Chapter 7

"Sheik… what's wrong?"

"Nothing…"

"Is this about the other night?"

"No…"

"Then what?"

"I said nothing…"

"Don't lie to me Sheik…"

"I saw what happened to Link…what made him the person he is today…"

"You what? How?"

"Don't worry about it, Theirs no need for you to know…"

"Why not?"

"His secrets are his to keep, I stupidly tried to see them. There is no need for me to tell you what his secrets are… he has his reasons to keep them…"

Saria stood outside the Hyrulian Castle town market's draw bridge. She looked towards where Lon Lon ranch once stood, but now their was only ash and smoke. It saddened her to hear that Malon had died after all what Link had gone through to save her. He cared for he deeply, she knew this by the way the memory of her face came to her. She was smiling, a slight hint of a blush on her face, the stars bright behind her, a single lantern illuminating her face. She had the strangest idea that she had just been surprise…possibly by a quick kiss from Link, who's eyes she saw this from.

She must have meant a lot to him for that memory to stand out so much, that moment must have been truly a special time… for the both of them. Saria sat down upon the ground, her back up against the drawbridge's chains. The memory of Link as a child stirred something within her, a deep though …a deep emotion. When they had both been children, growing up within the Kokiri Forest, they had been best friends. Wasn't it ironic that he was constantly picked on by the others, and now he has become the hero of the land of Hyrule. She had been his protector then, stopping the bullies from picking on the weeping boy who only wanted to be alone… he was an outcast, and outcast that became even more alienated when charged with the duty of Hero of Time.

It was childish at most, and yet she had a childhood crush on him. The side that no one but her saw, was that of a nice, smart, and even for his age, charming. With that childishness, came the hope that after his quest to find Navi, he would come back to the forest…come back to her… She remembered how long it seamed that he was gone… it seamed like forever. She would wake up each morning, hoping that on that day, he would be there…waiting to be with her again…

Then it came. A dark creature that none had ever seen before, not even the Sages of which she was one of. The thing seamed to have no mass, and yet it brought destruction with it, destroying the Kokiri Forest, killing most of those who were foolish enough to try and fight it. Nothing survived when they came in contact with it, it brought with it's touch only death and destruction.

Like many others, she ran. She had ran as fast as she could run, deep into the Lost Woods, soon becoming lost within their wicked grasps. That night was the hardest for her, to an extent, it was as if the woods were now alive to her. She had gone their many a time, mostly to the Forest temple where she spent many hours of the day. But now the woods were more wicked than she had ever seen them, the evil creatures grabbing at her as she ran. Saria looked down to her sleeved arm, the sleeve tightly bound to it. She pulled the sleeve upwards, looking at her exposed arm. Underneath were scars and scratches she still held from that night.

She had stayed within the hollowed out center of tree trunk that night, attempting to keep herself alive from the beasts, hoping against all that she could just survive. That night, she felt it happen, a feeling she had not felt for many a year. She began to grow. Her hair color had changed, that of dark brown, and the connection she had with the forest began to lessen. She could no longer feel the grasses flickering before the wind, the trees swaying against the strongest of gales. The forest had died, another death by the monster.

It didn't take long before she learned how to survive, how to keep herself safe. Soon after was when she had found it, a small blade, of which became her only weapon. She learned to use it, to fight with it, to strike down her enemy using hers and it's strength. She had finally become the one who was the fighter, not some boy she once cared for, but her, the one that had to keep herself alive.

The nights became easier, and the fearsome beasts became less fears. She had found her way to live, she had found what was her path. However, her caring for Link became less and less, and her anger towards him grew more and more. She began wishing he would return, all in his blazing glory, triumphant once again, and then she would put it all to an end. She would kill him. She trained harder, longer, making herself as strong as she could make. She would have her revenge, she would show him, and herself, that Hyrule didn't need him.

Suddenly he was back, and the day of her triumphant vengeance would be soon. He ventured into the forest, the place of which she knew all of, she would be able to attack and kill him before he had the chance. She waited within the bushes of a clearing, watching him walk into it. She was ready, she was going to strike. Then she saw his face.

She first believed she had made some kind of mistake, maybe it wasn't him, maybe he hadn't returned and she had gotten her hopes up for no reason. She knew better however, his physical features were that of the child she knew, but not the look he carried about him, the way he moved, the way he looked around him, looking as if he didn't care anymore, about anything. Something had changed him, something that had completely made him a new person.

