A/N: I own nothing except a copy of this great game.

When he came to, Ishaka was aware that it was much cooler out. Night had fallen, and they were no longer in the Eldin Caves. Groaning, he slowly sat up. He had been lying down. Someone had moved him from where he was last. Where was he last? Ah, right. He'd been standing next to that pillar they were going to bomb, he'd been in pain so he lit up some sharp stuff to dull the pain…and now he was here.

Groaning, he shook his head. He must've loaded too much in this time.

"Sleep well?" He heard a voice. He turned, and saw Impa sitting in seiza position next to him. Groaning, Ishaka rubbed his forehead, trying to ignore the pounding headache he had.

"Yeah, I be 'ite." Ishaka said. "Tha's th' last time I smoke tha' stuff af'er a fight, Sheikah." He muttered. He reached into his duster pocket, pleased to see that no one had taken his pipe while he was out. He grabbed it, reached into another pocket for his lighter and some snuff, and struck up a match against the sole of his boot. Impa stared at him with a combination of fascination and horror.

"You pass out from delirium that was exacerbated by you smoking some sort of concoction in that pipe, pass out for an entire evening, wake up early the next morning, and the first thing you do upon waking is smoke?" The Sheikah warrior asked. Ishaka looked at her and shrugged.

"'elps me wake up, Sheikah." He said. "Yeh can't b'gru'ge a man tha' much." Impa raised an eyebrow.

"You sound a lot like Justinian did, when I caught him with several bottles of mead next to the war room map." She said. Ishaka narrowed his eyes.

"I be callin' malarkey on yeh. There ain't no way yeh don't 'ave yer own vices, Sheikah." He said. Impa smirked.

"I have no vices, Ishaka. I am only motivated by my defense of the princess, and my love of Hyrule and her people. That is my drug."

"Yeh soun' like a self-'elp book." Ishaka said. "I ain't ever read one, but tha's what yeh soun' like."

"If name-calling makes you feel better about your foolishness, then by all means continue." Impa said. She smoothly stood up from seiza, and looked down upon the Ravager captain. "If you take a look around you, you'll see that we're in the Faron Woods."

Ishaka glanced around them. Sure enough, instead of a massive and gloomy (not to mention burning warm) cavern that surrounded them, they were in the branches of some truly massive trees. The Faron Woods* carried a very pleasant and soothing smell of nature, and there were many signs of vibrance and life. Green. Greens as far as the eye could see.

And yet, if Ishaka listened carefully, he could hear that no birds sang.

"So we be." He said, puffing a cloud of haze around his face. Impa wrinkled her nose, but otherwise did not change her expression.

"We're trying to find the princess in here. She has to be, because the magic is getting stronger. One can feel it in the air." She said.

"Huh. An' I though' it 'twas jus' what I be smokin' that got ev'rythin' so sharp." Ishaka mumbled. Impa rolled her eyes.

"What I was getting at is that I took the liberty of sending some of your scouts to see if there was any rebellious force in the Woods that didn't look like it belonged to the forces of darkness." She shrugged. "I hope you don't mind."

"Nah. I couldn't do tha', wha' wit' me bein' knocked out an' all." Ishaka said. He glanced down across the way. They were all on a monstrous tree branch, so thick and stout that it could pass for an aerial highway. He looked through the Ravager soldiers and Hyrulian soldiers resting, until his eyes caught the one he was looking for. "Who is tha' Sheikah, Sheikah?" He asked.

"Sheik?" Impa's eyes narrowed. "I am not certain." She said. "All I know is that he's lying." At this, Ishaka's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oh? And what migh' that be, Sheikah?"

"I am the chieftain of the Sheikah tribe in Hyrule." Impa said. She stared coldly at Ishaka. "There is no 'Sheik' in my tribe."

The two warriors sat there, away from the mess of their soldiers, resting on a large shelf mushroom that jutted out from the trunk of the titanic tree they were all camped upon. Both of them watched the mysterious individual in the distance with earnest. Sheik was casually gliding through the ranks, absently strumming that harp of his. It was a song both soothing and up-tempo, so as not to lull one to sleep but definitely to keep one's mind at ease. He passed by Link, who was in the middle of teaching some of the younger recruits some sword techniques, and stared at the Hero for a moment. But then he was back to patrolling through the ranks, as if he'd never stopped. Impa was far too busy pondering the identity of their new companion to notice the crafty grin slowly forming on Ishaka's face.

"Whacha think? Can we trust 'im?" Ishaka asked. Impa sighed.

"He seems like he is trying to help us. I can respect that, for now, but I cannot condone this secrecy." She said. "For now, he can run with us. But the moment I sense that he is not on the straight…we take care of him."

"Mighty cold 'a ya, Sheikah." Ishaka mused, standing up now and leaning against the massive tree trunk. "Killin' someone yeh don' know?"

"This is war, Ishaka." Impa said. "Considering what our enemy is capable of doing and more importantly willing to do in order to destroy our morale, I can't trust anyone." She frowned. "Well, most everyone."

