My, the quest to get awaken the Spirit Sage is a long one! This chapter was hard to write because it seemed to go on forever. Thanks for reading and please review.
xXx
Shinichi left behind the lush fields of Hyrule and headed for the hot Gerudo desert. Problems arose immediately, but he was after the last spirit medallion, so he expected there to be numerous obstacles.
"Did Gin's followers really think they could stop me just by cutting the only bridge to the desert?" Shinichi snorted, "My Longshot will easily get us across. It wasn't a very thought out plan. Why even bother?"
Ai shook her head, "It's not about the cut bridge, but the message that the cut bridge sends. After you cross this bridge, you will be entirely in enemy territory. Across this bridge lives the Gerudo, the desert people, and they are clearly telling you that they do not want you here."
Shinichi nodded at her words, "I guess you are right. With all of the other temples, the people living in the nearby area were peaceful and had no ill will against me. But the Gerudo have already put themselves against me…this won't be easy."
Shinichi pulled out his Longshot and within seconds he was across the deep drop that separated Hyrule Fields from the Gerudo Desert. He set off through the gorge, the ground becoming more elevated as he walked.
He walked around a large boulder and saw a young man seated on a rock on the other side. The hero paused in surprise; he wasn't expecting to see anyone till he got closer to the Gerudo village. The other boy turned to him as he approached. Shinichi saw his eyes pause and take in the Master Sword strapped to his back. His eyes widened and he stood and approached Shinichi.
"You there, are you a swordsman?" he asked Shinichi.
Shinichi blinked, "Ah…I suppose I am.
The boy nodded and took a step closer to Shinichi, "You have to help me. My friend, she is in the Gerudo village up ahead. I haven't heard from her in a while and I'm worried something happened to her. But I'm just the son of a botanist, and I don't know anything about fighting. Please, you must come with me and help my friend."
Shinichi could hear a note of desperation in the other's voice. "Of course I'll help. I'm on my way to the Gerudo village myself. I have some business there. My name is Shinichi," he added.
"I'm Hakuba, pleasure to meet you Shinichi," the other said in a polite tone.*
They shook hands and began to walk together to the village.
xXx
Shinichi and his new companion, Hakuba, crouched hidden behind a boulder and inspected the village. The village was nestled into the side of a mountain. All of the structures were built of stacked stones and the tops were completely flat to catch any precious rainwater that might fall. Some of the buildings looked to be stacked on top of each other creating multiple levels to the village. The lack of plant life of any kind left the village looking unfinished to the hero, who grew up in the forest and had never seen a desert before.
The thing that worried Shinichi the most was the multiple guards that passed around the village. He counted three, no four, women patrolling around the village. He could tell by their similar appearance that they were all Gerudo. All the guards were women with brown skin that spoke of the harsh desert sun. Their outfits were brightly colored, and they all wore the same slipper like shoes with the tips curled up. Their pants looked loose and airy and they used a tiny piece of clothe to cover their chest, but they left their stomach bare and exposed. Oh, and one more thing, they all carried sharp looking glaives. Not sure what a glaive is? It's a scary looking blade attached to a long pole.
"How do we get in?" Hakuba whispered.
Shinichi shrugged his shoulders and turned to his fairy, "Any suggestions, Ai?"
The fairy thought for a moment before she finally answered, "Let yourself get caught."
Hakuba hissed, "What? Are you crazy? Shinichi, tell her she is insane!"
Shinichi pulled away and rubbed a finger around his ear with a scowl, Hakuba had hissed/whispered right into his ear, "Ai, I know from past experiences that your ideas always end up working. However, could you humor us simpletons by explaining your plan to us?"
Ai stifled a chuckle when Hakuba huffed at being called 'simpleton.' She answered, "Well it's simple really. It looks to me like most of the guarding is focused on the perimeter of the village. I bet they don't expect anyone to get past them, so they don't think they need to guard the inside of the village as heavily. You are outnumbered 2:1 with a gardener as your backup (Hakuba, "Botanist!") and each one of those girls looks like they know exactly what they are doing with their glaives. So my suggestion, get caught. Let them bring you into the village, then escape."
Hakuba crossed his arms and frowned at the fairy, "I suppose you are assuming that the Gerudo won't simply kill us on the spot."
Shinichi interrupted before Ai could reply, "It's the only plan we've got so we might as well go with it. If the Gerudo try to kill us after capturing us, I'll think of something. Now come one!"
Hakuba sighed but didn't argue further.
xXx
The females shrieked with laughter as they threw Shinichi and Hakuba down the hole and into the prison below, "Stupid men, stay down there and keep quiet."
Shinichi landed with a crouch while Hakuba landed hard on his ass. The botanist wasn't use to being thrown around, unlike our harassed hero. Shinichi waited until he could no longer hear the laughing women and then he turned to Hakuba.
"Are you alright?" he asked his new travel companion. The other nodded so he turned and inspected their surroundings, "It looks like the only door out is the one we came in, that hole in the ceiling. There is also a window, but it's pretty high up."
Hakuba frowned in worry, "What do we do? How are we going to get out?"
Shinichi turned to Hakuba with a confidant smile, "Well lucky for us, they didn't take any of my weapons or equipment. They must have been confidant that we wouldn't be able to get out of here." He pulled out his Longshot. "I can use this to hook to the top of the window."
"Can it lift both of us?" Hakuba asked.
"I'm sure it can, it's very strong. You are going to have to hold on to me very tightly," he answered.
The two of them got out without any problems and took cover behind a wooden crate. Hakuba peeked his head out, "It's clear, let's get inside."
They were able to run inside a nearby building. As soon as they made it inside, Shinichi saw a small cell. "I wonder why they didn't throw us in there," he said to Hakuba.
"Probably because there is already someone in there," he replied.
Shinichi looked and saw that the botanist was right, a large man stood inside the cell. They made there was closer to the cell and the man finally noticed them. "I don't know where you two came from, but you must have a lot of guts to make it past all of the guards around here," he grunted at them.
"Who are you?" Hakuba asked the man.
The man replied, "I'm Ichiro, the carpenter. Me and my fellow carpenters were repairing the bridge outside of the Gerudo desert. We uh…decided we wanted to visit the lady folk if you know what I mean. Anyway, they threw us in prison. Somewhere in this fortress is my fellow carpenter buddies. You have to let us out, we didn't mean any harm; we were just flirtin' with the ladies."
Hakuba turned to Shinichi who shrugged, "We can't just leave them in here. Who knows what the Gerudo will do to them."
Hakuba nodded, "Okay, but how are we going to get the keys to the cell?"
"You mean like this key?" a voice came from behind them. The two boys turned and found a Gerudo standing behind them. She was holding a silver key up and waving it around with a smirk on her face.
Shinichi smiled at the Gerudo, "I suppose you won't just give that key to me, will you?"
