Link walked to an empty corner of the fighters' waiting area after checking to see who his next fight was with and seeing that his opponent hadn't been decided yet. Navi took a seat on his shoulder as he found a chair to relax on, kicking her tiny feet. "How long have you been back Hyrule, Link?" The fairy asked curiously.
"Little under a week." Her partner said as he leaned back against one of the wooden walls, listening to the cheers of the crowds as the fights continued.
"What did Saria say when you told her you were back?" She asked. "She's been worried about her best friend. She always asks for news when I go see her each month."
"...Haven't talked to her yet." Link admitted slowly, making the tiny woman gasp.
"Link! You should have reached out to her as soon as you arrived in Hyrule!" Navi admonished, flying in front of his face in order to wag her finger at him. "You do so right now, mister!"
Link hesitated briefly before nodding, feeling guilty for not contacting his best friend as soon as he could. He pulled the Ocarina of Time out of his magical storage space and brought it to his lips, pausing briefly before closing his eyes and beginning to play Saria's Song, not noticing the other contestants turn at the sudden music.
It took several long seconds, but eventually he felt the connection he hadn't felt in years reemerge. "Link? Is that you?" Saria's voice came directly into his mind, sounding cautiously hopeful.
"Hello Saria." He replied, his fingers going through the familiar motions of the song without any actual conscious thought.
He heard a small sob of happiness in his mind. "You're back! I'm so happy. I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about me."
"Never going to happen." He replied firmly.
"When are you coming back to the forest?" She asked eagerly. "And where are you, anyway?"
"At the tournament. I'll visit when it's over."
"I'll hold you to that." She said happily. Then her voice turned wistful. "I wish I could have gone to see the tournament. Navi told me about what it would be like. I'd like to see you win."
"I'll tell you how it goes." He assured her. He was about to continue when the ocarina was suddenly knocked out of his hand. Link opened his eyes, blinking, finding a man in plate armor standing in front of him, pulling his hand back from the swing at the priceless artifact.
His assailant was decently handsome, with dark hair and eyes. His looks were marred by the sneer on his face and the condescending look he gave the younger man. "Stop distracting those of us that are here to win the tournament, boy." He said, the last word full of disdain. "You lowborn louts shouldn't even be in such a prestigious tournament, so the least you could do is remember your station and stay out of sight of your betters." He turned around to move away, a small posse sneering and sniggering just as much as their leader. "Now take your vermin and leave us be." With that he walked away.
"Vermin!?" Navi snarled, sounding like she was ready to inflict grievous bodily harm to the arrogant bastard. "When I'm through with him he'll wish he'd never left his mother's skirts!"
Link picked up the ocarina, inspecting it for damage even though he knew from experience that there wouldn't be any. "Leave it." He told her.
"You're not just going to let him get away with this?" The fairy asked incredulously.
Link shrugged. "No point getting worked up. I'll beat him if I face him."
Navi huffed. "Fine, but if you get the chance, you better grind that overinflated ego into the dust."
Link shook his head with a smile, having almost forgotten how vindictive his partner could be. He could have sworn that fairies were supposed to be good influences on their partners.
Sitting back down he brought the ocarina back to his lips, Saria's Song flowing out once again as he waited for something to happen.
"So, you figure out what happened?" Nabooru asked Zelda once they'd returned from the lunch break between rounds. All the sages but Ruto were back in their seats as the crowd gathered, the zora princess soaking in the stands Zelda'd had constructed specifically for the Zora audience, which were seats in what was essentially a large tub of water, so that the zora's could stay hydrated. The hylian princess had admonished herself for forgetting that her friend would need something similar.
Ruto had endured it with commendable grace, but it became obvious as the morning went on that she was having a bit of trouble, drinking water almost constantly and slightly flushed from the light heat of the day. As soon as the break was announced she dove into the zora stands on the pretense of talking to her people, though the real reason was obvious. None of the sages made an issue of it, and Nohansen was smart enough to do the same.
Focusing back on the present Zelda nodded to the older woman. "Yes. It seems like shortly before the tournament began someone claiming to be a messenger from me delivered an updated list of allowed spells for the organizers to distribute. That list included the spell Isali used on Link. I've studied the new list and found several dangerous spells I specifically wanted banned on it." She shook her head. "I should have double checked the spell list I was given when it was brought to me at the beginning of the tournament. As it is I've instructed the organizers on which spells are once again banned, and that this list stands unless I say otherwise in person."
Nabooru nodded, arms crossed, gaze serious. "Someone wanted to undermine the tournament by engineering a possible death on the field despite the stated rules. The question is why."
Zelda pinched the bridge of her nose. "I don't know, but I'm going to be vigilant going forward. There's no telling what the endgame is of whoever did this." She turned when Ruto approached, her skin beaded with water and a relaxed smile on her face. "Feeling better?"
Ruto nodded as she picked up a goblet of water. "Much."