It was to much for her to bare. She had expected Link as his triumphant and cocky self, and yet here he stood, a broken man that seamed not to care if he lived or died. She couldn't kill him now, he looked as if he would have welcomed death, he looked like he had gone through so much. She couldn't do it…she couldn't kill him. So when it came that he had finally found her, she let him beet her, and held back.

It was something she had subconsciously done, and yet, she wanted her to see him. She wanted to see if he missed her, and yet, his gaze saw her as just another enemy, and then an ally. Their was no regret with giving up her thirst for vengeance, and she decided to travel with him, finally leaving the woods and the forest.

A voice came from behind her, a young soldier that walked towards her.

"Lady Saria, The Princess wishes to speak with you." Saria looked towards the man, seeing in him the youthfulness that she had once seen before in another.

"Very well, let us go."

The desert sands blew furiously, as two figures fought, one a woman, her long red hair blowing in the wind as she fought, and the other, a cloaked figure, fighting with no apparent weapon. The womanly figure slumped down upon the desert floor, exhausted, the desert sands already at work at their attempt to bury her. The woman looked up towards her foe, attempting to see who the person actually was, for the figure's cowl hid any sign of a face.

"You putt up a good fight Nabooru, but your no match for me." Came the figure's voice from underneath the cowl's hiding. "It's to bad you have to die now…" With that the figure brought his hand forward from under his cloak, and used his powers to bring back up Nabooru from her fallen position, and slammed her into a nearby wall made by a giant bolder. She screamed in pain as she hit, but still managed to keep her eyes on the cloaked figure.

"How…how did you get out?…" She gasped, before she coughed, the sound of blood within her throat. "Only a Sage…"

"Could what? Let me out? Oh that was simplicity in itself." said the figure, making it's way forward towards Nabooru's floating body. "I used the Water Sage, she was so easily taken by me."

"Ruto?… What did you do!…" asked Nabooru, her voice starting to crack under the strain. The figure laughed, dark and evil.

"It was so funny. After the reemergence of Link, she left Zora's domain in search of him, foolishly to see if he loved her. I took control of her, and made her set me free. She's dead now, ironically at the bottom of Lake Hyla." He laughed once more, as a look of sorrow came over Nabooru's face. "It really is to bad I have to kill you now, you being a Sage and all…" His finger came up to her face, caressing her cheek with his finger. "So beautiful…" She glared, and spit at his face under the hood.

"You pig…" she answered, the glare still present. "You won't stand a chance against him…you won't…" she stopped, he had suddenly grabbed her throat and had begun to squeeze.

"I won't what?" Her voice croaked and stammered from the choking, blood starting up. "If you mean Link, then your sadly mistaken. If you hadn't herd, he's a changed man now, not willing to fight for the land of Hyrule. He's nothing now…" his squeeze tightened, and a yelp came from her mouth. "So if you think that Link will stop me, your very sadly mistaken, and your sad attempt to stop me was stupidity in itself." He pulled back his cowl to reveal his face, his red eyes glaring, and an evil smile upon his face. Nabooru's hands clawed for his grip, trying to stop him, her ragged attempts for breath being herd, and her face becoming pale. "You are the third sage that I have taken care of, now only 4 more to go.

A yelp of pain was herd, followed by a sharp crack, and Nabooru's limp body fell to the ground. The figure brought his cowl back over his head, turned, and walked away.

Zelda once again stood within the high chamber within the tower of Hyrule Castle, staring at a box she held before her. Her eyes were fixed upon it, as if in a trance, however, within a war was raging. She had had used it when saving Link from the fire several nights ago, and ever since it has hurt her to keep it away. She couldn't eat, couldn't sleep because it was too much for her, the battle raged within, the decision of opening the box and using it again going through her mind.

Suddenly she blinked, her gaze no longer fixated on the box. Something terrible had happened, she could feel it. Nabooru…she could not longer feel her presence within the world, she had died. The power of the sage of Spirit left the land of Hyrule once again, and the land weakened. She had felt a similar feeling several days ago, when she felt Ruto die, however, she did not tell anyone, for it's knowledge wasn't for many to know.