Ishaka chuckled.

"Yeh mean 'im?" He asked, pointing to Link. The young man below them had a dopey grin on his face as some of the younger, dirtier-faced Ravagers were begging him to tell them stories about how he'd killed the King Dodongo. At this point, though most if not all of them had actually witnessed the moment, the stories were a form of flattery.* "I can't blame ya, Sheikah. Kid's gotta heart 'a gold, tha's fer sure. Prob'ly wouldn't know mani'pla'tion if'n yeh pointed it out ta 'im."

Impa smiled, watching as that little fairy rose out of Link's cap and no doubt started to tell the Ravagers to stop embarrassing Link with their silliness.

"I suppose so. He is the Hero, after all. But then again, he is not the only one I've come to trust." Impa stared pointedly at Ishaka. The Ravager took a long drag from his pipe, and laughed.

"Don' put too much 'a yer faith in me, Sheikah. I'm th' guy tha' smoked 'imself unconscious after a battl'." It was the wink that caused Impa to roll her eyes again, but there was no denying the smirk that he'd put on her face.

…

There was a shrill whistle, enough to make everyone in the camp look up. Two Ravagers, a craol and an upper Hylian*, were sprinting towards the camp. Both were clearly out of breath. The upper Hylian one regained his composure first, and bellowed as loud as he could so as to get Ishaka's attention.

"Brother Ishaka! There's a massive army of darkness coming from the north! They're headed for a keep holding an unknown party!" He shouted. Quick as a cat, Ishaka was standing on the edge of the mushroom shelf, peering down upon the hundreds of soldiers below him.

"What dey look like?" He asked.

"All sorts, sir! Hyrulian, Craol, spirits of the forest…there is a woman that leads them!"

That was all the encouragement that Impa needed.

"To arms!" Impa shouted. "We'll intercept them at the keep!" She drew her Biggoron Knife, and held it above her head. "Forward!"

"OO-RAH!"

Link felt Proxi rush back inside him, feeling a warmth in the side of his head where the fairy had disappeared. He wasn't sure how fairies were able to do that, but he didn't really care. She was nice, and did the talking for him. Which was good, because he wasn't really one for chattering. He let his actions speak for him. Speaking of which, seeing as Proxi could speak for him yet not fight for him, it was time to earn his keep.

He drew his sword, and made sure that his shield was secure on his right arm. He was in the middle of the Ravager march, a brisk gallop to make sure that no one fell off of the trees and to the forest floor many feet below, yet not being so slow as to miss the potential ambush. He heard a panting, and saw that Ishaka had already caught up to him, as well as Impa and that mysterious Sheik. The masked Sheikah shared a glance with Link, and nodded as if to affirm that what they were doing was the right thing. Link needed no affirmation, but at the same time wondered why he was so concerned with how Link felt.

...

She felt the lightning leave her fingertips, and watched as it struck a Moblin directly in the chest. The beast let out a strangled yelp as the electricity jolted through its body, before going rigid as a board and falling to the ground with a loud thump. There was no one directly threatening her, so she took a moment to reevaluate the situation.

Their keep, a shabby little walled fort built out of rotten sticks and branches from the mighty trees around them, was in the midst of a full-frontal assault from the forces of darkness. They easily outnumbered her rebellion by fifteen to one, if not more. Her soldiers were fighting bravely, yet there was a pained feeling in her heart as she slowly came to terms with the reality that they would all die in this forest. But if that was so, then it would not be without a fight.

She glanced at the spellbook she cradled in her right arm, and frantically flipped through the pages until she found the incantation she wanted. She spoke the ancient words with clarity and force, and watched as an ethereal square covered in runes formed above the battlefield and dropped straight down, crushing a few Bokoblins. With a wave of her hand in every direction she pointed, the cube rolled around the battlefield, crushing foes yet just barely avoiding her own soldiers. It was a good tactic, but she was starting to feel the strain of constantly firing off spells without a moment to recharge.

She heard a cry, and saw that one of her trusted lieutenants, the first Hyrulian she had approached for this crazy dream of fighting back the darkness, had been knocked down by a Moblin, who thrust his spear downward. The Hyrulian twisted out of the way to avoid a deadly blow, but the spear still pierced his shoulder. He let out a pitiful cry of pain, and the Moblin roared in fiendish delight. Her eyes narrowed, and her brows furrowed, she spoke a word of power, and watched as a jet of blue flame burst from her pointer finger and turned the Moblin into a pile of grey ash. She ran forward, and slid on her knees until she was right beside the fallen Hyrulian captain of her forces. She cradled him in her arms, gently speaking the healing words so that the pain would lessen and he could start healing. It was likely that they would all be dead before the spell could fully take effect, but she could not stand to see those loyal to her be hurt.

"Mi…milady, I'm sorry." He said through gritted teeth, trying to smile despite the pain. She placed a finger on his lips.