The Gerudo smiled and took a fighting stance. She used twin swords and crouched low to the ground. One sword held high behind her back and the other low in front of her. "No I won't, but if you defeat me, you can have it," she answered before springing forward.
Shinichi blocked her blow and the two began fight. The Gerudo woman was very skilled, and her fighting style was very graceful. She looked almost like she was dancing. She brought both swords down at the same time, Shinichi blocked just in time, "You are a very skilled fighter, it has been awhile since I fought a human as skilled as you."
The Gerudo smirked, "Thank you, trespasser. The Gerudo people are very skilled warriors. We are trained in the art of fighting at a very young age." She flung his sword away and sprang at him.
Shinichi jumped back to avoid her blow and retaliated with one of his own, "I see, but why are you fighting us? And why are you holding the carpenters prisoner? We have done nothing wrong."
The Gerudo suddenly frowned, "You came to our lands, that is enough. We cut the bridge connecting our desert with the rest of Hyrule, and yet still you men came. Our orders were to not let any outsiders into out lands. Anyone that trespasses will be punished."
It was Shinichi's turn to frown, "Whose orders?"
"Enough talk," she snarled before throwing herself into the fight. It was all Shinichi could do to avoid her blows, he was completely on the defensive.
"Ai, a little help here," Shinichi called to his fairy.
"What do you expect me to do?" she called back in frustration.
Hakuba suddenly called to the hero, "I think I have a plan." He came up behind Shinichi and pushed the hero out of the way. The Gerudo paused for a moment in confusion and he threw a hand full of some brown powder in her face.
"What? Is that Valerian roots?" The Gerudo had enough time to ask before she collapsed onto the ground.**
Hakuba saw Shinichi's concerned look, "Don't worry, she is just sleeping." He held up a small glass bottle; Shinichi could see a brown powder inside. "I threw crushed Valerian root in her face. It instantly put her to sleep."
Shinichi was impressed, "I think you sold yourself a little short when we met. You may not be able to fight, but you have your own talents."
The botanist shrugged, "Plants can be more mysterious then most people think. Not all plants are just for looking and smelling nice. I have learned that during all my years working with them."
Shinichi took the prison key off of the sleeping Gerudo and released the carpenter. He thanked them and left presumably to sneak back to Hyrule.
xXx
Shinichi and Hakuba continued deeper into the Gerudo city. They had to sneak around to avoid detection by guards. Sometimes a guard would block a door or hallway, but during those times Hakuba used his trusty Valerian root to put them to sleep. Still, they tried to avoid using the sleeping powder as much as possible. If the other guards suddenly found a bunch of sleeping Gerudo lying around, it could cause them to become suspicious.
"So this friend of yours, is he one of the carpenters imprisoned in here?" Shinichi asked.
The botanist hesitated, "Not exactly."
Shinichi would have asked him to elaborate, but a new voice interrupted, "Is someone there? Please, get me out of here."
"It looks like you found another imprisoned carpenter," Ai told the two.
Shinichi and Hakuba made their way to the man in the cell. The man spoke, "My name is Jiro. I'm a carpenter and I was repairing the bridge when…"
"We know," Hakuba interrupted, "We'll get you out as soon as we can find a key. I bet there is a guard nearby that has a key."
"You mean like me?" A Gerudo guard behind them spoke up.
Shinichi turned and gave the guard a scowl, "Do the Gerudo have a habit of sneaking up on people and making their entrance at just the right moment?"
Hakuba also frowned, "And let me guess, if we defeat you, you will give us the key?"
The female Gerudo gave them both a winning smile, "Well I see you both know my lines, so I won't bore you with the rest." She raised her twin swords and sprang forward.
Once again, Shinichi and the Gerudo fought. They circled around each other, both looking for an opening and finding none. Hakuba watched, keeping his eyes peeled for any moment when he could slip the guard some Valerian root powder. When the opportunity didn't arise, he had to resort to more desperate measures.
"Sorry Shinichi," he called out before he covered his nose with his sleeve and threw some of the powder at the two.
The guard was caught completely by surprise…as was Shinichi. The hero had already taken a deep breath of the powder before he realized what the botanist had done. "Hakuba, wha…" he had enough time to utter before he fell unconscious next to the female Gerudo.
Ai turned to Hakuba, "Now that the only one in our group that can fight is unconscious, no thanks to you, what do you suggest we do now?"
The other gave her an arrogant smirk, "Do you really think I have a plant to put someone to sleep but not a plant that can wake someone up? Just give me a moment; I'll have him awake in a moment."
He rolled Shinichi onto his back and cupped the back of the hero's head, propping it up off the ground a little. He reached into a pouch at his side and pulled out a tiny glass bottle with an amber colored liquid inside. He carefully poured a couple drops of the liquid into Shinichi's mouth and waited.
After just a moment, Shinichi showed signs of waking up. "KID, is that you?" he mumbled before opening his eyes. He blinked in confusion when he saw Hakuba.
"Are you ok, Shinichi? And I wouldn't say I'm a child, I'm probably the same age as you," Hakuba asked confused.
Shinichi blushed, "Oh, uh I'm fine. Let's move on before the Gerudo wakes up."
"Hey guys, don't forget me!" Jiro called from his cell.
Shinichi took the key from the Gerudo and unlocked Jiro's cell door. "Thanks for letting me out, kid. Say, you are kinda cute, better looking than some of those Gerudo women in here even," the carpenter chuckled. Shinichi sputtered a little, not really sure what to say. "Aww, you don't need to be shy, although it does just make you look even cuter. Am I right?" he smacked Hakuba hard on the back.
"Get your hands off of me, you great oaf. Why don't you get out of here before another Gerudo throws you in prison? Come on Shinichi, Ai, let's get moving." Hakuba began walking to the door without waiting for Shinichi.
xXx
"So Hakuba," Ai began. She saw the botanist tense and inwardly grinned, "I noticed you got a little angry back there when Jiro started talking about how cute Shinichi is."
Hakuba let his breath out in relief, "Oh that. I didn't care about that, I just didn't like it when he slapped me on the back."
"So you don't think Shinichi is cute?" Ai questioned.
Hakuba retorted, "I didn't say that."
"Well it's a good thing you don't think Shinichi is cute, because he already has a boyfriend," Ai replied ignoring Shinichi's growing blush.
"I never said I didn't think he was cute! I think he is actually quite attractive, actually. But that doesn't matter and I don't care if he has a boyfriend because I'm already in love with my friend we are going to rescue!" He all but shouted at the fairy.
Ai was giving him a smug look, or she was until she felt a hand close around her tiny body. She squeaked in surprise. "Alright Ai, I think it's time you took a nap under my hat," Shinichi told the tiny fairy before throwing her underneath his hat. He walked with Hakuba in silence for awhile. Finally he felt the need to break the silence, "So your friend, were they kidnapped by the Gerudo?"
His companion sighed, "Actually, she is a Gerudo. Her name is Aoko."
Shinichi nodded, "Why don't you tell me what happened."