Now their were only 5 out of the original 7 sages left , including herself. They were being eliminated… one by one… Zelda stood from her chair and set the box down upon the shelf before her. This was no time for childish wishes, this was a time for action, before it was too late. Even though she told herself this, she stared at the box as she walked backwards towards the door, her eyes fixated upon it, still wanting it.

Finally, taking all the will she could muster, she turned and walked through he door. She walked briskly down the hall leading from the chamber, attempting to take hold of herself once more. The inner battle was still waging itself, one side content on keeping herself going, the other wanting to sprint back to the room and use what was contained within the box.

She knew that she should not have used it the other day, however, she knew that no one could reach Link in time, and she knew that id he tried to save Malon, he would parish with her. When she was told the news of his riding to there, she knew what she had to do. Part of her wanted to use it so bad, the other being cautious still, hoping against all that she wouldn't lose control. Her consciousness in that state wouldn't last long she knew, so she would have to get there and get out.

When she arrived, the barn was in flames, being quickly consumed by the wicked fire that was burning he ranch. She already felt herself slipping, so she didn't bother with putting the flames out, she merely used her powers to push them aside, giving her a clear path to Link and Malon's body. When she came to him, his eyes were full of sorrow, looking up to her like she was an angel taking him to heaven.

He held the girl to his body, like she was part of him, not letting her go, even if it meant his own death. She must have meant a lot to him, more than any one else could imagine. After his days of rest in the Hyrule castle hospital wing, he once again returned to his usual self, not wishing to speak about his actions the days before. It made her wonder if the reason of his sorrows was because of this girl however, how could he miss her so much to try and rescue her, and be damaged by not being with her, even though she seamed to mean nothing to him for the many days he had been back to the land before the fire. It was almost like he thought she was someone else…

Also, Sheik's knowledge of what happened to Link could have helped tremendously, however, he chose to withhold the information he had acquired from Link's dreams. He had told her that Link had his reasons not to tell them what happened, and that he had been foolish to think otherwise. This made her conclude that whatever happened to Link had to be terrible, a thing that most other people wouldn't be able to live through. Link, being the person he was, had the ability to survive what had happened, but he was left severely damaged, to the point of there being scarce similarities to the boy she knew from childhood.

To an extent, she regretted bringing him back to Hyrule, his lack of enthusiasm of his return being one of the mane causes, he would most likely rather stay in whatever land he had stumbled across, or rather die. Link however, was needed by the people of Hyrule, to defend them against the many evils that had crept forward after the time of Ganondorf the evil King.

What made her worry now was the fact that someone was hunting down and killing the sages, the reason, she had no way of knowing. Her instincts told her that whatever was happening was very bad, and that if this person succeeded in what their plans, then it could be another rein of terror.

Also the dream that she had had soon after the return of Sheik held little knowledge to her. Tell the hero that his weapon has been sent… the voice had said to her, and yet, she had no idea what they were talking about. If Link was to find some kind of weapon, where would he look? The thoughts however, seamed unimportant to her at the time, and she pushed them aside, as just another thought that came through as she was deciding other matters.

She would have to talk with the others, telling them what had happened. She had already scheduled a talk with Saria, to talk about her having that dream. This seamed to be a good time to have the others come to meet as well. Hopefully, they could figure out what to do about this Sage Hunter before it was too late…

Link stood within the training arena for the Hyrule guard, ready to start practicing his sword play. He stared down the other end of the arena, to the place where a training post stood, acting now as his foe. His eyes fixed upon the post, he unsheathed his sword slowly from the scabbard he wore on his back with his left hand, his right hand free. He tuned out all other things that did not pertain to his foe, keeping his eyes fixed upon it in a way that he was completely focused upon it, and it alone.

Link had regained his strength after spending several days within his bed chamber, where he was supposed to be resting. Two guards were posted outside his door, and even though he felt he could easily get past them, he knew to stay in the room. So, instead of resting, he built back up his strength by practicing with the sword he kept in the room. So, after the allotted time it took him to convince Zelda that he was back to full strength, he was ready to fight once again. Not surprisingly, Sheik had scheduled another fight as soon as possible.

His bandaged hands were red, for the clenching of his sword kept splitting the wounds upon them open. He had tuned the pain out, so it no longer bothered him. The bandages that covered his face had been removed, for he no longer needed it, however he had a thin scar on the left side of his face that would be there for the rest of his life. As the bandages on his chest were removed, where some miner wounds he didn't know of had been placed.

