Chapter XIV

Zora Hall and Mikau's Fall

Link woke up groggily to the sound of Tatl's worried cries.

"Link? Link! Are you ok?" He held up a hand to block the sun in his eyes and noticed that it wore a pair of unfamiliar leather gloves. He followed the rest of the arm with his eyes, noticing the pale blue skin tone and tattoos that covered it. He had turned into Mikau! He shakily stood up, and immediately noticed the height difference. He was standing at least 6 feet off the ground and felt sinewy, yet muscular legs hold him up. He wore only a green loincloth, leather boots, and leather gloves, leaving his chest bare. Link couldn't see his reflection, but he was certain that if he did, then it would look exactly like the face of Mikau. Link finally registered what Tatl had been saying after inspecting himself.

"Yea, Tatl, I'm fine. It hurt like hell, though.", he said. He winced, still feeling phantom pain in his limbs and back. He stretched his arms and during his stretch, felt two fins that he had missed during his inspection. They were about two feet long and had a definite curve to them. They were the same pale blue color as the rest of his scaled body, but they had a tinge of green at the end. Once Link finished his stretches, he turned back to Tatl.

"Now that that's done, what should we do? Is there a Zora settlement nearby that we can ask questions in?", he inquired.

"Well, the Zora Hall is just down the beach. I've never been inside before, but I'm sure that someone might be able to tell us what's going on here.", Tatl replied. After shaking some loose sand out of her wings, she flew to Link's bag, which was the only place for her to rest in. She had made it a habit to be as lazy as possible when the two were traveling long distances because she claimed that 'Flying is a lot harder than it looks!'. Soon, the Link was walking along the beach, guiding Epona by her reigns. He passed by umbrellas and canoes and was told by Tatl that under normal circumstances, the Great Bay would be full of Terminans who were on vacation.

Link found the rest of the beach just as disturbingly quiet. The only sounds made were of the surf crashing against the sandy shore, and Epona and Link's muffled footsteps. He hoped he wouldn't have to just leave Epona alone, but he saw no stables or places where he could leave her safely. Just when he thought he had to guide her back to Termina Field, he saw a small hut on the side of the beach. He let go of Epona's reigns long enough to take his mask off, which thankfully didn't hurt nearly as much as transforming into the Zora. Once back in his Hylian form, he tied Epona to a fence while he went inside to talk with whoever owned the hut. Inside, he found an impressive collection of fishing supplies and equipment, with a large, bald man standing behind a counter.

"Hello. What do you need, kid? Fishing gear? Maybe you'd like some fresh fish?" Link shook his head.

"No. I don't need any of that. I was wondering if there is somewhere around here where I can leave my horse? Is there anyone who owns a stable here?", he asked. The shirtless man scratched his chest and responded slowly.

"There aren't any, but I'd be willing to watch your horse if ya pay me." After a short while of bargaining, Link made a deal with the man, who turned out to be a fisherman. He left Epona to graze on the grass that was around the fisherman's house and made his way towards the Zora Hall that Tatl had been talking about. While he was walking, he noticed furrows appearing in the sand behind him. He had little thought to the furrows until they began to move behind him. All of a sudden, he remembered a situation that was just like this, but it was too late. Three leevers popped out of the sand, their sharp spines topping their green, cactus-like bodies. They whirled towards him with the sound of swishing sand, and they slammed into him at speed. Link went flying across the sand, gashes opening across his body, and he landed hard on the ground. Breathless, he stood back up and unsheathed his sword for the next attack. One leever got a little too close, and Link swung his sword once, twice, and then the leever fell to the ground. The other two soon followed suit, but the damage had been done. Two bloody cuts leaked blood onto the sand from Link's legs, and he was feeling woozy after the amount of blood loss. He sat down dizzily, with Tatl flying frantic circles above his head.

"Link! You're bleeding! Drink a potion!" Complying, he popped open a bottle and guzzled down the red potion. It burned as it slid down his throat, and he made a face as he tasted its bitter flavor. Once the whole bottle was finished, he could already feel the potion's effects working, knitting his wounds back together bit by bit.

"Well," Link said, "That wasn't great." Tatl smirked at him. Link half smiled-half grimaced back at her. "You don't say, huh? Please don't ignore the moving sand next time."

