By the time the full circle of the sun had risen into the sky, Link and Zelda were already on horseback, headed for the Kokiri Forest. For the first time, Zelda saw the tower and was taken back by its shear size. The sun shone eerily off the walls of the tower. It seemed as if some of the light was actually absorbed by the black substance. The route that they were going to take was not the most direct one, but they had no desire to come close to the menacing structure. In the distance to the west, they could see a large crowd of creatures making their way across Hyrule Field. Zelda only hoped that Hyrule's allies would get here soon.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nick and the other Knights were trying to devise a strategy as fast as they could. Having control of the entire Hylian army was something that Nick had never done before, although he had longed dreamt of it. And in this case, he would also have control over the armies of Dellenia, Malaank, and Larosia.
"So," Nick started, "When can we expect the reinforcements?" He looked in the direction of Aaron, William, and Robert.
"The forces of Malaank should be here within a day or two, depending on the seas," William informed him.
"My fellow countrymen should be here by nightfall, for they are already on their way here," Aaron said.
Robert looked at Nick and gave his response, "As you know, Larosia is the furthest away, so it will be a few days before they get here."
Nick wasn't thrilled with their responses, but he knew that there was no other choice. "Good enough, I guess. It'll have to be. As for now, we will divide the Hylian army among us and take position right outside Hyrule Castle. I just pray that your men arrive soon."
Just then, one of the Hylian soldiers ran into the room. "Sir, important message from the scouts!" He gave Nick a small piece of paper. After reading it, Nick turned to the others.
"An army of creatures has begun the trek to the tower. We must prepare ourselves for an attack. We will not attack them, we must defend the Castle until your men arrive." He turned back to the soldier. "Alert the army of the possibility of attack at any time." The soldier saluted him and left.
"Let's just hope that Link and Zelda find what they are looking for before it's too late."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By late afternoon, they had reached the entrance of the forest. The hollowed out tree trunk looked the same now as it had when Link began his first quest. They dismounted their horses, took their equipment, and entered the forest. Once inside, Link was at home once again with the familiar surroundings. Link went to the forest numerous times a year to visit with his old friends and the Great Deku Tree. He and Zelda were the only two outsiders welcomed into the forest, although Link was hardly an outsider.
Their arrival usually was met with a lot of happy Kokiri, but something was amiss this time. None of the children were outside, which was very strange. Usually the Kokiri would be out for as long as possible. To them, indoors was a boring place, its only purpose being a place to eat and sleep. The weather was extremely nice, which worried Link more. If the weather was good, and the sun in the sky, where were they?
"Hello?" he called out. Nothing, just the sound of the forest. Zelda tried her luck as well.
"Hello?" Still nothing responded. Curious, they made their way through the little village, and upon further inspection, they found that none of the Kokiri were in their homes, either. Zelda was obviously confused by the recent turn of events. Link turned to face her and immediately saw the look on her face, and smiled.
"Don't worry. I know where they are."
"How could you know? What if something terrible happened to them?" She was beginning to panic a little.
"They're in no danger. Just follow me." He gestured to her with his hand, and started to make his way through the village. She ran just enough to catch up with him, then slowed to his pace. He seemed confident of their whereabouts, but she still felt like there was something wrong. Then again, anything that didn't make sense to her made her feel that way. She continued to follow him through the forest until they were about to pass through the other end of the village. She now knew where he was taking her, but in all the times she had been here, she never ventured this far. They walked down a small corridor of trees and stepped into the Great Deku Tree Meadow.
Zelda's craned her neck upwards to see the top of the tree, but she sensed that something wasn't right about it. She continued to stare at the topmost point of the tree, almost like she was waiting for something to happen. Link caught her stare and looked in the same direction. With a smile and a small laugh, he put his hand on the top of her head and tilted it down. At first, she was surprised. She had been lost in her staring that she never saw him move. She then realized why he was doing it. There before her was the Great Deku Tree Sprout, a lot smaller than its predecessor, but it had only been growing for ten years. Making a half-circle in front of it were the Kokiri, sitting cross-legged on the ground.
"Children, leave us for now," commanded the Deku Tree. Without even a word, the Kokiri jumped up and ran past Link and Zelda, back into the village. "Link, Zelda, please sit." They both walked closer to the tree and sat onto the ground in front of it.
"Hello, Deku Tree," Link said cheerfully. He didn't know why, but every time he talked with the Deku Tree, his spirits would rise.
"Hello, Link. I have been expecting you two. You are on a quest, am I right?"
"We don't even know yet. The reason we came here was because Link's dream told him to." She looked at him with a face of disbelief, as if his dream was nonsense.
"That it did, and the dream told you something else, did it not?"
"Yes, yes it did. It told me to search for the Amulets," Link recalled. "But what Amulets?"
"The Amulets of the Goddesses. With these three Amulets, you will be able to dissipate the magic barrier that surrounds Ganondorf's tower."
Zelda was surprised. "How did you know about Ganondorf's tower?"