"Shh. It was an honor that you should fight for me." She said. She saw that the forces of darkness had surrounded her rebellion. She closed her eyes, hugged her captain tightly, and prayed that it would be quick.

…

Then they heard it. It was a rumble, coming from the distance, as if a thunderstorm on the ground. It was growing louder and more forceful, enough to cause the forces of darkness to stop fighting. They, as well as the rebellion, turned in the direction of the coming storm. It was from beyond the one wall of the keep that had not been breached. It was getting louder. Louder. Louder. Louder.

There was a terrific cracking noise, as the heavy wooden gate was splintered open. Standing in the middle of the wreckage was a man. Easily over six and a half feet tall, his hair a wild mess on his head and a bushy beard that went down to the top of his collarbone. A faded and battered duster, and equally battered leather armor underneath it. Two terrifying-looking knifes, one in each hand. A pipe dangling from his closed mouth. And an indubitable twinkle in his eye.

He reared his head back, and blew the smoke out of his mouth like a dragon rising. And then he let the pipe drop from his lips and screamed.

"EEEYYYYOOOOWWWWWW!"

As if on cue, a row of archers emerged from the top of the wall, wearing the distinguished colors of Hyrule or patchwork clothing that was barely held together. It didn't really matter. They all hit their target the same.

Bokoblins, Bulblins, and even the Moblin raid captain of this assault fell before the hissing volley. She looked up to see a river of soldiers pouring through the breach, and slamming into the army of darkness like a veritable tidal wave. Shields were splintered, bones were broken, and spirits shattered. The Moblin captain barely managed to bleat a call for retreat, before an arrow brought him down.

In the middle of the chaos, the massive man reached down and picked up his pipe. He put it back in his mouth (after checking to make sure it wasn't dirty) and relit the thing. He walked forward towards her and the captain, who had recovered enough that he could open his eyes. The massive man was soon joined by two warriors that bore the colors and markings of the Sheikah tribe…and him.

…

She was unlike any girl that Ishaka had ever seen. Radiant blue hair, and violet eyes. A red feather clipped into her hair, and a rather fancy-looking shoulder pauldron that connected the elegant single-shoulder cape she wore. Gold bracelets, sapphire encrusted, and a slightly frilly skirt. One look at her face was all Ishaka needed to know that, though she was most certainly the leader, she was not a warrior at heart. There was a cherubic lightness to her feature, and he could tell that he intimidated her.

Thankfully, Impa was the one to break the tension.

"Are you the one leading these warriors?" She asked. The girl nodded.

"Yes I am."

It was clear that she recognized the importance of the people in front of her, as she had stood up straight and was trying to give off a regal and elegant vibe. Something about it felt forced. Impa gestured to her spellbook.

"You can use magic," she said. "Where did you learn your craft?" The girl shrugged.

"Oh…well, I'm a sorceress." She said. "You know the one who started this war? Cia? We come from the same magical clan."

This news brought a wave of raised eyebrows. So they had a name. Cia. Cia was the one that had caused this mess. Cia was the one that had invaded Hyrule. Cia was the one that had dared to attack on the princess' birthday. Cia was the one that was responsible for the death of Lord Justinian Tiberius, and the missing status of the princess.

Cia.

They had a name. And in a way that was liberating.

"Ah, well. That explains it…" Impa said. Sheik and Link nodded in agreement, but Ishaka just kept staring at the girl. He could tell, by the way her eyes had darted around during that last bit, that this girl knew a little bit more about Cia than she was letting on. But he was savvy enough to know that now was most certainly not the time in which to press her.

"And what does this 'Cia' want from Hyrule?" Impa asked. Ishaka rolled his eyes. A bit of an obvious question.

"Death? Destr'ction? A nice summ'r 'ome in th' south?" Ishaka said, before he could stop himself.

That got him another slap, this time a backhand to the cheek from an annoyed Impa. The mysterious girl giggled, most definitely amused.

"You really want to know?" She asked. She cocked her head to the side. Ishaka groaned on the inside. He knew that posture. That was the posture of someone who was being coy. And of someone who didn't believe in 'no-strings-attached information.' "Well…" She continued, glancing off to the side. Then she turned towards the group. "Help me defend the forest! If you do that…" She giggled, a twinkle in her eye. "I might tell you."

Yup. There it was.

"Seri'sly?" Ishaka asked. The girl nodded, a Cheshire grin forming on her face. For once, Impa was inclined to agree with her unruly partner on his attitude. They'd just come out of the Eldin Caves for…this?

But before they could ask or press her for more, the girl had turned around and started running away from them, leading her recovered troops in the direction that the Moblin forces had retreated from.

…

In the distance, floating high above the battlefield, Wizzro let out a throaty laugh.

"Hiya ha ha! Scatter those Hyrulian and ruffian pests!" He rasped. "Kill! KILL!"

"So that's the wizard that's in charge of these monsters, huh?" The mysterious girl mused. "I bet if we drive him off, the monsters will go away!"

