Link's Awakening

Chapter Four: Shipwreck

I was filled with hope that Agahnim was still alive as I left Mabe Village, following the directions to the beach where the young woman had found me… but my thoughts were also filled with images of Marin, herself. She was so beautiful, and kind, not to mention the fact that she had saved my life when I washed up onto the island like a drowned rat. Girls like her didn't show up every day, and I remember deciding that I was going to get to know her better once I knew that my best friend was safe… but as I soon learned, every inch of Koholint Island was filled with surprises.

Going past the stone building that was the library, and then following the path south just like Marin said, Link started to find white sand along the ground as the forest thinned out. Seagulls could be heard now, and a strong breeze was blowing through the palm trees, while… while there was nothing beyond the shoreline but water… endless water in all directions. This was normal, since usually any islands in the ocean were too far apart to be seen with the naked eye anyway, but something about the way the water stretched out across the horizon made it seem… I don't know, more final, maybe?

Anyway, the young woman had told him to turn right as soon as the path ended, and then to start walking along the shore until he found the wreckage, which according to her, he couldn't miss. Seashells and small rocks littered the ground, with the occasional scurrying crab running past the young man's feet, but with as active as the people inside the village had been, Link was surprised to find the beach deserted. Well, it was pretty late in the day, sometimes in the afternoon by the sun's position in the sky, so maybe everyone was doing things like how Marin was gathering mushrooms for… huh… he had completely forgotten to ask her why she was getting them in the first place.

Was that how she and her father made money? Did they cook up mushrooms and other things and sell them at a stall like the ones found at the bazaar in Port Hylia? The young man's stomach grumbled, making him realize that he hadn't eaten anything since the boat had been destroyed, so some friend mushrooms were sounding pretty good right about now. Link really hoped it was true, since in addition to all the things he liked so far about the young woman, her being able to cook would have been a huge bonus… if she ended up liking him at all.

From hearing the story about the curse that caused his parents to meet, the young man knew to be careful about assuming how others felt about him, especially when it came to women, since his father had made that mistake with the original Princess Zelda. He had assumed that because he was the great hero who was rescuing her, that the Princess would just fall into his arms, but this turned out to not be the case. While Zelda hadn't completely ripped the heart from his chest, she had explained to Link Senior that she just didn't share those feelings.

Honestly, that must have been crushing to his old man, but then again the young man wouldn't be here today if the story ended differently. Besides, his mother was way better than the Princess, anyway… I mean, she could do magic that was even better than what Agahnim's father could do… even though this power didn't seem to get passed on to him. It would've been nice to be able to create shields, or toss fire from his hands, or even do that vanishing thing like his best friend could, but… yeah… it just wasn't there.

"Agahnim!" Link called, putting his hands around his mouth. "Agahnim, where are you?!"

It was the sight of a piece of the ship's hull that prompted him to start calling out for the wizard; a piece of completely broken, yet new looking wood that was sticking out of the sand near the water, but the waves had erased any footprints, if there had even been any in the sand, so the young man had no choice but to keep going. More and more pieces of the boat were discovered as he continued along the beach, finding parts of the mast and even some of the tattered sails… hey, maybe there was enough material there to build a smaller boat and leave the island after everything was said and done.

Or maybe a new boat could be acquired from someone on the island, since Marin said they at least had rafts, and… wait a second, maybe he would be forced to get a new boat, since a lot of the wood from the wreckage was starting to not look so good. Most of the wreckage he found was in really good shape, just blasted apart by lightning and waves, but some of the wood looked like it was rotten and starting to fall apart. Sun-bleached from what looked like a long time on the beach with no cover, a lot of the wood had turned white, as if… no, it couldn't be the same ship, this stuff looked like it had been there for years.

Marin had mentioned that another castaway had been seen on the island a really long time ago, so maybe it was his boat. Sure would be nice to find that person, if he was even still on the island, but it was starting to look like Link was going to have plenty of time to find out. Even if the village library didn't have any nautical maps, he was sure that one of the island itself could be found, so he was going to learn the layout of the place, and then perhaps Marin would be willing to be a guide for him… if nothing else, it was an excuse to spend some more time with her.