The botanist nodded, "When I was young, the Gerudo use to come to my village. They weren't as hostile to others back then, and sometimes the women would become the girlfriends of the men in my village. One day, she came."
"Aoko," Shinichi asked although it wasn't really a question.
Hakuba nodded, "She had never been outside of the Gerudo desert before as she had only just turned old enough to travel with the other Gerudo. She spotted me and walked right up to me and introduced herself. We immediately became friends. She was curious about everything. She told me she wasn't use to seeing so much green."
"So what happened?" Shinichi asked.
"I don't know. One day, about seven years ago, she told me she wasn't allowed to see me anymore. She was crying. When I asked her why, she just shook her head and said something about the king and left. I was too young to try to help her back then, but I just became of age, so I set out immediately," Hakuba finished.
Shinichi sighed, "And that was about when I met you, a lone botanist without any weapons to defend himself against a group of violent women."
Hakuba glared, "Seven years ago, they weren't violent. Sure they loved swords and knives, and they never passed up the opportunity to best their boyfriends in a fight, but they didn't lock people up for no good reason."
"So something must have changed seven years ago. I can only think of one thing, or more specifically, one person. Ai, are you listening to this?" Shinichi looked up toward his hat.
His fairy lazily raised the brim of his hat with one hand so that she could be seen, "Of course. And I know where you are going with that thought and I agree, it must be the work of Gin."
Hakuba looked up, "Who is Gin?"
Before Shinichi could explain, a gruff voice spoke up, "Hey kids, let me out." They had found another imprisoned carpenter.
Shinichi began to walk to the cell but stopped when a Gerudo blocked his path. This one looked like every other guard except for one key difference, the lower half of her face was covered with a piece of cloth. She saw Shinichi looking at it, "That's right, intruder, we found some of the guards sleeping and were able to figure out what happened. Your tricks won't work so easily on me. If you want to release that man, you will have to defeat me the old fashioned way."
"But why imprison them in the first place?" Shinichi questioned.
"Because our king demands it. Now fight me!" She charged.
Hakuba watched the two fight, but had to stop. They moved so fast, it made him dizzy trying to keep up. Their swords were like extensions of their arms, the way they moved them. It looked effortless. And yet…yes, now that he looked for it, he could see the beads of sweat on Shinichi's brow, the heavy breaths the Gerudo was taking. They were growing tired, and fast. The fight would soon end.
Shinichi chose that moment to knock the twin swords from the Gerudo's grip and point the Master Sword at her slender throat. The Gerudo froze and glared with hatred at the hero. "I won, now give me the key to the carpenter's cell," he told her while panting slightly.
At first, Hakuba didn't think she would do it, but then she reached into her pocket and tossed a silver key at him. He caught it and went to unlock the carpenter's cell. "Thanks kid, my name is Shiro," he told Shinichi before leaving through the door. Hakuba knew he wouldn't have any trouble getting out, he had drugged half the guards in the fortress.
The two heard slow clapping. They turned to the door as a new Gerudo walked into the room. Shinichi raised his sword but she stopped him, "Put that thing away, boy. You could hurt someone. I'm not interested in fighting you." Shinichi hesitantly lowered his sword. The Gerudo smiled. She was very beautiful and she had long red hair, "My name Akako, and I have seen you're fine work. I use to think all men were useless," she paused and cleared her throat, "All men but the great Gin of course. But today, after seeing you in action, I realized I was wrong. The great Vermouth put me in charge of this fortress. Vermouth is the second-in-command to the great Gin, King of the Gerudo thieves. Her headquarters are in the Spirit Temple, which is at the end of the desert."
Shinichi looked at her suspiciously, "Why are you telling me this?"
Akako laughed. Shinichi shivered, her laugh was creepy, like the cackle of a witch. She answered, "Because I figured you would want to meet her. After all, I have just decided to make you an honorary member of the Gerudo tribe. Your fighting impressed me, so I am giving you membership."
Hakuba asked, "Why would he want to be part of the Gerudo tribe?"
Akako turned to him and gave him a mischievous smile, "Simple, now that he is a member, he has free access to the desert, our fortress, the training grounds, and he can talk to any Gerudo in the desert without having to fight them first. As for you, young botanist….you have also impressed me."
Hakuba raised an eyebrow, "I don't suppose I get some fancy membership as well, because I really don't have use for it."
She chuckled, "No, I have something else I think you want more. You may not wield a sword, but you have your own weapon of choice, the plants you use. As I said, you impressed me. Your reward is what you came here for. I see no reason why you cannot be friends with our young Aoko."
Hakuba froze, "A-Aoko?"
A young Gerudo, somewhere around Shinichi and Hakuba's age, came running in and threw herself into Hakuba's arms. "Haku, You really came! I heard the rumors from the other girls, but I didn't believe them. But you are really came! I have missed you all of these years, I never forgot about you."
Hakuba came out of his shock and awkwardly hugged her in return, a small blush on his face, "I missed you too."
Shinichi smiled at the two. "Come on Shinichi, our business here is done. Let's cross the desert and find the Spirit Temple," Ai told her companion.
xXx
"You really want to go out into the desert?" the Gerudo asked.
Shinichi sighed in frustration, "For the third time, yes. I have business at the Spirit Temple. Please open the gate and let me pass."
The guard looked at Shinichi long and hard, as if measuring him up, and her expression said she wasn't impressed by what she saw. "You are crazy, rookie. Even we Gerudo hesitate before going deep into the desert. We will die out there….but, if you are really so determined, who I am to stop you. I will open the gate for you."
Shinichi smiled in relief, "Thank you."
"But," She continued, "I will at least give you some information before you go. When making your way to the Spirit Temple, there will be two trials you must face. The first is the River of Sand. You cannot walk across this river. If you do manage to get across the River of Sand, follow the flags we have placed, they will lead you to the second trial. The second trial is the Phantom Guide. Those without eyes that can see the truth will only find themselves returning here."
The hero blinked in confusion at the Gerudo's strange information. He wasn't exactly sure what she was talking about, "Thank you for the information."
The Gerudo gave him one last look before shrugging her shoulders and raising the gate. Shinichi walked through and she immediately closed the gate behind him.
As soon as Shinichi left the high protective walls of the Gerudo fortress, the wind beat down on him and sent sand into his eyes. He squinted against the sand storms trying to see. With little else to do, he made his way forward. He thought he could see in the distance two tall poles with a red cloth tied to them. They must be the flags the gate guard was talking about, but where was the River of Sand?
Shinichi made his way to the two flags keeping his eyes on the ground in attempt to protect them from the sand. He looked up again and saw something that made him pause; the sand seemed to be crawling along the ground. What? He cautiously moved closer and saw just past the two flags was the patch of strange crawling sand. Now that he was closer, he could finally see what it was: quicksand.
