This is another chapter devoted less to dungeon crawling and more to world building, like Chapters 5 and 8. I hope you guys don't mind if I'm not getting straight to the Ice Cavern, but writing dungeon crawling chapters not only takes forever to do, but it's really draining on my mental faculties.
RRRP:
ChangelingRin (FF): Thank you! Also, don't you worry. I think I've done a pretty good job of walking the line between Link's character development that we saw last chapter and also the brutal ramifications of losing an eye. That being said, you only lose about 25% of your vision when you lose an eye, because part of your eyes' cones of sight overlap.
Guest (FF): Honestly, that's kind of what I'm going for. My goal is something that's definitely darker than the vanilla OOT experience, with more threat, danger, and stakes. I did a lot to do that, mostly in subtle ways, but sometimes you just have to give the dead horse more bruises.
Don't take that out of context.
To answer your second question, yes, I am okay. And I don't hate OOT Link, either. But I'm not afraid of treating my characters like tools, a means to an end. If I didn't, I wouldn't be able to bring myself to do a lot of the things that must be done to make a good story.
Chapter XII: Respite
The boulders disintegrated into a pile of rubble, revealing a small cave that eventually led to a Great Fairy Fountain. Link stowed the Megaton Hammer back in his pouch and walked through, after Ivan had gone in and dispelled the greater fay's fears. It took longer than usual. Before playing Zelda's Lullaby, though, he leaned over the stone walkway to quench some of his thirst.
Then he froze, staring blankly at the face looking back at him.
The face staring from the water looked like it had been dragged through the dirt before being immolated with unholy flames. His blonde hair was streaked with grime and dust, and even singed in some places. A collection of ratty, half-burnt bandages were wound around his head, slightly brown with all the dirt and sweat that had accumulated there. An abundance of… were those little sprouts of hair growing along his jawline? Why would it grow there? It made it all scratchy and it served no purpose. He had asked Navi about it, all that time ago, along with a host of other embarrassing questions. She'd never answered.
"Ivan? I have a question," the Hylian eventually said.
"What's the question?" the fairy replied.
"What made me turn from a child into… well, this?" Link asked, gesticulating towards his stubble. "I mean, I get that seven years have passed since I was a kid, but… why do I feel so restless, even after finishing the Fire Temple? Why does my voice sometimes randomly change its pitch? Why do I keep-" He stopped, cheeks flushed in embarrassment.
"You never asked… her… about it?" Ivan responded.
"You can use Navi's name, Ivan. I don't think I mind anymore. And whenever I did ask her, she'd change the subject."
"Ah," he said solemnly. "Ivan will give you the fast version. Basically, your body is at an age where it is maturing into a fully-fledged adult. So many of the changes in your body are completely natural. For example, all men grow facial hair like that, but most of them decide to cut it. Some of them don't, like that fellow who ran the Bazaar back in Hyrule Castle Town.
"These changes also pertain to the mind. You've been thinking a lot about girls, haven't you?" Ivan continued, completely serious.
Link blushed even deeper. "I mean, a little, but…"
"That's part of the process too. Leetle man will be fine, as long as you don't do anything stupid. Ivan trusts you."
Clearing his mind and taking a deep breath, Link drew the Master Sword and brought it to his face, carefully cutting the stray hairs along his jawline. He felt bad using the Master Sword to shave, as to some extent he felt like it was alive, but it was either that or look like a half-starved beast that had just dug itself out of the grave.
Once his job was complete, Link wasted no time in procuring the Ocarina of Time and playing Zelda's Lullaby. With a squeal of laughter, the Great Fairy emerged from the fountain, sitting back in midair and propping her head up with the heel of her hand. She stared at Link, daintily.
"Welcome, Link! I am the Great Fairy of Wisdom!" she boomed, flitting her eyelashes suggestively. "I will grant you an enhancement for your magic power. Receive it now!"