There was more wood now, a lot more as if it was the majority of a boat that was sticking out of the sand in pieces, but it was all white and rotten, with just a few pieces of the newer stuff mixed in. One thing among the wreckage did catch his attention, though, and that was because it reflected the sunlight in his eyes as if it were a piece of metal. Walking toward it, and then having to kneel down in order to dig the object out of the wet sand, the young man was surprised to find that it was a small shield like the kind that the town guards of Hyrule wore on their forearm. But then on further inspection, he discovered that after wiping more of the sand off, that this wasn't just any shield… it was his.

The word Link was carved onto the inside of the metal, again something his mother had insisted upon, but it felt good to lock the shield back onto his arm, since it was like reclaiming something that had been lost. It would've been nice to find his sword lying around somewhere as well, but that felt a little bit like pressing his luck, and there was still no sign of Agahnim. Calling out for his friend once again, the young man got up and just kept walking along the shore, but then stopping after a few minutes when something reached his ear.

Besides the sound of the wind and waves, mixed in with the constant cawing of the seagulls, there was music. It was the same tune that he had heard after the lightning strike during the storm, and now there it was again, sounding like it was far away, but definitely coming from somewhere up ahead. Music like that had to be played by someone, and maybe that person knew what happened to Agahnim, or at least saw something, so Link walked faster… but instead of finding someone playing music on the beach, the only thing in front of him was a cave.

Carved into a large rock formation that was just jutting out of the ground, the entrance to the cave was dark and foreboding, but that music was a little clearer now, and coming from inside… at least, it was until it faded away moments later. Now, everything was quiet again, aside from the waves and such, but as the young man looked around, he noticed that he wasn't alone there. No, his new companion wasn't Agahnim, or even a person at all, it was an owl… a pretty big one that was just glaring at him, almost… judgmentally as it sat perched on top of some kind of small pole that was sticking out of the sand.

"Well, hey there, little guy." Link said as he slowly approached the animal. "I don't suppose you know where…

The owl hissed and bit at him when he reached out to pet it, interrupting the young man's words when he was forced to quickly pull his hand back, and then the animal just glared at him again, narrowing its eyes. For a little while he and the owl just stood there, staring at each other, but then Link became distracted when he heard that music again, just for a few seconds. Again, it was distant and difficult to make out against the other sounds around him, but it was definitely coming from inside the cave… there was no doubt about it.

"All right, I'll tell you what." Link said, looking back at the owl. "I'll go and check out the dark, scary cave, and you… you just stay up here."

Hoot! As if it was able to understand the words, the animal let out its call while still glaring at him, and the young man just rolled his eyes while turning toward the entrance to the cave. His feet sank a little into the wet sand, since he had to go out a little closer to the water in order to get around the edge of the cave wall, but once inside he was relieved that some of the sunlight was able to get in. Once Link's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he was able to see the rocky outline of a tunnel that sloped slightly downward.

Progressing farther toward the back of the cave, and wondering what the hell he was doing this for, the young man cursed loudly when his foot struck one of the larger rocks, as he was unable to see it because of the diminishing light levels. Brilliant, Link, he said to himself, just brilliant walking into a dark cave without a lantern, or a candle, or anything. But then he rounded a corner and suddenly there was more light… coming just in time to stop him from taking another step, which would have sent the young man tumbling down… a set of carved stairs?

There were little holes punched through the rock that made up the cave's ceiling at regular intervals, allowing just enough light in for Link to see the features of the cave, specifically how the rocky walls became smooth as if purposefully carved out, descending downward sharply along a set of expertly shaped stairs that ended at a heavy looking wooden door. Carefully moving down the stairs, the young man examined the door before trying to open it, and discovered that while it had been securely locked at one time, the lock itself had been destroyed a long time ago, lying in pieces on the smooth ground nearby.

Had someone already been here? Quietly taking hold of the latch and turning it, the door swung open easily, allowing the young man free access to the place hidden by the cave on the beach.