After living in the forest all his life, he had only heard stories of deserts and the mysteries they contained. One story he remembered was about quicksand. He hadn't believed they were real, believed they were just stories the Kokiri children had made up to scare him. But now the truth was staring him in the face.
He picked up a random animal skull; because that's something every hot desert has, right? Maybe next to a cactus? He tossed it up in the air and caught it before casually flicking his wrist and tossing it into the quicksand. Within moments, the skull was gone, completely swallowed by the sands.
He considered going around the patch of crawling sand, but a quick glance to the left and right showed that it seemed to stretch for miles. Well the Gerudo did say this was a trial, going around the quicksand would be too easy.
"Ai, I think it's a puzzle. She told me I can't walk over the River of Sand. But I bet I can fly over it," he pulled out his Longshot and squinted his eyes, scanning the other side of the quicksand. Sure enough, he could barely make out another set of flags on the other side. He took careful aim and fired the Longshot. It hit one of the flag poles and the sharp point imbedded itself deep into the wood. He pushed the button on the handle and flew across the quicksand safely to the other side.
Now what was the next part? Oh yeah, follow the flags. He squinted into the distance; he could barely make out a red flag in the distance. The wind blew the sand into the air making it hard to see it, sometimes concealing it completely. He kept his eyes glued to the flag and began walking. When he made it to the flag, he looked around. Ah, there! He could just barely see the next flag, but he began walking.
He kept this pattern up until he was deep in the desert. The only thing within site was sand, sand, sand, and the next flag. After doing this for some time, he saw not one, but a circle of red flags in the distance. It had to be his destination. He walked to the circle of flags and looked down. Half buried in the sand was a small stone altar. It had a path that looped around the outside and lead to the top. He walked around the altar until he found the start of the path and started the short journey to the top. It didn't take very long, the altar wasn't very tall.
Once at the top, he saw a tablet with writing on it. It read, "One with the Eye of Truth shall be guided to the Spirit Temple by an inviting ghost." The instructions were pretty straight forward. He pulled out the Lens of Truth and looked around. Floating high above his head was a Poe. She noticed Shinichi looking at her through the lens and she let out a cackle of laughter.
"I'll be your guide on your way, but coming back I won't play! I'll show you the only way to go, so follow me and don't be slow!" with those last words, she began floating away.
"Hey, wait," Shinichi cried and ran after her. The ghost was very fast and he had a lot of trouble keeping up, especially considering he was running on sand, which isn't that easy to run on. He had no choice however; there were no red flags to follow this time, just the ghost. So he followed her up and down the sand dunes, farther and farther into the desert. Sometimes the ghost seemed to be toying with him. She would suddenly change directions and make Shinichi retrace his steps, as if she were trying to lose him. Shinichi noticed however that if he ever lost sight of her, she would be waiting for him, hovering in one spot until he took off after her again.
Than it happened, she just disappeared. He looked around for her, not sure where to go next. He walked to the spot he had last seen her and suddenly the wind died leaving not even a hint of a breeze. The sand settled and he could suddenly see.
Ai poked her head out from under his hat and looked around, "this place is called the Desert Colossus."
"How do you know?" Shinichi asked.
"Because it says so on that sign right there," she gestured.
Shinichi groaned and stuffed her back under his hat, ignored her squeak of protest. He looked around. It looked a bit like an oasis. There were a couple of palm trees and a small pond. But what really stole his attention was the gigantic relief sculpture carved into the side of a high plateau. The sculpture was several stories tall and was carved in the shape of a praying Gerudo woman. At her feet was a doorway going into the plateau. Above the doorway was carved a bird, its wings spread wide from one side of the door to the other.
Walking inside Shinichi found that he seemed to be inside a temple. In front of him were two cobra statues, one on the left side and one on the right. The snakes were both rearing up clearly showing the poems carved underneath their chins. He couldn't see any doors or any way deeper into the temple, just this single room. He walked to the statue on the left first and read aloud, "'If you want to proceed to the past, you should return here with the pure heart of a child.' Any idea what that means, Ai?"
The fairy studied the poem, "I'm not sure. Maybe the other statue will give us some clues."
Shinichi read the statue on the right, "'If you want to travel to the future, you should return here with the power of silver from the past.' This one is just as confusing as the first."
"Not really, look at the wall here," Ai told him. She was indicating the wall to the right of the snake Shinichi was in front of. The walls of the room were all the same color brown, except for the part Ai was pointing to. It was made of black stone and had a symbol carved into it, a crescent moon with a star.
"Ok, that bit of the wall is suspicious, but what about it?" Shinichi asked.
"Shinichi, I don't think its part of the wall. I think it's a stone block that is in the way of a door," the fairy answered.
Shinichi's eyes widened, "You're right. And these statues are both symmetrical. If there is something on the right side, there should be something on the left." He barely restrained himself from running to the other side of the room. The left side of the wall was a little disappointing however. All he could see was a hole in the wall. It looked large enough for a child to crawl through, but much too small for him. He circled around the room a couple of times, inspecting the two poems, the block, and the hole, but he had no idea what he was supposed to do. "Let's get some fresh air, Ai. I need to think about this one," he told his companion as he walked back outside.
His breath caught in his throat when he saw KID waiting for him outside. His heart skipped a beat, he didn't realize how much he missed the Sheikah until he saw him now. He gave his…boyfriend (?) a warm smile, which KID returned. "Past, present, future…The Master Sword is a ship in which you can sail upstream and downstream through time's river…The port for that ship is within the Temple of Time. To restore the Desert Colossus and enter the Spirit Temple, you must travel back through time's flow."
Shinichi frowned before realization dawned on him, "Are you telling me that if I put the Master Sword back in the Temple of Time, I can go back in time to being a child? So that hole I saw in there, it really is for a child. I'm suppose to face this temple as I was seven years ago."
KID took one of Shinichi's hands in his own. He pulled his cowl down and placed a kiss on Shinichi's knuckles, "Not the only entire temple, you only need to be a child until you find the item that will help you move that block on the right side."
"You mean the silver from the past?" he asked.
KID made a noise of agreement before turning Shinichi's hand over and kissing his wrist, causing the hero to turn pink. "The moment you find that item, you have to return to the Temple of Time and get the Master Sword back. You can play the Prelude of Light to take you their immediately, you don't even have to walk through the desert again," the ninja answered.
Shinichi raised an eyebrow, "You are worried about me, aren't you. Why?"
"You are use to your adult body now, and you have the Master Sword, the Blade of Evil's Bane. But when you travel back, you will once again be in the body of a child, a significantly weaker body that you are not use to. And you won't be able to wield the Master Sword but will be forced to use that sharp stick you call a sword. Putting it that way, I think I have plenty to be worried about," KID growled the last part.
