The whole of the drowsy village could hear the screech of a Goron rolling at full speed against the stone floor. It bounced off the walls and carried deep into each individual hole, awakening every Goron dwelling there. It was Magol that was causing the racket. He was acting completely strange; no one had ever seen him (and anyone else besides Darunia) reach such a speed within the town before.

Five minuets beforehand, Magol, who had been about halfway to his own home, had felt a pang of sudden wary that sent his mind reeling. It was a feeling of deep uneasiness that one may get when one b2C eyes screwed shut against the pain. Magol knelt down beside him, unaware he was kneeling in a pool of blood, and removed the dagger in one fluent movement. Rahami started, his eyes flew open, and he gasped out: "Get him! Get… That fake!"

Magol, completely clueless, furrowed his brow. When Rahami did not continue, his panic returned and he tossed the dagger aside, calling out hysterically: "HELP! HELP! SOMEONE GET A MEDICINE MAN IN HERE— HELP!"

Outside, there came the faint sounds of movement as others began to hobble on foot up to the sett. Good Din, Magol thought angrily, Can't they get up here quicker?

He looked back down at Rahami, trying to remember what to do in situations like these. He did not know how to dress a wound, or at least not one as serious as this, and he was unsure if he should have even removed the dagger. So, with a nervous gulp, he just decided to talk. "Who did this to you? Was it that traveler? Where did that rockhead go?" He lifted his eyes and looked around the room. The bed, where Ijauh had been resting, was now empty, as was the rest of the room. How could he have snuck out…?

Rahami abruptly spoke up, and his large hand reached over to meaningfully grip Magol's wrist. "There is no time to look for him," He grumbled weakly, thick drops of blood streaming from the corner of his mouth and down his cheek, "just make sure that no one comes up here… No one must get anywhere near that monster. Especia…" He trailed dimly, his black eyes rolling in their sockets. Magol waited with bated breath, but Rahami said nothing else. With one last choke on his own blood, the Goron's eyes closed, he curled reflexively inward, as if he were rolling up, and breathed no more.

Magol was shocked. His heart seemed to freeze, and his lungs seemed jammed, as if he had just been punched hard in the stomach. He did not move when five different Gorons entered the den at once, nor did he say anything when they noticed the dagger and all of the blood that was sprayed on him from pulling the weapon from Rahami's belly. Only one thought remained on his mind. As they forced him up onto his feet and bound his bloody hands behind his back, yelling and screaming, that thought was all that was in his mind.

…Who shouldn't come?…

"You should really come!" Nabooru's voice was desperate, and it was the first plea that Link had ever heard from one so haughtily as her. Saria was wearing the same expression that the Desert Princess was: it was one that expressed deep seriousness. But Link had his own serious matter now that the circumstance was in full view.

The beast seemed by far more threatening then any he had yet faced, save for Ganon. It was not its physical power that made it so lethal; no one yet knew the extent of its brawn. It was the matter of the fog that worried him most. The fog, though not deadly, seemed to be able to turn people mad. Already half of the Goron village had inhaled it, and Link knew that if he traveled to Death Mountain conspicuously, they would meet him at the mountain pass and attack. And, despite all of the monsters the Hero had destroyed to date, he knew he could not bring himself to kill a single innocent Goron, let alone dozens of them.

"Link, no one else will do it," Saria added swiftly, her green eyes staring pleadingly at him. He hated it when she did that, and though he was still unsure, it seemed to sway his mind a little. He now knew plainly why the King did not send his armies up there. If the whole of the Hyrulien army were under the malicious creature's influence, then there would be absolutely no hope, even with Link's help.

"Isn't there any way you can clear the fog?" He asked suddenly, looking up at the two Sages.

Nabooru sighed exasperatedly. "Sure," She said sarcastically, "if we want to send it down into Kakariko Village instead, then yeah, we can send some wind in there for you. Otherwise, you're out of luck."

"The fog has layered up to a height of 6 feet already, and its getting higher and thicker as we talk," Saria said urgently. "Luckily, it's only staying on the uppermost part of Death Mountain. But the creature will probably move if we don't start moving ourselves!"