She spread her arms, as magical energy spewed forth from her bosom. Link closed his eye in an effort to not let it wander, and instead opted to feel the magical energy within him swell, eventually settling at a size twice as great as it had been before.
"Now you have twice as much magic power," the Great Fairy said. "When battle has made you weary, please come and see me again, will you?"
"You're not even going to- okay," Link sputtered, gesturing towards the bandages wrapped around his face. "Whatever. Ivan said it couldn't be fixed, anyway."
"What couldn't be fixed?"
"There was an Iron Knuckle in the Fire Temple and it kind of cut my eye open," Link explained bluntly, removing his hat and unwrapping the bandages covering his left eye.
The Great Fairy of Wisdom hovered a bit closer, to the point where Link could feel her hot breath on his skin. "I assume it had a glowing axe?"
"How'd you-"
"Your eye socket is covered with magical residue," she explained flippantly. "I can do a little, but not much. The lens in your eye looks to have been completely shattered, and then all the fluid inside came out. I can give your eye its shape back, but unfortunately, because of the circumstances, I won't be able to restore it to its original state. You'll just have to make do."
Without further talk, the fairy spread her arms once again, as even more magical energy emanated into Link. He felt his eye revert back to its normal size as his bandages re-appeared on his face. Eagerly, he peeled them off, only to find that his left eye was somehow even more confusing than before. Everything was completely out of focus and extremely blurry, but he at least didn't have a true blind spot on his left.
Then again, it wasn't like this was any better. Not only was his entire left side blurry and out of focus, but even the part straight ahead was incredibly difficult to discern. Link figured that he'd be better off keeping the bandages on.
"Thank you," Link said somberly. "I'll be going now."
"Fare you well, Hylia's Chosen," the fay said before retreating into her fountain. The room was dark again.
Ivan appeared in the corner of Link's vision, on the right. He stared at Link's left eye for a few seconds. "Do you want Ivan to tell you what it looks like?"
"Sure," Link relented.
"It's still blue, but a paler blue than before," the sprite described. "The pupil is the same shade as your iris, and if you squint, you can see a little scratch on the big part. At a distance, nobody would notice."
Nobody noticed anything about Link, especially his pain. Why would this be any different?
!0*0!
"That broken knife is surely my worrrrrrrk…" Biggoron whined, squinting at the hilt Link had liberated from Anjou's father. "I really want to repairrrrrr it, but… because of the errrrrrruption ten minutes ago, my eyes are all irrrrrrritated…"
"Sorry about that," Link whispered.
"There are fine eyedrops in Zora's Domain… You will find them if you go to Kinnnnnng Zorrrrrrra… Please go get the eyedrrrrrrrops…"
"Fine," the Hylian grumbled.
The Goron stopped pawing at his sore eyes and handed Link a tiny piece of paper. It looked like a prescription for eye drops. Link was about to turn to go when he realized something important.
"Oh, and Biggoron? When you fix this knife, could you make it hollow with an interior lattice network of steel? I have a medical condition that prevents me from lifting things that are too big, and the knife is just a hair above my limit."
"I will see what I can do, friennnnnnnnnnd," the large Goron replied tiredly. "But it may cosssssst you… Now go get the eyedrrrrrops already…"
Link nodded, not realizing that the grand Goron couldn't see him due to his sore eyes, and started the long trek down to Kakariko Village. There was a cool wind that day, but not one cold enough to make him shiver. It was just as well; he was going to Zora's Domain next.
And it was freezing there. Completely frozen over, if his memory served him correctly. Which it probably did.
"You know, you took longer in there than you usually do," Link noted, referring to Ivan's time spent convincing the Great Fairy to let him into her Fountain. "What was that about?"
"Great Fairy gave Ivan boon as well, if you must know," the fairy responded, sounding particularly smug. "Ivan's Mind Hacking has been upgraded so that Ivan can Mind Hack more efficiently. It still has that time limit and recharge, but Ivan now has more control over his host, and can Mind Hack stronger enemies, assuming they have no mental wards. Got it?"
