I'm sorry it took so long for me to continue this story. I don't know why I slacked off on it but I will try to update sooner in the future. Thank you for the few of you who actually reviewed and I hope to hear from you in the future. Well I hope you like this next chapter in the story…oh and I don' t own LoZ or any of it's characters or games.

New Challenges and the Leap of Faith

"Wow," Link commented as he looked up into the Great Deku Tree's core. Here, Link finally understood how vast the Great Deku Tree was. "You could put every house in the village in here and you'd still have room for more."

"Would you please be a little more respectful," Navi chastised. "The only ones allowed inside the Great Deku Tree are a precious few fairies and newborn Kokiris."

"Really? I always thought the Kokiri sprouted from the ground like the rest of the plants." Navi gave a small sigh in disbelief of Link's own ignorance as to how he was born. "So…let's get a better look of the place." Link stepped forward into the center of the Deku Tree looking up the whole time. There were many spider webs, especially near the top. A couple of platforms were outlined the better portion of the circumference of the tree as well. "Lot of vines growing on the walls…whoa!" Link fell as he stepped onto a huge spider web covering a giant hole in the base of the tree. "I can't get up!" he screamed as the thick strands clung to his arms, legs, and body.

"Calm down Link!" Navi called back. "Stop squirming or it will only restrict you more."

Remembering what the Great Deku Tree told him, Link calmed himself at Navi's words. Still shivering he thought to himself, I hate spiders, I hate spiders, I hate spiders… He could feel himself rising slowly as Navi pulled on the back of his tunic. Opening his eyes, he saw what looked like water down below the web. "Navi, there's something down there!" Navi gave one last yank and Link came free of the still whole web. Immediately Link began brushing the strands of web off his body and clothes in the manner of a paranoid arachnophobic.

"What'd you see down there?" Navi inquired. "And what's wrong with you?"

Stopping in place and breathing heavily, Link breathed out, "I…hate…spiders…"

Dumbfounded, Navi asked, "You grew up in an insect infested forest and your telling me your afraid of spiders?"

"Lot's of Kokiri hate spiders!"

"Uh-huh…" Navi agreed sarcastically. "So what did you say you saw under the web?"

"Oh right," Link clapped his hands as he tried to remember. "It was water…a stream or pond or something…"

"Probably an aquifer," Navi informed him. "The Great Deku Tree is after all a tree…he needs to get water from somewhere. I'll bet any amount of rupees, we'll have to get down there."

"Why?"

"Well, it looks like something has infested the Great Deku Tree," Navi speculated. "All infestations attack the roots of their host. Since the Great Deku Tree's roots probably take water from the stream down there, that is probably where we'll gain access to them. This web is unusually thick and strong though…I don't think your sword will be able to cut it, so we'll have to burn it somehow. But that could endanger the Great Deku Tree so…"

"I'll jump through it," Link stated. Navi looked up and followed Link's gaze. Just above them was a platform that jutted out from the wall of the tree. It would be easy to jump onto the web from there. There was even an old ladder leading to it.

"I guess that could work," Navi admitted, though she wished she had thought of it. "Be careful though, if you miss the web…" but Link had already set off for the ladder. That little brat! Spotting a threat, she turned yellow and flew over to Link's side as quickly as possible. "Link!"

Link looked up just as a Deku Baba rose from the ground and eyed Link greedily. "No problem," Link said confidently, as he drew his sword and shield. The monster launched at him snapping its jaws hungrily. Surprised, Link covered his face with his sword arm. A sharp pain in his left arm confirmed the monster's successful attack. Warm blood and saliva trickled down Link's arm as the creature's toothless jaws squeezed harder and harder on the boy's thin skin.

"Link close your eyes!" Navi ordered. Obeying Navi's command, Link forgot the pain and shut his eyes and seconds later, the pressure on his arm ceased. "Cut it down!" Link opened his eyes and saw the Deku Baba straightened up its jaws quivering. Quickly, Link took this advantage and cut the plant by the stem. Like the other Deku Baba's it flew into the air and landed head first into the ground.