Link frowned. It was a risk he should not be taking… A risk Hyrule should not take. If he accidentally inhaled more then a mouthful of the fog, then he would be a much bigger threat to Hyrule then that beast was…

"…Well, even if we do leave now, it will take me days to cross the sea and get to Hyrule, even if I do have Epona! How do you suggest I get to the mountain— Better yet, how will I get to the beast?"

It seemed near impossible, but Nabooru merely waved it away as though it were a passing fly. "We can take you as far as Great Bay, in Termina," She said easily, "but then we must return to our Temples. You're on your own after that, but I think it will only take you a few hours to get back to Hyrule. As for getting on top of the mountain… Well, Ruto says she has a plan."

"Let's hope so, because her last plan to help even out the conflict between the Lakeside Scientist and the Zora community wasn't exactly a blast…" Said Saria, with a smirk.

"I'm telling ya," Nabooru sighed, shaking her head and making her fiery hair gleam. "There were pancakes everywhere…"

"So… I best get ready," Link arose and walked out of his house. It was a fourth mile away from the rest of the town, and its backside faced a tall ridge of gray stone. There was a small stretch of earth between the stone and the rear of the house, and Link had chosen to dig the cellar here, where it would be harder to find. He unlocked the cellar's double doors and swung them open, walking down the staircase and into the cool room below.

For the first time in a decade, it was finally time to gear up again. Here, in the cool, dry cellar, Link kept what equipment he had gathered while bouncing back and fourth through time. The Biggoron's Sword, which was strung over his shoulder already, was one of those artifacts. Another was the Hyrulien Shield. He strapped that on as well, and scooped up more carefully selected items— his bow and quiver, bomb bag, longshot, tunics, boots, gauntlets, several choice masks, and what few other magic items he had picked up— and placed all of these into his saddlebags.

As he turned to leave, something sitting in the corner caught his eye. The deep blue luster of the Ocarina of Time caught the light, even in the dim gray light of the cellar, and seemed to glow. He lifted it up pensively, wondering if he still knew how to play it. Raising it to his lips, he quietly played the Bolero of Fire. Nothing happened, of course; he was beyond Hyrule's border. He sighed, and suddenly felt a small pang of homesickness. He lowered the ancient instrument and placed it with his other magical items.

After locking up the cellar doors again, he returned to his cabin. Saria and Nabooru were waiting for him out in the barn, so his home was once again empty. As he shucked his shepherd's clothes aside, it dawned on him that maybe his old Kokiri garb would not fit him. After attempting to fit into it, and failing horribly, he gave up and slipped instead into his Goron Tunic. It fit, but only just. It was rather tight about his chest, he noticed, but it did not matter, so long as he had something to wear that would not attract too much attention in Hyrule.

"Ah, our conqueror is back again!" Saria exclaimed once she saw Link striding back towards them, wearing normal Hyrulien clothes once again with a sword and shield on his back. Nabooru, on the other had, was staring skeptically at the red garb he was wearing, one eyebrow raised.

"Awww, Link! What happened to your trademark green?" She asked, mock-pouting as he walked by.

"My green tunic doesn't fit me anymore…" He said, but then added with a smile, "Besides, I think I look better in red anyway."

"Well, I don't remember you being a fussy dresser," Saria said, smirking, "You would have probably run around in a dress if you had too, and you wouldn't have minded it."

"Yeah, right," Link shot back mischievously as he lifted the saddle onto Epona's back. "I'd rather run around in my birthday suit then in a dress."

"Oh, so you're saying you'd rather stand about naked then to wear a dress?" Asked Nabooru impishly, with her infamous smirk.

"Well, you wouldn't catch me doing either so it really doesn't matter." Link rolled his eyes whilst forcing the bit into his horse's mouth.

"But you still said that!" The Desert Sage sniggered, "You probably even wait till the dead of night to run around town bare naked!"