"Whuh-what wizar-" Impa was cut off by the girl, who pointed in the distance to the distant Wizzro floating and conducting its arms like a maestro. The girl raced off again, and Sheik came up alongside Impa.

"She…is interesting." The Sheikah fighter mused. Impa was too baffled by this sorceress' spontaneity to think too hard about the identity of this man beside her, so she just nodded dumbly.

"Hiya ha hah!" Wizzro bellowed, waving its hand full of dark magic. "Here's a little something for you!"

There was a rumbling sound, and across the battlefield massive-stalked plant…things with purple mouths erupted and began to spew clouds of a purple hazy gas. Anyone that came within close contact of it, whether it was light or dark, began to cough frighteningly hard.

"What are those things?" Sheik asked.

"Deku Babas*!" The sorceress girl cried. "We've got to take them down or else they'll poison the whole forest to death!" Indeed, some of the gas was causing the trees around to start exhibiting slightly pallid coloring, as if the trees were getting sick.

"Don't get close!" Ishaka shouted. "Shoot 'em in th' mouth!" He barked to some of his archers. The Ravager archer line took their time, lined up their shots, and let the arrows fly straight and true. Each scored a direct hit, and soon all that remained of the Deku Babas was a rapidly fading cloud of poisonous gas that was being taken in by the forest's purifying air.

The numbers of the army of darkness had also been reduced to almost negligible size. The leaders of the allied coalition took the time to regroup.

"Where to from here?" Impa asked. The sorceress pointed in two directions.

"We need to retake the southern tree and the western tree." She said. "We have to eventually get back to the Great Deku Tree* in the center of the forest, otherwise that nasty wizard will destroy it, and the forest will die!"

"That is all the motivation I need." Impa said. She turned to the rest of the group. "Split the difference. Sheik and I shall head to the south. Ishaka, take Link and…hm…what's your name?" She turned to the sorceress.

"Lana!" The sorceress said with a smile. "My name is Lana. And I'd be happy to go with Link and Yeechaka!" She said.

"Ishaka." Impa politely corrected her.

"Isn't that what I said?" Lana asked, a look of confusion on her face. Ishaka grinned, but said nothing of it. For now.

"Move!" Impa barked. The Ravager and Hyrulian coalition splintered at this crossroads, with Impa and Sheik taking one half towards the south. Lana, Link, and Ishaka took the rest (and what remained of Lana's rebellion) towards the west.

…

It was easy. The forces of darkness had been taking their sweet time whittling away at Lana's little rebellion, expecting that it would be a walk in the woods to take things over. They most certainly had not accounted for a completely refreshed army of Hyrulians and Ravagers to come in and even and then tip the odds in their own favor. And it showed on the battlefield. Impa thrust her Biggoron knife right into the chest of the Moblin captain, ripping the blade back out and spinning it around her head like glittering fan. Most of the Bokoblins dropped their weapons and fled with terror. Sheik, in turn, would take advantage of this cowardice by throwing her seemingly endless supply of shruikan into their backs. She hadn't missed yet.

Lana felt herself starting to be more invigorated, as the onus of leading the battle was no longer hers and hers alone. The presence of these new warriors was more than enough to let her step back a little bit and regenerate her energy and strength, and it showed in how she moved. She felt a spring returning to her step, and the thought of casting another spell no longer seemed like a chore. It was as it should be: something to be excited about, and something that she could do without even thinking. And so it was.

But even her mighty sorcery paled to the impact that the two men protecting her had. Ishaka and Link combined were a veritable pair of destruction, cutting through the forces of darkness like butter. Their styles mixed together with precision and gory perfection: Link's almost balletic speed and grace connecting with Ishaka's raw power and ferocity to create a near-unstoppable machine of fighting spirit.

The keep boss was a Bulblin, who fell to the combined efforts of Link and Ishaka. The Ravager captain had kicked the Bulblin in the face so hard he had felt the beast's nose crumple beneath his boot, and almost as soon as the creature fell to the ground Link finished it with a downward stab to the chest. Lana thrust her hand towards the ground, creating a glowing blue sphere. Its intention was to signal that they had taken the western tree. The entirety of their attack force glanced over to the south, and through the chaos of battle they could see Impa waving in affirmative that their force had captured the southern tree.

"Whew! We're recovering the forest!" Lana said. She pointed to the absolutely massive tree in the middle that looked like it had eyebrows and a mustache. "Let's all regroup in the Great Deku Tree, and go from there!"

Ishaka nodded, and then climbed up one of the branches nearby, so that Impa could see him. He whistled to get her attention, and then started flashing a series of hand signals. In the short time that he'd worked with the Hyrulian forces, he had learned their basic hand communications for battle. He signaled that they were retreating towards the Great Deku Tree, and that they wanted Impa's force to join her as well. He saw her cock her head as she deciphered the signals, and then her eyes widened in understanding. She gave a raised hand, and waved frantically. Then she started signing towards him.

"Whuh-what are they doing?" Lana asked Link. Before the Hylian could answer, Proxi popped out of hiding.

