changes in this chappie from the original manga, so I hope those went well. They were just minor changes, nothing drastic. Chapter seven will be out ASAP. And then that might be it for a while: I haven't finished writing the rough drafts of the last two chapters yet.

Well, till next post!