"Shhh!" Link said, flushing a deep maroon in his cheeks and tying the saddlebags onto his steed, "If anyone in the town hears you, they'll stay up until midnight trying to get a glimpse of…" He trailed off, looking past the two Sages and into the large cerulean eyes of a blonde boy standing several yards away from the open doors of the barn.

Colin. He was staring openmouthed at the two beings he'd never seen before, and at Link, who looked as though he were dressed for war. In his hands he held a flake of alfalfa, which he'd been taking to Epona, but he saw now that it was not going to be eaten. He closed his mouth and, shyly, walked past the two staring Sages and into the barn. Link looked uneasily away, even though he knew that Colin wouldn't say anything. The boy placed the alfalfa in the hayloft and hurried away without a backwards glance.

"We better go now," Link said solemnly, "Before his mum comes running in here full-speed with a camera… The last thing I want to hear when I come back is people asking me how the war went or something…"

Fifteen minuets later, Nabooru's temper was pushed to its limits. "What in the heck is wrong NOW!" She snarled exasperatedly as Saria made several panicky hand gestures. Her fingertips were alight with a sharp, green light, but nothing seemed to be happening. Link had mounted Epona and taken the reins into his hands, his deep azure eyes flicking between Nabooru's angered expression and Saria's wide, fearful eyes.

"Okay, okay!" The green-haired girl gasped, "I've never done something like this before, though!"

"Fine then," Shot Nabooru tiredly, waving her heavily-adorned hand, "I'll try and teleport him and the donkey by myself! You just sort your powers out when we get home, okay? You've been having this trouble for weeks…"

"No, no!" Squealed the Sage of Forest, "I can do it! Let me take Link; you can take Epona by yourself since she's bigger!" Link drew his brows together, then spoke up, disgruntled. "Just let Saria do it."

Nabooru, beaten down and in no mood for an argument, merely snorted and turned her head sharply away from them. Saria smiled wearily, and Link dismounted Epona again, setting the reins on the horn of the saddle and giving her one last goodbye stroke on the face. The two Sages raised their hands and, squaring up to him and the horse, muttered a few inaudible words.

A strange, horrifyingly unexpected sensation shot up through Link, and Saria, Nabooru, and the whole of Toaru dissolved before his eyes. He was suddenly surrounded in utter darkness, and around him snaked an artic breeze. He felt as though he'd plunged into a pool of ice water, but just as he was about to panic, his feet touched down on land, and he fell face-forward into a hummock of deep, powdery dirt. Warm air swirled about him once again, and his momentary anxiety began to ebb. It took him several moments to gather himself, but when he did, it was clear that wherever he'd ended up teleporting to, it was definitely NOT Great Bay.

He was, in fact, on a beach, but it stank of dead fish and cigarette smoke. The sand was black and dusty. He was at a dock, and a rather busy one at that. The undergrowth he'd landed in hid him from view of the surly looking sailors— No, not sailors… They were creatures. He raised a gauntleted hand to visor his eyes from the sun. Yes, they had snouts, floppy ears and sharp, jagged fangs. They held spears in their burly hands and snorted as they walked. Moblins. He crinkled the bridge of his nose and moved farther back into the foliage. The last time he had faced down a moblin was in the Sacred Forest Meadow, but even that long ago, he still remembered them.

Their presence puzzled him. He had thought that, after the defeat of Ganondorf, all of the disgusting creatures that had soiled the earth dissipated. Were these getaways? How could they have escaped? He remained silent, watching and waiting. When ship after ship had been loaded with the boars, they took to the seas, heading off towards Hyrule…

Link made a mental note to remind Saria to practice her teleporting skills as he sat there in the darkness, staring at the unfamiliar seas that stretched out before him, completely at a loss…

---

I didn't know what else to call a Goron Doctor, so I just went to the closest thing to what they might have called one.

I am aware that this is up to it's ears in mistakes, but I couldn't proof-read it very well since my brain suddenly shut off and I'm afraid I might just change the whole thing around if I look at it anymore. Sorry for the late late LATE update, but I got busy o-o;