"They're communicating battle plans…or dinner plans? I'm not sure, but it looks cool!"

Lana giggled, and nodded. She glanced at Link.

"Can you imagine making dinner plans like that?" She asked him. Link felt a little embarrassed that she was talking to him and him alone, and so he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. He shrugged, and shook his head. Lana giggled again.

"You're not one for talking much, are you Link?" She asked. Proxi started glowing brightly.

"Wait, how do you know Link's name? We didn't properly introduce ourselves!"

Lana looked like she'd been caught in a trap, but before she could stammer an explanation, Ishaka hopped back down.

"Ravagers!" He barked. "To th' Grea' Deku Tree!"

Lana took this distraction to race to the front of the force, leaving a sizable gap between her and Link and Proxi, before they knew what was going on.

…

After a few minutes, everyone had reconvened in the center of the Great Deku Tree. There was a deep rumbling noise, and everyone except Lana looked around in confusion.

"That was the Great Deku Tree!" She said with a smile. "It's very happy you came to help out. It says that you're safe inside of it!"

"Huh. Di'n't know tha' trees 'ad their own langu'ge…" Ishaka muttered. He lit up his pipe again.

There was another rumble, this time more forceful.

"Um…the Great Deku Tree would prefer that you didn't smoke inside of it, Yeeshasa." Lana said. "It's not a big fan of fire. Being a tree, you know."

Ishaka hastily extinguished his pipe and placed it back in his pocket. He also daintly rubbed the floor, as if that would make things better.

…

Increasingly frustrated at the ineptitude of its forces, Wizzro snarled. It floated aimlessly for a moment, wondering what it could do to turn the tides. Then, it got an idea. An awful idea. Wizzro got a wonderful, awful idea.

"Hiya hah ha!" It cackled. "Enjoy your little success, weasels! My next plan will burn your spirits to ashes! Hiya ha!" It raised its hands to the sky.

…

Lana's Hyrulian captain was the first to notice that something was wrong. He smelled something burning, glanced towards the outside of the Great Deku Tree, and let out a yell.

"Whoa, I can see flames! A fire's been started!"

Everyone could feel the temperature rising, and sure enough flames were visible to the edges of the mouth of the Great Deku tree.

"Everyone, get outside!" Impa roared. She turned towards the Goron squadron on loan to her. "Clear a path! No one gets left inside here!" They nodded, and tucked themselves into balls and rolled towards the entrance, where a large band of dark forces gathered. They struck the enemy like bowling ball against the pins, and cleared an open path to retreat from.

"I can't believe those monsters!" Lana said as they ushered the last soldier out of the Great Deku Tree. "They set fire to the Great Deku Tree! Don't they know what that'll do to the forest!"

"Yeah, an' I bet they don' care!" Ishaka said, picking her up over his shoulder when he saw she wasn't moving fast enough.

"Put-me-down-put-me-down!" Lana yelled with each step. When he finally did, she gave him a slap right across the face.

"Agh! Wha' wa' tha' fo'?" Ishaka said, his hand covering his smarting mouth and cheek. Lana stomped the ground in frustration.

"I'm not some damsel to be carried off like a prize!" She said. "I needed to make sure that no one was left behind in the Great Deku Tree!"

"We can't lose yeh!" Ishaka said. "Altr'ism 'sgood in all, bu' tha's jes' stupid! I had ta save ya!"

"Why?" Lana demanded. Ishaka got in real close. Lana felt a shiver as she realized just how monstrously big he was.

"Cuz I thinks yer hidin' somethin' abou' Cia." He said with a growl. He glanced towards the Great Deku Tree, which was burning brightly. "Can we save it?"

"Yes…" Lana said, slowly regaining her composure. "But we'll need to seek out a Great Fairy Fountain! The Great Fairy Fountain, the one that is to the north of the forest!"

"What're we waitin' fer?" Ishaka asked. "Les' MOVE!"

He took the forefront of the charge, leading a branch of the Ravagers towards the general direction Lana was directing him. Link, Impa, and Sheik followed behind, making quick work of anyone that came too close.

They reached the entrance to the Great Fairy's tree, and were relieved to see that there was nothing blocking the entrance to the fountain. Lana ran to the middle of the room, and quickly began to speak the summoning incantation. The runes and carvings in the walls, floor and ceiling began to light up again.

"Link! Stand in the middle of the magic circle!" Lana shouted. "I can feel you've got a great magic coming from you…with me and you together, there's no way that the Great Fairy can ignore us!"

She was right, and shortly thereafter Link and the rest of the group bore witness to the creation of another Great Fairy. She stared at the group with sultry eyes, waiting for their silly little wish. Lana spoke with conviction.

"Save the Great Deku Tree!" She said. The Great Faily flipped her hair, as if this was the easiest request in the world, and exploded in a puft of fairy dust and uproarious laughter. There was a pause, and then the sounds of thunder and flashes of lightning. It was completely pouring outside.

