Hmm… this one turned out to be much longer; oh well. Hopefully the rest will be about this long. Those of you who reviewed, thank you!
Justin Time: Thank you again for your wonderful review! I'm glad that you like Impa; she's one of my favourite characters.
Nicole Da Cat: Glad you liked it; I hope you can post stories soon! Say hello to everyone up there for me, kay?
Allyanna: Your name made me smile, as it was so similar to Allya's. I guess it's not that shocking and all, but it tickled me.
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: same as it has been the last few times; I only own my copies of the games. Ganon must die…
OoOoO
Several days after their arrival, Link was well enough to sit and hold conversations. Walking and standing were still difficult, so the two remained in the cave.
"Why am I so damned sick when you're perfectly fine?" Link growled at Impa. She snorted.
"Think about it. You're the Hero of Time. We traveled across Time to get here." Link glared at her. He hated it when he was sick; it lessened his chances of being able to hold his own against Impa.
"Well, that explains why I was so sick when Zelda sent us back in Time. It had all the doctors in Castle Town confused," he muttered.
So he's the one, Impa thought, amused. Well, that would explain why no one knew what was going on. She stood up and exited the cave. Link watched her go, wishing that he too could move around with ease. She was checking out the area, and he hoped that she would find something more palatable to eat than mashed tubers. Add to that, all he had been able to keep down the past few days was soup, so he got to have mashed tuber soup. Lucky him.
She better beat the night, he thought, reflecting on what happened a couple days ago. Impa had run in, blood dripping from numerous cuts on her arms. He was still very sick, so it took a few seconds before what he saw clicked.
"Wha… what happened?" he managed to get out, as he tried to push himself up. Tried being the key word; he failed miserably at it.
"Don't get up," she snapped, "I'm fine. Now I know why everyone is in by sundown; this place is covered in undead. Stalfos, redeads, all of them." Link blinked owlishly, trying to grasp it all with his foggy mind.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
"I said I was fine. The day I let some undeads get the better of me is the day I let Ingo be in charge of Zelda." Link had wisely let the subject drop; it had appeared that she had been caught unawares, which was a blow to her pride as a Sheikah.
Just as the sun was setting, Impa returned. And, to Link's delight, she had a quezle, a large bird that could often be found in the plains, with her. No tubers tonight!
"There seems to be a large war going on at the moment," she said as she began to pluck and gut the bird. "Nobody was to keen on being near me, much less talking to me, so I don't know who is fighting who." Link waited for more, but she was silent.
"So you found a settlement?" he asked, impatient. She shook her head.
"It's more like a camp, and it was full of Hylians. I saw a couple of Sheikah signs around, but nothing more than that." She looked up at him and then looked at the fire. Link sighed and added wood, and then placed their pot above it on a makeshift hook. The pot was found in the back of the cave, and after Impa tested it, it became their cooking pot. The hook was a piece of rock that jutted out above the niche where the fire was. Link assumed that when the battle that occurred here took place someone had used this cave to live and cook in. Who, he was not sure, but it was either Sheikah, Gerudo, or Hylian. Gorons don't cook over fires, and the Zora don't use fire.
"We should probably move on from here. Either to the forest or one of the Temples," Link stated as he kept an eye on the fire. Impa nodded, and put the quezle in the pot, chopped up, with chopped tubers and other plants. Link winced as he saw the tubers go in. He was beginning to detest the things.
"Do you have your ocarina?" Impa asked.
Link sighed, and shook his head. "No, it's gone. I checked while you were out. Someone else must have it in this time, and that is where it will be. I don't think it could have existed, being in the same time with itself."
"Then our best bet is the forest. Everyone seems pretty terrified of it, so you better let it know who you are quick," Impa stated, stirring the stew.
"We'll have to make it in one day," Link said, staring off into the distance. "And I doubt we can make it from here in one day. We won't be able to stop at any camps either; the inhabitants won't let us in without knowing who we are, and if we tried to tell them, well…" he left it hanging. Impa nodded.
"We'll need horses," she stated. Link looked at her skeptically.
"Where are we going to get horses?" Link asked, receiving a look from Impa. It was a look that said, Are you really that dense?
"Never mind," he said, leaving Impa and her plans alone.
Dinner that night was the best they had since they had arrived. Link was not able to eat anything in the stew, but he was able to keep down the broth, which, thanks to the quezle, tasted nothing like tubers. Neither of them spoke during the meal; there was too much to discuss. Where to go, what to do, how to get back; no, it was better for them to remain silent. Besides, who knew when an unfriendly person or animal would come by, attracted by the sound of their voices?