"It attacked me," Link said incredulously.

"Well of course it did!" Navi scolded him. "The monsters you fought earlier were old and withered, that Deku Baba was younger."

"I couldn't tell," Link said quietly, holding his hurt arm.

"And next time…use your shield!" Navi continued to berate the young boy.

Link didn't like being scolded but he knew he deserved it. He vowed to himself that he'd be more careful from now on when fighting monsters. "That was a deku nut wasn't it? The thing you used to stop it?"

"Yes it was," Navi confirmed. "There's a whole bunch of them over by those weeds."

Link walked over to the weeds that Navi gestured to and cut them down with his sword. Navi was right; there were at least five deku nuts. Grabbing one of them Link said, "I remember I used to use these to blind Mido. He got used to it though and was able to tell when it was coming… I haven't used them since."

"Well they're pretty useful if you want to stun an enemy," Navi agreed. "You better grab as much as possible, they'll come in handy." After Link picked up the nuts and stored them in one of the pockets in his tunic, Navi took out a small necklace with three heart shaped charms. "I should have given this to you earlier," she admitted. She flew over Link and dropped the necklace around his neck. Immediately, the charms began to glow, though half of one heart remained dim.

"What is it?" Link asked curiously.

"It's a charm necklace. You can find those charms anywhere in Hyrule. It reacts to whoever wears it. Those hearts are an indicator of your strength and stamina. If all the hearts glow, it means your fine…no cuts, bruises, or wounds."

"What happens if they all fade?" Link asked skeptically.

"You die." Link froze with fright, there were only three charms on the necklace and already half of one was dim. "It helps you to determine your limits," Navi offered.

"I better be more careful…" Link observed. "C'mon, let's go." The two of them headed for the ladder that led to the first spiraling platform. Navi flew ahead and Link followed her along the path. Jumping over a small space between the platforms, Link finally made it to the jumping platform. "What's that?" he asked as he pointed to a small red object floating in mid-air.

"That is life energy," Navi explained. "The Great Deku Tree uses it to give you Kokiri eternal life as well as to care for the entire forest. It can be found anywhere life is abundant though like forests, towns, and villages. Some people can actually channel it and store it. Saria is one of those people. I saw a lot of life energy around her house in the village."

"Wow, I didn't know Saria could do that."

"Try to jump through it when as you land on the web, it should heal your wound." Nodding in comprehension, Link coiled his legs and readied himself for the fall. Link shot off from the platform and fell through the red energy, instantly healing the cut on his arm. Link brought his feet under him as he prepared to land but the spider web just stretched as it supported his weight. The web then recoiled and launched Link into the air and back toward the wall. The boy hit the wall with a sickening pop and slid toward the ground below. Navi caught the back of his tunic like she always did and let him down gently.

"AHHHHHH!" Link screamed in overwhelming pain as he wriggled around on the floor, his right shoulder dislocated. Navi noticed the limp arm and immediately attempted to reintroduce the shoulder to its empty socket. With another pop, the shoulder was relocated and Link started to calm down, though the pain was still immense. "That hurt…that really really hurt."

"The web is too strong," Navi speculated. "There's no way you can jump through that thing."

His breathing now regular and unlabored, Link disagreed with the fairy, "I can, I felt a few strands break…I just need to get higher."

"Are you crazy!" she demanded. "You got seriously hurt from only ten feet and you want to go higher?"

"The wall over there has a ton of vines on it," he gestured. "I'm sure I can climb up it and jump from the top."

"You're insane."

"Maybe I am," he admitted, "but I'm going to prove to you that I can do this." With that, he stood up and headed for another platform with vines growing up the side of it. Navi just stared after him in awe until she saw another Deku Baba that Link missed.

"Watch out!" she warned as the Deku Baba grew out of its hiding spot. It lunged at Link who did a back flip just like he learned in the training grounds. The monster fell short of its target as its stem kept it from reaching to far. It lied there snapping its jaws threateningly like a dog on a leash. Link struck its plump head and it straightened, screeching in pain. His next strike cut the stem of the plant and it fell to the ground like the others defeated. Link took the stem of the plant and, using some of the vines from the wall, tied it to the other deku stick he received outside the Deku Tree.