The fires of the Great Deku Tree were almost immediately quenched, and in the middle of the chaos the Ravagers struck first. They used any technique they could to knock members of the forces of darkness off of their feet, and sent the slipping off of the slicked branches of trees and down towards the crushing fall of the forest floor below. In relatively short time, they had cleaned out the remainder of Wizzro's army.

Link, Impa, Ishaka, and Lana walked out of the Great Fairy Fountain along with the Ravagers and Hyrulians that had joined them, and regrouped with the rest of their army. There was no sign of anything dangerous anywhere. The rain still poured with fury.

…

Wizzro growled.

"Bah! If you want something done right…you summon a bigger fish!" It waved its hands, casting a magic spell of summoning. "Hiya ha hah! They'll love this one!"

It disappeared in a puff of smoke.

…

"So what happens now?" Lana asked. "Is it over?"

"It would appear so." Sheik said. "I cannot sense any darkness around us."

"Right." Impa said, looking at Sheik suspiciously. "Then we can get to the crux of the matter…"

"…That bein', what d'ya know abou' Cia?" Ishaka asked. He turned towards Lana. "We defended yer fores'. Part 'a th' deal. Spill it."

"Oh, okay." Lana said. "Well, the truth is that I knew Cia from a very young age…"

She kept talking, but Ishaka wasn't listening. He was looking behind her, an increasingly cold sense of horror growing in his chest at the sight above and behind her. Something monstrous was moving slowly down the tree trunk, its legs spindly and spiderlike. It looked at Lana, and he saw as its burning red eye turned a searing blue.

"DOWN!" He roared, tackling Lana to the ground, as a laser beam erupted from the creature's eye. It ripped across the tree branch, and caught a couple of Ravagers and Hyrulians. They didn't even have time to scream.

"Scatter!" Impa shouted, drawing her Biggoron knife. The Ravagers and Hyrulians retreated towards the inside of the Great Deku Tree, leaving behind Impa, Sheik, Link, Ishaka and Lana. There was a rumbling, and the Great Deku Tree closed its mouth, no doubt to protect the soldiers inside from this monster.

"Wha' th' 'ell is THAT?" Ishaka roared in shock.

"Gohma*!" Proxi shrieked, flying around Link's head. "Don't let it get you!"

Ishaka ducked under one of the creature's spear-like legs, and with a yell swung his knives at the joint. They clanged off of the creature's hide like stone, creating a spark.

"Its hide is nigh-inpenetrable!" Proxi wailed. "Go for the eye! The eye!"

Link and Ishaka stayed underneath the creature's belly, hacking and slashing as best as they could, but neither of them could get to the creature's soft eye. Gohma shrieked, and tried to sit on them. When that didn't work, she thrusted her stinger at them in an effort to impale them clean through. Impa shifted back and forth on her toes, looking for an opening to rush in. There was none. She felt the frustration building. Her Biggoron knife was the only weapon big enough to take out that creature's eye and then kill it outright. Sheik rolled out of the way of a laser blast, and rolled up next to Sheik.

"If you are given a distraction, can you kill the creature?" Sheik asked. Impa stared at him with distrust, but nodded. "Good. You will see the opportunity when it arrives." Impa was about to ask what he meant, but she had merely blinked and he was gone.

"You are beginning to annoy me, 'Sheik.'" Impa muttered darkly. But for now, she did nothing but dance on the sidelines, waiting for the moment to strike.

…

Sheik found scaling the tree rather easy, considering the slickness of the wood. He kept climbing until he landed on a mushroom shelf. He glanced around, knowing that he'd felt some pressure coming from this spot earlier in the fight. He nodded when he saw the fallen body of a Bokoblin archer. He picked up the creature's bow and quiver, knowing that the beast no longer needed it. He wrinkled his nose. Bokoblin bows were brittle little pieces of garbage, but a bow was a bow at the end of the day. Still, he needed to get the creature's attention from this high up. Gohmas were incredibly dangerous, but also quite stupid and easy to trick when angered. Considering how frustrating it must be to deal with Link hacking at its underbelly and Ishaka insulting its intelligence, it was most certainly riled up at this point.

Sheik put his plan into motion. He placed his harp in the crook of his right elbow, and wrapped his hand around so that it could feasibly pluck the strings. He took an arrow, and nocked it into the bow. From there, he clamped down on the feathered end of the arrow with his teeth, and pulled the bow away from his face with his remaining hand. He felt the stress on his teeth and jaw, and knew that he didn't have too much time. He began to pluck.

Impa, Link, Ishaka, and even Gohma were soon made aware of a sound. It echoed across the air, and was immediately and easily heard. It was, quite frankly, the most goddess awful fucking noise they'd ever heard in their lives. It sounded like a blind drunkard had found a violin, and was scratching the strings with a coin in an effort to "play" the instrument.

Impa winced, and tried to block the sound out. Her Sheikah meditation skills were good…but this was testing them. The sound was so bad that Link and Ishaka had stopped fighting, and were holding their ears in pain. (Ishaka was violently and filthily swearing and threatening that he would murder the perpetrator in most gruesomesly colorful ways) Lana was begging the Goddesses that this most infernal sound was silenced, going so far as to lie prostrate on the ground and begging.