Holding his sword to his side, he started forward, and sprinted towards the post, where he brought the sword up and stabbed through it, being it a real enemy, it would be a killing blow. He unsheathed the sword, and continued slicing the post with his sword, slashing it to the point that their was nothing left that resembled what was once there.

The next target he laid his eyes on stood several feat away, the post having many small poles that stuck from it that rotated when hit. It was a practicing post for martial artists, most likely used by Sheik currently. He didn't care about completely destroying the post, it would be replaced within the day if destroyed, just like the sword training posts.

He ran towards the post, swinging his sword upwards to slash it, but got it caught between two of the poles, and knocked him off balance. He fell face first onto the ground, his sword sheathing itself into the dirt floor. He coughed, after breathing in a good amount of dust, and got back to his feat. Unsheathing his sword, he swung at it again, this time ending with a pole being hit by him, being swung around and hitting him on the back of the head.

A glare on his face, he got back up, however he did not unsheathe his sword from the ground. He walked up towards the post, anger filling his face, and flat out punched one of the sides of the posts with his left hand, sending it swinging around. Suddenly, on instinct, his right arm came up and blocked the pole from hitting his face. Surprised by this, he stared at the pole that he had hit, some amazement upon his face. I didn't try to…

He tried hitting another pole, lower down, and blocked it with his other hand, and did the same to another. He stared at the post as he did this, not concentrating on the spinning portions that he had been hitting and blocking. Why was he doing this… this was stupid. He left the font of the post and walked back over to the place in which his sword stood sticking from the earth. His hand brushed down to grab it, but lay limp. He looked back at the post, staring at it, a sudden look of surprise and understanding on his face. This was Sheik's fighting style… use you enemy's skills against them…

He ran over to the post, and began hitting and kicking the posts, while with the other side, blocking the swinging posts, and pushing them back around. He began to do this faster with each punch and block, his feat kicking and stopping the lower posts. Punch, block, kick, block, punch, punch, block, kick, block, block, kick, punch, block. He kept going, attacking the posts and blocking the other swinging sides, then hitting them back around. He then stopped, breathing hard as he stood there, staring at the post once again.

A clapping sound came from behind him, as much of a clap bandaged hands could do. Sheik's laughter filled the room as he walked up towards Link, a smile on his face. Link glared back at him, watching him walk up towards him from the entrance.

"What do you want?…" asked Link, the glare still present. Sheiks laughter kept going until he was mere feat from Link's own body.

"You were doing it. You understood." The smile stayed upon Sheik's face, a hint of satisfaction was worn upon it. "I expect to see you practice that from now on, upon your practices with your sword."

"You what! This was just a stupid thing I was doing."

"For what! Fun Link? Did you have fun doing that?" Link glared back at him, not answering his last remark. "You got it though, you understood what I was trying to teach you. You now see how you can defeat your enemy, by letting him attack himself, and tire out. I expect you to use this from now on in our fights, and I will help you in improving your skills."

Link looked downwards to his sword that lay stuck within the ground, bring his hand down to the handle, and pulled it out. He then looked back up to Sheik's face, where the grin still stayed. Link sighed.

"Fine. If you want me to, I'll do it." Sheik maid a slight laugh.

"Good. Our next fight is within the hour, I would recommend training some more though, you looking pretty rusty." Link roared with anger, and slung his sword towards Sheik, not thinking of what he was doing. He watched as Sheik bent downwards, and caught the sword by it's handle, and spun it around, all in one smooth stroke. A smile on his face. "Link, throwing weapons aren't the best for you, I would stick to melee." Sheik laughed again, and walked out the door.

Darunia the sage of Fire stood within Death mountain crater, just outside of the entrance to the fire temple, the temple of which he was the guardian of and spent most of his free time. He stood watching the boiling magma flow within the cavern, making up a red hot liquid carpet for the crater, it's red glow penetrating all crevices that were within. He was in deep thought at the moment, mostly because the food shortage that the Gorons were currently going through.

To merely sit and think about things would have seamed unheard of several years ago, during the time in which he was not the sage, and was merely the wild and hot tempered Darunia, it was ironic that he was to be a sage. He breathed in the warm air that stood within the crater, bringing with it the smell of fire and brimstone, a smell that not many could bare. He, however, was strong in body, and now in mind, making him able to take such a small thing as this stench easily.