"Ok, I guess I will." Once he felt like he could walk again, he got back up and was directed further down the surprisingly long beach. When Tatl told Link to stop, he looked surprised. About a half-mile from shore was a massive rock statue the size of a mountain. It was shaped like a large fish, its head facing downwards, and its tail high in the air, but with its tail fin flipped horizontally instead of vertically. Sighing, Link was prepared to dive into the water, when he realized that he had a much easier option. With a half-grin on his face, he put on the Zora Mask, transforming into Mikau's form once more. To his surprise, his healing leg wounds closed with his transformation, and his appreciation for his new mask grew even more. With one final deep breath, Link dove into the murky water. Looking around underwater, Link was startled to see all sorts of life living beneath the waves. Even with the dirty water, he could clearly see the strange beauty of its aquatic plants and animals that were swimming around. He kicked his legs once and was again surprised. He shot forward at an incredible speed! Link looked down appreciatively at his finned and muscled form, very glad that it could speed up his swimming. The Zora's bodies were perfectly made for swimming in the water, which would be a great boon for his adventure. It took only minutes to get to the opening of the enormous fish-shaped mountain, where he and Tatl both emerged to a breathtaking sight.

The entire inside of the fish must have been hollow to hold all the houses, shops, and waterfalls that fell from its sides. In the center lay a deep pool, with a truly enormous white clamshell standing right behind it like a stage. Doorways and arches lay across the walls of the hall, and the voices of many Zora echoed and babbled much like the waterfalls spilling into the pool.

"This is beautiful!" Tatl cried. She looked around in wonder at the soothing sight until a voice startled both of them.

"Mikau! You're back!" A Zora stood not too far from Link and Tatl, and he was looking directly at them. Link forced a smile and walked towards the Zora, who had a large jaw and a brown headband decorated with shells.

"Yea, I am," Link lied, "and I've found a friend too!" He gestured to Tatl, who pretended to not notice him. "That's great. Did you get the eggs?", the Zora asked. Link, who had been getting into character, froze. The Zora frowned at him. "You did get the eggs, right? You know how important they are to Lulu! At least tell me that you have a plan?" he said. Link cleared his throat, then said uncertainly

"Y-yes, I have a plan. Don't worry about it." The Zora seemed to calm down at his words and gave a friendly wave as he continued with his business.

"That was too close, fish breath." Tatl remarked. Link frowned at her statement.

"I'm doing my best. Besides, it doesn't count if I have fish breath if I am a fish!" he shot back. Tatl, having no ammo to shoot back, just sighed and flew off, muttering about "making a joke". That left Link alone in the hall.

Link began to explore the hall, trying his best to discreetly look at everything at once, but only making him look paranoid. Eventually, he came to a shop front where another Zora stood behind a counter. Link tried to see the difference between the saltwater Zora from the freshwater Zora that he had encountered in the past, but couldn't tell any difference between the two. After a few seconds, he shook his head, then approached the Zora.

"Hi Mikau, what can I get for you today? A nice, fresh fish? Or maybe you need a new spear? Whatever you need, I've got it all here." The male Zora gestured to his wide array of goods, and Link looked over each of them. He only had a few dozen rupees left, but he managed to purchase a few health potions, rope, and some dried fish from the friendly store owner. He wasn't completely sure, but he felt like he had been given a discount on what he had bought! Of course, he wasn't complaining. Also, through carefully asking the Zora store owner, he had learned some more things about the Zora that he was impersonating.

Apparently, Mikau had been a part of a band called the Indigo-go's, and he was quite popular among the Zora. Link also learned that Mikau had a room, which he was grateful for. He needed a place to be himself, just for a few minutes after all the pretending that he was doing. Going to Mikau's room, Link opened the door to peer inside. Mikau's room was cool and slightly humid, with a waterfall coming out of the ceiling and pooling in a small body of water on the right and left sides of the room. A large, rocky shelf stuck out from the wall, creating a loft room, and there were beds, desks, and appropriately ocean-themed decorations. There was something that struck out to Link, however. In the middle of the room sat a very fat Zora who was busily playing a drum and cymbal set, practicing rhythms on the fish-painted drums. The drums also had a name written on one of them; Tijo. The Zora looked up at Link when he opened the room and grinned wide.

"Mikau! You're back! Where have you been? I was worried. The concert in town is coming up, but it seems like all the band members are in a funk. I betcha didn't know that, huh? Especially Lulu. I haven't heard her voice in a long time. She's usually in good spirits, too. Ooh! I wonder if this is related to the ocean turning all weird…" Link shook his head.