But Gohma was even worse. Shrieking in pain, the creature started to slam the tree branch they stood on in frustration, as if that would get the noise to stop. Howling some more, it thrashed about, trying to block out the noise. When that failed, it reverted to a plan that had helped it plenty in the past: laser.

It looked up in the direction of the noise, and its eye began to glow bright blue. The light in the darkness brought on by the rain was enough to barely illuminate Sheik like a silhouette. Impa could just barely make out the fact that Sheik had removed his mouth wrap so that he could hold the arrow in his teeth, but before she could get a closer look she saw an arrow fly straight and true. It embedded itself in Gohma's eye, with a little spurt of blood coming from the wound. The creature shrieked in pain, and Impa realized that this was the opening that she needed.

She sprinted forward, running as fast as she could before the creature could recover. She saw that Ishaka was facing her.

"Lift!" Impa barked. Like a sixth sense, Ishaka deciphered what she meant. He got down on one knee, and cupped his hands low and by his ankle. Impa ran so that her left foot landed in his hands while in stride, and soon felt that unbearable lightness of being as Ishaka hoisted her into the air.

The last thing Gohma saw was a shining blade and a roaring Sheikah warrior.

The Biggoron knife went through the eye completely, and Impa could feel it strike something beyond, perhaps even the brain. She was coated in a splash of disgusting blood and gore, and the Gohma shuddered and went still. Then it fell forward.

Right on top of her.

"Sheikah!" Ishaka shouted. Lana, Link, and he had encircled the slain beast. There was no sign of the Sheikah warrior underneath. Sheik had rejoined the group, and had put his mask back on.

There was a silence. And then, a muffled groan.

"Get…this…thing…off me."

Chuckling, Ishaka grabbed low underneath the corpse, and with a roar (and a little help from Link and Lana and Sheik, though he didn't really need it) hoisted Gohma's corpse up. Groaning, Impa rolled out from underneath the beast. She was drenched in its blood, though thankfully the rain was slowly taking care of that. There was a rumbling, and the mouth of the Great Deku Tree opened and allowed the Ravagers and Hyrulians to emerge.

Impa got back to her feet, and sighed. It would be hell getting her knife out of that creature's eye. At least it was dead. And the battle was over. They had won.

Everyone else seemed to recognize that, as the rest of the group all turned their eyes towards Lana. The sorceress looked around, and then giggled sheepishly.

"Eh heh heh…I guess I have some explaining to do?" She said. Impa folded her arms.

"I was just buried by a most foul beast for your forest. I'd say yes. Yes, you do."

…

It was quiet in the Temple of Souls. Wizzro had returned, muttering something darkly about failed attacks and spontaneous rainfall. Volga had seen the wizard's features and demeanor, and responded to this by laughing uproariously. And then laughing some more. Not even an attempted hex gave the Dragon Warrior pause. He continued following the wizard back to the depths of the temple, laughing and laughing some more.

They passed by the sorcerer's room, Cia's private chambers. The door was slightly askew, but neither dared to open it and let their master know what had happened. She was busy. And she could wait to hear about what had happened.

…

She sat in the middle of the black and white tiled floor, her legs crossed and her hands resting on her knees. Her eyes were closed, and her face was a mask of longing and wistfulness. Her mouth closed, she began to hum a soft little tune. As she hummed, her shadow seemed to detach from her body. It rested in the middle of the room, and began to bubble and rise from the ground. It continued to rise from the ground, becoming less formless as it grew. Finally, it appeared to take a humanoid form. Cia's humming faded away, and in its place was her honeyed voice. She slowly rose from the ground, her singing soft and haunting.

Onlllyyyyy yoooouuuu…can make…this world seem briiiight…

Eyes still closed, she started to walk towards this living shadow. It was becoming more refined and crystallized. A face was beginning to form. Clothes, and arms and legs.

Onlllyyyyy yoooouuuu…can make the darkness…briiiiiiight…

She continued to close the gap. She was somewhere deep within her desires, eyes closed and her face a mask of contented bliss.

Onlllyyyy yoooouuuu…and you…allooooonnneeee…

…Can thrill me like…you doooo….

Her shadow had now taken complete form. It looked like a youth of heroic feature and conviction, and yet it was a shadow nonetheless. It stared at her, seemingly expectantly, before extending its arm as if playing a gentleman. She grasped its hand in hers, and pulled it in close. She rested her head on its shoulders, and they slowly swayed to the sound of her voice.

And fill….my heeeaaaarrrttt…with love…

…for onlyyyyyyyyy…yooouuuuu….

Slowly, the shadow began to fade away, dissolving into a cloud of smoke. She stayed frozen in place, as if still dancing with her lover. She slowly opened her eyes, and her expression changed to one of wistful sorrow. She closed her eyes again, but the feeling was gone.