After a moment longer of watching the boiling of the red river below him, he turned and started for the bridge that connected the portion of the mountain that made up the fire temple, and the portion that led to the Goron City. The bridge creaked and groaned as he passed over it, however, it was made to hold much more than his weight, so he had no worries of plummeting to his doom. Before passing into the entrance that connected to the secret entrance to his chamber in the city, he looked back at the temple, for something made him feel uneasy. This thought was brushed aside quickly after it's first occurrence, for he had other things to worry about.

He pushed the pillar back into place that hid the opening within his chamber, a thing he did regularly, and was not that hard of a task for a Goron. Finally, he replaced an ancient Goron spear into a hole, in which made the engraved picture of the ancient Goron Booom of, look as if he was holding the spear. A loud clicking sound occurred, telling him that the lock had been closed. It was a simple door, and yet it served it's purposes well, for only he and his son, named after the Hero of Time Link, knew of it's secret.

"Big…brother…" came a voice from behind him, that of one of the many Gorons that lived in the city. Darunia spun around to meet the face of the one who spoke to him, but he had collapsed to the ground, a knife wound in his back. Darunia ran towards the fallen body, tears pouring down his cheeks. The fallen one was already dead as he came towards him, and his tears of greave could do nothing to bring him back.

"I will avenge you my fellow Goron, as the big brother of the gorons, and the Sage of Fire." he said aloud, rage and anger coming to his voice. "The one who did this will pay!" he ran out of his chamber, to see the most horrible sight he had ever laid his eyes upon, the dead bodies of almost all of his fellow Gorons carpeting the floor. In this time he did not cry however, he grew ever more into rage, and roared a mighty roar, a thing gorons didn't commonly do.

An evil laugh filled the corridor, it's darkness of spirit seaming to blot out the light within the city's chamber. It echoed throughout the city, leaving no area untouched by it's evil sound. Darunia cringed at the sound; he knew this laugh. He looked up to see a cloaked figure holding one of his fellow gorons into the air on the ledge just above him. The Goron he held was one of the young ones, only about 5 years old.

"Link… my son…no…" his words drifted up to the ears of his son, who looked down to meet his gaze, fear and horror in his eyes. The figure holding him up shifted his head to look at Darunia, which wasn't entirely apparent, because of the great hood he wore over it.

"Father! Help me!" echoed the voice of his son, wailing for he had began to cry. He, like all others before him, did not want to die. The laughter from the dark figure began once again, it's sound making Darunia cringe.

"So Darunia… you finally arrived… I was hoping that I didn't kill all of them before you got here. I finally had to revert to killing them slowly, so the wait would be more bearable." Came the darkened voice of the figure, a slight laughter still emitting from his lips.

"You Monster! Let my son GO!" roared Darunia, who wanted to stop him so badly, and yet he was afraid that if he tried anything, his son would be killed. The figure merely laughed once more at this remark, seaming not at all intimidated by Darunia's words.

"I have heard a great deal about you Darunia, the wild one that took so long for the King of Hyrule to satisfy in the piece talks, the one who is said by some to have mercilessly killed those who wandered onto your mountain."

"That's a lie…" said Darunia through gritted teeth. He would never just kill someone, however, he was thinking of making an exception…

"Well now you are the Sage of Fire, no longer the wild one that so many stories have been told. You are in a lose-lose situation you know, if you try to stop me, I'll kill him, If you stand their, I'll kill him. Now you have to make a choice, are you going to let the last things your son sees the blubbering fool before me? Or are you willing to fight me for his life?" Darunia looked up to his son's face, the tears streaming down it's sides, wetting the ground below him. "What's it going to be?"

"I'll do it…" Darunia knew that this was like signing a contract without reading the fine print, he was going to lose, and he knew it. However, he would not let his son see his dad go down like a coward, he would watch him go down as a proud Goron warrior, a Sage of Fire, a good father. The figure watched him for a moment, then threw Link over his shoulder, making him land face first onto the ground.

"You should feel lucky kid, you get to live when your dad has to die…" he said, not turning to look towards the child Goron behind him. "I would suggest you run, before I hunt you down and end the Goron race." Link of the Gorons looked down to the eyes of his father, who's tears mirrored his own. No words passed between them, however the message that his father was trying to send came through easily. Go my son…go before you die like me… So he ran, and didn't look back.