Shinichi smiled at the Sheikah. He gathered his courage up and gave KID a chaste kiss. He pulled back and was tomato red. KID chuckled at how cute Shinichi looked and gave him a kiss in return, although his kiss wasn't quite as pure. He wrapped his arms around Shinichi, pulling the hero closer and deepening the kiss. Shinichi shyly opened his lips allowing KID access. KID's tongue entered and Shinichi moaned into the kiss and wrapped his arms around the Sheikah's neck. KID finally pulled back, both panting for air. He kissed Shinichi's forehead before telling him, "Just be careful, okay?"
Shinichi smiled at him, arms still wrapped around the Sheikah's neck, "I promise to do my best. Now don't you have a new melody to teach me?"
KID sighed before reluctantly removing his arms from the hero. He pulled out his lyre while Shinichi took out his ocarina. "This melody is called the Requiem of Spirit. Use it to instantly transport yourself back here, even when you are a child." The song was peaceful and a bit sad. Like all of the other temple songs, it was beautiful, but this one spoke of the end of a long journey.
KID threw down a smoke bomb and was gone, but Shinichi could still feel the tickle of breath on his ear as the ninja whispered, "Please, be safe."
xXx
Shinichi played the Prelude of Light and returned to the Temple of Time. He placed the Master Sword back into the pedestal and suddenly felt very dizzy. He closed his eyes until the feeling passed. When he opened them again, he saw that he was a child again.
"This is amazing, Ai. I thought the Master Sword could only seal my soul until I was old enough to wield it, but it can send me back in time as well. I'm the same as I was before I pulled out the Master Sword," he told her in his squeaky, child voice.
Ai nodded, "And this time may be dangerous, but Gin will have only just attacked the castle. He hasn't spread his evil to the rest of Hyrule yet. It shouldn't be as dangerous here as it was in the future."
Shinichi nodded in agreement, "That's true, but I don't plan on sticking around. All I have to do is find the item in the Desert Colossus and then I can return to the future." He pulled out his ocarina. It looked massive in his tiny hands. He wondered if he would even have the finger span to play the Requiem of Spirit. He would have to make it work. He lifted the ocarina to his lips and played.
At the song's completion, he felt himself being transported back to the Desert Colossus. He made a move to go directly inside, but paused when he saw a cave. He knew he was supposed to go straight into the colossus and get the item, but curiosity won out. He walked inside in sighed in relief when he saw the familiar sight of a Fairy Fountain. He played Kaito's lullaby and a scantily clad woman appeared. "Hello young hero, I am the Great Fairy of Magic. I would like to give you a gift that will help you on your quest. Please accept my gift, it is called Nayru's Love. This magic spell will protect you for a short period of time. While under the influence of the spell, nothing can hurt you. But use it wisely, for it will drain much of your magic."
"Thank you, Great Fairy," Shinichi had time to tell her before she was gone. Shinichi left the cave and quickly made his way inside the Desert Colossus. Once inside however, he paused. There was someone already inside.
It was a blonde female Gerudo, and she was inspecting the hole he intended to climb through. He cautiously approached her and she turned around. She saw him and spoke, "I haven't seen you around here before, kid. What do you want?"
Shinichi considered his options. He really didn't know her, but the Gerudo he knew in the future tended to be hostile and lock men in prison. It would be best not to tell her the truth. He gave her a fake cheery smile and answered in a sugary sweet voice, "I don't want anything, ma 'am. I just wanted to look around. This place is really cool, don't you think?"
The Gerudo narrowed her eyes at him and grinned in return. He couldn't tell if she believed him or not, "You have nothing to do, you say? What good timing. How would you like to do me a favor?"
Shinichi cocked his head to the side, trying to look as innocent as possible, "A favor?"
"Wait, before I go more into detail, I have to ask you," she narrowed her eyes again, but this time she was frowning, "You wouldn't happen to be one of Gin's followers, would you?"
Before he could stop himself, Shinichi's eyes flashed in hatred. It was too late to fix his mistake, so he decided to answer truthfully, "No, I hate Gin."
The blonde Gerudo smirked, "Uh-huh. You've got guts, I like you. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Vermouth of the Gerudo. You may not know this, but Gin is also a Gerudo. I am nothing like him. Gin is ruthless, he stops at nothing to get what he wants, even if he has to kill those that stand in his way."
Shinichi wasn't hearing anything new so far, but what she said next peaked his interest, "A kid like you may not know this, but the Gerudo race consists only of women. Only one male is born every hundred years, all other newborns are female. Gerudo law states that the lone male is to become our king until the next male is born, but I do not care what our law says. I will never bow to him."
With this new information, the Gerudo's behavior in the future suddenly made sense. Hakuba had said that the Gerudo women would come to the village to find boyfriends. They had to travel outside the desert for a boyfriend because they were a tribe of all women. He also said that Aoko would visit him until she was forced not to. That was the time when the Gerudo broke the bridge between Hyrule and the desert. Gin must have ordered them to stop, and as their king, the Gerudo had to listen. And he would have ordered them to be more hostile to Hylians because he didn't want anyone to cross the desert and get inside the Spirit Temple. It all made sense!
Vermouth interrupted his thoughts, "I have a favor to ask you. See this hole here? I need you to crawl through it and grab me an item called the Silver Gauntlets. The gauntlets are enchanted to make the wearer very strong, and the wearer can easily push and pull very heavy things. And don't even think about taking the treasure for yourself, the Silver Gauntlets won't fit a child like you anyways. So I want you to be a good little boy and give them to me. Gin and his followers are using the Spirit Temple as a hideout. With the Silver Gauntlets, I can sneak deep into the temple and mess up their plans. And if you give me the Silver Gauntlets, I will do something great for you in return."
Shinichi gave the Gerudo a big smile and replied, "Ok I sure will, lady! I'll get those Silver Got-lets for you so you can defeat the bad guy."
"Good boy," Vermouth cooed. She moved aside so that Shinichi could crawl through the hole.
Once she was behind him, Shinichi couldn't resist rolling his eyes. He got on his hands and knees and squeezed himself through the tiny hole in the wall.
Once he was through, he stood up straight and looked around. The Silver Gauntlets weren't anywhere in sight, instead there were a couple of spike traps and the couple Keese. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his old Slingshot, "I've missed this thing; it was my first dungeon item, remember Ai? It's too small for me when I'm an adult, not to mention my Longshot and Bow make it obsolete, but it still works great in this body." After he finished with the annoying bat enemies, he went through the next door.
As soon as he entered the new room, he came face to face with a Stalfos. The animated skeleton grinned as soon as it saw the child and it raised its sword high, "Shit, I don't remember Stalfos being so tall." He raised his own sword, which honestly was more like a dagger, and readied himself. The Stalfos threw back its head and laughed before attacking.
It was tough, but eventually Shinichi managed to defeat the skeleton. It took a lot longer than it would had he been in his adult body, his child body didn't have near the strength as his adult body. By the time he was done, he was panting heavily. Looking around, he still didn't see the item he was looking for, just another door.
The next couple of rooms were just as tough for Shinichi. The thing that really ticked him off was the knowledge that this mini quest for the gauntlets would probably be a piece of cake while he was an adult. Damn he hated feeling weak.