"I am sorry for forgetting to take your needs into account like that, Ruto. I thought I'd managed to plan for every eventuality, but I guess it's true that there will always be some detail that slips passed your gaze." Zelda said contritely.
The zora waved the apology away. "It's alright, Zelda. Take it as a learning experience." She sat down on her seat. "When will the next round start?"
The King was the one to respond as the conversation he was having with Darunia ended. "From the look of the crowd I would say any time now, am I right dear?" He asked his daughter, who nodded.
The tournament did indeed resume shortly afterwards, the fights proceeding apace. As this was the third round the combat got longer and more ferocious, the remaining contestants being some of the best there was to see now that the weaker and less skilled competitors had been weeded out. All the while the sages waited eagerly for their friend's next bout.
It took a few hours, but when Navi came flying over to them they knew it was time for what they most wanted to see. Each of them, even the King, became more attentive as the combatants of the latest fight left the arena, one needing assistance from the healers.
"Link of the Kokiri will now fight Tila of the Zora!" The announcer called as the combatants entered the field.
Tila was an attractive zora female that appeared to be a few years older than Ruto. Around her waist she had a woven cord with several pouches hanging from it. Beyond that the only thing of real note was what looked like a wooden flute to most of the audience in her hand.
Of course, after having seen the woman fight a couple of times before, the sages knew what it actually was. Not that they would warn Link even if they could. They were all well aware he wouldn't thank them for it.
When the match began Tila immediately brought the flute to her lips after sliding a loose slip of wood in place to cover the holes. Then she blew while aiming the open end of it at Link, revealing it to double as a dart gun.
Link quickly and easily dodged the dart even though it would likely do little to him unless it hit his face thanks to his armor. He knew better than to take a hit he didn't need to.
His distraction with the dart was exactly what Tila wanted, however, as she used the time given to turn and sprint for the pond that was along the wall, being smart and zigzagging slightly to keep any retaliatory shots from landing.
"She's doing it again…" Darunia rumbled as he leaned back in his seat. "I wonder how my brother is going to deal with this."
"She has won her matches handily once she reached the pond." Nohansen agreed. "Sir Link's best chance would be to stop that from happening, but he doesn't know enough of her capabilities to be aware of that."
Link had indeed followed Tila, sheathing his sword and shield as some bolas appeared in his hands, peaking Zelda and Impa's interest. He threw the bolas at the zora's legs with ease when she was a few yards away from the water, making her go down with a cry, falling onto the grass at the edge of the small strip of sand that encircled the pond.
Link knew better than to think the fight was over, instead unsheathing his sword again as he approached. Unfortunately he didn't move fast enough and Tila moved the strip of wood on her blowgun to turn it back into a flute, bringing it up to her lips and playing a quick, slightly frantic series of notes.
Link was forced to stop and dodge to the side as a tentacle of water shot out of the pond and whipped down to attack him, another tentacle scooping Tila up and depositing the zora in the water, which let her sink underneath to disentangle to rope around her legs without fear of retaliation.
Link moved back slightly, eyes wary and shield up as he kept an eye out for any more attacks while trying to figure out what his best course of action would be. Quickly switching his sword for his bow he stood at the ready, waiting for his opponent to poke her head out of the water.
It took several minutes during which the crowd began to murmur to each other, but eventually Tila did just that, her flute already at her lips. Link immediately loosed an arrow, but it was intercepted by another tendril of water which batted it away as the zora played a quick, playful tune. Soon enough multiple water tentacles had risen from the pond and began to swing at Link, doing their best to plaster him all over the ground as he began dodging.
"This is the part where she got the other two." Ruto said with a small, prideful smile. "Tila is one of our best water mages after all."
"Indeed." Nohansen said thoughtfully. "Her first opponent got flattened and had to be carried out on a stretcher, the second yielded when he found he was unable to reach her without suffering the same fate." The king stroked his beard thoughtfully. "I wonder what Sir Link will be able to do about it…"
Link moved back out of range of the tentacles and eyed them critically with a furrowed brow. Stowing his bow he stood for a moment in thought, empty handed, Tila playing a slow tune, ready to react to any attack.
Finally coming to a decision Link moved his hands slightly, what seemed to be a mask appearing in his hands. Most there had trouble making it out, but a few, including Impa and Zelda, could see that it was a mask of a Zora's face.
"Huh?" Navi asked, confused as she saw her partner bring the mask up to his face. "What's that going to-" She was cut off when, as soon as he put the mask on, Link bent over in apparent pain, clutching his stomach. He let out a choked sound that the suddenly silent stadium could hear before he straightened up, throwing his head back as a cry of pain escaped him and a bright light emanated from the mask, blinding those looking at him.
Zelda shielded her eyes and turned her head, blinking furiously as she tried to regain her sight. Her head whipped back around as people began to gasp, none less so than her fellow sages. What she saw made her jaw drop.