After this was done, he started to climb the vines up to the platform, putting as little weight on his right shoulder as possible. Navi was truly amazed at the maturity the boy showed when introduced to a serious situation. She pulled him up when he got to the top so that he didn't have to put much pressure on his shoulder.

Continuing along the winding platform, Link found a rather large wooden chest; much like the one he found the Kokiri sword in at the base of the vines. He would have run for it but he heard some kind of scuttling noise coming from above. When he looked up he saw a small spider with a skull on its back crawling along the vines. "What is that?"

"Skullwalltulla," Navi answered, "and there's more than one." Scanning the wall, Link counted at least three of the arachnids.

"Great, now what do I do?"

"Don't climb the wall," Navi warned. "If you get to close to them, they'll knock you off."

"Well they're too high up to reach with my sword," Link said. Eyeing the chest, Link walked under the first skullwalltulla. It didn't pursue him and, according to Navi, it wouldn't as long as he didn't get to close, so he continued up to the chest. The lid creaked as he opened it just like the other one and the same green light emanated from the inside. After hoisting himself up onto the edge, he was able to extract a single piece of old parchment from the chest. After examining it, he concluded it was a map of the Great Deku Tree. "But who could have made it?"

"Other fairies I would assume," Navi suggested, "but for what I have no idea." After scanning it again, Navi found that there were indeed rooms below the spider web as well as higher above them. "There are two more rooms down here," she gestured along the platform they were standing on. "Maybe you can find something to use to get rid of these spiders."

"I hope so," Link said shivering slightly. Rolling up the map, he tucked it into his belt and continued down the path to a wooden door. As they approached, the door slid up into the wall to allow them entrance. As they entered the room, the door slid shut, covered by multiple metal bars. "This can't be good…" Just as he said that, he heard a small crash next to him. He turned and saw the remainders of a deku nut lying at his side.

"Link!" Navi called urgently. Link spun and saw another nut flying at him. With a quick sidestep, Link drew his weapons and put up his shield just as another nut came flying at him. This time however, the nut bounced off his shield and hit the creature that had shot it. The plantlike creature jumped out of its hole in the middle of the room and ran wildly away from its attacker. "Corner it!" Navi shouted. Immediately, Link began pursuing his enemy. Eventually, Link managed to coral it in the corner of the room.

"What is it?" Link asked in disgust. It was a rather nasty looking creature. Its dwarfish round body was made of wood with a pattern of leaves on its head that must have been its hair. The leaves covered the top of its face which created an eerie look as its eyes glowed a bright yellow. Perhaps the most distinguishable feature was its round mouth that it used to shoot the deku nuts.

"Its called a Deku Scrub," Navi answered. "They're a cowardly bunch but intelligent nonetheless."

In a pleading voice it began to speak, "Ow-ow-ow! Forgive me master! If I teach you a trick, will you let me go?"

Link raised an eyebrow at the response. Unsure whether or not to trust it or not, Link consulted Navi who suggested he listen. "Okay…why not?"

"When you jump off a cliff," the Deku Scrub began, "roll when you land and you won't get hurt from the fall. I can't guarantee it will work, though, if the cliff is really really high, heh heh!" The deal complete, the Deku Scrub ran passed the stunned Kokiri and jumped back into its hole.

"Ooookay…" Link said confused. "Can we go now?" As if to comply with his request, the iron bars slid up from the door they entered from as well as the ones covering the door on the other side of the room. Refusing to look a gift horse in the mouth, Link hurried through the door and into the last room within reach.

Link still ran as the door slid shut behind him and was forced to jump due to the sudden end to the floor. He landed hard on a rotting platform suspended in the air which started to rumble. The boy quickly stood up and jumped for the other side of the room which actually had a floor. Rolling as he landed, Link gasped for breath as he was certain he would fall into a bottomless pit. However, a large crashing sound intrigued him so he rolled to the edge and peeked over. What he saw left his mouth agape as the remainders of the rotting platform where scattered on another floor below the one he was standing on. "Wow…sure wish I knew about that before I jumped…"

"Maybe if you would stop rushing through everything you'd notice these things before they happen," Navi criticized. "That platform was obviously too old to hold your weight and now you have no way of getting back across."