She fell to her knees. And she held her hands to her chest, shaking slightly.

If one listened carefully through the halls of the Temple of Souls, one could faintly hear the soft sound of a woman crying.

A/N: Another one in the books. If you have the time, check out the poll on my profile. It might help push the plot if enough people check in. All reviews are welcome.

HYRULIAN CODEX

Faron Woods – The Faron Woods are a mystical place, located to the northwest quadrant of Hyrule. There is a thick air of magic to this wondrous place, and nature flourishes in its undisturbed glory here. The woods are impossibly deep and thick, and the most famous aspect of the depths of the woods are the absolutely inconceivably large trees. Legend has it that their roots stretch across the entirety of Hyrule. None of those trees carry the mystique and legend of the Great Deku Tree, the watchful guardian of the forest. It is a fully sentient tree, whose roots go down to the core of the planet, and is said to be rooted to the very lifeblood of the planet. A popular legend is that the Great Deku Tree was planted by the Three Goddesses as the world's first plant, and considered the magical abilities of this place, it is not a stretch to believe this legend. The Faron Woods are also unique in that neither the forces of good or evil, no matter how much time and how many resources are spent, are able to completely claim the forest for their own use. The Faron Woods are old, and are beyond the petty squabbles of light and dark. They represent something more…ancient.

Ravager Tales – As the "Ravagers" are a loose confederacy of peoples linked together by a common cause (personal loss), and yet are a very young "people", there are few (if any) written records of their favorite stories. In fact, it is unknown just how literate their society is. Thus, the power of the spoken word is priceless in this roaming community. That is not to say that verbosity equates to value in the community. Rather, it is the quality of one's storytelling abilities that makes one more valued. Thus, it is feasible for a Ravager leader to not be able to read a single word, be unable to speak more than a three-syllable word, and yet still captivate his audience with a story. It is not uncommon for younger Ravagers to try to establish their storytelling prowess by a verbal game of one-upsmanship: they will take a story that is well-known, and retell it with even more passion and detail. The mark of a good storyteller is how long they can weld ridiculous fabrications to the original story before a more learned member of the community calls them on their lies.

Upper Hylian – A colloquial term referring to Hyrulians raised in the upper north of the country. They are fair-skinned, and relatively unassuming in size. Considering that most of them live close to the castle and nowhere near hard labor areas, their only real profession is in banking or other jobs usually scorned by people of the earth. A popular saying in the outer territories is that though the Goron mines the stones and the Low Hyrulian braves the seas and the Craol harvests the grain, it is the "High"rulian that has the power because he's the one counting the money. This saying can be said with either great mirth or great bitterness. Both are equally effective.

Deku Babas – The canker sore of the forests. These obnoxious little beasts fall somewhere in between that unholy grey zone of beast and plant. They are stalk-necked mouths that spew poison, and upon their death their stalks become wonderfully sturdy wood to build houses, or furniture, or even arrows. No one is sure exactly whether to classify them as plants or animals, and they sure as hell aren't going to risk their lungs being seared inside out for the sake of a question that doesn't really need to be answered. The strategy for seeing a Deku Baba sprout is simple: stomp on the little bastard early, and if that fails…get a-weed whackin'.

Great Deku Tree – Little, if anything, can be described about the Great Deku Tree. Stories say that it is the first plant that ever graced the planet, and that from this all floral life sprung. A true sign of the mystery of the Great Deku Tree is that even the most ardent of anti-theists throw up their hands in exasperation when trying to explain the existence of the Great Deku Tree. Even absurdists are weirded out by the presence of an inconceivably large tree with what appears to be a mustache and eyebrows, and that allegedly can talk to those that it deems completely pure of heart (though that takes a lot of training on the listener's part), and so frequently change the subject or come up with the idea of some sort of magical mutation. (Even then, the logic isn't very convincing)

Theological debates aside, what can be proven is that the Great Deku Tree watches over the Faron Woods with a steady eye, and keeps the land vibrant and green and full of life. Pilgrims take a risk in venturing deep into the woods for the chance to place their hands on the bark of this mighty tree (to ask to intercede for their prayers, for blessings, etc.), and yet in the hundreds and hundreds of years of people doing this…despite the ever-present dangers in the Faron Woods…not a single pilgrim has been lost or has failed in their mission to reach the tree.

Gohma – It is a good thing that these creatures can take years and years to give birth, because if there were more of these creatures in existence or if they had a faster reproductive rate…the rest of the ecosystem would be in severe jeopardy. The best possible description of these beasts is, in the words of less formal scholars, "giant spiders with frickin' laser beams in their eyes." Admittedly, the qualifier attached to laser beams has been a more contemporary addition to the definition, but the fact remains that Gohmas, armored monstrous arachnids as they are, are the scourges of the forests. Thankfully, none are found outside of the depths of the Faron Woods. It makes one wonder if the reason they don't leave the woods is because they can't leave. Perhaps the Great Deku Tree plays a role in this cloistering? (See above)