Chapter 14: The Ghosts of Romani Ranch
Author's Note: The "ghosts" will have a greatly expanded backstory in this fanfic, and this chapter really elaborates on certain aspects of the Cremia and Romani sidequest.
Afternoon of the Second Day
64 Hours Remain
Link was still confused by what Kaepora Gaebora had said.
"Romani Ranch…that's the ranch near Milk Road, not far from the entrance to the Southern Swamp! But lately…the road's been blocked by a boulder," explained Tatl. "A big boulder, at that…They tried using bombs, but it didn't really work…not powerful enough."
At this Link, remembered the Goron in the Bomb Shop who was selling Powder Kegs.
"Powder Kegs made by my instructor are extremely powerful," he had said.
Link rushed back to the Bomb Shop and purchased a Powder Keg, then followed Tatl's directions to the boulder and blew it up, heading into the ranch.
A young girl who looked like Malon from Lon Lon Ranch back in Hyrule was sitting on a crate. But what interested him more was the fact that Epona was behind a fence by the house. He walked up to the girl.
"Hey, who are you? I'm Romani. I was given the same name as the ranch. What's your name?"
"Link."
"Link? That's a nice name, but... How about...Grasshopper? That's the name Romani gives you. See, you're wearing green clothes, and you patter about when you walk, so Grasshopper it is! Romani was practicing...For tonight...Tonight...They are coming..."
"Who's 'they'?" questioned Link, confused.
"They...They come at night every year when the carnival gets closer. They come riding in a bright, shining ball, and many of them come down...to the barn...My older sister won't believe me...But Romani must protect the cows! Hey, Grasshopper, I'm recruiting for an assistant right now! You're a boy, won't you try?"
Link sighed. "Fine."
"Great! Now that's the spirit, Grasshopper! OK then, I'm going straight into my strategy! They'll appear all over the ranch...They'll aim for that barn and approach it slowly, so hit them with arrows so they can't get in! You got that? And you mustn't leave the ranch! Grasshopper! Let's practice right away! There are 10 ghost-shaped balloons in the ranch, so hurry and burst them all. If you take over 2 minutes, you're out. The current record is 1 minute. If you can hit all the balloons, you can have Epona, this horse we found."
Link nodded.
Forty-five seconds later, he had popped all the balloons.
"When your arrow hits these, they burst into nothing, but the real ones will keep popping up! If they get in the barn, we lose! They run away at first light of the sun, so we'll have to keep fending them off until then! And about your score…That's great. You two work perfectly together! I'll teach Romani's horse-calling song to you, Grasshopper." At this, Romani sang a familiar song – Epona's Song.
Link memorized it then nodded to signify he had done so.
"Now you two keep getting along, and go practice some more!" ordered Romani.
"Will do," replied Link.
Link waited around until two in the morning, and then Romani walked into the barn where Link was.
"It's almost time...You take care of things outside, Grasshopper!" Romani requested.
Link nodded.
"If you have a map, watch your map carefully! OK? Whatever happens, do not let them get into the barn!"
"I know…"
"They'll come from behind the barn, too, so watch out. If you run out of arrows, we have crates of them near the house, so stock up when you need to."
"I got it," Link replied.
"They're here!" exclaimed Romani, and Link dashed outside.
The ghosts arrived in a ball of light. They were terrifying beings – they appeared to having glowing eyes that projected beams, with clawed hands. They wore purple robes, and attempted to approach the barn. Link grabbed his bow and fired arrows at several of them.
He repeated this until around 5 AM, when they began to retreat. Link fired a few arrows at one of the retreating ones, knocking it to the ground, where it collapsed. The ghosts flew off, leaving the injured one behind. Link and Romani rushed over to it.
"Who are you?" asked Link, drawing his sword and pointing at the ghost.
"Uh…we're Poes…we serve the Garo ninjas of Ikana…We have been loyal to them our entire lives. We have lived for centuries. When the Skull Kid went on a rampage long ago…he made us glow…and gave us the ability to carry things with energy…We went a long while without seeing any Garo..so we moved to this area, Milk Road, and found two. Two brothers, Gorman were their names. Interesting Garo. They didn't wear robes…just the hood….They told us 'steal Romani Ranch's cattle'…so we've been trying to for years…we were having pretty good luck this year, normally that girl stops us really quickly…but we failed horribly," explained the ghost in a frightened voice.
"…Why did you listen to those two?" inquired Link.
"They wore the mask of the Garo Master – the Garo Masters are the elite squadrons of the Garo, each falsely referred to as the leader of the Garo. The true Garo Master…no one knows what became of him…his elite squadron all go by the title 'Garo Master', for that way the true one stays safe…and the enemy that captures the elite rather than the true leader is fooled into believing he has triumphed."
"So basically, you listened to these two 'Garo Masters' who acted very little like actual Garo Masters?" pointed out Link.
"…They're not really Garo Masters, are they?" asked the ghost.
"Nope," replied Link.
"We've been had…From henceforth, sir –"
"My name is Link."
"From henceforth, Link, you are our new master. If you ever wish to command us, then simply call for us and we will listen. Please, sir…take those Garo Masks from the Gorman Brothers, those evil men who foolishly upset the Garo's personal Poe squadron."
'The Garo have a squadron of Poes?"
"Indeed. It is nearly sunrise, and I must go. I apologize for inconveniencing you all, this I assure you will be the last time we try to steal your cattle." With that, the ghost got up and floated upwards into a ball of light that had arrived a few moments ago.
"…Uh…" Link was in shock.
"I knew those two spineless creeps were behind this…Romani always suspected it," stated the ranch girl, once again speaking in third person.
"...We did it...We won. Thank you! Thanks to you, the cows are giving thanks, too! Here's Romani's thanks. When you drink it, put your hand on your hip and take a big gulp like we do here at the ranch!" Romani exclaimed, handing him a bottle of milk. "It's almost time for my sister to get up, so I have to get back to bed...See you later...Little hero." She rushed back into the barn house and shut the door.
Meanwhile, Link's face was beet red. He was blushing.
"Does someone have a crush?" teased Tatl.
"You shush," warned Link.
Night of the First Day
49 Hours Remain
Author's Note: So, sorry to keep you waiting. Did you like how I expanded the backstory of "them"? Next chapter will be more of the Gorman Brothers story arc.