"I didn't notice it yet… Tijo." When the Zora seemed fine, Link continued. " I was going to ask somebody why the ocean is getting so murky. Why is it so dirty?", he asked. Tijo slowly nodded his head, with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Actually, I know a little bit of Lulu's secret. Do you want to hear it?" When Link nodded, he continued. "There's a rumor that the ocean is getting weird 'cause there's trouble offshore, at the Great Bay Temple. And they say that when that happens, something bad will befall the Zora descendant who's protecting the temple. Do you catch my drift? And lately, Lulu has been looking kind of weird… Maybe Lulu's the protector of the temple?"

Link was doing his best. He really was. But when after hearing about so many unknown people and places, he slipped up.

"What's the Great Bay Temple?" he asked. Tijo frowned. "Mikau, you should know this. We learned about it together years ago! It filters the ocean water? Keeps monsters away? It's a sacred place for the Zora? Does any of that ring a bell?" Link fumbled with his words, trying to respond, but couldn't speak. Tijo's eyes crinkled in concern, then in suspicion.

"Mikau… tell me, what's your favorite riff?" Again, Link stood silently, not knowing even what a riff was. After a few seconds, Tijo stood up and growled at him. "Who are you? A shapeshifter? A monster?" Before he could get any angrier, Link put his hands up to try to placate him.

"It's… complicated. If you let me, I can explain everything." The large Zora still looked rather furious but grunted in assent. Link slowly lifted his hands to his face, then lightly pulled on it. Within seconds, he had turned back into his Hylian body, with Mikau's mask in his hands. Tijo was astonished at the display, mouth agape as he stared at the young child who stood before him. Before he could start to ask any questions, Link began to talk.

"My name is Link. I know what you are thinking, and no, I'm not a wizard or a monster. I came across Mikau earlier today… He was dying. He had a huge gash across his chest, and he was bleeding out. I-I tried to save him. He managed to tell me through song about what happened to him, but once he finished, he died. Before he died though, he begged me to heal his soul. Ahem. You see, I learned a song, one that I play on my Ocarina called the Song of Healing. It heals people and their souls, and if they are dead, turn their bodies into masks. I played the song to heal his soul as he asked, and he turned into this." Link gestured at the mask in his hand. Tijo's eyes were as wide as saucers as he looked at the mask.

"So that means that Mikau is… dead? But even if your story is true, how did you turn into him?" Tijo asked. Link cleared his throat as he pushed down his guilt for Mikau's death.

"I, uh, put on the masks that I get from healing people. I have two more, actually." He pulled out his Goron and Deku masks as well. Seeing Tijo's expectant gaze, Link sighed, gritted his teeth for the expected pain, then placed the goron mask on his face. With a straining of muscle and bone, he grew into the hulking form of Darmani, the Goron hero. By this point, Tijo's eyes may as well have been dinner plates at how wide his eyes opened. Link pulled off the Goron mask and put on the Deku mask just to make a point, and he shrunk into the form of a Deku. Seemingly overwhelmed, Tijo sat back down, his hands to his head.

"Ok man. That's a lot of info. Mikau is dead, and you can be able to look exactly like him? That's messed up, man." Link's head fell, gloomily staring at the ground.

"Yea… that's basically it. Oh, and I have a fairy friend who is probably wondering where I am."

After further explanation, giving as many details as possible about what Mikau had said, Tijo finally seemed satisfied. Tears filled his eyes, yet he was grateful that Link could tell him. Sitting up, gestured Link to go up the ladder to Mikau's part of the room. Still on the ground, he projected up to Link

"If you look around, I'm sure you will find Mikau's journal. I feel that Mikau would want you to have it." Looking around, Link quickly found the large book, and he tucked it into his bag for later, along with a piece of heart that was also next to it. Coming back down, he hugged Tijo, surprising the large Zora.

"I'm really sorry about Mikau. I know that you must have been a really good friend to him. I-I'm sorry that I couldn't save him" By the end, Link was almost tearing up, until he felt a cool arm wrap around him. Tijo hugged him back, not saying anything for a moment.

"I'm sorry too, kid. You are too young for this kind of thing. I know you couldn't have done anything to save him. It's not your fault, so please, don't beat yourself up over not being able to save Mikau." He gave one last, gentle squeeze, and let go, looking down at the small Hylian. "Well," Tijo said in a forced cheerfulness, "You can't go walking around as Mikau if you don't know what he does, right? I can help you with that. Ask me anything about him, anything at all, and I'm sure that I can tell you. I am- was, his best friend." Link nodded in agreement. If he wanted to progress, he would need to get a lot better at playing his role, figuratively putting on a mask to not only change his appearance but also his personality. And so they began, began to make the mask, the shell, for Link to become like Mikau.