Link scanned the side of the room from which he had came and realized that Navi was right. The door was too high up for him to reach and the walls weren't covered in vines like the ones in the core of the Deku Tree. "What's that up there?" Link asked as he looked toward the ceiling, "Up in the webs…do you see it?"

"It looks like an old ladder…to bad it's all the way up there, you could have used it."

"I'm not so sure I can't," Link stated. Navi turned and found Link standing near an open chest, holding a slingshot and a leather pouch with thick strings around the top. "Maybe if I shoot it I can knock it loose."

"What will you use for bullets?" Navi inquired.

"There's a whole bunch of deku seeds in here," Link answered holding up the leather pouch. "These things are incredibly hard…I'll bet they'll work on those Skullwalltulla things too."

Navi knew he was right. Deku seeds were hard as rocks and could easily break the teeth of anything that tried to eat them. They could definitely knock the ladder down from the webs. "Okay," Navi said as she turned green again. "Aim right next to me." Navi flew over to the ladder, giving Link a target. Link loaded the slingshot and pulled back, taking careful aim so that he wouldn't hit Navi. When he was satisfied with his aim, he released a seed, hitting the ladder which shook a little. "You have to aim higher," she called to him, "where the web is wrapped around it!" Link nodded and reloaded his new weapon. This time his shot was aimed perfectly, as the ladder broke free and landed on the floor below.

His current task finished, Link stuck the handle of the slingshot into the bag of seeds and tied it to his belt. Then he jumped down to the floor below and set up the ladder so he could get to the door. Link climbed the ladder and exited, heading for the vine covered walls that he passed by earlier.

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"Where is he?" Saria wondered as she sat on the edge of Link's balcony. "I didn't think it would take this long."

"Well don't worry about it," Nimo her fairy consulted her, "he's a brave kid, he'll be just fine."

"Why would bravery aid him?" Saria asked skeptically. "He's just talking to the Great Deku Tree." Nimo, turning bright red as he realized his folly, promptly attempted to change the subject but failed. "You know something!" Saria exclaimed. "Out with it! What's going on?"

"Nothing that you need concern yourself with," Nimo answered.

"Nimo…Link is my best friend. If something is going to happen to him, I want to know."

Reluctant to answer, Nimo asked, "Are you sure?" Saria nodded her head in the affirmative and Nimo let out a long sigh. "Then listen up and don't interrupt, this could take a while…"

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"This is way too high!" Navi exclaimed as Link neared the top of the Great Deku Tree.

"Oh c'mon Navi," Link chided, "where's your sense of adventure?" Only moments ago Link had disposed of the three wall crawling monsters Navi called Skullwalltullas. Of course, he had to use almost half of his ammo to do it as he wasn't all that proficient with the slingshot yet. Link dropped down to a wooden platform below him, surrounded by a wall of web. "Whew, it sure is a long way down."

"Forget this," Navi exclaimed. "There is no way I'm gonna let you jump from this height." Link had already moved on however, oblivious to Navi's complaints. Goddesses this kids getting on my nerves!

"Ahhh!" Navi heard Link scream and she darted for the source, afraid he had fallen off the platform. When she found him, he was lying against the wall, and across from him a giant spider with a skull on its back finished his spinning attack.

"You okay?" she asked as Link stood up; half of one of his heart charms was dark again. Link didn't answer her as he lunged in anger at this new foe. Striking it with his sword, the spider withdrew inside the skull, causing it to swing back and forth like a pendulum. "Stop!" Navi ordered. "This is a Skulltulla, the adult version of those things you shot off the wall earlier. Just wait, it sees you as a meal. It will turn its belly to you to entice you, that's when you strike." Link waited as Navi's words came true. The spider, growing aggravated as its meal kept its distance, turned its vulnerable underside to Link. The boy jumped into the air and slashed the monster's underside, green ooze seeping out of the cut. The spider fell from its web and plummeted down to the floor so many feet below.