The Deku Tree let out a small laugh. "Princess, just because I'm rooted here does not mean that I can't see the world beyond the forests." Zelda seemed almost ashamed at her shallow thinking, but she never really knew that much about the Deku Tree.
"What are the Amulets?" Link asked, yearning to get on with the quest so he could get rid of Ganondorf again.
"The Amulets are ancient relics, made shortly after the Triforce took form. Ancient craftsmen formed the Amulets out of pure gold. They were beautifully crafted and were very valuable. The craftsmen offered them to the Goddesses and the Amulets were blessed with their essences. Great power became present in the Amulets, though not as nearly as powerful as the Triforce. The craftsmen couldn't let an evil person possess the Amulets, so they hid them away in separate areas of what is now Hyrule."
Link's curiosity was awakened at the prospects of finding three ancient Amulets blessed by the Goddesses. "Do you know where they are?"
"Vaguely."
Zelda spoke, with a little bit of frustration in her voice, "What do you mean, vaguely?"
"I mean, Princess, that I know the general area where you two can find the Amulets, but their exact position, I am unsure of. Farore's Bracer of Courage is located somewhere in the Lost Woods, Nayru's Necklace of Wisdom lies underneath Lake Hylia, and Din's Ring of Power lies in the depths of Death Mountain."
Link stood up, and Zelda followed suit. "Thank you, Deku Tree."
"Don't thank me, Link. It is all I can do to help you rid this land of that evil man. Good luck!"
The two travelers walked back into the village, where all the Kokiri were back to their normal morning activities. Some were fishing, some playing, some cooking, while others were doing some hard labor. As they walked by each one, Link waved and smiled, and each time, they waved and smiled back. Some of them still couldn't get used to the fact that this was the same Link that grew up in the forest, but one look into his eyes was all they needed to convince them. Finally, Link and Zelda came upon the entrance of the Lost Woods. As they stood there, Link only hoped that he remembered all the twists and turns of the Enchanted Forest, and hopefully, they would find the Amulet.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Sir, I would like to help out in any way I can." Jacob had a look of revenge in his eyes.
"And I will gladly accept your offer," Charles answered. "We sure need all the help we can get."
"Well, Sir, John and myself would like to join the Hylian army and defend the land against the evil," he requested back.
Charles balked for a moment upon hearing this. "But Jacob, John, you two are only sixteen. Surely there are other ways you are willing to help us?"
Jacob shook his head. "This is the only way we know how to avenge the deaths of our families, townspeople, and the destruction of our homes."
"Please, let us do this," John pleaded.
Charles thought about it, and then called Nick over. "Nick, what do you think? They went to join the army and help us defeat Ganondorf's forces."
Nick's initial response was no, but as he looked at the two teenaged boys standing in front of him, he could sense a real desire within them. Letting out an audible sigh, he said, "Yeah, alright. Seeing that it means so much to you. Charles, bring them to the armory and get them prepared for battle."
"Right away, Nick." Charles led the two boys down the hall and toward the armory. Nick stood there alone for a moment, but was soon joined by Aaron.
"Something bothering you, Nick?"
He sighed again. "It just seems that today's youth are too eager to arm themselves and fight." Aaron nodded. "They shouldn't be exposed to this. I always felt that the fathers should protect their sons by way of battle, not the other way around."
"It seems as if many young boys are taking up fighting now, more than ever. They try to compare themselves to Link. He was only ten when he went out to save the world, and they feel they can do the same." Aaron's explanation made some sense to Nick, but he was still uncomfortable with the idea of sending them off to war, possibly death. "I'm sure they'll be fine."
"I pray that you're right, my friend. I pray that you're right."
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
They made their way through the Lost Woods, rarely coming across an enemy or a dead end. Link feared getting lost in the Woods, but something told him that they were headed in the right direction. A short while ago, Zelda had spotted a strange green glow coming from deeper in the Woods. Since that time, they had tried to approach the light, which seemed to bend around trees and corners of the forest. They had made steady progress, and the light was becoming larger and larger.
They were in an area of the Woods that Link had never traveled. In fact, shortly after leaving the Kokiri Forest, he discovered that the part of the Lost Woods he was familiar with was just a fraction of the whole. This new region seemed even more dangerous to him, as each meadow and break in the trees seemed to be exactly the same. They were very lucky that Zelda had spotted the light, otherwise, they may have never gotten this far. He turned the corner down another path and suddenly found himself surrounded by the green light. The brightness caught up on them so quickly that they were momentarily blind.
"Link? Link, where are you?"
"I'm right here," he replied as he swung his arm wildly behind him, trying to find Zelda. "Grab on to my hand!" Upon hearing this, Zelda began to swing her arm blindly. By fate, or just pure luck, their arms contacted and they quickly grabbed a hold of each other's hand. The light was still blinding, and they continued to stand in place, afraid to move.