The next morning, Impa was gone when Link woke up. Once his head had cleared, he tried to stand up. This time he managed to get to his feet, and even stay upright for a minute or so, before he was forced to sit down again. He knew that he was probably pushing himself, but he also knew that he couldn't afford to remain helpless for much longer. And besides, he was bored.
He tried standing several more times, resting between each one. By the time noon arrived, he was exhausted. After forcing himself to have some more broth, which, to his disgust, tasted more and more like tubers, he took a nap.
He woke late in the afternoon and heard muted voices outside. The language they spoke was similar to the Sheikah tongue, but, to his ears, sounded more archaic and formal.
"Someone… in there. Tell… ? What do you suggest?" was all that he could make out. He stood up, and the voices stopped. He slowly walked over to the entrance, grabbing his bow and quiver along the way, and in the dimming light, saw three Hylians standing in front of him. Link doubted that they were the speakers, and his assumption was proved correct when the middle one spoke.
"Who are you, and what business do you have in Hylian territory?" Again, this language was a more archaic form of the Hylian tongue. Link snorted; apparently he did not look enough like a Hylian for them.
Wonder what tipped them off? He asked himself as he stared at the appointed leader. Was it the clothes, bow, or the fact that they don't recognize me? There is a war going on…
"I asked who you are and what your business is!" The Hylian reminded him, and this time Link decided to answer him.
"My name is my own; you do not need to know it." He did not want to even think of the possibilities if people in this time found out his name. "I am from the forest. As for my business, I am returning there and merely passing through." He hid his amusement as fear passed over the face of the Hylians when he mentioned the forest. If only they knew that the 'dreaded' forest people were a bunch of children.
"Ahem, well, since you are only passing through," the leader began again, "You'll only have to pay a fine." A grin appeared on their faces, and Link began to worry. He had no money of this time and was in no condition to deal with the three.
"Do you really want to do that?" he asked, a smile playing on his lips. This was a gamble, but the only choice he had. "The Guardian's knowledge spans across the land. He'll know what you are doing, and do you really want that?" The soldiers looked at each other, nervous.
"A rule is a rule!" one said, trembling, "Everyone must pay the fine, even the forest folk." Link swore inwardly. He was about to tell them he had no money when he heard shouts and hoof beats. Two horses were galloping towards him, one on a lead and the other with Impa on its back. As the Hylians scattered, Link somehow managed to pull himself into the saddle. Impa let go of the lead, letting Link guide the creature, and he untied it from the saddle, letting it fall in the dust. The two galloped away, headed for the forest. The Hylians stared at the two and glared at the Sheikah who removed themselves from the rocks, were they had been watching.
"Where were you sneaks?" the leader demanded angrily. The Sheikah did not even bat an eye at the leader's comment.
"We do not collect the fines," he said simply. He turned to his companion and nodded towards their camp, which was a fair walk away. He did not tell the Hylians, but it had been their horses that Impa had taken. As the two headed for their camp, he focused on the strange Sheikah that had appeared out of no where. One moment the horses had been there, fine, and he had turned back to the scene between the Hylians and forest youth. Then, after hearing the horses move, he saw the strange woman on one and leading the other. Sheikah she was, but besides that he could not tell. Shadows seemed to surround her and the horses, and before he could warn the Hylians, she was charging them. Then, the youth, who had appeared to be very weak, somehow managed to pull himself into the saddle. It was all a very strange occurrence, and a very unwelcome one at that.
Impa and Link made it to the forest by midnight. They had avoided the undead because the horses moved faster, and they had gone easy on the animals during the light part of the day because of this.
"You're going to have to dismount," Link told Impa, his voice saying volumes about the exhaustion he felt. Impa slipped off, feeling nothing but respect for him. She too was amazed by his sudden ability to pull himself up while the horse was still moving at a fast canter, when even she could only do it when she was in top shape.
"Follow me, and don't say anything or attack anything, understand?" Impa nodded, following him into the silent forest.
Who are thee who intrude upon my domain? A thunderous voice demanded of them. Link winced as the sound hit his ears; his headache was still strong.
"My name is Link, Great Deku Tree, and this is my friend Impa. We seek a place to rest and answers to questions," he shouted to the forest.
You are not Link, came the angry answer, Link is but a child, safe within the forest! Link sighed.
"I know!" he shouted, "But he is me! I am the Link from another time, far in the future!"
The future?
"Aye, the future! You called me the Child of Destiny, and I am from the time when that destiny has been fulfilled!"
Prove that you are Link, came the command. Link rolled his eyes and drew up every memory he could.