"Thanks Navi," Link said.

After a long sigh of relief, Navi asked, "What did I tell you about rushing into things?" Once again her protests went unheard as Link was already going through the next door. "Wait!" she called as she flew for the door, getting through just in time. Just as before, the door slid shut with iron bars blocking the way back.

"Well…I guess I should get used to that…" Link commented as he stepped forward. "Alright, let's see, I bet if I step on those circles…"

"Hold it!" Navi growled as she pulled on the back of his tunic. "Every time you rush into something, you wind up getting hurt…this time, why don't you look around a bit, see what you're up against."

With a sort of half-smile, Link surveyed the room. It was basically a large rectangular area with two raised platforms on either end separated by a sunken floor. On the floor in the middle, were three circles, about the same size, stretching from one end to the other in a zigzag pattern. On his side of the room, Link spotted two metal torches. One of which had a simple steel frame; the other, was plated in gold. There was also a small raised platform near the golden torch. "What's that?" Link asked, gesturing toward the platform.

"I…don't really know," Navi admitted. "There's only one way to find out…"

"My thoughts exactly," Link agreed without hearing what she had to say. Before Navi could stop him, Link jumped onto the platform which sunk easily into the ground. Catching his balance, Link backed off of the platform to see if it would rise back into place. Instead, however, the three circles in the gap next to him rose out of the ground forming platforms. "Awsome!" Link yelled in excitement. Without hesitation, Link hopped to the first of the three circles.

"Don't you know the meaning of caution?" Navi asked sarcastically as she caught up to him.

"I'm a kid, of course not!" he answered as he jumped to the second platform and then immediately to the third. Eyeing a chest at the end of the room, Link leapt off the third platform, rolling as he landed. Laughing, he turned to Navi and said, "That was fun! I'd like to do that again!" Navi looked a little exasperated but said nothing because the boy was unhurt. Link stood up and went to the chest which looked like the just like the others: big, old, and wooden. The same bright light poured out as he opened it which started to annoy him. It made it impossible to see what was inside and he was getting tired of being surprised. This time though, the object made a beeping sound, making it easy to locate. Link pulled a small blue compass out of the chest and examined it annoyingly due to the beeping sound.

"Why won't this thing shut up?" Link demanded of nobody.

"I don't know," Navi admitted, "but it's going to be hard to avoid enemies if it keeps making that infernal noise!"

A loud noise ensued from behind the two pair and echoed throughout the entire room…the circular platforms were sinking! "What's going on?" Link questioned.

"That switch near the door…" Navi began. "It must have made the platforms rise temporarily." Link took no more hesitation as he hurriedly jumped to the first descending platform. Navi helped to steady Link's landing so he could jump to the second platform immediately.

I won't make it…Link thought to himself as he landed on the second platform. Navi flew ahead of him and waited by the last platform expecting him to jump right away but he hesitated. "Now's not the time to linger!" the fairy yelled to the boy, annoyed that he choose this time to heed her cautions. Then she saw why he had stopped. There was a small, dark alcove to Link's right; one that he had missed earlier.

Link jumped through the alcoves opening, falling hard on his knees. Pulling himself up to his feet, he froze as he heard that dreadful scuttling sound again near the back of the alcove. No…not another spider… His thoughts were cut off as a Skulltulla grabbed his ankle from behind and started to pull him up to the ceiling. Link flailed around in the spider's grip for a short time before he remembered his sword. He drew his weapon and slashed the monster, causing them both to tumble toward the ground. Giving the monstrosity no time to recover, Link jumped and lunged his sword into his enemy's belly, green goo spilling form the cut.

Link fell backward and sat against some kind of mound to hold him up. There were now two beeping sounds that no doubt alerted the monster to his presence. One he knew was the compass, which was beeping uncontrollably. The other he was unsure of until he looked down at his heart charms…only one was left alight. Navi flew into the alcove as she saw Link defeat the creature. With a gasp she said, "Link! Your charms…you've been acting too reckless. Unless your wounds heal, those things will emanate that horrible sound."