"That's really cool! Congratulations!" Link lauded, feeding Ivan's ego as they approached Kakariko proper. The tektikes were still there, but the bokoblin population was nowhere to be seen. The Hero of Time wasn't complaining; after fighting Ganon, he was a bit wary of pigs in general.
!0*0!
New Lon Ranch was enjoying its first sunny day in more than six years. The smog from the constantly erupting Death Mountain had smothered the village for the entirety of Ganon's domain, blocking the sun's rays from reaching any of the village. Unfortunately, this only underscored the pitiful condition the ranch was in; the crops had all died long ago, the animals were thin and sickly, and everything had a fine dusting of ash coating it. Still, it was better sunny than overcast, Link decided.
Then again, maybe it was just the fact that Malon was singing. Yeah, it was probably that.
Link breathed in the fresh air, stepping into the ranch. He had somehow managed to avoid everyone else, and had snuck into the farm without anyone seeing him, even Commander Rusl. He would drop by the knights' base of operations- Impa's old home- soon enough, but first came Malon.
He unslung the Master Sword from over his right shoulder, set it down inside the barn and realized he was still wearing the Goron tunic. He decided to keep it on; he looked good in red.
He exited the barn and stole into the vast fields, following his pointed ears to the beautiful sounds the farmer was making. Several times, he found himself moving in the opposite direction of the noise on instinct; some primal part of his body still thought he was nose-deep in the Fire Temple and was skittish as a result. Eventually, he found her scattering seeds in a recently-plowed patch of land. Feeling awkward, he coughed, only to not get a response. Sighing, he procured his ocarina and started an accompaniment to the song, hoping that the blue instrument would get her attention. She whirled around and saw Link and his fairy standing there, looking back at her. She dropped the seeds she was holding and slowly walked up to the Hero of Time.
Then she punched him in the face.
Link stumbled, clutching his smarting nose. "What the hell was that for!"
Ivan took ten Rupees from Link's wallet. Great. Now he was almost broke again.
"That," Malon replied, "was for being an idiot. I know you went to the Fire Temple by yourself, because the volcano finally stopped erupting and none of the knights left their posts. You should have taken at least half of them with you to keep you safe! And what happened to your eye? Why's it all wrapped up? Did something happen to you?"
"There was an Iron Knuckle, this giant suit of armor with a big axe, in the Fire Temple…" Link replied, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck. "It hit my eye, and now everything in it is so blurry that it's easier to just keep it covered up. And to answer your implied question, taking the knights from Kakariko not only would have left the town defenseless, but it would have slowed me down and cost too many lives. You see, there was this dragon in the volcano called Volvagia that was causing all the eruptions. It could only be harmed by a massive Goron Hammer that I, quite honestly, can barely even lift. Bringing the knights wouldn't have helped. I hope you understand."
The ranch owner blinked. She said nothing for a few seconds. "Fine," she relented, stepping closer to Link. The Hero of Time, unsure of what was going on, did nothing as Malon walked up to him and pulled him into a tight embrace. Awkwardly, Link's arms reciprocated the expression, although they really just hung there. Still, though, nothing in Link didn't enjoy the contact, even if he was so used to the searing pain of being attacked by a whole host of monsters that any other physical sensation felt strange.
Echoing shouts met their ears a little bit later, and the pair hastily parted before anyone saw them. Ivan grumbled something about them ruining the ambience before darting under Link's conical hat.
"Malon! Rusl is here and he's asking for- oh! Link! Commander Rusl is asking for you! Please come with me!" Anjou said, bursting from the fields of dilapidated rye and half leading, half dragging Link away from Malon. Link internally lamented it, but said nothing.
They made their way through the farm and eventually showed up by the main entrance, where the knight's commander was waiting.
"Ah! Link! Just the man I wanted to see!" Rusl laughed, slapping Link's back roughly. "What happened to your eye?"
"There was an Iron Knuckle in the Fire Temple," Link admitted.
