I left the temple upset and more than a little confused, a new potion stored in my pouch. I walked in a haze all the way up the hill, and then I heard the cries for help. I drew my sword-an automatic action.

Off the small cliff where I stood, a round, humanoid creature was surrounded by red trolls holding big knives. The round creature called for help again, and I leapt down from my perch, slicing one of the trolls to dust as I came. Of course, I was surrounded in the next second.

A spin attack, followed by fatal blows as quick as I could deliver them, dispatched most of the others. The last two I had some trouble slipping my sword past their big knives. I was cut a few times, but they weren't deep, so I ignored them. Once the trolls were dead, I wiped some blood off my face and turned to face the unknown round creature.

"Wow! That was some craaaaazy moves, bud!" it-well, he-yelled. "Thanks for saving me there. Those red creeps are crawling around everywhere. I'd be busted if it weren't for you."

"Don't mention it," I answered. "I needed to blow off some steam and those trolls deserved it."

"Bokogoblins," he corrected me. Then he remembered himself, introducing himself as Gorko. "I'm an archeologist by trade, and I wander around, looking for relics from the time when the Goddess was with us. Speaking of, come look at this!"

Gorko ran off to the corner of the small clearing. I trailed after him, unwillingly, sheathing my sword. Hidden under a fountain of ivy was a stone statue of a bird. It looked unremarkable, until it glowed a fierce orange.

"Whoa!" Gorko hollered. "It's never done that before!"

A beam of light shot from the statue and disappeared into the clouds. I was certain Gorko would faint, though I didn't care either way.

"You must have activated it! Amazing! That would mean all the other statues are active now! I wonder if now they'll live up to the legends and take someone up to the Goddess' floating city..."

I left Gorko to his amazement and ran up the hill. The sooner I got to Faron woods, the closer to Link I'd be. And whatever warped destiny I had, it would have to wait until Link was safe. Nothing mattered until I got my best friend home.

There were more cries of red trolls-Bokogoblins-ahead. I climbed out of a small ravine and saw them circling a bush, chattering. It then occurred to me that the bush was squealing in terror. The moment I stood upright, the Bokogoblins rushed me. My sword sliced through them with no effort, and they were finished in seconds, leaving nothing behind aside from a few Ornamental Skulls. I walked over to the bush slowly.

Imagine my surprise when the bush stood up, revealing a tiny, brown, soft-looking creature. Then it talked.

"Kwii? Are the monsters gone?" Then it saw me. "Ahhh! Another one! And blue this time! Don't eat me!"

The creature flopped onto it's stomach, and the bush opened on it's back again, effectively hiding it. I knelt by it, putting my sword away.

"I'm not going to hurt you, little one," I assured the bush-creature. "I hate the bokogoblins as much as you do. In any case, I don't eat...well, whatever you are."

The bush vanished and the creature stood up.

"Kee-paleep? You won't?"

I promised I wouldn't, and the creature told me that he was a Kikwi, the native inhabitants of Faron Woods.

"My name is Machi," he continued. "Hey, come to think of it, I saw another funny animal like you running through the woods earlier."

"You did?" I asked, excited for the first time today. "Was he a head taller than me, with blue eyes, and dirty blonde hair?"

"Yeah, kwee. He was being chased by a whole swarm of those red guys. He was running away with the Kikwi elder."

"Do you know where I can find this elder?"

"Not really, kee-koo," Machi answered. "Sometimes he hides near the big tree. Oh, if you find him, can you tell him I'm safe?"

"Sure," I agreed. Machi then spent the next few minutes pointing out where the other members of the Kikwi tribe were; well, more of where he had last seen them.

Slipping my map into my pouch, I ran to the big tree, only stopping once to kill a few Deku Baba and a Quadro Baba. I spotted the elder-which wasn't hard due to his considerable bulk-across a small ravine. A vine, which was placed conveniently in my way, proved an easy way to cross over. The elder, Bucha, was very thankful to know that all his tribe members were safe. He even gave me a slingshot to thank me, though what use a slingshot would be, I had no idea.

"Kweee! Yes, I was with the boy," Bucha told me after I asked about Link. "I helped him escape the red monsters crawling through the woods. He ran faster than I could, so I lost him, but I'm sure I saw him go into the deep woods."

Bucha pointed me in the right direction, and I thanked him briefly before running off.

So close. Close enough to taste it.

So close!