A Link to the Past
Chapter Twenty Seven: Mothula
No matter how hard he struggled against his mummified captors, there was just no way for Link to free himself while he and Maple were carried deeper into the dark forest, the mummies remaining silent expect for groaning and the clattering of bones under wraps. The red monster was struggling, too, although with no more success, and even when the young man managed to move enough to see the ground, all there was to see was more random items like the keys found earlier, such as a random boot, a rusted shovel, and other such things. He tried talking to them, but there was no response no matter what was said, not who they were or where the two captives were being taken, nothing.
Eventually, the ever thickening, darkening canopy of trees opened up to reveal a clearing that was similar to the one where that tree creature had spoken to Link, although much smaller. Even though the permanent sunset lighting of the Dark World was dim compared to even a cloud covered day in Hyrule, it took a second for the young man to get used to it after being in darkness so long both there and in the dungeon, but now this whole region was a lot less deserted. There were other people there, both guards and prisoners from the dungeon, all tied to the few trees that dotted the interior of the grove, and far more possessions scattered around as if this were some kind of refuse pile or junkyard.
Clothing, personal belongings, money, there was a ton of it all scattered around, and with three or four captives tied to each tree, it was obvious what was about to happen to him and Maple. Still not responding to either of their words or struggles, aside from tightening their boney grip for restraining, the mummies just calmly went on their way of lowering the prisoners, before dragging them over to a tree with some open spots, and securing them with arms down at their sides just like the others. The other captives were struggling and trying to talk to the strange creatures, themselves, but having no more success, and once everyone was tied up the mummies simply sunk down into the ground as quickly as they appeared.
"Hey, what's going on here?" Link asked the alligator guard next to him. "What is this place? Why did those things bring us here?"
"Shut up and keep struggling!" The guard replied urgently, pulling at his own ropes. "We gotta get out of here before it comes back!"
That was all that could be gotten out of the guard, who was clearly frightened of something, so explanations would have to wait until they had gotten free. All around the grove the other captives were doing the same thing, crying out in exertion while pulling on the ropes, trying to rub them against the tree's bark, anything they could in order to get free before whatever had gone on there before the young man and Maple were brought in, and with as franticly as everyone, guards and former prisoners alike, were trying to get free, it was becoming obvious that whatever it was, it was not something that the two of them wanted to be involved in. However, these ropes were thicker and stronger than they looked, and…
"Silence!" A voice called from… above? "Silence falls amongst the crowd… suspense and anticipation akin to torture… the artist, they cry… bring us the artist… bring us… Mothula!"
Now a new sound like the flapping of wings as a shadow moved overhead, and when it finally came into view, Link had to admit that the spectacle he was witnessing was actually really beautiful. It was some kind of moth or butterfly twice the size of a man, colored in sections of green, yellow, and purple with some kind of sparkling powder or pollen falling from its abdomen, the flakes shimmering in several different colors as they reflected the dim sunlight. The other captives didn't seem so taken with this display, however, in fact now they were all starting to panic even more, crying out in fear as they struggled against the ropes even more, some even begging to be let go, promising to do anything that this creature wanted just to spare them.
"Applause… the thunderous applause of an adoring crowd!" Mothula declared, spinning around as it hovered above the grove. "The artist is appreciated… the artist is loved… more, the crowd cries out… we need more of your art, Mothula! And the artist delivers!"
Moving forward with a heavy flap of its wings, the flying creature began to circle around the nearest tree, just below the dark canopy of leaves so that its pollen could fall directly onto the four captives. The display was again beautiful, each captive's body shimmering as they were covered by the multicolored flakes, and then their movements slowed down, their voices softening as if becoming calm… but this beauty was not to last. Suddenly all of the captives began to cry out, groaning as if in great pain, and then their skin started to… to… move? No, their skin wasn't moving, it was slowly sliding down until it just completely fell off along with all the muscle and blood underneath in one solid chunk, leaving only a white skeleton that seemed to be forming some kinds of growths… growths that looked like old bandages.