At one point he found himself in a huge room. Against one wall was a colossal size statue of what appeared to be a snake goddess. She was sitting with her legs crossed and had both of her arms out stretched, palms up to the ceiling. He could see multiple doors on higher levels, but none he could reach. There was only one door he could reach, aside from the one he just came through, so he had no choice but to take that one.
On the other side of the door was a long set of stairs going up. His short, child size legs groaned at the sight of all the stairs, but he forced himself to go forward. As he climbed, Ai spoke up, "These stairs are nice. Is that a velvet carpet? And look at those torches. Nice."
Shinichi answered, sounding a little thrown off by her comment, "What? Oh yeah, I guess it is. What about it?"
She replied as if it was obvious, "Well this is some forgotten temple in the middle of a giant pile of sand. So far, this entire place has been dusty, dirty, and not much attention paid to decoration. But these stairs look really nice. I think we may be getting close to something."
Shinichi nodded at her wise advice and continued up the stairs in silence.
At the top of the stairs was a throne room. The red carpet flowed in the room in an 'L' shape until it stopped at the large stone throne. Sitting in the throne was a very tall suit of armor.
Shinichi cautiously approached the throne, but it didn't move. Was it empty? He was within reach of the armor now and it still hadn't moved, so he did what anyone would do, he poked it with his sword.
The moment the sword had tapped the armor, it stood up and grabbed the two handed battle ax behind the throne. Ai made a noise like she had just remembered something, "Now I know what that it, it's called an Iron Knuckle. They are very hard to defeat because of their strong armor, not to mention that ax could easily cut you in half."
Shinichi snorted, "Now you tell me." He jumped backward as the Iron Knuckle swung its ax. The force of swing drove the ax deep into the ground and the large behemoth paused to pull it out. Shinichi to advantage of this and sprang forward, sword ready. The sword simply made an annoying noise and bounced off. "This isn't going to work, I might as well use a butter knife, it will work just as well!" he growled.
Ai patiently replied, "It must have a weak point, you simply have to find it."
Shinichi circled around behind the Iron Knuckle and spotted something just as the armored enemy pulled its ax free, "That's it, it doesn't have any armor covering its back!"
Ai suddenly sounded panicked, "Shinichi, watch out!"
The Iron Knuckle turned and swung its ax down as hard as it could. Shinichi barely had time to react, but as soon as he heard Ai shout he released his magic. A blue barrier formed around Shinichi like a protective bubble and the ax bounced harmlessly off the blue wall. The not-child sighed in relief, "Good thing that last Great Fairy I met gave me the gift of Nayru's Love. Ow! Ai, stop it!"
Ai was tugging on his ear, "You idiot, you never tried using that spell before, you didn't even know it would work! Now is not the time to be experimenting with new spells!"
"Ok, ok I'm sorry," Shinichi yelled back. Ai released his ear just as the barrier disappeared. The Iron Knuckle raised its battle ax, but Shinichi was no longer there. It looked around confused until it felt Shinichi's small sword stab through its back. It dropped the ax and collapsed; it didn't move again.
The defeat of the Iron Knuckle seemed to trigger a hidden switch and a door behind the throne opened. Shinichi went through the door and found himself back outside the temple. He looked around and realized he was actually standing on the colossus statue's hand. In the palm of her hand was a treasure chest. Shinichi sighed in relief, "It's about time I found them." He opened the chest to find the Silver Gauntlets inside. They were too big for him, just as Vermouth said they would be.
"You told Vermouth you were going to give those Gauntlets to her. What are you going to do?" Ai questioned, sounding mildly curious.
"I'm not sure. I need these, but for the same reason she does, to defeat Gin. I know I promised her, but I also promised Prince Kaito…." Shinichi trailed off. It had been awhile since he had thought of the Prince. In this time, he still knew the prince, had recently seen him even. Was the prince still safe? Did he ever think about Shinichi, wondering when the small boy from the forest was going to save him?
A shout startled him from his musing, "Unhand me, you hags! Let me go!"
Shinichi looked around for the source of the voice. He looked down and could barely make out Vermouth on the ground far below him. It looked like she was slowly sinking through a portal. She wasn't alone; two small figures were flying around her, both riding on broomsticks. He couldn't see them very well, but something about them just felt…evil.
Vermouth cried out again, "Gin's minions, I should have realized you were spying on me. Shinichi, wherever you are, get out of here! These witches, their black magic is too strong." After those last words, she fully sank into the portal and the black hole disappeared. The two figures on broomsticks reentered the temple, unaware that Shinichi was watching from the palm of the colossus's hand.
Shinichi was quiet for awhile after the witches left. Finally Ai spoke up, "Shinichi, I know what you are thinking but there is nothing you can do. She is gone. You heard what she said, they were Gin's minions, and they took her. You don't know where they took her or even if she is still alive. The best you can do is return to being an adult and defeat Gin so that his evil ends."
As much as Shinichi hated to do it, he nodded in agreement and took out his Ocarina. He played the Prelude of Light, the happy melody sharply contrasting with his mood. He closed his eyes as he felt himself being transported to the Temple of Time. 'I'm sorry I couldn't help you, Vermouth.'
xXx
Shinichi pulled the Master Sword from his pedestal. His world immediately went black and when his vision returned, he was an adult again. "Amazing," he couldn't help but murmur. He sheathed the sword and pulled his Ocarina back out again. He played the song quickly and as soon as his feet touched the sandy ground outside the Spirit Temple, he ran inside. This temple was taking far too long, he needed to get it over with.
He spared glance at the left side of the room. He saw the hole he crawled through as a child, the hole Vermouth was inspecting when he first saw her. Seven years had passed, but it looked exactly the same. He shook his head as if to free himself of the past thoughts and forced himself to look to the right this time, more specifically at the stone block in the wall.
The block was quite large, much taller than he was, and it looked very solid and heavy. It felt feather light when he picked it up, thanks to the Silver Gauntlets. He moved the block out of the way and went through the door that had been previously blocked.
He turned to his fairy with a smile, "It feels like I'm finally getting somewhere with this temple."
Ai hummed in agreement, "Next obstacle, to get through that." She nodded her head in the direction of the room.
Shinichi turned and saw what she was referring to. He let out of groan, "Great, a boulder-of-doom room. Well isn't that original." The room before him was a peculiar shape; it had two inclines on either wall giving the bottom half of the room a half cylinder shape. Spaced throughout the room were three large boulders, defiantly bone crushing size, rolling back and forth from one side of the room to the other. Getting to the door on the other side was simply a matter of timing, easy. There had to be more to it than that.
His eyes carefully scanned the room, and there he could see it now, along the room were five switches. He guessed he would have to hit the switches to get the door unlocked. Of course the switches were all strategically placed so that he would have to put himself in the boulders' paths to reach them. Well it was defiantly more challenging, but he could handle it as long as he paid attention.
