It was dusk when the Songbird landed. Max was already more than a bit surprised by what he'd learned about Hyrule. He could actually understand Hyrule's unusual level of technology, after all they communicated often with places like Mushroom Kingdom, but learning that Link was a pilot... that kinda threw him off.
"So what exactly are we doing in Hyrule, Link?" he asked.
Link turned around to look at him and Mario, the red sky behind him as they sat on an airstrip. "That's a good question... what ARE you guys doing here? Was there a party or something and I didn't get invited! Why does this always happen to me?"
Mario started laughing and finally stopped Link. "Cause dis kid ain't Captain N yet. Where's ya girlfriend at?"
Link looked up. "Zelda? She's probably waiting just outside the airstrip."
North Palace was a hell of a lot bigger than it looked in Zelda 2. The airstrip in the back of the palace was suspended off the side of a cliff, and overlooked a forest below. Inside were two women. One had dark hair like Link and had on some small glasses and a red suitcoat with Hyrule's royal crest. The other had on a blue suitcoat far too small for her and a skirt that showed a lot of leg. Both of them were waving to the small group.
"Ah, see, there she is!"
Max was a little confused by Link's statement. "Uh... which one?"
Link pointed first to Princess Zelda in the red suit. "Hello, Link.", she responded.
"Hey! Point to me! Come on, Linky!", screamed the other. Link pointed over to her, and she giggled happily, and introduced herself as Princess Zelda.
"...Huh?" said Max (yeah he's confused too, don't worry.) "You're both Princess Zelda?"
"Well, yes", responded the one in red. "Link defeated Ganon and saved me when we were kids."
"Aha, and Link woke me up from a deep sleep later on!" the other Princess Zelda said.
Max stared at Zelda. Then at Zelda. Then back at Zelda. Then at Zelda again. "Gee, I think I need to memorize your names… but I think I get it. Zelda 1 and Zelda 2's princesses aren't the same. Now, Link which one is your girlfriend?"
Link pointed to the cute one in blue with the lighter hair, then they both proceeded to jump up and down like idiots while holding hands. "Cute, huh?" The other Zelda queried. "Anyway Max, we brought you to Hyrule because we're having a major problem at one of our chief sites... Parapa Palace."
"Parapa Palace?", responded Max. "The desert Northeast of here?"
Zelda nodded. "Of course we've had problems with bandits and pirates before at our sites, but recently things have gotten seriously out of hand. It's getting to where Link and Zelda are our last trump card, and even they can't fend them all off now!"
Max stopped for a minute. "Uh... you mean the other Zelda right?"
Zelda smiled. "Yes, the other Zelda. And believe me, she's not a ditz or anything, she just... really likes Link. They've really been overworked lately, and Mario has his own work he needs to get back to... I'd really like to give Link and Zelda a breather, but I just don't feel comfortable doing something like that..."
Max stopped her. "...I think I understand what you mean. Don't worry about it! If this involves space pirates I'm sure Samus Aran will show up too, right?"
Zelda thought for a moment. "Well, I do suppose. And she COULD be a lot of help to you. In any case, tomorrow we'll head out for Parapa Desert. In the meantime, why don't you get some sleep?"
Max once again had the luxury of a big royal bed all to himself. He could hardly sleep, just thinking about all the adventure he would have in this new world, so late that night he got up to look around. That's when he heard a noise outside his window: Someone was breaking in!
"Wh-who's there? I've got a... well I don't really have anything but I... huh?" Max was a bit surprised to find that the intruder was the weird girl from before in the sweater. "What do you want?"
"What are you trying to prove?" said the girl in the sweater. "Douchebags like you have no respect for what comes before you, it's just "whoo adventure this" and "whoo videogames that". I swear people around here just don't get it..."
Max got up slowly. "Uhm... what do you mean?"
Sweater girl looked him coldly, ordering him to sit back down. "Go home, Max. Go home before you get killed."
"But I can't." Max explained. "It's impossible now..."
The girl looked him in the eyes once more. "Then stay out of my way." And with that, she jumped out the window and disappeared.
The next day, Link, Zelda (the other Zelda!), and Max were heading out to Parapa desert. The issue of this angry woman was really getting on Max nerves, so he finally asked Link about her.
"Her? Yeah, she's been seen around places... doesn't talk much though, you know? I think she's just shy... anyway, most of us just call her Turtle cause she hides in that big sweater like it's a shell. She doesn't seem like a bad person or anything, just weird."
"Hmm", said Max as they rolled through the desert. "I wonder if that will change..."
Meanwhile, a colossal satellite orbiting the planet got a terrifying signal.
"Sir, we just got a message from the Galactic Federation", Lieutenant Lenny said. "Ridley himself is paying a visit to Hyrule."
"WHAT! NOW?" Needless to say, General Mushmellow was a bit shocked. "Why? Doesn't he have puppies and kittens to cook in a microwave or something?"
"Well sir, if it's any consolation, Samus Aran is also on the planet, not far from the ruins that his pirates have been attacking so much. Should I call her and tell her now?"
"...Yes. But nobody else. Samus doesn't freak out about these things, and she knows when to keep a secret. Contact her right away."
So far, things were pretty quiet at the Parapa site. Dry and hot, yes, but not particularly dangerous. Max though had again wandered off to a remote section of the ruins to gather his thoughts about his first assignment. He was actually inside the palace, Not far from the elevator back outside, when he heard a voice coming from up on the wall, near the windows which poured sunlight into the dark place.
"You know it's dangerous to go alone, right?" It was the girl in the sweater, yet again.
Max sighed. "You again? What do you want from me this time?"
Surprisingly, she didn't stare angrily at him (or even scornfully). She actually was kinda smiling. "Come up and sit with me for a minute, would ya?"
Max shrugged, and climbed up to join her. "There you go! Come on, it's okay I don't bite, dude... There you go."
"You're suddenly very nice to me...?" Max mentioned.
The girl thought for a moment. "Yeah, well, I was thinking and you know... I was kind of a hypocrite... talking about all the gullible people around here, when I was making assumptions about you... you aren't REALLY an idiot, are you?"
Max laughed a little and looked in her eyes. "No, of course not. And I'm gonna finish this assignment, whatever it throws at me."
The girl in the sweater smiled back. "Then I think I owe you a big apology for the things I said, and for knocking you down. You really aren't that bad."
Max smiled. "Neither are you."
Within minutes, they were talking like old friends, and put their somewhat rough past behind them. Max's attraction to this girl was growing even stronger since their dispute had resolved, and it looked like she shared the feeling. As Max looked into her eyes, he could see something, that made his heart beat twice as fast. She wouldn't say it, he knew, but looking into her eyes, he saw that she was shyly hiding feelings for him. As he fumbled for ways to evolve their connection past being good buddies, her phone rang.
"Ugh, just a minute... yeah? ...Wait... slow down... okay... ...right now? Alright... no, I can do it... I'm in Parapa right now, anyways. I'll be ready in a few minutes... okay bye." She sighed and turned to Max. "I'm sorry, Max... I have to go."
Max called out to her as she left. "Will I ever see you again?"
The girl in the big sweater turned around and smiled. "Definetely. And very soon."