Slowly, the light died down and they could see again. They were in another meadow, but this one was more beautiful than the rest. The trees surrounding the small meadow were almost perfect in every way. Their bark was a perfect brown, their leaves beautifully green. Along the edges of the meadow seemed to be some sort of garden. How it got there and who kept it in shape was a complete mystery to them. The flowers gave off an array of many colors, from purple to red, yellow to orange. But what caught their attention the most was the object standing in the exact middle of the meadow. It was a shrine of some kind, small, yet beautiful. The base of it was a white, cylindrical column with groves along its side. On top of the column stood what appeared to be a fairy, also completely white. As they moved closer to the statue, they could feel the power coming from it. The fairy's hands were stretched above its head, holding the Amulet. The golden bracer seemed to glow on its own. Set in the bracer was a green stone. The stone was unfamiliar to both Link and Zelda. It didn't seem like it was of this world, rather that the Goddesses created it just for this purpose. Standing next to the statue, Link slowly raised his hands and grabbed a hold of the bracer. He could feel the power of it through his hands and realized that this was why no evil person could be allowed to obtain it. He was lost in the beauty of the object when he heard a faint rumbling. He stepped back from the statue just as it collapsed onto the ground. They stared at the remains of the statue, wondering what was going on. They turned toward each other when they heard another noise: the howling of six large Wolfos. The Wolfos encircled the Hero and the Princess and snarled threateningly at them. Link placed the Amulet into his satchel and drew the Master Sword.
The first Wolfos made a jump for Link, but he smoothly stepped aside from the attack and scored a hit across the beast's side. Infuriated, the Wolfos ran at him again, this time making no mistake as it landed on top of Link, his shield protecting his face from the Wolfos' sharp teeth. Zelda quickly notched an arrow and aimed at the heart of the large beast and let the arrow fly. The arrow hit true, and the Wolfos howled in pain before becoming limp and falling off of Link. The Hero jumped up and smiled at his wife, then turned to face the next attacker. This time, two Wolfos attacked him at once, and Zelda once again notched an arrow. But before she could fire, a third Wolfos jumped onto her back, pinning her to the ground. Link was completely unaware that Zelda was on the ground as he was defending himself.
Lying there, Zelda could feel the hot breath of the Wolfos on the back of her neck and she cringed with disgust. Calling upon the magic of the Triforce, she let loose a magic attack that hurled the Wolfos from her back, slamming it into a tree, killing it instantly. The two remaining Wolfos attacked her.
Link was still desperately trying to defend himself against the two attacking monsters. After battling for a few minutes, he decided on a course of action. As one of the Wolfos leaped forward at him, he swung with his shield arm. The shield caught the Wolfos squarely in the face, causing it to run back from its prey. It stood stunned about ten feet away, but Link had his sights set on the other Wolfos. Almost instantly, the second Wolfos jumped at him, teeth ready to tear his skin from his bones. He performed a front flip over it and landed directly behind it. Without a moment of hesitation, Link brought the Master Sword down on the still confused Wolfos, breaking its neck. The beast fell without a sound. The remaining Wolfos was no longer stunned and attacked Link from behind. The claws of the beast tore four gashes into his back. Although not fatal, the injury was very painful, causing Link to stagger some. The Wolfos made another leap at Link, but he jumped out of the way in time. As he tried to circle around the monster, Link's foot got tangled up with some underbrush, and he fell flat on his back, the pain increasing to the point of agony. The Wolfos turned in its tracks and stared at its fallen prey. Confidently, the beast jumped into the air once again, ready to sink its teeth into Link. Reacting on instincts, Link raised his sword into the air, impaling the large creature as it was coming down on him. The two enemies sat there, face-to-snout, and Link could see the fear in its eyes. Finally, the Wolfos stopped breathing and Link pushed it off.
Zelda used her magic to defend herself from her attackers, but she couldn't find the time she needed to cast an attack spell again. The two Wolfos were taking turns jumping at her, wearing her down so that they could finish her off. Though stupid, these creatures knew some tactics of their own, and this one was working. Steadily, her magic was draining and she was becoming very exhausted as the battle went on. She wasn't sure how much more of the beating she could take before her defenses were worn out and she was thrown at the mercy of the two beasts. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement and knew that it was Link. He had taken out his bow and aimed a fire arrow at one of the beasts. He let the arrow fly and it hit the unsuspected Wolfos right in the face. Its fur immediately caught on fire as it tried to free itself of the intense pain. Finally, the creature slumped over onto its side, flesh and fur still burning. The beast breathed its last. The lone remaining Wolfos turned on Link and prepared to take out its new enemy. It hesitated slightly, as if it wasn't sure if it should leave Zelda there. The beast's hesitation was all Zelda needed to draw another magic attack. Before the Wolfos could get to Link, it was sent flying into a tree, stunned. Still alive, it got back up and headed for Zelda. She didn't wait for it to come down on her, instead she attacked it as it ran at her. The second wave of magic hit the Wolfos, so powerful that it actually disintegrated it on the spot.
Zelda fell to her knees, exhausted from battle. She wasn't used to it like Link was, but she felt that she fared quite well. Link walked over to her and laid down beside her.
"You okay?"
"Yeah. Just need to rest for awhile," she said, breathing hard at the same time. He simply nodded and they both relaxed on the ground of the meadow.