He recognized the next room from the last time he was here as a child. He was once again in the room with the colossus Gerudo statue. This time, instead of seeing the statue from the ground as a small child, he was seeing it from a level higher and was now even with the statue's hands….and now that he was even with them he could see the Symbol of the Royal family in the left hand. He put on his Hover Boots and walked to the hand. After he played Kaito's Lullaby, another small chest appeared, this one also containing a small, silver key. Time to move on.
He progressed through the rest of the temple taking each room one by one until he saw something familiar again, a staircase with red velvet carpet. He followed the carpet up the stairs and found himself once again in a throne room. This one was an exact mirror of the other Iron Knuckle room he had been in. He looked at the throne and there he was, the Iron Knuckle, just like the last time. But this time, he was stronger. He pocked the Iron Knuckle awake and watched the heavily armored enemy stand. Funny, he didn't look so tall anymore. He easily dodged the Iron Knuckle's first swing and circled around behind it. One stab and the Iron Knuckle was done. Was it just his imagination or was everything easier as an adult?
He went through the door and found himself outside on the Colossus's hand again, this time he was on the left hand. A large chest was in the palm of the hand. "I guess the Silver Gauntlets aren't the only item to be found in this dungeon," he told Ai. He looked in and found a beautiful shield inside. The front was polished until it reflected like a mirror. Carved into the glass-like surface was a crescent moon.
Ai let out a low gasp, "That is a mirror shield. I've only heard of them, they are very rare. The obvious use for them would be to reflect light, but what many don't know is that they can absorb and reflect black magic."
"Black magic, huh?" Shinichi thought as he replayed Vermouth's words to him. She had mentioned some witches that used black magic, but that was seven years ago. Where they still here? Did Gin still use that as his base? He took his normal Hylian shield off and stuffed it into his pouch that held all of his other items. Even though the shield was more than twice the size of the pouch, it easily fit with room to spare. He equipped the new Mirror Shield and let it hang from his back until he needed it.
Shinichi went back into the temple and went through a new door. Now that he had the Mirror Shield, he gained access to more rooms that he couldn't previously get to. The way he unlocked the new paths was by reflecting light off of his shield and shining it on a specific spot. This would activate a switch and unlock a door. So far he had yet to absorb any black magic.
He knew he was almost at the end when he found what could only be the boss key. It was larger than the other keys he used in the temple and was gold with little jewels in the handle. Whatever beast had settled itself in the temple had very tacky taste.
Eventually he found himself in a large room directly above the colossus statue. The room was full of mirrors and there was a single light source coming from a window. A platform could be lowered so that he was level with the statue's face in the room down below. It took a bit of thinking, but eventually Shinichi figured out what he was suppose to do. He used all the mirrors in the room above to shine light down to the room below, the room with the colossus statue. Then he rode the platform down till he was level with the statue's face and used the mirror shield to reflect the sunlight onto the statue. He wasn't exactly sure why, but when the light hit the statue, the face melted off revealing a hidden door. He used his Longshot to get from the platform to the door. He wasn't surprised when he had to use the gold and jeweled key to unlock it. He opened the door ready to face what was on the other side.
When he entered the boss room, he saw three figures on the other side of the room. The two on the left and right were very small and were riding on broomsticks. He may not have gotten a good look at them before, but he knew that these two were the ones that kidnapped Vermouth. The figure in the middle was another Iron Knuckle. This one seemed different from the other two he fought, although he wasn't sure how.
Now that the witches were closer, Shinichi could better make out their appearances. They were almost identical, they had to be twins. Both had the signature tanned Gerudo skin, although age seemed to have dulled their skin to a sickly olive color. Their eyes were large and popped comically out of their skulls. A tuft of white hair stuck out of their head like someone had replaced their hair with the end of a broom. Both wore black robes with gold Gerudo symbols lining the bottom and sleeves. The only difference Shinichi could see between them was their jeweled headdress. One wore a large celeste blue jewel on her forehead while the other wore a scarlet jewel.
Ai narrowed her eyes, a look of disgust on her face, "I recognize those two now, they are Koume and Kotake, also known as the Twinrova Sisters. They are witches skilled in the arts of black magic."
Both sisters cackled in delight. The one with the red jewel sneered, "That's right little fairy, we are the Twinrova. And how dare you two trespass in our fortress. Maybe we should rip your wings for punishment. Fairy wings can be used in some of the more complex spells you know."
The one with the blue jewel spoke, "But first, we will take care of you, hero." She spat the word like it was an insult.
Both spoke at once now, "Oh loyal minion, take care of this pest on our behalf." They chanted the words, making it sound almost like a spell. The Iron Knuckle stood from its throne and the two sisters disappeared in a puff of smoke.
The armor enemy raised its ax high and laughed. Shinichi meanwhile rolled his eyes. If the first two heavily armored goons didn't finish him off, why did the Twinrova think this one would?
Shinichi ducked an ax blow and circled around, ready to stab its weak spot….only to see there was no weak spot. The straps that normally crisscrossed around the Iron Knuckles back were covered by a thick piece of armor.
"Shinichi, if you hit the armor where the joints are, you should be able to cut the straps that hold it together. Then you could hit the enemy that is hiding underneath the armor," Ai suggested.
The hero nodded and stabbed at the spots where the armor connected, slicing through leather straps and ducking the occasional ax swing. With one final cut, the armor began to fall away, revealing the enemy that was underneath. The person inside collapsed onto her hands and knees and all Shinichi could see was a shock of blonde hair. Then she stood and Shinichi gasped, "Vermouth?"
The rebellious Gerudo slowly got to her feet. Her eyes were wide with confusion, "Where am I?"
Before Shinichi could answer, the witch with the blue jewel suddenly appeared on Vermouth's left, "It looks like she is back to normal, Koume." Vermouth's head whipped around to stare at her.
The red jewel wearing witch appeared on Vermouth's right, "She's just a little girl, but she commands so much respect from the Gerudo people, Kotake." Vermouth's head spun to look at the other witch. She was clearly confused. The one with the red jewel spoke again, "Maybe we should make her work for the great Gin just a little longer."
The blue jewel witch chuckled in delight, "Then we should brainwash her again! Ho ho ho!"
Shinichi shouted at the two, "You aren't brainwashing anybody! Run, Vermouth." He raised his sword. Vermouth looked in confusion at Shinichi for a moment before deciding to follow his advice. She had only made it three steps closer to the door before both sisters raised a boney finger and pointed it at the young Gerudo. Vermouth disappeared.
Shinichi turned in anger to the Twinrova, but they spun on the spot and disappeared as well. "Dammit!" Shinichi shouted.
Ai tried to reassure her companion, "We'll rescue her, Shinichi. Don't worry. Let's go."
Shinichi nodded but didn't answer. He went through the door that was behind the throne and walked into the Twinrovas' lair.