"Heh…I'm fine, don't worry about me," Link lied in a weak voice. He went to push off the mound he was leaning against but its top flew backwards and his armpit crashed hard on the lip of what seemed to be a small wooden chest. Link peered inside, holding his hand under his arm in some futile attempt to control the pain he felt. Inside, much to their alleviation was more of that red life energy the Deku Tree seemed to be filled with. A smile swept across Link's face as he set eyes on the ruby light which spread throughout his entire body as he stuck his hand through it. Almost immediately, the scrapes on his knees and the spider bite on his leg vanished as the skin melted together leaving not so much as a scar.

"What a relief," Link mused, "I thought I was gonna have to walk around with that bite on my leg."

"There wouldn't have been a bit on your leg if you hadn't been so careless…" Navi said exasperatingly. "Well, at least the charms stopped beeping…"

"And so has the compass." Link finished. Link's face seemed to glow as he realized how the compass worked. "I get it now! The closer you are to a chest, the quicker it makes that noise. Since I opened the chest, it stopped."

"Yeah…I guess that makes sense," Navi agreed, once again surprised at how intelligent this stupid boy could be. "Now all we have to do is figure out how to get you back to the door, because the platforms…" The fairy stopped short as a familiar scuttling sound resonated throughout the small alcove.

"I…I thought I killed the spider…" Link said shakily as he turned to check on the dead body of the Skulltulla. Seeing that the limp body of the giant spider was still behind him, dripping green ooze, Link looked back toward the inside of the alcove. "So where is it coming from?"

"It sounds like it's coming from further inside," Navi suggested.

"You go first," Link said shakily. "You know, so you could light whatever it is up."

"Well aren't you the little gentleman?" Navi asked sarcastically. Although annoyed with Link's cowardice, she flew ahead anyway, knowing full well that Link was right.

Navi slowly moved ahead of Link lighting up the alcove around her. It didn't take long for her to find the cause of the sound as the alcove wasn't very deep. Navi let out a small yelp as she realized that she had never seen this kind of monster before. It was definitely a Skullwalltulla, yet it didn't have the ivory skulls over its back like the others did. Instead, this one's skull glowed golden in the light Navi gave off from her body. It didn't attack; at least it didn't seem to show interest in such a small fairy. It just stood there on the wall, spinning around in place.

"You okay Navi?" Link asked as he heard her strange cry.

"Yeah I'm fine…come here, quickly!" she ordered.

Link walked toward her dutifully, unsure of what would require his immediate attention. He stopped short though, at the sight of the giant spider. "Wha…Wha…What is that?" he stammered.

"I don't know…" Navi admitted. "It's like a Skullwalltulla, but with a golden skull."

"What should we do about it?" Link inquired.

"Kill it of course!" Navi answered incredulously. "What kind of stupid question is that?"

A little taken aback by the criticism, Link stepped forward slowly, sword in hand. He only needed to slash it twice before it disappeared in a puff of black smoke, leaving the golden skull behind. "Take it," Navi said.

"Are you nuts?" Link asked. "I'm not touching that thing!"

"It's made of gold pea brain!" Navi retorted. "It'll be worth something. Besides, there aren't that many monsters that leave behind useful things. If one does though, chances are you're best off taking it."

Reluctantly, Link bent down to pick up the golden skull. It wasn't how he'd expected it to feel. It was glassy, not in the least bit coarse at all. Even its underside was perfectly smooth; no ooze or blood like he expected after it had been on the spider.

Link had become bewitched by the mystical object in his hands. He almost didn't hear Navi when she called his name, "Link!" The boy's consciousness was focused again, but still he remained silent, merely turning his head to look back at the ball of light floating over his shoulder. "Will you snap out of it? We have to figure out how you are getting back through that door remember?"