"So, am I right to assume that you were the one to stop the eruptions?" Rusl interjected.
"I mean… yeah, but-"
"I knew it!" Rusl said, cutting Link off. By this time, they had made it to what was once Impa's old house. Rusl pushed the Hero of Time inside, and then shut the door, locking it behind him.
"Alright, look. I get that you've done a great deed for all of us by stopping the eruptions. But as far as I'm concerned, you're still a threat," Rusl stated, dropping the facade of unadulterated friendliness. "You came out of nowhere with a sword, spouting something about said sword putting you in a coma and being locked in the Temple of Time for seven years, meaning you were locked inside at almost exactly a year before Ganondorf suddenly took over the Kingdom and almost exactly when King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule died. I don't believe in coincidence, and by proxy, I don't trust you."
"Finally," Link said exasperatedly. "Someone with a healthy sense of paranoia. I was beginning to think everyone in Kakariko was blindly trusting. Hallelujah for that, am I right?"
"See, this is what I mean!" Rusl sighed. "You send so many mixed messages, and whenever I think I've got you figured out, you say something like that and upend all of it. I'm going to have to demand an explanation, and if you could make it quick, that'd be great. I have to plan a celebration for the village regarding the end of the eruptions."
"Okay, but I'm going to have to start out from the beginning. Were you around for the Unification War?"
"I didn't serve in it, but my father did. He was present at the Battle of Khalonir and slew nearly fifty Catalian knights," Rusl supplied. "I think you can still see the ruins of Khalonir, Catalia's capital, down by Lake Hylia."
"All right. My dad was also a knight in the War," Link explained, fishing out the little medallion the Deku Tree had given him. "I never met him, as he and my mother both died shortly after I was born. To escape the fires of that war, my mother transported me into the Lost Woods, where I had to be raised as a Kokiri for reasons I'll get into later. Are you still with me?"
"Yes, but-"
"Don't worry, I'm getting there. Ten years later, the Great Deku Tree, the sovereign guardian of the forest, was cursed by Ganondorf and died. I was entrusted with warning Princess Zelda about Ganondorf, and then she sent me to collect the Spiritual Stones so that we could get the Triforce before Ganondorf could. But right before we were about to do it, Ganondorf attacks, kills King Daphnes, and forces Zelda to escape. Then he threatens to slaughter all of Hyrule if I didn't draw the Master Sword from the Temple of Time, and I had no choice but to draw it. That let Ganondorf get a third of the Triforce, but he doesn't know that I got a third of it too.
"Anyway, because I was too young to wield the Sword, it sealed me in the Sacred Realm for seven years. Now I'm trying to fix everything by awakening the Sages, which basically forces me to go through all the Temples that are oozing dark energy and cleanse them. One of them was causing all the eruptions. I assume another is poisoning all the water. Speaking of which, is there any drinking water here?"
"No," Rusl denied.
"Drat. Oh well. Anyway, there's the story. Go plan your party, but make sure there's not nothing to drink. I'm sure everyone could use it."
With that, Link unlocked the door, walked out of the house, and gently closed it behind him. He heard Rusl chuckle goodnaturedly before the wooden door eased itself shut.
"That kid's crazy," he heard Rusl's muffled voice say, "but somehow, it makes sense."
!0*0!
True to Rusl's words, there was a town-wide celebration planned for that evening. According to rumor, children weren't allowed for some reason. Link wondered why.
Some of the other knights had asked him to join the Hyrulean Knights proper. The Hero of Time had refused, citing freedom to operate as his reasoning. Being tied to Kakariko would hurt, weaken, and effectively upend his ability to fix everything for everyone. But he had been tempted by the offer nonetheless.
The Master Sword was still in the barn, fortunately. The Hylian decided to move it to the ranch house for safekeeping, to ensure that it wasn't stolen by anyone. It probably wouldn't be, but it was the Master Sword. It was better to be cautious with it.