It looked like the lair of any of the other final enemies in the other temple. High ceilings, a raised platform for fighting (because evil villains hated fighting on the ground, so it would seem), but this one had not one final enemy, but two. Shinichi could see them flying in slow circles around the ceiling. They mocked him, "Look at the stupid kid, he came on his own to offer himself as a sacrifice to the great Gin."
The one with the red jewel flew closer and looked right at Shinichi, "With my flame, I will burn him to the bone." Her hair erupted into flames.
The one with the blue jewel copied her sister, "With my frost, I will freeze him to his soul." Her hair was replaced by a sheet of solid ice.
Shinichi called up to the two witches, "Why are you so loyal to Gin? Who cares if he is the only male of your tribe, he is an evil madman!"
The Twinrova laughed and the red jeweled with called down to him, "We are not loyal to Gin because he is our king."
The one with the blue jewel continued, "We are loyal to him because he is our son."***
Both spoke once, "And we couldn't be more proud."
Shinichi made a face between disgust and confusion, "How are you both…never mind, I really don't want to know." The two sisters circled around Shinichi staying well out of his reach on their brooms. Shinichi tried to keep track of them both lest one of them snuck up behind him. "Any idea, Ai?" he asked.
"The Master Sword should do plenty of damage to them, if you could reach them. Otherwise, they are immune to anything except their own magic. You have to turn their powers against each other.
For a moment, Shinichi didn't understand what she meant, until he remembered his Mirror Shield's other ability. The ice witch raised her hand and summoned a beam of ice and shot it at Shinichi. The hero raised his shield just in time and was pleased when the beam harmlessly bounced off the polished surface. He aimed and was able to direct the beam to the other sister. The fire witch screamed in pain and anger. Shinichi smirked in triumph.
"Don't smirk at us, foolish child. How about you try a taste of my flame," she shouted before sending a jet of flame at him. Shinichi shook his head, 'She didn't learn anything.' He raised his shield and deflected the fire back at her other sister. This time, it was the ice witch that screamed in pain.
Both sisters gritted their teeth in anger. The fire witch spoke to her sister, "This isn't working, let's get serious, Koume."
The ice witch looked at her sister in surprise, "Against this shrimp? If you think it's necessary than I will, Kotake."
The witches flew toward each other, but instead of crashing into each other, they seemed to melt together and become one. The new, singular form was of a tall woman, she had to be at least a couple inches taller than he was. She looked very young and almost attractive, unlike the withered hags that were previously facing off against him. The black robes of the Twinrova were replaced by a stylish pair of desert pants and a small shirt that left her stomach bare. The only sign that she had once been Koume and Kotake were the high pigtails she wore, one was made of fire the other of ice, and the hybrid jewel on her forehead, half red and half blue.
She winked at Shinichi who shuddered in a mix of fear and disgust. Shinichi muttered to himself, "Oh, that's how they are both his mother."
The Twinrova sent a beam of ice at the hero. He raised his shield, but rather than deflecting it, the shield absorbed the icy spell. He could hear a low hum coming from the Mirror Shield. Ai called out to him, "She may be one singular being, but you will fight her the same way as you did the twin sisters. Absorb some of her magic in your shield, and once your shield is powered up, use her own magic against her."
The Gerudo sent another attack at him, this time fire. He tried to absorb it once again, the magic seemed to be repelled by something. He also noticed that the humming stopped. 'I guess I can't mix the elemental spells,' Shinichi thought to himself.
She began to send more fire spells at him. He absorbed the first two spells and when she sent an ice spell his way, rather than absorbing it, he dodged instead. Once his shield had absorbed three fire spells, he released the fire back at the witch. The jet of flame hit the Gerudo witch and she cried out in pain.
The Twinrova sent another beam of ice at him, but this time she was aiming for the ground in front of him. The moment the ice spell hit the ground, it spread and encased his ankle in ice, freezing it in place. Shinichi hissed in pain and broke the ice off with his sword.
From that moment on, the witch aimed for his feet rather than directly at him. The ice spread on the ground and froze him where he stood while the fire heated the ground till it was too hot to stand on. Shinichi was forced to not only catch the spells in his shield, but he also had to keep track of what spells he was absorbing so that he didn't mix the two. It wasn't the hardest fight he ever had, but it was possibly the most complicated.
Finally, the witch seemed too weak to handle any more of her magic turned against her. She let out a final scream and lay still.
xXx
Shinichi found himself once again in the Chamber of Sages; in front of him stood a familiar Gerudo. "Vermouth, you're okay," Shinichi smiled in relief.
She returned the smile, "Yes, I am. And let me thank you, kid. Hehehe, I can't believe I met you seven years ago and you were just some little kid. Look at you now; you have grown up to be quite the competent swordsmen."
Vermouth continued, "By the way, I really messed up. I was brainwashed by those evil witches and forced to do Gin's will. But isn't it funny that a person like me could turn out to be the Sage of Spirit?"
Shinichi frowned, "Vermouth, the witches brainwashing you wasn't your fault. And no, I'm not surprised that you would be the Sage of Spirit. I remember when I met you how strong you were, and how much courage you had for standing up to Gin, the king of your people. I don't think I can imagine anyone better to be the last sage."
Vermouth's features softened, "Thank you, and I suppose you are right. Now that I am one of the six sages, I can lend you my power and help you fight Gin. Instead of granting you that favor I promised you seven years ago, I want you to have this, the Medallion of Spirit. It is the last medallion of the sages, and with it you can finally face Gin. Just remember, you won't be alone. You have the power of six sages behind you."
After she finished speaking, the young Gerudo raised her arms and summoned the Spirit Medallion. Shinichi raised his arms to receive it. The medallion was a burnt gold color and reminded him of the desert sands. On the side opposite of the Triforce was what looked like two tadpoles chasing each others' tails.
Shinichi felt himself going back, but he was still able to hear Vermouth's last words to him, "If only I had known you would become such a handsome young man...I should have kept the promise I made back then."
xXx
I'm sorry everyone, I wanted to make KID and Hakuba meet so that I could make KID get pissed and dye Hakuba's hair pink, but I just couldn't figure out how to squeeze it in! I promise I tried!
Writing the kiss scene between Shinichi and KID was really hard for me. I fear what it says about me that I can write dirty scenes (in my other fanfic) but I have trouble writing a simple kiss scene. Do it feel awkward to anyone else or was that just me?
*= I guess technically he should have introduced himself as Saguru, but I always liked his last name more. I'm not really sure how to pronounce Saguru, but it my mind, it sounds like Cigar. Yuck :P
**= Valerian plants are real. They are one of the most renowned plants used in light tranquilizers. But…I'm not sure it would instantly put someone asleep like Hakuba's roots did. That's just for the story.
***= In the game, it is true that the Twinrova are Ganondorf's (the bad guy) mother. I think I pointed it out before, but I will say it again. Nintendo is fucked up.
This chapter was super long and very hard to write, so I would appreciate some lovins. Please, send me some reviews.