Without a word, Link pocketed the small skull and ran back toward the edge of the alcove, jumping over the dead Skulltulla on the way. "So how do you plan on getting out of here?" Navi asked skeptically. "I hope you don't expect me to fly you over…Where did he go?" Navi looked around to find Link who had left her side. When she found him, he was heading back toward the small wall by the door. She flushed as she realized that vines where growing up the side of it; ones he could climb to get to the door. The color of the light surrounding her tiny body changed immediately from red to yellow, however, as she realized what else was in the corner. "Link! Watch out!"

A Deku Baba rose out of the ground, readying its lunge at Link, jaws snapping. With a nimble dodge, the dark plant got nothing but a jaw of wood. Link jumped into the air, brining the edge of his sword down on the plant's "head," decapitating it. Navi was stunned. She had never seen the boy react so quickly and decisively. Perhaps this little journey was having some affect on the boy after all. As Link began to climb the vines, the flower's petals shriveled instantly, revealing three small Deku Nuts. Navi grabbed them as Link made it to the top of the platform he had started at. Link thanked Navi as she placed them, carefully, into his palm; he pocketed them too.

"So…now what?" Link inquired. The bars covering the door were still in place. Evidently, activating the switch hadn't changed that.

"They've got to be enchanted in someway," Navi offered. "There must be some task you have yet to complete in order to exit." With that, the fairy began to look around. There wasn't much in the room. He had already opened that two chests in the room and jumped across the platforms. Besides the alcove and the platform on the opposite end, there were no other places he could get to. Apart from the chests, there was nothing else in the alcove or on the other platform. "It must be something on this side of the room."

At Navi's words, Link eyed the torch frames. "Maybe we have to put that flame out," Link suggested. "This one has no flame in it," Link explained motioning to the unadorned steel, "so maybe we have to douse that one too."

"Possibly, but…" Navi flew toward the unlit torch, hovering just above the frame. "Just as I thought, come here Link." Link rushed over, eager to hear what his guide had discovered. "Smell that, the ash? This torch was lit recently. Instead of extinguishing that flame, try lighting this one with one of your Deku Sticks." Link nodded his head in comprehension and took a Deku Stick from the bundle he made earlier. Lighting one end of the stick, he carefully brought it over to the unlit torch but hesitated in lighting it. "What's wrong?" Navi asked.

"There's nothing to fuel the fire," Link observed. "How will it stay lit?"

"It's enchanted remember?" Navi asked aggregately. "Just light it before your Deku Stick burns up." Link looked up at the stick and realized that it was burning quite fast. Quickly Link touched the top of the Deku Stick to the top of the frame. The fire ignited immediately causing the metal bars over the door to slide back up into the wall. Dropping the rapidly burning stick, Link ran through the door, Navi following close behind.

"Finally got out of there…" Link sighed. "Well I guess all that's left is to jump…"

"Whoa wait!" Navi ordered. "You were serious about that? I'm not letting you jump! What if you miss the web or it doesn't break? You've gotta be at least one hundred feet up!"

"You got any better ideas?" Link asked patronizingly. "Listen…this is the only way I can think of to break that web. The strands are too thick and sticky for my sword's blades and I can't burn it away. I have to jump." Navi began to debate the situation but Link walked to the edge of the floor overlooking the whole of the Great Deku Tree's interior. Looking up, Link could see a few Skulltullas entangled in the web above, watching in anticipation for his leap. Before jumping, the boy turned to the now shaking fairy. "You realize you can't catch me this time…" Navi nodded slowly as Link stared back down the center of the tree. His legs coiled as he thrust himself out into open air. The spiders lunged at him but were batted away by the ferocious Navi as Link seemed to become suspended in the air. Then down he plunged, the air racing passed his freefalling body, pushing his air and tunic toward the ceiling. Please let this work… Link thought to himself as he fell, hoping that the web would buckle under his weight…

So what do you think? I'm sorry once again that it took so long but I had other things to deal with. I hope you liked my first action packed chapter. The next one probably won't be up for a while but I'll do my best. See you later. Oh and I'd appreciate it if you reviewed my story as well. Thank you.