Twenty-four years had passed. His date of birth was seventeen years ago. He had lived about eleven years. And according to Ivan, he acted about thirteen or fourteen. So which was he? Was he a teen, a child, or a young adult? Or was he something else entirely? Some phase in life he didn't have a word for?
He shoved the thoughts out of his mind, only for them to echo back in a cacophonous roar. Detachedly, he felt and heard Ivan do and say something, but the Hylian didn't process it. Instead, he sat there blankly, on the edge of a chair, contemplating his reality.
He wasn't sure how long he was there, enraptured by his own thoughts. Eventually, he was shaken from his doldrums by a gentle tap on the shoulder. He slowly swiveled in place, and saw Malon standing over him.
"Want to talk about it?" she asked.
"I'm fine, Malon," Link responded through gritted teeth. "I'm just thinking. About stuff."
"Like what? She pushed, taking a seat right next to him.
"Nothing."
"Link. I'm a farmer. I know bullshit when I see it."
He was silent. Why wasn't he talking about it? Even the abridged version of his tale he had told Rusl had felt so liberating to finally put into words. Maybe this was what he needed. Maybe it was because he had never said anything that nobody remembered in the first place.
Then he sighed. "It's about who I am. You know the story about how I was locked in the Temple of Time for seven years?"
"Sealed, you mean."
"Yeah. Because I got sealed, I never technically grew up these last seven years. It was an instantaneous change for me. That seven year gap passed in an instant. So… what am I? Am I seventeen? Ten? Something in between?
"And now I'm here. Doing it all over again. What does that make me now?"
He put his head in his hands, dry sobs cleaving through his body. He had gone too far, hadn't he?
"A… again?" Malon repeated.
Yes. Definitely too far. Or was it not far enough? Link had lost himself in a tidal wave of confession.
"Again," Link confirmed."I've done all of this before. That time I told Rusl about where I'd come from… that was only half of the story. I fought and killed another Ganondorf, rescued another Malon from when Ingo took over Old Lon Ranch, and freed another Hyrule, where left was right and right was left. Or maybe it was a Hyrule where forwards was backwards and vice versa. It doesn't matter.
"I saved that Hyrule… and then, she sent me back. They said they would remember all of it. That we would stop Ganondorf before he ever got the Triforce in the first place.
"They lied."
He took a deep breath before continuing. "I tried to get it all back. The first few steps of my second excursion were excruciating. But to tell you the truth, going forwards seven years was almost… gratifying. I don't know. It's hard to describe. But… maybe now, I won't- have to go back again. A third loop would be the end of me."
He finally stopped talking. His throat was about twice as dry as the Haunted Wastelands. "You can hate me if you want. I wouldn't blame you. Just…"
Whatever he was going to say next got stuck in his throat when Malon, who had been silent the whole time, scooted closer and tugged him into yet another embrace. Instinctually, Link returned the gesture with only slightly less vigor.
"I'm sorry, Fairy Boy," she whispered. "I had no idea any of that had ever happened. It must have been very hard for you."
"No one knows anything. Not even Ze- the princess. We're the only ones who know about it, excluding Ivan, and honestly, I plan to keep it that way."
They sat there in amicable silence for a few minutes, undisturbed.
"And for the record," Malon started, causing Link to jerk between her arms. "I don't care who you are, so long as you're m- Link."
A dazed grin spread across Link's features as he processed her sincere-sounding words. He was happy. No- happy didn't cut it. He was elated. Euphoric. Ecstatic. No, none of them really fit how he felt at that instant. He felt all warm and fuzzy inside, which was good, because he would need as much heat as possible for the Ice Cavern.
He finally had someone to confide everything in. That was a first, a first in both timelines.
I wasn't intending to write that last fluffy scene. I was actually intending to get more into the party [or at least, an excuse for one] and shed more light on Kakariko's state. Plus, TF2 Demoman was going to get a cameo. You can… probably see where that was going, what with the fact that he's a drunken Scottish cyclops.
NOOTTD: I don't think there was anything this chapter. Cool.
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