"I had no fairy," he began, and the forest listened attentively. "I was teased by Mido and some of the others because of this. They called me 'the Boy without a Fairy'. My best friend was Saria, and we often explored the Lost Woods together. You got mad at us one time because we almost went to Death Mountain. We wanted to meet the Gorons; sometimes we could hear their voices, but you forbid us to ever leave the forest. When you yelled at us that day, we both felt like it was the worst day in our lives. The next day though, you called us and explained why we couldn't leave. We felt better after that, but when ever we saw the gateway to Death Mountain, we both got this uneasy feeling at the bottom of our stomachs. That's as far back as I can remember." He looked towards the center of the forest, waiting.
Come Link, and thy as well, Lady Sheikah. Follow the path that I have set before thou. Shouldst thou desire to leave this path, I promise nothing. The two nodded, and leading their horses, followed the path deep into the forest.
"We're going straight to his glade," Link muttered to himself.
Now Link, the Deku Tree began when they arrived, Wouldst it surprise thee to know that the reason I yelled at Saria and thy was because had thou made it to the home of the Gorons, thy wouldst have been killed? Link looked at him, shocked.
Listen. He turned his head towards the path that lead to the village, hearing two tiny voices.
"Why was he so mad?" one sobbed.
"Don't worry Saria, it'll be okay!" the other said, trying to sound uplifting despite the tears that threatened to spill. Link took a step back. He remembered that walk; he remembered reassuring Saria in just the same manner, and then protecting her from Mido's questions. He remembered holding back his tears, so she would not see them, and then letting them loose once he made it up the tree to his room.
"Th...That was today?" he whispered. How much had he protected us from? He wondered belatedly, collapsing into an unconscious heap.
Impa swore as Link hit the ground and bent over to pick him up.
There is a glen to thy left, Lady Sheikah. Take Link there; the horses shall follow thee. Impa did as she was told and lay Link down. She then took care of the horses before she too lay down.
Rest in peace, none shall harm thee, was the last thing she heard before sleep hit her. She slept deeply; it was the first real sleep she'd had in days, and she needed it. Age is hard to tell with the Sheikah, but Impa was not young anymore. In fact, her grandchildren were nearing the age when they could marry, not that they would. Life was no longer as kind to the Sheikah leader, but she had no intention of stopping.
Meanwhile, the two Sheikah from the cave had made it back to their camp unharmed. They immediately went to the leader's tent, where they began their report.
"This young man, you are sure he is from the forest?" they were asked.
The two looked at each other and shrugged. "His clothing was odd; the tunic was forest green, easily seen anywhere but in the forest. His accent and word choice was odd; it sounded like he spoke some odd version of Hylian. And he could hear us, so his ears are better than Hylian ones."
"And his bow," the other said, "He carried an odd looking bow. It was short, but the ends curved opposite of the middle. It resembled a horse bow, but it was slightly larger. He held it as if he knew what he was doing, and when he heard of the fine to pass the plains, he prepared to string it." The leader nodded.
"And of the other?"
"She was of Sheikah blood, most defiantly. The horses allowed her, and the young man, to ride them, so they must have been trained by Sheikah. It's just…" the speaker shook his head, not willing to believe that the shadows around her were real.
"Say what's on your mind," the leader said gently, "These are strange events, and I have the feeling they are only going to get stranger." The scout nodded, and continued his report.
"The Sheikah, she appeared out of no where. One moment no one was near the horses, and the next she was taking off with them. Also, shadows surrounded her. They disappeared as she left, so it appears that she was using them to hide herself. But who has control over the shadows?" The leader sighed; these were indeed troubling events.
"Very well; I will think over this. Go and get some rest, we must move camp tomorrow." The two bowed their heads and left. The news did not surprise them; the camp was always being moved. It was troublesome, but it kept them alive. With or without their allies in the figure, the Sheikah were the most hated tribe on the land. The undead had a reason for killing and attacking; they were forced too by their necromancer king. But the Sheikah had no excuse in the eyes of the other tribes for being attached to the shadows and darkness. Demons, some said. Tainted by the dead, said others. In the end, it mattered not, but it was troublesome for the Sheikah.
Tomorrow, tomorrow we leave for the Temple, the leader thought as he sat down, No one will reach us their. No one dares to even come near. Then, then I can deal with the forest youth and this shadow wielding Sheikah.
A/N: I made Link's bow like a Mongolian horse bow; when it is unstrung, it is curved instead of straight like a long bow. I believe it's called a recurved bow. His bow is larger than the Mongolian horse bow, but it is considerably smaller than a long bow (it's not anywhere near six feet ;). He still gets great range, but it's more compact and easier to deal with on horse back.
Also, ancient Sheikan and Hylian is basically the same as present day versions of both languages, but they have more levels of respect built into them and the accent is different. Hence why Link can still understand everyone and they can understand him.