Where Link once stood was a lithe yet strong looking zora male. Unlike most zoras he wore some clothing, including leather boots and elbow length gloves. What seemed to be a green skirt hung from his waist, which the princess realized looked like the lower part of Link's tunic. His back head fin was different as well, changing from the normal zora blue to a green color like Link's hat the further it went. His large eyes were just as blue as Link's own.
"Holy crap." Nabooru said in awe.
"Link!?" Navi exclaimed, shocked at the newest impossible thing her partner had done.
Zelda turned her gaze to Ruto to see how she was taking this development. The zora princess's eyes were wide, and a deep blush stained her cheeks. She appeared to be dazed, and her breathing was slightly laboured.
It didn't take a genius to see what Ruto's thoughts were.
The zora sage licked her lips before she addressed Navi. "You better remind your partner of his promise to me…"
Navi gulped. "R-right…"
The crowd was beginning to cheer the unexpected occurrence as they got over their shock while Tila quickly got over her own surprise, though a blush still colored her cheeks. The watery limbs began moving again after having frozen without input from their mistress.
The zora that Link had become cracked his neck before he suddenly began running straight towards the pond with surprising speed. When one of the watery tendrils moved to smash him a pair of large fins appeared on his forearms and he dove forward, slashing through it before continuing to run forward. As another limb swept in from the side he leapt over it acrobatically, tucking into a roll as he landed before hopping back to his feet without any apparent trouble.
Tila started getting worried and consolidated multiple tendrils into a single limb, larger around than Link was tall, which once again moved to smash him, not only not reduced in speed but somehow faster than its smaller variants.
The crowd made sounds of alarm as Link leapt directly at the tendril, positioned as though diving into a body of water. Shortly before he impacted with the tentacle his body lit up with a bio-electric aura that made pretty much every zora in attendance gasp in shock, which allowed him to sink into the water whip.
Everyone watched in awe as Link proceeded to swim along the inside of the tendril, heading straight for the pond it was emanating from. Even Tila made the mistake of letting her surprise get the best of her, keeping her from reacting in time to stop him, and before she realized it he'd reached her.
She only had a moment to gasp in shock before Link slammed a fist into her stomach under the water, his opponent losing control of her spell as her breath left her. The water tendrils splashed down, no longer held aloft.
Link wasn't done, however, and he quickly dragged her to the edge of the water before throwing her out onto dry land with surprising strength while she was still trying to get her bearings. Then he leapt out after her, lengthened his fin blades, and placed them on either side of her neck, pinning her to the ground. "Yield." He said calmly, gazing down at her with an intensity that made Tila blush despite her position.
"I-I yield." She choked out, still a bit short of breath. Link immediately pulled away from her, his fin blades practically disappearing as the medics rushed out onto the field and the crowd began to cheer his victory.
Letting out a sigh Link reached up for his face, a light once again enveloping him before leaving his normal hylian self in its place, mask in hand. He looked around at the roaring crowd, a small smile on his face, before he headed back to the fighters' waiting area.
"That boy has a lot of explaining to do." Navi growled before she took off after her partner.
"Indeed he does." Zelda murmured.
Nabooru poked Ruto's side playfully. "Doing alright, princess? Done swooning?"
Ruto's blush deepened again after having begun to fade. "I-I w-was not swooning." The zora growled ineffectually, practically unheard over Nabooru's cackling.
Zelda shook her head at her friends' antics before turning to the king. "What did you think, father?"
"I think you were spot on when you said Sir Link hadn't even begun to surprise us." The ruler of Hyrule said with a smile. "I'd never heard of magic that turned you into another of Hyrule's races before. It makes me more and more curious as to what other capabilities he has."
Darunia rumbled a laugh. "Yes, little brother has always been surprising. Still, if he can turn into a zora, I wonder if he can also turn into a goron…" He said thoughtfully.
"Now that would indeed be a sight to see." Nohansen said with a nod and a chuckle as the next fight was announced. "Maybe we'll find out as the tournament goes forward."
The sages all settled down to watch the rest of the fights even as their minds stayed thinking about their friend and what else he might be capable of.
Yay, I finished in time!
This story was the inner over on my Pat A Ron poll, so I've been working to get it done in time. Sadly I haven't had as much time to write as I'd like, so I did almost all of this in the space of the last 4 hours.
This is slightly shorter than my usual, but that's because it was primarily focused on the fight with a bit of setup for the future. I hope to go back to my usual length going forward.
What did everyone think of the fight? I hope it was entertaining.
I actually debated long and hard on whether to make Tila mle or female. I don't want to make all the spellcasters Link fights women, but it kinda felt right for this fight, you know?
I think that's all there is to say at the moment. As always, don't forget that you get a say in what I write when you donate to my Pat A Ron and vote in the monthly poll. No Good Deed is back on this month's poll, so if you want to see what happens next, feel free to throw it a few bucks. That's at Pat A Ron dotcom /athanmortis.
Till next time!