Maple let out a roaring scream of fright when she saw this, and as soon as the transformation was complete, the mummies had no trouble freeing themselves from the weakened ropes. Groaning and clattering like the others as they moved away from the tree, each one slowly removed their clothes and personal items, all of it joining the pile while their former owners slowly walked forward before sinking into the ground as monsters undistinguishable from the other mummies that had captured them in the dark forest. But then Link momentarily forgot about these horrors when the flying creature brought one of its hind legs up toward its own face, opening up to reveal what it was holding a familiar looking object.
"Did you see it, my darling dearest?" Mothula asked happily into the diamond shaped crystal. "Oh, crystalline lady of my heart… everything the artist creates, he creates for you… you, the only creature in this dreary place who's beauty compares to my own."
"Maple, that thing has the next crystal." Link said, trying not to be overheard. "We have to get free, and find a way to get it back."
However, the red creature wasn't listening, instead continuing to panic with the rest of the captives, and even worse so when Mothula flew around the next tree. Repeating the process of the first one, soon there were four more mummies that sank into the ground after shedding their skin and former belongings while the flying creature continued to confess its love and dedication to its crystalline love. Whether or not this one was Princess Zelda, the whole experience of being in Mothula's clutches must've been horrible for the trapped girl, having to watch as all these people were turned into mummies, and all while being the object of the artist's affection.
"Don't let it get me, Link!" Maple roared louder than any other screams. "Don't let it turn me into one of those things!"
The young man tried to calm her down, but it was too late as the flying creature's attention was instantly turned away from the tree where it was heading, and it was now looking right at them. The red creature was in a full panic like the others now, crying and begging him to save her as she pulled at the ropes, but none of their struggles were doing anything against it, and now… and now Mothula was hovering right above them only a short distance away. Instead of speaking to them, it spoke only to the girl in the crystal, its tone getting angry as it accused Maple of upsetting its crystalline love. Link tried to distract it away from her, for all the good it would do since the monster could convert all of them into mummies at the same time, and the pollen was falling so close that it looked like it was irritating the red monster's nose.
"Amateurs, fools, and charlatans!" Mothula declared as Maple's nose got more irritated. "My darling dearest will not suffer this insult… the artist dazzles, the artist delights… but the critics persist! Watch, my diamond darling… watch as the artist creates… watch as the artist silences those who would…
While yelling these things in an angrier and angrier tone, the flying creature slowly approached with the pollen coming closer until its words were interrupted by Maple sneezing. However, along with this long pulled back and drawn out sneeze came a long stream of fire from her mouth, fire that illuminated the landscape with brilliant yellow light as it went right toward Mothula. The flying creature screamed in surprise and fright as the stream caught its right wing, burning up the pollen in the air and quickly grounding Mothula as well as igniting some of the brown grass around them. Once the shock of this wore off, Link started to believe that there was hope of escape after all, but then the red monster sneezed again… and again… and again.
Maple was in the middle of a full blown sneezing fit of allergies, and with each one came another stream of fire that burned everything it touched, and she just wasn't stopping. Again and again the red monster let loose, each one catching more of the brownish green plants on fire, and soon most of the grove was burning. One nice thing was that the fourth or fifth sneeze had caught Mothula right in the center of the thorax as it was getting up, and the dozens of mummies that the burning flying creature was trying to summon were catching on fire only moments after breaking the surface. However, the mummies also managed to walk several steps before collapsing, including onto the captive next to Link, catching both the alligator and the tree on fire.
Smoke was filling the burning grove, and the young man could see the shadows of captives running away once the ropes were burned enough for them to escape, his own included, but what was to be done about Maple? She had finally stopped sneezing, only to fall forward and collapse onto the ground once the ropes burned, but the flames were getting closer, and… and how was he supposed to get out of there with the crystal and the red monster before they were all burned alive? There was no choice but to run through the fire to where Mothula fell, the young man taking off his hat and using it to pick up the visibly heated crystal. Shoving the whole thing into his pocket, Link stumbled back to Maple while holding his arm up in front of his face because of the heat, and now… and now he had to what… carry her?
Regardless of what the red monster might have looked like back in Hyrule, her body was actually a little bigger than him, but thankfully the glove's strength, which had bene unable to break those ropes, allowed him to put her over his shoulder. But the flames were spreading, the smoke blinding him as he stumbled forward, desperate to find a way out of the burning grove.